Chapter Text
“So…”
“...”
“You wanted to talk about something?”
“...”
“Okay, very helpful. Seriously, what’s on your mind?”
“...”
“Barnes.”
“...”
“Okay, if you’re going to stare straight ahead and sit in silence, I’m pretty sure you don’t need me for that. If there’s nothing else…” Sam trailed off, slowly easing himself up off the couch to see if Bucky would call his bluff.
“Stay.” Sam let out a breath and dropped back down onto the couch.
“Okay, you want to tell me what this is all about?” Sam asked, picking up the coffee cup in front of him. Bucky had led him to the center of the couch and stared at him until he sat down, and the mug had been sitting on a coaster directly in front of him, which he supposed was probably Bucky’s idea of a nice gesture.
“I…” Bucky stopped himself, then took a deep breath, still staring at Sam. Sam took a sip of the coffee and tried not to wince at the temperature.
“Take your time, man. No rush.”
“Steve,” Bucky finally managed to get out. “I want you to talk to Steve.”
“Okay,” Sam nodded, putting the mug down and leaning forward slightly. “What about?” Bucky clenched his jaw and stared at him in silence for a few seconds. Sam waited.
“He...wants to—but he shouldn’t...and,” Bucky stopped himself again and looked down at the ground, moving his arms from the armrests to clasp his hands together. He took a breath and sat up straight again, hands still together. “I have to do something. Steve wants to come with me. He shouldn’t. I want you to convince him to stay here,” he delivered the words quickly and efficiently, frustration no longer audible in his tone.
“Okay, what do you have to do?” Sam questioned, raising an eyebrow.
“Unimportant.”
“Steve’s not gonna be convinced by me just sayin’ it, Barnes,” Sam pointed out. “He’ll want to hear a nuanced take on the subject, which I can’t give if I don’t know what the subject is.” Bucky’s expression shifted slightly, though Sam couldn’t figure out what emotion he was expressing.
“Fine.” Bucky paused for a long moment. “I’m getting my ring back.” Sam was shocked into silence for a minute before regaining his ability to speak.
“So, in other words, you want me to convince Steve that you should, on your own, start breaking into HYDRA bases, and he should just stay home and read a magazine or something?” Sam asked incredulously, gesturing while he spoke.
“Not on my own,” Bucky replied stubbornly.
“Who—”
“I was going to ask you to come with me.” There was a beat of silence.
“Me?” Sam asked, trying to disguise the surprise in his voice.
“Yes.” Bucky paused. “If I take someone...Steve’ll be more okay with it.”
“Okay,” Sam nodded, absorbing the information. “What about Natasha? She seems perfect for this kind of thing.”
“Her too. But she already said yes. You didn’t say anything,” Bucky pointed out, still refusing to break eye contact. Sam took a deep breath, about to tell Bucky that it was a big decision, one he needed to think over. Then he noticed Bucky’s first finger on his right hand, subtly tapping on the side of his leg. Bucky almost never showed his nervousness physically, especially in ways that anyone could pick up on. Usually, he was pretty comfortable around Sam—at least, for someone who wasn’t Steve—so he must have been really nervous about what he’d asked Sam for.
“Okay. I’m in,” Sam agreed, his mouth moving before his brain could get fully on board.
“Thank you,” Bucky said. There was no expression in his voice, but he stopped tapping his finger and relaxed ever so slightly.
“If Steve agrees to all this,” Sam quickly warned. “We are not just running off in the middle of the night if he says no.” Bucky finally broke eye contact, looking quickly to the side at that suggestion.
“Oh, my god! Seriously? That was your back-up plan?”