WARNING: I would like to apologize beforehand for the intense fluffiness and cliche-ness of the first part of this chapter

★ ★ ★

He only had eyes for her. Despite the countless attention from the dozens of other girls—and even men—roaming the fairgrounds, his attention remained solely on the small brunette happily skipping around in front of him.

Bucky was never one to be in a serious relationship. He was never one to possess such intense feelings for a girl, but something about this girl was different than all of the others he had been involved with, and he couldn't exactly figure out what it was. The only thing he was aware of was that he had never felt this way for anyone before, he had never felt so strongly for anyone before, and he didn't particularly mind it either. She made him feel like he belonged; she made him feel like he was at home. His feelings had even grown to the point of him never wanting to be without her. He was definitely not the clingy type, but he made sure to see her whenever he was able, otherwise he would be at a loss without her presence.

"C'mon, Buck," the brunette chirped as she grabbed his hand, igniting a sensation within him that he had only ever experienced with her. "Stop oglin' and get on the ferris wheel with me."

The sound of her voice alone was enough to ignite a feeling of happiness and content within Bucky. He absolutely adored her, adored everything about her. He adored the melodic sound her voice produced when she spoke; he adored the way her hazel eyes lit up in excitement over the smallest of things; he adored the contagious smile that lit up her face when she was happy; he adored the way her brown hair sat perfectly on her shoulders. She would never believe it, no matter how many times he told her, but in Bucky's eyes she was the only definition of beautiful that existed.

"Alright, Mar," he chuckled as she pulled him along. "I can only move so fast, doll."

Marlena giggled—sending an automatic smile onto Bucky's face—and stopped walking. "I'm sorry, I'm just excited. I've never been on a ferris wheel before."

She spoke nothing but the truth, and that was one of the reasons Bucky had brought her to the fair in the first place. Although her family was wealthy enough to afford tickets to the fair every year, she never had anyone to accompany her as her mother was always at work, and her brother was much too small to ride the rides. She had talked about wanting to go to the fair since she and Bucky met, and he bought tickets the moment they released fair dates. He had received a mild scolding for spending money on her, but in the end she was happy he had done it for her, and that was really the only thing Bucky cared about—her happiness. 

"Well, now you can say you've been on one." He smirked down at her and intertwined their fingers together before pulling her into the carriage the fair worker had waiting for them.

Marlena almost squealed in excitement as she boarded the ride, and Bucky found himself smiling at her once again. He was sure to acquire arthritis in his jaw within the next few years just because of how much Marlena made him smile.

Before long the ferris wheel began moving, and Marlena threw herself against Bucky, startled by the abruptness of the action. He chuckled and hugged her to his side, placing a gentle kiss on top of her head. Marlena smiled widely at the notion and squeezed him tighter, admiring the way she fit so perfectly in his arms. If the choice was hers, she would stay wrapped up in his arms forever.

The two of them sat quietly for several seconds, enjoying each other's presence. But as the ferris wheel continued its ascent, stopping every once and a while to let people on and off, Marlena pulled away from Bucky and moved towards the edge of the carriage, gazing at the view in which the height of the carriage had provided her with. The wondrous view of Brooklyn below had managed to completely enamor Marlena. She had never seen anything like it before, and although she knew the view couldn't compare to what Brooklyn's tallest buildings provided, this was enough for her, and being with Bucky made it all the more enjoyable.

"The view—it's so beautiful," she hummed as she glanced back at Bucky.

He watched as her painted red lips stretched into a smile when she turned back around. The wind whipped at her hair, and she would occasionally reach up to fix it, swatting it behind her ear in a frustrated manner that made Bucky chuckle to himself. No view, not even the wonderful view of Brooklyn, New York on a busy Saturday afternoon could compare to his view of Marlena. She was the only thing that mattered to him, and there was nothing anyone could do to change that.

"I've seen better views," Bucky mused, earning a gasp from Marlena.

"Oh, really now?" Marlena retorted as she turned back around to face him, crossing her arms over her chest. "Like what?"

Bucky smiled and pulled her close to him, wrapping his arm around her waist and placing his free hand on her cheek. "Like you."

She wasn't even given the chance to respond before he pressed his lips to hers. There was a ninety-seven percent chance he was going to need to wipe the red lipstick off of his mouth later, but that was the least of his concerns at the moment. The only thing that concerned him was Marlena and just how desperately he wished for the two of them to have this moment forever.

★ ★ ★

Bucky shot out of bed, seemingly shocked—and a little jovial—because of the dream that was responsible for removing him from his slumber.

He glanced over at the clock on the bedside table and saw that it was nearing four in the morning. He couldn't recall ever falling asleep, nor did he think he was even able to fall asleep. He had shared the same bed with Marlena for the past several weeks, and he had originally been a tad bit wary about falling asleep without her for fear of having a nightmare, but his exhaustion due to the day's events had won the battle against him.

Bucky ran a hand over his face and got out of bed. He quietly ushered his way into Sam's kitchen and opened the fridge, pulling out the carton of apple juice Sam had been drinking earlier. He pulled a glass out of the cupboard and sat down at the table, pouring the liquid into the small container and downing it instantly.

Thoughts of Marlena and his dream were consuming every part of his mind, making it difficult for him to figure out his feelings. The dream made Bucky feel rather happy; his dream was a perfect representation of what he wished and longed to have with Marlena, despite the 1940's aspect of it. But Marlena being gone only made him somber.

He just wanted her back—he wanted her back more than anything. It had barely even been twelve hours since Hydra had taken her and he was already feeling so lost without her. He just wanted to be able to hold her in his arms again; he wanted to be able to hear her laugh again; he wanted to be able to hear her voice again; he wanted to be able to kiss her again. Because of Hydra, though, none of that was possible, and he was more than intent on making them pay for it.

