There's Someone I'm Waiting For (Steve Rogers x Reader)

Chapter 6 - New Symptoms

In the middle of the night, you woke up and the light in the room was soft and dim. Steve was still asleep so you tried to quietly slip off the bed. You felt his hand on your arm. "Please... don't go."

You turned around to smile at him. "I just have to go to the bathroom," you said.

When you came back, Steve moved his arm across the pillow so you could snuggle in closer and when you laid back, he wrapped his arm around your shoulder.

"Part of me is afraid to get too attached to this..." you whispered. "I'm so afraid you'll be ripped away again."

He tightened his grip on you. "If that happens, you give me those cards again. If I forget you every single day, you give me those cards to read every single day and I will remember you over and over again for as long as it takes." He looked over at you. "I'm not letting go."

You reached to the stand beside the bed to get your phone and you held it out in front of the two of you to take a picture. "Smile," you said. If Steve was back, even a little, this was a moment you wanted to remember. After you took the picture, you turned on your side a bit and snuggled into him.

***

Early in the morning, when the sun was barely up yet, you woke again. This time Steve was sound asleep so you snuck away and left a note on his lap that you had gone to take a shower.

On your way back to sick bay, you ran into Bruce and as he was asking how Steve did overnight, he got a phone call he had to take. "This is one of our guys," he said to you. You continued on to see Steve and when you opened the door, he seemed pleased to see you. "Good morning," he smiled. Your heart thumped in your chest to see him laying there with his bed head, smiling at you.

"I brought you some things," you said, handing him a bag. "Just some personal items so you wouldn't feel so gross this morning. Don't know how long you'll be here." You put your hands on his cheeks and leaned down to kiss his forehead.

"You take good care of me," he said, latching onto your hand before you could move it away. He gently pulled you down to the bed for a hug and he didn't let go. He moved his face against your cheek, you thought he might kiss you but he didn't. You assumed he remembered he hadn't brushed his teeth yet.

"Why don't we get you cleaned up a bit?" you asked. You stood and started pulling the curtain around the bed. Bruce walked in just then. "I brought some things for him to clean up, Bruce, he'll just be a few minutes."

"I can unhook the monitors so you can get up," Bruce said, looking at Steve. Bruce started taking wires apart and Steve started off for the bathroom with his supplies.

You sat back down in the chair. "So what's the plan?"

"Oh, company's coming," he said, signing into the computer and entering passwords. When he finished, he looked at you. "How are you holding up? - You seem better this morning."

"I do feel better, I suppose," you said, thinking about it. "Now that Steve knows about us, it feels like he's back... or at least, it feels more normal."

Bruce smiled, "That's nice to hear."

"Did you sleep?" you asked him.

"A little... I stayed up making some notes and thought of a million tests I probably need to run..." he sighed. "I'm going to do everything I can."

"I know, Bruce. You have no idea what that means to me." You got up and walked to the bathroom door, knocking softly. "Steve? Do you mind if I tell Sam what's going on?"

"Go ahead," he called out. "I'll just be another minute."

You sent Sam a quick text about what was going on and then there was a knock at the door. Bruce opened the door and shook someone's hand before they walked in and you could see who it was. He looked familiar.

"(Y/N), this is Dr. Reed Richards," Bruce said as Steve walked out of the bathroom, drying his face with a towel.

You shook his hand and then Steve did as well. "Dr. Richards," Steve said, "thank you for coming."

"Please, call me Reed," he said looking at you both. You could see the pity in his eyes and you could only assume Bruce had already told him the whole story.

Bruce stepped forward next to Reed. "We're going to put you through a whole new set of tests again this morning. We need to compare with the originals."

Steve turned to you, putting his hand on your lower back. "I want you to go have breakfast - and kill some time. You don't need to wait around here." He leaned down and gave you a quick kiss on the lips.

Though you didn't want to leave, you weren't about to argue with him. It wasn't until you got out in the hallway that you realized he'd just kissed you. You smiled and turned back to look through the window next to the door. Steve looked at you and a smile came over him as he put his head down, obviously trying not to laugh. Bruce and Reed were talking to each other and didn't get to see his cheeks get pink. That memory would be burned into your brain until you saw Steve again.

Sam texted you while you were walking. He wanted more details and to talk. You texted him back to tell him you were on your way to the kitchen and for him to meet you there.