#i think Steve is their part time receptionist and also works at the coffee shop across the street

[hotluncheddie]

omg I didn't realize you wanted chubby steddie asks 🙈

as much as we love the babygirlification of Steve Harrington..... I'm obsessed with boyish manly Steve who is chubby and Eddie is obsessed with him!!!! I'm thinking about your one fic with the sweaty tank top!!!!! do you have more thoughts on this??

yesssssss!!! anon yes yesssssssss!!!!!

not me being like 'yeah! sweaty task top fic nice nice' then realising i have like three different posts that have Steve in a sweaty tank top lol

thankfully @scoops-aboy86 came in clutch with a new tank top sciario <3 (and held my hand thru writing the end lmao ty pal)

but i just love an ex jock trope, i love bulk under muscle and i think big beefy hairy guys are hot - and Steve harrington deserves to be all of that, and more

and also, importantly, eddie munson deserves to have all of that too, in and around him, all the time, in the form of Steve Harrington.

-

Eddie had come to accept the wealth of things he could be into, the actual buffet of people and scenarios that could get his dick hard. He's had more than his fair share of knuckle biting orgasms over the ex chief of police Jim Hopper. Before and, maybe worse, after getting to know him.

So he knew what it was to have something of a shame wank. To enjoy a moustache or two and a paunch at a middle.

But nothing, no deep seated daddy issues or fantasy of being held down, could ever prepare him for Steve Harrington.

Post upside down, post eventual college and transition to work. Post two bed apartment with Robin, then two bed apartment with Robin and Eddie. Then actual full blow house with Eddie, and more often than not weekend guest Robin. Dating Steve for as long as has was one thing, loving Steve with everything he had was another, and being loved by Steve was something he still had nights of panic about - silent tears as fear and self doubt gripped his throat, nightmares about it all being an elaborate prank that sneak their way in even with Steves arms wrapped tight around his middle.

but Eddie had him.

Was allowed to love him, and worship Steve for all that he was worth. It was wonderful. Eddie knew that.

But it had its challenges. Nothing past Eddie could've done would help current Eddie for what he was in for.

Like how Steve had bulked up over the years, settled and filled out in a way that made those visions of Hopper, and guys from bars he really shouldn't have been at, all come surging back.

Steve was thick, and strong and still so achingly beautiful. Boyish in his actions at times but also protective and capable in a way that made Eddie swoon. Honest to god. Made him feel like a main character in one of those bodice ripper books he had seen (taken out and read) at the library.

And then Steve made it worse.

So so so much worse.

Because Steve went and got a tattoo.

Well, another tattoo. He added roses to go along with the robin and branch on his arm, adding to its greenery with red petals and thorns that Eddie knew were secretly for him. He’d said, offhandedly, that they were his favourite and he knows, because he knows Steve, that thats something he'd listen to and remember.

He’s a die hard romantic.

And now Eddie is going to die, hard.

Soon, if Steve doesn't put a proper fucking shirt on.

Steves been wearing his stupid, old, cropped, white tank top since the appointment. He's "letting the tattoo breathe", "doesn't like the feeling of the healing skin against the fabric", "wants to do it properly". "hates Eddie and wants him to die of hard dick, big-fat-ball disease."

He glares at Steve from the other end of the couch, and maybe only three of those things are something Steve's actually said, but, he thought them. All of them. Must have.

Because Steve's tank is so old it's nearly see through, the peak of his pink nipple evident and distracting. The cropped end keeps rolling up and exposing his wider bellybutton and soft sides. And, as always, with any tank top, with any tank top on Steve, hit tits are there - hairy and lovely and out.

'Steve, please.' Eddie whines, he doesn't think he can take much more.

Steve just raises his eyebrows, taking a swig of beer and not looking away from the tv. 'If I sweat too much, it'll mess with the healing.' He says.

Eddie just crosses his arms, sinks lower into the couch. ‘Can you put on a normal shirt at least? For my sanity, for that alone, please?' Not wanting to sound desperate, but he is desperate.

Steve sighs, muting the TV. 'C'mere.' He holds his arms out and Eddie crawls into his lap. Still sulking, arms still crossed. ‘Eddie, you’re the one who gave me the tattoo. I’m following your instructions.’ Steve says gently.

‘M’firing Robin for getting you to sign the info form.’ He grumbles.

Steve smiles at him, tucking some hair behind his ears. ‘You can’t fire her for doing her job baby.’

‘Maybe not’ Eddie sniffs. ‘But I’m not sharing my baby blue ink with her next time she gets one of her slutty little lady sailor pin ups booked in.’ He mumbles to himself.

Steve pulls Eddie in closer, hands on his waist as he leans in to whisper in Eddies ear. 'Aren't I being so good though? Following what you said, no strenuous activity for two days right?' His voice a little breathy, soft.

And that makes Eddie pause, makes his insides churn and his heart rate increase. 'Ye-yeah.' He rasps, eyes wide. 'So good Stevie.'

'So we have to wait until tomorrow, like you said, yeah?' Steve asks, eyes all big and sweet, lips in a little pouty.

Fuck. He's right. Eddie dug his own grave.

'Yeah.' He sighs. He can do it, for Steve.

Steve smiles sweetly at him, tapping Eddie on the ass and shifting him closer so Steve can unmute the tv and keep watching his game. 'Good boy.' Steve says, kissing Eddies temple.

…Wait. Eddie scrunches his eyebrows, half hard and confused.

But Steve just holds him closer. Eddie buries his head in Steve's neck, and whines.

#:) #eddie gets domed by pouty dilf Steve #he doesn't know how to feel about it - but he likes it #<3 #ask #hotlunch #steddie #chubby steve harrington #tattoo artist eddie munson #and robin #i think Steve is their part time receptionist and also works at the coffee shop across the street #or part time florist across the street - to really live the au tropes #hes hot

[neonghostlights]

Listen- listen carefully- okay?

okay so

so

Eddie, right? Eddie, with a tattoo artist crush??!! like cmon. The possibilities are endless!

how does he confess? What are their dates like? How do they spend quality time together? So many questions, not many answers. (Fem reader pls-) 🍋-

BESTIE. I AM HEARING YOU LOUD AND CLEAR. This is great. I love it. Readers a badass. Eddie’s in love. This is amazing. This is gonna end up being a two parter with the next chapter being their relationship once the relationship is established. Thank you! also, sorry it took me so long to write this ):

Warnings: Love at first sight, Tattooing, Pain, Blood, 18+ only

Wordcount: 2.1k

Rose

The bell attached to the shop door dinged when Eddie walked in. The floors were clean, polished. That was something he always checked when he walked into tattoo shops. Back in highschool he didn’t particularly care about the cleanliness of tattoos, just getting whatever he wanted etched into his skin in his buddies trailer. After seeing the outcome of a particularly nasty skin infection Gareth got one time that left his tattoo looking like a jumbled mess, Eddie cared a little more now. 

Robin had begged him to stop by and check out her new job as a part time receptionist at the best (only) tattoo shop in Hawkins, Indiana. Eddie was a little surprised to see you here since he had seen your work done in one or two magazines before. You were somewhat of a celebrity in the tattooing world, having won quite a few awards for your art. 

Steve had told him that Robin had been terrified to start here, since your reputation was well known. But after the first day she came home gushing about how great you were and insisted that Eddie swing by to meet you as soon as possible. 

Low rock music played from a speaker in the corner of the room. Black leather couches and chairs surrounded a coffee table full of binders and magazines. Artwork, presumably yours, covered the walls top to bottom. Eddie usually drew up his own designs when getting work done  but yours were so good that he wouldn’t mind having one of your pre-drawn designs placed on his body. He could smell the fresh paint still lingering in the air, telling just how recent the shop had been opened. 

“Hey!” Robin greeted him from behind the clear glass counter. “Welcome!” 

“Nice looking place,” Eddie said with a low whistle. 

“Right,” she said with a fake whisper. “You think you want to get something done?” 

“Nah, not today. I didn’t draw anything up.”

Robin rolled her eyes, knowing Eddie was picky about what he wanted done. She couldn’t blame him. She had an orange tattooed on her foot after a drunk spring break dare from Steve that looked more like a basketball. 

“Hey, Rob?” Your voice broke out, muffled by the rock still playing on the radio. Eddie heard the sound of wheels rolling across the floor as you scooted your rolling chair out of the room you were working in and backing out into the hallway. “You wanna order some lunch?” You asked once you were fully in the hallway. 

Eddie had seen a lot of attractive people before but none of them had made his heart stop quite the way you did. 

“Oh, hi,” you said, startled to see Eddie standing there. “Were you looking to get something done?” You asked, standing from your chair and approaching him. 

Eddie froze. All thoughts escaped his brain as you walked towards him. He could see the skin of your legs through your ripped jeans and Eddie had never thought a kneecap was so sexy before. 

“This is my friend Eddie. He just came by to check out the shop. Right, Eddie?” Robin plucked his cheek to try to reboot him. 

The magazines had never included your picture, but he wished they had so he wouldn’t be standing here like an idiot. He had a feeling that your picture printed on glossy paper wouldn’t do you any justice. 

Eddie winced at the sharp sting of his cheek, rubbing at the stubble there. 

“Hi,” was all he was able to croak out, sticking his hand out to you. 

You smirked a knowing smirk at him that made him feel embarrassed from how obvious he was being. He was usually the one that was smirking to make people melt, not the other way around and it made his head spin. 

You gripped his hand, firmly giving it a little shake. Eddie didn’t want to let go, but finally did, realizing how sweaty his palm had gotten. He tried to discreetly wipe it against his jeans. If you felt it, you didn’t say anything. 

“So, Eddie, did you want to get a tattoo today?” You asked, head tilted as you looked him up and down. 

“He said no-”

“Yes. Yes I do,” he said, cutting Robin off. 

Robin looked like she was about to die of laughter. Eddie knew she would be itching to grab the phone and call Steve to tell him all about the way Eddie was acting. He knew there would surely be some jokes cracked at his expense during the next family dinner. But he couldn’t bring himself to care all that much. 

You tilted your head, like you were studying him, picking him apart to make sure he was actually worthy of having your art on his skin forever. Eddie would let you draw on his bones if you were able to. Shit, he’d hand you the pick and chisel. 

“Okay,” you said slowly. “Have any idea of what you want to get?” 

“Uh…” Eddie trailed, eyes darting to the artwork around the shop. “You choose.”

You frowned. “You want me to choose your tattoo for you?”

Eddie nodded, already too far in to back out now. 

“And you’re sure? Completely?” You checked as Robin started pulling out paperwork for Eddie to sign. 

“Oh, yeah. I’m sure.”

Three months later and the bell dinged over the shop door. You could hear it from your office where you had low music playing as you sketched away at an idea you had. It was getting closer to the holidays and the shop was less busy. People usually liked to spend their money on presents and food this time of year instead of tattoos. You knew January was going to pick back up again so you weren’t worried. 

You could hear Robin laughing at something up front, probably at whoever just came through the door. You heard the familiar sound of boots come your way and it brought a smile to your lips. 

His knuckles rapped against the door a few times. This had become a routine since Eddie let you tattoo him a few months ago. He had gotten a couple more done by you, each more intricate than the last. But some days he would stop by just to say hi to you, like he probably was today. You never let other customers come to your office like this. Eddie was special. 

“Hey,” you greeted him, turning in your chair. You dropped the pencil you were using to your desk, ready to give your hand a break for a bit. 

Eddie smiled as he leaned against the door frame. “What are you working on?” 

You held up the sketch pad. It was a drawing of a dragon taking flight. It was small, simple with just enough detail to not overpower it. If someone ever wanted this you could of course add anything to it. 

“That’s sick,” Eddie said as he came closer, humming as he assessed the drawing. 

“It’s not done yet. I need a little more time with it,” you explained, feeling a little self conscious about your art, something you hadn’t experienced until you realized shortly after meeting Eddie that you always wanted to impress him. 

“Is it for a customer?” He asked. 

“No. Just an idea I had,” you said as you set it back down on your desk. 

“Can I get it?” 

You tilted your head as you looked up at Eddie. His hair framed his face where he was still looking down at the drawing with intensity, avoiding your eye contact now for some reason. You could see the rose tattoo on his arm, the first one you gave him on the day you met. You didn’t tell Eddie what you were tattooing until you were done. You knew it was a risk, not many men wanted a flower tattooed on them. But this one seemed like it fitted him. 

After you had tattooed the rose he stared at it with teary eyes. You thought you had really messed up until he told you that Rose was his late mothers middle name. After that, the dynamic seemed to change, bringing you even closer even though you two had just met. 

“I mean if you want but it’s really not done and I-” 

“I think it’s perfect,” Eddie interrupted, finally looking up at you with a small smile. 

You took a deep breath at the intensity of his stare before leading him back to the room to be tattooed. 

You had Eddie lay back in the reclining chair. It was laid back to be as flat as a table so you had better access to his ribs. 

You explained to him that the ribs were going to hurt pretty bad even though he was no stranger to tattoo pain. He just laughed it off and asked if you could hold his hand when he starts to cry. 

You rolled your eyes, pushing away the butterflies at the thought of holding his hand in yours. You didn’t really like emotions. You’d prefer to spend your time alone, drawing with nothing to complicate your life. It had been a battle the past three months of knowing Eddie. You were constantly denying the way you felt and it was getting harder and harder each time you saw him. 

Eddie closed his eyes and laid mostly still except for the occasional twitch and tapping he would do. He was uncharacteristically quiet today and you found yourself going through most of his tattoo without him even saying a word. That wasn’t normal. 

“Are you doing okay?” You asked as you gathered more ink. “If it’s too much we can stop for today.” 

“No,” he said loudly, practically jumping off the table at your offer. He cleared his throat looking embarrassed before he slowly laid back down. 

“Are you sure?” You checked again, giving him the opportunity to quit if he wanted to. 

“Yeah. I’m sure,” he said with a nod as he closed his eyes again. 

You went back to tattooing, trying to figure out why he was acting this way. He seemed nervous to be around you today and you weren’t sure why. It didn’t make sense. He was usually a blushing, stumbling mess around you and now suddenly he was acting like this tattoo was the most serious thing he had ever done. 

“You need me to hold your hand?” You joked, trying to lighten the mood. 

Eddie giggled nervously with his eyes still closed. You watched him wipe his palm discreetly against his jeans. 

You had a feeling you knew what was going on here. It was a feeling you had from the first day you met him and he not so subtly asked you out. When you tattooed him that first day, he seemed to cover up his nerves well by joking with you and asking you questions about yourself.  You could ask him, see what he says. The worst he could say is no. You usually had a good eye for things like this and Eddie had all the signs. 

“You know next time you can just ask me out on a date instead of having me tattoo you,” you said as you cleaned the fresh ink off the now finished tattoo. 

Eddie’s eyes shot open in a flash. He sat up, wincing at the tender skin on his ribs. 

“Wait!” You yelled as you grabbed a cloth and cleanser. “I need to clean it before you get up.” 

Eddie ignored your demands. “Did Robin tell you?” He asked, looking defeated.

“No,” you said as you wiped at the skin from the new position he sat in. “You were just acting kind of weird so I figured that might have been what was going on.”

Eddie sighed deeply. 

“If I read that wrong and totally made this awkward just tell me,” you said quickly. 

“No,” Eddie rushed out. “No. You were right. I didn’t realize I was that obvious.” 

You laughed and shook your head. “You were just a little obvious.” 

You motioned for Eddie to stand up and take a look in the mirror. He whistled as he looked at the fresh ink on his now angry skin. 

“You like it?” You asked. 

“I love it. It’s incredible. Thank you,” he said, still in awe of your artwork on his body. 

You nodded your head awkwardly as you started to wrap it to keep it clean and uninfected. You met Eddie’s eyes in the mirror when you were finished. You froze, unsure what to do now and afraid that you had ruined everything by speaking up. You really enjoyed Eddie’s company and the thought of becoming something more made your heart race. 

