#This is a Winteriron Story | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

riotwritesthings · 4 months ago

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The Tale of the Widower (is there a fridge or not?)

WinterIron - M, 12k - Angst, Fluff, Humor, Angst, Fluff, Humor, Everyone-is-a-shield-agent!AU, Mission fic, Canon-typical violence, excessive flashbacks, assumed character death, happy ending

Bucky is one of the top agents of SHIELD. He's also a brooding badass. One of his teammates is determined to learn a little more about him.

There is quite a bit of, lets say assumed character death. Please please check on the end notes of the story here on A03 if you want to see the spoilery tags before you dive in

Fun fact I have owed this fic to the lovely and infinitely patient @saganarojanaolt for like. 4 years now. Here you go BB you probably forgot all about it haha

~~~

Bucky spins the ring that hangs from the chain around his neck and resists the urge to sigh heavily, again.

He can feel the newest agent staring at him, but he’s easy enough to ignore. Bucky’s never thrilled to be working with fresh-faced baby agents. Even if SHIELD is incredibly thorough with their training, it still makes him twitchy. He much prefers working with people that he knows can handle themselves, that he won’t have to worry about slipping up and getting themselves killed.

But apparently, he can’t expect to be teamed up with Steve for every mission, which Bucky still thinks is bullshit. He’s filed several complaints about it.

Instead he’s stuck with a different team, and at least Natasha is the one running things on this mission, he really hates taking orders from people he doesn’t know. He has worked with two of the other agents before too, Van Dyne and Natasha’s sister, and has no real complaints about either of them. But there’s also one agent Bucky has never even seen before, and he never loves working with new kids.

Especially because Bucky is well aware that he has a reputation. According to Sam and Natasha and everyone he’s something of a legend around HQ, both for his brutal efficiency and just for the fact that he’s lifelong friends with the top agent Steve Rogers. Bucky doesn’t understand it, honestly, but he quickly learned it was easier to just ignore all the stares and whispers.

He spins the ring on his necklace again, lets it clatter softly against his dog tags and runs his flesh fingers over the engraved words.

They have a long flight ahead of them, so Bucky lets his mind drift.

~~~

Bucky wakes up with a tuft of Tony’s fluffy hair stuck to his lips.

He’s still waiting for the day he finds it annoying, but three years in Bucky is still smiling widely as he carefully plucks strands of hair from his mouth. A quick glance over at the clock confirms the alarm will be going off soon anyway, so Bucky drags both of his hands down Tony’s strong back, digging his fingers into the muscle and smiling wider when Tony shifts against him. Tony lets out a sound caught somewhere between a complaint and a pleased hum as Bucky does it again, pushing his fingers up into Tony’s hair and scratching lightly at his scalp to pull a sound almost like a purr from Tony.

“Too early,” Tony grumbles, his breath warm and his arms tightening around Bucky a little more.

“It’s seven minutes before the alarm,” Bucky says with a huff of laughter.

“Too. Early.” Tony says again and throws a leg over Bucky as well, clinging to him tighter. Bucky laughs again and continues dragging his fingers through Tony’s hair.

When the alarm goes off Tony’s hand instantly snaps out to slap it silent, and Bucky tugs lightly at his hair.

“Now it’s time to wake up, sugar,” Bucky says and grins when Tony lets out another grumpy whine of complaint. Bucky tugs at his hair again and Tony finally lifts his head, pouting at Bucky with his eyes barely open, and Bucky leans in enough to press a kiss to the tip of his nose before saying, “Morning, sunshine.”

“Damn you and your early mornings,” Tony grumbles in response, blinking slowly and clearly fighting down a smile.

“That’s your alarm,” Bucky reminds him, pausing for Tony to let out another groan before adding, “For your early meeting-“

“Nooo-“

“-Which you told me to make sure you get up for,” Bucky finishes, and then laughs when Tony smashes his face into Bucky’s sternum. The movement of his chest has Tony’s head bouncing in place, wild tufts of hair tickling Bucky’s face again.

“Awful, I quit,” Tony mutters into his skin, and then hums and arches up into it when Bucky drags his palms down the warm line of Tony’s back.

“And here I set the alarm a little early,” Bucky says with a regretful sigh, his hands dipping lower, “but if you’re going to quit I might as well go start my workout. Since you’ll be home all day now.”

There’s a moment of silence while Tony processes that, and then he lifts his head again to fix Bucky with an impressive pout. “You are not going to leave me here-“

“Well if you’re quitting-“

“In this nice warm bed-“

“Then you’ll be in bed all day-“

“All alone-“

“And you’ll still be here when I get back.”

They’re both failing to fight down wide smiles by the end of the mock-argument, and Tony rolls his eyes with a dramatic sigh as he says, “Fine, I’ll go to the stupid early meeting.” Then he presses a little closer, looking much more awake as he smirks and adds “If you can convince me.”

Bucky grins back, pulling Tony fully on top of him.

~~~

“Alright team, look alive,” Natasha calls, snapping Bucky out of his thoughts and back to the present, to the dull roar of the Quinjet’s engines and the quickly dying hum of conversation around him. “We’re about to hit the drop zone, ” Natasha says, “any last minute questions, now is the time.”

The jet explodes into motion around him as people grab and double-check their gear. Yelena quadruple checks her many vest pockets while the greenest agent, Lang maybe, shifts his weight anxiously and asks for the hundredth time the exact odds they’ll run into one of the random Hydra patrols, and Bucky just sighs again as he pushes himself slowly to his feet. He hadn’t done anything but sit and half-doze, so all he has to do is sling his rifle over his shoulder and he can join Natasha in looking over the map of the heavily wooded mountainside.

A heavy silence settles over the jet as they begin to descend over one of the few areas on the mountain clear enough to allow it, and before they dip below the tops of the trees Bucky barely spots the couple of trails of smoke that indicate their target. The prepared safehouse is just outside the small village, and all they need to do is make it there without running into any of the patrols.

When Natasha gives the word Bucky is the first one to hit the ground, eager to get himself to focus on the mission, not on places he’d rather be.

For a minute it actually seems like they’ll make it to the safehouse without incident, moving slowly through the trees as a tight group, but then the soft growl of an ATV engine breaks the quiet. A short whistle of alert from Yelena off to the left of the group is all the warning they get before bullets are flying at them from that direction.

Bucky all but tackles the new kid in his hurry to get them both behind the questionable cover of a tree.

“Turns out odds are about 100%,” Van Dyne calls from where she’s crouched behind another tree.

“Thanks, very helpful,” Lang mutters dryly, flailing his way upright and then wincing apologetically when he almost smacks the rifle off Bucky’s shoulder.

“Plan B,” Yelena shouts gleefully and begins returning fire.

Honestly, Bucky had expected this the second he read the brief and learned there are random, unpredictable patrols of the mountainside. So he doesn’t hesitate to drop his rifle, knowing a handgun and a large blade will do him better in this situation, and he dives in.

~~~

Bucky pulls the blanket tighter around him and stares unseeing at the shifting colors on the TV, letting the noise wash over him without registering any of it.

He’s not sure how long he’s been sitting here now, but it’s long enough that there’s a plate with a half-eaten ham sandwich sitting on the coffee table in front of him with a mostly empty glass of water. He doesn’t remember eating, but he must have because he’s only a little hungry. He doesn’t have the gnawing pit in his stomach that he used to be left with when he’d spend a day zoning out.

