Little Secrets, Little Bucky

Cowboys Don't Get Jealous

The next day, Bucky's family surprised him with a day at the fair. Sam and Steve had seen that it was on their way to California and couldn't resist suggesting it to Y/n, who thought it was a great idea. It was the day before his birthday and so they had decided that it would be a nice surprise.

They wandered around for a while, getting a feel for where the exits, entrances, and attractions were before they started to enjoy themselves. It was a habit ingrained in each of them after the years spent in dangerous situations. As they were passing by the carnival games, Bucky saw something incredibly important. It was a stuffed horse, just about the size of Benny. It was wearing a little cowboy hat and he felt his little self trying to surface as he stared at it. Pretty. Soft. He finally tore his gaze away from it when he heard Y/n talking.

"You okay?" She laughed, smiling at the sweet look on his face. He clearly wanted the toy, but she wanted to see if he'd admit to it.

"It's kind of a cool horse, don't you think?" Bucky asked shyly, rubbing the back of his neck. "You know with the hat and all."

"It's awesome," Sam chimed in. "Maybe we can come back when we finish scanning the place and try to win it."

"Really? We can?" Bucky asked, flushing red as he realized how excited he sounded.

"Sure!" Steve said. "Let's finish up quick!"

By the time they had come back around to the game, the toy was gone and Bucky felt a small pang of disappointment. I wanted it so bad. But the disappointment quickly faded as he reminded himself that it was just a toy.

"Hey, how about a friendly competition?" Steve called out, handing over a couple game tickets to the booth worker. "Whoever gets the most points gets to pick where we have dinner tonight!"

Sam and Bucky happily agreed, but Y/n was preoccupied. Bucky saw her talking to a strange man, who had approached her with the stuffed animal he had seen earlier. He was smiling at her and for just a moment Bucky felt sick. Mine. No. Not his. He tore his gaze away and watched as Steve and Sam took their turns, ignoring the pit in his stomach.

When it was Bucky's turn he stepped up confidently to the ring toss and accepted his rings. "Watch and learn boys!" He said to Sam and Steve, a cocky grin spreading across his face. He threw them one by one, easily meeting his target every time. The booth worker gave him his prize, a cone of cotton candy, and he handed it over to a little girl that had been watching them play. She thanked him quietly before running back to her group and he turned back to his friends to brag about his perfect score.

"Did you see that?" He shouted excitedly, glancing at Y/n for her reaction. She must be so proud of him. But she wasn't looking at him at all. She had accepted the toy that the stranger had offered her and was talking to him with a smile on her face. Bucky felt his stomach drop as Y/n scribbled on a scrap of paper that she fished out of her pocket. Was she really giving that guy her phone number? He glanced over to see that Steve had clearly picked up on the jealousy that was flooding through his system, as the other man was heading straight for him.

"What, you mad he didn't ask for your number too?" Steve joked, clearly trying to lighten the tension. Bucky scowled at him. "C'mon Buck lighten up. Some random guy won't take Y/n away from you, there's no need to be jealous."

"I'm not jealous, Steve." Bucky gritted out, wincing as the whirring of his arm betrayed his words. "She's not mine."

"Maybe not officially," Steve scoffed.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Bucky asked, finally tearing his gaze away from where Y/n was chit chatting with the strange man.

"Dude how many times do I have to tell you? You mean literally everything to my sister." Steve said. "Like burn down the world to make you smile, go to jail because someone insulted you kind of everything. But you can't keep pretending that you don't want this with her."