Eddie grabbed his things, about to head to the front to pay. 

“So…was that a no?” He asked as he slipped his shirt over his head. 

You laughed. “Eddie, you didn’t even ask me.” 

“Oh, right. Sorry. I’m still nervous.  Do you want to go out on a date sometime?” 

“I’d love to.”

#eddie munson x reader #eddie munson au #eddie munson x y/n #eddie munson fanfic #eddie munson #eddie munson imagine #eddie munson x you #eddie stranger things #eddie munson x tattooartist!reader #eddie munson x fem reader #eddie munson x fem!reader

[darkficsyouneveraskedfor]

summertime sadness .3.

first day

Sequel to kiss me in the d-a-r-k

Part 1 Part 2 (masterlist under construction)

Warnings: dub con sex (intercourse, oral)

This is dark!(dad)Steve and dark(professor!)Bucky explicit. 18+ only.

Summary: You start your new job as you juggle the men in your life.

Note: back at it again with part 3. I'll keep y'all updated about a possible new posting schedule and an announcement regarding Patreon. Apparently writing every day and stressing myself out is not good for my mental health lmao. But I'm enjoying this one and I'm not sure yet if we're gonna be able to stick to 6 parts. Bon appetit. 💋

<3 Let me know what you think in a reblog, reply, or like. I'm loving the feedback from y'all and the excitement! You guys are gold. Also as always, memes accepted.

💋💋💋

You woke to the buzzer. You rolled over and grabbed you phone from the table. Your voice was thick and groggy as you answered it. 

“Hello?” You nearly coughed through your dry throat.

“Delivery,” The monotone response came.

“Okay,” You shook your head confused and hit the button to let him up. 

You dragged yourself from the bed and staggered to the door. You watched through the peephole as the carriers appeared at the top of the stairs. The two men in their brown uniforms carried a large box between them. They knocked once before you managed to unhook the chain and opened the door. 

“Um?” You stared at them confused.

“Delivery for apartment 6,” The man read off his tablet. “Signature?”

He turned it toward you and you read your name across the top. You hadn’t ordered anything. You couldn’t afford to. You signed, still confused, and held the door open for them to drag the box inside. You thanked them and watched them go before you shut the door. You crossed your arms as you stared at the package. You needed coffee.

You brewed your usual morning potion and sipped it slowly as you paced around the box. It took up much of the space you had left. You set your mug down and grabbed your keys to slice through the plastic tape. Within was an instruction booklet and a litany of boards and screws. It was a desk.

Your phone vibrated on your night table and you stood. You grabbed your coffee and sat on the edge of your bed as you opened your phone. 

‘You got your present?’ Steve’s message popped up.

‘You?’ You responded with an O face.

‘Figured you needed something better than that lumpy double,’ He returned and you tutted.

‘Thanks’ You replied with heart eyes.

‘Don’t worry. I ordered the smallest desk I could find.’

‘Still don’t think it will fit.’

‘You should be used to a tight squeeze.’ He kidded and you finished your coffee.

‘Uh huh. Well I guess I gotta day ahead of me, don’t I?’

‘Good luck.’ He sent a winky face alongside the taunt.

You returned a smiley and tossed your phone on the mattress. You stood and sighed as you once more ruminated over the box. Well, a little something to keep your mind off your nerves on your last day of freedom.

💋

You were pressed, preened, and as professional as you could get. Button up blouse patterned with small daisies, blush-toned blazer, and ironed beige pants. In your bag, you had a fresh notebook, your laptop, and about a dozen pens, including the golden on gifted to you. 

You strode through the front doors of the city tower as your nerves jittered in your chest. You hadn’t been there since the workshop. You and the other students had gone on a tour of the offices and your submission earned you a page in the company’s Sceptre Magazine. It also gained you the unexpected offer for this job.

After an elevator ride which seemed to make time stand still, you stepped off into the shining offices of Adder Press. It was just as you recalled only even more intimidating. You approached the receptionist’s desk tentatively and resisted your habit of wringing your hands. The buoyant redhead greeted you with a bubbly smile.

“Hello, you must be the intern,” She chimed.

“Um, yeah, I guess that’s me,” You answered.

“Well, I’m Stacey, I don’t know if you remember me, and you can just head on over to his office. He’s waiting for you.” She clicked something with her mouse and hit the intercom button on her phone. “Mr. Laufeyson, your 8 a.m. is here.”

“Very well,” His voice replied from the speaker.

She nodded for you to you pass her desk and you ducked your head down as you left her. You vaguely recalled the layout of the office. The round desks and the cozy seating all around. You bit the inside of your lip as you wandered cluelessly through the maze of employees who knew what they were doing.

You looked up and a familiar slim figure appeared in the doorway of the office along the back of the immense space. Loki Laufeyson, the editor and owner of Adder Press, greeted you with a handshake as you neared. His green eyes sparkled above his trademark smirk. In your brief introduction, you found he always looked as if he had a secret.

“Good morning,” He let go of you and stepped back to let you into his office. “You’re early.”

“A habit,” You assured him as you entered his roomy office.

“An admirable one,” He followed and passed you as he rounded his desk. “Sit,” He waved to the seat across from him before he took his own. “First, we’ll go over the job and your expectations. Any questions you have…” He checked his watch as he crossed his legs and leaned back. “And then we have a long day ahead of us.”

“Okay,” You said as you cradled your bag in your lap.

“You’ll be shadowing me for the most part. You’ll get an idea of how the business works and everything that goes into publishing.” He explained. “And we’ll get a taste of your editing skills. I’ll hand you a few minor pieces and go from there. Meetings, pitches, and so on.”

You nodded and listened to him as you sat on the edge of the chair. 

“I trust you will attune well. Your article was exceptional and I have no doubt there is a place for you in this business. Literary or otherwise.” He continued. “You are the first intern we’ve had that wasn’t a fourth year. I hope you realise the gravity of this position. Of this opportunity.”

“Of course,” You assured him. “And I’m am grateful for it.”

He tilted his head and squinted at you as he thought. He sat forward and smiled again. 

“Well then, we should get started. I’ll show you your desk before we attend the morning meeting. Then you can sit in on my next. The board must select the winners of the contest for our Pride Issue of Sceptre, among other significant decisions.” He stood and tapped his desk with two fingers. “Tomorrow, we’ll deal with the marketing side of things. Just as important as the content itself.”

“Alright,” You rose, excited though too nervous to show it.

He seemed amused and turned to guide you out of his office. Your stomach flipped a second time that day and you swallowed down the storm. You had to keep reminding yourself that this was what you wanted. An actual dream come true.

💋

Your first week flew by. The workload kept you busy and your desk was quickly cluttered from it; both at work and at home. Your nights were late and mornings early. The true university experience but not for the usual reasons, though it was just as thrilling as any party.

To your surprise, Loki was an accommodating boss; in his own way. His expectations were clear but not easily met. His standards fueled you; encouraged you to fight harder to meet them. And when you didn’t, he wasn’t disappointed; rather encouraging in his singular discerning manner. That he did expect so much of you, was flattering on its own. 

And your first edited piece, a quarter page review, had passed his grueling rounds of criticism. You couldn’t help but beam as he read over your final submission and uttered that single word, ‘adequate’. He looked up from his screen and across his desk. “It’ll print.”

You were still smiling as you walked out onto the street. You took out your phone, long ignored for your work. The screen was filled with notifications. Both Steve and Bucky sent identical messages; ‘How was your first week?’

You answered Steve first. ‘It was good. I think I’m getting the hang of it.’

Then Bucky. ‘Great! I’m learning so much.’

‘Awesome. Facetime tonight?’ Steve replied and you accepted the invitation.

‘Have you eaten?’ Bucky’s text popped up.

‘Not yet.’ You answered.

‘You still downtown?’ He asked. Another confirmation sent.

‘I’m at the Beer Garden. My treat. They have amazing tacos.’

‘Ten minutes,’ You promised and opened up your Maps.

When you got there, Bucky was waiting. A pitcher sat before him and two glasses; one empty, the other half-finished. You neared and set your bag on one of the tall chairs as you climbed up on another.

“Hey,” You greeted. “Didn’t think I’d ever be here again.”

“Why not? Good beer, good food,” He poured you glass as he spoke. “Good men.”

“Sure, sure,” You laughed as he set the pint before you. “So, how are classes?”

“Ugh, can we not?” He grumbled. “I didn’t come here to think about school.”

“Only to get me tipsy, eh?” You sip from the foamy stout.

“It never takes very much,” He grinned. “And I figured, we could take a walk after. There’s a nice little bookshop down the street.”

“Books? So this night will be worth it after all?” You kidded.

“Free food,” He reminded as he slid a menu over to you.

“I can get food at home, cozy in my bed with a good doc on my laptop,” You chided. “But new books? That’s better than--”

“Sex?” He ventured coyly.

“Almost.” You answered as you lifted the menu. “Though the more I think about it, free food might just change my mind.”

💋

Your stroll to the bookshop led you past Adder Press once more. It was a small nook between a cafe and a foreclosed business. As you entered a bell chimed and the smell of aged paper filled your nostrils. The walls were lined with shelves and small desk sat along the left side of the store. Books; used, new, rare, surrounded you.

You followed Bucky to the back of the shop and perused the non-fiction section as he looked over the military memoirs. The shelves between you and the front of the store blocked the view of the street through the wide bay window. It seemed darker back there; quiet.

As you scanned the back of a book on the old studio system in Hollywood, you felt a tickle along your side. Bucky’s hand gripped your hip as he turned you and slowly edged you back against the shelf. He glanced towards the front desk but cared little as he leaned in. He took the book with his other hand and blindly put it aside.

“Long week,” He purred.

“It was,” You said. “But I think you can wait a little longer.” You patted his chest and tried to push him away. “Maybe until we’re somewhere more...private.”

“Ah come on, have a little fun, miss priss,” He rubbed his nose against yours. “Just a kiss.”

He pressed his lips to your and you squirmed. You kissed him back as he trapped you in the corner. His arms wrapped around you and he slid along the shelves. Several books fell behind you noisily and he pulled away at last. You sneered and bent to pick them up as the cashier craned to look around the shelves.

“Sorry,” You waved to him as you gather the books. “Clumsy.”

You put them back on the shelves as you stood and Bucky watched you with a smirk. You growled and grabbed his arm. 

“Fine, let’s go,” You snarled.

“You want that book, baby?” He teased as you dragged him back down the aisle.

“I want sleep,” You said. “And the quicker we’re out of here, the quicker I get my wish.”

He chuckled as you shoved him out onto the street. “You’re sexy when you’re mad.”

“I’m not mad.” You insisted.

“Sure,” He slung his arm over his shoulder and led you back down the street. “Don’t worry, I’m sure I’ll find a way to cheer you up.”

💋

Bucky had never been to your apartment before. You always met at his; it was bigger, cozier, and less stressful. When he pulled up to your building, he killed the engine but you didn’t say anything as he followed. Surely he knew a student couldn’t afford a condo.

When you showed him into your meagre flat, he glanced around and smiled. “Quaint.”

“Affordable,” You said as you set your bag on the chair. 

“Cute.” He commented as he neared your desk.

“New addition,” You explained. “Steve sent it last week.”

“Of course he did,” He mused. “Always practical, isn’t he? Well, in most things.”

“Mmm,” You grumbled and took off your blazer. “I suppose.”

“Did you send him a pic?” He asked and you lifted a brow. “Of the desk?”

“No,” You said. 

“Well, why don’t you?” He winked. “We can do a little photo shoot for him.”

“I don’t think so,” You scoffed.

“For me too,” He said. “Sexy school girl. Classic.”

“Stop,” You neared him as he pulled out his phone and tried to take it from him. “Or I’m gonna send you home early.”

“Take your clothes off,” He held his phone above you. “Come on.”

“No,” You squealed. “Now put that away.”

“You can keep your panties on,” He bartered. “Just give a smile.”

“Bucky…”

“Hey, if it’s gonna be another week, I need something to keep me from getting lonely.” He argued. 

You stepped back and stared up at him. You sucked your lip in and nibbled on it.

“You’re thinking about it,” He said. “I know that look.”

“One photo. That’s it.” You sighed and unbuttoned your blouse. “And it stays between you and Steve.”

“You have my word,” He grinned.

He watched you undress until you were in nothing but your bra and panties. You went to the desk and stood in front of it stiffly. You smiled. “Okay?”

“I said panties,” He intoned. “Nothing about your bra.”

You frowned and swiftly unhooked your bra and tossed it aside. 

“Up,” He gestured with his hand as he held his phone up. 

You pushed aside the chair and turned to clear a spot for you to sit before you climbed up awkwardly. You turned back to him and leaned on your hands.

“Stick your chest out a little,” He directed. “Good, and cross your legs. Mmm, yes. Like that.” He hit capture and lowered his phone. “Wow.”

“What?” You leapt down and scrambled over to him. “I must look awful.”

“You look… hot,” He growled the last word. “Fuck. Get those panties off while I send this to Steve.” He rubbed his crotch as he flicked his thumb over his screen. “I can’t wait much longer.”

You rolled your panties down your legs as you turned away from him. You heard him set his phone down as you neared the bed. 

“No, I want you back on that desk,” He said. “Now.” You spun back and put your hands on your hips. He shook his head in warning. “You know what happens to bad girls.” He warned.

You strutted over to the desk as he pulled his shirt over his head. He kicked off his shoes as he slowly closed in on you. He stripped deliberately until he was before you, naked and hard. You stared up at him and he lifted you up onto the desk. He pushed your knees apart and stepped between your legs.

“Do you remember that first time? On my desk? Hmm?” He inhaled your scent as he dragged his nose along your cheek. “I’ve been thinking about that all week.”

“Oh yeah,” You breathed as you felt along his sides and around his broad back. “Do you think about me when you teach?”

“Always,” He snarled. “I think about fucking you, front and centre, right in front of everyone.”

“Really?” His lips tickled your temple as he plied kisses one at a time. You leaned back and bared your throat.

“You know, what I really want,” He nuzzled your neck as he spoke. “I want you under my desk as I mark… help keep me focused.”

“Oh?” You moaned as his fingers inched along your stomach. “When do you mark?”

“Whenever you’re free, baby,” He nibbled at your skin between words.

“Tomorrow?” You felt long his thigh and brushed your fingertips along his sac. He shivered.

“Tomorrow.” He gulped as you gripped him. “Meet me at my office.”

“Mmm,” You pulled him close as rubbed his tip along your folds. “What about tonight?”

“Tonight,” He lifted his head as you guided him to your entrance. “Tonight I’m gonna fuck you till you scream.”

He pushed into you and you gasped. You wrapped your arms and legs around him, hungry for him. Each time he thrust, the desk wobbled and clattered against the wall. You clawed at his back as you curled your pelvis towards him, longing to take every inch of him. You moaned and locked your legs around his ass.

“Make me scream,” You taunted.

He grunted and plunged into you harder. You were at the edge of the desk, entirely at his mercy. He pushed his hand between your bodies and pressed his thumb to your clit. He rubbed you roughly, painfully almost, yet the thrill of it was delicious. Your moans grew louder and louder.

He reached back with one hand and tore your arm from around him. Your other arm slipped as he pushed you onto your back and pulled your ass over the edge of the desk. Your grasped onto the desk above your head as he crashed into you. Your body jerked across the painted white wood and you gritted your teeth as your voice rose.

“Come on, baby,” He rutted into you, harder and harder. “Come on.” He hissed as his thumb worked your clit. “Scream.” 

He impaled you entirely and you obeyed. He wrenched your orgasm from you and your legs quivered around him as you shrieked. Your head lolled and you covered his hand with yours as his thumb kept its motion. When it stopped, he dug his fingers into your hips and began to thrust again.

His own climax was barely smothered as he hung his head back and bit down on his lip. He pulled out and his cum spilled onto your vee and dripped down your cunt. You gulped and gasped as you tried to catch your breath and he lowered your legs back to the floor. Your sat up as his cum cooled along your thigh.

