fateandfortune | Just a kid from Brooklyn. [For Steve Rogers]

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Just a kid from Brooklyn. [For Steve Rogers]

Three months. That's all the longer Rogue had been in this world that wasn't hers, trying to scrape together a life out of nothing. She'd barely made a decent start of it when the world had tried to end on her with the Battle of New York. The city had been in chaos, was still trying to pick up the pieces two months later, and Rogue did all she could to help in her own way. In a small way.

Sure, there had been a few times she'd been tempted during the battle to run out into the thick of things and become her old self. Join the superheroes who had taken charge of the situation. But in the end she'd stayed back, because the reality was that without someone to borrow an active power from, she was just another normal person, and normal people just got others killed in fights like that.

In the weeks that followed the Battle, she'd taken to volunteering whenever she wasn't working. She'd joined an organization that worked with the elderly in various capacities, and they sent her where she was needed. Sometimes it was a nursing home to visit with the ones who didn't have families or who had simply been forgotten, sometimes to the retirement communities that put on events and could always use a few extra hands. Those were her big plans that Sunday - a party at a residential community, complete with cake, punch, music, and streamers. Lots of streamers. They'd really done the place up for the 4th of July holiday, which wasn't technically until Wednesday, with red, white, and blue all over the common room. It had taken hours for Rogue and a few others to get the decorations up and everything ready, but the smiles on the residents' faces as they were shepherded in by a fresh set of volunteers made every second worth it.

Laughing as goofy Mr. Samuels swept Mrs. Hawkins into something almost resembling a waltz, Rogue continued spooning out strawberries onto the whipped cream on top of the line of shortcakes. It felt strange to not be wearing gloves, even after months of having decent control over her mutation, but she'd still chosen a blue dress with long sleeves for the occasion. A simple dress, with sensible heels, so the sticker nametag reading "Marie" didn't look too terribly out of place.

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It was unfortunate that he couldn't use the abilities he had without having to hold back and hide his identity. She knew what that was like, both first and secondhand, and it was one of the absolute worst feelings. Already she was trying to think of a secluded place where he might be able to let loose, as he'd put it.

He had such a great smile. Every time he threw one her way, she swore her heart skipped a beat. "I'd be happy to teach you, sugar," she told him. "It's what I used to do, actually. I used to work at a school for gifted children," he'd know what she meant by that, "where I taught French, literature, and self-defense. I'd studied all different types of fighting, we can find one that suits your style." She had a few that she was partial to; they could start there.

"Fighting is a whole different ball game than running," she acknowledged. "I love the feeling of losing myself in a spar, and being able to match my opponent on instinct rather than serious thought and strategy. I'm still getting back to where I was before, but I'll gladly take you on. You don't look so tough," she teased him with a bump of her hip and a quiet chuckle.

While Steve knew, intellectually, that she was a mutant who had to hide her powers, he'd never seen them, or known any other mutants, so he didn't consider the fact that she'd understand just how frustrating it was to hide his full abilities. He wasn't really one to complain, anyway - well, most of the time, and not real seriously. He understood how life just dealt you a crummy hand, and you had to make do. But he also believed in doing everything you could to make things better. He just hadn't figured out how to do that, in his current situation, yet.

He loved it when she gave him small glimpses of her life before. He never really expected her to tell him about the harder parts, toward the end, but listening to the small stories and snippets she casually gave him, helped give him a more complete picture of who she'd been, what had helped shape her into who she was now.

"I'm not sure I really have a style," he replied, "but I'm a pretty fast learner." He'd picked up the shield and almost instinctively known exactly how to use it, and the first time he'd thrown it, it had come right back to his hand. Howard had been gobsmacked, which Steve still counted as a large personal victory. Not many people could render a genius completely speechless.

Steve rubbed the back of his neck with his free hand. "Don't take this the wrong way, but, uh... I've never fought with a woman, before. Sparred. I've never sparred with anyone before, actually. I kinda just jumped in the deep end." Story of his life, honestly.

There were so many stories she could tell him about her life before this, before the war. All of it would be tinged with a hint of sadness for the friends and the life that she'd lost, but it was better to talk about the people she'd loved and the adventures she'd had than to let them be forgotten.

"That's alright, I'll go easy on you," she teased him further with a smirk. After a pause, she added, "But really, that's fine. We can take it slow until you're comfortable with it. Sparring is quite a bit different from a fight for your life, but it's exhilarating."

