More boat fixing
Bucky put his mug of coffee on the wooden table and sat opposed to Sam who was reading the news on his phone, his own drink next to him. It was early enough for the atmosphere to remain a bit fresh - the yesterday's rain made the grass from the garden smell harder than ever (not to bother the two men in the slightest).
"You know, I've been thinking about that dating stuff," said Bucky.
"Hum," replied Sam. He didn't lift up his eyes but lightly tilted his head, showing he was listening.
Bucky grabbed a small piece of bread to dip into his coffee.
"I'm way too old for Joaquín. He's twenty and I'm like a hundred years old."
Sam nearly chocked.
"Come on, man!" he laughed. "Buck, you're only technically a hundred years old. Physically, you're more like, what, thirty, thirty-five? And Torres is not twenty either."
He paused, frowning, although he had a mild smile.
"Come to think of it, I'm the oldest one. That's crazy, isn't it? You've known WWII but I've lived longer than you!"
"What are you talking about?" said a young voice, quickly followed by a similarly young hand diving in the bread's basket.
Torres was up and already dressed but his hair was still sleepy. He was looking at Sam when he took a bite in the bread but then his eyes flied to Bucky and both of them had the same irrepressible though very pudique smile.
"We were saying I'm an old dinosaur," replied Sam.
Torres frowned. He was clearly about to counter argument that claim but he might have realized he really didn't have any clue about that conversation and sat down, choosing to focus on the marmelade instead. For a few moments, the conversation dried down. Bucky watched Joaquín spread marmelade on his bread without realising he was still holding his own coffee-soaked piece of it in his left hand.
"By the way Joaquín," started Sam again, turning his phone off and putting it in his pocket to give his full attention to his friends, "we were thinking about a three-person training today."
"Sure! What kind?"
"Shield training."
Torres froze on the spot.
"Me? Training with the shield? Like, your shield?"
He was full of fanboy excitation and respectful dread. That had Sam grinning, showing his adorable teeth gap. Bucky suddenly found his bread interesting again. It wasn't like he was angry Torres was a bigger Captain America fan than a Winter Soldier one (only a sad, twisted mind could be) or even that Torres had a very much and very obvious crush on Sam (because Bucky did too). It was like, well. He wanted Joaquín's full attention for himself. "Jealousy" said his mind. He brushed it off. If he were to consider Joaquín as a dating partner, couldn't he be a bit jealous?
Torres was attractive. That was the first very thing Bucky thought when he had seen Torres next to Sam, back in that hangar. He only side-eyed him because he was at that time -wrongly he understood later- obsessed with the shield. Still his mind registered it. The puffy dark hair, the enthusiastic smile, the nonchalant agility with which Torres hold himself, his shyness too. Now, looking back, Bucky couldn't say if, when he jumped off that plane without a chute, he did it to impress Sam or Torres. Possibly both.
Torres was attractive the way Sarah Wilson was attractive. An instant crush. Completely different from Sam. Without even considering the circumstances Sam and he met, Bucky was in no mental place to think - to be able to- about these kind of things. Sam was, first and foremost, his best friend, his anchor in this world, his next inspiration to live and fight after Steve left. Turned out -that, he found out only a few months back- that he was hot as hell too. Sarah attracted him because she was beautiful and had a vibrant personality (she also was a woman). But as it failed, he thought dating his best friend would be easier. But Sam didn't date. Torres was attractive and attracted to him but Bucky had no idea what, whom to look for anymore.
"Bucky, watch out!"
His reflexes were of the war and the murders and the pain - his left hand immediately went up and caught the shield. Still, it had gotten too close from his face already and he punched himself by doing that. He stumbled and raised his right hand to massage his bruised forehead.
"Bucky!" cried out the two other, rushing to him.
"You're alright, man?" asked Sam.
Bucky offered them a feeble smile.
"Yeah, yeah, I'm completely fine, don't worry. I, er, well now I know not to loose sight of this damn thing!"
Sam laughed, Joaquín looked a bit worried still. They resumed their training. Bucky forced himself to focus on the shield, bouncing forth and back. Sam, the tree, Bucky, the tree, Torres, the tree, Sam, the tree. They weren't wearing their suit, just their usual sport pants and shirt. Sam wanted to practice his ground and they wanted to teach Torres how to catch and send back the shield - even if it was handled primarily by Sam, field experience taught them it was necessary for the three of them to be able to use it. Torres was struggling having neither the experience and super-strength of Bucky nor the practice and skills of Sam. And while he was struggling, he was showing off his arms - not bigger than Sam but with some fine muscles too. And the way his shirt adhered to his chest, the way he could see him breath...
Dammit Bucky, that's exactly why you took a shield in the head.
*
"I'm dying, I'm dead, bury me right now!"
Bucky laughed at Torres, lying on the ground, his back against the house's wall in a desperate attempt of getting some cool out of it - moaning as if he was the most miserable soul on Earth. The sun was high and it was starting to get really hot. They had decided to stop. Sam had gone to fetch his wings and was finishing his training alone. Bucky was fiddling with the garden hose. When he finally opened it wild, right in the direction of Joaquín, the latter screamed with surprise and delight at the welcoming flood.
Bucky sprayed himself too and then turned the water off to go sit next to Joaquín, joining him in watching Sam. Well, at first. Soon, they found themselves staring at each other. Joaquín's eyes flickered to their hands, lying next to each other but less than one inch apart and tho it was brief, Bucky caught the movement. He had no idea what to do. How to even begin with. "Will you go out with me?" That was kinda too out of the blue, wasn't it? At the same time, they already had a tendency to be physically more closer than regular friends would.
"Can we kiss?"
Joaquín looked at him, mouth open, and for one second Bucky thought he had read his signals wrong since the beginning. Then Joaquín threw himself in his arms and his mouth onto his and Joaquín was not only attractive, he was passionate and tender and - Bucky felt his crush's hand on his ass - certain of what he wanted.
That, Bucky decided, he liked.