#marvelliz

Clint had a smirk plastered on his face when he joined Natasha and Tony in the living room, with a coffee in one hand and making sure his precious drink didn’t spill on the ground, a bagel in the other. He had considered making popcorn, but he didn’t want to risk missing anything.

“So tell me. What are they fighting about today?”

You swung your leg in the air, and if Bucky hadn’t had such damn fast reflexes, he would’ve been hit in the head. Lucky for him, he was quick to take a step back, grabbing your foot in one swift movement and pulling it hard to bring you out of balance. But you wouldn’t have been the great fighter you were if you hadn’t found a way to take him down with you.

Nat sighed as she watched both of you continue your fight on the ground, but her friend knew her well enough to know that she secretly enjoyed the entertainment you and Bucky brought to the Tower. “Honestly, I don’t even know. Something ‘bout Bucky finishing Y/N’s leftovers.” Never taking her eyes off the fight, she reached for Clint’s bagel and took a bite. “That, or Y/N stole Bucky’s shirts again.”

Tony chimed in. “I bet it’s the latter. Or he’s just fighting shirtless because he knows that’ll turn her on.”

“Nah, he’s too clueless for that.” The archer was practically beaming with excitement. Sometimes life started getting a little boring at the Avengers Tower, but luckily you and Bucky never let it come that far. And if your fights had been really hostile, no one would’ve let you two be in each other’s presence anymore without being chaperoned, because you both were skilled enough to kill one another and not even flinch about it. But everyone knew you were practically best friends. And everyone, except for clueless Bucky and you, knew that you were head over heels in love with each other. And that fighting was basically your way of flirting, since you were both pretty much cowards when you weren’t on the field and thus didn’t really talk feelings with each other.

“By the way, shouldn’t Cap be here to try to keep them apart?”

A chuckle escaped Nat’s mouth. “Steve gave up two fights ago, where were you?” With raised eyebrows, she turned to Clint. “He left immediately when they started again today. Something about ‘little children who needed to learn how to flirt like normal human beings’.”

“Well, can’t argue with that.” Clint shrugged, returning his attention to the fight. “Hey Stark, wanna bet on who wins today?”

Bucky was a lot stronger than you, and you both knew it. But you wouldn’t have been world’s best assassin if you couldn’t take him on. You knew exactlyhow to make his weaknesses play in your advantage.

The thing was, Bucky was a great fighter too. He relied too much on his strength though, whereas you were a more tactical player, and touched your opponents where they least expected.

But since you and Bucky fought all the time with each other, your attacks weren’t as surprising as they used to be. Bucky knew you better than anyone, and you were certain that he only had to look at you to know which move you would pull on him next. That’s what made you such an amazing team on the battlefield, but it also meant that you had to find new tricks every time you guys fought.

Now at the moment, thinking was a little hard. You’d managed to get up to try and take the upper hand in the quarrel, but the Winter Soldier was quicker and took you down with one swift move of his leg. You would’ve fallen straight on your back if you hadn’t learned how to turn your body in that way that you would not only land safe, but also be immediately ready to attack or defend yourself.

Bucky was faster though, and he knew what you were gonna do before you knew it yourself. As soon as your body touched the ground, he hit you right in your waist to keep you from doing the move you wanted. With strong hands, he held your hands tight pressed against the ground above your head and quickly moved to straddle your hips, preventing you from moving any further.

His body weight pressed you down, and though you knew his strength had the upper hand in this situation, it didn’t stop you from trying and wiggling as hard as you could to escape his forceful grip.

Bucky watched you with a smirk, loving to see you struggle underneath him. “Guess you were too slow this time, doll!”

You grunted again, then decided to give up and let your head rest against the soft carpet – God thanks for the carpet, at least you were trapped in a comfortable pose this time. Last time he’d managed to get you, it’d been on the roof where it’d just stopped raining and puddles were spread all over the surface. Your clothes had been soaked, but in all fairness, Bucky’s were too and you couldn’t say you didn’t enjoy the view of his wet shirt clinging to his chest.

Especially when he was hovering over you with that sexy smirk of his.

You threw him a sassy wink before he would notice how turned on you were. “Please, Buck, I’m never too slow. It’s all part of the plan.”

Bucky simply raised an eyebrow at you. You knew he thought you were bluffing, but he still asked. “What plan?”

“This one.” As hard as you could, you threw yourself forwards, using his surprise to your advantage. But Bucky really was strong, and he was holding you too tight for you to move enough to do any harm. The only thing you could move was your head, but Bucky quickly took both your wrists in his metal hand, while his flesh hand pressed down on your throat to keep you from head bumping him.

He chuckled at your poor attempt to get yourself free, and you felt him add a little more pressure on your throat. “So what, that was your plan?”

Bucky should’ve known you better. Something dark clouded your eyes and your lips fell into a flirty smirk as you let out a moan. “Mm, choke me, daddy.”

His eyes widened noticeably at your words, and almost imperceptible his grip on your hands loosened a little. Something you had counted on, because as soon as you felt it you yanked your hands free and in a swift but powerful motion, you pushed his arm on your throat away. You took advantage of his loss of balance to firmly grab his flesh arm and push his shoulder with your other hand, bucking your hips to your side to throw him off you.

As soon as his back hit the floor, you moved to sit on top of him. You pressed your forearm against his throat before you leaned closer to him and whispered in his ear.  “No, this was my plan.”

Natasha was roaring with laughter in the distance.

Bucky’s eyes were still wide as he stared at you. You looked back, panting a little from the fight. Bucky, who was now laying under you, was breathing just as hard, you could feel it. Your eyes travelled down his face to his heavily rising chest, sweaty enough to make your breath hitch in your throat. You’d forgotten he was wearing no shirt.

“Like what you see, doll?”

Your eyes snapped back up to his, amusement shining in them. You didn’t even miss a beat.

“I like to see me beating you, so yeah.”

He tipped his head back and laughed, and your heart skipped a beat when you felt the rumbling under you.

“I guess you win this one, doll.”

“That’s what I thought.” You rolled off him and stood up, smoothing your – or rather Bucky’s – shirt and extending your hand to help him up. Then you walked up to Clint, who held out two bottles of water, and threw one his way. “Daddy.”

With another wink, you walked out the door. You didn’t see how Bucky again froze at that last word and how the water bottle you threw at him hit his head.

Clint and Tony were arguing in the background while Natasha joined Bucky on the couch. The Soldier was quiet and kept glancing at the door through where you’d just disappeared.

“Hey, wanna tell what that was all about?” Nat nudged him gently, and a soft smile appeared on his face.

“Nat?”

“Buck?”

He chuckled, because he was pretty sure that what he was gonna say was gonna sound stupid. But Nat had seen him in more embarrassing times, and he trusted her. “Is it possible to get a boner ‘cause you’re so in love with someone? Like a boner, but for your heart?”

Nat stared at him for a moment, but then she grinned widely.

“Oh you’ve got it bad, loverboy!”

The next time you had Bucky pinned under you was only two days later, and this time it was for training purposes. Of course it helped that you fought all the time already, but that didn’t stop you from feeling victorious whenever you won. But to your surprise, this time Bucky didn’t struggle to get free.

“You’re smiling. Why are you smiling?” You were still a little breathless from the fight as a frown took over the triumph on your face. Instead of the usual wrestling, Bucky was just laying there, defeated but with a small smile on his face as he looked up at you. The smile felt endearing, almost loving, but that didn’t make any sense.

