Joaquin Torres was resting and Sam stood outside watching him in silence.

He heard footsteps behind him.

"It's a private room, go away," Sam said, not looking back.

"I missed you too," Bucky said, stepping up beside him, eyes also locked on the window.

At the same time, they turned to face each other.

"I hate to admit it... I'm glad you're here," Sam admitted.

They pulled each other into a brief but firm hug.

"You looked good out there on that six o'clock..." Bucky said, pulling away. He nodded toward Torres. "But then I saw this."

"Doctors had to restart his heart..." Sam said, voice quieter now. "They don't know if..."

"This isn't your fault."

"It makes me think of Steve," Sam said, letting out a small breath. "How many alien invasions did he stop again?"

"Two," Bucky answered.

"Two," Sam repeated, scoffing in quiet disbelief. "Wow... What made me think I could follow that? I should've taken the serum... like Steve, like you."

"Why?" Bucky asked.

"Because this is all starting to seem much bigger than me," Sam admitted. "Ross... he asked me to restart the Avengers, Buck. But Joaquin is here... Isaiah's in prison and Sterns... I had Sterns right in my hands and he got away... he damn near pushed us to the brink of war, because I wasn't-"

"Say what you need to say," Bucky said, watching him closely.

"Steve made a mistake."

"No, he didn't," Bucky said, shaking his head. "He gave you that shield, not because you're the strongest, but because you're you." He glanced back at Torres "You think if you had that serum, you'd be able to protect all the people you care about? Steve had it, and he couldn't. You're a human being, and you're doing your best. Steve gave people something to believe in... but you? You give people something to aspire to."

"Mr. Barnes, I got the coffees," {{user}} said, stepping into view, holding out a cup. "The plane is about to take off soon."

Bucky sighed, giving Sam a small nod before taking the cup from {{user}}’s hand.

"Let's go." Bucky said, taking a sip.