Love's New Hope

Dinner and Chat

Bucky didn't even start when he heard the door to the apartment open. He was very proud of the fact that he no longer pulled a gun on anyone who came up behind him, which had been a big problem in the beginning, especially with Natasha who was used to sneaking up on people. But now, Bucky just calmly turned towards the door and smiled when he saw Natasha and Steve walk through the door.

"How was the first time out in a while?" Bucky asked cheerfully.

Natasha groaned and flopped on the couch. "Tiring," she responded, placing an arm over her eyes to block out the light. Bucky was a little surprised when Natasha didn't move again and began breathing slowly and regularly, a sure sign that she was asleep.

"Wow," Bucky commented, turning to Steve who had a similarly surprised but amused look on his face.

"Well I guess she was tired." Was all Steve said.

"Well this actually works out perfectly for me." Bucky said, motioning Steve to follow him into the kitchen. "Because I wasn't expecting you, so I just made dinner for Tasha and me. But since she's asleep..." Bucky handed Steve a plate of food. Steve laughed quietly.

"You're just going to give me Nat's food?"

"Hey, you know that new fangled expression "you snooze you lose"? Well she's snoozing so I guess she can lose her food to you." Bucky grinned as Steve mulled over those words.

"You've been spending WAY too much time with Nat." Steve teased.

"Yeah, but at least I get to spend some time with my best friend." Bucky told him. "And you too." He added mischievously.

"Jerk." Steve teased, sitting down at the table and beginning to eat.

"Punk." Bucky shot back as he sat down across from Steve.

They spent an amiable few hours eating and talking, especially about how different things were now.

"So, how are the Avengers?" Bucky asked Steve finally.

Steve shrugged. "Doing ok. Everyone is really getting back with the program. Remember that spider kid from the airport?" Bucky nodded slowly. His memory from that point was a little shady but he definitely remembered that kid. "Well he comes in a couple times a week and trains with us. I think that if he so chooses when he's older that he'd be a great asset."

Bucky nodded his understanding. "Who was that weird red skinned guy on Stark's team?" He asked, knowing that this was the only time he'd be able to pump Steve for information.

And Steve told him everything. About the team and how they worked together, about their habits, likes, dislikes, and anything else that popped into Steve's mind.

"Wow," Steve said finally, glancing at the clock on the wall. "It's getting pretty late." Bucky nodded sadly, knowing that his best friend was going to leave soon.

"Yeah, I guess." Bucky said reluctantly.

Steve was equally reluctant. "Well I should probably be heading back..."

"What about a quick round of cards first?" Bucky said, thinking fast.

"Absolutely." Steve said almost on top of Bucky's suggestion. They both grinned at each other. Whenever they'd visited each other when they were younger, it'd been almost impossible to pull them away from each other, and never before a few farewell rounds of cards.

"So," Bucky opened as he began shuffling cards. "Anyone special you're seeing right now?"

Steve chuckled. "You and Natasha are about as bad as the other one."

"We just want what's best for you, Steve." Bucky told him seriously. "I've got Natasha and she had me. We just don't want you to be alone."

Steve smiled and clasped his hand on Bucky's shoulder. "I know, Buck. But I'm fine. The Avengers are my friends and, quite frankly, it's rare for them to all be gone at once so I've always got company if I want it."

Bucky nodded as he dealt. "And you know our door is always open for you."

Steve grinned at him. "I know you feel that way Buck, but does Nat?"

"Absolutely." Bucky said firmly, picking his hand up, grimacing, and putting it back down. "Is your hand as bad as mine?"

Steve wrinkled his nose at the cards. "Yep. I think you're losing your touch, Buck."

Bucky shrugged as he gathered the cards back up to shuffle and deal again, not even bothering to play that round. "Hey, being on ice does things to a person."

"Well, you were a terrible dealer to begin with so..."

"Oh, you think you can do better?" Bucky challenged.

"Yeah, I do." Steve snapped back. Both of them were barely able to keep straight faces. This was a common argument between them. Bucky would always begin by dealing a terrible hand, then Steve would say he could do it better, but really he dealt an even worse hand before it went back to Bucky, who would deal decent hands that were almost impossible to win with. That was how they'd add almost two hours onto their visit. It was rare for them to not to play their card games and everyone had long since stopped trying to get them to stop.

That's how Natasha found the two young men sprawled out on the table over a game of cards, fast asleep. She smiled and gently kissed both of their cheeks before gleefully hitting the shower before either of them could use up the hot water.

"Perfect way to start the day." Natasha commented to herself as she prepared for a nice, hot shower.
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Hey guys! This chapter was mostly Steve and Bucky, but I thought it was important to show how much they adore each other in the brotherly sense. Hope you enjoyed this and I'll try to get my next section out quicker this time!