Hey guys! Sorry, this update took so long, but finals just ended! Oh, I'm drained, but excited to post this new chapter! I hope you like it! And the surprise at the end! Review and let me know what you think!

~One Month Later~

"Can I just point out that everyone is doing something except you?" Rhodey huffed to Tony as he and Sam were currently on the task of taking in our new dining room set.

Things moved pretty quickly after Clint and I put our bid for the house in. We went back and forth with another couple but eventually, we won.

A day later we signed the papers.

I was now officially a homeowner with my retired Avenger lover.

Never thought that would happen.

Over the last month, Clint and I barely had time to think as we packed up the apartment, Clint did renovations on the house to get it move-in ready, and we went insane with furniture shopping. Clint had surprised me by putting a whiteboard wall in my office so I could nix my butcher paper habit whenever I would need to work on a new project. It was a great way to save on paper. Beth gave me a jumbo twenty-four pack of whiteboard markers.

Three days ago, Clint and I officially moved out of the apartment when the mattress and bedroom set for our master suite arrived. The cable and internet people arrived the day after. We politely declined on Tony setting up an AI unit for us. We wanted to continue on with everything as normal as possible. Plus, we really didn't need Tony peering into our lives 24/7. That would just be plain weird.

Speaking of Tony…

He was currently sitting on our brand-new living room couch as everyone else moved our million pieces of furniture.

The team took the day to come and help us "officially" move in. Meaning they volunteered to help us move all the new furniture so we wouldn't have to spend a fortune hiring movers.

"Hello, I am helping," Tony replied and motioned to the two empty suits that were in the middle of flying mattress number four upstairs.

"Using your suits while you sit down isn't helping," Natasha commented as she continued unpacking the living room boxes with help from Wanda and me.

"I second that," Clint grunted as he hung a painting over our fireplace.

"Still these are quite interesting," Pops remarked as the two dummy suits came back downstairs. He intently studied them.

Steve passed by as he carried the dining room table himself. He had it by the middle, carrying it over his head. Anyone else I would be terrified but not Captain America.

"See Steve is doing it all by himself," I smirked knowing it would bug Tony.

"He also has super-human strength." Tony rolled his eyes.

"That dining room table seats sixteen people!" Exclaiming at his weak argument.

"It's okay I'm used to picking up Tony's slack by now." Steve cracked a rare quip at the inventor as he came back into the living room. He barely had broken a sweat.

"Hey!" Tony cried out.

Steve looked at me and we both tried to smother our grins.

"Just be glad we decided to not furnish all ten bedrooms at once," Clint said as he stepped down from his ladder after he finished hanging the painting.

"That is true. I only wanted to furnish four including ours, but someone kept twisting my arm to furnish five and ours instead." Glaring at Clint "You should have seen the poor cashier at Bed Bath and Beyond who checked us out. Six bedding sets and twenty-six pillows." Shaking my head at the memory.

"Are you going to fill all the bedrooms?" Sam asked as he and Rhodey came in and collapsed into a set of chairs.

"One will be used for my office…I believe that furniture is still on the truck." Shyly saying as I watched Sam let out a groan.

"Sorry." Giving him an apology.

"I'll tag in for a while." Vision floated down from one of the bedrooms before going out the front door.

Sam and Rhodey gave him a grateful nod.

"One room will be for Beth. One for Pops, and one for Wanda." Shooting the girl a smile which she returned.

"The others will be used for any future children." Beth cheekily said as she came in from the kitchen.

"Beth!" Turning red as I threw a throw pillow at her.

"What! It's not totally inconceivable." She ducked just in time.

"Oh yes, it is." Pops seriously answered. Glancing at Clint we both smirked but said nothing.

"Baby they just moved in. Don't pressure them into having kids yet." Sam said to Beth.

"Yeah. So have you guys talked about kids yet?" Natasha directed her sarcasm towards Sam and we all laughed as he becoming a blubbering mess.

