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imaginedreamwrite · 1 year

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Breach Of Contract: Part 9

A/N: Peggy Carter bashing as usual

You felt anxious before the plane had even touched down. It started with your palms sweating and your heart racing, the steady uptick in beating had been a synonymous symptom of your changing emotional well-being.

Senator Rogers had departed your side a half hour ago, leaving you to get a briefing of the events that would take place the first night you arrived.

He had left for the back of the plane to make a few adjustments to his wardrobe and his physical appearance. In his absence, you were welcome to fall into a pit of anxiety and restlessness, the debilitating awareness that you were going to face the media as both his intern and as some specimen, they wanted to shove under a microscope.

You knew, full well, that the connection between you and Steve had been noted by both likely supporters and opposition.

You knew full well that comments were comparing the kind of chemistry you two had, versus the kind of blasé and underwhelming bond that tied Steve and Peggy together. The evidence of support or animosity had already been noticed through different socials and handles on the vast internet.

However now you were going to have to face it head-on.

Pepper had made you aware of the media circus, of the absolute hell and chaos that would ensue once Senator Rogers touched the ground. It was only natural given the attacks that the other party was trying to unleash on him in order to dissuade the public from voting for the necessary parties to vote him in. It was rather nasty, from what you had already seen and it was only going to act as gasoline for this insane and innate fire that would be all-consuming.

Once he set foot on the tarmac, the press tour started. There would be no shortage of events that would aid Senator Roger’s message for unity in the country, and the need to help each other out rather than turning our backs on each other.

The start of the press tour on the west coast would start the moment he stepped off the plane and the docket had started to take place with the first flash of a camera. Senator Rogers was ready, he was prepared with a level head and an assurance that he could and would handle whatever was thrown his way.

“I hope you’re ready.” Chase had given you a forewarning as the process to off-board was starting. “We’re coming behind him and immediately going to the hotel.”

You reached for the bag you’d packed, one of the carry-ons with little inside other than a quick change of clothes and a few books, hesitating when you felt hands grazing your own. Given the last chance to give you a pep talk, Steve lifted the bag from the overhead compartment for you and set it on the floor.

Inhaling slowly, you focused on the scent of his cologne and the tinge of spice that made you want to turn into him for comfort. He was strong and broad-shouldered but he carried so much warmth with him, warmth that you wanted to surround yourself.

“Take a deep breath, don’t let them get in your head.” He whispered, he whispered gently as if the roles were reversed and you were the one who was going to be facing the onslaught of the media circus.

“I’m scared.” You replied with a mumble, unable to turn and face him, at least not while the doors were prepared to be opened.

“Fear is not a weakness.” Steve had pulled away when it was time for him to settle into his role, and after he stepped away you looked over your shoulder and locked eyes with him. It was only a moment, it was barely half a minute before he had to turn away but it was enough.

And then the door opened, a powerful vortex of questions and the steady click of cameras had come rushing to your ears before he had even stepped out. He had upped out of your line of sight although you could easily detect the cacophonous drone from the tarmac.

“We have to go, we have to face it.” Val and Sasha both stepped by your seat, the latter helping you pick up your bag and the files you’d been scouring over. “We’re right here with you.”

The buzz that you heard on the plane was tepid compared to being on the tarmac with a line of press, different media cycles and online avenues for gossip and information vying to get his attention. It was as if you were in a wind tunnel, being accosted by the piercing noise that hit your ears with an unseemly tangency that made you grit your teeth.

“Senator Rogers reaches the LAX airport with his team in tow-“

“Senator Rogers is starting the tour here on the west coast and is said to be attending a few ceremonies-“

“The excitement for the senator to arrive has boiled over and quite a crowd has been drawn. Now I’ve been told-“

You could remain ignorant to the questions as Steve had stopped by a few press junkets as the start of his tour commenced. However, when you started hearing questions fired off at you, you were not as poised and collected as the Senator.

“Y/N! Y/N do you have any responses to the fans and supporters of Madame Carter who have accused you of interfering in their marriage?” A reporter for a popular online gossip outlet had raised their voice to garner your attention, and immediately you were thrown off guard.

You were a deer in headlights, eyes wide and tongue-tied. Your mind was not cooperating with your vocal cords or your motor skills, you couldn’t move or respond in any possible facet. Rather, you were stuck where you stood with your fingers tapping on the inside of your hands.

