It's been a month and a half since Steve returned from Siberia with the red book. It's also two weeks before Christmas. The four of them were starting to get on each other's nerves given the fact they've been held up in Tony's cabin for almost half a year. The book is currently in a high security vault at the Avenger's Tower in New York. Tony figured it would be smarter to have the book and Bucky at two separate locations in case there was a chance that HYDRA was going to infiltrate the facilities.
The girls rarely went out, Steve went out on missions, and it was apparent that Nat was really starting to like him. She grew nervous any time he left, and this of course annoyed Bucky because she would never stop talking about him. Melany was irritated by the fact that he was even bothered by the fact that Nat was talking about Steve, but they managed to talk it over before they both exploded in each other's faces.
Due to Steve being out on missions every few weeks, Nat is now the caretaker for the engagement ring. She hasn't been as stealthy with it as Steve was, but Bucky knew Nat wouldn't let Melany find it. He was still sure about wanting to propose even if it wasn't soon.
He wanted to know she was sure about him as well before popping the question.
Bucky knows that Melany cares for him, and that she loves him, but there's a small part of him that thinks she's going to come to her senses after everything he did as the Winter Soldier and leave him. He hasn't expressed this much to her since he doesn't like talking about it. Melany has no suspicions about her feelings for Bucky, and she tries to remind him as often as she can whether its physically or verbally.
The team visited them for thanksgiving, which was not a traditional thanksgiving. Thor brought some Asgardian Liquor, resulting in a very drunk Nat and Melany. Scott was there, living up the party, along with Sam and Tony. It was more of a potluck than a Thanksgiving. Loki, fortunately, kept control of his mischievous antics this time around, and there was no game of truth or dare. Bruce obviously came to see Melany, he's missed her so much. Bucky didn't get the chance to talk to Bruce alone, but Bucky knew he didn't want to ask until he knew Melany was also ready to make that next step. He was okay to wait for her.
The weather quickly got cooler throughout the last few weeks. Their wardrobes changed from light long sleeves to heavy sweaters and jeans. Melany was currently cuddled in a blanket on the couch, with a cup of hot coffee pressed to her lips as she watched a movie. Nat was on the phone with Steve in their room – seeing as he was currently on a mission, and Bucky was somewhere around the cabin estate for a morning run.
Around 30 minutes later, Melany looked back from her movie as she heard the door upstairs open and close. Nat had a huge smile on her face as she walked down the stairs. "What?" Melany asked, turning back to her movie.
"Nothing." Nat said almost singing.
Melany hummed in response, reaching for her mug. She rolled her eyes when she realized it was empty. She wrapped the blanket around her as she walked back to the kitchen. "Is it something about Steve?" She asked as she poured herself another cup.
"How many cups of coffee have you had this morning?" Nat asked - disregarding her questions - as she leaned against the counter next to her.
"Don't worry about it." Melany started. "Probably too many." Melany smiled, taking a sip. "Bucky had a cup, and I've had..." She paused to mentally count. "Four, counting this one." She said pointing to her mug.
Nat rolled her eyes as Bucky walked in. He was taking deep breaths and sweat was dripping down his face. "Tell your girlfriend to stop drinking so much coffee. Her heart is going to explode." Nat chuckled.
Bucky smiled softly at the girls, catching his breath. "She'll be fine." He muttered, walking over into the kitchen. He opened his arms to bring Melany in for a hug.
She placed her hand on his chest over his sweaty shirt. "Shower first and then you can get attention." She giggled.
He rolled his eyes, pausing before wrapping his arms tightly around her anyway. A huge smile was plastered in his face as she squirmed in his arms, he peppered kisses over her face as she squirmed and screamed.
"Put me down!" She screamed, trying to push away from him.
"No." He chuckled, pressing a sloppy kiss to her lips.
She groaned, finally being able to successfully pull away from him. She groaned, wiping off her lips and rubbed her bare arms from his sweaty clothes.
