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

[fishybusiness]

[ Showing up is what counts, and it's a rescue when one is needed all the same. She can't really comment on the awkwardness of his arrival given that she's caught legs tangled in a fishing net which will require a painfully embarrassing explanation. ]

The boys were out, I was going to get to marathon True Blood. Set up the net as sort of a hammock but see there was this part I did not see coming and I had been drinking and I was really into it and the more I moved the more tangled I got. And then there was this scene where one of the characters just exploded and I jumped and well... this.

[ Bucky, she's single, was drinking alone and watching True Blood, a little manhandling would probably be welcome at this point. ]

[freakymagoo]

...you lost me at True Blood. [That storyline might need a whole evening in and of itself to unpack and he will have questions about Sookie's life choices, as hypocritical as that would be coming from Bucky Barnes of all people. But hey, no explanation required. He's been caught in much worse situations that he can't explain himself out of.

He gently snips Sarah free after deeming the knots and tangles too time-consuming to try and undo. Pulling away at the excess netting to free her, he rests his hand on her calf and takes a final look for any welts or cuts. So far, so alright.]

Alright. I think we're good. [He straightens up and offers a hand to help her step out of that entangled bundle.]

I um. I-- brought you some more Captain Morgan. [He gestures over his shoulder to where the flowers and the liquor are. He clearly hasn't done this Netflix and chill thing in a while. Or, well. Maybe ever. He can do manhandling but being a smooth operator while manhandling might need a bit more work.]

[fishybusiness]

Not proud of it, it's all nonsense. But, [ She shrugged. ] It's kinda hot sometimes and has a story and is usually less awkward to explain than actual porn.

[ Sarah was trying very hard not to notice he had really nice hands for a guy who spent most of his time fighting people. Well the one anyway, the flesh one that was on her calf that one was warm and nice and she really needed to stop thinking or start thinking about something else. ].

[ Like getting up, yeah good idea. She took his hand and stood, carefully stepping out of the net that would be a bitch to repair. But that was gonna be a sober Sarah problem Thank you. ]

You're helping with that, right? [ She gestured to the booze but spotted the flowers. ] I guess we should get those in water then, and I'm done with the boat I don't trust myself anymore.

[ So Sarah lead them back to the house from the dock it wasn't too far, fortunately. ]

[freakymagoo]

[So, it doesn't sound like a work of art that should go down on his list of things he needs to catch up on over the past few decades. Still, he doesn't mind a bit of mindless entertainment. Especially if it means a potentially less awkward few hours with a newly-minted drinking buddy.]

I'll help with that, sure. And anything else you need. [Nobody's saying that what Sam is doing isn't important, but it's tough being out here raising the boys and trying to run a business and trying to be there for the community on her own. If he can even chip in a little bit, give her a little less stress for the day, he would feel a lot better about it for the both of them.

He carries the booze and the tools back to the house, setting them down on the kitchen counter once they're inside. He's been around often enough that he helps himself to the glasses to pour out the rum without asking.]

Why don't you watch it on TV if the kids aren't around? [He's an old man. He doesn't understand the obsession with the small screen. Also, he doesn't realise how porny True Blood is. Probably wouldn't have asked otherwise.]

[fishybusiness]

[ She is half sober and that half is all that saves her from saying something she's pretty sure she'd regret later, but she did think it loud enough to make her snicker. ] Nah, I'm good.

[ Sarah's life hasn't been easy, she lost her folks, her husband, her brother twice and even now he's gone more often than he's able to be around. Finances are never going to be easy, the area she lives in isn't booming but she loves it, the roots there run deep and she bleeds Delacroix. She's not sure she could leave now if someone gave her the choice. This was home, even if she's the last Wilson to call it that. ]

[ She's nothing if not resilient, she has gotten through everything life has thrown at her and tonight she'd just wanted a little stupid fun. It blew up in her face sure, but hell maybe getting company out of the deal wasn't half bad either. ] If I tell you you're going to laugh, and then I'm gonna have to hit you like I hit Sam.

