Bucky smiled as he watched Steve from across the table. Steve was beautiful, he thought. Who else could look that good while peeling an orange?
Watching Steve came as second nature to him. He suspected it was from his time with Hydra: the need to keep his target within a close distance. Though he liked to believe it came from an earlier time; keeping Steve within arm’s distance to quickly pull him away from fights. Or maybe he just liked looking at the guy.
“What’re you looking at, Buck?” Steve grinned.
He always had an audience when Bucky was around. Couldn’t do anything without being watched. It was flattering, mostly. Sometimes he got caught messing up; dropping his phone or trying to unlock the front door with the key upside down.
Bucky never failed to remind him of the perfect Captain America image he was supposed to uphold. It was all in good fun. Bucky’s Steve had never been perfect, and that’s the way they wanted to keep it.
“Nothing interesting,” Bucky replied with a smirk of his own, “Just my husband.”
Bucky loved calling Steve his husband. It had only been about two weeks since the wedding and Steve had been woken up several times just to hear Bucky say, “You’re my husband, Stevie.”
The ceremony itself was nothing to write home about. As expected, neither of them wanted anything too lavish. Just their close friends in the same place at the same time without some war going on around them. It was peaceful. They had all seen each other just a month earlier for Tony and Pepper’s wedding; but Bucky and Steve kept theirs nice and quiet compared to the extravagant event Tony had planned for himself.
The announcement that Captain America had gotten married to the former Winter Soldier made headlines the next day. Support and outrage poured from all corners of the nation. The happy couple couldn’t care less. They were in Wakanda on their honeymoon by that point. Just a small, cozy hut by a lake Bucky had found.
Now back in their Brooklyn apartment, it was time to get back to business.
“Are you gonna eat that?” Bucky asked, already reaching over the table.
Steve snatched the orange before Bucky had the chance to grab it, “I mean I was planning on it. I didn’t peel it for you, Buck.”
“Well can I have half?”
Steve sighed, placing two slices on Bucky’s plate, “And that’s all you get!”
“Any plans for today, husband?” Bucky wiped away some orange juice which had dribbled down his chin.
“Nothin’. You?”
“Maybe meet Peter for lunch, but I’m free other than that.”
“You hear from Sam lately?”
“You mean Captain America?” Bucky teased. Steve rolled his eyes; having passed the torch to Sam right after the Thanos incident. Steve would’ve handed him the actual shield if it hadn’t gotten ruined in Wakanda versus Thanos’, “I haven’t though, have you?”
“Sam’s out of the country. Some project he’s working on with Nat.”
“Is it weird not being with them?” Bucky asked, “You three usually went out together if the threat wasn’t full Avengers worthy.”
“I mean, I’d rather be here with you,” Steve confessed.
“Doing what?” Bucky threw his arms up, “I’m bored!”
“You sound like a kid Buck. C’mon, we’re in New York City!”
“Brooklyn.”
“We’re in New York City,” Steve repeated, “There’s an unlimited amount of activities for people to do.”
“Steve, you officially retired a year ago. Over a year ago. Like last April. I’m pretty sure we’ve done pretty much everything New York has to offer in said year,” Bucky leaned back in the kitchen chair.
“Go to a Mets game?” Steve suggested.
“On the west coast playing the Los Angeles Dodgers," Bucky doesn't think he'll ever not be salty about the Dodgers' move to the west coast.
“Yankees game?”
“Don’t hate myself enough to go to a Yankees game.”
“Any other sports teams still playing?”
“Don’t think so,” Bucky yawned, “Rangers suck this year, Knicks suck this year. And I don’t care if they play in Brooklyn, I won’t subject myself to the torture of an Islanders game— either way they suck too.”
“We could go to the Museum of Natural History or something, you like it there.”
“Taking Wanda there next week.”
“You can’t go twice?”
“This is what I’m talking about Steve,” Bucky sighed, “We’ve done everything and now we’re just repeating.”
“Well we could visit that children’s hospital. I mean they’re expecting us tomorrow, but they probably don’t mind if we’re a day early.”
“Then we’re gonna be having this same discussion tomorrow. I want to do something, Steve. I want to have something to do.”
“So what you’re saying is you’re gonna be complaining until September?”
Bucky thought for a moment, “I mean if September is when it’s gonna happen, then yeah, I’ll complain until September.”
“I’ll talk to Tony to see if he has something for you to do for the next three months,” Steve reasoned, “Maybe even Fury, he discussed getting SHIELD back together. Maybe he has something for us to do there.”
“No fighting, right?” Bucky asked, “I mean, I’m pretty sure Thanos’s crew took all the fight out of me— forever. I’m even willing to be a mascot for SHIELD as long as I don’t have to fight.”
Steve chuckled, “I’ll talk to Fury. I’ll talk to Tony. In the meantime, let’s just prepare for September.”