Ridiculous fun sounded like a good time. Nonsensical entertainment was the best kind, wasn't it? Getting to have that with his best friend sounded like a good way to spend his time, so Bucky agreed to go through the doors when Steve presented the idea. It was definitely a change, since he knew Steve typically avoided ventures through them whenever he could.
The situation was bleak. Bucky and Steve had both joined the army far too young, but with few other options for themselves. Being orphans in one of the poorer parts of Brooklyn, they didn't have a lot of opportunities to do much else. They'd promised to stick together, to be with each other til the end of the line, they always said. There was a love there that had never been spoken, never been pushed into the forefront but instead always hidden behind a close friendship.
As they rose through the ranks in the army, and the world went to war, the two did find themselves split apart. Bucky was sent with the 107th Infantry Regiment, leading a group of men who were all ultimately captured by their enemy. They'd been prisoners for nearly two weeks without word. It was going to take a Christmas miracle for them to come home.
A Christmas miracle, indeed.
A man came into the bar, stumbling from his wet boots as he hurried over to where Steve Rogers was seated. He was a lower ranked officer, who happened to know Steve was at the bar. "Cap -- Cap'n Rogers," he stammered. "It's a miracle. A real Christmas miracle. They're comin' in, down by the harbor. On a ship. The whole 107th, they're all safe. Word came in by morse code. We've been trying to find you. Sarge is on the boat. We got confirmation."