Lost Friend

It was the first time he had seen him in over seventy years. Seeing him standing on that bridge holding a gun to his head brought back a wave of emotions and memories that came crashing into him all at once. He felt this incredible pressure on his chest making it hard for him to breath. He called out to his friend but was met with an angry and confused reply, "Who the hell is Bucky?". Ever since those words left his lost friend's mouth he couldn't sleep. The words plagued his dreams, he would wake up every night in a cold sweat, the picture of his friend staring at him with big, black holes where his eyes should have been, screaming, crying out for him.

It's been a year since the bridge incident, since everything he thought he knew was good and true came crumbling down around, burying him in the weight of all the lies and destruction. Clint was speaking to him now from across the quinjet, asking him how long it had been since he last saw his friend. He doesn't answer right away. All of a sudden Bucky appears standing in front of him, wearing his green military uniform from the 40's. Instead Bucky answers Clint, he pats Steve on the shoulder with a wide grin spread across his face and exclaims, "It's been seventy long years, huh Steve, without me by your side, and look where it's gotten you, throwing punches at the bad guys but you're the one taking the beating, Steve. Man, I told you not to do anything stupid until I got back, Punk!". Steve calls him a jerk in return when Clint asks him if everything's all right, he looks towards Clint and asks, "What?" and when he turns back around to look at Bucky, he's gone.

The pilot of the quinjet reports that they'll be arriving at the target soon and starts to descend to the ground. Clint asks again if he's alright and he just nods his head, lying to Clint and himself. When the jet door lowers onto the ground he steps off onto the cold, hard forest floor. It's pitch black outside and it takes him a second for his eyes to adjust to his surroundings. Ahead of him he sees a figure lying motionless, face-first on the frozen ground, he takes a couple of hesitant steps toward the body then sprints towards it cursing under his breath when the moonlight catches on the metal arm of the still body. He leans over the man and turns him around to see his face, he sits back in shock at seeing his long ago lost best friend's face, unshaven and sunken in. He has a deep gash across his forehead, blood seeping into his hair turning it black and matting it to the side of his face and forehead. Clint comes up beside him and asks if he's still alive, Steve starts into action looking for a pulse first in his right wrist then finally finding a faint one in his neck. They carry him onto the quinjet and lay him on a bench, Clint moves to the front of the jet, sitting with the pilot leaving Steve in the back alone with an unconscious Winter Soldier. Steve sits beside Bucky moving his bloody hair out of his face and starts to cry, he cradles Bucky's head in his lap and whispers, "God Buck, you're such a Jerk!" , the quinjet takes off leaving the forest and the rest of the world behind at least for a little while until they reach Clint's farm.