He shrugged as best as he could, with you hindering even his littlest movements. “I don’t know. You always have that fire in your eyes when you win, and I never really noticed that before.” He shrugged again, as if he was just stating facts. As if his words didn’t make blood rush to your cheeks. It was almost embarrassing how easy it was for him to make you blush.

Which was why it occurred to you that it probably was just another way to make you feel stunned, to make you weaken your grip on him so he could still overpower you. Like you did with him a few days ago. You grounded yourself by making your grip on his forearms even stronger than it already was.

But Bucky didn’t seem to notice. The smile playing on his lips was nothing but gentle, no glint that showed that he was up to something. “It’s beautiful. You’re beautiful.”

You scoffed. “I’m sweating and in my sports clothes. I doubt that’s anything of a beauty norm around here.”

“Guess I must really like you then.”

More abrupt than you would’ve liked to admit, your eyes rose to meet his, and you were surprised to see him staring back - more sincere than you’d ever seen him before. Though the words felt real, you couldn’t help but look for the lie in his features. “You … what?”

“You heard me.” He chuckled at your perplexed expression. How could you not know how amazing you are? “I have for a while now, in fact. I mean, what’s not to like about you? You’re kind, but you also stand up for what you believe in, and you’re so strong. And I don’t mean only physical, although you really are very strong.”

He threw you wink, which made you break out in a disarming smile. “Since when are you this good with words? You could’ve told me this much earlier, you know?”

“I’ve got some help.” Bucky flinched when he thought back at the awkward conversation he had a few days before. “Nat encouraged me a little. No, actually she said she would kill me if she had to watch the apparently thick tension between us for one more day, and she’s terrifying sometimes!”

You broke into a fit of giggles when you imagined the much smaller Nat lecturing Bucky about talking emotions. But you knew first-hand how terrifying she could be, so you completely understood what he meant.

Then you realized he had just told you he liked you, and you had yet to say something back. You’d never been one to talk about your feelings either, but with Bucky’s expectant blue eyes looking up at you, you knew what you had to say.

“I like you too.” Also for a while now, but you never dared to say anything because you didn’t want to mess up your friendship. And you were pretty scared of being rejected, even if you had regularly the gut feeling he felt the same towards you – a feeling that was apparently right.

Bucky grinned at your confession, as if you just made his entire day. “So –“ He wiggled his eyebrows suggestively, and you almost laughed out loud because it was a pretty comical sight, seeing him completely defeated under you but still acting all cocky and confident. “Can I kiss you now?”

Your eyes flickered down to his lips and back to his eyes, and you nodded in anticipation. “I’d say go for it.”

He kept looking at you. Your eyebrows raised in question when he didn’t move, which made him chuckle. “You’ve trapped me, remember? I can’t move if you don’t let me go.”

“Oh.” Right. You immediately loosened your grip on his forearms, and as if he’d waited for that, he instinctively grabbed your shoulders and rolled you over, so he was now on top.

Your back hit the ground hard, but you didn’t feel it when you saw him hovering over you, that goofy smirk you had fallen for plastered on his face. Eyes widened when you realized that he was now in complete control, that you were the one trapped now, but somehow that realization only made the anticipation  in your stomach grow. Maybe it wasn’t so bad to have him holding you down for once.

When he kissed you, it was with the same tension you and him fought with, but the passion in the touch was a whole new feeling. This was a battle you could both win. Bucky smirked against your lips. “Gotcha.”

“I told you I could get him to confess.” Natasha grinned up at Steve, who did his very best not to look at the security footage of two of his best friends making out with each other. One kiss he was okay with, but he really didn’t need to see how the two of you kept rolling each other over to take control and deepen the kiss.

“Who confessed to whom?” Tony walked in on them, his eyes curiously looking from Steve to Nat and back.

Steve just motioned to the images. “Bucky did. Now they’re busy making the gym unsafe.”

Clint walked in at the moment Steve shut the videos down. “Hey, no, I wanted to see that!” He pouted like a young boy who just was told he couldn’t have candy anymore.

“Gross.” Tony shook his head, then grinned widely. “Hey Clint, I still get 50 bucks from you!”

“What now, Bucky confessed?” The archer groaned and took out his wallet in defeat. “Come on, Y/N! I counted on you!”

You opened the door to your shared apartment. “Honey? I’m home!”

Tom appeared from the kitchen, an apron on and a big grin on his face. He hugged you from behind while you hung your jacket on the coat rack next to the income, and placed a soft kiss on your cheek. “I missed you, darling.”

A giggle escaped your lips as you turned and wrapped your arms around his neck. “I’ve only been gone for a few hours, Tom. I’m sure you can survive a short time without me.” With a wink you leaned in to kiss him back. It was only a short, sweet kiss, but just like the first time your lips met his, your heart fluttered at the feeling.

“So, how was it?” Tom asked when he pulled back, his arms still strong around your waist.

“I mean, it was alright. They should have the dress ready tomorrow, Zendaya promised she would pick it up.” Zendaya had quickly become your best friend after Tom had introduced you. If it hadn’t been for her and Harrison’s schemes, you would probably never had the courage to tell Tom how you felt. Without them you wouldn’t be where you were now.

Z was now your Maid of Honor, and Tom had unsurprisingly chosen Haz to be his Best Man.

“But …?” Tom ducked his head to look you in the eyes, and you weren’t even surprised that he knew instantly something was off.

“There were reporters again, you know? They tried to get pictures and kept shouting questions when I exited the store.” You sighed at the memory. “But I guess that’s part of marrying you, isn’t it?”

Tom pouted. He knew you didn’t like life in the spotlights, that’s why at first he tried to keep your relationship a secret for the public. But Tom had become even more famous than when you and him first met, and now the paparazzi was more interested in him than ever. Since they found out that not only he had a girlfriend, but that he was also engaged, they wanted to know everything about the wedding. Forcing you to make the ceremony bigger, and hiring extra photographers for the press.

So much for keeping it small.

But hey, if you could marry Tom, you were happy. So you simply shrugged and send him a comforting smile. “How was your day? Cake tasting, wasn’t it?” You said with a wink.

Tom’s expression lightened up a little, although his eyes were still a little weary. “I think I have gained at least three pounds, but I can assure you it will be delicious!”

“And what are you making now?” You raised your eyebrows while looking at the bright pink apron he was wearing. You were certain you’d never seen that piece before, which meant Tom had bought it himself. Something that you couldn’t help smiling at.

Your boyfriend snickered at your amused gaze. “It’s your favourite …”

Your eyes widened a little, before you delightedly clapped in your hands. “Yes! Tom, you’re the best!”

His grin didn’t seem like it would disappear anytime soon. “Don’t I know it, darling?” He winked. “Just go take a nice bath while I finish this, okay?”

“Thanks Tom.” You kissed him on his cheeks and looked him admiringly in the eyes. “I love you.”

“Love you too. Now go!”

Tom had made sure there was a soft bathrobe waiting for you when you were done, and you felt completely relaxed when you exited the bathroom. It’d been weeks since you last were so calm, but in the back of your mind there still was this nagging feeling that kept reminding you of all your responsibilities. You had a wedding to plan, and that involved a lot of stress for you and your soon-to-be-husband. But maybe you could forget about that for now.

You exited the bathroom, and where one moment you felt totally carefree, the next you were frowning your eyebrows and sniffing in the air. Something was burning.

With big steps you followed the smell to the kitchen. “Tom? What did you do?”

