second chances.

Kate wasn't afraid of him. There was a part of her that knew she probably should be after what had just happened, but she wasn't going to back away from him because of one incident. He had never hurt her before then, and it was the first time he'd had a nightmare since she'd taken him in, so she really didn't know how often they were going to occur now. "You did...I heard you screaming. That's why I came." She told him. "But it's fine, don't apologize." She was glad that she had woken up when she had. She knew that he was probably used to doing this alone, but she didn't want him to do that any longer. She wanted to help him in any way that she could. "Do you want some tea? I think I have chamomile. That's supposed to help you sleep." She offered, able to tell already that he wasn't going to fall asleep easily any time soon.

---

Steve knew that he had probably ruined a perfectly good moment, but he couldn't help it. He couldn't hold it in any longer. He'd had these thoughts for so long now, and he simply couldn't keep them to himself any longer. He did feel a bit bad for bringing it up though when he saw the tears she was trying to hold back. He didn't want her to cry, that was the last thing that he wanted. All he really wanted were some answers. "Then why are you still with him, Hazel?" Steve asked, a frowning tugging at the corners of his lips. "Because you telling me all of this is all well and good, but if you're still with him then it makes no difference at all. This isn't fair to him and it isn't fair to me either. It isn't fair to either of us."

"That sounds nice actually," Bucky said not sure when the last time he'd had tea was exactly, but he did know she was right. Chamomile was supposed to help you sleep because it was supposed to be relaxing, and it had worked for him in the past so hopefully, it still did. "I don't think I've had chamomile tea since before the war," he told her trying to think about it really. "Of course, when you're on the run and constantly in hiding, you don't really have enough time to buy tea or even worry about it for that matter," he told her knowing that he'd had chances to have it, but with how little he got out as he'd tried to stay hidden as much as possible relaxing tea was never really on his mind. Though maybe he should've tried it sooner, maybe it could've helped out.

---

"I know this," Hazel said before she looked down at her hand and slipped her ring off. Steve was asking her to choose one of them and let the other one go without actually saying the words, or at least that's what it felt like. She looked at the ring in her palm and wished that she could say she felt bad for taking it off or for what she knew she had to do, but she didn't. If anything she hated that she'd let people pressure her into saying yes to him, to begin with. Hazel sat the ring down on the little table they had up there before she turned back to Steve. "I don't want to lose you again," she said running her fingers through her hair. "I should go though," she said halfway afraid of breaking down halfway afraid of what was going to happen next. But Hazel knew there were things that she needed to take care of especially if this really was what she wanted.

[Okay, my impatient ass kind of wants to skip to that whole washing dishes scenario I mentioned earlier in the next post possibly? ]

"Alright, come on then." Kate said with a smile, motioning for him to follow her out of the bedroom when she stood up. She figured the last thing he needed to be doing was sitting in his bedroom after what had just transpired a few moments ago. "Well, there's always tea in this apartment, so feel free to help yourself whenever you feel like it." She told him as she grabbed the box of tea from the pantry closet. "I have an electric kettle now, and I'll show you how to use it, but should you forget how to for whatever reason, boiling water in a saucepan still works like a charm." She grabbed two mugs from the cabinet before filling the kettle with water. "I always leave it plugged in, and it's honestly rather simple. Just hit this button here and wait for the water to boil."

---

Steve was honestly a bit shocked when she slipped off the ring. So much so, that he was kind of at a loss for words. He had hoped that she would chose him over the other guy, because she had just claimed that she still cared for him after seventy something years and she still wanted to be with him and not her fiancé, but it still shocked him to see her slip the ring off her finger. "You aren't going to lose me again. I'm not going anywhere this time, Sawyer. No plane crashes into the Arctic, I promise. I just need to know that you really want this..." He wanted to know that she really wanted to be with him, though the message was already pretty clear to him.

