im working on a luke x reader fic right now BUT i also started another project.
it’s called „Closed Circuit”, takes place after RotJ, and is a murder mystery/bond vibes fic. it will be posted on AO3 mainly, but if you want i can post it here too.
your university roommate han solo finds a rival (and love interest) in student council president leia skywalker, but both of them are too stubborn to admit that they have feelings for each other. luckily, you and her twin brother, luke, devise a plan to get the two of them to spend more time together. challenges arise, however, when you start to develop a crush on him.
chapter warnings: making out in public, drinking, sexual humor, slightly stereotypical college tropes, luke is a freak
a/n: sorry this one took so long! not super happy with it but i hope you guys enjoy anyway :p
You had returned to class a few days ago, readjusting a bit difficult after your brief absence. The ache in your ribs and inability to use your hand served as painful reminders of what had transpired that night. Han’s first day back was today, and although you thought it was far too soon, he at least would be seeing Leia in class later. Since she knew what happened, you hoped that she might be a source of comfort for him. As you left your lecture, you were pulled from your thoughts by your phone buzzing in your pocket.
Luke: heyyy! i just passed han! is he back?
You hadn’t talked to Luke since you’d essentially fondled him in your bedroom several days ago, so the text surprised you. You stared at it for a second before deciding to reply.
You: yeah it’s his first day back. hope he and leia can get along today lol
Luke: ohhhh same but i’m sure she’ll be happy to have him in class again! i think she’s missed him >:)
Luke: sooooo does that mean ur back too?
You: yes i got back a few days ago actually
There was a beat of silence, and you could see him switching between typing and not typing a few times, the three dots disappearing and reappearing in a brief cycle of apparent deliberation.
Luke: u were supposed to lmk </3 heart is broken. don’t think i’ll recover tbh
Luke either just consistently texted like a teenage girl, or he was flirting with you. Deciding to test the waters, you sent him a message back.
You: my bad my bad i’ll make it up to u babe
His response was immediate.
Luke: YOOOO
Luke: what if we get lunch like. right now. i’m on campus
You laughed, but you had to admit that having someone be so excited to see you was a good feeling. Even if your relationship was largely fabricated, Luke did seem to genuinely enjoy your company.
You: ok i’m leaving class rn. food court or dining hall?
Luke: food court ok with u? i want sushi
With that, you told him you’d meet him there, and then made your way to the agreed upon destination. You were pretty nervous about being seen with him in the food court, as it was usually pretty crowded. Still, that wasn’t a good enough reason to avoid him, so you anxiously let your feet carry you there.
Despite the density of the room, Luke was easy to spot. He stood out in any crowd, something about his demeanor incredibly radiant and eye-catching, his mere presence enough to make people turn their heads. To your surprise, he spotted you pretty quickly too, and excitedly waved you over. When he did, a few people around him glanced in your direction, their curiosity getting the better of them as they wondered whom Luke Skywalker could be so excited to see. Your face flushed.
“Hey!” he greeted you enthusiastically, standing as close to you as he possibly could without actually touching you.
“Hi,” you replied somewhat shyly, hoping the rosiness of your cheeks went unnoticed by him.
“How’s your day going?” he asked, not bothering to be subtle as he looked you over, seemingly studying every detail of your appearance.
“It’s okay. Been really tired recently, but I guess that’s to be expected,” you replied, looking down at your shoes.
You almost jumped out of your skin when he gently wedged a finger underneath your chin, nudging your face upwards so you were forced to meet his eyes. You could feel countless stares on you, and you were wondering how far Luke was willing to commit to this if he was likely driving away other potential suitors by being intimate with you in public.
“You have dark circles under your eyes,” he observed, cocking his head at you. You were puzzled.
“Uh, sorry,” you said, not really sure how you were supposed to respond, “I guess I usually wear concealer.”
“I wasn’t suggesting that you should wear concealer,” he replied, giggling, “Just that you should get some rest tonight.”
“Right,” you mumbled awkwardly, the eyes of your peers burning holes into your skull, your skin searing from the red hot embarrassment of it all. You had never received so much attention in your life, and all you were doing was standing in front of the sushi counter at your school’s food court.
He ushered you towards the counter, making you order first so he could pay for it without having to put up with your protests. He also insisted on carrying it to the table for you, saying that you shouldn’t have to since your wrist was broken. You all found a seat against the wall, tucked out of the way but not fully shielded from the prying eyes of your classmates. When you were about to take a seat, Luke stopped you, putting a hand on your shoulder to get your attention.
“You face the wall,” he told you knowingly, “It’ll keep your back turned towards them. I can pretend not to notice, so I’ll face this way.”
You were speechless for a moment, but you supposed you shouldn’t have been surprised that he picked up on your apprehension. Luke was observant. Sitting down, you sighed, putting your head in your hands for a moment before looking back up at him.
“I’m sorry,” you said sincerely, taking a deep breath to steady yourself, “I fly under the radar most of the time. It’s just new to me.”
“You shouldn’t be the one apologizing. It’s my fault for not asking if you would be okay with people ogling you while you’re trying to eat,” he replied, seemingly embarrassed.
“It’s not your fault,” you assured him, offering him a smile, “I mean, I guess I’m friends with Han, and he attracts all sorts of attention. I’ll adapt.”
Luke laughed, accepting your affirmations as some relief set into his shoulders. He relaxed a little, opening the lid on his sushi container and cracking his chopsticks apart. He sighed happily when he took the first bite, a blush creeping up on your cheeks when you recalled how him eating chocolate in your room escalated to your hands grasping his chest. That look of mischief you had become so familiar with shone in his eyes, and you immediately knew that his mind had drifted there too.
“Behave,” you warned, narrowing your eyes at him.
“You know that doesn’t deter me, right? I could listen to you say that over and over again. It’s hot.”
“Luke, we’re at school!” you exclaimed, his confession turning your already red face a deeper shade of crimson. You weren’t sure how much of what he was saying was true, but you couldn’t deny that you were flustered by his words.
He laughed then, bright and cheery as always, looking at you like you were the most fun he’d ever experienced. His gaze sank deeper into your skin and reached your bones, making them ache with the yearning you were starting to feel towards him.
“I’m sorry,” he said, still giggling a bit, “You make it too easy.”
“Why can’t you just eat normally? Why do you have to make everyone around you wonder if you’re trying to be erotic?” you asked, rubbing your temple with your good hand before taking a bite of your own roll.
“I love food,” he replied, shrugging, “Always ate the same shit growing up, so I like having so many options now. And it’s also possible that I’m exaggerating a little bit to mess with you.”
“I figured,” you huffed, though your brain had grabbed onto something else he said, “You didn’t grow up rich?”
He paused, his chopsticks unmoving and even his chewing coming to a halt, his eyes scanning the room for a moment before falling back on you.
“No,” he muttered, voice quiet, “Damn. Didn’t even realize that I gave myself away. You’re good. Don’t tell anyone that, please.”
You had a million questions for him, your curiosity about his life increasing by the minute, but he clearly hadn’t meant to reveal that to you.
“I don’t really care,” you reassured him, pushing your questions to the back of your mind for the sake of his comfort, “You won’t believe this, but I didn’t grow up rich either.”
He laughed, relaxing again as he looked at you fondly, a bit more somber now but definitely calmer than he had been just a moment ago. He gave you a smile that told you he appreciated your willingness to move on, and you decided then that if he smiled at you like that, you were content with being patient.
“So,” he said, mischief returning to his expression, “I’ve been scheming, as you might say.”
“Of course,” he confirmed, leaning so that his face was closer to yours, “So, two weeks from now, there’s a concert. Local bar. Two bands are playing. That’s the type of thing you and your friends enjoy, yeah?”
“Right,” you told him, nodding, “But we couldn’t mosh or anything since my wrist is broken and Han is all sorts of fucked up, so we might not be very fun company.”
“No, that’s alright. That’s not what’s important,” he continued, “There’s a band making their debut there on that night. You can stand by the bar if you want, no pressure to go out into the crowd at all. I think you guys will enjoy it regardless.”
“I feel like you’re omitting some information,” you pointed out, narrowing your eyes at him.
“Well, yeah, but it’s nothing bad. And Leia will be there.”
You briefly recalled the conversation you’d had with Luke when you’d first met his friends, the mention that Leia was really into punk and alternative music surprising enough for you to note.
“I’ll do my best to get us there,” you told him.
He beamed at you, resting his chin on his hand as he mused over his plan, the details of which you weren’t privy to.
“I think it’ll put things into motion,” he said ominously, seemingly to himself.
He changed the topic after that, asking you about which movies you’d watched recently and if there was anything you thought he might like. In return, you asked him about how his recovery was going, and he told you that he would be cleared to participate in practice again soon, as his concussion had waned. You talked for the next hour, pausing every now and then to actually eat like you had intended to.
Overall, it had been a pretty good time. You were never able to shake the stares of your peers fully, but once they realized that nothing much would come of gawking at the two of you, they largely minded their own business. You bid him farewell and thanked him for the food, promising to see him again soon.
When you got back to your apartment, Chewie had started making dinner. Meatloaf, it looked like. You helped out where you could, though your injury made it more challenging than you would’ve liked. You were anticipating Han’s arrival any second now, but you were left in waiting. As the minutes ticked by and eventually reached an hour, you grew anxious. Finally, you decided to call.
“What?” he answered after the third ring, voice a whisper.
“Where are you?” you replied, ignoring his abrasive tone. That was just Han.
“Library with Leia. I got really pissed off in class today because I didn’t know what was goin’ on, so now we’re here.”
“Oh,” you said, a bit dumbfounded by this information, “Well, Chewie made meatloaf. You should ask her if she wants to stop by for dinner.”
You heard him mumbling, likely inviting Leia over, and then you could vaguely hear her voice too.
“She has to go to practice after this,” he told you, sounding bored.
“Practice? For what?”
“Geez, I don’t know, kid. I’m not gonna sit here and interrogate her. I’ll be home later, alright? We can watch somethin’ on TV.”
“Okay,” you murmured, not really sure what else to say to that.
He muttered a quick goodbye to you and hung up. Without thinking twice about it, you immediately texted Luke.
You: they’re at the library together right now…
You explained the situation to Chewie as fixed some asparagus to go with your meal, telling him about the show in two weeks and asking if he’d be interested. He nodded, an amused expression on his face as he continued to cook. A few minutes later, you got a text back from Luke.
Luke: no wayyyyy they’re evolving
Luke: ask him about the show when he gets back!
You weren’t sure what was up with Luke’s insistence, especially considering how the last show went for you all, but you shrugged it off.
You supposed you’d find out soon enough.
─── ･ ｡ﾟ☆: .☽ . :☆ﾟ. ───
You hadn’t seen Luke any since lunch that day, but you’d texted him a few times over the past two weeks. You all didn’t say anything of much importance to each other, nor did you talk very frequently, but it was nice to know that he hadn’t completely forgotten about you as his practice schedule picked up again and he resumed his normal life.
Han hadn’t needed much convincing to go to the show, as he hadn’t been out on the town since the incident. You had told him Leia would be there, so when he came out of his room dressed in his nice brown coat instead of the Carhartt again, you mentally cheered. Maybe he cared about looking nice for her after all.
“You look good,” you told him. The bruises on his face had healed some in the past several days, and he was starting to look a little more like himself again. It was refreshing.