“You still mad, baby?” He asked as he framed your face with his hands. 

You pulled his hands away and placed them on your tits. “You still have some work to do.”

#Steve Rogers #Bucky Barnes #dad steve rogers #dad!steve rogers #Professor Barnes #professor!bucky barnes #dark!steve rogers #dark!bucky barnes #dark steve rogers #dark bucky barnes #dark!steve rogers x reader #dark!bucky barnes x reader #dark!fic #Fic #series #au #Dark Fic #summertime sadness #kiss me in the d-a-r-k #Sequel #mcu #marvel #captain america

[captain-s-rogers]

Have A Little Faith In Me

(gif credit to the creator)

Part Three

Master List

Pairing: Steve Rogers x OFC // Clint Barton x OFC Word Count: 2,527 Warnings: none? A/N: Here’s the third part of the rewrite of my first ever Marvel series! Special thanks to the best bestie in the world, @arrowsandmixtapes​​ , for making sure all of my work isn’t absolute garbage! If you want to be added to my tag list please let me know! Feedback is cool :)

Sophia lost track of how many times she listened to Steve’s message over the next few days as her head and heart battled each other. Though she wanted to call him back, at least hear out his explanation, she refused to return the phone call and be the girl who caves to a guy only because he’s good-looking. 

“You could just call him back, ya know,” Lucy mentioned, as casually as possible, while the two women were having lunch.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Sophia speared a cucumber in her salad and crunched into it, pretending to be innocent of the subject at hand while also trying to convince herself that good looks was all she had seen in Steve the night of the public event. 

Lucy reached across the table and snatched Sophia’s phone. Sophia tried to stop her, but she wasn’t quite quick enough. 

“Sophia, it’s Steve. Steve Rogers. I’m so sorry about not making our date tonight. Something important came up and I couldn’t get out --” 

Sophia ignored Lucy’s knowing look, set down her fork and leaned over the table to snatch her phone back. She cut off the message and shoved the phone back in her purse. She went back to her salad as though she hadn’t practically crawled over the table in a public place. 

“I can’t call him back,” Sophia stated. “In case you forgot, Luce, he stood me up, then gave a vague, thoughtless excuse. Aren’t you the one who told me that men are only vague when they’re lying?”

Lucy rolled her eyes. “I said most guys. And anyway, is sitting here, repeatedly listening to the message and driving yourself absolutely insane, really any better than calling the guy back and going on one little date?” 

“Yes.” 

Lucy shook her head, taking a bite of her own salad. Since Sophia had apparently dug her heels in on the matter, she took the conversation in a slightly different direction. 

“You know, Colin in marketing has had his eye on you for a while. Why don’t you accept his offer?” 

“Because I’m not looking for a date,” Sophia replied. “It’s not like I’m lonely and looking for someone to save me from my misery. Steve just so happened to ask me out in a moment of weakness -- I was in the mood to go out, that’s all.”

Lucy took the last bite of her salad before wiping her mouth. “I’m not saying you have to marry Colin or even accept more than one date with him. But, Colin doesn’t seem like he’s looking for anything super serious, either. Maybe going out with him will at least get you to delete Steve’s voicemail so you can move on with your life.”

Sophia leaned back in her chair and huffed. Lucy always had her best intentions at heart, and that motivated Sophia to give what her friend was saying a moment of real consideration. Maybe Lucy was right; maybe Sophia needed to go out with someone else to get over the nothing she’d had with Steve. 

“Fine, I’ll go out with Colin,” Sophia relented, drawing a grin from Lucy across the table, “Next time he asks me out, I’ll say yes, but I am not going to seek him out.” 

“That’s fair. I do really think it will be good for you.” Lucy leaned forward and gave her friend a comforting smile. 

Sophia assured Lucy that she knew her friend had good intentions. With a plan in place, Sophia was able to finish her lunch without Lucy pressing any more on the subject of men and dating.

Steve couldn’t think of anything or anyone else except for Sophia and the fact that she hadn’t returned his call. He threw himself into work, even going so far as to ask Director Fury for extra missions with S.H.I.E.L.D -- ones he really wasn’t needed on -- but the distraction failed. Though he knew that she had to be upset about being stood up, and rightfully so, he had been so sure that she would call back. 

Calling again crossed his mind, but he didn’t want to bother her or press the issue if she didn’t want to call him back. Their time together at the public event had been short, but Steve knew that they could be a good thing. Missing his date with her had left him missing out on a good thing, which was another thing he couldn’t stop his mind from reminding him throughout the day.

“Just like Peggy, all over again,” Steve sighed to himself. 

His work with S.H.I.E.L.D was important. Steve knew that. If he hadn’t known that from the beginning, he never would have agreed to be part of the supersoldier program in the first place. His need to serve his country, to live up to the duty he had been called to fulfill, did not escape his knowledge, either. But, he was realizing the cost of service and duty now: his personal life was being greatly affected by this work he had been called to do. 

The walls of his apartment were closing in on him, and his mind was only racing faster by the minute. He needed to clear his head, to get out and find something else to think about. After pushing his arms into the sleeves of his worn, brown leather jacket, Steve double-checked that he had his keys and his wallet, and walked out the door, making sure to lock it before he walked away. 

Present day New York City was still a sight Steve was getting used to. The buildings were far more numerous, not to mention taller. Traffic was more dense and faster and -- well, chaotic, really. Out of all the things he had to adjust to in this new time period, the city traffic was something Steve wasn’t so sure that he would ever be able to wrap his mind around. 

There was a coffee shop a few blocks down from his apartment building; Steve decided on a whim to stop there for a cup of coffee. Starbucks was all right, and maybe it was the old-timer in him, but he preferred these little local places. So that he could remember it for next time, he looked up, trying to read the name on the building as he pulled on the door handle. Still trying to commit the name to memory, he wasn’t quite paying attention when he stepped into the shop -- and abruptly bumped into someone preparing to walk out of the shop. The woman he bumped into dropped the small purse in her hand as a result of the interaction. 

“I am so sorry,” he quickly apologized, feeling a little ridiculous for not having his head on straight. He picked up the purse and handed it to her. “Sophia?”

“Steve?” She looked just as surprised to see him as he was to see her. 

Steve thought his mind had been racing before, but now it was reeling out of control. Sophia was standing right in front of him, looking more beautiful than he even remembered. He stared for a bit too long before registering that her arm was hooked through that of the man standing next to her. He was tall, with dark hair and blue eyes. Steve’s heart dropped, followed quickly by his stomach. No wonder Sophia had never called him back; for all he knew, she hadn’t shown up that night at the restaurant, either. 

“Sorry, didn’t mean to knock into you,” Steve apologized. His voice was trembling a bit, so he cleared his throat. “Good to see you again, Ms. Hawkins.”

“Yeah, you too, St -- Mr. Rogers.” Sophia seemed confused, and Steve wondered if he hadn’t also imagined the tremble in her voice.  

Steve walked past her quickly and joined the line to order. So much for making sure he remembered the name of the shop. He’d never visit here again, if only to avoid the possibility of seeing Sophia with another man again. 

He ordered his coffee to go and went straight back to his apartment. As he walked, his mind slowed -- not that that meant much as it only returned to its normal racing speed from the last few days. The slow down helped him think things through. That man with Sophia wasn’t necessarily a boyfriend, he could have been someone else she was on a date with. Maybe it was serious, maybe it wasn’t. 

“You’re going to drive yourself crazy,” he muttered. 

The walk and the coffee had indeed helped to clear Steve’s mind. By the time he reached his apartment door, he had decided to give Sophia another call and ask her one more time to go out with him.

Sophia surprised herself by enjoying her lunchtime coffee date with Colin, and quite a bit at that. 

Until she ran into Steve. 

Seeing him standing right there, within inches of her, in the coffee shop had sent her directly back to square one. Do not pass go, do not collect a fresh outlook, do not move on. Fortunately, she didn’t have time to dwell on the unexpected meeting, as swamped as she was when she returned to work. There were messages to return and vendors to secure, reservations to take for the latest benefit hosted by the firm. 

On top of all of that, her desk phone had been ringing off the hook since she had sat back down at her desk. Making a note to talk to someone about maybe hiring an assistant or receptionist, she rejoiced when things finally calmed down. The lull allowed her to finalize the seating chart for the guest list. She forwarded the chart over to Lucy for a second look, to be sure, and then, inevitably, the phone rang again. 

“Son of a bitch,” she mumbled under her breath. She allowed herself a frustrated groan and considered letting the call go to voicemail. She didn’t recognize the number anyway, and calls could always be returned. Then, she remembered that a couple of new vendors had been hired for the event. With the most upbeat voice she could manage, and even going so far as to plaster a smile on her face, Sophia picked up the receiver and greeted the caller. “Thank you for calling Rockefeller PR, Sophia Hawkins speaking.”

“Sophia? It’s Steve. Uh, Rogers. Steve Rogers.  

The phone slipped from her hand, but she caught it before her shocked reaction could be detected from the other end of the telephone line. “Steve. How did you get this number? And why are you calling me at work?”

“I looked the number up,” he replied simply, leaving out the fact that he’d had to track down a phone book to do so because the internet had been too complicated in his worked up state. “And, I’m calling you at work because I want to ask you again if you would consider having dinner with me. Before you say no or anything else, you have to understand, I know that I messed up last time. I should have called you before our scheduled meeting time. But, I swear to you, I really could not get away from the important thing that came up. I hope I can tell you about it someday, but we can’t get to know each other better and get to that point if you don’t go out with me.”

“Generally, I won’t and don’t get myself all dolled up again for a guy who stood me up, regardless of the circumstances.”

“Sophia --” He started to protest, ready to give another amazing speech, but Sophia interrupted him.  

“But for you I will consider it. Give me some time, and I promise to let you know whatever I decide. How does that sound?” 

“Much better than a flat-out no,” Steve answered, releasing a sigh of relief. “I’ll wait for your call.” 

Sophia promised Steve she wouldn’t let too much time pass before she called him with an answer, and they ended their phone call. Ironically enough, the phone call with Steve helped to calm her nerves and Sophia found the remaining hours of her work day flew by. After setting the phone to go directly to voicemail, she gathered her things and met Lucy in the hallway for the short walk to the subway. 

On the ride home, Sophia filled Lucy in on her lunch date with Colin, and then continued on into the phone call with Steve. Lucy listened intently, allowing Sophia to tell her everything before replying. For once, Lucy’s tone was rational and calm and, before Sophia knew what had happened, Lucy had managed to convince her to agree to the second-chance date with Steve. 

Sophia waited until they were in the quiet of their apartment to make the phone call. She dropped the couch, not even taking her jacket off, if only to get the phone call done with before she changed her mind. Steve answered on the second ring. 

“Hey Steve, it’s Sophia.”

The smile in his voice was evident, though it was fringed with hesitancy. “I wasn’t expecting to hear back from you so soon.” 

“Yeah, I wasn’t expecting to call so soon,” she admitted with a chuckle. “Listen, here’s the deal. I will go out with you, on one condition.” 

“And what would that condition be?” Steve asked.

“We make it a double and you find someone to set my friend Lucy up with,” Sophia replied, stifling her laughter at Lucy’s shocked expression. “This way, if some important circumstance comes up again, I won’t be all alone.” 

Sophia thought she might have sounded a little harsh and hoped Steve would understand that was not her intention -- 

“I think that’s more than fair,” he ceded, “I can find someone for Lucy, no problem.”

Shaking her head, Lucy disappeared into the kitchen while Sophia finalized the plans for the double-date with Steve. Once off the phone, Sophia went to the kitchen where Lucy was waiting at the bar with a glass of wine. 

“I didn’t know that I was going to be punished for encouraging you to go on a date with this guy,” Lucy commented through gritted teeth. 

“I need you to help me feel this situation out, Luce! You have to be there with me to do that. And, if he doesn’t show, I don’t want to sit there alone, drinking away my humiliation like last time.” Sophia took the wine glass from Lucy’s hand and drank down most of what was left. “You hungry?”

Lucy nodded. “Starving, actually.”

“Oh good,” Sophia grinned, corking the wine bottle and putting it back in its proper place on the counter. “Because we’re meeting Steve and his friend downtown in an hour.”

Lucy finished off the contents of the wine glass and set it in the sink, then headed to her room to freshen up and change her clothes for an evening she hadn’t planned on. Sophia kept grinning as she followed, but Lucy narrowed her eyes at her friend. 

“You are so lucky you’re my best friend, you know that?”

@arrowsandmixtapes​​​ @the-murder-strut-murdered-me​​​ @growningupgeek​​​ @star-spangled-man-with-a-plan​​​ @captain-rogers-beard​​​ @kitkatd7​​​ @patzammit​​​ @sagechanoafterdark​​​ @what-is-your-plan-today​​​

#steve rogers #clint barton #steve rogers fanfic #clint barton fanfic

[intothestarkerverse]

Paper Hearts

The Starker-Office AU the world needs.

Tony Stark is a paper salesman who hates his job but is secretly in love with the beautiful receptionist. A glimpse into their unorthodox courtship and happily ever after.

Tony Stark hated his job.

Selling paper was one of the most boring professions he could think of, and it had a very obvious expiration date that drew ever closer the more digitized the world became.  At best, he thought, he had another few years before he had to hit the unemployment line and look for another job he despised.  Nothing left to do but collect his paychecks until then, really.

His boss was an idiot.  

Scott Lang was no where near as funny as he thought he was.  His jokes caused Tony actual, physical pain.  The way the guy was a lapdog for Hope from corporate, that was even worse.  Didn’t help that for some reason Scott thought he and Tony were best friends.  The indignities he put up with for this job were not worth the pay check he took home.  Not.  At.  All.

The guy across from his desk was a killjoy.  You’d think Steve Rogers had some amazingly important job with how dedicated he was to it.  First one to arrive.  Last one to leave.  He was a puny little, sanctimonious nerd that Tony loved to play practical jokes on…which was really only one of two things that made the job bearable.  The second?  The second was Peter.

Peter fucking Parker.  

The receptionist.  

Light of his life.  

His reason for waking up in the morning.

The only damn reason he hadn’t left this fucking job in pursuit of something that didn’t make him contemplate using his letter opener to carve a giant hole into the middle of his chest.

Peter was young and beautiful and sweet and he sat directly in Tony’s line of view.  He caught himself staring at the kid way more often than he should.  He would day dream about running his fingers through those fluffy chestnut curls, tugging on the strands in the throes of passion.  He pictured what Peter’s lips would look like wrapped around more than just the straw of his water bottle.  He committed every centimeter of Peter’s face to his memory, knew every piece of clothing in the kid’s wardrobe…enough that he recognized when Peter had treated himself to a new sweater or pair of skinny jeans.  Tony stared because it was all he was allowed to do, and it was the only thing that got him through the day.  Peter caught him, too, but either the kid didn’t realize that Tony was head over heels in love with him…or he didn’t care.  

Tony really hoped it was the former, but it didn’t matter really because Peter had a fiance, Quentin Beck, some handsome asshole from the warehouse who had been promising Peter a ‘happily ever after’ that the kid had yet to realize was really a ‘never gonna happen’.  Quentin wasn’t ready to grow up, settle down, be a fucking man, and Tony had caught him flirting with people who weren’t Peter enough times to know he was a piece of shit.  Quentin Beck didn’t know what he had, but Tony did.  He hated that fucking guy, and the feeling was clearly mutual.

Someday.  Someday, Tony was going to sweep Peter off his feet, steal him away from the asshat and show the kid what a happily ever after should look like.

Someday.

If he ever worked up the nerve.

Until then…

***

Tony leaned against the reception desk, drumming his fingers on the Formica counter and waiting for Peter to finish his call.  Peter glanced up at him through a curtain of eyelashes, biting back a grin and holding a finger to his lips as he quickly scrawled a message on a notepad for Scott.

