A/N: Hi everybody ! Leave me your thoughts pls. You know me. I'm always a slut for comments/reviews. Also, anybody know how Ko-Fi works? If I offer to write personalized oneshots for people and charge a set price can Marvel like take me to court? How does that work? What if I offer: 'one your OC/self inset with any character you want but you have to buy me a cup of coffee'? Does that still count as earning money from Marvel copyright? It shouldn't though b/c y'all are just pals buying me coffee? Actually the more I type this out the more I'm freaking myself out lololol

ANYWAYS

I tried to keep the medical terminology to a minimum in this chapter but if you get lost you might just wanna google a picture of a shoulder's anatomy? Or just message me. Jesus I'm talking so much right now okay I love all of you so very much pls leave me comments and reviews I wanna hear from y'all sooooooooooo much (lowkey I've been drinking b/c nothing is more fun that drunk writing ok forreal imma shut up now).

Chapter #03:

Patience is Not My Virtue

"People forget that abuse is damaging, but its aftermath is permanent. Your body will heal, and so will your mind but when things heal they leave scars behind. You owe no one an explanation, a reason, a defense, for who you become after you survive." –unknown

"No."

"Tony—"

"No!"

"What the hell was I supposed to do!?" I yelled and crossed my arms. "If I hadn't been there the episode would've been so much worse—"

Tony threw his hands out as if physically cutting my words off, "You don't seem to understand what happened there, Aj. You fucking gambled. If he had lost it, you would've been right there in his damn warpath!"

"Bucky wouldn't hurt me!"

"That is naïve thinking." Tony snapped. "You hope that he wouldn't hurt you, and I'm sure in your brain you think lover boy would never set a hand on you—" I rolled my eyes at his comment, but he pressed on, "—but he isn't in control. I'm sure Bucky fucking Barnes wouldn't touch a hair on your head, but the Winter Soldier would snap your neck without hesitation!"

I saw his concern. I understood it. But in my head, there was no question. Bucky was stronger than the Winter Soldier, and Bucky would never hurt me. That's all I needed to know. I ducked my head down for a second, taking in a deep breath, then looked up again, "Tony, think of this objectively. If I hadn't been there, his episode would've spiraled into something worse. We could've had actual injuries."

"Fine." Tony grumbled. "This isn't working though. We need a better system than 'Toss you at him and pray the Soldier doesn't rip your head off'."

"I can agree on that." I nodded to settle his worries. Tony twisted his lips, and I reached out to touch his arm, "Now can you please stop stressing and get the hell out of my apartment? Pepper is in the lobby with your kids waiting for a day out on the town and you're in here bitching."

Tony scoffed and turned to leave, I followed him to the door, "Are you the one who told Barnes they aren't really my kids? I had a whole thing planned and you went and ruined it."

I pushed him out the front door, "Any other complaints?"

"Not right now, no." He replied then pointed at me, "I'll be back by 5 to meet the surgeon with you."

Tony began to say something else, but I said a slow good-bye while shutting the door on him. He had woken me up at 8 in the morning for this lecture and it hadn't been nearly as much sleep as I wanted. The thought of lying down to go back to sleep didn't feel right. That was the great thing about the training gym though. It was always open for my restless mind.

I quickly changed into shorts and a sports bra. Before I could step out of my bathroom though, my eyes landed on myself in the mirror. The scar at the center of my body still looked angry. It was healed, but it would take much longer for the redness to disappear. I hated it. It was mark 35, but unlike the first 34 it couldn't be hidden. Even with my longest sports bra on you could still see the lower half of it. I clenched my jaw and grabbed a tank top to slip on so it couldn't be seen.

It only took me a couple minutes to get to the gym. The design was very similar to the Tower's but with added space and a lot more natural lighting from huge windows. When I stepped in, I noticed Wanda was running on a treadmill by herself. She glanced over at me, at the sound of my entrance, and I offered her a small wave before moving over to the bags.

After a quick warm-up, I went to town. For the most part, I felt back to normal, but every once in a while, with a specific movement, I'd feel the burn of my abdominal muscles clenching. It was more irritating than it was painful. I got about fifteen minutes in before I realized Wanda was standing a few feet behind my shoulder. I stopped, catching the swinging bag, then turned.

"Hey, Wanda. You okay?" I greeted while trying to catch my breath.

"Good morning." She smiled. Her hair was pulled back into a tight ponytail and she had on yoga pants and a tank top of her own. "You're very quick on the bag."

"Years of practice." I chuckled.

"It looks like it comes so naturally to you. Those movements feel odd to me when I train. Can you help me with this one?" As she spoke, she swung her arms out into a slow jab, uppercut, hook combo.

I nodded, "Absolutely."

I helped get her feet in the right position then walked her through the combo while putting emphasis on where the power should be coming from. Wanda had the beginner's mistake of putting too much focus on her arms rather than relying on her hips and body for all the power.

Wanda shook her head after working up a sweat, "I don't understand why I need to know all this. In case you guys have not noticed, my hands glow."

With her words she wiggled her fingers and sparks of red danced from them. I chuckled and nodded, "Yes, and that's all good, but what happens when you can't rely on those pretty sparks?" She shrugged in a 'you win' kind of gesture and went back to placing punches into my held out hands. After another second, I lowered my hands, and she gave me a curious look. "Hey, can I ask you something?"

"About Bucky?"

"I thought you stopped peeking into heads." I raised an eyebrow at her.

Wanda grinned, "I didn't have to look into your head for that information. I know he had an episode last night and that you helped."

"Right." I mumbled. "FRIDAY said that you were the one who told her to notify me whenever that happened. What made you… Why?"

She paused in thought briefly, "It's… I know I'm not supposed to look into heads anymore, but he's in so much pain. It screams out at me and I want…I want to help him so badly so I do what I can."

"Do what you…" I narrowed my eyes in confusion, "What do you mean by that?"

Wanda wrapped her arms around herself nervously, as if she was scared that I was about to start yelling at her, "I make it quiet. When I can. Not enough to be intrusive, I swear I'm never going to do what I did to the others again, I swear it, Aj." She chewed on her lower lip briefly. "But I just…curb the darkness when I can." I blinked in surprise at her words. Was this why he wasn't having as many episodes as we all thought he'd have? The first real one that happened was the one last night. Wanda continued, "And I knew you could help him because of the way his mind is split. Steve Rogers was a part of his past. He's part of Bucky's memory and though he can help in some ways those memories are twisted into his nightmares. You're separate. You weren't a part of his past, either one of them. You're only part of his present. You stand out, and it anchors him to reality. I can see that quite clearly."

