Stucky oneshots

Overstimulated

TW: possible trigger for self-harm/suicide

It was team bonding night. Everyone was on the main floor of the compound. Bucky, Steve, Clint, Peter, and Tony were playing Monopoly, Bruce, Natasha, Scott, Wanda and Vision were baking in the kitchen, and Sam, Thor, Rhodey and Stephen were playing a card game.

"No! That's cheating! You can't make rent that high!" Clint yelled, slapping Tony's hands away from his pile of Monopoly money.

Tony quickly grabbed the pile and began counting what he was owed. "It's not cheating, it's business management 101. And you now have $3 left. Congratulations." He smirked as he handed Clint back the three white papers.

"I hate it here!" Clint groaned dramatically as Peter laughed, high-fiving Tony.

Bucky faked a smile at the scene, trying very hard to not flinch at the yelling and noise. Steve looked at him as if in deep thought but didn't say anything.

"Your turn, Capsicle." Tony informed Steve as Clint passed the dice to him.

Suddenly the lights turned off and Scott ran in screaming being chased by Natasha.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry! Why are the lights off? Oh God, she's going to kill me and I won't see it coming! Ahhh! Please! Ow, ow, ow, please stop!" He screamed before Rhodey turned the lights back on and revealed Natasha pinning him down on the floor with a knife held to his chin.

"Jesus, chill out. What's going on?" Sam asked nonchalantly as if this was a regular thing.

"He ate my leftovers that were clearly marked." She explained, applying slight pressure to the knife and drawing a bit of blood.

"They were leftovers, not your life savings. Don't kill him over it." Clint told her as she released Scott from her hold.

"Fine. I won't this time." She sighed disappointedly.

Steve glanced worriedly at Bucky, seeing him incredibly on edge. He was shaking and clearly trying very hard to control his breathing. Everything that had just happened was loud and sudden and overwhelming and Bucky was clearly not okay with it.

Music then began playing loudly as it was turned on from the kitchen. Then a timer went off. Then Thor and Rhodey began arguing loudly over the rules of their game.

Bucky's head was spinning and he wanted to scream. He worked hard to practice the breathing exercises he learned from Sam to calm himself down. After that failed, he tried to ground himself with the technique Rhodey taught him. It wasn't working though, none of his coping mechanisms were working for him. He was too overwhelmed and overstimulated in the environment.

He tried to just tough it out and act like he was fine. He tried hard to refocus on the game he was supposed to be playing and the people around him. But there was so much surrounding noise going on that he couldn't make himself tune out.

More laughing, more music, more timers, more yelling. His senses were enhanced anyway due to the serum and there was just so much going on. Every time he tried to listen to one conversation, other ones caught his attention and the cycle continued viciously.

"...you don't know you're wrong, but you're wrong..."

"...and I swear to God, if you touch my leftovers ever again, I..."

"...can't burn the cookies this time..."

"...just look at your properties, dumbass..."

"...that movie was no where near as good as the original..."

"...wouldn't matter whether a dog could sit if it could drive a car..."

"...would rather slit my wrists than pay you rent..."

That was it. That phrase sent him over the edge, as it triggered him to think about his battle with self-harm and suicidal thoughts on top of being way too overstimulated.

Steve had noticed Bucky looking a little lost and in his head for awhile but didn't want to baby him or make a big deal about it in front of everyone. Suddenly he felt Bucky grab his hand under the table and squeeze it tightly.

He looked at him and saw his eyes were shut tight and his face was pale. He was breathing heavily and sweating and looked both scared and sick. Steve had to get him out of there.

"I think we forgot to get clothes out of the washer. Buck, come with me so I can show you how to work the dryer. Nobody touch my money." He warned everyone before walking away from the Monopoly game, still holding Bucky's hand.

They got to the elevator and just as the doors closed all the way, Bucky fell to his knees with a pained scream as tears streamed down his face.

"It's okay, baby. You're okay." Steve assured him quietly, pressing the emergency button on the elevator to make it stop. He kneeled beside his husband but didn't touch him in fear of further overwhelming him.

"I-I'm sorry...everything was-it was too much!...the-the music and yelling and-and laughing..." Bucky made out through his sobs, breathing heavily still.

"I know, it's alright. It's okay now." Steve softly reassured him. "Can I touch you?" He asked, wanting to pull Bucky into a hug but not unless he was ready.

Bucky shook his head 'no' quickly, knowing any additional stimuli would make him feel worse. "Just...just need everything to-to stop."

"Okay." He nodded in understanding, watching helplessly as Bucky squeezed his eyes shut and used his hands to cover his ears in a desperate attempt to block everything out.

After nearly twenty minutes, he opened his eyes and uncovered his ears slowly. He looked at Steve, who was patiently sitting a few feet away, before averting his gaze to the floor and sighing softly.

"I'm sorry." He whispered, embarrassed and disappointed in himself.

"Don't be sorry, Buck. Do you feel any better?" He asked quietly, knowing their enhanced senses could be a lot sometimes, especially in busy environments.

He shrugged. "A little bit. It's calmer and quieter in here." He stared at the floor still, hating himself for dragging Steve away from team bonding night.

Steve knew he was feeling guilty and sighed sadly, wishing he could magically make him feel better. He unstopped the elevator and took them up to their floor. When the doors opened, Bucky looked up and saw their living area.

"Come on, baby. Let's go lay down." Steve smiled at him, not wanting to stay in the elevator too long in case someone else tried to use it.

Bucky got up slowly and walked to the couch. "You don't have to stay with me. I'll be okay. You can go back to the main floor with everyone. Just...don't tell them."

Steve shook his head. "I'm not leaving you. Besides, you know Tony and Peter already stole our Monopoly money." He smiled lightly before sitting down beside him on the couch, leaving some space between them in case Bucky didn't want to be touched yet. "Friday, tell everyone we're calling it an early night and not to bother us."

"On it, Captain Rogers." Friday replied before doing as instructed.

Bucky, feeling less overstimulated, laid down with his head in Steve's lap. "Thank you." He whispered, closing his eyes.

"Tell me earlier next time and we can come back to our floor before it gets to this point, okay?" Steve spoke softly as he gently played with his hair.

Bucky hummed softly. "Okay." He began to drift off to sleep, his brain exhausted and needing rest. He tried to fight it and stay awake but Steve could tell.

"Sleep, sweetheart. Let yourself rest. I'm not going anywhere." He assured him, continuing to play with his hair as his eyes closed and he fell asleep.