Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

1.

“Aw, come on!” Tony groaned, jostling Bucky’s shoulder with his own as he reached across the broader man to reach for the chicken container. “Just a piece! Just one measly piece!”

“Nope!” Bucky declared, laughing as he easily stretched out of Tony’s reach. “You didn’t order any even when I told you you’d want it, so now you don’t get any. Them’s the rules.”

“Them’s stupid rules,” Tony grumbled, finally collapsing in defeat against Bucky’s chest. His own food sat forgotten on the coffee table in front of him, rice and fried noodles and cabbage. “I’m not feeling the love,” he moaned, pushing his face into Bucky’s shirt and wiggling around like a little kid.

Bucky just laughed fondly and put his metal hand in Tony’s hair, stroking through the curls. “Relax, sweetheart,” he said, settling back against the couch they were leaning on. “Patience is key.”

Tony looked up at him and pouted, looking far too adorable for Bucky to resist dropping a kiss to his mussed up hair. Tony sat up a little straighter but didn’t back off, rubbing the spot Bucky had kissed and turning his pout up to full power. “Not a sweetheart,” he grumbled, and Bucky sighed, but it was clear from his smile he wasn’t anywhere near as fed up as he would have Tony believe.

“Fine, doll,” he said, bringing to container down and offering it to Tony. Tony shot up like a spark, grinning wildly and throwing his arms around Bucky like he’d just offered him a trip to Hawaii and not a bucket of sweet and sour chicken.

“Oh man, you have no idea how much you mean to me,” Tony declared, snatching the container away and immediately digging through it, stuffing his mouth full with the first bite. “Like, dis much,” he declared through a mouthful of food, throwing his arms out wide and nearly dumping all the chicken onto the floor.

Bucky just laughed, rich and full in a way nobody but Tony could ever make him laugh. “You’re adorable,” he decided, wrapping an arm around Tony’s shoulders and dragging him to his chest.

The rest of the team watched the display in slight shock. “Did we miss something?” asked Steve slowly when Bucky started tickling Tony, eliciting shrieks of laughter from the genus, turning to Natasha. “I feel like we missed something.”

Natasha shook her head thoughtfully, eyes narrowed as she watched her two teammates. “No,” she finally said, “I think they’re the ones missing something.”

Clint just rolled his eyes and reached over to grab the tub of chicken from where Tony had dropped it, and the laughter silenced as two full powered glares swung to him. Clint froze with his arm outstretched.

“Think real wisely about what you’re doing there,” Bucky growled, grip on Tony noticeably tightening.

Clint retracted his arm. Bucky and Tony were rolling on the floor within moments, grabbing for each other’s sides and feet. Clint turned disbelieving eyes on the rest of them.

“Are they for real?” he asked, shaking his head. “’Cause if not, this is ridiculous.”

“Bucky didn’t tell me anything,” Steve said, shaking his head.

“And Tony didn’t say anything to me,” Bruce added, eyebrows up as he studied his friends like they were a rather confusing science experiment.

“Well then,” Natasha declared, standing up, “let’s just see how this plays out, why don’t we?”

 2. 

“Ugh, seriously?” Tony groaned, slumping over in his seat and softly banging his head against the table. “Undercover work? You know undercover work is the bane of my existence.” Bucky wound his metal arm under Tony’s arms and started kneading his shoulders in apology.

“Really, Stark, the bane of your existence?” asked Fury, unimpressed, though his eyes lingered on the casual contact Bucky and Tony maintained.

“Yes, really!” Tony said, darting up and flailing his arms around. “It is terrible! You have to act inconspicuous! I am so bad at acting inconspicuous!”

“Believe me, Stark, we all know,” Fury sighed, rubbing his brow. “It’s one mission, and I only need you to blend in with the crowd until our villain arrives.”

Tony grumbled under his breath but nodded, albeit reluctantly. “Fine,” he groused. “What are we supposed to do?”

Fury hid his satisfied smirk and gestured to Coulson. “Take it from here, Agent,” he directed, stepping away from the front of the room.

Coulson nodded and stepped forward, handing out files to the team. “As I have already observed you, I’ve decided on a few personas. You will be working in pairs. Thor and Natasha, Steve and Clint, and Tony and Bucky, and Bruce you’re with me.”

Tony whooped excitedly, fisting pumping with Bucky who just smiled obligingly. Coulson raised his eyebrows at the pair, and something in his smirk told the others he was planning something. “Tony, Bucky, you two are posing as Edward Flan and Michael Mosby. You are-”

“Boyfriends?” asked Tony, looking up at Coulson with his jaw hanging down.

