Chapter Text
4F. Out of all that he could have been listed as, a 4F? Steve Rogers groaned as he made his way to the local theater for an afternoon showing. Annoyed with the answer he had been given yet again, he decided that he might as well find some way to distract himself, along with avoiding the reaction he knew he would receive when he arrived home.
In the theater, he was reminded once more of what had happened that afternoon. Taking his seat in the auditorium, an advertisement for the war effort began to play. Steve longed to be on the front line. It was what he felt was the right thing to do. He knew he had the courage and desire to help protect his home. The only problem was his was barely ninety pounds, five-foot-four, and had a long list of health issues to boot.
As he watched the advertisement, someone behind him began to shout for the movie to begin. Around the room, different people began to shuffle uncomfortably in their seats. A woman sitting near him seemed to purse her lips as she tightened her grip on her purse. At another jeer from the man, Steve turned around telling the jerk to shut up.
The next thing he knew, he wasn't watching his afternoon showing. Instead, he was being beaten up in the back alley. It wasn't long before the familiar young man, the one he called his best friend, arrived and gave the jerk a punch to the face and a kick in the ass for good measure. Turning to Steve as the jerk disappeared, James Buchanan Barnes rolled his eyes.
"Sometimes, I think you like getting beat up," the charming man said.
Steve wiped at his nose, knowing he was bleeding. Once again, he knew the reaction he would receive when he arrived home. He wondered how long of a list he could create before he arrived. Turning his attention to his best friend and wiping the blood of his hands, he took in the appearance of his best friend.
The tall and charming figure of Bucky Barnes was dressed in his military dress uniform. In his hands, he held the morning paper. With a particular page in view, he handed it to Steve.
"Come on, we're going out tonight," he started. "And we're bringing Allie with us."
"Are we celebrating something?" Steve asked, knowing the answer he was about to receive.
"I've been assigned to the 107th," Bucky started. "I ship out tomorrow at seven, so this is my last hoorah."
"The 107th?" Steve's eyes widened as he took the paper, keeping his eyes on Bucky. Steve's father had been a member of the 107th in the first World War. After a mustard gas attack head left him sick, Joseph Rogers had returned to Brooklyn in time for Steve to be born, and his mother to become pregnant with his younger sister.
"Yeah," Bucky nodded, his eyes on the ground as he thought for a moment. "I'll be Sergeant James Barnes."
"Yeah, well, around us you're still Bucky," Steve tried to smile before his mood soured once more.
Two men began to walk out of the alleyway. On their way back to Steve's Brooklyn home that he shared with his sister, Bucky seemed to study him for just a moment.
"So, what exactly were you doing this morning?" Bucky asked as he took back the newspaper from Steve.
"Nothing," Steve shrugged, making sure to tuck the paper in his jacket pocket further in.
"Uh huh," Bucky mumbled, swiftly pushing Steve's hand away, reaching in, and taking the piece of paper. Reading it, he groaned and crumbled the sheet. "Steve, Allie's going to kill you when she finds out."
"It's fine!" Steve shrugged off the thought. "I'll just try again."
"She's going to kill you."
"Not if she doesn't find out."
Steve had made a habit of trying to enlist with the same result each time: rejection. Allison Mae Rogers, or Allie as her friends called her, was the very same younger sister that waited at the Brooklyn home; the very same one he was keen to avoid that afternoon.
Allie was a nurse at a local hospital, and was used to the way her brother liked to pick fights. She was accustomed to cleaning up his cuts and scrapes, scolding him for provoking men larger than him. She wasn't exactly pleased when she had found out about his habit of falsifying forms in an attempt to be enlisted.
As the men reached the Rogers house, Steve dreaded the moment that his sister realized what had taken place that day. Deciding to pretend that nothing had happened, he led himself and Bucky inside, choosing to prod about what the charming sergeant beside him had planned.
"So, what exactly are we going to do tonight?" Steve asked him, taking off his jacket and putting it on the coat rack beside the front door.
"Did you even look at that newspaper? Howard Stark has a whole expo going on," Bucky explained with a wide grin. "It's the future. Besides, I got us dates, and one for Allie, too."
"She's going to kill you," Steve mocked Bucky's earlier sentiment.
"Why? He's a nice guy! She'll like him," Bucky gave a small shrug.
Stomping could be heard on the second floor. Steve and Bucky looked at one another, both terrified of the fury of Allison Mae Rogers.
"JAMES BUCHANAN BARNES!" her voice shouted as she tore down the stairs that directly faced the men.
