Mostly short one shots covering Bucky Barnes in different situations and AUs, from the 1940s to the present. Some will be soft, some dark, and some hopefully humorous.
Previously published on Tumblr. All MCU characters are the intellectual prope...
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Content warning: Brief description of consensual sexual relationship.
There were several reasons why tonight was the night that I was going to give Bucky Barnes an ultimatum. The first and most obvious reason was that it was the time of year that I could make resolutions for the new year. The second was because I was done being not even friends with benefits, but just co-workers with basic needs that were being met. No more. If he couldn't see that I was worth more than a middle of the night booty call, then I was done with him, done with the man I met on this same night, New Year's Eve, a year ago. The third reason was because despite all the rationalizing I had done in justifying this informal, no strings attached relationship I had somehow, somewhere along the way fallen in love with the man. The tall, handsome, blue-eyed man with the body of a god, and an attitude that bordered on antisocial at the best of times, had somehow wormed his way into my heart. I longed to hear the words from him that would keep me staying on with the Avengers, keep me living in the Avengers compound, keep me near to him.
How pathetic was that? Me, with two undergraduate degrees, and waiting for my master's thesis in physiotherapy to be approved, recently hired to work on rehabbing injured Avengers, and fully committed to my career, had somehow fallen in love with the most inaccessible member of those superheroes. It defied belief but that's what comes from having the most incredible physical relationship I've ever had. I wanted it all with him, the house, the kids, the dog, birthdays, anniversaries; I wanted to grow old with him at my side. All he wanted was someone to bed, especially on those nights when he came back from a tough mission.
So, my New Year's resolutions were as follows: tell Bucky I was in love with him and ask if he felt anything at all for me. If he did, then great ... we would go on from there. If he didn't, then I was out. There was a professional baseball team that had approached me to head up their physiotherapy department, and they were willing pay me a lot of money for it. If he didn't have feelings for me then there was one more resolution that I was going to make ... to never get into a no strings attached relationship again. I deserved more and I wasn't going to put myself into that position ever again.
I wore the same dress I wore New Year's Eve, a year ago. As I looked at myself in the mirror, I thought back to that first week on the job, and the decision to wear the nicest dress I owned for the Avenger's New Year's Eve party; a red satin vintage cocktail dress in a rockabilly style, with straps that tied at my shoulders. It was fitted, with a flared skirt, that showed off all my curves, and every time I wore it, I felt beautiful in it. I'm no waif, but in that dress, I always felt very girly and flirty at the same time. It must have been the first thing that Bucky noticed about me when he walked in while I was being introduced to the others there, along with several other new employees.
As I was being led to meet the various Avengers, I formed my own first impressions of the individuals; from the sweet man that Bruce Banner was to the friendly earnestness that Peter Parker displayed. I knew that I was going to enjoy working with this varied group of extraordinary people. Then I heard a little buzz from the other civilian guests along with the murmured words that Captain America, Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes were there. Immediately, I turned around and saw Bucky, in his black-on-black outfit, looking like sex personified. He had a date, a blonde who was hanging on to his arm for dear life, even though he seemed distanced from her. I'm guessing it was a setup, because he certainly didn't seem to be particularly attached to her.
