Work Text:
Late nights and early mornings were always a part of the plan in Tony’s life when work had him up at all hours of the night lost in projects without thought to the moments outside of the lab. However, that all changed the moment Bucky arrived turning Tony’s world around in ways that led Tony to spending less time in the lab than he’d been doing at the start. The longer Bucky was in Tony’s life, the less important it was to lose himself to his projects and work himself to exhaustion as the things that once mattered were sidelined by the idea of finally having someone in Tony’s life who knew him in ways that the rest of the world could never quite comprehend.
To the rest of the world the announcement that Tony and Bucky had been secretly dating had been met by skepticism when they’d first gone public in their relationship. There were whispers about how it wouldn’t last, how they were far too volatile together to make it for the long haul together with Tony’s playboy past and Bucky’s tormented history. Even their most loyal supporters were skeptical of where they were headed until one weekend Tony had decided to throw caution to the wind and say ‘I Do’ in a Vegas ceremony with Bucky at his side led by Elvis and a string of dancers who’d come along for the ride on the strip that fateful night when Tony had decided he was tired of waiting for life to happen for him. In their return Tony and Bucky were met by even more skepticism with people making bets on how long it would be until they were in divorce court tearing each other apart after realizing the error of their ways.
Two years later they were still going strong as Tony found himself waking up to an early morning filled with hope and promise for the day ahead of him. Much like at the start of his relationship with Bucky, Tony found another purpose to keep him out of the lab. He let out a yawn as he was twisting around on the blanket after yet another sleepless night, but Tony didn’t mind. If he was honest he and Bucky had always been good at keeping up late hours together, working to keep from allowing exhaustion to take them from passion and the joys they’d found in each other, but this year things had changed.
“Morning,” Bucky yawned from his pillow looking over to Tony behind tired blue eyes. Bucky stretched his legs out over the blankets before carefully reaching out to touch Tony’s chest as a smile lifted over the corner of his lips. Like Tony, Bucky was still wearing his clothing from the previous evening looking a little worse for wear, but happier than Tony could ever remember him being as Bucky’s smile touched Tony’s heart in ways that Tony was certain he’d never lose sight of, “Merry Christmas doll.”
“Merry Christmas,” Tony’s yawn mirrored Bucky’s but it did nothing to quell the excitement Tony felt in twisting onto his side and looking at the new reason why he and Bucky hadn’t been able to get a good night’s sleep in the last few months.
There positioned between them Morgan was stirring to the sound of her fathers voices, offering up her own tired yawn. Her big eyes opened, and she looked between her fathers expectantly as if she hadn’t been up most of the night too curious about the world around her to sleep. It had been a pattern for them since her arrival as the trio had spent long days together and nights sharing family time, but this morning in particular was something special. Something to remember, Tony realized as he rolled onto his back and stretched his arm out to reach for the nightstand. He pulled his phone up, listening as Bucky spoke to Morgan in the same soft, loving tone delivering their daughter a proper wake up with kisses and giggles as she was reaching for Bucky’s finger wanting to squeeze it in her tiny grasp.
“Wait for me,” Tony rolled around again as he tapped at his phone screen. He looked over to where Bucky was playing with Morgan’s tiny rattle that Bruce had picked up for her right around the time she was born. It had the Hulk on it, which at the time Bruce had joked about Morgan using it to channel her inner Stark rage when she wasn’t getting her way, but that day had never come. Instead, she was an energetic, excited baby with a curiosity much like Tony’s as even in her young age she invested her everything into exploring the world around her.
“What are we waiting for?” Bucky questioned looking up to see Tony positioning the camera above them just in time for their daughter to push her rattle into her mouth. She was only interested long enough to clamp down on it with her eager gums before her eyes darted over towards Tony in seeing what he was doing.
“Get closer,” Tony suggested running a finger through his hair before repositioning his camera.
“Tony, we just woke up,” Bucky’s halfhearted protest held no weight to it as he leaned in closer getting ready for their first photo of the morning with their daughter.
“It’s our first Christmas with our princess. Granted this is only the beginning as we’re going to have to pull out the big guns for her first glimpse of the tree with all the presents and…,” Tony paused in his attempts at a selfie long enough to pull the rattle out of Morgan’s reach for a quick set of photos. He set it aside before giving her a quick kiss and raising his phone in the air again, “On the count of three, okay?”
“Fine,” Bucky bit down on his bottom lip before reaching out to Morgan again.
“One…two…” Tony snapped the first photo then a few others, unable to get enough of the idea of their precious, perfect daughter there beside them waking up in their bed now that she’d become a part of their daily routine.
“Okay dad,” Bucky laughed reaching out to pull Tony’s phone from his fingers after Tony took at least a dozen photos of them together, “Let me look.”
“I know it might seem like a lot, but…” Tony rolled onto his side to look at Morgan and Bucky together feeling his heart full of love in having his family with him.
“No, it’s perfect,” Bucky smiled back at him as he scrolled through the photos taking each one in with a widening grin, “Just like you are doll.”
“I know this might be a far cry from the holiday in Aspen last year when we were on the slopes together, but I was thinking that maybe after presents we could bundle her up and take her out for that sled ride with the reindeer and…” Tony’s excitement poured out into each word as he thought of his big plans for his family for the day.
The previous evening after Morgan had drifted off to sleep, Tony and Bucky had been working on the finishing touches with the tree and the presents working to make them perfect for the moment their daughter’s eyes opened and she found her way to discovering all the treasures her fathers had waiting for her.
“What time is everyone else coming over?” Bucky questioned behind a yawn, as Morgan was once again reaching for his metal fingers and trying to pull them into her mouth.
“Pepper and Rhodey are coming around early,” Tony explained thinking about the rest of their family ready to share the holiday with them, “Something about Pepper wanting control of the kitchen as she worked up something with catering and…”
“Sounds busy,” Bucky replied behind another tired yawn before reaching for Morgan’s rattle and offering it to her again, “We’ve got our work cut out for us today daddy.”
“We do, but for right now,” Tony took in the sight of his daughter and Bucky together in their bed, sharing in the first of what he hoped was many holidays shared between them. It was everything he ever could’ve asked for and more as Tony leaned down to give his daughter a quick kiss. She made a tiny giggling sound kicking her legs out as Tony tickled her with his kisses. Her tiny fingers were pushing over Tony’s cheek causing him to get lost in the moment all over again, “We need to show her what’s waiting for her in the other room with all the presents.”
“You’re not at all excited about yours either, now are you?” Bucky teased behind a small wink, as Tony reached out to pull his husband closer. Tony linked their hands together before encouraging Bucky to carefully slide in closer and meet his lips in a far chaser version of a kiss than the other morning wake ups that they’d shared in the past. It still carried the same emotion and spark that was there from the start, but somehow things were even better than they’d been before, stronger than Tony had ever imagined as they’d finally found the missing piece of the puzzle in being together and sharing a life with the promise of happily ever after with their daughter in their lives. As their kiss continued Morgan let out a small sound to remind them that she was waiting for their doting.
“We’d never forget you,” Tony exchanged looks with Bucky again. They both moved in to kiss her, taking the time to plant kisses over her chubby cheeks as Tony reached for his phone again bound and determined to capture every single second of their first holiday together as a family for all it was worth.