Archive of Our Own

Chapter Text

Peter was halfway through a grilled cheese sandwich when there was a pounding at the front door of the apartment that he shared with his Aunt May. He set his food down, then wiped the crumbs off his hands and onto his jeans. He got up and made his way over to the entrance, peering out into the hallway via the peephole. He frowned upon seeing that it was dark – whoever was on the other side of the door was blocking his ability to see them. Peter took a deep breath and braced himself, readying for a fight just in case. He could have ignored them, but that would have possibly resulted in the door being broken down and they definitely didn’t have the means to fix it. He unlocked the door and opened it.

“Hey, kid,” Barnes greeted with bloodstained teeth as he grinned down at the youth. “You-” he let out a ragged cough – it sounded like it was painful- like he was in a world of pain- “you gonna let me in?”

Peter backed up to let him in, partly out of shock and partly because he was raised to help people when they were in need – and the sergeant definitely looked like he was in need. Direly.

Barnes stumbled inside, knocking one of his shoulders off of the door frame with a wince as he moved into the apartment – he also appeared to be limping. He cursed under his breath as he shut the door behind himself and leaned up against it, closing his eyes. His chest moved up and down rather quickly as he tried to relax.

Peter stood there and stared at him, unsure of what to do.

Water, he thought to himself before shuffling away. He grabbed a glass from the cupboard and filled it up with water from the tap, his hands shaking all the while. What is he doing here? What happened to him? Some kind of fight, that was for sure, but who had been strong enough to injure the Winter Soldier that badly?

“That for me?” Barnes asked, his voice nearly making Peter jump out of his skin as he turned to see that he was standing right behind him.

“Uh, y-yes, sir,” Peter answered in a voice that matched the shakiness in his hands. He held out the glass towards the sergeant, “I thought you- well, you look like you need it,” the teenager added quietly.

Barnes’ eyes dropped down to the cup, and he took it from Peter. He tipped it up to his mouth, parting his lips as he took a sip from it. Barnes winced, swallowing hard – his features twisting as he grimaced.

“Is it too cold?” Peter wondered, frowning again. “I can- I can boil some water or- or tea, I could make you some tea, if your throat is sore.”

The older man set the glass down on the counter and gave him a look, lifting a brow at him, “That’s alright, I’m fine.” He rubbed his mouth with the back of his hand before grimacing again as he peered down at the blood that had smeared across his skin.

“We should get you to a hospital,” Peter heard himself saying – although he didn’t drive, so getting there was going to be a pain.

“No.” Barnes perked up in fear, his eyes widening. “Don’t you think I would have gone there if I’d had a choice?”

Peter fidgeted with the strings of his sweatpants, only then realizing he hadn’t put on a shirt that morning and was currently standing there half-naked in front of a man he didn’t really know.

“Why- why did you come here?” Peter asked in a small voice. He was sure that the Stark Tower would have been a more suitable place for the sergeant to go and ask for assistance.

“Gotta lay low,” Barnes replied vaguely as he unzipped his jacket.

I guess he’s staying, Peter thought faintly.

“The first place anyone would look for me is there, and I remembered Steve mentioning something about you living in these parts.” Barnes slid his coat off of his arms, wincing, and cursing softly. Now, without his extra covering, Peter could see that he had a large gash that streaked down his front. It was maybe half the length of his arm – starting at his stomach and disappearing under the top of his trousers. “It wasn’t that difficult to track you down, kid,” Barnes was going on. “You might want to look into that.”

“That- that doesn’t look good,” Peter whispered, his eyes remaining on the large wound.

Barnes glanced down and ran his fleshed fingers over the blood soaking through his shirt with another wince, “I’m- it’s fine. I just need some place to hole up for a few days.” He returned his gaze back to Peter’s, “So what do you say, kid? You wanna help me out or not?”

Peter had no idea how he was going to explain this to his aunt – May wasn’t exactly a patient person. She already didn’t like the fact that he was Spiderman – she wouldn’t like that he was getting himself into trouble once again. He still had a few hours before she came home from work though, so he still had time to think of a plan. Of course, the easiest solution was to tell the Winter Soldier that Peter had made a mistake, and that the teen couldn’t house him for a few days – but that wasn’t going to happen. Peter had been raised right, and he would not kick someone who obviously needed help back out onto the street – though he wasn’t too sure that his Aunt May wouldn’t precisely do just that when she got home.

“I don’t think I own anything you can fit in, sir,” Peter said, his gaze travelling up and down Barnes. He had moved them into his bedroom now, on the off chance that his aunt got home early – he really didn’t want to risk it.

“I don’t think so either, kid.” Barnes grinned to himself like he was enjoying a private joke before turning his body around to face the boy directly. When he caught Peter staring, he chuckled lowly, “You checking me out, Spidey?”

Peter flushed, his eyes snapping back up to the older man’s face as he fumbled for his words. “What? No, no of course not! I was- I was trying to figure out your measurements, sir.”

“Kinky.” Barnes smirked, obviously having a blast messing with the teenager.

“No, I mean- I need to- if I knew your measurements- how big you are, then I would be able to pick out something of mine that you’ll fit in.”

Oh yeah, that’s better, Peter scolded himself mentally.

Barnes snorted, shaking his head, “I’m just jerking on your chain, kid. I know what you were doing.” He leaned back against the ladder that was attached to Peter’s bunkbeds. “You shouldn’t be able to get riled up so quickly – you should find some way to relax.” The smirk returned, “I could help with that.”

“What?!” Peter was pretty sure that he was losing brain cells at that point, talking to the sergeant was giving him a bit of a migraine. “Wha- what do you-”

“Training.” Barnes tilted his head to the side, “Why? What did you think I was talking about?”

Peter pressed his lips into a hard line and took a deep breath, “Nothing, nothing.” He shook his head as well, “We- first things first, you should probably shower before my aunt gets home. It’s going to be one thing for her to see you here, it’s going to be a completely new problem if you’re still covered in blood when she sees you.”

Barnes’ expression shifted, a sober look creeping into his eyes, “Are you sure it’s alright for me to stay here?”

“Yeah... no.” Peter rubbed the back of his head before he gestured for Barnes to follow him from the room. He led him down the short hallway and into the bathroom, flicking on the dim yellow light in there. “She’s not really happy about all of this Avenger stuff,” Peter continued on, after retrieving a towel from the closet for Barnes to use. “She’s worried it’ll get me hurt… or worse.”

