when i see your drawings.. :D
If this somehow happens, my life would be complete :D
Pairing: Mechanic!Bucky x Fem!Personal Assistant!Reader
WC: 20k (Complete)
Summary: It's your first international trip working for bestselling author Tony Stark as his new personal assistant, and you're desperate to prove yourself worthy of such an incredible opportunity. But when things start to go wrong whilst staying in Dublin, and suddenly you're stuck in the middle of the Wicklow Mountains with a flat tire, you're convinced that you'll be fired before the day is over. Luckily, a handsome, blue-eyed mechanic with an accent that makes your insides melt comes just in time to save the day.
No pressure at all, but if you'd like to support me for my writing, please consider buying me a Kofi!
🍀Sweeter Than Honey Drabbles/Thoughts Tag
Note: This series was inspired by a request made by @w0nderw0mansw0rld MONTHS ago, mixed along with a life situation that I thought might fight with the story. Some of the banner images I used were taken by w0nderw0man herself (including the bottom right corner one in the masterlist), which makes it that much more fun and personal. :) <3
There will be no taglist for this series. For updates on new chapters, be sure to follow @dreamlanddlibrary and turn on notifications for when I post new fics!
Beta'd by the truly wonderful @sweetascanbee
Divider by @firefly-graphics
Moodboard by @treatbuckywkisses 💕
Fayth moodboards STH tag
Moodboard by @m4tthewmurd0ck 💕
This lovely moodboard by @buckspumpkin 🥰
Summary: After a mission gone awry, Bucky finds himself on your doorstep in the middle of the night.
Words: 5.3K
Fluff, fluff and fluff and a lil bit of angst. Classic hurt/comfort and friends to lovers
Through the darkness, there's a knock on your bedroom door, so soft, so cautious, that if you hadn't already been half-awake, you're not sure you would've caught it.
Legs quickly swung over the side of your mattress, you stop and focus at a fixpoint in your moonlit room.
According to the big mission schedule hung in Steve's office, you should be the only one at the compound, so you cannot for the life in you figure out who would rap on your door at 3.30 in the morning, but it wasn't just something you'd imagined because there it is again. A knock, not much louder than before, but definitely there.
For a brief second, your foggy brain ponders that it's likely someone who's been sent to kill you in the dead of night, but before you've even reached for your bedside Beretta, rationality reminds you that they probably wouldn't have had the curtesy to knock first - and then it dawns on you.
"Nat," you sigh with a roll of your eyes and let your bare feet hit the floor while you rub the sleep from off your face. It's not the first time she's forgotten the lock combination to her room after post-mission drinks.
Slowly, you walk across the cold floorboards and over to the wooden door where you can hear ragged breathing from the other side of the wall. Hand lazily pulling the door open, you start talking before you've seen who's on the other side.
"It's only four digits and you're panic breathing?" you chuckle but is immediately taken aback when you're not met by Natasha but instead by your best friend. "...Buck?"
He's back from his mission a day earlier than you'd expected and you're just about to crack a witty comment on how you'd told him that Sam couldn't stand to be alone with him for more than thirty-six hours, but then you notice the state he's in.
His entire body is slumped over as he clutches his right arm tight to his chest, eyes droopy and blank, cheekbones dotted by freckles of soot and framed by thick strands of auburn hair caked in dried blood. "Doll," he breathes painfully and takes a step closer, looking only mildly relieved to see you.
"Buck!" you hiss in fear and grab both his cheeks, but his dirty face just drops further, and he can't even look at you though you're standing mere inches apart.
"I know it's late," he mumbles with his gaze downcast, "but can I come in?"
It's as if you don't hear him clearly enough to respond. His voice is under water and at the same time layers above you while you're far too concerned with every look of horror splashed across his handsome face, your hands frantically clutching his bloodied cheeks as you desperately search his eyes though he still won't look at you. "What happened? Where's all this blood coming from?"
"It's - it's not mine..." he croaks with a small shake of his head.
Fear ripples through your entire body one more time and you can barely speak as you imagine the worst possible scenario that might have caused Bucky to behave like this. "Is it... Sam?" you whimper with tears already burning in your eyes, fighting the urge to throw up.
"He's fine," Bucky quickly interrupts with a small nod, "I dropped him off at his girl's place twenty minutes ago," he croaks and finally looks up at you, his eyes more broken than you've ever seen them before. It makes your heart crack in two. "Sweetheart, can I please come in?"
"Oh god," you pant anxiously and reluctantly let your fingers slide off his cheeks as you step to the side and finally let him inside your bedroom. "Yes, yes of course you can come in."
Immediately, he's on your bed, his face buried in his vibranium hand as the pads of his fingers start rubbing circles over his dusty forehead.
"What happened?" you barely manage to croak as you sit down beside him and carefully place a hand on his rigid thigh. "Last time I heard from you, everything was going according to plan."
"I don't want to talk about it," he gulps and starts rubbing his face even more agitatedly, looking over at you with an apologetic look on his face. "- not right now... I just had to see you. I'm sorry I woke you up."
You grab his vibranium hand and bring it down to his lap to get him to stop his frantic movements and he immediately squeezes you tight, letting out another heart-breaking sob.
"It's okay, Buck. I'm glad you're here."
Over the last year, you've seen Bucky on his darkest days a handful of times, and he usually has the same look on his face, but this time, it's different. It's deeper. Despondent and morose, the anger that's usually posessing him om the bleaker days replaced by a different kind of sadness.
Something really bad must've happened...
"Do you wanna sleep in here tonight?" you ask, unsure how to tackle this the best way possible if you don't want him to shield himself off in his room the way he usually does when he's not feeling his best. He shouldn't be alone under any circumstances.
You're half expecting him to protest, but to your surprise he starts nodding, relieved. "Thank you," he whispers and squeezes your hand tight again.
You make an attempt at a comforting touch as you brush over the soot on his cheeks, making a strand of dirty hair dipped in dried blood fall from his forehead. "You want a shower? I can draw you a bath."
He nods again.
"Come on, love," you say quietly and watch as he gulps hard at the sound of the tender pet-name that you've been wanting to call him for months now but haven't had the guts to say out loud until it accidentally slips past your lips. Surprisingly, you're not even embarrassed by yourself. You suppose there are more important things to worry about than an accidental profession of love in a moment of gentle affection.
Bucky seems taken aback too, frozen, and full of wonder, but he shakes it off and lets you pull him to your small bathroom, accepting your fluffiest towel without a word as he continues staring at you.
"I'll be just outside, okay?" you say reassuringly as you turn on the water in your bathtub, making sure it's the right temperature before putting in the drain stopper.
He's still looking at you with huge eyes, flesh arm clutched to his chest while the fluffy white towel gently supports his elbow. You silently wonder if he's hurt but before you can ask him, he speaks.
"Can you... stay?" He asks quietly, biting his inner cheek, unsure if his request is too much.
Still, it's your turn to be taken aback. You and Bucky are close but not like that.
"Stay?" you instinctively furrow your eyebrows, "while you shower?
He immediately clenches his jaw shut and shakes his head while small patches of pink appear on his cheeks underneath all the dirt. "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have asked."
"No, no it's okay," you quickly stand up from your position by the tub spout so you're once again levelled. "- I was just surprised, that's all," you want to smack yourself for making him doubt himself. "Of course I'll stay."
Ice blue irises slowly find yours while the rose tint of his lower lip is being pulled between his teeth. "Are you sure?" he hesitates while sucking in some air, "I don't want to make you uncomfortable..."
"You're not," you touch your hand to his sternum to underline your words and watches as the crease between his eyebrows slowly reduces as he gradually relaxes under your touch. You can't help but think that even through all the dust and the grime, he looks incredibly beautiful.
"Let me give you some privacy," you unwillingly let go of him and turn away so he can undress in peace.
From behind you, you can hear the ruffle of his tac pants being pushed down his legs before the belt buckle clangs loudly against the tiles of the floor. It's followed by a series of loud painful grunts and hisses a few seconds later.
"Are you okay?" you ask and turn your head to the side, careful not to look directly at him as to not break the trust he put in you when he asked you to stay. "Buck?"
"Yeah, sweetheart," he sighs in embarrassment behind you, "it's just... do you think you could... help me?"
You turn around slowly to find him standing in the middle of the bathroom still wearing his torn t-shirt and Kevlar vest, bare-legged in boxer shorts and black socks pulled high up on his calf while his pants are lying crumbled on the floor beside him. He's awkwardly shifting the weight between his two feet, still clutching his right arm tightly. "It's my elbow."
Immediately, you furrow your eyebrows and walk over to him, taking his right hand in yours. "Yeah, I meant to ask you earlier. What happened?"
He doesn't answer but just silently lets you examine the swelling and black-purple skin that's half-hidden underneath dust and blood.
"Shit," you breathe and hear him give out a sharp hiss when you turn his arm over so you can examine the other side, "Buck, I think your elbow's torn."
"Me too," he gulps, "- I heard it snap."
At the mere thought of the sound, a wave of nausea hits you square in the chest and your stomach starts to churn. You can feel the tang of acid push up on your tongue when you imagine the pain he must've been enduring - still is enduring - but you fight it relentlessly and eventually manage to swallow down the bile. You should be taking care of him, not the other way around.
"We should go down to the infirmary," you say and keep your gaze firmly placed on the purple bruising, so he doesn't notice your discomfort. "I know it probably won't take too long to heal with the serum and all but just to make su-"
"Sweetheart," he gulps from above you and it makes you stop mid-sentence. "Not tonight, okay? I just wanna stay here tonight."
