When It Snowed

Chapter 4 - The Game of Pursuit

Steve and Bucky were making their way up the stairs, Bucky dragging a little further behind him than he normally did. Just visiting the museum today- it was enough to trigger every memory he ever had of her.

Since he woke up from the ice, some things had blurred together; but no matter what, as long as the memories were of her- he wouldn't throw them away for the world. Love was a strange thing, especially when it came to Steve. The guy was head over heels for Peggy Carter in the 1940s. Bucky missed how much himself and Finley would tease him about it.

Now however, he seemed to be catching feelings for someone else. His innocent neighbor in their new apartment complex next door found herself being chatted up by the super soldier nearly every day now.

She was standing outside of her door this time, phone against her ear with a smile on her face. "That's so sweet. That is so nice." Her eyes caught sight of Steve as they approached their own door from the hallway. "Hey. I gotta go. Okay, bye." All Bucky could do was stand against their door watching his friend approach the woman. "My aunt, she's kind of an insomniac." The woman informed him with a smile.

In her arms was a large load of laundry that she was clearly going to do downstairs. "Hey, if you want, you can use our machine." Steve smiled towards her. "Might be cheaper than the one downstairs."

"Oh yeah?" She flirted. "What's it cost?"

"A cup of coffee?"

Brushing her hair behind her ear, their blonde neighbor smiled and looked down to her feet. This immediately made Bucky perk upwards and take her in. For a second, he could have sworn that he saw Finley within her features. How she never held eye contact, always looked away and to her feet, the blonde hair and subtle smile. It made his nerves spark to life and chest tighten.

It wasn't her though, she was long gone and Bucky had to remind himself of that. It wasn't healthy the way that he still saw her, but he couldn't help it. Being in love does that to someone.

"Thank you..." she sighed disappointed. "But I already have a load in downstairs." Steve's shoulders slouched. "You really don't want my scrubs in your machine anyway. I'm just finishing orientation in the infectious diseases ward, so." It was true, she was a nurse.

Nodding, Steve stepped back towards Bucky. "I'll keep my distance."

Her smile grew again. "Well, hopefully not too far."

A new sound caught Bucky's attention. It was coming from inside their apartment. There was a soft rhythmic beat, steady music playing in the background and it caused him to nearly press his ear against the door. "Oh, I think you left your stereo on." The woman called before making her way towards the elevator.

This made both Steve and Bucky look at one another. They knew for a fact that they didn't have any music on when they went to work. Someone was inside, but they couldn't alert anyone; including their neighbor.

"Yeah, that was me." Bucky lied while pulling out his key. "Thank you."

They waited for her to be out of sight before opening the door. Then, once inside, both stepped silently towards the music. Every corner of the room was picked apart by the super soldiers, careful of anyone hiding in any shadows or corners.

Both came up short with their expectations of danger. Though, when they saw Fury sitting on their couch, the two men stood side by side in shock. "Don't remember giving you a key." Bucky began the conversation with a hint of confusion in his voice.

"You really think I'd need one? My wife kicked me out." He spoke in a low and blank tone.

This spiked both of their interests. Fury was not married, he never was.