Little Secrets, Little Bucky

Christmas Eve

Bucky stumbled off the jet, exhausted after his solo mission. He was covered in grime and hadn't slept more than a few hours in days but he'd made it home and that was all that really mattered. He hadn't bothered to tell anyone that he was back, they were busy with party preparations and he wasn't going to make Christmas Eve all about how tired he was. Once he'd been cleared by the medic he went back to the tower and showered. He could feel the stress of the mission washing away with the grime that had been covering his body and let out a long sigh of relief at finally feeling clean. He put on his party clothes and laid down, just for a second.

A second turned into a few hours and he was woken up by Y/n calling out his name from the living room of his suite. He dragged himself out of bed, feeling much better than before and she got a huge smile on her face when she saw him. It made him get that warm feeling again when he saw how happy she was to see him even after just a few days.

"Merry Christmas, Buck!" She said happily, throwing a bundle toward him. He caught it easily and realized that the bundle was a sweater, it was the ugliest thing he'd ever seen, covered in sparkly pompoms and gaudy Christmas lights that actually lit up.

"Y/n/n, I appreciate the gesture but I've already got clothes on," he said, trying to avoid wearing the horrific article of clothing.

"We changed the party theme a few days ago," Y/n explained. "It's an ugly sweater party now and I didn't want you to feel left out."

"Thank you." Bucky was shocked that she'd even bother to include him. It would've been easier to just let him be the odd one out, but instead she'd gone out and bought him a sweater so that he could be a part of the fun.

"Anytime, Buck," she said, giving his shoulder a reassuring squeeze. "Now go change fast, dinners ready and I think Clint might actually explode if he doesn't eat soon."

Bucky gave her a goofy smile. "Meet you downstairs?"

"You know it!" She went to the elevator and headed to the common floor, where everyone else had already gathered.

"Did you get him?" Bobbi asked excitedly. She'd barely been keeping Clint from the kitchen for the last 15 minutes.

Clint rolled his eyes at his partner. "Obviously not, B," he groaned. "I'm gonna die if I don't eat something soon."

Natasha threw a piece of bread at him. "You're such a baby," she teased, flopping down on the couch with Tony and Bruce. "He just got back from a mission, give him a break."

"Thank you, Nat," Y/n laughed. "He'll be down in a second."

As if on cue the elevator doors opened and Bucky stepped out, dressed in the sweater that Y/n had bought. "Damn Buck!" Steve yelled out while Sam wolf whistled. "I think you might just win the competition!"

"Oh god," Tony laughed. "Does that monstrosity light up?" Y/n went over and pushed the button on Bucky's collar, triggering the lights to start flashing as the rest of the team erupted in laughter and excitement.

"That settles it!" Thor roared. "We must cancel the contest, none of us stand a chance against the horrors of the Sargeant's sweater!"

Everyone went to sit down at the huge dinner table, passing dishes of food around and laughing at each other's preposterous outfits as they ate. Bucky was regaling the team with a most likely exaggerated version of his mission, weaving a tale of espionage and adventure that, in his defense, was mostly true.

"But enough about how cool I am," Bucky said, leaning back in his chair. "What'd you guys do while I was gone?"

"Steve and I were super busy all week," Sam said, reaching for another dinner roll. "We spent like four hours putting together a- ouch!" Steve elbowed him in the side, signaling his partner to stop talking before he revealed crucial information. "I was gonna say a piece of furniture, you don't have to elbow me," he complained, rubbing his side where Steve's elbow had made contact.