Between one long blink and the next the glass is replaced with a fresh one, the remains of the sandwich whisked away, and this is the kind of thing that used to drive Steve crazy with worry. When Bucky gets stuck in his head he tends to forget little things like eating or drinking or the outside world, sometimes for days at a time, and sure it happens less and less as the years go by, but Bucky knows he’ll always have his days.

At least he has Tony now too, who stays home with him when he can and makes sure there’s food in front of him at the appropriate times. Bucky doesn’t even have to work up the nerve to ask for help, or the energy, Tony is always there. And on the rare occasions he’s not, all Bucky has to do is send a text, even just a dumb frowny emoji, and Tony is right there or sending someone to check on him, taking care of him until he comes back to himself. Maybe it’s not the best system, but it works. And it’s a hell of a lot better than before.

Tony walks past him as he moves around the apartment, Bucky is very dimly aware of his footsteps on the carpet moving behind the back of the couch. He’s much more aware of the quick kiss Tony drops to the top of his head before shuffling along on his way, reminding Bucky that he’s there, that he’s not alone. Bucky has no idea how many times it happens, doesn’t bother to keep track, all he knows is that time passes slowly, and that Tony is never far away, that he’s waiting patiently until Bucky feels like himself again.

It’s late evening by the time he finally does, the sky almost completely dark out the window and the smell of food filling the apartment. There’s an empty plate in front of him and a distinct lack of the once-familiar pit of hunger in his stomach, so apparently he ate again. Despite not doing anything all day he’s exhausted, and he could really use a trip to the bathroom, but the first thing Bucky does is head for the kitchen, where he can hear the rapid tapping of Tony’s fingers against a keyboard.

It looks like Tony is deeply absorbed in whatever he’s doing, his coffee cup sitting mostly full and forgotten beside him, and Bucky doesn’t want to disturb him. He’s sure Tony has already spent plenty of time worrying about him today, but he can’t do nothing, so he leans in enough to press a light kiss to the top of Tony’s head before leaving the kitchen.

He’s barely made it halfway to the bedroom before Tony is chasing after him, colliding with his back and winding his arms around Bucky’s waist, and Bucky smiles.

~~~

Night has well and truly fallen by the time they reach the safe house, and Hope adjusts Yelena’s arm over her shoulders as they wait for Natasha and Barnes to do a quick sweep of the tiny building. Scott is trying to downplay the bullet graze on his arm, but he also can’t seem to stop poking at it, and Hope fights down all but the tiniest grin as she watches him.

“We’re clear,” Natasha says, poking her head out of the door, “everyone in.”

“Yay, clubhouse,” Yelena says dryly, slinging her other arm over Natasha’s shoulders and together she and Hope get Yelena into the small cabin and dropped into the armchair.

Scott finds the first aid kit and Hope volunteers to help him patch up his arm, all too happy to leave bandaging Yelena’s leg to her sister. Scott chatters through the whole thing, clearly still hopped up on adrenaline, only to snap his mouth shut the second Barnes returns from securing the perimeter.

“So we definitely missed our first window,” Natasha says once everyone is back in the tiny main room.

Scott quickly turns his gaze in her direction, clearly eager to pretend that’s the reason he fell silent, and Hope can’t completely fight down a snort of laughter. When Scott looks at her with a pout Hope just grins and tugs the bandage around his arm tight. Scott yelps and it kind of looks like he’s planning on kicking her before Natasha clears her throat to pull their attention back.

“Our next window is in nine hours,” Natasha reminds them, “assuming that the missing patrol isn’t noticed before then.”

“Did you have to add that?” Yelena demands, wrinkling her nose and fidgeting as Natasha applies butterfly bandages to her shin, "we all know." She snaps her mouth shut when Natasha glares at her, smiling innocently instead.

“So we should get some rest while we can,” Natasha finishes like she hadn’t been interrupted and then looks over at Barnes, who has already settled himself in the hall between the tiny living room and the singular door. “You’ve got first watch, I’m guessing?”

Barnes nods silently and settles his rifle across his lap, checking it over before he begins moving his gaze constantly around the safe house. Natasha nods back and pulls out a communicator to provide an update to HQ, and Hope returns her attention to finishing up with Scott’s arm. At one point she starts to ask if the bandage is too tight, but finds that Scott’s attention is still fixed on Barnes.

The man still has one hand on his rifle, clearly ready to jump into action, but with his other hand he’s once again spinning the gold ring that hangs beside his dog tags. The curiosity on Scott’s face is painfully obvious as he watches Barnes, and Hope just knows he’s going to ask.

So it seems only fair that she warns him.

“Don’t ask,” she says quietly and then resists the urge to sigh when Scott visibly startles a little, has to remind herself that everyone is jumpy on their first mission. “I know you’re curious,” she says, cutting a quick look over at Barnes, “but trust me, just leave him be.”

Scott has his mouth open, no doubt to ask why, but Hope yanks the bandage around his arm tighter to cut him off and she can only hope he actually lets it go. She doesn’t need to hear the tragic ode to Barnes’ late husband again, she’s already made that mistake and it really brought down the mood of the whole mission.

“I think you’ll probably live,” Hope declares with a grin when Scott turns to her with an offended look, firmly taping down the bandage and hoping he’ll let it go.

“If everyone is patched up we should try to get some sleep,” Natasha says, dropping to the floor in front of the armchair and leaning back against it.

“What, not even a bedtime story?” Yelena asks with a grin and then squawks when Natasha blindly reaches back to swat at her.

“Alright, scoot,” Hope says, flapping her hands at Scott, “I’ve got second watch and I deserve the couch.”

Scott pouts but doesn’t argue, probably scared that she’ll tighten his bandage again. Hope makes herself as comfortable as possible on the lumpy couch and it’s never easy to fall asleep in strange safe houses, but Hope has gotten pretty good at ignoring strange smells and the sounds of an entire team settling in around her.

By the time Barnes nudges her awake for her turn at watch a couple of hours later Hope has managed some halfway decent sleep, but she’s already looking forward to this mission being done with. She has to step carefully over Scott’s sprawled limbs to climb off the couch and actually take up the post by the door, and she sees Barnes shoot Scott a brief look before bypassing the couch entirely and making himself relatively comfortable in the far corner of the room.

She’s pretty sure Barnes never actually sleeps during other people’s watches, but it’s also never slowed him down so no one’s said anything yet, and Hope certainly isn’t going to be the one to start.

After fighting down a single yawn she settles in, listening for any signs of life outside the tiny cabin and in the back of her mind debating the best way to wake Yelena up for her shift without getting stabbed. It looks like Yelena has already slid halfway out of the armchair she fell asleep curled up in, maybe Hope will get lucky and Yelena will wake herself up by landing on the ground and/or Natasha before then.

~~~

Tony muffles a yawn into his shoulder for the second time in ten minutes and Bucky’s stomach twists with guilt. He knows better by now than to suggest Tony head to bed without him though, not when they both know that Bucky won’t be going back to sleep for at least a couple hours, if he manages it at all tonight.

It doesn’t happen nearly as often as it used to, but Bucky knows he’ll never fully escape the nightmares that follow him. There was a time when he was first rescued from Hydra and freshly released from the hospital with a shiny new metal limb, that Bucky was certain he’d never get a good night’s sleep again. He was sure that every single time he closed his eyes he’d be seeing the same damn things, death and fear and pain. But with time, and the SHIELD-assigned therapist, the nightmares had come less and less often.

