The First Avenger AU - Apple Pie Life? That's Boring

"Hey...it looks like your vitals are starting to change. Are you waking up, bug guy?"

Bucky Barnes heard a female voice, and assumed it was a nurse. She sounded like a tough cookie, just like Peggy...

Peggy...Steve! The train...the fall...he'd been so cold...but he was really warm right now. He stirred, feeling the blankets shift above him, but when he lifted his left hand to rub at his eye he nearly poked his own eye out. Snapping awake, he gasped and sat up, the heart monitor going crazy. He looked at his hand and almost passed out again. Metal. He had a metal hand. Someone was talking to him...looking up, he could guess by her start that his look of panic was extreme. Oh...but she wasn't just a nurse. She was in a doctor's outfit. No wonder her voice had sounded confident.

"Hey." Teresa's voice was softer now that she saw his panic. His gaze wandered which and every way around the room. "You're safe here. We're in Germany." She paused. "Can you tell me what the last thing you remember is? Your name perhaps?"

"Bucky...a-ah, sorry. James. James Barnes. I fell off a cliff, from a train. How am I alive? My arm...how is it metal and not a stump? Steve...Captain America...he was with me on the train. Is...he..."

"Easy tiger." Teresa soothed gently moving to sit on the edge of the bed, her clipboard balancing on her knees. "Howard had an idea for a prosthetic design and Steve had given the okay as well as your mother when letter reached her. You were in a coma for a good few months, Sergeant Barnes. Steve survived the train. One of the soldiers on our side found you before a Soviet Russian solider did. I heard that it was a good gun fight. Not that it matters, I still had to stitch the man up even when he was bragging it was a graze. Saving you was already enough brownie points, he just needed a bigger ego."

"That is...starting to make sense... but I am pretty sure I froze to death...Doctor..." he tilted his head to see her name tag, "Rivera. Did Stark do that too? Do...you know where Steve is? Is he still fighting the good fight?"

"He put up a tremendous fight." Teresa said after a moment of thought. As Bucky started to look panicked, she quickly grabbed his hand. "Listen. He's alive still. But he's in the same condition you were. He's in a coma, a deep sleep. He froze in the arctic trying to stop a plane from crashing into New York City. He parachuted out, but...not even a Super Solider can survive the cold for too long. His body shut down and we found him. Still alive." She stressed. "Just sleeping."

Heart lurching up to his throat, Bucky tried to swallow it back down, "Your accent...you are from America, not Germany. So you're just stationed here? Do you know if Steve's in this same Hospital?"

"He is, but I'm not certain about his condition." Teresa admitted as she leaned away from him and tapped on her clipboard. "My mentor, Dr. Knight is his primary physician."

Fidgeting, he looked down at his lap and his two different hands, "I'm sure there are tests you want to run, I smell like death so I should take a shower as well. After...after all that, can I go see him, Dr. Rivera?" He needed to see his boy, the man who changed so much but never lost who he was.

"That shouldn't be a problem." Teresa carefully stood up and held her hand out and gently pulled him to a better sitting position. "Stop, wait, gather your bearings." She said carefully watching him. It was strange to see his eyes a little more focused than a lot of other coma patients. It was also very weird that his strength was a little stronger than a lot of the soliders who were weakened by battle. She kept her mouth shut, but if this was how Bucky Barnes woke up...then Captain America shouldn't have much problem. "You're going to want clothes so I'll get them." She gestured over towards a door. "Shower is that way. Limit yourself on the hot water though. It'll make the shower last longer."

"Yeah, not a problem," He flashed her a smile and was slow as he got to his feet. Oh damn...he had to just stay in one spot for a second. It sure /felt/ like he'd been out for months. Nurses had kept his muscles active so they wouldn't atrophy, which was nice, but he still felt so /stiff/. A shower would do him good.

He'd spend the better part of half an hour in there, compared to the usual soldier in and out within five minutes. That was barely enough time to shampoo your hair. Speaking of hair, his had grown a fair deal since he had been out. It came a little passed his ears but he rocked longer hair pretty well. Steve would testify to that, since they'd gone to school together. After enduring her tests and changing clothes into something a lot more comfortable, he looked at her hopefully, "Is it too late to see him now? Should we wait for tomorrow?"

"I'll sneak you in." Teresa said kindly and gestured him to follow. The compound was practically a maze of flourscent lighting, tiled floors and nurses and doctors coming and going every which direction. Teresa sometimes was stopped to say hello or a patient would tell her about their progress however small and she'd beam proudly like it was the best news she heard all day, give them a second's advice before continuing on their walk. "I'm sorry if I'm dragging you." She apologized. "I'm a bit of a marvel considering I'm one of the few woman doctors these poor men ever met. Here we are." She knocked on the door before opening it cautiously. "And it appears...no differences." She allowed Bucky in the room.

Steve was lying on the cot, his skin still retraining some frost. He looked peaceful, and dead. Some color was coming back to his cheeks and lips, but it was easy to tell that they were cold and pale. His hands were stiff, but they could be moved. "Do you wish me to leave you for a moment?" She asked politely to Bucky.

