AN: Like I said, I'll be posting weekly! I'm so grateful for the great response so far. We're (maybe) halfway through, probably less than that, but we'll see how the rest of the story works out in my brain. Hope you enjoy!
Disclaimer: I don't own any Marvel characters, but I do own Stella, and she's pretty badass.
"So, how was it?" I heard Stella mutter suggestively behind me as I stocked fabric. I rolled my eyes and couldn't help but smile at least a little bit smugly.
"It was none of your business," I answered and Stella huffed impatiently, walking around me to get a better view of my face.
"Uh-uh. Based on the smile on your face it is my business. Share some details sweetie, let this old woman live vicariously through you." Stella continued, taking a seat on the demon stepladder from earlier that week, peering up at me beseechingly. I rolled my eyes and grinned.
"It was amazing. He was amazing. He was sweet and gentle and so nervous, it was freaking adorable," I gushed, unable to stop myself. Stella smiled and clapped her hands gleefully.
"Oh, I'm so happy to hear that doll. You were in need of some good loving. I think that's why you've been so clumsy lately. Unbalanced chakras." she nodded sagely.
"Excuse me, how do you know I haven't been getting any? For all you know, I've been getting plenty!" I replied indignantly.
"Oh sweetie, if you've been getting plenty then it has been the wrong kind of plenty. Especially considering the glow you've got about you today from a long night of loving," I sighed, knowing that she was right. I had been in the middle of a dry spell after a short series of untalented and assholish lovers. I hadn't had proper, feel-it-in-your-bones-and-happy-dance-sex in a very long time. "Now tell me, are those shoulders as big as they looked in that leather jacket?" she asked.
"Bigger." I replied and Stella grinned.
"How was he in the sack?" she asked unabashedly.
"Very...eager" I chose my words carefully.
"Eager? What do you mean eager?" I paused, unsure of how to continue and how much to share without encroaching on Steve's privacy.
"He was very eager to learn. Very eager to please." I finished.
"Well that's always a good sign. A man who's eager to please will always put your needs ahead of his, inside and outside of the sack. Wait, eager to learn? Don't tell me Captain America is inexperienced." she finished. I hesitated.
"Well, not anymore he isn't." Stella's eyes widened visibly in shock before her face broke out into a smile that threatened to split her face in two.
"Charlotte Alexandra, you dog," she exclaimed.
"Sssh, Stella, keep it down. He just didn't have much experience and now he does. He was very eager to learn last night. Multiple times." I winked at her and she slapped her knee loudly.
"Charlotte, I couldn't be more proud. Ugh, to be young again," she murmured, gazing off dreamily.
"Oh please Stella, if you wanted some you could still get some no problem. You can charm the crap out of anything that moves." I replied, finishing with the rest of the fabric and grabbing leftover stock to put in the back.
"Maybe in my youth. But I'm not a young woman anymore. Your captain reminds me of a young soldier I met after Vietnam. Somehow he had managed to come home without being completely screwed over by that war, like so many of the boys who got sent over there. He was kind and loyal and sweet. But there was a sadness in his eyes I still can't describe properly. Just like your Steve," she mused quietly, her eyes growing sad and reminiscent. "And he was eager to please too. Gave me my first vaginal orgasm." she proclaimed proudly, "He was a good man. A good man." she finished, leaving me standing in the middle of the stockroom, that scarring image now burned into my brain. I shook my head, grabbing my phone out of my pocket when it vibrated.
"Hey, how'd it go last night?"
"Well, I can now say that I've officially defiled a national treasure."
"Oh my god, you whore! I hate you!"
"Hey! I saw the opportunity arise that's all."
"I'm sure that's not all you saw 'arise' *wink-wink*"
"Jesus Steph, real mature."
"Hey, what can I say? I'm one sophisticated lady. What happened? I need details."
"Not through texts. This isn't a secure line. National security is at risk."
"National security my ass. You just want to brag to my face."
"Yep. Loudly and rudely. Can't do that over text. You free later tonight?"
"I get off of work at 7. Want me to swing by with our usual?"
"No, I'll make dinner. How do tacos sound?"
"Amazing. Guac too please?"
"No problem. I'll see you then!"
