Bucky Barnes imagines

Happy Ending, Part 1

A/N: Hello, my loves! So... you may be wondering... why on earth is Megan starting another series when she just started a different one last update? To be honest, it's probably not smart, BUT I really wanted to start this one so I thought, "why not"?   This series is going to be much longer than my other mini ones, and it will be a slow-burn read. I've noticed after re-reading some of my stories that I tend to rush (lol), so I'm taking it back a notch and trying this out.  I am planning to update my "Family of Three" series next update, however, so keep an eye out for that! As always, thank you for reading! It means the world to me!

-M <3

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I did not know what loss truly was until the day I lost Steve Rogers. The cold fingers of grief wrapped tightly around my heart, watching as Sam approached the bench where the old shell of the mighty Captain America sat quietly, looking out over the river.

I could not find the energy to even say a word, only mere seconds from shattering into pieces that would be incredibly hard to put together again. Tears burned in the corners of my eyes, my bottom lip nearly bleeding with how harshly I was biting it. It felt wrong to be this upset, this heartbroken. Steve finally found the happy ending that he deserved. That was all that I ever wanted for him.

I had just wished that he could have found that happy ending with me.

Five years together were gone in a matter of seconds. Endless nights of comforting each other, loving each other, talking about a life together... gone. Almost as if Steve had snapped his fingers with the stones instead of Tony. And here I was, my own heart slowly drifting into nothing as I realized that I had never been enough.

Steve chose Peggy. It would always be her.

Perhaps it was naive to believe I could ever be anything other than a placeholder for a love as great as theirs, but fuck, I wish that it had been real. At the very least, real for him. The shattering of my heart reminded me constantly of what this meant to me.

A hand gently grasped my shoulder, and I turned to look at Bucky. His demeanor was collected, but I could see the storm of grief lingering in his eyes as he watched me carefully. "We're going to be okay."

It wasn't a question. But the truth of that statement seemed too good to be true. How could either of us be okay after something like this, let alone survive it? Bucky had lost his closest friend and I had lost the man I had given my heart to. I could not imagine what life would look like after today.

I smiled at Bucky sadly, blinking away the tears that were threatening to fall. "Are we?"

Those two words seemed to break him. But before he could say another word, a voice interrupted our brief conversation.

"Y/N! Bucky!" My head snapped back towards where Sam was standing. He gestured to come closer, and I felt myself stiffen as Steve turned around to look at us. He smiled at us, which somehow made my heart ache even worse. How was this so easy for him? Did I not even matter?

My lips began to tremble with the threat of tears, and I could only bring myself to shake my head. I glanced at Bucky, who remained silent next to me. He turned to look at me, his expression was relatively calm to the nearly heartbroken one that I didn't even bother to hide anymore. I suppose he was a lot better at keeping a poker face than I was.

"I can't do this." The words spilled from my lips quietly, and I could feel Steve's gaze on me. I refused to even look at him. "Tell him goodbye for me. I'm done."

I turned and walked away, ignoring the calls of Sam and Steve begging me to come back. As I walked away from the lake, I began to feel my tears grow damp with tears that I knew would never stop falling. My chest ached with each step that I took, moving closer and closer to the safety of my car. I could not even bear being close to the man I had once loved, despite knowing that he found happiness in the end.

I doubted that I could even bear to be around anyone for quite some time. The feeling of loss was all too familiar and all too repetitive. Nat, Tony, and now Steve. It seemed that it would just be easiest to be alone. At least, I wouldn't have to suffer through losing anyone else again.

I unzipped my purse and reached in to grab my keys with shaky fingers, only to feel them slip quickly from my grasp. A curse escaped my mouth, but before I could reach them from the ground, a familiar metal hand had taken them for me. I looked up, finding Bucky watching me through weary eyes. His facade was finally beginning to fade. His eyes were red with tears that were only beginning to fall, and his jaw clenched in an effort to hide them. He placed the keys in my hand gently.

"Let's go home."

I nodded silently, before unlocking my car and climbing inside. He silently climbed into the passenger seat and we drove quietly back to the compound. It was silent, but honestly, that was what was needed. Time to process what we just saw. Time to process what Steve had done. Time to process what the future would be.

Eventually, we made our way inside. I gave him a weary smile, pulling on my brave face for a few more moments as I approached my room. But as I began to unlock the door, his hand caught my wrist, causing me to turn and look at him.

"We're going to be okay." His words were firmer than they were the last time, and I knew that he meant them.

I parted my lips to speak, but only heart-wrenching sobs were able to come out. Bucky's arms wrapped around me gently, pulling me into his embrace in a matter of seconds. I let my head rest against his chest, unable to fight away the emotion that I so badly wanted to hide from everyone else. It was too hard to do so anymore.

So for the next few minutes, I just cried. And I felt Bucky's body begin to shake softly against my own. This was a loss that neither of us expected and neither of us was prepared for. But life would have to go on, despite how badly I wish things could have been different.

Steve Rogers had taken my heart and left it behind like it was nothing. And despite how much I wished it would, time would not even be able to heal a wound as deep as this.