You look up at him, about to protest, but the words quickly die in your throat when you notice the look he's wearing. He's begging. Anxious. Heavy-hearted.
"Okay," you reluctantly agree and carefully let go of his arm while he sends you a grateful look. "Come on, let me help you out of this," you say quietly in defeat and unstrap his vest beneath his ribs, pulling the Kevlar plates over his head while he groans loudly.
"Ah!" he hisses and clutches his elbow tight, squeezing his eyes shut when you try and pull his t-shirt over his head. "Fuck!"
"You good?"
"Mm-hmm" he hums displeased with lips pressed so tightly together they're forming a thin, white line. "Just get it over with."
You pull on the hem again so the dark fabric rides up his stomach, revealing scarred skin pulled tight over the bulging muscles you've spent so many warm summer days discreetly staring at. "Can you reach your arms just a little higher?" you ask and watch how his diaphragm heaves in small electric shocks when he cannot control the loud gasps that escape his throat.
"Fuck me!" He hisses and squeezes his eyes so tightly shut that his entire face pales. "Just rip the damn fabric off," he hisses angrily, "I can't extend my fucking arm."
"Are you sure you don't wanna get it checked out in the med wing?" You let go of his t-shirt and look him deep in the eye, hoping your concerned gaze can convince him that it'll be worth the trip just to get your jumping nerves under control.
"Just... get me out of this thing," he sighs in defeat. "Cut it open, I don't care."
Disinclined, you dive down in the drawer underneath your sink, pulling out a small flat-legged scissor that came with a roll of gauze you bought last year when you had a nasty wound that wouldn't stop bleeding. "Are you sure?" You look up at him as you put the blade underneath the hem of his t-shirt.
Through the fingers you have placed over his chest, you can feel how his pulse quickly falls again when your eyes meet.
"S'just a t-shirt," he mumbles quietly while nodding, "I'm sure..."
Though you want to stay in this position forever, you slowly look away from him and down at your hands as your hesitantly start cutting, careful not to pierce Bucky's flesh with the sharp scissors.
The blade runs through the fabric like a hot knife through butter and you can feel every tense muscle that the edge of the scissors encounters as they travel over his warm stomach and chest. It makes the blood roar in your ears as more and more skin is revealed underneath your fingertips.
Concentrated on not hurting him even more, you keep your gaze firmly placed on his heavily panting chest as you cut open the front of his black shirt and carefully peel the fabric off his bruised arm until he's standing in front of you in nothing but black boxers and socks, his left hand carefully reaching out for yours as if to comfort both of you.
You've seen him bare chested several times before, but it's never been in this close proximity, never been this intimate, just the two of you holding hands and looking each other deep in the eye as you silently try to assure the other that everything is going to be okay.
"So..." you clear your throat, embarrassed by the fact that you have to hold yourself back from leaning forwards, planting a small kiss on his dusty cheek. "- I take it you can shimmy your way out of those on your own, right?" You nod down towards his boxers and he blinks as if he's just woken up from a trance.
"Yeah," he nods and lets go of your hand while the pink patches make a reappearance on his face.
Slowly, you turn around facing the running spout in the tub to the soft sound of cotton hitting the floor behind you. Involuntarily, you give out a gulp and flusteredly grab the box of bath salts just to give your shaking hands something to do. You cannot believe that your extremely fuckable best friend is standing naked in your bathroom no more than two feet away, begging you to stay close to him.
Eyes still firmly placed on the water in the tub, you point over your shoulder to the rainfall shower in the opposite corner of the bathroom. "You wanna rinse off first?"
"I better," Bucky hesitates behind you. "Don't you think?"
"It'll be a much nicer bath if you do," you awkwardly clear your throat.
"Yeah, you're right," he sighs and turns on the shower, immediately stepping inside and closing the glass door behind him so you can finally breathe freely again.
Through the mirror above the sink, you can make out his naked silhouette behind the matte glass and how the tension in his shoulders first tenfolds and then completely disappears the minute the water turns warm and he relaxes. He lets his forehead fall forwards so it's pressed up against the cold tiles while the water runs over his defined shoulders and down his sculpted back, and you literally have to force your eyes away from him and the shape of his handsome torso.
With your gaze fixed firmly on the fuzzy bathmat at the foot of the shower, you hear the sound of your bath gel being opened, followed by a series of painful grunts as Bucky desperately tries to lather himself with the soap.
"Fuck," he mumbles quietly and before you've even voiced a single word of concern, he continues. "Sweetheart, I know it's a lot to ask..." he says a little louder, the embararssement still evident in his voice, "- but I'm gonna need a little help in here... it's - it's this damn elbow," he sighs, "I'm useless. Can you...?" his voice trails off and the question hangs thickly in the air between you.
He wants you to join him.
To wash him.
Take care of him.
The thought alone makes you nervous, you have to admit, but he needs your help and you're willing to do anything for him.
"Give me a minute," you gulp and strip down to your panties, pulling on the bra you wore earlier so you're not completely bare in there. Several times, you've dreamt of you and Bucky naked together, but not like this - never like this - and you'll be damned if the first time he sees you without a shred of clothes is because he needs help and not because he needs you.
With your pyjamas neatly folded on top of the toilet seat cover, you take a final look at yourself in the mirror, brushing your hair out of your eyes before nervously reaching for the shower door with shaking hands.
He's still standing with his chiselled back towards you, letting the water rinse over his dirty hair and down between his shoulder blades with a slightly pinkish hue. "I'm so sorry about this," he mumbles uncomfortably and hands you your loofah behind his back. "I'll make it up to you, I promise."
"Come on, Buck," you say as you dribble a little soap on the sponge, fighting the urge to let your gaze run all the way down to his thick thighs. "Don't beat yourself up, you know I'm always here for you."
"Still," he mumbles and goes silent as the loofah gently runs over his tense shoulders and traces down his spine.
The white soap bubbles work magic on his dirty skin and you make sure not to leave out a single square inch of his scarred backside as you wash him while fighting the urge to wrap your arms around his torso, telling him how glad you are that he not alone came home, but also that he came to you seeking help instead of barricading himself in his room. It seems significant that he's here, as if something's changed between you though you cannot put your finger on it.
Completely lost in thought, you accidentally run the loofah a little too vigorously over his right tricep, sending shockwaves down his broken bone and resulting in a painful hiss falling from his open mouth.
"Sorry," you mumble, and scrub down his lower back, this time more careful with your movements though there aren't any dirty or bloody spots left on either side of his spine. "There we go" you conclude quietly when you realise that the rinsing water has finally lost its pink and grimy hue. "Turn around," you ask and hope he cannot hear the nervousness straining your voice. No matter what, you're not looking down.
Bucky seems just as jittery about his compromising position as you do, and he slowly spins around, revealing pink cheeks and heaving pecs, his gaze glued to the ceiling as he looks as if he's ready to fling himself off the nearest cliff. "God, sweetheart," he mumbles and breathes hard, "I'm so sorry for all this."
"Bucky, come on - what'd I tell you?" you touch the loofah to his chest, careful not to look anywhere than at the sponge itself as it traces over his collar bones and down his handsome stomach.
He merely sighs and stands completely still while you rinse the crevices between the metal plates over his left clavicle, careful not to move his torso so much he hisses in pain again.
"...You're a good friend," he mumbles after a few focused minutes where you've carefully been scrubbing the gold-plated lines in the vibranium, "- I ever tell you that?"
"All the time," you smile genuinely for the first time since he knocked on your door earlier that evening. If there's one thing you can count on, it's that Bucky Barnes appreciates you more than anything.
"I mean it," he says, "never doubt that."
You look up into his eyes.
He looks so soft and innocent as he stands before you, face finally clean, wet hair sticking to his forehead while he professes his love for you. Even if it's just platonic, it makes your heart skip a beat.
"I know, Buck."
"Good," he nods and blinks a few times with heavy, wet lashes framing his cerulean eyes. The air between you is thicker than ever and for a brief moment, it looks as if he's about to lean in and kiss you, but you break the tension by looking away. You don't want to take advantage of his vulnerable state no matter how badly you want that kiss.
"You ready for the tub?" You ask him in a weirdly shaky voice.
He nods while an almost inaudible sigh escapes his lips. "Yeah," he says and turns off the water, quickly exiting the shower before you can take notice of the disappointment burning on his skin.
You dry your feet on the small fuzzy mat, carefully watching Bucky's naked backside as he tests the temperature in the tub by dipping his toe in the water before stepping over the porcelain edge, sitting himself down.
Immediately, he gives out a content sigh, and drapes right arm over his chest, supporting his broken elbow with vibranium fingers, and you finally deem the situation safe enough to approach him again.
"Want me to wash your hair?"
"Mmh" he hums with closed eyes, immediately more relaxed now that he's covered by water. "I don't deserve you."
You grab your shampoo bottle and push out a decent amount of liquid, pressing it to his warm scalp to the sound of an alleviated sigh falling from his lips as you carefully start massaging it into his roots.
"Does that feel good?" you ask through a smile.
"Yeah, sweetheart," he groans quietly, making the butterflies in your stomach flutter awake, "- feels amazing."
