Sharon Carter is a super spy (exshieldagent) wrote in valarlogs, @ 2016-08-02 18:42:00 |
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Entry tags: | !complete, bucky barnes (winter soldier), leon orcot, sharon carter |
Who: Sharon Carter, Leon Orcot and Bucky Barnes
When: July 8
Where: Sharon’s place
What: Dinner
Rating/Warnings: Low/None
Status: Complete
Sharon was nervous. She was probably more nervous than was absolutely necessary, but this was Leon and Bucky. The two most important men in her life, it was ridiculously important to her that they get along. So she put an inordinate amount of pressure on tonight’s dinner. Speaking of, her mom had picked up Viv, and the pizza had been delivered. It was from this great cornmeal crust place that she loved not too far from her house. She had beers and salad, and ice cream for dessert. Sharon could have gone formal, but it seemed like casual was the order for the evening. She’d dressed the part, too; put on jeans and a sleeveless blouse, gone shoeless.
That’s how she was dressed as she answered the door.
~*~
Leon still wasn’t sure what he thought about a cornmeal crust. What the hell was wrong with normal pizza? Why would anyone mess with a classic? But, well, it was Sharon’s thing and she could order whatever kind of pizza she wanted. He guessed. And with any luck, the pizza would be the only bad part of the night.
Today he was wearing his Giraffe shirt and his usual bootcut blue jeans, a case of beer in his had. He knew Sharon likely had beer of her own, but assuming he and this Bucky guy got along, he figured that they’d probably need some extras in reserve.
“Hey Sharon,” he said, stepping into the place when she opened the door. “Bucky here yet?”
~*~
Meeting The Best Friend was surely easier than Meeting The Parents, right? Bucky considered the two options, weighing one against the other before deciding both would be circumstances outside his control. He couldn't make anyone like him. They either would or they wouldn't. Bucky was the kind of guy people held in extremes. People weren't ambivalent toward him which was fine by him.
He'd been having a worse than usual day with the arm so he'd opted to use the sling he had which anchored it across his chest, the black straps of the sling criss-crossing over his back and around his sides. Bucky wore a t-shirt and jeans with his leather jacket on one arm and merely draped on the shoulder of his useless arm. It wasn't cool out. He simply liked to have the jacket on for extra protection when he was driving the Jeep with everything pulled off from the doors to the roof. It wasn't as free as riding on a bike, but it was as close as he could get now.
Rapping his knuckles against the door in warning, Bucky let himself in with a smile, "Hello beautiful. I see you've already got company. I'm Bucky and unless we've had a party-crasher? I'm thinking you're Leon?"
He offered his good hand to the man to shake as he let the door fall closed behind him. They were all in the foyer which meant he wasn't late. Leon was punctual or close to it. Good to know.
~*~
Sharon hoped she didn't look as nervous as she felt. A smile crossed her lips at the sight of Leon at the door with beers. She stepped aside and let Leon into her home, but didn't push the door closed.
"Speak of the devil," she grinned, just when Bucky walked up to the door. Her heart skipped a little now that her two top dudes were in one place. Butterflies in her stomach. The whole nine yards. Ah, introductions. "Bucky, Leon. Leon, Bucky."
~*~
Leon eyed the dark-haired man up for a moment, before he smiled at him and grasped his hand. If his grip was a little stronger than it needed to be, well, that was because he didn’t want Sharon to wind up with some sort of wimp.
“That’s me,” Leon confirmed. “Leon Orcot. You ever try this cornmeal pizza that Sharon’s been going on about?”
~*~
Bucky could handle a handshake. He'd been dealing with enlisted men for too long to think about and Steve before his stint in the service. Steve was one of those guys who shook hands like a man when he was still only a boy. It was one of many traits his best friend had which Bucky respected.
"I have not tried the cornmeal pizza," Bucky confessed, "I will say I'm ready to give it a shot. I think pizza should be declared the Great American Food instead of the burger. I can eat pizza nearly anyway it comes. I have some notable exceptions, but I think most people won't go for anchovies or sardines."
