CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

( "MR. MAN" )

A SIGH ESCAPES Quinn's lips as she fixes her hair in the mirror, trying get smooth away any flyaways that escaped her brush. She was never one to worry about her looks, usually she'd rely on Jo to primp her hair, tweeze her eyebrows, or blend away any unwanted blemishes. Being without her seemed to create a hole in her heart, like she had taken advantage of living with her, to the point where she didn't know what makeup trends were even in now. Thankfully, Robin was moving in with her and by the looks of it she was equate to Jo in the makeup department. Maybe just a tinge more subtle.

She cursed to herself as she picked up the eyelash curler, pinning it to the light-bulb in the bathroom to add heat to it. A little trick she had learned from Jo. Where Jo had excelled in perfecting her makeup techniques had spent too much time focusing on working or running to even begin looking up any eye catching makeup tutorials.

A soft nudge knocks her out of her concentration, burning the top of her eyelid with the hot metal tool. She hisses in pain as she glances down as the culprit. Rudolph's soft brown eyes seemed to double in size as she gazed down upon him, a small whine escapes from his muzzle. She scoffs to herself as she looks at her eyelashes in the mirror, this was about the most she was going to get to a full face of makeup.

Perhaps it was the best since she was undoubtedly going to be sweating with all the moving. She ruffles the fur atop of Rudolph's head as she exits the restroom, heading towards the kitchen where he danced happily against the tile floor. A small smile appears on her lips as she watches how excited he got knowing it was breakfast time. She scoops out a cup of dry dog food and slaps it in his bowl, waiting for him to eagerly eat it.

Instead, the golden retriever sits in front of the bowl, staring at the kibble then glancing back up towards her with pleading eyes. "Sorry bud, it's the best I can do for now," she apologizes, placing the scoop back in the bag. Jo had gotten him too attached on wet dog food, which was always nice, she knew what he was eating but, it was just too expensive for her. Rudolph turns his nose up to the food, leaving the kitchen and Quinn behind.

"Bud," she calls out to the dog, hoping to catch his attention. Her phone vibrates against the tile on the counter, making an awful sound. She was half expecting it to be Steve calling her, asking where she was, but instead it was a an unknown number.

This peaked her curiosity, yet she was hesitant to answer it. Knowing her past experience with Hydra it had conditioned her to be untrustworthy of the unknown. She builds up enough courage to pick up the call with a skeptical greeting. "Hello, is this Miss Quinn Cruise?" The posh accent of the woman confused her. She didn't know anyone from England. Her arms instinctively tuck themselves against her chest. "Yes?" her voice is still on edge. "Miss Cruise, my name is Priya Khatri. I work for Stark Industries. How are you this morning?"

Quinn's brows raise at the title. The name sounded familiar to her but she couldn't place where she had heard it before. "I'm fine," she answers. "How are you?" she continues the niceties, however, that's the last exchange that is pleasant with the PR rep.

"Miss Cruise, I'm calling you today in regards to my client, Captain Rogers. I'm sure you're obviously aware of his status as an Avenger, correct?"

"Uh, yes," Obviously, is what she wanted to say. "Is there something wrong?"

"Not at all. We just have been noticing that you and Captain Rogers have been getting rather close lately -"

"Oh, no, it's not like that," Quinn lamely attempts to correct her. She wanted it to be like that but she just wasn't too sure about them. "Right," Priya states, her friendly voice starting to disappear. "Well, here at Stark Industries we like to keep extreme precaution over our clients, including any members of the Avengers. We know that you and Captain Rogers are fairly close and we need you to sign a non-disclosure in order to be seen out in public with him. Just as a precaution,"

Quinn's brows knit together in confusion. A non-disclosure just for their friendship? She didn't plan on bad mouthing him in public to anyone or bad mouthing him in general. Where was this back in DC? What they were doing back then was more discreet than what they were doing now. "I'm sorry, Miss Khatri, I'm just not I follow -"

"We need you to sign a NDA in order to be around our client. We've been made very aware of your past with Captain Rogers and I have nothing but the best intentions to keep my client safe,"

Quinn is speechless for the first time in a while. Did Stark think she was going to intentionally hurt him? That she was just going to snap on a whim? This remark hurt her, it felt as if she'd been slapped. A burning reminder of how naïve she had been in DC after the months of what she thought was being careful. Her attitude of somewhat confused turned into a strict anger. How dare them judge her without fully knowing her. "I appreciate you trying to protect Steve but, he's my friend. And I would never dream of hurting him if that's what this is about,"

"Miss Cruise this is precisely what this is about," Priya's voice was now starting to get hostile. "I'm not sure you fully realize the threat you possess towards Captain Rogers, nor do I think he does as well. Because of your unpredictability, we are asking you to sign this agreement to keep Captain Rogers's name in good taste -"

"But slander mine?" Her phone vibrates next to her ear, making it irritated. She peers down to see a picture of Robin picking up a moving truck. This must've been her warning to get going. "I'll think about signing it. I have to go -"

"I don't think I've issued the severity of this. We need you to sign this in order to continue seeing Captain Rogers. We'll also need whatever friend you decide to show him off to to sign one," Priya insists, causing Quinn's temper to almost broil over the edge.

