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Steve is driving back to the Airbnb when the sky opens up and snow flurries start to fall. It’s been gloomy all day, clouds covering the sun so not a ray of light shines through. The sky began to darken a while ago, night slowly creeping up on him as he drives down an empty road. He went out into the nearest town in search of food and found a small grocery store with not everything he needs, but enough of it.
He turns down a road and up the radio. The only station that extends out to where he’s going is a country one, and while he’s not partial to it, it’s better than nothing. A song of an artist he doesn’t know is on and guitar strums fill the car with a broken-hearted melody.
The roads out here are long and windy. Trees pass by at quick speeds as Steve drives way over the fifty miles per hour speed limit. Headlights illuminate the asphalt ahead of him along with fat snowflakes that begin to stick to the ground. He puts more pressure on the gas pedal and speeds up even more to make it back before the snow starts to fall for real.
Taking another left turn, Steve pulls into the driveway, the gravel under the car crunches as he drives further in. The cabin comes into view.
Bucky is outside collecting wood from a pile off the side of the house with the light on the front porch providing enough light to do so. Steve can see him situating each piece onto his left arm, balancing them easily with the steady metal. He turns the key in the ignition and shuts the car off but makes no move to actually get out. Steve’s content to sit back and watch his boyfriend before braving the cold.
It was Bucky’s idea to spend Valentine’s Day away for once. They’ve never really done Valentine’s Day, exactly. Every year the two of them come home from work (well, Bucky comes home. Steve’s able to work from home), order a pizza, and watch romcoms to their heart's content while curled up on the couch under several cozy blankets. And it works for them! Even if Steve isn’t feeling too hot and is sniffling through drawing at his desk, piles of tissues next to him, the evening is calm enough not to agitate anything.
But Steve came home about a week ago to Bucky holding a bouquet of flowers that wouldn’t make Steve sneeze his brains out and a promise of getting away for the weekend. He didn’t question it at the time, although he did raise his brow at going out on Valentine’s Day.
They drove out this morning, bags packed full of warm clothes and a cranky Bucky in the driver's seat, despite the entire trip being his idea. Steve had giggled at a disgruntled Bucky, with his eyebrow crinkle and frown on his face. Steve held his hand the whole trip.
Now though, hours and a cuddle session on the couch later, Bucky was in a way better mood. Steve can tell all the way from the car there’s a smile on Bucky’s face, even in the below freezing weather. He’s noticed Steve pull in, eyes flickering back and forth between the car and the house. Steve takes that as his cue and grabs the few bags off the front seat and gets out of the vehicle. His breath is visible as he puffs his way through the cold.
“You get ‘em?” Bucky asks as soon as Steve’s climbing the stairs to the porch. Steve huffs and laughs.
“Yes, I got the cookie cutters. No heart shaped ones though, guess we gotta deal with some animals and miscellaneous shapes.” Steve tells as he opens the door and steps inside, Bucky following right behind him.
The interior of the entire cabin is filled with rustic decor, which Steve thinks is terrible, quite frankly, but Bucky had other opinions. He swears up and down it goes with the cabin theme, but Steve just thinks it’s… eugh .
Steve sets the grocery bags on the old looking kitchen table and puts everything out in front of him. The cookie cutters that Bucky requested as well as many ingredients to actually make cookies, like chocolate chips and chunks of peanut butter to put in them. He also bought some tea bags, lots of different types of chocolate for him and Bucky to munch on whenever they feel like it, and a premade pizza for them to throw in the oven at some point over the weekend.
Just as Steve tucks the reusable bags away, Bucky comes up behind him and wraps his large arms around Steve’s narrow frame. The smell of Bucky’s cologne hits him and Steve would be lying if he said it didn’t affect him just a little.
“C’mon, Buck,” Steve groans and wriggles out of Bucky’s grip. He turns around to face Bucky instead, gazing into love-filled eyes and up at the monstrosity on his head that once was a messy bun, but is now a mop that’s very disheveled from being played with so much all day.
“Can’t a guy get a kiss from his fella around here?” Bucky grins at him, leaning into Steve’s space and stares right at his lips. Steve doesn’t refrain from rolling his eyes and kisses him anyway.
Bucky's lips are soft and plush and there’s no hesitation before Steve’s opening up. Their tongues brush, mouths making slick sounds and Bucky cups Steve’s face in his hands. He tries to pull back, but is ultimately kept in place by the kiss being deepened. Steve slides his hand up into the hair at the back of Bucky’s head.
