You stirred the next morning at a small creak in your room. You're eyes fluttered open as the light came on and a loud noise came from the door. It sounded like a gun shot. You shot up in bed and looked to the door.
Bucky was stood there covered in confetti and holding a party popper in his hand.
"HAPPY BIRTHDAY!" He shouted and laughed, pretty much leaping in to your bed and sat with you, bringing you in for a cuddle.
"What the hell?" You smiled cuddling into him.
"Well, you missed 10 birthdays. We need to go all out and start early." He went in his pocket and pulled out another party popper. He pulled the string and you jumped with a smile as it scattered confetti.
"I definitely hit the jackpot coming across you."
"You mean when you face planted the road?" He smiled as you pushed him slightly. "But first" he turns to the bedside and brings a cupcake you didn't notice before into view "your first birthday cupcake."
"For breakfast?"
"If you can't have cupcakes for breakfast on your birthday, when can you?" He smiled and passed it over to you. "There is also a pancake breakfast in the kitchen too."
You looked down at the cupcake and smiled weakly, "can't remember when I last had a cupcake. Or pancakes. Or anything ending with cake."
"Nope. No feeling sorry for yourself. Not today. You can do it tomorrow." Bucky stood up and pulled you up with him, "now eat your damn cupcake and then eat some chocolate dipped, syrup coated, sugar filled pancakes."
Bucky dragged you out the bedroom to the kitchen. He pushed open the door and let you go ahead.
"SURPRISE! Happy birthday!" Everyone shouted as you walked in.
Natasha ran over and grabbed you tight and hugged you, "happy birthday." She smiled.
"Thank you. Wow. Did you guys have all this in already?" The room was decorated with a banner, streamers and balloons.
"We may have done a bit of shopping yesterday." Natasha smiled and pulled you to the table. It was set with pancakes and so many different toppings you weren't sure what to have first.
You all sat around the table and ate the mountains of pancakes. Everyone chatted and laughed. You just watched them all and thought back to your 16th birthday, your last birthday party.
It was an amazing day at school with all your friends. Your parents had given you extra money to go out for lunch and get pizza, and when you arrived home there was a pile of presents. Your brother had even managed to come home from the army. Your favourite gift was from him; his dog tags. Little did you know at that moment, that three months later he would be M.I.A. And then two months after that you were kidnapped.
"Y/N?" Nats voice brought you back to reality, "you OK?"
"Yeah" you smiled and nodded, "overwhelmed."
She smiled and took your hand in hers, "I was saying, how about we go shopping? Gotta look good for your party."
"Party?" You asked confused, looking between everyone else.
"My idea." Tony smiled.
"This one finds any excuse for a party." Sam laughed
"And what better excuse than your birthday?"
Bucky smiled from the other side of the table.
"You are such a suck up Mr Barnes." You laughed. He shrugged and laughed with you.
After filling yourselves with pancakes, you and Natasha went off to town in one of her sporty cars - you weren't sure on the make or model, but it looked very expensive - just the two of you. A girls shopping trip. Plus, you had to be safe with her, she was an assassin after all ...
You were in the second shop flicking through the rails. "So, you and Bucky?" Nat smirked with a wink.
"Me and Bucky what?" You asked confused. You continued to search through the rails as you spoke, trying to find the perfect dress.
"You guys are ... cute together."
You stopped flicking through the clothes and looked up to her, "You know we're just friends, right?"
"You sure?" You nodded in response, "OK. What about Steve?" With the mention of his name you smiled, "Oh my fuck! You like him!"
"Shhhh!" You put your finger to your lips and moved closer to Natasha, "look, I'll be honest. The last guy I liked was 16. So at 27 this is... not what I thought." You sighed and picked imaginary fluff off one of the dresses in front of you.
"I thought I'd have experience, loved and lost. Maybe married. But I'm not. It's weird because I still feel like the 16 year old that was taken, but I know I'm not. So much has changed in the passed 10 years and I don't think I can keep up."
"That's why Steve is perfect for you." Nat smiled like a Cheshire Cat as she picked up some dresses, "OK, he woke and thought it was still the 1940s. But that's what makes him perfect."
"I'm lost." You frowned, trying to understand her.
"He's a gentleman. He's old school. He would take a girl out and woo her, ask her dad if he could court her, and then ask him if he could marry her. He is what every 16 year old wants in a future husband." Natasha sighed.
"The more you date, the more you realise that type of guy did die in the 1940s and we're stuck with, 'wanna hook up?' Guys and those who don't treat us how we should be. Guys who think us girls need them. We don't. We got this without them."
"Then why do we need to get married?"
She shrugged with a smirk, "sometimes the real thing is better than a battery operated machine."
"WOW!" You said a little too loud.
Natasha smiled and pulled you to the changing rooms. You tried some things on while she sat outside the cubicle, watching everyone that came passed.
You poked your head out of the curtains and looked at Natasha, "you OK?" She nodded. "You not trying anything on?"
"I know what I'm wearing tonight." She smiled looking at you quickly before looking around again.
"Are you looking for someone?"
She jumped up and pushed you in the cubicle a little and put her finger on your lips, telling you to be quiet, "there seems to be a lot of men here for a ladies store." She whispered
"Buying presents?" You mumbled against her finger.
She gave you a "don't be stupid" look before moving back a little, "you stay here."
She left the cubicle and you could hear the heels on the tiles moving further away from you. You put your top back on and grabbed the things you wanted, walking to the tills. You looked round and couldn't find Natasha anywhere.
You picked out Tony's card - he said "buy whatever you want. It's your birthday!" - and paid for the items. Taking the bags you were unsure what to do next. So you slowly walked to the car which was not that far away.
Natasha wasn't at the car either. You put the bags down and waited, leaning on the car. There were enough cars in the tower block that you didn't feel unsafe. Enough cameras that would pick things up, right?
You stood up and walked to the boot, looking round the parking lot to see if you could see her red hair in the distance at all.
A mans hand wrapped round your throat and a knife at your face, the blade stabbing against your cheek, "say anything and I'll cut that pretty little face of yours off." You swallowed hard and tried to control your breathing.
Natasha will be here.... she will....
He pulled you along and you stopped by a van, and the doors opened. You got flashbacks from when you were kidnapped. Your heart thumped against your chest and it was as if you could feel your blood boiling. You weren't some defensive little girl any more. You had too many experiments done on you and you didn't want to go back. You couldn't.
You jolted your elbow back into the mans stomach and he let go of the knife and your throat. You jumped and grabbed the knife, stabbing him in the leg as someone else jumped out the van.
You weren't sure where you were aiming, but you managed to get him in the side of his stomach. He doubled over as his mate tried to get up. He was on his knees when something came over you and you kicked him in the face.
You dropped the knife and started shaking, "oh my god." You breathed, backing away.
"Hey, Y/N!" Natasha's voice came from behind you. You whipped round and saw her jogging towards you, "looks like you don't need me around." She smiled and looked at the two on the floor.
"Where the hell did you go!?" You screamed as she linked your arm and walked to her car.
"The guys in the store were after you. So I had to fake a phone call from you and they followed me out. Obviously not all of them went to the store." You both got in the car after putting the bags in, "get something cute?"
"How are you so calm!?" You shouted as the engine started.
How was she so calm!? Someone tried to kidnap you and she was all smiles and 'get something cute?' Like, what the hell man!?
"This is my job. If I don't stay calm, I could regret my actions." She pulled out the parking lot and off back home.
"Regret what!? You kill people."
She nodded in agreement, "fair statement. But only those that need it."