Again

Chapter 21

"Robin!" Steve says with a soft fondness as relief washes over him. He hadn't seen her in such a very long time, maybe, not for ten years in person. He kept track of her in the news, and they'd call once in a blue moon, but there was that cycle of guilt. Not calling often enough, which leads to have I left it too long to call? Do I have anything interesting to say? And when he finally had something interesting to tell her, he'd got so wrapped up in whirlwind-Eddie he hadn't called.

She pauses as she steps into the room, her big vibrant eyes studying over him, and her brow knits in concern, "Steve," she almost gasps out, "A heart attack, Steve? Really? Everything you've been through, this is what finally did it, huh? What were you doing to land yourself here?" She moves forward to sit in the empty seat right next to him. She quickly looks around the room, checks the back of the chair, and then back to him. It's then he realises she doesn't know everything, perhaps. She's checking to see if she's stealing Eddie's seat. He waves his hand at it and nods with as much a smile as he can. He's delighted to see her, but the thought of Eddie was bringing him down again.

"Got a little worked up, I guess," Steve says with a laugh and rolls his eyes as her hand reaches forward to grasp his.

"You guess?!" A more than annoyed but familiar voice comes from the doorway, along with a tapping, "You have any idea how hard it's been to get to visit you? I knew the lawyer trick would work, Robin. It always does." In walks someone Steve does not expect at all, eyes covered by sunglasses, in a comfortable jeans and sweater combo, her cane in hand, gently tapping the room's objects as she makes her way around the other side of the bed. She doesn't check for belongings on the chair nearest to Steve. She takes it, folds up her cane and reaches out her hands in front of her, "Let's see you then". Her flame-red hair is tied up in a high ponytail, and her big smile pushes up the apples of her freckled cheeks.

"Max..." Steve says shakily. When the nurse had said there were two people outside, he hadn't even thought it would be her. Dustin, maybe. Nancy or even Joyce, but Max...that was a surprise. Steve leans forward, and he's so happy he'd asked the nurse to help him freshen up before his visitors because as her delicate hands surround his face, she leans forward too. They sit quietly for a while as her fingertips delicately move over his face.

"You got old, Steve." She smiles, and it makes him laugh. Her fingers move to the corners of his eyes, "For sure, some crow's feet here, but it's the same smile I remember. You changed your shampoo and cologne too?" Her hands move up to his hairline and over his hair. A mischievous smile spreads over her face, "Clearly, some things not even time can help tame."

Steve asks her the same thing he used to ask her every time she woke up, and he was at her bedside. "Want me to check they're feeding you enough?" His voice wavering as he asks until she throws her arms around him for a hug. Their special code, because asking Max directly if she needed or wanted a hug, would always be met with an annoyed negative response.

"No, let me check you." Max says, tightening the squeeze, and Steve welcomes it, "Oh, sorry, didn't realise you were wired up", She says, loosening her grip and sitting back in her chair.

Steve looks between the two women, "Why have you come all the way here? Travelling must have been a nightmare right now. A phone call would have been great. You didn't have to do all this."

Robin looks over at Max and then back to Steve. She laces her fingers between his, "Actually, we did have to. I'd already planned a surprise visit on the back of the news Max told me about you and Eddie getting together." Steve's eyes shoot to the floor at the sound of Eddie's name. "Max obviously insisted on joining me, seeing as I wouldn't know if it wasn't for her. Then somewhere between the world's largest preserved steer and the world's largest sycamore stump, somehow, that genius child Dustin managed to do wizardry and got through to us yesterday. Everyone would be here, Steve, just Max, and I were already road-tripping over, and flights were at a standstill. Don't think they didn't want to come."