It had been a few weeks since the whole nightmare incident and Bucky was starting to feel a little more himself again. He hadn’t had anymore since then and that was good. He didn’t know how long that would last, but he also didn’t want to ruin something good by worrying about it either. So he let things flow normally and that’s how he found himself in the kitchen helping her do dishes. It was a normal thing to do and honestly Bucky could use a little more normal in his life. He’d been in the middle of drying this one plate though when it happened, when something in his mind just clicked and he had this surge of feelings rush through his entire body. He suddenly remembered that he was so in love with this woman, that he had promised to love her and marry her. He remembered seeing her face first when he’d fallen off the train, and he remembered how heartbroken he’d felt knowing he’d never see her again. He even remembered how terrified he’d been when he’d woken up in that HYDRA base and saw what they were doing to him and how he hoped if he did make it out of this Kate never had to see him like that. And in the process of all these emotions coming back to him he hadn’t even realized he’d dropped and broken a plate.

---

“I really want this,” Hazel said closing the distance between them before cupping his face in her hand. “I’ve wanted this for so long,” she whispered before she pressed her lips against his for the first time in seventy some years and she felt like nothing had changed. Hazel felt something when she kissed Steve that she just didn’t feel with anyone else. Not that there had been many men other than Steve in her life but the few men who she had gone out with a couple of times when she felt extremely lonely never add her feel this. Hell she didn’t even feel this way she kissed her fiancé and if that didn’t scream he wasn’t right for her she didn’t know what would. Steve Rogers was the man Hazel had given her whole heart to a long time ago but destiny had another plan back then. They were together now though so maybe destiny was on there side after all.

Kate had definitely seen some progress in the last couple of weeks. There weren't any other nightmares and, while she wasn't trying to change him, she did see a bit more of the James Buchanan Barnes she had once known. It was in how he carried himself. He wasn't so timid, and he had a bit more confidence and spring in his step. Sometimes, he'd say things and she'd sort of just look at him, because she knew that was the type of thing that her Jamie would have said back then. She tried not to draw attention to it though, she didn't want him to feel like he had to be that man again. She was really just happy having him there with her now, in the flesh. So, she continued to teach him about the twenty first century, and he was a pretty fast learner truthfully. He picked up on things rather quickly, quicker than Steve had which caused a confident smirk to form on his face when she admitted that to him. And he continued to help around the apartment. He'd vacuum, and help her do the dishes, and he even helped her cook sometimes too. His specialty was breakfast, and she really had lost count of how many times she'd woken up to the smell of pancakes in the morning. Today was no different than any of the other days. She taught him a few things, she convinced him to go out to the store with her to pick up a few things for dinner, they made dinner, and now she was working on clearing off the table while he washed the dishes. She was clearing off the last remnants of dinner when she heard something break in the kitchen. She hurried in, unsure of what might have happened, and spotted the broken plate first then she saw the stunned expression on Bucky's face. "It's only a plate, don't worry." She assured him, knowing that he could be as skittish as a cat at times, and worrying that the sound of the porcelain breaking had set him off or something.

---

Steve let out a breath that he didn't realize he'd been holding in. He had been trying to read her for any signs that she still wanted to be with him for a while now. All signs, at least in his mind, did seem to point that way, but he couldn't really be sure because she'd still been with another man. He was pretty sure that would confuse even the man who was the best at reading women. Although he'd had his doubts, there was a part of him that had always hoped that she still wanted to be with him. She wouldn't stick around and help him through all of this shit if she didn't, right? That's how he'd been trying to look at it for quite some time now anyway. But then there had been that glittering reminder on her left hand for a while now that told him that she wasn't really his even if she wanted to be as much as he wanted her to be. She's with that other guy for a reason, Rogers. A small voice in the back of his head kept on telling him. And yet, here she was now, telling him that she wanted this. That she wanted to be with him, and that small, glittering reminder was no longer on her finger, and before he could fully process it all, she was kissing him, and he was kissing her back, and honestly, nothing had felt more right in this ever-changing world in a very long time. "You had me worried for a while there, doll." He said quietly when he pulled back, pressing his forehead against hers lightly.