You're slowly lathering shampoo into his long hair, enjoying the feel of him underneath your fingertips, how his soft hair slips through your hands while also trying not to think too much about the kiss you robbed yourself of in the shower. You can hear how his breathing slowly steadies and you think that maybe he's in the early stages of sleep but then he unexpectedly heaves a deep breath -
"You know... I haven't been scared of death for a long time," he says so sudden, so seriously that you're immediately brought out of your trance as your every muscle freezes at his austere tone of voice. "I used to not care if I lived or died but... tonight didn't go as planned," he swallows thickly and you can see how his jaw tenses up as his voice becomes husky, "- they... had me."
"What?" you pant with mortification, your every skeletal muscle paralysed as your breathing picks up. You don't have to ask him who he's talking about.
"Sam and I, we were so sure of ourselves," he shakes his head with his gaze fixed on the wall straight ahead. "We thought had the perfect plan... I - I'm such an idiot, nothing ever runs smoothly with Hydra."
You can feel your heart thumping in your throat. "What happened?" You whisper.
"Sam was on the look-out while I got the hard drive," he mumbles, "it was so easy. It didn't even take me five minutes before I was heading back towards the safehouse," he gulps, "- of course it was an ambush. I should have realised the minute I set foot inside that building."
"You couldn't have known," you whimper softly and stroke his scalp, but he doesn't listen.
"- I thought I was..." the words drown in a heavy sigh, and he stares blankly into space while blinking the tears away.
"Buck," you whisper and can feel the pain radiating from every fibre of his entire being when you wrap your arms around his wet torso and hold him close to your chest.
"They took me to a room. Strapped me down," he takes a ragged breath, and you hold on to him even tighter, "I was sure that was it. I never thought I'd find myself home again."
"You're home now," you whisper and softly kiss his shoulder, hoping that he doesn't feel the tear that lands on top of his clavicle. "You're home now with me."
"I know, sweetheart," he leans into your hug with a sigh, "trust me, I know."
"Everything's gonna be alright, love," you whisper against him and stroke your hand over his hair, "it's you and me against the world, always."
"You and me," he quietly confirms and leans back into your chest with a deep breath.
You continue stroking him over the hair, hold on to him for dear life, not willing to let go as you feel him relax more and more in your arms until he starts snoring slightly, finally warm and safe in your embrace.
"Buck, come on," you instinctively kiss him right below his ear, "you're sleeping. Let's get you into bed."
"Sorry," he mumbles groggily and lets his head fall back against your shoulder. "m'just so fucking tired. Been up thirty-six hours..."
"We'll talk tomorrow," you kiss him again and unwillingly unwrap yourself from around his chest, standing up straight beside him. "I'm not going anywhere. Promise."
He's looking up at you with puppy eyes, gaze slowly travelling down your body and up again as if he hadn't realised you were in your lingerie until that exact moment. "You look beautiful," he says quietly and you half-expect him to laugh it off, but his face stays serious.
"...Thanks," you croak while handing him the fluffy towel, not sure how to react to his sweet words. He's called you many things, but he's never downright called you beautiful before.
"I can take it from here, sweetheart," he nods slowly and steals one last glance down at your body, "you just go to bed. I'll be in in a minute."
"Okay," you whisper and peel yourself away from the tension between you by swiftly turning around, exiting the bathroom.
Back in your room, you barely have time to get out of your wet underwear and put on a fresh set of pyjamas, before a boxer-clad Bucky joins you on the bed.
"Are you still okay with me staying the night?" He asks, nervously.
"Of course I am," you answer immediately and find his vibranium hand underneath the covers, lacing your fingers between his as you scan his weary features. "See if you can get some sleep, okay? You need it," you brush a strand of wet hair away from his face and make sure he's fine by gently cupping his cheek before closing your eyes, hoping he's following your lead, doing the same.
The dark room goes completely quiet for a few minutes where the only audible sound is of your synchronised breathing.
You can feel yourself grow impossibly tired too as you lie there hand in hand with Bucky, and you're just about to succumb to sleep, when suddenly, his quiet whisper breaks the silence.
"I thought about you," he says softly, and it makes you open your eyes again.
You're staring straight into his handsome face, his beautiful blue eyes scanning over your features as he slowly clarifies.
"When they had me strapped down, I thought about you," he moves his fingers against the palm of your hand and completely engulfs you. "The thought of not seeing you again was..." the words die in his throat, and he looks as if he's seconds away from whimpering. "- Sweetheart, you make me so afraid of dying."
You breathe hard with quivering lips, huge eyes matching his as you let his confession sink in.
"I was so desperate to come home, I snapped the restraints in half. Snapped my own elbow along with them," he winces slightly at the painful memory that once again makes your stomach churn. "Sweetheart, I fought like hell. I don't think I've ever been so angry... I - I killed everyone I could get my hands on, I just had to see you again," he brings your hand to his soft lips and kisses the delicate pulse point of your wrist.
"Buck..." a slow whine escapes your throat as you try to blink away a stubborn tear that slowly starts rolling down the side of your nose.
"I love you," he whispers so softly against your thin skin that you almost don't hear. His eyes are closed and he looks relieved to be lying here with you, so you carefully pull his hand to your chest, placing his vibranium palm above your heavily beating heart.
"I love you too."
"Sweetheart," he whispers above you and moves his hand a little on top of your soft pyjamas while lightly shaking his head with a sigh. "No, you don't understand..." he gulps and searches your face, "I love you."
Your breath hitches in your throat.
"- I want more than this," he slowly admits. "I want to be more than your friend. I'm in love with you."
You squeeze his hand and move a little closer to him, scared that he'll stop confessing his love if you say something to throw him off track.
He holds on to you and can feel how your pulse starts racing underneath your pyjamas. "I hope I'm not scaring you off."
"No, no you're not," you say in a hoarse voice, "not at all. I - I think about you all the time."
"You do?" He breathes hard, clearly not believing what he's hearing.
"Yeah," you merely nod and move your head a little closer to him while he does the same. "I'm in love with you too, Buck. Have been for quite some time."
With a serious look, he moves his hand from off your chest and up to your face where he brushes a finger over the delicate features of your cheekbone and down to your jawline. "I'm gonna kiss you now," he warns in a whisper and waits for you to give him a nod before he reaches his head forwards, finally claiming your mouth with his lips.
His hand snakes down the length of your spine and you press your entire front up against his hard chest and stomach while he caresses the small of your back, slipping his soft tongue inside your mouth. "God," he moans and gently grabs hold of your hips, pulling you impossibly close to him. "You make me feel whole again," he whispers against your skin and kisses a small line from your earlobe and down to the base of your clavicle. "What do you say sweetheart?" he mumbles and nibbles at your skin, "can I take you out?"
"Yeah, Buck, you can take me out," you squeeze his hand, and he smiles for the first time that evening, setting everything inside of you aflame.
He's finally smiling and it's because of you.
"I wanna do it the old-fashioned way," he says, beaming, "bring you flowers. Take you dancing. Show you how you're supposed to be treated."
You can't help but chuckle at his soft innocence. "You're an old man," you brush him over his hair, "nobody goes dancing anymore."
"I'll teach you," he chuckles back but lets it turn into a sharp hiss when he accidentally moves his broken elbow.
"That sounds lovely," you admit with a smile, excited at the prospect of having his hands on your hips while he tells you what to do, "- though I'm afraid we'll have to get that elbow sorted first if you want to manoeuvre me around on the dancefloor. I know you don't see the point in going but... med wing tomorrow morning?"
"Okay," he rolls his eyes with a laugh that makes your stomach go all warm and fuzzy. "If it gets me to go dancing with you just an hour earlier, it's worth the trip... Will you go with me?"
"Yeah, I'll go with you," you kiss his hand, and he chuckles so warmly your stomach lights up again. "I'll go with you always."
Weiterlesen
Welcome to my Bucky Barnes Masterlist.
As always, this is an 18+ blog, by continuing to read you agree that you are 18+. Remember you are responsible for your own media consumption.
All fics are with a female reader.
Weiterlesen
Someone who’ll talk you through it 🥲
Summary: Request! The team underestimates Y/N's strength until one day when her powers save them all.
Warnings: slight violence and mention of injuries
Word Count: 2717
a/n: You're basically the avatar in this fic. You're welcome :) lol
Masterlist
"What am I supposed to do?" You asked as Steve finished explaining everyone's role for the next mission.
Tony and Sam were air support, meant to keep on eye on the perimeter and notify the ground teams of any surprises. Bucky and Nat were approaching the west entrance, Steve and Wanda the east, and finally Vision and Peter the north. The quinjet would be parked on the south side, where the building had no entrances.
"Guard the quinjet." Steve answered automatically.
"But, I really think I can help with more than just-" Your attempt at arguing for more responsibility was interrupted by nearly everyone in the room.
"Y/N, you're not ready." Steve's voice echoed louder than the rest, although nearly everyone murmured in agreement.
It was the same for every mission you went on. If it was a short mission, like the next one, you were meant to guard the jet. If it required multiple days in a hotel, you were on surveillance. No matter how simple the mission, you were basically told to "wait in the car" every single time.
You officially joined the avengers 8 months ago when you prevented a sinkhole- caused by a new Hydra weapon- from killing civilians in a small town in Europe. Despite only gaining more control since you began training with the team, almost none of them seemed to think you were capable of actually joining a mission.
"But, I've been training-" Again you were cut off.
"Trust me, it's better to wait until you've got complete control. Otherwise people could get hurt." Wanda's eyes seemed to hold a sadness as she spoke, but you weren't given time to further inquire.
"We leave in half an hour." Steve announced to the room before departing to make final preparations.
You slid down in your chair like a child, if they were going to treat you like one you might as well act like it. Hell, you're a fully grown adult capable of creating a tsunami, but everyone acts like you're a toddler who still needs training wheels.
