#but the way the captions are written it seems like he's telling VI not to let that happen

[thenationofzaun]

1x2 : Some Mysteries Are Better Left Unsolved

2x2 : Watch It All Burn

[marveldc-imagines-hub]

The Vision, The Witch, and the Baby Wizard (Captions)

Masterlist

A/N: Okay, well, two anons had very similar "Subtitles WandaVision taking care of recovering Reader" requests but for some reason when I made this post, those asks disappeared from my drafts, so... Thanks for the requests, anons, and sorry Tumblr wouldn't let me respond to your asks. >:T Also, thank you for being patient with meeee...

Word count: 4,188

Warnings: Reader suffering from a concussion, broken nose, and other mild injuries after eating concrete at the end of Episode 3. Crying babies and baby babble. Fluff.

Taglist: @madamevirgo @cyanide-mustard @badasspolygenderfriend @maceidelic @alexpress @angelvinella

Ko-Fi Shoppe

~~~

Under any other circumstances, you would have loved to be spending the day at the Maximoff home, relaxing and spending time with Wanda until Vision got home from a night watch meeting. The two of you could cuddle and chat, you could help Wanda cook; you imagined that there would be lots of kissing and teasing either way. You could play with the babies while Wanda took a break and maybe a nap or, more likely, you could at least watch over them while Wanda busied herself with errands and other chores.

But no. Instead, you were laying on the couch in the living room with an ice pack covering your entire face—which you’d just accidentally dropped on your head after falling asleep—and bandages wrapped around scraped-up limbs. You were nursing a broken nose and mild concussion, the dull throb pulsing from your aching head and bruises lulling you in and out of restless sleep, and Wanda was, unfortunately, taking care of three babies for the time being.

Speaking of babies, while you groaned and checked your nose to make sure you hadn’t made it bleed, the oh-so melodic sounds of the crying twins grew louder as Wanda made her way down the hall with them.

“Hey, baby, how are you feeling?” the woman said as she finally appeared in your field of vision. She held a crying Tommy in the crook of one arm and a sobbing Billy in the other, and exhaustion was written across her face and in the frizz of her hair. Instead of the comfortable dresses she often opted for, Wanda was wearing a pair of shiny, dark green palazzo pants with flared legs and a simple white peasant blouse, perhaps to prevent any dresses from getting snotted or spit up on. Her hair, once cheerfully curled but now flat, was held out of her face and babies’ pulling reach by a scarf of a lighter shade of green and she wore a pair of what were clearly Vision’s house slippers. 

You stopped gently pressing at your nose after confirming that it hadn’t been injured further from you dropping an ice pack on it. You readjusted the ice pack that was slumping over one eye back to its spot on your nose and attempted to squirm into a sitting position before dizziness had you slumped back down again. You groaned again at the weird, nauseating feeling of every organ in your body writhing around inside your torso like a bag filled with angry snakes.

Once your insides settled and the only thing keeping you from opening your eyes was the same baby cries that have been present for the past three days, you answered Wanda with a whine, “Please don’t pair me with them, I already feel awful having you take care of me too.”

You thought you heard Wanda snort, then you felt a light tap on one of your feet. Moving very slowly, you shifted to curl up on one side of the couch so she could sit as well. 

Wanda said, “You know that’s not what I meant. It was an endearment. Besides, it’s not your fault that you fell in the driveway a few days ago.”

You sent a close-eyed scowl in what you hoped in her general direction. You opened your mouth to respond to what sounded like a quip to your ears only to feel something soft press against your lips. Your brows furrowed and you opened your eyes, then flailed away sputtering; Wanda had stuck out a leg to cover your mouth with the sole of a slippered foot to keep you from talking. 

Over your distraught mouth sounds, scrubbing your lips with a hand, and another wave of nausea caused by sudden movement, you heard Wanda struggling to keep her snickers to herself. After a few more moments of you making sure fuzz wasn’t stuck to your mouth and that your lips didn’t taste like dirty shoe—whatever that tasted like—you received a light kick to your hip.

“Wow, Wand, way to kick me when I’m down—literally,” you grumbled. You grabbed the ice pack, which had once again slid out of place and fell into your lap instead, and looked over at Wanda again while pressing it to the side of your face that felt the most out of shape.