“I know,” he replied smugly, seemingly excited to feel a bit more normal—well, as excited as Han could seem to be.
Chewie stood by the doorway, scrolling on his phone. He was wearing a beanie this time with his long hair down, glasses perched on his nose and a blue flannel tucked into his black jeans.
“And so do you!” you cheered, walking over to Chewie and smoothing out his eyebrows with your thumb. Unlike Han, he didn’t make much of a fuss when you tried to detail his appearance, allowing you to exercise your cosmetic expertise to your heart’s content. He rolled his eyes and smiled at you, gesturing to your outfit and giving you a thumbs up.
“Thanks,” you said, understanding his meaning immediately. He thought you looked nice too.
“Yeah, not horrible,” Han added, glancing over your outfit. It was one of your favorites, teetering the line between your casual attire and something a bit nicer. You wore Han’s black coat, as it was slightly baggier than your own, concealing your cast pretty well. You didn’t want people walking on eggshells around you all night because you were hurt.
With that, the three of you departed, your walk downtown leisurely as Han and Chewie split a cigarette. You were in a good mood, glad that the three of you were going out again. It’s also possible that you were a little bit excited to see Luke too.
When you all walked into the bar, you felt at ease. These types of venues were what you were used to, classic college bars with live music. Before bothering to find Luke and Leia, sure that they were likely in the company of others and wouldn’t be bothered by your absence, you went on a quest for drinks. You would probably have to hang out near the back anyway due to your injuries, so being leaned up against the bar didn’t seem like that bad of a call. You ordered something strong and sipped your drink peacefully, taking in the atmosphere and anticipating the band’s performance.
“We oughta take a shot,” Han mumbled to you, “Whiskey.”
You laughed and agreed, knowing that being a little tipsier would help you relax. After the shot and downing your first drink, you moved onto a second, you and Han talking and in your own little world. It was then that you looked across the room and saw a tighter crowd of people, and you instantly knew that Luke had to be the center. Han noticed too, and the two of you watched as you caught glimpses of him every now and then. Unusually, he wore all dark colors today, his sweater a dark gray and his pants black, beat up converse on his feet. He was drunk of course, hand clutched around a drink you couldn’t quite identify. You watched as a girl placed her hand on his chin, appearing to look at the fresh scar under his lip. He was relatively nonreactive, politely smiling at her and probably answering questions about his injuries. To your surprise, though, he never put his hands on her, nor did he lean into her touch.
“Gonna handle that?” Han asked you, taking another sip of his drink and watching the scene before him unfold.
“He’s not my boyfriend,” you said simply, though you did take some joy in the fact that Luke didn’t seem to be reciprocating her advances.
“You’re staring daggers into that girl’s head.”
“I am not,” you insisted, downing the rest of your drink and ordering another.
“Sure, kid,” he said dismissively, “Didn’t take you for the jealous type.”
Before you could defend yourself, Luke met your eyes. His smile widened, he appeared to apologize to the girl he was talking to, and he immediately departed from the group that had crowded around him. They watched him go curiously, slowly trailing as to not give themselves away as being dependent on his presence, but you tried to pay them little attention.
“Hey!” he greeted you excitedly, putting his drink down next to you and pulling you into a hug. You squawked in surprise, but eventually wrapped your arms around him as well, returning his affection.
He didn’t let go of you for what felt like an awkwardly long time, and you made eye contact with Han in a silent plea for advice. He rolled his eyes at you and shook his head, the smallest of grins playing at his lips.
“Missed you,” Luke drunkenly confessed as he pulled away, though his hands had dropped to your waist, “I’ve been waiting for you to get here all night.”
You were stunned into silence for a moment before finally swallowing hard, mustering the courage to speak.
“It’s good to see you,” you told him awkwardly, his hands on you making your heart rate accelerate more than you liked to admit, “You look really good in black.”
He beamed at you, his cheeks flushing a little under the vibrant lighting of the venue, and brushed a piece of your hair behind your ear.
“You think so?” he asked teasingly, leaning into you as he spoke.
“Don’t go fishing for compliments,” you told him lightheartedly, “How much have you had to drink?”
“Not enough. Wanna take a shot with me? Or a shooter? I’ll pay, of course.”
“You really have to stop buying me things.”
“Nah. I like buying you things,” he countered, grinning as he ordered you a drink.
He had ordered you green tea shooters, which you’d never had before but sounded so much like something he would enjoy that you were eager to partake. Before you knew what was happening, he gripped your chin and tilted your head back a bit, the glass of the shooter pressing against your lips.
“Open,” he told you, his confidence that you’d do whatever he asked almost making your knees buckle. You did, the alcohol slipping past your lips and going straight to your head—or maybe the way Luke was looking at you was the cause for your drunkenness, you weren’t sure. Both were likely explanations.
Luke didn’t give you the chance to pull the same maneuver on him, quickly downing his shooter and smiling innocently at you. In the meantime, Chewie had appeared at the bar, presumably to distract Han from Luke’s hands on you. When he gave you a brief look, you knew your assumption had been correct, and he smiled and rolled his eyes at you when you mouthed a quick thank you to him.
“Wanna stand in the back? Close to the bar but still in the crowd. No one should shove us there,” he proposed, seemingly also at least somewhat aware of Han’s guard being up around him.
You nodded, following him into the back of the crowd and finding a good window between some of the taller individuals to get a pretty solid view of the stage, especially considering where you were standing. You had taken your regular drinks along with you, and you sipped yours as casually as you could, knowing that a lot of eyes were on you despite your position at the back of the crowd.
“Will Han kill me if I make out with you in front of everyone tonight?” he asked you, cheeks flushed and pupils blown wide from the alcohol. You nearly choked on your drink, and you had to take a deep breath to stabilize yourself before you could manage a reply.
“That’s—Are you sure you want to do that?”
“What?” he said, laughing at your question, “Why wouldn’t I? Are you sick or something?”
Thoughts swirled around your mind, bouncing off every corner of your skull and almost making your head hurt in the process. Everyone in this venue wants to make out with you. You could have any one of them. If it’s me, you’ll sabotage your chances of finding someone you really like to take home tonight. You didn’t say any of it, because you didn’t want to make him feel even less like a person than he probably already did.
“Just wanted to make sure,” you murmured quietly, looking down. He gently hooked his finger under your chin and pushed upwards, forcing you to meet his eyes. No matter how many times he did this, you always blushed.
“Hey, if you’re more private about that sort of stuff, it’s totally fine. I’m not here to push you into situations that make you uncomfortable. We don’t have to kiss at all.”
Reassessing your comfort was the bare minimum, but it made you feel warm nonetheless. You weren’t sure what came over you, but you leaned forward and let your head drop to rest on his shoulder, sighing. You heard him chuckle lightly at that, and he immediately wrapped his arms around you, your face still buried into the crook of his neck.
“Or you can just do that, I guess,” he remarked, sounding amused.
“Sorry, I’m just not used to so many people looking at me. But you’re so nice, and I wanna be close to you still. Just hiding for a second. You smell really good, by the way.”
He laughed again, hugging you a little tighter, cautious to not spill his drink or injure your wrist.
“You’re drunk,” he told you, and you felt him sigh when you smiled into the side of his neck.
“So are you.”
“Well, yeah,” he replied, giggling again, "But I’ve just never seen you be like, expressive when you’re drinking. I like it. Tell me more about what you like about me.”
It was your turn to laugh, Luke’s lack of subtly entertaining to you.
“Do you have any shame?” you teased.
“About some stuff, sure. But not about this.”
“Well, you know I like your abs.”
“And my chest, apparently.”
“Hey. You enjoyed that.”
“Never said I didn’t. Wanna do it again right now?”
“Luke!” you exclaimed in a fit of drunken giggles, pulling away to lightly smack his arm. He smiled at you and took another sip of his drink.
“So, what else do you like about me?” he pried, and you rolled your eyes at him before stepping closer once more.
“You’ll find out. Be patient,” you told him, your own touch of mischief seeping into your voice. He smiled at you, right hand dropping to your waist and pulling you closer, left hand tossing his drink back and finishing the rest of it in a single go. You mimicked his actions, finishing your own beverage and meeting his eyes. Just then, the first band emerged, and you turned towards the stage while Luke placed his hand on your lower back.
“We can get another drink in the middle of the set, if you want,” he said, pulling you flush against his side as the band started to play, “But I’m kind of drunk right now, so I need a second.”
You laughed and nodded at him, and pretty soon your attention shifted towards the talented musicians on stage. Since you couldn’t be in the front, you had to settle on gently swaying and nodding your head rather than something more exciting. This band had more of an indie rock vibe, so there wasn’t a ton of moshing to be done anyway. You hoped Han wasn’t feeling left out, but you were confident that Chewie would stay by his side while you were gone.
You were so inebriated that you barely noticed Luke’s friends circling around you, with the addition of a few strangers as well. You only realized how many eyes were on you when Biggs clasped a hand around Luke’s shoulder, making him jump a little. Without thinking, you gently smoothed his sweater down over his bicep, hoping the gesture provided him with a small bit of comfort. He looked over at you and smiled before quickly turning his attention back to Biggs.
“Why’re you all the way back here?” Biggs asked him, seemingly pretty drunk himself.
“He’s injured, Biggs,” a girl you didn’t recognize interjected, stepping closer.
“Can’t believe you even came out tonight, Luke. I mean, I’m glad you’re here and all, but what if you get hurt again?” her friend added, joining her in crowding close to Luke.
“I’ve got a personal investment in the next band,” he said simply, offering the group standing in front of him a perfect smile.
“What, you fuckin’ the drummer or something?” Elias replied, and you had to restrain yourself from rolling your eyes.
“I think their drummer is a dude,” one of his other friends pointed out.
“So? You think that’s gonna stop Luke? He’ll fuck anything that moves—“
“Cut it out, Eli,” the girl from before said, placing a hand on Luke’s shoulder, “That’s not true. Don’t be mean to him.”
Luke laughed, but you watched him tense as the stranger’s hand stayed put on his body.
“Oh, fuck off. You guys were literally calling him—“
“Shut up!”
“Calling me what?” Luke interrupted curiously, tilting his head and looking at the girls in front of him with an expression that you couldn’t quite decipher.
“Luke,” she said, hand still on his on his shoulder, “You know our friend Marie. We were just talking about when you guys got together, and—“
“Marie’s been telling all of her friends that you’re easy, dude,” his friend interjected, cutting her off.
“It’s not like that,” she protested, bringing her hand up to the side of his neck and moving to cup his cheek, “We don’t think you’re easy, Luke.”
“I don’t really get what you’re trying to say,” he murmured, brows furrowed, “Sorry. I’m a little drunk.”
She cooed at him and you wanted to throw up in your mouth. Or on her. Either would do.
“It’s okay. We can just drop it and get another drink,” she told him, tucking a piece of his hair behind his ear and giving him a sickeningly sweet smile. She was a beautiful woman, so it was really a shame that she was acting so creepy.
“They were calling you a slut earlier, man,” Biggs finally said, frowning, “Sorry. Just thought you should know. Marie and a bunch of her friends were over there talking about you.”
