Darcy flopped onto her couch. Shit. Double shit. This was not what she had planned. Not that she had really planned anything but… She sighed and looked at where she had thrown the source of her problems. A positive pregnancy test was on the coffee table. Darcy groaned and turned until her face was pressed into the couch. She was so not ready for this. She was not ready for a baby. She didn't even know where to find the father. He had been a quick fuck, picked up and left in a bar. A quickie in the bathroom of a dive bar that no respectable person frequented. Of course, Darcy hadn't been feeling particularly respectable that day. A shit day at work and a need to not be surrounded by SHIELD agents or Avengers had had her throwing on a dress that was entirely indecent, heels that hurt, and a red lipstick made for leaving marks and she had gone to the seediest bar in town. She'd found him there, dark hair and fucking built. The rest of the details were a little fuzzy, as she'd been pretty drunk at the time. But she definitely remembered being pushed against a tiled wall and being fucking within an inch of her life. She also remembered straightening her clothes as she stepped into a cab, the dark haired man paying the cabbie and winking as she drove away. That had been almost two months ago, long enough for Darcy to have realized that tall-dark-and-handsome was possibly the worst description to have when looking for someone. It was also long enough for her to miss her period and, recently, start throwing up in the morning.

Just then, JARVIS called into the room,

"Miss Lewis, Doctor Foster requesting to be allowed in."

"Mrumph." said Darcy into the couch. She had run out of Jane's office earlier that day so she could throw up in the nearest biohazard box. She opened one eye to glare at the test still on her table. With a groan, Darcy sat up. It hadn't even fully sunk into her what had happened. She grabbed the test and quickly threw it into a garbage can.

"Let her in, J."

"Yes, Miss Lewis." The door clicked and Jane pushed it open,

"Darcy?"

"Yeah?" she said, walking around the couch to see Jane.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah. I think I had some bad sushi last night or something." Darcy was needed a moment to process and a baby-crazy astrophysicist was so not what she needed right then. Jane nodded,

"Do you want the rest of the day off?"

"Yeah, thanks. Still feeling a little green around the gills." Darcy must have actually looked sick because Jane nodded,

"Alright. Feel better. Do you mind if I come by after work?"

"Yeah. Bring soup or something." said Darcy. Jane nodded and waved, closing the door behind her. Darcy sat back on the couch. Fuck. She was going to be a mom.

Six months later, Darcy's life had officially changed. She was eight months pregnant. She hadn't had caffeine or alcohol in months. Jane had kicked her out of the office and she had been sentenced to collating data in the communal living room at Avengers Tower. Of course, that left lots of time for cat videos, which Darcy wasn't complaining about. On the other hand, her boobs had practically doubled in size, which was not fun. Darcy shifted slightly and the baby moved, punching at her kidneys. Darcy winced,

"Chill out, kid. I've got homework." The baby didn't heed her words and shifted until Darcy sighed and put her laptop to the side. The baby only quieted when she walked around. Jane had a theory that it was like being rocked to sleep. Darcy was just sick of having to walk around with an extra forty pounds hanging off her front and swollen ankles. She walked to the kitchen and opened the cupboard. She growled when she realized someone had moved her tea from the bottom shelf to the top, where a poor short pregnant lady like herself couldn't reach it. She stretched on her tiptoes but quickly found that her large belly prevented her from getting close enough to the counter to actually reach anything. A hairy hand reached up from behind her and grabbed the box she'd been straining for. Darcy turned to Bruce Banner, one eyebrow raised,

"Darcy, what is conveniently located in the corner of the kitchen?"

"A stepstool." said Darcy like a kid who'd been caught their hand in the cookie jar.

"And why do we have a stepstool?" asked Bruce.

"So Tony can reach the second shelf." said Darcy. Bruce smirked and handed her the box of tea,

"True. But still."

"I know, I know. Thanks for grabbing it." said Darcy, filling the kettle, "You want some as well?"

"Please." said Bruce, sitting down at the table. Darcy grabbed two mugs and put a teabag in each. She paced slowly through the kitchen.

"Baby being restless again?" Bruce asked. Darcy nodded,

"I swear, this thing is more active than I've been in my life."

"Well, it's probably getting a little confined. You're due in, what, three weeks?" he said. Darcy nodded,

"Three weeks until I get to scream and basically defy the laws of what humans can physically due. And speaking of defying the laws of human limits…" said Darcy as Steve Rogers walked into the kitchen. He smiled,

"Hey Darce. How're you feeling?"

