I have been having the worst time with trying to write lately. I asked for some requests and got a pretty good response. An anonymous ask suggested this:
I wanted to write this But I think you could do it justice if you’re into the theme but it’s basically based on the reader being a princess and her guard being her confidant, Like the bodyguard they’ve confessed love tho but it’s still forbidden. There’s a scene in a story I just can’t remember, they torture him in the front of everyone to see as a punishment for smthn? he makes no sound coz the reader is there so she leaves but sneaks out later to him still hurt and tied and then good ol h/c.
And this is what became of that ask.
WARNINGS:THIS IS AN AU; this is set in medieval-ish times, so outdated and F’ed up thoughts and actions towards women will occur; royalty au, forced engagement/wedding, abusive relationship, public whipping, fevers, painful wound cleansing, suicidal thoughts, aborted suicide attempt, magic PAIRING: Princess Reader x Guard Bucky Barnes WORD COUNT: 11,000ish WRITING IN THE DARK BINGO FILL: Royal AU BAD THINGS HAPPEN BINGO FILL:Fevers AUTHOR’S NOTE: Title taken from “ivy,” by Taylor Swift Specifically the line“Your touch brought forth an incandescent glow, tarnished but so grand.”
Near silent footsteps grew closer to the tree just past the garden. A smile played at his lips as he followed the trail of dainty footprints that stopped at the base of the tree. He slowly looked from left to right, turning to lean against the trunk of the tree, crossing his arms over his massive chest and speaking low.
“I know you’re up there.”
He laughed when an acorn popped him on the head. He let his arms fall and tilted his head back, dark hair falling off his shoulders with the movement. There you were, looking up, refusing to look his way.
“Come on, now. He’ll be here any minute.” “I don’t care about him.” “I know you don’t, but he could be a good one.”
You glanced his way then, long enough to make eye contact and narrow your eyes at him before you looked away again.
“That’s what you said about the last two.” “Prince Samuel was a good man, even if he did get on my nerves.” “But you were wrong about Prince Anthony.”
He nodded.
“That guy was a prick.”
You giggled, looking down as he looked up. His lips lifted in a crooked smile as he raised a hand. You sighed, shimmying down a little until he could reach you, taking hold of your waist and lowering you from the tree.
“There we go.”
You stayed close to him once he set your feet on the ground, hands gently brushing the tree debris from your gown. He made no movements away from you and you looked up into kind, icy blue eyes, your chin nearly brushing his chest as you spoke just above a whisper.
“I don’t want to marry them, Bucky.” “I know, Princess.” “Why can’t I just marry you?”
Bucky ignored the twinge in his heart, forcing a sad smile onto his face as he let his fingers trail over your cheek.
“I’m just a lowly guard, your grace. You deserve only the finest of princes.”
You shook your head, eyes drawn to your family crest pinned at Bucky’s chest.
“I don’t know, being solely responsible for the safety of the Princess is worthy of some nobility, isn’t it?”
Bucky smiled for real this time as you met his eyes.
“No one has ever accused me of being noble, my lady.”
You smiled, giving a laugh under your breath before he offered you his arm. You sighed again, looping your arm through his, laying your other hand on his thick bicep as the two of you slowly began to walk back to the castle.
“I feel as if we’re on a death march.” “You can’t look at it that way, my lady. He could be the love of your life.”
You swallowed hard, not realizing as you pulled Bucky closer.
“Who is he again?” “Prince John. A man worthy of you, according to the legends surrounding him.” “What legends?” “He’s defended his kingdom more than once. His father died during one of his battles and John saved the kingdom before returning home.” “So is he the king or a prince?”
Bucky let go of your arm, stepping over a small ravine. There was a fallen tree stretched across the ravine, one you’d hurried over on your way into the woods and up your tree. Bucky held out a hand and you grasped it tightly, lifting the skirts of your gown as you walked over the tree. Once you were safely to the other side, Bucky offered you his arm again.
“Technically he’s king, but he hasn’t had a coronation yet. His kingdom’s laws say the prince must be married first.” “And that’s where I come in.”
You stopped suddenly, dragged forward the slightest bit when Bucky hadn’t realized you weren’t walking with him. He dropped your arm and started to apologize, but you shook your head. He stood before you and you laid your hands on his shoulders, Bucky hunching over enough for you to reach him.
“I don’t want to marry someone just because it would be a good, strategic move for the kingdom. I want to marry forlove.” “I know, my lady. But couldn’t you grow to love him?”
You stared into those icy eyes, biting back the words on the tip of your tongue.
How can I, when I love you so?
You blinked, shaking your head. Bucky smiled, rolling his shoulder to make your hand fall, taking your hand in his and bringing it to his lips. He pressed a kiss to the back of your palm, tucking your hand through his arm once more.
“I’m sure the Queen is wondering where you’ve run off to.” “She should know by now.”
Bucky’s smile widened as he thought to the first time he’d caught you in the tree. Your parents had arranged for Prince Ikaris, a boy you’d grown up playing in the woods with, to come and spend the summer. Only once the days shortened did they tell you that he was there as your suitor, and you’d end the year betrothed.
You’d stayed in the tree until your father ordered the tree cut down to get you out of it, and only by Bucky carrying you back to the castle did you relent.
It seems that Ikaris was only the first in a line of suitors, none deeming you worthy enough to play along with your antics. You were sure Prince Anthony had figured you out, and the wink he’d given you as he kissed your hand during his goodbye only cemented your belief.
No, the only constant through the parade of princes was Bucky, the one who’d sworn to protect you with his life when you were barely a teenager, and he barely a man. He’d kept his word, staying by your side through every attack on the kingdom. While seldom, the attacks did still come, and instead of fighting on the front lines, Bucky stayed at your side.
He also stayed by your side through every cold and fever and illness, keeping you in his sights through every lesson, every ball, staying outside your bedroom while you slept. You weren’t sure when he slept, but every time you needed him, he was by your side.
“Here we are.”
You looked up at the castle before you, glancing up at Bucky. He laid his other hand on the one you had currently gripping his arm.
“It will be fine, Princess. John will be a good man. He’ll be the one.”
You swallowed, pushing a smile on your face and nodding.
Even though you both knew it was a lie.
You paced the sitting room, skirts swishing as you walked. The words you muttered didn’t make sense, but you couldn’t sit still and you couldn’t be quiet. You didn’t look up at the knock on the door, your mother huffing out a breath when the door opened.
“Thank goodness. Talk some sense into her before she sends us all to an early grave!”
You rolled your eyes as you continued your pacing, stopping only when you saw the shiny boots step into your path. You lifted your head, closing your eyes with a relieved sigh when you saw the one constant in your life.
“Bucky.”
You laid your hands on his arms and he led you to the bench where your mother had been sitting. He sat beside you and you shook your head, taking hold of his hands.
“I hate him.” “You don’t know him.” “And I don’t want to!”
You shook your head, body vibrating along with it.
“There’s something about him … I can’t. I won’t marry him.” “You have to give him a chance, Princess.” “I did!” “No, you haven’t.”
You squeezed Bucky’s hands and he shifted closer to you.
“Just talk to him. Get to know him.” “I don’t want to get to know him!” “I know, but you have to.”
You lifted your eyes to his, seeing the pain in his eyes.
“What?”
Bucky looked down at your hands and you shook your head, giving his hands a squeeze until he lifted his head again.
“Bucky, what?” “Your father will force this marriage to happen.”
Your eyes widened, hands falling from Bucky’s. You shook your head, but he nodded his.
“You don’t have a choice anymore, my lady. You will marry Prince John.” “No, he … Father wouldn’t do that.” “He would. He will. Uniting John’s kingdom with ours would be a brilliant strategic move.”
You slowly nodded.
“Whatever is best for the kingdom.”
You stood on shaky legs, walking away from Bucky. He stood, the sword at his side softly clanging as he walked towards you. You stopped and lifted a shaky hand to your lips, closing your eyes as Bucky came to a stop behind you, his warmth surrounding you.
“Give him a chance, my lady. Get to know him.” “I don’t love him.” “You’ll learn to love him.”
You turned quickly, grabbing Bucky’s elbows. You watched his nostrils flare as his hands went to your waist, steadying you. His hands didn’t move from you, the warmth of his fingers burning you like a brand. You stepped closer, watching his eyes flash as he stayed still, a quiet gasp leaving your lips as his fingers flexed on your hips. The two of you stared at each other until you leaned even closer, your near silent voice echoing in the small space between you.
“I’llneverlove him.”
Bucky had made you promise to give Prince John a try, so you did. Sitting beside him at meals, strolling through the grounds with him. Standing at the entrance to the smelly barn as he brushed his horse and regaled you with tales of battle.
You couldn’t stand the man.
Bucky kept his distance when you were with John, brushing off the prince’s insistence that you were more than safe with him and Bucky could take the time off. Bucky politely declined, giving you and John space while still following you.
Now, you were on yet another stroll through the castle grounds, arm through John’s at his insistence, Bucky following a dozen paces behind.
“Is he always like this?”
You glanced over your shoulder, a soft smile crossing your lips.
“He’s duty-bound to protect me.” “And he’s always around you? Even in your private chamber?” “Well, of course not. He stays outside the door.”
John clicked his tongue, much the same way he did with the horses. The sound was grating to your ears and he shook his head.
“That’ll be the first thing to go.”
You blinked.
“I beg your pardon?”
John gave you a patronizing smile.
“When you’re my wife, you won’t need a bodyguard. I’ll protect you.” “I would think as the Queen, you’d want as much protection around me as you can get.” “Of course, your grace. But I have my own men I’ll put in that position.”
You blinked a few times.
“I’ve known B—“
You cleared your throat.
“James my whole life. I trust him and I know he will protect me, no matter the cost.” “Well, I don’t need him.” “Youmay not, butIdo.” “You’ll need what I say you’ll need.”
