The season is fast approaching.

Steve has told Howard to just get a new pitcher.

Howard has refused.

"Clint can pitch." Howard says every time. But Steve is well aware of the tactic he's trying to use.

"I'm just not sure what I'm doing." Steve says, segueing the conversation. "So you shouldn't rely on my coming back."

"Okay." Howard says, looking distracted on his phone.

Steve narrows his eyes. "Who's going to catch if Clint pitches?"

"It's baseball. There are a million options." He says it nonchalantly. Waiting for Steve to protest that Clint is the best catcher. But Steve knows when he's being tricked. So he goes along with it.

Steve shrugs, "okay."

Howard frowns. His ploy derailed.

"You gotta talk to him."

Peggy shuffles through her makeup drawer and holds the phone to her ear by her shoulder, "about what?"

"He's genuinely not going to come back for the season."

Peggy pauses, fingers brushing against the blush compact she had been looking for. "Did he give a reason?"

"No."

"I'll talk to him," she promises, "but I refuse to make him do something he doesn't want to do."

"He wants to," Howard urges, "I know he does. He loved being a part of the team. There is just something holding him back and I don't know what it is. Find out and I'll remove the obstacle. Alright?"

"I'll try."

Steve's eyes are closed, head in her lap as her fingers run through his hair. They are at his apartment and the TV is playing the news softly.

Peggy brushes a fingertip against the tip pf his nose and he scrunches it, opening one eye and looking at her, "what?"

She pretends to be confused, "what?"

"You're thinking about something. I can tell."

"Oh, can you?"

"I can."

"You're right."

He grins, his eye closing again, "and what is it that you're thinking about?"

"Why you don't want to play on the team."

The grin slips off his face and he goes still.

"It's alright if you don't want to. I won't force you. But I am… curious why."

He relaxes and sighs, eyes still closed. "I don't think I can face that many people. Knowing what they know. Knowing what they've seen."

Her fingers trail to his shirt, and she pulls the neckline down a bit. The scratches have healed and only faint marks remain. It may scar. It was rather deep.

"But they know the truth."

"Do they?" Steve asks, pushing his neckline back up. "Not everyone."

"It's been all over the news. Anyone who knew the lie will probably be aware of the truth."

"Maybe."

"Is that the real reason?" She asks, "or is it that you don't enjoy being part of the team?"

"No, I love the team."

"Is it that you want to be a mechanic more?"

"No…"

"An artist?"

He pauses… "I don't know."

"Howard said—"

""Howard. Howard. Howard."

She can't see it, since his eyes are closed, but she can sense the eyeroll.

"He's persistent."

Steve huffs, "I'm aware."

"His persistence…." She grimaces but doesn't stop, "allowed us to find out the truth."

The slow exhale Steve releases is accompanied by a calm acceptance. "I know. And I'm grateful."

"He just wants to make sure you're not holding back for any reason. If it's a reason he can fix, he's promised himself to do so. I told him I would ask. That's what I am doing. If you don't want to play simply because you don't want to play, or another logical reason then he will back off."

"Will he?"

"I'll ensure it."

He huffs a laugh, "why does it have to be a logical reason?"

"Is it an illogical reason?"

"I know it is."

His voice is sad and she runs a thumb over his cheek, his eyes still closed, "and that is?"

"Even though I was drugged, and she was coerced, and I know that… I still did it. I still kissed or allowed myself to be kissed. Everyone knows that. I kissed another girl while engaged to you."

She frowns, annoyed at his perception of himself, "You're right. That is illogical."

He says nothing.

"Steve."

He stays quiet.

"Steve, look at me."

Sad blue eyes meet hers and she grasps his chin gently. "I am fully aware of what happened. I do not blame you for a second. In fact there is nothing even to forgive. You were drugged and manipulated and the victim. And then treated horribly by myself and the public for our misconceptions. You have nothing to be ashamed of."

His sad smile is small. And she knows him well enough now to know that it means he still doesn't believe it. Still blames himself at least a little bit.