~*~
Sharon watched the handshake out of the corner of her eye, feeling the nerves bubble up inside her again. She closed the door behind them, then turned around and broke into a smile. “See? Bucky’s willing to try it. It’s just cornmeal in the crust. It makes it… oh, I don’t know. Thicker? Stronger? Anyway, it’s in here. I already got out plates.”
So far so good. Sharon led the way into the kitchen and opened the fridge so the guys could deposit and collect beers, then moved over to put pizza on plates. She hadn’t bothered with a salad--normally she would have. She was trying to lose those last few baby pounds, and salad was good, anyway. But tonight was a guys’ night, and that meant less rabbit food, more pizza.
“I got pepperoni and sausage for Leon,” Sharon said, setting a piece on his plate. “And this one’s got goat cheese, caramelized onions and bacon.” She grinned, putting a piece onto her own plate.
~*~
Bucky passed the first test at least. Maybe a firm handshake wasn’t a very good test, but at least Bucky wasn’t a wimp or a whiner. “That’s where you’re wrong, my friend. The only thing that’s better than a juicy burger with an ice cold Coke is a burger with an ice cold beer.” Of course, burgers had been Leon’s favourite food for as long as he could remember.
Leon rolled his eyes a little at Sharon. Leon was willing to try anything that was put in front of him, but that didn’t mean he wouldn’t complain about it. The nice thing about Sharon was that she normally didn’t force him to try new things. With everything else in his life going tits up, it was kind of nice to just eat a regular pepperoni and sausage pizza, even if the crust wasn’t quite right.
He took a couple of slices of his own pizza and pulled them onto a plate. “You’re welcome to the pepperoni if you think goat cheese and caramelized onions on a pizza is just wrong.”
~*~
Sharon had helped with setting out the plates. She was used to the way Bucky maneuvered his way around the obstacles of life as a man with only one functional arm. It helped Leon hadn't made any comment at all on it. Bucky felt more at ease as he pulled two slices of the gourmet pizza onto his plate before taking a slice of pepperoni and sausage for the sake of familiarity. It was always nice to have a protein-rich meal.
"I figure I'll try a little of both while keeping an open mind. I gotta say pepperoni is my favorite topping. In the event I had to pick a favorite pizza topping. When I was growing up, we used caramelized onions on hot dogs with a bit of kraut and brown ground mustard. New York Style."
He made himself comfortable by moving closer to Sharon as he juggled his plate and the beer he'd tucked into the sling holding his arm against his body.
"Leon sounds like Steve. He's my best pal from growing up. He's as All-American as it gets. I think he was born knowing how to grill a burger."
~*~
Bucky and Sharon had been seeing each other for over half a year now. She was getting used to having him around, and, if she was quite honest, the place had started to feel empty without him. Without comment on his arm, she’d learned to help out a little more--get him a plate, open his beer, whatever. It didn’t change her opinion of him. Where it mattered? Bucky was everything she wanted in a man.
“Keeping an open mind sounds like the best plan,” Sharon said, agreeing with Bucky but somehow directing the comment at Leon with a playful, teasing tone. Then she popped open some beers and motioned toward the living room. They could sit on the sofa and loveseat she had set up in there, and talk.
Of course, on the way she had to move some baby gyms and playmats out of the way.
~*~
“Onions belong on hot dogs,” Leon said. “Pizza’s a whole other ball game.” For just a heartbeat, he paused with the pizza halfway to his mouth when Bucky mentioned Steve. Steve was a popular name, and the chances of it being Steve Rogers was slim. But then, what better description for him than ‘All-American,’ and given that Sharon was Peggy’s cousin, it seemed well… not completely unimaginable. Then, he took a bite of the pizza, and tried very hard to convince himself that even if Sharon was dating the best friend of the guy who was dating the girl he’d kind of been seeing, who also happened to be Sharon’s cousin, it didn’t mean that Leon was going to lose his best friend.
“I’ve got an open mind,” he protested. “I’m trying your pizza, aren’t I? I guess this crust isn’t so bad.” It was actually pretty good, though Leon wasn’t all that hungry anymore. He reached for his beer instead. “So, Bucky. What do you do?”
