Day 10

Steve and Anna had moved back to the room she shared with Tony after the first night. Steve thought it might help her sleep better if she was surrounded by Tony's scent, like she had tried to do with Steve. She had woken up 3 times since then, and while the episodes weren't as bad as the first night, he still made love to her every time to take her mind off it. During the day, she would be in the gym, or be at her bookshop with Jules, but Steve always made sure she was never alone.

Steve was working with Pepper a lot, trying to figure out what Stark Industries could do to help out what was left of the world. Parents had lost their children, there were children who were left without parents, it was awful. Steve really tried not to work late, so he could spend his nights with Anna. They watched movies, catching him up on what he'd missed in the last 70 years. She found that he enjoyed the Harry Potter movies, which was good, because if he hadn't, she might never have spoken to him again. They cooked together, and surprisingly Steve was a good cook. Nat couldn't cook for anything, so she was always in charge on nights when they got takeout. They had a good rhythm going, but Anna was nowhere near okay.

She stood in the bathroom, freshly showered, looking at herself in the mirror. She could see the discoloration in her face, it was subtle, but nobody but her would notice. She felt dizzy and weak, but that's what happens when you start to desiccate. "Happy Birthday to me." She murmured.

Anna got dressed and went into the kitchen, giving Steve a kiss on the cheek, saying good morning to everyone, before heading to the gym. Nat and Rhodey exchanged looks and Steve looked confused. "What's going on?" He asked them.

"Steve, since we've been back, have you seen Anna feed?" Nat asked him. He thought for a minute, but he hadn't. He thought that maybe she was just being discreet, but then he knew that couldn't be true because nobody judged her, and she usually mixed it with coffee or something anyway.

"No, actually, I haven't."

It was Bruce who spoke next. "That's what we were afraid of." He told Steve.

"What do you mean?"

"When a vampire stops feeding, they start to desiccate. It means that their body slowly shuts down, and if they go too long, they just fall into a coma like state." Steve frowned.

"Has she done this before?"

"Once." Rhodey said. "About a year ago."

"After she called me." Steve said softly.

"What!" Nat yelled. "She called you?"

"Yeah, I had sent her and Tony a phone to call us incase of an emergency. She called me, just to hear my voice, the call wasn't long."

"That makes sense. That's also around the time she tried to shut off her humanity." Rhodey added.

'What do you mean, turn it off?" Nat asked worriedly.

"Vampires have a switch inside them, if they flip it, they can turn off their humanity. They become void of all emotions, stop caring about anyone or anything. It makes them very deadly." Bruce explained.

"She tried turning it off, it took Tony literally begging on his knees in tears for her to stop. After that is when she stopped feeding." Rhodey told them.

"So, what do we do?" Steve asked.

"Just watch her. Don't let on that you know what's happening, just be there for her."

Jules had been quiet this whole time, nobody even knew she was there. "It might be a bad time to point out that today is her birthday, so if there was going to be a day she turned it off, this might be it."

By the time Anna was finished in the gym, the sun was setting. She didn't know how long she'd been in there, but she guessed it was most of the day. She took a shower, letting the water run over her until it turned cold. She grabbed the wall when she got out of the shower, the effects of not feeding really catching up to her. She didn't want to be like this. She didn't want to do this to Steve, but she couldn't do this anymore. She couldn't hurt anymore. How much loss is enough for one person before they crack? She grabbed the bottle of bourbon she had snagged out of the kitchen when nobody was looking.

She opened the giant window in their room and sat on the bench in front of it. Half a bottle later is when Steve found her, after doing some shopping with Jules, having no idea what to get her. She didn't move when Steve entered the room, not having the energy to do so. She assumed the bourbon was drying her out quicker.

"Hey sweetheart." Steve said, sitting down next to her, pulling her legs into his lap. She gave him a small smile and turned back to the window, taking a swig from the bottle. "Hey, no more." He said softly but sternly, taking the bottle from her. He wasn't like Tony. He wasn't going to break down and beg her.