"Fine," she says between gritted teeth. "I'll come in and sign it tomorrow -"

"No, you will need to sign it as soon as possible, Miss Cruise," Priya interrupts. Quinn pinches the bridge if her nose in order to stop herself from exploding at Priya over the phone. She didn't have time to banter about what she can and can't do.

"Listen, this is the only day I can move my roommate in. I will sign it tomorrow," Quinn persists, her voice teetering on the edge of a shout - it definitely wasn't friendly.

"Miss Crui -" she hears Priya protest before she cuts the line off. A large sigh escapes from her lips as she rubs her forehead. Was being Steve's friend always this difficult? She couldn't remember a time where she had to sign anything in order to see him. It wasn't even an option. Fury granted her the right to continuing teaching Steve, why did Stark feel the need to control this? Was it because of the Hydra situation? Maybe trying to be Steve's friend was wrong. Her phone vibrates in her hand once again, alerting her of a new text. She rolls her eyes, it was probably from Robin again. As she looks at the screen Steve's name pops up.

"Where are you?"

"Shit!" she hisses under her breath. She was supposed to pick up Steve before going over to help Robin out. She didn't have time to stew over how Priya had treated her over the phone or how annoyed she was with Tony Stark - a man she's never met before. Quinn frantically tears through the apartment looking for her keys. Once she finds them, hidden underneath a throw pillow, she pats Rudolph on the head and heads out the door.

"I'm on my way."

~BOOK TWO: AGE OF ULTRON~

IT'S A MIRACLE that there was parking beside Stark Tower that had an available upon Quinn's arrival. Whether or not the spot was meant for someone important she didn't care, she was on a mission. Extract Steve and get to Brooklyn as soon as possible without letting him know how stressed she was about the day. She takes a moment to preen herself in her rear-view mirror, pouting at the poor effort she put in to doing her makeup today.

She shakes her head to clear her thoughts, she couldn't think about herself right now. As she steps out of the car she's engulfed in the shadow of the skyscraper, which forces her to marvel at how tall the building really was. The once prominent "Stark" on the top of the building was presumably redesigned into an stylized "A" for the Avengers. Something she had seen them working on when she came for an earlier visit to see her mother years ago.

She meanders through the crowd of people who engulfed the area, either trying to get into the building for work or just using the tables on the outside to relax and maybe catch an Avenger or two. Once inside the noisy and cluttered outside becomes echoed in almost complete silence aside from the few phones that rang at the wooden front desk and a handful of people in suits walking about. She quickly picks up her phone from her back pocket and attempts to call Steve. No luck, it goes straight to voicemail. A groans escapes her lips as she stands awkwardly in the middle of the lobby looking completely out of place.

While everyone was dresses nicely in cool tones of black or a sleek grey suits or dresses, she stood out like a sore thumb wearing black and grey gym shorts, sneakers, and a fitted hoodie that she could easily take off when she got too hot while moving. "Excuse me, ma'am?" a voice calls out to her from the side. She swivels over to see who's calling her - a receptionist with a sweet smile who obviously noticed how confuses she looked.

"Can I help you with anything?" she questions as Quinn slowly approaches the desk, craning her neck around one last time in an attempt to find Steve. "Uh, yeah, maybe. I'm here to pick someone up. Steve Rogers?"

The receptionist raises her brows at the mention of the Avengers name. "Okay. Do you have an appointment?"

"Appointment?" Quinn reiterates, sounding even more confused. The receptionist nods her head. "Yes, per our policy all guests who request to see and Avenger must make a pre-approved appointment with the party," she informs her tapping the sign encased in plastic on the edge of her desk. Quinn's brows raise even higher as she reads the sign, the large symbols of Stark Industries and The Avengers were proudly stamped underneath the legal language.

This obviously was Tony Stark's doing, there was no way Steve would approve of this. She nods her head as she purses her lips, feeling a bright red shade of embarrassment engulf her cheeks. "Thank you," she whispers out as she places the sign back down, slowly backing away from the desk. She gnaws at her bottom lip as she takes one final look around the spacious building before deciding to wait in the car. As she turns to head out towards the door she hears a familiar voice call out for her. "Quinn!"

