Ava talked Bucky into letting her drive. She planned on taking her to the new Captain America exhibit at the museum they had facts about who Bucky was before he became the winter soldier. They walked into the museum Bucky had his metal hand in his pocket like Ava instructed him to do and Ava held onto his arm as if they were dating to avoid suspicion something that Natasha taught her. The two listen to the recorded voice telling them about Steve and Ava led Bucky to a glass wall with his picture and facts about him.
"You were a hero Barnes. You risked your life for many people." Ava says quietly so only he can hear her. He tenses up. "You helped save Steve you always did and that's how they thought you died protecting Steve."
The soldier didn't say anything to Ava he pulled away from her and walked quickly out of the building. That man wasn't him; people looked up at that man with pride and respect, when people saw the soldier they look up at him in fear or with deceitful eyes like Pierce had. Pierce had made him a weapon to fear, a weapon to use that was all the soldier was.
"Barnes!" Ava yelled from behind him he didn't stop she need him to stop. She thought of the only way to get him to stop walking and it made her sick to her stomach but she couldn't let him just leave. "Soldier stop." She commanded much to her displeasure he stopped. "Bucky what's wrong?"
Rage built up in The Soldier Ava kept calling him James or Bucky and that wasn't him it couldn't be. He snapped at the word Bucky and slammed the woman against a tree pinning her to it. He searched her eyes for the similar sight of fear but there was none she just looked sad. He was frustrated and confused about everything.
"Barnes." She whispers.
"That's not my name! I am not him! I am not that man! I am a weapon not a hero! I have killed dozens of people!" He yelled at her, still fear did not cross her features.
"You are." She says with a small smile putting her hand on his cheek he released her. "You protected me and you saved Steve you didn't let him drown. You were wet when you came after me you pulled him out of the water you saved his life again. I've killed people too maybe even more than you."
"We should find a place to stay neither one of us is safe at your apartment." Bucky says walking away from her towards where they'd parked the car. With the amount of times he'd been in and out of Ava's he knew it wasn't safe. The woman had a bad tendency to leave her windows open and her locks weren't very good which was surprising since she was a Romanoff.
Ava directed Bucky to a motel 20 minutes out of the city. She put her feet up on the dash and tried to make small talk with him but he stayed silent. She decided she wasn't going to drive in silence so she turned on the radio flipping through the stations to find the one she liked. A few minutes into the drive one of her favorite songs came on, not caring that she was with Bucky she started to sing and move around to the music.
The soldier glanced over at Ava when she turned up the music. She was belting the lyrics to some pop song trying to dance in the car with a large smile on her lips. The smile wasn't sad or testing it was one of simple happiness and it seemed like it was contagious.
"You should do that more." Ava says turning down the music after seeing him smile it was bright and suited his stubble covered cheeks well and added a light to his blue eyes. Bucky was definitely a sight to be seen he was strong and handsome he was different from any other man she had met.
"I should do what more?" He asks.
"Smile. It looks good on you." She says earning a small chuckle from him.
The two pulled up to the motel and Ava checked into a two bed room suite under one of her aliases. The secrets from S.H.I.E.L.D may have been released but Ava didn't think she was nearly as important as Natasha, Agent Hill, Fury, Steve and the other Avengers and superheroes she knew. She got the key and led Bucky who had their things to their room.
"I don't know about you Barnes but I'm starving. I'll order us a pizza." Ava said pulling out her laptop to find the number. After she placed her order she turned back to face Bucky Bucky gave her a confused look. "What don't tell me you've never had pizza?"
"No I'm not even sure what that is." He says.
"Oh Bucky you poor man it's like heaven on your tongue ok it's never terrible it's like the best meal ever and you can get it deliver so we don't have to do anything." He still looked very confused. "Well you'll see soon Barnes and I think should make a few calls and see what we can dig up on you."
She called a few of her former friends and they located a file on Bucky. They were already in the states with a 2 copies. They were both supposed to go to Natasha but Ava talked them out of one. She set up the meeting for the next day a few miles away from their hotel.
"Ok well I pulled a few strings and we're going to get your file." She smiles at him hiding her fear of what they might uncover. Bucky's life wasn't one of happiness after he fell from the train it couldn't have been if Hydras men used him to do their dirty work. "I'm going to go take a shower give this to the pizza guy and tell him to keep the change." She says handing him a 20 dollar bill.
The soldier sat at the small table in the room and opened Ava's laptop he then quickly hacked into a camera stream. Her little apartment showed up on the screen like it had some many times before but this time she wasn't there he wasn't watching her he was watching to see if anyone was there and there was. A familiar man stood in her bedroom looking at a pile of black clothes that they had escaped in the man now knew Ava was with the soldier and he was definitely going to be after them. There was a knock at the door, the soldier picked up his gun and shut down the video stream. The soldier looked out the window a man with a box stood outside in some red uniform.
"Hi I have a pizza for an Ava Marin." The man said after the soldier had opened the door after he assessed the threat level to be low.
"Thank you she said to keep the change." The soldier said handing the delivery boy the twenty and taking the pizza.
When she turned off the water she heard Bucky talking to the pizza guy. Starving she quickly pulled on her pajama shorts and oversized t-shirt. She came out of the bathroom with her hair in a towel and Bucky was sitting at the table examining a slice of pizza in his hands.
