AN: Natalia and Natasha are two different people in this.

'I'm going to have so much fun.'

That's what Sam had said to him nearly a month ago and that's what they had done. They saw each other pretty much every day after that. He and Steve would run together in the morning and Steve would visit him in the garage in the evening before bed. Sam joined Steve, Bucky, Shannon, Becca, Natasha and Clint at their table during lunch. They took watches together and went out on supply runs together, Sam had even spent time with just Steve and Shannon in Steve's room. Shannon liked Sam very much and he was added to the list of people she had begun to cling to. Steve thought this was both good and bad, good because Shannon had more people to love and interact with now, bad because in this world no one knew if they'd be dead the next day and Steve didn't want someone to be ripped viciously from Shannon's life. Steve looked over to the playpen in the corner of his room as Shannon began calling out to him. The playpen was something Sam had brought back from a run he went on without Steve. He had said he had found it packaged in a room, Steve doubted the truth of that though he didn't push it.

"Hey, sweetheart." Steve cooed, picking her up out of the playpen only for her to immediately cuddle into his shoulder. He smiled at the warmth of her tiny body pressing to his. He had previously been very awkward with babies. He didn't know how to hold them and he feared he'd break them if he held them too hard or something but with Shannon it seemed like instinct took over and he just did what he had to do to make sure she survived and was as happy as she could be. He wished he had Peggy with him but then if he had Peggy would he have met Sam? Not that anything had happened between them... yet anyway.

"You like Sam, right? What do you think, huh Shan? Is Daddy completely over thinking this?"

"Yes, he is." Bucky said, walking into Steve's room as if he owned the place.

"Knocking. It's not a new concept, you might wanna familiarize yourself with it." Steve said sarcastically.

"Don't change the subject. Sad, desperate times you're in when you ask your one year old for dating advice." Bucky said plopping onto the bed.

"I'm not dating anyone." Steve answered, turning around from Bucky and going over to the small table where there was a highchair, another gift from Sam, and a bowl of applesauce for Shannon.

"You and Sam are totally dating."

"We are not."

"You are too and if you're not you should be and the only reason you're not would be because you are definitely over thinking things." Steve didn't answer. Bucky sighed.

"Look, I've got exactly five minutes before I have to meet Natasha and her dad so let me use two of those minutes to impart some wisdom on you."

"And what wisdom would that be, oh great one?" Steve asked sarcastically.

"Stop using Peggy and Shannon as an excuse to not take your relationship with Sam to the next level." Steve whipped around angrily towards his brother.

"I am not-"

"You keep telling yourself you owe it to Shannon to preserve her mother's memory and that you owe it to Peggy not to move on so quickly. Honestly, I think that if Peggy were with you, you two and Sam would be some freaky threesome."

"Really Bucky?" Steve deadpanned.

"It's what I think. Seriously though, there's nothing wrong with falling in love again."

"How would you know, Bucky? You spent your life as a manwhore before everything went to sh-" Steve stopped himself from cursing and looked back at Shannon obliviously eating her applesauce before abruptly turning back around to face Bucky.

"Before everything happened. You had a new love of your life every three days, you didn't know how to settle. You didn't know what you wanted. You didn't like yourself enough to like anyone else for more than a week. You don't know how it felt to be with Peggy and then to lose her and then, and then-"

"And then to have someone else make you feel the same things again is terrifying because you lost the person you wanted to ride hell out with. You don't want to put yourself in that position again, what's more it's not just you you have to think about. That makes it doubly terrifying and all the while you're wondering what the person you lost would think of your decision to move on." Bucky finished. Steve looked at Bucky with clear confusion as to how he would understand Steve's feelings.

"Two months ago we hadn't seen each other in two years, Steve. A lot happened. Her name was Natalia. She kicked my ass the first time we met and of course Becca fell for her instantly and she started travelling with us. Long story short: we fell in love, she died, I took it hard and Becca did too. So when we came here and I started having feelings for Natasha I wasn't pleased to say the least. I didn't want to deal with it again, didn't want to open myself up again even though I didn't want to reinstate my life as a 'manwhore' as you harshly but accurately put it. I told myself it was because I didn't want to put Becca through that again and that was true but mostly I was friggin' terrified of losing someone again. At that point, I thought I'd lost you and Peggy and then I lost Natalia, I wanted to protect the one thing I could control: my heart." Bucky chuckled nostalgically.

"Truthfully, Natasha made it damn easy to push her away. She was running away from a second chance too. Eventually we got tired of fighting against it when we really weren't certain how long any of us were going to live. Why waste the opportunity to have something pure and light in a world filled with so much darkness?" Bucky stood up and placed his hand on Steve's shoulder as Steve felt his eyes stinging.

"You could love him Steve. I know the problem isn't that he's a guy, you've been openly bisexual for ages. I know the problem isn't so much that you think Peggy wouldn't approve, it's that wall you put around your heart. It's flimsy at best but you keep trying to reinforce it. Let it down, let him in and you won't regret it. Trust me, when have I ever led you astray? Actually don't answer that question." Steve chuckled a little before sighing.

"I have to go, Steve-O. Do something reckless and crazy and don't think about it, okay? But make sure it's worth it. Now I've gotta go before Natasha castrates me for being late." Bucky patted Steve's shoulder and gave Shannon a kiss before he ducked out the room, leaving Steve to his thoughts.