#mcu fics

[tvseries-writings]

Bad addiction

Plot: After an interrogation gone wrong, it is hard not to fall back into old habits and make questionable choices

TW: alcohol addiction, past suicide attempt, depression

Wandanat x Bioquake (Jemma x Daisy) x Bobbi x reader

Many people say that silence is the most deafening sound, more so than any other sound, even more so than the sound of a mine being blasted to extract the precious minerals it contains. And now, as you sit in one of the chairs at the kitchen table, looking down at the still-unbroken bottle of vodka in the complete silence that surrounds the room, you realize that these people are right.

It is 3:45 a.m. on a dreary Saturday morning, and that boy's face, imprinted in your mind, has kept you from sleeping and at the same time made you open the bus locker that Jemma had diligently locked as soon as she learned of your "not-so-little" problem.

In your world, everyone has tattooed on their body the first words their soul mate will say when they first meet.

You have to admit that in the unhappy and violent family you grew up in, it was no big deal to have five different phrases tattooed on your back due to some hideous flaw in the system. Two soul mates was abnormal enough, but five? Inconceivable, and Mark, your stepfather, had reminded you of it over and over again until one fine day he died of a heart attack. Of course, the moment he had collapsed in front of you, you hadn't run for help... Besides, they say there is no such thing as karma.

Bobbi was the first of the five mysterious soul mates you met and fell madly in love with. It was Bobbi who brought you into S.H.I.E.L.D. shortly after recruiting Daisy (then Skye), and who finally put a face to two of the people whose words she had tattooed on her right forearm.

"I want to be your sponsor, I want you to get better."

It was Bobbi who helped you out of the maelstrom that had engulfed you, who helped you to what would become six full years of sobriety. Six years without a single drop of your trusty friend alcohol in your stomach. She became your sponsor, was with you day and night, held you while you puked your guts out in the filthy bathroom of a bar at five in the morning, and whispered tough words to you when you told her you wanted to quit. You don't know where you'd be without her. In fact, you don't know where you'd be without all of them. Jemma, Bobbi, Daisy, Wanda, and Natasha are your rock and always will be. But today, today you have to forget and they may be your rock but unfortunately they have far too many demons to face and yours you might as well keep to yourself.

With a knot in your stomach and nausea, you uncork the bottle. The pungent smell of vodka burns your sinuses as you carefully place the cap on the counter. The concave side facing down, just like at the bar. Your fingers tighten around the thinnest part, the contact of your skin with the cold glass makes you shiver, and for a moment, just a single moment, you think you don't want to throw away these six long years of sacrifice, and then... then the boy's face hits you like a slap in the face. Actually, the slap would hurt a lot less.

He was just a boy, a young soldier molded by Hydra who had killed himself to give in during your interrogation. You had been too harsh and too slow to stop him, and you had not stopped him, and he had broken his right cheekbone, causing the small cyanide capsule placed there, just below the surface, to rupture. That boy was walking around with a time bomb between his eye and his nose, and he had done it voluntarily, killing himself with that same bomb. He had killed himself in front of you, his name was Gideon and he had just turned nineteen. And he was dead, he was dead because you were not focused enough, because you were the one who pushed him to do it and now he was gone. He should have had his whole life ahead of him, he had just been subjugated, but now, now there was no chance of redemption for him. So you punished yourself, nothing new, the bullet in your right leg is proof of that...even though you had stopped the bleeding by now. You just needed to punish yourself, that's all. And the bottle you hold in your fingers serves the same purpose as the bullet.

"What are you doing?"

The sound is so sudden and unexpected that you let go of the bottle and it shatters on the floor of the bus. The plane continues its course as if nothing had happened. How fascinating machines are, so emotionally numbing and yet indispensable.

Bobbi approaches you slowly, as if afraid to frighten you. Her hair is disheveled and her expression is a mixture of concern and weariness. You swallow, begin to shake your head and fall to your knees, repeating the words "I'm sorry" and "I'm sorry" as you fiercely pick up the shards of glass from the bottle.

"Stop or you'll get hurt."

The blonde girl is not even in time to say these words before a piece of glass gets stuck in your hand, causing a deep cut that begins to bleed profusely. You don't notice and Bobbi is scared to death. You don't feel the pain and, on the contrary, you continue to clear your mind.

Perhaps you have become a machine too, emotionally numb. Damn, how you want it; to feel no more pain - isn't that the human dilemma?

Bobbi snaps forward, tired of seeing you hurt again and again, and grabs your wrists with her hands to stop you; it works. You suddenly freeze, avoiding eye contact and not saying a word. Bobbi never loses sight of you for a minute as she gets up to get a cloth to dab the wound and stop the bleeding.

You stay like this for about ten minutes, in silence, while Bobbi bandages your wound with two stitches for "safety". He wraps your hand, but when he is done, he does not pull away, contrary to what you expected. Instead, she tucks a strand of hair behind your ear, making your eyes meet before breaking the silence.

"Do you ou want to tell me what happened?"

You always said that Bobbi, as an alternative to super badass spy, might as well have been a psychologist (as well as a model, of course). In fact, her tone is exactly what one would expect from a psychologist; gentle but detached. In a warm but cool clarity of action. In the art of weighing words that only Bobbi is capable of, and in which she is the first even to Jemma.

When she realizes you have no intention of answering, her hand quickly finds your leg.

"Have you been drinking?"

You bite your lip and shake your head slowly.

A small smile curls her lips as she leans in to plant a kiss on your forehead.

"Well... you did good rockstar."

Bobbi rests her forehead against yours, caressing your cheeks as if you were the most precious thing in the world.

"We're both tired and need to sleep, especially you. I'm not dropping the subject, and it's definitely something we'll discuss in the morning, but until then, until then, we're going to bed with the others. And I don't want to hear any objections."

You follow her, whatever she wants, you're going to give it to her. You owe it to her after the shit you wanted to do tonight; not that you wouldn't have done it if you had gone back. But now, now is a thought that has to be put off until the morning.

Bobbi tucks you in and wraps her arms around your sides, hugging you from behind. Your nose breathes in the lavender scent of Diasy and the vanilla scent of Wanda as Nat's soft snoring and Jemma's recovered words accompany you into the world of Morpheus.

.........................................................................................

As soon as you wake up, the weight of the conversation you're likely to have with your soul mates hits you harder than you'd like. And if you hate getting up on other days, today is even harder.

You get out of bed and walk down the hall with the same agony as a condemned man on his way to the gallows.

No, a condemned man is better off than you. At least he has the consolation of death; you, on the other hand, have only the certainty of a head-spanking from your girls.

It's barely 10 a.m., and your girls' voices echo down the narrow, cold hallway leading to the kitchen. As soon as your head pokes through the door, the voices stop.

"Hey."

Your stomach turns as you sit down in the only empty chair.

Wanda is at the stove, Natasha behind her, trying to help, even though you all know the Russian spy is anything but a good cook. Instead, Daisy, Jemma and Bobbi are all three at the table. Needless to say, all eyes are on you.

Wanda places a stack of pancakes on a plate in the middle of the table and with a shy smile invites you to help yourself to her delicious masterpieces.

You are not hungry. The silence between you is so strange, so different... that it has created a knot in your stomach. You are sure that if you even tried to take a bite of Wanda's pancakes, you would immediately run to the bathroom and throw up.

It is not you who breaks the silence, nor is it Bobbi; contrary to what you might have expected, it is Daisy who does so. Well, maybe you should have seen it coming.

"How could you even think that?"

You know very well that it is not a question. The others know it too.

The young superheroine wants to know the reason that almost made you break your promise.

Not that you could forget that promise. How could you?

It's hard to forget the feel of your girls' damp, heavy clothes and the sting of their deeply disappointed stares as you limped into the foyer of your simple, unassuming Manhattan apartment, staggering around with a bottle of vodka in your right hand and a gun in the other with only one bullet in the clip. It is hard to forget the look of terror on her face as you squeeze the trigger three times in a row, the cold metal of the barrel burning your temple. It is impossible to forget their screams as Natasha lunges at you, at the exact moment when you pull the damn trigger for the fourth time in front of their disbelieving, frightened, terrified eyes, and the bullet lodges on the wall behind you; inches from your head, as the gun, now unloaded, is kicked away from the Russian spy. It is impossible to forget the promise you made to them about never touching even a drop of alcohol again.

Over time, you have learned so many terrible things that you have trouble falling asleep at night. And when they say that addictions of any kind don't change a person...they lie. Fuck, how they lie. Lying bastards in an age of lies. An addiction changes you. No choking.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean it, I - yesterday was hard, the mission - I'm sorry."

You don't look up, you don't meet the eyes that you learned to love and accept only after a long time. You don't have the courage, you can't look at the most important people in your life, knowing that you made them suffer again. How many more times will you have to hurt them before they realize they no longer want you in their lives?

Bobbi sighs and shakes her head slowly. He gives you a small smile, just a hint of the one you loved before anyone else. She squeezes your thigh and reaches her hand out from under the table.

"We're not mad, we're just worried rockstar."

"Bobbi's right, Detka, we are scared that what happened years ago might happen again."

Wanda plays with the rings you exchanged when you all decided to move in together.

Natasha doesn't speak; she just watches you in silence. So does Jemma.

Daisy, on the other hand, seems on the verge of exploding, and that's exactly what she does.

"You can't do this to us again, okay? Do you know how long it took us to get over that? We still have nightmares about that night and you know it! How could you even think of drinking? You had to talk to us about it, you had to..."

Bobbi interrupts the inhuman, wrapping her arm around her hips and holding her close as she plants small kisses on the top of her head.

"He killed himself right in front of me, Daisy! He was a young boy, he had his whole life ahead of him and I didn't stop him!"

You slam your hand down on the kitchen counter, carefully away from your soul mates, using so much force that the deep cut you made the night before reopens and the bandage quickly soaks with blood.

A small grimace crosses your face as soon as your hand hits the marble surface.

"Y/n!"

Jemma takes your hand between her own, examining the wound medically and glancing at Bobbi as Wanda runs to the first aid kit in the bathroom.

"Honey, it's not your fault. The only culprit in all of this is Hydra. Yes, the boy was young, but he was aware of his choices."

Natasha strokes your back as Jemma uses needle and thread to sew up the cut on your palm. Jemma is about to put the fourth back on when you pull your hand away from her loving care and turn away from your girls.

"Y/n, please come back, I'm not done yet."

You look away; your left arm falls back at your side and small drops of blood run down your hand and fall to the floor. Your only desire now is to hold on to the bottle and drink until you see the empty bottom. You do not deserve their love, let alone their understanding.

"You're thinking very hard, detka," Wanda whispers, holding out her hand to you, and when you don't take it, intertwining your fingers, the hurt look on the Sokovian's face makes your heart clench.

"I thought I had overcome my addiction, and yet when some event shakes me, I am still in the grip of my emotions and it sucks....You want to know if I still want to drink? Yes, it gets stronger and stronger and it will never go away. That's the problem, I... I don't know if I can live with that for the rest of my life.

You all feel the small gasp that leaves the telepath's lips as she looks into your mind.

"Last night I... I took your gun," you whisper, turning your gaze to Natasha, "I know the password to the safe where you hide it; besides, it's not hard, just remember the day you first came into my life, and yes, yesterday I took the gun and put it to my temple, but I didn't pull the trigger, I didn't, okay? Just like I didn't touch the bottle of alcohol in front of me, so yes, I'm not okay, I'm shaken by what happened and part of me will always want to end it, but I'm not going to make you go through this again. I love you too much to hurt you like that again."

You scratch nervously at your wound, pinching your stitches before a gentle hand stops you. Jemma takes your hand back and makes the final stitches as the girls surround you.

"It's going to be okay honey, we're going to get through this too, but you need to go back and see Dr. Garner."

You sigh and shake your head before being stopped by a rather pissed off inhuman.

"I don't think you have a choice, so you're going to do what we say, okay?"

You sigh, nodding slightly as you begin to find the steel floor beneath your feet particularly interesting.

"Y/n, where did you leave the gun?"

Bobbi whispers and the question that has been hanging in the air until now is asked.

You teleport to your bedroom and retrieve the gun from its hiding place, where it had been masterfully concealed among some of your old clothes, and then Teleport back to the kitchen and hand the gun to Bobbi. The blonde takes it and slides the magazine out of the black Glock she holds in her hands, and when she does, your heart stops. You didn't think he would check.

