In Another Universe

TWENTY SEVEN

Two weeks later.

Anastasia chokes down the bile rising in her throat as Steve reaches for her hand, Pulling her toward where he sits on the park bench.

He leans in to place a kiss atop her wind blown mess of blonde curls as she takes the seat beside him. And he does his best to soothe her nerves. "Everything's going to be fine."

"I shouldn't have asked Bruce to wait in the park." She admits, clenching his hand tight as the chilly breeze blows past her flushed cheeks. Thankfully the sun is beating down through the bare tree branches, Otherwise they'd have turned into human shaped icicles by now.

"Bruce is only hanging around to be sure nothing goes wrong, Bucky won't know he's here unless one of us asks him to come to our location." Steve reminds her of the plan.

He's confident they won't need Bruce' to intervene, However, Having a Hulk on your side is never a bad thing.

"It's too soon, Everything's still fresh... We should wait a couple more weeks or—"

"Bucky chose the day, Sweetheart." Steve rubs his thumb in circular motions on the back of her shaking hand. "He's meeting us halfway. He's trying."

"That's what I'm worried about..." She swallows thickly, Continuing on when Steve's brows twist in confusion. "He went from fighting Bruce in the street to willingly meeting us in the park. He went from wanting your head on a platter to—"

Someone clears their throat in the distance, Gaining both Steve and Anastasia's attention in flash.

Bucky. Anastasia's heart pounds erratically, her gaze dropping to Rosie as Bucky sets her onto the ground.

"There she is!" Anastasia squats to the ground, greeting Rosie with a hug. "Did you have a fun breakfast with your Dad?"

"Mhm we went to the waffle place and I got extra whip cream and sprinkles on mine!" She replies excitedly, brushing a golden strand of hair from her eyes. However the static from her mitten causes the hair to stand straight up instead.

Anastasia smiles, her pulse still lodged in her throat as she smooths the hair down on her daughters head. "Wow, I hope they were good!"

"They were the best!"

"Rosie," Bucky says, calmly standing behind her and Anastasia backs away a step. "Remember how I told you we had someone important to see today?"

The two parents lock eyes for what feels like eternity, Rosie's soft "yeah?" Barely making its way to their ears.

"I know I told you not to talk to Steve, But that was wrong of me, Peanut." Bucky kneels beside Rosie, motioning with his hand for Steve to join them. "Steve Rogers is a member of our family. He was gone away on a mission for a very long time, And I couldn't forgive him for being away. I was angry, But it wasn't his fault. Now that I'm not angry anymore, I want you to get to know him."

Rosie follows her Dads careful words, her thin blonde brows twisted together in an expression that mirrors Anastasia's.

"You said he was a bad man..." Rosie replies, side-eyeing Steve as he kneels a few feet away.

"I know, Peanut. But he's not, He- He's a good man." Bucky swallows the lump in his throat, her blue-green eyes staring back at him. "He's been a brother to me since I was only a little bit older than you are now. I'm sorry for making you believe otherwise."

"Is he why you and Mom are broke up?" She asks.

"No." Bucky answers, his lips forming a tight smile. "You know your mom and I were fighting all the time. Like we told you and Riley, We weren't meant to be together. And that's okay."