Winter Love || Bucky Barnes

1943: Dance

I had been standing outside in the cold for almost half an hour, wearing nothing but a short dress. A young soldier had asked me if I would go dancing with him and as I loved dancing, I had said yes. At first, I had been full of energy, but now I was just freezing. Depressed, I hopped from one leg to the other, but that didn't help much against the cold.
Suddenly, I saw someone coming towards me and had already regained hope, but it was only Bucky. "Hello, little one. What are you doing here all alone? Especially in such a short dress." His gaze traveled down my body. "I wanted to go dancing with John, but he's late."
Bucky looked at me sympathetically. Now he noted that I was freezing. Without hesitation he took his uniform jacket off and placed it on my shoulders. "Thank you", I replied, relieved about the little bit of warmth. "I don't think John will come. He's an idiot. He probably just made a bet with some other guys. I'm sorry." In disappointment, I stroked my brown hair. "Oh, okay. Well, good, then I can finally go." I was just about to set off when Bucky stopped me. "Where are you going? Don't you want to dance?"

"Of course, but as you can see, I don't have a partner." He smiled and offered me his arm. "You want to dance with me? Really?" I could hardly believe it. That was so sweet of him. "Yes, otherwise you'd have got ready for nothing. And now come on, little one." I smiled gratefully and took his arm.

Inside, there were already many couples dancing to the music. I hung his jacket on a clothes rack and noticed again how he looked me up and down. "What?" I asked curiously. "Nothing." An amused grin formed on his face. "You just look very pretty little one, that's all."

"Don't always call me little one. It's annoying."

"Why not? You are very short."

I punched his arm. "But not that short."

He laughed, grabbed my hand and pulled me onto the dance floor. "Good, then I'll call you .... doll. Because you're just as pretty."

Now, I couldn't hide my grin any more.

I held my breath as he suddenly pulled me closer and put his arm around my waist.

When we started dancing, I couldn't take my eyes off him. He was so handsome, so kind, so funny. I had never felt this attraction before, it felt incredible.

I rested my head against his chest and closed my eyes. My heart was beating so fast that I was afraid it would soon run out of power.

"You are a good dancer, doll", he whispered in my ear, making me blush. I smiled and looked up at him. "You're not bad yourself. Do you dance a lot?" Bucky shook his head. "Hardly ever. I don't like it very much."

"Then why did you offer me to dance with you?"

"Well, you're different. I had this feeling that I would like it with you."

We looked into each other's eyes and suddenly I realized how close we were. "And do you like it? Dancing with me, I mean.", I asked hesitantly, looking away.

Bucky raised my chin with his finger and smiled at me. "I do, doll. I really do."

The evening ended far too quickly. Bucky had his arm around me and accompanied me home.

"Thanks for the evening, James. It was very nice." I smiled, giving him his jacket back.
"No problem, doll. Don't you want to call me Bucky?"

I grinned at him. "I like James better."
He shrugged his shoulders. " As you wish." He put his hand on my cheek and looked deep into my eyes. Then he suddenly turned away and left.