Wanda was stuck in a wacky position and staring at you with wide eyes. One leg was still outstretched from lovingly muzzling and then kicking you, and the other was bent into a half cross-legged position with a peacefully swaddled Tommy nestled in the crook it made. The arm that used to be holding Tommy now had a hand clasped over Wanda’s mouth while the other still held a cozy Billy.

You said, “You look insane.” When your partner didn’t respond or even move aside from her eyes glancing wildly from baby to baby, you gave her an incredulous look and followed her gaze as it bounced around. “What? What? I’m missing something—” Your sentence broke off into a silent gasp. After a third glance at the twins—the quiet and peaceful and not crying twins—you finally figured out why Wanda was refusing to move a muscle. 

You mouthed at her, They’re sleeping!

Wanda gave you the slightest of nods. After a long moment of all four of you frozen in place and silent, she very slowly dropped her hand from her mouth to mouth back, The first time in almost forty-eight hours.

Thirty-six, you corrected. You grinned at Billy and Tommy in turn and then moved in a sloth-like fashion to give them both a couple of silent claps. Tommy seemed to be dozing finally but Billy, who had been staring at you since you’d opened your eyes, responded with a baby grin and a kick of his little blanketed feet. Since he hadn’t seemed to mind you talking a minute ago you decided to risk a whisper, “Unreal job, you groovy little badasses!”

“[Y/N]!” Wanda whisper-yelled and gave you another gentle kick.

You returned her glare with a cheeky grin before looking back at Billy who managed to free an arm from his blanket cocoon. “It was a compliment, and he doesn’t seem to mind! Do you, Bill? Little Billy-Boy. The Billiest. Magical, partially synthezoid little boy. You know you’re a little troublemaker, huh? Or maybe you just got tired like the rest of us.”

You leaned over, careful of your swimming skull and the awkward entanglement of your and Wanda’s legs, and took Billy’s tiny hand to give it a gentle squeeze. The tiny hand squeezed back in response, which paired with a big-eyed, wondering baby stare was enough to make you break into another aching grin. You kept your personal discomfort at bay long enough to give Billy’s hand a peck before tucking his arm back into his swaddle, then turned your attention to Tommy who received a light head pat.

It was then that you felt Wanda’s gaze following you. You tried to focus on Tommy for a bit longer but your cheeks grew warm when you felt your partner still intently watching you as you finally relaxed back onto your side of the couch. Once you sunk back into the pillows underneath you, you heaved out an exhausted breath as dull aches began resurfacing from your various minor wounds. Just moving around slightly and mumbling to the babies had been enough to drain you of almost all of your energy.

“They haven’t been this quiet since the day they were born,” Wand murmured, and you lolled your head to rest on the beck of the couch so you could still look at her without using any more muscles than you had to. “Now they’re as exhausted as you are.”

“Well, what can I say,” you tiredly mumbled back, “I’m quite the trendsetter.”

Wanda snorted and looked down at the twins, her unkempt hair falling out of its loose scarf and over all three of them like a curtain. Now that the excitement of your sons no longer crying had slipped away, you could see, like before, that Wanda was just as exhausted as the rest of you. Her whole body seemed to sag with the weight of her head and shoulders and her clothes were rumpled. When she sighed, it was heavy, and when she looked back up at you, you saw the tired lines of her face and dark circles under her eyes.

Still, the smile she gave you, albeit strained at the corners, was radiant enough to light up the entire room, to the point where you almost felt like you had to squint, although maybe that was just the concussion-induced migraine. The brightness of it paired with the delighted sparkle of an excited new mother that danced in her eyes were enough to tell you that regardless of what she had to suffer through, screaming babies or whatever else, living in Westview with her husband and babies and—hopefully—you was worth it. 

You didn’t realize you were stuck in a lovestruck daze until Wanda saying your name snapped you out of it.

“[Y/N]?” Wanda said suddenly; her cheeks were tinted pink. “Did you hear me?”

You blinked and heat rushed to your own face. “Hm? Sorry, what?”

“I said they look up to you in some capacity,” Wanda repeated. “The twins. Vis and I can’t get them to stop crying for the life of us. I sit down next to you? Not a tear.”

You stared at her.

Wanda snorted and broke into a half-laugh before quickly quieting herself again. “What?”

