There was a knock on the door around 1:30 in the afternoon, Steve and Irene both looked up as an agent came in with their usual lunch food.

The man smiled eagerly at Captain America, as always, but when he looked over to the mutant, his hands started to shake as he practically tossed her order onto her lap.

"Thanks" Irene mumbled as the agent ran out of the door.

"I wouldn't take that too personally"

"You know? You would think that I would've gotten used to it since that's how everyone else in the outside world treats me"

"Why?"

"Captain"

"I keep telling you to call me Steve" Steve told her, "Keep calling me Captain and I'm going to call you Irene"

"Steve"

"That's better" Steve smiled to her.

"The world is still full of hatred but that's because they found a different type to discriminate on" Irene replied.

"But you're not all that bad" Steve leaned in on the table.

Irene couldn't help but smile as she slowly moved her fork around her plastic bowl.

If only men like him were in this world today.

She blinked out of her daydream and let out a sigh as she looked back up into his eyes.

"You've only known me for seven days. That's hardly enough time to judge someone" Irene finally spoke up, "My criminal record is still colorful. What makes you so sure that once we're done with this history class that I won't go back with them?"

"Because you said them" Steve responded, "You implied that it wasn't you're doing, but of someone else's"

Irene looked up in shock and surprised, it felt like she was being interrogated once again.

She put a strand of hair behind her ear, slunk back into her chair, and crossed her arms over her chest.

"What happened that day?" Steve asked, "True, I've only known you for seven days, yes, but I don't believe it was all you're planning to kill the Senator. You're smart, but I also think that you were trapped. This is why I think that's why you got caught. This was your first time in an attempt to assassinate. You had no idea what you were doing"

"I stopped because I noticed that my sister was a SHIELD agent and had a gun pointed at me" Irene responded.

"You could've made everyone forget that you were even there" Steve perused, "Come on, talk to me"

Irene looked back into his eyes and noticed how pleading they looked, not all stone cold and hard as steel as everyone else is in the SHIELD department.

"We looked out for one another" Irene responded.

Irene exhaled and realized that a tear was falling down her cheek before she quickly wiped it away.

"It's something you need to do when you're the sole reason that kids are scared to look under their beds and in their closets at night" Irene continued.

Irene's throat became tight as she remembered how she revealed to her best friend at 9 years old that she was a mutant; it was that night that they had to flee the city after death threats were put upon the family.

Steve watched as Irene tried to fight back tears.

He wished that there was some way that he could turn back time and not ask her about all of this.

So he reached out and gently put his strong hand into her soft hands, making her look up at him as another tear fell from her eye.

"It used to be boogeymen… then it turned into mutants" Irene let out.

Steve looked down and traced a thumb across her hand.

"I'm just like you. In a way" Steve shrugged, "If they learned to love me, then they will learn to accept you. I'll make them, you'll see! The humans won't be scared of mutants anymore"

"That's what they all say" Irene smiled, "It's just an empty promise that no one intends on keeping. You'll see. That always happens. You don't need to do this. It'll go bad for you in the end…"

Irene sighed and took her hand out of his grasp.

"Maria and Elizabeth tried…" Irene trailed off.

She looked back down to her food and then started to stab her fork into the salad.

"That was before you knew she was a SHIELD agent" Steve pieced together, "And you guys have never talked about her reason joining?"

"No! Yes" Irene suddenly stopped.

She then grunted in frustration as she moved her hand throughout her hair.

"It's complicated" She finally said.

She exhaled and went back to eating her food before she looked back up to him.

"So, Steve Rogers" Irene let out slowly.

"Great. I knew it…" Steve let out, "I poked fun at you and now you're going to poke fun at me. What do you have for me?"

Irene didn't say anything but just smiled and waited for him to continue, in which he did.

"Everything is just flipped upside down" Steve let out, "Back in my day, everyone just saw me as a circus act. But before that, just a scrawny little boy who was old enough for war but still looked like a 13 year old. Even when I became this 'Captain America', I was still treated poorly with the people I went to boot camp with"

Irene replied, "And what about now?"

"I became a legend" Steve shrugged, "I had these so called Christmas Specials with me in it. Even this woman named Oprah wanted to interview me. It was like the very first time I opened my eyes, everyone was all in my face and no one thought for once what it must've been like to wake up after 70 years"

Irene straightened up and looked down to her food, suddenly not really hungry anymore.

"All of my friends, family, and Peggy are all at the end of their road right now" Steve marveled, "And I wanted to be right there with them"

"There must be a reason why you jumped through time. Something must've brought you to my world then" Irene replied.

"I'm starting to believe so too" Steve looked into Irene's chocolate brown eyes.

Irene glanced down and looked at her food, trying to not look back up at the handsome man sitting right in front of her.

Steve watched as a blush slowly rose to her cheeks and Irene's hands started to fumble.

"So, what is there to do around here?" Steve asked.

"What do you mean?" Irene questioned, "We're locked in this cell for another four hours"

"Not here" Steve chuckled, "I meant this day and age. The 21st century"

"Things have changed since your age" Irene mentioned.

"Irene" Steve pushed.

"I thought you were going to start calling me Ren, Steve" Irene glared.

Steve chuckled and rubbed his strong jawbone.

"I just think it's adorable when you get mad at me" Steve smiled.

"Thanks" Irene tried hard not to blush again, "But I seriously don't like that name"

Steve nodded, "Ren…"

"That's better! See how much we can compromise?"

"It's amazing, really" Steve mentioned, "But why don't you like the name Irene? Back in my day, it was a popular name"

"Yes, and now it's not. People confused me for their grandma's. I was even picked on about my name before puberty kicked in and my powers unleashed" Irene let out.

"Ren, it's not that bad. Did you know you're name means 'peace'?" Steve asked.

"Peace? Well, Steve, how do you know that?" Irene questioned.

Steve opened his mouth before he too started to shy away from her gaze.

"I might've looked it up" Steve shrugged.

"In what century?" Irene pushed.

"The 21st?" Steve said slowly, "Ren, I was curious"

"I noticed" Irene smiled, "And I think that's a good thing. Well, flattering but good also. I never thought that you would think of me after class. It feels like hell in here. I just thought it would be the same for you"

"It was. Whenever Nick Fury would come in. I noticed how on edge you get with him" Steve noted.

"Doesn't take a miracle to figure that one out. He was the one who tazed me after all" Irene rolled her eyes, "Among other things. But that one was the most recent"

"He tazed you, Ren?" Steve gawked. "Why would he do that?"

Irene sighed as she decided now was the time to take a drink out of her soda can, there was a lot that Steve Rogers didn't know about his own precious SHIELD.