Maria will from henceforth be called Maria Rogers and I'M SUPER HAPPY ABOUT THAT! Finally...

Thanks to those who favorited and followed!

A special thanks to love . fiction.2017 who reviewed!

Make You Feel My Love
~Book IV~

Disclaimer: I do not own Civil War or any other Marvel characters in this story. All I own is the story I've come up with and my own characters.

Chapter 27

Silently, Maria and Steve sat in the hospital room. Maria had a monotone look on her face, though her eyes revealed how sad she felt inside. The brims of her eyes were red, and from time to time, her eyes would fill with tears that she managed to push back enough for them to not spill over onto her cheeks.

Unsure of what to do, Steve sat next to her on a chair as well, simply holding onto her hand and watching her face intently. His face was not monotonous, but riddled with worry. Right after she had fainted, Steve had taken her straight to the hospital, not even turning off the stove, which right now was causing him some distress. She had awoken on the way to the hospital, though she had said nothing, not even when Steve had asked her questions. Maria never ignored him, and he was worried it might be something else that was causing her to unconsciously ignore him. Her face was pale, and her hands shook from exhaustion. She had barely even been able to walk up to the front desk on her own, needing Steve's full support.

The doctor entered, though only Steve looked up at him when he did.

"The test results are… worrying."

Steve froze.

"Even with the extra nutrition, her body isn't recovering. May I ask what happened before she fainted?"

"She got the news that one of her friends had died."

The doctor's eyes showed regret at asking that question, and as he looked over at Maria, he saw her eyes filling up with tears again.

"The baby is alright at the moment. The results show that every piece of nutrition is moving straight to the baby, but Maria needs some as well… For some reason, her body isn't absorbing any of it for itself. Perhaps… Perhaps you only need to talk to her. I suggest you take her back home, let her grieve and… hope for the best. I will warn you though, her body, although it has self-healing capabilities, cannot stay malnourished for much longer. She and the baby will be in danger if this goes on for too long."

Three weeks later, and Maria had barely moved from the bed. The wedding had been postponed and everyone worried. No one could make her feel better, no one could get through to her. Steve was worried sick, his heart beating fast all the time. He tried to make her talk to him, but could not. Her face paled more and more each day, her cheeks sunk in… This was beyond grief now. Something was eating her up, and Steve had to get it out of her.

One evening, when Wanda and Clint left after another failed attempt at getting her to talk, Steve heard footsteps from the bedroom. He had been sitting in the living room, staring at the black TV screen, thinking of a solution to get her to talk to him. Little did he know, that he did not have to come up with a solution on his own. Before he knew it, Maria was standing in the doorway. Although her body shook from the strain she was putting on it, she was still standing on her own, staring straight at him. Unsure of what to do, Steve stayed put on the sofa, watching her carefully as she rounded the TV and sat down on the other end of the couch. She placed an arm around her baby bump before shyly glancing over at Steve, who was still staring at her, shocked she suddenly was walking and looking at him again.

"I didn't say goodbye."

Everything fell into place. How Steve had not understood it earlier was a mystery to him. Of course she missed Matt, but it had not been her grief that had caused such a catatonic state. It had been the fact that she had left him on such bad notes, not even saying goodbye, that had been eating her up. Without hesitating, Steve shuffled over to her and embraced her, cradling her body close to his. She sobbed, finally letting out the tears she had been holding in for so long…

"Matt Murdock is dead…" she wheezed in between sobs. "He was my friend…"

"I know, I know…" he hushed.

For over an hour, the two sat like that on the sofa, Maria sobbing to and fro. When she had finally calmed down, she looked up at him. Her bloodshot eyes and her paled face made her seem so weak, even though Maria Dalton was in no way weak. It only made Steve want to hold her tighter.

"I'm hungry."

The words were almost comical to him, and he smiled gently down at her. With one hand, she caressed her tearstained cheek.

"I can make pancakes."

For the first time in three weeks, she smiled.

