My Endgame (A Steve Rogers/ Captain America Love Story)

Chapter Four

I was angry at myself for reacting the way I did to Natasha's joke. Why did it affect me so much? I'm sure people assumed we were a couple from the outside. We spent so much time together, and he was always around my house. I guess it was just that no one had ever said it before. It wasn't the idea of betraying Theo, because he was gone, it was the idea of replacing him. And it wasn't like that with Steve. He wasn't interested in me in that way and I didn't think I was interested in him. I mean he brought a comfort to me that I hadn't felt from anyone. But, that was the superhero effect. It had to be. He literally saved lives every day.

I continued to wander the halls and forced myself to think of any memory of Theo I could conjure up. I begged my brain for anything. Even just the way he used to look at me. But, it was becoming more and more impossible to think of those small moments. The best I could do was seeing him standing in the kitchen the day before it all happened. He smiled slightly and then he began to fade. But, I felt him for a moment standing in front of me and as I reached out with my eyes closed I could almost feel him standing there. I felt a tear roll down my cheek as I was startled from my memory.

"Anna?" Steve's voice was soft yet booming in the empty hallway of the Avengers Compound.

"Oh," I took a step back and quickly wiped the tear from my face.

"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to startle you." He apologized. I shook my head and looked down.

"No, it's okay. I kind of lost myself for a second there." I looked around the hallway then back at Steve. "Where's Natasha?" He rubbed the back of his head.

"That's why I came to find you. She got a lead on Barton and left almost immediately." He rolled his eyes as he spoke.

"Barton?" I asked, unsure of who he was talking about.

"Sorry, uh... Hawkeye." He chuckled, once. I nodded.

"Oh, his name is Barton?" We both began walking down the hall.

"Clint Barton. Him and Nat were best friends. He hasn't really talked to anyone since the snap though. He's been off the grid." I sighed and looked down at the floor as we walked down the hall.

"I don't know what's worse..." I spoke, quietly. "Having your best friend disappear from the snap or because of the snap?" Steve didn't respond. Instead we walked silently back to his car.

The ride to my house was also silent. I kept trying to think of things I could say but everything seemed so frivolous and not worth bringing up. Instead I thought of where I was in this moment. I was sitting in a car with Captain America. Leaving the Avengers Compound. Nothing seemed real anymore. Theo would never believe it. As we pulled up to my house I looked at the clock. 11:34pm. I should have gone in alone and went to sleep but instead I turned to Steve and forced a smile.

"Do you want to come in? We can hang out for a little while longer." It was a silly question. We spent almost all of our time together anyway. I should have just gone in alone but in that moment, and to my surprise I felt butterflies in my stomach as I waited for Steve's answer about my request for a nightcap. He turned off the car and smiled back.

"Yeah, I'd love to!"

As we walked up to the house I realized that Theo was now becoming more of an idea than anything else. Which should have felt more sad than it did. There was no way he was going to come back anymore. It was going to just be me alone without him and my father, for the rest of time. But, I wasn't as upset as I was a year ago. I felt different. I had Steve. He was my new companion. We depended on each other. We both went through the same thing. It felt better to have someone.