Which means it's her job to prove to him she means it.

—

Jack balks, "wait, wait, wait, you want who as a guest?"

"You heard me."

"But why!? To murder her in cold blood on television?"

She laughs, "unfortunately no. She is a victim a bit too even if she was too forward."

He shakes his head. "Holy hell the syndication numbers we will get."

She rolls her eyes. "Can you do it?"

"I'm sure as hell going to try."

—

She arranges it carefully. Howard promises to think of something to help her keep Steve busy for the evening that this particular episode airs. And Barnes and Natasha are in on it too although they don't know the specifics.

She dresses in her favorite skirt suit, the one with the little black velvet bow at the top of the slit in the back.

The crisp white collar of her button up sits nicely under the matching gray jacket. Black velvet buttons and lining to match the skirt. High black pumps with a rounded toe and the engagement ring on her left hand.

Angie is grinning like a wild cat the whole prep time and Peggy laughs at the way the woman keeps saying, 'you're going to eviscerate her."

"I am not." Peggy reminds her, the humor in her voice, "I am just going to make the truth more publicly known."

"I hope she cries." Angie hisses.

Peggy just laughs and brushes her curls firmly into place.

Premiere Night

Steve is never not in awe of Howard's mansion in Manhattan. He stares at the art deco lamps and the huge library through the cracked door and shakes his head. Even with his ridiculous salary last year, he could never afford a place like this.

"Come on!" Howard calls, his footsteps echoing on the marble floors, "Ana has cooked us up a feast."

Bucky and Natasha walk behind him and Peggy. They were here for Howard's wife's birthday party.

The table was set elegantly and Steve stared in disbelief at the sheer amount of dahlia's vased, hung, and spread about.

"Her favorite flower." Howard grins, "we have a special grower."

"Oh humble humility and a slice of pie." Clint teases, "to be loved by Howard Stark."

The crowd laughs and Howard just grins.

Filming Night

"Our first guest tonight," Peggy starts, staring at the audience, "is a bit of a surprise. And perhaps a bit unusual. I ask that you stay respectful in any response you may have." The crowd looks at each other in confused expressions, but she just looks back to the camera.

Max, her favorite cameraman, gives her the 'five, four, three, two, one' finger count down and at the end she smiles.

"Good evening. Thank you for joining us tonight. We are excited for our line-up of unique and unexpected guests." Her eyes crinkle at her own wry smile, knowing that will start the twitter feeds flowing. She wants the most eyes on this when it airs.

After her opening monologue in which she makes the audience laugh, chuckle and the occasional guffaw, she settles back behind her desk. "This first guest is a rather unexpected one. But I felt it necessary. Please join me in welcoming sports journalist, Lorraine Davies!"

The crowd goes silent, shocked. No one had been warned who was coming except the actual show people.

Then a slow and brief applause happens as the woman steps out of the doorway and looks rather resigned and stoic.

Peggy looks at her. Her blonde hair is pale and beautifully curled. She's lean with a sharpness instead of the softer curves Peggy has. Her bone structure is harsh, angular and lips a pale pink instead of Peggy's deep red. Her smart crisp white pantsuit is fashionable and elegant.

She is beautiful. But it's strikingly clear that she is nowhere even near Steve's type. She feels an idiot once again to have ever thought Steve would make a move on this woman.

She stands, adding her own applause and shaking the woman's hand, which clearly surprises the journalist, before they both sit.

"Welcome Ms. Davies. Thank you for being willing to join us tonight."

The woman laughs, "well. Either I get eviscerated on TV or I get to speak my peace. Either way there is closure."

Peggy huffs and covers her amusement with a head nod. "Well my vote is the latter but I'm happy to change tactics if you so desire."

The woman appraises her and then laughs, shaking her curls, "you really are a wonder, Carter." She leans her elbow on the little wooden table between them, "when my manager said you'd called asking for this interview, I about fell off my chair."

