Summary - Could something as simple as a s'more bring you and Bucky closer together?

Prompt - Toasted marshmallows

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The sun was sinking low in the sky as your small caravan made its way towards a rustic cabin set far back from the main road near a small lake in upstate New York. With the world safe for the moment the resident Avengers had taken this opportunity to schedule some bonding time, away from the compound and the responsibilities that hung over everyone's head while they were there. It was about time too. You knew that the team needed to have some normalcy, something to remind them that even though they were enhanced and highly skilled they were still human. Well, most of them anyway.

You may not have been the one to come up with the idea but you were the one who had been tasked with organizing the trip. Finding and securing the location was the hardest part, after that you just made sure to pack some fun activities and special snacks to make sure that everyone had a good time. Your leg was bouncing like crazy from where you sat in the passenger seat and you kept craning your neck to get a better look.

"Calm down, (Y/N)," Steve teased from the driver's seat. "We're almost there."

"I can't help it," you whined, "I'm excited. And I want everything to be perfect for you guys. After all, you save the world on the regular, you deserve a few days away to relax."

"So do you, you know," you rolled your eyes as Steve went on, "I'm serious (Y/N), you might not be out there dodging bullets but you work just as hard as the rest of us. Promise me you'll try to have some fun while we're here?"

"Okaaaaay, dad..." Steve chuckled as you slumped in your seat, only to perk right back up when the cabin came into view. You breathed a sigh of relief, noting that it looked even more picturesque than it did online. Steve pulled into the driveway leaving plenty of room for Clint and Bruce to park behind you then put his new old VW Bug into park, smirking as he glanced in the rearview mirror.

"You got a picture of that, right?" Steve said, nodding toward the scene in the backseat.

"Are you kidding? Those two were on Snapchat the instant they started snoring." You turned to take in the scene behind you, Bucky with his head thrown back, mouth open, while Sam is slumped over, drooling on the Winter Soldier's shoulder. "It's almost a shame to wake them up... almost." You waggled your eyebrows at Steve before the both of you suddenly and simultaneously hopped out of the car and slammed both the driver and passenger doors at the same time.

You almost forgot how to breathe for how hard you were laughing at what happened next. After a fair amount of pushing, shoving, and cursing the two men unfolded themselves from the back of the Bug, red-faced and grumbling under their breath.

"You okay there, Buck?" You wiped away a tear or two as you caught your breath. Bucky, still fuming, was slicking his hair back and scowling in Sam's direction. "Damn birdbrain, droolin' all over me..."

"C'mon Buck, don't be angry. We came here to have some fun, remember?" You laid a hand on his bicep which seemed to instantly defrost his icy demeanor and he returned your hopeful smile with a small one of his own. It always amazed you that you had this sort of effect on the stoic supersoldier. Maybe it was your determination to treat him no differently than the rest of the team, maybe it was the gift you had for bringing people out of their shells, heck maybe it was the copious amount of baked goods you created and had decided Bucky would have to be your official taste-tester for. Whatever it was it worked and had created a unique sort of bond between you and the brooding brunette.

Avenger after Avenger had climbed out of the vehicles and were in the process of grabbing their bags and taking in their surroundings. "This place looks amazing, (Y/N)," Wanda exclaimed from behind you, wrapping one arm around you in an affectionate hug.

"I mean, it's not my chalet in Aspen but it'll do-oof!" Tony winced as Pepper elbowed him in the side. "W-what I meant to say was that this looks like the perfect getaway. Just what we all needed. Fantastic!" Tony lowered his voice as he passed you with a sheepish smile, "Seriously, ya did good kid."

You smile to yourself before getting everyone's attention. "Alright guys, this is it! There's a couple hours before it gets dark so you have some time to settle into your rooms before dinner. The weather is perfect so we'll be having a bonfire down by the lake, just head down there whenever you start to get hungry. Oh, and the rooms aren't labeled or anything so it's every man for himself. Have fun!" You giggled watching Peter and Scott practically trip over each other to be the first ones into the cabin.

"Idiots," Bucky shook his head in their direction and turned to find you struggling to open the trailer where you'd stashed all the supplies for the weekend. "Here doll, lemme help ya with that." He had the door open in no time and began to help you unload.

"You should go on in, find yourself a good room before you end up stuck with Sam or something," you said as he helped you carry crates of food down toward the beach.

"Nah, you know me, doesn't really matter where I sleep. I won't be getting much of it," he said matter-of-factly. "What about you, doll? You planned all this, dontcha want a decent room?"

Setting your crate down on a picnic table you grinned and showed Bucky what was in your pocket. "Like you said, I planned all this. So naturally I made sure to tell the caretaker to lock up one of the best rooms just for me and forward me the key. It's got a huge bed, a spectacular view, and its own bathroom." Bucky chuckled as you pocketed the key again. "Listen Buckaroo, I may be nice but I'm not naive, I made sure to take care of me this weekend too."