You stopped, and John gave a hard exhale when you tugged at his arm.
“Come on. I’m tired of dealing with your attitude.” “I hate to break it to you, but the attitude stays.”
John gave a laugh, turning to stand in front of you and glaring down at you.
“I’ll fuck that attitude right out of you. Now do as I say.”
He grabbed your arm tightly and harshly pulled you forward, causing you to stumble. A warm hand grasped yours, the other on your waist as you were righted a moment before you were standing behind the wall of Bucky.
“I swear to God, if you touch her again—“ “I didn’t do anything.” “I watched you. I heard you.”
John laughed.
“And what will you do, guard? You think you can undermine the king?” “You’re not the king yet.”
John lifted his chin, a wicked smile coming to his lips as he stared at Bucky, glancing to see you peeking around Bucky’s wide frame before he spoke again.
“We’ll see about that.”
You sat up in bed at the sudden commotion outside your chamber. You pushed back the blankets and grabbed your robe, pulling it around you as you flung open the door. Guards wearing Prince John’s family crest were surrounding Bucky, trying to put his hands in shackles.
“What’s happening? What is this?” “Princess, go back inside.”
You shook your head at Bucky, reaching for him, gasping when a fist flew out, catching Bucky on the chin. He went to his knees with a groan, hands quickly shackled behind his back.
“Unhand him. Let him go!” “Orders of the Prince. Go back inside, my lady.” “No, I demand you let him go!”
Before a burly guard could force you back into your chamber, a hand reached out, placed in the center of the guard’s chest. The guard gave a nod, and Bucky was carried away. You turned quickly to see one of Bucky’s closest friends at your side.
“Steve, what’s happening?”
Steve sighed, gently ushering you back into your chamber.
“John put out the order. Said Bucky threatened him, threatened you. He’s going to use him to teach a lesson.” “Bucky didn’t threaten him. And he would never hurt me—“ “I know. I know, your grace, but I couldn’t go against the Prince.”
You looked in the direction that they’d taken Bucky, your heart feeling as if it were in your throat.
“What will he do to him?”
Steve’s eyes were cast down when you looked back to him, and you covered your mouth with your hand. Your hand drifted to your throat, as you spoke the words that burned like acid in your mouth.
“Will he kill him?” “I don’t think so.”
You closed your eyes, Steve’s quiet words slicing through your heart.
“But there are things worse than death.”
You opened your eyes again, knowing that despite the late hour, sleep would not come for you tonight.
John smiled as he adjusted the armor on his arms.
“Where is she?”
He glanced to see Steve at the doorway, who bowed his head.
“She’s coming, your grace.” “Good. I want to be sure she watches closely.”
Steve nodded, eyes cast to the ground. His eyes flicked up when he heard your gown swishing as you walked, clenching his jaw before he turned his head.
“She’s here, your highness.” “Excellent.”
John turned to see you in the doorway. Your eyes seemed tired, as if you hadn’t gotten enough sleep. John smiled, knowing his plan had worked.
“My Queen. Let’s take a walk.”
You glanced away when he was near, biting back a groan when he grabbed your chin and held it tightly as he kissed your cheek. He grabbed your arm and placed it through his own, pulling you forward.
“There’s something you need to learn. I’ve spoken with Samuel and Thor and Ikaris. I even wrote to Anthony, but I never received a response.”
You bit your lip to hide the smile at that.
“They all said the same thing. That you weren’t worth the time.”
You schooled your face into a calm, cool facade. You weren’t going to let his words get to you.
“Honestly, Princess? I have to agree with them.”
You clenched your teeth together as he went on.
“You may not be worth it, but your kingdom is. Well, your father’s kingdom. Let’s not pretend it would ever be yours.”
You straightened your spine, focusing on putting one foot in front of the other.
“But I can’t get the kingdom without you, so I guess we both just have to grin and bear it. But here’s the thing, sweetheart.” “Don’t call me that.”
John maneuvered your hand to where he was grasping it, squeezing so tightly you felt your bones grind together. You yelped at the sudden burn of pain and John sneered at you.
“Remember your place, Princess. I will be your husband and your king very soon.”
You blinked back tears as the two of you came to a sudden stop.
“Consider this the first of many lessons I’ll have to teach you. And you will learn, Princess. One way or another.”
John snapped his fingers and two of his men came to stand on either side of you. You looked from one to the other, noticing the crowd that had gathered. You narrowed your eyes when you realized you were standing on some sort of scaffolding, a stage of sorts.
John stepped near the edge of the stage.
“Citizens! Your future king has called you here for one simple reason.”
You tuned him out, glancing around the stage, looking through the crowd for a familiar face. You didn’t see one, save for Steve near the stairs, head bowed, shoulders tense. You swallowed as you studied the crowd, eyes falling onto a woman paces behind the rest of the people. She locked eyes with you and a shiver rolled up your spine. She lifted the hood of the cloak she wore, setting it on her fiery hair before turning and walking away. You watched her until you couldn’t see her anymore, blinking as if you’d been in a trance. Your eyes fluttered as the crowd began buzzing like a hive of bees, your heart pounding in your chest as you watched Bucky with his hands and feet shackled being led up the stairs. You started to step forward, stepping back when one of the men beside you blocked your path.
“You’re to watch this, Princess.”
Your heart throbbed in your chest as Bucky was led to the middle of the stage, the shirt he was wearing torn away. You met his eyes, saw the emotions swirling in the icy blue before he was forced to look away, his body wrenched to face the crowd.
“No.”
The word was barely audible, your eyes widening when John was handed a whip. You shook your head, reaching out, being stopped quickly by the thickly muscled arms of the men on either side of you. You looked to see Steve with his head still bowed, eyes squeezed shut, lips pulled tight in a wince. You took in a breath as John raised the whip over his head, hand flying to cover your mouth as John brought the whip down, the crack seeming to echo as Bucky’s body jolted forward.
Bucky tried to hold back, but soon every crack of the whip was followed by a scream of agony. You wanted to collapse at the first sound he tried so hard to hold back, but you stood firm. Bucky would want you to be strong. John looked back at you, wild-eyed with a wide smile on his face, and you glared at him, managing to stay still when the next crack of his whip was viciously hard.
When Bucky’s screams faded, you peeked around the man beside you, your heart falling to your toes when you saw how limp Bucky’s body was. The final lash from John’s whip had no reaction from Bucky, and John threw the whip to the ground as he turned and made his way to you. He stopped in front of you, smiling sadistically.
“Let this be a lesson to you, Princess. King or not, I own you.”
He glanced back over his shoulder.
“And this is just the beginning.”
You closed your eyes as John bent to kiss your cheek before walking away, whistling a tune as he did. The crowd began to disperse with quiet murmurs being exchanged, and you rushed forward, hitting your knees beside Bucky’s prone form.
“Bucky? Oh god. Buck, can you hear me?” “He’s unconscious.”
You looked up to Steve, seeing the pain on his face as he studied the lashes on Bucky’s back, blood oozing from the wounds. You shook your head, one shaky hand moving to the back of Bucky’s head.
“What do we do?” “I can help.”
You looked up at the new voice, quiet and thickly accented. The woman you’d noticed earlier that stayed at the edge of the crowd was standing over Bucky. You moved a hand protectively over him and she smirked.
“Don’t worry, Princess. I mean no harm. He’ll need these wounds cleaned to ward off infection.”
You nodded, looking down at the crisscrossing wounds on Bucky’s back. Shaky fingers gently touched his broken skin and you shook your head.
“I don’t … I can’t leave.” “I know, your grace. I have a few men who can help us.”
You met Steve’s eyes and nodded. He turned and nodded, and three men stepped out of the shadows. You recognized two of them, smiling sadly.
“Clint. Timothy.” “Your highness.”
The men bowed before offering hands to help you to your feet. You stepped back with the woman beside you, your heart clenching with every moan and noise Bucky made. The men managed to get Bucky on a horse, planning on taking him to Clint’s farm. The woman turned to you, and you would have sworn you saw her eyes turn red.
“I’ll do what I can, Princess, but he’s going to need you.” “Me?”
She nodded, a smile coming to her lips.
“I’ll send for you.” “How?” “You’ll know.”
She turned away and you blinked a few times before stepping forward.
“Steve!”
He looked back at you, crossing the space they’d already put between you. You took his hands.
“Be careful. You know there’s wolves in the woods.”
Steve nodded.
“We’ll keep an eye out.”
You nodded, squeezing his hands before he jogged to meet Clint, who was leading the horse away.
You stayed in your chamber with the door locked, refusing any visitors and the requests your parents and John made for you to come out. The only person you would allow into the room was the lady-in-waiting that had been by your side since you were a child, Lady Jean Grey.
You were sitting on the cushioned bench by the window, hands clasped in Jean’s as she knelt before you. You couldn’t speak, tears silently rolling down your cheeks as Jean spoke softly.
“He’s going to be okay, your highness. Steve will be sure to take good care of him.”
You hung your head and gave a soft sob. Jean always seemed to know just what you were thinking, even when you couldn’t put it into words. She knew how you felt about Bucky, how you felt about John, the hopelessness you could feel yourself slipping into. Your father had been delighted with John’s public show of power, and he was more determined than ever to make the marriage happen. You didn’t have a say in the matter, and seeing John’s self-satisfied smirk made your stomach turn.
Your head lifted, eyes locking with Jean’s before the two of you turned towards the window. You helped her to her feet, your gowns swishing as the both of you made your way to the window. The moon was high in the cloudless sky, and a chill rolled down your spine as a wolf’s howl broke the stillness of the night.
You turned to Jean, grabbing her hands.
“That’s it.” “Your grace, that was a wolf.” “No,shedid that. We haven’t heard wolves since the snow melted.”
Jean was incredibly smart and intuitive, and you saw goosebumps rise on her arms when the wolf howled again. You gave her hands a squeeze.