Trying to hold back a grin, you whispered, “They look up to me because they’re tiny. They have no choice.”

Wanda gave you a shove with her foot and rolled her eyes so hard that, if you hadn’t broken into a giggle fit at your own joke, you would have been worried that they’d roll right out of her head.

“Shh!” Wanda whisper-yelled, only to snicker a bit herself, “And if that’s the case, would you tell them that we’re both taller than you are?”

“Hah! And lose the only power I have? Never. Now c’mere.”

Wanda raised an eyebrow.

You gave her a beckoning nod of your head, then groaned because you moved your head, then weakly reached your arms out towards her. “Gimme babies. Come lay with me for a bit.”

Wanda pursed her lips in thought but ultimately shook her head. “I shouldn’t. I’ve got some cleaning to do, cooking before Vis gets home. I should put them down and get some housework done while I can.”

She picked up Tommy and moved to swing her legs off the couch but you hooked one of yours around hers before you could. When she scowled at you, you arched your eyebrows and made grabby hands at the babies. 

“What if they start crying as soon as you get up?” you questioned, “We’ll all be miserable all over again. Don’t forget, I’m the baby wizard. You’ve got magic, Vis is… well Vision. And I’m the wizard of babysitting.”

“Is it babysitting if they’re your babies?”

“Don’t change the subject! I may not be of much use right now but the least I can do is take care of them while you rest and then go back to your Super-Mom duties.”

Wanda chuckled and watched you continue your grabby hands and soft chant of “Ba-by wiz-ard, ba-by wiz-ard.” The chuckle turned into another brief laugh and she finally caved, scooting closer to pass off the babies to you. You happily took them and nestled one each in the crooks of your arms, then snuggled farther down into the couch as Wanda disentangled your legs and crawled over you.

“One hour,” Wanda said. She jabbed a finger at you then settled between your legs, wrapping her arms around your torso and resting her head on your chest.

“One hour,” you grumbled back. You gave each twin a light kiss on your forehead, then nuzzled your face into Wanda’s citrus-scented hair. Now all cozy and warm and snuggled up, sleep had an easy time persuading you. Still keeping a solid hold on your babies, your eyes fluttered shut as you slowly sank into a doze.

You weren’t sure how long it was until Wanda’s sleepy voice caught your barely conscious attention again.

“What do you see when you stare at me like that, [Y/N]?” she asked. You felt her readjust her position a bit so that her head was nuzzled under your chin.

You hummed until you could get your mouth back in order enough to properly talk. Hopefully, the little words you managed to get out before falling asleep managed to get your point across. “You. Happy.”

===

===

===

You were awoken by the savory smell of food that had your mouth watering before you were fully conscious. It took you a second to remember where you were or what decade it was but two little bundles in your arms and the lack of weight on your torso quickly brought you back. You blinked your eyes a few times to get the sleep out of them, then took a quick look around. Tommy and Billy were still safe and sound in your arms, breathing softly with not a tear in sight, and as you expected, Wanda was no longer laying on the couch with you.

“How long did you end up sleeping?” you asked through a yawn. You gingerly shifted into a more comfortable sitting position and looked around again; this time you noticed that the living area’s coffee table had been dressed up like the dinner table, with a makeshift tablecloth and a few sets of dinnerware. You quirked a curious eyebrow and looked towards the kitchen, where Wanda was busy preparing food.

“Like I said,” she replied, “one hour. You were still knocked out, so I let you and the twins sleep.”

“One hour exactly?”

Wanda looked over at you and gave you a pleased nod. “Yup.”

You hummed, then gingerly tilted your head towards the coffee table. “What’s with the coffee-slash-dinner table?”

Wanda set a couple of small dishes on a table tray and made her way over to you with it in hand. Setting the tray on the table—you caught a glimpse of several small portions of what she had been cooking and your stomach growled—Wanda squatted down next to it and picked up a spoon. “You haven’t been able to move much, so I figured we’d eat out here tonight.”

“What, are you and Vis gonna sit on the floor?”

“When he gets home, he’ll help you take the babies to bed to prevent any outbursts,” Wanda said, then grinned as she pulled a couple of large cushions out from under the coffee table, “and I snagged a couple of Agnes’s meditation cushions earlier today. Apparently, they’re also good for your posture!”

