For Eternity - Avengers: Endgame (Thanos Love Story)

Seven - Five Years Too Many

New York City - Earth

2023

Where do we go, now that they're gone?

Steve had been leading the group support sessions for a couple of years now, after he had stumbled his way out of his own grief enough to reach out to others. Karen went to every single one.

"So, I uh, went on a date the other night," said one man.  "The first time in five years.  I didn't even know what to talk about."

"What did you talk about?" Steve urged him on.

He shrugged.  "Just the same old crap.  How much things have changed, my job, his job, how much we miss the Mets. He cried as they were serving the salads... And I cried just before dessert. But I'm seeing him again tomorrow, so..."

"That's great," Steve told him with a supportive smile.  "You did the hardest part: you took the jump, didn't know where you were gonna land.  Didn't know where you were gonna come down. And that's it-" Now he turned to address the rest of the group as a whole.  "Those brave little baby steps we've gotta take. To try and become whole again, try and find purpose.  I went into the ice  back in '45 right after I lost my best friend and  met the love of my life.  Woke up seventy years later. You gotta move on,  though.  You gotta move on... The world is in our hands. It's left to us, and we've gotta do something with it. Otherwise, Thanos should've killed all of us.  Otherwise, he would win."

After the session, Steve shook each person's hand as they left.  He didn't put the chairs away, and instead, sat there pondering what had been brought up that evening. 

Karen sat next to him after saying goodbye to everyone.  "I think this is great, what you're doing.  Everyone needs some support, and they all feel so alone..."

Steve gave her a small smile.  "Thanks Karen."

"I should have done to something like this after the war. Hell, I should have led it. There were plenty of women in the same or similar situations, who had lost sweethearts and other loved ones. This reminds me of the post-war period a lot, actually. Totally different, but similar.  Everyone was affected somehow."

"Yeah, only this time we lost."

"Yeah."

Steve sighed heavily, burying his face in his hands, looking severely defeated.  

"You know, I was really nervous, reconnecting with him," Karen continued.  

"Bucky."

"Yeah.  It had been so long and we had both changed so much. By all accounts, we shouldn't have even been together again. It's impossible, really.  But when you really love someone, not even time can keep you apart." He looked at her. "I know it sounds cheesy..."

"No, it's beautiful," he assured her.

"Thanks.  "You know, I almost moved on after the war," she said, almost sheepishly.

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, almost.  There was this guy Peg and I worked with, Jack Thompson, another SSR agent.  But it was too soon, and while I ended up liking the guy, I always loved Bucky.  What we had was something special, and you couldn't just recreate that. When you know, you know."

Steve nodded, reaching into his pocket where his compass sat, Peggy's photograph still inside, safe and sound and always close to him.  "Yeah."

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