"Y/n...? One bullet is missing-"

Daisy grabs the clip before Bobbi can finish her sentence,

"Are you fucking serious? You did this? You lied to our faces?!"

"I, it's not what it looks like."

Your throat goes dry as you look for the nearest chair to sit in; you wrinkle your nose as the bandage you've been so busy tightening around your thigh rubs painfully against the wound. And while the other girls are too busy trying to figure out what's going on, Wanda reads your mind and her eyes go wide as she falls to her knees in front of you. The other girls look at her with confusion and concern before the Sokovian speaks.

"Detka, Detka, where is the wound?"

Your breath catches and you freeze. They can't take away the pain you feel, they can't - you don't deserve the relief, you don't.

"N-no! Me, it's okay, I took care of it, I'm fine."

Natasha, who had been silent until that moment, steps forward and pulls your pants down before you can even think of stopping her.

The blood-soaked bandage shifts to reveal the bleeding, red wound; an ongoing infection, most likely -- after all, you didn't put any disinfectant on it, and the only thing you cared about was wrapping it tightly with a bandage so you wouldn't lose too much blood. You don't even know if the bullet got out, but considering your teleportation skills, it probably did. The only reason you don't stay naked every time you teleport is because Fitz made all your clothes out of a dwarf material that apparently allows you to stay clothed.

"Damn it!"

Natasha says, leaning over your thigh and looking at Jemma, urging her to get the first aid kit. The biochemist runs to the bathroom and returns in less than a minute with the kit in her hands. You kneel down next to the former Russian spy before putting on your gloves and cutting off the now completely useless blindfold.

Bobbi walks over to you and places a hand on your forehead to check your temperature before asking Natasha to hand her the thermometer.

"She's warm, I think the wound is giving her an infection."

Bobbi puts the thermometer to your lips, and when you make it clear that you are not going to take your temperature, Bobbi raises her right eyebrow and looks at you intently.

"Rockstar, I don't want to force you to open your lips, but you really messed up, your health is not the best right now and we're really worried, so please, please... help us help you, okay?"

Bobbi's voice breaks as her look of pain and concern finally makes you realize how much this, how much YOU are costing them...so you do everything they tell you and a full twenty-five minutes pass before you are finally patched up and lying on a cot in the infirmary.

"Why did you do this? Are you... do we have to take you off missions? Are you trying to hurt yourself?" Natasha approaches the edge of the bed, resting a hand on your good leg.

"Obviously, considering what he did."

Daisy blurts out, and the fact that she relies so heavily on her sarcasm lets you know that she is genuinely worried about you.You bite your lip, a small sigh rippling the air around you as you trace the bandage on your hand with your thumb, distracting yourself from the conversation you are about to have.

"I... just wanted... I needed to feel physical pain, and not the kind of pain that tears you up inside. I just needed to feel nothing, just for a little while...I'm sorry."

Jemma squeezes the IV bag and, after a final glance at the monitor showing your blood pressure and heart rate, sits down in the empty chair to your left before taking your hand between her own.

"We're going to help you, okay? It's going to be okay, we're going to be with you every step of the way, and we're going to get through this, just like we did before."

"But we need you to help us, rock star."

"And you need to tell us how you feel, especially if it makes you do things...dangerous for yourself, detka" Wanda comes over and gives you a small smile with eyes full of concern, just like the other girls.

Daisy crosses her arms under her breasts and you see worry and anger distorting her face and then, to the surprise of you all, the inhuman bursts into tears. Sobs shake your body and your need to embrace her makes you get out of bed and reach out to her, hiding a grimace of pain.

"Dee, Daisy, hey, it's okay love, I'm sorry, I know how that night left a deep scar on you, I... when certain thoughts come, I can't think straight... I can't think at all, damn it. I don't... I don't think about how much damage what my mind is telling me to do could do to you. I'm sorry, my love."

Daisy throws herself into your arms, causing you to fall back onto the cot as the inhuman wets your shirt with her tears.

"I know what it feels like to want the pain to stop, many of us do it”. Your body stiffens at the thought that at least once both Natasha and Wanda and Daisy felt exactly what you felt and are feeling now, "but you are not alone, I know you feel alone but you are not. We are here and we love you so much it hurts..."

"I am so sorry...I, I will try to get better, I want to, for you and to finally be well without having to resort to pain or alcohol."

You whisper, leaving kisses in Daisy's hair as you hold her close. Your girls stand still, letting the inhuman vent before they too join your embrace.

They say nothing, they don't need to. The fact that they are there, their warmth is more than enough and they bring you a slight relief and the burden you have been carrying for so long finally lightens... at least for now.

Thanks for reading! Spoiler: some poly!aos x wandanat x reader is coming! Comment, like and support me on ko-fi. Have a great day!

Taglist: @wandanatsbaby @bioquake-archives @bioquakeweek @daisyjohnsonx @wandanatsgirlfriend @chaekhan @station19 @resilientpendragon @so-no-kissing-then @thearchpitbullmx @ashadash0904 @kingshitonly @alwaysgoodnight @callistic @xjule @yuleni18 @simpforwandanat @alexxislexi @mrsdanversromanoff @coollemonsaresour @hushed-woodsman @razorscooteer @eponine-xx @maniacallinc @michelle170 @classyig @elenaguarnieri @scarletwidow @tati3001 @cristin-rjd @your-my-mission @mr-nicely @hi-i-1 @anniethurs @ktstwice @scarlet-raccoon @maria-403 @goldfishthegr8 @wandanatfan @looiegirl-blog @bioquake-blog @daisyjohnsonx

[strawberrycables]

i ask this genuinely: is it just me or do fics with no smut get virtually no engagement now?

seemingly it creates a cycle of writers only writing smut because it's the only genre that gets interaction, which in turn encourages writers to include smut as it becomes a sort of norm and requirement if you're going to publish something for a character.

I do believe we go through patterns and trends within fandom spaces, and right now it seems to be an emphasis on smut, dark fics, or fics that take place in darker aus. fics in other genres very rarely perform well, especially in contrast to numbers from a few years ago.

series have it even worse, especially series that have no smut guaranteed. i scrolled through the top bucky x reader posts in the last year-- every story over 3.5k notes was a smut fic, other than 2 (it may have been more varied as i continued, but i scrolled for a pretty long time)

i don't mean in this in a 'puritan sex evil everything you write must be a exploration of the human condition way' but as a 'what does this say about the current state of reading and engagement in fandom especially in the context of current trends of reading elsewhere'

[vendettaparker]

i want to start writing again :(

[saiilorstars]

Just a Girl and a Boy

Pairing: 40s!Steve Rogers x OFC

Summary: Steve meets a girl at the carnival and it doesn't end up in flames like every other time. Seren is funny, kind and so pretty and best of all, she saw him first.

Story Masterlist ○ Seren’s Masterlist ○

Also available on Fanfic ○ Ao3 ○ Wattpad

Taglist: @ocappreciationtag​ @arrthurpendragon​ @maaaaarveeeeel @stareyedplanet​ @averyhotchner@foxesandmagic @kmc1989 @caplanbuckybarnes​

[If you’d like to be a part of any OC’s works/edits, let me know!]

Steve hated these nights out with Bucky and their dates. He always knew — they always knew — that the girls would always end up hanging out with Bucky. Bucky was just too nice of a friend to say it out loud. He had left the group with the excuse he was going to buy treats for them. Truly, he was only going to buy himself one sorry treat and then head home. He had nothing to do at a carnival on his own.

"C'mon, which one are you going to get?" The ice cream employee was a lot more impatient with him, though, than he had been with the customer before him.

Steve had fallen into his grim thoughts and had been staring at the flavors of ice cream. "Uh, sorry," he blinked and cleared his throat before actually taking a look at the ice cream flavors.

Someone tapped his shoulder from behind and before he could look back, the someone spoke to him in a sweet feminine voice.

"Mint chocolate is usually good!"

Steve did a double-take on the woman and flushed. She was very pretty, as was her sweet smile.

She had bright green eyes and perfect pinned curled brunette hair that shined under the carnival lights. She wore a soft green dress with a white shawl over her shoulders. Her smile was wide and beautiful with a soft pink tint on her lips.

"Let's go, man," the ice cream guy shot at Steve again, "You're getting in this nice pretty girl's way. Move it!" And suddenly there was a nice smile on his face as he motioned the woman forward.

Steve took the steps necessary to give way for the girl (who was indeed very pretty). She thanked him kindly and stepped forward to make her order.

"Two mint chocolates, please," she said, and the ice cream guy got right on it. In less than a minute, she had two ice cream in her hands.

"There you are, sweetheart! Enjoy your evening, alright?"

"Oh, I will," she assured and turned away. She suddenly held one of the ice cream in her hands towards Steve, leaving the latter to blink with confusion.

"I — um — you didn't — I didn't —"

The girl chuckled and even that Steve found to be very alluring.

"Don't tell me you don't like the flavor," she tilted her head at him.

Steve swore she was purposely batting her eyes at him. He was only guessing; no one ever did that to him.

Practically gulping, he reached out to take the ice cream from her. Their fingers brushed together and Steve found her skin to be as soft as silk.

She had everything, didn't she?

"I'm Seren by the way," she introduced herself.

"Steve," he said back, eyes glued to her. She had not stopped smiling at him and it took him a moment to realize she was waiting for him to try the ice cream. Like a little boy following directions, he dug his spoon and took a taste like he'd never tasted ice cream before.

Seren giggled as a brain freeze caught up to him. "I'm glad you liked it, but you should probably slow down."

Steve rubbed his forehead and tried his best to ignore the flourishing embarrassment. He was cursed to make a fool of himself in front of every woman on earth. "Th-thanks…"

Seren stopped him when he started taking money out to repay her. "It's on me!"

"Absolutely not, ma'am. Let me pay you, please," Steve was very insistent and even got the money out from his pocket.

"I paid because that guy," she nodded back to the ice cream stand, "was being an unnecessary jerk. Trust me, I would have taken 3 ice cream for free if I wanted to but unfortunately, I only have 2 hands."

Steve chuckled with her. "If you won't let me pay for the ice cream, then you have to let me pay something else for you."

"I'd be much more content with a walk around this place," Seren gestured to the carnival. "I lost my friends in the crowd and I'm new to Brooklyn."

"You're new?" Steve thought it made sense. He knew just about every girl in the neighborhood thanks to their rejections.

Seren nodded at him. "Just moved last week."

"And you already made friends?"

Seren laughed at the question. Steve realized how that sounded and flushed.

"Sorry, I-I'm not that great with, uh — never mind…"

"It's alright," she assured him and dipped her spoon into her ice cream. "I'm not exactly great friends with them. They're neighbors on my street and I suppose they felt sorry for the new girl and invited me here. Regardless of what they felt, I still lost them here."

"I can help you find them, if you'd like," Steve offered. He certainly wouldn't mind spending time with her.

Seren beamed at his help. "Thanks!"

Except instead of walking around the carnival to find said friends, they wound up on a bench together eating their ice cream. Neither one seemed to mind the detour.

"So where exactly did you move from?" Steve asked her out of curiosity.

"Hudson," Seren replied, "Because of the war, my father's job relocated him to Brooklyn."

"And how are you liking it so far?"

"Mm, other than the fact I don't know anyone here, it's great!"

Steve laughed at her sarcasm. "Well, you know one new person now."

"I'm happy about that, trust me," Seren said, sensing him a warm smile. He was the first guy she met who didn't immediately flirt with her. Plus, he was really cute. "What about you? Did you come with someone here?"

"Uh, yeah, my best friend and…and some others…" Steve had been very close to saying 'dates'. He wouldn't even mention it because said dates preferred to be with Bucky anyways. He didn't mind anymore. He found someone much, much better.

"Did you lose them too?"

"On purpose," said Steve quickly, making Seren automatically snort and laugh.

"That bad, huh?"

"Well…" Steve swayed his head, "My friend, Bucky, he's a thrill rider and me…I have some, uh, health issues, that make the repercussions just a bit worse for me."

"Oh, I'm sorry about that," Seren said, genuinely sympathizing with him.

