Work Text:
It wasn’t that Sam actually hated Barnes. He felt bad for the man, had seen how that level of trauma affected people time and time again. Sam wanted to help him. He knew that Barnes didn’t have a say in the things he’d done. Unlike most of the others, he was willing to give the man a chance, but he’d seen the damage he was capable of and knew he had to be careful. He wanted to help, but protecting Steve came first and he knew damn well the man wouldn’t protect himself against Barnes, the only man he wouldn’t fight.
Now just because Sam didn’t hate the man didn’t mean he wasn’t going to be petty. The guy had ripped the steering wheel out of his car, which though terrifying, annoyed Sam. It was completely unnecessary, could have just grabbed Sam, but no the bastard ripped out his steering wheel. So when Barnes asked him something while they waited for Steve to get back in the car, Sam took his revenge - at least started to, since this wasn’t enough.
“Can you scoot your seat up?”
“No.” Could he? Yes. Would he? No. Part of it, a bigger part than Sam would admit, was being petty, but he also wanted to see how Barnes would react. At least that’s what he told himself.
Sam heard Barnes sigh and glanced up at the rearview mirror just in time to see him slouch back in his seat, torso going left, while his legs went right in an attempt to make the best of the tight space. Next time they’d need to get a bigger car.
The matter settled Sam turned his attention back to Steve. The blonde had been talking with Sharon for a while now and Sam was beginning to get impatient, a bad habit he’d picked up from Steve, which he did his best to avoid. This time he did at least feel slightly justified as the tension in the car was getting higher by the minute.
Another glance at the rearview mirror showed him that Barnes was watching Steve just as closely, if not closer. Sam opened his mouth to say something smart but stopped as Barnes’ eyes narrowed and he frowned slightly. Sam turned back to Steve only to sigh in a way that mirrored Bucky’s earlier sigh, but with a level of annoyance that only Steve could produce.
“What the fuck, Rogers.” Steve had kissed Sharon and now he was grinning like a goddamn idiot. Sam caught Barnes glancing at him, no doubt making his own conclusions about why Sam was so annoyed. Probably thought Sam was just ready to go or annoyed at Steve for not sticking to the task at hand. That was part of it. Now wasn’t really the time for flirting, but the other reason for it was sitting behind him.
Sam could just keep quiet, but since when did he keep his mouth shut? “He spends months looking for you, talks about you constantly, then as soon as he’s got you he pulls something like this? Man probably thought he wasn’t that obvious, but even so, this is too much.”
“Don’t know what you’re talking about.” Just the fact Barnes chose to say something told Sam that he knew exactly what he was talking about. Man might not have had all of his memories, but clearly he had enough to remember. Steve had never clearly stated what his relationship with Bucky had been like in the past, just saying they had been best friends, but Sam had figured it out.
“Sure you don’t.” Sam let the silence resume for several minutes until Steve started making his way back to the car. “Maybe this is none of my business, but I know Steve’s too stubborn to do anything by himself, so I will. So if you’ve got any objections, speak now or forever hold your peace.”
Barnes didn’t say anything, even as Steve reached the car.
Just before Steve got the door open, Sam added one more thing, just another little piece of revenge. “Ain’t doing this for you.” That was a lie, but Barnes didn’t need to know that.
Steve climbed back into the car, just barely fitting in the driver’s seat. Definitely a bigger car next time. He glanced at Sam, then back over his shoulder at Barnes. “You two get along while I was gone?”
“He’s still in one piece isn’t he?”
Steve only laughed at Sam’s comment as he started up the car. “You’re impossible, you know that?”
“As if you’re any better.”
**********
“Then this asshole kisses her. Right in front of my salad.”
Natasha smiles at the joke but doesn’t comment on it. “What did Barnes think?”
“Tried to act like he didn’t care, but when I threatened to get him and Steve together he didn’t argue either.”
Sam had spent the last few minutes catching Natasha up on the day's events. They had gone over a lot in the debriefing earlier, but only mission-related items. He’d grabbed Natasha as soon as the meeting ended, insisting it was very important, and she had to admit he was right. It was in Natasha’s nature to put up a cold exterior, a defense mechanism, but Sam quickly saw right through it to the warmth underneath, a woman that cared about her friends more than life itself.
“You know, you never told me why you wanted to help. I can see why you’d want Steve to be happy, but I thought you didn’t like Barnes.”
“I don’t dislike him. I just don’t trust him yet. Steve can’t think objectively when it comes to him, so I have to.” Sam was pretty sure the only thoughts Steve had regarding Bucky were gay ones.
Natasha hummed. “So what’s your big plan?”
“Figured I’d try and get Steve to make a move and if that fails we’ll just have to set him up on a blind date or something. I say we, but that’ll be your job. Less likely to say no to you.”
“And we tell Barnes about the blind date if we go that route?”
“Yep.”
Natasha considered for a moment. She figured they would have to go the blind date route. Steve had been avoiding his feelings for seventy years. “You know this isn’t really our business.”
