The Bet: Victory At Last
Pairing: Bucky x reader
Warnings: flirtacious Bucky
Word count: 2.9k
Notes: Part 4 is here! Getting close to the end. A reminder that this was for @justsomebucky 4k celebration! You should definitely go check out her works! Remember to leave feedback. Writing doesn’t happen without your comments, even if it’s just an emoji or a keyboard smash.
Masterlist || Part 3 || Part 5 || Series Masterlist
Three days. Three days left to this stupid challenge and your nerves are so frayed they can barely take it. It’s been four days since you realized you were falling for Bucky, and that meant four days of listening to shitty pick up lines and having your stomach flutter. Four days of feeling more and more vulnerable to his words, even if they hadn’t improved in quality. Still, he often laughs at your snappy responses and it reminds you of the night the two of you spent together, curled into each others’ sides. You hadn’t gone back inside until sunrise and Steve had caught you both on his way out the door for a morning run with Sam, happy to see you made up.
You shake your head to clear out the whispers of hope that run through your brain as you shoot another arrow towards the target. Agent Hill is coming by after her meeting with Tony to help you get better at target practice so you can out shoot Clint when he comes back from his mission. You frown as the arrow slams into the target, far from the bullseye. “You’re distracted.” Her even tone leaves no room for argument and your shoulders drop.
“You’re astute.” The sarcasm in your voice is heavy, and Hill rolls her eyes at you.
“You know, I won’t be much help if you can’t focus on this.” Her chin juts towards the target in front of you and you sigh. “Is this something we can talk through?” Chewing your lip, you weigh your options. On one hand, you can tell her about what’s going on and she might help you out, but on the other hand, she might laugh at you and tell you to get over it.
“Think you can do it without judging me?” You finally ask.
“Should I be judging you for whatever this is?” She raises an eyebrow, arms crossed.
“I do.” You frown as you sit down, nodding at the patch of grass beside you. “Take a seat and I’ll tell you all about it.” She sits next to you and you struggle to find the words to start. After a few moments of pained silence, you blurt out a question. “You ever fall for someone you know you shouldn’t?” She hums quietly, either in affirmation or sympathy and suddenly you’re telling her everything, the words coming out faster than you’d anticipated.
“...and you see, I know I shouldn’t give a damn, but I can’t help it.” You finish after several long minutes. She leans back beside you and you fidget a little, plucking at the grass as she keeps the silence she held through your entire spiel. At least she’s not laughing.
“So, let me get this straight.” Her words are even, measured, and you know she’s been thinking about it. “You and Barnes both bet on his ability to make you get flustered with some pick up lines. You win, he has to be your scapedate; he wins, you’ve got to be his wingman.” You nod, playing with a single, large blade of grass. “And along the way, you found that his pickup lines were working?”
“Not quite. It wasn’t the lines, but it was the…” You pause, unsure of how to fill in the gap.
“It was the time and effort he put into doing it.” Maria finishes and you nod, breathing a sigh of relief that she understood. “But now his lines are actually making you flustered. The way I see it, he’s already won.” You groan, dropping your head into your hands. “But he doesn’t know that.” Maria adds slyly and your head pops back up immediately.
“So you don’t think it’s hopeless?” You ask, already knowing her answer.
“Not entirely. But from my perspective, if you want this to work, you’re going to have to win. You put some effort into it and you win, and I’ll let you know my plan.” Maria winks and you grin, extending a hand.
“Deal.” She shakes your hand and smiles back at you before tilting her head towards the target downfield from you.
“Now, let’s get to work on this.”
---
When you run into Bucky later, he seems a little more determined than usual. You’re seated in the common area, replying to Natasha’s snapchat that you should meet her with a dumb selfie of your own when he sits down next to you.
“Hey, doll.” He raises his eyebrow and slings an arm across the top of the sofa behind you. “Whatcha up to?” You keep your eyes on your phone as Nat’s answer comes through. She’s with Wanda and now they’re both begging you to join them outside.
“Apparently, I’m going to go join Natasha and Wanda on the lawn.” You double tap her name to send her a response, making a face of resignation and sending it off. You stand immediately after that, blood rushing and making you dizzy. Bucky’s hands instantly steady your waist and you shoot him a small smile as the room stops spinning. “Thanks, Buck.” You head towards the door when he yells out.
“Wait! I’ve got a question!” You pause in the door frame, turning to face him. “Can I have a photo to prove that angels truly exist?” He puts on a falsely innocent face and your lips curl into a sly smile.
“Sure.” You head out, pulling a picture from a quick google search and attaching it to a message. You’re almost out of earshot when you hear him shout.
