"Hey, Bucky." Y/N said shyly, blushing furiously.
"Hey, Y/N." He replied. "I didn't know you were staying here tonight."
"I wasn't, but, uh, well, stuff." She stuttered.
"You okay?" He asked.
"Uh, yeah." She answered, quickly. "I'd better be going." And with that, she ran out, leaving a very confused Bucky.
"Lady y/n, you look lovely." Thor told her, grinning over a plate of shawarma- Tony's request.
"Thank you." She replied quietly, her eyes flickering to Bucky momentarily, before returning to the kebab on her plate. Bucky smiled at his plate, not wanting to agree or disagree, in the interest of not embarrassing himself, or hurting anyone's feelings.
One by one, everyone left the room, heading off to do something. Bucky turned in the direction of the door. He didn't know what he was going to do, but being in the kitchen with no food was painful, and there was no way in hell that Bucky was cooking.
"Hey, frosty, can I talk to you?" The voice of Tony Stark made him jump.
"Uh, sure." Bucky replied.
"My daughter." Stark said. "What do you think of her?"
"I don't know. She's pretty sweet, I guess, but I don't really tal-" Bucky began.
"Do you know what she thinks of you?" Tony continued. Bucky shook his head, feeling strangely intimidated.
"My daughter is absolutely head over heels for you. How the hell you haven't noticed, I will never know." The man jabbed Bucky in the chest. "And I don't particularly like you, but you're sure as hell better than that greasy Maximoff boy, and she likes you. So you are going to make my little girl happy, and she's not going to know a word of this conversation, or there will be consequences." Bucky gulped, nodding frantically.
"Good. And if you break her heart, I will destroy you."
"Hey, bud, you okay?" Steve asked. Bucky shook his head.
"What's up?" His friend pressed.
"God, I am so stupid." Bucky dropped his face into his hands. "Stark threatened me into dating his daughter, and I agreed."
"Why is that so bad? She's a lovely girl." Steve furrowed his brow in confusion.
"Exactly." Bucky mumbled. "She is nice, and she's pretty cute, but I don't feel for her that way."
"Well, you've gotta do it." Steve sighed. "If you don't, Stark will rip you apart while you sleep, and if you mess this up, you will awaken the wrath of Thor. He's sweet on her."
"Thanks for your encouragement." Bucky glared at his friend. "You're really making me feel better."
"That's what I'm here for."
"So, what am I doing again?" Bucky asked Steve.
"Just go ask her to dinner." Steve chuckled. Bucky appeared nervous, something he had never been before. If Steve didn't know better, he would assume that his friend actually had feelings for the girl.
"Okay. I can do this." Bucky exhaled.
"Just remember, if you don't, you ain't gonna move for a long time, Buck." Steve added.
"Cheers, buddy. You always manage to make me feel better."
"Uh, hey, Y/N?" Bucky asked. She turned around, a slight blush on her cheeks.
"Bucky." She replied.
"I was wondering, are you doing anything tonight?" He said quickly. The blush on her cheeks grew rapidly.
"No." She said. "No. Well, maybe, but, um, I can be free."
"Oh, it's okay, I was just-" He said, worry growing inside him. He was feeling off about the whole agreement anyway, but if she was doing things, willing to put her friends aside for him?
"It's fine, it was something I wanted to get out of anyway." She said shyly.
"Uh, okay." Bucky replied, the heavy feeling in his chest easing slightly. "I was just wondering if maybe you would like to go out to dinner?"
"That sounds great!" She grinned.
"Just, you know, casually. If you want." He bit his lip. "Or not. If you want."
"Yeah. Great." She said, dashing out.
"Smooth, Buck. Real smooth." There was a voice from behind him. In any other circumstances, he might have mistaken it for his conscience, but he knew that voice. Very well.
"Thank you for telling me that, Steve. I'll be sure to remember that for next time I ask a girl on a date because her dad threatened me." He snapped.
"Hey, relax. You know I didn't mean it like that." Steve reminded him.
"I know. It's just, this doesn't sit right, y'know?" Bucky sighed.
"Believe me, bud, I know." His friend reassured him. "But it's too late to back out now."
"Yep. Too damn late."
"Lookin' good, sergeant." Sam whistled appreciatively. "Is this for a purpose or do we get you all to ourselves?"
"Frosty's got himself a date." Tony smirked. "Or so I heard."
"Date?" Sam echoed. "Date with who?"
"My daughter." Tony turned to Bucky. "Look here, kid. If you hurt my daughter, I will destroy you."
"Yes, Sir." Bucky nodded frantically.
