Chapter 22
“Morning,” Steve murmured, blinking the sleep out of his eyes. Celia had been lying awake for a few minutes, just staring at the ceiling. She smiled thinking back to the night before. After they had come back to Steve’s floor, they had begun arguing nonstop. Steve was insisting that she take his bed while he took the couch. Celia refused to kick him out of his own bed and said she would take the couch. Steve had made a big show of sitting down and getting comfortable, as if that would leave her with no choice but to take the bed. She had warned him she was stubborn before, but apparently it didn’t really sink in until she laid down on the floor, ready to sleep right there. Steve groaned, muttering about hard headed people and rolling off the couch. Celia thought he was admitting defeat and going to his bedroom until he pulled her off the floor, dragging her behind him.
“I guess we can share tonight,” he relented, crossing his arms over his chest in embarrassment.
“We did already today,” Celia pointed out. “It’s only weird if you make it weird.” Steve sighed in resignation and they parted ways to get ready for bed. Celia went into the bathroom she had used earlier, brushing her teeth and changing into sleep clothes. She chose more covered options than she would wear at home, trying to respect Steve’s old fashioned ways. She figured sharing a bed with a woman was already pushing things pretty far for him.
She found him sitting on the edge of the bed, on the side furthest from the door. The same side he had slept on earlier that day. He hadn’t gotten in the bed yet and she hoped he wasn’t going to try to take the couch again.
“Do you want me to leave? For the first part I mean?” Steve asked quietly, still facing away from her. Celia hesitated before answering, shifting her weight a little. Did she admit that having Steve there the last time really helped? She didn’t want him to think he had to be there every time she wanted to sleep, and she knew his guilt would make him do it. Celia needed to be able to get past this on her own, instead of relying on other people.
“It’s up to you,” Celia said casually, climbing into the bed and leaving the decision up to Steve. If he stayed, great. If he left, she’d deal. Steve slowly climbed in on his side, laying at the very edge. Celia hid a chuckle, observing all the space left open between them in this king sized bed. She was used to sleeping on a full size, when she wasn’t on the couch. All this room to stretch out on was enticing, but she kept to her side, giving Steve his space. They had just spent over an hour wrapped up together on the roof, but this was different.
“Will you read to me again?” Celia asked, tucking the blankets up under her chin. She was glad to have Steve with her while she fell asleep, but she also didn’t want him to stare at her during the healing. It was weird having someone watch her while she was in pain. Steve picked up his same book from earlier, reading to her in a soothing tone as she fell asleep. He kept reading as she went through the healing and didn’t stop until she drifted off again.
“How did you sleep?” Steve asked, bringing her back into the present. Celia turned over to face him, grinning at the sight of his sleep tousled hair. It was easy to forget how young he was when he was wearing his strong Captain America persona. Seeing him while he was relaxed, before he put the weight of the world on his shoulders, was nice.
“Good,” Celia answered honestly. The healing still sucked and hurt more than she’d like to admit, but it was nice having Steve’s voice to focus on. “What time do you think Fury will get here?”
“Director Fury’s eta is approximately one hour and 27 minutes,” Jarvis responded, making Celia twitch a little.
“Maybe only speak when spoken to when it comes to Celia, eh Jarvis?” Steve said, chuckling at her reaction. Celia didn’t care, the super smart computer was creepy.
“I guess we should get up. Get ready to face the music,” Celia groaned, snuggling deeper into the blankets. She wished she could just stay where she was forever, not worry about anything else. Celia could admit to herself that she was terrified about her meeting with the director of Shield. That her earlier issues with Tony would pale in comparison to what she had to face from Fury. But there was no getting around it. She’d face it like she faced everything else: head on.
“Can I make you breakfast?” Steve asked, rolling out of bed. She smirked, raising up on an elbow to eyeball him in a challenge.
“I don’t know, can you?” Celia questioned with a giggle. Steve glared at her, crossing his arms over his chest.
“Meet me in the kitchen in fifteen,” he stated, walking to his bathroom. Celia dragged herself out on her side, softly padding down the hall to the bathroom she’d been using. She got ready in record time, pulling on a clean white t-shirt and the black pants from yesterday, fingering the marble she had tucked into her pocket. She wished she had a chance to go to her storage unit before this meeting to get different clothes, feeling at a disadvantage wearing such casual stuff. Celia hoped the rest of them wouldn’t be dressed up nice for this. She walked back to the kitchen, where Steve already was. He was vigorously beating a bowlful of eggs.
“You weren’t kidding about the eggs,” Celia said, sitting down on the stool Steve had used the day before.
“Super soldier strength does have its advantages,” Steve laughed, giving the bowl one last stir before setting it down on the counter. “I hope you don’t mind scrambled eggs and toast. Not as fancy as what you made, but a classic.”
“Sounds perfect,” Celia agreed, enjoying watching him work. It was nice having someone make her a meal for a change, used to cooking every meal. Her roommates would sometimes cook, but she didn’t ask them to, letting them make their own decisions for a change instead of forcing them to do her bidding.