“If you want out just say so.”
“I never said that. You talk to Steve, I’ll go plan out a date and find Barnes something to wear.”
**********
“Do we really have to talk about this, Sam?” Over the past few days, Steve had managed to get out of the conversation half a dozen times with some excuse or another. Foolishly he’d figured Sam had forgotten about it by now when he agreed to their morning run. He could just run away, but from the frown Sam leveled at him it was clear his friend was getting tired of that.
“Yes. I’m not sure what the hell you were thinking, kissing her when you just got Barnes back.”
“Not sure how those two things are related.” Steve couldn’t see it, but he just knew Sam rolled his eyes.
“Yeah, right. Some people might say that what you did to get Barnes back isn’t something you do for a friend, but we both know better. The two of us just can’t help ourselves. That doesn’t override the fact that the feelings you have for Barnes aren’t entirely platonic.”
Steve sighed. He really wasn’t in the mood for this, especially not on a run. As soon as a free bench came into sight, Steve made a beeline for it, plopping down onto the metal frame. Sam took a seat beside him. “What gives you that idea?”
Sam leaned forward, enough to look Steve in the eyes. He was frowning, a frown Steve recognized, a sadness that remained despite the passage of time. “Because I know how that looks.” He didn’t talk about Riley much. The few stories he told were always lighthearted, memories of stupid things they’d gotten into, never anything serious like this.
Steve pressed his lips together, dragging up the courage to finally answer Sam’s questions. It never took much for him to go into enemy territory or jump out of a plane without a parachute, but talking about feelings he’d kept bottled up for decades was terrifying. “Can’t hide anything from you can I?” When Sam didn’t respond he continued, “You’re right that my feelings for Bucky aren’t strictly platonic. They haven’t been since 1934. We weren’t exactly a couple, but we weren’t not one either.”
“Which explains why you kissed Sharon how?”
Steve shrugged. “I guess I figured that maybe I could find someone else to point these feelings towards. Bucky’s been through enough; he doesn’t need me complicating his recovery.”
“Well, you failed miserably there, bud. Both of you need to come to terms with this if either of you are going to heal.”
“And how do you plan on fixing that?”
“You go on a date. Obviously.”
**********
“You know this isn’t any of your business, right?” Bucky asked from where he was curled up on his bed, attention focused on the book in front of him. At least it had been until Natasha had stuck her nose where it didn’t belong. He’d recently discovered that there were more books by J. R. R. Tolkien, a favorite author of his back in the day, and was midway through The Two Towers.
Natasha was looking through his closet, which was beyond bare. She made a mental note to herself to buy him some more clothes. “So? He’s agreed to the date hasn’t he?” She had been surprised at how quickly Sam had gotten the answer out of Steve, it had taken several days, but she’d expected at least a month.
“You said he doesn’t know that I know about the date. So he just figures we’re going to the movies as pals?”
“Something like that.” Giving up on the closet, Natasha joined Bucky on the bed, mentally running through an inventory of Clint’s closet.
“What do you even do on a date these days?” Back in the day, he’d known exactly how to handle a date, where to eat, the best places to go dancing. Hell, he’d even planned a few dates with Steve, not that he ever took Steve on most of them. A trip to Coney Island or grabbing a bite to eat together was easy enough to pass off as friendship, but a guy just didn’t take his best friend dancing. Steve had enough to put up with as sickly as he was and with no family left. He didn’t need another risk.
“Go out to eat, see a movie, just spend time together. Besides, Sam and Steve are in charge of the details. You just have to look cute and flirt with him.”
“Not sure I can do that anymore.”
“What? Look cute? Leave that to me.” Natasha knew exactly what he was talking about. She didn’t doubt that Bucky wouldn’t be able to flirt like he used to. He was slowly regaining his past confidence, but that would take time. She also knew that it wouldn’t matter how bad he was at flirting, it would still drive Steve nuts.
**********
It was probably a good thing Steve hadn’t really been interested in the movie in the first place. They had a rather limited selection to choose from since neither of them was interested in a war movie or Sci-fi, they’d had enough of that in their own lives. So they’d settled on an old-style Western movie, which though not bad, just didn’t hit the same notes as the ones they’d watched back in the day. Sure the fights were better, but they missed a certain nostalgia.
Of course, Steve had lost focus not even half an hour into the movie. Bucky had shown up in jeans, a red Henley, baseball cap, and bomber jacket. Nothing fancy, nor anything like what he’d worn on dates back in the day, but he certainly looked good nonetheless. And now they were sitting so close together, knees touching. Just recently Bucky had leaned toward Steve, shoulder to shoulder. If there hadn’t been an armrest between them, Steve figured he might just combust right there.
**********
Shit.
They’d barely said anything before going into the movie and not soon after that Bucky had gotten sucked in, too focused to notice anything but the screen in front of him. Definitely not what he should be doing on a date. He should have at least made some effort to move closer to Steve, maybe even put a hand on his knee or arm, but he hadn’t even thought about the blonde the whole time.