With a final huff of annoyance, you got up to get ready for the mission. It felt like a waste to get fully dressed in the uncomfortable tac gear when you wouldn't even be leaving the jet, but you did so anyway. No need to give them more reasons to leave you behind.
The ride in the quinjet was filled with whispers, each sub-team going over their plan of attack. You sat in the back alone, watching as everyone else prepared to fight. As Steve landed the jet, you tried your hand one more time.
"Cap, are you sure I can't do anything?" You asked again, trying your best to not whine. To your surprise, Tony answered before Steve could finish his typical dad sigh.
"Y/N, right now all you need to do is stay here. Got it?" He sent you his patented glare before flying out the door. Sam at least had the decency to direct a sympathetic smile your way before following.
"He's right. Just wait for us to come back." Steve secured his shield before descending the ramp, Wanda at his side.
"We'll be back soon, doll." Bucky squeezed your hand before leaving. Unfortunately for you, not even the physical contact and pet name from your not-so-secret crush could lift your mood.
You and Bucky walked a fine line between friends and, well, more than friends. The flirty comments, pet names, and not so innocent touches were common place, yet the two of you still doubted the others feelings.
"Sorry, Y/N." Nat grimaced at leaving you behind. At least you had one of them on your side.
You watched as the rest of the team moved into position, leaving you to watch the feed Tony projected onto the monitors of the jet.
Each team of two flawlessly executed their plans, infiltrating the base at exactly the same time. Everything seemed to be going smoothly until all of the video feeds you had access to cut out.
"Tony, the video's gone. Is everything okay?" You tried to spot him or Sam from the ground outside the jet, but neither flyer was visible.
"Tony? Cap?" You asked into the comms again, panic slowly rising.
You were about to ask again when a sharp cry blasted through your ears. There was no way to be sure, but it sounded like Peter.
Without another thought, you ran from the quinjet towards the base. If your team was in trouble, then you couldn't just sit and watch.
You ran through the woods until the base was in clear view. Scanning your surroundings, you spotted three pairs of guards making rounds on the perimeter of the base. With a few simple hand movements, you knocked them out with various flying rocks.
After another quick scan, you made your way to the closest entrance on the West side of the building. Various guards were laying strewn about the area, dead or unconscious, you couldn't be sure.
The door creaked slightly as you opened it, but luckily nobody was waiting on the other side. Twirling your finger, you created a ball of air to float you down the corridors, preventing alerting anyone of your presence via footsteps.
It also made it easier for you to hear when Hydra agents were approaching. You incapacitated each agent with a swift bolt of lightning to the heart, easing them to the ground with pillows of air to prevent any noises from giving away your position.
You slowly made your way to the center of the base, listening intently for any sign of your team.
About 15 minutes, and 30 hydra agents later, you could hear Tony's familiar sarcasm.
"Well, if I could reach it, I wouldn't have asked you!" He whisper yelled.
You scoped out the room as best you could, but since Tony was talking it was easy to assume it was currently void of any enemy combatants.
"Tony! Sam!" You dropped to the ground in front of them, clearly surprising them with your entrance.
"Y/N! What the hell are you doing here?" Tony's volume rose slightly, but Sam was quick to shush him.
"The video feed went down and nobody was replying on comm's." You moved to untie him, but halted when he whisper yelled again.
"You're supposed to be in the quinjet! It's not safe in here." His glare only fed your anger, but you didn't have time to fight with him on this.
"No shit, you're tied up." Your response earned a snort from Sam and another glare from Tony.
Before you could move to untie him again, the doors swung open. You retreated to the shadows, again floating on a ball of air.
A group of twenty Hydra agents lead Steve, Bucky, Wanda, Nat, Vision, and Peter into the room. Wanda and Vision were both rendered unconscious. The rest had clearly taken a beating, but were awake. Steve's shield was thrown into the corner with Tony and Sam's suits, and Bucky's arm rendered immobile with an electromagnet.
The Hydra agents quickly tied up the rest of the team, leaving you to wonder what the hell happened that got everyone caught. It was easy for you to see that Tony and Sam were trying to clue the rest of the team as to your whereabouts, but with so many agents in the room they couldn't get the message across without giving you away to everyone.
With bated breath, you decided you needed a plan. First, you had to free everyone from their bindings, including Bucky's arm. Next, they needed their weapons. Then, you need an escape plan. If there are twenty agents in this room alone, getting out with such a large group was not going to be easy.
You looked around the room for anything that could help, eyes focusing on the skylights in the roof. Clearly, this room was not meant for holding prisoners.
With a plan in your head, it was time to act. Luckily, your tac suit is equipped with elemental weapons.
You reached for the stones in your belt that were sharpened to act as knives. With one hand, you weaved the stones around the room, cutting through the thick ropes binding the avengers. At the same time, you sent bolts of lightning through all the hydra agents in the room.
As soon as they fell, more agents were piling in. Following through the steps you outlined in your head, you created balls of air to carry the team's previously discarded armour and weapons to them. One whip like blast of air separated the magnet from Bucky's arm, rendering it operational again.
Both sides watched with varying expressions as you controlled the elements to free and arm your team. As more agents poured in through the various entrances, you shouted to Tony.
"Did you get what you came for?"
With wide eyes, the man nodded.
"Looks like we're out then." You flung rocks through the skylights, before creating balls of air for your team. Each member quickly flew through the new holes in the ceiling, escaping from the assault of bullets from the Hydra agents.
Once outside, you set down anyone who could walk, maintaining the balls of air for Vision and Wanda. You lead them toward the jet, signalling for the rest of the group to follow. As you ran from the base, you shot blasts of fire into the main gas lines, not turning back as the base exploded.
Once back to the quinjet, Steve immediately took off while you slowly lowered Wanda and Vision to the beds in the makeshift medbay onboard. Wanda appeared to be knocked unconscious from a blow to the head. The rest of the team watched in starstruck awe as you hooked her up to the vital machines, sighing with relief at a steady heartbeat.
Vision had some sort of device attached to the mind stone, appearing to put him into a coma like state. With careful movements, you used whip like motions to separate the device from his head, another sigh of relief escaping when he woke up.
"Wanda, where's Wanda?" He questioned immediately. You gestured behind him, where Wanda was recovering.
"Y/N..." Tony spoke first, eyes still wide. Steve was now looking at you as well, having set the course for the jet to return to the compound.
You turned to look at the rest of the team, each member wearing matching expressions of awe and surprise. Bucky's eyes looked the softest.
"Sit down." You commanded to them. They complied instantly, still shocked at everything that happened.
You grabbed the first aid kit, working your way through the various gashes and scrapes each avenger had received. You cleaned up wounds on Tony, Sam, Steve, Peter, and Nat before finally making your way toward Bucky.
You took a step toward him, stumbling slightly from exhaustion.
"Carefull, doll." He caught you, helping you into a chair. You closed your eyes briefly, humming in agreement to Bucky's command.
When you opened them again, everyone- barring Vision, Wanda, and Peter, who was now taking a nap- was still staring at you.
"What?" You grimaced, slightly uncomfortable with all of the attention.
"What? What!" Bucky exclaimed incredulously from next to you. "Y/N, you just single handedly saved all of us! From at least 50 agents!"
The rest of the team nodded, still at a loss for words.
"Well, I told you I was ready." You huffed, still miffed from their dismissal of your abilities.
"Damn, straight. Should've let you in first." Sam quipped, eyes beaming at you.
"Y/N, I'm so sorry." Steve's apology rang clearly through the near silent jet. Tony followed immediately with an apology of his own.
"Me too. Kid, I'm sorry we doubted you." Tony stared at the ground, guilt radiating off him in waves.
"I, for one, never doubted you." Nat cut in. "I didn't, however, know you could do that." She smirked, eyes twinkling with pride.
"Thanks, Nat. And apologies accepted." You smiled at everyone, too exhausted to hold a grudge. "But, I think I need a nap." You yawned through the words, leaning into Bucky and instantly falling asleep.
-
When the jet landed it jostled you awake. You were still leaning against Bucky, his metal arm wrapped protectively around you while his flesh hand ran through your hair.
"Hi." You gave him a sleepy smile, blinking repeatedly to wake up. "Oh!" You suddenly remembered Wanda being unconscious. "Do you need me to get Wanda inside?"
You turned to look at her, surprised to see she had already woken up. Even more surprising, she immediately embraced you in a hug.
"Thank you. Clearly you have complete control." She gave you a small smile.
"Of course, anything to help you guys." You smiled at the team, finally feeling as if you were one of them.
Everyone left the jet, grumbling about food and showers. You and Bucky walked slowly behind them, arms swinging next to each other.
Suddenly, Bucky grabbed your hand, pulling you to a stop just outside of the jet's entrance.
"Y/N, you fell asleep before I got to say it, but thank you. And, I'm sorry too. I should've stuck up for you. Clearly you're more than capable of helping us on missions." He spoke clearly, but refused to make eye contact.
"Buck, it's in the past. You all know now, so I'll never have to babysit the jet again." You smiled happily, grin widening when he chuckled.
"I mean it though. Thank you... Watching you was incredible. I don't know how long it took you to plan everything, but clearly you can think on your feet because we weren't in there for more than five minutes before you had us flying through the ceiling." He laughed slightly, clearly still in awe of your powers.
"It was nothing. Any of you would've figured out a way to free everyone." You shyly muttered back, still unused to the praise.
