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

Four

Hanging the autumn-centric creations around the room, Steve prepared for the conferences. He dreaded them every year. Mainly because no one took him seriously. No one found art to be important. Half the time he wondered why he was even there to begin --

A low whistle startled Steve, almost causing him to fall from the step-ladder he was currently standing on. Whipping his head around to see what bozo was being inappropriate with him, he was delighted to find that it was his bozo.

Bucky smiled, leaning against the doorway. Looking just as handsome as the day Steve met him, Bucky greeted, "Hey."

"'Hey,' yourself," Steve crossed the room to him. Since school was over, he felt more liberated to indulge in a sweet kiss. "You're here early."

"Arnim let me leave early," Bucky slid his arms around Steve's waist, resting his forehead against his slender shoulder, "And I wanted to see you before you get all Mr. Teacher-Man."

That surprised a laugh out of Steve, loud and boisterous. Bucky pulled back to look at his husband. Adoringly, he pulled him in for one more kiss before he pulled back completely. Nearly jumping out of his skin as he quickly glanced behind himself. Finding Ethan standing there, he sighed in relief.

The relief didn't remain though. Pressed up against Bucky's legs, Ethan hid his face and wrapped his arms around Bucky's thighs. Bucky's brows furrowed and Steve's did, too.

"What's wrong, little man?" Bucky asked, rubbing the child's back.

Ethan shook his head and clung just a little tighter. Bucky removed Ethan's arms from around his legs so he could crouch and be eye level with him. Ethan's normally pale, alabaster face was red from being upset. Not just upset though because big fat tears rolled down his face as he silently, calmly, cried.

"Hey," Bucky soothes, wiping the tear stains from his face, "It's okay. You can tell us, bub."

Crouching down next to his husband, Steve pushed the white-blond hair away from Ethan's red face and asked, "What happened?"

Lower lip quivering, Ethan took in a ragged breath, "Lance... was... being... mean."

White hot fury shot down Steve's spine as he stood up. This wasn't the first time that one of their foster children were bullied, and it never failed at making him instantly angry. Steve didn't like to think of the students as jerks. But sometimes, they reminded him of the kids who bullied him as a child. And that just pissed him off.

"I'm going to say something to his mother tonight," Steve warned, starting to pace. His hands already in tight fists at his sides as he tried to come up with something more mature to say than, you're a shit parent, do fucking better.

"Steve," Bucky gave him that look. The look that meant to calm down. To not go out blindly fighting battles, especially when they weren't his. It was a look that Bucky had mastered over the years, and always managed to make Steve roll his eyes.

But it fulfilled its purpose as Steve stopped pacing. Instead, crossing his arms along his chest and occasionally clenching his jaw. Bucky was always the more levelheaded between them, and boy, was Steve glad to have him. Especially when Bucky effortlessly hefted the six year old into his arms, subtly rocking from side-to-side as Ethan rested his head on Bucky's broad shoulder.

"Did you tell Lance that he hurt your feelings?" Bucky softly asked. Ethan kept his head down, but nodded. Bucky nodded, "What did he say?"

"Nothin'," Ethan sniffled, "He just pushed me."

"Did you tell Miss Hildy?" Bucky calmly questioned while Steve felt like pushing that kid. See how he liked it. Brat. Ethan nodded again, and Bucky sighed, "Well, that's all you can do right now, bub."

Steve grit his teeth, feeling positively helpless in the moment. Now I know how Mom felt, Steve sighed. Almost angry to the point of distraction. But not quite. As soon as Sophia entered the room, Steve smiled, greeting the little girl.

"Sup, buttercup. How was your day?" Steve asked, affectionately pushing her straight across bangs off her forehead while noting the bird-nest her long hair had become since that morning.

"Good!" Sophia cheerfully answered. Holding up a fat, sparkly purple pencil that was getting glitter all over her hands and her clothes, "Lila gave me this pencil because I'm her best friend!"

Exchanging a fond look with Bucky, the brunet said, "That was nice of her. Did you say, 'thank you?'"

Proudly, Sophia nodded. Then, she must've realized that something was wrong because she asked, "Is Ethan okay?"

"His feelings got hurt," Steve quietly relayed. Placing his hands on his knees, he got down to eye level with the eight year old and added, "I bet he'd feel better if you were super-duper nice to him."

Averting her eyes as she thought, Steve glanced over at Bucky who was unabashedly checking him out. When he realized Steve had caught him, he winked at him. Playfully, Steve rolled his eyes and stood up. Not that either of them cared. Steve was just glad that after seventeen years, Bucky was still attracted to him.

Grabbing the bottom of Steve's blue cardigan, Bucky tugged him closer. All the while, Sophia tugged on Ethan's pants and held up the pencil, "Hey, Ethan, wanna hold my new sparkly pencil? You can pretend it's a wand!"

"A wand?" Ethan perked, even removing his head off Bucky's broad shoulder. Sophia nodded and Ethan wiggled, trying to get out of Bucky's grasp. Once the brunet had set him down, he wiped his face -- bumping his glasses as he did so -- and asked, "Really?"

Sophia nodded again, "Yup! Lila's my best friend, but you're my brother, and that's pretty special."

Steve's heart nearly exploded with all the love. And although he knew that the paperwork was being processed and it was probably going to end in their favor with a successful adoption, he still worried. There was always a chance that Ethan's abuser, and biological mother, would try to regain custody. All Steve wanted was for their kids to have a good, happy life the way they deserved. And while sometimes that meant the children finding their forever home with other parents, sometimes it meant their forever home was with them. Ethan was one of those kids that Steve and Bucky were convinced was already in his forever home with a, very lucky, them.

Before the four of them could linger in Steve's classroom any longer, Sophia reminded, "Swim lessons."

"Swim lessons," Bucky confirmed, leaning over to give Steve another kiss.

"Text me when you get there," Steve told him, pressing another sweet chaste kiss to his husband's lips. Then, he leaned down and kissed each of the kids' foreheads, "I'll see you for dinner."

"Okay," Ethan sighed, always hating when his routine was disturbed.

"Be good for daddy," Steve said, smoothing down Ethan's hair. Ethan nodded, and Steve tucked Sophia's hair behind her ears, "Have a good lesson. Remember, it's not a race. Go at the speed right for you, okay?"

"Okay, papa," she confirmed, giving Steve a brief hug.

"I'll send videos," Bucky smirked, taking each of the kids' hands, they left Steve's room.

For a moment, Steve just watched them leave. Wanting to make sure they safely reached their destination. Unfortunately, his classroom didn't get the view necessary for it. Instead, he re-entered his room to get back to decorating the space with the pictures of handprint leaves, tissue paper trees, and leaf mosaics. Hoping that the parents who came to see him -- if they did -- would be as proud of their children as he was.