When Steve awoke he reached out his arm for Bucky only to have his efforts be useless. Bucky was gone. Steve then noticed the fire alarm started ringing through the apartment that's what must have woken him. Steve was up and out the door to see where the fire was. When he came into the main room there was no one there but he could see smoke coming out of the kitchen. When he rushed in he saw Bucky standing underneath the fire alarm waving his hands around like an idiot. After a few seconds Bucky grabbed the broom that was leaning against the counter and smashed the alarm straight of the ceiling.
When it turned silent Steve said "Bucky? Are you okay in here" Bucky jumped around at the sound of Steves voice.
"Steve! I didn't realise you were up!"
"I don't know how I could have slept through that noise" Steve smiled. "What are you doing in here anyway" Steve coughed when he breathed in some of the smoke floating around the room.
"Cooking um... correction burning breakfast, the thing is you always cooked for me so I decided to try but you make it look a lot easier than it is." Bucky turned towards the smoking food.
Steve walked over to the hob and started to turn down the heat and open the air vents to let the smoke out. He then took some tongs and pushed the sausages around the pan, they were slightly burnt but not too bad. "There, breakfast is saved, I think."
Bucky pulled Steve into a hug, "sorry I woke you," he kissed Steve "sorry I almost burnt down your kitchen," he kissed him again "sorry i..."
"You don't need to apologise, I'll teach you how to cook, we'll make something nice for dinner tonight. Okay?" Steve said.
Bucky nodded.
A few minutes later they both sat down to an overly done breakfast. They sat in silence together both trying to pretend that they were enjoying what they were eating.
"Let's just say it" Bucky started "this tastes discussing." They both started laughing.
"I didn't want to say it but yeah this is bad. How's this for a slice of awesome," Steve took Bucky's hand "we get some delicious pastries and go to the park, we could find a nice bench and sit down together, if you want to?"
"Sounds good" Bucky said squeezing Steves hand slightly.
"Hang on" Steve got up from the table and disappeared into his room. He was gone for a few minutes and when he returned he had a pile of clothes. He place them on the table in front of Bucky, "they might be a little big but you can't go walking around in broad daylight in this tacky shirt.
"what's wrong with this shirt." Bucky said taking the pile of cloths and standing up in front of Steve.
"it's all ripped and dirty, I can't have my pal looking like a homeless man, and then there's your hair..." Steve said reaching an arm to lift up a lock of hair that hung lose on Bucks shoulder.
"What's wrong with my hair?" Bucky protested.
"You should try brushing it." Steve said letting his had drop to his side. "Go and get changed, take a shower, brush your teeth and your hair." Steve said shoving him in the direction of the bathroom.
Steve heard the shower turn on and the water flow out he then went to his room to change. He slipped on some genes and started rummaging through his draws in such of a t-shirt. When Bucky walked in through the door holding a red and white horizontal striped t-shirt he said "I can't wear this I'll look like a pirate." Steve rolled his eyes
"Try this one" Steve threw a sky blue t-shirt to him that he was planning on wearing.
"Thank you." He slipped the shirt on over his damp hair and used the towel to dry his hair.
"Have you tried braiding your hair?" Steve suggested.
"What like a six year old girl?" Bucky laughed when Steve nodded "no I haven't and I don't really intend to either"
"Okay, how about an ordinary pony tail, here I have an elastic band somewhere." Steve looked over to his desk and picked up a black hair band that Natasha probably left here when she was hanging around his place. He went to give it to Bucky but when he looked over to him he saw a very distressed man with his hair stick in-between the plates of his metal arm. Steve smiled "here let me help."
30 minutes later they were both sitting on a bench looking out over the park, stuffing their faces with some pastry, when in the bakery they had argued on which one they missed the most, they both settled on strawberry pie. They had been sitting on the park bench for about 15 minutes when a little boy and his older sister approached the two of them.
"Are you captain America?" the little girl asked
"Um... yes I am" Steve said smiling at the little girl.
"We just wanted to say thank you for what you did for our country the other week." The little girl said.
Their mother came up behind the children "could we trouble you for a picture?"
"No no its fine" Steve knelt down and put his arm around the children and smiled at the camera. He accepted their thank yous and then they let him go back to his day out.
He sat back down next to Bucky "they love you" he said in a sober tone. "I mean they still love you just as much maybe more than they did in the 1940s." Bucky shook his head in disbelief.
"No they don't they love captain America not me" Steve leaned forward so that his elbows were on his knees.
"Steve, there's no way in hell that your gonna convince me that there is a bone in your body that's not captain America and what he stands for." Bucky laughed "Now stop beating yourself up, from what I can tell you've been beating yourself up since we did that mission to capture Dr Zola and that was over 70 years ago."
"Thanks Buck"
After wandering around the park for an hour or two Steve's back pocket started vibrating. "what is that?" Bucky asked.
"It's my mobile device thing, shield told me to get one so they could keep in touch but now I use it to stay in touch with the avengers. Hang on I have to get this." Steve answered the phone "hello this is Steve Rogers"
"dude you don't need to tell me who you are I phoned you up" the voice said through the phone
"What do you want Tony?" Steve rolled his eyes
"Is that any way to talk to a family friend?" Tony said
"Tony I'm busy what do you want?"
"Pepper said I should invite you to come and stay at Stark tower to be closer to the other Avengers and do patrols and stuff to protect New York and the rest of the world as you and your bird friend destroyed S.H.E.I.L.D." Tony said.