The sound of footsteps caught Bucky's attention, and he looked up to see Steve heading into the kitchen. He gave his friend a small smile and poured more juice into his glass, downing it instantly.

"Slow down there, tiger," Steve chuckled as he pulled a glass out of the cupboard and sat down across from Bucky at the table.

Bucky sighed and pushed the carton over to him. Steve poured a decent amount of juice into his glass and took a small sip of it before looking to Bucky. He noticed the abundance of emotions on his face and frowned.

"What's goin' on, Buck?" Steve questioned. He already had a very strong feeling he knew what was going with Bucky, but he needed to hear it from Bucky himself.

Bucky swallowed the growing lump in his throat and looked down at his empty glass. "I need her, Steve."

"You really do care about her, don't you?"

Bucky nodded and looked up at Steve. "Of course I do—she brought me back, or at least she brought back what she could. I don't see how someone could not care about someone who has done so much for them and has stuck with them through everything."

Steve smiled softly and took a sip of his juice. "She sounds like a truly amazing person, Bucky—she really does."

"That's because she is," Bucky smiled. "Aside from you, she's probably one of the greatest people I've ever met. I can recall doing certain things that had I been staying with someone else, they probably would've kicked me out the door immediately. But she wasn't like that; she stayed with me, she helped me, she comforted me."

Steve could only listen as Bucky continued talking about Marlena.

"I relapsed one night because of a nightmare and actually ended up throwing her into her bed frame," Bucky sighed sadly as he remembered the night, "I fractured her spine, but even then she refused to push me away. She begged me to help her and even made me share a bed with her—she claimed it would help get rid of the nightmares, and it did. It just amazes me that she was willing to put me above herself, even when injured."

"Well, sometimes that happens when a person cares about another person," Steve said to him. "But I understand where you're coming from, and I can't even begin to imagine how awful you must have felt because of it. I do have to say, though, that you are a seemingly different person than you were during our confrontation on the helicarrier."

Bucky shrugged and spun the glass on the table. "I guess I have her to thank for that. Before I met her I was convinced that I was this monster hellbent on killing everything in his path, but when she came along that feeling slowly began to fade away. Marlena never once saw me as a monster—not even when she learned who I truly was—and I think that's part of the reason why I grew to like her so much. She saw me as a person, a person who was lost and needed help finding his way back to himself. She made me feel better about myself and who I was, and it was because of her that I was able to finally accept myself for me and not some brainwashed, Hydra-produced assassin.

"I will forever be grateful for that girl, as well as thankful that she managed to find her way to me. I just wish that I could've helped her like she helped me. She doesn't deserve any of this, Steve," Bucky finished with a frown.

Steve studied his features for a moment in an attempt to uncover the emotion he had been looking for since the moment they left Marlena's house, and when he found it he wasted no time at all in addressing it to Bucky.

"You love her, Buck."

Bucky snapped his head up to look at Steve, surprised with the words that had just come out of his mouth. The words played at the very edge of his mind though, leaving him to question everything he thought he knew about his feelings for Marlena.

He had never in his life felt such strong emotions for someone, that much he knew. He also knew that whenever he so much as thought of Marlena he would began to feel an excessive amount of comfort and security. Marlena had become one of the most important people in Bucky's life, and it had gotten to the point where he couldn't even bear to think about living his life without her. Even now, just sitting at the table without her was enough for him to realize how much he truly needed her. He would be absolutely nowhere if it weren't for Marlena, and he would never be able to stress that enough. She was his rock, she was his better half, she was the light in his dark life. . .she was everything Bucky needed and more.

Bucky would do anything in the world for Marlena, even if it included risking his life and the past he had worked so hard trying to recover just so she could be safe again and remain safe; he didn't care how much pain he would have to endure in order to ensure her safety or even her happiness. Marlena was more than worth it to him, and she always would be. Nothing and no one would ever be able to change that.

"I do, Steve—I really do," Bucky finally answered after pondering over his thoughts. "I'd go to the ends of the earth for that girl. She's easily the greatest thing to ever happen to me."

"I know, Buck," Steve replied, a small smile on his face at Bucky's confession. "I'd almost guarantee she'd do the same for you too, though."

Bucky smiled at Steve. "I know she would."

Steve returned the smile and stood up, grabbing his glass and walking over to sit it on the counter top. He looked back at Bucky, who still seemed to be in deep thought.

"You okay?"

Bucky nodded and stood up so that he was now facing Steve. He looked at his best friend for several seconds before closing the distance between them and wrapping his arms around him. Steve returned the hug immediately, and Bucky relaxed at the feeling of finally being with his best friend again. He would have loved to have met him under different circumstances, but Bucky couldn't deny that Steve's presence made dealing with the situation a lot easier. He had missed his best friend. . .he had missed him so much.

"Thank you, Steve," Bucky murmured as he held Steve tightly. "Thank you so much for being here with me. I don't think I'd be able to handle this if it weren't for you."

"You know I'd do anything for ya', Buck. I'm with you 'til the end of the line, remember," Steve chuckled as he tried to suppress his tears. It had been over seventy years since he had had this sort of interaction with Bucky. It made him realize just how much he truly missed Bucky, and just how thankful he was to finally have him back in his life.

Bucky pulled away, holding Steve at arm's length. "You're gonna cry? Really? I thought Captain America was tougher than that," Bucky teased as he noticed Steve's glistening blue eyes.

Steve chuckled and shook his head. "Captain America is, but that scrawny little kid from Brooklyn isn't."

Bucky pulled him in once more, his emotions getting the best of him. "I'm sorry I tried to kill you. It'll never happen again."

"I don't even care, Buck," Steve remarked, squeezing Bucky as tightly as he possibly could. "I'm just glad to finally have my best pal back."