Work Text:
Si te quieres divertir
Con encanto y con primor
Solo tienes que vivir (¿a dónde?)
Un verano en Nueva York (¡Nueva York!)
John was definitely regretting saying yes for once. It had been, oddly enough, Ava's idea.
“There's a bar a few blocks from here,” she said one day over lunch. “They do a Latin night once a month. Maybe we could go.”
The idea had been met with mixed reactions around their table.
“I don't think that's a good idea,” Bucky said, trying to dampen the enthusiasm of Lena, Ava, and Bob.
For once, John had to mentally thank him.
John was definitely not the clubbing type. Olivia had tried to persuade him a couple of times to take her dancing, but with little success.
The truth was John was literally a piece of wood in the middle of the dance floor.
He had no sense of rhythm, he felt awkward.
“Why on earth?” Yelena asked. “We deserve a little fun every now and then.”
“Yeah, we’ve been going on missions after mission. One after another,” Ava said. “I thought it was a good idea.”
John looked at Bob at the corner of his eye, but he hadn’t said anything yet.
He blushed beside him, watching him with curiosity.
What there was between them was strange.
Sometimes it almost seemed like Bob was patiently waiting for John to figure out what he wanted, to finally put a name to what he felt for him.
The truth is, John hadn’t slept alone in a while now. And many times he didn’t even spend the night in his own bed.
John was aware by now. He wasn't as straight as he thought he was anymore.
Their therapist asked him if he might be bisexual, and that was probably the closest thing she could come to describing what he felt.
The truth was, he'd had some casual crushes on a few guys in the past, but he'd only ever been truly in love with womens, especially Olivia.
Bob was the first guy he'd ever had real feelings for. And it was hard to admit, but he was falling for him.
He couldn't be with someone and just have sex. The whole "friends with benefits" thing was new territory for him.
He was falling more and more for that curly-haired man with the sea-blue eyes, better known as Bob Reynolds.
"Come on, Bobby," Lena said. "We need some help convincing these old folks."
"We're not old folks," John snorted.
"This might be fun," was all Bob said.
He looked at him with a small smile, and John forgot everything.
"Hey," Yelena said, "You don't have to dance, you can just stay at the bar for all I care."
"Okay," Bucky said, after a moment of silence, "Promise not to make a fool of yourself."
And now here he was.
Sitting at the bar, Alexei was lost somewhere, hitting on some girls who definitely didn't want to know anything about him while Bucky kept an eye on him, a beer in his hand that wouldn't do anything to him, not even make him tipsy.
Bob and the girls were in the middle of the dance floor, and John was trying his hardest to contain himself.
He smiled slightly, seeing how Bob was having fun, for once.
He smiled at him, his forehead sweaty and his dark curls plastered to his temples, the smile of someone who was having a great time and wasn't thinking about anything.
Yelena had convinced him to dress in a white shirt that now clung to his chest, paired with the tightest jeans they could ever find and the new boots the girls had given him for his birthday.
Yelena had also given him a thin gold chain that now shone under the neon lights, the top buttons of his shirt already undone a few minutes ago.
It was a heavenly sight, and John was trying very hard not to get a fucking erection, his own dark jeans far too tight.
He regained his composure as Yelena approached him, her shiny red heels clicking against the parquet floor while the red dress she'd borrowed from Ava made her look like a flamenco dancer, a red rose caught between her soft blonde waves.
John glared at a guy who was clearly staring at her ass. No one looks at his sisters like that when he's around.
"Did they leave you here all alone?" She asked, leaning against the counter.
“Your dad was trying to bother a group of girls,” John said. “Bucky went to keep him from making a fool of himself.”
“Good God,” Lena said, huffing. “I don’t know whether to be happy that he’s getting back on the market and trying to forget Melina or worried that he’s hitting on girls way too young for him.”
John laughed along with her as he watched her order three virgin margaritas.
“You’ve been staring at him ever since we got here,” Lena said, moving closer to him.
John blushed. He closed his mouth a couple of times before speaking.
“I’m just keeping an eye on you guys,” John said. “Did you see the guy staring at your ass earlier?”
“I really appreciate the gesture but in case of danger, I have one of my eight-inch knives strapped to my thigh,” Yelena said, lifting her skirt slightly. As she'd said, one of her combat knives was strapped to her left thigh.
"And you're the one who's been staring at Bob's ass for an hour or so," Yelena said.
"I don't know what you're talking about," John said.
"Oh, tough super soldier John Walker who blushes like a lady," Lena said, giggling.
They were silent for a few seconds before Lena spoke again.
"I know about you two," she said, taking the first sip of her drink.
John stared at her without answering.
"What?" John said. "Did Bob tell you?"
"He shares a wall with my room," Lena said. "You're not as quiet as you think. All it took was a few well-placed questions to make him break."
"And?" John asked. "No death threats?"
“Oh, I know where to find you, John Walker,” Lena said. “You can run, but you can’t hide. If you even try to break his heart.”
“Well, we’re not a couple anyway,” John said. “We’re just getting to know each other better.”
“And you need three months of sex to ‘get to know him better’?” Lena said. “I know you’re not capable of doing that. You’ve been with a woman for over 15 years; you don’t seem like the type.”
“Maybe I am,” John said, shrugging.
“Or you love him, but you're not sure about your feelings and if he wants the same thing,” Lena said. “Trust me, he's had a stupid high school crush on you ever since he met you.”
“Do you really think…”
“Come on,” Lena said, taking his hand. “You can stand there with us and be a guard dog rather than sit here alone feeling sorry for yourself. And anyway, I need someone to help me with the drinks; I really can't carry all three glasses.”
John barely had time to pick up the third cocktail before letting Lena drag him to the middle of the dance floor.
“Look who I found at the bar,” Lena said, handing her drink to Ava.
“Good evening, stranger,” Bob said, smiling.
John smiled at him, handing him the drink without taking his eyes off.
He let Bob wrap his arms around his waist and began to sway with him, letting himself go to the rhythm and trying to follow it as best as he could.
“Come on, Ava,” Lena said. “I need someone to walk me to the bathroom.”
“Be good, lovebirds,” Ava replied, giggling.
John waited until the girls had moved away before speaking.
“You look beautiful tonight,” he said, speaking directly into his ear.
“You look pretty good yourself,” Bob said, nuzzling his beard.
“God, Bobby,” John said with a sigh. “You’re the most beautiful thing I’ve ever seen.”
“Keep it up, and you might get really lucky tonight,” Bob said.
He kissed him without giving him time to think, the lemon flavor of the Margarita still on his lips.
Maybe it was the beer finally starting to take effect, making him talk.
He tucked a dark curl behind his ear before he found the courage.
“What if I wanted to be lucky forever?” he asked.
He laughed when Bob looked at him strangely, chuckling.
“Are you jumping straight to the proposal?”
“No, I think it’s still a little early,” John said, blushing. “But I’d love to call you mine. My boyfriend.”
“Boyfriend?” Bob said, smiling. “I’d like that, too.”
John smiled. He kissed him, forgetting where they were for a second.
“As your boyfriend,” Bob said, smiling, “I’m going to unleash the full power of the Sentry on that girl staring at you.”
“Please, you’re not the type to get jealous,” John said. “That’s my job.”
“Well, get over it,” Bob said. “That’s what you decided to date.”
And, at least for now, it was the best decision he’d ever made.