She turns to see Steve stepping out of the elevator, a wide smile on his face as he waves to her. She returns the smile and the wave, stepping away from the door. Hopefully this didn't make her look stupid for absentmindedly standing in the lobby like at idiot. As she approaches him she notices a smaller woman at his side dressed in business attire. She was beautiful in laments terms, especially when she looked up to smile at Steve as she said something, a giggle erupting from the both of them. Quinn tries her best to hide the jealousy that was starting to coarse through her blood. Steve wasn't hers, she knew that, but for some reason looking at him with another woman who was giving him a flirtatious look gave her an awful feeling.

Once again her lips press into a tight lipped smile as she stops halfway, not wanting to move another inch if there was going to be something upsetting she was going to witness. "You're wearing shorts today, I don't think I've ever seen you wear shorts," he notes as he approaches her, pointing at her bare legs, causing the woman next to him to giggle along with him. Quinn merely shrugs as she feels embarrassed at the comment. "I don't want to be too hot," she mutters under her breath. "Where's Robin?"

"Oh she's at her place in Brooklyn, I was going to go help her out,"

"You mean we were going to," he corrects her a small chuckle escaping his lips. Quinn joins in and laughs awkwardly along with him not wanting to come off as irritated by the strange beautiful woman's presence. She shuffles her keys in her hands out of habit when she's in awkward situations like this. "Right," Steve chides as she watches him place a hand on the woman's shoulder. "This is Priya. She's my PR," he introduces the small tan woman. Quinn resists the urge to roll her eyes. Of course this is the woman she snapped at over the phone.

She takes Priya's hand in a firm shake as she notes that it's great to finally meet her in person. She wished she could say the same. However, the comment toiled with her mind. Did Steve regularly talk about her? "I actually spoke with her earlier," Priya informs Steve. "She actually hung up on me,"

Quinn's mouth falls open at the audacity that the woman had. The nerve. Although she may have been in the wrong for hanging up on her, she didn't need to brag about it in front of Steve. Her face felt hot with anger and embarrassment. She laughs nervously to herself. "What? Quinn would never do that," Steve chuckles light-heartedly his face contorting into a weird expression - somewhere between comical and questioning. Thankfully, she had been good around Steve for him to think this was uncharacteristically of her. She begins to join in with a nervous chuckle. "Yeah, I'm sorry. I had bad reception and I didn't want to call back since I was in the car," she lies watching Priya force a giggle out.

"Well, since you're here Quinn, why don't you sign the NDA?" she asks, simply holding out a packet the size of a small book, a fake smile plastered on her face. Steve's brow raise in question as he looks at the packet. Quinn was starting to get a migraine about signing this non-disclosure, and frankly it was getting on her final nerve. Begrudgingly, she takes it and flips through the pages.

"You want me to sign this right now?" she asks, perking a brow up at the PR rep who in turn nods her head. "Doesn't he get a say in this?" she gestures over to Steve, who has put his hands in his pockets, examining the packet with a questioning gaze. "He would've but he already signed a contract with us," Priya counters, forcing Quinn's lips to purse. She can see Steve shift awkwardly in her peripheral. She thought Steve would've been more careful. "You want me to read sixty pages when I only have a limited amount of time to get to Brooklyn?" she flips through the pages once again.

"You could just sign," Priya shrugs. Quinn can tell that she was starting to get a little tense by being around her. She snorts at the statement. "And get roped into something I don't know about?"

"Do you usually read user agreements when your phone updates?" Priya questions, placing her hand on her hip while glaring at Quinn. She was starting to show that she was agitated now. Quinn rolls her eyes. "I work at Apple, of course I do,"

"Quinn," she hears Steve call for her. She gazes up at him only to receive a pleading look - something only Rudolph would do to make her roll over. He wanted to leave with her, not be stuck here doing paperwork. Quinn rolls her eyes as she signs the last page of the non-disclosure but not before adding a little of her language in. Priya's face scrunches up as soon as she reads her demands.

"The signature is just a precursor. Because of the time constraints I'm willing to sign it but on the condition that we can make addendums when I can read it thoroughly," Quinn states, watching Priya bite down on her bottom lip to restrict her anger. The PR rep rolls her eyes and shuts the packet. "Deal," she hisses out under breath, fucking the packet underneath her arm. She completely ignores Quinn's presence as she shows off a dazzling smile towards Steve. "Be careful, we don't want you straining any muscles, Mister Man," she flirts, grasping on to his left bicep for good measure as she giggles. Steve joins in the laugh making Quinn's gut wrench with envy. What was happening?

