Christmas 1935 – Amelia:
Steve had always been oblivious to woman's feelings, he was too busy with his life to even notice anyone. Besides, why should he? Steve was a teen and there was this girl, one who he had been friends with ever since he was little. Well, not exactly friends. She would talk to him, she was nice to him and he had fun with her, but when the bullies came, she changed sides. He didn't like that, she was false and he hated it. Yet, he couldn't help but like her too. As a friend, of course.
It was Christmas again, his father and mother had no money, not even to buy food, so he was out, as always, working, selling candy, matches, journal, whatever thing he could get his hands on. It was cold, too cold and the ragged clothes he wore didn't help with protecting him from the low temperatures. Since it was Christmas eve, there was no one on the streets and he had sold almost nothing. It was night and he insisted on roaming the streets, stopping anyone he could, but no one bought anything.
It was eight p.m when he finally stopped. He looked at the window of a shop and saw those delicious cakes and foods and wished he could buy them. He couldn't. Then she came. Amelia, she called herself, the one who was always with the bullies. She stood by his side and watched the food. She too was poor, she too wished she could buy those things. But she couldn't.
"Hey, Steve." She greeted him.
"Hi, Amelia." He smiled at her.
"So…" She trailed off, probably thinking of something to say.
"Merry Christmas." He said.
"The same to you and your family." She nodded and looked up, there was something in her eyes that shone at that moment. Happiness, maybe, he couldn't tell at the moment. He looked up too and saw what made her happy, the mistletoe.
"I- Amelia…" He said taking a step back. He couldn't kiss her, not her. He didn't like her enough and he didn't want to break her heart later on. It would only make things worse. "I can't Amelia."
And then came the questions, questions he didn't want to answer. Questions he didn't know how to answer. "Is it me?"
"No, it's not, I promise you. It's me, Amelia. I… I don't like you enough to do that." He said staring in her eyes though he felt like looking down, avoiding her gaze, "I mean, I like you as a friend, I care about you. And, because I don't want to break your heart, I'm not kissing you."
"You don't have to love me." She stated, she was almost begging. But Steve denied her request, he wasn't that kind of man. "Well, I never liked you anyway." She turned around and left.
Steve…. Steve was so oblivious to that, he was so oblivious to girls lies. He didn't know that she liked him and that telling him the opposite would do nothing, but make her feel better. The boy shrugged, not feeling bad. He hadn't made her suffer, had he? Steve headed back home, where, as always, his father yelled at him for not bringing enough money and his mother cried while watching the scene.
The next day, his father died and Amelia never spoke to him again.
Christmas 1943 – Howard's secretary:
It was Christmas again in the camp, his third year overseas – not that he minded. He had nothing to do back in the U.S. The third one since he had taken the serum. Since his transformation, Howard's secretary seemed to be all over him. But he didn't want her, he didn't want anyone, he hadn't found the right woman yet. He was interested in Peggy, yes, but he wasn't sure of his feelings towards her. He stood outside the H.Q. He wasn't sure of what he was doing out there, freezing. Maybe, he was just watching the snowflakes that fell lightly from the sky, maybe he was just trying to clear his mind, he didn't know.
There was no one in the streets and it was almost dusk, the sun was setting. He watched the sky change its color, light blue, orange and finally dark blue. He liked to capture those moments, those little moments that he liked to make eternal in his sketchbook. He rubbed his hands together hoping that the simple gesture would help warm him up. It didn't. The sound of light steps on the snow coming from behind him, made him turn around. He saw her, that blonde hair walking towards him.
"Are you cold?" Her high pitched voice sounded.
"Yes, a little, why?" He asked, a bit oblivious of her intentions.
"Why don't you let he warm you up, then?" She asked pushing him against a wall. Steve was about to say something, but she cut him, "Oh, look! A mistletoe."
It was happening all over again, he didn't know what to do. Steve didn't want her, that woman he didn't even know the name. She was trying to throw herself at him. At least Amelia had been a bit more subtle, not like her, who was all over him without his consent. "Stop it." He said and she did as she had been told.
"What?" She was confused.
"I don't even know your name." He told her.
"I'm Jessica." she told him and kept trying to kiss him.
"Stop it." He said again, "You don't get it, do you? I didn't even know your name 'til like five seconds ago. I'm not kissing you."
"Aw… Come on, Cap." She rubbed herself against him.
"No, Jessica. I don't know you and I'm not kissing you. Give up."
The woman looked at him the same way Amelia did and he was sure that she would blurt the same words, but, instead, she fixed her clothes and walked away. She didn't look over her shoulder. Not even once. And she pretended that it never happened. She continued talking to Steve the same way she always had, treating him casually, but, he could notice, a tad more coldly.
Christmas 1944 – Peggy:
That was one of the worst mistakes he had ever made his entire life. Peggy, the love of his life and he had let that chance of being with her slip away just because he thought that he wasn't sure of his feelings yet. It was Christmas party in the H.Q and everyone was there. They were all drinking and having fun, there, those parties were the only chances they had to have fun, to forget about the war and all the problems around them. Even Bucky was there, everyone was there.
