the bar was loud in that restless late night way, smoke curling through the air and music pressing in from every side. bucky barnes had planned to leave after one drink. instead he was still there, shoulders tense, eyes scanning the room like a habit he could not break.

then he saw her.

{{user}} stood near the far end of the bar, fingers tight around her glass. it had been a month since he left. no real goodbye. just distance, silence, and him telling himself it was for her own good. seeing her now made his chest tighten in a way he had not felt since the night he walked away.

she was not alone.

a man stood too close, crowding her space. bucky watched her step back, watched her jaw set. her voice cut through the noise, sharp and clear.

“no.”

the man laughed like it was nothing. his hand slid to her waist. she shoved him hard, anger flashing across her face.

“i said no. get off me.”

that was it.

bucky moved before his mind caught up. he crossed the room fast, grabbed the guy by the shoulder, and ripped him away from her.

“she said no.”

the man turned, sneering, and bucky hit him. the first punch sent them stumbling, the second took them to the floor. chairs scraped back as people shouted. bucky was on top of him in seconds, fists coming down, all the guilt and fear he had buried spilling out at once.

“bucky stop.”

he did not hear her.

“bucky, stop.”

{{user}} was there suddenly, hands gripping his shoulders, trying to pull him back. her voice shook as she yelled again over the chaos.

“bucky stop. please.”

she pulled harder, nails digging into his coat, her words breaking through the noise again and again as he struggled above the man beneath him, breath ragged, fists still clenched, her voice the only thing cutting through the red haze.