#cxptains1kfollowerchallenge

[kayteewritessteve]

Soon Enough - 2/2

Description: It’s been a full year since Steve’s welcome ‘home’ party, and he finds himself surrounded by friends in a far too loud club. But unbeknownst to him, his teammates aren’t the only ones at the club that night, a sweet voice and friendly smile may also be there too.

Masterlist HERE. Part 1 - Be Alright HERE.

Word Count: 7,600 ish.

Pairing: Steve Rogers x Bar Owner!Reader.

Rating: 18+

Warnings: Curse words. Smidgen of angst and smut, if you squint. The slight descriptions of smut are enough to make be label this 18+, though with that said, it’s only vague descriptions so don’t get your hopes up.

Requested: not requested, this is just the second half of Be Alright which is for @mysterioh ‘s 1k follower prompt challenge. This entry is sooo dang late, but the sentiments are stil there. CONGRATS ON 1K, LOVELY! You deserve the dang world, and I miss you, I hope your step back from the fandom is going well for you, and if your ever around, send me a PM, I’d looove to catch up and see how you are! Aaanywho, my prompt was: "I am desperately and completely in love with you." - St. Elmo's Fire (1985) - and it will be bolded in this story. Enjoy! ❤️

A/N: I sadly don’t own any of these characters. And no beta reader, so I do proudly own all the errors and this story, so there’s that.

Divider by writeyourmindaway

He glances around the packed club, from his place tucked safely away in the VIP lounge on an open upper floor. He has a view of almost the entire lower level, minus the part directly below the VIP level. Tony was throwing yet another ‘welcome home’ party, but this time for Nat and Clint. And this time it was in fact a welcome home party, and not a welcome back to their mental state.

It’s been just over a year since that party, at the beautiful bar owners pub, and he hasn’t been back there since, he hasn’t seen her once since that night. But that’s for the best, Steve needed to find himself, to build his own life the way he wanted it to be, before he could invite another person into it. You can’t offer yourself fully to someone, if you don’t even truly know who you are. Or what you, personally, want from your life.

He wanted to be established, have his own things going on, have set and met a few of his own personal goals, and have a better knowledge of himself that one truly needed before they could offer themselves to another. Before they could share themselves with someone else.

Where he is in his life now, after a year of just being Steve Rogers—the scrappy kid from Brooklyn, who occasionally took missions when he was needed, but mainly just lived his day to day life the way he truly wanted to—was exactly where he’d always wanted to be. He didn’t think about relationships, lovers or dating. He didn’t think about finding someone, or using them to help him build this new life. He didn’t want to rely on someone else to help him get what he truly wanted from this world. He just focused on himself, on what Steven Grant Rogers truly wanted. Truly needed. And it had worked out exactly as it should.

He was finally happy, truly happy with where his life was at this moment. He had been for months now. He’d found a new apartment that was exactly what he’d always wanted, and suited his needs perfectly. It was tucked away in the middle of Brooklyn, only a few streets over from where Steve had grown up. He’d gotten rid of almost everything he’d owned before, knowing he’d need and want a full reset. A completely fresh start, and nothing that reminded him of his old life, or of his last love. So he’d set out and bought all the new furniture and decor that he’d need, slowly over time, and he’d filled the apartment with the things that Steve wanted. Stuff that made it feel like his home to him.

After a few months of that, he decided it was finally time to get the final piece to the ‘Steve Rogers new life’ puzzle, a scrappy little mutt he’d met when he was volunteering at an animal shelter in Bronx. The dog was damn near skin and bones back then, he shook like a leaf in the wind when any human even glanced his way. The guy had clearly had a rough life, he’d recently been rescued, but was not adapting well in the 5 by 8 foot cell. Steve had never related more to an animal in his entire damn life, and knew instantly he had to do something for the little guy. Save him from that fate.

He was a Bullador, as one of the other volunteers had told him that day. A mix between an American Bulldog and a Labrador, but none of that meant anything to Steve. It was the look in the dogs eyes that told him he’d be adopting that dog by the end of the week. And that had been an entirely accurate thought at the time—though he’d actually ended up adopting him by the end of that day. But that’s neither here nor there.

So after that, Steve had brought the dog home, and to say he was skittish, was an understatement. The dog would flinch anytime Steve even moved a muscle, and Steve had a lot of muscles to move. It took weeks before the dog finally settled in, and just as long to get him back up to a proper body weight.

