He was always going to snap eventually

In a team like this it was inevitable

Being the only person who was allowed no leeway, no freedom, no space to just relax and be human.

There was never any room to just be Steve because he always expected to be The Captain. It was exhausting and frustrating and sooner or later something was always going to give.

As he stood there at the front of the table, eyes sweeping over the angry glares directed at him by his team he knew that he had reached his limit.

It was the injustice of the mater that bothered him most. The hypocrisy.

He could easily admit that on this one occasion he was in the wrong. It was a beautiful day, everything was calm and he decided to take this opportunity to finally explore this new city and see what had changed. He wasn't psychic; he couldn't have predicted there would be an attack whilst he was out. Taking a phone everywhere may have been an ingrained habit for everyone else in this century but it had slipped his mind today. This one occasion. Out of the hundreds of time he had remembered to take the damn thing with him.

And it just had to be this one time that the shit hit the fan.

He had been out of contact for as little as two hours and the latest irritating prick to try his hand at world domination had decided today would be a good day to send a dozen fucking killer robots into New York. Seriously, where are these nutjobs coming from and how is it they are managing to build these things without anyone noticing? SHEILD is meant to be an intelligence agency, why is it they never seem to fucking know anything?

Apparently the fight didn't go very well. Without Captain America there to call the shots and keep everyone in line the whole thing was a disaster. They were reckless and unorganized and although they eventually did win, far more damage was done to the city than necessary.

And it was all his fault.

Because he wasn't there.

What do they think he does when he's not at headquarters? Sit by the phone in his uniform waiting for the next disaster so he can spring into action?

It's ok for Tony to take a spontaneous holiday to Hawaii for a few weeks without telling anyone or for Bruce to disappear off the map for over a month because he 'needs space' but Steve goes out for a walk and suddenly he's the worst person in the world. It's more than he can deal with.

Fury is currently staring him down with his one good eye as he rants and raves about how irresponsible Steve was today; how he expects more from Captain America; how everyone expects more from Captain America. The rest of the group sits there nodding in agreement.

"Well Captain, what do you have to say for yourself?"

Captain America is polite, when things go wrong he stays humble and respectful and gives his apologies as is expected of him.

Deep breath "I'm sorry" he says turning to look at his team.

What many people don't realize however is there are two sides to Captain Steve Rogers. There is The Captain and there is Steve. After 7 long years of sitting back and letting The Captain have the reigns Steve has had enough, now it's his turn.

"I'm sorry you pathetic, useless group of lunatics couldn't pull your shit together for five fucking minutes and behave like a team without me there to hold your hands."

The silence in the room was palpable, even Tony was shocked into silence. No one could quite believe what they had just heard from their usually shy and conservative leader.

"Seriously. If you were any more fucking dependent on me I would be holding your cocks whilst you piss."

Finally the shock was beginning to wear off and shouts of protest were raised.

"Captain what the hell do you think you're doing?" Fury screamed above the rest

"I'm done with this. I can't stand this team anymore" Steve's resolve grew with every word "Consider this my resignation, next time there is an attack you will just have to figure out how to deal with it yourselves. I joined the army to do my part in the war. Well the war is long over and I've done more than my duty."

The wave of relief that washed over him was indescribable. For the first time in months he could breath. All the stress and anxiety that had been a constant feature in his mind for so long was lifting away and he felt free. The joy of it caused him to burst into an uncontrollable fit of giggles.

Turning away from the crazed mass of people at the table, still shouting out their protests in a chorus of angry voices all blending into one, he sauntered towards the door, almost skipping in his excitement.

"Where the fuck are you going?" Natasha's voice finally snapped through the haze of others.

He quickly spun back to face them again, with a light whoosh and a happy grin across his face.

"Honestly Nat, I don't care. Anywhere. Everywhere. I'm gonna travel, go somewhere warm where I can lie on a beach and not give a shit about anything. Above all else I'm going to get fucked. And believe me I mean that in absolutely every sense of the word."

He quietly chuckled at the once again silent room and the shocked faces of his now former team mates before once again turning and leaving the room.

In his defense he really had wanted to help his country when he signed up to the army. The world needed a hero and he needed a way in; so he did what was expected of him; played the good virtuous patriot that the world wanted him to be. But people forget he wasn't always The Captain, one upon a time he was just Steve, little orphan on the streets of New York. Nice guys don't survive in that sort of environment, especially not ones his size. So he got tough, he learned to take a punch even if he couldn't dish them out. If you break from something as petty as a few beatings you're never gonna make it out here kid. He learned to manipulate people. Used his supposed naivety to his advantage. Make them think you're an easy target and they won't notice they have been duped until they are halfway to the ground with a knife in their back.

He may not have much by way of savings but if he survived as a child on the streets pre-serum then sleeping rough now and then isn't going to be much of a challenge now.

It's a whole new world out there and an old almost forgotten part of Steve is finally making a reappearance. Now the fear of survival he faced as a child and the overbearing responsibility he faced as a soldier are both finally gone, he's going to have some fun.