Author's Note: Many thanks to Cottonballpoofs and NewMoonFlicker for these words! Please feel free to give me some new ones to work with ;) In this section, 55 and 56 go together, as do 59 and 60.
If you can hold the stars in place
You can hold my heart the same
Whenever I fall away
Whenever I start to break
So here I am, lifting up my heart
If you can calm the raging sea
You can calm the storm in me
You're never too far away
You never show up too late
So here I am, lifting up my heart
To the one who holds the stars
- "Stars" by Skillet
51. Socks
He'd finally stopped crying once they got back to London, but the tiniest thing sets him off again: A pair of socks folded neatly at the foot of a bed, waiting for their owner who would never return.
52. Twisted
Fingers are twisted in his hair, booted feet kick his aching ribs, and harsh voices scream in his ear; but he clings to the only thing he can still be sure of: Steve will save me.
53. Fuse
He keeps trying to fuse the two halves of his life together—the man he was and the thing he is now—but he's no welder and everything curls and blackens into something ugly and warped; he weeps in frustration until someone reaches down and points out the beautiful work of art his life has become.
54. Anxious
For the longest time, Steve can't figure out why he's so anxious about Bucky coming out of cryo (more than just excitement at getting to see his best friend again), but then he realizes: Their reunions are usually accompanied by bloodshed and danger.
55. Void
"It's a mistake to love me, because there is nothing but a black hole in my chest, a dark void instead of a heart."
56. Favorite
"Then you're my favorite mistake."
57. Nickname
Before he met Steve, Bucky thought a nickname was just shorthand for a mouthful of a name, but now every time he hears the name 'Buck,' he hears a riddle of meaning and emotion that will take a lifetime to decipher.
58. Impossible
The one time Steve let himself believe something was impossible was when he didn't think there was any way Bucky could have survived the fall—and he still hates himself for that.
59. Heart
He didn't know he had a heart until he felt it breaking, didn't know he remembered until tears filled his eyes and his fists faltered; now he knows what love is, but it's slipping through his bloody fingers like the water far below, and he will never be able to gather up those broken pieces again.
60. Ache
There's an ache in his chest that won't go away; the doctors say it's his wounds, and Sam thinks it's because Bucky is gone, but Steve realizes that it started when Bucky looked at him with tears in his eyes instead of anger.