Chapter Thirty-Seven
Soroya
I glance out of the window of the jet, confused to see the Washington Monument down below.
I look over to Steve from the co-pilot seat. "Why are we in D.C.?"
"You'll see." Is all he says, which is weird because Steve has never been known to be cryptic.
He lands the jet right in a large park, where people don't even bat an eye at the high tech vehicle parking in the grass. I guess when superhero's have been around for fifteen years then things don't shock you anymore. I know nothing shocks me anymore, especially since I get emails from a talking raccoon.
The sky is growing darker as we walk through the always cluttered city. I think D.C. is better at night; all of the lights in the city shining from the buildings and monuments, making the whole city glow with life. It also seems less chaotic, allowing one to really take in the city's beauty.
My confusion deepens as Steve leads us to the Smithsonian, especially since it's closed. But I think this isn't the only time Steve has broken in, because he knows exactly what door to use. I feel slightly wrong for doing this, but as we make it into the main part of he museum, I like being able to see these attractions without so many people here.
I finally understand why Steve took me here as we make our way down the WWII hall. We stop when we reach the 'Captain America; The Living Legend and Symbol of Hope' exhibit.
Steve leads me into the room, flipping on the lights. I am hit with a wave of emotions; Bucky's face is everywhere. I remember he told me he came here to learn about his past. Seeing this exhibit made him want to discover who he really was. I've wanted to come and see it for myself, but I just never had the time.
Steve follows behind me as I look around, reading each plaque I come across. I soon find myself staring at the giant painting of Steve, Bucky, and the men I understand were called the Howling Commandoes. I walk up to the painting and I feel an ache in my chest at seeing Bucky's face. As my eyes drop down, I see a mannequin under his portrait. It's a pair of dark pants, a purple button down jacket and a belt filled with weapons. I touch the jacket gently, hearing Steve say from behind me:
"That's what he wore while we went on missions to take down HYDRA. He used to joke that they saved the best fashion for the sidekicks of Captain America."
I smile sadly, forcing my hand away from the jacket. I gesture to the empty mannequin under Steve's painting. "I'm going to take a wild guess and say that was you?"
Steve shrugs. "It's not stealing if it was mine."
"Is it back at the compound?"
"In a box in my closet."
I smile lightly and continue on looking. My attention is pulled to a large memorial board with Bucky's face on it. In the description it talks about the achievements he made on the battlefield, as well as him being the best friend to Captain America 'on both school yard and battlefield'.
It shows his death date being in 1944. I hate that my mind thinks about him falling into that ravine, being dragged into HYDRA's clutches and being tortured. I hate that everyone thinks he died then. Things could have been different if someone had just looked for him. Maybe an allied soldier would have found him instead of a HYDRA one.
A tv screen next to the board shows silent footage of Steve and Bucky laughing at a joke someone told off screen. Watching him laugh makes me almost able to hear it. God knows I would trade anything to hear it again.
Feeling tears prickle in my eyes, I move onto something else, finding that there's a board detailing the life of Steve. Of course it talks about his childhood, which mentions Bucky quite a bit. It even shows a few pictures of them I hadn't seen before. It says that the day Captain America was 'discovered' was at a Stark Expo in Brooklyn, New York. I turn back to Steve and say:
"Stark? So that would have been Tony's father?"
Steve walks up to the timeline and smirks at it. Next to the description of the event is a clip from the newspaper that day depicting the event. Steve touches it lightly and says: "Howard made all the weapons for the U.S. army. He was holding an expo to showcase some of them. Right next to it was an enlistment office, so I snuck away from the show in order to to enlist. That's where I got recruited for the super soldier experiment."
"Was Bucky with you?"
Steve nods. "He was the one that made me go actually," he says, smiling at the memory. "I had gotten beaten up in an alley by some jerk I stood up to at the movies. Bucky came and saved me. He told me that he was taking me to the expo that night on a double date. He was always trying to set me up, but both of the girls only had eyes for him."
I shake my head. "It's only because people can be shallow and they didn't see the wonderful person you are."
