"Absolutely. You know Natasha, life really just isn't the same without you. When the one on the island left . . . It was awful. I really didn't have anyone there, not from home. Until I realized what I shared with Loki. Even then, it was . . . it was really lonely."

Steve closed his eyes with a soft smile, still holding Natasha's hand for ransom, "I did have friends there, but it's just not the same, you know? Having someone you trust, that you've fought with. That's precious, and I really felt the lack." There had been a handful of people that were special to him on the island, but it wasn't the same as having people like Natasha and Tony at his side. And the people that had been there he did know were . . . complicated. Really complicated.