Come Back With Me

You Were Being A Coward

Bucky returns home to the sounds of yelling and banging upstairs.

He takes the steps two at a time and discovers that the noise is coming from Steve's room.

He runs in and sees that the room looks like it's been ransacked. There are boxes everywhere and clothes thrown about.

Lizzie and Steve are screaming at each other at the top of their lungs. Bucky has seen the twins fight but nothing like this.

"Hey!" Bucky yells over their screams.

They both turn to him.

"What is going on?" Bucky asks.

Lizzie angrily points at him.

"Did you know? I swear if you knew, you're sleeping at your parents for a month," Lizzie yells.

"Did I know what?" Bucky asks.

"I got out of school early today and came home to see Steve packing all his stuff into boxes. He decided he was going to move out without telling me. So, Did. You. Know?" Lizzie says.

Bucky looks at Steve in surprise. He's glad Steve didn't tell him because he did not want to be an accomplice.

"He didn't know. I didn't tell him because I didn't want him to have to lie to you," Steve says.

Now the boxes and the clothes make sense. It looks like Steve was mostly packed but then Lizzie took it upon herself to unpack him.

"Why didn't you want to tell us you wanted to move out?" Bucky asks.

"Because I know that she wouldn't approve and I thought everything would be cleaner if I just did it," Steve says.

"You were being a coward!" Lizzie yells.

Bucky has never heard Lizzie call Steve a name in anger. That is when he knows that this is serious.

"El, maybe you should calm down," Bucky says soothingly.

"No! He already got a place and everything! He was just going to sneak away without telling us," Lizzie yells.

Angry tears are flooding down Lizzie's face.

"You want to know why I did it this way? It's because of you! We are getting too old for this Elizabeth and you refuse to let go. You need to grow up!" Steve says.

Steve instantly knows he went to far but he can't bring himself to apologize.

The fight goes out of Lizzie at his words.

"Then go Steve. If you've outgrown me, than just go," she says softly.

"Liz," Steve says.

"I can't be here right now," Lizzie says.

She turns away from Steve and faces Bucky.

"Can you help him repack and get to his new place? I'm going to go down to the hospital and see if they need an extra hand," Lizzie says despondently.

He kisses her on the head and gives her shoulder a squeeze.

"Sure, can you call me when you want to come home from the hospital? I don't want you to walk home alone when it's dark," Bucky says.

She gives him a small smile and nods. Even if she ends up with nothing, she knows she will always have Bucky. She thought she would always have Steve too but apparently that's not the case.

She gives him a quick peck on the lips and walks out the door.

Steve goes to follow her. He doesn't like that he is moving out on these terms. He knew it was time to move out but he realizes now that he played it all wrong.