My initial question had been answered, but I didn't even give a damn about that anymore. Wanda curbed his darkness, helped him feel better, and she did that without any real effort. What if we had her actually sit and actively try?

"Will you… Will you come with me real quick?" I asked slowly.

It took me less than a minute to drag a confused Wanda all the way to the kitchen. Since it was still early in the morning the area was empty. Clint would be coming back sometime today, and Natasha had taken Vision on an unnamed mission. I motioned for Wanda to take a seat and hurried over to the elevators. Before my finger could hit the button, the doors slid open to reveal Sam.

His eyes widened at me, "Morning. Where's the fire?"

"I'm gonna have Wanda use her cool red glowing mojo to push all the darkness out of Bucky's head. Cool, huh?" I said in one breath and tried to squeeze in past him. Sam hooked his arm through mine and dragged me backwards out of the elevator. I frowned at the motion, but allowed him to drag me, "Hey."

Sam ignored my complaint, "Aj, can I have a quick word with you?"

I recognized his therapist voice with ease and resisted the urge to audibly sigh. Sam dragged me all the way back into the kitchen and the teenager gave us a curious glance. She motioned toward the hall to where the dorms were, "Do I have time to take a shower before this meeting?"

"Meeting's been cancelled. Go hit the showers and then wake up your lazy ass brother." Sam smiled at her.

Wanda looked briefly confused but shrugged and rose from her seat to leave. I turned back to Sam and crossed my arms in a pouting fashion. The moment Wanda was out of earshot I spoke, "It's kind of rude to cancel a meeting you didn't call."

"Run that plan you had by me again." Sam used his index finger and motioned in a rewind fashion. "Just wanna make sure I heard you right."

I leaned onto the kitchen counter across from him, "Wanda has been using her powers to quietly round out some of Bucky's nightmare's sharper edges. She does it without even trying or thinking. If we have her sit down and actively try—"

Sam nodded, "Yeah, unfortunately that's what I thought you said."

"Sam—"

"Aj, do you remember what I told you about healing?"

I twisted my lips and bobbed my head a little. Sam raised an eyebrow at me and then motioned with his hand for me to continue answering. I groaned once then spoke, "It has ups and downs. Healing is not linear, and we should not be ashamed of backwards movement because movement is still movement or some shit like that."

Sam grinned, "Eloquent as always. You know what else healing is? A marathon."

"Will you please just tell me what you are trying to tell me?" I pleaded.

"Healing is a marathon and, girl, you are taking this race way too damn fast." Sam leaned on the kitchen counter as well and he held my gaze with sincerity. "Aj, you are trying to sprint to the finish line, and we need to be pacing ourselves." He laced his hands together and nodded once. "We all wish there was a button we could press and we'd be magically healed, but that isn't how this works. The most important part is the journey. Quick fixes are just that…quick fixes."

I pressed my lips together and shook my head, "We can help him now, Sam." That's all I wanted to do. Bucky looked so miserable last night. He mentally tortured himself, and if we could fix that right now… "Wanda could fix this entire thing today."

"Wanda is still learning to use her powers. She could unintentionally make everything worse." Sam said and his argument was pretty solid. He wasn't wrong. Sam pushed off the counter and walked around to stand beside me. Sam threw his arm around my shoulders and I leaned into him. "Even if she could though, Bucky has to set this pace. We can't solve this for him. He has to learn to fight this battle himself. He needs to have the peace of mind that comes with knowing you overcame your hardships on your own."

I sighed, "You're right and I know you're right but… I want to help him, Sam."

"And you are." He squeezed my shoulders reassuringly. "Our job is to support him. Not take away his control."

Sam was 100% right. I knew more than most what it felt like to have control taken out of your hands. It left a bitter taste in my mouth that I tried to do that to him without even realizing it. Bucky spent so much of his life having people decide things for him, force him onto a path he had no say in, and here I was trying to do the same fucking thing.

I felt Sam pull back from me and he held both sides of my arms with a frown, "Hey, you just wanted to make him feel better. There's nothing wrong with that, Aj. You obviously care about him and that has to make all of this so much harder. You just gotta be patient."

"Right. Because it's a marathon, not a sprint." I said and he nodded. I raised an eyebrow at him, "How many healing metaphors do you have?"

"About 213 give or take." Sam joked. He must have noticed that I was still upset at myself because he squeezed my arms again, "You alright?"

"Mhmm." I said quickly then pulled away. "I need to, uh, work on some more arm stuff before the doctor gets here later and I should, uh, shoot at things too. It's been a minute since I practiced. Clint's gonna bitch when he gets back."

Sam sighed in concern, "Aj…"

I shook my head, "I'm fine, Sam. You're 100% right. I just got…excited, I guess."

Sam still looked hesitant to end the conversation here, but I forced a smile and hurried toward the lab. My entire time with the Avengers I had been healing and they never once rushed me. They never pushed me more than what I was comfortable with. You would think that would've stuck with me. Yet here I was trying to drag Bucky to what I thought was the finish line. I had been doing this the entire time too.

When I was wary of touch the Avengers took a step back and they respected that. They never pressured me into any sort of contact. They let me figure that out on my own. With Bucky, I hadn't done that. Maybe the first few times I had, but lately I had just been assuming he was okay with it.

God, what the hell was wrong with me?

Tony Stark had built a surplus of rooms at the Compound. A number of reading rooms, a game room, the main living spaces, a few office styled rooms, and more and more and more. Bucky wasn't sure why there were so many private Avenger rooms when there really weren't that many Avengers, but he wasn't complaining right now. The ridiculous amount of rooms meant he could hide away and it would take Steve more than a minute and a half to find him. It's not that he didn't want to be around the blond, but after last night the thought of having to face him was heavy.

Bad nights weren't unusual for him, but this had been the first at the Compound. Bucky felt a weird mix of shame, embarrassment, and guilt. Despite all that, there was some small part of him that felt relief. He hadn't hurt Steve, not physically at least, and winding down in Aj's comforting hands was a Godsend. That's how he felt, and he hated that he took comfort in that. Bucky should be suffering. The nightmares, the lapses in judgement, the episodes were the cost of his sins. They were supposed to hurt him.

He sunk in his seat and tried to focus on the words in his book. It was one from the list he was creating of things he needed to read based off curiosity and suggestions. This one, the Book Thief, was one Aj had suggested for him because she had enjoyed it a long time ago and it took place during WWII. Bucky enjoyed what he read of it yesterday, but today he didn't have the focus for it. It felt like he was reading the same line over and over again as flashes of his nightmares tip-toed around the edges of his mind.

