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CHAPTER NINE
ENDINGS, BEGINNINGS

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      They had somewhat of a routine in the mornings. 

      Since trying Brew Haha!, Katherine had made a vow that she would try all their weird flavors. She had worked her way through about six of them, with her favorite being (ironically) the Sugar Daddy drink he'd made fun of their first time there. He didn't stray much from his Thin Mint latte, only changing it once to a caramel latte that he didn't end up finishing because it was so sweet. Still, he enjoyed going there with her. She'd taken to bringing a notebook and writing reviews of each drink, like she was a professional critic.

      It wasn't looking good for the German Chocolate latte she was currently drinking, he noticed as he peeked at her notes. 

      It was nice to just sit in the cafe. It gave them a change of scenery and it never got incredibly crowded. The baristas were starting to know them by name, and it was nice for someone to just know him as Steve. Katherine always tipped extra, so they wrote fun little notes on their cups with jokes that made him chuckle. 

      She tsked at the latte. "I'm giving it a four. Too chocolatey."

      He raised an eyebrow. "The drink is called German Chocolate."

      Katherine shrugged, marking something down in her notebook.

      Steve liked her little quirks. At the beginning of this little social experiment, she'd been kind but always an arm's length away. She had been trying to keep that professional barrier between them. But he didn't need a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent. What he really needed, and was slightly embarrassed to admit, was a friend. He didn't quite know if they were there yet, but he trusted her and hope she trusted him in return. 

      Katherine closed her notebook and took another sip of her drink, despite giving it a four. "I wanted to run something by you," she said, and the nervous tone in her voice made him pause. "I was cleared by Fury to take you on a little road trip of sorts. Not back to New York, but to Washington D.C. That's where the Triskelion is." He remembered the name. It had been in a packet Fury had given to him when he had first woken up to try and get him acclimated to S.H.I.E.L.D. Little did Fury know that it didn't take much more than showing him Peggy was one of the founders. "And if all goes well, that's where you'll be primarily located." That last part was a whisper, as if she was worried that he'd disagree.

      He knew that living in New York probably wasn't an option. Not only was he at S.H.I.E.L.D.'s mercy and would be relocated whenever they saw fit, but he wasn't sure he could live there anymore. Not with all the memories. And knowing that Bucky and Annie were gone, New York wouldn't feel like home.

      "Alright," he mentioned to Katherine, who looked up at him with questions in her eyes. She must have been expecting him to protest. "When do we leave?"

      "This weekend," she replied. It was Wednesday, so it gave him a couple of days to prepare. "It's about two hours away, give or take a few minutes. We can leave around eight on Friday morning."

      Steve nodded. "Sounds like a plan." He slid his Thin Mint latte over to her. He only drank about half of it every time. She polished it off, tossing both of their empty cups in the trash.

     They got back to the house and Katherine immediately went to go pack. He remembered hearing Sophia Benjamin mention something about Katherine's packing habits before they'd taken off for Delaware, and he smirked a little bit as she flitted around the house, packing little things here and there. 

      Friday morning came soon enough and Steve was surprised to find that Katherine would be driving. "Lionel's got the day off," she explained, holding up some grocery bags. They were full to the brim. "I've got us some road trip snacks. You can't do a road trip without snacks."

      He raised his eyebrows. "Isn't it only a two hour trip?"

      "Yeah, but we've got all of our options here. We've got Red Vines for sweet, sour Skittles for sour, Hershey kisses for chocolate, and we've got an assortment of chip flavors in here. Plus," she said, reaching into the bag and pulling out a couple of cans of soda, "I got you soda."

      "Pop," he corrected.

      She didn't argue, but he saw her roll her eyes. "Ready to head out?" She was wearing jeans and a plain brown shirt with white sneakers and a white hat to match. He realized he was wearing something pretty similar and smiled a little when he noticed they matched. 

      "Ready," he affirmed, moving towards the door. Their suitcases were packed and waiting by the threshold. He took a hold of hers in his hand, ignoring her protest. With his free hand, he opened the door for her.

