London, January 1945

Peggy stepped through the make-shift door and into the pub. She noticed Steve, who was sitting at the bar and sullenly sipping his beer.

"Doctor Erskine told me the serum wouldn't just work on my muscles and my reflexes," Steve started. "He said it would work in my cells, create a protective system of healing, of regenerating. Which means…" he looked up at Peggy. "I can't get drunk. Did you know that?"

"Your metabolism burns three times faster than average," Peggy replied. "He thought it could be one of the side effects."

Steve snorted slightly. "Probably didn't want anybody stealing his schnapps."

Peggy sighed heavily and rested a hand on Steve's shoulder. "It wasn't your fault."

"You read the report?" Steve raised his brows, almost as if he was challenging her.

"Yes," Peggy nodded.

"Then you know that's not true."

"You did everything you could—

"I got in over my head!" Steve interrupted, clearly angry with himself. "Bucky waded in and pulled me out, just like he always did. And the one time he needed me to return the favor, I couldn't. And now…" he trailed off, thinking of Josephine. "Now I have to tell Josie that Bucky's dead."

"I doubt it's that simple," Peggy argued. "And Josie will be upset, but she'll know that it wasn't your fault."

"All I had to do was hold him," Steve shook his head.

"Did you believe in your friend? Respect him?" Peggy questioned, earning a look from Steve that said 'of course.' "Then stop blaming yourself. Allow Barnes the dignity of his choice. He damn well must have thought you were worth it."

Steve pursed his lips and stared at his beer. "As soon as I finish this, I need to be flown out to New York," he replied. "Josie deserves to hear it in person, not in some letter. I owe her that much. Then I'm going after Johann Schmidt. I'm going to burn out every hold there is for him to hide in. And I'm not going to stop until he and all of HYDRA are captured or dead."

Peggy nodded silently. Then she took his beer and swiftly drank the rest of it. "Let's go then."

~/~\~

Brooklyn, New York, January 1945

Steve stood outside of Josephine's door and he just stared at it for a few moments. He wanted to give her a few more moments of normalcy before he knocked on the door and gave her the worst news of her life. After a few beats, he took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

Waiting for Josephine to open the door felt like an eternity. When she finally did, Steve immediately stood up straighter.

Josephine frowned and her brows furrowed in confusion. "Steve?" she asked, shocked to see him standing before her. "H-Hi."

Steve cleared his throat, trying to stay composed. "Hey, Josie. Can… Can I come in?" he asked softly. "Please?"

Josephine nodded and stepped aside, allowing her best friend to walk inside. She shut the door and started making her way toward the kitchen.

"Can I get you anything to drink?" she offered. "I have water, beer, or tea."

"Just a water would be great. Thanks, Josie," Steve forced a smile on his face, though it didn't reach his eyes.

Josephine took in his odd behavior and felt an odd feeling swirl around in her gut. She brought a glass of water for Steve and set it on the coffee table in front of him. She sat on the couch next to her friends and toyed with the hem of her dress.

"Why're you here, Stevie?" she asked quietly, fearing what the answer could be.

"Um," Steve started, pausing for a few moments. "I-I wanted to make sure that you heard this in person, from me," he grabbed her hands gently. Steve took a deep breath and tried to find the right words. "Josie, I am so sorry," he apologized and tears immediately began to blur his vision. "I-I'm so sorry, but Bucky, he um, he died, Josie. Bucky's dead."

Josephine felt her world crumbling around her. Steve had to be lying, Bucky couldn't be dead. But of course, the rational part of her brain knew that Steve was telling the truth. Josephine felt like she was going to be sick.

"No," Josephine sobbed and tears began falling down her face. "No! Steve, please. H-he can't be dead, Steve," she shook her head. "He can't be, he always said that…" she was practically hyperventilating now. "He always said that he'd come back!"

Steve immediately pulled Josephine into his arms and rubbed circles on her back. Steve felt his own tears roll down his face. "I'm so sorry, Josie. I wish I didn't have to give you this news at all," he whispered as she sobbed loudly into his chest.

"W-we were supposed to get married," Josephine cried. "This isn't fair, Stevie!"

"I know," Steve cooed softly. "I know, I'm so sorry."

Josephine continued to cry at the loss of her fiancé, the love of her life, the man she would love until the end of time itself. She was mourning him and the future that they were supposed to have together. Just the thought of having to continue on living without him felt impossible.

"I don't know how to live in a world without James," Josephine sniffled, pulling away from Steve. Her mascara was completely smeared and she wiped away the stray tears. "How am I supposed to get used to a world without him? It feels wrong."

Steve understood what she was feeling, he felt similarly. He and Bucky had been a pair from the moment his family had moved into this apartment complex. He wanted to comfort Josephine, but he truly had no idea how to when he knew that the loss she was feeling was unimaginable. Steve was pulled from his thoughts when Josephine finally spoke up again.

"How did he die, Steve?" she whispered, her eyes red-rimmed and puffy.

Steve shook his head. "Josie—

"Tell me. Please," she practically begged. "I want to know. I need to know, Steve. Will… will we even have a body to bury?"

"No. We won't," Steve's voice cracked slightly.

"Then please," Josephine begged her best friend. "For closure, please, I need to know Stevie."

Steve let out a shaky breath. "We were tracking down people who were involved with HYDRA, the people who had captured Bucky," he started. "We, uh, infiltrated this train on the mountains and got into some trouble. This, uh, blast caused Bucky to be thrown off the train and he was hanging from outside of the train. Josie, I tried to grab his hand…" Steve's voice cracked. "But the rail he was hanging onto broke and… he fell down the mountain."

"Oh God," Josephine cried, covering her mouth in an attempt to stifle her sobs. "Oh, Stevie, he must've been so scared."

"I'm so sorry, Josie," Steve whispered. "I wish I could have saved him, I should have been able to save him."

Josephine sniffled and shook her head. "It's not your fault, Steve," she assured. "I know that you did everything you possibly could."

"It doesn't feel like it," Steve muttered. "He deserved to come home to you."

Josephine nodded and wiped her face with her hands. She felt hollow, like half of her was missing. And in a way, half of her was missing. Bucky was her soulmate and now she had to keep living without him, and it felt like an impossible feat.

"I still want to give him a funeral," Josephine whispered, her voice hoarse. "He deserves a proper goodbye."

Steve nodded in agreement. "That'd be nice, Josie. If you need anything—

"I know." Josephine interrupted. "I know I can ask ya for anything, Stevie."

"I can stay for a few days and then I have to go back," Steve explained. "I can help you and Bucky's ma with anything you need, okay?"

Josephine nodded and brushed her hair from her face. "Thank you, Stevie. And if you need anything, tell me. Please."

"I will, Josie," Steve promised, pulling her into another long hug.

~/~\~

A few days had passed since Steve had to leave and Josephine really started to feel the loneliness kick in. Steve had informed Winnifred and Bucky's sister of what had happened, and they had all been grieving together. Winnifred of course made sure Josephine was still taking care of herself and Steve had promised to write her consistently.

However, Josephine felt like she was just going through the motions. Instead of planning her wedding, she was now planning Bucky's funeral. It made her sick to her stomach. One moment their future had been so bright and the next it had been completely destroyed.

Josephine was sitting on her couch, flipping through the photo album that she had given Bucky on his 25th birthday. She felt a certain emptiness knowing that she had to carry on without him. She quickly wiped away a stray tear and closed the album, unable to handle the memories anymore.

"I'll love you forever and then some, James," Josephine murmured to herself.