Life Before The Heartbreak- The Winding Path I

Steve Joined The Army! WTF!

"Oh really? Who is it?", I asked with my arms crossed.

This time he looked up, he pushed his glasses down, "You'll see. I want you to return to Camp Lehigh.", he said and then went back to the paperwork. I was bewildered, but I did as he asked. I walked out and I went to the train station.

I purchased a ticket for the morning train the next day. I went back to the hotel where Bucky and I had stayed. I packed everything up and then I got ready for bed. I put on my pajamas and I climbed under the covers.

I turned to Bucky's side and I grabbed his pillow. I put it on my face and I inhaled his scent. I started weeping. I already missed him so much that I felt like my heart would burst. I pressed the pillow to my face to muffle my sobs.

I eventually cried myself to sleep, and I dreamt of burying an empty coffin and a headstone that bore Bucky's name.

Back at Camp Lehigh...

I walked into the meeting tent and I saw a stack of files of the new recruits coming in. I picked the first one up and I opened it. What I read shocked me, I saw the name Steve Rogers. I slammed the file down and I marched to Erskine's lab.

My heels slapping on the tile floors turned heads but I didn't care. Why on earth would Erskine choose Steve for the Super Soldier Serum? Then I stopped in my tracks, I remembered what Howard had told me.

"Dr. Erskine said that the serum makes the good, great. And makes the bad, worse.". Then I understood why he had chosen Steve. He couldn't have chosen a better candidate. I smiled and I turned back to exit the building.

The new recruits were already lined up and I noticed Steve immediately. I walked around to where Peggy was standing. I noticed that one of the men was smirking at Peggy.

"Recruits, attention! Gentlemen, I'm Agent Carter. I supervise all operations for this division.", Peggy announced in an authoritative voice.

The man who was smirking asked haughty, "What's with the accent, Queen Victoria? Thought I was signing up for the U.S. Army.".

"What's your name, soldier?", Peggy asked.

"Gilmore Hodge, your Majesty.", he answered with a smirk. Oh, so he thinks that he is so high and mighty huh? Wait until Peggy kicks your ass. I thought.

"Step forward, Hodge.", Peggy ordered.

The man looked back at the other men and smirked.

"Put your right foot forward.", Peggy commanded.

"Mmm... We gonna wrassle? Cause I got a few moves I know you'll like.", Hodge says. Oh, wrong move mister.

Then, just as I predicted, Peggy punched him hard in the face. He went down just as Colonel Phillips drove up. "Agent Carter.", Phillips said.

"Colonel Phillips.", Peggy acknowledged.

"I see you're breaking in the candidates.", he told Peggy. "That's good! Get your ass up out of that dirt and stand in that line at attention 'til somebody comes tells you what to do.", he says, turning to Hodge.

Hodge scrambles back up, "Yes, sir.".

"General Patton has said that wars are fought with weapons but they are won by men. We are going to win this war because we have the best men...", Phillips says and notices Steve. He ignores him and continues, "And because they're gonna get better. Much better. The Strategic Scientific Reserve is an Allied effort made up of the best minds in the free world. Our goal is to create the best army in history. But every army starts with one man. At the end of this week we will choose that man. He will be the first in a new breed of super-soldiers.".