Will woke up with a gasp, the sound of clicking ringing in his ears still as he stared into the ceiling, eyes dancing left and right as he tried to forget the vivid images from his haunted dreams.

He needed to get up, needed to move and do something.

So he pushed himself up, threw a worn hoodie over his bare torso and walked straight out of his room and town the hall. Dog was jogging behind him, her fluffy tail swinging left and right.

He found himself in the large living space, going to the kitchen to make himself a cup of tea. He'd studied Steve in the kitchen and knew fairly well where everything was.

He moved fluidly, as if he'd been living in there for years. He boiled the water in a pot, not liking the odd looking electric kettle much. He studied the rest of the thing, the modern devices that cooked, heated and made food for whoever wanted.

These things felt strange to him.

Once the water was boiling he poured it into Steve's mug, the dried leaves swirling in the hot water.

Dog was dozing off in the corner, snoring quietly and kicking her back legs every once in a while in her slumber.

Will kept swirling his tea, staring out into the dark city as he felt himself relax on the bar stool.

He wasn't sure how long it took before he heard a pair of shuffling feet heading towards kitchen as well. He looked quietly as the man he had attacked limped into the kitchen, his one hand was in a sling, the other holding a crutch as he grunted in pain, blinking his eyes groggily as they landed on William.

Sam froze like a deer on headlights, the haze of sleep disappearing from his dark eyes as he assessed the situation.

William wasn't sure what to do either, so he just went back to stirring his tea, eyes slipping off the man as to brush him off. He wasn't a threat, and what he understood from Steve's endless blabbering, Sam was their friend.

"No biting my head off this time?" he asked with a touch of humour in his groggy voice.

The sound of his voice startled Dog up, her eyes looking at the man in the doorway before laying back down. Will glared at Sam for waking her up.

"No." in William's defence, Sam had attacked him first. He had every right to get back at him.

"Can I make some coffee?" he asked next, gesturing towards the coffee machine that was right behind Will.

Good thing he asked, Will didn't like it when someone was right behind him, especially a stranger. Nevertheless he shrugged, he had gotten his revenge, somewhat.

Sam was nothing to him, and he was nothing to Sam.

"Okay, then. You been up for long?" he tried to make a conversation, his voice at ease and friendly. But Will could see right through the relaxed façade.

Sam was alert, forcing his own body to seem unthreatening, slouching his shoulders, dragging his feet, avoiding eye contact that may seem too challenging.

William just shrugged, not really feeling up for a conversation with him. Or anyone really.

He took a clean mug from the cupboard before limping toward the coffee machine. It seemed as though Sam was walking loudly on purpose, making as much of a hassle as he could as he made his coffee. Will refused to look over his shoulder, but his senses were alert. Even though Sam was hardly a threat to him.

"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you don't like me much." he walked around the table, the coffee still running.

Will slowly looked up, and then raised an eyebrow as if to say really?

Sam snorted, "You act exactly like someone else I know. Look, I'm not going to apologize. You were a job for me, would you expect any less from a person who does the work you or I do? Besides, you already got back at me. Let's bury the hatchet and move on."

What did it matter to Sam? They didn't need to play acquaintances, ignoring each other would be just fine.

"I don't care."

"Are you sure you and Steve are brothers?" Will's nonchalant expression changed in a heartbeat as Sam shuffled by him to get his coffee. "I swear if I didn't know any better, I'd say you're more related to Barnes." he muttered to himself before going to rampage through the fridge.

"I think you care more than you want others to know. That's why you attacked me. You cared too much about those two to have them be threatened, even if the threat at the moment was just little old me." he said casually as he pulled out some milk and cereal.

Coffee and cereal? This man was insane, he should perhaps send Sam back to hospital. They might need to check his brain for damage.

"I just wanted to kill you, really." Will shrugged again, holding back a smirk as his dark tone made the other man freeze for a second before clearing his throat.

"Get in line." he grunted, sitting down. There was a big bowl Infront of him that he filled with cereal to the brim before adding milk. Will didn't plan on continuing the conversation but Sam seemed to have other ideas.

"So, you're a vet." it was a statement, not a question.

"I don't know shit about animals." the response made Sam cough, Will hoped the cereal would get stuck in his throat.

"Veteran, not a veterinarian." Sam explained, giving Will a pointed look.

"I'm a highly trained, genetically mutated mutt, call it whatever the fuck you want." Will couldn't refrain his eye roll. Sam snorted and went back to his food. There was silence between them, making Will nearly relax again but of course Sam had to open his mouth again and ruin everything.

"You're very defensive."

"And you're not very bright."

"See? Defensive."

Will crossed his arms and leaned back slightly, narrowing his eyes at Sam who was pouring himself more milk and cereal. He placed the carton down slowly, as if unsure how to approach the topic as he slowly made eye contact with Will again.

"My teammates found somethings that might belong to you, if you want them back, I suggest asking Bucky." 

"I don't want anything you have." 

Sam cocked an eyebrow, huffing silently, "I really think you do, it's something... private."

Will frowned, expression growing guarded as the man's words sunk in. "Like what?"

To his credit, he didn't fidget under William's cold stare, he simply stood his ground before answering. "When I answer that and it hits too close to home, should I have a tranquilizer close by?" 

