The Captain, the Sergeant, and the Nurse || B. Barnes

Popcorn Strings and Stalingrad

For a second time in her life, Allie woke up in Bucky's arms. She winced at the sunlight that painted the room, shivering under the blanket they were wrapped in. Bucky had his face buried in the crook of her neck, snoring softly and puffing small breaths against her skin.

Memories of the day before rattled in her mind. Had they really done it? Had they really eloped and made a decision that changed the course of their life together? Were they even going to be able to keep it a secret like Allie had requested?

As the thoughts ran a mile a minute, Bucky began to wake. His groan quickly turned into a yawn as he finally opened his eyes. Reaching out and stretching his arms, he wrapped them around her once more. Kissing that very same crook of her neck he had been nestled against, his lips tugged into a smile.

"Good morning," he mumbled against her skin.

"Good morning," she gently turned herself over, facing him. "How are you feeling this morning?"

"Oh me? I'm feeling just fine," he smirked, his eyes roaming her face. "How are you?"

"I'm happy," she grinned. "And grateful."

He just smiled down at her. Taking in every piece of her being in the moment, he felt a relief. Just as he always seemed to do, he committed every inch of her to memory. The way she looked on a typical morning, the way she stretched her arms and back before settling back next to him. He watched the way she covered her yawn with the back of her hand and blinked as her body and mind fully woke up.

"November 13th," she mumbled after a moment.

"Hm?"

"November 13th," she repeated. "That was yesterday's date."

"November 13th," he let the date settle on his tongue, smiling as he looked down at her. "I'll remember it."

"You had better remember it," she teased. "It's a day that's just for us after all."

"Right," he nodded as he thought.

Silence fell over them. It was almost like an extra warm blanket that enveloped them. Neither was certain of what time it was in the morning, not willing to look for a clock in the event that it told them it was time to rise for the day.

The night before, they had made an agreement with the other Commandos that from then on, they would be sharing the bedroom that was reserved for Allie or for another Commando when Allie had bunked with her brother. There were requests from the other Commandos with the agreement being made, all of which Allie quickly agreed and asked them to never bring up again.

He kissed her after a moment, taking in a deep breath as he remembered the day before. Glancing to the door, he brushed Allie's hair away from her face.

"How long do you think it'll take before they start to pound on our door?" he grinned.

"I'd say until after they've all had breakfast," she smirked.

"We could always have ours in here," he teased.

"Maybe when we're home alone Sarge," she patted his chest gently.

As it turned out, the others were quick to knock on their door to invite them down for breakfast. Allie and Bucky assured them they'd be there soon, taking one last moment to lay in silence before they left the room.

That afternoon, Bucky was certain they couldn't have packed and loaded the Jeeps once more soon enough. Somewhere in the back of his mind, while he would remember the day before and marrying her, he wanted to leave France. He wasn't sure how easily he could forget that night that they had been attacked.