His Best Girl {Steggy}

-Fourteen-

"Hey, Peggy."

Peggy looks around. She's back at SSR headquarters, with its rows of desks and filing cabinets. But it is void of people—where is the voice coming from?

"Where are you?"

"Where I've always been." Peggy turns, and there, leaning on his desk with his crutch in his hand, is Daniel. "Waiting for you."

"Daniel!" Peggy flies into his arm, and Daniel laughs, wrapping an arm around her. "But I lost you. You were shot, I couldn't-"

"Don't do this to yourself, Peg." Peggy leans back and spots the blooming of red on his dress shirt, the one that still haunts her. "We don't have much time."

"I'm so sorry. I barely got to say goodbye. What I wouldn't give for a second chance to save you," Peggy responds, a hand on Daniel's cheek and tears in her eyes. "I miss you so much. Every day."

"They way I see it, you do have a second chance. Just not with me. You have a second chance to live. To help Steve Rogers," Daniel says, wiping away one of Peggy's tears with his thumb. His soft brown eyes are fading, and yet so full of love and understanding it makes Peggy's heart break.

"Please don't leave me again, Daniel," Peggy whispers. "I love you."

"I love you too," he says with a smile, the red on his shirt expanding. "We'll see each other again."

Daniel's eyes drift shut, and Peggy's heart breaks all over again. "Daniel, don't-"

Peggy's eyes fly open and she sits straight up in bed, gasping for air. Even seconds after waking, Daniel's words and face are fading from her memory, and Peggy scrambles to wipe her tears away and hold the dream close for as long as possible. She rushes to her desk and grabs his photograph, which she has sitting right on top, next to a silver ring that looks completely new. Like it hadn't been given a chance to turn into something beloved. Now a symbol of love emanates pain.

A stray tear slides down Peggy's face as she stares at Daniel's photo. Losing Daniel was like losing Steve all over again. The dreams of his face are so like the ones she had of Steve for months after his disappearance rip her heart open once more, and she feels barren. In situations like this she would've been able to go back to sleep, knowing that she would have Angie or Mr. Jarvis to speak to the next day. But now?

Now nothing is the same. And it is as if she is being reminded of that every day.

"You all right today Peggy?"

"Of course. Bad night's sleep, is all. I'm sure everyone here is used to it," Peggy says. "But thank you, Natasha."

Peggy and Nat are training together in the large gym at the compound. It has become a bit of a tradition for them, following the growing number of weeks since Peggy's arrival. They get up at around a similar time, and head straight for the gym. With the punching bags and other equipment, whatever they need to work off the frustration of another dream is at their disposal.

"I'm taking a break," Peggy says, moving to grab a bottle of water and going to sit on a bench. Nat continues to punch at the bag until she decides to join the other agent.

Peggy glances over at the woman. Her bright red hair is tied into a ponytail, and sweat barely glistens on her forehead. When she moves to take a drink from her water bottle, Peggy notices the faintest lines of a scar circling her wrist.

Peggy is instantly reminded of Dottie Underwood. The Red Room handcuffed Dottie, along with Nat, as it seems, to the bed at night to prevent escapes, and evidently the scars still remain.

"Forgive me, if this is too... forward," Peggy says, "but-"

"You want to know about my time in the Red Room." A fleeting smile crosses Natasha's face.

"Yes. If you're all right with it. I knew someone. Dottie Underwood. She handcuffed herself to her bed every night because that's what they did to her in the Red Room. I just was curious about your experience."

"Ah. Well, I've had to reconcile with my past long before now; I don't mind." Natasha shifts in her seat. "We all started young. All girls, because we could be underestimated. No parents, no homes. Just a small bed with a pair of handcuffs." Natasha takes another drink before continuing. "We became excellent at ballet, those of us that survived the training. We attacked each other, to show our grace and combat. And if we failed..." she shrugs, but her point is clear. "I became good. Too good. They knew when I was just pretending to lose." Shaking her head, she says, "I did so many things that I regret, but living with all of that red in my ledger is no way to live at all.

"I think Clint saw that in me. The fact that I hated myself and what I was doing. I'm grateful to him for recruiting me instead of attempting to kill me. Because then I would've killed him."

"I believe it." Laughing softly, Peggy looks over at Nat. "Thank you for telling me."

"Yeah, well, we all have our demons. I try to be better every day for these guys. My past is... in the past. I try to remember to keep it there, but it isn't a problem to remember it once in a while."

Peggy nods, swallowing hard. "I'm trying to remember that myself," she says. "Every night I close my eyes and I see all of the people I left behind. I know I have a second chance here, but..."

"You weren't given the option, and I think that's something different," Natasha says. "You were ripped out of your home where you were perfectly happy. It's understandable that you're not over it just yet. But we're here for you."

"Thank you." Peggy takes a deep breath, trying to process all of her thoughts. They seem to swarm in her head like bees, refusing to stay still long enough to focus on just one. So instead of talking more, she stands up and stretches out her arms. "Ready for more? Sparring, maybe?"

"Only if you're ready to get your butt kicked," Natasha replies with a grin, jumping to her feet.

Peggy laughs, choosing to forget about her worries for now. "Oh, we'll see about that."

A/N:
Yes, I am alive. Life's been busy but I hope you enjoyed this chapter! Not a ton of stuff going on, but showing some bonding between Peggy and Nat and a reminder that Peggy is still healing since she lost everyone she loves.

Like I said, I hope you enjoyed!