He had started to look so much better, his coat began to shine, his eyes were full of that sparkle again, and he was slowly warming up to Steve. Little by little, every passing day. Steve knew, back then, that it would just take time, that the dog just had to settle into the new dynamic, just as Steve was trying to do with his own life. They’d do it together, he figured, as a little team and side by side.

And it had worked, because one day a few months back, Steve was lounging on the couch, watching a baseball game with a useless beer in his hand, and the dog had come up, and gave him a look. Steve had patted the couch cushion beside him in invite, like he’d done time and time before, even with knowing the dog would just huff and end up laying on the floor by the couch, he still offered every time.

And luckily he did, as that time, on that random Thursday afternoon, the dog finally took his offered spot. And not just that, he’d hesitantly curled up against Steve's side and laid his head atop his thighs. And Steve had never been happier in his damn life, he’d spent the rest of that game stroking the dogs head lightly, and refusing to get up to grab another beer. Not like they did anything for him anyways, besides give him something to sip on. And his desperate need to not ruin the small bonding moment between him and his dog, kept him glued to his seat until he finally had to get up to start making dinner.

But to Steve’s utter happiness and surprise, that wasn’t a one time thing after that day. The dog began always joining him on the couch, snuggled up against his side, and from that random Thursday on, him and Rocky—as the shelter had named him—were damn near inseparable. Occasionally things got a little dodgy when the Jerk was around, Steve would say Bucky’s name and the dog would come running. Or vice versa, he’d call the dog and Bucky would reply. Steve would just chuckle each time and have a small thought to maybe change the dog's name after all.

However, one look at Rocky, and he’d know without a shadow of a doubt that changing the dogs name now, wouldn’t work. He was a Rocky, through and through, it suited him, so Steve would resolve that he’d just have to get better at enunciating their names. Yeah, that was all that was needed. But yet, he was never able to remember to do that. So the confusion continued, and became somewhat of a joke around the tower after the first time Tony witnessed the name mixup first hand. And then it just went from there.

Steve sighs softly, as his eyes glance around the too loud and too packed club, and all he wants right now is to be at home, on his couch with Rocky snuggled up against his side. He finishes off his beer, this one not spiked with mead, and then stands up. It’s the end of the evening for Steve, he’s reached his late night club limits and now he wants nothing more than to leave. To get home to the quiet and relaxing calm of his place, and hang with his best bud, Rocky.

He makes his way around the private VIP space, saying his goodbyes to his friends, and after a little whining from a few, and the obligatory digs at him being an ‘old man’, he heads down the stairs and onto the main level of the club. He makes his way through the mass of moving bodies, and just as he is about to reach the stairs that will lead him out of the club and up to street level, his eyes catch on a familiar figure and he halts his movements entirely.

It can’t be, he thinks. As he shifts slightly to get a better look at the woman in the corner, by the bar. And once he successfully has, he knows without a shadow of a doubt that it is her. The beautiful bar owner.

Before he can stop himself, again, his legs are once more taking him towards her at the bar. Except this time she isn’t behind it making the drinks, but instead she is standing on this side of the counter, nursing one of her own. And he only figured that because she isn’t actively drinking it at the moment, she is leaned up on the edge of the bar, her finger aimlessly circling the rim as her eyes watch the action. She looks deep in thought, and he hesitates, wondering if he should even approach her or not.

But his legs don’t stop fully, they won’t stop, they keep their course on a direct path to her. And as he nears, he realizes her long legs are on full display. He’d always seen her in jeans and a t-shirt, looking effortlessly beautiful and relaxed. But this is the first time he’s actually seen her in full form, seen your lovely legs exposed and on display, instead of hidden behind fabric and a bar. And he honestly can’t drag his eyes away from them, at least not at first, not until they slowly slide up upon realizing her legs would only be on full display right now because she is wearing a dress or a skirt or something—the details don’t really matter.

Or at least they didn’t until his eyes finally land on the article in question. A dress. And a fucking outstanding one at that. His breath hitches as his eyes rove over her smaller form, hugged perfectly in the tight fitting material. He knows he’s being a creep, but with the way that dress shows off every lovely bump and dip that makes up her, he can’t bring himself to really care about ogling.