[I got a little carried away ]

Bucky wasn't sure where they all came from because it was like they all just came rushing back to him at once, which was a little overwhelming at first. But then she stepped back into the room and he couldn't help himself, he quickly walked over to her and just engulfed her in a hug. And he never wanted to let go really. He stood there in the kitchen holding her in his arms for a moment before he rested his chin on her head and closed his eyes taking a moment to just fully immerse himself in what was happening. This was it. This was what he was supposed to come home to seventy-some years ago. And while he hadn't been able to come home to her then he was there now. He was home with her now. And he didn't ever want to leave. He didn't know how he could leave really. Not now, now that he'd remembered how he felt about her. If anything now he felt like he had to overcome the soldier put in him even more. Because Bucky wasn't going to lose her again. He'd make damn sure of that. Nothing was going to keep him from her. "I love you, Kate Sinclair," he said for the first time in who knew how long. But he meant it. He wasn't just holding her or telling her these things to make her feel better or because it was what she wanted to hear. This was happening because he remembered. Not everything, probably not even half of everything, but his feelings.

---

Hazel rested her hand on the crook of his neck. "I'm sorry," she replied softly. She knew that she still actually had to call off the engagement but she wasn't exactly worried about that. Well, she was worried about how he'd respond, and how his mom would respond, but it had to be done. She didn't really love him because she was standing with the man she loved now and it wasn't fair to anyone involved not to call things off. "Nothing to worry about now," she said kissing him again one more time. "I'd love to stay here all night like this. But well I have to take care of some things if we're going to start anything," she told him knowing she needed to take care of everything now before things got way out of hand or she forgot about something. "I'll be back though," She told him willing herself away from him even though she didn't want to. She wanted to just stay wrapped up in his arms, maybe even pack a bag and go away for a while with him, but none of that could happen if there was still a wedding planned. Well, it could, but Hazel didn't want to stand anyone up on their wedding day. She already felt bad enough for calling everything off. Plus standing up someone up on the wedding day was unforgivable.

[ it's okay ]

@ Epiphany.
Kate's eyes widened in surprise when he walked over to her and didn't say anything. Instead, he simply pulled her into one of the tightest hugs ever. It was one of those hugs that you still felt minutes after it had ended, except he didn't let go, he just continued to hold her, and she had no idea why. She didn't question it, not at first anyway, and she simply hugged him back, resting her cheek lightly against his chest as she did so. She couldn't remember the last time she'd been in his arms like this, and she wasn't going to question it straight away because, well, quite frankly she'd missed the feeling quite a bit. She'd forgotten just how safe she felt there in his arms, like there was nothing in the world that could ever hurt her. And then he spoke, and she had to pull away slightly so that she could look at him, because, had she heard him correctly? Had he really said what she thought that he had? "What?" She breathed as she looked up at him. And when she did, she saw it. She saw a look in his eyes that she hadn't seen since the day that she kissed him goodbye and he'd wiped the tears from her cheeks and promised that he would return to her soon.

---

"It's alright, I have my answer now." Steve said softly, pressing a kiss to the tip of her nose. He'd been so worried that he'd lost her, that she was really going to marry that other guy, but he knew now. He knew that she still felt the same way about him, and that he wasn't going to lose her anytime soon because she wasn't going to marry him. And in that moment, there was truly nothing else in the world that really mattered. Because he had her back, and he didn't plan on letting her go anytime soon. Well, maybe not quite in the literal sense, because he knew why she had to leave. She had a lot of loose-ends that needed to be tied up, and he knew that. "Don't go changing your mind on me, alright?" He joked, pressing another kiss to her lips before he pulled back fully.

Bucky didn't mind saying it again because it was how he felt. He did love Kate. And he would tell her every single day for the rest of their lives if that's what she wanted, he felt like this moment called for something else though. So he cupped her face in his hands and pressed his lips against hers firmly and he kissed her until he was out of breath and had to pull away, then he rested his forehead against her own keeping his eyes closed, and gently ran his thumb over her cheek. "I love you," he told her again opening his eyes to look at her. He really didn't know where they'd come from given they just kind of came back out of nowhere, but he wasn't complaining because he realized how long it had been since the last time he'd been this man. The man who loved her and planned to marry her one day. And he was sure she'd missed him, plus it felt really nice to feel things for her again and know that they weren't made up emotions. That it was real.

---

"I won't," Hazel replied softly before she turned to actually leave, making sure to pick up the ring on her way off the roof. It was almost surreal everything that had just happened and she hadn't wanted to leave just yet, but she knew she had to. So she left to take care of her business. And she had every intention of going and breaking things off probably explaining a little bit and then returning to Steve because that was the plan. The plan was to return to Steve because this was Steve the man she wanted to be with more than anything in the world. But plans don't always work out the way people want them to. And she didn't know what she was walking into, she did know though that she hadn't expected to walk into what she had.

