An Archive of Our Own, a project of the Organization for Transformative Works
Chapter 2 of my @stucky-week fic is now live! :D
Chapters: 2/?
Fandom: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers
Characters: James "Bucky" Barnes, Steve Rogers, Sam Wilson (Marvel), Natasha Romanov (Marvel), Darcy Lewis, Tony Stark, Stephen Strange, Bruce Banner, Clint Barton, Rebecca Barnes Proctor, Layla El-Faouly, Marc Spector, Steven Grant (Marvel)
Additional Tags: Shrunkyclunks, Captain America Steve Rogers/Modern Bucky Barnes, Stucky Week, Stucky Week 2023, Canon Divergence - Post-Avengers (2012), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Eventual Happy Ending, Fluff and Angst, Fluff and Humor, Protective Bucky Barnes, Steve Rogers Needs a Hug, Steve Rogers Feels, Bucky Barnes Feels, Natasha Romanoff is a Good Bro, Sam Wilson Is a Good Bro, Past Peggy Carter/Steve Rogers, Slow Burn, Food as a Metaphor for Love, Food Porn, Alpine - Freeform, Friends With Benefits, Sex worker Bucky Barnes (sort of), it's complicated - Freeform, Smut, If you have issues with sex scenes this is probably not the fic for you, Steve and Bucky are horny on main throughout, history stuff - because it's me, Magic, Sanctum Sanctorum (Marvel), SHIELD Agent Bucky Barnes, Touch-Starved, Touch-Starved Steve Rogers, Cuddling & Snuggling, Let me know if there's something you think I forgot
Summary:
It's 2015, and Steve is living in a post-publicly coming out world. His every move is scrutinized in the tabloids and on social media, he's still wrestling with life in the 21st century, and the paparazzi never give him any peace. Making friends who aren't co-workers is practically impossible, let along dating. His solution? Have a regular, no-strings 'arrangement' with one of Natasha's honeypots. Bucky is a former spy and adventurer who used to work for S.H.I.E.L.D., but left for *reasons*. Having just gotten his heart ripped to shreds by a traitorous ex, he finds the idea of a discreet, 'with benefits' arrangement with his teenage-years crush very, very appealing. But you know what they say about what happens the minute you stop looking for love...
Steve comes back from his birthday gala and finds that someone had broken into his apartment. To leave a cupcake.
----
Steve closed the front door behind him and sighed. As much as he enjoyed spending time with his fellow Avengers on his birthday, the elaborate party that doubled as a charity event was slightly out of his comfort zone. The futuristic drone display that Tony put on instead of fireworks had been incredible and much quieter than the traditional fireworks, which was a blessing to his ears.
Steve sighed, dropped his keys into the bowl next to the door and walked into the kitchen without turning on the lights. It wouldn't be long until midnight, and his birthday was officially over. Steve just wanted to drop into bed. He opened the fridge to get a protein shake to give his body some fuel overnight. It took a while until Steve realized that giving his body enough calories improved his sleep and overall mood. He'd never had the chance to eat what he needed during the war, and after waking up in the 21st century, he had stuck to what he had known, getting three meals a day and not much else.
He closed the fridge door, taking a sip from his drink, when something caught his eye in the light coming from the fridge. There was something on the counter that hadn't been there when he left in the afternoon. Steve was instantly on high alert but didn't react. He casually closed the fridge and flicked on the light in the kitchen, muscles tense and ready for a fight.
Seconds passed. Nothing happened.
There was a plate sitting on the counter with a cupcake on it. Steve was confused. Did someone break into his apartment just to leave a cupcake? He had friends who would do that, but they all had been at the party earlier. And Natasha would probably leave an annoying singing card with it.
Steve looked around the apartment to see if anything else had been messed with. The curtain was blowing in the evening breeze. Steve knew the windows had been closed when he left. He slowly walked closer, listening for any noise that might come from the window, but the booms from the distant fireworks were making it hard to hear anything.
Somehow, Steve didn't sense any imminent danger, despite the obvious intrusion into his apartment. He stepped closer to the window and reached out to catch the curtain. He pulled it aside to reveal a small gap, purposefully left open. A shiver ran down Steve's spine, anticipation building. He pushed the window open, revealing the fire escape. Suddenly Steve found himself transported back to another time, to a different apartment, a different fire escape but the same day, decades ago.