He finally reaches the bar, and with a small deep breath in he tears his eyes away from her, and instead focuses on the male bartender as he leans against the bar directly beside her. But not close enough to actually touch her. The music isn’t as loud in this corner of the club, so he knows he won’t need to yell for her to hear him, and he thanks her choice in leaning spot for that small feat.

“You alright there?” He asks, no better words entering his mind, so he just goes with the first ones he’d thought to speak.

In his peripherals he sees her tense up then shift away slightly, most likely to tell the intrusive guy that just inserted himself into her space, to find someone else to bug. At least that was the vibes he was getting off her, but then a soft giggle meets his ears and he glances down at her. Instantly seeing that cheeky look he’d forgotten he liked so much, was back in full force.

And yes, he’d forgotten so many things about her, he realizes as his eyes take in her face for the first time in a year. Yes, he’s thought about her in passing a couple times over that time apart, but it was never more than a fleeting thought. A quick wonder as to how she was doing, how her pub was doing, but nothing more. Steve needed to focus on himself the entire last year, and not be distracted by thoughts of beautiful women, and happily ever afters.

As selfish as that may sound, that’s the way it had to be. Steve had to focus on only himself, and then only on himself and Rocky. No one else.

But now that he feels he’s finally found his own happiness, maybe he can explore the option of having someone else enter his fully built and well adjusted life. Have someone else join it, and help him to perfect it just that little bit more.

“I’ll be alright,” she replies, an adorable and sassy twinkle in her eye. “Soon enough.”

And he can’t help it, he laughs low and deep at the words. The chuckle earns him one of her brilliant smiles, and that little voice that’s always commented on her smile, in the back of his mind, is back once again. Informing him once more just how breathtaking she truly is when she smiles like that.

“I see you’ve found your way,” she comments softly, her words sounding so happy for him. For the fact he finally found the life, or at least the happiness, he always wanted, and was desperately searching for a year ago. And yeah, he might have found the first part of it, but not the second part; the next phase in the life he’d always dreamed of.

“For the most part,” he nods, “still a few more things I need to work on, but those take a little more time, and a lot more effort. I’ll get there one day though.”

“Well, I’m really happy to hear that, big guy,” she hums, her eyes going back to watch her finger aimlessly circle the rim of her glass once more. A pensive look on her face now, and he desperately wants to know why.

“Not a big drinker?”

“No, not really,” she laughs, the sound a little self-deprecating, “I know, shocker right? Girl owns a bar but doesn’t even drink. What are the odds.”

“I’m not the Captain anymore, but I still go on missions,” Steve shrugs. “Just because it’s your livelihood, doesn’t mean it has to be your life.”

She glances up at him, a little indignantly if he’s honest, but he doesn’t take offence. “Yeah, but that’s a little different though. You save the world, I just make drinks.”

“And I’m sure to some of your patrons, just making them a drink is saving their world.” He shifts a little, leaning his side on the bar to fully face her now. Taking the deeper place their conversation has drifted to a little more seriously now. “And I actually know that for a fact. That first night in your pub, I was so lost. I felt like my world was crumbling around me and I couldn’t do a damn thing to stop it. Some superhero I am, huh?” He shakes his head, “can help save the world time and time again, but can’t even save my own damn self when I needed it the most.”

He locks eyes with her as he continues on, ���and then you, you came out of nowhere and you asked me a question so simple, yet it was exactly what I needed. It’s as if you knew I needed someone to see me, really see me. And to just make sure I was alright.”

Keeping his eyes connected with hers so she will see the honesty within them, he shrugs again, “so yeah, maybe you do just make drinks. But you also offer a comfort to your patrons, you also notice them, and interact with them, and you care. You built an entire little world in that pub, that is so damn inviting and friendly, that it puts anyone who enters it, at ease, even if just for a moment or two. And that, that alone, can save someone's world. Someone who may truly need it, but just doesn’t know how to do it on their own.”

She holds his stare for a silent moment, before a soft smile takes over her lips and she drops her eyes back down to her drink. And even in the low light, Steve couldn’t miss the light dusting of pink filling her cheeks. He likes having that effect on her, he thinks, likes it a lot, actually.

