Authors Note: Just wanted to thank you for reading my first posted fanfic. I started writing it on the fourth of July, but didn't have time to finish it until now. While this is my first posted fanfic, it isn't my first one. I do have one I've been working on for two years but haven't posted it yet. Hope you guys enjoy!
Fourth of July in Wakanda
Bucky looked around the room from his stool in the kitchen. Everyone was sitting in the living room and had a bored expression on their face. Steve looked particularly down. It was the fourth of July and they were stuck in Wakanda.
"Anything you want to tell me, James? You've been staring at Steve for a while," Natasha said quietly so the others couldn't hear as she sauntered up to the counter.
"What?" Bucky responded, then realization set in at what she had said. "No. It's nothing like that. It's just that it's the fourth of July, Steve's favorite holiday and his birthday, and we're stuck here."
"Fourth of July? Oh, wait, America's Independence Day… Hey, wait, when did you remember it was Steve's birthday?" The redhead leaned on the counter excitedly.
"Just before, while I was 'staring at Steve,'" Bucky stated.
It had been a month since Natasha had arrived in Wakanda and the moment she touched down she had badgered Steve to wake Bucky up. Bucky couldn't quite understand why she wanted him out of his cryo-sleep; he was a threat to society as long as his trigger words could still be used. He had no idea who knew them and could use them against him, such as Zemo had done. Natasha didn't seem to care though. She had made the Wakandan King give him a new arm made from vibranium and had stayed by his side ever since. It had taken Bucky a few days to recognize her, but when he did, he felt sick to his stomach. He had once loved her and had tried to kill her on three separate occasions. He couldn't understand why she would want to be anywhere near him, but Natasha just smiled when he told her he finally recognized her. In the month since he recognized her, he had learned to push the sick feeling he got from remembering what he had done to the back of his mind. Natasha and Steve had made it their mission to help Bucky return to "normal" no matter what it took, which for Bucky meant having them around constantly.
"Well that's great that you remembered something. What did you guys do for his birthday?" Natasha was now sitting on a stool next to Bucky, facing him.
"Uhh, let's see…" Bucky mumbled trying to remember the memory. "I remember our families having a barbecue for lunch and singing happy birthday… Then Steve, my sisters, and I would go swimming… Then we'd head out to Coney Island where we'd stay until they lit off fireworks… And then finally Steve and I would take whatever money we had left over and buy some firecrackers of our own from the back alley near our houses."
"Sounds like a fun childhood memory," Natasha commented. "Too bad you guys can't go do that this year."
"That's the thing, what if we could?" Bucky swung around to face Natasha.
"James, it would be very hard to go to Coney Island right now. We're all wanted by just about every government around the world…"
"No, not going there, but why couldn't we throw a party here?" Bucky said eagerly. "Think about it, all we need is food, decorations, a cake, and some music."
Bucky watched Natasha as she considered the idea. "Come on, Nat. It could be a surprise. It would finally be something fun to do around here."
"What are you guys getting so excited about?" Sam asked, looking desperate for something to do. "Do you have a mission?"
"Yes," Bucky answered in his most serious voice, "But it's top secret."
"I know you two tend to not get along that well, but Sam could actually be helpful," Natasha stated then turned to Sam. "James wants to throw a surprise fourth of July birthday party for Steve."
"I am so in," Sam whispered enthusiastically. "What do you need me to do?"
"Keep Steve busy and out of sight for the day," Natasha answered.
"I can do that. When do you need him gone by?"
"The sooner the better," Bucky stated.
"Hey Steve, you wanna go train for a bit? My muscles could use a good workout after all this sitting around," Sam called over to Steve.
"Sure, just let me get my gear," Steve called back.
"You've got about four hours," Sam directed to Bucky and Nat.
"That should be enough time," Natasha said, pushing Sam towards Steve who was already at the door. "See you when you get back."
Just as Natasha returned to sit next to Bucky, Clint walked up to the counter.
"You guys are planning something. Anything I should know about?" Clint asked. Clearly he was missing his family and was eager for anything that could keep the distance between them off his mind. The Wakandan king promised to bring Clint's family here as soon as he could negotiate it with the United States government.
"We're planning a surprise party for Steve," Bucky told Clint, who gave a nod to show he was interested.
"Surprise party? For Captain America?" Scott exclaimed, joining the group at the counter. "Is it his birthday?"
"Yes, and his favorite holiday," Natasha added.
"Count me in, I'd do anything for that guy," Scott stated eagerly.
