I love you work so much! ššš I was wondering if I could request a sub!bucky smut where maybe he's inexperienced after being in hydra for so long and is scared and whimpers (I swear bucky whimpering is one of the seven wonders of the world) and maybe he cums in his pants or smth? If that's not something you're into no worries! I wish you the best all the same! š«¶š«¶š«¶
calm in wakanda.
synopsis: youāre sent by steve rogers to keep an eye on bucky barnes as he rehabilitates in wakanda. in a moment of tender vulnerability, bucky experiences the touch he thought he no longer deserved.
warnings: 18+ explicit content ahead, minors do not interact, clothed sex, dry humping, sub!bucky, inexperienced!bucky, touch starved!bucky, whimpering, soft praise kink, hurt/comfort, mentions of hydra and ptsd, feelings of unworthiness, gentle aftercare, soft smut but heavy emotional intimacy <3
word count: 3.2K
bucky barnes masterlist
Wakanda was never quiet in the way you expected.
Even in its stillness, there was always sound ā the soft chirp of birds, the wind through the trees, the hum of distant vibranium pulses in the earth. Youād assumed a nation so advanced would feel cold, sterile. But it was alive in every sense. Organic. Vibrant. Peaceful.
It made Bucky Barnes feel even more like a ghost.
You saw him for the first time across a sun-drenched courtyard, pacing slow circles in the sand. He wasnāt wearing a uniform. No weapons. Just that red tunic tied low on his hips and a look on his face that wasnāt quite grief, but not quite peace either. His hair had been longer than you remembered from the footageātied back, unruly. He looked like a man who didnāt know what to do with stillness. Like someone who hadnāt yet decided if he deserved it.
Steve hadnāt said much when he asked you to go.
āI just think he needs someone who wonāt see him as a threat,ā he told you. āShuri and the Dora are doing their part, but heās⦠withdrawing. And I trust you.ā
You werenāt sent to fix him.
Just to observe. To monitor his mental and emotional rehabilitation after the cryo sleep. To make sure the Winter Soldier wasnāt clawing his way back through cracks in Buckyās mind.
But after two weeks, your reports were thin. There wasnāt much to say. He didnāt speak unless spoken to. He trained, bathed, ate. He never complained. Never smiled. Never asked for anything. You couldnāt tell if that was progress or survival.
Still, you tried.
You left books by his door. Sat nearby during meals without pushing conversation. You offered him simple thingsātea, an extra blanket, help braiding his hair when it fell into his face during sparring. Sometimes he accepted. Sometimes he didnāt. But you never forced it. You let the silence grow soft between you.
Eventually, he began walking with you in the mornings.
Then he started sitting near you during evening meals.
He still didnāt talk much, but his presence shiftedājust slightly. Less rigid. Like his muscles had stopped bracing for impact. Like he was finally letting the quiet sink in.
And somewhere between the long silences and careful smiles, a rhythm formed.
You stopped seeing him as an assignment.
And he started looking at you like a tether. Something grounding. Familiar.
Something safe.
Thatās what tonight was supposed to be. Just another quiet evening. Another layer of slow trust.
You made dinnerāsomething simple with vegetables from the garden, rice soaked in ginger brothāand he came to your quarters without you asking. He always did now. He never knocked anymore.
You sat close on the floor cushions afterward, sipping tea and listening to the rain as it whispered against the window panes. Youād put on a movie for background noiseāsomething old and grainy, all velvet tones and longing staresābut neither of you had been watching.
You were too aware of him.
The weight of his thigh near yours. The fall of his hair over his cheek. The scarred line where his metal arm used to be, shadowed by the low flicker of lamplight.
And thenā
His hand brushed yours.
Fleeting. Unintended.
But it lingered.
And that was when you knew: something had changed.
It wasnāt in his postureāhe still sat stiffly beside you, legs pulled up, red tunic falling loosely around the slope of his shoulder. It wasnāt in his breathing, though that had gone quiet, shallow. It was in his stillness.
Bucky only got still like that when something in him was breaking.
The movie flickered across the wall, all forgotten dialogue and soft music. You sat cross-legged, a mug of now-cold tea cradled in your hands, and you could feel the weight of him beside you. Tense. Heavy. Waiting.
And then, softlyālike he wasnāt sure if the words were real or notā
āI want to touch you.ā
You blinked.
Your head turned slowly to face him, and his blue eyes were already on you, wide and glassy and afraid. Like the moment the words left his mouth, he regretted them.
