A/N: Part 7! Now, I don't know when part 8 will be up, I have not started writing it yet and I have to get some other requests done. Let's see what happens.

Warning: just a whole lotta fluff once again, maybe a dash of angst depending on your take on it

Sitting on a chair next to the hospital bed while holding Bucky's metal hand in yours, your eyes wandered to Ava who was sleeping on his chest. It was her favorite place to take a nap on. With you, it never seemed to work. Bucky's was the only chest comfortable enough for her to fall asleep on without a fuss.

Bucky's fingers ran up and down Ava's back as he hummed gently, gazing down at his sleeping daughter. A small smile grazed his lips and he sighed happily before turning to you. He noticed you frowning and his own face twisted the same way. "What's wrong? He asked, squeezing your hand which was lying on top of his on the side of the bed.

You shook your head, keeping your eyes on Ava to avoid looking into Bucky's blue piercing ones. You felt his hand squeeze yours some more and your lips pursed together.

"I just can't believe Ava almost lost you," you said."I can't believe I almost lost you again," you said much quieter but loud enough for Bucky to hear. 

"Neither of you are going to lose me, ever," he tried to assure you. "You need to stop thinking about that. I'm here, I'm well... I'm right here."

You nodded, sniffling as you blinked away the tears in your eyes. You were sleep deprived, hungry and still quite overwhelmed about Bucky being hospitalized. It was no wonder you were emotional.

Bucky kept quiet as you calmed yourself down. You took a deep breath before looking up at his face, seeing his eyes on yours already. He had a small sad smile on his lips as his thumb drew gentle circles on your skin.

"I'm going to be fine."

"I know," you said, attempting to smile. "I just... I haven't—"

"You should get some sleep and grab something to eat."

You raised a brow. "How did you—"

"Have you forgotten our time together in Bucharest?" He asked with a playful smile. "I know you, Y/N and I know when you're sleep deprived and haven't eaten much."

You smiled, the corners of your lips curling up as your eyes fell down to your intertwined hands again.

"I know you want to make sure I'm fine but you can't just stop taking care of yourself."

"I'm a mother," you chuckled. " What do expect me to do?"

Although your tone made it seem like you were joking, Bucky didn't find any humor in your words. He looked rather sad. "I know you'll always put Ava's needs before yours but you still need to take care of yourself."

"I know," you said. "I was just joking. Of course I take care of myself."

Bucky opened his mouth to say something, probably to remind you how it didn't look like you had been taking care of yourself but you beat him to it. "Alright, I'll eat something..." You sighed. "Do you want anything?" You asked as you pulled your hand back, ignoring the feeling of emptiness you felt when you let go.

"A sandwich would be nice," he said while glancing down at Ava who stretched her arms in her sleep. He smiled, leaning down to press a soft kiss on her head.

You smiled before turning the door knob. You opened the door and were about to step out before you heard Bucky call out your name again. You turned to him too see him looking at you, unsure.

"You know we need to talk, right?" He asked.

Your body tensed, your jaw clenched. You nodded, looking him straight in the eye. "I know," you said quietly. "But let's leave that until you get out of here, okay?" You asked, practically pleaded.

Bucky nodded. "Of course."

***

Bucky glanced down at Ava who had her fingers in her mouth to replace the pacifier she hadn't taken before falling asleep on his chest. She always fell asleep fast when lying on Bucky. It warmed Bucky's heart knowing she was so comfortable with him that she could fall asleep instantly.

After hearing the word 'dada' come out of Ava's mouth, he couldn't help but feel joy. That being one of the first things he had heard after waking up made him so incredibly happy. For a second he couldn't help but think how it would be to wake up to that every morning. He had started dreaming of waking up, still sleepy, his eyes still closed as he'd hear the door of the bedroom opening, the sound of little footsteps carrying across the floor until he'd feel small hands being placed on is arm. He'd open his eyes with a smile and see Ava next to the bed with the little teddy in her arms and a wide smile on her face. The word "dada" being whispered before she'd attempt to climb on the bed. He'd have to help her out a little and he'd end up spending a couple of minutes just playing with Ava.