In the present, Steve climbed out, noticing the person sitting just out of view of the window. He lowered himself next to them.
"Bucky," Steve breathed, the name sounding like a prayer.
There was a long pause, and Steve feared this was all a hallucination after all. The man wasn't looking at him, instead staring straight ahead. Steve could see his profile in the light coming from the open window. He looked exactly how Steve remembered but at the same time different.
"Maybe."
Steve's heart almost stopped. The voice was soft and still so familiar after all this time. He hadn't dared to hope.
"I'm not the man you remember. I might never be."
"I don't care," Steve said so forcefully that it made the man - Bucky turn to him. The light blue eyes that had been devoid of recognition the last time he had looked into them now swam with emotion.
"Steve…"
"No, Buck, I mean it. I'll take whatever you can give me. Even if it's not like we were before, I'm still your friend, and you'll always have a home with me."
Steve wasn't sure who made the first move, but suddenly they were in each other's arms, and Bucky's head was tugged against Steve's neck. He could feel Bucky's tears hot against his skin as he held the other man.
"To the end of the line, remember?" Steve mumbled, letting his own tears fall freely. He felt Bucky nod, then slightly turn his head.
I forgot to post this one despite having finished it right after I posted Day 4. Urgh. Now it's out of order.
----
"Stevie!"
Steve's focus was suddenly pulled away from the drawing he was working on. He had barely registered that Bucky had called for him before a bang and a crash rang through the apartment.
He rushed out of his room to find his boyfriend at the front door, standing in a mess of the fallen shoe rack and the plywood board that was the obvious culprit.
"What the hell?"
"Freaking board slipped out of my hand," Bucky grumbled. He kicked off his shoes and dropped his bag. "I just had it, too. I managed to get it here from the shop without dropping it."
"Why do you have a wooden board?"
Bucky sighed and wrangled the board free from the shoe rack. "I need to build a model for my civil engineering project." He leaned the board against the opposite wall and rightened the shoe rack. "For some reason, the prof wants a physical model. I'd rather do a 3D model on the computer, but I guess the guy is a little old-school."
Steve helped Bucky pick up the shoes.
"Damn." Steve knew how annoying professors could be with their requirements. He had encountered more than once during his art degree.
"Yeah, I'll probably need your help and an additional hand or two."
"Sure, what did you have in mind?"
"I want to do an environmental engineering project, but I'm not sure what exactly yet. Maybe a modern aqueduct."
"That sounds interesting."
Steve helped Bucky get the board on the kitchen table. Bucky got a water bottle from the fridge, then flopped down into a chair, putting the bottle against his forehead.
"I'm already dreading getting that thing back to uni once I'm done."
Steve went to stand behind Bucky and wrapped his arms around his neck, resting his chin on Bucky's head. "We'll just ask Sam to help us."
Bucky hummed in agreement. He lowered the bottle and considered it for a moment before holding it out to Steve. "Could you…"
Steve twisted the cap off before Bucky could even finish the sentence.
"Thanks, babe." Bucky took a few sips before leaning back against Steve's chest. "What have you been up to?"
"I was working on some art, I should have probably used the time to study, but I was in the zone."
"And I disturbed you. I'm so sorry, sweetheart." Bucky placed the bottle on the table and grabbed Steve's hand.
Steve shrugged. "It's okay. I should have probably stopped sooner. My back is killing me."
"You need to stop shrimping so much," Bucky pulled Steve's hand over his head and tugged him around the chair and onto his lap. Steve willingly followed, straddling Bucky like he did so often. Bucky's hand found its way under Steve's shirt and rubbed up and down his spine, putting just enough pressure on the spots that he knew tended to lock up when Steve sat hunched over too long. Steve knew he should be more observant of his posture, especially with his scoliosis already making it hard on his muscles. When he was working on an art project, he could barely pay attention to his surroundings or his body. Now that he had a quiet moment, Steve realized he was also hungry.
Steve didn't want to get up. Bucky's hand was doing miracles to his back, and Bucky had tugged his face against Steve's chest, probably as reluctant to move as Steve.
"We should make food," he eventually said but didn't stop playing with the hair at Bucky's nape.