"So the game plan for tomorrow I figured I could meet my guy and pick up some stuff for us. It should only take an hour or two."
"I am going with you." He says thinking of the man in her room.
"You really should stay here no offense but you stand out a bit in public." She says shrugging.
"You are not going alone Ava it's not safe I will stay out of sight. That is something I'm good at." He states not allowing her to say no.
"Alright then I guess they don't call you a ghost for nothing." She smirks biting into her pizza and letting out a small moan at the taste he watch a look of pleasure cross her face arching his brow. "What? The food at our Hydra prison sucked and pizza is almost better than sex ok?" He smirked at her took a bite and mimicked her response she bit her lip and blushed at the sound of his deep moan "Now he has a sense of humor! Don't mimic me ass." She says laughing. "What do you think?"
"It's good." Bucky said taking another bite smiling.
After they ate Bucky took a shower and came out of the bathroom in just a towel hanging low on his waist. Ava's eye widened and she swallowed hard she may have been a scientist but she was still very much a woman and Bucky well Bucky was a very very attractive man.
"Jesus Bucky." She says turning around and digging in her bag for something for him to put on. "Here, put this on." She says throwing him a pair of boxers she usually used as pajamas "Yup getting you more clothes is definitely a priority a girls got to keep her wits about her." She jokes.
The soldier slept dreams invading his head, no not dreams, flash backs, memories. He was talking to the man on the bridge the one Ava called Steve and then he was falling. The next thing he saw as being attacked being force into that chair he fought the person off pinning them to the floor his eyes snapped open when he heard a high pitched scream.
Ava was pulled from sleep by Bucky making noises first mumbling then begging and he let out a scream. Ava rushed over to him to wake him up saying his name calmly she put her hand on his arm and he grabbed her and pinned her to the bed and she screamed out in shock and surprise more than fear. His eyes snapped open and focused on her he was covered in sweat and he looked afraid.
"You know you could by me dinner first." She quips smiling trying to calm him down.
"I'm sorry I..." He mumbles.
"You were having a nightmare It's alright I've been known to hit people in my sleep Barnes its ok." She says softly. She wasn't lying he had seen her scream in her sleep and she had indeed punched a man who she was with at the time.
"Why aren't you afraid of me?" He asked her still pinned beneath him. "I could easily kill you." He says purposely trying to scare her but it doesn't work.
"You could have killed me several times but you never did even when you aren't in the right state of mind you still stop. I trust you; you saved me from Hydras men." She says her eyes wide and clear showing him anything and everything he'd never seen after he fell 70 some years worth of admiration, care and trust.
"All the things I've done all the things I've seen and you still look at me that." He began tilting his head a bit his hair cascading around his face. "Like I'm something worth caring about like I'm something worth saving like I'm not just some expendable thing." He said struggling to find the right words.
"That's because you are Barnes." She beamed.
Bucky moves his normal hand to her hair and presses his lips to hers using his metal arm to support him over her giving her room to shove him away if she wanted. She didn't. Her lips were soft against his chapped ones, his kiss was desperate and eager. He needed it he needed her. His warm moist tongue ran across her bottom lip he started to suck lightly on her bottom lip causing her to moan out he moved his arm around her waist pulling her closer to him. He moved his mouth to her jaw slowly down to her neck causing her to whimper and press her hips to his.
"Bucky." She gasped breathlessly when he nipped at her neck. He groaned hearing the way his name had escaped her lips. Ava's phone started playing some loud annoying song. "It's my alarm we've got to get ready." She sighed annoyed. Bucky placed a chaste kiss on her lips before rolling off her and onto his back.
Ava squirmed into a knee length black dress and pair of grey stiletto pumps she sat on the edge of the sink to buckle the ankle straps she had planned to meet her contacted in a law firm. Her head or her heart was racing unfortunately she couldn't decide which. Her thoughts focused on Bucky's kiss. She hadn't been kissed like that in a long time. Her fingers trailed her lips feeling the ghost of his. She was shocked that he even kissed her, sure she'd thought about what it'd be like to kiss him but never expected him to kiss her and when he did her heart had skipped a beat. She had only known Bucky for a few days and he was already stirring a storm inside of her.
The soldier pulled on his black jeans and leather jacket he scolded himself for kissing Ava. She was beautiful, gentle, smart and kind but she was also fierce and full of attitude he shouldn't have kissed her. He didn't deserve anything she could ever give her. When Ava walked out of the other room the soldiers eyes widened and wandered the curves of her body in the dress, her legs that seemed to go on for miles, her hair that draped like a waterfall on her shoulders. He watched her pull her dress up to the middle of her thigh where she then strapped on a stiletto knife. Ava blushed under his greedy gaze.
"Um we should get going." She says snapping out of his haze.
Ava's heels clicked against the floor of the law firm. She made her way to the 5th floor where she was meeting her contact. Bucky was watching her from god knows where trying to make sure she was safe. Ava's contact sat at an empty table with her file.
"Hello Ms. Marin." The man says "This is a very tough case I suggest you be very careful with this client." He says standing up and walking out of the room. She grabbed the file and walked out of the building. Ava walked down the side walk on the car when someone slipped their arm around her waist digging something hard into her side.