𝐀𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐥𝐬𝐨𝐧𝐠 ➳ 𝐁𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐲 𝐁𝐚𝐫𝐧𝐞𝐬

5├𝚆𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝙳𝚒𝚗𝚎 𝙼𝚎, 𝚋𝚊𝚋𝚢

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𝐁𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐲 was locked in his spot for a moment longer than he would have liked to. His eyes were on her as she strutted away with more confidence than he would ever be able to muster. He turned on his feet and returned to the kitchen with the plate in his hands. Steve was already busy packing away the leftovers in the fridge.

Tonight was nice. Bucky felt more like himself than he had in a good while and his cheeks were hurting from smiling — not that he did it much, but he wasn't used to the sensation. His blond friend sent him a gleeful grin as he put a lid on one of the plastic containers.

"How're you feeling, pal?"

"Good... just called Cadence doll," he hesitantly replied, and Steve's eyes widened before breaking out into laughter. "What?"

"Remember how ya did it with the gals you were dating?"

"Yeah, I guess..."

"That's funny. I mean, the two of you would make a cute couple," he said and began transferring the sauce to a smaller pot. Bucky started scraping the plates off into the trash like he'd been taught.

"The two of us wouldn't work. She deserves better," he mumbled.

"I don't think she thinks that."

"What?" Bucky asked, face drawn in a large question mark.

"Really?" Steve asked, tilting his head in a joking manner but he soon realised Bucky was being serious. He straightened up and took a heavy breath. "Her and I are real good friends, you know, but that's all we are. People today talk a lot more about who they might like — women even do it with men."

"... right..." Bucky grumbled.

How was he supposed to deal with anything like that when his mind was still in shambles? He hadn't even thought of her as pretty like that until Steve had mentioned it. He hadn't thought about anyone in that way since the 40s. He couldn't do it now, they still had things to do for tonight. He could deal with it later, on his own.

"Where's the wine? Cadence wanted a glass," he explained and went to look through different cabinets.

"She prefers cooled White or Rosè. It's in the fridge," Steve grinned as he shook his head.

"Thanks," Bucky whispered before grabbing the first bottle. It had a white label with the name of a French company on the front, decorated with small flowers around the edge. It was cute. Fit her.

He took three ice cubes — so the drink would stay cool — and plopped them into the glass before coating them in white wine and filling the glass halfway. That was how he had seen his mom do it back way back when. Steve gave him a look, one he couldn't fully decipher before he left the room with the drink in hand.

Inside the small living room, Cadence had sat down on the couch and cuddled up with a blanket. Her elbow was resting on the armrest, knuckles squishing her cheek as she flipped through something he was pretty sure was a streaming service. She looked calm. Unbothered by his presence, the same warmth filled his body. A sudden want to sit down next to her came over him. Would she mind if he cuddled her? He had seen her and Steve do it after a hard mission.

Bucky had been confused by it. The two of them were very close — in a way he was almost certain wasn't a thing when he was young. Steve had explained it to him. She had been somewhat new to technology. After moving with her stepdad from Kamar-Taj, many things were new to her, and it was something they shared. He almost wished he had been there. To help her in all the ways she had helped him.