[ She's actually grateful he feels comfortable enough there to make himself at home, it makes it easier for her, and she can take a glass after he pours and head into the living room to drop onto the couch he normally occupies when he crashes there. ]

[freakymagoo]

Well, I'm too old and fragile to be taking that kind of hit, so forget I asked. [There is a natural comfort with which he sits down right next to her and puts an arm up behind her shoulders over along the top of the couch. This is basically his couch; he knows every lump and bump on it, and her with her hospitality and not asking a million questions or jumping to judgemental conclusions, she puts him at ease.

He takes a sip of rum and makes a face - clearly, not really much of a seasoned drinker - before leaning forward and setting the glass down on the coffee table. He inadvertently touches her with his other arm by doing so, but his wordless apology comes by way of his thumb stroking her shoulder and upper arm.]

Are you going to take the boat out tomorrow, or do you take it easy after a night with Captain Morgan? Or... Do you ever take it easy? [He may be slightly worried that he's just cut a hole in tomorrow's haul.]

[fishybusiness]

[ He made her snort-laugh with that, old maybe but fragile? Not a word she'd associate with him, not easily anyway. Sarah settled back into the couch, a little surprised to feel the weight of an arm behind her, it had been a while. But it was nice.

Nicer than the unexpected chill of the other arm when that grazed by her. She almost laughed at the unexpected difference of it but the soothing touch turned it to just a quiet smile behind a quick sip from her glass. ]

I gotta get a new net rigged up and then patch the one I messed up if it can be patched. So I might take tomorrow off or half a day at least. [ She looked at him. ] I take time off, sometimes, from some things and look who's talking. When do you take time off?

[freakymagoo]

Well I'm enjoying my night off right now. [He takes plenty of time off - some might argue he has taken more time off than anyone else. He can afford to put his back into it a little more.]

Technically I messed it up so I'm happy to crash here tonight and lend a hand tomorrow. If you'll have me, of course. [It wasn't his intention to bring some drinks and just invite himself to stay.

Sam might have the weight of the country and the rest of the world on his shoulders. Bucky's still dealing with his own sins. Starting small. Taking things one night at a time. He'd be more than happy with small, incremental steps of progress, helping out just in his little circle of trusted acquaintances. Maybe he can figure himself out along the way. Eventually.]

[fishybusiness]

You're here, drinking with me after getting me out of a ridiculous situation and you're enjoying it? You really do need to get out more. [ Sarah laughed and tipped back her drink and then let her head rest back, normally it would be along the couch back but since his arm was there it was against him instead. ]

You keep making invitations like that and someone's going to take you up on them. [ She warned with a wave of her glass. ]

But if you're willing to help, I'm more then willing to have it. [ She gestured again, this time raising the glass to him and taking another sip before she relaxed back, tucking her legs up beside her. ]

[freakymagoo]

Well, you know, I could be getting shot at, or knitting a sweater at home. [Jokes aside, sitting on the floor alone in his apartment is the best case scenario. He's usually trying to stay up and stave away the nightmares and flashbacks, or doing homework so his therapist won't write some terrible evaluation of his progress. This is... supposed to be good for him, isn't it? Getting to know people, having something to do that isn't just fighting all the time?]

I can't say I've spent that much time out in a boat on the water, but I'll make myself useful. [It might not be as peaceful as a small plot of land with a few goats to watch over, especially if the water's going to get choppy, but at least they're not getting shot at by all the fish in the sea. That's definitely going to be a bonus.]

I know it's your family business, but it's not an easy one to run on your own. You never thought about leaving, doing something else?

[fishybusiness]

Yeah you need to get out more if those are your options. But that does make this seem pretty good by comparison. [ She hadn't put on True Blood yet because she wasn't sure how she felt about watching that with someone she felt was attractive. She hadn't done anything like that since... hell since her husband. ]

I'm not worried about you, I'll find a used for you as long as take directions. [ Sarah shrugged, not like there was a lot to it, point the ship and drive. The most of it was the gut instinct for fishing, that came from years of doing it. ]


Only about once or twice a day. [ She finished her glass and set it down on the coffee table, buzz firmly in place. ] But I'm it, I'm all that's left. Sam is occupied. Mom an dad are gone, the boys will be headed off to college and they will have a future out there doing something other than this. So one day I'll sell and retire and that'll be it. But not today and not tomorrow.

