Heartbeat (Completed)

Epilogue (1)

Steve didn't know if there was enough time. He had to make the safe play. That's what Bucky would've done - he knew that much. One life wasn't much compared to millions. His life wasn't worth millions.

The bombs on the Valkerie would destroy most of the US - probably to the point of no return. He couldn't allow that to happen. His country was depending on him to make the right call. Innocent children, mothers, wives...they needed him to lay down on the wire.

In a strange way, Steve was almost relieved. Was this what Bucky had felt when he fell? Probably not. This was Steve's choice - his decision. Bucky hadn't had that. Bucky had just tumbled off of a precipice he hadn't known he was teetering on.

Maybe this was Steve's redemption? Maybe this was the payment for his sins? Perhaps this was what was required at the hands of justice?

He watched with a calm, distant kind of horror as the snow and ice drew closer. He could possibly wait for Howard. He might survive the crash.

It was doubtful.

At least when he died, the dearest people would be waiting for him. His Mother, father, Ian, Roger... Bucky. He would wake to their smiling faces and tender touches.

He had been taught about heaven. He knew that was where Bucky and his loved ones were - there was no way they couldn't make it. He only hoped he had done enough to even the scales.

~

He woke hours after the crash, only to realize that he was half frozen in a block of ice. His shield was across the room, so he couldn't smash it.

It was alright. He couldn't feel anything, which meant he'd freeze pretty soon. But as death went, he felt it was pretty calm. He wasn't burned to death, bleeding to death, or hit with shrapnel. He had time to think and come to terms with it.

He closed his eyes, dreaming of flashing white teeth, multicolored eyes, and dark curls. He dreamed of the solid, familiar weight that usually settled itself over his shoulder, tugging him into a firm side.

He dreamed of his Mother's voice. The smell of her apple pie.

He smiled to himself as he slipped away. He was ready.

~

The Howling Commandos had taken Bucky's death hard. He had saved each of them in multiple ways, treated them like equals, and proved himself to be the best of friends.

They had agreed with Steve's plans, eager to exact revenge. Bucky Barnes would never be replaced - nobody could fill his shoes.

When the news about Steve broke, the men crumbled. They had stayed strong in hopes that they could destroy Hydra in honor of James Barnes, but the second blow to their unit undermined their composure.

Thankfully the war ended just a few months later, but it wasn't soon enough for some of them. Stark and Carter had genuinely mourned for their friends, but the Commandos knew they hadn't truly seen either of them as they had.

They hadn't seen them hauling their battered comrades from ditches, or seen their leader make a quick judgment call. They hadn't seen Bucky's grin after a long hard day, or felt his presence at three in the morning when they were freezing in a fox hole somewhere. They didn't know the comfort of having a sharpshooter overlooking every move they made out there.

They didn't see Steve's attempts to keep their morale up. Or the way he sketched them as the sun's last rays gave out. They didn't taste Bucky's beans and bacon and wonder how he made it taste so good. They didn't see them when they were scratched and bleeding, yet mothering each other instead of licking their own wounds.

Falsworth and Dernier decided to go home after the war, rebuilding their lives and moving on. Jones, Dugan, and Morita all signed on to Carter's new intelligence agency after the war.

Mrs. Barnes didn't ever fully recover from the death of Ian, Roger, and James. She did her best to be there for her other children, but that deep sorrow lingered until her death.

Robbie took Ian's death hard. But Bucky's death was even worse. In many ways Bucky had been a role model and father figure in his life. Roger had filled that role after a time, but Robbie only grew to appreciate his brother more as he matured. Thankfully, Robbie was a smart cookie and became a professor at a college nearby. He always thought both his brothers and his step dad would be proud of him.

The girls grieved for their lost ones, but they both had others to take care of. Becca became a widow at the young age of twenty three, with two children to feed. Eventually she remarried, but she was always the busy type. Beth's fiancè came home after the war with a missing arm, which made labor rather difficult. They never had children, but Beth opened an animal shelter instead.

Teddy was his Mama's anchor. He took care of her until she took her last breath. Unlike his siblings, Teddy headed out West once he no longer has obligations. He started a ranch down in Texas somewhere, and ended up marrying a Native American who kept him on his toes. He ended up with quite a bit of money, plenty of cattle, quite a few horses, five dogs, and a whole passel of children. Still, he lived by his brother's example, quoting him like the Bible.

Even though Bucky was gone, his legend would never die.

Steve was not forgotten, because whoever knew Bucky also came to have a firm understanding of Steve. Often, Robbie, Becca, Beth, or Teddy would remember a certain skinny boy with a twinkle in his eye and a split lip. They could picture him in the doorway of their kitchen, watching as Bucky held a little one on his hip while he made dinner.

Steve was a part of the family too. Because Bucky had adopted him, and his family had followed suit. Just as they always had.