“Toasters were so expensive when I was a kid,” Steve said, sliding the bread down into the machine. “My mom used to make ours on the stove. It was my job to watch it, so it didn’t burn.” Celia smiled, listening to Steve talk about his mom. She liked that he could do it with joy, instead of with sorrow. The woman might have passed a long time ago by her standards, but it wasn’t the same for Steve.
“Kitchen appliances have come a long way,” Celia commented idly, pulling the marble out of her pocket. She absentmindedly rubbed the spot on her forehead where it had bounced off, remembering the look of pure shock on Steve’s face.
“Breakfast is served,” Steve said with a flourish, presenting Celia with a plate of food. He frowned when he noticed the marble she was playing with, glaring at the little ball.
“What’s wrong?” Celia asked, tucking the marble back into her pocket. Steve sighed, taking a bite of his food instead of answering. Celia took a bite of her own food, prepared to eat in silence until Steve came out with what was bothering him. She could tell Steve had been a lot angrier about the Clint thing than she was, seeing it as more of a funny prank than anything else. She knew what it was like when someone was being malicious, and that wasn’t it. Celia inhaled the rest of her breakfast, hoping it would entice Steve to come out with whatever it was he wanted to say. They didn’t have much time before Fury came, so she wanted to get at least one awkward conversation out of the way. Steve was still picking at the last bit of his toast, stalling so he wouldn’t have to talk. Celia picked up her empty plate, walking it around the counter to the sink. Steve must’ve cleaned up the dishes from last night before she made it out of the bathroom, the entire kitchen spotless besides what they had just used.
Steve gave another heaving sigh, spinning around to face her at the sink. Celia just raised a brow at him, holding her hand out for his plate. He handed it over without argument, grabbing the towel to dry. They stood side by side at the sink, washing and drying in silence. Celia was aching to just elbow the words out of him, but remained patient.
“You can’t let people push you around!” Steve burst out, finally letting out what was bothering him. Celia frowned a bit, thinking back to the past two days and how she definitely didn’t just let Tony walk all over her. She pushed back until she couldn’t anymore.
“I don’t Steve, what are you talking about?” Celia questioned, toweling off her wet hands.
“After everything Tony did and said, you just brushed it off afterwards.”
“What was I supposed to do? Punch him?”
“No, but you acted like it didn’t matter.”
“The only thing I cared about at that point was getting out and doing what I needed to do,” Celia pointed out. “What good would it have done me if I pushed back at Tony, after he was willing to let me go?”
“Okay, but what about with Clint? Throwing something at your face was so inappropriate. You could’ve been hurt.”
“That was not a big deal.”
“He should’ve at least apologized,” Steve ground out stubbornly.
“What is this really about, because I doubt you really want me to be getting into fights with your team about dumb stuff?” Celia questioned, crossing her arms. She hoped this morning before the meeting could be stress free and relaxing, but it didn’t look like that would happen.
“I’m worried about this meeting with Fury, okay?” Steve sighed, walking around the kitchen island to sit on one of the stools. Celia stayed where she was, knowing this conversation would make her too tense to sit still. “It just feels like you’re giving up, ready to tell Fury and Shield everything.”
“What other options do I have Steve?” Celia asked, shaking her head in bewilderment. Steve seemed fine with the plan last night, but now he was going to question it, less than an hour before the meeting started. “You think I haven’t gone through every scenario I could think of in my head by this point? What other choice do you see working out for me?”
“I don’t know, but it just feels like you aren’t thinking of yourself first in this situation.”
“Thinking of myself would’ve had me running the first time I left the tower. And I thought about it,” Celia admitted, sagging under the burden of truth. “I’ve disappeared before, you know. And on some level I’m always ready to do it again, but then what do I do? When I did it before, I hadn’t started my career, I had no ties I wanted to keep. If I had to leave now, I’d have to become a ghost, because where could I hide?” Steve didn’t answer, because there really wasn’t anything to say.
“Just, promise me you won’t give up? That you’ll fight for yourself? You don’t owe anyone anything,” Steve said earnestly.
“I’m going into this with an open mind. Planning only goes so far, then you’ve just gotta roll with the punches. And I know you’ve got my back, so I’m good,” Celia said, trying to convince Steve that she was ready for whatever was going to happen. Steve still didn’t look assured and she shifted restlessly, knowing their time was almost up and not wanting Steve to go up there anything but confident. She needed his calm, strong presence by her side.
“Look, when you’ve been through what I’ve been through, it changes how you approach things. Do I wish I didn’t have to go up there and tell your boss about what happened? Sure. Do I wish I could tell Tony to screw off and never have to see him again? Maybe. But that isn’t realistic for me right now. Sometimes you have to play the long game,” Celia stated confidently.
“Are you playing me right now?” Steve asked, a little bit of sparkle back in his eyes. Celia just shrugged, smiling slyly back at the man.
“Pardon the interruption, but Director Fury is due to arrive in approximately ten minutes,” Jarvis said, making her jerk a little. She was never going to get used to that.
“Tough words coming from a woman scared of a little computer,” Steve smirked, standing up from his stool and walking toward the elevator. Celia sneered at him until he was out of sight, then closed her eyes for a second, gearing herself up for what was to come. She could barely convince someone who was on her side that she was okay. How the hell was she going to pull this off with the head of a government agency?