“Mhm, yeah, no, I’ll totally have him call you back…Yeah…Soon, for sure…Uh huh…Yep, I have here that it’s important so he’ll definitely get back to you…Yep…Cool, okay.  Bye.”  He placed the phone back in it’s cradle carefully and turned his attention to Tony, resting his head in one hand and blushing intensely under the other man’s gaze.  “That was corporate.  You could have gotten me into trouble.”

“I’d never get you into trouble, Pete.  I’d sooner die.”

“This job’s not worth dying over, Mr. Stark.”

“You might be…”

Peter choked out an embarrassed giggle.  “Stop it!  You’re the worst.  Did you just come over here to tease me or did you need help with the copier again?  For someone with half a degree in computers, you really suck with copiers, you know that?”

Tony shrugged, so what if that was one of his many excuses to spend a little time with Peter during the day.  He could hardly be faulted for that.  “Got you a present.  Wanted to make sure you got to enjoy it properly.”

“Oh yeah, what did you get me?”  Peter looked more than a little skeptical, and in all honesty, he probably had a right to be.

“Wait until Rogers gets back from his coffee break and then enjoy the show, Kid.”

“Oh my god, what did you do?”

Tony chuckled, stealing a piece of candy from the bowl Peter filled every week.  “I may have hacked his computer last night…sent him a very official looking email from the US Army inquiring about a very special kind of paper needed for a top secret mission and included a referral from one of his best clients.”

“You didn’t!”

“He’s always acting like his job is a matter of life and death, let’s give the geek a thrill, huh?”

“Mr. Stark, that’s so mean…”

“I could abort the mission if you really think…”

“I mean it would be a shame to waste all that hard work…”

***

“No.”

“Seriously, Steve, I haven’t even gotten to ask…”

“I know, but whatever it is you want, Tony, it can’t be good.  So, no.  My answer is no.”

Tony frowned, hanging his head in frustration for several seconds.  “I know you got Peter in the office Secret Santa thing…”

“How do you know that?  Did you just conveniently skip over the ‘secret’ part?”

Tony was trying really hard to be nice here.  Steve wasn’t making it easy.  “I asked everyone else.  Paid them.  Did them favors.  Tracked down the lucky bastard who was gifting Peter…and Fate hates me, so here we are.  Look, Rogers, I know we’re not friends…”

“Whose fault is that?”

“Mine.  Mine.  It’s clearly mine.  I accept the blame.  I do.  It’s just…I have something planned for Pete and I need to be his Secret Santa.  I will do literally anything.  Name your price.”

“I can’t be bought, Tony.  Peter has a fiance, or did you forget that?  Whatever you want from him, it can’t be good.”

Tony groaned, hitting his forehead against the top of his desk.  “I know Peter has a fiance, Rogers.  Believe me, no one is more aware of Quentin’s existence than I am.  The guy’s a jerk…a bigger jerk than me, and that’s really saying something.  You know it’s true.  He’s a piece of shit and Peter deserves better.  The guy is going to give him some generic piece of crap for Christmas, no thought at all.  You know it.  Peter’s a good kid.  He deserves…he deserves a lot more than that shithole.  Let me give him something nice.  I’m not going to break up his relationship.  I’m not going to lead him down the path of temptation.  I just want to give him something nice and make him smile without him feeling like he needs to do something for me, okay?  Rogers…I’m begging you.”

Steve stared at him for several long minutes before he sighed and nodded.  “Fine.  Yeah.  Okay.”

“Bless you, Steve Rogers.  Consider this our armistice.  War over.”

“I’ll believe that when I see it.”

***

Tony had never wanted to hug anyone as badly as he wanted to hug Peter in that moment.

The kid looked defeated.

He was seated at a little card table towards the back of the comic book shop with several stacks of his own self-published comic in little piles all around him.  

No one was stopping to look at them.  To talk to him.  To acknowledge his existence at all.

His eyes were glassy.  The kid was literally minutes away from crying and he just couldn’t let that happen.

“Just your luck that you’d have your debut on a rainy day, Parker.”

Peter jumped, scrubbing a hand over his cheeks and putting on a brave face as he looked up at Tony with a paradoxical mixture of relief and fear.  “Tony!  You…you came.���

“Course I came.  Wouldn’t miss this for the world.  But seriously, you know rainy days are terrible for business, right?  It’s a proven fact.  Why…I’ve never seen so few people in here before.  Gotta be the weather.”

“Yeah…no, yeah, I’m sure you’re right.”  Peter looked like he didn’t quite believe Tony, but he was also apparently eager for an excuse to explain his lackluster turn out.  Had anyone else from the office even come?  Ass holes.  All of them.  And where the fuck was Quentin?

“So, let’s see…”  Tony reached out for one of the books, carefully flipping through the pages and perusing the content with a little humming noise.  “Hey, now, do you take inspiration from people you know?”

Peter was blushing.  “Maybe…”

“No maybe about it, Peter, you cannot tell me this handsome bastard isn’t based off me.”  He flipped the book around, tapping at an image of a roguishly handsome superhero in crimson and gold armor.  “You know I’m a raging narcissist, right?  I was going to buy a book anyway, but now I have to buy the whole series cause I’m one of the stars.  You in here, too?”

Peter nodded slowly, his blush darkening.  “Yeah…but I won’t tell you who.  You’ll have to figure that out…”

“I do love a challenge.”  Tony closed the book and reached out to add one from every pile to the one in his hands.  “So, how much?”

“Um…they’re ten a piece but…”

“But obviously that’s much too low so I’ll give you a hundred for the set of five.”

“Tony, no…”

“Fine.  A hundred and fifty it is.  You’re a tough negotiator, Pete.”

“Tony!”  The smile on Peter’s face was worth every fucking penny.  And who needed to eat, anyway?

***

“Mr. Stark!  You promised that the goatee was not because of my comics.”

Peter was standing at his desk with both hands over his mouth.  His face was as brilliantly red as the home made Halloween costume Tony had donned for work that day…the costume he had based entirely off of Peter’s comic and the character he just knew was based on him.  Had to be.  And dammit, if he was right…if he was right, than Peter had even made himself Tony’s fucking love interest…and wasn’t that just the most interesting thing he’d ever read in his whole damn life?

“So, I lied.  It’s not my fault. You’re such a damn good artist that I took one look at my comic book self with that awesome facial hair and said, ‘Fuck, Tony, why did you never realize that you’d be even more devastatingly attractive if you just had an impeccably groomed goatee?’  The world has you to thank for it, Pete, and I’m definitely keeping it because it’s been a hit.”

Peter’s hands dropped from his face to his sides.  He was chewing on his bottom lip, looking pensive.  “Who…I didn’t know you were dating anybody Mr. Stark.  I’m glad…they like it.  I guess…”

Tony didn’t bother to correct him.  Not yet.  A little jealousy might do the kid some good, let him know how much Tony wanted to choke the fucking life out of Quentin every time that piece of shit showed his face.

***

Peter was wearing a new soft blue sweater over a button down shirt and Tony was trying very hard not to swoon over how fucking adorable he looked.  He was playing with his gum, winding it around his finger before popping it into his mouth to begin again.  He had his phone concealed in his lap so no one could see him playing on social media while he was supposed to be working.  That was probably why he didn’t hear Tony approach until the man was standing directly in front of him, leaning against the reception desk and looking at Peter with what Tony recognized was something very close to the heart-eye emoji.  God, this kid.  

He really couldn’t take it anymore.

He had to make a move.

Be brave.

Be bold.

Be the fucking hero in that kid’s comic.

“What are you doing tonight, Pete?”

Peter jumped a little, looking up at Tony with a little flush of surprise.  “Tonight?  I don’t know.  Quentin’s got poker at Drax’s, so probably just going to lay in bed and catch up on Netflix.  Why?”

Tony smirked, dropping something on the desk in front of him.

“Oh my god, how did you get this?  It’s not even supposed to be released for another two weeks…”  Peter’s excitement was quelled by the sudden realization, “Is this a bootleg?”

Tony nodded.  He was never going to admit to how much he’d spent for a bootleg copy of something he cared absolutely nothing about because in the end…it was going to be completely worth it.  “Come over to my place tonight.  We can break the law together.”

“You think if the FBI raids your place while we’re in the middle of it that we could at least be cellmates, Mr. Stark?”

“Don’t worry, Pete, I’ll protect you in the prison yard.  No one would dare put a hand on you.”

“I’ve always thought you’d make a great prison husband.”  The witty banter ground to a halt with Peter’s last quip, his light brown eyes flaring wide.  His mouth had runaway without his better judgment, but Tony wasn’t quite ready to let it go yet.

“Oh, I’d make a great husband, prison or not.”  Tony held Peter’s gaze for a second longer than was probably comfortable for both of them, the kid’s face was red as a cherry tomato when they were interrupted by the sound of an exasperated sigh from behind them.

“Tony…could you just grow up already?  Some of us are actually trying to work…”

Peter giggled into his hand, leaning to the side to look around Tony at Steve Rogers’ desk.  “I thought you and Mr. Rogers had finally ended the Civil War, what did you do this time?”  He was careful to keep his tone soft enough that it didn’t carry.

“Hm?”  Tony was still distracted by thoughts of Peter as his prison wife, but managed to pull himself out of it to look back over his shoulder and shrug.  “I super glued everything to his desk last night.”

“Everything?”

“Everything.”

Peter was under his desk now, hugging his sides and laughing himself breathless.  

***

It was far from the first time he and Peter had spent time together outside of work.  They were friendly, in fact.  Quentin didn’t share any of Peter’s interests, and that left plenty of things for Tony to exploit.  Movies Quentin wouldn’t be caught dead seeing.  Video game releases.  Comic conventions.  Hell, Tony had even gone to a few games of D&D with Peter because he would take literally any excuse to spend time with that kid.

Now, they were cuddled up on Tony’s couch in his apartment with enough snack food to weather the apocalypse and a bootleg that Peter was dying to see.  Though, for something Peter was dying to see, he didn’t seem as enthusiastic about watching it as he had earlier that day.

“Pete?  You okay?  Something happen after work?”  He’d been fine when they’d said their goodbyes that day.

Peter ran a hand through his curls and let out a long, shaky breath.  “I think Quentin might be cheating on me.  I don’t have proof but…Drax didn’t know anything about a poker game tonight and it’s just, it’s little things, you know?  I found this little church I really liked for the wedding and I mentioned it to him, that we could maybe set a date…but he brushed me off.  MJ…you know from customer service?  She says I’m an idiot, that he’s never going to marry me and now I’m afraid she’s right…do think she’s right, Tony?”

Tony reached out, drawing the younger man close and inhaling the scent of his shampoo as he tucked Peter against his chest.  “You’re not an idiot, Peter.  You’re way better than that piece of shit in the warehouse deserves.  You’re beautiful and smart and funny and talented, and if you were mine…we’d have fucking eloped the second you said you’d marry me.”

Peter pulled back with a watery smile, “Yeah?”

“Mhm.  They increased the limit on my credit card last month.  Enough for two tickets to Vegas, a week long stay in a crappy casino and a quickie wedding chapel.  I’d lock that shit down before you had a second to realize that you could do better than me, too.”

“Better than you?”  Peter sounded as if that idea was more insane than eloping to Vegas minutes after a marriage proposal.  “Tony, there isn’t anyone better than you.”

“If you believed that, you wouldn’t be with that piece of shit, Quentin Beck.”

Now, Peter just looked confused.  “In what universe did I ever have a choice between you and Quentin?”

“This one.”

Peter’s head slowly canted to one side, brow furrowing and eyes narrowing.  “No…”

“Oh yes, Pete.”  Never in his wildest dreams had ever thought that Peter thought Tony was out of his league.  Was the kid blind?  Did he not own a mirror?  Did he not know how brilliant and funny and talented…  “Oh yes..”  Those last two words were repeated a hair’s breadth from Peter’s lips as Tony leaned forward to bridge the distance between them.

It was everything Tony had ever thought it would be and so much more.  Peter’s lips were soft, his whimpers were music to Tony’s ears.  Tony let himself bury his fingers in those chestnut curls and inhale the scent of him, revel in the taste of him, live in that moment as if it was the only one he was ever going to get.

The kiss went on until neither one of them could breath, until they were forced to pull back with heaving chests and swollen lips.  Peter stared at Tony for several seconds before he threw off the blanket and walked out of the room.

What.

What the fuck.

Tony was dumbfounded.  Was Peter not into it?  Had he just been shot down?  Was Peter not even going to talk to him…

No.

No.

Peter was back.

With his laptop?

Tony frowned, watching as Peter dropped the computer in his lap followed by something small and golden.  Glancing up, Tony caught sight of Peter’s now empty ring finger.

“Put your money where your mouth is, Stark.”

Tony stared. “What…”

“Two tickets.  Vegas.  ASAP.”

“Wait…”  He couldn’t be serious.

“No, you said you wouldn’t make me wait.  I already Snapped Quentin.  We’re broken up.  I’m single…but I don’t want to be.  So buy me those tickets to Vegas and a ring…when we get there.”

Tony slowly opened the laptop, stealing glances at Peter ever few seconds as he booted it and pulled up a travel site.  “You’re not…this isn’t a joke, right?”

“Not a joke.  You’re not the only one who’s been pining, Tony Stark.  Why do you think Quentin hated you so much?  He knew I was super into you…hell, Tony, I made you my lover in my comics…You’ve been my unattainable crush since I started my job.  You’re the nicest guy I’ve ever met. Most supportive.  We have fun together.  We have a lot in common.  We just…”

“Yeah.”  Tony was smiling now, not even second guessing himself as he typed in his credit card numbers.  “I don’t know if we can get a week off work…”

“Four day weekend is good enough for now.  I’ll call Mr. Lang and let him know we won’t be in.  I’ll have to tell him why…”

“God help us.”

***

Four days later when Tony and Peter returned to work in the same car, they arrived to find an impromptu wedding shower waiting for them.  Quentin had quit.  Left all of Peter’s stuff in the warehouse in a pile in the middle of one of the docking bays. But whatever, the less they had to see of that prick the better.  Scott seemed happier about their elopement than they were, and he’d gone to great lengths to print up t-shirts proclaiming that everyone in the office ‘shipped Starker’.  Even Rogers was wearing one.

Tony pretended to hate it.

Really he fucking loved it.  

Maybe his job wasn’t the absolute worst after all…

#starker

[jordanlahey]

King With No Crown (1)

Pairing: Mobster!Bucky x Reader

Summary: Y/n is just another girl in Brooklyn nothing special, she went to school, got good grade and has a well paying job in an office. She is aware that the streets of Brooklyn aren’t as safe as they use to be especially when the “King” has eyes everywhere. On a works night out she stumbles into a situation and now she can’t get out of it, she’d be signing her own death certificate if she tried.

Chapter Warnings: Language, mentions of violence.

Word count: 2833

A/N:Here is part one, enjoy. Tag List is still open.

KWNC - @tuyetnhivo , @sgtjaamesbaarnes @theonelittleone , @sparkling-gayyyy , @dragoste-lunes , @chims-kookies , @hey-nonny-nonny @jsmith509, @dudeodin

Permanent - @doowneey , @m-a-t-91 , @fuckthatfeeling , @jitterbuck , @ria132love @pvnk-bivch , @etherealmandi, @pri00r @5aftermidnight , @thisismysecrethappyplace @dtftheavengers , @typicaltrashbagg, @lanijoyxo

Bucky Barnes - @release-the-cathyrchkn 

Series Masterlist

The rain pelleted heavy off your window, waking you up from your deep sleep. Looking over at your night stand you realised you had woken up 5 minutes before your alarm was supposed to go off, you thought there was really no point in going back to sleep so you got up and headed to the kitchen to make yourself a steaming cup of coffee to prepare yourself for the day ahead. 

After getting changed into your works clothes which only ever consisted of a black pencil skirt that hugged your curves just right and a white blouse that flowed nicely over your chest but not revealing much cleavage and a fitted blazer in case it got chillier in the office, you did your hair, applied minimal makeup to your face, slipped on your favourite pair of black heels and grabbed your bag as you headed for the door.