And when you finally could speak, when you finally found yourself able to produce a sound, it came out as a stuttering and weak response.

“I’m…I don’t-“ you were steered away, set into the protective side of Chase and Val.

“Ignore them. Keep your head down and move. Act normal.” Chase squeezed your hand and led you off to the vehicles waiting for the support team. He opened the door and watched you slide into the back beside Val before he joined you, the other vehicle held out for Pepper, Sasha and Steve.

“This is madness. It’s chaos-” you rest your head in your hands, your eyes closing for a single moment to gather your thoughts.

You weren’t prepared for this, even with all the warning and prep you’d been doing it wasn’t expected. This was your first real, true job as a PR intern for a major political campaign, and maybe it was your naivety that made you ignorant, but you didn’t know it would be like this.

“The first day and I feel like I’ve been dumped into the Arctic Ocean.” You lowered your hands, watching aimlessly as Senator Rogers approached the lead vehicle and took a pause to wave once more at the crowds.

“We have the night off. Sasha, Pepper & the Senator are going to do a kickoff press conference, so…” Chase leaned in and nudged your arm with his. “Come to my hotel room, we’ll order food and watch B-rated movies.”

“As long as you promise not to start sexting your boyfriend. The last time you invited us over, we got a deeply personal insight into your sex life, and we didn’t want it.” Val leaned forward and directed her attention to Chase, the two of them continuing their ease back and forth until the driver started taking off from the airport.

As the vehicle moved, you leaned back against the seat and angled your head, staring out the window at the masses of people or reporters who were still recording or taking pictures of the envoy.

It was endless or seemed to be and you wondered, at any point, if you would be on the receiving end of Madame Carter’s hatred in person.

“The press tour started eventfully,” the fabricated crooning which once had brought him to his knees had now been a nail upon glass to his ears, “are you enjoying playing with your intern?”

“Peggy quit.” Steve drew out his annoyance with a sharp hiss when his wife’s comments, through a picture-perfect screen, had come across as hypocritical at best. “We’re not doing this.”

“Not doing what, Steve? You’re not screwing around with a younger woman while your wife is doing charity work?” Peggy leaned forward tucking her hand under her chin, her long deep brown hair was pinned to the top of her head in a style that was as calculated as she was.

Peggy was unbothered by the weight of her affairs, by the notion that while Steve wanted to change the world for the better she wanted to acquire an endless stream of power and money for herself.

It was a reality that was more of a nightmare, the idea that she could have used Steve so easily and not found fault in the irony that she was committing physical adultery. Steve, in comparison, felt like he was genuinely falling in love with someone incredible.

“Where’s he hiding? Where do you have him this time? The closet?” Steve blew out the accusation with animosity, and disgust hanging off every syllable until his mouth was coated with bitterness.

“I have no idea who you’re talking about,” Peggy’s lips were drawn back into a smirk, a slow-building quirk riddled with heinousness, “I should remind you…”

His heart sank and his hands were balled into tight fists by his side.

He didn’t need to know what toxic spewing ire she would fire off at him to know that it was another tactic for control. Steve knew that she and her family, who had promised so much for the man who wanted to be a great politician and make a difference, were trying to tighten the strings and spin this discourse between the two of them into a positive light.

“It’s in your little whore’s contract that if she fucks anyone in her circle she’ll be fired.” It felt like a victory for her, Steve could see it written clearly.

Every shadow and highlight on her aesthetically pleasing face, her natural beauty and charisma that charmed more than just him, was now twisted.

Every facet of her that he once loved was tainted and obliterated by this poisonous facet that made him hate her. It was despicable, it was beyond what he thought he could handle. Peggy Carter and Pierce’s were fucking with what little glimmer of happiness he could have.

“Make sure you’re a good boy, Steve. Don’t put your dick in anything that could get you into trouble.”The irony, cruel and twisted, befell him.

He was finding happiness but couldn’t step over the line they drew in the sand. It was a method of torture to keep him in their distinctive clutch, and Steve was caught between letting himself chase the glimmer of hope and squandering it all.

“I wanted to change the world, Peggy. I wanted to do good and be good. I wanted a loving wife and kids to come home to, I wanted the American dream and you-”

“I told you to fuck her, didn’t I?” Steve’s heart sank, the acid in his stomach churning as he rendered himself stuck on this terrorizing notion that if he chased you, physically seeking you, you would be ruined. “Guess you better keep your dick clean.”