"Shit!" Bucky jumped at the sound of her voice. "She never pulls out my middle name."
"Only when she's mad at you," Steve smirked at him.
Walking up to the two, Allie ignored her brother and instead came to stand toe-to-toe with Bucky. Her striking blue eyes were narrowed, her golden blonde curls tied back and away from her face. She was in a plain dress and had no shoes on in the house, but her cheeks had begun to flush red, the freckles on her cheeks disappearing in the rush of color. Bucky only found himself swallowing harshly at her glare.
"Did you just say that you set me up on a date?!"
"Yes?" Bucky asked, noticing the way her fists had been balled at her sides, coming to rest across her chest as she crossed her arms.
"Why the hell would you do that?"
Bucky looked at Steve before he dared to speak. He wanted to curse Steve out when he noticed the smirk on the man's face. He slowly looked back at Allie, trying to smile as he looked her in the eye.
"Because he's nice?"
"James! I don't need you trying to find me a date. You have terrible taste," she scoffed.
"Really?" his lips quirked into a grin. "I think I have perfect taste."
"You don't," she glared. "Now, why have you gone and gotten me a date?"
"It's a triple date," Steve sighed, walking past his sister and Bucky into the kitchen, grabbed himself a glass, and poured himself a glass of water from the tap.
"A triple date?" Allie's face fell a bit as she looked between where Steve had disappeared and Bucky.
"Yes, a triple date. All three of us are going to have dates tonight," Bucky explained, taking off his dress uniform's hat and placing it in the crook of his arm.
Walking past Allie and into the kitchen to get his own glass of water, he didn't notice the way Allie's expression was full of hurt. It was bad enough that he had set her up on a blind date. It was an entirely different amount of hurt to have to watch him be on a date as well. She knew that hurt all too well, this wasn't the first time he had done this.
"I see," she seemed to calm down. "And where exactly did you say we were going?"
She followed the two into the kitchen, taking out bred and jam to make a quick afternoon snack for themselves. Placing a slice of jam covered bread in front of each of them and pouring a glass of water for herself, she sat down at the kitchen table.
"The Stark Expo," Bucky grinned. "It'll be a night of the future."
Bucky had always had an interest on the future. Anytime they had science lessons or science fairs, he could be found talking about it on end with anyone who would allow him the time. Allie had always been someone the knew would allow him to talk about it as long as he wanted.
"I'm sure," she mused and began to eat her slice of bread.
Steve looked between Bucky and Allie. The three had always been close friends ever since they had met in their early teens. She had never admitted it to him, and he was sure that she never would, but Steve knew that Allie was sweet on Bucky. After he had made the realization, he had made his own attempt to convince Bucky to quit his habit of setting Allie up with the various different men, but he was hard to convince on the matter.
"Come on, Allie," Bucky leaned in with a grin as Allie decided to add more jam to her bread. "It'll be a fun time. Besides, if for some reason he does in fact turn out to be a jerk, you've got your two favorite guys right here."
Allie only turned and faced Bucky, butterknife in her hand and pointed at him. Keeping it directly pointed at him, she narrowed her eyes. "Really?" she asked. "Because I don't see them."
"Well, now that's just hurtful," Bucky said, his voice full of mock hurt as he pretended to clutch his heart in despair.
"Well, what time are we all going out?" Steve asked, trying to move on as quickly as he could.
"I told them all six o'clock," Bucky shrugged and gave a small sigh. As silence settled over them, he looked at Steve who still had not made mention of what he had been up to that day. "Oh, by the way, Allie?"
"Hm?" she hummed as she took a bite of her bread.
Steve's eyes snapped up to Bucky, knowing what he was about to say. He tried to motion for Bucky not to say anything, but it was to no avail. If Bucky was going down for setting Allie up on a date, Steve was going down for what he had done. Allie looked between the two with a raised brow.
"What is it?" she asked, unladylike as her mouth as full.
"Steve tried to enlist again," Bucky spat out quickly.
Allie blinked for a moment, swallowing her food as she let Bucky's words fully register. Had she heard him correctly? They locked eyes for a moment, Bucky giving a small nod as Allie's eyes narrowed once again that afternoon.
"STEVEN GRANT ROGERS!" she yelled as she turned and faced her older brother. "How many damned times do I have to tell you to stop that!"
"Allie! I need to be out there fighting! If you're scared about who's going to take care of you once I'm enlisted—"
"Take care of me? I'm not worried about anyone taking care of me. I'm worried about you," she argued. "You can't keep doing this."
"Allie..." Steve's voice fell flat.
