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Bucky doesn't get it. Steve never really was a ladies man but somehow he ended up with four girlfriends and they are all cool about it. Bucky doesn't know how he feels about it. A little jealous, maybe. But jealous of who? That's the question…
Steve’s girlfriends, Sharon, Darcy, Emma and Bernie, are all objectively beautiful. They are all special in their own ways. They are good for Steve, truly. And still Bucky finds himself wishing things were different. That he could play a role in this somehow…
It hits Bucky when Steve walks into the apartment he shares with Bucky, and all his girlfriends are with him. Bucky wants to be one of them. He has always felt attracted to Steve, he realizes now. There's something so magnetic about Steve, something so incredible. Does Steve have room in his heart for one more? Does Steve even like men?
"Interesting," Emma says suddenly.
She grins at Bucky like he just gave her a great gift. Fucking telepaths…
She sits down next to Bucky on the couch.
"Can I tell him?" she whispers in Bucky’s ear.
Bucky nods slowly, bracing for impact.
Emma strokes his cheek. "Good boy."
Bucky’s pretty sure his face is bright red now.
"Bucky likes you too, Steve," Emma says.
"Do you, Buck?" Steve's voice is soft and hopeful, like he can't quite believe this but wants to.
"I do," Bucky says steadily.
"I think you should kiss," Emma says.
"Do you want to do that, Buck?" Steve checks.
Images of kissing Steve flash through his mind. Yes he wants to, so much. Those lips against his, yes please. Being pressed against that body, yes please.
Emma grins at him.
"Tell him," she says, "he can't read your mind."
"I want to kiss you," Bucky says. "Badly."
Steve’s fast. He's next to Bucky a second later and kisses him deeply, passionately. Kinda like he'd been waiting for this, preparing for it. In the background Darcy makes a comment about getting a show and Emma is still grinning at them. Bernie and Sharon just look at them fondly.
It feels like… like Bucky is not just getting Steve, but potentially all of them. He's okay with that. More than okay with that.
Later that night he gets why Steve insisted on buying such a big bed. The six of them are cuddling on top of it and it's comfortable. Bucky is resting against Steve’s chest and playing with Sharon’s hair, Darcy and Emma are kissing lazily, and Bernie is curled up at Steve’s other side reading some case files and asking for Steve’s thoughts.
"I'm glad you are finally with us," Sharon says softly.
"Me too," Bernie comments.
"All of us are," Steve says.
"Sorry it took me so long," Bucky says.
"Don't worry about that," Darcy says, briefly disconnecting her lips from Emma's. "We all went at different paces when it came to polyamory and this relationship. It's better to be sure than to rush into things."
"I was so jealous of all of you," Bucky admits. "It took me so long to realize why."
"But you know now and we have each other now," Darcy says. "That's all that matters."
Yeah, Bucky thinks. It is. He's in the arms and in the bed of some of the most incredible people he knows and they want him and he wants them. Things couldn't be better.