Timeless (Captain America x Reader)

Chapter One Hundred Thirty-Eight

Y/N landed the jet back at the Avengers Compound in New York as everyone walked down the ramp and inside the building, each of them feeling a whole new type of guilt as the reality of the situation settled in.

Y/N quickly set up in one of Tony's lab, each of the monitors around her showed different news stations which were all displaying reports of the mysterious disappearances. Y/N had numbers coming in from around the world, the number of missing persons rising exponentially by the minute.

Steve walked into the lab after talking to the rest of the team briefly, he leaned against the doorway, unsure of what to say at first.

He could see that Y/N was hard at work, and though he admired her determination, he worried for her. Y/N needed to take a break, to grieve, to compose herself over what just happened.

"You've been down here for a while," Steve said, sauntering over towards Y/N.

Y/N sighed, "I know," she replied. "I'm trying to figure out how to get a message to Titan," she told him.

Steve furrowed his brows, "A message to Titan, why?" he asked.

"Because someone could still be up there, Tony could still be up there," Y/N answered, putting her head in her hands.

Steve regretted his choice of words, he sat down beside Y/N, resting a comforting hand on her back as she leaned into him. "We'll find whoever is up there, and we'll bring them home," Steve told her.

Y/N dropped her hands, "I've been picking up subspace transmissions from across the galaxy, planets are calling out for help...but there is no one who can help them," she said softly.

Steve was hurting, hell, everyone on the team was hurting, some more than others, some felt guilt while others felt regret...but still, they all felt the loss the day held over them.

"They trusted us to protect them, and we failed," Y/N added as she fought against the tears that stung in her eyes.

Steve pulled her close, "That's not true. We did our best to fight him, and that's all that we can do."

Y/N pulled back and looked up at Steve, a seriousness in her expression. "We lost because we're divided, Steve...we weren't a team, maybe we never will be again, but that's why we lost. Loki, Ultron, against all the other evils, we were united, against Thanos, we were divided," she explained to him.

"United we stand, divided we fall," Steve concluded.

"It's as simple as that..."

Steve was silent for a moment, "That's not all that's bothering you," he spoke up. "Y/N, Thanos showed you something and you were pretty shaken up by it."

He recalled the moment Y/N was lying in his arms after Thanos snapped his fingers, she had been shaking like a leaf, clearly terrified, but before Steve could do anything, he had to watch his best friend disappear right before his eyes.

Y/N nodded slowly, "That's because he showed me the one thing I fear the most...losing you," Y/N replied as she looked up and met Steve's eyes with tears in her own.

Steve instinctively pulled Y/N closer to him, "I'm right here, Y/N, and I'm not going to leave you," he assured her.

Y/N turned and wrapped her arms tightly around Steve as she sobbed into his chest. Steve held Y/N close, they both needed the comfort of each other. "I'm right here..."

Later that same day, the team congregated in the conference room, Steve and Y/N stood together at the center of the room. They were both trying to lead the team through the mess Thanos had left them with.