《 𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝 》𝘭𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘦𝘺𝘦𝘴 ➝ 𝘫.𝘣.𝘣.

𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐅𝐨𝐮𝐫 - 𝐀𝐧 𝐄𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐲 𝐆𝐢𝐟𝐭

The next day, since the rest of the squad knew about Maddie and Bucky, they sat together on the couch. Of course, no one else was in the room, but they wouldn't have moved even if there was someone else. Bucky had his arm around Maddie and his eyes were closed, but he was still awake. Maddie had a blanket wrapped around her, her legs curled up under her, as she mindlessly scrolled through Instagram on her phone. She was thinking about the group's reaction when the two had admitted they were dating the evening before. Steve had feigned being surprised, but was happy for them. Tony had said, "About time! You two were so obvious." Natasha and Clint had laughed and congratulated them. Wanda had just smiled, fear still swirling in her eyes.

Maddie shifted a little under the blanket, causing Bucky to open his eyes and glance at her. "You alright?" Maddie smiled up at him, cuddling closer. "Yeah, I'm just trying to move my legs. I sat on them too long." She stretched her legs out and and Bucky kissed the top of her head for about the hundredth time that day. His eyes were glowing turquoise and gold. "Isn't Stark throwing a Christmas party in a couple weeks?"

Maddie set her phone down. "Yes... are you suggesting we go together?" A little bit of hazel snuck into his eyes. Maddie realized she'd made him uncomfortable and warmly smiled. "I'd love to." Bucky smiled back, the hazel leaving his eyes. "Good. Uh, do you know if we have to dress up?" Maddie thought for a moment. "I don't know. Probably. We both know Tony goes over-the-top."

Of course, as if on cue, Tony walked into the room. "Tony what? I heard my name. Ooh, you two are cuddling. That's like PDA for you." Bucky tensed, and Maddie glared at Tony. "We were talking about your Christmas party. Is it casual or fancy?" Tony replied, "As much as you and Nat are gonna hate it, it's fancy. I think it'll be funny to see you and her in dresses." Bucky's eyes turned deep orange. Maddie leaned into him a little more, trying to comfort him. "I can rock a dress. I just choose not to." Tony rolled his eyes and kept walking on his way back to the lab.

Bucky finally relaxed a little and Maddie read his emotions. The annoyance was fading away, but red and hazel remained. Maddie murmured, "Why are you nervous?" Bucky looked at her. "I'm always a little on edge." She brushed her right hand along the side of his face. "It's not usually this bright, though. Is something wrong?" Bucky hesitated. "No. Stark just makes me kind of tense. He keeps trying to upgrade my arm."

Maddie laughed a little, reaching up and lightly kissing him on the lips. He smiled a little. "I'm sure you'll look amazing in a dress." Maddie giggled. "I only have two dresses, and I already know which one to wear."

"How?"

"The other dress is for funerals."

"Oh."

"And since I don't usually wear dresses, I only need two."

Maddie got up from the couch, keeping the blanket wrapped around her. "Every time I've gotten Christmas presents, whoever gave them to me jokes about it being a birthday present, too." Bucky looked confused. "Why?" Maddie turned around. "Oh, I guess I didn't tell you my birthday's on Christmas." Bucky sat up, his irises turning hot pink again. "What? Oh crap, I didn't get you anything yet." Maddie smiled and stepped a little closer to him. "There's two whole weeks left until Christmas. Besides, you're the best gift." Bucky stood up and kissed her.

Natasha walked into the room and gagged. "Ew, gross. Knock it off, you two." They stopped and turned to her. Maddie scoffed. "This is why I wanted us to stay in my room." Bucky sighed. "Yeah, let's go." They made their way down the hall, finally getting privacy in Maddie's room.

a/n: by privacy i do NOT mean fonduing! ok you may continue

⭐︎☆⭐︎☆⭐︎

It was a week and a half until Christmas. Maddie had decided to get a dog for Bucky, because a few days ago he'd mentioned how much he loved dogs. But she couldn't find the right one. She'd searched almost every dog pound in New York City, looking for the right dog for him. A chihuahua mix that hated men. Yeah, right. A big, fluffy Samoyed that was always scared. Probably not, but it was just so cute! She walked down the row, glancing in the cages at each scared, angry, or tail-wagging dog.