Everyone’s heads whipped to Coulson, but only Natasha was able to see the grin in his eyes behind his passive façade. Fury’s head was in his hands. “We needed at least one couple in the group for infiltration purposes, and as Natasha was needed elsewhere, I figured you two would be the best option.”

Steve’s shoulders stiffened, waiting for Tony’s – loud – objection, but was surprised when the only thing the genius had to offer was a whoop of joy. “Hell’s yeah!” he declared, turning to Bucky and high-fiving him, both of them grinning like goons. “We’re gonna kill this, sweet-buns.”

“’Course we are, doll,” Bucky said, grinning devilishly.

“You two seem excited,” Natasha said passively, face blank.

Tony chuckled and slumped in his seat against Bucky. “Of course I am – I get to be James Barnes’ arm candy for a day.”

“And I get to kiss Tony Stark in public,” Bucky added, leaning back into Tony comfortably.

“You could just get on with it and do it now, if you’d get your head’s out of your asses,” Clint grumbled, and Natasha smacked the back of his head. Luckily, Bucky and Tony were too preoccupied by whatever the genius was whispering in the former’s ear to pay any of them much attention.

“This is going to be a long mission,” Steve said, shaking his head, before glaring at Coulson. “This is all your fault, you know.”

“I’m perfectly aware,” Coulson said, not even looking at the captain as he flipped through the file in his hands. But Steve could see the smirk on his lips. “I think it’s time someone gave those two a push.”

3. 

“This is the worst afternoon of my life,” Clint mumbled out from between his fingers. Steve hummed his agreement, though he refused to even face the table again.

Across from them on the food court bench were Bucky and Tony – well, Bucky was sitting on the bench. Tony was perched in Bucky’s lap, feeding the other guy French fries.

“What?” asked Tony, smirking as Bucky’s teeth snatched a fry from his fingers. “We’re supposed to be dating. Gotta sell the act.”

“Hmm, plus I like him where he is,” Bucky purrs, wrapping his arms around Tony’s waist and pulling him firmly against his chest.

“While I'm all for selling the act,” Natasha grumbled through the earpieces they were sporting, “you should probably focus more on the mission, as none of you have noticed that the target has just entered the area.”

Steve and Clint both stiffened, and it might have actually said something about Tony and Bucky’s ability at undercover that neither of them did. “We know,” Tony murmured, nuzzling into Bucky’s neck. “He came in three minutes ago and had been scanning for potential agents for the past two minutes fifty seconds. Me and Bunny here passed his radar ‘cause what kind of stupid agents would be making themselves this obvious? He keeps looking back to Steve and Clint, although they’ve been embarrassed enough that he’s only a bit suspicious. He’s focusing mostly on the two security guards on lunch break in the far corner.”

Bucky purred happily and started rubbing his knuckles up and down Tony’s spine. “You are amazing,” he purred.

“Damn it you two,” Tony spoke to Clint and Steve while making moony eyes at Bucky. “Relax. You’re drawing attention.”

Bucky shrugged easily and grinned like a demon. “You know, Nat once told me a good way to do undercover is to start making out,” he said, bouncing his hips obscenely. “Makes people uncomfortable.”

“Oh, we just have to try that,” Tony purred, before pushing his lips his lips to Bucky’s and moaning like a slut.

Steve set his head on the table, but this time he managed to keep his eye on the target, who was now decidedly not looking at their table, like most everyone else in the food court, sans a few giggling teenage girls.

Ten minutes later when the perpetrator was in the back of a SHIELD issue van after Tony had tackled him when he’d attempted to detonate a suicide bomb – and the following applause that Tony had grinned and bowed through (and the further applause when Bucky had pushed through the crowd and kissed Tony, vocally reprimanding him for being so stupid and brave – and the crowd had cheered even louder as Tony and Bucky smirked against each other’s lips) – Clint was sitting on the ground, shoulders shaking lightly as Natasha stroked his hair.

“I can't take it anymore,” he moaned. “They’re too perfect for each other!”

 4. 

“Happy birthday Bucky!” Tony hollered, beam wide enough to outshine the moon as he stood on the bar counter so he could be seen above the people gathered in the living room. “You’re my best friend, bro, and this is all for you!”

Bucky was leaning against the armchair, laughing his ass off as he watched Tony tipsily perform ‘And I Will Always Love You’ on the counter of his own bar, completely ignoring the advances of several girls as they approached, eyes fixed on the genius making a fool out of himself for his friend’s amusement.

