---

“You two are such liars.”

“Why are we liars?”

“You are obviously a couple and you’re just lying to mess with us.”

“What makes you think we’re a couple?”

Natasha gave you two a look, like she was asking whether you two were being serious, while Sam started to gesture widely at you and Bucky. You looked down at the position you two were in and had to admit that you somehow got why your friends would have misunderstood your relationship. You were practically in his lap, your legs swung over his and your shoulder leaning against Bucky’s chest while one of his arms rested behind you on the back of the sofa.

But then you remembered how often you two had fended off your friends’ prying and told them you were just friends, so you just crossed your arms over your chest and shook your head in amusement. Meanwhile, Bucky lifted his arm from behind you to support his head on his hand and rolled his eyes at your friends.

“We are not a couple. We’re just friends.”

“Yes, Bucky’s right.” You nodded wisely but didn’t move away from him and he couldn’t help but cherish the comforting weight of your body against his. “Can’t two friends cuddle with each other from time to time?”

“They can.” Joaquin piped up from next to Sam but then a grin spread across his face and he shook his head. “I mean, sometimes I cuddle my friends, too. But you two are practically attached at the hip.”

You just shook your head at all their speculations. “Bucky and I are not a couple.”

“If you say so.”

“Don’t you all have something else to talk about?” Bucky interjected as he brought his other hand down to rest atop of your leg, fingers absentmindedly running over your shin, making goosebumps rise on your skin and a smile appear on your face. “This can’t possibly be the most interesting thing to talk about.”

Sam narrowed his eyes at the movement of Bucky’s hand before he shrugged. “Fine, have it your way. Anyways, did you guys hear about the new exhibition at the Museum of Natural History? It’s about space travel and all the planets that we’ve made contact with in the last decades. I thought of going there to see how many of those planets I know through fighting with their people against Thanos.”

“You’ve probably heard about it before, Doll. You love space.”

“I did hear about it.” You nodded with a smile, the warmth now spreading up your chest at how well he knew you. As you began to talk about it, you leaned a little more into Bucky. “But you love science and space, too. We should go see it together.”

Bucky smiled at your words and you wondered if he was also happy to be known so well. You knew that he’d loved science ever since he’d been a child and you were getting excited to learn more about it with him. “I’d love nothing more than that.”

“So, you two are basically going on a cute museum date.” Joaquin piped up, grinning widely at the two of you. “And we’re supposed to believe you when you say you’re not dating?”

You couldn’t help but roll your eyes at Joaquin’s words before you gave him an amused look. “Because friends can’t spend time together, I guess.”

“Come on guys, they don’t want us to talk about this.” Natasha piped up and you turned to her in surprise that she was willing to drop the subject. But when a big grin spread on your face you knew you’d rejoiced too soon. “I mean, if they want to keep their obvious relationship a secret, let them.”

“We are not in a relationship.” You groaned out before pushing yourself up off Bucky’s lap, wanting to escape this conversation. As you separated from him you couldn’t help mourning the loss of his body heat but chalked it up to simply enjoying the presence of him as a friend. “That is my cue to get myself something to drink. Does anybody want anything from the kitchen?”

“I’ll come with you. I want to see if you guys have any interesting snacks.”

You nodded at Joaquin’s words and the two of you left for the kitchen, leaving Bucky with Sam and Natasha. While you busied yourself with grabbing something to drink from the fridge, Joaquin started rummaging through the cupboards and once more you dared to hope that this whole discussion was over. But then Joaquin spoke up.

“Are you two really not a couple? I mean, if you’re pretending not to be to mess with Sam Nat and everyone else, then I have to say it’s pretty funny, but at least clue me in here. We’re best friends and I could help you mess with them some more!”

A small chuckle escaped you at his reasoning but you shook your head. “Joaquin, for the last time, Bucky and I are not a couple. We’re just friends – close friends, yes, but friends.”

“I really thought you two were dating.” Joaquin mused as he gathered some snacks into his arms and turned to you. “I mean, you’re basically his girlfriend without the benefits.”

That got your attention and you turned around with a shocked expression. “I’m his what?”

“You know, the opposite of a friend with benefits. You’re like his girlfriend but without the kissing, hugging, going on actual dates, and stuff. So, a girlfriend without the benefits.”

“That’s ridiculous!”

“Are you getting so defensive because I’m right?”

If you were to be honest, you really didn’t know why you were getting so defensive and why his words made a strange emotion grow in your chest. Bucky had been your best friend for years and you two had always been adamant about not being a couple, no matter how close you were, so you were left wondering what that emotion you were feeling was. Nonetheless, you shook your head at Joaquin.

“We are not a couple and I’m not his girlfriend without the benefits.”

“Just think about what I said.”

---

And think about it you did. It really irritated you because now you were second-guessing every interaction you and Bucky had, from cuddling during movies, over cooking for each other, all the way to simply seeking out each other’s presence. For a few days, it was all you could think about and that strange new emotion that you had yet to identify didn’t make things easier for you. But then a mission came along, almost like a welcome distraction from your feelings.

Unfortunately, it ended with injuries. While you had all successfully taken down the criminal organisation after months of surveillance, it wasn’t without consequences. Natasha had been shot twice and had to be taken to the hospital to have the bullets still lodged in her shoulder extracted. You were luckier and after getting your stab wounds stitched up, you got to go home without any surgeries.

It was Bucky that worried you the most because he’d been hit in the head and the doctors had said he had a concussion. While you knew that with the serum, he’d be fine by tomorrow, at the moment he was in pain and lying on his back on the sofa, eyes closed and a cold wet towel on his forehead. The moment you walked into the living room, however, he tried to sit up and check on you, only for Sam to force him to lie down again.

“Take it easy, Bucky. She’s alright.”

“I am.” You quickly reassured Bucky as you hurried over to help Sam ease your friend back into a more comfortable position. “They stitched me up and I’ll be fine. Please, don’t get up, Bucky. How is your head?”

“It fucking hurts.” Bucky grumbled out, eyes still closed and blindly reaching out for your hand. “That damn security personnel hit me hard.”

Sam nodded his head along to Bucky’s words. “The doctors said with the serum he’d be fine by tomorrow and gave him painkillers, but they haven’t kicked in yet. He’s also not allowed to move around too much, read or look at screens.”

“I’ll keep all that in mind. When did you take the painkillers, Bucky?”

“When Sam and I got home.”

“Twenty minutes ago. They’ll take a few more minutes to kick in.” Sam said before he straightened up again. “Listen, Natasha called me just before you came in and asked me to pick her up. I told her I would come as soon as you got here, so you can keep an eye on Bucky.”

Bucky’s hand squeezed around yours. “Keep an eye on me? I’ll be fine.”

“I need her to make sure you don’t do anything stupid, like trying to get up and walking around.” Sam teased back before looking at you. “Can you do that, please?”

“Of course. You go get Nat.”

“Thanks!”

With that, Sam grabbed his things and left, leaving you and Bucky alone in the living room. Bucky turned his head just slightly, eyebrows drawing together in pain, before he cracked one eye open to look at you.

“Be honest with me, Doll, are you alright?”

“It hurts when I move too much but I’ll be fine. I’m more worried about you.”

“I’ll be alright.” He promised, giving you a tight, almost forced smile. “It just sucks that all I can do is lie around and wait. I can’t even read anything because that’s too hard on the brain, so-- so I can’t distract myself from the pain.”

You thought for a second before you had an idea. “I could read to you.”

“You don’t have to. You should-- You should rest.”

“Nonsense. If you let me sit down on the couch, so I won’t have to stand, I can totally read to you. And the book I’ve been reading is right here. It’s really not that strenuous.”

Bucky was quiet for a few seconds before his eyes focused on you. “Can I lay my head into your lap, please?”

“Of course.”

Gingerly, so as not to cause him any pain, you manoeuvred around until you were sitting on the couch, back against the armrest with Bucky’s head in your lap. The smile that spread on his face, all relieved and content, made your insides twist up again and once more you wondered why you felt this way around Bucky. But you couldn’t think about that now because he was injured and you wanted to help. So, you reached for your book and started reading to him.

While you did so, your hands began to gently card through his hair and you felt him relax into your touch. Despite you two being injured, it was strangely peaceful, but then again you always felt at peace around Bucky. Had you two not been injured and had you not been so focused on easing Bucky’s pain you would have given that a second thought. But for now, you were glad to be able to help.

You stayed like that for almost an hour until Sam and Natasha got back, the latter supporting her weight on her friend as he helped her inside. Joaquin was trailing behind them with some bags of take-out balanced in his arms. When they all saw you, Natasha had to cover her mouth with her hand to keep herself from making any loud noises and Sam had to elbow Joaquin in the side to keep him quiet.

“Not a word.” You hissed softly, careful not to disturb Bucky. “Don’t you dare wake him back up. He’s in pain and he needs rest.”

“We’ll be quiet. But we got you some food.” Joaquin whispered back before placing a box of take-out on the coffee table. “What are you reading?”

“Project Hail Mary. Well, I’m re-reading it but that’s actually perfect because both Bucky and I know the book, so he won’t have to concentrate on listening.” It was when you leaned forward to place the book on the coffee table that you noticed that Bucky’s right hand was tightly wrapped around your free wrist. The strange sense of warmth once more began spreading in your chest at him subconsciously holding onto. “I wanted to distract him from the pain. I guess reading to him did the trick.”

