Music is "Still Falling For You" by Ellie Goulding.

Picture is Sebastian Stan as Bucky Barnes (because you needed this picture in your life.)

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CHAPTER FOURTEEN: Old Style Love

{April 4, 2018 -- Present Day}

W A K A N D A

"You're going to want to change into your bathing suit before we leave the city."

"What, why?"

"Just trust me, Bucky. You might want to also remove your makeup."

"Oh, that's hilarious! Very funny, Doll."

As the sun looms above our heads, a clear sign that it's past noon, I lead Bucky down the path towards the waterfalls. What most people outside of Wakanda don't know is that this country is rich with natural wonders, not just vibranium. There are waterfalls and rivers and lakes everywhere you turn. Just outside the city, not far from where we had our movie, is a small waterfall that I've visited a few times in the past month. It's secluded and private, away from the city and most people.

To get there, we trek through the thick brush of the Wakandan wilderness. Trees and shrubs and vines fill the area, even crossing into the barren path that leads to the falls. The sounds of nature fill our ears: animal cries, insect chirps, and flowing water.

When we break through to the falls and fresh-water pond below it, there's no mistaking it. The sunlight streams through the brush overhead, hitting the crystal clear water at the perfect angle. The water crashing over the rocks, creating the twenty-foot waterfall, glitters like diamonds. The pool of water is as big as a swimming pool. Huge tree limbs stretch over parts of the lagoon, giving both shade and a place to sit and stare at the blue expanse.

My grin grows wide, and I turn to Bucky with excitement. "See? I told you it was the right idea to change."

Bucky looks at the falls with amazement, a slow smile spreading across his face. "Well, what are we waiting for?" Bucky, without shedding the clothes he'd put back on over his swimwear, runs straight into the water.

I burst into laughter as Bucky turns back around to face me with a grin on his face. "You're an idiot, you know that?"

Bucky shrugs. "I've been called worse." He waves his hand towards me. "C'mon, Doll. It's warmer than it looks."

I scoff, pulling at the hem of my shirt. "I am not ruining my clothes, James, unlike someone I know."

As I tug the skirt and blouse off of the one-piece swimsuit I put on underneath, Bucky rolls his eyes. "You can buy another skirt, Emma."

Carefully, I place my clothes into my bag and place the bad at the base of a nearby tree. I motion towards him. "Throw me your clothes, and I'll hang them up. Hopefully, they'll be dry in an hour or so."

Bucky gives a cocky grin and throws a wink in my direction as he does what I say, though it's a struggle due to the fact that his clothes are soaked and he has one arm to get them off. "If you wanted to get me naked, there are easier places to do it, Doll."

"Oh my god, you are impossible."

Bucky cackles mischievously and struggles to get the shirt over his head with one arm. "This is a lot harder than it looks."

I scoff, "Well, that's your own bloody fault." I roll my eyes as I catch the shirt and trousers he tosses towards me. "See, aren't you glad you listened to me and put your swimwear under your trousers? It would be even more difficult to get those on."

"Maybe."

"James Buchanan Barnes," I warn, turning my back towards him as I tread out of the ankle-deep water to drape his clothes over a tree limb, leaving them in the sunlight to dry. "If they shrink, it's your fault."

Bucky extends his hand towards me as I turn back to him. "I'm sorry. It won't happen again, promise."

I shake my head and laugh as I step back into the water. Bucky was right; it is warmer than it looks. I push forward grabbing his hand as the water reaches my stomach. "You know, all the times I've been here, I've never gotten in the water."

"I'm glad," he replies. "It's really nice."

I give him a playful smile, threading my fingers through his. "Was that a compliment? A non-sexual innuendo compliment?"

Bucky rolls his eyes. "I got those, too, if you want 'em."

I release his hand and step backwards. "Oh, no. I'm good."

"Good? I'd say you're pretty great."

"Awww, so sweet." I put my hands down in the water, quickly flicking my wrists upwards the fire a thin spray of water at Bucky. He raises his hands, too late, to defend himself. The water covers his face, dampening his hair. "I'm sorry, did that scare you, Bucky Bear?"

Bucky looks at me with a glare, recalling the playful nickname the Howling Commandos called him as a joke. "Call me that again and you're gonna get it, Emma Jane."

I stick my tongue out at him, a huge grin on my face as I splash him again. "Try me, Bucky Bear!"

Bucky's face turns into a devious smirk. I stop splashing and begin to back up, my movements slowed by the water. "You asked for it!" he exclaims.

As he lunges for me, I continue to back away. "No!" I squeal as he catches up to me, wrapping his right arm around my middle. He pulls me up and over his shoulder, carrying me from the shallows to the deep water. "If you throw me in the water, I will bloody kill you, James. I am not kidding."

A deep laugh reverberates in Bucky's chest. "Oh, don't worry, Doll. I'd never throw you." Just as I breathe a sigh of relief, Bucky adds something to his statement. "You might wanna hold your breath, though."

Before I have the chance to freak out or ask why, I do as he says. Not too soon, either, for Bucky stops swimming in the deep end of the falls. We sink under the surface, completely submerged in the warm water. I open my eyes as Bucky lets me go. I swim back a foot or so, scowling at him even as we swim under the water.

When I resurface for air, Bucky follows soon after me. I shove him by his shoulder, though laughing and smiling. "You'd better be bloody glad that I took my makeup off before we got in the water, James."

Bucky laughs, throwing his head back as his eyes narrow. "That would've been hilarious."

