Never Have I Ever…" pt. 2.8
Chapter 10
(The Tour, pt 1)
The car ride to their first destination was only about twenty minutes and Bucky stayed outside, leaning against the hood of Steve's car as he went inside the building. There was a large barn-type building that was set behind and to the right of the smaller building that looked like it housed a tiny office with its large windows and a glass door that had an Open sign hanging cock-eyed in the top half. A few people walked about the area, mostly between the barn and another building that looked like a fix-it garage toward the rear of the property.
Steve was inside the office about ten minutes when he came back out following a man who obviously worked there. Steve smiled and waved his hand, beckoning him to follow them.
Bucky pushed away from the car and headed in their direction as the older man disappeared inside the barn. Steve waited for him to catch up before entering. It was dark and cool inside the large storage building and Bucky looked around curiously. He followed Steve toward the back of the building where the older man was unlocking one of the storage units. He rolled up the overhead door as he and Steve approached.
Steve looked inside, smiled and turned to Bucky. "Pick one," he said. Bucky looked at him curiously and then looked inside the unit. There were three motorcycles sitting there side by side by side; one was a restored 1957 Harley Davidson Sportster painted red and the other two were Harley Davidson Iron 883's; one in black and the other tan. Bucky took a moment to take in the sight of the three beauties and then looked at Steve confused.
Steve gave him a light slap on the back and smiled. "They're mine. Didn't intend to collect bikes, but… it just, sort of, happened."
Bucky walked over to the 1957 Sportster and crouched down to look at all the workings then he stood up and swung his leg over the seat. He lifted the bike up off its kick stand to feel the weight and balance of it. He grinned and nodded; he liked it. Then he carefully leaned it back on the stand and dismounted. Steve watched him with a small grin on his face as he waited for Bucky to choose his ride.
Bucky then stepped over to the black Iron and mounted that one. He put his hands on the handlebars and pulled the bike up off its stand. He wiggled his butt on the seat and lifted his right foot onto the peg. He looked at Steve and smiled.
"Good choice," Steve told him then walked over and mounted the tan Iron to Bucky's left. It'd been a while since he'd ridden these particular bikes, but he remembered them being comfortable for cruising. He dismounted, kicking up the stand and walked the bike out of the building. Bucky followed suit.
Outside, the man was waiting for them standing next to Steve's car. Steve rolled his bike over to him and propped the bike on its stand so he could go to the trunk. He took out two back packs and gave one to Bucky, who put it on, and then dropped his car keys in the man's waiting palm. "Thanks," he said. "We'll be back for it this evening before you close." The man nodded and Steve returned to his bike, stuffing his back pack into one of the saddlebags. Then they were off.
The one place Steve really wanted to show Bucky was Kaaterskill Falls in Haines Falls, north of where they were staying. It was a nice long, but leisurely, ride north along Route 23A. As they headed out, they rode side by side until they began the climb up toward the falls and the road began to twist and turn. As they got closer to the falls they encountered more and more pedestrians who had parked along the road and crossed over in front of them to get to the trail head.
He thought that was sort of ironic that people would choose to park illegally on the road so they didn't have to walk up from the safe parking areas, but then would walk the one and a quarter mile round trip from the road to the falls.
They threaded the bikes slowly through the pedestrian traffic, stopping now and again to let people cross the road safely, receiving smiles and nods of gratitude from parents who were trying to cross from the parking area with children in tow. Steve steered his bike into the safe area and parked. Bucky pulled up alongside him. They sat there for a few moments just looking around, getting their bearings and then Steve dismounted and grabbed his pack from the saddlebag. Bucky was already wearing his so he simply dismounted and followed Steve back toward the road.
They followed the flow of pedestrian traffic and crossed the road when it was safe to do so. They turned onto the trail at the first clear marker and Steve pointed it out to Bucky; cautioning him to keep to the marked trail signs just in case they got separated.
The hike to the falls was relaxing and it felt great to get out and get some real exercise. Every so often they'd stop to let a family pass by or to let hikers who were moving with more purpose get ahead of them.
They stopped once on the way to the falls to get their canteens out of the packs. Bucky noticed there were power bars at the bottom of his pack and he pulled one out with a grin. Steve chuckled softly as it seemed to him that Barnes just couldn't get enough calories especially when he was physically active. He figured it had something to do with his particular metabolism and the serum he'd been given.
Steve led the way most of the time when the trail got congested with people coming and going. Slower sightseers would clog up the trails as those moving quicker would come up on them and not be able to get around due to the people coming toward them. When that happened, Steve simply stepped off the path and found a place where he and Bucky could rest until they cleared. Bucky was doing really well keeping his anxiety in check around so many people, but Steve didn't want to press the issue so, before Barnes had a chance to start getting squirrely, Steve would get them away from the crowds.