Now that they were at a nearby diner, Bucky knew he had to do better. He couldn’t let this date be a total bust, not when it was something he’d dreamed about for years. Sure Steve was a bit bigger, they both had changed a lot over the years, and the setting was far from what he’d imagined, but none of that mattered. All that mattered was that he was here with Steve.
Steve had ordered a milkshake - they both had - and was now sipping on it while they waited on their food. He held the glass with both hands, wiggling a bit in his seat like a kid.
“Guess you can actually drink a full milkshake without getting sick now.” Bucky took a sip of his own milkshake. That was one thing the future hadn’t messed up.
“Don’t remind me. Spent too many birthday nights in the bathroom thanks to those.” Steve had been somewhat lactose intolerant back then. He could handle a normal amount, but an entire milkshake was a step too far.
“Only 'cause you were dumb enough to eat one all by yourself.”
“You never stopped me.”
“Yeah cause you looked at me with those sad puppy eyes of yours. How was I supposed to say no to that?”
Steve shrugged. “Not my fault you’re weak. Becca taught me well and I was going to use it to my advantage.”
Bucky shook his head, taking another sip. He was drinking his a lot slower than Steve, unwilling to risk a brain freeze. “The two of you were gonna be the death of me.”
“Still might be.”
Bucky rolled his eyes, softening his expression to give the waitress a thankful smile as she set down their meals. Two extra-large burgers with huge piles of fries. By the time Bucky was halfway through his burger, Steve had already scarfed his down. The kid always ate like someone would steal his food at any moment - and Bucky had done so on occasion, but only when he could give something back in return. Usually.
Burger gone Steve moved on to his fries, eating a few then dipping one in his milkshake.
“That’s disgusting.” Bucky set his own burger down to eat some of his fries, with ketchup - as God intended.
“It’s delicious.”
“Its sacrilege is what it is.” Steve had always mixed things together that made no sense at all to Bucky and he’d managed to forget most of them, until now anyway.
Steve shrugged, before grabbing a few of Bucky’s fries and shoving them in his mouth before the brunette could say anything. “Your loss.”
**********
Their time at the diner had gone so well. It was the closest they had ever been to ‘old times’, but as they made their way back to the tower some of that familiarity and easiness were fading. The fact was they needed to decide what they were or, more accurately, what they wanted to be. It had been so much easier when they were younger. Everything just came to them naturally, even some things that weren’t exactly normal for friends.
Bucky had always been a hands-on kind of guy. Nearly every time they went out he’d throw an arm over Steve’s shoulder and pull the blonde close to his side. He’d put his hand on Steve’s shoulder to get his attention or give him a pat on the back for reassurance. When they were alone in the apartment, Bucky would find almost any excuse to be in contact with Steve.
Any night that was even remotely cool - and even some that were not - the two of them would share a bed. Eventually, they just pushed their beds together, so most nights they would go to bed, Bucky’s arm over Steve’s side, the blonde’s back to his chest. Even on nights where Steve had gone to sleep before Bucky got home from work they would end up like that.
When they had time off Bucky usually sat on one end of the couch reading or listening to the radio while Steve worked in his sketchbook. Their legs would end up overlapping or Bucky’s foot would end up pressed against Steve’s leg. Listening to the radio together led to Steve leaning against Bucky’s side, occasionally tipping over into his lap.
At the time part of Bucky had tried to insist he shouldn’t have been so close, but that part was always quickly overcome by the desire to just be close to Steve. He’d been close to his parents and sisters when he had lived at home, so it was only natural that Steve took that place in his life when he moved out.
Now Bucky wasn’t so sure if he could be that person again. Part of him itched to, desperate for physical contact, but just as strong was the worry that any contact he got would only bring pain. Once he would have just pushed himself to get over that feeling, but the risks were far higher now.
Back at Steve’s place, Bucky settled on the couch to watch TV while Steve took a shower, then took his turn after the blonde returned. He checked his phone once he got out. A single text from Nat.
Nat: How was your date?
Bucky: Good.
Nat: Have you told him it was a date yet?
He didn’t answer that, which would be enough. Back in the living room, he found Steve curled up in the corner of the couch, so he took the other corner facing the blonde rather than the TV. “Hey, Stevie.”
“Yeah, Buck?” Steve gave him his full attention and that made it even harder to get the words out.
“You know that was a date right?”
“Nat told you it was a date? I thought you didn’t know.”
“I thought you didn’t know.”
Both men laughed, grinning. Steve shook his head, running a hand through his hair, something he always did when he was both amused and exasperated. “Guess they fooled both of us.” He paused for a moment before continuing. “How was it for a first date?”
“Considering we’re both incredibly out of practice, not too bad.”
Steve rolled his eyes. “You’re the one out of practice. I never had any.”
Bucky hummed, taking the opportunity to move so he was leaning against Steve like he had been at the movie theater earlier, except this time there wasn’t an armrest in between him. “I can do something about that.”