Work Text:
It was a Saturday morning and you were surprised to find that your boyfriend of several years was nowhere to be found.
You sat up, rubbing the sleep from your eyes and called out, “Buck?” you listened for a moment for any reply or sound, but nothing.
You frowned, reaching over to your bedside and swiping up your phone. You see that you received a text from Bucky so you answer it:
Bucky Baby: morning, babe! i got called into work for an emergency meeting. breakfast is on counter as well as a little something else. love you!!
You softly smiled and proceeded to slide out of bed, stretching your arms above your head. You then made your way to the kitchen and instantly smelled Bucky’s blueberry pancakes that you loved so much.
Beside your plated breakfast was a gift bag with the famous Prada logo on it. You can’t help but sigh because you’ve noticed that Bucky’s been getting you a lot of expensive gifts lately. You appreciate it, but you don’t really need thousand dollar bags and clothes.
You opened the bag and appreciated the item that you pulled out. It wasn’t too fancy, more like a casual streetwear kind of bag. One that you know that’s been trending for a while.
You set it back into the bag and sat at the counter, proceeding to dig into your breakfast. As you ate, you typed up a message to Bucky:
You: morning, babe! thanks for the bag. again, you really don’t have to buy me extravagant gifts! I’m totally fine with flowers and chocolates. Nonetheless, thank you. i love you and have a good day at work! hope it’s nothing too bad.
It’s seconds after you set your phone back down that you receive a reply back:
Bucky Baby: i just love to spoil ya. you deserve the best, baby. ;D
You sigh, texting back a kissy face emoji and then back to eating your breakfast.
______________
Bucky let out a breath of relief when you told him that you appreciated the gift. Despite you saying you’d appreciate the little things, Bucky felt like he had to spoil you with luxurious things. Why?
Well, first off, he’s the CEO of the prosthetic company he built from the ground up after getting discharged from the army after getting his left arm blown off. Because he was the CEO, he ended up earning a lot of money, money that he could spend on you.
Second, with work taking up a lot of his time, Bucky ended up gaining a lot of weight. He ate a lot of takeout food and hardly had time to go to the gym. He no long looked like the strong, fit, handsome guy you met several years ago. Now there was a little bit more chub to his cheeks, arms, thighs, and bellies.
You’ve never stopped reminding him how handsome he is nor have you ever stopped being intimate with him, but still. Bucky knows that his attractiveness was what first brought you two together and now that he isn’t at that level anymore, he’s sure you’ll eventually leave him for it. And that terrifies him because you’re his world. The thought of losing you breaks his heart.
So he tries to make up his lack in looks with his plentiful bank account. So far, you haven’t made the slightest indication that you want to break up, so that’s good, right?
________________
Bucky should’ve been home by now. It was almost 6pm and your reservations for dinner were at 6:30. You were dressed and ready to go, but Bucky wasn’t even home. When the doorbell rang at 6:20, you were hoping it would be Bucky, but you were sorely mistaken.
“Y/N L/N?” the young man was holding a bouquet of your favorite flowers, a takeout bag, and a gift bag with the Louis Vuitton label on it.
“Yeah?”
“Mister Barnes sends his apologies. He won’t be able to make it to dinner, but he ordered your favorite.” he handed you the flowers and the bags and nodded, “Have a good night, ma’am.”
“Thanks,” you mumbled somberly and closed the door.
You went over to the kitchen, setting your things down and plucking your phone off the counter, dialling Bucky’s number.
“Hey, honey,” you can hear the exhaustion in his voice and you feel pity towards him.
You sigh, rubbing your forehead, “Hey, Buck.”
“You get my gifts?”
“Mhm, see about that, I think we need to have a talk, Bucky.”
Hearing those words from you, made Bucky’s heart drop to his stomach, “Is-Is something wrong?”
“Yes? No? Kinda? Ugh, I just-” you took a deep breath and collected your thoughts, “I want to have this conversation in person. So when you get home, we’ll talk. If I’m asleep, just wake me up. Okay?”
With a stuttered breath, he replies, “O-Okay. I’ll probably be here for another hour or two.”
“That’s fine.”
“I love you, Y/N.”
