Chapter Seven: Degree Seven: Semantics With Big Green Rage Monsters
Knowing that Tony knew did absolutely nothing to lessen his nervousness; in fact it probably worsened it. It didn't matter that Tony had it wrong, Steve didn't feel like dealing with the man one way or the other. Lord, he feared to think what Stark would be like if he found out the truth. He figured it would go one of two ways: either Tony would make a huge joke out of it, or he would try to kill him for defiling his favorite lab-monkey. He had a sneaking suspicion it would be the last one. Tony was rather protective of Darcy even if he liked to pretend otherwise.
Steve ran his hand through his hair a couple of times as he took a moment outside of the lab. He wouldn't admit it to anyone, but he was nervous about the results of the tests. If things came back fine then he could very well become a father, should they come back wrong… he would have to give up the dream of a family for good.
"You can come in, no one else is in here." Bruce pulled his glasses from his nose, tucking them neatly into his pocket. Since the rather embarrassing; on Tony's part; display earlier, he had been keeping track of movements outside the lab via Jarvis. All had been quiet so far, but that was really more worrying than anything.
"Oh, that is not…" Steve could feel his face flush red. He hadn't realized his fidgeting had been so obvious. It didn't matter that Bruce mistook it for being because of Tony, it was still annoying. Nat would have his hide, he was supposed to be working on his "poker face."
"Don't worry about it, just come in before Tony or Clint rounds the corner and wonders what you're doing out there." Bruce shook his head, he sometimes wondered why he was friends with either of those two. Though he would confess, he would much rather deal with Tony and Clint than Nat… or Darcy for that matter. The younger woman had been taking lessons, he was sure of it.
Steve smiled awkwardly, stepping into the lab and allowing the door to shut firmly behind him. He gazed around a bit, as though the answer to his tests would be plastered across some screen. They weren't of course, but that didn't stop Steve from checking each and every one. His eyes landed on one screen tucked in the corner; he was no expert when it came to the sciences, but he could make out enough.
"You've started work on it again?" He turned to his friend and teammate, all awkwardness gone. "How many does this make?"
"I just need to make a few adjustments to my calculations, that's all." Bruce looked away from Steve, put his glasses back on, and read over a few of his notes. He didn't need to hear about it again, not from Steve or anyone else. None of them understood, they got the choice, he didn't.
"Bruce, last time almost killed you." Steve would never forget finding the man one evening in a pool of his own blood.
"Don't start… As I said, I just need to make some adjustments. I'm looking into bringing in someone to help; a fresh pair of eyes. So if we could just drop it and deal with the matter at hand?" Taking a few breaths in, Bruce worked to calm himself. He had everything pretty much under control, but sometimes certain buttons could be pushed and he would have to take a breather.
"Alright." Not wanting a Code Green, Steve let it drop for the moment. Bruce was right though, he had come there for a reason. "So, do you have the results?"
Bruce blew out a sigh and quickly composed himself. Back to business, that he could deal with. "Yes, they're not very comprehensive, but I'm not sure anything more will be necessary."
"Is something wrong?" Steve felt like he had been shot in the gut; all the air in his lungs had been forced out of him and his head was spinning. He knew there was a chance, a pretty big chance actually. Still, he had hoped, and to have that hope dashed… what made it worse was thinking about Darcy.
"Oh, no, no, everything is fine!" Bruce rushed forward with his hands held up. Maybe he should've worded that differently. "Very fine in fact. There are no residual traces of radiation, and as far as I can see any future children should be quite healthy. Though, unless you are planning a family right now, I would suggest you use these." Bruce pulled a box from his coat pocket and tossed it to the recovering man in front of him.
"Rubbers?" Steve looked down at the box in his hands, not his preferred brand, but at least the right size. Which he didn't even want think about how Bruce knew that… and now the awkwardness was back. He wasn't a prude and he wasn't all that shy, it was hard to be when part of the military, but things could sometimes be uneasy around the other man.
"Seriously, use them. Looks like there was a bit of an unforeseen side effect." Bruce shrugged his shoulders and smiled at the question that was clearly on the other man's face. "You are rather… let's just say you have quite a large army of little super-soldiers. Unless your partner has problems I doubt it would take much to get pregnant."
"Really?" That gut wound quickly became a mass of butterflies as he realized how close everything was to becoming a reality. He wasn't sure if he needed to sit down or pace.
