Therapy // Stucky [AU] - Completed

Chapter 9

Over the course of two weeks, Buck and Steve got closer to each other. They often stayed up and talked, going into the late hours of the night. Steve even managed to agree Buck to get a small job as a zookeper: nothing to stress him out but also something that made him happy. One of the days where Buck worked from the afternoon to night time, he returned home extremely content over the fact that he had used part of his paycheck to buy Steve a present. He couldn't wait to get home and show him it. Steve had given him a key so once he approached the front door, he simply unlocked it and walked in. He made sure to be quiet so that he could surprise Steve. As he placed the gift behind his back and he walked towards the living room, laughter became distinct in the room. He stopped by the entrance of it and blinked expressionlessly at the blonde and a gorgeous red-head who were having wine together on the sofa. They didn't seem to notice Buck's presence in the room and the woman placed a hand on Steve's thigh.

"Hey Steve, I'm home." Buck announced.

Steve looked up at the brunette and set his glass of wine down on the table in front of him, getting up.

"Hey Buck! How was work?" The man smiled generously.

"Uh, it was good. I had to feed some baby tigers. That was nice." Buck sounded despondent while replying.

"This is my friend Natasha , I've known her for years and I hadn't seen her in ages." Steve moved out of the way and gestured to the woman who now stood up to greet Buck.

She was wearing a sultry red dress with black high heels.

"So this is who you were talking about?" Natasha smirked at the man as she approached him and stuck her hand out. "Nice to meet you, James. My name is Natasha." Her eyes studied Bucky and his features, shooting him a flirtatious smile.

Buck shook her hand, still keeping Steve's gift behind his back.

"What's that?" The blonde questioned.

"Nothing. I'm going up into my room, I don't feel too well tonight."

"So won't you be coming down for dinner?" He frowned and pouted like a little kid.

"I don't know." Buck replied sternly, making his way upstairs before he could be questioned further.

Steve looked sullen and Natasha sealed her lips, looking awkwardly at him.

"What's up with him?" She asked, making her way back to the sofa.

"I-I don't know. I thought he would be content that I'm introducing him to a friend of mine."

The two grew silent for a few moments, going back to drinking their wine. When they finished, Natasha stood up and grabbed her purse to go.

"Well, I better get going to my date. I'll catch up with you later."

"Have fun! Let me know how it goes Nat." Steve's face still held a concerned look from earlier.

"I will and for goodness sakes, tell that poor guy how you feel about him." She giggled as Steve turned red and tried to act casual by scratching the back of his neck.

"What do you mean?"

She narrowed her eyes at Steve.

"I've known you long enough Steve. Come on, you turned so miserable as he walked up those stairs without even sticking around for a bit."

He sighed and looked down at the ground.

"I don't know Nat, what if he doesn't see me like that."

"The man was clearly bothered by the fact he came home to a woman drinking with you. He's been frozen for I don't know how many years right?! He's hardly likely to know how to feel unless you show him how you do." She poked his chest where his heart is and smiled at him.

He grinned at the delightful thought of pulling Buck into a long hug and telling him everything that had built up inside of him.

"Thanks Nat. I think I'm going to do it."

She nodded and Steve walked her out, shutting and locking the door after she left. He raised his hands to his head and ran them through his air, his feelings battling inside of him. Bucky deserves to be loved, he thought. The blonde decided to sleep on it and so he went to his room and got in bed, Buck being the only thing on his mind.

**********

Upstairs Buck sat in his room, looking at the gift he was going to give to Steve. He grabbed hold of the iPod Steve lent him and looked through the songs. As he pressed shuffle, 'Is This Love' by Whitesnake came on. Buck grunted and his finger hovered over the skip button; eventually he just locked the screen and took in the lyrics. They made him reflect on his own feelings and as the song went on, his train of thought led him to think about how he couldn't deny his feelings any longer. He liked Steve. He really goddamn liked him. Steve was the first person who had truly meant anything to him since his sister Rebecca. He was now living in this man's house despite telling him how he had been made into a killing machine. But just as the good thoughts filled Buck's mind, so did the antipathetic ones. Steve hadn't shown any clear interest for Buck - he was just caring and helping Buck out. Plus there was no way Natasha showed up in such a sensual outfit for no reason. She was even touching his leg. Bucky no longer cared about the music that was on; he blocked it out as his mind gave him an unhealthy way to look at his situation, his mind full of negativity. He decided that he would try to push whatever it was inside of him that made his heart warm up for Steve out of his system. At that point he remembered how badly he had wanted to lace his fingers with Steve's at the park but even that thought darkened and died as he thought about it more. Buck convinced himself that they would never be anything more than friends.

// I hope you guys are enjoying this story! I'm open to suggestions if you'd like anything specific to happen in the story. You can always message me on here privately, comment on the chapters, or even on twitter (my @ is BUCKYS0LDAT) //