“She’s smart to worry,” Barnes informed him as he hung his jacket over the sink. He pulled at the hem of his shirt, gasping out softly as the fabric stuck to his bloodied skin. “Fuck,” he hissed, before quickly glancing at Peter. “I mean... crap, sorry. I know Stark doesn’t want us swearing around you.”

“That’s a thing?” Peter flushed, embarrassed. “He isn’t- I don’t mind the language, sir.” He laughed a bit, “I thought Steve was the one with the issue.”

Barnes nodded with a grin, “Steve’s issue is with everyone,” he told him. “Stark’s only concern is about you.”

“Oh.” Peter pursed his lips once more. “Well, I really don’t mind it. I’m almost 18 now – I’m hardly a kid anymore.”

“Well, I don’t think I have ever been called ‘sir,’ at least since I ‘got back’. So, how about I don’t call you kid, and you use my actual name, hm?” Barnes raised a brow at him.

“Sergeant Barnes?”

The Winter Soldier laughed fully that time, “Yes, because my first name is ‘sergeant’ – just call me Bucky, okay?”

“But-”

“K- Parker?” Bucky hissed without any anger, though he sounded a little impatient. “I have to undress now, so unless you’re going to help me with that-” he paused suggestively, and Peter’s stomach flipped with a feeling that he couldn’t place. Bucky grinned at him before continuing, “I suggest that you go back to whatever you were doing before I interrupted. Sound good?”

Peter bit his lip, “You can call me Peter,” he told him.

The older man tipped his head back as he ran his eyes over the teenager, humming lowly, “No, I don’t think I will,” he decided before he returned his focus back to his shirt. “Now, get gone – I don’t want Stark blaming me for scarring you for the rest of your life.”

Peter frowned but left. He went back into the kitchen and washed his hands before sitting back down at the table. He began eating his grilled cheese again, though he could barely taste it – he was too zoned in on listening to Bucky in the other room.

Bucky... Peter mused. He, of course, knew of the nickname, but he’d assumed that only friends were allowed to use it, and the two of them barely knew one another. It was nice to maybe think that they could be friends – maybe then it wouldn’t be so strange for Peter to ask more about the older man’s cool metal arm. Help first, he told himself. Bother later.

*.*.*

Bucky had to peel the material of his shirt off of his body – he bit down on his metal fingers as he did so, in an attempt to keep from screaming. The gash was worse than he had let on – for one hysterical moment, he thought as though he was actually going to pass out from the pain of simply removing his shirt. He filled the sink with cold water before plunging the garment into it – the shirt itself wouldn’t be able to ever regain its white color again, but he could still use it to help wash the wound. Bucky drained the sink after his shirt was completely drenched, watching as the blood tainted water swirled down out of sight. He honestly would have kept the sink filled if he had been anywhere else, but he was worried that the porcelain would have been stained. Bucky didn’t think Peter would be able to explain that one to his aunt anytime soon – the boy had already chosen to help him without her permission, and he didn’t want to get Peter in more trouble than he was already going to.

Bucky bit down on his tongue as he pressed the cloth to the gash and froze. He inhaled sharply and tasted blood from biting down too hard on his tongue as the pain surged through his body. Bucky knew he should have asked the kid for his help, but he’d been serious about Stark, and didn’t want Peter to see something he’d never forget. By the time Bucky finished cleaning up only the top half of the wound – he hadn’t even taken off his jeans yet – he was shaking. There was no chance in hell he would be able to stand up in the shower and wash – he would slip and fall. Before that though, he was going to pass out.

Peter popped the last of the grilled cheese into his mouth, chewing as quietly as he could as he wanted to hear Barnes in case he called for his help. Though he would be able to hear him even if he did chew loudly – with his super senses and all that. Peter jumped to his feet upon hearing a loud thud – he raced to the bathroom and flung the door open.

Bucky was on the floor on his knees, he peered up at the boy and grinned, “Sorry,” he said. “I lost my balance while standing... in one place.”

Peter frowned and shuffled over to him, offering him his arm. He helped the older man back up to his feet, only for Bucky to partly fall onto him. The teenager held him up as best as he could, struggling slightly – the metal arm definitely added some unnecessary weight. Peter finally managed to prop the sergeant up on the side of the tub – he didn’t let him go though; he continued to hold onto him to help him sit up.

“I- I’m sorry,” Peter apologized to him, gripping at Bucky’s shoulders to keep him steady. “I shouldn’t have left you alone.”

Barnes snorted, “What else could you do to help?”

“Well-” Peter snuck a glance over to the counter where the older man had swiped off the glass bottle of soap which lay in broken pieces in the sink that was looking a little pinker than usual- “I could have stopped that from happening.” He hoped the soap hadn’t been too expensive – he would have to replace it before his Aunt May realized that it was gone.

“I don’t have the strength to stand up in the shower,” Bucky informed him, as if that wasn’t already obvious.

Peter chuckled, nodding his head, “Yeah, I can see that.” He bit his lip, “But we do need to get you cleaned up.” He tapped his fingertips against Barnes’ metal shoulder while he tried to think of a different course of action. “What about a bath?”

“I’m a grown man, k- Parker – we don’t take baths.”

“What? Since when does taking a bath have an age limit?” Peter narrowed his eyes at him, “Sure, you only really do it when you’re little, but have you never wanted to light a few candles and just relax in something that was like a big, warm hug?”

Bucky blinked before glancing at him sideways with the side of his mouth quirking upward, “Candles?”

“That’s all you got out of what I-” Peter took a deep breath and shook his head, “I mean- how else are we going to get you clean? If you had fallen in the shower-” a sense of dread flooded through him- “well, I- I’m not sure what I would have done.”

Bucky studied his expression for a moment before letting out a low sigh, “Alright, alright – I’m sorry, okay? A bath does seem like it would be my best option.” He ducked his head, rubbing his fleshed hand over the stubble growing on his jaw thoughtfully, “Though, I might actually need some help getting undressed.” When Peter seemed hesitant, Bucky added, “I passed out there for a sec after taking off my shirt-” his eyes flickered over towards the sink- “and I would hate to break anything else.”

“Okay,” Peter agreed after another pause. That made sense, didn’t it? “So, we have to get your pants off then – uh, I guess I can...” he faded off as his eyes dropped to Bucky’s blood-soaked trousers.

Bucky snorted again, “I can bathe with them on – I’ll have to wash them somehow.”