One week later

Wanda was her bridesmaid. Her hair had been pulled up into a beautiful setting held up by flowers twirled into her hair. She wore a beautiful red dress that showed off her curves and sat tightly around her waist before extending out into a flowy piece of skirts that dragged off behind her. Maria had made jokes about how her dress was more beautiful than her own, though in reality she hadn't really been joking. The whole idea of wearing white wasn't really what Maria wanted, though Steve wanted it and so she decided to go along with it.

The white dress Maria and Wanda had chosen was, however, not bad, although Steve would probably not have chosen it himself due to how open it was. But Maria was pregnant and it was hot out, so she decided she could wear whatever she wanted no matter what Steve thought. Besides, there was no safe way they could have a proper wedding night without harming both herself and the baby, so she had to tease Steve somehow.

The dress was cut open both at the front and at the back. The skin that would normally be shown was painted in a faint layer of glitter, an idea Wanda had when Maria said Steve might faint if he saw her wearing such a dress in public (no matter what he might say, he was still a true forties man in his heart) and some of the ladies living there in Wakanda had given her some bracelets to wear on her arms. And it was literally her arms and not her wrists. The bracelets were made out of silver threads who, when the bracelet was put on, created a beautiful network of silver threads all up her arms to the strap of the white dress, which happened to also have outlines of silver. Around her waist, just above her small, but still protruding, bump, a silvery belt was strapped around her dress to make sure it stayed where it was supposed to, while at the same time also making sure that her curves could be seen. She wore no bra due to complications concerning sweat and friction, which meant she felt pretty comfortable in her dress. Below the open upper part, a forest of white skirts all embroidered with tiny silvery threads flowed gracefully over her legs, stopping just above her ankles to show off the open high heels she wore underneath, while her hair was done in a similar way to Wanda's.

"You know, Steve is going to have something blue, something red and something white on."

Maria frowned, "Are you sure?"

Wanda gave Maria a look that told more than the words 'for real' could have done and Maria giggled at her friend.

"I don't mind."

"Well, I do. It means he's showing off who he is, but you're not. And you're much cooler than he is," she said, her faint accent still causing Maria to question her sexuality.

"Well, I'm known to be the, oh, what does the media call me again, oh yeah – mother of death, and I don't really know how you can represent that in a beautiful way on your wedding day."

Wanda smirked, "Challenge accepted."

"Wh- Wanda! I didn't mean that!"

"Well, I did."

"Alright, what did you have planned?"

"We're obviously not going to have you representing death on your wedding day. But, you told me earlier this week about what the doctors had revealed about your powers. About there being something to do with shadows?" Wanda walked around Maria as she stood before the mirror, seeming to be inspecting what Maria looked like. "So, how do you make shadows beautiful and non-creepy?"

"I don't know," shrugged Maria, perfectly content with the way she looked and just wanting to see her future husband's sexy attire and be able to call herself Mrs Rogers.

"Like so," smirked Wanda, grabbing a piece of cloth from behind Maria and showing to her what she meant.

Maria smirked.

Steve was standing in front of the waterfall, nervously biting his lip. Sam was standing next to him, looking out over the rather small group of guests who were all standing, waiting, for the bride to arrive. T'Challa, King of Wakanda, would wed them and Sam and Wanda each had a ring, serving as both bridesmaid/man of honor and ringbearer at the same time. T'Challa cleared his throat, earning the attention of Sam, before he nodded over at Steve. Sam sighed at the completely distressed look Steve had on his face.

"Relax," said Sam as he nudged Steve in the side. "What do you think is going to happen? She won't run away now, she's sorta stuck with you since you got her preggers."

"Stuck? Did she tell you this? Does she not want this?"

Sam sighed again, rolling his eyes at the 'captain' and first avenger. "You've fought Hydra. You've fought Ultron. You've fought Tony freaking Stark. And you're worried about this? Dude, she loves you! Look at everything she's going through just to be with you! Ya'll are fugitives!"

Steve let out a shaky breath, "You're right... I need to calm down."

"You know what you need to do? You gotta keep those arms down. You've sweated right through the fabric of your suit..."

Steve glanced down at his armpits, blushing as he realized the truth. Though before he could comment on it, music started to play indicating the bride had arrived.

"Just, stay calm, don't faint like those people on YouTube, and don't lift your arms," whispered Sam before patting Steve's shoulder, clearly enjoying the moment where he was braver than Captain America. "Good luck."