Kate really didn't know what had brought this on. Had she really heard what she thought she heard? Had he just told her that he loved her? But...if he had, then did that mean he remembered? Or at least remembered some things? Her questions were answered shortly after when he pressed his lips to hers. She reciprocated almost immediately, wrapping her arms around his neck as she pressed her body as close to his as she possibly could, almost unwillingly pulling away when they both needed to come up for air. She had thought about doing that for seventy something years now. For the longest time, she never imagined she would be able to, and she honestly regretted not holding onto him longer when she'd seen him on that last day, but now he was here. He was telling her that he loved her and he was kissing her just as she remembered him kissing her on that last day. "I love you too, James Barnes." She said softly, a small smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "Where did this come from though? I'm not complaining at all...I'm just curious."

---

Steve smiled. "I'm going to hold you to that, Sawyer." He said. "I'll walk you out." He offered her his hand. Although he had never been good with women, his ma had at least taught him good manners, and he wasn't about to just stand up here and watch her leave without offering to walk her out to her car or anything like that. He'd just gotten her back, and he wasn't about to muck things up. He honestly couldn't quite believe that this was all happening right now. He had hoped that she would choose him over the other guy, but he couldn't see her doing so. They had a history, but they hadn't known each other long enough to really start a relationship of any kind. He hadn't even taken her out on a real date before he brought that ship down in the Arctic.

[I'll post on the other ones tomorrow, I couldn't leave this one hanging before I headed over to my friend's for NYE ]

“I don’t know really,” Bucky said softly as he gently ran his hand over her arm. “It all just sort of just came rushing back,” he told her knowing it might’ve sounded insane but it was the truth and sometimes that was insane. “Not everything though. I still only remember bits and pieces of our time together but I remember my feelings for you. All of them. And I remember your face being the last thing I thought of when I fell from the train, and how heartbroken I felt thinking I was going to die and never see you again. I also remember how awful it felt thinking that you might never know what happened to me. And of course how I feel about you. How madly in love with you I was, am, and always will be,” he said feeling totally content for the first time in a long time because he was right where he needed to be. He was with the woman he loved and able to hold her close and kiss her if he wanted. And it felt wonderful, honestly.

---

Hazel knew it was insane have harbor feelings for a man she’d never been on a date with for seventy some years. She knew it was crazy to say she loved him over the last seventy years when he’d been lost to everyone pretty much. But she had. Hazel had loved Steve for long time even though it made no sense. So having him back was the best thing that could’ve happened. So she took his hand and let him lead her out to her car. “I shouldn’t be gone long at all really. I mean I’m not expecting things to go super well and him be happy about this. But I don’t expect it to go super bad either and him lose it. So somewhere in the middle. So I’ll see you when I get back,” she told him giving his hand a small squeeze before she climbed into her car to drive away.

Kate really didn't need to know where this all was coming from, she was just happy that the man that she loved more than anything else in the world loved her once more, but it had happened so suddenly so her curiosity was definitely peaked. The few memories he had of her were sometimes spurred on by something else that had happened that day, but she knew some of it simply came to him at night in his dreams. This though seemed to have happened in the middle of them cleaning up from dinner and she really had no idea why. "That's more than you've ever remembered about us." She said softly, his words honestly warming heart but still paining her at the same time. Yes, he remembered how he felt about her, but he also remembered what it had felt like to know that he wouldn't see her again. "The fact that they never found your body haunted me for so long." She bit her lip, hoping to will the tears away that came on because of the pain in her chest and the thought of him laying there in the snow, waiting, and hoping death would come soon even though it never would. "When your ma asked me to come over and I saw Steve was already there, I just knew..."

---

Steve knew that some people might think he was crazy for having such strong feelings for a woman he hadn't spent much time with in the grand scheme of things, but there were others who understood. He'd gone out on so many double dates with Kate and Bucky over the years, and none of those girls had seemed right for him. Not to mention the fact that most of them had snubbed their noses when they saw how small he was. But he never felt that way with Hazel. With her, things were different. She seemed to like him for him, not just because he was Captain America. She liked him when he was just that skinny kid from Brooklyn, and that honestly meant the world to him. And now they had their chance together. Now, they could really try things out. He could really take her out on that date that he had promised her seventy some-odd years ago. "I'll see you soon then, doll." He said, squeezing her hand back before he took a step back and watched as she climbed into her car and then drove away.