“Great,” you said, “I’m useless and I get to take up all the sitting space.”

Wanda scoffed and lightly swatted your arm with the spoon she was holding, then used the spoon to scoop up a spoonful of what appeared to be a thicker, more seasoned chicken soup. “You can’t help being injured, [Y/N]. You’re just as bad as me when it comes to taking care of yourself sometimes, I swear.”

“That’s why we look so good together,” you grumbled, “Everyone in this household is a mess in one way or another.”

Wanda ignored you and raised the spoon to your mouth. “All you have to do is let us take care of you for a while. Now, try. Chicken stew. One of my mother’s recipes.”

The smell of the stew made you want to drool. It was your turn to give in this time, so you let Wanda feed you the spoonful. “Holy fu— I mean holy heck. Sorry, babies. Wherever you are, Mama Maximoff, thank you.” 

There was a tinge of sadness in Wanda’s next smile but then she perked up as she reached for a spoonful of another dish. “It wasn’t something we had often but it was always something magical. Get-well food.”

“Dear, food,” you prayed aloud, “please send help, I want to die.”

Wanda snickered and held up a spoon of the second taster dish, this one having a spicy aroma that stung your eyes and made your stomach growl again. “Good then? Let me know if I should change anything.”

“Perfection and also I want so much food.” You paused, then added, “Actually, I don’t know if I’ve eaten today.”

“You tried breakfast this morning and almost got sick. The fact that you can eat this time must be a good sign.”

You ate the second spoonful, then said, “Yay, good sign. Healing food help.”

You and Wanda chatted a bit longer as she had you taste-test the last of her dishes, then she carried the tray back to the kitchen to finish up cooking. You asked what time it was and found out you had slept significantly longer than one hour and that Vision would be getting some quite soon. Eventually, the two of you settled into a comfortable silence and you listened to Wanda casually hum as you gently bounced the babies in your arms and, when you were feeling somewhat emboldened, tested how much you could move without getting winded or nauseous. Then, at some point, Tommy decided to wake up have a very important discussion about taxes in baby babble.

“I do agree,” you replied as Tommy wriggled in your arm and cooed at you, “tax fraud is a reasonable crime.”

“[Y/N],” Wanda said, “stop teaching the children about breaking the law.”

“He started it,” you said, only to get angrily goo’d at. “Well, you did! I wanted to talk about why paisley is the worst fabric pattern.”

Wanda’s laugh was drowned out by the front door unlocking and Vision making his way inside.

“Hello, family!” Vision from behind you. You heard the door close and some light thuds as the man kicked off his shoes. “Oh, where my house shoes?”

“Sorry dear,” Wanda said and briefly stuck one leg out from behind the counter, “Borrowed ‘em.”

You gasped at Tommy and bounced him in your arm. “Daddy’s home, Daddy’s home. Look who it is, even though neither of us can see him because we’re facing the opposite direction. It’s Mr. Dad!”

Tommy cooed.

You scoffed back. “Always taxes with you.”

“Who’s talking about taxes?” Vision sounded much closer now and luckily, you didn’t have to twist your head around to see him. Instead, he moved around the side of the side and into your field of vision, then knelt next to you and gave Tommy a grin and a little wave.

You nodded your head at the talkative twin. “This one. He wants to be an accountant.”

“Oh?” Vision reached over and took one of Tommy’s waving hands to hold. “Is that so?”

Tommy kicked his tiny legs in protest.

“My mistake,” you said, “he wants to fight an accountant.”

Vision laughed softly at your nonsense. He gave Tommy’s hand a shake before releasing it, then used the same hand to ruffle what little hair Billy had. Finally, he smiled at you, which you returned, and leaned over to give you a gentle kiss. When he pulled back, he carefully ran his fingers through your hair and lightly massaged your skull and neck. “How’s the head and nose and everything else, my love?”

You groaned happily and leaned into his hand, especially when he found a particularly tight spot in your neck. Your eyes fluttered shut as you responded, “I can manage three positions thus far. Slumpy because I can’t lay down all the away, partially sitting, and almost completely upright sitting.”

“Almost completely upright sitting,” Vision exclaimed, “That’s almost sitting. Congrats!”