Steve swallowed, looking over at the stairs where Maria would soon descend from... And descend she did. There, glowing, glittering and looking even more beautiful than Steve had ever seen her, was his wife; Maria. Her dress was beautiful, a little too revealing in certain ways, but still beautiful. It was clear that she had thought about showing who she was as well, a white cloth hanging down from her hair to her hips which looked to have been dipped in shadows at the end – clearly a trick she was causing with her newfound powers. Around her feet, the same effect was going on, her dress looking as though she had dipped it just recently into a pool of shadows that now were dripping down as she walked and moved. However, as the shadows dripped, they did not touch the floor but simply disappeared like mist. And although she looked fearsome and beautiful all at once, it was her smile and her happy eyes that made Steve's heart melt at the sight of her. She could have worn anything – but in the end, it was that smile and those eyes that Steve found beautiful.

Reaching out a hand as she finally reached the altar, the two intertwined their fingers and turned to face each other. Wanda moved to the side, smiling over at Sam who was stood on the other side, behind Steve. The crowd was not big. Basically, only the doctor, a few of T'Challa's relatives and close friends, Scott and Clint were stood there, watching the ceremony. Though it was more than enough for Maria and Steve.

T'Challa's ceremony was a mix of Wakandan traditions and American traditions. Though mostly Wakandan. The only thing that was American to do during weddings, and which Steve and Maria also did, was to write their own vows. Wanda had helped Maria with hers, seeing as she was not the best of writers nor speakers. And together, the two had come up with a beautiful little speech that involved a few inside jokes, and a few romantic promises. Steve's smile never faltered as he listened to her and watched her put the ring Wanda had given her onto his finger.

Though it was not her speech which people would remember. It was Steve's.

He cleared his throat before beginning to speak, both his hands holding onto hers, "When I first met you, I was a broken man. A man out of time. A man with no friends. All I knew was who I was, though I was no longer needed in the world in the same way I previously was. In short, I was only half of what I used to be. A half.

"And then Coulson picked me up on that street in New York, and you stepped out of the SUV as well. I was nearly swept off my feet right there and then, blinded by your beauty. I thought I was simply being taken to a mission, but it turns out, I was being taken to you.

"I soon found out that you were just as broken as I was." Maria chuckled at his words, causing him to smile. "And you understood me. It was a sensation I had never really felt and I could not explain either. Not until after I had proposed to you the first time did I find out what I actually felt.

"Remember when we were dared to lift Thor's hammer? Remember how we put our hands on its shaft and actually managed to lift it, though we both refused to due to what might actually happen? I do too. And I want you to keep that in mind for a little while longer.

"Remember when we were at the airport, and you had hurt your hand and I helped you up, grabbing your sword and handing it to you? Do you remember when I did the same thing a month back? And the sword did not react to me like it would with others? Keep it in mind for a little while longer.

"Love. That is obviously what I felt for you. But I knew that way before I proposed that first time. It was not just love that I felt. It was more. You see Maria, I believe I was a half. And you were a half. And together we make a whole. That is why we together can lift Thor's hammer. That is why we both can hold your sword… That is why we are standing here today, deciding to take on the same surname. That is why we love each other.

"And I promise you, Maria, that, no matter what, we will always stay as two parts of a whole."

Maria stared up at him, her smile gone out of shock of what he had told her. She did not even look down at her own hand to see him putting on the wedding ring Sam handed him... Her heart had basically melted by now and she was actually unsure of whether or not it was still beating. Everything was out of focus, everything apart from Steve.

T'Challa smiled at the two of them, "I now pronounce you husband and wife. You may-" Before he had even finished his sentence, Maria caved to the feelings that Steve had stirred inside of her with that speech, grabbing his face and kissing him square on his lips. "-uh, kiss the bri-husband."

Steve stumbled slightly at the harsh kiss, though melted into it at last, gently moving closer to her while she let her arms lock around his neck. Wanda, Sam, Clint and Scott applauded the two of them loudly.

"Maria Rogers," breathed Steve quietly as she ended the kiss.

"Finally…" she breathed back, kissing him again.