Dateless
Summary: Almost everyone believes you are dating…
Pairing: AU!Bucky Barnes x fem!Reader
Warnings: angst, unrequited feelings, Bucky being a douche?, hopeful ending, idiot in love
“Come on, spill it. This is the circle of trust. The boss didn’t send us here for team building for you to chicken out.” Your college poked your side, making you giggle. “You and Barnes are dating, right?”
“I—no. We just click. He’s like my work husband. “Though I don’t have a husband outside of work,” you sighed and shook your head. It was always the same story. People ask you if you and Bucky are dating, and you must tell them the truth. “I wouldn’t mind dating Bucky, but he never asked me out.”
“What?” The other women gasped, looking at you in disbelief. “But…you are always so close. He’s joking and laughing with you. Barnes is mostly reserved, but with you, he’s relaxed and nice.”
“I know,” you admitted. “It’s just…” You don’t know how to explain to your colleagues that you waited for Bucky to make a move for almost as long as you have known him. Over time, you gave up and settled for friendship instead of a relationship. “I think we would be a great couple.”
“RIGHT!” They all agreed, cheering you on. Some even told you to make a move on him instead of waiting any longer.
Unbeknownst to you and the women, Bucky heard every word. His features darkened for a moment before he walked off.
“Movie night, sleepover, and margaritas?” You tugged at Bucky’s sleeve. He was sipping his coffee outside the building, lost in thought. “Come on, Barnes. It’s Friday, and the world is wide open for us.”
“Uh—maybe,” Bucky cleared his throat as he watched your colleagues leave the building, “you should stop touching me around our colleagues. People will get the wrong idea and think we are dating.”
“Oh,” your eyes widened in surprise. Bucky never seemed to mind when you touched and got close to him. “Yeah… and we don’t want that, right?”
“Right.” He nodded, confirming your worst fear. Bucky didn’t want to date you. You felt like a fool asking him to spend his Friday night with you, only for him to turn you down.
“Okay. Maybe I should go now.” You awkwardly glanced at Bucky, waiting for him to tell you he didn’t mean what he said. “Have a good weekend. See you on Monday, James.”
Bucky watched you walk off. He frowned deeply, wondering if telling you not to touch him all the time had hurt your feelings.
“…and then he said", You choked on tears while talking to the stuffed bear Bucky won for you at a fair a few months ago. "I should stop touching him in public as if I’m some freak or an obsessed stalker.’”
The bear sat opposite you, staring at you with its black eyes. “I don’t know what has gotten into him, Bucky Bear. He was always so nice, and we had so much fun. I believed there was something more between the two of us going on.”
You sighed deeply and wiped a stray tear off your cheek. “I guess we were wrong all this time. Bucky just isn’t into me. I should act like a good colleague from now on and leave him alone.”
“Y/N, good morning,” Bucky huffed when you walked right past him. It seemed that you purposely ignored him. “Hey, I’m talking to you.”
“Good morning, James. Sorry, but I must go. I have a meeting in a minute.” You lied, but it didn’t matter. From now on, you’ll fulfill his wish and stay away from Bucky. It’d only confuse people, watching you cling to a man you couldn’t have.
“Wait—uh. Are you alright?” He asked, looking at you with those baby blue eyes that used to melt every resistance you built over the years to not get your heart broken.
“Sure.” You quipped. “Everything is fine.” You hissed the last word before walking off.
“Fine?” Bucky tugged at his tie. “Okay…good…that’s good…” He glanced at your colleagues, who looked like they were in shock.
“Man, you fucked up big time…huh?” One spoke his mind.
“What are you talking about, punk?” Bucky asked, glaring at the man. “Got something to say?”
“If a woman tells you she’s fine, or something is fine, you should run, buddy,” the man laughed at Bucky. “Run like the damn house is on fire. You should know the rules. If a woman tells you she’s fine, it’s quite the opposite.”
Bucky squared his jaw as he watched you disappear down the hall. “You don’t know Y/N at all. If she says she’s fine, she’s fine…” He felt a knot in his stomach, something he hadn’t expected.
Bucky replayed your last conversation in his head. You left him in a hurry and called him James. You never called him James before. It’s always Bucky, or Bucky Bear.
You kept yourself busy with emails and spreadsheets, avoiding to run into Bucky at all costs. You’d become an expert at pretending that things were fine, but every time you thought about your last conversation, you wanted to tear up.
In his office, Bucky stared at his monitor. “I should talk to her,” he muttered, frustrated. “I never wanted to hurt her. It’s just…”
After work, you hurriedly left your office to avoid running into Bucky once again. If only you could stay away from him for a while, you’d be able to lick your wounds and get over your stupid crush on your colleague.
He didn’t let you go so easily. Bucky leaned against the lobby wall, pushing off it the moment he saw you. “Hey, Y/N,” he said, voice softer than usual.
“James, hi,” you replied, stopping a little further away from him, not getting any closer. “I wanted to head out. Do you need anything?”
He stepped closer, his hands shoved into his pockets. “Are you sure you’re okay?”
You nodded, forcing a smile. “Yeah. I’m fine.”
Bucky saw right through your fake smile. His shoulders slumped as he stepped even closer. “Y/N, I didn’t want to hurt you. I just—I didn’t know how to… I’m not good at ...”
You searched his face, confused about his mood change. “What is it? Is something wrong?”
“I heard them talk to you about…us.” He admitted it, looking anywhere but at you. “You’re my friend… maybe my best friend. I… I never had a female friend…well…I have my cat, but that’s a different thing.”
You nodded, unable to speak.
“You see… I didn’t want to fuck things up between us by…” Bucky looked conflicted. “We are friends, and we are good together. If I asked you for more…”
“More?” You questioned.
“If I asked you out,” he finally said. “You’d turn me down, and I didn’t want our friendship to end. I wanted things to stay the way they were to not lose my friend.”
“Ask me out.” You repeated his words, your heart fluttering. “Oh…” You thought all the time that he made your heart race whenever he was close to you. “Why didn’t you ask me out?”
“I tried, but…chickened out.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Would you… I mean…could you imagine going on a date with me? Be honest.”
“Yeah… I mean…why not?”
Bucky wanted to turn to leave. He stopped in his tracks, blinking a few times. “Wait? What did you say?”
“I said yes… I think.”
“Oh…okay.” Bucky turned around. He swallowed thickly as you stood in the middle of the lobby, staring at each other for a moment.
“So…movie night and snacks?” You asked, nervously tugging at the seam of your jacket. “You’ll pay for the snacks…of course.”
“Of course,” he chuckled, his arm wrapping around your shoulders. “Will Bucky Bear be there, too? I think it’s time for a serious talk. He can’t sleep in my woman’s bed from now on…”