"The reaction from my executives was similar."

The audience lets out an awkward laugh and then Peggy straightens her notes, "so, tell me, from your perspective. What happened?"

The woman, to her credit, doesn't wilt or get defensive, she leans back on the small expertly crafted blue couch and looks at the audience, "I already know what everyone thinks of me. And—" she shrugs, "they aren't entirely wrong." She eyes Peggy a bit impishly, "I see something delectable. And I want to eat it. It's not a crime."

Peggy keeps her face impassive and says nothing. So the woman continues. "Steve has been the talk of the town since his first game. Incredibly handsome, kind, hot as hell after that interview he had with you, and so humble it's almost sickening, you know?"

Peggy does not. She does not appreciate the way the woman is speaking about her fiancé. But she had promised herself to let the woman speak her peace. Then shred her apart if needed.

"So when I'm tapped to go to Norway, a huge career opportunity, I go. I hadn't even known it was the Avengers playing until I got there."

At least there's that. It hadn't been some grand vile scheme.

"You saw the interview." The woman says, "I was totally into him."

"But you knew he was engaged." Peggy cuts in, eyebrow raised. She does not add to' me, you bitch', but she thinks it.

Lorraine laughs, genuine mirth. "No offense, but that has stopped very few men before." She shrugs, "now maybe I should have known Steve would be different, but I wanted to shoot my shot anyway. So I did."

"And he?" Peggy queries.

"He was pretty dazed in that interview." Lorraine says calmly, "more so than I think the camera showed. He was pretty out of it. So I backed off and caught up to him later."

"In the alley?"

Lorraine shakes her head, "no. The player's tunnel. After the game, after he'd been cleared from a concussion."

Peggy blinks, trying not to let surprise show on her face. "You did?"

The woman nods, "I did. I figured he didn't remember it when it didn't get mentioned in any news rags. I asked him for a drink."

Peggy's heart is pounding. "And what did he say?"

She laughs, "even without a concussion he was sort of fuzzy. He'd said he was already late for a drink. He was talking about the after party."

Peggy tilts her head, "and that was it?"

Lorraine looks sort of guilty, "no, then I asked him if he wanted to skip the drink and go straight back to my hotel room."

The audience gasps and Peggy has to dig her nails into her desk to keep from scraping them across the woman's face. "And he said?"

"He looked at me like I had thrown another fast ball at his head." The woman laughed, "just said, 'I'm engaged'."

Relief floods her. "So he turned you down?"

"He seemed stunned when I asked him, and then he just— like— walked away." The woman shakes her head. "It did hurt my pride I guess. I haven't really been told 'no' before."

There's a first time for everything you little snake. Peggy thinks.

"What happened after that?" Peggy asks calmly.

Lorraine turns to the camera and looks sharply at it, "I walked away, heading back to the journalist section when I passed by Tom."

Peggy's voice is sharp, "Tom Laufeyson?"

"Yep," the woman emphasizes the 'p' sound and nods, "I look back at that day now and realize how stupidly I got played too—" she holds up her hands, "before you all bite my head off, I get it. I was a bitch for even trying something with him. I get it. But it's not like I forced something."

"The alley?" Peggy asks.

"I'm getting there." The woman says with an eye roll that makes Peggy's annoyance flair, but she nods her head,

"Continue."

"So Laufeyson was in the medical wing too, pretending he'd hurt his hand at that last bat. But I'm pretty sure he was just curious about Steve and whether he was going to get punished for giving him a concussion. But he clicked his tongue at me and offered his condolences for being rejected." Lorraine's eyes get steely, "and he told me the guy was an idiot for turning me down."

Peggy sees the fact that Loki had initiated a grande scheme. Something so simple. Play on people's hurts, their fear of rejections.

"I just sort of ignored him, but then that night, at the bar, he comes up to me."

She remembers the footage.

"And he told me that Steve had changed his mind."

"And you believed him?"

