Entwined | Bucky Barnes *On Hold*

Chapter Twenty

~Bucky's POV~

Betty and Debbie were the first to arrive, with Freddie in tow. They had boxes full of solar powered fairy lights, and gingerbread men iced with smiling faces.

Freddie beamed at me as I answered the door, his cheeky eyes glinting with the joy of a party. They had left shortly after Matt had arrived, but with the knowledge that it was Jeremy's last night here, they had offered their services to help us enjoy it more.

Our family dinner had doubled in size from the initial invite of Jules and Tom, but we didn't mind, and welcomed them in with open arms.

"How are you doing Bucky?" Betty asked, her hand softly resting on my arm.

I nodded, not sure how to reply. "I'm... good."

She smiled gently, knowing I wasn't sure how I was feeling, and ushered Freddie further down the hall, telling him to quieten down a little as he started excitedly looking for D'Arcy.

Steve, Noelle and Angie were the next to arrive. I had met Noelle several times before, and Angie only a handful of times. She clung to her mothers shoulders, a slight frown on her face as Noelle made our introduction.

"Bucky?" She asked.

I nodded, and smiled a little. "That's me."

"But... who are you?"

Steve stifled a laugh as he stroked her curly hair. "He's my big brother."

The girls brows frowned again. "He looks nothing like you!"

"Angie," Noelle gently put her daughter down, "that doesn't matter."

Her dark eyes shone up at me, her little hands resting on my finger tip. "Are you my Uncle?"

My heart softened into an ache, and I managed to nod slowly. "Yeah, your uncle Bucky."

She grinned, and with that, skipped down the hall.

"Betty and Debbie are in the kitchen with Amelie, and Matt is in the living room discussing housing arrangements with Jeremy. I think David and River are babysitting the kids at the table and if you want a drink please help yourself." I recited.

Noelle nodded, and squeezed my hand on her way to the kitchen, "thank god for this party, I've been dying to go out for days now."

"What happened to your hair?" Steve flicked my cheek as we walked down the hall. "It looks darker than normal."

"Says you." I mumbled, have you dyed yours recently?"

"This is natural!" He spluttered, "I just wash mine."

"So do I!" I protested, pushing his shoulder as Freddie suddenly charged past.

The doorbell rang seconds later, and as I turned to see who it was, Jules and Toms faces appeared around the side of it. "I bring a child." Tom picked Jules up and swung her inside, letting her down next to Freddie. The pair immediately began talking, and they scurried to the kitchen, dancing around Steve and I who were still in the hall.

Tom closed the door, his hand holding a large shopping bag.

"Got us a present?" Steve grinned.

"I've got Amelie the stuff off her list."

"Her list?" I asked, "what list?"

Tom shrugged, "she said it's a surprise." And with that, he walked past me and into the living room to the side.

"This house is chaos." Steve mumbled. "How are you coping after...?"

"No family, then you, then Amelie, then this?" I filled in his trailing sentence. "Er... It feels natural, I guess."