“WHAT THE HELL IS A CASTIEL?!” Your following giggles echo through the hall as you hurry outside before Natasha kicks your ass.
-----
You don’t see Bucky again until after dinner that night, when you’re munching on a candy bar. He walks into the kitchen as you’re talking to Sam, laughing about an old story of him and Riley getting up to crazy shenanigans while on tour. When he opens the fridge door, looking for something to eat, you put up a finger to pause your conversation with Sam.
“Hey, Buck. I got you some ice cream while we were out earlier.” He closes the door to the fridge and opens the freezer, finding a pint of his favourite ice cream with a note that says ‘SAVE FOR BUCKY’ in sharp, black letters. He pulls it out of the freezer slowly, an odd look on his face that you miss with your back to him, but one that Sam can’t ignore. Bucky clears his throat and thanks you before sliding up next to you to grab a spoon out of the drawer.
“Hey doll, you’re so sweet you put Hershey’s out of business.” He gives you a wink and you stay still, almost rigid as you look down at the wrapper of the chocolate you’re eating.
“I guess it’s a good thing they don’t make this.” You hold up your candy bar and turn back to Sam, watching Bucky slink out of the room out of the corner of your eye. As soon as he’s gone, your shoulders drop, the tension ebbing out of them.
“What was that all about?” Sam gives you a knowing look and you do your best to remain nonchalant.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about.” You mumble, taking another bite of your chocolate. Sam crosses his arms and gives you a look that clearly says he doesn’t believe you.
“So you have no idea why your tension just drained out of your shoulders or why Barnes just gave you a weird-ass look?”
“Tone down the sass, Samuel.” You fix him with a pointed look and he just smirks. “Besides, I didn’t see whatever look you’re talking about.”
“It was when he grabbed his ice cream out of the freezer. It looked like this, but less handsome.” Sam contorts his face into what you figure is an attempt at confusion and a smile, but turns out just looking ridiculous. Your straight face fails immediately as you snort with laughter. It takes only a moment before Sam is laughing with you, and the two of you make silly faces at each other to spur on your laughing session.
When your laughter finally dies down, Sam fixes you with a serious and slightly concerned look. “For real, though. What’s eating at you, kid?”
“It couldn’t be anything like that stupid bet we’ve got going on, I suppose.”
“Tone down the sass, Y/N.” Sam grins at you as he uses your words against you and you smile back at him, although halfheartedly. “Are you alright? I’m sure Barnes would call this off if it’s bothering you.”
“I’ll be fine, Sam. I just gotta win this. Maria and I have a plan. I think. She didn’t really specify, but I have to win first.” You shrug and pop the last of your candy bar into your mouth.
“Do you want help?” Sam nudges you with his elbow and you shake your head, a more genuine smile on your face.
“I ‘preciate it, Sammy boy, but I’m pretty sure that if my terms would have applied to you if you helped Buck, his terms will apply to you if you help me.”
Sam grimaces. “No way I’m wingmanning for Frosty. Sorry, babe, you’re on your own.”
“That’s what I thought.” You pat him on the cheek. “Now, I have a book that’s basically screaming my name, so I’m gonna go be a hermit for the rest of the night.” You head towards your room, only to have him stop you with a hand on your shoulder.
“You know I’m always here for you, right?” He’s quiet and serious, and you give him a soft smile and nod.
“Yeah, Sam, I know. Thank you.” You give his hand a squeeze and he kisses the top of your head before you head back to your room.
The next morning, you’ve dragged your book out to the common room when Bucky approaches you again. He must have noticed that the lines he says flippantly get to you more than his strategically planned ones, since he pauses as he passes in front of you to quickly say his piece.
“If you were words on a page, you’d be the fine print.” You glance up from your book, a half smirk on your reading dazed face.
“So everyone ignores me and I screw them over in the end. Excellent.” You look back down at your page, and you’re grateful he can’t see your face clearly when he speaks next.
“I don’t know about everyone, but you could screw me.” Bucky hovers for a moment more as you take a deep breath, doing your best to not show how much his words are affecting you. As soon as he’s out of sight, you put your bookmark back in your page. There’s no way you’re going to be able to focus on words on a page after that.
Bucky makes multiple more attempts throughout the day and each time you thwart him, noting his slightly disappointed look as he walks away. You hate to make him feel bad in any way, but you can’t let him win. You know you’re in too deep now and your heart would break into a million tiny pieces if you had to be the one to set him up with someone else. You just can’t do it.
