Chapter Text
Propinquity (pro·pin·qui·ty) noun
1. the state of being close to someone or something; proximity.
2. close kinship.
Age 6, 1992
“Tell me: why are you in your dad’s clothes?” Bucky’s mom asks, the video camera raised and pointed at him.
Bucky fumbles with a button, unable to slip it into the securing hole, before dropping his hands and looking up at his mom. “I’m gonna’ marry Steve.”
Winifred grins, kneeling down so the recorder’s closer to Bucky. “And why are you going to marry Steve?”
“‘Cause we saw it in Cinderella,” he replies with a shrug, looking up at his mom.
Becca put on Cinderella for him and Steve earlier. Halting their game of tag when the all too familiar sound of Disney’s theme song rang through the living room. Within seconds the couch cushions were on the floor along with he and Steve. Both of them settled on the cushions, paying close attention to the movie like they were going to be quizzed on it later. They both kept their eyes glued to the screen, watching Cinderella, her evil stepsisters, and the loyal mice. He’s see Cinderella before, her being his favorite princess and all, but he’s never seen it with Steve. It was a new experience, watching it with his best friend.
He made sure to watch Steve’s ever reaction when more important scenes came on. Watching him as she sang with the birds, as she turned into a princess, all of it. He knew from the moment he saw Steve gasp at the the wedding scene he wanted to do that with him. He wanted to reenact the wedding scene with his best friends because that’s what best friends did, right? Get married, that is.
“But why do you want to marry him?” Winifred asks, her voice patient and amused.
Bucky frowns, looking down at the button he can’t seem to close. He thinks on why he wants to marry Steve, like Cinderella did with Prince Charming, before looking up at his mom. “Because he’s my best friend.” He looks over to where Becca’s fixing a tie on Steve, the fabric almost touching the floor, “You married dad because he was your best friend, didn’t you?” Bucky asks, looking up at his mom.
Winifred chuckles, switching the camera from one hand to the other. “I did.”
“And that way you’ll be best friends forever?” He tilts his head to the side, slightly pouting his lips because why else would someone get married than to be with their best friend for life? If people got married for other reasons that would be dumb.
“Exactly, James. But you can still be best friends forever without marrying someone,” She says gently.
Bucky frowns, confused once again. “How? If marrying someone makes them a person’s best friend forever, then how would not being married to someone do that?” It doesn’t make sense to him. He thought that a person could only have one best friend. He’ll have to as his mom or Becca about that later.
Winifred shrugs. “You just stay their friend while the person you marry is the bestest of all friends.”
Bucky’s frown deepens, the gears in his head turning at the thought of the movie. “But Cinderella didn’t even know Prince Charming before marrying him, why did she get married to him?”
“Sometimes you fall in love with someone that isn’t your best friend but by marrying them they become your best friend. That’s what happened with Prince Charming and Cinderella.”
“Oh.” Bucky looks down at the shirt he can’t seem to button, “That’s dumb, she should have married her best friend.”
“She didn’t have a best friend, James,” Winifred chuckles.
“‘Cause her step mom and sisters were evil.” If he knew Cinderella he would have been her best friend. He wouldn’t have married her because he’s marrying Steve, but he would have shown her how great having a best friend is.
“Exactly,” Winifred says, rising from her crouching position to ruffle Bucky’s hair. She nods over to where Steve is fiddling with his tied tie, “I think Steve’s ready for you.”
Bucky looks over at Steve, who grins at him, before looking up at his mom. He frowns, fingers still fiddling with the button on his shirt, “I can’t button my shirt.”
Winifred places her hand on his shoulder, nudging him forward, “Ask your big sister to do it. Nicely.”
Bucky nods, walking over to where Becca’s still kneeling by Steve. “Can you button my shirt Becs?”
“Sure thing. You gotta’ look cute for your wedding.” Becca grins, slowly doing up the little buttons, her fingers deft unlike Bucky’s. She pats his chest when she finishes the last button, “All done.”
