Come Back With Me

I Just Wanted To Protect You

But most of all I wish I didn't remember that I was hers and she was mine. We belonged to each other and without one, the other is lost. That's how I feel now, lost.

I am glad that she got a happy life though. Perhaps the best thing that happened to her was losing me.

By the time Lizzie finishes, she's a mess. She was so focused on her own pain that she forgot about his.

"I just wanted to protect you," he whispers.

She looks in his eyes and sees the sadness reflected back at her.

"All I've ever wanted was to protect you. I thought you were happy because you got married and started a family. I didn't want to step in the way of that for my own selfish reasons. I have a darkness in me now and I didn't want to taint you with it. I loved you enough to stay away if I thought it would keep you happy," he says.

He seemed pretty set in his decision so why did he come back?

"What changed your mind?" She asks.

"You did," he says.

She did not expect that.

"How did I convince you?" She asks.

"You wrote a letter to me the day before your wedding. You gave it to Peggy who later gave it to Steve before she died. You said that you could never let me go and you wished I was marrying you instead. You said that you never recovered from my death. I couldn't let you be broken like that if it was in my power to fix it," he says.

Lizzie takes a deep breath before asking the hardest question.

"Did you come back because you wanted to fix me or because you wanted me?" She asks.

"The only reason I didn't immediately accept is because I care about your happiness over my own. I'm a selfish human being but I can never be selfish when it comes to you. Ellie, you're my reason for everything. I don't just want you doll, I need you," he says.

And she knows he means it. They need each other now more than ever.

"I'm sorry for not letting you explain earlier. Everything seems to good to be true and part of me is waiting for the other shoe to drop," she admits.

He once again considers proposing to her but the time just doesn't seem right. He'll know when the time is right.

"Let me reassure you then. I love you and I'm going to love you for the rest of my life. I will be by your side until the end of my days and nothing will ever tear us apart," he says.

She relaxes because Jaime never makes her promises he can't keep.

She kisses him and they get lost in each other. They always seem to get lost in each other and they wouldn't want it any other way.

Lizzie pulls away and rests her forehead against his as they both catch their breath.

"We should go back downstairs and finish talking with Steve and Peggy," she says.

Bucky groans because she just feels so good against him and he doesn't want to let go just yet.

"No, lets just stay in bed," he pouts.

His eyes are immediately drawn down to her mouth as she bites her lip.

"How about we go downstairs and finish our conversation and then we can come back up to bed and do whatever we want," she says huskily.

"If I didn't know any better I would think you were thinking nefarious things Miss. Rogers," he says.

She leans over and whispers in his ear.

"Maybe I am," she says.

He quickly gets out of bed and halls her over his shoulder.

"Jaime! What are you doing?" She yells.

"The quicker we finish the conversation, the quicker we can come upstairs. I'm just speeding along the process," he says.

He jogs downstairs and jostles her as he goes. She's laughing though so he's not to worried.

He walks into the living room and Peggy and Steve smile in amusement at their antics. Bucky flings Lizzie down onto the sofa.

"I take it you made up," Peggy says with a teasing smile.

"Yes, yes everything is fine," Lizzie says flippantly.

"Good, anyways we were talking while you were gone and I suddenly remembered a deal we made before I left for the war," he says.

She remembers that they made some sort of arrangement but her head is still spinning slightly so she's still a bit disoriented.

"Up for a road trip?" Steve asks.

Then she remembers their agreement.

"The Grand Canyon?" She asks.

He nods his head in confirmation. Steve feels a little bad but he already visited the Grand Canyon without her. After she died, he decided he wanted to take the trip in her memory.

"I've never left Brooklyn before," Lizzie says nervously.

The other three in the room can't relate. They have been all around the world and Steve and Bucky have even been to other planets.

"Brooklyn is home, but the world is so beautiful," Bucky says.

Part of her is scared to leave home for the first time but she would follow the three of them anywhere.

"Okay, let's go," she says.