The Captain's Husband

46. Smoke Signal (Steve)

"May I?" Ana asks as she appears beside us.

Bucky and I have been mingling and spinning wildly across on the dance floor since we got into our reception, and we finished our "first" dance a few minutes ago.

Natasha, Wanda, and Lorna appear behind Ana, all of them smiling bright.

Must be time for the father-daughter dance.

"Which one of us do you want to dance with first, baby bear?" Bucky asks her.

She grins and looks at me.

"How does some Josh Groban sound?" She asks.

Bucky smiles, "There's our answer. I'll keep the girls entertained while you spend some quality time with our daughter."

He kisses my cheek before letting me go and taking Nat's hand.

"All right, Momma Spider, let's see if you can keep up with this old man," he laughs.

I shake my head and smile as the song changes to Josh Groban's "Granted."

"She's going to strangle him one of these days," I sigh.

Ana places her hand in mine as she says, "I think Uncle Tony would strangle him first, Dad."

I smirk, "Oh, believe me, he's tried, baby girl."

As she rests her other hand on my shoulder, I put my arm around her and take the first step of a dance we've practiced hundreds of times.

"Breathe," she smiles. "You're better at dancing than you think."

I smile back at her, saying, "I appreciate the thought, but I've always had two left feet."

"That's probably because you're too stiff," she points out. "I've seen you at concerts and stuff, and you're totally different. Just think of formal dancing the same way. You don't even have to think about it, actually; just move with the music."

"You're also a ballerina and an incredibly talented musician," I tell her. "Moving with music comes naturally to you."

"Daddy, I think you forgot that you were the first person to dance with me," she smirks. "Pops has told me dozens of stories about you singing me to sleep while dancing around the nursery."

"I would describe that as inventive pacing," I say as I roll my eyes. "I can't dance, Ana."

"Yes, you can," Bucky and Nat tell me as they twirl past Ana and I.

"Can't," I correct them.

"You haven't found your favorite type of dancing then," Ana sighs. "And, honestly, just from what I've noticed over the years, rhythm isn't the problem, it's movement. When you and Pops are fighting bad guys or training together, you trust your bodies to do what you're asking them to do, and you trust each other to duck, jump, kick, or punch at the right time. You've never accidentally swung and hit him, and he's never hit you. You let go and just move. That's exactly how dancing works."

I think for a moment.

She's got a point.

"Maybe I can help," Nat says as she appears with Bucky at her side.

I bring Ana and I to a stop, saying softly, "It's hopeless, Natasha."

"Honey, you danced like a dream when we had our first dance at our wedding on the moon," Bucky sighs. "You've forgotten all of it between then and now."