Rosalie dried her eyes before she made her appearance downstairs known again. Laura had put the kids to bed and was sat in the living room, a glass of water in one hand and her laptop balanced on her knee. As soon as she saw Rosalie enter, dressed in jeans and a shirt, she shut the lid to the laptop and placed it on the coffee table.

"Hey," Laura said and Rosalie pulled her hands out of her pockets, holding them up as she looked to the other woman.

"Sorry," she said. "I didn't want to disturb you if you're busy."

Laura scoffed and moved to her feet, placing her glass of water on the table as she motioned to the sofa. "I was looking at colours for the nursery," she said. "Sit down. Do you want a drink? I have some wine in the fridge that I can't touch, but you're more than welcome to a glass."

Rosalie shrugged and moved to perch on the sofa, feeling slightly out of place. "I'd love a glass," she informed her and Laura smiled widely, nodding her head as she poured a glass. "Sorry again for interrupting. I'll be gone first thing tomorrow."

"It is no bother at all," Laura said, sitting back down and handing Rosalie the glass. "Besides, I get the feeling that things aren't going particularly great for you right now."

Rosalie chuckled and took a sip of the glass. "What gave you that impression?" she dared to wonder from Laura.

"Clint told me that he walked past earlier and heard you two arguing outside," she admitted. "He said that he didn't think that Steve argued with anyone except Tony, but he didn't stand around for too long. He's nosy, but he does have some self-control sometimes."

"It's fine," Rosalie said with a shrug. "I mean, Steve doesn't really do arguments. Don't get me wrong, there are times when I would like to do nothing more than argue with him, but he…he's too…it's going to sound ridiculous, but nice, to argue with anyone usually."

"You know," Laura said to her, "Clint and I had some arguments to begin with. We used to argue about everything. Some of it was stupid, but some of it was pretty important."

"You said that it doesn't get easier," Rosalie said, referring to their previous conversation.

"It doesn't in a way," she responded. "It never gets easier seeing Clint walk out that door and know that he is going to risk his life. I never get over that feeling."

"But he will give it up eventually, won't he?" Rosalie wondered from her. "What happens then? Do you have to stay hidden? Do you still have to be a secret?"

Laura chewed down on her lip for a second then, uncertain of what to say in response to that. Rosalie did her best not to look too inquisitive at the woman. It was almost as though she had the answers, but Rosalie knew each relationship was different. There were none the same.

"You're scared," Laura observed as she looked Rosalie in the eye and saw the clear panic there. She understood what was going on.

Rosalie nodded. "I'm scared," she admitted back to her. "I'm angry…so angry…but if he doesn't come back then what do I do? But then he does come back and I know that we're not going to agree. We're not going to agree on anything."

"It is healthy for you not to agree on everything," Laura said.

Rosalie shook her head. "But not this," she said to her. "He doesn't even know if he wants kids, but if he does then he wants us to live like you. He wants me to be hidden because he is scared that someone could use us against him."

"And you don't want that?"

Rosalie shook her head. "No," she said without hesitation. "I once told Steve that his job was far more important than mine. I know that it is. He saves lives. But I am not willing to give my job up and go into hiding. I don't want that life for me or for my children."

"But Steve won't give up his job?" Laura checked.

Rosalie chuckled darkly and took another drink of wine, tossing her head back as she looked to the ceiling. "No," she answered honestly. "I don't think he ever will. He thinks that he owes the world and I don't see that changing."

"These are all things that you can discuss at a later date," Laura promised her. "You need to settle into married life first before you make any rash decisions. You have time before you need to start thinking of children."

Placing the glass down on the coffee table, Rosalie clasped her hands onto her thighs and closed her eyes for a second. "But who is to say that things will be different in a year's time? Or two year's time? Nothing is going to change. I honestly don't think anything will change. That scares me."

"Relationships are…well…they're about compromise," Laura said. "I agreed to live here on the farm because I like it. I love my life here and I love my children. At the time, I was nervous. I was pregnant and living here on my own while Clint was out saving the world. There were days when I questioned why I had agreed to this life, but then he came home…the kids were born…and everything just felt right. Sometimes you don't know about something until you try it."

"I know," Rosalie shrugged. "I just don't know what this means for the future."

"Just focus on him coming home," Laura said, holding Rosalie's arm for a second. "That's all that we can do for now."

…

Standing in the airport, Rosalie looked to the news and let out a deep breath. She had her suitcase to the side of her, a satchel on her shoulder as she watched the news play out on a big screen TV. There had been destruction in Seoul thanks to Ultron, who had seemed to grow stronger. She had watched Steve on the screen, her stomach churning as she dug into her satchel and grabbed hold of her cell. She looked down to the screen and moved off into the corner as the tannoy announced a flight to Washington Dulles Airport.

