Steve's internal alarm woke him at 06:00. He had a night of many dreams, of being buried in snow, unable to dig his way out, the feeling of being constantly cold, but the last hour or so had been mostly dreamless, for which he was grateful. He had a shower, brushed his teeth and tidied his hair and beard. He pulled on a pair of dark grey pants, a white T-shirt with a light button-down shirt over it. It had a light, thin-stripe chequered pattern. He laced up his shoes and threw on his brown leather jacket. It was winter in Wakanda and though it didn't get nearly as cold as back home, the mornings could bite.
He walked a few steps to Jane's door and knocked quietly. "Jane, it's Steve." There was no answer. He tried again. Nothing.
Worriedly, he opened the door a crack and saw her bed empty.
"Jane, are you in here?" No response, nor was the shower going. "I'm coming in." He slowly pushed open the door, chivalry keeping him from barging in, but it was empty. He stepped in and checked the bathroom. No Jane. He wondered if she might have gone to the cafeteria already, so he turned on his heel to go and check.
The sign on the cafeteria door stated that it opened at 07:00. He turned around at the closed doors and heard the television on in the Lab lounge. He walked toward the sound and on first inspection, the room appeared empty, but something told him to check the couch facing the TV playing images of CNN.
Sure enough, there she was, asleep on the couch. She was curled up against the cool morning air, goose bumps on her arms. The scrubs didn't offer much protection against the cold. He picked up the remote that had fallen to the ground next to the couch and switched off the TV. Jane woke with a start at the sudden absence of noise, pushing herself up on her arms.
"Good morning." Greeted Steve, a little concerned. "What's going on?"
She sat back on her legs, pushing her hair out of her face, her lower lip between her teeth. She pointed at the TV.
"I couldn't stop watching."
"Did you have trouble sleeping?" He asked, draping his jacket over her shoulders.
"At first." She looked at him for the first time, absentmindedly pulling at the jacket, still warm from his body. "I came here because I heard a noise and I found," she gestured with her hand toward the TV again "this."
"I couldn't stop watching, even though much of it was disturbing. I must have fallen asleep at some point."
"You watched CNN all night?"
"I saw a box, a ten-thousand-year-old box, they said that something had been stolen from it, but they were not sure what or who stole it. Was that you? Did you steal me?"
Steve sat down beside her. "We went to go and get you because we thought our hands were the safest place for you to be."
She searched his face for a lie, unsuccessfully.
"Steve, I need to get to that box, there might be something there that will help me remember." She implored him.
"Okay, we'll talk to the king when he gets back."
"Where is he?" she asked, disappointed.
"He's away on official business. He has agreed that we get you the things you need to live in this century today, but as soon as he gets back we can talk to him about the box."
She seemed to relax a bit. "I can agree to this." She conceded softly.
"Now, let's get you back to your room so you can get ready. We don't have a lot of time and I'd like you to get some breakfast before we go."
She nodded and pushed herself off the couch, clutching his jacket around her. A familiar pleasant smell filled her nose.
Steve and Jane stood outside the lab waiting for Shuri to join them. Jane was positively vibrating with excitement next to him. She'd been asking him all sorts of questions about what she could expect. He'd answered them as best he could, knowing that nothing could prepare her for seeing it for herself.
Shuri came rushing out of the lab. "Okay, let's go, the car is already waiting for us."
The party of three walked briskly out of the small world Jane had known up to this point. The doors to the courtyard were flanked by long rows of floor to ceiling windows and Jane couldn't take her eyes off the clear blue sky as they walked out. The sun hit her face and she stopped, tilting her head back and closing her eyes. It felt like food to her soul.
Steve stopped and looked back to see what was keeping her, she was wearing the same clothes as the night before, the loose white shirt playing gently in the wind.
"Come on, let's go." He grinned at her.
Her attention snapped back to him and then to the waiting car at the bottom of the stairs. The black Jaguar was unlike anything she'd ever seen. The driver held the door open for Shuri. Steve took over from him and motioned for Jane to follow Shuri. Once she was in, he closed the door while his eyes scanned the perimeter, before getting in next to the driver.
