Destruction ━ Bucky Barnes [2]

22 ━ LONG WAY TO FALL

DESTRUCTION.
( chapter twenty-two. )

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ANDREA HAD NO GRAND expectations for her arrival.

As the quin-jet landed, she found herself resolved to facing the team's anger. Their mistrust— their lectures. She could handle it, maybe even deserved it.

  But, then Steve was there. His arms wrapped around her, pulling Andy from the ground and holding her close. Like he might never hold her again.

And she knew it was more than just anger Steve felt. It was grief. Tangible and too close for her to resist the sobs building in her chest.

What they felt was the horror of not knowing whether you might see your family again.

  Andy held him tightly, feeling sick. He was shaking. She didn't want to imagine being in his shoes; nearly losing her best friend. They had already lived that reality and Andrea wasn't sure if she could survive that again.

  "I'm so sorry," she whispered, feeling the words tighten in her throat.

  "Don't," Steve spoke quickly. There were no apologies needed between them. "Just don't do it again." He held her tighter and Andy bit back tears.

"You know what I promised him," Steve whispered. The air between them was punctured with a familiar ache. A knee-jerk response to Bucky's memory.

Andy gave a breathy chuckle. "I know," she said, pulling away. It was best not to dwell too much on Bucky.

She kept her eyes averted, feeling guilty as the pair looked each other over. Steve's smile was nervous and Andy was struck by how much he resembled that small boy from Brooklyn. A vision of the past.

"Til' the end of the line," he promised.

The words stung. What would he do when he found out what she was hiding? Andy swallowed her nausea and stared blankly at his smile.

  "Always," she echoed back. Lying because she had to. Didn't she?

Steve took her arm, supporting Andrea as he led her towards the safe house. His presence did little to comfort her guilty conscience, but it was grounding. Steve served as a calm to her storm as Andy ran through the events of their last mission and what it meant.

  However, exhaustion was quick to set in. With the understanding that she was safe, Andy had no more energy to cling to. Her body had experienced something traumatic. It would need time to recover.

And time was running out.

Once inside, Steve gently settled her on the couch. Andy took deep breaths to calm her racing heart and the thoughts that accompanied it. When coffee was finally brought to her, she drank greedily, the scalding heat warming her from the inside.