Chapter Twenty
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"Hey, Peggy - you okay?"
Peggy Carter brushed her snow-soaked hair out of her eyes and turned to see Steve Rogers, long legs driving powerfully through the deep drifts as he caught up with her.
"I've been warmer," she admitted, thanking him with a smile for the grenade pin he offered.
He shifted his gear a little more solidly on his back, eyes fixed on her face as he fell into step beside her. "Yeah, this cold is getting at everybody. Wish it would let up, just for a minute."
Peggy tugged off her gloves, holding them in her teeth as she fixed her hair back with the bit of wire. Sometimes it seemed as if the cold would never let up, that she would never, ever be warm again.
Steve seemed to read her mind because after a few minutes of silent tramping, he spoke up again. "Bucky and I were talking. After the war's over, we're going to go to Coney Island. You want to come along? They've got a swell Ferris wheel, and it'll be lots warmer."
Surprised out of her gloomy mood, Peggy smiled up at the tall man next to her as she pulled her gloves back on. "I haven't been on a Ferris wheel since I was a very little girl, but I remember it was magical."
"No kidding?" Steve was genuinely surprised. "Most of the rides were too much for me, but we both liked the Wonder Wheel. Man, Bucky and I used to go almost every summer to get away from the heat in town, when we could scratch up the cash. Seems impossible now, doesn't it?"
They looked out across the bleak landscape for a long moment, trudging through the snow, nearly knee deep in places. Steve tripped over a hidden log, and only his enhanced agility kept him from planting his face in the snow.
"Depend on it then," he told her as he recovered his footing. "You come out to Brooklyn after this is all over, and we'll go to Coney Island and take a ride."
She laughed at him then, and her heart warmed at his answering grin as big fluffy snowflakes started to fall around them both.
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"Oh Steve, I'd almost forgotten about this!"
"Did you?" Steve asked, helping her into one of the seats. She didn't exactly need the help, but the opportunity to hold his hand was too good to pass up. The line wasn't very long for some reason; she noticed the wheel was almost empty. The attendant made sure the bar was secure across their knees and then the wheel began its slow rotation.
Peggy's shoulder brushed his as she settled back. To be fair, the seats were rather narrow. "Not entirely," she admitted at last. "But I didn't expect it would ever happen."
It was unusually cool for May, and the sun had set and the wind was blowing in off the water. She shivered a little, and Steve leaned forward to pull off his jacket, carefully wrapping it around her shoulders. Sitting back again, he too-casually left his arm along the back of the seat, and she hid a smile at the smoothly executed maneuver.
"That better?" he asked, and she nodded gratefully. His jacket was warm around her, and sitting next to him was like sitting next to a hot water bottle, due to his higher metabolism. Peggy got chilly easily these days, possibly as a side-effect from being frozen. Tests had determined she didn't seem to have Steve's souped-up metabolism, and while traces still remained in her blood, Bruce was fairly certain that her body was not actively generating the super serum.
"It's much better than that winter," she pointed out, and could feel his chuckle vibrate through her shoulder. "It was so cold that year - I thought I would never feel my feet again."
"You're warm now though?" he asked again, and she nodded. "I'm warm now." Warm inside and out, just from being near him.
The lights of Coney Island shone brilliantly, dropping below them as the wheel began another turn. As they rose, she tipped her head back to look at the sky. One or two stars were just visible through the light pollution and smog of New York.
"The stars aren't as bright these days," she mentioned, leaning into his shoulder. "It must be all those electric lights - you can't really see them any more."
Steve's heart skipped a beat and he very carefully tightened his arm around her, just the littlest bit. "I don't need the stars anymore," he told her, and he could scarcely hear his own voice over his heartbeat pounding in his ears. "You've always been my North Star, Peggy."
She grew very still, but he couldn't quite see her face, couldn't tell what she was thinking. Then she tipped her head back with a teasing twinkle in her eye. "Is that why my picture was in your compass?"
Steve groaned in mock frustration. "Did Tony tell you about that? He wouldn't stop giving me flak about it when he found out."
Peggy leaned away from him so she could see his face better. "I saw it on a newsreel during the war. You mean you still have it?" She couldn't stop the smile that grew across her face as he shifted his weight to get at something in his pocket.
"They tell me it was in my fist when they found me," he told her at last, putting the battered metal case into her palm. Her breath caught as memories rushed over her at the touch of the familiar little instrument. Settling back against his shoulder, Peggy opened the small case. Her own eyes looked back at her from a scrap of newsprint. It was faded, damaged by water and time, but SHIELD restorationists had worked hard to preserve it.
