A/N: Hey! Thanks for checking out my story! :D So, this story takes place in present time. Steve was never frozen though, and Peggy is the same age that she was in The First Avenger.

"Steve. Hey, Steve. Keep those eyes on me, alright?" Peggy demanded, cupping the young boy's cheek in her hand as she pulled him into her lap and cradled his head.

A horrible thing had happened to the super soldier, while on a mission to rescue passengers on a sinking ship. It had been a setup. A trap. It had happened so fast that even he hadn't known what hit him. Peggy knew it had been a plot by HYDRA, but she hadn't seen it coming until it was too late. Receiving a distress call from Steve, she raced to his rescue, finding him floating in the water near the wrecked ship, unconscious and not breathing. Peggy had spotted him; had dived into the water, dragged him to shore, and had resuscitated him.

Now, she sat on the ground, holding him close and trying her best to keep him from becoming hypothermic as she waited for the medical team to arrive.

With her stomach flip-flopping, she had realized with a sick feeling that her boyfriend's head was bleeding, and at an alarmingly fast rate. Steve had regained consciousness seconds ago, which had surprised her since he was so injured. Taking his slightly-better level of consciousness as a good thing, she tried to get him to keep his eyes trained on her.

"Steve." She tried.

His head rolled left and right in her grasp. Then his fogged blue eyes focused on her. "….Peggy…? Where 'm I…?" He slurred.

"Shh….save your energy, Steve. You were attacked."

He grunted in response, hearing her but not registering what the words meant. His eyelids slipped closed.

Peggy panicked. "Captain!" She shook his head, gaining no response. He went limp against her, all signs of life not visible, aside from the sound of his gasping breaths. "Steve," She tried, tears in her eyes.

The boy jerked awake, his face paling as his body tensed. Suddenly, he turned onto his side, choking up blood. He continued to cough and spit up red liquid for several minutes before he was done. He collapsed into Peggy's arms, going limp but still remaining conscious.

"Steve, are you alright?" Peggy asked him, already knowing the answer. She just had to get him talking, had to keep him awake, or he may never wake up again.

"…'m so t'red…." He mumbled, hardly conscious. He definitely wasn't aware of what he was saying, and he'd surely never remember it.

"I know. Just a little longer. Please," She begged him, stroking his cheekbone with her thumb.

"…'eggy…." Steve choked out. " 'eggy, I love you," He sighed, his breathing labored.

She held him closer, and tighter. "I love you too, Steve. Just hang on, alright? You're going to be okay," She noticed with encroaching fear that he was much colder, and that he was shivering violently.

"I…..I love…..l-love….." Before Steve could finish, his eyes rolled up into his skull, and his body went limp.

"Steve!" Peggy cried, not even hearing the sirens behind her. She didn't even realize that the paramedics had arrived until a woman with brunette hair and greenish-blue eyes dropped beside her, placing an oxygen mask over her boyfriend's mouth and nose.

"Ma'am. We need to put Captain Rogers on the stretcher so that he can be transported to the hospital," The woman spoke, her voice full of concern.

Peggy nodded, swallowing dryly, and leaned over Steve, giving him a kiss on the forehead before allowing the medics to take him away.