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Chapter Text

Tony’s head hurt, but lately that was nothing new. He curled in on himself, pulling his knees up against his chest so that he could wrap his arms around his legs and rest his chin on his knees. The bright colors and flashing lights of the movie they were all watching was actually making his headache worse, but to leave now would be as good as announcing that something was wrong.

As it was, he could feel Steve watching him now that Tony had been moving around. The attention itched under Tony’s skin and made him feel simultaneously frustrated and annoyed. Part of him wanted Steve to actually do something already, but the other half of him just wanted Steve to back off already. The dichotomy only served to worsen Tony’s mood.

Especially since it wasn’t like he could say anything either way. Doing so would probably only make Steve even more worried, which meant that Steve would stare at him even harder, and that would only make things even worse.

So, he kept his feelings hidden as best he could and pretended to be totally absorbed in the movie. And eventually, Steve did stop looking at him and turned back to the movie. That was good… or at least, Tony wanted to believe that it was good. The Avengers had been so busy lately, especially Steve. They all deserved a chance to relax a bit and worrying over Tony wasn’t exactly relaxing.

As it was, Tony honestly couldn’t remember the last time that the whole team had been in one place for more than a handful of minutes. It had probably been at least a month, maybe closer to five or six weeks. He just wished that he could enjoy it more. The awkward tension between him and Steve was getting hard to handle. He felt like they were totally disconnected.

No, worse than that: they were just on completely opposite pages. Both as a Caregiver and Little, and as teammates on the Avengers. Sometimes Tony wondered if Steve even wanted him around anymore. Maybe Steve was tired of him. Or maybe this was just too much for Steve now – maybe Steve didn’t want to be his caregiver anymore because of how busy they all were…

He glanced at Steve out of the corner of his eyes. It was kind of tempting to lean over and rest his aching head on Steve’s lap. Steve might welcome the contact. He might put his hands in Tony’s hair and massage the painful tension away. He might even scoop Tony up and carry Tony upstairs when the movie was over. Then the two of them would be able to have a nice, calm, quiet evening together just the way that they used to…

“Oh, that was so much better than I thought it would be!” Clint said suddenly, and Tony looked around in surprise as he realized that the movie had finished. His chance to put his head in Steve’s lap had passed, not that he’d been fully committed to doing it anyway.

“We should put on the sequel,” Sam said.

Natasha groaned. “No way. Sequels suck.”

Clint made a sound like a buzzer. “Wrong! Some sequels suck, others are works of art. You can’t just lump them all in under the same title!” He sounded outraged.

“Name me on good sequel that was better than the original,” Natasha challenged, sitting up.

For a split second, Clint looked panicked and Tony had to hide a grin in the crook of his elbow. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Steve grinning too. It would never not be funny to watch Natasha put Clint on the spot. But that amusement died away quickly when something much louder than the movie began blaring through the room: the Avengers alarm.

“I guess that decides it,” Sam said loudly, looking disappointed as he stood up. Bruce and Thor got to their feet too. So did Clint and Natasha. The usual enthusiasm from everyone was just a little bit dampened by the fact that they were all tired, but they were still Avengers with a job to do. Tony got up too.

“Whoa, where are you going?” Steve said. JARVIS cut the alarm at the exact moment, so that Steve’s voice rang out through the room. Discomfort prickled at the back of Tony’s neck as all of their teammates glanced over at them, even Bucky.

“I’m going to help,” Tony said, just a touch of a challenge in his voice, meeting Steve’s gaze evenly.

“No way. You still haven’t been cleared after what happened last week,” said Steve.

“Only because SHIELD medical hates me. I’m fine,” Tony said, lifting his chin slightly. He had a headache, that was true, but it was nothing compared how bad the pain had been when it first happened. And his arm barely hurt anymore. He was fine to go out in the field.

But Steve got a stubborn look on his face and shook his head. “No way. You’re staying here, Tony. We can handle it without you.”

That stung more than Tony wanted to let on. One of his deepest fears was that someday, the team would realize that they didn’t really need him around – that Steve would realize that he didn’t really need or want Tony around. It was a fear that he had never shared with anyone else, but he felt like he was watching it come to life before his very eyes. Tony couldn’t let that happen.

“I’m going,” he repeated.

Steve let out a frustrated sigh. “I said you’re not going and that’s it. I meant it – stay here!” he barked, nodding sharply at the others. Except for Bucky, everyone else filed out of the room after Steve. Tony stayed where he was, trying hard to blink back the rising tears.

“Tony,” Bucky said, his voice soft.

But Tony didn’t want to hear it. Without looking at Bucky, he walked quickly to the door and went to the elevator. At least in the workshop, no one could see him cry.

--

Bucky watched Tony go with a feeling of rising frustration. Honestly, sometimes he just wanted to lock Steve and Tony together in a room until the two of them sorted their shit out. Except that was a little unfair, because in this case it really wasn’t Tony’s fault. This time, Bucky was pretty sure that most of the fault was Steve’s. Stupid, stubborn, overly committed Steve.

He sighed to himself and got up, deciding that he might as well clean up the room – clearly, their movie night was over. He cleared away the bowls of popcorn and drinking glasses, then folded up all the blankets and put the pillows away. When the room looked a little neater than it had before, he quickly checked his phone and saw that the Avengers were now on scene.

“JARVIS, is Tony crying in the workshop right now?” he asked, glancing upwards. No matter how many times Tony told him that he didn’t need to do that, Bucky couldn’t seem to break the habit of instinctively looking up to address the A.I.

“I can neither confirm nor deny,” JARVIS replied, which was basically his way of saying yes without actually saying yes.

“Of course he is,” Bucky muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose to quell a rising headache. He had been quietly watching the situation develop between Tony and Steve for the past couple of months, and he’d just been waiting for the moment when it would all implode. He had expected a bit more of a bang, but then maybe this kind of quiet devastation was more fitting.

After all, he was pretty sure that Steve had no idea just how close he was to losing Tony forever.

“Sir has not locked the workshop behind him,” JARVIS added, which was probably the closest thing to an invitation that Bucky was going to get. Bucky decided that he might as well take it, given that Steve and the others might be gone for a while.

Steve had to be really distracted not to notice how close Tony was to his headspace, Bucky mused as he made his way to the elevator. Which made sense, in a way: Steve had been taking on a lot of responsibilities outside of the Avengers lately, particularly with SHIELD and some other organizations. It was all stuff that Steve loved doing, so Bucky didn’t fault him for doing so, but it did mean that Steve’s time was stretched really thin.

Thin enough that Steve barely had time to be in the tower, much less the time to take care of Tony the way that Tony needed to be taken care of. But Tony would never actually say that to Steve, oh no. That would require too much effort on both their parts to have an actual adult conversation. Instead, Steve would just blithely continue on while Tony suffered in silence until both of them self-destructed in their own ways.

“Complete morons,” Bucky said under his breath as the elevator doors swept open. He was familiar enough with Tony’s workshop that he didn’t hesitate to enter. The sight inside broke his heart.

There was an old couch in the corner of Tony’s workshop. Pepper had said once that Rhodes had put there a long time ago in a bid to make Tony actually sleep once in a while. The couch wasn’t the most comfortable thing to rest on, but it was a hell of a lot better than falling asleep bent over a desk, so Bucky had to give Rhodes props for that one. Right now, Tony was curled on that couch. But he wasn’t sleeping. He was, just as JARVIS had not confirmed, crying.

