AN: Surprise Snow Day Update! I'll be posting another update tomorrow, this is just a little teaser.
Disclaimer: As always I own nothing.
Steve woke up slowly and then all at once when he realized he wasn't in his own bed. He sat up gingerly, feeling a twinge at his side and looked down, noticing that the bruise that had covered most of his side the day before was now almost gone. He looked around, remembering bits and pieces of the night before. Day before? Night before? He wasn't sure exactly how long he'd slept. The room was dark, but the shades had also been pulled tight over the windows. The room was tiny, too small for such a big bed, but it spoke volumes about its owner. A deep and vibrant burnt orange covered the walls and posters and postcards covered the paint. A small vanity sat opposite the bed, the counter strewn with various products. The closest doors were folded open revealing a truly impressive amount of clothes.
He sat up and was about to get out of bed when he realized that he was completely nude under the sheets. He blushed deeply, looking around for something to cover himself with, eyes finding a towel slung on a hook in the corner. He got up, grabbing the towel and securing it around his hips before opening the folded doors to the living room. Charlotte sat on the couch, facing away from him, hair pulled up into a messy bun, watching a black and white movie on the TV. The smell of what only could be chicken soup wafted from the kitchen and Steve heard rather than felt his stomach rumble. Charlotte must have heard it too, because she turned quickly and smiled when she saw him, standing there in nothing but a towel, looking properly disheveled and sleepy eyed.
"Hey Sleeping Beauty. Decided to join the land of the living?" she asked, a knowing smirk on her lips.
"Yeah, how long was I asleep?" Steve asked, running a hand through his now dry and unruly hair.
"Oh just around 9 hours," she muttered, rising from the couch and pausing the movie.
"Nine hours?" he asked incredulously.
"Yep. And boy did you need it. You were exhausted." She crossed the room, picking up a pile of clothes from the table and handing them to him. "Here are your clothes, I had time to run load downstairs so they're nice and clean." she smiled smugly and stepped up on her tiptoes to give him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Its good to see that you're feeling better. And damn, your bruise is almost gone!" she exclaimed, tracing her fingers over the small remainder of bruise. He sucked in a breath to stop himself from giggling.
"Blue Eyes, are you ticklish?" she asked, a grin spreading over her face. Steve shook his head quickly, panicking.
"No, of course not," he said, covering the spot with his free hand. Charlotte's grin only grew wider.
"Uh-huh. You get off on that for now Blue Eyes. Just wait until you're not injured." she winked and Steve chuckled nervously. "Now go change, I made chicken soup and from the sound your stomach just made you could use a bowl or two." Steve grinned and went back into the bedroom, pulling on the clean clothes before joining her in the small kitchen as she ladled out a large bowl of chicken noodle soup, chunks of carrots and potatoes floating to the top. He inhaled deeply and sighed.
"That smells good," he murmured, taking the bowls from her hands and setting them on the small table.
"Chicken noodle soup with carrots, potatoes, corn and chickpeas. And noodles of course."
"Old family recipe?" Steve asked. A shadow passed almost imperceptibly over Charlotte's face and she hesitated briefly before smiling and setting a chunk of french bread in front of them.
"In a way." she replied, sitting opposite him at the table, "So how was la-la land?" Steve's brow furrowed slightly. Sore spot. He made a mental note not to prod her too much about her family.
"Great. I don't think I've slept that long since I came out of the ice." he muttered, scooping up and spoonful of soup and blowing gently.
"Really? Well I can't say that I'm surprised. You were completely wiped when you came in earlier. You looked like you been in a war zone," she paused, cursing her choice of words, "Then again, I suppose you were." she finished. "Is everyone alright?"
"The team's fine thankfully. Once Stark figured out what was signaling the things it was easy enough to take down. Though it looks like Thor'll be here permanently, or at least for a little while."
"Really? The God of Thunder has decided to join us humans? Is he staying at the Tower?"
"For now at least. Jane Foster and Darcy Lewis, her intern, are joining us too. The Tower just got a little more crowded. Though God knows the Tower is too big to ever feel crowded." Steve replied.
"Jane? Jane Foster?" Charlotte asked.
"Yeah, she's Thor's girl? Fiance? I'm honestly not sure. Why? You know her?" Steve asked.
"I know of her. I studied a few of her theories in college. Fascinating stuff. She's kind of a big deal in the scientific community." Charlotte smiled apologetically, "Sorry, I'm a bit of a geek."
"Don't apologize," Steve smiled, "I like it." She blushed deeply and got up, taking both of their empty bowls and bringing them to the sink. Steve got up and took over washing the dishes as she sat back in her seat.
