Hi! I'm glad that you guys are enjoying this story. Thank you so much for your support! Here is the next chapter where we are still kind of setting the scene for the story. Sorry if it may be a bit boring but it will start picking up soon. Let me know what you guys think. Enjoy!
"Mom! Dad!" Natasha called. "We have a visitor!" She practically dragged Steve behind her and into the living room. They sat down on the couch and Natasha continued to flip through the channels while they waited.
Not a minute later, Phil and Melinda came out from the kitchen. "Who?" They asked at the same time.
When her parents reached them, Steve stood up and faced them. "Hi."
"Steve! What a surprise. It's good to see you." Phil said as he took Steve's hand and shook it before hugging him. Steve then went and hugged Melinda.
"It's good to see you, too, sir. How are you two doing?"
"We are doing okay. When did you come in?"
"I got back this morning. I just came from Sam's house. I thought I would wait for this one to finally get out of school." Steve placed one arm around Natasha, who decided to join them, and used the other to ruffle her hair a little. This, of course, earned him a punch in the arm. "Besides, I really missed you guys and wanted to stop by and say hi."
"Well we are happy that you had time to stop by, Steve. Would you like to stay for dinner?" Melinda asked.
"Are you cooking?" Steve questioned, grimacing.
"Boy, you are lucky, I like you." She pointed a finger at him while scrunching her face up a little. "Otherwise your ass would have been out on the street right now."
"Duly noted, ma'am."
"Don't worry, Steve. I'm making dinner." Phil interjected. "Does this mean you'll stay?"
"If you guys don't mind, I'd love to stay for dinner. It's been quite a while since I last had a nice home-cooked meal." Steve smiled sadly.
"Good. Dinner will be ready in about five minutes then." Phil announced before walking into the kitchen with Melinda following behind.
"Could you and Natasha help set the table?" Melinda called from the kitchen.
Natasha groaned and looked to Steve. "Do we have to?"
"Come on, Nat." He said as he pulled her with them to gather plates and utensils.
In about ten minutes, the table was set, the food was done and set on the table, and everyone had taken a seat ready to dig in. Phil was at the head of the table with Melinda seated to his right and Nat to his left. Steve sat at the other end of the small table.
"This looks really good, sir." Steve commented as he took a look at his plate full of mashed potatoes, caramelized onions and mushrooms, bit of salad, and a large T-bone steak. He went straight for the steak and cut a piece before putting it in his mouth. "Tastes even better than it looks."
"Thank you, Steve. I'm glad you like it. I'm also glad you decided to stay for dinner. It's nice to have another man in the house. Sometimes, the girls just love to team up on me."
"Yeah, well all Dad wants to talk about is Captain America. He is so obsessed."
"I am not obsessed. I am a dedicated fan."
"Phil, you're obsessed." Melinda deadpanned.
"See. This is what I'm talking about. They're teaming up on me. Help me out here."
"I don't know, sir. Last time I came over you talked about Captain America for about an hour and then you had me watch both movies with you as you gave me detailed commentaries of what was happening."
"You're supposed to be on my side here, Steve."
"Sorry." Steve shrugged as Melinda and Natasha tried to keep from laughing. Being the man he was, Steve decided to help Phil from feeling the tiniest bit embarrassed. "So, sir, how is work going?"
"First, no more sir. Come on, Steve. We've known each other for so long. You were like the son I never had. I watched you grow from the little boy from Brooklyn into the man you are now."
"Sorry, sir, just a habit." Steve explained.
"It's okay. We'll work on it. Anyways, work is tough. Crime never stops but we're doing our best down at the station to keep it at a minimum. I'm just happy to be a part of something where I can help keep people safe. It's nothing compared to what you do, though."
"Don't think of it like that. Your job is just as important as mine. I protect the country from outside threats. You make sure that people feel safe in their own homes. The police force is important in its own way." Steve reminded Phil.
"That's true. I never really thought of it like that. But, still, being a Navy SEAL is a category of its own when it comes down to it. The training they put you through, the missions you must go on. Are those as tough as people think they are?"
