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If there was one particular thing that Bucky hated about Sam (and there was a lot), it was his ability to attract attention from everyone with his mere presence. This shouldn’t bother him as much as it did honestly. Bucky hated having himself be the center of attention. That was, until he met Y/N.
Y/N was the newest Avenger in the lot of them. They never talked but they were polite and sweet. Truthfully, they didn’t seem the type that could kill a man without flinching but yet Y/N was. Maybe it was their contradicting nature that made Bucky start to fall for them.
Whenever Bucky was in the room with them, whether it be watching television together or being in the gym, he would try his best to talk to them. Even if he knew they would never respond. Bucky just felt like they enjoyed someone enjoying their company. Having their attention was something he didn’t know he craved until he had it and lost it.
Bucky could still recall the first time Sam stole their attention from him. It was months ago when they first joined. At the time, Bucky’s feelings were simply borderline interest/crush.
They were in the gym, the place the team would only see Y/N at during their more anti-social months. Bucky had offered to help them stretch. He practically talked their ear off. About what? He can’t remember anything past how their body felt against his.
Sam barged in, searching for Bucky to bicker about cereal or something along those lines. Both of them seemed to forget Y/N pretty much trapped under Bucky until Sam looked down and started to talk to them.
Their eyes were on Sam as he joked around and a soft smile etched onto their face. Bucky felt an ache in his chest and he didn’t know why. He watched as they giggled and Sam smiled before making his leave. Of course, jabbing Bucky in the side on his way out.
Since then Bucky was able to put a name to this feeling he had for Y/N. A crush. Truthfully, that terrified him for a few reasons that he would keep to himself unless he risk a lecture from Steve. Steve’s lectures were a whole new level of torture.
Those lectures were almost as torturous as seeing Y/N right there in front of, practically dangling within his reach but feeling so far away. No matter what he did, they never let him closer inside. At least, not any closer than the others have gotten. Maybe they didn’t have any interest in him and never would. Bucky just wanted that chance.
The quinjet was landing on the roof of the compound after a particularly rough mission that left Bucky with a large laceration in his side. It hurt like hell but not the worst thing he had ever experienced. Y/N was fussing over him the whole way back, trying to convince him to let them stitch him up without actually communicating it to him.
He would just wave them off each time their hands would make a move toward him. The last thing he wanted was for them to them he was incapable of dealing with his own issues (even though sometimes it felt like it). As everyone made their way out the jet, Y/N stood in front of Bucky, making sure he couldn’t escape their scrutiny.
“If you don’t let me help you, I will physically beat you unconscious and stitch you up then.” Bucky gaped at them. For one, their voice was more beautiful and soft then he expected. Secondly, of all the words he imagined them saying to him for the first time (a three word sentence to be exact), that wasn’t it.
“What?” He dumbly said.
Y/N just shook their head before holding their hand out to the super soldier who took it without much thought. From there, Y/N led him down the med-bay where they waved the nurses away and began to prepare the sutures themselves.
Bucky’s mind was buzzing. They never spoke. NEVER. Everyone had bets on who would be the first person to hear them speak. (Most were on Tony and Sam.) Never in his wildest dreams did he ever think he would have the pleasure to be the first one. He opened his mouth to speak only for Sam to come into the room.
“You know you don’t have to stitch up Buckaroo yourself, Y/N?” They waved him off, pushing the tray closer to Bucky who was sat on the hospital bed, glaring at Sam who chose to ignore it. “You need to rest. The nurses can handle him.”
Y/N looked towards Sam, seemly in thought and Bucky panicked. He couldn’t let Sam lead them away. He couldn’t let Sam take the one thing he wanted more than anything.
Without much thought, he grabbed Y/N’s hand and let out a soft “don’t go” which made Y/N look back at him. Their face was expressionless as they examined him. He couldn’t help but wince at the desperation in his voice. Now they really will think you’re pathetic. He thought to himself.
But then they smiled.
“Never gonna leave you, James.” Sam stammered in the background as Bucky could feel blood rushing to his face. With a kiss to his cheek, Y/N began cleaning his wound.