Steve is so confused at this reaction, but his response is immediate: "No," he says, taking Bucky by the shoulders. "I only want to do that if you want - if you think it'll help." Because he wanted to find his own identity, right? And how was he supposed to do that if Steve was around?

Because that's the thing. Steve can't just tell everyone to stop paying attention to him, or to tell everyone to forget that he's Captain America. He can't just dull his shine, because to him, that means doing a bad job. Or retiring. And he's not sure he can do that, even for Bucky.

Especially not while watching Bucky do the job he's supposed to be doing.