Chapter Text
After searching the Tower for nearly thirty minutes, Steve tracks Bucky down in the gym. He's on the treadmill, running at pace all too leisurely for the Sergeant, and when he sees his friend approach him, he pulls out his headphones, the only distinguishable feature of the music playing being its fast and intense bass.
"Buck, we've been looking for you," Steve says as he stands with his hands on his hips. Bucky doesn't question who 'we' is, he only keeps his eyes trained on the wall ahead.
"Well, you found me," he replies, his voice monotone.
"Tony called a meeting."
"Good for Tony."
Steve raises an eyebrow at his friend's nonchalant attitude. "You gotta be there too, Buck."
"I don't see why," he says as he glances at the other man.
"Because you're part of the team?"
"If you say so, Rodgers."
Steve heaves a sigh, not willing to argue with the brunette right now. Or ever, for that matter. "Just come on, Buck..."
Bucky doesn't reply and simply stares ahead. He really doesn't want to go to the meeting but he knows Steve won't leave him alone otherwise. With the blond still staring him down, he switches the treadmill off and climbs off the machine, following him out the gym and through the winding halls of the Tower until they reach the board room where everyone else is gathered.
He makes a beeline for the back of the room, dragging an empty chair into the corner where he situates himself in hopes no one will strike up a conversation with him.
Steve watches him go with a sigh before he turns to Natasha who sits at the table. "Where's Tony?"
"Dunno," she says with a shrug. "He should be here soon, though. He did call the meeting after all."
"Anyone know what it's about?" Bruce asks and the scattered shrugs around the room are his only response. Steve goes to sit between Natasha and Sam, glancing to where Bucky sits and he sighs again. He's not sure what's gotten into his friend as of late and he's even less sure of how to help him.
Ten more minutes go by before Tony finally arrives. Bucky's eyes flick upward at his entrance and he almost has to do a double take when he sees the woman on his arm. He stares at her in awe; silky, dark hair hanging loose across her shoulders, warm, caramel skin, a soft smile that lights up the room. He's never seen a woman so beautiful.
"Everyone, meet Valerie Dietrich," Tony says, smiling fondly as he glances down at her. "She'll be joining the team from today."
Her smile widens slightly, staring distantly into the space in front of her as she lifts her hand in a small wave. "Hello! It's wonderful to meet you all."
Her voice, like everything else about her, is a beautiful sound. Sweet and melodious, Bucky almost swoons hearing it and he knows that he never wants to hear anyone else speak again.
Steve is the first to greet her. He stands up and stretches his hand out towards, turning his charm on as if it were a simple switch. "Steve Rodgers," he says. "Welcome to the team."
Valerie doesn't shake his hand nor does she really look at him, rather looking in his direction. Her smile turns conspiratorial, seemingly finding amusement at a secret only she knows. "Thank you, Steve."
Peter speaks up suddenly, blurting out the words before he can stop himself. "You're blind!"
Tony snorts, hiding his face behind his hand as she turns her head in his direction, her smile never wavering. "I am," she says and Steve quickly retracts his hand before sinking into his seat. Looks of confusion are thrown around the room but Bucky can't take his eyes off her.
"How can she fight then?" Peter asks quietly and Bucky glances at him. Sitting between Wanda and Thor, his face is bright red and he looks as if he wants to crawl under the table and never come out again. Bucky swallows his laugh.
Tony looks down at her, her fingers still wrapped around his arm. "Show or tell, Val?"
She smirks. "Show."
He nods and looks at Natasha. "Step right up, Nat," he says as Valerie lets go of his arm and he takes a step back.
Natasha looks around at her fellow Avengers in confusion as she slowly gets to her feet and walks towards her. "What am I supposed to do?"
"Take a swing," Tony supplies.
"What?" She looks between the two of them with an incredulous look on her face. "I'm not gonna attack a blind woman, Tony."
"Just do it, Nat," he insists.
Natasha looks at Valerie with a concerned look on her face. The woman stands before her, waiting patiently with that absent look on her face, her lips curled up in a smile. Shaking out her hands, Nat takes a deep breath before unleashing a series of swift hits, all of which the blind woman blocks and evades, her eyes still staring at nothing.
"What the..." Natasha breathes out, semi out of breath as she drops her arms.
"What the fuck did I just watch?" Sam says, staring at Valerie, like Bucky, in awe.
The woman only smiles and Tony looks at her proudly, stepping back up beside her to let her take his arm. "Valerie can read minds," he announces.
"I hear thoughts," she corrects and Tony throws his hands up in defence, a shit eating grin on his face.
"What's the difference?" Steve questions.
"I can't control it," she says.
"She's not like Wanda," Tony adds. "As soon as you have a thought, she hears it too."
Natasha straightens her back. "Wait, so you can hear all our thoughts right now."