"Are you ready to talk about it now? Or is it still a rough subject?" She asked. Steve's shoulders tensed slightly and he paused in washing the dishes. He sighed, considering his options and finally decided to just tell her. Steve dried his hands and returned to the table, sitting opposite her. His eyes stayed downcast, and he could feel her concern for him like a heartbeat. Sighing heavily he looked up, her green eyes sympathetic and caring.
"It's stupid really. Considering everything I've seen, I don't know why this mattered so much. And I've seen a lot of things, felt a lot of pain, seen a lot of people, good people suffer." he looked at her, blue eyes betraying his true age in their depths.
"The bugs were relentless. The first one nearly shot us out of the quinjet. Thor was trying as hard as he could to keep it back, but nothing got past that shield. Then when the second one came out, we needed everyone we could get on the ground. Stark figured out somehow that they were running on a type of radio signal, but JARVIS couldn't get a hold on it so we needed to get inside the rock and shut them down from there. By the time we figured it out the bugs had already taken down nearly a block of homes." he paused, his fists tightening, "They were just homes. Some stupid suburb with houses all alike and close together. Families and children. The authorities got a lot of people out in the surrounding area, but that entire block was almost completely a loss. People running, screaming. Kids-" he trailed off, trying to refocus himself. Charlotte reached out, placing a calming hand on his fist. His fingers loosened, grasping hers tightly for support.
"It was hard. Almost as hard a New York. None of us were expecting it. We just thought that it'd be a quick in and out. Take down the bug, extract Thor and be done with it. If we'd known how bad it would get we would've brought Banner with us, but we didn't take it seriously. We were wrong and people died." He finished, eyes dropping. Charlotte stood, walking around the table to sit on Steve's lap. She grabbed his face softly, bringing his eyes to hers.
"You listen to me Steve. You all did what you could. I know it's hard to think of the people who died, but you have to think of all of the people who lived. The blocks of people who had enough time to evacuate because of you guys . The families and children you saved. Imagine if those things had actually gotten to the city. Millions of people could have died, and you guys stopped that. Its what you do and you came through in the end."
"I know that, really I do Charlotte. But we're supposed to be 'Earth's Mightiest Heroes'. How can we be that if we can't shut down a stupid bug?"
"You may be 'Earth's Mightiest Heroes' but that doesn't mean you're infallible. It doesn't mean that you're all perfect or that you never make mistakes. You're human." she pulled his face back to hers, keeping her green eyes on his blue, "You're human. The serum may have changed you but it didn't make you immortal or omniscient. You're only human, and you're doing a pretty damn good job with what you've got." she stroked his face softly, kissing him on both cheeks and then on his forehead tenderly. Steve sighed, finally releasing the last dregs of tension in his system before smiling softly and rising.
"I now officially owe you two meals," he said.
"Oh Boy Scout, you don't owe me anything."
"No, I do. The burgers and now the chicken soup and tucking me into bed and everything. I owe you big time for this. Why don't you come over tomorrow night? We're having a post mission movie night. Stark seems hellbent on getting me to watch the Star Wars movies before we have to go on another mission. You could come. There'll be food and you can meet the team." Charlotte opened and closed her mouth, hesitating, unsure of what she should do.
"I don't know Steveā¦" she trailed off. Steve smiled and took her hands, raising her up.
"Don't worry about anything Charlotte, they're going to love you," He stopped himself before the rest of the words came spilling out of his mouth, knowing that saying them now would terrify her and make her head for the hills. Charlotte sighed and smiled hesitantly.
"Alright, fine. I'll go," she conceded softly.
"Thank you Charlotte. It's going to be great, I promise." He tipped her lips up and kissed her gently, pulling her closer. She melted into his arms, reaching up to tangle her hands in his hair, the tone of the kiss shifting abruptly, deepening and heating quickly. Before he got in too deep Steve pulled back and looked down into her eyes, the green already clouding over with desire.
"So, I'm feeling pretty good now," he murmured suggestively. Charlotte's brow quirked.
"Oh really?" she murmured.
"Yes, I am. Good enough for a practice session," he hinted, placing a kiss at the pulse of her neck, "Or two," another kiss at her collarbone, "Or three," he finished, finding her lips again with his own. Charlotte shuddered in his arms, giggling softly.
"Well then, I certainly can't interfere with someone's education," she replied cheekily before Steve swept her up into his arms, laughing as they headed back toward the bedroom.
AN: Aww cute. Stay tuned for another update tomorrow! Review!