“Thank you, Steve. I really needed to hear that today.” She glances around the bar for a few seconds before her eyes stay locked on something behind him for just a few more seconds, then she meets his eye. “Do you need to stick around? Would you maybe wanna get out of here, and go grab that coffee now?”

He nods, a small smile on the corners of his lips, “I’d like that.” He is just about to push off the bar top, when a thought enters his mind and he pauses, “your friends won’t mind if you leave?”

She pushes her drink away and stands up to face him now, softly shaking her head, “no, they know I’m not huge into clubbing. And probably think I already left.” She glances around the club once again before her eyes land on something and Steve turns to follow her line of sight, seeing a small group of women dancing together, surrounded by guys. They must be her friends, he thinks. “I was actually about to leave, right before you joined me.”

He turns back to her, and sees she is already looking at him now. “Well, then I’m glad I found you when I did,” he smiles and offers her his arm.

She takes it and he goes to lead her to the exit, but she diverts them to a desk sort of thing off to the side, noting that she needs to grab her coat. Once they have it, he leads her up the stairs and out onto the street, his head much happier without the constant buzz and boom of the club's music and patrons.

And just as they reach the sidewalk, she pulls him gently to the left, leading him just as she had in the club. “There is a 24 hour diner 2 blocks down,” she supplies as she glances up at him, “not the prettiest looking place, but they make a mean coffee.”

“Those are the best places,” he hums in approval and lets her lead them down the street by his arm, clutched lightly by her own.

They passed groups of friends laughing and singing, people standing on the curbs trying to flag down cabs, the odd person walking alone with headphones in, ignoring the world around them. And all while her arm is still tucked securely around his, and it feels right, as cliché as that sounds in Steve’s head. It feels like they’ve done this many times before and the ease at which they’ve settled into each other is foreign to Steve. With his ex, things always felt a little forced, a little awkward, and he thought that was just how dating in this day and age was. But he is quickly realizing that’s not the case. That things could be so, so much easier and flow so much more smoothly.

He glances down at her, on his left so he is closer to the street and cars, and sees her staring into the shop windows as they walk by. Looking at the clothes, the electronics and the displays as they slowly move passed. She looks so at ease, so relaxed and comfortable, and it hits him that she is finding this just as simple as he is. She has settled into their close proximity and connection the same as he has. And he can’t help it, he smiles at that thought.

“How’s the pub?” He abruptly asks a little too loudly, as the thought enters his mind, and he almost chuckles at himself. The night may be going well, progressing smoothly and all, but Steve very much is still not that smooth for the most part. But that’s less to do with their connection and more to do with just the newness of the whole situation. Though, if he really thinks about it, he assumes he’ll always have those small awkward Steve moments, no matter how close they may one day become. This is him we’re talking about, after all.

“It’s good, same as always.” She glances up at him, a cheeky smile tugging up her lips just a little, as if she can hear his thoughts and is wholeheartedly agreeing with them. “We actually had a small bachelor party there last week, that was a rather funny night.” She laughs, shaking her head fondly, most likely at the memory of that night. “I never realized just how hilarious and rambunctious, yet destructive, a small group of college best friends could truly be. Now I know.” She laughs once more and he barely notices that he’s involuntarily smiling down at her again. This seems to be a regular reaction that she invokes from him, and he’s honestly not about to complain about that.

“Yeah?” He asks through a small chuckle, “hopefully they didn’t damage too much?”

“No, just a few glasses by mistake.” She snorts trying to suppress a laugh, “and my head bartenders eardrums, or so he claimed, but that’s about it.”

Steve raises an eyebrow in question, “His eardrums?”

She clearly can’t hold it in anymore as she burst out laughing, “yeah, they insisted on providing the musical entertainment for everyone else in the bar that night. Though, they just couldn’t seem to get the keys quite right.”

Steve laughs with her, he just can’t help it, “Screeching cats?”

“More like nails on a chalkboard,” she playfully cringes as she laughs some more, “but they really gave it their all and had a blast doing it, so I guess that’s what truly matters.” She pulls him to a stop and he glances up, seeing Donna’s Place in cursive on the glass door they are now in front of, “here we are.”

Steve moves fast, grabbing the handle and pulling the door open for her, receiving another beautiful smile and a soft ‘thanks’ as she enters the establishment before him. An older woman behind the counter, pouring coffee into two mugs, glances up at them and offers a polite smile, “take a seat wherever you’d like.”

