Chapter Text
'Why am I doing this again?' Bucky wondered, staring at his list. Not that he didn't love Sam, but he wasn't exactly an expert when it came to lists. The last time he had tried using one to dictate his love life hadn't gone very well. To be fair, everything had worked out in the end but that was because Sam was the epitome of human perfection. In any case, Bucky had an interesting past with lists.
This time was a little different, however. He’d finally decided to pop the question. He and Sam had been dating for a little over three years and what a wonderful three years it had been. Sam was his everything, his love, his sweetheart. The other man would probably call him a dork if he ever heard Bucky say that and then laugh. His sweet, beautiful laugh…but Bucky was getting off topic. He had a list to complete. Hopefully, he wouldn’t have to run through all his options again.
Attempt No. 1
Method: Romantic Dinner
Of course, Bucky should learn not to put his eggs in one basket. He had started with a romantic dinner: a classic. How could Sam resist being wined and dined? They had had some of their best conversations over dinner, especially a homecooked one. So, Bucky invited Sam over to his suite and set to work all afternoon cooking. Creamy garlic chicken with a side of mashed potatoes was one meal he was an expert in making and it never failed to get Sam dishing out compliments. Bucky was just putting chocolate cake batter in the oven when he heard a knock on the door.
“Coming!” he called, shutting the oven door. He quickly took off his apron, thankful that he had gotten ready before mixing the cake. He went to answer the door, smiling at his boyfriend as he stepped inside.
“Hey, sweetheart,” he greeted as he closed the door.
Sam smiled, “Hey you. Don’t you look dashing.”
Bucky glanced down at his outfit, a black button up shirt and black jeans. It wasn’t much but the first shirt he had chosen had a stain on it and he had to switch. He was glad that Sam liked it though, especially since his boyfriend looked gorgeous as always. He never got tired of seeing him.
“I would say you look great too, but that’s a given.”
“Stop it,” Sam said, but leaned in for a kiss anyway. Bucky smiled as they pulled away. He never got tired of that either. It was just one of the joys of being completely and utterly in love with Sam Wilson.
“It’s the truth,” he insisted. Sam shook his head, letting his boyfriend pull him towards the small kitchen.
“Do you need help with anything?”
Bucky waves him off, “No, no. Go sit.”
Sam did so and watched as Bucky plated everything before sitting down.
“Oh, my favourite,” Sam said, grinning.
“Slow down, sweetheart,” Bucky teased. “It’s not going anywhere.”
“Shut up. You’re lucky you’re cute.”
“It’s a blessing.”
Sam laughed and they started to eat. As they talked, Bucky could feel the ring box in pocket weighing him down like anchor. His heart pounded away in his chest, anxious at the thought of finally proposing. He had thought about this moment for months. He couldn’t believe he was actually about to propose to Sam. He had no doubts that Sam would say yes. They had discussed marriage before and agreed that they would do it someday. Bucky loved Sam and he knew Sam loved him back, especially enough to make a lifetime commitment.
Back in the forties, he had imagined settling down with someone after he grew out of dating around. When he got drafted, he quickly forgot about those dreams. Waking up in the twenty first century put his life into perspective as he realized how much had changed. After getting to know Sam, he came to acknowledge that he would do anything to make the other man happy if it meant seeing him smile just once. He also knew at that point that he was screwed.
“Bucky?”
Bucky looked up from his empty plate in surprise, seeing Sam staring at him with concern.
“I’m sorry, what?”
“I asked if you want me to help clean this up.”
“Oh, no. Go sit on the couch.”
Bucky stood up, shooing Sam from the kitchen despite his protests. He made sure his boyfriend was actually seated on the couch before turning to collect the dishes. As he quickly washed everything up, he realized that something smelt like it was burning.
Bucky froze for a moment before his eyes widened. His cake!
He cursed loudly, scrambling to open the oven. Of course, as soon as he did so, a plume of smoke began to rise of out of the space.
“Babe, you okay in there?” Sam asked from the couch. His voice became louder as he got up and started towards the kitchen, “What’s that smell?”
‘Failure,’ Bucky thought, bitterly.
He grabbed his oven mitts off the counter and put them on to take the cake out of the oven. As he placed his burnt creation on the stove top, Sam came up beside him.
“Oh, did you forget?” he asked with a wince.
Bucky hung his head in shame, “Yes.”
He felt Sam’s hand on his shoulder and looked over to see him smiling.
“It’s okay. I’m sure it would have tasted great.”
“But –”
“Bucky, it’s fine. Let’s just eat ice cream and watch a movie.”
“Are you sure?” Bucky asked, turning to wrap his arms around Sam’s waist.
“Definitely.”
Bucky nodded, even though he didn’t feel very enthusiastic about the situation. Sam gave him a kiss on the cheek and went to pick out the movie. Bucky sighed as he took ice cream from out of the freezer and grabbed two spoons before going to join Sam on the couch.
“What are we watching?” he asked, handing the other man a spoon.
“Knives Out.”
“Oh, I’ve been wanting to watch that.”
“Me too. It looks interesting. One of the characters kind of looks like Steve.”
They cuddled close together and began to eat the ice cream as the movie started. As Bucky watched the family of assholes prance around on screen, he tried to ignore the ring box burning a hole in his pants. He would have made his move, but the moment had passed and he didn’t want to interrupt the silence they had. He was supposed to propose after serving dessert and see the look of surprise on Sam’s face as he dropped his fork before he could dig into the delicious chocolate cake. It would have been perfect. Bucky looked down at Sam as the credits rolled across the screen. He couldn’t help the fond smile growing on his face as he realized his boyfriend was practically falling asleep on his shoulder, curled up under the throw blanket Bucky normally kept on the couch.
As he ushered Sam into his bedroom, Bucky decided that he would just have to leave everything for another day. He had a list after all.
Result: Failed.
Notes: Keep an eye on things while cooking, especially if baking. Also, ask Steve if he was secretly an actor.