Rules of Friendship | 18+

𝘖𝘯𝘦 ♡

𝘚𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘪𝘵𝘺

➵➵➵➵➵➵➵♡➵➵➵➵➵➵➵

Rule number one: Don't fall in love with your best friend.

A rule I had currently managed to break. I had been friends with Steve since our freshman year in high school, and I think I had managed to fall in love with him by our senior year. But we went to different colleges, and I did that on purpose because I didn't think I could be able to continue to watch him date everyone but me. Bucky joined me at NYU, staying close to home for different reasons, him for his little sister, and me for the fear of leaving home. We met Sam along the way, and the three of us had become inseparable. So much so that during the summer of our junior year, Sam decided to stay in New York, crashing in my spare room with Bucky half the time.

But with summer approaching, that also meant Steve returning home.

I thought I had a few more days, to swallow the pain that comes with watching Steve hook up with everyone under the sun for two whole months, wishing it was me. The routine never changed, he'd show up with me, and toss me his valuables before he crashed in some girl's bed for the night. Puberty did Steve and Bucky well, they grew to be over six feet tall, their muscles bulged and they no longer were the dorky boys I used to hang out with. But the difference between my two childhood best friends was if Bucky showed up with me somewhere, he would leave with me, but Steve would not.

We were in a little dive bar in Brooklyn, The Rusty Tavern. A hole in the wall that used to be a speakeasy back in the twenties, now it was a rustic-themed bar with a full selection of beer. Sam sat across from me in the booth, Bucky to my right as we talked about our last few classes of the semester that ended yesterday. "I'm just saying," Sam raised the beer to his mouth, taking a generous sip, "Professor Kennedy could've gone a little easier on the final, twenty-long questions and a final presentation? Seems a bit like overkill if you ask me, I don't even remember what her class was for."

"Probably because you didn't do the work," I teased, pouting when he kicked my foot under the table, "It was World Conflicts, specifically in the twentieth century. You're welcome by the way."

Bucky's arm was draped along the back of the booth, reaching over to take a drink of my beer when his glass was empty and we were waiting for a refill, "I'd take twenty long questions over Professor Warwick's class," He slid the beer in front of me again, "An hour-long presentation for each student in the class, I had to sit through fifty fucking hours of presentations, finals started at the beginning of the month," Bucky rolled his eyes, dropping his arm around my shoulders. "What was your hardest class genius?"

"I didn't have a hard class," I shrugged, "I took a light semester because I knew I'd be doing most of the work for you two." Bucky and Sam's loud laughter filled the air and I held the glass up to my mouth to hide the smile that formed.

It was a warm day in Brooklyn, the air was sticky but comfortable. It was the beginning of a good summer. None of us had stressful jobs, all working part-time and we were going to be able to enjoy one of the last summers as young adults before we went out into the real world. Bucky and I promised to give Sam the Brooklyn experience, and it started with cheap beer from mine and Bucky's favorite bar in the borough. I was wearing a high-waisted skirt, and a white tube top covered my upper body while we lounged in the heated brick building. It felt like home. With two of my favorite people in the world, laughing in front of me I couldn't think of a better scenario.

I jumped when an arm was placed in front of me, another behind me in the booth and a voice in my ear, "Hey baby, miss me?"

I turned to my left to see my best friend smiling wide at me, a white T-shirt tight against his body, jeans hugging his hips perfectly, he took my breath away. "Steve!" I smiled, pushing Bucky off of me and standing in the booth, letting Steve wrap his arms around my waist and lift me into his embrace. My legs were tight around his hips while he swayed us, pressing his lips to my cheek. "I thought you weren't home for a couple more days!" I pulled back to look at him, his grin wide, arms tight around my waist.