"They're only joking." Beth soothed as she finished laughing and sat on Sam's lap.

"Right now I just want to get settled in the house." Speaking as I placed picture frames on the fireplace mantle. Hoping to deflect some of Sam's embarrassment.

"Is Wanda staying here tonight?" Steve asked.

"No, I wanted to give them some time alone." The teenager winked at me and Clint.

"Not even going to answer that." Clint snorted.

"When everything is settled we would love to have everyone over for a fancy official dinner." Telling them "But for now you'll have to settle for pizza."

"Fine by me." Rhodey let out a sigh, looking exhausted.

Vision came back into the house carrying my office desk.

"Guess we've uncovered the office furniture," I commented as he passed by and flew upstairs.

"I'll go give him a hand," Steve smirked taking pity on Sam and Rhodey, and walked back out the front door.

"Just don't scuff up my new artwork." Smiling at him. Clint had called in Steve to do a Hamilton inspired mural for my office with Wanda's help since they were the only two members on the team with any artistic talent. Another delightful surprise for my office.

"I'll be careful." Steve gave me a cheeky grin and went to the truck.

"How did Thor get out of this?" Sam questioned from his seat.

"He said there was stuff going on at home," Nat replied, folding another now empty box.

"He's been saying that a lot lately," Clint commented.

"He didn't get into it, but I think it has something to do with his father's health." Quietly adding.

Poor Thor.

"We would let us know if he needed anything right?" Sam asked.

Tony snorted in response "Doubt it. In the meantime, we'll just have to do without our demigod."

I bit my lip at his response. It wasn't like we could get messages to Thor easily. But I hoped he was okay. I knew he still struggled with the loss of his mother. Having his father sick must be adding onto his plate as he had to run Asgard in his place. It was stressful to take care of a sick parent, let alone run an entire realm on top of that.

"He'll let us know if he really needs anything." Clint softly said to me, reading my mind.

Glancing up I gave him a nod knowing he was right.

Still, something unsettled me and I couldn't place what.

"Anyone want another s'more?" Asking before I packed everything up.

There was a murmur of no's and I nodded as Clint helped me clean up.

"It feels wrong to have s'mores without Thor." Wanda sadly commented as I roasted another marshmallow over our gas-powered fire pit. We were all gathered on the patio in the backyard making s'mores as we relaxed after an exhausting day of moving.

Pops had left a little while ago even though the team had offered to drive him home in the quinjet. Pops politely declined the offer, knowing full well it was too much for him. He was still getting used to the superhero stuff.

So it was just the team and myself sitting on the patio in the dark having our own little party.

"Thor's S'mores," Sam smirked and even though it was stupid we all laughed.

"I'm going to put that on a mug for him." Only half-joking.

"Hey, do you think I could fit fifteen marshmallows in my mouth?" Clint asked as he picked up the bag.

"You're a hazard to society." Steve shook his head.

"And a coward. Do twenty." Nat said with a serious expression.

"No!" Rolling my eyes, taking the bag from him.

"Aw come on mom." Nat laughed and yawned at the same time.

"Are you guys sure you're okay to fly back?" Clint asked as he saw Nat smother another yawn.

"We'll be fine. If anything, Stark can fly since barely did any physical labor." Nat shot out at him.

"I helped!" Tony shouted as he began a rant.

Shaking my head I gathered the s'mores supplies, making sure to keep the marshmallow bag close to me, and went into the kitchen. Wanda trailed in behind me.

"Thought I'd help." She gave me a grin.

"Thank you." Smiling at her.

"There is actually something I wanted to talk with you about." Saying as we began to put things away.

"Yeah?" She asked.

"Well Clint and I have been talking it over and we wanted to know if you wanted to make your coming here something of a more permanent basis? I know you just got your GED and we weren't sure if you had thought about college or even if you wanted to go, but there are so many great schools around here." Explaining to her "We would love to have you here if that's what you wanted."

