Christmas was coming around now, and Christmas music playing non-stop in her store started to get on Claire's nerves. She loved Christmas as much as the next person, but she hated how much the music bothered her. The only thing that made it better was looking across the mall into Bath and Body Works to see Wanda dancing along to the jolly tunes. That scene always put a smile on her face, even more so when Wanda would accidentally catch her watching, blush profusely, and stop, running an embarrassed hand through her hair.

Bucky came over to Claire behind the register and grasped her shoulders, slightly scaring her. Claire looked over at him with a glare that grew larger when she saw him with a big floppy Santa hat. Bucky ignored her glare and place a similar hat on her head and started singing "Here Comes Santa Claus."

"What's the matter, Claire? Not in a Christmassy mood?" Bucky asked, wiggling his eyebrows in a playful manner. Claire sighed and grabbed the hat, ripping it off her head and slamming it on the counter.

"Not when you force Santa hats on my head," Claire replied. Bucky gave her a sympathetic look and leaned on the counter, looking at her.

"Everything okay, Claire Bear?"

"Yeah, Buck, I'm just not feeling Christmas right now."

He sighed and looked away briefly before looking back at her. "Does this by any chance have anything to do with Wanda?"

"What would make you think that?" she asked, growing agitated and defensive. "How does me not being in the mood have anything to do with Wanda?"

Bucky held up his hands in defense and back off the counter. He walked around the counter and into the store, stopping and turning around to face her.

"Hey, I just asked a question, you don't need to get so defensive. Besides, you've done nothing but sit here at the counter and stare off into Bath and Body Works. If you and Wanda weren't together already, one would think it was a little creepy." Bucky turned toward the t-shirt shelves and started to refold the shirts.

"We're not together," Claire said an exasperated huff. "That's the problem."

"What's the problem?"

Claire sighed and laid her head against the counter. Bucky looked over at her, and came over to her, rubbing her shoulders.

"We both admitted that we have feelings for each other, and yet...I still don't know where I stand with her. We almost kissed and now...it's like it never happened. I don't know what to do."

"Oh man, Claire, I had no idea. Tell me what happened."

Claire relayed the story to Bucky, letting out all of her frustration, and Bucky listened to her. He took in all her information and pain like a sponge, and when she was finished, Bucky came around the counter and wrapped her up in a big hug. He held her tightly and placed a platonic kiss against her hair. Claire leaned into the hug and allowed herself to relax in his arms. The dam broke and tears fell from her eyes and into Bucky's shirt.

"Hey, you don't have to cry. You two just need to talk, smooth out the bumps and figure out what you both want."

"What if she doesn't want anything? God, Buck, I don't know what I would do without her. I...I...love...her. I love her, so much Buck, and I'm afraid that she doesn't want anything more than what we have now. How would I go about just being friends? I don't know if I can do that, but I don't want to lose her as a friend, Buck. God, what do I do?" Claire cried harder and Bucky held her tighter.

"Hey, hey, hey. It'll be okay. You said that you both admitted to having feelings for each other, right? You two just need to talk about your relationship and what you both want, and the sooner you do it, the better you'll feel," Bucky comforted her, rubbing her hands up and down her back. "Try not to think about it right now, it's only going to make you feel worse. When your shift is over, go on over there and talk. I'll close up tonight."

"Thank you, Buck."

"Hey, no problem. Just...get back to work." Claire laughed and sniffled, letting go of Bucky after a few more minutes.

The rest of her work day dragged on, and it was mostly because of the absence of Wanda. During her break, Claire did not venture over to Bath and Body Works; she just sat in the back room, eating a snack and playing on her phone, and when she heard the voice of Wanda in the front of the store, she got really quiet and hid behind some boxes when Bucky came looking for her. He definitely found her, but after quietly explaining that she wasn't ready to talk to her yet, he nodded and told Wanda that she was on the phone and that it sounded important. She felt a little guilty for avoiding Wanda, but seeing her would only hurt her more, and she wanted to wait until she had some semblance of a plan before she spouted word vomit to the woman that she wanted to confess her love to.

When her shift ended, she awkwardly stood in the entrance of Hot Topic, looking into Bath and Body Works watching Wanda sweep the floor, nervously biting her nails. Bucky came up behind her, broom in hand, and laid a hand on her shoulder. He gave her a small push out the door.

