Chapter 12-A Day at Work

Third Person:

Beni yawned as she walked into the living room. It was four-fucking-thirty in the morning. She wished she could change her schedule so she wouldn't have to wake up at such an ungodly hour to get ready. If she was able to move faster she would only get up at five like any other normal person that had the same hours as her, but that wasn't gonna happen any time soon.

So she was kind of surprised to see Bucky awake and moving around, but she didn't say anything about it. If he wanted to be up at the most ungodly hour of the morning with her than that was his business.

"Morning, Princess," Bucky teased when she came into the kitchen.

"What's up, Chewbacca?"

"Breakfast since you never get a chance to eat. I am loving the bed head by the way."

Beni gave a snort in response. Her long, colorful hair was sticking up in all directions, but then again, so was Bucky's.

"Have fun getting the knots out of yours when I'm away," she shot back. He chuckled slightly and she managed to steal a piece of bacon.

"That's really good. You're cooking more often."

"Whatever keeps us both happy and healthy. Your notes are on the coffee table and your lab coat is on the hook."

"You didn't have to do that for me," Benin stated, eyeing the apron he was wearing. It was pink and had little ducks on the front, and other that that, all he had was a pair of shorts on.

"What time did you get up?" She asked, raising an eyebrow as she stole another piece of bacon.

"Early enough," he replied with a shrug.

"Uh-huh. Tell me the truth, James."

Bucky almost stopped. She used his real name because she wanted a real answer. She was always bugging him about food and sleep and such things, so he really, really didn't want to tell her. But the look in her eyes and the tone of her voice made his mouth betray him.

"I didn't really get any, actually," he said, not meeting her eyes. Not until he was hit in the head with a bouncy ball of course. He turned to see Beni with a slightly angry look in her eyes.

"The minute I leave I expect you to go to sleep for at least a few hours, okay?"

"Promise. Now go get ready, I'll drive you."

"You drive?"

"Yeah, more or less."

Beni stared at him for a second mere before grinning and shaking her head.

"Yeah," she said, going back to her room, "The more you know."

Beni sighed as she sat down on her desk. So far she hadn't been able to work with some actual reptiles. It had been notes on top of notes on top of some comic books that was on top of other notes. Stark was wanting them to make a serum similar to Dr. Connors' from New York. He had given them the formula on what not to use in that certain amount so they didn't end up with a city full of lizard-people again.

She had no idea what that meant but it sure as hell didn't sound good.

Most of them worked alone but next to each other in their own section of the lab, testing different things on three-legged mice. Beni didn't necessarily like doing the mice thing, but if she didn't then she didn't get paid, so she had to suck it up and move on. She got the job because Stark liked her, and she intended to keep it that way.

Since she was still her mostly antisocial self, she put music in when she worked instead of collaborating with others. She worked better with her own mind, not anyone else's. But she still had friends. She talked to people often during lunch, and before and after she punched in. She found most of them rather boring, and a few she didn't like, but she was okay with that as long as she was able to put a smile on a few people's faces.

She liked her job very much.

Bucky yawned as he woke up. Like Beni had told him, he did try and get at least a few hours. He looked at the clock, only to see 11:17 blinking at him in red letters. He sighed. When Beni left he got really bored, so he would watch some movies or read a few books, and excessive so he could keep his muscle mass. He already worked out, and he didn't really feel like another movie or book.

So there he sat, wondering what in the hell he should do.

He looked around the house from his spot on the couch. Everything was covered in a nice later of dust, and there were a few candy wrappers and water bottles everywhere. He cocked his head to the side and pursed his lips.

"Maybe I should clean the house..." he thought aloud. Without another thought he launched himself from the couch and started picking up some random trash here and there. He nor Beni had really thought about cleaning the house except for doing the dishes or taking out the trash. But now he realized the place needed a bit more than that.

So he got to work.

Beni looked up as her coworker, one of the boring ones who was also kind of a dick from time to time, tapped her shoulder. She didn't really feel like talking to him, but she pulled her head phones out and turned in her roll chair anyway.

"What's up, Levi?" she asked. He had a crazed smile and something that was equal to Bucky's bed head, and his glasses were a little crooked. His silver tooth made his smile more unnerving, but she didn't show him how uncomfortable she was around him. Instead, she plastered a fake smile on her face and leaned back in a relaxed position, giving him an expectant look.

"This!" he said like a giddy school girl. He then proceeded to stab Beni in the leg with a needle and empty whatever was in the syringe. She cried out slightly before pulling her fist back and punching him in the jaw. He flew back and she stood up, taking the needle out as she did so.

"Beni, what happened?" one of the good, almost boring coworkers asked. Beni was beyond passed at the moment, but she managed to keep her cool with Lacy.

"He was being more of an asshole then normal," Beni replied, pressing her crutch into Levi's chest. His glasses had been knocked off and he was coughing slightly. Behind Beni, Lacy picked up the syringe and narrowed her eyes.

"Call security," she said loudly. Then she put a hand on Beni's shoulder and gave her a comforting look.

"Beni, I don't know what he put into you. I need a blood sample to see if it will-"

"-No need. I appreciate it, but I can do that myself at home. Thanks, Lacy."

"You sure you're okay? I've never seen you like this."

"Fine, just angry. Would you mind if I went home an hour early?"

"Go ahead, we'll back you up if the big man asks anything."

Beni gave her a grateful smile and took her crutch off of Levi just as security showed up.

"Thanks. I'll call if anything to bad happens."

"You better. Now go home."

Bucky had just finished putting the dusting supplies up when Beni walked in. He raised an eyebrow. She was never home this early, and she was never not smiling. When she came in she was mumbling to herself, looking at the groud on deep thought. Her brow was furrowed and when she sat down, she instantly started rubbing her thigh like she always does whenever she gets nervous. But once she saw him, she smiled.

"Hey, Rupunzel. How's it going?"

"Good, I guess. I've kept myself busy all day."

Beni smiled and looked around. Then she frowned again, her brow going back into it's crease.

"Something's different," she said. She sniffed the air slightly and looked around again. "You cleaned the house while I was gone," she said, half matter-of-factly, half sort of a question. Bucky nodded and leaned against the door frame of the kitchen.

"I did. And you're upset. Talk to me."