Bucky stormed out of his room and across the hall to your door. He was fuming. All he wanted after his workout was a shower, but instead he got blasted in the face with some type of pink powder as soon as he walked into his bathroom. He didn't have to guess who had set it up.
"Open the damn door, Y/n!" He yelled as he pounded on your door.
He wasn't going to stop until you opened it.
"Geez, okay! Will you stop banging on my door?" You yelled as you opened your door.
"What the hell is your problem?!" Bucky hissed and motioned to his bare upper body that was stained pink.
You stifled a chuckle and tried to look at him with a serious expression on your face.
"I don't know what you're talking about, Bucky."
"You don't know what I'm talking about?" He asked incredulously. "You did this. You know damn well what I'm talking about, Y/n."
"I did no such thing, James. I'm appalled that you think I'd stoop so low." You bit down on your lower lip to keep from smiling at him
Bucky's fists clenched by his side and his lips pressed into a hard line. The two of you had been at each other's throats from the moment you met. Bucky thought you were annoying and you thought he was too uptight. You tried being nice when you first met him, but he just scowled and walked off without so much as a hello. You gave him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he had a bad day. You tried again the next time you saw him, but it was the same thing. After a few more tries, you realized that Bucky was just a crotchety asshole, so you adjusted your attitude accordingly.
The first time you had pranked Bucky was after he told you that your voice made him want to stab himself in the ears. Instead of yelling, you went out and bought two air horns. You snuck up behind him and blew them right into his ears. After that he didn't have to worry about hearing your voice. Actually, he didn't have to worry about hearing anything for a few days afterwards.
Bucky had never retaliated against you. He'd get mad and yell, but he never tried to get even with you. It confused you a little bit because he always seemed like the type to have a reactive response. You expected pay back, but he'd just stomp off as he grumbled about how childish you were. It drove you crazy because you wanted a response other than him screaming at you and then running off.
"You are such a brat! I don't know why Tony and Steve keep you on the team."
"I'm only a bitch to you, Bucky. The others treat me like a person, not a hindrance. Maybe if you tried being nice, I wouldn't feel the need to aggravate you so much."
"Keep dreaming, princess. There's no way that's going to happen. Leave me the hell alone, Y/n."
Bucky turned around and walked back into his room, slamming his door behind him. You huffed and slammed your own door. You fell down on your bed and started thinking about your next prank.
~
"She's getting on my last damn nerve! I can't take it much longer." Bucky said as he walked downstairs to the kitchen with Steve.
"I keep telling you to sit down and talk to her." Steve shrugged his shoulders.
"About what? I haven't done anything to her. She's the one pulling all these stupid pranks on me!"
"Bucky, she tried being nice when she first met you, but you were your usual grumpy self. Y/n's just giving you the same energy you're giving her."
"Are you seriously siding with her?" Bucky scoffed.
"I'm not saying she's going about it the right way, but I understand why she's acting the way she is. You both need to grow up and have a civilized talk. Be the bigger person, Buck. Ask her to talk to you."
Bucky frowned and leaned back against the kitchen counter. The last thing he wanted to do was try to have a conversation with you. If it would get you to stop terrorizing him and give him a moment of peace, then it looked like he was going to have no other option than to sit down with you. As Bucky contemplated on how to approach the topic, you came sauntering into the kitchen.
"Hey, Steve. We still on for dinner later?" You asked as you grabbed a cup of coffee.
Bucky's head snapped up and he looked between you and Steve. The two of you were having dinner together? Bucky didn't know why, but it didn't sit well with him.
"Yeah. Chinese good with you?"
"Sounds great." You smiled at him and then settled your gaze on Bucky. "Hey there, tin man. Looks like you missed a spot when you were scrubbing all the pink off."
You reached forward to wipe at Bucky's hairline, but he smacked your hand away. Bringing your coffee cup up to your mouth, you smirked at him.
"It's not funny. I had to scrub my skin raw to get that shit off."
"Oh, don't be a baby. It's not like I caused bodily harm." You rolled your eyes and walked out of the kitchen.
"Little fucking..." Bucky mumbled.
"Play nice, Buck. Just talk to her. I'm sure the two of you can work things out." Steve said and patted Bucky's shoulder.
"Why don't you talk to her for me? The two of you are having dinner after all." Bucky seethed.
"Is that jealousy I hear?" Steve smirked.
"Absolutely not!" Bucky said defensively.
"Mhm" Steve nodded, his smirk growing into a full on grin. "She's helping me set up a training schedule for the new agents. This isn't a date."
"I didn't ask."
"You didn't have to."
Steve took a sip of his water and then left Bucky in the kitchen, contemplating why the idea of you and Steve on a date upset him so much.
~
You left Steve's office after setting up the schedule with him and walked back to your room. Before you left, he sat you down and talked to you about your issues with Bucky. As hard as you tried to make up excuses for why you had to leave, Steve wasn't having it. He told you that you had to give him a chance. That the two of you needed to talk and work through your problems like adults. Your pranks might have been harmless, but the tension between the two of you was causing bigger problems than you realized.
You promised Steve that you'd stop pushing Bucky's buttons no matter how much of a dick he was. The team was important to you and pissing him off did nothing but cause more problems for them. It was time for you to let go of your grudge...after one more harmless prank. You were planning a little game of hide and seek for Bucky. He wouldn't find it so amusing, but it was going to be a huge source of entertainment for you. As you sat to plan out your attack, there was a knock at your door.