“I thought we were gonna make cookies?” Steve mumbles against Bucky’s lips. Bucky snickers and retracts just enough to press his forehead to Steve’s.
“Oh no, I'm gonna make us cookies. I still don't trust you in the kitchen Rogers, you're gonna go light us a fire and put on a movie.” He kisses the bridge of Steve’s slightly crooked nose and backs away
Steve huffs although still pecks Bucky on the lips before heading into the living room to work on the fire.
He makes quick work of it. Adding logs on top of some old newspaper and lighting it in several different places to make sure it catches. Steve steps far enough back once he finishes that the smoke has no effect on his lungs. They’re a lot better than when he was younger, howbeit he has no desire to worry Bucky by standing too close to the flames and smoke and begin to cough.
Steve moves on to set up sort of a blanket den on the couch. Pillows surrounding an area that is roughly the size of Steve and Bucky combined and blankets tossed haphazardly around for maximum comfort and easy access to warmth whenever they want it.
Bringing up the guest Netflix account, Steve picks a romance movie ( Falling Inn Love . It looks cheesy and terrible and Steve can’t wait to watch it) before placing the remote on the arm of the couch and strolling back into the kitchen to check on his boyfriend.
Bucky’s cutting the shapes of the last cookies when Steve walks in.
“Well that was fast,” Steve comments and boosts himself up to sit on the free part of the counter.
“Practice makes perfect n’all.” Bucky smirks and takes the tray to slide it into the oven just as it finishes preheating.
“Ah, I see. And when have you had time to practice?” Steve questions. He’s never seen Bucky bake or show any interest in baking in all their years together, childhood to now. Sue him, he’s curious.
“I have my ways, Stevie.”
“Whatever you say, Buck.” Steve hops down from the counter and grips his boyfriend’s arm to drag him into the other room and down onto the couch. Once Bucky is seated, Steve plops down right next to him, practically on top of Bucky, and shoves his cold toes under Bucky’s thighs.
“Comfortable?” Bucky teases yet tugs Steve closer to him. Normally, Steve wouldn’t put up with being held, always preferring to hold Bucky, but right now he’s more than fine with being curled up against his guy.
“Yep.” And Steve snatches the remote and presses play.
Almost a half hour into the movie, the timer on the oven goes off so Bucky jumps up to take them out to cool before coming back and resuming the same position they were in previously.
When they pause halfway through for snacks and bathroom break, they bring the mismatched cookies back with them to eat.
The first bite is heavenly and Steve lets out a truly pornographic moan. It’s so soft and chewy and chocolatey, and the salt Bucky added on top made it perfect .
They finish the cookies off a little too fast, probably, but they’re good enough they’re worth it. Steve spends the rest of the movie tucked against Bucky under several throw blankets.
When the movie is over, Steve puts out the fire and Bucky gathers some of the throws to take to bed with them and they walk together to the bedroom, Steve trailing right behind Bucky.
They lie down and get under the covers, though Bucky thinks he’s still the big spoon. That’s not happening on Steve’s watch. He turns and starts to make Bucky move .
After a bunch of poking and prodding each other, Steve manhandles Bucky so his back is pressed to Steve’s chest. Steve wraps his arms around Bucky’s waist and nuzzles his face to his neck.
“G’night Buck,” Steve slurs, sleep heavy on his eyes and tongue.
“Night Stevie, love you.” Steve can feel the vibrations of Bucky’s voice and barely responds with a mmm before exhaustion takes over.
The first thing Steve notices when he wakes up is that he is warm. He’s so fucking warm it’s almost too much to handle, but there’s something stroking his hair and he’s lying on the most comfortable pillow ever.
So he doesn’t move. Steve’s content to just lie there and never move again.
Then his pillow shifts and he lets out an embarrassing sound he refuses to admit was a whine.
Steve cracks open an eye and sees Bucky propped up on one arm, looking down at him with the most love struck look on his face, despite him being the dictionary definition of a grouch right now.
“And I always thought I was bad in the mornings,” Bucky snorts. He outstretches his hand to mess up Steve’s bedhead more than it already is.
“Shut up, asshole.” Steve halfheartedly tries to slap him away, though Bucky just kisses his forehead and rolls out of bed. Steve groans.
