This takes place after AoU and Civil War never happened and Bucky showed up at the Avenger facility and is now living there. Also Brutasha never happened because that's garbage. Vision doesn't show up in this story. I don't know why maybe he's snorkling at the Great Barrier Reef or something

Living with Steve and his friends at the compound made Bucky feel safe. Not in the traditional way, he could defend himself and there weren't many people who were a match for him. No, he felt safe like in having a home. He had a home again and Steve was next door and everything would be okay one day. He had a place in the world again and could make up for the things HYDRA made him do. It was a long way but he would find his peace one day with his past. He knew it wasn't his fault but it was still him that did those horrific things. He was now allowed to join the Avengers on missions and he finally had a purpose in life.

Steve was..., well Steve meant the world to him. He always did and always would. Without Steve he wouldn't be here. He would either still be working for HYDRA or be dead. And Steve's friends were nice to him when they didn't need to be. Sam was sometimes a bit bitchy to him but he figured it was because he was jealous and feared that Steve didn't want him as his friend anymore. Bucky had no intention of taking Sam's place but he loved to push his buttons. Rhodey was a good man and soldier and had everyone's back. He also had a great sense of humor that Bucky really enjoyed. Wanda was a sweet girl and helped his mind with her powers. Stark showed up at the compound from time to time and it was weird how much he was like his father, even though he didn't like to hear it.

And then there was Natasha who had a similiar past like him and was also trying to make amends. He didn't tell her but Natasha was his inspiration, if she could make it, he could make it. She was incredibly beautiful, smart, lethal and a redhead - exactly his type and he would charm her like there was no tomorrow if there wasn't one thing - he was absolutely positive that Steve was in love with Natasha. He would also liked to say that he was absolutely postive that she was in love with Steve but that woman was hard to read. And she had the annoying habit to try to set Steve up with every female person that crossed their paths. Was that woman really so blind that she didn't see that Steve was head over heels into her? Like one evening Wanda, Natasha and Hill went out for a girls night and Natasha wore a really nice dress that showed off her legs and Steve literally walked into a wall when he saw her and couldn't stop staring. He didn't have that reaction when he saw Wanda or Hill who also looked very nice.

For someone being as perceptive as Natasha there was no way that she didn't realize what was going on with Steve. Last month they helped the Defenders with something in Hell's Kitchen and when Daredevil let it slip that he and Natasha used to have a fling, Steve was pretty much a dick to Murdock the whole time while Natasha just rolled her eyes at him and ignored him. So there was no way that she didn't know about Steve's feelings but she didn't make a move on him. Which either meant that she wasn't interested in him or afraid of being with Steve. Bucky suspected the latter, he knew from his own experience how deep the self-hate went when you got turned into a cold-blooded killer. He also knew that he wasn't the only one that saw that something was going on between the two. Wanda always had this little smile on her face when she saw Steve and Natasha together, and they were together a lot!, and Sam made some not so subtle comments everytime he got the chance but he always made sure that Natasha was out of earshot.

Bucky spend the the 20th century when he was himself with trying to find a girl for Steve and now that he was himself again he would make sure that Steve would finally get the girl. He just needed to come up with a plan without Natasha noticing. He considered locking them in a room but he didn't think that Captain America and Black Widow would be trapped in a room for long. He thought about making them jealous but Steve already didn't do anything when he found out about Murdock and he kind of feared that Natasha might kill a girl if she got too close for Steve. For saying she wanted to find a date for Steve, she was always really pleased when he turned her suggestion down. Maybe he should just sacrifice himself. He was running out of ideas. He would flirt with Natasha in front of Steve's eyes. He could use the practice and maybe Steve would finally have the balls to ask Natasha out.

He found the perfect opportunity two days later when Steve and Natasha were in the common kitchen after training. Natasha was sitting at the kitchen isle drinking a tea and craning and rubbing her neck while Steve was leaning against the fridge clearly trying to build up the courage to ask her if he should massage her sore neck. Bucky hid his smirk when he walked into the kitchen and stopped next to Natasha.

"You need help there, gorgeous?" He knew he was laying it a bit thick but Steve wasn't always the smartest.

Natasha raised an eyebrow and took a sip from her steaming mug.

"You want me to get those knots out of your neck? I have the magic touch!" He wiggled his hands in front of her face and she actually laughed.

"I'm pretty sure Wanda is the only one with a magic touch here but sure knock yourself out." She moved her hair to the side and turned her back to him. Bucky could see out of the corner of his eyes that Steve was watching the whole thing with a set jaw. Perfect!

The muscles in her neck and shoulders were really hard and it took some time to get them soft again. Natasha was silent except for a few humms and purrs and he could practically feel how Steve was fuming behind him. He didn't leave nor did the punk say anything. It was kind of hilarious.

"There you go." He let her hair slid through his hands before letting it fall back on her back.

Natasha rotated her shoulders and gave him a small smile. "Thanks, James." She put her mug in the dishwasher.

"If you want me to massage anything else, let me know." He winked at her and made sure that Steve saw it. He was slightly afraid that Natasha would kill him for his statement but she just shook her head and left the kitchen.

Steve watched her leave and then turned to Bucky. "What the fuck!"

"What?"

"Did you just hit on Natasha?" Steve sounded appalled and he tried his best not to laugh.

"So? She's single and I am single, so why not have some fun?" He shrugged his shoulders and grabbed an apple from the fruit bowl on the kitchen island.

"Someone on the team likes her." Steve blurted out. Oh boy, did Steve really think that no one noticed how he looked at Natasha? She only needed to breathe and he had already hearteyes.

"Who? Sam? Ugh, she can do so much better!"

Steve looked like he was thinking about lying but then he shook his head.

"Rhodey? No, I don't think she's his type. Hill seems more up his alley." Bucky took a bite from his apple. "Is it Wanda?"

"Um,no."

"Then who is it? I don't think Vision got the hots for her."

Steve blushed and looked at his feet. "It's me." He whispered out.

"Oh really? And now you expect me to step back?"

"Well, um yeah." Steve looked at him sheepishly. "I really like her. Well, it's more than liking if I'm being honest."

"I know."

"And I really want to... Wait, what? What do you mean you know?"

He just grinned at Steve.

"Oh my god, were you just messing with me, you ass?" Steve threw a towel at him.

"First step is admitting your feelings. Now you have to go to her and tell her!" He hoped he was giving Steve an encouraging look.

"What if she doesn't feel the same? I don't want to ruin our friendship. I don't wanna lose her!"

"Do you really wanna think your whole life about ifs? A woman like Natasha won't be single forever! And something tells me that she feels the same. Just tell her!" He clapped Steve on the shoulder and then left him alone with his thoughts.

Steve and Natasha didn't show up to movie night in the common room but that wasn't unusual. They sometimes went through mission reports in Steve's office. Bucky shared an apartment with Steve at the facility and Steve still wasn't back when Bucky went to sleep. He had a hunch where Steve might was but he wasn't entirely sure. The next morning FRIDAY informed them that Captain Rogers and Agent Romanoff wouldn't join them on their daily morning run. The smug grins of Sam and Rhodey and the smile on Wanda's face told him that they were thinking the same thing- FUCKING FINALLY!