Resolution

I nodded, then turned to smile at Sargent Barnes. "I'll see you and Capt- Steve tomorrow." I handed my bag over to him. "And I would like to see my textbooks then, too."

A guilty grin came onto Sargent Barnes' face, but he nodded regardless.

The sunlight shining in the room couldn't fill the silence that hung in the air. I was holding my breath, too scared to say anything to break the tension.

"...why would they do that?"

I finally exhaled, the words spilling out of my mouth. "I think you can understand. Sometimes you feel cornered, like there's no way out, and the only options are bad ones. You have to make a choice at some point."

"One year..." Captain Rogers shook his head. "One year, I'm in the ice, and everything goes so wrong they feel the need to drop two atomic bombs."

I sighed, but nodded in agreement. I couldn't imagine how Steve felt hearing about how the war really ended. It wasn't glory, it wasn't honor. It was brutal. But it was history, and they deserved to know.

"They did what they thought was best at the time, Steve. Just like all of us. You've had to make decisions on the battlefield before that you might now regret, but you can't know how things would've gone had you chosen differently," I explained gently.

"Not everyone has a choice," Sargent Barnes' voice cut through the silence. I looked over at him, surprised he'd spoken. His shoulders were hunched, and his hands were folded together. It almost looked like he was trying to restrain himself.

The anger in Captain Roger's eyes melted away into sorrow when Sargent Barnes said this. I found my own heart twist in pain, but I put on a sympathetic smile. "Precisely. Not everyone has a choice. War is war, either way you look at it."

Captain Rogers nodded slowly at this, still looking as though he was trying to understand it all.

I took in a deep breath and continued where I'd left off. "Even if we don't like it, it was a quick way to end things. Japan finally surrendered just a few days after the bombings, bringing the war to a close. During all of this, of course, they were still looking for you, Steve."

He shook his head. "I'm glad they didn't find me then," he said as he stood up from the couch. A frown was etched deep into his face. "I wouldn't wanna work for people like them."

I watched closely as Captain Rogers left the room. His typically perfect posture seemed more tense than usual, and his hands kept tightening into fists. I sighed, closing my history book and getting up from the couch to put it on the shelf. It was our first Saturday, and even though everything felt perfect when I walked into the newly designed room, I should've known it wouldn't stay that way. Talking about the end of the war was going to be tough either way.

Sargent Barnes cleared his throat from his position on the couch. "What about me?" he asked softly. "Were they-"

"No, no they weren't looking for you," I answered honestly. His face was neutral as I sat back down on the couch about a foot away from him. "The assumption was that you were dead. No one could've guessed what really happened. People just…" I sighed, deciding to be blunt. "People don't survive falls from trains."

An amused smirk came onto his face. "Honestly, sometimes I wish I hadn't survived the fall, too. A lot more people would be alive if I hadn't."

I frowned. Self deprecating humor. That was his method of getting through things, of handling his guilt. "Look up there," I instructed, pointing at one of the quotes that had been hung above the desk. "It says 'Change is the law of life. And those who look only to the past or present are certain to miss the future.' That quote is by-"

"John F. Kennedy, I know," Sargent Barnes cut in. "You know I killed him, right?"

I forced a smile onto my face. "Well, I'm sure he wouldn't hold it against you. He was a very nice man, or so we're told. He hated war just like the rest of us, even though he had to deal with a lot of it during his presidency. That quote is very important, though. You can't move on to a brighter future if you keep living in the past."

Sargent Barnes nodded, still looking deep in thought. Sensing that a topic change might be good, I nodded my head toward a sheet of paper next to him. "What's that?"

He picked up the paper and gave it to me. "My list of questions."

My eyes scanned over it, and I found myself grinning. "How about you go down the list and ask me the questions? I'll answer them as well as I can."

He cleared his throat before he read, "Why is coffee such a big deal?"

"Coffee has caffeine, and caffeine gives people an energy boost. Society likes to move fast, and a lot of people become addicted to coffee and can't live without it. Companies like Starbucks began finding ways to make it more palatable, and that's why it's a big deal."

"What is an apple?"

"Do you mean the technology company?"

"…yes?"

"They make computers, phones, watches, stuff like that. They're easy to use and look cool, so they're very popular."

"Okay…why are there so many different types of food? I keep seeing words I don't understand, like paleo, vegan, gluten free, that sort of thing."

"Because we have easier access to food nowadays, people are becoming more picky with how they eat. From what I've heard, paleo is when people decide to eat only whole foods— nothing processed. Vegan is like the next level up from being a vegetarian. Not only do they not eat meat, they also don't eat or use any products from animals at all. The gluten-free thing is a bit more of a fad right now, but there are some people who can't eat gluten because of health reasons. It's called celiac disease."