"Y/n, can we talk?" Bucky called through the door.
You walked to your door and opened it to find Bucky standing there with a sheepish look on his face. It was odd that he was standing outside your door. He never stopped by your room unless it was to yell at you. Maybe he had changed his mind and he was finally here to exact his revenge.
"What do you want, Bucky?"
"I just want to talk. I want to try and work out whatever problems we have with each other."
"I really don't think it's going to be that easy." You said skeptically.
"It won't hurt to at least try."
You looked him up and down, wondering if he was telling the truth or if he was planning something. Deciding to take him at his word, you stepped aside and let him enter.
"Come in, but don't try anything funny."
Bucky took a seat on the small loveseat in the corner of your room. You followed and sat next to him, feeling awkward with his proximity. He turned to you and cleared his throat. You twisted to look at him and waited for him to speak.
"I want to apologize, first of all. When we first met you tried being friendly and I was...less than receptive towards you. I understand that you reacted according to the way I treated you and, though I still don't think your pranks were funny, the things I said were hurtful and uncalled for."
Bucky rubbed at the back of his neck, looking uncomfortable as he apologized.
"Woah." You whispered.
"Woah, what?" Bucky asked, confused.
"I think hell just froze over." You smirked.
"This is useless." He groaned. "You're never going to accept an apology. Even if you did, you'll never stop with your little tricks."
"Hold on a minute. I didn't say I wouldn't accept your apology. I'm just shocked you gave me one in the first place. What's the second of all?"
"Huh?"
"You said 'first of all' implying that there was a 'second of all'. So, what is it?"
Bucky leaned back with a neutral expression on his face. He'd apologized, now he wanted you to stop torturing him.
"Second of all, I'd appreciate it if you would stop with all the pranks. I apologized and I want us to start fresh. That means no more hurtful comments from me and no pranks from you. No more dye in my shampoo. No jumping out and scaring me. No more prank calls. No changing my ringtone to pop songs."
You stared at him without answering. It was exhausting trying to catch Bucky by surprise and it took up more of your time than you bargained for, but it had been worth it when he was being an asshole. What sucked about your situation was that you had actually come to like him. You'd catch him in moments when he thought no one else was around and you felt like you were seeing the real Bucky, not the grumpy exterior he put up to shield himself.
He'd smile at something in his book while he sat in the common room reading. While you were sneaking around trying to figure out his routine, you'd catch him on the roof during dusk and he looked so calm and peaceful. He said he was sorry, but some of the things he had said really got to you. You had a lifetime of people complaining about the fact that you talked too much or that you were annoying. Hearing him say the same things hurt you more than you let on. The way he hurt you remained a secret just like the feelings you had for him.
"Nah." You finally said. "At least, not yet."
"W-what?"
"The things you said hurt me. My whole life I've heard how annoying I am when I get excited or how I talk too much or laugh too loudly. Those are my biggest insecurities and you had to pick and pick at them until I couldn't take it anymore. Why would I let you off the hook just because you apologized?"
"Because I'm sincerely sorry." Bucky said.
"And I'm sincerely pissed off!" You said, rising to your feet. "I could take Steve telling me I was annoying or Nat telling me that I sound like a hyena when I laugh, but not you! Knowing that you think of me like that is devastating."
"Why am I any worse than the others?" Bucky asked with a furrowed brow, making your frustration soar through the roof.
"Because I like you, you jackass!" You screamed and then clamped your hand over your mouth.
"You like me?"
Bucky was stunned. With the way you tormented him, he never would have guessed that you had any feelings for him other than hate.
"I wish I didn't." You mumbled.
"Then why did you keep up the pranks?" Bucky asked as he came to stand in front of you.
"Because every time you said something that hurt me, it made me feel better. I never said anything because I know you don't feel the same way."
"Damnit, Y/n! You can't treat me like shit and then just..." Bucky looked down at you, his eyes flicking to your lips and then back to your eyes. "Ah, fuck it."
Bucky grabbed your face and pulled your lips to his. Your lips parted in shock and Bucky brushed his tongue lightly against yours. The shock passed quickly and you kissed him back, nipping playfully at his bottom lip. He smiled into the kiss and chuckled as he leaned back to look at you.
"That was one hell of a kiss." You said and pressed a quick kiss to his lips.
"That's so much better than fighting with you." He said, grazing his thumbs along your cheeks. "Think you can drop the pranks now?"
"Hmm, I still had one planned. But if you kiss me like that again, maybe I can reconsider."
"What exactly did you have planned?" Bucky asked, raising an eyebrow at you.
"It may or may not have involved stealing your arm and playing a very rousing game of hide and seek." You looked up at him and cringed.
"Leave my arm alone, princess." Bucky whispered.
"Then kiss me."
Bucky immediately leaned in to kiss you again, this time harder and more passionately. You gasped softly at the intensity and then melted into him. His hold on your face loosened and his arms moved down to encircle your waist as yours wrapped around his neck. Bucky kissed you until you were breathless and left you panting when he finally pulled away.
"So, you'll stop messing with me now?" Bucky asked.
"Not exactly. I just plan on messing around with you in a different way now." You smirked.
Bucky's eyes widened when you pushed him down onto your bed and crawled over him. This was much better than pranking him.
A/N: All part should be up today and then I'll begin posting new parts after that! Enjoy.