"Really?" She twisted her hair like she didn't believe me.

"Yeah. I know you've been through a lot but you're barely 18 Wanda. You deserve a shot at normalcy if you want it. Go to school, get your degree, meet guys, do normal things teenagers do." Joking with her "Superhero stuff can wait and will always be there. You only get one chance to go through life. Live it how you want."

"But what about the team? What would Tony say?" She asked with a lot of hesitation.

"I think the team can handle being without you if they knew this was something you really wanted. Plus you can try multitasking the superhero thing and school, see how it works out. As for Tony, I don't think he'd mind. Besides, Steve, Nat, Clint, and I would pester him until he was okay with it. He's not your keeper Wanda." Laughing as I continued to put things away.

"And you and Clint would be okay with this? Having me here like almost all the time? Don't you want your privacy?" She questioned but I could see her hope beginning to shine through.

"Wanda we wouldn't have offered if we didn't want you here. You're family." Grinning warmly at her.

"Well…" She started "I mean I think it would be interesting to see what all the fuss is about when it comes to college. But I have no idea what I'd want to major in." She frowned.

"You have time to figure that out." Soothing as I rubbed her arm.

"And-" Dropping my voice to a whisper "You could see more of Vision without everyone watching you guys."

After watching the AI superhero and the redhead for the past few months I could see something blooming between them. I'm just not sure they knew what.

Wanda's face went white before turning red.

"And you could have time to figure out what you feel for him too." Shyly smirking.

"Thank you." She whispered back. Her cheeks were still red.

"No problem. You're my little sister remember." Pulling her into a hug.

"So does this mean you want to stay here more and give school a try?" Asking her.

She pulled back and had a huge smile on her face.

"Yeah, I would love to!" She beamed, almost jumping up and down in excitement.

"Super!" Her excitement growing on me as I did a little hop next to her "I'm so excited for you!"

This would be a whole new beginning for Wanda! I'm glad Clint and I would be there to help! Maybe if I was lucky she would want to major in history…

"Hey Dot, can you go over to the Captain America exhibit? The visitors are complaining that the video loop for Sergeant Barnes keeps cutting in and out." Amy came over to my desk and filled me in.

"Again?" Sighing as I got up "That's the third time this month." Grabbing my keys, phone, and my USB drive "I'll go check it out but we might need to put in a new screen."

"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it." Amy joked as I left the office room and made my way to the exhibit on the second floor.

Unlocking my phone, I texted Clint asking if the screen problem was something he could help fix in the near future. If he wasn't preoccupied with his million little side projects on the house.

We had been moved in for three months and so far, owning a ten-bedroom house was pleasant, but kind of exhausting.

It seems like there was always something to do, something always coming up. But Clint didn't seem to mind. To me, I think he was in heaven having something to constantly do and being in his work shed out in the backyard most of the time. It was good to see him keeping busy, but some days there were times when we barely had time to see each other.

We actually had to schedule time to celebrate our one-year anniversary! Which was nuts but the anniversary itself was amazing. Clint took me back to Folia Mare for dinner, and he surprised me with a quick weekend trip to Salem, MA. He knew I had always wanted to go, so he humored me as I dragged him on countless tours and he even let me take him on a few haunted ones and managed to keep his sarcasm in check.

A smile pulled on my face. Jesus. That year flew by in a minute. I cannot believe Clint and I had been together for a year. I wouldn't have traded anything for the time we've spent together.

Beth then not so jokingly started dropping hints to Clint that he should propose. I had to put a quick stop to that and shut her down. I told her Clint, and I were in no rush.

But even when she joked a few times and called me the future Mrs. Barton I have to say I didn't hate the sound of that.

The thought put a whole new smile on my face.

Would it be nice for Clint to propose? Yes. But I didn't want to rush him or me. I knew he loved me, and I loved him, and that we were together for the long-haul. There was time for us to plan how we wanted our future to look.