He wanted to call her a bitch, he wanted to call her a hypocritical whore for this cage she was forcing him into. Steve wanted to rip into her, endlessly tearing her in two through the screen, and yet all he could do was stare at this vile poisonous snake.

She was fucking every intern she had and dangling up above him like a carrot in front of a horse.

Peggy Carter was holding everything from him.

“I’m not letting you go, Steve. I still need you and you need me, my family, to get what you want. Who knows…maybe when I become the First Lady I’ll give you the whore as a gift. You could keep her locked under the Oval Office to suck dick for all I care-”

Steve closed the screen with a snap, using enough force to crack the screen. He stood violently and reacted in anger, swiping everything from the desk to the floor. Bile was crawling up his throat, stinging his esophageal system from the inside. His heart was thrashing violently as he continued the destruction, seeking an outlet for himself.

And as he finished, as he had spent all the anger he had, Steve slowly slid down the wall nearest the window. He drew his knees up to his chest and hid his face in his hands, slowly exhaling.

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allyouneedisbuck · 3 years

Text

Sole Survivor -> III

summary -> days nineteen through twenty-three; confessions, secrets, more immunity idols, and wavering trust.

words -> 5.0k

warnings -> survivor typical wording (immunity idol, idols, tribal council) cursing, mention of past steve x reader

notes -> we find out a little more about steve & reader, the beginning of the merge (i’m so excited!!!) & trust is crumbling.

series masterlist here

— ➶ —

PREVIOUS <- CHAPTER III • OUTLAST -> NEXT

— ➶ —

Day Nineteen

Bucky won’t talk to you.

You’re unsure if it’s because of what you had said or because he’s just giving you space, but the tension between you two is palpable.

And for some reason, you hate it.

You’re not used to this feeling of regret, especially within the game of Survivor. Your motto had always been there are no regrets in this game, you hold your head high and live with how you’ve played.

Only, Bucky had so quickly become your anchor in this game, just going one day without him by your side felt wrong. You couldn’t even pinpoint when it had happened. Was it the first vote, where he had shown you just how strategic he could be? The jokes in the water? The way his arms wrapped you in the storm?

It had never felt like this with Steve. His arms had always been just a little too tight and things had always felt a bit too forced. You had always know Steve was a means to an end, you would get far and avoid being hurt. You had just assumed that would happen this time too, you hadn’t prepared for a Bucky Barnes.

Bucky was more subtle touches and bright eyes. Bucky just felt right. You suppose that’s why you hate not talking to him, because he felt right. Because deep down you knew he wasn’t Steve, he wasn’t a means to an end, he was real in a sense. Someone you wanted around and didn’t want to see go.

A laugh escapes you. One loud enough that it garners Bucky’s attention from his spot in the water.

The two of you stare tentatively before he looks away. There’s a second where you debate staying where you are, but right now all you and Bucky had was each other and showing weakness to the rest of your tribe would lead them to strike at you again.

You swallow your pride and stand up with a purpose. You and Bucky would forgive each other and move on, there were no other options.

“Bucky.” You call out. His head whips around to look at you again. Surprise filters across his face as you wade through the water towards him. “Can we talk?” You ask about two feet away from him.

Bucky nods. “Of course.”

“Things got tense the other night.” You start hesitantly. You don’t really know where to start. You don’t want to take the entire blame to make him better, but you want him to know you truly did trust him. “We both got upset and I-“

“-I’m sorry.” Bucky cuts you off quickly. “I wasn’t trying to downplay your game, I’m just nervous. For both of us. If we don’t merge soon, I’m afraid it’s the two of us on the line.”

You smile up at him. “You gotta have more faith, Bucky. In both of us.” You emphasize softly. “We’ve made it this far without numbers, I’m sure we can do it again.”

A moment of silence before Bucky’s fingers intertwine with yours and he pulls you towards him. “I have faith in you.” He says softly. “I’ve just played a weak game, riding your coattails.”

“As long as you can admit it.” You smirk. Bucky snorts and pushes you away so you stumble into the water. You re-emerge with a spluttering laugh. “I was joking.” You push him back.

Bucky smiles with a shake of his head. “You and me, sweets?”

