Chapter Text
Working with the Avengers had proved helpful for Bucky; they were busy, near constantly on missions, helping people, saving the world a few times even. He barely had time to think, let alone worry about the constant nightmares or flashbacks.
One night, after a mission, Natasha finally threw herself at Steve, literally, off of a second story balcony, and they were now happily coupled. Sharon and Sam had started seeing each other, Bruce hardly ever left the labs, and Clint was often gone back home to his family. With Tony and Pepper expecting their first baby, and Thor constantly off world, it left Bucky feeling kind of like the odd man out, for yet another reason. He was happy for Steve, Nat was perfect for him. She reminded Bucky a little of Peggy, strong, brave, and brave enough to run into battle with Steve.
But he was also alone. Not a situation he ever thought he would come to loathe. Usually the former assassin was content to be left alone; privacy was his friend, no one could pester him about how therapy was going or how his nightmares were when he was alone. But soon he found that cooking for one wasn’t as much fun as cooking for eight, or nine, or ten. His Brooklyn apartment away from the tower had seemed like a good idea, but now, he wasn’t so sure.
But then, he’d met all of three of the tenants in his building. First, there had been the meathead, misogynist Brad who went running every morning before heading to the gym where he was a personal trainer, who Bucky decided at first glance, was decidedly not someone he wanted to get to know. And then there was the couple who lived above him, Olivia and Trevor, he met them at three in the morning when he was pounding on their door after six consecutive nights of their bass thumping music and her shrill screams during what Bucky hoped was sex and never wished to know for sure. Overall he was beginning to think it was all a bust, his odd hours hadn’t lent to meeting many of his neighbors who tended to have normal lives and normal comings and goings.
A few nights later, he was sitting up listening to Olivia screaming yet again, having decided that his privacy from Sam & Natasha (the nosiest Avengers) was not worth this kind of aggravation, when he heard it. A voice in the hall swearing profusely and then what sounded like flesh hitting the brick of the walls outside his apartment. When he opened the door he saw her. She was average height, overweight, surrounded by luggage, and fumbling with her keys, pounding her head on the wall.
“I am not in the mood for this. I should have taught the damn cat to open doors.” He couldn’t help but chuckle at the poor girl. She twisted her head to look at him, eyes narrowed.
“It’s not polite to laugh, at least not until after you’ve offered your help there chief.” Laughing openly now he walked over and took the keys from her open palm. The laughter died in his throat when he found he too couldn’t get the door to open.
“Not so easy is it?”
“What the heck is wrong with your door?”
“Four locks, six keys, the super gave up on me. I’m a lost cause he says. Me, I think it’s the door. It’s normally not so much of a problem, but after the day I just had, not something I want to deal with.” She leaned up against the wall next to the door and stared at him out of the corner of her eye. “I’m Y/N by the way. I haven’t seen you before.”
“Moved in awhile back, the name’s Bucky. Ha!” The door opened suddenly and she sighed happily.
“Well thank you Bucky. You, good sir, are officially my hero.” He cocked an eyebrow at the language, but laughed heartily at the curtsy.
“Are you always this…?”
“Odd? Peculiar? Quirky?”
“Sure.”
“Meh. It varies. But two planes, a five hour delayed layover, and four hours next to a lecherous old grandpa makes me a bit extra special.” Then she began unceremoniously throwing her luggage into her apartment.
“I should let you get some rest then. Good night.” He started to turn away but suddenly she was there in front of him.
“Let me know if there’s ever anything I can do for you… You get used to that by the way.” She said pointing up at the sound of a particularly loud scream from upstairs.
“Really?”
“No.” And she was moving, not into her apartment, but towards the stairwell. He was about to follow when he heard a harsh pounding. He heard more footsteps moving quickly across the ceiling and he wondered if maybe they knew his new mysterious neighbor. Then there was yelling, he couldn’t quite make out the words being said but he ventured a guess that they weren’t very nice. A minute later she was back smiling brightly through heavy lidded eyes.
“They won’t be an issue for awhile.”
“How did you do that?”
“Oh, see I have the same problem you do, being right under them, though I think you might have it worse being under the bedroom itself, ouch. Anywho, I camped out on the fire escape with a radio I put right under their bedroom window, when I could hear her screaming I would turn it up to max volume. After five days, they started sleeping most nights at her place. Must have started coming back when they figured out I was gone…”
“What could you have possibly played that would make those two stop?”
“Oh…enough. Good night Bucky. See you tomorrow.” And she was gone, leaving Bucky with a smile on his face for the first time since he’d moved out of the tower.