Chapter 3
By: MysticFantasy
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"One, two, three...One, two, three..." Natasha counted as she and Steve slowly walked through the steps to the dance they would be doing. They stopped and Natasha looked at the soldier before her. "You're getting the pattern but you're still a little off rhythm."
"I'm sorry Natasha." Steve apologized.
"Hey, don't be sorry. You're doing a lot better than any of us thought." she said.
Steve gave her a shy smile.
"I think I know what your problem is on getting the hang of rhythm."
"I don't have any?" Steve suggested.
"You put yourself down too much. No, I think you're mind and body are still stuck on military movements. You need to relax more. Once you relax you'll be able to get these moves easy."
"No offence ma'am, but I don't think that's for me." Steve said sitting on a near by bench. Natasha followed and sat next to him.
"Why do you say that?" she asked.
"I'm a super soldier." Steve answered. "Ever since I became this 'perfect soldier' I've always had to be on my toes, ready for anything and everything that might pop up. Which usually happened because of the war. After being defrosted and learning how the world is now, I guess it's a habit that stuck."
"I know that it's hard to accept, especially with our positions, but you can relax when you have the chance." Natasha said. "You don't always have to come train and push yourself. Believe me, that serum will keep you exactly the way you are so you don't have to worry about coming to the gym every day. Which Tony hates about you by the way."
Steve lightly chuckled. He'd heard Tony's declarations of hate because he actually had to work to keep in good shape while Steve could go as long as he wanted without working out and still be in the best of human health there is.
"Tell you what. Let's call the lesson done for today. Let's spend the rest of the day just relaxing. Just you and me." Natasha suggested.
"Just hanging out?" Steve asked.
"Yeah. We can go to some places that haven't changed since you grew up here." Natasha said.
Steve smiled.
"Sounds great."
"Good. Let's go get cleaned up and meet up in an hour." Natasha said.
"I'll be there." Steve said.
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It didn't hit Steve until he was standing in front of his closet that he was going to be spending the day with a lady friend. Granted that he knows her, it still made him nervous and it caused him to become picky and unsure of what he was going to wear.
He knows that he needs new clothing to blend into the new era he'd awoken into, heaven knows that Tony and Clint gave him not so subtle hints to do so, but he felt comfortable wearing the clothes he had back in the forties that, for some strange reason Steve rather not know about, were taken into someone's custody, given to SHIELD when it formed and kept in storage.
At the same time, Steve felt it would be pointless to try to blend in. The world knows who he is and that he's Captain America. Almost every time he went out into the world someone would recognize him which eventually led to more people noticing and then he was being asked to sign autographs and have pictures taken. All of which made him shy and nervous.
Even when he'd been the Star Spangled Man, Steve hadn't felt very comfortable in front of crowds. Tony's constant trying to use Steve to make the Avengers more popular in the publics eye didn't help.
The blond soldier sighed heavily as he began to look through what he had in hopes of looking half decent. He didn't want to embarrass Natasha. She'd been so nice to him and he didn't want to make her look bad.
After nearly twenty minutes of changing his mind, Steve eventually settled on tan slacks and a light blue button up shirt. He loosened the cuffs of the shirt and rolled the sleeves just above his elbows in an attempt to match how he'd seen other men wear this kind of shirt.
Realizing he didn't have much time left, he quickly combed his hair, put on a light touch of colonge and deoderant, slipped his shoes on his feet and grabbed his wallet and watch. He quickly made his way to the elevator as he slipped his watch on his wrist.
He lightly smiled when he saw Natasha walk to the elevator. She was dressed in a pair of jeans with a red shirt and black boots. He looked like a regular beautiful woman but Steve knew she was most certainly carrying one or two guns.
"You look great." The Black Widow commented as Steve reached her. "You're doing great on catching up with today's fashion."
"Thanks." Steve said. "You look great too."
Natasha gave him a smile as a ding signaled that the elevator reached them.
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Steve had to admit that he almost felt like he was back in the forties. Central Park was one thing that hadn't changed, except for the fact that it was more dangerous to walk in alone. But the two Avengers had nothing to worry about. Anyone who would try to take them on would be out of their minds and wanting a death wish.
"Feeling relaxed yet?" Natasha asked.
"A little." Steve answered. "I like how the park hasn't really changed that much."
"Did you come here a lot?" Natasha asked.
"Some times." Steve answered. "The park was still a little dangerous back in my day but Bucky and I would go every now and then before we both became part of the army. He would try to set me up with a friend of a girl he was dating. Never worked. Probably because of how I looked before the serum. Didn't matter that I was the last eligible bachelor in the city."
"Sounds like women were just as shallow then as they are now." Natasha said.
"Well, it kept me from being distracted." Steve said. "The only thing I wanted at the time was to serve my country. Took five tries but I eventually got in."
"You really wanted to be part of the military." Natasha said.
"Sure did." Steve confirmed. "Bucky was a little miffed at me when I got a higher ranking title than him almost instantly but he eventually let it go."
"You know that Clint doesn't like that you out rank him?" Natasha asked with a smirk.
"He does?"
"Yep." Natasha confirmed. "He's got a little of the jealous side in him and he thinks he doesn't. Before you became part of the team, he was somewhat one of the highest ranking agents. When you came along he got so jealous. But he's over it now."
Steve lightly chuckled.
"He reminds me of Bucky." he said. "Ready for anything and always looking forward to the next adventure."
"Do any of us remind you of anyone else?" Natasha asked.
