Chapter Text
Cadence never hated Bucky. She didn’t take any of his cold nature to heart, it was how he was with everyone. He only seemed open with Steve, and Sam at times got away with his sarcastic comments. His ability to fly was to thank for that.
So, she didn’t mind when he would push back or try to shut her down. Truth be told, she couldn’t help herself. They both lived in The Avengers Tower so getting away from each other was impossible. Most of their missions were the same. Her scouting and his long-range sniping, along with their shared stealth, made them a good team. Even Bucky could see that.
And yet, when Cadence decided to fall down on the couch next to him for the usual movie nights reserved for the two super soldiers, Bucky frowned. He gave her a quizzical look. She smiled and let her eyes glide past him to Steve.
“What’re we up for tonight?”
“We’ve made it past the horror movies of the 80s…” he mumbled and ran his finger down the page of his notebook reserved for ‘must watch’ movies. Most of the titles were from her or Sam. “What’s the one you wanted me to write down about?”
“Which one?” Cade grinned and leaned somewhat over Bucky to get a look at the title.
She felt the brunet's body freeze completely beneath her weight but had no intention of moving away yet. Her eyes landed on the name next to Steve’s finger and a loud laugh left her.
“Oh, we are so watching that! ‘The Breakfast Club’ is a classic!” She practically shouted and reached for the remote to find the right streaming service.
“You say that about all of ‘em,” Bucky grumbled, and she smiled over her shoulder.
“Because I’m right.”
The way his cheeks reddened didn’t go unnoticed by her. A satisfied smirk crept over her features as she sat back on the couch – slightly closer to Bucky than before. Every act of kindness, as small as a smile, made him blush and fold in on himself. She had been confused at first and asked Steve about it, but he said it was a good thing, forced him to get out of his comfort zone. If Bucky didn’t like it, he could easily leave, had done it plenty of times before so neither of them worried much.
The two super-soldiers turned their heads towards the entryway and Cade did the same. Her senses were good, but she had no enhancements as they did. Being a second slower had always annoyed her. It was easier when Steve was the only one but then five months ago Bucky came along. He had barely adjusted to life in the tower. Much less the abundance of people around.
The three of them watched Tony saunter into the room with Peter hot on his heels, they had been the ones that the two men could hear. Bucky was first to turn back to the screen, bored perhaps. Cade was aware of how annoying he found Peter at times, the kid was a little energetic. It must be a lot for someone over a hundred years old.
“Oh, are we starting movie night already?” Peter asked as he noticed the three on the couch. Tony was busy grabbing various snacks. He liked them while working, Cade had noticed.
“Yup!” She excitedly said, “we’re watching ‘The Breakfast Club’.”
“Still haven’t told me what it’s about,” Steve mumbled, eyebrows cinched together in that cutely confused fashion that emerged whenever he was relaxed.
“It’s a classic,” Tony grinned, “you picked it, Birdie?”
“Uh-huh!” She proudly said while Peter curiously walked closer.
“Oh, it’s that old movie with the kids!“
“Yeah! Have you seen it, Pete?”
“Can we please just watch the damn movie!” Bucky snapped, eyes still on the screen and looking away from Tony and Peter. His face was drawn in concentration, staring down at his own feet with a taut expression.
“Yeah. Of course, Buck,” Steve said in a calm tone while Peter and Tony quickly ushered out of the room.
They knew it was better to leave Bucky alone when he got like that. Even Tony had learned the current short fuse of James Buchanan Barnes after making one too many jabs. Cade knew Bucky wasn’t the most stable man, but few of the Avengers were. You couldn’t in their line of work. He just hadn’t figured out how to properly deal with it yet.
She clicked the play button on the remote.
The upcoming press tour couldn’t be helping either. Bucky had been officially seen fit for missions, not that it meant his mental state had improved – according to Steve – but it meant he had to be reintroduced to the public. His name had been cleared as The Winter Soldier, but they hadn’t introduced him as an Avenger yet.
Cadence couldn’t help but grin at the familiar music of the opening credits. She had watched this movie more times than she could count.
Getting introduced as an Avenger to the public had terrified her, and she was used to the formal events after being adopted by Stephen Strange as an older kid. Of course, the question she disliked the most had come up. ‘What could she even do?’ A failed attempt at asking what kind of powers she had, but it hurt, nonetheless. Perhaps her past experience with breaking down stubborn old men like with her adoptive father was the reason Tony had insisted she join the tour. Or maybe it was because she was one of the few people Bucky could stand to be in a room with.
More accurately, she wasn’t turned off by his cold personality.
Cade giggled gleefully as the David Bowie quote appeared on screen. She looked over to Steve, he had listened to some of his music already.
“That’s the guy, right?” He asked with a sense of childlike hope.
“Yeah, it’s Bowie,” she replied and rested her elbow on the back of the couch.
She was less than an inch from Bucky, and his body instantly tensed. Cade didn’t care, or more accurately, she wasn’t going to move. He warily turned his head. So slow it was almost amusing to her. He was frowning again. In the months he had spent in the tower, she had only seen him smile – like really smile – once at Steve reminiscing on old memories during dinner. He even cracked a joke but was back to his grumpy self the next day.
Cadence leaned forward and grabbed the bowl of popcorn, putting it into Bucky's lap. Steve usually did it, but he had already become too distracted by the character introductions on screen. The brunet’s mouth was about to open but she quickly shook her head and pointed to the screen.
“Pay attention, sergeant. It’s important.”
Bucky didn’t look satisfied, but he kept his eyes on the screen and ate the popcorn in silence. Cade soon became too caught up in the movie to even pay attention to the man next to her. It was one of the few movies that never failed to make her smile or laugh. Sure, by now it had become pretty hyped up, it was a classic after all. But she could still remember her best friend showing it to her when they were kids. It only brought fond memories.