“You and me, Barnes. We work together, not just one or the other doing it all.” You smile up at him, your eyes squinting in the bright sun. “But if you’re mean to me again, I’ll send you packing.”

Bucky presses his tongue against his cheek, but you can see the smile he’s forcing back.

Bucky Barnes - Villain Tribe

“She’s stuck with me.” Bucky laughs. “I don’t… Til the end of the line, I hope.”

Day Twenty

“Bowling!” You cheer as your tribe walks up to the challenge, where two bowling lanes are set up next to one another. “I kill at bowling.”

Bucky laughs from behind you and he can see that even Natasha cracks a smile at your pure excitement. Some of the heroes, like Peter and Shuri, look excited at the prospect of bowling too.

“Heroes, getting your first look at the new villains tribe. Tony voted out at the last tribal council.” There’s a wave of murmurs as the heroes look at one another with wide eyes.

Everyone perks up when Jeff announces that todays reward is a feast. Bucky can feel his mouth watering at the idea of steak and vegetables cooked to perfection.

Even better, he can picture the clue wrapped in a napkin waiting to be found by a winning tribe member. “Hope you’re not lying, sweets. We could use a win.”

A bright smile is sent his way. “Promise, handsome.” It makes Bucky’s heart melt, the way you at him with sparkling eyes and upturned lips. He’s come to terms with the fact that he’s become a little infatuated with you.

Jeff goes through rules pretty quickly, considering it’s just basic bowling and Clint is up first against Thor.

“What do you think the heroes think?” Bucky whispers into your ear from behind you. He keeps a pointed eye on the heroes team, making sure they don’t see the two of you talking. He knows what you’ll say before you say it.

You know what Bucky’s doing too. He feels a surge of pride that the two of you work so well together. “That us girls are getting you boys out one by one. I promise they haven’t given up that theory.”

“You’re brilliant, sweets.” Bucky smirks to himself. Thor gets eight pins to Clint’s nine. The two of you cheer with the rest of your tribe before the next two take their places at the lane.

You lean back a little, your eyes still on the hero tribe as well and whisper, “Try to look pathetic. Like you know you’re time is coming. If we merge, they’ll try to recruit you and give us secrets.”

Shuri gets eight whereas Darcy gets nine pins. Bowling was the villains game, apparently. You cheer again, completely pulling away from Bucky. He immediately misses your warmth, but he knows too much associating and it could hint the heroes into what’s really going on.

You’re up next. You walk up to the lane with a bounce in your step, far more excited than Peter who looks nervously at the wooden bowling ball.

Bucky cheers when your wooden ball knocks down every single pin. “Strike!” Your voice rings out as Peter’s ball only knows down one pin.

When you return to your seat, Bucky squeezes both of your shoulders proudly. “Nice job, sweets.” He says quietly before standing up to take his own turn.

In the end, the villains win, sweeping the heroes in every round. It’s a moral boost, watching the heroes gather their things and take the walk of shame back to camp. The villains are led to a clearing in the jungle, where a small table filled with food is set up and a waterfall stands no more than thirty feet away.

“This is incredible.” You murmur in awe as you look around. Bucky watches you softly as you pull him towards the table by his wrist.

It’s almost natural, you pulling him. At least, it feels natural for him to follow you. It almost hurts how attached he finds himself to you, because he knows it’s all just a game to you.

This is what you do. Anything to win the game you love. Bucky’s not stupid, at least, he knows more than people think. He’s almost sure the people who watch at home will watch in disbelief as he falls into what everyone else tells him is a trap.

But when your hand finds his so naturally, your leg brushes against his thigh and you turn to smile at him brightly after the first bite of food, it doesn’t feel like a trap. It feels so real he almost forgets to breathe.

Maybe that’s why he’s been ignoring the piece of his mind that tells him the best thing to do would be to turn on your before the merge. Maybe you’d forgive him this early on. When the reunion if filmed, he could apologize and beg for a chance in the real world after you’ve had months to cool off.

It would be smart. Turn on you before you turn on him, but he won’t do it. He can’t. Not after you put your life in the game on the line and gave him the idol. He owed you and he couldn’t betray you. Bucky knew himself pretty well, the guilt would destroy his mind and in turn his game.

“Oh, Bucky.” You moan as you swallow down a bite of the steak on your plate. Bucky has the force himself to breath calmly and not allow his pupils to blow at the sound. “It’s so good. Eat!” You push your plate towards him and reach our for more food.

