Truth
Darcy knocked on Jane and Bucky's door lightly after her first therapy session, feeling a little frazzled. She didn't want to wake Jane if she was resting, but figured the knock would alert Bucky and keep him off of attack-mode.
She pushed through the door. Their apartment shared the same layout as the one she shared with her family, except it had a wonderful view of the Manhattan skyline. And it felt a little emptier.
That would change, she supposed, in a few months once they started to prepare for the babies, but right now it suited them.
She found Jane and Bucky in the living room. Bucky was holding up two coffee frothers, one that was brand new in the package.
"I say we use mine," he was saying as he looked at the package closely. "It hasn't been opened."
"Do you know what those are," she asked him seriously.
"Yeah," he gave her that smile that she supposed helped him land her cousin.
"Are you telling the truth," Jane narrowed her eyes at her partner and Darcy bit back a smile.
He inhaled, then paused before finally admitting, "No."
Jane smiled and leaned back, a bowl of mixed fruit on her tiny bump. "I didn't think so. They're coffee frothers, James. They give your lattes foam and stuff."
He made a face that made him positively adorable, and Darcy started laughing from her spot, before joining Jane on the large sectional. "I take it someone doesn't like coffee."
"I tried to get him into but he's definitely not much of a caffeinator. If he does drink it he'll drink it black," Jane replied taking a bite of her fruit and turned back to Bucky. How about we just keep mine, and we can donate the new one to charity," she said.
Darcy popped up from the couch and snatched the box from Bucky. "Today my name is Charity. Thanks Bucky!"
He grinned at her and shook his head. "What are you doing here? I thought you had therapy."
"I just came from my first session," she replied while snatching some honeydew from Jane's bowl. "What are you guys up to."
"A dissolution of property, of the sorts. We have a lot of things that we have multiples of now that we are living together, so we're going through them."
"Smart. You'll have more space," Darcy replied while snatching another piece of fruit.
Bucky shook his head and laughed. "You know there is a whole bowl of fruit in the kitchen, feel free to get some."
"Oh my gosh! Thank you so much for the offer, Bucky! I would love some," Darcy exclaimed. "Thanks for offering to get me some."
Bucky opened and closed his mouth a few times, looking adorably confused while Jane laughed at him. "Will you get me some more too, hon? I'm really hungry."
If he was going to complain, that shut him up. He gave Jane a kiss on the cheek, before grabbing her bowl and heading to the kitchen.
Jane turned to her. "How was your therapy session?"
Darcy inhaled before shoving her shoes off. She brought her legs in and under her. "Awkward. But then, that was expected."
"Yeah," Jane smiled. "I had to do a couple sessions with Bucky when we first started-" she stopped then blushed, and Darcy laughed.
"The bedroom tango? The mattress mambo," Darcy asked, ribbing her cousin who was getting redder by the second.
"Dear Lord, Darcy!"
"What," Darcy exclaimed. "It's not like we don't know what's going on. I mean," she pointedly looked at Jane's bump and gave it a soft rub. "Not that I blame you. These super soldiers are aging like a fine wine. I'd do the same thing if I were in your position. "
A crash from the kitchen let them know Bucky heard them. "Shit! Sorry," he said, and the girls broke out into laughter.
"It's ok, Bucky," Darcy. "I'm sorry. I was just teasing."
Jane bit her lip and grinned. "You realize that you could just say the word, and Steve would be right there in a second. That guy is gone on you."
"Steve needs someone without my drama. He deserves that much, at least," Darcy replied.
Bucky came in with the two bowls of fruit. "I think that you should let Steve decide what he deserves, doll." He sat beside Jane and pulled her into him, the dissolution of property momentarily forgotten, and Darcy felt a twinge of envy for her cousin. Nick use to do that with her, once upon a time.
Jane nodded in agreement. "I agree. And I'm not going to shut up about it either until you realize it," she finished with a smile before popping a raspberry in her mouth. "But," she continued. "I do understand why, at least right now. But in a few months," she warned.
Darcy grinned. "I'm not worried. In a few months you'll be as big as a house and not worried about me."