“It probably also helped that you were petting his hair.” Sam joked, earning himself a glare from you, to which he simply smiled. “I’m serious right now. I think Bucky really likes it when you play with his hair. He always relaxes when you do.”

Joaquin motioned for your occupied hand. “It’ll probably be a bit hard to eat like that, though. Do you need any help?”

“No thanks, I don’t need you feeding me.” You joked before shaking your head and cosying down on the couch. “It’s fine, I’m not that hungry anyway. I’ll eat something later when Bucky releases his death grip on my arm.”

“We’ll be in the kitchen so we don’t disturb you two love birds.” Natasha said softly, ignoring your glare. “If you need anything, call us.”

---

It really surprised you how much time you spent thinking about Joaquin’s words and how they made you question how you two behaved around each other. His words still had you wondering about why you liked having Bucky close, why you always felt a pleasant warmth when he was around and why your heart skipped a beat any time he touched you. In the back of your mind, you already knew the answer because you weren’t stupid by any means. But despite all your intelligence, you were also very stubborn.

These thoughts kept running through your head at all times, even now as you sat in the kitchen, eating your breakfast. You only stopped thinking about this when Bucky walked in. You gave him a bright smile, as always happy to see him, but when you saw that he was avoiding eye contact and hadn’t yet reattached his arm, which he usually only took off during sleep or when his shoulder hurt, your face fell into a frown. He gave you a nod of acknowledgement before going to the counter to pick up an orange.

“Bucky, are you alright?”

“I’ll be fine, Doll. Just had a nightmare.”

“That means you’re not fine now.” You got up from your chair and walked over to place a gentle hand on his back. “Do you want to talk about it?”

“’Can’t.”

“Alright, that’s fine. You don’t have to. Do you need anything?” You leaned forward to get a look at his face, drawn together into a deep frown. “Do you want me to distract you? Or do you want me to hold you? I could also make you something for breakfast like I always do. Maybe you’ll feel better once you’ve eaten.”

Bucky finally looked up at that, eyes locking with yours and you felt some tension leave your shoulders because you knew that if he wasn’t making eye contact, things were bad. “Thanks, but there’s not much you can do about it now. I just want to forget about it for now. Can I join you for breakfast?”

“Of course, James.” You smiled softly and rubbed his back a little before you two made your way back to the table to sit down. “Do you want me to make you something to eat, though? I mean, I’m just having muesli but I can make you a sandwich or some eggs or whatever you want.”

“I’ll stick with my orange for now. I’ll eat something more later.”

You looked at him for a second, taking in his frown and how his right hand shook ever so slightly on the orange as he tried to peel it. Before even thinking about it you reached out to take the orange from him and Bucky gave you a confused look, but when you started peeling it, his frown melted into a smile.

“Thank you so much, Doll.”

Warmth spread through your chest at his words but you ignored it in favour of helping Bucky. After giving him a gentle smile, you hooked the nail of your thumb into the skin of the orange to break it open and you began to slowly peel it. You were interrupted when you heard footsteps approaching and soon after, Yelena walked in, accompanied by Natasha. The two of them were talking amongst themselves, only stopping once to greet you and Bucky. As you continued to peel his orange, Yelena went to the fridge and Natasha looked through the fruit bowl before frowning.

“Damn it, there aren’t any oranges left.” She complained before her eyes locked on you. “Can I have half of yours?”

“You have to ask Bucky. It’s his orange. I’m just peeling it for him.”

Natasha turned to ask Bucky but before she could get a word out, Yelena gave a loud squeal that made all of you flinch. While her sister looked at her in amusement, you threw Yelena a confused look to which she just pointed at the half-peeled orange in your hands. Your gaze flickered down toward it but you really didn’t know what Yelena was talking about, so you looked back up at her in question.

“Come on, have you never heard of the orange peel theory?”

“I don’t think I have.” You mumbled, looking back at the orange in your hands. “Is this like an internet theory or a real one?”

“It’s an internet theory, yes, but I think there’s some truth to it.” Yelena began, raising a wise finger. “It’s a viral social media concept that says a partner’s willingness to perform small, unasked, and seemingly trivial acts of service -- like peeling an orange for you -- is a meaningful indicator of care, attentiveness, and love.”

Natasha snorted a little at her sister’s words. “You recited that so well; you get ten points for that.”

“Come on, Nat, don’t tell me you don’t think there’s some truth to it. She is peeling an orange for him and it seems meaningless but she’s doing it because-- Why are you peeling Bucky’s orange for him again?”

“He had a nightmare and still seemed shaken by it, so since I make breakfast for him all the time anyway, I wanted to peel it for him.” You mumbled, trying to ignore the way your stomach fluttered at Yelena’s words, at how this theory actually made some sense. “It’s an orange; it’s not that special.”

Yelena shook her head at that. “No, you’re doing it because Bucky is feeling down and you want to be there for him. You’re peeling an orange for your boyfriend to make life a little easier for him and that shows care, attentiveness and love, even if it doesn’t seem like a big deal to you.”

“Actually, that does sound about right. I mean, people always say that it’s the little things that show us that someone loves us.” Natasha agreed with Yelena, crossing her eyes and smiling at you and Bucky. “Look at you, acting like a couple again.”

“While denying that you are one.”

While Bucky jokingly rolled his eyes at their antics, you shook your head in amusement and placed a hand on his back almost on instinct. “I was just trying to be nice and help Bucky out.”

“Keep denying it if that’s what floats your boat.” Natasha joked before leaning closer to you and giving you a big grin. “But did you notice that you never called Yelena out on her referring to Bucky as your boyfriend?”

---

Natasha’s question kept running through your head for days afterwards and you couldn’t help but wonder whether or not there was some truth to it. The thought of Bucky being your boyfriend wasn’t bad at all but you two had always been adamant about just being friends, so you were certain his feelings for you were only platonic. You were also sure that your confusing thoughts and feelings would go away on their own in no time.

But even as you were lying on your stomach, reading your book you couldn’t completely shake them off. Not until Bucky entered your room without even knocking, used to letting himself in as you did with his room. You merely peeked up from your book at first but when you saw him, you couldn’t help but frown. His eyebrows were pinched in a pained expression and his right hand was massaging his left shoulder which was missing his Vibranium arm.

“Hey, Buck, are you alright? Why did you take your arm off?”

“My shoulder really hurts today.” Bucky shrugged and let himself flop onto your bed before turning his head to you. “You said you wanted to show me something earlier, right? So, what is it?”

“Nothing that important.” You said off-handedly and got onto your knees on the bed, looking down at him as you placed your hands onto your thighs. “Where does it hurt? The shoulder blade? The neck?”

Bucky pushed himself up a little bit. “It’s more the top of the shoulder and up to the neck.”

“Turn onto your stomach and take off your shirt.”

“Why?”

“I’ll give you a massage.” You shrugged, looking at him expectantly and when he slowly began to shrug off his shirt, you smiled in satisfaction. “I’m no physical therapist but I’m sure I can get some of the tension out of your neck. Turn around now.”

Without a hint of hesitation, Bucky turned onto his stomach. He trusted you completely and you smiled to yourself as you crawled halfway on top of him, sitting down on his butt but keeping most of your weight on your legs. Then you leaned forward and got to work, focusing on his shoulders first and using your thumbs to work out the tight knots there.

Whenever he hissed in pain, you shushed him gently and used the balls of your hand to smooth out his muscles before continuing to ease the tension in his muscles with your thumbs. Slowly but surely, his hisses of pain turned into sighs of relief and pleasure at having your nimble fingers work at his neck.

“I swear your hands are magical, Doll.”

You just chuckled at his words, leaning forward a little to put more weight onto your hands and work out a particularly stubborn knot. All the while, you tried to ignore the way your stomach lurched at the position you two were in. The way he sighed underneath you and the heat of his body made it really hard to ignore these strange feelings. But Bucky was in pain, so you just focused on massaging him and stubbornly shoved your thoughts way.

That worked until the door swung open and none other than Joaquin marched in, talking away about how you’d stood him up for the training session you two had planned with Sam, but he stopped when he saw you and Bucky. His eyes grew wild and he began to point back and forth between the two of you.

“Sam is never going to believe this!”

“Never going to believe what? Did you figure out why she’s late?” Came Sam’s voice from the hallway because you could truly never catch a break and when he came into view, his mouth fell open. “I knew it!”

“This isn’t what it looks like!” You exclaimed as you got off Bucky and he sat up next to you, shaking your head. “I swear!”

Joaquin snorted at that. “I don’t even know what it looks like.”

“Foreplay.” Sam commented and then had to dodge the pillow Bucky threw at his face. “Hey, I’m just kidding! It’s obviously a massage but come on, man, you can’t be in that position with her and then got off at us for thinking you’re more than friends!”

“We are friends, Samuel.” You hissed and he turned to you at the use of his full first name. “Bucky’s shoulder hurt, so I gave him a massage. Don’t be nasty!”

Joaquin snorted from next to Sam. “And you expect us to believe that?”

“Alright, you know what? You wanted a training session? You’re getting one because I’m going to kick your butt.” You threatened jokingly as you got off your bed, your face still hot with embarrassment and questions over questions running through your head. “Meet me down at the gym in ten minutes. I’ll just run a bath for Bucky and then I’ll be there.”