The previous year, Bucky’s birthday party had been a small event, just the Avengers and Coulson and Pepper, gathered around in the pent house watching movies in the quiet party, and it had been nice, but this – this was proof of how far Bucky had come that this year he’d wanted to be surrounded by people and blasting music and alcohol – and was having a fantastic time. And it was all because of Tony.

Clint watched with a soft smile as Tony tumbled down from the counter and Bucky met him in the middle of the room in a sloppy hug, both of them holding each other up as they nearly fell over.

He’d never admit it out loud – not when he hadn’t ingested at least three cases of beer – but it made him feel warm to know that his friends were finally happy. Bucky, of course, was the most obvious – he’d been miserable, scarred, and lost when he’d first come here, unable to see the light – and then Tony had swung in like a beacon and Clint got to see Bucky smile.

But Tony, Tony had been miserable and none of them had noticed. Just assumed it was part of who he was that he didn’t eat and didn’t sleep, that he was reckless and carless with his own life because he didn’t know how not to be. But then Bucky was there, and suddenly Tony’s old smile seemed… plastic, strained, fake, compared to the new one he wore everyday. The act had been good of course – astounding, really, considering it had gotten past two of the world’s best assassin/spies – but looking back, Clint cursed his stupidity. He knew Natasha did so as well.

“We really need to get those two together,” he said to her, turning his head so he was looking down at his red-haired companion. “If they act like this when they’re just friends, imagine how dopey they’ll be as a couple.”

Natasha hummed her agreement and took a sip of her beer, eyes calculating as she studied the oblivious pair across the room now tripping their way through a rendition of ‘Don’t Go Breakin’ My Heart’ together.

“Tony is far from stupid, and far more observant than I originally gave him credit for,” she says, and the way she flicks a glance towards Clint as she does tells him that she is aware that what she is saying is the understatement of the year. “Even taking into account his emotional stuntedness, he would not have missed Barnes’ infatuation unless he was purposefully ignoring it.”

Clint hummed in agreement and bumped his shoulder against Natasha’s. “Got any idea as to why he’s doing that?”

Natasha cocked her head. “I believe he doesn’t know that he himself is in love and therefore can't recognize it in Bucky.” She snorted in amusement when Bucky nearly fell over his own feet as Tony started to play the piano. “Bucky is just as oblivious.”

“How do we get them to see it?”

They both watched as Bucky pulled Tony away from the piano and into a crushing hug, whispering into Tony’s ear. Clint looked down to Natasha, prepared to make a smart-ass comment, but he stopped when he saw the vaguely wistful smile playing on her lips. “I think,” she said slowly, “that for now we should leave them be, let them figure it out for themselves. They’ve got it handled.”

 5. 

“Where is he?” Bucky snarled, pulling the man forward by his throat before slamming him back against the wall. The hand not gripping his throat was reaching into the man’s mouth, metals fingers easily resisting when the guy tried to bite him, and he tore out the cyanide pill and the tooth, eliciting a scream from the Hydra agent. Clint hovered behind his shoulder, not saying anything against the brutality; after all, he would’ve done it if Bucky hadn’t. “Tell me!” Bucky roared in the guy’s face.

Terror flooded the man’s eyes but he didn’t answer until Clint took a step forward. “We’ll find him either way,” he said, eyes hard and unforgiving, sending a clear message that while they might be the good guys, they would never refrain from spilling blood to get back one of their own. “If you tell us where he is, then we might not kill you.”

The agent wasn’t too old, but not too young to inspire true guilt in Clint. About twenty-five if he had to guess, and he might be Hydra, but he didn’t want to die. “Sub-level seven, room 3-A, next to the surveillance rooms,” he chocked out, moments before Clint brought the butt of his gun down on the guy’s forehead and he slumped forward to the ground, unconscious, joining the other bodies littered around waiting for SHIELD personnel to gather them and lock the people up.

Bucky didn’t hesitate for a millisecond before he was striding away down the hallway, and it was all Clint could do to keep up.

Clint knew that once they found Tony and got out of this godforsaken Hydra facility, the team would barely make it to the Quinjet before passing out from exhaustion; they’d spent every moment for the past three weeks – three dreadful weeks – searching for their captured teammate – for Tony, and really by now, they were far closer to family than team. And none of them had searched as hard as Bucky. Bucky, who previously had refused to think about anything Hydra related, had sat for hours with his head in his hands sorting through every bit of information he knew about every Hydra base until they found the right one.

