The anger had calmed down to frustration, a contrast to the shouting match moments prior. Maybe we were finally running out of things to scream at each other. "I thought you'd be happy with the new job. I get paid more and get to work closer to home so I don't have to take the subway as far, which you," you jabbed Bucky's chest with your finger, not caring if he got angry again, "always told me was unsafe." Your shorter height didn't make you seem as intimidating as him but you still glared at Bucky with everything you had. "And with my boyfriend at the same place, I won't have to walk home alone anymore, which again, you kept drilling was unsafe." He looked away with a mixture of guilt and anger, which only made your anger flare again. "God damn it Bucky! I did this as a compromise for both of you! I know you don't like my boyfriend but this is ridiculous!" Oh how you hated when you were mad enough, you start crying in frustration. It ends up feeling like no one takes you seriously afterwards. "I did this because I know you care damn it and I was trying to keep you from worrying so much about me." As quickly as it came, your anger shifted to defeat with a small sniffle.

"Hey." Bucky softened his expression as he pulled you into a hug. He didn't mean to make you this upset.

"Why aren't you happy?" It came out more like a whine but at this point, you didn't care. You just wanted to know why.

Bucky didn't answer for a long moment. He really didn't mean to make you cry. It was just expressing himself was difficult. Adding jealousy and anger in the mix only makes it more complicated, which is how it ended up with the two of you yelling at each other. "I..." Bucky sighed when you thought he wasn't going to answer. "It's because I don't like him."

You scoffed but didn't try to move away from him. "Fucking understatement of the year Buck."

A flash of annoyance crossed his face. "Look, I don't trust him."

"You don't trust anyone."

"This is a different kind."

You rolled your eyes as your voice dripped with sarcasm. "Sure."

Bucky gripped your shoulders to pull you back enough to glare at you. "He's not who he says he is." You returned the glare as Bucky's expression grew angrier. "I just want you to be ok damn it."

You pulled out of his grip with an exasperated sigh. "I am ok. At this point, I just think you're jealous."

Bucky's jaw clenched at your words before growling. "I am but this has nothing to do with it."

That made your eyes widen in surprise. Bucky realized what he said as an embarrassed flush dusted his cheeks. The two of you stood in silence before you broke the quiet with a soft voice. "How long?"

"I don't know. Months?" Bucky licked his bottom lip as his nerves took over. He didn't know when he had started liking you but it didn't go away over time like he had hoped. Then you got a boyfriend which made him hide his crush even more but he couldn't just cut you out of his life. Sam and you had shown you guys deeply cared about him and are willing to pull him out of the deep holes he let himself fall into occasionally. He'd be stupid to let that disappear so he sucked up his pride and settled on being your best friend. You watched him bite the inside of his cheek as the silence dragged on. You had no idea what to say but Bucky continued so you didn't have to respond. "I don't trust him. Not because I like you." He forced himself to look at you with a serious expression, even though you could see the underlying trepidation. "He's been an asshole to Sam every time we hang out. I've almost punched him for it."

"He's never..."

"He only does it when you aren't around."

The accusations coming from anyone else would have sounded stupid and like a ploy to cause drama but you knew Bucky. He'd talk shit to Sam's face to rile him up but never talk shit about Sam behind his back. Bucky wasn't that type of person. "I had no idea…"

Bucky frowned as he shoved his hands into his pockets. "I'm sure he didn't want you to know."

You watched Bucky shift his weight uncomfortably and knew he was hiding something else. "There's more to it..." Bucky tense at your words. He looked away and that only confirmed your observation. "What else did he do?"

He kept his gaze on a random spot on the wall for a long time before finally answering. "He insulted you."

"That's not a big deal to-"

"It is to me." Bucky gently cut you off as he looked back at you. "He said something bad enough that Sam looked like he wanted to punch him too."

You blinked in surprise as Bucky awkwardly chuckled. "That's why you guys don't ever hang out with him now." The short nod was all you needed. "I'm sor-"

"It's not your fault." He placed his hands gently on your shoulders again. "You don't need to apologize."

"But-"

"No buts." He gave you a stern stare until you conceded. "I don't blame you."

You chewed the inside of your cheek but nodded in understanding while you studied his face as he seemed to relax with a half smile. You returned it but you weren't expecting a stomach flip when his smile grew. "Did you still want to go to the movies?" You tried to hide the emotion by changing the subject.

"Do you?"

You nodded with a bigger smile. "I'm going to clean myself up and we can head out." You gave him a quick wave before going into the bathroom. You turned on the sink and watched the water run. Your not so small crush from when you first met resurfaced again. Bucky was attractive and that's what got your attention in the first place but the more you got to know him, the harder it was to let that crush die. You told yourself you were going to wait until he made the first move because you don't want to cross any boundaries. You ended up meeting your current boyfriend and for a moment, you could mostly forget about the attraction to Bucky, but today brought it back full force.

The fact that your boyfriend was only nice to Sam when you were around made you reconsider your relationship. If he was doing that behind your back, what else was he doing without your knowledge? You washed my face as you thought everything over. You didn't want someone in my life if they were going to treat your closest friends terribly behind your back. You'd rather be single than lose Sam and Bucky. You pause as you thought back to a few moments ago when Bucky admitted he liked you. You knew what you wanted to do.

You quickly finished cleaning up and made your way back to the living room. Bucky stood from the couch but before he could say anything, you hugged him tightly.

"You ok?" Concern laced his words as he hugged back just as tightly.

"Yeah. I just figured out something important." Bucky frowned his brow in confusion as you buried your face deeper into his chest.

"Is that why you took so long?"

"Yep and for the record," you hummed as you pulled away to start walking towards the front door with a shiteating grin, "I like you back Bucky." Before you could see his expression, you opened the door and turned away. "Once I break up with him, you better say yes to being my new boyfriend." You giggled as you stepped outside, not waiting for his reaction, but knowing he'd still follow you.

--

Thank you for reading this far! These BuckyxReader shorts are inspired by Instagram reels I find.

Please give this creator love. They do a wonderful job making POV reels.

This particular short is based off this reel.

https//reel/CoaH0AKgqI3/?igshid=YmMyMTA2M2Y=