Frostbite

Twenty

Once we got Steve to the hospital, he had to go through surgery, which was nerve wracking. He had several bullet wounds and had lost so much blood; the doctors were astounded that he had survived so long with his injuries. He was thankfully stable after his surgery; he just hadn't woken up yet.

One of the doctors had taken one glance at me and insisted I be admitted, but I refused to leave the private room where I had been watching Steve's surgery. So, they reluctantly allowed me to stay while they stitched me up. When he had finally come out, they immediately admitted me and put me in an actual room so that I could get fluids and blood.

Tony never left my side the entire time. I was only admitted for two days, and during that time Tony had camped out in my room. I tried to at least get him to go eat and shower, but he refused. Sam had been in out of my room during that time; he'd been staying with Steve. He was kind enough to bring Tony food on one of his visits.

I came out of the bathroom, freshly changed and glanced over at Tony. There were bags under his eyes, and he had to be ready to go home to Pepper by now. My discharge papers were already signed, and the doctor had deemed me fit enough to leave, I would just have to come back to get my stitches removed in a few weeks. I slung my bag over my shoulder, and we walked into the hall together.

"Next time, call me. I mean it. If there's a fight, I wanna know about it, if you're in trouble, I'll help you, Mel. Don't keep me in the dark. I'm the big brother; I'm supposed to look out for you. It wasn't a pleasant experience finding out you were a fugitive from the S.H.I.E.L.D agents that tried to knock down my door looking for you two," Tony lectured me, still slightly stung. I scrunched my nose up at him.

"I didn't want to involve you and put Pepper and Happy in danger too. It seemed noble at the time," I joked lightly.

"Yeah well, next time don't worry so much about it," he scoffed, rolling his eyes. I grinned and leaned in to hug him, ignoring his normal attitude that had returned. He crushed me back for a moment and ruffled my hair before pulling away. I swatted at his hand and fixed my hair.

"Love you, Tony," I said as we reached the elevator. The floor was almost dead with activity.

"Love ya too, Lanie," he replied with a smile, getting onto the elevator. I waved goodbye and the doors closed, leaving me alone. I walked towards the other side of the floor, towards Steve's room.

I turned a corner and stopped dead in my tracks. Bucky Barnes was standing outside of Steve's door. He was wearing a baseball cap, and his hair was tied back, he wore long sleeves and was obviously trying to make himself inconspicuous, but I could tell it was him immediately. Had he come to finish the job?

"Hey!" I called, jogging forward. His head snapped to the side to look at me in surprise, and he wasted no time in fleeing. I chased after him, cursing the entire time. He hit the stairs, flying down them at an inhuman speed. I took them three at a time and still struggled to keep him in my line of sight.

An alarm sounded as he barreled through one of the emergency exits. I had almost caught up. The sun hit my face as I passed through the door and I squinted, trying to spot him on the street, but he was gone. People stopped and stared. It was as if he had vanished into thin air.

I made my way back up to Steve's room, still unsure why Bucky had been lurking. It didn't matter; I wouldn't be leaving Steve's side.

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Shifting in my seat, I flipped the page in my book, trying to get comfortable. Steve stirred in his bed, and I perked up instantly. He had woken up for a few minutes while I had been chasing Bucky, but that had been days ago. I sighed when he went still again.

Sam had finally left to go take care of himself, and he deserved it. He hadn't wanted to leave either of us after I had told him about seeing Bucky in the hall.

"Hey beautiful. Am I dead? Because I'm looking at an angel," Steve croaked from beside me. I laughed, relief flooding through me. Finally.

"All the lines you could've used, and that's the one you go with?" I snorted, moving to the edge of the bed. He chuckled and sat up a little.

"I thought it was good," he said defensively.

"Maybe back in your day it was," I teased, poking him in the chest. That got him to laugh. The sound was rich and warming; I savored it. I gave him a reproachful look and gently held his hand.

"What is it?"

"You almost died Steve. I was terrified. We couldn't find you... I thought you were dead," I choked, a single tear escaping. He lifted his hand to wipe it away and caressed my face.

"Hey, I'm alright now. So are you. That's all that matters," he comforted me, his eyes burning.

"You're right. I just can't imagine this world without you in it," I smiled sadly. It was just who he was. He would always put others first with no regard for himself at all. It was that kind of selflessness that everyone tried to achieve, but I wasn't so sure that it was a gift more than it was a curse.

"I'm not going anywhere," he promised. I leaned down and kissed him lightly on the lips, and then the forehead. I sat upright and brushed the hair from his face, soaking in the moment, and banishing any dark thoughts that swirled around my brain.