Paternity
"...and that's why I don't think Snoke is actually dead and that he could totally be Darth Plagueis."
Bucky nodded, his eyes not leaving the screen, "Uh huh." He was sitting up, propped against the arm of the couch. Peter lay half on top of him, his head pressed to Bucky's belly. A flesh hand rested on Peter's back. The Force Awakens played on the TV in front of them.
Peter had been talking for a solid five minutes about his theories about The Last Jedi.
"Now...who is Darth Plagueis?"
Peter's laughter made Bucky smirk a bit (despite the fact his question was legitimate), "Oh my god, Dad."
Bucky's heart skipped a beat.
Peter tensed suddenly under Bucky's hand and he sat up, pushing Bucky's hand off of him.
Bucky looked at Peter. Peter looked at Bucky.
Red-faced, Peter jerked a thumb towards the hallway, "You know, I should- I have homework- like I shouldn't have even-"
Bucky felt himself flush as well, "Oh yeah, I should- we can pick this up later?"
Peter nodded, not trusting himself to speak and dashed away to his room, shutting the door.
"-And then I called him Dad!" Peter flung himself back onto his bed dramatically.
Steve chuckled. Oh, how much money he would've paid to see the look on Bucky's face, "I'm sure it's not that serious, Pete."
Peter groaned and sat up again, "What if he thinks it's weird? What if he thinks I'm weird?!"
Steve smiled warmly and leaned forward in Peter's desk chair, "I'm going to tell you this right now and let me know if I lose you: Buck adopted you, Pete." Peter immediately looked sheepish, "He basically signed up to be called Dad for the rest of his life. So I can almost guarantee that he might be freaking out a little, but it's in the best way. Buck and I love you more than anything."
Peter blushed furiously and became very interested in his bedsheets, "Love you too."
Steve grinned, "So can I be called Pops?" And Peter groaned and buried his face in the pillows.
"-And then he called me Dad!" Bucky looked to be on the verge of tears.
Steve was beginning to feel a very strange sense of deja vu.
"Buck, seriously, he's already embarrassed. Don't make it worse."
Bucky wrung his hands, "I know, but I just- I don't even know what to do."
Steve's eyebrows knit together, "Act normal? He didn't tell you he was a Satanist or something. Whatever." He shrugged, then tilted his head to the side and gave Bucky an evil smile, "Or..."
Peter managed to stay in his room the rest of the night and the next morning, he forced himself to face his parents. He stepped into the kitchen, rubbing his eyes, and then was met with a horrifying sight, "What the-"
There Bucky stood in all his glory, sporting khaki cargo shorts, a girl's college lacrosse sweater, and a baseball cap. On his feet were tattered New Balance shoes, "Morning, kiddo!" He exclaimed cheesily.
"Uh..." Peter looked around and caught sight of Steve at the kitchen table, reading the newspaper and sipping coffee, "What is going on?"
Steve smirked before raising the cup to his lips once more. Bucky smiled brightly, "Whaddya say, sport? Wanna toss the ol' pigskin around?"
Bucky watched in silent glee as a deep blush crept up Peter's neck and danced across his face, "Is this because I called you Dad?"
There was a moment of silence before Steve burst into a fit of laughter, nearly spitting his coffee across the table. Bucky broke character and collapsed against the counter, heaving from laughter. He wiped tears from his eyes and attempted to catch his breath, "Ah, I'm sorry, Pete, that was mean."
"Ya think?" Peter grumbled, grabbing the milk from the fridge and pouring it into his bowl of cereal.
"Hey, hey, hey." Bucky stopped laughing and walked up to Peter, standing next to him. Peter wouldn't meet his eyes, instead choosing to focus intently on his breakfast.
Bucky wrapped his arms around Peter's shoulders from behind, ducking his head by Peter's face, "I love you and I am honored and I promise I am just giving you a hard time."
Peter smirked a bit but still didn't look up, "I love you too."
Bucky grinned, then resumed his fatherly persona, "So is that a no to throwing the ol' pigskin around?"
Peter couldn't help but burst out laughing. He turned around, still wrapped in Bucky's arms and buried his face in Bucky's chest, "Shut up."
Then he hugged Bucky back, "Love you, Dad."
A warmth filled Bucky, "Love you too, kiddo."
There was a thwap as Steve dropped the newspaper on the table, "What am I, chopped liver?"
Peter giggled and released Bucky to go wrap his arms around Steve, "Love you too, Pops."
And Steve didn't stop smiling for the rest of the day.