"It's alright, I've dealt with it my entire life. It's nothing I'm not used to."

"Well, if you ever need anything, my mother's a nurse. She'd be happy to help you out!"

Steve liked her. By God he was liking her a lot.

She was so sweet and she looked damn beautiful even if all she was doing was eating ice cream. She was funny and had the most dramatic eyes when she was reacting to something he said that she found amusing.

After leaving the bench, they wandered around the carnival in search of Seren's friends. Steve offered to buy her another dessert, noticing that she had a sweet tooth. It was both to repay her and keep her around for a bit more. She had no problem with that.

They came across a house of mirrors and before Steve could say anything — that he absolutely hated houses of mirrors — Seren pulled his hand and ran inside. It took Steve a while to get over the shock of her taking his hand, and it led to him being pulled every which way through the mirrors like an idiot…

But he was a happy idiot.

He held onto Seren's hand tightly and soon began to pull his weight through the maze of mirrors. He may have crashed into a few mirrors here and there — to which Seren giggled each time — but it was about the most fun he'd ever had in one of those things.

"Dammit, another dead end." Seren gazed at mirrors circling them. "You're not very good at this, are you?"

"Me?" Steve looked at her incredulously, though he was beginning to laugh. "I don't see you getting us out of here."

"I was following you!" Seren exclaimed. She walked up to the mirrors in front of them and fixed a few strands of her hair. "And look where you got us?"

Steve watched her with a fondness in his eyes. He'd seen plenty of girls do the same thing and always thought of them as shallow. Something about Seren screamed that was far from who she was.

Seren caught him looking at her and smiled at him through the reflection. "Sorry, the running messed it up."

"You look great," he said, his cheeks a bright red.

Seren stopped with her hair and turned around. "I never asked and I probably should have but are you seeing someone?"

"Uuh, n-no, not…not at all, trust me," Steve said. "A bit more running and you'll trigger my asthma. Not a very, uh, attractive quality…amongst others."

"Your health isn't well?"

There was a hint of worry in her voice and that alone was a very stark difference between her and the other girls. Most took his health as an excuse to reject him.

"Not as great as I would like," he replied, deciding to leave the full history of his illnesses to the side. "The friends I came with were, uh, supposed to be dates but…let's just say my friend Bucky is a bit better looking…"

"How rude of them," Seren scowled.

"It's fine, trust me—"

Seren walked back to him and took his hand again. The scowl was off her face and replaced with a sweet smile. "So then nobody will mind if I steal you for a bit more?"

Steve was sure the look on his face was that of an idiot…because it was. He blinked at Seren and even though his mouth was open, nothing came out.

"I'll take that as a 'let's go'," Seren chuckled and pulled him away from the dead end.

They maneuvered through the rest of the mirror maze until they finally found their way out. They both argued that they each found the way out, neither one willing to back down.

They settled their differences of opinion by playing at a stall of ring toss. Steve threw a few and (of course) missed all of them.

Next to him, Seren laughed teasingly at him. "Wow, you are horrible at this!"

Steve playfully rolled his eyes at her. "Ha, ha…I told you, I don't have the right coordination…"

Seren hummed. "That's alright. I can win…I think…" She prepared to toss the first ring forwards by stepping back and drawing her arm close to her chest.

"Don't miss," Steve said innocently just as she made the toss…and missed.

It hit the corner of the stall instead.

"Gah! You did that on purpose, you cheater!" Seren threw a reprimanding glare his way.

"No, I didn't!" Steve exclaimed, but Seren shook her head at him.

"I see you, Steve. Don't think for a second I don't. I see you!" With narrowed eyes, she turned her attention back to the bottles.

Steve watched her fondly again. Maybe it was all in his head but for the first time in his life, he actually felt seen.

Seren made the rest of her ring tosses and successfully landed them on the bottles. "I made it! I actually made it! Ha!" She bounced with excitement and threw her arms around Steve.

Steve was forced to bounce with her as she excitedly hugged him. He didn't mind — who in their right mind would? She smelled so sweet like flowers. His nose was ambushed by her hair and like her, smelled so nice. He felt so at peace with her — complete, one would say. He had problems that went on forever and yet in that moment, he couldn't remember a single bad thing.

~0~

"What are you talking about? Caramel popcorn is way better than buttered popcorn," Seren scrunched her nose. "Why would you pick butter over caramel? You're crazy." And to prove her point, she dropped a few pieces of caramel popcorn into her mouth. She winked at Steve afterwards.

He sat next to her on the bench holding his own popcorn in his hands — buttered popcorn. "Not everything needs to be sweet, you know."

"The best things in life usually are."

"What are you, a poet?"

Seren deadpanned him and threw a few pieces of popcorn at his face.

"Hey!"

Giggling, Seren continued to eat.

Steve picked up the pieces she threw at him and popped them into his mouth. They were pretty good. He offered her some of his own popcorn and just as she was going to take it, she reiterated that he was still wrong about the better flavor.

"I'm beginning to get that you are very stubborn," he remarked as she chewed.

"Never say that to a woman, Steve," she wagged a finger at him. "Especially when you're clearly wrong."

He shook his head at her and ate some more.

The sun had set a while back, leaving the carnival lights to illuminate the place. Steve was aware they had not gone in search of Seren's friends like they planned but Seren herself never mentioned them throughout the afternoon. His heart did a little flip wondering if it was because she had a good time like he had. Unfortunately, all good things had to come to an end.

Steve heard Bucky's voice minutes before he appeared by the bench. For some reason, Steve felt disappointed. One of two things was going to happen in the next few minutes: either Seren would like Bucky more, or it was time to head home for all of them.

Bucky's gaze drifted towards Seren once he joined them. "I was wondering where you headed off to but it all makes perfect sense now. Hello there, I'm Bucky, and you are?" He held a hand out to her.

"Seren," she said back and took his hand.

Bucky kissed the back of her hand with his usual charming smile. Steve was giving him the flattest look ever, clearly not amused. Bucky noticed it.

"This is your best friend, then?" Seren's question and sudden glance pulled Steve out of his thoughts.

"Mhm," he nodded.

"Sorry I took him from you," Seren said to Bucky, and he noted the mischievous glint in her eye when she spoke. "Except I might do it again."

"Oh?" Bucky raised an eyebrow at her, chuckling, especially as he saw his friend flush with embarrassment.

"Well, it's just that I moved to Brooklyn literally last month and I still don't know much about the good parts of the neighborhood…" Seren trailed off as she met Steve's look, "He seems to know a thing or two about the best sweets…"

"Oh, he does!" Bucky exclaimed and not so subtly stared at Steve. "He knows the best spots, don't you Steve?"

"Uh, y-yeah…" He nodded slowly, "I d—"

"Seren!" A blonde girl from a distance shouted. Seren looked over and saw a group of girls waving her over.

"Oh, those are my friends! Scuse me for a second!" Seren promised she would return in a moment and rushed off to meet her friends.

"There you are!" huffed the blonde girl. "We've been looking all over for you."

"I got held up, Chloe," Seren said sheepishly. "Met a nice guy on the way. That's him over there — the blonde one. His name is Steve.

Chloe looked over Seren's shoulder and saw Bucky and Steve conversing with each other in a hushed manner. "I see…" she remarked with her own interest, "Who's his friend?"

Seren rolled her eyes.

Across from them, Bucky was trying his best not to smack Steve in public. "You need to ask that girl out on a proper date, you punk. She likes you!"

But Steve was still very nervous. Every time he asked a girl out, she always rejected him. The real mean ones laughed at him.

"Either you do it or I punch you right now," Bucky hissed. "She's coming!" He shoved Steve forwards. "Go!"

Steve felt like he couldn't breathe and it had nothing to do with his asthma.

"Go!" Bucky gave him another push then plastered on a faux smile as Seren returned. He made himself scarce and pretended to be interested in a nearby game booth.

"Seren, hey," Steve gulped, "everything alright?"

"Mhm," nodded Seren, "My friends were just worried about where I went. I told you, I don't know where anything is…" Her voice was with purpose and that Steve caught this time.

He cleared his throat, preparing himself to ask the simple question that wasn't really simple at all. "I was wondering if you wanted to—"

"Yes," Seren said with a bright smile. Her cheeks were tinted pink but she didn't care. Better to make it easy for both of them rather than lament what could have been.

Steve's eyebrows rose together, his own face feeling the same warmth as her. "I like you, Seren," the words tumbled out of his mouth. He was about to regret it when she giggled.

"Great, because I like you too," she said back. Then, without warning, she leaned over and pressed a kiss on his cheek.

If Steve was red before, he was as bright as a tomato. She was so beautiful…

They decided to meet next week at a certain park and then go from there to wherever they felt that day.

~0~

Many things happened between the day of the carnival and the day of their date. Seren didn't understand why Steve missed it. She was very upset and honestly disappointed in him.

"Honestly, don't get that upset," Chloe remarked the next day, "You could easily find another guy. Sure, he was good looking but he was kind of small — the girls all know he has health problems. He's always sick."

Seren didn't care about any of that stuff. She just wanted to know why, after having such a wonderful time together at the carnival, he would leave her hanging like that. And it's not like she could call him either. He disappeared, for a lack of a better word. He didn't strike her to be that kind of man. She couldn't understand what happened.

"Maybe he just stopped liking me," she said glumly, "Maybe I was too forward."

Chloe scoffed. "Please, you're the prettiest girl on the block! Trust me, Seren, you can find someone better. You'll see."

But a few weeks later, Seren (and Chloe) got the shock of their lives. There was a bumbling noise about the ongoing war and with it came something about a popular show across America. Steve was the face of it all, and he was very different.

For some reason, all of the noise and excitement around his new image didn't cause the same reaction as it did with everyone else. She grew angry, and even more disappointed. Even Chloe had changed her mind about him, although she still made her preference for Steve's friend very clear.

The weeks turned into months and Seren was very tired of seeing Steve everywhere. Suddenly, everyone around her adored him, especially the girls. She hated all of them. It was all a reminder of what he did to her.

The show-tour (whatever it was called) circled its way back to Brooklyn and that day, Seren ignored all her friends going there. She was not stepping foot anywhere near the place.

In the evening, she waited for her friends at a diner. She ordered herself a milkshake though she didn't drink a lot from it. Her mind was somewhere else.

From the corner of her eye, she saw someone take a seat on the empty stool beside her.

"You know, I'll bet the mint chocolate milkshake tastes better," he spoke to her in a friendly voice. "Or the caramel one…"

Seren did not afford him the same courtesy. "I'm surprised you found the place considering you should be 10 miles in the opposite direction…any direction, actually."

Steve supposed he should take the sarcasm as a blessing. She could have smacked him on the spot and left without saying a word. It's a start, he told himself.

Seren watched him through discreet glances. Dammit, he's still good looking. He was just taller now. "I guess I should say that you're about 4 months late to our date…if you even remembered it." She heard his quiet sigh.

"Seren, I didn't mean to leave you—"

"But you did," she snapped, turning on her stool towards him, "and I can see why. Congratulations. Everyone loves you now. My friends adore you."

"And you?" Steve met her look cautiously. "You don't…'like' me anymore?"

Seren scoffed quietly. "I liked you on day one. The carnival…the ice cream…the mirrors and the ring toss…I liked you then and you blew me off." She noticed longer wanted her milkshake, she didn't want to be at the diner again. "So let me repay you with the same coin."

"Seren," Steve watched her get up to leave, "Please just—"

"Goodbye, Steve," she reiterated and walked past him.

"Oh, no you don't…" Steve mumbled under his breath and got up after her. "Seren!" He went after her, following her out the diner.

"Stop following me, you creep!"

"I'm a creep now?"

"Trust me, it's better than what I actually want to call you!"

Steve rolled his eyes behind her. He picked up his pace and caught up with her down the street. He grabbed her by the arm and turned her around. His pull was a bit stronger than he expected — he was still getting used to his newfound strength — and so her body fell against him.

"Get away from me!" She pushed him away but found it did nothing against him. "I don't want to talk to you!"

"I don't, please just listen!" Steve exclaimed. His arms were wrapped around her waist to keep her with him.

"I don't need to listen to anything you have to say because I know what you're going to say!"

"Oh, really?"

"Yes!"

"And how do you know what I'm going to say?"