He had also imagined you to appear at the door, leaning against the door frame, smiling at Ava and him. He'd stop playing with Ava and just hold her in his arms while she'd keep giggling like she always did. He'd smile at you, wish you a good morning before you'd go over to the bed as well. You'd sit down next to him and give him a quick little kiss, maybe even a remark about his morning breath depending on how playful you were feeling. You'd snuggle up to his side and the three of you would spend some more time in bed before getting ready for the day.

Then suddenly, he had been awakened from his daydream and he heard Ava repeating the wonderful word, "dada" while he heard your voice. He had instantly known you were stressed and he turned his head to see you talking to Steve. And when he had heard the words you chose to describe him, 'the love of my life' it was enough to make his mind blank, enough to make him forget about everything else for a while.

At first he had thought his mind was playing tricks on him. He blamed it on the fact that he had been asleep for God knows how long but after he had seen the scared look on your face after realizing he had heard you, he knew you had said it.

Now he was lying in bed with Ava in his arms while thinking through what had happened a while back. Right before you had left, he had made sure you knew the two of you needed to talk. He had been needing to talk to you for quite a while. He was not completely sure about your situation. He had tried to talk to you but some things had gotten in the way. Somehow most of those things were related to Tanner who Bucky despised without even really getting to know him.

A part of him was rolling his eyes at his ridiculous jealousy but another part was practically ripping out his hair out of stress and fear of having Tanner butt in and steal you away. The fact that Tanner had made a joke about himself being more of a father than Bucky had just pushed the metal-armed man over the edge. That night, he had pretty much freaked out. What he had done and said really had him regretting not letting you talk. His jealousy and paranoia had taken the best of him.

On the day of the mission, he had been distracted. He couldn't stop thinking about how much of an ass he had been. He had yelled at you for nothing, he hadn't let you explain anything... He had been so wrapped up in his fear of losing you and Ava that he had miraculously almost gotten himself to push you further away. Gladly, you hadn't given up that easily. The day after the little screaming match, you had texted him and asked if he still wanted to go over to your house. He had been quite surprised. A part of him had expected you to avoid him but instead... he had avoided you.

How his mind worked was a mystery to him. He hadn't wanted to be away from you. He had wanted to drive up to your house, run up the stairs and burst into the apartment. He had wanted to run up to you, apologize for being such an ass and confess his love for you so you could live happily together with the perfect daughter along your side.

But for some reason, he had stayed away. He had gone to the mission although some people had told him maybe he should stay in the quinjet until he was absolutely needed. There had been many close calls and a couple of hits, a few serious ones which lead him to being knocked out for many hours.

He chose not to think about his heroic actions since it could have been a lot worse, worst case scenario was that he could have died. He was just happy to be alive and well even with a couple of wounds, many bruises and some pain around his body. He was happy to be there with you, Ava and his friends.

The door opened and Bucky turned his head, seeing you with a small tray of food. You walked over to the chair beside the bed and set the tray next to Bucky. You raised your hand, placing it on Ava's arm. You shook her slightly to wake her up. It only made her snuggle up to Bucky even more which caused you to laugh, Bucky joining in.

"Ava, I brought you some food," you said and this made the little girl lift her head up from her father's chest. She rubbed her sleepy eyes and sat up, placing her hands on the tray. You handed her a jelly sandwich which she loved and began eating right away. You took some napkins and placed one on her lap and tucked one into the collar of her shirt to prevent a big mess.

"If you ever need to wake her up and she's putting up a fight," you started and sat back on your chair, taking a bite of the sandwich you had made for yourself, "Just mention food and she will rise," you chuckled, raising a hand over your mouth while it was full of food.

Bucky smiled, not saying anything or letting out a laugh. He gently took a hold of Ava and raised her up so he could sit up as well. You helped him out by taking his pillow, fluffing it and placing it behind his back so he had some cushion to rest back on.

"It works like magic," you continued as you turned your attention back to Ava who was munching away on her sandwich.