And now he has Tony, who shakes him awake before he can sink too deeply into the horrors, who wordlessly moves to the couch with him and puts a mindless comedy on the TV. Bucky doesn’t even need to ask, not since the first month they were dating and he’d haltingly admitted that yes he’d like some company when the nightmares keep him up, but he’d never expect it. That’s all Tony had needed to hear, and now whenever Bucky gives up on sleep and rolls out of bed Tony is right behind him. All Bucky has to do is drop his heavy bones onto the couch and Tony is right there, piling them both with blankets and cracking dumb jokes to try and coax a smile onto Bucky’s face, staying pressed in close to his side warm and familiar, reminding him that he’s not alone.

Bucky still doesn’t know how he got so goddamn lucky, but he must have done something amazing in a past life because he certainly doesn’t deserve Tony in this one.

Tony muffles another yawn and then looks over at him, like he can feel Bucky watching him. Tony raises an eyebrow at him, just daring Bucky to tell him to go to bed, but Bucky knows better. So instead he smiles, small but real, and leans over to press a lingering kiss to Tony’s cheek.

“Thank you, baby,” Bucky breathes out, and then kisses him silent when Tony makes a soft sound like he’s about to put up his usual protest that it’s nothing. “Thanks for staying up with me when you can,” he says, lips still brushing against Tony’s with every word. He pulls back enough to meet Tony’s eye and slides his fingers up into Tony’s hair to keep him close. “I know you don’t wanna hear that you don’t have t’ stay up with me,” Bucky says with a small grin, “but you don’t. An’ it means the world to me that you do, sweetheart. Makes me feel like all th’ nightmares might be worth it, if all that shit brought me to you.”

All the air escapes Tony in a hard rush, his mouth hanging open and his eyes bright. Bucky is feeling pretty misty himself, and he thinks they can both blame the late hour but the truth is that thinking about how damn much he loves Tony always makes him emotional.

“Of- Of course,” Tony finally croaks out, his voice thick with emotion, “I- of course, honey.” He leans in to kiss Bucky again, lips moving together slow and sweet while his fingers tangle in the blanket that’s draped over Bucky’s shoulders.

Bucky is all too happy to kiss him back, melting into it and eagerly letting himself forget everything that’s not the taste of honey and green tea on Tony’s lips, the gentle drag of Tony’s fingers along his jaw. By the time Tony pulls away Bucky has nearly forgotten their entire conversation, much more interested in pressing another kiss to the tip of Tony’s nose.

“Anytime,” Tony says softly, like a promise, and then plants a kiss on the corner of Bucky’s lips while he’s distracted losing his breath, “always.”

~~~

When the time comes to head out to the base Bucky is more than ready.

He’s already feeling a little stir-crazy from being cooped up in the tiny safe house, and it’s only been a day. It doesn’t matter how many long missions he’s been on now, he’s never been a big fan of being away from home that long. And ever since the whole brain-washing fiasco, a tiny part of him is worried that if he’s away from familiar surroundings for too long he’ll end up losing himself again.

Plus, the near-constant looks that Lang has been shooting at him are kind of putting him on edge. They’re different than the usual looks of vaguely fearful awe that the new agents usually give him, but Bucky can’t figure out what it is about. And he doesn’t want to be tempted to ask, in case he has to fend off awkward hero-worship that he doesn’t deserve and ends up regretting it.

He’d much rather be sneaking into a heavily-armed enemy base, at least that’s familiar.

They make it to one of the side entrances of the base without running into another patrol, and it’s immediately obvious that the one they took out yesterday hasn’t been missed yet.

No one is expecting them, there are only a few guards posted outside and one of them actually squeals in surprise when Yelena drops out of a tree on him. The rest of their ambush kicks off without a hitch, the newer agents heading inside while Bucky, Natasha, and Yelena split off to take care of any other guards around the perimeter of the complex.

And if Bucky is a little more vindictive than he needs to be, well it’s because he spent the whole morning making himself miserable. He just couldn’t stop himself from thinking about how much he misses Tony’s laugh, the way Tony’s smile lights up his entire face. These particular Hydra goons aren’t the reason Bucky would do just about anything to hear the sound of his husband’s voice again, but he can still take his frustration out on them.

Plus, it’s not like Bucky doesn’t have his own, very personal grudge against Hydra as a whole. He thinks he’s justified in a little extra aggression.

It doesn’t help though, he’s still frustrated and miserable by the time they actually make it into the base and he’s honestly a little disappointed that Van Dyne and Lang get the evacuation triggered without any trouble. He, Natasha, and Yelena slip easily into a side hallway where they won’t be seen by all the fleeing scientists and Bucky is kind of hoping they will be found, just so he can keep fighting. He’s not stupid enough to do something to draw attention to them, he would never put his team at risk, but he can dream. He’d been looking forward to more of a fight.

To his selfish disappointment, the plan continues going perfectly.

They regroup with Van Dyne and Lang in the main control room of the base, and Bucky sets up in one of the doorways to watch hopefully for any stragglers of the evacuation. Yelena watches the other door, looking just as hopeful for more action, and the rest of the team gets to work uploading all of the files to SHIELD’s systems.

Using the devices that Tony designed, Bucky can’t stop himself from thinking and then sighs again.

~~~

The sound of the front door opening echoes through the apartment and Bucky is glad that he’s in the kitchen. It means he’s out of sight of the entryway, and Tony can’t actually see the way Bucky perks up like a lonely house pet.

It’s just that he hasn’t actually seen Tony awake in days, and that is after the mission that had Bucky away for a week and a half. Bucky has missed him, dammit, and while he’s sure everyone is well aware of it, that doesn’t mean Tony needs to know Bucky has been moping around the kitchen for the past ten minutes while he waits.

“Honey, I’m home,” Tony calls, laughter in his voice, and it makes Bucky smile because he knows Tony still hasn’t gotten used to the novelty of having someone to come home to. He knows it’s not a thing Tony ever expected to have, that Tony is just as stunned to have found each other as he is, and a part of Bucky hopes the novelty never wears off.

“Welcome home,” Bucky calls back, and within seconds Tony appears in the doorway.

“Something smells amazing,” Tony says, moving towards Bucky even as his gaze lands firmly on the stove.

“That would be dinner,” Bucks says with a laugh, holding his arms open and then wrapping them around Tony as soon as he steps in close enough. "My dinner, which I have eaten all of."

Tony groans unhappily into his chest, pinching at his side, and Bucky laughs again as he uses his own arms to trap Tony’s at his sides.

“If it makes you feel any better, it was delicious,” Bucky says around a wide grin and Tony groans louder.

“Awful,” Tony grumbles into his chest, “and after I rushed home to see you.” He tips his head up to fix Bucky with a pout that is clearly about to crack into a wide smile, and then huffs when Bucky responds by smacking a kiss to the tip of his nose.

“Of course I made you dinner,” Bucky says with a laugh, and the wide smile that immediately splits Tony’s face makes Bucky’s heart jump in his chest.

“Smells like tomato sauce,” Tony says, spinning both of them in place slowly until he can peek over Bucky’s shoulder at the pot sitting on the stove.

“I tried my hand at makin’ the sauce from scratch,” Bucky says, grinning at the way Tony pouts when Bucky spins him back out of view of the stove, “I think it came out okay, but you’ll have to be th’ judge.”

Tony hums happily, casting one more look at the stove before returning his attention to Bucky. "Did I ever tell you you’re the best husband I’ve ever had?” he asks, smiling widely and leaning more heavily against Bucky.

