"What's with the scissors? Are you planning on cutting your hair?" Natasha asked Bucky.

"Sure am." He nodded, wiggling the pair of scissors and the razor he held in both his hands. "It's too long."

He couldn't spend one more day with it at that length and he needed a change.

Now.

"Why don't you let me do it?" She suggested offhandedly, halting his walk to the bathroom. "It'll be easier. I can see what I'm doing."

"Okay." He shrugged. "But I'm trusting you."

"Big mistake." She winked and carried a chair over to him, a few feet away from the kitchen so that no hair would get into anything. "I'm gonna enjoy this. Hand me the scissors."

Her hand on his shoulder sent shivers up his spine that he couldn't ignore. She smelled like strawberries and the way her hair fell down over the sides of her face made her look radiant.

Bucky almost shook his head to snap himself out of it.

She was just so….beautiful.

"James!" Natasha tapped his cheek to get his attention.

"Huh?"

"The scissors, please."

"Oh, right." He held up his hand so she could take them.

"Very funny." She rolled her eyes. "That's the razor."

Was he really that distracted? What was going on with him?

It seemed like these days, every time he was within five feet of Natasha and they were alone, he acted like a complete fool.


"Where's Mama?" Alya eyed the living room very suspiciously once she got home from school.

There was literally no one home except for Bucky. Which, was odd because her mother was always there to greet her when she got home.

"Hello, to you, too." Bucky smirked. "Mama and Wanda aren't here right now. We're gonna have a special day all to ourselves. They'll be back in time to say goodnight."

Alya's lip jutted out in a pout before she turned on her heel to go right back into the elevator. If he wasn't going to tell her where he mama was, then she'd find the woman herself.

She didn't expect to be yanked from behind and held up by the straps of her backpack, though.

It took everything in her not to laugh, because being held in the air like that was actually kind of funny. Her feet dangled and kicked, but she never tried to get down.

"Are you hungry?" Bucky acted as if he wasn't carrying her like a coat on a hanger and this was the most normal thing ever.

"No." She lied as he carried her over to the kitchen, setting her down on one of the stools at the island before he took her bag off of her shoulders.

"It's not nice to lie." He sang. "Especially when I made you something I know you'll like."

He could practically feel her eyes boring into the back of his head. Just after Alya headed off to school, Steve caved and told him everything, he said that he thought that he should know and he didn't want to sit back should any more issues arise.

Bucky had an idea that that was how Alya was feeling, but he needed her to be the one to admit it. If he was the one to bring it up, she would end up feeling attacked and that would make everything worse.

So, he and Natasha decided that it would probably be beneficial for the two of them to spend some time together on their own. They needed to get reacquainted and Alya needed to spend time with her father without her mother being there to fall back on.

"I'm not interested." Alya huffed, kneeling on the stool in an attempt to get a look.

"Suit yourself." He shrugged, scooping up some food in a plate before grabbing a fork and placing it all down on the counter, right across from Alya.

It was pelmeni.

Well played.

"I've been so hungry, all day." He sighed dramatically, cutting a piece with his fork. "I'm so glad that I can finally sit down and eat."

Alya watched as he so cruelly ate her favorite meal in front of her and noticed that he cut his hair. Her stubborn streak would not let her admit it, but the new hairdo suited him. She liked it.

"Sit down, please." He told her, motioning to how she was kneeling on her seat. "That's not what that stool was made for."

She was going to put up a fight and argue, but when she realized that he was no longer paying her any mind, she complied.

There was first time for everything.

"This is delicious. I've really outdone myself this time. Wow."

Alya's stomach growled quite loudly, giving her position of hunger away, making her father look up at her with a curious glance.

"I'm a little thirsty, so I think I'll get myself some water." He winked, setting his fork down to walk to the fridge.

His steps were slow and deliberate. He knew exactly what he was doing, even if Alya was oblivious to it.

The little girl leaned forward and picked his fork up in her dominant hand before she shoved some food in her mouth to quench some of that hunger she was feeling. She made sure that he wasn't looking before she took another forkful.

The food was really good and it only made her want more, but Bucky was going to sit back down soon. He would notice if too much was missing.

Still, a couple more bites wouldn't hurt.

"Caught ya!" He whirled around without warning just as the fork was about to enter her mouth once again.