      "I can carry my own bag," she said, holding out her hand expectantly. He grabbed his duffel bag and followed her out the door.

      "My ma would kill me if I let you," he responded, giving her a quick smile. She pressed the security code into the lock behind them and listened to the mechanical whirring sound it made when it locked shut. Katherine popped the trunk for him and he set their luggage inside, taking note of her simple black suitcase. It didn't surprise him that it was so plain. He'd noticed in their few months in Delaware that she didn't wear much color. He didn't either, but he knew there were some blue shirts S.H.I.E.L.D. had packed for him and he was pretty sure there was even a dark maroon one in there somewhere. 

      They got into the car and Steve handed her the map that was in the passenger side door. "You okay to navigate?" she asked. 

      He liked having something to do, so he nodded. "Fine with me." She set the snacks and drinks behind them on the floor of the car. She rummaged around in them before getting out the salt and vinegar chips from the bag, along with a can of soda. "Salt and vinegar?" he asked.

      "Want to try?" she held the bag out to him and he shrugged, taking a potato chip in his fingers. When he popped it into his mouth, he was surprised by the flavor. It was actually pretty decent. "You like it?" she asked.

      "It's good," he agreed, reaching for another one.

      She let him have the bag and he munched on more of the chips as they pulled out of the driveway. While he was mostly excited to get out of the house, there was also a small bit of apprehension. The small excursions that he'd gone out for hadn't been...pleasant. They were successful in terms of he made it there and back in one piece while accomplishing whatever task he set out to do, but he always felt too crowded and claustrophobic with the people around. D.C. was a hell of a lot more crowded than Wilmington, of that he was sure. He found that he was upset with this new facet of his personality. He used to love the hustle and bustle of New York. Selfishly, he hoped he'd one day get used to it again.

      Katherine had some music playing in the background lowly, taking sips of her soda as she merged onto the freeway. She was a good driver, he noticed. She was careful about keeping two hands on the wheel, only moving one when she grabbed a snack or a drink. Otherwise, they were on ten and two. He don't know why he noticed her unpainted fingernails, but it didn't surprise him that there wasn't any color on them. Just like this new facet of himself that was scared of big crowds, this seemed to be a part of Katherine's personality.

      "My family and I," she began, and he blinked at the casual mention of her family. It was rare that she discussed them unless prompted. "We used to play a game on road trips. We would try and find a car that was every color of the rainbow."

      "You ever get through a road trip finding all the colors?" he asked.

      "My mom got close. Got all except purple. Then, with Sophia's family, we used to play I Spy."

      He raised his eyebrows and she explained the rules of the game. "I Spy something red," she said after she'd told him what the game consisted of.

      He looked around in their own car first. There was the packet of Red Vines, but he felt like it was too obvious.  "The red stripe in the Lays logo?" he asked, holding up the bag of the salt and vinegar chips he'd very embarrassingly polished off within minutes.

      "I like your thinking, but no," she responded.

      Steve looked outside of the car then. "The McDonald's sign?" he guessed as they passed by. 

      "Correct," she said, smiling at him. 

      They played the game for a good chunk of the trip. He was pretty proud when he'd stumped her with the red car registration sticker on the Toyota in front of them. She opened the packet of peanut butter crackers and the two of them snacked on a few, looking around at the businesses they passed. They agreed to eat as soon as they got into D.C. so they didn't eat a ton, but enough that was "appropriate for a road trip" according to Katherine. 

      Katherine pulled up to a parking garage and paid the fee. Once they were parked, they both got out of the car. "Eat first?" she asked, and he was happy she seemed to be on the same page. She found them a restaurant fairly close to the National Mall and they sat, looking around at the patrons in the restaurant.

      "I figure we'll hit all the memorials and then maybe two or three Smithsonians?" she questioned. He actually knew all of the things included in her sentence, so he nodded before they ordered their drinks. Unlike the fun drink she'd gotten at their last food outing (outside of the ridiculous things she considered coffee at Brew Haha!), she just got a water this time. He copied her.