“I have to go, Jean. She said he was going to need me, and this is her sign.” “Okay. Okay, go.”
She sighed, looking to the door over your shoulder.
“I’ll stay here, pretend I’m you if I have to. I’ll ward off everything I can, but you must hurry back.”
You nodded, pulling her hands forward until you could kiss her cheek. She helped you into a gown more suitable for someone who wasn’t a princess, pinning your hair up and giving you her cloak. You knew there would be guards outside your chamber door, so Jean helped you climb over the balcony, using the blankets from your bed as a makeshift ladder.
You twisted your ankle when you dropped to the ground, wincing as you ran through the pain. You went in the direction you remembered Steve and Clint leading the horse that had carried Bucky away, the thought coming to you that you had no idea where you were going.
You covered your mouth with a hand when the wolf’s howl filled the air again, the sound sharp in your ears. You looked to your right, jolting when the howl sounded again, but turning that direction. You pulled Jean’s cloak tighter around you, eyes widening when you saw a curl of smoke rose towards the moon. Clouds were quickly hiding the moon, so you hurried towards the smoke, stopping when you saw a stone cottage. You made your way to the door, knocking on it and stepping back.
“Your highness. Welcome.”
You followed the woman into the cottage, removing the hood from your head. You untied the strings at your neck and she took the cloak from you, hanging it beside what you assumed was her own cloak.
“Excuse me.”
She turned to you, curls of her red hair framing her face.
“What is your name?”
She smiled.
“Wanda. Follow me.”
You did, stopping suddenly when Wanda walked through a doorway.
“Oh god.”
You hurried forward, hand brushing over Bucky’s sweat-soaked face. He was laying on his side and he moaned at your touch, his huge body shivering almost violently. You lifted your eyes to Wanda, who sighed.
“He’s got a fever from the infection. I’m doing everything I can.” “Oh, Bucky.”
You grabbed a cloth near his makeshift bed, dipping it in a bucket of water. You gently pressed the cloth to his forehead, a moan leaving his lips. The shivering of his body slowed just a bit, and you moved the cloth to gently clean his face.
“I’m here, Bucky. I’m so sorry.”
He hummed as you dipped the cloth back into the water, wringing it out and pressing it against his neck.
“How long has he had the fever?” “The wounds were showing the beginning signs of infection when we got him here.”
You lifted your head at that, and Wanda smiled as she moved to stand in front of a big bowl.
“They’re in the barn. Close enough that they can come if I call. The big one said it was unseemly for the men to be in a lady’s home.”
You smiled as you laid the cloth over Bucky’s heart.
“Steve.”
Wanda nodded, turning to grab a jar from a shelf on the wall.
“What can I do?”
Wanda took a few jars into her arms, setting them beside the bowl.
“You’re doing it. He’s stopped moaning. Perhaps he recognizes your touch.” “Is he delirious?”
Wanda nodded.
“He’s woken up a few times. That’s usually when I have to call the big one in to calm him down.”
You nodded, sucking in a breath when one of Bucky’s shaky hands touched your thigh. You moved the cloth back to his face, patting gently.
“It’s me, Bucky. I’m here with you.”
Your only response was a moan, and Wanda spoke from behind you.
“Can you fill this with water from the bucket?”
You took a small glass vial from her, dipping it into the bucket and handing it to her before dipping the cloth back into the bucket and wringing it out again.
“Wanda?” “Mm-hmm?” “The wolf howling. That was you, wasn’t it?”
She didn’t answer, and you lifted your head to see her dark eyes on you. She nodded, and you swallowed as you moved back to Bucky, placing the cloth against his neck.
“What are you?”
Your voice was quiet, your eyes on Bucky, watching his eyes move under his eyelids as his sleep was restless. You finally glanced over your shoulder, Wanda’s eyes still on you. You swallowed again and Wanda’s lips curled in the slightest semblance of a smile.
“Will you help me put this salve on his wounds?”
You nodded, watching Wanda stir whatever she had in the big bowl.
“We can get the big one in to help hold him down.” “Does it hurt him?” “It does, but it helps as well. I’ve already had to convince the big one that I’m helping him and not purposefully hurting.”
You let your fingers graze through Bucky’s hair, your breath catching in your throat at the way his head moved, as if he were seeking out your touch. You nodded, and Wanda walked to the window, unlatching it and pushing it open. She whistled a short tune, then closed the window. A few seconds later, you watched Steve exit the barn, wiping his feet before he walked into the room, eyes widening at the sight of you.
“Your Highness.”
You smiled at him and the short bow he gave, turning your attention back to Bucky. Wanda’s accented voice broke through the quiet.
“It is time to clean his wounds again.”
Steve blew out a breath, lifting a hand to rub at his bearded chin. You wiped the cloth over Bucky’s mouth, your fingers trailing through his hair. Steve stepped towards you, voice gentle.
“Princess, you don’t have to watch this. Clint will keep you company in the stables.”
You shook your head.
“I need to be here.”
Steve nodded, exchanging a look with Wanda. Steve murmured to Bucky as he gently began pushing him onto his stomach. Bucky groaned, painful moans escaping his lips as he went with Steve’s urges. You tried to shush him as best you could, touching his face and whispering to him. A horrified gasp escaped your lips when you saw the wounds on his back, how angry red they were, how some were seeping. Wanda and Steve exchanged another glance above where you had knelt at Bucky’s head.
“Your highness?”
You looked up to Wanda, who had a soft smile on her face.
“You stay there, try to keep him still. The big one and I can apply the salve.” “My name is Steve.” “I know your name, vysokiy.”
You and Steve exchanged a look, a smile crossing your face at the flush in his cheeks. The smile slid from your face as you met Wanda’s eyes, saw the compassion and sorrow there.
“He will fight. He may be weakened, but he is still strong. He won’t know what he’s doing and if he hurts you, he doesn’t mean it.”
You nodded, closing your eyes for just a moment.
“Brace yourself.”
You did, your heart shattering in your chest when Wanda laid a stripe of thick green paste over the lashes on Bucky’s back. Bucky gasped, then screamed, legs flying up as the salve burned into his skin. Tears came to your eyes when you listened to him scream, as Wanda gently layered the salve onto the lashes in his skin and you finally heard Steve calling your name, looking up.
“Talk to him! Calm him down.”
You shook your head, unsure of what to do, and Steve ground his teeth as he pressed Bucky’s shoulders down.
“Let him hear your voice.”
You looked back at Bucky, the tears sliding down his cheeks breaking your heart. He screamed again as Wanda spread more salve on his back and you knelt in front of him.
“Bucky! Bucky, calm down. Just breathe.”
Bucky’s eyes flew open, wild and glassy from the fever. You shushed him, taking his face in your hands.
“You’re okay. I’m here.”
He whispered your name and you nodded, smiling through the tears rolling down your cheeks.
“Hi, Buck.”
He groaned and you moved closer, resting your forehead on his, feeling the blaze of his skin against yours.
“It’s okay, Bucky. I’m here.”
He murmured your name again, one shaky hand reaching for you. You took his hand, holding it in yours, kissing his fingers before bringing it to your chest. He gave quiet groans as Wanda and Steve spread the salve over his back, giving your hand intermittent squeezes. You whispered to him, words that you weren’t even sure made sense.
When Wanda quietly announced she was done, Bucky’s body relaxed. You smiled, blinking open your eyes in time to see Bucky lean back just enough to brush his nose against yours. Your eyes widened as he moved, wincing the slightest bit. You took the hand Steve offered you and stood to your feet, eyebrows furrowing at the sight of the chair he moved for you to the head of Bucky’s makeshift bed. You sat down and Steve moved the chair closer. He maneuvered Bucky just a bit, until Bucky’s head was on your lap. You stared at Bucky for a moment, shaking your head as you looked up to Steve, looking back down when Bucky gave a content sigh, quickly drifting back to sleep. You stared at his sleeping form, the furrow between his eyebrows that you gently smoothed away. Every touch of your hand seemed to relax him more, and you smiled as you ran your fingers through his hair, gently untangling the dark strands.
In the kitchen, Wanda smiled as she washed out the bowl she had used. Steve stood back, eyes in the room where Bucky slept on the Princess’ lap. He lifted a hand to his forehead, gently rubbing.
“Something on your mind, vysokiy?”
Steve swallowed.
“This … them … it can’t be. You mustknow that.” “I know that the heart is not something to be played around with.” “They can’t be together. This will just hurt them more in the end.” “Will it? You see him? He’s sleeping more restfully than he has since he regained consciousness. The infection is already calming.”
Steve shook his head.
“It doesn’t matter. She has to go back to the castle and he has to go back to being a guard. Not her guard, because her new husband won’t allow it.” “Her new husband is not her husband yet. There has been no wedding.” “One is coming. The whole kingdom knows it.”
Wanda turned to face him fully.
“And you think she will go through with it?”
Steve stared at her, head tilting slightly.
“What are you talking about?”
Wanda’s dark eyes danced from you and Bucky back to Steve.
“Surely you can feel the love between them as I do.”
Steve looked away, looking back when Wanda stepped closer to him.
“You think she’ll go through with marrying the monster who broke her heart by nearly killing the one who holds her heart?” “She doesn’t have a choice.” “There’s always a choice, vysokiy.”
Steve grabbed her wrist, his touch gentling when her fingers gently caressed his wrist.
“What do you know?” “Nothing as of yet. Is only a possibility.” “What is?”
Wanda looked to you, saw you dip your head to press your lips to the crown of Bucky’s head. She nodded.
“I do believe your Princess would rather die than be forced away from him.”
Steve dropped her hand, eyes flashing back to you and Bucky, who slept peacefully in your lap.
You stayed in the chair with Bucky’s head in your lap until the sun came up. He stirred, groaning softly before blinking his eyes open. His eyebrows drew together, confusion marring his features until he looked up and saw you smiling down at him.