"Why didn't you tell me it was your birthday?" He asked her. She looked back out the window. "Last year I didn't have you, this year I don't have Tony, what the use in celebrating?"

"Is that why you're not feeding again?" She snapped her head over to him. "Rhodey told me what happened last year." She nodded and looked down at her hands. "Anna, look at me." She did.

"You have to feed. This isn't healthy. Tony wouldn't want this for you."

"How would we know what Tony wants? He's not here is he." She snapped. She hadn't meant to; she was just so tired of feeling this way. "I can turn it off you know. I can stop feeling everything, just be the monster I was made to be."

Steve took her hands in his. "You're not a monster. Fate wouldn't have given us to you if you were a monster. You're not going to turn off your humanity, and you're going to feed. That's an order, understood?" He knew how she felt about being controlled, but Steve felt like this was the only way to get her to see reason. She looked up at him and didn't speak for several minutes, contemplating what he was saying.

"Okay." She whispered.

"What?"

"I said okay. I'll feed. I won't shut off my humanity. I'm just so tired of feeling like half my soul is missing. It's like it was when you were gone. I always felt like part of me is missing, and now that feeling hasn't gone away. I just want to feel something, anything, other than this."

He held his hand out to her. "Come here." She crawled over and straddled his waist, placing her hands on his shoulders. He was very gentle with her, as if she would break. He touched her face, ran his hands through her hair, down her back, her legs, arms, just trying to make her feel loved. He leaned in and kissed her, putting his hands on each side of her face.

He pulled back and reached his hand down into her shorts, running a finger down her slit. She shuddered and he exposed his neck to her. "Feed from me."

"What?" She looked down at him, struggling to keep her composure when he slid a finger inside her.

"Feed on me sweetheart. Now." He pushed. She kissed his neck, and latched on, biting down. She moaned as his blood ran down her throat. He picked up the pace with his fingers, adding a second one, his thumb coming around to rub her clit. She kept drinking, trying to pay attention to his heartbeat, but it was hard. She moaned as she came on his fingers, shaking from the pleasure. She pulled back from his neck, she looked into his eyes and licked her lips, getting the remaining blood off. She swore she heard him growl, ripping her shorts off her, before pulling himself out of his pants, and slamming her down on him.

She cried out in pleasure as he moved her up and down, being a little rough with her. "I love you Anna, I love you so much. Stay with me. Stay with me forever." He whispered into her hair.

She nodded into his neck, tears rolling down her face, letting all her emotions flood her at once. "Now and forever." She said, coming for the second time, Steve right with her.

They stayed like that for a few minutes after, panting, Anna shaking, trying to control her tears, while Steve rubbed her back. "I'm sorry." She whispered.

"It's okay." He told her. He pulled out of her and went to the bathroom to get something to clean them up with. When he came back out, Anna was staring at the floor. "What is it?" He said, cleaning her off. A small smile played on her lips.

"You tore my shorts." She said, giggling. Steve looked down at the shorts on the floor, they were indeed torn almost in half.

"Oh, sorry." He said sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck.

"No, no, it was insanely hot." She said, getting up and grabbing another pair of shorts from her drawer.

She sat on the bed and he sat across from her and pulled out a small gift bag. "Steve, you really didn't have to get me anything."

"Of course, I did, you're my best gal." He smirked at her. She rolled her eyes.

"I'm your only gal."

"True, just open it." Anna pulled the box out of the bag, eyeing it curiously, hoping it wasn't another engagement ring. She opened the box to find a beautiful gold necklace. On it was a heart pendant, she flipped it over and it had 'Now and Forever' inscribed on it. Her eyes welled up in tears and she looked up at Steve. "Thank you. It's beautiful."

"You're welcome sweetheart. I know that Tony gave you the necklace you have on, but I thought maybe you could put his ring on this one instead? That way, you have both of us with you always." He told her. She smiled and switched the necklaces out and kissed Steve. "I love you."

"Happy birthday sweetheart."

a/n: So tensions are high and if Tony doesnt come back soon, Anna's PTSD is only gonna get worse