"Yeah, so wrap it up." Shaking his head, Bruce laughed. It was a bit surreal; lecturing Captain America on safe sex. He remembered the old posters that were plastered on the walls of his sex-ed class in school: old pictures of Captain America with captions underneath about keeping it safe. He wondered what Steve would do if he saw himself holding a condom with the slogan "I want you! To wrap it up!" emblazoned in bright red across the image.
"Uh, yeah. Look, thank you for this." Steve backed up towards the door, the box still in his hands. If Bucky ever got word of this conversation he would laugh, well after kicking his ass.
"You're welcome. Your fears were reasonable, but thankfully you were given the good stuff. Myself… not so much." Bruce had come to terms with not being able to have children, even if he hadn't with being the Hulk. He figured it had more to do with him never really wanting kids in the first place than anything. Even without the Hulk, he knew he had the capacity for great violence. He never wanted to be one of those fathers.
"I'm sorry, uh…" Steve never knew what to say when that particular subject came up. Sorry always felt like too little, but anything else sounded like pity.
"I've accepted it." Bruce cut off Steve before he could go any further. He had heard everything and had no use to hear more. "Now, it's getting late so you should probably get ready for your date."
"What makes you think I have a date?" Steve tried to think back on what he had told Bruce earlier. He knew the other man thought he was seeing someone, but he couldn't remember saying anything about a date.
"You wanted the results today, I kind of figured you had something set up." Bruce watched as Steve started fidgeting again, but he just attributed it to his nervousness.
"Uh, yeah, I do. So, thanks again…" Steve shook the box a bit, an awkward smile on his face.
"You're welcome, again, now go." Bruce waved him out of the lab and laughed to himself. It was strange to see Steve so nervous, the man was normally so sure of himself.
Darcy paced the length of her living-room, back and forth, back and forth in front of her couch. She stopped every now and then to look down at the coffee table. Feeding super-soldiers was busy work, she had cooked dinner once for both Steve and Bucky and had refused to ever do it again. Since then she would put in several orders from different take-out restaurants. Her coffee table was filled with the normal amount: several pizzas, Thai, Indian, Mexican, and pretty much a menu sampler from every place within a ten mile radius of the tower. The only thing that was missing was the superhero meant to eat it all.
They hadn't set an actual time, but that didn't stop Darcy from worrying that Steve had changed his mind. With each passing minute she convinced herself more and more that he had given into his doubts. She was so worked up that she hadn't realized that someone had entered her apartment, a someone that had been calling her name for five minutes before she finally heard him.
"Oh! You came!" Darcy jumped a little, her heart racing beneath her ribs. She had been so close to calling it an evening and just tossing everything away.
"Uh, yeah I said I would. Are you alright?" Steve moved further into the room, his eyes taking in the woman in front of him. She was flushed red, a bit of sweat clinging to her forehead, and her hands were clasped tightly in front of her. He worried she would burst out crying at any moment with the way her eyes glistened.
"Fine, I'm fine! I just…" Darcy took a deep breath in and let out a soft, nervous laugh.
"Thought I'd chickened out?" Steve laughed himself, mostly out of relief that she was alright. It always worried him when she got sick. "Don't blame you, with the way I've been acting I'd be thinking the same thing."
"So… you didn't change your mind?" Darcy could feel her heart hammering away in her chest. She had thought of nothing but this for so long now, she wasn't sure how she would feel being given a bit of hope and having it taken away.
"Nope." Steve smiled wide as he rocked on the balls of his feet. Now that he was standing there all the excitement of a new adventure was whirling inside of him.
"Good, good… Um Steve? What are… are those…? Forgetting what we talked about this morning, you do realize that those are counterproductive to what we are planning?" Darcy raised a single eyebrow and pointed to the box held firmly in Steve's hand. She had to bite her lips to keep from laughing, she was sure there was a story there.
Steve blinked a moment at Darcy before he realized what she was talking about. He looked down at the box of condoms still in his hand with something akin to outright panic in his eyes. He looked around the room for a moment, trying to find some place to set the box down. In the end he hurriedly tossed the offending item across the room and behind a curio-cabinet.
"Ah… Bruce gave those to me." Damn his Irish skin, he could feel the heat rising along his neck and into his cheeks.
