It took Bucky a long time to fall asleep that night. He tossed and turned, feeling too hot and too cold all at the same time.

He kicked his blankets to the floor; they were suffocating him.

His metal arm felt foreign to him. He wanted to rip it off and throw it, hard, at someone.

How had things changed so much? How had their lives become what they were?

Bucky sighed and tired to lie still in bed.

But he had too much energy. His legs twitched, itching to get up. To run away.

Watching that movie, as inaccurate as it had been, was a mistake.

Bucky scrubbed a hand over his face, closing his eyes.

"It was a long time ago, don't think about it," Bucky told himself.

He rubbed his hand over his metal forearm, the movement soothing him and finally, Bucky drifted off.

Bucky's eyes shot open.

His room was pitch black, but something was wrong.

There was a shuffling noise in the doorway of his room. Bucky was grateful that he had kicked the blankets away; he didn't have anything hindering him when he jumped up.

He swung a punch at the area where a grown man's head would be and met air.

Stumbling due to his momentum, Bucky frowned.

"Uncle Bucky?" A tiny voice said, and Bucky's guard immediately went down.

"Hey," he said softly, kneeling down and reaching out for Liam, "What's wrong?"

Liam sniffled, "I had a n-nightmare!"

He threw his little body into Bucky's arms and Bucky was startled by how badly he was shaking.

"Hey, it's okay. Liam, it's okay," Bucky held Liam tightly with one hand and rubbed his back with the other.

Liam's face was buried in Bucky's neck, and Bucky could feel tears. His neck was also getting kind of sweaty.

"Do you want to talk about it?" Bucky asked, shifting so he was sitting on the floor and leaning against the side of his bed.

Liam shook his head, fisting the fabric of Bucky's shirt tighter in his hand.

Bucky sighed; he knew exactly what the kid was going through.

"Sometimes it helps to talk," he said, squeezing Liam in a hug.

Liam mumbled something into Bucky's neck, but wouldn't loosen his grip.

"What'd you say, buddy?" Bucky asked, gently stroking Liam's hair.

If Bucky had stopped to think about it, he would realize that he was moving on autopilot. Bucky had never dealt with a kid having a nightmare before. His comforting Liam was coming from a subconscious place.

"I want Mommy and Daddy," Liam cried, curling up into a tight ball on Bucky's lap.

Bucky's heart broke for his little nephew.

"I'm sorry, pal. Mommy and Daddy are coming home tomorrow. I wish I could get them for you,"

"I want them now," Liam cried, his face turning red and tears dripping down his cheeks.

He hiccupped, his breathing shallow. Bucky winced; he knew that sound. He'd grown up listening to that sound.

"Hey, buddy. Try and take a nice breath," he tried to coax Liam into breathing normally, before a full-blown asthma attack hit.

"I feel funny," Liam wailed, crying even harder.

Bucky held tightly onto Liam and leaned over to pull open the drawer of his bedside table. Steve and Kit usually kept inhalers around the house, just in case.

Bucky retrieved the plastic tube, and held it up for Liam.

"Okay, breathe in, buddy. Just like your Dad showed you."

Liam's hands came up and covered Bucky's, holding the inhaler to his mouth.

Bucky kept a supportive arm around Liam's back while the kid got his breathing under control.

Bucky took a deep breath of his own; he knew Liam had occasional asthma attacks, but he had never had to deal with one on his own.

By the time he had met Steve, they were older and Steve could take care of his asthma on his own.

Watching four-year-old Liam struggle to breathe sent Bucky's heart lurching in his chest.

Steve and Kit were convinced that Steve's enhanced genetics would kick in eventually, but for now they were coping with Liam's occasional health issues.

Liam relaxed in Bucky's arms, dropping his hands and sighing.

"I don't like that," he mumbled, fiddling with the hem of Bucky's shirt.

Bucky dropped his chin to rest on the top of Liam's head, "I know, buddy, I know. Your Dad didn't like it either."

They sat on the floor, tucked together, for a long time. Bucky didn't want to move, just in case Liam freaked out again.

But eventually, light started to shine through the window.

Bucky blinked a few times and looked down at Liam. His blue eyes were wide open, and there were purplish shadows under his eyes.

"Hey, buddy, you want to try and sleep a little?" Bucky asked, rubbing his back.

Liam nodded, "But not in my bed. Scared."

