The Same, Just Deadlier (Book 3)

1.2

June 14, 2014

I sat there, baseball cap and sweater on, watching as the kids and their parents looked around the museum. Everyone would stand in front of the mirror to see if they were as tall as Steve. But no one measured up. But I was here to watch them. I was here every weekend to look at the pictures of Bucky. Captain America had his own section in the Smithsonian. And in that section, Bucky was a small part of it. For the first time, people like Steve more than Bucky, which was rare for us back in our time. I was probably the only person here who came to look at Bucky nowadays. I sat there for a while until a hand grabbed my shoulder. I looked up seeing Steve in a similar baseball cap. He gave me a small smile as we both looked back up at the pictures of Bucky.

The narration for the slideshow restarted, showing its first picture: one of the three of us when we were kids. "Best friends since childhood, Bucky Barnes, Steven Rogers and Clara Williams were inseparable on both schoolyard and battlefield. Barnes is the only Howling Commando to give his life in service of his country. Williams was a nurse on the battlefield and even helped transform Steven Rogers into Captain America. No one knows where she went to when Barnes died or if she is even still alive. Rumor has it that Barnes and Williams were more than just friends. Though none of our sources can prove it." I chuckled as I drowned out the sound of the narrative, looking back at Steve. Steve was no longer paying attention to Bucky though. He was looking at the video of Peggy that had started playing next. I smiled, placing my hand on his shoulder.

"You should go see her." I tell him. "Spend as much time with her as you can." Steve looks at me and then back at Bucky.

"Do you need a ride home?" I just shook my head.

"No, I think I'll take a walk today." Steve gave me a short hug before he left to see Peggy. I really wasn't sure who was in a worse situation. For me, Bucky was dead. Long gone. But with Steve, Peggy is alive. She's lived life well and now it was winding down. She had been hospitalized because of her Alzheimer's. Every time Steve went to see her, she would be in shock that he was alive. They would talk about the same things every time but I knew Steve was patient with her. He loved her. Loves her. He would never stop loving and caring for her. Just as I would never stop loving Bucky.

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June 15, 2014

Steve and I stood at the door, watching Sam talk at his PTSD group meeting. Sam was the main counselor for the veterans. There was one female war veteran who stood up to speak. "The thing is I think it's getting worse. A cop pulled me over last week, he thought I was drunk. I swerved to miss a plastic bag. I thought it was an IED." I looked at Steve, a sorrowful expression in my eyes.

"Some stuff you leave there, other stuff you bring back. It's our job to figure out how to carry it. Is it gonna be in a big suitcase or in a little man-purse? It's up to you." Sam tells her. He finished up the meeting and began to say goodbye to all of the veterans individually. Steve and I waited as Sam said goodbye to the last of the veterans before waking up to him. "Look who it is. The running man. Hey Clara." I smirk at Steve, before smiling at Sam.

"We were able to catch the last few minutes." I tell him. "It's pretty intense." Sam nods.

"Yeah, we all got the same problems. Guilt, regret." I nod, agreeing with him.

"You lose someone?" Steve asks Sam. Sam sighed, nodding.

"My wingman, Riley. Flying a night mission. Standard PI rescue op, nothing we hadn't done a thousand times before; till a RPG knocked Riley's dumb ass out of the sky. Nothing I could do. It's like I was up there just to watch." I looked at Steve, thinking of Bucky.