Seren scoffed in his face. "Because every guy says the same thing when he blows off a girl! You'll say the same thing to get me to forget what you did and guess what, I'm not buying it!"

"Well, I actually have something I need to tell you that will definitely help you understand what happened and why I didn't come find you!"

"I severely doubt that! Now let me go!" she hit her fists against his chest. "I will start screaming! Don't think I won't!"

"I'm sorry, Seren! I didn't mean to leave you like that, I swear! I-I tried enlisting into the war and I met a doctor and he — he did this —" Steve gestured to his new appearance, "—and before I knew it, I was being put through tests. I would have called, but I didn't have your number. I didn't even know where you lived."

Seren stopped hitting him there and then. Her big green eyes flickered up at him, her brows hunching together. "What?"

Steve felt confident enough to let her go without fearing she would run off. "They took me away to run these exams and yeah, it was in Brooklyn, but I had no way of contacting you. I didn't have your number…I didn't know your home…I only had your first name. Your beautiful name and the memory of you is all I had. I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry."

Seren stared at him in silence, making Steve feel worse. She brought her arms across her chest and began to feel quite awkward once Steve's words registered in her head.

You never gave him your number…She closed her eyes as a sigh left her lips.

"God, I hate that you're making sense," she muttered with annoyance.

Steve blinked at her, then realized what her words meant. His heart began to relax then.

"I guess…I was just so confident that you were going to come…" Seren lowered her head, "Didn't even think about…"

"I was going to come," Steve promised her. He stepped closer to her, daring to slip a finger under her chin to lift her head. "You have no idea how awful it was knowing I was supposed to be there and I wasn't. The idea of you waiting for me killed me."

"Trust me, it was not very fun for me either," she mumbled. In that moment waiting for him, she felt embarrassed just sitting on her own waiting for a guy she thought liked her back.

"I'm sorry, Seren, I really am."

She nodded at him, accepting his apology. Her eyes looked him over then. "So…enlisting in the war…makes you change your whole body?"

Steve chuckled lightly. "Not really."

"Did you do it for everyone else, then?"

"No—"

"Why did they do this to you?"

Steve paused for a second and took note of her expression. "Do you…do you not like me…?"

Thanks to the night, he couldn't see the complete blush on Seren's face. She was very grateful. "No, no, I — of course I do — I — yeah, I—" She passed a hand through her hair, feeling the air suddenly get very hot around her.

Steve tried to follow but in the end, Seren's stammering entered a whole other language. "Are you alright?"

"Yeah, yeah!" Seren nodded and worked hard (and fast) to calm herself down. "I was, um, I was asking…wh-what was the…the, uh…purpose…of your…change…?"

"It was supposed to be a blueprint thing to create a better soldier for the war," Steve explained. "More strength, better senses…"

"Was?" Seren caught the word, as well as the lingering sadness in his eyes.

"The creator, Dr. Erskine, was killed just seconds after the experiment happened. He was a good man. He didn't deserve that."

"Oh, I'm very sorry," Seren said, touching his arm for comfort. "So if this whole thing was to help the war…why are you here?"

"With Dr. Erskine dead, there's no way to recreate the serum. I'm sort of all they have and, uh, they don't really want me."

"They have no idea what they're saying," Seren said decisively. "You look perfect to me."

Steve felt the familiar warmth spread across his face. "I thought of you," he said, looking her in the eyes, "Every day I was thinking of you…"

"Really?" Seren raised a brow at him. "Why? Everyone loves you now…you didn't even have to come back to find me anymore…"

"You said it — they love me now. They would've never looked in my way before I changed." He gently touched her cheek and grazed her skin with his thumb. "You made me feel seen when I only ever knew what it was like to be invisible. You, the carnival, that whole afternoon was the best day of my life. Why did you see me?"

It was hard concentrating with his fingers rubbing her cheek, but Seren still tried. "I…I thought you were…sweet. When we were waiting in line for the ice cream…I don't know, I just wanted to talk to you…maybe it was all my big mouth…"

"I'm glad you did," Steve said, bringing his hand down under her chin, "Because I don't think I would've had the courage to talk to you."

"Mm, did I look mean?"

"Beautiful more like it. The most beautiful girl at that carnival…"

He thought of her in the house of fled fixing her hair that didn't even need fixing in the first place; then of her at the ring toss and how happy she was to win; her eating popcorn with him on the bench bantering about the better flavor.

"Do you think I could steal you this time?"

Seren looked at him with a mischievous glint. "I thought you said you weren't brave enough to talk to me?"

"It's either I try or I lose you forever this time," Steve said, "I prefer the former. Are you busy?"

"I am, actually…"

"Oh," Steve startled, not expecting that answer. "I'm—"

But then Seren started giggling at him. He threw his head back and groaned.

"Okay, I deserve that…"

"You do," she nodded. As soon as he straightened his head, she grabbed the sides of his face and pulled him down for a kiss.

The shock of it wore off pretty quickly as Steve preferred to take advantage of her move and show her how much he missed her. His arms came around her waist and pulled her flush against his body. His new strength definitely gave him a few new perks he loved, like this one.

He had taken her air in a way Seren never dreamed of. Pulling away from her almost made her mad. Her hands were still on his face, lowering to his jawline.

"You were planning on doing that for our first date?" she whispered, her eyes still shut. She didn't want the moment to be over just yet.

He pressed a kiss on her forehead. "Not precisely…just felt right…"

"You've definitely changed a bit on the inside too…"

"Is that good or bad?"

"I don't know yet, give me another kiss and maybe I'll decide."

Steve smirked. "You're certainly the same."

"And is that good or bad?"

Steve took her hands off him in a gentle manner. "I'll decide in a moment," he said before diving forwards for another kiss.

[azriona]

Friday Five Fic Recs: Grab-bag Edition #1

So this week, I'm giving you a grab-bag of five MCU fics featuring romantic pairings that probably aren't considered "major". (They're still awesome, though!) Give 'em a try if they sound good to you: after all, you're only one good fic away from your next favorite ship!

(Click on the fic name for the fic; all links lead to AO3.)

Want a different pairing? Check out the Friday Five Masterlist!

🥰

Order of Operations (series) by @bekala

(Explicit, Bucky/Darcy Lewis, background Stony, AU after Winter Soldier, Hydra Revenge Tour)

The Tower is attacked by HYDRA, but before Darcy can make her way out safely, she’s tasked with an important assignment: take Bucky Barnes, still not entirely himself, to Thor and Jane in Alaska, before HYDRA can get their hands on him. Ten minutes later, the Tower falls, everyone dies (maybe) and now Darcy has her own pet assassin.  I’m making this sound funny; it’s not, but it also is, and Darcy and Bucky have great chemistry and are just adorable. There's a sequel and an AU where things go a little differently. Excellent buddy film slash love story.

🥰

A thing that wants by magdaliny

(Explicit, Natasha/Maria Hill, one-shot, background Stucky, humor and terrible matchmaking)

Steve tries to find Natasha a date. It goes really badly. That’s it, that’s the fic, it’s awesome.

🥰

Seduction by Winglet (series) by @flawedamythyst

(Teen, Crossover with Cabin Pressure, Tony Stark/Martin Crieff, Winterhawk at the very end)

Tony and Martin bond over winglets, have a one-night stand, and then they fall in love. If it sounds unexpected, it is (especially to them), but it’s also so, so perfect. I mean, come on: Martin wants to be a plane, and Tony is a plane. Also the Avengers play the Lemon Game, Douglas tries to con Captain America, and Arthur and Thor run kitchen experiments together. Need I say more?

🥰

In cayenne and honey, in vinegar and lime by alby_mangroves & Nonymos

(Explicit, Bucky/M’Baku, character study, Bucky’s time in Wakanda)

M’Baku takes offense at why T’Challa would let some random white guy live and recover in Wakanda. And then he takes an interest in the white guy. And then he just takes the white guy. I love M’Baku anyway; I love him more in this.

🥰

We’re Starting at the End by nerdwegian

(Explicit, Clint/Coulson, MCD because many of them are angels and therefore dead)

Clint is an angel assigned to help people, and he keeps getting assigned his neighbor, Phil. Oh, and someone is stealing office supplies and Nat's an Angel of Death. You know, just another day at work, really. Sweet and sad and darkly funny.

Don't see your favorite fic? Send me a rec!

[snowonebutyou]

it’s in the air we’re breathing (can you taste the freedom?)

chapter summary: wanda wonders what it’s like to be human.

notes: heyoooo! honestly i don’t have any excuse for such a hiatus. just the same old -- burnout, started dating, had anxiety attacks every time i tried to open the doc. but finally! the gods of fanfiction smiled upon me again and helped me finish this fic. if any of you guys are still around, i hope you enjoy this and that it doesn’t take me as long to get more of this out. see ya! :)

title’s from shania twain’s waking up dreaming

chapter 7: there ain’t no shakin’ this feeling

words: 2,584

rating: teen and up audiences

One thing Wanda always remembers her mother saying is how she was the heart of the family. “You are our heart, zaychik,” she would whisper every night while putting her to bed. “Don’t ever forget that.” It’s something she can still hear to this day in her mother’s voice, and she cherishes it, even if she doesn’t quite understand what it means. She never did. Her mother used to say it with such awe and reverence, as if that was a good thing. But given everything her emotions have led her to do, Wanda isn’t so sure she agrees.

READ MORE ON AO3 //  ko-fi

[reigningqueenofwords]

Bucky Barnes Drabbles

As If Bullshit Coffee Shop First Kiss Fit In Flirting with Thor Get Cleaned Up Meet Cute Miss Me? Misunderstanding Mistletoe Party Point Blank Shenanigans Shirt Someone You Loved Sorry, Doll Steve's Girl Sweaty Talk Truth || Revealing Waitress You're On

[annachum]

Some Midgardian outfits I can see Sigyn of Alfheim wear

🤩🤩🤩🤩🥺🥺🥺

[biting-miguel-ohara]

Kinktober submissions

Hey, y’all! I’ve never done a Kinktober before and wanted to do one this year for Marvel

Feel free to send in any kinks, characters, or combos of both so I can start working on a prompt list!

I’m aiming for three fics a week, for all four/five weeks of October. 12-15 kinks/characters in all

And as always, my requests are open for regular Marvel fics too!

[alissa3000]

Just got flashbacks to like 2019-2020 when I would read Wattpad fics of Peter Parker being the sun of black widow and winter soldier omg (temped to read them again on ao3…)

[ficview]

View - Raising Hybrid Puppies

By JayPendragon

AO3 Link: http://archiveofourown.org/works/11596698

Tony Stark, in this no-powers AU, meets Peter Parker, a cute but underage barista, in a local coffee shop. The law's never stopped him before though, has it?

Pros:

-Really well-written with a solid plot. It reads and flows so well, it could be a book.

-Great inclusion of major characters in this no-powers world. Loved to see Stucky, Banner, MJ, and especially, Toomes in their new roles!

-Concrete themes of class divide (rich vs working man), media culture, and infantilization of teens that mostly blend well with the story

-There are actual legal consequences for indulging in an underage relationship for Tony which are a huge plot point. There is no skirting the law, and it was heartening to finally see that in a Starker.

Cons:

-Barely any characters who are close to Peter or Tony express any serious outrage upon getting to know their relationship. Takes the realism out of a mostly believable story.

-I can see the lust but I can't see the love (so when they suddenly say 'I love you', I was like 'Where did that come from?!!')

But this is a must-read for any Starker fan. I'm still going gaga over how absorbing the plot was and how fluently it read.

[tvseries-writings]

And he is back

Wandanat x Bioquake x Bobbi x reader (soulmate au)

TW: suicide

Plot: In a nightmare, you see Hive whose persuades Diasy killing herself and now he is in your mind, again.

You see him, behind her back, the great and powerful Hive. The shadow of a sadistic smile painting his monstrous face as he whispers in her ear. He did it to you too, and now he's doing it to her. You scream at her to stop but it's no use, she can't hear you, no matter how hard your vocal cords vibrate, begging her to stop, not to listen to him. Daisy, the inhuman who stole your heart, stands in front of him, her back to him as she puts a gun to her temple, her finger firmly on the trigger.

You scream, tears streaking your cheeks as you try to get closer but some kind of barrier prevents you. You slam your hands on that invisible wall; once, twice, three times but nothing you do seems to get his attention.

