Stay With Me

24. Happily Ever...Back In Time

Rogers Residence, Upstate New York. October 2023

"Babe!!!" Steve yells from the living room of their home happily situated between Stark Cabin and the Avengers Compound. His call is left unanswered. Steve checks the mantle clock above a roaring fire place. His eyebrows pull together, it isn't time for Rosie's bath yet, but maybe Julie is upstairs with their three year old daughter anyway.

He peaks into the kitchen, cursing under his breath seeing he's missed dinner, again. Dishes from dinner lay in the sink, a pile of unwanted food laying under Rosie's booster seat, pots and pans still sit on the counters and stone. Looks like he missed a good dinner too. Steve sighs and vows to make it up to her after the mission.

Now that they are days away from the mission, he's been spending more time at the compound and less time at home with his girls. He begged Tony for a few days off before the team jumped. Just in case.

He has yet to tell Juliette any of what's been going on since Scott Lang — who was supposed to have vanished 5 years ago — reappeared suddenly at the Compound gate three months ago. The team regathered, all sworn to secretary, swearing not to tell Julie about the mission until it was time to jump. Not even Thor has seen his best friend or his god daughter in months.

"Baby?" Steve calls again while ascending the steps to his daughter's bedroom. He passes the spare room — the one he hopes will become a nursery soon — on his way to the rose pink and gold bedroom with flowers and princesses crowns everywhere. She is the little princess of the Avengers, next to Morgan Stark. But Morgan is more like her father, and less like a little princess in frilly dresses like Rosie.

"Jules?" He whispers, noticing how quiet it is as he peaks his head into the room.

"Shhh." Julie smiles, her eyes still on the toddler sound asleep in bed.

Steve steps into the room, his hand at the small of his wife's back as she finishes the song she sings before kissing her child good night.

Steve sighs, having wished he's gotten to see Rosie tonight. He only has two days before he has to report back to the Compound, he wanted to spend as much of it as he could with his little girl and his wife.

Steve leans down, kissing his child on the forehead and cheek before pushing her golden curls away from her face. "Daddy loves you Bubble." He whispers and tucks her in with her stuffed Hulk. Something she's had since before she was born. Much to Thor and Tony's disappointment.

Juliette smiles at the nickname. Everyone else calls Rosie by her name, except Steve. He calls her Bubble, because when Julie was first pregnant she felt Rosie moving at 10 weeks and told Steven it felt like tiny bubbles. Ever since, he's called her Bubble. It makes Julies heart sing and she feels the tug in her uterus. The one that encourages her to bite her lip and pull Steve out of Rosie's room and into the hallway, determined to love him until they make another baby.

Before he manages to close Rosie's door, Julie is on her knees, unbuttoning his slacks and reaching inside his boxer briefs.

"Woah... woah, baby. Hold on." He grabs her wrist and pulls her to her feet. Juliette pouts, her lip sticking out as she gives him big blue doe eyes.

Steve gulps, as he tries to remember why he just stopped his wife from pulling out his cock and sucking his soul from his body. "We need to talk about something first, then... if you don't hate me" he mumbles, "We can play."

"Why would I hate you?" She looks into his face and notices he refuses to make eye contact. Her shoulders drop back as her face tightens into a scowl. Her head tilts as her eyes harden. "What did you do?"