“Oh, Tony,” Bucky murmured, his anger and frustration dissipating rapidly. It was pretty hard to feel either of those things when Tony looked so upset and so miserable.

He walked over to the couch, looking down at Tony for a few seconds. He didn’t know for sure, but he would have put good money down that it had been at least a month since Tony had been in his headspace. For a Little, that was far from ideal. For a Little as young as Tony, that was actually dangerous. No wonder Tony had been scattered enough that he’d gotten hurt on a mission last week.

When Tony noticed him standing there, his eyes widened and he sputtered. “B-Bucky! What – uhm…” He awkwardly trailed off, quickly wiping at his face as though that could hide the evidence of his tears.

Bucky made a decision and held his arms out. “Come on.”

Tony looked at him blankly.

“I’m going to give you a bottle and put you down for a nap,” Bucky declared. Technically he was overstepping his bounds here – he wasn’t Tony’s official Caregiver. That was a position reserved solely for Steve. And under normal circumstances, there was no way he would’ve done this without talking to both Steve and Tony first. But he felt like these weren’t normal circumstances, and that this was warranted.

Tony frowned at that, his nose scrunching cutely. “Um… what?” he mumbled.

Hearing the usually loquacious Tony Stark reduced to using one or two words to communicate hardened Bucky’s resolve. Tony only got like that when he was already in his headspace or perilously close to the edge. At this point, leaving a Little down here all alone would make Bucky the world’s biggest jackass. It didn’t matter that JARVIS could monitor Tony: Bucky was not doing that.

“Come on, sweetheart,” Bucky said, letting his voice soften into a gentle drawl. “You’re so tired, right? You just want a cuddle?”

He kept his arms out, willing to allow Tony to make the decision. If Tony turned him down, then Bucky would coax him upstairs through other means. But he found himself hoping that Tony wouldn’t turn him down. It wasn’t until this moment that Bucky realized part of him was looking forward to this, to caring for a Little again. It had been such a long time…

Tony stared at him for close to a minute, eyebrows furrowed, before he seemed to come to a decision. He hesitantly lifted his arms up in the universal signal for ‘pick me up’. Bucky was glad to oblige, putting his hands under Tony’s arms and lifting him. He quickly had Tony’s slight weight settled on his hip, with Tony’s legs wound around his waist and two arms around his neck.

“There’s a good boy. Let’s go,” Bucky said softly, patting Tony’s back as he headed back towards the door. They could deal with this later. Right now, he needed to get Tony into bed.

Chapter Text

At any other time, Steve probably would’ve thought that the sight of the countryside below the plane was beautiful. Lakes, rivers, fields, forests: he was sitting beside the window so he saw them all, but the picturesque scenery barely registered. He was too deep in thought, and had been ever since he, Natasha, and Coulson had boarded the plane about an hour and a half ago.

Despite what had happened to him, flying didn’t bother him much – particularly when he was with other people. Morbid though it might’ve sounded, it was comforting to know that, if the plane crashed again, at least this time he would be in good company. And honestly, Natasha and Coulson were two of the most competent people that he knew of. So if the plane did start to crash, the two of them would know what to do.

No, Steve was busy thinking about one of the, if not the, most important people in his life. Tony. Normally thoughts of Tony would be more than enough to make him smile. He’d be spending the whole flight wanting the plane to go faster just to get him back to New York a little quicker so that he could get back to his baby boy. He’d be dreaming of the moment when he got to scoop Tony up into a huge hug.

But now… Steve sighed, rubbing a hand over his face. Now he wasn’t even sure if Tony would be happy to see him. It felt like Steve had blinked and somehow six months had gone by. Six months during which he and Tony had somehow drifted apart a bit. Steve didn’t even know how it had happened. Every day he promised himself that tomorrow he would spend some much-needed time with Tony, yet the time just slipped by…

“That’s the sixth time you’ve sighed in the past half hour, Captain. Problems?” Coulson asked, sliding into the seat beside Steve. He looked about as tired as Steve felt, which was really saying something for Coulson. Even his shirt was a little wrinkled, and Steve didn’t think he could remember the last time he’d seen Coulson look anything but completely presentable.

“It’s nothing,” Steve said, straightening up. “Just thinking.”

“About Tony?” Coulson’s expression was both calm and knowing, which was enough to prompt a frown from Steve.

“Am I so transparent?” he asked.

Coulson smiled a little. “Only to another Caregiver. I just recognize that look because I’ve worn it so often myself when it comes to Clint. Want a drink?” He leaned down and picked up two bottles, holding one out to Steve. The brand of cola wasn’t familiar to Steve, but he took it anyway and cracked the bottle open.

“Thanks,” he said, taking a sip. The drink was cold and fruity, tasting like cherries. It was good, but only served to remind him even more of Tony. Fruit was one of the few things that Tony would always eat no matter how fussy he was feeling.

“Are you having some trouble?” Coulson asked. “Tony’s not overworking himself again, is he?” This time there was a faint glint in his eyes, like he was completely ready to march off the plane and go have an argument with Fury on Tony’s behalf. It wouldn’t be the first time, and it definitely wouldn’t be the last time. Ever since Coulson had stepped fully into his role as the Avengers-SHIELD liaison, he had become increasingly protective over the team and in particular Tony and Clint.

“No. Or at least, I don’t think that he is,” Steve said, frowning again. But this time it was at the realization that he didn’t even know if Tony was overworking himself. He assumed that Tony wasn’t, but did he really know?

“Well, that’s good. I was hoping that the last chat we had with Tony about not over-extending himself too much actually stuck this time. But if that’s not the problem, what is it?” Coulson opened up his bottle too, but he didn’t drink from it. He just sat there, looking at Steve.

“For once, I think that the problem is me,” Steve admitted.

“You?”

“Yeah. Coulson, I think I’m the one over-extending myself. I don’t think I should have agreed to work with SHIELD.” Steve hadn’t intended to say that, but he felt a sense of relief once the words were out there.

When Fury had first approached him about working for SHIELD – not as an Avenger, but as a SHIELD consultant much like Tony sometimes did – Steve had been intrigued. Especially when Fury made Sam and Bucky the same offer. Bucky had declined, but Sam was just as interested as Steve was. Sometimes there were just situations where the Avengers weren’t the right answer, but neither were SHEILD agents. That’s where Steve, Sam, Natasha, and sometimes Clint could fill a gap.

At first, it had made for some really fascinating work. Steve had enjoyed it a lot more than he thought he would. It gave him something to fill his time with when everyone else was busy with their own lives and there just wasn’t a lot for him to do at the tower. But slowly, the number of missions that Fury had been sending them on had increased from a couple times a month to every week to every few days.

And now… Steve tried to think about the last time he’d spent a night at the tower. It might’ve been five days ago. Yes, it had been. He and Sam and Natasha had been there just long enough to have breakfast before Fury put the call out. Steve had been planning to spend the day with Tony, but that had gone out the window. He’d barely had time to drop a kiss on Tony’s head before running out the door.

“You know you don’t have to work with SHIELD if you don’t want to. Your Avenger’s work does come first. If you feel that your SHIELD work is encroaching on your Avengers work, you can stop,” Coulson said, pulling Steve’s attention back to him.

“It’s not that. I can handle my Avengers work just fine. It’s my personal life that’s suffering,” Steve explained, and understanding lit Coulson’s eyes.

“Ah, I see. You haven’t had much time with Tony lately, have you?” Coulson said.

