"You alright, love?" William asked, glancing at the desk next to his.

"Hm? Oh, yeah, yeah, I'm fine," Lana assured hurriedly, sending him a short smile before returning her attention to her computer, the rushed workspace around them full of chatter. Her eyes shot up as someone sat down in the previously empty chair on the other side of her, only then noticing Bucky's arrival.

"You left without me," he accused quietly, clearly sparing those around them from hearing the conversation.

"You didn't get home until late last night, I figured you needed the sleep," she excused it, sending him a shaky smile. He furrowed his eyebrows, running his eyes up and down her sitting figure. Her hair was gathered in a ponytail, her face free of makeup and her body dressed casually, the only thing giving her away being her right leg, jumping up and down on the floor.

"Doll?" he asked her softly.

"I'm nervous," she admitted, her breath immediately becoming shallow and uneven as she told it, unable to hold it down. Bucky quickly stood up, grabbing her hand and helping her up on shaking legs.

"I-I can't," Lana claimed, tears welling up in her eyes.

"We're just walking, Doll. We're just stepping outside, alright?" he told her, placing an arm around her waist and speaking softly.

"James, I-I." Her sentence broke as her legs began shaking, unable to carry her. Bucky immediately reacted, holding her up without gaining the attention of anyone as he slowly walked past the mass of people.

"It's okay, doll. We're just going outside," he repeated, keeping his voice calm in spite of his spinning mind; "We're alright, you're alright." As they reached the door, he quickly pushed it up with his foot, helping her out while muttering assurances before letting the door close behind them. Without Lana properly noticing, they'd left the building through the back exit, placing them in a small but surprisingly light alley.

"C'mon, doll, you're alright," Bucky continued, helping her sit down on the curb before placing himself in front of her; "What's going on, doll?"

"I, I can't do this," she told, the tears slowly beginning to roll down her cheeks as she began hyperventilating, her eyes shutting in a pained expression as her leg jumped on. Unsure what to say, Bucky quickly sat next to her, moving an arm around her shoulders and pulling her into him, letting her shaking body cry while whispering whatever he could think of to her.

After a few minutes, the shaking slowly stopped, leaving behind a sniffling girl.

"I have to go back in," she told, wiping the tears from her cheeks.

"No. Fuck them. You don't have to do a thing," Bucky told her, running his thumb up and down on her upper arm.

"I'm sorry you had to see this," she told, pulling as little away as possible while still enabling eye contact, causing their faces to be closer than they'd probably ever been before.

"I'm not," Bucky whispered, eyeing her red cheeks.

The door opened behind them and before Lana could even pull away, William appeared in front of them, a worried expression on his face.

"Jesus, Lana, I didn't notice, I'm so sorry!" he exclaimed quickly; "I didn't even see you leaving and I asked Cam if he'd seen you leave and he hadn't and I checked the bathroom and you weren't there and-"

"She's fine, William," Bucky interrupted him, a slight sneer in his voice.

"I am, I just, I panicked a little," she admitted, trying to laugh it off as she wiped her cheeks again.

"You were doing so well, you haven't had an attack for so long. What happened?" he asked, crouching down in front of her.

"I don't know. I just... I'm broken, I guess," she half-joked.

"You're not broken, doll," Bucky muttered, placing his chin on top of her head.

"I'm alright," Lana told William, taking a deep breath; "I just needed some air. I'll be back in soon."

"Right. Well, uhm, it's almost a quarter to twelve, so-"

"We'll be in soon," Bucky interrupted, shooting William a warning glance.

"Right. I'll... See you in there, I guess," William replied slowly before standing up and leaving the two after one last glance at Lana. She leaned her head back on Bucky's shoulder, enjoying the feeling of the sun on her bare arms.

"You never told me you got panic attacks," Bucky muttered, not stopping his thumb as it drew little circles on her skin.

"I thought I was past it," she admitted quietly.

"Doll, you faced Loki on your own, you faced torture, you faced your father when you returned to America and never showed any anxiety. What's different here?" he asked softly. Lana shrugged, not moving her head.

"I'm not sure. It just... There's so much on the line," she tried explaining.

"You've negotiated while your life, as well as all of ours, have been on the line, without batting an eye. You're telling me that a website can take down the great Lana Williams?" he teased, smiling into her hair.

"Not take me down, just... Pause me," she answered; "I don't know, it just... This is it, this is make it or break it. It reminds me of my exams," she explained with a small shudder.

"You didn't like exams?" Bucky asked her.

"Hated them. All tests, really. I always wanted to prove myself, and it doesn't matter if you work hard or show up early to every class, all that matters is what you manage to do in those few hours, because at the end of the day, that's all you have to show for yourself," she explained, pulling away from Bucky to sit up properly.

"That's not true," he disagreed, looking at her.

"How is that not true?" she challenged, rubbing her eyes.