Bucky's head snapped up when he heard someone come into the room, but it wasn't the broad shouldered blond he expected. Instead, it was Wanda. The girl had on jeans and a sweater, her hair freshly washed making the red tones blend with the rest of her dark hair. Without hesitation, she took a seat on the other end of the couch where he sat and opened up a book of her own. It was one of the one's Aj was having the twins read as part of their curriculum.

He shifted, feeling awkward, and began to rise from his seat as slowly as he could so his movements didn't startle the young girl. When he got completely up, he was the one startled when Wanda set her book down and quickly thrust her hand out, "Please don't go. I am not scared to be in this room with you alone. I came to sit with you."

"O—Oh." Bucky said dumbly. He could barely comprehend her not being afraid to be around him let alone why she would seek him out. Wanda gave him a smile and he sat back down hesitantly. "Okay."

"Are you alright with me sitting here with you?" Wanda questioned in Sokovian.

It was one of the many languages that he suddenly found himself now able to understand and speak. Bucky cleared his throat and replied back in her native tongue, "I am. It's fine."

"I know… I know you had a rough night." Wanda said softly. "How do you feel this morning?"

Bucky considered lying, but the teen could see into his head, right? Would there even be a point to lying? To be honest, he wasn't really sure how her powers worked. Her or her brother's. Both of them always seemed unusual to him and it was because they never gave him any kind of berth. It's like they didn't seem to realize that he was the monster in the dark that parents warned their children about.

"Fractured." Bucky answered, again in Sokovian, and shook his head. "It could be worse. It should be worse. Hah." He quickly stood up and awkwardly shook his head as he began to step away. "You don't need to hear this. You're a kid and I—I—It's a risk to even be…"

It was a risk to be this close to him after an episode.

He felt solid enough not to lose control, but the risk was never at zero. Never. Wanda stood abruptly, her hands tightly gripping the book she had picked back up, and he raised a confused eyebrow at her.

"Aj wanted me to help you, I think. That's what it felt like." Wanda shrugged once. "I don't know if I can help. I still…" She swallowed once. "I still don't know what my powers can do. I don't understand, but—I—" Wanda set her book down on the couch and then motioned to him. "I want to help. Pietro too. We want to help, and I know you're confused by that, but… You're like us, but you were better."

Bucky was confused before, but now he was lost. He didn't understand how these two precious kids, who had suffered so greatly, could compare themselves to him. More so, he couldn't grasp how, in any way of the word, he would be considered better. Bucky opened his mouth but closed it in panic when he noticed the girl in front of him began to tear up. Her eyes flashed red as a tear rolled down her cheek, and Bucky was frozen in shock. This moment reminded him of when they first met. When she collapsed and spewed apologies at him. He hadn't forgotten that. He hadn't forgotten Wanda begging him for forgiveness.

"Hey, hey, it's…it's okay." Bucky said cautiously. He sat a seat cushion away and tried to figure out what he was supposed to do now. "Wanda…"

"HYRDA changed all of us." She cried. "Physically and mentally—they left no thing untouched. We're just a bundle of scars held together by well wishes." A wave of red rolled off her. "But you were taken—you were taken and tortured, and you fought. You fought and we volunteered. We volunteered for them and I am so sorry. I am so sorry."

Wanda was sobbing now, and it woke something in him. A memory of Rebecca coming home with skinned knees. Rebecca waking him in the middle of the night because of a bad dream. Without even thinking, he moved closer and held out his right arm toward her. It was only then that he hesitated. Bucky wasn't a good big brother anymore he was a weapon of mass destruction. This didn't stop the girl from moving herself, familiar with the motion. She fell into his arm and rested her face on his shoulder. Nervously, Bucky lightly let his hand pat her back in comfort.

"You don't owe me anything. You aren't to blame for anything."

"We chose this. We chose—"

"I know HYDRA." Bucky said firmly. "Which is why I know you didn't sign up for what you got. They are liars and deceivers. I don't know you or your brother's full story, but I know without a doubt that HYDRA took advantage of you kids. They saw your pain and they used it and for that I'm sorry."

Wanda cried a moment longer before pulling back and swiping at her face with the back of her sleeve. She sniffled once and shook her head, "Pietro and I wish we could've been stronger, like you. The moment we noticed something off we wish we would've fought. Fought like you."

Bucky shook his head, "It's never that simple. Situations are different. Steve told me a little about what happened. From what I heard, when it came time to put up a fight both of you did. He said the Ultron situation would've gone very differently without you two."

"That doesn't change what we've done." Wanda said softly.

"Nothing ever does." He sighed. Bucky thought of all the things told to him. Every comfort and kind word. It was hard for him to believe it, to accept any of it, but maybe it would do them more good than it did him. "No choice, no fight, fixes what you've done in the past. All you can do is… All we can do is choose better now. Be better in the present."

Wanda's lips curled up into a smile and it brought him comfort. He made her smile. He brought her comfort in her time of sorrow. For the first time in a very, very long time, Bucky got to play the role of older brother and he didn't fail. In a blur, Pietro was suddenly there, a hand on his sister's shoulders, and Bucky only stiffened for a moment at the sudden appearance.

Pietro leaned down, "Sister, are you alright? I felt your power."

"I am." Wanda nodded. "We should read. We need to finish this book by the end of the week."

Her white haired brother groaned and dropped to the ground. He leaned his back against the couch and pulled out his own small copy of the book from his back pocket. Wanda pulled her legs under herself, nestled in the couch beside him, and grabbed her book again. For a moment, he just stared at the kids who just made themselves comfortable and settled into their books. They looked so calm and at home despite being stuck in a room with him. Bucky leaned back into his own seat. He used the elastic hair-tie around his wrist to pull back half of his messy hair and grabbed his book again. It was much easier to focus on the words now.

"Nah", Sam said, tucking the phone between his ear and shoulder so he could continue to make a sandwich with his hands, "Your boy toy ain't back yet."

Natasha grumbled on the other end in Russian, "Fine. He isn't answering his cell. Have him call me the moment he lands. He's gonna be busy with the new kid but—"

"New kid?" Sam paused in making his masterpiece. "Please tell me we didn't pick up another child superhero. We seriously need an age limit around here. Don't these kids have responsibilities like chores or daycare, I don't know."

His friend chuckled, "This is a different kind of kid. She's from Asgard."

"Your boy is getting wild with these adoptions now."

"Just tell him to call me."