"I was sort of questioning at first, but I was buzzed too and then he said that Steve was out in the alleyway, drunk and waiting for me but he wouldn't wait for long because he didn't want to draw eyes because of his very public engagement." The woman frowns. "Now that I see how I was played, it pisses me off. But to me, and my inebriated mind. It soothed my hurt pride to hear it. Made me feel good that he'd thought about me and changed his mind. Decided I was worth it."

Peggy hates that she understands it even if the actions repulse her.

"So I headed outside, and sure enough, there he was, leaning against a brick wall, head in his hands."

"And you just kissed him?"

Lorraine glares at her, "listen, I'm sure you think I'm some nasty bitch. But I'm just telling you what happened, okay?"

The audience is quiet and Peggy gestures to the woman, "continue."

"I approached him, and he hadn't even noticed me yet. All I said was 'Steve?'" She shakes her head. "Being drunk, I thought I heard him say 'this is wrong'. Which made sense in my drunk mind. Of course this good guy would think cheating on his fiance was wrong. But I'd convinced myself that he wanted me. I wanted him to want me." She looks down at her nails. "I kissed him then, trying to show him that wrong could feel right." Her smile is without emotion, wry and regretful, "and the camera flash went off almost immediately. It startled me, made my drunk panic set in. Then Thor or Chris or whatever his name is was crashing through the back door, some scientist on his arm and I took off." She looks over at Peggy. "The next morning, when I came to my senses, I realized he hadn't said 'this is wrong'. He'd said 'something's wrong'."

Peggy feels the dread. How scared and sick had Steve been? Knowing something was wrong and not able to do anything?

"But the picture was already out there. It was too late. I knew I'd been played by that bastard, but I didn't know what to do about it. What was I going to say? He hadn't pushed me out the door. And my boss was pissed. Flew me straight home."

Peggy, who had felt confident in Steve and at ease about the situation since the truth had come out, feels the last bit of concern melt away. Not once had Steve betrayed her. Not once had he been a willing participant in anything that had happened.

He was as perfect as she knew a person could be.

"Thank you." Peggy says genuinely. "I appreciate you coming on here and sharing your side of the story."

"Thanks for actually listening." The woman responds, "most people have just assigned me to the skank category and not given me a chance to explain. I know I wasn't in the right, but I would never have done what I did if I'd known the truth."

And for some strange reason, Peggy believes her. "I believe you." She says, turning to our audience, "Lorraine Davies, ladies and gentlemen!"

The audience cheers, louder than before and the woman smiles, waving and disappearing through the doorway and hopefully out of their lives forever.

Steve grabs his phone out of his pocket and looks at the caller I.D.

It's Dugan.

He stands, "I'll be right back."

Bucky sees the phone in his hand and grabs his wrist, "what is it?"

"Dugan's calling."

Howard glances over, "what is it?"

"Dugan's calling me." Steve says confused, "I'll be right back.

Howard blanches. "I'm sure it's fine. You can call him back."

"What?" Confusion rising at their reaction. "It will just take a second."

"It's rude." Peggy says quickly. "It's Maria's birthday party and you're going to answer a phone call?"

The room is now quiet and Steve stands there, one foot away from the table and 7 pairs of eyes on him.

"It's fine—" Maria says softly, looking as confused as he does, "I don't mind—"

"Maria," Howard says tightly,

But now Steve is suspicious. "What?"

Howard turns to Bucky, "you didn't warn them?"

Bucky frowns, "about WHAT? You wouldn't even tell me! I just know basics!"

Suddenly his phone is buzzing again and it's Jones.

"What's going on?" Steve asks, concern ratcheting, "is someone hurt?"

"No." Natasha says quickly, "no. No one is hurt." She sets her phone back up on the table as if she'd just had it in her lap. "They're calling because Howard and I wanted them to pressure you into rejoining the team. I forgot to tell them we were here tonight. that's all."

Peggy grabs his hand, smiling at him.

