Steve was always secretive about his daily routine with Bucky. Steve either got up after the brunette left so he could go to the floors bathroom in peace, or he was up and ready long before Bucky even though about getting up. The brunette was so comfortable with Steve that he walked around the apartment in his underwear after long days of work or long nights of dancing. Steve though? He wasn't interested in any of that.
Bucky would set them up on dates, and Steve would go out. He would be a gentleman to the dame and try to give her a nice night, but that was it. The dames never seemed as interested in Steve as they were for Bucky and the blonde couldn't help to be jealous. He was jealous that Bucky got to have a normal life and he was stuck with abstinence and masturbation.
Steve slept in a shirt and pants every night, hiding his body from Bucky. The older man occasionally teased the blonde, especially as the weather started to get hotter. It was the middle of July and Steve had just turned twenty.
The blonde was laying in their dark shared bedroom on his small cot. He was wearing a pair of sleeping pants and an undershirt. It was so sticky and hot in the space that Steve was surprised he wasn't wheezing right now. Sweat clung to his brow, his bangs sticking to the moist skin. Hell, everything was sticking to his moist alabaster skin.
"How the hell are you dressed right now?" Bucky huffed from his cot on the other side of the room. He was about as naked as he could be without taking his underwear off. He was staring at the blonde in the dim lights of the open windows. His eyes wide in awe and amazement of how Steve wasn't dying with heat over there like he was. Steve had it so much worse and was just trying to ignore it. "Yer makin' me hot." Bucky whined.
Steve rolled his eyes and refused to move, he didn't have the energy to move. "Will you quit starin', Jerk, and go to sleep?" Steve huffed. He was panting quietly and slowly sat up. He couldn't stand it now that Bucky had to point it out. He slipped the undershirt off but kept his pants on. "You know I don't like sleeping naked, makes me feel weird." Steve mumbled and rolled so his back was to Bucky.
The brunette hummed and rolled onto his back. "I don't know how it makes you feel weird, it's great in the summer." He mumbled and rolled again, unsettled in his cot. There was no breeze tonight and the air hung heavy in the room. "Ya know…now that you say it I don't think I've ever seen you naked." Bucky mused and looked at Steve's form on his cot.
Steve could feel a blush creep onto his face and he didn't need that heat right now. "So?" He asked quietly. He heard Bucky chuckle on the other side of the room.
"Nothin' Stevie, just know that you don't have to be shy around me. I've seen you covered in puke and blood. What's me seeing you as naked as a jay bird?" He mused and closed his eyes again.
Steve huffed and got up. He felt gross and uncomfortable now that Bucky was talking about his body. He had every reason to be shy around the brunette because he wasn't normal and Steve didn't want to lose his only friend. The shorter blonde walked to the bathroom and wiped his skin down with a rag before he came back to find Bucky sleeping. He was relieved the conversation was over and he tried to sleep himself.
Steve got up the next morning and saw that Bucky wasn't in his bed. He smiled a little and grabbed his towel. He stripped down and wrapped it around his slim waist as he made his way to the bathroom for a shower. Just as he went to open the door, Bucky did. The taller man smirked, drying his hair with a smaller towel.
"Good Moring, Punk." He said and ruffled Steve's hair with the towel. He chuckled and stepped to the side. "The hot water is out again, but we can't really complain with this heat." He said and started back to their apartment. Steve's cheeks were flushed and he nodded. He quickly went in and shut the bathroom door. Well shit…
By the time Steve was finished with his morning routine, Bucky had made them both oatmeal and was eating in the small kitchen. Steve practically ran to the bedroom to get dressed before Bucky saw him.
"Hey, we are going out tonight. Just so you know, your dates name is Jenny." Bucky called after the flustered blonde. He always questioned why he was so secretive about these mundane things. He knew Steve was iffy about his appearance and he always tried to assure him that one day he would find the right dame, settle down and have kids. He couldn't understand what went on in the younger man's head though, it seemed like he was scared of dating.
What Bucky didn't know was that Steve knew damn well what and who he wanted. He came out of the bedroom doing the last button on his shirt. "Alright, Jenny. I can handle that." Steve said and grabbed his bowl from the table. "Thanks for breakfast." He said and tucked into the bland meal. It's what they had to work with, and Steve was used to being dealt the hard cards in life.