Perhaps one day he'd let her touch him with her power, just for a few seconds, and she could give him a really good fight by borrowing a bit of his strength and speed. Just enough to be able to keep up, even the playing field. She'd been fighting with and without her powers for so many years, it would be nice to have it be fun again instead of just necessary.

Edited 2016-05-31 23:58 (UTC)

Steve would gladly listen to all of her stories, and only wish that she'd been able to have more of them, before ending up here. It was a strange contradiction, happy that she had those memories, but sad that he hadn't been able to see them; see her, happy and... well, as carefree as she could be, back then. It was a mixture of feelings he was becoming rather familiar with, unfortunately.

Steve grinned. "You may have to go easy on me," he told her. "But it does sound...great. Sounds fun."

Before he could say anything else, Steve saw a flash of color in his peripheral vision, and glanced over instinctively. That shade of red rarely occurred in nature except for the brightest of cardinals... and black widows. Casually walking toward them, was none other than Natasha Romanov.

"Oh, crap," Steve muttered without thinking. His brain immediately switched to tactical mode, assessing and evaluating possibilities. Natasha could be just going for a stroll, like they were - but it was unlikely, in his books, that she'd just happen to choose Central Park to do it, and then just happen to find them. It was a huge park, and what little he knew about her didn't lend Steve to believe she went for casual strolls. Or stumbled on to anyone she didn't intend to meet. She could be looking for him for Fury again, but he had a cell phone, she could have called for his location.

And then there was the third option: Tony had called her, and harassed her until she went looking for him, because Tony had no doubt told her 'Steve was just at the Tower with a mysterious woman, and they had an intense conversation and I couldn't hear it, yes of course I was trying to eavesdrop, I'm a nosy bastard - so could you go find them and find out who she is, because I have to know, because I can't keep my nose out of other people's beeswax for five seconds.'

The look on Natasha's face was... interesting, too. Not upset, not quite predatory... But definitely intent. She was wearing a white tank top, probably in concession to the heat, light blue jeans that looked painted on, and soft ankle high leather boots, with a heel. She looked prepared for a fight if need be, but he was pretty sure she always dressed with having a fight in mind.

Steve came to a gradual halt, waiting for Natasha to reach them. She smiled happily when she was close enough, and it was an expression Steve instantly mistrusted.

"Hey, stranger," she said in her husky teasing voice. "Fancy running into you here."

Steve wasn't having it. "It's a public park, Natasha."

And then, with that smile still playing along the edges of her lips, Natasha turned to Rogue. "Who's your friend?"

Rogue wished that she had known Steve at a happier time in her life, when things were actually a little easier. It was hard to say whether that would have affected how she saw him though, as changed as she often was by experiences and the people she absorbed. Perhaps he wouldn't have liked the person she'd been back...

She was grinning like a love-struck idiot when she heard that oh, crap. The smile was wiped away in exchange for a frown as she looked up at Steve, waiting for a clue as to what had caused such a reaction in him. Whatever it was, it didn't have him panicking or readying for a fight, so it couldn't be all that bad.

The sight of the red-haired woman walking toward them with purpose was an anvil-shaped clue. A who then, not a what. A person who, if Rogue remembered correctly, was at the Battle with him. That shade of red was pretty unmistakable. Once she knew that, well, it was easy to put the pieces together. Either something had come up that needed Steve's attention, or someone wanted information - likely on her. Why else would someone Steve knew suddenly show up out of nowhere the first time they were out doing something together, and t after leaving Stark Tower?

Steve stopped them and Rogue gave one last glance up at him before turning her attention to the other woman, offering a larger smile than she was given when the question was posed. Might as well just jump into the deep end.

Holding out her free right hand and giving Steve's arm a little squeeze with her left, she offered a bright, "Marie LeBeau. I'm Steve's girlfriend. It's lovely to meet you." The word wasn't entirely accurate to what they were, but she didn't have a better one. Hopefully Steve took it reasonably well.

Steve was prepared to tell Natasha she could mind her own business and tell Tony to do the same - when Marie stuck out her hand, squeezing his arm and if he hadn't already experienced his life flashing before his eyes during the plane crash, he would've sworn that's what was happening to him now.

His girlfriend. It was exhilarating to hear her say that - and yet, it couldn't have been any worse timing on it. Steve hung his head in defeat. Christ on a cross, he was never gonna hear the end of this from Natasha.