“That is the least threatening thing you could have ended with.” Joaquin grinned and raised his voice to imitate you. “Let me just run a bath for my boyfriend and then I’ll come and kick your butt!”

Your eyes narrowed at Joaquin mocking you but before you could answer, Bucky did, getting up from the bed and raising his hand in an appeasing gesture. “Once again, in case you two douchebags have forgotten it, we’re not a couple. And I bet you two are just jealous you don’t have a wonderful friend who massages your sore shoulders and draws you a bath.”

“Exactly.” You grinned from next to Bucky, heart leaping at him immediately backing you up. “Now get ready for our training sessions. I’ll be with you shortly.”

“I cannot believe I got called a douchebag and Joaquin got threatened to get his butt kicked.” Sam exclaimed in mock betrayal and dramatically threw his hands to his forehead. “You two are so cruel to poor Joaquin and I, you’re perfect for each other!”

Bucky’s laughter rang out from next to you, light and carefree, while you felt anything but. From the way your heart leapt at his laughter to the way your stomach fluttered at Sam’s words, you knew you couldn’t deny it anymore. You were in love with Bucky.

---

For the next few days, all you could think about was how you were in love with your best friend and whenever the two of you interacted, you had to actively reel yourself back in to not act upon your feelings. You were at a loss of what to do and if you should tell him about how you felt, because you were so uncertain of whether or not he saw you as more than a friend. Thankfully, the Halloween party hosted at the Watchtower was a welcome distraction from your pining and thanks to the costume you’d worked so hard on for months and its helmet you could hide from Bucky while you pondered what to do.

You couldn’t hide from your feelings, unfortunately, because you’d spotted Bucky the second he’d walked in and when you’d clocked that he was dressed as Han Solo while you were dressed as Leia pretending to be Boushh in ‘Return of the Jedi’ you felt your heart leap into your throat. It made you think of the words she told him during the scene where she rescues him and how they kiss afterwards. The thought of kissing Bucky made your face heat up and your stomach flutter. Groaning quietly, you resigned yourself to the fate of being helplessly in love with your best friend.

“You look miserable, girl.”

“I’m wearing a helmet, Yelena. How could you possibly tell?”

“Your shoulders are ever so slightly slumped, your listlessly lingering around the edge of the dance floor while fiddling with the straps of your costume and all the while, you keep staring at Bucky.”

“What is that supposed to mea—” You started but then you cut yourself off because there was truly no lying about your feelings anymore and perhaps talking to your friend would make you feel a bit better. “Lena, I don’t know what to do about this!”

“About what?” Yelena narrowed her eyes, making her look straight out of the hallway scene in ‘The Shining’ that her double costume with Natasha was inspired by. But then she seemed to get what you were saying and her whole face lit up. “Are you in love with Bucky?”

“Not so loud.” You hissed at her before shaking your head miserably. “I kept questioning why I didn’t correct you when you said he was my boyfriend during that whole orange thing a week ago. Then I gave him a message and Sam and Joaquin walked in on us. They teased us and when we started joking around with them, Sam said Bucky and I are perfect for each other. And then Bucky was laughing and I got butterflies in my stomach and—”

Yelena raised her hands to calm you down. “Slow down there and take a deep breath. Now I get why you’ve been hiding under that helmet for the whole party. First of all, I’m glad you finally came to terms with your feelings and second of all, what are you going to do about them?”

“I just told you that I don’t know!” You exclaimed in exasperation. “I don’t know if he feels the same and I don’t want to ruin our friendship. Romantic feelings aside, I care so much about him and I don’t want to lose him.”

“That’s rough.” Yelena nodded along while you sighed deeply. “But I have an idea. You two are dressed as Han and Leia, right? And in that movie she tells him she loves him, right? So just do it and see how he reacts. You can play it off as a joke, but if he gets bashful or blushes or acts nervous, then that might mean he feels the same.”

“You’re a genius, Lena!”

“I know, I know.” She joked and reached out to pat herself on the shoulder. “And if I run into you two again, I can definitely drop some hints, make some allusions to you two acting like a couple all the time. You know, like I usually do.”

“Are you sure it will work?”

“No, but it’s worth a shot, right? You are in love with him, so it’s worth it.”

“I sure am in love with him.”

You took a deep breath and turned to look for Bucky, spotting him at the buffet table. It seemed that Sam had spotted him and had stirred Redwing, who he’d dressed as a ghost with a white sheet draped over it, toward Bucky to bother him. Bucky was swatting at the drone while Sam cackled in the background not far away. You quickly took the chance and walked over, getting between Bucky and the drone to shoo it away. Sam eventually steered it into the other direction and you flipped him off, earning yourself more laughter from him.

“Thanks for shooing the ghost of Redwing away.” Bucky chuckled softly, making your heart leap into your throat again before eyeing your costume. “Who are you?”

Taking a deep breath, you took your helmet off and grinned up at Bucky with a proud expression. “Someone who loves you.”

Bucky stilled for a second and you quickly scanned his face for any hint of emotion. His eyes flickered away from you at your words and he licked his lips like he did when he was nervous. Part of your brain was screaming at you about how this meant that he liked you as more than a friend. But the more logical side of it reminded you that he might be nervous because he didn’t have feelings for you and your words had made him uncomfortable. The thought made your heart sink but you had to ask if he was alright.

“You good there, Bucky?”

“Your costume’s amazing, Doll. I get why you wanted it to be a surprise. And before I forget, Joaquin wants to see your costume, so you should show it to him later.” He said and your smile grew at his signature nickname for you. “I bet you’re so happy you got to use that quote.”

“I totally am! I love that we’re both dressed as Star Wars characters.”

“You two are Han and Leia!”

Both of you turned to find Bob approaching, dressed as a vampire and with a giddy smile on his lips. Behind him followed Yelena and Natasha, who were dressed as the other twin from The Shining. As they came over, Yelena gave Bucky a wide grin.

“You two go to a Halloween party dressed in a couple’s costume and then wonder why people think you are a couple.”

“I swear, it wasn’t on purpose. You know I was planning my costume in secret, Yelena.” You said in fake amusement. On the one hand, you were thankful for Yelena’s attempt to get you two together by making comments about you acting like a couple as she’d promised. But on the other hand, the part of your brain that was trying to convince you that Bucky didn’t feel the same way about you was winning and you didn’t want to make him even more uncomfortable, so you tried to play it off. “It was a coincidence.”

“Coincidence or fate?” Came Natasha’s voice as she also decided to join the conversation, standing right next to Yelena which made them look straight out of the movie scene. “I mean, if you two really didn’t plan this, which I am not totally convinced of, then isn’t it a sign from the universe that you two just happened to show up in a couple’s costume?”

Next to you, Bucky shook his head at their words, making your heart sink even further. “How many times do we have to tell you guys that we’re just friends? We are not a couple, no matter what we do or say or dress up as.”

This was it, the last nail in the coffin. His words proved that he had no romantic feelings for you. Now you had the confirmation that he’d just been uncomfortable because of your words, not because he was secretly also in love with you. Tears sprang to your eyes but you blinked rapidly against them. He couldn’t know how you felt because that would definitely ruin your friendship and that was the worst thing that could happen. You had to say something to get out of this situation before you ruined everything even more, so you took a deep breath to gather yourself.

“Exactly.” You tried hard to keep the sadness out of your voice but you knew you sounded dejected, although you were still smiling at your friends. “Now stop harassing us. I got to go find Joaquin and show him my costume now anyway.”

“I just found you.” Bucky protested weakly and when you looked up at him he looked almost sad but you couldn’t understand why. He’d been so adamant about not being your partner, so him looking so upset confused you. “Let’s get something to eat.”

“I see Joaquin just over there. Let me talk to him really quick and then I’ll be right back.” Everything was so confusing and you just had to get out of this situation, if only for a few minutes. You patted Bucky’s chest and promised to be back. “Just give me a few minutes.”

With that, you hurried off, leaving Bucky with Yelena, Natasha and Bob while you made your way toward Joaquin. When he saw your heartbroken expression, he gave you a concerned look.

“You look like you were just told your husband died at sea.” He was trying to make you laugh and you felt terrible for not doing so. “What happened?”

“I’m in love with Bucky.” You confessed. “I started thinking about what you said about me already acting like his girlfriend and then Yelena explained the orange peel theory while I was peeling an orange for him, saying he was my boyfriend and I didn’t correct her. It made me realise that I would really like Bucky to be my boyfriend.”

“I knew it.” Joaquin said under his breath before his face fell into a confused expression. “Wait, why do you look so sad? Have you told him? Has he rejected you?”

“Basically.”

“Basically? So, you haven’t really told him and he hasn’t really rejected you, right?”

“I mean, I told him I’m someone who loves him, like Leia does in the movie—”

“Because you’re a nerd, got it.”

You tried to glare at him but his words got a little chuckle out of you before you shook your head again. “Anyways, I wanted to see if he would act bashful about that or blush or something because Yelena thought it would show me if he feels the same. But he looked nervous, instead. Then Yelena, Natasha and Bob came over, and they talked about us being dressed in a couple’s costume and all that.”

“And he said he doesn’t like you like that?”

