Captain America: The Winter Soldier ➯ Gap Scenes

Compromised

     The helicopter flew swiftly through the air.  Natasha's headset buzzed with noise, until a clear voice was put through. 
   "Please tell me you got that chopper in the air." Sam yelled
 Natasha picked up her mic moving it closer to her mouth, "Yeah, where are you?"
       She awaited his response which came very quick. 
"41st floor northwest corner."
Natasha glanced at Fury who then which nodded, "We're on it stay where you are."
    "NOT AN OPTION!" Sam's voice echoed through their comms. 
She moved her gaze to the building they were now in front of.  The final carrier was crashing into the Triskelion.  The chopper hovered over the side of the building, when a sound of glass shattering startled them both, as the helicopter moved to its side.  Natasha held on the side of her seat, as Sam crashed through the side of the helicopter.  Natasha let go of her seat as she moved to grab Sam.  She grabbed his hand and pulled him up. 
    "41st floor, 41st." Sam said out of breath. 
     "It's not like they put the floor numbers on the outside of the building."  Fury chimed in. 
     "Hill, Where's Steve? "Do you got a location on Rogers?" Natasha found the words to speak as soon as the thought popped up in her head.  The radio silence made her feel uneasy.  She asked again,"Hill where's Steve?." 
   She heard a shaky breath on the other side as the attempt of the other woman to speak.  "Maria?" Natasha felt all eyes on her.  When the final reply came,"He um he was on the last carrier."
Natasha felt her heart sink,"What?" She looked up to find Sam staring at her.  Natasha turned back at the last hellcarrier, slowly it started to sink lower towards the lake, lower and lower just like her heart. 

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      Sirens echoed through the walls of the hospital corridor, and her slow steady heartbeat was all Natasha could hear.  The only thing she allowed herself to hear.  Natasha's eyes blurring from tears yet to spill out, when she got the call that they found Steve, Natasha was immediately on her way.  Now here she is waiting for Steve to wake up, though the nurse assured her he'd be fine. She couldn't help feel miserable, like she owes him.   

  Steve's chest felt heavy, his brain clouded with remembrance.  The hellcarrier, the lake, Bucky.  Bucky, where did he go, was he okay.  The ghost that was once his old friend haunted his memory, it echoed in his mind without pause.

Memories and old feelings ambushed his mind, the overwhelming sense of guilt overcame him.  But now he realizes it never left.  Steve never embraced the feeling of his best friend dying, the way he slipped right past his reaching hand.  The way his screams etched into his brain for eternity. 

  But now he knows, he knows the truth.  Sometimes he wonders if Bucky was better off actually dead.  Instead more guilt rushed into his soul, of how his friend's blank face stared back at him with confusion and fear as those horrid five words exited hid mouth. 

"Who the hell is Bucky?"

The words still made Steve shudder inside, worst of all he couldn't get them out. 

His eyelids felt heavy, it was hard to open his eyes. Lips cracked, and dry mouth, he felt as if he'd swallowed a lot of salt.  He didn't feel terribly sore, but he could still feel the overbearing pain in his abdomen. 

His sudden consciousness didn't last long.  Steve felt the familiar feeling of sleep pull at his mind. 

Natasha hadn't noticed his awakening she'd only noticed how he looked like he went through hell and back.  She had been taken a back when she first saw him.  Lip busted, his eye bruised with purple and yellow oozing out.

"Hey."

His first attempt to speak startled her, though it came out more like a croak.  She wasn't crying, but it was obvious she was in some sort of distress.