Natasha arched an inquisitive eyebrow, seeming a little nonplussed at the information, as much as the straightforward way it was delivered. Still, she had a role to maintain. She reached out and shook Marie's hand, smiling again, more like a cat that caught the canary. "Natasha Romanov. It's a delight to meet you as well. Steve kept telling me he wasn't interested in dating yet. Apparently you changed his mind." It was a dig as much at Steve's reticence on the matter as much as it was at Marie; the 'yet' was added to see how much she knew about Steve. She was also curious on just what it was about this Marie that had made Steve decide to take the plunge into dating.

"That's enough, Natasha." He'd watched the footage of her speaking with Loki, knew how she could hold what seemed to be a perfectly innocent conversation, and at the end of it have all the knowledge she'd wanted, with her subject not even realizing what had happened.

"Steve's very protective about the people he cares about." Natasha couldn't stop herself from getting the dig in - especially if this were a new relationship, which it had to be; no one had ever seen this woman before, and it had barely been two weeks since she'd last spoken to him and Steve had been obstinate about not wanting to date anybody yet.

Unless... Unless they'd already been dating, and he just hadn't wanted to tell her. Natasha dismissed the idea, though; Steve was a lousy liar, and she would've picked up on any evasions or false fronts he'd tried to put up. No, the last she'd seen him, he'd genuinely seemed determined to wallow in grief for the foreseeable future.

Rogue could tell by the very measured way Natasha reacted and spoke that she had training. Real training, and a lot of it. The words she used were carefully chosen and arranged, hinting at meanings and prying for information that might not be readily given. It was something that most people wouldn't realize, but Rogue had her own brand of training in having a few hundred minds crammed within her own, many of which had ended up there from her days gathering intelligence during the war. Interrogation could be long and messy; it was much quicker and cleaner to just have her tap them and sort through the information she got that way.

She was already forming her response to Natasha's first comments when Steve issued the order that sounded like it might be part warning. It made her wonder what exactly Steve was worried about. This was his teammate, someone he worked with and had obviously trusted to have his back - yet he didn't seem to trust Rogue to have even a brief conversation. What had he been intending to do, keep her hidden from everyone he knew? That sure was flattering.

"It's something we have in common," she informed Natasha, tightening her grip just a little on Steve's arm. A confirmation that she did care about Steve, and a warning that Natasha hadn't seen protective yet, but she would if she messed with Steve. (Just in case they weren't quite as close as Rogue assumed.)

"And we changed each others minds," she corrected, smile still in place. "I didn't think I was ready for another relationship yet, but you can't always help when these things happen." Rogue was fine with talking about all of this, but she was trying to tread as lightly as possible for Steve's sake.

Of course it wasn't that he didn't trust Rogue. Maybe he shouldn't after such a brief period of knowing her, but this whole thing between them was a whirlwind, and Steve had stopped trying to talk himself out of his gut feeling. His intuition had never steered him wrong; it was only when he ignored it that he found himself in real trouble.

It wasn't even that he didn't trust Natasha, really. He'd trusted her with his life; he'd trusted her word, no hesitation, when she'd indicated that Barton was alright to join the Battle, after having been compromised and on enemy lines until then. It wasn't her loyalty as a teammate he didn't trust - it was the shit he was going to receive from her as a friend that he didn't want to have to deal with. And when this inevitably got back to Tony...

They'd been dating less than half a day. He was still coming to terms with the fact that they were definitively dating; he hadn't had a chance to contemplate introducing her to his friends. Call him selfish, but he kind of wanted her all to himself, for a while. At least until their relationship had evened out a little bit from the high of finding someone who seemed to fit so perfectly with them. He wanted to learn all about her, before his friends learned all about her. It was definitely selfish, but he'd never claimed to be otherwise. He wasn't trying to hide her, though. He wanted everyone to know about her. Just...not yet.

Trying to suppress a sigh of resignation, Steve quirked a smile and tilted his head toward Rogue. "Yeah. What she said." He couldn't help getting a dig of his own in, though, and glanced at Marie as he said, "Natasha is the one I was telling you about, who keeps trying to set me up on dates."

