Somebody pointed out Second Chances was the title of one of the others using this particular trope. It is my favorite of these, but I have read a few others on Archive of Our Own. Since I couldn't think of the names of the others, I opted not to name any. I think you'll find this one quite a bit different, but no malice was intended. Feel free to skip it if that's your preference. I'm posting this one early so the story's direction will be nice snd clear.

That's the thing about tropes. It's tricky keeping them original enough to stand on their own. I won't start one until my take feels fresh. You can go back to Deep in the Soul and see that it came out a few weeks post Endgame and took things in a different direction from others written at the same time. That was very intentional. I think this chapter narrows things quite a bit and flushes out the direction pretty clearly. The next few are also complete. I've been working on this story during the in-between time while waiting to see what changes Amir-015 wanted to make to our story together. Working with a partner has been a great experience. It has allowed for some necessary downtime when starting the next chapter needed to be on hold and given me time to flush out major plot ponts. Figured I have enough done to post concurrently until the end of the other story now.

Earth 2012

Steve reached into his case and pulled out a fresh vial of the Pym particles. He wasn't sure what he could say to make things better. He wasn't even completely sure he should say anything at all. He'd messed this up. Natasha was his best friend. Instead of saying the wrong thing, he opted to just get down to business. "I was thinking it might be a good idea if we trade out your particles. After everything that happened, let's not take any chances."

Natasha took the vial and popped it in. "Probably a smart move. Everything looks good, but I'd hate to end up a baby or an old man." She smiled, but it quickly faded into a frown. "Tony won't be there to fix it."

Steve pulled her into a hug and held her for a minute. She didn't pull away too quickly. He was grateful. It felt right to hold her, more right than anything else he'd ever experienced. That's when he knew he was coming back to her. As they pulled apart, he touched her cheek. "I'll see you in a minute."

Natasha bit her lip. "Don't make promises you can't keep."

"I wouldn't dare. I'm coming back to you." He leaned down and kissed her. She didn't resist. "I know what it feels like to live without Peggy. I know what it's like to lose you. Only one of those scenarios works for me. I'm sorry I didn't see it a few hours ago. I will see you in a minute."

She pulled him into another kiss. "You're sure? Completely sure, because this is your chance, Steve. No hard feelings, no regrets."

"I'm sure. I want to be with you."

Steve shrunk the ship. Natasha popped it into her pocket as Steve put her Pym particles into the case. They counted off and pressed the buttons on their wrists in complete synchronization, they way they did everything in battle. A split second later, the started to dematerialize.

The Platform, Tony's Lakehouse 2023

Natasha was still smiling when she landed on the makeshift platform near Tony's lake house. She was home. She was alive. Steve chose her. They'd deal with the aftermath of Thanos's destruction together.

Bruce was the first to comment, well, it wasn't so much a comment as a bone crushing hug. "You're alive," he repeated over and over. "I can't believe it. We thought it couldn't be undone. I tried so hard to bring you back. How did he do it?"

"I don't have any answers, but I'm not going to be alive much longer if you don't stop squeezing me," Natasha said. Her voice was muffled by Bruce's chest, but he must have heard her. He let her go, but she barely had time to catch her breath before Sam and Bucky gave bear hugs of their own.

She looked around. Steve hadn't rematerialized. He should be here by now. Bucky was looking around, too. Their eyes locked as they realized the truth. Steve wasn't coming. "I guess I thought he might change his mind with you here," Bucky said, "but Steve told me something before he left."

Natasha tried to hide her disappointment. "I know. He told me, too. He actually said a few things. I guess he decided to do it." The words felt like bile in her mouth. It was Sokovia all over again, but this time it wasn't Bruce who'd left. She couldn't blame a big green monster who wouldn't let the man she wanted have a choice. It was Steve, and he finally did the one thing she never thought he'd do. He lied.

"I'm confused," Sam said. "Somebody enlighten me."

Natasha set her jaw and made the words come out of her mouth. "Steve stayed in the past, Sam. He saw a chance to be with Peggy, and he took it. He's not coming back."

