Aftermath (A Steve Rogers/ Captain America Romance)

Chapter 3: You're Welcome Steve.

"Welcome to my humble abode, Mr Rogers." April spoke as she stuffed her house keys back into her pocket and stepped through the front door; Steve following timidly behind her.

"Its huge" He commented

April nodded "Needs to be... Wasn't sure I'd be able to fit you through the door." She winked

Steve shook his head and chuckled. Looking around the house he was astonished at how different and modern everything looked. There were machines and appliances that he had never seen before; there was a lot of questionable pieces of 'art' scattered along the walls; and also an unusual light smell of burning and ash.

April tossed her jacket on the sofa and showed Steve to his room. "I hope it's ok? My rooms only next door if you need anything. " She reassured him.

Steve smiled up at her from his seated position on the bed "No, It's brilliant! Thank you."

"You are very welcome Captain... " April grinned leaning against the door frame, "Whenever you feel comfortable I'll teach you your way around the kitchen." she offered. Seeing the apprehension and slight panic on Steve's face she laughed "You'll work it all out, Don't worry..."

Steve agreed with a light nod and watched as April retreated back into the living room. She reappeared moments later with a stack of S.H.I.E.L.D files tucked neatly under her arm.

"Fury thought these might be useful" she explained, handing Steve the pile "I guess it'll be a little heads up on who your going to be working with in the future..."

April exited the room as Steve got to work rooting through the files. The top three instantly drew his attention; in order, they read: 'Margaret Carter', 'Howard Stark' and 'James Barnes'. Steve spent hours reading and re-reading about the lives of his old friends. He had known them better than could ever have been written in words, but still, seeing their physical appearance and personality written on the page in his hand, offered him mild closure.

Steve finally made his way onto the rest of the files: 'Natasha Romanoff', 'Clint Barton', 'Maria Hill', 'Reed Richards', 'Ben Grimm', 'Susan Storm' and 'Jonathan Storm'. He was sure his eyeballs would explode, but Steve set himself a mission to read all the files in as much detail as possible. He was curios to see the kind of people and personalities that lived in the new time he'd awoken to; the type of powers they held; the type of soldiers they claimed to be.

He'd gotten through the majority of the files before April knocked lightly on the door. "Come in?"

She poked her head in and smiled "You hungry?"

"Starving." He replied

She gestured for him to follow her to the kitchen "Come take a look at what you fancy."

Steve quickly picked up the last few files he hadn't read, and followed her into the kitchen. After opting for a simple home cooked pasta dish, he made himself comfortable on the sofa. April hummed softly as she cooked; it was a familiar tune, making Steve grin wildly.

"That's from the Wizard Of Oz." He stated

April giggled "Yep. It was on the television earlier, couldn't help myself". April squeezed some more tomato puree into the sauce before turning back to Steve again. Her house had an open plan kitchen, it only had a half-wall separating it from the living room, so her and Steve could openly chat without having to run in between rooms.

"Have you read any of those files from Fury?" She asked

"Nearly all of em' actually" Steve said picking up the last file "Just finished Susan Storm. Now I'm on-" He checked the name at the front "Jonathan..." He then took a closer look inside the folder and continued "Johnathan... 'Johnny'... Storm". He finished.

April nodded, licking off some extra sauce that had dripped onto her finger. Meanwhile, Steve read through Johnny's file.
He wasn't too impressed by Johnny's personality profile, which made it all the more surprising when he got to his relationship status: 'Status: Partner - April Stark'

"Hey April?"

"Yes?" She responded

"Are you and Johnny Storm together?" he inquired

April smiled at Steve's confused face "Yes. Been with him for three years..."

"Oh?" Steve couldn't understand how someone like Johnny 'Hot head, Arrogant, Irresponsible' Storm could ever be considered good boyfriend material. "So... He lives here?"

April nodded "Fury has him and Ben Grimm away on a mission right now though, They won't be back for a few weeks..."

"So all these people-" Steve gestured toward the stack of files "I'll be working with them?"

"Pretty much" April confirmed as she started to 'plate up' the meal for them both "All of those people either work with S.H.I.E.L.D or work for S.H.I.E.L.D. There's a ton of other's you'll meet but those guys are the main team."

She set the plates on the table and called Steve over. Steve sat opposite her and started to make noises in appreciation of the food, making her giggle. After a long pause in conversation, April spoke up "Steve, listen..." She started "I know this is probably a stupid gesture and wouldn't make any difference, and I honestly can't even pretend to understand what your going through, or what your feeling... But, If you ever just want someone to talk at, you know where I am... I don't even have to say anything. I'll just listen."

Steve looked up at her. He didn't understand how someone with such cold, icy eyes could make someone feel so warm and invited with just one expression. He smiled "Thank you... I really, really do appreciate the gesture. I also want to thank you for allowing me into your home, and basically... For babysitting me..."

April laughed "You're welcome, Steve."