It was a fair question and Will didn't even feel insulted, because yes absolutely he should, "no".

Sam seemed doubtful. "I'm trusting you here, so when you try to remove my head from my shoulders within the next five minutes, I will be resurrecting myself from the grave and haunt your ass." 

Will snorted, "get in line, but heads up, it's a long one so you might have to wait a few years. Or decades." 

"Was that a joke? Are we having a banter right now?"

Will glared at Sam, but his smirk only grew. "Wow, did that ruin your scowling streak? How many years has it been since you last laughed anyway?" 

"Are you going to evade the question?"

"I feel like I might live longer if I do."

"You might actually live longer if you stop beating around the bush." 

Sam didn't reply, he seemed to try and find the right words. And for a second, Will could admit that despite the weird conversation they were having, the dim light and silence was actually comforting this time around, because he wasn't alone. Sure, he would have preferred almost anyone else to sit with him in the kitchen, but Sam was an alright stand in he supposed. If only he could shut up. 

"It's your things, or what's left of them." he finally seemed to admit, his voice almost a whisper. 

Will just nodded and took another sip of his drink, focusing his gaze out of the window instead of Sam. 

"Okay you're taking it way too calmly, should I start running now?" he was joking around, but there was a hint of undeniable anxiety in his tone. 

"It's like you're asking me to murder you, is that what it is? Your own personal suicide mission?" Will wasn't even sure why he was entertaining the conversation so much, he couldn't remember the last time he had had so laid back chat. 

"Look who's evading the question now." Will gave him a bored glance before raising the mug to his lips.

"I had a hunch, you haven't exactly mastered the art of subtlety." Sam's smirk fell immediately, but before he could open his big mouth again, Will continued. "So I take it Bucky knows?"

The silence was enough of an answer, so that's why he hasn't been around as much recently. Was he disappointed? Angry? Confused? 

"Does Steve?" he whispered, refusing to look at him. 

"No, not that I know of." 

"Very well." With that, Will stood up. The dog who had been dozing off seconds ago jumped up at the movement as well. "Where are you going?"

"Getting my stuff back."

"At this hour?" 

"Who really sleeps in this place at this hour?" 

And with that, Will was gone from the kitchen, ready to hunt down his personal belongings, his only personal belongings. His nearly silent footsteps were drowned out by the heavy stomping of Dog, whose panting was already a familiar sound of her soothing presence. The animal was loud and messy and her thin, dark hairs were constantly on every surface of his room. But he didn't care. 

She sat down next to him when they stopped before Bucky's room, ad he knocked quietly before he could change his mind. He was certain that Bucky had already heard him coming, or well, Dog stomping her way across the hall. 

The door opened silently, the crystal clear blue eyes cold as they landed on Will's. Bucky's dark hair was a mess, as if he had been sliding his hands though it for hours now. His face was impassive and the dark circles underneath his eyes seemed to be darker than before. He was wearing a blue tank top and shorts, his refined muscles on display. For the first time, he was not even trying to hide his metal arm as he crossed them infront of his chest. 

William copied his stance. "I'm here for my things, Sam said you have them." when he mentioned Sam's name, Bucky's eyes seemed to darken, he didn't seem to be a Sam fan either. 

"Are you going to talk about it now, and do you want Steve to be here as well?" his voice was gruff, as if he was trying to hide his displeasure, he was still standing in the way, not allowing him to enter. It didn't go unnoticed the way he had worded the question. It was clear that Bucky demanded answers, he was only granting Will the time. 

They seemed to fall into a stare-off, Bucky's gaze got colder, his expression turning into a frown as they seemed to silently communicate in the hallway. Will was silently demanding he be given his things without a hassle, and Bucky was adamant on him telling them everything. William tried to intimidate the other man, it would have worked with anyone else but Bucky. Apparently, the man's domineering presence seemed to win that round and eventually, William averted his gaze. 

"It seems there's no better time than the present. Because what life has shown us so far, is that a new tomorrow is never fully granted." he said quietly, earning a pleased nod as Bucky stepped aside, holding the door open for them. 

"FRI? Tell Steve to get here." 

"Right away."

The familiar box sat on a small table, it was closed. He wasn't sure if Bucky had peeked inside or had left it alone. It looked a bit more beat-up than it did before, but the relief he felt washing over him nearly weakened his knees. 

"Sit, make yourself comfortable." and William did, Bucky sat on the other end of the couch and they waited in silence. This one, however, was not as comfortable as the pervious one with Sam. 

***

Uh, hello?

Did you know that last update was more than a year ago? Scandalous, I know. The audacity to leave you all hanging is just... outrageous. Thank you all who are still here, hope you enjoyed this little chapter and brace yourself for the next one!

Special thanks to: TheFvckedFinger, Katie_xoxo172023, 1-800-Holywater, F1shRfrndsN0tF00d, mac_is_lost, Cool_RanchDoritoes, perseushyde, _Anonymous_Rosetta, Herlipsticksblack, Lovegoods_, Xio_fi_chan, C68937, Confetti438, musicalpr0situtE, Withouthope7, Socksarenotrequired, Wolf471, Iustatia, AllyDay36, cozwemadeit, Bella_bex, Mutantgened, Linzyyrin, Pigeonlorddinosaur



Sincerely

- K