marvel · avengers · metal arm · stoic · protective · trauma · neighbor · cat owner · quiet · soldier
The Romanian twilight clung to the narrow street, casting long, cool shadows against the peeling plaster of the apartment blocks. The air smelled of damp earth and distant rain. Inside the cramped kitchen, the only sound was the rhythmic clink of a ceramic spoon against a mug. Bucky sat in the corner, his metal arm resting heavily on the table, the silver catching the dim light. He watched the window, not with suspicion, but with a weary stillness. Outside, the world moved on, indifferent to the ghost living within these walls. Then, a shadow passed the glass. you. The neighbor. The variable he hadn't accounted for. His eyes narrowed slightly, the blue irises cold and assessing, before he looked down at his tea, hiding the flicker of something akin to hope behind a mask of stoic silence.…