"Did you just wipe off my kiss?" He gawked, clearly offended.
"You're all gross!" She defended, smiling.
"I'll make you gross." He smirked, noticing Nat had gone back upstairs.
"No." Melany put her hand in front of her to try to keep him away from her. "You're nasty."
"You weren't saying that last night," Bucky countered.
Melany rolled her eyes, watching him as he stalked closer to her. She threw the blanket at him to distract him as she ran around the island in the kitchen. He chuckled as he tossed the blanket back on the couch as he jogged after her.
She ran outside to the backyard, trying to get away from him. She turned around, seeing him take long strides toward her. She tried running even farther, before feeling his arms wrapped around her waist. "No!" She laughed, throwing her head back on his shoulder.
"Gotcha." Bucky muttered into her ear, holding her against his chest. She calmed down, realizing she was only wearing a short sleeved shirt and leggings. She forgot shoes in her panic, and so she was on her tiptoes to keep her feet from being on the cold ground.
She leaned into him more, feeling the warmth from his body against her back. She started to feel goosebumps nip at her skin, and she began to shiver. Bucky let go of her briefly, throwing his hoodie over her head. It smelled like his cologne with a hint of sweat from his run, but at this point she didn't mind. He wrapped his arms around her again as they looked out at the lake.
"Aren't you going to be cold?" She asked, looking back at him.
"I'll be fine, doll." He said, placing a soft kiss to her neck. He paused for a moment, breathing her in. "Can I ask you something?"
She nodded. "Of course."
Bucky took a deep breath, nervous. "Have you ever thought about getting married?" He stared out at the lake as he talked. He didn't want to see her expression if he didn't like the answer she gave. After a moment of silence, he added, "in general, I mean." He cleared his throat.
"Well, yeah." She looked over at him, seeing he was staring out at the lake. "I've dreamt about it since I was a little girl. My mom and I would talk about how I would marry a great guy who would show up out of no where, but he would be the best thing for me." Melany smiled as she stared at him, knowing he was the one.
"Would you uhm..." He swallowed hard as he continued. "Would you say you found him?" Bucky smiled softly.
She nodded immediately. She reached up, placing her hand on his cheek and turned his face to her. "I have." She smiled, placing a soft kiss to his lips.
Bucky smiled on her lips, holding her tighter in his arms.
"Can I ask you something?" She asked, repeating his question. He nodded, staring down at her.
"Have you thought about having kids?" She asked, biting the inside of her cheek. She knew they weren't even ready to have kids, let alone get married, but she was ready whenever he was. She knows she find her person, her true love, despite all it took for them to get to this moment.
"I have." He paused, taking a deep breath. "I didn't think about it much in the 40's. After I got drafted, I honestly thought I wasn't going to survive, and then HYDRA found me, and here we are."
"When did you start thinking about it again?" She asked, turning to him.
He hummed, playfully thinking. "About 8 months ago, when I met the most beautiful woman, who's currently standing in my arms." He flirted, winking.
"I'm being serious!" She said, blushing at his words.
"I'm being completely serious." He smirked, placing a kiss to her forehead.
"Really?" She was a little shocked if she was being honest with herself. She was expecting him to say he didn't want kids, especially after his history as the Winter Soldier. "Even after...?" She trailed off the question, knowing he didn't like talking about it.
"Yes." He responded immediately. "There was no question about it, when you and I started dating, I felt like I finally saw a future for myself, and I really hope that you're going to continue to be in it." He licked his bottom lip, smiling gently.
"I will be, don't you worry." She smiled up at him. She wrapped her arms around his neck, leaning up and kissing his lips.
"Good." He replied, placing his flesh hand on her neck, running his thumb over her jaw.
"You're hand is freezing!" She yelled, grabbing his hand. "Let's go inside." She grabbed his hand, pulling him back inside.
He followed her, closing the door behind him as they walked in.
"You still need a shower, old man." Melany noted.