“My lady?” “Good morning, Bucky. How are you feeling?”
Bucky blinked, as if he were unsure you were really there. You gently slipped your fingers through his hair again and his eyes drifted closed. You continued, his voice deep and sleepy.
“How are you here?” “I snuck out. Lady Jean is pretending to be me.”
Bucky moaned softly, realizing where his head had been laying. His cheeks flushed as he pushed himself up with a groan, and you quickly moved to help him sit up.
“Take it easy. Just breathe.”
He took your hand, lacing his fingers through yours. You smiled, moving your hand from his bare shoulder to his neck. He groaned again, hanging his head.
“Just breathe, Bucky.” “When did you get here?”
You swallowed, gently rubbing the ball of his shoulder.
“Last night. I had to help Wanda and Steve dress your wounds. Which, it should be time to change the bandages. We had to apply them while you slept.”
Bucky watched as you lifted a strip of cloth from just under his shoulder blade.
“It might be easier if you lay back down.”
Bucky shook his head.
“No, I … I’d like to sit up.”
You smiled.
“Okay.”
You stepped away from him, going behind him.
“I’m sorry, this may hurt.” “I’ll be okay.”
You slowly lifted the bandages from his skin, some of the salve causing the bandages to stick. You pulled as gently as you could, wincing each time you heard Bucky hiss out a breath. When the final bandage was removed, you went to the bucket of water Clint had brought in before the sun rose. You dipped a fresh cloth into the water, bringing it back to gently clean Bucky’s back. He hissed at first, then moaned softly.
“I’m sorry.” “It’s okay. Just a bit tender.”
You nodded, tears blurring your eyes as you did your best to clean the wounds. Once the wounds were clean, you continued to pat the cloth over Bucky’s back, urged on by the pleased sighs leaving his lips. Soon, however, Bucky realized there was no rhyme or rhythm to your touches. The cloth was barely skimming over his skin, the gentlest of brushes.
“My lady?”
You didn’t answer, dropping your hand to your side, going back to the bucket and dipping the cloth back into it, wringing it almost dry.
“Princess?”
You laid your hands on the small table where the bucket sat. You hung your head, only turning when you heard Bucky move.
“Don’t try to get up. You’re weak.” “Why are you crying?”
You sniffled, shaking your head. Bucky held out his hand and you took it in both of yours, stepping forward at his gentle pull.
“Are those tears for me, sweet Princess?”
You nodded, closing your eyes as you moved one hand to brush his hair back from his face, the other grasping tightly to his hand.
“I’m so sorry.” “What could you possibly be sorry for?”
You lifted your head when Bucky gently pushed at your chin, tears shining in your eyes when his icy blues met yours. He shook his head and you gave a shaky sigh.
“It’s because of me. John did this to you because of—“ “Don’t…”
Bucky shook his head, clenching his jaw before he looked back to you.
“He did this. Not you.” “But he did it because of me. He wanted to teach me a lesson and he knew hurting you would be the best way to hurt me.”
You lowered your head again and Bucky shifted to push your chin up again.
“Don’t hide from me, Princess. Let me look at you.”
You swallowed, stepping closer to him.
“I hate him.” “I know.” “They’re going to make me marry him and I—“ “Shh.”
You were careful to keep your arms by your side when Bucky pulled you into his arms. You didn’t want to touch his back and cause him any sort of pain, but you couldn’t help resting your head against his shoulder. You lifted a hand to cup his face, closing your eyes when you felt his rough beard against your scalp.
“I know he won’t allow me to guard you anymore.” “I know.” “If I could change it, Princess …”
You lifted your head, nose brushing against Bucky’s chin.
“I wish it could be you.”
Bucky’s hands tightened around you and you gave a shaky sigh.
“My lady—“ “Don’t say that he’ll be a good king or that I’ll grow to love him. I won’t. I won’t ever love anyone, Bucky. No one but—“ “Please don’t.”
You couldn’t stop the sob, your hand tightening just a bit on his face, resting your palm against his cheek. Bucky closed his eyes, his voice pitched low.
“You have to go back.” “I don’t want to.” “I know.” “I get this terrible feeling that I’ll never see you again.”
You shook your head, moving back until you could look him in the eyes.
“I can’t live the rest of my life without you.” “You can, Princess. You’re strong.” “I’m not.”
Bucky reached out, taking your face in his hands, wiping the tears from your cheeks with his thumbs.
“You deserve more than a lowly castle guard.” “I deserve someone who loves me, and that monster never will. I can’t live like that, Bucky. I can’t.”
He swallowed at the sureness of your words, rubbing his thumbs under your eyes again, causing them to close. He pulled you closer, pressing his lips to your forehead, the place where your crown usually sat. You lifted your hands to hold onto his thick forearms as he spoke again.
“You have to go back.”
You shook your head, a smile coming to his lips at your stubbornness.
“You can’t turn your back on the kingdom.” “The kingdom doesn’t care about me. The only thing I’m good for is marrying someone who can rule because I never can.”
You opened your eyes, looking into his again.
“Do you know what he said to me while we were walking one day? He said maybe I won’t be as useless as my mother and actually give him a worthy heir.”
You shook your head.
“How can you say I should go back to that?”
Bucky looked down at your still-joined hands.
“It’s your duty as Princess—“ “I don’t care about duty!”
You let go of his hands and stood up, shaking your head as you looked at him.
“The only thing in this world I care about is you. It broke my heart when John tortured you the way that he did. Look at me, Bucky. I snuck out of the castle to get to you. I knew what a risk it was and I couldn’t help myself.”
You’d been pacing the small area, stopping and turning to him.
“He doesn’t love me. He never will, and I know that. Deep in my bones, I can feel it. But you …”
Bucky hung his head, putting his face in his hands. You could feel the cracks in your heart, the break beginning. The cracks only deepened when he lifted his head, pain-filled eyes meeting yours.
“I can’t give you anything.” “You think I care about jewels or gold?” “What about food? I have nothing, Princess. I am nothing.”
You shook your head, going to him and taking his hands as you knelt before him.
“You’reeverything, Bucky. If I never step foot in another castle, that would be fine with me. As long as I had you.”
Bucky stared down at your hands, shaking his head.
“You have to go back.”
You felt the cracks in your heart deepening even more.
“You won’t even try, will you?” “There’s nothing to try. My duty is to guard the castle and your duty is—“ “To marry a monster whose cruelty towards me brings him such joy.”
You shook your head, giving a sharp laugh at the tears welling up in your eyes. You stared into Bucky’s eyes, the pain you felt reflected in the stormy grey of his orbs. You slowly nodded, turning away from him.
“Princess…”
You didn’t turn back at his voice, as much as it hurt. Bucky noticed then the weight on your shoulders, the way every breath seemed heavy from your chest. He called you by your name and you turned, lifting pain-filled eyes to his. He went still, the sad smile you put on your face breaking his heart, along with the words you said.
“I love you, James. And I’ll never love anyone but you.”
The tears sparkling in your eyes made him want to run to you, but you turned away before he could move. He hung his head as he listened to your footsteps walk away, curling back up on the bed once the closing of the door signaled your departure.
“Your Highness? Prince John would like you to meet him in the dining hall. He wants to discuss the food for the wedding feast.”
You continued to stare out the window, taking a breath before you acknowledged Lady Jean.
“Tell the future king that whatever he desires is fine with me.” “He wants to get your input on some things, my lady.”
You pulled your dull, tired eyes from the window.
“I highly doubt that. But you know what I like, Lady Jean. Speak in my stead.” “It’s not my wedding, your grace.” “It’s not mine, either.”
Jean sighed, closing the door behind her as she made her way to you.
“You must leave this room, dear. Let’s take a stroll around the gardens.”
You turned your head towards her again.
“He cut down my tree. Did you know that?”
Jean knelt beside you, reaching a hand up to gently stroke your hair.
“He reinstated James. Did you knowthat?”
You shook your head.
“He’s a castle guard now, but he’s here. I could bring him to you.” “John would never allow that.” “Then we could take that walk and be sure to find him.”
You smiled sadly.
“I told him I love him. That I’d never love anyone but him.”
Jean’s hand fell from your hair. You nodded, tears welling up in your eyes again.
“I think I’d just like to stay here.” “Princess…” “Thank you, Jean. That will be all.”
Jean sighed, standing to her feet, laying her hand against your head before turning and leaving. You took in a breath, folding your arms and placing them on the windowsill, putting your head on your arms and crying.
When the moon was high in the sky and the castle was at rest, you crept as quietly as you could from your room. The guard outside your door, one wearing Prince John’s family crest, was asleep. He had his chin against his chest, quiet snores leaving his lips. You shook your head and silently crept past him, pulling your cloak tighter around you. You went for the winding staircase, making your way to the castle’s roof. Once there, you untied your cloak, letting it fall to the stones you slowly walked across. You stopped at the edge, leaning over the railing there, your heart fluttering at the distance to the ground.
You took in a breath and let it out slowly, taking hold of the railing and lifting yourself up. You slowly stood on top of the edge of the stone balcony, looking straight ahead instead of down.
If you looked down, you’d never do what you set out to do.
You closed your eyes, trying your best to clear your mind. You didn’t want to think of Jean or your parents or John and especially not Bucky. You lifted your head, the night wind rolling over you like a cold caress, cutting through the thin gown you wore to bed.
“Princess?”
You opened your eyes, the breath catching in your throat.
No.
“My lady, please. I need you to step down from there.”
Not him. Anyone but him.
“Princess, I can’t make it down fast enough to catch you. So that means I … I’ll have to follow you.” “You’re not my guard anymore.” “Maybe not where the future king is concerned, but I’ll always protect you.”
You turned your head then, tears welling up in your eyes when you saw him.
“Is that what you did when you sent me away? You were protecting me? By pushing me towards that monster?” “Take my hand and we can talk.”
