Bucky sat in his seat on the quinjet, nervously playing with his hands as he waited for Tony, Steve, and Sam to make an appearance; he had asked to speak to them earlier regarding his cryogenic situation and having to leave Marlena again. After reading through her journal the night before, he had made up his mind. Bucky could not leave her-not again. He'd never be able to forgive himself for it, especially now that he knew the pain she had gone through while he was away. He refused to subject her to that again, and he refused to allow it to be because of him. He just hoped the three of them would understand.
The sound of footsteps caught Bucky's attention, and he looked over, his eyes falling upon two tired males and one very exuberant male. Tony rubbed his eyes and moved to the seat across from Bucky, as did Steve. Sam simply yawned and plopped down on the floor, too tired to hoist himself back up.
"Wanna tell us why the hell we're awake at eight-thirty in the morning?" Sam grumbled. "I set my alarm for noon; it's not noon."
Bucky rolled his eyes and sat back in his chair. "Shut up, Sam."
"I, too, have a question," Tony started. "Why are we talking in the jet instead of the comfort and safety of the Barton residence? I almost died tripping over a log on the way out here."
"I needed to talk to you somewhere nobody could hear us, especially Marlena," Bucky sighed.
"She's asleep," Sam grumbled. "Or at least she was when I went in her room to use her deodorant. Her Secret Vanilla smells wondrous."
Steve let out a sigh and shook his head at his friend, turning his attention to Bucky. "What do you need to talk about, Buck?"
"Marlena," Bucky answered as he looked down at his hands. He could feel the tears welling up in his eyes as he thought about having to leave her in a couple days. He didn't want to, and he was willing to do whatever it took so he didn't have to. "I can't leave her. I can't leave her again."
"We know you don't want to, but T'Challa said for us to have you back-"
"I don't care what T'Challa said," Bucky cut Steve off, glancing around at the three men. "Do you guys remember the journal she was writing in yesterday after we got here?"
Tony nodded and crossed his arms over her chest. "Yeah, the one she almost broke her hand writing in."
"Well, it's a journal full of entries that were written for me to read. Every single page of it is filled with everything that's happened while I've been gone. Not only that, but she took the time to write down some very heartbreaking things," Bucky told them, his voice cracking as he spoke the word heartbreaking.
"What are you talkin' about, man?" Sam questioned him.
Bucky ran his clammy hands over his thighs. "Let's just say that she wasn't doing too well without me here. I could literally feel the pain she felt as I read over those particular entries; she was a mess. There were things written in that journal I know she'd never be able to tell me in person. That's how broken she was, and I can't allow her to feel that way again."
"T'Challa's scientists told me they're close to figuring everything out for you, Barnes," Tony told him. "You won't have to be away from her that much longer; just a few more months or so."
"And what does a few more months entail, Stark?" Bucky exclaimed. "Does a few more months mean three more or twelve more? This isn't even about me anymore; this is about Marlena, who, by the way, cried herself to sleep last night after learning that I had to leave again. Do you not understand how painful it is for me to see her like that? Do you not understand how painful it is to see her in such a state because of me? That girl is my entire life, and I know I'm hers; that's what you don't understand. For her, there is no life without me, and I know this because of those horribly emotional entries I stayed up all night reading."
Tony exchanged a look with Steve, while Sam just sat there and watched the expressions on Bucky's face shift from that of anger to annoyance to sadness and then to defeat. Sam had a sense of just how broken Marlena was without Bucky; he had experienced it firsthand when he left back in April. It was the reason he refused to argue against Bucky's claim. He knew how much she needed him, just as he knew how much Bucky needed her. He cared for the couple more than he cared to admit, and he wanted nothing more than for them to remain together. They belonged with each other; they didn't belong away from each other, separated at opposite ends of the Earth.
"Buck," Steve started.
Sam shook his head and stood up, more than ready to make his argument. "Okay, listen here. Sure, Bucky is a little fucked up in the mind, but is that really his fault? No, it's Hydra's."
"Thanks, pal," Bucky muttered.
"Shut up for a second," Sam reprimanded him, turning to look at Steve and Tony. "As I was saying, Bucky's a pretty screwed up and broken person, but I need both of you to tell me a time in which you didn't see that broken and screwed up Bucky Barnes. C'mon, spit it out or I'll have to do it, and then I'm gonna have to force ten dollars out of both of you."
Tony raised a brow at his words, but decided to answer anyway. "There was that time at one of my cleverly-themed parties when he was dancing with Marlena and he seemed kind of. . .y'know, like a decent, happy man I would consider befriending."
"All I can think of is when we got Marlena back from the Hydra base in Russia," Steve breathed out. "I'll never forget the look on his face when he saw her."