1970

Steve was a man on a mission. One stone to return then he was going home. He felt almost guilty for the happiness he was feeling. It almost felt like a disservice to Tony's memory, but he figured Tony would forgive him. As he tried to stay inconspicuous, he thought about all the years he and Natasha had spent together. It suddenly made sense. They'd danced around this for years. Tony saw it. He commented on it a few times on visits to the Compound before the Avengers fell apart. Steve dismissed it every time. A few days before the time heist was the last time Tony had said anything. Steve shrugged it off and repeated what he had said so many times before. "A man and a woman can be just friends."

Tony's retort had seemed silly at the time, but it didn't seem so out of place now. "Oh, I'm not denying that, Cap, but if you guys are just friends, Pepper's just my assistant. Friends don't look after each other the way you do. They don't constantly search each other out in every room. They don't become fugitives just to protect each other. You're so much more than friends."

Tony was right. Steve knew it. He loved her. He just needed to get this "minute" over with as quickly as possible and go back to her. It didn't take long to return the space stone. He only ran into one guard, and the guard was a kid who obviously had no idea what he was doing. The gullible young man completely bought Steve's story without so much as a follow-up question.

As soon as the stone was in its place, Steve grabbed a fresh batch of Pym particles from his case, put it in, and hit the button. He didn't need to see Peggy. He knew his place.

Brooklyn, January 1, 2028

Natasha walked through the door of her Brooklyn apartment with her overnight bag on her shoulder. "Alexi, James, I'm home," she called out.

Alexi still looked half asleep as he walked into the room. "Shh, your son is sleeping."

"It's after ten," Natasha said. "How late did you let him stay up?"

"It was New Year's Eve. He wanted to watch the ball drop. How could I refuse him such a small request?"

"He's four. He can't even tell time yet. Why didn't you just show him a ball drop on YouTube and put him to bed?"

Alexi scratched his head. "I didn't think of that." He sat on the couch and propped his feet up on the coffee table. The bunny slippers James had insisted on getting his uncle for Christmas were on his feet. "It's your fault really. You should have told me about YouTube."

Natasha casually removed Alexi's feet from her coffee table as she walked towards the kitchen counter. The open floor plan of her Brownstone apartment had been a real selling point. They moved in when James was two, and being able to keep an eye on him at all times was extremely important. He was a ball of energy. The dueling super serums in his blood may have had something to do with it, but Alexi didn't seem to think so. He said Natasha was always the most energetic child in the Red Room. He should know. He was one of the trainers. It was possible he was right, but Natasha had been around enough children to know that being able to keep your eyes on a child was worth the extra price.

Not that money was much of an issue. With Happy now handling security at the new Avengers' Compound, a place that stayed vacant most of the time now that the current crop of Avengers were starting families of their own, Pepper relied on Natasha as head of security for Stark industries. The pay was good, and it was a relatively safe way to use her skill set.

Natasha started a pot of coffee. She didn't need another cup, but Alexi looked like he could use one. She was grateful he was always willing to stay with James when she had to be away for a day or two. Alexi got up off the couch and moved to a barstool closer to where she was working. He was staring at her. "What?" she asked. "Do I have something between my teeth?"

"Not between your teeth, but your face does look different," Alexi said, staring at her with a scrutinizing look. "Oh, I see it now. Your smiling."

"I smile."

Alexi shook his head. "You smile for James. This is a different kind of smile. I don't think I've ever seen it on your face before." He pulled out his phone and clumsily typed into the search bar. Natasha just watched as he held up a picture. "Saw this first thing this morning. You made the news. 'Former Avenger Natasha Romanoff Steps Out With New Beau'. When were you going to mention this new beau? I need to have a conversation with him."

Natasha rolled her eyes as she grabbed the phone from Alexi's hand. "How did the press get this picture? It was a closed event."

"That's the problem with freedom of the press. They are always present, nosing around, looking for the story. In Russia-"

"Yeah, yeah," Natasha said, "you could always go back."