"No, Y/N. What you did was amazing. Yeah, maybe we could've found a way out, but you freed us and nobody was seriously injured. Plus, you still managed to complete the mission." He finally met your eye, clearly waiting for you to just accept the compliment.
"Thank you." You still smiled shyly, but there was no use in arguing.
"You amaze me more and more each day." He whispered, so quietly you almost missed it.
"What do you mean? You've never seen me use my powers before?" You furrowed your brow, tilting your head in curiosity.
"Christ, you're adorable." His hand moved to cup your cheek, thumb brushing over the soft skin. "Even without your powers, you amaze me. You've always been the kindest person here. Always willing to help someone, even if you're in the middle of something yourself. You're beautiful, and smart, and funny, and just... incredible." His words trailed off, voice thick with emotion.
"Bucky..." You looked at him with wide eyes, lip quivering from trying to control your own emotions.
"Can I kiss you now, doll?" he asked, moving even closer. You nodded, breathing out a soft reply before closing the distance between you.
You could've spent forever kissing him under the stars if the sound of someone clearing their throat hadn't disrupted you.
You broke apart to find the one and only Steve Rogers staring at the ground with a blush on his cheeks.
"What do you want, punk?" Bucky held you close, eyeing Steve with a playful glare.
"I, uh, I left my shield on the jet." He gestured behind the two of you to the entrance you were partially blocking.
Wordlessly, you stepped to the side, pulling Bucky with you. Steve nodded in thanks, still blushing as he boarded the jet.
"Well, that moment was officially ruined." Bucky sighed, hand running through his hair.
"I think it was pretty perfect." You smiled, pressing a quick kiss to his lips. He groaned when you pulled away.
"C'mon, Sergeant. I wanna watch a movie and cuddle." You pouted, pulling his arm until he followed you.
"Anything you want, doll. It's yours."
From the jet, Steve smiled to himself, knowing Bucky would follow you across the world if you asked.
Permanent:
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Kinda crying rn
—boxer!bucky x reader
—summary: bucky hated his job just as much, if not more, than you did. but if you wanted to live the remainder of your lives together comfortably, you'd both have to stick it out. which included him having to fight your ex husband.
—word count: 7.2k
—tw: swearing, alcohol, violence, blood, guns, hospitals, abuse (not from Bucky), Br*ck R*mlow, grammar mistakes, unedited lol
—a/n: my first Bucky pic! Yay! this is kind of a heavy one, as all of my fics are, lol, so if any of the triggers bother you pls don't read any further! I wanna write more blurbs based on this so keep an eye out for those. also Steve and nat are married in this, and sam's wife is an OC named Sonya, I picture her as Kiki Layne but feel free to use imagination! enjoy!
It was never fucking easy.
He had promised. He had always promised that it would get easier.
Of course, you’d believed him at first. When the love of your life whispers sweet promises into your ear with his hands grasped at your waist, your knees turn to jello and you believe him.
But as time went on, how could watching your fiance get his face smashed in repeatedly by his opponent wearing a red boxing glove ever get fucking easier?
“It’ll get easier, baby. Promise.”
Bullshit.
The tremor in your fingers never eased, the clamminess of your hands never dried, the tunnel vision barring you from seeing or hearing anything that wasn’t Bucky in that goddamn ring never let up.
“What if it doesn’t?” You whispered.
If there was anything in this God forsaken universe that Bucky Barnes loved, it was you. And he hated himself for making that promise, because it never got easier for him either. The last thing he could ever want was to see his girl shaking in panic, a panic that he caused. But, this was all he knew. His father was a boxer, and he’d been training since he was a teenager. There was no other life for him now, he just needed her to hold on a little bit longer. Just a little bit longer until his contract is up and he can retire forever, having made enough money for the both of them to live comfortably for the rest of their lives and raise a family.
He hoped and prayed that it would get easier, that the pain both of them felt would subside until it was over. But of course, nothing ever seems to work out that way.
—
“Well if you aren’t as beautiful as the day I first met you!”
“That was only 5 years ago Tony. You gonna break my husband’s contract or what?”
Tony Stark, the loveable yet completely tiresome man who managed your fiance, along with multiple other well known boxers under SBA.
“You know that’s out of my control, gorgeous.”
You sighed. Of course you knew. Tony owned the company when you first started dating Bucky, but things changed, and Tony ran out of money. He was eventually bought out by Nick Fury, a good man who let Tony keep a high up enough job at the company, but he played by the rules. He refused to let Bucky end his contract and keep his money.
“I know it.” You rolled your eyes and patted him on the back as you made your way into the gym.
“Visitors pass!” Tony called after you and you flipped him off, causing him to chuckle. You made your way to the far corner of the gym, knowing it was exactly where Bucky and his friends would be on a Thursday.
“Afternoon, boys! Your voice sang through the gym as you raised a hand in the air, catching the attention of the 3 more so men than boys huddled in a circle with their arms folded across their puffed up chests.
You scoffed. Men.
Sam Wilson, Steve Rogers, and Bucky Barnes. Or, “The Big Three” as most of their fans called them fondly.
Steve and Bucky both trained under the infamous Sam Wilson, originally the heavyweight champion for the PBA before a debilitating head injury left him and his wife fearful for their future and the future of his newborn daughter. Sam was lucky enough to break his contract with PBA, with the help from his lawyer who found multiple legal loopholes, at the fault of the CEO, Alexander Pierce, who Sam describes as “an asshole on a stick”.
You always thought it was so funny, these 3 big men that just turned to absolute putty in the presence of their girls. Just 3 soft teddy bears that only a select few got to see the sweet, carefree and fun side of.
Just last weekend, you and Bucky hosted a dinner party for all your friends at your new penthouse in New York.
–
“Steve, for the love of all things good, feet off of the sofa!” You scolded from your seat at the bar where you were accompanied by Sam’s wife, Sonya, and Steve’s wife, Natasha, along with Tony’s assistant, Wanda. Sam’s youngest girl, Thalia, was on your lap, head rested on your chest and playing with your hair.
Steve groaned, yanking them off and planting them on the ground before hoisting himself up and making his way towards the bar for a drink for himself, but not before plucking Thalia from your grip.
You were extremely proud of yours and Bucky’s home, it was exactly like you’d always dreamed. A kitchen with the most gorgeous island and oak cabinets, a beautiful dining room with a sparkling vintage chandelier and a table big enough to fit your dysfunctional family, a full functioning bar in the living room and the most stunning view of New York a small town girl like you could never dream of. Bucky wanted to give you everything and more.
“She sent me the link to that sofa when she first ordered it, and for that price you better keep those nasty ass feet off of those cushions.” Natasha berated, pointing a finger in her husband’s face, who responded by playfully biting the end of it before kissing her nose, causing the woman to scrunch her face, and earning a giggle from Thalia.
“Ever so charming.” Sonya taunted, rolling her eyes before taking a sip from her martini, only to make a sour face. “Tony this is the worst martini that’s ever made its way past my lips!”
“I make men fight, Mrs. Wilson, not martinis, be thankful you got anything at all.”
You shook your head, though a smile still played upon your lips as you felt your fiance’s well built arms wrap around your waist, his lips grazing your shoulder.
“Well, hello handsome.” You greeted, turning your head so he could give you a kiss on the lips.
“Hi, my love.” He said ever so gently, pressing a kiss to your brow before letting his lips linger there.
“When are you two lovebirds finally gonna get married?” Sam asked, breaking the silence as he reached over Wanda to grab a piece of cheese from the assortment of snacks you’d set out before dinner. His comment earned a smack on the arm from Sonya.
“If you don’t wife her, Barnes, I might. Because this amaretto sour she made me is kind of to die for.” Wanda joked, sipping from her drink.
“And that sauce just smells heavenly.” Tony remarked, popping a grape into his mouth.
“And this decor…” Steve said, looking around the apartment, wrapping an arm around Natasha. “Honey, do we need a third?
“I think we might-”
“Alright, alright.” Bucky said, tightening his grip around your giggling frame. “Everyone back off of my girl before things get ugly.”
–
Bucky turned to you, his face lighting up as he saw his girl, beautiful as ever, walking through his gym with a cooler bag in hand, lunch for him, no doubt. He met you halfway, picking you up by your waist, spinning you around and dipping you before kissing you in front of all the men who liked to stare a bit too long as you walked past them in your tight jeans and small tank top.
“Bucky!” You squealed, “Don’t make me drop the food I slaved away making for you all this morning.”
Bucky froze, raising an eyebrow, “All?”
Steve and Sam’s ears perked up, “All?!”
You smiled, wiggling out of Bucky’s grip, but keeping one hand wrapped in his. “Thought it’d be a fun surprise!” You set down the cooler bag and let the 2 men rifle through what you had to offer. Salmon, rice, steamed vegetables, your special sauce that you refused to share the recipe to, and multiple bags of your boxer diet- friendly chocolate chip cookies that the boys went crazy over.
“Mrs. Barnes you are quite literally a saint.” Steve said, gripping your small head in his hands and planting a kiss right in the middle of your forehead.
You and Bucky weren’t married, he hadn’t even proposed yet. But you both had a habit of calling each other ‘husband’, ‘wife’, ‘fiance’, and everyone else’s favorite ‘Mrs. Barnes’.
You laughed and wiped the remnants of Steve’s kiss before turning to Bucky, wrapping your arms around his neck.
“How are you today, doll?” He asked, a serious tone on his face as well as settled in his eyes.
