Just before midnight on Tuesday evening, Kayla got a call from Sam Wilson. The baby was restless, so Kayla was awake, but not nearly awake for the worry in Sam's strained words.

"Hey Kay, can you head over to the compound? Steve's been hurt and he'll probably want to see you when he wakes up."

Kayla blinked, rubbing sleep from her eyes before yawning, "Sure. Is he okay?"

"I think he'll be okay..." Sam trailed off, and Kayla could hear the jet rumbling in the background, meaning they were already on their way home. "I'm gonna give Cho a call, see if she can meet us."

"Okay, sounds good. When will you be here?"

"Within two hours." Sam said, his breath hitching as he asked nervously, "Is Tiff with you?"

Kayla shook her head as she stood, stretching out her legs before waddling toward the front door and grabbing her keys, taking too long to realize Sam couldn't see her, "Sorry, no. She's at the compound. Baby brain got me a lil all over the place tonight."

Sam paused and Kayla wondered what he wasn't telling her. Her voice dropped as she asked threateningly, "Sam... what is it? Steve's not alright, is he?"

"Just see for yourself when we get there. Drive safe." He hung up and Kayla swallowed before literally sprinting down the front porch to her car, not even bothering to lock the front door.

She sped down the road towards the Avengers Compound, constantly reminding herself that she'd beat them home no matter how fast she drove. Had they failed? Was Steve going back to the Raft? Was this some kind of joke to surprise her now that he was finally coming home? Was he actually hurt and Sam was just trying to soften the blow? As the compound came into view, Kayla realized that the lights were coming alive, meaning anyone and everyone who was there was awake and ready. Kayla skidded her car to a stop, patting her baby comfortingly before flinging open the door and running as fast as she could towards the front doors. One of the agents held the doors open for her when she approached and she turned to him worriedly, "What's happened?"

"I don't know, Falcon called for an extensive medical team. Stark has everybody up and ready to-." The man answered, but Kayla was already running towards the stairs before he could finish his sentence. Rhodey and Vision were in the kitchen and they stared at Kayla blankly as she approached.

Natasha appeared from the side and threw her arms around Kayla, leaning her forehead into the other woman's shoulder, "Kay-"

"What happened? Sam said he was fine, what happened?" Kayla began to sob until Wanda and Tiffany appeared from the elevator. The Scarlet Witch grabbed Kayla from the other side and held her against the Black Widow while Tiffany looked out the window towards the landing pad. "Sam told me that Steve was gonna be okay."

"And he might be. Sam's not a doctor, but..." Tiffany trailed off, looking between Wanda and Natasha for help, "Did he not tell you that Steve was shot?"

"No. He said Steve was hurt."

"Kay, he took a bullet to the skull." Natasha murmured and Kayla's legs gave out, threatening to take Wanda and Natasha with her if Stark hadn't appeared from the sliding glass doors leading to the outside. When he saw Kayla, he stepped out from his suit and jogged over to her, taking her in his arms and rubbing her back comfortingly, "Cho is already downstairs, and Doctor Palmer is on her way from New York, she was Doctor Strange's assistant, do you remember her?"

"Where's Doctor Strange, he's the best-"

"He was in an accident last year. He's not available anymore." Stark said quickly as he pulled away, confirming that he'd already tried to get the best for Steve. Kayla nodded, tears streaming down her cheeks as she gasped for air. She wiped them away as Stark asked FRIDAY what Palmer's ETA was.

"She'll be here within a half hour, Sir."

"Where's Wilson?"

"They are about forty-five minutes out."

Stark motioned for Wanda to come forward to Kayla before turning his attention to Romanoff, "Cho is already here, make sure she's set up and have a stretcher ready at the landing pad. Maximoff, you keep her under control okay? Stress could cause her to go into labor."

"Oh God, Steve's never gonna see his child!" Kayla wailed as she fell into Wanda's arms, weeping openly as Tiffany rubbed her back.