“About as much time as you’ve had with Clint,” Steve said. Coulson usually came with them on SHIELD missions, which meant he wasn’t around Clint much either. But it didn’t seem to bother Coulson the way it was bothering Steve. Maybe it was because Clint came with them sometimes?

“We have been busy lately, haven’t we? It’s hard,” Coulson murmured, picking at the label on his bottle. “I don’t blame you for struggling.”

“It’s not me. I’m just worried about Tony,” Steve said, but Coulson just pinned him with a stern look.

“You should be worried about yourself too. Spending time with your Little is just as beneficial for you as it is for Tony. You know that. Caregiver withdrawal is a real thing, Steve. You know that.”

“Yeah, I know,” Steve muttered, mostly because he didn’t want to be subjected to a lecture about it. Honestly, he really wasn’t worried about himself. He could handle a lot worse than a few months without caring for someone. But Tony? He was so fragile sometimes. Bucky was there helping out, but it just wasn’t the same. The bond between a Little and their Caregiver was sacred.

It just made him feel really guilty to know that he’d been neglecting Tony. He hadn’t done it on purpose: it was just something that had sort of crept up on him. And now it had been so long that Steve didn’t even know what to do about it. He knew that Tony had to have noticed, but he wasn’t sure how Tony would be feeling about it. He could be upset, or he could be happy about it – he did complain sometimes that Steve had a habit of being overprotective.

“You know, you don’t have to accept all of the missions that Fury offers. You could turn some of them down,” Coulson said after a couple of minutes. “I know that Fury has the tendency to default to you, Sam, Natasha, and Clint because, even if you’re not there in an official Avengers capacity, you still have the weight of the Avengers name behind you. But that’s not to say that other agents aren’t capable.”

Steve nodded. “I did think of that, but it’s always hard to know in the moment what I can safely turn down and what I can’t. I would feel terrible if I turned down a mission where it really was necessary for us to be there, you know?”

“I know. But there’s no harm in wanting SHEILD to do their homework more thoroughly before they come to you,” Coulson said.

“By SHIELD, do you mean you?” Steve asked with a wry smile. Coulson frequently complained about how some of the standards at SHIELD had become more lax ever since he’d stepped into his new position. Steve usually found it amusing. Not everyone could live up to Coulson’s extremely high standards and he didn’t envy anyone who had to try.

“If you wanted me to, but there are other agents at SHIELD who could do it as well. I’m just saying, if you find it’s too much there are ways for you to pull back a bit. No one is going to get mad at you or think that you’re not doing your job. You don’t have to keep going at the pace you’re going at right now,” Coulson explained.

“Right. I get it. And I might take you up on that. I think I need to talk to Tony first,” Steve said. “For all I know, he might enjoy the fact that I’ve been away more. I know he was pretty busy for a little while there with some stuff for S.I.”

“Hmm, maybe. I think you’re underestimating how much Tony loves you though,” Coulson said. “I think he’s going to be very happy to see you.”

“I hope so. I could use a relaxing night with just the two of us,” Steve said.

Coulson sighed. “I know exactly how you feel. I can’t wait to have the same thing with Clint.”

“You’re in luck. We’re landing soon,” a voice said right behind them. Steve jumped and even Coulson startled. Natasha grinned at the both of them and then sauntered back to her seat, laughing to herself.

“I really hate her sometimes,” Steve muttered.

“Agreed,” Coulson said, making a face.

But Natasha was, at least, right. They were landing within twenty minutes. There was a car already waiting for them to take them home – one of the many perks that came from knowing a genius billionaire philanthropist. By the time the clock rolled over to 7pm, Steve, Natasha, and Coulson were in the elevator and on their way up to the shared floor of the Avengers tower.

“Daddy!”

The deafening screech was the first thing Steve heard when the doors opened. Clint sprinted across the room and literally threw himself at Coulson, who only just managed to get his arms out in time. As it was, Steve had to plant a hand against Coulson’s lower back to prevent Coulson from falling over backwards when Clint slammed into him at full force.

“Hi sweetheart,” Coulson said, so softly and so tenderly that Steve had to look away. It felt like he was intruding. He left Coulson and Natasha to greet Clint and walked into the living room. His heart melted when he saw Tony sitting on the couch. Tony was wearing a onesie and had his favorite stuffed toy tucked under his arm, so he was clearly in his headspace. Exactly what Steve needed.

He walked towards the couch. “Tony! Hi! I’m home!” he said, holding his arms out. Tony looked up at him, eyes wide, and scrambled up from the couch. Steve stretched his arms out, fully expecting Tony to run into them – but Tony didn’t. Instead, Tony turned on his heel and ran into the kitchen. Steve watched him go, confused and hurt.

Why had Tony run from him?

Chapter Text

Bucky was standing at the kitchen counter dicing up some peppers when something – or rather, someone crashed into his legs hard enough to almost make him fall over. He caught himself just in time, setting the knife down and glancing down to find that it was Tony. The kid was sitting on his butt, both arms wrapped around Bucky’s knees, face pressed into Bucky’s thigh.

“What’s going on?” Bruce asked, looking around.

“I think Steve’s home,” Bucky said. He’d been wondering what Tony’s reaction would be to Steve’s return; he had thought that something like this might happen but had hoped he would be wrong. Apparently not. Bucky stifled a sigh. Between Tony’s tendency to avoid uncomfortable situations and Steve’s ability to be an oblivious shit with a big mouth, this wasn’t going to end well.

“Oh. I thought I heard Clint yelling out for Coulson.” Bruce frowned down at Tony, but quickly looked away when the pot on the stove started spitting. He grabbed a wooden spoon and started stirring the chili again.

It was a little hard with the strength of Tony’s grip, but Bucky managed to pivot back to face the counter again. He quickly finished dicing up the vegetables for Bruce and then set the knife aside, wiping his hands off. Only then did he look back down at Tony again. Despite all his experience with Steve, and his recently gained experience with Tony, he wasn’t sure how to handle this.

“I’ve got the rest of this. Why don’t you handle that?” Bruce nodded at Tony as he reached over to pick up the cutting board.

“Right. Thanks.” Bucky leaned down and easily pried Tony’s arms away from his legs, then slid his hands under Tony’s arms and hefted Tony up onto his hip. Instantly there was a pair of arms clamped around his neck and a face buried in his shoulder.

In spite of it all, Bucky’s heart melted. He had forgotten how good it felt to hold a Little in his arms. Somehow, holding Tony was enough to make any fear, worry, or anger just magically dissolve. That was probably why Steve loved having a Little so much too. When so much of their lives were about negativity, it was nice to have something so sweet and pure to be able to come back to.

Or at least, it was nice most of the time. At Bucky walked into the living room and realized that the room was now empty, he knew that Steve couldn’t be feeling too great at the moment. Normally Tony’s greeting, after Steve had been gone for any length of time, was just as enthusiastic as Clint’s had been. Steve had to have noticed the chilly reception.

“JARVIS, where’s Steve?” Bucky asked.

“Captain Rogers accompanied Agents Coulson and Barton upstairs to their floor before going to his own floor to take a shower,” JARVIS replied. “Shall I tell him that you need him?”

“No, that’s fine.” Bucky hugged Tony a little tighter, thinking. Was it better to go upstairs and talk to Steve right now, or better to wait and see what happened at supper tonight? Would Steve even want to talk right now, or would be in a bad mood?

Tony shifted a little, squirming in Bucky’s grip. Bucky automatically held him a little tighter and then, after a second thought, checked his diaper. The expected, wet puffiness that met his fingers decided his next action for him. Steve could wait. Tony had pretty sensitive skin, so it was important to get him changed as quickly as possible to avoid him getting a rash.