You grimaced. Bucky had a fight today, and you weren’t exactly ecstatic over it. Well, you were never exactly ecstatic when Bucky had to fight. But, that was the only way to bring in money, and the only way to end his contract faster.
“Quentin Beck, right?” You smiled while Bucky ran a hand along your spine. “Easy money.”
“I know that’s right!” Sam whooped, cookie crumbles falling from his mouth. “Gonna need all the practice you can get before you fight Rumlow!”
Brock Rumlow.
One of the meanest, most vicious fighters of the PBA, heavyweight champion the past two years. He gave Wilson the head injury that put him out. He nearly killed Steve 3 years ago.
Infamously known as “The Hydra”.
Cut off one head, two more grow back.
And much to your dismay, your ex husband.
You had married extremely young. After running away from your small town in Georgia at 18, you met Brock Rumlow at a fancy party you snuck your way into with some girls you met at your job. He promised security, safety, wealth, love.
You got maybe two of those things.
You met Sam through Brock, he helped you through all of the legalities of divorce after you showed up on him and Sonya’s doorstep in the rain, soaked, bruised, and shaking.
It’s how you met the love of your life.
“Bucky…”
He hadn’t told you he was fighting Rumlow.
Sam regretted his words as they barely even tumbled past his cookie stuffed mouth as Steve shook his head, pity evident on his features as he looked at you.
“Doll…”
His voice was so achingly gentle, his eyes so painfully soft as he continued to hold you, letting you work through every emotion that seemed to be hitting you like a semi truck.
“Please say somethin’, honey. Anything.”
“Um- when, when is this happening?” You asked, trying your best to keep your cool amongst the many other men and women in the gym.
The three exchanged looks. Bucky had a world of time to tell you, but he was so damn afraid of the exact reaction painted across your face at that moment.
Everyone threatened to tell you multiple times, but Bucky insisted it needed to come from him, and he’d get around to it. Wanda even went so far as to dial your number one day.
You had picked up with your signature cheery hello and Bucky made a pleading gesture with his hands, desperation evident on his face as he wordlessly begged Wanda to keep her mouth shut.
“Hello?”
‘Please’ Bucky had mouthed.
“Wanda?”
Wanda shook her head before answering you, “Hey girl! Just making sure we’re still on for drinks this weekend.”
Bucky wanted to cry as he held you in his arms, not that he’d think you would be angry with him. You just had been through so much, you didn’t deserve to go through this too.
“Two weeks.” Bucky choked the words out.
You were stoic, staring at Bucky as if you were just staring straight at the weight machine behind him.
The three men held their breaths, terrified for the reaction you might give.
“Okay.” You said. Your voice suspiciously even. “Let’s beat this motherfucker.”
–
You never liked the private rooms at the arena.
They were nice, perfectly clean with comfortable couches and working restrooms. The mini fridges were stocked with sodas and snacks, the good kinds like cheez-its and coca-cola. They even had air fresheners in the corner of each room, making all of them smell like fresh laundry and flowers.
But that wasn’t your qualm.
You hated the rooms because all they brought were anxiety and pain.
The moments before a fight were filled with unshed tears you struggled to keep inside and Bucky’s arms around you, whispering the sweetest of words that seemed to drip like honey and stick to your ears.
The moments after were filled with panicked breaths that you tried so hard to conceal as you watched your husband's unrecognizable face get cleaned and bandaged by his medical team while he held your hands in his own, rubbing soothing circles with his thumbs and occasionally bringing them to his lips to press sweet kisses to your wrists.
Today was no different.
“Sweetheart, it’s okay to be nervous.” Bucky said, pressing a kiss to your shoulder.
His med team just finished checking him before the fight, so he was sat on a temporary medical stretcher, his large arms wrapped around your waist, you had your arms around his neck.
He tried to pull away to look at you but you just shook your head and held him closer, allowing a few stray tears to slip.
“Okay.” He whispered, running his hands up and down your back. “Okay, doll. I’m here. Right here, okay?”
There was a moment of complete quiet. Just you and Bucky, the only sound being the whirring of the air conditioner in the corner. You didn’t want to ruin it.
“Don’t fight him.”
Yet, you did.
Bucky furrowed his eyebrows. “Beck? Baby, that guy’s barely even-”
“Rumlow.”
“Doll, you know I wish I could…”
“Bucky, please.” You pulled away from him then, feeling the ache in your bones of no longer being in his hold.
Bucky’s heart severed at the look on your face, cheeks puffy and eyes swollen, fat tears rolling down your skin but ever so beautiful.
“He’s doing this to get back at me.” You were sobbing now, not even fully pronouncing your words.
Bucky wanted nothing more than to give in. To say ‘Okay’ and tell Tony he wasn’t doing the fight. Hell, he’d march straight into Fury’s office if he could.
Bucky held your face in his hands, firm, yet gentle enough for you to want to just melt into him. He pulled you closer, settling your legs in between his knees.
“Tony did everything he could all these years to keep me from fighting him. We need this money, baby. We’re one step closer. We’re so close.”
You let yourself lean into Bucky’s touch, bringing your hands up to grip onto his wrists as you continued to cry. “I don’t want him to hurt you like he hurt me.”
Bucky hated thinking about what Rumlow did to you before you found the courage to leave. It took everything in him not to beat that sick son of a bitch every time their paths crossed. Which wasn’t often, but enough to get Bucky to think about it.
Luckily, Brock knew to steer clear of anybody from the Big Three. He wasn’t stupid. One wrong move and he could completely lose his contract. Though, it didn’t stop him from taunting Rogers or Wilson anytime he saw them, a disgusting grin splattered on his face, beaming with pride that he almost killed one of them and completely ruined the career of the other.
“I got this, babydoll. Then it’ll be one step closer to me and you.”
–
“Bucky ‘The Winter Soldier’ Barnes!”
The announcer’s voice pierced through the stadium, causing you to cringe. He hated that name, it was chosen for him by his father, whom Bucky resented throughout the entirety of the man’s life, until quite literally the day he died. He tried to change it, but everyone refused. He couldn’t change his brand this late in the game.
“And aren’t we lucky to have the infamous Big Three in the arena with us tonight!” The other announcer exclaimed as Bucky walked up to the ring with Steve and Sam in tow, his walk up song blaring through the speakers.
“And all three wives in the stands, it’s a family affair!” The screens lit up with the view of you, Natasha and Sonya sitting side by side in the stands, all adorned in T-shirts with Bucky’s face on them, and you did what all 3 of you were trained to do.
Smile and wave.
It was rare that all 6 of you were there at the same time. There was usually a straggler or two in the mix. Either someone had to stay home with the kids, a relative was in town, work came up, or you stayed backstage to sneak away from the fanfare.
“And don’t they all look stunning as ever!”
“Get this camera off of me so I can take a sip of my damn margarita.” Sonya mumbled, though continued to smile and point to her Bucky shirt.
You couldn’t help but cover your mouth as you laughed, trying to remain composed for the camera so nobody would speculate later. You could already see the fans on twitter spewing lies about Sonya having an attitude and being ungrateful.
The camera changed to Bucky, who seemed to be looking right at you so you turned, making eye contact with your man.
He broke into the most gorgeous smile you’d ever seen and your heart burst just before he blew you a kiss, causing the arena to erupt in cheers. You caught the kiss and pressed it to your cheek.
“What a sweet moment, but it’s time to move on.” The announcer’s voice rang in your ears once more.
“I love you.” You mouthed.
“I love you more.” Bucky mouthed back.
–
The fight with Beck went as everyone predicted. Bucky won, of course, but not without a fight from Beck. Which left him bruised and bleeding, but nothing nearly as bad as you some of the times you had seen him before, which was a thought you hated but it was a relief for now.
Bucky could feel the ache down to his bones.
Not of pain, or exhaustion, or anger.
The ache of how much he loved and completely adored you as he looked down at you, your head in his lap, completely enthralled by the movie playing in front of you as if the two of you hadn’t seen it countless times. Bucky could recite it beginning to finish.
“Here’s looking at you, kid.”
Bucky spoke along with Humphrey Bogart on the screen and you smiled, slightly turning your head to look at your husband, and he was already looking at you.
“Sap.”
Bucky smirked and leaned down to place his lips on your temple, lingering there for a moment before sitting back up and letting his eyes return to the movie, his fingers mindlessly running up and down your torso.
You stayed that way for a while, positions switched, Bucky’s eyes glued to the TV, and yours glued to him.
The purples and blues on his face made you frown, and you could just cry at how beautiful he looked, face illuminated by the black and white of Casablanca, his perfect lips unconsciously mouthing the words.
You yearned for this life forever with him. Everyday he promised you were one step, a couple thousand dollars closer to living up to his contract and getting all of the money he was owed. He could be a trainer with Sam. Still bring home consistent money, but be safe,
Safe.
The word rang in your ears until you winced.
Safe. Safe. Safe. Safe.
Nothing about your life, except for Bucky, felt safe.
It felt completely out of control, unpredictable, scary.
Bucky knew that and it broke his heart to know you went through everyday life being scared out of your mind. He’d break his contract now if he wasn’t completely certain, without a shadow of a doubt, that the two of you were going to come out the other side of this happier and more secure than ever.
“We’ll always have Paris.”
You’ll always have me.
–
Bucky had been at the gym for nearly 6 hours.
Sam put him on a strict “No visitors” rule, and “Yes, Mrs. Barnes that applies to you.”
And an “Especially, you!” From Tony.
