Character Pairing: biker!Bucky x librarian!Reader Soulmate AU
Word Count:1705
Warnings: a little cursing, anxiety caused by insecurities
Summary: You nearly gave up on finding your soulmate. You couldn’t greet anyone without stuttering. But all that changes when a leather-clad man walked into the library to get a library card.
Prompt: “I wanted to say ‘I love you’ for the first time without stuttering, but I failed.”
A/N:This is for #jbwinterchallenge hosted by @jurassicbarnes! I’m so so sorry this is so late! Inspiration for the soulmate AU is from the story Pulse, by @tomhollands who was kind enough to give permission to use the idea here. Constructive criticism is welcomed and my tag list is open! Huge thanks to @mindingmyownbusiness for all her help, I wouldn’t have posted my first fic without her, let alone fourth. Also, should I make this a mini-series/drabble series?
This is a repost from my original blog, @the-observant-fangirl
Your coffee shop was a small little thing with only enough space for a couple tables. The interior wasn’t as modern as in the big coffee shop chains, but a bit old-fashioned (as some people said derogatory) though that accounted a lot for the charm of your little shop. It was located in a side street, where the stream of people was notably smaller than near the main roads. But thanks to your regular customers, you and your shop were able to survive.
One of those regulars was a Biker who looked highly intimidating with his tattoos, leather jacket of the local biker club, long hair, beard and muscular build, but he was a polite and quiet kind of person so there was no reason to not let him in. He tended to grab a coffee to go in the mornings and to sit down with a piece of whatever you had baked for that day and a big cappuccino in the late afternoons while working on his laptop. Though unlike some of the business-people who stayed at your shop for work every now and then, he always packed his belongings and left when you started to prepare everything for closing time.
You never needed to remind him that you wanted to close the shop for the evening and that he had to leave. He never complained about needing ‘just five more minutes’ or how important his work was. You liked the Biker, even though the two of you didn’t talk besides his orders and occasional small talk. The other regulars mostly ignored him, even if some weren’t exactly comfortable in the man’s presence. Even though everything one heard about the club he belonged to was non-problematic. Basically, they were simply a bunch of people who loved to ride their bikes and didn’t turn down opportunities for a party.
One evening – an unpleasant, rainy day in autumn – you and the Biker you only knew as Bucky were the only two people left in the coffee shop when a gang of young people came in, about ten people in total. All of them were clad in black leather and almost every single one held a baseball bat. Something about them spelled trouble, and lots of it. Before you could even say a word, one of them smashed a glass cabinet where you kept the cakes of the day.
You couldn’t help the startled scream, even though the cakes were already gone. A second thug violently flipped over a wooden table and armchair. The rest of them cheered and laughed while you were forced to watch them helplessly. Tears streamed down your face as you watched the gang wrecked your little shop.
After what felt like an eternity, one of the gang members – you assumed the leader – came over to you, casually playing around with his baseball bat. “What a pity. If only there was somebody to protect you from this happening again.”, he said, not at all sounding as if he felt bad about what had just been going on. Quite the opposite, actually. He was having fun to watch the chaos they had brought.
“What do you want?”, you hissed through your tears. No need to beat around the bush. They had come because they wanted something. The why wasn’t important. The what was. The gang leader grinned, in a way you did not like. “Smart girl. We’re here for money. Not a one-off, if you understand what I mean.”, he replied patronizingly. It was clear as a day that he talked about protection money. Which you wouldn’t be able to afford. You only made enough to keep the shop running and live a modest, but decent life.
“That’s enough. Nobody’s gonna pay any protection money. Especially not to you.”, the voice of Bucky suddenly interrupted. Calm but self-confident. You had completely forgotten that he had been there too. The emotional part of your mind was angry at him that he hadn’t tried to help you sooner, but the more logical part knew that he wouldn’t have stood a chance against all those thugs. Though you had no idea why he spoke up now, it still got him in trouble.
“Shut up asshole, this is between us and her.”, the gang leader instantly hissed. Meanwhile Bucky was absolutely calm as he walked over to you and him. Easily a full head taller than all of the gang members and more muscular as well. “Just in case you wannabe-bikers are new: this town is officially claimed by the Avengers. We’re not 1 percenters, but we’ll definitely not sit back and watch while some juvenile wannabe-bikers wreck havoc in and try to take over our town. I already called the club, they’ll be here any second. It’s your decision how this is gonna end.”, the biker said with a deadly calm.
A part of you listened, hoping to hear the distinct sound of bicycles approaching, but so far, there was nothing. For a couple seconds, the gang was absolutely silent, as if they too tried to hear if there was a biker club approaching. Though when there still wasn’t the roar of bikes to be heard after half a minute, they started laughing. “Nice try old man. But it seems like your buddies aren’t coming.”, the leader said with a bright grin on his face and tried to strike at Bucky with his baseball bat.
