Work Text:
They were gonna go on a date.
They were gonna go on a date.
A date.
To say Bucky was nervous was an understatement. He was panicking. What was he gonna wear? Where were they gonna go? What if he messes up? What if he makes Sam hate him?!
He couldn’t have that. He’d die if that happened. He liked Sam. A lot. He wanted to see if it could even be love. And maybe, if it could lead to his happy ending. The 40s, from what he remembers, were not accepting towards people like him - towards gays. He would have never been able to have a happy married life with another man. And then the war where he thought he would die. And he did, sort of. HYDRA got him and the next 70 years were spent as a puppet. No real happy end there.
And then, 10 years later, he was finally free from HYDRA and free to be himself. He was free to love who he wanted and have a happy ending.
And he was gonna fuck it up.
He wanted Sam to keep liking him, at least as a friend if tonight went to crap. And his mind kept telling him it would. If only he could somehow shut it up.
“Sharon, I really don’t know what to wear,” he complained into the phone. He heard her sigh.
“Listen, it depends on where you’re going on the date,” she told him. “You have to adapt to the setting.”
“But I don’t even know where we’re going!” said Bucky.
“Have you asked Sam?”
“...no,” said Bucky sheepishly. Sharon snorted and he could imagine her shaking her head.
“Then go and ask him so you can prepare. I have paperwork to do, but talk to you later. Good luck,” she told him.
“Yeah, thanks,” he said and they hung up the call. He hit his head against the wall. He was an idiot. Taking in a deep breath, he went to find Sam. Said man was watching TV in the living room. He took another breath. “Hey, Sam?”
“Hey, Buck. What’s up?” Sam turned to look at him.
“Um, about our date…” Bucky tried to find a way to ask a simple question. Good God, he needed help.
“Something wrong with it?” Sam was frowning. Bucky immediately panicked.
“No, no! Nothing’s wrong! I was just wondering where we were going so I could dress up appropriately,” he said while scratching the back of his neck. Sam relaxed and smiled.
“Damn, man. Don’t scare me like that, again!” he laughed. “I found this little diner, thought we could eat dinner there and then go for a stroll through the park.”
“Oh,” said Bucky. That sounded perfect. “Yeah, okay. That’s cool. Thanks.”
“Should have told you before,” said Sam. He then looked back at the TV and again towards Bucky. “You want to join me? They’re showing reruns of Full House.” Bucky smiled.
“Yeah, sure,” he said and walked over to the couch. He plopped himself down next to Sam.
************
Bucky ended up wearing a nice grey T-shirt, a blue leather jacket over it, a pair of black jeans and combat boots. He sent a photo to Sharon to see if she agreed with the choice. She gave him compliments that made him blush. He looked good. He just hoped Sam would find him attractive in it, too. It was a few minutes till they had to leave. Bucky was nervously pacing in his bedroom. He was praying that he wouldn’t mess it up. He didn’t want to embarass both Sam and himself, nor did he want to make Sam hate him. Taking in a deep breath, Bucky calmed down a bit. Then, his phone pinged. He checked it and saw that Sharon had sent him a message.
You’ll be fine. Relax. Have fun! And remember, you have to wait till the third date ;)
Bucky laughed. Leave it to Sharon to calm him down when it came to Sam. The clock on his phone said it was five minutes till they had to leave. Taking another breath, Bucky pocketed his phone and left his room. He was left speechless. Sam looked good . Like, really good. He especially liked the pants he chose. Let it be known that Sam had an amazing lower body. Sam had heard him come to the living area and turned around. He whistled.
“Looking good, Buck,” he said then winked. “The colors bring out your eyes beautifully.” Bucky blushed a bit at that, but smiled gently.
“The pants bring out your ass beautifully, too,” Bucky said and immediately regretted it. Was he allowed to make those comments? Did he make Sam uncomfortable?
Thankfully, Sam just laughed and smiled at him.
“Thanks. I was saving them for these occasions,” he said. Bucky was left a bit stunned at that and shuffled on his feet. Sam smiled gently and took a hold of his shoulders. “Hey, calm down. It’s okay. You don’t have to worry about making a mistake. Just relax and we’ll see how the night will take us, okay?”
Bucky looked at him and finally smiled back. He nodded. “Alright, yeah. I think I’ll manage to do that.” Sam nodded and put his arm around his shoulders.
“Okay, then. Now, let’s get going, shall we?” he suggested. Bucky nodded and they left their apartment. The date was gonna go okay.
************
Or maybe not?
Bucky sighed on a park bench, knees drawn up to his chest. He fucked up. Honestly, he was an idiot.
The date was in a lovely diner, run by an even lovelier family. Everything gave off such a calming atmosphere. But, it did nothing for Bucky’s nerves. It had been okay when they walked in, but after sitting down, not being able to keep moving, caused Bucky’s insecurities to come back. He tried to distract himself from it, but nothing helped.
