Those Who Fall: Falling Series 3 (Modern Domestic Stucky AU)

Forty-Four

Eventually, Steve pulled away from Bucky and took Holly. Just needing something to do, he decided that she didn't need to be around all of that. So, he carried her downstairs. Getting emotional seeing the family photos and class portraits with their many foster kids on the floor instead of hanging on the wall where they belonged.

"Watch out for glass," Steve cautioned the others.

Nuzzling against Holly's red curls, Steve held her closer while tears rolled down his cheeks. All Steve wanted to do was lay down in his bed. To wake up and realize that all of this was just some elaborate nightmare. That he'd wake up and find all of their kids in the kitchen enjoying a nice pumpkin spice breakfast.

Pushing the door open, Steve sagged. Drawers were ripped completely from the dresser. Clothes were strewn about. Their pillows were torn open. Even their bedframe was broken. Steve wasn't even sure how that could happen. And when he noticed the slurs spray painted along the walls, Steve turned Holly's head into the crook of his neck as though she could read.

Sighing, Steve decided to check for other damages. Walking into the closet he found the clothes pulled off their hangers and thrown on the floor. Some of them were ripped and burned. Their important documents were pulled from the file cabinet and thrown about. Even some of those looked charred, and Steve knew that they were going to have to get new ones.

Entering the bathroom, toilet paper was strung about and tossed around. The shaving cream was sprayed over the mirror and the little ceramic pumpkin that would hold their jewelry, was smashed.

Holly started fussing, and Steve bounced her on his hip. Softly, Steve sang, "You are my sunshine. My only sunshine. You make me hap--"

"Papa!" Sophia popped out of the bathroom linen closet from behind the clothes hamper, nearly scaring Steve to death.

However, knowing that Sophia was okay, Steve dropped to his knees, so he could look over her body for any wounds. And when Ethan followed, stepping over the towel rack that had been ripped out of the wall, Steve examined him as well.

So happy that they were okay, Steve cried and brought them close. As close as he could while still holding Holly, at least. Sniffling, Steve called out, "I FOUND SOPHIA AND ETHAN!"

Footsteps were heard as they crossed the floor over from the living room for the staircase. Steve looked over Ethan and noticed that he wasn't wearing his hearing aids. Steve signed while also verbally asking, "Are you okay?"

With a wobbly lower lip, Ethan lunged forward to wrap his arms around Steve's neck. Kissing the side of his head, Steve rubbed his back and asked Sophia, "Are you okay?"

Sniffling, Sophia said, "Mimi said to come in here and hide, and not come out until she came to get us."

Steve's chest constricted and he clenched his jaw to hold back his own tears. Steve confirmed, "Mimi was right. And you and Ethan are very brave, and listened very well. I'm so proud of you."

Rounding the corner, Bucky led the police through the wrecked bedroom, messy closet, and finally into the tped bathroom. Immediately, Bucky dropped to his knees and hugged each of the kids. Tears silently raced down Bucky's face before he pulled back to look over the kids.

"These are the kids that were presumed missing, correct?" the officer questioned looking over the kids.

"Correct," Steve confirmed, wiping the tears from his own face. Briefly distracted by the other officers who came into the bathroom to take pictures of the destruction.

Pulling back, Bucky amended, "Two of the kids. Our foster daughter, Wanda, is still missing. She's seventeen, 5'6", dark brown hair, light brown complexion, of Romani descent, and she's pregnant."

"The bad people took her," Sophia said, looking up at the muscular officer.

Fear froze Steve straight to his core. Looking at Bucky, Steve could tell that he felt the same. The officer crouched down so he could appear more approachable and less scary at their eye-level, "What kind of bad people, sweetie? Can you tell me what they look like?"

And while there was nothing too intimidating about the man, the kids had a bad history with the police. Sophia moved closer to Bucky and Ethan cowered completely. And Steve knew that they'd have to call the kids' therapist after tonight. Hell, Steve knew that he'd have to call his therapist after tonight.

Reaching out, Steve rubbed the eight year old's back, and assured, "It's okay, honey. We just want to make sure that everyone is safe, okay?"

Obviously catching on, the officer fixed a friendly grin on his face and introduced himself, "I'm Officer Walker. But my friends call me, 'John.' Will you call me, 'John?'"

Sophia thought about it for a moment. Glancing over at Steve, Sophia waited until he nodded his head in encouragement. Softly, Sophia said, "Hi, John. I'm Sophia."

"Well, that's a very pretty name, Sophia," John complimented, still smiling. "Now, I know that this is scary, but can you tell me about what happened?"

"They were scary," Sophia answered. Her mouth quivered as she fought back tears and continued, "They said bad words. And... and..."

Bucky rubbed her back and assured, "Take your time. No one is going anywhere any time soon."

"That's right," John confirmed, "I can wait right here all night, if you need me to."

Sophia nodded, but still tried to push through it, "And they hit Vis... when he tried to stop them. And... and... they hit Wanda. And mimi brought us down here because she went to get a bat... She told us to hide... And we did."

"That was very brave of you," John told her.

Wiping at her face, she hiccupped and Bucky brought her close again. Letting her cry on his shoulder. Steve's breathing started turning erratic again, and he nuzzled Holly to try and soothe himself. He didn't want his kids to go through that. Especially not when they had already been through so much in their short lives.

"What about you, buddy?" John asked Ethan, who was still cowering against Bucky's strong frame.

Figuring that Ethan probably couldn't read John's lips, Steve interpreted. Ethan replied with signing, "They had on scary masks. It scared me. It scared me a lot."

"He says they wore, 'scary masks.'" Steve relayed to the officer. 

"What kind of masks?" John questioned.

Steve interpreted again and Ethan signed, "From movie."

As Steve relayed that back to Officer Walker, Sophia sniffled, "I can show you."

So, Sophia led the way over to the -- now -- broken shelf of movies that they kept in the master bedroom because they were inappropriate for the younger kids. Weaving in and out and around the other officers who were cataloguing the damage. John stayed close as he observed the eight year old and accepted the DVD when Sophia handed it to him. Considering there were many masks on the cover of The Purge: Election Year, Sophia pointed to the one.

Looking over the LED mask, John asked, "Are you sure?"

Sophia nodded, "All different colors."

Ethan had gone back to crying into Bucky's broad shoulder, and Bucky went back to swaying him in hopes of calming him. Steve reached over to rub the little boy's back too. It didn't stop Ethan from crying, but the six year old did reach out so he could hold Steve's hand. Steve didn't hesitate to bring the little boy's hand up so he could give the back of it a sweet kiss.

Seeing that her brother was getting loved on, Holly lifted her hand to Steve's mouth, and he gave her a small smile before kissing her palm. Holly smiled and Steve kissed her forehead. Despite everything going on, Steve knew that as long as he could help his kids, he'd be okay.

As Sophia ran over to hug Steve's torso, Officer Walker asked, "Do you know if your foster daughter had any enemies? Bullies from school? An ex-boyfriend? Anyone who would want to hurt her?"

Steve exchanged a look with Bucky and immediately knew who the perpetrators were.