Narrator's POV

Sam opened his door, dressed and ready for his morning run. He closed his door, noticing the box of food still on the ground with the fork and chopsticks on top. He sighed, but raised a brow when he noticed that the fork's plastic wrapping had been popped opened.

"Hm." A small smile formed on his lips as he made his way through the house and out the front door.

///0///0

Sam came through the door, expecting nothing but silence upon the house, but that wasn't the case this time.

This time, the smell of food lingered in the air and the sound of something sizzling filled his ears.

Sam raised a brow, making his way to the kitchen area, seeing Bucky up and cooking breakfast.

Well this was new.

"Ow.." Bucky got burned by the hot oil that jumped from the pan.

"Uh, what are you doing?" Sam asked.

Bucky turned to him quickly, a little spooked. "I thought it'd be nice if I made breakfast while you were out running...only to realize I don't know how to cook." He admitted.

Sam looked at the half used carton of eggs and cracked eggshells on the counter along with several yolks and egg whites.

A small smile settled on his lips.

///0///0

"Aren't you gonna eat?" Sam asked, sitting on the couch, looking over at Bucky, who was sitting a fair distance away. He knew Bucky didn't eat much due to his strict rule following from HYDRA, but this time he noticed he hadn't even made himself a plate.

"I'm not very hungry." Bucky replied.

His time recovering in Wakanda showed him that he had control over his own body, and he could eat what he wanted when he wanted.

And of now, Bucky wasn't looking after himself properly. He was sad, depressed even, and that lead to unhealthy eating choices.

Sam, being an outsider voice, was helpful; but he choose not to admit it.

"I thought maybe you could teach me how to throw that thing." Sam said, motioning his head at the round leather case leaning against the wall.

Bucky looked at the circular case against the wall, bringing up old memories. He knew he would have to suck it up, that he had to learn to move on.

Friends don't last forever, especially those who had been through as much trauma as Steve. They had grown apart, they weren't the same kids they used to be. Steve chose Peggy over Bucky, and, well, Bucky couldn't blame him for that.

"It's an overgrown frisbee, you'll get the hang of it after you get the form down pat." He said, standing up and leaving the living area to walk back to his room.

Sam watched him leave. He sighed, feeling a sense of guilt when he pointed out the shield. "Okay." He said a little surprised over how quick Bucky changed his attitude after they had just had an enjoyable morning.

The first in a long time.

You're losing him. Say something, but don't make it stupid or he'll just call you out for it and be rude. Don't bring up Steve either.

"Hey."

Bucky stopped in his footsteps with his back to Sam, listening.

Sam knew Bucky missed Steve, a lot in fact. He knew how much they cared for each other after he fought along side them to prove Bucky's innocence. He wanted to say something, just didn't know how to say it. "I-"

What if he said something and offended him?

He knew Bucky was very protective over his feelings, even when he didn't show much of them. Sam sighed. "I think I'm gonna skip the game of frisbee and go out. These past few months have been weird since everything happened." He said, poking at the little left over breakfast in his plate. "Get back into the groove of things." He held back a smile, he felt stupid. "Maybe you wanna come?"

What was he doing? Trying to keep the conversation going? Asking Bucky out on a date? What an idiot.

"What are you gonna do?" Bucky asked. He was going to come anyway, because he knew he needed time out of the house. He had to admit, Sam had been more helpful than he initially imagined.

They got off to a rocky start, fighting for Steve's friendship and attention, but now that he was out of the way Bucky saw this man for who he truly was.

They had a lot in common. Veterans, metal counter parts, even some aspects of their personality were the same.

Sam was taken by surprise when Bucky showed interest in the idea.

Shit, that actually worked?? What do I say now?

He knew Bucky to be more of the stay at home type, so the interest was a an unexpected surprise. "Oh, you know..." He was trying to think of something that wouldn't sound lame. He didn't want to seem boring and plain to Bucky. "Go around the market, the mall maybe... Go see a movie. The park." He said, keeping his eyes fixed on his plate. His face began to heat up a little.

That sounded incredibly plain and boring, but not a bad idea.

His whole world had been turned upside down when he met Steve and joined the Avengers. Suddenly he didn't have time to live a normal life. Chasing bad guys, getting shot at, saving the world from aliens.

He didn't have much time to himself or do things a person with a domestic life style would. "Yeah." He nodded, gaining a little
confidence when he thought about it. He picked up his plate and walked to the sink to wash it. "Normal things people do, you know?"

Bucky thought about the possibility of just spending a day outside doing normal things.

It sounded great, perfect even. It was just a lot of effort...

"Sure." He blurted out, agreeing to it before he could think too much about it and let his anxieties take over. He sent a smile toward Sam.

"Oh, uh-" Sam was speechless.

"After all, I do owe you a new table." Bucky said, pointing out the still broken table.

Sam looked at the table. "Right."

A small smile formed on his lips.

"Okay." He nodded. "I'm gonna take a shower real quick." He said, walking toward the hall that lead to their rooms to grab his things. He looked back at Bucky, watching him for a minute.

Bucky looked so calm, it made Sam happy to see him at ease for once.

He looked away before it got weird or Bucky caught him. "Yes. Okay, this is progress. This is good." He whispered to himself, walking down the hall to his room with a smile.

Bucky only looked up once Sam's back was turned, his sensitive hearing picking up the whispers. He cocked a brow, but thought nothing of it. He went to his room and dressed himself after haphazardly spraying deodorant on himself. He wore long sleeves and gloves, shoved his phone and wallet into his pocket then stepped out into the main living area to lay on the couch while waiting for Sam.

Sam stepped out of the shower not long after, feeling a little more relaxed. He got dressed, wearing jeans and a simple shirt. He packed his wallet and phone. He walked out of his room and into the hall, knocking on Bucky's door. "Whenever you're ready, it's cool." He said, waiting a little for a response.

There wasn't one.

He shrugged it off, walking into the living area. "I'll be in the..." He saw Bucky in the living area. Raising a brow, he looked back at the hall then at Bucky. "Okay." He said. "I don't know if you want to walk there or take the car."

"We can take the car." Bucky said, getting up.

"Alright." Sam said, walking over to the foyer and grabbing his keys.

It was still unbelievable to him that this day was going incredibly well.

He stood at the door, looking back, only to see Bucky right behind him. "Oh, you're actually following me." He jumped.

"Yeah." Bucky nodded, letting out a small laugh.

They both stepped out of the house.

"So I thought we could go to IKEA to get the table, but if you'd like to go somewhere else; that's fine too." Sam said.

"We'll see." Bucky said as the two made their way toward the car.