Bucky stepped forward, hand outstretched to you. You shook your head, the stone ledge digging into your bare feet.
“I can’t live like this. I can’t marry him. His cruelty is constant and I can’t even begin to imagine what he’ll do when I’m his wife. He already treats me like he owns me and I can’t … I won’t live like that.”
You squared your shoulders, looking back out over the kingdom.
“If you do this, then you must know that I’m coming after you.”
You glanced over your shoulder, seeing Bucky staring up at you on the ledge.
“I can’t live in a world where you’re not.”
Your shoulders dropped at that. As a quiet sob broke free from your chest, Bucky stepped even closer, hand outstretched towards you. You put your hand in his and he stepped even closer as you bent down, wrapping your arms around his neck as he slid one arm around you, the other under your knees. He held you close as you put your face in his neck, and he knelt to the ground, keeping you in his arms. You stayed holding onto him, the warmth of his body bleeding through his armor and into you.
You couldn’t say anything. Tears slipped from your eyes and onto him, but Bucky didn’t speak either. He just knelt there on the castle roof, holding you, for what seemed like hours.
You stood on the balcony outside your chamber, staring out over the hazy day. Dark clouds were rolling over the hills in the distance, an ominous appearance to what should have been the happiest day of your life. You hadn’t slept well, your dreams invaded with hopeless, dark images and wolf howls. You exhaled slowly, closing your eyes, blinking them open again.
You tilted your head, the hooded figure at the edge of the trees sending a chill up your spine. You instinctively knew that was Wanda, and you felt a pull towards her. You watched her come to a stop at the tree line, hands coming out from under her cloak, twisting and turning and you would swear they were glowing red. You would also swear that she was looking right at you, and you turned, hurrying from your chamber. You were halfway down the steps before you realized how empty the castle was, considering your wedding ceremony and feast were tonight. You lifted your skirts and ran through the open doors, hurrying down past the stables. The closer you got to the tree line, the further away it seemed Wanda slipped. You jumped at a crack of thunder, glancing over your shoulder to see Bucky stop in his tracks on a balcony of the castle. You stopped as he did, watching him shake his head and call for you.
You’re not sure what came over you. You felt as though your body wasn’t your own as you turned and ran into the forest. You called for Wanda, but got no response. You kept running, sucking in a breath when you heard the commotion behind you, of the guards mounting their horses to come after you.
“Wanda! I know that was you. Where are you?”
You went still when you heard a wolf howl, glancing over your shoulder when you heard snarls and yips close by. You watched a pack of wolves walk out of the trees and slowly surround you. You swallowed, closing your eyes and wishing you could have had one more moment with Bucky.
You gasped as a wolf snapped its jaws at you, and you backed into a thorn bush, cutting your arm. You yelped when another wolf did the same thing, gasping when a wolf bit your gown, tugging until it ripped. On your other side, another wolf did the same thing. You didn’t want to run because you knew you couldn’t outrun the wolves. But you noticed strangely that the wolves weren’t trying to hurt you. They seemed more preoccupied with tearing your gown.
You turned and cut your other arm on the thorn bush, your blood dripping onto the scraps of your gown on the ground. One of the wolves threw its head back and gave a loud howl, your eyes widening when a larger wolf stepped out of the trees. You noticed something in this wolf’s mouth, a vial that seemed familiar to you, but you didn’t know why. The wolf stopped directly in front of you, tilting his head to the side before dropping the vial at your feet. A strange crimson smoke wafted from your feet up to your nose, and you inhaled deeply.
You stared into the wolf’s eyes, your mouth opening as your breathing sped up. Pain shot through your body, and you threw your head back and screamed. You fell to your knees and screamed again, the pain seeming to completely encompass you. The wolves began snapping at you and howling, your screams interspersed with their howls. You gave a gasping, wet gurgle, feeling like your heart was trying to burst out of your chest. A quiet groan was the last sound you could make before you collapsed, the pain too much for you to handle.
You were hanging on the edge of consciousness, unsure of what was happening. You could swear you felt the wolves’ nudging you with their noses, causing you to roll over onto your belly. You were sure you felt claws scratch one leg, then the other, until a quiet yip sounded. You felt the wolves nudge you again, and you felt yourself be lifted, placed onto something soft and warm. You felt wind against your skin, and the cool drops of rain against your face was the last thing you felt before you lost consciousness.
As storms raged through the kingdom, a blanket of grief settled over the castle. Your mother refused to leave her chamber, demanding the curtains closed and shrouding herself in darkness. Your father seemed to be in a fog. John saw no reason to stay, leaving his condolences before heading back to his kingdom.
Lady Jean Grey was inconsolable, sitting in your chamber and weeping. The castle was quiet and dark, and from his place on a balcony, Bucky decided he’d prefer to be publicly whipped every day of his life than to have to live with this godforsaken pain.
He stood unmoving in the rain, soaked to the skin, completely numb. He kept his eyes trained towards the woods, hoping against all odds that you’d step through the tree line. Steve stayed beside him, sometimes trying to talk with him, most of the time just standing by.
Every time Bucky closed his eyes, he saw you. The sweet smiles you only gave to him, the way your eyes lit up when he was near. He could feel your gentle touch, reminders of the comfort only you could bring when he was at Wanda’s cottage. He could hear your laughter that only happened when he did something that tickled you, the soft way you said his name, the only one besides Steve who could call him Bucky.
It was a pain he never wanted, a grief so heavy and sharp he wasn’t sure he’d survive.
He’d fallen to his knees when he and the rest of the guards arrived at the clearing in the woods, in the midst of the remnants of what was to be your wedding gown strewn about, soaked with your blood. The howls of the wolves as they’d retreated had him reaching for his sword, but his hands were shaking so badly he couldn’t take hold. He’d managed to pick up a scrap of lace that was tattered at one end, soaked with rain or wolf saliva, he didn’t know. It was now tucked close to the place where his heart once beat.
They hadn’t found your body before the rains fell, but from the noises he’d heard, your screams and the howls and snarls of the wolves, everyone knew your fate.
Now, Bucky just stood. If the castle fell under attack, he’d rush to the front line. He wouldn’t put up much of a fight, and perhaps one day they’d say he died a noble death. Steve would know the truth, but he wouldn’t speak of it. Until then, Bucky would focus on trying to breathe through the weight of his grief.
As the sun started its descent, Bucky gazed over the tree line. A hooded figure stood in the distance, face shrouded by a cloak. Bucky watched hands appear from under the cloak, turning and fingers moving, pops of red glowing around the digits. He turned to the guard at the other end of the balcony, found him with his eyes closed, chin resting against his chest. Bucky swallowed, looking back out to see the figure turn away, cloak falling to reveal a head of fiery red hair, hand flicking above her head as she walked away.
“Wanda.”
Bucky turned and left his post, hurrying into the castle and down the steps, not realizing how empty the castle was. He burst through the doors and ran for the trees, bursting into the forest before he heard—and ignored— Steve calling his name.
Bucky ran through the forest, armor clanging with every move he made. He stopped, a strange feeling coming over him as he quickly removed his armor, leaving it in a pile with his sword carefully on top before he continued running. He burst into a clearing, looking from left to right, going still when he heard the howl of a wolf much too nearby. He closed his eyes when he realized where he was, the same clearing where he’d found all that was left of you. He opened his eyes again to find wolves surrounding him, on every side and at every turn. He reached for his sword, hands falling to his sides when he realized his armor was far behind him.
As the wolves snarled and bared their teeth at him, his only thought was, if the gods had mercy on him, at least he’d see you again soon.
He closed his eyes, jolting when he felt a wolf bite at his pants, opening his eyes and trying to pull his leg away, only to hear the seam rip. The wolf shook it’s head with a mouthful of fabric before spitting it out and growling at Bucky. Bucky braced himself when the wolves charged at him at once, only to quickly realize they weren’t trying to hurt him; it seemed they only wanted to rip his clothes. Bucky hissed out a breath when his now-bare arm swiped a thorn bush, blood dripping from the cut onto his tattered clothes.
He went still when a much larger wolf stepped into the clearing, a strange vial in its mouth that seemed to glow red. Bucky stood as still as he could, until the wolf stopped before him, staring into his eyes until the wolf dropped the vial, deep red smoke curling from Bucky’s feet into his nostrils as he inhaled.
Bucky winced as pain shot through his chest. He coughed, choking a bit before a pain-filled scream left his lips. He couldn’t stop the screams as pain wracked his body, and he hit his knees, hands scrabbling at his chest as he coughed and moaned. He fell forward, landing against something soft, instead of flat on his face in the dirt. Quiet moans left his lips as he felt claws against his legs, and he felt his body being shifted. He managed to catch a glimpse of lightning streaking across the sky before raindrops fell against his overheated skin. As he felt wind whip his face, his only thought was of you, wondering if just maybe, you’d be waiting for him in heaven.
The damp, cool cloth felt like heaven against Bucky’s overheated skin. Fever raged through his body, but gentle caresses and the cloth helped. He kept hearing a soft, familiar voice repeat his name, but the fever kept pushing him down into unconsciousness.
“Sleep,” the gentle voice murmured. “I’ll be here when you wake up.”
Bucky whispered the name of his lost Princess, asleep before he could hear the voice’s response.
“His fever should have broken by now.” “Perhaps he still had some infection in him.” “You said you got rid of that.” “I don’t know what to tell you, velichiye. Your fever lasted almost as long.”
Bucky was hovering on the edge of consciousness, two feminine voices reaching his ears. He tried to open his eyes, but they were so heavy. He gave a quiet moan, the swishing of skirts filling the space before a damp cloth was pressed
Warnings: angst/hurt; mentions of assault, Non-Con (not graphic);
18+; please pay attention to the warnings.