"Roger." Sam hung up the phone and slid it into his back pocket. He turned to grab some condiments from the fridge and when he spun back around he jumped at the sight of Bucky leaning on the kitchen counter by his sandwich. The mayo bottle flew out of his hand in the panic, "Fuck!"

Bucky reached out and caught the bottle with ease, "You dropped this."

"I didn't even hear you come in!" Sam snatched the bottle from him and motioned to him with it, "We're getting you a damn bell to wear around your neck, I swear to God."

"I didn't think you'd be into that kind of thing, Sam." Bucky replied, and Sam nearly choked on his spit at the comment. It was the first non-hesitant comeback the dark and gloomy man had hit him back with. Sam was a weird mix of both proud and exasperated. Before he could reply himself, the man continued, "Have you seen Aj? She's not in the gym or the lab."

Sam shrugged and went back to his sandwich, "Maybe over in the shooting range", he motioned out the window with his head to the other building, "She said she wanted to get some target practice in today. You gonna go see her?"

"I don't know if I'm allowed in the other building." Bucky stated casually. Sam glanced over at him to see a look of concentration drawn on his features. He surprisingly looked really good today. After what he heard happened last night, he expected the man to be an absolute mess. Instead, he had on real clothes, his hair pulled back, and a clear look in his eyes. "What?"

It was only then he realized that he had been staring. Sam cleared his throat, "How do you feel, man? Really? I know last night was rough."

Bucky looked startled by the question, as if he didn't expect him to ask it, "Um, I'm okay. I think. I'm honestly as surprised as you are by it."

"You talk to Steve about any of this yet? I know he was looking for you."

"Not yet." Bucky said, his voice going softer, "I don't want to…" He hesitated, but Sam turned his body to face him entirely and nodded for him to continue. Bucky sighed, "He was my—the Soldier's last mission. If Aj hadn't been there last night I don't know what would've…"

Sam shook his head, "Hey, stop looking so guilty. This isn't your fault."

"Isn't it?" Bucky replied, but his tone stayed level, "Steve wouldn't be at risk if I weren't here. None of you would be."

Sam smirked, "You're being a dramatic little bitch again." Bucky's eyes widened comically at the words. He chuckled himself and shrugged, "No point in moping in self-loathing or self-pity, whichever one you ended up on today. If you weren't here, then both Steve and Aj would be circling the Earth, putting themselves in danger, looking for you. They're safer with you here." Sam motioned to him. "I mean, do I need to remind you of the Romanian incident."

"No." Bucky shook his head.

"Which I'm still not entirely over. I was on the wrong side of Romania looking for your ass." Sam scoffed. "I nearly got my hand bit off by a goat. A goat, Barnes."

Bucky's lips twitched up in amusement and Sam took it as a win. If Bucky stayed still for too long on the same thought, he began to sink. Sam noticed it very early on. The man needed forward movement. Hell, even backward movement would've worked. He just couldn't linger. Sam motioned to the building, "I'm sure you can get to the shooting range without getting caught. Aj probably needs talking down."

As expected, Bucky's eyebrows immediately furrowed in panic and worry, "What?"

"She was upset earlier. We were talking about your healing and I think she took something the wrong way." Sam replied. He finished with the mayo and flipped the bread over on his now complete sandwich. "There really wasn't anything she should've been upset by, but sometimes her demons latch onto a word or phrase and she beats herself up on it."

Bucky shook his head, "What'd you say to her?"

"Calm down." Sam capped the mayo bottle. "You should go talk to her about it. Like I said, it was nothing and the two of us cleared it between us, but I think she hurt herself over something involving you."

"Yeah." Bucky nodded once.

Sam grabbed the mayo bottle and turned to return it to the fridge, "Oh, and while you're talking to her maybe mention the Steve thing? The man is wandering around this Compound moping like a kicked puppy. It's honestly—"

Sam turned back around but his words came to a halt when he realized Bucky had disappeared as quickly as he had come. His eyes darted to his plate where his sandwich was missing as well. His eyes widened, "That son of a bitch!"

He glanced around but Bucky was already way gone. Sam twisted his lips trying to stay annoyed at his masterpiece being stolen from under his nose, but he couldn't help but smirk in amusement as a chuckle fell from his lips. Bucky goddamn Barnes.

I emptied the entire clip into the target then set the handgun down on the table in front of me. My aim had improved a little, but the muffled sound of every gunshot made me flinch and that was seriously affecting where the bullet landed. I hated how the sound alone could put me back in that basement. With a sigh, I hit the button to pull the paper target down the lane back towards me and then pulled my earmuffs down around my neck in aggravation.

"You weren't lying."

I jumped at the familiar voice and turned to see Bucky leaning against the back wall. This was the first I was seeing of him today, since his episode, and it gave me comfort that he had his hair pulled back in a half bun. It was the little things that told me he was doing better. It was the little things I took comfort in. Bucky pushed off the wall and walked over to me. He motioned to the target.

"Over the phone, you always said you were terrible, but I just assumed you were being humble."

I shrugged, "Nope. Not humble. Just a shitty shot. What are you doing down here?"

"The sound of gunfire won't put me in another episode. I promise." Bucky joked.

"That makes one of us." I mumbled and kept my gaze on the gun as I began to take it apart. I had only gotten the first few pieces off when a hand covered mine and forced my actions to a halt.

I glanced over at Bucky to see a look of concern drawn on his face, "Talk to me. Are you alright, doll?"

"I'm fine." I shook my head and forced a small smile. "I shouldn't have said that. It was—It's nothing." Bucky tilted his head slightly, giving me a look, and I had to tear my eyes away from him. "Sometimes… Little things will remind me of the basement. The sound of a gun, accidentally touching something too cold, anything sharp pressing into my skin, it… I don't know. I thought it would've passed by now."

"Aj, that happened not even a month ago." Bucky said softly. "You're strong, so strong, but at the end of the day you're still human. You gotta give it a little more time."

I let out a small laughed and ran a hand through my hair. It was so long now. Too long. The itch to dramatically cut it was scratching at the back of my mind. Bucky shot me another concerned look and it was all too much. I turned to face him entirely, "Bucky, I owe you a huge apology."

He furrowed his brow, "What?"

"I'm not a patient person. I've never been a patient person." I said quickly. The words just all tumbled out of me. "And I just got so excited about helping you in any way that I could that I completely steamrolled you in the process!" I covered my eyes with my hands in frustration. "I'm so sorry, Bucky."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa." Bucky said and I felt him carefully take my hand and pull it away from my face. Surprisingly, he was smiling. "Are you trying to apologize for caring too much?"

