Bucky and Steve were walking home from school a couple weeks after the incident. Bucky had noticed that Steve didn't want to hang out as much.
He was worried that Steve was getting tired of him. Bucky had lots of friends but he had never instantly clicked with someone like he did Steve.
He noticed that the distance started after he came over for dinner. Bucky couldn't help but wonder if the problem laid there.
"Do you want to come to dinner at my house tonight?" Bucky asks.
Steve looked over at Bucky guiltily. He felt bad he kept turning Bucky down but Lizzie was his priority. He knew his mom was working at the hospital tonight and he wouldn't leave Lizzie home alone again.
"I can't," Steve replies.
Bucky stops walking and Steve turns to face him.
"Can't or don't want to? Did I do something wrong? Did you not like my family or something?" Bucky asks.
He hates how insecure he sounds but he was never one to avoid hard conversations.
"No, no. Of course not!" Steve stammers quickly.
"Then what is it?" Bucky asks.
"It's Lizzie," Steve admits.
This surprises Bucky. He thought the animosity between them was in the past. He knew she was still cautious about him but she trusted him enough.
"Lizzie? I thought she was okay about me?" Bucky says.
Steve is quick to reassure his friend.
"She is! She really doesn't have a problem with you," Steve says.
"Then what is it?" Bucky asks curiously.
Steve hesitates. He doesn't know if it's a betrayal to talk about her insecurities but he doesn't want to hide anything from Bucky either. He knows Bucky won't say anything to anyone.
"When I went over to your house my mom had to leave her home alone. Neither of us have ate alone. She had never been left home alone at night either. I came home and she was really upset. She would never say it but I think she feels like you're taking me away from her. Our dad died and mom is always working so we have always relied on each other to be there. I haven't been doing the best job of that recently. I was so excited to have you as a friend that I completed ignored her. I can't come over because my mom is working tonight and I don't want to leave her again," Steve explained.
Bucky thought about all that Steve had to say. Bucky didn't know Lizzie but he felt like he did. The way that Steve talks about her, she is the most amazing person to walk the planet.
Bucky and Lizzie were both important to Steve. He felt terrible that Steve felt like he had to choose between them.
Suddenly, Bucky was struck with an idea.
"Can I come over to your house tonight then?" Bucky asks.
Steve looks at Bucky in surprise. He has never come over on a night when Sarah wasn't home.
"Um sure but my mom won't be there to make dinner," Steve says.
"That's okay. What do you and Elizabeth usually do for dinner when Sarah is gone?" Bucky asks.
"We each make each other a meal out of random stuff in the fridge. Sometimes it turns out really well and sometimes not so much..." Steve says.
"Well if you don't mind, I would love to sit in on your tradition," Bucky says.
"If it's okay with Lizzie," he quickly adds.
"She'll be fine with it. Honestly, she doesn't have a problem with you. She has a problem with some of the people you hang out with but nothing about you personally," Steve says.
He instantly realizes he may have said too much.
"She mentioned before that I was 'guilty by association'. What does that mean? Has someone I know done something to her?" Bucky asks.
As far as he knows, his crowd has never interacted with Elizabeth. He didn't even notice her around school until he met Steve. Her and Steve are always together at school. The only time she seems to be alone at school is when Steve is out sick. Though she is small like her brother, luckily she hasn't inherited his immune system.
Steve and Bucky begin the trek to the Rogers household.
When they enter the house, it's very quiet. There's light music playing in the background and they can hear the slight hum of someone singing along.
They walk into the living room to see Lizzie sitting on the couch with her legs tucked under her. She has her sketch book open on her lap.
The floor boards squeak under their feet and she looks up at Steve in surprise.
"Oh Steve, I wasn't expecting you home so soon. I thought you'd be out with Bucky," she says.
Bucky enters the room further and she finally notices him.
"Sorry, I didn't realize you have company. I'll go draw in my room so you can have some space," Lizzie says.
She quickly gets up and walks past them.
"Wait!" Bucky says to her.
She stops and turns towards him.
"Why don't you stay? Steve is always talking about this amazing sister and I haven't really gotten a chance to know her," he says.
She nods and comes back. He can tell that she is uncomfortable with this turn of events but he is determined to get along with her for Steve.
Bucky sits on the couch with Steve while Lizzie sits in the arm chair. They sit in awkward silence with none of them knowing how to start a conversation. Bucky is the one to finally break through.
"What were you drawing?" Bucky asks.
She looks down at her sketch book and clutches it to her chest.
"It was nothing. Just some random doodles," she says.