It wasn’t just puppy love between Tony and Bucky, they were assured, if they’d had any doubts to begin with. That kind of devotion… Clint just prayed Tony could return it.

Bucky was barking the directions into the comms as he stormed through the building, and Clint heard Natasha call out, “I’ve got him,” into the comms, quickly followed by viscous Russian cursing. “He’s in bad shape,” Natasha says gravely, and then Bucky’s running.

By the time Clint manages to catch up to the super-soldier, he’s already reached the room they were told Tony was in. Bucky is kneeling on the floor, Tony held in his arms oh so gently. There are ripped heavy iron manacles on the floor, and chunks of concrete missing from the wall. It doesn’t take a genius – even thought they do have their own back - to figure out that Bucky ran here and ripped Tony free.

There’s blood on the floor – fairly fresh, not more than a few weeks old – and Clint knows it’s Tony’s. There’s also an overturned wheeled table and all manner of torture implements scattered around the floor.

Clint can't see Tony other than pale, shaking arms wrapped around Bucky’s neck and a mop of greasy hair bobbing against Bucky’s neck as the previously homicidal soldier holds the genius close to his chest, mindful of every cut and bruise Clint can't see on the man’s body.

And seeing Tony, injured as he is, alive and – more importantly – in Bucky’s arms, Clint knows his friend is safe, and he finally relaxes.

Chapter Text

+1

Tony’s limp is almost gone, Bucky notes happily as he watches Tony go through his physical therapy movements, occasionally offering up corrections when he gets to the yoga portion of the recovery. His leg had been awfully broken and the muscles mangled, so bad that the doctor had told Tony gently there was a chance he wouldn’t ever walk again.

Tony had laughed in the man’s face.

And only four months later – three less than the prescribed minimum recovery time – Tony was up and about, hopping around like usual, even if he did wear himself out more easily now.

Other than the leg, Tony hadn’t had many injuries that wouldn’t heal with time and a few weeks rest. Bucky hadn’t left Tony’s side for the first month, partially because he was the only one who seemed to be able to get Tony to relax, and partly because he couldn’t bear the thought of not having Tony in his sight at all times. It physically hurt.

Tony hadn't minded – quite the contrary actually, he tended to get pissy or cruelly sarcastic with the others when Bucky finally did start to give him more space. But the soldier and the rest of the team all new he just did it to cover up the fear he felt.

Bucky sighed. He wasn’t the only one who’d gained a new set of nightmares from the whole ordeal.

“Ugh, Bucky, Buckster, Buckaroo Banzai, Bucky-buns, Bunny-”

“Not that one,” Bucky interrupted smoothly, flipping through his magazine absently, even as he smiled slightly at the carefree teasing.

“I'm bored,” Tony whined, and Bucky glanced up in time to see him flop backwards on the yoga mat he was stretching on. “Do you wanna go to Coney Island? I want to go to Coney Island. We can ride the Cyclone and you can win me a stuffed bear from one of those boardwalk games and I’ll buy the entire stock of another after many failed attempts to win something for you-”

“We’re not going to Coney Island,” Bucky interrupted, only months of practice keeping the laughter from his voice. That is how an afternoon there would happen. Or at least, how it had happened the last time. And the time before that.

“Buzz kill,” Tony grumbled. “Fine then, Mister I-Don’t-Want-To-Do-Anything-That-Requires-Leaving-The-Premises, how would you like to spend the afternoon?”

At this, Bucky did glance up, raising an eyebrow. “How pissed will you be if I say anything that doesn’t require leaving the premises?” he asked, managing to keep a straight face.

Tony laughed, loud and full, and rolled over onto his side so he was facing Bucky. “Depends on how serious you are when you say it,” Tony said, grin cheeky. “But really, I’ll probably just kiss you either way.”

Bucky laughs happily, throwing his head back. “I think I like that answer,” he purrs, sliding of the bleachers he was sitting on so that now he’s on the floor with Tony. “If that's the case then I might just have to say it, won't I?”

 “Oh, I bet you will, big boy,” Tony coos, rolling onto his knees and crawling over the floor to Bucky. He flops down abruptly, laying his head in Bucky’s lap with his eyes up. He sighs contentedly and closes his eyes. “If I could mass-produce you as a pillow, I’d make a fortune on sales,” he mumbles through a yawn.

Bucky chuckles, a warmth blooming in his chest that only ever shows when he has Tony like this, sleepy and adorable and in his lap. “You’re already a millionaire,” Bucky said, fingers carding through Tony’s hair as his lips curled, waiting for the inevitable reply.

