Chapter Text
Steve had a lot of things to adjust to this new world. He liked running every morning around the city he'd grown up in. It was a good way to see the changes while running fast enough that if it was too much he could just, keep running and keep it behind him.
Of all the changes, there were a few Steve was actually enjoying without longing for his time. And that, was mostly the food. Growing up on boiled potatoes and getting to eat french fries? Yeah, like Steve was going to complain about that.
There were so many choices now too. Sam Wilson had introduced Steve to 'take out' and all the options thereof. And to date, Steve had eaten at just about every restaurant in a regular human's walking distance.
Except one.
It was a food truck and it was frequently parked across the street from Stark Tower around lunch time. Steve made excuses for not going, always something, but never the real truth.
"How about we go to Buck in the Day?" Sam asked after their run, breathing heavily as he hunched over. "Reviews say the guy who cooks there makes like old school burgers. You'd probably like it."
Steve felt like he could swallow his own tongue. "I, uh, food shouldn't be made on a truck, that's disgusting," he said, hoping Sam didn't try to force the issue. The truth was that Steve had seen the fella that worked the truck a few times, in and outside the truck, and Steve had very much liked what he'd seen.
The man was tall and Steve figured maybe an inch or two shorter than he was. He looked fit too, even through the zip hoodie he was almost always wearing. On one memorable occasion, Steve had seen him bend down to haul a box into the truck. He's never seen an ass that fantastic since Peggy Carter.
That wasn't even mentioning the man's face. His jaw was cut, hidden just behind a dusting of scruff and high cheekbones which drew attention to the pale blue, almost grey eyes with the cute crinkles in the corners whenever he smiled.
And what a smile it was. The man's whole face lit up when he smiled. All white teeth and pink lips and a charming little dimple on his chin.
His hair was gorgeous too, long, probably down to his shoulders, but every time Steve had seen him, the soft brown hair was pulled into a messy bun. He kind of wanted to run his fingers through it.
So, yeah. The real reason Steve had avoided eating at Buck in the Day had everything to do with the crush he had on the cook and the fact that Steve had absolutely no idea what to do with that. It wasn't like he'd grown up in a time where it was allowed for a man to fancy another (not that Steve had never looked before, he's always found people attractive regardless of gender). Besides, he'd never really known what to do at all with people he fancied. The only person he'd ever really had the guts to go after was Peggy, and look how that ended.
"Come on man," Sam said, nudging Steve with his elbow. "Gourmet food trucks are a thing these days man. They've got burgers, you like burgers."
"But, it's a truck," Steve complained weakly. He felt silly really. He just, god. He wasn't sure he could formulate words in front of the Buck in the Day fella.
"If you don't like it, we won't come back," Sam continued, giving Steve a weird look. "But I want to try it. He does burger specials, that's cool right?"
Steve just nodded, letting Sam drag him towards the truck.
"Hey, I'll be right with you guys," the man said, carrying a box into the truck with a bright smile towards Steve and Sam. Steve wanted to see more of that smile. The man came to the window and leaned out, pale gaze sparkling. "Don't think I've seen you guys here before. First time?"
"That it is," Sam said with a smile. "Steve here is old-fashioned and was nervous about the truck thing."
"Old-fashioned huh?" The man, 'Bucky' according to his name plate. "Well, I've got three burgers on the menu today. The staples, Plain James Burger and the Say Cheese Burger, which are your standard hamburger and cheeseburger respectively. Both come with lettuce, tomato, pickles and onion and whatever condiments you want. And the special of the day is the Onion-tended Throwback Burger."
"Onion-tended Throwback Burger?" Steve echoed, interested more than he thought he would be. Tony Stark frequently called Steve a 'throwback'. "What's that?"
Bucky smiled. "It's a play on the fried onion burger," he said with a grin. "My great granddad used to make them in the Depression. But instead of just mashing the onions in the burger, I grind them together actually, so the burger is like, half burger half onion and it comes with or without cheese. It's topped with caramelised onions, so that's extra onions, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, and today, I've got a smoked paprika aioli that I recommend to go with it."
Steve felt his chest tighten. His ma had read about fried onion burgers. The burgers had been from Oklahoma, but after reading about them in the paper or wherever, Steve's ma had started to use onions to supplement a lack of meat.
"I'll have that, with the aioli you recommend," Steve said, feeling nostalgia overwhelm his memories.