"I didn't know you were an artist," Bucky admits.
"I'm not, I'm really not. It's just a hobby," she says.
"She's definitely better than me," Steve adds.
Bucky had seen Steve's artwork before and knew if was really good. What would hers look like if it's better.
"Can I see?" Bucky asks.
Her immediate impulse is to tell him no but then he looks over at Steve. She can see he's so hopefully that there interaction is going well. She can't ruin that for him so she carefully hands over the book to Bucky.
He begins to flip through the pictures. There's a lot of pictures of Sarah and Steve. There's a couple of a man that shares a resemblance with the twins who must be their father. There's pictures of random people and building around Brooklyn. There's a picture of the hospital where Sarah works. The most recent picture is one of the front of their school. They were beautiful drawings.
"This is amazing Elizabeth," he says as he hands the book back to her.
"Thank you" she responds quietly.
"Do you think you could draw me? I feel like I'd be an excellent model," Bucky says teasingly.
She doesn't know how to respond. She's never drawn anyone on request before. She simply draws whatever she feels like at any given moment. But then she reminds herself that this is for Steve.
"Sure, I'll make you a deal. You and Steve cook me dinner and I'll draw you. The best models don't pose," she says.
"You've got yourself a deal princess," he says as he holds out his hand for her to shake.
She shakes his hand and is surprised to find how comforting his hand feels in hers. The handshake lingers a tad to long so she quickly drops his hand.
"Well, get to cooking boys," she says as she starts walking to the kitchen.
She turns back to face the boys.
"Oh and by the way James, call me princess again and I'll stab you with a pencil," she says.
He throws his head back and laughs and she can't help but laugh with him.
While the boys begin the cooking competition, Lizzie opens her sketchbook to a fresh page. She couldn't tell you what ingredients they put in their recipes or the jokes they made. She was in her own world that involved her, a pencil, and a paper.
By the time she finished the picture, the boys were presenting dinner.
Steve's dinner was quiet edible. He made a grilled cheese sandwich with apple slice in it. It was definitely strange, but it worked well.
Bucky's recipe was a disaster. He mashed beans and potatoes together and tried to fry it in oil. He some how managed to burn it but also make it completely soggy. Not to mention the ridiculous amount of salt added to the mixture.
When dinner was over and Steve was declared the clear winner she presented the boys with her drawing.
In the picture, Bucky was fanning above the pan with a pot holder to clear the smoke as his disaster of a meal caught fire. Steve was in the very edge of the drawing laughing at him.
"Now your very first 'Rogers sibling cook off night' will never be forgotten," Lizzie says.
Bucky looks at the pair sheepishly.
"I honestly don't know if that's a good think or a bad thing," Bucky admits.
The trio spend the rest of the night talking and laughing.
Conversation that was once forced was now naturally as breathing.
Steve watched as Bucky laughed at the story his sister was telling about the time she got stuck in a tree. This was one of the best nights of Steve's life. Two of his favorite people in the world getting along and laughing together. He never thought life could get this good for him.
Eventually, Bucky had to go and Lizzie said she would walk him to the door.
He opened the door but hesitated before walking out.
"I know we mostly did this for Steve but I had a really good time," Bucky admits.
She was surprised that he knew that she was mainly doing this for Steve. She also knew that this was one of the most fun nights she's had in awhile.
"I was wrong about you James. You are a great person and I'm glad I've got to know you. You officially have an invite to any 'Rogers sibling cook off night' you want," she says.
"I'll be sure to take you up on that Elizabeth," he responds with a laugh.
"Goodnight James," she says.
"You know you can call me Bucky," he says
"I thought your friends only called you Bucky?"she responds with a small smile.
"Yes, and?" He says.
"And you can call me Lizzie if you want. My friends call me Lizzie. Well I mean they would if I had any friends," she responds.
He decides right then that she will have a friend in him. The Rogers siblings were so special and it was crazy no one else has taken advantage of their light.
"I'll keep that in mind. Goodnight," he says.
"Goodnight Bucky," she responds.
She watches him walk away until he reaches the front gate he looks back and waves. She shuts the door and finds Steve smiling at her.
"Thank you," he says.
She knows what the thank you is for. Thanks for being a friend to his best friend.
"Anything for you Stevie," she replies.
As she lies in bed she turns on a flashlight and looks at the drawing she made earlier in the painting. It puts an instant smile on her face. She looks at it a moment longer before placing it on her bedside table and closing her eyes to go to sleep.
Little did she know that that was the first of many drawing of James Buchanan Barnes that would grace the pages of her sketchbook.