Neighbors

A Couple Drinks

"Hey! Sorry we're late, we hit a pocket of traffic," you lied as Charlie greeted the two of you at the door. "You know how 395 is, it's always packed with tourists." Bucky kept his amusement to himself, knowing very well that you hadn't touched the interstate for that exact reason, but it was a better excuse than what had actually happened in your apartment. And with his track record of being a terrible liar, you took the lead on this one while he kept quiet, which wasn't out of character for either of you.

"Oh, I should have told you! It's faster to go around so you come up Maine Avenue, way less traffic," she explained as she opened the door wider, and he gave the blonde a smile as he followed you in. "We're just getting settled, Izzy showed up not too long ago."

"Of course he did," Bucky teased as he helped you remove your jacket, hearing a quiet protest of 'I heard that' from the accused in the other room.

The intimate afternoon you and Bucky had spent together was clouding his brain, his intense feelings for you bubbling just underneath the surface. Now, standing here in your friends' apartment – friends who still didn't quite know the extent of your feelings for each other – pretending you hadn't given him what was probably the best orgasm of his life... It felt like whiplash.

Was it wrong how much he loved it?

Bucky loved the excitement of it. This beautiful thing with you was so new to him, and it was only for him. He wasn't under any obligation to share your relationship with anyone else unless he decided he wanted to, something special just the two of you could share.

Back in his prime, he wouldn't have had such luxuries; relationships came with pressure. When he was proposing, how big the wedding would be, how many kids he wanted to have... He could hear a distant ringing of some of those mothers' shrill voices... "You're not getting any younger, I expect a ring and promise of grandchildren within the year."

Bucky could love you at his own pace. He could take his time to unravel you and get to know each strand that made up your whole, and give you time to know his in return. He knew that loving all his strands was asking a lot... but with you, he didn't feel like it was asking too much. He had fallen in love with all of you, and he would wait as long as it took for you to do the same.

As his head swam with romantic notions, he took a moment to look at you as you talked with Charlie in the entryway, handing off the bottle of wine you'd brought as she talked about ... something, he wasn't listening for shit. He was too focused on how beautiful you looked in the flowy blouse you'd paired with a pair of light jeans, the shimmery texture of the silk complimenting all of your curves.

You floated around gracefully on a pair of comfortable wedges – your words, not his – your calves flexing flatteringly in the jeans that already helped accentuate the curve of your ass. You talked animatedly with Charlie before she stepped around the corner to put the wine with the rest of the drinks. When your hostess disappeared you turned back to catch his appreciative gaze, leaning up just a little less than usual to press your painted lips to his in a chaste kiss, lacing your fingers together before gently pulling him with you.

He followed you like the lovesick puppy he knew he was, seeing everyone from the diner settled around the living room. River was the first to skip through the furniture to make her way over, wrapping you in a tight hug despite having seen you at work only a few hours ago.

Bucky tore his gaze from you to look back out into the room, returning Jay's nod and Izzy's half-wave before being looped into River's arms for his own hug. She was a sneaky one, having managed to ease him into more and more of a hug each time he saw her, working up from a side-arm embrace to the tight hold she had on him now.