"Oh, you know. Pregnant. Cranky. Like an incubator." she said. Steve smiled. Darcy and Steve had had an easy camaraderie since she had moved into the Tower. For the first couple of weeks, Darcy had thought there was a chance of them being more than friends, but Steve was so absorbed with finding his friend that Darcy knew better than to get wrapped up in that crazy-fest. They'd stayed close friends though. When the baby kept her up, she'd talk him through a few of his nightmares and when her feet were killing her, he massaged them. It was a good trade. Steve looked behind him, nervousness overtaking his face,

"Guys, I want you to meet a friend of mine. Darcy, Bruce, this is Bucky." Bucky walked out of the hall and Darcy gasped. It was the guy from the bar eight months ago. His gaze flicked to her and his pupils widened slightly, but there was no other indication that he recognized her. Steve looked between the pair of them,

"You know each other?"

"…sorta." said Darcy. She stepped forward slowly. Bucky watched her but said nothing. Darcy stopped a few feet out,

"Do you remember me?" she asked. Bucky nodded,

"Darcy. Dress," he frowned, "Bathroom?" he asked. Darcy flushed,

"Yeah." Bucky's eyes dropped to her abdomen. A hand came up, reaching toward her belly. He looked at her questioningly,

"Mine?"

"Yeah." said Darcy with a relieved sigh. There was a shattering behind her and before Darcy knew what had happened, Bucky had pulled her behind him and he was sweeping the area for the cause of the noise. Bruce had dropped his mug and was currently turning a lovely shade of red. Darcy gingerly rubbed at Bucky's human arm,

"It's okay. It's just Bruce. We're good." she said. Bucky slowly stepped to the side, looking at her. His eyes catalogued her appearance, looking for anything wrong. He must have found nothing because he turned and glared at Bruce. It was a tense silence before Steve broke it,

"Wait, so Bucky is the father?"

"Yep. I didn't know it was him, I swear."

"Didn't the arm kind of stand out?" asked Bruce. Bucky glared at him as he pushed a button on his arm and it instantly camouflaged itself to look like skin. Bruce shrugged,

"Seemed like a legitimate question to ask." he said. Darcy looked at the group in front of her. Bruce was embarrassed, Steve utterly shocked, and Bucky strangely devoid of emotion. She bit her lip,

"Um, can you guys give Bucky and I a minute?"

"Sure. If you need anything, give a holler." said Steve. Bruce followed him out of the room. Darcy was willing to bet godparent rights that both of them were standing on the other side of the door. She didn't particularly care if they heard. It just felt more relaxed if she could at least pretend that this was a private conversation. She gestured at the couch,

"Would you like to sit down?" she asked. Bucky soundlessly moved forward and perched himself on the couch. Darcy sank into it, the baby still moving constantly. She absently brought a hand up and rubbed her side where it was kicking. Bucky watched her but said nothing. She looked up, "You can feel if you want to." He held up his hand and Darcy pressed it where the fetus was kicking. It nudged at Bucky's hand and his eyes widened. Darcy couldn't help but grin and nod at his reaction, "Yeah, it's a bit of a trip the first time around. Scared the hell out of me." she said. Bucky had no reaction to her words. Some part of her wondered if he had even spoken to her at the bar, or if it had just been unspoken mutual agreement to go fuck each other's brains out. Darcy swallowed and tried to amp up her courage,

"You don't have to be a part of this if you don't want to. I mean, this is kind of a curveball. If you want, you can join the veritable legion of uncles that this kid is going to have. Uncle Steve, Uncle Bruce, Uncle Bucky…you'll fit right in." she said, even as Bucky shook his head. He said something in Russian and his hand pushed harder against her belly, as if he was trying to make a point. Darcy's brow furrowed,

"Sorry, English is the only language I'm remotely fluent in." she said. Bucky blinked in surprise and she wondered if he even realized he'd been speaking in Russian. His speech was halting and Darcy wondered if it was because he was mentally translating everything, or if it was because talking was just that hard for him now,

"This is our child. I will be a father. You are my responsibility. This," his hand made a small circle on her belly, "is our responsibility. We will do this together. I will do my best to help." Darcy nodded. They both knew that there would be nights where he couldn't help and days when he needed help and she had a sneaking suspicion that Steve would be coerced into helping in both cases, but Bucky was going to try. They could do this.