Never Separated

Four

Starts with a kind of "PG-13" scene? Just like kissing and stuff. ;)

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"Mm -- Buck -- " Steve arched against him as Bucky kissed him deeper, Anakin and Luke Skywalker whatever completely abandoned. He pressed closer and in response Steve slouched back against the couch until Bucky was lying on top of him, straddling his hips as he kissed him intently. Steve's legs shifted and twitched as Bucky kissed him deeper.

"Wanted... to say thank you," Bucky said in hushed tones as he ran his hands through his hair, carding through the dark blond strands. Steve pulled him in for another kiss, letting out a noise of surprise as Bucky slipped his tongue across his lip and into his mouth.

"Well, it's... working, you're welc--mm, Bucky -- " He groaned and rolled his head. "Christ -- "

"Not quite."

Bucky unintentionally jerked his hips and Steve hummed against his mouth as he kissed deeper. He reached up and clutched at Bucky's short brown hair, realised Bucky needed a trim to keep it short, and toyed with the few long strands that he needed to keep pushing out of his eyes.

A hand snuck up his shirt and he shuddered, breathing shakily as his stomach twisted with delight. "God, Bucky -- "

The sound of tires crunching into the driveway jerked Bucky up and off of Steve in a flash. He jumped to the other end of the couch, flushed and embarrassed. Steve stared at the tv intently as the door creaked open and his mother walked in.

"Oh! Steve, I didn't realise you had company," Sarah said as she walked into the kitchen. "Hello, Bucky dear."

"Hey, Mrs. Rogers," he said sheepishly, clearing his throat. Steve could feel his face burning and tried to shrink in on himself as he focused in on the movie, taking a deep breath.

Sarah, however, seemed to be preoccupied with other things. "Grandmother's coming over tonight for dinner," she reminded Steve. Bucky watched a conflicted look cross Steve's face, and as smoothly as it appeared, it was gone, and he was once again relaxed.

"Okay."

"Bucky, would you like to stay for dinner?"

"Oh, Bucky's busy tonight," Steve rushed to say, shooting him an apologetic look. Bucky lifted an eyebrow at him, confused, and Steve gave a subtle shake of his head as his mother re-entered the room.

"That's a shame," she replied, working a convincing sorrowful look on her face. "Friday?" She smiled and tried to make it a little more genuine than usual, so Bucky did the same.

"Friday's perfect, thank you."

As Sarah rushed upstairs, Bucky twisted to face Steve. "What was that all about?" He kept his voice quiet. Steve looked at him pleadingly.

"You... can't meet my grandma yet. She's brutal."

"How brutal can an old woman be?" he scoffed, trying not to roll his eyes. Steve played with his hands.

"You'd be surprised," he said dryly. "She might be relaxed when Friday comes around, that should work out..." He trailed off and thought, staring blankly at the wall for a moment, before nodding. "Yeah."

Bucky regarded him strangely. "Alright then."

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It was Wednesday. Steve was playing soccer with his usual crew and Bucky elected to dedicate the day to baking -- one of his favourite past-times. April was there with Emma, and they sat on the couch, cuddling and watching Bambi.

Bucky wished that that was what he could be doing, but no. His weird boyfriend wanted to play soccer.

Well, soccer wasn't that bad. Besides, making a banana cream pie gave Bucky time to think. Mainly, what Steve's told him and what he's decided to keep from him.

Like the future wife, for example. He reflected on Peggy as he worked on the pie crust, pinching and rolling the dough. Nice enough girl. But why wouldn't've Steve told him?

Did he think Bucky would be jealous?

Nah. People had past lives -- he knew he couldn't have been the real first, even if Steve admitted that their relationship was the most real to him.

Bucky always smiled at that.

Another thing was this grandmother, who was, apparently, brutal. She lived down in Washington, D.C., and had decided to make the trip to see her daughter and grandson. (She didn't seem to care much for Steve's father, Joseph.)

He sighed, louder than he would've thought, and Emma tilted her head. "What's up?"

He recalled yesterday and huffed. "Nothing, just thinking," he replied.

"Any way to do it quieter?"

April rolled her eyes at Emma, used to her attitude. She simply kissed her cheek and pressed play, pulling Emma's attention back to the task at hand. Bucky turned to the mixture and bit his lip.

Once the pie was finished, he returned to his room and flopped onto the bed.

"Hey," Rebecca said as she stood in the door. "I'm bored, and so are you. What're we gonna do?" She flounced into the room and sank onto Charlie's bed.

Bucky sat up and smiled. "Maybe we can head to town," he suggested. "Take the rest of 'em out for a bit?"

Rebecca brightened at the prospect. "Sure!"

Bucky gathered together his siblings and stopped by his parents' room to see his mother. "Hey, we're gonna go to town, anything you want us to get?"

She shook her head, smiling faintly. "That's okay, dear," she responded. "Have fun. Oh, maybe have Charlie get you all dinner," she mentioned.

Bucky smiled and squeezed her hand. "Okay. Love you, ma."

She smiled gently at him. "I love you too. Be safe," she called as Bucky smiled and headed out.

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Just a bit of a filler chapter, stuff is gonna go down soon though, so maybe be prepared.