Bucky grumbled, rubbing his face against Steve's body before pulling back. "Okay, if we must." He pouted adorably, and Steve couldn't resist leaning down and kissing him.
"Come on, the faster we eat, the faster we can get onto the couch and cuddle. I'm done with this day."
Bucky sighed dramatically. "I hate that that makes sense."
We want to thank everyone who participated by sharing their beautiful and incredible works with us and who cheered our participants on! Thank you for joining us to share the Stucky love again ❤️ It was a blast!!!
We'll leave our ao3 collection open for another week in case some of you still want to submit your creation.
Summary: Sometimes retirement just means having an argument over what’s on TV during nap time.
Wordcount: 765
Created for: @stuckyversebingo — Supersoldier Retirement / @fluffuly2023 (alternate) — Quality time / @slashmultiverse’s June Pride Prompts event, day 22 — Fun / @sebastianstanbingo — Back scratches / @julybreakbingo — “How can you live with yourself?” + “I can’t remember the last time we talked, the last time we had a real conversation.” + “I’ve waited too long for this to let it go.” + “If you have a problem with me, then tell me. Don’t talk about it behind my back.” + “What did I do wrong now?”
Excerpt:
“Let’s just say that … I don’t find it as exciting as you do,” Steve choked, a worried look on his eyes.
Putting the remoter away, Bucky planted his hand on Steve’s chest.
“Which is not a problem at all. I can leave it on until you’re deeply asleep!”
Another story posted for the @stucky-week day 4 prompt Childhood/Teenagers :)
Fandom: Captain America (Movies)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Tags: 5+1 Things, Snippets, Childhood Friends, Drawing, First Love, Fluff and Angst
Summary: The five times Steve didn’t show Bucky his drawings, and the one time where Bucky found out what he was drawing.
Wordcount: 1,409
Created for: @stuckyversebingo — Requited Unrequited Love / @allcapsbingo — “I don’t know if I’m worth all of this.” / @slashmultiverse’s June Pride Prompts event, day 28 — Promises / @fluffuly2023 (alternate) — Bittersweet / @thebo3bingo — Free space / @julybreakbingo — “I can’t be in love with you.” + “I ruined it, just like I ruin everything else.”
Excerpt:
“I guess you prefer to draw instead of making a puzzle,” Bucky teases him.
“Sorry,” Steve blurts out. “You were so focused that I didn’t want to be a bother. I’ve never seen one of those and I don’t know how it works.”
“It’s okay,” Bucky smiles at him while Rebecca climbs on his lap. “I can show you”
“Do you mind if I sit here and just watch you?” Steve proposes.
“It’s alright, but you can join whenever you want ‘kay?”
Just posted this fic for the @stucky-week day 1 prompt Role Reversal. I really loved working on this story!
Fandom: Captain America (Movies)
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Tags: Hurt/Comfort, Sharing Clothes, Pre-Serum Steve Rogers, Mild Blood, First Kiss, Friends to Lovers
Summary: When Bucky comes back home after getting in a fight, Steve's of course fuming, but it gives them a chance to talk and get closer than they've been before. Every cloud has a silver lining after all.
Wordcount: 2,932
Created for: @slashmultiverse’s June Pride Prompts event, day 4 — Bad guys made them do it / @sebastianstanbingo — “Is that my shirt?” / @buckybarnesbingo — “Don't panic” / @stuckyversebingo — Things Have Changed / @allcapsbingo — Not Worth the Risk / @thebo3bingo — “Are you proud of me?” / @julybreakbingo — “Is that the best you’ve got?” + “Look at me when I’m talking to you.” + “What have you done to yourself?” + “You really don’t have to do this.” + “I’d watch that mouth if I were you.” + “That was then, this is now.” + “What do you think? Oh, right, you don’t think.”
Excerpt:
Steve had gone to change the water, being done cleaning his hands and with only his bruised face to take care of. “Listen, I know that things have changed,” Steve started saying, still back to back. He was talking about how his health had taken an ugly turn and he had barely been able to leave home in those last months. “But that doesn’t mean you gotta Rogers the whole neighborhood, you hear me?”
Waiting until he was back with him, Bucky raised an eyebrow and teased “you’ve made a verb out of your name?”
“Yeah, it means throwing punches first and asking later,” Steve followed along with a lovely chuckle.
