The Runaways
by: muaaimoi
Summary- Basically a street kid au. There are issues and avengers but they all turn out okay anyway. Also, stony, Thorki, Phlint ,and Brutasha, because damn it, just because.
2.
Bucky is... Bucky is from before.
Bucky was from a time Steve was still the runt of the pack, tiny, asthmatic, mouthy little brat. He'd been Steve's best friend, his favorite playmate, his protector from when running his mouth got him in trouble, probably his first crush. Bucky had been a lot of things to Steve.
Before the crash.
Before that icy, snowing, winters day when his parent's were being embarrassing, singing Christmas carols, even though Christmas had been over ages ago, and they'd been hit by a car. Drunk driver. Steve could remember the crunching sound of of the impact. The squeal of the tires as the force drove them off the road, the shriek of metal against metal as another car hit them from behind. Crawling out against the snow, the feel of ice in his veins, the cold...
Steve hated the cold.
He doesn't remember what he told Bucky. Steve can remember the crash like it was just yesterday, but the day's that followed... The months after, really, those are blurry. He thinks Bucky's parent's tried taking him in at first, but something happened, and it didn't work out. Steve didn't have any other family. So it was just foster home after foster home, Steve got into too many fights, tried standing up for people too much, he'd even been too bossy once, or something. There was always a reason, and so Steve had to leave. Once he'd hit his growth spurt, leaving his scrawniness and asthma behind, he'd left.
He couldn't stand being yo-yoed from place to place anymore. He was too big to play the victim card when he got into scraps and he was expelled so often no one wanted him in their school anymore. It was much easier to just stay on the train, leave his stop and his newest foster home behind. If he hadn't run into Dr. Erskine, his old pediatrician, he's not sure what he would have done. It hadn't been a planned thing, leaving, he'd been starving two days later, and almost willing to go back. He hadn't, staying away through sheer stubborn will alone, and now, he's glad he had.
He'd been a runaway for something like three weeks until he met Tony. Sometimes he wonders about it. What he would have done if he hadn't. Steve had been drifting, lost, Tony had given him a purpose, something to care about beside himself. He doesn't like to think about what he would have done with out him. He'd run into other street kids before, he was a big guy, he'd been invited into groups, almost, but not quite gangs.
He hadn't gone.
There was something in the looks of them, desperate and desolate. People who'd just given up. Steve hadn't wanted to accept that, hated the thought of admitting that that was exactly what he was doing to himself. But then he'd met Tony, and he didn't have to. Everything was just ...easier, when he was with Tony. Time flew, goals were outlined and accomplished, Steve barely had to think about it as they did things that needed doing to survive.
He tried not to wonder what Tony had done before hand, the ease with which he talked about booze, drugs, and sex. Sometimes, Steve got the sense that Tony had been a street kid long before he had been. And Tony was tiny. Not small and scrappy the way he had been, but rather slim, lean and wiry. He tried not to think about it. Tony with his charming smiles, his wide, beautiful dark eyes and floppy curls, tried not to think about what happened to kids as gorgeous as him on the street. He tried and he tried, but he never quite managed it. Instead he comforted himself with thoughts of the present. Whatever had happened in his past, Tony had Steve now. And Steve would protect him.
Then there was Natasha, Natasha and Clint. Natasha who got under Tony's skin. Clint, quick and clever, with his sarcastic sense of humor. They had been different. It hadn't just been the performing, or no, maybe it was exactly that. Clint could hit his mark on anything, climbed buildings with the ease of a squirrel going up a tree. Clint could have been breaking and entering, with pro's, Steve had no doubt about that. Clint would have just as easy a time hitting a bulls eye with a gun as he did with his arrows. He was skilled. Valuable really, but he chose to perform in the park, picking pockets instead of robbing prized jewelry.
And Natasha. If Clint was skilled, Natasha was deadly. It was in the way she moved, sinuous, graceful. The way they all felt fear when she was wielding a knife, even if all she was doing was something as innocent as chopping carrots. Once upon a time someone had turned Natasha's body into a weapon. Steve didn't like to think about that. Or what Natasha's opinion had been of it at the time. Natasha had scars in places she usually kept covered. The only reason Steve knew about them was because they stretched before their runs. He'd caught thick scar tissue peeking out from her lower back. Steve didn't like to think about it, hated it when he caught himself thinking, almost a hundred percent sure, that there was a lot more he'd never know about.
