"Does any of this look familiar to you? Do you recognize any of the men in this group?"

Bucky stood in silence, his face inquisitive as he studied the Captain America display at the Smithsonian, trying to get his mind to release the hidden information from his past. "Only that one...Steve. But even he's just a really distant ghost of a memory. There's no substance to it; he doesn't mean anything to me."

You sighed, overcome by anguish at the thought that these two best friends may never come together again. "Don't push yourself. If it's going to come back, it will on it's own time. Maybe it's just waiting for the right trigger?"

"Yeah," he whispered, staring at the picture of his own face; a face he didn't recognize and one that wore a life that he was growing desperate to remember. "(Y/N), tell me something," he said, finally looking at you, "if I don't become the man that you used to know, what will you do?"

You were shocked at the question; you had never even considered any other option than staying with him. You had no idea that he didn't expect you to stay. In this form of Bucky, this brainwashed and blank version, you had still known him for so many years that you wouldn't even entertain the idea of leaving him to a world that knew him only as an assassin. He was skilled at camouflaging himself and hiding, but that was no life to live, and you vowed that you would protect him with your own.

"I'll stay at your side," you grabbed his arms and turned him towards you so that your eyes met, "there's nowhere else for me to be, Buck. There never has been and there never will be. That's how love works."

"You love me?" he whispered with a sad tone in his voice, his gaze now dropping to the ground. "Are you sure? Only if you're sure."

Only if you're sure.

The memory of the evening in the garage took over your mind, of the two of you taking shelter from the rain that soaked your clothes; so much so that you were having a sensory reaction. You swore you could feel the same warmth of his skin and caught the smell of rain. 'Only if you're sure,' he had said on that day too, looking at you with a passion in his eyes that you missed so much now; passion that was now replaced with sadness and confusion.

As tears streamed down your cheeks, you pulled him towards you, your bodies pressed firmly together and his arms enveloping you. You felt the desperation in his embrace, desperate for someone to accept and protect him in this rare time of weakness. "I've never been more sure, love. Even if you never remember the other life, we will figure out this new one."

~~~

The next day you had decided it was time to visit Steve, and to see with your own eyes that he was okay. You had to see that he was really there, and had to know if he would accept you or not after everything that had happened.

There were two armed guards outside of Steve's room, and one Falcon inside. You weren't sure if this new guy would recognize you from the battle on the freeway several days ago, but your mask had stayed intact and you relied on that shred of hope that you could be allowed to see your best friend; the best friend that you had thought dead during your darkest days with Hydra.

You didn't know if Steve would recognize you now, but the only way to know would be move forward toward the door and pass through. Face the fear of seeing him after all this time.

But your feet wouldn't move.

It's only Steve. He'll forgive you. He'd forgive you for anything. Move your feet, (Y/N).

You nodded your head and resolved that you were doing this not just for yourself, but for Bucky. You could do anything for him, and this would be the first step in proving that.

"I'm here to see Captain Rogers," you told the nurse, trying to mask the tremor that was growing in your hands as you signed the name of your alias on the visitor roster.

"I'll need to see your identification and you'll need to leave your bag here."

You handed her the only ID you had from a few years ago when you had gone undercover with Bucky, but you still looked pretty much the same. You held your breath as she inspected it, finally approving you and placing your belongings in the desk next to her.

"Visitation is limited to thirty minutes, unless otherwise approved by Mr. Wilson."

"Thank you," you said with a small smile, your nerves worsening as the reality of seeing him became closer and closer. Nodding at each of the guards, you rested your hand on the door and took a deep breath, whispering to yourself and searching for your courage. "It's only Steve. Your Steve."

You pushed the door open and stepped inside before you had the chance to change your mind.

~~~

"This is what you want to do, right?"

"Yes, Steve, this is what I want, but it's just too much pressure." It was the day of your admission interview for college; you had passed all of the tests so far, and this was the final, and ultimately, worst one. It was a struggle to not let your nerves get the best of you.

He shook his head at you while straightening out the lace collar of your shirt and buttoning the bottom of the fitted jacket that you happened to find at the thrift store just that morning. You were not the kind to dress up, and it was obvious by your demeanor. "(Y/N), you want to be a nurse, right?"

"Of course. That has a lot to do with you."

He smiled and rolled his eyes, "Oh, because you've taken care of me so much? That's so sweet."

"No," you countered as you slapped his hand away and fixed your own jacket, "it's because I watched your mother for so many years. When she was the one taking care of you; she was such an amazing person and you could see that it what she was meant to do." You sighed and met his gaze, "I'd be damn lucky to be even half the woman she was, Steve."