“Let’s get you changed, baby doll,” Bucky murmured, walking briskly over to the couch. They kept a diaper bag stocked there with both diapers and pull-ups for just such an occasion. With one hand, he laid a changing blanket out on the couch and then set Tony down.

“Nooooo,” Tony whined, reaching out with both hands.

“Make do with your dragon for now,” Bucky said, grabbing the toy from the floor. He handed it over. Tony immediately crushed the toy to his chest but kept whining under his breath.

With the ease of practice, Bucky ignored the whining and teary eyes and set about changing Tony’s diaper as quickly as he could. In a matter of minutes, he had Tony cleaned up and in a fresh diaper. He snapped the front of Tony’s onesie back together, then reached out and teasingly pinched the tip of Tony’s nose. Tony made an indignant sound and pouted at him.

“No!” he said again.

“Oh yes,” Bucky said, pleased that there were no more signs of tears. “You’ve got a cute nose, Mister. I like it.” He gently pinched at Tony’s nose again. Tony wrinkled his nose in response.

“Mine!” he said, waving the dragon at Bucky.

Bucky couldn’t tell if Tony meant the dragon or his nose, but he nodded regardless. “Yours,” he agreed, cleaning up the remaining mess. He disposed of the diaper and wipes and washed his hands before returning to find that Tony had slid off the couch and was now sitting on the floor, playing with his dragon. He stood there for a long moment, just watching Tony play.

It was an adorable sight, but Bucky was keenly aware that something was missing. Steve. Steve should have been here, either crouched down beside Tony and playing with him or standing there beside Tony watching him. As much as Bucky was enjoying the chance to take care of a Little, this whole situation just didn’t feel right. It hadn’t been feeling right for a long time now.

One of the first things he had learned of upon coming to the tower was that Steve and Tony were a perfect match, and the stable relationship between the two of them was somehow something that Bucky had come to rely on. He liked knowing that no matter what happened, at the end of the day he could come back to the tower and watch Steve have the time of his life taking care of Tony, who flourished under the attention.

He should have done something before now, Bucky realized. No one should have let it get this far. This ever-deepening distance was toxic, and it needed to be fixed before they all crossed a line that they couldn’t come back from. He clenched his hands into fists as the thought crossed his mind. This Little-Caregiver relationship was something that both Steve and Tony both needed to be happy.

Which meant that Tony had to have missed Steve desperately. Well, of course he had. Tony had cried a lot when Steve first left, though Bucky had struggled with figuring out whether the tears were because of Steve’s sternness or because of Steve leaving or maybe both. Either way, that meant Tony should’ve been elated to see Steve come back – but he wasn’t.

So Bucky crouched down next to the baby with a smile and said, “Hey Tony, why didn’t you want to see Daddy when he came home?”

Tony didn’t look at him. He just kept playing with the dragon like Bucky hadn’t spoken, even though Bucky was positive that Tony had heard him. He had to hold in a sigh of frustration. Obviously it wasn’t going to be that easy. Baby Tony was no easier to speak to than Adult Tony, it seemed. He supposed that he should’ve expected that.

“Daddy was happy to see you,” Bucky pressed, watching Tony carefully. “He missed you a lot when he was gone.”

It was almost imperceptible, but Bucky’s serum-enhanced eyes caught the way Tony’s fingers tightened around the dragon toy when Bucky said that. He remembered the way that Tony and Steve had parted and wondered if Tony thought that maybe Steve hadn’t missed him. That was total nonsense, of course, but with the strained nature of their relationship lately, it wasn’t exactly surprising if that was what Tony was thinking.

“He was really anxious to get back here to see you and spend time with you. So I think that maybe you should give him a chance,” Bucky said carefully. “He’s your daddy, and he loves you more than anything in the world. You know that, right?”

Still, Tony did not look at him. Bucky bit his lower lip. Luckily, he was saved from having to figure out what to say next by the arrival of Clint and Coulson. Clint was clearly into his headspace now judging by the purple footie pyjamas that he was wearing. He took one look at Tony sitting on the floor and let out a whoop, bounding over to grab Tony by the hand.

“Tony, Tony! Let’s play Lego together!” he yelled.

“Clint, use your indoor voice,” Coulson chided, following Clint over.

“Yes, Daddy. Come on, Tony!” Clint managed to pull Tony to his feet and over to the corner. Tony went along willingly enough, and Bucky shook his head as the two of them were lost to Legos.

“I promised to help Bruce with supper. Can you watch them until Steve comes down?” he asked Coulson.

“Of course. Go ahead.” Coulson leaned back against the couch, picking up the remote, and Bucky headed back into the kitchen.

Bruce had the chili well under control, so Bucky put the garlic bread into the oven to heat up and then finished up their dessert. He’d made cupcakes, and it seemed to be safest to frost them while Clint and Tony were otherwise distracted – he’d have little hands trying to sneak into the frosting if they knew. As it was, even Bruce couldn’t resist sneaking a taste. Bucky put a hand on his hip and scowled at him.

“What?” Bruce said around the tip of his finger, trying to look innocent.

“I did see that,” Bucky said, trying and failing not to smile.

“I can’t help it if you make the best frosting around,” Bruce said with a shrug. “If you want those to last until after supper though, you’d better hide them. The chili is ready and I’m calling everyone in.”

“Give me thirty seconds.” Bucky whisked the tray of completed cupcakes off the corner and stored them in the highest cabinet, where only he, Thor, and Steve could reach without a stool or climbing on top of the counter. Once they were hidden, Bruce called everyone into the kitchen.

Bucky held him to dole out the chili while the others filed in. He watched out of the corner of his eye, feeling simultaneously relieved and a little jealous, as Tony allowed Steve to help him into his highchair and strap him in. But that wasn’t right, was it? He shouldn’t be jealous that Steve was back where he belonged, caring for Tony. That was what Bucky wanted!

“Alright, who’s hungry?” Bruce said, bringing three bowls over to the table. Natasha stood up and helped him pass them out as Bucky carried over the rest.

“I love chili!” Clint exclaimed happily, clapping his hands.

“Me too. Thanks for cooking dinner, Bruce,” Natasha said.

Bruce inclined his head with a shy smile. “No problem.”

Bucky sat down too, watching as Steve took a spoon and put some chili on it. He held it out to Tony, who frowned and turned his head away. But that wasn’t unusual for Tony: he didn’t always want to eat, and sometimes Steve had to coax him into eating. So Bucky just smiled to himself as he tucked into his own meal, thoroughly enjoying the heavily spiced taste of Bruce’s excellent chili.

Steve kept trying to feed Tony without success, even pulling out some of his best tricks. At last, he said, “Tony, what’s wrong? Don’t you want any chili tonight?”

“No!” Tony said, which did surprise Bucky because usually Tony adored Bruce’s chili.

“No? Then what do you want instead? Garlic bread?” Steve said, furrowing his eyebrows.

“No!” Tony said again.

Steve sighed. “Tony –”

“No!” Tony’s voice grew louder and shriller, drawing attention. “Winter! Want Winter!”

“Winter?” Steve repeated. Slowly, he turned and looked at Bucky.

“Winter!” Tony cried again, stretching his arms out towards Bucky. Though he normally would’ve jumped to Tony, right then Bucky just sat there, frozen. Torn between shock, horror, and the stirrings of delight as he watched Tony reach out to him while Steve struggled to mask his hurt expression and everyone else at the table stared at the three of them.

