Bouquets of Love
Steve and Sam were ambling through Kiev. Natasha had received a tip from one of her contacts that recently a Hydra base was burnt to the ground there. She was not sure if it was the Winter Soldier but this was the latest lead they had, so Sam and Steve decided to check it out. The base was in the outskirts and they were already late. The base was completely burnt. Sam called out to Steve his eyes fixed on the scene before him. The room Sam was in didn't burn completely. Steve came rushing in and saw Sam's clenched teeth and balled fists and didn't understand what caused that much anger in the always easy going Sam. He entered the room and immediately regretted entering it. There was a chair in the middle of the room and it had some weird circle above it. On the corner of the room, was a steel closet or at least that was Steve thought at first.
Bile rose in Steve's throat when he saw that there was an entire wall covered with various pictures of Bucky in the chair, the circle attached to his head, Bucky screaming in pain, Bucky being put in Cryo tank, Bucky being led out of Cryo tank, guns being pointed at his head. Various readings of Bucky's vitals and his responses to pain and punishment were all documented and pasted on the wall. There was a single man in all the photographs who Steve assumed was the lead scientist in handling Bucky. He was currently lying on the ground with a bullet between his eyes and his face frozen in terror. Suddenly Steve felt like death was too quick a reprieve for him. They combed the base but there was no Bucky. Steve almost broke down crying when it hit him the horror his best friend, his partner, and his lover had gone through.
Sam's hand on his shoulder was the only thing that was keeping his sane at the moment. With a heavy heart they returned to the room they were both sharing and on Steve's bed there was a bunch of daffodils placed neatly. There was no sign of forced entry but that means nothing for the Winter Soldier. Steve took the delicate bouquet in his hand and remembered all the time Bucky would bring him flowers. They did not have much money but that never did stop Bucky. He always brought home bunch of flowers, even wild flowers he just picked from the roadside just for Steve. "Just for you Punk" he would say. Sam was giving him a dejected look. He could not make head or tails out of the daffodils until Steve told him Daffodils mean New Beginnings.
They were about to look into new leads for Bucky when they got the call about Cross Bones creating havoc in Wakanda. Clint picked them up in a quinjet. Bruce Banner was somewhere in Asia at the moment and his whereabouts were unknown. They did not have time to search for him, so it was just Steve, Clint, Natasha, Tony and Wanda. He and Tony have really been not getting along. Tony wanted Bucky to pay for murdering his parents even though he was mind controlled by Hydra. They dropped right into the chaos and Steve charged towards Cross Bones when he caught the sight of him. Rumlow was a good fighter and he matched Steve step for step. Suddenly a shot rang out and Steve turned around to see a Hydra agent dead behind him. He saluted at Natasha and continued the fighting. Rumlow escaped in the chaos. When Steve thanked Natasha for the save, her face was completely blank. She had no clue what Steve was talking about. They helped in the clean up and dragged their bruised and battered body to the Quinjet and nobody moved a muscle. There was a cluster of Alstroemeria in the seat Steve was sitting earlier. Tony started teasing about how old men are getting secret admirers in Wakanda of all countries, Sam cleared his throat and said he caught a glimpse of a metal glare during the fight but did not think much of it. Tony immediately shut his mouth and stomped to the cockpit. Eyes filled with tears, Steve said they are the flowers of friendship and Natasha just gave him a squeeze of his fingers.
Steve refused Tony's offer to stay in the Avenger's Tower and found an apartment in Brooklyn. Sam returned to DC with an offer to return any time. Every morning when Steve went jogging he could feel eyes on his neck. He made the mistake of turning around to see who is staring and the feeling immediately disappeared. He knew in his heart it was Bucky and hoped someday he will get a glimpse of his friend. He decided to take a page out of Bucky's book and one day between his lapses he placed bunch of Alstroemeria in a bunch hoping Bucky will remember the meaning. The flower was there at his second lap and third lap too. Steve was losing hope and thought maybe he was wrong and there was no Bucky but during his fourth lap the flowers were gone and there was a slip of paper. Steve smiled so big when he saw the words PUNK written in there.