The rain didn’t look like it was going to clear up anytime soon so you decided to head on over to the apartment car park to take your car. Your car wasn’t anything fancy it was only a light blue Fiat 500, your job did pay you enough that you could buy some luxuries but you preferred to save up your wages only ever taking it out for a food shop or for rent. You only worked for one of the biggest companies owned by the “King of Brooklyn” whoever the hell that is, you don’t exactly know who you’re working for but you didn’t mind the boring days in an office at all and your boss spared that detail mostly because the “King” never visits the office only gets people to come in and check up on things.

Parking your car, you grab your bag and ran for the door avoiding getting soaked by the rain which was now pouring it down. You greeted the receptionist and walked up the stairs to your office occasionally bidding other workers and clients ‘good morning.’

You sighed as you took your seat at your desk and started up your computer, as you waited You organised your desk with files and folders that you were due to complete. You were interrupted by your boss slamming his palms on your desk which drew a lot of people's attention still.

“Good morning Y/n.” He chippered, he was a bright and happy man and had a lot of energy throughout the day and sometimes gets too over excited about work. “Just giving you a reminder it’s the works night out tonight, are you still up for coming?” He smiled but it was forced he always tries to persuade anyone to come to works night out and if you didn’t he will nip at your head for ages.

“Good morning and of course, I wouldn’t miss it for the world.” You smiled back, he seemed satisfied and left you to carry on with your work. Sighing again you started your work like every other day, like a zombie and everything went like clockwork. You avoided looking at the clock as you found that if you kept looking at it time went slower and therefore staying at work longer which no one likes.

However, something did catch your eye and that was the men exiting the elevator. Usually you wouldn’t care for who leaves or enters the building but these men didn’t work here nor were they clients. They wore expensive 2 piece black suits paired with a black tie, you didn’t live under a rock you knew expensive clothes when you see them. One of them was really tall and had great muscles you could see it through his blazer that you guessed was a size or two smaller than his, the other guy had dark skin and was a little shorter not by much who had

also wore the same as the blonde but he wore dark sunglasses which kind of lacked their purpose sinces it’s raining outside.

They both seemed to have spotted you and made their way over to your desk, you quickly looked back at your computer screen hoping they would go to someone else but you were wrong.

“Good morning ma’am.” The Blonde spoke, his voice was stern and deep. You had no choice but to look up from your screen and smiled at the two gentlemen at your desk.

“Good morning, is there something I can help you with?” You spoke softly, you weren’t the receptionist why the hell are they over here.

“Actually yes we’re looking for Mr-”

“Gentlemen, I’m right here. Please come to my office and we can talk privately.” Your boss popped up behind them and you couldn’t shake the feeling that something wasn’t right but you tried your best to ignore it and get all your work over and done with. 

You were done for the day and packed your belongings as headed for the elevator. Shortly after the doors began to close an arm made its way in the gap of the elevator doors so it would open again and revealed the two men that were at your desk earlier that day. You wondered what took them so long to be talking to your boss.

“Nice to see you again…?” The blonde flashed a smile at you, the long pause only meant he was waiting for your name.

“Y/n.”

“Ah Y/n, I’m Steve this is Sam.” You greeted quickly and the you stood their awkwardly till you reached the car park floor. What made you even more uncomfortable was that they followed you to your car and your car plus one other was the only ones on that floor and to make matters worse they parked right next to yours. Seriously you have the whole car park to choose from!

You quickly got into your car and and started the engine and drove off in a hurry worried that they were going to follow you to your home. You can’t be too careful these days. 

You got home round about 6:45pm and you had enough to time to have a hour nap and shower before you start getting ready for your night out. Undressing yourself you put your work clothes in the washing basket and headed for the shower, before you could go in you wrapped the towel around you as you waited for the water to heat up which takes a while. You hummed a tune as you washed your hair and body occasionally singing a verse or two before humming the rest again, then you shut off the water and wrapped the towel around you again before throwing on some sweatpants, a t-shirt and flopping down on your bed but before you could pass out you set an alarm on your phone for an hour later for your night out.

The sound of your alarm filled the room followed by a groan, you really wished your boss wasn’t bothered about everyone showing up for a works night out but when there’s alcohol involved everyone is happy. Except you, you get bored quickly at the night outs and alcohol wouldn’t lift your spirits at all.

You made your way offer to your closet and looked through all your nice clothes, trying to decide if you should go with a skirt or dress? ‘Dress it is, all my skirts are for work.’ You though and started pulling out two dresses, one was red bodycon dress that laced up at the back and the other the same but in black without the lace up back. It took you nearly 10 minutes to decide to go with the red one, you thought it was time for a change and you wear too much black anyways, you paired the dress with a simple pair of black heels and a matching red choker.

You started on your makeup it was a night out which meant you applied more than what you usually do but then have to suffer the consequences with your skin after. You chose to give your hair some loose curls and you didn’t much care if they fell flat throughout the night, you weren’t trying to impress anyone and your hook up days were so behind you. The next decision was whether you were driving tonight or if you should get a cab or just walk which would probably be the best option. You save money on gas and you don’t have to pay someone to drive you home when you don’t live that far away from the club speaking of which you check your phone and you had 20 mins to be at the club or your boss will nip at your neck for being late. You were organised enough that you didn’t need to rush out the door and your coat was hanging on the pegs on the way out anyway.

Now you regret wearing a dress. The cold air was nipping at your legs and other parts of exposed skin, you had forgotten that it had been raining the whole day and the ground was still wet but you were glad that the rain finally stopped. On your way you couldn’t help but feel like you were being watched and it made you feel uneasy, you started to be on your guard for anything you even occasionally looked back to see if you were being followed but nothing seemed out of the ordinary. You wondered if you felt uneasy because the so called ‘King’ had eyes everywhere, you’d think he made the streets safer But it’s the opposite. Your uneasiness came to an end when you found your colleagues standing outside the club waiting for you.

“Y/n, glad you could make it.” Your boss shouted, he was already tipsy you could smell the alcohol off him.

“It’s not like I really had a choice.” You joked, he wasn’t going to remember that on Monday so you can say what you want and he won’t give a damn.

“Let’s get you a drink.”

By the time everyone had arrived you were already bored out of your mind and desperate to get home but you were a nice person and still not tipsy enough so you might as well look out for your fellow colleagues. So there you sat at the bar, on your own,  holding an empty glass in your hand and simply watching everyone have a better time than you.

“Do you want a refill?” A dark husky voice spoke beside you, you turned to look who that voice belonged to. Now you weren’t going to lie the man was attractive as hell but you weren’t planning on taking anyone home with you nor going home with anyone but if you were that he was the one. He had dark brown hair that wasn’t long but wasn’t short either, it looked fluffy if you were being honest and he had really blue eyes that you could get lost in and some stubble which just adds to his attractiveness. He definitely had money in the banks cause his three piece suit wasn’t second hand or cheap despite it just being a plain black three piece with a white shirt underneath.

“Uh-no thanks, I think I’ll just stick to the water for the rest of the night.” You put your glass back on the bar table but you couldn’t stop trailing your eyes all over the mystery man. The man chuckled at your comment and shook his head.

“Now aren’t you supposed to be having fun? You look bored out of your mind.” He spoke, he was right though.

“True but i’m not having fun, I’m looking forward to sneaking my way out so my boss doesn’t see me and I can go home.” You said bluntly. His night outs used to be fun then you got bored of the same old thing every damn time.

“I like your honesty. C’mon one more drink, then you could go out the back he won’t see you leave.” He swirled a glass in front of your face and you gave in.

“Fine one more I suppose.” You turned to look at the bartender and opened your mouth but the man next to you interrupted.”

“One whisky for me and for the lady…” He turned to look at you.

“Whisky for me too.” You flashed a smile at both the gentlemen. Mystery man was shocked at your choice of drink but didn’t argue.

“You’re my kind of girl. Whisky and honesty, what else are you hiding?” He smirked at you then when the drinks came you pulled out your purse but he insisted on paying.

“I don’t mean to be rude but you didn’t give me your name.” You finally asked, if you were going to have a drink with this man you might as well know his name but the face he gave you confused you like you were supposed to know who he was.

“James but my friends call me Bucky. And you, dollface?”

“I’m Y/n and I don’t have a lot friends that call me any nicknames.” You laughed at your own irony. How sad. 

The rest of the night you and Bucky spoke but you didn’t continue drinking with him you were on the water now. Mostly he was intrigued about you and he wouldn’t answer any of your questions and if he did they just created more questions.

“I should probably be getting home now, it’s getting late.” You drink the last sip of your water and collected your coat and purse, Bucky also stood up with you giving you a lopsided grin. “I’m not coming home with you and your not coming home with me.” You looked at him with an uncomfortable smile.

“I understand at least let me walk you to your car or cab.” His hand was at the small of your back as ushered you to the club door then stood with you outside. You felt your cheeks heat up.

“Oh I was planning on walking home, it’s not that far really.”

“These streets aren’t safe for a girl like you.”  Those words lingered in the cold air, you knew that the street weren’t safe but what did he mean by ‘a girl like you’

“I’ll be fine it’s really not that far but thank you for keeping me company and making my night better.” You smiled kindly at him despite him making you feel uncomfortable at times. You turned around and started walking in the direction of your apartment.

Bucky stood in the street, watching you leave like a predator watching his prey. When you were out of sight Bucky took out his phone and dialled a number.

“She’s prettier than you said. I want her.” He hung up the phone and started walking back to his home. Of course being the King of Brooklyn he wasn’t fussed about going home cause he never was alone, he’d find a girl in need of attention and bring her home and fuck her then make her leave when it’s over, he wasn’t fussed. But you. Oh he wanted you not only squirming underneath him but alongside him. 

It was getting colder every step you took and there was hardly any people walking around. They would all be in clubs or at home but the quiet was scaring you slightly and the only noise was the wind blowing harshly passed your ears and the sound of...yelling? You passed a dark alleyway but stopped in your tracks when you heard the same aggressive yelling and the sound of punches hitting skin and bone. You took off your heels to avoid being heard and you hurried down the alley but no was between the two buildings they were behind one of them so you hid behind the brick wall watching as two men beat up another. You recognised the two men it was Steve and Sam but the other guy who was getting the shit beaten out of him you had no idea.

“You messes with the wrong man and now you pay with your life.” You has you back against the wall as you heard Steve’s voice and you listen in horror of a gun being fired. Everything seemed to stop and you waited till you heard the footsteps fade away before running to the body on the floor.

You checked for a pulse and he had one but it was faint, the man was going to die whether you took him to the hospital or not.

“Are...You an...Angel?” The man spoke between breaths as she struggled to stay conscious.

“I’m sorry no.” He smiled and he lost all consciousness and you left. 

In the distance you were being watched, your every move from leaving the dead body to going passed a kebab shop then to your apartment. They waited outside till your bedroom light went off and you drifted off into a deep slumber.

#marvel #avengers fanfiction #avengers fanfic series #Bucky Barnes #bucky barnes x reader #Winter Soldier #bucky barnes au #mobster!bucky #mobster!bucky x reader #bucky barnes fanfiction #Mobster!bucky barnes #MOBSTER!AU

[regulusirius]

coffee and sunsets chapter two

Series Masterlist

plot: When a stranger comes into Y/N’s newly acquired coffee shop she didn’t think much of it. Who knew this interaction would lead her to meet the earth’s mightiest heroes and some love along the way.

pairing: Bucky x female reader

word count: 2.2k

warnings: slight mentions of anxiety, fluff 

piña colada

“This is stupid, so stupid. Why the hell did I agree to this,” Y/N mumbled to herself as she did the clasp on her choker. Agreeing to go to this party was a terrible idea to Y/N . The only person she would know there is Clint and she is bound to make a fool of herself. Looking in the mirror one last time Y/N smoothed out her off the shoulder black gown placing a few strands of her brown her behind her ear. Realizing the uber was waiting, with a sign she locked up the apartment and quickly made her way down the stairs.

The ride to the Avengers Tower was silent, besides the faint sounds of the radio and the jingling of Y/N ’s bracelets. She fiddled with her invitation hoping that this night does not completely turn to shambles. It is the first party she has gone to in months, and as the closer the gps said they were to the destination, the more her anxiety increased. Worries filled her brain with all the possibilities of something going wrong. What if they do not let her in at the door? What if she falls and knocks down all the food at the party? What if for some reason Clint is not there and she knows no one at all? The ‘what ifs’ flooded her brain for the rest of the ride not stopping until the driver told her that they had arrived. Signing she stepped out of the car onto the rough concrete of Park Avenue, only to stare up at the extravagant building before her. It had become a staple of the New York City skyline, more famous than the Empire State building. The large blue ‘A’ shimmering in the moonlight, reflecting all the lights throughout the city. Y/N shook her head as she pushed the glass doors open entering the lobby, not comprehending how she was invited such an elite place.  

Entering the lavish building, Y/N was quick to notice all the memorabilia of the Avengers and Stark Industries achievements hanging on the walls as she handed the now dented invitation to the receptionist. She was guided into the direction of the elevator and told to go up to the twelfth floor. As soon as the elevator doors closed, Y/N signed a breath of relief. One-step completed, now all she had to do was find Clint. When the doors again emerged, Y/N was greeted with the sound of piercing music and many already drunk guests. Stepping out of the elevator, her jaw almost dropped at the extravagant room. The many windows displayed almost all the corner of the Manhattan skyline as the lights on the chandeliers glistened the metallic surfaces around the building. Y/N began to walk up one of the many staircases when she heard a familiar voice call her name.

“Y/N ,” shouted Clint with excitement, as he waved her over to join what she presumed were the rest of the Avengers near one of the many bars, “You came!”

“Yea, well I didn’t really have anything better to do,” Y/N chuckled as she approached Clint pulling him into a hug, before noticing all the faces staring at the two of the time.

“So, this must coffee shop owner you invited,” someone, she presumed to be Tony Stark, asked Clint.

“Yep everyone this is Y/N, she works at Everbean a couple of blocks away,” with that, he proceeded to tell Y/N who everyone was. The red head closest to Clint was Natasha, who Y/N has learned was practically a sister to Clint. Wanda was close behind Natasha, offering Y/N a small wave when Clint stated her name. The man standing next to Tony with the curly hair was Bruce, who seemed to keep to himself, not in a shy way but more of a calming manner. Behind that pair was Steve who gave Y/N a polite hello when introduced and sitting near him was Sam who attempted to make a joke before Clint quickly cut him off. The last introduced was Bucky Barnes. Though part of the group, he seemed distant sitting close to the end of the bar, twirling the olive in his drink with his head down ignoring Clint for the most part. Y/N noticed Steve nudge him out of his thoughts when Clint told her the brooding figures name, leading Bucky to lift his head reveling his shimmering blue eyes as his long brown locks moved away. He offered her a small smile before returning to look down at his drink.

“So what do you want to drink kid, just enter it here and Jarvis will make it for you,” Tony told her pointing to a small tablet attached to the bar. As Y/N entered piña colada into the device, she fully expected a man to pop up from somewhere to begin making it. It was to her surprise when, instead robotic arms appeared to make the tropical drink.  

“Wow I should get one of these for Everbean, it would make my job a lot simpler,” she took a seat next to Clint and Natasha waiting for her drink.

“So you and Clint met at your coffee shop,” Wanda asked, Y/N quickly noticing her Eastern European accent.

“Yea he comes in a night sometimes to get coffee. I kind of feel like a drug dealer giving him his fix,” Y/N joked noticing Clint’s equally joking hurt facial expressions.

“What it’s a normal thing to like coffee,” Clint defend his habit.

“But you only come to get a drink of coffee at night, when most people are going to sleep,” she countered smirking.

“She does have a point there, you need to go to like an AA meeting, but for coffee,” Sam added laughing at the prospect of Clint wandering the streets at night to feed his addiction.

“No offence Y/N , but we have a coffee maker here in the tower. I never understood why he would leave after a mission to get some coffee,” Tony wondered aloud as he went ahead and placed his own drink order for Jarvis to make.