Bucky looks down at the long stretch of buttons, grinning before looking up at Becca, “Thank you.”
She pats down his hair, moving the waves this and that way until their to her liking. “No problem.”
Bucky turns away from his sister and looks at Steve, grin still on his face, “We’re gonna’ be best friends forever.”
Steve frowns, his little fingers tugging on the tie, “I thought we were gonna’ be that already?”
Bucky nods, “Yeah but this makes it like..” he trails off, searching the air for a word, “..like super official.” He frowns at his choice of word, not liking that it doesn’t match what marrying Steve will feel like, but shakes it off, “Like nothing could make us not be friends.”
“Not even moving away?” Steve asks, biting his lip.
Bucky shakes his head. “Not even moving away.”
“Not even-” Steve gasps, like he was burned by the thought, “-finding another best friend?”
Bucky shakes his head, “Mom said you can have another best friend but marriage makes you my super best friend forever.”
“Oh,” Steve says quietly, thinking on it before nodding, “I don’t think I would find another best friend like you, anyways.”
“I wouldn’t want to find another best friend, either,” Bucky says, throwing his arm around Steve’s shoulders.
Steve grins, looking up at Bucky, “Neither would I.”
“Boys!” Winifred calls, pointing the camera at them, “Your sister’s ready to officiate.”
Steve and Bucky walk to where Becca’s perched on the couch, sitting cross legged with a bible in her hands. They stop in front of the coffee table, Bucky’s arm still around Steve’s shoulders.
Becca clears her throat, opening the bible to a random page. “Please face each other, holding hands.”
Bucky drops his arm from around Steve’s shoulders and turns so they’re looking at each other. He holds both of his hands out like he’s seen in the movies, smiling when Steve takes them between his own.
“Bucky Barnes, do you take Steve Rogers as your lawfully wedded best friend?” She asks, looking at Bucky with a raised eyebrow.
Bucky nods. “Yeah.”
“You’re supposed to say ‘I do’,” Steve whispers, “Just like the movies, Buck.”
“Oh, uh, I do,” Bucky stutters, blushing at his mistake but silently thanking Steve for correcting him.
“Even in sickness, poorness, in the worse of times?”
“Well..” Bucky looks at their joined hands, shrugging, “Stevie always gets sick and I help him, neither of us get large allowances, and we never don’t speak for long so yeah. I do.”
Becca turns her head to look at Steve. “Steve Rogers, do you take Bucky Barnes to be your lawfully wedded best friend?”
Bucky watches as a grin spreads across Steve’s lips, gaped from the tooth he lost last month. “I do!”
“Even in sickness, poorness, in the worse of times?” Becca repeats, eyebrow arched.
Steve nods vigorously, “Yeah, yeah, I do.”
Becca closes the bible, producing two green, beaded bracelets from her pocket. She holds one in each hand, “With these you will solidify your best friendship. Take one and place it on the other friend.”
Bucky extracts his hand from between Steve’s, taking the bracelet from Becca before turning back to Steve. He takes Steve’s wrist and slips the beads on it, holding his own out for Steve, grinning when the beads are secure on his wrist. The beads are plastic with some elastic holding them together but it’s the best friendship bracelet he’s ever seen.
“I now pronounce you best friends forever,” Becca says with a clap.
Bucky’s grin stays on his face as he looks at Steve, their faces mirroring each other. The grin widens when his mom cheers, still recording them.
“We’re best friends forever, Buck,” Steve says, playing with the bracelet on Bucky’s wrist. He pulls it gently, letting it snap back against Bucky’s wrist.
“Yeah, yeah, we are.” Bucky nods, looking down at the green beads.
He’s officially best friends with Steve, and he wouldn’t want it any other way.
“Forever,” Bucky says, looking up at Steve.
Steve nods, serious, “Forever.”
It’s a promise.