"Because you're right, a grade only shows how you managed a few hours, and yeah, that might be what a stranger judge you on, but everyone around you who actually knows you, care about you, love you, they know you the rest of the time, and they already know how much you're worth based on that. To them, some stupid letter means nothing," Bucky explained.

"Our grades were in marks. Out of 100," she told, looking at her feet; "And they're all my dad judged me on."

"That's because your dad is a jerk who didn't bother getting to know you or your work ethic or bother actually talking to you and seeing how smart you are, so he had to rely on some random strangers' judgement," Bucky told her flatly.

"You think my dad is a jerk?" she asked curiously, looking at him.

"I think your dad had every chance in the world to get to be part of your life, and I think he's an idiot for missing out. And I think he's a jerk for even considering some stupid mark based on one moment worth more than anything else you had to show for yourself," Bucky told honestly.

"I think he's a jerk, too," Lana decided, smiling slightly. Bucky didn't even feel the relieved smile show up on his lips, only focusing on Lana's hopeful eyes.

"I'm ready to go back in," she decided, nodding decidedly.

"We don't have to," Bucky reminded her.

"I know. But it doesn't really matter what happens in there, because everybody who knows me won't judge me on it," she told, smiling at her friend.

"Nope. They'll already have judged you on your annoying attitude, or your downright lousy jokes, or your-"

"Amazing personality, great work ethic, motivation?" Lana interrupted with a slight laugh.

"Exactly," Bucky agreed, smiling softly at her.

"I'm proud of you, doll," he told her honestly.

"Thank you. Now, can you tell that I've been crying?" she asked him, standing up from the curb, brushing off her behind.

"A bit, but we can just tell people I said no to going out with you and that's why," Bucky suggested.

"If I asked you out, you'd be the one crying because I'm so amazing and beautiful," Lana claimed, laughing slightly.

"Damn straight," Bucky replied, smirking at her as she rolled her eyes at his reply.

"Five, four, three, two, one!" as the plenum countdown ended, a loud cheer erupted from the group, the excitement evident amongst them all.

"Want me to handle this one?" William offered quietly, grabbing Lana's elbow as he spoke to her.

"No. I've got this," she replied, smiling confidently at him before grabbing Bucky's hand, letting him help her onto her desk.

"Mateo Security Systems is officially up!" she told the group, a loud cheer sounding again, making her laugh excitedly.

"As I've said before, we couldn't have done it without you. I've been pretty nervous about this moment because it felt like a chance to prove myself, prove my worth, but I've realised that this isn't just my moment, it's our moment, and whatever happens from now on... Bloody hell, guys, we did it! Congratulations!" she finished, waiting for the applause to finish.

"There's plenty of food over there, lots of cake and I forgot to buy champagne or anything of the sort, so treat yourself to some soda or whatever you want!" she told, stepping down after those words.

"You didn't forget the champagne, I reminded you and you decided not to get it," William commented with a laugh.

"Will, half of these people aren't 21. We can't be serving alcohol to minors on our first day, and we sure as hell can't offer half of them champagne and tell the rest to have a glass of kool-aid," she exclaimed, laughing as his face lit up.

"There's kool-aid?!" he exclaimed excitedly.

"And juice boxes, and oreos," she teased, grinning as he practically sprinted away, desperate to not miss out on the oreos.

"You guys know each other pretty well," Bucky commented, watching a group of people cheer as William joined them by the cake.

"Well, we've known each other for a long time," Lana explained with a shrug. Bucky received a message and looked at Lana weirdly.

"Your phone. It's a text," she explained to him. A look of realisation dawned upon his face before he got his phone out.

"It's Steve," he just told before pocketing his phone.

"What does he want?" Lana asked curiously.

"Nothing," Bucky quickly claimed. Lana sent him a suspicious look consisting of narrowed eyes and slightly pursed lips, making Bucky smirk in amusement.

"Apparently he has a mission for me," he admitted.

"Oh," she realised; "So... You have to go?"

"I'm not leaving, doll, don't worry. I'm sure it can wait," he tried calming her.

"It probably can't if it needs the bloody avengers," Lana retorted quickly. Bucky shot a silencing glance at her before looking away.

"He'll just have to find someone else to do it," he told carelessly.

"James, he's your best friend. If not for the good of humanity, then do it for him," she urged with a smile. Bucky looked at her, considering her options.

"How will you get home?" he asked her.

"I'll drive home, just like how I drove here. I think I can manage going home on my own without being kidnapped," she told him sarcastically. He eyed her annoyed before sighing.

"Fine. I'll see you at home," he told, pulling her in for a quick hug before pulling away, sending her one last smile.

"Hey, James," she said, grabbing his wrist before he could fully leave. He looked at her concerned.

"Stay safe, will you?" she asked softly. Bucky's lips twisted into a crooked smile.

"Anything for you, doll."