Lizzie is playing outside with the kids when she feels her first contraction. She's been having practice contractions all week but this one feels more akin to when she was in labor with the twins.
She is so glad that Bucky isn't around when she has her first one. She plans on hiding them from him for as long as she can. Labor can take a really long time and she knows he'll be hovering more than normal if he knows she is in labor.
She takes the kids over to Peggy and Steve's house so she can talk with Peggy. She knows that Steve and Bucky are catching up at her house so she won't be interrupted.
She walks into the living room to find Peggy sitting on the couch with Sarah playing with her toys in front of her.
"Sawah!" The boys yell.
The three toddlers run off to play. It was a smart choice for all the adults to safety proof their houses because those three are definitely mischievous.
Lizzie sits down next to Peggy. As soon as she sits down, she has another contraction. Her face scrunches up in discomfort and Peggy notices.
"Are you in labor?" She asks.
"Early stages," Lizzie says when the contraction passes.
"Does Bucky know?" She asks.
"Of course not, do you think he'd let me out of his sight if he did?" She asks.
Peggy knows that Lizzie is right. Bucky has been hovering as her due date gets closer. In his defense, he is trying to give her her space, hence why he's with Steve right now.
"Do you need me to watch the kids?" Peggy asks.
She quickly gages how far into labor she is. Things are definitely moving quicker that they did with the twins. She feels like she will probably have the baby by tonight.
"Yes, things are moving along quicker than before. I don't want the twins around when I give birth," Lizzie says.
"Understandable, I won't want Sarah in the house either," Peggy says flippantly.
It isn't until she sees the smile on Lizzie's face that she realizes she slipped up.
"Damn, I promised Steve we'd tell you together," Peggy says.
"You're pregnant again?" Lizzie beams.
"Yes, we have been planning on having another baby for awhile but it took some time," Peggy admits.
Lizzie surges forward and pulls Peggy into a tight hug.
"Admit it, seeing me pregnant again gave you baby fever," Lizzie says.
Peggy can't deny it because that was a large part of why they opened the discussion of more kids. They loved Sarah and they wanted to build to their family.
"Yes, alright," Peggy says begrudgingly.
"We are going to be outnumbered by children now," Lizzie says.
They hear the backdoor open.
"Daddy!" the three toddlers yell.
They hear squeals of laughter before their husbands turn the corner with the kids slung over their backs.
"Have you seen the kids?" Bucky asks Lizzie.
"I haven't seen them," Lizzie says, playing along.
"No, I seem to have misplaced them," Bucky says dramatically.
"We hewe, mama!" JJ yell.
Lizzie gets up with a little help from Peggy and walks over to her kids.
"Well there you are," Lizzie says.
"I hewe too, Awnty Izzy," Sarah giggles from behind Steve's back.
"Wow, you are all very good hiders," Lizzie says.
Bucky and Steve place the kids on the ground.
"Alright boys, it's nap time. Say goodbye," Bucky says.
The twins go and hug Sarah and then Steve and Peggy. All the kids are very affectionate and give hugs freely.
Bucky picks up the twins and they walk back to their house. They tired themselves out because they are half asleep on Bucky's shoulders by the time they get them into bed.
They put the twins down and walk down to the living room. Lizzie lays back on the couch with her feet on the cushions and opens a book.
Bucky sits down next to her and places her feet on his lap. He takes off her shoes and begins rubbing her feet. He knows that Lizzie has been getting a lot of body aches as she gets closer to delivering the baby so he tries to help relieve the discomfort whenever he can.
He sits and watches her. Looking at her is one of his favorite activities. He especially likes looking at her face while she's reading. Her face is so expressive that it's almost like he's reading the book with her.
She notices him staring and looks up at him. She always notices him looking at her but he has a special look in his eyes this time.
"What?" She asks.
"I can't admire my beautiful wife?" Bucky asks innocently.
"You can, but you have something on your mind. We've been together for twelve years so I know how to read your expressions by now," she says.
"I was just thinking about the first time I admitted how I felt about you to myself. Steve and I had just gotten back to the house from doing God knows what. We walked in and you were sitting on the couch. You were so entranced by your book, you didn't hear us come in. I watched as your face changed from one expression to another and you landed on one that I couldn't understand. I was so frustrated that I couldn't figure it out and all I could think was about how much I wanted to know everything about you. I wanted to know what made you laugh and cry. I wanted to know what made you happy. I wanted to know how it would feel to kiss you. I wanted to know what it would feel like to be loved by you. I had been attracted to you for awhile but that was the first moment where I knew that being just friends weren't in the cards for me," he says.
She smiles at him because even after all these years, he still finds new ways to tell her he loves her. That he's loved her for most of his life.