"Daisy, please," your voice is hoarse and trembling and the Inhuman looks at you but her eyes are glassy, the effect of Hive's drug clouds her mind and your heart aches, you know what she is feeling and you know the effect her control has on Inhumans like you.

"Daisy, look at me, don't do it, love. There's me, there's Jemma, Wanda, Natasha, Bobbi, May, Coulson, Fitz, Mack...please Dee, don't do this."

You plead with her, falling to your knees as your tears fall so profusely that they pool in a small stain at your feet. Your heart clenches as you watch her grip the gun tighter.

Hive walks over to the hacker and girds her hips, bringing his mouth closer to Daisy's neck.

"They'll be better off without you; think about Lincoln, Trip..."

He whispers it as glibly as if he were speaking words of love as he looks at you with dark, malevolent eyes that pierce your soul. He looks at you as if he were addressing those words to you as well.

Daisy looks at you one last time before unlocking the gun's safety.

"You'll be better without me."

You scream and your heart stops when a shot rings out in the dark gray cell where you stand. You fall to the ground and watch the blood gush from her lifeless body. You watch his face quickly turn to ash gray.

"Do not despair, you will soon meet his end, inhuman."

Hive approaches you and, finally, the barrier that separated you from Daisy shatters. You start to run toward her but Hive grabs you by the arm, forcing you to turn toward him.

"Your time has come."

"No!"

You scream and as he makes you dependent again, your concern goes to Daisy's body lying on the cold concrete floor and the only desire that pervades you, before Hive takes over, is to hold her in your arms and hear her laugh once more.

………..………………………..………………

You wake up drenched in sweat and with your heart beating wildly. Your chest aches and it takes you a few seconds to realize that what you experienced was nothing but a terrible nightmare.

Chills run down your spine as you sit up; your pajama shirt is so wet that the cold air outside the covers makes you shiver at the mere touch.

You search frantically for Daisy with your eyes, and when you see her chest slowly rising and falling and her light snoring, you breathe a sigh of relief and your heart finally begins to calm a little. You bring your knees to your chest, looking at Daisy and not taking your eyes off your girlfriend. You struggle to extricate yourself from Bobbi's grip and step over Jemma to get out of bed. You need to get some air and you don't want to sleep, not anymore. You don't want to see her face again and, most of all, you definitely want to get the image of Daisy out of your head and- and.

You shake your head, gritting your teeth and trying to breathe deep to get the image of the gun pointed at her temple out of your head.

You look at the nightstand where Bobbi always rests her gun, despite your protests, Jemma's protests, and Wanda's protests. Natasha, on the other hand, along with Daisy, fully supported her. You don't think twice before taking it in your hand, squeezing it with more force than you should. If Hive is back, if he has entered your head again...No, he is dead, Lincoln sacrificed himself to make him dead. His sacrifice could not have been in vain, not-

You can't freak out, not here, not with them sleeping so you touch your bracelet, activating it, before teleporting to the gym. You sit on one of the mats May uses to meditate, turning the gun over in your hands, savoring its weight and the coldness of the metal. You sob, thinking back to the nightmare and what Hive put you through, put you through. You remember vividly the dazzling withdrawal his lack of touch caused you; the physical pain he caused you, not to mention the mental pain. If he came back--you look down the barrel of the gun and turn it toward you,toward your face. If he came back, your last moment of lucidity will lead to your death, is a promise.

"What the hell are you doing?"

May's voice makes you wince and you drop the gun to the ground. May quickly approaches you, kicking the gun away and trying to meet your gaze.

"What the hell were you doing with a gun pointed at you?"

May repeats, punctuating each word harshly as she watches your every movement.

"I-it's not what it looks like May."

You whisper; you don't make eye contact with her, yet you feel her gaze burn into your back.

" Y/n, I really don't think it can look like anything else right now."

Flashbacks of your nightmare return to cloud your mind. You don't even realize that you tried to reach for your gun again and were stopped by May.

"Y/n, y/n! This is not real, what you are experiencing is not real. Listen to me, follow my voice, let's go."

May is frightened, you don't seem to be listening to her, and the Caveman is particularly startled by the blank look on your face.

"Agent!"

May shouts, shaking you by the shoulders, and Hive's face in front of you turns into the face of your SO.

"M-May?" you whisper, your voice shaky and broken as you cling to her as if she were your only lifeline.

"It's all right, it's all right. It was all in your mind."

It takes you a few minutes to realize that you are clinging to your SO; although you see May as a mother -- well, she must not know that. You pull away from her and swing from one foot to the other, looking out of the corner of your eye at the gun a couple of feet away from you.

May follows your gaze and quickly reaches for the gun, taking it in her hands and slipping it into the empty holster on her right thigh.

"Are your girls awake?"

You open your eyes wide, shaking your head firmly.

"No, no May, you don't have to tell them anything. Please May."

The officer sighs, crossing his arms and looking at you with a raised right eyebrow.

"Y/n, you're clearly having problems and you need to talk to someone about it, okay? They are your partners, if-"

"It's Hive!" May stops and you sigh, before continuing; your back hunches, as if you are bearing the weight of the world on your shoulders, "It's Hive, May. He's back, he's entered my head again, he's brought Daisy to-a-"

Tears line your cheeks, you no longer know what is real and what is not.

May looks at you confused and shakes her head as she tries to move closer to you, unsuccessfully as you pull away from her touch.

"No y/n, Hive is dead, Lincoln sacrificed himself to make this happen...Daisy is fine and he is not in your head. Not anymore."

You chase away the tears, wiping them away with your pajama sleeve but they continue to fall copiously; again and again as your body shudders with each sob you emit.

"Rockstar?"

Bobbi's voice makes you hold back a sob. You turn to her, noticing that she is not the only one who has noticed your absence in the bed. After all, your soulmates feel, at least in part, the feelings you have; especially if those feelings are as strong as the ones you are feeling right now.

"We didn't find you and we got scared," Jemma whispers, moving a few steps closer to you.

"And Bobbi's gun was not in its usual place."

The Inhuman approaches you and, before you can pull away, draws you into a hug.

"You dreamed Hive, didn't you?"

You stiffen under her touch as soon as that name slips from her lips. It feels wrong, poisonous, you want to suck it away once and for all. From yours and his mind, knowing the pain he has caused you both.

You nod, slowly. You lean into her touch, tired of bearing all that suffering alone, like so many times before. Daisy caresses your face, brushing a rebel lock from your forehead, before leaving a tender kiss on it.

"He's dead love, he's dead. He will never come back; I will not let him hurt you again, do you understand? Never."

Jemma, Bobbi and May watch the intimate moment between you and Daisy. Although Jemma and Bobbi are dying to hold you in their arms, they understand that in this moment Daisy is the only one who can truly understand your pain.

May approaches the two biochemists, handing them the gun she had previously hidden in her holster.

"I believe this is yours, Bobbi. I would advise you to put it in a safer place, you never know what might trigger an attack, you know."

Bobbi nods, quickly taking the gun and putting it in the back of her pants only after setting the safety. Jemma looks at the gun, looks at you, and then turns her attention to the older officer.

"What did he do? Why doesn't the gun have the safety on anymore, May?"

May sighs, shoots you a look and then drags Bobbi and Jemma away from you and Daisy.

"She...had the gun in her hand and was pointing it at herself."

Jemma gasps, as does the blonde. The weight of the gun, now, is a hundred times heavier and almost seems to drag her down.

"No May, you're wrong, she wouldn't, not-" The biochemist shakes her head, clinging to Bobbi's arm and looking at the blonde for confirmation, a hint of reassurance that, however, does not come.

The blonde agent looks away, thinking about how much Hive's addiction upset you, just a few months earlier, and how you became a different person under his control.

"Bobbi? She can't, right? She can't have done that, not-"

"Jem, remember what Hive did to her, how her powers rebelled against her own control...And now think if she thought she was at his mercy again, unable to do anything. I don't doubt that she could have, though it hurts to admit it."

You only seem to break out of the little bubble you and Daisy have created when Jemma emits her first sob.

Daisy's head snaps toward the biochemist; her gaze is a mixture of concern and confusion as she searches for an explanation for the fact that one of her soulmates is in tears. Bobbi shakes her head, mimicking a "we'll talk about it later" with her lips before leaning close to Jemma's right ear and whispering something that neither you nor Daisy can hear but that makes her stand up and leave the gym.

"Bobbi, what-?" you ask, confusion painting your face as you force yourself away from Daisy and toward the blonde.

"It's okay rockstar, she's just worried about you, we all are really. What do you say we join her in bed? It's four in the morning and I think we all need a good night's sleep."

You're not convinced by his answer, but he's right about one thing-you do need sleep, and even though you're afraid Hive will come back to haunt your dreams, you fear you have to do it anyway. Or at least, you have to pretend you do otherwise your girls will never leave you alone. So you nod, nod a small smile at them, say goodbye to May and leave the gym, joining Jemma. Daisy, Bobbi and May stand there and watch you leave, avoiding talking until your silhouette disappears from their sight.

...............................................................

You are holding Jemma in your arms when you see Bobbi and Daisy enter your room. From their looks, you can tell that May has told them everything.

Bobbi stares at you for a few seconds before setting the gun down on the same nightstand from which you borrowed it not an hour earlier. You stiffen a little at the thought of the talk the girls are about to give you and shudder at the mere thought of having to tell Daisy about your nightmare. The girl you're holding in your arms notices; in fact, she lifts her head and looks you in the eye as she lovingly strokes your back two, three, four times before the other two girls also join you on the bed. Bobbi sits cross-legged on the bed, inches from you and Jemma; Daisy, on the other hand, sits beside you, taking your right hand between her own.

"Honey, what did you dream? Did you dream Hive?"

You nod, stroking her hand and playing with the ring on her index finger. You focus on the warmth emanating from her body, on her face, on the face no longer as pale and lifeless as that has invaded your mind in the past few hours.

"L-he...he killed you, Dais. Or, I, he had you under his control again and convinced you to-"

Although you are trying to hold them back, tears line your cheeks ignoring your concern, "I saw you put the gun to your temple and pull the trigger."

The three girls remain silent and you turn away from them.

"And I couldn't do anything, I couldn't teleport, you couldn't hear me and- and finally, he made me go to you and I held you in my arms but it was too late."

Sobs shake your body as you approach the bedside table. Bobbi follows you, not for a moment leaving you uncontrolled.

"Y/n..." the blonde whispers, starting to move, slowly, toward you.

"I can't let him control me again, I can't, he's still inside my head, I-I love you, I really do, but I won't survive if he controls me again."

Your thoughts race frantically, so much so that your hands shake and you suddenly find yourself on the opposite side of the room. You fall to the floor with a thud, watching your girls, previously inches from you, more than a couple of feet away.

"Fuck it, fuck it, it's messing with my head, I can’t even control my powers anymore!"

Tears roll down your cheeks; you jump to your feet and shake your head furiously, over and over again. The last time you weren't in full control of your powers, it was under the influence of Hive. You no longer have doubts. You're not thinking clearly, otherwise you wouldn't do what you're about to do. You sprint towards the nightstand and, despite Bobbi trying to get there before you, you manage to grab the gun and remove the safety.

“What-no, stop!”

Daisy is moving towards you, Jemma is petrified and Bobbi is analyzing the situation trying not to panic.

"I'm sorry, I love you"

You pull the trigger and wait for the gunshot and the pain but none of that happens. The screams of your girls are the only thing you can hear.

"What the hell did you want to do"

Natasha stands in the doorframe, her voice shaking at the sight of the gun pointed at your temple. Wanda, however, is right behind her; her face is pale and her eyes are red as she uses her magic to keep your index finger from pulling the trigger. You look at your hand, see it covered in Wanda's red magic and your heart stops for a while when you realize that you haven't completed your task yet. Bobbi lunges at you, tackling you to the ground and throwing the gun away, but not before stuffing the magazine into the back pocket of her jeans. You collapse against the floor, surrendering under the blonde's grip with the hope that what is happening is nothing more than a nightmare. You could use your powers to free yourself from her grasp but you don't want to hurt her in any way. And suddenly, despite months of therapy, you fall back into the depressive state that Hive brought you to during his time on earth. You remain helpless in Bobbi's arms; your gaze is glassy as Bobbi talks to you, shaking your shoulders when you don't answer her. Your body moves back and forth, with the same ease of an unconscious body but you, on the other hand, have your eyes open, wide open, even if the emotionless and apathetic look in your eyes worries your girls greatly and Wanda does this that you think is best for you. She kneels next to you, caresses your temples and puts you to sleep with her magic.