āBucky,ā you said gently. āWhat do you mean?ā
He flinched. You felt it ripple through him, a shudder just beneath the surface of skin. He sat up straighter, pulled his knees in a little tighter. Like he was preparing to run. Or disappear.
āNothing,ā he muttered. āForget it.ā
āNo,ā you said, quieter now. āDonāt do that. Donāt shut down. Talk to me.ā
āI justāā He looked away. His jaw clenched. āI shouldnāt have said it. Iām sorry.ā
You reached for him slowly, not touching until you were sure he wouldnāt flinchāand when you rested your hand on his arm, his only arm, he froze.
Not pulling away.
Not leaning in.
Just still.
The fabric beneath your hand was soft and worn from countless washings, still warm from his skin. You felt the tension beneath it. Felt how tightly he held himself together.
āWhere?ā you asked plainly.
āWhat?ā Buckyās voice was barely above a whisper.
You swallowed. āWhere do you want to touch me?ā
Then, he turned his head toward you. His eyes flicked up, searching your face like he didnāt believe this was real. And thenāwithout a wordāthey dropped to your lips.
You didnāt move. Didnāt speak.
Just watched.
āOh,ā you whispered, the word catching softly in your throat. āOh.ā
He didnāt say anything. Didnāt need to.
You leaned in slowlyāso slowly he couldāve stopped you a dozen timesāand you kissed him.
It was soft at first. Barely there. A test. A question. But then he answered.
He pressed back with a quiet desperation, the barest tremble running through his lips. His hand came upānot sure where to go, not quite touching youāand then dropped back down to his lap, like he didnāt trust himself. You shifted closer, let your fingers slide up the side of his neck, into his hair. He gasped, and the sound shot straight through you.
The kiss deepened.
His breath hitched, and you could feel the way his body reacted, the way he leaned toward you like it was involuntary.
When you finally pulled back, just an inch, his eyes fluttered open, dazed.
āIs that what you meant?ā you asked.
He nodded, throat bobbing. āYeah.ā
āWas that your first kiss sinceā¦?ā you asked gently.
He nodded again, slower this time.
You cupped his face with both hands, warm and steady. āIt was nice.ā
Buckyās cheeks flushed crimson. āOkay.ā
āI thoughtā¦ā You paused, hands now folding in your lap, unsure how to finish the sentence without breaking the spell. āI didnāt think you were interested.ā
That caught his attention. Youād positioned it like it was something youād considered before. Something youād thought about.
His brow furrowed, lashes sweeping low, lips parting with a breath you werenāt sure heād meant to release.
āInterested?ā he echoed, voice faint.
You gave a gentle, awkward shrug. āI just mean⦠you never said anything. Never looked at me like that. I thought you didnātāā
āI did,ā he interrupted, and then flinched at his own urgency. His cheeks flushed a deep, unmistakable pink.
āI do,ā he corrected, quieter now. āI just⦠I didnāt know if I was allowed to.ā
You stared at him for a moment, stunned by the fragility of his voice. The way he looked like he wanted to sink into the floor.
āBuckyā¦ā you whispered, breath catching.
He shook his head, not in disagreement, but like he was trying to shake something loose. Shame, maybe. Fear. Whatever tightly-wound thread had kept him holding back until now.
āI didnāt mean to confuse you,ā he said, rubbing the back of his neck with a shaky hand. āI justāIāve been quiet so long I forgot how to ask for what I want. And with you⦠I was afraid if I said something, it would ruin this. Whatever this is. I mean, itās probably nothing. I just overthink. Iām so used to being in my own head all the time. I know Steve sent you to watch me⦠and that Iām just an assignment to you. Iām so stupid, Iāā
āBucky, stop.ā
You looked at him, really looked. The slope of his shoulders under the red tunic, the way he held himself like he was always bracing for rejection. Youād known him long enough to understand the signs. He didnāt trust easily, not even himself.
āDo you really think I wouldāve pushed you away?ā you asked, gently.
He hesitated. Then nodded. A tiny, reluctant motion.
And there it wasāthe heart of him, cracked open in a single gesture.
Because this was the version of Bucky that few ever saw. Not the assassin. Not the ghost Steve mourned or the asset Hydra forged. But the man in-between. The one still learning how to occupy his own skin. The one who watched your hands when you spoke, not to scan for weapons, but because he liked the way you moved. The one who hadnāt touched anyone in yearsānot because he didnāt want to, but because he didnāt believe he deserved to.
