chivalry → bucky barnes

||Chapter 10||

Leah walked into the towering mansion in awe with Jarvis by her side.

'Mr Stark said to send you right to his office.' Edwin said before scurrying away.

Leah pulled her, or Howard's, jacket tighter around her as she walked towards the door Jarvis pointed to. The floor creaked under her feet as she approached, strangely nervous about the situation. She knocked once, twice, three times before the door swung open revealing an overjoyed Howard.

'Leah-' He breathed out smiling wide.

She blushed under his dreamy gaze before regaining her composure.

'Howard, it's nice to see you again.'

He led her into the office and closed the door behind them making her jump slightly.

'Jumpy are we?'He joked as he brought her to his desk by softly placing his hand on the small of her back.

She chuckled weakly due to the nerves she was feeling. What if Howard didn't make her part of the team for Project Rebirth? Where would Avery and herself be left after?

'What's our first task?' She asked.

He chucked before walking behind his messy oak desk.

'I've got something big in the works.'

Her heart skipped a beat.

'May I ask what it is?' She asked shyly.

He looked up and their brown eyes met.

'It's classified.' He said with a smirk.

She frowned deeply before he collected a stack of papers and walked over to her.

'You'll find out soon enough if you can finish these tasks.' He explained.

He led her through the mansion until they ended up at what seemed to be his lab.

'I'm really like this idea of having an assistant; I hope it lasts through the years of Stark Industries.' He said grabbing a rolling stool for himself before getting another for Leah to take a seat.

She sat and chuckled lightly at the thought of Pepper.

'What's first, Boss?' She joked.

He smiled to himself as he handed her a blueprint and some materials.

'I need someone who can help me out around the lab, this-' He said pointing at the pile of mess he had just handed her.

'-will help me see your level of mechanics.'

Leah felt slightly nervous but once she got to work, she realized how similar the blueprints resembled the things she made while studying science in school. Howard admired her from a far as she tampered with the metal, her hair fell across her face but she was too deeply engulfed in her work to care. Howard wanted to walk over and brush the hair out of her face but he knew she'd get the wrong idea. He wanted more than a one night stand with Leah, something about her was different and he knew it was a good sign.

*

Avery walked around the house before finally sighing with boredom and slumping on the couch. She'd been stressing about Bucky all night because she didn't want him to feel like she'd blown him off. Sure she liked Steve but the way the story was going according to the movie it seemed like he was meant to fall in love with Peggy. Avery thought hard for a moment before snapping out of her trance.

'I need to find him.' She muttered.

She pulled on a pair of shoes and a jacket before running into the brisk New York weather in searches for Bucky Barnes, her new found crush.