She tries her best to conceal the negative emotions she was feeling by crossing her arms across her chest. She hoped with how tightly she was hanging on was enough to conceal whatever she was feeling. She tries to place a smile on her face as Steve gazes at her, she wanted to appear content even though the whole experience in the building had her seething. What had taken him so long to get to her? Why did he ignore her call? All these questions swirled around her head, jumping to the conclusion that it was because of Priya.

She stays a steady pace in front of him, causing him to look at her with worry. He wondered if he had done anything wrong. She tries to shake the gnawing feeling of envy away. She didn't know she could get this hot headed over someone's actions, it was completely unlike her. She starts to blame it on the stress of the time constraint, she also didn't like signing something without actually reading it. Legal paperwork was tricky, she didn't know what she was getting into or even what she was turning into.

"Since when did you become famous?" she jokingly questions as she places herself in the driver's seat of the car, watching Steve climb in beside her. His brows furrow before he answers. "When I got the serum in forty-four, I guess,"

She rolls her eyes, she didn't think he'd take the question so literally. "Has it always been like this?" she asks as she types in Robin's address to her phone. "Like what?"

"You know, signing contracts and NDA's. Did you know I have to make an appointment to come see you?" Steve's brows raise at this information. He knew that when he had signed up for the Avengers it wasn't like this but, because of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s fall Stark Industries was now the main funder of the team. He was grateful for Tony doing that, he'd be out on the street otherwise, but he noticed that Quinn had a point. Things had changed exponentially since he moved into the tower. His popularity grew in size, it wasn't like he could go on a run through Central Park without being stopped for a picture like he could in DC. "It can't be all that bad, right?" he tries to explain.

"I have a place to live and Priya is actually helping me find my place here in New York," Quinn is silent for this, only merely nodding her head. He could've sworn that he saw her roll her eyes. "Right, well, I'll remember that when I have to make an appointment to see you because apparently that's a policy that I was made aware of today," she jabs, throwing the car into reverse.

Steve scoffs at her comment. Quinn tries to calm herself down, knowing that this was only going to effect her and Steve's friendship if she kept badgering him about it. She knew she couldn't let things get to her, there were always going to be girls out there who wanted him but he hasn't chosen any since he's returned from the ice. He places a firm grip on her shoulder, causing her to peer over towards him. A warm and encouraging smile is placed on his lips, causing her cheeks to become hot.

He didn't have to look so damn good all the time, and she hated that he was wearing the grey shirt that made his arms look bigger. "It's going to be okay," he reassures her, his hand travelling to the top of her shoulder blades lightly rubbing it. Her stomach erupts with butterflies. She bites the inside of her cheek to stop herself from smiling at the small gesture instead focusing on why he was doing this. He must've noticed how quiet she was being and how conflicted she looked. It was somewhat embarrassing but for some reason she didn't feel all too embarrassed.

Steve's hand stops rubbing her shoulders, leaving his arm resting behind her in a nonchalant style. Although, Steve barely seemed to notice what he was doing it was very hard for her to continue driving, knowing that his arm was slung around her shoulder. She thought for sure that he would retract it at any time but, his arm remained around her the entire car ride.

Quinn places the car in park as she finds a spot on the side of the street to park, a few spots down from where the large, orange moving truck was parked. Steve hops out of the car, squinting up and around the brick styled borough of Brooklyn. It seemed all too familiar to him and if he tried hard enough he could imagine being back in the forties. His heart sinks as he realizes that the borough had changed - as most things tend to do with time, he just didn't know it could change drastically.

Quinn places a hand on her forearm, drawing his attention down towards her. A small smile spreads across her lips. It was almost as if she were encouraging him, telling him that it was alright to be like this. Nostalgic. Instead of pulling him along with her, she drops his forearm and turns to head down the street towards the building with a moving truck in front of it. Steve follows her lead, trying to keep pace behind her without looking around. She places her hand up on his chest to stop him in front of the building.

"Maybe I should go in first. Alert them that royalty is coming," she half-way teases, Steve playfully nudges her shoulder with his own. He plants his hand in the pockets of his sweatpants and allows Quinn to leave his side, leaving him alone with his thoughts as he looked around the borough. The sound of pop music lures her into the apartment building, along with the singing of a familiar voice.

As she travels up the narrow stairwell she finds a small apartment door propped open to where the music is coming from. She cautiously enters the apartment, hoping she wasn't just entering a stranger's apartment. By the looks of the inside she could merely guess this was Robin's due to half of the furniture being gone and boxes laying everywhere. "Robin?" Quinn calls out, her voice echoing off the blue walls.