“Billionaire,” Tony corrected, right on cue, cracking open an eye to glare at Bucky.

“Okay, billionaire,” Bucky teased, tugging lightly on Tony’s curls. “Think I can cash in on that kiss now?”

Tony sighed and rolled his eyes, but allowed Bucky to tug him up, their lips meeting in a soft cushion of movement.

It wasn’t their first kiss – not nearly – but Bucky felt a shiver up his spine and, well, that was new. He felt Tony gasp lightly into the kiss and shift, and guessed that Tony felt it too. At the very least, the genius didn’t pull away when Bucky deepened the kiss, pushing Tony down as they both moved together. Tony’s hand came up to grip Bucky’s long hair just as Bucky’s metal arm wound its way around his waist, stretching him out until they were lying horizontally on the gym floor, Bucky over Tony, all the while their lips never separating.

Tony was soft and pliant under him, so unlike the Iron Man suit – strong, unrelenting, unbreakable – and Bucky felt him shudder lightly when he caught the smaller man’s bottom lip between his teeth. When Bucky pushed his tongue into Tony’s mouth, the other let him in easily, let him explore the area, lick along his sparkling white teeth. It was so different from the other times they had kissed – so much better. That had been a battleground, both fighting for dominance. It had been a game, a fun game for sure, but nothing like this.

“Bucky.”  

His name sighed from Tony’s lips like a reverent prayer as the genius arched under him. Bucky couldn’t tell where he ended and Tony began, and that simple spill of his name from those pretty pink lips, the feel of his name on his lips, and in retrospect, it was painfully obvious.

“I'm in love with you,” he murmured against Tony’s lips, eyes widening in surprise at his own admission and his body stilling above Tony’s.

Tony blinked up at him, before cracking a grin, and within moments the genius was howling with laughter. Bucky grimaced and started to pull away, but Tony halted the move by wrapping his legs around Bucky’s waist. “I love you too, you dumbass,” Tony said, rolling his eyes and kissing Tony again. “I was just laughing because I honestly had no idea. I think my genius status needs to be revoked.”

“Hmm,” Bucky hummed happily, nuzzling into Tony’s neck before sucking a prominent mark there. He pulled away and licked happily over the bruise, enjoying both how Tony’s body trembled under his, and how Tony looked with his mark branded clearly on his skin. “Nah,” he disagreed, rolling his hips a little and smirking at the gasp that got out of Tony. “You’re still smart enough to impress me.”

Tony chuckled shakily, moving his body with Bucky’s. “Yeah well, that wouldn’t take much, seeing as how your high school diploma is – oh – seventy years out of date.”

Bucky pulled back from where he’d been ravishing a matching mark on the other side of Tony’s throat with a loud smack. “Such a mouth on you,” he said, pressing a hard kiss onto Tony at the same time that he used his weight to push Tony down into the mat they were still lying on.

“I know a better place to put it,” Tony offered, raising an eyebrow.

Bucky so would’ve taken him up on that offer – just the visual that came to mind was enough for him to pop a semi – but of course they had to be interrupted.

“Oh,” came the startled exclamation, and Tony and Bucky both turn their heads to the entrance to the gym, where Steve is standing, eyes narrowed. “Are you guys having sex now or did you finally get your heads out of your asses?”

Bucky’s jaw drops and Tony starts howling with laughter. “Captain America just cursed!” he yelped delightedly, rolling out from under Bucky and springing to his feet to do a victory dance, injured leg forgotten or ignored. “Damn, if I knew all I had to do to get you to curse was reveal my undying love towards your best friend I would’ve done it months ago!”

Steve huffed and crossed his arms, but there was a smile playing on his lips. “Congratulations,” he said dryly.

“I know!” Tony declared, pausing in his dance to grin widely at Steve. “I might just have to throw a party to announce this to the world!”

“I meant – oh, never mind,” Steve said, shaking his head, before smiling at Bucky. “Good luck,” he said to his friend, before turning on his heal and leaving – probably to go tell the others, Bucky thought dryly. “You’ll need it,” he called over his shoulder.

“Hey! What do you mean-”

Bucky cut Tony’s offended rant off by kissing him, smile wide and obvious as he pulled Tony against him again. When he finally pulled back Tony’s smile was much softer.

“Ready to catch up on missed time, soldier-boy?” Tony smirked, cording his fingers through Bucky’s long hair, silently asking if Bucky was sure.

Bucky smiled. “Can't wait, doll,” he promised. And he meant it.