It had been almost three weeks since that night in that no name town. Three weeks since Bucky kissed you on the dance floor, and then again outside of the bar, as the team giggled and stumbled their way back to the Quinn jet. You had laid your head against Bucky’s shoulder as the plane’s autopilot feature brought you all home, and listened to the laughter of your family, as they planned the next getaway. And in that moment, Bucky’s gloved hand entwined in yours, you felt like you were in paradise. A little bubble that nobody could break.
But as soon as the plane landed, and everyone stumbled to bed, it was as if the world shifted and the feelings you had on that dance floor turned into memories. And Bucky slipped away like sand through your fingers.
It started small. You’d place a hand on his shoulder as you passed in the kitchen, and he’d glance up and give you a small smile before excusing himself to the gym. You had figured he was just getting back into his routine, which was completely fine, you had your own to return to. But it started to weigh on you the more he pulled away. You’d gesture for him to sit in the seat you saved during movie night, but he’d flop down on the floor near Sam, pretending to be engaged in whatever random thing Sam was talking about. And yeah, that had hurt. More than you wanted to admit. But you’d give him space because you wanted him in your life, and you figured he’d come around eventually. You were sure that the kiss meant something to him. To you both. He’d come around.
That was weeks ago.
The team had been discussing the next outing, deciding to just stay in New York and deal with the crowds and attention as it came. Tony planned to research a darker, smaller bar, away from the hustle and bustle of the city, so things would go as smooth as they did last time. And you all deserved it. Nat was still recovering from a recent mission that had her out of commission the last few days, locked in her room, refusing to see anyone. She finally emerged and announced this outing, insisting that the entire team needed it. You had looked at Bucky timidly, but he averted his eyes, smiling at Sam being pulled away by Nat to secretly discuss their next karaoke performance. The team was abuzz as Tony returned with the name of a bar close to the outskirts of the city, and everyone went their separate ways to get ready for the night. Everyone but you and Bucky. He looked tense, both hands clamped to the side of the island table in the kitchen, and you approached him cautiously.
“Hey, Bucky?” You whispered, watching carefully as his head jerked up looking at you fully for the first time in weeks, before letting out a deep breath, the ghost of a smile playing at his lips. Just as soon as it was there, Bucky was stone faced again, wrenching his hands from the table and facing you.
“Hey,” he responded, glancing behind him, almost as if he was plotting his escape through some secret hatch.
“Hey,” you said again, suddenly nervous. Bucky glanced back at you, a look of impatience in his eye, and your cheeks heated in response. You took a breath, stealing yourself for the conversation you knew you needed to finally have with the super soldier in front of you.
“Bucky, can we talk about what happened?” Bucky met your eyes briefly, letting out a puff of air and running his hand through his cropped hair.
“What do you mean?” You let out a frustrated breath, scoffing at his feigned ignorance, Bucky giving you a weary look.
“You know what I’m talking about, Bucky. You’ve been avoiding me for weeks.” Though you fought it, your breath hitched on the last word, and Bucky’s eyes shot up to yours, bright and alert. He took a half a step toward you, before thinking twice and taking two steps back. In any other moment it would have been comical to see such a tough man so nervous, but you waited patiently for him to finally engage with you somehow. He let out another breath, glancing down at the floor.
“Sweetheart…” He paused, considering his next words. “I shouldn’t have gotten so caught up in the moment.” He finally blurred out, eyes rising to meet yours. “Your friendship means too much to me, I can’t risk losing that.” You stood silent as his words washed over you, confusion quickly morphing into anger. Bucky took your silence as an answer and gave you a weak smile, before turning on his heel and heading toward the exit behind you.
“My friendship?!” You spun around and shot at his back, making him jolt to a stop in the doorway. “You’ve been ignoring me for weeks, Bucky,” you continued, keeping your voice more measured and even.
“If you didn’t like me, all you had to do was say so.” Your voice came out a level above a whisper, as you confessed what was weighing on you for weeks. Bucky kept his back turned to you, and you were silently begging him to turn around, to say anything to deny what you had just said. But the soldier simply hung his head and exited, never once turning around to see the tears slip down your cheeks.
You swiped at both cheeks angrily and stomped to the third floor toward where Nat and Wanda were surely getting ready for the night. You bust through the door, heading to Nat’s closet, muttering “I need to borrow a dress.” As you rifled through the fabric hanging in the closet, you didn’t catch the worried look the two women exchanged behind you.
————————
Tony was right that the bar was quiet, but there were still quite a few people huddled around and moving on the dance floor, the DJ pumping out a top 40 dance remix, much to Nat and Sam’s chagrin.
But after a few shots of whiskey that you made them take with you, they were more than willing to pull you with them in the dance floor, the red cocktail dress you borrowed from Nat threatening to expose you with every move you made. As you waltzed through Nat’s room earlier you vowed to forget about Bucky, even if just for tonight, and your plan was working for the most part. When a pair of muscular arms snaked around your waist, and a voice muttered “dance with me?” in your ear, you were brought back to the night a few weeks ago, but you nodded your head, and the four shots in your system did their job, forcing you to sway back and forth with the stranger, shaking your hips.
The stranger looked pleasant enough, shoulder length blonde hair briefly making you think of Bucky again, but you pushed the thought out of your head and tried to focus on the strangers hands warm at your lower back. You closed your eyes and leaned into the man when Tony had walked up, pulling you roughly from the stranger’s hands.
“What are you doing?” Tony yelled over the fast beat of the music, shooting a warning look at the man’s protests behind you. You pushed against Tony’s arms, but his grip was firm, so you looked up at him, Tony’s eyes softening as you met them.
“Are you okay?” He practically mimed, struggling to be heard over the music. You nodded yes before Tony’s attention was pulled from you by a few screaming drunk girls wanting to take a picture.
You took advantage of your “dad’s” distraction to pull out of his grasp and shimmy back to the stranger, taking the shot he offered you in one gulp, and wincing as the liquid burned its way down your throat. The music changed to something a bit slower, and the man wrapped his arms respectfully around your waist, you placing your hands on his shoulder. Though you were looking into green eyes, you were imagining blue ones, and a hint of vanilla and spice hit your nostrils. You looked around, but Bucky was nowhere in sight so you settled into the strangers embrace, hoping to get the blue eyes out of your mind, even if just for one song.
As you continued to sway, your mind began to get a bit fuzzy, vision blurring, and you tried to remember how many shots you had taken. Surely it wasn’t more than four or five; you would be drunk, but not this drunk.
You continued to try to shake the haze from your mind, not realizing the man was slowly backing you off of the dance floor away from your friends and down a hallway toward what must be the bathroom. You tried to push out of his grasp, but you were spiraling fast, and halfway down the hall, the man was practically dragging you toward the woman’s bathroom his hands under your armpits. You tried to protest as the door to the bathroom swung open and you were dropped with a thud onto the floor inside, but your mouth wouldn’t move, your brain struggling to send the words to your lips. Your vision was darkening at the edges and you couldn’t make out who was crawling on top of you anymore, or whose hands were hiking up your dress and yanking down your underwear, the elastic burning across your thighs. You moved your hands weakly pushing at the man’s, who slapped them away easily. You hadn’t felt so human for decades, and the thought had you spiraling further into your drunk, and drugged mind. You were numb to the entire situation, blacking out as you heard the clank of a belt buckle.
You were awakened what had to have been hours later by a scream, and water being thrown on your face. You didn’t react, unable to process what was happening to you, simply opening your eyes, and looking up into wild red hair.
“Y/N! Oh my god baby!” Wanda was screaming gripping your shoulders and pulling your body into her lap, struggling with your dead limbs. But all you could think was that Wanda had never called you “baby” before. Even when you were laying up in the hospital with several broken ribs and a massive concussion. It wasn’t like she was emotionless, but pet names were never a thing between you two. What happened? You felt Wanda’s warm hands smooth down your legs and you flinched at her touch.
“I know, baby, I’m sorry,” she replied, an octave or two away from speaking to a toddler. “I’m just fixing your dress.” Taking in her words, you had a sudden flashback to the clinking of a belt buckle, and the calluses on the stranger’s hands. You felt a tear slip out from your eyes, and you wanted to swipe at it angrily, but you couldn’t make your limbs move the way you wanted them to. Your arms felt like they did when you slept on them wrong and it took a minute for the blood to return and allow them to function. You were too lost in that thought to focus on what was happening around you.
Between whispers to you, Wanda continued to shout toward the exit, until Nat finally strutted in, unaware of what she was about to see as she casually came through the door.
“Wanda, what are you shouting fo—” she stopped mid sentence, taking in the scene in front of her, her mouth twisting into a perfect ‘o’ complete shock forming on her face.
“Nat, get Bucky, please, I can’t lift her.” You could tell by Wanda’s voice that she was crying, and by the way Nat spun on her heel and rushed out the door, it was obvious that the situation wasn’t good. The weight of it all hit you, and a flood of tears leaked out of your eyes, a soft moan coming out of your mouth.
“Shhh, baby, it’s all gonna be fine. I’m just gonna move you away from the door okay?” You tried to nod, but your head merely lulled to the side and you tried to confirm for Wanda to move your lower half away from the door, your dignity on display for everyone with your short dress and discarded underwear. Wanda scooted slowly on her knees, pivoting your body so your feet were pointed at the sinks, pulling your dress down the best she could, and smoothing down your hair. You laid there another minute or two, when the door opened again, revealing a solemn Natasha, and panicking Bucky. You refused to meet his eyes as he rushed through the door, Nat locking it behind them for privacy.
Bucky threw himself on the floor next to you, shouting at Nat and Wanda to tell him what happened, and you had the sudden urge to yell at him to stop shouting at the two women, but your lips and throat disobeyed you, nothing but a tiny squeak emitting from your lips.