Bucky hated that she’d been through all of that. He hated that no one had ever found him and so she’d had to go all those years assuming he was dead. But at the same time he hated it because it meant no one ever saved him. Not until all the damage had already been done. “I know this it isn’t my fault, but I’m sorry you had to go through that,” he told her resting his forehead against hers. “I wish things could’ve been differently, but at least we’re both here now alive and as well as we can be given everything we’ve been through.” He said honestly just happy they were together again. Because now they could make up for all the lost time, and there was a lot of that.

---

Hazel had fully intended on retuning to Steve in a decent amount of time. But things were a bit off when she arrived home. For starters she had a weird feeling the minute she noticed the door was unlocked, but she ignored it assuming it was just the agent in her not being able to trust anything. Though this was the one time she was devastated that her agent side had been right. Because as soon as she made it into the apartment she saw him, laying on the ground dead. And not really sure what else to do she’d called Steve a little shaken up honestly. Hazel knew how to handle herself pretty well if she were being honest. She’d been trained by the best and had also lived for nearly a hundred years at this point so she’d had a lot of time to really practice kicking ass. None of that meant however that she wasn’t allowed to be shaken when she arrived home to find her fiancé dead, even if she was coming to break things off, she hadn’t wanted to find him like that. Plus it didn’t even make sense why or how this has happened.

[ I’ll try and post on the other one at some point tomorrow when I get a break. But I wanted to get up something before I crashed! ]

"You're right." Kate said softly. "It wasn't your fault in the slightest, and we should just consider ourselves blessed because we've been given another chance together." She'd waited seventy some odd years for this, spending most of that time believing that she would never experience it, and now she was. She knew that Bucky wasn't quite the same man he once was, and he still didn't remember most things about their time together, but he remembered how he felt from her, and he still felt that way about her now, and she really couldn't have asked for anything else shy of him never falling from that train. She pressed her lips to his, honestly just relishing in the feeling of being this close to him again, and when she did pull away, she brought her hand up to touch his face and smiled. "I love you so much, Jamie."

---

Steve walked back into his apartment with a smile on his face and a spring in his step. He almost felt like a lovesick teenager in a way, and Sam wasted no time at all in calling him out on that fact. Of course, he'd decided to call him a lovesick puppy instead of a teenager, but it was close enough to the analogy Steve had thought of himself, and was still pretty damn accurate to say the least. So, he spent some time explaining what had happened on the roof to his friend, and of course Sam was happy for him, smacked him on the back and everything, and they hung out in the living room for a while before Steve's cellphone started ringing. His eyebrows furrowed slightly in confusion when he saw that Hazel was calling him. "You haven't changed your mind, have you, doll?" He teased lightly.

[You're fine, I still have the one I need to post on anyway ]

"We should," Bucky said with a smile on his face. He knew that things were different now, they weren't the same and they'd never be quite the same as they were seventy-some years ago before everything happened, but that didn't mean things couldn't be good. Because he had a feeling things were going to be good again. Not in the same manner, but that was okay. "I love you too," he said simply resting his forehead on hers and just being content in the moment. This was a nice moment too. He truly couldn't remember the last time they'd been like this, and even if he could he knew it had been a really long time. So it just felt nice to be able to stand there with her knowing that whatever had happened in the past to tear them apart was over. They were together again now which was what mattered. And Bucky wasn't going to let anything get in the way of staying with her this time.

---

"Next to the roses, you'll find what you need. But please be careful," Hazel whispered quickly as she scribbled a quick note to Steve about how Tony would be able to find her and within seconds of walking away from the flowers Hazel let out a scream as someone grabbed her from behind and she dropped her phone. "Listen to bitch we know who you are and you're coming with us," the man said covering her mouth muffling her sound before he stomped on her phone crushing it under his foot. She'd felt something off the moment she'd walked into her apartment, and this wasn't far off from what she'd seen coming. She didn't know who they were, and she wanted to believe that she didn't know why they were after her, but she had a really bad feeling. And Hazel knew how to defend herself, but even she knew this wasn't worth it. There was no way she'd be able to take both men by herself right now and especially given they'd had the element of surprise. She just hoped that Steve would get her message, both of them. To get Tony's help and to be careful. And then next thing Hazel knew she was having her head covered and being thrown into the back of a vehicle then everything went black for a bit. So whoever these guys were they knew what they were doing.