"Go on, kid. You can do this. Just be yourself."

"Buck, it's just talking, not making friends on the first day of school."

"Still, just go on and talk to her," he said gently, pushing her again. Claire nodded and began moving her feet in the direction of Bath and Body Works. With each step she got closer and closer to the cause of her discomfort. Talking to Wanda was easy, always was, the hard thing came after the talking; the part where Wanda would either accept or deny her feelings, thus effectively obliterating her heart and her confidence.

She walked through the open doors and slowly crept up behind Wanda as she swept. She awkwardly played with her fingers and shifted her stance from foot to foot as she worked up the courage to talk. Clearing her throat, she tapped Wanda on her shoulder. The brunette spun around and immediately smiled upon seeing the redhead.

"Claire. Hey," Wanda said, leaning the broom against a display. She stuffed her hands into the pockets of her apron and stood awkwardly. Claire gave her a small smile and rubbed the back of her neck.

"Uh...hey Wanda, how are you?"

"Oh, fine I guess. Work was interesting. A customer came in, bought five bottles of lotion, and then not five minutes later, they came back and tried to return them all. They were all opened and they claimed that they were open when they were bought. It was a whole big mess. They were yelling, I was yelling, Carol came over and she was yelling. This guy just wouldn't take the hint. Jesus, I think I have a headache. Anyway, how was your day?"

Claire stood wide-eyed in front of Wanda, playing with her fingers again.

"My uh...my day was...stressful."

"Aww why?"

"I just had something on my mind that's been bothering me." Wanda stepped forward and rested her hand against Claire's arm.

"Tell me."

Claire hesitated, but then she grasped Wanda's hand lightly and pulled her over to the register. Wanda sat on the counter and Claire stood in front of her, smoothing her hands over the thighs of her pants while taking a few deep breaths.

"Claire are you okay?" Wanda asked, sensing Claire's nervous mood. She took her hand and held it, intertwining her fingers with Claire's. Claire inhaled deeply and ran her free hand through her hair.

"Wanda, listen. I need to talk to you about something, and it's kind of serious." Claire took another deep breath and walked away from Wanda, pacing the floor. Sharply she turned and faced the brunette again. "Wanda, I'm in love with you. I have been for a while now, and I wasn't sure how to tell you. For a minute when we almost kissed that day you were sick, I thought maybe I had an in, but then...I don't know...it's like you were acting like it never happened, like you were trying to get us back to normal after crossed a line. Well, I can't go back to normal, Wanda. I can't just pretend that I don't have feelings for you, and if you can't handle that, then...I'm sorry, but I can't be around you. I refuse to hurt myself every day for your sake."

Claire ended her mini rant with a big sigh. She was out of breath from speaking so fast, and her chest heaved as she tried to catch her breath. Wanda stared at her, processing her words and her thoughts, and after a moment—too long for Claire's sake—she slid off the counter and walked over to Claire, taking her hands in hers, and looked into her beautiful purple eyes. Claire frowned and looked down, away from her, but Wanda's hand on her chin brought her eyes back up to hers.

"Oh, Claire, I...had no idea that this was bugging you so much. I only wanted things to go back to normal because...I love you too. I thought maybe I was projecting or misinterpreting our relationship. If I had known, I would've said something sooner. I'm so sorry that I made you feel this way." Wanda wrapped her arms around Claire and rested her head against her chest. Hesitantly, Claire's hands came up and circled around Wanda, stunned after hearing her confession.

"You...really love me? You're not just saying that?"

"Of course I love you. What's not to love?" Wanda smiled at her and touched her cheek. "I would never lie to you about how I feel."

Claire's eyes filled with tears and she smiled brightly, pulling her roughly into her. She rested her head against Wanda's hair and nuzzled into her, enjoying the feeling of her warmth. She pulled away briefly after a moment, and brought her hand under her chin, tilting her face up, and crashed her lips to hers in a hungry and passionate kiss. Claire's hands immediately shoved themselves into Wanda's thick brown hair and she stood a little bit taller, pushing Wanda back until she hit the register counter. Wanda groaned when she connected with the counter and Claire immediately pulled away, concern in her eyes.