You turned around the corner and found Tom, staring back at you with wide, innocent eyes. Behind him smoke circled to the ceiling. “Well … I may or may not have broken the microwave a little.”

You raised one eyebrow and a corner of your mouth turned up when you looked at the mess behind him. “You broke it a little?”

Tom raised his hands in defeat, but grinned at you. “Okay, no. It may have exploded a little.”

A laugh escaped you lips. “Why am I not surprised?”

“But you love me.” He wrapped his arms around you and gave you a kiss on your nose.

“You know I do.”

At that moment your phone rang, and both you and Tom groaned at the interruption. The display lit up when you reached for the device. “It’s your mum.”

Your boyfriend groaned again and tried to push the phone away. “She’ll understand.” You gave him a pointed look, and he sighed in defeat. “Fine. But don’t let her convince you to go away tonight, okay?”

With and exaggerated eyeroll at your boyfriend’s neediness, you picked up the phone. “Hey, Nikki!”

“Hey Y/N, sweetie!” Nikki’s voice was as enthusiastic as ever – you knew she adored this wedding planning, and it was mostly for her this ceremony was going to be so big – but you heard a hint of stress. “’Are you free tonight? The florist needs to know which flowers they need to order for the wedding.”

“Uhm - I am free, but …” You hesitated. Sure, this wedding was important for everyone – they’d made that more than clear –, but all you wanted was one carefree evening with Tom. But you’ll have more of that when this wedding was over, you realized. “Yes, I’ll come o-“

The phone was ripped out of your hands, and you glared at your boyfriend – who just winked and turned around, making it impossible for you to grab the device back. “Sorry, mum, we’re busy tonight! Maybe another time, okay? Love you, bye!” With a wide grin he turned back to you and handed you the phone. “You’re welcome.”

You threw him another glare. “You know, you’re lucky you’re cute. Or-”

“Or what?”

He gave you a challenging look, but you sighed – not in the mood for your playful bantering. “This wedding is important, Tom. You know it has to be perfect.”

His expression fell, and confusion was written over his face. “You never cared about that.”

“Of course I do!”

Tom shook his head. He knew you too well for that. “No, you don’t. You’re not happy with all of this, am I right?”

You looked him in the eyes for a moment, and realized that no, he wouldn’t believe you if you denied. So you let you head hang in defeat and walked to the living area, letting yourself fall on the couch. “It’s just so stressful, you know? Everything I do is being judged by the whole world.”

“And you hate being in the spotlight, I know that.” Tom took a seat next to you and pulled you closer in a comforting hug. “We don’t need to have a big wedding, if you don’t want to.”

You huffed. “There are lots of people who say otherwise.”

“But it’s our wedding, not theirs.” He pulled back to look you in the eyes. An idea popped up in his mind. “What would you think if we disappeared for a while? Just you and me, going away for the weekend to where no one could find us?”

It was an alluring perspective, and you couldn’t help but smile at the thought. “I’d like that.”

“You’re a mysterious one, you know that?”

You looked at MJ, who was leading you through the hallways of your new school. It was only your second day, so you knew you were lucky you’d already found somebody nice to help you around. And Michelle – no, she’d said you could call her MJ – was really your type of person. She didn’t seem to care what other people thought about her, something you tried to be too, but your previous school had left quite an impression. You didn’t know MJ that well yet, but you already felt that she wouldn’t judge you as your previous classmates had.

Plus, she had really nice friends. You’d only met Ned and Peter once, but somehow you already felt included in their little group. Sure, they were both a little awkward, but how could you judge when you were probably even more so?

A light chuckle escaped your mouth as you looked up at your new friend. “And you aren’t?” It was true, MJ was probably the most mysterious person you’ve ever met. But something about that made you want to become her friend even more.

She took your arm as to not lose you in the busy hallways, pushing your way through the crowds of students that were packed before their lockers. As soon as you passed them, she let go of you. There wasn’t much you knew about her, but you did know she wasn’t a touchy-feely person. More of the opposite actually, which made a warmth spread in your chest – because that meant she was looking out for you.

There was a twinkle in her eyes when she looked at you, as if she was on the edge of discovering something. “No, I mean there’s something about you that you want to keep a secret. I just wonder what it is.”

Her smile told you that she already had a few ideas, and your cheeks grew bright red under her investigative gaze. How did she -?

“We’re here.” She interrupted your thoughts by leading you in a room you hadn’t been before. “Welcome to the Academic Decathlon Team.”

Hesitating, you looked around the room. There wasn’t a team like this in your old school, probably because no one wanted to enter it. Something about it not being cool enough. But you were pleasantly surprised to see that here it was an honour to represent your school.

There were not many people in the classroom yet, only a boy and a girl that were sitting at a table and laughing at something on the boy’s phone. You looked at MJ. “Shouldn’t the teacher be here already?”

“He’s late, as always.” A loud voice behind you exclaimed. You couldn’t even turn before you felt a hand on your back and you felt a presence behind you, looking over your shoulder. “That’s why we always come here fifteen minutes later too.”

The boy looked at you a little too close with his dark eyes, a strand of his equally black hair hanging over his forehead. Behind him Michelle rolled her eyes excessive, and you couldn’t blame her in the slightest. The guy had an aura around him that you couldn’t quite place, but you didn’t like it.

He gave you a once-over and extended his hand with a smirk. “You must be new here. I’m Flash, I’m basically the teamleader. Nice to meet you.”

You politely took his hand, but raised your eyebrows to MJ - who rolled her eyes again and shook her head to you. “He’s not. I am.”

Flash only shrugged at her words. “I should be.”

Realizing you were blocking the doorway for other students that wanted to pass, you moved away – well, actually more because Flash was getting in your personal space and you didn’t know what to think of him. MJ certainly didn’t seem to consider him her best friend.

Footsteps came from the hallway and both Flash and Michelle looked over their shoulder. Another smirk appeared on the boy’s lips, but this time it was a more taunting one, not the flirty one he had given you only a few moments before. “Look who it is! Penis Parker decided to show up today!”

“Just shut up already, Flash.” Peter Parker, the guy you’d met the other day, entered the classroom with a rather irritated expression on his face. You didn’t blame him, ‘cause really? Penis Parker? You had had enough to do with bullies already, and you didn’t like it when other people suffered the same experiences you had to go through on your previous school. Although Peter seemed more frustrated by Flash’s almost childish behaviour than he seemed intimidated by it.

“Ah, Penis Parker here has some comebacks on his sleeves.” This time Flash looked to you, throwing you a wink. Somewhere in the back of your brain you realised he tried to impress you by getting other people down, but that just made your distaste for him grow even more.

You threw him a glare, hoping to shut him up now once and for all. “You heard him, just be quiet.”

At the sound of your voice, Peter abruptly whipped his head around. He probably had already forgotten you would come today, as he was staring at you with wide eyes. A small smile formed on your lips, hoping to let him loosen up around you a little. “Hey, Peter.”

“Y/N.” He whispered your name, and somehow it felt really intimate coming from his lips that way. Which was super weird, because you’d only met the guy the day before.

Peter quickly shook his head, then a smile matching to yours appeared on his face, although a little more shy. “Y/N, hey!”

“Hey, Y/N!”

You hadn’t seen Ned until he suddenly stood behind Peter, immediately catching your attention. He smile widely at you as if you just had made his day a whole lot brighter, but how contagious his laugh was though, it wasn’t what drew your attention.