But she was there with Clint, performing, surviving when she didn't have to. When she could have easily offered her services, her skills with her fists, to any gangster and been happily accepted. Instead she did acrobatics for petty cash. It was something to respect. Something to admire, about both of them. Steve didn't have to worry as much about them either, they could take care of themselves. Once it had been the four of them, they'd begun coasting. The frantic worry of where the next meal was coming from, or if they would be safe, always present, if never really apparent, began to ease. Steve could trust them to take care of him, more importantly, he could trust them to take care of Tony. They pooled what cash they made, ate three meals a day, a rarity for kids in their position.
And then there were Bruce and Thor. Together they'd gone from barely surviving, to thriving. With an apartment, and people who cared when he got home, people who suffered through black and white movies just because Steve liked them. People he could trust to have his back. People who kept him warm at night when the memory of the crash brought ice creeping through his veins. People who made him happy. People Steve was pretty sure he loved.
And then he saw Bucky.
Steve had two days off a week from the gym, and Tony was always insisting he take advantage of it. Making an outing for every one. Ranging from dragging him for long walks in central park, just the two of them, to team bowling that was free for them for reasons Steve didn't want to think too deeply about, considering the way some of the employ's looked at Tony.
Steve had insisted on just taking a walk and Tony insisted on making it one on the boardwalk. So they did, strolling along as Tony talked about all the science stuff he and Bruce were always getting up to, and Steve recalling the few funny things that had happened that week at the gym. They'd just come to a lull in the conversation, a comfortable silence falling between them for roughly ten seconds, one Tony was no doubt gearing up to break , when Steve spotted Bucky.
Steve had barely recognized him at first, arm around a pretty brunette with warm brown eyes. He'd probably just passed him by if Bucky hadn't been in the middle of lighting a cigarette. Just a flick of that lighter and Steve found himself recalling acrid smoke, Bucky's dad had that habit, and Bucky had sneaked some away once, when they were ten, to try it for themselves. Steve had refused on the grounds of having asthma and wanting to live, but Bucky had tried it anyway, he'd proceeded to choke himself into a coughing fit whilst Steve laughed at him and they never mentioned it again.
Of course Bucky's mom had apparently smelled the smoke on him and tanned his hide, but the only reason Steve knew about that was that he knew his mother, he'd learned to recognize the look she'd give her spawn after a beating she thought they'd been begging for. Steve's pretty sure the only reason she hadn't smacked him around a couple of times was because his blonde hair was a constant reminder he wasn't her child. In a lot of ways he basically had been, with all the time he and Bucky spent together.
Steve found himself coming to a stop before him," Don't tell me you actually started that disgusting habit, Barnes?"
" Mind your business, Rogers." Bucky completed the exchange absentmindedly, words they must have exchanged a thousand times growing up. They'd both thought calling each other by the last name made them cool.
Bucky blinked, as if becoming aware of what he'd just said," Steve?"
"Bucky." Steve smiles, amazed by the warmth he feels at the sight of his childhood friend.
" Steve!" Bucky shouts, and next thing he knows he's being swept in a bear hug. Steve has a slow moment of vertigo when he realizes he's taller than Bucky now. It's decidedly strange.
" Oh my God, man! How've you been, man? When did you get so huge? I could barely recognize you!" Bucky barrels on, not letting go of Steve for a second. The words are almost flippant, but the arms around him tighten like steel beams. He's been missed. Steve returns the hug, finding himself smiling softly, it's been far too long.
It feels weird though, hugging Bucky. He doesn't think too hard about touching his friends, time spent huddling together in the cold had left them with no kind of regard for personal space in regards to each other. They touch all the time, especially Tony and Thor. They starfish in their sleep, Steve doesn't think much of waking up with Tony in his arms, or finding himself being cuddled by Thor. It's something of a thing. But touching between them is very rarely so... Deliberate. He doesn't think he's been hugged by anyone who isn't Tony on purpose in a good year. How odd, to think about that. No one ever hugged him while he was in foster care either. But he remembers now, confronted with Bucky, and his easy touch, how familiar that kind of thing used to be. He'd come from a demonstrative family, he'd received pats on the head and kisses on the cheek growing up, now knowing how little he gets those things... It leaves him cold. Steve hates the cold.