“She had been dancing with that guy…” Wanda began, explaining that she noticed you had disappeared from the dance floor and had found you laying on the floor passed out moments ago. Her words had your shooting your eyes up to look into hers. You had only been in the bathroom a few minutes? It felt like hours since the stranger pulled you in here. Wanda left out many of the details of how she truly found you, but Bucky was smart enough to put the pieces together, glancing around you and spotting the ruined piece of fabric, bunched up near where you were sprawled out. Bucky let out a noise at the realization that sounded more like a growl than anything else, and rose to his feet in one quick motion, walking purposefully toward the door. You watched him with your eyes, as Nat put her hands on his chest, halting his movements.
“Barnes, stop.” She commanded, using her best in charge voice.
“We don’t have time to kill him, Tony can track him down later. We need your help to get Y/N out of here, me and Wanda can’t lift her on our own.” Bucky stopped at her words, glancing back over his shoulder and looking into your eyes. Whatever he saw there must have made his decision for him, because he stomped back to your side, and lifted you effortlessly into his arms. Despite your broken heart screaming at you to stop, you lifted your head as much as you could and rested it into the crook of Bucky’s neck, reveling in his warmth. Wanda reached up gently to fix your dress and you cursed your decisions hours ago to wear such a revealing garment. Not because of what happened to you, but for the impracticality of it. With you securely in his arms, Bucky headed toward the door Nat unlocking it, but pausing before opening it.
“I’ll keep an eye out for the guy while you take Y/N home. Wanda, you’ll tell everyone Y/N got sick and Barnes is taking her home. I know it’s not ideal, but Tony and Sam will burn this place to the ground with everyone in it if they find out wha happened to her right now.” Bucky let out a low growl again at Nat’s words, but she ignored him, continuing with her plan.
“We’ll discuss what to do when we get back to the compound.” Wanda nodded in response, Bucky simply fixing his gaze on the door waiting for Nat to open it. You let a few tears slip from your eyes as you listed to the plan, the drop of them against his neck making Bucky flinch, which made the tears come faster. Nat opened the door after another beat and everyone went their separate ways, her and Wanda back to the noise of the bar, and Bucky out a side door marked “employees only,” that thankfully led outside.
You figured Bucky would hail a cab, but were surprised when he stepped onto the sidewalk taking purposeful steps toward the Avengers compound. It would be a long, quiet walk, so you moved your head the slightest bit closer into the crook of Bucky’s neck, seeking comfort more than anything. You could feel how tense Bucky was, and you weren’t sure what was making him more tense, the anger you could feel coursing through his body, or the discomfort from having you in his arms. Either way you wished more than anything that you were able to ask what was going on in his head. Almost as if he read your mind, Bucky spoke to you for the first time since your conversation in the kitchen hours earlier.
“I was outside,” he started. His voice rough and full of unreadable emotion.
“I was outside when Nat found me.” You couldn’t move your head to look into his eyes, so you fluttered your eyelids against his neck slowly, hoping that let him know you were listening.
“I couldn’t stand seeing you in that guys arms. The way he whispered in your ear and you rewarded him with a full smile. I couldn’t take it. So I went outside. And he—“ he trailed off, unable to say the words, his jaw clenching.
“He hurt you while I was outside.” You felt Bucky’s arms tense around you as he spoke, and you heard the regret, and anguish he was feeling. But also the red hot anger. You couldn’t respond, even with a million thought flying through your mind, but you didn’t have the chance to anyway as you neared the blue lights of the compound, and Bucky hurried his steps.
Bucky rushed up the stairs of the building heading toward the fourth floor and opening the door to his room, and you were hit with the unmistakable scent of Bucky once again, a wave of comfort washing over you. He set you lightly on his bed, fixing the pillow under your head, and disappearing, returning a second later with two glasses of water and a salt shaker. He slowly positioned your body to a sitting position, placing the first glass of water to your lips, being careful to guide the liquid into your mouth the best he could. When you’d drank some of the water, Bucky placed it back on the bedside table, hesitating, before grabbing the next glass and dumping the entire salt shaker into it, spinning the liquid around to mix it, and looking back at you.
“Sweetheart,” you were used to pet names from Bucky, but this time a jolt ran through you, as you heard concern and love in his voice for the first time in weeks. He looked a bit panicked again, unsure of what he was about to say, so you tried to urge him on with a raise of your eyebrows, your facial muscles unfreezing a bit. Bucky sighed before continuing.
“I think he drugged you, sweetheart. And you should try and throw up to see if it helps.” Bucky was still holding you in a sitting position, but your head felt less and less heavy sitting on your neck, and you were able to nod up and back down once, Bucky giving you a small smile, before hoisting you into his arms again, grabbing the salt water, and heading into his bathroom, where he sat you gently in the bathtub leaning you against the edge to grab some towels from under the sink.
“Okay, doll,” Bucky said with a small grimace. “This is going to suck a bit.” You blew some air out of your lips, and raised your eyebrows again, urging Bucky to continue. He lifted the cloudy water to your lips and tilted your head back so some of it could fall down your throat. Almost immediately, a warmth was flooding to your throat, and your body heaved. Bucky removed the glass, tipping your head forward as you threw up onto the towel Bucky had laid across your lap.
“That’s so good, baby, almost done.” Bucky muttered as you sputtered a few times, dry heaving once more before you were done, your body slumping in exhaustion. Bucky wiped the sweat from your forehead and used another towel to wipe around your mouth, throwing both to the other end of the tub, and hoisting you up and back into his arms. You were dizzy from the motion, but could already tell your limbs were beginning to cooperate, and you were able to hold your head up better.
Bucky laid you gently back on the bed, turning to his closet to get you something different to wear. You were able to slowly scoot yourself to the headboard, a quiet thud sounding as your back hit it, Bucky glancing back at you, a small smile on his face as he saw what you were doing. You still felt incredibly foggy, and couldn’t form a complete sentence, but you were able to move your arms a little, elbows stiff from not being used in awhile. And you could feel some bruising developing across your back from where you were dropped casually to the floor of the bathroom. Bucky returned with one of his shirts and a pair of sweatpants, holding both out for you. You grabbed the shirt slowly, your arm trembling a bit from the motion, and Bucky dropped the sweatpants to the floor, turning to give you some privacy.
“Thank you,” you said, your voice coming out barely audible, like a puff of air. You slowly pulled the straps of Nat’s dress down, setting a mental reminder to wash it before returning it to her, and slipping Bucky’s shirt over your head. You lifted your hips and pushed the material off the dress down your legs and settled the shirt to rest against your upper thighs, leaning against the headboard again. The serum was helping you recover faster, you could tell, but the act of dressing had you exhausted, practically huff and puffing like you ran a marathon. Bucky waited a beat more, before glancing over his shoulder to see that you were finished.
He reached for your discarded dress, folding it and placing it on the chair near where you sat, moving his weight from foot to foot, as he looked anywhere but at you.
“You must be exhausted.” He finally said, glancing at you to see you nod once in response. He seemed to relax at that, and motioned to the bed continuing.
“You can stay here if you want, I’ll sleep on the couch over there of course.” You stared into Bucky’s eyes as he finally looked into yours, before he turned and headed toward the couch. You gathered up all your courage and took a deep breath to make sure you were heard.
“Bucky,” you started, The soldier turning around and letting out a soft “hm?” in response.
“Please, stay with me tonight.” You hadn’t wanted to sound as desperate as you did, but the entire night all you had wanted was Bucky, and that hadn’t changed. When he came storming into the bathroom earlier you couldn’t deny that you were glad it was him coming to save the day. You were far from a damsel in distress most days, but feeling like Bucky cared tonight eased some of the hurt from the conversation earlier in the kitchen. Bucky seemed to weigh his options, chewing on his bottom lip as he thought before slowly nodding and coming to sit at the end of the bed, pulling the comforter back so you could slide down to a laying position.
“I’ll be right here, doll.” Bucky whispered, clicking off the lamp by the bed, the quiet and the dark calming the mood in the room. As you tucked yourself under the blankets and into a little ball, you reached out for Bucky, grabbing hold of his right hand tight, as if he were the only thing anchoring you to reality right now, which was probably more true than not. You’d never admit it, but you were terrified of what awaited you behind closed eyelids. Would you dream of the bathroom?
You couldn’t remember what had happened on the cold floor earlier and the realization had you shivering, and you felt Bucky tuck the blanket around your legs a little tighter, mistaking your body’s movement for being cold. You smiled at him gently, as he slowly moved his thumb across the back of your hand, holding it tight in his own. Your eyelids were beginning to droop when you heard crashing and raised voices from the floor below, where the main living room and kitchen was. Bucky let out a long breath, and pulled your hand away from his, looking into your eyes to see you were still awake.
“I’ll be right back, Y/N, okay? I’m going to go see what’s going—“ you gripped his hand tight again, not letting him finish his thought, silently begging him to not leave you alone. He gently pulled his hand away again, giving you a reassuring smile.
“I promise I’ll be right back. 5 minutes, okay?” You only looked at him, and he leaned forward slowly, placing a soft kiss to your forehead, moving back when he heard another crash from below.
As he reached the door he turned back toward you, uttering out a quick “get some sleep,” before disappearing through the door, closing it with a soft click.
And suddenly, you were alone.
A/N: I’m not sure how I feel about this one, and I’m sorry if it’s not what people expected… it’s just kind of where the story led me, for better or worse. Probably a part 3 coming.
Summary:On a rare Avengers team trip, you and Buck find yourself getting closer and closer. What could this mean for you and him?
Warnings:none; absolute fluff
It was incredibly rare to have a day out with the entire team.
Tony did some research and found a city with low engagement with the Avengers online, so there was less of a chance of being mobbed by people. Tony didn’t say so, but you knew he did the research mostly for Bucky, who wasn’t exactly on the public’s good side lately. You caught him wearing a glove over his left hand more and more when he’d go out, and he cut his hair, surprising everyone when he casually walked into the kitchen one morning, his hair shorter than anyone had ever seen it. He was hiding himself away from everyone, and it worried you more and more every day that you found him punching away at a bag in the weight room, or up on the roof, looking down at the city below. All he wanted was to be accepted, and you could tell he wasn’t sure what to do anymore.