“That is not what happened,” she said, placing her other hand on Luke’s face, effectively forcing him to look only at her, “Luke, I promise that I would never—“
When you saw Luke tense further and his eyes widen, you’d had enough. You could put up with other people flirting with him—he wasn’t your boyfriend, after all—but making him uncomfortable was a separate ordeal entirely. You rolled your eyes, reached over, and grabbed her wrists, making use of the weight of your cast to push her arms down and away from his face. You stepped in between them then, giving Luke some space away from her.
“I’m tired of listening to this,” you announced, speaking for the first time since the whole situation had started transpiring, “This entire conversation is stupid.”
You didn’t feel the need to further elaborate, nor did you have any interest in personally shaming the girls, instead taking Luke’s hand in your own and tangling your fingers together, walking off towards the bar. He went happily, giving the group a small wave and a smile as you pulled him away. You didn’t bother looking back at any of them, your focus just on getting Luke out of that situation. When you reached the bar, Han gave you a quizzical look, but you just shook your head and mouthed not now.
“My knight in shining armor,” Luke said, leaning against the bar with you and keeping your hands entwined.
“They sound like they’re in high school. I don’t know how you manage to be nice to people like that.”
“What I do reflects on my parents,” he replied with a shrug, “Seriously though, thank you. That wasn’t a very fun interaction for me.”
“Sorry for just pulling you out of there without even asking,” you murmured sheepishly, cheeks a bit red, “I was just annoyed, and you looked uncomfortable.”
“What? Don’t apologize. You can take me wherever you want, but that’s especially true in cases where someone is grabbing my face and trying to convince me that they weren’t calling me slutty thirty minutes ago.”
Thinking about it made you irritated all over again, and it must’ve shown on your face, because Luke spoke again.
“Just so you know, I really don’t sleep around as much as people say, and since we’ve started this whole thing between us I haven’t been seeing anyone, and I never even slept with Marie—most I’ve done is kiss her at a club, and when I do sleep with people I’m super safe, I get tested regularly, and—“
“Woah, hey,” you interrupted him, gently grabbing his shoulders, “What are you saying?”
“Well, you looked upset when they were talking about that stuff, and I just didn’t want you to think that I was like, I don’t know, a womanizer, or someone who only cares about sex, or some kind of pervert—“
“Luke, that’s not—I was upset because they were objectifying you and making you uncomfortable. You know I’m not judging you, right? You seriously don’t have to explain yourself to me. I trust you and what you choose to tell me is your business. I don’t care about rumors or whatever, alright?”
He stared at you with wide eyes, mouth slightly agape. You couldn’t read his face, and you were about to ask him if he was okay before he started talking again.
“Thank you,” he told you, voice soft as his hands came to rest on your waist once again, “That means a lot to me. I want to say more, but I don’t think I can articulate it very well right now. Just—thank you.”
“It’s just basic respect, dude,” you replied dismissively, blushing a little, “No big deal.”
“Well, I’m not used to that, I guess. And don’t call me dude when I’m touching your hips.”
You laughed, your arms having wrapped around the back of his neck as he pulled you closer.
“I thought this was just you being friendly,” you teased, grinning at him.
“Seems like I’ve given you the wrong idea, ‘cause I’m really not trying to be friendly with you. Like, at all.”
You weren’t sure if it was the alcohol in your system, how protective you felt over him at the moment, or how he was looking at you, but you were curious to see if things would escalate between the two of you tonight. So, without second guessing yourself, you leaned forward and whispered in his ear.
“Maybe you should give me the right idea, then.”
Something changed in his expression, and before you knew what was happening, he was leading you through the crowd, and you were embraced by the loud music once more.
“Hey, my wrist is still broken, so I really shouldn’t be dancing—“
His course deviated then, and you suddenly realized that he had taken you towards the wall. You were out of direct contact with the crowd, but they still danced around you, shielding you from prying eyes. This was still very much public, but certainly more private than before. His hands returned to your waist as he leaned forward, lips now next to your ear.
“Can I show you?” he asked, voice lower and breathier than you’d ever heard it, “Just tell me what you’re comfortable with, and I’ll show you that I’m not trying to be friends. Fuck, please let me show you.”
Your breath caught in your throat, but you brought your good hand to rest on the back of his head, trying to ground yourself.
“Yeah,” you told him, running your fingers through his hair, “I’ll stop you if you go too far.”
He had backed you all the way against the wall now, his hand coming up to caress your face as he leaned closer. His face was so close to yours that you could feel his breath fanning against your lips, his thumb gently tracing your jaw as he inched forward. You almost passed out when you met his stare, his eyes filled with what you could only describe as desire. He looked at you for confirmation one more time, and when you offered him a small nod, his lips were on yours in an instant.
You had suspected all along that he would be a good kisser, but thinking that and experiencing it were very different. He started out relatively slowly, but you wanted to prove to him that you could match his pace, so you lightly tugged his hair to deepen the kiss. You were surprised when he faltered a bit, having to brace himself against the wall and pull away for a second.
“God, fuck,” he groaned, voice strained, “If you do that again, I might embarrass myself.”
You were too curious to find out what that could mean to stop yourself from pulling him forward and capturing his lips in your own once more, savoring the taste of him on your tongue for a second before tugging his hair again, this time a bit harder.
His reaction was immediate. He moaned into your mouth, left hand still holding your jaw and right hand now falling to firmly grab your ass, pulling you even closer. The kiss deepened further, and your grip on his hair tightened the second you felt his tongue.
You hadn’t made out with someone so passionately in a long time, and you certainly hadn’t ever imagined yourself doing it so publicly. And yet, here you were, letting Luke Skywalker shove you against the wall and fuck his tongue into your mouth.
“I’m sorry, fuck—“ he gasped against your lips. You weren’t sure what he meant until you felt him rock forward, something solid pressing into you. You suddenly realized that this part at least had to be real, and the knowledge that you had made Luke hard had you floating. With him against you like this, you decided to experimentally pull his hair again. He moaned, this time loudly enough for you to catch the wandering eyes of a few people standing nearby, but he paid them no mind, instead squeezing your ass harder and trying to bring you even closer.
“Luke,” you warned, breath hot against his ear as he moved to bury his face into the side of your neck, “Luke, we’re in public. People are staring.”
“People always stare. Doesn’t matter,” he protested, starting to kiss your jaw, “I’d go down on you right here, I don’t care—“
“Luke!” you gasped, placing a hand on his chest and pushing him back a bit, putting some space between you, “You’re drunk. I don’t want you to be embarrassed tomorrow or something, okay?”
“Embarrassed,” he repeated, like it was his first time ever hearing that word, “No way. I’d let you do anything to me. Anywhere.”
“You can’t be serious,” you replied, laughing at how ridiculous he was, heart hammering in your chest, “You’ve had a lot to drink—“
“You think I only want you like this because I’m drunk?” he asked, tucking your hair behind your ear as his eyes bore into yours, reading you so intensely that you felt dizzy.
“I mean…maybe? I don’t know. I’m just confused, I guess. Like, we aren’t—you and I aren’t really together, you know?”
You didn’t understand why, but you were certain that hurt flashed across his face for a second before he recovered, biting his lip and looking down at his feet, nodding.
“Yeah, I know that,” he murmured, his tone unreadable to you as he looked back up, “Doesn’t mean I’m only making out with you because I’m drunk, though. I wanted to do this in your bedroom, remember? Just because we aren’t together doesn’t mean I don’t want you. I do. A lot. Like, all the time. I thought that was obvious.”
“Are you being serious?” you asked, emphasizing your bewilderment with a drunken hiccup.
“Are you? You can feel my dick right now, can’t you? If you can’t, that’s a bit of a blow to my ego—“
“Don’t be a smart ass,” you scoffed, giving him a lighthearted shove, earning a chuckle from him, “I meant that you’re beautiful. Like, ethereally beautiful. I’m just a little surprised to learn that you’re attracted to me. I wasn’t trying to insult the size of your dick.”
You had meant the last part as a joke, but when his eyes widened as a deep crimson bloomed across his cheeks, you started to panic.
“Hey, I’m not actually trying to imply anything about your dick. It seems big, from what I can tell, and—“
He was giggling now, still blushing as he shook his head at you in disbelief.
“I was just joking about that,” he insisted.
“Well, you looked offended,” you mumbled, crossing your arms.
“I’m not offended. I’m just—you can’t just call someone ethereal and expect them to instantly recover. It caught me off guard.”
“Oh, fuck off. You know you’re breathtaking in every sense of the word. I’m not the first person to tell you that.”
He awkwardly looked to the side, nervously chewing his lip, and shrugged a little. You were shocked by the realization that he was embarrassed—not by grinding on you and moaning like a porn star in public, no, but because you had called him beautiful.
“Oh my god,” you whispered, eyes wide, “You’re embarrassed. No way. I thought Luke Skywalker didn’t get embarrassed?”
“Shut up,” he murmured, leaning forward and hiding his face in your neck, “You’re such an asshole.”
“You’re ridiculous. I can’t believe that this is where you draw the line. People are practically throwing themselves at you all the time. How could you not be used to hearing you’re attractive?”
“That’s not what you said,” he argued, and you were so thoroughly entertained by the slight pout in his voice, “You called me other stuff. Like, poetic shit. People don’t just say that to each other.”
“Yeah?” you asked teasingly, relishing in the fact that you had him stumbling over his words for a change, “Can’t handle me telling you how beautiful you are?”
“If you’re trying to get me to stop begging to fuck you in public, you’re going about it the wrong way,” he murmured against your neck.
“If it weren’t for the fact that your sister would kill you, then I’d consider it.”
He suddenly stood up then, as if he had just had some stellar epiphany. Alert with wide eyes, he glanced back at the band, their set seemingly coming to a close, and his lips curled up into a wide grin.
“I’m gonna buy us a round before the next band,” he announced, abruptly pulling away from you and offering you his hand.
You were confused, but tangled your fingers together anyway, allowing him to lead you back to the bar. Ignoring the prying eyes of others was much easier when you were inebriated, but conversely, people were a lot less subtle with their staring when they were drunk. You continued to try to pay them no mind, but now you had to wonder how many people had seen Luke shove you up against the wall and make out with you like it was his sworn duty.
When you reached the bar this time, Luke immediately made conversation with Han and greeted Chewie, asking all sorts of small talk questions that you didn’t really see the point of. Han indulged him, though it could’ve been for your sake, you weren’t sure, and gave a few answers that were at least mildly interesting. That suggested to you that Han didn’t see your public display of affection just a moment ago, and you relaxed a little. Luke then ordered drinks for the four of you, and it seemed that everyone was a bit far gone. You briefly wondered where Leia was, but figured she probably did have her own friends to hang out with.
“Where’s your royal pain in the ass sister?” Han asked right on cue, trying to sound disinterested.
“She’ll be around in a few minutes,” Luke replied, and you knew the look in his eye well by now.
You were dying to know what his plan was, but you stayed silent, not wanting to give your scheming up to Han.
Luckily, you wouldn’t have to wait long, catching sight of her at a distance, a long, flowing skirt coming down to her boots and a leather jacket resting on her shoulders. Her shirt was cropped, which seemed slightly unusual for her given what you knew about her style, and her hair was in two long Dutch braids. She looked beautiful, which was no surprise, of course.
What was shocking, however, was that she was on stage.
Summary: After joining the Resistance as a mechanic, you were happy to keep to yourself, until a little orange and white bb unit and his master wander into your workshop one day.