"What do you need us to do?" Clint asked.
"Could you go talk to T'Challa and see if he has any fireworks laying around?" Bucky suggested.
"And invite him to the party as well!" Natasha quickly added.
"We're on it," Clint and Scott said as they walked out the door.
"I feel bad for them. They both must be missing their families by now…" Natasha mentioned.
"Scott has a family?" Bucky questioned, raising an eyebrow.
"Yeah, a little girl, I think."
Bucky nodded. He often wondered what it would be like to have a family. He never really wanted one before going into the war, but now he thought about it often. He couldn't imagine being separated from his loved ones. Technically he could, his handlers had taken both Steve and Natasha from him on separate occasions, but they had wiped his mind then so he couldn't remember who they even were at the time.
"I'm sure T'Challa will reunite them soon. He seems pretty big on family…" Bucky said, thinking back to the king's attempted revenge against him for allegedly killing his father. Luckily he had learned the truth about Zemo and had been trying to make it up to Bucky since then by granting him immunity in Wakanda.
"What is this 'fourth of July' you keep talking about?" Wanda questioned as she walked up to the pair.
"It's America's Independence Day and Steve's birthday," Natasha answered the girl.
"We're planning a party if you want to help?" Bucky asked.
"Can I cook?" Wanda countered.
"I was going to do the barbecuing, but you could help with everything else." Bucky offered.
"Deal. I will make the cake now," Wanda said, walking over to the refrigerator and pulling out ingredients.
"I guess that just leaves us to decorate," Natasha said as she slid off the stool and pulled Bucky by the arm into the living-room area.
"Um… Alright." Bucky had no artistic side whatsoever, that was Steve's thing, but if Natasha asked him to do something, he somehow could never say no.
"Here," she said, handing him one of the laptops on the coffee table. It was Steve's. "Start looking up banners, flags, and whatever else you can think of to print off." Bucky watched Natasha do the same with her own laptop.
A half hour later, Bucky and Natasha had a stack of papers surrounding them.
"I'll grab some scissors," Natasha called as she climbed over the back of the couch. She returned a moment later with two pairs, holding one out to Bucky.
"Are you sure you trust me with those?" Bucky asked hesitantly.
"Yes, James. I trust you." She dropped the scissors into his hand and returned to her seat next to him. Natasha scooted closer to Bucky, almost as her way of daring him to doubt her trust and move away from her, which he didn't.
"Start cutting these into strips and I am going to tape them together to make a paper chain."
Bucky did as he was told, and soon she had quite a long chain in front of her gathering at her feet. When he ran out of strips to cut he started moving the paper links away from her so she wouldn't step on them.
"Done!" Natasha rejoiced when she attached the last link. "Okay, now you go over to that corner and hold the chain up."
Bucky held the chain in place while Nat decided where to string it next. This was the happiest he had seen her in quite some time. He even found himself smiling as he watched her work. When he attached his end of the chain to the wall, he went to go ask Natasha where she needed him to hold it next. Just as he was about to open his mouth, Nat lost her balance on top of the end table she was using as a stool and started to fall.
Bucky's years of training kicked in and he was behind her before she could even make a sound. He caught her in his arms and lowered her gently to the ground.
"Are you alright?" Bucky questioned her, franticly looking her over for any bruises.
"James, I'm fine." Natasha placed her hand on his shoulder halting him from his inspection for bodily harm.
Bucky looked into her green eyes and noticed she was blushing as red as her hair. 'This was new,' Bucky thought. He tried to remember all the times he had ever been with Natasha. The last time he had made her blush she was just a young woman, practically still a girl at only eighteen years of age. She had just confessed her feelings for him in the memory. He had been her trainer in the Red Room and she had caught his attention from early on. She was his only happiness in those days. He hadn't realized that he loved her until she confessed. Love wasn't an emotion he had felt much since becoming the Winter Solider.
Snapping out of the memory, he watched as Natasha pulled her hand away from his shoulder and thanked him for catching her. "My hero," she said with a laugh, giving him a shy smile as she returned to the couch to continue cutting out the decorations.
Natasha was a world class gymnast, athlete, dancer, acrobat, and so on… Had he actually snuck up on her and startled her? Bucky went to sit down on the couch besides her, but quickly noticed the person standing in the kitchen. Wanda had a knowing smile on her face. Bucky blushed and felt his nerves start to kick in. It had been quite a while since he had felt nervous around someone for a reason other than they wanted him dead.