      Katherine had gotten them a bus tour of the monuments. After they ate and paid, they stood where the bus was going to pick them up. Steve wasn't excited when he boarded and it was cramped, but he still gave Katherine the only seat that was available. It was rude to make her stand when she'd gone through the trouble of making this a somewhat enjoyable experience for him. 

      He couldn't imagine what it would be like to live in D.C. New York was the only thing he really knew. Still, maybe it would be a good thing to get a change of scenery. And what a change it was. He spied out the window as the bus drove and admit to himself that it was a nice city with lots of things to admire and look at. A thought suddenly struck him.

      "Are you located in New York?" he asked. He realized that he didn't actually know where Katherine lived. She'd been in New York when he woke up, but who knew if that was her actual home?

      She shook her head. "I live in D.C.," she replied. A breath he didn't know he was holding left his lungs. At least if he was forced to move here, she would be here as well. She would be some familiarity in the new city. "After the Smithsonian museums we'll be looking at some different apartment buildings. Seeing if there's anything that sticks out to you."

      Ah, there was the catch of the trip. He pressed his lips together in a thin line and nodded, not quite disappointed but not quite pleased either. She seemed to pick up on his disappointment and stayed quiet the rest of the bus ride.

      Their first stop was the Jefferson Memorial. The unloaded from the bus and he held out his hand for her to take to help her step off. She gave him a grateful smile and put her hand in his. He didn't mistake the petite fingers for weakness. He knew firsthand how strong she was. 

      "So if you live here," he started, a peace offering for earlier, "you've probably seen all this stuff before, right?"

      She shrugged. "I mean, yeah, in a way. I never did a tour or anything, but they're around. I see them every so often. I'm more of a Smithsonian girl myself."

      The Jefferson Memorial was cool to look at, but even Steve could admit there wasn't much to do except look. He snapped a couple of pictures with the phone S.H.I.E.L.D. had provided him and he noticed Katherine snapped a couple with the disposable camera she had brought. After he was done taking pictures, she held it out to him with a shy smile.

      "Want to take a picture?" she asked.

      "Sure," he answered, grabbing it from her. Luckily, the device was pretty easy to use. He held it up to his face and paused when she started laughing a little, worried that he was doing something wrong. "What?" he asked, self-conscious.

      "I meant," she emphasized, "would you like to take a picture with me?" She grabbed the camera back and turned it so the front was facing her. "Stand next to me," she said, gesturing to her side. He moved closer, trying not to smile when she immediately stood on her tiptoes. He bent his knees to get as low as he could without looking too awkward or feeling too uncomfortable. "Smile, Cap." He smiled and the flash went off. He was glad she hadn't told him beforehand how bright it would be, otherwise he probably would have closed his eyes in anticipation. "We'll get them developed when we get back," she said. 

      The next stop was the Lincoln Memorial, and they took a picture there too. Everything was so big and expansive that Steve didn't know where to look first. He was happy Katherine was pointing things out, otherwise he would have missed something. After Lincoln Memorial was the Washington Memorial, which they could take an elevator up to the observation deck. 

      It was there that Steve realized that Katherine was afraid of heights.

      The elevator ride was normal enough. He wasn't particularly afraid of heights, so he just watched the floor number creep upwards. He read on a plaque that the monument was 500 feet tall. There was a small museum about 490 feet up in the monument, and he was debating checking it out when he looked over to Katherine and realized she was gripping her disposable camera with white knuckles. 

      "You okay?" he asked. She nodded but stayed silent, eyes closing for a little bit. "Is it heights?" She nodded again. "Why'd you agree to come up here then?" he asked.

      She shrugged. "Seemed like you wanted to." He felt bad. He never would have suggested going up if he'd known that she was uncomfortable. 

      "Here," he said quietly, holding out his hand. She opened her eyes and looked down, staring at it with confusion. "It's not going to bite you, Agent Baker."