No, his clothes did. Or rather, their colour. Everything he was wearing was a bright, outstanding orange, from his shoes to the hat he was wearing. And since most people in the room were wearing more safe colours, like black, white and grey – since it was rather difficult choosing clothes when you couldn’t see their colour, and you could never do wrong with those – his remarkable choice of clothes was even more obvious.

Honestly, the person who invented that shade should go to jail for a crime against humanity.

You quickly realised that no one seemed to notice anything outstanding, because not many people your age had already seen their soulmate. That’s why no one turned their head when Ned walked in in those horrible colours.

Just kidding, it wasn’t that bad. It was … flashy.

“Hey Ned.” MJ greeted him back, bringing you back to the world of the living. “You seem happy.”

Ned was beaming with the attention he suddenly got from MJ. “I am! I saw –“

“That wasn’t an invitation to talk, weirdo.” Flash interrupted him cheekily.

MJ threw him a murderous glare, reminding you immediately why you wanted her as a friend – and not as an enemy. “Shut up.”

Even the always chill Flash seemed to be at least a little bit afraid of her.

“Alright kids, let’s begin!” A tall man stood in the doorway, instantly drawing all the attention to him. Then he squinted at Ned. “Wow! What are you wearing?”

He shook his head instead of waiting for an answer and walked right to the table where more students were already waiting. You knew that face, it was that face that said ‘never mind, not my problem, don’t get involved’.An expression you were quite familiar with, for the simple reason you had had to do with teachers all your life and they all could get evenly frustrated and uninterested when it came to their students. Just another day in high school, apparently.

“What? Don’t you guys like my clothes?” Ned didn’t seem disrupted at all by his teacher’s words, his usual wide smile still plastered on his face. “Y/N?”

“What?” Why did he address you? Did he know something? You couldn’t say anything about the colour, because everyone here thought you hadn’t met your soulmate yet. Which was technically the truth, since you’d only seen him from a distance, swinging in the air like it was just another boring day in Queens. “I think they’re … nice.”

“What do you think about the colour?”

MJ interrupted him, but gave you weary look at the same time. “Why do you think she can see colours yet, Ned?”

He shrugged casually, as if it was the most logical answer ever. “Well, since Peter can see colours …”

“You can see colours?”

Michelle didn’t often look this astonished, and even you knew that while being here for this short period of time. Flash apparently didn’t know it either, because he looked just as stunned.

Your interest was immediately awoken.

Peter looked flustered, so nothing different from how you have seen him that one time before. “I – Not so long! Only a –“ You noticed how he quickly looked your way while he tried to explain. “Only a couple of days?”

Flash scoffed, obviously not believing him. “And who’s the lucky person? Or unlucky, if they have to be tied to you for their whole life!”

He looked Peter challenging in the eyes, and this time Peter was not so quick on comebacks. No, Peter seemed to have a hard time with words for the moment.

“Uhm … It’s – complicated?” Again, he looked at you from the corners of his eyes.

Flash huffed demeaningly. “Sure it is. Which colour is Ned’s hat?”

“Orange.”

Ned smiled broadly, and you were almost worried that he was gonna break his face if he kept laughing like that. “He’s right, my mum said so too! Is it a cool orange?”

Peter chuckled at his friend, truly amused by his excitement. “It’s the ugliest colour I’ve ever seen, I’m sorry man.”

At least that’s something you and Peter had in common.

The moment every student was seated at the large round table in the middle of the room, the teacher cleared his throat. “Yes, well, for everyone who’s new here, my name is – and I think it’s only you who is new here, what’s your name?”

You felt your cheeks redden at the ten pairs of eyes that suddenly looked your way, some of them more curious than others. “I’m – uhm, Y/N Y/L/N, sir.”

“Miss Y/L/N, right. So, welcome in the Academic Decathlon Team, I’m sure you will like it here. I’m Mr. Harrington, the head of the team.” He was fumbling a bit with the papers that were laying in front of him and pushed his glasses higher on his nose with one finger. He seemed to be a nice teacher, though he was a little clumsy.

“Uh- Where did I leave those papers? I had them right – ah, here!” Mr. Harrington mumbled under his breath, then his focus shifted and he looked at MJ. “Maybe you could start with practicing some questions?”

MJ shrugged indifferently, but her eyes shone as if this was really important to her. “Sure. Who begins?”

She looked at you before she even finished her question, just like most other students, you realised. Mr. Harrington coughed. “Yes, Y/N. We need to see what you can do.”

For the second time that day you felt your face flush. Michelle just nodded seriously. “We’ll do in teams. Abe and Jason against Y/N and …”

“Peter will do it!” Ned was quick to intervene, maybe too quick. You didn’t notice though, as you send Peter a genuine smile.

Peter blushed heavily at Ned’s not so subtle words, and even more when you smiled so sweetly at him. “Yeah, I’d like too!” He returned your smile.

“What is the modern name of the element Sb, which stands for Stibnum or –“

You didn’t need to hear the end of the question to know the answer, but one of the boys on the other team was faster than you to push the button. You didn’t remember which of them was Abe and who was Jason.

“It’s Stibnite.”

Whatever his name was, he was right. But Michelle just shook her head. “It is, but that was the last word of the question. Which you would’ve known if you had listened ‘till the end.”

At those words you immediately pressed the button. You had something to prove.

“Yes, Y/N?”

“Is it Antimony?” Though you were certain of your answer before, now you doubted it again. Like always.

But MJ nodded lightly, and you could swear she had a small smile on her face. “Yes, great job. I think that makes 7-3 for Peter and Y/N, which makes it ten questions. Let’s switch groups.” Next to you Peter started to get up, but MJ wasn’t finished yet. Now her smile was more obvious as her eyes locked with yours. “And I think I speak for all of us when I say that Y/N is an amazing addition to our team.”

You bowed your head so to hide your flushed cheeks at her words, and followed your partner to the tables in the back of the room. You looked up again when you felt a kind nudge against your arm.

“You’re amazing, Y/N.” Peter looked at you admiringly as he walked next to you, and you almost beamed under his gaze. “I don’t think you even need me as your partner.”

It was an obvious lie, of course, because you knew he could’ve easily been a lot faster than you in answering. At least, that’s what MJ had told you earlier, that Peter was effortlessly the smartest kid in school. His only problem that most of the times he just didn’t go to school.

But you appreciated his gesture. You weren’t the most confident person, and as if he knew that, he tried to give you more trust in yourself in the only way he could right now. It was sweet.

“Thanks, Peter, but I think you know I that I do need you.” You winked at him. It was so easily to get him flustered, and somehow you thought it was cute when he was this red because of something you’d said. “You’re a great partner, you know?”

Ned held his hand up for you to give him a high five when you arrived at where he was waiting for you two. “That was so great! You really smashed them there!” Still as excited as ever.

His flashy orange clothes were still horrible, but you kinda were used to them by now. Peter chuckled next to you. “They’re on our team, Ned. Be nice to them!”

“No, he’s right.” You lightly poked Peter with your elbow as you looked at him with a glint of mischief in your eyes. “We really did smash them.”

All three of you laughed loudly now, a little too hard that Mr. Harrington had to ask you to be quieter so the other students could exercise without being disturbed. Giggles still escaped your mouth after he’d warned you a second time, but you didn’t mind that much. It’d been a while since you really felt included in a group. And now, with Peter and Ned, and even MJ who threw you an irritated look but with a small smile on her lips as if she couldn’t wait to join you, you knew this year would be better than the last one. Not that it could be any worse, that is.