He was confident once, you knew that. Youād read the files. The charming kid from Brooklyn who could smooth-talk his way into any bar or out of any fight. The man whoād winked at nurses and swaggered into battle like death had no teeth. But confidence was a muscle, and war had atrophied it. Hydra had severed it completely.
Now he was relearning. Piece by piece. Hesitant. Vulnerable.
But stillāhe was trying.
āI didnāt think youād want someone like me,ā he said suddenly, gaze fixed on the floor. āNot when Iām like this. No arm. All this history. All these⦠cracks.ā
You moved before you could think, reaching for him. Your hand found his knee, grounding, steady.
āBucky,ā you whispered. āYouāre not broken.ā
He glanced up. Just barely. His throat bobbed.
āI donāt feel whole,ā he admitted.
āThatās okay,ā you said. āYou donāt have to be whole for me to care about you.ā
He exhaled thenālike a storm letting go of the wind. His hand reached for yours again, trembling less this time.
āEvery time you touched me,ā he murmured, āI wanted more. Even if it was just the brush of your hand or the nudge of your shoulder⦠I⦠I felt it everywhere.ā
You brushed your thumb across the back of his fingers, voice barely audible.
āThen take more.ā
He looked at you like he wasnāt sure heād heard you right.
So you leaned in, kissed him againāgently, slowly, no pressure.
And this time, he didnāt pull back.
He leaned into it.
Opened his mouth under yours with a small, aching noise that shot heat straight down your spine. His hand curled into the fabric at your waist, tugging you a little closer, still unsure but needing somethingāneeding you.
And in that moment, it didnāt matter how long heād been silent. Or how many pieces he still hadnāt put back together.
Right here, with the soft press of his lips and the low, desperate catch in his throatā
He was present.
He was real.
And he was yours to hold.
He kissed you like he was afraid it wouldnāt happen again.
Slow, aching, breathlessālike the taste of your lips was something heād memorised in dreams but never believed heād actually have. His handāhis only handāmoved from your waist to your side, unsure, then back again, like he didnāt know where to keep it. The fabric of your shirt bunched under his fingers.
You deepened the kiss just slightly, just enough to part his lips and let your tongue brush his, and that was all it tookāhe gasped, a soft, guttural sound that punched from his chest and made your body tighten in response. His mouth chased yours before he realised it, breath stuttering.
His cheeks flushed instantly. āShitāsorryāā
āDonāt be,ā you whispered against his lips. āYouāre doing perfect.ā
That praise nearly broke him.
He looked dazed. His eyes were glassy, lashes fluttering, lips pink from kissing. You could see the war behind themāthis tug-of-war between instinct and shame, between want and permission. His thighs were pressed together, rigid, and he kept shifting his hips like he couldnāt not chase friction.
āCan Iā¦ā he asked hoarsely, voice low, forehead almost touching yours. āCan I touch you?ā
You nodded, and he exhaled, like that one word cost him everything.
His palm slid beneath your shirtābare skin to bare skin. Hesitant. Reverent. You felt the pads of his fingers trace along your ribs, the heel of his hand trembling as he moved higher. You kissed the corner of his mouth, his jaw, the scarred edge of his neck. His hips jerked at that, and you felt the way his cock pressed against the inside of his pantsāhard, twitching, aching.
āFuckāsorryāI didnāt mean toāā He was already panting, already flustered, eyes wide and overwhelmed.
āHey,ā you murmured, brushing your nose against his. āItās okay. Donāt apologise. Thatās your body telling you what it wants.ā
His hand tightened at your waist. āI havenāt wanted like this in so long,ā he whispered. āNot like this. Not where it was mine to feel.ā
Your heart cracked right open.
You climbed into his lap without thinking, straddling him gently, careful not to overwhelm. His breath hitchedāsharply. His thighs tensed beneath you, his head falling back just slightly as your weight settled in his lap.
āIs this okay?ā you asked.
He nodded quickly. āYeah. Yeahāplease.ā
You cupped his face and kissed him again. This time he kissed back with more urgency, his lips parting beneath yours, his breathing already quickening. You let your hips shift, just a little ā the barest drag of your body over his.
The sound he made was devastating. A low, desperate moan that caught halfway in his throat, as if it surprised him.
You did it again, slower this time. His hand slid from your waist to your hip, gripping like he was afraid youād pull away.
āFeels good?ā you murmured.
He nodded, eyes squeezed shut, forehead pressing to yours. āToo good.ā
You smiled against his mouth. āThatās the point.ā
You rocked against him again, and the friction was undeniable ā the heat of his body through the thin barrier of his pants, the way he shifted up into you instinctively. Each small grind pulled a different sound from him: a sharp inhale, a broken whimper, a soft curse under his breath.