“Yeah, but not like that.” Peter paused once more, trying to come up with something more logical. “I think if you’re able to hold yourself up- I- I can pull them off.” He raised his gaze back up to the other’s face, “Are your arms strong enough to do that?”

“They should be,” Bucky replied. “They weren’t injured during the fight,” he noted further when Peter didn’t move to do as he had suggested. “I really can just bathe with my pants on though, kid.”

Peter knew Barnes had let the ‘k’ word slip, but it was what he needed to ‘man-up’, as his fellow peers would call it. Though he was still unsure about one part. “Should I close my eyes and... pull?”

“Why would you need to close your eyes?” Bucky seemed genuinely curious to know.

“Uh... because you’ll be naked,” Peter answered, his cheeks heating up.

“And?”

“And that’s... weird,” Peter replied in a small voice.

“Why is it weird?” Bucky couldn’t figure out why it would be. “We’re both men – you’ve got what I got.”

Peter’s eyes dropped once again to the older man’s pants – more so the direct middle of them, his crotch area. “I doubt it,” he muttered half-heartedly.

“Parker?”

“Mhm?” Peter gave him a nod while his eyes remained trained on his middle. He snapped out of it a second later, blushing furiously. “Huh?” He looked back up to Bucky’s face again.

Bucky appeared amused, “You ready?” He asked.

Peter nodded another time and swallowed hard. He could do this, right? He had already agreed to help, and this is what that help entailed.

“I can undo them and get them over my hips, but I need you to do the rest. Is that alright?” Bucky wondered, eyeing the youth. “You’re not squeamish, are you?”

“Nope.” Peter shook his head and got down on his knees in front of the older man. He had definitely never been in this position before, though he’d seen it in a couple of ‘movies’ on the web. “I’m ready,” he told Bucky after another few beats of silence.

“Just look at me- my face, okay?” Bucky gave the suggestion to him lightly. “Don’t think about it too much.”

It was a little too late for that, but Peter nodded in agreement and locked eyes with the sergeant.

Bucky held his gaze with his as he undid his trousers and shimmied slowly, sliding them over his hips while trying not to fall backwards into the tub – he was sure that would make things more difficult.

“Okay, you’re up,” Bucky notified him. He placed his hands flat on the edge of the tub and lifted himself up. He gritted his teeth together as the action strained the muscles in his chest where the wound was. “Be quick about it, if you can,” he added, speaking out through his clenched jaw.

Peter hurried as best as he could. He reached out basically blindly, finding the hem of Bucky’s pants and pulling them down towards himself. Beforehand, he had been a 100% sure that he was accidentally going to touch something that he wasn’t supposed to – he was ever so thankful that he hadn’t, this was already awkward enough. He slid the trousers down Bucky’s legs and tugged them right off at the bottom, somehow managing to keep eye contact the entire time. With the pants off, Peter got to his feet and folded them in his hands.

“See, that wasn’t so bad, right?” Bucky’s voice was a little hoarse as he spoke out. He set himself back down on the edge of the tub, giving his body time to relax. He was only partly aware of the extra blood that had begun to spout from his wound due to the stress of his skin being pulled across his ribcage when he’d lifted himself up.

Peter kept his sight aimed directly above the older man’s head as he answered, “Nope, it wasn’t.” He set the folded garment onto the counter beside the sink and busied himself with cleaning up the glass that had circled around the drain – he hoped that none of it had actually gone down the hole.

“I hate to bother you again,” Bucky started, making a slight face. He hated this – he hated relying on someone else after so many years of only relying on himself. He had already put Steve through hell – he hated doing it to someone else. “Could you fill the tub? I don’t think I can safely drop down into nothing – the water would help.”

Peter stopped what he was doing, “Oh, right.” He turned back around, keeping his eyes up. He leaned over Bucky with the thought of only plugging the sink closed and nothing else. However, he’d misjudged his movements, and his shoulder bumped into the older man’s, causing Bucky to flail and grab onto him. Peter managed, by the grace of God, to keep his balance. “Crap, I’m sorry, I wasn’t watching too closely,” Peter breathed. Bucky’s hold on him didn’t loosen though and he waited a bit more before asking, “Are you okay?”

“Your... your hand, Parker,” Bucky whispered, almost too quietly.

Peter frowned, a little confused. His hand was holding the plug that he had grabbed from the corner of the tub. It took him too long to remember that he, in fact, had two hands. His right hand was holding the plug – his left hand though had dropped down to grip the side of the tub to stabilize himself... except it hadn’t made it to the porcelain.

Oh no, Peter thought. Oh, no- was right. His left hand wasn’t touching the cool, hard surface of the tub. It was touching something that was warm and soft and- Oh... maybe not so soft...

“Parker?” Barnes’ voice sounded like it was really far away, which was stupid because Peter could feel his breath on the side of his neck as he spoke. “You alright in there?”

Peter blinked and came back to himself, “Uh, yeah.” He bent lower and plugged the tub before turning on the water, checking then adjusting the temperature.

Bucky didn’t say anything, though it seemed as though the teenager had curiously forgotten that he was still touching him. Bucky thought that it was a little funny, especially because of how anxious Parker had appeared about seeing his dick – but that wasn’t the reason why he hadn’t said anything. The real reason was that Parker’s hand felt good on his cock, and he’d been pretty much dying for the last hour – it was nice to feel something good after suffering through all that bad.

Peter was lost in his mind, trying to come up with some kind of apology. When he did finally zone back in, he realized (mortified) that he had yet to take his hand off of Barnes’-

Peter flinched and fell backwards, his bare back hitting the tile with an awful slapping noise.

Bucky winced at the sound, “Fuck, Parker,” he hissed. “Are you alright?” He repeated, more sympathetic that time around.

“Yep!” Peter shot up to his feet, trying to ignore how warm his hand still felt from being in contact with- “I’m alright! Super alright, uh- you can turn the water off and get your- you into the tub by yourself, right?”

Barnes opened his mouth to say something, closed it, then reopened it, “Yeah, I can,” he decided. “Thanks.”

Peter nodded so quickly it hurt, “Good, good. Well, I’ll be out there, so... be careful.” He left then, moving faster than he ever had in his entire life. He shut the door behind himself, but instead of going back into the kitchen, he went into his bedroom. Peter went over to his desk and picked up his water bottle before chugging more than half of it. He sat down on the side of his bed, continuing to gulp down the lukewarm liquid. He eventually finished it and tossed the empty bottle onto the mattress beside him.

