No, Bucky doesn't need to say it. It's right along the lines of what Bucky hadn't said to him back at the end of the arena, and Sam's opinion of that hasn't changed since then.
"If it comes to that, then you need to know I'll be right by your side." Whatever they end up doing about it - there's no way in hell that Sam won't help.
He considers saying that just because Sam listens to him doesn't mean Bucky's required to listen to Sam, but he doesn't. He's asked once, and he'll take Bucky at his word. "One of my last missions, Riley - my wingman - he was shot down by an RPG. I was right there with him, and there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it. After that-" He hesitates, looking away.
“It took me a long time to admit it, to say my best friend died and I couldn’t handle it, but.” If Sam really thought Bucky was going to hold any of this against him, he wouldn't be telling him. But through everything else, Sam’s still a soldier. It's still hard for him to admit a weakness, particularly a fresh one. It's so damn hard to admit he couldn't cut it, and he's worried maybe he still can't.
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"If it comes to that, then you need to know I'll be right by your side." Whatever they end up doing about it - there's no way in hell that Sam won't help.
He considers saying that just because Sam listens to him doesn't mean Bucky's required to listen to Sam, but he doesn't. He's asked once, and he'll take Bucky at his word. "One of my last missions, Riley - my wingman - he was shot down by an RPG. I was right there with him, and there wasn't a damn thing I could do about it. After that-" He hesitates, looking away.
“It took me a long time to admit it, to say my best friend died and I couldn’t handle it, but.” If Sam really thought Bucky was going to hold any of this against him, he wouldn't be telling him. But through everything else, Sam’s still a soldier. It's still hard for him to admit a weakness, particularly a fresh one. It's so damn hard to admit he couldn't cut it, and he's worried maybe he still can't.