"Bruce, as in Bruce Banner, Dr. Bruce Banner?" Darcy crossed her arms over her chest, her mouth set as she looked at the man in front of her. She had expected to hear that Tony had been an little shit again, but Bruce…
"Um, yeah." Shit, yeah that was not the look of a pleased woman. In fact the look currently on Darcy's face was what Bucky had dubbed her 'Proceed With Caution' face. Steve hated that face.
"Dr. Bruce 'You won't like me when I'm angry' Banner gave you condoms, right before you came to see me?" Darcy pursed her lips and narrowed her eyes. Bruce wasn't a big one for jokes; The Hulk was, but not Bruce. So the only reason he would give them to Steve would be because her idiot solider said something.
"Yeah." Steve kind of wanted to turn and run the other way at the purse of her lips. The last time that was added to the 'caution' face, Sam found himself on his back with an entire pizza resting on his face. It had been funny at the time, but Steve really didn't relish having his dinner shoved down his pants.
"Ok, so I'm not sure if this is some funny misunderstanding or if I should be really, really pissed off at you." Darcy's foot started tapping, and she tried really hard not to think about the fact that she looked like her mother at the moment.
"Oh God! No, it's a misunderstanding I swear!" Steve held out his hands, he wasn't sure if it was surrender or to show he was unarmed, either way he hoped it would keep the food where it was and not on him.
"Ok, explain why the Hulk gave you condoms, because I'm this close to conducting an experiment on whether or not my taser would work on a super-soldier." She held one hand up, finger and thumb almost touching, and glared at Steve.
"Bruce gave me them not the Hulk." Yeah, Steve realized that was a mistake the moment it came out of his mouth. Sometimes he really needed to learn to keep his mouth shut around Darcy.
"Semantics, as I tell him every day. But we are not getting into that whole thing, right now I want an explanation." She waved a hand, gesturing for him to get on with it. They could talk later about Bruce's inability to accept the worst parts of himself along with the good. That subject had little bearing on their situation.
"It's not what you think. This morning when I told you I needed to do something, well I went to Bruce and had my… well had some tests done. To make sure everything was safe." Seeing Darcy drop out of 'caution' pose, Steve relaxed. The two of them didn't fight often, or well they hadn't before, but when they did it could get pretty loud.
"Safe? Oh my God, please tell me you don't have radioactive sperm that is going to mutate my uterus or something. I'm not even sure what kind of superpower that would become. My God, could you imagine my alter-ego name? Utero Woman? Womb Witch?" Darcy paced back and forth, one hand to her mouth. She had been sure she had thought everything through. She understood there could be complications with the child; such as if the child ended up with Steve's pre-serum ailments. What she hadn't thought about was the effect his super-sperm could have on her.
Seriously, that would be a really strange and embarrassing origin story. She could just imagine it; she would gain powers and end up becoming an Avenger and all the history books would explain how her womb had become super-powered by way of Captain America's sperm. School books would have to be edited though.
"Darce, Darcy, focus now." Steve took the few remaining steps into the room and grabbed Darcy by the shoulders. He turned her around so she was forced to look at him.
"Sorry, so you were saying you wanted to make sure I was safe from becoming super by way of your super-seed?" Darcy swallowed and gave a little half shrug. She might be just a bit wound up.
"No, I had no worry about that." Steve slowly lead Darcy to the couch and sat the both of them down. He swept a bit of hair off her shoulder before sitting back enough that he wouldn't have to hunch over to look her in the eyes.
"Thanks for caring." Finally feeling a bit calmer, Darcy leaned back on the couch and took in the man beside her. He still wore the same clothes as that morning, but they had become a bit wrinkled over the course of the day. He looked just as nervous as her, which made her feel better, though he seemed to have a better hold on it.
"That is not what I meant. Just… I knew when it came to that, that my… semen… was safe." Steve ran a hand through his hair, a few bits sticking every which way. It wasn't as though they hadn't talked about sex, hell Darcy was very open about her intimate life with him. But Steve had never actually discussed his with her. He pretty much figured that she knew, he might not talk about it, but he didn't try to hide it either.
"Huh?" Darcy blinked up at Steve trying to figure out his words. He seemed frustrated when she just stared at him.
"Good Lord! I'm not a virgin." He really didn't think he had to spell it out to her. She had met with some of his dates before, he was sure she would have put two and two together when he spent those nights out.
"Sorry." Darcy felt her face flush, of course she knew that. It was more along the lines that she tried not to think about it. Whenever she did it left a sour taste in her mouth. "Um, anyway, what were you having… oh, OH! So, is it safe?"