You had new friends, and you couldn’t wait to get to know them better. No drama this year, and certainly not when it came to soulmates.

“So, who is it?” MJ asked you the moment you were alone again. Her expression was indifferent, but her eyes shone with curiosity.

“Who’s what?”

“Your soulmate.”

Your mouth fell open at her words, but you immediately remembered that she was not supposed to know.“I don’t – what are you talking about?”

She sighed. “Listen, you don’t have to tell me. I know you probably have your reasons to keep this a secret and I swear I won’t tell anyone.” She quickly looked you in the eyes, and that was enough for you to see she meant it. “I promise.”

You realised you were gaping at her. And that it probably was pointless to deny at this point. “How did you know?”

A small smile played on her lips.

“I’m just very observant.”

TRTMG taglist: @fandomscompilation @loxbbg @ceylon-morphe286 @mnemosymedream @wishingforahome @thequeenofashes @miguelstilinski24 @adrovet @hollandjmc @ussentercries

Soulmates were a tricky thing.

Parents told their children about it as bedtime stories, stories about how they first met their significant other and immediately knew. Now, in a world where people only started to see colours upon seeing their soulmate for the first time, it was kinda obvious.

You had vivid memories of lying in your bed, being gently tucked in by your father and listening to him. Sometimes he told you how he first met your mom, and how the world quite literally looked brighter. But that wasn’t what you were most interested in. You wanted to know what red was, or how the sky looked when it was not grey. Was it just as beautiful as people said? You wanted – no, you needed to know.

You used to talk about it with your friends, and then you discussed what you thought colours looked like. “My mommy says green is the colour of the grass, and that it looks really fresh and that trees have the same colour!”

“My daddy says yellow is the most beautiful colour, because the sun is yellow and bananas are yellow and I like bananas.”

“What colour do you think my jacket is? My mommy says it’s red, but I think it looks more like blue.”

“Oh, can you see colours already?”

“No, but I thinkit’s blue. Blue is gonna be my favourite colour!”

Even when you were little, you could talk about colours for hours. Your friends, however, could get annoyed pretty fast by your rambling, because to most of them the colours where only a nice bonus. Meeting your soulmate was the real thing.

It wasn’t that you were indifferent to the whole soulmate story, the colours were just more important to you. No, you secretly loved the idea of soulmates, the idea that there was somebody out there who was perfect for you in every way and who you could share the rest of your life with. You wouldn’t have to feel alone anymore once you met them.

And as everyone grew older, and many of your classmates started to date – because suddenly they were repulsed by the idea of having the universe decide for them -, you still held on to that thread that would lead you to that perfect person. Because even though you understood their doubts about the whole soulmate idea, you trusted the universe in that decision.

It wouldn’t fail you, would it?

You remembered the day you finally saw colours for the first time, as if the exact moment was etched in your memory. It probably was.

It wasn’t the first time you’d been staring at the sky and imagining what it’d be like to see the different shades of what your parents called blue. You were waiting for something, maybe the bus, when suddenly everyone around you started buzzing more than usual. Something had happened, and a little further a crowd was gathering. It took you a moment before you noticed what the problem was exactly.

A scaffolding had collapsed, and two construction workerswere dangling from the edge of the building, both about to fall to their death. You were almost shocked to see that, except for one mother and a college student, no one really tried to help them. Of course you knew why - this was New York, so there would probably be a superhero somewhere in the neighbourhood who would save them.

Still, you couldn’t just wait and stare. That wasn’t in your nature. But before you could do something, an excited scream erupted from the crowd. People looked up to the sky as one, and you instinctively followed their gazes to see what had caused that reaction.

Next thing you knew, you could see it. Colours.

The first you saw was red, you would learn to know later. It was a flash of red that drew a line in the air, but it wasn’t the thing that caught your attention the most.

No, it was the sky. Because now you could finally see the heavenly blue you had dreamed of all your life, and it was so much more beautiful than you’d imagined.

Your eyes were wide as you stared in shock at the sky, so surprised that you only later realized how weird that must’ve looked for other pedestrians – but this was New York, no one probably even cared. And most of them were more focused on the collapsed building anyway.

It took a few seconds for the truth to settle in. You could see colours, so that meant … Realization hit you.You turned so abruptly you almost fell, but … You saw him. The guy in a blue and red suit. He’d managed to grab one of the workmenand bring him to safety, no idea how he’d done it. But then the other one’s hand slipped … and the masked superhero caught him mid-air, somehow swinging from a thin thread in his one hand, while his other held tight onto the surprised, but relieved construction worker.

When he’d brought the man safely to the ground, an applause rosefrom the crowds. But instead of welcoming the attention, like you knew Iron Man would most likely do, the guy seemed almost … perplexed by the positive reaction. First he stumbled backwards, but once he noticed that the people weren’t playing a stupid joke on him, he simply saluted a little awkwardly and exited the scene - swinging from building to building.

You were perplexed. Of course that had to happen to you, a soulmate with a red-blue onesie and weird superpowers.

At first you didn’t tell your parents about it. Well, you told them you’d seen your soulmate, that you could see colours now – they were almost more excited than you were, if that was even possible -, but you didn’t tell them whoit was. You told them you wanted it to stay your secret for a while, until you eased into it a little, and with your parents being amazing and supportive, they understood.

They didn’t have to know that you were not even sure who your soulmate was.

You quickly found out, though, because the next day Spiderman was thehot topic of your school. There was a new superhero in town!

Some of your classmates thought he had really cool powers – he was not a Thor or a Hulk, but still. Others were more interested in what he would look like under the mask – was he young? Old? Maybe he was really handsome!

And then your best friend asked what your opinion was on this new Spiderdude, and you made the mistake of telling the truth.

“I think he’s my soulmate.”

You’d never really been popular, but not a complete loser either. But those words were a terrible mistake, because somehow, nobody wanted to believe you. You understood their caution, but still. It wasn’t long before you were looked at differently, and everyone started making vicious comments on everything you did. Because if he really was your soulmate, why didn’t he know that as well?

And to be honest, you wanted to know the answer to that last one more than anyone. There was an obvious explanation actually, because that you saw himdidn’t mean he had seen you too. But it was common knowledge that it almost never happened that only one half of a soulmate duo started to see colours. So why would you be that exception?

When you came home from school a few days later, you told your parents the truth, and how nobody believed you. Your parents comforted you as well as they could, but you knew, you felt that they didn’t believe you either.

All those vile comments you received from classmates were eventually the reason you changed from school.

Peter Parker didn’t expect much to happen that day.

Some boring classes, Flash being a dick, Ned fanboying about his last night activities as Spiderman … He was tired anyway, so maybe he hoped that nothing much would happen.

Everything went all right – as all right as high school could be, that was -, but then it was lunch break, and his spidey senses were tingling. He probably should’ve paid more attention to it, but this was high school, which meant that danger was around every corner. It probably was just Flash about to call him ‘Penis Parker’ again.

Ned was rambling about the Star Wars movie he’d seen last night, when MJ appeared. Peter didn’t really know how it had happened, but Michele had become one of his best friends in a short time, even though it seemed like she could say nothing but sarcastic remarks. He liked that about her, though, she wasn’t afraid to say what she thought. She was the complete opposite of Ned, because she kept him with his feet on the ground. And he maybe needed that sometimes.

“So, guys, there’s a new girl at school and I’ve said she could sit with us.” Michele said it as if it was the most normal thing in the world, but both Peter and Ned knew better. It wasn’t like her to casually invite new people over.