Bucky pushed his hair out of his face, and cleared his through before speaking. "Is there anything else you need me to do?" Bucky found himself looking around the room, why was he finding it so hard to talk to her now?
"If you want, you can go hang these around the room," she answered, handing him a stack of streamers, also avoiding his gaze while doing so.
"Okay," Bucky said, taking the decorations from Natasha and heading into the kitchen.
"So, what was that in the living room?" Wanda asked in her Sokovian accent.
"With Natasha?" Bucky questioned. "I must have surprised her when she fell."
"I think she fell on purpose." Wanda was now starting on the side dishes. "You're still cooking the meat, yes?"
"Yeah, I'm still barbecuing," Bucky responded. "Now back to Nat. What do you mean you think she fell on purpose?"
"Have you not seen how she looks at you?"
"Well, yeah…" Bucky shifted uncomfortably.
"She definitely likes you. I saw you two sitting close together on the couch. Do you like her?" Wanda asked, a wide smile on her face.
"It's… Complicated." Bucky was hanging streamers from the ceiling trying to stall for time before the Sokovian asked further questions.
"What is so complicated, either you like her or you don't."
"I… We used to be together," Bucky stammered. "Back when the KGB were my handlers and Nat was still in the Red Room… But they found us together and they took me away from her. Wiped my brain clean of her. Since then I've tried to kill her three times. Nat deserves better."
"Are you kidding?" Wanda scoffed. "If she still loves you after all of that, you two are definitely meant to be together."
Bucky blushed again and Wanda pointed her spoon that she was using to stir the pasta salad she was currently making at him. "Steve told me that you were quite the ladies man back in the day… Where is all this shyness coming from now?"
"This is different. I didn't love those girls…" Bucky's blue eyes widened as soon as the words left his mouth.
"Ah-ha!" Wanda smiled triumphantly.
"Wanda, what am I supposed to say to her? 'Oh, sorry I tried to kill you, wanna give this thing a shot again?'" Bucky hung the last streamer then faced the young girl in front of him.
"Well, I wouldn't mention the killing. Maybe just tell her how you feel. Some physical contact, holding hands, arm around her, you know? Clearly she wanted you unfrozen for a reason."
Bucky thought over Wanda's words. Did Nat really have him pulled from his cryo-sleep strictly because she wanted to be with him? Before he had a chance to ask Wanda, Natasha was at his side, pulling on his arm again.
"The decorations look great in here. I already did the living room. We just have to go outside and do the patio," Natasha said, still pulling on his arm.
"You go on ahead, I'll meet you there in a second. I just want to see if Wanda needs any help in the kitchen before I head out," Bucky told Natasha.
"Okay, James. I'll see you in a few," Natasha said after letting go of his arm and walking out the sliding glass doors.
"As I was saying, she definitely likes you, James," Wanda smirked.
"Don't call me that…" Bucky huffed.
"But you let Natasha call you that all the time…" Wanda said in her most innocent sounding voice.
"She's… sort of… the exception. It's just always felt right when she says it…" Bucky could feel his face burning again.
"Okay lover boy. Now is your chance. Go help her decorate. Talk to her. Go, go…" Wanda pushed him through the living room and out the door, firmly shutting it before she turned around to continue cooking.
"I'm gonna take it that you don't live up to her cooking standards and she shoved you out here?" Natasha smirked as she handed Bucky one end of a paper chain. "Hold that right there and I promise I won't fall again."
"Nothing like that, just apparently I talk to much…" Bucky did as he was told. He watched Natasha balance on a chair while trying to reach where she wanted to pin the chain. Bucky quickly pinned his end and walked up to her, taking the chain from her and wrapping his metal arm around her waist to steady her. When he was done, he quickly let go, then offered his hand to help her down.
"Thank you," she said as she took it.
"You're welcome," Bucky returned. "Nat, there's something I've been meaning to ask you."
"Yeah?" Nat acknowledged as she placed candles around the patio.
"Why did you unfreeze me? You knew I didn't want to be woken up until you guys could get rid of my trigger words, and yet you wouldn't leave Steve alone until I was awake." Bucky was nervous to find out the answer, but he felt he needed to know.
"Because when we were on the tarmac, I knew you recognized me then, but I was too late getting here to see you again. I needed to know…" Natasha hesitated on her last words.
"Needed to know what?" Bucky demanded. He could feel his metal arm reflexively tense up.
"If you remembered me. If you still loved me the same way I still love you."
Natasha's eyes now had tears in them and Bucky felt all the adrenaline leave his body. He walked over to her and pulled her into a tight hug. "There isn't a day that goes by where I don't love you, Natalia."