Sargent Barnes let out a sigh. "Is everything more complicated now or is it just me?"

I laughed. "No, it's not just you. I think people always try to make things easier, but they just wind up more frustrating. Like taxes."

"Now there's one thing I know hasn't gone away," he chuckled as he stood up. "I'll save my other questions for next time."

"Sounds like a plan," I replied as I mimicked his actions. I began folding the blanket I'd taken out of the basket. I'd just put it back in its place when I heard Sargent Barnes' voice start speaking. "Sorry, what was that?"

He cleared his throat. "I asked if you would like to see my room. It's all different now, and the, ah, the guy…what's his name?" he asked.

"Mr. Coulson?" I suggested.

"Yeah, him," he nodded. "He wanted you to make sure they got everything right."

"Sure!" I smiled as I grabbed my purse. I followed James out of the room, taking a right down to the corridor of bedrooms. He opened the door and walked in, stepping off to the side to let me look around.

A grin came onto my face as I looked around. They'd followed my directions to a T. "FRIDAY, give me the specifications," I requested.

"Of course. The walls are Sherwin Williams 6622. The bookshelf in the far left corner is from IKEA, and the leather chair is a midcentury modern piece from the website Article. The punching bag has been placed in the gym one floor below, and a maintenance crew came through to do a thorough clean. His belongings were organized into their proper areas. Sargent Barnes regained access to his room last night at 8:27 PM."

I nodded my head, then looked at Sargent Barnes. "You okay with everything?"

"I think I will be," he replied with a shrug. "It's not that I don't like it, but-"

"It takes time getting used to change," I finished understandingly. "How did you sleep last night?"

A begrudging smile came onto his face. "Better than usual."

My right hand lifted reflexively to pat him on the shoulder, but I refrained. He hadn't given any indicators that he was fine with physical touch, and I didn't want to make him uncomfortable. "That's good! Hopefully you can become more settled in here now that there are more places to put things. Did you organize your books?"

Sargent Barnes was about to answer, but a knock at the door cut him off. Captain Rogers entered, looking bashful and a bit nervous. "Sorry, I went back to see if you were still there, and I knew Coulson wanted Bucky and me to get your approval on our rooms, so I figured-"

"It's fine," I told him. "Let's go next door to take a look, alright?"

Captain Rogers nodded shyly. I could sense that he felt embarrassed at his angry behavior earlier, but it wasn't like I would hold that against him. I'd be angry, too. Sargent Barnes followed us across the hall, where we found that Captain Roger's room had been equally transformed.

"Specifications, please," I requested again.

"Of course," FRIDAY said immediately. "Feature wall is Sherwin Williams 9176, the other walls are Sherwin Williams 7105. Bedding and mattress have been replaced as per your instructions. Personalized clothing has been picked out and placed in the closet."

I took a glance into his closet and saw that it no longer contained a greyscale of clothing. An array of colors were on display through t-shirts, polos, and a few sweaters. I felt Sargent Barnes' presence near me as he also took a look in the closet.

"Polka dots?" he snickered as he pulled out a collared shirt. "Really?"

Captain Rogers chuckled with a grimace. "Yeah, I know. I hate 'em, but they didn't exactly ask for my input."

"Perhaps because you never gave it before?" I commented slyly.

The Captain hung his head with a wry smile. "Yeah…I never did before."

I continued my gander around the room, but I could sense that something in the atmosphere had shifted. Captain Roger's feet were shuffling toward where Sargent Barnes stood, and I pretended to be busy studying the new bedding.

"Buck…I just wanna say I'm sorry…for, for what I said earlier," he said. "I know you didn't have a choice, and…we've all had to do stuff that we now look back on and regret. I'm sorry I didn't think about that sooner."

I turned back in time to see an appreciative smile appear on Sargent Barnes' face. "Thanks, Steve."

After a moment, I clasped my hands together. "Well, I think we're done for the day. I'll be back next Saturday around the same time, and we'll be moving on in history. Remember to keep writing down any questions you have. My only other request is that you keep a sleeping journal," I suggested. At their raised eyebrows, I explained. "It's nothing crazy, just write down how you slept on a scale of 1 to 5 when you wake up. We'll look over your journals when I come back and see how your sleep has improved. Sound good?"

"Yes, ma'am," Captain Rogers nodded. Sargent Barnes nodded his head in affirmation.

I smiled before I walked out, quickly reaching for my phone to help me figure out how to get back to the airstrip. One week down, many to go.