"Yes, any child of ours shouldn't have to worry. They should be healthy and whole." Moving past the awkwardness, Steve smiled. He loved saying that, that his children would be healthy. He knew there was still a chance for complications, but with modern medicine any child of his stood a better chance than he ever had.
"So, what were the condoms for?" Darcy swept her eyes over to the corner that Steve had tossed the box. She would have to remember to dig it out later, lest Jane find them one day. Though, seeing the woman's face would be totally worth not picking up.
"I didn't want him guessing why I asked him for the tests, so I allowed him to think it was for the same reasons you first thought. When I came to find out the results he gave me those, because it turns out that I'm rather… potent. He thinks I've got a date tonight and wanted to make sure I was prepared so I wouldn't get her… you… whatever, pregnant." Steve scratched the back of his head, he wasn't very good at explaining everything. He knew they would be doing everything clinical, but it didn't stop his heart from going wild at the thought of Darcy and sex. Which was something he knew he needed to nip in the bud right then and there. Shit, one of his many reasons for not going through this had been fear of loosing their friendship because of sex.
"Ok, that's good. I am too…" Darcy laughed at Steve's raised brow, and waved a hand at him. "I mean, I went and had tests done at a clinic and I'm all clear. As far as they can see I shouldn't have any problems, my ground is fertile and ready for planting."
"I really wish everyone would stop with the euphemisms." Steve rolled his eyes, he knew he would have to deal with worse once Tony and Clint found out.
"Yeah, because just alluding to it is so very mature?" Darcy laughed when Steve stuck out his tongue and gave her a bit of a wink. The public seemed to think that he was some uptight, stiff sort of character; they could never separate Captain America from the man. It always struck Darcy funny thinking about the public seeing Steve the way she got to see him; all playful and teasing. Wouldn't the media have a field-day if they ever witnessed Captain America playing strip poker or pulling pranks on Iron Man?
"Touché." Steve reached out a hand and flicked a bit of Darcy's hair. This was their relationship. It was fun and easy, it was calming, and led to joke wars. It felt good to get back to rights with her. "So, this is all very good right?"
"Yep, very good. It means I won't have to be on any fertility drugs, and hopefully it should only take a couple of tries, if that." That had been a huge relief to Darcy. Fertility problems didn't run in the family, but there was always that first person.
"Drugs?" Leaning fully back, Steve rested his head on his upturned hand. There had been many advancements in medicine since he had been frozen; the vaccines alone were wonderful. He had been doing his own research since he had woken up, but there were just so many and they came so quickly that he had yet to catch up.
"Some women have to use them to help them conceive. I shouldn't need them though, and thankfully I've been off the pill long enough. I didn't see the need since I broke up with Ian. Shit, the most I've gotten in the past two years is some heavy petting. Probably the longest dry spell I've gone through since High-School." She wasn't complaining, alright not that much. She wasn't a huge fan of one-night stands, it just wasn't her thing. She had had a few through her college years, but it mostly stopped after she started interning for Jane. There were too many chances that the guy would turn out to be Hydra or some shit. So, it had pretty much just been her and her little helper lately.
"You realize that having a baby isn't going to help with that?" He knew that having children didn't mean the end to having a sex life, but he figured one's priorities changed.
"Yeah, I know, but I really want a baby more than I want sex… and that sounded so weird." Darcy laughed. She had never thought she would say something like that, ever. Oh, she figured that maybe one day she would have kids, but it had been such an abstract idea.
"Kind of, yeah." Steve just shook his head, he was used to Darcy's lack of filter. It was one of the things he enjoyed about her actually. "Look, I'm pretty on board for this, but we still need to talk about things."
"I know, um, actually I brought up some sites that I had bookmarked that I thought you'd like to read. They explain the procedure in detail, what we can expect and so forth." Reaching over, Darcy grabbed her laptop off the coffee table, setting it on her lap when Steve waved her off.
"Thank you, but what I meant was how we plan to raise this kid. I understand that having a kid out of wedlock isn't as big a deal as it was in my day, but…" He shrugged, he wasn't sure how to put his concerns into words.
"But what? It isn't like they will grow up in a broken home. Our kid would know he or she is loved by both parents, there would be no competing or anything. And it's not even like we live in different cities; hell we don't even live in different buildings." Darcy knew that their child would have one of the best upbringings of any kid on the planet. Between her and Steve and the rest of their friends their child would be surrounded by love and good role models.