Valerie nods happily and Peter's face goes pale, a muttered 'oh fuck' leaving his lips as he buries his head in hands.
"That's incredible..."
"Thank you, Bruce," she says, beaming.
Bucky watches on in silence as the superheros throw questions at her. He wants more than anything to talk to her himself but he can't bring himself to do so. Not here, not in this room, not surrounded by everyone else.
"What's it like?" Sam asks.
She tilts her to the side in thought and Bucky can't help but think that the way she rolls her plump bottom lip in her mouth is adorable. "It's like I'm always in a room filled with hundreds of people who are all talking at once."
"How do you focus?" Wanda asks.
She lifts her shoulders in a shrug. "I've gotten used to it."
"What training do you have?" Natasha asks.
"Military."
At this, Bucky raises his eyebrows at her. The more he learns about her, the more impressed he is. He notices a small smile take over her lips and he knows she's heard what he's thinking. He quickly averts his eyes and shrinks back into himself, though it's not long before he's staring at her again.
Natasha looks at Valerie with a look of awe on her face. She quickly turns her attention to Tony. "Please, please let me train with her, Stark..."
"Val requested one-on-one's with each of you," Tony says, addressing the room. "As long as you're all okay with it, I've agreed."
Natasha all but jumps up and down in a cheer. "Hell yeah, I'm okay with it!" She says, earning a laugh from the woman. "When do we start?"
Steve nudges her in the side. "Let her settle in first, Nat."
She grumbles her ascent as Bruce steps forward, a warm smile on his face as he addresses the blind woman. "I would like to know more about your abilities, Valerie."
She nods. "Whatever you want to know."
"This'll be better done in the lab," he says, offering Valerie his arm which she happily takes.
Tony steps forward, clapping his hands. "Well, I guess that does it! Meeting adjourned." No one says anything as he starts for the door though he stops in the entryway. He looks over his shoulder at Valerie and she turns her head in his direction. They share a moment of a silence before a smile spreads over her face and she nods. He nods as well and turns back around, leaving the room without another word spoken.
"Follow me," Bruce says as they make for the door and she throws a wave and warm smile over her shoulder at the rest of the room.
"Wait, I wanna come too!" Natasha quickly chases after them and Stephen silently follows her out the room. The rest of them sit in stunned silence.
"That is not what I was expecting the meeting to be about," Steve says, breaking the silence.
Sam raises an eyebrow at the boy sitting across from him. "You good over there, Parker?"
"What were you thinking about?" Thor asks innocently as he looks down at the brunette boy next to him, the red on Peter's face deepening.
"Nothing!"
"I think that's obvious," Sam says with a scoff. When no one replies, he looks around the room with his eyebrows raised. "She's a total smoke show!"
"I think this is where I make my escape," Wanda mumbles as she gets up and hurries out of the room.
Bucky drowns out the conversation, his mind immediately going to Valerie. He thinks of her smile, so warm and bright; her pale brown eyes that stare nowhere and still manage to see right through him, into his soul; her hands, small and delicate, with slender fingers and manicured nails that wrapped around Tony's arm with such ease. He imagines her holding onto his arm and his face grows warm. He imagines her hands doing a lot of other things and his face gets even warmer, his pants getting tighter.
"Bucky?"
He snaps to attention and finds Steve standing in front of him, that concerned look of his back on his face. He glances around the room, finding it empty save for the two of them, and he quickly scrambles to his feet.
"You okay?" Steve asks and Bucky avoids looking him directly in the eye. "You've been quiet."
"That's nothing new."
"I know," Steve says earnestly. "This just seems... different."
"I'm fine," Bucky insists.
The blond nods, unconvinced. "What do you think of Valerie?"
"Not much," he shrugs and he mentally curses himself for responding so quickly. Schooling his face into an neutral expression, he avoids looking at Steve all together. Really, he just wants Steve to leave him alone. He doesn't know how to talk to him any more, how to relate to him. They're too different now, too separate from who they used to be. Bucky doesn't think its fair, after losing almost everything in his life, he's now losing his best friend, but he doesn't know how to fix it. He doesn't even know if he can.
"It'll be interesting to work with her, don't you think?" The blond man asks and Bucky only shrugs in response. Steve heaves a sigh, seemingly giving up on their conversation and he can't blame him. "I'll see you at dinner, Buck."
Left alone once more, Bucky let's his feet carry him back to the gym, his mind returning to Valerie. He wants to talk to her, get to know her, be around her, but after seeing everyone's reactions to her, he doubts he'll ever get the chance. And maybe that's for the best. Maybe he's destined to be alone forever and he doesn't want to bring someone like her down with him.
Climbing back on the treadmill, he plugs in headphones and sets the machine to its highest speed. He resigns himself to only watch and admire her from afar. Even if she can hear every thought of his. Every unfiltered and unholy thought.