They nod, and move to a corner table right in front of the windows, Steve helps her from her jacket before removing his own and hanging them on the hooks at the end of the booth seats.

And once he is seated across from her, he can't stop himself from wanting to know everything about this beautiful creature. Her hopes, her dreams, her ambitions. He wants to know about her childhood, her hobbies, the things that make up who she is. How she acquired her pub, what her family is like, what her favourite food, colour and movies are.

He wants to know it all, he needs to know every part of her. And as the night goes on, he learns the answers to a few of his questions, but it’s not enough. He wants all of her. Every last part.

They eat their meals between their lively conversation, and then he walks her home, where they exchange numbers and agree upon the day for their forst actual date, before she leans up on her toes and kisses his cheek. And Steve melts right then and there, and he stays melted the whole way home. Even as he settles into his bed that night, Rocky curled up beside him, he’s still melted. And he lnows right then that he’ll definitely be alright, soon enough. At least so long as he has any say in it, and so long as she is in his life.

He slowly trudges his way up the stairs to the two bedroom apartment that he now shares with Y/N. They’d dated for 6 months before deciding to move in together, choosing to find a new place all together, one they could both share, and that was also a little closer to her pub. A lot of people questioned Steve about why they had decided to move in together so fast, why they weren’t waiting to get to know each other a little better first, and honestly, the only answer he could give them was ‘when you know, you just know.’ And he’d realized pretty early on that she was the one, the exact person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with. So, why wait? Why prolong the inevitable?

Plus, things moved rather quickly back in his day, you met a gal and then a few months later, you were married. So this didn’t seem too fast for Steve at all, it honestly felt like they were taking too long, in his mind. If relationship standards weren’t so different now, he’d probably have already asked her to marry him, cause again, why wait? But he held off for a while, as they’d now been living together for 9 months, and there was also just one major thing holding him back.

How would she handle him being away for long missions?

That was the golden question. His ex hadn’t been a fan of him going away for work in any capacity, but especially when he’d be gone for weeks on end with no outside communication available. They’d fought so often over that exact topic, almost every time he told her of an upcoming mission, and then again once he’d return. He hadn’t noticed till they’d broken up that they really did fight more than they didn’t, and he can’t understand why he didn’t notice that at the time. He’d clearly been living in rose coloured goggles, and if he’s honest, he hadn’t even realized this when they’d broken up. It actually didn’t become truly apparent to him until his relationship with Y/N, until he was with someone who didn’t guilt him over his job. Who didn’t get mad about him taking missions. Who didn’t pout, or stomp, or complain about him having a rather intense job. Someone who was actually excited for his returns, someone who actually jumped for joy when he’d walk through the front door after being gone for a week or so.

But even with that said, he still had his reservations about this all. It had become second nature to fear longer missions, and the homecoming reception that would follow them. Nat had called his ex’s behaviour toxic and selfish on more than one occasion—she’d also used a few other choice words that he didn’t feel like repeating—be it during their many heart to hearts while away, or their random deep conversations while home. Usually whenever Steve would confide in her about his troubles and issues in life and love. But at the time, he was too stubborn to listen, or maybe just too afraid of what those words truly meant, of the ramifications of letting those damning thoughts worm into his head and fester there.

He knew Y/N was different, truly he did, but when you live one reality for so long, when you allow yourself to be pushed into this emotional mold and forced to believe that is just the norm, pulling yourself out of that mold is harder than one may think. They’ve been together for over a year now, and he’d yet to go away for longer than two weeks, and even missions that long were few and far between. He found himself declining all the longer missions, just due to his irrational fear. Just due to not wanting to burst the happy little bubble he’d found himself in recently.

It was foolish, he knows, but yet, here he is walking up these stairs at the slowest pace he can possibly go. He has a random thought that this pace has to be some sort of world record. Slowest ascent of an apartment staircase in history. It’s not that he didn’t miss her—God, did he miss her—it’s more that he is nervous. His mind is telling him to prepare for the incoming fury. For the fight that it thinks is going to greet him the moment he steps through their door. Even if he knows she’s different, even if he tells himself she isn’t his ex, something in him is still stalling. Still urging and forcing him to drag his feet, he can’t explain it, it’s almost compulsory, maybe even some weird version of auto pilot. He can’t really be sure. But what he does know is, he’s so fucking nervous.