“I mean, he didn’t say that exactly.” You explained, trying to make sense of it all despite your confusion. “I said it was a coincidence and that we’re not a couple.”

Joaquin’s mouth fell open. “Why would you say that?”

“Because it’s true and he looked so nervous which means he was uncomfortable with me saying I love him as a joke, so he must not like me like that.”

“Are you a psychic or why do you know why he acted nervous?”

“It was pretty obvious, Joaquin!”

“No, it wasn’t! He could have been nervous for a thousand different reasons. Like, maybe it was too loud for him or maybe he really needed to pee or, I don’t know, maybe he is also in love with you and that’s why he was nervous.”

“He isn’t in love with me. He said we’re not a couple, no matter what we do or what we dress up as, so there.”

“You know you’re one of my best friends and I love you, right?”

“Yes, what does that have to do with anything?”

“Are you stupid?”

“Rude.”

“He said that because you said it was a coincidence and that you weren’t a couple. Bucky probably thinks you don’t like him and that’s why he doubled down on you two not being together, so he won’t make you uncomfortable.”

Your head turned around to where Bucky was still standing and by the looks of it, he was having a heated discussion with his friends, looking absolutely miserable. Maybe Joaquin was right and he was truly in love with you, too. That would also explain his nervousness. And it would explain why he looked so heartbroken right now.

“I just agreed with him and ran off, saying I needed to talk to you.” You whispered, bringing a hand up to cover your mouth. “Bucky tried to get me to stay and I just left. I am such an idiot and I was so afraid of ruining our friendship, that I just ruined any chance we had for ever getting together.”

Joaquin opened his mouth to speak to you but then his eyes drifted from your face to something behind you. “I don’t think you’ve ruined things just yet.”

“What do you mean?”

“Bucky is coming over.”

Your eyes grew wide in panic. “What do I do, Joaquin?”

“Talk to him.” Joaquin said, trying to soothe your fears. You were so scared of ruining everything and he could tell, so he gave you an encouraging smile. “Tell him everything you told me, about how you’re so in love with him, how you want him to be your boyfriend and how you only said those things because you were afraid he didn’t feel the same way.”

Before you could say another word Bucky was right behind you. “Hey, Doll.”

“Hey, Bucky, I’m sorry I kept you waiting for so long. Joaquin wanted to know how I made the chest straps and--” You explained while you turned around but when you saw his expression, your face fell. “What’s wrong, James? Are you alright?”

“Can I talk to you for a second? Just the two of us? We could go onto the balcony. No one’s there.”

“Sure.” You nodded quickly before giving Joaquin a nervous smile. “I’ll talk to you later.”

Joaquin eyed Bucky for a second and then gave you a look that you knew was supposed to be encouraging. “I’m sure this is more important than your costume. I’ll see you later!”

The walk to the balcony was nothing short of nerve-wracking. No matter the outcome of this conversation, you two needed to talk about how you felt and should he not feel the same after all, find a way to navigate your friendship despite your feelings. You could feel your friends all watching you from across the room. When Bucky opened the glass door leading to the balcony, holding it open for you, his hand shook on the glass and you wondered if he was just as terrified as you were. Once outside, you turned to him with a concerned expression before reaching out to take his flesh hand and give it a tight squeeze, trying to ground yourself as well as him.

“You look scared. Do we need to leave?” You asked but Bucky didn’t answer, making you feel even more uneasy. “James, talk to me, please”

“I have something to say.” He blurted out and you blinked in surprise. “You know how everyone always assumes we’re a couple but we tell them we’re not? Well, a few weeks ago Natasha said something about that, telling me I was basically your boyfriend without the benefits and-- and it got me thinking. I’ve been thinking about it for weeks now.”

Your eyes grew wide at his words, at how Natasha had basically told him the same thing Joaquin had said to you, and you could feel your hands shaking as you looked up at him. “My boyfriend without the benefits?”

“It made me realise that we already pretty much act like a couple and I don’t want that to change but I realised that I want the benefits, too.”

You were taken aback by his choice of words. “The benefits? Like getting it on or--”

“No! I mean, if you want to! I mean, I-- Fuck, I used to be so good at this. I’m sorry, let me try again.” Bucky grumbled and squeezed his eyes shut, giving you a second to draw in a steadying breath before he continued to speak. “Natasha’s words and all the teasing from our friends made me think. I want to be with you, hear you say you love me without it being a joke about our costumes and when I didn’t correct that man who called me your boyfriend, I realised I would really like being your boyfriend. And I’m in love with you, Doll.”

You felt like time had stopped. Bucky was in love with you. He felt the same way about you that you felt about him. All this time of fretting over your feelings, of worrying that you’d ruin your friendship, was all swept away in an instant and you felt so relieved that you almost forgot to answer. But then you caught his concerned, almost dejected expression, and despite your heart racing you managed to stammer out and answer.

“You’re in love with me? You want to be my boyfriend?”

“More than anything in the world. Being your boyfriend would be the benefit. I’m so in love with you, Doll.” Bucky confessed before averting his eyes. “I had to be honest with you but if you don’t feel the same, then--”

That wouldn’t do. Bucky thought you didn’t feel the same, already resigning himself to the fate of what he thought was unrequited love for his best friend. But you felt the same for him. You were hopelessly in love with him and because you didn’t trust yourself to speak anymore, you did the only thing you could think of. Before Bucky could get another word out, you placed your hands on his cheeks and pulled him into a fierce kiss.

The feeling of his lips against yours, your bodies pressing close together and his soft cheeks cradled in your hands had your eyes slipping close in almost perfect unison with his own. His arms wrapped around your waist to hold you close, making your stomach flutter. Emboldened by his actions you deepened the kiss, sighing contentedly against his lips as you poured all your yearning for him into this moment. But sadly, you eventually had to separate to catch your breath. Bucky seemingly didn’t want your kiss to end and followed your head to keep his lips against yours for as long as possible. It made a smile spread on your lips.

“I feel the same way, James. I’m so in love with you it’s unbelievable. I’d be so happy if I could be your girlfriend.” You confessed before he could get another word out while keeping yourself close to him and placing your hands on his shoulders as you pursed your lips in amusement. “You know, Joaquin actually called me your girlfriend without the benefits and it got me thinking. I realised I’m in love with you, too. I’m so glad you feel the same.”

“Does that mean we can tell our friends that we really are a couple now?”

“Absolutely.” For a second, your eyes flickered back to the doors to the balcony where you spotted all of your friends watching from inside the Watchtower. Then you let your gaze drop to his lips again. “I really want to kiss you again but all of our friends have gathered behind that glass door to watch us and it’s quite frankly a little uncomfortable.”

It seemed that Bucky hadn’t even realised that you had an audience and a quiet chuckle escaped his lips as he turned to look at the glass door, too. You followed his gaze and it made your heart leap into your throat when he let out a full-on laugh upon seeing most of your friends quickly scatter to pretend that they hadn’t been spying on you two. The exceptions were Natasha who clapped her hands with an excited smile and Sam next to her who gave Bucky a thumbs up.

“Maybe we can continue this later on.”

“I’ll hold you to that.” You sighed softly, leaning your head against his chest and squeezing him tightly. “I’m so happy you’re my boyfriend.”

---

“You two are such liars.”

“Why are we liars?”

“You are obviously a couple and you’re just lying to mess with us.”

“What makes you think we’re a couple?”

Natasha gave you two a look, like she was asking whether you were being serious, while Sam started to gesture widely at you and Bucky. He looked down at the position you two were in and he almost understood why your friends would have misunderstood your relationship. You were practically in his lap, your legs swung over his, your shoulder leaning against Bucky’s chest, while one of his arms rested behind you on the back of the sofa.

But then he remembered how often you two had told your friends that you were, in fact, simply good friends and he couldn’t help but roll his eyes at them. He moved the arm from behind you to support his cheek against his hand as he shook his head lightly.

“We are not a couple. We’re just friends.”

“Yes, Bucky’s right.” You nodded wisely but didn’t move away from him and he couldn’t help but cherish the comforting weight of your body against his. “Can’t two friends cuddle with each other from time to time?”

“They can.” Joaquin piped up from next to Sam, grinning at him and shaking his head. “I mean, sometimes I cuddle my friends, too. But you two are practically attached at the hip.”

You just shook your head at all their speculations. “Bucky and I are not a couple.”

“If you say so.”

“Don’t you all have something else to talk about?” Bucky interjected as he brought his other hand down to rest atop of your leg, fingers absentmindedly running over your shin. “This can’t possibly be the most interesting thing to talk about.”

Sam narrowed his eyes at the movement of Bucky’s hand before he shrugged. “Fine, have it your way. Anyways, did you guys hear about the new exhibition at the Museum of Natural History? It’s about space travel and all the planets that we’ve made contact with in the last decades. I thought of going there to see how many of those planets I know through fighting with their people against Thanos.”

“You’ve probably heard about it before, Doll. You love space.”

“I did hear about it.” You nodded with a smile, leaning a little more into Bucky as you began talking about it. “But you love science and space, too. We should go see it together.”

Bucky smiled at your words, always happy to spend time with you and if it was about a topic that he was interested in, then that was just a bonus. He’d loved science ever since he’d been a child and he was glad that in you, he’d found a friend that was also interested in it. “I’d love nothing more than that.”