He takes a bite. “You’re right, sweets. This is delicious.” He moans around his second bite of steak. He’s sure even if the steak wasn’t cooked to perfection he would still find it delicious.

The two of you look at each other with smirks before letting out small laughs. Bucky reaches for the napkin wrapped to the right of his plate.

When he unfurls the white fabric, a rolled up piece of paper falls into his lap. He shoves it into the pocket of his shorts without a second glance, making sure nobody across the table had their eyes on him as he did so.

He turns to look at you, to see if you’ve caught what just happened, but you’re too busy eating the fest in front of you.

He’ll show you later. You’ll find it together.

Bucky Barnes - Villain Tribe

“This,” he holds up the small piece of paper with a victorious smile, careful to speak quiet enough nobody can overhear, “is our ticket to the merge. I just can’t believe my luck.”

Bucky is fidgety. It’s making you nervous as the two of you relax by the fire and listen to the crickets chirp and whispers among the rest of your tribe, which isn’t many anymore.

You can hear them vaguely. Natasha is asking Clint about his family, who seems to light up when he’s able to talk about them. Darcy sits with them, but she doesn’t say much besides a question here and there.

It’s relaxing, getting a break from talking about game play and plans. You feel like it’s been full speed ahead since day one and to just sit by the fire with Bucky in comfortable silence is something you didn’t know you needed.

You swallow thickly as you glance over at him. He’s twiddling his thumbs over his lap as he stares into the fire. The light casts an orange glow over his skin that makes your heart pick up a little bit.

“You okay?” You ask quietly. You lean towards him without really realizing it, but he doesn’t really seem to mind. “Your head is somewhere else.”

Bucky looks at you with a smile that makes you feel warmer than the fire. He knocks his knee against yours in support and gives you a reassuring look. “Nothing bad. I’ll tell you later.” He nods to the group near enough they could hear you if he spoke over a whisper.

You furrow your brows, but nod. “Tell me about home.” You urge quietly.

While you and Bucky had been working together for almost the entire game, you didn’t know much about his life. You knew what little things hr had mentioned on his first season, like what had happened to his arm and about his job.

“Like what?” There’s a handbook you get when you get chosen to be on the show, filled with rules you’re required to follow. One of the biggest ones being ignore the camera when you’re not giving a confessional.

It’s hard to pretend they’re not there. You know they keep people from admitting a lot about their personal lives. “Anything. Family. Work. Girlfriend.” You smirk when Bucky laughs.

“Promise I’m not out here disrespecting a girlfriend. I’m a good boy.” He looks at you with bright eyes. The words make you laugh loudly. “How about you?”

You shake your head. “No boyfriend at home.” You look down at the sand on your feet. “Guys are kind of intimidated of me. I know that’s shocking considering how mundane I come off.”

“The right guy won’t be intimidated by you. He’ll see how impressive you are.” Bucky states with an air of confidence.

The words make you smile. Something small and completely unlike you because it’s embarrassed instead of confident.

Bucky did something to you. Something you were so unused to. The way his smile made you warm and how butterflies fluttered in your stomach when he looked at you with those bright blue eyes. It was all unchartered territory, feelings you had never really let yourself have for someone. Especially someone you had planned on betraying when you needed to.

“The right guy, huh?” You ask quietly. Your heart racing and heat on the back of your neck. “Let me know when you find him.”

You and Bucky watch one another before you both look away. It’s a crafted choice of words, one that seems to make things settle gloomily between you two. “How about family? I remember you mentioning some sisters.”

Bucky nods. “A little sister. Her name is Rebecca.” He lets out a laugh. “She told me I wouldn’t last longer than a week out here. I remember seeing her on family day, I never thought I would miss talking to her as much as I had.”

The admittance makes you smile. You can vaguely remember the tight hug shown on screen when his sister had come running out. “She believe in you more this time?”

“I sure hope so.” Bucky laughs. “I like to think that they’re proud of me, my sister and mom. That they’re not too humiliated by me out here.”

Your hand finds his in the sand. “I think they are proud. I’ve seen a lot of guys on this show, none of them quite as good as you.”

It’s the truth. Whether or not fans labeled Bucky as a villain, he had been good the entire game. He hadn't turned against you and with only one small fight in your wings, he had been good to you.

