It had been two weeks since Steve disappeared and everyone was still celebrating the war was over, army members were reuniting with family members and friends except Bucky.

Bucky was in his apartment trying, and failing, to get drunk sitting on his couch in silence.

He lost his best friend, his brother, his little guy from Brooklyn, his partner, and what they had hid for the last twelve years, lover.

Since he was seventeen and Steve was sixteen they had been dating but hid it due to legal reasons.

Everyone in Brooklyn knew they were close and stuck together like glue so it was a little easier to hide it. They had gotten close a few times but not many.

When WWII came and Bucky was approved for the army Steve was worried and didn't want to lose him.

Bucky knew that was one of the reasons he wanted to join them, to be with him.

When he became Captain America Peggy made it was for Steve to hide their relationship and with girls always after Bucky, it was always easy.

Then he sighed when there was a knock on the door so he got up and walked over to open it.

When he opened it he saw the Commandos, Peggy, Howard and Colonel Phillips.

"Uh, hi?" he said confused.

"Hello Sergeant Barnes. Can we come in?" Phillips asked.

"Sure?" Bucky said and let them into the living room. "Can I get you anything?"

"I'll take a beer." Dum Dum said and Bucky couldn't help but smile a little remembering how much Dum Dum loved his beer.

"You never change do you Dum Dum?" Bucky said shaking his head amused. "Anyone else?" he asked and a few people asked for a few drinks so he got what they asked for.

While he did that they noticed how easy it looked for him while it was hard for everyone else.

Peggy, Howard and Phillips looked at each other thinking the same thing.

'It couldn't, could it?'

"Alright. Here you go." Bucky said and handed them what they asked for and sat down. "Now, what do you want?"

Everyone looked at each other and took a deep breath.

"You know how there is still a lot of work to do after the war and HYDRA?" Peggy said and he nodded. "We're offering you to take Steve's position as the leader of the Howling Commandos."

"Excuse me?" Bucky said in shock.

"You're an excellent sniper Barnes, you were second in command, you became a sergeant after only three years of training. Hell, you should be damn promoted!" Phillips said and Bucky looked at him in shock.

"He's right sergeant." Peggy said and looked at him gentler. "Steve was your best friend and I'm sure he would want this." she said and he sat there thinking.

"We were more than friends." Bucky said. "He was my best friend and like a brother to me. I always looked after the punk. Always getting into fights, getting sick, having an am asthma attack, trying to join the army or something like that. At his ma's funeral he was eighteen and I was nineteen, I offered to move in with him. I had a job and he didn't. All he had to do was do the house chores he could like take out the trash, shine the shoes and I'd do the rest. He said he'd be fine on his own." he said and sighed rubbing his forehead. "When the war came and he wanted to join, I did everything I could to stop him. Try and get him on dates, get him jobs, show him what he can do to keep himself busy while I'd be training my family would be doing the same. When it was my last night, I saw him in another fight outside the movies and he asked me what my order was. When I said 107th he said he should be going. Later we were at Stark Expo with two girls on a double date to try and get him a girl again but he was so focused on joining the army he didn't listen. The last things we said to each other before I left were Don't do anything stupid until I come back. How can I? You're taking all the stupid with you. That's been our thing for years. That and I'd call him a punk and he'd call me a jerk. After that the next time I saw him he was Captain America and not the small kid from Brooklyn I knew."

"You really knew him." Howard said and Bucky nodded. "Peggy is right, Steve would want you to be happy, not miserable. You'd be helping people, still have the rest of the crew and be able to tell them all about Steve before the serum so they can see the small punk he was." he said and Bucky chuckled thinking about it while the other Commandos nodded wanting to know.

"Fine. I'll do it." Bucky said and they smiled.

As time went on Bucky grew better and better at leading people. Every few months he would be offered a promotion but he knew that he would be leaving the Commandos if he did so would always say no.

When he first agreed to coming back Peggy had a breakdown and that's when he realized he had to step up, keep his emotions locked and help the others more.