From around the corner of the hallway Robin's head pops out, a makeshift headband of bubble wrap. A wide smile grows upon her face after seeing Quinn. "Hey!" she greets over the music, turning it down once she enters the living room. Robin engulfs Quinn in a hug, making Quinn feel awkward. She knew they were supposed to be roommates but she hadn't set the personal boundaries yet. She also didn't know Robin was a hugger.

"We're almost done packing everything up, we'll just need to get everything to the moving truck," Robin informs Quinn, who flashes a confused look. "We?" Quinn reiterates. "Oh, duh," Robin snorts to herself, hitting her head in a joking way. "Mary!" she shouts, her voice creating a loud echo in the apartment making Quinn cringe. Was she this loud at Foam Party? A tall woman with dark curly hair and a scowl upon her face emerges from the same hallway Robin had appeared from, bubble wrap encircles her wrists as she places her hands on her hips

"Quinn this is my best friend Mary. She's helping us out," Robin introduces her friend. Quinn attempts to flash a friendly smile at the new face but Mary doesn't return it. She immediately feels intimidated by her presence. Her arms were more muscular than any woman she's ever met and her judging glare didn't help her feel comforted either.

"You're not in a weird sex cult are you?" Is the first thing that pops out of Mary's mouth. Quinn is taken back by this straight-forward nature of the woman. Her voice was the same, low, monotonous tone as Jessabelle. If she didn't know any better she'd think they were related. "What? No," she answers the bizarre question while narrowing her eyes. Robin quickly intervenes, pushing Mary aside and telling her to stop. "Sorry, she gets way too overprotective at times,"

"Only because she met her new roommate through Craigslist," Mary interjects.

"That's okay," Quinn comments, she surely understood being protective over a naïve friend. "I'm an open book, you can ask me anything," she suggests with a small smile. She could feel the sweat on the back of her neck build up as Mary continued to eye her uneasily. "How about you meet my friend? He's here to help out. Maybe you could gauge a better judgement about me if I introduced you,"

'Maybe you could see I'm not a creep because I'm friends with Captain America', Quinn thought as she plastered a nervous smile on her face. She hated how Mary seemed to look at her with scrutiny. Is this how Jo's friends felt about her when she'd bring them home? Mary have her a lazy thumbs up. "Cool,"

Quinn couldn't move towards the open door fast enough. For some reason she didn't like being judged today. Not by Mary and not by Priya.

Priya.

The NDA.

Quinn mentally slapped herself as she thought of the agreement that she blindly signed off on. There was no doubt that if Robin lived with her she was going to need one too. Her hand grips the doorframe, as she careens her head back to look at the two women. She gnaws on her lip before blurting out, "I need you to promise me you won't freak out,"

Mary crosser her arms across her chest once again as Robin's large eyes widen. "Oh boy, uh," she begins to chide as she fidgets in place. "I'll try not to but I think you should know that I get excited easily so, I'm already nervous,"

Quinn can't help but watch Robin bounce in place for a quick moment. She must've been serious when she said she gets excited about meeting new people. To be fair she did make it sound like they were meeting a celebrity. Technically they were in a way. Her lips press into a thin smile as she exits the apartment building. To her surprise she comes across Steve sitting on the stoop, looking around at the buildings solemnly. It hits Quinn as soon as she looks around the area. This was his home. Brooklyn may have changed since the forties but it still must've had it's charm and it seemed to put Steve in a trance.

As she steps down to where he's sitting he snaps out of his haze. She offers him an encouraging, sympathetic smile. This was the Steve she was used to being with - not Steve the superstar. She reaches out for his hand, struggling to pull him up to his feet. She playfully grunted in the process causing Steve to let out a low chuckle at her attempt to make him laugh. She felt somewhat accomplished.

He follows her lead, walking behind her as they wind their way through the stairwell of the apartment building, all the way to the open door where bickering can be heard amongst those who were left in the apartment. She hadn't left them for too long and they were already fighting. A few words stood out to her, something about not claiming an item since it was her ex's. Robin was still clearly getting over her breakup if she wanted to keep something from her ex. It surprised her, this was something that she and Jo would fight over, she was glad to see that it extended to other friendships as well. She just hoped bickering wasn't something that she'd be doing too often with Robin. Quinn sighs as she starts to feel a headache flare up.

The music, the chaos, it was enough to instill a migraine on anyway. Quinn opens her mouth to grab their attention but as soon as she does so Steve clears his throat from behind her, announcing his presence. His cough almost sounded annoyed yet authoritative. Simultaneously, Robin and Mary stop bickering to look at the two new faces in the door way. Her new roommates jaw drops as she gazes at Steve, making Quinn feel accomplished.

