Chapter Text
The auditorium is filled to the brim with men, women, and children. A dozen large fans are blowing at full speed but it does little to cool off the packed room. Bucky pushes his way up to the third row at Steve’s protests that he couldn’t see from the back. You and Steve cling to one another, scurrying behind Bucky and the path he clears for you. Once you find standing room for the three of you, Steve starts looking through the pamphlet the chorus girls were handing out by the doors while Bucky starts up a conversation with a harried looking woman who’s trying to keep track of her four small children. He eventually offers to take the youngest off her hip so she can help another their shoe. You love watching Bucky with babies. The biological clock that you never expected to ring has been blaring for a few months now. The plan is to wait another year, but you don’t know if you’ll make it that long. Watching Bucky with the sweet little red headed boy on his hip has you wondering if you’ll make it another day without caving in. The guys have never pushed, but you suspect their own biological clocks are ringing too.
The lights flicker twice and a hush falls over the crowd. Music swells from the stage and a line of chorus girls come twirling out, announcing the coming of Captain America. You try not to chuckle thinking that it should have been Steve up there in the uncomfortable tights smiling until his cheeks hurt. This man, Captain America 2.0 you dub him in your mind, appears on stage and the crowd goes wild. The show only lasts half an hour and then Captain America and the chorus girls line up to greet people near the exit. You leave Bucky to help the woman you stood next to wrangle her children into leaving as Steve slips off to use the restroom. It’s silly, but it’s important to you that you meet this Captain America 2.0 face to face. You need to thank him, despite not being able to tell him exactly why. This man becoming Captain America has allowed your little family to stay together. It’s allowed Steve to know a life of comfort and kindness instead of the years of hardship and war he would have lived.
The line moves quickly and after only a few minutes you find yourself standing in front of the looming figure clad in red, white, and blue. “Hi there, nice to meet you.” the man says with a bored tone. He flashes you a smile that doesn’t meet his eyes.
“Hi, you too.” you try to be polite despite his blatant disinterest, “I just wanted to say thank you. For what you’re doing. It really means a lot.”
“Just doin’ my job.” the man shrugs and looks to the next person in line.
Wow, just… wow, you think as you continue down the line to the bubbly chorus girls. He isn’t even trying to be kind to people, just saying the same lines over and over again with no emotion. He isn’t half the man Steve Rogers is and you wonder if this Captain America will ever do more than sell bonds. He certainly doesn’t seem motivated.
Bucky catches up to you as you finish talking to one of the girls. You’d made a little joke about the captain’s attitude to the last girl in line and she had spilled that apparently they aren’t huge fans of him either. You’re not surprised in the least.
“Ready to go home?” Bucky asks, just barely catching himself from taking your hand. He’s always been more tactile than Steve and it’s hard some days for him to restrain himself in public.
You nod in agreement, “Yeah, let’s find Steve and head back.”
“What did you think of the star spangled man? Not gonna run out on me and Steve and join his entourage, are ya?”
You chuckle at the thought, “Never. He seems like a jerk.”
“Never trust a man in tights.” Bucky jokes.
You wander the room with Bucky for a few minutes until you finally spot Steve tucking papers into his back pants pocket.
“Oh, Stevie.” Bucky sighs, pulling the papers from Steve’s pocket before he can dodge him.
“I got one for each of us.” Steve offers weakly.
“They’re $25 a pop!” Bucky squawks.
Steve huffs, “I had a little put aside from that big grocery commission last month, it’s fine.”
“I thought we were putting aside money for a car.” you point out mildly.
“And we are, but come on you two, it’s the least we can do! Everyone needs to do their part and this is us doing ours.”
You wrap your arm around Steve’s waist, you know he only had the best intentions and you tell him that.
Bucky sighs, knowing there’s nothing he can do now anyway. “I don’t know how you fit a heart that big in that little chest.” he says quietly to Steve.
Steve blushes prettily and leans his head on your shoulder. You press a kiss to the top of his blonde head and shoot a smirk of agreement to Bucky. Steve might do some foolish things from time to time because of his generous, caring, nature but you wouldn’t trade him for the world. And thanks to Captain America 2.0, you don’t have to.