"Okay, okay." He kissed her temple as he walked past her to go upstairs. "No more coffee!" He called out before walking into their bedroom, and taking a shower.
Melany sat back down on the couch, placing the blanket over her cold, sock covered feet, and she pressed play again on her movie. She heard her phone chime next to her.
Nat: Image Sent
Melany opened her phone, looking at the photo. It was from Nat's bedroom that overlooked the lake. She had caught a few pictures from when Melany and Bucky were outside. The first was from when he had first grabbed her and she was flailing around. They were turned toward Nat's window, so she could see Bucky's huge smile as Melany struggled to get out of his arms. The second was after he'd given her his hoodie, his head was nuzzled into her neck as she leaned back against him. His arms were latched firmly around her waist. They were facing the lake, so you could only see Bucky's back and her head, but it was still cute. The third was when they were talking, but facing each other. Nat had zoomed in some, surprisingly the image was still rather clear. They were centimeters apart and the sunlight was shining down between them. They were both smiling, her arms were around his neck and his were around her waist.
Melany: I want you to be my photographer at all times. ;)
Melany smiled as she saved the photos. She chose the last photo as her screen saver, and sent them to Bucky.
Nat: If I'm not in your wedding, I'll be your photographer.
Melany: You're my maid of honor, it's already been decided.
Melany giggled as she saw Bucky like the last photo in their conversation. She set her phone down, finally paying attention to her movie again.
The day passed slowly as the three of them sat in the living room together watching movies and mindlessly talking about things. Bucky and Melany were laid together on the couch. She remained in his hoodie that he gave her that morning, feeling too comforted to take it off given that he'd worn it on his run. Nat sat on the arm chair, but laid with her legs over one of the arms and her back supported by a pillow. She was facing them as they were cuddled up.
"How long do you think we're gonna be stuck here before we get to go back home?" Nat asked them. She took a sip of her water bottle before screwing the cap back on.
"I talked to dad a few weeks ago, he said according to Tony it might be after New Years." Melany said, laying her head on Bucky's chest.
"Fuck." Nat groaned, leaning her head back. "I love you guys, but I'm tired of you two." Nat joked.
Bucky rolled his eyes, chuckling. He ran his metal hand against Melany's back as she settled into him on the couch. Melany spoke up. "Love you too, Nat."
Nat smiled. She heard her phone ding in her pocket. She pulled it out, looking at the message. "Hey, guys. We need to go outside." Nat stood up quickly, grabbing her jacket and heading outside.
Melany gave Nat a weird look before getting off Bucky, grabbing her phone off the coffee table and following her outside. "What are you—" Melany stopped as she saw the whole team outside the cabin. Two Quinjets were sitting on the estate, and Bruce ran up to her, engulfing her in a hug.
"You're coming home, sweetie." He said, hugging her tighter.
"Wait-" Melany leaned back to look at her father. "I thought you said after New Years?"
"Are you seriously questioning this right now?" Tony yelled out. "Grab your shit! You're coming home!"
Bucky walked out as Tony said the last bit. "Home?"
Melany turned around, looking at Bucky. "We're going home!" She screamed, running inside and upstairs.
He chuckled, looking over at Steve who was making his way up the front steps. "You guys wait in the jets, we'll be out soon." He called out to the rest of the team.
Bucky gave Steve a questioning look. "What happened?"
"We took down enough of the bases for HYDRA to – hopefully — collapse on it's own. Tony wanted to wait till after New Years to see if they would, but Bruce managed to convince him otherwise." Steve explained as Nat listened. Steve wrapped his arm around her waist, kissing her temple.
"Do we tell Mel?" Nat asked.
Bucky shook his head. "No. If she knows we didn't take them all out, she'll be devastated to have to stay here any longer. I know she misses Bruce, and privacy." He chuckled at the last point.
"Right. We still have to be on high alert." Steve agreed. "At least we don't have to hide anymore." Steve smiled.
Bucky nodded. "Have you heard from Zemo?" He asked, looking back into the house, seeing Melany was up in their room, packing their things.