She knew he'd come in handy in impressing people. Robin abruptly drops the box in her hands, sending it flying to the ground with a crashing sound. "Oh my god! No way!" she squeals in a shrill voice, making Quinn and Steve take a step back. Clearly they weren't expecting this big of a reaction. Robin hysterically giggles as she jumps up and down before waltzing over to the door where he stood by anxiously. "You're Captain America! I'm like such a big fan. What are you doing here?" Robin questions her voice well beyond ecstatic as she clutches on to Steve's hand, not knowing personal boundaries at this point. Steve gives her a nervous smile as he begins to look towards Quinn and the door anxiously. "I'm here to help," he explains, slowly extracting his hand from her grip. "Quinn said you were going to be her new roommate and I had to meet you -"

"This is amazing. Can I get a picture?" Robin asks, cutting him off abruptly. Steve hesitates as he looks to Quinn for an answer, her body is more relaxed than his as she leans up against the door-frame, her arms crossing her chest with a smug smile on her face. He got where she was coming from - he was famous and didn't act like he was. This is what he deserved. She merely nods her head once before retreating inside the house, leaving him to Robin's demands. It's not long after that Mary gravitates towards Steve as well, leaving Quinn to pack up the box that Robin had thrown to the ground.

Thankfully none of the china was completed broken, a couple were cracked but that seemed to be it as far as the damage goes. All the while Mary and Robin hang around Steve. Which in Quinn's defense was great because she does packing better alone, however, she does notice that some of the boxes have very large C's written on them in bold red marker which piques her interest but figures not to bother with it at the moment.

"How much can you press?" She hears Mary ask Steve, causing her to let out a low chuckle. She didn't know she was providing that much entertainment, she thought she was providing help. "Quinn!" Robin's shrill voice startles her, causing her to jump in place. She wasn't expecting someone to sneak up on her, let alone place their hand on her back. Robin steadies her before apologizing for frightening her, to which she shrugs off. It was mainly Hydra's fault for making her this way. Robin picks the opposite side of the box she was starting to lift, noting that it was incredibly heavy for someone to lift on their own.

Her gaze absentmindedly rest on Steve as she exits the apartment with Robin. She couldn't help it, he just looked so friendly and relaxed as he chatted with Mary. It was nice to see him actually having a decent conversation with someone who wasn't herself - even if it was about exercising. "So," Robin starts as the start to descend the staircase of the building. "How do you know him?"

Quinn merely shrugs. It wasn't like she was going to hide anything from her, especially if they were going to be living together. "We worked together as S.H.I.E.L.D.,"

The statement alone is enough to make Robin stop mid step out of curiosity. "Like the government agency? Were you like an agent?"

Quinn let's out a sarcastic laugh. "No, I was in I.T.,"

Robin hums as if she's intrigued by the field of work she was in. It wasn't that fancy. Not nearly as interesting as Steve's line of work. "He's so much better looking in person," Robin notes as she brushes her hands off from lifting the box. "I bet he's super strong,"

Quinn's lips press into a firm line as she stands outside of the building, thinking about Steve. She hadn't seen him in action, or at least from what she could remember she had never seen him in action, besides clips that she's seen of him on television. She had to do a little research on him ever since her memories became wiped. Sure she'll remember a tiny detail from time to time, like how he looked when he was asleep, but nothing too big. She had to distract herself from thinking about him. She couldn't get too close to him, even though she desperately wanted to.

She may need to sign some different paperwork with Priya that might make her head spin. "Mary looks strong too," she states gaining Robin's attention as her brow perks up at the statement. Quinn anxiously points to her own biceps to elaborate. Robin forces out a chuckle. "Strong is an understatement," she replies. "Mary has her own krav-maga studio a couple blocks away,"

"Krav-maga?"

"It's a class that primarily teaches women's self-defense. Mary just likes to push her limits," Robin shrugs as they begin to climb back up to the apartment. That explained the raw muscles that Mary had, along with her interests in Steve's workout routine. She was comparing herself next to the world's only super soldier. As they come back into the apartment Quinn notices that they're still chatting away with their daily routines. It was nice to see him actually enjoying a conversation for once and unforced.

"What's the difference?" Quinn asks as she points to a box that had a large C written across it. "Don't touch it!" Robin interjects, her voice raising as if Quinn was about to touch a bomb. She in turn gives her a wide eyed glance as she continues to point to the box. Robin composes herself before reassuring her. "That belongs to my ex, Cynthia,"

"Oh," Quinn hums out, quickly pressing her lips together as her eyes scan for another box. She could tell from the way Robin looked that the breakup wasn't easy. If she remembered correctly Cynthia had cheated on her. This must be why she's so anxious to get a new place. Hopefully they didn't run into her while packing. Robin's attitude seemed to shift from bright and bubbly to almost mopey as she began packing once again.

