AN: I own nothing except my OCs.

Set after S1 E6 of The Falcon and the Winter Soldier.

Prologue

At eight in the morning, the sun was already high overhead as Sam jogged up the driveway towards the house. The air was thick with humidity, and he was glad he hadn't waited any longer to get moving that morning. Stopping at the porch, he wiped the sweat from his brow before grabbing the bottle of water his sister had left for him on the top step before she left to go to the marina and out on the boat for the day.

Footsteps from inside the house, caused him to smirk as he took a sip of water. He heard the door open as he replaced the cap on the bottle, not needing to turn to see who was behind him.

"You're early. Sarah let you in?" he asked.

"Yep," was the response, and Sam turned slightly on the step to watch Bucky lean against the porch railing. "I finished my jog an hour ago."

"Of course you did," Sam retorted, with a roll of his eyes. "You up for helping me unload the boat later? Sarah has something at the boys' school she has to go to this afternoon."

"Sure," Bucky said, falling silent when they heard Sam's phone buzz in his pocket.

Pulling the phone from the pocket of his shorts he saw a number he didn't recognize. With a smirk he said, "Probably looking to talk to me about my car's extended warranty." Swiping up to answer he held the phone to his ear and said, "Hello?"

"Hi, I'm looking for Sam Wilson," a female voice said on the other end of the line.

"This is Sam," he responded, standing from his spot on the steps so he could stretch his legs.

"Hi Sam," the woman said. "My name is Kelsey Rogers. I...I found your number in one of my grandfather's books."

Sam felt his eyes widen at the all too familiar name. He glanced over at Bucky who looked at him questioningly, and Sam was sure he looked as if he had seen a ghost.

"You're Steve's granddaughter?" Sam asked, wanting to make sure he had heard her right and not entirely believing after all the months of not knowing what had happened to his friend, a member of his family was finally reaching out.

"Yeah," she said softly. "Listen, Sam...my grandfather...he passed away last night. He talked about you alot, the last few months, so when I found your number...I just…"

He heard her voice crack a bit as he fought back his own emotions. Steve was gone, really gone. It wasn't just a hypothetical any more. He glanced over at Bucky again, dreading the conversation that waited for him after the phone call was finished.

"I'm so sorry, Kelsey," he said softly. "Is there anything I can do?"

"I don't have a number for his friend Bucky," she said. "I know he'd want him to know too. If you could pass along the news, I would truly appreciate it."

"Yeah," Sam answered with a sigh. "He's actually here with me, I'll tell him."

"Thanks," he heard Kelsey say through the phone. "We're having a small service this weekend here in New Jersey. He...he didn't want anything big. He said he didn't want to draw attention. I could text you the information as soon as we finalize everything if you'd like."

"Please," Sam told her.

"Will do," she said. "I'm looking forward to meeting you finally. I wish it was under better circumstances."

"If you need anything between now and then you have my number," he offered, running a hand over his face.

"Thanks, Sam. See you this weekend," her heard her say before the phone went dead.

"When?" Bucky asked, drawing his attention back to the other man who stood on the porch staring out at the water with his arms folded over his chest.

"Last night," Sam said. "They're having a service for him this weekend."

"Shit," he heard Bucky mutter under his breath.

"Kelsey...his granddaughter is sending over all the information once she has it," Sam told him, sitting back on the porch again. "This is not how I saw this day going."

"No, me neither," Bucky said, with a sigh. "Look, I'm going to head home for a bit. I'll meet you at the dock later."

Sam nodded his head, not in any frame of mind to stop Bucky or insist he shouldn't be alone. Part of him was relieved to have a few minutes to process the fact that he was truly now living in a world where Steve Rogers didn't exist. He wasn't sure how long he sat there after Bucky left, just staring out at the water, phone in his hand. Sometime later Kelsey's text with the details for the funeral finally drew him from his thoughts. Pushing up from his seat on the step, he made his way into the house to shower and start arranging a flight to New Jersey.