Looking Straight Through You
For the second challenge you ended up outside on the archery range. "Well this is just unfair" Sam commented as you all approached the range.
"Oh no, I think this is great" Clint joked.
"He only has one hand Sam, how much more of a disadvantage do you want" Steve spoke.
"Of course you'd say that, you're his partner" Nat chimed in.
"When you're all done throwing your dummies out of the pram, can we get on with this" Tony broke the little debate.
Unsurprisingly, Clint and Steve did well. Clint moved Steve around like a puppet so the first 2 arrows were basically in the centre. The last one missed the centre slightly but was still close to the others. The other duos took their turns, until it was you and Bucky's turn.
After testing different positions you finally found one that would work. Your right arm was wrapped across your stomach so that Bucky was pressed against your back. It allowed you both to face the correct direction whilst still using the bow pretty much normally.
Bucky held the bow steady whilst you loaded the arrow and pulled it back before closing one eye and taking aim. "Up a little" you relayed information to Bucky until your aim was set dead on the centre. You released the arrow and it hit the target dead centre. The next 2 arrows followed suit until you had a tight grouping in the middle of the board.
Once the bow was placed back on the stand and you and Bucky untangled yourselves, you faced the rest of the team. They all looked shocked at how well you'd done. "No concern about personal space with you two is there" Sam teased.
"Don't be jealous Sam" you teased with a smirk which made Bucky chuckle beside you.
"Let's move on already" Clint spoke up "next challenge".
Tony lead the group to what appeared to be an assault course. "Where did this come from?" Thor asked the question you'd all been thinking.
"Had it built this morning" Tony replied "billionaire remember" he pointed to himself with a smug look. You easily managed the balance beams, the climbing and other obstacles until you reached the final one. A zip line. You were fairly high of the ground.
Bucky had gone still beside you and seemed to be staring off into the distance lost in a memory. The others went down until only you and Bucky remained. You went to move forward but Bucky didn't. He was frozen in place.
"Bucky?" you tried to snap him out of his thoughts. It didn't work and Bucky simply backed up until his back was against the wall of the tower. Bucky slid down the wall, pulling you down beside him..
Bucky mumbled some words but the only decipherable one was 'train'. Your phone buzzed in your pocked and you answered it to hear Steve "you good up there?"
"I don't know, Bucky's gone into some sort of episode I think. Keeps mumbling about a train. Do you know what's wrong?"
Steve paused before answering. "The last mission he went on with the Howling Commando's" Steve spoke "a zip wire to the train". Realisation began to dawn on you. "It was an ambush, they shot a side of the train out" he paused "I tried to reach him but... he fell. And Hydra found him".
The memory was clearly traumatic for Steve too. You turned your attention back to Bucky, hanging up the phone. "Bucky" you started "you're safe". You placed your free hand on his shoulder and tried to get him to look at you.
The rest of the team called up from the bottom. "They can't hurt you anymore" you soothed Bucky "you're free now". He seemed to meet your eyes but wasn't fully there yet. It was as if he was looking straight through you.
"I remember all of their faces" he whispered with more sorrow that you'd ever seen him show. It broke your heart seeing him like this. You all had your own demons, but Bucky had a whole army of them.
"Hydra killed those people not you" you soothed.
"Y/n?" his eyes fixed on yours properly at last. You gave him a smile. Before you could react properly he pulled you into him and hugged you as if his life depended on it. Bucky wasn't a touchy feely kind of person usually, but he obviously needed the grounding in this moment. After getting over the shock of it you held him back, until his hold loosened.
He met your eyes awkwardly before speaking "sorry".
"What for?" you asked. He couldn't seem to find the words. Grinning you tried to lighten the mood "you give nice hugs". He did seemed to relax a little at your comment. You made a move to get up, pulling Bucky up with you. As you started to walk to the stairs back down to the bottom of the tower, Bucky stopped you. "What?" you asked.
He thought about it for a second before answering "the challenge" he nodded to the zip line. At his reply you walked over and reached up for the grip. Hesitantly Bucky did the same. You allowed him to decide when you left the tower and a few seconds later you were going down the line. Once you reached the bottom the rest of the team waited patiently.