Bucky smiled at the trail of jelly on her chin. He grabbed the end of the napkin on her chest and raised it up to wipe away the excess food. She shooed his hand away and continued eating, keeping her hands tightly on the snack.

There was a knock on the door and soon Bruce walked in. He had glasses perched up on his nose as he looked at a folder. "Bucky, everything seems to be fine. We're ready for you to leave whenever you are."

Your whole body tensed and you gulped, knowing that meant you and Bucky would finally have to talk. You tried to play it cool and seem as if you weren't as nervous as you actually were. "Well, you didn't have to be here for long," you said with a small chuckle as you turned to Bucky who was already looking at you. He saw right through your exterior, he saw that you were anxious.

"Really? Everything is fine?" Bucky asked after turning to look at Bruce.

"Yes. Well, of course you need to be careful with the bullet wounds but thanks to your regenerative healing factor, those will heal in a matter of days."

Bucky then nodded, letting out a relieved sigh. "I'd leave right now but..." He trailed off as he tried to reach for the sandwich that Ava had in her hands. She pulled it away from him and screamed, telling Bucky to back off without using any words.

Bruce chuckled Ava's reaction with you and Bucky joining in soon after. "No rush," Bruce said and left the room after sending a warm smile to all three of you.

***

After you were all done eating, you took Ava in your arms to let Bucky stand up on his own. You wiped away the rest of jelly from Ava's face and threw the napkins away. You saw Bucky grabbing some clean clothes and looked at you. "I'm gonna change, take Ava to her room, I'll be there in a minute."

You nodded and walked over to Ava's room. It still surprised you that she had her own room. She had many toys, not much more than she did at home. The room was bigger, though. It was the same size as the other bedrooms, you assumed.

You set Ava down and went over to the bag you had brought with you when you left home. You opened it and took out some of her toys, one of them being the brown teddy her father had given her. You watched her playing with the toys around the room and took a quick look around the room. It was much bigger than her room back in your apartment. It was definitely made just for her, it had light pink walls and a carpeted floor unlike the other rooms in the building.

As you looked around, you heard someone stopping at the doorway. You looked back and saw Bucky leaning against the door frame. "Can we talk now?" He asked quietly.

You nodded, standing up and following him out of the door. He lead you to the room across the hall and got in, you following right behind. You took a seat on foot of his bed while he took a seat on his desk chair a few feet in front of you. You had a clear view to Ava's bedroom door so you'd know if she left after getting bored of toys or getting anxious about being alone.

"Where do you want to start?" You asked, moving your gaze back to Bucky.

He shook his head, letting his hair fall over his face.

"How about we start with why you hate Tanner so much?" You suggested.

Bucky scoffed. "That's where you want to start?" He asked. "Tanner?"

You shrugged. "Well, you seem to have a problem with him and I just want to know why. You always get so worked up about him."

Bucky muttered angrily under his breath, even the mention of his name got him clenching his fists. "I just can't stand him."

"Why?" You asked, crossing your arms. "He's a good guy, I'm sure you'd like him if you gave him a chance."

"I just," Bucky started, sighing. "The night I brought Ava back to the apartment after you had been out with friends... I was," he stopped, feeling embarrassed for what he was about to confess. "I was ready to come over and talk to you about our situation and if you... wanted to start.... dating? I don't know..."

You bit back a smile. "I wasn't sure if you wanted that or not."

"So I came to your apartment with Ava, ready to ask if you wanted to start something but who did I see? Damn Tanner with his shirt off, abs on full display." Bucky's lips formed a thin line and he shuffled awkwardly in his seat. "Can you promise me there is nothing going on with you and Tanner?"

"Yes," you said very confidently.

"And there never has been?"

"Yes," you chuckled.

"Why are you laughing?"

"Because he's gay."

Bucky's eyes widened and he leaned back on his chair. "He's what?"

"Gay."

"As in... happy?"

"No, as in homosexual. He likes men." You tried to prevent yourself from laughing too hard. "I don't understand how you didn't notice, he was obviously flirting with you the first time he saw you. He was practically undressing you with his eyes."

