Rings (Bucky Barnes x OC soulmate AU)

Chapter 5 - Movies

Bucky returned home seven days later, exhausted and ready to turn in early. He sat through a debriefing half asleep, and when he was driven home in a large black SUV he nearly fell asleep in the middle of a light conversation with the young agent who was driving.

As they drove by the park near his apartment building he wasn't surprised to see Clara standing in the park under their tree. She wore her exercise clothes, staring absentmindedly at the road. As soon as she caught sight of the vehicle, she started walking home. The black tinted windows were so obvious.

Bucky stepped out of the car and it drove away immediately. As soon as the SUV was out of sight, Clara broke into a run and didn't top until her body collided with Bucky's and she was embracing him. He stepped back to find his balance again and, like he wasn't sure what to do, lightly put his arms around her shoulders.

Soon recognizing that he felt uncomfortable, Clara let go and took a few steps back, rubbing her arm. "Sorry, I just - I was really worried. About you." She looked up at him, smiling softly, anxiously. "I mean... I dunno. It's good to have you back, Barnes. Let's go inside." She turned and the two went inside, Bucky following her closely. "Hey, do you like brownies?" The two began to climb the stairs, ready to go up to the fourth floor. "Because I made some for when you get back."

"Uh, yeah, I do." At least, he thought he did.

"And I was thinking we could watch a movie. Just relax, and hang out a bit." She glanced at him out of the corner of her eye. "If you want to, of course."

Bucky nodded, not sure how to respond. He wanted to sleep, honestly, but he didn't want to say no to Clara. A movie couldn't be that hard to stay awake during, was it?

He was absolutely wrong. There were two things keeping him awake: one was the pan of brownies that sat on the coffee table in front of the couch. Not wanting to disappoint Clara he fought to keep his eyes open and took bites of brownie whenever he felt himself drifting.

The other was the awkward tension in the air. Bucky and Clara sat on opposite sides of the couch, sneaking glances at each other but not really saying anything. Clara looked comfortable in her pajamas, but on the inside was a raging storm. She wanted to talk to the man on her couch, but she couldn't seem to make her lips move. He was looking so intently at the TV, sometimes blinking slowly...

"You're tired." Clara winced at the sound of her own voice, sounding a lot more harsh than she had intended.

Bucky blinked and quickly turned his head to look at her. "Sorry, I - I've had a long week."

Clara nodded, pressing her lips tightly together. "You can go home if you want. Or fall asleep here. I won't be offended, I promise. I probably should have let you sleep." This is so awkward...

"No, it's fine-"

"Go home, Bucky. We can-"

"No. I'm fine, Clara."

Clara narrowed her eyes at him. "Really."

"Really."

Clara's lips turned up in a smirk. "Okay. Let's make a bet, then. If you fall asleep, we go camping sometime. If you manage to stay awake, we do whatever you want."

Bucky accepted, confident he could stay awake.

Five minutes later, Clara heard soft snores coming from him. She looked over and saw his head resting against the back of the couch, face peaceful.

"You're such a cutie," she sighed and turned the volume of the movie down.