Steve POV: 2023
Clint materializes in front of us, his eyes wide and bloodshot, the soul stone glowing softly in his hand.
“Where’s Nat?” I ask, looking at her landing pad, expecting her to materialize any second now, ignoring the growing pit in my stomach as every second tics by.
Clint shakes his head, a choked sob escaping his lips.
No.
“No, she’s not—” I stammer, stepping off my own landing pad, towards him, my words falling off.
Tony steps forward too, wrapping his arm around Clint’s shoulders as he sobs again, only confirming the fact that Natasha isn’t going to be making it back.
I turn on my heels, walking out of the room.
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“Are you sure about this Steve?” Nick Fury asks, breaking the silence in the empty lab.
I swallow hard, shrugging into the same time suit I wore a few months ago.
The last time I wore this, Natasha was alive.
Tony was alive.
“Yeah.” I answer, looking at him before stepping onto the landing pad, Nat’s landing pad.
He nods, pulling up the computer screen.
“What year?” He asks, not looking away from the screen.
I shift my weight on my feet.
“1947.” I reply.
He nods again, typing the year into the computer.
“Okay, you’re all set.” He says simply. “Steve, remember, you can’t tell anyone what you know. And you can’t mess with major events. You have to be careful.”
I nod this time, looking at him as I adjust the watch on my wrist.
“That watch will let you jump a couple times, if you change your mind.” He says, looking at me with an almost pained expression on his face. “Just remember, if you come back to time before now, I’ll have no idea what you’re talking about.”
He forces a laugh with the last word.
I force one too.
“Thanks, Nick.” I answer. “I’m sorry.”
He smiles sadly.
“Go, get the girl.” He answers.
I nod, and he presses the button.
A harsh jolt through my entire body causes me to tense, it doesn’t get easier with more time travel.
My eyes open, and I’m back in Brooklynn, 1947.
My heart races as I look down the simple street, a few old Cadillac cars line the curbs.
I walk down the center of the road, towards house 349.
The yellow paint on the paneling outside with the whitewashed porch screams familiarity, and I unzip my jacket as I step up to the front door.
I knock twice, stepping back and holding in a deep breath.
The door hesitantly swings open, and Peggy Carter looks at me with her wide brown eyes.
“Steve?” She asks, her voice wavering slightly. “Are you really here?”
I smile, taking a slow step closer.
“Yes ma’am.” I reply quietly, ducking my head in greeting.
She suddenly runs and crushes herself against me, wrapping me in a tight hug.
I hesitantly rest my arms around her small form, squeezing her softly.
She pulls me into the house, and we stand in the front room, still pressed together tightly.
Her record player sits on a small table beside the door, a slow waltz bleeding softly through the air as it spins.
“How is this possible?” She asks, her voice thick with tears.
I gently place one hand under her chin, tilting her face up to look at me.
“My favorite girl still owes me a dance.” I whisper, wiping her tears with my thumb as she smiles a delicate smile.
Her hands lock behind my neck, and I rest mine on her lower back as we sway to the music.
“I thought you said you couldn’t dance.” She murmurs against my shirt.
I laugh.
“I’ve been practicing.” I reply, whispering against her hair.
She laughs quietly.
“How long are you staying?” She asks, trailing one hand down from behind my neck to rest against my chest.
“Not long.” I sigh.
She leans back, looking up at me.
“Why not?” She asks.
“I have somewhere I have to be.” I answer softly.
I keep one hand on her back, using the other to pull her hand from my chest, pointing out the small gold band on her ring finger.
“And so do you it seems.” I say, just as softly.
She blushes a deep red, breaking eye contact with me, but doesn’t pull away.
I put her hand back behind my neck as my hand falls on her lower back.
“He’s a good man.” She says quietly. “Not a soldier. An accountant. Normal, safe.”
I nod, pulling away to take her hands in mine as we continue the dance.
“And do you love him?” I ask, as I spin her slowly under my arm.
She looks up at me as we come together again in the center of the room, tears filling her eyes again.
“Yes.” She answers. “I do.”
I smile, leaning down to rest my cheek against her mahogany hair.
“Good.” I whisper. “I’m happy for you Peg.”
She stops swaying, hugging me tightly.
“You’ll find someone, Steve.” She murmurs. “You will.”
