Inbox/Voicemail

[fishybusiness]

You've reached Sarah Wilson and Wilson Family Seafood, I'm probably out fixing the boat, or trying to get the boys to school, or packing up the catch for the market or about a thousand other things so I can't pick up the phone right now. So leave me a message and I'll get back to you when I can.

Comments

[freakymagoo]

Oh. [He ducks his head and flashes a small smile at the floorboards before redirecting his attention back to the frying pan.] That's kind of you. Thanks. [He's probably pushing the sausage around the pan a bit too much. He's not sure. Browning the meat might involve leaving it alone for a little while so it has the time to actually sear a bit, but he keeps checking compulsively.]

I get it. Some things you need to leave behind, move on. The world's changed and-- [Bucky's shoulders rise a bit before he shrugs.] we can't go back to how things were, for better or worse. But some things you need to hold on to. I mean, I get it on a logical level, but... [The tip of his tongue flicks out between his lips and he breathes out a quiet sigh through his nose.] Emotions get into it.

[Memories are important to him. Important to everyone, sure, but he's lost quite a few already. He so desperately wants to hold onto what's left, knowing full well that the world he had known and the people that were in it are gone now, and he needs to keep moving. But he needs these anchors, these cornerstones to keep him tethered and grounded while he works slowly on building his new life in this new world, or he'll just-- drift, and not know where he's going, what he's doing, if he's even headed in the right direction.]

Since you're keeping it, maybe the boys can be convinced into getting off the video games and getting out there sometime. Make new memories. [Easier said than done, he knows, but if he thought he'd help any, he'd try nudging them out there too.]

[fishybusiness]

Kind of me? Did you miss what happened back there? [ She gestured up toward the upstairs and the general bedroom and shower area. ] Because I thought that would have been a clue enough that even you'd pick up on it.

[ Her sarcasm would feel familiar, she and Sam had a similar sense of humor when they were making a point. She sighed deeply and nodded. ] Emotions get into everything when all you have left of family is a thing then that thing becomes family. That boat connects me to my folks and to some of the best times of my life. I thought I could sell it but I know now I can't, I never will.

And it's taught the boys plenty, they've learned a lot about work and how important it is to make good choices and not necessarily just easy choices. Sometimes you can do everything right and have a bad day out there, and that's life. You're best sometimes doesn't matter because it doesn't and you have to find a way to be ok with that and get up the next day and do it all over again. [ Which was maybe way more philosophy than had ever been applied openly to it when she was kid but she could appreciate the truth of it now. ]

But if you're offering to make new memories I can pretty much guarantee all three of us would be happy to see it. That goes for you too you know. [ Sarah leaned over and kissed just below his ear. A quick peck but it was an open display of affection in a smooth motion that just seemed completely natural. ]

[freakymagoo]

[It's a testament to how far he's come that he doesn't shrink away instinctively, that his face even lights up a bit when she shows him a kind of affection, a comfortable intimacy he isn't used to receiving, even if he still feels like he's taking baby steps.]

I've... never thought of fishing that way. But you're right. [It's a kind of work that involves patience, luck, and a lot of life lessons along the way. He's a city boy through and through and he never really had that with his family, sketchy as his memories are of such a long time ago.] If you've done all you can, you've done all you can. It's always enough, even if the day doesn't choose to meet you halfway.

For what it's worth though, I've-- had a really good day. [He flashes her a small smile, and moves out of her way so she can finish with the sausage while he eyeballs the biscuits.] Well, night and morning, at least. [He should probably pop back upstairs and find his clothes soon, but he'll finish helping out in the kitchen first. And by 'helping' he means mostly not getting in her way.] You're going to have to kick me out at this rate. Although hopefully I'll be dressed before then.

[fishybusiness]

[ How it was that he fought in multiple wars, did what he'd done for a living, had seen more than she ever hoped to see, worked with gods and wizards and who all knew what and a kiss like that made him smile like a schoolboy. Sarah couldn't help but be charmed by that, there was still something in him that was so vulnerable and human. ]

Some days are just bad, it happens. But you can't let it make you give up on tomorrow or the next day. You learn you do the best to make your chances as good as they can be, and you go back out there. You just don't quit. [ That might sound like someone else he knew, someone who would have probably agreed with her philosophy even if he had come to it from a very different direction. ]

I haven't had, it's been a while since I've wanted to share anything with anyone and it was well worth every minute of it.[ She wasn't even sure how to phrase what they had but she knew she liked it and she'd like to have more of it. Not the sex, well not just the sex but it was amazing, but this closeness, companionship. Having him around made things feel lighter. ]

You in a hurry to get dressed? Cause I'm enjoying the view. [ She grinned and made a point to give him a slow once over while biting her lip. Somehow she managed to keep the gravy stirred while her attention was on him. ]

[freakymagoo]

[There's been plenty of times he's wanted to just give up. It'd certainly be a lot easier, for him and for everyone else involved, he thinks. But he's been finding more and more reasons not to, through others' efforts as well as his own, and it is a testament to her strength that she can run her show and lift stubborn old boulders like him up as well while she's at it.

He's quiet for a while, mulling over her words of wisdom, staying out of her way trying to do some washing when she's done with certain dishes and keeping the space tidy, but she does get a quiet snort and a snicker out of him. He's not so sure about the view himself, a little self-conscious about things she would find silly, but as long as she's appreciating it, he can put the self-depreciation on hold for the morning.]

I guess not. [He can stay in his towel casual for a while longer. It's been a while since he's been able to unwind like this in someone else's house. Maybe just Steve's, when he was still around, but even then Bucky never stopped by that often. These days it's only with precious few people like either of the Wilsons that he can just hang around, maybe crack open a beer depending on the time of day and whether they're dealing with some kind of imminent world-ending catastrophe, talk frankly and casually about anything that came to mind.

He doesn't know, if it's just. One disaster after another, not getting much of a breather in between, or it's him personally. It's been hard getting close to people the way he has here and frankly he hasn't really wanted to, erring to the solitary life he's become intimately acquainted with. This is different for him, in a way that doesn't come with too many teething pains, and he's so comfortable here that he's worried he might have let his guard down too much too fast.]

Is almost-nakedness allowed at the dining table? [His whole apartment is clothing-optional, but he would hate to make the same assumption here.]

[fishybusiness]

[ She could correct him about the pleasantness of the view in a dozen ways but some things were just easier to prove with action than words, and the look she gave him was not at all subtle. Those dark eyes sized him up like he was the most delicious thing to ever exist in her kitchen.

Sarah bit her lip and shook her head before she turned back to take the gravy off the heat now that it had simmered down thick and flavorful. She gestured to the trivet on the counter. ] Put that on the table?

[ As soon as he did she brought the pan with gravy over and gave it a last stir. ] Oh, and the biscuits smell about done, can you take those out?

[ A round of coffee was called for and she put that on and set the cups nearby. A hot, homemade breakfast was almost ready to go and she trusted him to serve himself once everything was out. All I ask is that you put some clothes on before the boys get back. Which wasn't for another couple of hours from the last text she'd gotten from them. ]