      She placed her hand in his and he squeezed lightly. Steve remembered that Bucky's younger sister was afraid of heights too, and Bucky's mom used to hold her hand to calm her down. He hoped it would be of some comfort to Katherine. She gently squeezed his hand back, then let out a breath of relief when the elevator opened.

      He felt for Katherine, he truly did, but he didn't regret his decision. The view was incredible; Steve could see the entire National Mall and the horizon. Katherine seemed okay, but she clung to the walls a little bit and didn't get closer to the viewing pavilion like he did. She seemed much more happy when they got back in the elevator to go down to the ground level.

      "Thanks for going with me even though you were scared." He truly was grateful. They walked back to the bus to head to the next location. "Can I ask?" he kept his voice gentle, hoping she'd share a little information with him.

      "I've always been afraid of them. I'll put up with them for work, but I don't seek them out." She shrugged. "I'll be fine. Now that we're on flat ground," she added.

      Their last location for the tour was the World War II Memorial. Katherine was quiet as they got off the bus, and she noticed the stony look on Captain Rogers's face. It wasn't that he was angry or offended that she'd brought him here, but she had to keep in mind that for him, World War II was only four and a half months ago. Four and a half months since he'd lost his best friend, the love of his life, and the world as he knew it.

      She hung back as he walked through the memorial. She wanted him to have his moment and reflect. This had been the part of the trip she'd been the most nervous for, but she knew that if the roles were reversed, she'd want to see this part. To see proof that even though his life was cut short and he was thrown ruthlessly into this new world, it had been worth it. His sacrifice hadn't been in vain. 

       He didn't dare take any pictures. Neither did she. She just watched him, and he just looked solemn. 

      He turned back to her with that stony face and she had the immense pleasure of watching it crack apart when he came out of the memory he was stuck in, saw her, and gave her a sad smile. "Thank you," he said when he returned to her side. "I know you probably wrestled with bringing me here. I'm glad you did."

      "You helped make this happen, Captain Rogers," she said softly. And just like he had in the elevator, she held out her hand as a peace offering. He looked down at it and the corners of his lips twinged upwards. He placed his hand in hers and the two stood, taking in the memorial once more.

      "You called me Cap earlier," he said suddenly. She turned to look at him, raising an eyebrow. "Back at the Jefferson memorial," he clarified.

      "Oh." She hadn't even realized she'd done it. "Sorry, Captain Rogers."

      He shook his head. "No, I didn't mind it. But...you can call me Steve. If you want."

      Four months ago, he wouldn't have offered this. It made her feel happy to know that he trusted her enough to let her. "Okay," she agreed, "but only if you call me Katherine."

      They were already holding each other's hands, so he turned his to shake hers. "Nice to meet you, Katherine," he joked.

      "Nice to meet you, Steve."     

      There were more than fifteen Smithsonian museums, so Steve chose the Museum of American History and the Museum of Natural History. The American Museum was full of all aspects of American history, including American pop culture. He was surprised this ended up being his favorite section, but it was colorful and he enjoyed seeing the good that American had done instead of their involvement in the wars. The Museum of Natural History contained fossils and extinct animals that Steve marveled at. It was the perfect outing for after the World War II Memorial, seeing how amazing the world was after also seeing the destruction it could cause. When the exited the museum and got back on the bus to head back to the parking structure, Katherine handed him a newspaper.

      "These are apartment listings. If all goes well, at the beginning of May, you'll be moving out here. These are all buildings that have a spot available then." The listings were circled in blue pen. There were about seven of them.

      "Surprised S.H.I.E.L.D. doesn't just put me in one," he said, a little bitterly.

      "They tried," Katherine admitted, pressing her lips together. "But I convinced them to let you pick. They don't always go about it in the right way, but they care about you and making sure you're comfortable."

      "They don't care about me, Katherine. They care about Captain America," he argued.

      She looked up at him then, and he was amazed at how big and brown her eyes were. He'd never really looked at them up close before, but they were beautiful. "Fine, maybe they don't," she acquiesced, "but I do. I care about Steve Rogers. And I'd really like it if you had a choice in where you got to live."