Alya's eyes widened in alarm. She had no intentions of getting busted, but it had been Bucky's plan all along.

"Are you hungry?" He asked her once again, positive that she'd tell him the truth this time.

"Yes."

"Here." He slid the plate over to her so she could finish it and got himself another.

Maybe next time she wouldn't cut off her nose just to spite her face.

Alya felt the urge to test him again, so as soon as he looked at her, she rolled her eyes.

It was completely unprovoked and she knew he couldn't stand it, but she couldn't help herself.

Where would he draw the line?

"Alya, don't roll your eyes at me."

"Why?" She questioned.

"Because it's rude." In this new century, Bucky had learned that the whole, 'Because I said so' answer didn't really work, so he decided to give her a real answer to the question.

"So? Who cares?" She nearly dropped the fork she was holding as her palms began to sweat. She was entering uncharted territory and it could end badly.

"Alya, just do as you're told and eat."

"And if I don't?" She narrowed her eyes as if to challenge him.

Bucky sighed and ran a hand over his face to keep his cool. Alya didn't have a disrespectful bone in her body, he knew that this was out of the ordinary. She wanted to learn the cause and effect of their relationship.

So be it.

"Then you can stand in a corner for me and you can roll your eyes all you want from there." He kept an air of nonchalance in his tone.

But that only seemed to frustrate her. Her nostrils flared and she took a long breath to try to keep herself calm, but seeing that he was unbothered, triggered her.

"I'm not afraid of you." She scowled.

"I don't want you to be afraid of me."

Why was he being so nice? Why wasn't he getting frustrated? Why wasn't he leaving?

It was irritating!

"I don't care."

"Alya, come one, talk to me." He softened his tone to try to get through to her and urge her to open up.

But when did Alya ever do things the easy way?

"No! I don't want to talk to you!" She glared. "I want Mama!"

However, Bucky heard the complete opposite.

What she was really saying was, "I need you to hear me, but I don't know how to express myself well enough to tell you! I'm frustrated!"

"Mama's not here right now. You're gonna have to settle for me, Babydoll."

"No!" The calmer he was, the angrier Alya grew. "No! I don't want you!"

I don't want you to leave me. Please keep trying.

Alya hopped off of the stool and stood in front of her father, her breathing was heavy and her face was all red from the onslaught of emotions she was feeling. "I don't want you here!"

I'm gonna hurt you, before you ever get the chance to hurt me. I'm confused!

"Okay." Bucky knew she didn't mean it. He wasn't taking it personally.

She needed to get it all out into the open without any interruptions and he was going to let her.

"I hate you!" She pounded her fists into his chest in frustration. "I hate you!"

I need you! I need you to help me! Look at me! See me! I can't do it by myself! Make it better!

Sobs wracked the little girl's body and her shoulders shook, but she continued her assault, not knowing what else to do with herself.

"Why won't you leave?!"

Is there anything I can ever do to make you leave? I don't want you to go.

"Go away!"

Stay!

"Okay." Bucky took her wrists in his hands. As soon as he touched her, she collapsed in a heap of unbridled tears. So he pulled her up to stand and set her on his hip. "It's okay."

"I h-hate you!"

"I know, I know." He swayed back and forth to soothe her. "Friday?" He called out to the AI.

"Yes, Sergeant Barnes?"

"Can you play 'Moonlight Serenade'?"

"Of course." Friday responded before playing the old Glen Miller tune.

Alya's sobs took a backseat when the music reached her ears. It sounded very familiar to her and it was very soothing. Combined with Bucky's soft love taps, she didn't have a choice but to calm down.

"The stars are aglow and tonight, how their light sets me dreaming." Bucky sung softly, dimming the lights to give her senses a break. "My love, do you know that your eyes are like stars brightly beaming? I bring you and sing you, a moonlight serenade."

He didn't have a bad voice. To Alya, he was much better than listening to anyone else. Well, besides her mother.

She noticed that after a while, her hiccups became none existent and her tears stopped flowing as quickly as they had been earlier.

"Let us stray till break of day, in love's valley of dreams. Just you and I, a summer sky, a heavenly breeze kissing the trees."

