Splendid Suns

"Where are we going?" Tony huffed as Steve continued pulling him further into the park.

Tall trees towered around the pair and the falling autumn leaves crunched beneath the soles of their shoes. It was almost impossible to believe they were in the heart of a city since there was almost absolute silence.

Steve checked his watch, it wasn't long until sunset. He tugged on Stark's hand to get him to speed up. They took a left instead of following the main path around the park. It was clearly less travelled. He tugged again.

"Come on. I don't want to miss it." Steve spoke over his shoulder.

They were close; Tony knew as the soldier began to get increasingly more excited. The man's steps kept getting faster and the grin on his face blossomed.

Eventually, they made it to an old bench and Steve collapsed down on it eagerly. His eyes trained on the thick woodland in front of them. His pearly teeth clamped down on his bottom lip as he waited. His eyes danced along the very top of the trees, the bravest of leaves that managed to reach the highest.

Then suddenly it happened.

The light from the sunset behind them lit the leaves ahead of them as though they were ablaze. They glimmered golds, yellows and oranges. The intense final daylight made each individual leaf stand out a different shade from its neighbor and the gentle breeze made them shimmy before their eyes. As the light reflected off them, it lit the area around the great tree in a warm hue making the men feel warmed to their core. The gold was mirrored in their eyes, hiding whatever emotion was held there.

Steve and Tony sat on their bench with their necks craned to take in such a spectacle.

Too soon, it was gone. The sun's light slipped away from the very last outreaching leaf and they were in relative darkness. The silence surrounded them like a thick blanket. They watched the trees, now far less magnificent, as they rustled in the breeze and dropped a few more of their leaves.

"I used to come here," Steve's voice was quiet and fragile,"Before the army, before the Serum, before Captain America... And just watch. In a world ravaged by war, I found it difficult to comprehend how their could be this much peace and beauty." He sniffed and Stark knew he was crying. "I remember that I once thought about how awe inspiring it would be once these trees grew taller then the others so they'd be the last in the park to hold on to the light. I never thought I'd live to see that day."

There was silence. Neither had the words to say.

After a few minutes, Captain America spoke again, "This is the only part of the park where you can't see significant change from when I remember it. The trees are taller... But they manage to block out the rest of the changed world around them. When I first came back from the ice this place helped me through."

They sat side by side for a few minutes. Tony slipped his hand over Steve's and squeezed gently.

"Thank you for showing me."

Together they stood and left that one perfect part of the park. From now on whenever Steve was overwhelmed by his new life, Tony would bring him here to watch the sun play on the leaves. Right there, from that spot, the world didn't seem quite so scary after all.

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590 words! Thanks for reading! X