“I’m the only husband you’ve ever had,” Bucky says with a fond roll of his eyes even as he wraps his arms more firmly around Tony, making sure he doesn’t lose his balance.

"The only husband I’ve had so far," Tony corrects him with a cheeky grin, and then squawks when Bucky bites at the tip of his nose.

Tony makes ridiculous and adorable considering noises when it comes time to try the sauce, taking so long to give his judgment that Bucky threatens to actually eat all the food himself, but then Tony kisses him again and declares it perfect. It was already pretty late when Tony finally made it home, and it’s even later when they finish eating, but Tony gets right to doing the dishes despite Bucky trying to argue that they can leave it until morning, insisting that its only four and refusing to let Bucky help.

So instead Bucky just watches him fondly and occasionally chimes in with helpful advice about where the Tupperware is. He knows it was a joke, no different than any of the other goofy jokes they’ve made over the course of their relationship, but that hasn’t stopped the thought from lingering in Bucky’s mind all through dinner. Because it’s not like it’s not at least a little likely, with the life he leads, and as much as he doesn’t want to know he also can’t stop thinking about it.

“Hey baby,” Bucky says and waits until Tony hums curiously and glances up from the sink at him. "If somethin’ happens to me on a mission or anythin’-“ he starts and then has to pause for the distressed noise Tony lets out, turning to face him fully, “would you actually, ya know, move on, get remarried, all that?”

Tony just stares at him for a second, his mouth opening and closing before he abruptly says, "Yes, I’d marry Steve.”

“I’m divorcing you right now,” Bucky says instantly, and then dodges dramatically out of his chair when Tony flicks soap at him.

“You’re the one who asked,” Tony says with a wide grin as he reloads his hands with bubbles, “you were never supposed to know about my secret backup husband.”

“And what does Sam have to say about your plan to steal his man?” Bucky asks, opening one of the cabinets just in time to take cover behind it as Tony flails made soap at him.

"Clearly in this scenario, you and Sam have killed each other in some increasingly intense physical contest," Tony says, like it should be obvious.

“Clearly,” Bucky agrees and gets so distracted laughing that Tony manages to get him right in the chest and face with flicked bubbles.

Tony’s cheer of victory turns into a squeaking noise of protest when Bucky swoops in and wraps both arm around him, letting soapy water soak into both of them. After a second of half-hearted attempts to wiggle free Tony wraps around him in return, smiling widely.

“I wouldn’ mind, if you did,” Bucky has to say even though he’s not sure why. He just can’t let it go.

"Well of course not, you’d be dead," Tony says with a roll of his eyes, but the corners of his lips are starting to twitch down.

“I just want you to be happy and loved, sweet thing,” he insists as he leans forward just enough to let their foreheads bump together, “you deserve that.”

“As long as it’s not with Steve."

“As long as it’s not with Steve,” Bucky agrees shamelessly.

Even from this close, Bucky can see the way Tony’s big brown eyes go sad as he says, “I’m not making any promises. If anything happens to you-” he has to pause to swallow thickly, his eyes glassy, and Bucky kind of regrets even bringing it up before Tony smiles again, only a little strained. “I’m no spring chicken, after all,” he says with a wiggle of his eyebrows, and then raises his voice a little when Bucky tries to protest that point, "hush, honey. What I’m trying to say is that, getting over you? I don’t know, I think that would take the rest of my life.”

Bucky just has to kiss him after that, ignoring the cooling water on their shirts in favor of burying his fingers in Tony’s hair and pulling him closer.

If Tony intends to ask Bucky the same question he never gets the chance, too busy gasping and tugging at his clothes as Bucky thoroughly distracts him from the dishes. It saves Bucky from admitting that he’s a goddamn hypocrite, that he can’t imagine moving on from Tony, doesn’t even want to try.

~~~

“Hey Sarge-“

“Sarge?” Barnes interrupts and it is impossible to tell if his tone is confused, or annoyed, or what.

“Isn’t that…“ Scott stutters, and he’s seriously rethinking taking Hope’s advice, ”that’s what- uh, Wilson calls you?”

“Yes,” Barnes says slowly, “as an insult.”

Scott splutters for a second, because he had not seen that coming and damnit, Sam totally set him up. Scott is going to have to get him for that when they get back to base. He seriously considers just walking away from the conversation, giving up on making friends, but no, he is determined. It certainly doesn’t look like Barnes has any intention of carrying any conversational weight though, so Scott casts around desperately for another opener before his eyes land on the ring Barnes is once again spinning on his dog tag chain.

“I never heard that you’re married,” Scott says hopefully, because who doesn’t have a lot to say about their spouse one way or another? Barnes abruptly drops the ring, like he hadn’t even realized he was fiddling with it, and sure, Scott could take that as a sign to give up, but instead he smiles encouragingly and tries to sound friendly as he asks, “Do they work at SHIELD too? Or civilian?”

“SHIELD,” Barnes replies slowly and Scott thinks that’s going to be the end of it, but Barnes surprises him by continuing. “He’s- we met when he was working in R&D,” Barnes says, the words halting and soft like he’s surprising himself too, “he- the equally crazy hours made it easier, somehow.”

Scott nods, because he can definitely see that. The hours of a field agent are wild, ever-changing, and can be the death of nearly any relationship. He doesn’t know much about the hours in the R&D department, but he has heard how demanding the director can be and that probably leads to quite a few missed dates too.

“And he…” Scott says slowly, trying to figure out how to put it delicately, “he uh, doesn’t anymore?”

Barnes’ flat expression darkens a little, and for a moment Scott doesn’t think he’s going to answer before he simply grits out, “No.”

Scott can feel his mouth working uselessly as he tries to figure out what the hell to say now, and no wonder Hope told him not to ask. Before he can put his foot any further into his mouth, Barnes surprises him by speaking up again without prompting.

“He used to say-“ Barnes starts and then cuts himself off, lost in thought. He lifts one hand towards his ring again before apparently catching himself and clenches his fist on top of his thigh instead, looking back up at Scott with a tiny, sad smile. “He’s the reason I’m still here,” he says simply.

Scott isn’t sure if he means here at SHIELD, trying to save the world, or here on the planet, and he doesn’t ask because he’s not sure he wants to know. “I’m here for my daughter,” he says instead, because even he does occasionally know when he’s asked enough questions.

Barnes makes the grave mistake of quirking an eyebrow at him, so Scott happily seizes the hint of an opening. He launches into a full-blown rant about how amazing his daughter is, that her favorite movie right now is Coraline, and that she’s the reason he knew he had to get his life together after prison, had to do something with himself that would make her proud.

The other man doesn’t say anything while Scott recounts the tale of the director recruiting him right out of Baskin Robins, but he also doesn’t walk away or tell Scott to shut up, so as far as Scott is concerned they’ve bonded big time

He’s just getting into explaining the complicated game Cassie came up with and has been trying to teach him, which is both very similar to and nothing like tag, when he’s cut off by Romanov finishing her call back to base and turning to address the group again.

“The director wants us to make sure we neutralize those weapons on our way out,” she reports and then points a finger at Barnes when he opens his mouth, possibly to argue. “Do not,” she says sternly, and to Scott’s slight surprise Barnes does actually snap his mouth shut.

He certainly doesn’t look happy about it though.

~~~

“Our reservation is in fifteen minutes,” Bucky calls and he can’t completely keep the amusement out of his voice, because usually he’s the one running around at the last minute, fussing with his outfit and making them late.