— Pairing: TFATWS!Bucky Barnes x Reader
— Summary: Bucky lost the love of his life before Thanos snapped his finger. The only issue with the whole ‘moving on’ thing is: there is someone else who can bring her back. There’s somewhere he can go back to being happy in this world, and he isn’t above asking the Scarlet Witch for a place in it.
— Word count: 3.6k
— Warning(s): Mentions of death, violence, unhealthy coping mechanisms (don't ask to live under a spell just to get your love back, folks), depression, mentions of suicide.
— A/n: Requested by this nonnie, who clearly was on crack and wanted to feel something. This is sad. You've been warned :D You can consider supporting me on Ko-Fi, as well. If you enjoy it, feedback is appreciated & highly encouraged and motivates me to write even more.
⋅☾ My Masterlist | Join the taglist | Soundtrack ☽⋅
⋅|⋅
There was somebody who understood.
For weeks, all Bucky could think about was the point in all of this ‘being alive’ ordeal, if the world itself was such a bleak and dark place to be in. Without being asked, the universe forced upon us existence and threw us in a giant rock where crazy things happened, people were no longer good to each other and to pop the cherry on the cake, crazy old beings from other planets decided to play god.
Bucky was tired.
He had been tired for years, and that ended when he met you at the V.A., but then Thanos happened and for the second time he came back to himself, he was alone and tired.
Above all, Bucky felt anger. And competing for the first place, in the layer right under anger, was the sea of grief he'd bottled up into a vial.
All the grief, and all the missing he did daily because of you.
All of it mixed together in his chest and simmered under his skin like a poisonous and allergic reaction—to what he was yet to discover.
Everything around him, even the things he had started finding pleasure in or the people he initiated a conversation and eventual friendships with— all of those lost colors.
When he was young, Bucky watched TV with no colors, then he was kept frozen in a fridge like a thing waiting to be consumed and sometimes, he’d catch the small, sixty inches box the scientists who guarded him used for distraction and they’d sometimes have to slap the little thing for the color to come back.
Looking around the world now felt like that.
Like Bucky had to slap the color back to it, except he couldn’t.
Doing so would require bringing half of the population back — for most people — and even if everyone did return, you’d still be gone.
He wondered if it was a personal thing.
It had to be, given how much shit the cosmos had put him through. Him, personally. Bucky Barnes. Branded for Pain— that’s what Bucky pictured was stamped over his forehead: an idiot with code-bars which read “please make my life as miserable as possible! and if you can, keep it interesting!”.
He found none of this interesting.
To be fair with himself, he had tried.
Bucky put in the work when Sam rose to the occasion and started the support groups with Steve. God, Steve. His best friend was as broken, if not more, than he was. Seeing him that way only broke Bucky further, and looking at the person he grew up with while failing to find the similarities between the man standing in front of him now and before…
It hurt in places of his soul Bucky forgot he had.
So for months, he tried. Trying looked ugly when you were his age and went through what he did. It looked like beer bottles littered all over his apartment’s floor, stubble so long it could only be called a beard and days without seeing the sun.
The beard brought in other problems.
When Bucky catches his own reflection in the mirror and the bearded man looking back at him has bags under his eyes deeper than the feet of snow in front of his building, he flinches away from it.
Mirrors become an enemy once more.
It hurts in other tiny spaces of his soul Bucky’s forgotten about, and even more in the places that he’s trying to “get over”.
The beard is unkempt and uncared for, so it lacks the shine and the sharp look that it evoked reactions from you not a year ago.
Sometimes, Bucky flinches away from the memories. Most times, he just sinks and drowns in them like a man surrendering to the quicksand.
“Your beard looks sooooo good.”
That one is fresh. In that one, Bucky was lying in the same place he is now — his bed — but unlike the pigsty he’s surrounded with, the memory brings him the smell of lavender from his recently-washed sheets back then and the vanilla with berries from your body lotion.
Bucky’s house smelled of baked goods, wild fruits, good and seasoned food and just a hint of sex during the year and a half when he had you.
He started recognizing the smell of home in it.
“I don’t look like a hobo?” The question had been rhetorical, made while he scratched his trimmed beard.
You shook his head, then propped your chin on his pelvis bone. The twilight sky made your skin glow due to its peachy tones. “You look… sexy.” He loved how you said the word. Bucky smiled, and your grin widened with his reaction. “Like a hot movie star.”
He laughed out loud. “I could never walk a red carpet.”
“Hmmm, I don’t know, Buck. I’ve seen your strut on the tv.”
“Strut? I don’t strut—what even is that?”
His laughter filled up more rooms of the apartment when you got up from the bed and, in what was supposed to be an imitation of him, started walking with purpose around his bedroom.
You moved your shoulders a lot, and stared ahead with the biggest frown he’d seen on your pretty forehead so far.
He saw it— that was definitely a strut.
“Okay, okay! You’ve made your point. I’ve got swag,” he joked, finishing with a shit-eating grin.
You dropped your body on the bed right next to his, and rolled your eyes dramatically. “Why do I indulge in blowing up your ridiculously big ego?”
“Awn, don’t be mean, pretty. You know I love it when you talk about me, ‘s all.”
“Don’t do that!”
Bucky laughed harder. “What am I doing?”
“The cute pout thing! You know you look like a puppy when you do that— I can’t take it.”
“Even with the beard?”
“The beard makes it dangerously sexy, yes.”
You were indulging him, back then.
Hearing from your lips that he was beautiful, or sexy, or fun, all those things sounded better and more special coming from someone who knew exactly what he was and still loved him entirely. Not despite all of it, not because of all of it, but with it.
Simply love.
“What does a sexy man have to do to get a kiss around here?”
“Ask nicely.”
“Baby… please come up here… I’m dyin’ for a kiss.”
“So dramatic… c’mere.”
With difficulty, Bucky pulls back from the memory before it becomes too much.
Remembering you is sweet and necessary. If he’s honest with himself, it’s the only thing standing between Bucky and a vibranium bullet to the skull, but it’s also a tricky and treacherous river.
It can escalate from a momentary blink of happiness in his miserable days to what resembles the weight of a final nail in a coffin at a concerning speed.
He leaves your precious kisses in his memory-box and puts the lid on before something else slips out of him.
Bucky goes to sleep in satin sheets that no longer smell like you, even though he tried clinging onto those.
The missed calls from Sam continue to pile up on his phone, which keeps ringing throughout the night.
⋅|⋅
When he came back after the limbo he was stuck in, Bucky had told himself and then Steve that he would try it. That promise was kept— on his end, at least, Bucky thinks it was.
Then, Steve becomes someone else. He becomes the type of person who leaves a fellow man behind and escapes to another reality, and that’s when Bucky ceases trying to begin with.
Sam’s calls are the hardest to ignore.
Sam met you when he traveled to Wakanda with Steve, and he’d overheard Bucky’s conversation with you where the topic of moving out of the city was discussed.
“So what you’re saying is… you’re saying that if I went back— if I went back to Brooklyn and found myself an apartment after all this crap, and I moved there to live in peace. You’re telling me you’d go with me?”
“Of course I’d go with you, silly. I lived here all my life and this has been home, but I could experience other things. Plus—I meant what I said, okay? I’m with you. Ride or die, isn’t that how you say it in America?”
“It is, yeah.”
“Yup. That’s us. Ride or die. You said I’m everything you ever dreamt of. You can’t get rid of me that easily after that, Sargeant.”
“God— you’re so. I don’t even have words?”
“Say you’ll find us an apartment that I can fit a small lab in and you’ll have my eternal gratitude.”
“Baby— I’ll literally work five to ten to afford you a penthouse if I haf’to.”
“Cool. That’s good.”
“So we’re doing this?”
“Yup. Just gotta battle it out one last time.”
“It’s been a while since I’ve looked forward to a battle.”
“You just want what’s at the end of it— I know you’re dreaming about waking up with the smell of my pancakes.”
“You got me there. I love you but woah… your pancakes are the dream.”
If Bucky had seen Y/n falling in battle before the goddamn finger snapped, his knees would’ve lost their strength and his own demise would’ve come through the blades of one of the enemies.
That scenario often came to mind.
More often than not, Bucky wished he had seen. If he did, he too would’ve been before the snap.
If he’d seen it, he wouldn’t have to return without you.
The existence of a God never crossed Bucky’s mind, ever since he was a boy, but god did he pray for things to go differently.
Why me, God? Why not me and her? She didn’t deserve this. She deserved better.
It should’ve been me.
None of those thoughts brought her back.
After months of trying, none of his prayers or self-hatred would bring her back, and that’s the seed of the thought that infects Bucky for the next few weeks.
What if he could? What if bringing you back was an option?
Bucky knew the answer to those questions. He knew that if there was a way, he’d dive in, head first.
He must project his thoughts so loud to the universe that it gives him an out.
That’s all it could be— Sam’s phone calls have been ignored ever since Bucky came back and there was no reason why this one would’ve been different than the others, but after days without showering and thinking about all the things he would do to bring you back, Bucky is sitting with heavy and swollen eyes on his bedroom when the phone pings and he reads Sam’s message on the cracked screen.
There’s a situation happening… I could really use your help. It’s serious.
The message hypnotizes him. Bucky reads it over and over again until the screen fades to black again and there’s a little spark inside of him saying he should go. As a service to Sam being so good and not leaving him behind—he could do this one last thing for him.
It was only right.
It’s with those thoughts that he gets ready. Bucky showers for the first time in more than a week, trims his beard just in case Nick Fury is around, puts on the last clean clothes he can find and heads to the address Sam sent.
His arrival comes as a clear surprise, but the real gift comes in later that evening in the meeting Rambeau is conducting.
Bucky can barely look away from the files.
The situation is simple: there was somebody who understood.
He can barely feel the ground underneath him.
Everything zooms into these files, and Bucky swallows them down like the last meal. Wanda Maximoff understands what he’s going through, and Bucky pretends to listen to the rest of what people say, pretends he cares about the outcome of his mission and when he’s home, pretends there’s something to think about regarding all of this.
He pretends while cleaning his apartment, while boxing everything he owns into boxes, while packing his bags.
When the apartment is bare and everything is inside something, Bucky stops pretending.
There’s someone who understands what he’s going through, and the choice was made when Bucky read in the file ‘coping mechanism to disassociate from the loss of a loved one’.
If Wanda can create a reality where her peace and love still exists, Bucky applauds her.
And he isn’t above asking for a place in it.
⋅|⋅
It takes only three hours of Bucky standing in front of the barrier Wanda created around Westview before she shows up.
He’s sitting with crossed legs and a duffel bag over his shoulder, his gaze fixed on his hands and his head miles away, buried in the way you laughed.
When she walks through the magical wall, Bucky’s eyes snap up.
“Are you here alone?” Are the first words Wanda Maximoff speaks to him.
Bucky’s never been in the presence of pure, raw power before, and the experience leaves him with tingles all over his body. Her eyes flashed red the second she crossed the threshold and he wondered if it was a side-effect of the veil she lifted, but he realizes it when her chin lifts up and the moonlight shines into her brown orbs that it's just her.
Your voice speaks in his brain. Everyone’s darkest and best selves are revealed under the light of the moon. Did ya know that, baby?
Now he saw it.
