[ over the next hour or two, every 10 minutes on the dot, Bucky receives pictures of Redwing as taking somewhere on the station, posed as if the drone is doing human activities. sunbathing, cooking, training... the last few pictures are all of Redwing hovering over Bucky's bed, a little lower with each subsequent picture. ]
[That one gets a response. Though probably not for the reason Sam is hoping for. Having an image projected into his head though-
His earpiece is ripped out, and he has to take a few moments to get his breathing under control. Some time to remember that he's on Ximilia. That Sam had only sent that image to tease him. Nothing more.
This is fine.
(No it's not).
The messages are then ignored completely, his earpiece tucked away in his pocket, and he's off to the Sunlight room for the next few hours. And then a few hours more.]
[ Sam is pretty quick on the uptake that something is wrong, though he doesn't know what immediately. Ignorance can be bliss and curse alike - he doesn't know about the specifics of some of Bucky's triggers. But the radio silence is telling sooner rather than later that he pushed too hard one way or another, and he can hazard a guess or two as to what button he pushed even if he doesn't know exactly how. Enough work eirh vets not to be naive here.
He doesn't go to find Bucky immediately, leaves him space and time. Guilt rolls uncomfortably in his stomach, but he knows better than to push further just to assuage it at the expense of Bucky's comfort level.
He does follow, eventually, a few hours later, hoping the time helped to at least not make his presence an unwelcome one. Doesn't take a genius to figure out where Bucky is - Sam knows him well enough for that at least. He sits nearby though, doesn't insert himself into Bucky's space. The man knows Sam is there, of that Sam has no doubt.
Sam let's the silence stretch for a while, giving Bucky space to send him away if he needs that. If Bucky doesnt, Sam offers: ]
[Although he's laid down with his eyes closed, Sam's approach is easily picked up on. He knows that the man isn't hiding his approach. That he's purposely allowing himself to be heard. And that alone is enough to have his shoulders untense a little.
It's the silence though. That's what gets to him. What makes it clear that he's been caught out. Sam is giving him space. Isn't pushing his teasing any further. Which means that he knows what happened in the time between that first image and now.
The apology is left hanging in the air between them, Bucky making no sign that he's even heard it. It's a dismissal of those words. A refusal to accept them because they aren't needed. Sam isn't the one responsible for how things ended, and Bucky isn't ever going to hold something like that against him. Not anymore. They taunt, they tease. That's how they work. It isn't Sam's fault he stumbled across a landmine along the way.]
You got any idea who that guy is?
[Erik. Technically the reason for their whole conversation.]
[ For Sam it's a simple equation. He knows he pushed and stepped on something that blew up on Bucky. He doesn't apologize to be forgiven - he knows Bucky of all people won't hold this against him, something that wasn't malicious and Sam had no way of knowing. Now he knows better. The apology is because regardless of intention, regardless of forgiveness not being necessary, Bucky got hurt and deserves to hear an apology for that. Sam is content to have said it, and he's neither surprised nor hurt that Bucky doesn't say anything to acknowledge.
They work because they can trip each other's failsafes and still move on alongside each other.
The change in topic confuses Sam for a second until he remembers what prompted their conversation. ]
The dude on the network, Erik? No clue. Our world, but from 2018. Before Thanos. Name doesn't ring any kinda bell.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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think I can't do another 6 months repeat performance?
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[Gonna need to break out the name, Sammy]
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His earpiece is ripped out, and he has to take a few moments to get his breathing under control. Some time to remember that he's on Ximilia. That Sam had only sent that image to tease him. Nothing more.
This is fine.
(No it's not).
The messages are then ignored completely, his earpiece tucked away in his pocket, and he's off to the Sunlight room for the next few hours. And then a few hours more.]
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He doesn't go to find Bucky immediately, leaves him space and time. Guilt rolls uncomfortably in his stomach, but he knows better than to push further just to assuage it at the expense of Bucky's comfort level.
He does follow, eventually, a few hours later, hoping the time helped to at least not make his presence an unwelcome one. Doesn't take a genius to figure out where Bucky is - Sam knows him well enough for that at least. He sits nearby though, doesn't insert himself into Bucky's space. The man knows Sam is there, of that Sam has no doubt.
Sam let's the silence stretch for a while, giving Bucky space to send him away if he needs that. If Bucky doesnt, Sam offers: ]
I'm sorry.
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It's the silence though. That's what gets to him. What makes it clear that he's been caught out. Sam is giving him space. Isn't pushing his teasing any further. Which means that he knows what happened in the time between that first image and now.
The apology is left hanging in the air between them, Bucky making no sign that he's even heard it. It's a dismissal of those words. A refusal to accept them because they aren't needed. Sam isn't the one responsible for how things ended, and Bucky isn't ever going to hold something like that against him. Not anymore. They taunt, they tease. That's how they work. It isn't Sam's fault he stumbled across a landmine along the way.]
You got any idea who that guy is?
[Erik. Technically the reason for their whole conversation.]
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They work because they can trip each other's failsafes and still move on alongside each other.
The change in topic confuses Sam for a second until he remembers what prompted their conversation. ]
The dude on the network, Erik? No clue. Our world, but from 2018. Before Thanos. Name doesn't ring any kinda bell.