Steve was looking out the window, Christmas, it was always a sentimental time for him, especially because of his father's death. He liked the snowflakes that hit the glass, the moon that shone full in the sky, it was all so perfect. He couldn't even describe it. Then she came to stand beside him. For a moment, both of them simply stared out of the window and into the night, as if they were looking for answers in the stars.
Then the laughter got louder and he turned around to see every single one of the drunken soldiers were pointng at them and laughing. He looked up and there it was, that damned plant. The one that seemed to be always following him around during Christmas. Steve sighed and ran a hand through his hair. She looked at him.
Both of them wanted it. Steve wanted to kiss those full red lips of hers, he wanted to be with her and he was so sure of his feelings. Her eyes told him the same, but he convinced himself otherwise. He convinced himself that he needed more time to think about it, so he simply walked away. The laughter stopped and Peggy left the party earlier. So did Steve.
And he regretted that night. He regretted not kissing her, not asking her to dance with him, not grabbing her hand when she wanted to leave and ask her to stay. He regretted all the things he wanted to do about it, but he didn't because he "wasn't sure". If only he could go back in time and fix his mistakes. It would all be so different.
23rd of December, 2014 – A bunch of random girls (A.K.A the time he was saved by Nat):
It was the 23rd of December and it was only then that Steve and Natasha went out to buy gifts to their friends. It was the first time in a long while that she did so and, even though she had postponed the day in which she would go out shopping, Steve finally managed to drag her out of her apartment with him and they went to the mall.
"I still can't believe that you dragged me to do this." She groaned for the hundredth time that night.
"Come on, Nat, it's not that bad." He replied with a smile. "And we're almost done."
She sighed in annoyance as they left the store. Steve was carrying a bunch of bags in both of his hands and, walking like they were, side by side, they seemed like a couple. Too much for her taste. They finished shopping and Natasha was feeling cold.
"Steve, stay here while I buy a coffee." She told him, "Do you want one too?"
"Yup." He nodded, "A caramel Mocha, please."
"Okay." She walked towards the coffee shop and stood in line.
Since it was an especially cold day, the line was huge. Personally, she would rather have Vodka, the alcohol did a better job in warming up a person's body than any other drink, yet, Steve didn't drink and she didn't want to force him to do something he didn't want to do. Her back was turned to the glass doors and windows of the coffee shop, so she wasn't even aware of what was happening to Steve out there.
~X~
Yes, he was a super soldier, but it didn't mean that he was invulnerable to low temperatures. Personally, he thought that it had been pretty wicked of Natasha to leave him out in the cold, perhaps, it was a way of getting revenge on him for dragging her out of her house to do something she didn't want to do. Steve retreated a few steps and rested his back against one of the walls placing the bags on the ground. Steve rubbed his gloved hands together in an effort to warm up.
Steve had been admiring Natasha for a while, she was a strong woman, a beautiful woman, she was deadly and funny, she was hot and cold at the same time if that was even possible, but she was perfect and he wanted her. Still, she would never notice him. Thinking of it, she could have any guy she wanted, why would she want him? He had nothing special…
Then his musings were interrupted by a girl who seemed to come out of nowhere, she had black hair and green eyes. She approached him and tried to kiss him. She was almost successful, but he managed to push her away in time.
"What is the meaning of this?!" He gasped. That was such an unladylike thing to do, push yourself onto a man like that.
"Why did you push me away?" She asked. The woman seemed genuinely confused.
"Um… Because you tried to forcefully kiss me." He stated. It was the most obvious thing… wasn't it? "Why did you do that?"
She raised a brow and opened her mouth to say something, but another woman, a blonde one, pushed her away, "Shut up, Tara." the blonde who seemed to have appeared from nowhere said, "It's obvious that he doesn't want to kiss you."
"I bet he doesn't want to kiss you either, Maddison." Tara said crossing her arms on her chest.
"Ladies, ther—" He began to say, but Maddison tried to kiss him. He rejected the woman just as he had done with the other one. "What is wrong with you?"
He was trying his best not to loose his composure, he couldn't, they were ladies, he had to be polite. Steve glanced at the coffee shop desperately looking for a sign that Natasha already had their drinks and was coming back, but she was still standing in line, tapping her foot impatiently. He found himself lost in her body, in her curves, in her curls and thinking of her smile and her eyes. He snapped back to reality, he had no time for distractions, he would have to get rid of those women by himself.
Steve was so sure that he had drifted for only a moment, but, apparently, it had been much more than that since two more woman had appeared. They all looked the same. The same clothing style, the same hair style… They were all fighting over him, discussing who would kiss him. He was cornered against the wall. He didn't want to kiss any of them, he would never want to kiss any of them, he wanted Natasha and only her. She was the only woman in his mind.