“What the hell is going on?” Natasha whispers, breaking the silence as all the girls look at your unconscious form in Bobbi's arms.

“I… I think she has some Hive residue in her mind,” Jemma says, knowing she's just released a bombshell. They have to help you, whatever is happening to you, they will help you.

Thanks for reading! I don’t even know what is this but hey, at least it’s something :)- Have a great day and, if you want, you can support me on ko-fi. ☕️

Taglist: @wandanatsbaby @bioquake-archives @bioquakeweek @daisyjohnsonx @wandanatsgirl @chaekhan @station19 @resilientpendragon @so-no-kissing-then @thearchpitbullmx @ashadash0904 @kingshitonly @alwaysgoodnight @callistic @xjule @yuleni18 @simpforwandanat @alexxislexi @mrsdanversromanoff @coollemonsaresour @hushed-woodsman @razorscooteer @eponine-xx @maniacallinc @michelle170 @classyig @elenaguarnieri @scarletwidow @tati3001 @cristin-rjd @your-my-mission @mr-nicely @hi-i-1 @anniethurs @ktstwice @scarlet-raccoon @maria-403 @goldfishthegr8 @wandanatfan @looiegirl-blog @bioquake-blog @daisyjohnsonx

[hqwkeyes]

finally going to have some time to write next week. i feel like as soon as i got requests, things got crazy so now i'm making time for it.

[saiilorstars]

Curing the Brokenhearted

Bucky Barnes x ofc || One Shot Masterlist 

Summary: Bucky can't stand seeing Chloe through another break-up and decides to fix things for her. He does everything except telling her the truth about his own feelings.

Taglist: @ocappreciationtag​ @arrthurpendragon​​​​​ ​​​​ @maaaaarveeeeel​​​​ @stareyedplanet​​​​​​​​ @gloryekaterina​​ @lenonizi​ @averyhotchner​​ @foxesandmagic @kmc1989 @caplanbuckybarnes​​​​​​​​​​​​

• Chloe’s Masterlist •​​

Also available on Fanfic ○ Ao3 ○ Wattpad

If you’d like to be a part of this OC’s work/edits, let me know!

Chloe was a terrible mess. She was a loud, sobbing mess. It was embarrassing and everyone in the compound could hear her. Later in the future, she would be absolutely mortified by this moment but for now, she didn't have a head for anything else. Her best friend Seren was doing everything she could to console her. She had boxes of tissue at the hand, her best comforting words and hugs available. As the hours ticked by, the tissues ultimately ran out, much like Chloe and her tears.

"I'm gonna get you something to eat," Seren decided, though Chloe explicitly declared she didn't have an appetite for anything. "You gotta eat something. It's not good for you!"

"What's not good for me is to keep trying at this relationship stuff," huffed Chloe. She grabbed one of the last tissues to blow her nose. "Look at how they all end? I can handle being stood up, being dumped, but to be cheated on? What is that?"

"It's awful," agreed Seren, "but he does not deserve any of your tears."

"This is what I get for lying to myself," Chloe muttered, tossing the used tissue to the floor. "For thinking that I could…that I could love someone else…"

"Oh, Chloe, don't do that to yourself," Seren said, trying to fix some of Chloe's hair away from her face. "This is definitely not the moment to think about that."

"I think it's the perfect moment considering this is my umpteenth failed relationship," Chloe retorted bitterly. "I'm tired of it, Seren."

Seren knew that she was. It couldn't be easy trying to hide your real feelings. "I'm going to get you something to eat," she insisted. "Don't move."

Chloe scoffed. "Not like I'm presentable enough to go anywhere but the four walls of my bedroom."

Seren left the room with the promise that she would come back with something that would make Chloe want to eat. On her way back with a dinner tray in her hands, she came across Bucky in the hallway. He seemed to be lingering close to the lounge room where Chloe was (hopefully) waiting.

"What's going on?" he asked Seren, his face filled with nothing but concern. "Why's Chloe so upset?"

Seren sighed and answered in a quiet voice. "Chloe went to see her boyfriend this morning."

Immediately, Bucky rolled his eyes. "That guy…"

"Yeah, 'that guy,'" Seren mimicked his tone, "wasn't exactly alone when Chloe surprised him in his apartment."

Bucky blinked with surprise. "Excuse me?" His eyes settled on the ginger in front of him. "What do you mean?"

"I think you know what I mean, Barnes," Seren said with a hint of sarcasm in her voice.

It was no secret to anyone that Bucky hated just about anyone who dared to date Chloe. It was also no secret to anyone why he hated them. It was an endless cycle; Chloe found someone new to date, Bucky would hate them, the relationship ended (sometimes good, sometimes bad), and then it would start all over again. However, none of these relationships' endings ever made Chloe this upset.

"What the hell did he do to her?" came the sharp demand from Bucky.

"Turns out you were actually right about this one," shrugged Seren. "He's an ass. He cheated on Chloe, what else? She went to surprise him this morning and she had a key to the apartment. He was busy. Got it now?"

Bucky's jaw clenched. "Got it," he muttered.

"He didn't even have the decency to apologize."

"He didn't?"

"No, but really what guy ever does? Poor Chloe, she's taking it really hard. It's definitely brought her confidence down."

"Where does this guy fucking live again?"

"Oh, I'm not gonna do that," Seren shook her head and went around Bucky to continue her way to Chloe. "You'll go over there, make a bigger mess, possibly murder the guy and then Chloe will cry all over again."

"You think she'd cry over him again?"

It was the way the stupid question was asked that made Seren spin around, nearly spilling Chloe's dinner. "Are you that dense? Why would she cry over someone she doesn't love?"

Bucky straightened up and stared at her. "She's crying right now…"

"And you think it's all gotta do with him?"

Bucky understood the question, but he didn't dare to answer. Answering it would mean nitpicking until the truth came out and to admit the truth out loud...well, he didn't want to cause a bigger mess.

Sensing his inner turmoil, Seren walked up to him and pushed the dinner tray into his arms. "You really want to help her? Get her to eat, and then get her to rest. I hate the guy as much as you do right now so let's make sure she gets over this fiasco already. While she's not crying about him, he still humiliated her in the worst way possible. Neither you nor I will stand for that. Do you understand?"

There was nothing else to say after that. Bucky gripped the sides of the tray and made his way towards the room.

When he entered, he found Chloe sitting on the couch, her legs tucked underneath her. Her eyes were red and puffy from crying, her hair disheveled, gaze downcast until she heard him.

"Okay, I'm ready to be embarrassed now," she mumbled and began wiping some of the tears off her face. Her confidence took another dive when she started taking count of all the tissues she had around her.

"Hey Chlo, how you feeling?" Bucky gently spoke to her and approached her slowly.

She gave him a weak shrug. "I'm sure Seren told you about my…lovely morning…"

"She, um, she told me…" Bucky took a seat next to her on the couch, setting the tray on the table in front of them.

Chloe's shoulders slumped down as a sigh left her lips. "I don't understand. If he didn't want to be with me anymore, why didn't he just tell me?"

"Because he's a coward," Bucky didn't hesitate to say. "Because he's not a real man. A real man would say what he wants or doesn't want."

And yet as he spoke these words, Bucky felt like he himself was nowhere near a real man too. He loved Chloe, he had for a long time now, and he kept his mouth shut. Instead, he resorted to watching her go out with other men. It didn't matter if they treated her nice and made her happy, he despised them all. They got to do the things he would love to have with Chloe.

"I just don't understand!" Chloe's exclaim brought Bucky back to the present. "I don't think — I don't think I deserve this."

"No, you don't," Bucky agreed with her. "You deserve to be happy. You deserve to be with someone who can give you everything you want in life."

"Hm," Chloe smiled for the first time that day, "I fear nobody really gets me like you do, Bucky."

He half smiled at her. She looked so pretty when she smiled, how could any man want to take it away? Before his thoughts really got away from him, Bucky asked her — pleaded with her — to have some dinner.

"I'm not that hungry," she insisted.

"Please, for me?" Bucky held out the plate to her, putting his best smile to encourage her.

Little did he know, Chloe had given into his request because of his oh-so charming eyes. The way he looked at her when he was trying to persuade her to do something never failed, he just never realized it.

"Okay," she mumbled and took the plate from him.

Bucky made sure she ate everything, down to the vegetables she didn't like all that much. Chloe cursed him and his beautiful eyes.

"Can I interest you in a nice rest this evening?" he asked after he'd taken the dinner tray from her.

"You don't have to be that nice to me, Bucky," Chloe said with a sigh. "You don't have to walk on eggshells around me either."

"And you don't have to pretend like everything is okay," Bucky countered smoothly, but very quickly panicked when her gaze fell.

"I guess I really do look that awful then," she said miserably. She rubbed her cheeks as if there were still tears lingering there, then retried fixing her hair a bit.

"No, no, hey," Bucky reached for her hand tugging at her hair, "That's not it at all. Hey…" He gently squeezed her hand in his. "That's not it. I just think you should rest, you know? Don't give that guy another thought."

"It's harder than you think," Chloe admitted. "It's awful — knowing that someone cheated on you. It's like…it's like you weren't good enough…it's even worse knowing that I didn't even…"

But she stopped herself there. There was no reason to overshare with Bucky about how she didn't even love the guy; that she only went out with him in an effort to suppress her actual feelings for someone else…

"It's nothing but humiliating," she whispered, lowering her head. "He didn't even try to deny it. Kind of made it my fault, you know? Why was I in his apartment? Why didn't I treat him better?"

Bucky's blood boiled with anger. "He said that?"

"Said, shouted, it's all a blur," Chloe shrugged. "I mean…I know I'm not the best but…he could have just broken up. I didn't deserve that moment…"

"You didn't," Bucky said sternly. He stood up and without a warning, he pulled Chloe up as well.

"What are you—!?" she yelped as his arm swung behind her and she was picked up. "Bucky!? What are you doing!?"

"You're sleeping!" he declared. He held her bridal-style and walked to her bedroom with zero regrets.

Chloe knew better than to try and fight her way out of his arms. His strength was unmatched. And maybe…she didn't really want to fight anyways.

He brought her into her room and put her down on the bed.

"Can you stay for another moment?" She asked him as he backtracked from the bed.

Bucky had not been expecting the request and it showed. "Uh, are you sure?"

"I fear what my thoughts might turn into if I'm alone again," she admitted. "You know what they say…sometimes you are your worst enemy…"

Boy, did Bucky know that. He ultimately agreed and with her guidance (and more reassurance), he climbed into the bed with her until they were laying side by side.

"How pathetic," Chloe mumbled, then turned her head towards Bucky, "Isn't it Friday night?"

"Yup…" Bucky said, turning his head towards her.

A large smile spread across her face. "And we're here…so we're both pathetic?"

"I don't want to kick you when you're already down but—"

Chloe laughed and turned her head away. Sometimes, his blunt sass was the best medicine for her struggles.

"You should rest, Chlo. I'll come back and check in on you later."

"No!" Chloe had stopped him before he even moved a muscle. "I'm — you think you could stay for just another moment? I-I just need…someone here…" Had she been braver, she would have said he was the one she needed. "Unless…it's Friday night…" she closed her eyes and smiled, feeling very dumb for a second, "You have places you want to be at…of course…"

"No, no, no, what are you talking about?" Bucky touched her cheek before he thought of it. "I don't have anywhere else to be except here, I promise."

"Are you sure? Weren't you making plans with Sam or something to go out? I heard something about some dates…" She lied. She heard exactly about the dates. It had only been a few times that Bucky had been seeing some girl — Sam's friend or whatever — and while the girl was absolutely great, Chloe was not happy about it. It was actually right around the time she started going out with this guy…

"Nah," Bucky said without hesitation. "I didn't have any plans."

"Really?" Chloe couldn't ignore the little flutter in her heart at the news.

"Really," Bucky promised her again. "I'll be right here for you, it's okay."

