Bucky leaned against Tony's locker, eyes watching keenly for the boy's arrival. No matter how many times Bucky texted him or called him, there had been no answer from Tony all fucking weekend. He could only hope that Howard had taken away his phone, and it wasn't because Tony simply didn't want to talk to him.

It wasn't long until he was joined by Bruce Banner. They both gave a simple nod of acknowledgment before standing together, waiting, in companionable silence. It was one of the very reasons Bucky liked Bruce so much, there were no need for words. Natasha, Clint, and Bruce had barely been a part of their friendship group longer than Tony, but Bruce was one of the easiest people Bucky had ever been able to be around.

There were issues there, hinted at, but never spoken allowed. Bucky knew that Bruce had stuff going on with his father, Bruce knew that Bucky had stuff going on with his arm; together they ignored their issues, and negated the pressure to talk.

It was Natasha who intruded on their peaceful silence. She greeted Bruce with a small hug. Bucky couldn't help but notice the way Bruce looked down at her, for a moment it was as if she were the only thing keeping him grounded to the earth; he wondered if he had the same look about him whenever Tony was around.

"Waiting for Tones?" Natasha guessed.

Bucky just nodded at her.

Bruce filled in the silence, "Haven't heard from him all weekend," he mumbled miserably.

"His dad just got back," Bucky explained, "his dad is a dick."

"Oh." Natasha breathed softly, he eyes studying Bruce's face for a reaction. There had been hints before at the terrible relationship Bruce had with his father. Bucky didn't know too much and he didn't want to.

There was a small spark of jealously and doubt that sparked in his mind. He wondered if having shitty dads would have them empathising with each other, and eventually… no. Initially there may have been cause for concern that Bruce would be a romantic rival, but it was so obvious that he loved Natasha.

A few minutes later, Bucky was relieved to see Tony's familiar face. He was walking alongside Jane, completely immersed in conversation with her. Bucky took a moment to appreciate how uncomplicated he looked when he was talking about… you know, science or whatever. His features were relaxed, with his hands moving around excitedly as he explained. Jane looked enraptured by his words, nodding and bouncing in her heels with the same level of excitement Tony was showing. They were probably talking about space science, or something. Thor was watching them too, looking like a confused over-sized puppy.

Tony looked up and met Bucky's eyes, a sad special little smile came across his face. When they were in distance of each other, Bucky reached out for him -metal arm and all- to tuck Tony away against his chest.

"Aw," Jane gushed, "young love."

"Shut your whore mouth, Jane," Tony mumbled, and Bucky felt the vibration in his chest.

Thor gasped, "Anthony!" he near-growled, genuine shock on his face.

"It was a joke," Natasha and Jane said in unison.

Thor's frown broke into a smile, and he laughed loudly. "Ah, I will never understand your humour."

Bucky tuned out the next few minutes of conversation, focusing on gently rubbing Tony's back. He had questions, but they could be saved for later, as long as he had the boy in his arm's, it would all be okay. Tony relaxed against him, content to simply cling on like a particularly adorable sloth.

His attention was snapped back when Steve walked over to join them. Bucky could see his sad blue eyes scanning over the sets of couples, and the loneliness set in. There was another problem- Steve needed to get a girlfriend.

oOoOoOo

It wasn't until lunch time that Bucky could really talk to Tony.

Tony cuddled up to him where they lay on the grass. There was a reluctancy in his touches, Bucky wished he could just kiss away. They were both still a little awkward when things became a little too intimate, but Tony especially so. One minute, the boy could be sitting in his lap, grinding and kissing, the next Tony would blush intensely over the mere idea of holding hands.

Tony's confidence dipped and curved around them, determining what was okay and when. Bucky still wasn't sure which he liked better: confident and compelling Tony, who knew exactly how to draw everyone's attention and impress them, who showed-off, kissed Bucky in public, and was happy to let the whole world no how brilliant he was. Or the Tony that suffered from crippling self-doubt, but also a sweet wide-eyed curiosity to everything around him, when he let himself be in true, unbridled awe or his work, when he accepted that he didn't know everything because everything was complex and amazing.