He nods to her, swallowing the lump of intimidation on his throat. It’d been a while since he was face to face with someone who could actually defeat him without lifting a finger, and he needs a couple of seconds to regroup. “I am.”
Her expression remains flat and uninterested. “Did someone send you?”
Bucky shakes his head at that. Sam had no idea of where he was and Bucky’s only means of contact was now at the bottom of a river.
Knowing of her powers, Bucky takes a leap of faith.
You always said timing your leaps was the key to life. You gotta know when to jump, Sarge.
“I know you don’t know me, but I have something to ask of you.”
Those words get Wanda’s attention. One of her eyebrows lifts and her mouth leaves the state of the thin annoyed line it was since she made her appearance. “I’m listening.”
Bucky gets up, making sure to measure his movements so she’s aware he’s no threat. He stops a couple of feet in front of her, then takes a deep breath.
“Could you look in my head?”
Wanda’s head tilts back, confused and definitely a little suspicious. “Why?”
“‘Cause it’ll be easier than explaining.”
Wanda narrows her eyes, but finds no lies in his eyes or words because there are none. Bucky thought of several ways he could approach this and while he sat and waited for her, compiling a series of linear thoughts which explained how he ended up on her metaphorical doorstep like a stray dog was easy.
Red shines in front of him and he feels the red before he sees it.
There’s a brush of something on Bucky’s mind.
He thought too about what it would feel like to have somebody reading his mind, but there’s no pain. It resembles the feeling of someone’s hand hovering millimeters away from your skin, close enough to raise goosebumps, but not enough to touch. He feels Wanda like brushing his mind and capturing what he compiled for her, and then she’s gone, feeling as empty and alone as when he first arrived.
She gasps when the red leaves her eyes, and it’s a shaky one. “You…” Wanda trails off, and Bucky swallows the expectations down. “You want to enter. Fully enter Westview.”
Yes. The word apparently gets stuck on his throat, so Bucky nods.
“Are you… are you sure?” Wanda asks.
“Positive.”
There’s a moment of silence and Bucky fears all the scenarios which could follow if she rejected his request, but they all fade into smoke when she takes a step to the side, like she’s opening the door to her house to him.
Bucky is the one to gasp this time, because while the opportunity sounded real, it didn’t feel real until now.
“Are you serious?” He breathes out.
“I’ll need a moment to access your memories of you and her together so I can find her essence through the layers of… everything. And then you can enter.”
Bucky nods enthusiastically, because that is the easiest thing possible.
He closes his eyes and embraces the intrusive feeling of Wanda’s power ghosting over his brain, and finally surrenders himself to the memories he’s been running away from for what it feels like forever.
Y/n flashes in his eyelids in beautiful, sad, heartbreaking moments. Wakanda was where Bucky found peace, but it was through you, not the place.
You’d brought him peace.
When Wanda’s ghost is out of his mind, she nods in the direction of Westview and Bucky steps over the electric-looking veil with confidence. He expects nothing, thinks of nothing and to his utmost delight, the only feeling that washes over him is… watery.
Bucky steps inside the town and it’s like his head is being placed under the shower stream after a long day of hard work.
Refreshing.
Disorienting.
Washing away all the bad…
What was the bad?
Bucky has no idea. All he knows is that he left town to get… something. But he came back without it. What did he need?
“Bucky?”
The voice by his side snaps him back to the present, and Bucky has to shake his head.
That’s Wanda.
His neighbor… Vision’s wife. She had kids just last week. “Hey.” His voice sounds hoarse.
Y/n will be unhappy that he’s kept so quiet during his mission. She always talks about how he comes back with a smoker’s sexy tone because he refuses to talk like a human being during missions.
Wanda smiles at him and it’s a little sad, but Bucky knows how tired mothers get on the first weeks and dismisses the thought of sadness in her. Wanda’s always smiling. “Y/n told me to come get you,” she tells him.
Right! He’d left for a mission, but now he was home.
“That’s so kind of her,” he breathes out, feeling choked up for some reason.
Why is his baby so nice? God, Bucky misses her so much. He misses her like he hasn’t seen her in forever and that’s never a good thing. Y/n is his heaven on earth, and just like T’Challa said, if there was a person who deserved a little safe haven on this floating rock, it was him.
“D’you think she could look after my boys this week again?” Wanda asks him, giving him a tight-lipped smile.
He’d have to ask her, and he can’t imagine a day where Y/n would say no to a request like that. “Yeah, sure,” he laughs, feeling the same knot as before climbing up. The more he walks, the more Bucky wants to cry.
He just missed his baby so much.
“Cool. Thanks, Barnes,” she says.
“Of course.”
Wanda makes more small talk with Bucky about some of the residents and he pretends to pay attention to it, like he often does.
You’re always frowning at them! They’ll think you’re a grumpy neighbor— smile, baby. You’ve got such a pretty smile, Buck…
Was that… was it you?
It was. The voice was yours, and the memory looks foggy, but he remembers you telling him that.
You were right. Wanda was a nice neighbor. He tries smiling wider at her when she leaves him at his doorstep and it comes out so genuine that Bucky wonders why it feels like he hasn’t smiled in months.
Then, the door to his home opens and all those silly concerns fly out of the window.
There’s your frame on the door.
If Bucky was a better man, he’d smile like a stud from the old movies and strut his way to you, welcoming you into his arms.
But Bucky’s only Bucky, and he knows that if he doesn’t feel your warmth immediately he’ll crumble into thousands of pieces, so he runs.
Bucky runs to the door and he’s welcomed by the sound of you laughing at him, so pleased and amused. You’re the one who opens your arms to welcome him, and when you close them around his shoulders, Bucky feels the sobs ripping through his next breath.
He breathes in your scent and it feels like the first genuine breath he’s taken since he gained his mind back.
“Baby.”
He doesn’t know why he’s crying, but it feels like it’s over how much he missed you.
Then, you giggle in his ear and says, “Hi, baby. I missed you too.”
Bucky’s sobs all evaporate and what comes out next is a choked laughter. You missed him, but that was okay, ‘cause Bucky was here. Of course he was here.
He belonged next to his baby and through every mission, he’d find his way back.
Where else would he be? Somewhere you’re not?
“I’m here, baby.” He’s by your side now. He’s in your arms, and you’re kissing his temple like you always do when you say hello, and Bucky is at peace again. “I’m here.”
He’s here, because there’s no other place he’d rather be.
“I know, love.” Your voice feels like honey dripping all over his skin, and Bucky can barely open his eyes. Your next kiss to his temple feels like a kiss on an open wound, and Bucky smiles with water in his eyes.
He’s here, because being somewhere you’re not is never going to happen.
He’s found his peace, and that’s where Bucky will stay.
Pairings: Clint Barton x Reader
Summary: New to the Avengers, you’re told to stick by Clint’s side during the mission - which is a terrible idea really, considering you both act like children
Made for @brooklynbarrnes writing challenge using the prompt: “When it comes to shooting patterns, I like to go PB&J. Penis, brain, jaw.” (bolded)
Warning: senseless killing- but they’re HYDRA so fuck them, also the names for these shooting patterns are shit but hard to come up with so I apologise in advance
masterlist
“Y/N, stick with Clint”
You held back your laughter at Steve’s order, throwing him a semi-sarcastic salute before walking over to Clint side.
“Oh this is gonna be fun” he sniggered, making eye contact with Natasha who was shaking her head, a look of incredulity on her face, “You up for a friendly competition?”
“You betcha Hawkeye” you smirked, checking your thigh holster, “What’s the game?”
“Most creative kills?”
“Oh you’re going down”
He just shook his head, smile only growing as he ran over ideas in his mind.
description - Poe always promised he would come back from missions. One time he doesn’t. (Ends in fluff i promise i promise)
warnings - depression?, anxiety?, fem pronouns, talk of injury and death, grief, fluff at the end, use of petnames, reader gets carried for a while and sits on a lap, mentions of eating and eating avoidance (not ed)
word count - 3800
A/N - so this was an oops. I wrote this hella fast but i was in the zone and i am pretty happy with the emotionally devastating product. I promise it has a happy ending i just dont want to give too much away. I feel like for maximum emotional damage you need to be a little in the dark. anyway, forgive me
MASTERLIST
You were stood in the command center with your hands wringing together. No matter how many missions Poe went on, the waiting was always hell. How were you supposed to remain sane when the love of your life was out fighting a battle that he might not come back from. That you might never see him again. He always reassured you that he would always come back to you. That you never had anything to worry about. You tried to believe him, and for the most part you did, but that didn’t prevent you from being worried when he was gone.
You listened through the coms, trying to keep track of what was happening during the battle. Leia let you stay in there because she had a soft spot for you, as well as the pilot you were worried about. You were thankful she let you listen in on every mission, it meant that you weren’t alone worrying in the room you shared with Poe. The conversation over coms was rushed and loud, they were scared and that made your heart beat faster.
Leia gave you work to do, vital work, and you gave Poe an order. Turns out, resistance is in his very nature.
Blue and stark, the light from the data pad began to wear at your eyes. In the hopes of clearing the tiredness that clouded your vision, you rubbed your hands over your face. Lightly, you pressed your knuckles into your eye sockets and groaned. When you returned your gaze to the screen, the typography swirled together. Numbers and letters blended into a mess.
“Focus,” you whispered to yourself before you shook your head. When your eyes opened, you were greeted with momentary clarity. You needed to get this done. You had to.
Leia said it was a matter of urgency. This data needed to be processed as soon as possible. Without it, the Resistance leadership wouldn’t be able to map stealth routes do allied systems to transfer intelligence and supplies. Lives were at risk, rested on the data pad that you held in your hands and before your bleary eyes. You could not entertain failure.
You could not entertain distraction either, which was why you removed your easiest temptation: Poe. Before you retired to your shared quarters, you banished him to the barracks for the night. He had protested, insisted that he would behave; but, you knew him too well. And, based on how he, after you cocked a doubtful brow at him, turned tail towards the barracks, Poe knew that he wouldn’t be able to keep his word.
Though, that was hours ago and all you wanted was to crawl into bed to rest in his arms. You always slept better when you were with Poe. Something about his warmth carefully melted your every worry and ache away. If you didn’t know better, you would have called it magic. Sadly, you did not hold any grand illusion, especially not with such an important task at hand.
So, when the door slid open with a dull whoosh and Poe poked his head inside, you were wholly displeased.
“I told you to stay in the barracks!”
“What can I say, I’m a rebel,” he said with a wide, playful grin. When you failed to return his expression, Poe stepped entirely into your shared room and shut the door behind him. You watched him with a squinted glare. Though, when he reached up to sheepishly, almost shyly, scratch at the back of his neck, you lost your resolve. Your frustration seeped away.
“Sorry, I shouldn’t have snapped.”
“No, no, I’m sorry,” Poe said as he met your gaze with only softness. “I thought you’d be done by now, but you’re…”
“I’m not,” you finished for him. The words came out in a choked whimper and the sound proved enough to coax Poe close. He closed the gap between you and stood before where you sat with the data pad in hand.
“Hey, hey,” he crouched down and reached up to hold your face in his hands. “It’s alright, you’re alright. It’s just taking longer than you thought, yeah?”