~*~
Eating with one arm was its own struggle. Bucky had gotten good enough at it to manage even tough things such as pasta at this stage. He could certainly manage pizza. Sharon didn't appear to even notice any longer; Leon was proving to be the kind of guy who was decent enough not to comment. His question had Bucky choking on a bite of pizza while he tried to clear his throat and swallow, huffing out a laugh.
"Sorry. I'm sorry. I'm---retired? I guess that's the nice way to say it. I was permanently disabled in the service. Army. They decomissioned me as a disabled vet so I don't work now. I do good to make it through my days without screwing anything up. I know, I know, I'm a real catch. Don't tell Sharon. She still thinks I'm perfect."
He winked even though his face was burning at the admission.
What kind of guy liked admitting he wasn't capable of working any longer? It was humiliating.
~*~
Sharon might have been a little insulted if she’d known what Leon was thinking. There was no way he was going to lose his best friend. Not now, not ever. No matter who she was dating, and no matter who he was dating. Thankfully, she couldn’t hear his thoughts, so she had no idea what was going on in there.
Except for what he told her.
“See? Not so bad. Pretty good, actually,” Sharon argued, breaking into a grin. Then, as Bucky spoke, her hand wrapped around the crook of his elbow. For support. She could see the embarrassment on his face and though she understood it, she wished he didn’t feel that way. He was a hero.
“Leon’s a cop. Have I mentioned it?” Probably. Maybe? “That’s how we met. I worked with Logan when I first arrived in Orange County, and Leon and Logan ended up partners. We both worked in homicide, but we never worked together.”
~*~
Well, that was embarassing. Way to make things awkward, Leon. He’d met enough cops and other servicemen who’d ended up disabled through their work, and Leon usually knew better than to bring it up. There was always the curiosity attached to how someone came to such an injury, but Leon always figured if they wanted him to know, then he’d know. “Retirement’s not so bad. Especially not on the days when you can lie on the beach and enjoy a cold cocktail while the rest of the schmucks are slaving away at their day job. You know, the days when there’s not a giant spider crawling up from the ocean depths.”
Leon snorted a little when Sharon mentioned working homicide. “Her last day she punched some dick in the face. It was hilarious.”
~*~
"I imagine it was a great moment for everyone except the guy taking the knuckleshot to the head."
Bucky pushed down the urge to say he'd literally give anything to be able to work again and there was no beach anywhere worth what he dealt with daily. This guy was Sharon's friend. He was a good guy. Leon seemed to be an up-front kind which Bucky could always appreciate. All he had to do was keep his mouth shut, behave, and act as if he were normal for a few hours while hanging out with the guy.
He could do that.
"It's no problem. I hope to get out of the 'retired' category someday. We'll see though, right? In the meantime? I get to spend time with Sharon and Viv anytime they're free. I like being able to control my own schedule. That's a definite plus. This pizza? Also a plus. I gotta say I'm a fan."
~*~
"That dick deserved it," Sharon said. There was still a tiny bit of anger there, though she'd left the force... two years ago? (Holy cow, how time flies.) But she was more amused than angry. She'd never really felt welcome by the "old boy's club" in the homicide department. Sure, Leon and Logan were two of her best friends (more like family than anything), and she and D'Artagnan had become very close, but most of the rest of the homicide department were misogynists and racists, and didn't deserve to wear a badge. "It was one of the greatest moments of my life," Sharon added, breaking into a grin. "Definitely in the top five."
And then a little laugh escaped her. "Right? Good pizza. I love this place. We get it sometimes when we're working late. See, Leon? Bucky likes it." She couldn't stop grinning. Things seemed to be going well, anyway. She hoped. there were few things in the world she wanted more than for her friends and family to like Bucky, because... well. She saw forever when she looked at him.