Kate knew that a lot had changed since they were last together in this capacity. She knew that they both had changed, and that was to be expected. Seventy some-odd years was way more than enough time needed for a person to change, and it often wasn't the amount of time that someone was given to change anyway. The one thing that hadn't changed was their feelings for each other. They both loved each other, and sure, it kind of sucked that Bucky didn't remember everything about their time together before, but if he remembered how he felt about her, surely some of those memories would return in the future as well. She smiled at his words and shut her eyes when he leaned his forehead against hers, just really relishing in the feeling of being this close to him again.

---

Steve frowned at Hazel's words. He was about to ask what she meant and if everything was okay, because she wasn't really making much sense at all, but he didn't get a chance to. He heard a man's voice in the background, and knew that it wasn't Hazel's fiancé, and then he heard Hazel scream and it sounded like she had dropped her phone. "Hazel?!" His exclamation and the panicked expression on his face was enough to get Sam's attention. "Hazel? Doll, answer me, please." He pleaded. He heard what sounded like some sort of a struggle on the other line before the line went completely dead. "Something's wrong." He told Sam as he was quick to slip on his jacket. "Someone was in her apartment." He ran a hand through his hair. "Call Kate for me, okay? Tell her I'm heading to Hazel's apartment, and that I might need backup."

Bucky couldn’t have been happier than he was right now. Everything was just right. And he would have loved to stay like this with her forever really but the moment was cut short when he heard her phone ringing. He let out a soft sigh and pulled back slowly. “Back to reality,” he said softly wishing they didn’t have to leave the comfort of one another’s arms, but whoever was calling her probably had something important to talk about. “Who is it anyways?” He asked her not wanting to totally invade her privacy and answer it for her, plus he knew that wouldn’t be a smart idea given people couldn’t know he was there and it might be suspicious if a man started answering her phone for her when people didn’t know he was there.

---

Hazel had never been more glad that Howard had created tracking devices for SHIELD agents than she was right now. Of course, she hadn’t really had to use it in such a long time that she hoped Tony would know how to track her. Hazel didn’t doubt Tony because he was extremely smart like his father, however she really had no idea if Tony even knew about the devices. She couldn’t think like that though. Hazel knew she couldn’t give up hope that everything would work out because the moment she did that things really would be bad. “Do you really think he’ll come for her?” She heard one of the men ask and she knew they were referring to Steve which made her heart sink a little, because she didn’t want him to be put in danger because of her. “Of course I do. Our intel says that he cares more about this woman than anyone so he’ll come looking for her. And when he does we’ll be ready for him,”

Kate frowned slightly when her phone started ringing, interrupting the otherwise perfect moment. "We'll have plenty of time together now." She assured him, pressing a quick kiss to his lips before she grabbed her phone off of the kitchen counter where she'd left it plugged in and charging. "It's Sam." She said before answering her phone, figuring it couldn't be anything bad. Steve and Sam had been laying low since the whole Sokovia Accords incident, and they checked in periodically to see how things were going with Bucky and to let her know that they were doing okay as well. "What's up, Wilson?" She asked, leaning against the counter. Her eyebrows furrowed slightly in confusion when Sam started talking. "I wish I was calling for a better reason, Kate, but I'm not. Hazel's in trouble. I don't know what happened, but Steve's heading to her apartment now, asked me to call you and request backup. I wouldn't be surprised if he wanted Barnes to tagalong as well." Kate frowned at Sam's words. Hazel was in trouble? Nothing was good about what Sam had just said. "We'll be there soon." She said before hanging up. "Steve needs help, something happened with Hazel, he's headed to her place now and requested backup."

