Marvel What If?- An Autism Story

Baths for everyone

After walking down the stairs, Steve finds Mary sat in front of the big tv completely entranced by a show.

"I told you it brainwashes kids. She hasn't even grown up with a tv and loves it", he mumbles to Tony, mostly just to annoy him.

"Technology is the future!" He shouts back as Steve smirks and heads into the kitchen.

He walks in to see Wanda stirring something in a pot. The room smells of tomato and he assumes its some kind of sauce.

"Pasta will be done in twenty if you wanted?" She told him but he shook his head.

"No thanks, just gonna get some toast and see if Buck is awake. Also why is it always you cooking? Its great, but don't you want a break?"

"No", she laughed. "I would rather cook than do most things. Its relaxing. I know you probably don't know what that word means".

"Haha", he said sarcastically as he buttered the toast and stacked it onto a plate. "Come and get me if anyone needs help with Mary".

"We've got it, don't worry!" She shouted after him.

As usual, Bucky's room was dark and the curtains covered the windows. Steve placed the plate on the bedside table and leant over the bed.

"Rise and shine, Buck", he whispered.

The man moved slightly in his tangle of hair and made a disgruntled noise. It sounded exactly like the noises Mary makes but Steve knew it was still too early to bring this up.

"I brought you toast?" He tried.

At that, Bucky lifted his head off the pillow and opened one eye.

"Yea, i thought that would do it. Sit up or you're just gonna go back to sleep".

He waited until Bucky had clumsily tied his hair up and sat against the headboard with a pout before handing him the food. They ate in silence for a moment until Steve looked around at the mess on the floor. He shoves two pieces of toast together and eats it with one hand and picks up clothes with the other.

The dirty ones get thrown into the laundry and the clean ones are half folded and shoved into drawers. He forgets Bucky is even watching until the man speaks with a sleep toned voice.

"I think you're a clean freak".

"I'm not a clean freak, you're just a slob", Steve jokes back and hears a tut from the other side of the room.

When the room is starting to look a bit better and the toast has been eaten, he goes back through all the drawers and folds each piece of clothing to avoid wrinkles. He knows Bucky would not iron anything so they should get ahead of the situation now. After all that, he stands up and looks at the man in the bed.

"You need a shower today".

"I don't want a shower", Bucky replies instantly.

"You're having a shower", Steve says sternly but kind. "Come on, I need one too".

He holds out his hand until Bucky takes it with rolling eyes. They each get a clean outfit from Bucky's closet and head into the bathroom to undress until the water turns warm enough for them to step in.

Bucky seems to be avoiding the water like he sometimes does, so Steve opens his arms and the man falls right in. They stand there for a while, not talking as Bucky's head falls on Steve's shoulder. The warm water starts to steam up the room until no surface remains cold.

"It feels like forever since we've talked", Steve whispers into brown hair.

For the first time since they got in, Bucky shifts slightly and answers back.