“I’m sorry for interrupting,” Bucky murmurs.
I snort. “Don’t apologize. I appreciate it,” I respond, watching pedestrians and bikers. “One of the reasons I agreed for you to come was because I had a hunch that George and Finn would be there.”
“What’s up with those two anyway?”
“They’ve been trying to take over my business basically ever since I started,” I respond sourly.
“So you’ve had interactions with them before?”
“If you would call it that.”
“I should’ve ripped his hands off,” Bucky mutters darkly.
My head turns quickly to him. “That’s a bit extreme James,” I say.
“He would’ve deserved it,” he mutters, his hands tightening on the steering wheel.
I turn away so he can’t see the smile creeping onto my face. My fingers drift lightly over my still throbbing knuckles. I really should’ve iced them earlier.
We turn onto our street and my breath stutters as my eyes land on a black compact SUV with windows so tinted I can barely see the two figures in the front. My throat having closed up, I frantically tap Bucky’s arm to get his attention.
“What?” he asks, sounding both surprised and exasperated.
“SUV,” is all I manage to get out, my eyes still glued to the black car. I feel Bucky’s arm muscles tense under my hand, which is still resting on his arm.
Bucky drives past the cafe and the car in front of us stops, making us stop, directly next to the SUV. “Holy shit,” I whisper, my eyes now staying on the front windshield as my entire body goes cold.
“Astrid. Calm down and try to act normal,” Bucky murmurs, his lips barely moving.
I slowly remove my hand from his arm and reach it forward to turn the radio on. My hand is shaking so violently that I miss the button a few times before finally managing to press it. Smooth jazz quietly fills the car, warring with my heart’s rapid pace.
“Do you have a hat? Or any way to hide your hair?” Bucky asks as we’re finally able to move forward.
“Uh… Y-yeah… why?” I ask, my breath shaky.
“I’m gonna park the car on a nearby street and we’re going to walk to the cafe and act like customers. Your hair stands out a bit since it’s one of the rarest hair colors and it would be better if we limit the possibilities of being recognized,” Bucky says, his voice startlingly calm.
I quickly braid my hair and tuck it under my jacket before pulling out a hat from one of the pockets.
“Is it possible to call the police on them?” I ask quietly. I step out of the parked car and quickly pull my hat on. I try to tuck a few loose strands but the tremors in my hands make it very difficult. “Arg,” I mutter.
Bucky steps closer to me and trucks the stray hairs away before placing his hands on my shoulders. “Maybe,” he says, answering my question. “How are your knuckles?” he asks as we start walking down the street.
I let out a breath, trying to loosen my shoulders. “They’ve been better,” I respond, my eyes darting up and down the street.
“Stop looking around like that. It’s suspicious,” Bucky chastises.
“How the hell can I not?” I fire back.
“What about ‘act normal’ do you not get?” Bucky mutters, shaking his head slightly.
“How are you not freaking out?” I hiss, glancing at him.
He looks at me and raises an eyebrow. “I’ve been in many situations similar to this one,” he responds.
I open my mouth to say something else but close it again, realizing I have nothing to say to that. “I can barely walk. My legs feel like Jell-O,” I mutter, stuffing my hands deep into my pockets and hunching my shoulders.
“Astrid, you were an aviator for years. Come on now,” Bucky says, sounding a bit disappointed in me.
“Why do you say that like it should help with this?” I snap, glancing up as a small group of girls walk past us, laughing loudly.
“I just expected you to have a bit more balls in a situation like this,” he responds, shrugging. “But I guess not.”
“I’ve got far more balls than you,” I mutter.
“Doesn’t seem like it,” Bucky says, a smile in his voice though his face is mostly blank.
I take a deep breath and straighten. “Let’s cross here,” I say, nodding to a crosswalk.
“There’s the Astrid I know,” Bucky murmurs.
We cross and walk past the SUV before reaching the cafe and entering. The familiar smell immediately makes me feel a bit better but I don’t let my guard down.
We wait in line, which is a bit strange to do in your own cafe, but I’m not about to make it more obvious who I am in case the people in the SUV are taking notes.
Finally, we step up to the counter and Owen looks up with his mouth open to say something but he falters when he sees it’s me. “Please just act normal,” I mutter through clenched teeth.
He blinks a few times before regaining control of his mouth and closing it, smiling. “What can I get you two?” he asks.
“A medium apple-cinnamon tea,” I say swiftly.
“Medium hot apple cider,” Bucky murmurs, a small frown on his face.
“Is that all?” Owen asks, looking up from the screen.
“Can I also have a cinnamon bun?”
“No problem,” Owen responds, tapping a few things. “Anything else?” he asks.
“That’ll be all,” I respond.
“It feels weird making you pay,” Owen whispers, glancing around.
“Fine, then I’ll make James do it,” I mutter. I scoot back and Bucky takes my place, paying for our order.
“I’ll have that all ready for you in a few minutes,” Owen says cheerily before turning.
I follow Bucky over to the waiting area just as someone gets their drink. “I’m getting Clare to come here,” I murmur. Bucky nods, his eyes slowly looking around the room.
~~~~~~
Hi. I hope you are still enjoying the story
:)
YOU ARE READING
The Grey Raven // Bucky X Oc (Discontinued For Now)
FanfictionAs of now I've stopped adding to this, I'm not sure if I'll come back later but for now this is all I'm writing. ~~~~~~~ She's normal, just with a small bit of enhanced hearing. He's an ex-assassin with a vibranium arm. And guess what? They're roomm...