Natasha rolled her eyes. "Two. Two dates, very lovely girls. Although I must say, Rogers," she grinned a little mischievously, "I hadn't realized you had such good taste, or I would've left you alone." It was a huge lie; Natasha lived to meddle, but she did like what she saw from this Marie. She knew how to hold her own, and the fire in her eyes as she'd responded hadn't gone unnoticed; she was willing to be friendly at the moment, but something in her bearing told Natasha she wasn't one to mess with lightly.

Steve really had no idea what he was getting into. And she wasn't about to tell him. It would do the Captain good to have a spitfire girl on his arm - literally, and wasn't that just Steve to a T. Maybe Marie could draw him out where his teammates had been unable to. She'd keep an eye on things, but for now, she decided she could probably back off. At least some.

Oh, so this was that friend. Rogue could see it quite easily, now that she looked. Natasha was clearly protective of Steve as well, so of course she would want to help him adjust to this new world - her interpretation of that just included dating and/or a good time. Having a companion to navigate with made sense, but Rogue couldn't see Steve ending up with just any girl off the street, and that wasn't her own bias or ego talking. His life hadn't been normal, and he needed someone who could at least fathom what that might mean; a normal girl might be able to manage that, but she'd have to be a pretty special one...

The thought of Steve with anyone else just didn't sit right with Rogue. It made her feel prickly and irritable, jealous even, and she knew right then that she was a goner. She'd fight tooth and nail to keep this man beside her, and damn anyone who tried to separate them.

"Why, thank you," Rogue said in response to the compliment on Steve's taste, her own smile turning a bit mischievous as well. She liked this Natasha, and she felt like maybe, if they got to know each other, they could be friends. That would be nice, actually, to have that sort of relationship with someone in Steve's life. She would just have to be careful about what she said around this woman in order to keep her own secret. "He does have rather good taste, doesn't he? And such a great smile."

She turned her head to press a kiss to his clothed shoulder then, unable to resist the urge and honestly not even trying. Who cared what Natasha might think about the display, it sure as hell wasn't for her benefit. Rogue wanted to touch Steve, to be close to him and express in every possible way just how much he meant to her. If that meant a few (tame) public displays, then so be it. She just hoped that didn't mind.

Oh yes, Natasha thought, she did like this woman. She smirked at the compliment to Steve's smile, and his accompanying blush; the expression blossomed into surprised amusement when Marie kissed his shoulder, and Steve turned to look at her with an absolutely adoring, stupidly lovesick expression on his face.

Jesus, it was sickening just looking at them like this. Natasha shook her head; she'd gathered enough intel to be sure Steve was alright, for the moment, so she decided it was time to take her leave, and let them get back to whatever tooth-rottingly sweet thing they'd been up to before.

"Stark just wanted to make sure everything was alright, that you hadn't been replaced with a pod-person, or something. He doesn't seem to believe you can get any action." She watched Marie, looking for any signs that she didn't understand just who 'Captain Rogers' really was. But it appeared he'd come clean with her, which was interesting, as he'd been trying to get back in the world by being anonymous. And yet within two weeks of speaking, he'd met and begun dating a girl who knew who he was, and didn't really seem to care.

She shrugged, catching Marie's eye and smirking again; it was a smirk of female camaraderie, a sharing of the thought Yes, Captain America is gorgeous, and can get anyone he wants.

"I knew it," Steve muttered under his breath, rolling his eyes in exasperation. To Natasha, he said, "Yes, I'm fine, and whatever a pod-person is - and I can hazard a guess - no, I am not one."

Natasha nodded. "Got it. See you around." She added to Marie, "we really should get together sometime, compare notes. I'd love to know what Steve's like when he lets his hair down."

Rogue had spent years watching other couples be sickeningly sweet and adorable with each other, envying them the ability to be so at ease with each other. By the time she and Remy had finally committed to their relationship, they'd been past that sweet stage and had just moved into comfortable familiarity and companionship. It had been exactly what she'd needed at the time, but now she was looking forward to being the couple other people rolled their eyes at. However, should anyone dare to comment on it in a way that made Steve uncomfortable, they would have her to deal with.

So Tony had sent Natasha. The great Tony Stark, who certainly seemed like the nosy sort who wanted to know everything that was going on, regardless of if other people didn't want to share. Rogue didn't react to the mention of Tony's name, but she did look a little unamused at the comment about Steve not getting any action. She'd be proving Tony very wrong before too long.

And there was a movie to add to the list of things she wanted to share with Steve. Or they could read the book together - she wasn't picky.

