All This Time

the thing about modern clothing

Summary: Steve is absolutely certain that Diana has made it her personal mission to make them late to every appointment. Especially when she's wearing something like that.

i.

Steve's not exactly sure what he expected when he died and came back to life for the third (and what Hades promised would be the final) time in 2017, but it was not to be shocked by the clothing. Of all things to completely baffle his mind, modern fashion was something he never would have expected. There are only vague, blurry memories of when he was alive in 1984 so he's not sure how much fashion has changed since then, but he does remember 1918 fashion and it was definitely not this.

"You're staring," Diana said with a laugh.

Steve blinked, but couldn't seem to tear his eyes away from what he was pretty sure she had decided was a suitable work outfit. "You're wearing pants."

Diana laughed again as she walked across the bedroom and sat on the bed where Steve was still in his pyjamas. She ran her fingers through his hair, though whether it was to smooth it out or muss it up, Steve would never know. Sometimes it did a little bit of both.

"Do you not like the pants?" she teased, framing his face with her hands.

Steve shook his head quickly. "No, I like them very much."

Even sitting down, the pants looked great on her. The loose-fitting fabric looked soft and if Steve wasn't so distracted by the fact that women wore pants now, he probably would have convinced Diana to take them off and join him back in bed.

"It's a bit surprising," Steve admitted, tugging gently on the fabric. "But I like them very much."

"You saw me in pants in 1984." Steve would kill to have that memory. "How surprising is it really?"

"Consider this my first time," he murmured. He locked his arm around her waist and pulled her to his chest. "You don't have to go to work, you know. You could stay here and I can show you just how much I like these pants."

Diana pressed a short, soft kiss to his lips then pulled back and wiped her lipstick off his face with her thumb. "I'll be back this afternoon. How about you show me then?"

Steve hummed, trying to pull her closer, but Diana didn't budge. She raised a brow at him and he groaned, dropping his forehead to her shoulder in defeat.

"This is going to be the longest day ever."

ii.

He'd finally gotten used to his own clothes, feeling comfortable enough to not ask Diana for her advice every time before going out. He knew that his scarf was not for fashion like the advertisements, but just for keeping warm, and he also knew that his white shoes could be worn with anything and he'd blend right in with the Parisiens. What he did not know, however, was why Diana was wearing a dress like that when he'd told her they were going out to dinner.

He had almost expected the pants to make a reappearance, in all honesty.

When Diana turned to him with a small smile and bright red lips, Steve got the very strong feeling that they would not be leaving the apartment.

"Is that a new dress?" he managed to ask, still staring at the way the short black dress seemed to hug her. Fashion really needed to slow down.

She smiled, adjusting the single sleeve and then reaching her bare arm out to him. Steve floated towards her, eyeing the high hemline and wondering if she was going to add heels and if he should just tell her now they would not be making their reservation.

When he got to her side, Diana brushed a kiss to his cheek and Steve tried to chase her lips with his own. He was unsuccessful, but the little grin Diana gave him didn't allow him to get too upset.

"We're making our dinner, Steve," she told him. Steve frowned. "I got all dressed up and pretty for it."

"You're always pretty." It was stupid and obvious, but she still smiled at it so Steve counted it as a win. "You shouldn't wear things like this if you expect me to make it out of the apartment."

"If I wanted you to stay in the apartment, I'd wear other things."

Steve's mind immediately flashed through memories of a dark bedroom and the things Diana had worn then.

"Are you—Are you wearing those things now?" he asked, trying to see if he could make out a pattern of lace under her dress, but was unable to see anything aside from the smooth black—did this count as a cocktail dress?

Leaning closer until her lips brushed his ear, Diana murmured, "You'll have to make it through dinner to find out."

Steve took great pride in making it all the way to the restaurant and through dessert before pulling Diana back home and finding out that yes, she was wearing one of those things and no, they would not be leaving the apartment until late the next day.

iii.

Skinny jeans. He thought he'd seen enough of them. They were certainly popular and there wasn't a day where he didn't see someone in the street wearing them, but for some reason, when Diana walked into the apartment wearing a pair of perfect skinny jeans, Steve's brain short-circuited.

She was saying something—probably about the Louvre? Who was he to know?—but he couldn't figure out how to pay attention to her words. It was almost like she'd walked in and greeted him in Greek instead of the French or English he understood. The skinny jeans had removed all of his brain function.

"Steve?" Okay, maybe not all of it if he recognised his name.

"Hmm?"

"Are you alright? You haven't moved since I got home." Diana was looking at him worriedly and Steve looked around the apartment, trying to figure where he was and why he was so far away from her when she was still wearing those skinny jeans.

In reality, he was only halfway across the room and she was already moving closer, but it was too far in Steve's empty brain so he jumped up from the sofa and raced across the remaining distance so he could wrap his arms around her.

"When did you get these?" he asked, tugging on the belt loop behind her and snagging his thumb through it. She couldn't walk away from him now, he thought victoriously.

"Probably a year ago," she shrugged. She leaned forward and pressed a warm kiss to the corner of his mouth. "As I was saying, Cleo, Etta's great-granddaughter visited today—she's a history major—and wanted—"

Steve cut her off with a kiss, drawing her closer yet and kissing her until he had to pull away to breathe or risk passing out.

After a moment, Diana murmured, "Is it the skinny jeans?"

"God, yes," Steve groaned, hoisting her up into his arms and kissing her even longer, forgetting everything she'd been saying about the Louvre and Etta's great-granddaughter for the next couple of hours.