What were they supposed to do now?

Chapter Text

Dinner was extremely awkward, needless to say. After a few minutes Steve got up and left the table, which left Bucky with the task of feeding Tony supper. Tony seemed much more cheerful once Steve was gone, and that only made Bucky feel even worse. Clearly the conversation with Tony about giving Steve a chance had fallen on deaf ears, and Tony had decided that he didn’t want anything to do with Steve right now.

That technically wasn’t Bucky’s fault, but it somehow felt like he’d had a hand in it. Bucky pondered the matter all through supper but couldn’t come to a reasonable conclusion. Once they were finished Coulson took Tony and Clint into the living room to watch over them, so that left Bucky free to help Natasha and Bruce clear the table. Bruce had agreed to do the dishes even though he had cooked since most of the team had just returned home, and Bucky joined him automatically to help.

“Are you okay?” Bruce asked quietly after a couple of minutes. Bucky glanced around automatically, but there was no one within earshot. He knew that Natasha had gone upstairs to rest and Clint was preoccupied with Coulson and Tony, so he didn’t need to worry about any eavesdroppers.

So he said, “Not really. I feel like I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place. Tony and Steve are both stubborn as it is, but it feels a hundred times worse when I don’t fully understand what they’re fighting about.”

“Is it a fight, then?” Bruce wanted to know, rinsing off a plate, and Bucky thought about that for a second. Maybe fight wasn’t really the correct word. He didn’t know what he would call the tension between Tony and Steve right now – maybe there really wasn’t a word for it.

“I’m not sure. Tony hasn’t really talked to me about it. I know there’s been some tension between them, but I thought things would be okay once Steve came home. I never expected Tony to react that way to Steve… and then he called out for me…” Bucky sighed and picked up the plate to dry it off. He tried not to think about the shattered look on Steve’s face at supper, but it was hard.

He couldn’t help feeling guilty.

“Well, it doesn’t have to be your place to resolve things between the two of them. Steve and Tony are adults. They can figure out their own relationship,” Bruce said.

Bucky raised an eyebrow. “Can they?”

Bruce sighed. “I guess I should say they should be able to figure things out,” he amended. “If I had to guess, I’d say that Tony is probably feeling frustrated and neglected by Steve right now. And I wouldn’t be surprised if Steve is frustrated too. They both want the same thing in the end, but they’re coming at it from completely different angles.”

“And my presence is making things worse,” Bucky said, filling in the blanks. He supposed that made sense. He’d been trying to help out while Steve was gone, and truthfully he had enjoyed looking after Tony a lot more than he had expected to. Or at least, he had enjoyed it but for the lingering sense that he was somehow encroaching on Steve’s territory. Maybe that concern had been more valid than he’d realized.

“Honestly? I don’t know that for sure, but I wouldn’t say that you’re not either. Relationships can be complicated,” Bruce said. “Having said that, Tony really did need you while Steve was gone. The fact that you looked after him means a lot to Tony, and to me.” He smiled at Bucky.

Bucky smiled back automatically, but Bruce’s words didn’t give him any comfort. Rather, they just serve to make him feel worse. By stepping in for Steve while he was gone, he had inadvertently widened the gap between Tony and Steve. He didn’t regret having done so – he’d enjoyed looking after Tony, and Tony really had needed someone – but he thought it was probably time for him to step back. Maybe that would be enough to make Tony and Steve talk to each other.

It would be hard to not look after a Little anymore, though. He’d found more comfort and pleasure in it than he’d expected. Perhaps, Bucky reflected as he and Bruce finished the dishes, it was time to look for a Little of his own. The only problem was that whoever he ended up with wouldn’t be Tony, and that would suck, but he had to accept that Tony wasn’t his to love.

“Come to any decisions?” Bruce asked, letting the sink drain.

“I think I’m going to step back,” Bucky said, looking at Bruce somewhat nervously. “I think Tony and Steve need to reconnect with each other, and I don’t think they can do that if I’m there too.”

“That sounds like a good idea,” Bruce said with a nod and another smile. “It’ll be okay, Bucky. This kind of thing happens. They’ll work it out, you’ll see.”

But Bruce was wrong.

True to his word, Bucky kept his distance from both Tony and Steve over the next three days. He didn’t go downstairs to coax Tony out of the workshop, he didn’t spar in the gym with Steve, and he made it a point to avoid the common floor as much as he could just in case either one of them happened to be there. He ended up spending most of his on his own floor, slowly working his way through the massive list of must-see movies and TV shows Clint and Tony had put together for him.

On day three, JARIVS said, “Sergeant Barnes, if I may speak with you for a moment?”

“Huh? Sure. Go ahead,” Bucky said, frowning down at his pot of noodles.

“It’s about Sir and Captain Rogers,” JARVIS said.

“What about them?” Bucky said, suspicious.

“They have not spoken in three days. Sir hasn’t left the workshop since that night,” JARVIS said. “My repeated reminders that he promised Captain Rogers to emerge from the workshop every 48 hours have gone ignored. When I attempted to let Captain Rogers know about this, he said that he didn’t want to hear it and that I should be telling you instead.”

“Damn it Steve,” Bucky said under his breath, squeezing his eyes shut. Just once he wished Steve would stop being such a stupid, stubborn punk, but apparently that was too much to ask. So much for staying out of it. Obviously Bucky was going to have to go talk to Steve.

He sighed and took his lunch off the stove, drained the water, and set the noodles aside for later. Under JARVIS’s direction, he left his room and made his way down to the gym. Ever mindful of those who lived in the tower, Tony had built the gym with supersoldiers and Asgardians in mind. That meant that every piece of equipment in the gym could take a lot of punishment – which was a really good thing during times like this.

Bucky entered the gym and immediately spotted Steve, though Steve didn’t see him. He was running on the treadmill closest to the windows, staring out at the city. The headphones on his ears covered the sound of Bucky’s approach, so Steve didn’t know that he was there until Bucky stuck a hand in front of Steve’s face and snapped his fingers. Steve startled, jerking back, and nearly fell on his ass.

Honestly, Bucky was a little disappointed that he didn’t. Steve deserved a bruised ass right about then.

“Buck? What are you doing?” Steve said a little too loudly, belatedly jerking his headphones off. Loud music blared out of them for a few seconds before Steve grabbed his phone to make it stop. He looked at Bucky quizzically then, shoving his phone back in his pocket.

“We need to talk,” Bucky said flatly.

“Talk? About what?” Steve said, feigning innocence. It wasn’t a good look on him. Steve had always been a shitty liar. His eyes would get a little too wide and his cheeks would go pink.

“Cut the crap, Steve. I am way too tired to dance around,” Bucky said with a groan. “Why are you avoiding Tony?”

“I’m not avoiding him,” Steve said defensively.

“Oh really? Then why haven’t you talked to him at all during the past few days?” Bucky said.

Steve looked away, staring out the windows again. “I thought you would be taking care of him. He doesn’t need me.”

“Wow, you really are a dumbass,” Bucky said, somewhat in disbelief, and Steve turned an annoyed glare on him. “Don’t look at me like that! It’s the truth. Do you even know how many times I had to comfort Tony while you were gone because he wanted his daddy? Too many. He wanted you and he still does.”

“Are you sure about that? He didn’t want me at supper that night,” Steve pointed out.

Bucky sighed. “He was mad at you, Steve. He was in his Little headspace, so he expressed that anger in the best way he knew how. You shouldn’t take it personally.”