"Are you okay?" she asked, her eyes roaming over Wanda's body, looking for any sign of injury. Wanda laughed and leaned more into Claire, pressing her face against hers.

"I'm fine, Claire. I...liked that." Claire sighed and started to giggle.

"Are you sure? I don't want to hurt you..."

"Honestly, I'm fine." Wanda lightly kissed her cheek and hugged her. Claire hugged her back, nuzzling her face into her hair and kissing her neck.

"Alright you two, break it up!" Bucky yelled from behind them. "Not everyone signed up for Pornhub." The two women broke apart immediately, blushing profusely. Wanda hid behind Claire in embarrassment and kissed the back of her shoulder.

"Why don't you mind your own business, Buck?"

"Kinda hard when you're practically getting it on right out in the open." Wanda leaned her head down against Claire's shoulder, her face redder than her cherry red car. Claire's hand came around and held onto her, assuring her that everything was okay and that she didn't have to listen to Bucky's nonsense.

"Don't bother with him," Claire said, turning towards Wanda and pulling her from out behind her. She wrapped an arm around her shoulders and pulled her into her and kissed her cheek. "He's just an idiot. And a virgin, I think." She whispered the last bit to her, causing her to laugh and relax a little.

"I heard that, Claire," Bucky groaned. "At least when I have sex, I will no longer be a virgin. No matter how many times you have sex, you will always be a virgin." Claire rolled her eyes and took Wanda's hand in hers.

"Whatever. Come on, Wanda. I'll take you home."

○○○

The car ride to Wanda's apartment was slightly awkward, the only sound infiltrating the car was the light pop music playing on a random station. Wanda stared out the window, playing with the rings on her fingers, avoiding Claire's frequent glances.

"Everything okay, Wanda?" Claire asked, briefly looking at her before turning her eyes back to the road.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"You sure?"

"Yeah. Claire?"

"Hmm...?"

"Can I ask you a question?"

Claire looked over at her again, her heart jumping into overdrive when she took notice of Wanda's nervous face. She pulled the car over and shifted in her seat, turning towards Wanda.

"Wanda you can ask me anything."

Wanda uncomfortably played with her rings again, looking down at her intertwined fingers. She didn't speak for a few seconds, and Claire, growing nervous, placed a gentle hand on her knee.

"Wanda, what's wrong?"

"I was thinking about what Bucky said, which made me think about what we were doing, and...I don't know, I guess I just...Claire, do you really love me or are you just using me?"

Claire's heart broke at hearing Wanda's doubt. Did she really believe that Claire would use her? Claire didn't know how to progress; how could she possibly explain to her that her feelings were genuine? Would she ever believe her, regardless of what she said?

"Wanda, I don't know how to begin to tell you how I feel. Yes, I am attracted to you in more ways than one. Yes, I would love to eventually take things to the next level. Yes, Wanda, I love you. I would never take advantage of your feelings and I would never use you like that or in any way. I can promise you that, and I will never break a promise to you. Never ever." She looked at Wanda, wiping the tears from her face, and kissed her nose. "I know we just started...dating? but how can I prove it to you?"

"I don't know, Claire," Wanda whispered, more tears rolling down her cheeks and onto Claire's hands. Wanda's hands came up and grasped at Claire's wrists. Claire thought for a moment, hoping to come up with some idea, some way to prove to Wanda her loyalty. She continued to wipe away Wanda's tears, and after a moment, Claire's purple eyes glistened with an idea.

"I have an idea," she started. She pulled her hands from Wanda's face and dug into her purse, sifting through loads and loads of crap and cursing and muttering lowly to herself, "I could've sworn I put it in here," and after another moment, she let out a joyful "ah-ha!" when her fingers grazed the object of her search. She winked at Wanda as she pulled out a small silver band. Holding it between her index finger and her thumb, she held it out towards Wanda. "My grandmother gave me this ring, and for some reason it's smushed between the contents of my bag but that's neither here nor there, the point is, she gave me this ring telling me that the man she loved who became her husband and my grandfather gave this to her as a promise ring. And that's what I'm gonna do with you."

She took the ring and Wanda's right hand, and while she looked at her questioningly, Claire slid the ring onto her ring finger, keeping her eyes locked on hers and placing a kiss against the cool metal. Wanda's teary eyes looked down at the ring quickly and then back up at her, eyes wide and more tears falling.