He breaks away from Bucky, smile somewhat frozen in place. He doesn't know what to say. Childhood promises of eternal friendship are all well in good, but he doesn't know Bucky anymore. Bucky is a normal kid now, with parents and a home, normal worries about girls and school. That's something Steve lost the ability to understand a long time ago. It's not that Steve thinks Bucky has become a bad guy, someone he doesn't want to get to know anymore, or anything like that. Quite the opposite actually. It's just the same worry that keeps them from making normal friends, the thought that he might be inviting someone with misguided notions and earnest good intentions into their lives. At least other street kids know the score, and sometimes you can find people who get it, who are really willing to help, like Happy or Dr. Erskine.
Something tell's him Bucky, with his fond memories of Steve being a normal person, wouldn't quite understand.
He wishes he hadn't recognized Bucky after all. Or at least that he'd known better than to call out to him. He can't think of a thing to do, no matter how much he just want's to run away, his legs feel as frozen as the smile on his face. Fortunately he's not alone.
" Hey, Steve, not gonna introduce me to your friend? How rude." Tony teases him with a pretty smile. Steve knows that smile, it usually gets them awesome deals at flea markets and charms people out of five dollar bills when they'd only meant to hand them a dollar." I guess I'll do it myself, names Tony, who are you? And you're lovely lady friend of course."
He extends a hand. Taking the hand of Bucky's friend first and bringing it to his lips in a move that he really shouldn't manage to look gallant, but does anyway. Then grasps Bucky's hand in a strong easy grip.
Bucky shakes it, looking slightly confused and he's not the only one. It sounds almost polite, but this isn't Tony being friendly at all, for Tony real friendship is found through running his mouth and insulting a person until they begin to give back as good as they get. This, the pretty smile and half harted if seemingly effortless attempt at manners is Tony's version of cold indifference, thankfully Steve's one of the few people who knows this.
" I can introduce myself as well." Bucky's friend declares with a smile that's almost as pretty as Tony's." My name is Peggy, and this rude lug here is Bucky Barnes. And I do agree with you, Steve, was it? Rogers, right? I think we wen't to grade school together. Smoking is quite a disgusting habit, please help me get Bucky to stop."
" Peggy?" Steve finds himself saying. Looking at the pretty girl before him for any clue of the chubby child he and Bucky use to chase around the playground, pulling her pig tails and calling 'piggy Peggy'. Back about a year before he'd figured out it was an awful thing to do. He flushes, immediately embarrassed by having been such a jerk, no matter how long ago. But he's not sure how to apologies, and he doesn't know how much her reply is honest, and how much is an attempt to politely deflect and give him an out. It's kind of her, but Steve doesn't want to take it, he'd been a jerk to her, and he should own up to it." I remember you. I thought you moved to London?"
There's a vague hint of an English accent, a crispness to her words.
"I moved back about four years ago. Imagine my surprise to find the wonder twins split up." She says.
Bucky laughs." You should have seen it Steve, back in eighth grade, no one recognized her! And almost every guy in class asked her out before she let us have it! Something about misogynistic brats, and only caring about what someone looked like and not whats on the inside." Bucky nudged her playfully, " It was very inspiring."
Tony and Peggy laugh.
Steve just smiles, the engaging one he doesn't think about too hard that's become almost automatic whenever he feels awkward. He's still floundering. Trying to figure out if there's anything he can say that wont give away the fact that he's spent a good year and a half on the street and hasn't even thought about things like school when he wasn't running from cops who thought he was a truant.
" Ah man!" Tony exclaims suddenly, pulling a red and gold cellphone out of his pocket Steve's never seen before and smiling sheepishly. " Your going to have to give us details next time! Here give me your number, I'll text you Steve's, he's always leaving his at home. It's so annoying, but what can you do? We're suppose to helping this friend of ours move today. We cut school and everything, and we really can't afford to be late. He'll throw a fit, and moving days are stressing enough, don't you think? We can meet up somewhere, hang out and stuff, you know?"
Someday, he will figure out the ease with which Tony can believably lie and figure out how to do it himself. Mean while, he'll be grateful that Tony can read him like a book, and is willing to lie for him.
" Sure! I get it." Bucky says," Me and Pegs here just needed a break, we've got this teacher who was ex military or something and he's been driving us up a wall. Hey do you guy's want any help I don't mind heavy lifting. Peggy might though. "
Tony makes a face, " Don't start. I don't think about school unless I'm in it, I sleep better at night that way. And no, sorry, but are you kidding? Two teenagers wondering around only really flies because Steve here looks college level, and we both left our backpacks, but you two are clearly cutting, and Tasha will kill us if we get caught by the truant police. Now your number?"