Although it was her favourite movie, she couldn’t fight the sleep creeping up on her. The two super-soldiers didn’t feel the long missions like she did. Cade needed one or two days to recover every time. Her body was slumping more, slowly swallowed into the couch. She never wanted the others to know how bruised her body always became.
Most of the time, she won. But not because she was better. Her opponents were always larger and heavier than her. Their hits equally so, but she could last longer, fight more. She was good at getting back up on her feet. Steve taught her that.
The large bruise on her left side was why she recoiled instantly when Bucky accidentally brushed his arm against her side. While the kids danced around on screen, Bucky looked at her with hurt in his eyes. It turned to anger instantly.
“You should’ve left if you’re that scared o’ me,” he growled in a low voice.
In the back of her mind, she beat herself over the head, cringing at herself. Bucky began sliding away from her, obviously uncomfortable. Cade didn’t want that. She had spent so long trying to have him ease up to her. So, she wasted no time in yanking up the side of her hoodie.
Bucky’s eyes shot to her, then quickly averted again. She rolled her eyes.
“No, look,” she said, “got a bruise from the last mission.”
He doubtfully looked back at her, but the bruise wasn’t hard to spot. Her side was completely blue and black, the outer edges slowly becoming yellow. She had Bruce take a look at it, but nothing was broken or bent.
“I’m not scared of you, James. I never have been.” She smiled, bright and big. He didn’t look like he believed her, but it didn’t matter. Eventually, he would. “Now, pay attention to the movie! It’s so good.”
It wasn’t long after that, she fell asleep. It happened often. She had told Steve how sorry she was about it, but he always insisted it was fine. He was usually the one carrying her to bed afterwards, chastising her for how bad sleeping on the couch was for her neck.
It was why she wasn’t confused by the feeling of sheets around her body as well as her lack of socks. Sleeping with socks was the worst thing in her opinion, too uncomfortable and warm.
However, socks were not the thing on her mind as her body lurched forward, sitting upright in her own bed in the familiar bedroom. Sweat was dripping down her forehead, fear evident in her body. Nightmares had become a common occurrence. Another thing most of the Avengers had. There was always someone in the kitchen late at night. A lot of the time, it was Natasha. She at least tried to sleep again. Steve would go to the gym or run laps outside in the dark.
Cade was a mixture of both. Getting rid of her energy and fears was needed, but the chamomile tea with honey made by Natasha always helped her calm down. It was why she didn’t think twice about making her way to the gym in a pair of shorts and a sports bra.
At first, by the sound, she thought Steve must have had an especially bad night. The hits were heavy, strong, and less controlled. There wasn’t his usual grunting either. She could usually hear exactly how frustrated he was from the volume of them. But nothing.
She turned the corner, and instead of finding Steve by the punching bag, she saw the long-haired brunet super-soldier. His body glistened in the low light, bulking muscles covered in a sheen of sweat. From the exertion, the veins had begun to swell and protrude. Hair clinging to his forehead. Bucky’s movements slowed and he rested his forehead against the punching bag while clutching it between two hands to steady it.
“Can I help you?” His low voice sounded, gruff but she didn’t miss the vulnerable edge to it.
“Thought you were Steve,” she replied and pushed off the door frame.
Cadence knew his eyes would be on her as she made her way to the running track. Bruce would kill her if she started martial training this soon, but a short jog couldn’t hurt. Her feet were planted on the track, and she began with a brisk walking pace. The sound of hits still hadn’t continued.
“What’s up, James?” She asked while setting into a light jog.
“Ain’t good for ya bruise,” he grumbled, and she glanced at him with a smile.
“You know the drill, sergeant. Not much else to do when your mind isn’t very kind to you.” Her breath was becoming heavier the faster the pace became, but she always enjoyed the searing sensation and the tingling in her muscles.
“Most of us have got nightmares of some kind. It’s the kind of team building no one really talks about,” she chuckled, “we’ve all got our rituals. Tony doesn’t leave his room much when he’s got them either. But you can tell. He says they’re easier to manage with Pepper sleeping next to him, though.”
The thuds re-emerged, heavy punches delivered to the punching bag. Talking became harder the more she pushed herself. A steady pulse came from her large bruise, but that was what she got after trying to fight hand-to-hand with a group of unidentified enhanced individuals. It was only supposed to be a small scouting mission. Bucky was there as backup. Cade just had to see what was happening in the warehouse and then get out again. Easier said than done. She would’ve been a goner if he hadn’t been there.
“Are you worried about the press tour?” She breathlessly asked.
His eyes shot to her – frowning and staring as always.
“I was terrified when I was getting introduced.”
He gave her a look and then began unwrapping the gauze around his hands. She couldn’t stop her eyes from trailing over his body. Long hair shielding his face, the veins bulging on his arms, toned muscles of his broad back and shoulders. Those washboard abs.
The tower was full of gorgeous people, but none of them had intrigued her like Bucky. Maybe she had developed a slight crush on the unstable soldier. No matter how hard she tried to think of him as only a friend, late at night, she always ended up wondering how it would feel lying next to him in a bed. Beneath him. On top of him. Caging in his large form with her small one.
“Has Tony told you I’m coming?” She asked, forcing her eyes back onto the track whirling past beneath her feet. She heard his movements pause. “I’ll keep the snakes off you, if that’s what you want. The paps can be a real-“
Cadence didn’t get to finish her sentence as the door to the gym slammed shut. No Bucky in sight. She smiled softly to herself and amped up the speed on the treadmill.