Steve said nothing, just hunched in on himself and crossed his arms over his chest. Despite everything, Bucky felt bad for him. Yes there was a lot that Steve could’ve said no to, but he also recognized the huge amount of pressure that Steve was under as Captain America. People expected Captain America to be a perfect person who could do anything and didn’t always put a lot of thought into the man behind the mask.

“Tony loves you,” Bucky told him, gentling his tone. “He’s just… frustrated right now. He thinks that you’re the one who doesn’t care about him anymore. He might even think that you don’t want him on the team anymore.” He thought back to the night Steve had left, and the look on Tony’s face when Steve said the Avengers could handle the battle without Tony. That had hit hard.

“What? That’s crazy! The Avengers need Tony,” Steve said, looking shocked.

“I know that, and you know that, but I’m not sure Tony does. He was very upset that you told him to stay behind for that fight,” Bucky said.

Steve groaned, running his hands through his hair. “I told him that because he was still injured! I would’ve said the same thing to Clint or Natasha or anyone else who had been hurt.”

“Again, I know that and you know that but I’m not sure that Tony does,” Bucky said with a little smile. “Things just kind of snowballed from there. I know you’re up here thinking that Tony doesn’t want you anymore, but that’s not true. He does. He’s just being a cute little asshole about it.”

A small smile crossed Steve’s face, but it faded quickly to be replaced with a serious expression. “It’s not just me that Tony wants though. He wants you too.”

“Steve, I told you, that night at supper –”

“It’s not just about supper,” Steve said, cutting Bucky off. “Tony loves you too. And you liked looking after him, right?” He watched Bucky with an expectant look.

Bucky’s first inclination was to deny it, but he realized just as quickly how silly that would be. Though he was a much better liar than Steve was, Steve knew him well enough to know when Bucky was lying. So to do so now would be pointless and might even cause Steve to shut down again. That would be pretty unfortunate right when Steve was finally opening up.

So Bucky said, “That’s besides the point. This is about you and Tony, not me.”

Steve snorted. “That’s bullshit and you know it. You’re a part of this now too.”

“I shouldn’t be,” Bucky said quietly, and it was Steve’s turn to sigh.

“Buck, I didn’t – I didn’t mean to make you feel like you and Tony can’t have something,” he said carefully. “I was just… hurt, that’s all. Because it felt like you had replaced me.”

“I never wanted to replace you!” Bucky said sharply, and Steve nodded.

“I get that now. But I was just thinking that maybe there’s room for both of us. I’ve tried really hard to be everything that Tony needs, but that’s impossible. I can’t be here all the time no matter how much I want to be. None of us can, not even you. And…” Steve frowned for a second, then added, “And I have a hard time understanding Tony sometimes even after all this time. You seem to get him better than I do sometimes.”

“What are you saying?” Bucky said. His heart had started pounding so hard he was sure Steve could hear it.

“If Tony was okay with it, how would you feel about becoming Tony’s papa?”

Chapter Text

Steve’s head was spinning the whole time that he showered. He kept going over his conversation with Bucky, trying to figure out any new bits of information that would give him a potential leg up when he went to talk to Tony. He could see now how he had completely misconstrued Tony’s confusing and hurtful behavior since he’d returned, and it just made him more certain than ever that there was definitely room for Bucky.

The idea had flustered Bucky a lot. But Bucky hadn’t been opposed to it. That had been immediately obvious to Steve. Bucky had never been afraid to say no when there was something that he didn’t want to do, so the fact that he had never actually said no to the idea of being Tony’s papa… Well, that meant Steve just needed to get Tony on board and it would be a done deal.

“Alright. Let’s do this,” he murmured to himself. “JARVIS, could you tell me where Tony is right now?”

“Sir is in the workshop, Captain,” JARVIS said. The A.I. had been distinctly frosty towards Steve during the past few days, but Steve didn’t think it was his imagination that JARVIS sounded a little friendlier now.

“Do you think he’d talk to me?” Steve asked, quickly drying himself off.

“Sir is not in a welcoming mood, but he hasn’t locked the workshop,” JARVIS said after a moment. Steve sighed as he pulled on jeans and a t-shirt. He supposed he deserved whatever unwelcome reception he received. Tony’s mood wasn’t going to improve the longer he waited, so he headed for the elevator. The whole ride down, Bucky’s words kept bouncing around in his brain.

”You guys actually need to communicate, Steve. Not just talk. Communicate. The two of you have this weird way of talking at each other and thinking the other is understanding when really neither one of you is on the same page. You have to be way more direct with Tony. You can’t just assume that when you tell him to stay off the field, he knows why. Even if it’s for his own good, you can’t do that without going into detail. Because you and I both know Tony would show up to a fight with a broken leg. His first assumption will always be that he’s done something wrong. He’s insecure that way.”

How did Bucky know Tony so well? Steve had no idea. But as the elevator doors opened and he stepped into the workshop, he was infinitely grateful to Bucky for shoving the truth of the matter into his face. He could tell at a glance that Tony had not been having a good few days. The blaringly loud music, combined with the way that Tony didn’t even turn around to acknowledge him when he entered, told him that.

“Can you turn it down a little?” Steve practically yelled. He was almost positive that it was JARVIS, not Tony, who granted his request, but the music suddenly switched off completely. The silence was jarring after how loud it had been. Were it not for the serum, Steve was positive that his ears would’ve been ringing.

“What’s the matter, Cap? Supersoldier hearing can’t take it?” Tony said. The comment was sarcastic enough to make the hair stand up on the back of Steve’s neck; had he not talked to Bucky first, he absolutely would’ve risen to the occasion and turned this into a spectacular fight. He had to force himself to take a deep breath, knowing that Tony was intentionally trying to rile him up.

Just like an unhappy little kid with hurt feelings, he realized, and in a flash all of his irritation drained away to be replaced with tender warmth that made him want to gather Tony up into a big hug. His poor little baby.

“No, I came down here to apologize, and I wanted to be able to do it without yelling,” Steve said calmly.

Tony was visibly shocked by that. His head lifted and he started to turn around to face Steve before he physically stopped himself, planting his hands flat on the desk in front of him. Steve dared to take a step closer, bringing him to the top of the steps. He knew better than to get too much closer quite yet, but just the fact that he’d knocked Tony off-balance felt like a victory.

He continued, “I’ve been unfair to you, Tony. My schedule has gotten so busy that sometimes it’s really hard to fit everything in, and somehow, without me meaning to, you’ve been the thing that I was compromising on. And that’s not fair to you, because you should be a priority in my life.”

In fact, if it weren’t for the Avengers and Steve’s work as Captain America, he would’ve gone so far as to say Tony was the priority of his life. Tony and Bucky. The two of them meant everything to Steve. He couldn’t bear the thought of losing Tony over this – over Steve being so damn stupid and short-sighted. He clenched his hands into fists and thought about what Bucky would want him to say. What he wanted to say.

“It’s also been brought to my attention that I’ve also been unfair to you when it comes to the Avengers, and when it comes to communicating with you as your team leader,” Steve added, and this time the way that Tony flinched made his heart ache.

“I don’t want to talk about the team,” Tony said lowly, and only someone who knew him well would’ve heard the slight wobble in his voice.

“You don’t have to talk. You just have to listen,” said Steve. “I remember the day we met. You told me that you weren’t a soldier. I know that, I do, but sometimes I forget. I just –” He sighed, crossing his arms over his chest. “Tony, I told you to stay behind because you were wounded. You weren’t okay to go out in the field.”

