It all happened in slow motion.
Tony saw the blast hit Steve in the chest. He watched the reinforced suit rip away, disintegrate into nothing. He watched the blood splatter in a wide arc through the sky. Finally, he watched his best friend and worst enemy hit the ground.
He was deaf to the worried shouts of his teammates as he flew to Steve's side, landing heavily on armored knees next to him, face plate coming away so he could better look into the pale, blood streaked face of the other.
"Cap?" The word was choked, and Tony knew he was on the verge of panicking. Steve only smiled wanly, reaching a shaking hand up.
"How... Bad is... It?" The way the captains voice cracked with the pained effort of speaking only made the situation that much worse for Tony.
"Don't move, Steve. Oh God..." Tony threw his helmet to the side as his armor began falling off, piece by piece, an unspoken command heeded by his AI.
His now bare hands came forward to peel away the scraps of Steve's suit, cringing when Steve flinched. With the last shreds of fabric away, he could see the gaping hole in Steve's chest. The serum was probably the only reason he was able to hold on this long.
Tony choked on a sob, a blood covered hand rising to cover his mouth. He couldn't remember the last time he cried. "Steve... Steve you'll be okay. I'll get Banner and you'll be fine."
He wasn't ready to lose a teammate, to lose one of the only people he'd ever let in, but it was becoming clearer, with Steve's breathing growing more shallow with each garbled breath he took, that he wasn't going to make it. Not even a super soldier could handle this kind of damage. That wouldn't stop Tony from trying.
Steve reached up, shaking, and wrapped a hand around Tony's that fluttered about his chest in hopes of finding a way to stop the bleeding. "You can't... Save me..." The words brought forth another sob. "You made this... Life easier... Thank you, Tony... Thank you..."
Tony trembled as Steve's grip slowly went slack, the life fading from those bright blue eyes. He clenched the limp hand in his, overcome with a sadness he had never known that had him leaning over his friend, sobbing into his stomach, refusing to leave until he was dragged away.
Tony was the first to lay a rose upon Steve's casket.
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