The stress of his habit of enlistment attempts had taken its toll on Allie. The trouble that he was risking, the way that if he were to be caught, he could be arrested, it weighed heavily on her. She loved him, and he was her only family left, but she couldn't do anything more than scold him for his actions. That, combined with Bucky's attire caused her to see that the night was more than just a random triple date.
"Allie—" Bucky started, but Allie turned to face him.
"No, stay out of this, Bucky," she warned. Turning to Steve, she gave a sigh. "Steve, you need to stop this."
There was an uncomfortable silence that settled on the three. There was nothing more that could be said on the topic, Bucky and Allie had both made their attempts to convince Steve that he had picked up a bad habit. For a moment, Allie let her eyes drift over to Bucky. She swallowed harshly before she dared to speak.
"What's the real reason we're going out tonight?" she asked, placing the last few bites of bread down on her plate.
"I'm being shipped out tomorrow morning," Bucky's voice was soft, gentle in its nature as he looked over at her.
"What time?" her lips pursed.
"Seven."
Leaving her plate at the table, Allie excused herself before hurrying upstairs and walking into her bedroom. On her dresser, an opened envelope with a letter hastily shoved back inside laid with her name and address facing the ceiling. In her closet, her crisp and clean white nurse's uniform, its accompanying cap sitting on the dress beside the letter.
Allie's breath had quickened in its pace, becoming rapid as she sunk to the ground at the foot of her bed. The war overseas had rapidly begun to change her life, and it was settling in, scaring her in the process. Wringing her hands together, she heard a knock at the door. Looking up, she saw Bucky standing there.
"Allie, I know you'll miss me, but Steve's still here," Bucky gave his small attempt at a teasing grin.
"That's not what I'm worried about," she admitted, her eyes falling back to her uniform.
"Then what are you worried about?" he asked, walking closer and sinking down to sit beside her.
Allie took in a deep breath, closing her eyes for a moment. As the words threatened to spill out in a confession, she made herself take a second deep breath as she opened her eyes and turned to face him. Tears began to brim along the edges of her eyes, Bucky taking note of them as she spoke.
"I was accepted to be a nurse overseas."
"What?"
"That's what I'm worried about," a couple of the tears streamed down her cheeks. "Bucky, he's not going to stop trying to enlist. If you're not here, and I'm not here, then who's going to look after him? If we're both over there, there's no-one to keep him from getting himself arrested."
"Oh Allie," the words came from his lips softly as he wrapped his arm around her shoulder. It certainly wasn't the first time that he had comforted her, hell, it wasn't even the hundredth. With Steve's poor health, Bucky was accustomed to holding Allie as she cried. Rubbing her arm gently, his thumb grazing over the skin of her upper arm, he felt as she laid her head down on his shoulder. "It's going to be okay."
"Is it selfish of me to go?" she asked.
"No," he answered in a heartbeat. "Frankly, I think Steve and I would have been more shocked if you hadn't applied to begin with. It's going to be okay, though. I'll go and fight for the country, you'll go and patch up the boys overseas, and my parents and sisters can look out for him."
"And your brother?"
"Thomas is thirteen and would tell Steve what he's doing is a good idea," Bucky snorted. "We are not letting him take care of Steve. We are not even letting those two be in the same room."
Allie softly laughed beside him, burying her head into his shoulder as she laughed. At the sound of her muffled laugh, Bucky gave her shoulder a squeeze.
"The only problem with your plan is that Steve is stubborn. I'm not sure he would let them help him even if they tried," she breathed.
"Probably not," he agreed, a soft chuckle sounding from him. Bumping her lightly with his shoulder he leaned back just enough to look at her. "Look on the bright side though."
"Bright side?" she glanced up with a frown.
"The two of us will be over there. With my good looks and your scary attitude, the war will be over before we know it," he smirked.
"You're annoying, you know that?" Allie rolled her eyes at him.
"Yeah," he grinned. "I know."
Allie paused for a moment and wiped at the tears that had streamed down her cheeks. Bucky leaned over, kissing her temple and standing to his feet, helping her up as he stood.
"Now, I should probably go home long enough to give my family the news," he frowned at the thought before looking her in the eye and smiling once more. "All I want you to do, is relax, and dress up for tonight."
"You want me to dress up?" she raised her brow and laughed.
"I want you to enjoy your night," he shrugged. "And I know you. You like getting to dress up."
Allie's cheeks flushed a bit as she tried to suppress her grin. Nodding, she offered to walk him downstairs to which he agreed. Taking his hat from the kitchen table and saying goodbye to the two, he agreed to pick them up in just a few short hours.