[freakymagoo]

[Bucky, a little bit clueless sometimes that he is, hasn't quite picked up on the fact that he's permanently interrupted her marathon. He's happy to shut up if she wants to watch her show but he seems to be quite comfortable lounging around next to her. Well, apart from the fact that he's getting up to play fetch for a few seconds.]

Just bringing the bottle over. [And he'll just top her up by a finger before setting the bottle down on the coffee table and sitting back down again. He's going a little slower with his own drink, but he can catch up before she gets the chance to get too drunk.]

You know, I never thought about that when I signed on. I just-- there was a war. I was young, and cocky, and it was just the right thing to do. These last few years I'm... seeing more and more, what's happening to people who get left behind. Nothing like half the world vanishing to make you feel alone. Makes you wonder where the fight really is sometimes.

[fishybusiness]

[ He got up so she rearranged herself, Shifting more comfortably with her back against the arm of the couch and her knees pulled up to tuck her feet up close to her. She eyed the drink but was going to give it a minute before she had more, she had a very pleasant buzz going right now already. ]

Cute and he does bottle service, not a bad deal. [ She grinned and might have laughed lightly in a way that was most certainly not a giggle if only for the fact that Sarah did not giggle. ]

Doing the right thing, that is a loaded statement. Because right is subjective. Not sayin that there weren't some obvious bad guys in world war two, but these days it's a whole lot more complicated.

[ She nudged him gently with her foot. ] You're not though, you're not alone. Not unless you chose to be.

[freakymagoo]

[That does get a little laugh out of him, and puts more colour in his cheeks than the rum does.] Yeah, you'd be surprised what other features this old, refurbished model comes with.

[He cradles his drink in his lap, chipping away at it slowly and quietly nodding. He could fill his little red notebook with all the things in this new, modern world he needs to catch up on, and still not understand how much times have changed. Things certainly feel a lot less black and white, and oftentimes you can't see the enemy through a rifle-mounted scope anymore.

Even those bad guys in world war 2, what they did to him, heinous as it was, they saved his life. And there were bad guys perfectly comfortable on home turf telling her parents where they could sit, stand, go to school at, what kinds of jobs they could and couldn't have. It's not so clear cut back then as people like to think it was.]

I'd-- well. You did ask for a hand, but I chose to come here. [He turns to flash her a tight-lipped smile, resting a hand on her ankle.]

I like--... [Well, this is awkward. Anything he says would make it sound like he'd come here expecting something, which wasn't the case at all. He falters a bit before he tries to backtrack - salvage? that non-starter with a small smile and a slight duck of his head.]

I like it here.

[fishybusiness]

[ She made some sort of amused sound at that and turned to look at him more seriously, probably a bad idea lord knew how many drinks in and a season and a half into a True Blood marathon. But she did it anyway, she was getting too old to be coy about things and she'd spent too much time raising boys to pretend not to notice things anymore. ]

I did, and you came through for me and I appreciate that. Not as big or grand as saving the world but it means a lot to me. [ She would always be thankful for help, especially nonjudgmental help. People thought that she had everything so together all the time without realizing there were days she was just barely hanging on. She had it together because she didn't have any other choice. If she didn't do it, who would? Sometimes she wondered where she fit into things anymore when her life had become about taking care of everyone and everything else. ]

[ Bucky started to say something and faded out when he did continue it wasn't with what she thought he might have been about to say and found herself disappointed. ] You're welcome anytime. Sam declared that last time you were here and I know the boys think you're cool. That's rare so enjoy it. An I like having you around, so it's an open invitation.

[freakymagoo]

[He wouldn't be so facetious as to pretend that he looks out for the little guy all the time. His friends are usually off doing those big and grand things, sure, and sometimes he tags along. Sometimes he just wants to be somewhere like here.]

You're important to me. [That much he is willing to say with a tight-lipped smile and a small shrug. He doesn't always feel safe to be around, and there are days where even getting out of bed can be a struggle, but she can expect to have him hover around more often on those days where he doesn't feel like such a burden.

