Lazy Day
Darcy had slept pretty soundly and not like she'd passed out, like she actually had a nice night's sleep. She woke to find she'd rolled a little closer to her neighbor. Her sigh made Bucky's eyelids flutter. They were face to face on their sides, and he was possibly even more attractive in the filtered morning light than he'd been last night when she was a little tipsy. She certainly hadn't forgotten about Steve, but she was feeling more and more like he wasn't interested in her, at least not as anything other than strictly a friendship. Which meant she should probably stop thinking of him as something other than that either. The way Bucky's lips curled into a soft, lopsided smile Darcy thought maybe there was an off chance he wasn't just being a nice neighbor by letting her sleep over. It was still too early to say for sure, but he looked happy to see her.
"Hi." Darcy smiled back, she had one hand curled into his hand and had the back of his hand pulled to her chest, while her other hand was still cupping his cheek. His other hand was holding lightly to her forearm, and upon waking, his thumb softly brushed at her wrist again. A sensation that had her humming softly, both inside and aloud.
The soft hum seemed to make him smile a little more. Bucky couldn't help smiling, not when he'd opened his eyes to the most beautiful sight he'd seen upon opening his eyes in a long time. "Hi. How are you feeling? Did you sleep well?"
"I feel pretty good, actually. I did sleep well. Possibly better than I have in weeks." It was the first night in weeks she hadn't woken from some weird dream. They weren't always bad dreams, but they were always strange. Full of places and people she didn't know and often didn't even look like places that existed on Earth. So, even the not bad ones kind of left her feeling strange and disoriented.
"Really? I'm glad. I think it was the best sleep I've had in I don't know how long either." When her thumb brushed against his lip again, as it had before they'd fallen asleep, his lips softly brushed against her thumb. For a long minute, maybe two, they just stared into each other as Bucky's lips moved around Darcy's thumb and her thumb softly pressed and brushed against his lips.
His face looked so soft and his eyes so deep, Darcy wondered what stories he had behind those eyes. The notion he slept better too seemed nice and warmed her inside. "I'm glad you slept well too then. Given I kind of stumbled in and made myself at home all drunk and crazy like."
Her fingers stroked his cheek and his eyes closed as his forehead leaned softly into hers. Bucky had still half expected her to rush away when morning came and she wasn't drunk anymore. The fact she seemed happy to linger in bed with him upon waking had his head spinning a little with hopes he probably needed to put some reins on. "I'm glad you're not drunk anymore, but I am glad it somehow brought you to my door."
When his eyes opened again at the end of his comment, Darcy trembled a little from the intensity of his stare. "It's a strange way to get to know someone, but sometimes life is strange."
"That it is." He squeezed her hand gently and pulled the back of her hand to his lips and pressed a soft kiss there. "Are you hungry? I think I have a few things that would work for breakfast."
"I am a little hungry. But if you don't have a lot of food in the house yet, I have some in mine. We could go there, or I could bring something over. Do you like pancakes? Or scrambled eggs?" Darcy felt comforted by his slow and gentle manner, it also made her insides flutter with excitement at the same time somehow.
"Either of those sound good. My kitchen is a little thin on food still. I should probably go shopping. I can help you cook though." Bucky had managed to cook a bit for himself while he was hiding out. It was also something he could recall doing when he was young, back in that other life. Nothing complicated, but the basic skills applied to anything. He knew he could scramble eggs, and probably manage pancakes, though that was something he'd never made himself.
The idea of him helping her cook made her grin. She didn't rush to move, and he didn't seem to either. His thumb softly tracing circles on her wrist was slowly spreading tingling sensations through her whole body. It made her feel like she probably should get up, and also like she never wanted to. "That sounds like fun."
"Whatever you feel like eating I'll eat." Bucky was still cautious in touching her in any way she hadn't touched him. Actually even that he was nervous about. She'd touched his face, but he was still hesitant to touch hers, in case it was too intimate. He was loving the feeling of her fingers on his cheek though, and her thumb brushing against his lips.
"I suppose we should start getting up. I have everything for both pancakes and eggs, if you're feeling hungry, I could make both." Darcy still didn't actually move to get up, not until he nodded and started to shift, letting his hands slide off of hers.
"I suppose so." Bucky would have laid in bed all day with her. It was the most content he'd felt in, well, he didn't know how long. He had no recollection of feeling so content, so it was probably before the War. Probably some time in his youth, hanging out with Steve.
They slowly extracted themselves from the bed and Darcy gathered up her clothes to take back to her apartment. Bucky used the bathroom and then followed her to her doorway. Though he didn't step inside until she appeared from her own bathroom and waved him inside. It seemed simplest to just eat at her place, and for Bucky, there was something amazing about being invited into her apartment. As it turned out, the only time he left her apartment that day was for a half hour to go back to his and shower, and so she could do the same. He returned and they made dinner together and watched a movie. She had a nice little collection of DVDs and Bucky picked one out randomly.
It was nearly midnight when Darcy yawned. Bucky took it as a cue to maybe go home. "I should probably be heading to bed. This was really fun though." He inhaled and exhaled slow as he stood up. Scratching his head and looking down when he spoke again in a much quieter tone. "Maybe we could do this again sometime?"
"That would be great. I've got nothing but time this week, so whenever you aren't busy." Darcy stood up slowly. She’d thought about asking him to stay but she wondered if that would be rushing things. She had been drunk last night and had kind of flopped her way into his apartment. Given the state of her life as well, it seemed prudent to let things move at whatever pace nature dictated.
"I don't actually have much planned for tomorrow. Or the next couple of days really. I kind of gave myself some time to settle in after the move without too many projects." Since he didn't actually have any work to do, Bucky was quick to jump to take any time Darcy was willing to spare. “We could maybe spend the next couple days doing more of this? If you want. Whenever you aren't busy.” He was also quick to doubt himself and what she might be interested in.
“That would be great. Maybe tomorrow I could show you where the best market in the neighborhood is and get you some groceries. Then we can relax and watch some more movies.” Darcy stood close, smiling softly.
“That would be great.” It was perhaps one of the first full-blown smiles Bucky had in quite a while. Truth was he couldn't recall the last time he smiled so boldly and easily.
“Great. Tomorrow then.” Her smile had radiated through her whole face when he had smiled so bright at her suggestion. It made her not want him to go.
“Tomorrow. Definitely.” Bucky nodded, the smile had mellowed, he didn't really want to go, but it seemed like he should. But that couldn't completely diminish his excitement at the prospect of spending tomorrow and hopefully several more days with her.
As he turned to go, Darcy spoke. “James?”
Not many people had called him James in his life. Usually, teachers who didn't care for nicknames or his parents when he'd gotten into trouble. But it sounded so soft and gentle coming off her lips. Bucky paused and looked back at her.
Darcy stepped in close. “Thank you.” When he didn't move she slid her arms around him.
Bucky all but melted into her. His chin on her shoulder and arms wrapped around her. She felt so good. So warm and comfortable. Her hands rubbing over his back kept him from being able to pull away. Not that he wanted to pull away, he had just thought maybe he should. “Thank you. I wasn't sure that I wasn't going to be very alone out here when I moved in.”
Darcy squeezed him a little tighter. They held on for a while longer before she finally figured she had to pull back. But she sure wished she could pull him into her bed. It did feel somehow colder sleeping alone, but she did get some sleep. Though when the strange dreams appeared, morning, and the chance to see him again, couldn't come quick enough.