Steve and Claire go on their first date. Hurricane Lauren ruins Tony's plans for a Hampton's vacation and puts the East Coast into a panic.

Claire ran her fingers through her neatly curled hair, before grabbing her shoes off the chair and heading out into the hallway. It was early August and the Eastern Seaboard was under a massive heat wave, sending flocks of civilians to movie theaters, cooling centers, pools and beaches. Steve enjoyed the heat, going for runs in Central Park and being outside in general.

Two weeks after Claire's birthday surprise for Steve, he finally asked her out on a date. With the heat being unbearable to do much of anything, Steve came up with the idea of seeing a movie. A local theater re-opened after sustaining significant damage during Loki's attack, which played classic films. Not fully accustomed to films of the new era, he thought a little black and white and Technicolor wouldn't hurt. When he brought the idea up to Claire, she said yes without any hesitation.

"Steve are you ready to go?" Claire shouted, as she stood at the bottom of the staircase. "The movie starts in twenty minutes!"

"Yes Tony, I saw the news. No Tony, I don't know what we're going to do," Steve said, as he poked his head out from the kitchen.

Claire snorted and made her way down the hall, stopping before him. She motioned for him to hand the phone over, which he did and she sighed.

"Stark, I have a very important date and your constant worrying about a storm that hasn't even hit the country, is really annoying me. Now, I will talk to you tomorrow," she said, before hanging up. "God, he's so paranoid!"

Steve chuckled as he put the phone back on the cradle, "He wants us to stay at his place until the storm passes,' he said, as they made their way to the front door.

Claire rolled his eyes, "The freaking thing isn't even supposed to hit us!" she exclaimed, as they stepped out onto the stoop. "Besides, you're supposed to stay away from windows during storms. Stark Tower is all glass!"

"Maybe he misses us?" Steve asked, making her laugh.

"You mean, he misses making ice jokes about you to your face?"

She locked the front door and took Steve's waiting hand, following him down to the sidewalk. The air was thick with humidity and the sweat automatically began to drip down her back. Claire would've been disgusted with herself for sweating on a first date, after making sure she looked nice. But when she wrapped her arm around Steve's waist, she felt the dampness on the back of his shirt and didn't feel as bad.

"I don't know how you're wearing jeans, Steve. The thought of heavy denim is giving me heat stroke," she muttered, as they crossed the street.

….

The Philadelphia Story became Claire's new favorite movie, and she made sure everyone knew it as she and Steve walked back home.

"I didn't expect to enjoy that movie as much as I did!" Claire admitted, as they made their way into the house. "It was nice to see something that was loaded with special effects."

She slipped her shoes off by the door and dropped the keys on the table, moving towards the thermostat. Steve shut the door and locked it, before making his way over to her.

"So I take it you had fun?" he asked, as she turned around to face him.

Claire smiled and wrapped her arms around him, "I did have fun."

Steve leaned down to kiss her, holding her tightly against him as he did so. After a few minutes and a desperate need of air, they parted.

"Well, I'm gonna get ready for bed. It's getting late," she said softly.

Steve nodded, "Me too," he said. "Breakfast tomorrow?" he asked, as she made her way up the stairs.

Claire stopped and looked down at him, "Yeah. I have no plans for tomorrow," she said, before smiling. "Good night, Steve."

"Night, Claire."

By Friday, Hurricane Lauren went from a category one to a category 4, heading up the East Coast. Manhattan went into a panic, as mandatory evacuation took place in the lower parts of the city. All week long, Tony called and complained about having to cancel the annual trip to the Hampton's because of the storm. But it didn't stop him from begging Claire to bring herself and Steve to his place.

"I don't understand what he can't grasp!" Claire said, as she unloaded the grocery bags. "We are much more safer here, than at his place!"

The television in the living room was permanently stuck on the weather channel, and Steve was glued to it. This was his first hurricane in seventy years, and the advanced technology used to track them was mind-blowing to him.

"What if it gets really bad?" he shouted from the kitchen.

Claire snorted, "Steve, it'll either rain or turn at the last minute and move further East," she said, walking into the living room.

She glanced at the screen and rolled her eyes, as the stationed meteorologists reported from cities in the storms path. Grabbing the remote from the arm of the sofa, Claire turned the set off and dropped in onto the table.

"I was watching that!" Steve exclaimed.

Claire sighed, "They've been repeating the same thing over and over again for the last hour, Steve."

He pouted, "But it's interesting!"

"Could you please help me find candles and flashlights?" she asked. "Since I said no to Tony, he made me promise that we would be prepared for when the power went out," she said, rolling her eyes.

Steve sighed and pulled himself off the sofa, "Didn't we leave them in your room the last time the power went out?" he asked, as he moved past her.

Claire followed him, "I took them out when I was cleaning and now I can't find them," she said. "I'll look upstairs again if you check the kitchen."

An hour later, twelve candles and three flashlights were placed throughout the house for easy access. Claire settled into the kitchen to make dinner, while Steve went back to watch the news. She had to bribe him away from the television to have dinner at the table, much to her annoyance.

"I'm sorry, I just think it's cool!" he insisted, as they ate.

She sighed, "When is this thing supposed to hit anyway? Not that I'm expecting it to hit," she mumbled.

"You're very grumpy today," Steve stated, as she pushed the food around on her plate.

She scoffed, "You try buying food in a packed market with morons running around like headless chickens! Stocking up on milk and bread as if it's the end of the world!"

Steve chuckled and she continued, "I don't understand why one would need six gallons of milk! If the power goes out, it'll go bad!" she exclaimed.

"How about we call it an early night? No more weather television or anything about this storm?" he asked.

Claire nodded, "Are you sure? You seem pretty comfortable on the couch," she said, as he stood up to clear the table.

"I'm sure, Claire. I've been up since five, when Tony called the first time about this entire thing."

Whack. Whack. Whack.

Claire slowly opened her eyes and stared at the ceiling.

Whack. Whack. Whack.

The sound of water hitting the windowpanes and a huge gust of wind could be heard from outside. Claire groaned and rolled over, glancing at the clock on her nightstand. It was three-thirty and it was raining. Pushing the blankets off and moved to the window, peeking out between the curtains. She could see the rain falling down in a slant, in the lighting from the street lamps. The tree that stood between her townhouse and the next creaked and groaned in the heavy wind.

The whack came from the tree branches, smacking against the windows near her bed.

"Really?" she asked herself, moving away from the window.

Claire went facedown on the bed, and tried to go back to sleep. But five minutes passed and she was still awake, which made her angry. Rolling off the bed, Claire made her way out of her bedroom and down the hall to Steve's room. The door was slightly open, as entered. Making her way across the room, Claire crawled up the bed and settled next to him.

"Hmm wha?" Steve mumbled, as he stirred in his sleep.

Claire pulled the blankets up and slipped under them, "Goddamn storm is here and I can't sleep," she mumbled, settling down next to him.

Steve peered at her through bleary eyes and from the glow of the lights outside, "It is?" he asked.

"Yeah and my damn tree is hitting the windows," she groaned, settling her head against his chest.

He nodded, "Cool," he yawned, as he pulled the blankets higher up over them. "Night," he mumbled, before falling back to sleep.

Claire snuggled closer to him before closing her eyes, falling quickly into a peaceful slumber.