Chapter 1
Emily didn't know why she let Anna talk her into coming to the masquerade extravaganza her brother was throwing. She didn't know anyone but Anna and she wasn't the best at making small talk. Especially not with the people Tony associated with. True, she'd gotten to see Anna again, and met Anna's new guy, who he seemed decent if not a bit rough around the edges, but that had only been a very small portion of the evening. Now Emily was debating making a hasty exit. That was, until Steve Rogers approached her.
"I think our friends have ditched us," Steve murmured as he sidled up alongside Emily.
It was easy to tell it was her now, after Bucky had pointed her out to him. Apparently Anna wanted to introduce the two, and something the blonde had said or done managed to intimidate Bucky. Now that Emily's blue eyed stare locked on his, questioning his presence there without her saying a word, Steve was starting to understand how Bucky was intimidated.
"Steve, I mean Mr. Rogers, or do you prefer Captain?" Emily stumbled over her response.
Normally she wasn't such a dunce with words, but she hadn't anticipated Steve approaching her. Forcing herself to take a calming breath, Emily reminded herself that he was just another guy. A very brave and noble guy according to her grandfather, and handsome to boot. She had to shake that thought off and replace it with the fact that he was technically old enough to be her grandfather.
"No formalities are necessary," Steve assured her, with a grin. "I wanted to thank you, for mending and returning my jacket." Happy had been the one to bring him his returned jacket with the bullet hole stitched up so well it was unnoticeable. Happy had claimed the blonde who dropped it off refused to give it to Steve in person when he offered.
"I don't like to let anything go to waste," Emily said, glancing down at her hands as she played with a ring on her right hand. Her salary as a violinist and her upbringing made it impossible for her to be wasteful.
"My wardrobe appreciates that," Steve said, trying to think of something else to say. "Are you having a good night?"
"Better than the night we met," Emily responded, glancing back up at Steve. "It was questionable there for a while but tonight finally won out."
"I'm not the biggest fan of Tony's parties either. They're a bit extravagant for my taste," Steve concurred, smiling at Emily's dry humor.
"You should have seen the parties he always threw for Anna's birthday," Emily said, gazing around the room. "This is nothing compared to them."
Silence fell between them after that, as both tried to think of something to say to keep the conversation going. Emily half expected him to leave. It wasn't as if she was providing stimulating company to begin with, but he didn't.
"Anna tells me you play violin in the New York Philharmonic. That's rather impressive," Steve commented, finally finding something to say that wasn't stupid.
"It's my dream job," Emily grinned. "I've always loved music, and now I get to make a living off it and occasionally do some traveling for it."
Music had always brought Emily the greatest joy. When she was younger she always loved listening to orchestra's, how each instrument sang together to create a symphony. How by just changing what notes were played she could shift the emotions the song conveyed. Music was the way she best expressed herself.
"What about you?" Emily asked. "When you're not saving the world, what do you like to do?"
"Saving the world keeps me pretty busy." Emily deflated at Steve's answer, hoping for a real one instead of the generic brush off most guys did when they didn't really want to get to know you.
"But I enjoy drawing, and listening to records. Their sound just has more soul," Steve added, unknowingly redeeming himself.
"It's the grooves in the records, and the static," Emily added when Steve stopped talking, rubbing the back of his neck subconsciously. "It makes big band music feel like their playing live just for you."
"You listen to records?" Steve didn't think anyone listened to records, real records not the cheap knockoffs the kids with the funny hats and glasses listen to, anymore.
"My grandfather gave me his record player and collection as a graduation present. It reminds me of my childhood and summers spent at his house."
"Funny, it reminds me of my childhood too," Steve joked with a sad smile.
"Does it help, listening to music that takes you back?" Emily couldn't imagine what it would be like to wake up 70 years in the future, everyone you know and love gone. It sounded very lonely.
"Sometimes. It makes me miss home, but it also helps me remember. No matter what I never want to forget."
"Memories make us who we are. Without them, we are constantly searching for ourselves," Emily murmured something her grandmother always told her.
"Exactly," Steve agreed, relieved someone understood his need to relive the past while surging forward in this new world. Movement over Emily's shoulder had him noticing Tony emphatically waving him down from across the room.
"It's been a pleasure, truly," Steve insisted, his attention back on Emily. "But I'm afraid I'm being beckoned by Tony," he added, nodding towards Tony.
"You better go. Tony doesn't like to be kept waiting," Emily said, turning back to Steve after looking over her shoulder.
Emily watched Steve move through the crowd, his wide shoulders easily clearing a path to Tony, and his height keeping him from blending into the crowd. He turned back to her when he reached Tony, just a quick glance. It had her turning away quickly, hoping he hadn't caught her staring. When she glanced back up, both Tony and Steve were gone.
She didn't stay long after that, catching a cab back to her apartment in Queens. Sliding the deadbolt behind her, Emily slid off her heals on her way to her room. It felt good to change into a tank and pajama shorts. Putting on a record and pouring herself a glass of water, Emily couldn't help but smile as she replayed the events of the evening in her head. She'd actually had a conversation with Steve Rogers, at a masquerade ball, which was so not cohesive with her everyday life.
Thinking back to what Steve had mentioned, about wanting to remember the past, had Emily pulling one of the many photo albums from her bookshelf. It was her grandfathers, filled with pictures and scribbled stories of his time in the war. She'd always been fascinated by it when she was a kid. Her grandmother had given it to her when he passed away. Flipping through it one last time, Emily wrapped it in spare newspaper and set it on the counter.
The next morning Emily grabbed the parcel, a to-go cup of coffee, and her violin, leaving earlier than normal for work. She had a stop to make before rehearsal.
"I've got another special delivery for you Rogers," Happy announced, interrupting the impromptu Avenger meeting taking place in Tony's living room.
"See, people already think you live here. You might as well move in," Tony commented as Steve took the package from Happy.
Carefully pealing back the newspaper wrapping, a detail that reminded him of past Christmases with his mother, Steve found it to be a photo album. Confused, and a bit curious, Steve opened it to the first page where he found a small note written in neat cursive that made him smile.
In case you ever need help remembering, this belonged to my grandfather. If you ever need someone to talk to, feel free to reach out. 917-508-1612
Emily
A/N: So this is short and sweet. A start to a possible Steve/Emily story that kind of started in my story Relentless. I'm not sure if I'll continue, if people will be interested in me continuing this. I don't feel like it's my best work, but it's what I came up with. It's a work in progress. Let me know if you would like to read more of Steve and Emily.
Rach
Xoxo