The first incident happened when their drinks were brought over. He tried to take a sip from his drink, but his hand was shaking hard and it ended up spilling on his shirt and pants. The second one happened when the food was brought over. Bucky choked on his bite of food. All the while in between it all, he and Sam didn’t really talk much. It wasn’t going great. The last straw for Bucky was when he was returning from using the toilet. He bumped into a waitress, causing her to drop the plates she was returning to the kitchen. They shattered on the floor and Bucky panicked. The anxiety of this whole night caused his fight or flight instinct to kick in. And he ran, leaving Sam to look after him worriedly. Not that he noticed.
And now he was here, at the park. Alone, on a bench, trying to get his breathing under control.
“God, I fuck everything up,” he mumbled into the night. Sam surely had second thoughts now, right? He had to. Bucky just caused problems everywhere he went. It was shown ever since what has been called ‘Civil War’. He wasn’t worth anything. He really wasn’t.
He sighed once again. Then, he heard footsteps coming closer. Someone sat beside him.
“You know, when I said we’d go to the park later, I didn’t know you wanted to go this early into the night.”
Sam.
Lord, he must be so annoyed with him. He basically left him there to clean up the mess by himself.
“Hey,” he heard him say. “It’s okay. You were nervous. This was your first date since the 40s. I get it.” God, why was Sam this understanding? Couldn’t he just yell at him?
“I fucked up real big,” said Bucky. Sam stayed silent, a sign for him to continue. “I wanted to not embarrass us tonight. And then I go and make a mess that you have to clean up, as usual. It’s not fair to you. You should be out there dating someone who’s not going to get you into trouble. And someone who can actually function. Not a mess like me.”
Sam hummed, but didn’t say anything. They stayed like that for a while, just sitting next to each other. Soon, though, Sam stood up. And offered his hand to Bucky.
“Come on. I know a place,” he said vaguely. The ex-assassin frowned, but took his hand and followed him, anyway.
************
Sam had taken him to an arcade. Why? He didn’t know. He just knew that he loved going here with Sam, and the girls when they wanted to join.
“What are we doing here?” he asked Sam. He just smiled.
“To play.”
And with that, started a friendly competition. They tried to beat each other's scores in various games. And as the time passed, Bucky was getting calmer and the two of them were teasing and talking with no problem. And small arguments happened over the games as well.
Sam won Pac-Man and Out Run.
Bucky won Donkey Kong and Galaga.
They tied in Virtual Racing.
“I’m not ending this night with a tie,” said Sam. Bucky snorted.
“Like you’ll win,” he teased. “You know what, how about you pick the game? The loser has to do whatever the winner tells him to.”
“I like the way you think, Barnes,” grinned Sam. He looked around the arcade and grinned upon spotting something.
“Dance Dance Revolution. Let’s go,” he said and dragged Bucky over. Bucky laughed. Once at the game, Sam put on the song Everytime We Touch by Cascada.
“Ready?”
“Happy losing.”
Sam laughed and the song started. It was going great. Bucky and Sam were practically in sync during the game. One messed up, the other messed up the same move. One did a move perfectly, the other did the same. Bucky noticed it, and teased the idea of them being meant for each other. He shook his head at that and focused on the game. Towards the end, Bucky was starting to slip up a bit. He was distracted by his thoughts, and by Sam who was practically a master at this game. Either way, he lost his balance.
Bucky tripped over his own feet and crashed right into Sam, causing them both to fall to the floor. They groaned before looking at each other and laughing. Bucky’s long hair got into his face so Sam pulled it away with his hand. He was looking at Bucky with a loving look. Bucky blushed, but didn’t look away.
“What I want, who I want to date, is a mess. And that mess’s name is James Buchanan Barnes. Pain in my ass, but also the guy who I can’t help but have a crush on. And who I can’t help falling in love with,” he said. Bucky blushed even more. They stared at each other for a few more moments before bringing their lips into a soft kiss.
To them, the kiss was perfect. They didn’t feel any fireworks, but they did feel warmth. A small spark that appeared in their chest had turned into a steady flame. It made them fall even more.
Then the game sounded next to them, interrupting the moment. They pulled away smiling. Sam peaked at the game and grinned.
“Looks like I won tonight, sweetheart,” he said. Bucky looked and saw that Sam indeed had won. Bucky pouted. Sam laughed and kissed him again.
“Alright, alright. You won. What do you want me to do, Master Samuel?” sassed Bucky. Sam smirked. Bucky looked at him unsure now.
“We’re going back to the diner tomorrow. And this time, you’re paying,” he told him. Bucky winced and went to talk. “No. No apologizing. You’re making it up to me by paying for our lunch date tomorrow.”
Bucky smiled. “Alright, I think I can do that.”
“Good, now as my actual request, I want you to kiss me,” he smirked.
“Oh, is that so, Wilson? Now, why should I list-”
“Man, just kiss me.”
Bucky laughed, but obeyed. The kiss was just as good as the other two.
Maybe this date went okay after all.