"I'm sure Steve Rogers fans would disagree. Nobody gets sweeter than that." He gives you a self-depricating smile and his words let on more than he may think.

You shake your head. “Steve is sweet. As sweet as they come, maybe. Doesn’t mean he’s good though.” You swallow thickly and look down at your feet. “It looks like I ruined his game, like I took that million dollars from him.”

“It does.” Bucky agrees easily. You shrug. “Is that not what happened?”

You almost glance up at the camera man sitting a few feet away, but keep your eyes steady on the fire. “I will never deny that I screwed Steve over. I just… Steve had just as much to do with what went down before he got sent home as I did.”

Bucky nods slowly. “And you wanted to turn on him before he turned on you?”

Your eyes flash to his in surprise. You can’t really believe he understands that, not when so many people saw you as the villain who ruined Steve’s game. “Yeah.”

There’s a pause where neither of you say anything before you speak up again. “I cared for Steve. Maybe I played into the romantic bit too much, but I cared for him as a friend.” You say adamantly. “And I’m sad to have lost that friendship, but we both wanted that money and we both were going to do anything to get it whether he wanted to admit it or not.”

You look at Bucky with fierce eyes. “I made the move first because I knew if I didn’t that I would never make final council.”

The admission makes you feel a little lighter, but you can see the weariness in Bucky’s eyes. It’s like he has the thought of well if she did it to him…

“I guess there’s a lot that viewers miss out on.” Bucky finally says. “You and Steve haven’t spoken since?”

“No.” You shake your head. “We avoided each other at the reunion and after that there was no need to. I know how it looks and I don’t regret what I did. Not for one second.”

You know the words seem harsh. That they’ll only fuel the villain ideal behind your name. The words may even turn Bucky against you, show him that you’re here for you and nobody else.

His silence worries you too. Your mind swirling with thoughts of him betraying you or this being his deal breaker.

You take a breath. “I don’t feel that way about you.” The secret pushes itself past your lips and into the tense silence. “I truly hope we can make it to end together.”

“When did you get soft?” Bucky chuckles awkwardly and your chest tightens. The words aren’t reassurance you had hoped for and you seem to have worried Bucky more than reassure him.

You force out a laugh. “Soft? Don’t ever say that again.” You nudge him with your shoulder before moving to stand.

Bucky looks like he wants to say something, but decides against it at the last minute. You try not to think about it too much.

You - Villain Tribe

“I was hoping talking about Steve would get him to trust me more, but it looks like he’s even more guarded now.” You rest your chin on your bent knees. “I’ll just have to be prepared for the worst.”

Bucky Barnes - Villain Tribe

“I want to tell her about the idol, but I need to start looking out for myself. I truly don’t think she’ll turn on me, but I just can’t gamble away my faith in the game like that.” He looks away, his profile illuminated by the moon. “I can’t.”

Day Twenty-One

The merge is around the corner. There’s no doubt about that as the competition enters it’s third week and there’s only eight remaining players.

It will be a battle of who has more people going into it, at least that’s what both tribes are thinking now since neither of them truly know who may flip if given the opportunity.

“Tree mail!” Natasha’s voice wakes you up a little more as you turn to look at her and Clint returning and the rolled up piece of paper in her hand. “Think it’s the merge?”

You shrug. “Let’s find out.” She unrolls the paper and frowns. Not the merge, you think a little disappointedly. You weren’t sure if you and Bucky could make it one more elimination if it came to it.

“Castaway, rate your tribe members from weakest to strongest as a group. Bring your rankings with you to today’s challenge where the rest will be explained.” Natasha reads aloud to the camp.

You all exchange glances, utterly confused by the instructions and unwilling to voice who is the weakest first.

“I think we’re all pretty strong.” Darcy says quietly. “I mean, we all have our strong suits. Does it say physically weak or socially? Mentally? How are we supposed to rank?” She sounds more agitated by the second.

You know it’s nerve wracking. Not knowing exactly what these rankings mean is horrible. Your entire tribe is left to fight it out over who is the strongest and weakest and they don’t even know the prize.

Will the weakest be sent home? The strongest pitted against the hero’s strongest in a fight for reward? Not knowing anything put a stunt in your tribe’s ability to figure this out.

“Let’s just vote for physicality.” Natasha says evenly. “Majority wins. That way it’s simple and we can prepare for the challenge. These are probably just for pairs in today’s challenge.”

