Chapter fourteen

"Tony," Steve began as he, Bruce, and Bucky followed Tony out of the Avengers Tower lobby. He squinted as the sunlight hit his eyes. "What are we doing again? We need to be discussing plans to deal with HYDRA."

"Calm down, Gramps," Tony said, waving a hand. "We can't do much until Boris finds the files. For now the four of us are going to get lunch. I would have brought Space Cadet, but he's with Red at the gym, and Merida and the Winged Boy Wonder, but the Bird Bros were doing missing. So it's just the Science Bros and the Army Bros."

"Couldn't we have just made lunch at the tower?" Bucky questioned, tucking his hands in his jacket pocket. He was used to the team seeing his arm, but he hadn't been out in public long enough to be comfortable with people seeing it.

"Of course not," Tony said, looking as if Bucky had just said something horrible. "We can't get Shawarma at the tower. And we need to take you, Buckaroo, to get your first Shawarma. If you're going to experience everything from the twenty first century, you have to have Shawarma."

"Did you count how many times he said Shawarma?" Bucky whispered to Bruce. "I lost count."

Bruce chuckled. "Just go along with it," he said to Bucky, who smiled back at the scientist.

"Thanks. So what's so special about Shawarma?" he asked.

"Tony had mentioned it after the battle against the Chitauri," Bruce began. "Since then, he's been obsessed with it. It is pretty good food though."

"It is and you're going to like it too, Frosty."

Steve chuckled as Bucky rolled his eyes in good nature. "Like Bruce said, just go with it. Tony won't back down and won't stop bugging you until you try it."

"Mom!" a tiny voice shouted in front of the four men. Looking up they saw a little blond haired boy pulling on a woman's arm as he pointed towards them. "It's the Avengers!"

"Bobby, don't point, it's rude," she scolded as he dragged her to the men. She looked up at them apologetically. "I'm so sorry," she said.

"No worries, ma'am," Steve reassured.

"Can I have your autographs?" Bobby asked, digging into his mom's purse, practically pulling her down. He pulled out a pen and a notepad of lined paper.

"Bobby, they're probably busy, let them be," his mother said, causing the little boy's face to fall.

Steve smiled and gently took the notepad from Bobby's hands. "So your name's Bobby?" he asked.

"Uh huh!" Bobby said, his face beaming like he was opening presents on Christmas.

"How old are you, sport?" Tony asked as Steve passed him the notepad and pen.

"Seven!" he cheered. "I just turned seven on Saturday!"

"Well happy birthday, Bobby," Bruce said as he signed next.

Bobby looked from each man, a large, bright smile on his face. He tilted his head when he looked at Bucky. The super soldier shifted uncomfortably under the boy's stare. Bobby's eyes landed on his arm. A bit of Bucky's jacket had lifted up revealing a small bit of metal.

"What's wrong with your arm?" the blond child asked.

Bucky froze, his eyes wide. Bobby's mom noticed his tense posture and quickly scolded her son.

"Bobby, you don' task that sort of question to a person. I am so sorry, sir."

"Did something happen to you?" Bobby continued, ignoring his mother. "Something happened to me too," he said. He bent down and rolled up the right leg of his jeans. "I lost my leg in a car crash. Now I have a protestic."

"Prosthetic, honey," his mother corrected, smiling lightly down at her son.

Bucky stared at the prosthetic on the boy. This kid was younger than him and had experienced something awful. Something that cost him a limb. But Bobby was all smiles and didn't seem bothered by it. He looked proud of his leg with the way he was showing it off so easily.

Bucky smiled and pushed his sleeve up. He chuckled when he saw the boy stare at it, not in fear, but in awe.

"How did you get it?" He turned to his mom. "Mom! I want a metal leg!"

Bucky's heart swelled. The thing that he hated was something that this little boy was amazed by, even want. He wasn't scared of him like he feared most people would. He chuckled. "I got it from bad guys. They captured me and gave it to me after I fell off a train." He was slightly amazed at how easy he was able to retell the story to a complete stranger. But the way Bobby was looking at him in wonder as he told the story made it all the more easy.

"Bad guys?" Bobby gasped. He looked between Steve and Bucky. His face broke out into an even larger smile. "Are you Bucky Barnes? You're my favorite Howling Commando! I read all about you in books from the library! I even got to see the Captain America exhibition at the museum in Washington DC last summer!"

"It's exhibit, honey," his mother corrected again with a laugh.

"Yeah," Bucky smiled. "I am."

"Wow! Mom, he's Bucky Barnes!" He held up the notebook. "Can I have your autograph, please?"

Bucky took the pen and notepad with a smile. "No problem, kiddo." He quickly signed a new page as Bobby bounced up and down.