As I made my way to the exhibit hall I had to maneuver my way through crowds of people wanting to get one last look at the exhibit before it was officially retired next week and taken down. It was kind of bittersweet to see the exhibit go, being that it was the first one I ever helped assemble when I was in grad school. Though I still had the original first Avenger to call whenever I wanted to chat, so that was something. Steve had even graciously donated his suit to the museum where it was in the works to be put up on permanent display in one of the halls.

Walking over to the Sergeant Barnes area I noticed the screen flickering and let out a sigh at the annoyed faces standing before it. Politely apologizing for the inconvenience to the visitors I went over to the monitor that controlled the screen I shut everything down and waited for the system to reboot. The crowds had dispersed from the screen as everything went black. Putting in my flash drive I pulled up the video production on Bucky and ran it through the system. When the video ran through completely clean I tried putting it back on the screen.

It still flickered even though the video on the monitor was crystal clear.

"Cheap piece of crap," I muttered under my breath as I gave the screen a few thumps to get it working properly. After my fourth thump, the video feed stopped flickering.

"Thank you." Saying aloud as I bent back down and retrieved my USB and relocked the monitor box.

Standing back a few feet in front of the screen I stood and waited for the entire video to run through in case, any more problems came up. When the video montage reached the end and the screen showed no signs of an issue I let out a relieved sigh, happy my work was done.

Turning back around I had every intention of going back to the office area when I collided into someone.

"Oh my God, I am so sorry!" Rushing out an apology "I didn't even see where I was going I was so focused on the video."

The person I collided into was a man whose entire face was masked by a baseball cap and long brown hair. Stubble littered his chin.

"It's fine." He shortly replied. Looking down at the floor instead of me.

"Are you okay?" Asking him.

"I'm fine." He nodded and briefly flickered his eyes up to me. They were blue.

Glancing down I saw him clad in jeans, a denim jacket, and a light hoodie to add to the baseball cap. He wore a pair of leather gloves on his hands. Which was super odd because it was the middle of spring?

"How are you liking the exhibit?" Trying to feel this strange man out "I actually helped put it together." I may have been making small talk, but I was wondering if I needed to call security or something.

"I like it fine. It's nice." He said in a low voice "You did a good job." He quietly added.

"You know I did all the work on Sergeant James Barnes. I fought to do his section." Attempting to keep the conversation going, still trying to decide if I needed to call for security.

The mystery man flickered his eyes back up at me. There was something weirdly familiar about them.

"Why?" That was all he asked me.

I shrugged my shoulders "Because he was a good man. He fought for his country. He had honor. He cared about Steve. He loved him and it showed. It still does. Steve remembers it all. He talks about Bucky all the time."

The man snapped his head up at me.

"He does?" Mystery man asked in a whisper with hopeful eyes.

My eyes widened at seeing his face. No. It was not possible. It was not possible.

Save for the stubble and the long hair he looked exactly the same. How? How was this even real?

When I sucked in a breath, he realized his mistake at showing his face. He had been recognized. Without warning, he turned and darted away from me. I bolted from my place and tried to catch up with him as he weaved in and out of the crowds. I wanted to call out to him but I didn't want to make a scene. I didn't even know what to say.

By the time I had made it to the front doors I had lost him. Rushing outside I took in everything, my head darting back and forth like a madman trying to spot him but it was no use.

Trying to get some air into my lungs I tried to think.

What did I see? Who did I see?

Maybe I just imagined it? Or placed his face on someone else's body?

But even deep down I knew I was fooling myself.

I had no way to describe it or explain it but I knew what I saw. Who I saw.

My legs began to shake. Hoping I didn't look like a mess I sat down on a nearby bench and willed to pull myself together. I needed to think.

Grabbing my phone my hands shook as I called Clint.

"Hey baby, what's going on?" He picked up answering the call.

I attempted to speak. I really did. But my throat momentarily decided to close up.

"Dorothy, what's wrong?" Clint's voice took on a tone of panic when I didn't answer.