The smile disappeared when Bucky not only dodged the swing but also managed to grab the bat. “Big mistake.”, the Biker commented before knocking the guy out with a single punch. For quite a couple seconds, the rowdies were utterly shocked. You were too; Bucky had always been a very peaceful person who even had not used his fists when some asshole tried to provoke him.
“That was a mistake. Get him!”, another gang-member finally said. All of them raised their bats and obviously started to go for Bucky. Instantly, your worry for him sky-rocketed. He obviously knew how to throw a punch, but that wouldn’t save him from getting beaten up by the gang.
“Stop that, right now.”, a rigid voice snapped. A bunch of Bikers stood in the entryway of your coffee shop – at least fifteen to twenty, you assumed, but definitely more than the gangsters. All of the Bikers wore the same sleeveless leather jacket Bucky too always wore. Most of them had a gun in their hands, except a huge blond guy who was obviously the leader of the Biker Club (though he too had a gun quite visible in a holster).
Upon seeing the Biker Club and how they were outnumbered, the thugs hurried to lay their baseball bats to the ground in an attempt to avoid a fight. “What’s been going on, Bucky?”, the blond asked, still visibly unpleased about the situation. After a nod, some of his Bikers collected the bats. “Well, after I ended the call, I told these wannabe-bikers to stop smashing up the inventory and they’re on our territory. Was even nice enough to let them know we don’t want trouble but won’t let them do as they please either.
Their…leader didn’t want to listen and tried to hit me with that bat of his. He missed, I didn’t and just when the others wanted to beat me up you came in.”, the Brunet replied calmly. The leader of his Biker Club just nodded and then turned towards the gangsters. They still looked like rabbits caught in the headlight. Meanwhile, the thug Bucky had knocked out woke up again. He seemed still dizzy, but rather quickly entirely awake again once he realized the situation he and his gang were in.
“I’m Captain, the President of the Avengers MC. You’ve been trying to cause trouble in our town and attacked my Road Captain.”, the Blond introduced himself. You looked at Bucky, an eyebrow raised quizzically as you had no idea what a Road Captain was. He sent you a quick smirk and a wink but then returned his attention back to the gangsters. Their leader gulped, obviously only now realizing the trouble they were in. “Our Treasurer Widow” a red-haired woman with a nose piercing stepped forwards “will take your contact details and make certain you pay for the damage you have caused here. If you cause any issues about it, Bucky will be the least of your problems.”, ‘Captain’ continued. The redhead smirked dangerously.
“After that, my Vice President Falcon and some of our members will escort you out of the town to make certain you don’t cause any further trouble.” The man stepping forwards this time had several tattoos on his arms and an eyebrow piercing. His build wasn’t as massive as Bucky’s or Captain’s, but you didn’t doubt that he too could hold himself in a fight. The gangster just nodded at everything demanded from them.
Not even 10 minutes later, you were alone with Bucky, Captain and a handful Bikers. They had offered to help you with the cleaning and taking stock of what had been damaged which you accepted. At first rather shyly since the Bikers – except Bucky – were quite intimidating, but your gratitude was honest. However the shyness soon vanished as the menacing behaviour – and the guns! – had quickly disappeared as soon as the gang had been led out of your shop.
They were great people who looked intimidating but every single one of them had a heart of gold. With everyone’s help, it took barely an hour to clean your shop, though they couldn’t do much about the glass cabinet besides sweeping up the bits of broken glass so nobody would get injured. It was amazing to see and even though your heart ached from what had been done to you by the gangsters, the Biker’s kindness warmed it.
“Bucky?”, you asked the brunet since he was the one you felt most comfortable with once everything was done and the Bikers started to heed out again. The Road Captain instantly looked at you with a gentle half-smile. “I would like to invite you and the Club over coffee and cake tomorrow afternoon. In appreciation for your help. Just…let me know how many of you will be there, so I can make enough for everyone.”, you said carefully. The gentle half-smile turned into a bright, full grin. “I’m certain they’ll appreciate the invitation. There’s a club meeting later so I can ask who’ll come and then let you know.”, he offered.
You returned his smile. About a minute later, you handed him a napkin with your personal phone number scribbled on it so he could let you know the details as soon as possible. When he left as one of the last Bikers, Widow said something you couldn’t hear to him which earned her a jab in the ribs, though they both laughed. When the Club rode off, you looked after them until the last taillight was out of sight.
Getting involved with a whole Biker Club definitely hadn’t been on the list of things you wanted to do, but you were glad you had. They were great people who you’d welcome into your coffee shop any time.
Summary: When your friend started dating a new guy, you didn’t think much of him, yes he was a biker, covered in tattoos, yes he had very similar friends, yet Steve was a good man, during a meeting you managed to catch the eyes of Bucky, and that’s when your life changed.
When Sharon started dating Steve, you had your doubts.