Bucky was confused, he had no idea Tanner was gay. "Then why did you tell me it wasn't what it looked like if you thought it was obvious he's gay?"

"Because I know you, James," you smiled. "You immediately thought me and him had sex, you always jump into conclusions." You shook your head. "After you left, he started raving about how hot you were. Kept saying if I didn't make a move soon, he would."

"Really?" He asked. "Well, tell him thanks," he smiled proudly, making you laugh. "I'm still not fond of the guy."

"Of course." You nodded understandingly.

"Now... Let's talk about what you said to Steve."

You gulped, looking down at your hands that were playing with the hem of your shirt. "Okay," you answered quietly.

"You called me the love of your life," he said, making you flinch and want to hide in embarrassment for using such dramatic words. "Did you mean that?"

"Yes," you answered, closing your eyes so you wouldn't have to look at him. "Why else would I have said it?"

Silence followed and you lifted your head up and opened your eyes. He was staring at you as if he was thinking about something. He looked at you sitting on the edge of his bed with a small smile, letting his eyes take in every part of you.

"You love me?" He asked carefully.

You nodded. "Very much," you answered quietly. "Do you love me?"

"I do," he answered, causing your heart to flutter. "And I have for a long time."

A smile formed on your face at his words. He stood up and started nearing the bed. You watched closely as he sat down next to you. He began talking again.

"You were so kind when I first met you, you didn't start treating me differently when you found out who I was, you were never scared or even surprised by this arm," he said, looking down at his metal limb.

"I was surprised," you corrected. "I just hid it well."

Bucky's smile grew. "You comforted me, you kept me company when I needed it. You always smiled so brightly when you were around me. You touched me so gently but not like you were afraid. You held my hand if you felt like I needed it. You were never afraid of me."

You took your hand in his and squeezed it gently. Not that he needed that, you just felt like it was the right moment.

"When I finally got to show you how I felt, it just made my feelings for you even stronger. That's when I realized I loved you, that night we spent together. I just wish I could have stayed long enough to tell you... It broke me to be apart from you. When I finally got out of cryo, I went to look for you and you weren't there... I thought I had lost you, thought I'd never see you again. But then you were there, in Central Park just sitting on a bench with a friend. I was taken back in time. You looked just as beautiful as you did when I had last seen you if not prettier."

You felt your cheeks heating up at his words and tried to play it off cool. You shyly looked down at your intertwined hands and smiled, still keeping quiet to let him continue. 

"Seeing you brought all these old memories back to me and I started walking up to you but then... I saw Ava." He stayed quiet for a few seconds, staring out of the open door. "Young, lively, shy little Ava. I recognized those eyes immediately. I had been staring at the mirror so many times, seeing those same eyes staring back at me."

"They are one beautiful set of eyes," you said with a breathy laugh.

Bucky shushed you which caused you to laugh some more. "Go on," you urged him to continue.

"I was so afraid of this new life as a dad but you helped me through the toughest times. Of course there are many more of those times coming up but I'll be more than happy to be there for her and you. I want to be a part of her life. I want us to be a family. You, me and her, all together. Is that okay with you?"

You nodded, trying to contain your smile as you looked up at him. "I'm more than okay with that. That's all I want."

Bucky lifted his hand up to your cheek, brushing a fallen eyelash away from your face and let his hand rest on your skin that was heating up once again. "Good," he said. "I thought I was going to have to persuade you."

You shook your head slightly, not hard enough for him to pull his hand away. "Have you ever had to persuade me to do anything?" You asked. "You've had me wrapped around your finger ever since you came into my life the first time."

"Even when you didn't see me for a few years?"

"Even then. There's nobody else I want to be with. You ruined dating for me," you laughed. "I didn't want anyone but you, I still feel the same way."

"I'm sure there are people much better than me around there somewhere," he whispered, leaning in closer. "You could find them if you looked harder."

"I don't care," you whispered back, feeling your nose grazing his. You leaned up, ready to close the remaining distance between the two of you only to hear your daughter call out for you. 