"I-I don't know." Finally getting myself to speak "I-I uh I-" Speaking out but was at a total loss for words.

"Are you okay?" Clint's tone now had a hard edge to it laced with panic.

"I'm fine. I'm okay." Breathing out "I-I need you to call Steve and tell him to get down here right now. I'm going to leave work early. I have to speak to him."

"Why? Dot what's wrong?" Clint stressed and I could hear his panic multiply by a thousand.

Pausing I closed my eyes and pictured the face I had just seen.

"Because I think I just spoke to a dead person." Swallowing my own panic as I had just come face to face with James Buchannan Barnes. And he looked just like he had when he died in 1944.

"Let's just go over this again." Clint tried to reason for like the tenth time.

"No. I know what I saw. I know who I saw." Shaking my head.

It was him. It had to be.

Currently, Steve was on his way to our house. After I got off the phone with Clint, I faked an illness to leave work early and sped straight home to attempt to explain everything to Clint.

"Dot you were working on the exhibit, maybe you just-" Clint tried to speak but I cut him off.

"No! Babe I know I'm not crazy. I know who I saw." Starting to get frustrated.

Our doorbell sounded making us both go still.

Clint moved first and went to the door as I ran my hands through my hair.

When I heard three sets of steps instead of two, I turned around just in time to see Steve, Clint, and Sam coming into the living room.

"Sam?" My eyebrows knitted together "I'm sorry but I really need to speak to Steve alone." Hoping to explain without being rude.

"Sam…might be helpful in the situation." Steve slowly said.

"Dot what's going on? Clint tried to tell us on the phone, but he didn't want to get into it too much." Steve asked as he stood in my living room.

"Okay…" Trailing off, "This is going to sound nuts, but I saw someone at work today."

In my head, I was attempting to formulate what to say but none of it really made sense.

"I saw James. I saw Bucky at work today." Finally, just saying the words to them.

Steve went still and Sam eyed him carefully.

"I'm not insane. I know who I saw. I saw his face. He looked exactly the same as he did in 1944, but his hair was longer but-the minute I saw his face not hiding behind the baseball cap I knew it was him." Saying to the group.

I paused and waited for Steve to pass out or something, but he didn't…

"Why don't you look surprised? Your best friend who you thought had been dead for seventy years isn't. Why aren't you curled up into a ball on the floor?" Skeptically asking him.

Both Steve and Sam were silent as they glanced at each other.

"Since you're in this now there is something you both need to know." Sam was the first to speak to Clint and me.

In seven minutes, he was able to tell us that last year it was Bucky, aka The Winter Soldier who had attacked Captain America in D.C. Who had tried to kill him when they took down Hydra. How he pulled Steve out of the Potomac and pulled him on the riverbed and saved his life. He had remembered Steve.

It was a lot to take in seven minutes.

"How is he even still alive?" Clint openly questioned after Sam was done "He fell from a moving train in the mountains."

"It was Zola wasn't it." Finally, able to find my voice, "When Bucky's whole unit was captured in '43, Zola experimented on him. Wasn't he trying to replicate the serum, Erskine gave you?" Looking at Steve as I remembered all the research I unearthed on Bucky, that he had been a POW and Steve had gone looking for him to rescue him.

"Yeah, Hydra was taking POWS and experimenting to replicate the same serum used on me. Apparently, Bucky was the strongest candidate. When he fell from the train the serum must have protected him somehow, made him stronger without him even realizing it." Steve told me.

"But how in the hell did he become the Winter Soldier?" Clint was still trying to put everything together.

"When he fell from the train Zola found him. He fixed him up, gave him the metal arm, and made him Hydra's prisoner. They brainwashed him to forget everything to become the Winter Soldier." Sam said.

"But he looks the same?" Inquiring to them.

"They kept him frozen. Only thawing him out and re-wiping his memory when they need him to perform a hit." Sam quietly said as he glanced at Steve, who had a pained look on his face.