“Y-yeah, but it’s...the coordinates don’t match up, so the program can’t automatically generate the star maps we need. Which means I have to check the coordinates and construct the maps by hands and that takes so-”
As you spoke, your voice grewer higher and higher, and your being began to break down into a sob. You were rendered unable to finished explaining as you quickly fell apart. Tears slipped down your cheeks before you realized that you were crying. As quickly as they fell, Poe wiped the wetness away and tried to soothe your babbling.
“It’s going to be alright, alright? We’ve got it handled.”
“No, no! Not alright!” You slumped forward and buried your face in Poe’s shoulder in a vain attempt to hide your shame. “Leia said it was vital! It needs to be done...done now!”
“Okay,” Poe said as he rubbed his hands up and down your back. You lifted your head to look into his dark eyes. Concern laced his gaze and made your chest ache. He meant well, but there were lives at stake. It wouldn’t be ‘okay’.
“Not okay, either!”
“Okay, so not alright or okay. We can make it alright, but you,” his hands roamed from your back, over your shoulders, to your face, where he cupped your jaw. “You need to sleep. You’ve been working nonstop and you’re overtired.”
“Poe…” You gave him a stern look, as he clearly did not understand the weight of the task you were given. He only smiled in return, in that smug way he did, and brushed his thumbs along the sides of your face. His touch made it difficult to stay cross.
“Y/N…”
A moment of silence passed with both of you fixed on the other. It was a moreless silent resignation you made as, with a sigh, you began to fully rest the weight of your head in Poe’s hands. Once you did, Poe’s smile widened and he leaned up and forward. He pressed a kiss to your forehead, lingering and gentle. When he pulled away, you frowned.
“Two hours,” you murmured, “then I have to get this done.”
“Two hours,” Poe repeated in agreement.
He stood, let his hands fall from your face only to hold them out to you. Without hesitation, you took them and he helped your stand from your desk chair. Once you were on your feet, Poe led you to your shared bed. The thought of sleep entered your head, made your mind grow fuzzy with want and yearn for the snugness of Poe’s arms around you. His hands were just a taste of his soothing warmth.
“Two hours,” he echoed as you both collapsed on the cot in a tangled mess of limbs, “unless you’re just too deep in sleep to wake.”
With your eyes closed and head tucked against Poe’s chest, you let out a satisfied sigh before you spoke up. “Dameron, if you don’t wake me up, you’ll be just too deep in trouble that you may make the barracks your permanent residence.”
A dull, rumbling laugh reverberated in Poe’s chest. It was the last sound you heard before you drifted off into the dark behind your eyelids. Your whole being surrendered to embrace of Poe’s body and his warmth. A second before entirely succumbing to sleep, you heard the last bit of Poe’s laughter and felt the dread of having to stir.
Though, when you woke, you were too in the throws of grogginess to even acknowledge dread. You were much too concerned with the noted lack of Poe. His side of the bed was colder than it was warm under your palm. He must have gone a few hours ago.
Hours. Two hours. How long had he let you sleep?!
Panicked, you shot up from your bed and darted over to your desk. Fresh and white-hot, another wave of anxiety washed over when you saw the data pad was gone too. In one, wild moment, your mind went to every worst-case possibility. A missing Poe and a missing, incredibly important data pad could lead to countless bad scenarios. Just as you felt yourself begin to drown in a flood of worry, you began to stumble towards the door.
You reached it the same time it opened to reveal a wide-eyed Poe. His mouth fell open in surprise and he took a step back as you leered forward.
“Two hours!”
“It’s been more than two,” he said softly, a smile on his lips. If you weren’t so angry, you would have oogled at his charming expression longer. Instead, you only reached and pulled Poe inside your shared quarters by the arms. He started to make a joke about the last time you pulled him into this room when he noticed your unending glare. Quickly, he quieted.
“Where is it?! Where’s the data pad?!”
“With Leia.”
Your eyes widened and you felt suddenly faint. To keep yourself on your feet, you gripped Poe’s arms a bit tighter. “What?! I wasn’t finished!”
“But you were,” Poe said, his voiced raised slightly. “I checked the coordinates that you said wouldn’t convert or whatever and I finished up your work.”
“While I was sleeping,” you said as your brain, still foggy from sleep, attempted to totally understand what he did. Your hands fell numbly to your side as your worry began to ebb.
“While you were sleeping,” he echoed. He stepped towards you with arms extended. His hands cupped your elbows and drew you in close. Instinctively, you pressed your face into his shoulder and took a deep breath. Leather, fuel, and something uniquely Poe filled your nostrils and soothed the lingering licks of nerves. “Don’t worry. I gotcha covered."
“By the Maker, I was ready to-”
“Banish me to the barracks?” You nodded against him and Poe’s arms tightened around you. “Glad that you didn’t?”
You pulled your face from his jacket and met his dark eyes. “Yes,” you murmured, “and thank you. For letting me rest and finishing my work.”
“That work could save the Resistance,” he pointed out, a smug grin on his lips.
“It could.”
“So, in a sense, I saved us.” There was a teasing tilt in his voice but you played along.
“You saved us? I think you mean I saved us. I did most of the work.”
“Yeah,” Poe agreed, “but I checked.” In response, you merely blinked, unbelievingly up at him. His grin widened, unable to bite back his joking intentions. “We saved the Resistance.”
“We could have, might have,” you corrected. Poe sighed.
“You won’t let us have this?” You shrugged and he shook his head. “Well, I think we, no, I think you deserve a medal.”
You hummed, “how about a kiss instead?”
“I can do that,” Poe said before he leaned down and captured your lips with his.
so this is specifically dedicated to the amazing @sigyncevans cause shes in love with stevie and cause we wanted a crossover between verch x steve and ivonne x charles. so yea here you go, i hope you'll like it lmao
side note: before every part there's a title of a song that matches this part's vibe :D also, as you'll probably see, I'm a Swiftie and NBHD stan <3
warnings: mentions of war, canon level violence, some swears, apart of that none - pure fluff
word count:
hope you enjoy <3
I'M GONNA UPDATE THIS LATER THIS IS NOT THE WHOLE STORY
------------------------- "Paper rings"
"Verch, hey Verch wake up, the sun has already risen!"
"And what do you want me to do, photosynthesis?" Verch asked Steve who tried to wake her up
"Hey, you don't need to be aggressive" said Steve with a little smirk "I just want to eat breakfast with my beautiful girlfriend"
"As you should tho" she yawned "wait a second I'm coming"
Steve gave her this heart eyes look which always made her heart melt. He took a few steps back so she had more space to get up. He looked at her as she stretched her arms, grabbed a hoodie and made her bed. When she was done he took her hand and together they went downstairs to the kitchen.
"What do you wanna eat?" Steve asked
"Anything babe" Verch responded "you cook so good, everything you make is great" she added.
"Okay,, it's cereal then" he said
"Not very ambitious but I love it" she laughed "thanks Stevie"
"Really it's my pleasure" Steve chuckled and started preparing the food.
Verch brought the bowls and cereal while Steve was finding milk. Few minuted later they had everything finished. Together they sat at the table, chatting happily, appreciating the fact that they had each other. They both knew damn right that they were so lucky that they met and that they had someone to share everything with, to talk about everything, sometimes cry to. They loved each other, there was no doubt about that.
----------------------------- "London boy"
Charles opened his eyes slowly and blinked as the sun hit him right in the face. He moved his head and now he was facing her. Ivonne. She was still sleeping, breathing quietly, hugging him very thighly for a sleeping person. Suddenly she yawned and started blinking just like Charles did. She scrunched her nose a little.
"I love your cute nose scrunch" Charles said "it reminds me of Edith" /fyi Edith is a cat Charles and Ivonne adopted/
"Since when I'm compared to our cat Charlie?" Ivonne asked with overdramatic tone.
"Since we got her. You remember when we first saw her? She had exact same look on her face as you had" he laughed "still, I think you look adorable"
"Thanks I guess" she yawned again "I'm hungry" she added.
"This was so random darling" Charles put her hair behind her ear "but same, so maybe let's go and eat something"
"Good idea" she sat on the bed and rubbed her face "this sun is attacking me" she complained as she covered her eyes with her hand.
"You're right" Charles said and rolled out of bed. He immediately stood up, offered Ivonne his hand ("will you take my hand ma'am?") and dancing with her to the melody they together sang he guided her to the kitchen.
-------------------------- "Play with fire"
"So, did you like the movie?" Steve asked as they went out of the cinema.
"Yes of course! My favourite part was when all heroes went into the sunshine in the end. So emotional" Verch said, tearing up a little bit "If I was in a movie I would end it exact same way" she added.
Steve nodded and smiled at her softly. For some time they remained silent as they both imagined their perfect endings.
"You know what?" Verch asked "It's not about going to a certain place. It's about who you go there with" she stopped for a second. "In my perfect ending, I go into the sunshine with you and all our friends. We're all happy cause we know that we did everything we could to leave this world better than we arrived in it"
"It's a beautiful ending" Steve imagined it in his head "I would love it to be real" he added. "It can be real if we try hard enough" Verch smiled hopefully "I want to try Steve. For you, for all of us" "Me too darling, me too" he kissed her cheek gently "I love you Verch and I always will"
Suddenly they heard a high pitched sound, as if someone vey angry tried to tear all metal around them into pieces. Verch curled up in pain, covering her ears. Steve immediately pulled her closed and hugged her so the noise was less painful.
"What the hell is that?" Verch asked with pain in her voice
"I have no idea" Steve replied, at same time trying to find the source of sound. He looked up to the sky... and saw a man in a strange looking suit, long cape and a helmet who was floating in the air and basically... worked like a big magnet. All metal from the street, which was cars, phones, street lamps, wires etc were flying in this man's direction and creating some kind of field around him.
"Maybe we should do something about this?" Verch yelled as noise was getting louder.
"Yeah you're right" Steve yelled back "luckily I have my shield with me"
"Wait Stev-" Verch tried to warn him but he didn't hear her. Steve threw the shield at the man and yeah of course shield didn't come back cause.. it was metal.
"What the hell Steve, this man rules metal and you throw your METAL shield at him?!"
"Yes, maybe this was not the best idea" Steve said with a bit of shame in his voice "plan B then, run"
They both started running away from the metal ruler. There was noone here, all other people ran away much earlier. Suddenly they saw a white light before them. The light was growing fast and it formed a circle. It looked like a... portal. They stopped like 100 meters away from the circle. They saw a silhouette coming out of the portal. Woman, dark hair, blue eyes, something about 25 years, in a black suit with white stripes forming "X" on her chest. She looked serious yet her view had something comforting in it. She saw them standing and gestured to the portal.
"Come on Steve, take Verch to the portal" how did she know their names? "quick, it's mot safe for you here" she rushed them. Steve, still in shock, took Verch's hand and ran with her to the portal. Last thing they saw before portal closed was that the woman's hands were glowing just like Wanda's but not red. Left white and right black.
------------------------ "Little dark age"
They ran onto a lawn. Very big lawn to be honest. Somewhere in front of them they noticed huge, old-looking mansion.
"Where the hell are we?" Verch was a little scared " and how this girl knew our names, who was she and who was this magnet man?"
"Well, I can answer all your questions, if you let me" they heard a calm voice. They looked around to find the talking person but there was noone in their sight.
"Uhm, who are we talking to?" Steve asked also worried
"I'm Charles. Charles Xavier. And I'm sorry I am in your minds but I didn't know if I can fully trust you" said the voice.