But as you all walked down the sidewalk of the small downtown area, you saw the slight smile on Bucky’s face, shoulder to shoulder with Nat, who was relaying in detail the many drinks she was planning to have tonight (it had been a while since we had gone out). Bucky caught you looking at him and gave you a little wink, the small lift of his lips growing bigger, and you were rewarded with a full smile, which made your insides flutter.
“I saw that,” Wanda whispered to you quietly, snapping your attention back to the sidewalk, your cheeks reddening. It wasn’t a secret that you had a large crush on the former soldier, but still, being caught didn’t help the anxiety you had about whether or not Bucky felt the same way. Some days you were sure he liked you, especially when he sought you out at movie night, or went out of his way to bring you your favorite bagel from the bakery down the street. But other days? It felt like he wanted nothing to do with you, his brooding silence effectively ripping your heart out of your chest.
“Was I that obvious?” You asked Wanda quietly, who gave you a knowing smile.
“Yes,” she giggled, wrapping your arm with hers, “but it’s not like everyone doesn’t know! Well, everyone but Bucky that is.”
You heard Sam snicker next to you and you shot him a look that begged and demanded that he keep his mouth shut. He held up his hands in surrender, and you faced forward again, following behind Tony’s perfectly tailored suit in front of you.
“Hey,” you heard a voice close behind you, and felt Wanda’s arm slip out of yours as she fell to the back of the group next to Natasha, taking Bucky’s spot. You glanced up into blue eyes, the little flecks of gold in the corners standing out in the afternoon sun. Bucky’s deep voice sent shivers through your body, and you tried to keep it together as you smiled brightly at him. His eyes crinkled up at the corners, as he walked to catch up, both of your shoulders brushing against each other as you continued to follow Tony, who was talking Bruce’s ear off about the latest science whatever, words you couldn’t even begin to understand.
As you walked, you were reminded that one of your favorite things about Bucky was his ability to make people feel comfortable even in complete silence. You both continued to walk quietly, content to simply be in each other’s company, something that both comforted and confused you. You were focusing on the brush of Bucky’s shoulder against your own when you heard the scream. The rest of the team continued walking, but you and Bucky stood still, both unsure if you had heard the scream in the first place, with your enhanced hearing. The second scream, had you both sprinting in the opposite direction, Wanda, Natasha, and Sam whipping around to follow you both without question.
You kept pace with Bucky, flying down a grass hill toward a tall building on the horizon, Bucky pulling a knife out of nowhere, unsure of what you were heading toward, and all of you woefully unarmed. As the building grew closer, you noticed a group of people crowding outside, a woman crying loudly, while the man next to her held on to her tight. Nat stopped to talk to the couple, as you and Bucky rushed inside of the building, neither thinking about what you might find inside of the doors. You glanced around quickly, the carpet damp, water pouring from the floor above down the walls and onto the floor beneath your feet.
“Pool on the top floor flooded!” Nat shouted through the open doors, “Woman’s 3-year-old son is in the building somewhere.”
You nodded at Nat silently, grabbing Bucky’s hand and pulling him quickly to the staircase, water rushing down the stairs. It reminded you of the sinking scenes from the Titanic that the team had just watched last week, both Bucky and Peter having not seen it. You hesitated, glancing at the heeled boots you were wearing, and Bucky smirked down at you, before squeezing your hand and taking the stairs two at a time. You followed carefully behind, trying to not slip and fall backwards down the stairs. You might be a super soldier, but you weren’t immune to gravity.
Bucky rushed through the doors to the pool room a step ahead of you and glanced around surveying the scene. Nat had been correct, the pool room was in fact flooded, every surface slippery, as the water rushed out the open door from an unknown location. Bucky looked at you with confusion on his face, and you shrugged, glancing around to find the woman’s son. This was definitely not the situation you were expecting when you heard the scream minutes ago. You strained your ear over the rush of water and heard the soft sniffling from over in the corner. You nudged Bucky, and headed toward the sound, noticing the small boy huddled in the corner, arms wrapped tightly around his legs as he shivered, sitting in a puddle of water. You approached slowly, not wanting to scare him.
“Hey sweetheart,” you murmured, the little boys head lifting, scared eyes focusing on you. His lips began to quiver, and he let out a quiet, “mama,” that broke your heart. You nodded in understanding, reaching a hand out to him slowly.
“Yeah, honey, let’s take you to go see mama.” The boy seemed to consider your words, before nodding, a pout on his face, choosing to stand fully and grab your hand. You grasped it tightly and walked with the boy, splashing lightly through the water. Bucky held the door open for you two, and the boy eyed Bucky curiously, as you gripped his hand harder, guiding him through the water and to the stairs, careful to keep him from getting swept away by the rushing water. You could feel Bucky behind you, but you kept your eyes on the stairs, so you didn’t trip, finally making it to the bottom floor and back out the door, toward the crying mother and father, and your team.
“Johnny!” The woman cried, rushing toward the little boy, who let go of your hand and waddled quickly toward his mother. Bucky came to stand next to you, as the woman cried out “thank yous” toward you two, soft applause erupting from the crowd, murmurs of “it’s the Avengers,” rustling from person to person.
“So much for anonymity,” Tony signed, clapping Bucky on the shoulder, and repositioning his sunglasses, leaving to speak with the sheriff who had pulled up moments ago.
“Nice work you two,” Sam said, coming to stand next to Bucky. “Sorry it took us a second to figure out what was going on, not all of us have super hearing and super speed.” You stuck your tongue out at Sam in response, feeling Bucky chuckle next to you. The crowd was beginning to thin, people going back to their lives, as the police sorted out whatever was happening in the rec center that caused it to flood, and Tony returned to the group, reporting that the sheriff offered his thanks.
“Let’s get a celebratory drink!” Natasha offered to the team who all nodded vigorously, and took off back toward the downtown area, Nat and Wanda practically skipping in excitement. You glanced at Bucky and smiled wide when he took your hand lightly in his and tugged you with him to follow the others.
The bar Nat and Wanda rushed into was small, but had plenty of booze for the team, and Nat began practically vibrating with excitement that they had one of her favorite Russian vodkas that for some reason or another you couldn’t get in New York. Before long the bottle had appeared on the table, and Nat was serving up warm shots that had your stomach turning. After the first four you started dumping yours in Bucky’s glass, giving him a lazy smile, that you hoped hid the fact you were already a few sheets to the wind. You would have felt much more self-conscious if everyone else at the table wasn’t just as drunk if not more than you. It seemed as if only Nat and Bucky were able to hold their liquor, super soldier serum be damned! Before long, games started to break out across the table, Tony and Peter engaged in an arm wrestling match; Bruce and Wanda yelling over everyone about some sort of book they apparently disagreed with each other about; and Nat and Sam fighting over a microphone that someone decided to give to the table, a karaoke machine appearing up on a little stage in the corner.
Nat and Sam finally agreed on a song, both heading toward the stage as the slow music began.
“it’s late in the evening,” Sam drawled into the microphone, surprising everyone with the velvet baritone of his voice. “She’s wondering what clothes to wear. She puts on her makeup, and brushes her long blonde hair. And then she asks me do I look alright?”
Couples began to flood the dance floor, holding each other close as Sam and Nat perfectly harmonized.
“And I said yes, you look wonderful tonight.”
Wanda started to drag Peter to the dance floor, the skinny guy crying that he didn’t even dance at school dances, and Bruce and Tony began to sway back and forth at the corner of the dance floor, drunk enough to not feel an ounce of embarrassment, arms wrapped tight around each other’s shoulders.
You watched on with love for each member of your team, and as the second verse began, you looked up at Bucky, who had been watching you the whole time.
“Dance with me, Buck.” You meant it to sound more like a question, but it came out more demanding than you expected, and Bucky let out a soft chuckle, grabbing your hand and leading you to the dance floor.
“And then she asks me, do you feel alright?”
You were a bit unsteady on your feet, and Bucky pulled you close to him, gripping your waist tightly with his gloved hand to keep you upright, as you held on tight to his right, swaying to the beat of the music.
“I haven’t danced since 1943,” Bucky whispered, placing his lips against the skin behind your ear making you shiver, and you rested your head against his chest, breathing in what could only be described as Bucky’s distinct scent. Something like vanilla and spices.
“And I say yes, I feel wonderful tonight.”
Bucky held you tight to him as he gently turned you both in perfect circles, making you a bit dizzy, both by the movement and the feeling of being in his arms. You moved your hands up to wrap around his neck, resting your head on his shoulder, feeling like you were at your high school prom again. Only with your dream date. A man who saved lives for a living. And liked way too much sugar in his coffee, and watched westerns and Taylor Sheridan movies religiously. You adored this man and the thought had you smiling into his shoulder, pressing your face to his shirt to hide your grin.
I feel wonderful, because I see the loving light in your eyes, and the wonder of it all is that you just don’t realize how much I love you.”
You and Bucky continued to sway to the soft guitar instrumental, loving the feeling of Bucky’s arms wrapped around your waist, and you hoped this moment would never end. You glanced up from Bucky’s shoulder and met Nat’s eyes as she sang into the microphone, Sam standing at her side giving you an obvious thumbs up. You groaned internally, hoping Bucky wasn’t watching the two on stage.
“So I give her the car keys, and she helps me to bed. And then I tell her, as I turn out the lights…”
You glanced up into bright blue eyes that hadn’t stopped looking at you, and Bucky surprised you with softly singing the final few lines of the song.
“I said my darling you are wonderful tonight. Oh my darling you are wonderful tonight.”
And before you knew what was happening, as the final beats of the song wore down, Bucky was leaning forward, pressing his lips to yours in a soft kiss that took your breath away.