He programmed their route into the GPS as they left the courtyard of the palace complex. He looked in the side rear-view mirror and saw Jane staring out the window at the giant panther statue and the series of waterfalls. Shuri didn't volunteer any conversation, still a little sour at having been assigned this task.
The city sprawled out in front of them. Jane's eye caught the glint off one of the skyscrapers and was instantly on the edge of her seat, looking over Steve's shoulder, her fingers brushed his arm gently as she took hold of the seat to steady herself and a bolt of electricity shot from there straight to his core.
"People built this?" She asked, her eyes wide.
"Yeah." Chuckled Steve, his heart beating a little faster than it should.
The city was abuzz with life and the traffic slowed them down a bit, though Jane didn't mind, it gave her ample time to take in all that she saw around her. She asked no one in particular what specific buildings were for and Shuri began to tell her about the landmarks and the history of the city as they slowly progressed to their first stop, the more Shuri spoke the more pride filled her voice and her face and she thawed considerably. Steve found it just as interesting. There was a lot he didn't know about Wakanda.
As they drove into the underground parking lot of their first stop, Shuri explained that they were at the Royal Birnin Zana. They were to visit a select few shops in the very upmarket and exclusive mall.
VIP parking had been arranged for them and the driver parked right next to an entrance with the letter 'A' suspended above it in gold. They had to take an elevator up to the ground floor. Its doors on both sides were gold and it was very large and opulent on the inside with wood carved details of panthers and heart-shaped leaves, golden railings and a marble floor.
When the doors on the other side opened, they were met with the same opulence in the storefronts, the high glass ceiling that let in the bright sunlight and the wide, marble-clad corridors.
Jane noticed that Steve seemed on edge. Shuri was making a beeline for a clothing shop. "I absolutely love this place," Shuri grinned at Jane. They entered the carpeted store and were greeted by a very well dressed assistant who was almost too friendly. Shuri spoke to her in Wakandan, gesturing to Jane. Steve was standing behind them at the entrance of the store as Jane looked back to see where he was.
The shop assistant who'd introduced herself as Bongi gently asked Jane in a thick Wakandan accent to come with her. Jane followed with Shuri on her heels to the fitting rooms. Bongi showed Jane into the second booth and instructed her to strip down to her underwear and wait for her to return. There was a full length, gold-framed mirror on three of the surrounding walls with warm lights shining out from behind them. Jane did as she was told and waited, inspecting herself tentatively in the mirror. She had light circles under her eyes from not sleeping much. Her shoulders and hips were still a little bony and she could see the light indents of her sternum on her chest.
Jane could hear Shuri excitedly oohing and aahing as she helped Bongi pick out items in the store. She and Bongi returned with arms full of clothes, which they hung on the hooks on the door. Jane felt a little exposed and clasped her arms around her waist. She eyed the many hangers with a little apprehension.
Bongi was trying hard to be the perfect shop assistant, but Shuri ran the show like she wasn't even there.
Rummaging through the hangers she pulled two items out "Yes, let's try this first," and with a very Shuri-like excitement, slammed the two items onto Janes' chest. "Put that on, and hurry, I can't wait to see what that looks like on you!" Her eyes sparkled with expectation as she turned to leave the booth. Once the door was shut and Jane was alone, her eyebrows shot into her hair at the shopping experience up to this point.
Jane put on the pants and the very flowy and to Janes mind, very large, blouse covered in a loud pattern before she stepped out of the fitting room.
Shuri spun around looking like she wanted to shriek with excitement but was instantly taken aback with an expression on her face like she'd smelled something unpleasant.
"That's way more bag lady than ancient goddess." Shuri made a motion with her index finger for Jane to turn around and go back into the fitting room.
Jane turned but paused to look into the store to see where Steve was. She couldn't see him anywhere and a wave of anxiety washed over her.
"Where is Steve?" Her heart was racing.
"Oh no my dear, we'll only show Steve when we find that ancient goddess, now go on and let's try something else." Shuri picked up on Jane's sudden anxiousness and made a mental note to address it when they got back to the Design Institute.
