The Blip Bae

Sad Centenarian Orphan

Time was strange. Before the Snap, life moved at subsonic speed, kids grew up way too fast, loved ones aged before our eyes, and the more anyone thought about it, the worse it seemed. Now, after the worldwide cataclysm, things felt like they moved in slow motion. Like the global doom and gloom added an additional layer of gravity to every day. Time still passed, but it was like it was suspended in amber that hadn't dried yet. Beautiful but ominous. The fragility of life still so apparent, even though the world kept turning.

It had been three whole years. Three years of trying to restart. Trying to rebuild. Some things had been worked out, most world governments were at some base level of functioning. The economy had stabilized to accommodate only half as many consumers in the world. Some people were even able to move on, try and start over, make the best out of a fucked up situation. It had been long enough that this "new normal" was just the way things were.

As for the "Three Amigos" as Tony had dubbed them, they were doing their best, too. Natasha had established herself as the central point person for communications between any remaining allies, working hard to stay on top of things happening all over the world (and occasionally off world) and allocate resources as needed.

She had been openly communicating with Tony over coms, but still was not up to seeing him in person. It was better than nothing, and she appreciated all the work Zoe did to facilitate their tenuous working relationship. She also had steady reports of incidents happening all over the world that were attributed to who she assumed was Clint, but still had been unsuccessful in tracking him down. She went to his farm every other month like clockwork anyway.

Zoe was working hard to keep things going in the med bay. She kept her 3 clinic days going, while also picking up the occasional shift at the local ER when they needed her. It kept her busy and made her feel useful, as her super friends needed her less and less. She was relieved that they were doing as well as they were, and continued to celebrate every win with them.

Her aunt duties had not let up, as she saw as much of her "favorite Stark" every chance she got and still kept close tabs on the Wilsons, visiting when she could. Steve had not gone back with her since that first visit, but it didn't matter. She actually enjoyed her time in Louisiana more without the added pressure of having to keep him entertained, too. They were somewhat drifting at this point. After a few forays looking into adoption, Steve had been less obnoxious as of late. She chalked it up to him finally having things to do other than obsess over kids, and was grateful for the reprieve.

Steve had taken up running some survivor support groups. Zoe had suggested they drop into one not long after she arrived at the compound, but there were none in the area at the time. Over the years, many had popped up, and she encouraged Steve to partake as a way feel useful and to honor Sam's legacy. They eventually set up a network of groups all over New York to help people who were still struggling. She was so proud of him and told him as much every chance she got.

Though he was glad to have something to occupy his time, he was also grateful to have some small missions come up, too. It made him feel like he still had real value in the world, as he joked his fists usually fixed things a lot faster than his listening skills. He had tried not to give up hope on starting a family, but saw how difficult the laws were when it came to adoption, if he wanted to do everything himself and not reach out to Tony for help. He almost asked Zoe to marry him after one Social Worker told them that their chances went up and the paper work went down if they presented as a married couple...but something still felt like it was missing.

Though he loved her, he still felt a sadness hanging over their relationship. Maybe it was the infertility, maybe it was the fact that she was married before, maybe it was the whole world drowning in depression. Something just felt incomplete. And no amount of leading support groups was helping...