Alexi raised his eyebrows. "Like you could ever do this without me. We're getting off track. Who's the shmuck?"

Natasha poured Alexi a cup of coffee and sat on the other barstool. "He's not a shmuck. He's a very nice man. His name is Matt, and he's an attorney. Pepper has dealings with him on a regular basis."

"So, it was a work thing and you're smiling like this?"

Natasha smirked. "I didn't say that."

Alexi took a sip of his coffee then spit it out. "Hot, scalding hot."

Natasha laughed. "Your Russian. You can take it."

Once Alexi recovered, he looked Natasha in the eyes. "What do you know about this attorney? Is he worth your time? You haven't exactly put yourself on the market much in the past few years."

"Market? Really, Alexi, I'm not a piece of fruit. Matt is a nice man, and I enjoy spending time with him. We're keeping things casual. I don't want to bring a string of men in and out of James's life, so keep this to yourself. If it becomes something, I'll let you know."

"So I can cross examine him?"

"So you can meet him," Natasha said. "I think I really like him. Matt has a unique understanding of who I am. That's something rare outside of our circle. He doesn't treat me like some kind of assassin or a superhero. He just treats me like a woman. It's nice."

"You are a superhero."

Natasha shook her head. "Not anymore. I'm a mother. James is my top priority, but it's kind of nice to be a woman once in awhile, too." She waggled her eyebrows suggestively.

Alexi just groaned and took a drink of his coffee. If he planned to say anything else, he didn't get the chance, because James came barreling into the room and straight into his mother's arms. "Mommy, you're back!"

Natasha placed a kiss on her son's forehead and took a whiff of his hair. She loved this little boy more than life itself. He was her reason for getting up everyday. "Good morning, Jitterbug. Did you miss me?"

James nodded. "You were gone forever."

"It was two days, James. I would never stay gone forever. Go get my bag. There's a present for you."

James ran to her bag and carried it to the bar. Natasha opened the front pocket and pulled out a package of trading cards. "Aunt Pepper had these special made. They're for the five year anniversary of the Blip. We'll be giving these out at the celebration. Do you remember what the Blip was?"

"It's the day everyone came back. What's on the cards?"

"Open them and see." Natasha watched as he son carefully opened the foil wrapper and looked at the cards inside. "There's one for every Avenger."

"Even you?"

"Even me."

James started pulling the cards out one by one and naming each Avenger. "Uncle Scott, Uncle Tony, Uncle Clint," he said, stopping to point at Clint's hair. "He looked goofy."

"Yes, he did," Natasha said. "Keep going."

"There's you, Mommy." The boy pointed at her picture before moving on to the next card. "Uncle Sam, Uncle Bucky, Uncle Steve, there's a bunch of cards."

James still had the picture of Steve in his hand. It didn't sting so much looking at it now, but James calling his father uncle cut to the quick a bit. She couldn't tell him the truth. He was too young and too honest to keep the secret, but it hurt lying to her son. What was it she used to tell Steve? The truth isn't all things to all people? "You like the cards?"

James nodded. "Yours is best. I like the red and yellow hair. This one's good, too," he said, holding up the Steve card. "Captain America is Ben's favorite hero. Can I take it to school and show it to him?"

"Sure. I know your preschool teacher would think these would make a great Show and Tell. We'll wait until Thursday. That's the day you can bring things in, right?"

James nodded. "I can't wait."

Natasha looked at Alexi. He was grimacing over the idea of James showing off the cards. They'd decided hiding James completely from the public eye was the wrong move. Everyone at James's school knew he was Natasha's son. Alexi insisted on being James's personal security guard. He sat in the back of the classroom everyday. The kids adored him. Natasha teased him often about being the perfect nanny, but Alexi only scoffed at her comments a little bit. He loved looking after James.

"Let's get you some breakfast. You can tell me all about the ball drop while I cook, okay?"

James happily rattled on about his adventures with Alexi as Natasha cooked. This was the best part of any day. She loved it when James was feeling extra talkative. She loved her life. It wasn't the one she would have chosen, but it was pretty fantastic.