Pepper called him one day to ask him to attend a fund riser with her. Tony is on a business trip to Europe and she wanted someone to be with her in case the extremis got volatile. Steve was wearing a tux and several photos were taken when he and Pepper entered the event and there was a TV reporter asking questions about SHIELD operations in Wakanda. Steve was beyond exhausted when he came back home and was truly surprised to bunch of amaryllis wrapped in a brown paper at his door. Steve's thoughts that Bucky thought him to be worth beyond beauty kept his usual nightmares at bay.
Steve's run next day was intercepted by Tony's frantic phone call stating that Pepper had been kidnapped. The kidnapper was sloppy and had shown his face on a camera. It was an ex-employee of MIA and he was trying to recreate extremis using Pepper. Steve ran all the way to the Tower where Tony was already suited and his AI was searching for Pepper's whereabouts. Two hours later there was no development. Clint and Natasha were there and Bruce was trying to calm Tony down when the elevator opened and in walked Pepper relatively unharmed. She was shaken a bit but not harmed. On seeing Tony, she ran to him and hugged him tight. Not even Steve's advanced hearing could hear what she was saying to Tony's chest. After a few minutes, she looked Steve in his eyes and said "Your friend has a heart of gold Steve. I was proud to have met him today." Tony looked gobsmacked. This was the Winter Soldier Pepper was talking about. Pepper told them how the guy took her to an unused apartment and just as he was about to hook her to a machine, Bucky crashed through a window and had the kidnapper down in less than 20 seconds. He avoided eye contact with Pepper and did not acknowledge her gratitude. He stored everything the kidnapper had on a memory stick and gave it to Pepper and hot wired another car and dropped her at the Avengers Tower. Before she can thank him for saving her, he vanished in the crowd.
Tony just nodded at Steve and led Pepper away. On his way home Steve searched for the right flowers to give Bucky when his eyes led him to Lavender Heather. Bucky must know how much Steve admires him. He left it by the door and went about making dinner. He was reassuring Sam that Pepper was safe that he saw the shadow moving in his peripheral vision. He dare not move, dare not breathe, and though he longed to turn around to see his friend he just remained on the phone. Sam must have sensed something because without giving Steve an opportunity he was talking so Steve can be quiet and listen. Nothing caused more happiness to Steve other than the words "Are you trying to get robbed punk? You forgot to close the door." Bucky did not say anything else and ate dinner with Steve when it was offered and disappeared between emptying his plate to Steve picking it and placing it in the sink.
There was something tickling Steve's nose the next morning. He woke up to hydrangea and a note questioning where his brain was at for not closing the window and PUNK written. Steve did not know how much Bucky remembers about his past. He was not sure if Bucky remembered them as lovers but he did not want to push. He left Purple lilac for Bucky the next day hoping he will get the meaning. There was a crisis in Romania and Steve had to go, so Steve left a note for Bucky stating that he is going on a mission and left. All through the mission, Steve longed for home which he has not done since he woke up after freezing. Tony told Steve that he wants to thank Bucky, and that was the first time he has used the name, for saving Pepper and both of them are welcome to the tower anytime they want and Pepper will be very happy to see Bucky. Choked on his feelings, Steve came home to a vase full of Pink Camelia and white carnation. Bucky was longing for him and he loves him. There was no Bucky in the apartment though. Steve wanted to scream, wanted to laugh, wanted to cry and wanted to do all these things at the same time. It was too overwhelming for him and he wanted to see Bucky, he wanted to touch Bucky, he wanted to feel Bucky and taste him.
Finally tears won and he started crying. He cried for all the chances he has missed with Bucky and cried for all the chances he had with Bucky. Suddenly, he was being hugged from behind. Someone was hugging him tight and was kissing the top of his head and whispering it is okay and that they are sorry they overstepped but Steve was blind and deaf to everything and all he wanted was Bucky. He wailed with Bucky's name on his lips and suddenly Bucky came into his vision. Without a word Steve grabbed Bucky by his neck and crashed their lips together and finally god finally Bucky was there and he was touching him and kissing him. Bucky's lips were chapped and little bit dry but Steve didn't care and felt like heaven when Bucky captured Steve's lower lip with his and slightly bit it. On his gasp, Bucky slipped his tongue into his mouth and was tracing his lips, teeth and finally tangled their tongues together. When Steve slowly opened his eyes and pulled away, he felt Bucky's heated gaze and finally Steve felt like home. Bucky was always Steve's home.