You stumbled into your older sister's house for your niece's second birthday party, your arms pained by the massive present in your hands. You dropped it on the dining room table with the rest of the presents, and let out a sigh of relief.
"Y/N! You made it!" Your brother grinned, walking in from the kitchen and hugging you. "Well, come on in, the party's in the back of the house."
You followed him deeper into the house, not exactly looking forward to having to spend the day with your family. Ever since you joined SHIELD as a field agent and got into your....accident, you had distanced yourself from them. You were weary to spend time around people who couldn't know your secret. After the accident, you developed the ability to manipulate gravity, and while you had become more comfortable with your skills, you weren't 100 percent confident. When you got stressed for upset, you tended to not be able to control what happened. The only reason you were at this party was because your boyfriend Steve told you he would go with you. But, of course, he and the other Avengers had been called out to an emergency mission at the last second, and he couldn't go. So, you were alone.
"Do my eyes deceive me or is that Y/N Y/L/N?!" Your weird uncle hollered from across the room.
"Hey, Uncle Bernie," you grimaced.
Your brother snickered but hid his grin behind his beer bottle.
You glared at him and made your way towards the counter where your sister had put the booze. "I'm gonna need some drinks, aren't I."
Just as you were pouring yourself a generous glass of wine, you heard a gasp and suddenly two arms were wrapped around you tightly.
"Y/N! You're here!" Your sister shrieked. "Wait, wait, where's this boyfriend I heard about?! I thought we were finally gonna meet Mister Fancy?"
You took a large gulp of wine before responding. "He had a, uh, work, thing come up. So, he's there, um, not here."
"A work thing on a Sunday afternoon? Sketchy!" She giggled. "Anyway, I have to go continue my rounds. I'll talk to you later!"
You muttered a goodbye and took another sip of wine. For the next few hours, you flitted around the party, sipping your drink and trying to ignore the odd looks you knew your family was giving you. After a while, you headed towards the bathroom at the front of the house, but stopped at the doorframe to the dining room when you heard someone whisper your name.
"I mean don't you think it's a little suspicious Y/N claims to have been dating this guy for over a year and none of us have ever met him?" You recognized the voice as your sisters. "I mean every time I invite them somewhere, one of them always has work."
"Maybe she made him up." That would be your sister's sister in law. Whom you weren't too fond of.
Someone else snorted. "Maybe she just felt like her life was boring so she threw an imaginary hunk in there." And now your sister's best friend.
"Well I know she's desperate," your sister laughed. "I just didn't think that desperate."
They all dissolved into giggles, and you, blood boiling and eyes stinging, stepped out from around the corner. Your sister's eyes met yours and she stopped laughing.
"Excuse me," you muttered, pushing past them and walking out the front door.
You could feel yourself loosing control, and wiped the tears from under your eyes. Hands shaking, you pulled your phone out of your pocket and called Steve. No answer. So, you called Natasha.
"Hello?"
You took a deep breath to mask the fact you were about to burst into tears before talking. "Hey, Nat. Do you have any idea where Steve is? He's not answering his cell and I just really, really could use one of his pep talks right about now."
"Sorry, Y/N, I'm not sure," she said apologetically. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I'm fine. Bye."
You hung up quickly and buried your head in your hands, not quite knowing what to do.
"Y/N, what are you doing?"
Your head snapped up, and you felt the weight of the world lift off your shoulders when you saw Steve standing at the edge of the driveway. Before he could even blink, you had your arms wrapped around him and were holding on like you thought you'd never see him again.
"Hey, what's wrong?" He asked softly, putting his hands on your face.
"I remember why I don't like parties," you said, kissing him quickly. "I hate people."
"As soon as we were done in the field I came here. I felt bad, this is like the sixth time I've stood your family up."
You glanced back at the house hesitantly then back at Steve. What you really wanted to do was go back to your apartment, put on some pajamas, and cuddle while watching Netflix. But, the thought of walking back in there with literally the most attractive man in the history of the world and seeing your sister's face was too sweet.
You kissed him again; only longer. "Yeah, let's go in."