MARVEL IMAGINES

BUCKY BARNES - DANCE

Dedicated to the my dearest most lovely friend a_tea_enthusiast for making me laugh and feel better when I needed it.

__________

It was that time of year again- the time when Tony threw his annual "Avengers Formal," as he liked to call it. In short, it was a night filled of fancy dresses and suits, dancing, and great food. Tony always liked to throw it in the winter, a few weeks or so before Christmas.

Naturally, all of the Avengers were invited. But other heroes often came too, and everyone typically brought a date. So it always turned out to be a busy event, with both new and old faces every year.

It was no different this year. Unfortunately, your date had cancelled on you last minute. Natasha was also dateless, and so the two of you decided to be each other's dates. "Girl power, am I right?" she had said with a grin.

You and Natasha pulled up to the Stark Tower in your limo before stepping out into the frigid night. Natasha looked elegant and deadly all at once in her jet black dress, which fell above her ankles. You wore a stunning navy blue gown which fell to your feet and was paired flawlessly with your grey heels.

You both walked inside the building and into the ball room, which was decorated exquisitely, per usual. Strands of lights were hung from the ceiling, and jazz music played in the background. The buffet table sat at one end of the room, the dance floor at the other.

Natasha let out a small gasp, so quiet that you wouldn't of noticed were you not standing next to her. You followed her eyes to the one and only Bruce Banner, who stood a few feet away in a black suit. He looked at Natasha adoringly, an expression of apology mixed in his features. It was the first time he'd returned since the battle in Sokovia. "He wasn't supposed to be here," Natasha murmured under her breath. "Go," you said nudging her shoulder with yours. She turned to look at you, her eyes apologetic. "But we came together-" You cut her off, holding your hand up. "Nat, go. You should be with him. You haven't seen him for what, months? Almost a year? Go."  She looked at you for a moment before wrapping her arms around you in a hug tightly. "Thank you." You watched as she walked towards Bruce. They exchanged a few words before embracing warmly, making you smile.

"Hello, ladies and gents," Tony's voice came over the speakers as he spoke into the microphone on stage. "We're going to start off this evening with some slow songs, so pair up and get cozy." You moved to stand against the wall, watching as couples paired off and made their way over to the dance floor. A slow song began to croon over the speakers, and you smiled as you watched all your friends dance. Steve and Sharon, Natasha and Bruce, Tony and Pepper, Wanda and Vision, Thor and Jane, and Scott and Hope. You swore you even saw Maria and Sam. It was rather cute, really.

You were so immersed in watching everyone else that you didn't notice someone had come and was standing at your side until they spoke. "Where's your date?"

You jumped and looked over in a start to see Bucky, who was looking at you with a shadow of a smile. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you."

"It's okay, I wasn't paying attention," you laughed. "My date cancelled on me. And Natasha well, she deserves to be happy. Especially if that happiness is Bruce." You glanced over at him before doing a double take. "Hey, you shaved. And you got a haircut!"

His usual stubble and shaggy head of hair was gone, replaced by a clean-shaven face and and smoothed back cut. He looked rather dashing, if you were being honest.

He nodded his head and chuckled lightly. "Yeah, I figured it was about time to clean myself up."

You gazed at him for a moment longer before smiling. "Well, you clean up nice. Really, you look good." He rubbed the back of his neck in what was almost embarrassment before glancing back up at you. "So do you. You look very beautiful."

It was your turn to be embarrassed, and you felt your cheeks flush in surprise. "Well, thank you."

There was a beat of silence until Bucky cleared his throat. "There's a reason I came over here, actually. Would you care to dance?" He held out his hand in a very gentlemanly gesture.

You broke into a smile and took his hand graciously, letting him lead you onto the dance floor. "I would love to."

As you reached the floor, you wrapped your arms around his neck, and he cautiously placed his hands on your waist. "Is this okay?" He asked tentatively. You couldn't help but laugh at his polite manner- it was extremely adorable. "Yes, that's just fine."

As the slow song came to an end, a more upbeat tune began to play. You instantly recognized the song as Jamie Cullum's Don't Stop The Music. "What is it?" Bucky asked. You looked up at him, raising your eyebrows. "What?"

He gazed at you in amusement as you swayed back and forth to the music. "Your eyes just brightened, and your lips started to lift upwards."

Your cheeks warmed under his intense gaze and you smiled up at him. "Very observant, Barnes. It's just that, well, this is one of my favorite songs."

The beat of the song started to pick up, and Bucky broke into a grin. "Well, if it's your favorite song, let's dance to it."

He suddenly grabbed your hand and twirled you around, making the skirt of your dress spin around your body like a hurricane. You let out a laugh of surprise, smiling at him in delight. You both continued to dance together, but this time with more energy.

As the beat of the song started to slow, he twirled you once more, but this time, you spun back towards him, leaving your back pressed against his chest and his arms around you. You swore you could feel his heartbeat, and were sure that he must have been able to hear yours for it was beating so quickly.

Before you could even comprehend what he was doing, Bucky tightened his grip on your waist and leaned down towards the floor, dipping you in one smooth move. He then pulled you back up swiftly, one hand on your waist, the other holding your own hand. You looked up at him, and all you could see were his eyes, leaving you to wonder how a man's eyes could even be that blue. "You're not a bad dancer, Y/N," he said with a grin. "Neither are you," you smiled. You stared at him for a few moments longer, and then realized that it was obvious that you were staring. So you the only thing you could do: you grabbed the edges of his suit and pulled him towards you, pressing your lips to his. As you broke away, you looked up at him, taking on the same tone he had earlier. "Is this okay?" His lips lifted into a smile as he leaned down to kiss you once more. "Very okay."

__________

IMPORTANT: you really must read a_tea_enthusiast's Marvel Imagines book if you haven't yet. (I don't why you wouldn't have already, unless you hate really amazing imagines).

Get her to 1k!!! She truly deserves it and I know she would love it.

love, elizabeth