“I’m almost ready,” Tony calls back, for the fifth time, and then finally appears from the bedroom, adjusting the cuffs of his jacket despite the fact that as far as Bucky can tell they’re already perfect. “Almost ready,” Tony says again and at this point it sounds like he’s talking to himself more than anything, patting at his pockets and glancing over at Bucky before just as quickly darting his eyes away.

It is without a doubt the most nervous Bucky has ever seen him, including the night before they found out if Tony got the promotion to head of R&D. As Tony starts pacing back and forth in front of the couch, looking seconds from running his fingers through his carefully styled hair, Bucky starts to worry that someone is dying. So he crosses the apartment and puts himself right in Tony’s path, then gently grabs Tony by the hips to reel him in when Tony moves to step around him.

“What’s got you so wound up, sugar?” Bucky asks, careful not to wrinkle Tony’s suit as he wraps his arms around him, because he’s learned better by now.

“I’m not- what are you talking about?” Tony stutters out, twitching in place as his eyes continue darting around the room.

“Babydoll,” Bucky says patiently, “you weren’t even this worked up on our first anniversary, and I had to talk you out of buyin’ me an entire flower shop-“

“I was going to buy you half a flower shop at most-“

“So what it is this time,” Bucky asks with a grin, “you finally go through with buyin’ me that pony?”

“No, because we’ve determined you wouldn’t appreciate the pony,” Tony protests weakly but at least stops shifting his weight in place and looks at Bucky, even if it is to pout.

“I’m just gonna keep guessin’ until you give in an’ tell me,” Bucky points out, and when Tony tries to deny it again he just says, “c’mon baby, you know I’m gonna figure it out, so unless you’re plannin’ on proposin’ or something-“

Bucky’s voice trails off as Tony’s face twitches and he goes abruptly, deathly still against him.

For three long seconds, they just stare at each other as Tony tries his hardest to keep his expression blank and Bucky feels his own eyes go wide, his mouth falling open. He’d been joking, but he knows Tony well enough to easily read the way Tony’s face twitches as his eyes continue darting evasively around the room.

“I uh- just kidding,” Bucky says quickly, topping it off with a disjointed laugh, and then feels worse when Tony’s expression begins to morph into a pout. “Nevermind, not that,” Bucky says quickly, desperately trying to think of any other guesses so he can change the subject, ”you- you um, bought a car?“

Tony continues to stare at him for a second, expression still caught somewhere between carefully blank and a pout, and then he finally huffs out a soft laugh. The one chuckle becomes another, and then Tony is full-on laughing, all the gorgeous smile lines on his face deepening with it. Bucky can only smile back, shrugging sheepishly, and then tightening his hold when Tony leans forward to rest his forehead against Bucky’s chest.

Bucky’s breath catches in his throat as Tony stands up straight again and reaches into the inner pocket of his jacket, pulling out a small velvet box. He’s pretty sure he doesn’t blink as he watches Tony turn the box over a couple of times in his hands, giving away his nerves, and when Tony clears his throat Bucky’s gaze snaps back up to his face.

“Since you apparently know me so well,“ Tony says with a roll of his eyes that’s completely undercut by the fond smile on his face, ”and since you, for some reason, still want to hang around, and because you make me deliriously happy even when you’re driving me crazy, do you want to, you know…” He trails off, gaze dropping as he spins the small box between his hands, and then he takes a final fortifying breath and looks back up at Bucky with a wide, hopeful grin. “Do you want to be legally obligated to hang out with me for the rest of our lives?”

The wording startles a laugh out of Bucky, even if the sound does come out choked with emotion. “Well, when you make it sound so magical,” Bucky says, not even trying to hide the lump caught in his throat. Apparently Tony doesn’t consider that a good enough answer and starts to pout again, but he doesn’t get further than barely poking his lower lip out before Bucky is hurrying to add, “Yes, obviously yes.”

Immediately Tony is smiling widely again, and he has his mouth open to no-doubt continue teasing him so Bucky reels him in and kisses him quiet.

They’re late for their reservation, but neither of them mind.

~~~

Everything in the base goes so well that they’re almost caught off guard by the ambush waiting for them when they leave.

Some of the fleeing guards must have flagged down one of the patrols on the way out, but they’re goddamn professionals and within seconds Natasha, Van Dyne, and Lang are falling back to cover them while Bucky and Yelena do what they’re best at. Focus on the enemy.

Bucky hears but doesn’t process the orders that Natasha is barking at at the two green agents, because they’re not directed at him. All he has to worry about is the Hydra goons in front of him, and he is all too happy to do that.

He does catch it though when Van Dyne nearly shouts over the comms.

”Distraction coming in hot!” She says gleefully, and it quickly becomes obvious why when Bucky turns his head.

He ducks behind a thick tree as an SUV goes roaring past, flames and black smoke pouring from the open windows and beneath the hood. Bucky doesn’t need to look again to know that it’s headed right for the biggest group of Hydra agents, and the cut-off screams followed by a loud crash are incredibly satisfying.

“Escape vehicle acquired,” Scott says seconds before Bucky hears another engine roaring towards him, “everyone hop on board and be ready to show your tickets to the conductor!”

When he peeks out around his cover Bucky sees a jeep careening between the sparse trees, Lang at the wheel and Van Dyne laying down covering fire from where she’s standing in the passenger seat. Bucky slings his rifle over his shoulder to swap it out for his pistol as the jeep gets closer, and when it goes roaring past he grabs one of the support bars with his metal hand.

He’s instantly swept away, and as he swings himself up into the back of the jeep he nearly crashes into Natasha doing the same thing. She shoves one hand at him, so Bucky grabs her wrist without question and then anchors her as she leans most of the way out of the vehicle to haul Yelena up as well.

“We’re all in, go go!” Natasha shouts as she and Yelena tumble in.

They momentarily squash Bucky against the back of the driver’s seat before Lang hits the gas and the three of them slide towards the back of the jeep. Bucky grabs one of the support beams to stop them, grunting as someone’s knee digs into his stomach. In almost frightening synchronicity Yelena and Natasha shove themselves upright and throw grenades back towards the few Hydra agents stupid enough to try to follow them.

The explosion rocks the jeep even as they speed away from it, and Lang cheers while Natasha and Yelena flash each other matching wide grins. Bucky rolls his eyes and shoves Yelena’s elbow away from his shoulder, settling in for the ride.

They get to the next safe house in better time than expected, because stealing a jeep and driving like hell until the half-empty gas tank ran dry wasn’t in the plan. From there it’s a short walk to their evac location, and between keeping an eye out around them Bucky glances at his watch to confirm it’ll be hours before pickup.

It’s really too bad, he hates waiting for pickup at the end of a mission.

Bucky’s not impressed by the deserted, crumbling warehouse waiting for them, but Sam had done the recon for this mission and he’d sworn up and down that the center of the building is stable. To Bucky’s annoyance, Sam is right. The center of the sprawling warehouse still has a roof, and the maze of half-collapsed walls are about as secure as they can ask for in the middle of enemy territory.

After he’s checked the place over thouroughly, Bucky seats himself near the only entrance and prepares to wait.

The rest of the team start making themselves comfortable as well, and Bucky is half expecting it when Lang plops down beside him, apparently determined to make friends. The guy actually reminds him a little of Steve, like an overeager golden retriever with just a little more enthusiasm than sense when it comes to people.

He’s not sure what to make of the look Lang is fixing on him, some weird mix of pity and sincerity, and maybe Bucky should lean into his scary reputation, it would probably save him from a lot of weird conversations.

“I just wanted to say,” Lang starts, his voice low and serious and Bucky has to resist the urge to sigh heavily, “if you wanted to- to talk about your husband anytime, you know, I’m a great listener.”

“Like what?” Bucky asks before he can stop himself, one eyebrow raised, and for a second Lang just stares at him, like he’s stunned that Bucky actually responded.

“Anything you want!” Lang says quickly, “more about how you met, or- I don’t know, anything."

It’s not the usual way people try to start conversations with him, Bucky has to give him that at least, and he supposes it’s slightly better than being interrogated about Steve. It does make sense that people would be curious about Tony too, and who else are they going to ask?

“You just wanna hear about the time he almost blew up all of HQ,” Bucky says knowingly and he can feel the tiniest of smiles pulling at his mouth that gets wider when Lang’s eyes go wide with obvious surprise.

“What?” Land demands, his voice cracking, and it pulls the attention of everyone else in the warehouse, “he- how did- what?”

A tiny grin tugs at Bucky’s lips, because he thought everyone knew this story by now. “Well, he wasn’t a big fan of yearly reviews,” Bucky starts, and his grin dims a little as he adds, “still isn’t, I guess.” Scott’s mouth opens like he’s going to say something, but then he closes it and simply nods for Bucky to continue. Bucky is more than a little curious what that’s about, but decides to just keep going because despite everything else he does enjoy telling this story, and more specifically watching people’s faces during it. “An’ he thought it would be a good idea to get really ahead to impress the higher-ups…”

As expected Lang’s face twists into all the familiar expressions of shock and horror as Bucky goes through the story. Over Lang’s shoulder, Bucky can see Natasha smiling wistfully to herself, although he’s not sure what to make of the occasional looks Van Dyne keeps shooting him, something that might be understanding. He’s not sure what the hell that’s about, but by the time he reaches the explosive end of the story Bucky is surprised to find that he’s a little less miserable.

Once the laughter dies down Natasha jumps in, and she and Lang manage to weasel a couple more stories out of him. Considering he spends most of his time thinking about Tony one way or another, Bucky has to admit it’s not the worst way to kill time until their evac shows up.

