“Oh, God.”
It took three days for Tony to wake up after surgery. It took four more for him to be coherent enough for him to even attempt speaking. Still, he regularly slipped in and out of consciousness, spending more time sleeping than anything else. And each time his eyes blinked open, it was like the previous times had never happened.
“Wh’ am I?” He slurred for the seventh time that day. Now, a week and a half into his recovery, he still had amnesia.
“You’re in the medbay, Tony.” Steve reminded him. “You had surgery.”
“Head hurts.” He reached up to touch the bandage on his head, but Steve gently guided his hand away.
“I know, baby. I’m sorry.”
Bucky came into the room with a coffee for each of them. “Hey, doll. You’re awake.” He kissed Steve’s temple on his way by, handing him his coffee. He sat on the opposite side of Tony’s bed.
“Wan’ go home.”
“When you’re better, doll. Gotta let the doctors take care of you.” The conversation was nearly identical each time, but Steve and Bucky always answered earnestly; Bruce and the surgeons assured them it was essential to his recovery. But then he said something they weren’t expecting.
“Dizzy.” Headaches were normal, so was the confusion, but this was the first time he’d told them he was dizzy.
“Okay, I’ll go see if the doctors can give you something, baby.” Steve immediately got up to grab a nurse.
“Just dizzy, doll?” Bucky rubbed Tony’s arm, his hand warm from the coffee. “Anything else wrong besides your head hurting?”
“Chest,” he mumbled. Bucky was now on high alert. He looked to the door, willing Steve to come back faster.
“Okay. You’re okay.” He wasn’t sure if he was saying that for Tony or for himself. His legs bounced as his hand moved to hold Tony’s hand, rubbing his thumb across his knuckles.
“I heard someone’s feeling a little dizzy?” A nurse walked in with Bruce and Steve.
“He also said his chest hurts.” Bucky blurted out.
Steve’s eyes widened at the new information. The nurse remained completely calm. “Alright, let’s check everything out. Could just be side effects from all the medications he’s on.” She began taking his vitals. “Tony?” His head lolled in her direction. “Can you tell me how you’re feeling?”
“Hurss…” He was slurring his words more than he was a second ago.
“What hurts?” She asked patiently.
“Head… d’zzy. Chest-” he broke off in a groan, his breathing started to pick up. She jotted a few notes.
“Tony?” she asked again, his eyes were staring blankly. Then, his breath hitched and his body went rigid before violently jerking in a seizure. The nurse pressed the red crisis button and pushed Steve and Bucky out of the way.
“What’s happening?” Steve yelled, already crying.
The nurse laid the bed flat and removed the pillows. Seconds later the room was filled with people, Dr. Cho barking orders the second she arrived with the crisis team. Bruce tugged Steve and Bucky out of the room, away from the chaos, and into a conference room across the hall.
“Bruce, is he…” Bucky couldn’t finish the sentence.
“I know as much as you do.” He said matter-of-factly. “He was having a seizure, so we won’t really know how it affect him until he wakes up. I’m sure Cho will order another brain scan.”
There was a knock at the door. Bruce stood to open it and in stumbled Peter, tears streaming down his face. Bruce pushed him into a chair before he collapsed “Mr. Stark… I was coming to visit him but- Is he okay?”
“Take a deep breath, Peter,” Bruce told him. He did, laying his head down on the table as he sobbed.
Bucky got up from his chair to crouch in front of him. “Pete? I know that must’ve been scary to walk in on, but the doctors are looking after him.” Calming Peter down made him feel like he was helping in some way.
“B-but his heart- it stopped.”
Bucky could hear blood surge in his ears as his legs gave out. “What?” he managed. He looked over to see Steve leaning over the arm of the chair retching up coffee and stomach acid. Bruce got up to rub his back, grabbing a trashcan for him.
“Th-they were p-per-performing CPR,” Peter stuttered out.
Bucky fought for consciousness and literally crawled over to Steve to hold his hand. “Oh, God,” he sobbed into Steve’s knees. Steve slumped over seconds later, passing out from the stress. Bucky pulled him onto the ground laying head in his lap and stroking his hair. From that point on, Bucky’s mind was completely numb.