All American Dad

Meeting the Team

A month had passed since Steve had first found Lillian, and things seemed to be going great. When he was called on a mission, Kate would babysit. When he ran out of an item, Kate helped him learn where to find it. The two had worked together to make sure Steve knew what he was doing. Everything was working out for Steve and baby Lily, as Steve nicknamed her.

Steve was holding Lillian on his lap, resting in the rocking chair next to her crib. Lily played with her pacifier as Steve tried to get her to fall asleep. She went to bed easily at night, but she usually tried to resist naps. Even though Steve would usually have to rock her for an hour a day, he rarely minded that Lily wouldn't sleep. He rather enjoyed when it was quiet and Lily was content.

Lillian's eyes then started to slowly drift, until she finally fell asleep. Steve laid her in the crib and went back to the living room. He chuckled, thinking how only a month ago his apartment had been nice and tidy, with very little furniture. Now, toys were scattered everywhere, baby furniture took up the majority of the space. Steve had never before thought his apartment would look quite like this.

Still, Steve didn't mind it one bit. He enjoyed it. Yeah it was exhausting and took up all his time, but it was worth it. Every sleepless night, every dirty diaper, every puked on shirt, worth it.

"It's no trouble, really." Steve tried to tell Clint. Natasha and Clint needed a file that Steve had obtained from a mission. Clint had insisted that they could just drop by the apartment, and that normally would've been fine. Except that now Steve had Lillian, and he wasn't sure yet how the other avengers would react to Lily, who was now six months old.

So far Steve had only told Kate, Sam, and Nick Fury. He had figured he could trust Clint and Nat, considering how Clint had trusted Nat with the secret of his own kids, but he still wasn't sure.

"Come on, Steve." Clint persisted. "We're a block away. Your apartment can't be that messy!"

Steve finally gave in. "Fine, I'll have the file ready when you get here." With that he hung up. He glanced around the room. Lily was asleep in the swing. They might not even notice her. Steve hoped that was the case as he went to get the file.

"Uh, come on in." Steve tried to stay calm. He knew there was nothing to be worried about, but he was still slightly nervous. He had managed to hide all the baby toys, but sweet baby Lily was still sound asleep in the corner of the room. "Here's the file." Steve handed the card file over to Nat.

"What no 'Hey! How's it going?'" Nat teased. Steve smiled, but it was a nervous smile. Clint quickly noticed it and glanced at Nat.

"What's going on, Steve?" Nat asked as she started to walk into the living room. At first, she only looked around the room, waiting for Steve's reply. Then she jumped and let out a small gasp. She had found Lillian. Nat turned back to Clint, whose eyes got wide at the sight.

"Well, well." Clint started to smile. "Who is this?" Nat stared at Lily, unmoving.

"This is Lillian Grace." Steve started to explain. "I found her abandoned in a cardboard box, laying in the park."

"So what's she doing here?" Nat inquired, turning back to Steve.

"I've decided to keep her. I've had her for six months now." Nat just nodded. Clint smiled and bent down to look at Lillian, who had just woke up. Lily looked at the three avengers and started to whimper.

"Mind if I hold her?" Clint asked. Steve shook his head. Clint smiled and started to unbuckle the crying child. "Hey there, Lillian." Clint said softly as he picked up the baby girl. Lily looked at Clint, and began to quiet down. He gently rocked her in his arms. She continued to calm down until she was finally silent. Natasha walked over to look at Lillian. Lily watched Nat carefully. Lily then smiled, and Nat smiled back.

"Ok, my turn." Nat declared. Clint carefully handed Nat the baby. She gently cradled Lily into her arms.

"She'd soo tiny!" Nat said as she smiled down at Lillian.

Steve smiled. "She seems big to me, but that's probably because I've watched her grow." Steve knew even though she had grown, Lily was still small. Steve watched as she wiggle her skinny limbs. Nat chuckled at the sight.

"So what do you think of the dad life?" Clint asked Steve.

Steve rubbed his neck and shrugged. "It's definitely a challenge. It's got some ups and downs." Then Steve smiled. "Although, the ups far outweigh the downs." Clint nodded in agreement.