"No, no, you weren't dragging me at all. I think it's amazing a dame like you became a doctor, it shows you can persevere and you are ambitious," Buck grinned at her, but then he sobered at the sight of Steve. It hadn't been too long since he'd been found then. "I'd like to be, Dr. Rivera. I can retrace my steps back to my room, so don't worry about me. I'll be in my bed come morning, I swear," he put his hand on his chest over his heart.

"You better be." Teresa told him and quietly left him to his own devices, shutting the door behind her for extra privacy. She took a breath in and then walked away, going to her next patient that needed her. It flattered her a little that Bucky thought of her as ambitious and had a lot of perseverance. Mostly the comments she got were degrading at best, and at most "hot". It was nice for someone to see her hard working as she hoped to be.

Throat tightening, Bucky didn't bother stopping the tears that streamed down his cheeks since he was alone. Striding over to Steve in a few steps, he sat on the bed, not bothering with a chair. The heart machine beeped steadily which gave him relief, but Steve's stone face made panic want to rise up. Squashing it, he had to tell himself Steve would be alright. "You've gone through it all not to concur this, you damn punk," he sniffed and his good, warm hand caressed Steve's cheek, "Damn it, Steve! You don't ever think about yourself! You jump in recklessly, hell bent on saving whomever you can whenever you can, damn what happens to you."

His fist thumped on Steve's chest, and he panicked a little, realizing that was his metal fist. He hoped he didn't leave a mark. Biting his lip, he soothed it by rubbing his hand over the area, "I'm sorry...I'm so sorry...I tried to move towards you, but every shift I made was my doom. The bar broke...and I left you to fight on your own. I couldn't reach your fingers...you must feel like shit, like it's all your fault. Is that why you did this? So you could follow me down? You dumbass...what if it worked and I woke up but you weren't here? I'm so glad you're alive, you have no idea..." he wiped his eyes only because his fat salty tears landed on Steve's other cheek.

"You gotta wake up, Steve. The war...if can go on without us. We've done enough. I want to go home," Bucky's voice was cracking and he laid his head down on his friend's chest, sobbing softly, "So much has happened...I'm done. I'm done with this fight and I /need/ you to wake up. I won't go home without you. Even if you're in a coma for a year, I won't go home without you. So wake up."

~*~

It took an hour of ramblings of home, the friends they left behind, their favorite hangouts they could go to, the movies and diners and dances with girls. Maybe Steve could actually dance with a girl for once without them stepping on each other's toes. The idea had made him chuckle, and he told Steve to wake up again, squeezing his hand which he swore had squeezed back, and left to keep his promise to Teresa.

Only...he was so disoriented from crying and /exhausted/ even though he really had only been awake for maybe five hours...he got lost.

Bucky Barnes got lost.

Groaning, he didn't want to ask a nurse where to go. He tried to follow the number on his wristband, but that was useless. Eventually, he just gave up for the night and sat down on a bench he discovered, head in his hands and heaved a deep sigh.

"Looks like you got yourself in a pickle," an amused male voice caught his attention and he looked up. The man had /really/ long brown hair tied at the back of his neck. It went to his mid-back, and his bangs were long enough on each side to touch his jaw. His eyes, though...his eyes were heterochromic, one silver or grey, and the other a deep blue like the oceans that separated Germany from America.

"That must be a pain to put into a sanitary cap for surgery," was all Bucky could think, followed by, "You have weird eyes."

The man laughed heartily, "I get the last one a lot, but not many comment on my hair. Yes, it is both a Japanese and a Native American culture to grow your hair long. I'm neither myself, but I found the philosophy intriguing. That's a long explanation to tell, however, and I feel you are not in the frame of mind for such things." At the shake of his head, he held his hand out in offering, "How about I see you to your room? Teresa will be upset if you aren't in bed when she checks on you."

"Teresa...do you mean Dr. Rivera?" Bucky eyeballed the hand before taking it, heaving to his feet and wavered a bit.

"You over exerted yourself," he tsked, "You just woke up, after all, you should take better care of yourself. Yes, Doctor Teresa Rivera. Lovely ring, no? Much better than 'Nurse Teresa Rivera'." He nodded to himself, "Oh! Beg my pardon, where are my manors? I am her mentor, Doctor Meara Knight. Pleasure!" he grinned.

Bucky shook his hand, nodding, "I like to be called Bucky. I agree, that does sound a lot more meaningful. I told her she was ambitious earlier. I see she had a good teacher." They headed back through the halls...and he realized where he'd taken a wrong turn, feeling silly. Steve's room really wasn't all that far away but it must have thrown him off because she had kept stopping before so it had seemed longer.

"Good compliment! That must have her on cloud nine, a lot of people look down on her and don't take her word for anything solid, wanting my second opinion on everything she does. It's rather annoying. I've started to tell a few doctors off for it," Meara snorted.

"Well, good! She was very patient with me during my examinations and tests she ran, answered any question I had with firm knowledge on what she was talking about. That was very impressive," Bucky knew why, but that didn't mean he liked the idea of anyone doubting Teresa.