He grabs my hand and squeezes it tightly, continuing to stare at the news paper clip. "That was the day before he went off to war. He had gotten his orders that morning."
I feel a tear fall down my cheek silently. "He never came back from that war."
Squeezing my hand again he says: "I don't think any of us have."
There is a small room in the exhibit that allows for people to watch 'The Movie Magic of an American Hero'. Steve doesn't want to go inside this one, but I force him to.
There are several movies to pick from, but the one I pick is called 'The Star Spangled Man'. Steve's cheeks light up with embarrassment when he sees the one I picked. This reaction makes me more curious about what it will show. I can't help but laugh as thirty dancing girls in American colors appear on the screen, singing as Steve walks onto stage.
Not only does Steve look ridiculous in his outfit, but hearing him say corny dialogue surrounded by beautiful singing women is better than any movie I've ever seen. As I listen to the lyrics of the song, I genuinely laugh.
'We can't ignore there's a threat and a war we must win
Who'll hang a noose on the goose-stepping goons from Berlin?
Who will indeed lead the call for America?
Who'll rise or fall, give his all for America?
Who's here to prove that we can?
The Star Spangled Man with a Plan!'
I turn to Steve and all he does his shake his head. "The army originally didn't want me in combat, so they had me selling war bonds with shows like this. If I had known they filmed these I would have burned every copy."
'Who waked the giant that napped in America?
We know it's no one but Captain America
Who'll finish what they began?
Who'll kick the Krauts to Japan?
The Star Spangled Man with a Plan!'
When the film ends, and the image of Steve holding three women on a motorcycle fades to black, I stand and applaud. Steve shoots me a glare.
"That was a beautiful performance."
"Alright, I get it."
"I mean Gene Kelly should have retired once he saw this."
"That's enough."
"Do you keep those tights in a box in your closet, too?"
Steve rolls his eyes and shoves me with his hand playfully. "Don't tell any of the others about this."
I nod. "You're secret is safe from me, Star Spangled Man."
"That nickname better not become a habit."
"Only on special occasions."
We make our way out of that room to the delight of Steve. I look at a few other items and boards in the exhibit before Steve and I agree to leave. But before we do, I notice a booth near the entrance that sells Captain America souvenirs. There are Captain America flags, keychains, patches, pencils, and even journals that say 'Star Spangled Man' on the cover.
Steve looks at the journal then at me, saying sternly: "Don't even think about it."
As we sneak our way out of the museum, I loop my arm around Steve's again. "Thank you for this, for today. It's felt like I've gotten a piece of him back."
Steve nods. "He told me he came here to find out who he was. Ever since he told me that, I like to come here and...and just for a moment pretend he's still here. I've watched those films a million times. He's in a lot of them too, except the ones I made on my tour. Those who weren't in those should be thankful for that."
"I miss him," I whisper. "So much."
Steve squeezes my arm. "I do too. I'm just thankful he never got the chance to watch one of those performances. He never would have let me forget it."
"And neither will I." I promise him.
"You go back to Wakanda for the weekend, right?"
I nod, seeing the jet come into view. "Yeah, but I'll be back early on Monday."
"Well, tell Khari and Okoye I said I've missed them the last few weeks."
"Apparently one of the council members is sick. I know they'll come back to the action as soon as things are sorted out."
Once we reach the jet, Steve let's me get on first before following me in. As he walks to the pilots seat he asks: "Do you want me to drop you off there?"
"That would be great, Steve, thank you."
Steve pauses, keeping his eyes on me before finally muttering as he sits down: "Happy birthday, Soroya. I know that's tomorrow."
I smile sadly at him, feeling my voice grow thick. "It won't be a very happy one, but thank you."
Steve nods, having nothing more left to say. Because what was there to say? Every birthday of Alex and Bucky has been unbearable. My birthdays have become an event to dread. It hurts to think of Alex on my birthday. When he died he was 32. I am turning 35 tomorrow. I'm not a little sister anymore, I'm the older sibling.