The Fall

177. Wake up, sleepyhead!

DECEMBER 25, 2019 — AVENGERS COMPOUND — BUCKY

"Wake up, sleepyhead! It's Christmas!"

I open my eyes to see Réa bouncing on her knees beside me, a giant smile on her beautiful face.

'Adorable. She's always so adorable.'

"Alright, I'm up," I say as I climb out of bed.

Réa follows behind me as I head to her dresser, where I grab a pair of sweatpants and a t-shirt.

"What do you want to do?" I ask.

"Well, I have the oven preheating and cinnamon rolls rising in the kitchen. They're actually ready to go into the oven now, so I thought maybe we could do our stockings while they bake. I'd like to save your main present for when we exchange gifts with the others."

"Sounds good. Let me go grab your stocking. I'll be right back."

I press a quick peck to her lips then head across the hall to my room. I gather a change of clothes—jeans and a red henley—then go into my closet and grab Réa's stocking. My eyes land on the fire-resistant, explosive-resistant safe I bought after the destruction of the original compound. It holds the usual things like my birth certificate, passport, and other documents, as well as Réa's new feathers...and eventually, it will hold our marriage certificate and the birth certificates of our children. Those thoughts make me smile and cause my heart to swell in my chest.

'Stop it...you're getting ahead of yourself,' I tell myself, but I can't help it...for once in my life, the future I want is so close and so real—so tangible—that I can see it; that I feel like I can reach out and grab it.

Gathering my clothes and Réa's stocking, I head back across the hall to her room. As I step inside, the aromas of cinnamon, caramelized sugar, nutmeg, and clove fill the air, the warm, spicy combination a perfect complement to the fresh evergreen of the tree.

"It smells really good in here," I say. "If those taste as good as they smell, I might have a new favorite food."

"You're abandoning carbonara? But you put it on my tree!" Réa says, turning to me with a smile on her face and laughter in her eyes.

'God, what has gotten into me?' I think as I fight the urge to just drop to one knee right now.

I don't know if it's the holiday making me sappy—ok, extra sappy—or if it's the fact that Réa is celebrating this year, or if it's just Réa being Réa...

'That,' I think.

...but I'm overwhelmed with the desire to make her mine. Officially mine.

'Gotta wait just a little longer...gotta stick to the plan. Can't propose without the ring, anyway.'

I know Réa doesn't care about material things—the photos of her parents, her with Pepper and Tony, us at game night, and her holding Morgan for the first time excepted—but I refuse to ask her without a ring. I'm only going to propose once, and I have to do it right...for her and for me.

"You alright?" she asks, pulling me out of my thoughts.

I feel my cheeks pink slightly, realizing I've been staring at her this whole time.

"Yeah...you just look really pretty."

'Good save. Cheesy, but effective,' I think as I watch Réa bite her lip and duck her head.

"Thank you," she says, looking back up at me, her cheeks scarlet. "So, the cinnamon rolls have about fifteen minutes left. Your stocking is on the coffee table," she makes her way to the couch as she speaks, settling into her usual spot.