Hide in plain sight
Steve got to the stairs and scanned the crowd for the familiar dark blue jacket Bucky always wore. The second he caught sight of the jacket sprinting up the stairs, so did a Hydra goon.
Seeing that there were a lot of witnesses around Steve decided he couldn’t take him out, right then and there.
Hydra didn’t share that same concern, seeing the men pull their weapons and chasing after Bucky, who fled to the left. When Hydra came upstairs, quickly followed by Steve, a big herd of teenagers greeted them. It seemed as if a whole university had dumped its students here.
Bucky would definitely use that to his advantage and hide.
~
Turning to the left, I adjusted my pace to the people walking around me. They seemed to be about my age. Probably stinky students from some nearby University.
Good.
I pulled off my jacket and dumped it in a trashcan.
Shame, I actually really liked that jacket.
All I had to do now was get my heartbeat down and think clearly. First rule of going on the run is: Don’t run. Walk.
Alright. That, I got.
Phone. Lose it.
Okay, phone goes in the trash too.
I lost my jacket, phone, I’m blending in and it’s probably a good idea to tie up my hair. Thank god for always carrying hair ties. And thank God I never got that haircut.
What the hell do I do next?
~
Steve decided it was best to just start scanning faces and bodies in the crowd of teenagers, given shouting Bucky’s name wouldn’t be the best idea with Hydra on their tail.
No. No. Not him. Too short. Different hair color. Ponytail? Nah- wait. Ponytail.
Steve grabbed the arm connected to the man wearing a dark red Henley and dark brown hair tied back into a ponytail. The man startled, his eyes widening as panic probably surged through him and he looked ready to scream. Steve’s first instinct was to cover his mouth with his hand, which was a good instinct, because not a second after Bucky would’ve screamed he recognized Steve and relieve washed over his features.
“Jesus. Hydra-.”
“I know. We need to get you out of here.” Steve answered.
~
I noticed most of the students were standing in groups, but like all schools, there were some who were standing alone. Which was great.
Not particularly for them, but it meant I wouldn’t really catch anyone’s eye.
I hoped.
I turned my back to where I came from and tried to disappear into the background. No such luck though, because not five minutes later someone grabbed my arm and I was about ready to scream to let everybody know that I was fucked. The man apparently read my mind and quickly slapped a hand to my mouth, keeping my scream at bay.
In those few seconds adrenaline seemed to pump through my veins faster than it did before, causing me to not recognize the man in front of me for a while.
Until I did.
Steve!
“Jesus. Hydra-“ I hissed, wanting to let Steve know that I needed to get the hell out of here before Hydra would drag me back to one of their super villain layers.
“I know. We need to get you of here.” Steve said, his voice calm. He positioned himself so that his broad shoulders hid my body from view as well as he could. He craned his neck to the side to see where the Hydra agents were and if they had spotted them already.
“Don’t look, but they’re getting closer and they are gonna recognize you.” Steve informed me.
“Kiss me.” I instructed Steve; whose eyes widened.
“What?”
“Public displays of affection make people very uncomfortable.” I said, hoping Steve would get the gist.
“Yes, they do.” He responded dumbly. Was he an idiot?
I noticed a man in black gradually coming closer and decided it was all or nothing, so I grabbed Steve’s face and pressed my lips against his. I noticed his hand made his way to my hip on reflex, which would’ve been adorable in any other situation. Well, maybe it was still a little adorable.
This was not how I imagined my first kiss with Steve going.
I let Steve go and saw the Hydra agents had all passed us, still looking for me. Thank god.
“You still uncomfortable?” I joked, already walking back towards the stairs to get the hell out of here.
“That’s not exactly the word I would use.” Steve responded.
~
“They’ve seen you, Steve. They’re gonna find us here.” I snapped.
“Don’t you dare flee again, Buck.” Steve growled back, then sighed, “I need to call someone.”
Steve picked up the phone and told the person he had called, “I found him. He’s safe but it was a close call. Any chance you got a safe house, ‘cause mine’s compromised.”
The other man, whom I now recognized as Tony, responded with, “Yeah, I got one in Brooklyn. It’s not under my name and it’s close to public transportation. I’ll send Happy to pick you up. Just hang tight.”
Steve hung up the phone and looked at me, “Guess we’re going to Brooklyn.”
~
“Tell Tony thanks too. Bye Happy.” Steve greeted the driver before ushering me inside the apartment. It was quite small for something that Tony had bought. It was cozy and it felt safe.
Just what we needed.
“You need to take a shower.” Steve said from the bedroom down the hall.
“I smell that bad, huh?” I scoffed, making my way over to the bathroom and turning on the water.
Half an hour later both of us had showered. Steve had opened the door to the bathroom to let out all of the steam and was currently looking very good in a white tank top. I averted my gaze, opting to stare at the ground, while Steve looked at me in the mirror and turned around, standing in the opening of the bathroom.
“You okay?”
I nodded and picked up the towel lying next to me to continue drying my hair, “Yeah.”
Apparently that didn’t fool him. He came over to the bed and sat opposite of me, “What’s going on?”
I stared into his blue eyes for a second. His eyebrows were pulled together in an expression holding sympathy.
“I-“ I didn’t even know what to say. That I was dangerous to be near? That he should clear the fuck out, walk the hell away because he barely knew me? That this was all ridiculous?
Instead I opted for, “I owe you.”
Where would I be if Steve hadn’t turned up when he had that first night? I’d be assaulted at least, (and that was wishful thinking), I’d be homeless, without a job, beyond furious and also in the hands of Hydra.
Steve shook his head slightly, “It’s okay.” he responded.
“It’s really not. You keep saving me and all that got you is that now you’re in danger too. I bet Hydra is already tearing your apartment to shreds looking for us. For me. And Tony. God, even he is in danger. All because of me. And I don’t know if I’m worth all this, Steve.”
“Everything that’s happened, it wasn’t you. Hydra is to blame here.”
I nodded slowly, staring blankly ahead.
“And you are worth it to me, Buck.”