Quinn didn't mean to upset her in any way, she felt upset at herself for reminding Robin of her ex. She's never felt her heart ache for someone she truly loved, only pangs of jealousy when it came to Steve. She had only had her heart broken once and that was a while ago, ever since then she's been somewhat defensive. Steve's hearty laughter fills the room along with Mary's. She whips her head around to see them both picking up a side of a mattress that was much bigger than the both of them. Seeing Steve be himself, not an Avenger and not a celebrity, made Quinn's heart throb. Perhaps he could change her outlook on love. Or perhaps he could damage her beyond compare.

~BOOK TWO: AGE OF ULTRON~

THE THROBBING SENSATION burns in the bottom of her feet as she places herself down on the ground. Moving was hard, she had forgotten just about how much she had hated it. Even with Steve's help her muscles were sore and ached from the strenuous lifting. Not to mention that even though Robin's things were moved into their apartment, it didn't mean they were one hundred percent done with the move - she still had to help Robin unpack her belongings to see what would go with the apartment. Just thinking about it made her want to collapse into a puddle of jelly.

The smell of pizza wafts through the apartment along with the sound of joyous and inquisitive talking coming from Mary, Robin, and Steve. If she had more energy she'd join in on the conversation in the kitchen but her legs protested. She can't help but run her calves. This is what she got for not running as much, Maddox seemed to dampen her spirits when it came to it. She had been rather lethargic ever since she moved to New York. The smell of pizza draws closer to her, causing her to look where the strong smell was coming from.

A plate drifts into her sight with a large piece of cheese pizza on it, dripping and soggy with grease. She can barely focus on the delicious looking food with Steve smiling down at her as he offers her the plate - which she graciously takes. He slides down on to the ground next to her, leaning his back against the front of the couch, following her lead as she scarfs down the pizza. It's the first actual thing she's eaten today, she's almost embarrassed by how fast she ate it but even more impressed that Rudolph hasn't even attempted to steal it from her plate or Steve's.

Robin and Mary are quick to follow Steve into the living with their own slices of pizza. Quinn smiled at the thought that he was like a mother duck, having Robin and Mary trail closely behind him. If Jo were here it'd feel complete. She's tuned out of most of the conversation as her hunger takes over, it's not like they were interested in talking to her anyways when Steve Rogers is in the same room as them. In a way his popularity did make her feel bad, she wanted to be noticed and talk to her roommate to gauge what kind of person she was but at the moment she didn't care, she just wanted to relax.

Well, relax as much as she could seeing as she still needed to work on EDGE. She feels a little guilty for not working on it as much as she could've today, she could even start working on it now but she feels distracted with company over. Especially if that company is Steve. Quinn pats her own lap, offering Rudolph to come and lay on her as she starts to tune into the conversation that the three were having.

"Is everyone on Asgard as buff as Thor?" Robin wonders. Quinn stifles back a snort as she begins to pet the golden retriever who was now flopped across her lap, his head resting on Steve's leg, looking up at the plate in his hand as if he were begging. She had never pictured Steve to be one for girl gab, perhaps he was just being polite enough to answer their questions, not wanting to hurt anyone's feelings. It's not until a touchy subject comes up that piques her attention. The obvious question that was bound to be asked at some point.

"Are you seeing anybody?" The question from Robin was enough to make Quinn almost choke on her pizza. Thankfully she kept her composure as she intently listened for the apparent answer. However, she didn't like how he was lingering. She tries to snap out of this anxious feeling, she was reminded that he wasn't looking to settle down after she had spent time with him. In fact he told her it was one of the many reasons why he respected her, she didn't force anyone or herself on him, although it's now become a running joke that their made for each other between the people who know the pair (Jo, Blair, Natasha, etc.).

"I'm not seeing anyone at the moment," he answers to Quinn's surprise. "At the moment?" Mary questions as she sinks further into the couch. "Does that mean you're interested in someone?" Robin pipes in, causing Quinn's blood pressure to rise. She hated feeling like this. "I'm not going to answer that," is all he says before taking a bite of his pizza leaving Quinn to her devices. Of course her mind jumps to he's already seeing someone - then it jumps to Priya immediately after that. How couldn't he be interest in her? She was beautiful. Would he even tell her if he was seeing someone?

She tries to not let this consume her thoughts or at least not show that she's wondering what he means. It must be a common question for him. Instead, she focuses her attention to counting all the boxes she'll have to unpack. Somehow counting seemed to calm her nerves. It's not until her eyes and on a specific box that she finally finds her voice.