"Mama!" Could be heard at first with, "Dada!" following soon after.

You pulled away from Bucky, sighing. You could have already felt yourself being taken back in time as you almost kissed. Your eyes had been closed and suddenly it felt like you were back in Romania, taken back to the night you had first tasted his lips. But as Ava came in, you were pulled back into reality. 

"Hey, baby," you cooed and opened your arms as she ran up to you. "Did you get tired of playing with your toys?" You asked as you lifted her up and set her down on your lap. 

She nodded, grasping onto your sweater and playing with your sleeve while leaning back against you. She looked to the side, seeing Bucky and she smiled. "Dada."

Bucky smiled as well, reaching out to run his knuckles over her chubby cheek. "I'm never going to get tired of hearing that," he muttered quietly while Ava latched her hands on his metal one. "Say it again," he said quietly.

"Dada," Ava repeated like Bucky had asked her to do. This caused you and Bucky to chuckle which only made Ava join in, giggling at your reactions. 

Suddenly there was a knock on the door and you and Bucky turned to look at the door to see Steve standing there with a small smile on his face. "I was told to come check up on you. How are you doing?"

Bucky smiled and nodded. "I'm great," he answered. "I really am."

***

You were in Ava's room with her and Bucky, packing up the bag you had taken with you while the other two were playing. You looked over to see Bucky holding Ava in her arms and spinning around. Ava's laughter seemed like it would never end, it was also contagious. Bucky joined her laughing which made you chuckle as well. As much as you would have wanted to just sit down and look at them having fun, you kept on packing up the bag. 

After finishing up with packing, you slung the bag over your shoulder and walked up to Bucky and Ava. You saw him holding his side with a frown etched on his face while holding Ava close to his chest. 

"Bucky, you should be resting," you scolded. "Don't tear those stitches."

"It's fine. They're gonna heal very soon anyway."

You shook your head but smiled. You sighed, looking down at he ground. "We should head home."

Bucky's face immediately fell. "Oh..." He sighed. "Of course, yeah."

"You really should rest and having Ava here won't help that at all."

Bucky nodded, laughing. "That's probably true."

You turned over to the door only to have Bucky wrap his fingers around your wrist and turn you back. "We never got to really finish the talk," he said. "What are we? What are we going to do now?"

"Why don't we take it slow?" You asked carefully, surprisingly afraid of his reaction. "You know, let's ease into this," you continued while waving your hand back and forth, gesturing to both Bucky and yourself. "See where it goes."

Bucky's lips pursed into a thin line but he nodded. "Yeah, of course. We shouldn't rush into anything."

"Exactly," you said with a relieved sigh, glad that he understood where you were coming from. "Just play it safe in case there's a chance of this falling apart."

"Are you really afraid this won't work out?" Bucky asked, harboring a sad look on his face.

You shook your head. "It's not something I think is a big threat but just in case. We can do this, okay? We just need to go slow."

"Yes, I know, I understand," he smiled gently before starting to walk towards the door, walking you out. You waited the elevator to come up to the floor you were in before you turned to Bucky, watching him give a goodbye kiss to Ava before he turned to you. "Well... I'll see you soon, I guess."

"You better," you smiled before stepping closer and hugging him tightly.  You took Ava from him who immediately protested about leaving without her father. Your face fell and you wished either you could stay or Bucky could go home with you. You tried to soothe Ava while her bottom lip started quivering. You got into the elevator and saw Ava looking over at Bucky who also looked very sad. You waved at Bucky as did Ava until the doors closed and you could no longer see him. 

Bucky stood outside the elevator, staring at the doors that had just closed. With every fiber of his being, he wanted to run to the doors and rip them off so he could wrap his arms tightly around you and kiss you until he could no longer breathe but he stayed still.

"Let's take it slow..." He repeated the words you had said to him. "I can do that," he sighed, turning towards his room again. "I can go slow."

Although he sounded unsure, he was confident that he could do as you had asked. He could go slow. He also knew it was going to be hard as hell but he'd be able to do it, for you.

"I can do this," he muttered to himself. "We can do this."