"Shhh, Kay, we don't know how bad it is yet. He's not dead, we know that much." Tiffany whispered as Stark led Nat away to prepare for their arrival. Kayla continued to sob until Tiffany carefully pried the tall blonde off of Wanda's shoulder, "Hey. Dry those tears. Sam said he neutralized the target. Steve's a free man, that's what Ross promised. We're gonna get him all fixed up, just like he did with you. He's gonna be okay, I just know it. The absolute best of the best are here, and he's a super soldier... as are you." Tiffany reached up and used her thumbs to wipe Kayla's tears away, "I know emotions are running high right now and that this couldn't have happened at a worse time, but you are the strongest woman I know. You can get through this. Steve needs you to get through this, okay?"

"Okay." Kayla's lip wobbled, but she stood up straight and smoothed down her wrinkled t-shirt. It was Steve's. She wore his shirts to sleep every night, because it made her feel less alone, and because they were the only t-shirts that fit her now. "Is there a spare apartment here that I can rest in for a while? I can't wait out here while everyone is milling about, I'll go insane."

"Yeah, of course, you can come to my room. I'll stay with Natasha." Wanda offered, leading Kayla toward the elevator to take them to the residential level.

For almost an hour Kayla paced across Wanda's bedroom, chewing the side of her finger until she left indentations in her skin. Finally Vision knocked on the door and Wanda used her magic to open it, allowing the android to walk in, "Captain Rogers has arrived. He's being transported to the medical wing if you'd like to see him."

Kayla clenched her hand in front of her chest, unsure if she wanted to go to Steve or hide until she knew he'd be okay, "Did you see him?"

"I did." Vision said evenly, eyes flickering to Wanda for a moment, "He's unconscious, but he is alive. The doctors will know more. To be honest, I don't think he looks very good."

The blonde nodded and darted past Vision in an attempt to reach the medical wing as quickly as possible. Everyone in the building stopped and stared at her as she passed, until she skidded to a stop in front of the glass windows of the medical bay. She flung her hand out in front of her to catch herself against the glass wall looking into the room. "Oh my God."

Sam grabbed Kayla's wrist and pulled her in for a tight hug, "I wasn't there. There was nothing I could do. I was a block away, but I saw it on Redwing. If I'd been there two minutes earlier, I could have-"

"What happened?" Kayla asked, seeing Doctor Cho and Doctor Palmer taking turns passing tools back and forth before carefully prying the helmet off of Steve's head. It was clear the bullet had pierced the helmet, saving Steve's life but striking him with enough force to do damage. Blood was caked from the gash in his skull to his beard, and Kayla held her fist to her mouth to keep from sobbing. "Is he gonna be okay?"

"He just got here, Kay. They don't know yet." Tiffany told her friend, allowing her husband to keep his arms wrapped around the blonde. The contact seemed to comfort him more than her. Tiffany took a deep breath through her nose and looked up at Stark as he approached, punching one folded fist into his other palm. "The helmet was bulletproof, but the shooter was at close range. I'm having FRIDAY run some tests, see if we can identify the type of weapon. Might narrow down the suspects."

Kayla pressed her hand to the glass, watching as Doctor Cho carefully cleaned Steve's wound while Christine studied the monitors. How many times had Steve sat beside Kayla while the wires flowed out of her? How many times had he endured this very feeling, and how many times was it her fault? "He killed his target. Does Ross know he was shot?"

"Yes."

"Have we heard anything from him about Steve's pardon?" Kayla looked up at Sam, only to be distracted by her phone ringing in her pocket. It read Unknown Caller, but Kayla didn't have much more to lose. "Hello?"

"I know who shot Steve."

"Who is this?" Kayla asked, trying to place the female voice, and why she recognized it, "If you hurt him, I'll tear you limb from limb-"

"I know Steve was in Madripoor, and I know who shot him. Do you want the name or not?"

Kayla stared at Sam and he narrowed his eyes, mouthing 'who is it?' while Kayla considered the stranger's offer, "How'd you get this number?"

"I've had it for years. You probably should have changed it."

