Back in Time

Happy birthday to me

July 8, 2033

Today is my tenth birthday. It's a really big deal because I’ve been alive on this earth for a whole decade now. A milestone if you would. It was one that all kids looked forward to because it meant they were only two more away from being a teenager. This was a time to be excited. When your friends came to a big party thrown by your parents who loved them filled with fun and laughter and of course, presents. But mine was overshadowed by the fact that my dad’s birthday and America’s birthday had been four days before. For everyone else July 4th was a day of massive celebration. Fireworks that lit up the night sky after a whole day of friends and family partying as they ate a never ending buffet of barbeque, sides and pie. For me it was just another reminder that my father Steve Rogers wasn’t here. 

Tucking a loose strand of the dark hair I’d inherited from my mom behind my ear I glanced over my shoulder one more time at my bedroom door. Cocking my head, focusing my hearing to see where mom was. Having inherited more than just the color of my dad’s eyes I had also gained the genetic enhancements given to him by the serum he’d taken in 1942. It made me faster, stronger and smarter than the average ten year old. But to be fair to my mother’s family I’d also gotten my smarts from the Starks side as well. Right now though I needed to sneak out of my room without getting caught. So I kept my eyes closed to better hear where exactly mom was in the house. Because if Veronica ‘Ronnie’ Stark caught me abandoning the party she’d meticulously planned I was dead. 

The sound of my mother’s steady footsteps tripping lightly down the staircase to the first floor in the house my father built has me breathing out a sigh of relief. Easing the window of my bedroom up I carefully maneuvered myself out and onto the roof of the porch that wrapped around the whole of the white painted two story house. Keeping my steps ninja silent like uncle Bucky had taught me, I crept around to the side where a tree was planted close enough to reach. Shimmying onto the sturdiest branch I quickly and quietly made my way to the ground with the softest of thuds on the balls of my feet. 

Not waiting to see if anyone had seen me, I immediately raced off into the woods. 

One of the things I liked the most about our home was the fact that the land surrounding it was a thick wooden area untouched by anyone but them. According to Aunt Pepper my dad had her buy him the four acres back in 2014 when he’d been thinking of moving out of the Avengers Compound. His plan had been to clear a section of it, build a house himself and then live out the rest of his life on it. Part of that plan had come to fruition. During the lull after the Snap Steve Rogers had built their house over the course of two years since he had plenty of time to do it then. Though he hadn’t lived in it for very long. Seeing as he’d skipped off only a couple of years later to go shack up with some lady named Peggy back in 1949 leaving behind her pregnant mother. 

Arms and legs pumping as fast as they could go I sped along the hidden trails no one but a chosen few knew about. This particular trail led to the small creek I swam in during the warmer months of the year. Ferns and tall weeds whip against my bare legs with each surefooted step. I knew where every rock, dip and root was. Making it so that I could run these trails blindfolded. And had once just to see if I could.

The further I got from the house had me peeking over my shoulder every now and then to make sure no one was following. Sucking in a deep lungful of air as I remember to steady my heavy breathing so I wouldn’t get winded like Uncle Sam taught me. Having super soldiers for running mates for so long Sam had to relearn how to run so he wouldn't get left in the dust. Although as he's gotten older he's slowed back down a bit.

Five minutes later when the shaded body of water came into sight I slowed  into a down walk, hands on my hips as I tipped my head back to catch the early rays of morning sun. It was early enough to still be cool out. The light breeze eased my overheated skin a little. Running hot was a serum thing according to uncles Bucky, Tony, Bruce and my mom. They also explained to me that with the way the serum boosted all of my physical and mental strengths, it made it so I would always need a higher calorie meals to go along with my higher metabolism.