As he closed the front door behind himself, Bucky held Allie's eye for just a moment more than what might have been considered normal. And Steve noticed.
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"How do I look?" Allie's voice sounded as she walked down the stairs.
The two had been in the middle of straightening their ties in the mirror, calling out to her as they stood there. Bucky had been straightening and fixing the small pieces of his uniform, the sadness that surrounded his family at his news that afternoon causing him to fidget.
Coming to stand at the foot of the stairs, Allie looked at both Bucky and Steve. She was dressed in her nicest dress; a beautiful light blue dress her mother had bought her for special events shortly before she had passed away. She had paired it with a beautiful pair small dangling earrings with beautiful blue stones that glittered in the light. Her hair had allowed to brush along her shoulders, the front pinned back just enough to not be in her eyes, and her makeup was soft and light. Looking her over, Bucky swallowed harshly before being brought back to reality by Steve telling his sister she looked pretty.
If he had been completely honest, he would have told her that she looked gorgeous. He would have told her how she had taken his breath away. And yet, he wasn't exactly going to be that frank and bold in front of her and her brother.
"You look nice," he settled for a vague and general statement.
"You think so?" she smiled as she walked over, looking through her heels on a small shoe rack by the door. "It's been a while since I last wore this dress."
"You look great," Bucky smiled.
She settled on a pair of simple heels, putting them on quickly and grabbing a handbag from a living room end table. Giving herself a finally glance in the mirror, she allowed Bucky and Steve to lead her outside as they began to make their way to the Stark Expo. Bucky hailed a cab and the three friends piled into the back of the car. Steve exchanged a glance with his sister as the drew closer to the event. Neither Rogers sibling was thrilled with the idea of being on a blind date.
At their arrival, the three seemingly hopped from the taxicab and made their way into the Expo. Everywhere they looked, something incredible was being displayed. Bucky looked like an excited child as his eyes lit up. Allie teased him before receiving a soft glare before he smiled in turn.
"Are you sure we really came for a blind date? Or was this your excuse to get us to come and babysit you?" Allie teased.
Her answer came in the form of a pretty brunette waving in their direction and calling out to Bucky. Looking at her, Allie's heart sank. She knew she had been teasing, but she had hoped that maybe, just maybe, these dates hadn't really existed. Beside the pretty brunette was a pretty blonde and a fairly handsome young man.
"Over here, Sarge!" the brunette smiled brightly. Allie was internally cursing the way that the girl looked so sweet.
"So what did you tell her about me?" Steve asked quietly as he took in the beautiful blonde's appearance.
"Only the good stuff," Bucky assured him as he waved back to the girl.
"And what exactly did you tell him about me?" Allie asked, her grip tightening on her handbag.
"Like I said, only the good stuff," Bucky assured her.
Coming to stand in front of the three new faces, Bucky began the introductions. His date, the beautiful brunette, was Connie. She happily greeted Allie, complimenting her dress as Bucky introduced Steve to Bonnie and Allie to George.
"You look lovely in blue," Connie whispered to her.
"Oh," Allie's lips parted in surprise before she smiled. "Well, thank you. You look lovely as well."
Allie had been on a few double dates with Bucky in the past. She was accustomed to his dates being jealous of her having been his best friend. She always did her best to feel friendly, or at the very least indifferent, to the girls Bucky took on dates. She was relieved to find Connie already friendly and excited for the evening. It was a nice change.
Despite liking the girl's personality, Allie still struggled with the idea of the triple date. Ever since that afternoon, she had already been struggling with the idea of Bucky being shipped off in the morning to go and fight in a war she knew he wasn't keen on fighting in. It was even harder knowing that he was spending that night with another girl draped on his arm. Steve caught her expression as she frowned at Bucky with Connie on his arm.
The date itself was quite boring for the Rogers siblings. Steve was far too terrified to even speak to Bonnie and chose to keep to himself the entire time, much to Bonnie's annoyance. Allie made the attempt more than once to make small talk with George. The little bits of conversation that they had were filled with compliments, however the compliments were from George to... well George. He boasted of his achievements, boring Allie to no end. It took a majority of their time walking around the Expo for George to notice Allie's off-put expression, to which he quickly began to compliment her appearance.
"Well, thank you," she said politely. "But, I'm more than just a pretty face."
"How so?" George scoffed with a cocked brow.
"I happen to be a nurse," she said with pride, deciding to ignore his demeanor.
"So you like to play doctor?" the man smirked.