The woman hung up and Kayla stared down at her phone, feeling her anger rise as she squeezed the device until it cracked in her palm. She let the pieces fall to the floor as she looked up through the glass, glowering as Sam asked who had called again. "They said they know who shot Steve."

"Who?"

"They didn't tell me." Kayla spat, never taking her eyes off her husband, "It doesn't matter anyway. He's gonna be okay. He did what he was tasked to do, and he's gonna recover and that's it. Happily ever after."

Tiffany and Sam shared a knowing look behind Kayla's back. The woman gestured for her husband to follow, leaving Kayla alone at the glass as Doctor Palmer began hacking away at Steve's hair. Once his head had been cleaned, Doctor Palmer pushed through the glass door and took a deep breath, only to be rushed by Kayla, "How is he doing?"

Christine studied Kayla for a moment, nodding a little before sighing, "We think he'll live, but his brain activity isn't normal. We'll have to wait until he wakes up to understand the extent of the damage."

"He has the serum, it protects his cells and it stimulates his brain activity." Kayla explained and Christine just smiled weakly as the woman rambled on, "I'm sure by the time he wakes up he'll be fine. He has to be, that's what it does... it makes his mind sharper, I know this. I know it'll fix it. I took it. I'm... we're..."

"I know, Mrs. Rogers." Christine said calmly, taking Kayla's hands in hers. It wasn't until the doctor was holding her that Kayla realized she was shaking. "We're gonna do our best, but there's only so much we can do. We have to wait until he wakes up, and then we'll run more tests. Whoever shot him was precise. If he hadn't been wearing the helmet, he would be dead."

Christine swept back into the room, grabbing a tablet from Doctor Cho as the other woman pushed aside what hair Steve had left to study his wound. Kayla's eyes landed on the helmet, black as night like the stealth suit he wore. She wanted to get him out of it, clean him up, protect him. He was home, and she was going to make sure he was okay. He'd taken care of her time and time again. He'd taken this mission to get home to her. Kayla had to move on from the pain of the past nine months and look forward to their future.

She looked down at her stomach, rubbing it as she sniffled, "He's gonna be okay. I know it. He wants to meet you so badly, I know he's gonna make it through." She looked up, gasping for air through her tears, "At least he's alive."

Tony sidled up next to Kayla, but didn't say anything as she sniffled. They both stared through the glass as Doctor Cho set up monitors while Doctor Palmer finished setting up probes on the sides of Steve's head. Finally, Kayla spoke, "Thank you for all of this. After everything that happened in Siberia, I don't expect you to help him."

"I don't want to see him dead." Tony replied quietly, sparing a glance at Kayla, "FRIDAY says the bullet came from a sniper gun."

"Doesn't matter. I knew how dangerous that mission was. They sent in hundreds of people to get slaughtered, why did I think he'd be any different. I'm just thankful he's alive. And thank God Sam's okay." Kayla replied, turning to Stark, "He'll be okay. He'll fight through this."

"If anybody can get shot in the head and walk away, it's Steve Rogers." Tony chuckled, patting Kayla on the arm, "Want me to have a bed brought up?"

"Naw, I'll sleep in the chair. He's done that enough for me." Kayla answered, turning to Doctor Cho and Doctor Palmer as they pushed through the door. Kayla looked to them expectantly, and finally Cho spoke, "You ready to go in?" Kayla nodded, and Christine held open the door for her, allowing her in with Steve. The steady beep of the monitor reminded Kayla that he was alive, and whatever happened next, they'd figure it out together.

Kayla sat in a chair next to Steve, reaching over and grabbing his left hand to squeeze. After gazing at him for a moment, she turned to Christine, "Thank you for everything."

"We'll be here. Cho and I are gonna take shifts until he wakes up. If he starts to stir, hit the button on the bedside, okay?" Christine gestured to a red button connected to the bedframe, and Kayla nodded to show she understood. "If you want to get him changed, Cho says there are hospital gowns in the cabinet." Christine bid her goodnight and closed the door behind her, allowing the woman some privacy with her husband.

