One in a Million
“Babe?” you called out to Bucky once you noticed him. You were supposed to meet at your favourite coffee shop for lunch and your boyfriend was standing at the hand-off counter, patiently waiting for his cup of coffee.
When he didn’t turn around, you walked over to him and slid your arms around his waist. You didn’t notice how the man tensed and straightened himself up. You nuzzled his neck and placed a soft kiss on his jawline.
“Um, you cut your hair?” The man gave you a little shove and you took a step back to look at him. “What’s wrong?”
“I’m sorry, I think you’re mistaking me for someone else.”
“You’re hilarious,” you replied, rolling your eyes. “Let’s go, I’m starving.”
You reached forward and took his left hand, but instead of the hard metal and soft leather glove, your fingers closed around a flesh hand. The man, who looked exactly like your Bucky, frowned when your eyes widened.
Looking down at your hand, you saw that his left hand wasn’t made of metal. You pulled your hand away as if you had been burned. What the hell was going on? The barista came over with a large iced coffee. She turned the cup around so she could read the name scribbled across the plastic cup.
“Sebastian?”
With a smile, Bucky’s look-alike took the cup she handed him and walked away. It took you less than a second to decide what to do next. You shouted his name and met him in the middle of the coffee shop.
“I am so sorry,” you apologized. “You probably think I’m insane, but you look exactly like my boyfriend.”
You fished your phone out of pocket and held up one finger, motioning him to wait a second. He shifted his weight from one foot to the other as you scrolled through your photo album.
When you found the picture you wanted, you handed your phone to Sebastian. “That’s Bucky, we’ve been together for two years.”
“Bucky? I’ve heard that name before.”
You were a bit surprised. The media only referred to Bucky as James Barnes and as far as you knew Bucky was a fairly unusual nickname. Sebastian’s brows scrunched together for a moment, trying to figure out what was happening. You took the time to really look at him. The only difference between them was that Bucky’s hair was longer and his beard fuller.
“I think I know what’s going on,” he finally said, smiling at you, as you plucked your phone from his hand. “Do you mind if we sit and talk?”
You nodded and followed him to the table by the window.
As Bucky opened the door to the coffee shop, a bell jangled, and he scanned the crowd trying to find your familiar light brown jacket. He re-read the text you had sent him earlier ‘Hurry up, there’s someone I want you to meet.’
When he finally found you, his jaw clenched involuntarily. You were smiling at a man with broad shoulders and short brown hair. He would never admit it out loud, but seeing you with another man always made him livid.
“Buck!” you nearly shouted when your boyfriend approached your table. You got to your feet and took his hand as his eyes met those of his look-alike. “This is Sebastian… Proctor Barnes.”
Bucky’s head snapped toward you, the look in his eyes spoke a thousand words. ‘What the hell?’ You gave him a reassuringly smile and tugged on his hand. You both sat across from Sebastian who reached out to shake Bucky’s hand.
“It’s nice to meet you. Weird… but nice,” Sebastian said with an awkward laugh. “I’ve heard a lot about you.”
Bucky fidgeted in his seat and you squeezed his metal hand a little tighter. You were relieved to be able to touch the soft leather glove and feel the hardness of metal under your fingertips. Everything felt ‘normal’ again. At least now you were sure that your Bucky was sitting next to you.
“My great-uncle is one of the Howling Commandos,” Sebastian continued, a big smile on his face. “I used to brag about that constantly when I was a kid.”
You felt Bucky relax next to you and your heart swelled with love. He hung his head bashfully and bit his lip, unsuccessfully fighting back a smile. His cheeks were a little pink, which usually only happened when you were together.
“How’s Becca?” Bucky asked after a moment. “I haven’t seen her since… well it’s been a while.”
“She’s good,” Sebastian nodded, a small smile crossed his lips.
While you were waiting for Bucky, Sebastian told you that his grandmother was Rebecca Proctor Barnes, Bucky’s little sister. After her husband passed away, they had no choice but to place her in a nursing home. Rebecca had developed a form of dementia. She remembered her past and every little details as if she was still living in the 40s, but she couldn’t remember her children or grandchildren.
Every time Sebastian came to visit her, she would cry and scream that her brother was back. But in her brief moments of clarity, she’d realized Bucky wasn’t back and she’d cry even harder. No one told her Bucky had survived the fall, it would only make things more confusing.
After a few months, Sebastian had stopped visiting her - he had never meant to cause her grief. He knew he looked a lot like his grandmother’s big brother, he had seen pictures of him. He would remembered her grandmother fondly, but he preferred to focus on the good times they’d shared.
