The next morning everyone piled into the two cars. Ella's parents were ready in no time so set off first, planning to go and get the house ready for everyone before the kids got there. Once they were ready, Steve, Bucky, Sam, and Ella climbed into the car, the weather was no cooler than the day before and they were all sweaty from loading the cars with their bags. Steve put the air-con on full and Sam took on the role of navigator and DJ, passing his phone around the car so everyone could pick some music.

The drive went quickly, they stopped for snacks and gas once but other than that it was an uninterrupted journey. The four of them belted out song after song, laughing at each other's awful singing, and tucked into Slim Jims and Oreos. Pulling up onto the driveway they spotted the house. It was bigger than the one they usually rented, it had a deck that wrapped around the outside that was littered with sun loungers and deck chairs and the walls were painted pretty light blue that almost matched the sky.

Sarah and Joe had been round and opened the countless windows, trying to cool the stuffy interior. Now they were sat out on the deck overlooking the beach, drinks in hand. The kids knew their first port of call was the sea, so after depositing their bags in their bedrooms and quickly changing into swimsuits they all ran down the steps and across the sand to the sea, not stopping when they hit the water until they were waist-deep.

They all laughed, finally cool for the first time in two days. They splashed around, doing their best to soak each other, flinging bits of seaweed as they did, every time Steve hit Ella with a piece she squealed and ran in the opposite direction. By the time they quit, Ella's hair was wet through and hanging in salty waves down her back. She loved her hair in summer, the sun made it blonder and the salt from the sea made it curl up in beachy waves.

Once they'd caught their breath from the mock fighting, Ella turned to face Bucky, his chest and shoulders were covered in water droplets and his hair was so wet it looked black, even in the sunlight. She lost herself in the moment as she watched him, he was absentmindedly running his hand through his curls, brushing them out of his face as his eyes wandered up and down the beach that they had almost to themselves.

The sound of Sam and Steve diving in under a wave to swim further out broke Ella from her trance. Bucky turned to Ella, to see if she was planning on joining them, but she stayed planted where she was.

"What's up?" Bucky asked in confusion.

"I uhh... I don't like not being able to touch the bottom," she replied, embarrassed. She avoided Bucky's gaze, instead, she looked down at her hands as she skimmed them across the surface of the water.

"But you're a swimmer, a good one?" he questioned, not understanding Ella's hesitation.

"I know, it's stupid, I just don't like the sea," she said, hiding her flushed cheeks by turning away, "I mean, there are sharks out there," she laughed in an attempt to hide how scared she was.

Bucky came up behind Ella and wrapped his arms around her, he desperately wanted to tease her but he could sense her genuine fear, instead, he kissed her shoulder and held her hand. They collected towels to brush the sand off their feet and they wandered back inside to help her parents make lunch.

When they were joined by an out-of-breath Sam and Steve, Ella could already see how much they'd caught the sun, and so could their parents. Steve's nose was as red as the lobster they were about to ear. Sarah thrust bottles of sunscreen at the kids and gave them a quick warning to put some on before they headed out that afternoon.

They tucked into a lunch of lobster rolls and salad and when they were done they pulled the bikes out from the shed. Sam and Bucky had never been to the Cape before so it was up to the Rogers to give them a quick tour. Ella pulled a white sundress over her bikini, causing Bucky to make another inappropriate comment into her ear, so no one else would hear, but Ella's giggle in response gave him away.

"I don't want to know," Steve huffed as he climbed on his bike and cycled off up the road. The other three quickly joined him on the half-hour ride into town. Once there, Ella wasted no time finding her favorite Cape food - cranberry ice cream. Bucky looked at it in disgust but Ella shook her head.

"Don't judge until you try it," she warned. Bucky looked doubtful but was quickly proved wrong. As Ella expected, he loved it.

"Oh my God," he laughed, "I can't believe I've lived my whole life without this."

"Told you," Ella jokingly teased. They all sat and chatted on the beach overlooking the small harbor while they waited for Sarah and Joe to join them for dinner. Sam and Bucky were distracted, in a heated conversation about something Ella couldn't work out so Steve used the opportunity to ask Ella something that had been weighing him down all night. He'd kept his feelings hidden all day, but in the moment of peace and quiet, they had washed over him.

"Do you really think Nat will go to London?" He asked, running his hands through the sand and not looking Ella in the eye.

"Yeah, I really do," she replied somberly. At that moment, it was hard to tell who was going to miss her more. Although whatever had transpired between Steve and Nat was months ago, it had still been on his mind and if anything it had brought them closer.