Over the years they started noticing that Bucky hadn't aged a day and he started getting nervous he'd have to tell them what happened that night in 43.

He swore not to tell anyone unless it was life threatening.

Commandos had slowly started retiring and starting families of their own. Peggy, Howard and Phillips had been trying to get Bucky to join them at SHIELD since there were only a few left but he still says he stays until the end.

He would go on personal missions now and then or with Chester and or Peggy.

He was on one with Peggy and Chester now and were trying to dodge being hit by granite.

"We gotta get outta here!" Bucky said.

"How?!" Phillips asked and coughed.

Then Bucky saw a wall and punched it.

"What in the world did you just do?!" Peggy asked.

"I just got us a way out!" Bucky said and coughed. "Now go!" he said and they ran when a part of the ceiling started crashing down onto Phillips.

"CHESTER!" Bucky and Peggy yelled and got no reply.

Then Bucky looked at Peggy.

"Go! I'll get him out!"

"But-"

"Just go!" he yelled and she started running out while Bucky took a deep breath, looked at his hands and shook his head. "Alright Zola, let's see what your serum gave me compared to Steve's." he said, shut his eyes tight and slowly started lifting the ceiling from Phillips.

A few seconds later it was off so he grabbed Phillips and started running out to see Peggy still coughing.

"You OK?" he asked and she jumped. "Sorry."

"James!" she said and saw Phillips there. "How-"

"We don't have time for this Pegs! Call Howard so we can get him to a damn hospital!" he said and she nodded and did as told noticing Bucky was already half healed.

A few hours later they were all in a hospital room looking at Phillips.

Peggy and Howard were mostly looking at Bucky trying to figure out how he did this when they heard Phillips groan and looked at him.

"Where the hell am I?" Phillips asked and they laughed.

"That's Phillips alright!" Howard said.

"Definitely!" Bucky and Peggy said.

"Is anyone going to tell me what happened or not?" Phillips asked again and they calmed down to tell him. "Damn." he said and looked at Bucky. "Sergeant Barnes," he said and Bucky looked at him in attention. "I want you to be loud, clear and honest."

"Yes sir?" Bucky said.

"What happened when 107th was captured in 43?" Phillips asked and Bucky froze while they all looked at him waiting patiently.

They knew he had PTSD from all the fights he had done over the years and that HYDRA capture was probably the highest level but they also knew he was a fighter.

Then he took a shaky breath.

"HYDRA got us and I was the only one that could fight them the longest. Being the youngest of the crew most of them tried to protect me while others knew I was strong from all the training and defending Steve. When I finally reached my weakest point they took me to an experimental room and Dr. Zola examined me as if it was a physical. After that he injected a, a serum like Dr. Erskine's but a little different." he said and they froze looking at him in horror. "He wanted me to be a part of some program called the Winter Soldier. I think it was basically going to be the opposite of Steve. Shortly after getting the serum they started trying to brainwash me so I'd forget everything. My name, my family, friends, everything. Until Steve found me I kept repeating the same thing. My name, position and number. When Steve said his name it only took me a minute to realize who it was." he said and chuckled. "I was so confused and shocked when I saw the new him. When we started leaving I needed some support but then after about five minutes I didn't. I was fine, no pain, just about healed and everything except mentally. But I think the most traumatic thing was seeing Red Skull take that damn mask off." he said and shuttered. "I still have nightmares from that sometimes."

They looked at him in silence and realized that's why he looks so young, heals so quickly and everything. He's the same thing as Steve, a Super Soldier.

"Why didn't you tell us?" Peggy asked.

"I didn't know how you'd all react to HYDRA's experiment being here."

"You were captured and just doing your duty of protecting this country sergeant." Phillips said and Bucky nodded and looked at them.

"I promise, when you retire I'll do everything in my power to make SHIELD everything I can. When I'm the last Commando I'll join you and do whatever it takes to keep your family safe." Bucky said strong and they nodded.