“Oh, I so do miss the days where I could sit completely upright without feeling like my head was going to pop off my body and fly around the room like a deflating balloon,” you said, opening your eyes again and gazing wistfully into space.

“Very visual,” Vision commented. His eyes drifted towards Billy and you followed his gaze to find that the second twin had now also woken up and was staring at his dad with bewildered eyes.

“Who’s that?” you crooned at the baby, “Hm? Who is that, little man? It’s your dad! Oh, by the way—” You turned back to Vision and switched back to your normal voice “—you’re supposed to help me maneuver them to the bedroom so we can have floor-dinner.”

“Floor-dinner,” Wanda reprimanded from the kitchen and you could easily visualize the roll of her eyes happening. “[Y/N]!”

“Sorry, dinner on the floor,” you corrected and directed the confused Vision’s attention towards the dressed-up coffee table. “You know, because of the whole not sitting completely upright thing. Wanda made healing food.”

“I’m going to assume that’s also an exaggeration on your part,” Vision said as he got back to his feet.

“It’s stew,” Wanda explained. “Mom’s old recipe.”

“Magic stew,” you agreed.

“Just stew.” 

“Well it’s nice to see you feeling better again,” Vision said as you cackled. He offered his arms and you handed Billy and Tommy off to him, then attempted to move into a better position to put your feet on the ground.

“Why can’t I just put the babies away?” Vision questioned as he watched you carefully move to your feet.

“Because,” you started, then paused to steady yourself as your stomach suddenly started to churn. You flinched and held onto Vision’s arm and took a few more moments to collect yourself before trying again. “Because if they get even a couple of feet out of my presence, we suspect that they will cry and then, naturally, unleash the apocalypse.”

“Ah.” Vision nodded. “Completely understandable. Shall we shuffle at a slow and steady pace to the nursery then?”

“I think we shall.”

As you and Vision did just that, half-clinging to each other as you slowly shimmied your way across the floor and towards the hallway, you felt Wanda’s gaze trail after you. Not long after you and Vision turned the corner down the hall, you heard Wanda burst into giggles. You grinned and glanced at Vision, who was smiling as well. 

“We must look like quite the pair, eh?” your sythezoid partner asked. “Two people, two babies—”

“And a whole lot of pain and nausea,” you finished with a somewhat strained laugh.

You saw Vision’s expression soften a bit as the two of you entered the twins’ bedroom. Vision helped you settle into the nearby rocking chair while he placed Tommy and Billy in their crib. After placing them down, Vision froze in place to see whether or not they would react to being without a parent holding them. When he didn’t he very carefully backed away from the crib and backtracked to where you sat.

Both of you stayed silent for a bit longer, then Vision asked in a voice barely above a whisper, “Do you think we’re safe?”

You didn’t respond right away and instead eyed the crib. You made a few random movements, like tapping your feet and waving an arm in the air, and when no babies burst into tears. You gave him a nod. “Think we’re alright.”

“Fantastic, let’s beat feet then.” Vision moved to help you stand but you suddenly stopped him. Thinking you saw the babies beginning to stir, he froze again, and you took the opportunity to sling your arms around his neck.

“Carry me,” you said with the sweetest smile that you could muster.

“Why, you…” He broke off into a chuckle and easily hauled you into his arms, careful to not jostle you too much in the process. Then he carefully made his way out of the nursery, tugging the bedroom door closed with his foot.

“My hero,” you sang at normal volume when the two of were free and batted your eyelashes at him.

“I think I would make quite a good hero,” Vision responded. “Quite a dashing one, don’t you think? In fact, I think I was one in a past life.”

He gave you a cheeky smirk and little eyebrow wriggle, which you responded to by grabbing his face and squishing it in your hands. You slowly leaned up and kissed his forehead, quickly replied with “The most dashing,” and then gave him another full kiss on the lips. 

He paused his walk to the living room to briefly kiss you back, then gave you your own kiss on the forehead, and walked over to where Wanda was finishing up serving dinner at the coffee table.

“We’ve returned!” Vision chirped. He helped you sit back on the couch and get comfortable again, then moved to one end on the table.

“The boys?” Wanda asked as she gestured for Vision to sit on the nearest meditation cushion.

“Safe,” Vision answered, sitting.

“And sound,” you added.