She glanced at Steve with a little smile before turning her attention back to Natasha. "Maybe in a few weeks, when he's decided he's definitely keeping me," she agreed, setting her other hand on Steve's arm to give him an affectionate almost hug. No one had to tell her that Captain America could get anyone he wanted; she felt supremely lucky to have had him choose her. And her comment wasn't at all doubting his pledge that he wouldn't be going anywhere, it just seemed like the best way to give them a little more time to themselves before the others entered their lives even further.

Steve couldn't help sending another smile her way. He opened his mouth, automatically ready to reassure her, again - but then realized she might be on the same wavelength as he was, at least somewhat - she was giving them a few weeks together, at least, before anyone came to bother them. His mouth shut with a snap.

Natasha, of course, noticed, and quirked an eyebrow. "Hmm. A few weeks, got it. Hopefully you've gotten some of it out of your system by then." She had no doubt they'd still be together - unless Marie called it off, which wasn't unreasonable, of course - but Steve was clearly in it for the long-haul, already. From what she knew of him, once he'd decided on something, he never gave up, and he never went by halves. And he'd decided on Marie.

She turned and began to walk away, with Steve calling after her, "No. She's my girlfriend, not yours!" Natasha raised her hand and waved over her shoulder without looking back. Steve raised his voice. "And tell Tony to keep his nose out of my business, or it's liable to get cut off!"

He turned to Rogue, and said (only half-jokingly), "I have horrible, insane friends. Please don't feel obligated to associate with them. Ever. They'll just suck you into the crazy, too." He wasn't sure what it said about him, that he seemed to attract the kind of eccentric people who seemed bent on driving him insane. Marie was by far the sanest person he'd ever met in this new era - and she was literally from a different world.

Rogue had known that automatic reassurance would come, and it was absolutely adorable, but she was glad he seemed to have caught on to her meaning. Whether they would have it out of their system in a few weeks as Natasha said would have to be seen. With the way she was feeling now, there was really no telling.

Steve's last words to his teammate had her grinning and holding back a laugh, all while feeling like dancing with excitement at the sound of him proclaiming that she was his girlfriend. It had such a nice ring to it.

She couldn't resist bursting out in a full laugh at his comments about his friends, though. Clinging to his arm, she nearly tumbled over from the strength of the laughter. When she finally had a grip on herself again, she straightened up and told him, wiping away tears from the corners of her eyes, "Oh, sugar, I used to spend my days surrounded by a couple dozen hormonal, superpowered teenagers. I can handle crazy just fine, don't you worry."

Hearing her laughter made Steve grin, and even huff a few chuckles himself. "Yeah, okay." He admitted it sounded like she did probably know her way around crazy. "I'm just saying: they're great people, but sometimes I like not having to deal with crazy, that's all. I'd rather deal with you, any day."

Lord, did she love that smile of his. "Steve, honey, I'm not sure you're with the right woman if you want to avoid dealing with crazy," she informed him teasingly. "But it's certainly sweet of you to say."

She had the good kind of crazy and the not so good under her belt. For half a second, she worried about the latter and how he might deal with it, but she knew what he would say if she brought it up now, so instead she tucked that worry away at the back of her mind. She could deal with it another time.

Steve shook his head. "No. No, I don't care what kind of crazy is going on with you, I promise, it does not compare to a Stark genius on too little sleep, too much caffeine, in the middle of an inventing bender. It's like Speedy Gonzalez and Wile E. Coyote had a love child.

"I can handle crazy," he continued in a softer tone, leaning down to press his forehead against hers. "I can handle your crazy. I'm not perfect either, y'know. My issues are numerous and sundry." He leaned in and kissed her, soft and sweet.

In all honesty, Steve didn't know how he would deal with her issues, either. He didn't know what all they were, yet. But he knew he could, and would, tackle it when the time came. He wanted to be with her, and he'd do whatever he had to to see that through.

His worst fear, though, was having a bad day, and taking it out on her. He'd already yelled at her on Sunday, for something she hadn't meant to do, and he was afraid some day, he wouldn't be able to hold his temper in check, even as poorly as he had then.

Oh, Rogue definitely had to meet Tony now, if only to see if Steve's description was accurate. She was fairly certain it would prove to be, which was both amusing and terrifying.