At one point, they'd stepped off the trail to let a couple dozen people pass by in both directions. Bucky removed his cap and swept his hair back, tucking it behind his ears again. Steve did a double take when he noticed two young ladies on the trail had paused to check them out. Bucky turned to look at Steve and noticed him nod once. He turned to see who Steve was nodding to and stilled when he saw the two beauties smiling at them. Bucky put his cap back on and lowered his head to hide behind the bill of his hat. He glanced up again to see the girls whispering to one another and the red-head gave him a flirtatious smile while her friend gave Steve a little wave.
Steve waved back to be polite and Bucky simply gave the redhead a nod as Steve had done. The girls giggled softly, obviously attracted to them but moving along as another group came up behind them. Once the girls had walked further on, Bucky let out the breath he didn't even realize he'd been holding. Steve looked at him, curious but with a bemused grin.
"You okay?" he asked.
Bucky looked at him and nodded, giving him a shaky smile. "That was weird," he replied.
Steve cocked his head to the side and furrowed his brow. "What was so weird about it?" he asked. Bucky shook his head, not really knowing how to answer that question. "You were the one who was always the lady's man," Steve told him as if Bucky should remember that.
"Yeah? Well, that was a long time ago," Bucky said softly, "I don't remember all that."
Steve suddenly felt bad for assuming Bucky would have been fine with having a pretty young lady flirting with him. "Sorry, Buck. I didn't mean to—."
"I'm no lady's man," he told Steve. "That ain't me anymore… if it ever was." He was a little hurt by the fact that Steve seemed to be pushing him toward flirting with someone else. He started wondering if Nat had been correct when she told him she was sure Steve was attracted to him too.
Steve watched him thoughtfully for a moment and then decided to keep them moving. He laid his hand lightly on Bucky's shoulder before stepping back onto the trail. As they strolled along, Steve couldn't let it go and he smiled. "She thinks you're cute," he told Bucky as he came up alongside him.
Bucky didn't even look at him, he simply shook his head. "Well… she's wrong."
Steve thought about that and looked at his friend. He smiled and put his arm around Bucky's shoulders as he said, "No she's not." Then he dropped his arm, slapped Bucky on the back and stepped out to lead the way again.
Bucky stared at Steve's back, wondering what he meant by that and hoping what he meant was what he wished he meant. He pushed that thought away as they continued along the trail.
It didn't take long to get to the falls. The loose dirt and rocks sliding under their feet was a sure sign that they were nearing the bottom of the falls. At one point, Bucky slid on a carpet of wet stones like he'd just tried to walk across marbles. Steve grabbed his arm to keep him from going down. Bucky got his feet under him and gave Steve a nod of thanks.
Steve suddenly stopped and Bucky almost walked into his back. Steve turned, reaching out his hand to tug at Bucky's jacket, pulling him to stand next to him and pointed up. As Bucky looked up to see at what Steve was pointing, his mouth fell open as he stared in wonder at the towering falls. Standing at 260 feet, it was one of New York's most majestic natural wonders. Steve couldn't help but stare at Bucky; the look of stunned delight on his friend's face was better than anything Steve had hoped for.
"Wow," Bucky breathed out.
Steve smiled. He'd glance up at the falls now and again but found it really difficult to pull his eyes away from the look of awe on his friend's face. Barnes didn't even notice Steve staring at him as he took in the sight and his eyes followed the flow of water as it cascaded down the side of the mountain. The spray would get picked up by a breeze and wash over them, giving them a cooling respite from the summer's heat. He watched the water's pattern in the pool below the falls as the thundering deluge caused waves and rippled toward the stream as it continued its journey down the mountain.
Steve tapped Bucky's arm and gestured toward the top. "Come on. I've got something else to show you." He led the way as they climbed.
About ten minutes later Steve stopped on a rock ledge, turned around to pull Bucky up with him and pointed. Bucky turned so he could look out over the landscape and saw that they had climbed high enough to view the Hudson River Valley below them.
"Wow," Bucky said again. "It's so beautiful."
Steve smiled and looked out over the valley below them. He was thrilled to be able to share this with Bucky. He'd seen so much ugliness for far too long and it was Steve's desire to show him that there was beauty in the world around them too. Perhaps it would help him to climb out of the depression that often dragged him into the depths of despair; like an anchor dragging him to the bottom of the sea.
They sat on the rock ledge for about half an hour in almost complete silence. They hydrated and shared a power bar from Bucky's pack then Steve slapped him on the shoulder and stood up. "Time to go," he said, "We've got other things to do today."
They made their way out of the falls area; and to the road in a fraction of the time it took for them to get in because they didn't hit slower foot traffic on the way out. They crossed the road and got back to the parking lot just as a caravan of coach buses pulled in.