“I was fine,” Tony snapped. He finally turned around to face Steve, his expression bright with anger. Steve took in the dark circles under Tony’s eyes and the pallor of his skin and felt a wave of guilt so powerful that he had to struggle to keep it from showing on his face. He was certain that Tony was in no frame of mind to deal with Steve’s guilt right now; he needed to hold himself together.

“You weren’t fine and we both know it. It’s the same call I would’ve made for any of the human members of the team. That includes Natasha and Clint,” Steve added before Tony open his mouth. “Please believe me when I say that wasn’t about you.”

Tony stared at him for a long moment. He didn’t believe Steve. That much was obvious. But it took Steve a few seconds to work out why. When he finally realized, he felt like slapping himself in the forehead. Of course.

“It’s not about the fact that you’re my Little, either. Or the fact that you’re about a Little period. I really did think that you weren’t well enough to be out in the field, and I’m not lying to you when I say I would’ve made that call for any of you. It’s my job as the team’s captain to make those kinds of calls no matter who it is. That’s something you agreed to when you became an Avenger,” Steve reminded him.

And finally, Tony’s shoulders slumped a bit and he looked away. “I know.”

“You’re a really valuable member of the team, Tony. You know how much everyone relies on Iron Man. It’s always harder to go on missions when you can’t be there. But I would never compromise your health like that,” Steve said. He dared to walk down the steps, putting him on the same level but still a good few feet away form Tony.

“I was…” Tony trailed off, biting his lip. Perhaps unwilling to admit that he hadn’t been fine, but knowing that Steve wouldn’t believe him if he said he was fine anymore than he had the first time.

“I’m sorry that I didn’t communicate that to you. I thought you’d understand. That was stupid of me,” Steve admitted. “There was no way you could’ve understood because I didn’t explain it. I’ll make sure that I explain my reasoning to you from now on.”

Tony took a deep breath and held it for a few seconds before exhaling. “What do you want, Steve?”

“I want to fix this,” Steve said as earnestly as he could. “I miss you. I miss my baby, but I also miss my friend. He’s kind of a dork, but I love him.”

“I am not a dork!” Tony said immediately, looking insulted, and Steve couldn’t help a smile.

“You are, but that’s okay,” Steve said. “What do you think? Is this… are we…?” He couldn’t bring himself to say the word ‘over’. He didn’t know what he’d do with himself if Tony didn’t want him as a Caregiver anymore.

“I… I don’t know,” Tony said in a small voice, wrapping his arms around himself. He looked small and vulnerable, and Steve had to consciously stop himself from closing the distance between them and wrapping Tony up in a big hug. He could see how much Tony needed a hug though, and it hurt to stop.

“You don’t know what?” Steve prompted gently.

“I thought you didn’t want me anymore,” Tony confessed in a low voice.

“Oh, Tony. Of course I want you,” Steve said, swallowing hard. That hurt. That pained look on Tony’s voice and that whispered confession was going to haunt Steve’s nightmares for weeks.

Tony just looked at him for a long moment without saying anything, and something cold tightened up Steve’s chest to the point where he couldn’t breathe right. Because while he still loved and wanted to take care of Tony, he suddenly found himself doubting Bucky’s reassurances that Tony still felt the same way. What if Tony didn’t want Steve anymore and he just didn’t want to say it?

“Do you… I mean, if you would rather Bucky took care of you, I’d understand,” Steve said, trying hard to sound unaffected by the possibility of that. Again, he didn’t want to put Tony into the position of trying to reassure him right now. He wanted to offer up the opportunity to Tony while putting his own emotions aside.

But a stricken expression crossed Tony’s face, and he shook his head. “No, he wouldn’t want to. He hates me too.” Then, as soon as the words were out, he clamped his hands over his mouth.

Too?

Wait, what?

Steve stared at him. “Tony, Bucky doesn’t hate you.”

“He’s been ignoring me for the past three days. Just like you,” Tony choked out. Tears glinted at the corners of his eyes.

“Tony, oh Tony – no. Baby, no. You’ve got it all wrong.” Steve couldn’t hold himself back any longer. He closed the distance between them and pulled Tony into a hug. Tony collapsed into him with a weak little sob that shook Steve down to his core. He hugged Tony as tightly as he could, trying to figure out the right words to say that could assuage all of Tony’s fears.

But maybe, he realized, there were no words that Steve alone could say.

They needed to talk to Bucky. Steve never should have come down here by himself. He should’ve made Bucky come along with him. Bucky was a part of this now just like Steve and Tony were, and some of the misunderstandings had arisen on Bucky’s part too apparently.

He could’ve asked JARVIS to bring Bucky down to the workshop, but Tony had been down here all by himself for long enough. Steve bent, sliding one arm under Tony’s knees and hefting him up. He half-expected Tony to protest or try to pull away, but Tony curled willingly into his arms. Steve patted his back and climbed back up the steps, heading towards the elevator.

They were going to finish this tonight.

Chapter Text

“Sergeant Barnes, Captain Rogers has asked you to meet him and Sir up on Sir’s floor.”

Bucky looked up in surprise at the sound of JARVIS’S voice. He had spent the last two hours staring blankly at a book that Natasha leant him, reading the same paragraph over and over without truly focusing on any of it. He couldn’t stop thinking about the last thing that Steve had said to him right before Steve went off to have an actual conversation with Tony.

“If Tony was okay with it, how would you feel about becoming Tony’s papa?”

It was a question that Bucky had never thought that he would be asked. Now that he had, he genuinely wasn’t sure how to put his feelings about the situation into words that would make sense. He wanted it, but… at the same time he was afraid to want it. Afraid that Tony wouldn’t want it. Afraid that he would somehow overstep. Afraid that he’d end up intruding and things would fall apart…

“Sergeant Barnes?” JARVIS prompted gently. “Shall I tell the captain that you’re otherwise occupied?”

“No! No. I’m okay.” Bucky closed his book and set it aside, standing up. His heart was beating faster in a weird mix of anticipation and nerves as he left his room and headed for the elevator. He supposed it was a good sign that he was meeting both Steve and Tony, but he was a little surprised that they weren’t taking some time to themselves.

JARVIS helpfully whisked him up to the penthouse the moment Bucky stepped into the elevator. As the doors opened, Bucky nervously stepped out. He spotted Steve and Tony immediately. Steve was sitting on the couch with Tony in his lap. Tony was curled up with his face hidden against Steve’s shoulder. Steve had one arm wrapped around Tony’s waist while his free hand rubbed Tony’s back.

“Ah, Buck, there you are,” Steve said, looking pleased when he saw Bucky step out. “Come over here, would you? We have a small problem.”

“A problem?” Bucky repeated, confused as he walked towards them.

Steve nodded. “Seems that Tony here thinks that we both hate him.” His expression faded into a more somber look as Bucky stopped cold in shock.

“We hate him?” Bucky repeated again, completely baffled as to how Tony had arrived at that conclusion. He’d known that Steve and Tony were having some problems, and he could kind of understand how Tony might think that Steve didn’t like him anymore, but how on earth could he think that Bucky hated him?!

“Yes, because we’ve both been avoiding him,” Steve said, this time with a significant look. In Steve’s arms, Tony sniffed and tried to curl deeper into Steve.