“Coffee should be made by a person; it always tastes better that way. Plus it gives me a chance to get away from you fools,” Clint chuckled at his friends hurt faces, “you guys won’t understand until you come to her shop and have a drink yourself,” Clint offered Y/N a smile as one of the robotic hands was placing the piña colada in front her.

“Well if Clint’s wandering around at night to get this coffee it must be good,” Nat decided looking towards Y/N.

The party led on into the night with most of the Avengers making their way to the dance floor, with Y/N deciding to hang back as her dancing skills were not the best. Watching the group from the bar created a pit in her stomach as she longed from something similar. Being alone for so long it seemed as though Y/N had forgotten how to make new friends. She swirled the umbrella in her tropical drop as she delved deeper into thought, until the man with the metal arm caught her eye. Him too, had refused to join the group on the dance floor and had not moved since Y/N arrived to the party. His head still now facing what seemed like a different drink, but still lost in his own thoughts. Debating whether to go over to say hello, Y/N scrunched up her nose and thought, “What the hell,” she picked up her drink and place it and herself a few seats closer to Bucky.

“You’re not much of a dancer either,” Y/N asked the reserved man hoping he would answer her.

He looked up in confusion at first not realizing another member of the group had decided to stay behind as well, “not really no, not anymore,” with that Bucky looked down at his drink again hoping that would be the end of the conversation.

“Neither am I. With heels on I always feel like I’m going to fall,” Y/N laughed nervously, backing away a little realizing he might not want to be bothered.

Silence filled the conversation with neither working up the courage to speak once more. The music from the dj filled their ears as they both avoided looking each other in the eye. Normally, Y/N would leave the situation not wishing to intrude, but Bucky intrigued her. He was not like most of the men she had encountered in her life, his eyes where filled with mysteries and secrets that Y/N longed the answers for.

The silence loomed on until Bucky looked up meeting Y/N ’s green eyes and decided to break the not so comfortable silence, “So where’s your coffee shop?”

Y/N shocked that he had been listening to the conversation enough to know who she was responded, “Not far from here, by Central Park right near the MOMA. It’s called Everbean.”

Bucky nodded remembering the area having a comic store that he and Steve would go to back in the day, “Do you have other things besides, um, coffee there?”

“Not a big fan a coffee,” Y/N laughed

“I’m more of a tea person myself, but coffee’s okay,” Bucky sighed as a noticeable weighed was lifted of his shoulders.

“Well there’s tea and little deserts. I also have a whole bunch of books there for people to borrow,” Y/N sipped her piña colada moving closer again to Bucky.

“What kind of books?”

“Pretty much every genre. Fantasy, historic, sci-fi, poetry… I even I have all the Harry Potter books, but I only led those out to certain people.”

“I haven’t had the chance the read those yet, I’ve heard they’re good,” this confession made Y/N ’s eyes widen.

“You need to read them now, come on Bucky they’re only like the best novels in the entire world.”

“Better than Agatha Christie,” he challenged raising an eyebrow.

“A bit better, besides they are different genres you can’t compare then,” she defending her stance leaving the empty glass on the bar taking a seat next to Bucky.

“You said best novels in the entire world, nothing about genre.”

“Fine I’ll agree to disagree. I guess your Agatha Christie novels are my Harry Potter, it’s just the time we grew up in I guess,” with that Bucky’s eyes widened in shock. He looked down again making Y/N believe no longer wanted to continue the conversation, but he quickly placed his head back up with confusion in his eyes,

“So you know who I am and what I’ve done, but you still came over here?”

“Well I know from the news that you’ve done some things in your past, while you weren’t really yourself,” she responded explaining the situation lightly, “It wasn’t you. And, I’ve met a lot of not to kind people in my life Bucky, just from sitting here with you now I can tell you’re not one of them,” she offered him a small smile with squeezing his right forearm.

“I still did it, but thanks that means a lot,” he avoided her gaze still uncomfortable about his dark past.

With that the conversation to a turn to more buoyant topics. The rest of the night the two remained at the bar, Y/N sipping on a piña colada while Bucky a scotch, while the rest of the Avengers danced the night away. The pair did not think for a moment to join them, as they were too involved in debating what truly the best film of all time was.

“Wizard of Oz made cinematic history, your favorite movie can’t top that,” was all Steve and Tony heard as they approached the pair when the party was winding down.

“You got him talking about Wizard of Oz Y/N, now he’s never going to stop,” Steve chuckled at his friend’s passion for the movie.

“That and Snow White he won’t stop defending. We need to update your film  selections Barnes,” teased Tony leading Bucky to glare at him, “Anyways Y/N, some of the gang is staying to hang out would you like to join,” Tony offered.

Y/N took a quick look at her watch to realize it was already midnight, “I’d loved to, but I have to be at the shop early, maybe next time,” she began to pick up her purse to walk out.

“Let me get Happy to drive you home,” Tony stated moving to call his friend.

“No okay, thanks but I’ll just call an uber or something.”

“No, I insist,” Y/N did not bother to argue further knowing she would not win.

She walked over to Clint giving him a small hug, thanking him for the invitation, “See it wasn’t so bad,” he smiled teasing Y/N for her reluctance to come.

She waved goodbye to the rest of the group moving to the elevator where she saw Bucky waiting, “Tonight was fun,” he said “I’m use to just sitting by myself, it’s nice to have the company.”

“Me too this was the most fun I’ve had at a party in a while,” Y/N smiled at him as the elevator doors opened, “You better come to the shop, I’ll have tea and a book waiting,” she said stepping in to the elevator pressing the button for the lobby.

“I’ll see you there Y/N,” with that the doors closed and she could not wipe the large smile off her face.

three. mint macaroons

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[i-have-been-changed-for-good]

Easing Back Into Things

I am successfully omitting many interactions and pieces of our conversations. I am trying to make these shorter every week so as to only record things I think are essential. It takes up a lot of my time writing these, but I also really like documenting my moments with Scott. I’ve just gotten into the habit of doing these for so long that it’s a hard habit to break. One day I hope these posts become and stay smaller and that I can just keep future moments in my head, for the most part at least :)

Monday -  When Scott comes in, I turn around the perfect time. I say good morning to him and he seems pretty happy and returns my greeting. He has his sunglasses on and is holding them like he's about to take them off, but he doesn't. He comes right back out of his office right after he goes in to put his food in the fridge. I turn my head but just miss him.

Later in the day, I come out of Joyce's cubicle as he comes walking down the hall, right about to enter his office. He looks at me, but his expression doesn't change. Neither does mine. I hate this finality of things, that Scott will never again have any interest in me. It makes me sad. I still don't understand anything. Was he just having fun this whole time? Do I mean absolutely nothing to him? I can still feel where all the colors were, so beautiful and vibrant, and now I'm left with the stain of them that turned to brown, and it's not the same. During my lunch, I go to the sink to rinse my bowl. I'm there for about a minute, and when I turn around, Scott is right there walking up to the water jug. We greet each other. When I go in his office to talk to him a few minutes later, we ask each other how our weekends were. He says he didn't really do anything. I tell him how I had some drinks with a friend and then got a little tipsy and went to Wal-Mart at like midnight. I show him the giant heads I tried on and the cowboy Santa we saw, and tell him how i could still ride a bike while tipsy. He says how yesterday his daughter wanted grapes so he went out and got them for her, but he didn't realize you could take some out of the bag for however many you wanted and he ended up paying $8 lol. We talk about food shopping a bit and he says how he rarely goes. I guess the wife does it :( I tell him how I got up earlier than normal the past 3 days because I'm feeding my friend's cats all week so I’ve been motivated to wake up on time. I got to work today almost 10 minutes early today. Scott says how he likes waking up early and I do too. Scott hurt his back and under his ribs, so we talk about that and the trainees being here this week as well. Scott makes his tea after lunch. He went upstairs to see what food they had, but it was individual meals. "I told you earlier I heard Linda on the phone ordering individual meals. Did you not believe me?," I joke. We talk about how there’s no cookies today. I tell him I need to stock the coffee lids and when he walks away, I do too down the opposite hall to get the key at the receptionist desk. When I head back, he's putting his creamer back into the mini fridge. I can tell he is looking at me. I go to get my guacamole from upstairs and hear someone at the water jug. I do not look because I see the pastel blue shirt in my peripheral vision, and I know it's Scott. I had no idea he was down there. I 100% try not to look like a creep, but for some reason, the more I try the more I happen to see him so that it looks like I am creeping. I could see too that he looked up at me, so I thought it best to pretend like I had no idea. But then it happens again later on. I go to grab stuff I printed and turn around and the men's room door opens. I walk into my cubicle, but not before seeing that it’s Scott. I had no freaking idea he was in there because I had my headphones in and didn't hear him walk by. I talk to Scott at the end of day and he says how the day dragged. I wasn't busy, but I still felt the day went pretty quick. I feel hungry and tell him I'm usually hungry on Mondays which I think is because I eat so much Sundays at brunch. He tells me it's time to go and then points out how he actually told me today because I get annoyed when he doesn't. I smile and say, "I don't get annoyed." I turn my head as I pass by Steve's window and I swear Scott is looking in his window's reflection to see me leaving. We walk out together and I already have my sunglasses on, but it's gray out. "I'm getting like you, wearing sunglasses when I don't need them. And you don't even have yours on yet." He does put his sunglasses on before we get outside and I remember how I noticed this morning he had different sunglasses on. I turn to him and ask, “New glasses?” “Naw, I just don’t really wear these that often. Do you like them?” “Yeah, I do.” He thanks me and we say bye to each other.

Tuesday -  Just like yesterday, when Scott comes in in the morning, I turn around at the perfect time. He's maybe about 5 feet from me. He takes off his sunglasses, and he gives me that look that he always used to, with the flirty smile. We lock eyes. My heart skips a beat. I have not see that look on his face in weeks. Scott goes somewhere during my lunch and he ends up being gone for about an hour. I hear him talking and he's coming down my hall and not his. I know he does this to pass by my cubicle, but I don't look at him cuz I don't wanna creep lol. He runs into Steve at their office doorway and I hear Scott say something about HR. He gets tea after his lunch and I'm at Joyce's cubicle. My conversation with her ends and I go over to talk to him. I ask him how his day is and he says he's pretty busy. He went out again for lunch since there's nothing good upstairs. I tell him how there's pizza in the fridge and when I peeked in one looked like it was just veggies, so I might swipe some at the end of the day. Once leftovers go in the fridge, no one eats them and they just get tossed. Scott said there was no chicken at ShopRite so he got pasta in his salad. I find out he apparently doesn't like cold eggs. I try to make mental notes of his likes and dislikes. What's weird is he says he has no choice but to buy his own lunches usually. Idk what he means by that. I tell him how I'm happy because my friend helped me put up my TV mount yesterday, only like 3 months after I bought it. It's a little crooked, but I'm just happy it's up. Scott gives me a little smile. During our conversation at one point, Scott and I just look at each other into the other's eyes. We hear Steve start cursing and hes banging the phone down repeatedly. We both stand there laughing really hard, trying not to laugh out loud. Scott goes into his office to see what's up. I walk by after heating my tea and he looks at me, no smile, but I smile anyway. When I come back in from the warehouse a little later, Scott looks at me, but Linda was right there walking by and I said hi to her, and when I look at Scott he looks away. Asdfghjkl.

At the end of the day, when I go to throw my papers in the paper bin, the single bathroom door opens. It's Scott. He fills up his water at the jug right there and I go back to my desk. I wait about a minute before going to his office. He grins at me when he sees I still came to talk to him. I tell him how i went to grab some pizza but that it had sausage under the cheese. He says I can't just pick it off and I agree and say I wouldn't eat it anyway and he agrees. He's starting to get it <3. I say how its not like I don't have food at home and he smiles and says "Yeah, it's not like you're starving." Ah, but once upon a time I did rely on these trainee sessions to eat, Scott. One time, for one whole week I survived off of it because I had no money for food after paying my bills. Another time, I had $20 to split between gas and food for a week. I'm okay now, but it was a struggle last year for me. I have pink mauve pants on today and I say how I have to do laundry cuz I have no clean pants and found these at the bottom of my drawer. Scott says he likes the color. I say how I have shirts in the same color but didn't wanna match them with the pants. I found a black shirt with a pattern that goes nice. Scott is wiping his sunglasses and I say how I ordered a bunch of cleaning wipes for my phone, glasses, etc. He had to have a new screen put on his phone cuz it broke, he thinks from sitting on it. "I don't know how you would break it just from satting on it," I reply. I meant to say "sitting". Scott laughs. I notice the sunglasses he brought today are the ones he wore yesterday and I wonder if this was intentional on his end. We walk out together. I turn to look at him and say "No sunglasses today, on a sunny day?" He smiles and says he just hasn't put them on yet. I say bye to him when we get outside. I always turn to look at him when I say bye and when I do so today, he smiles at me. I get to my passenger door and look at Scott, who is very clearly looking over at me. When I get into the driver side, I see Scott acting like he forgot something and he runs back inside. I start pulling out the exact moment that he opens the door to come back outside. He smiles at me and I wave at him. I’m not sure if he’s just smiling at me because of me, or because of my noisy hubcaps, loud music, or squeaky brakes lol  I reach the gate and Scott pulls up behind me. 

Wednesday -  I didn’t get to greet Scott in the morning as he came in about 10-15 minutes later than usual. 

I go on my lunch and heat my pizza, and as I walk down the hall, Scott turns to me and says, "Hey, Dana." I go in after I finish eating and Scott is pretty busy today. I tell him how I had DiGiorno pizza for the first time and he says he thinks he had it once maybe 50 years ago. "50 years? So before you were born?," I tease. I say how I didn't have to get in the left lane at all yesterday on the way home cuz the right was all open and Scott says I left like 2 minutes before him and he got stuck in a busy section. It was not 2 minutes because Scott was right behind me when we got on the highway. He's terrible at estimations lol. He says traffic was shitty this morning and that that's why he was later than usual coming in. I ask him if he heard how Will quit and he says yeah, how Will always said he was going to quit but Scott never knew if he was serious. It was hard to tell when Will was joking or serious. We talk about that a bit more and then Scott gets a phone call. He hangs up and I go to move my hair over my shoulder and my hand catches on the front of my shirt, so it's pulled forward (not down) and then snaps back. Scott's eyes flutter to my breasts for a quick second. He asks me what I'm doing. Okay, I didn’t do it on purpose, Scott. I tell him how tomorrow is National Book Lovers Day and I say how I read every day anyway. "Do you really?," he asks. Then he adds, "Well I do too. I read Peppa the Pig every night." We both laugh and we talk about that and then I show him the video clip of Peppa the Pig and the whistling thing where she hangs up on Susie. It's the only Peppa the Pig thing I've ever seen. Steve comes in and I think he makes a face at us cuz Scott looks up at him and smiles. When I turn to look, Steve already went down the hall to the water jug. I decide to go up during Scott's lunch to go grab some fruit. Ed is up there getting his lunch and we all say how there hasn't been any cookies this week. I ask Scott if he wants any fruit or honeydew since there's a lot left but he declines. There's no forks left and Scott offers me his. I think he had meat on it cuz he tells me to wash it, which I do. I sit down and have to move some of his stuff cuz he's spread everything out across the table. He asks if I'm still on lunch, which I would think he knows I'm not, and I tell him no. I literally only came up to talk to him. I can come up anytime to grab the food. He's wearing a white shirt and there's a small blue stain where he dropped some yogurt earlier. He's so messy, but it's cute. I tell him about Weasley catching this giant flying bug yesterday and then start talking about the restaurant I work at and how ghetto it is cuz the owners don't care. Before I leave, I tease him about the mess he made on the floor. I go back to my cubicle and then go to fill up my water bottle. I can hear Scott shuffle out of his office to go outside to his car. I turn and look at him when I get to the jug and he turns to look at me too. We talk again when he's back from lunch and makes his tea. He nods his head up at me. I make my tea right after him. When i heat my tea later on, Scott is standing up and leaning on his left elbow. I know he's more likely to look at me when he's standing like that, and sure enough he looks at me and nods his head up ever so slightly with a little smile. I smile back at him. Scott apprently leaves when I go upstairs to grab my lunch bag, so around 4:30ish. I picture him looking in my cubicle to say bye and me not being in there. Thursday -  I once again turn around at the perfect time when Scott walks in. He takes his sunglasses off at the same exact moment I turn. I beam at him and we greet each other. His voice makes me melt. 