Bucky nodded, "Got it. You can stay in here with me, okay?"

Liam sighed, and clung to Bucky's chest as Bucky stood up and sat on his bed.

With Liam still clinging to him, Bucky grabbed the blankets from the floor and shifted the pillows so he could lay back.

Bucky tucked his right arm up under his head and let Liam lie on his chest. He tucked the blankets around Liam's skinny shoulders.

"You comfortable, buddy?" Bucky asked, poking a finger into Liam's side.

"No," Liam murmured, yawning widely.

Bucky laughed, "Why don't you lay on the mattress then?"

Liam shrugged weakly, "Okay," and rolled off of Bucky's chest. He tucked himself closely against Bucky's side; one fist gripping tightly onto Bucky's shirt, and the other thumb stuck firmly in his mouth.

Bucky rubbed his hand over Liam's back, remembering that they were supposed to discourage the thumb sucking. But right now, Bucky figured that Liam needed it.

Soon enough, Liam's soft snores filled the room, muffled by the thumb in his mouth.

Bucky yawned, and shut his eyes, letting himself fall asleep now that he knew Liam was out.

Bucky woke up hours later, feeling more rested than he had in months. He looked at the clock on his bedside table.

11:30.

He hadn't slept that late in…a helluva long time.

Liam shifted in his sleep, and Bucky was suddenly very grateful for his metal arm. If he still had his real arm, it would have been numb beyond belief.

Liam had shifted during the night and was flung spread-eagle on the bed. The sheets were tangled in his little legs, one foot poking out.

Bucky saw a Captain America action figure clutched tightly in Liam's hand. How had he missed that last night?

Liam snorted in his sleep and a stream of drool was pooling on Bucky's shirt.

Bucky shook his head and brushed some of Liam's hair off of his forehead. Moving the blond bangs exposed a tiny bruise.

Where had that come from? Bucky wondered, and then remembered the collision with the wall Liam had before dinner.

"You're a mess, kid," Bucky muttered affectionately.

"Not a mess," Liam breathed out, eyes shut, "Cleaned m'Legos."

Bucky couldn't hold in the laugh.

"Stop," Liam commanded in a tired, little voice, "No shaking the bed."

Bucky smothered his laughter, "Right. I'm sorry."

"Good," Liam yawned, rolling over and blindly reaching out to pat Bucky's cheek. He missed and smacked his uncle in the nose, but it was the thought that counted.

"Do you want to get up and have breakfast?"

Bucky stretched, his feet reaching the edge of the bed.

"No," Liam mumbled into the mattress, "Sleepy."

Bucky nodded and closed his eyes; a few more hours of sleep wouldn't hurt.

Bucky's eyes opened again two hours later.

Liam had migrated again so he was half draped over Bucky's chest.

Bucky scrubbed at his eyes, it was definitely time to get up now. The gross taste in his mouth was bordering on hazardous.

Bucky slowly rubbed his hand up and down Liam's back, "Pal, come on. Time to get up."

Liam's eyes blinked open slowly and gained focus, "Up?"

"Yeah, it's already late in the afternoon," Bucky said, "Don't you want to do fun things today?"

Liam smiled sleepily, "Fun stuff. Let's go."

He tried to roll off of Bucky's chest, but his legs were twisted in the sheets and only managed to kick Bucky in the groin.

Bucky grunted in pain, and Liam looked up.

"Sorry?" he said, blue eyes wide.

"We're good, kid," Bucky muttered, sitting up and lifting Liam onto the floor.

Liam, his grip still tight on the Captain America action figure, rubbed his eye, "Cereal for lunch?"

Bucky grinned, "Cartoons too."

Liam happily trailed after Bucky into the bathroom and watched while his uncle shaved and brushed his teeth.

"Can I shave?" Liam asked, kicking his feet against the edge of the tub.

"When you get older, pal. You don't have anything to shave," Bucky said, dragging the razor over his cheeks.

"Oh," Liam said, fiddling with his action figure.

Bucky looked at his sad little face, and got an idea.

"Hey, come here," he gestured with a hand and knelt down.

Bucky squirted some shaving cream onto his hands and smeared it on Liam's cheeks.

"Try this," he gave Liam as comb from the medicine cabinet and dragged over the step stool so Liam could see his face in the mirror.

"Cool!" Liam exclaimed, "shaving" his face while Bucky finished up his.

When he was done, Bucky wiped up the leftover shaving cream and sent Liam to change in his room.