So... I didn’t look at it, but-

But Peter had touched it, felt it – and his mind seemed set on figuring out what it would look like based on what he had felt. He scrubbed at his eyes with his fingers, before jerking his left hand away from his face. He picked up the bottle of hand sanitizer off his desk and used it, rubbing his hands together almost furiously. He shook them, drying up the excess gel.

“Okay, okay, this is- everything is fine,” Peter murmured to himself, trying to collect his thoughts. As he gathered them though, he realized that he would probably have to help Bucky again. The older man hadn’t been able to stand – how the hell was he going to get out of the tub by himself?

Well, he’s not, Peter told himself as a matter-of-factly. For now, he decided to sit there and wait – that was all he could really do. That was until he heard a door slam open. Peter jumped to his feet, moving out into the hall to discover (confusingly) that the bathroom door remained shut.

“Peter! Could you help me with these?” The voice- the female voice- his aunt’s voice came from the front hall.

Peter jerked around so quickly he almost lost his balance. He rushed to meet her at the front door, where May had her hands full of brown grocery bags.

“Sorry about the noise – I had to kick it open,” May apologized with a sheepish smile. “Here-” she handed him one of the bags and he took it immediately.

“It’s alright,” Peter told her with a smile of his own – though his was forced. “I, uh- I thought you weren’t going to be home until later.” He went into the kitchen, setting the bag down on the counter before beginning to put the food away.

“They double booked,” May told him. “I was supposed to do a double, but the late person came in and sent me home.” She beamed at him as she set the other two bags down on the counter. “So, I figured I’d do groceries for the week – save the time of going tomorrow on my day off. This way we can spend the day together – you don’t work tomorrow, right?” When Peter faltered – he’d heard a slight splash of water in the not too far distance – she continued on. “Or am I remembering that wrong?”

“No, you’re right. I don’t work tomorrow.” Peter said quickly.

May, upon hearing his tone, narrowed her eyes, “What’s going on, Peter?”

“What? Nothing,” Peter replied before letting out a shaky laugh. “Why would something be going on?”

“You’re acting funny,” May countered. “You seem rushed.”

Crap, crap, crap, I’m going to have to tell her...

“Well, I was just-”

“You’re in the middle of a game with Ned, aren’t you?” His aunt interrupted before he could confess to what was actually going on at that moment.

“What?”

“One of your computer games online?” May started putting away the groceries, pulling the carton of milk out of her nephew’s hand – he had completely forgotten that he’d been holding it. “The ones where you can’t pause, I assume.” She nudged him with her hip lightly, “I’ve got this – you can get back to your tournament or whatever.”

Peter didn’t even stop to correct her, “Right, right. Uh, thanks, May... I’m actually going to shower first; I’ve been sitting in these clothes for too long.”

May inhaled, making a face, “I think you better,” she agreed. “It smells like something died in here,” she added before taking another breath in. “That coppery smell of blood and such.”

Peter forced another guilty laugh, “Yeah, yeah that’s, uh- I spilled expired ketchup on myself or something when I was eating lunch,” he lied.

May’s eyes dropped momentarily, no doubt realizing that he wasn’t wearing a shirt, but then she didn’t mention anything about it – which he was thankful for. “Well, I’ll start dinner while you wash up. Lasagna, okay?”

Peter nodded, “For sure.” He then turned and went back down the hall, keeping his eyes low as he looked for any blood that had come off of Bucky. He then went into the bathroom without knocking because he had to make it look as though there wasn’t someone else that was already in there. When Barnes’ raised gaze to him, Peter pressed his finger to his lips before leaning back out into the hallway. “I’m gonna game right after I shower, so could you just call and let me know when dinner is ready, May?”

“Of course!” His aunt called back.

Peter slowly shut the door behind him – he took a deep breath before twisting back around to face Bucky’s p- Bucky’s face.

“Can she hear us?” Bucky wondered in a quiet voice, his eyes sliding over to the door before settling back on the teenager.

Peter nodded, “Thin walls,” he half-mouthed, half-whispered.

Barnes cocked a brow at him, “So, genius, how are you gonna shower?”

“I don’t know.” Peter scoffed, shaking his head at himself. “It’s hard to lie to her when she looks at me like that – I came up with what I could.”

Bucky sighed and shifted, his hands moving down the gash in his side. The worst of the bleeding had stopped, but the bathwater was still teetering on being opaque. “Help me up,” he eventually instructed.

“Are you done?” Peter was really struggling to keep his eyes on the older man’s face, though he wasn’t sure why as he’d had no problem doing so before.

Well, that was before I touched his-

“Basically.” Bucky bit his lip, “I was just trying to figure out how to get out when you came in,” he admitted softly.

“Yeah.” Peter chuckled a bit, rubbing the back of his neck. “I, uh- knew you would need my help again.” He shuffled over to the side of the tub. It was surprisingly easier to get Bucky up than it had been to get him down. “Slowly,” Peter murmured, partly talking to himself, “We don’t want you to slip. I don’t know how I’d convince her that it was me falling.”

“Are you calling me heavy?” Barnes teased as Peter helped him get his first leg over the side of the tub. His foot slid the slightest amount and they both froze for a second before continuing.

“Your arm would probably shatter the porcelain,” Peter informed him. “How the hell would I be able to explain that?” They had managed to get Bucky’s second leg over, and now they were both standing beside the bathtub. Peter wasn’t sure if he regretted not putting on a shirt or not.

It would have just gotten wet, he insisted to himself. Though having his bare chest pressed up against Bucky’s naked, wet one was definitely something that he-

“Okay, uh-”

Now what?

“How fast can you move by yourself?” Peter inquired with a small smile.

Bucky lifted one of his shoulders, “Why?”

*.*.*

Peter ended up having to partly drag Bucky across then down the hall and into his bedroom – he put him down on his bed, throwing a towel over his nakedness, before scrambling back into the bathroom. He shouted something about getting a towel to his aunt, letting her know what he had been doing while he’d been running back and forth. He showered as quick as he could, but not too quick so it would seem out of character – not that he normally took long showers or anything. He secured his own towel around his waist before wrapping Bucky’s bloody clothes up in another one. He then wiped up any blood he found on the floor and counters before cleaning the glass out of the sink. He hoped May wouldn’t realize the missing soap, but he doubted that she wouldn’t. He would just have to worry about that later – he could only handle one thing at a time, especially when the other problem that he had to deal with was much bigger.