"Hey Buck, can I stay at yours tonight?" Tony asked quickly, voice real quiet like he didn't quite want to be heard.

"Of course, Doll," Bucky answered, placing a kiss in his hair. "Is it your dad?"

Tony shrugged, "Howard's being a prick. He took my phone, sorry I didn't text."

"Don't be sorry, I figured it was something like that."

"But I should be sorry," Tony insisted, "I can't believe I let him speak to you like that, a-and I called you… my friend. I didn't mean it, I just couldn't tell him-"

Bucky pulled him closer, breaking off his apology with a gentle kiss, "I know that. I know you couldn't say anything, and I don't expect that from you. Your da- Howard doesn't bother me. You know how I feel about bullies, tech geniuses or not."

Tony smiled with relief, before giving a small chuckle, "Nah, I'm the tech genius. Howard's clever, but never as clever as I'm gonna be, nobody is; I reckon' he hates that."

Bucky smiled, recognising the arrogant side of Tony coming out. "Oh yeah? I dunno Tony, Bruce Banner seems pretty clever to me…"

Tony hit him playfully, "You take that back!"

"Did I say cleverer than you? I would never say anything like that, my doll."

"You dork," Tony laughed.

"You're such a rude little boy!" Bucky gasped in mock-horror.

Tony winked, swiping his tongue across his lower lip, "Rude? That's one word for it."

"Damn that was hot," Bucky breathed.

Tony pouted, "Are you being sarcastic?"

"No fucking way," Bucky growled, moving forward to catch Tony's lush lips. He kissed him deeply, enjoying the hot wet slide of their tongues. Tony was being playful, running his hands up and down Bucky's arms, sighing oh-so-prettily.

When Bucky eventually pulled back, he looked down appreciate at Tony's flushed cheeks and swollen lips.

"Tonight, I'm sleeping on the couch," he decided out loud.

"Woah, you really don't think you could keep it in your pants? That's just sad, Buck."

Bucky grinned, kissing Tony's cheek. He was content to cuddle in the grass, away from prying eyes for the rest of the afternoon. No talking, just touching, and listening to the sound of each other breathing.

"By the way, I was gonna ask…" Tony piped up, "Steve looked sad today?"

"Oh yeah, he's just cause a case of being permanently single."

"Really? But he's so good-looking?" Tony mocked a dreamy voice, pretending to look wistful.

"Tony."

Tony laughed, "Sorry, Buckaroo. I mean it though. It hardly makes sense for Steve to be single."

Bucky nodded in agreement, "Yeah. I kinda figured out why."

"Do tell."

"Steve is too good. I mean, he's like some paragon figure, ridiculously good. He's got a strong sense of right and wrong, and never hesitates to do what's right. Sometimes he's a little too black and white about things for my taste, but that doesn't stop him being admirable. I think it scares people off, he's way too intense. And whenever he does have a girl's attention, he's so awkward. So, not that many people pursue a relationship with him, and he finds it impossible to even talk to them."

Tony nodded, eyes thoughtful, "Hmm, so what you're really saying is he needs to be set up."

"Huh?"

"I bet Nat knows someone…"

"No, Tony he'll kill us."

Tony was practically wriggling with excitement, "It can be subtle! We'll do a group thing, and invite one extra. Then say, one or two or six of our friends can't make it, and it ends up being a double date… where's my date, by the way?"

"What? I- I uh… we've been on dates."

"When?"

"The party…"

"Bucky, no." Tony huffed, crossing his arms.

"I brought you McDonald's…"

"I thought you were gonna break up with me!"

"Last Friday, we did the movie thing at your house. And we've done video games at my house."

"Okay, maybe, just maybe, Friday night counts. But anything before we were dating does not count, and I want to make out with you in the back of a movie theatre!"

"Yes, okay, real dates I promise. No making out if Steve is there, though."

"Oh right, Steve. Lost my train of thought. Yes, we are totally gonna set him up. This is so fun."