[Virginia AU] take my waking slow

[nerves_of_ice]

The nightmares are present, but at least they don’t jerk him out of sleep in any way that disturbs Sharon. When he does finally wake sometime shortly before dawn, he kisses her shoulder and her hair before sliding silently from the bed.

Bucky pulls his shorts back on, then pads into the kitchen and searches out the coffee. He sets it to brewing as quietly as he can and picks up his phone to send Alyona a text while he watches the sky lighten.

surprise - am in Berlin
hope all is going well

Comments

[nerves_of_ice]

"Probably more than occasional. But that's what the tablet's for." He shrugs. "Riley's team's supposed to help, like you said, when it comes to sifting the data."

[from_the_outside]

"I'm sure they'll be useful."

Her feet are bare; she nudges her toes against his leg, marveling all over again at having him here, real and solid. So what if Yelena Belova doesn't want to meet her? That doesn't change anything. "I didn't hear any explosions, so I figured things must have been going reasonably well."

[nerves_of_ice]

"Reasonably. Although I think the HR guy's having some kind of crisis now," he informs her. Bucky curls his hand loosely around her ankle.

"Evidently it's a problem that I don't have a Social Security Number."

[from_the_outside]

She laughs at that – giggles, more accurately. "Yeah, I guess it would be."

Sharon leans her head against her free hand and watches him. "But our HR people are pretty good at navigating sticky legal situations."

[nerves_of_ice]

"I was trying to explain it didn't matter because there wasn't a payroll issue or whatever and Riley hopped in to connect the guy to Alan before he had a breakdown, so ..." He shrugs again.

"Anyway, it could be worse." Bucky smiles at her. "For one thing, I'm here."

[from_the_outside]

She smiles back at him over her glass. "I'm glad you're here," she murmurs. "Even with the paperwork."

[nerves_of_ice]

He studies her carefully. "Ross didn't give you too hard of a time, did he?"

[from_the_outside]

God, she'd almost forgotten the texts from Ross. She'd been too busy planning and then shopping and then getting just a little bit tipsy when dinner didn't work out. "No," she promises.

It's difficult to say what too hard of a time might mean, but her boss had sounded more exasperated than angry. "He was just venting a little."

[nerves_of_ice]

"Uh-huh." Bucky sounds a little dubious. "He asked if there was anything before yesterday. I told him I'd been interested for a while, but I didn't compromise you."

[from_the_outside]

"Of course you didn't."

He'd been far more concerned about that than she had been, which is understandable, considering what it did to him and Natasha. And, by extension, Yelena. "Don't worry, baby. He can be annoyed, it won't mean anything. It's all aboveboard now."

[nerves_of_ice]

"It is," he murmurs, watching her. "No regrets?"

[from_the_outside]

She leans forward to kiss him, firm and full of promise. There's wine on her breath and her cheeks are flushed, but her eyes are clear, if bright. "None," she promises, nudging her forehead against his.

"Not a damn one."

[nerves_of_ice]

His smile is sweet and almost shy as he reaches up to cradle her face in his hands. "Good."

[from_the_outside]

"I like being with you," she reminds him, an echo of the day they'd arrived at the compound, just before she'd kissed him for the first time. "Even when it's complicated. I wouldn't give it up for anything."

[nerves_of_ice]

"You must," he says, ruefully. "Because it looks like there's nothing about me that's not complicated."

[from_the_outside]

"Not true," she tells him, and kisses him again. "This is easy."

[nerves_of_ice]

He cups his left hand around the back of her neck and kisses her again, slow and thorough, drawing her in and drowning in her.

[from_the_outside]

She holds her glass carefully so as not to spill and shivers as his cool fingers run over her warm skin. Everything's just a little fuzzy, but not so much that she can't feel every press of his lips and puff of his breath.

"See?" she murmurs, when this kiss breaks, then kisses the tip of his nose, fond.

[nerves_of_ice]

He laughs, soft and low. "Yes. I do."

Bucky draws his fingers slowly through her hair and asks, "Want to curl up with me here on the couch for a bit? Watch something besides the news?"

[from_the_outside]

"Sure."

It's probably all she's good for right now, anyhow. Her wine sloshes a little in her glass as she shifts on the couch to curl next to him, warm and relaxed, so she sips at it to lower the level. "Do you have a preference?"

[nerves_of_ice]

"I really don't," he says, and puts one arm around her before reaching to bring the remote in her reach. Bucky presses a kiss to her hair.

"This is all I could ask for."

[from_the_outside]

Even two glasses of wine can't quite kill the pang that comes when she thinks of the last time they tried to sit down and watch a movie together. She can't quite recall the options they'd pulled for consideration, aside from Jupiter Ascending, and she's not sure she's quite in the mood for that one.

If they were in the States, she could just flip it to one of the many movie channels and watch The Shawshank Redemption for the millionth time. But they're not, so she pulls up a streaming channel instead. She settles on Rocky instead, thinking of his fondness for boxing, then sets the remote down and curls into his side, sipping at her wine as the movie begins.

[nerves_of_ice]

He keeps his arm around her as they watch, idly running his hand back and forth over the curve of her hip.

It's not the same as the last time, or the time before, but they're together again now and he's beyond grateful for it. He makes the conscious decision not to worry too much about the future right now - maybe tomorrow, or the day after.

[from_the_outside]

She's seen this movie about a million times, which means she can watch without paying too much attention, until she lifts her glass and finds that her wine's been all sipped away. She sets it aside and curls more comfortably against him, her head on his shoulder, her arm across his middle, as Rocky does his best by Paulie, by Adrian, by his oily mobster of an employer, and gets the chance of a lifetime.

They haven't quite made it to the training sequence by the time her eyes have closed and she's breathing slow and even, drowsing against him.

[nerves_of_ice]

He's enjoying the film, but when Sharon goes boneless in the curve of his arm he catches her before she can slide. Bucky presses a kiss to her hair and makes sure she's comfortable.

Once the movie's over, he gathers her in his arms and lifts her up, cradling her close as he starts toward the bedroom.