"But Darce, what happens if down the line we stop being friends, what then?" He never wanted to think about such a time, but he knew it could happen. He had had friends when he was a kid, ones he thought he would have forever, ones that eventually moved on as time went on. It was just the way that the world worked. Friends came and go, sometimes for no other reason than out growing each other.
"I doubt that would happen, but even if the smallest chance it does?" Darcy sat up straight, her eyes directed on Steve's. She smiled and reached over to take one of his hands. "You know, back when I was in High-School a bunch of friends and I went out for Chinese this one time. We had this whole pile of those little fortune cookies you get, each of us grabbed one and read out our fortunes. All my friends got something along the lines of how money or love was coming their way. Me? Mine said, and I quote, 'Finite games can be won, but life is an infinite game.'"
"Nice story, but what does this have to do with us having a kid?" Steve blinked at Darcy. She had a habit of going off on a tangent, and being the only one understanding the connection.
"The thing is that while that cookie was one pathetic fortune for a seventeen-year-old, I've come to understand it." She had pouted when she had read off that fortune, it wasn't something a girl that young wanted to hear. Over time though, she came to appreciate it. She now carried the little bit of paper folded up in her checkbook.
"You've come to understand what, that no one can win at life?" That seemed a rather morbid fortune, as well as outlook on life.
"Pretty much. There is never any guarantee that things will work out, even if we were married one day something could happen and we would end up divorced and hating each other." And Darcy knew that parents being married didn't always guarantee a happy childhood. It was all how the couple handled things. "Maybe you will understand me better this way. If you knew how things would've turned out back at that faire, would you have still gone through with everything, or would you have stopped it before it could start just so you wouldn't have to go through all the heartache?"
"I still would've done it." He had thought on that many times since he had woken, but each and every time he realized that he wouldn't change anything. Some of the things he went through were hard, he dealt with a lot of heartache, but in the end he knew that he would've still went through it.
"Of course, because in the end it was worth it. This is the same thing, maybe not save the world same sort of thing, but it's something that even if things go pear-shaped it will all be worth it." Darcy squeezed his hand before letting go.
"That actually makes sense." Steve shook his head and smiled from ear to ear. He knew that some of the other interns and assistants in the lab didn't think much of Darcy because she didn't study a 'real' science, but if they took even half a minute to talk to her they would realize just how intelligent she was. Darcy could hold her own, and he loved watching her do it.
"Of course it does, I said it." Darcy flicked the back of her hand across one of his arms. It was nice being able to slip right back to normal with him. There had been a point where she thought she had ruined everything, but by then she had already gone too far, been too committed to the idea. "I know there is a lot we need to talk about, but some things you can't truly prepare for. I figured we would talk about the most important things now: living arrangements, how we will handle the subject of religion, health care, so on and so forth. After that? Well, after that we will just have to wing it. When something needs to be decided we would discuss it and work together."
"What about if something happens to me?" He hated to bring it up, but sometimes he felt as though she forgot about.
"Nothing will." Same old argument, she figured they would probably have the stupid thing over and over again until both of them died of old age.
"Darcy, I don't want to think about it either, but it's a real possibility. One day I might not come back from a mission, what happens then?" He was careful, mostly now that he had something at home to live for, but things happened.
"Then we live, we continue to live. It will hurt, but you don't really think that Tony and the others would kick me out just because you are gone?" She understood where he was coming from, every time he went out she feared it would be his last. But she couldn't live her life on pause because something might happen, and neither could he. "Do you have any more questions, or are we done?"
"What if one day you find someone you want to marry?" The words left a sour taste in his mouth. He knew it was a possibility, that she would find someone and move on with her life. It didn't mean he had to like it. He was happy with the way things were, him, Darcy and Bucky all together. It was bothersome to think that someone from the outside would one day wedge their way in and change everything.
"Let me turn that one around on you, what if one day one of those women finally sees all of you and you want to marry, what then?" It would happen, she knew it would. One day there would be a woman that saw not just the hero, but the man, and she would turn his whole world on its head. He might not believe it, but she did, because it would be a cruel world that would allow a man like Steve to continue without love.
"If she can't accept that I have a child then she doesn't really see or understand me." The problem, Steve knew, was more with society's views. Women didn't have a problem with single fathers like men did with single mothers.