When his tone changed and he leaned in, she practically melted into him. He was perfect in every way that truly mattered. Sweet and kind, caring and determined. She wanted to spend the rest of her life with him, sharing these little moments that meant just as much as the big ones.

"Your issues come wrapped up in a handsome, adorable package, though," she told him after that wonderful kiss, lifting a hand to smooth her fingers over his cheek. "For that, I can handle whatever you throw at me, sugar." She would take the good days and the bad, and would weather any storm that came her way, even those of his own making.

Steve wanted all the little moments; a lifetime of little moments with her wouldn't be enough for him. The bad times would come. He wanted to have enough happy moments to combat them with.

"Y'know," he murmured, leaning in close, but not kissing her again, "there used to be a time, someone called me adorable and I'd call them out to the street. You wanna fight, Marie?" He pressed in a little further, forcing her back a step, his hands finding her hips to make sure she didn't stumble.

"You wanna find out just how adorable I am?" He continued to murmur, enjoying the lazy teasing and ease of it all. He didn't want to have to worry about what would inevitably come. He wanted to just enjoy this, right here and now. "Come on, kid. I can take you." He couldn't quite hold back the smile threatening his face, wondering how she'd react. He loved her reactions, to everything. He hoped he never stopped being surprised and delighted by her.

[I'm never sure how much someone will let me manhandle their character. Steve's stronger than Rogue, so he can push her back even if she resists. Let me know if this isn't okay though, I can change it.]

It was because she trusted Steve instinctively and implicitly that she didn't resist when he pressed her back, trusting that those warm hands would keep her safe. As she listened to that hushed teasing, a mischievous look slowly entered her gaze, matched by a measure of desire that she didn't bother to conceal. She disliked bullies, but this, what he was doing, was akin to the most delicious foreplay, and he probably didn't even know it.

She did, in fact, want to find out just how adorable he was. But there were much more pressing matters to attend to at the moment.

Lifting her hands, she set them on his chest for a moment, just enjoying the feeling of his strength beneath her palms, and then her fingers moved to grasp the open sides of his shirt. "You can take me anytime you want, sugar," she informed him in a low, sultry voice before tugging him down to her. The kiss was passionate and hungry, conveying just what affect his teasing had had on her. It was perhaps not the most publicly appropriate display, but go ahead, someone ask her if she cared.

Well...that hadn't actually been the response he'd been expecting. Steve couldn't say he was disappointed by it, though. He'd never had the chance to just be playful with someone he was involved with (he'd never had the chance to get this involved with anyone, before), so there was a learning curve. But if this was the result... well, he wasn't complaining.

Maybe he should be trying to slow things down, pull away and cool off; they were in the middle of the park, after all. But their clothes were still on, and while he'd wrapped his hands around Marie to hold her flush against him, they were still clearly on top of her clothes, he wasn't putting them anywhere inappropriate... The thought made him tighten his arms around her, though. Imagining touching her, skin to skin, being close to her in the most intimate way possible...

Somehow, that thought broke through his lust a little, and Steve managed to slow the kiss down, before pulling away reluctantly. Panting, he pressed his forehead to hers - unable to resist stealing a quick kiss or two while his mind sorted through his jumbled thoughts. He'd been processing all that she'd told him about her past, and her powers, in the back of his mind, and now certain things were starting to get questioned. Questions of logistics and specifics, more than anything.

"Wait, wait," he huffed. "I have... well, a question, that might kinda kill the mood, but..." He cleared his throat. "This is... I mean..." God, he couldn't think straight. He wanted to be delicate, but he couldn't really beat around the bush with his questions. "Your powers... You couldn't touch anyone, before, so, how did you... Have you ever, actually..."

There was something taboo-feeling about frankly discussing sex with her. If that was the case, he wasn't sure how he'd manage to have it, but for now, he'd have to muddle through the conversation. He'd like to hope for a minimum of blushing, but wasn't holding out much hope.

Rogue realized belatedly that she'd promised not to do this sort of thing to him again in public, but she just couldn't help herself. It was this deep need to kiss him, touch him, be as close as she could until she couldn't tell where she ended and he started. And it wasn't just that she'd missed the touch of a man, though she wouldn't deny that that was a factor - more so, it was Steve. He was like oxygen to her, and even after such a short time, a life without him seemed impossible.

She'd apologize for it later.