She just took a bite from her sandwich when she noticed the boys staring at her. “What? She seems cool.”

A big smile appeared on Ned’s face. “I trust your judgement, MJ.” The girl threw him a weird look, to which Ned answered with an only bigger smile. Peter hadn’t known it was even possible.

His spidey senses started tingling right when Michele looked up. “Oh, there she is!” A genuine smile appeared on her lips, something both boys weren’t used to see on their friend. About just as much as seeing MJ waving to the person behind them.

When Peter turned around, the first thing he noticed were your eyes, that were anxiously looking around. The second thing was how your mouth curved into a small smile when you saw Michele, and how you trembled a little, nervous to be in this totally new environment.

It was only when he looked into your eyes again, that he noted something new. Your eyes didn’t look grey, like Ned’s or MJ’s, but he saw a twinkle and … a colour, only he didn’t know which colour he was looking at yet. But he didn’t mind, because it was the most beautiful thing he’d ever seen in his life. His eyes grew wide with understanding once he noticed that not only you, but everything else was suddenly so much brighter than it was before.

“Dude! Stop staring!” Ned pokedhim with his elbow, his excitement making the nudgea little too hard. But Peter didn’t care, because he didn’t feel like he could focus on anything other than the girl in front of him. You were the most beautiful person he’d ever seen, and maybe that was just because you were the first person he’d seen in colour. Or maybe he was a little biasedbecause you were his soulmate …

His soulmate. You were his soulmate.

“Ned.” Peter tried to tap his friend on the shoulder, but it was as if he couldn’t get his eyes of you, so he ended up patting him on the head instead. He didn’t care. “It’s her, Ned. It’s her!”

“What?”

“Boys.” MJ interrupted Ned, who Peter was sure was looking at him with confusion written over his face. Peter didn’t look, though, because his eyes were trained on the girl who was now standing in front of them, shy smile plastered on her pretty face.

“This is Y/N Y/L/N, she’s with me in English Literature.”

You felt your cheeks grew red at MJ’s introduction, even though there was literally nothing to be ashamed over. Both boys in front of you seemed sweet enough, although the one on the right was staring quite a bit at you. You dismissed it with a shake of your head and gave them a little wave. “Hi, I’m Y/N.”

You could mentally slap yourself. That was literally the first thing your new friend had said about you. “But of course you know that already, since Michele just told you.”

Way to go, Y/N. Way to make new friends!

But they didn’t seem to notice how awkward you felt. No, the boy on the left had the biggest smile on his face and waved cheerful before extending a hand to you. “Hi, I’m Ned!” He told you as you took his hand. If he shook your hand only a bit harder, you were sure it would fall right off.

The other boy didn’t react, he kept staring at you. It was starting to get a little uneasy, but then MJ slapped his arm and the boy shook up. With wide eyes, he looked around. “Wha-“ From the corner of your eyes, you saw Michele roll her eyes and give him a hand sign in your direction. The boy quickly extendedhis hand towards you. “I’m – I’m Peter. Sorry, I was  …“ He narrowed his eyes as he studied your face, searching for something. “- a little … distracted.”

“Hi.” You answered him with a small smile and went to sit down next to Michele. How could you blame the boy – Peter – for not being completely here with his thoughts? That was something you easily did all the time.

And these people seemed nice. Maybe your time on this school would be better than on your last one.

Hopefully.

How could it be that he saw colours, but you didn’t?

Peter had studied your face for minutes now, and you showed no sign that you’d just met your soulmate. No indication of seeing colour – none.

How?

“So, why did you change schools, Y/N?” It was MJ who’d asked the question, and Peter honestly couldn’t remember when was the last time she’d been this interested in someone. Although he must admit that he was pretty interested himself. Even if you weren’t his soulmate and him seeing colours was just an accident or a fault from the universe, you still seemed like an amazing person. He wanted to know more about you.

“Euhm –“ You were hesitant to answer the question, that much was obvious. But that didn’t take long. “My parents thought it’d be better to change schools, they think I’d be better prepared for university here.”

The words came out smoothly.  As if you’d been prepared for that question, and had repeated the answer way too much in your head.

Peter himself hadn’t said much yet to contribute to this conversation, but the mystery that surrounded you intrigued him. Maybe he could get more answers by just asking, instead of searching for them in your gorgeous eyes.

“So, Y/N.” He cleared his throat, to ask her why– why she didn’t seem astonished upon seeing him. Because she should’ve been, right? Seeing colours was not an everyday thing, it was special. Right?

You were looking at him with expectant eyes, he noticed then. And immediately decided he couldn’t ask what he wanted to know so badly. Because maybe you just didn’t want him to be your soulmate.

“So are you thinking about joining the decathlon team?”

“Hey bro, what’d you think about that new girl?” Ned had been excited all day, and Peter suspected it was because he loved meeting new people. Somehow, where Peter was anxious, Ned was physically incapable of having any negative feelings.

School had just ended and Ned had decided to come home with him, y’know, for some ‘guy in the chair’-business. Since aunt May had found out about his Spiderman-secret, she was so much more protective than she’d ever been before. But somehow she trusted him more when Ned was there to help him, because if Ned wanted to be the enthusiastic one, then Peter had to be the responsible one. Which made him hopefully much more careful. Her words.

And of course Mr. Stark was there to help him, too. Ned had now access to his personal number too if he ever needed it, because apparently even Mr. Stark trusted him more when Ned was by his side.

Which he was not sure was a compliment, or if he should feel a little offended by.

“Hey, man, what’s wrong?” Ned poked him, but real worry overtook his features. “You’ve been absent all day!”

Peter shook his head lightly. “It’s nothing, Y/N just confuses me a little.” It was not only that, he’d been completely distracted in every single class for the fact that he could see colours now. He didn’t know if was really a fault of the system, but for as long as he could see this new world, he wanted to take it in as much as he could. Although he had to admit it was also very much overwhelming.

“Yeah, that was really obvious.” Ned’s voice made Peter jump out of his daydreams – he had those a lot today – and look at his friend in bewilderment. Ned went on, he probably hadn’t even noticed that Peter’s thoughts had been wandering again. “Bro, you’re so smitten by her, it’s almost embarrassing. You’ve been staring at her the whole day!”

“No! No, I haven’t!” He was quick to defend himself, but he realised that he really had been staring at you a lot.

“Yeah, you have!” A smug look adorned his friend’s face, like always when he was certain he figured something out. “What, is she your soulmate or something?”

He had said it jokingly, but Peter only looked at him with determined eyes, a look that could not be misunderstood, not even by Ned. And yeah, Ned’s eyes widened almost immediately in understanding.

“She is?!”

“I don’t know, Ned!” Frustration coated Peter’s voice. “I started seeing colours when I saw her, but she doesn’t show any sign of seeing colours too! It’s confusing!”

“You can see colours.” It was as if Ned hadn’t understood a thing of what he just said, because he was staring at him in something that was almost close to awe. He had that same face when he’d found out about Spiderman. “You can see colours!”

Peter chuckled. Even if nothing seemed to go the way it had to, Ned’s excitement always managed to cheer him up, even just a little bit. “Yeah bro, that’s what I’m telling you.”

A big smile accompanied the enthusiastic look in his dark brown eyes. “Then am I really wearing red? Or is it not red? What does red look like? Did you hear music when you saw her, like in movies? Cause that would be so cool!”