You call it quits during the movie that Tony has decided everyone has to watch. You were more than set to skip out on it in favour of hiding in your room, desperate to get a break before the final day of the challenge, knowing that Bucky will be doing anything and everything in his power to win. When you’d gone to unlock your room, popcorn ready for the Netflix marathon you had queued up, you’d found it locked. F.R.I.D.A.Y.’s voice informed you that Mr. Stark was having a mandatory meeting in the cinema and you scowled, knowing no good could come of this. Of course, when you arrived, the only seat open was next to Bucky in the back row, which is how you found yourself in your current predicament.
Bucky has his shoulder pressed against yours, his hand rooting around in your popcorn bag for one or two half-popped kernels that he can crunch. He’s on his best behaviour for the most part, making dumb comments every now and then on the movie. “A 600 pound twinkie? I bet Steve and I could eat that in one day.” You try not to laugh, not wanting to disturb the movie for Steve in front of you, who has never seen it. You glance over at Bucky and shake your head, lips curled in a smile. He fixates on them and you fight down every urge you have to blush.
C’mon, Y/N, think of Hulk modeling in a speedo for the cover of playboy. You bite the inside of your cheek, the pain and the image in your head keeping you grounded.
“Hey Y/N.” Bucky whispers next to you and you turn to look at him. “Your lips look so lonely. Would they like to meet mine?” He flicks his tongue across his lips, as if you weren’t already drawn to them. You’re frozen for a moment, vividly imagining those lips on yours. When Bucky’s lips tilt upwards into a smirk, your trance is broken. You shake your head before whispering your response to him.
“Actually, they’re more introverted. Sorry.” You get up, hurrying out of the room. You need to get away from him as quickly as possible. Only one more day.
That night, you don’t sleep. You try as hard as you can, but you toss and turn, the image in your mind of Bucky’s lips all over someone else seared in your brain. You won’t even risk leaving your room to wander the compound, fearing another run-in with Bucky that you’re sure will split every nerve you have. When the sun rises the next morning, you figure you got maybe an hour over the course of the night. You resign yourself to an agonisingly long day as you splash water on your face before applying some makeup to try and make yourself appear human.
When you walk into breakfast, Bucky’s there already. Of course he’s there already. You let out a groan as you find the biggest mug you can and fill it to the brim with coffee.
“Rough night?” Tony asks, looking pointedly at your cup. You growl your response as you flee the scene hurry out of the room and off to a secluded area of the compound. You know that you’ll be susceptible to Bucky’s charm today, and with it being the final 24 hours, you can’t afford to lose. You have a half hour of peace and quiet before Bucky manages to find you.
“Hey doll, are you from Tennessee? Because you’re the only ten-I-see.” He winks and you close your eyes, exhaling loudly.
“Please, just put me out of my Missouri.” You grumble, getting up and taking your coffee mug back to the kitchen for a refill.
Once you’re armed with a fresh round of caffeine, you head to the mission prep area of the compound, praying that no one will find you. You spend longer than you intend to reading through the intel the team has received, and when your stomach growls, your second round of coffee is long gone. With a sigh, you file away the stack of papers you were working on and head towards the kitchen.
You almost literally run into Bucky about halfway to the kitchen when he enters the hall from his room. “Where you headed, sweetheart?” He asks and you blink owlishly before his words register.
“Kitchen. Lunch.” You scrub your eyes, knowing you’ll need another cup of coffee before lunch is over.
“Can I follow you then?” He asks, and before you can answer he grins at you in the way he has been before he delivers a line. “Because my ma told me to follow my dreams.”
You frown, knowing that you must look like a gremlin with your lack of sleep. “I’d consider finding a dream that’s not a nightmare.” He looks you over thoughtfully before he responds.
“Well, I happen to be quite used to nightmares at this point. I’d say you look more like the thing I wake up to. The one that lets me know everything’s alright.”
You aren’t sure how it happened. It could have been the lack of sleep or the fact that hours alone had you lowering your guard. More likely, it was the way Bucky looked at you when he said it. Like you were the only person in the world that could make him feel that way. Whatever the reason, you could feel the heat rise into your cheeks, and you knew as soon as the shocked expression crossed his face that Bucky could see it too.
You both stood in silence, mouths slightly agape. Seconds ticked by as the gravity of the situation sunk in.
“....did...did you just…?” Bucky finally speaks in a hushed tone, but still can’t seem to finish his sentence. “I won?” His voice is still whisper-like, but you can hear it.
“I won.” Bucky’s disbelief turns into a small smile that grows by the second, even as your heart hits the floor and seems to go lower.
On the last day, with only hours left to this stupid challenge, Bucky won.
And you lost.
Part 5
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