Steve shook his head. "Nothing from Sharon either, other than that there's no more signal out to search for you and Melany."
Bucky nodded. "Good." He paused. "I still don't think you should trust Zemo, but at this point, it's your call." Bucky sighed, walking inside and upstairs. "Need any help?" He asked as he saw all their clothes piled in suitcases.
"Please." She smiled at him, rushing into the bathroom. She tossed him some items to pack.
He placed them in plastic bags she had set out and put them in the suitcases as well. He wanted to tell her the truth, but he knew that she'd have more than enough security at the compound with Bruce, Steve, Nat, and Bucky there. The occasional drop ins from Thor, Loki and Sam would help as well. He knew that he had to keep the truth from her in order to keep her safe.
In half an hour, Tony was complaining about how long they were taking. Steve and Nat took longer since they hadn't started packing right away. Melany and Bucky were already on the Quinjet with the rest of the team. Bruce had already talked Melany's ear off trying to truly catch up with his daughter.
The only thing Bucky could think about was talking to Bruce alone when they got back and settled into the compound again.
Hours passed as they all sat in the Quinjet, some of them resting, and other quietly chatting amongst each other. Tony had FRIDAY keeping the jet on course, so he was talking with Bruce about something regarding a mission.
Bucky had his arm around Melany as they sat in silence, ready to get home and sleep in their own beds. They landed in front of the compound, and soon everyone was heading back to their rooms. Bucky carried their suitcases up to their floor. He opened his door, pulling both of their suitcases into his room.
"Buck?" Melany asked.
"Hmm?" He asked, turning to her.
"You have my suitcase." She stated, walking into his room.
"I know." He said as he placed both of them on the bed and unzipped them.
"What are you doing?" She giggled, grabbing his hand.
"Move in here with me." He said, looking down at her. "We haven't slept in separate rooms in almost 8 months, I don't know that I can sleep without you." He admitted, looking down and rubbing his thumb over her knuckles.
"James." She called his name so he would look back up at her. She took a deep breath. "I'll move some of my stuff in the morning." She grinned.
"Wait- really?" He smiled, biting his bottom lip.
She nodded. "I'd probably be staying in here anyway, and I'm right across the hall, one of us would be staying in the other's room." She explained. "It would be like we lived together, we would just switch rooms, and that just seems counterproductive." She pulled one of his shirts from his suitcase and a pair of panties from her suitcase. "Move these so we can go to bed, I'm exhausted." She smiled as she began to change.
Bucky zipped up the suitcases, purposefully facing her as she changed. He swiped his tongue over his bottom lip as she slipped off her shirt and put his on. He pushed the suitcases to the opposite side of the room. He walked over to her, gripping her the waistband of her pants. He kept eye contact with her as he unbuttoned them slowly. Her hands stayed at her sides, as she tried to control her breathing. This is the first time in months they've truly gotten privacy. The rooms had a soundproof setting, which was great for them, especially for Melany with her dad being around the compound.
He unzipped them and slipped them down her legs. She grabbed on to his shoulders and stepped out of them. His hands slid up her legs and grabbed the sides of her panties. He slid those down her legs and grabbed the fresh pair. He slid those up her legs, biting his lip as he gave a smack to her ass before standing all the way up.
"Let's go to bed." He whispered, keeping his hands on her waist, underneath his shirt.
She nodded, swallowing hard and stepped over to the opposite side that he does. She pulled back the comforter, sliding under them. Bucky took off his shirt, letting his dog tags jingle together as he moved. He got under the covers after changing into sweatpants. She didn't have the chance to fully settle before Bucky had turned her to him, pressing a rough kiss to her lips. She tangled her fingers in his hair, pulling gently. He pulled back, placing a kiss to her cheek and laid back on his pillow.
"Goodnight, doll." He whispered, wrapping his arms around her waist as she laid her head on his bare chest.
"Goodnight, Buck." She muttered before drifting off to sleep.