Natasha reached up, putting her hands in his hair, and pulled him in for a kiss. Bucky didn't register what was happening at first, but when his brain finally kicked into gear, he pulled her closer to him and deepen the kiss. He still couldn't wrap his mind around the fact that this was actually happening. The two finally broke apart when they heard someone clear their throat behind them.
"Ahem… We ugh, got the 'fireworks,'" Scott said, holding them out for the others to see.
"Hold on, Scott," Clint said, pushing the box back from view, "How long has this been going on for?" He raised an eyebrow towards Natasha.
"Um… Technically since before you met me… However, there was a large break… So this," Natasha gestured towards Bucky and herself, "has just started again now…"
Clint walked up to the two of them and pulled them both into a tight hug. "Thank God this is finally happening. I couldn't take watching the two of you staring at each other from across the room everyday much longer."
Both Bucky and Natasha turned bright red. They were not ones to usually share their relationship with others…
Wanda walked out with a giant smile on her face.
"I see you took my advice," she gestured towards Bucky and Natasha.
"I did, and you were right, it turns out she does like me," Bucky said with a laugh, kissing the top of Nat's head.
"Glad to hear it worked out for you, but now is not the time to rekindle your relationship. Steve will be back anytime now."
Scott stepped forward and presented the box to the others. "So, T'Challa didn't have any fireworks, but he did let us have a case of flare guns and the refills to go with them."
"Perfect," Bucky said as he examined the flare gun. "This will do just fine."
"This looks like it'll be fun," Natasha remarked as she grabbed it from Bucky's hand to examine the gun herself.
"Also, the king has stated he will be attending the party," Clint told the others.
"Great," Natasha said, "now it really will be a party!"
"How about I show you the cake?" Wanda proposed as she headed back through the door towards the kitchen. "I just finished decorating it."
Bucky followed her and walked up to the counter, pulling Natasha along with him by the hand. The cake was three tiers and read "Happy Birthday Steve." It had a red, white, and blue theme with stars and stripes covering it. "You made this, Wanda?"
"Yes, do you like it?" Wanda asked nervously.
"Like it?" Bucky said, "I love it! Steve is definitely going to love it too."
"Excellent," she said as she handed Bucky the cake. "Here, hold this for a moment, then put it back in the fridge." She turned around and started pulling other dishes from the refrigerator. "The rest of you can carry this out to get it ready. Our party should start any minute now."
There was a knock at the door, and everyone froze.
"I'll get it," Natasha said, as everyone else dashed out the door with the food.
Pulling the door back, the first thing Natasha noticed was a guard in the doorway.
"The king is here for your gathering," the stern looking woman said.
"Ah, yes, thank you," Natasha said to the woman before turning to T'Challa. "Your highness, please come in."
T'Challa looked around the room as he walked in. "I like what you've done with the place," he remarked.
"Thank you. We tried to decorate the best we could on short notice."
"I do hope the flare guns fulfill your need," the king inquired.
"Yes, they will be perfect," Bucky said, walking towards Natasha.
He wasn't sure why, but he still didn't trust the king around her. Bucky wrapped his arm around Natasha and pulled her closer. He noticed that the king noted their relationship and gave a small nod before continuing on into the room to examine the rest of the decorations.
There was another quick knock at the door.
"That must be Steve," Bucky said in a hushed tone. "Everyone go hide."
Bucky grabbed Natasha's hand again and the two took cover behind the counter. T'Challa hid behind a chair, while Clint and Scott went behind the couch. Wanda stood behind the curtains. When the door flung open, everyone jumped out and yelled, "SURPRISE!"
Steve looked shocked. "You guys remembered it was my birthday?"
"James did," Natasha beamed.
"Buck, how did you remember?" Steve looked hopeful.
"Well, you were watching all those patriotic shows earlier and when I saw you looking so down, it kind of just hit me…" Bucky told Steve.
The captain walked over to his best friend and pulled him into a tight hug.
"I'm so glad to have you back, Buck," Steve beamed, then added as he pulled away, "Thank you. For all of this, everyone. It really means a lot to me."
"Now it is time for you to make these steaks that you've been talking about all day," Wanda said, handing a platter of meat to Bucky.
"You guys are going to love it," Bucky smirked. "It's Steve's favorite."
"You mean the steaks like your dad used to make?" Steve asked.
"Those are the ones," Bucky replied as he walked out the door to the patio.