      He was humbled into silence. 

      The bus dropped them off and they walked back to the car. Katherine drove them to the first apartment listing, which was about five minutes away from the National Mall in the opposite direction in which they'd been traveling. She'd apparently scheduled tours for all of the apartments, so there was an employee waiting for them when they walked into the apartment building.

      The first apartment was one bedroom and one bathroom. Steve didn't care about this, but Katherine wrinkled her nose. "Don't you want more than one bedroom?" she asked when the building's manager had given them the key and left them to tour the space.

      "For what?" he asked genuinely.

      "More space?" She suggested.

      "This isn't going to be a forever place for me," he argued, peeking into the giant walk-in closet. "One bedroom is fine."

      "What if you have guests over?"

      He wanted to snort. The only person he knew in D.C. was her, and she would either be at her own apartment or at the Triskelion. "Who?" he asked.

      "I don't know, but whoever it is won't have anywhere to sleep"

      He truly didn't think anyone else was going to be at his apartment, but he did veto this particular one because there wasn't a good view. If he was going to live within walking distance of the National Mall, he wanted to have a better view than the brick building next door. They thanked the building manager and drove to the second option. This one was another one bedroom and one bathroom, but Katherine kept her opinions to herself this time, letting him peruse it without commenting. This one just didn't feel right, which he told Katherine made him feel silly for not wanting it based on that. She assured him that the gut feeling was a good one to have and it wasn't wrong to follow it.

      The third apartment complex had the view he was looking for. He couldn't see the National Mall, but he did see the Washington Monument in the distance and had a view of a small dog park outside. The kitchen was small, but despite Katherine's opinions, he truly didn't need that much space. His tiny Brooklyn apartment had been half the size of the ones he was in now, and he had shared that with his mom (and Bucky, about ninety-five percent of the time). 

      "I like this one the best so far," he said, and Katherine starred it on the newspaper. She'd crossed out the first two when he'd rejected them, and he'd snorted a little bit at how thorough she was. 

      "This one has the option of coming fully furnished for an extra fee." She didn't bother telling him how much because they both knew S.H.I.E.L.D. was paying for it. "So that could be helpful."

      "Oh, yeah," he said, but she could hear something in his tone.

      "We don't have to do that. You can pick out your stuff," she assured.

      "I just want it to feel like my place and not someone else's."

      "I get it. I was the same way. We can start furniture shopping online when we get back to Delaware, if you'd like. That's always the best part about moving into a new place."

      "I'd like that," he agreed.

      Apartments four and five were also vetoed. Four was too small, even for him, and five was a two bedroom that was too much and too big. Katherine's eye twitched when she crossed it off the list, but he liked that she respected his wishes and didn't push for it. Apartment six was a contender and apartment seven had been promised to another tenant when they went to go tour, which annoyed Katherine but Steve didn't mind much. 

      "Okay so between apartment three and apartment six, what are you thinking?"

      Apartment six had been nice and he liked the big brick fireplace in the living room, but he couldn't let go of the view from the third apartment. "I'm thinking apartment three," he said.

      She smiled. "I was hoping that of the two you'd pick that one. I'll let Fury know and he'll sort out the details." She whipped out her phone to send a quick text then put it back in her pocket. "And since you've seen the space, you know what kind of furniture will fit in there."

      They got a quick dinner and a coffee to prepare for their drive home. But when they got in the car, Katherine turned to him. "Do you mind if we make a stop first?"

      "You're driving," was his only response. 

      They drove for about ten minutes before they came to another apartment building. This one was brick and had a little corner store next door. It looked like it was a smaller complex, maybe only ten or so apartments with only two stories. Katherine parked in one of the spots. 

      "I thought we were done looking at apartments for the day," he said in confusion.

      "We are," she replied. "This...this is my apartment."

      Steve raised his eyebrows. He hadn't expected her to take him to her apartment. He knew that she hadn't been there in months, far longer than they'd been in the safe house together. Most of her stuff was probably at the New York facility. But he found himself curious to know this little piece of her, to see where she lived and the aspects of her life outside of S.H.I.E.L.D. that made her Katherine Baker.

