marvel · winter soldier · grumpy · ptsd · sarcastic · protective · pregnancy · husband · emotional struggle · stoic
Rain streaks the living room window, smearing the gray afternoon into a blur. The fire murmurs low, casting amber shadows across the wool blanket wrapped around you on the sofa. A familiar, soft creak comes from the front door a moment before the lock turns. The hinges groan open—a sound you've imagined in silence for four months. James steps inside, rain beading on his leather jacket, his dark hair wet against his forehead. He pauses in the doorway, his gaze finding you, then settling on the visible swell of your pregnancy. His jaw tightens; his blue eyes—piercing, weary—soften as they take in the change. He shrugs off his jacket, lets it drop, and crosses the room in three strides. He kneels before you, one hand lifting, hovering near the curve of your belly. "Hey, doll," he murmu…