"I don't mean to be rude, but I'd rather not talk about my missions."
"Oh, I'm sorry, Steve, I didn't mean to bring up any bad memories or anything."
"It's fine. Don't worry about it." Steve began staring down at his plate and picking at his food. The other three looked a bit concerned but knew better than to ask Steve more on the subject.
"So, Steve." Natasha began. "How long are you here for?"
"I'm here for a few weeks before they deploy me."
"That's great. It must be nice to have some time off. If you don't mind me asking, where are you staying?" Melinda asked.
It happened just after his high school graduation. Sarah Rogers had passed away from breast cancer. Steve had been completely devastated since it was him and his mom for so long. She was the last of his family and when she passed, it almost felt like he was alone. Fortunately for him, he had his friends and most importantly he had Phil, Melinda, and Natasha. The three of them made sure that he was taking care of himself properly after his mother passed. Steve tried to put a brave face for everyone to see, but they could always tell that he was only pretending.
Even though Steve was a now an adult, Melinda and Phil treated his as their own as they comforted him and cared for him like any parent would when their child was in a bad state. Steve felt loved and appreciated them for everything they did for him. Phil and Melinda may have acted like parents to him, but in no way did he ever feel like they were trying to take place of his deceased parents. It was like they were the second set of parents that were always by his side that were proud to watch him grow into an amazing young man.
Natasha was a different story. There are times after his mother's death that Steve felt that God had sent down an angel to watch over him and that angel had taken the form of his best friend. People always asked if he was okay or how he was doing, but Natasha didn't ever ask that. Instead, when other people asked, she was by his side and held his hand to remind him that she was there for him. When they were alone, she never pushed him to talk. They would sit and she would hold him as he cried. She would rub his back and tell him that it was okay for him to cry and hurt because it meant that he loved his mother.
On the day of Sarah's funeral, Steve was a mess. At times he looked like a little kid who didn't know what to do. Natasha never left his side and that is what helped get Steve through the day. Steve felt numb as people offered their condolences, but as soon as everyone was gone, he broke down. That night, Natasha didn't say one word to him. She let him cry in her arms. She held him and wiped the tears away and ran her fingers through his hair. She did whatever he needed without being asked until he finally cried himself to sleep that night.
Steve thanked her and her parents profusely for taking care of him in those weeks following the funeral. Natasha took care of Steve and he was so grateful for a friend like her. He would admit to himself only that there were times that he was able to imagine Natasha as something more. No one knew and know one would know.
He ended up putting the house up for sale and allowed Melinda and Phil to take care of everything when he left for Navy SEAL training. Whenever he was on leave he stayed at Sam's house. Sam Wilson was one of his closest friends and rarely seemed to mind considering that he lived alone and enjoyed the company.
All of these memories passed through Steve's mind before he reverted back to the question at hand. "I was planning on staying at Sam's place, but he has some family visiting and crashing at his place for a few days. I'll probably get a room at a hotel or something until his house opens up."
"You don't have to do that. You could stay here with us." Phil offered.
"I couldn't do that. I wouldn't want to intrude."
"That's crazy, Steve. Like I said, you are practically the son I never had."
"Phil's right, Steve. You're part of this family. We have a guest bedroom upstairs that you could take."
"Really, you guys don't have to do that."
"But we want to." Melinda reached over and placed her hand on Steve's. "There's no reason for you to spend money on a hotel room when we have a perfectly good one here waiting for you."
The look on Natasha's face is what did him in. She was smiling and her eyes her so bright with the prospect of being able to spend more time with him if he was living with them. "Fine, but I have one condition. You never treat me like a guest and allow me to pull my own weight around here."
"Of course. What did you think, we were going to let you stay here for free?" Phil joked.
It did get a laugh from Steve. "It's settled then." He turned to Natasha. "Guess you're stuck with me for the next few weeks."
She rolled her eyes at him. "Guess so."