"Good timing," Steve mentioned and Bucky looked up as he threw his leg over the seat of his bike.
"Yeah," Bucky agreed with a grin.
As the last of the buses maneuvered into the lot and circled around to park one behind the other to make it easier for them to exit, Bucky noticed the same two girls in the center of the parking lot, tossing their packs into the trunk of a car. They both turned to smile at him and Steve as they sat on the bikes. Steve smiled and the brunette waved at him and Steve replied with a nod. The redhead was making eyes at Bucky and he just stared at her.
"Smile," Steve told him.
"What if I do and she comes over?"
"She won't come over," he assured Bucky. "She's flirting. That's all. Give her a little thrill. A smile isn't going to kill you."
Bucky looked at Steve and then back to the redhead. She was still smiling at him, looking as if she was totally smitten and she gave him a cute little wave, wiggling her fingers at him as if she, too, was shy. Bucky found that amusing and he couldn't help but smile. He flipped a wave and she immediately turned into her friend as if his simple action made her swoon.
"See? You just made her day," Steve told him and kicked the engine over.
Bucky grinned and kicked his over too. Looking back at the young lady he gave her a genuine smile and she continued to smile back. Steve watched them for a moment and then headed out. Bucky gave her a nod then maneuvered the bike slowly through the lot and followed Steve back down the mountain.
They rode in a southerly direction on the highway for nearly an hour; it was a relaxing ride, despite having to stop a few times to pay the toll. They exited the highway and continued riding for a few more miles. Bucky was starting to wonder where Steve was leading them when he turned into a parking lot and a huge smile crossed his face.
Steve pulled his bike into a shaded area at the side of the lot and waited for Bucky to pull his around and come to rest beside him. He turned and grinned at his companion who was now chuckling softly as he turned off the engine.
"Ta da!" Steve announced, tossing his arms out straight toward The Frozen Caboose sign.
"Nice," Bucky said with a wide brilliant smile on his face. "I do like ice cream."
"Yep, I know," Steve said, nodding.
Bucky frowned with a thought. "But we haven't had lunch yet," he mentioned.
"That's the best part!" Steve told him as he dismounted. "See the sign? Read the bottom."
Bucky came around and fell in step beside Steve as they approached the serving window. He looked up at the sign and saw the words under the name of the establishment and read it aloud, "Life is short – eat dessert first!" He chuckled. "Considering you and I are over one hundred years old, I'm not sure that pertains to us."
"It does," Steve told him. He didn't have to point out that even though they'd both lived a very long time, neither of them had truly lived their lives in that very long time.
Bucky grinned as he read the flavors on the signs that bracketed the window. "Geez, I remember when Rocky Road and Rum Raisin were about the fanciest flavors we could get."
"And, that was before the dairy product rationing during the war," Steve remembered aloud. Bucky looked at him with a slight frown as he didn't remember that part. Steve noticed and distracted him from his thoughts with a light slap on his back. "So what are you going to try?"
Bucky let his gaze slide down the list again and then pursed his lips together with a grin. "Banana cream pie."
"Good choice," Steve replied. "I'm going to go with… pistachio."
After getting their cones, they returned to the bikes and relaxed there to finish their sweet treats. It was shortly after lunch hour and being summer the place was starting to get crowded.
"How is it?" Steve asked, watching Bucky as he tried to keep up with the ice cream melting down the cone and over the back of his hand.
" S'good," he barely got out before having to catch a small glob before it rolled off the side of the cone. "Wanna try it?" he asked, holding the cone out toward Rogers.
"Sure," Steve replied and leaned toward him. Opening his mouth he let his lips suck up most of the liquefied ice cream off the top and as he pulled away a drop rolled down his chin. "Nngh," he grunted and wiped it with his napkin as Bucky laughed softly at him. "Yeah that is good!" Steve exclaimed, now wishing he had gotten the banana.
When Steve opened his mouth and wrapped his lips around the top of the melting ice cream, Bucky found he was unable to look away. His attention was suddenly focused on Steve's lips as they scooped up the melted treat. When Steve pulled away he'd dribbled the melted ice cream down his chin and Bucky caught his breath. He watched Steve wipe away the mess from his chin as he smiled and laughed lightly at his predicament.
They finished their dessert and tossed their trash in the bins nearby. Bucky took his canteen out of his pack and rinsed off his sticky hands then poured some water into Steve's palms before putting it away. Once they were cleaned up again they were ready to head back.
"We can grab lunch when we get closer to home," Steve mentioned and then kicked the engine over. Bucky nodded and followed him back out to the highway. He tried to keep his focus on the road ahead but couldn't stop his thoughts from returning to that moment.
TBC'd
