Recollection ★ Bucky Barnes

Take Him Home

Marlena sat in her kitchen with her MacBook lit up in front of her. Her mom stood by the stove, conjuring up a lunch dish to feed to her children and Bucky. It was her day off—which was rare—and she intended on spending every minute of it with her children. Bucky would have most certainly been included if he would come out of Marlena's room, but because of the incident that took place a mere two weeks ago, he refused to make his presence known elsewhere. His need to detain himself worried Miranda and Marlena, and the two were doing whatever they could to get him out. Marlena understood why he felt the need to confine himself, but she didn't understand why he was still so torn up about the situation.

Marlena let out a sigh and pushed her glasses further onto her face. She studied the computer screen rather tentatively, not bothering to pay much attention to the details that were being displayed on the screen. She wasn't even sure why she was on her laptop anyway. It only served to distract her from the now-timid Bucky sitting upstairs in her room, but at this point there was nothing that could distract her from him. She was worried about his well-being and was desperately trying to find something that could potentially bring Bucky back to her.

"I don't understand why he won't come downstairs," Miranda mused as she grabbed a loaf of bread from the cupboard. "I mean, I know he's afraid to hurt you again, but didn't you tell him it was okay?"

"Yes, I sure did," Marlena answered.

She hadn't originally planned on informing her mom of the incident, but after coming home from work one day Miranda noticed something seriously wrong with her daughter. Marlena tried to pass her back pain off as sleeping wrong, but her mother, although a neurosurgeon, knew it was something worse than she was letting on. The dangerous amount of bruising on her back only confirmed it, and after further inspection it was revealed that Marlena had acquired a spinal fracture. She was then forced to tell her what had happened, and, surprisingly enough, Miranda wasn't even the least bit of angry with Bucky—she only scolded Marlena for waking him up the way she did.

"Do you have any idea what to do? Like what could you possibly do to bring him back, make him happy again? I've noticed just how lost he looks, and it's kind of upsetting," Miranda responded as she sat a plate of food down in front of Marlena.

Marlena reached for the sandwich on her plate, wincing slightly at the pain still lingering in her back. "I dunno, mom. And trust me, I know. You should've seen him the day I met him. It broke my heart."

Miranda pursed her lips and placed her hands on the counter. "You mentioned something about trying to get his memory back right?"

Marlena nodded in response and munched on her sandwich. She watched as a rather concentrated look came over her face, and in seconds her eyes were lighting up with excitement. Marlena made a face at her mom and moved before she could grab her wrists—as she loved to do when she was excited—and potentially destroy the beautiful sandwich in her hands.

"What are you so happy about?" Marlena questioned with an estranged look on her face.

"Where did Grandpa Jo say Bucky was originally from? Like, where did he used to live and stuff like that?" Miranda inquired, an enormous smile on her face.

Marlena wracked her brain for an answer, and a smile fell upon her face when she finally found one. "Brooklyn, New York. I remember him talking about how they would sometimes go to his and Steve's apartment when they had some time off if they didn't come here. Why do you ask?"

"Take him to Brooklyn," Miranda suggested.

Marlena's mouth fell open at the sound of her words. "Brooklyn, New York? You want me to take him to Brooklyn?"