      She lived on the second floor, which made him laugh because of her aversion to heights, but she didn't seem to mind this particular one. They took the stairs (no elevator because it was only two stories) and Katherine stopped at the apartment with a 4B above the doorbell. Procuring a set of keys from her bag, she unlocked the door and stepped inside. Steve awkwardly trailed behind her, squinting into the dark room until she flicked the switch and the room was bathed in light. 

      The apartment was smaller than he expected, given her moaning about how he needed two bedrooms. Her kitchen was about the size of his new apartment, and it was pretty modest. Except for the giant coffee machine she had sitting on her counter, most of the kitchen stuff was the same as in their Wilmington safe house. She hung her jacket on the back of one of her kitchen table chairs, so he did the same.

      "Welcome to my home," she said, waving her hand around. The kitchen led into the living room, where she had big bookshelves on the far wall and a TV with a stand right next to the bookshelves. There was a big couch and a smaller two-seater across from the TV, with a dark wood coffee table in the center of the room. There were a few photos scattered across the bookshelves and TV stand, most of Katherine and Sophia. 

      There was one that caught his attention.

      In the photo there was a taller man with facial hair that had his arms wrapped around a beautiful brunette woman. In front of them were two kids— one girl and one boy. The boy was small, probably only three or four years old at the time of the photo. The girl looked older, probably seven or eight. Both kids had lighter brown hair and brown eyes, and there was a little gap in the girl's teeth, right in front.

      He knew what he was looking at without asking.

      Katherine moved to stand next to him, her eyes landing on the same photo. "That's my father, Roland. And my mom, Ina." She pointed to the little boy, her eyes growing soft and sad all at once. "That's Charlie."

      He looked back to the photo. He was surprised that Katherine looked so similar to her mother. "You look like her," he commented.

      "Thanks," she responded, giving him a small smile. "Well, I've got a couple things to grab while we're here, so I'll give you the tour." She gestured towards the hallway and he followed her. On the right side of her hallway was one bedroom and a bathroom. Everything was clean and looked relatively untouched. The guest room was decorated in (predictably) shades of grey and navy blue. It was nice, but it was impersonal. The bathroom was pretty much the same way.

      On the left side of the hallway was a small door and what he assumed was the master bedroom. "Washer and dryer," she said, gesturing to the small door as she continued down the hall. "And then my room." She walked in but he stopped awkwardly at the door frame. 

      Just like the rest of her place, this was clean to a scary extent. He supposed it made sense since she hadn't been here in months, though. This room had a little more personality, with a burnt orange comforter and rug. He also noticed that she had several plants littered throughout the room, and based on how long she'd been in Delaware, he assumed they were fake. There was a bathroom attached to her room that he couldn't see inside from his vantage point, but he was pleasantly surprised at the decorations in her room. There were more bookshelves here, and a small TV mounted to the wall underneath what looked like a dresser. She had some pictures in frames on her wall, including some more of her little brother and one of what looked like her parent's wedding. There were more of Sophia here, too, he noticed. He liked seeing those ones because Katherine looked happy in them.

      "You can come in, you know," she said. She was at her closet, grabbing a couple of things and putting them into a duffel bag. He cleared his throat awkwardly and took a couple of steps inside the room. He didn't want to invade her personal space.

      "I wasn't expecting this," he said, walking over to one of her plants and running his hand over the leaf. To his surprise, it was real. 

      She saw what he was looking at and grinned. "I've got a neighbor with a teenage kid looking to make some cash. He's saving for a car. He waters my plants while I'm away." Steve nodded. "And what weren't you expecting?"

      "All this color," he responded without thinking about it. He almost apologized, but he caught the little snort she let out as she put another shirt into the bag.

      "Can't take the credit. Sophia helped me pick some of it out. The plants were her idea, but I ended up liking the one she bought me and picked up a couple more that are really hard to kill." She gestured to the one that he was examining. "We could get some plants for you place, if you want."

