Bucky gets dragged to a speed dating event by Sam and Kate. He's exasperated and unimpressed by everyone he connects with, until he comes face to face with Nora, the owner of a book store. She's sweet, kind, and funny, but she's not interested in a...
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A/N: We've got a therapy session, more of Bucky and Nora hanging out, handyman!Bucky, the fundraiser, some dancing, and a little surprise at the end!(and don't you dare come for me at the end lmaooo because it's still going to be a slow burn! I just wanna amp things up a little) 🥰 Please vote and comment!
CW:Mentions of homophobia, struggles with homophobia (I'm a queer person, I'm writing fro my own experiences - if folks take issue with that, I don't care). Also Bucky struggles with the modern world, discussions of the impact of trauma, a brief mention of death. One more note is at the bottom.
"So? Tell me about this friend," Jocelyn asks.
Her office is cozy, filled with plants, stuffed animals, and a lot of books. She's got a great couch, too. Bucky could nap on this thing.
Jocelyn usually works with elderly patients with dementia. Sam found her online after it was proven that Bucky couldn't get by on his own after John relieved him of his time with Dr. Raynor.
Brain scans indicated that Bucky has severe scarring, trauma, and brain damage from his time with Hydra. His short term memory isn't great, he forgets words mid-sentence. The doctors in Wakanda told him that his frontal lobes are a little smaller than someone who hasn't been through the kind of trauma he has. 70 years of torture literally changed his brain. No wonder he still has nightmares. They're fewer and farther between, but they're still there. No amount of amends can erase the that.
Bucky has depression, poor impulse control, and trouble regulating his emotions.
Jocelyn is working with him to forge newer, healthier pathways in his brain by changing his thinking his approach to things. It should help a little bit, but the damage that Hydra inflicted is permanent. Still, he's getting better. If he feels like he wants to make an impulsive decision, Jocelyn taught him to sleep on it unless it's an emergency in the heat of battle, or a car is coming at him or something.
He smiles and Jocelyn's eyebrows raise.
"Oh? That kind of friend?"
"Not that kind of friend."
"But you know we've talked about that, right? It would be good for you, Bucky."
"Yeah," he sighs. "But she just wants to be friends."
"What's her name?" Jocelyn asks.
"Nora. She owns a book store, she's smart and funny, and last night when I was hanging out with her... I don't know, I felt like I'd known her my whole life."
"We've talked about this too, this thing you do."
"Yeah, I know," he sighs. "I fall in love with people. They're just interesting, you know? I wasn't around a hell of a lot of people when I was..." he makes a little pew pew pew sound with his mouth while he pretends his gun is a finger. "You know?"
