James Bucky Barnes, the former soldier, doesn't think he's got any gentleness left in him. But Grace Juniper Cunningham, the former child prodigy, strongly disagrees.
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"𝘐 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘐 𝘫𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘣𝘳𝘰𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯."
"𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘴�...
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Bucky's POV
"Don't you want me to be your girl?" she'd asked.
I would've ripped my heart out of my chest and given it to her if she'd asked for it. But she kept asking for things I didn't have—stability, consistency, sanity.
It was well past two in the morning, and I was in my apartment. I could still hear music coming from down the hall. Stark's, in the common area, it sounded like. At least she wasn't too far away.
I hated not being there in case something else happened. I hated the fact that I didn't need to be there anyway, because she was better off with someone else looking after her. I hated that I felt like I was lying to her, like I was hiding things from her, because she didn't understand what I used to be (or what I felt like I still was at night).
I wondered what exactly she imagined I was having nightmares about. She kept asking me to talk, and she must've been thinking I was having flashbacks about being hurt, the way she'd hold me and touch me. I didn't know how to tell her I wasn't usually the one being hurt in them.
I kept alternating between pacing and sitting. I wanted to hit something.
I tensed at the sound of pounding on my door.
"Bucky!"
Sam.
Maybe if I didn't answer, he'd leave.
"Bucky, if you don't open this door—"
I yanked the door open and stared at him expectantly.
"Your girl is drunk and helping Tony and Bruce test out some motorized roller skates right now," he told me, laughing. "It's not going well. They're the three smartest people I know sober, and the three dumbest people I know drunk."
"Is it just them? What if something happens while they're all drunk?"
"No. There are some others. I think about 5 drunk Avengers equals 1 sober Avenger, so—"
I made to push past him.
"Relax," he said. "Steve is there, too. Designated super soldier, as always."
I did relax. If Steve was there, then it was fine.
"Why did you come here to tell me about it, then?"
"I was worried. I've barely seen her without you hovering over her since I got back here. Wanted to make sure you were alive."
"I'm fine."
"I went to see her yesterday. In the lab," Sam said. "I thought it might be good for her to spend time around here with someone other than you."