"It's the same for me, if a guy can't deal with me already having a kid then I don't need or want him in my life. So, we good?" Darcy held out her hand as though to shake on it. Maybe it was a bit silly, but she figured after all the angst and drama they needed a bit of silly.
"We're good. So, those sites you wanted me to look at?" Steve took her hand with a shake and a smile.
Natasha was good at her job, that was a given. There were things that the others all knew: never try to sneak up on her unless they were willing to lose a limb, never engage in a sparring match with her, never insult her, the list went on and on. The only thing that the team never seemed to learn, and that was to watch everything you do or say around her when they had a secret.
There was more to being a spy than gadgets, infiltrating and extracting top secret information, or taking out targets. It was also being able to translate body language and reading between the lines. And that was something that Nat was good at, and used to her advantage when it came to dealing with her team.
"So, when are you going to tell me what is going on between Steve and Darcy?" Nat bit down on a bit of pickled ginger, her eyes on the selection of food in front of her and not the man in the opposite chair.
"What makes you think there's anything going on? Pass the soy would you?" Sam deliberately avoided looking at Nat, he had found keeping anything from the woman was impossible. The only reason he had been able to keep everything with Steve a secret was because Nat had not been actively seeking it out.
"What makes you think I'm that blind?" Pointing her chopsticks at Sam, she just shook her head. She might like to keep that air of mystery about her, but it was still a bit disappointing that her team members couldn't figure it out.
"Nat, you know I can't tell you anything, confidentiality and all that shit." Keeping his eyes averted, Sam poured himself a bit of the soy.
"Are we really going to play this? You know I will get the information anyway, why not save both of us the trouble and just tell me?" Nat rolled her eyes, he always tried to pull the confidentiality card. She delighted in reminding him that only worked with patients.
"Why would it be trouble for me?" Finally taking his eyes off the food, Sam groaned at the look his girlfriend was sending him. It was her 'I've already won, so you best just give in,' face.
"If it will be trouble for me you can bet it will be twice as bad for you, now spill." Reaching over, she stole Sam's last California Roll with a smirk.
"You are a bad influence sometimes." Sam couldn't help but laugh. He knew he was getting in too deep when they had first started, but he wouldn't change a thing. Life was never dull with Nat, even in their quiet moments a thrill could be found.
"Only sometimes?" With a lick of her lips and a smirk, she winked at him. She liked that she could be herself around him.
In the past she had found her lovers more attracted to the Widow, always wanting that mysterious Femme Fatale; the red dresses, the leather cat suits, the whips and whatever the hell else that they thought she should be. She had had those who allowed her to be free, to be something other than the alluring assassin, but they had never lasted. But with Sam, Sam allowed her to be who she was, silliness and all. They flirted, but it never felt the same as when she was working. It was never fake, he didn't want that, and for that she was grateful.
"Most of the time." He wasn't even lying. Since they had gotten together he had found himself nosing his way in to his friend's lives more than he use to. He had even found himself matchmaking; something he had sworn he would never do.
"Sam, you know I only want to know because I care about both of them." Setting down her chopsticks, Nat crossed her arms in front of her and leaned over the table. What she said was true, she cared a great deal for both of them, but also she just wanted to know. She hadn't been able to get anything out of Darcy, and she had learned awhile ago not to even try with Steve… the slippery little bastard.
"Manipulative… fine, there might be something going on." Shit, Steve was going to kill him, then Darcy would bring him back just so she could tase him and kill him all over again.
"I guessed that with the weird little dance they've been doing lately. So, UST or have they already fucked and they are in the stupid awkward stage that idiots get into?" It would be just like those two to finally get their shit together and throw it all away because of stupidity. If that was the case she wouldn't hesitate to lock them in a room together… naked. In fact she might just do it anyway.
"They're planning on having a baby." Sam sat back, his whole body ready for flight. He probably shouldn't have been so blunt, but there were only so many ways to gently say that your friends, unmarried and not dating friends, were starting a family.
"WHAT?! Run that by me again?" She had to have been hearing things, because surely…
"It's a long story, but the gist of it is both of them have caught baby-fever and are at this very moment deciding whether or not to have one together." He had told Bucky that a baby might be good for the two, but that didn't mean that Sam didn't think they were crazy.
"Right now?" Nat wondered how fast they could finish their meal. She wouldn't interrupt them, not really, but she knew that Darcy had a weird obsession with cucumber rolls and was sure the woman would be grateful for some… and if she happened to hear something, well that was just dumb luck.
