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“What’s his name again?” Bucky mumbles at Steve, leaning close to the blond as they both watch Sarah walk up to the restaurant’s door.
“Um...” Steve frowns, and looks over at his friend, “Er....Wasn’t it something with a ‘K’ or um...”
“What? What starts with a K? Kyle? It’s not Kyle,” Bucky mutters in return, and they’re both looking toward the door now. Sarah, and Not-Kyle, her boyfriend, wave once they hang their coats by the door. Both Bucky and Steve start grinning in spite of themselves, wave in return, and start to get up.
“Jared, it’s Jared,” Steve whispers hurriedly as the two others approach the table, and Bucky laughs.
“Hi!” Sarah very nearly squeals as she lets go of Jared’s hand, and prances up to Steve, arms open for a hug. As they embrace tightly, Bucky smiles and glances over at Jared, who is just standing there staring, obviously confused. Because Steve and Bucky still look like they’re in their late twenties, when their daughter isn’t much younger than that now.
“Jared, right?” He extends a hand to the kid, who looks at him for a second, dazed, then smiles. He’s a decent looking kid, sharp dresser, pretty average. Bucky’s pleased with that much.
“Yeah,” Jared laughs nervously, but that’s better than staring like an idiot, “You um....”
“Call me Bucky,”
“Right.”
Then it’s his turn for a hug from Sarah, and she’s still grinning bright and lovely, and Bucky couldn’t be happier that she was here, Jared or no Jared.
“Hi papa,” She says as she clings tight to Bucky, her grin showing in her voice as well. He grins into her thick brown hair, and pats her back affectionately. It’s good to have her home.
“How’s it going?” He says, smiling so wide it hurts as they withdraw, and he holds his daughter at arms length. It’s a little weird for him and Steve, too, to still look almost as old as their 22 year old daughter. But they were far beyond being able to explain it to everyone, so anymore, they didn’t really try. No doubt Sarah had told this Jared guy that their family wasn’t what he would consider average.
“Good, good. Cold!” She laughed, and then looked over her shoulder, where Steve was introducing himself to Jared, “Okay great, introductions are great, lets sit down, I’m starved.” She tugged at Jared’s hand, pulling him into the booth next to her, as Bucky and Steve sat down across from them.
The restaurant was warm, compared to the snow and slush outside, and filled with the smells of breakfast. They’d all agreed to meet in Manhattan, where Sarah was staying with Jared and his family for a few days before Christmas. She’d be back in Brooklyn on Christmas day, and then for the New Year. It was a different routine from the one they’d had when she came home from Darmouth on break in previous years, but they can deal, she’s got an apartment up there anyhow and spends summers there now--she’s a big girl.
They all sit down, and the waitress who had greeted Steve and Bucky and got them their drinks comes back to do the same for Sarah and Jared. She orders tea with cream and sugar, and he gets orange juice and water. Bucky knows Steve’s paying attention to all of it, because they’ve talked about this, the breakfast, the meeting the boyfriend thing, and it’s what Steve always does. Bucky likes to think they’re pretty equal when it comes to how they handle having Sarah’s boyfriends, but Steve might be a little more...fervent than Bucky is. Bucky isn’t really forgiving, but more so than Steve.
When the waitress comes back with more drinks, asks if they’re ready to order and gets a resounding no, they pick up their menus and look at all the place has to offer. Bucky decides on pain perdu pretty quickly, sets down his menu, sips at his coffee and tries not to stare at Jared. They all chat lightly until everyone decides, and waits for the waitress to come back and take their order. Jared’s majoring in political science, doesn’t say if and what he’s minoring in. Sarah’s in law, her third year, with a focus in “Super-human Rights and Process” (which Steve and Bucky were totally surprised to hear was a thing now.) Then Bucky asks about Jared’s parents slash family, and he explains he has two littler sisters, his mom is a surgeon and his dad owns a restaurant somewhere else in Manhattan.
The whole time Sarah looks on adoringly, and it’s insanely obvious how enamored with this kid she is, which makes Bucky, and probably Steve, a little uncomfortable. But that’s pretty par for the course, isn’t it.