"Oh my God." Whispering out in sadness as I looked at Steve, who wasn't looking at anyone.

Bucky used as Hydra's puppet for the last seventy years made me sick. Steve was his best friend. I couldn't even imagine how he must be feeling.

"And so you've been looking for him since last year." Asking them, but already knowing the answer.

Steve nodded "We had a few leads, but nothing panned out. Until now." He raised his head looking at me.

"Why would he be at the museum today?" Sam asked me.

"The Howling Commandos Exhibit is set to permanently close next week. I guess he wanted to see it-you." Softly answering thinking that could be the only answer.

"What exactly happened?" Steve asked and took a seat across from me.

"I went to the exhibit hall because the screen for Bucky's part was broken again. I went there I fixed it. I stayed until the whole video ran through to make sure it was working properly. I turned around and bumped into someone-Bucky." Starting off my story.

"He was acting really strange. He wouldn't look me in the eyes. I looked him over, he was wearing jeans, a hoodie, a denim jacket, baseball hat, but he was wearing gloves and I found that really odd because it's spring. Now I know it's because of the metal arm…" Trailing off making brief eye contact with Steve who shifted in his seat.

"I tried talking to him about the exhibit. I told him I helped put it together. I was nervous about the way he was acting. I didn't know if I needed to get security or something. I was trying to gauge him. I told him that I fought to put together his-Bucky's exhibit." It was so weird to talk about a current person who you thought had been dead for seventy-plus years.

"He finally looked me in the eyes when I said that, briefly though, but there was something familiar about them. He asked me why I had fought to do Bucky's set. I told him that I admired Bucky, that he was a good man who served his country. He had honor and Steve cared about him, that you loved him, and it showed, I told him that you still do." Swallowing as Steve looked at me with a gutted expression, "I told him that you still talk about him all the time. He looked at me at that point. His head snapped up like in sudden realization. And he said in a quiet voice 'He does?' He sounded so hopeful."

It might have been my imagination, but I thought I saw Steve's eyes begin to water, but I decided not to bring it up, but continue "I finally saw his whole face…and I knew it was him. He looked the way he still had in 1944, though the hair was longer, and he had some stubble. I froze and he realized his mistake, that he had shown his whole face and that I recognized him. Then he bolted. I tried to keep up with him, but the room was packed. I ran to the front doors, but he was already gone. I'm really sorry Steve." Softly finishing my story with a pit in my stomach as I took in Steve's face.

"But he remembers you. He still does, maybe he was trying to remember more by coming to the exhibit. He still cares about you Steve, and now you know that he still cares about you. Otherwise, why would he have been there today?" Asking with some hope in my voice. This had to be good news right?

But Steve didn't look happy, hopeful, or relieved.

Instead, he got up and went outside on the front porch without saying a word.

"Sorry, this hasn't been easy for him." Sam apologized for him.

"There is no need to apologize. I can't even begin to imagine what he is going through." Quietly staring at the front door. I was itching to follow him but I didn't know if I should.

"Who else knows about this?" Clint asked Sam.

"Besides you guys just Nat, Hill, and Fury but I've been the only one helping him locate Bucky. He wants to keep this as quiet as possible. It's going to be hard enough to bring him in and get him accepted and pardoned because of his past with Hydra." Sam told us.

"But none of that was his fault." Arguing with his logic.

"We know that, but Dottie, you know that not everyone is going to feel that way." Sam gently said.

I bit my lip. He was right.

"You're right, we should keep this between us until absolutely necessary." Glancing at Clint, who nodded with me. I didn't like having to keep secrets from the others, but what I wanted didn't matter. It what was going to help Steve that mattered.

"You can count on us. And if you need me to follow up on any leads, I'd be happy to lend a hand." Clint added.

"Appreciate that." Sam nodded gratefully.

My gaze drifted back to the front door.

"I'm going to go check on him." Telling them and leaving before they could say anything.