"Thank you," Chloe said genuinely, then scooted closer to him. She appreciated him more than he knew. "Do you think I'm an idiot for not seeing the signs sooner?"

"What are you talking about, Chlo? Him cheating on you is not your fault." Bucky feared he would have to repeat that line at least another ten times before Chloe's hard head finally understood.

For now, she would be self-doubting until she fell asleep. It only infuriated Bucky more.

~0~

Seren was clearing up the kitchen when she saw Bucky striding past the doorway, and right behind him went Steve. She dropped everything and ran after them. "Hey!" she stopped them in the hallway. "How was Chloe? Did she—?"

"She's asleep," Bucky answered hastily, looking the part as well. "We gotta go."

"Go?" Seren scrunched her nose. "Where? It's like 10 o'clock in the night. What, a boy's night?" She was smiling jokingly until she saw the look on Steve's face, and the ire-filled one on Bucky. "What is going on? Where are you going?"

"Just out," said Bucky, shrugging.

"Where?"

"For a drink, what else, Seren?" Bucky said, clearly annoyed she was holding them up.

Seren's eyebrows couldn't go up any higher. "You guys know I'm not buying this for a second, right?" She looked more specifically at Steve. "Don't let him do anything stupid."

Steve gave her a mock salute. "I'll try my best." But he truly couldn't do anything except just go along with Bucky's idea, no matter how crazy it was. It was definitely some sort of payback for everything he put Bucky through back in the 40s.

Bucky had found the address of Chloe's ex with JARVIS' help and had the wonderful idea to pay him a visit. Steve's intervention only allowed for Bucky to just knock on the front door rather than destroy it. In five seconds flat, Bucky had slammed the guy face-first against the wall, hands pinned behind his back.

"Argh! What the hell!?" No matter how many times he fought, Bucky's grip wouldn't budge.

"Let's talk about your to-do list for tomorrow," Bucky said very matter-of-factly. "You're going to call Chloe tomorrow morning and apologize for being a complete ass."

"The hell I will!" snarled the guy until Bucky gripped one of his wrists so tight that he broke a bone. "AGH!"

"Bucky," Steve began to try and intervene again, "maybe you shouldn't—"

"Stay out of it, Steve," warned Bucky. He tilted his head at the guy. "So then — you'll call tomorrow morning?"

"Yes, yes, fine!"

"And you'll apologize—"

"Yes!"

"—and you'll send her a little gift—

"What!?"

Bucky twisted the man's already broken wrist and elicited quite a scream from him. Steve winced behind them but didn't try stopping Bucky anymore.

"A gift to apologize," Bucky reiterated loudly and slowly as if he were talking to a child. "Do you understand?"

"YES!" cried the guy.

"Good," Bucky grinned rather maniacally, "and don't you dare step foot anywhere near Chloe. You call and send the gift. And it better be good or I'll be back."

As soon as Bucky released him, the guy spun around and clutched his broken wrist.

"You're crazy!"

"I'm worse than that," Bucky promised him. "So you should try and follow along before I'm back without him," he made a gesture towards Steve. "Got it?"

As soon as he got the 'yes', Bucky was out of there.

"You don't think you overdid it a bit?" Steve asked him on their way out.

"What do you mean? I didn't even kill the guy," Bucky muttered. "She'll never hear a word about this, right?"

Steve bobbed his head, a smile coming to his face. "Yeah, Chloe's not the one I'm worried about."

~0~

Seren brought Chloe a nice breakfast in the morning and used it as an excuse to see how she was doing today.

"I haven't cried, I swear," Chloe said, eyeing the meal prepared for her. "I think I'm all done, you know? No more tears in these eyes."

"That's good…I think…" Seren said slowly, "But, really, you shouldn't be crying for that guy. He's not worth a single tear."

Chloe nodded fervently. She had told herself that all night. "Yeah, I know. It's just the…the shock, you know? I've had bad relationships before but no one's ever humiliated me like that. Like, I know it's my fault—"

"It's not your fault," Seren said flatly.

"No, no, listen," Chloe motioned for her to wait, "I'm not — I understand that, I do. But let's face it, you know my secret. You know that I never even really liked him in the first place…"

Seren sighed, but agreed.

"So…I really could have avoided all this if I hadn't gone out with him…"

"Well, I hope this is your wake-up call," Seren said, reaching for the fork next to the plate. "Get yourself ready, and just go talk to—"

Chloe's cell phone went off at that moment. She reached over for the night stand and picked it up, answering without checking to see who it was.

"Hello?" she took the fork from Seren.

"Chloe, I'm sorry."

Chloe dropped her fork on the meal tray. Seren raised an eyebrow at her.

"What are you doing?" Chloe frowned. "Calling me like this? What? You think I'm going to forgive you?"

"No! I — I'm just calling to say sorry. I'm sorry, okay? I-I shouldn't have—"

"Cheated? Well duh. That should have been obvious," Chloe rolled her eyes.

"Chloe listen to me, please, just…just know that I'm sorry. I'm really sorry."

Chloe detected something off with his voice, but before she could ask about it, he hung up. "Huh…that was strange…"

"My thoughts exactly," Seren said. She had picked up Chloe's fork and eaten some of the food.

Chloe was thoughtful for a long moment.

"You okay?" Seren asked after a while.

"Yeah…I…I think I am…" Slowly, Chloe reached over and took her fork back. "I mean… I didn't really need this apology…"

"Yeah, you did," Seren nodded, "because you deserve that and more. Eat."

~0~

It was noon when Seren found Steve and Bucky in the training room sparring together.

"Who's winning?" she called, letting them know of her presence.

"I am!" They each said then shot each other the same looks.

Seren laughed lightly.

Steve gave up the sparring and went to Seren to greet her with a hug and a kiss. "Where've you been?"

"Just looking after Chloe," she said, then looked over at Bucky. He'd gone towards the weaponry for a change of training.

"How is she doing?" he asked nonchalantly.

"Oh, you know, better than yesterday." Seren cleared her throat before speaking again. "Funny thing, we were having a little chat in the morning having a chat and she got an interesting call." She felt the lightest little move of Steve's hand on her back.

"She did?" Bucky turned around with a staff in his hand.

"Yeah, apparently, her cheating ex-boyfriend had a change of heart this morning…"

"He did?"

"Mhm," nodded Seren, looking up at Steve innocently, "He called to apologize to Chloe, can you believe that?"

"That's…that's great," Steve smiled, as did Seren.

"Yeah," she agreed with a light chuckle before meeting Bucky's gaze, "Who would have thought, right? I mean yesterday he was the world's biggest jerk and now today he grew a conscience? If only all guys were like that…the world would be a much better place."

"It would," Bucky agreed, walking over to them. "Good for Chloe."

"Mhm…" Seren made a point to look between the two men for a dramatic minute. "You guys understand that I'm not buying this, right? Like not even close."

Steve snuck a glance at Bucky with a 'what do we do now?' look.

Bucky remained absolutely cool. "I don't understand."

Steve almost punched him on the spot.

Seren's face fell flat. "You know, being an ass to the best friend of the girl you're in love with isn't really the way to her heart."

"I didn't do anything, Seren. If the guy grew a conscience, who cares. It's the least Chloe deserved, right?"

"Right," agreed Seren casually, "oh, and by the way, next time you guys want to lie with a shred of credibility, you might want to go with a better line. It's hard to believe you went out for drinks when neither of you" — she looked between them again — "can get drunk. You guys are shitty liars."

"She used bad language," Bucky pointed at Steve, the latter rolling his eyes.

"He likes it," said Seren nonchalantly. "But my point stands."

"I didn't do anything," Bucky insisted. Not even Steve was willing to continue with the lie.

"Buck, c'mon…"

"This was dropped off," Seren declared and pulled a small box from her jacket's inside pocket. "For Chloe…so strange, right?"

"I don't know how you take her stupid smirk," Bucky muttered to Steve.

"I think she's trying to make a point," he told Bucky.

"I am," confirmed Seren with a fervent nod. "What I'm trying to say is, instead of going behind Chloe's back to do all these things for her, why don't you just face her and tell her the truth? That you love her. That you don't want anyone to hurt her the way that this guy" — she made a gesture to the present in her hands — "did. I think that's good, right honey?" She gave a light whack on Steve's arm.

"Perfect, actually," he agreed.

Seren pushed the present into Bucky's hands. "Don't think Chloe's going to want this, by the way."

"That wasn't the idea," Bucky said, earning identical smiles from the pair. He rolled his eyes at them. "You guys are annoying, you know that?"

"We think we're alright," Steve shrugged, and Seren chuckled as Bucky took off.

~0~

Chloe was humming a little tune under her breath while she finished the last bit of her make-up in front of her mirror. Her spirits were a lot better than yesterday, and she even felt a little motivated to go outside. Someone knocked on her door and she shouted that it was unlocked. If she moved now, her eyeliner would be ruined. From the corner of her eye, she saw the door open and Bucky standing on the other side.

"Hey sergeant," she greeted politely, "what's up?"

"Uuh, things…" Bucky replied slowly, gazing at her fondly. She looked a lot better than last night. "What are…what are you up to over there?"

Chloe smiled at her reflection. "Well, not that you needed to know but I got up and I felt like showering, taking care of myself, you know?"

"I can see…does that mean you're feeling better then?"

"Yup!" Chloe popped the 'p' in her answer and turned around with a dazzling smile that soon became a confused one. "What are those?"

Bucky was holding a bouquet of flowers in his hands. "Oh, you know…" he cleared his throat, his miserable attempt at being casual was actually killing him on the inside, "I thought…maybe, uh…you'd like 'em?"

Chloe's smile returned, although the confusion did not waver. "Seriously?" Bucky nodded, clearing his throat again. "I mean…they're beautiful, Bucky. I can smell them from here!" She also wondered if he could hear how fast her heart was going right now. That's embarrassing. "What's the occasion?"

"You," Bucky said without skipping a beat. He saw a faint blush across Chloe's face in the next second and relaxed.

"Me?" Chloe pointed at herself.

"Yeah," Bucky looked her over once, and then twice. She was in a very pretty dress and the light make up on her face was perfection. She was perfection. "With you, there's always an occasion for flowers, don't you think?"

"Well, if my confidence was off the charts, sure…" Chloe chuckled nervously, "Is this your way of cheering me up from last night?"

"Before I answer, how are you doing, Chloe? Really?"

Chloe's eyebrows raised at the question. "Interestingly enough, I do feel better. Honest. I, um, I got a call from him, actually."

"Oh, really?" Bucky feigned surprise.

"Mhm," nodded Chloe, "He apologized, can you believe it?"

Bucky raised his eyebrows as he fully committed to the role of someone in the dark. "Wow, no, uh…I'd never expect him to do that."

"Yeah…" Chloe crossed her arms, her lips spreading into a very, very wide smile.

It took Bucky a moment to realize she was staring at him with purpose. "What?"

"You know that I know you're lying through your teeth, right?" Chloe tilted her head at him, waiting for him to unravel from his obvious lie.

"Wh-what!? Why would — what are you talking about, Chlo?" As much as his best friend loved Seren, he was going to kill her for telling Chloe everything.

"James," Chloe's gaze sharpened, "if you know what's good for you, don't make me government name you right now."

"Government name me?" Bucky laughed nervously. "What's that even mean?"

"Cut the bullshit! I know you had something to do with that call!" Chloe inched towards him and pointed with a sharp finger at him. "You can be the honest sergeant I know you are and just own up to it. I think…it was pretty sweet of you."

Bucky stopped completely. "Really?"

Chloe chuckled at him. He looked adorable (well, more than usual anyways). "Mhm…so…if it was you…"

"No, it was," Bucky said instantly, eliciting another laugh from Chloe. Bucky exhaled deeply and apologized for his interference. "I just couldn't take what he did and the fact that he blamed you for it? He's lucky I didn't punch him with this," he raised his vibranium hand.

"Yeah, it'd be hard to thank you if you were in prison," Chloe remarked then went back to smiling. "Thank you, if it wasn't obvious. You know you didn't have to do any of that for me, right?"

"I know," Bucky shrugged, "but it doesn't mean I shouldn't have. Nobody should have the right to hurt you. How did you know it was me? Did Seren tell you?"

"No," Chloe shook her head, "Although I'm very shocked that she let you interfere with this."