~~~

“So when are you finally going to ask Tony out?” Steve asks, completely out of the blue, and Bucky nearly chokes on the large swig he just took from his water bottle.

“I’m… working on it,” Bucky grumbles when he gets his breath back, and Steve gives him a skeptical look.

“Are you, though?” Steve asks, one eyebrow raised. He may not be saying out loud that the Bucky from before wouldn’t have dreamed of taking three months to work up the nerve to ask someone out, but his eyebrow says plenty.

And sure before, Bucky probably would have asked Tony out within a couple of hours of meeting him, the first time he made a dumb joke and Tony laughed in the way that made his whole face scrunch up, but that was before. Before Hydra, before the capture, before the scars and constant nightmares. These days Bucky counts himself lucky if he can even think about dating. He’d been thinking about it a lot more lately though, thinking about Tony, and Bucky is this close to asking him out, if only so he can tell himself that he tried. Any day now, he’ll actually do it.

“I will,” Bucky insists, a little more firmly, and elbows Steve when he makes another skeptical noise.

“Why are you bringing this up now?”

“Hmm?” Steve hums innocently, then lifts his hand in a wave as he says, “because he’s right over there.”

Sure enough, Tony is standing nearby talking to a couple of other R&D guys, and at Steve’s wave he heads over toward them.

“Hey, just the super soldiers I was hoping to run into,” Tony says in greeting as he approaches and Bucky is going to strangle Steve if he says anything.

He tries to shoot a look at Steve that will convey that message, but Steve just gives him a bright grin before turning to Tony and saying, “Sorry to disappoint, I actually have to run off so I’ll leave you with your favorite super soldier.”

With that Steve slaps him on the shoulder and walks away before Bucky can do more than croak out, “Help.”

“Is that a specific request, or general existential crisis?” Tony asks, looking caught somewhere between laughter and confusion.

Bucky clears his throat and tries again, saying, “Hey Tony, what can I do for you?”

Tony bites his lip for a second, which is unfairly distracting, and then asks, “How do you feel about burgers and shakes?”

“Love ‘em,” Bucky says instantly and then asks, “Wait, why?”

Because he still hasn’t gotten a straight answer on why the R&D lab was filled with popcorn that one day, or why everyone was forbidden from eating any of it, but he’s been suspicious of any food that comes from that wing of the building ever since.

Tony’s face starts to fall, but before Bucky can backtrack and insist that he loves radioactive burgers Tony’s eyes go wide with realization and he laughs. “This is nothing like the popcorn incident,” Tony promises, and then his smile begins to wobble as he says, “I was just wondering if you wanted to- um, get some burgers and shakes. With me. Like, as a date.”

Bucky can only blink for a second, making sure he heard that right and for some reason stupidly wondering if he can convince Steve the date was his idea. Tony just continues smiling at him hopefully, apparently familiar with what it looks like when Bucky’s brain needs to completely reboot and fuck Bucky is so crazy about him, why hasn’t he said yes yet?!

“Yes,” Bucky finally blurts, a little louder than he intended, then clears his throat and says, “yeah, that sounds- that would be great.”

Tony’s smile grows until it takes up his entire face, making his eyes shine, and Bucky’s heart flips over itself in his chest.

~~~

The flight home is blissfully uneventful after the noise and explosions of the end of the mission, and Hope even manages to sneak a small nap slumped down low in one of the seats.

She wakes up to find the quinjet relatively quiet around her, as much as a jet flying through the upper atmosphere can be, anyway. Scott, Natasha, and Yelena are near the front of the jet and Barnes is, of course, off in the other far corner with his arms crossed and his eyes closed. After checking her phone to see that they’re about an hour away from HQ, Hope decides against going back to sleep and instead scoots over to join the rest of the team near the front of the Quinjet.

Yelena appears to be absorbed in sharpening one of her many knives while Scott and Natasha hold a hushed conversation, and it doesn’t take long to catch on that they’re talking about Barnes.

“I think that’s the most I’ve ever heard him say while on a mission,” Natasha is saying thoughtfully, shooting a quick look over at Barnes, “ever.”

“I feel like I deserve some kind of award for that,” Scott says proudly, turning to flash his smug grin at Hope as he adds, “And you told me to leave it alone."

“I said that it would be a real downer,” Hope replies, rolling her eyes, “and it was.”

Scott’s face twitches in the way it does when he’s trying to avoid admitting that she’s right, and then he deflates the tiniest bit. “I mean, it was a little,” he says, “but it was also kind of sweet, you know? He clearly loved the guy-“

“He still talks about him like he’s alive!” Hope hisses, being sure to keep her voice down.

“It’s sweet,” Scott insists stubbornly.

“How do I keep forgetting, you’re a romantic,” Hope says with a sigh, leaning back in her chair.

Across from them Natasha is almost managing to fight down a smile, which Hope assumes is related to her also judging Scott for being such a sap. There is something that’s been bugging Hope for a while now though, and when Natasha’s gaze shifts over to her she sees her chance.

“What happened to Barnes’ husband, anyways?” She finally has to ask, and it’s almost funny how quickly Scott perks up, clearly wanting to know the answer, too.

Natasha’s face twitches again, and her gaze flashes over to Barnes for a split second before she quietly says, “We don’t talk about that.”

Scott’s face falls, but Hope is a little more interested in the way Yelena’s attention finally jerks up from her knife. Hope isn’t sure what the expression on her face is supposed to be, but when Yelena opens her mouth Natasha cuts her off with a quick wave of her hand.

“We don’t talk about it,” Natasha repeats shortly, and Hope doesn’t even have a chance to track all of the emotions that cross Yelena’s face before she ducks her head, firmly turning her attention back to her knife and whetstone.

At this point Hope needs to know, but she’s more than a little intimidated by Natasha so she keeps her mouth shut. For a second it looks like Scott is going to ask anyway, and Hope is kind of hoping that he will, but then he glances over at Barnes as well and nods. Trust the man to finally learn some tact when Hope is practically dying of curiosity.

Just as the relative silence in the jet starts to get awkward, Yelena clears her throat and says, “So about this debrief. Can we do it in the cafe?”

“Yes,” Scott chimes in instantly, "I vote for that, debrief with food. I am starving."

“No,” Natasha says with a roll of her eyes, “I’ll never get you two to focus.”

“I focus better with food,” Yelena says, and Natasha lets out a disbelieving snort.

“And I’d like to eat something that doesn’t come from the SHIELD cafe for once,” Hope has to jump in, “I vote debrief, and then we go eat whatever we want.”

“This isn’t a democracy, why are you all voting?” Natasha demands, but it looks a lot like she’s fighting down a smile as Yelena starts trying to make another point.

Despite all of Natasha’s protests, the discussion continues the rest of the flight back to headquarters.