Everyone agrees easily and Natasha decides to start with the strongest vote. “They’ll probably vote Steve or Thor the strongest. I say we make Bucky our one and Nat or I our two.” You declare.

Everyone glances at each other before nodding. “Okay so, all in favor for me as number two?” You ask and Bucky, you and Natasha raise their hands.

At you confused look Natasha smirks. “I don’t want to go against Steve or Thor if that’s what these rankings are for.”

The words make you all laugh and some tension is obviously lifted from everyone’s shoulders. “All in favor of Clint third?” Nat cuts in before you can say anything else.

The rest of you raise your hand in agreement. You can tell nobody wants to argue much about this and create an awkward environment at the actual challenge. “Then Nat, then Darcy.” Clint marks it on the paper before anybody votes, but nobody argues it.

Darcy Lewis - Villain Tribe

“I got named our weakest player and I guess I saw it coming. Two and two against one, I was never going to be voted the strongest. I just feel like I’m being severely underestimated by them all. Somehow I’m the odd one out when the plan for the last few tribals has been Bucky or Y/N.” She shakes her head in disbelief.

Steve Rogers - Hero Tribe

“I can’t wait to see how they did this. What they assumed. Heroes just have no idea if our rankings will help us or hurt us. It’s stressful.”

Bucky can’t contain his smile when he sees which challenge is set up behind Jeff. The walls, all different colors, have foot mounts attached to them that get smaller and smaller.

Bucky knows this challenge. Bucky has won this challenge. He turns his head to look at you and he knows you’re thinking the same thing he is.

The villains have this one in the bag. Bucky knows it, especially when Jeff explains that each competitor will go against their equal rank from the opposite tribe.

It’s obvious that being lighter will help more than brute strength especially as the foot mounts get smaller and smaller.

Bucky can’t help but smile as everybody takes the first steps towards the wall. The match ups seem to have worked in the villain’s favor today.

Bucky takes his place on the other side of Thor, who struggles almost immediately. While Bucky would definitely have a hard time, he knee this challenge and he was lighter than Thor.

You were matched up against Steve, who seemed less than thrilled when he realized how much lighter you were compared to him.

“You’ll stand on the first mount for ten minutes.” Jeff explains as everyone settles in. “This is for immunity. Now more than ever your tribes need this.”

Bucky knows that Jeff is right. This far in the game it becomes a battle of which tribe has more going into the merge. It didn’t matter if people thought they would flip or if there were other deserters. All that mattered was who appeared stronger going in probably got to decide who went home.

The villains needed the numbers going in. Bucky was sure that wanting to get rid of strong heroes would be the only thing that protected him post merge.

Thor slips off before they even make it to the second mount. “Villains gain a point, Bucky you can step down.” Jeff orders as Thor stumbles to the small table set up for them to wait at.

“That was tough.” Thor grumbles as he rubs at his bare feet. “Not my thing.” He smiles politely as Bucky sits beside him.

Bucky laughs silently as he turns his attention to the challenge. Nobody else seems to be struggling on their mounts, showing the game will continue on far longer than Bucky and Thor had.

Thor Odinson - Hero Tribe

“I’m embarrassed. They ranked me the strongest of our tribe and I lose first? It’s just humiliating, there’s no momentum for our team.”

Your feet are aching by the half hour mark. Jeff has moved you all to final mount to stand on until the last person falls off, meaning you could be here for hours.

You’re jealous of Bucky, who’s relaxing on the sidelines with Thor, Wanda and Darcy. Darcy had fallen after moving to the second mount, leaving both tribes tied with one point.

You can hear Steve groaning to himself. You assume he’s adjusting his stance and trying to hold on and you’re considerably impressed. Steve has stayed up much longer than you thought he would, longer than he had when you had played a version of this challenge on your season.

“You can come down, Steve!” You call out with a teasing laugh. “Nobody will judge you. I could do this all day.”

It’s silent for a moment, as everyone waits for Steve to respond. The two of you hadn’t interacted at all throughout the entire twenty-one days and there had been no reason to do so.

“I’m not losing to you.” Steve says in a cold tone. You could only imagine the cold blue eyes that matched and his steeled face.

You bite down on your lip to conceal a smile. The retort on the tip of your tongue. Something along the lines of you’ve lost to me before. You settle on a shrug he can’t see and call back, “We’ll see!”