~*~
“Having your own schedule’s definitely a plus. There’s nothing worse than getting called into work when you’re in the middle of a date or something.” Not that Leon actually managed to get many dates, but sometimes he did, and it seemed like half the time he was needing to leave in the middle because of work. He managed even less second dates. “But I’m sure there’s tons of jobs out there that’d love to have you.” Not many physical type jobs, which could be disappointing. Bucky didn’t really seem like a call centre kind of guy, but there was bound to be something out there.
He gulped back more beer. “Hey, I’d probably like your weird ass pizza too if I was getting laid,” Leon teased.
~*~
The only party Bucky wished would 'love to have him' was Sharon Carter which meant he was as happily employed as he intended to get for a while. He did appreciate Leon trying to salvage the moment with humor. It didn't hurt to know Sharon was used to him, especially when he made a wisecrack about her private life. There were few people Bucky would let get by with any kind of comment similar to the one Leon had made about Sharon.
It was none of anyone's business if they were or were not being intimate with one another. Nevermind she had a baby outside of marriage, Sharon was a lady. She deserved to be treated like one.
"Well, I'd offer to lend you a hand, but really? You're not my type," Bucky winked at Leon as he took another bite of pizza, chasing it with a swallow of beer, "I suppose I'm flattered though. You aren't a bad looking guy. Could use some work on your social graces, but couldn't we all?"
He figured it was easier to play along if he made it about him instead of Sharon. That way they weren't joking around about what Bucky shared with the lovely Ms. Carter.
~*~
Sharon knew about Leon's abysmal dating record, and almost called him out on it. Few first dates, fewer second ones. She knew that there was something going on between Peggy and Leon, but she didn't have many details where that was concerned. It felt a little gross to know, truth be told. Leon was so much like her brother and Peggy so much like her sister... she just wanted them happy. And didn't want to hear any of the details. When things didn't work out between them, it was a bummer. But Peggy and Steve were... fate. Hard to compete with that.
When Leon teased about getting laid, Sharon laughed and gave his arm a shove. "Shut up." She grinned over at Bucky. It was funny. She didn't take it personally, she wasn't offended. That was something she and Leon joked about.
She looped her hand through Bucky's elbow and squeezed gently, turning her eyes back to Leon. "I promise I'll get you boring pizza the next time. Pepperoni and boring." She winked at him.
~*~
“Really? Well shit, there go my plans for the evening,” Leon said, cracking half a smile at Bucky’s direction as Sharon pushed him. “Anyway, I get told that a lot. Table manners of an ape, yadda yadda.” Well, it was more D who’d told him that, over and over again in his dreams when he was still having them. ‘Don’t drink tea with a spoon in it, you barbarian’ and ‘get your feet off the table,’ and ‘would you please chew with your big mouth closed,’ and all those other rules that Leon had never paid much attention to. Though, he did know proper drinking etiquette, which meant when he finished off his bottle of beer and stood to get more, he asked the table if anyone else needed a refill.
“Hey, boring’s a staple for a reason you know. Can’t mess with perfection,” he called from the kitchen.
~*~
"No, boring's just boring. It's comforting to some who can't stand the idea of breaking out of the box. I don't mess with perfection when I see it because I know I'm lucky to get to see it. That's why I'm not sleeping alone tonight."
Bucky chuckled as he shook his head no. He didn't need another beer. The pizza was different enough to make the taste fun yet it changed the beer's flavor for him in a way he didn't enjoy. He didn't want to be that guy who asked someone just getting up for a quick beer run to get him a water instead so he just declined. There was a charm to Leon he could understand. Sharon liked him because he reminded her of a time in her life before she'd been a mother, before her life had changed; she liked him because he treated her differently than other people.
The guy was her Steve as far as Bucky was concerned which made the guy okay in his books.
"Next time? We'll do regular crust so the beer will be the highlight of the evening. I know a lot of local brewers."
It was a compromise of sorts which would make everyone happy. He was prepared to accept Leon as a part of his social life since he wanted nothing so much as to be a permanent part of Sharon's life. Sometimes it was all about compromise so everyone could find a way to make their lives fit together, a puzzle of individual parts which fit together only because they'd found a way to have their edges line up just right.
~*~