Sam placed a hand on Nat's when it looked like she was going to just stuff her dinner in her mouth. He loved the woman, but she was nosey.
"Darcy has been on board with the idea from day one, been pestering Steve about it every chance she gets. Steve had his reservations, not surprising with everything he's gone through, but he's decided that he actually wants a kid. He went to go talk to Darce just before I picked you up." Sam sat back when he realized that Nat wasn't going to run off.
"Those two are the biggest idiots I have ever met!" Of all the things that she had expected to hear, that was the last. How in the world did you go from secret/not so secret crushes to having a baby?
"Don't tell me you're planning on trying to stop them?" There would be enough problems once Bucky found out, they didn't need to add in another person.
"No, it's not my place. If this turns out to be a mistake, it's theirs to make. I was talking about the fact that they've been dancing around each other for almost two years now. This is all getting a little tiring now." It was cute at first, watching as they gave each other little looks when the other was turned away. But at a certain point it just becomes ridiculous.
"Can't argue with you there. Still though, I thought you were rooting for Darce with Steve and Bucky?" Sam knew she had been one of the loudest about the three in the pool. Tony joked around, but Nat seemed pretty sure in her bet.
"Yeah, and those three haven't been doing some dancing? Come on, Sam, you're not an idiot." Nat had watched the way the three moved around each other. It might not end up that way, but she knew the potential was there.
"They might've been doing some dancing, but it will never make it off the dance floor. Buck has too many problems that he has yet to deal with. Those need to be taken care of before he enters into any kind of relationship." Sam knew that Bucky was whole enough, but it was Bucky that needed to believe that. The problem was, no amount of words from him or their friends would be able to convince him until he was ready.
"Shit's going to hit the fan when he finds out about this." Even if the three never ended up together, she knew that Steve and Darcy having a kid wouldn't settle well with Bucky.
"Shit started flinging some time ago. Buck figured it out before I did, he's not happy that is for sure. He's already tried to talk them out of it. As of right now though he thinks he has with Steve. I think more than just shit will be hitting the fan when he finds out it didn't work." Sam really didn't want to be there when it happened. Actually, he didn't even want to be in the damn state when it happened.
"This whole thing is going to turn into a shitfest." Nat laughed lowly, she really wondered sometimes why she always ended up with the idiot friends.
"It could, but in the end Buck will be fine. He loves both of them and only wants the best." One never could really know, but Sam would be surprised if this whole ordeal meant the end of that friendship. "Now, this is our first real date, can we maybe stop talking about team problems and just enjoy ourselves?"
"And just how enjoyable are you planning this night to get?" Nat crossed her arms over her chest and raised a brow. They had been together for awhile, but time and circumstances didn't lend itself well to normal relationships.
"Extremely enjoyable."
Darcy blinked as she worked to wake herself up. She hadn't planned on falling asleep, but she had been so worked up before Steve showed up that she must have crashed once there was a moment's silence.
She groaned as she felt a sharp pain in her neck. Her couch was great for cuddling up on during move night, but it was the worst place to sleep. She stretched her legs, hoping to work out any and all kinks, only to have her feet knock into a very toned leg.
"You still awake?" Darcy had to rub her eyes to get the sleep out before Steve's image stopped being blurry. Why was it that naps left you worse off than before?
"Don't require as much sleep, remember?" Steve set his hand on Darcy's ankle, curling his fingers around the delicate bones there. He smiled down at her sleepy appearance, she looked so much like a child herself in that moment. It made him stop for a second, he might look young, but he was technically older than her. He shook the thought from his head, he normally tried not thinking about it much as it was kind of disconcerting.
"Right, so you are totally going on night feeding duty then." Darcy dropped her hand from her face, allowing it to dangle off the edge of her couch. It was a little strange actually talking about such things, but it was also exhilarating.
"Don't you plan on breast-feeding?" Not that he would dare to dictate to her on what to do, he just wanted to be as informed as he could be.
"Yeah, of course, but I can pump and store some in the freezer for when I can't be there in person. It's totally fine… and you will have to come up with something else to get out of nighttime duty." She gave a pointed look at the man beside her. She knew there would be times when he would be unable to help; when he was injured, on a mission, or just got back from one. But she would be damned if he got out of everything; not that she thought Steve the type to pull that.