Steve watched as Shuri and Bongi flitted around the store, Shuri pulling items off racks and draping them over Bongi's quickly filling arms. He wondered if Jane would be alright with all of this. Shuri didn't seem to afford Jane's situation any understanding and thus had no filter.
He thought about going to get some coffee and was a few steps away from the store when the burn phone in his pocket vibrated. Sam and Nat.
He quickly pulled the phone out of his pocket and answered. Nat's husky voice came over the line.
"Steve?"
"Nat." He answered.
"There's something big coming up. We could really use an extra pair of hands." She said.
"When?" Asked Steve.
"I'm not sure yet. I'll let you know." She answered
"I'll be there. If you can, just give me 24 hours before crunch time." He said.
"I can't promise anything."
"I know."
"I've got to go. Look out for my call." The line clicked as she ended the call.
Steve felt suddenly torn between helping his friends and what would happen to Jane if he left. He hoped that there would be enough time before Natasha called for him to get Jane a bit more settled. The reluctance he felt at leaving her surprised him. He slid the phone back into his pocket and continued on to the coffee shop.
Many changes and an hour later, Jane emerged from the fitting room for the twelfth time feeling a little harassed at having to try on so many garments. Shuri had approved of a few ensembles and the one she was wearing now was deemed fit to show to Steve. She looked down at the dark skinny jeans and the emerald green blouse with a vintage cut and beautiful details. Shuri handed her a pair of vintage, nude heels. Jane slipped them on and grimaced.
"This is very uncomfortable" She muttered.
"They really bring out the ancient goddess," mused Shuri.
"Come on, let's get a second opinion."
Steve was back and waiting for them on a large round stool with a coffee for each of them. He'd already finished his.
"I went to get us some coffee, but I think it's cold by now." He said as Shuri emerged from the fitting room passage.
"Thanks, we need your opinion." She half snapped.
"Jane, come." She said after a few seconds of waiting.
Jane's muffled voice came from further down the passage, "I am struggling to walk in these shoes."
"Suck it up cupcake. We're waiting." Shuri's voice was impatient and commanding.
Jane slowly emerged from the passage and strode gracefully into the shop, she was relieved to see Steve sitting directly in her path and her eyes were fixed on him, she suddenly felt shy and felt heat pool on her cheeks.
Steve's eyes snapped to Janes approaching figure and he could feel his heart start to beat faster. Wow, was the first thing his brain could manage inwardly.
She kept walking until she was just a few steps away from him. A blush flashed on her cheeks and she broke eye contact for the first time, looking shyly at her shoes. Steve instinctively rose to his feet, his eyes taking in the picture in front of him. A silence stretched between them as Jane looked up and her eyes met his.
Shuri cleared her throat behind Jane.
The sound sent reality rushing back in around Steve. He felt his ears grow hot and he let his eyes drop to the floor. It seemed to be the only way he could get words out of his mouth.
"I... I thought you said you were struggling to walk in those shoes." He fumbled at the words.
Jane tilted her head slightly to her left ear.
"I am." She said as if it were obvious.
"It certainly doesn't look like it, Tyra Banks." Shuri's voice dripped with sarcasm over Jane's shoulder as she eyed the two of them suspiciously.
"What do you think?" She asked Steve, making a gesture with her hands at Jane.
"Uh, I think... Come on man. I think she looks... great." He felt a little mortified at being put on the spot like that.
Jane watched as a faint blush of colour fleeted over the parts of his cheeks not covered with beard. She could see he felt very uncomfortable and took a step back, pulling off the shoes.
"That's better." She said, with an understanding smile for him, before turning and disappearing back into the fitting room.
Steve felt as though air entered his lungs for the first time in minutes, staring after her. Two paper coffee cups still in his hands.
Shuri pulled him out of his trance again by taking one of the cups out of his hand. "Thanks, she said with a mischievous grin."
"You sure seem to have turned this job around." Steve jabbed at her.
They visited two more stores, one for a couple of pairs of more practical shoes, three pairs causal and one pair for exercise. They also stopped at the pharmacy and Shuri threw a few toiletries in a basket.
They left the mall two hours after arriving and turned out of the parking garage onto the street toward their second and final stop. It was a fifteen-minute drive to the University of Birnin Zana.