*{Fandom Imagines}*

➵ Bucky Barnes - Kitchen Counter Conversations

Reader: Female
Warnings: none
Word Count: 3354

3rd Person POV

Y/N sat with her legs draped over the edge of her chosen armchair for the evening. She smiled over at Thor who sat opposite her as he told tales of Asgard. Tony sat next to her, sipping on some expensive champagne that Nat had found. She was sitting on the sofa next to Clint, Clint was sat next to Wanda who was snuggled into Vision's side. On the other end of the sofa to Nat sat Sam and Rhodey. (This may sound like a lot of people to be on a sofa but it's one of those ones that looks like a corner - if you get what I mean)

Unlike the rest of her drunk friends, Y/N was drinking lemonade, simply for the fact that she couldn't be bothered to get drunk. Everyone around her was sure to be wasted soon enough and she was quite content with recording everything rather than being a part of it.

They were all celebrating their recent defeat of a hydra base that had taken seven months to track down, but they'd slowed down since Steve was yet to arrive. Tony was trying to start some childish party games but no one was playing along. Not many battle scars had been left but everyone was tired and wanted to see each other before they went their separate ways for a few days.

Just before Tony opened the third bottle of champagne, Steve cane through the door accompanied by a certain metal armed man. People looked at the pair curiously, everyone knew that Bucky hated the compound.

Y/N looked at him sadly. The bags around his eyes had darkened since the last time she had seen him, he also appeared to have lost a lot of weight over the same amount of time. He met her eyes briefly before looking away, a stony coldness taking over the previous vulnerability that cloaked his face.

The two didn't interact for the rest of the night, Y/N and Tony spent most of their time together, Bucky was with Steve and so on. But it didn't stop her from feeling bad about his condition, she couldn't imagine losing all of her childhood memories, let alone anything else that had happened to him.
But those thoughts didn't stick with her for much longer. The upbeat music, dancing, and drinking (however little) was enough to drown out the sadness for a night.

Whilst Bucky stayed solemnly at the sidelines, talking and drinking with Steve, the rest of the compound could be heard from across the other side of the country.
It was about 2am when the crew finally decided to call it a night and head to their respective rooms.

___

Y/N's POV

I went to bed the same time as everyone else, enjoying the feeling of knowing that I could lie in bed for hours tomorrow without any further responsibility for a while. And although I didn't care when I got to bed, I was more than ready to go to sleep. What little alcohol I had consumed had worn off completely and left me feeling drowsy. My mattress and duvet was all too welcoming as I collapsed in it sleepily.

My slumber didn't last as long as I would have liked though. I woke with a start to see my clock read 04:28.
Great.
I tried and tried to close my eyes and drift off again but try as I might, I did not succeed.

The clock read 04:52 when I finally decided to get up and make myself a cup of tea or something to make me feel tired again.

The cold winter air drifted around the compound, chilling my feet as they hit the cold laminate floor. I shuddered and grabbed a large hoodie off of the floor, suddenly grateful for my untidy nature.
Ambling quietly to the kitchen, I noticed that one of the countertop lights was on. As I drew closer, I noticed a tall figure leaning against one of the worktops, his head buried deep in his hands. I recognised it immediately as Bucky. His strong outline was visible in the dimly lit room, and his long hair was easily distinguishable from the rest of the guys in the building. The only other person it could have been was Thor, but he was the heaviest sleeper I knew.