Placing the cell to her ear, she looked out over the runway as it rang for a few seconds. She held the handle of her suitcase with her free hand before he picked up, his voice sounding worried as he spoke in a rushed tone.

"Rosalie, what is it? Is something wrong?" he worried from her and Rosalie almost felt her chest ache at hearing him speak.

"No," she answered, trying not to let her voice break. "I just saw the news and what happened in Seoul."

"I should have known that we'd make the news," he told her.

"Are you okay?" she wondered from him.

"Fine," Steve promised her. "I'm on a ship to Sokovia to find Ultron with the others. He captured Natasha."

"He won't hurt her, will he?"

"I don't know," Steve answered honestly. "We're going to get her out though. We're going to find her and help her. A lot has gone on, Rose…loads more than I could imagine. Stark and Banner have uploaded JARVIS into a body…they think that it can defeat Ultron. There is something called an Infinity Stone in him."

"Am I supposed to understand what you have just said?" Rosalie asked, folding an arm around her waist as she rested her head against the glass, her gaze still set on the runway as she watched a plane land in the distance.

Steve chuckled then. "No," he said. "Honestly, Rose, I have no idea what is going on. All I know is that Ultron has gone to Sokovia and is using some kind of vibranium anti-gravity machine to lift the city into the sky, drop it and create a meteor strike."

"Shit," Rosalie whispered.

"Can say that again," Steve responded.

"I would, but I know how you are with swearing," she said and she hoped that he managed a small smile at hearing her. She took a deep breath before speaking again, hoping that they didn't have an argument. "I called because I didn't want to leave things how they had been, Steve."

She heard him sigh then and shuffle on the other end of the line, no doubt trying to go somewhere slightly quieter and away from the rumble of the engine.

"I thought that you wanted to talk about it when I came home?" he asked from her.

"I do," she promised him. "I think there is a lot we need to talk about, but while you're gone and away from me, I don't want to think about what we need to talk about. I just want to think about you coming home and back to me, okay? That is all I want right now…everything else…we'll work through it."

"Will we?" he wondered from her. "Rose, I-"

"-Don't," Rosalie interrupted him. "Steve, we don't need to talk about it now. I just need you to know that I love you. I will always love you and I need you to come home."

Steve went silent for another second, but he didn't bring the subject up again Instead he coughed and spoke in a softer tone. "I know," he said to her. "I'll come home, Rose."

"Okay," she said, letting out a shaky breath. "We'll be okay, won't we, Steve?"

She wondered what he was doing then. What was he thinking? What face was he pulling? She could always tell by how he looked at her. He wore his heart on his sleeve. He always had done as far as Rosalie could tell.

"Yeah," Steve said to her, but it didn't sound committed. It didn't sound true. Rosalie almost felt herself burst into tears. "I love you, Rose."

"I love you too," she said and pulled the cell from her ear, looking down onto it before hanging up the call, wondering what exactly the future held for her and Steve.

…

Rosalie didn't know how long had passed since she had arrived at the new Avengers facility. She had sat and watched the news unfold, events in Sokovia slowly ruining her as she longed for them to focus solely on Steve. Her parents had called her, her mother full of worry and her father asking if she needed them. She had assured them that she was fine, but that was a lie. She wasn't fine. She had sat in the boardroom of the new building, agents of S.H.I.E.L.D rushing around and ignoring her. She had pulled her mac from her body, draping it over the back of the chair before letting her satchel join it.

She had sat down in the leather seat, her arms folded on the table and her head resting in the crook of one of them. She didn't know if she had dozed off, but it wasn't long before someone came and told her what was going on. The man was dressed in a smart dark suit, his blond hair neatly coiffed on top of his head.

"They're on the way back," he told her. "All of them…except for Doctor Banner."

"What happened to Banner?" Rosalie wondered out of intrigue.

"He turned green," was the only explanation he offered her.

She didn't push him. Instead he placed down a cup of tea at the end of the table and Rosalie managed an appreciative nod. She didn't touch the tea. Instead she went back to resting her head in her arm, feeling a headache coming on. She didn't know how long had passed when she felt a hand on her shoulder. She startled before turning to look up, the sight of Steve stood there enough to make her move with haste, reaching up to throw her arms around his neck. Steve moved his arms around her waist, holding her tenderly as he felt her shake slightly.

"How long have you been here?" he wondered from her.

"I don't know," she mumbled back, her voice nothing but a gurgle. "I was watching the news but it went dead…I came here and demanded for them to tell me where you were. Steve…"

"Sh," Steve tried to sooth her, knowing full well that everything that had happened would be no good for her mental state. "I'm safe and back home. And you're safe, Rose."

