Laundry day wasn't so much of a set day as it was an inevitable point in time when the amount of wearable clothes you owned got dangerously low. An appointed cleaning time probably would've saved you a lot of trouble. If you'd been a more organized adult you probably wouldn't be rushing around your room throwing all of your clothes into a basket while fretting over whether or not you'd still have time to do all the other chores that needed dealing with on one of your precious days off. You also probably wouldn't be stuck with only your pajamas left to wear. You'd probably have less than an entire laundry basket and half a bag to clean. And you probably wouldn't be struggling to precariously carry said containers down three flights of stairs. It's at times like these that you sometimes questioned your competence as an 'adult', but when all was said and done you made it down those malevolent stairs. And in the end isn't that what's really important?

It may have only been a small win but that's what life was comprised of; tiny victories. And so you allowed yourself to bask in this glorious achievement as you dropped your hefty load on top of one of the washing machines with a mighty 'THUD' that reverberated across the laundry room; a smug smile of accomplishment gracing your lips.

"Um, afternoon," that was the second time Steve Rogers made your heart leap into your throat and stop mid beat.

Swerving around you came to the realization that the laundry room was not as empty as you had previously thought.

"Afternoon," you replied before quickly turning back to your machine. Awkward moments were not something that you had a shortage of, but for some reason that didn't seem to make them any easier to deal with.

Silently cursing your lapsing grasp of reality you started stuffing your clothes into the machine, not once stopping to think about what materials you were putting in and fighting to ignore the heavy air of discomfort that seemed to hang over every moment you spent with your newest neighbor.

It wasn't until your first load had started and you could hear the rushing cool water start to fill the tub that you let yourself fall into a more casual stance. Rolling your neck in an attempt to relieve some of your built up tension you made a vain promise to yourself (for what was possibly the millionth time) to relax more. It was then that your attention slipped back over to your, seemingly always, unlikely companion. He stood over his own preferred machine jumping between looking confused and hopeless. His eyes briefly turned to you before quickly looking away and your curiosity had no choice but to be peaked. Was he waiting on his clothes? A quick glance at his basket showed it to be full. Along with everything inside being separated colors from whites and almost neatly folded. Was his machine broken? Your eyes flickered over to the change machine that had a handwritten 'Out of Order' sign taped on it. Another glance in your direction followed by an awkward shuffling of feet forced the following words from your mouth:

"Do you need some help?"

Blue eye flashed to meet your own, while his mouth seemed a bit slower on the uptake, "Y-yeah, actually… if you don't mind."

"Of course not," you replied bouncing over, "I can't tell you how many things about this place confused me when I first moved in."

Steve nodded mutely giving you a small grateful smile.

"So firstly, in case you hadn't noticed; the change machine is broken."

"Yeah, I… I saw that. Has it been broken for long?"

"Couple of years… at least."

"At least? No one's done anything to fix it?"

You gave a small noncommittal shrug, "Not since I've been around."

"And how long has that been?"

"Little over two years?"

The look Steve gave you was a mix between comical and adorable, "Anyways, no one's really cared, at least as far I can tell, because the old machines were replaced with ones that now take cards."

You'd hoped that this explanation would have cleared things up enough for him to suddenly not need your help and leave you back to the manic panic that was your relaxing day off but instead he just looked somehow even more uncomfortable.

"What? Don't have your card on you?"

"…Something like that…" You ignored the strange sense of déjà vu, "I was given one, I just… don't really use it."

"Ooooh… Are you more old fashioned or just trying to avoid Big Brother?"

You'd somehow perplexed him enough to get him to look you straight in the eye, "Big Brother?"

"Well, that basically answers that…"

It was impossible not to smile at how adorable his face got when looking that lost, "Never mind. This one's on me."

"What? No! I can't let you-"

You cut him off with wave of your hand as you pulled out you wallet, "Don't worry about it! You've only got-what? One load of laundry? Think of it as a 'welcome to the building/thanks for saving me from dying alone at the bottom of a staircase covered in books like crazy old lady Alma from the 3rd floor always says I will' gift."

A long silence passed where neither of you broke eye contact and the only sound that could be heard was the steady whirring of the machine that currently held your clothes.

"That's a really specific gift name," Steve finally said, the corner of his lip twitching up in amusement.

"Yeah, well…."

Your voice trailed off into an unintelligible mumble as you quickly swiped your card through the machine. You could've come up with a witty retort easily, but the washer suddenly needed your full attention.

"So, who's 'crazy old lady Alma'?"

"Oh, you haven't met her yet? She lives a few doors down from mine. She's not really crazy so much as she's reached just the right age where she's all out of fucks to give! She's the best."

You laughed to yourself as Steve's machine finally started running, "This one time I came home halfway through a grave yard shift and there was Alma; door kicked down with some kid pointing a gun in her face."

You shook your head at Steve's alarmed face, "I know, I know, it wasn't funny at the time. But here was this kid clearly meaning to rob her. He had a gun, he'd destroyed half her living room, and he was screaming all sorts of threats at her. And what was she doing? She was standing there wearing nothing but an old fashioned nightgown and curlers screaming back at him!"

Steve let you giggle for half a beat before his concern got the better of him, "What happened?"

You shook your head before walking back to your side of the room to start on another load, "I'll be honest, I was in a bit of a shock to return home after a thirteen hour shift to find my neighbor being held up in her nighties so I can't say I remember exactly how it all went down. All I know is that it ended with the kid running out in tears and me getting a forty-five minute lecture on 'what's wrong with kids these days' and another twenty on the rudeness of snooping."

"…Uh huh…. And you say she's not crazy?"

"I prefer the word 'eccentric'," you replied with a wink. As if on cue your phone released an obnoxiously loud chime, warning you of an incoming text.

'Hey girl! donna just called out sick tonight think you could cover for her? ill make sure mackey throws in a extra 10 for ya! ;)'

You instinctively pulled a childish face at your phone as the words played over in your head. Of course you'd get called in for a job on your day off. With a huff you slapped your phone back onto its place on the table with maybe a little more force than needed before starting your next load of laundry.

On the one hand you were always in need of extra cash, it's why you did small jobs like these on the side to begin with. But on the other hand it was your day off! You wanted to hurry and get your chores done so that you could just lay back and relax, maybe read a bit. Besides, aside from the laundry you still needed to go out for groceries and your apartment was in serious need of a good once over. Not to mention that if you did take the job you'd also have to make a supply run. And find an assistant, because if Donna wasn't going to be there then there was little to no hope of Reg sticking around! You wiped a hand down your face with a sigh; would the pay even be worth all the trouble?

"Are you ok?"

Your exhausted eyes flickered over to meet a pair of concerned blue. Bright blue… framed by long blonde lashes… on a handsome face…With a killer body… You were suddenly struck with an idea!

"Hey Steve, what're you doing tonight?"