Ella bumped her shoulder against his. "She'll be home for the holidays though, and we could visit," she reassured him.

Steve nodded, but his mood hadn't improved at all. "I just always thought she was joking, you know?"

Ella sighed, she'd begrudgingly believed Nat from the moment she first mentioned it, in fact, Ella could've guessed Nat would move far, far away for college since they were kids. As much as she hated it, she'd always seen it as inevitable. She just wished Steve had been a little less oblivious.

"You could go with her," Ella said with a small smile, knowing full well Steve was going to be the last person to go intercontinental for college.

Steve didn't respond, he was just as certain that was out of the question. He carried on distractedly running his hands through the sand and the pair of them watched as Sam and Bucky attempted to skim stones across the lapping waves. Eventually, Ella stood up and held out her hand to drag Steve up with her.

"Come on, stop moping. Mom and dad are here," she smiled, gesturing towards the end of the beach where she could just about make out their figures. Steve rolled his eyes but let Ella pull him up.

Bucky and Sam joined them, and Bucky wrapped his arm around Ella's waist and gave her a look, silently asking if everything was alright. Ella gave him a smile in response, letting him know not to worry. They all collected their bikes and joined their parents at the beachfront restaurant. Everyone ordered the same meal of fried clams and French fries. They all ate enough that they wouldn't want them again for a year, as was Rogers tradition on the first night of the holiday.

Once they were back at the holiday home they all grabbed hoodies from their bedrooms so they wouldn't catch a chill in the breeze that blew up the beach, Ella stole one of Bucky's that she loved, and they sat outside with a crate of beers.

When the sun set it started to get cold so Ella cuddled up to Bucky on one of the seats. There was a firepit on the decking but none of them could be bothered to get up and figure out how it worked, that would be a job for Joe the following night. Ella and Bucky were so deep in their own conversation they didn't immediately notice that Sam and Steve had disappeared inside. When Bucky turned around to grab another couple of beers he finally noticed and looked around in surprise. The lights in the house were all off and he realized they must've gone to bed.

"Looks like we're alone," he said suggestively.

Ella narrowed her eyes at him. "What're you thinking?" She asked with a smirk.

Bucky set their bottles down on the table and reached over to pull Ella's hoodie over her head. He kissed her before taking off his own top. He helped Ella stand up with a grin and pulled her towards the beach. Once she realized what he was thinking she pulled her dress off, discarding it in the sand alongside Bucky's shorts. She shimmied off her underwear as Bucky fiddled with her bra clasp before pulling off his boxers. Then they ran into the water hand-in-hand.

They waded out into the darkness. With each step fear prickled up the back of Ella's neck, but Bucky gripped her hand. Once they were up to their waists, Ella came to a stop, but Bucky kept going, not letting go of her hand. Inch by inch, Ella tiptoed forward until the water was up to her neck. She was really starting to panic and she squealed as something brushed against her foot in the water. Worried that they'd wake up everyone in the house, Bucky gently placed his hand over Ella's mouth, silencing her.

"Shhh," he smirked, "you'll wake up your parents."

In fear, Ella wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist. She finally felt a little safer so far from shore.

"I've got you," he whispered with a smile, letting his hand drop from covering Ella's mouth. He leaned down and kissed her as he shielded her from a wave breaking over his shoulders. "We should go further out," he said, shaking the saltwater from his hair, and spraying Ella with droplets before another wave broke on him. Ella didn't say a thing but tensed up around him.

Bucky stepped backward until his feet no longer reached the floor. Ella let go of him and let herself float. As every second went by she felt more at ease, nothing else touched her in the water and the quiet settled in around them. She floated on her back, reaching out for Bucky's hand again. Ella looked up at the sky in awe, this far from town the stars were easy to see, something they didn't experience often. She loved the sense of peace and couldn't believe she felt this at ease in the ocean. Her grip on Bucky's hand was keeping her grounded, and she knew she wouldn't be able to be out there without him.

They both swam a little before goosebumps crept over their arms and they headed to the shore. As they made their way up the sand they giggled to each other as they searched for their various discarded items of clothing. Ella and Bucky only bothered to put their underwear back on and carried the rest of their clothes inside with them. Once they were inside they hopped in the shower together to rinse off the sand and finally went into the bedroom.

The windows were still open from earlier in the day and a breeze was flowing through the room. They curled up under the blankets and cuddled up close, both still cold from their skinny dipping.