I rolled my eyes, "I'm serious. Even with the—the touch thing!"

Bucky lifted the hand still resting on one of mine with a raised eyebrow, "Do you not want me to touch you?"

"No! I mean, yes! Wait—" I groaned, "You were uncomfortable with touch and I kept pressing and trying to push you into more and more—"

"Aj, doll, take a breath." Bucky said firmly. He set his hand back on top of mine. "You didn't force anything. I want to…" He sucked in a sharp breath and nodded once. "I…I like touching you. Just look at last night!" Bucky lifted his right hand from mine and set it on the side of my face with a smile. "See."

I closed my eyes with a sigh, "Bucky, don't you see? I tried to take away your control, make decisions for you, like all those others—"

"No." Bucky said firmly, obviously realizing where I was going with that statement. His hand slid from my cheek and grabbed my chin, holding it between his fingers, and forcing me to keep my gaze on his. "You are nothing like those people. Aj, do you know how honored I am to have you in my corner? I mean, Steve is stuck with me—"

"You know he doesn't see it like that."

"Doesn't change the facts." Bucky shook his head, his thumb traced over my chin just under my lips, "I always had his back, and he always had mine. That's all he sees. The punk is incapable of letting anything go. Even a lost cause like me—"

"You're not—"

Bucky chuckled, his lips curling up in that charming smile, "But you…You saw me, an absolute mess in that desolate bunker, and you… You were the first person from this era to have faith in me and… words do not describe how grateful I am for you."

"Still, Sam was right. You need to be in control of this. I'm just here to support you." I said firmly. I lifted my hands to try and pull his away from my chin, but he refused to let it budge from place. "Will you promise to tell me when I become too overbearing, and you need space?"

Bucky held my gaze for a moment before nodding once, "I promise, but I wouldn't hold your breath on it actually happening. You said we'd talk for the rest of forever, remember? We aren't anywhere near the end of that."

I laughed and lightly pushed him away, "Yeah, okay we'll see how long that holds up. I guarantee you get sick of me by the end of this century."

"Come here." Bucky grabbed the gun, put back the pieces I had managed to pull off, then set it in my hands. Once I had a grip on it, he pulled my earmuffs back over my ears and reached out to hit the button that sent the target back down the lane. Bucky hovered behind me, reaching forward to correctly position me, and telling me little tips to correct me. I tried to focus on what he was saying, Lord knows I needed the help, but all I could think about was how close he stood to me.

I was so worried that after last night he would regress into himself, hide away and simmer in self-hatred, but instead he was down here with one hand on my shoulder and the other under my elbow trying to show me a more consistent way of shooting. It was a reminder that I didn't need to push him at my pace. Bucky was strong. The nightmares in his head were no match for him. I was honored to have a front row seat in watching him kick his demons' asses.

Clint kicked his apartment door open, and Lucky zoomed in nearly knocking him off his feet. Behind him, Star hesitantly lingered by the doorframe. There was a small red bookbag on her back filled with crayons and paper and any other toy the others had given her. In her arms, was a small duffel bag filled with clothes that she clung tightly to. The girl had her arms wrapped tightly around it. Clint could nearly see the nervous energy radiating off her.

"Hey, it's okay. This is my home." Clint said reassuringly. Star stepped into the apartment and Lucky bounded back over to bury his head into her side. He watched the girl relax a bit. "You're gonna stay here with me and Natasha. You remember Natasha, right?" Star nodded once. "Good."

"Hey."

"Ah!" Clint yelled in surprise as Natasha stepped out of their bedroom freshly washed and in casual clothes. Star clung to his arm nervously at his outburst. He reassured her again then turned to his girlfriend, "I thought you were on mission?"

She nodded, "I was and I'm still back before you." Natasha pasted a warm smile on her features, "It's nice to see you again, Star."

Star gave her a small smile but didn't untangle her arm from his. Clint knelt down and squeezed her arms, "Hey, why don't you and Lucky go exploring around the apartment? You're safe here. It's just you, me, and Tash. Okay?"

The little girl nodded, he took the duffel bag from her arms, and then she turned to walk away with Lucky. Natasha gave her another smile before closing the space between them. She quickly pressed a chaste kiss to his lips that he returned eagerly. Natasha shook her head, "Any news from Coulson?"

"The government still wants to use us as puppets and we're one bad day away from inhuman registration country wide." Clint replied. He nodded toward her, "How was the mission?"

"Vision was good. Very helpful." Natasha replied then stepped closer. She set her hands on his chest and looked up at him, "But… we have a problem."

Clint groaned, "Don't we always?"

"Authorities in Greece just arrested Brock Rumlow." She said and Clint felt his blood run cold. That was a name he hadn't heard in a long time. In fact, the last time Clint had seen the man he had a building falling on top of him while Sam was leaping out of said building into their helicopter. Clint hated the guy and he hated him for more than just the attempted murder. Rumlow had been an agent. A good agent. Kind of an ass at times, but Clint had trusted him before on missions. This betrayal was personal. Natasha continued, "Rumlow had to be taken to the hospital first. He was beaten pretty badly."

Clint didn't shed a single tear for him, but the news did raise a few questions, "Who the hell beat him up? That wasn't SHIELD was it?"

"Coulson says he knows nothing about it." Natasha replied. "Which means it was either HYDRA, for some reason, or we have a third party on the board. Whoever it was they were looking for information though. The injuries look like the interrogation kind."

"Shit." Clint mumbled. That meant the chances were it was probably the latter of the two choices. As if they needed any more enemies. "Where is he?"

"Getting moved to the Playground as we speak. Should be there later tonight."

God, he had just gotten back from the Playground. There was an interrogation room here at the Compound. It was underground and hidden from anyone without the proper clearance, but he didn't like the idea of keeping Rumlow so close to where they slept. For all they knew this could be some kind of trap. It wasn't worth the risk. Not with Aj and Bucky here.

"I assume we're gonna go say hello?" Clint questioned. Natasha gave him a small smile. He sighed once and her smile turned to a questioning look. He stepped back and began to dig into the inner pocket of his jacket, "While we discuss terrible, terrible news." He handed her the folded-up drawing. "Here."

Natasha took it from him, unfolded it, and he saw her face fall in confusion and worry as her eyes traced over the drawing. Her green eyes snapped back up to him, "You have to be kidding me."

"Nope." Clint replied. "We are in deep shit."

