Bucky attempts to open his eyes, only to shut them when the bright light filters in. A small groan escapes his lips and he hears a gasp, causing him to attempt to open his eyes a second time. Bucky groans once again before letting a word slip from his mouth.
"Bright." He hears a small "oh" from close to him, and he opens his eyes once again to find that the light has dimmed, allowing him to fully open them.
"Welcome back, Mr Barnes." A confused look forms on his face as he thinks for a second. My last name is Rogers.
"Where am I?"
"You are at Phelps Memorial Hospital. You have some friends here to see you if you're ready for them." The nurse states, continuing to write something on a chart before looking up for a response. Bucky gives a small nod before she walks out, Nat and Sam walking in a few seconds later.
"Glad you finally decided to join us back in the land of the living." Nat comments, placing a hand on Bucky's shoulder. Bucky looks slowly between the two of them before glancing at the door and back at Sam.
"Where's Steve?" Sam's face drops and the man eyes Nat before looking back at Bucky.
"Do you not remember what happened?"
"No, no I remember what happened. I was in HYDRA and then I passed out and I woke up in the tower and Steve was there and then I passed out." Nat gives him a sad glance before sighing.
"Bucky, you've been in a coma for a week and a half." The woman states, watching Bucky's face contort into even more confusion
"What do you mean?" Bucky asks.
"We rescued you from HYDRA and brought you here. You've been in a medically induced coma since. What you just said happened in your head, not in the real world." Sam explains, a solemn look on his face.
"No, you-you're lying to me. If you think this is funny, it isn't. Now tell me, where the hell is Steve?!" Bucky yells, not accepting what they're saying.
"Bucky, Steve is still dead!" Sam responds, causing the soldier to go quiet. Both Nat and Sam look at each other in the split second of silence, before both of their gazes turn to Bucky as he begins to sob. Natasha sighs before wrapping her arms around Bucky, giving him a hug that he gladly accepts. When she goes to pull away, he grips on tighter, mumbling a short phrase.
"Please don't leave me."
"I won't."
"It-it felt so real. Steve was back and everything was perfect."
"I know Buck, i've been in a coma before too. I know what it feels like." Nat reassures, going to continue when Bucky speaks again.
"You were the maid of honor." The woman gives Sam a confused look before glancing back at Bucky.
"What?"
"Steve and I got married." Bucky starts, pausing to let out a sob. "You were the maid of honor and Sam was the best man."
"Oh Buck-"
"It felt so real!" He cries, slowly leaning back against the pile of pillows behind him. Bucky blubbers for a little bit longer before the high dosage of morphine they had him on finally kicks in. "I feel loopy."
"That's what morphine does to you buddy." Sam tells him, Bucky looking up at him soon after.
"Why'd they give me morphine?" He asks, a slight slur to his voice.
"The one thing you said earlier that was right was you were in HYDRA. We found you passed out in what looked like an electrical chair."
"So they did try to kill me."
"WAIT WHAT?!" Nat exclaims, turning around from the small box of chocolates in the corner of the room. Bucky nods before explaining.
"They said I was too weak to be of any real purpose to them. So they strapped me to the machine and tried to fry my brain like an egg."
"I will address that trauma later, I'm going to go see if I can get you out of here." Sam states, walking out of the room
~~~~~~~~~~~~
Sam walks back in a few minutes later with the nurse from before, who does a few more routine check-ups before deciding that Bucky is free to go, as long as he comes back for a follow-up.
"Ready to go back home?" Sam asks, carrying the stuff others had brought for Bucky. Bucky had insisted on carrying his blanket, so he held it tight in his hands.
"Mhm." Bucky responds, not exactly focusing on Sam's word. He's more focused on the song playing in the lobby as they leave, the song striking a string in his heart that makes a few tears slip down his face.
"Everywhere I'm lookin' now
I'm surrounded by your embrace
Baby, I can see your halo
You know you're my saving grace
You're everything I need and more
But it's written all over your face
Baby, I can feel your halo
Pray you won't fade away"
YOU ARE READING
Soldiers Aren't Supposed To Cry
FanfictionA Post-Endgame Story about what Bucky does after Steve leaves, but when he leaves in a different way. ⚠️WARNING⚠️ Mentions of death, suicide and torture. Also some swearing because it's the Avengers.