I take a deep breath.
“I already have.” I reply, my voice steadier than it has been all day. “I’m going to see her now. I came to say goodbye.”
She leans back, looking up at me with her deep brown eyes and a sweet smile.
“I don’t know how you’re here,” she says softly, one of her hands reaching up to cup my cheek gently, “but I’m so happy for you Steve.”
I smile down at her, brushing a strand of her hair away from her face.
“I have to go.” I whisper.
She nods, smiling tightly.
She walks me to the door, opening it as I step through.
“Peggy?” I ask, turning to face her before I go.
She nods, waiting for me to speak.
“Please, don’t tell anyone I was here.” I ask. “It’s important.”
She nods again.
“Of course.” She replies, leaning her head against the door. “But I’m always here if you need anything.”
I smile, leaning down and kissing the top of her head quickly before turning to leave.
I walk back down the street in the direction that I came, looking for an alley to duck into.
Finally, I step into a dark and empty street as I zip my jacket, fiddling with the watch on my arm as I set it to a very specific date and time in 2015.
I squeeze my eyes shut as I slam my hand down on the watch, sending jolts through my body again as I shoot through time.
My eyes open in Tony Stark’s lab, weeks before the events of Ultron.
Luckily, it’s empty, as I knew it would be.
Most of the Avengers are out of the tower today.
Some are out of the state, others out of the country, some are even on other planets.
No one should be here today except for me and—
“Rogers?” A familiar voice asks from behind me.
I turn on my heels to face the voice I’ve been longing to hear for months.
Natasha Romanov stands behind me, arms crossed over her chest, a sly smile playing across her lips.
“What’s with the jacket hotshot?” She asks, smirking at me. “And weren’t you supposed to be off on some adventure with Rhodes?”
I ignore her, walking in long strides across the lab until I’m inches in front of her.
“Steve what the hell are you—?”
I hold her chin in my hand as my other hand circles around the small of her waist, pulling her close as my lips crush against hers.
She gasps, her fingers lacing into my hair instantly as she kisses me back.
Months of longing are released, months of pain and months of horror.
Almost everything is set right in this moment, here with Nat.
“Wow soldier.” She breathes, leaning away just far enough to rest her forehead on mine. “Who would’ve guessed you’d be so smooth?”
I laugh, brushing my finger against her cheek softly.
“What gives?” She asks, her fingers running absently through my hair.
“You wouldn’t believe me.” I murmur, looking into her familiar eyes.
She smirks.
“Oh yeah?” She asks. “Try me.”
I laugh again, tilting her chin back up to meet her lips with my own.
The only time I’d ever kissed her before this was on the escalator in the mall when we were looking for Bucky all those years ago, and she wouldn’t even remember that at the time we are now because it hasn’t happened yet.
She must’ve cared for me long before I realized how much I care for her.
“Do you trust me?” I ask, whispering against her lips.
“Yes.” She whispers back, without hesitation.
“Enough to follow me without asking why?” I ask. “At least for now.”
She searches my eyes with hers.
“Yes.” She breathes.
I smile, reaching into the small bag secured to my back and pulling out a jacket.
“Then put this on.” I whisper.
She cocks one eyebrow at me, looking between the red and grey fabric in my hand and the red and grey jacket on my body before taking it and putting it on.
I step back towards her, wrapping her tightly in my arms.
“Hold on tight.” I whisper, adjusting my watch and pressing down on it.
She gasps as the jolts course through our bodies, transporting us through time again.
We stumble onto a street, blinking in the sun.
“Where are we?” Nat asks after a minute.
“1955.” I reply, taking her hand in mine and leading her towards the wood paneled house, a new white picket fence surrounding the lawn.
She looks around with wide eyes, saying nothing as I lead her to the door, knocking gently.
A small boy with mahogany hair swings the door open, looking up at me with a smile.
“Momma!” He calls behind him. “Someone’s at the door!”
A hugely pregnant Peggy rounds the corner, looking through the doorway with wide eyes.
“Steve?” She breathes, a wide smile on her face as she pushes past the little boy, wrapping me in a hug. “You’re back.”
I laugh, hugging her back softly before pulling Nat closer beside me.
“This is Natasha Romanov.” I tell her, and Nat reaches out a hand towards Peggy.