After a quick trip to the local bodega on my way home, I cooked up the beef for the tacos, filling my apartment with the fragrant smells of cumin and chili powder. I hummed along with the music I had set to play on my computer, hips bumping in time with the distinctly latin beat. I always liked to listen to latin music after a night of sex. Something about that warm rhythm just resonated with me whenever I felt I had been properly appreciated, which I definitely did. I looked up at the clock from prepping the veggies for the tacos and noticed that Steph was running late again, though I couldn't say that I was surprised. She was incredibly dedicated to her job as a nurse at Cedars-Sinai. She had always had that unique streak of a rock solid core and unconditional sense of compassion nurses need, even back in college when she had been my first roommate my freshman year. Reminding me to eat and shower and function whenever I dived too deep into either of my majors.
As I finished the thought, she burst through the door, a densely compact unit of energy. Long and skinny, she was always the complete opposite of me. Rail thin due to an overactive metabolism and running around a hospital floor nearly every day, Steph seemed frail, but those long muscles were deceptively strong. She shrugged off her coat, tearing one of my clumsily knit hats from her pin straight blonde hair as she walked over to the kitchen, leaning over the stove to sniff at the beef in the frying pan.
"Too much cumin," she evaluated.
"Excuse me?" I asked incredulously.
"You always put too much cumin. I don't know why you want everything to taste like armpit," she reached over me to grab the salt and I smacked her hand away.
"Hey! This is the recipe I've been using for the past 5 years. It's delicious. And no more salt! You're a nurse for godsakes. Aren't you supposed to be concerned about sodium intake?"
"Ugh, don't be such a stickler. A little salt never hurt nobody." she smirked and dove past me to sprinkle more salt in the beef. I made a face and conceded, stirring the beef to incorporate it.
"Boy, you must've got some last night. You never would have let me do that otherwise," Steph remarked, taking a seat at the kitchen table.
"I didn't exactly let you do anything. It's not my fault you have freakishly long arms," I replied, and yelped when Steph reached over to pinch my arm.
"Still. You got sex last night. You're listening to latin music. Cuban, from the sound of it. Which means you got good sex," she wriggled her eyebrows suggestively as I plated up the beef and tortillas, bringing them over to the table.
"What does the nationality of the music I'm listening to have to do with what kind of sex I had last night?" I asked incredulously.
"Ha! So you do admit that you had sex last night! And you always listen to Cuban music when you have a good night of loving. So spill!" she pushed, assembling a plateful of tacos.
"We didn't really mean to have sex, it just sort of happened," I replied, taking a bite of my first taco.
"Uh-huh, we've had this conversation before. Sex does not 'just sort of happen'. It is a conscious choice between two individuals. Consent and all that shit," she gestured. I cocked an eyebrow.
"Classy," I muttered, "I mean it. We didn't really mean to have sex on the first date, we both just kind of couldn't keep our hands off of each other." Steph shivered delightedly.
"Oh my god, that's hot. I'm so glad I made you wear the garter belt."
"Me too." I blushed. Steph's face lit up.
"So, how was it? Was he good?" she asked.
"Of course. Once he got into the hang of it."
"Out of practice? I guess 70 years in the ice would do that to you."
"Not out of practice per say…" I trailed off.
"What do you mean?" she pushed.
"He wasn't out of practice. He just had never really picked up the bat," I winced at the euphemism and Steph squealed.
"You mean he? No. Captain America's a virgin?" she asked incredulously.
"Not anymore." I smirked.
"Oh my god. You deflowered a national treasure! You took the Captain's V-card!"
"Ugh, shut up," her phrasing sounded awfully similar to Tony's and I didn't like it one bit.
"Sorry, sorry, I'll stop. How was it," she snickered and suppressed a giggle before continuing, "performing your civic duty?"
"Steph," I said warningly.
"Think you can get out of jury duty because of this?"
"Steph!"
"Sorry, sorry, I'll stop, seriously," she laughed, her face finally turning serious. "But really, how was it?"
"It was fantastic. He's a very quick learner." I admitted sheepishly.
"That's always nice. The only time I ever had sex with a virgin it was back when I was still one. And that was a fumbling awkward mess."
"There was definitely no fumbling or awkwardness last night. He was surprisingly sure of himself. Confident, but not too cocky," Steph snorted at my word choice and I rolled my eyes. "He was very sweet, very concerned about how I was feeling. But I'm serious about not meaning for it it happen. Definitely not three times either."
"Three times? In what time span, numbers woman!"
"Oh, I don't know, like six hours?" Steph's eyes popped wide before she narrowed them in mock offense.
"Oh I hate you. That's just not fair." I couldn't help but smile smugly.