He finally reaches their floor and one glance down the hall shows their door on the left. He makes his way towards it, and once he reaches it, his hand hovers over the doorknob for a moment. Allowing him a second to clench his eyes shut and take a deep stablizing breath in, before he opens the door and steps inside. His ears are instantly met with soft music playing from the living room sound system, and the dim atmosphere that comes with only having a couple lights on in the winter evenings.

He gently puts his shield down by the door and removes his shoes, trying for the life of him to not make a single sound. Still trying to prolong the inevitable, it would seem. But just as he gets his shoes off, he hears a soft humming that matches the music get a little louder, and he glances up to see her, in all her lovely glory as she walks out of their laundry room with a laundry basket propped securely on her hip.

And he is struck for the millionth time with just how damn breathtaking she truly is, even in her too big sweats and one of his old t-shirts. Her hair is up in a messy bun and there isn’t a drop of makeup anywhere on her skin. It’s just her, entirely her, and his heart skips a beat at that simple fact alone. A hesitant smile pulls up the corners of his mouth—God, he really did miss her. But damn, if he isn’t nervous for how she’ll react to his surprise early return. He wasn’t due home for another week, and it was a no outside communications mission, so he had no way to give her a heads up of his impending arrival.

Okay, that’s a lie, he could have called her once he boarded the Quinjet. He could have texted her at any point during the 7 hour flight home. But he just hadn’t. Partially due to wanting to surprise her, and partially due to everything he was thinking on his way up the stairs.

Ugh, his mind is a mess, a tug-o-war between yearning to see her and hold her in his arms again, and fearing her reaction to him walking through the door after 6 long weeks away.

But before he can give this all another second of thought, Rocky comes strolling out of the laundry room hot on her heels, and the second the dog is fully out, he glances up and notices Steve. Then he barks incessantly as he bounds over towards the—now even more—frozen super soldier, tail wagging and tongue lolling out to the side.

Steve didn’t even have a chance to utter a damn word, nor prepare himself at all, before the 80 pound mutt lunged at him. The dog's vocal reaction to the large mans return clearly caught Y/N off guard, as she damn near chucked the laundry basket across the hall, clothes flying everywhere as she whips around to see why the dog was freaking out all of a sudden. Her eyes land on Steve, holding the front paws of their dog as he bounces on his hind legs in any attempt to drench Steve’s face with his kisses.

It would probably have been a hilarious scene if anyone else were to witness it, he thinks just before his eyes lock with her now comically widened ones.

“Big guy?” She mutters breathlessly, before the switch flips and she is now the one bounding directly at him. He barely has a chance to release Rocky’s paws before she is lunging onto him next, and the sudden impact nearly knocks the wind out of Steve’s lungs, but he manages to catch her just in time. Her legs wrap around his waist and her hands cup both his cheeks as she begins to assault his entire face with kisses.

He is again rendered frozen but now also speechless at this quick attack, he doesn’t know what he was expecting, or maybe he does, but this wasn’t it.

“I missed you, I missed you, I missed you,” she repeats softly, over and over again between her never-ending smooches, and finally his mind catches up, and his arms tighten just a little more around her as he walks into the kitchen, on the left of them, and gently places her on the counter top. Rocky trailing at his heels, still trying to figure out the best way to join in on the excited homecoming action.

Steve sighs contentedly, releasing all his earlier tension and nerves, as her assault finally begins to slow down. And once it does, she pulls back, still holding his face between her hands and just stares at him. A silent moment passes as she takes in his faces every feature and detail, then she locks eyes with him and that glorious smile takes over her entire face. Yanna, the one that the little voice always told him was just so damn beautiful. Yeah, that smile, and yes, that little voice is back once again.

“Hi,” she finally whispers.

He smiles at that, “Hi.”

“I missed you,” she adds quickly, as if that wasn’t already abundantly apparent from the last couple minutes of her loving assault.

“I see this,” and he can’t help it, he chuckles as his hand rises up to caress her cheek with the back of his fingers. “But I missed you too.”

Her eyes drop down, inspecting his whole form now, as if to ensure he is truly okay, that he isn’t harmed or hurt, that he’s really here and in the flesh. And Steve just lets her have her moment. He stands there and let’s her inspect him from head to toe, if only to put her mind at ease that he is in fact okay, that he’s safe, he’s home.