Peter slipped into his bedroom, shutting and locking the door behind him. He threw the towel holding Bucky’s dirty clothes into his closet at the far end – he would have to wash them when May was back at work. He wished he hadn’t drunk all of his water before; he was sure that Bucky probably needed some more.

“Parker?” Bucky whispered, “Are we okay to talk in here?”

“Quietly,” Peter told him, keeping his voice low. He then went back to his closet and pulled out a first aid kit that he had stashed in there for emergencies. He also grabbed a belt from a hanger before coming back over.

Bucky eyed the belt and the kit before raising his gaze to Peter’s face, “Whatcha doing?”

Peter paused, “Don’t I- don’t I need to stitch you up?”

Bucky smiled a bit, “I heal pretty quickly,” he insisted. “I’ll be okay without it.”

“But you’re bleeding- you’re still bleeding pretty badly.” Peter frowned, moving closer to him. “You’ve already lost a lot of blood. I don’t- I don’t want you to lose anymore.”

“Pfft,” Bucky blew out. “Why?”

“You’re a person,” Peter replied, a little confused as to why he needed a reason why he wanted to help. “And you’re in pain, and I- I can help.”

The sergeant studied him for a moment, shifting, causing the towel that Peter had placed over his lower half to slide slightly. The older man stopped it before it fell, pulling it back up. “Why do you care? You barely know me.”

Peter inhaled deeply, “Listen, you came to me for help. So, let me help you.” He sat down on the bed next to him, “You- you wouldn’t have come here if you didn’t think I couldn’t help, right?”

Bucky stared at him for a long time before nodding slowly, “Right.”

“Then trust me,” Peter persisted in a steady tone. “If you don’t let me sew you up, I will call an ambulance to take you to the hospital.” It was an empty threat – they both knew that if Peter did that, it would most likely result in them both getting attacked.

Bucky’s jaw worked, “Give me that,” he said, holding out his hand for the belt, which Peter handed to him. Bucky folded the leathery object and placed it between his teeth, biting down before lying back against the mattress.

Peter nodded and opened the first aid kit, quickly finding a needle and thread. He placed those to the side before retrieving a small pack of alcohol wipes from the case. He then got up onto his knees beside the older man and opened the small square. He pulled out the little cloth, his eyes flickering up to Bucky’s face, “This might sting a little,” he cautioned.

“It can’t hurt any more than it already does,” Barnes responded quietly, his voice half-muffled by the belt. “Let’s just get this over with.”

Peter nodded and pressed the wipe down onto the gash, gently washing the skin around it. Bucky’s body twitched slightly, and he inhaled sharply, but other than that he made no noise. Peter tried to clean the wound as quickly as he could – well, the top half of it. The other part of the injury remained covered by the towel, though when it became apparent that Peter couldn’t possibly just clean one part-

“Bucky?” Peter whispered as Bucky’s eyes were closed at that point. “Could you hold the towel in place over... yourself, so I can clean the second half of the wound?”

Barnes reached down and gripped himself – a little too casually for Peter’s liking, but he didn’t mention anything as he could now move the towel a bit to the side to get to the rest of the gash. The teenager cleaned it just as quickly. After he was done that, he checked for anything caught in the actual split – he was thankful that there didn’t seem to be anything.

“Okay, I’m going to start with the needle now,” Peter let him know as he picked the other instruments back up. He laced the thread through the small hole, before bending over Bucky – he had never done this before, and he did not want to mess it up.

Barnes took the belt out of his mouth and asked abruptly, “Have you ever done this before?” It was as if he had read Peter’s mind.

“Do you want the truth?”

“Lie to me.”

“Yeah, at least 20 times now – I learned at summer camp,” Peter lied.

Bucky chuckled, “Must have been one hell of a program.”

“It was super hardcore. They even had us swimming with sharks one day to increase our speed.”

“Now-” the older man smirked- “why couldn’t you have lied like that to your aunt?”

Peter laughed faintly, “Because she scares me.”

Bucky lifted his head a bit to peer down at the teenager, “And I don’t?”

“No,” Peter responded instantly. “Of course not.” Peter was too focused on hitching the thread to the needle to even remotely notice the way that Bucky’s expression softened, too focused to realize how what he said had affected the other. “Okay, belt back in – I’m starting.”

Bucky swallowed and bit back down on the belt, a little shellshocked – he usually scared people. He had scared a lot of people. It was surprising to hear that he didn’t have the same effect on the teenager.

He’s young, Bucky thought to himself. Or he doesn’t know what I’ve done.

Bucky’s teeth sank into the leather when the needle first pierced his flesh, but after a few moments the pain seemed to disappear, and he couldn’t figure out why. He only realized seconds later that it was because Peter’s other hand, the one holding the wound together, was also moving slightly- very slightly. Peter was using two fingers and his thumb to hold the cut closed, but the other two fingers were softly stroking over each newly stitched patch of skin – as if he were kissing each spot to heal it that way. Bucky was sure Peter didn’t know that he was doing it, because why would he be doing it? They didn’t know each other – they’d met like once. Why was this kid- teenager being so good to him?

Peter finished up, tying the string off at the end before digging around through the first aid kit with his other hand. He frowned when he couldn’t find a pair of scissors and although he could have gone out to the kitchen to grab some, he didn’t want his aunt asking what they were for. Instead, Peter bent down and caught the thread between his teeth.

Bucky’s body did something upon feeling the teen’s lips brush up against his flesh, and he lost his grip on the towel which abandoned him immediately, sliding out of his reach. Bucky closed his eyes again – if he couldn’t see anything then maybe it hadn’t actually happened.

Oh yeah, that makes perfect sense, he scoffed at himself.

Peter didn’t notice right away, his mouth still breathing hot air against the sergeant’s thigh as he gritted through the thread. He sat back a little and then tore open another small pack of alcohol wipes. He used it to blot around the newly stitched area, remaining oblivious to the lack of towel. When he got to the bottom of the cut, he did a second take and then- well, okay, he squeaked.

Bucky pulled a face without opening his eyes, “I dropped the towel,” he whispered after a few beats of silence.

Peter swallowed hard, looking down still – he couldn’t seem to look away from it, he was frozen in place. He didn’t know they could get that big. “I can- I can see that,” he replied quietly.

“You wanna get it for me?” Bucky wondered after another long pause between them. He opened one eye and then the other to find Parker just sitting there, staring at his penis. “Or we can just keep doing this?” Bucky teased. “Whatever you want to do is fine with me.”