Sam clapped his hands together. "And what do both of those instances involve? Anyone care to guess? I'll give you extra brownie points."
"Marlena," Steve answered.
"Ding ding ding, we have a winner!" Sam exclaimed. "Yes, both do indeed involve our beloved little Marlena Claire-the girl who is a light in everyone else's life, but the darkness in her own."
Bucky sighed and placed a hand over his face, unable to find the words to respond with.
Tony looked at Sam, however, his expression estranged. "What does that mean?"
"Marlena is the darkness in her life, just as Bucky is the darkness in his," Sam started. "Together, however, they shine like a million suns. They may be the dark in their own lives, but they are the light in each other's, and if anyone has anything to say about that they can talk to Redwing and myself."
Bucky looked up at him. "I appreciate you."
Sam merely smirked at him and leaned against the wall, crossing his arms over his chest. "Now, as we all know, Bucky is also a complete idiot. He made the original decision to go into cryo because he was afraid he would hurt Marlena and anyone else around her. But let's be honest here-that girl is one of the most powerful people on the planet. The Winter Soldier is not and never will be considered a threat to Marlena Claire, unless she's, y'know, drugged on suppressors. Other than that, she's perfectly capable of taking care of herself, just as she's perfectly capable of taking care of him. He doesn't need a group of Wakandans scientists and doctors figuring out and fixing whatever the hell is wrong with his head when Marlena is more than capable of doing it herself. I can assure you Wanda would assist her in doing so, too. That's just what weird telepathic, mentally manipulative sisters do when they care about someone so much."
"I'm beginning to see where you're coming from, Wilson," Tony said.
Steve scratched the back of his head. "I just-how would we get T'Challa to okay this, though?"
"You let your fellow black brother worry about that," Sam said. "Barnes just doesn't belong in a box; he belongs with Marlena."
Bucky shook his head in amusement. "Who knew Sam Wilson could be so helpful?"
"It's hard to make sexual jokes when you're in a freezer and she's a thousand miles away," Sam shrugged. "I'm not just helpin' you two out; I'm helpin' myself out."
"So, you're staying?" Tony questioned. "I hope our little flower is able to remove that shit from your head, Barnes."
Bucky ran a hand through his hair and stood up. "I hope so, too."
Tony then glanced at his watch, his eyes brightening when he realized what time it was. "I say we go ahead and head back now. I hear Lady Barton is a fantastic chef, and I'm dying to find out just how fantastic she is."
Tony got up from his seat without another word and rushed out of the quinjet. Bucky sighed and stood up, as did Steve. The two moved to head out of the quinjet, only to stop when they realized Sam wasn't following after them.
"Sam?" Steve spoke, his brow raised in question.
Sam just waved his hand at the two of them. "You two just go ahead. I'm gonna give our Wakandan King a phone call."
Bucky let out a sigh. "Please don't say anything that will prevent me from staying here."
"Don't you worry your pretty little head, princess," Sam said to him.
Bucky simply shook his head and headed out of the quinjet with Steve on his tail. The two trailed through the trees for several minutes before finally getting back to the house. The moment they stepped through the door they were met with a strong scent of cinnamon and bacon. The two barely even had the time to register that breakfast was even being cooked before Clint strolled up to them, a glass of orange juice in hand and a stern expression on his face.
"Always leave a damn note behind if you're gonna head off on some secret gathering to nowhere the morning after you tell your very devastated girlfriend you'll be leaving again," Clint said to Bucky, his finger pointed at him in a chastising manner. "She's upstairs crying her eyes out because she thinks you left her. . .again."
Bucky cursed under his breath and hurried towards the staircase, not bothering to give Clint a response. He ran up the stairs and down the hall to Marlena's room, wasting no time at all in shoving her door open.
Marlena lay in her bed, the comforter pulled tightly over her body. She cried into her pillow, unaware that anyone, let alone Bucky, had made their way into her room; she was too consumed in her tears to pay attention.
Bucky ran over to where she lay in bed and plopped down beside her, pulling her up and to his body. He squeezed her tightly, rocking her back and forth in an attempt to calm her, but she only seemed to cry harder, even after she realized who it was that was holding her.
"Calm down, Mar," he told her. "I'm here; I'm not going anywhere, sweetheart."
"I thought you left me without saying goodbye."
Marlena let out a sob and hugged him as hard as she could, deathly afraid that if she were to let him go he would drift away. But regardless of how tightly she held onto him, in a matter of days he would drift away, or at least that's what she thought. She couldn't bear the thought of him leaving her again. It made him being with her all the more painful.
"Never in a million years would I ever leave you without telling you goodbye," Bucky said, planting a kiss to the top of her head.
"But you're still gonna leave me anyway," she forced out through her sobs.