Bucky didn’t have his phone on him, and you understood, he really did need to focus, the fight was in 5 days. Steve assured you that his phone would be on and close to him in case of emergencies, same went for Tony, Sam and Wanda.
So, you decided the best way to spend your time was with Sonya and Nat, using them as a distraction while the three of you holed up in your apartment, sipping seltzers and playing drinking games like you were teenagers again. Sonya left the girls with their Aunt for the day.
“Okay, if you could marry anyone in the big three, not including your own husband, who would it be?” Sonya asked, a smug look on her face before she added, “If you refuse to answer you take a shot.”
“Barnes. Without a doubt.” Nat said without hesitation and Sonya laughed at her transparency, covering her mouth with her hand.
“What?!” Natasha asked as you laughed as well, clutching your stomach.
“Have you seen where you live? Not only is it gorgeous but Bucky lets you decorate it however the fuck you want! And I’ve never once seen you have to ask him to do anything. He even cleans! Cleans!!!”
You and Sonya continued to cackle as Natasha continued to ramble, tears streaming down your cheeks while you clutched onto each other’s hands.
“Nat, baby, if you were so unhappy with Steve you shoulda said something!” Sonya joked, still holding back chuckles.
“I’m not unhappy with Steve! Wouldn’t trade him for the world! But, gun to his head, I had to trade him or else he’d die, I’d pick Bucky!”
You laughed, shrugging in agreement. You couldn’t blame her.
“You know what, I think I’d go with Mr. Barnes too. Y’all know I love Sam and I love our girls and don’t slap me for saying this either but he is entirely too easy on the eyes.”
The three of you burst out laughing again. You didn’t feel the slightest bit annoyed or jealous. These were your best friends, your sisters, who loved their husbands, and you, and each other’s husbands, and Bucky like family, and protected and fought for you like family. You thought it was kind of endearing actually, that they could see how yours and Bucky’s love was something special.
“You never said your answer, babe.” Nat said, gesturing to you with her can.
You pondered for a moment. Both men had been so good to you on so many different levels.
“Sam, but only because he was so good to me with the whole Brock thing, I don’t know if I could ever repay him. And you, Son.”
The vibe changed after that, your friends’ faces softened and the air felt heavy.
Sonya shook her head, exhaling through her nose, mumbling your name as if she were scolding you.
She wasn’t.
“Nothing can compare to that fear I felt. Nothing. It still keeps Sam up at night too.”
You frowned.
“But we’d do it again a million times if you needed us to. We would.”
She leaned forward, taking your hand, “Don’t ever, ever, insinuate that you owe us a damn thing. We fucking love you.”
You smiled, not realizing you were crying until the tears were wetting your lips. You were quick to wipe them.
Natasha had stayed silent for the most part, letting the two of you have your moment, she hadn’t been around then.
“And even though I wasn’t there I also fucking love you and would probably die for you.”
The moment was over almost as quickly as it began, the three of you going back to drinking and asking each other outlandish questions, until your phone rang.
“It’s m’ husbandd!” You sang, holding the phone up to your ear and smiling, your cheeks burning from intoxication.
“Hi, gorgeous. I’ve been tryin’ to open the door for ages. Did you lock the top?”
You gasped and slapped a hand to your mouth before hurriedly running to the front door, fumbling with the lock only for a moment before swinging it open to reveal a tired and amused Bucky, followed by Steve and Sam, lazy smiles pulling at their lips.
“Oh, my handsome boys! I locked you out! However, will you forgive me?!” You threw your arms around Bucky, falling into his embrace and he responded by peppering your face with kisses.
“Make me a double jack and coke and I might consider it.” Sam said, sauntering into the room and into the dining room, to sweep Sonya off of her feet no doubt. Steve did the same, before muttering, “I’ll show myself to the refrigerator.”
“Good man.” Bucky responded as he walked you into your home, shutting the door behind him with his foot.
“I missed you.” You mumbled against his lips while he kissed you again.
“Oh, my doll, my soul ached for you.”
“You watch too many 50’s movies, Barnes.”
“Are you complaining, darling?”
“Not at all.”
“Well then, here’s looking at you, kid.”
–
Bucky was stressed.
So incredibly stressed he felt like he might throw up.
He was fighting Brock Rumlow today.
He knew he could take him, that’s not what Bucky was worried about. He was worried about you. The thought of you in the private room, tears rolling down your face and shaky breaths filling the air, with him unable to hold you made him feel sick. He wanted you to stay home, in fact he practically begged you to stay home with Natasha and Sonya to keep you from turning on the TV but you completely refused. You’d be there, sporting a T-shirt with his name and face on it, and you’d look Rumlow dead in the eye while you celebrated victory with Bucky.
You would not hide.
And Bucky was so incredibly proud of you. His brave girl. But that didn’t change the fact that he was worried out of his mind.
“It isn’t too late to change your mind, doll.”
You were applying last minute makeup in the bathroom of your private room in the arena, Bucky behind you, his chin resting on your shoulder.
“I’m only leaving this arena when you do.”
“Okay.” He said softly, pressing a kiss to your shoulder.
“Whatever you do, baby, block him out. Don’t listen to his taunting. He’s trying to get in your head.”
Bucky nodded, wrapping his arms around your waist and lightly squeezing.
“Any chance you wanna back out together?” You asked, a sad smile on your face, knowing the answer.
Bucky only sighed and kissed your cheek.
It wasn’t long before Steve and Sam came to collect Bucky, or maybe it was. You could’ve stayed in that bathroom forever if it meant Bucky wouldn’t get hurt.
You followed behind him as he exited the room, his large hand engulfing yours. You had to get to your seat and he had to get to his place to talk and warm up before his walk out.
You connected your forehead to his and looked into his eyes, giving him a nod and a kiss before you separated, going to find Tony and Wanda, who would take you to your seats with Nat and Sonya.
You weren’t as high up in the stands as you usually were, requesting to be right next to the ring for this fight.
Everyone questioned the decision but you put your foot down. You wanted to be in Bucky’s eyeline, wanted him to easily see you.
You wanted to reach him easily if anything went south.
You didn’t pay attention as Tony patted your shoulder, or as Nat and Sonya squeezed your arms when Brock’s walk out song began, or the sympathetic glance Wanda shot your way when Brock looked at you with a nasty grin.
Bucky entered the ring and your heart stopped.
His eyes were glued to you.
You nodded.
He nodded.
“Lookin’ at you.” He mouthed.
“Always.” You mouthed back.
You don’t know where that became your thing in the past two weeks, or how it just now blossomed even though the two of you had been watching that movie for ages, but you adored it and thought it to be incredibly sweet.
The moment was short lived before Brock started mouthing off, but Bucky kept his cool, his hands clasped behind his back and his head held high.
You couldn’t hear what he was saying, though you were sure you didn’t want to.
Bucky was thanking God you couldn’t hear what he was saying.
“You take pride in the fact that you stole what was mine, Barnes?!”
Bucky said nothing.
“I wouldn’t think sloppy seconds were your style.”
Nothing.
“I see you’ve got your bitch sitting in the front row. Tight leash, huh?”
His blood was boiling but he didn’t flinch.
“Does she scream for you like she did for me?”
Bucky was just waiting for the ref to blow the whistle, he was itching to slam his face into the mat.
“She’s a good fuck, isn’t she Barnes?”
The whistle blew, and it was Bucky who was face down on the mat in seconds.
You wanted to gasp when Bucky went down but you held your composure, not only for him but also for the thousands of eyes on you, no doubt just waiting for a hysterical reaction.
But Bucky was quick, and regained himself quickly, taking his turn to pin Rumlow to the mat, holding his arm behind his back so he could not get back up.
It was brutal. The entire fight was vicious, blood and sweat ran down both men’s faces, drenching their necks and chests and you wanted to cry at the sight of Bucky’s already swelling bruises on his knees and face. His chest was heaving, and the look in his eyes was something you had never seen, even in all his years of fighting some of his toughest opponents in the ring. It was dark.
He was angry.
For Bucky, this was the best way for him to take out his anger on Rumlow for what that man had done to you. The years of nightmares and overthinking and tears and anguish.
“Damnit, I said no!” Bucky’s voice thundered across the kitchen, in perfect timing with his hand flying through the air to run through his hair and you flinched.
Your Bucky.
Your lovely Bucky who danced with you as the moonlight pooled into the room through your curtains on nights where you couldn’t sleep.
Your gentle Bucky who wiped your tears and washed your hair when your days were just too much.
Your patient Bucky who sat with you and instructed you to breathe with him, your hand to his chest when he’d come home to you panicking.
Your Bucky.
And you fucking flinched.
“Bucky I- I’m sorry. I just-”
He shook his head, his angry demeanor had completely vanished, his pretty blue eyes soft and beginning to fill with tears.
“Sweetheart, please don’t apologize. God, please don’t.
And just like that you were in his arms, a complete weeping mess because of what that man had put you through.
What Brock Rumlow had put you through.
That sick son of a bitch that was in front of Bucky now, a disgusting smirk on his face, blood seeping from his gums and smearing onto his teeth.
Bucky was certain he could kill him if it wouldn’t land him in prison.
“Come on, Buck.” You muttered, your knee rapidly bouncing up and down. You hadn’t noticed, but you were gripping Nat and Sonya’s hands.
You were trying your best to pay attention. Really, you were. But you kept going in and out of focus and flashbacks. You were sure people had caught multiple photos and videos of you spacing out, but you couldn’t really bring yourself to care.
Wanda has asked you multiple times if you wanted to go back and sit in the room, take a breather and maybe drink some water but you refused. You’d be right here.