~~~

Bucky is just now realizing it, but Tony isn’t usually home when Bucky is preparing to leave for a mission. Usually Tony is caught up in his own projects and debriefs and mountains of paperwork, and Bucky will simply text him when he leaves, leaving his phone on just long enough to get Tony’s ‘stay safe’ response.

This time though, Tony is here. He’s off today to try and catch up from his insane jet lag, sprawled out on the couch with his laptop. The screen is dark as he just watches Bucky move around the apartment, collecting his favorite knives and grabbing an extra pair of socks.

“Alright, I’m out,” Bucky says once he’s made sure he has everything he needs and then delayed a little more, finally accepting that he can’t put it off anymore. He can’t help a soft laugh at the look on Tony’s face, so clearly trying not to pout and mope and Bucky can almost ignore the fact that he doesn’t want to leave either. “Quit poutin’ and come gimme a kiss,” Bucky says, securing his duffle bag over his shoulder a little more so he can hold his arms out expectantly.

Tony nearly drops his laptop in his hurry to push himself to his feet and cross the room, all but colliding with Bucky and wrapping around him tightly. He buries his face in the curve of Bucky’s throat, and Bucky can just barely feel the tremble of Tony’s hands where they fist in the back of his shirt.

“I’ll be back before you even have time to miss me,” Bucky says and then can’t help a grin when Tony snorts skeptically against his neck.

“Well I already miss you, so what are you gonna do now?” Tony grumbles into his skin and Bucky shrugs as much as he can without dislodging his arms from around Tony.

“Guess I’ll have t’ quit,” Bucky says carelessly, and grins when Tony clearly has to fight down laughter.

“Perfect, just stay home with me. I’ll quit too. We can both stay home all day forever.”

“One of us has to work,” Bucky argues, “someone’s gotta pay these bills and I wannna be the kept man.”

“No fair, I wanna be the trophy husband.”

“Too bad, I called it,” Bucky says, punctuating that by planting a smacking kiss on top of Tony’s head.

Tony whines and then sighs, finally looking up at Bucky again. “Fine,” he says with a roll of his eyes and an even heavier sigh, “we’ll both keep our jobs.”

“Nope, I already said I’m quittin’,” Bucky says, pretending to drop his bag and then laughing when Tony shoves at him without actually letting go of him.

“Such a smartass, I’m not even going to miss you, so just go on and get out of here already,” Tony complains, still not actually letting go of him in the slightest.

“I totally believe you,” Bucky says and then kisses Tony before he can try to insist. Tony melts into it instantly, fingers tightening in Bucky’s shirt and leaning into Bucky’s hand cupping his cheek. By the time they break apart Bucky’s chest feels tight at the impending separation despite his attempts to make light of it, and Tony’s breath is shaking where it washes over his lips.

“Be back soon as I can,” Bucky promises, pressing lingering kisses to the corners of Tony’s lips, the tip of his nose and the point of his chin.

“You better be,” Tony replies, leaning into Bucky’s hands cupping his cheeks a little more before his eyes finally flutter open again. His big brown eyes are clear and just a little bright with emotion, but his voice is more steady than before as he says, “Just make sure you come home.”

Bucky’s breath catches a little in his chest, and he has to swallow thickly before he can promise, "Long as I got you here waitin’ on me, I wouldn’t dream of not comin’ back to you.”