She was addicted to the way he stayed close to her after the intense kiss ended, following it with little ones and the amazing way he pressed his forehead to hers. It was such a simple gesture, but it was so incredibly intimate, and something she'd never been able to experience before, not in the same way. Her dark eyes watched his expression as he struggled to get the words out, confused and a little worried until the end when it all clicked together. Oh, Steve.

Loosing her grip on his shirt, she smiled softly at him and lifted her hands to frame his face, smoothing her thumbs over his cheeks. "I have," she confirmed quietly, being as gentle and delicate about the subject as he'd tried to be. He was from a different era, she reminded herself, and he was clearly having trouble with the subject despite its importance. "Only with my husband; I couldn't anyone else enough to try. But he was nothing if not creative, and we had a healthy relationship despite the limitations of my situation."

God. He kind of wanted to know what she meant by 'creative,' but he also really didn't. He pressed his forehead harder against hers for a second, squeezing his eyes shut, then huffed out a laugh, that wasn't all that amused. "Well. That makes one of us. I haven't... I never really got the chance, before. First no one woulda had me, and then the War, there wasn't really any time to think about it. Plus, I kinda expected..."

Steve drew in a deep breath. He could say this. And he had to say it coherently, so Rogue would understand what he meant. "I figured, when it was all over, I'd be with Peggy, and there'd be time to figure all that out. I didn't wanna just have a quick tumble with a friendly pro skirt, like some of the other boys."

He finally decided to fall back on the euphemism he'd enjoyed the most, back then, and still thought of fondly. "I gotta find the right partner, before I wanna dance. And I really wanna dance with you. Literally and metaphorically." He couldn't stop the sheepish grin that covered his face; he knew he was being a little ridiculous, but he didn't care.

If Steve ever decided to ask what she meant by 'creative,' she would happily tell him in detail. It wasn't something she'd ever shared with anyone else, she wasn't the kiss and tell sort, but he was different. Everything with Steve was different, and she would share every part of her life with him that she could.

Her heart went out to him as he explained about his past, and she found herself falling even more in love with him. Waiting for the right partner, she understood that all too well, and she felt so very privileged to have earned a spot on his dance card.

"I wanna dance with you too, sugar," she assured him, pleased with the euphemism he'd chosen and running with it. "It's not difficult to learn the steps. Dancing is a bit like fighting, you go with what feels right. And you'll be my first partner I can really dance with, you know." Without having to worry about draining the life out of him, 'dancing' with Steve would be an entirely new experience for her.

He was both pleased, and embarrassed when she started using the dancing analogy as well. Did she think he couldn't even listen to talk about sex without it being couched in vague terms and euphemisms? He had to admit that it made it easier for him, though. One day, he'd be able to talk about it openly with her. He hoped.

Pulling her into a hug, Steve buried his face in her hair, feeling more content and at peace than he thought he'd ever been, more than he thought possible. "I have no idea what I did to deserve you." Privately, he thought the answer was Nothing. You're never gonna do anything to deserve this woman. But you can keep trying, anyway.

From a distance away, Steve suddenly heard someone holler "No sex in the park! Totally illegal, man!"

Steve pulled back, annoyed. He turned around, unerringly spotting the guy, probably not even out of his teens, and shouted back on instinct, "It's called a hug, jackass! What kinda sex are you havin'?!"

Oh, sure. Couldn't have an open, legitimate conversation with the gal he was planning on sleeping with, but he could turn into a total New Yorker and start shouting abuse at a total stranger about it.

The last thing Rogue wanted was for Steve to feel uncomfortable, whether it be in their conversations or their various activities together. They were still learning their way around each other as much as this new world, and she couldn't even contemplate not being considerate of that.

I have no idea what I did to deserve you. She'd said much the same thing to him, and her answer would have very like his. He'd survived. He had struggled and fought for what he believed in, had walked through pain and sorrow, and still he was one of the kindest people she'd ever met. Whatever element in the universe had allowed her to end up in this time and place to meet him, she was so very grateful to it.

Where's Steve's first reaction was to yell right back at the kid, which amused her to no end, Rogue's would have been to stomp over and punch him in the face. That had been a hell of a hug he'd interrupted, and she wouldn't have felt one bit of remorse. Steve saved the little shit from his fate with that hilarious exclamation though, and Rogue couldn't help the stream of giggles that followed.

"Come on, sugar," she said between giggles, tugging at Steve's arm to get his attention. "Let's keep walking before the idiot gets any other bright ideas."

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