And when the fight was finally over, when Bucky finally stood victorious over Rumlow while the ref held his red glove covered hand in the air and the crowd cheered, you could breathe again.
He was drenched in blood and bruises but you couldn’t feel anything except relief.
Bucky looked at you and you couldn’t help the tears that began to gather in your eyes and spill down your cheeks as you smiled at him. Nat and Sonya were cheering and hollering, jostling your shoulders and jumping up and down, planting kisses on your cheeks and the side of your head and you could barely notice.
Because Bucky was looking at you.
The ref let go of his hand and he made a dash to get out of the ring and to you, shoving past Sam and Steve trying to congratulate him, completely ignoring the med team trying to lead him away to check his injuries.
You. You. You.
You met him halfway even though your knees felt like jello and your hands were shaking, you took his face into those shaky hands and pressed your forehead to his as his hands rested on your waist.
“You did it.”
“I did it.”
–
Luckily, Bucky didn’t have any major injuries. After some stitches and some compression wrap on his ribs and wrists, he was cleared to leave.
You just couldn’t believe it. One of his biggest fights to date and he was walking away almost unscathed.
It almost felt too good to be true.
Despite how tired everyone felt, this was cause for celebration. You all decided to retreat to your respective homes and get ready for a nice dinner, just the 8 of you.
“Bucky this place has a coconut blood orange margarita!” You said from the bedroom as Bucky continued to get ready in the ensuite bathroom. You were putting on your shoes while browsing the menu on Yelp. You could never visit a restaurant without checking the menu first.
“That sounds right up your alley, doll!”
“I know!”
Bucky emerged from the bathroom, looking as handsome as ever in his white button down and black slacks.
“Have as many of those as you want, sweetheart. Long as I get to take this” Bucky’s fingers ran along the fabric of your black dress, just simple cotton with a long slit coming up to almost your hip, “Pretty thing off of you when we get home.”
“You can do whatever you want to me when we get home, Mr. Barnes.”
Bucky smiled, his large hands grabbing at your waist as his bottom lip made its way between his teeth.
“God, you are so beautiful, Mrs. Barnes.” He hummed.
“As are you, my love.”
“Here’s lookin’ at you, kid.”
“Always.”
–
Dinner was completely perfect. Nothing but laughter and jokes, bread being thrown across the table while the waiters weren’t looking and you and Wanda taking secret sips of Tony’s $200 champagne when he was in the bathroom or on a call.
Bucky was never not touching you. Whether it was a hand gripping your thigh or his arm around the back of your chair, his fingers gently tracing the length of your arm, or your hand in his.
And, God, was he radiant.
His smile was ear to ear. His top buttons on his shirt were undone, showing off his chest and you could absolutely just eat him up. It was like heaven hearing him laugh at some stupid joke Sam had made or when Steve would get flustered at Natasha’s flirting after she’d had a couple glasses of wine, or Sonya scolding Sam after an inappropriate joke. He even took a couple photos with fans who had just watched the fight, all of them ecstatic to take a photo with the Bucky Barnes with the scars from the fight still fresh on him.
You were both so happy even once you decided to get the check and wrap up dinner. You’d had 4 coconut blood orange margaritas, a celebratory shot of tequila and Tony had even been kind enough to let you have a glass of his fancy champagne.
“You deserve it after these past two weeks, gorgeous.”
Bucky had agreed. You stuck by him ferociously and put on the bravest face, even in the presence of Brock Rumlow, you stood tall. He was so proud of you.
You were trying not to trip over your own feet in your much too tall heels on the way out to the valet. You felt fuzzy and drunk but you still couldn’t shake the feeling of the valet watching you entirely too closely.
“Bucky that guy keeps staring.” You whispered and Bucky’s head whipped around, the valet turned his head immediately.
“You’re a diamond, sweetheart. People can’t take their eyes off of ya.”
You nodded and smiled, though you were still entirely too uneasy, and Bucky could tell.
“Car’s comin’ around soon, baby. I gotcha.” His grip tightened around your waist and he moved in front of you so his body was blocking yours, but you could still see him. He wasn’t looking at you, he was looking at Bucky.
Steve’s car had barely pulled up to the restaurant when it happened.
It was like everything happened in slow motion.
You saw the gun first, Bucky’s eyes were still on you.
“What were you thinking?” He sobbed.
But that’s just the thing, you weren’t thinking. There wasn’t one thought in your head besides Bucky as you ripped yourself from his arms and shielded his body with yours, and gave him not even a second to react before the sound of a gun rang.
The valet was tackled to the ground in seconds.
An angry fan of Rumlow’s, no doubt.
How Bucky’s security team didn’t catch on sooner was beyond you. He had security with him everywhere, though they stuck to the sidelines so as to not disturb. There were a lot of wild fans out there who got very angry very easily about the outcome of fights, and it just wasn’t safe to go out alone.
You were in shock, your hands clutched your stomach but you didn’t even register you had been shot as scarlet red liquid thick as syrup seeped through your black dress and into your fingers.
Bucky’s arms were around you in an instant as he lowered you to the ground. You could hear the commotion and panic of other restaurant patrons around you.
Blood was seeping into his white shirt. Your blood was seeping into his white shirt. He didn’t care. He couldn’t fucking care, not when the life was trickling out of you right before his eyes.
“Baby. Oh my god, oh my god.” Bucky was shaking, his voice thick with tears as he held you as close to him as he could.
“Somebody call 911!” Sam.
“I’m on it!” Tony.
Bucky wiped the hair from your face as his tears began to splotch on your face, he couldn’t bother wiping them.
Not when this could be his last time holding you.
You tried to close your eyes but Bucky tapped your cheek firmly. “Ya gotta keep your eyes open, sweetheart. Gotta stay with me, come on.”
You nodded, your head lulling to rest comfortably on Bucky’s chest as his body shook with the most vicious cries that had ever ripped through him. You continued to look at him, those pretty eyes that he adored so much looking up at him, but there was barely anything there.
“Bucky-”
“Save your energy, doll. Please. Ya gotta stay with me, okay?”
Your hand felt like heavy stone as you brought it up to hold Bucky’s face, weakly wiping his tears. “I love you.”
“No, no, no. Keep looking at me, baby. Keep lookin’ at me. Please.”
“So much.”
Bucky planted a kiss on your forehead as he continued to sob.
“I love you, doll. I love you so goddamn much that’s why you gotta stay, alright?”
He pulled away. “Here’s looking at you, kid. Remember? You remember, doll? Always.”
You didn’t respond.
Bucky screamed.
–
Hospitals are so fucking gross.
It was something you firmly believed in since you watched your great grandfather die in one when you were 14.
Full of dead, sick and dying people. Full of weeping family members and friends.
“Don’t let me fucking die in a hospital, Bucky, I swear to God.” You had said.
Bucky always laughed when you went on your rants about how much you hated hospitals. Talking loudly and waving your hands around in the air.
“I’ll never let you die in a hospital, sweetheart. Promise.”
And now here you were, lying in a hospital bed after 12 hours of surgery, hooked up to a heart monitor and Bucky thought how do you still look so impossibly beautiful?
It was just you and Bucky in the room. Tony, Wanda, Steve, Natasha, Sam, Sonya and their girls were all squished together in the waiting room. None of them had it in them to sit even an inch apart.
Not when they could lose you.
Bucky hadn’t cried in an hour. His eyes dry but still red and heavy, a headache that he was waiting to go away after a nurse gave him Tylenol booming in his temples. His blood stained shirt was discarded as soon as they wheeled you in for surgery. Steve gave him an extra T shirt stashed in his car.
He threw up in the bathroom while he was changing.
“You gotta wake up so you don’t die in a hospital, honey. Can’t have ya kickin’ my ass when I get to heaven for lettin’ that happen.”
The thought made his lip quiver. The doctors were hopeful after the surgery, but things don’t always go as planned. And he was fucking terrified.
“I’m gonna kick your ass for even letting them bring me to this awful place.” You mumbled.
The sound that came from Bucky had to have been embarrassing. Somewhere between a laugh and a sob as he stood up and immediately started fawning over you and pressed the nurse button to alert them you were awake.
“Oh, sweetheart.” He cried, his hands cupping your face and placing kisses all over your cheeks.
“I’m okay, Buck.”
“What were you thinking?” He sobbed, his face buried into your hair and you broke, wrapping your arms around his neck. The pain in your stomach didn’t even register because you just needed him closer.
“I wasn’t. I wasn’t thinking. I just- I saw the gun and he was gonna kill you Bucky.” “Don’t ever do that doll, not for me. God, please not for me.”
“I was so scared, Bucky. I didn’t wanna scare you but, I had- I had to tell you I loved you. I couldn’t leave this earth without telling you I loved you.”
“I know, baby. Just please, I can’t lose you. I can’t fuckin’ lose you.”
His whole body was shaking as he continued to hug you when the nurse came in. He awkwardly separated himself from you, his large body pushing itself off of the tiny bed.
She checked you over and ran a couple tests, and afterwards promised to go and alert your friends and allow them to come in.
While you waited to be bombarded by the people you called your family, Bucky had situated himself next to you in the bed, his arm around you, allowing you to put your weight onto him, and careful not to disturb your wound.
“Hey.” You whispered, bringing your hand up to hold his.
He looked down at you to find you already looking at him fondly.
“Here’s looking at you, kid.”
Bucky smiled, the most beautiful, genuine, sincere and heartstopping smile. He kissed you.
“Always.”