“Nana always said I look a lot like you,” Sebastian said, fiddling with his empty cup. “So when your girlfriend called me Bucky, I… kind of put two and two together.”
“Yeah,” Bucky replied softly.
You saw his brows furrowed momentarily and you knew what he was thinking; how did you two meet exactly? Sebastian cleared his throat, catching your attention.
“I’m gonna go grab another coffee. You guys want anything? My treat.”
You both shook your heads ‘no’, too stunned to eat or drink anything. As Sebastian walked to the end of the line, Bucky rubbed the spot between his eyes, he could feel a headache coming on.
“It’s crazy.”
“They say that there are seven people in the world who look exactly like us.”
“He’s my sister’s grandson, my flesh and blood, and we’re the same age,” Bucky said, his voice quivering. “Please tell me you didn’t kiss him thinking it was me.” You scrunched up your face and he groaned out loud. “Jesus Christ!”
“I kissed his neck. Sorry.” You raised your hands in surrender before you wrapped your arms around Bucky neck. “I thought you had cut your hair and shaved.”
“Fair enough,” he sighed, bringing you closer. “But don’t kiss another one of my doppelgängers.”
“I swear.”
Bucky pulled you close to him and kissed you passionately. The kiss made you forget where you were and you only came to your senses when Sebastian came back to your table. He gave you a lopsided smile and your felt your face heat up. It was a bit strange to see that look on his face. It reminded you so much of Bucky.
Bucky’s arm curled possessively around your waist as Sebastian sat down. You tried to think of something else to say when your phone vibrated on the table.
“It’s Nat,” you said, “I won’t be long.”
You kissed Bucky’s cheek before you slipped off to the Ladies to answer the call. Bucky and Sebastian stared at each other for a moment, unsure of what to say. Of course, there was something Bucky needed to know, but he wasn’t sure how to bring up the subject.
“Do you know who I am?” Bucky asked. “You know what they call me?”
Sebastian nodded. “The Winter Soldier.”
“You know what the Winter Soldier did?”
“I do.” He waited a second before he continued. “It wasn’t your fault. I’ve heard about the fall, HYDRA and the experiments. You can’t be held responsible for your actions. HYDRA’s the monster, not you.”
Hearing someone other than Steve, you or the other Avengers tell him that he wasn’t a monster made Bucky’s heart leap in his chest. He recognized his sister’s good heart behind the words of his grand-nephew. It made his eyes water.
“You must have felt so lonely.”
Sebastian placed his hand on top of Bucky’s flesh hand, his metal hand was hidden under the table. You walked back to the table and saw that Bucky’s shoulders were slumped and his head bent. It didn’t take a genius to understand what they were talking about. Bucky looked back at you as you sat next to him. His pale eyes were full of unshed tears, making them bluer than ever.
“Thank you.”
“For what?” You frowned.
“For being my best girl.”
Cupping his face, you placed a sweet kiss on his mouth. A tear fell from Bucky’s lashes and landed on your cheek. When you pulled back, you saw Sebastian smiling at the two of you. You smiled back before you spoke.
“I don’t want to interrupt your reunion, but Nat’s waiting for us. We have to go.”
You and Bucky said goodbye to Sebastian and while you gathered your stuff, an idea crossed your mind.
“Are you busy this Sunday? Maybe we could have breakfast together.” You turned to Bucky. “If you’re both okay with that.”
Bucky nodded. “I’d like to know more about you. You’re my grand-nephew after all.”
“You gotta stop calling me that, it’s weird,” Sebastian chuckled, making you and Bucky snicker.
“You’ll get used to it. He makes a lot of ‘I’m an old fart’ jokes.”
Sebastian laughed while Bucky rolled his eyes. He gave you his phone and you created two new contacts: you and Bucky. He pocketed his phone and turned back to you.
“So, uh, the Pancake House, 9AM? Is that good?”
A large smile appeared on Bucky’s face. “No! You like pancakes too?”
“Fuck,” you muttered to yourself. You forgot that every time it was Bucky’s turn to choose a restaurant, he’d always choose the Pancake House. And apparently, it was a family thing.
“Definitely!” Sebastian grinned at your boyfriend’s enthusiasm. “With a little maple syrup, you know… some blueberries, some whipped cream. It’s great!”
Bucky turned into an excited puppy and shook your arm as if to say ‘look this guy is like me.’ You face palmed yourself, grinning behind your hand.
“I like that guy,” Bucky said, slinging his arm over your shoulders as you stepped out of the coffee shop. “And don’t you think he’s good looking?”
You threw him one of your legendary dirty look, the corner of your mouth twitching into a smile. Bucky laughed, kissing your temple as you fell into step with him.