Home. A four letter word that never meant so much to Steve before. This is home. She is home.

And instantly he wants to punch himself in the damn face. How could he doubt her? How could he fear his homecoming with her, she isn’t like his ex. She isn’t like anyone else. She is just so perfectly her, and she would never be mad at him for working, for going out there and protecting the weaker ones. For going out there and making sure the world gets to live in peace, or at least as much as it’s capable of having.

She truly is the one, and he’s an idiot for ever fearing otherwise. For even thinking for a moment that she may not be. And with that last thought, he knows exactly what needs to happen next. He knows exactly what he has to do now, he has to make her his, for life.

He steps away from between her legs, and she playfully pouts at the distance he’s now putting between them.

“Hey,” her lip juts out just a little more, muffling the word a bit, and it makes Steve chuckle. And that reaction from him causes her to cross her arms over her chest, “Where do you think you’re going? You just got home, mister, get back here and let me love you!”

He grins at her, and he knows it’s cheeky as hell, “hold on, I just gotta grab something real quick.”

Her brows furrow, pout still very much in place and arms still crossed, she stares at him for a few seconds before her arms relax and fall at her side, then she nods, “okay, but be quick, I’m not done with you yet.”

He nods then quickly makes his way to their second bedroom that is actually his office. He makes fast work of getting over to his desk, using a key he unlocks the top drawer and grabs the item he needs so he can head right back to the kitchen. Not wanting to be away from her for a moment longer, but the second he has it in his hands, he fucking panics.

He starts to freak the hell out again, weeks he’s had this thing. Weeks he’s taken it out, and held it in his hands. Weeks he’s hummed over when would be the right time to use it. To give it to her. He’d wanted it to be perfect, to be the exact right moment. This was not how he’d planned it, nor how he’d envisioned it going down. But like he always said, when you know, you just know.

With that he takes a deep breath, tucks it into his pocket and then heads back out to the kitchen, finding her exactly where he’d left her. Rocky standing by her dangling legs as she pet the spot between his ears. Steve halted at the entrance of the kitchen, just wanting to commit this moment to memory so he could keep it forever.

Rocky and her were his life now, and when he’d first introduced them, many many months ago, he was worried how Rocky would take to her. He was nervous that Rocky wouldn’t like her at first or would take forever to warm up to her too. But his fears were for nothing. No, they hadn’t been instant best friends, Rocky had taken a couple weeks to get used to her being around. He’d been timid and shy in the beginning, refusing to get more than 5 feet from her.

But after those first few weeks, Steve had to go away for a mission and instead of setting Rocky up with one of his teammates while he was gone, Y/N offered to dog sit for him. And when Steve got home a week and a half later, Y/N and Rocky were the best of friends. He was even under the impression Rocky liked Y/N more than him after that day. But he can’t really judge the dog for that mindset, Steve likes Y/N just as much. She is his favourite human now too. So he gets it, God, does he get it.

He steps into the kitchen, and she glances over at him while still petting Rocky, but then the furrow of her brows is back as she notices his empty hands.

“I thought you said,” she starts to softly say, but Steve had moved quickly, back to in between her thighs. And his large hands have landed on the tops of them, just below her hips and the firm squeeze he gave them had stopped her words in their tracks.

“I did,” he answers quietly as he gives her a chaste kiss, both because he needed one to calm his racing heart, and because he just wanted one so damn bad. His hands drag up to her waist, relishing the feel of her beneath his palms—though he’d like it more if there were no clothes in the way at all, but he’ll take what he can get right now. It’s been 6 long weeks, the guy is dying to show her just how much he missed her. Show all of her, just how much he did.

But he has something to do first. Something very, very important and that’s been a long time coming.

He lifts her gently off the counter and places her on her feet in front of him, not moving back a single step though. Yes, he may be crowding her, but from the twinkle in her eyes now, she doesn’t mind one damn bit.

He has no big speech planned, no sweet words or affirmations to voice. No lovely memories to bring up and relive. He has no dinner planned, and no gift to go along with this, be it flowers, chocolates, or a card. He has nothing but himself, his heart, and his soul to give her in this moment.

He looks deep into her eyes, and then the words just sorta spill out, in a classic awkward Steve fashion, all mumbled and quiet.

