Coffee, Courage and a Captain

Chapter Two: Dressing Appropriately

A sound like a banshee ripped through the frigid morning air, rousing both Steve and Charlotte from their sleep.

"What the hell?" Charlotte said as she stumbled into the living room, bleary-eyed and hair all over the place. "What's that noise?"

Steve groaned. "Bucky."

"The man who helped me last night sounds like a woman screaming?" Charlotte asked slowly, staring at the door.

"No, he's the reason behind the screaming," Steve muttered, pulling the blanket he had been using up around his face.

"Jesus, what time is it?" she asked, rubbing her eyes.

"Six," he said, glancing at the clock beside the kitchen cupboards.

More shouting and screaming came from behind the front door.

"That's it," Charlotte said, striding over to the door and wrenching it open.

A man and a woman were standing on the landing. The man was half-dressed, and the woman had tears streaming down her face.

"You told me you loved me!" she shrieked at him.

"Well obviously I didn't mean it!" he shouted back.

"HEY!" Charlotte yelled at the pair of them. Upon hearing her voice, Steve jumped to his feet and ran to where Charlotte was standing in the doorway.

The pair turned to look at her.

"It is six a.m. As in morning. People are still sleeping. You," she said, pointing at Bucky. "You are obviously a womaniser who needs to stop treating women like playthings. And you," she said, pointing at the woman, who furiously wiped away her tears. "You obviously knew that from the moment you met him that this would be how it ends. This should not be surprising, and it is probably for best that you don't pursue a relationship with him. Eventually he'll learn that he can't treat women this way, or he will be forever single."

Bucky looked thoroughly shocked, and just stared at Charlotte agape while the other woman walked off angrily into the dawn.

"Who are you?" he said eventually.

"Buck, this is Charlotte," Steve said. "Charlotte, this is Bucky."

"Bucky Barnes, a pleasure to meet you," Bucky said, walking over and taking her hand, bringing it up to his lips. Charlotte just looked a mix of confusion and anger, and Steve couldn't help but chuckle at her expression. Most women giggled when they saw Bucky, but she'd just gone and told him off.

"How's the head?" Bucky asked, tilting her head back to look at her cut, which she was certain had coloured up beautifully in the time she had been asleep. He poked it, and she yelped in pain.

"Knock it off, Buck!" Steve said, slapping his friend away.

"Ooh, we are protective," he teased, Steve's face going bright red.

"What time does the police station open?" Steve asked Bucky, trying desperately to change the subject.

"What, did she clear out your apartment?" Bucky replied. "I knew she looked dodgy."

He smirked as he looked at Charlotte, who glared at him.

Bucky blew out a sigh. "They're always open, Steve. But if it's non-urgent, then the desk sergeants officially get in at eight. Why do you need to go there anyway? You can't try to enlist again, you're on your fourth 'F'."

Steve looked down at the ground, his face bright red with embarrassment.

"Enlist?" Charlotte asked, looking confused.

Bucky and Steve looked genuinely shocked. "There's this little thing called a war going on right now? Or have you been living under a rock?" Bucky said slowly.

"That's why we need to go see the police about Charlotte. She doesn't know where she is."

"Or when, by the sounds of it," Bucky retorted.

"That too," Steve agreed. "We'll go down as soon as we all get dressed and have breakfast."

Charlotte was suddenly aware that she was standing outside in the frigid morning air in Steve's pyjamas.

"Sounds like we have a man with a plan," she said. "Can we go inside? I'm freezing."

*********

Charlotte stared at her jeans and her t-shirt that were covered in the blood from her head wound and the grime of the alleyway, tears running down her cheeks.

There was a knock at the door, and she looked up, furiously wiping away her tears.

"Come in," she said. Steve stuck his head in the door.

"I got Buck to bring these over. They might not fit you, but they're the best I could find when I went through his closet."

Charlotte stared down at the green and blue tartan dress that Steve had given her, paired with shiny black heels. A black winter coat was draped over his arm, and he placed that over the end of the bed.

"Thank you," she said finally, smiling at him. He smiled back, before closing the door as he left.

She sighed and looked at the dress.

"Okay dress. Let's do this."

*********

Bucky had seemingly invited himself in while Charlotte was changing, and he had draped himself over the couch while Steve busied himself in the kitchen.

The radio was playing some jazzy number that Steve was humming to himself as Bucky read the newspaper. Charlotte caught sight of the date in the top right hand corner of the paper. April 6th, 1943. She gulped. She was so lost.

She finished pulling her red hair into a high ponytail, and slipped the heels on after she pulled Steve's bedroom door closed behind her.

Bucky looked up and whistled. "Looking good, doll."

Steve looked over, and his face turned bright red. "You look beautiful- I mean, good, Charlotte," he stuttered out.

The dress fell to just above her knees, the shape very flattering to her figure. The coat fit snugly around her shoulders and just about covered the full length of the dress. It tied in the middle, accentuating her slim waist.

She sniffed the air, wandering over to the kitchen. "Are those... pancakes? Are you making pancakes?" she asked excitedly, jumping up and down.

Steve grinned broadly at her as he flipped them onto a plate and doused them in maple syrup. "Here you go."

Charlotte realised that she hadn't actually eaten since the previous morning, and she wolfed them down.

"These are so good," she moaned.

He watched her with a content smile on his face as she ate.

"I'm glad you like them. We'll need to get some more groceries for tonight."

"Two nights?" Bucky asked incredulously from the couch, glancing over the top of his paper.

Steve shot him a look.

"Sure. I can cook tonight if you want? I make a mean stir-fry."

Bucky just laughed off his confusion. "So long as it's food, I'll eat it."

"We should go now," Steve said, looking at the clock. "It's quarter to eight."

He headed over to the door, scooping his keys up from the kitchen bench and putting them in his pocket. "C'mon, let's go."

Bucky jumped up from the couch. "I need to grab my coat from my place, give me a second."

They waited out on the landing for Bucky to come out, Steve leaning over the railing and looking at the passing cars. Charlotte observed him properly in the morning light, noting his straw-coloured blond hair, sparkling blue eyes and strong jawline. He turned to look at her, and smiled softly. She blushed, realising she had been caught staring.

"Okay, I'm ready," Bucky said, shutting his door behind him. "Let's go and find out what's going on with you, Charlotte."