“I know, Bucky.” you ended the call without saying ‘I love you’ back to him and Bucky started to panic.
They hate the gifts. They’re going to break up with you. They’re tired of pretending to love you. It’s over.
For the next two hours, those thoughts kept running through his head, so by the time he arrived back home, the luxurious home he bought for the both of you, he began to truly prepare for the worse.
He gulped and cautiously moved towards the living room where he heard the TV on, “Y/N?”
You looked over the couch and softly smiled at him. You picked up the remote and paused the show you were watching on Netflix, “Hey,” you got up, greeting him and kissing his cheek, “Everything at work turn out okay?”
He nodded, “Yeah, uh, Parker rewired one of the prototypes wrong, which means our production date is pushed back.”
You rubbed your hand up and down his bicep, “Sorry to hear that.”
He shrugged, “It happens,” he then gulped down, “So, uh, you wanted to talk?”
“Mhm,” you took his hand, leading him to the couch, both of you sitting down, “So, I noticed you’ve been buying me a lot of stuff lately-”
“Do you not like them? I can return them and get you something better or-”
“-No, no. Bucky, hey, that’s not it. While I do appreciate everything you’ve given me, I don’t need them. And, I’ve been having thoughts.”
“What kind of thoughts?”
You sigh, looking away from him, trying to figure out how you want to say this, “Every time you cancel a date or you have to suddenly leave for work, you end up giving me something expensive and I just-I don’t know. I feel like you’re trying to buy my love, which I don’t understand because I already love you.”
“I’m not trying to buy your love,” Bucky says, scooting closer to you, “Well, maybe I was. I-I-” it was his turn to take a deep breath and collect his thoughts.
“We’ve been together for seven years. When we first got together I was this fit guy that oozed sex appeal and now, I’m pretty sure I don’t ooze anything other than sweat.”
You look at him confused, “Bucky..what?”
He scoffed, “C’mon, Y/N. You have eyes. I’ve gained a lot of weight since we first got together. You probably don’t think I’m as hot and sexy as I used to be.”
“Okay, first off, that’s not true. Second, so you buying me all this stuff was to, what, make sure that I stay with you? Bucky, we’ve been together for so long and you really think that money and expensive gifts will persuade me to stay with you?”
“Maybe, I don’t know, Y/N! I just-I feel like I need to provide you something! I don’t give you anything nice to look at, we barely see each other at home anymore, I rarely take you out on dates. I’m trying to make sure you don’t leave me.” he says the last part with watery eyes and a broken tone.
“Bucky,” you cup his round cheeks in your hands and look deep into his deep blue eyes, “I love you. I loved you when you struggled to accept yourself after getting discharged from the army. I loved you when you were struggling to find a job that would stick. I loved you when you came up with the idea for your company. I loved you when you had trouble looking for investors. I loved you when you opened your company. I loved you through it all and I love you now.
“I knew that being with you while you started up and ran your company would mean sacrificing parts of you and I was fine with it. I’m still okay with it because you’re doing something that you love and something that will help so many people. What I’m not okay with is that you think you should buy my love, when it’s already something you have.
“Sure, you’ve gained weight and that’s fine. I still find you incredibly handsome and sexy. Did last night not give you that impression?” you asked with a chuckle and he just shrugs.
“I sometimes think that you’re just pretending to be attracted to me.”
“I promise you, babe, that’s not the case at all. I love you, Bucky Barnes. Whether you’re broke or rich, chubby or skinny. I love you and I’ll always love you.” you lean in, pressing a gentle kiss to his lips and Bucky sighs.
“How did I land someone amazing as you?”
“I know right? I’m such a catch!” you giggle and Bucky joins you, leaning in for another kiss.
“I’m sorry. I’m sorry for thinking expensive things would make you love me.”
“I forgive you. And I meant what I said earlier, Buck. I’m a simple person. Flowers, chocolates, and teddy bears appeal to me so much better than fancy clothes and accessories.”
“So if I proposed to you with an expensive ring-”
You laughed, “Bucky, you could propose to me with a ringpop and I’d still say yes.”
“Noted,” he says with a soft smile, love shining in his eyes. You were right, you’re a complete and total catch and Bucky’s lucky to have someone like you.