"A house," Jane exclaimed. "That's passive aggressive. "
Bucky winced and rubbed her shoulder. "You'll still be the most beautiful woman in the world, sweetheart."
That seemed to appease her cousin and she settled back into his chest. Darcy, relieved the conversation about Steve was forgotten, at least for now.
Truth was, she didn't know why she felt that way. Steve who was perfect, and tall, and already loved her children so easily. He had become like their pseudo father, a fact in which Nick reminded her he hated on a daily basis. But her kids would not stop talking about him to their father, if they talked to Nick at all. And truthfully, Darcy wouldn't stop them even if she could.
Nick was thousands of miles away and had years to prove himself to his kids. Even when he was there, he was never present. Never in the way Steve was. Bucky too, but Bucky's role was clear cut due to his relationship with Jane.
And the kids were thriving in their atmosphere here. Mason with his sports. Bella was caught up on all her AP classes, since she was behind fron the curriculum in Texas. Even Sofia was starting to blossom from the attention, even if she was more rotten then ever.
There was a time at the start of her divorce when her only goal was to be pleasant with Nick, because the children needed their father. But it took so much more to be a father rather than being one in name only.
She'd gone with Jane and Bucky to their ultrasound last week, and watching Bucky's eyes light up as he watched the screen, not really having any idea what he was looking at, but knowing that those were his very own children. The conversation over lunch after, when Jane let him know that she was expecting him to be her birthing partner. His adorable confusion because men were allowed to be in the room now?
His excitement when Steve sat down with them, and he told him.
She never got that with any of her kids. She was lucky if he was there with a couple of appointments. she let it go. He was busy. He was the breadwinner. They had money, and a house, and good health insurance. And good vehicles. Food on their table, clothes on their backs. The kids went to good schools. They travelled.
But should she have excused it?
Not that it mattered now anyway. Here and present she was a thirty-five year old divorcee with three kids, having to pick up her life from the beginning like a twenty year old.
She didn't even have any credit. How pathetic was that? The fact she had depended on Nick for so long that everything they bought was in his name only.
She was lucky the judge sympathized with her over their house, car, and credit cards. She hadn't taken any alimony to push the divorce through as quickly as possible. By the time it was over, she already had Jane's offer and she was ready to go.
Could anyone blame her? Her own mother couldn't even.
By now Jane's mother had been told that she was expecting, so naturally everyone knew now. It had spread throughout the family like a wildfire. The excitement of new babies was enough to push Darcy's problems to the back of everyone's mind.
At least for now.
"You ok, Darce," Jane snapped her back from her thoughts. They were both watching her carefully.
"I'm fine," she said. "Just thinking about how in seven months, those two little beans are going to be here. Have you picked out names yet?"
Bucky grinned, seeing through her completely. Darcy was convinced that he was a super spy before he signed up for the war. Always rescuing Steve, kicking ass, and taking names.
But he let it go, thankfully, he knew when to push.
"We don't know what we're having yet. We have a few names picked out."
"Can I hear them," Darcy prodded taking another bite of fruit.
"Well," Jane cleared her throat. "We like Max for a boy."
Bucky nodded and Darcy grinned. "Mason would love that."
"We also like Isaiah," Bucky said.
"Yeah," Jane agreed. "And Elijah."
"What about girl names," Darcy asked.
"Well we like Elizabeth," Jane replied. "But that's kind of close to Bella."
"Again," Darcy smiled. "Bella would like that."
Bucky laughed. "We also like Graciella," he shifted gently. "Jane said you had a grandmother named that."
Darcy nodded and smiled. "Isabella was supposed to be Isabel. I added the 'Ella' on without Nick's permission. "
Jane giggled. "Well we won't be doing that," she reassured Bucky, who laughed himself.
"We do have some 'B' names too. So they share his initials. Like Brooklyn and Bradeyn."
"Oh I love Brooklyn," Darcy said. "Brooklyn Barnes."
Bucky beamed and looked at Jane with a nudge. "See?" He looked up at Darcy. "I'm from Brooklyn."
"See," she exclaimed. "It totally fits then!"
"He's been devouring baby name books, like their candy," Jane explained. He's been stuck on that name for weeks."