It was at that exact moment that Allie decided that if the war didn't kill James Buchanan Barnes, she would. Steve and Bucky both looked back at her as the group neared a presentation being given by Howard Stark himself. Both men frowned as they saw her soured expression. George hadn't caught on and continued to make suggestive comments about Allie's profession.
"I think that's enough," Steve bit out angrily.
"Oh yeah? And what are you going to do about it?" George scoffed at Steve.
"Keep talking to my sister that way and you'll find out," Steve threatened.
Bucky placed a hand on Steve's shoulder and sent a glare in George's direction. Letting his eyes fall on Allie, he noticed her small shrug and frowned. Connie and Bonnie shared a look before Connie took Allie's hand and quickly asked her questions. Allie was grateful for the graceful excuse to no longer have to stand beside George.
The three women glanced at the stage where they could see the presentation in the middle of starting. Connie eagerly looked over her shoulder and told Bucky it was starting before she pulled Allie and Bonnie towards the show. With the men poking behind, Connie took advantage of the loud audience to lean over to Allie.
"Are you okay?" she whispered.
"I'm alright," Allie assured her. "But thank you, I appreciate you saving me back there."
"Of course," Connie smiled and gave her arm a squeeze. "Maybe with any luck we'll all lose him?"
"That would be a dream," Allie laughed.
"Maybe we could get Mr. Stark's attention and he'll sweep you off your feet in front of him," Bonnie laughed.
"I don't think Howard Stark is exactly my ideal man," Allie laughed as Connie and Bonnie looked at her with confused, but amused expressions.
"But he's rich," Connie teased.
"And he's kissing one of his showgirls," Allie nodded at the stage and laughing as Connie and Bonnie both laughed.
"You know, I know you three are incredibly clever, but I want to know what's special about a car," Bucky leaned in and teased them.
The three women stifled their laughter as Howard Stark gave his presentation about said car. As it turned out, it wasn't just any car, but a flying car. Allie found herself impressed by the technology, but curious if it was truly the future.
"Do you think I could get one of those?" Bucky leaned in and asked Allie.
"If you did, your brother would sneak into and wreck it before you could ever fly it for the first time," Allie snickered. At Connie's look between Allie and Bucky, Allie shook her head. "His little brother is thirteen and has always had a habit of causing mischief."
"Oh, I would definitely keep a flying car from a thirteen-year-old," Connie laughed.
As Allie listened to more of Mr. Stark's presentation, she wondered what her future was going to look like. Would it be something shiny and spectacular like a flying car? Would there be even more? Something less?
Bucky turned around as the presentation was wrapping up, looking to talk to Steve, but found the young man missing from the group. Nudging Allie's arm, she noticed Steve's absence and looked around the crowd with Bucky. Both sets of eyes fell on an Army exhibit nearby, both sighing as they excused themselves from their dates. Making their way to the exhibit, Bucky was certain he heard Allie muttering expletives and possibly even plotting how she would kill her brother when she caught him.
Inside the exhibit, they found Steve standing and looking longingly at the different displays. Bucky and Allie stopped in their tracks, both simultaneously upset that he had snuck off without telling them at the same time they felt sorry for Steve who was yet again at a road the couldn't take.
"Steve," Bucky sighed as he led Allie over to her brother. "You've got to stop this."
"Bucky, there are men laying down their lives over there. I don't have any right to do any less than them," Steve argued. "I don't have any right to do any less than you."
"There are things over here that you can do, too," Bucky countered. "There are factories you could work in, and there's more that you can do to help the war effort."
"I'm not going to just sit around here while people are fighting," Steve insisted.
"This is illegal, though," Bucky hissed at him. "Steve, they could arrest you, or worse, they'll actually ship you overseas," he rubbed his temples in frustration.
"Bucky," Allie said gently as she put a hand on his arm.
"Buck, I'll be fine. When they finally send me overseas, I'll make sure that Allie is okay and taken care of. It's all going to work out," Steve explained with a grin. Allie and Bucky could only exchange a knowing look with one another.
"Hey Sarge! Are we still going to go dancing?" Connie's voice was heard ringing towards them as the group finally found where they had gone off to.
The three friends turned to face their dates. Connie and Bonnie stood with linked arms and curious expressions at the conversation that was taking place while George looked annoyed and was glaring at Bucky standing with Allie. Allie and Bucky both turned back to face Steve who just shook his head.
"You two go ahead," he swallowed. "I'll be okay."
"But—" Bucky began.
"No, seriously," Steve smiled. Bucky could only shake his head at his best friend.