"I know. And he's coming over here tomorrow for a movie night and take out."
"Wow a fourth date, already? Damn girl you're diving in quick." Steph shook her head and turned her attention back to her tacos.
"What do you mean 'diving in quick'? Its just a movie night." I replied.
"Yeah, but its what the fourth time you've spent time together in less than seven days. That's a lot of exposure for you," she continued, grabbing both of our plates and heading to the sink, well aware of my cleaning policy.
"What do you mean 'a lot of exposure for you'? Am I some kind of vampire or hermit? I do leave this apartment on a regular basis."
"That's not what I meant and you know it. You just tend to hold guys at arms length most of the time, especially in the beginning, which you definitely aren't doing now. You just met the guy, made him baked goods, had sex with him and now you're going to have a movie night with him, all in the span of a week. I'd say he was something special if I thought you wouldn't bean me in the head with a pot holder," I dropped the pot holder in my left hand, making a face when she used her nurse skills to predict what I was going to do.
"Of course he's special. He's Captain America. But he's not special like that. He's a nice guy and all, but nothing more spectacular than any other relationship I've had before." my voice growing quieter and quieter as I finished the sentence. Steph snorted loudly and burst into laughter.
"What? Steph!"
"I'm sorry, I just wish you could've heard yourself there. You are full of shit. You really care about this guy don't you?" she asked, drying her hands and coming over to the table and sitting down.
"Shut up." I muttered.
"You really do. Oh, you've got it bad, I can tell already. I should've known it would take a superhero to get you to actually open yourself up to a real relationship." I glared at her, and stared at my hands. Maybe I had gotten myself torn up over Steve already. Steph made a few good points, but this was just the beginning of our relationship. Weren't the beginnings of relationships supposed to be hot and heavy? So what if we had sex last night, that doesn't mean I was any more emotionally involved than any more of my one night stands.
"I don't have it bad, okay? Steve and I just met. We're a little hot and heavy a little quicker than we usually are but that doesn't mean jack shit." I answered, getting myself more and more worked up as I spoke, the beginning of a migraine perking up in my brain.
"Hey, calm down Charlie, I know. I wasn't deliberately trying to bait you, I promise. I'm just surprised. And happy. He's a nice guy, and a superhero. Just enjoy the ride. But don't let your fear of actual human connection get to you okay?" she replied, holding my hands in hers on the table. I met her blue eyed gaze and nodded evenly.
"Fine." Steph smiled and patted my hands approvingly.
"Good. Now, I've got to go get home to Tim. If I leave him alone too long he gets too entrenched in his Skyrim game to notice if the building is burning down." Steph leaned over and gave me a kiss on the cheek before rising and wrapping herself up in layers. "Now, don't sulk. Do something productive, okay? I'll text you!" she said before swinging out the door. I sighed, looking around my now silent apartment. Penelope sneaked around the corner, winding her way around the kitchen chair. I smiled and picked her up, carrying her to the couch.
"What is up with you lately? So unsocial." I nuzzled her fur and scratched that spot I knew that she liked between her ears.
"I don't know Penny. Maybe I am getting too involved with Steve. He's just so nice and easy and sexy." Penny purred in agreement, licking the underside of my chin affectionately with her rough tongue. "Yeah, I know, not as sexy as you. But seriously. He's handsome and sweet and loyal and kind and all of these ridiculously wonderful things. How could I possibly be what he wants? How could I delude myself that I'm anything but a fling? But on the other side, he's Captain America. Captain American doesn't have flings. Or is that stupidly old fashioned of me to think at all?" Penelope squirmed out of my arms and walked slowly away, losing interest in that immediate and complete way cats do sometimes. I sighed.
"Yeah, I don't blame you. I don't even want to listen to me complain about this," I murmured, getting up and going over to my bed. Maybe Steve and I were spending too much time together. Maybe I was getting myself in over my head. Steve was everything I never knew I wanted in a man. And from the way I was already looking forward to our movie night the tomorrow, I could already tell that maybe I had gotten myself in far enough. But that was fine. I would see him tomorrow night because it would be rude to change plans on such short notice and then we'd take a few steps backwards. Maybe wait a few days before we met up again. Yeah, I told myself as I snuggled into bed, that would be fine. My phone buzzed on the nightstand and I picked it up.
Hope you had a good day. Miss you already -Steve
I locked the phone and sighed heavily. Yeah, no. I was pretty much fucked.
AN:Oh no, is our hapless heroine falling in love? Review please!