The day that Steve had been dreading had finally come. There was no getting around it, especially with the people he lived with, but he'd hoped something would come up to distract everyone. No such luck though.
Could he pretend to be sick and stay in bed all day? That probably wouldn't work, given who he was, but maybe it was worth a shot. Everyone would see through it though or freak out, and neither option was ideal. Steve was just going to have to suck it up and make the best of it. Maybe it wouldn't be as bad as he was imagining?
He peeked his head out of his bedroom, prepared to see something jump out at him. The coast was clear though, so he kept going. Maybe he could sneak out of the tower for the day and pretend he had important business to take care of? Who was he kidding, he had nothing going on and they all knew it.
"Don't even think about it," Celia called from the kitchen. Steve sighed, sagging under the crushing weight of defeat. She was like a bloodhound, sniffing him out anytime he thought about being up to no good.
"Think about what?" Steve asked innocently as he walked into the kitchen, finding Celia stirring something in a big bowl.
"Running away from your fate, of course," Celia laughed, gesturing to a plate that was stacked high with waffles.
"And what is my fate?" Steve asked, pulling the plate toward him with excitement. They looked heavenly.
"Having a good day, of course," Celia grinned, pulling a little horn from out of nowhere and giving it a hearty blow. "Happy birthday!"
"Don't remind me," Steve groaned, shoving a forkful of waffle into his mouth.
"Hey, for a guy in his 90s, you look great," Celia joked.
"Thanks, I think," Steve scoffed, taking a healthy drink of his milk. "These are amazing, by the way."
"Thank you."
"You'll have to let me make you a nice birthday breakfast."
"Aw shoot, mine's already passed. Maybe next time," Celia laughed.
"What? When? Not while you were living here, right?" Steve asked. When Celia didn't answer, he shook his head in disappointment. "You let your birthday go by without even telling me?"
"Well, in my defense, I didn't tell anybody."
"I didn't tell anybody about mine either."
"Steve, yours is a literal national holiday," Celia snorted.
"That doesn't matter. I still wish you had told me," Steve sighed, tapping his fork against his plate. "I would've done something for you."
"Honestly, I don't really celebrate my birthday. Actually, I don't think I ever have," Celia said, scrunching her eyebrows in thought. "There was this one time, I think I was around seven or eight. I begged my parents for a birthday party. Just a small one with the kids of their friends from church. I was so excited, but of course my mother had a crisis that morning and there was just no way she could deal with guests that day. I had to call everyone and tell them the party was canceled. And I couldn't say that it was because of her, I had to say it was because of something I did. After that, I just wrote the whole day off."
"I'm sorry," Steve said quietly, hating that he brought up what had to be bad memories for her. "It doesn't have to be like that now though, right?"
"I suppose not, but I don't even think about it anymore. And you know how stubborn I get when I decide something. I'm just set in my ways," Celia shrugged.
"Will you help me come up with a reason why I shouldn't celebrate my birthday?" Steve joked, slouching against the counter now that his food was gone.
"I guess if you don't want to celebrate, that means you don't want this cake I'm baking you," Celia said with a sly grin.
"Cake? What kind?" Steve asked, his interest piqued against his will.
"Just chocolate. Actually, it's a chocolate truffle layer cake, with three different kinds of chocolate, if that matters. I guess I could just dump it," Celia sighed exaggeratedly, picking up the bowl to take it to the trash. Steve stopped her with a hand on her arm.
"You wouldn't want to waste all that hard work, right?" Steve asked, peeking into the bowl. He hadn't really been paying attention to what was in it, since Celia always seemed to be cooking something, but now he could see that it looked like the makings of something decadent and delicious.
"If you insist," Celia said, continuing her mixing.
"It looks really good," Steve murmured, licking his lips in anticipation. "Can I lick the spoon?"
"I'd be disappointed if you didn't."
"What the hell am I interrupting?" Clint laughed, walking into the room carrying a bag.
"Oh hey, what's up?" Steve asked, trying to seem casual.
"Just answering Celia's call for butter," Clint replied, setting the bag on the counter.
"I underestimated how much I needed. I'm not used to cooking for so many people."