“Marry me?”

Her eyes widen again, as she just stares up at him for a moment and he realizes he forgot the best part. He fumbles around till he pulls the little black, velvet box from his picket and now he does take a step back. Opening it to show her the modest ring he’d picked out, could he have afforded a huge ring with lots of bling, as Sam calls it? Yes, yes he could have. But then had he see this ring and instantly thought of her? Yes, yes he had. He knew it would be perfect for her, it would suit her better than any of the other hundreds he’d looked at over the 3 weeks he’d searched for the perfect one.

“I want to spend the rest of my life with you, Y/N. I want to call you my wife till the day I die.”

And that does it, that knocks her back to earth and instantly tears well up in her eyes as she once again lunges at him and wraps her arms and legs around him. “I want that too,” she quickly affirms.

“You want to call me your wife till the day you die too?” He asks, like the cheeky bugger he is.

And she abruptly laughs at that, the sound watery and lumpy due to her emotions and tears, “yes, exactly that!”

Then the kiss attack is back in full force, and Steve can’t help the deep chuckle that vibrates out of him. “So I take it that’s a yes, then?”

“Mhmm,” she hums happily, still assaulting his face with her love. “Of course it’s a yes,” she pulls back and lightly pinches his cheek as she talks in that silly baby voice that she always uses with Rocky, “like anyone could turn down this handsome face.”

He glances down at Rocky, still sitting beside them and sees the dog looking up at her, head tilted to the side as if he doesn’t quite understand why she is using that voice on Steve either. That makes him snort and shake his head before his eyes meet hers once again and he raises a brow at her playful tone with him.

She laughs, kissing him once more while mumbling, “sorry, I get a little weird when i’m this excited. My filter sorta goes out the window.”

He laughs with her, then the kiss takes a deeper turn and Steve has no complaints about that. Not a single one.

With her still wrapped around him, he places her, and the ring, on the counter before he reluctantly pulls away. He mumbles a, “one second,” before he goes to put Rocky in their room, where the dog's giant bed is.

Once the dog is in bed and laying down, Steve promises to be right back to snuggle him before he shuts the door then quickly makes his way back to her, finding his rightful spot between her thighs and instantly seeing that she’s put the ring on now. And that sight alone, his ring on her finger, causes something to snap in Steve and before he can blink, he’s dived right back in.

“I love you so damn much,” she mumbles softly between heated kisses and scorching touches.

“And I am desperately and completely in love with you,” he mumbles back before all speech ceases, minus their soft moans and deep groans.

Clothes are lost in haste, yanked from their bodies and thrown quickly but thoughtlessly around the room. Hands grab, pull and smooth over supple, heated skin, as lips claim and mark any place they can find, any spot they can reach.

God, he missed her. Her and this, the connection they’ve always shared, the one they’ve nurtured and grown together. This isn’t the homecoming he imagined, but damn if the thought of volunteering first for the next long mission doesn’t pop into his head in this moment. Because if this is the exact reunion he gets every time, after being away for a while, the time apart would be entirely worth it.

But all his thoughts cease once he slides home, once he is fully settled inside her, deep and imposing, a perfect fit. The soft sighs and whimpers coming from her are like a drug to him, the feeling of her tightening around him, of her walls quivering from time to time is intoxicating to him.

As he begins to move, starts to climb, all he can do is stare at her, at the beautiful woman before him. His hands push her loose hair out of her face, so he can see her better, and then they just stare and climb together.

When she reaches her first peak and abruptly falls over it, the glorious sensation of her inner walls milking him nearly drags him over with her. But he clenches his teeth and fights through it, not ready for this to be over just yet. He wants more, he needs more.

He watches as her eyes snap shut, he sees as her lips part and a delicious moan of his name falls from them. He watches it all unfold before him, this beautiful creature he gets to call his own. This lovely person who showed Steve what real love is, what a solid and stable relationship entailed.

She’s helped him more than she will ever know, even long before they ever dated, moved in together or, now, got engaged. Long before he even knew her name, she’d helped show him the way, she was the light in his dark time. The sweet voice and friendly smile that helped him realize he could begin again, and that he definitely should. She helped him realize that he’d be alright, soon enough, he all he needed was a little patience, elbow grease, and time.

And just like that, it hits him, he’s finally reached his Soon Enough.

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

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