"That's beautiful, (Y/N)," he said with a smirk, "but you're stalling. Get your ass in there." Steve pushed his hand against the small of your back, thrusting you through the door and into a room of men in suits and ties, already eyeing you and judging you by your appearance before you had even said a word. As you stumbled in, you regretted bringing Rogers with you, but you also knew that you would have completely chickened out if he hadn't been there.

~~~

As the doors closed behind you, you leaned back against them to support yourself; seeing him bruised, beaten, and stitched together tore at your heart. Knowing that Bucky was the cause of it all made it almost unbearable. But he was asleep, looking peaceful with a soft snore filling the room.

"Hey, I'm Sam Wilson." The man stood and walked towards you, extending his hand in greeting. So far, you didn't sense that he recognized you at all.

"I'm (Y/N)," you grabbed his hand in a firm shake, his eyes widening at the force of your grip, "I'm an old friend of Steve's. Really...old friend," you snickered. "So, how is he doing? I don't want to wake him."

"He's already awake."

Your breath caught in your throat at the sound of his voice. It was filled with the same sorrow that you had heard on that final day when he drove away from you with Peggy to go take on Hydra. "Hi Steve," you whispered, your voice barely audible. You stepped around Sam so that he could see you for the first time in decades. "Long time, no see."

His face was immediately pale and his breathing quickened; so much so that the monitors around him began to alarm, drawing the attention of his nursing staff. A team of them came in before he could say his first word to you.

"Ma'am, I'm afraid you'll need to step out."

"No," Steve barked, "she'll do no such thing. She stays or I'll leave."

His authority startled you; you had never seen this side of him before, taking command of a room so immediately and effectively. He had always been right; serving and being in command was definitely his forte. He focused on slowing his breathing and getting control of himself, allowing the nurses to finally feel comfortable leaving his side.

"Hey, man, what the hell was that all about?" Sam said with worry as he returned to his chair at the bedside. "You need to calm down, alright?" He paused and turned to lean down and whisper into Steve's ear, but you heard every word.

"I'm gonna get this story later, you hear?" He glanced back at you for a mere second, "I have a feeling that this one's gonna be good." Once Sam had made his way out, you stood frozen in place as Steve studied you, running the gamut of expressions across his face in a matter of seconds.

"Come here, (Y/N)."

Hesitantly, you moved to Steve's side, looking down at him and seeing the face of your best friend change to one of recognition and relief. "I don't know how," he began, "I don't know why, and I don't care." He pulled you down onto the bed next to him and wrapped you in his arms, breathing you in and stroking your hair as if to convince his brain that you were real. "My god, I've missed you so much, (Y/N). Please tell me that I'm not imagining this in some drug-induced hallucination."

You sighed and squeezed him harder, taking care to not cause him any more pain from his injuries, "I'm here, Steve," you murmured, "and I have something that you need to know." You pulled back from him and lowered your eyes from his intense stare that you felt in your soul. His eyes followed yours when the sunlight caught a shine from the ring that was once again at home on your left hand.

"We're both here."

~~~

Steve looked at Bucky and slapped a hand on his shoulder, smiling and laughing at the man who had finally decided that he wanted to spend his life with you. "I knew this day would come, but you wouldn't hear it! I'm smarter than you think, Barnes!"

"Do ya think it's okay?" Bucky was clearly more interested in his purchase than in what Steve was saying, holding the ring up and studying it for any flaw. "There were some that were nicer, but I can only afford so much."

"Buck, you could ask her without a ring and she'd still say yes! I bet ya twenty bucks!"

Bucky scoffed and shoved the small box deep in his pocket, "Dumbass, you think I have twenty bucks to my name? Did you not just see what I bought today?" He laughed to himself and nodded at Steve, "I think tonight. I don't want to wait anymore. Besides, if we're gonna break it to her that we're enlisting, I need to be on her good side first."

"Okay, so that covers you, but what the hell am I supposed to do?" Steve held his arms in the air and turned around in front of him, "look at me! You know she can kick my ass well into next week, Buck."

"Sorry, pal. We can't both marry her, even though it seems like the three of us already are sometimes." A bewildered look came over him, not sure of what that would even look like, but quickly shaking the thought away. "Okay, so enough of that. How do I ask her and tell her we're enlisting without it seeming like I'm trying to soften her up with a proposal first?" Bucky sighed and flopped down in the chair, leaning forward to rest his head in his hands, exasperated and nervous, "I need to make this perfect, Steve."

"We get one shot at this."