“So, you two are basically going on a cute museum date?” Joaquin piped, grinning widely at the two of you. “And we’re supposed to believe you when you say you’re not dating?”

Bucky watched you roll your eyes at Joaquin’s words before you gave him an amused look. “Because friends can’t spend time together, I guess.”

“Come on guys, they clearly don’t want to talk about this.” Natasha piped up, surprising Bucky because she was usually all up in her friends’ business. Then she threw him a big grin and he mentally smacked himself upside the head for thinking she’d actually drop the topic. “I mean, if they want to keep their obvious relationship a secret, let them.”

“We are not in a relationship.” You groaned out before pushing yourself up off Bucky’s lap and he couldn’t help but mourn the loss of your warmth. “That is my cue to get myself something to drink. Does anybody want anything from the kitchen?”

“I’ll come with you. I want to see if you guys have any interesting snacks.”

You nodded at Joaquin’s words and the two of you left for the kitchen, leaving Bucky with Sam and Natasha. As soon as you were out of earshot, Sam turned to Bucky with one eyebrow raised at him and a small lopsided smirk on his lips.

“Come on now, be honest with me, Buck. You two are really not a couple?”

“Sam, how many times do I have to repeat myself? We are not a couple.”

“I still don’t believe you.” Natasha chimed in, backing Sam up before waving her hand around to gesture at Bucky. “You’re like her boyfriend without the benefits.”

Bucky was so taken aback by her words that he physically withdrew a little. “What is that supposed to mean?”

“That you two are acting like a couple but without actually being one or doing things most couples do, like kissing, going on actual dates and the like.” Natasha explained as if it was the most obvious thing in the world and Bucky couldn’t help but feel a little irritated, though he wasn’t sure why. “I don’t mean it negatively either. I’m just saying that the two of you basically act like a couple already.”

“I don’t think we do.” Bucky mumbled, a strange feeling building in his chest as her words settled over him. “We’re just close, but in a platonic way.”

Sam gave Bucky a knowing look before he shrugged a little. “I’m not trying to pressure you; I just think Natasha makes a valid point. Think about it.”

---

Natasha peered up from the soup she was stirring to look at you and Bucky entering the kitchen, talking amongst each other and you laughing at something he’d said. As soon as Bucky caught the playful glint in Natasha’s eyes, he stopped and rolled his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest. Her words from a few days prior were still running through his head as if following Sam’s suggestion to think about them. It left him analysing every little thing you two did together and that irritated him even more than her words originally had, although he didn’t really know why.

“Just say it.”

“I wasn’t going to say anything!”

“You’re smirking at me.”

“I am not smirking at you. My lips haven’t even moved, Barnes.”

“With your eyes, I mean.” He defended himself but when he heard you giggling next to him, he felt himself smile despite his irritation, turning his head to look at you. “You could back me up here, you know?”

You gave him an amused look. “Back you up on what? Natasha was giving you a strange look but she wasn’t smirking.”

“See? You were giving me a strange look, Nat.”

“I was just going to ask if you guys wanted to have lunch with me.” She said in amusement before stepping to the side and gesturing at the pot on the stove. “It’s tomato-crème soup. Would you like some?”

You quickly nodded with a bright smile. “Of course, we’ll have lunch with you, Nat.”

“But we’ll pass on the soup.” Bucky said matter-of-factly and when he caught Natasha’s confused look, he simply shrugged his shoulders and pointed at the empty containers of ingredients on the counter. “You put crème into the soup and she’s lactose intolerant, so she can’t have that.”

Natasha put her spoon down on the counter and looked up at Bucky. “And you say you’re not her boyfriend?”

“No, I am not her boyfriend.” He defended himself, glaring at Natasha for bringing this topic up again. These constant reminders that always led to him having to tell her that you two weren’t together made a strange emotion rise in him that he still couldn’t quite place. When he heard you chuckle from next to him, he snapped out of his thoughts to turn to you. “What’s so funny?”

“I’m not laughing at either of you, I promise. I’m laughing at myself for immediately agreeing to eat tomato-crème soup with Natasha.” You shook your head at yourself and placed a hand on his arm, making his gaze snap toward where you were touching him. “I didn’t even clock that Natasha probably used regular crème and not the dairy-free one I usually use, so thanks for remembering.”

Bucky covered your hand with his own, ignoring Natasha wriggling her eyebrows and pushing away the question that had crept into his mind about why your touch was immediately making him feel better. Instead, he just smiled at you. “Of course, Doll.”

---

The wind howled around you as you all walked back toward the car you’d driven to the gala hours earlier. It was hosted by Valentina, so everyone had been a little suspicious at first but you had all soon realised that the gala was nothing more than a publicity stunt to better her image in the eyes of the public. While that made you all feel more at ease, everyone was a little annoyed about being shown off, too.

“It was a nice gala, though. The music was good, the food was nice and we had a lot of fun dancing.” You said, obviously trying to lighten the mood as you walked down the cobblestone street and Bucky couldn’t stop himself from smiling at how you were always trying to cheer everyone up. He also couldn’t help the warmth that spread in his chest at the reminder of how you two had spent hours dancing together, though he quickly ignored it so he could pay attention to what you were saying. “It’s just a shame that she only hosted it to boost herself up after the whole Void incident.”

“Yeah, but at least we got to have a bit of fun and enjoy ourselves.” Sam shrugged as he swung his suit jacket over his shoulder. “Even if she showed us off like a brand-new car or something.”

Joaquin piped up then, his hands in his pockets as he leisurely strolled alongside Sam, in front of you and Bucky. “And it gave us a reason to dress up.”

“That’s true, it’s been a while since I’ve had a reason to wear a dress like this one.” Ava mused from behind you and Bucky, bringing a hand up to run it through her hair. “I also really liked getting my hair done professionally for this.”

“I did mine myself.” Natasha threw in before giving you an interested look. “Who did your hair, by the way? The braids look super intricate. Did you get it professionally done?”

“No, Bucky did it for me.”

John couldn’t hold back a snort at that. “Bucky knows how to braid hair?”

“I grew up with three sisters, John. Of course, I know how to braid hair.”

“He’s really good at it, too. He braids my hair all the time. If you see me with pretty-looking braids, there’s a ninety-nine per cent chance Bucky was the one who braided them.” You commented matter-of-factly before giving Bucky a beaming smile, making his face light up in return. “He even helped me decide what jewellery to wear with this dress.”

Ava looked you up and down before giving Bucky a thumbs up. “Good job, Buck. It really matches her dress. But can I use this as a segue into telling you that I’m still upset you didn’t go dress shopping with us?”

“I’m sorry, Ava, I had this dress still around from the last gala I went to and I really wanted to wear it again because it’s so pretty.”

“You do look beautiful in that dress, Doll.”

As you thanked him bashfully, Bucky realised that he’d just said that out loud. He’d been thinking it all evening, unable to take his eyes off you for more than a few seconds and his mind had been running rampant thinking about what that could mean. But he wasn’t able to dwell on that because you stumbled next to him, the heel of your shoe getting caught in the cobblestones of the street, and he quickly grabbed you around the waist to keep you from falling.

“Careful, Doll.”

Natasha watched as you moved to grab onto his arm for leverage and held up the heels she was carrying. “I am so glad that I managed to cram a pair of flats into my purse, especially since Sam parked the car so far away.”

“How is this my fault now?”

Yelena chuckled from next to Natasha. “He’s right, Nat. It’s not his fault there were no closer spots. I’m just really glad that I refused to wear heels altogether, even if it caused a bit of an argument with Valentina.”

“I should have taken that chance.” You bemoaned and Bucky watched as you staggered along next to him, trying to walk without getting your heels caught in between the stones again. “As if my feet didn’t hurt enough already, this street is also really terrible to walk on in heels.”

Without even thinking about it, Bucky stopped dead in his tracks, making you do the same. Before you could even question him, he had already shrugged off his jacket and turned around, so his back was facing you. As everyone else stopped to wait for the two of you he spoke up, looking over his shoulder to give you a small smile.

“Hop on, Doll.”

“I can’t make you carry me.” You argued softly but the look on his face told him that you already knew he wasn’t going to back down on this. “It’s still a long way to the car.”

“I would carry you to Alaska if you needed me to.” Bucky said in slight amusement, although he was serious about his words. “Come on now, Doll. It’s not like I can’t carry you. I’m a supersoldier, in case you’ve forgotten.”

“You’re not going to let up on this, are you?”

“Absolutely not.” Bucky said in determination and then extended his suit jacket toward you. “And put this on, so you won’t get cold.”

With a thankful smile, you grabbed his jacket and pulled it on before grabbing onto his shoulders and jumping up on his back. Bucky quickly grabbed your thighs, so you wouldn’t fall down and pulled you a little higher, until you could comfortably wrap your arms around his neck and rest your head against him. Immediately, he felt warmth flooding his body at feeling you so close to him and a small part of his brain kept asking why he was always so ready to do practically anything for you. He wasn’t stupid; he was a smart man, but he was also stubborn, so he shoved those thoughts away.

“You’re the best, Bucky. Thank you.” You whispered and tightened your hold on him as he began walking again, holding you securely by the legs. “I don’t know what I would do without you.”

“Continue to stagger along this street like a newborn fowl?”

“Probably.”

