The Woman in Uniform

Arnim Zola

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Marlene stood with her arms crossed over her chest and a dark look decorating his face. She looked through the glass that displayed Colonel Phillips and Dr. Arnim Zola. From the inside, people would see the reflection of themselves rather than the people watching.

"You shouldn't be here, Rogers," Howard said softly. His concern for Marlene grew everyday. She hasn't cried since the day she found out of his death. She hasn't attempted to drink herself to death as her brother has despite the inability to get drunk. She hasn't, well, she hasn't fallen apart. He supposed that was simply who she was.

Some people drowned themselves in work. Some people pushed back their emotions until they couldn't contain it.

Marlene was some people.

And that worried Howard more than anything. He didn't want her to lose herself in grief. He didn't want her to act irrationally. He didn't want her to explode in emotions in a negative way.

But it wasn't his choice.

Marlene is, and always will be, her own person.

The best anyone can truly do, is be there for her when she does finally break.

"Whether or not I should be here is not up to you to decide," she responded coldly. "I'm simply doing my job."

"Marls-"

"I appreciate you making your way across the base to check up on me, Stark, but I'm fine. Your trip proved useless."

"Marlene, I'm there if you need me. Peggy is there if you need her. Steve is there if you need him. Hell, I'm sure he needs you, Rogers."

"You want me to grieve, right?" she turned to him angrily. "Do you want me to sob my little heart out? You want me to completely lose it so you can feel needed, right? You want me-"

"-to be alright," Howard cut her off. "Marlene, you're one of the only people in my life that I can rely on. You're one of the few people that I would give up everything for. Don't go pushing me away now. You're lashing out. You're angry, and that's one of the stages of grief."

Marlene remained silent, keeping her eyes on the person she blamed for Bucky's death; Dr. Arnim Zola.

"Listen, Rogers," Howard said calmly. "When you're ready to talk, you know where to find me. You know where to find the rest of your boys. You know where to find Peg. We're there for you. Don't forget that."

Howard moved to leave, but stopped at the door.

"Marls, you're not the only one that lost him," he said quietly. "While I wasn't close to him, your brother was. He's a mess, blondie. I'm not saying that you need to be there for him and ignore your own grief. Maybe you two can spend the day in private remembering what made James 'Bucky' Barnes so lovable to you too."