---

Steve really didn’t know what to expect when he got to Hazel’s apartment complex. He knew very little about the situation, only that there was a man in her apartment that wasn’t her fiancé, and that they had obviously been some sort of a struggle. He didn’t want to suspect the worst, but it was hard not to when he knew so little regarding what was going on presently. That was why he’d requested backup in the first place. He knew that Sam would show up as well, and he didn’t want to involve Wanda, Scott, Nat or Clint just yet until he knew what was going on, so he’d asked Sam to give Kate a call, because he knew that he could rely on her for almost anything.

Bucky raised his brow when Kate told him what was going on, which didn't exactly explain a lot, but that didn't matter. The woman he knew his best friend had a lot of feelings for was in trouble so Bucky would do whatever Steve needed him to do to help her. Just like he knew Steve would do the same for him, even if the woman Bucky loved was someone other than Kate who Steve wasn't also friends with. "So we're meeting him at Hazel's then?" He asked as he ran his fingers through his hair. "What do you think this about?" He asked getting a bad feeling about the entire situation. Of course, he was for sure going to help in whatever way he could, but that didn't mean he felt good about all of this. It honestly, almost felt like a trap. It probably was some kind of trap, but even then were they just supposed to let Hazel suffer and not try and save her? Because even if Bucky thought that was a better idea than helping her he didn't see Steve ever agreeing to that.

"Just because I have a bad feeling about this, and of course I want to help them both. I mean Steve's my best friend and Hazel is the woman he loves, and I know he'd do anything and everything he could to help you if you were in dangers. But I do think we should get all the facts straight and try and figure out who we're up against and why she was taken in the first place so that we don't end up ambushed. Especially given none of us are exactly friends of the state right now," he said realizing even more how strange it seemed given most of them were on the outs after everything with the accords.

Kate nodded. "That's what Sam said Steve wanted us to do." She said. She knew that they didn't have much to go off of, but clearly Steve hadn't really taken the time to figure out what was going on before he went to Hazel's apartment. He didn't always think things through fully before acting, and she really didn't blame him this time around because she knew how he felt about Hazel and just how important she was to him. "I don't know, but I have a bad feeling as well." She said with a small frown. She just had this feeling in the pit of her stomach that whatever this was about wasn't good at all. "I think whoever is behind this is trying to draw Steve out. They know that he's laying low, and they probably knew what Hazel means to him." That was the only explanation she could think of that would explain this. She didn't know why else someone would want to take Hazel. She supposed it could be an enemy she made while working for SHIELD, but she had a feeling that it was more than that.

---

Steve knew that he hadn't provided much of an explanation as to what was going on, but he really didn't know what he was walking into right now, so he couldn't exactly give an explanation. Maybe he should have thought this through a bit more before acting, but that was the last thing on his mind when he left his apartment. No, he was thinking about Hazel and Hazel alone. He didn't know what had happened, but he needed her to be okay, because he truthfully didn't know what he'd do if he lost her just after getting her back. When he walked into the apartment, he noticed signs of the struggle that he had overheard on the phone before the line went dead. He also noticed her crushed phone on the ground, and then he noticed her fiancé. Dead. This wasn't good at all.

It didn't take long for Bucky and Kate to arrive at Hazel's apartment which did no help with his bad feeling at all. The place was a disaster, there was a dead man laying on the floor, and overall everything just pointed to something not good. And he felt like Kate was indeed right. Someone was likely trying to draw Steve out by using Hazel because that would be who he'd use if he were trying to draw Steve out. So he couldn't help but wonder who would know that? Who could know that Hazel was Steve's weakness? He was sure that she'd kept it as quiet as she could that she'd been around for a while given that wasn't something normal and would draw a lot of questions if asked by the wrong people. But it was different if they were just after Hazel, this was something different. Bucky just knew it, this was about more than just taking out a SHIELD agent who'd crossed the wrong person.

"Tell us everything you know, nothing is too small," Bucky said once they'd walked into Hazel's apartment and towards Steve. "Who's the guy? How did you know something was wrong? Did she call you? What did she say? How long has it been since you talked to her? Do you have any idea who would want to take her? Or hurt her? Or even you for that matter?" He asked knowing it was a lot at once, but he knew they needed to get to the bottom of a lot of things and really Steve was the only one who'd have answers, even if they weren't the best right now he was their best hope for the time being at figuring out clues and getting Hazel back.