GROW (BUCKY BARNES x OC)

22

Bucky and Aurora rejoined the Avengers and the party continued on, just the four children running around in the big empty room. All the other adults had realized what was going to happen by now and looked upset about it, though they hid that from their faces every time Olivia ran by. Olivia looked sad. She seemed to have realized that her school "friends" weren't coming. Sometimes one of the twins could do something to make her laugh, and Joey quietly told her a few jokes to cheer her up, but the absence of all the children who should've been there kept catching up to her.

They lit Olivia's sandcastle cake and sang her happy birthday. She blew out the candles after scrunching up her face to make a wish. After the cake was cut and finished being demolished, the Fadler children were going crazy in the bounce house. Olivia just sat by the elevator though, as if still holding out some last hope that someone else would show up. It broke Aurora's heart to see her there. She walked over and took a seat next to her daughter.

"Am I a freak, Momma?" Olivia asked.

Aurora's heart twinged in pain.

"No, of course not! Why would you ask that?" She questioned.

Olivia shrugged sadly.

"This Bella girl at school says I'm a freak, and nobody came to my party." She said.

"Oh, sweetie." Aurora pulled her into a hug.

She noticed the tears falling fro must daughter's eyes as she pulled back. Aurora gently cupped Olivia's face with her hands.

"You are an amazing girl. You are not a freak. Your classmate Bella sounds like she was just being mean, but just because someone says something mean, it doesn't make it true, remember?"

Olivia nodded.

"Like Chris." She said.

Aurora closed her eyes for a long moment. She hated that her daughter had gone through so much trauma because of that man. She wished she could erase him from existence, like they'd never even met. Olivia was her daughter, and her daughter alone.

After realizing Olivia was still waiting for a response, Aurora nodded.

"Exactly like Chris. And you remember what I said about mean people? They're hurting on the inside so they try to make other people hurt too, but it only makes them sadder and angrier." Aurora told her.

"Okay."

"Do you want to open up presents?" She asked her.

That lit her little face up as she nodded eagerly.

"Let's go tell the others!" Aurora said with a kiss to Olivia's forehead.

Olivia scampered off to tell the Fadler children, and Aurora walked to start bringing in the presents from the other room. Bucky, Steve, and Tony helped her.

"Is she okay?" Bucky whispered as they walked together.

"She's sad that no one else showed up. A mean girl from her class called her a freak." Aurora said honestly.

His jaw clenched. He had the desire to storm into Maple Elementary School on Monday and give those parents a piece of his mind, but he doubted Aurora would appreciate that because it would only make them hate her more.

"She's excited to open up her presents though." Aurora said.

Bucky nodded, trying to shift his thoughts from yelling threats at the parents who hurt Olivia and Aurora to getting into a happy party mode. Olivia sat on the ground with her presents surrounding her.

"This is all for me?!" Olivia gasped.

"All yours kiddo!" Tony confirmed.

"Which do I open first?" She looked around, dazed by the pretty gift wrap and bags.