“Get up, sleeping beauty. We’re gonna go make snowmen!” Bucky’s cheerful attitude this early in the morning has Steve suspicious, but it is growing
on him.
“Snowmen? Are we ten?” He sits up and scoots out from under the mountain of blankets they must have brought to bed with them last night.
“You’re never too old for fun, Steve.” Bucky flings a throw pillow at him and Steve sends it flying right back.
Together they shower and make a simple breakfast of bacon and eggs. Bucky left his hair down this morning and the waves fall and frame his face perfectly, it’s making it hard for Steve to look away from his boyfriend.
Bucky notices, of course.
“What, do I got somethin’ on my face?” He scrubs at nothing on his cheek.
“Yeah right here–” Steve picks up some of the bacon grease off his plate and rubs it on Bucky’s face. Steve cackles as Bucky’s jerks back and almost squacks.
“Gross! You fuckin’ punk,” Bucky kicks Steve’s legs under the table and starts grabbing for a napkin.
“Jerk.” Steve blows a kiss at him and they finish their meal in the comfortable silence that comes with years of being side by side.
They clean up their mess and dress for the snow. Thick pants, long sleeve tees under sweaters under sweatshirts under winter coats, tripled up on socks, and boots. Bucky completes Steve’s look with a hat which Steve quickly takes off his own head and puts it on Bucky’s.
Apparently, it had snowed a ton more than Steve thought it would.
Outside, they find a flat patch of ground and get to work. Steve insists on making the bottom and starts clumping snow together and piling it into a very large circular base. It’s at least half the size as he is.
“Jesus, Steve,” Bucky says as he goes to add additional snow to the middle section.
“What? He’s a big boy.” Steve lovingly pats the ball of snow before going to find twigs for arms and grab loose gravel for eyes and nose.
He comes back to Bucky placing the small head on top and smiling at his work. Steve shoves the sticks in the side of the snowman and arranges the stones into a face.
“He needs a scarf. He looks cold,” Bucky comments as they step back and look at their creation.
“I think that’s kinda the point, he’s a snowman. Snow’s cold.” Bucky shrugs.
“How about we go warm up instead? Hot chocolate?”
“That sounds awesome.”
The pair make their way back to the cabin, gloved hand clasped in gloved hand. They quickly discard their snow gear and Steve pads to the kitchen to make hot chocolate. He’s not that good at food, but drinks? He can do that just fine.
Steve opens the cupboard for the glasses and takes out two large mugs. He adds some cocoa powder to the bottom of each cup and pours milk directly after. As he picks up a spoon to stir, Bucky finds his way back to Steve and clears his throat. Steve heaves a sarcastic sigh and turns around.
He drops the spoon.
Bucky’s on one knee.
Bucky has a black box in his metal hand.
Bucky’s on one fucking knee .
“Stevie,” Bucky starts and opens the small, black velvet box and oh dear god that’s a ring.
Steve must’ve said that out loud because Bucky’s laughing at him.
“You’re my best friend,” Bucky continues and his voice is wobbly. Oh fuck , Bucky can’t cry because then Steve will definitely cry. “I knew when I was fifteen that I loved you somethin’ fierce and crazy. I knew when we were in college I couldn’t be apart from each other for that long ever again. I knew a long ass time ago I wanted to be right where I am now, beside you through it all.”
There are definitely tears coming out of his eyes right now. Steve sniffs and wipes them away before striding right up to Bucky, both hands on the side of his face, and hauling him in for a kiss.
It’s not like their first one as teenagers, messy and uncoordinated, or one when they’re having sex, sloppy and downright filthy, it’s so much better than any one they’ve had yet. And they’ve kissed a lot .
“Yes,” Steve whispers, settling his forehead against Bucky’s.
Bucky’s smile then puts the sun to shame. He pulls Steve in for another kiss.
When they draw back finally, Steve is impatient and takes the ring to put it on himself.
“Did you get one?”
“Yeah, it’s in–” Bucky goes to reach in his pocket, but Steve beats him to it and fishes it out for him.
Bucky holds out his left hand and Steve slides the ring on his fiancé’s ( fiancé !) hand. It must be magnetic, because he can hear it click into place.
“So how about that hot chocolate?” Steve tries to tone down the grinning as he speaks, but he just can’t.
They’re getting married .
Bucky nods and they continue their day like normal, only every few minutes it seems like their attention is diverted to the rings on their fingers.