Of course, the boys are important too. There's something to be said about sitting next to them watching the game on TV, taking some gentle ribbing from them and dishing it back. Those little doses of normalcy do more for him than they realise.]

You're coming through for me too. [He's not particularly good with words or with initiating contact, but he manages a small squeeze of her ankle which he happens to still be having a hold of and just-- hopes he can get away with that without needing to use his words.]

[fishybusiness]

[ The world is filled with all kinds of people, big and small and they all need some kind of saving sometimes. She doesn't think less of people for being rich and just wished they didn't think less of people who weren't. No, that wasn't exactly true, if she was honest she just wished they thought about people who weren't rich at all. ]

[ But then he has to go and say something like that, and those are words that she hasn't heard in a long time. Words that make her think and swivel the ankle he was currently holding. He came to her rescue, he brought her flowers and booze, he was keeping her company and going to help her tomorrow. There was a lot coming across here without being said at least in her mind, her intoxicated, watching steamy tv distracted mind. ]

[ Sarah pulled back, she looked at him a minute and turned putting her feet on the floor. ] I'm too old, and right now too buzzed to play games so I'm just gonna straight up say something. You tell me if I'm off base with this and that'll be the end of it. Ok?

I like you, maybe a lot. I think you like me, but maybe you're shy or a gentleman or something. I'd like to kiss you if you're ok with that. [ It felt completely heavy handed but necessary to ask to her, given that it had been entirely too long since she'd been in that situation. ]

[freakymagoo]

[It wouldn't be all that off-brand if Bucky just blows this moment with a awkward comment or gesture or something that'll just pull the handbrakes on all this the moment he starts to overthink things. Having regained control over a number of things in his life, it's a difficult balancing act to know when to hold on and when to let go.

In this instance, it seems for the better if he just lets go. Leaning in a little closer, he moves to slide his hand up along her jaw, thumb brushing over her cheek moments before he presses his lips against hers. Chaste at first, a little uncertain - look, it's been a while, cut him some slack - and his shoulders are tense and tight before a slow exhale has him telling himself to relax.

She's got maybe three seconds to nudge at him to tell him to slow down before he's trying to lean and shuffle in even closer, on track to ending up with either him straddling her lap or them both lying on the couch in some entangled configuration.]

[fishybusiness]

[ She'd been thinking it would be up to her, and she was fine with that. She didn't want to rush him or push him, but maybe encourage him if he needed a little nudge. So his move surprised her, very pleasantly so enough to have her nearly laughing at the suddenness of it. ]

[ He's not the only one who's been out of the game a while though he probably had a few years on her there. She softened into the kiss easily with him after just a moment, with them both finding their comfort with each other. One arm wrapped around his shoulder, her fingers sinking into his hair. ]

[ Sarah eased back with him, her free hand minding them both to avoid hitting their heads on the arm of the couch. ]

Guess you're ok with it. [ She smiled against his lips. ]

[freakymagoo]

[She doesn't know the half of his story and he's only let on bits and pieces. Suffice to say, it's not going to look anything like what it looks like in True Blood. There's going to be at least one awkwardly-placed elbow and something getting too close to his balls for comfort and ow - no, haha, don't worry, it's fine - before they settle down in a somewhat comfortable arrangement on the couch. He barely manages to fit without hanging an arm or leg off the edge.]

Yeah. [He's more than okay with it. Nipping gently at her lips, he flashes her a small smile before he attempts a deeper, slower kiss, one hand curling into her top while the metal arm stays steady on the couch, keeping most of his weight off of her.]

I like you. [His voice drops to a low growl in between gentler kisses that start migrating to the side of her neck. It's easier to admit now that he's on top of her, that she seems open to the topic.] I like you a lot. [And how he doesn't have to hide a lot of the things he keeps hidden from other people. She makes him feel at home in all the ways that can be interpreted.]

