"There's no place like home…" Bucky Barnes muttered to himself as he stood on the crowded sidewalk of New York City with his best friend, Steve Rogers. What is home? Where is home? Home was a concept of which Bucky only had a faint recollection. He felt a profound emptiness in his chest as he realized, I have no home.

King T'Challa of Wakanda had provided Bucky with enough American dollars to get a decent apartment and survive for a while. But what was he supposed to do?

When Bucky posed this question to his friend, Steve merely laughed and said, "Get a job? A girlfriend? A life?" Steve said it like it was a joke, but Bucky knew that he meant it. Sensing Bucky's discomfort, Steve clapped Bucky on the back. "I'm serious, man. I know it's hard for you, but you gotta lighten up. Work a normal job, find a girl. Maybe normal life is what you need right now."

If it hadn't been for Shuri, T'Challa's younger sister, Bucky would have no chance to live a normal life. Since his alias, the Winter Soldier, was known as a criminal and killer throughout the world, it was safe to say that most people would start screaming, running away, and calling the police. Shuri had T'Challa release a public statement that the Winter Soldier had died during extensive testing in Wakanda. They were lucky nobody knew what the man behind the mask really looked like. Some people had caught glimpses, or seen blurred images, but Shuri assured Bucky that it was nothing to worry about. As far as the world was concerned, the Winter Soldier was dead and James Buchanan Barnes was a normal person. Shuri also made some modifications to Bucky's metal arm (that was kind of a dead giveaway) and added a cloaking device that made it look like the metal arm was a normal flesh arm.

Bucky had developed a habit of using the cloaking device only when he was in public, letting the metal arm be when he was alone or with the Avengers. He was surprised at himself for this. For so long, the metal appendage had tortured him daily, reminding him of the years of enduring abuse at HYDRA and the countless people he had murdered. Now it was a part of him. A part of his story. Maybe his story wasn't all fluffy bunnies and rainbows. But it was his story.

Ever since his brainwashing, Bucky had lived a bizarre, abnormal life. He had turned into killing machine while the real man inside kept trying desperately to break the spell, to emerge again from within. When that finally happened, the memories of his past life haunted him. Bucky knew, deep down inside, that with all he had endured, nothing would ever be the same in him.

"I'll never be normal." Bucky was not even aware he said this out loud. Steve looked at his best friend, pain in his eyes deepening.

"It might not be their version of normal, but it'll be our normal." Steve said soothingly. Man, did he feel bad for his friend. Bucky had been through so much...the guy looked and acted like a one-hundred-year-old man stuck in a thirty-year-old's body. There was a weariness in his eyes, something that wasn't there before. Steve had realized long ago that Bucky was not the same person he grew up with in Brooklyn five lifetimes ago. Steve even doubted if even he himself was the same kid who was, as Bucky once put it, "too dumb not to run away from a fight." They had both changed, in bad and good ways.

Awakening from his thoughts, Steve turned to Bucky. "We managed to get a hold of a decent apartment for a half-decent price. I'm telling you, apartments in New York City are priced like they're made of gold or something!"

For the first time in a long time, Bucky laughed. "Once, when it was my turn to get groceries at the Avengers Mansion, I went to Whole Foods. I think I had a heart attack when I saw that a loaf of bread cost twenty dollars!"

While Bucky laughed at his own joke, Steve put on an old man voice and wheezed, "'When I was a kid, it cost nine cents!'" The two best friends collapsed in laughter.

The rest of the trip to Bucky's new apartment was good. Steve enjoyed it when Bucky, panicked, froze at the sight of the metro. He "forgot" to tell him to hold on to something. When the train jolted to a start, it threw poor Bucky and his 200 pounds of muscle and metal across the train car right into the wall, scaring the life out of an unfortunate teenage girl. Once Steve and Bucky had apologized numerous times to the terrified passenger, they quickly went on their way to the apartment.

Bucky's apartment was not bad. It was small, but big enough for him. There was no furniture, but a nice kitchen with a stove and a refrigerator. A small bathroom and shower stood in a small room in the corner. Bucky said he didn't want to get furniture, claiming he preferred to sleep on the floor. They had brought along his sleeping bag and pillow, which Bucky placed on the ground. Looking, around, he nodded in approval.

"Thank you, Steve."

"You know where to find me." Steve said.

"Yeah." Bucky seemed to be deciding what to say next. "If you need me...if the Avengers need me...don't hesitate to ask."

The two men shook hands. Then, a bit slowly and jerkily, Bucky moved in to hug his best friend. For the first time since 1945. Wordlessly, they embraced. "'Cuz I'm with you to the end of the line." Bucky said, his voice scratchy. Steve smiled, tears forming in his eyes.

"I know you are, old pal."

Then Steve was gone. And Bucky was alone. Alone in his new "normal" life. It already sucked.