Evidently Steve had warned them against any snarky comments about what had happened.
"Next challenge" Wanda stated as Tony lead the group away.
After the last challenge, you decided to make sure Bucky was alright before continuing. "How about we take a time out?" you asked him. He nodded and the two of you slipped away from the rest of the team. At first he didn't seem like he was going to talk.
"Thanks for the help back there" he eventually broke the silence.
"Don't worry about it" you smiled "that's what friends are for right" He smiled back at you with a strange look in his eyes.
"You good to carry on with this" you held up your linked arms "we can happily tell Tony to go screw himself if you want".
"As funny as that would be, I'll be fine?" he assured you as he started to head back to the others who'd already started the next challenge.
"Look who finally decided to join us" Tony commented as the two of you entered the room. Thor and Nat were already having their turn on the... what was this. "You ever seen that TV show 'hole in the wall'?" Tony asked with a grin.
You nodded but Bucky shook his head. "You have to do the poses to get through the shape in the wall or else you get knocked in" you explained for him "it's a stupid game show".
"Exactly" Tony nodded "apart from the stupid part".
You watched as Thor lifted Natasha above his head to get through the wall approaching them. Everybody did well and nobody got knocked in so far. Soon enough your and Bucky's turn came around. You completed the poses well enough to not get knocked in until the last one came out. It was just a tiny opening in the bottom of the wall.
"What?" you spoke confused.
"We gotta lie down" Bucky told you awkwardly as the wall began it's approach. The two of you lay on the ground and as the wall got nearer, Bucky moved you so that you were lay on top of him, pulling you in close and tucking your head into his neck. You weren't going to lie, it was a little awkward being in such an intimate position.
Once the wall had gone over the two of you, Bucky spoke "I think we're done". Despite this something kept you where you were for a moment longer than needed. You realised that you enjoyed being so close to Bucky.
"Y/n?" Bucky snapped you out of your daze you realised how much of a weirdo you were being and moved to get up. As you moved back Bucky was watching you with a same strange look in his eyes. The two of you stood up and waited for the door to open so that you could leave.
When it didn't you got suspicious "Tony?"
"This is for being late" Tony spoke through a speaker.
Turning you saw that another wall was coming towards the two of you but there was no hole in this one for you to get through. "Tony!" you yelled, not amused by the joke. The wall came fast until it pushed the two of you into the cold water behind you. You were forced under for a moment as the wall passed above you before you resurfaced.
"Tony this water is freezing!" Bucky yelled.
"I thought you were the Winter soldier, it shouldn't bother you" Sam joked.
"Morons" you spoke under your breath as you and Bucky climbed out of the icy water. Your hair hung around your face and continued to drip freezing water down your back. Bucky and you both stood shivering from the cold. The door opened and the two of you hurried out of the room.
"I hate you" you moaned to Tony as you barged past him.
He simply laughed at your comment before speaking "I call lunch time". You and Bucky sat shivering on the sofa with a blanket wrapped around the two of you whilst the others got lunch.
"You two not hungry?" Tony asked as he came to sit on the chair opposite you.
"Screw you" you replied through clattering teeth.
"Hey, you two were the late ones" he retorted. You didn't reply, only pulled the blanket closer around you.
"Besides" he continued teasing "I was nice enough to give you both that smoochy wall". Feeling mortified by the fact that he'd bought that up you stayed quiet. Wanda had sat next to Tony, trying to stay out of the impending argument.
"Hey Wanda don't you think they appreciated it?" Tony tried to drag her into the conversation.
"Tony" she warned but he continued anyway.
"They were giving each other lovey eyes afterwards and everything" he continued, never knowing when to stop.
"SHUT UP TONY" you yelled at him.
"Ooh touchy subject I see" he teased you further. You sat and allowed yourself to boil in your anger. Feeling Bucky watching you only irritated you more, not that it was his fault, you were just angry in general. At least your boiling rage distracted from the freezing cold for a while.