"I think it's time I play DJ," Bucky heard Clint say before music started blasting around the room and through the speakers outside. It was some new pop song Bucky had never heard. It definitely wasn't something he could dance to like he used to back in the good old days.
After a while, Bucky turned the steaks over before calling back into the living room, "Hey you guys, the foods ready."
When everyone finished eating they all sat back in their chairs completely stuffed.
"Bucky, those steaks were great. Just like your dad used to make," Steve said, a satisfied smile plastered across his face.
"I hope you saved room for cake!" Wanda sang out as she ran back inside. She came back a moment later with the cake, candles on top of it lit.
The group started to sing Happy Birthday to Steve, whose face was now turning bright red. When the song finished, Scott called out, "Now make a wish!" Steve did and blew out the candles.
"Oh no, we forgot about presents," Natasha directed more towards Bucky than anyone else.
"It's fine you guys. This party was more than enough," Steve said gratefully.
"Actually, I have a gift for the Captain," T'Challa boasted as he stepped forward. "I had been waiting for an occasion to present it to you, so I think now is better than any other time."
The king held out an object wrapped in cloth and Steve gave a curious look before taking it. When he pulled the cloth back, there was his shield.
"You got my shield back from Tony?" Steve asked in amazement.
"No," T'Challa responded. "This is a new shield. I have the largest stock pile of vibranium in the world. I thought if anyone was worthy of receiving some of it, it was you, Captain."
Steve stood there dumbfounded for a moment just staring at the shield. Once it sunk in what was in front of him he held his own hand out to shake the king's hand.
"Thank you, your highness. This really means a lot to me." Steve was beaming again.
"You are most welcome," T'Challa responded. "Also, you may all call me T'Challa as I have come to see you all as friends." The king gave a warm smile as he gestured to everyone around the room.
"Great," Clint said, "Now, let's get this party started up again with our new best friend T'Challa!"
Music started blasting again and everyone started dancing. Bucky looked around the room. Steve had a large smile on his face and everyone else also looked happy. 'Mission accomplished,' Bucky thought.
"Hey you," Natasha called seductively. "Wanna dance?"
"I don't know how to…" Bucky started.
"You used to dance with me all the time," Natasha stated.
"I meant to this kind of music," Bucky finished.
"Then how about you show me how you used to dance back in the day," Natasha said, a hopeful smile on her face. "We can always dance to our own beat."
"Alright," Bucky said, walking up to Natasha and placing one hand in hers and the other around her waist. Natasha moved them even closer together by placing both of her hands around his shoulders.
They danced like that for quite a while before they were interrupted by Scott.
"I hate to break this up," He said, "But it's getting dark. Time for the fireworks?"
"There's fireworks?" Sam said, walking up to the group.
"Sort of," Bucky said, reluctantly letting Natasha go.
"Come on, James," Natasha said grabbing his hand. "Let's go surprise Steve."
Natasha was just as excited as the others even though she had fired just about every kind of weapon known to mankind.
Steve laughed when Scott handed him the flare gun.
"What's this for?" He asked.
"This is for the fireworks," Scott said as he handed everyone else a flare gun.
"Can't have a fourth of July party without fireworks," Bucky smirked as he put his arm around Steve, pulling him towards the backyard.
"This might just be the best birthday yet," Steve laughed.
"Glad you're enjoying the day, buddy," Bucky said.
"It looks like you and Natasha were too," Steve said, giving him a knowing smile. "When did this happen."
"Well… Technically while I was with the KGB…" Bucky shifted nervously. "But to make a long story short, when you were with Sam today we sort of got back together."
"I'm happy for you, Buck," Steve beamed. "Nat's a great gal."
"You got that right I am," Natasha said, wrapping her arms around both men.
The three of them sat down on the lawn watching the others figure out how the flare guns worked. They traded stories of when Steve and Bucky were younger and laughed for the rest of the evening. When the others finally figured out the flare guns, they started to put on a great show.
"This is the best birthday ever," Steve said as he wrapped his arms around Bucky and Nat, giving them each a one-armed hug before joining the rest of the group with his own flare gun.
Natasha slid closer to Bucky once Steve left and laid her head on his shoulder. Bucky put his arm around her, pulling her closer. He hoped he had more days like this. Even if these days didn't come often, as long as he could make the people he cared about happy, that was enough for him. He had had a lifetime's worth of hell and now he just wanted a normal life with friends and family. Or as normal as it could be given who his friends and family were.
"Mission accomplished," Natasha said happily.
"Mission accomplished," Bucky echoed as he smiled down at her.