Alya's limp noodle arm reached up to rub at her eyes before traveling to fiddle with the dog tags that were around her father's neck, tracing the engraved lettering of his information.

She hadn't felt this calm in a very long time. She had forgotten what it felt like, actually. Her muscles were so relaxed and all she could do was blink lazily.

"So don't let me wait, come to me tenderly in the June night. I stand at your gate and I sing you a song in the moonlight, a love song, my darling, a moonlight serenade."

Bucky knew that if all else failed, he'd be able to calm her down just by singing and swaying to this song. It always worked.

Back in the Red Room, sometimes it was the only way to keep her calm. He couldn't even remember exactly what he was singing, but he always could hum the tune to keep her from disturbing Dreykov.

It was something he hadn't even realized he carried with him all those years.

When the song finished he poured his and Alya's food into a big bowl and headed for the couch so that they both could eat without him having to set her down.

Friday continued to play the song on repeat to keep the mood as peaceful as possible and it proved to be successful.

To Bucky's surprise and delight, Alya didn't fight him when he pressed some food to her lips. The poor thing looked a little embarrassed by her outburst, but it was nothing to be ashamed of.

The two ate in silence until the entire bowl was empty and their hunger was satisfied.

Now, it was time to talk.

"You've been testing me a lot lately." He pushed some hair away from her face. Ever since Serena had cut it, Alya had been able to be convinced that she should wear it down more often. It put less tension on her head. "Wanna tell me why?"

To that, Alya shook her head, her fist gripping his blue henley in a vice-like hold.

"That's okay, I think I know why." He lightly bounced the leg she happened to be sitting on. "I'm not leaving, Babydoll. I promise."

"Never?"

"Never." He assured her. "And there isn't anything that you can say or do, that's going to change my mind. "I'm sorry that we didn't get the chance to be together before, but I'm here now and I want to be. I love you."

Alya sniffled and wiped her nose on her sleeve in true childlike fashion before she decided to say something. "Why?"

"Why do I love you?" Bucky questioned. "Because you're my daughter. Your smile lights up my whole world. Knowing you're my kid, makes my day so much better. It was the only thing that made my time with Hydra bearable…..because someday, I was going to break out and I was going to find you."

Alya watched him carefully as he poured his heart out to her.

"I love you so much, that if I had to choose between never enlisting in the war and never having to fall off that train, or doing it all over again, do you know what I'd choose?"

"What?"

"I'd do it all over again, do you know why?"

"Why?"

"It got me you." He pressed a gentle kiss to her forehead and she could see the tears the glazed his eyes, threatening to overcome him. "You are the best thing anyone has ever given me. Don't you forget it."

That made Alya stop and think.

Bucky just told her that if he had the choice, he would go through decades of torture and brainwashing all over again just so that they could be together like they were now.

He'd deal with it all, if it meant that she'd be here.

That's how much he loved her.

And all this time, she had been terrified of him packing up and leaving her.

If he could handle all of that, why would he throw in the towel after a few eye rolls and sassy remarks?

"Papa?"

"Hmm?"

"Sorry I said, I hated you. I don't." She felt the need to clarify.

"I know." He chortled.

"And I'm sorry I rolled my eyes at you and hit you." Since he was in a forgiving mood, she might as well get it all out in the open.

"Forget about it." He poked her side.

"Can we do something tomorrow?" She asked. "Just you, me and Mama?"

"Just you, me and Mama, huh?" He smiled.

"...And Wanda, and Tetushka...and Uncle Steve?" She didn't want to leave anyone out and hurt their feelings.

"What do you wanna do?"

"Ummm….I wanna go to Central Park." Alya could picture herself holding both her parents hands as they swung her up in the air after she got a running start.

She's always wanted to do that.

"I don't see why not, but you'll have to get up early."

"I can do that!"

"Then it's a date."

Alya beamed and leaned up against him, listening to the music once again.

"And Alyona?" His voice took a harsh tone and it made her freeze.

"Yes, Papa?"

"Don't you ever hit me again."

She was forced to turn and take a the look at the glare on his face when he held her chin in the palm of his hand, but she knew that she could butter him up if she wanted to.

"Papa?"

"Yes?"

"I love you." She kissed his nose, watching him soften a considerable amount.

"I meant what I said." He grouched, pulling her close once again. "I love you, too."