It had only taken a few days for me to recover from the extreme amount of exhaustion I had felt. I had to thank God for that, I didn't quite like sitting still for such long amounts of time. I think I had slept for nearly a day straight before I'd finally woken up for good; I think that might've frightened Steve a bit. He was one of my constant visitors though the time; it was sweet to see him so worried about me.

I don't know what it is, but I just get this feeling around him. A good feeling that I never want to leave; it warms my heart and makes me smile. Even though I've had so many different emotions running through me due to everything happening, whenever he was in the room there was one emotion I could point out.

Happiness.

And it was confusing me more and more. I used to be thrilled to be around him because he was my hero, and then he turned out to be my mentor. I knew I had a crush because, let's admit it, he's a handsome man with a heart of gold. The more my thoughts drifted to him, the more I felt this confusing onset of emotions. I didn't understand entirely what was going on with my feelings, if what I felt for Steve was just deep admiration or if it was…

One lonely morning after being lost in these thoughts, I wandered into the kitchen to get myself a cup of coffee. I was feeling particularly exhausted after a week of not understanding a thing that was going on in my head, and I wanted to see if caffeine could help clear it up.

Before I had figured out what I was doing, I realized I had two cups of coffee in front of me. I stared down at the second cup sadly, realizing it wasn't another Sunday morning at home. My mother wasn't here to chat with me over the news, or discuss my new confusing love life. It was just me, standing alone in the kitchen and looking like a girl who was about to overdose on caffeine.

I sighed softly as I heard someone else enter the kitchen; I was standing over to the sink about to pour the liquid down it when I felt a hand stop me. I looked up to meet the curious eyes of Steve, who took the second cup from my hands.

"You weren't going to waste this, were you?" He asked playfully. "I'll take it." I smiled at him, feeling my heart speed up and my cheeks turn pink.

"Oh, do I get the honor of sharing coffee with Captain America?" He simply smiled at me, taking a sip from the cup. I followed suit.

"Is there something wrong? You only drink coffee when something's troubling you." He had noticed that?

"I just… I miss my mom. A lot." I looked away, placing the cup on the counter. I could at least be honest with him about one of the problems on my mind. "I've been here awhile but I'm still not used to any of this. I guess it just goes to show you can't change a girl no matter what."

"Don't worry, as soon as this mission's over, you can go back home with your mom without any trouble." He walked over so that he was standing beside me, nudging me playfully. "You'll never have to see any of us again, well, not until the next monster comes along." I laughed along with him at his light-hearted joke, but realized the serious undertones of it. When he had suggested that I'd never see any of them again… Something changed in his eyes. For a split second they looked dark, clouded with worry and hurt. I wasn't sure exactly what it was, but now they were the normal light blue.

"I don't think I'd want to go back…" I frowned. "I'm kind of worried about my mother. I mean, you don't think Loki would target her, do you?"

"I'm not sure." Steve shook his head.

"I need to get my mind off of things. Train with me?"

"Yes ma'am." Steve saluted me with a smile before motioning towards the door. "Ladies first."

After a few hours of going strong, the punching bag finally snapped off the chain. I felt rather proud of myself, having never been successful in knocking one completely off the chain. I like to think it was a show of my new found strength, when it was ultimately due to the fact Steve had used it before I had and hadn't changed it. But I'll boost my ego for now.

We took a short break, Steve changing the punching bag before plopping down beside me and leaning against the wall. There was a weird amount of tension in the air; the muscles in Steve's arms would tense every time I accidentally brushed up against him. Finally, I couldn't take the tension that was building up in the unwanted silence.

"Steve, are you alright?" I turned to face him. "You're really tense."

"I feel out of place." Steve admitted, looking down with a sheepish smile. "Everything around me has changed, while I've stayed the same. There are cell phones and computers that I have no idea how to use… I feel like I don't belong sometimes. Like I would've been better off frozen than in this new world."

"I feel the same sometimes…" He looked over at me curiously. "I mean, not an extreme case like yours. My whole life I'd been a normal girl with no powers; I never thought I'd be travelling around with a bunch of heroes. I don't feel like I belong here, because I'm not as great as any of you are. You're all amazing fighters and I'm just here."

"I think you're pretty amazing." I sighed but couldn't help the smile that fell onto my face. He just seemed to have a way of cheering me up when I was down; a rare thing to be able to do. I leaned against him; he shifted his shoulder so that I could rest on him more comfortably.

It felt natural, as if moments like these were only natural between the two of us.

Or perhaps that was just me over romanticizing reality again.

"You're a good guy, Cap'n. I think the world is a better place with you in it, and I dare say you're making progress with your technological problems." He laughed heartily, leaning down to rest his head on top of mine. "Did you really think that you were better off frozen?"

"Things were confusing at first." He stopped speaking for a moment, his face contorting into a confused expression. "I was frustrated from everything happening, and having no one to help me. But after I joined the Avengers I realized my purpose; to keep innocent civilians safe from crazy dictators who try to rule them. As long as I'm alive, I've promised myself that I'll do all that I can to protect people."

"I think that's a pretty good reason to exist."

Steve started to move, causing me to pull away and look up at him curiously. I flushed as I realized his eyes were focusing on me, before they shifted down to my lips. I gulped as he moved closer to me; I couldn't tell if he knew what he was doing or if he really wasn't paying any attention. But it wasn't like him to be distracted around me; I normally had his full attention.

With a deep breath he leaned forward, pressing his lips to mine.

The kiss had started off awkwardly; he had used a little too much force when he went in for the kiss, so my head bumped against the wall. He held onto my arm tightly, forcing my body to face him as he moved his lips against mine. His tooth scraped against my lip, and at one point I swear my hand ended up somewhere it shouldn't have been, but it was such a great relief of tension that neither one of us cared. This kiss had been so long overdue that neither of us wanted it to end.

He pulled away, pink and flustered.

"I'm sorry, I should've asked." He apologized as soon as he got his breath back.

"Calm down, soldier." I smiled shyly. "I didn't mind." I gripped the white t-shirt he was wearing and pulled him down again. This time our lips met with more enthusiasm, since we were both prepared this time. His hand rested on my neck, his thumb gently tracing along my jaw line. My grip on his shirt loosened and my hand remained on his chest, until he finally pulled away for air.

"Well." We jumped apart, turning to face the new intruder. "I didn't realize the training room was for getting down and dirty; not like that, anyway."

"Be quiet, Tony. Did you need something?" He shrugged his shoulders.

"A kiss from you would sure seem to fit my needs, but alas, that's not what I came here for. Fury wants to speak with you."

"Will he ever leave me alone?" Steve stood up first, offering his hand. I gladly took it, smiling at him while Tony made disgusted faces in the background.

"I'll come with you." Steve started to say, but Tony cut him off.

"I didn't realize after one kiss you'd want to be attached to her hip." He commented sarcastically. "Director Fury wants to speak to her alone. So alone she shall be. You'll have to do without your lovebird for a few minutes, Cap, but I think you can handle it." I elbowed Tony as I walked past him, smirking as he glared at me. Steve looked frustrated, as though he had something to say but he held it back, watching as I left.

Why was Fury calling me down now?

I could only worry about what it was I had done as I walked into to his office.