"Wanda, I love you so much, and so I give you this ring and pledge myself to you. I promise that I am yours always and forever. I promise to never hurt you, use you, or take advantage of you—wait, that's the same thing..."

"It doesn't matter," Wanda squeaked out, trying to laugh through the urge to cry. Claire brought her into her arms and pressed her forehead against hers.

"Well, the sentiment is still there. I'm here for the long-run, baby, and I'm not leaving anytime soon. I swear to you that my heart is yours."

Wanda leaned in and kissed her deeply, burying her cries into the kiss. Claire held her tightly, rubbing her back as she trembled and continued to cry. She gently moved her lips from Wanda's and kissed the side of her face right before her ear, muttering over and over again how much she loved her. Wanda soon calmed down and nuzzled into Claire's chest, twisting the ring on her finger with her thumb.

"I just want you to know, I did believe you the first time. I didn't mean to make you think I didn't trust you, I just never had someone like you before, and Pietro always warned me that people who were interested in me only wanted one thing. Looking back, I think her was just trying to scare me away from sex." She laughed and shrugged before wiping her eyes. "Well, I think it worked."

"He sounds pleasant," Claire laughed, kissing her once more and moving to wipe her tears away.

"Oh yeah."

After one more minute of them sitting in each other's arms, Claire pulled away and gently pushed Wanda back into her seat, buckling her up, and restarted the car. "I should take you home," she said, winking at her, causing her to chuckle softly and relax into her seat. Shifting the car into drive, Wanda reached out and grasped Claire's hand in hers and pulling it into her lap. Claire looked over at her and smiled.

The rest of the drive was much more comfortable, and when they finally arrived, it took a while for Claire to work up the move to leave, and Wanda wasn't helping. She had shifted in her seat so that she could sit in Claire's lap and refused to move, circling her arms around the redhead's neck to anchor herself there. Claire chuckled and kissed her neck, earning a surprised squeal and a squirm from the brunette.

"Stop Claire, that tickles," Wanda laughed and squirmed in Claire's arms again. Smirking, Claire continued kissing Wanda's neck, moving her lips along every inch of visible skin and Wanda's laughs turned into squeals as Claire's lips, tongue and teeth tickled her skin.

"I would, but I know how much you like it."

"Claire, I need to go home. I'll call you tomorrow," Wanda said getting up from Claire's lap and exiting the car. Leaning against the door and sticking her face through the open driver window, Wanda kissed Claire once again before leaving.

"I'll pick you up tomorrow for work. Be here at 8," Claire shouted as Wanda walked up the steps to her apartment building. She turned around, smiled, and waved before entering into the building, tripping slightly on the threshold. Claire laughed, shook her head and drove off.

○○○

Bucky stood behind the register, casually doodling on a scrap piece of paper while Claire worked in the back, fixing and rearranging the clothes on the clothes racks. A few customers walked around the store, looking at shirts and other items like jewelry and Funko Pops. Occasionally they would engage with Bucky or with Claire in playful conversation, and then they would pay for their purchases and leave. When they were alone, Bucky turned towards Claire and folded his arms across his chest.

"So Claire, how's life been for you? You and Wanda still living in that blissful married paradise?" She laughed at him and walked towards him, smacking the back of his head.

"I don't think that's any of your business, Buck," she replied.

"What's none of his business?" Wanda asked as she walked through the store and up to the counter. Claire turned toward her smiling and kissed her quickly.

"Nothing baby. Bucky was just overstepping his boundaries." She stepped around the counter and came around Wanda, circling her arms around her waist from behind, and buried her face into her neck. Wanda squealed and tried to squirm out of her hold, but Claire just tightened her hold.

"Oh come on, Claire, it's an honest question. It's like asking how your day is going. How's your relationship?" Bucky tried again, shrugging his shoulders.

"We're fine, Bucky. Everything's...fine," Wanda said shooting a look at Claire and smiling.

"Just fine?"

"Yeah," Claire said, kissing Wanda's cheek. "It's been a great year. Things are going good."

Bucky smiled at the two of them and then promptly gagged when they started getting too mushy for his taste.