"Donald Duck is silly!" Liam giggled, spewing chewed up bits of Cap'n Crunch all over the couch.

Bucky nodded, "He is pretty funny."

They were watching a recorded Mickey Mouse cartoon. The animation had been updated, but Bucky remembered the characters from his own childhood.

"I never understood why he doesn't wear pants though," Bucky commented, shoveling a spoonful of cereal into his mouth.

Liam cackled, "Donald doesn't wear pants!"

Bucky laughed watching Liam laugh.

Liam held out his bowl for more cereal and Bucky topped it off with some milk.

"What else should we do today?" Bucky asked, finishing his bowl of cereal.

Liam shrugged, "I dunno."

He spilled his next spoonful of cereal onto his shirt, "Oops."

Bucky wiped up the food, but the milk left a small white stain on the black shirt. Bucky stared at the pattern on it for a minute.

Liam had informed Bucky that, "my grandpa got me this shirt 'cause of stars and I love it cause Uncle Thor is from the stars."

There was a constellation on the front, but Bucky had never seen it before. Not that he was a big fan of astrology.

Something tickled the back of his mind, but Bucky brushed it off.

It was already close to 3 o'clock. Which was good, because it gave Liam less time to dwell on the nightmare that had terrified him so much last night, and it gave him less time to miss Steve and Kit before they got home in the morning.

Steve.

Bucky got an idea about where he and Liam could go today.

"Want to go on a surprise?" Bucky asked, picking up the bowls and cereal and milk.

Liam perked up, "What kind of surprise?"

Bucky grinned, "Go change your shirt and you'll see."

Liam slipped off the couch and ran into his room. Bucky could hear drawers opening and being slammed shut.

Liam emerged a few minutes later, just as Bucky was sliding his arms into his jacket.

"Ready?" He asked, holding out Liam's tiny bomber jacket (a gift from Sam.)

Liam grinned and nodded eagerly, "I love s'prises!"

He laid his jacket on he floor, collar towards him. Bucky watched, fascinated, as Liam bent over, stuck his arms in the sleeves and flipped the jacket over his head.

"Ready!" he grinned up at Bucky.

"Where'd you learn that?' Bucky asked, shepherding Liam out into the hallway.

"Mommy teached me," Liam shrugged, running forward and smacking the elevator button, "Where's my s'prise?"

"You'll just have to wait and see," Bucky said, smiling mischievously.

Okay, so in hindsight, bringing a four-year-old, no matter how seemingly well behaved he was, onto public transportation all the way to Brooklyn was a bad idea.

"I'm tired," Liam wailed, digging his heels into the sidewalk and pulling on Bucky's arm.

"You slept for a really long time. You're not tired," Bucky countered, pulling him forward.

"I gotta peeeeeeeee," Liam moaned, wiggling around for good measure.

Bucky sighed, "You just went in Dunkin' Donuts."

"I gotta pee again," Liam said very seriously.

Bucky raised an eyebrow, and Liam wavered under the stare.

"Fine, I don't gotta pee. But this is a bad s'prise," he moaned, "There's not even a pony or a 'splosion."

"I think it's pretty cool," Bucky defended himself.

Liam sighed, "It's just buildings."

Bucky pointed, "Look, that's the building your Dad and I lived in when we were kids."

Liam regarded the brownstone dubiously, "Really?"

Bucky nodded, "Really. We had some good times."

"But now you live with me," Liam said, standing still for a minute.

Bucky nodded, "Yeah. Now I live with you."

"Is my s'prise over?" Liam asked.

Bucky sighed. Maybe he and Steve would just have to come back with Liam one day to explain the past.

"How about a different surprise?" Bucky asked, swinging Liam's arm.

Liam sighed, "I don't wannnnaaaaaa."

Bucky laughed, "This one is good. I promise."

Liam hung his head and traipsed after Bucky, not trusting that this surprise would be good.

"This s'pise is goooooodddd," Liam mumbled, mouth full of doughnut.

Bucky leaned back in his chair and took a rink from his take-out coffee cup.

"Glad you like it, pal," Bucky snapped a picture of Liam's chocolate covered face.

"This is the bestest doughnut in the whole world," Liam sighed, a look of pure happiness on his face.

Bucky laughed, "They are pretty good."

Bucky's doughnut was coffee and pecan flavored and better than any doughnut he'd ever had before, bigger too.