When their meals arrive, the talk is less, but still, they learn enough about Jared for this to be a successful first meeting, and by the time they’re done, Bucky all but likes the kid. He’s not as nervous as he first seemed to be--like he’s accepted the fact that Sarah’s dads look almost her age--so he talks easily with them about his family and things like that, how he and Sarah met in their Mutant Culture And History class even if they’ve heard the story over the phone at least 10 times since last semester. He seems like a fine kid, but one) they’ll leave the tip up to him and see how that goes, and two) Steve and Bucky are going to have a lengthy conversation about him on the way home before they really invite the kid into the family. Even then, they’ve decided that the secret telling only comes with marriage. Jared’s gotta earn it.
In very typical, and incredibly conspicuous Sarah fashion, she leaves for the bathroom when they’ve all finished eating, and are waiting for the check. Bucky looks over at Steve with what he hopes is a furtive smile, and Jared looks helplessly after Sarah.
“Relax, we’re not going to ask you what your intentions for Sarah are,” Steve laughs, which surprises Bucky, because he sort of expected Steve to ask. If he wasn’t, did Bucky have to, at some point? Jared laughs nervously and looks at his hands.
“Not yet anyway,” Bucky ads, draping his arm along the booth behind Steve’s back, and gives Jared a little smile. Steve elbows him, “Just kidding, sorry. Just pulling your leg.” Jared doesn’t really know what to make of the two of them, seriously. He just looks back and forth between the two older men, then raises his eyebrows.
“Um...yeah....are...what um - if you don’t mind me asking- what’s....up with you guys? I mean, I know asking about age isn’t polite, but really, Sarah told me you guys like...were really, really different, that your family is different but this,” he gestures over the table at them, “Is not what I was expecting.”
Bucky sniggers a little, and he knows Steve smiles too, even if he doesn’t take his eyes off Jared.
“We’d tell you, really, but it’s an incredibly long story for uh...another time I think. We used to work with S.H.I.E.L.D. - “
“We still kinda do,” Bucky cuts in.
“ - and I’ll leave it at that,” Smiling, and reaching forward to take up his water glass, Steve glances out at the snow. Theres a brief silence, in which Jared just looks down at his plate and nods, maybe trying to process what Steve had told him.
“So political science huh,” Bucky starts, because it’s probably better they turn the focus back on Jared while Sarah’s not here, “What’re you planning on doing with that?” And Jared perks up a little, so thats alright.
“Well I’d love to get into politics, but if I don’t, I’m really interested in journalism,” he says, nodding and smiling faintly. Bucky puts on a fake smile, because both he and Steve have had enough politics and press for a few lifetimes now, so he knows his partner probably has the same expression on, if not worse.
“Politics,” Steve says flatly. If anyone’s got the right to dislike politicians, it’s Captain America.
“Mhm,” Jared replies, then Sarah returns, still all smiles.
Steve picks up the bill, lets Jared tip (and he does so generously, so that’s another pro to add to the list), before they all get up to say their reluctant goodbyes. As Steve wraps Sarah in another hug, Jared shakes Bucky’s hand (again) and goes to get his and Sarah’s jackets. She looks at them both with an excited little smile as she bumps Steve’s hand with her own.
“So?” She says quietly, almost conspiratorially. Bucky laughs at her and shrugs.
“He’ll do. For now,” says Steve, making the three of them laugh, “The politics thing though. That might have to go.” Bucky doesn’t know if he’s joking about that. Sarah pushes her bottom lip out in a fake pout, and turns to look back at Jared as he weaves through the tables scattered through the restaurant.
“As long as he keeps up this treating you right stuff, I’ll let him live,” Bucky says, giving his daughter a wink, before Jared’s back with them and they all have to shut up about it.
“We’ll see you in a few days,” Sarah leans in to give Bucky a hug, and it’s Steve’s turn for another Jared handshake.
“Sure thing, kid. Have fun,” He lets her go rather reluctantly, he finds, but by the time she’s walking to the doors with Jared, Steve’s got Bucky’s hand clutched in his. He gives it a squeeze, and looks over at Bucky with a little smile.
“What?” Bucky asks as they make their way to the door to shrug on their coats and brave the winter weather as well.
“Nothing. He’s a nice kid, for all the joking,” Steve says.
“Yeah I know. But I think it’s a safe assumption we’re not going to trust any dope that she brings home,” Bucky chuckles, as he wraps a scarf around his neck.
“If there are other dopes.” The blond gives him a smile, and Bucky grins right back.
“Trust me, there’ll be other dopes.”