Bucky chuckled at your words but when he caught John’s raised eyebrow and Bob’s small smirk, his expression quickly turned into a frown. “Not a word.”

“I wasn’t going to say anything, man!” Bob defended himself before grabbing John by the arm to pull him along before the other man could say anything. “And neither was John. Come on, John, let’s go.”

---

“I’m really not interested, so please leave me alone.”

Bucky’s ears picked up the distressed tone of your voice and immediately he was drowning out everything else. Alexei’s voice kept droning on in the background, Ava and Yelena kept singing along to the song they’d chosen for their karaoke performance at the bar they’d forced everyone to go to, Sam and Joaquin kept making jokes, but he ignored all of them because you were in distress.

When he spotted you across the room, you were just outside the bathrooms and attempting to get past a seedy man who was trying to talk to you. He was cornering you and refusing to let you pass despite your repeated attempts to tell him to leave you alone.

Without a hint of hesitation, Bucky crammed past everyone else to get out of the booth. The few complaints about being shoved around from John died down quickly as he saw the look on Bucky’s face. Within the next five seconds, Bucky was at your side, just in time to grab the man’s wrist when he tried to reach for you.

“She told you to leave her alone!”

Bucky watched you take a step toward him, relief clear on your face, as the insistent and admittedly creepy man raised his hands in defeat. While Bucky knew he would have done this for any other person being harassed at a bar, he knew that for you he would gladly go the extra mile of dragging that man outside and teaching him a lesson about never approaching you again.

“Sorry, I didn’t realise she had a boyfriend.” The man defended himself, looking at Bucky in slight fear. “Had I known she had a boyfriend, I would have backed off sooner.”

“Oh no, absolutely not!” Bucky hissed and his hand wandered up to grab the man by the collar. “You think the only reason to leave her alone would be her having a boyfriend and not her telling you that she’s not interested?”

Your hand found its way to his arm. “Bucky, let’s just go.”

“Yeah, man, let me go. I’ll leave your girlfriend alone. I’m sorry.”

“You won’t just leave her alone, you’ll leave any woman that tells you ‘No’ alone, got it?”

“Yes, I got it!”

Bucky let the man go and he immediately went to grab his things and leave the bar. When he turned to check on you, Bucky found you looking back at him with a few stray tears in your eyes, though your face showed nothing but relief. Quickly, he took your face into his hands and locked eyes with you.

“You’re alright, Doll, he won’t ever bother you again.”

“Thank you, James.” Bucky pointedly ignored the way is heart leapt like it always did when you used his first name. You were in distress and that was much more important. “Can we go back to our booth?”

His thumb ran over your cheek, face drawing into a frown as you took a deep breath to steady yourself. “We can leave if you want to. Would you prefer that?”

“Yes, please.”

“Alright, let’s just grab our things and tell the others we’re leaving. Then we’re out of here.”

While Bucky went to grab his jacket and explained to everyone else that the two of you would be leaving, Sam eyed the way you were still holding on to his arm in interest. You were practically clinging to him and when Sam opened his mouth to speak Bucky knew that he was going to make a teasing comment.

“Leaving so soon? Got more exciting plans?”

Bucky rolled his eyes at the wriggle of Sam’s eyebrows. “No, we’re leaving because she just got harassed by some creepy guy and wants me to take her home.”

“Oh, fuck, I’m so sorry! I didn’t see that!” Sam quickly exclaimed and his face immediately changed into a serious expression as he looked at you. “Are you alright?”

“Yes, Bucky got the guy to leave me alone.”

“He intimidated that guy enough that he probably won’t ever come back to this place again.” Ava commented as she walked over from the karaoke machine, Yelena right behind her. “We were close by and stopped our wonderful rendition of ‘Don’t Stop Believing’ as soon as we saw what was going on. But Bucky seemed to have the situation under control.”

“Yeah, when we saw him pull out his Winter Soldier glare, we knew he got it covered.” Yelena joked a little before looking at you in slight worry. “Are you sure you’re alright?”

“I’ll be fine, I’m just really shaken up and to be honest, it really put a damper on my mood, so I want to go home. Bucky is sweet enough to take me.” You explained before you gave them all a small smile, undoubtedly to lighten the mood a little. “It also gives me some time to work on my costume for the Halloween party. I mean, I only got like three more days.”

“It also gives you an excuse to hold onto Bucky when he drives you home on his motorcycle.”

“Very funny, Sam.” You said but it seemed like you couldn’t help chuckling at his words. “But I've got to admit, I like riding on the back of his motorcycle.”

Bucky smiled a little, glad to see you smiling again and placed a hand on your upper back. “You’re still not going to tell me what you’re dressing up as for Halloween, Doll?”

“Absolutely not, it’s a surprise.” You grinned playfully, making Bucky’s stomach flutter in a way he was still stubbornly ignoring, before grabbing your purse. “Let’s hit the road.”

Before you two could leave, Ava leaned in to give you an interested look. “I just have a quick question before you leave.”

“Sure. What is it?”

“Did you notice that Bucky never corrected that creepy man when he referred to him as your boyfriend?”

---

For the next few days, all Bucky could think about was how he had not corrected that man at the bar. At first, he’d written it off to the heat of the situation, to how correcting that man about the nature of your relationship was the last thing on his mind when you were being harassed. But then, slowly he started to realise that maybe he wouldn’t hate the idea of being your boyfriend – on the contrary, he would really enjoy it.

It made him wonder how you felt, whether you’d feel the same way or if you simply saw him as a friend. The thought of you not feeling the same way made him feel all kinds of upset, so he kept his thoughts to himself. Thankfully, the Halloween party hosted at the Watchtower was a welcome distraction and as he walked the floor of the main living area, he could almost ignore his confusing feelings. But not completely because all he was looking for was you.

Unfortunately, he had yet to find you amongst the costumed people. He’d spotted everyone else, despite their costumes and the masks or helmets some of them were wearing. Alexei in his old Red Guardian suit was easy to recognise; John dressed as Westley from ’The Princess Bride’ was a little harder with his black eye mask and headscarf, and he only recognised Ava who was a mummy with bandages around her head by her voice. He had even found Redwing who Sam had draped a bedsheet over and was steering around to make it look like an actual ghost.

“Hey, Bucky!” Joaquin exclaimed, running over to him with the helmet of his Mandalorian costume underneath his arm. “Your Han Solo costume is so cool! It’s so funny how we accidentally match, isn’t it?”

“Yes, what a coincidence that we both dressed as ’Star Wars’ characters. But your costume’s looking really good, too.” Bucky said with a small smile, though his eyes continued to wander away from Joaquin to look for you. “But I can’t believe Sam brought that damn bird thing here and even put it in a costume.”

Joaquin chuckled as he watched Sam fly Redwing around. “You got to admit, it’s a pretty funny idea. And don’t pretend that it didn’t startle you when it flew up to you at the buffet earlier. I heard your shriek.”

“I did not shriek.” Bucky mumbled in amusement, craning his neck to look around the room again. “But it is a funny idea, yes. I just can’t believe that he got that damn thing repaired in time for the party after it got pretty much blown to shreds on our last mission.”

“Oh, he was very adamant about having it repaired in time for the party. Now I know why.” Joaquin laughed before he narrowed his eyes. “What’s with you looking around the room like that?”

“I’m just looking for—”

“Your special friend?” Joaquin sing-songed, grinning up at Bucky before he shook his head and looked around, too. “Speaking of which, I haven’t seen her all evening but there are a lot of people in masks and helmets. Maybe she’s also wearing one. She could be that Jason Vorhees by the buffet or the Boushh that’s currently talking to Yelena. Both of them are her size.”

Bucky rolled his eyes at his teasing. “Thanks. I’ll go looking for her.”

“Good luck. If you see her, tell her to come find me. I want to know what she’s dressed up as. She kept it under wraps for weeks and I need to know!”

After quickly agreeing, Bucky left and made his way across the room again, taking in the other guests in the hopes of catching something that would give you away – your voice, your laughter or the smell of your perfume. But when he went another twenty minutes without finding you, he decided to take a break and get something to drink.

Unfortunately, Sam had spotted him at the buffet and had stirred Redwing over to make it circle him. While he tried to swat it away, Sam cackled in the background not far away. Thankfully, he was rescued by the aforementioned person in the Boushh costume. They got between Bucky and the drone to shoo it away before flipping Sam off. The other man threw his hands up in defeat and left, but not without cackling to himself some more.

“Thanks for shooing the ghost of Redwing away.” Bucky chuckled softly, eyeing the mystery person in the Boushh costume. “Who are you?”

The person took their helmet off to reveal that it was you underneath, grinning up at Bucky with a proud expression. “Someone who loves you.”

Bucky felt his heart stop for a second for a whole plethora of reasons. For one, he was delighted to have finally found you. Then there was also the way his brain so kindly reminded him that in Return of The Jedi, Leia kissed Han after saying that and for a second, he almost dared to hope that you would follow the example. He didn’t even have to question why he wanted you to kiss him and why hearing you say that you loved him made his heart beat faster. By now, he knew that he was in love with you.

“You good there, Bucky?”

“Your costume’s amazing, Doll. I get why you wanted it to be a surprise. And before I forget, Joaquin wants to see your costume, so you should show it to him later.” He said, trying to cover up how his stomach was fluttering and his heart was pounding in his chest at what you’d just said, even though he knew you’d only done so to quote the movie. “I bet you’re so happy you got to use that quote.”