"You've always guided my decisions, helped me see the right way to go," Steve told her quietly. "I couldn't think of a better place to put your picture. I can't tell you how many times I pulled this out during the recent Hydra fiasco, trying to think, 'What would Peggy say?'"
Flushing with pleasure, Peggy carefully snapped the compass shut and slipped it into his waiting hand. Steve closed his fingers over hers, compass and all, and took a breath. Suddenly the world stilled, closing down to just the two of them on the top of the Ferris wheel, suspended somewhere between the earth and the sky.
"I lost you," he said, and his voice was very low and very earnest. "And I thought I could learn to live without you, but I was wrong. You're the most important person in my life, Peggy. I was wondering - I mean, you don't have to if you don't want, and I know you haven't been here long, but I thought maybe..."
His throat closed off for a moment with the intensity of his feelings, and she looked up at him, confused, a ridiculous, incredulous hope bubbling up in her chest. "Steve, what are you trying to say?"
Very, very carefully, he ran his thumb across her knuckles, loosening his arm around her shoulders a little so he could see her face.
"I'm trying to say that I love you," he told her honestly, and swallowed hard, blue eyes darting up to search hers, a shy smile beginning at the corners of his mouth. "If you're willing, would you do me the honor of becoming my wife?"
Peggy forgot how to breathe as Steve looked up at her from under his eyebrows. His hopeful smile looked so uncertain, as though he seriously thought she might refuse, but his eyes shone bright and true, waiting patiently for her answer.
She knew Steve loved her - had known it for years, since long before he drove the Valkyrie into the ice. He'd never been good at saying so, but every word, every look, every touch had told her as surely as if he had shouted it at the top of his lungs. He was loyal and tender, with a quiet humor and a stubborn streak a mile wide, and Peggy Carter loved him back so fiercely that she thought her heart would burst.
"Of course I will," she told him, and the staunch Brit somewhere inside of her was mortified to hear her voice choke. Then everything was swept away by the glad light that sprang into his eyes, and she was in his arms, caught triumphantly against his heart with the strong throb of his heartbeat pounding through her whole body. Burying her face in his collar, Peggy felt happy tears run down her cheeks, and she clutched at the front of his shirt with both hands. If this was somehow a dream, and he vanished away, then she was determined to vanish with him.
Steve cradled her close and smiled against her hair until his face hurt, scarcely able to realize his colossal good fortune. The only girl in all the world that he had ever loved had just consented to be his wife - the impossible realization filled his heart and set every nerve tingling with joy and relief. His blood was dancing in his veins, and the solid reality of her in his arms made him feel as if he could conquer every foe fate could throw at him.
"Peggy, I swear I'll make you happy, so help me God," he whispered into her hair, half prayer, half promise.
She tipped her face up to look at him, radiant, cheeks wet and bright. "Oh, my darling - you've already made me the happiest girl in the world," she breathed, and reached to pull his head down. He went willingly, bowing his golden head as she raised her lips to his for the first time in seventy years, warm and sweet, with a world full of promise.
It was better than their first kiss.
That alone was incredible, because Steve had always thought their first kiss had been pretty good. This time, however, there was no need to cut it short. No lives were at stake, no clock ticking down - it was just the two of them wrapped up in each other's arms. For the first time since their romance had begun, they had all the time in the world.
He kissed her back, tenderly, hesitantly at first, and then again and again until, rosy and breathless and laughing, she slipped her arm around his neck and laid her head against the heart that beat only for her. Steve blinked dazed eyes and tried to catch his breath, watching the carnival lights gleam on her hair and trying to memorize the moment, the way she felt pressed against his side. His mind was still staggering at the realization that he was holding the most precious woman in existence - and that she was actually willing to marry him.
"Peggy," he whispered, loving the way her name felt on his lips, and she tightened her grip on him, pulling herself even closer, tipping her face up to his. Steve's heart skipped a beat, and he lost himself in her dark eyes with a sweeping wave of sheer joy.
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"Okay kids, ride's over, break it up," the voice of the ride attendant was vaguely familiar as the wheel slowly came to a halt. Looking up, Peggy found herself staring directly into Clint's grinning face as he unhooked the safety bar. It was only then that Peggy realized they must have been riding far longer than the normal ride length. Raising her eyes, she discovered the wheel was completely empty; the other riders must have got off at some point.