"Does that box have a C on it?" she questions, pointing over to the small box next to the television. May head snaps over to the direction of the box while Robin's eyes grow dark with hurt. "Yeah," she whispers out, her voice just loud enough to be heard.

"Who didn't get the memo?" Mary asks aloud glaring at the small box. Steve looks down at Quinn confused, she merely shrugs. "I didn't I brought it," he announces. They all watch as Robin slowly makes her way over to the box and pick it up. Mary tries to console her from her relaxed position on the couch, as Steve leans down to whisper to Quinn.

"What's in it? Like a bomb?" The question is enough to make Quinn snort at the ludicoracy. "No it's all her ex's things," she answers, nudging his shoulder with hers which he mimics. Robin turns and places the box on the table in front of them, opening it up. Quinn had to admit that she was pretty curious to see what her ex was like, whatever was in the box was a part of the mysterious woman. "It's just a box of her stuff. All random," Robin's voice is filled with confusion as she pulls out an ashtray, a magazine, and a watch and places them on the coffee table. "There's even a bra -"

"What size?" Quinn interrupts, causing Mary to huff out a laugh and Steve to blush moderately. "Quinn," he hisses at her as she catches the cream lace bralett that Robin tosses to her. She merely shrugs in response to Steve as she lines up the bralett along her own chest, pouting in the process. "I have a bit more cupage," she mumbles as she tosses the lace garment back up on the table. Out of the corner of her eye she can see Steve's face is a vibrant red as he shakes his head at her actions. She can't help but chuckle under her breath. "Should I give it back? Or mail it? Or should I keep it?"

"She cheated on you," Mary chimes in after taking a swig of her beer.

Robin let's out a frustrated sigh. "Yeah, I know but -"

"We do have a rooftop," Quinn interrupts once again, gaining everyone's attention. "I know there's like a little spot where people can be outside and hang out. I think there's a fireplace,"

"Burn it?" Robin's voice sounds incredulous as she narrows her eyes at her new roommate.

"That seems illegal," Steve interjects. Quinn merely nods her head in agreement. Maybe it was a bad idea. Besides she couldn't say no to Steve's moral judgment. If she would follow anyone's advice it'd be his. She also could see this being a part of breaking the lease agreement. Not like she wasn't already with having an eighty pound dog and a roommate she didn't notify the landlord of. Hopefully he'd never find out. "But it sounds fun and she cheated on me so...let's start a fire," Robin chides, quickly taking the box in her hands and shuffling off to put her shoes on.

Steve lets out an exasperated sigh, clearly not wanting any part of what was about to happen. She almost felt bad for bringing it up, but it's what Jo would do. Mary huffs out a sigh as well before pushing herself off the couch and heading to find where her friend went. This gave the pair a bit of time to themselves. Quinn couldn't help but overthink about things to say during this time. Every time she could form a sentence her mouth became dry and her face became heated.

She took note that Steve didn't seem to want to even start a conversation himself. Instead his eyes darted off and around the living room, occasionally he'd glance over in her direction before quickly avoiding her gaze. Even though Quinn thought he'd be upset with her for suggesting doing this, what she didn't know was Steve was also trying to find the right words to form a conversation about her eccentric roommate, however, his mind couldn't help but run through the events of what had happened today.

Somewhere in the distance Quinn could hear her name being called. She was going to be the tour guide of this madness. "I guess we're doing this," she shrugs as she struggles to get on her aching feet, wincing slightly at the pain. "This is a horrible idea," Steve notes, earning a low chuckle from Quinn. She extends her hand to help him up on to his feet. She grunts as she has a hard time pulling him up, she could only imagine what she'd do if he was dead weight.

"Come on, just entertain her. She had her heart broken," she suggests trying to lighten the mood, make him have a little sympathy for what they were doing. "Would you burn things over a broken heart?" he questions making her stop in her tracks. If she was being completed honest, no, destroying someone's property wasn't the best thing to do and a good way to end up in jail. She turns her head over her shoulder to scan his features. Pursed lip, concerned brow, he was nervous for some odd reason as he awaited her reply. She simply offered him a smirk. "I don't intend on having my heart broken,"

A/N: There was an alternate ending where you did get to see them up on the roof burning Robin's ex's thing. Steve and Robin (did not mean to make Stranger Things reference) had an interaction more or less the line of this:

Robin: "Thank you all for coming to this ceremony where we let bygones be bygones,"

Steve: "That's a really weird way to phrase arson,"

But it was ultimately scratched because this chapter is long enough as is.