"Yeah," she weakly agreed with him, moving back slightly and taking his cheeks into her palm, making sure that he wasn't hurt.

He was still wearing his Captain America uniform, but it was ripped in several places and the star in the middle was falling from his chest. His hair had dirt in it and his face had a few smudges marring his perfect complexion. Apart from that he seemed unharmed.

"We stopped him," Steve told her, his own hands holding her waist loosely. "Ultron's gone."

"They told me," Rosalie nodded, sniffing and then wiping her eyes with the back of her hands. "They said that you just made it…just…Steve…"

"Hey," Steve tried to calm her again as he saw her take deep breaths and her chest heaved. She closed her eyes and turned her head away from him, almost too ashamed to let him see her like this. "Rose, darling, I'm fine."

"It's…Steve…do you know hard it is?" she asked from him. "To see you continuously go out there and risk your life. It's draining me. Do you not understand? I love you so much but I don't know if I can keep doing this."

"I'm not asking you to do anything, Rose. As long as you're safe here then that is all that matters. I can handle myself." Steve's promises were wiped away with continuous shakes of her head as she moved away from his grip, instantly feeling the loss warmth he had given her.

"I sat with you whilst you were in hospital, Steve," Rosalie said, moving her finger to point to him. "You were unconscious and I didn't know if you were going to make it. I almost lost you then…and now…this Ultron creature…I don't know how much more I can take, but more importantly I don't know how much more you can take."

"What do you suggest I do?" Steve demanded from her. "I cannot sit back and watch people suffer."

"I know that," Rosalie mumbled back and Steve shrugged, suddenly not feeling tired anymore as he looked to her and she sniffed again. "I know that's not you."

"Then what?" Steve wondered, his arms flapping by his side. "You know who I am, Rose. I cannot change. I cannot stop when I see suffering."

"It's driving me mad!" Rosalie finally snapped, unable to lower her voice as she yelled at him. "Sitting around and not knowing when…or if…you will come back is killing me. I love you too much and I want you to be selfish, Goddamn it. I want you to be safe!"

"That's not who I am," Steve yelled back at her and she nodded her head, accepting defeat as she sunk to rest the back of her thighs against the table, folding her arms and tilting her head to look to the ceiling.

"And I know that."

Steve kept silent, watching as she sucked in a breath and closed her eyes. He remained stood where he was, moving to fold his arms over his chest as he shrugged his shoulders, looking to the ring sat on Rosalie's finger.

"Then what do you want?" Steve wondered and there was a fragility to his voice as Rosalie turned to look at him and she shook her head, her hands running nervously through her hair.

Looking to him, she knew the words that wanted to come from her mouth, but she was having a harder time saying them then she could have imagined. He looked broken. He looked as broken as she felt. Shaking her head, she kept her distance from him as the ring on her finger continued to weigh her down, almost as if it knew what decision it should make for her.

"I don't know."

With a slam of his fist against the table, Steve quickly left the room, ignoring Rosalie as she tried to call him back. Shaking her head, she placed a hand over her mouth as the tears began to fall freely.

She didn't know what to do. She didn't know if she should sit and wait for him to come back or if this was it. Was this the end? Did he not understand? Was she being selfish? She moved to grab her coat, shrugging into it before taking hold of her bag. She slung it onto her shoulder before moving off, opening the door and walking down the corridor, wondering how the hell she got out of that building. She continued walking down the corridor before she saw him. He was stood right at the end of the corridor, one arm resting against the wall, his forehead pressed against it.

He turned as soon as he heard he was not alone. Seeing Rosalie, Steve sighed. "Rose," he spoke, this time seeming to be a little more tender. "Where are you going?"

"I want to go home," Rosalie answered him honestly.

"And is that with me or without me?" he enquired from her and Rosalie swore that she almost saw red then. Why was he speaking to her as if she was the one to blame? Why was he looking at her as though all of this was on her shoulders?

"You can make your own mind up, Steve," Rosalie sniped at him. "If you mean, do I want you to come home so that we can discuss this then yes, I want that."

Steve shrugged then. "I want that too," he said to her. "But I just don't know if we can work through this. You said it yourself. You don't know what you want anymore."

"I'm confused," Rosalie said to him, her voice almost breaking. "The past week has been tough, Steve, and we were doing fine until you asked me about the future. We need to sit down and work through it…come to a reasonable conclusion without yelling at each other."

Steve nodded his head, seeming to understand that. "Okay," he said. "Then we can go home."

Rosalie nodded her head and walked up to him. She half expected him to simply fall into step besides her, but he took hold of her hand, cradling it between his fingers as she looked to his face, seeing him staring straight ahead. She said nothing, simply squeezed onto his hand, silently pleading for there to be a way through the argument they had found themselves in.

…

A/N: Do let me know what you think!