“We’re not partners,” Bucky told Maria. “He just called in a favor.”

The woman nodded as Bucky packed weapons and ammo like he was about to storm a small nation. When he threw in a rocket launcher, she had to say something. “What exactly did he say he needed help with?”

“Some guys were giving him problems on the job,” Bucky said. “I didn’t hear the rest because his phone was breaking up, but I like to be prepared.”

“He works part time at the VA and homeless shelter right?”

“Yeah, probably some knuckleheads in the neighborhood, or someone figured out who he is.”

“Everyone knows Sam Wilson is Captain America.”

“They think they know, but I asked Ayo to make sure the goggles scrambled face recognition software. The threading, weaving, and padding is not only for stopping bullets; it's to throw off weight and height estimates when being surveilled.”

Maria wasn’t going to ask why Bucky had a bow on a giant box of red velvet donuts from the bakery in the lobby. It may have something to do with Sam inhaling a box every time he is in town and in the office. “You put a lot of thought into keeping your not-partner safe.”

“I felt bad about the shield thing, besides I like to be thorough,” Bucky said, grabbing his bags.

“Where are you going?”

“The airport,” Bucky said, walking out.

“But your flight doesn’t leave for another three hours,” Maria said to herself. She shook her head. She would have to file all this paperwork herself because Sam called, and Bucky went running as usual. The man was one of the most successful assassins and spies in the world because he analyzed his target's behavior and understood their driving motivations. He could use a bit more self-reflection.

-o0o-

“We’re not friends per se. I just thought he would like this,” Sam said, blowing up balloons. Sarah narrowed her eyes at the beautifully decorated cake and the personalized banner. “I mean the guy has had a hard year, life, and I don’t think he should be alone on his birthday.”

“How exactly did you get him to agree to this?” Sarah asked, opening a bag of tortilla chips. 

“I told him I was having a problem getting the guys to engage at work and needed his help. The Captain America shine has worn off, and now they're treating me like every other counselor they try to avoid. I thought I could use some Winter Soldier cred.”

“He agreed to that?”

“Yeah, well, I don’t know how much he heard because the line was breaking up.”

“This is a lot of work for a guy that’s not your friend,” Sarah said, looking at the decorations and the spread on the table. Sam invited everyone from the docks and even Ayo and Okoye. He had Ms. Hattie make her Cajun crab dip. It was good, but Ms. Hattie charged an arm and a leg for that dip. Last time he was here, Bucky ate a tub of the dip by himself. That’s probably why there were five tubs in the fridge.

“We have an understanding. We have each other’s backs. He’s been down lately and won’t tell me what’s wrong. He came down in October and went with me to Memphis to visit Riley’s grave. I figure I can cheer him up. I’ll corner him after the party.”

“Almost like a-” Sarah urged her brother to connect the dots.

“Damn, I forgot the Stalinskaya,” Sam said, grabbing his wallet off the counter. “I’m going to run to the liquor store.”

“Isn’t that an unopened bottle of Ketel One right there,” Sarah said to the slamming door. Her poor brother was so clueless. She frowned at the old timey music playing. She went over to the record playing and stopped it. “Glenn Miller? Oh, Nah.” She flipped through the albums Sam had pulled, and put on some Sarah Vaughn. 

-o0o-

They sat out on the couch snuggled under a blanket. Nat King Cole’s voice filled the air while Sam ate his third donut. Bucky was on his second tub of crab dip. It had been a crazy night. On arriving at Sam’s house, Bucky kicked down the door, his Sig Sauer drawn because the lights were off, and he saw movement in the house. 

They argued at each other for twenty minutes in the yard over their misunderstanding, and then went back to the party. It was fun once they got the door back on its hinges, and Ms. Hattie got her pressure back down. Bucky apologized, glaring at Sam. It wasn’t Sam’s fault the connection was bad.

“I got to head back the day after tomorrow,” Bucky said.

Sam looked over to him and readjusted Bucky’s birthday hat that was doing it’s best to stay on over all that hair. “You just got here.”

“I totally bailed on Hill because I thought you were in trouble . She’ll be pissed if she knows I’m partying.”

“I should have invited her,” Sam said. He took the spoon from Bucky and got a scoop of crab salad. “An oversight on my part.”

“Maybe,” Bucky mumbled.

“Alright, dude. What’s up?”

“What do you mean?”

“You're moodier than usual. You good?”

“Yeah. What about you?” Bucky deflected. Sam saw right through it. The agent spoke again, “You seem-” Bucky hesitated.

“I seem?”  Sam urged when Bucky went quiet.

“Happy.”

“Yeah. I think I am. I’m getting a hang of this Captain America thing and balancing my real life on my down time. It’s good to be around family, to be a part of my nephews’ lives.”

“Your real life. That’s great,” Bucky said. He reclaimed his spoon and dug in the salad for a chunk of celery. He wouldn’t look at Sam.

“How’s life in the Big Apple?”

“It’s fine,” Bucky grumbled.

“Fine. Hmm,” Sam uttered. “Buck, I asked you to stay.” Sam did. They were closing cases. All Sam’s family and friends loved Bucky. Sam thought he seemed happy too. It took him aback when Bucky said he got a job with Hill at S.H.I.E.L.D. 2.0. Sam had got used to him being around. He had planned on tricking him into coming into the VA as a volunteer. He even thought about renovating the attic.

“I didn’t want to be a burden. I had to have a job.” Bucky was from a time when men worked. Sam was talking about working at the VA part time. He couldn’t stay at the house all day while everyone else was working when there wasn’t Avengers business. He looked for something in town, but everyone recognized the arm, or they wanted a college degree for everything decent paying.

“You know, with technology today, you can do that job down here. You're not a burden man. The boys love you. You're my-” Sam started. Bucky watched him. “Associate?” Sam tried out.  “Nah, that’s not right.”

“Definitely not,” Bucky said, his head lolling back into the couch. “I’ll think about it.”

“Do that. Want to watch the game?” Sam said, reaching for another donut. 

Bucky took it out of his hands and bit into it. “We could or we could watch Return of the King again.”

“I should have never brought those movies,” Sam sighed, turning off the stereo and firing up his Apple TV.

“We can watch The Last Dragon tomorrow before I leave,” Bucky said, snuggling into the couch. They both jumped and pulled their guns when the front door crashed to the floor. Sam popped his lips and pushed Bucky. Bucky pushed him back before they got off the couch to fix the door.