"Good,” Tony says firmly, then reels him in for a final kiss.

~~~

The Great Debrief Location Debate is still ongoing as they prepare to file out of the Quinjet, and Scott likes to think he and Yelena are pretty close to winning.

They’ve managed to make Romanov laugh a couple of times, at least, and that has to count for something. Even Barnes has been giving some input on the plans, even if it’s only facial expressions and occasional grunts, and Scott is going to give himself credit for that, thank you very much. Hope resorts to just listing nearby restaurants as they emerge into the busy hanger, techs already swarming around the jet for repairs and restocking, and Scott shoots her a glare as his stomach growls loudly.

He has his mouth open to tell Hope that she is not going to defeat him this way, but one of the other agents lingering in the hanger mutters ‘Oh shit, it’s Director Stark,’ and Scott abruptly loses his train of thought. The news apparently spreads quickly across the hanger, a hush falling over the milling agents as at least half of them stop what they’re doing to watch Director Stark stride into the hanger. His fierce right-hand woman is at his side as always, and Scott notes in alarm that they’re heading straight for his little team.

Past his panic, Scott can’t help also noticing the way Barnes’ head snaps up, and it’s interesting to note that even he’s intimidated by the director of SHIELD.

But then a wide smile splits Barnes’ face, wider than Scott had even thought he was capable of, as he steps away from the group and right up to Director Stark. For a split second Scott thinks he’s about to see a mutiny, but instead of attacking the man Barnes wraps his arms around Stark’s middle and actually sweeps him off the ground with the force of the inexplicable hug.

The hanger has fallen so completely silent that Scott is pretty sure everyone can hear the gears of his brain grinding themselves into confused dust as Director Stark’s arms wind around Barnes’ shoulders, clinging to him right back.

“Hi honey, how was your day?” Stark asks, his voice dry and apparently not at all surprised by this turn of events.

“Missed you,” Barnes replies, his voice muffled by the way his face is thoroughly shoved into the chest of the director of all of SHIELD.

"Must you do this now?" Ms. Potts asks with a fond roll of her eyes, as if this is in any way normal.

It takes way longer than it should for Scott to put the pieces together. He swears he can actually feel the dots connecting in his mind as it sinks in that ‘Tony’ is also ‘Director Stark’. Barnes’ tragic late husband, who he talks about with such wistful fondness that it’s a little heartbreaking, is also SHIELD Director Tony Stark.

And then, before he’s even aware the words are building, Scott finds himself loudly blurting out, “I thought you were dead.”

He’s painfully aware of everyone in the already-still hanger turning to stare at him, including Barnes and Director Stark. Scott is also much more dimly aware of someone badly muffling laughter behind him, but he’s a little distracted trying to will himself down through the floor and out of here.

“I’m sorry, did you say that you think I’m dead?” Director Stark asks slowly, one of his eyebrows crawling up his forehead. "What- you thought you were working for a ghost? And you did so willingly?"

"What- no," Scott says with a frantic shake of his head, “not a ghost, but- Everyone thought so!”

He glances over at Hope for support, but she just fixes him with a fierce glare that makes Scott want to sink even further into the ground. The other agents and techs that were just here have all mysteriously vanished or moved halfway across the hanger, and it looks like Scott is on his own.

“I mean, you-“ he tries to defend, and he can’t stop his gaze from flicking between Stark and Barnes, “it- it just really seemed like, well like…”

His voice trails off weakly and the two of them continue to stare at him for the most painfully long second of Scott’s life. Then a slow, gleeful smile starts to grow on Stark’s face as he finally turns his attention back to Barnes.

“I know Steve says you turn into a sourpuss on missions," Stark says and it sounds a lot like he’s struggling to fight down laughter, "But are you really so grumpy that your teammates think I’m dead?”

Barnes grumbles something in response, but it’s drowned out by Yelena bursting out into wild laughter. Scott turns to fix her with a betrayed look, because she clearly knew and said nothing, and then he fixes the same look on Romanov when he realizes the same must be true of her.

Sure enough she’s smirking widely, and when Director Stark’s attention turns to her she confirms, “He really, really is.”

“No’m not,” Barnes grumbles, barely pulling his face away from Stark’s chest enough to get the words out and shooting Romanov a narrow-eyed look.

“You definitely are,” Romanov says, “all the new kids think you have a tragic dead husband.”

“And you just let them think that?!” Stark asks, pointing one finger at her as his voice finally breaks with laughter.

“In my defense, it’s very funny,” she replies with a shameless grin.

Barnes shoves his face back into Stark’s check with another grumble while Yelena laughs harder and Ms. Potts pointedly turns her attention down to the tablet in her hands, like she’s bored with all of this.

“Did you think his husband is dead?” Stark demands of one of the technicians who dared to emerge from their hiding place, and they freeze.

Their eyes flash down to Barnes for a second, then around the hanger like they’re looking for an escape. Finally they look up at the director again, nod minutely, and then scurry away as quickly as they can.

“I can’t believe I’m just now finding out about this,” Stark says, his tone offended as he clutches Barnes’ head to his chest.

“I can’t believe it either,” Romanov says gleefully, “everyone knows.”

“You’re all fired,” Stark shoots back instantly, “every single one of you.”

“You promised me you wouldn’t fire the entire staff this week,” Ms. Potts says flatly, not looking up from her tablet.

“You’re fired too.”

“Hooray,” she replies, her voice as dry as the desert.

“Do you hear this?” Stark asks, turning his attention down to Barnes with an honest to god pout, "I don’t get any respect at all. And apparently, I’m dead."

Barnes looks up him, still with that weird little smile on his face, and flatly says, “I’ll kill 'em all for you.”

“I know you would, honey,” Stark says with a wide grin, apparently completely charmed by the offer.

“Please ask me to kill for you.”

“Not now, dear,” Stark says, patting his head.

“Can you release your moody husband so we can debrief and be done with this mission?” Romanov asks, interrupting them.

“No,” Stark says with a sniff, “I am taking my moody husband and you can have his report later.”

“But-“

“Don’t question me, I’ll haunt you,” Stark threatens and he has to raise his voice a little because Barnes has already turned and started marching out of the hanger, the director of the entire organization still wrapped around him.

“You’re not dead!” Romanov calls after them.

“Apparently I am!” Stark shouts back with a laugh, and then he and Barnes are gone.

Motion slowly resumes around the hanger, quiet conversations picking up again, and Scott turns his glare back on Yelena.

“I can’t believe you did not know that he’s married to Tony,” she says, shaking her head and still snickering.

“Why would we connect ‘Tony’ to Director Stark?” Hope defends, her cheeks red with what Scott’s pretty sure is equal parts rage and embarrassment, “and it’s not like we’re in your little inner circle, or whatever.”

"And he was so broody!” Scott insists, looking around for more support and sure, now he gets other random agents nodding emphatically. “You could have said something, instead of letting me look like a moron,” he adds in a grumble as he shoots a sour look at Yelena and then Romanov, but she’s now talking to Ms. Potts and doesn’t notice at all.

“He said his husband 'used to’ work in R&D,” Hope says a little desperately.

“Right,” Yelena agrees with an innocent smile, “and now Tony is the director. Apparently, it has really affected their time together.”

Scott groans as he struggles to reframe all of his and Barnes’, admittedly limited, conversations. “I think I want to be fired,” he finally grumbles, and Hope nods while Yelena laughs again.

~~~

Tony spends the walk through SHIELD HQ to the residential wings clinging to Bucky and telling people, “Out of the way, dead man coming through!”

Bucky spends the entire walk bouncing between amusement and mortification. It certainly explains why Scott was so weird about his questions, what Bucky had thought was the new kid trying to learn more about the boss was actually him genuinely asking about Bucky’s not-so-dead husband, and Bucky has to admit it’s kind of sweet. It’s certainly a new method of trying to make friends.

“Quit claimin’ you’re dead,” Bucky grumbles as the door slides open to let him into their suite.

“Never,” Tony says gleefully and refuses to stop clinging as Bucky attempts to set him back on his feet, “I am never letting this go.”

“I’m divorcing you,” Bucky says flatly and nips at Tony’s throat so he laughs and finally loses his grip.

Tony’s feet hit the ground but he keeps his arms wrapped around Bucky’s shoulders, keeping him pulled in close and laughing as they nearly trip over each other. When Tony leans in a little more to kiss him it’s so tempting to just sink into it and forget about everything else in the face of Tony, warm and perfect and alive, but that final thought has his lips pulling down again.

“Stop pouting and kiss me back,” Tony demands, laughing against his frown, and with a sigh Bucky loops his arms around Tony in return, sealing their lips together properly.

“I’m not that grumpy,” Bucky grumbles once they slowly break apart, but it’s hard to be actually upset when he finally has Tony with him again, where they both belong.

“Apparently you are,” Tony says with a delighted laugh and drops another kiss to Bucky’s chin before stepping back, “so grumpy people thought I was dead. You’re ridiculous and I love you."

“Love you too,” Bucky replies automatically, then sighs heavily as he asks, "Can I pay you t’ let me live this down?”

“Definitely not, never,” Tony says gleefully, “now then, do you want dinner? I can make you the Widower’s Special.”

“And what is that?” Bucky asks, amused despite his best attempts to at least appear annoyed.

“It’s just leftover pot roast, but I continue mocking you the entire time," Tony replies, flashing him a quick grin as he turns away from the entryway.

“Sounds perfect,” Bucky says with a huff of laughter and a shake of his head.

He can’t help reaching out, his hands lingering on Tony’s shoulder and waist as Bucky follows him into the kitchen. Once the plates are in the microwave Bucky only puts up a minor protest before letting himself be pulled into another kiss, and before long he can barely remember what he was pouting about.

Besides, he really doesn’t care what anyone else at the agency thinks, or if their friends tease him for being broody without his husband. All that matters is Tony, and that he’s home.

#my fic #winteriron #starkbucks #bucky/tony #buckyxtony #riot writes

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