Darcy hasn't seen Clint all week, and it's made her grumpy and tense.
She'd snapped at Parker for breaking a few cups, told Thor he needed to speed up the with the drinks, and called Tony just to yell at him that he needed to propose to Pepper already and stop being an idiot.
She also hadn't slept well, tossing on the couch as she tried to watch ridiculous old slapsticks or dry comedies alone. Even rom-coms had betrayed her, and she gave up early each night and went to bed, restless and fidgety all night.
Friday came around, and she went out with Peter.
He seemed everything Sharon claimed he was and more. He took her bowling, and she told him she loved bowling. She and her friend Clint Barton had gone once and he'd slipped into the lane, still managing to make a strike, which she maintained didn't count since he went past the line.
They went to dinner next at an Indian restaurant, and Darcy looked at the menu and laughed, explaining to Peter that she hadn't had Indian in a couple of years because they'd found out the hard way that her friend Clint was allergic to curry. She told him how he'd gone into anaphylactic shock and when he'd finally been released from the hospital he was loopy and almost forgot to change his clothes.
Peter smiled indulgently and asked if she wanted to get a coffee. They were walking in the direction of the nearest café when Darcy pulls him across the street to a different one, "Oh, we don't go to that one, Clint says-" she cut herself off suddenly, abruptly, and overwhelmingly realising something she should have realised a long, long time ago.
"Aaand, there it is," Peter exclaimed, pointing to her face with an amused expression on his own.
She stared at him in confusion.
He gave her a small, encouraging smile.
"You know, they say the first thing you think about in the morning is the thing most important to you. I have a feeling you probably think about a person first thing every morning. And I'm willing to bet, because of this particular person, I'm probably not the one you should be out here with."
She tried to process everything she'd just recognised, her breath speeding up in her chest.
"Peter, you're a really, really great guy," she tried to explain.
He smiled. "Yeah. But I'm not Clint," he finished gently. He reached for her hand, which he shook genially, clasping it in both of his.
"It was nice to meet you, Darcy Lewis."
And with that he turned and walked away.
Darcy's mind raced, and she called a taxi, blurting out the correct address before she lost her nerve.
He is more than shocked when he answers his door. But he waves her inside where she starts to pace, her jumbled thoughts spilling out of her mouth all at once.
"Bucky, I know this is strange, but I need your advice. I know you broke up with me so you could date Sharon, and she's great, but-"
"I didn't," he cuts her off quickly, his tone harsh and firm.
"What?" That caught her off guard enough that she stopped pacing and turned to stare at him.
"I barely even knew Sharon when we broke up."
More of Darcy's world falls apart, and she looks around as though answers will magically appear. She gives him a befuddled look.
"Then what-"
Bucky sits down heavily on his couch, tugging on his still-long hair before sighing deeply. "I broke up with you because you're in love with Clint. You've always been in love with him."
She backs away, shaking her head automatically.
"No, I wasn't. I'm not-"
Bucky gives her a sad, miserable half-smile. The same smile he'd given her all those months ago when he broke her heart. When… he finally realised she would keep breaking his.
"Yes, Darce, you are. And he's in love with you. I couldn't just keep pretending I didn't see it."
"But, I don't- I can't be-"
"Where did you go?" Bucky interrupts her gently.
"Huh?"
"When we broke up, where was the first place you went?"
"Well, to Clint's, but only because-"
"And when your dad died?"
"Clint's, I guess, just to-"
"And when you have a really good day and just need to share it with someone?" he continued, the pain in his eyes belying his small, triumphant attempt at a grin. "When you have a bad day and need someone around? When you just want to be? Nearly anytime I needed to find you, I knew I just had to find him. He's your person, Darcy, and it wasn't fair to me to keep trying to be someone I'm just… not to you."
"I-" she opens her mouth. Sees how much it must have hurt him and for how long she must have caused this amazing, broken man pain, even without realising it. "Is there someone else?" she had asked. "I think we both know the answer to that." Bucky had always had to be her Someone Else instead of her Someone, because that position had been filled the moment Clint had leaned in and whispered, "I figured my odds were good he'd try to pick the ridiculously beautiful woman he hasn't realised owns this place," on the night they first met.
She sighs, full of shame and regret, and looks up to see him with his arms spread out to her.
She squeezes Bucky tightly, finally letting everything they once had go.
"I'm really sorry I hurt you," she apologises into his chest.
"Yeah. Me too." He murmurs. "Though, now I get the feeling you didn't know."
She barks a laugh, pulling away from him, both of their eyes shiny with tears.
"You make sure Sharon treats you right, Bucky Barnes. No more of his waiting and hoping nonsense. If she doesn't see you, you make sure she does."
He smirks at her, and it's almost his real, cocky smirk. He gives her a small wink. "Yes ma'am."