"And what about you," Darcy asked.
"I've been stuck on Max, and I have no idea why. It's just simple, and boyish, and cute."
"That's why I picked Mason," Darcy replied. "In all honesty. I did the same as Bucky. I read it and it stuck with me. Except Mason has no back meaning to me whatsoever."
Bucky grinned. "How did you come up with Sofia?"
"That little monster, we had decided between Ava and Sofia. She came out and it was like World War 3. She was pissed and didn't care who heard her. She was decidedly, definitely not an Ava."
Bucky laughed out loud. "I believe it."
"Believe it. I firmly believe that God gave me Sofi because I was old enough to handle her. She can go through fifteen mood changes in one minute and still not be done."
Jane laughed. "That sounds like my bean."
"Mason was my easiest," Darcy continued and Bucky leaned forward with interest, shifting Jane to the couch gently. He was soaking up anything he could about children lately, whether it was from Tony, Clint, Scott, or even her it was one of the reasons Darcy knew that planned or not, Jane picked a good one to be the father of her children.
"I don't know if it's because I knew what to expect," she continued. "I wasn't a new mother anymore. And obviously every kid is different. But Mason was just absolutely what I needed as a second child. Bella was running all over the place. And Nick worked late most days. Mason came out and didn't even cry. He was so chill. Most days I could lay him on the mat for tummy time, which I expected a fight because Bella absolutely hated tummy time, and he just went with it."
"What's 'tummy time," Bucky asked confused and Darcy had to grin along with Jane.
"When you lay the infant on their stomach so they can build strength in their head, neck, and spine."
"Oh," he nodded and took a notebook off the end table, opened and wrote, 'tummy time,' in his messy script.
Darcy had to look away. Jane had told her that he was keeping a notebook of everything he wanted to research before the babies came and after. She cleared her throat, "write 'swaddling' in there as well," she grinned as he nodded. "I have no doubt that you will be a pro at that."
Bucky grinned and wrote 'swaddling' down in his book and closed it. "I'm trying to learn. I've been researching carseats, and cribs, and high chairs."
"Word of advice on high chairs. Unless you want a lot of space in your dining area to be taken up, get the more portable ones. Most of the times the babies will be eating from your laps anyway. And at least the portable ones you can strap to a chair and take easily with you."
He nodded and Jane grinned as he opened his book again. She rubbed his back. "He's doing all my work for me.'
He smiled sheepishly and Darcy laughed. "That just gives you more time to focus on you. Which isn't a bad thing."
She nodded and looked at Bucky again with stars in her eyes. Jane, still at that point wasn't able to say she loved the embattled soldier in front of her. But it was written across her face everytime she looked at him.
Darcy had to agree at this point. Jane was the luckiest girl in the world.
Steve coached Mason from the stands. Darcy was a little late, but on her way. Either way he was happy he could be here. Sofia was coloring at his side. And Bella was with Darcy. It was almost ridiculous how natural it felt to pick up these kids from school and daycare and take them out for supper. Or help them with their homework. Or go to their ball games.
"Widen your stance, Mas," he called. "Good."
Mason's team was winning, but there was no harm in working on technique in the mean time.
Sofi had stopped coloring when Mason went to bat. "Go Bubba!" She climbed in Steve's lap and bounced clapping her hands.
Mason missed the first two balls, but hit the third. Sofi was standing in his lap clapping. "GO BUBBA, GO!"
"Go Mas," Bella yelled as she walked up. Darcy right behind her.
"Let's go, baby," Darcy yelled as she sat down in the spot Bella left beside him.
She looked good, which was doing things to him he hated to admit. Smelled good to. Sofi jumping in his lap as Mason reached third and stayed, brought him back to reality. "Good job, Mas!"
Darcy smiled at Sofi snd then at him. "Thanks for picking them up. Bucky got called out?"
"Yeah," he grinned. "A Hydra cell set up in New Mexico. They wanted someone who would create less of a mess. So not me."
"So the shield is not a fix all, then," she raised an eyebrow and teased.