"You just keep earning those brownie points," Meara's grin hadn't faded and he opened the door to his room, "Here you are, Bucky. I promise, I'll let you know if anything changes for Mr. Rodgers. He's a hero, you know. Peggy comes to see you both, too. She got the message about you being awake, so she'll be here tomorrow as well. Something to look forward to, yeah?" he patted Buck on the back, "Sleep well, soldier." With that, he turned and left the room.

A hero. That was his Stevie. That was all he had ever wanted, was to do his part in the war. Well, he sure did.

~*~

((you start with Steve waking up))

Light. It hurt his eyes and he groaned as he squeezed them shut and opened them again. He could hear soft sounds of the hospital. Someone a few rooms down was talking loudly, animated about something or another. Everything felt...off. He wasn't supposed to be here. Had he been found? Was he compromised? He looked over, towards the window. He was kind of surprised to see that the curtains were halfway-drawn, allowing in the light of the sun. What time was it? The room didn't have any kind of clock.

"Easy there, soldier," a face with two tone eyes came into his field of vision, "You were in a three-month coma. Do you know who you are? Procedure question," he added as he checked the machine, "I am Dr. Meara Knight. You may call me either, I don't mind."

"Dr. Knight." Steve replied and nodded his head. "I'm Steve Rogers." He closed his eyes for a moment and opened them again. "You said three months?"

"Yes, that's right," Meara nodded, not bothering with other unnecessary questions. If he remembered his name he remembered the rest, "Mr. Stark found you about a week ago. You are back in Germany, by the way. Your plane had sunk under the ice and he found the parashoot missing. It didn't take long after that. He didn't give up when others did."

Steve nodded, his fingers fiddling with the blanket. He couldn't ask about Bucky, because Bucky wasn't with him. It was painful, to be waking up to an empty room. He understood Peggy not being here. She had a war to win and fight. "When can I be discharged? I got to go back."

"No, you don't," Meara looked back at him, "The war was waging without you for three months, and it will continue to do so. Two days here at the most, but Super Soldier or not...your mind still needs to heal. I can medically discharge you for mental health, because you can't tell me you don't or wont have PTSD. Or, you can voluntarily take a leave of absence to recuperate. Refresh, breathe," he folded his arms, "I would have you take some evaluations, both paper and verbal, to make official record statements, but I myself don't need them. Perhaps later today you won't feel so bad, but there's at least one person that I know that won't.../can't/ leave without you."

Steve was a little taken aback. There was someone here that was loyal to Captain America to that point? He couldn't imagine any of the Howlies being around in the hospital, but then again it could've happened. His heart sunk. "Who?" He asked, "Who are you talking about?"

"You'll see for yourself soon enough. Now, you're more than welcome to walk around, take a shower, do whatever as long as you stay in this room. I'll have nurses nearby watching the door, too, so don't think about sneaking out," Meara shook his finger like a parent scolding a child, a smile on his face in mirth. He motioned to the standing wardrobe, "You have clothes in there, both civilian, soldier, and uniform, for whatever you feel more comfortable in. I do recommend a shower, first, to loosen the muscles," he bowed his head a bit, "I'll see you in an hour at most."

Walking out, once Meara closed the door, he let out a breath and started to look for those nurses. He couldn't let Steve find Buck, he wanted it to be the other way around. Hopefully Peggy would arrive afterwards. It was ten in the morning, and she was scheduled for three in the afternoon, so there should be plenty of time. Steve should get closure of /some/ kind. His mission right now was to tell Teresa and then Bucky. With his luck they'd be in the same room.

~+~
Steve had decided on civilian wear. It was easier to stretch out in. As bored as he was, he didn't dare leave his room. The man that Mera had been talking about could be getting ready to try and find him. Perhaps he was getting the news now that Steve was awake. Steve wanted to meet this person, and find out what kind of man he was. Hopefully, it wasn't one of the Howlies, but if it was, Steve wasn't about to abandon them. If they couldn't find him, or they didn't know, then it wouldn't take long for Steve to figure it out and meet them himself.

But it was always best to wait in one place. To keep his mind from going too haywire, he had managed to ask one of the nurses if they had a newspaper or something that he could read in order to catch up with what was happening....and what was happening was incrediable. The war was....almost over. They were getting close to the end, even if Steve did jump into it now, there wouldn't be much point. Plans were already being arranged. Japan was being stubborn and holding out on their honor and pride. Steve could already foresee what was to come.

There was a knock on the door and he folded it. "Yes?"

The glass on the door was frosted, so there was only a shadow on the other side for about a solid minute. You could count the seconds with painful accuracy. Finally...the doorknob turned and the wood popped inward.

Bucky watched as Steve dropped the paper to the floor, face paling and eyes wide like china saucers. He was sitting on the side of the bed, and slowly got to his feet. Swallowing the lump in his throat, Buck swiped his hair from his eyes and closed the door behind him. Nervous about Steve's reaction to his arm, he had put on a long-sleeved jacket and stuffed his metal hand deep in it's pocket. "Hey, punk...about time you woke up," he said to break the silence and grunted as he was swallowed in a bear-hug within the next two heart-pumping seconds, "Steve...Steve, I can't breathe!"