With Bucky's help you had everything set up and ready in no time, including a large stack of wood for the bonfire. You parted ways as you entered the cabin, you heading directly to your room for a quick shower and Bucky assuring you that he could figure out the place on his own. Before you knew it it was time for the evening's festivities to start.

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There are certain moments in life that you wish you could cement forever in your memory. This, this was definitely one of them. You took in the scene, everyone gathered around the crackling fire, all you could see were smiling faces. Everyone looked so at ease, not a trace of tension or darkness on anyone's face. Laughter filled the air as different members of the team told stories, reminiscing and sharing favorite memories.

You found your gaze continually returning to one face in particular. Bucky was always on your radar but tonight you couldn't seem to take your eyes off of him. Steve had just said something that made Bucky throw his head back and crinkle his eyes and absolutely laugh out loud and you swore it was the most beautiful thing you'd ever seen. It filled your heart and your soul and you never wanted to forget it. Ever.

"Take a picture, (Y/N), it'll last longer." Natasha's low voice in your ear startled you but you quickly regained your composure, getting up and moving towards the food table. "So," she said sidling up to you with a smirk, "how long has that been going on?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about Nat." You busied yourself by digging in the crates for the marshmallows, hoping that the shadows were doing a decent job of hiding the blush creeping over your features.

"Deny it all you want but I know what I saw." She looked over at Bucky and then at you. "For what it's worth, you'd be good for him. He needs someone who doesn't see him through the filter of his past. That's a rare thing, believe me."

You chanced a look at Bucky again, smiling slightly as you saw him still having a great time with the rest of the team. Shaking your head to break yourself from the moment you returned to your task of gathering the rest of the ingredients to make s'mores. "It doesn't matter anyway Nat, he's an Avenger, a hero... and... and I'm just me. I should consider myself lucky just to be in his orbit."

You could practically feel Nat's glare boring into your skull. "Lucky? He's the one who'd be lucky to have you." She looked over at him again. "You know I could talk to him if you want–"

"No!" you said, your exclamation coming out louder and more panicked than you intended. You lowered your voice, a pleading look in your eyes, "Look Nat, just drop it, okay?" Grabbing the small crate you turned back towards the fire, a smile plastered on your face. "Who's ready for s'mores?" you called out, thrilled to hear a chorus of cheers from your friends.

While some of them wasted no time getting started, others held back a bit. "I am unfamiliar with this Midgardian delicacy, (Y/N)" Thor picked up a marshmallow, eyeing it curiously. "What exactly is a suh-more?"

You giggled as Clint stepped up, plucking the marshmallow from Thor's grasp and spearing it onto one of the roasting sticks you had picked up just for this occasion. "They're called s'mores big guy, and you don't know what you've been missing. I mean, you get to set something on fire and then eat it, what could be better? I do this all the time with my kids, they love it. C'mon.." Clint grabbed another stick and marshmallow for Thor and proceeded to show him how it's done.

You scanned the scene, checking to make sure everyone had what they needed. Steve and Sam were already working on their second round, Tony was making faces as Pepper tried to get him to take a bite of hers, and Vision couldn't seem to get the hang of it. He had completely blackened several marshmallows in a row as Wanda tried not to laugh. Natasha had politely declined claiming they were just too sweet for her. You continued looking around, realizing the one face you were missing was the one you wanted to see the most.

Finally a glint of metal drew your eye to his quiet figure, set back from the fire practically in the shadows. You slipped over, taking a seat beside him on the cool grass. "You seem to be missing something... not a fan of s'mores?"

"Wouldn't know doll. I, ah, actually haven't ever had one before." He cleared his throat, "Not much of a chance for a treat like that when I was younger and well... the last few decades are sort of a blur so..." His voice trailed off, Bucky clearly doing his best to push back the dark thoughts of his past.

You placed your hand over his, pulling him back to the present. "Let's see what we can do to change that, yeah?" You stood, tugging at Bucky's hand, encouraging him to come with you. "I haven't made myself one yet so we can share."

"Share...?" Bucky looked slightly confused until you picked up one of the roasting sticks that had two prongs on the end.

"See? One for you and one for me." You speared a couple of marshmallows and lowered the stick above the fire, slowly rotating it. "The trick is to not put it directly in the fire like some people."

"I heard that (Y/N)!" Sam protested through a mouth of graham cracker. "Burnt and crispy in under five seconds is the way to go!"

Shaking your head you continued, "It takes longer but I like to hold it just above the flames, that way there's plenty of heat to make it super gooey all the way through without destroying the taste by burning it."