Vision was a good guy. Robot? Android? Synthetic person? I don't know what he was technically, but he was very nice. It had taken me a while to get past the way he sounded, and even now listening to him talk was distracting. His words were Vision, but all I heard was JARVIS. Maybe it was pathetic how much I missed the AI still.

Wanda laughed and I glanced up from my phone to see the 'not JARVIS' smiling down at her. The two always got along really well, and I kind of wished I knew what they were saying. Wanda said something else, still in Sokovian, and Vision replied back in her natural language. I still hadn't gotten to know him very well and if I wasn't so busy trying to help Bucky with his arm and running from Steve every time I spotted him then I would try harder.

"Aj!" I jumped with a cry, phone falling from my hand and clattering onto the kitchen island, as Pietro suddenly stood beside me. He was holding the book I assigned him in his hand with a frown on his face. Pietro waved the 'Lord of the Flies' cover in my face, "What is this? What is this you forced me to read?"

I bit back an amused grin, "You're not a fan of William Golding?"

"I liked his book very much." Pietro argued. "It was quickly becoming my favorite until Piggy died! Roger killed him! How could you do this to me!?"

"I didn't personally kill this character. You know that, right?"

"But you made me love him, Aj!" Pietro cried.

Wanda called out something in Sokovian to her brother and he replied back sharply which just made her laugh again. I opened my mouth to offer Pietro a halfhearted apology when Clint Barton swept into the room with an unfamiliar little girl on his back. She was adorable with a cloud of curls around her round features and her gold eyes were glowing unnaturally.

"I have returned!" Clint announced.

"Old man, I never even realized you left." Pietro replied and Clint's face fell in annoyance. The little girl on his back met my gaze but she quickly looked away. She buried her face into Clint's shoulder shyly.

Clint walked closer, "You're still an annoying shit, you know that?"

I clapped my hands once and shook my head, "Clint. Wanna explain what's happening here?" He gave me a confused shrug and I resisted the urge to roll my eyes. "The child on your back?"

"Oh, right." Clint tilted his head slightly so it lightly tapped against hers, "Guys, this is Star. Star, these are all my friends. They're very nice. Not to me, but to everyone else they're super great."

"Hi, Star." I gave her a little wave when she peeked up at me. Star immediately buried her head back into the shoulder. She was extremely shy apparently. I shot Clint a look, "You're literally just picking kids off the street now, aren't you?"

Clint smirked, "Star is from Asgard." My eyes widened in surprise. "She's hanging out with us until Thor finally swings by to pick her up and..." He bent at the knees slightly with a scrunched-up nose as he pleaded, "…you're babysitting her tonight?"

"I can't." I shook my head. "Any other time, Clint, but I'm about to have a meeting with the ortho surgeon for Bucky's arm."

"Oh, come on."

"Don't 'come on' me. You've given me like zero heads up here."

"Clint," Vision spoke up. He lifted a hand with a friendly smile, "If it's alright with you, I'd be more than happy to look after young Star."

Wanda nodded and chimed in, "I can help too."

"I cannot. Busy." Pietro shrugged and disappeared in a blink.

Clint skipped over to the other side of the kitchen island where the two others stood. He hopped enough that Star giggled with every step. I chuckled to myself and turned to head towards the lab. I wanted to check a few things before heading over to the conference room where we'd be meeting Dr. Bass and, his physician assistant, Emily Kim. There was so much riding on this meeting and I was determined to make sure everything was perfect.

Tony had a great day. He got to spend his entire morning and afternoon with Pepper and the boys, and he just found out that Pepper was gonna be able to stay in New York for the rest of the week. Admittedly, he wasn't overly excited about having the love of his life, his soulmate, staying on the same floor as Bucky Barnes who was still technically a ticking time bomb. Last night could've been a disaster. Tony was fully aware of that. He didn't blame Barnes for the episode. With a brain as fried as his was it was inevitable.

"I haven't seen you so dressed up since you were my PA." Tony chuckled. Aj was standing by the end of the table in a white spaghetti strap v-neck blouse tucked into a pair of navy form fitting pants rolled up at the ankle. She had an oversized black cardigan over it all with her long hair pulled up into a high ponytail. He tilted his head, "You should dress like this more often."

"I don't go anywhere anymore." Aj replied while one hand played with the sun and moon charm necklace around her neck. Tony knew she was nervous about this meeting, but he also knew she had no reason to be.

"How's your little dark haired, cuckoo clock doing today?" Tony motioned to his own head as he said it.

Aj stopped being nervous for a second to level a glare at him. She shook her head, "He's actually doing pretty good right now. At least, when I saw him he was."

"We still have to think of a better way to snap him out of his episodes." Tony leaned against the conference table he sat at. The orthopedic surgeon and the Physician's Assistant that worked for him had just landed on the tarmac and someone was going to bring them up to this conference room to talk logistics of fixing Bucky's fucked up arm.

Aj shook her head, "What I did last night worked, Tony. I could snap him out of it over the phone and in person it took way less time. The only hiccup was Steve being there, but now that we know that he's a trigger we can work around it."

"We got lucky. If you think me or anyone else is gonna keep letting you run in there—"

"Even Wanda says it's for the best." Aj quickly argued. "She told me that I can interrupt the episodes because I wasn't part of his past! The Winter Soldier has no idea what to do with me. Bucky sees me, hears me, and it clears his head enough to orient himself."

Tony leaned back in his seat and rested his clasped hands on his abdomen, "Okay, so we record your voice and use that, or we can have you call in. Facetime him."

"It's not the same." Aj argued again. "Last night, I was able to touch him. Bring him real comfort, you know?"

"God, now you're touching him? At least make him buy you dinner first."

She smirked and knocked her knuckles on the table before pointing at him, "You know what I mean. I know you understand that more than most." Aj paused in thought. "To feel a caress from someone who cares when you only expected pain is…"

Tony sighed. He did understand. There wasn't a single person on their weird little team turned family who didn't understand. There was something religious about a soft hand where you had only felt pain. They'd have to find some other way then.

A knock at the glass door broke their concentration and they both glanced over as people came in. Despite there being a glass wall, they only noticed the guests just now. A receptionist held the door open and allowed the doctor to walk in first. He gave her a thankful nod. The man was in his early forties and built kind of like a lumbar jack. Thick, broad shoulders with a head full of chestnut colored hair and matching thick, neatly trimmed beard. Just replace his suit with a flannel and his briefcase with an axe and you'd have the Bounty paper towel guy.

Behind him was a younger woman, older than Aj still, with jet black hair pulled back into a neat bun. She wore a button up shirt with slacks and a kind smile.