"Don't do anything stupid until I get back," Bucky said.
"How can I? You're taking all the stupid with you," Steve shot back and Allie let out a belly laugh.
"You're a punk," Bucky suppressed his grin as he gave Steve a hug.
"Jerk," Steve mumbled into Bucky's shoulder. Steve and Bucky straightened themselves out. "Don't win the war until I get there."
Bucky gave Steve a sarcastic salute before turning to Allie. She let Steve walk away, telling him that she'd make it home alright that night. Watching him disappear further into the exhibit, she turned to face Bucky.
"Don't be too hard on him, Buck. As infuriating as it is, and trust me when I say I am ready to wring his neck over it, he does want to help the country."
"Allie, you're going to have to tell him at some point," Bucky sighed as he glossed over Steve wanting to try and enlist again. "I am so proud of you for doing this, but he needs to know."
"I know, and I will tell him. Tonight, however, is not the night to do so. Now, come on. Let's go dancings and spend the rest of the night not worrying about any of this," she grinned at him.
"Alright," he nodded firmly, allowing himself to smile at her. Leading her out of the exhibit once more, he led her back to their dates. "Sorry ladies, Steve needed to head out early."
"So I won't have him hounding me for talking to you then?" George took a step closer to Allie, smirking as he did so.
"Hey, watch it," Bucky narrowed his eyes. "I'm still here."
"Right. Her 'best friend'," George scoffed.
Once again, Connie and Bonnie were quick to engage in conversation with Allie to pull her away from George. The five young adults made their way to a taxicab, driving to Brooklyn and finding a local dance hall that Bucky frequented with Allie when they were on double dates. The ride was uncomfortable for Allie who had found herself being pinned between Connie and George.
George continued to make suggestive comments to her, earning glares from Bucky who had taken the passenger seat to give the women more space. Connie held onto Allie's hand, squeezing when it was clear that George was making it uncomfortable.
Arriving at the dance hall, the five made their way inside. Allie thanked Connie quietly once more, letting the girl lead her inside and to a table where she, Connie, and Bonnie all sat together and began to talk about anything they could think of.
Bucky had held George back as the girls complimented one another on their appearances and about the Expo. George rolled his eyes, and let out a huff of annoyance as Bucky glared. George seemed to puff his chest out a bit, reminding Bucky of the jerk that had been beating Steve up earlier that afternoon.
"You need to stop talking to Allie like that," Bucky warned.
"Or what?" George scoffed. He was arrogant, but he was intimidated by Bucky who was taller and broader. "You gonna set her scrawny brother try and fight me?"
"Oh you wouldn't have to worry about Steve," Bucky assured him. "I'm the one that you've got to worry about."
"You don't scare me pretty boy," George scoffed.
"Keep talking to her that way and I will," Bucky felt confident as he turned his attention to the girls and walked over to them. Quickly turning on his smile, he watched as they all looked up at them with laughter bubbling from their lips. "Alright, now you three are laughing far too much for my comfort. What did you tell them, Allie?"
"Just a few stories from high school," Allie dismissed with a wave of her hand.
"Now I definitely know that you did something evil. George and I are going to get us all drinks," Bucky declared as George reached the group, glaring between Bucky and Allie once more. Taking their orders, the two men walked over to the bar and collected the beverages as they came.
At the table, the girls looked over at the men at the bar. Connie and Bonnie both sat their chairs a bit closer to Allie's as George faced away from them. Talking to them throughout the night, Allie realized that as much as she wanted to be able to dislike them, she found that she rather adored the two.
"So you said that you're a nurse?" Connie asked curiously.
"Oh, yes," Allie nodded. "I work long shifts a few days a week, but it is a big job."
"I've been interested in going to nursing school," Connie confessed and Bonnie smiled proudly at her best friend.
"You should," Allie encouraged. "It is a big job, I won't lie to you about that. But, I've found it to be very rewarding. My mother was a nurse and I took after her pretty quickly with it, and now I've been accepted to go overseas and help on one of the bases."
"Wow," Bonnie's eyes widened. "How did your brother take that news?"
Allie pursed her lips as she looked down at the tabletop. "Well, Steve doesn't exactly know about it yet. Bucky's the only other person that knows."
While her eyes were dropped, Connie and Bonnie exchanged a look. They hadn't been blind to Bucky and Allie being as close as they were, the whispering between them that had taken place at the Expo. With Steve having kept to himself for the most part, Bonnie had taken to observing the rest of the group, and it hadn't surprised her in the slightest to learn that Allie had confided in Bucky.