Bucky Barnes - Villain Tribe

“She looks good up there. She’s not breaking a sweat. Everyone else has shaking legs and can’t hold still and it looks like she could do this all day. Steve can’t even see how good she looks, no way he wins this.”

It’s another close game, one that comes down to you and Steve battling it out for the last point.

You look great up there, and Bucky thinks it in the least flirtatious way possible. You always look great, but you haven’t broken a sweat in this challenge.

It’s obvious Steve’s muscle mass and height is working against him in this game, so Bucky’s impressed by him, just not as impressed as he is with you. You lean your shoulder against the wall in the most casual way possible and you make sure to not adjust your feet to often. All while Steve struggles to stay still. It’s clear from his flexing and pained groans that his feet are cramping and he can’t find a comfortable position at all.

Bucky’s not worried. While the rest of his tribe watches with bated breaths and the hero tribe chews on their nails, Bucky is relaxed.

It’s like it happens in slow motion too. Bucky watches with a small smile as Steve moves to adjust his grip just a little too quickly and his foot slides off the mount.

“Villains win immunity!” Jeff calls out as you step down from your mount. Your eyes find Steve, who’s laying with his back on the sand and eyes closed. The two of you watch each other for a brief moment before you smile at him.

“Good effort.” The words are genuine. “You did really well.” You hold out a hand for Steve to take and help him to his feet again.

Bucky watches the scene with interest. He knows it’s good sportsmanship, a friendly gesture and it’s one that may help you in the long run of the game. If Steve moves on from his resentment, he’s a number.

But Bucky knows he would be a number for you.

You - Villain Tribe

“My feet are killing me. My arms are dead. I’m exhausted, but this win is one of the best yet. I earned us this win. I beat one of their strongest players. And I’m safe for another tribal.”

Steve Rogers - Hero Tribe

“Now that we know what it’s like to win, losing is so much worse. That feeling of being so close and losing by an inch? I just can’t stand it. We’re better than them, I’m better than them.” He purses his lips and his blue eyes are filled with rage. “We can’t lose anymore people, not with a merge so close. They’ll knock us out one by one by one.”

Day Twenty-Three

“Buck.”

There’s a crate sitting in front of where your tree mail is normally put. You can’t contain your smile when you see the note attached to the lid. “Are you thinking what I’m thinking?”

Bucky smiles as you pull the paper off of the crate. “Expect some visitors today to unlock this crate and the clue inside.” You look down to inspect the crate and notice a padlocked strapped to it.

“We made it.” Bucky says quietly. “The merge. We’re so close to the end, sweets.” Bucky’s arms wrap around you and you giggle as he lifts you into a hug, you legs wrapping around his waist with ease.

“Nobody can say we haven’t played a good game.” Your hands tangle in his hair. It’s gotten longer in the twenty-something days you’ve gone. “You and I. To the end, right?” You ask again.

Bucky smiles up at you as his hands tighten around your hips. “To the end.”

There’s a moment, where the two of you just look at one another, where you want to kiss him. Then you think it’s not just a moment, it’s just you realizing that you’ve wanted to do it all along.

“We should bring it to camp.” You clear your throat and Bucky hastily drops you back to your feet.

You look up at him again. Your cheeks are warm with nervousness and another feeling you’re unused to. This feeling of adoration. The care you have for Bucky is unlike anything you’ve felt before.

You want to kiss him. You want to know what it feels like to have him in your arms and be in his with your lips pressed against his. You wonder what his stubble will feel like and if he’ll rest a hand at the back of your neck.

“We should.” Bucky agrees easily. He meets your eyes and the two of you share a look.

You wonder if he’s thinking the same about you.

Bucky Barnes - Villain Tribe

“Everyday I don’t tell her about my idol, I feel worse and worse. Especially as we become better friends. I just… I’m paranoid. I’m scared. I need this safety net.”

— ➶ —

notes -> hi! i cut this part into two because this felt like a strong place to finish the chapter (and i was already at 5k words) hopefully you’re not too upset having to wait for more of the merge.

thank u for reading this au if you are! i’m having so much fun writing about one of my favorite reality shows.

#bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes imagine #bucky barnes x female reader #bucky barnes x fem!reader #bucky barnes x you #bucky barnes x y/n #james bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes x f!reader #bucky barnes oneshot #bucky barnes writing #bucky barnes #steve rigers #survivor au

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