"Tony, I don't think I can, I have a... um A friend staying with me... and I don't think he's a big fan of big groups of people" Steve said to tony.
"That's okay you'll have a whole floor just for yourself, your friend doesn't even need to talk to us if he doesn't want to. Please Steve we need you here in new York." Tony pleaded
"Did pepper tell you to say that?" Steve asked.
"Yep every word, but seriously we need our captain."
"I'll have to ask my friend if he's okay with this if he's doesn't want to then I'm not coming." Steve held his hand over the receiver, "Bucky..."
"Yeah yeah I heard what he said and I think we should go, I meant what I said about you being Captain America, and it's your job to be there for the people as much as it is for me to be there for you when you're off saving the world."
Going back to the phone, "Tony?"
"Yes dear" tony said in a cheerful voice
"We're on our way."
Steve and Bucky went back to the apartment to pack which was easy for Bucky as had very little stuff. Steve just wanted clothes, his suit and his shield. Soon they wear ready, they decided to take the train as neither could drive and Steve's motorbike couldn't carry their luggage.
They arrived at Stark tower over 5 hours later. Pepper greeted them at the front door "Captain its absolute delight to see you again. Who's your friend?"
Steve looks over his shoulder at Bucky who was looking up at the tall building in astonishment. "This is my old friend James Barns." Bucky look down from the building at pepper and smiled in greeting. Pepper reached out her left hand as a greeting. Without bothering to think Bucky reached out his metal arm and shook her hand. Other than a light gasp she said nothing which was a shock to Bucky as most people would have freaked out. "It's nice to meet Mr. Barns, why don't you two head on up to your level and get settled in." She smiled and showed them the way to the elevator.
Their level was huge much bigger than Steve's apartment. The elevator opened up to a wide hall space, Steve and Bucky walked out the lift and down a few steps into a living area with a couch and a large TV screen in front of a wall of glass looking out over New York. They both looked around and entered the kitchen there was a table in the centre and a kitchen counter almost all the way around the edge of the room with a white marble counter. There were two bedrooms both exactly the same, a king-sized bed up agents the far wall and a wardrobe in the corner opposite and two bed side tables on either side of the bed.
"wow it's nice, and very big." Bucky said to Steve.
"Bucky I don't think we should tell them about you and me just jet." Steve said
Bucky was taken off guard by that but he understood what Steve was getting at "Right yeah I understand, of course. Yeah let's keep it quiet." Bucky nodded
"Grate, shall I go and introduce you to them all?" Steve suggested. Bucky just nodded, he was a little peeved at the thought that Steve might be ashamed of Bucky and Steve being an item.
They went back into the elevator and pressed the button that said main floor in hope that would be the place all the Avenger would be at and they were in luck because when the doors open it revel a large room with a mini bar, chairs, sofas, computers, even a pool table and in the centre of the room was a clump of people all laughing as if someone had just told a funny joke.
Tony was the first to notice them coming in, "Capsical, so glad you're here."
"Tony." Steve said with a small nod. Tony's eyes flashed over to Bucky who was at Steve's side "This is my friend I was telling you about, James Barns"
"Hey, glad you could convince Capsical to come over to New York." Tony said
"It didn't take much persuasion he is Captain America after all." They all laughed except Steve who decided to introduce everyone.
"Bucky, this is Tony stark son of Howard Stark do you remember him?" Steve said to Bucky
"Yeah how can I forget Howard do you remember his idea of the floating cars." Bucky laughed "and then they exploded on the stage"
"Yeah, I remember," he turned back to the confused Avengers "on the right that's Thor" Thor gave a big wave. "Next to him is Clint Barton and do you remember Natasha?" Steve asked.
Shyly Bucky nodded "yeah I remember, sorry I shot you."
"Twice" Natasha nodded "that's okay I guess." She smiled at him.
"Next to Natasha we have Sam Wilson but you'll remember him as..." Steve was interrupted by Bucky
"The bird, I remember well I remember breaking your wings, sorry about that." Bucky apologised again.
"That's okay dude, hell I got a new and improved suit and its red! So you know what I'll forgive you" Sam walked over to Steve and shook his hand and did the same to Bucky "no hard feelings."
"Everyone this is James Buchannan Barns he not been himself recently but now he's back and back to stay... I hope" Steve said to the Avengers
"Steve, it's okay to say I was brainwashed by a Nazi rogue science division for 75 years being their personal assassin." Silence followed what Bucky said then Clint walked over to Bucky and hit him really hard in the head.
"Clint?" Steve gasped
Bucky fell to the ground looking shocked "ouch what just happened"
Clint just stepped back and said "cognitive recalibration it's what Natasha did to get me back from being brainwashed" Clint shrugged "just tiring to help."
Natasha slapped Clint round the back of his head. "He's not brainwashed anymore"
"Yes because I hit him really hard round the head" Clint said smiling proudly at himself and walked off to the kitchen.
Authors notes: whoop another chapter up, can't wait to hear what you think. I didn't know whether I should have done the bit with Clint it wasn't my idea, I get it but I don't know if you guys will get it, it's from the first avengers. I'm going to go and start working on my next chapter might be able to get another one up today but I'll see how it goes. I'm gonna be doing the move night Candi suggested but any other ideas please let me know. Thank you.