"Good evening. I'm Dr. Darren Bass and this is my associate Emily Kim." The man stepped forward and offered his hand to Aj first. He came across the table to shake his hand as well while the woman greeted Aj.

"Thanks so much for meeting us on such short notice." Tony had stood up to greet them, but he motioned for his guests to take a seat across from him and Aj then sat down when they did.

"Thank you for the private jet." He chuckled. "Traveling here was hardly a chore."

"Dr. Bass—" Aj began.

The physician shook his head with a kind smile, "Please. Just Darren is fine."

"Darren." Aj restarted. "We're so grateful to have you here working with us. Talking to both of you over the phone was great, but I'm glad to have you here so we can really start getting to work."

Tony leaned forward, "There is a small matter of privacy though." He reached into the seat beside him to pull out two folders then slid them across the table. "Anything you say or hear in here is to remain in here. It's kind of like Vegas in that sense."

Darren laughed, "We completely understand."

Tony went over a few more aspects of the disclaimer they were signing. When they finished, they slid the folders back to him and he set them aside. Emily Kim was the next to speak, she readjusted her posture, "We'd like to go over Captain Rogers injuries in a little more detail?"

"It's funny you ask." Aj chuckled. She tapped on the corner of the table and the entire tabletop glowed with life. Darren and Emily's eyes widened as they leaned back in their seat. Tony smirked at their reaction. There was always something about seeing the shock and awe in a stranger's eyes at his technology that warmed his engineering heart. Aj swiped along the table and brought up the x-rays. "We kind of lied to you. Captain Rogers is not the patient. James Buchanan Barnes is."

They look confused until Aj tapped the table again and a picture of the man rose in front of them. It was a recent one they took of him rather than one that could be found in his HYDRA file. It was side by side with a picture of him from the 1940's in his military uniform. Both of the healthcare professionals stared at the picture in a studying fashion.

"James Buchanan Barnes." Darren said slowly. "He was a Howling Commando. He… Didn't he pass during the war?"

"The details of his death were greatly exaggerated." Tony shrugged then swiped at the table to bring out a picture they took of him in the lab. Their eyes widened as they stared at the prosthetic carved into the man's shoulder. "When he fell into the ravine, his believed cause of death, a Nazi organization got their hands on him. Tortured the man. He lost his arm in the fall and their solution was that."

Emily quietly gasped and mumbled something in Korean. Darren motioned to the table and Tony nodded once. The doctor tapped on the x-rays to bring them into focus, and he zoomed in on the shoulder itself. He whispered something to Emily as they both looked over every x-ray they had.

"For safety reasons, we'd like to keep the news of his survival and him being here quiet." Aj said. Her fingers played with the bracelet around her left wrist. "The prosthetic they attached to him is permanent. He's never had it removed only updated, but he doesn't know what they did or how they updated it. It hasn't been worked on in over six months and it causes him constant pain."

Darren nodded once, "The fall tore his arm from his body? I suppose we don't have any scans of the injury before this organization…fixed it."

"No." Tony shook his head.

"He's missing the entire joint and most of his collarbone." Emily swiped at the x-rays on the table. She glanced back up at them, "Do you have any other imaging? So we can look at his musculature and tissue?"

Aj shook her head, "No, sorry. We didn't think any pictures would work because of the arm." She motioned to this picture. "He has full range of movement muscle wise."

"The injury is…extensive." Darren let out a low whistle. "Can we meet with him? Examine him in person?"

Tony looked over at Aj and she met his gaze. He tilted his head to them slightly. He may have been the brains behind the actual build of the new prosthetic, but as far as he was concerned she was in charge here.

Aj looked back to their guests, "Absolutely, but before we do that…" She hesitated then straightened her posture. "I'd like to go over our plan and goals of care with you first. It isn't that I'm questioning your motives or skill, but Buck—uh, Sergeant Barnes has been through a lot and we want to avoid putting him on display as often as can. I hope you understand."

Darren nodded, looking to Emily then back to her, and laced his fingers together on the table, "Ms. Bradshaw, I completely understand. Situations like this—injuries like this, create more than just physical damage. We are privileged to be here, to even be considered in helping this American hero—" Tony glanced over at Aj to see her lips twitch up into a small smile, "—and we want to ensure that him and his loved ones are as comfortable as possible. Over the phone, you mentioned you had an idea you wanted to run by us first?"

"Yes." Aj let out a sigh of relief. "FRIDAY, can you bring up the prosthetic blueprints?"

"You got it, Ms. Bradshaw."

The lights in the room dimmed and the glow from the table rose from the flat surface as the holographic blueprints appeared between them. Aj rose in her seat and motioned to the hologram, "Our main goal is to create something Sergeant Barnes will be able to remove when he needs to. Originally, we were going to try and do this with the entire arm and shoulder, but then we—"

"Oh, no, no." Tony cut in with a proud smile. "We nothing. This was your idea, Aj. Take credit, my precious little protégé."

Even in the dim lights he could see her roll her eyes with an amused smile. Aj cleared her throat and spun the blueprint to show them what she spoke about, "I don't actually know if any of this is plausible, but we—I was thinking y'all could do a shoulder replacement with something Tony has manufactured in his lab. I know typically shoulder replacement surgery only refers to the glenohumeral joint—" Aj pointed to where the bone of the upper arm sat in the socket joint, "but if we carve out the block of metal HYDRA shoved in there and replace it with a synthetic scapula and humerus then maybe we can treat his arm as if it were amputated just under his deltoid muscle."

Tony watched her explain the blueprints in length. He had created a schematic of a synthetic scapula. It would sit where his real shoulder blade should be, anchored loosely to the back of his ribs just enough to keep it in place but not enough to restrict movement, and then he also designed a synthetic humerus to sit in that ball and socket joint. If properly applied then those portions would be permanent, like a real shoulder, and he would be able to connect and disconnect the actual metal arm from there. It was genius.

"Movement and sensation? The muscles that surround the scapula—" Darren began.

"Right. The rotator cuff. The arm he has now has replaced all the muscles in his lower and upper arm, obviously, but it also replaces his supraspinatus, infraspinatus, teres minor, rhomboid minor and major, part of his trapezius, part of his pectoralis, and most of his levator scapulae."

Emily blinked with a small nod, "That…is a lot."

"You don't have to worry about that. The prosthetic I'm creating will have something similar to musculature." Tony reassured them. "Our question is, can you do this surgery? Do you think that—" He pointed at the blueprint "—can be successfully implanted in his body?"