"So what you're saying is you like a slow burn." You jumped, Natasha appearing out of nowhere yet looking like she'd been there all along warming herself by the fire. You glared at her then turned your attention back towards what you were doing.

"Nothing wrong with taking my time Natasha, some things are worth the wait."

"Like s'mores," she said with a smirk.

Exasperated you blew a strand of hair out of your face. "Yes, Nat, like s'mores."

"Mmm'kay (Y/N), can't really disagree with that." Nat walked away with a smile leaving you with a scowl on your face.

"Um, did I miss something...?" Bucky asked.

"What? Oh, no it's just.. It's nothing, really..." You turned the marshmallows one more time, quickly changing the subject. "Looks like they are about done..." You brought them over to Bucky to put them together. "Okay we need the graham cracker first, then the chocolate, and then..." You laid the marshmallows right on top, both of you using the other half of the crackers to slide the gooey goodness off the stick. "Perfect." You smiled, walking with him back over to where you were sitting earlier so you could both enjoy your treats in peace.

"Ready?" You couldn't help but grin giddily at this memorable moment.

"Ready as I'll ever be, doll." Glancing at each other you both went to take a bite of your s'mores at the same time.

S'mores had already been your favorite treat for practically your whole life, but to see the look on Bucky's face and to hear the sigh of satisfaction that came when he got his first taste of one... you'd never be able to look at a s'more innocently ever again.

"Doll... this is amazing!" He quickly took another bite, almost finishing it off.

"And messy.." Laughing you reached out with your thumb to swipe a glob of melted chocolate and marshmallow from the corner of Bucky's mouth then without thinking licked it clean. You froze, thumb still in your mouth, once you realized what you'd done. You quickly looked away, embarrassed, missing the look of shock and awe on Bucky's face.

Awkward silences were the worst. You popped the rest of your s'more in your mouth while your brain scrambled for something to say, finally settling on pretending it didn't happen and just moving forward. Then maybe moving to Switzerland. "Um I should.. yeah I should really start cleaning up or I'm gonna be out here all night." You started to get up but felt Bucky reach out and take your hand to pull you back down.

"Wait, you've.. ah, you've got a little something right here.." His eyes flickered down to your lips as his thumb wiped your bottom lip clean, mirroring your previous actions by sucking the stray chocolate off his thumb. You were pretty sure you'd stopped breathing as Bucky looked back into your eyes, the two of you gradually gravitating towards each other. You closed your eyes as his nose brushed gently against yours. Your heart was pounding and everything else faded into the background as you became hyper-aware of what you hoped and wished and prayed for was about to happen.

"Doll..? I'd really like to kiss ya if that's alright.." Bucky's lips ghosted over yours as he uttered his quiet plea.

"I think I might die if you didn't," you responded breathlessly. You were instantly rewarded with Bucky's lips pressing ever so gently against yours. A small sigh escaped you as you placed a hand on his chest, one of his hands cupping the back of your neck as he continued to kiss you sweetly for a long moment. You could feel him smiling into the kiss as he pulled back slightly.

"You were right doll, some things are worth the wait." Grinning you leaned back in, happily initiating the kiss this time, teasing him with your tongue until he opened up to you and oh if he didn't taste of chocolate and coffee and heaven on earth. You wanted to keep kissing him forever, and you probably would have if it weren't for something soft hitting the back of your head. Several more soft thuds on your back and shoulders caused you to pull back and look around confused only to realize that the two of you were on the receiving end of a barrage of marshmallows being hurled at you by several of your friends. "What the hell...?" Bucky quickly moved to shield you from the onslaught. "Really guys? So mature."

"We had to do it, you guys were about to scar Peter for life." Scott mock scolded the two of you while tossing a few more marshmallows your way.

"Seriously you two," Tony was using his dad voice, "get a room already."

Bucky looked at you. You looked at Bucky. Grins broke out on both your faces as he hopped up and pulled you up with him. "I believe that can be arranged. Scott!" you called out in your most commanding voice, "You're now officially on cleanup duty. See you guys in the morning!"

The two of you got out of there as fast as you could, not stopping until you reached your room. Stepping into the darkness you couldn't take your eyes off the view through the huge picture window of the moon reflecting off the lake. "Oh Bucky, would you just look at that..."

Bucky stepped up behind you, wrapping his arms around your waist. "It certainly is a gorgeous view... and the lake doesn't look half bad either."

You swatted his arm playfully as you turned to see him smiling down at you in the moonlight. "Now, where were we...?"

"Right about here..."

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Author's Note: Thank you for reading! This was a purely selfish fic due to my absolute love of s'mores (and of Bucky!) I look forward to your comments and if you liked this installment please consider voting, thank you!