Neighbors

Hairpins

"Doll?"

"Yeah, Buck?"

"That is the fifth time you've snatched my fries," he said with a smile, his strong frame leaning back against the booth with his arms crossed leisurely over his chest. He'd spread himself out in the space so your ankles brushed up against his, caging your legs between his under the table.

"Well, look who's counting," you snarked back, popping another of the perfectly golden fries in your mouth. He scoffed in amusement.

"It doesn't matter, I just thought you said you didn't want any," he said with that telltale smirk of his, leaning forward as his knee brushed up against yours. Your empty salad bowl sat off to the side, and while it had been good, you realized your mistake when you had gotten that first whiff of Bucky's fresh basket.

"Yeah, well..." you started, leaning forward to reciprocate his playful motion, hooking your legs up the slightest bit to bring your calves together. You furrowed your brows as you tried to retort, his shooting up as he waited to hear it. "I changed my mind." He let out a deep laugh from his belly, and you took the opportunity to take one last fry from him –just for good measure– as you laughed along, leaning comfortably back into the booth seats while your legs stayed entwined.

This had been your third time coming to Morelli's, and you liked the little routine that was starting to form around it. After you had gotten Bucky to begrudgingly accompany you in populating your closets with more dancing clothes, taking home more dresses than was strictly necessary, it had become a highlight of your week. You planned your outfit days early, ready for when Bucky asked about it in the middle of the week. You brushed up on old tricks, even going as far as seeking out new ones to look over together. And Saturdays had returned to being spent around each other practically the entire day, doing everything and nothing as long as it was with each other.

Tonight you'd opted for something simple, your first of the handful of new dresses, and one that was hard to put away after Bucky's reaction. He'd been insistent on seeing each one despite your offer to save him the trouble, going on about his 'expert opinion' until you caved. He had smiled so softly at you when you'd stepped out in the yellow pinafore dress, the repetitive pattern subtly tying in the undershirt... it had to come home with you so he could look at you like that all over again.

"I was thinking about that trick you showed me this morning, what did they call it... Around the World?" He brought up, and you hummed in acknowledgment as you took a sip from your coke. "I don't think it'll take us that long. It starts the same way as our shoulder flip."

"Sure, until I'm hanging upside down from your arm while you fling me around," you reminded, rubbing the toe of your matching heels against him as he giggled. "That part is gonna take some work."

"You think I can't?" You simply rolled your eyes at the super-soldier while he looked at you incredulously, amused by his own feigned offense.

"You might be able to do the heavy lifting, but I have to know where I'm going, James," you retorted pointedly, and he tilted his head in silent agreement. His blue eyes kept watching you for a few moments, your feet absentmindedly moving with each other below.

"You'll pick it up fast, sweets, it'll be easy," he reassured you earnestly, and you could feel the warmth of your cheeks as you looked at him with your chin rested in your palm. You went to open your mouth in retort, but Bucky's smiley carefree expression changed as he looked past your booth, a look he put on for people he didn't know. You turned slightly in your seat to look over your shoulder at who was coming and saw a couple looking directly at the two of you, awkwardly smiling in their approach.