Wanda lightly clapped and sat as well. “Great! Mealtime then. Here we have the chicken stew and…” 

[avengersassemble-fics]

Just Go With It (Prof! Rogers x Reader)

Word Count: (2,630)

AN: The response to this has been unbelievable y’all kill me, also omg why is this so LONG

The deposition came quickly, the end of the month was near and you had completely forgotten about that disaster and knife in your confidence that was Wanda’s wedding. She had called you almost a week later, apologising profusely about it all, and you held your office phone between your shoulder and ear and told her it wasn’t a big deal.

“Wanda, really, it’s no big deal, I can handle the fact that I’m single,” you reassured her, glancing out your glass lined office, and biting your lip as you stared at your handsome co-worker.

“Well... I saw you and Steve talking-”

“Wanda,” you warned, and on the other end she smirked.

“(Y/N) he was pretty much undressing you with his eyes!” she exclaimed and you felt your cheeks flush, but shook away the thought.

“Goodbye, Wanda,” you said, and hung up the phone and went on with your day.

A week after that, you got a folder from your friend, and it was full of pictures from her big day, mostly any that had the two of you in it. As you shuffled through the pictures, there was one of Vis and Steve together. You raised a brow, confused as to what this was doing among your candid shots, and flipped it over and rolled your eyes at the caption written.

“If I were you I’d call him,” Natasha commented as you showed her the picture. She was leant back in her desk chair, smiling at the photo in between her fingers, “he looks very well built, and also he could give you that second-”

You snatched the photo from her and she broke out in a fit of laughter, “Sometimes I wonder why we’re friends,” you said to her and glanced down at your watch. But Natasha was not one to let up.

“Oh come on. Just look at him,” she paused and you looked down at the photo, “can’t you just imagine riding that warm, big, d-”

“Ladies,” a man interrupted, and you spun to be faced with your boss, the famous Tony Stark. He was eyeing Natasha who was biting her lip to avoid breaking into laughter, and then glanced at your beet red face, “our final brief is in ten minutes if you’d care enough to join us.”

As he walked away you turned back to Nat and shook your head, “That’s it. We’re no longer friends.”

Nat smirked as she gathered her things and you walked in sync to the meeting room, and you could feel your palms grow sweaty as you neared. This was it. This was the final moment of truth - was Tony Stark going to trust you to be the head attorney for this case like James had said? Nat rubbed your back, reassuring you everything was gonna be fine. And you believed her.

But an hour later you were pushing open that door like a bat out of hell.

All you could see was red, and you were walking to your office so quick that Natasha couldn’t keep up.

That.. That bastard! This approach was all your idea. Every detail you crafted, was given to Sharon Carter. What the fuck?

You paced the length of your office when Natasha finally walked in, holding her hands up for you to calm down, “(Y/N)-”

“That was ALL ME, NAT!” you exclaimed, your hands over your face. You plopped down in one of your hard plush chairs and sighed deeply. Natasha smiled sadly at your bent over form, and eased herself next to you, and placed a hand on your back. You wanted to cry, badly, but you couldn’t bring yourself to do it. Because you knew this was going to happen. Somehow you knew.

“I can get you a meeting with Stark,” Nat whispered, and you glanced over to her, “we can do what we do best. Argue this. Because it should be you out there. Not Sharon.”

You nodded your agreement, and sighed again, “I’ll set it up for tomorrow, wear something nice... And uh,” she paused and you raised a brow, “and don’t wear something he’s seen before.”

There were many times you tried to impress Tony Stark and this was just another Saturday meeting that was added to the list. It was a “quick meeting” Nat said, but as you both sat there in Jack’s waiting for him to arrive, you had a feeling this was different.

Nat hit your shoulder, and you stood straight up, gaping at the sight of not only Tony Stark, but James was there too. Oh, god, you were nervous, and it seemed Nat just read your mind.

“Just relax,” she whispered, and you nodded, putting on a smile as the two men neared you, “trust me (Y/N).”

“Hi, Mr. Stark,” Natasha greeted, and he nodded in reply, motioning for everyone to sit. You sat back down in the plush armchair and cleared your throat.

“Thanks for taking the time to speak with me, sir,” you said to him and he nodded, removing his sunglasses and putting them in his jacket.

