Emotion was not something that came naturally to Bucky. After all his years at HYDRA, it had kind of been drilled out of him.
So when he found himself having *gasp* feelings for his (and Steve's) neighbour, he could not have been more shocked.
It had all started when Steve introduced her to the rest of their buddies (the avengers, if you hadn't worked it out). Sure, he had seen her briefly on a couple occasions, mainly in the elevator, and thought she was pretty cute, but nothing compared to that.
"Hi, I'm Y/N." She'd said. "You're Steve's roommate, right?"
And she had taken his hand, shaking it gently, a reassuring smile on her pink lips. He'd felt as if he was imploding, unable to think straight, overwhelmed by newfound emotion.
"Yeah." He'd managed to say. "I'm Steve. Wait, no, I'm Stucky. No, I'm Barnes. Forget that, I'm Bru- I'm sorry, I have to go." And then he had run from the room.
Nice one, Barnes, he had thought to himself. Now she thinks you're crazy.
He was also not expecting to see her in Cinnabun at three am on a Thursday morning, but by that point, he was entirely certain that in New York, anything was possible.
"Hi." He stuttered. "W-what are you doing here?"
"Well," She began, a small smile catching the corners of her mouth. "The cinnamon rolls were calling, and who am I to resist?" An embarrassing noise left Bucky's mouth, and once again, he found himself without words.
"It's funny, I hadn't imagined you as shy, Bucky." She said. "When Steve told me about you, I had kind of imagined you as, well, flirty. I guess leopards do change their spots."
"Heh, yeh." Bucky managed to say. She gave him a small smile, ruffling his hair as she left.
"So, she ruffled your hair?" Clint leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. Bucky nodded, his brows furrowing.
"Sorry, Buck, but you've been friend zoned." Clint sighed pitifully.
"Friend what?" Bucky did not remember a time in which he had been more confused.
"Friendzoned." The other man replied. "Basically, she thinks of you in a friendly way. It's bad news, buddy."
"How do I stop this..... Friendzoned?" Bucky ran a hand through his long hair. That was a particular habit of his; fiddling with his hair, particularly when he was stressed.
"That's the worst part. It's inescapable." Clint said in an oddly cheerful manner, as he left the room, leaving Bucky alone with his thoughts.
Almost a week later, Bucky had finally plucked up the courage to ask that girl out on a date. His first thought had been flowers, but all the florists were shut, meaning Bucky had to improvise.
So there he was, standing outside her door, wearing a pathetically knotted tie and clutching a small bunch of daffodils he had hunted for for hours. Finding flowers in January had been more difficult than he had anticipated, even in New York.
"Bucky?" She gasped.
"For you." He managed to say, blushing wildly.
"That's so sweet!" She said, taking the flowers and pressing her nose into them, before letting out the most adorable sneeze Bucky had ever heard.
"Sorry." She said bashfully. "Allergies."
"No issue." He replied, rubbing his neck. "Would you, uh, like to, uh, I don't know, maybe....."
"Are you asking me out on a date?" She grinned wickedly.
"Uh, yeah, I suppose." He said, more to the floor than her.
"Then I suppose I should say yes." She teased, pressing her lips to his cheek, before going back inside, leaving a very flustered and very smug Bucky.
"I have still got it."