"Never said I was trying to get out of anything. I'll even change diapers, promise." Steve held up one hand while he placed the other over his heart and gave her a wink.
"Swear on your shield?" Darcy placed a hand on her stomach and over the little flutter there. She really was tired if a single wink from him made her feel all light headed.
"On my shield and my uniform." Steve laughed quietly, his hand going back to wrap around her ankle. Since he had met her he had found himself swearing on the oddest things, and for the oddest reasons. Not that it bothered him, it was part of her charm. She was quirky and silly, and he hoped that nothing ever changed that about her.
"I'm holding you to that, I hope you know?" She twisted the foot he had a hold of, popping the bones there. She giggled at the look he sent her, but hey, it was his fault for holding her ankle.
"Wouldn't expect anything else." He gave her ankle a little squeeze before patting it and placing his hand back on his lap.
"Good, now what time is it?" There was a clock on the wall across from her, but she really didn't want to expend the energy to turn her head and look. She had been wound so tight worrying that Steve would never agree, that now that he had she had just crashed.
"Uh, five." He had to keep himself from using military time around Darcy, she always pinched him when he did. He had never seen anyone get so pissed off about something so silly.
"Like in the morning? Shit, it's too early to be up." Darcy groaned and burrowed her way into the cushions of her couch. She debated about going to her room; on one hand there was her bed, on the other there was actually standing up.
"Best get used to it now." He couldn't help the smile that spread across his face, he had always found sleepy Darcy cute. Which was a thought he really needed to push far, far back in his mind and not allow it to resurface… ever.
"I know, but you could let me have what's left of my late mornings." She kicked out, but before her foot could connect to his leg, he captured them in his hand. Damn the man and his huge hands and quick reflexes.
"Hey, you woke up all on your own." He shook her feet, only stopping when she peaked her head out of the couch and gave him her murder face.
"Gah, I know. I need a better couch, one like three times this size and looks like it was built out of hundreds of pillows." Maybe she would talk to Tony, she was sure he could put his mind to it and create the ultimate couch. On the other hand maybe not, he would probably put rocket launchers on it or something.
"Or, you know, you could just use your bed." Steve often wondered if she actually ever slept in her bed with how many times he had caught her on the couch.
"Nah, pillow couch is the way to go." Darcy turned around until she was fully facing Steve. She bit her lip a moment before giving him a nervous smile. "Hey, so um, we are doing this right?"
"Yeah, we are very much doing this." He reached out and took one of her hands, his fingers weaving with hers.
"Good. So, tomorrow… or ok later today I'll make an appointment at the clinic and see where we need to go from here." She had an idea, but you could only understand so much from online articles.
"Do you need me to go along?" Steve ran his thumb along the side of Darcy's hand.
"I wouldn't think so. We won't be starting anything today, it will be more of a consultation. Did… did you want to come along?" She knew he would want to be involved, but it really hadn't occurred to her that he would want to be there when he didn't really have a part to play. It should have, but sometimes she was the victim of major brain-farts.
"If you wouldn't mind, I might have a few questions." He wanted to be involved as much as he could, the child would be his as much as hers and he refused to allow her to go through it without him. They were in it together from the beginning to the end.
"That's fine… uh, I'll tell you once I make the appointment." Darcy squeezed her eyes shut, a yawn taking over her. Seriously, it was way too early.
"Darcy…" Steve pulled on the hand he was holding until he had Darcy tucked against his side.
"Yeah?" She looked up at Steve, her eyes already falling shut.
"Go to bed before you fall on the floor." He pushed her up until she was standing in front of him, her body swaying side to side. He was a bit worried that he might have to pick her up or she would actually fall.
"You'd pick me up." Darcy gave a sleepy smile.
"Every time. Now, go get some sleep."
Author's Note: Well, that took a long time. Sorry, life has been hectic lately, and then between my muse pushing oneshots at me and the crossover challenge on Tumblr I haven't gotten to work on this very much. But believe me, I haven't forgotten or given up on this story, I'm still working on developing future chapters.
Now, the next update might be awhile. School starts in less than a month and besides a oneshot or two, I'm going to try and work mostly on development; of this story as well as my 40's Darcy Centric, a Tasertricks, and a western Wintershock romance.
Disclaimer: All publicly recognizable characters, settings, etc. are the property of their respective owners. The original characters and plot are the property of the author. The author is in no way associated with the owners, creators, or producers of any media franchise. No copyright infringement is intended.