"Oh no, she didn't. I'm actually very annoyed with her for trying to stop me in the first place."

Chloe laughed lightly.

"C'mon, tell me how you knew!"

"It was just obvious," Chloe shrugged. "He would've never called me and the only way he ever would is if someone made him do it. Seren wouldn't do something like that and I just know you can be scary on purpose."

"Smart girl," said Bucky proudly. "So what if I told you that I also made him buy you something?"

"What?" laughed Chloe again, and even more when she saw him pull out a small black box. "Oh my God, you didn't!"

"I did," nodded Bucky. "Think it's a necklace or something." He opened the box for her to see and sure enough, tucked inside was a simple but nice necklace.

"Ha, you're unbelievable!" Chloe exclaimed.

"So, what do you want to do with it?"

"Honestly?" Chloe set her flowers on her dresser and took the jewelry box into her hands. "I want to return it for store credit and get myself something I actually want."

Bucky smirked. "Now how did I know you were going to do that in the end?"

Chloe raised an eyebrow at him. He was too good. "Because you know I can be diabolical?"

"You can be many things but 'diabolical' is definitely not one of them."

"Watch me make the exchange and then get back to me!" Chloe snapped shut the jewelry box and set it on her dresser next to her flowers. She looked at them both; the lengths that Bucky went to make these things happen to her made her very special. How could she not? Would he do that for someone else?

"…are you still seeing that girl?" the question slipped through her lips. It was probably more prudent as an inside thought but it was out there now and she couldn't take it back.

"What?" Bucky looked at her oddly when she turned to face him.

"Sam…he paired you up with one of his friends, I heard it," Chloe said so that he wouldn't try to deny it. "Are you going out with her? I know you went on dates with her…"

"Ah, Chloe, we don't have to talk about it—"

"No, we do! We-we really do because…it's important…" Chloe looked visibly nervous now, bringing Bucky to full attention. "Please, are you still seeing her?"

"No," Bucky replied without having to think about it. Truth is he had left that nonsense very early on because there just wasn't any point to it. "I didn't like her…"

"Me neither," Chloe said automatically and it made Bucky chuckle. She flushed and stuttered as she tried fixing her words. She didn't mean for it to come out like that. In reality, there was nothing wrong with the girl…except for the fact she was (at the time) dating Bucky. "I'm sorry, I — she was a very nice girl. Unlike me, apparently…"

Bucky continued to laugh and stepped closer to her. "Nah, I think you're funny…"

She scoffed. "Don't you think I've been humiliated enough already?"

"This is different."

"Oh?" Chloe's face was in a full scowl until Bucky touched her cheek and suddenly she was nervous all over again. "H-how's it different?" Her voice was feeble.

"It's funny watching you trip over the same words I wanted to ask you every single time you went out with those idiots in the past," Bucky said. He was actually very impressed with himself that he'd gotten all his words out in one go without sounding as nervous as he truly was.

"Excuse me?" Chloe's eyebrows furrowed together.

Bucky let out a deep exhale. "I should have said it sooner and I'm sorry that I didn't. When I said that a real man always says what he wants, I clearly wasn't talking about myself. I never told you that the only thing I wanted was you."

Many things ran through Chloe's head but for some reason the biggest urge she had at the moment was to smack him. "…you are so incredibly stupid, James."

"O-kay…definitely not the reaction I was going for…" Bucky cleared his throat and pulled his hand off her cheek. In retrospect, he probably deserved it.

"If you had told me before, we would've been on hundreds of dates already and—" she jabbed her finger on his shoulder, "—I wouldn't have gone through this hellhole of a breakup."

"What!?"

"Okay, that last one was more on me than you but my point stands!"

"Chloe," Bucky looked at her sharply, "what are you talking about?"

"You really never saw how much I liked you?" Chloe asked him with disbelief. "Seren told me I was so obvious!"

"I just thought…I mean…you know…I have a lot of baggage," Bucky said, lifting his vibranium arm to make his point.

"And I don't? We're screwed up, yeah in different ways, but still screwed up nonetheless."

"You are not," Bucky flashed her a warm smile, "You're so unbelievingly perfect."

Even though Chloe scoffed, there was a bright red blush on her face a second later. She glanced at her dresser and eyed the jewelry box again. "I've got an idea…" She picked up the box and looked at Bucky with a wide grin on her face. "Why don't we go pawn this thing and go out somewhere?" Bucky chuckled at her and for a moment, she thought he was laughing at the idea. "It's crazy, isn't it?"

"It's…diabolical…" He mimicked her and reached out to her, gently pulling her to him. "I love it."

"Yeah?" Chloe said, unable to focus completely when she could feel his arms wrapping around her waist. She swallowed hard as he neared her face to where their noses bumped with each other.

"Yeah, let this date be on that guy — it's about the only good use he's going to have…"

Chloe nodded slowly. She was transfixed with him and his touch. If she tilted her head just the right angle, she could kiss him. And why can't you? He just told you he likes you and you're going out tonight.

She tossed the jewelry box to the side and closed the little gap between them. Kissing Bucky was the perfect medicine to cure all her pain. His arms were already around her waist and little by little split so that one roamed her back and the other subtly traveled down her side.

"What do you say?" Bucky murmured against her lips, pressing a kiss between his questions. "Want to go out tonight?" He felt Chloe's smile against him.

"Absolutely…"

But for the moment, she was much more interested in finishing what they had started.

[magical-reid]

The Soldier and His Mission

Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Avenger!Reader

Word Count: 1K

Summary: When a trigger sends Bucky back into the grip of the Winter Soldier, he shadows you with an unyielding protectiveness that leaves the team on edge, though he doesn't harm anyone. After days of tension and careful steps, Bucky finally breaks through the icy barrier, returning to himself in a quiet, tender moment, finding solace in your presence.

You should’ve known something was wrong the moment Bucky went still.

One second, the mission was wrapping up—just another Hydra facility wiped off the map, just another set of goons taken down. The next, something triggered him. A phrase muttered in Russian over a radio, the faintest crackle of a long-dead handler’s voice. You saw the shift in his posture before he even turned around, the telltale tightening of his jaw, the blankness overtaking those usually warm blue eyes.

Bucky Barnes was gone.

The Winter Soldier stood in his place.

And yet—he didn’t hurt you.

Not when he turned to face the team, his body language bristling with danger. Not when Steve hesitated before stepping forward, his hands raised in a placating gesture. And certainly not when you cautiously called his name, your voice softer than the others.

Instead, the Soldier moved between you and everyone else.

A shield.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

Back at the Tower, you thought the episode would pass. That maybe, after a few hours, after enough familiar sights and sounds, Bucky would shake it off like he always did.

But the Soldier wasn’t leaving. And he had decided you were his mission.

Not to eliminate.

To protect.

At first, it was just hovering. You moved—he followed. You sat—he stood at your back, ever watchful. The others gave him space, exchanging worried glances when they thought you weren’t looking. Steve was tense, obviously trying to figure out how to break through, while Tony was less patient about it.

“This is a problem,” Stark declared after the first few hours, arms crossed as he leaned against the counter. “I mean, I hate to be the one to say it, but we have a fully armed, brainwashed assassin in the Tower again, and we all know how that went last time.”

“He’s not attacking anyone,” Natasha pointed out.

“Yet,” Tony shot back.

You ignored the argument as best you could, focusing instead on cooking something for Bucky—something normal, something familiar, something that might ground him. His eyes tracked you the entire time.

Then you miscalculated the heat on the stove.

The oil in the pan hissed and spat, and a second later, you hissed too as a sharp sting bloomed across your palm. You barely had time to react before there was a sudden blur of motion.

Bucky was on you instantly.

His flesh hand gripped your wrist, his metal one hovering protectively over the stove, as if it had personally attacked you. His face was unreadable, but his grip was firm, his hold gentle as he examined the burn.

“I’m okay,” you assured him, but he wasn’t listening.

Instead, he took the cold pack you hadn’t even reached for yet and pressed it carefully to your palm, his jaw tight, his brows furrowed in focus. You exchanged a look with Steve over Bucky’s shoulder, and the Captain exhaled, something like relief flashing in his eyes.

He was still in there.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

The Soldier continued shadowing you for the next two days, much to Tony’s frustration. But as Natasha had pointed out—he wasn’t hurting anyone.

Unless they posed a threat to you.

That was something Steve learned firsthand during a sparring session. You had barely landed a hit before Bucky, watching from the sidelines, had moved. The next thing you knew, Steve was on his ass, blinking up at the ceiling, while Bucky stood between you like a human wall, eyes cold and calculating.

“For the record,” Steve grunted as he sat up, rubbing his ribs, “I was letting her win.”

Bucky wasn’t convinced.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

It wasn’t until you needed a medical checkup that things really came to a head.

“Barnes, I have to actually examine her,” Dr. Cho said patiently, eyeing where Bucky stood between you and the med bay’s equipment.

“No,” he replied flatly.

“Bucky—” you tried.

“The room is secure.”

“That’s not the—”

“She does not require assistance.”

“I do require assistance,” you corrected. “Because I burned my hand and twisted my shoulder thanks to a certain super soldier overreacting in the gym.”

Bucky didn’t move.

You exhaled slowly.

“Okay,” you said, shifting tactics. “Then stay.”

That got his attention.

“If you want to make sure nothing happens to me,” you reasoned, “then you can stay here. But you have to let the doctor check me out.”

His expression was unreadable for a long moment. Then, after what felt like an eternity—

“…Understood.”

Progress.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

When it finally broke, it wasn’t dramatic.

There was no grand trigger, no huge revelation.

Just a moment of quiet.

You had fallen asleep on the couch, exhaustion finally winning after two days of Bucky’s overprotective hovering. When you woke up, it was to warm hands gently brushing over your wrist—both flesh and metal, but softer this time, as if relearning the feeling of touching you.

And then you heard it—his breath hitching.

A tiny, barely-there sound, but one filled with something raw.

You blinked sleepily, looking up.

Bucky was staring at you. Not the Soldier. Bucky.

His face was pale, his jaw tight, his eyes wide—his real eyes.

“…Doll?” His voice cracked over the word, like it had been caught in his throat.

You smiled sleepily, shifting so your fingers curled around his. “Hey, Buck.”

His exhale was shaky. His shoulders sagged. And when you tugged him down to you, he didn’t resist.

He just buried his face in your neck and held on.

─── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ───

“You scared the hell out of me, you know,” you murmured later, your fingers absentmindedly running through his hair as he rested against you.

“I know,” he admitted, voice rough.

“You threw Steve like a ragdoll.”

“…Yeah.”

“…Kind of hot, not gonna lie.”

A laugh. Quiet, but real.

And just like that, Bucky Barnes was back.

[snowonebutyou]

it’s in the air we’re breathing (can you taste the freedom?)

chapter summary: caring is a dangerous game and natasha is unsure if she wants to play.

notes: i have no other excuse other than life got busy. some good busy, some not. but hey! i refuse to give up on this story, so more late-night sunday posting it is :) hope you guys are still around to enjoy it!

TRIGGER WARNINGS: mentions of sexual violence (nothing graphic)

chapter 6: i’m a hazard to myself (don’t let me get me)

words: 3,527

rating: teen and up audiences

Natasha is a good judge of character.

You don’t survive and make it out of a place like the Red Room without sharpening your abilities to assess others and their intentions. Which, she has learned in the worst possible way, are often harmful.

Men, twice her size, trying to take advantage of the fact that she’s a woman; exerting their power over her like she is nothing but a toy that can be played with and then left broken and forgotten behind. Girls, just like her, trying to trick her into failing and meeting her demise, so they can come out on top as she becomes a part of the dirt they walk on.  Some of them, Natasha tries to assuage Natalia’s murderous thoughts, were just doing what they had to – were just trying to survive; but none of that matters when it’s either you or them.

None of it matters when the only place you can call a home is the one place that takes all your biggest fears and beats you hollow with them, over and over again until you condition yourself not to fear it anymore — not to feel at all.

The good thing about it is that Natasha knows how to be around bad people. She knows how to play and manipulate them to guarantee she always gets her way, and that she always gets her out. A lot of harm, very little foul. That’s what she knows.

Or that is what she used to know, until she met the Avengers.

READ MORE ON AO3 //  ko-fi