[fishybusiness]

[ Sarah shifted to settle a bit as he was moving, there was a moment of transactional whose what goes where before they found a configuration that seemed to work for them both without injury, but neither of them was short and the couch was not designed with this in mind. ]

[ She was about to say something about that when he kissed her again, upping the ante with it and his touch. He drew something of a pleased and happy sound from her in response. ]

I like what you're doing, a lot. But before you do too awful much more, we're not teenagers and I thought I'd remind you I have a whole bed right there. [ She pointed in the direction of her bedroom, formerly her parent's room before she and her husband inherited the house. And a room that had seen so little use too many years for anything but sleeping and folding laundry. Even if all they were going to do was make out, they'd been a lot more comfortable somewhere that falling off the edge wasn't going to be an issue.]

[freakymagoo]

...right. [He'll grow out of defaulting to couches and floors eventually. For now she manages to get him to slow down, ease up, sit back on his heels. He takes one last glance around the living room, like he's expecting they'll get jumped when they lower their guard, before he offers a hand to help her up and let her guide him to her bedroom.

He chases her down onto the bed, gets her sitting in a more comfortable and spacious sea of sheets as he nips at her lips again, hands in the hem of her shirt lingering before he tries to undress her. The cold backs of his curled metal fingers brush lightly against her skin, but he seems to prefer touching her with the hand he can actually feel her with.

The moment of self-consciousness comes when he takes his own shirt off, exposing scars he doesn't really want to talk about, but the hesitation ebbs and fades as he runs his hand slowly down the side of her torso and kisses her again.]

[fishybusiness]

[ It seems once he got over that initial hesitation he was good to go. Really good. ]

[ They made it to her room with no interference, even closed the door behind them to secure their privacy should they get any random visitors. And from there any hesitancy she'd noted in him earlier was gone. It was easier to believe he might have been a flirt or smooth guy once upon a time seeing him like this. ]

[ Sarah scooted back on the bed unable to completely suppress the slight shiver of his artificial touch but that was only a reaction to temperature, not to him. The fact that she arched into his touch thereafter was purely because it was him. ]

[ While he feels self-conscious baring himself to her she sees nothing but strength, resilience and beauty. She drew him back to her, hand at the back of his head, fingers threaded back through his hair. She kissed him, deep and sweet and hard. ]

[freakymagoo]

[He was a very different guy once upon a time. He's not sure if that guy will ever come back, honestly, but he's working on something in between that guy who was, and the guy he's supposed to be now, and hopefully there'll be a workable medium between 'socially awkward' and 'garishly outgoing'.

The bed is almost a little too soft for someone who spends most of his nights on the floor, and a half-gasp lodges itself in his throat when they eventually wind up lying side by side. He feels a little more secure on all fours, which he returns to with a small laugh, nibbling and nipping a path from the side of her neck down to her collarbone, her chest. He almost melts with her hand in his hair, a terrible side effect from not being touched in... longer than he cares to admit. The sensation feels almost foreign.]

Sarah... [God she's... doing something to him. Hands on her hips, forehead on her shoulder, his voice a low rumble against her warm skin, he balances himself on his knees as he tries to take more of her clothes off, though he might need a bit of her help there.]

[fishybusiness]

[ Jeans aren't the easiest things to get out of in this position, let alone get someone else out of. It's a good thing they both have a sense of humor about it all and hopefully an understanding that any chuckles were situational and not directed at each other. ]

[ Jesus, it had been so long she'd already popped a button and started the zipper before she even gave a thought to if she should be trying to put some sort of drama or presentation into it. Her game was stale. But he was still there so she had to be doing something right or at least not so wrong that it was terrible. Either way, she cast off notions of trying to bring sexy back for the sake of ease and comfort and just got her pants open. A couple of rolling motions of her hips helped to get her jeans down to where she could kick them off her legs, careful to avoid other people... that was new. Hadn't had that to worry about in... yeah a while. ]

[ If she hadn't been so stunned by everything else the idea that she'd never thought to be in this situation so she was wearing just a simple sports bra and tan cotton panties might have been concerning. It was a bland look, the saltine of lingerie but it wasn't as though this had even been on her radar. Good thing he had her distracted by being there and just being and causing that fluttering in her stomach she hadn't felt in years. Her hands moved down his stomach, fingertips tracing across the top of his pants before she popped that button too. ] Is it ok to call you James?