Bucky rattles off some digits and Peggy offers hers as well. Tony texts them both a number he assures them is Steve's and then wishes them luck catching him with it on his person. Bucky gives him one last rib crushing hug and then their off, Steve feeling dazed and confused, while Tony is quiet for once, shooting him considering looks.
They're walking home when Steve begins to feel better, not as shell shocked by the encounter.
" Did that just happen?" He asks Tony. He's not quite sure he want's to believe it. Seeing Bucky again, after all this time. Freezing up and the desire to freeze his old friend out. He feels like an awful person for even thinking it. Bucky has been nothing but a great friend to him since they met in kindergarten. Doubting him now feels like spitting on that friendship.
" Yeah it happened." Tony says, apparently favoring the blunt approach. " Question is, what just happened? Cuz to me it looks like you were happy to see someone from your old life, and that's just weird Steve, even for a nice guy like you."
" Bucky was my best friend." Steve says, " Before..." He stops, Tony doesn't know anything about the car crash, about his parents, about Steve before the foster homes, and in a weird way he prefers it that way. Not because he doesn't trust Tony. He trusts Tony with his life, that's never been an issue for them, he just, he doesn't want to burden him with that. Doesn't want to let on about all the pieces of him that are dead and gone. At least this way, sometimes Steve can pretend he's whole. It's bad enough Tony knows that he's broken. Steve doesn't want to let him know how. It's selfish, but he can't help it.
The silence hangs heavy for a moment, when it becomes clear Steve isn't going to go on. He's never been so grateful that it's one of those unspoken rules of theirs not to ask.
" Okay." Tony says, because he doesn't like silence, or maybe because he really does love Steve and want's to distract him from those thoughts, thoughts of before and just how messed up he is." So it sucks that the surprise is ruined now but here you go."
Tony produces another phone from his pocket, red. white and blue.
" Is that for me?" Steve asks, befuddled. What on earth would he do with a phone?
" Duh much?" Tony teases," Me and Bruce finally got these baby's working just right, unlimited texting, unlimited internet, and unlimited calls. Not a Penny paid in expenses. Gotta love the consumerism of the twenty first century, people don't bother fixing anything anymore, especially not small electronics like phones, they just throw them away, so we scavenged a few and personalized them a bit. We figured it would be easier to keep in touch this way, instead of having to coordinate stuff in the morning."
Sometimes some of them just needed to be alone. And as much as they loved and treasured their home, it was never quit the same as just taking off for a while, walking alone. Steve wasn't sure when he hated it more, when he found himself doing it or when one of the others took off. He hated not knowing where they were. It was like an itch on the base of his spine, a constant worry that something would happen, that they would never know if one of them ever just chose not to come back.
Steve gripped his phone." Thank you."
Tony shrugged, oddly shy." Your welcome. Help me explain to Bruce why I squealed when I was the one hounding him about this being a super secret surprise and we'll call it even."
Steve smiled," Deal!"
XxX
And the Shipping begins! So much for a three shot though.
Behold the power of my fangirling! Early update, especially for me. But thanks so much those of you who reviewed! Seriously, love. I'm sorry for how rough the original copy was, i get a little ahead of myself, sometimes, and publish without so much as spell checking, awful of me, I know, but I went back and fixed it, so give me some prop's plox. I'ts not like that many people read it anyway.
Gah! The Stony shipping on this site is sort of pathetic. AO3 is way, way better but i'm still waiting on that email invite, methinks I'll get it sometime next June, lol. I'm a little iffy on it site wise, it's hard to search on it I think, and people take a little too much liberty with the tags. Still, if you've only been reading avenger fics on this site, get out! Get out now, google Tony/Steve rec list or whatever pairing you ship, and all these wonderful bloggers have compiled these awesome lists of some of the best fanfiction for them. Just a tip, if you had no clue, kind if like I did, so yeah. Go do that, hopefully some kind soul will link this story to one of those blogs and I'll get more views. So thanks again those of you who reviewed! Five people did and seeing as only a hundred and twenty five actually viewed the thing, that's one person in twenty five! Love you guys! Anyone just giving this a try, please drop me a line!