One of them, with dyed red hair placed one of her hands on his chest and started saying things he couldn't actually understand, he didn't want to understand those things. He didn't want words that were supposed to be seductive if they weren't coming from Natasha. She tried to kiss him, just like all the other ones and he pushed her away.
"Stop it!" He exclaimed and they all turned to face him, he would have to lie, "I have a girlfriend, so none of you are going to kiss me."
"Yes, he does." Natasha seemed to have appeared out of nowhere and he thanked her mentally for that. "And the girl happens to be me. So you can all go away."
"Really?" Tara asked, not believing the story, "Prove it. Kiss him."
"Why should I?" Natasha asked, "Unlike you, I can kiss him whenever I feel like doing so and I ave nothing to prove to you."
The women were all speechless. "Now, Steve, why don't we go back home?" Natasha handed him the coffee.
"Right, let's go, Nat." He replied and picked up all the bags from the floor. Natasha took his arm and walked all the way towards the car with him like that.
Christmas Eve 2014 – Sharon:
Steve along with all of the other Avengers (and the newest member, Sam Wilson) were going to celebrate Christmas in Stark's mansion in Washington and Steve was waiting for Sam to come and pick him up. Since it was too cold for him to use his bike, he asked for a ride. The Falcon had accepted, of course. He was waiting in front of his building when Sharon came. She wore jeans and red sweater.
"Hi, Steve. Merry Christmas." She greeted with a smile.
"I wish you the same, Sharon." He replied, smiling back.
There was a moment of silence between them when they simply looked out, waiting for their rides. "So, you're spending your Christmas at Stark's, right?"
"Yeah." He nodded and laughed, "How did you know that?"
"I have my sources."
Their laughter filled the cold air of the night before silence reigned again. Steve liked Sharon too. In fact, he was in doubt between her and Natasha. Something told him that he should stick with Natasha, though. He looked up and there it was again, the damned Mistletoe. Sharon looked up too and saw the same thing as him.
She smiled shyly and blushed. Unlike all the other girls, she didn't do anything, but expected him to make the first move. Steve got closer to her and leaned in, he saw her eyes close before doing the same. Their lips were almost touching, he could feel her hot breathing in his lips, his heart beat faster. Then the sound of a horn broke the silence.
"Steve!" Sam shouted. And he looked away.
"Sorry, Sharon, we'll do that another time." He apologized and ran to the car. He got in and waved before leaving.
"Hey, Cap." Sam said with a teasing smile, "I see you were having fun with Sharon back there."
"It—It's not what it looks like!" Steve was nervous.
"Whatever you say, Steve." Sam said and then muttered something that sounded like 'Natasha won't like this'
But the man dismissed that idea, why would Natasha be jealous of him?
Christmas eve/ Christmas day 2014 - Natasha:
They got to the penthouse, Natasha sat in front of the fireplace playing poker with Clint, Tony and Bucky. Sam hurried to join them while Steve talked to Bruce, Thor and Jane. In the end, he ended up only talking to Thor, who was devouring a box of Poptarts since Bruce and Jane started talking about science. Pepper joined them after a few minutes and they all had dinner.
Then Natasha had an idea to spice up the Poke game, the loser had to take a shot of Vodka. Since all the three players were very good at the game, the shots were taken alternately and, when Midnight came, Clint was completely drunk, but Natasha and Bucky were still completely sober. Well, it wasn't like they could get drunk anyway.
It was time for the gifts, Tony bought them all gifts. When they finished unwrapping everything, he put on music.
"There's music from all times here, starting from the 2000s and ending up in waltz or something."
It started to play and everyone listened to the music and continued chatting and playing games. Tony could have all the flaws in the world, but he had an excellent music taste, that, no one could deny. He got all the best songs sorted out and, when the 60s songs started playing no one could stand still. The twist was a really catchy move. Natasha and taught Steve how to dance to it.
It was the end of the night and everyone had fallen asleep or was too drunk. Steve and Natasha were the only ones standing. Then came the slow music. Steve walked towards her, who was sitting in the couch sorting out the cards and playing with them by herself.
"Hey, Nat." He called her, "Would you give me this dance?"
"It would be an honor, Steve." She smiled at him and took his hand.
He pulled her closer by the waist and swayed with her to the slow rhythm of the music. She was so close to him. He could feel her head resting against his chest, he could smell the sweet scent of her hair and when he looked down, she was staring at him. They had stopped. He looked into her beautiful green eyes and lost himself in them.
He wouldn't miss that moment. He couldn't miss that moment, he wanted to kiss her, he wanted to make her his and he would. He knew that she wouldn't say no because what he saw in her eyes, in those green eyes that were as deep as the ocean was love.
Then he kissed her. And she kissed him back, wrapping her arms around his neck. He tasted that sweet mouth of hers, the one which he had been dying to taste. And he felt her lips against his for the second time and he swore it felt better than the first one. And none of them even noticed that they were actually standing under the mistletoe.