“Not a problem. James and I are meeting some clients downstairs in twenty minutes for lunch,” he commented, and you glanced at Nat who fiddled with her fingers, “so I’m going to get right to the point here, Cady.”

“It’s uh, (Y/N),” you corrected, lacing your fingers tightly together. You stole a glance at James who was nonchalantly playing on his phone.

“(Y/N). Uh, well, you know I think you’re doing a hell of a job for us,” he paused and shrugged, motioning in your direction, “and I’m sorry if your role with us isn’t all you hoped to be, but I suspect in time-”

“With all due respect sir, what if I don’t want to wait anymore?” you challenged, causing James and Natasha to look at you as you spoke. “I’ve been with you for 6 years and I think I’m good at what I do.

“Obviously, the clients agree. I mean, otherwise we wouldn’t be winning all these lawsuits, and you,” you pointed at him, noticing his jaw clenching, “wouldn’t be making all this money.”

There was a moment of silence before Tony cleared his throat, and you sat up straight. You were going to fight him about this.

“Let me tell you a story, (Y/N),” you wanted to roll your eyes, but tightened your grip on your own fingers, “when my parents died I took the advice of a man who only wanted this empire all for himself. I tried everything in my power to please him, the media, everyone but myself. When I finally got to do what I wanted, be who I wanted, it was after many painful years. I knew exactly what I wanted.

“Do you know what you want, (Y/N)?”

You blinked at him, not truly understanding what his story had to do with anything, “ I.. Don’t understand.”

Tony nodded, “Well, look at Natasha here,” he motioned over to your friend, who raised a brow, nervous of where he was taking this, “now, you two are the same age. But Natasha? She owns a home, a home that, in my opinion, she can’t really afford.”

You could see Natasha bite her lip from speaking. But Tony continued, “And this guy,” he motioned to James who looked up again, and smiled his toothy smile your way, “I co-signed the loan on his Mercedes. Happy to do it, because he isn’t going anywhere.

“Which brings us to you,” he paused and you took a shaky inhale of air, “now unlike anyone else who works for me, you’re the only person I know who lives like they’re still in college. You’re.. As free as a bird. Which is fine.. For you.”

This was the moment your world came crashing down.

“But because of that I’m not about to encourage you to develop a relationship with all my clients, and the media knowing who you are when I know there’s nothing keeping you from taking off and working for one of my competitors.”

You weren’t entirely sure how to reply, so you nodded, blinking back your tears, and offered a sad smile, “Excuse me.”

Shit shit shit you cursed to yourself and let the bathroom door close behind you. Angrily, you hit one of the stall doors and moved to the sink, leaning against the hard counter and sniffling back your tears. After a couple more minutes of cursing to yourself, an unknown woman exited a stall and hurried past you.

“Oh god, Ma’am,” you apologised as she raced for the door, “I’m so sorry!” but the door clicked closed and you sighed. Alone.

Tony’s words were so cut throat. They were the same words you had said to Natasha weeks ago, you have fucked up somewhere and your own boss couldn’t trust you. All those nights working late, all those one night stands and men you forbid yourself from getting involved with to focus on your career, he thought you were a sham. You were close to crying when the door opened again, and Natasha came in smiling.

“Free as a bird, Nat! He said-”

“He said welcome to the team.”

You paused and raised a brow, “Team..? What, what team?”

“The deposition against AIM. You’ve got the case.”

You shook your head and moved your finger between your two bodies, “Were we at the same meeting?” you asked, and started to pace again, “I don’t have a husband, a mortgage, Hell even a car manufactured by.. By a goddamn Nazi-”

“Oh so.. You mean to tell me you aren’t engaged to this guy?”

You spun around on your heels and saw the picture she was holding. The one Wanda had sent you, and you wanted to throw up.

It was the picture of Steve.

“Nat.. What the fuck did you do?”

“Me? Nothing much. I just got you 150 more a week and a new job title,” she shrugged and grinned, “you can thank me later.”

“I’m gonna be sick,” you mumbled, walking over to the open stall you were banging against earlier.

“I told Stark you were too proud to mention it yourself, and they want to meet him.”

“They?” you questioned and gasped, James was there too!