“I don’t know!” Again, he chuckled, then tried to answer his best friend’s question as well as he could. Describing colours actually helped him not to think about Y/N for a while.

Maybe that had been Ned’s intention all along.

As if he sensed it, Ned looked up at Peter and threw him a reassuring smile. “Don’t worry, bro, I’m gonna find out for you tomorrow.”

Just your luck.

Stark had sent you, along with five other avengers, on an undercover field trip to Maine. He and Cap had some clues about a Hydra base somewhere in the area, and while the mission was going on, the six of you were stationed in a little motel. And of course there were only three free rooms with each one bed.

“I’d say we toss for it,” Wanda suggested.

You sighed. “Fine. As long as I don’t have to sleep with Barnes.”

Normally, you would’ve volunteered – you were good friends with Sam and Steve, and it was just sharing a bed, nothing more – but both boys had claimed one of the rooms for themselves. That meant one of you had to share a room with Bucky. And if there was anything you didn’t want …

Wanda and Natasha shot each other a look. They knew by now how much you disliked him, you almost didn’t talk about anything else. And that’s exactly why they were convinced there was something more about your feelings. After all, there’s only a fine line between hate and love.

They had made excuses about how both of them had a boyfriend, so it wasobvious that they just couldn’t sleep with another man, even if it was for a mission. But you were adamant, so tossing it was.

Natasha took the dice. “I’m one or two. Wanda is three or four.” She started shaking the object in her closed hands. “Y/N is five or six. Agreed?”

Both Wanda and you nodded, so Nat tossed the dice on the table in front of you. It rolled and rolled … and came to a stop.

“Which number is it?” You asked Wanda, because the dice was too far away for you to see.

Nat stretched her neck to take a look, then smirked at you. Wanda just tilted her head. You waited for their answer, but then it dawned on you. Your eyes widened.

“No.”

You weren’t surprised when the supersoldier opened the door and immediately turned with an exasperated sigh at the sight of you. He couldn’t stand you just as much as you couldn’t stand him, that was obvious.

How it had come that far, you had no idea. You actually quite liked Bucky when you first met him. But he was really competitive, and you were even more so. And so everything you did turned into a competition, to the point where the others were so annoyed that they all left the room whenever you and Bucky started bickering.

That, and then there was that annoying tension that you felt whenever you were near him.

Why they had agreed to put you two together, you couldn’t put your finger on it.

“Don’t worry, I’ll sleep on the ground if you want to.”

You turned from where you were brushing your hair in the bathroom mirror, and saw Bucky eyeing the rather small two-person bed. You just shrugged. “Fine.”

Laying the brush aside, you opened one of the wardrobes where you had seen the extra blankets, and threw them at the soldier, who glared at you. “Here you go. You should have enough with two.”

“It’s winter.”

“Aren’t you the Winter Soldier?” You snapped and crawled into the bed, making yourself comfortable between the warm blankets.

Bucky growled, but started making his arrangements on the floor. Ignoring his stumbling, you buried your face into the soft pillow and tried to sleep. Until finally, it was silent.

And then you heard Bucky groan again.

A soft sigh escaped your lips. “Can you please be quiet? I’m trying to sleep here.”

Bucky was annoyed, you heard it in his voice. “Yeah? Well so am I.” He turned again, which made the floor boards creaking. “You’re not special, doll.”

Another sigh. “Just -, Just come here.”

The creaking halted. “What?”

He sounded almost insecure, which you definitely weren’t used to. A ghost of a smile formed on your lips. “Just get in bed before I change my mind.”

It was silent for a moment, then you heard him move. Your eyes were closed, but you felt him scramble next to you in the bed. This was not kindness, you told yourself when you felt his warmth too close for your liking. This was only because he was an important part of the team and they needed him in the morning. He would be useless if he didn’t sleep enough and, more important, if he didn’t sleep, you wouldn’t sleep. And there was nothing you loved more than sleep.

His weight next to you shifted, and the cold metal of his arm brushed your skin. You hissed.

“Keep that thing away from me.”

He chuckled mockingly. “You mean my arm? The one that is attached to my body?”

You tried to look at him, but in the dark you only saw the contours of his shoulder-length hair and his bare chest, because obviously he had refused to wear any shirt, even in the cold. “Yes, that one exactly.”

Bucky turned to look at you, eyes glinting in the dark. “I thought you used to like it so much, doll.” His face was inching closer to yours. “What has changed?”

He knew damn well that something had changed between you, and the thick tension in the room was only an example. You turned to face the ceiling. “Your arm is freezing. So no, I don’t like it that much right now.”

Bucky didn’t answer, and the silence that fell between you two was more awkward than comforting. Your eyes were wide open, not able to sleep with that tension still as a blanket over you.

“I mean, I get it. It’s cold outside, so your metal arm is cold too. But shouldn’t it have warmed up by now. We’ve been inside for more than an hour!”

“Y/N …”

You were rambling, you knew it. But that was something you tended to do when you felt awkward, so you couldn’t stop. “And I feel how hot your body is –“

“I’m flattered, but –“

“So shouldn’t your arm at least warm up a little? If your body does, why not your arm? What is the logic behind it? It’s a machine, right?”

“Y/N, please stop.”

Bucky shifted again, but you didn’t pay him much attention, desperate to lower the awkwardness. “Then why doesn’t it warm up? I’m not an engineer, but –“

Suddenly you felt two hands on either side of your face, the difference of his warm flesh hand and his cold metal hand making you shiver. Your eyes widened when you saw Bucky hovering over you, his features much more visible now that he was so close. And then you felt his lips on yours.

At first you didn’t move, too shocked to do anything. But it was as if your body and your mind were completely separated, as your eyes closed and your hands tangled in Bucky’s hair. You melted into the kiss, slightly arching your back to give him more access. His metal hand moved to take yours, held it over your head and intertwined your fingers, while his other arm wrapped around your waist.

If you were honest with yourself, you had to admit that you had maybe thought about kissing Bucky once or twice. You had never thought it would be like this.

He tasted like mint, his mouth almost devouring you as if he would die without you. Your teeth softly bit in his lower lip and he let out a sinful moan.

You whined when he pulled away, only to attach his lips to your neck. A gasp escaped your lips when he sucked on that one particular place, the one that felt so good, and you were sure that it would leave an obvious bruise tomorrow. But you couldn’t find it in yourself to care.

All your previous thoughts about Bucky disappeared, until only one was left: you wanted more. You wanted this forever.

And then he stopped.

He pulled away, still hovering over you, searching for your eyes in the dark. His breathing was heavy, matching yours, and his eyes fell on the mark on your throat. The one he gave you.

“Y/N, I am so sorry. I didn’t … I’m sorry.”

His pupils were still blown with lust, voice hoarse and lips swollen, and you were positively sure he had never looked more handsome. All you wanted to do was to kiss him again. And maybe again.

“It’s okay.” You ran your fingers through your hair, slightly tangled from where his hands had been. “It’s … nothing, okay?”

He stared at you for a moment, searching for the lie, before nodding and laying back down. “If you say so.”

But you wished you hadn’t said so.

You turned away from him, trying to sleep. You tried, really, but your mind was still by what had happened earlier. How he kissed you, how he intertwined your fingers. How his lips felt in your neck and on your mouth, and how good he tasted. How you wanted to taste him again.

“I told you so!”

You woke up by something shifting under you, as if someone tried to steal your pillow away. A whine escaped your lips by the sudden daylight that shone through the windows, not wanting to get up yet. You shifted slightly, trying to shield away from the light.

