Brooklyn - Steve Rogers X OC Spinoff

38 - Maddison

Everything was a little hazy, but Maddison remembered being brought home by Bucky. She remembered Scott bringing Avery home from next door, and she remembered eating something. She honestly couldn't even recall what it was she ate.

But she did remember Bucky insisting she take a nap. He even tucked her in and put Avery beside her to co-sleep. She vaguely remembered him saying, "It's all going to be fine. Get some sleep." Before he left her alone in her room.

But then she woke up spooning Emilia and her back pressed against Bucky's side. As carefully as she could, she rolled until she could see that Avery was asleep on his chest and that he was wide awake. He didn't say anything. He just put his finger to his lips to shush her before she woke up either her daughter or his wife. She just nodded in agreement.

"I'm up." Emilia insisted. She yawned, rolling on her other side until she was facing Maddison and Bucky. "How are you feeling?" She asked quietly.

Maddison felt weird laying between the most loving couple she'd ever met in her life. She worried that she was in the way. If she wasn't there, they'd be cuddling each other. But she also felt so tired that she didn't want to be kicked out of her own bed. So, she didn't move. She didn't even attempt to move. "I don't know. I wish Steve was home. He always knows what to do and what to say." She admitted.

Emilia stroked her hand down Maddison's cheek, smiling at her. "Steve knows what to do. If he says he's handling it, trust him. He'll be home soon. Plus, he left you with this one to fill in." She teased, pointing at Bucky.

Bucky let out a quiet laugh, spreading his hand out to hold little Avery on his chest more steadily while he laughed. "I am not a substitute boyfriend, Em." He said.

Emilia chuckled at that, making Maddison want to laugh with them. Their banter was adorable, and their relationship seemed like one that romance books would be jealous of. Aside from the spending years apart and both being human experiments, of course.

Bucky leaned in and kissed Maddison's forehead before hopping out of bed and collecting his wife. "We'll leave you to rest longer. But if you need to miss a day of class, we're staying to watch Avery while you sleep." He promised.

Maddison shook her head no. She couldn't miss class. Sure, she was allowed 10 missed days before she would be kicked out of the program, but she'd never risk it. She'd only ever missed 1 day since having to take a semester off for maternity leave, but she wouldn't risk putting her future in jeopardy like that.

Emilia glared at her a little, putting her hand on her hip. "Sweetheart, you can afford to miss one day. You're staying home." She demanded before taking Maddison's phone and walking out of the room. Bucky simply shrugged and followed behind her. She realized that was how their relationship worked. Despite Bucky being the big and scary one, he folded for anything and everything his wife said, and nobody questioned her. Maybe because Emilia was somehow the sweetest human being she'd ever met in her life. She knew she wouldn't argue with her either.

When Maddison woke up again, she realized it was dark out, and the only light shining in was from the street lights. She shot up, seeing the living room light on behind her closed bedroom door. She hopped up and headed out into the living room to see Emilia sound asleep on her couch and Bucky sitting on the floor in front of her. "There's a chair, you know." She whispered, pointing toward the comfortable chair sitting opposite of the couch.

Bucky just shrugged, turning his head to stare at his wife for a moment. "I don't like being away from her." He admitted just as quietly.

Maddison smiled at that, hoping Steve felt the same way about her that Bucky did about Emilia. He hoped that she'd have the love and devotion that Emilia gets every day. She climbed up in the chair that Bucky refused to sit in, pulling her knees up to her chest.

Bucky turned his attention to Maddison for a moment, but she could tell that his main focus was still on Emilia. She could tell that the slightest movement of sound would have him right back to her. "Did you sleep okay?" He whispered.

Maddison nodded, laying her face against the side of the chair. "As good as I could. What if he takes her? He doesn't even know her... What am I supposed to do? I can't go from seeing her every free second to every other weekend." She said quietly. She felt her eyes well up with tears, and the lump in her throat thickened. She didn't know how to not be a full-time mom, and she refused to find out.

Bucky shook his head no. He climbed up from the floor and headed into the kitchen. Maddison watched while he grabbed a bottle of water and brought it back to her. "He's not taking her. I don't know what Steve's plan is, but Steve always has a plan." He said confidently.

Maddison sipped on her water, trying to tell herself that it was true. That Steve would figure it out, but she wasn't so sure it was true. Ben had money, more money than sense. He was more than willing to take Avery even if it was just to hurt Maddison. "How can you know he won't take her?" She asked quietly.

Bucky shrugged, making Maddison no less worked up about the whole situation. But he walked back into the kitchen and started cutting up an apple on a plate, even adding a little dish of caramel sauce and a few crushed peanuts before handing her the plate. "Eat." He insisted. He took his place on the floor next to his wife again, even cracking a small smile when Emilia reached and put her hand on his arm. "I know he won't take her because even if Steve's plan fails, mine won't." He said quietly but confidently.

Maddison worked on her snack but raised an eyebrow at him in confusion. "What's your plan?" She asked as she chewed. But she wasn't so sure she wanted to know.

Again, Bucky shrugged. "He can't get custody if he's dead." He said casually.

Maddison almost choked on the bite she was eating, unfortunately waking Emilia while coughing. But Emilia sat up sleepily, letting Bucky get up on the couch. He sat down and guided her to lay across his lap and go back to sleep. Now, he stroked his hand through her hair. "Bucky, that's insane. You can't kill him." She said quietly.

Bucky shrugged yet again, making Maddison wonder how normal this behavior was for him. "It's just a backup plan. I'm sure Steve has it covered." He defended.

That did nothing to comfort Maddison. Yes, she had to trust that Steve had it covered. But if he didn't? Did she really want Bucky to kill for her? Was he even capable? Emilia spoke about her James like he was the most delicate and loving human you'd ever meet. The guy who would catch a spider in a cup and put it outside, not the guy who would murder her baby-daddy so she didn't have to go through a custody battle that would bankrupt her.

Bucky interrupted her train of thought by picking his phone up and saying, "Steve will be home shortly. You should go back to bed."

Maddison shrugged. She wanted to sleep, her mind was still cluttered, and her body was exhausted. But she also needed to know what his plan was and where he'd been all day. She knew that no lawyers office was open at this hour, so where had he been? "Not tired." She lied.

Bucky glared at her, seemingly not believing that in the slightest. His stare, however, felt like it chilled her to the bone. It amazed her how he could flip so easily. How he could be so nice and so charming to terrifying. "Is that the lie you're sticking with? I gotta tell you, Mads. You suck at lying." He whispered to her, still considering his sleeping wife while scolding her.

Maddison sighed, rolling her eyes and shaking her head no. She figured she'd at least attempt to lay down for a little while. Worst case scenario, she just sat there and stared at the ceiling.