It's a gross enough truth that Steve could believe it. He wouldn't put it past Natasha, Howard or Bucky to try to do something like that. But something doesn't sit right. Peggy doesn't seem annoyed by it.

The phone call dies off and he stares at his phone. "No one is in trouble?"

"No," Bucky says with his easy going smile. "No one is in trouble. Or hurt."

He sits back down. "Okay…"

Peggy relaxes. And that tells him it's something else.

Filming Night

"She's good." Angie says reluctantly, "I'll give her that."

"It's hard to hold a grudge when you know they're being totally honest." Peggy admits, "even if she's got a black mark in my book for trying."

Angie nods, helping her out of her suit and getting it hung for the cleaners.

Steve hears Peggy knock and he goes to open the door. She looks radiant in her comfy sweater and jeans, hair tucked in a bun and dangling earrings. "You look beautiful." He comments, "but you look ready to go out. I thought—"

"I want to take you out." She states, hands pressed against her thighs, "on a date. Will you?"

"You just got done filming. Don't you want to relax?"

"No," she says softly, "I want to go on a date."

He smiles, "you're sure?"

She nods. "Yes, now let's go."

Premiere Night

"You going to tell me what that was actually about?"

Peggy tries not to wince as they walk back towards her apartment, hands intertwined.

"I don't want to."

"Why?"

"Because you'll either be mad, sad, annoyed or a secret fourth option I haven't thought of."

"So it has to do with me?"

"Yes."

"That's why Dugan and Jones were calling?"

Her voice gets tight, "probably."

"And why would they be calling me?"

She lets him lead, her eyes closing for a second as she had hoped to avoid this conversation for at least 24 hours after it premiered, but that was foolish of her.

"What time we're they calling you?"

Steve frowns, "I don't know, 9ish?"

She nods. "Just after 9." She looks at her phone. There are texts and calls from his friends on her phone too. Morita asking what the hell? Then another that says, I take it back. I'm glad.

She just hoped Steve would feel the same. It has been miserable keeping it from him. But she was 100% certain if he knew he woudl have trie dto get her to pull the episode. Which… maybe she should have allowed him that choice. But it was too late now.

"Is the time significant?" He asks, still sounding lost.

"Yes."

"Okay…" she doens't say anything, "why?"

"What happens at 9 weeknights?"

He pauses, pulling her to a stop, "your hsow."

She grimaces.

"Why? What happeneD?" He looks worried, "what happened? You haven't said—"

She rests a hand on his chest. "I had a guest."

He frowns. "You always have guests."

"Yes…" she sighs, "but tonight I had a particularly strange guest."

His eyes search her face. But he's smart, connecting the pieces. "a guest that has to do with me?"

She nods.

His eyebrows pucker, "Laufeyson?"

"No!" She gasps out, "No. No. Not him. He's in Norway, hopefully behind bars. No."

His face gets more pinched then his eyes widen and he looks at her sharply not saying a thing. She grimaces, reaching her other hand out but he steps back, putting distance between them.

She does not step forward.

"It was a good thing," she whispers, her voice cracking. "I swear."

"You invited her?"

"Yes." She says more firmly than she feels, "and I don't regret it."

"Why?" He asks, looking hurt and confused.

"Because you were worried people didn't know the truth. Thought that people would still judge you on those actions since they didn't know the full story."

"You did this just to convince me to play baseball—"

She does step forward then, "No." her voice is a snap. "I do not care whether you throw another baseball in your entire life. But I will not live with the knowledge that my lack of faith in you and your actions caused you to suffer. So I rectified that."

He looks torn, "rectified?"

She takes a deep breath, "would you like to watch it?"

It takes a long minute. A police car wailing by in the meantime. But then he nods, "okay."

At the end of her segment, Steve takes a long deep breath and says nothing.

He can feel Peggy sitting beside him anxiously, waiting for his judgment.

And finally all he can say is the truth. "Thank you."

The flood gates of relief course from her and then she's wrapping her arms around him and he feels more at peace than he has in months.