When I clean my smoothie cup, Scott is leaning on his left elbow, so he's turned toward the door. He’s more likely to acknowledge me when he's standing like that. Sure enough, he looks at me. His smile is a little hesitant at first, but when I light up and smile, he seems more sure of his own smile. This makes me happy. I go in to talk to Scott during my lunch and tell him how they got the good salad today. He's shopping for Nike shoes on his computer. He tells me a story about this specific pair he had that his doctor recommended to him when he hurt his foot last year. He said he bought 2 pairs and ruined the one pair from doing stuff like mowing the lawn and I had asked him why he would wear nice shoes while doing that, which caused him to explain about his doctor and everything. When he's finished I laugh and say I like how he had to say all of that to justify his shoes. He smiles over at me. I tell him how I'm going to the outlets next Saturday with my mom and usually get my running shoes and whatnot down there since they're cheaper. I'm taking off next Friday too. My mom wants me to be well rested for Saturday so shes giving me money to make up for me taking off since I don’t get paid days off as a temp. Scott stares at me after I say this. It looks like he's trying to read me and is sort of surveying me. He's definitely thinking about something. I already know he took that day off as well and the Monday after. However, me taking off has nothing to do with him and I assumed he has some mini vacay planned with his wife. He tells me how he left early yesterday to go to the eye doctor but his appointment was apparently Tuesday. He got there and they were locking up, so he had to reschedule. I tell him how I was wondering where he went cuz I was like "Where'd Scott go?" at the end of the day. He says how he doesn't know if he wants to go to the Eagles training on Saturday. He heard at the last one there was 40,000 people, which is insane. It's only cuz they won the Superbowl last year. Before I leave his office, he's giving me that look again like he's reading me and thinking about something. I have no idea what he’s thinking. I go upstairs once again when Scott is on his lunch. He's the only one in there. I grab some salad and he says how all the strawberries in it are gone. I tell him someone must have picked them out because when I put my lunch bag away not that long ago there was plenty left. I pocket some of the raspberry dressing packets and tell him i keep some in my drawer when I can since it's rare we get this dressing. I ask if I can sit with him as I walk over to his table. Idk why I ask, I guess because of my anxiety I always need to be sure of things. He jokes and says no at first all sarcastically. I talk about my green pants I have on and how I put some pulls in them from trying to brush cat hair off of me cuz it's easier than using the lint roller and more effective. I should probably stop doing it though since it’s clearly not made for pants lol. I'm up there a good 15 minutes and then tell him I'm gonna head back downstairs. I mention how next time I’ll swipe some strawberries for us before everyone else can take them and he smiles at me. I stand up and pause to look at him. He looks up at me with a crooked little smile and unf, man, those looks he gives me really sends a warm feeling through my whole body. Scott makes his tea after lunch and I pop out with a blue folder since what I printed needs to go in there and given to Pete. After i staple what I printed and place it in the folder, I look over at Scott to talk to him. He is facing his whole body toward me and just staring and me with this sweet look on his face. I'm genuinely surprised. We start talking and then I say I forgot what I was gonna say. He comments on it and I retort "At least I remember my eye doctor appointments." He grins and laughs. We talk for another few minutes. It's our last interaction for the day since Steve leaves late and I feel weird going in to only talk to Scott. Steve sees me go to to the paper bin and look in at Scott. Whoops haha. I give him a little smile, but I know the damage is done. He caught me. I mean, I’m sure he knows what’s up anyway.

Friday -  Scott comes in in the morning, but I don't turn. I had turned my head to the right and saw in my peripheral, but I wasn't sure if it was him or his boss Chris. Scott greets me and I turn to the left. He's still looking at me as he passes, with a grin on his face. I smile back at him and greet him. I'm still standing at the printer when Joyce comes over to the coffee machine, and then Tom, from Sales. Tom is talking so I'm facing him and listening when Scott comes walking out to go down the hall. I look at him instead and he turns to me with a sly grin. I return it. I make my coffee about 10 minutes later and go in his doorway to talk to him. "No Steve today?" Scott says he had a Marilyn Manson and Rob Zombie concert last night so he took off today. We talk for a few minutes about that. Scott’s daughter broke his badge, so he shows me that. He doesn’t know what to do with it except put it in his pocket for the time being. He always has it clipped onto his pants so that he never forgets it. I'm standing there talking to him close to 10 minutes and then I tell him I'll talk to him in a bit. I hear Scott on the phone several times throughout the day. Usually I can't hear what's going on cuz of the printer or I don't care to listen to any conversations, so really it's all just background noise to me usually. However, I notice Scott talking today because of how much I hear him laughing on the phone. Like anyone, Scott has several different laughs, and his are all wonderful. He has a deep belly laugh and a casual laugh and then one where he goes "ha haaaa" and it's all just music to my ears. He also has the best voice I have ever heard and oh man, oh man, he fills me with such a joy just from listening to him. I head toward the warehouse door to take an order out, and Chris the engineer comes down the hall and gets there before me. I take the opportunity to look in at Scott. He's looking at me. I have a smile on my face, but Scott just stares, though it's not a serious stare but more of a welcoming one. During my lunch, I'm rinsing my bowl when Scott walks by to head back to his office. Idk what he was doing. We say hey. When I go in his office to talk to him I ask if he was looking at the pizza upstairs but he says he wasn't and asks where they got the pizza from. I'm not sure, but all that's left is plain anyway. He asks if I had my DelGiorno pizza today and I laugh and say, "DelGiorno? It's DiGiorno." He smiles and says, "Whatever." He's looking at videos on how to take the plastic apart that the badges are kept in. He asked Linda, the receptionist, for a visitor badge so he could put his card in there. That explains why he walked by me at the sink. He's not having much luck though and needs a special tool to open them. I somehow get talking about Jameel, one of the warehouse guys and how Charles told Jameel he needs to do the orders he's told to do. It's been an ongoing issue where we have urgent orders and Jameel purposely ignores them. Scott laughs and says, "Who does Charles think he is? That's not his job." It's definitely not, but no one in charge actually handles any issues they should be addressing. Scott used to work with Charles at the parts counter in the other building. He says how Charles had been there forever and still had no idea what he was doing but that he's a funny guy. Scott says he went into the warehouse earlier and instead of using a lift, Charles was trying to toss these rings onto a shelf and they kept falling on him. "I was like, 'Charles, what the fuck are you doing?'" I start cracking up. Both Scott and I are pretty busy today. Scott's happy about it cuz the day is going faster, but I wish the day would slow down so I can get all my work done. I show him Snapchats from 2 of my friends who went to the Eagles training last night and it was pretty much a full stadium. I think that kind of sealed the deal for Scott in not going, especially because it's also supposed to rain. Scott asks me if I have any plans this weekend and I tell him i will probably go to Barnes and Noble in the morning tomorrow, but other than that I want to relax. He turns to me and gives me the same look as yesterday, like he's trying to read me. He literally stops what he’s doing to stare me down. Yesterday I kept looking away, then back at him, then away, then back again. Today I hold his gaze. When he decides he's done intensely staring at me, he says he could really go for some coffee. He has to go to Shoprite for lunch and Dunkin is also right there. I end up saying "almond" and Scott thinks it's funny how I say it, and we get talking about linguistics. I tell him about Vine and how I say it differently (like how you would say "zine") but I think it sounds better like that. He doesn't know what it is anyway and I show him a few video clips. Our generational differences don't bother me at all and I actually appreciate what we can offer each other from it. My lunch is done and I ask him if he can get me the coconut aloe water. He says he will and I give him money. Scott comes back from lunch and goes into his office first before coming to give me my aloe water. "I felt like you only left like 10 minutes ago," I say and he says back with a smile, "Yeah, me too." I reach out to grab the bottle and move my hand in a way so that one of my fingers grazes his nail. It's such a small interaction, but I thrive off of the incredibly rare, minuscule physical touches. If I actually got to touch Scott in any other way, even just a hug, I don’t think I’d know what to do with myself.

I have to go out to the warehouse to take out an order I worked on while Scott was at Lunch. I look in at him when I walk out and he looks at me too. When I come back in, he's turned toward the doorway and I stop in it to talk to him. "Didja get your coffee?" He did. He got some new iced brown sugar coffee Dunkin has. He asks me if I want to try it and if I don't care drinking through his straw. I tell him I don't care and ask if he does and he says no. Of course I don't care, Scott, are you kidding me. We talk about tipping and I say I don't tip at Dunkin but I tip if I order take out or get ice cream, and of course at restaurants. All of those things are rare for me though because I try to eat most meals at home. Scott slowly smiles at me and says, "You’re generous, huh?" I try to wave it off and say, "I guess." Idk why I'm like that. We get on the topic of how Indians own most of the Dunkins and I tell him how when I was like 16 i called this Chinese restaurant to ask if they were hiring cuz I loved Chinese food and the lady got really pissed and yelled at me and then hung up. Scott gets a call on his cell about his heating and A/C so I go back to my desk. I had put my aloe water in the fridge so that I could retrieve it later and walk by Scott’s office, which I do. I say how there’s no one left in the office today except maybe 5 or 6 of us. Scott says how everyone he needs to ask about something who would know the answer isn’t here. I jokingly boast, “Ask me. Maybe I’ll know.” Scott laughs and asks about something and if it’s 2 ply or 4 ply. Of course I have no idea. He starts talking about how he’s dealing with this guy at another branch, who is also in parts like him, but this guy doesn’t know what he’s doing. We get on the topic of how dumb people can be. It’s not a great topic, but honestly, people can just be so incredibly frustrating and I feel like it’s good to let it out sometimes. I tell him how last Sunday at work there was a party in the back room, and I asked this one lady “Are you here for the birthday party?” and her response was, “No, I’m here for the birthday party.” Scott laughs. Then I tell him how I always say to people, “You can follow me” and I’ll start walking but then they won’t follow me. Then they’ll say, “We follow you?” as if they’ve never been to a restaurant before. And it’s not like I talk all that quietly; my normal voice is pretty, well, normal. So I tell Scott I don’t know how he deals with it as his full-time job, because I most definitely couldn’t. I tell him how our game event thing is next Friday but they’re also adding our quarterly review event in after it, so I’m glad I took off. I don’t want to hear how good we’re doing as a company when they can’t even hire me even though my paperwork is all done and signed. “Yeah, I saw the email and read ‘We had a great second quarter -’ and then deleted it.” Scott agrees and says all it does it piss people off anyway, because our company makes so much money and now they’re introducing the new, shitty health insurance next year and no one really wants to hear about how well we’re doing. We talk about the guy whose office the emails come from and how he probably makes so much money, but what does he even do? I tell him how at the one college I attended, the President got a $175,000 raise. Not salary, raise. My one friend worked in his office and was in charge of typing his emails and sending them out. I only ever saw the guy at my orientation and graduation. What exactly he did, I have no idea. It’s just so stupid how people in high positions do so little and make so much. I start to tell Scott about my old job but then he gets a phone call so I head back to my desk. 

Toward the end of the day, Greg, who sits around the corner from me, is talking to Scott on loud speaker. I hear Scott laugh through the phone and I can’t wait till I get to talk to him before it’s time to leave.

When I do go to Scott's office, he had just gotten off the phone and I can see he’s busy. I stand in his doorway and then he gets up and says he has to talk to Greg. He smiles as he walks past me and I look at his butt. I hand my hour sheet into Pete and go back to my cubicle. I’m just finishing packing up when Scott walks past. “You leavin, Dane?” “Yeah.” “Aight. See ya later.” NO. We are saying goodbye properly on a Friday, Scott. I grab all my stuff and head into his doorway. “You staying a few minutes?” Scott says he is, so I tell him to have a nice weekend and he tells me the same.

So something is definitely shifting with Scott. I can feel it and I also noticed it. He’s thinking about something, though obviously I don’t know what it is since I can’t read minds. He’s also starting to interact with me again like normal. I can’t help but feel like the only reason he stopped was because he didn’t know how to act and that he was also observing me and seeing what I do. Honestly, I feel no need to bring up anything again or ask him any questions. There isn’t really any need, whether he continues to flirt with me or not. Nothing has happened between us outside of work, so why would I keep bugging him? I told him I like him, so he knows that much. I felt like it was important he knows, just in case he changes his mind about things, he would know that for me, there is an emotional attachment there. Scott is the master of keeping his emotions in check, so what exactly is going on behind his mask is hard for me to decipher. Of course, that doesn’t mean I’m not going to keep trying, because that’s what I do, I try to read people and figure them out, even more so if someone wedges their way into my heart. Either way, still just kind of shrugging my shoulders over here going, “Meh, I have no idea what’s going on.” But I’m okay with it. I’m learning to be at peace with not knowing how everything in life is going to turn out. 

[superlepato]

The shape of you. Kind of Harringrove Modern Au

I honestly don’t know how to call this so I borrow the title from Ed Sheeran. Anyway the day before yesterday I wake up with this idea, I didn’t post it that day because I’m awful administrating my time and I got distracted easily.

For the sake of this plot, you need to have this information for reference. So according to this page Joe and Dacre's measurements are:

Joe Keery: 74 kg = 163 lbs / 1,80 cm =5 ft 11 inches Dacre Montgomery : 77 kg = 170 lbs / 1,78 cm = 5 ft 10 inches 12 Kg = 26 lbs

Note: I found interesting that in numbers there isn’t much difference between them.

Note two: I found hilarious that in the page the distinctive features Joe are: long hair and boy next door appearance.

I don’t know much about gym or diets, just basic stuff. You can leave a comment if I make a mistake.

• The day that Steve got the invitation for Nancy and Jonathan’s wedding he knew that he got a problem. Don’t take him wrong he cares and is happy for them, but it’s been a long time (years) since he last saw them and…he isn’t exactly the same.

• After graduating and start working with his father learning the basics, you know from the bottom, it was easy to stay in contact with the kids and everyone since he still stayed on his parent's house, but after moving out to be close to the branch office in Chicago he maintained contact mostly by phone.

• He thought he was going to hate working from his father but the work was actually pretty nice, apparently his people skills and quick thinking were an important asset in that line of work, for once he didn’t feel like lacking.

Also, he had Edna, his secretary, that woman still conserved her wit at her sixties, sharp as a knife. She helped him and compensate his youth and the bad judgments that come with it sometimes.

• Something that he learned that school didn’t teach him was that sometimes it was more important how you do things than what you do, in other words, it didn’t matter if you knew what were you doing or not, always be confident. One thing that seems to work was inviting investors or close deals by paying a dinner in a good restaurant or drinks in a bar.

• So it was inevitable to gain some weight, he worked in an office and when he didn’t he was too exhausted to work out, he wanted to relax a bit, watch T.V and eat Chinese, ok? Also, he didn’t gain so much just 26 lbs.

It wasn’t a big deal but still he didn’t want to be the one to look like he left himself go (you know the one that people talk at his back in high school reunions), it was stupid but he has pride and he’ll be damn if he became the first one of the group.

• He couldn’t decline not only it would be rude and coward on his part, but also because Jonathan requested to be one of his best men. (To be honest, in my mind I imagine Nancy being the one to do the request but at the same time and for plot reasons, I don’t see him as a bridesmaid (It would be funny, not going to lie))

• He had like four months to lose the extra weight which he couldn’t do alone, so he subscribe to a gym that was a bit far from his apartment but it was the best according to the nephew of Edna and if she says it was good then it was good.