Bucky shook his head and hugged her tighter. "No. I'm not. I'm not leaving you again, Marlena. I can't."
"W-what?" she stammered, moving her head to look up at him.
"I'm staying right here, doll," he told her with a small smile on his face.
"But what about what you said about-"
"Forget what I said," Bucky cut her off. "I read that journal. I don't have the heart to leave you behind again; I don't have the heart to put you through that much pain again. I'm not going anywhere, baby. I'm staying right here where I belong-with you."
Marlena opened her mouth to respond, but she couldn't muster up anything to say. She simply let out another sob and hugged him tighter, her relief and happiness beginning to overwhelm her. Bucky wasn't leaving her after all, and because of that she was ecstatic. She felt as if a weight had been lifted off of her chest knowing that he was staying.
"In a few days," Bucky brought his metal hand up to rest on her head, moving his fingers through her short locks, "when Steve, Sam, and Tony leave, you and I are gonna go back to DC, okay? We're gonna get Mason, and we're gonna take a much needed vacation."
Marlena sniffed and looked up at him again. "Can we go somewhere overseas?"
"Probably not the best idea," Bucky chuckled.
Marlena frowned when she realized why they couldn't just hop on a plane and go where they wanted, but she decided not to make a big deal about it. "Take me to Coney Island. Win me a stuffed bear and feed me cotton candy like those normal couples do," she murmured.
"We're not a normal couple, Mar." Bucky gave a soft laugh, "Sorry to break it to ya."
"We aren't, but that's okay," Marlena said quietly.
Bucky brought his free hand to her face, using the pad of his thumb to wipe the tears from her face. He smiled down at her, his blue eyes filled with nothing but love and admiration for her. He dipped his head down to catch her lips in a gentle and loving kiss. After a few short seconds he pulled away from her, though his eyes remained solely on her.
Bucky couldn't begin to express the amount of love he had for Marlena; he loved her so much it physically hurt him. He could never imagine his life without her in it. He had lived a single month without her and was miserable, and even after being released from cryo he still felt that agonizing pain of missing her burning in his veins. He would be nothing without Marlena; he would be nowhere without Marlena. Aside from Steve, Marlena was the one person in his life that he was the most thankful for. She had come into his life at a time in which he needed someone, a time in which he needed someone to turn to, a time in which he needed someone to listen to him. She had done it all, and for that he was forever grateful.
Marlena was all that Bucky could see in his future-Marlena was his future. Once upon a time, Bucky wasn't sure whether or not he would be allowed to have the life he once wanted before he had fallen off the train back in 1945, nor was he even sure if he still wanted it after all the pain and suffering he had been put through. After meeting Marlena, however, he found that he did, and he found that he wanted that life with Marlena. He wanted to see her walk down the aisle in a beautiful, white gown with all of their closest friends and family watching; he wanted to hear her say "I do"; he wanted to laugh as he watched her attempt to cook their first meal in their new home; he wanted to watch the way her beautiful hazel eyes lit up as she gazed at the small face of their son or daughter. He wanted to be able to call Marlena his wife and the mother of his children, which was something he never thought he would ever be allowed to have. Now that he could have it-now that he could have it with her-he wanted it more than he ever thought he possibly could.
"You're starin', Buck," Marlena giggled as she looked up at him.
Bucky took a nervous breath and gently grabbed her face with both hands. "Marry me, Marlena Claire."
Her eyes widened in surprise, her lips parting slightly as she looked up at him. That was not at all what she had been expecting him to respond with. "W-what did you j-just say?"
"I said 'Marry me, Marlena Claire.'"
"And you're serious?"
Bucky nodded, running the pad of his thumbs across the soft skin of her cheekbones. "Never been more serious about anything in my life, except for the times in which I tell you I love you."
"Oh my gosh, this is just so unexpected," Marlena breathed out.
"Is that a 'no'?" Bucky chuckled.
Marlena shook her head quickly and reached up to grab his arms. "No, no it's definitely not a no. I just. . .wow."
"You're so awkward, and I can't stand how cute it is," Bucky laughed. "Just give me an answer, babygirl."
Marlena smiled widely and nodded her head, tightening her grip on his arms. "Yes. God, yes. A million freakin' times yes I will marry you, James Barnes."
"That's what I like to hear."
Bucky smiled and leaned down to kiss her, his lips meeting hers in a loving but lustful kiss. He pulled away after a few seconds, however, to look at her.
"I don't have a ring, but I'll get one," he told her.
"I don't need a ring, James," she said, placing her hand on the side of his face. "All I'll ever need is you."
Bucky's smile seemed to grow at the sound of her words, his happiness far too great for him to conjure up a verbal response. He simply pressed his lips to hers once more, savoring the moment as he held his very future as tightly as he could within the safety of his arms.