Bucky was intending on grabbing something quick from the kitchen then returning to his room, to either watch a movie that made him feel empty but nostalgic, or to read something that could maybe make him feel like he wasn’t such a man out of time.
However, when the elevator opened on the common area, it wasn’t empty. The TV was playing a Bollywood movie and Alpine was snoozing across the back of the couch cushions—that’s where she was off to!—and Mel was sitting on the couch as well.
Mel was sitting on the couch, oversized t-shirt revealing nothing of what she was wearing for bottoms. She had a comb tangled in her hair and was currently colorfully cursing.
Bucky’s breath caught a little. He couldn’t help it. Whatever was brewing with him and Mel, it was fragile and new but he couldn’t deny that his heart and body reacted in ways toward her that he hadn’t felt since the 40s.
He slowly walked closer, around the edge of the couch. “Need some help?” he asked.
She cursed again and twisted, dropping the comb, which stayed tangled in her wet locks. “Oh, it’s you,” she said, her face burning bright. “I mean…hi, hello, are you spying?”
“Can it be spying in a community space?” Bucky raised an eyebrow and held out his hands innocently.
She rolled her eyes. “Sure, whatever. Does your magic Wakandan hand have any specialty with untangling hair?”
Bucky sat, one leg bent, the other on the floor. “I can try.” Mel shuffled around so her back was to him. Alpine slit open a single eye and then closed it again.
“I was distracted,” Mel explained as he took the comb handle in hand. He had better leverage and a better view of the tangle and where it was caught around the comb. “And a little overzealous.”
“You? Overzealous?” Bucky mused, lips curling into a smile as he worked some tangles out of the comb tines.
Mel brought her knees up to her chest, revealing she was wearing what looked like skin-tight cotton shorts underneath. “What can I say? You can’t exactly be the assistant to the head of the CIA without a little zealousness.”
“That’s fair,” Bucky said, concentrating.
“Sorry for ruining whatever plans you had for the next ten minutes.”
Bucky paused, brushing his hand along her shoulder in a bold move for their budding relationship. “No plans. This is better anyway.”
Mel shivered and then grumbled as Bucky yanked a little too hard. “Way to spoil the mood, Mr. Barnes.”
Bucky shook his head in amusement, but managed to untangle the last of her hair. Because he was there, he ran the comb through her long dark tresses. It felt nice to be taken care of for Mel—it felt nice to do something that felt so dangerously intimate for Bucky without it being actually physically intimate.
Though, perhaps, it wasn’t a bad idea…
She hummed a little and he set aside the comb. He swept her damp hair to one side and leaned in, lips hovering over her skin.
“Bucky,” she said, voice soft.
“Mmm?” His breath warm, causing her to shiver again.
“You will definitely need to tell me where you learned how to do that,” she said quickly. “Later, though.”
“You sure? I could tell you right now,” he chuckled, but she was leaning back slightly toward him. Tension mounted in the air and she shook her head, her hair falling to cover her neck.
“Later,” she insisted. He swept her hair aside again and then slipped his arm around her middle. Her fingers laid over his and she sighed as his lips pressed against the sensitive skin near her ear.
Much, much later. They had better things to do.