She came to a cage that she believed was empty and almost continued walking, but she heard a slight whimper. She whipped around and saw a dark gray pit bull mix puppy, hiding in the corner of its containment with its tail between its legs. Maddie slowly approached it and cooed, "It's okay, baby... oh, you're a cutie!" The puppy's tail slowly began to wag as it sheepishly snuck to the front of the cage. She reached her hand out to it and it gingerly sniffed it, then allowed her to pet it.

One of the people who worked there gasped. "She usually doesn't even look at people! Oh my gosh!" Maddie smiled at the puppy, then turned to the worker and asked, "How much?" She told Maddie how much it was and she paid for it. When the worker let the puppy out of the cage, it excitedly bounded around Maddie, wagging its tail hard. She picked up the puppy and carried it out, realizing she couldn't hide the dog for a whole week. She'd have to give Bucky his present early. She stopped by a Petco on the way back, getting a pink collar for the puppy.

She brought the dog in to Avengers Tower and Tony stopped her immediately. "No. No, no, no. No pets, Hollister." Natasha, Wanda, and Steve all gasped, "A puppy!" Maddie ignored Tony and brought the puppy up to the others. The puppy shrunk back into Maddie's jacket and Wanda awwed softly. Steve asked, "Why did you get a puppy? I mean, it's adorable and it's definitely staying..." he threw a defiant glance at Tony, who stuck his tongue out. Maddie stroked the puppy. "It's supposed to be Bucky's Christmas present, but I can't exactly hide it, so I'm giving it to him as an early Christmas present." Steve began to gently pet the puppy as well. "That's sweet. He loves dogs."

The others (especially Tony) protested as Maddie continued walking, but they didn't follow her. She stopped at Bucky's door and peeked in through the crack. He was sitting at the window, staring at the snowy skyline. Maddie nudged the door open. "Buck? I, um, I have an early Christmas present for you." Bucky turned his head towards the door and saw Maddie holding the puppy, his eyes turning from dark gray to gold. "You... you got me a dog?"

Maddie grinned. "I know you love dogs, and this one was just so cute, curled up in a corner." She gently placed the puppy in Bucky's arms and his eyes turned purple. The puppy squirmed a little, but then settled in, curled up in his arms. He glanced up at Maddie, who whispered, "It's okay, you're not gonna hurt it." He relaxed a little, his eyes turning turquoise as he pet the puppy's head with his right hand. "Does it have a name?" Maddie shook her head. "They called her Fawn at the pound, but it's up to the owner to decide."

Bucky was quiet for a moment, then he murmured, "How about Daisy?" Maddie smiled. "Perfect." The puppy stretched, wagging its tail a little. Maddie could tell it was happy to be free from its cage, even though she couldn't read animals' emotions. Bucky kissed Maddie on the forehead. "Thank you," he whispered. Maddie slid her hand into his left hand, assuring him he wouldn't hurt anyone.

Tony knocked on the door. "Hollister! No dogs!" Bucky glanced at Maddie, who got up and opened the door. "Stark, it's a puppy. Bucky and I are gonna take care of it. It's not even gonna leave the room!" Tony raised an eyebrow. Maddie looked away. "...Mostly. But it'll only be in my room and in here." Tony took in a deep breath. "Fine. Do not let it ruin any furniture." Maddie thanked him and closed the door. Bucky was still petting the puppy, which had fallen asleep in his lap. She smiled at him, glad to see he was happy. She sat back down beside him, resting her head on his shoulder and falling asleep mere minutes later.

⭐︎☽☽☽☽⭐︎☾☾☾☾⭐︎☽☽☽☽⭐︎☾☾☾☾⭐︎

a/n: I'M SO SORRY THIS IS LATE AND SHORT I'LL TRY TO DO BETTER NEXT TIME BUT I'M GONNA START POSTING MORE CHAPTERS EVERY OTHER DAY INSTEAD OF EVERY DAY ANYWAYS SORRY FOR YELLING HAVE AN AMAZING DAY LOVE Y'ALL