"How many people are we talking here?" Steve asked warily.
"Not too many. Just a couple hundred," Clint answered casually.
"What!" Steve choked out, a few seconds away from punching his way out of the tower.
"Stop it," Celia chastised, slapping Clint on the shoulder. "I convinced Tony to make it a team only thing. The only exception is me."
"Hey, you're team too," Steve said, sending her a small smile. He owed her for talking Tony out of whatever extravaganza he had planned.
"Yeah? Is there some sort of paperwork I need to sign to make it official?"
"I think Tony is drawing up the forms as we speak," Clint chuckled.
"Nice. What kind of perks will I get?"
"We get a pretty good medical plan, which is wasted on you unfortunately."
"Damn."
"A place to live in the tower."
"Shit, I already have that."
"My wonderful training."
"So you're saying I get to risk my life for essentially nothing?"
"Pretty much," Clint shrugged.
"Sounds great," Celia grinned.
"Well, I guess I should get out of your hair so you can finish up with your flirting," Clint sighed, walking backwards toward the elevator. "Have fun with your licking!"
"The spoon!" Steve yelled after him, covering his face in embarrassment.
"Don't worry, I'll make sure he gets the piece with the least amount of frosting," Celia assured him.
"My hero," Steve snorted.
"Someone's got to defend you and take care of you. Who better than me?" That was a good question. He hadn't planned on letting anyone this close, but somehow Celia had wormed her way in, without even trying. And Steve found that he didn't mind it at all.
True to his word, Tony kept everything low-key. There were a few tables with decorations set up on the roof, but it wasn't too gaudy. Clint was at the grill, with Tony hovering over his shoulder for every flip and check. It was just hamburgers and hot dogs, but Tony was mumbling something about imported beef that Steve didn't really pay attention to.
Natasha kept throwing these little white popping things at Clint's feet when he walked around, but it seemed to be all in fun. As long as they stayed away from the edge of the roof, he wouldn't say anything. Celia was lazily twirling a sparkler and sipping on a root beer.
"Are you having fun?" Bruce asked, sitting down in a chair next to him.
"Sure," Steve shrugged. He never really had the means to make his birthday a big to-do when he was younger, so anything was enough for him.
"Well, don't sound too excited," Bruce chuckled.
"Sorry, it's just my first birthday since everything," Steve mumbled, rubbing at the back of his neck. "Kind of bringing up memories."
"You don't have to apologize for how you feel," Bruce replied, patting him briefly on the shoulder. "It makes sense for you to have mixed emotions about the day."
"Yeah, but I'm trying not to think about it. I really do want to try to have a good time," Steve sighed. He felt like he owed it to everyone to enjoy himself, after they put so much effort into the day for him. But his brain kept wishing he would turn and see Bucky. They'd spent every birthday together since they met, except for when they were separated by war. They were separated by a lot more than that now.
"Well, if you ever want to talk, I'm always willing to listen," Bruce offered, shooting him a small smile. Steve thanked him before he got up to join the others. Sitting off to the side wasn't going to help him feel connected to the others and this time.
"Want a sparkler?" Celia asked, tossing a lighter up at him.
"I don't know, they seem kind of dangerous," Steve joked, accepting the little stick.
"And we're the two people least likely to have to worry about stuff like that," Celia laughed, nodding her head to urge him on. Steve lit the end, watching as the sparks flicked off in different directions.
"Mesmerizing," Steve grunted.
"Well, when you're constantly surrounded by my beauty, everything else tends to pale in comparison," Tony said seriously, walking over and snatching the stick from his hand. "You gotta actually do something with it, not just keep it still." Tony spun the sparkler through the air, spelling out his name.
"Oh," Steve shrugged.
"Your enthusiasm is breathtaking," Tony scoffed.
"Hey, is Clint pressing down on the burgers?" Celia wondered. Tony got a look of terror on his face before tossing the sparkler down and dashing back toward the grill. Celia snickered, using her foot to stomp out the dying flicker.
"Thanks for that," Steve said, sitting down next to her.