Peggy takes it, shaking it graciously.
“I was so hoping to be able to meet you one day.” She tells Nat with a smile.
“Nat, this is Peggy Carter.” I tell her, smiling between the two.
“Carter, huh?” A tall, dark haired man says as he steps through the door with the small boy in tow.
Peggy laughs as the man sets his hand on her shoulder.
“It’s Peggy Willis now, Steve.” She says with a smile.
“Steve?” The man asks, looking at me. “Steve Rogers?”
I nod, reaching out a hand to him.
“My god.” He says as he shakes my hand. “It’s an honor sir. I—I’m Jim Willis. Come in, both of you, please.”
I squeeze Nat’s hand as we walk through the door, and she smiles up at me with bewildered eyes.
“Johnny, go set the table for five please.” Jim says, and the boy runs into the kitchen.
Peggy sits in a chair in the front room, the room where I danced with her only hours ago, but to her it was already eight years ago.
She gestures to the loveseat across from her, and Nat and I sit on it facing her.
I wrap my arm over Nat’s shoulders, and she looks at me in surprise, but leans against my body anyway.
“So, you’ve got kids now Peg?” I ask, smiling as the little boy sets plates on the table.
She smiles, one hand running against her stomach as the other squeezes Jim’s.
“Yes.” She answers. “Johnny’s six now, and we’re expecting this one in a month or so.”
I smile at her, and Nat does too.
We eat dinner, talking lightly as we eat.
Peggy doesn’t ask how I’m here without aging a day, she doesn’t ask about my weird departure before.
She’s always known when to ask, and when not to.
She and Johnny begin to clear away the table as Jim lights a cigar.
“Walk with me?” I ask Nat, standing up and reaching a hand down to her.
She nods, taking my hand as she stands up.
I lead her out onto the porch, sitting on the last step and patting the space beside me.
She sits beside me, and I take her hand again.
“I don’t know what the hell this is all about.” She says softly, leaning her head on my shoulder. “But I like this version of Steve.”
I laugh, resting my head on hers.
“Would you believe me if I said I traveled from the future?” I ask her softly. “From years before I came to get you in Stark’s lab?”
She thinks for a minute in silence.
“Considering that I just met Peggy Carter, who’s supposed to be in her 90’s, and she’s young and pregnant, I’d believe just about anything.” She says, turning to look up at me. “But why would you have to travel to be with me? You couldn’t have been that far in the future; you don’t look much older than the last time I saw you. In 2015.”
I sigh, thinking about the horrific future I left behind.
“I can’t tell you exactly what happened.” I tell her in a low voice. “But I can tell you that we’re safe if we stay here.”
She doesn’t say anything.
“We don’t have to stay in this town, or even in this decade, but the closer we get to the time I was frozen or the time I took you from, it’s more dangerous for us to be spotted and mess up the timeline.” I continue. “And I know this is all very sudden. You don’t even have to stay here with me if you don’t want to. I have one jump left, and I can use it to bring you back to 2015, just say the word.”
She nods, thinking it over.
“If I went back, you’d be in 2015 wouldn’t you?” She asks, and my heart sinks.
I nod.
“Yes, a version of me.” I reply. “I wouldn’t remember any of this though, only you will.”
She nods again.
“And then something bad would happen.” She says softly. “Right?”
I nod, brushing her hair away from her face and tucking it behind her ear.
“Right.” I reply. “In a few years.”
“I want to stay here with you Steve.” She says, reaching up and brushing her fingers along my jaw.
“Really?” I ask, turning to face her.
She nods.
“Yes.” She says with a sly grin. “What girl wouldn’t want to hang out with you and your ex-girlfriend in the 50’s?”
I roll my eyes, leaning down to kiss her again.
She laughs softly, her hands holding my face as she kisses me.
“Really though.” I whisper. “We still have one jump if you wanted to go somewhere else.”
She runs her fingers through my hair, looking into my eyes.
“Let’s stay.” She whispers. “I could use some domestic bliss.”
I grin down at her, brushing my nose against hers.
“I adore you Natasha Romanov.” I whisper. “And I’ve missed you.”
She laughs again, resting her head against my chest as she hugs herself close to me.
“Oddly enough, I’ve missed you too.” She whispers.