Chapter 55
"Hey Peter!" Bucky smiled as the teen entered the living room. "How was your time with Harry?"
"Hey Bucky! It was good. We went on a walk around Central Park, and we even went to the zoo! He was super tired when we got back, though, so he's taking a nap right now."
"That sounds like fun," Bucky smiled as Peter sat down beside him. "Are you staying for supper?"
"I think I'm going to go home and have dinner with May tonight, but I'll be thinking about Harry's cooking the entire time, guaranteed," Peter laughed. He knew Harry had plans to make a pot roast tonight, but he and May hadn't been able to have a meal together all week. He wanted to make sure that they got some time together.
"That'll be really nice, though, your dinner with May- I'm sure she's looking forward to it," Bucky replied with a smile, knowing from all of Peter's stories and the few dinners that he and Steve had attended at their apartment that the woman, sweet as can be, couldn't cook to save her life.
"I'd actually better get going now," Peter declared, looking down at his watch. "I don't want to be late."
"Alrighty kiddo," Bucky grinned, rising from his seat. "Remember the rule- no leaving without saying goodbye."
Peter giggled as Bucky opened his arms for a hug. The solider looked so intimidating to most people, but he was nothing but a big teddy bear to those who knew him. It was almost bizarre to see him not giving hugs, or sneaking loving glances at Steve.
Peter eagerly threw his arms around the super solider, smiling when the hug was equally reciprocated.
"I probably won't see you again until Wednesday, because of school, Mathletes and patrol," Peter spoke, stepping away from the embrace. "But Wednesday afternoon, I'll be here for my internship."
"Then I'll look forward to Wednesday afternoon," Bucky smile, ruffling the teenager's hair affectionately. "Be careful on patrol, okay?"
"You're starting to sound like Mister Stark," Peter giggled.
"You take that back right now!" Bucky let out a deep, hearty laugh as the billionaire entered the room. "He sounds absolutely nothing like me!"
Peter rolled his eyes at Tony's antics, and made his way across the room to give his mentor a hug as well.
"I'll have Happy pick you up from school on Wednesday, alright? And Karen will be giving me updates while you're on patrol, so don't even think about doing any stupid shit," Tony looked Peter in the eye, making the teen squirm under his gaze.
"Okay Mister Stark," Peter conceded with a joking groan.
But the truth of the matter was, ever since he and Harry had started dating (with the exception of the one incident where he got stabbed and Harry had healed him), he had been a lot more cautious on patrols. He knew that everyone else worried about him while he was out doing his Spiderman-thing, but he couldn't bare the thought of Harry losing anyone else that he loved.
And if he could do anything to prevent that from happening, he was going to be damn sure that he would.
"Alright kid, get out of here," Tony gave Peter a loving swat towards the elevator as it dinged, doors opening.
"Bye Mister Stark! Bye Bucky!" Peter called, before turning to the person who had just stepped out of the elevator. "Bye Steve!"
"Bye Pete," Steve smiled as he passed the kid.
Tony let out a dramatic sigh as he stood up, and stretched. "Alright, I better head back to the lab."
Both Steve and Bucky gave him a small smile and wave as he exited the room, before Steve made his way over to the coach beside his fiancé.
"You're really good with him and Harry," Steve nodded towards the elevator that Peter had just disappeared into. "I know I've said that before, but it's true."
"You are too, you know," Bucky blushed as Steve used his thumb to reach out and brush a piece of hair behind his ear lovingly.
"No, but you treat them like they're your own kids, despite them not being. You don't have to be so caring and adoring towards them, but you do."
He paused, dropping his hand from the side of Bucky's head, instead grasping both of his hands in his own.
"I want to have a baby with you," Steve admitted, looking down at his and Bucky's intertwined hands.
"Steve, while there's 70 years of my life that I don't remember, but last time I checked, that's not biologically possible," Bucky smirked.
"I know it's sudden- we haven't even gotten married yet- but I can just tell that you're going to be such a great dad. I want to have a baby with you, Buck. I want a kid of our own," Steve admitted. "I don't care how they come to be. I just want to have a kid of our own. Someone else to share our love. Someone who every time I see them, my heart swells because that's our kid, and we raised them."
"I was thinking... maybe we could find a surrogate? Or maybe someone to adopt from?" Steve finished.
"You've thought about this a lot, haven't you?" Bucky asked, fiddling with the ring on Steve's ring finger absentmindedly. It wasn't that he was opposed to the idea- in fact, he loved the thought of having a baby with Steve. It was just, both Harry and Peter were teenagers, and while they may not always seem like it, they were far more independent than a baby. Far less fragile than a ten pound human being that could easily sit in the palm of his bionic hand. He wasn't sure that a baby would like him.
He wasn't sure that a baby would be safe with him.
"Hey now, none of that," Steve cupped Bucky's chin and tilted his face up to look him in the eye. "I know what you're thinking, and you're wrong. You don't let anything happen to the ones you love, and I know you would be our baby's fiercest protector. You would never do anything that would hurt the people you call family. I know that, and you do too, deep down."
Bucky closed his eyes and leaned into Steve until their foreheads were touching. The position was intimate, their faces close, their lips only a few inches away from one another, but there was no ulterior motive. It was just intimate, a way to show love.
"I'm in, Steve. I would love to have a baby with you."