Peggy wakes, feeling groggy and a bit stiff from falling asleep on his couch. She'd hugged and kissed and kissed him some more after he'd thanked her. All her worries and anxieties about how he'd react washed away.

Her hand reaches out and finds nothing. She sits up, blinking at the dim light over the oven that gives off a cozy glow. She can see Barnes' boots at the door and knows it must be eitehr very late or very early given the color of the sky.

"I know."

She pauses, hearing Steve's voice.

"So then you decided?" Barnes' quiet voice floats through the crack in the door and she realizes Steve is talking to James.

"I did."

"And, what did you tell him?"

There's a pause and she hears the smile in Steve's voice, 'I'm going to play—" A whoop fills the apartment followed by a furious shushing and quiet laughter. "She's sleeping!" Steve admonishes.

Barnes laughs, "sorry—" but he sounds too happy to be apologetic. Peggy can't blame him. "Did you tell her?"

"No, not yet." Steve says, and she peeks her eyes over the edge of the couch, watching the door even though she can't see them in his friend's room, "but I will when she wakes up."

"What made you change your mind? The interview?"

There's a pause and she can hear the endearment in Steve's tone, "no, I mean… Hearing all that did help. But no…"

"Then what?"

"I was sitting there an hour ago—" Steve starts. "And she had fallen asleep, just the most beautiful woman to exist laying in my lap. And I couldn't help thinking… she'd invited the woman she probably hates more than anyone else in the world, just to help me."

Barnes stays quiet and Peggy's fingers grip the top of the couch.

"She let Lorraine tell the truth. Invited her on to her own show, Buck. Had the woman less than five feet from her and just let her talk. And I've heard Peggy rant about Lorraine a few times now. But she pushed away her pride and let someone she can't stand speak. And she did that for me. Because of something I said bothered me."

She can hear the way his head shakes in disbelief. 'how can I be a coward when she is willing to do that?"

She hears a hand clap against a shoulder, "I'm proud of you, and I'm sure Howard was thrilled."

Steve huffs a laugh, "oh, he was."

Peggy sinks back down, closing her eyes and pulls the blanket closer to her, using it as a pillow. So is she.

"Numbers for that interview are out the roof—" Jack says, shuffling through papers. "Most rewatches of her segment on YouTube. Not passing you and Rogers' first interview, that's way out there in numbers, but still. Wildly popular stuff." He looks up at her and grins, "we need to get you guys in more scandals, this is great—"

Peggy throws a stress ball (provided in all the writers' rooms) at him and it bounces harmlessly against his forehead.

He grimaces, "okay, you're right. No more scandals."

She laughs and looks at her upcoming guest list.

—-

Steve's not sure what Howard's reasons are. But he does not announce Steve's return to the press. He keeps practices to just the team and does no press talk before the season is set to begin.

Their first game is home against the Arizona Diamondbacks.

And as the crowd fills the stadium, he wonders what their reaction will be.

The new uniforms, slightly altered from last season, look really good.

Natasha enters the room and smiles at them, "another season, ey boys?"

They laugh and cheer and clap each other on the back.

"Your families and invitees have made it to their boxes." She says looking at her clipboard. "So Clint, expect the camera to focus on Laura a lot."

He laughs and nods. Steve knows she's pregnant and the whole team is as excited for him as he is eager to be a dad.

She gives them a few more announcements and then Howard comes in, giving a speech about his pride in his team and excitement for the season.

Then he pauses and his eyes flick to Steve.

Oh no…

"And I wanted to say—"

"Howard—"

"Steve." He says clipped, "let me speak."

Steve goes quiet.

"Last year…" the room goes still, waiting to see what he will say. "I made a whole big deal about scandals." Steve winces, 'And I meant it." He looks around at the team, "and I still mean it. BUt—" he takes a deep breath, "I make a promise, from here on out, that I won't ever leap to conclusions again like I did this last year."

He wants to cut in again but he doesn't.