"Well, I'm sure that he'll be proud," Connie smiled and gave Allie's hand a comforting pat.
Watching George carefully, Bucky and the other man made their way back over to the table with drinks in hand. The three women looked up at the sounds of their footsteps.
"Alright ladies," Bucky smiled. "Martinis for Connie and Bonnie, gin for George, bourbon for myself, and," he turned with the last drink in his hand. "Allie, your strong whiskey."
"I'm still surprised, a whiskey?" Bonnie grinned.
"Well, I've had to keep up with the boys for over ten years. I found I like it," she grinned and took a long drink from the glass.
"Pease, she's been ahead of us since since the beginning," Bucky grinned and Allie just shook her head while laughing.
Once more, there was an exchange of looks between Bonnie and Connie before Connie decided to take a chance and asked Bucky to dance. He obliged, excusing them from the table as Bonnie was asked to dance by another young gentleman in the hall. Feeling her skin crawl, Allie realized that she was, unfortunately, left alone with George. He was quick to take advantage of the moment, sidling closer to her without having to deal with the others stepping in.
"You know, we could leave now and go somewhere else," he suggested.
"I'd rather not," Allie pursed her lips.
"Come on, I know there's plenty of rooms we could go to. I'd let you play doctor," he smirked.
Disgusted and offended, Allie did her best not to let her emotions show on her face. Instead, she quickly drank the rest of her whiskey before choosing what to say to him.
"I think I'll go dance now," she said sourly as she stood from her seat.
"Don't be that way," George began as he stood up and grabbed her arm.
From where they danced, Bucky was alerted to what was going on by Connie's small and soft, "Oh no." Bucky felt his anger growing before he noticed Allie had quickly lost all facade of being kind.
"I said I was going to go and dance. I suggest that you take your hand off of me right now," she said as she narrowed her eyes into a sharp glare.
"Or what?" George scoffed. "You'll set your boyfriend and brother on me?"
"No," she said simply. Raising her foot, she quickly and firmly stomped on his foot with the heel of her shoe. He let go of her as he cursed. "You deal with me."
Taking advantage of the moment, she stormed across the dance hall and joined the others who had watched her in awe. Looking Bucky dead in the eyes, she felt angry tears brimming at the edges of her eyes.
"You have terrible taste in the men that you choose for me," she bit out.
Bucky and Connie both looked to exist of the dance hall where George was glaring angrily at them before he escaped through the door.
"I really thought he'd be nice," Bucky frowned at the way George had been.
"You thought? Bucky, did you even know him before today?" Allie asked as her brows furrowed in confusion.
"Not exactly," he admitted.
"Not exactly?!" Allie fumed.
At her raising her voice, Connie and Bonnie gave each other a final exasperated glance. Looking at Bucky and Allie, Connie stood back from him and cleared her throat as she frowned.
"Bonnie and I should really head home," she started.
"Let me walk you home," Bucky began before seeing Connie shake her head.
"We'll be alright," she began. "As lovely as tonight was, you two clearly need to have a conversation," she turned to face Allie. "It was really nice meeting you Allie. I wish you luck overseas."
Bucky and Allie both watched as the two friends walked away from them and out of the hall entirely. Part of Allie felt guilty. Bonnie and Connie had done nothing wrong. They had helped her out when it came to her disastrous date, and yet there she was ruining the night for them. They had both been good dates for Bucky and Steve. That thought, however, reminded her of her terrible date. Turning back to face Bucky, she felt her cheeks flushing with anger.
"Why do you always do this?" she hissed. "Do you ever actually try when you find these guys?"
"That's not fair," Bucky argued with a pointed finger at her. "I tried."
"Clearly you didn't!" she argued. "You find lovely dates for yourself and Steve, and then leave me with a man that keeps asking for me to play doctor with him? I didn't even want to be on a date tonight! I don't like when you set me up on these dates!"
"Well, I 'm sorry that I wanted to do something nice for you," he countered.
"Nice for me?" she almost felt as her heart plummeted. "Something nice for me would have been taking just me and Steve to the Expo. Something nice would have been having me and Steve over for dinner. Not a blind triple date with a man you only met on the street today."
"I didn't know he was going to be that way," Bucky defended himself.
"It's not just him," Allie groaned. "I have never been on a good date that you've set me up on. They have always been disasters, almost like you're trying to give me horrible dates. I swear, I am so close to killing you before the war ever even gets the chance."
"Allie," Bucky paused. "You don't mean that."