"For you!"

Bucky swims closer, leaning in to press a quick kiss to my cheek. "You're adorable, you know that?"

I tap my chin, pretending to think it over. "I think I've been told something similar, yes."

He shakes his head, water droplets falling from the long locks that have pulled themselves out of the low ponytail.

I swim forward, gesturing for him to turn around. "Your hair is a mess," I laugh as he does as I say. Slipping the hair-tie from the mess the water created, I fix his hair back into a proper, low bun. "There, isn't that better?"

Bucky turns back around, slipping his arm gently around my waist. He brings his face close to mine. My arms instinctively wrap around his neck, moving me nearer. We both lean in, close our eyes, and let our lips meet.

This is far from the first time that we've kissed since Bucky came out of the ice two days ago. We've exchanged many over the time we've spent together. But they've all been gently and slow and reserved. I haven't pushed him, and he hasn't pushed me. We've taken our time getting to know each other again, even though we know each other better than anyone else. Still, things have changed since we were younger. We're not idiots, we know that.

But this kiss just proves that time is nothing when it comes to Bucky and I. He kisses me the way he used to: warm and kind and passionate. It's the kind of kiss that takes my breath away, every single time. It's the kiss that makes me smile and pull him closer, only to have us both end up laughing and gasping for air.

Things have changed, and Peggy was right when she said none of us can go back. She was also right when she said that the best thing we can do is start over. This day, our first anniversary together, is us starting over. We have all our lives ahead of us, and I wouldn't miss it for the world.

I pull back from my husband with a big grin on my face. Bucky leans his forehead against mine with a similar expression on his face. Both our chests heave from lack of oxygen, but I doubt either of us mind. After a few seconds, he leans in again and presses a gentler version of that kiss to my lips.

"I love you," he whispers, pulling back a few inches. "You know that, right?"

"Oh, I do," I reply softly, earning a smile from him. "I love you, too, Darling."

Bucky leans in again, but this time I duck out of his embrace and into the water below. I swim away a few feet before resurfacing, looking back at a very confused Bucky. "What the hell?"

"Race you to the waterfall!" I exclaim.

Bucky's grin returns. "If I win, do I get a prize?"

I flash him a wink and start swimming. "If you win, maybe you'll find out."

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We stay in the water until just before sunset. It's not entirely safe to be out past dark in the jungles of Wakanda, but what could really hurt the man who was the Winter Soldier and the woman who will never die? As the sun starts to set, we find a place to sit on the largest tree branch that extends over the lagoon. Our feet dangle off the side, and we're wrapped in the picnic blanket I kept in my bag.

"This was amazing," Bucky tells me in a calming sigh.

I lean into his right side under the blanket. His arm tightens around my waist. "I'm really glad you enjoyed it," I reply, a smile on my face. "You deserved a little bit of normal, especially today."

"It's the perfect gift," he chuckles. "I only wish I had something to give you. I didn't know it was gonna be this close to our anniversary when I woke up."

I straighten and turn to look at him. "Bucky, no physical object could make today better. I just want you. You're a gift enough."

Bucky's eyes meet mine, and he nods, reassured. We turn to stare out at the waterfall, taken-in by the light show that the sunset displays. "What's ahead for us, Emma?"

"What do you mean?"

"I mean, after we recover," he clarifies. "After Shuri finds you and Grant a cure. What then?"

I heave a heavy sigh, resting my forehead against his bare shoulder. "I don't know, Darling. I really don't."

"We can't go back to Brooklyn," whispers Bucky. "I know that."

"The government wouldn't let us get close," I agree, playing with the edge of my swimsuit to distract me. "Enhanced are supposed to sign the Sokovia Accords. Not to mention you're a wanted criminal."

"So are you," Bucky reminds me with a scoff. "Aiding and abetting a serial killer, remember?"

I roll my eyes, bitterness in my response. "You're no bloody serial killer, Bucky. Americans are idiots, what can I say?"

"I'll pretend I didn't hear that," Bucky laughs, then his tone gets serious again. "I'm not even sure Brooklyn is home anymore, anyway. All that time in Siberia, all those years away from New York, do I even have the right to call it home anymore? I wasn't born there. I haven't lived there in decades. I haven't even seen in since...I can't even remember when."

"Home is wherever you make it. Home is where the people you love are. I've learned that much over my lifetimes."

"Home can be wherever, then." Bucky's hand rubs circles on my arm as he thinks. "We could always go to Paris, like we planned, remember? I promised you we'd get hitched in front of the Notre Dame Cathedral. I didn't keep that promise because Paris was under siege in '44, but maybe now we can try again."

"France has a terrible extradition treaty with the United States," I laugh. "It's part of the reason why I picked it."

Bucky turns to look at me with a smirk. "That's my girl. What was the other reason?"

"Reasons," I correct. "My father was French, and we promised to get married there. Even though we never did, it reminded me of you. If I couldn't stay in Brooklyn, I wanted to be somewhere else where we could've been together. For me, France was perfect."

Bucky sighs, pressing a gentle kiss to my wet hair. "Look, we don't have to make a choice anytime soon. Hell, we can stay in Wakanda forever if you want to. I like it here. A lot. But if we ever wanted to stretch our wings and fly somewhere else, somewhere no one knows our names, just know I'd be more than happy to do that with you."

I wrap my arms around Bucky's middle, hugging him to me as we sit over the lagoon. "As long as we're together, I don't care where we are."

END CHAPTER FOURTEEN: Old Style love.