"Don't mention it. I figured you didn't want to be interrogated by the fun police," Celia replied, looking him over. "You know, I can provide a distraction if you really want to get out of here. Maybe I'll pull Natasha's hair, then everyone can watch as Bruce resets my broken bones."
"I'm sure she'd let you off with a warning first," Steve chuckled, knowing that Natasha and Celia had bonded a little after all the training sessions. "And besides, I thought I had to come to earn the chocolate cake?"
"Exceptions can be made," Celia shrugged, leaning closer so no one else could hear their conversation. "Really though, you shouldn't be stuck here miserable on your birthday."
"I'm not miserable. Do I look miserable?"
"Miserable adjacent."
"Well, I'm not," Steve insisted. Celia gave him a look like she wasn't buying it and he groaned under the scrutiny. He really thought he was hiding it better. "It's just…"
"Complicated," Celia finished. A million words of explanation probably couldn't sum up his feelings better than that.
"I'm trying," Steve sighed.
"I know," Celia replied, grabbing one of his hands and starting to massage it. This always helped to relax him. "Now, while running and hiding is my patented move, we could try something similar, but simpler."
"What's that?" Steve murmured, closing his eyes as the tranquil feeling flowed from his hand through the rest of his body.
"Good, old fashioned avoidance," Celia grinned, switching hands.
"And how do you suppose I do that?"
"Just leave it to me," Celia assured him. Steve wasn't sure how she did it, because he didn't remember noticing her say anything to the others, but all the decorations that referenced his birthday slowly started disappearing. There were still balloons, but only the ones with stars and flags. The streamers stayed, but the happy birthday banner got folded into just saying happy day. And when it was time for the cake to come out, something had obviously been scraped off the top and replaced by fireworks drawn with icing.
"Thank you," Steve whispered into Celia's ear later as they stood around waiting for the city's fireworks show to start. It was a lot easier to forget about himself when he wasn't the main focus of the day. He still felt the occasional pangs of sadness, but it was nothing he wasn't already used to. Celia hummed in acknowledgment and wrapped her arm around his waist as the first flashes of color exploded in the sky.
"You know, I didn't want to say anything in front of the others, but there was a major problem with your cake tonight," Steve said seriously as they stepped off the elevator to their floor. It was almost midnight and they'd just finished up cleaning the roof.
"What problem?" Celia asked, grabbing him by the arm and turning him to face her with a concerned look in her eyes.
"It wasn't nearly big enough," Steve grinned, laughing when Celia lightly smacked his shoulder.
"You're so mean," Celia moaned, stalking off down the hallways toward their rooms.
"Going to bed already?" Steve asked, trailing along after her.
"Some of us have jobs to get to in the morning," Celia chuckled, stopping outside of his closed bedroom door.
"Oh yeah, that's right. I forgot not everyone gets to live a life of leisure like I do," Steve snorted, leaning against the wall.
"Remind me, does the country club open at the normal time tomorrow or are they on holiday hours?"
"They open whenever I get there," Steve scoffed, tipping his chin up in superiority.
"Ah yes, anything for The Steve Rogers," Celia laughed, backing slowly toward her room. Steve liked that he was never Captain America to her. He still felt honored to have that role, but it was nice to just be himself when there was nothing to fight.
"Goodnight Celia."
"Goodnight Steve," she replied, stepping into her bedroom and closing the door. Steve opened the door to his own room, but stopped short when he noticed something on his bed. It was a big box, wrapped in bright blue wrapping paper. He approached it carefully, looking at it from all angles. It probably wasn't a bomb or anything, but you could never be too careful. Steve flipped over the tag he found on top, finding a simple note that said happy birthday in Celia's handwriting.
He tapped his finger along the side, trying to decide if he should open it or not. One little present wouldn't hurt, right? Well, it wasn't exactly a small box, but maybe there was a blanket or something like that inside. Not knowing would probably drive him nuts and it was kind of exciting to get a gift, even if he didn't want to celebrate his birthday.
The decision made, Steve carefully ran his finger under the seam, lifting the tape and unfolding the paper without ripping it. Bucky was always the type to rip into gifts with reckless abandon, but Steve figured it was better to reuse and not make a mess. It didn't matter much now, but he still found himself sticking to what he was used to doing.