• It was the first time going to a gym, especially one where he didn’t know anyone so he was kind of nervous and for the sweet way the receptionist treat him, he wasn’t doing a good job trying to no let it show. They took his measures, weight and his body mass.

The instructor that was assigned to him was some Billy Hargrove, he will help him not only to lose weight but gain some confidence.

• Holy shit. He just saw who was going to be his instructor and he was so fucked up, it would be a miracle for him to end this session without an erection. The guy was beautiful, stunning blue eyes, short blond hair a bit curly in the front, strong jaw and a body to die for. Damn.

• Now he understood what they said he will help him with his confidence, the guy not only exudes sex appeal but also charisma, he knew that he was just being nice but it was hard not to be flustered with was coming out of his mouth.

The instructions were simple he was going to get married to cardio and weightlifting, also he needed to reduce his carbohydrates intake, he couldn’t eat more than his body could burn. The good thing is that he wasn’t going to die of hunger, his calories intake should be between 3.000 -7.000.

• That’s how his journey started, his diet changed drastically, no more takeouts, fried foods, always drinking water, his only snacks between meal were veggies and nuts. If it weren’t for Edna he wouldn’t have lasted, she always makes sure that he didn’t cheat or forget to eat at a time. It was a shame that she couldn’t help him with his crush of Billy, he couldn’t have nothing with the guy since it was against the policy of the gym but one could dream, and how did he dream.

After Nancy he dated some girls and mess around with some guys, nothing serious but its been a while since the last time he had sex, God he was just 25 and already live the life of a fifty-year-old salaryman.

• By the third month, he loses all the extra weight and he really feels good, he forgot how good it felt to run in the morning and wake up full of energy. Now that he reached his goal it was up to him to maintain and keep the hard work. He was going to miss Billy though, he could ask him out now but he didn’t want to leave the wrong impression and be one of those people.

• He got his chance in a coffee shop and found him sitting alone at a table, he went to say hi, one thing leads to another and in the end, he got his number.

• He didn’t want to disturb him at work so he tries to send texts during his lunch break or after work, in one memorable occasion, he sends him a text in the morning, in his defense he was excited that morning he discovered that he has abs! He couldn’t remember having it in high school, he needed to share the news so he sends a photo to Billy.

• His relation at work was better, his new energy made the load of work easy to handle, he smiled more thanks to Billy, everyone in the office could see the changes especially after buying new clothes and getting a haircut.

People were giving him and trying to get his attention, but Steve was oblivious to it, could it be that he only has eyes for Billy or the fact that he got used to not attract the attention of anyone in the office, that now he couldn’t see more than friendliness in the approach of the same people that a few months ago didn’t mind him.

• He goes to New York a week earlier so they can take his measures for the smoking, a brief tour of where was going to be the wedding and practice the do’s and don’t’s. It was nice to see everyone again, especially the “kids” but he couldn’t stop thinking of Billy. He wished that he were here with him.

• The wedding was beautiful, the reception, the food, he danced with Nancy, Mrs. Wheeler and Mrs. Byers and some cousins and still the only thing that came to his mind was the blond.

• The first thing that he did at his return was to ask him out, which was the correct thing to do apparently Billy was dying to do the same, according to Billy he didn’t take the step for how disinterested Steve seemed at his advances. To Steve seeing Billy flirt in the coffee shop and the stares he attracted, make him believe that he didn’t have a chance.

He was surprised to find that he did have a chance from the first day, the things that really matter didn’t change with more or less weight (Billy’s words), it was sweet until he mentioned his dick and perky ass, he almost redeems himself complementing his eyes, almost. The apology sex was more than enough.

The other version of this Au was that Billy and Steve met before in high school, everything would be the same except that Billy would tease the shit out of Steve in the gym.

#harringrove #steve harrington #billy hargrove #The Shape of You #my writing

[captain-s-rogers]

Have A Little Faith In Me

(gif credit to the creator)

Part Three

Master List

Pairing: Steve Rogers x OFC // Clint Barton x OFC Word Count: 2,527 Warnings: none? A/N: Here’s the third part of the rewrite of my first ever Marvel series! Special thanks to the best bestie in the world, @arrowsandmixtapes​​ , for making sure all of my work isn’t absolute garbage! If you want to be added to my tag list please let me know! Feedback is cool :)

Sophia lost track of how many times she listened to Steve’s message over the next few days as her head and heart battled each other. Though she wanted to call him back, at least hear out his explanation, she refused to return the phone call and be the girl who caves to a guy only because he’s good-looking. 

“You could just call him back, ya know,” Lucy mentioned, as casually as possible, while the two women were having lunch.

“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Sophia speared a cucumber in her salad and crunched into it, pretending to be innocent of the subject at hand while also trying to convince herself that good looks was all she had seen in Steve the night of the public event. 

Lucy reached across the table and snatched Sophia’s phone. Sophia tried to stop her, but she wasn’t quite quick enough. 

“Sophia, it’s Steve. Steve Rogers. I’m so sorry about not making our date tonight. Something important came up and I couldn’t get out --” 

Sophia ignored Lucy’s knowing look, set down her fork and leaned over the table to snatch her phone back. She cut off the message and shoved the phone back in her purse. She went back to her salad as though she hadn’t practically crawled over the table in a public place. 

“I can’t call him back,” Sophia stated. “In case you forgot, Luce, he stood me up, then gave a vague, thoughtless excuse. Aren’t you the one who told me that men are only vague when they’re lying?”

Lucy rolled her eyes. “I said most guys. And anyway, is sitting here, repeatedly listening to the message and driving yourself absolutely insane, really any better than calling the guy back and going on one little date?” 

“Yes.” 

Lucy shook her head, taking a bite of her own salad. Since Sophia had apparently dug her heels in on the matter, she took the conversation in a slightly different direction. 

“You know, Colin in marketing has had his eye on you for a while. Why don’t you accept his offer?” 

“Because I’m not looking for a date,” Sophia replied. “It’s not like I’m lonely and looking for someone to save me from my misery. Steve just so happened to ask me out in a moment of weakness -- I was in the mood to go out, that’s all.”

Lucy took the last bite of her salad before wiping her mouth. “I’m not saying you have to marry Colin or even accept more than one date with him. But, Colin doesn’t seem like he’s looking for anything super serious, either. Maybe going out with him will at least get you to delete Steve’s voicemail so you can move on with your life.”

Sophia leaned back in her chair and huffed. Lucy always had her best intentions at heart, and that motivated Sophia to give what her friend was saying a moment of real consideration. Maybe Lucy was right; maybe Sophia needed to go out with someone else to get over the nothing she’d had with Steve. 

“Fine, I’ll go out with Colin,” Sophia relented, drawing a grin from Lucy across the table, “Next time he asks me out, I’ll say yes, but I am not going to seek him out.” 

“That’s fair. I do really think it will be good for you.” Lucy leaned forward and gave her friend a comforting smile. 

Sophia assured Lucy that she knew her friend had good intentions. With a plan in place, Sophia was able to finish her lunch without Lucy pressing any more on the subject of men and dating. 

Steve couldn’t think of anything or anyone else except for Sophia and the fact that she hadn’t returned his call. He threw himself into work, even going so far as to ask Director Fury for extra missions with S.H.I.E.L.D -- ones he really wasn’t needed on -- but the distraction failed. Though he knew that she had to be upset about being stood up, and rightfully so, he had been so sure that she would call back. 

Calling again crossed his mind, but he didn’t want to bother her or press the issue if she didn’t want to call him back. Their time together at the public event had been short, but Steve knew that they could be a good thing. Missing his date with her had left him missing out on a good thing, which was another thing he couldn’t stop his mind from reminding him throughout the day.

“Just like Peggy, all over again,” Steve sighed to himself. 

His work with S.H.I.E.L.D was important. Steve knew that. If he hadn’t known that from the beginning, he never would have agreed to be part of the supersoldier program in the first place. His need to serve his country, to live up to the duty he had been called to fulfill, did not escape his knowledge, either. But, he was realizing the cost of service and duty now: his personal life was being greatly affected by this work he had been called to do. 

The walls of his apartment were closing in on him, and his mind was only racing faster by the minute. He needed to clear his head, to get out and find something else to think about. After pushing his arms into the sleeves of his worn, brown leather jacket, Steve double-checked that he had his keys and his wallet, and walked out the door, making sure to lock it before he walked away. 

Present day New York City was still a sight Steve was getting used to. The buildings were far more numerous, not to mention taller. Traffic was more dense and faster and -- well, chaotic, really. Out of all the things he had to adjust to in this new time period, the city traffic was something Steve wasn’t so sure that he would ever be able to wrap his mind around. 

There was a coffee shop a few blocks down from his apartment building; Steve decided on a whim to stop there for a cup of coffee. Starbucks was all right, and maybe it was the old-timer in him, but he preferred these little local places. So that he could remember it for next time, he looked up, trying to read the name on the building as he pulled on the door handle. Still trying to commit the name to memory, he wasn’t quite paying attention when he stepped into the shop -- and abruptly bumped into someone preparing to walk out of the shop. The woman he bumped into dropped the small purse in her hand as a result of the interaction. 

“I am so sorry,” he quickly apologized, feeling a little ridiculous for not having his head on straight. He picked up the purse and handed it to her. “Sophia?”

“Steve?” She looked just as surprised to see him as he was to see her. 

Steve thought his mind had been racing before, but now it was reeling out of control. Sophia was standing right in front of him, looking more beautiful than he even remembered. He stared for a bit too long before registering that her arm was hooked through that of the man standing next to her. He was tall, with dark hair and blue eyes. Steve’s heart dropped, followed quickly by his stomach. No wonder Sophia had never called him back; for all he knew, she hadn’t shown up that night at the restaurant, either. 

“Sorry, didn’t mean to knock into you,” Steve apologized. His voice was trembling a bit, so he cleared his throat. “Good to see you again, Ms. Hawkins.”

“Yeah, you too, St -- Mr. Rogers.” Sophia seemed confused, and Steve wondered if he hadn’t also imagined the tremble in her voice.  

Steve walked past her quickly and joined the line to order. So much for making sure he remembered the name of the shop. He’d never visit here again, if only to avoid the possibility of seeing Sophia with another man again. 

He ordered his coffee to go and went straight back to his apartment. As he walked, his mind slowed -- not that that meant much as it only returned to its normal racing speed from the last few days. The slow down helped him think things through. That man with Sophia wasn’t necessarily a boyfriend, he could have been someone else she was on a date with. Maybe it was serious, maybe it wasn’t. 

“You’re going to drive yourself crazy,” he muttered. 

The walk and the coffee had indeed helped to clear Steve’s mind. By the time he reached his apartment door, he had decided to give Sophia another call and ask her one more time to go out with him.

Sophia surprised herself by enjoying her lunchtime coffee date with Colin, and quite a bit at that. 

Until she ran into Steve. 

Seeing him standing right there, within inches of her, in the coffee shop had sent her directly back to square one. Do not pass go, do not collect a fresh outlook, do not move on. Fortunately, she didn’t have time to dwell on the unexpected meeting, as swamped as she was when she returned to work. There were messages to return and vendors to secure, reservations to take for the latest benefit hosted by the firm. 

On top of all of that, her desk phone had been ringing off the hook since she had sat back down at her desk. Making a note to talk to someone about maybe hiring an assistant or receptionist, she rejoiced when things finally calmed down. The lull allowed her to finalize the seating chart for the guest list. She forwarded the chart over to Lucy for a second look, to be sure, and then, inevitably, the phone rang again. 

“Son of a bitch,” she mumbled under her breath. She allowed herself a frustrated groan and considered letting the call go to voicemail. She didn’t recognize the number anyway, and calls could always be returned. Then, she remembered that a couple of new vendors had been hired for the event. With the most upbeat voice she could manage, and even going so far as to plaster a smile on her face, Sophia picked up the receiver and greeted the caller. “Thank you for calling Rockefeller PR, Sophia Hawkins speaking.”

“Sophia? It’s Steve. Uh, Rogers. Steve Rogers.  

The phone slipped from her hand, but she caught it before her shocked reaction could be detected from the other end of the telephone line. “Steve. How did you get this number? And why are you calling me at work?”

“I looked the number up,” he replied simply, leaving out the fact that he’d had to track down a phone book to do so because the internet had been too complicated in his worked up state. “And, I’m calling you at work because I want to ask you again if you would consider having dinner with me. Before you say no or anything else, you have to understand, I know that I messed up last time. I should have called you before our scheduled meeting time. But, I swear to you, I really could not get away from the important thing that came up. I hope I can tell you about it someday, but we can’t get to know each other better and get to that point if you don’t go out with me.”

“Generally, I won’t and don’t get myself all dolled up again for a guy who stood me up, regardless of the circumstances.”

“Sophia --” He started to protest, ready to give another amazing speech, but Sophia interrupted him.  

“But for you I will consider it. Give me some time, and I promise to let you know whatever I decide. How does that sound?” 

“Much better than a flat-out no,” Steve answered, releasing a sigh of relief. “I’ll wait for your call.” 

Sophia promised Steve she wouldn’t let too much time pass before she called him with an answer, and they ended their phone call. Ironically enough, the phone call with Steve helped to calm her nerves and Sophia found the remaining hours of her work day flew by. After setting the phone to go directly to voicemail, she gathered her things and met Lucy in the hallway for the short walk to the subway. 

On the ride home, Sophia filled Lucy in on her lunch date with Colin, and then continued on into the phone call with Steve. Lucy listened intently, allowing Sophia to tell her everything before replying. For once, Lucy’s tone was rational and calm and, before Sophia knew what had happened, Lucy had managed to convince her to agree to the second-chance date with Steve. 

Sophia waited until they were in the quiet of their apartment to make the phone call. She dropped the couch, not even taking her jacket off, if only to get the phone call done with before she changed her mind. Steve answered on the second ring. 

“Hey Steve, it’s Sophia.”

The smile in his voice was evident, though it was fringed with hesitancy. “I wasn’t expecting to hear back from you so soon.” 

“Yeah, I wasn’t expecting to call so soon,” she admitted with a chuckle. “Listen, here’s the deal. I will go out with you, on one condition.” 

“And what would that condition be?” Steve asked.

“We make it a double and you find someone to set my friend Lucy up with,” Sophia replied, stifling her laughter at Lucy’s shocked expression. “This way, if some important circumstance comes up again, I won’t be all alone.” 

Sophia thought she might have sounded a little harsh and hoped Steve would understand that was not her intention -- 

“I think that’s more than fair,” he ceded, “I can find someone for Lucy, no problem.”

Shaking her head, Lucy disappeared into the kitchen while Sophia finalized the plans for the double-date with Steve. Once off the phone, Sophia went to the kitchen where Lucy was waiting at the bar with a glass of wine. 

“I didn’t know that I was going to be punished for encouraging you to go on a date with this guy,” Lucy commented through gritted teeth. 

“I need you to help me feel this situation out, Luce! You have to be there with me to do that. And, if he doesn’t show, I don’t want to sit there alone, drinking away my humiliation like last time.” Sophia took the wine glass from Lucy’s hand and drank down most of what was left. “You hungry?”

Lucy nodded. “Starving, actually.”

“Oh good,” Sophia grinned, corking the wine bottle and putting it back in its proper place on the counter. “Because we’re meeting Steve and his friend downtown in an hour.”

Lucy finished off the contents of the wine glass and set it in the sink, then headed to her room to freshen up and change her clothes for an evening she hadn’t planned on. Sophia kept grinning as she followed, but Lucy narrowed her eyes at her friend. 

“You are so lucky you’re my best friend, you know that?”

@arrowsandmixtapes​​​ @the-murder-strut-murdered-me​​​ @growningupgeek​​​ @star-spangled-man-with-a-plan​​​ @captain-rogers-beard​​​ @kitkatd7​​​ @patzammit​​​ @sagechanoafterdark​​​ @what-is-your-plan-today​​​

#steve rogers #clint barton #steve rogers fanfic #clint barton fanfic