As she watched her son ramble on, she really looked at his face. He looked more like his father everyday. Instead of this realization causing her pain, it filled Natasha with pride. Steve might be gone, but she would always have a part of him with her. Her best friend gave her a gift. That's the way she intended to look at things. Sure, she had once felt something more, but it was obviously nothing. How would girl who was raised not to love know what love was anyway? She'd been mistaken. She couldn't have loved Steve. She just thought she did. It was fine that he realized they were just friends before she did. So, what if she was just now coming to the same conclusion? At least, she got there.

Tony's Lake House

Snow? Why was there snow on the ground? Steve looked around. The platform was gone. What was going on? Where was everyone? Something wasn't right. He needed to find Natasha. He needed to figure out what was happening.

He took off in a dead run for the lake house. It was deserted. This couldn't be happening. He tried accessing the cabin with his voice. Friday acknowledged him and the door unlocked. The place was decorated almost exactly like he remembered, but not quite. The sofa was the same, but there were new throw pillows on the couch. Above the mantle was the familiar picture of Tony, Pepper, and Morgan, but there were other photos on the wall and mantle that put a pit in Steve's stomach.

Steve picked one up. It was Morgan in the picture. That much he knew, but she looked older-a lot older. She was on a horse, holding the reigns with one hand while her other hand was wrapped around the waist of a little red-headed boy he'd never seen before. How much time did he miss? "Friday, can you tell me today's date?"

"It is January 1st, Captain."

"What year, Friday?"

"2028. The other Avengers will be pleased to know you are safe. They believed you would not be returning. Shall I inform Master Parker of your arrival?"

Steve felt his knees grow weak. Something had gone terribly wrong. He lost nearly five years. He needed answers. Finally, he managed to open his mouth. "Peter Parker?"

"Yes, Captain. He is the leader of the Avengers. It is my job to keep him informed of all anomalies. I'll inform him now."

"Hold on that for a moment, Friday. I need to get my bearings. Can you give me Natasha's location? I think I need to talk to her before I face everyone else." She was going to think he abandoned her. How could this have happened? How did a minute turn into nearly five years?

"Ms. Romanoff is at her home in Brooklyn, New York. She no longer uses coms, but I can give you her phone number and address, Captain Rogers, or I can dial her number directly."

"Let's not call her. I think I better see her in person. That address would be very helpful, Friday. Thank you." Steve grabbed a pen and piece of scrap paper and quickly wrote down the address. "Any chance there are clothes laying around that might fit? And, I'm going to need a car."

"I'm sure Ms. Potts would not mind you wearing something of the boss's. You can take one of the cars. It is good to have you back, Captain."

"Sorry I'm so late." Steve opened the device on his wrist. It was fried. That's when it hit him. He'd been such a fool. One dumb move had cost him a lot of time. He opened the container carrying the Pym particles to confirm his theory. He did a quick assessment. Damn it. He must have grabbed the one he'd removed from Natasha's in his rush to get back to her.

He thought he was doing the right thing, but he'd been wrong. He never should have let her out of his sight again after he got her back. So what if not returning the space time had created some kind of alternate timeline?. The only one that mattered to him was this one, and he blew it.

Quickly going into the closet, Steve pulled out the first shirt he could find. It was Tony's Black Sabbath t-shirt. He quickly put it on along with a pair of jeans that didn't fit quite right then rushed back into the living room to grab the car keys. Only as an afterthought, Steve found himself sitting in front of Tony's, well, Pepper's computer doing a google search on the woman he loved. He needed to know how she'd fared in the years they were apart.

His heart stopped when he saw the most recent news article. There she was in a gorgeous, backless red dress dancing New Year's Eve away in the arms of another man. Oh God, he was too late. Of course, she'd moved on. She was a beautiful woman who thought he left her for someone else. Why would she wait for him? He picked up the broken wrist band and threw it against the wall. They messed with the universe. It messed back over and over again. What a mess!