When Lucy had said she trusted Bucky she did not expect that would mean walking down the streets of Atlanta at eleven o'clock at night carrying all their stuff. Bucky had his backpack on his back and his rifle bag shrugged onto his right shoulder. Lucy carried her own stuff in her backpack suitcase. They had stored the sleeping bags and other camping gear in a bag in a storage locker that Bucky had broken into.
Lucy wasn't sure how she felt about the illegal things they were doing. At the same time, she hadn't had time to process everything that had happened over the last three days. She was still running on adrenaline and survival.
She was trudging behind him and looking down at her feet feeling pretty tired of walking when Bucky stopped suddenly and Lucy walked right into his backpack-covered back and bounced off. She would have fallen if Bucky's left arm hadn't shot out and caught her, pulling her into his side.
He then turned them and walked them to the main doors of a highrise building guarded by a man in a security uniform. Bucky reached for the door handle but was stopped by a hand on his arm. He froze, and she could feel his muscles bunching from where he still held her against his left side.
Lucy placed a hand on his chest, hoping that they could avoid a physical confrontation.
"State your business here." The security guard demanded. He had a bit of a beer belly and looked to be older, in his late 40s. He had a gold wedding band on the left hand that gripped Bucky's arm and his other hand was placed on his gun.
"I am here to speak to Mr. Petrov." Bucky's voice came out casually but he was still tense and ready for a fight.
"Mr. Petrov?" The security guard sounded surprised then his face turned stony and his fingers tightened on both the gun and Bucky's arm.
"Mr. Petrov would have told me if he had an appointment; since you don't, you're trespassing and must leave."
"We don't have an appointment, but Mr. Petrov will want to see me. Tell him Ivan Smirkoff is here."
Lucy gave Bucky a questioning look but stayed silent. She trusted Bucky to keep her alive.
The security guard didn't let go of Bucky's arm but his hand did move off his gun and up to the walkie-talkie on his shoulder as he spoke into it.
"There's an Ivan Smirkoff and guest here to see Mr. Petrov."
Static was heard on the other side followed by a distorted voice coming through. "Send them up."
The security guard removed his hand and allowed Bucky to open the door and enter. Lucy followed, feeling very unsure about what was happening.
After entering the building Bucky made a beeline for the elevators with his flesh hand on Lucy's lower back. They entered and a man stood in the elevator. Lucy felt like she had been thrown back into the 1980s. She had never been in a building that still had someone operating the elevator.
She took a closer look at him. He didn't look like a bellhop. He wasn't wearing a uniform or anything, and she was pretty sure that was a gun stuck in his jeans peeking out from underneath his leather jacket when he reached up his arm to hit the button for the top floor. Who the hell were they going to meet that everyone had guns? Lucy was feeling a little underdressed without a weapon. Then again, Bucky was a weapon in himself even without all his knives and guns.
Lucy moved closer to him until she was leaning up against his side and his left arm was now draped across her shoulders and down so her back was against his side and his hand was hovering over her belly. At any other moment, Lucy would be uncomfortable about the position they were in, but right now it was nice to have the possessive gesture. It kept her safe from anyone trying to get anywhere near her.
The ride up to the top was awkwardly quiet, at least for Lucy. The man hadn't even asked them what floor they were headed to, he just hit the button and they rode up the twenty-something floors in silence.
The elevator finally dinged, signaling that they had reached the top. The doors slid open to reveal a hallway with one door. Bucky moved confidently towards it, guiding Lucy in front of him with a hand on her lower back.
Bucky walked them up to the door and knocked three times. Silence engulfed the two of them as they stood and waited.
There was a click at the door as someone turned the lock and opened the door. An older gentleman with silver-white hair, bright blue eyes, and handsome features.
"Ivan!" The man's face broke into a wide smile as he reached forward and pulled Bucky into a kiss on each cheek. Lucy was shocked. She took a step back, surprised at this sudden act of affection.
She always considered Bucky to be someone that was not touchy-feely and that she was a special circumstance. She had thought that she was special, but it looked like she was just another person to Bucky. That was a hard hit for Lucy to take. She shook it off as well as she could and returned her mind to the present moment.
Bucky pulled back, but there was a smile dancing across his lips. "Mister Petrov, kak dela? Proshlo mnogo vremeni." Bucky spoke in what sounded like Russian.
"YA ochen' khorosh, no udivlen, uvidev tebya zdes', osobenno v etot chas. Chto ya mogu sdelat' dlya tebya, Ivan? A kto eta krasavitsa?" the man replied.
Lucy shrank in on herself a little bit when the man's eyes turned to scrutinize her. He looked more curious than anything else, which made her feel a little better, but she didn't like not being able to understand what was being said.
Bucky turned and put an arm around Lucy's waist and moved her forward before gesturing with his hand and firing off some more things in Russian. "Eto Lucy, i nam nuzhna pomoshch'. My stolknulis' s nekotorymi trudnostyami. Nekotoryye lyudi ishchut Lucy, a mne nuzhny dokumenty."
A frown creased the older man's brow, but then he turned and ushered them both with hand movements and words to come inside.
He closed the door behind them and guided them through his beautiful penthouse apartment to a picturesque living room overlooking the city through floor to ceiling windows.
A white L-shaped sectional couch took up the bulk of the space with a glass coffee table sitting in front of it.
The man gestured for Lucy and Bucky to take a seat on the couch. Bucky moved Lucy toward the corner and crowded her in. They both set their things at their feet and sat down. Lucy ended up with her left side pressed up against Bucky's side and her right was against the armrest.
Lucy was definitely feeling a little squished but also a little bit happy with how physically pushy Bucky was being. She could tell he was doing it because he wasn't exactly comfortable here and trying to protect her with his body. He had done the same thing when they were in Walmart. It helped remind her that she probably knew him the best. This other person didn't even know his true name.
Lucy listened as more Russian was spoken from the older man, Mr. Petrov. "Yey nuzhny bumagi? Kak skoro?"
"Nemedlenno.." Bucky responded.
"Khmmm, eto opredelenno budet boleye slozhnym, no ne nevozmozhnym, moy drug. Day mne posmotret', chto ya mogu sdelat'." Mr. Petrov responded before he pulled out his phone.
He turned and walked away from Bucky and Lucy as he spoke more Russian into the phone. Bucky leaned back in his seat and put his arm around Lucy, pulling her into a cuddled position at his side. Lucy was surprised at how physically affectionate Bucky was being, especially after this morning. She thought he wouldn't want to be anywhere near her, but he seemed to want her glued to his side, not that she was complaining. Bucky was comfortable to be around and just the right kind of body type to snuggle with. He was tall, broad, and all muscle.
This whole situation made it too easy to forget the man's name written on her skin and desperately wish that it was Bucky's name. Whoever this James Barnes was, he wasn't here to protect her, or keep her safe. He wasn't here, defending her from bad guys, holding her when she slept or telling her that it was all going to be ok. Bucky was doing that. When she did find this James person, he better have a really good reason for not being here for her when her whole world fell apart.
Another more horrifying thought crossed Lucy's mind. What if fate had gotten it wrong. What if James wasn't her soulmate, what if she wasn't meant to have one and she got the name by mistake?
A hand was placed underneath her hair and on the back of her neck. Lucy looked up at Bucky. He wasn't looking at her, he was scanning the room, but she felt him gently squeeze in reassurance before letting go.