The little boy was jumping by the time he was given the notepad back. "Are you an Avenger now?"

Bucky blinked and looked around at his three friends. All had large smiles on their faces, nodding their heads. Tony gave him a thumbs up. Bucky grinned, turning back to Bobby. "Yeah, I am an Avenger."

"That's so cool! I'm like an Avenger then! I have a fake leg, 'cept it's not as cool as your arm. My friends always make me be Black Widow when we play Avengers," Bobby said, making a face. Tony snickered. "Now I can be you when we play!"

Bucky nearly felt tears brimming his eyes. He was considered an Avenger and a little boy was looking up to him as his hero. After everything that he had done through the years with HYDRA he was beyond happy to have a place he could call home in this strange world. He even was becoming a role model practically for a child. "Yeah you can, kiddo," he said, ruffling Bobby's blond hair with his metal hand. "But you know what? I think you're leg's just as cool as my arm."

Bobby beamed as his mother smiled and grabbed his hand. "Let's go, honey. We have to meet Grandma and Grandpa for lunch." She smiled at the four. "Thank you so much."

"Not a problem," Bruce said, waving as the two left.

They chuckled as they watched Bobby hug the notepad to his chest as he said to his mom "I can't wait to show Grandma and Grandpa!"

Steve patted Bucky's shoulder. "What have I said? Everything will be okay."

Bucky shoved him, laughing. "Yeah yeah, I've heard you, punk."

"Let's get going," Tony said, clapping both super soldiers on the shoulder. "Shawarma awaits!"

ooOOoo

"Tracey, sweetie," Pepper spoke up. She looked at the blonde woman across from her at the table worried. Tracey was staring at her computer, brow furrowed and chewing her cheek for the past hour. She never looked up from the screen once. "I think you should take a break. You've done so much for the team. They'll understand if you rest."

"No," Tracey said curtly. She paused taking a breath. "Sorry… No thank you," she said calmer. "I just want to get this done as soon as possible. If HYDRA is still out there I want to help some way I can. I can't fight like the rest and I feel useless because of it. I probably sound like a broken record by now…"

Pepper gave her a sympathetic smile. "Tracey, you don't need to fight in order to help the team. They appreciate all that you've done for them by getting the files. I mean I don't fight. The only thing I do is deal with Tony's outbursts and his eccentric-ness."

Tracey laughed lightly. "That's true." She sighed. "I don't know. I guess after hearing Barry was part of SHIELD I felt that he was doing more than me. I mean all I ever did was work at a restaurant and sell paintings at Central Park. Now that I'm able to do something more with the team I just want to do my best."

"You are, don't worry," Pepper said with a smile. It fell a moment later. "Are you sure you're not overworking yourself right now because of something else?"

Tracey frowned. "If you're asking about Dave, please don't. He's out of my life now."

Pepper opened her mouth only to be interrupted by a booming voice coming from the elevator. The women looked up and saw Barry and Thor walking onto the floor. Thor had a large smile on his face.

"Lady Pepper! Lady Tracey!" he bellowed. "It's great to see you again!"

Pepper smiled at the god. "Hello, Thor. How are you? How's Jane?"

"Jane is doing well. I am wonderful. Barry was just telling me a humorous story." He looked down at Tracey and grabbed her in his arms. "It is wonderful to see you again, Lady Tracey." He set her down and placed a light hand on her shoulder. "I am sorry to hear about Dave." Tracey glared over at Barry, who smiled sheepishly as he held his hands up defensively. "I am here if you would like a friend to talk with."

Tracey sighed and smiled lightly. "Thank you, Thor," she said, hugging him.

"Hammer Time!" Tony shouted as he, Bruce, and the two super soldiers walked off the elevator. He clapped a hand on the god's shoulder. "Great to see you again!"

"Tony!" Thor grinned, clapping a hand on the billionaire's shoulder as well. "It's been a while. Too long."

Bruce approached the god of thunder next. Steve grinned and walked over as well leaving Bucky to stand off to the side. The dark haired soldier eyed the newcomer warily.

Thor greeted Bruce and Steve heartily just as he had done with the two women and Tony. He looked up and spotted Bucky. He smiled and extended a hand.

"Hello, I am Thor."

Bucky slowly grabbed his hand, wincing at the fact it was his metal one. "I'm Bucky Barnes."

Thor's face broke out into a great smile. "You are Steve's childhood friend then? Wonderful! I am glad to hear you have reunited."

Bucky smiled lightly, relieved that the god hadn't said anything about his arm. "Thanks. Steve's told me a few about you as well."

Thor laughed. "I hope it was all good things then."