“Oh,” Bucky said dumbly, suddenly feeling incredibly stupid. Of course that was the conclusion that Tony had jumped to. Tony Stark was one of the most insecure people that Bucky had ever met. Bucky didn’t have any proof about it, but he was almost positive that they had Howard Stark to “thank” for that. Bucky had never liked Howard, but now he absolutely hated the asshole.

“I was trying to explain to Tony that that wasn’t true, but I knew he wouldn’t believe it coming just from me. So I thought it would be better if we came up here and had you join us so that you could talk to Tony too,” Steve told him.

“Right. Got it.” Bucky walked the rest of the way to the couch and sat down beside Steve, putting him within easy reach of Tony. After a few seconds of thought, he reached out and put his hand on Tony’s arm. Tony trembled a bit at the touch but didn’t pull away.

“You see, Tony, we wouldn’t be here if we hated you,” Steve said softly. “I think all three of us screwed up. We weren’t really communicating. We were all just making a lot of assumptions about what everyone else thought.”

“I agree. I don’t hate you, Tony. I could never hate you,” Bucky said. “I was just trying to give you and Steve some space so you could clear things up. I thought that maybe my presence was making things harder. I didn’t want it to seem like I was trying to take over Steve’s place. I’m sorry.”

Tony sniffed again and finally looked up at Bucky. Bucky’s heart twisted when he saw how wrung-out Tony looked. He immediately wanted to get some food into Tony and then put him to bed for at least twelve hours.

“It’s okay,” Tony mumbled finally. “I guess I just jumped to some conclusions. M’sorry.”

The words were spoken so quietly that even Bucky, with his super-soldier hearing, had to strain to hear it. He knew what that meant and exchanged another look with Steve. When Tony was getting close to his headspace but still actively trying to fight it, he tended to talk so softly that it was hard to hear him. And when he went down hard, there would be whole days in his headspace where he didn’t talk at all.

“Tony…” Steve trailed off and sighed, like he wasn’t sure how to put what he was thinking into words.

“I think that we all need to have a long talk about how we communicate with each other,” Bucky said carefully. “Tony isn’t the only one who jumped to some conclusions here. But I also think that maybe that can wait for tomorrow. Maybe today should just be spent resting.”

“What do you think about that?” Steve asked, and it was clear he was talking to Tony.

Tony mulled this over for a moment before looking at Bucky. “You too?”

“Yeah, sweetheart, me too,” Bucky said, his heart flip flopping again. He didn’t know how he could’ve ever thought he could walk away from Tony after having cared for him for even a little while. There was something about Tony Stark that Bucky just couldn’t describe, but no one could worm their way into your heart faster.

“Then yeah,” Tony whispered, eyes fluttering shut. His head sank down onto Steve’s shoulder like it was just too much for him to hold it up any longer, and Steve made a little sound like someone had punched him in the chest.

“Go get him ready for bed,” Bucky said, reluctantly taking his hand off of Tony’s arm. He wanted to change Tony himself, but he knew that Steve and Tony needed a few minutes alone to reconnect.

Steve shot him a grateful look. “Thank you, Buck,” he said.

“No problem. Go,” Bucky said, nudging Steve’s arm, and Steve got up and carried Tony into the bedroom. Bucky watched them go, then sighed and stood up. If he couldn’t help with getting Tony changed, then he could at least make himself useful. He went into the kitchen to prepare a bottle.

JARVIS was open about the fact that it had been a while since Tony had eaten, so Bucky mixed some milk together with some of the high-calorie protein milkshakes they kept on hand for moments just such as these. He didn’t think the likelihood of getting Tony to actually eat something was high, but Tony usually took bottles easily – especially a bottle flavored with strawberry.

That done, he stashed the bottle on the counter and looked around. Tony might not eat, but that didn’t mean Steve and Bucky wouldn’t have to. He opened up the fridge and stared inside for a moment. There really wasn’t much, which wasn’t surprising given that Tony tended to eat on the common floor or on Steve’s floor for the most part. Bucky sighed.

“JARVIS, what are Steve and Tony doing?” he asked. “Have I got a couple minutes to run down to Stevie’s floor?”

“I would say yes, Sergeant Barnes. The Captain and Sir should be preoccupied for at least another ten minutes,” JARVIS replied.

“Great, thanks.” Bucky returned to the elevator, which took him down to Steve’s floor. He found a bunch of take-out leftovers in Steve’s fridge, which Steve had been trying to hide from Clint and Natasha no doubt. Bucky loaded himself up with as much as he could carry and headed back to the elevator.

He emerged back onto Tony’s floor to find the area still quiet. He took the extra time to lay the food out on the coffee table and, with JARVIS’s direction, fetch some blankets from the nearby closet. He piled the blankets on the couch and then sat down himself, absently shaking Tony’s bottle to make sure that the contents inside remained mixed. He was just in time: the bedroom door opened a moment later and Steve and Tony emerged.

“Ravaged my fridge, I see,” Steve remarked, but he was smiling a bigger smile than Bucky had seen on his face in weeks. He had his arms wrapped around Tony, who was now dressed much more comfortably in a red onesie.

“I figured you’d be hungry. You’re welcome,” Bucky said, unrepentant. He started to handle Steve the bottle, but Steve stopped him with a shake of his head.

“You’re right, I am hungry. Starving, actually. I was hoping you could give Tony his bottle while I have something to eat,” Steve said, trying hard to sound casual.

Bucky narrowed his eyes. “Steve,” he said warningly, well aware that neither of them had actually talked to Tony about Bucky remaining as his other Caregiver. That could be something that Tony was totally uncomfortable with even if he had asked Bucky to stay.

“It’s okay. Tony asked me to ask you,” Steve said. If his smile got any wider, he was going to break his jaw. He was practically glowing with happiness and radiating smugness. And Bucky knew that he was telling the truth. Steve wasn’t anywhere near the squeaky clean boy the media tried to make him out to be – he could lie with the best of them – but Steve would never like about something like this.

This was too important.

“Oh… well… sure.” Bucky swallowed hard and leaned backwards, grabbing a pillow for Tony to lean against. Steve bent down and carefully laid Tony in Bucky’s lap. Then he grabbed a blanket and draped it over the two of them, tucking in the edges to make sure that Tony stayed warm.

Tony leaned comfortably against Bucky’s shoulder, looking up at him with half-lidded eyes. He was definitely fully in his headspace now. Bucky smiled down at him, feeling a swell of warm affection that seemed to light him up from head to toe. It was a good feeling. An addictive feeling. He brought the bottle to Tony’s lips and watched as Tony latched on.

Steve sat down beside them with a couple cartons of take-out, watching them. Bucky wondered if Steve would be a bit jealous, since he hadn’t had the chance to give Tony a bottle for a while, but Steve looked totally relaxed and content watching them together. That was a good feeling too. It was a good sign that Steve wasn’t see Bucky as competition right now, but as a partner.

“What do you think?” Steve said after several minutes had passed. Tony was pretty much done with the bottle. Bucky passed it off to Steve and then put Tony to his shoulder, patting his back firmly. He thought about it as Tony burped, thought about them as he laid Tony back down in his arms, and finally nodded.

“Yeah. I think we could all work,” he said.

Steve beamed. “I think we could too. We can all talk about it more firmly tomorrow, but for now… congrats, Papa.”

Bucky rolled his eyes, trying to hide how the nickname made his heart flutter, and looked down at Tony as Tony let out a contented sigh and closed his eyes. As he fell asleep, Steve picked up the remote and turned the television on for them to find something to watch – quietly, of course. It was the most peace that any of them had had for a while, and Bucky felt hopeful that it would last.