Liam was eyeing Bucky's doughnut, "Can I have a bite of yours?"

Bucky held the doughnut up and Liam chomped down on it.

And almost immediately he sit it onto a napkin, "Gross!"

"Didn't like it?" Bucky snorted.

Liam scowled, "I need another one to make my mouth taste better."

"Another one?" Bucky asked, "That one was as big as your head."

Liam nodded, "I'll get one and you get one and we can bring ones home to my grown-ups."

Bucky thought about the prospect of carrying two-dozen doughnuts on public transport.

"How about I just get more doughnuts for me and you?" Bucky stood up from the table.

Liam nodded, "I want another choc'late!"

"Stay here," Bucky said before heading to the counter. It was a small place so he felt comfortable leaving Liam at the table.

Bucky took his place behind a shorter guy with blonde hair.

The man ordered and then Bucky ordered.

Turning from the counter, Bucky's eyes landed on the table he had left Liam at.

He was gone.

"Shit!" Bucky cursed, "Liam? Where'd you go?"

He didn't care that his shouting was bothering the other customers.

Bucky's gaze scanned the place and his heartbeat quickened.

Fuck! Where was he?

Suddenly, Liam's familiar giggle hit Bucky's ears.

"Thank God," Bucky muttered, his eyes landing on Liam's green shirt.

Hurrying over, Bucky reached out and grabbed Liam's arm, "Liam, buddy, I thought I told you to stay at the table?"

Liam looked at Bucky, "I sawed Carter! I wanted to see Bart. But Bart's at home."

For the first time, Bucky looked up at the couple that was sitting at the table.

His eyes locked with Carter's blue ones and his stomach flipped.

She smiled and waved a little, "Hi."

Bucky half-smiled, "Hi. Uh, sorry about him."

Carter flapped her hand in the air, "Not a problem. I totally love this kid."

The man next to her, the blonde from the doughnut line, was scowling.

Bucky coughed, "I think it's time for us to head out."

Carter shook her head, "Please don't! Liam was telling me all about his silly uncles from dinner last night."

Bucky looked down at Liam, who nodded and said, "Yep! I'm telling Carter all 'bout Uncle Clint and Uncle Tony and Uncle Sam."

Bucky frowned, "That's great, pal. But I think we're interrupting Carter's time with…"

The blond man looked up from his phone, "Tim."

That was it. He didn't offer any more information other than his first name. Bucky nodded, "Right. Tim. Let's head home, and we can go to the park."

Liam bounced on the balls of his feet, "Park! Park! Park!" he chanted.

Tim scowled deeper as Liam got louder.

Carter giggled, but her eyes looked sad, "Well, if you have to go. But maybe we can hang out again soon?"

Bucky didn't reply, didn't want to look like he was after another man's girlfriend.

Liam threw his body into Carter's lap, "Bye Carter! Tell Bart I say hi!"

Carter promised that she would, and said goodbye to Bucky as well.

Tim didn't look up from his phone as Bucky and Liam walked away, but Bucky could hear him talking.

"I thought I said you can't talk to men unless I know them?"

Bucky's sudden and visceral reaction was to turn around and punch the douche in the face.

But Liam's hand in his stopped anything that Bucky would have done.

Bucky was more in his head than usual on the ride back from Brooklyn.

He knew it was bad.

He liked Carter. She was smart, and pretty, and funny.

But now he wasn't sure if he wanted to protect her because he liked her, or because Tim was an asshole.

He knew that the more he thought about it, the more he would want to ran back and slam fucking Tim headfirst into a brick wall.

Even Liam must've sensed something was off, because he was quiet on the train home, sitting quietly in Bucky's lap and taking pictures of the floor.

Stepping off the train and into the bustling station, Bucky kept a tight grip on Liam's hand.

"Can we still go to the park?" Liam asked.

Bucky nodded, "Sure. You were really great on the train."

It was only 5:30. Bucky figured if Liam would tire himself out at the park they could both get a good night's sleep.

And maybe Bucky would be able to sort out his feelings for Carter with a clear mind.

A/N: Hey guys! I did it! I got a chapter up in a week. I like this chapter too. So I hope you all enjoy it and leave me some reviews =)

This story will have probably one or two more chapters to it, and then I have ideas for about three or four more stories in this 'verse.

I'd love, love, love to hear your thoughts, so drop me a review!