I observed Steve sitting in one of the porch chairs as I shut the front door quietly behind me.

"Hey." I softly said as I took a seat next to him.

"Hey." He replied but kept looking at the floor.

"So I'm not sure what to say when you find out your friend's, best friend hasn't been dead for the past seventy years, but has been a frozen, assassin popsicle to an evil organization." Keeping my tone light, hoping to get away with my lame joke.

It worked, kind of. Steve did crack a small smile.

"Yeah, I'm not sure either." The half-smile still on his face.

"I can't even begin to imagine what you're going through, so I'm not even going to try, and this is going to sound like such a stupid question, but how are you holding up?" Asking him.

Steve slowly shook his head "I have no idea. Last year when I saw his face for the first time, I thought I was dreaming-or losing it. Sam has been trying to help me find him for so long since then, I guess I'm happy he was in D.C. today?" Steve sounded unsure of himself.

"Did he really remember me?" Steve softly questioned, as he finally looked at me. It made my heart melt.

"He did." Clasping his hand in mine, "He sounded like an optimistic child when I told him that you still remembered him and talked about him all the time." My own small smile coming onto my face now, "He still cares about you Steve, or otherwise, I don't think he would have saved your life last year. Or gone back today to try and remember you."

"I just…" Steve's voice strained, "I should have gone after him. I should have jumped after him after he fell from the train."

"Steve you would have gotten hurt too. You probably would have gotten captured by Hydra, same as Bucky, then what would have happened to you? To the world? Who knows how the war would have turned out if you hadn't gone in the ice?" Soothing as I scooted closer to him.

"I'm sure he doesn't blame you. You did your duty. One day, hopefully soon, you'll get to talk to him about it." Squeezing his hand, "But he knows you still care."

Steve was quiet for a few minutes. I let him ponder his thoughts as I held his hand as he stared out into our front yard.

"It's more than just caring about him." Steve finally broke his silence, but I continued to be quiet to let him speak.

After a minute Steve spoke.

"I love him." He quietly said.

"More than a friend." He whispered the last bit.

"Oh, I see." Biting my lip.

Steve was gay? How the hell did I miss that?

"There's nothing wrong with that Steve. It is the twenty-first century after all, not the 30's or 40's. Gay marriage is legal." Trying to joke.

Steve remained silent.

"Does-did you ever tell Bucky how you felt?" Gently inquiring because I didn't want to pry but…

"No, I never told him. As far as he was concerned we were best friends, but that's it." Steve quietly said.

"Do you think it could be different now? Now that he is back and alive? I mean you could have the chance to start over." Attempting to sound optimistic.

"Yeah, except we have to find him first and then somehow de-Hydra him." Steve sighed a heavy sigh and rubbed a hand over his face "And I would still have to tell him I love him. If I get him back, I don't want to risk losing him. I don't want him to be disgusted with me." Tears pooled in Steve's' eyes.

"Steve he's your best friend. At the core of everything that's happened to him, he still cares about you. When you get him back, he won't be disgusted with you if you tell him how you really feel. You won't know how he feels until you tell him." Squeezing his hand in reassurance.

We went quiet for a few seconds before I asked, "Does anyone else know about your feelings?"

Steve shook his head, "No, you know how the group is. Gossip all the time. Plus, I don't need Natasha pushing me and setting me up with people." Steve cracked a joke.

"Then I feel very honored you confided this to me." Giving him a genuine warm, smile.

"I know you could keep my secret, and I know how much you care about me." Steve smiled back at me.

Leaning forward I wrapped him in a hug "I'll always have your back, and don't worry. Your secret is safe with me."

Pulling back, I looked at Steve "Anything you need, not that I'm sure what I would be able to do, but Clint and I are here to help. We will find Bucky." Soothing him with comfort, "And when we do you can finally tell him how you feel. Everything will work out, you'll see."

Steve let out another sigh as he rested his head on my shoulder, "I hope you're right."