bucky barnes imagines

lxii. JEALOUSY

You glared daggers across the room at the group of new S.H.I.E.L.D recruits. You were supposed to be training them but, for some reason, they were all female – meaning that, as soon as Bucky Barnes entered the gym, they eagerly flocked over to him. You'd previously thought that the phrase "chick magnet" was just a metaphor, but now you were seriously wondering if that metal arm of his was literally attracting every girl within a ten mile radius.

Maybe that would explain why you were so obsessed with him.

It was no secret that you had a soft spot for Bucky. When you met him for the first time, he was quiet and nervous but, since then, he'd grown a lot. He was more confident, borderline cocky, in fact – and goddamn, if you didn't love him even more for it.

It had gotten to the point where your infatuation was becoming a slight problem. Of course, you could've just admitted your stupid crush, but you were too stubborn, too proud – you didn't want to give him the satisfaction of knowing that you'd fallen for him, especially when the feelings most likely weren't reciprocated.

And so, in the absence of a confession, that lead to situations like this, where he was basking in the attention of other women, while you were reduced to a mere onlooker, seething with childish jealousy.

After passive aggressively glancing at your watch several times, you let out a loud sigh and declared the training session over. The girls quickly scarpered once they noticed your scowl. However, you soon regretted your decision, because it meant that you were left alone with Bucky.

He made his way over to you, taking his time, wearing an arrogant smirk – oh, what you wouldn't give to slap that smirk off his ridiculously beautiful face.

"Something bothering you, doll?" he questioned, his Brooklyn accent making your knees weak as per usual.

"Yeah, you," you quipped, through gritted teeth. After all, it was only a white lie. "Why'd you have to walk in when I was in the middle of training them? You're a distraction, Barnes."

"Oh, I know," he bragged, "the other day you walked into a wall because you were too busy staring at me. And then you tried to play it off like nothing happened."

You grimaced at the memory, feeling your cheeks flush as you yanked the door open aggressively. "Don't flatter yourself. Maybe I'm just clumsy."

"Or maybe—"

You didn't want to find out where the conversation was heading. Flipping your hair back, you sent Bucky a fake smile before walking out of the room and slamming the door in his face, leaving him to chuckle and shake his head at your attitude.

The next day, you entered the training room, intending to forget about yesterday's events in the hopes of actually teaching the new recruits properly. To your dismay, somebody was already working out in the gym, running on a treadmill with their back to you; you didn't have to look twice to know exactly who it was.

"Out," you demanded. "Now."

Bucky slowed to a jog before switching the machine off completely, carefully stepping down and walking towards you.

"Good morning to you too," he grinned. "And no can do, I'm afraid. Gotta get a workout in before my date later."

His date. You tried to appear indifferent, but you couldn't ignore the way your heart twinged gloomily at his words. Of course this would happen to you – you'd waited too long, and you'd lost him. Possibly forever.

You had to take a deep breath to steady your nerves before replying, sounding more upbeat than you felt. "Date, huh? One of the girls from yesterday? I hope you know that some of them are underage."

Bucky rolled his eyes playfully. "Come on, doll, you know I wouldn't do that."

"Right," you responded. After a short pause, you glanced up at him curiously. "Who is she?"

You tried to seem as if you were just making conversation, but unfortunately he saw right through your flimsy act. Before answering, he leaned closer to you, placing a hand on your shoulder as his eyes bore into you.

"Why? Jealous, sweetheart?"

Yes. You resented the fact that your envy was clearly obvious, but it was too late – he already knew. Scowling, you ducked away from him just as the first of your students entered the room.

The training session passed agonisingly slowly. You were upset, angry, and to make matters worse, Bucky decided to stay the whole time. He perched on a bench in the corner and you could practically feel the way his eyes followed your every move, his gaze almost taunting. You were glad when the hands of the clock ticked round to the hour and you could finally dismiss everyone.

Unlike the previous day, you simply opted to completely ignore Bucky when you left the room. You were walking quickly, but he decided to follow you, catching up with you in mere seconds.

"What's wrong?" he asked, taking you by surprise.

"Nothing," you lied instinctively, despite already having proof that he could tell when you were bluffing.

Just as you expected, he scoffed. "C'mon, Y/N. I wanna know why you're so mad at me."

"Because... actually, y'know what, just leave it," you muttered, deciding to spare what little dignity you had left. "Don't you have a date to get to, anyway?"

Bucky nodded and you pursed your lips, preparing to see him walk away from you. However, he stayed put, causing you to tilt your head in confusion.

"I made it up," he blurted suddenly, awkwardly scratching the back of his neck. When you remained silent, still thoroughly bewildered, he continued, sounding significantly less confident than usual. "I don't have a date, I lied to you."

"But... but why?"

"To make you jealous," Bucky murmured, so softly that you almost didn't hear him. He smiled sincerely at you – a welcome change from the smug leer that you'd received so many times before. "I know you like me, Y/N. Everyone knows. And I wanted you to tell me in your own time, but you're too stubborn, so I had to give you a little push."

You frowned at the comment – stubborn. He was correct, but it still hurt. "Why are you still here, Bucky? To insult me?"

"No. To tell you that your stubbornness is actually pretty cute, sometimes. And so is the way you get all flustered around me, the way you pout when you're embarrassed, the way you squint your eyes when someone makes you laugh... I could go on for days, Y/N, but I think you get the picture. You get what I'm trying to tell you."

You were dumbfounded. You opened your mouth to reply, but no sound came out; you had to will the words to appear before you made a fool out of yourself again.

"You... like me?"

"No." Bucky began to chuckle and you narrowed your eyes – was this all just a game to him? Anxiously, you tried to back away, but he stepped towards you and grabbed your hands.

"I love you."

Once again, you were left speechless. Half of you was afraid that this was part of some elaborate prank, that there was no way someone like him could ever love someone like you. But the other half of you could see the genuineness in his eyes, in the way he was looking at you – as if everything he'd ever wanted was right there in front of him.

Before you could talk yourself out of it, you snaked your arms around his neck and kissed him with no hesitation. It was a little messy, but that didn't matter – it was Bucky.

When you pulled away, both of you were grinning like idiots; anyone walking past probably would've assumed that you were drunk. Yeah, drunk in love, you thought to yourself with a tiny giggle that made Bucky's eyes light up.

"So, how about that date?"