"I did not give Steve the proper due diligence or time to really investigate or understand what had happened. Even though I knew it didn't make sense for him."

Howard turns to him, "Steve, I am sorry. I don't know if I've officially said it. But I wanted to say it in front of them—" he gestures to Steve's teammates, "so you knew I meant it."

"It's okay—" he says quickly.

"No." Natasha says, stepping beside Howard. "It's not okay. We all just assumed what we heard was correct, except Sam." The man, sitting next to Steve, rolls his eyes but stays quiet. "So we're all at fault for believing something we shouldn't have. And that lack of fact checking won't happen again. Not from the press side, not from the managerial side."

Sam rests a hand on his shoulder and he nods, looking down.

Howard says a few final things and then his teammates are filing out, heading towards the players' tunnel. He notices Howard waiting for him at the door and he stops.

"You still haven't told people I'm pitching?" He asks.

Howard grins, "I mean, I'm sure some people know. Hard to keep a total lid on it, but for the most part, yeah. It's a secret."

"Why?"

Howard grins, "let me show you."

Peggy had worn a hat, glasses, a large coat, and not entered with the other families. Howard had not wanted her, or any of Steve's family and friends seen by the press until he'd walked out on the field. They'd all be shuffled in different directions and up different paths to reconvene in a different box than Steve's usual. It was a little extra cat and mouse, but she allowed it. Knowing Howard had some idea of how he wanted today to go.

Surprisingly, the sports world hadn't figured it out. They had been anxiously awaiting the announcement of The Avengers' pitcher. And since no word had come, people were split between believing Steve's return, and wondering if Howard had some secret other option he was going to bring up.

But then Spring training had happened and when Howard had kept the press out of the stadium, people assumed it was a new pitcher training with the team. Why keep Steve's return a secret?

The announcer is rumbling through the speakers, announcing the players for the Diamondbacks and she speaks to Hank and Gabe quietly from the back of the box where they can't be seen by the cameras.

Eventually the man gets to the Avenger's lineup and she can hear the excitement in the crowd, now sure Howard is trying to pull some ploy and shock them with whoever it might be.

they tiptoe forward, sure all the cameras are busy watching the players tunnel and that's when she hears it.

"And, your starting pitcher, number 18, Steven Rogers!"

It becomes crystal clear why Howard had waited.

The absolute cataclysmic roar of the crowd, first surprised and excited shrieks, to deep guttural bellows and ear piercing shouts make the whole stadium shake.

She cheers right along with them. As do Hank, Gabe, Jim, Dugan, Barnes and Denier.

His gobsmacked expression from the crowd's reaction is shown on the giant screen as he lightly jogs onto the field. The sight of him in that uniform makes her want to cry for some reason and even though it's cold, she rips off her coat and jumps up and down, the jersey she's wearing, proudly displayed.

And yep, she grins, the cameras had found them. His whole box cheers and waves and claps and shouts in their support and the crowd roars again.

Even the opposing team is clapping for him and she feels an achingly loving pang in her chest for Howard. He must have known this would be the response. What better way to ensure the man knew he was loved and seen than to have his whole city, family, and colleagues there cheering him on all at once?

She leans over the edge, feeling the cool spring breeze ruffle her hair and even though the crowd is still roaring, she sucks in a deep breath and bellows with all her might, "STEVE!"

She thinks the breeze might have been on her side as the man stops, turning in her direction as if the sound had caught his ears.

And then he does see her and he smiles. And just like all those days ago, she smiles, and blows him a kiss, turning to display that she was not wearing the jersey he'd had made for her, the one with her last name. But she was wearing a new one, one she'd requested from Howard.

Mrs. Rogers

18

The camera catches his wide eyes and then his joyous smile, looking like he wants to run up there and kiss her right that second.

But he refrains, saluting and winking at her instead. Which makes her grin in elation, Hank smiling like a proud dad and Barnes whooping like an older brother.

Soon after, he's on the mound and she hears the announcer call,

"Play ball!"