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Bucky started planning early. He met with the higher-ups, the people planning missions and who decided who was rostered over the holidays for on-call duty should any big problems arrive. He’d heard jokes about how the higher-ups took their time with decisions, how they probably went slow on purpose but finally, finally, the permission came through. The clearance for him and Sam to have Christmas off and be cleared of duty, unless another Thanos Level threat arose. And if it did, Bucky swore he wouldn’t need back-up. If anything or anyone ruined his plans they would be sorry.
His plans were simple. So simple.
He wanted to surprise his partner and boyfriend Sam with a trip to his home town for Christmas to spend it with his sister and her family. And while they were there, Bucky wanted to ask Sam to marry him. He’d been thinking about it for a while, and he thought Christmas time would be the perfect time to ask. Bucky had thought of the story his ma used to tell him and his sister of the night their father had proposed. He had taken her dancing and to dinner before popping the question on her parent’s porch while her mom and sisters hid terribly behind the curtains to see if she said yes. Bucky planned to ask Sam in private, so he didn’t feel pressured into saying yes but he wanted a great story to tell people. He and Sam had already discussed marriage and knew one day they would, they had even planned out how they would spend their lives together.
Dating in public for them was difficult but when they were in Sam’s hometown people seemed to let them be when they were out and about. He had the perfect day planned out. He found a ticketed event at a local jazz bar with a group he had seen in Sam’s music collection, they were seated at the back so less likely to draw attention to themselves. Bucky would have preferred somewhere he could dance with Sam, but the club didn’t have space where they were seated. He could work around that and fit dancing in somewhere else. He still had time to plan that.
But for now, he had done it, he had gotten the approval from the higher-ups that they wouldn’t be called on and could safely go on their vacation. Go home for Christmas.
The first thing he did was text Sarah, to make sure they wouldn’t be interrupting any of her plans with the boys and she gave the all clear. He wasn’t sure he would even be able to get flights this late but he was proven wrong again when he got an alert for a direct flight on the 22nd. Bucky didn’t hesitate, he booked it. He booked their tickets and let Sarah know that they would be coming after all. Sarah was thrilled, but he asked her to wait before asking Sam, because he wanted to surprise him on their anniversary of getting together in a weeks’ time. She promised not to bring it up with Sam and she wouldn’t say anything to Cass and AJ until Sam knew either. Bucky was excited because it was all coming together.
(Image of Bucky and Sarah text conversation. Conversation goes:
Bucky: I did it!
Sarah: Did what Bucky?
Bucky: I did it! I booked our flights this morning.
Sarah: I can’t believe this! The boys will be so excited!
Bucky: Believe it Sarah, we’re coming home for Christmas.)
Honestly, Sam thought, fuck adverse weather.
Sam was supposed to be on a flight to his sister’s house, sitting business class with Bucky and sleeping off their last-minute mission on the flight down there. But no. The weather had decided that flying was not happening, and their flight had been cancelled. Sam had been looking forward so much to going home after so long serving his country as Captain America and so suddenly it looked like it wouldn’t happen. Honestly fuck adverse conditions and the asshole who build a weather altering machine that brought on this damn blizzard. Sam was glad they had apprehended him, but still unhappy their flights were cancelled.
He looked at their tickets on the table, their tickets were printed, they had downloaded their boarding passes. And then the snow had begun. It was a delayed reaction. He had been so close to going home. He looked at their bags piled up by the door and sighed. He’d have to send the boys’ Christmas presents by post when things opened up again.
Bucky seemed to be taking it pretty hard. As soon as they got the notification of their cancelled flight he had called the airline and then the Compound to see if they could borrow a Quinjet only to be told no because of the very weather that had cancelled their flight in the first place. He’d left their apartment dialling his phone, he didn’t share his plan with Sam and Sam wondered what he was up to. What he was planning.
(Image of Sam and Bucky’s plane tickets, a set of keys and two phones. One downloading a boarding pass and another telling you to tap a button to download a boarding pass. There is a handwritten note in the lower right corner with Bucky’s packing list. It reads: Christmas Gifts (wrapped), Clothes, Passport/ID, The Ring (most important!) )
Bucky had done it. Sam didn’t know how but Bucky had done it. He had somehow managed to get himself and Sam out of New York, away from the adverse weather and to Sam’s hometown. Bucky had taken their car to get better tyres fitted and driven them out of New York and on their way to Delacroix. At first, in his determination to get there Bucky had refused to pull over and take a break, or to stop for the night. Eventually Sam made him pull into a motel for the night, telling him that he didn’t care if they didn’t make it in time for Christmas. Sam was getting to spend time with his family, Bucky included.
That evening, in the motel, Sam accidentally found the ring Bucky had been saving. Bucky hadn’t noticed it fall from his bag as they carried it into the room and Sam had picked it up to hand it back before pausing when he realised what he was holding.
“Oh, Buck, wait, this just fell-” The words died on his lips.
Bucky turned, his heart breaking all over again because now his final surprise was ruined. They would miss the show at the club and at this rate they wouldn’t make it for Christmas.
“Shit, no, you weren’t meant to see that,” Bucky groaned before spilling the beans on his plan. He show, the dinner he had booked, the late-night walk back to their Airbnb. The proposal. “Now it’s not gonna be much of a story,” he sighed. “Guess things just can’t go right for us at the moment, huh?” Bucky sat on the edge of one bed, facing the other one. Sam sat across from him. A small smile playing on his face.
“You sound pretty sure about that.”
“Sam look where we are. We’re in a motel on some questionable sheets. We should be in our Airbnb getting ready to go see your family.”
“Well I can see one member of my family right now and he needs to quit throwing himself a pity party and ask me something.” Sam told him. Bucky looked up from his lap.
“Huh?” Sam put the ring box in his hands.
“I know you wanted a story and it might not be as traditional as your folks, but we aren’t exactly living traditional lives, so our story doesn’t have to match theirs. When I tell this story to my nephews or even our kids someday, I won’t remember the dingy motel or the unidentified object that was floating in the pool, but I’ll remember my partner who drove me out of a blizzard and through the night until he could barely stay awake behind the wheel so I could see my sister and her family for the holidays. My partner who I love and I believe has something he wanted to ask?”
Bucky grinned and took the ring. “I had a whole speech prepared but I don’t think I can top what you just said, plus we aren’t where I thought we’d be. But Sam, I love you. You make me enjoy the life I’m lucky enough to have a second chance at and I want to spend the rest of my days making you enjoy yours. Will you marry me?”
“Of course I will Buck,” Sam smiled, stroking Bucky’s inner wrist with his thumb soothingly. “I would love to marry you.” Sam leaned in and kissed Bucky, only breaking to help him slide the ring onto his finger. It was a simple gold band, not flashy, just right and it already felt at home on his hand. Sam kissed him again and Bucky pulled him down onto the bed to finally get some rest.
December 25th: 05:57
They may have missed Christmas Eve, but Sam and Bucky pulled into Sarah’s driveway just before six am on Christmas morning after another couple of days at driving. The lights were already on, the boys were no doubt half way through their gifts, but Sam didn’t care as he killed the engine. It had taken them each pulling long shifts behind the wheel but finally they had made it to Sarah’s place and just in time for Christmas.
Sam turned to his fiancé, snoozing in the passenger seat. He leaned over and kissed Bucky’s cheek, “we’re here. We made it.”
“Hmm?” Bucky rubbed his eyes, waking up.
“We’re home and just in time,” Sam said, linking their hands over the central console. “Merry Christmas Buck.”
Bucky leaned in and kissed Sam. “Merry Christmas Sam.”