"Sorry to leave like this," Pepper interrupted, standing up from the table. "But I have a meeting that I need to get to." She turned to Tony, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "You need to be there as well."

Tony sighed, but smiled at the red haired woman. "Alright, fine. But I expect something in return," he said, kissing her. "See you guys later. We'll catch up later, Hammer Time."

"Come on, big guy," Barry said. "You should meet Sam. You two will get along just fine."

Bruce nodded as the four headed to the elevator. "I have something I need to finish in the lab."

The elevator doors closed leaving the two super soldiers and hacker in silence. It remained silent even as Tracey got up and sat on the couch with her laptop. She continued the routine of typing, chewing her cheek, and never looking up from the screen. Steve and Bucky looked at her with worried expressions.

Steve patted Bucky's shoulder before giving him a light shove towards her. "I'm meeting up with Sharon. I'll see you guys later." He pushed Bucky again, giving him a look before leaving.

It was silent once more. Bucky stood in the middle of the floor awkwardly. The only sound was the tapping of keys from Tracey's laptop. He looked over at her taking a step towards the living room. He paused, shaking his head, and headed towards the kitchen instead.

Get it together, Buck. he scolded himself.

He grabbed a water bottle from the fridge and made his way back towards the living room. He stopped next to Tracey. "Um," he cleared his throat. "Do you mind if I sit here?" he asked, pointing to the seat next to her.

She shook her head. "No," she said, quietly, still not taking her eyes off the computer.

His brow furrowed in concern as he sat down. She was dead set on working and keeping herself distracted. But he couldn't tell if it was working or not. He racked his brain, trying to think of a way to cheer her up. He stared ahead of him, zoning out as his eyes were staring at the black screen on the TV in front of him. His eyes lit up hopefully.

"Hey, Tracey," he said, grabbing the remote from the table.

"Hmm?" she hummed, eyes trained on the computer screen.

He stopped. Was she crying? He looked closer and saw a few tears brimming her eyes. "Tracey?" he said slowly.

"Uh yeah?" she said, putting on a strained smile.

He shook his head. "Stop that. Stop pretending you're alright. Stop hiding in your computer." He closed the lid to the laptop. "Tracey, you don't have to put on a show for everyone. We know you're upset about what Dave did. You're allowed to cry."

Tracey stared at him, her eyes wide as he spoke. Her lip began to tremble a few seconds into his speech. A tear slipped out, followed by more.

"I'm an idiot," she said, tilting her head down. Tears landed on her jeans, darkening the fabric. "I kept going back to him. Who does that? He never changed once. I'm a freaking idiot for believing he would." She took in a shuddering breath. "I-I was going to his place to break up with him, but I found him with Veronica. I don't even know why I'm crying over it if I was going to break up with him. I-I-I guess seeing him with someone else made me feel useless. Like I didn't mean anything to him."

Bucky grabbed her hand, squeezing it. "Tracey, you're not an idiot. No matter how many times you say that I'm going to tell you you're not," he said, repeating the same thing she and Steve kept telling him when he called himself a monster. "You are anything, but an idiot. You're an amazing woman and he's an asshole for not seeing that."

She sniffed. "He constantly put me down and I never did anything. He made me feel like I'm nothing special."

"I beg to differ."

Tracey looked up at him, wiping her face. She breathed a laugh. "Thank you, Bucky. I'm sorry for throwing my problems at you. You've been through so much worse than me and here I am crying over some guy."

He shook his head. "I don't mind. You've done so much for me already, it's my turn to return the favor."

She smiled and quickly hugged him. "Thank you. And I'm sorry."

"Don't apologize," he said, hugging her back. He grabbed her laptop from her when they released. "No complaining," he said when he saw her open her mouth to protest. "You're taking a break." He set it down and grabbed the remote again. "So you told me about Enlisted and Friends. Is there any other shows you like?"

Tracey blinked as he turned on the TV. She giggled as he looked at her expectantly. "Well," she began, taking the remote from him. "There's Big Bang Theory," she said, scrolling down the TV guide.

Bucky smiled as she scanned the TV screen. Her smile was back, not as bright as usual though. He was relieved to see her like that, she didn't deserve to be sad. She was this light among the team that always seemed to make things better no matter what. He didn't want to see her crying again and he would make sure it wouldn't happen again.

"What's Big Bang Theory about?"

"It's about four scientists and their friends. It's like Friends," she said, smiling up at him as he continued to stare at the TV.

"It's about scientists?" he said, raising an eyebrow. "I thought you didn't understand science."

"Computer science I get. The kind Tony and Bruce do goes over my head. But it doesn't mean that the show isn't funny. You don't need to understand everything they're saying to get the jokes. There's plenty of things they say that's not about science that's hilarious."