Darren leaned on the table. He had shrugged out of his blazer some time ago and now had his sleeves rolled up. He hummed in thought, "If this was you or me then I would say absolutely not. It's a pipe dream. However, I am gathering that it's safe to assume he isn't like us? To have been born in the 1910's and to have survived all he had."

"Sergeant Barnes is similar to Captain Rogers in healing capabilities." Aj answered.

"Then I guess I have to say it's possible. The idea and design work is incredible." Darren complimented in awe. "Surgery would be difficult. I'm sure any tissue around that prosthetic is just straight scar tissue at this point, but if he has survived with it this long then that means his arteries have been correctly rerouted or cauterized. Hypothetically speaking, we'd be going in, taking out the metal, and then putting your design in its place. I have two main concerns."

Tony nodded, "They are?"

"Depending on how much tissue he still has in this area", Darren pointed to an x-ray where it was mostly just a blur of white from the metal, "There might not be enough to hold the new joint in place. If that's the case, then you'll have to change the design some. Perhaps make it a little bulkier."

Tony pulled out his phone and made a quick note of that. Emily was the one to speak up next, "The only other concern is his spine. It's a bit of a mess."

"Exactly." Darren agreed. "I can see here connections to his cervical and thoracic vertebra. Is that how he has sensation, movement, and pain?"

"That's what we're guessing yes." Aj nodded.

Tony pointed to the x-ray, "I've been in touch with a neurosurgeon. Second best in the country."

"Second best?" Aj's head snapped to look at him.

Tony clapped his hands, the lights coming back on, and stood up, "How about we show you to the lab? You can see what we're working with and meet the mystery patient, yeah?"

They both glanced over at Aj who stood as well with a tight smile, "Yes. Perfect idea. FRIDAY, can you tell Sergeant Barnes and Captain Rogers to meet us in Tony's lab?" The AI gave her confirmation and they both stood. She motioned to the door, "If you go back out the way you came the receptionist will show you the way to the lab. We'll meet you there."

"Of course." Darren smiled.

He grabbed his coat and motioned for Emily to step out first. The moment they were out of the room, Tony turned to look at Aj with a bright grin, "I like them. Got a good feeling about them. Real salt of the Earth kind of vibes."

"Tony…"

"Also, why have Captain tight pants meet us in the lab? I thought we were both avoiding that asshat." Tony questioned.

Aj pointed at him, taking a step closer, "First off, I know you're angry at him and you have every right, but you know I don't like you calling him names in front of me. Second, I plan on standing here to argue you with you for a good ten minutes so I want someone in the lab with Bucky so he doesn't have to meet Darren and Emily alone. Third—"

"Ten full minutes?" Tony groaned. "Can I get the spark notes of this lecture?"

"Second best neurosurgeon? What happened to the best neurosurgeon you talked so much about?"

Tony sighed and crossed his arms, "I tried to hire him, but he wouldn't bite. Money, praise, accolades, a small island in the Bahamas… I offered this guy everything and he wouldn't take it."

"You explained the situation to him?"

"As much as I could without having him sign a disclosure agreement." Tony replied. "Guy wasn't interested. Said it wasn't worth his time. When I explained it was experimental surgery, one of a kind, he said it wasn't… uh…"

Aj narrowed her eyes, "Wasn't what?"

"Wasn't worth the risk. He has a reputation to maintain. A success to failure ratio to balance."

"I'm sorry. Did you just tell me that this asshole said he didn't want to do Bucky's surgery because he doesn't want to risk his success percentage?" Aj asked slowly in a voice that told him she was mentally preparing to go to war.

Tony held his hands up, "His loss. The surgeon I've been talking to is more than—"

"Bucky deserves the absolute best." She said firmly. "Who the hell is this guy?"

"Guy named Stephen Strange." Tony replied. Her eyes widened marginally, just enough to be noticeable, and he tilted his head curiously. "Do you know this guy?"

Aj shook her head, "Not exactly." She glanced away in thought for a second before looking back him with a grin, "Can you finish the rest of this meeting with Darren and Emily? I wanna get this surgery on schedule as soon as possible."

"Where do you plan on going?" Tony asked, but he already knew the answer.

Aj walked to the door and gave him a cute, innocent smile over her shoulder, "Just going for a quick drive."

If he had any kind of shame right now, Steve might be embarrassed by the fact that he was sprinting to get to the underground parking level where all their private vehicles were kept.

Tony had shown up to the lab after Dr. Darren Bass and Emily Kim had shown up. It was the first time he had been in the lab since they fought, and he was more than content with staying in the lab with his friend. That was until Tony told him that Aj was heading into the city alone. Last night had been rough for many reasons. As glad as he was that Aj had been there for Bucky, their talk had left a bad taste in his mouth.

It was why, after Bucky told him he'd be fine with just Tony, he took off running for the garage. With his speed, it didn't take long at all, but he was still almost too late. Steve entered the garage and spotted Aj making her way to her Jeep.

"Hey!" He called out and closed the space between them. Aj froze up like a deer in headlights and Steve felt bad for that. Not bad enough to give up though. "Heard you're going into the city. Mind if I join?"

"I, uh, with me?" Aj asked with wide eyes.

"Yeah."

She shifted awkwardly from foot to foot, "My Jeep is kind of a mess right now, Steve. Got a lot of stuff on the seats and stuff…"

Steve should've taken that terrible excuse as what it was, but last night he made up his mind. He wasn't going to give up on this. He wasn't going to give up on her. Steve would endure a hundred more awkward moments, a thousand half-assed excuses, and anything else she threw at him. Steve was going to keep trying to fix this until Aj firmly told him that she wanted nothing to do with him.

"I don't mind." He replied with a smile.

"Okie dokie." Aj mumbled and pointed to her car. Steve walked up to the passenger side of the two-door, bright yellow vehicle as she climbed behind the driver's seat. When he opened the door, he saw the mess she spoke of. One jacket, Bucky's jacket actually, was tossed into the passenger seat and that was it. Aj reached over, grabbed the jacket, and tossed it into the back seat. Steve jumped in and pulled his seatbelt on. As she stuck the key into the ignition and started the car up, a familiar song drifted through the radio.

It was the chorus of their song.

Aj scrambled for the dash and slapped her hand against it a few times before the system skipped to the next song. He glanced over at her to see a tint of pink across her cheeks. Aj cleared her throat then mumbled, "Shouldn't take too long to get there."

Steve tried not to actively wilt in his seat. He didn't know what he had to do to fix this, but by God was he willing to try literally anything. Steve just prayed that he wasn't too late. That she wasn't too far gone from him.