Something wasn’t right.

You slowly opened your eyes. Nat and Sam were standing at the end of the bed, looking down at you. That wasn’t anything new, it was probably their turn to wake everyone up.

But it was their smirk that made you think something was wrong.

It was only when you turned your head and were met with Bucky’s shocked eyes staring down at you, that you realized why they had been grinning like idiots.

You were laying half on his bare chest, his metal arm around your shoulder and your legs intertwined. Eyes widening, you were immediately awake.

You bolted upright. “It is notwhat you think!”

Sam huffed. “Sure it isn’t.”

Meanwhile Nat’s smirk widened. “Then what is that?”

You had no idea what she was talking about, until she pointed at somewhere above your shoulders. Your thoughts immediately went back to the night before, to Bucky’s lips on your neck.

Your face heated up, embarrassed, while you glanced at Bucky. He looked as if he had no idea what to say, something you and him had in common, for once.

Six weeks since he’s been away.

It felt like an eternity already.

“Everything’s changed, Tom.” His heart broke at your cracked voice, and he imagined the tears welling up in your eyes. It killed him that he wasn’t there to comfort you. “It’s so much harder than I’d thought it would be.”

He sniffed, quiet enough that you wouldn’t hear it, or mistake it for his rapid breathing. You didn’t need him to be crying too, even though he wanted to. He needed to be strong for you.

“I know it is, darling. I know it is.” He inhaled deeply, trying to keep his breathing under control. “But I love you, and no distance between us will ever change that.”

A sob on the other end of the line, which made him pause. He didn’t want this for you. He wanted to be there for you.

“Y/N, please listen to me. I’ll be back as soon as possible, and when I’m back, I’ll never let you go again.” A tear streamed down his face, he hoped you wouldn’t hear it in his voice. “When I get home, I swear I’m gonna marry you, and I’ll never leave you again. If you want it or not.”

A broken laugh between the sobs. He loved your laugh.

“Promise?”

He nodded, even though you couldn’t see him. It helped if he pretended you were here.

“I’ll promise, Y/N.”

He hated the nights that he wasn’t able to call you. It was because of the time difference, he knew that – twelve hours was not nothing, it meant that whenever he went to bed you had just woken up. But he couldn’t help feeling guilty.

He felt like he left you alone, although he knew you wouldn’t blame him for any of it.

But just the thought of you lying alone at night, in a cold bed without him to keep you warm … He hated it. It made him question why he’d ever taken the job.

“No, Tom, you should take it! It’s a big deal, and it’s only a couple months. You know we can do this!” Your expression matched your voice; forced cheerfulness. No, he knew you were happy for him getting the job. It was only the distance that made you hesitate. He didn’t blame you, because he was probably even more reluctant than you were. He knew he would love the job, but never as much as he loved you.

“You really think we can do this?”

A genuine smile adorned your lips now, the smile you had when he was deep in thoughts and his face was all scrunched up. You said it was cute.

“Yes! Of course we can do this!” She took his hand. Tom loved the feeling of her small warm hand in his. “Just … See it as a test, okay? It’s a big relationship test and if we get through this, maybe I’ll think about marrying you.”

You threw him a wink, and the love he felt for you almost made him overlook the sadness in your eyes. Almost.

He had taken the offer. Now he wished he didn’t.

You were slipping through his fingers, it was almost painful to feel at this distance.

It was as if you were getting further away with every day you didn’t see each other.

He hated it.

“Maybe we were wrong. We weren’t ready.”

“No, Y/N, don’t say that. I love you.”

You had the good calls, the cheerful ones in which you both talked about your lives. About how nice the coffee shop around the corner had changed their interior, or how the actors he worked with were surprisingly friendly and not as stuck-up as he had expected them to be.

But then there were the calls where you would both be out of breath, ready to give up because you just couldn’t take it no more. It hurt.He wished he could just ignore it, but he couldn’t.

He was in physical pain just from your absence.

“Maybe we’re wasting time, Tom.” Your voice was unexpectedly steady, but he heard the fragility underneath.

For a moment, a short, almost insignificant moment, he was ready to agree. To give up. You were trying as hard as you could, but what if it wasn’t enough? What if this broken line wasn’t enough to keep you together?

He didn’t want to admit it, but even your beautiful face, something he’d never had any trouble imagining before, was slipping from his mind. The traces of your jaw were blurry, your hair may or may not have been the right length – who knew, maybe you even cut it. For a second, a truly terrifying second, he even forgot which colour your eyes were.

Maybe you were right. Maybe you both had changed so much in this time he’d been away, you were almost strangers to each other.

Maybe it wasn’t worth fighting for.

No.

“I’m not giving up on you, Y/N.”

Because if you weren’t worth fighting for, then what was?

A text message woke him up.

Love<3: Babe, you won’t believe who I just saw!

You’d attached a picture, and a big smile appeared on his face when he saw what you meant. The screen lit up with another text from you.

Love<3: It’s your frog!🐸

The little frog was almost hidden entirely behind your hair, and your eyes were sparkling at the camera while you pointed to the little creature. You were terrible at taking selfies with the new phone you bought, and he loved you for it. Your face was way too close and the frog way too small in the image. Tom imagined you telling him that it was just your artistic freedom, a new way of photography.

Me: Tell him I said hi!😂<3

Maybe this was as good as you were ever gonna get.

It wasn’t much, but it was with you.

The lights seemed to laugh at him.

Japan. From New Zealand to Japan. His return was delayed for another few weeks filming in Japan, while you were still waiting for him in London.

He’d called you. You got mad at him. He couldn’t blame you.

He made a promise, now he couldn’t keep it.

Your fight had ended hours ago, with a sleepy goodbye from you, your voice still hurt. A click when you ended the call, and only then did he let his tears flow freely.

You knew he would always wait for you.

Now he wondered if you would wait for him, too.

You were running out of time, and it scared him to lose you more than anything.

The tears were the hardest. He could hear it, even over the phone.

You just wanted this to be over.

And if it meant you had to move on, so be it.

You never said it out loud though, but he could hear it.

You shouldn’t have gone.He told it himself every night. Every day. Why did he ever leave you? He wanted to go home more than anything, to take you in his arms, kiss you with every single drop of passion he had to offer. He wanted to marry you, as he had promised.

It was too hard to stay away. He didn’t think he could do it any longer.

His agent got mad when he asked for a few free days. Didn’t he get enough free days? He did, no arguing with that. But every few days one day off … the moment he finally got on a plane he already had to be back on set.

It was too hard to stay away. Maybe it would be better if he just let you go.

Six months since he went away.

Six months was a long time without seeing each other, without touching each other, feeling each other’s warmth. Everything had changed, there was no denying in that. The only thing he knew that hadn’t changed in the slightest, was his always burning, overwhelming love for you.

He hoped you still returned that love.

That was what he thought when he stood at your front door. Your shared front door. A small smile played on his lips when his eyes fell on the little name tag with both your names on it. Another thing that hadn’t changed.

He hadn’t told you when he would be back. First because he wanted to surprise you, but now he was getting afraid. What if it wasn’t as it had been before?

But he knew his love for you hadn’t changed a thing. Now he hoped your love for him was still there.

Only one way to find out.

Tom took a deep breath as he slipped his hand in his pocket. His fingers curled around the small metal band, and he envisioned the small stone gleaming almost as bright as your eyes did. Another breath, and he pushed the doorbell.