Bucky looked down at the blonde as she stared at the show. The corners of his mouth turned upward a bit as he watched her laugh at it.

She looked back at him. "Thanks, Bucky."

"For what?"

"I know you asked me about my favorite shows to cheer me up," she said with a smirk. "I'm not an idiot…like you told me." She smirked at the last statement.

"And I was right," he grinned. "Always am."

She rolled her eyes, shoving his shoulder. "Whatever you say, Sergeant," she laughed.

After an episode, Bucky had to admit that it was pretty entertaining. Even entertainment has changed over the years, like music. Some of the music he heard made him cringe and question the lyrics while others were quite catchy and something he wouldn't mind listening to again. There was also video games, something completely new and bizarre, but entertaining all the same. He looked back at when Barry had taught him how to play a few games, such as Mario Kart, a few weeks ago with the guys. It was all amazing.

He chuckled with Tracey at the comedy on the television. He glanced sideways at the blonde woman next to him and smiled softly. He was still surprised that after everything that has happened to her over the last few months, things like him nearly choking her to death the first night he showed up at Steve's apartment and him stabbing her, he couldn't believe that after all that she was happy and smiling as if nothing happened to her. She was strong, he admired that. He was going to make sure that nothing like what happened with Dave would make her cry.

He looked at her. Steve was right, he liked her. Hell, everyone was right. But how could he ask her out right after she broke up with Dave. She's heartbroken. He couldn't just ask her out and expect her to be ready to start dating again. He ran a hand through his hair. It almost reminded him of how he tried over and over again to ask Linda out. He stiffened. What if Steve was wrong and Tracey declined him like Linda did? He shook his head. It was worth a shot wasn't it?

He furrowed his brow when he noticed Tracey wince as she shifted slightly in her seat. "Is it your side?"

"Yeah," she said. "Don't worry, it's not that bad."

He nodded his head with a hollow laugh. "Yeah, I'm sure it's worse…"

"Bucky," Tracey began, "I told you it's not your fault and I'm not mad. It's nothing to worry about. I'm a fast healer." She winked.

He smirked at her. "Yeah? Well what do yo-"

"Oh shoot!" Tracey exclaimed, quickly standing up. She smiled at him through a wince. "I am so sorry, I completely forgot some things at my apartment that I need. I'm sorry, Bucky. I'll be back. You can watch the rest of the show without me. Sorry," she said, quickly rushing out of the room.

Bucky watched Tracey leave. As soon as the doors to the elevator closed he groaned and rested his head on the back of the couch. Of course she had to leave. Well…it now gave him time to figure out what he would do to ask her out. Maybe he could ask Steve.

He chuckled lightly. "Who would have thought I'd be going to Steve for dating advice."

ooOOoo

"Dexter, calm down," Tracey commanded as the puppy pulled on his leash as she walked down the hall of the apartment complex. She tugged on the leash as she held her phone against her ear. "Barry, I just went to my apartment to get some things. Can you tell Thor that I'll be back later and I'll be able to catch up with him then? Thanks. Dexter, stop! Sorry. I've got to go, I'm at my door. Yeah…okay…bye." She hung up the phone and let go of the leash. "Sit," she ordered.

The golden retriever sat obediently at her feet as she dug around in her purse for her keys. Dexter's ears pricked up and he stood abruptly. He began to growl at the door. Next second he was barking.

"Dexter, quiet!" Tracey snapped as she pulled out her keys. "Knock it off," she said, as she unlocked the door. As soon as the door was open the puppy rushed in barking like mad. Tracey shook her head as she followed in. "Dexter, sto-"

She didn't get to finish her sentence and she didn't see much of the state of her apartment. The moment she closed the door a hand was around her mouth and the smell of chemicals filled her nose.

Okay, don't ask me how I came up with yet another chapter. I honestly don't know. I have ideas written down in another document and I guess it somehow comes together. I never think that I'd be able to write out the ideas as quickly as these past few chapters.

Anyways, Thor is finally in the story! I've been meaning to bring him in, just never knew when. Also sorry for leaving it off on a cliffhanger. But I had this idea for a while and this point in the story seemed to fit in with what has happened so far.

If you want to ask Tracey and Barry and the Avengers any questions feel free. Look me up on Tumblr under

winter-is-ending

As always I love to hear your thoughts. So please leave a review and let me know what you think and if there's anything I need to work on feel free to tell me. I love advice and helpful critiques! And can I say that I. Am. Shocked! 69 reviews? I honestly have never gotten more than 30 reviews before. Thank you guys so so much! You guys are the best and I am honestly shocked at the number of reviews!

Thank you for reading! I hope you have a great day!