"Okay you two, break it up. This is still a business and I don't want you scaring way the customers," he said, causing them to laugh and break apart reluctantly.

"Hey Claire, is it okay if I hang out here until the end of your shift?" Wanda asked as she turned towards her and held her hand. Claire lifted her hand and kissed her knuckles.

"I don't mind, but I'm not done for another few hours. You sure you're okay to stay here?"

"Yeah I'm sure. I don't mind waiting."

"Okay, it's cool with me," Claire shrugged. "Cool with you, Buck?"

Bucky also shrugged and said, "Cool with me. Wanda, you get to watch Claire strike out on making a sale. Maybe if you're lucky, you'll even witness her do something stupid like walk into the clothes rack." Bucky broke out into a fit of laughter, slapping his knee and banging the counter. Claire glared at him and rolled her eyes. Wanda giggled quietly to herself, covering her mouth with her hand.

"It's not that funny, Buck. I only walked into the clothes rack because you were distracting me." Wanda walked up to her and hugged her.

"Aww baby, it's okay. I still love you, regardless of you walking into a clothes rack, and nothing will change that," Wanda said kissing her pout away. Claire chuckled and slightly pulled away from Wanda, going back to her work. Wanda hopped up on the counter next to Bucky and began to play with her rings, turning the promise ring that Claire gave her around and around her finger. Claire disappeared into the back room and Wanda could hear her bumping around back there, loudly cursing to herself after a loud crash. Bucky and Wanda laughed and he turned his attention to the young brunette, watching her spin her ring.

"Did Claire give that to you?" he asked her, awkwardly trying to make conversation with Wanda. She turned towards him and looked down at her ring before looking back at him, a smile now on her face.

"Yeah she did." Her voice held so much love and adoration as she looked down at the ring, smiling dreamily. Bucky smiled too as he watched her get completely lost in the metallic shine of the ring, imagining what a promise like that felt like.

"So, what? Are you two engaged or something?" he asked her, feeling a slight twinge of jealousy and feeling guilty that it escaped in his voice. He hoped that Wanda hadn't noticed, and if she did, he hoped that she wouldn't acknowledge it in any way.

"No, we're not engaged...at least not yet. I hope one day we will be, but we're not right now. It's more like a promise ring; her way of assuring me that she would always be faithful to me." She sighed and licked her dry lips, still staring at the ring, though her face and tone changed. "I don't deserve her, you know. She's so loving and kind and generous, and what am I? Insecure. Nervous. Overly emotional. She deserves to be with someone who's much better than me."

Bucky didn't miss the small tear that rolled down her cheek, and he was unsure what to do. He knew how to comfort people—in fact he was quite good at it; people would search him out whenever they needed a shoulder to cry on or a comforting hug—but Wanda was different. He didn't know her well enough; the only reason she was even in his life was because of Claire. What did he even do in this instance? Did he hug her? Wipe her tear away? Hold her hand? God, this was hard for him.

Bucky came around and draped an arm around her shoulders and wiped her tear away. Wanda looked over at him, her bright green eyes turning slightly red as more tears built up in her eyes. He pulled her into him, pressing her against his chest and ran a hand up and down her back. She clutched tightly onto his shirt and buried her face into the soft fabric.

"Hey, come on, Wanda, don't talk like that. I've seen Claire in other relationships and believe me, Claire's been with some pretty shitty people and has some pretty shitty things done to her. She's been cheated on, used, betrayed, and she was even in an abusive relationship. You are not the worst person she's been with, trust me. You are the first best relationship that she's been in, and while I don't know your life, I can tell that you cannot and will not do better than Claire. You both deserve happiness and the things that you both have to offer," he said, looking down at her, his voice soft and sincere. Wanda relaxed in his arms and sniffled, wiping her tears away.

"Do you really believe that?" she asked him timidly. Bucky pulled Wanda away from him and looked deep into her forest green eyes. Smoothing her hair down, he nodded his head.

"Of course I believe it, Wanda. Ever since you and Claire started dating, hell even just hanging out as friends, she's been happier than I've seen her in a long ass time. And you did that, Wanda."

Wanda smiled and looked down at her ring again. Claire stormed out of the back room, cursing again. Both Bucky and Wanda snapped their heads over to her, giggling at her as she walked over towards the counter.

