Chapter 6
"Uncle Steve, come look!" Jamie yelled, as he pointed into the lake.
Steve walked over to the little boy and they stared into the water together. He pointed at a larger fish that swam by just under the surface and Jamie squealed in delight, effectively scaring away the fish.
Danielle sat on the blanket they had laid in the grass for their lunch picnic, watching her son's excitement. He didn't know how bad the world was, or the insurmountable odds they were facing to set it right. He was blissfully unaware that everything in his life could change in an instant because of what the Avengers were planning to do.
The tests and simulations had been completed. They knew where each of the infinity stones would be in the vast timeline. They had been paired off to gather the stones and return them to this timeline. Everything was in motion to set the world right.
But at what cost?
Could changing the past change this future? Could they make everything worse than it already was? They were too deep into the mess of it all to abandon ship now.
"Mama, look what we found!" Jamie barreled toward his mother, barely stopping before he ran her over. His little fingers unfurled to reveal one half of a geode. The outside was a rough mixture of browns and tans, but the inside held a blue glass-like center. The blue center reminded her of the color of James' eyes.
"That's beautiful." She said, smiling at her son.
"You can have it." He held out the rock to her.
"No, baby. You found it. You should keep it." She closed his fingers around it.
"But I want you to have it." His lower lip pushed forward into a pout.
Danielle nodded and took the geode from his hand. "I'll keep it safe for you."
Jamie beamed and ran back down to the water, passing by Steve who was walking back to the blanket. He lowered himself to sit beside Danielle.
"Is he wearing you out yet?" She teased, handing him a bottle of water.
Steve took the bottle from her. "No, he's fine. I like being cool, Uncle Steve."
"You would make a great father, Steve." Danielle saw his eyes flash in surprise. "I just mean when we save the world, you should slow down. Fall in love. Start a family."
Steve's eyes grew nostalgic as he stared out to the lake, but saw something else in his mind. Whatever memory was playing for him, brought sadness to his face.
Danielle reached out and placed a comforting hand on his arm, making him look at her.
"Thank you, Dani. I appreciate you saying that." Steve said, sincerely.
Jamie turned and hollered for both of them to join him at the water's edge. Steve got to his feet first and helped Danielle to hers. They walked over to Jamie and listened as the little boy pointed out the minnows swimming near the shore and the frog that he could see hiding between the rocks.
—-
The car came to a stop in her usual parking spot in the driveway. It had grown dark on the way home and Danielle was glad she had turned on the porch light before they had left. Danielle shut off the car and quietly closed her door. On the other side, Steve got out of the passenger seat and moved to the back seat where Jamie was sleeping soundly. He unbuckled the small boy from his seat and slowly lifted him from the car. Jamie leaned heavily against Steve's shoulder as the super soldier held the boy. Steve moved out of the way as Danielle shut the car door.
She led the way to the house and unlocked and opened the door for Steve to go in. He knew where he was going and took Jamie to his room. He laid the boy down on the bed and moved out of Danielle's way.
"I'll get the stuff out of the car," whispered Steve.
Danielle nodded then focused her attention on Jamie. She removed his shoes and set them on the floor, before lifting him slightly so she could pull back his sheets. Once she laid him back on the pillow and pulled the sheets back over him, he snuggled into his bed like he recognized the feel. She placed his stuffed bear near his hand and kissed him on the head, before leaving his room and closing the door behind her.
All the stuff from their picnic had been placed neatly on the kitchen table for Danielle to go through later. Steve was nowhere to be seen and she wondered if he had left, but she heard his footsteps on the porch. When she stepped out the front door, she found Steve standing by the railing.
"Thank you for carrying him in. I swear he gets heavier every day." She joked.
"I need to say something," Steve insisted, the porch light illuminating only half of his face, making him hard to read.
"What's wrong?"
Steve stepped closer and took her hand in both of his. "What you said today, about me slowing down and starting a family. I want that."
Danielle furrowed her brows. "I don't understand–"
"Marry me."
The words hit her ears but the meaning took a second to hit her brain. Danielle's head jerked back, but she didn't pull away from him.
Steve looked hard into her eyes. "If this plan doesn't work and we can't get everyone back. I want to take care of you and Jamie. I want the three of us to be a family."
She glanced down at their joined hands then back to his face. She had never seen the super soldier be more serious than in that moment. He was ready to marry her and be a father to Jamie. A vision of a thousand more days like today appeared in Danielle's head and she could almost believe it would be enough.
Behind his shoulder the shadows shifted, catching her eye. At the edge of the porch light, a figure materialized and stared at the two of them.
James.
She knew it was a hallucination, and he wasn't really there frowning at her as she held Steve's hand, but it solidified the decision she needed to make.
"Steve," she placed her free hand on his cheek, "I care for you very much. You are one of my oldest friends in this world, but I can't marry you."
His face remained neutral, but his eyes brimmed with tears.
"It's not because I don't love you, because I do. And I want you to be in Jamie's life. I want you to be a part of my family, but I don't want you to feel like you have to pause your own life and be with me out of duty or guilt." She explained.
"It's not because of guilt," he replied.
"Maybe so, but it's not because you're in love with me." She watched his expression falter and reached forward to pull him into a hug. "I want you to be so happy, Steve. And one day you will find a woman who makes you happier than you ever dreamed."
"What about you? I want you to be happy, too." Steve responded.
Danielle squeezed him tighter. "Even if this plan doesn't work, I will find a way to be happy. I'll still have my son, and he is my greatest joy in life."
Steve nodded his acceptance into her shoulder and held onto her for a long time. They remained hugging one another in the chill of the night, listening to their hearts beating together.
