Life Without You

Chapter 2

Steve pov

It was 0755 when Bucky and I boarded the quinjet and prepared to leave. "Bucky can you input the coordinates of the HYDRA base please?" I asked as I settled into the pilot's seat.

"Sure. It looks like the coordinates lead us to the Hamar-Daban mountain range in Siberia." Bucky said while reviewing the location the coordinates were located at.

"Do you remember ever being stationed at that base?" I asked, "Anything could be helpful."

Bucky tried to think of the base but drew a blank. He thought harder but nothing came to mind. "No. I can't think of anything. I don't think I was ever there." Bucky replied while buckling his seat belt in the passenger's chair next to me.

"Alright. That's fine. It should be abandoned anyway so we should just be careful of traps when we arrive." I stated as I fired up the quinjet and prepared to take off.

The quinjets engine roared as they fired up and the quinjet lifted off and we flew towards Siberia.

Time skip to arrival at the base

I started to slow down the quinjet as we approached the base. The base itself was at the bottom of a mountain. Snow-covered the ground around it for miles and camouflaged the base very well. I landed the quinjet and we both exited and carefully made our way towards the base. It was completely silent except for the crunching of our boots in the snow as we walked.

"Well, it certainly looks abandoned," I stated as we approached the front door.

"No security cameras. No tripwires." Bucky observed, "There's only a chain around this door."

I approached the door with my shield raised and brought it down hard on the chain shattering it and giving us a way in.

Slowly the door creaks open and we enter.

As we're walking down the halls but I can't help but think back to the conversation me and Bucky had yesterday about Elsie.

God, I missed her. After she and Bucky fell off that train car it felt as though two pieces of me vanished and left two giant holes in my heart that could never be healed. I felt extreme guilt. It was my fault she fell. I had her and then she was gone. When she fell it was like a piece of me died and was never coming back. Her and Bucky both.

But when I discovered Bucky was alive after all these years it started to heal those holes. It made me hope that maybe she was still alive too. I searched for both her and Buck for over a year but I never found a trace of her. I did find Bucky and was able to get him help but not without a fight.

After me and the Avengers took him down we were able to get him help in Wakanda thanks to King T'Challa. After he was healed Bucky came and lived at the tower with the rest of us. Both me and him searched and searched for any hint that Elsie was alive and found nothing. We eventually accepted the fact she was gone but it's hard to move on. And the guilt I felt when she first fell only increased when we gave up. A part of me came back when Bucky did but the other part is still missing and I'm never getting that back.

"You look deep in thought," Bucky commented as we made our way down the long hallways.

"Yeah, I guess I am. After our talk yesterday I keep thinking about Elsie but not the happy things." I admitted sadness lacing my voice.

Bucky put his hand on my shoulder. "It wasn't your fault Stev-"

I interrupted him. "Yeah, it was Buck. I had her then she fell. If I had just been quicker and held on tighter then she would still be alive."

Bucky sighed "You can't keep blaming yourself, Steve. She would kick both our asses if she heard you talking like that!"

I smiled at the thought of Elsie kicking our asses. "After our talk yesterday I realized I couldn't keep blaming myself and wondering what I could have done differently. I know I failed to protect her. I'm her older brother it's my job but she wouldn't want us blaming ourselves and wallowing in guilt for the rest of our lives. She would have wanted us to move on with our lives without her. If she were alive you and I both know she would kick our asses for making such a big deal over her." Bucky exclaimed.

"That doesn't mean I'm not still sad or that I don't wish with every fiber of my being that she was here with us but we gotta learn to live without her as painful as that may be," Bucky spoke softly.

"I know your right and I was doing better but after yesterday it just brought all the old feelings of guilt and grief to the surface. But you are right. It's time to let her go." I admitted a sigh.

Bucky nodded and with that, we continued down the extremely long hallway.

After walking for another few minutes down the empty hallway it opened up to an intersection with 2 sets of double doors, 2 sets of single doors, and 2 more hallways that lead who knows where. But underneath one of the sets of double doors, there seemed to be a light on.

I pointed it out to Bucky and he nodded. I raised my shield and he raised his glock 17. We cautiously opened the double doors and a cold chill swept over us as we walked inside. On one side of the room, there was an empty table surrounded by filing cabinets. On the other side, there was an old-fashioned tube-like machine. The window was frosted over so you couldn't see inside. I lowered my shield and Bucky lowered his gun.

I drew in a sharp intake of breath. "Buck," I said barely above a whisper. "Is that?"

"A cryo-pod," Bucky answered clearly shocked.

"Do you remember anything about this place now?" I asked him. He shook his head.

"I'll go check and see if there's any records of who might be in there and why. I'm praying it's not another Winter Soldier." He stated as he walked towards the filing cabinets and sifting through them. I saw him pick up a folder and start reading it but I was more interested in the pod itself. It looked really old.

I walked closer to the pod and wiped my hand across the window to clear the frost and froze in shock and terror. I was not prepared for what I saw. "B-bucky!" I barely managed to stutter out a lump rising in my throat and tears starting to well up in my eyes.

"Yeah, Steve?" When I didn't answer he looked up from the file he was reading and saw me staring at the pod. "What is it?" He asked walking up to me. He saw my face and looked through the window in the pod and saw the face of the person inside and his body instantly went rigid. The shock and confusion clear on his face but fear had also taken its place within both of us.

"Elsie?" He whispered.

Well! How's that for a dramatic ending?😁So she's alive! Yay! But why is she there? How did she get there? You'll just have to wait and find out! Anyways I really do hope you guys enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it! Ik it's a little boring but now that she is found I can guarantee action next chapter! Thank you to everyone who commented last chapter! I read each and every single one! I love seeing what you guys think so don't b afraid to comment your thoughts, ideas, or theories on the chapter and/or future chapters! I'm sorry I didn't update sooner like I said I would! My life is crazy and unpredictable! I do not have a posting schedule but I will try not to go any longer than 2 weeks without updating! But I do hope you enjoyed this chapter of Life Without You! Thank you everyone for all your love and support so far on this book! I love all you guys so much!❤️ Please stay safe and stay awesome!❤️         *edit, THAT SONG AT THE BEGINNING CAPTURES THIS BOOK ALMOST PERFECTLY!!! ✨Especially✨When you learn the details of HOW she "died"! *wink wink* 😉  Lol! Ok! I'm done now! Bye guys!   -Lark