Summary: After losing against Thanos, Steve can only focus on one thing: Did Natasha survive?
Steve stared at the ground in front of him. Where Bucky used to be, now only dust sat. He couldn't breath. He'd lost Bucky once before, but this was more permanent somehow. He'd seen Bucky disappear with his own eyes. He hadn't blinked and given Bucky a chance to jump behind a tree; he'd watched as his best friend slowly turned to dirt and disappeared. It only confirmed Steve's suspicion that they hadn't won. Whatever Tony had done in space hadn't been enough. They hadn't been able to keep Thanos from getting to Vision, either, and in the end they had lost.
"Did we lose?" Rhodey asked, flipping his face plate up as he approached Steve. Steve could do nothing more than nod numbly. "They—They're actually gone?"
"More disappeared?" Steve asked, a feeling of horror settling in his stomach. He supposed he had known more than just Bucky had disappeared, but he hadn't realised the same thing could happen to more of his teammates.
"Sam dropped out of the air," Rhodey said softly, looking at the ground as the image of his friend slowly disappearing and his wings crashing to the ground threatened to make him cry. "I don't know about the others, but people are disappearing off the battle field leaving no more than dust behind."
Steve swallowed the lump in his throat and looked up from the ground. He looked around the forest and saw Vision's grey body on the ground, a large hole in his forehead. Light dust covered his head and Steve knew Wanda had fallen victim to the dust. With a panic he didn't know was possible, he realised Natasha was unaccounted for. Out of their group of four—him, Sam, Wanda, and Natasha—that had been in hiding for years, only he remained. He wasn't sure he could handle learning she had disappeared as well, leaving him entirely alone.
"Natasha," he gasped, his heart banging against his ribs. He looked around the forest quickly, but couldn't see her. He ran out of the tree line and looked over the battle field, hoping to spot her blonde hair contrasting against the field.
"I followed her in here," Rhodey told him. Steve turned away from the battle field and began to search through the forest earnestly. He didn't even stop to question the crying raccoon he passed. He had spotted the Iron Hulk armor and was heading for it. Maybe Natasha had gone to check on Bruce after the hit he'd taken.
"Nat!" he yelled, hoping she'd hear him and respond. His voice echoed back to him and he could hear the blood rushing through his ears as he waited anxiously for her reply.
"Steve?" Bruce asked, appearing from behind a bunch of bushes. Steve was glad to see Bruce alive, but he really just wanted to find Natasha.
"Have you seen Natasha?" Steve asked hopefully. Bruce looked down at something in front of him and Steve felt his heart shatter. She was gone.
"She's right here," Bruce said cautiously. Steve walked around the brush against his better judgement. He had to see the dirt before he could believe she was truly gone.
"Nat," he breathed. She was standing in front of him, in shock, but alive and not dirt. He moved forward and pulled her into a tight hug.
"Steve?" she asked softly. Steve nodded, his face pressed against her head as he clung to her.
"Yes," he replied, moving one hand to the back of her head. "Yeah, I'm right here."
"What's going on?" she whispered, wrapping her arms around his middle and hugging him tightly. Her eyes were still wide as she stared over his back without taking in anything going on around her. This had to be a nightmare and soon she would wake up, ready to find Wanda after the girl had been out with Vision longer than agreed.
"We lost," Steve told her, his grip tightening as he remembered seeing Bucky turned to dust. "We lost and I thought you had gone with them."
"I'm okay," she assured him. They both knew that was far from the truth, but neither were dust and they were both still alive and breathing, so that would have to count as 'okay' for now.