Work Text:
The day they fixed the boat, Sarah came home weary with the satisfying ache of well-purposed work. All the weights and worries which had cluttered her mind had, for the time being, been put away. In their place was a sort of empty quiet, contentedness allowing in only the most immediate concerns and washing them all in pale golden light. She was hungry and Cass and AJ would be home soon--Sam too--so she set about making dinner, humming to herself quietly.
She set the timer on the oven then leaned back against the fridge with a sigh, slowly rolling her head from side to side to stretch the sore muscles in her neck. Her fingers drummed the counter, and she chewed at her lip. A thought had worked its way into the quiet of her mind. Something new among all the familiar hands and faces that had stepped in to bolster her throughout the day. A pair of blue eyes and a crooked smile.
She pulled her phone out of her pocket and turned it over in her hands, fingers playing at the edges as she gazed fixedly out the window at nothing. She turned to the phone, abruptly, pulling up Google. Just as quickly, she turned the screen off again and set the phone firmly on the counter. Her fingers resumed tapping. The familiar kitchen doggedly resisted offering anything to pull her thoughts away from the nagging impulse. The well-kept counters offered no cleaning task for her hands. The timer on the oven stared at her, stubbornly refusing to move faster.
Sarah broke and grabbed her phone again, decisively this time. After all, why not? The search bar, a few quick keystrokes, and the “Bucky Barnes” Wikipedia page was before her. She hit the “Early Life” tab and started reading.
***
When Sam opened the door, she was well into the “Avengers in Berlin” section, eyes glued to the screen, fingers mechanically twisting and untwisting a braid of hair. As he entered the house, Sam called something to her that she didn’t pay attention or respond to.
“That smells good.” Sarah looked up at the sound of Sam’s voice and jumped as Bucky entered the kitchen a step behind her brother. Frantically, she tried to close the tab on her phone. For a second she fumbled awkwardly, losing her grip and bobbling the phone between her hands momentarily before it clattered on to the table beneath her. She felt Sam and Bucky staring at her.
Before Sam could comment, Sarah snatched a dish towel from behind her and flung it at him. “What’s wrong with you!? Sneaking up on me like that.”
Sam met the accusation with exaggerated indignation. “I said ‘Hey Sarah, we’re back’--what more would you like me to do?” He half-turned to Bucky, gesturing with the dish towel for dramatic effect. “A man gets assaulted in his own home.”
Sarah tried to recover. “You could have let me know you were on your way back.”
Sam’s eyebrows shot up. “The text saying, ‘On my way. Bucky’s coming too’ wasn’t enough? Your phone was literally in your hand.”
He gestured at the phone laying on the table and Sarah reflexively flipped it so the screen was down against the table, splaying her fingers across it protectively, then cringed inwardly, hoping neither man had noticed the odd reaction.
There was a moment’s pause as Sarah struggled to come up with a response that would make her seem less deranged. Before she could, Sam turned toward Bucky. “Sorry, my sister’s a crazy person.” He pressed the dish towel into Bucky’s hands and walked out.
Bucky paused a moment before following. He smiled politely and only a little awkwardly. He took a step forward and leaned towards her, holding out the towel. “Thanks for having me.”
Sarah took it from him, her breath catching a little as her fingertips brushed against his and she felt the smooth vibranium. She smiled at him. “Any time.”
Bucky’s smile shifted to something a little fuller, a little warmer, and far more self-assured. He lingered a moment more, attention rapt, and then nodded and trailed Sam out of the room.
The men’s voices carried easily from the next room.
“What did I say not to do?”
“I was setting down the towel.”
“Sure, just ‘setting down the towel’.”
“
You
handed it to me. Am I supposed to just carry it around the rest of the night?”
“Yes. Like a normal person.”
Sarah stood stock still, waiting for the bickering to fade. Finally, she was sure they’d passed into another room. She snatched up her phone and closed down the Wikipedia tab. Her shoulders sagged in relief. She started to put her phone away and then thought better of it. She cleared her search history. Just to be sure.
As she moved to check on the food again, Sarah found that once again a certain smile would not leave her head. And she felt pretty sure that hers would not be leaving his head either.