honestly the thing I have the hardest time suspending my disbelief for in the Marvel Cinematic Universe is that Steve and Bucky are not fucking.
A guy shrinks down to the size of an ant and can communicate with them? Totally believable. Literal other world god that is thousands of years old and travels via rainbow? No problem. Dude manages to stay alive by performing what is basically open heart surgery on himself while being held in captivity in some actual hell hole, and somehow doesn’t die? Sure!
Bucky breaks through 70 years of brainwashing and disobeys a direct order from the man that has tortured him for god knows how long, because his ‘best friend’ recites a line that is basically a marriage vow, and i’m supposed to believe those two aren’t head over heels for each other? Yeah right.
Steve: This is horrible! This is the most humiliating thing to ever happen to me!
Bucky: Even more humiliating than-
Steve: Let’s not do this!
Tony: *to Steve and Bucky* Finally! Where have you two been?
Steve: We had to do some planning, and then we had go eat…and then some stuff happened, you know.
Natasha: Your shirt’s on inside-out.
Bucky: Yeah, that’s the stuff.
The way Steve marks Bucky’s progress in memory healing/recovering from being brainwashed/therapy is by the nicknames Bucky uses for Steve.
For the first few weeks, Bucky only called him Steve. Once, he called him Stevie, but then wouldn’t talk to anyone for the rest of the day.
After that, he started calling Steve the normal pet names/nicknames like Babe and Baby.
It wasn’t until the year and a half mark that Bucky called Steve, Doll. When he did, Steve just stared at him for a solid three minutes them tackle-hugged him. Bucky let out the most unmanly squeak (It sounded like a kitten was being sat on)… though he’ll never admit it to anyone.
From then on it was a rarity to hear Bucky call Steve by anything but, Doll.
hannahbelleeeebackup 