"Did you want to make that a meal? That's adding fries and a drink. And what about for you?" Bucky asked, jotting down Steve's order on his ticket book.
"I'll try the same actually, and yeah, I think we'll both do meals," Sam said, nodding. "Water for me, Steve?"
"Uh, water yeah, thanks," Steve said, unable to take his eyes away from Bucky as the man turned to start preparing their food.
"Alright, that's twenty dollars gentlemen," Bucky said, turning back to them. He leaned out the window again, a few strands of brown hair had fallen from his bun and framed his face.
Sam pulled out his wallet and handed over some money. "Thanks, it'll be right up," Bucky said, taking the money and disappearing back in the truck.
"Alright Rogers, what's actually in a fried onion burger? I'm pretty sure I zoned out on the terrible puns," Sam said with a shrug.
"It's an old thing, Depression era stuff," Steve explained, shifting slightly as he tried to subtly peer over the window. "It was just a way to stretch things. Beef was expensive, onions, not so much. Sounds like he puts them together like real meat though. Might be good."
Steve wasn't trying to get a glimpse of Bucky through the window or anything. No. Steve's toes were just cramping, that's all. Yeah. His shifting just had the pleasant side effect of giving him a decent view of Bucky's shoulders as he worked. They were broad and looked strong. Steve was so distracted by Bucky.
"Steve, you in there?" Sam asked, nudging Steve's arm with his own. Steve started, blinking rapidly as he made himself focus again. "Lost in thought? This something you had as a kid?"
"Yeah, my ma read about them once," Steve said, smiling wistfully at the memory. "She made them when money was extra tight. Meat was expensive, onions were cheap. I can't believe he's making them…"
"Order for Steve," Bucky said, appearing in the window, leaning out the window with the two food orders in his hand. Steve's mouth watered at the smell. God it smelled just like his ma used to make, or well, what he imagined it smelling like. Steve's nose hadn't worked right after he'd broken it. The serum had fixed that.
Sam grabbed their food and handed one of the baskets to Steve before biting into his burger. "Holy shit, that's actually stupid good," he exclaimed, taking another bite.
"I'm glad you like it," Bucky said, still in the window and smiling at them. "I do a throwback Thursday every week if you like the old-school vibe. I tend to follow my great granddad's recipes with my own flair, sometimes I go a bit rogue, but I do try to keep my throwbacks even closer."
Steve took a bite now. And immediately his taste buds exploded with a familiar, yet unique flavour. It wasn't exactly like his ma made. It was easier to eat for one, with the onion ground down it didn't have the strange insect legs of onions. The burger was juicy, and the sauce was smoky and sweet at the same time.
"Oh my god," Steve whispered, feeling tears prick at his eyes. "This is the best burger I've ever eaten."
"Not bad for a truck burger then?" Bucky asked, grey eyes sparkling at Steve. "Hopefully I'll see you around."
Bucky ducked back into the truck and Steve's eyes followed him until the dim light in the truck caused him to disappear. He idly returned to the incredible burger, trying to savour every damn bite.
Steve and Sam started walking towards the Avengers Tower, neither making conversation in favour of eating. Steve was having a hard time getting over the fact that this was actually something he'd eaten growing up, and that it tasted so much better than he remembered. No offence to his own Ma, of course.
"So, I take it you liked the truck burger?" Sam asked after they settled in the Avengers Commons with what was left of their food. "You look like you're about to cry man."
"It's like, what I had when I was younger, but so much better," Steve admitted, munching idly at the fries. "I am going back every day."
Sam made a face at Steve's declaration. "That's all you Cap," the man informed him. "I work out, but not enough to eat one of these things everyday. I ain't no super soldier."
Steve snorted a laugh. He didn't blame Sam for that. Steve didn't worry about things like his weight with the way his metabolism worked, he had to eat large quantities of food just keep himself upright. But Sam wasn't enhanced, and followed all the standard rules of people.
"Alright fair," Steve allowed, still laughing softly. "I'll go for my mid afternoon lunch without you then. Unless you wanna come."
Sam just rolled his eyes and stole a fry from Steve's basket. "I will let you know man," he said, chuckling softly. "And I will admit, for being half-burger half-onion, this might be the best damn burger I've ever eaten. The food truck guy knows what he's doing."
"Yeah, he does," Steve agreed, feeling wistful for the nostalgia for a moment. "Alright, we've got a meeting to get to."
The pair tossed the paper baskets and headed to the meeting room for the weekly State of the Avengers meeting.