"Jesus fucking Christ! Bucky, I swear to fucking God that I will take that goblin piece of shit and toss it in the fucking trash, I swear Bucky! Imma do it!" She paused when she saw Wanda's teary eyed face and she immediately grew concerned and protective. She walked over to Wanda—who was still sitting on the counter twisting her ring—and grasped her shoulders firmly, looked her right in the eyes. "What is it? What's wrong, baby?" She looked up at Bucky, growing angry. "What did you say to her?"

"Nothing!" Bucky exclaimed, raising her hands in defense. "Honestly, Claire, I didn't say anything."

"He's right, Claire. It was me."

"What do you mean, Wanda?" She hopped down from the counter and leaned in to whisper into Claire's ear.

"Can we talk someplace private?" Claire looked over at Bucky, as if asking him for permission. He nodded at her, telling her he would cover for her, and Claire led Wanda to the back room she had just come from, slowing down as she got to the door.

She hesitantly opened the door and peaked her head inside before flicking on the light switch and stepping into the room. Letting out a sigh of relief, she turned around and faced Wanda, letting out a loud scream as she faced the stupid scary goblin Halloween decoration. In the background, Bucky started laughing and Claire groaned loudly, grabbing the decoration and wringing its stupid fake neck.

"I'm gonna fucking burn this thing, I swear!" she exclaimed angrily. Throwing it away from her, she turned back towards Wanda and softened her gaze and voice and sat her down on a giant plastic bin. "So what's up?"

Wanda took a deep breath as she played with her promise ring and gazed at Claire.

"Lately—and this isn't your fault—but lately I've been feeling weird about our relationship." Claire immediately tensed up.

"What do you mean 'weird'? Weird how?" Claire's thoughts were running a mile a minute and all at once the bad thoughts kept pounding loudly against the walls of her brain. Claire's eyes widened and filled with tears and a large painful lump formed in her throat. "You're not breaking up with me are you? I don't know what I did, but I promise I'll change. I'll do whatever it takes to keep you, baby, please don't go. I-I-I need you, Wanda, please. I promise I'll cut my hours back and make some more room in my schedule for you. I'll take you out more, we'll go on more dates, hell I'll even take you dancing. Whatever you want, baby, just say the word and I'll do it, just...please don't leave me." Claire's voice broke and trembled as she tried not to break down and cry. Her hands started to shake and her breathing sped up. Tears pricked her eyes and slowly fell down her cheeks, and before she knew it, she was fully crying.

Wanda jumped off the plastic bin and harshly pulled Claire into her arms, letting her cry. She rubbed her back and smoothed her hair down in an effort to comfort her.

"Claire, please relax. I'm not going to break up with you." Claire soon calmed down and clutched onto Wanda's shirt, trying to fully relax into her arms and enjoy the feeling of her holding her.

"You're not?"

"No, baby, I'm not. I'm afraid you're stuck with me," Wanda said, chuckling and kissing the top of Claire's head.

"If you're not breaking up with me, then why were you feeling weird about our relationship?" Claire pulled away and looked at her, her red-rimmed eyes glistening with unshed tears. Wanda leaned forward and kissed her lightly on the nose and caressed her cheeks, wiping away her trail of tears.

"I...was feeling insecure. I thought maybe you would notice that I wasn't good enough for you and that you would leave me. I started thinking about all the things that you do for me and all the things that you are and that made me think about what I do and what I am, and I...you are such a good person, Claire. You deserve someone better than me. And whenever I look at your ring, I start thinking about what my life would be like if I just didn't have you."

Claire looked over at her with disbelief.

"You really thought that I would leave you? Wanda...I don't know how else to explain to you that you are the woman of my dreams. I love you more than anything in this whole world. Like you said baby, you're stuck with me."

Wanda smiled and leaped into Claire's arms, burying her face into Claire's hair and neck. Happiness spread over them, engulfing them like a warm blanket. Claire chuckled and she lifted Wanda up into her arms more, swinging them around in a giddy circle. Wanda squealed and giggled as she clutched onto Claire tighter and wrapped her legs around her waist. Her surprised squeals turned into fits of giggles and Claire's face heated up at the intoxicating sound.