“You should’ve seen James’ face when I mentioned it,” Nat laughed and you clenched your chest, “he was so surprised and his eyes.. Oh they got so dark-”

“My first chest pain.. All because of you,” you grumbled and closed your eyes. Is this what a heart attack felt like?

“Oh relax,” she assured you, “they don’t really want to meet him. I told them he lives in Boston and flies in every Friday because you’re house hunting.”

“Nat! I’m not even married to the guy yet.”

“You will be.. In March,” she said and before you could throw a curse word her way she kissed your cheek, “ you wanted a spring wedding.”

The next Monday you walked in and Natasha grabbed your arm, a smile plastered on her face as she pulled you towards her office, “You’re never going to believe this,” she said, and stopped at the recently vacated office next to hers, that your things were being carried into. You bit your lip, finally having processed everything since Saturday afternoon.

So Steve was your fake fiance to get you this promotion (which was rightfully yours), and he had no idea. And he would never have to know if this all played out right. You smiled and walked inside, spinning around to take it all in before sitting down in your new big boy rolling chair.

“You’re welcome,” Natasha said, and left you to your thoughts. You spun back to the large window showcasing the city line and remembered your last conversation yesterday with her.

“Oh God, what have you done?” you questioned as Nat stirred some creamer into her coffee. She paid you no mind as you seemingly lost your shit. “I can’t believe you did this to me, your friend. And Steve! Oh my God-”

“I didn’t do it to you, I did it for you (Y/N),” she explained, and rested her elbows on the table, peering at your face, “you deserve this. Stark was being an ass and I told a little fib to get you the gig.”

You wanted to say she was a very good liar, almost like she could be a secret agent or something, but you shook your head, “What if-”

“You’re going to be fine. Before the big day just say Steve broke it off. Say he didn’t want to be second to your job anymore.. And that’s it. He’d never have to get involved.”

There was a knock on your door, and you spun around in your chair to be met with James Barnes. He was leant against your door frame, and had the sexiest smile on his lips.

“(Y/N),” he greeted, licking his lips just a bit.

“James,” you greeted back, and smiled at him, “what can I do for you?”

“I wanted to talk,” he said, and you motioned for him to come in. He closed the door behind him and suddenly you felt nervous, all the blinds were drawn and you couldn’t help but wonder if he was onto you.

“What’s up?” you asked, and he ran a hand through his hair, walking the length of your new office.

“So.. You’re engaged,” he started, and looked over at you. You could feel your cheeks burn a bit.

“That’s right,” you confirmed, feeling your stomach knot.

He smiled, shaking his head, “Why didn’t you tell me?” he asked, and you raised a brow.

“We aren’t exactly.. Close,” you started and he frowned, pushing his hands into his pockets, “you just talked to me to cover your expenses.”

He was quiet, letting your words sink in. You were right, of course, and he sighed heavily, “I’m sorry.”

You were taken back, eyeing him as he shrugged, balancing his weight from one foot to the next, “You’re totally right, I took advantage of you and I’m sorry.”

You shook your head, “It’s no big deal, besides-”

“What’s his name?”

His question made you stop, and when he turned to face you fully, you fought hard not to notice how his hands gripped his waist, or how perfectly he fit into his pants.

You cleared your throat, “Steve. His name is Steve.”

“And what does he do?”

Shit, what was it again? “He’s a.. A professor! At Boston University.”

James took a minute to process this. He could feel your eyes on him, but he couldn’t help himself. He had to know about this guy. When Natasha broke the news to Tony and him, he dropped his phone. He stared at her as she told them you were too proud to make it a big deal. And he got angry, he was pissed for reasons that were unknown to him, and it’s all he could think about until he could talk to you.

“Let me take you out for drinks, to.. Celebrate this.”

You bit your lip, and he just smiled. James was asking you out! It’s what you had always wanted, but the voice inside your head was telling you it wasn’t right.

But your relationship wasn’t even real.

“Yeah.. Yeah I’d like that.”

He smiled, and your core grew hot. How could God create this man and not want you to jump at the opportunity to go out with him?

“Great, so tonight? There’s this place I know-”

“I’ll meet you there, James.”

He made his way to your door with a skip in his step, and as he pulled the door open and paused, he turned back around and grinned, “Please. Call me Bucky.”

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