āGodāā he gasped, his voice rough and breathless. His hips twitched, chasing you without thought.
āThatās it,ā you whispered. āDonāt think. Just feel.ā
His blush deepened, his jaw going slack as you moved against him in a slow, steady rhythm. You kept the pressure constant, the pace gentle, enough to let him sink into it without fear. But his body was already betraying him ā trembling thighs, shallow breaths, the faintest, uncontrollable jerks of his hips beneath you.
āFuck, Iāā His voice cracked. āI canātāā
You rolled your hips again, slower but harder this time, and his head tipped back against the cushions. A choked sound escaped him, high and helpless.
āBucky,ā you breathed, lips brushing his ear. āYou donāt have to hold it in.ā
His hand fisted in the fabric at your hip. āIāshitāno, Iāmāā
āLet go,ā you murmured, your voice firm and warm at once. āItās okay. Iāve got you.ā
That broke him.
He gasped ā a ragged, desperate sound ā and his hips jerked up into you in short, stuttering thrusts. The warmth spread quickly between you as he came, his whole body trembling violently. A strangled whimper caught in his throat as he buried his face in your shoulder, trying to hide.
You stayed with him, moving your hand to the back of his neck, holding him through every shudder.
āThatās it,ā you whispered. āGood boy. So good for me.ā
He was shaking.
His arm curled around you, fingers digging into your back, holding you like he was scared youād vanish. His voice was wrecked against your neck.
āIām sorry,ā he choked out. āI didnāt mean toāfuck, I didnāt thinkāā
You shushed him softly, stroking his hair.
āDonāt apologise,ā you murmured. āYou needed that. Didnāt you?ā
He nodded. Slowly. Breath still catching in his throat.
āI didnāt think it would feel that good,ā he admitted, voice ragged. āI didnāt think I was allowed to have that anymore.ā
āYouāre allowed,ā you said, pulling back to look him in the eye. āYouāre allowed to want. Youāre allowed to feel. It doesnāt make you weak.ā
His eyes brimmed with something heavy. Gratitude. Relief. Grief.
You kissed his forehead.
āNext time,ā you whispered, āwe take our time. And I show you just how good it can be.ā
He let out a small, wrecked noise in response. Something between a breath and a sob, though it never fully formed. You could feel his eyelashes flutter against your skin, the heat of his cheeks blooming pink under the dim golden light.
āI didnāt mean to make a mess,ā he said quietly.
You kept stroking your fingers through his hair, slow and rhythmic.
āI like the mess,ā you murmured. āIt means you let go.ā
He shiveredāfull-bodyāand you realised just how much heād been holding in. Not just tonight. All of it. The months of silence. The years of suppression. The tight, angry coil of shame that wrapped around every thread of pleasure and told him he wasnāt allowed to want.
You leaned back slightly and cupped his jaw, gently guiding him to look at you.
His eyes were glassy. Red-rimmed. He looked undone in the most beautiful way.
āI donāt want you to be embarrassed,ā you said, brushing your thumb along his cheek. āNot with me.ā
āIām not used to⦠this,ā he whispered. āBeing touched like I matter.ā
You felt it like a punch to the heart.
āYou do matter,ā you said, firm and low. āYouāre not just something Hydra made. Youāre not a soldier, or a weapon. Youāre James Buchanan Barnes and you deserve softness.ā
His throat bobbed.
Thenāso quietly it nearly broke youāhe asked:
āCan I stay here?ā
You nodded without hesitation. āOf course you can.ā
He exhaled shakily, and you could tell he was trying to keep it together. That old Winter Soldier reflex: contain, suppress, control. But it was slipping. He was raw and unguarded, and that was okay.
You kissed the side of his head. āCāmere.ā
You helped him shift out from under you slowly, guiding him down to lay across the cushions. You tugged a soft blanket from the back of the couch and draped it over his waist, then curled beside him, pulling his head into your chest. His arm wrapped around your torso automatically, instinctive, and the sound he made when you carded your fingers through his hair again was devastatingālike he didnāt know people were allowed to be touched like that.
Like he hadnāt known until now that he needed it.
You scratched lightly at his scalp, whispered quiet affirmations as his breathing slowly steadied. Every once in a while, heād whisper your nameānot asking anything, not expecting a response. Just saying it. Holding onto it.
As if your name was the only anchor he had in a body that finally, finally belonged to him again.
You held him until he drifted off in your arms.
And even then, you didnāt let go.
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