“I totally am! I love that we’re both dressed as Star Wars characters.”

“You two are Han and Leia!”

Both of you turned to find Bob approaching, dressed as a vampire and with a giddy smile on his lips. Behind him followed Yelena, dressed as one of the twins from ’The Shining’ which was part of a double costume she was doing with Natasha. As she came over, she gave Bucky a wide grin.

“You two go to a Halloween party dressed in a couple’s costume and then wonder why people think you are a couple.”

“I swear, it wasn’t on purpose. You know I was planning my costume in secret, Yelena.” You exclaimed in amusement and Bucky felt his heart sink a little at how vehemently you were refuting the idea of dressing in a couple’s costume with him. Perhaps, you really only saw him as a friend. “It was a coincidence.”

“Coincidence or fate?” Came Natasha’s voice as she also decided to join the conversation, standing right next to Yelena which made them look straight out of the movie scene. “I mean, if you two really didn’t plan this, which I am not totally convinced of, then isn’t it a sign from the universe that you two just happened to show up in a couple’s costume?”

But your words were still ringing in Bucky’s head, leaving him doubting that you would ever reciprocate his feelings and unable to ignore that ache in his chest any longer, he shook his head at them all. “How many times do we have to tell you guys that we’re just friends? We are not a couple, no matter what we do or say or dress up as.”

“Exactly.” You agreed but the tone of your voice sounded strangely dejected which made Bucky’s head snap toward you. Although you were still smiling at your friends, he saw the hint of sadness in your eyes. Unfortunately, before he could say anything, you continued. “Now stop harassing us. I got to go find Joaquin and show him my costume now anyway.”

“I just found you.” Bucky protested weakly even though he didn’t know what his plan was should you actually decide to stay. Everything was confusing. Now he was wondering why you’d sounded so sad about him vehemently refuting the claims that you were a couple. He didn’t know if he should apologise, confess his feelings to you or try to distract you. But what he knew for sure was that he didn’t want you to leave. “Let’s get something to eat.”

“I see Joaquin just over there. Let me talk to him really quick and then I’ll be right back.” You promised and gave Bucky a soft pat on the chest. “Just give me a few minutes.”

With that, you hurried off, leaving Bucky with Yelena, Natasha and Bob who all looked a bit unsure of what to make of the situation. While Yelena and Natasha looked somewhat guilty, Bob just averted his eyes uncomfortably.

“All jokes and teasing aside, I think there are some unresolved feelings there.” Natasha said softly and Bucky turned to find her looking at him with a worried frown. “You looked upset when she denied being your girlfriend and now, she was upset when you basically did the same thing. Maybe you two like each other more than either of you realise.”

Bucky was quiet for a few seconds, wondering if he should tell Natasha the truth, but then he quickly decided that he should because she was one of his best friends. “Trust me, I’ve realised. I just-- I think I’m in love with her. I mean, I want to be close to her all the time, when she quoted ’Star Wars’ and told me she loved me I was so happy, and I hoped she would kiss me like-- like Leia does in that scene and I know I wouldn’t mind being her boyfriend-- Scratch that, I would actually love being her boyfriend. That means I’m in love with her, doesn’t it?”

“Yes, it means you’re in love with her!” Natasha exclaimed before she could stop herself, eyes wide and looking a little overwhelmed with her normally so closed-off friend having gone on a rant about his feelings. “James, you’re so in love with her it’s unreal.”

“For real?” Bob exclaimed excitedly, earning himself an elbow to the side from Yelena as she realised that they were drawing attention to themselves. So, Bob lowered his voice. “You have feelings for her? Alexei owes me fifty-- I mean, I’m so happy for you!”

And as if the conversation couldn’t get any more uncomfortable, Sam had heard the commotion and was now making his way over. “What are you talking about?”

“Bucky just realised that he’s in love with his best friend.” Yelena explained matter-of-factly before she nodded over to where you were talking with Joaquin. “Too bad, the two of them just vehemently denied being a couple five minutes ago and she got really sad about it.”

“Seriously, man?” Sam groaned and ran a hand down his face before placing a hand on Bucky’s shoulder. “You have to tell her.”

“I can’t. Five minutes ago, she was so adamant about us not being a couple. What if she doesn’t feel the same?”

Natasha huffed softly at that. “Did you not see how absolutely heartbroken she looked when you agreed that you two weren’t a couple?”

“And besides that, even if she doesn’t feel the same, it’s still better to have it out in the open.” Sam said softly, thumb rubbing Bucky’s shoulder as he tried to comfort his friend. “If she says she doesn’t feel the same way, you two can move on. And if she says she is also in love with you, you can finally be together.”

“How do I do this? I mean, we’re dressed in Star Wars costumes at a party full of people. Isn’t this the least romantic way to do this?”

Sam shrugged his shoulders at that. “You’re both nerds who love space, so I think it fits. I also don’t think it really matters how and where you say it, as long as you mean it.”

“Surprisingly good advice from Sam over here.” Natasha commented, earning herself a scowl from Sam, before she gave Bucky a genuine smile. “Tell her you want to talk to her and take her to the balcony. Then just say exactly what you said to me about wanting to be close to her, to kiss her and be her boyfriend. I’m sure she’ll love it.”

“You can do it, Buck.” Bob said with a small, awkward but encouraging smile. “I mean, you’ve fought aliens, saved the universe and faced the Void. Surely, this is way less scary.”

“It’s not. I’m actually way more scared.”

“Now you’re just being dramatic!” Yelena complained before she grabbed him by the shoulder and shoved him in your general direction. “Go and tell her!”

Bucky was quiet for a few seconds before he decided that the truth was the way to go and he gave his friends a small nod as he set out to talk to you. His heart was pounding in his chest, his head was swimming and when you turned upon hearing him approach, he almost bolted. After everything he’d been through, getting so nervous and scared about confessing his feelings to you seemed almost ridiculous to him.

“Hey, Doll.”

“Hey, Bucky, I’m sorry I kept you waiting for so long. Joaquin wanted to know how I made the chest straps and--” You explained but when you saw his expression, your face fell. “What’s wrong, James? Are you alright?”

His heart once more leapt into his throat at you using his first name but he willed himself to speak. “Can I talk to you for a second? Just the two of us? We could go onto the balcony. No one’s there.”

“Sure.” You nodded quickly before giving Joaquin a small smile. “I’ll talk to you later.”

Joaquin eyed Bucky for a second and then gave you a strange look he couldn’t quite identify. “I’m sure this is more important than your costume. I’ll see you later!”

The walk to the balcony was nerve-wracking, as well. Bucky was distinctly aware of all his friends watching from across the room and when he held open the door for you to step outside, his hand shook on the glass. Once outside, you turned to him with a concerned expression before reaching out to take his flesh hand and give it a tight squeeze.

“You look scared. Do we need to leave?” You asked but Bucky felt himself unable to speak out of the sudden. “James, talk to me, please”

“I have something to say.” He blurted out before swallowing thickly against the lump in his throat. “You know how everyone always assumes we’re a couple but we tell them we’re not? Well, a few weeks ago Natasha said something about that, telling me I was basically your boyfriend without the benefits and-- and it got me thinking. I’ve been thinking about it for weeks now.”

Your eyes had grown wide as you’d listened to Bucky talk and he could distinctly feel your hand shake in his. “My boyfriend without the benefits?”

“It made me realise that we already pretty much act like a couple and I don’t want that to change but I realised that I want the benefits, too.”

“The benefits? Like getting it on or--”

“No! I mean, if you want to! I mean, I-- Fuck, I used to be so good at this. I’m sorry, let me try again.” Bucky grumbled, taking a deep breath and closing his eyes for a second to gather his thoughts. “Natasha’s words and all the teasing from our friends made me think. I want to be with you, hear you say you love me without it being a joke about our costumes and when I didn’t correct that man who called me your boyfriend, I realised I would really like being your boyfriend. And I’m in love with you, Doll.”

“You’re in love with me?” You asked, voice barely there as you stared at him in utter disbelief. “You want to be my boyfriend?”

“More than anything in the world. Being your boyfriend would be the benefits. I’m so in love with you, Doll.” Bucky confessed before averting his eyes. “I had to be honest with you but if you don’t feel the same, then--”

Before Bucky could get another word out, your hands were on his cheeks and you were pulling him into a fierce kiss. The feeling of your lips against his, your body pressing closer to his chest and your hands cradling his face had his eyes slipping close, arms wrapping around your waist to hold you close. Seemingly emboldened by his actions you deepened the kiss, sighing contentedly against his lips, until you sadly had to separate to catch your breath. Bucky couldn’t help chase the kiss for a second, leaning forward to keep his lips on yours for as long as possible which made a huge smile spread on your lips.

“I feel the same way, James. I’m so in love with you it’s unbelievable. I’d be so happy if I could be your girlfriend.” You confessed, keeping yourself close to him and placing your hands on his shoulders as you pursed your lips in amusement. “You know, Joaquin actually called me your girlfriend without the benefits and it got me thinking. I realised I’m in love with you, too. I’m so glad you feel the same.”

“Does that mean we can tell our friends that we really are a couple now?”