When the box was finally free, he lifted the lid to see what was inside. It was practically bursting with art supplies. There were tiny tubes of paint and multiple sets of brushes. There were charcoal and pastel crayons, canvases of different sizes, and a really nice sketchpad. Steve grabbed a box of the fanciest set of drawing pencils he'd ever seen in his life. Not even the teachers at his art school had anything like this.
"Shit, I'm sorry!" Celia burst out, rushing into his room. "I forgot I put this in here earlier." She was halfway between changing into her sleep clothes and Steve could tell she ran over as soon as she realized what she'd done.
"It's okay," Steve murmured, setting everything back in the box.
"I was looking for something to get you for your birthday and I remembered our conversation about your art, so I figured I'd get you some stuff in case you decided to start up again. The girl at the store told me these were the best, but I don't know anything about it, so I hope she didn't scam me or anything. I should've put it away and given it to you another time, but I forgot. I'm hope I didn't upset-"
Steve cut off her rambling with a hug, squeezing her tightly to his chest. He didn't think he would've gotten through the day without her here. Her presence was a comfort that he couldn't quite articulate.
"Thank you," Steve mumbled into her hair, resting his cheek on top of her head.
"You're welcome," Celia whispered back.
Celia sluggishly blinked her eyes open, trying to figure out what woke her. She could tell she hadn't been asleep long and usually she slept like the dead after her healing session, so this immediately worried her. She tried not to move much, hoping that if nothing was wrong she'd be able to go back to sleep easily.
Celia felt kind of guilty about the whole birthday thing with Steve. She knew it would most likely be a hard day for him, but she didn't think he would be so downtrodden. Making sure Tony didn't go overboard was the obvious move, but it seemed like any mention of the day was too much. It seemed to get salvaged after she signaled to the others to dial it back, but she still felt bad. And Celia had been terrified when she remembered the box of art supplies on Steve's bed. She knew it was a gift she wanted to give him in private, which is why she tucked it in there, but saving it for another day might've been a better call. Luckily Steve had loved it and after their hug they broke apart and went to bed.
"Jarvis, is everything okay?" Celia mumbled.
"I seemed to have had a slight issue with my speaker system," Jarvis replied. Since when did Jarvis have issues?
"Okay, so what was it?"
"I accidentally patched in the sound from Captain Rogers' room into yours."
"Is he okay?" Celia asked. She figured he'd be asleep by this point.
"He seems to be caught in a nightmare." Celia didn't wait any longer, folding back the blankets and rolling out of bed. She couldn't sit back and go to sleep while Steve was in distress. He'd helped her through all of her sleep issues and she would do the same for him.
His door was cracked when she got there, so she pushed it open and peeked in. Steve was tossing and turning on the bed, mumbling something she couldn't understand. Celia walked over, crawling onto the bed behind him. She laid against his back, running her fingers through his hair.
"Steve, can you hear me?" Celia murmured, scooting up higher to curl around him. He shifted in his sleep, sniffling a little. "It's okay, you're okay."
"Celia?" Steve rumbled softly, slowly pulling himself awake.
"Yeah." Celia could tell that his growing awareness was making him more uncomfortable, but she wasn't going to let him close himself off in some misguided attempt to hide his emotions. He'd been with her through everything and it was finally her chance to return the favor. "I've got you."
There was no dramatic sobbing or wailing, just quiet tears with the occasional sniffle. But Celia could tell that it was more than Steve had allowed himself for a long time. She'd asked him way back when, on the day they'd met, if he'd cried yet. He'd said no, but she knew it was only a matter of time before something came out. His birthday must have been the trigger that broke through the last walls.
Celia held him silently as he rode the waves of his emotions. She wasn't sure how long it was before he started to nod off again, but she didn't move. She wasn't planning on leaving for the rest of the night, just in case he needed her again. Celia shifted into a more comfortable position, preparing herself for the long night. She couldn't risk going back to sleep and disturbing Steve with her healing, so she was content to stay awake until morning. It would be worth it for Steve.
