Jealous

Helen knocked on the door to apartment 4D and then inhaled deeply to try to calm herself down. She hadn’t expected to be invited to a party by Bucky, imagining that her flawed dancing would be a cause for laughter amongst his friends, but Bucky had a way of talking her into it over the phone. Helen had later decided it was his usual layer of charm that had convinced her. She didn’t doubt that many women became entranced by it, and she recognised that she was following in their footsteps. The door swung open and Bucky smiled toothlessly at her, approving of the sweetheart neckline of her red and white dress. His face fell a second later, mimicking Helen’s reaction as she peered over his shoulder and inside his apartment.

“You said eight, right?” she breathed with wide eyes, thinking she had heard the time wrong and hence embarrassed herself.

“Yeah, I did. Come in,” Bucky insisted. Helen took a cautious step inside and looked around Bucky’s living room. It was a small space but didn’t feel cramped due to a lack of furniture. There was a radio in the corner playing music to dance to, and a selection of food and beverages had been laid out on the table.

“Is Steve here?” Helen wondered, confused about why Bucky was hosting a party without other guests, including his best friend.

“No, he’s not,” Bucky replied as he approached the table. “Would you like something to drink, doll?”

“No, thank you, I’m fine,” Helen declined while looking around the room again. “Bucky, why-“

“Something to eat?” he interrupted with a gesture at the food. He took a sip from a beer bottle and Helen sensed that for once he was possibly more nervous than she was.

“No, thanks, I just was wondering-” Helen began but she was once again spoken over by Bucky.

“Are you sure? I’ve even got a lemon meringue pie-“

“Bucky!” Helen exclaimed, finally shutting him up. “Where are the rest of your guests?” Bucky’s confidence wavered, his lips parting and his eyes darting around the room as though he was searching for an appropriate answer. Then he sighed and gave in.

“I didn’t invite anyone else,” Bucky confessed. Helen’s eyebrows pinched together as she tried to decipher his actions.

“Why not?” she breathed, almost too afraid to ask. The uncertainty of what Bucky might say was making her anxious.

“Because…” Bucky began, stopping himself with a frustrated sigh. “Because I’m jealous.”

“Jealous?” Helen exclaimed with disbelief. “Jealous of what? Of who?” He had no reason to be jealous; he and Steve were the only men to ever pay her much attention.

“Of Steve, for getting to share all of those dances with you as I taught you both how to dance. Of those men that realised how beautiful you are and asked you to dance with them,” Bucky explained. Helen froze, too shocked to even know how to respond. “But now they’re not here. Now I can finally ask you to dance.” Bucky held out his hand but made no move to close the distance that separated him from Helen. He wanted to see what she was feeling, to see if she thought he was insane, to see if she liked him too. Helen remained glued to her spot in the lounge for a few seconds as she processed what he had just said to her.

“I’m not very good at dancing,” she said, gaze dropping to the floor. Bucky’s hand wavered a little, sensing a polite refusal coming his way. “I have a good teacher, though, so I’m learning. I could try to dance with you as long as you don’t move too fast.” Bucky relaxed, incredibly pleased that Helen hadn’t rejected him. He crossed the room to loop an arm around her waist and link his other hand with hers, glad that the radio was playing a slower song for them. Bucky pulled Helen in closer than he would have done in front of Steve, and he noticed her inhale quickly because of the gesture. He smiled down at her, trying to help relax her as he lead her around his small living area.

“Can I ask you something that you don’t have to answer if you don’t want to?” Bucky questioned after they had found a nice rhythm together and he had felt Helen relaxing in his arms.

“Sure.”

“Were you ever interested in Steve?” Bucky wondered, hoping he hadn’t stolen another girl away from his friend. The other times had been unintentional, but this time Bucky had become rather determined to gain Helen’s undivided attention.

“He’s a nice guy,” Helen said and she spotted some sadness filling Bucky’s blue eyes. “But a friend.” With the clarification Bucky perked up.

“Okay, well that’s honestly a relief to hear,” he smiled.

“Can I ask you something now? But you have to answer?” Helen questioned. She felt Bucky briefly tense and she wondered if he was finally the nervous one.

“As long as it’s a fair question,” he reluctantly agreed, puzzled about what on earth she could want to know.

“Does a woman really need to know how to dance before a man sees her as beautiful?” Helen asked in a voice so scarce it was almost a whisper that the radio threatened to drown out. Having received minimal attention from men until her dancing had improved, she wanted to know if it was the cause. Did men find that skill incredibly attractive?

“I knew you were beautiful the first time I saw you. You just needed to know how to dance so you could see it too,” Bucky explained softly. He gave Helen a twirl, admiring the way her dress and hair flared out before she returned to his close hold with a sweet smile. “Besides, dancing makes it a lot easier to do this.” Bucky leaned in and kissed her, gentle at first to see how she was going to react. As their lips parted from the first kiss, Helen pushed forwards a little and reconnected their lips, much to Bucky’s relief. He let go of her hand to instead cradle her neck, and they swayed to the music as they became lost in each other’s affection.