𝙼𝚢 𝙴𝚞𝚙𝚑𝚘𝚛𝚒𝚊 ✰ 𝙱𝚞𝚌𝚔𝚢𝚡𝚁𝚎𝚊𝚍𝚎𝚛

Chapter 16

Dresses were never Y/n's thing, and neither were parties. Nat would always tell her that her hatred towards them was mutual, but she hid it well. In fact, watching her toss her head back in laughter, enjoying every second of her birthday party, only convinced Y/n that Nat had grown to love these parties. The Avengers were her family after all. This was her home, and these were her people.

Y/n glanced down at her outfit and half smiled. A navy-blue dress that loosely fell just above her knees, with some heels that only rose an inch and a half or so off the ground, unlike the stilettos Wanda had suggested.

"Why not a tighter dress?" She remembered Maria pester last time Tony threw a party. "You don't have to, but you'd look absolutely gorgeous."

If only it were that simple.

The nasty scars, the insecurities. It was enough to overlap any possibility of feeling comfortable enough.

"Hey Y/n? Are you okay?"

She turned to see Tony beaming with his party hat slightly crooked on his head. Y/n chuckled and pushed it so it was straight. "I'm doing fine... great actually. How's Nat doing?"

"Better than I expected." He smirked. "She was threatening me to take down the decorations, but after a few shots, not a word about them."

He yelped as he felt someone pull him towards the dance floor, giving Y/n a thumbs up before disappearing into the crowd. With that, she stood alone in the corner once again.

She swirled around the glass of tequila in her hand which, as a matter a fact, did nothing to her super soldier body. As much as Thor's offer of Asgardian Mead tempted her, there wasn't a point. Getting drunk wasn't what she needed right now.

Her eyes drifted to the balcony, completely vacant. "Score." She muttered to herself thankfully.

The cool, evening air hit her face as she slid the sleek, glass door open. The music muffled as she slid it closed behind her, becoming white noise.

From living in the low-income suburbs to the Stark tower in New York City. What else was there to ask for? The view never failed to be completely overwhelming.

"Is that tequila doing anything for you?"

Y/n let out a small gasp as Bucky appeared from behind her. She clenched her jaw as her eyes went to his suit, defining his build in all the right places. It wasn't often that she saw him this classy. He usually skipped the parties entirely.

"What are you doing out here?" She mumbled, turning back to the city view.

"The music got even louder. I can't even hear myself talk without yelling." He chuckled lightly, joining her gaze next to her. "I take it parties aren't your thing either."

Y/n shrugged. "Nah. I mean, I went to a few in high school, but they weren't special."

"Well, I'll tell you one thing, the parties I used to go to were pretty fun." Y/n turned her head, shifting her attention to him fully. "Like how?"

"Well, the music was lively and catchy. You'd dance around with your friends or a nice dame and be smiling all night. Then sometimes the music would get a little slower, romantic." He began to trail off. "And the lucky guys would be slow dancin' with the prettiest gals they've ever seen."

Y/n couldn't help but giggle, noticing his forties, Brooklyn accent tainted in his words. "Sounds like fun."

They fell into a silence, the faint sound of rushing cars and pop music sounding around them.

"So you don't like these kinds of parties then?"
Y/n questioned. "With all the smoke and loud music?"

He shook his head, a grin playing on his lips. "I guess it's... not the same." The bass of the music inside boomed around them.