“Absolutely.” You smiled, eyes flickering toward the glass doors to the balcony before flickering down to his lips in a way that made his heart leap. “I really want to kiss you again but all of our friends have gathered behind that glass door to watch us and it’s quite frankly a little uncomfortable.”

Bucky hadn’t even realised that you had an audience. A quiet chuckle escaped his lips as he saw his friends behind the glass door and he couldn’t help but full-on laugh when most of them quickly scattered to pretend that they hadn’t been spying on you two. The exceptions were Natasha who clapped her hands with an excited smile and Sam next to her who gave Bucky a thumbs up.

“Maybe we can continue this later on.”

“I’ll hold you to that.” You sighed softly, leaning your head against his chest and squeezing him tightly. “I’m so happy you’re my boyfriend.”

---

“Give us your child. And I will spare the Earth.”

The persistent terror that had been swirling around your chest at being in this place, at having to come there to bargain with an all-powerful being that was threatening the very world you lived on, was replaced by a wave of immediate horror. You weren’t a mother, although you and Johnny had spoken about it and had agreed that one day in the near future, you would start a family, but you still could not fathom giving up a child to be consumed by Galactus, much less a child that was your own.

“No.”

You had not expected anything else from Sue, and the way she presented herself -- firm and standing tall as she relayed her decision to Galactus -- made you feel a little more at ease. Sue was strong, resilient, and resourceful, and you were sure she had a different plan or would come up with another idea, together with Reed.

“You would trade your whole planet for this child.”

It wasn’t a question but a statement and as Galactus leaned closer to inspect you all, you could see Johnny moving a little closer to you from the corner of your eyes. You were unable and unwilling to tear your eyes from Galactus but you did move a little closer to Johnny, silently showing him that you were there.

“I will not, but I also won’t trade my child for Earth. You will not have my son.”

“He is a being of unmatched power. He could absorb my hunger inside of him.” Galactus spoke, voice booming around the halls of his domain as his eyes roamed over all of you once more, inspecting each person standing before him. “It must be him.”

“It will not be him!”

“It must be because he is soon to be born. My terrible hunger cannot wait for the other being that could squench it to be born, for her to be brought into this world.”

His eyes flickered to you and you felt your blood run cold as they travelled down your body to fix on your abdomen. Though you knew he was an infallible and all-powerful being, your first instinct was to doubt him and his words. You and Johnny had always been careful because you wanted to plan for a child when you were both absolutely ready. On instinct, your hand came down to cup your abdomen, to shield it while Johnny’s head snapped toward you.

Yet, before he could say anything, Galactus turned his gaze to Sue and she doubled over in pain, exclaiming that the baby was coming. That prompted a quick retreat and you barely had the time to think about what Galactus had just implied as you made your way to the Excelsior. But when Johnny flamed up, which Reed had warned him would use up his oxygen supply faster, you felt your chest tighten at the idea of him putting himself in danger like that when you had just found out you were expecting a child.

You didn’t get to dwell on these thoughts for long because the silver woman cut you all off just before you made it to the ship, bringing you back to reality. Your fight to escape continued, with Reed trying to get Sue back to the ship, Johnny trying to ward off the silver woman, Ben ending up rescuing him after his oxygen ran too low, and you eventually freezing your pursuer in place.

When you finally made it to the Excelsior, you immediately whipped around to check on Johnny and watched as he ripped off his helmet to take a deep gulp of air. You breathed a sigh of relief as you realised he was alright and when he turned to find you looking at him with a worried expression, he gave you a reassuring smile.

“All good.”

“Do you have any idea how worried I was?”

“I’m sorry, Honey. But you know how resilient I am. I wouldn’t leave you alone like that.”

His eyes flickered down to your abdomen and he opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted when Ben pulled him to his feet, urging him to get to the cockpit. With quick steps, you followed the two of them, one hand absentmindedly straying to cover your abdomen as you entered the cockpit. Once there, everyone was immediately up in arms to get off the planet and bring Sue back to safety before the silver woman could take the child from her.

In the end, it came down to everyone’s combined efforts to get back to safety. Reed’s plan to fly close to the centre of a nearby black hole so the silver woman would be sucked into it worked out, with Ben assisting the birth, Johnny getting the ship to safety, you bringing it to a temperature at which it would hold steady and Sue turning it invisible at the right moments. And just as you escaped, you heard the cries of a baby.

“Our son.” Sue said in wonder as Ben handed her the child, cradling him to her chest. “He’s safe. Franklin is safe.”

Reed looked terribly relieved as he embraced both her and the baby, though confusion etched onto his face. “For someone that Galactus called a powerful being, he looks rather usual. We know nothing about him.”

As the adrenaline of the situation ebbed away and everyone gathered around the child, fussing over him, cooing at him and debating his powers, you felt yourself suddenly brought back to reality, to what Galactus had implied with his words. And as if you two were thinking in unison, which was something Sue liked to joke about all the time, Johnny turned to look at you.

“I think we need to adress the elephant in the room here.”

“We do.” You said softly, daring to look up at Johnny to find him gazing back at you with an expression somewhere between joy, fear and disbelief. “We’re all in agreement on what Galactus was implying when he said there was another child, right?”

Reed didn’t give Johnny the chance to react before he piped up. “I can run tests to be sure of it but I doubt Galactus would lie about this.”

“Maybe we should give the two of them some space to talk.” Sue suggested, sitting up and nudging Reed with her elbow when he opened his mouth to speak again. “Help me get to one of the beds, so I can rest with Franklin.”

Ben quickly rushed to her side and, together with Reed, helped her up. “I’m coming with you, to make sure you’re fine and to get away from this conversation.”

The three of them left, with Sue giving her brother a comforting smile and a reassuring squeeze to the shoulder. Then they were gone, the door swooshing shut behind them, leaving you alone with Johnny on either side of the console where you had previously stood to look at Franklin. You didn’t exactly know what to say but you still spoke up because Johnny looked just as speechless as you.

“I also don’t think Galactus was lying about this or trying to deceive us.” You said softly, your eyes flickering up to meet his and immediately welling up with tears when you saw the reassuring expression on his face. “I didn’t know, I swear.”

“I believe you.” Johnny quickly rounded the console to take your hand into his. “But we were so careful. I don’t understand how this happened.”

“Not careful enough, it seems.” You whispered, squeezing is hand tightly as anxiety once more gripped your heart. “What do we do now, Johnny?”

“Well, I don’t know about you but I’m going to steal all of Reed’s books on child rearing once we get back to Earth.” Johnny joked, giving you a slightly uneasy grin in the hopes of lifting your spirits but when you started crying he immediately cursed himself, thinking he’d done something wrong. “I’m sorry, Honey. I’ll stop with the jokes, I promise. I’m just nervous about being a dad and they-- and I just--”

You just shook your head and embraced Johnny tightly, softly sobbing into his shoulder. “No, no, you didn’t do anything wrong! I’m just overwhelmed and I-- You are so ready to step up and be a father, to do whatever it takes to be prepared and to make me smile and-- and I love you so much, Johnny.”

“Of course, I’ll step up and be the baby’s father. That is our daughter we’re talking about, if Galactus is right about the gender, and I-- I mean, I’m scared and worried but I’m ready.” Johnny whispered, blinking against the tears in his eyes as he held you tightly. “Honey, do you want to have this baby, too?”

For a second, you just froze and mulled his question over in your head. You two had always wanted to have children but had not really talked about when and you knew that now was not the ideal time to be pregnant. But you couldn’t deny that the thought of carrying your and Johnny’s child, of having a baby sooner rather than later, was making your heart swell with happiness. So, despite the danger of your current situation, you found yourself nodding.

“I do. It’s sooner than we expected and-- and we haven’t been trying for a baby but I-- I really want to have this child with you.” You confessed, pulling back to look at Johnny with teary eyes. “Do you want this child?”

Johnny nodded slowly, as if unsure of whether or not it was the right answer. “I do, Honey. We didn’t plan for this but-- but I mean, Susie and Reed had given up on having a baby and they weren’t expecting the pregnancy, either. And look how happy they are. I think we’re going to be just as happy.”

“We will be.” You said and leaned in to press a chaste kiss to his lips. “But what about Galactus? What if he comes for our daughter? He said she would be powerful enough to sustain him and if he can’t get to Franklin, he might try to get to our child.”

“I won’t let him touch our daughter.”

You looked at his determined eyes and took a deep, steadying breath, feeling calmer at how certain he was in his words. “We will protect her. And perhaps, by the time she is born, we’ll have defeated Galactus.”

“That’s the spirit, Honey.” Johnny sighed softly and pulled you back into a tight embrace. “I can’t believe I’m going to be a father. Once we’re back on Earth, I've got to prepare.”

“We have nine months to prepare, Johnny.”

“They will go by before you know it!” He exclaimed jokingly, pressing a kiss to your head. “But together, we can do anything.”

“I know we can.”

Johnny smiled softly, resting his cheek against your head as he held you, cradling you in his embrace. “With how Galactus induced Sue’s labour and figured out you were pregnant before either of us did, he should have become a gynaecologist rather than a cosmic entity that feasts on planets.”

“He really went down the wrong career path.” You joked, the anxiety in your chest leaving as Johnny held you and joked around with you, knowing that he was by your side and that together you would be fine. “I love you so much, Johnny.”