      "Let's make sure I've got a teenage next door neighbor willing to water them while I'm away before we do anything drastic."

      "Fair enough." She set the duffel on her bed and zipped it shut. Then, she just stood and looked around her room for a little bit. "I haven't been here in months. Feels weird."

      "We could stay overnight, if you want," he offered, noticing the wistful look on her face. "We don't exactly have anywhere to be tomorrow."

      She looked up at him and smiled. "That would be nice, actually. There's a good bagel place we could go tomorrow morning before heading back. Would you really be comfortable with it? I don't mind driving back if you don't want to stay."

      "I'm fine, Katherine. We can stay." He wouldn't exactly be comfortable sleeping in the same clothes, but he would get over it. He could see how much she missed her place just by the look on her face.

      "I've got some S.H.I.E.L.D. sweats you can borrow." She reached back into his closet and grabbed some navy sweatpants and a gray shirt. He caught the clothes when she tossed them his way. "We always keep extras just in case an agent ever needs to crash at our place."

      "Does that bother you? Having your home open involuntarily?"

      She shrugged. "It's only happened once since I've had this place. And it was a friend, so..." she trailed off. "If you want to shower, the guest bathroom has towels under the sink. I'm going to let Fury know."

      While he went to the bathroom to shower, Katherine sent a text to Fury with their updated trip details. She couldn't say she was upset about the change of plans. She hadn't been to her apartment since she'd been put in charge of watching over Steve as he slept. That had been about five months ago. Thank god she had Tyler next door to water her plants. She heard the water in the guest bathroom start up and she moved to her closet to lay out some sweats. She'd hop in her shower after Steve got out so they wouldn't be running the water at the same time. While she waited, she walked out into the living room and turned on the TV, finding a movie to serve as background noise. 

      Her attention snagged on the photo Steve had looked at earlier. She grabbed it from the shelf and held it, eyes caught on her little brother. 

      That's how Steve found her fifteen minutes later.

      "You okay?" he asked, feeling bad when she started.

      "Yeah, I'm fine," she responded quickly, putting the photo back where it had come from. He could tell she was a little embarrassed that she'd been caught staring, but she shouldn't have been. 

      "I do that a lot, too," he said, reaching under his shirt to pull out his dog tags. Luckily he had been wearing them when he'd gone under in the Valkyrie, so he still had them in 2012. His name was worn with the amount of time he reached to run his fingers over his name. Then, he reached in his pocket and pulled out his compass, opening it to reveal a picture of Peggy.

      "She's beautiful," Katherine commented when he handed the compass over to her. 

      "She is," he agreed, nodding. "She's fierce and doesn't take any disrespect from anyone." And she loved me, he thought to himself. Or if she hadn't yet, she could have. He didn't dare say this to Katherine, but she had the fortunate knowledge in her family's death that they loved her. Steve was still so unsure. The only people who he knew for sure that had loved him were Bucky and Annie. And they were both gone. Peggy was still here physically, but would she even know who he was?

      "It's nice that you love her so much," Katherine mentioned quietly. She'd never known that kind of love. Maybe she'd found it once, with her ex-boyfriend Ian. But things hadn't worked out because she was too scared to ever truly let someone in. 

      "Didn't get me anywhere," he replied, shrugging his shoulders. She set the compass back in his palm.

      Katherine didn't respond, simply staring at the TV. He felt bad that he had put a damper on the mood. He was realizing that he was really good at doing that. "Hey," he said quietly, turning to look at her. "I had fun today. Thank you, Katherine."

      When she smiled at him, softer than any smile she'd ever given him, he figured maybe he hadn't messed things up as bad as he'd thought.

      "I had fun too, Steve."

      "And thanks for showing me your place. It's nice...seeing a little bit of you outside of the Agent thing."

      She shrugged but let out a little laugh. "Thank Tyler. It would have been a lot worse if your first impression of my apartment was that I couldn't keep my plants alive."

      He just laughed. "Alright, thanks Tyler."

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