"Sergeant Barnes?" Thor's voice made the three men turn around. "Lady Y/N is waiting for you."
"Thor, how many times do I have to tell you? It's just Y/N." She giggles slightly, rounding a corner.
Bucky had to admit, she looked pretty hot.
"Are you gonna finish that?" Y/N asked, eyeing Bucky's remaining dessert. "Damn, that was rude. Let me-"
"No, honestly, doll, you're fine." Bucky reassured her. "You can have it. You look as if you could use eating a little more chocolate."
"As if." She snorted, eating a mouthful. "And did you just call me doll?"
"Why yes, Miss Stark, I did indeed." A smile crept onto Bucky's face, as a blush did Y/N's face.
"Hey, big guy, how'd it go?" Steve smirked.
"It was surprisingly alright, actually." Bucky replied.
"She looked rather lovely, didn't she?" His best friend continued, the grin on his face growing.
"Yeah. She looked nice." Bucky shrugged. "And I don't get why you're looking at me like that."
"No reason." Steve smirked. "No reason at all."
Bucky woke later that night to hear screaming, and a knock on his door.
"Your girlfriend is screaming. Go shut her up." Sam growled from the other side. Bucky headed into the corridor, knocking on her door.
"Y/N?" He asked. "Y/N, are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine." She called back. Part of Bucky was willing to accept that, but a small part of him told him that she wasn't, that he should check.
"Really?" He continued.
"Yes." She repeated, but she sounded unsure.
"I'm coming in." He said, pushing the door. The girl was shivering, her eyes red, a sight that tugged at Bucky's heart.
"Move up." He said. She looked confused, and he pulled the sheet back, climbing in next to her.
"Bucky, what are you doing?" She asked.
"Comforting you." He replied, smiling at her shocked expression. She bit her lip, before snuggling into him. Now it was Bucky's turn to be shocked.
"Don't look so surprised." She said. "You asked for it."
And so, a few months later, Bucky found himself with the girl in his arms, in his bed. Bucky had never actually, properly shared his bed with anyone before, so this was new to him. Actually, a lot of this was new to him. Going on more than two dates, having a 'long term relationship'. Whilst at HYDRA, he- obviously- didn't have a lot of time to form any real kind of relationship. Even before, he had been more of a ladies' man, determined to see the world, and in his eyes, a long time relationship would have destroyed that. He dated around, but didn't ever really feel for anyone. But with her, it was different. The more time he spent with her, the more he felt himself falling. It wasn't love, but it was something. Something strong, something compelling. Every kiss he shared with her, every touch, every happy moment, intensified it, his will to keep her safe, his will to be with her. But he carried this guilt, the knowledge that this feeling had only come around because her father blackmailed him. He was fighting a war with himself, the guilt he felt over her, and the strange emotion he felt for her.
"What are you thinking about, soldier?" Her sleepy voice woke him from his daydream.
"Nothing much." He replied. Her hand moved up his bare stomach, eliciting an involuntary shiver from Bucky. She giggled slightly, resting her head on Bucky's upper chest.
"Chill, Bucky." She murmured. "You're all tense."
"I can't help it." He said, to no one in particular.
"I know."
"Wow, Bucky." Y/N told him, chewing thoughtfully. "This is, um, interesting."
"Steve has been helping me cook." Bucky told her. "He called this stir something."
"Stir fry." She corrected him. "I think that's what it's supposed to be, anyway."
Bucky looked proudly at his portion of noodles. He had never cooked before, and he was rather proud of his attempts. Sure, he had to cut the noodles with a steak knife, but he swore that Steve told him that was what you were supposed to do.
"How is it?" He asked.
"It's, um, different." She told him.
"Wait. You don't like it?" Bucky's face fell.
"It's not that I don't like it, it's just that-" She started.
"It's revolting." Bucky finished.
"No." She told him. "It's just that this is your first time cooking, and you have no practice. This is a first attempt."
"It'll be better next time, I promise." He said.
"Bucky, you don't have to promise me anything." She told him, taking his hand and leading him into her room.
"Barnes, what the hell do you think you're doing?!" The loud voice of Y/N's father woke Bucky up.
"What the hell?" He asked. "What time is it?"
"Time for you to get out of my daughter's bed!" Stark yelled.
"But..... What?" Bucky rubbed his eyes sleepily.
"This was not part of our agreement!" He hissed.
"What agreement?" Y/N asked. "Bucky, Daddy, what's going on?"
"It doesn't matter, doll." Bucky soothed.
"I'm guessing it concerns me." She said, crossing her arms. "Well?"