She often told you she only agreed to go out with him because he was dangerous. “Every girl likes a wild bad boy they cannot tame.” is what she said.
Although you didn’t agree with her reasoning you did agree. Every girl liked a bad boy. You just felt bad for Steve, he didn’t deserve this treatment. You only met him once when he picked up Sharon, although he had a hard exterior, the man was full of muscle and ink under his skin, yet his eyes were gentle and kind, and he spoke with such respect and kindness.
Sharon didn’t deserve Steve, even if she was your friend, you wished her happiness, but Steve was way too good for her, especially after hearing her reasons for dating him.
Steve invited you to a get together with his friends, he explained that two of his single friends will be there. And although you tried to decline, he managed to get you to agree.
So, you stood in front of your mirror, applying your make up, hair done and you already had your dress on. You were nervous but excited at the same time.
But, in the end, you decided to just have a good time.
When you arrived at the bar, Steve was already there but Sharon wasn’t, you noticed two men with Steve.
“Hi.” you said with a kind smile.
“Oh, Y/N! Lovely to see you! Come, these are my friends, Bucky and Sam.” both of them greeted you, Sam had a huge smile on his face, Bucky was more reserved as you noticed. You introduced yourself to them as Steve left to get you a drink.
The two were just like Steve, bikers, tough guys, but still kind. Both were covered in tattoos, Sam even had some on his neck, they both looked very very sexy.
They looked exactly like the kind of men your mother warned you about, and now you wanted it even more.
Sam loved to talk but he didn’t flirt with you, no he flirted with you FOR Bucky. He kept on saying how amazing Bucky is, how he wants to take you on a date and so on. You didn’t know what to say, since that wasn’t what Bucky was saying at all. He kept shaking his head and apologizing for his friend.
Then Sharon arrived, she and Steve, of course, being the only couple started to hit it off, while you spoke to Bucky and Sam, well more to Sam but Bucky was also there, paying a lot of attention.
You constantly noticed him just looking at you, not behind you, no one was behind you, you checked.
Then he stood up to get another round when Sam spoke up.
“He really does like you, I know.”
“He didn’t even speak to me.” your tipsy mind making it easier to speak.
“Maybe, but I can see it in his eyes, and I have known him for a long time, He never looked at a woman like he is looking at you.
You were doubtful, even made a face. You were about to respond when another pink cocktail landed in front of you, making you forget everything you wanted to say.
Four more pinky cocktails later, you were not wasted, but tipsy enough to laugh a bit louder, talk more freely and dance.
And oh boy, did you dance a lot.
You just grabbed Sharon and danced until your feet hurt or you got sobered up a bit and needed another drink.
You had a fun night.
But now you faced a little problem. You needed to go home and you hated taxis or uber…
“I can drop you off.” said a voice behind you as you were checking your phone for buses.
You turned around to find Bucky standing right behind you, with his bike keys in his hand.
“Oh, but you drank too.”
“I did but I stopped a while ago so I am sober now. Let me drop you off unless you are scared.”
“Scared? Me? Don’t make me laugh.”
You were never scared of vehicles.
Ever.
But sitting behind him, holding onto his waist… now that was a different thing. That made you extremely nervous.
Bucky was a really, really handsome man. He could have anyone so to be close to him like this, made you feel some kind of way.
Although he was rather quiet and reserved, he had a strong aura around himself. He looked like someone who was hard to approach, yet his eyes were so kind and his body was so warm, even in the cold evening, you could feel it radiating off of him.
When he arrived at your place, he helped you off your bike, you expected him to leave immediately but he didn’t.
“Thank you for the ride,” you said.
But he didn’t reply, he just looked at you, made you wonder if you had something on your face.
“Sam didn’t lie you know. About me liking you.” you didn’t know how to react or what to say. So you just stood there like an idiot, just staring at him and him staring at you. For a moment you thought you only imagined it, that he didn’t say anything. Maybe it was the shots you took playing with your mind.
“Huh?” was all you could manage and it made him laugh.
“I like you.” he was so straightforward.
“B-but…we just met, how can you be so sure?”
“I just have a feeling, so will you let me take you out on a date?”
Who would say no to that?
—
You were anxious. Nervous. Extremely nervous.
Your date with Bucky was today, he would be at your place to pick you up at any moment.
You tried to look nice, did your hair, make up and wore nice clothing to impress him. You were trying way too hard, but a man like him is worth it.
And soon, maybe way too soon, you heard the recognizable sound of a motorbike stopping by your place.
This was it, you took a deep breath as your phone rang.
You didn’t pick up, instead grabbed your jacket and headed out.
Seeing him leaning against his bike, wearing dark jeans and a tight top did something to you.
And he smiled. Gosh, his smile was amazing.
It made you realize that there was nothing to worry about, you smiled back, and you just knew what he meant, that feeling, because at that moment you felt it too. And you knew everything will be okay.