"You planned this, didn't you?" she asked Steve as he helped her to her feet. His bashful smile gave her the answer. Clint took the opportunity to claim her free hand in a brief handshake. "Welcome to the family, sis," he told her, and then slapped Steve on the shoulder. "Get rid of the lipstick, man. Doesn't suit you at all."
Blushing, Steve went for his handkerchief, but Peggy stole it from him. Standing on her toes, she blotted the color from his lips with great care. From the look in his eyes, she could tell he wanted very badly to kiss her again, but this was too new and there were too many people around for either of them to be comfortable doing so. She started to fold his handkerchief, but he gently pulled it from her hands to wipe away her forgotten tear-tracks. The tender reverence in his touch almost made her break down all over again, so she laughed shakily instead.
Clint stood by, watching the happy couple. Already, they'd completely forgotten his existence, which was just as it should be. He nodded decidedly, and smiled at the look on Steve's face as he tucked Peggy's arm through his own. "Yup, he deserved this," he told the Ferris wheel controls, throwing the lever to start the wheel turning once more. "Can't think of a guy who needed this more. They're gonna start glowing in the dark if they get any happier."
The control panel didn't answer - but he did get a strange look from a couple of passing teenagers.
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The moon was nearly full as Steve and Peggy strolled down the empty boardwalk, listening to the ocean, reveling in simply being near each other. Steve's arm was close around Peggy's waist, and she pressed into his side, fingers laced between his. After a few minutes, Steve suddenly made a small sound of surprise and drew away, hands slapping his pockets. Then a little sheepishly, he motioned toward his jacket, still wrapped around her shoulders. "Ah, in my breast pocket - the inside one..."
She opened the front of the coat so he could get at the pocket himself, and stole a glance up at his face as he fumbled around, brow endearingly furrowed with concentration. Her heart sped up as she realized all over again that this man loved her. Then he stepped back holding something small, wrapped in tissue paper.
"I knew I was forgetting something," he admitted, pulling away the paper. Peggy caught her breath at the sight of the ring in his hand.
"We can get a different one if you'd like," Steve was saying, but she cut him off. her voice snagging in her throat. "It's perfect, Steve. It's perfect."
It took them both a minute to figure out which hand was her left, since she was too excited to think straight and he kept getting distracted by her radiant face. Peggy held her breath as he finally slipped the cool circlet down over her finger, and then pressed her hand between both of his. "There, now you're officially my girl," he told her earnestly, and she dimpled helplessly, admiring the gleam of the ring on her hand, proud that it was his.
"I don't suppose you'd marry me tomorrow?" he continued, a half-teasing, half-hopeful light in his eyes. She slapped ineffectually at his chest, and felt the rumble of his chuckle through her palm. "Tomorrow? Steve, we'll have to get a license and a church, and you have the children's hospital concert in the evening."
"I can multitask," he protested, and she couldn't help laughing giddily at the injured tone of his voice.
"Sam flew out to California," she reminded him gently. "Somehow I don't think he would ever forgive you if we got married while he's out of town."
"Sometime soon, then?" Steve slipped his arm around her waist again, pulling her close. "I really, really don't want to wait much longer," he added, voice low in her ear, and she understood what he wasn't saying. They'd waited too long before, and almost lost their chance at happiness and a life together. This time would be different. Thrilling, she put her arms around his neck because he was hers now, and because she could.
"You've been patient for seventy years, captain," she told him mock sternly. "You can be patient a few more days. However," her voice softened, and she laid her head on his shoulder, safe in his hold, "I'll admit I don't want to wait for very long either."
He folded her still closer, and she felt him press a kiss against her hair. "Saturday then. Will you marry me on Saturday?"
Peggy tipped up her head, enjoying the way her sweetheart's eyes lingered on her face. "Saturday sounds wonderful, but don't you have that meeting with the president?"
"The president can reschedule," decided Steve firmly, and kissed her again.
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Yay! Okay, folks - I did some scrambling, and there is one more chapter after this. Possibly two, but no promises. I keep giving you faulty estimates - so sorry. I'm just glad you're hanging around to the end!
As with a lot of my chapters, this one has a real-life element to it. During WWII, my grandpa came home on furlough, took his sweetheart to a local amusement park, and asked her to marry him. (She said yes.) Also, the Wonder Wheel Steve chose to propose on is quite real, and one of the landmark rides in Coney Island. Built in 1920, it still runs to this day.
Thoughts? Drop me a line - I love to hear what you're thinking!
Disclaimer: I own nothing but the storyline.