"Well, you see, you seemed quite unhappy, so I had a word with Barnes here about.... Him making you happier." Her father said sheepishly. "Which I can see he did. But sex was not part of our agreement!"
"Dad, you are my father, but you do not have the right to control who I am with, and much less blackmail them into dating them." She looked like she was about to cry. "It would be better if you left."
"Doll, I-" Bucky began, wrapping his arm around her.
"As for you." She snarled, turning on him. "I actually thought that you cared about me. I thought we had something. But no, you bought into blackmail, from my dad? Dad, I don't want to see you for the rest of the day, and James, I don't even know if I want to see you again." Both men jumped, running out of the room.
"Thor, please let me talk to her." Bucky begged.
"I give you my most sincere apologies, Sergeant, but Lady Stark has expressed a desire to never see your face again." Thor replied.
"Yeah, Bucky, lay off it." The snarky voice of Pietro Maximoff added. "She doesn't want to see you, asshole."
"Since when have you been her personal herald?" Bucky asked, shoving him.
"I will take you any day, Sergeant." Pietro shoved him back.
"Pietro, given Sergeant Barnes' history, I wouldn't think it wise to-" Thor began, But Pietro was already swinging. Within seconds, Bucky had Pietro pinned against the wall, beating him within an inch of his life.
"Beat me all you like, your pretty girl sleeps in my bed now." He smirked, and that was all it took for Bucky to explode. His metal hand clamped around the other man's throat, squeezing and watching his face turn darker and darker.
"Hey! Boys! Stop!" Y/N yelled. Bucky released Pietro, dropping him on the ground.
"This... Psycho tried to... Kill me." Pietro wheezed, touching his neck, where a bruise was forming.
"All due respect, Piet, I'm not certain that you're entirely innocent." She replied, gently touching his neck.
"Y/N, I...." Bucky started.
"I don't wanna hear it." She said, helping the blond to his feet. "C'mon, let's go see what Bruce can do." The two left the room, Bucky watching sadly.
"God, I screwed up." Bucky rubbed his face tiredly.
"I believe you did." Thor chipped in, making him jump.
"Why are you still here?" Bucky snapped.
"I was not entirely sure when was appropriate to leave." Thor replied. "Should I..... Uh....."
"Yeah, I think so." Bucky drawled, not lifting his head from his hands.
Bucky was fuming. The scene in front of him made him sick to his stomach. Pietro, comforting Y/N. Bucky had no idea what about- the girl got emotional about the smallest things. Those commercials for those animal sanctuaries even got her. One night, the two of them had watched Titanic. By the end, she had been in floods of tears. Bucky smiled in spite of himself.
"Oy. Frosty. I need your help."
"Stark, I hope you realise that your amazing plans where what got me in this place the first time around." Bucky said suspiciously.
"Yeah, I know, but she's upset, and no one upsets my little girl. And like I said before, you're better than that greasy maximoff kid." Tony replied.
"Has anyone ever told you that you are extremely charming?" Bucky drawled.
"I'm sure." The other man replied sarcastically. "Anyway, I'm willing to help you get back in her goodbooks. Want in?"
"Sure. Why the hell not?"
So, Bucky found himself standing outside Y/N's window, with a pebble in his hand. It wasn't as romantic as it sounded- he was standing outside Stark Towers in the driving rain, and his pyjamas were soaked through. And he thought it quite likely that the rock would smash the window, despite Tony's reassurance. But before he knew what he was doing, the rock had hit the window, and an angry Y/N was leaning out of it.
"Go away, Bucky." She yelled.
"Give me five minutes." He begged. "Please."
"Did my dad put you up to this, too?" She drawled.
"No!" He said. "Well, it was kinda his idea, but I'm the one standing in the rain."
"You know this is a massive cliche, right?" She told him.
"Yep." He answered. "I also know that you love cliches, and the romantic kind are your favourite."
"Damn, you've got me." She bit her lip. "Alright. Let's hear it."
"I'm sorry I hurt you." He said. "But doll, you've gotta believe me. I'm crazy 'bout you."
"Here's a thing, Bucky. I know how your charm works." She drawled.
"Doll, please. I adore you. I didn't mean to hurt you. But there are so many things that I love about you. The way that you twirl your hair, that cute face you make when I tickle you. The way that you always grab my hips if I kiss your neck. I've learned so many little things about you, but I want to learn more. Take me back, please."
"Damnit Barnes, you always know how to melt me." She muttered.
"Sergeant Barnes, doll." He grinned.
"One chance, Bucky. One bloody chance. I'm a fool, but I'll give you one damn chance."