"Wait- you're in our heads?" Verch asked now absolutely frightened
"I'm sorry, but I had to check" Charles replied "wait a minute, I'm already near to you" he added. As soon as he finished the sentence, they saw him walking down the lawn. Tall, blue eyed and dark haired just like the woman who they've met before. He stopped few meters away from them and looked at them for a second. Finally Steve asked the question both him and Verch wanted to ask.
"This woman who opened the portal... you know her?"
"Yes, her name is Ivonne. She sensed that you're in trouble and immediately got herself in the middle of a multidimensional hole. But, here she comes" Charles said and, in fact the portal opened again and woman, or Ivonne as they just learned, appeared again.
"And how did it go?" Charles asked her "what did you do with him? I hope you didn't kill him"
"Oh no, of course not, stupid" she said with a cocky smile "the Avengers showed up and bet his ass"
"The Avengers?" Steve and Verch gasped
"Yeah, the Avengers" Ivonne said "not that they introduced themselves" she winked at Charles and laughed
"Ivonne's a telepath, just like me" Charles explained "we can read people's minds"
"So this is how you knew our names right?" Verch turned to Ivonne
"Yep" the girl replied "I know, it's wasn't really good but I didn't have time to explain"
"It's okay" Verch chuckled "thank you for saving us tho" she added
"No problem and you're welcome" Ivonne smiled "and I love your hair Verch. It looks great"
"Thank you" Verch smiled at her "I love your suit"
"Now thank you" Ivonne smiled back "well, I guess you're hungry, maybe you want to come in and eat something?" she asked
"Great idea" Charles joined in "Verch, Steve what do you think?"
"Sounds great" Steve said
"Yeah same" Verch responded
"Okay, Ivonne, can you guide us?" Charles asked
"Of course, this way" Ivonne started walking to the mansion and the rest followed her.
--------------------- "Meet me at our spot"
"So, how did you know we're in trouble?" Verch asked when everyone finished eating.
"I'm not sure, but it's possible that something or someone broke the reality and that it's possible to travel between different universes" Ivonne said and Charles nodded
"We think someone was at the end of time and did something that consequented into forming a multiverse" Charles added.
"So this guy, this wielding metal one, was from different universe?" Steve was completely shocked
"Yes, specifically for OUR universe" Charles replied "his name is Erik, also known as Magneto. He is... was my friend. I don't think I know him anymore" Charles saddened "anyway, he probably didn't intentionally go into your verse. He just got himself into a hole between a parallel verse, which we found out to be your verse aka Avengers Verse. In shorter version we call it AVerse"
"Wait, so now everyone can travel between universes?" Verch was clearly very interested in the topic.
"Not everyone, just people with powers to bend reality, for example me, or people who just got themselves into a colliding verses like Erik" Ivonne answered.
"Wow.. this must be so cool to have powers like yours" Verch smiled sadly "I don't have any superpowers, I'm just... like everyone"
"No, you're definitely not like everyone" Charles tried to cheer her up.
"Yes, he's right" Steve hugged her "you're unusually intelligent, smart, charming... you're the one and only" he added
"I'm sure you have powers but just don't know it yet" Ivonne smiled "you'll figure it out someday. Maybe faster than you think"
"Thank you guys" Verch gave them a soft smile "but if you'll excuse me, can we go to sleep now? I'm horribly tired and I'd love to get some rest"
"Now that you say it I feel sleepy too" Ivonne yawned.
"Great, I'll show you a room" Charles stood up from the table "one bed or two?"
"One of course" Steve winked at Verch
"Oh I understand" Charles looked at Ivonne "we have same thing going on"
"Oh God, can you stop flexing with it" look on Ivonne's face told that this is not the first time she had to deal with this "he literally tells that to every single couple we meet. "Hi, I'm Charles and this is Ivonne, hey did you know she's my girlfriend? Oh well she is, yeah we sleep in the same bed" and it goes and goes and goes and it never ends"
Verch chuckled but Charles looked like someone just punched him in the face.
"I didn't know it bothers you that much darling" he said looking in Ivonne's eyes
"Well, no it doesn't, I just like messing with you" she gave him a filtry smile "alrighty then, Verch, Steve come on, I'm gonna show you your room"
"Goodnight" Charles said as they were going up the stairs. They said goobe to him too and followed Ivonne who was already upstairs. They walked through the corridor to its end and Ivonne opened the door before them.
"I hope you'll like the room" she pointed at door on the right side of the room "here's a bathroom, I think towels are already there, if you'll need anything just focus on it, Charles or I will hear you" she checked again if everything was on its place "goodnight and see you tomorrow"
"Bye" Verch said "sweet dreams"
Ivonne closed the door behind her. Verch went to the shower and Steve waited for her outside the bathroom. When she finished, she walked out so Steve could wash himself too. She jumped on the bed. It was very comfy and soft. She wrapped herself up into the blanket. She didn't even know when she fell asleep.
------------------------- "Don't blame me"
"We can't leave it like that Charles" Ivonne confronted him "waiting won't give us more time and you know it. Do you want our world to be taken over again?"
"No, I just think we should know more about the problem before we start doing something about it" his voice was calm but his eyes were saying different thing.
"We already know what the problem is: the multiverse" Ivonne bit her lip "we don't have time Charles. Erik went to AVerse, what if someone bad from AVerse will arrive in our world? Avengers don't have telepaths in their squad and we don't know how to fight their bad guys"
"You're right, but still, we don't know if the multiverse is actually the problem. Maybe we misunderstood something or maybe only the two verses collided. We don't know it and, till we will not be absolutely sure, it's not wise to take any actions. Also we don't know what caused the break of reality so we don't know how to patch it up"
"You're just scared" Ivonne let out a little snort "you're scared of doing anything about it"
"No, I'm scared about YOU doing anything about it" Charles looked her in the eyes
"Why? I think I can handle my powers, you yourself said it"
"It's not about your powers, I just... I just don't want you to be hurt" did his eyes fill with tears or was it just the light? "you suffered enough Vonnie. I don't want to see you in pain again"
Ivonne moved closed to him and hugged him delicately. "I don't want you to be hurt too Charles" she whispered "you mean everything to me, never forget that". She missed him softly and rest her head on his shoulder.
"I love you so much Vonnie"
------------------------ "Sweater weather"
Verch woke up in the middle of the night from a nightmare. She didn't remember everything but she saw light, felt pain and... she had some kind of powers? It was beautiful and terrifying at same time. She tried to calm her mind but she only stressed herself even more. She heard quiet knock on the door. They opened and Verch saw Ivonne standing on the corridor.
"Hey Verch" Ivonne said quietly trying not to wake up Steve "is everything okay? I heard your mind and I wanted to find out. You sounded very... terrified"
"I'm fine, totally, just had a nightmare. It's nothing really, I'm sorry I woke you up" Verch felt really bad for waking her up "I'm really fine" she added
"You sure about that? It's okay, I couldn't sleep anyway" Ivonne smiled calmly "if you want to talk, I'm here"
"Uhh it's just that.. this nightmare.. it felt so real. I felt pain, my pain, and saw light coming from me, and I'm scared cause I don't fucking know what that means"
"Do you need a hug? Sometimes it's the best way to help"
"Yeah thanks"
Ivonne walked to her and hugged her softly
"I can help you fall asleep if you need it"
"Do you think I really have superpowers?" Verch asked after some time.
"Yes, actually, now when you had this dream I'm sure about it" Ivonne hugged her a little thither "they will appear really soon in my opinion"
"Thanks Ivonne" Verch smiled "I could use your help going back too sleep if it's okay"
"Of course"
Verch watched her as she rised her right hand and touched her scalp. Her mind went blank and she fell asleep with no dreams.
------------------------- "Leaving tonight"
Next day, Verch and Steve woke up and went downstairs. They met Charles who clearly didn't sleep well, dark circles under his eyes told them everything.
"Woah, you look like you didn't sleep at all" Steve asked him, raising his brows.
"I didn't actually" Charles yawned "it was a very bad night. Ivonne didn't sleep too"
"Oh my god what happened, I hope it wasn't our fault" Verch really didn't want to be a problem.
"No of course not, it's just... our world is not perfect and... I don't know if I can tell you that actually. I have to ask her first, wait a second" Charles touched his head like Ivonne did when she came to help Verch. He looked like he's contacting someone without words. "Alright, she's okay with it. Well, I am from a family that loved me and stuff but Ivonne isn't. Her parents never accepted her powers and basically threw her out of the house. She was fifteen at the time. She used her powers to get food, water and have a place to sleep. She was still studying and decided to go to university. Oxford specifically. That's where I met her. She was very closed and didn't trust me at first but after some time she told me everything about her past and about her being a telepath. When I was assembling the team I asked her if she wanted to join. She said yes. She was mostly doing a spy job and she was really good at it. But once we lost contact with her. She was sent to New York to find a well known scientist, who we thought might be in danger. She arrived there but suddenly she disappeared. We tried everything to contact her again but her mind was gone too. I was so worried about her that I went to NY to find her. She was in fact captured by CIA and investigated. They asked her about our team but she didn't tell them anything so they became more brutal. I somehow managed to break her out but she already was totally terrified. She has photographic memory. She remembers every single detail of the investigation. How she was tortured and stuff. She has nightmares. Every single night. But sometimes, it's worse, like today. Panic attacks for sure. Its hard to calm her down and it takes me whole night sometimes"
"This is awful, how is she feeling now?" Verch and Steve felt sorry for her "is there any way to help her?"
"I'm afraid not" Charles smiled sadly "but thank you. Now, would you like to eat something?"
"Yeah, sure"
"Okay, come on, let's prepare breakfast"
-------------------- "Call it what you want"
It was afternoon, Steve was training with his shield in the garden (Ivonne gave it back to him after Avengers bet up Erik). He thought about everything: about the danger multiverse created, about how he was in parallel universe now, about how are Avengers doing without him and about... Verch. She seemed a lot more serious last days and he didn't know if it was because of everything they went through recently or because of something she didn't want to tell him. She clearly had a secret and Steve was okay with it, he just didn't want her to go through this alone. He loved her and wouldnt sleep well knowing he ignored her problems and didn't do something to help. He threw his shield again, it bounced off the trees and came back to him. He threw it harder. And harder and harder. He catched the shield and sat on the grass, covering his head in his hands.
"Steve?"
He immediately recognised this voice. Verch.
"You alright?" Verch asked again.
"Yes sweetheart, I'm fine. Just a little tired" he tried not to sound weird. He didn't want her to worry about him.
"Steve. Don't lie to me, I see something isn't right" Verch didn't let him trick her "you can tell me everything, you know it"
"I just worry about you Verchie. You are more serious now, you laugh less, you don't seem happy, I mean you don't have to be happy all the time but I just feel something is wrong"
Verch went silent for a few seconds. When she finally spoke her voice was shaking.
"I feel like I have a power inside me. It awakened some time ago. And it scares me. I don't know if I will control it, what if I hurt someone? I... don't know anymore who I really am. I don't know what these powers even are" her eyes filled with tears. Steve hugged her and stroked her hair softly as she cried in his arms.