"I know he hates it but Tony reminds me so much of his father." Steve answered. "Looks like him, sounds like him, confuses me with different gadgets just like him...It's a little errie to be honest. Thor kinda reminds me of Colonel Phillips. He just has that sense of power in him that the Colonel had and the fact that he's the only person who's older than me. Bruce kinda reminds me of Dr. Erskine. The way he's able to come up with so many things. Then there's you."
"Who do I remind you of?" Natasha asked.
"Peggy Carter." Steve answered.
Natasha remained silent hearing that she reminded Steve of the woman he loved. It was no secret to anyone who knew Steve that he never got the chance to be with Peggy because of his sacrifice to drive the Hydra plane into the freezing ocean.
Peggy had been the only woman Steve ever came close to dating and they had only shared one kiss before Steve had fought against Johann Schmidt.
"You have the same fighting spirit that she had." Steve said. "She never let anyone get in her way or put her down. She wasn't afraid to show how tough she was. On my first day of training, she punched a guy right in front of us because he was making fun of her accent. Colonel even praised her for it."
Natasha lightly smiled.
"You miss her?" she asked even though she already knows the answer.
"Very much." Steve answered. "But I know that she had a good life. Fury told me everything about her just after Loki tried to kill us."
"How long ago did she pass?" Natasha asked hoping she wasn't being too nosey.
"About three years before SHIELD found me." Steve answered. "She named her first son after me."
"Can't blame her." Natasha said. "If I ever have kids I'll probably do the same. Name all of the boys I have after you guys."
"I can picture kids running around with all kinds of weapons taking after their mother." Steve said with a smirk.
"Of course." Natasha mused. "My children are going to learn how to crush veins by the time they're ten."
Steve chuckled.
"Hey, how about we move somewhere with a bit more fun in the atmosphere?" Natasha suggested.
"Sounds perfect."
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The sound of music was in the air and the cool breeze felt wonderful as it mixed with the warm sun light.
Steve smiled at the view as the giant ferris wheel slowly made its way to the top. He hadn't been to an amusement park since Bucky had dragged him to Coney Island. He'd gotten sick to his stomach on the Cyclone but it had been a good day regardless.
"Having fun?" Natasha asked seeing the smile on his face.
"I am." Steve admitted. "It's been too long since I'd last been to an amusement park. Before the war even."
"That is a long time." Natasha said as their cart rounded the top and headed downward. "Any particular games you were good at?"
"Not really. At least, not before the serum. Bucky was the one who always won everything. That's how he always had a dame on his arm. No offence."
"None taken. I think it's cute that you stick to how things were in your day." Natasha said.
"Tony hates it. Him and Clint keep trying to get me 'modernized' or something like that. Just before this little bet, Clint asked if I wanted to go with him to find 'trendy threads'." Steve said as the cart started head up again.
"Clint thinks he's so cool when it comes to fashion." Natasha chuckled. "You should have seen some of the disguises he wore when we went undercover for a few missions. He looked like a tourist half of the time."
Steve chuckled as the cart started to slow. They were let off by the ride operator and Steve, being the gentleman he is, helped Natasha off.
Smiling, the femal Avenger looped her arm through Steve's which made him blush a little. They walked through the park trying to find their next form of entertainment.
When they were walking by a row of games, Natasha spotted the perfect ride that would make Steve squirm a little.
"Let's go on that one Steve." she said.
Steve looked to the ride she was signalling to and paled a bit as his nerves became more appearant.
"If that's what you want Natasha." he said.
Natasha grinned as they made their way to the Tunnel of Love. Only two couples were in front of them and it didn't take long before they were sitting in a white boat with a heart shapped seat heading down the narrow water path.
Slow love songs played over the hidden speakers as dimmly lit heart and star shaped lights revealed the walls to be covered in romantic themes.
Natasha noticed how tense and nervous Steve was. She reached over and grabbed his hand, making him a little more tense.
"Steve, relax." she said. "I did this in hopes that you would relax a little more. Especially since there's only four days left before we have to dance in front of everyone."
Steve nervously smirked.
"Come on. Sit closer to me."
The super soldier looked at her as if to confirm he just heard right.
"Come on." she urged tugging at his hand a little.
With a nervous gulp, Steve moved closer to Natasha who took his arm and placed it around her shoulders while she snuggled into his side.
She didn't fail to notice his quicked pulse. It seemed that any kind of close contact with a woman made the famous Captain America weak in the knees.
They sat in silence as the boat continued to slowly make its way through the narrow tunnel. Steve was fighting for something to say but nothing was coming to mind.
Luckily he was spared from conversation when he saw the light at the end of the tunnel. The boat came to the exit dock where he once again helped Natasha off the ride. Like before, she looped their arms together as they began walking again.
"You'll get use to it Cap." she said giving him a reassuring smile.
"I hope so." Steve agreed. "I don't really like being nervous around beautiful ladies all the time."
They both caught what he said but neither was going to say anything.
With a quick glance at her watch, Natasha saw that it was still a little early in the afternoon but had decided that she'd tortured Steve enough at the amusement park.
There were still four days left before their dance and they still had a lot to do. Luckily, the next activity didn't have anything to do with practicing.
"Hey, how about we head to the mall and decide on what we're going to wear for our dance?" she suggested.
Steve nodded with a smile.
"Sounds good." he said. "I'd rather someone honest give me their opinion on what I'm trying on. Tony wants me to dress fancy and Clint is just all over the place."
"Don't worry. I'll make sure you look even more handsome than you normally do." Natasha promised.
Steve lightly blushed.
"Thanks." he said as they made their way to the exit gate of the park.