Peter’s mouth had gone dry – he wet his lips with his tongue, which to Bucky looked like lip licking while staring at his- and whatever he wanted turned into him needing-

“Kid,” Bucky hissed. “Hand me the towel.”

Peter’s head snapped in his direction, but Bucky could tell he wasn’t really seeing him, “Hm?”

“The towel.”

Peter’s hands moved, but his legs did not. He tucked two fingers under the towel that was still wrapped around his waist, “You want me to take it off?”

Bucky’s brain came to a complete halt, “What?” Maybe he had lost too much blood.

“I asked, if you wanted me to take it off, sergeant,” Peter’s voice had taken on a lower tone, and Bucky also realized that they had been talking at a normal volume for quite some time now.

Still, he asked, “Why would I want that?”

Peter tipped his head back and gave him a knowing smile, “Because you do.”

“I- what?” Bucky narrowed his eyes.

“Shh,” Peter breathed out, “It’s okay. I said I would help you and that’s exactly what I’m going to do.” He slid off the bed then but didn’t go too far as he positioned himself between the older man’s legs. Before Bucky could say anything- do anything, Peter was sucking the head of his cock into his mouth.

Bucky’s body jerked- awake. His eyes flickered around quickly taking in his surroundings – it was dark in the room, and he could hear something beside him. He went to sit up and gasped out in pain as his body screamed at him. Bucky ran his fleshed hand over his chest, feeling the stitches there.

So, he thought, that part hadn’t been a dream, but when the fuck did I pass out?

Bucky blinked into the darkness, trying to get his eyes to adjust faster. He realized that the sound he was hearing was someone snoring, but the person wasn’t on the bed. He shimmied over to the side of the mattress, trying his best not to pull at the stitches. He peered down to see a shape in the darkness, pitch black against filmy black.

“Kid?” He hissed. He couldn’t tell what time it was, and he wasn’t about to risk waking up the teen’s aunt. “Parker,” he said, a little louder.

“Mm,” Peter murmured, stirring in his sleep. He rolled onto his back and blinked up at the older man, “You’re up.” He sat up and stretched, wincing as his back cracked at a weird angle. “I was worried, but then I figured you probably needed to rest – so, I let you sleep.”

“When did I- when did I pass out?” Bucky asked softly. “I didn’t mean to worry you.”

“I’m actually not too sure.” Peter lifted a shoulder, “Sometime after I finished you off.”

Bucky’s heart skipped a beat, “What?”

“You were already really tired,” Peter was going on. “I’m sorry, I- I probably pushed you over the edge.”

“What?” Bucky repeated, because-

What?

Peter gave him a funny look, “With the stitching – it took a lot out of you. I should have listened to you and left it alone to heal.”

“Oh.” Bucky nodded. “Oh, right, no. You- you were right to stitch me up.”

“Also, the blow job probably didn’t help either,” Peter exhaled. “Did you want something to eat? I can swing down to this place on the corner if you-”

“Wait,” Bucky snapped out, harsher than he meant to. “You- you what?”

“Swing? With the web shooters that I use.” Peter smiled, “I created them myself. They’re the ones I used in-”

“No, not that.” Bucky waved his hands, before dropping them back to his sides as pain surged through his body. “The-” he swallowed hard- “you gave me head?”

Peter nodded, “Yeah, I did.” He got to his feet and stretched – he’d put pajamas on, thankfully.

Bucky couldn’t understand why the teenager was acting so casual, “You- you didn’t want to accidentally see me naked before... how did you go from that to...” he faded off. His head hurt. “Why?”

“You stopped breathing,” Peter informed him as he sat next to him on the bed to pull on a pair of socks. “What else was I supposed to do? Let you die?”

“What?” Bucky was past confusion now.

Peter turned towards him and stared into his eyes, searching for something, “Are you okay?” He asked.

Bucky choked. “Am I okay? Are you okay? What the hell is going on?”

“When you fell earlier, you hit your head off the tub,” Peter told him. “I cleaned up a large puddle there, but I didn’t piece it together until you started hallucinating.” He frowned, “Are you still having problems?”

“H-hallucinating?” Bucky was still slurring – he seemed to be getting worse.

Peter’s frown deepened, I knew I should have taken him to a hospital.

“What were we just talking about?” Peter asked him, speaking slowly. “Do you remember?”

“I’m fine, I’m just tired,” Bucky insisted, rubbing the back of his head. He could feel stitches there as well, but he couldn’t remember Parker stitching him up in the second area.

“Are you hungry?” Peter asked again, “I can-”

“No-” Bucky shook his head- “I’m not. I just need to sleep more.”

“Oh, okay.” The teenager nodded before laying back down.

Barnes waited several moments before clearing his throat, “Actually, if you wouldn’t mind- could you come up here?”

Peter lifted his head, peering at the older man through the darkness, “You’re up there.”

No shit, Bucky thought.

Bucky spoke out loud, “Yeah, I- I know that.” He waited another couple of seconds before sighing, “You had your hand on my dick a few hours ago, but you can’t stand sleeping beside me?”

Peter blanched, “That- that was an accident,” he stuttered out. “I would never touch you like that- never touch anyone like that without their consent. I’m really sorry, I should have been paying more attention, I didn’t mean to-”

“Parker?” Bucky interrupted, sounding as though he was already done with this conversation – which he kind of was. “Just- get up here.”

Peter took a deep breath as he got to his feet, “I, uh- I didn’t have anything that fit you,” he told him, hesitating by the side of the bed.

“Yeah, I know – we already had that talk, remember?” Bucky tilted his head back, squinting up at the boy.

“So... you’re still naked...”

“And?”

“And? I- I don’t think I need to clarify my answer.” Peter crossed his arms over his chest, suddenly feeling too warm in his thin pajamas.

“Parker,” Bucky hissed. “Just get on the bed.” When the teenager didn’t move, the older man let out another sigh. “Christ, kid – I’m not asking you to fuck me.”

Peter flushed, the heat moving through his body to redden up his face before shooting down and warming his lower stomach – his dick twitched between his legs. He didn’t answer as he slid onto the bed, lying on top of the covers.

“It’s a little chilly in here,” Bucky mentioned after a couple minutes. “You should get under the blanket.”

“I’m hot,” Peter answered dismissively, not making any action to move.

“Well, I’m cold.”

“Probably because you’re naked.”

Another low sigh, “Parker.”

“Why do I need to get under the covers?”

“You agreed to help me,” Bucky reminded him in a quiet voice. “So, help me – please.”