"I'm afraid Steve, I don't want to hurt anyone"
"You won't sweetie and don't be afraid, I will always be here with you, I promise"
"Thank you Stevie"
"I love you Verchie"
--------------------------- "Best friend"
Verch didn't remember next few days well, it all blurred into fear, sleep, eating and wandering around the mansion. Ivonne was feeling better, Verch talked to her a lot, she was checking up on her very often which Ivonne appreciated. The two grew up closer, Verch started to think that she finally has a friend other than Steve. She couldn't call the Avengers her real friends cause they didn't talk much. She saw them sometimes when they were coming to her house to pick up Steve. They were all cool, dangerous and... had superpowers. Were better than average people. It scared her a bit and always made her feel a little anxious. Did she say everything right? Didn't she annoy any of them? Maybe they didn't like what she did or said and now she made new enemies? Steve always told her that they like her and that she did everything right but she didn't really believe him. One small part of her always doubted that.
So she really appreciated Ivonne. She felt like she had someone who doesn't judge her, who genuinely likes her and who won't turn their back on her once she disagrees with them. Ivonne felt same way but, as she had in her character, didn't tell Verch about that. Ivonne's one and only real friend, apart from Verch, was Charles. He always was there for her, understood her so well and never left her side. She always thought about him as a very good friend but deep inside she knew that he's something more. "Idiot in love" she called herself out one day.
Now, that she had Verch, she was damn sure that she finally has a best girl friend who will always stand with her.
And Verch thought same about her.
------------------------- "Flawless"
Charles called them all to his office telling them that they must think about a plan. So, the four was now sitting on comfy armchairs brainstorming how to end the multiverse. For now, noone had any ideas.
"My brain hurts" Steve complained "I'm not used to this much thinking about complicated stuff"
"Same" Ivonne rubbed her eyes "even tho I am a MSc in genetics"
"I need a break" Verch let her head fall on the back of her armchair "this shit is tiring, all these... dangers, oh my god they are just-" she yawned
"Yeah I think we need a break" Charles also seemed sleepy "wanna go outside or have a nap here?"
"Move Xavier, I'm coming" Ivonne stood up and three fast steps later she was on his lap.
"Steve, you move too" Verch followed her friend's example, sat down next to Steve and cuddled into him.
"I'll take as a "we wanna take a nap here"" Charles chuckled and started playing with Ivonne's hair.
Steve pulled Verch closer and watched her for a second as she fell asleep.
"How did you confess to Verch?" Charles suddenly asked him.
"What? Oh, I invited her to the cinema then we went to a tower, she loves night views from high places, and I just... told her. Kinda basic but I couldn't think of anything better to be honest. She liked me back so anything would work anyway. But there was also one situation, we were at the Avengers Tower at a party. We danced a lot and I told her that I love her for the first time and we kissed.. all Avengers saw it so it was kinda awkward" he laughed quietly "and you?"
"Well, it was more complicated" Charles chuckled again "Ivonne's a telepath so if she wanted to, she could've known the truth immediately. But I wanted to tell her myself and I did. It was in the middle of a battle, she was injured. I took her away from the battlefield, tried to cheer her up and it just... happened. She was first girl I ever kissed"
"Wow now that's elite" Steve couldn't help laughing a bit "what was your friends' reaction to you two dating?"
"Raven said she wasn't surprised, Hank said that he knew it all along, Erik didn't care, only Peter and Alex were totally shocked and didn't stop joking about it since then" Charles made a face that let Steve know that he doesn't like Peter and Alex's jokes "oh, and Logan said that it's really nice to hear that we're happy and stuff, only one normal person really"
"Well my friends were supportive, at least most of them. Nat was totally in heaven when I told her, she told me she shipped us from the beginning, Tony joked about it but he was genuinely happy for us, Clint said that he will take care of our kids when we have them, Vision as he has in habit, was VERY much like Tony but nicer, Thor said that he can arrange us a nice wedding in Asgard and Bruce... well Bruce was in shock but in a nice shock I mean he was happy but shocked"
"I would love to meet your friends"
"And I'd love to meet yours"
------------------------- "Softcore"
So, after some more talks they came out with a plan. It was simple: find The Avengers and maybe some X-Men and make a team out of that. They weren't sure if it will work and if anyone would be interested but they thought they should do it anyway. In worst case they would just end up alone and fight without any help.
They all started training, each one different. Steve trained with his shield, mostly ran around an obstacle course Ivonne made for him. Verch trained sword fighting as she was great in it and it was useful. Ivonne trained her powers in other obstacle course which also included using knifes. Charles just walked around the town trying to confuse people.
After two weeks they were ready. They suited up and walked out on the lawn.
"Alright, yall ready?" Ivonne asked them "I'm opening the portal"
They watched her as she moved her hands in some kind of circle and then pushed it forward. Portal opened.
"Welcome to the Avengers reality" she said with some fear in her voice "everyone remembers who they need to find?"
Everyone remembered so they went through the portal. They appeared in New York, near the Avengers Tower.
"Good luck" Verch said "see you soon"
Steve walked down the street to the Tower, Verch caught a bus to Louisiana, Ivonne quickly found out which way she should go and Charles turned back and went to the city centre.
------------------------- "Stargazing"
Steve was standing before the Tower. He took a deep breath and opened the door. He took a lift to highest floor. The lift stopped and he got out. He was home.
His best friends were here but who should he talk to first? Who would believe him? Sam was in his house, Bucky also was away and Scott... well he didn't know but he definitely was not here. Suddenly the idea flashed in his head. Thor! He would believe him if he wasn't in Asgard. Steve went to the living room, expecting at least one of his friends to be there. He was right but the person chilling on the sofa wasn't Thor.
"Steve! You're back" Clint shouted as he saw Steve coming "where have you been mate?!"
"Oh you wouldn't believe me" Steve hugged his friend "I was in alternate reality"
"For real?! Oh God this is amazing!" Clint looked now like a puppy whom you offered a walk "how does it look like, are the people nice, do I exist there, are there superheroes, is there McDonald-"
"Clint please don't ask me this much questions in one minute, my brain aches" Steve laughed "it's pretty much like ours, but there are no Avengers, their superheroes are called X-Men"
"Did you meet them?" Clints eyes shone like two stars from excitement
"Yes, to be honest I lived with two of them in one house for three weeks. They're really nice" Steve tried to calm Clint down
"What superpowers do they have?" Clint couldn't stop asking
"They're both telepaths but one has also powers pretty much like Wanda's"
"What are their names and can I meet them?"
"They are Charles and Ivonne and no, you cannot you HAVE TO. We need your help to patch the multiversal mess up"
"OH. MY. GOD IM GONNA TRAVEL TO ANOTHER UNIVERSE" Clint yelled so loud that he woke up Tony
"Why are you yelling Clint" Tony asked with a sleepy voice "Oh hey Steve, I thought you died"
"Hello Tony, no I'm not dead" Steve was not surprised with Tony's joke "Clint you tell him, I'm gonna find and informate the rest"
"Of course Cap" Clint saluted as Steve walked to the kitchen. Steve heard Clint happily explain everything to Tony and Tony sobbing cause he didn't understand anything from Clint's babbling.
"At least they didn't change" Steve whispered to himself.
---------------------------------
Verch got out of the bus and looked around. She was in Louisiana and she needed to find one person. From what Steve told her and she knew herself she figured out that she needs to go to the forest so she did. Few minutes later she walked onto a lawn. She saw a nice looking house and two kids playing outside of it.
"Hey boys" she smiled at them "can you tell me if Sam Wilson lives here?"
"Yup, he does" the taller one answered "should I ask him to come here?"
"Yes, thank you" Verch answered. Boys went to the house and she waited outside. After a minute Sam walked out of the house.
"Oh my, Verch! Hi its been a while" he smiled and hugged her "it's so nice to see you"
"Back at you Birdie" Verch hugged him back
"So what is going on? I know that you want something from me, what happened?"
"Multiverse. Steve, I and our new friends are assembling the team to fix the problem"
"Let me guess, your new friends are not from our world"
"How did you- okay nevermind. Yes they are, and they will help us a lot. When we get everyone from our universe we gonna find heroes from theirs"
"Who do you have for now?"
"Me, Steve, Clint for sure, maybe Nat and Bruce, Thor, Tony if he will not laugh at Steve and you"
"Nice team, what about Wanda and Vision?"
"We don't know where to find them. But we will ask Doctor Strange if he wants to join"
"Oh that's great, are you gonna ask Bucky? I personally think he would be very useful"
"Right, we have that covered tho. One of our new friends is going to ask him"
"Is he or she a good fighter? Just in case Bucky gets,, you know scared"
"She's a telepath"
"Well then I think she will handle him. Also, I'm in. I wanna be in the team"
"Thanks Sam"
------------------------------
Ivonne stopped before a bar. She felt persistence of Bucky Barnes inside it. Thanks to everything Steve told her about him, he was easy to find. But, she was a telepath so everyone was easy to find for her.
She entered the bar and quickly located Barnes. He was sitting in the darkest corner, alone. She took her chance and sat at other side of his table.
"What do you want" he asked her, his voice sounded a bit russian.
"I want your help, James" she used his first name cause she didn't know if she can call him Bucky.
"Wow I see youre informed" he sounded chill but she felt his thoughts - his head was flashing red lights
"Not to worry James, I'm not your enemy, i don't want to hurt you. I'm Ivonne Xavier, Steve Rogers sent me" she thought it won't be a good idea to reveal her powers till she won't fully trust him
"So that's how you knew my name" he finally raised his head and looked at her. His eyes were nearly same color to Charles'.
"Yeah. Stev- WE need your help. Multiverse emerged and we need everyone we can get help from to fix it. You are on the list"
"We? Who do you mean?"
"Me, Steve, Verch and my fiancé. Also the entire world and probably the whole multiverse"
"Wait.. you're not from our universe are you? No, don't answer, if you were you would've been recruited by the Avengers long time ago. You clearly have superpowers"
"How did you know?"
"When you entered the bar, door opened but you didn't use your arm for this. Yes, you raised your hand but none of your muscles moved when you opened the door. Small detail, I think noone spotted it except me"
"Wow you have nice sight. Anyway, do you wanna join our funky team?"
"Give me time to think about it" he thought about something for a second "come back in two hours. I'll tell you what I decided"
"Sure. See you in two hours then" she stood up and left with a thought that James is definitely hiding something, but she didn't know what. Yet.
----------------------------------
177A Bleeker Street. Charles read the address and looked at the building he had in front of him. He was at the right place. He knew it not only because the address was right but also because he sensed someone very powerful inside of the building. Probably Doctor Strange. Now he needed to convince Sorcerer Supreme to help him.
He took a deep breath and opened the door. He was in a big hall, before him there were huge stairs. He raised his hand to his head and "scanned" the area upstairs. Nothing.
"Well, you're a telepath. Nice gift" Charles heard a voice on his right. He moved around and saw a tall, dark haired man in a long, red cloak.
"You're Doctor Strange right? Steve Rogers sent me, we need your help"
"Yes, it's me. And what do you need help with? Multiverse, maybe?"
"Exactly. So you already know something about it"
"Yes, it is in fact a multiverse, and I suppose you are from a parallel universe, am I right?"
"You are. Anyway, would you help us fix the problem? You would help a lot, cause we don't know much about realities, universes and stuff like that"
"Let me think.. yeah I think I can help you. In fact, I was actually gonna start looking for a solution for the multiverse issue and I've already collected some clues"
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