She watched his chest rise and fall, thanking God for sparing his life one more time. Despite being two in the morning, Kayla couldn't even consider sleep. Her mind was running a million miles a minute.

As the lights in the med bay went off, Kayla went to work slowly peeling Steve out of his suit, careful not to jostle him too much, yet hoping it might be enough to wake him up. It wasn't. Once he was stripped of his dirty uniform, Kayla crumpled it and dropped it on the floor near the door where nobody would trip over it. She glared at the helmet on the metal counter nearby, secretly wishing she could track down whoever hurt her husband. Despite telling her friends it didn't matter, she wanted track down whoever did this and make them suffer a long, painful death.

After maneuvering Steve into a hospital gown, Kayla dropped herself into the chair beside him, clenching his hand for dear life. When he still didn't move, she shifted in her chair, leaning it back a little but never letting go of Steve's hand, even as she finally drifted off to sleep.

When Steve Rogers started to come to, the first thing that registered was the pounding in his head. He felt like he'd taken a brutal hit to the skull, but he didn't remember fighting. The second thing that registered in his mind was that he didn't know where he was. The bed he was in was too soft, meaning he wasn't in his Brooklyn home. He shifted, feeling his body stiff and heavy, but the panicked voices that began speaking around him warned Steve he wasn't alone.

"Steve?" A woman's voice asked softly. He scrunched his brows, suddenly aware of the rapid beeping somewhere in the room. A soft hand rested on top of his, but it didn't feel familiar. Her voice was worried as the woman repeated, softer this time, "Steve?"

He groaned a little and leaned his head to the side, feeling something tug against his scalp, as if he was strapped to something. He straightened up, then slowly opened his eyes, squinting into the bright lights. Everything was startlingly clear in vivid color, and Steve sucked in a deep breath, finding it easier than he remembered. "Where am I?" He asked, feeling his throat dry and his voice gruff. He tried to turn towards the woman who was clutching his hand, but his attention was drawn over to a doctor standing over him with dark blonde hair pulled back messily behind her head. He furrowed his brows, noting how oddly she was dressed, but she was clearly the doctor. "Where am I?" He asked again, feeling his heart begin to pound more rapidly.

The beeping behind him picked up to match pace with his heartbeat, and Steve turned to his left, seeing a blonde woman staring back at him nervously. Steve swallowed, turning back to the doctor as she grabbed his jaw and shone a light in his eyes, "Can you tell me your full name?"

"Steven Grant Rogers."

"Birthday?"

"July fourth, 1918."

She wrapped a black band around his upper arm, and Steve looked to his right and choked a little at the size of his arm before looking down at his long body. He sat up in bed, panting as he ran his hands over his broad, muscular chest, "What have you done to me?"

"Steve?" The blonde whimpered, but the doctor pointed at her and ordered, "Get out. Please. Cho and I need to speak to him alone."

"I'm not leaving." The woman snarled, gripping Steve's hand tightly. He looked down her hand, seeing the sparkling blue stone on her wedding ring. He slowly turned her hand over so his was on top, realizing he wore a wedding ring too. This was his wife. He didn't remember her.

He looked up at the doctor with wide eyes, releasing the woman's hand to hold both of his in front of himself, panting as he clawed at the wires connected to his hands before touching the side of his head, causing it to sting terribly. The doctor pulled his hand away as a small brunette woman came charging in followed by a tall black man with a shell shocked expression. The brunette grabbed the blonde sitting beside Steve, trying to tug her out of her seat, but the woman didn't move, "Steve?"

"Captain Rogers, what year is it?" The doctor asked, and Steve looked up at her in horror, replaying her question over and over as the woman beside him began to hyperventilate.

She called him Captain Rogers. They must have him confused with somebody else. Did he wake up in somebody else's body? Clearly he wasn't the man they were looking for, but they hadn't batted an eye at his name and birthday. The room began to spin a little, but as Steve focused his gaze on the doctor, his head began to clear, "I believe it's... it's..." He closed his eyes, scrunching his face as he tried to remember, "1940."

"How old are you?"