"You, James Buchanan Barnes, are the best risk I ever took. Realizing I loved you was terrifying but also exhilarating. I told you that epic loves, like the love in the books I read, are beautiful but destructive. Our love is better than all the books I've ever read. Sure, we've had our ups and downs, our heartbreaks and our triumphs but I wouldn't change a single thing because it led to here. You were my fairytale beginning and are my current fairytale. I don't think you're my fairytale ending because love like ours doesn't have an ending," she says.
He goes to respond but then he sees Lizzie's face scrunch up and immediately knows what's going on.
"Are you in labor?" He asks accusingly.
She should have known she couldn't hide it from him for long.
"It's a long process and I didn't want you to worry prematurely," she defends.
He sighs because he's frustrated but yelling at his pregnant wife who is in labor isn't the best decision.
He knows that he can't panic even though his body is tense with anxiety. If he panics, it will stress her out and that's the last thing she needs right now.
He gets up and walks over to where she is leaning back.
"Scoot up," he demands.
She does as he says and he slides in behind her and pulls her between his legs so her back is pressed to his chest.
"Do you want to read or do you want me to read?" He asks.
She loves him so much in that moment because she knows his anxiety is probably through the roof. That fact is confirmed when she can feel his heart racing against her back.
"Can you read?" She asks.
She wants to distract him and she also knows if she has to pause reading due to a contraction, it will just stress him out more.
She hands him a copy of The Hobbit. He used to not be a huge fan of reading unless it was with her but she knows he really enjoyed this book.
As he reads, she strokes his hand that is resting on her stomach . She keeps taking deep breathes, hoping that he will match her breathing which is speeding up.
He pauses reading and leans over to whisper in her ear.
"I know what you're doing and I'm supposed to be the one calming you down but thank you," he says.
"You are calming me by trying to relax. We can help each other because that's what we do," she says.
They hear the twins wake up and Bucky calls Steve to see if he could pick them up and watch them for the night.
When Steve comes over, he sees his twin and best friend curled up on the couch reading.
"How are you doing Lizzie?" Steve asks.
"I'm okay, my contractions are getting closer together so I think I'll have her by the end of the night," she says.
Like on cue, another contraction hits. This one is the longest she's had. Bucky looks at his watch and frowns.
"That's only five minutes apart, we should probably call the doctor," Bucky says.
"You may be able to deliver a baby but none of us are equipped for that," Steve adds.
Lizzie rolls her eyes but agrees.
It is lucky they called the doctor because less than a minute later, her water breaks.
Bucky is the perfect partner throughout the whole process. He encourages her and soothes her and swallows his fear.
A few hours later, Natasha Margaret Barnes enters the world.
"She's beautiful Lizzie," Bucky whispers as Natasha lays on his bare chest later that night.
Lizzie is resting on her side with her head on Bucky's shoulder at she gazes at her daughter.
"We make good babies," Lizzie agrees.
Just then, they hear the pitter patter of feet coming up the stairs and the twins burst into the room.
"Mama! Dada!" The yell.
Lizzie lightly shushes them so they don't wake up Natasha.
"Inside voices, loves," Lizzie says softly.
Lizzie helps them climb up on the bed so they can see their new baby sister.
"She tiny," JJ whispers.
"You were once this tiny," Bucky says.
Steven reaches his hand out to touch her.
"Softly love, she's a little fragile," Lizzie says.
He lightly rubs her cheek with his little finger.
"She soft," Steven says.
JJ is quick to stroke her cheek as well and he nods his head in agreement.
"It's getting late boys, time for bed," Bucky says.
Lizzie gets up so she can help the boys get ready for bed.
"Sleep here?" JJ asks.
Bucky and Lizzie exchange a quick look. They try not to make it a habit of letting the boys sleep in their bed but tonight they both want the whole family close.
"Okay, but just for tonight," Lizzie says.
She leaves and quickly gets them ready for bed before placing them in between herself and Bucky.
It isn't long until all of the kids are sleeping soundly. Bucky looks over at Lizzie and sees that she is also asleep.
He looks over his family and again marvels at how lucky he is.
Bucky never thought he could have a life like this after all the horrible things he's done, but somehow, he ended up with it all the same.
Coming back to her was the best decision of his life.
The End
A/N: This marks the end to Come Back With Me. The next chapter will be an epilogue that may be turned into a sequel if there is enough interest. Thank you all for the amazing support while I was writing this book. So many people have reached out and said how much they enjoyed the book and that means the world to me. When I started this book, I began writing because I just couldn't get the idea out of my head. I have loved writing Elizabeth Grace Rogers and I'm so happy that you guys connected with her too. Thank you for reading, liking, and commenting. Thank you for joining me on this journey.
-Mikayla