Peter grumbled to himself as he slid under the comforter and sheets. He shifted onto his back, staring up at the ceiling – and keeping his hands to himself. Bucky shifted as well, but it went on for a much longer time. Eventually, it got to the point where it was so bad that Peter couldn’t get back to sleep.

“What are you doing?” Peter hissed out at him, refusing to open his eyes again.

“Your pillow is too soft,” Bucky informed him. “I can’t sleep comfortably on it.”

Peter’s eyes opened back up just so he could glare at him. “You were sleeping comfortably on it a few minutes ago.”

“I passed out from the pain of a severe injury,” Bucky retorted. “Now that I’m more awake, I can tell that I won’t be able to sleep on this.”

Peter sighed, “Then give it to me.”

Bucky gave the pillow to Peter who propped it under his own head and closed his eyes once more. It was only when Bucky began to move again, did he reopen them.

Holy crap, Peter thought to himself.

“What now?”

“Your mattress is too soft.”

“I don’t know what you’d like me to do about that – I can’t remove the mattress from the bunk.” Peter rolled his shoulders – he didn’t think his mattress was too soft at all. “Well, I could, but I don’t want to.”

Bucky shifted closer to him and Peter didn’t have time to react before Bucky was laying his head down on his chest. His flesh hand came up and rested flat against Peter’s shirt – Bucky hadn’t been lying about being cold. Peter felt a chill run through his body as Bucky slid right up against him.

“Much better,” Bucky muttered, sounding more relaxed than before.

Peter rolled his eyes but didn’t say anything – he just wanted to get some sleep at that point. He settled back against his pillow and closed his eyes for hopefully the last time that night.

Peter didn’t normally move in his sleep – although, he didn’t normally have someone else in bed with him either. He was sure that was the reason why he woke up in the position that he did. At some point in the night, he had wrapped his right arm around the Winter Soldier’s shoulders, he’d also tangled his hand into his long hair. Peter couldn’t tell if Bucky was awake or not – his breathing was calm enough, but then again, he could have been faking. He was a trained assassin after all.

Ex-assassin, Peter reminded himself. At least, he thought so. He didn’t think the sergeant would be out and about if he were still a danger to society.

The teenager moved a bit, trying to pull his arm back – he froze when Bucky stirred and murmured something in his sleep. Peter reached up with his free hand and placed it against the older man’s forehead, checking his temperature. He didn’t feel feverish, and Peter was thankful to discover that he was no longer cold either.

Bucky’s eyes slowly opened, and he blinked up at the boy, feeling a little disorientated. He pushed himself up a bit, closing the distance between their faces – it was habit, muscle memory from other times he’d woken up in bed with someone else.

Peter was too shocked to move in time to avoid the press of the older man’s lips against his own. His arm was still around the other, his hand still twisted into the long locks of hair – so, maybe Barnes’ reaction was partly his fault.

Bucky’s tongue flicked out and ran across the boy’s bottom lip, seeking entrance which Peter gave him – though it was 100% out of surprise. Bucky pressed closer to him and Peter felt his erection brush up against his hip.

God, am I still letting this happen? Peter thought. At that point he might as well have been kissing him back because he hadn’t done anything to stop him. And that’s what he did, but as soon as Peter moved his mouth against Bucky’s- Bucky pulled back, blinking up at him again.

The older man’s eyes seemed to focus and then his whole body went rigid – his throat going dry.

Peter stared back at him for several moments before chuckling lightly, anxiously, “Uh, good morning,” he greeted in a small voice.

Bucky blinked very slowly that time, as if he hadn’t understood the words that had been spoken to him.

Peter swallowed; this isn’t awkward. It had been less awkward when they had been kissing. He found himself strangely wanting to go back to that.

“How did you sleep?” Peter tried again, seeing if Bucky would understand him if he asked a question.

Bucky stretched up once more and kissed him again. His fleshed hand slid up and gripped at the boy’s collarbone – he deepened the kiss.

Peter kissed him back right away that time, because at least it was better than just lying here staring at one another. He moved the hand he had tangled in Bucky’s hair, tugging slightly and eliciting a low moan from the older man. The sound did something to his brain, and he felt his dick start to harden between his legs.

Okay, so we’re actually doing this, Peter thought. He still didn’t understand why this was happening, why the sergeant was behaving like this, but Bucky didn’t seem in the mood to answer any questions.

Bucky shifted against him a second time, rutting his erection against the side of the boy’s leg. Peter didn’t get much warning before Bucky rolled on top of him, straddling his waist with his strong thighs. The Winter Soldier pulled back from the kiss and ripped Peter’s shirt down the middle, apparently too impatient to remove it properly. Peter opened his mouth to say something, but his complaints didn’t seem that important when Bucky pressed his lips down to his newly bared chest. Bucky’s tongue flicked out, running over one of Peter’s nipples until the nub hardened under his warm and wet caress.

Peter found himself sliding both of his hands into the longer hair, pulling on it – soft noises spilled from his lips as Bucky worked his way across his bare chest with his mouth before moving downward. Peter lifted his hips as the segreant slid his pajama pants off of his body – Bucky tossed them to the side and leaned over him.

He then paused, his eyes finding Peter’s, “This okay?”

Peter was having trouble finding his voice – instead, he nodded. So, Barnes was awake and coherent, at least Peter knew that now. He had been worried that he’d been hallucinating or out of it again. But then-

Why is he doing this? He still didn’t have an answer for that question- his main question. Actually, it was probably his only question. Peter’s body jerked as Bucky wrapped his mouth around his cock. He didn’t take his time at all – he swallowed Peter down his throat without a second thought.

“Shit,” Peter hissed, his hold on the back of Bucky’s head tightening.

Bucky lifted his eyes once more, locking his with the boy’s as he began to deep throat him. He was surprisingly good at it, as if he’d done it before – as if he had a lot of practice. He swirled his tongue around Peter’s shaft expertly while the tip of the teen’s cock was still settled in his throat. It definitely had Peter wondering about those Captain America rumors that had circled the web not too long ago.

Peter came back to himself and moaned deeply, his hips stuttering, his back arching as Bucky’s teeth scraped up against his sensitive skin – he had never felt anything like this before. It was a bit much, too much too fast. He came embarrassingly quick – he didn’t even have time to warn Bucky.

Though it didn’t seem to matter, as the sergeant simply swallowed his load before pulling off of his cock with a slurping sound. Bucky leaned back, narrowly missing hitting his head off the bottom of the top bunk. He panted softly as he stared down at Peter, then his eyes dropped even lower.

