Readers Assemble!

This Life Comes at a Cost (Steve Rogers x reader x Bucky Barnes)

(A/N: This was a request on my Tumblr. Could you do a fic in which Bucky falls in love with Steve's girl? Bucky respects their relationship but can't help but to admire her from afar. Even though she isn't involved in the world of superheroes Bucky feels obligated to protect her even from Steve, since he is a super soldier and can unintentionally hurt her. It doesn't have to be a cheesy love triangle.)

Bucky forced a small smile on his face as he watched her place her hand on Steve's arm. While Bucky couldn't really remember a lot about his pre Winter Soldier days, he was certain that this had never happened before. Bucky had fallen for Steve's girl. Everything about her drew him in as much as he wished it otherwise. He could see why Steve loved her and that was one of the only things that stopped him from pursuing her. Steve.

"Buck?" He met her (e/c) orbs and brought himself back to reality. "Yeah?" She giggled and said, "I think Steve was expecting more of a reaction than that from you." Bucky looked between the two of them. It was then that he realized that her hand now held a ring with a small diamond. "Y-you're getting married?" he asked in a small voice. They beamed at him and nodded. Bucky forced another smile and said, "Congratulations. Listen, I'm beat. I think I'll head home." He got up and headed to the door, knowing Steve would follow.

As soon as the door closed behind them, Bucky rounded on Steve. "Are you crazy? You proposed?!" Steve held his hands up in defense, but a look of confusion crossed his features. "Crazy? Buck, I love her and I have for a while now. Of course I proposed. Why wouldn't I?" Steve could feel the anger radiating from his friend. He was almost afraid the Bucky would revert for a moment. "Steve, does she even know what you do? How often your life gets put on the line? Does she know that you were injected with a serum and you have this impossible strength? Do you not realize that you could hurt her?"

"I would never-"Steve began but Bucky cut him off. "I didn't mean intentionally, Rogers. But you can't always be in control. And what about HYDRA?" Without waiting for a reply, Bucky left a dumbfounded Steve standing on the doorstep of Y/N's apartment. When he reached the tower, Bucky made his way to the gym. As he struck the punching back over and over, he thought about her. He wanted to protect her. Steve was a nice guy, but between his strength and their job Y/N could get hurt. If HYDRA found out that Steve had a weakness, they would use her against him.

Bucky hit the bag with such force, it flew off the hook and into the wall. He sat on his knees, breathing heavily. He had to think of a way to protect her, but he wasn't sure how to do it without ruining his best friend's relationship. The last thing he wanted was to break them up. He cared for Steve too much to do that. Suddenly, Bucky had an idea. He found his phone and dialed. "Dr. Banner? I need a favor."

*Time skip just because I like to*

"You did what?!" Steve shouted from his seat in Dr. Banner's lab. Banner and Bucky flinched at the volume. Bucky stepped forward to soothe his friend's temper. "Steve, this is the only way the two of you can be together and it be safe. Y/N needs to be protected." Banner eyed Bucky knowingly. Everyone could see how Bucky felt about his best friend's fiancé.

"Let me get this straight. After years of trying, Dr. Banner finally managed to recreate the super soldier serum and now you somehow injected it into my fiancé?!" The other two men nodded sheepishly. Steve took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He sat like that for several minutes before he spoke again. "She does NOT get pulled into the Avengers, is that understood? She doesn't get involved in this war we're fighting. Non-negotiable." Again, they nodded unable to speak. Bucky was not willing to incur Steve's wrath about this again. He hoped Steve realized that this was the only way. Steve and Y/N could still be together and Bucky could rest easy knowing Y/N was protected.

"Fine. I suppose it had to be done." Steve pinched the bridge of his nose. "Why did you do this, Buck? You know this life comes at a cost." Bucky sighed and replied, "Because you deserve to be happy and so does Y/N. The two of you can be together now without me having to worry about you accidently hurting her." Steve looked at his friend and gave a small smile. "You love her, huh?" Bucky instantly paled and began stuttering out an apology. "Relax. Just keep your hands to yourself, Jerk," Steve said with a smirk. Bucky returned the expression and answered, "No promises, Punk."

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