He grinned. "Definitely not," he clapped as Mason made his home run. Then turned back to her. "As much as I hate what those jerks did to my best friend over the years. I'm glad he's here now. And I get a little bit of glee when Hydra realizes all that terrible stuff they trained him to do all those years, he just turns back on them now."
"Did Sam go with him," she asked reaching into her bag handing the girls some fruit snacks. Bella was munching on the end of her pencil, clearly she got that habit from Jane, concentrating on her homework. Sofi had gone back to coloring.
"Yeah," he responded. "They've developed a pretty good partnership. It's been rocky but they did it their way. Now at home, it's a different story," he laughed.
"That might change," she replied. "I spent some time with him and Jane, a couple days ago. He's got a wicked sense of humor that he likes to hide."
"Yeah. It makes me sad. That use to be him all the time."
"It'll come back," she rubbed his shoulder. "He's just got work to do "
All Steve could do was nod because she was right. Bucky would never be the same Bucky he was before the war. Hell he himself wasn't the same. He'd never expect Bucky to be, no matter how much he wished for it.
But his best friend, who was total asshole, was putting in the work everyday, and was reaping the rewards. He could smile often. He loved to dance even more now than he did back then, much to Jane's dismay. And his sense of humor at times rivalled Tony's, much to his dismay and Steve's genuine amusement.
In a way the baseball game wrapped up too quick, but Mason won and Darcy invited him to supper. Jane was there, looking more radiant by the day. He kissed her cheek gently before asking how she was.
"Pregnant," she replied matter-of-factly. "That sums it up, right?"
Darcy laughed and set a tray of vegetables in front of her cousin to keep her satisfied until supper was ready.
"This isn't sushi," Jane sighed and put her cheek in the palm of her hand, to which Sofi copied perfectly. "I miss sushi."
"Me too, Auntie Janie," Sofi sighed with all the drama of a soap opera actress. "Vegetables are gross."
Jane grinned at her and reached across to tickle her tummy while Steve joined Darcy in the kitchen. "You are a monster!"
Steve washed his hands in the sink, before turning to Darcy. "Can I help?"
She smiled at him. "Yes," she replied. "But first," she got close and stood on her toes and placed a gentle kiss on his cheek. "Thank you again for helping with the kids. They love you. And I'd be lost without you."
Steve tried to talk but his mouth was dry so he nodded. "No problem."
She took a large onion from the vegetables stand. "How are you with chopping onions?"
"I'm terrible at it," he replied honestly. "At the whole cooking thing, actually."
She grinned. "Well today's your lucky day. Jane wanted chow mein and beef and broccoli, so Jane gets chow mein and beef and broccoli."
He raised a brow. "Is that how it works when you're pregnant," he teased.
"Didn't you know," she asked, her tone teasing. "It's bad luck to not satisfy a pregnant lady's craving."
"I believe it," he laughed. "She had Bucky out at three-thirty in the morning buying her horseradish for her sandwich."
Darcy laughed out loud, "well he deserves it. He knocked her up with twins. He deserves two times the work."
"Is that how it works?"
"Oh yes. And Jane is lucky. I didn't have that when I was pregnant with my three," she grinned as she heard Sofi tell Jane about her almost escape from daycare today.
"But the teacher caughted us, and we couldn't leave," she sighed dramatically. "I hate being caughted by my daycare teacher. Don't you, Auntie Janie?"
"Oh yes," Jane replied. "it's the absolute worse. I agree."
"At least she isn't giving her any pointers," Darcy laughed
A knock on the door sounded and with Sofia's gasp, they knew Bucky had entered the premises.
"Uncle Bucky," she squealed. "you're here!"
His responding chuckle was almost too low to hear. Steve figured Bucky would get settled and talk to Jane for a bit. Besides if he needed him, he knew where to find him. The mission had been a success, pretty much over before it started, which is why he loved sending Bucky.
He took a sharp knife and started chopping the onions and cabbage while Darcy started prepping the beef.
She'd fast learnt how to feed two super soldiers on a regular basis, the more food the better.
And while Darcy was always a beautiful distraction in his mind wherever he went now, he couldn't stop thinking about that kiss.
And how he hoped that some day it would be more.