Peter followed his gaze to the leaking erection between them and bit his lip. He made his decision verily easy, tentatively reaching out to wrap his hand around Bucky’s length. Peter gulped hard as he closed his palm around the hardened flesh and gave the organ a slow pump.

Bucky’s breath hitched in the back of his throat and his eyes closed partially, his head falling back. His body didn’t even hurt anymore, the large gash in his side long forgotten as the boy beneath him started to jerk him off.

Peter realized he hadn’t asked Barnes if it had been alright to touch him, but the other didn’t seem like he was hating what he was doing, so he didn’t mention anything. Peter’s hand seemed small compared to the weight in it – he slid his palm up and down Bucky’s shaft for a long time before thumbing his slit. He honestly wasn’t quite sure what he was doing, the only other cock he’d ever touched was his own. So, Peter knew what he liked – and hoped that Bucky possibly liked the same kind of things.

As Peter rubbed at his slit, Bucky’s hips jerked, and he lowered himself on top of him. He pressed his mouth back to the boy’s, kissing him hard as Peter continued to stroke him. Bucky pulled back the tiniest amount, whispering, “Have you ever done this before?”

“No,” Peter answered honestly – there was no point in lying, he was past feeling embarrassed about anything that was happening and anything that was going to happen. “I’ve only ever touched myself – I haven’t- I’ve never touched someone else like this. I’ve never been touched by anyone like this,” he confessed in a low voice. Bucky paused, thinking – and Peter opened his mouth again. “I don’t want to stop though,” the teen added quickly. “Don’t make me,” he pleaded.

Bucky chewed on the inside of his cheek, weighing his options, “I want to keep going, but if we do- I- Well, I won’t want to stop,” he admitted, sounding a little shameful – the dark heat in his eyes didn’t waver though.

“I don’t want you to,” Peter breathed out. “I want this.” He sped up his strokes, pumping Bucky’s member faster in his sweat slicked palm.

Bucky began kissing his neck, sucking a patch of skin into his mouth and trapping it between his teeth – marking the flesh. “I wanna know what you feel like inside,” he spoke out against Peter’s throat.

Warm, probably, Peter thought distantly, but he thankfully didn’t say it out loud. His free hand gripped at the back of the Winter Soldier’s head as he pulled him up to press his mouth back to his, kissing him hard.

“Then do it,” Peter murmured against the older man’s lips. “Fuck me, sergeant.”

Bucky knew he was hallucinating again, but this time he had embraced it. As long as this Peter, who was only a figment of his imagination, kept wanting more – he’d give it to him. What was the harm in playing along within this little fantasy? It wasn’t real, so it didn’t matter how far they went.

“Fuck me, sergeant,” ‘Peter’ whispered against his mouth before continuing to kiss him again wholly. “Please,” the boy’s voice trembled as his body shuddered against Bucky’s.

Bucky obliged, reaching between them to replace ‘Peter’s’ hand with his own. He stroked the head of his cock against the teenager’s pucker, sliding in easily with only precum used as lube.

“Fuck,” Bucky hissed as he pushed further into ‘Peter’, feeling his inner walls constrict around him as he bottomed out inside of him. He didn’t see the point in taking his time – after all, this wasn’t real. The real Peter would probably never let him do this, and Bucky wouldn’t do this with the real one either – he didn’t think that would go over too well with Stark.

Peter gripped at Bucky’s shoulders, crying out, his back arching again as he squeezed his eyes shut. He inhaled sharply, swallowing another noise of discomfort as he attempted to adjust to the thickness of Bucky’s member. It was difficult to say in the least. The rest of Bucky’s body wasn’t exactly small – Peter should have taken that into account. It felt as though he was being split in two – he thought for a moment that he’d actually felt something rip inside of him.

“God, you feel so real,” Bucky murmured as he ducked his head, pressing his lips back to Peter’s. The teen was impossibly tight and without much in the way of lubricant, it was quite a battle to get inside of him.

Real? Peter repeated to himself, frowning against the older man’s mouth. Out of all the words that the sergeant could have used, that one was possibly the oddest. Though Peter didn’t have time to ask what he’d meant, because Bucky was moving again – and any thoughts of questioning him went out the window. Peter’s grip on Barnes’ shoulders tightened as the man on top of him began to fuck him at a steady pace. Peter clenched his jaw, pursing his lips to muffle the sound of pain that threatened to spill from them. He recognized that he could have said something, that he could have told Bucky that he needed more time or more lubricant (or any, for that matter) but he didn’t because he was worried that the other would stop.

And I’ve already agreed to this, haven’t I? Peter thought. His short nails dug into flesh and metal as the sergeant continued to fuck him – as Peter continued to hope the pain would eventually mellow out.

“So tight,” Bucky moaned the words out – more so than actually speaking them. He nuzzled his face into the crook of the teen’s neck and sucked another section of his flesh into his mouth again – marking a different spot that time. “God, you feel good,” he muttered. “I don’t want this to end,” he added quietly.

But it’s going to, right? Bucky asked himself. This hallucination seemed to be going on forever, he kept expecting to wake up, but he never did. When was he going to snap back into reality? Not that he wasn’t enjoying himself immensely, but if he didn’t wake up- on the off chance that he didn’t snap back into reality- well, that meant that he wasn’t actually imagining this. But I am, aren’t I? Peter would never do this, he’d never-

When Barnes came to a complete stop, Peter couldn’t help the whine that escaped from his lips – he bucked his hips up, seeking friction. As he did so, he felt something warm and wet underneath him – probably sweat or precum, but he wasn’t sure. Peter flushed upon remembering the noise that he had just made – part of him wanted to take it back.

“Parker?” Bucky whispered almost too quietly.

Even though Peter was literally right there, he had to strain to hear him. “Yeah,” Peter breathed out – his heart was beating a mile a minute in his chest.

“Peter?” Bucky’s voice had somehow gotten quieter. “I’m- I’m here.”

“Yes?” Peter frowned, a wave of confusion washing over him. “Did you think you weren’t?” Something in the teenager’s mind clicked and he let go of the older man, “Did you think this wasn’t actually happening?”

That’s what he meant before when he said I felt so real, Peter realized in horror.

“Oh my god,” Bucky hissed. “Stark is going to kill me.”

“Peter?” Aunt May’s voice came through the door then, followed by the turning and click of the doorknob when it got stopped by the lock.

Well, if Stark doesn’t- she will.