"I really wanted to enjoy this last night of you being home," Allie's eyes were filled with tears, although he couldn't tell if it was from anger, hurt, sadness, or a little of each.
"Well, then come on," his voice had become gentle. "Let's go and enjoy the rest of then night," he placed a hand on each Allie's arms, rubbing his thumbs against her skin as he had earlier that afternoon in her room when he had comforted her.
Looking up at him, Allie took in a deep breath. He was going to be leaving for the war in the morning. She didn't exactly like the idea of him going and possibly dying when they were still in a disagreement. Nodding her head, she let him pull her into an embrace as the music from the band across the hall had slowed.
"Allie, would you like to dance?" he asked her softly.
"Yes," she nodded and held Bucky as close to herself as she could. "I'm sorry for yelling at you."
"That's okay," he grinned with a small laugh. "You only ever yell at me when I need it. Besides, we're both stressed. Everything will be fine."
"I hope you're right," she whispered.
Bucky and Allie danced for a few songs, both trying to forget about the immediate future. Allie found herself content in Bucky's arms, even if it was only in a friendly embrace. Bucky held Allie hoping beyond all hope that he would make it home to see her again. As they evening grew later, Bucky eventually leaned down and whispered to her: "Let's get you home."
Walking over to the table and grabbing her handbag, the two walked outside where a breeze sent a chill down Allie's spine. Feeling foolish as she realized that she hadn't brought a sweater, Bucky didn't hesitate to undo the belt holding his uniform jacket in place. Shrugging the jacket off, he stopped Allie long enough to put it around her shoulders.
"Thank you," she smiled. "Although you looked better with this on."
"Oh? Did I look handsome?" he teased.
"Handsome isn't what I'd call it," she shook her head before smiling at his eye roll.
Walking along the sidewalks in Brooklyn, the two found themselves kicking rocks and trying to make then other smile. It certainly wasn't the first time that the sidewalks of Brooklyn had seen the two walking and laughing on their way to the Rogers home. For brief moment, Allie had begun to walk in front of Bucky. He smiled at the woman in front of him, catching up with her when she had turned around to face him.
"You know," he thought for a moment and grinned. "Maybe we'll see each other over there."
"If we do, I hope it's under good circumstances," she smiled at him.
"What if you have to patch me up?" he asked in mock terror.
"Then I'll finally have my revenger for all of the terrible dates you've set me on," Allie gave a small shrug. "But I'd be more likely to kill you for getting yourself hurt."
"I'll be okay," Bucky reassured her. "I promise."
Allie stopped walking, causing him to stop in his tracks. Turning to face him, she studied his warm expression. "You better."
The rest of the walk to her home was silent, neither one wanted to think of things going wrong when they were overseas. As they walked up the stairs and onto the the front porch, Bucky and Allie finally looked each other in the eye once more.
They stood there for a moment, unsure of what to say as a goodbye. Allie remembered his jacket on her shoulders, shrugging it off and handing it back to him, watching as he put it back on and straightened out the belt that went around his waist. Fussing over his appearance as just watched her, Bucky brought his hands to hers, holding them to stop them.
"Allie, it's well around midnight," he reminded her. "I don't think I need to worry about my appearance just yet."
"Right," she laughed. "Please be safe in the morning."
"I will," he promised her. "And you don't do anything stupid while I'm gone either, okay?" he smiled down at her, making her laugh as she thought of what he and her brother had said earlier that evening.
"How can I? We're both taking the stupid with us," she continued to laugh.
Bucky's tongue quickly wet his lips as he glanced down at his hands still holding hers. Swallowing harshly, he finally let go of them. Allie felt the cold air of the night hit her skin as Bucky's warmth left her. She wrapped her arms around him, squeezing as tightly as she could. Feeling his arms wrapping around her, Allie was sure that she could have stayed like that and been content.
She knew, however, that she had to let go. Parting from him, she placed her hands on his shoulders and stood on the tips of her toes. Pressing her lips tenderly against his cheek, she was amused at the way a smudge of lipstick stuck to his skin. For a moment, Bucky was stunned as she let go of him and took a step back from him.
"We love you," she looked in his eyes. "So please, come home."
"I will," he swore to her with a smile.
"Goodbye, Bucky," she smiled in return as she went to the door.
"Goodbye, Allie," he watched her walk through the door.
He stayed long enough to watch her shut the front door, taking in a deep breath as he turned around walked down the stairs once again. His hand went to his cheek as he gently rubbed where Allie had kissed him. As he walked into the night, Bucky smiled to himself and thought only of Allie.