"Twenty-two." Steve whispered, beginning to realize neither of those answers were correct. "Did you know my mother? Sarah? She passed several years ago, she was a nurse at the clinic downtown..." Steve looked back to the blonde, seeing her arm quivering as she held her fist to her mouth, wanting something from him, but he didn't know what. "Where am I?"

The doctor looked across Steve to the woman he believed was his wife, noting how the brunette clung to her for dear life to keep her from tackling him. Part of Steve wanted to speak to her. Part of Steve didn't believe he was the man she thought he was. The blonde doctor cleared her throat and bravely told him, "It's 2017. You're in the medical wing of the Avengers Compound. Years ago you were given an experimental serum that propelled your body and mind to the peak of human potential. You were once the leader of the Avengers."

"I'm not who you think I am."

"Doctor Cho, we need anesthesia, his heartrate is skyrocketing."

Steve panted as he tried to pull away from the wires holding him back, but the black man gently held him down as he tried to talk to him, "Steve, listen to me. You're confused-"

"Where's Buck?" He looked to the blonde, seeing her freeze at the name and wondering if she knew him. His breath caught in his chest when realization hit him. The doctor said it was 2017. "He's dead, isn't he? Everybody's dead, it's been almost eighty years, but why am I here? Why am I alive?" When the woman just stared at him in shock, he yelled, "Somebody answer me!"

"Cho, we need to anesthetize him now! He's having a panic attack!"

The blonde seemed to jolt awake at that, and she jumped to her feet, but the small brunette tried to steer her away as the other doctor, Doctor Cho, ordered them, "Out. Now."

"But-"

"No buts, we need you out, now!"

It was then Steve got a good look at her, and his stomach dropped at the realization that she was pregnant. His wife was pregnant. Before he could question it more, his eyes began to droop, and he realized they were pumping drugs into the tube still attached to his right forearm. "Who are-"

His eyes fell closed and his body relaxed, but Kayla was in hysterics as Sam practically carried her out of the hospital room. She got one good kick against his knee and he released her, but Wanda used her power to block the door back into the room. Kayla turned around, seeing her friend still in her pajamas with her red hair piled on top of her head, "Kay. What happened?"

"He has retrograde amnesia." Doctor Cho explained as she emerged from the room, taking the bullet and dealing with Steve's distraught family. "It makes sense, considering where he was hit."

"Is it permanent?" Tiffany asked, holding Kayla's arm tightly with both her hands.

Doctor Cho took a deep breath and looked back into the room, "Potentially, but unlikely. But he's never going to recover unless we acclimate him slowly." Cho smiled weakly at Kayla, knowing what she was about to say would upset the expectant mother, "I know how hard this is to hear, but you need to give him some space. Let him come to you when he's ready. He knows who he is, but he's been thrown forward in time. Again."

"Great." Kayla muttered, turning to Tiffany and snarling, "Get me King T'Challa of Wakanda on the phone. I need to speak to him."

Tiffany scrunched up her face in confusion, "Why?"

"Stop asking questions and fucking do it, okay?" Kayla barked, then pinched the bridge of her nose and took a deep breath before turning back to her best friend, seeing how hurt Tiffany looked, "I'm so sorry. I didn't mean that. I just need to talk to him. Please."

"Okay." Tiffany answered quietly, noting how stiff her husband was. She bumped into Sam's side and muttered, "It's okay. She's under a lot of stress."

Sam pointed at Kayla, and she lowered her head shamefully, knowing she'd get an earful about speaking so cruelly to Sam's wife. "He's alive. The prognosis isn't terrible, just inconvenient. We'll figure this out, just don't shut down, okay?"

Kayla looked up, remembering how good Sam was at talking people off the ledge. "Okay. I'm sorry."

"We know. Get some rest, we'll let you know if anything changes." Sam told Kayla, nodding away from the medical wing. Wanda slung her arm over Kayla's shoulder and led her away as Stark wandered up wearing a hoodie. He smiled brightly until he saw Kayla's devastated expression, then looked to Sam and Tiffany to see them not much better.

"What did I miss?"