When he had thought of his return home from his latest mission, Steve had barely been able to contain his excitement to see you. Three weeks had been far too long for him to be oarted from you.
Even Diana- whom, bless her heart, loved you like you were family- was getting sick of her companion's continuous forlorn sighs of longing.
So when news reached him that you were in the hospital, he could not help but feel complete and utter despair.
What was wrong? What had happened while he was away? Were you receiving visitors? All of the questions filled his mind as he read that telegram.
Those few words had managed to turn his world on its head.
(Y/N) STOP IS STOP THE STOP HOSPITAL STOP. YOU'RE STOP NEEDED STOP HOME STOP.
Thankfully Diana had managed to pull some strings and get him a place on the next boat home. Steve could hardly express his gratitude to her, due to his anxiousness to see you.
She had reassured him on countless occassions that, everything was going to be okay but even she couldn't shake her constant feeling of uneasiness.
****
You rolled onto your side, shivering as the cold set into your bones. You curled into a ball, trying to to keep warm. You could hardly help but mewl contentedly when a blanket appeared and was tenderly wrapped around your body.
There was a scraping of a chair beside your bed in the hospital cubicle.
You rolled onto your other side, towards the sound.
Opening your eyes, you smiled at the welcoming visitor who stared back so worriedly. "Steve," you whispered happily. "you're here "
He smiled sadly back at you, tears beginning to swell in his eyes. "Hey." he quickly wiped them away, not wanting to alarm you. "How are you feeling?"
"Broken, my body feels broken, like I've been pulled apart."
"Oh," he chuckled meekly. "well that's to be expected, I suppose." although his was trying to feign a care-free tone, there was too much of an anxious hint to it. "I'm so sorry I wasn't here sooner, sweetheart. I got here as fast as I could. I heard from the Docs that you've been very brave the last few days."
"I wasn't really." you sighed, exhausted. "You're braver."
"I'm still proud of you." he placed a tender kiss on your temple. "My brave (insert your preferred gender)."
You couldn't stand to look at the hurt in his eyes. So naturally, you changed the topic to a more pleasant subject. "How's Diana?"
He looked almost broken himself for a moment before he recovered, smiling at you. "She's doing okay. She misses you and says sorry that she isn't here. She wanted to come with me but they needed her out there."
You smiled at him too, absent-mindedly checking the cannula that was inserted into one of the veins in your right arm. "I told them not to send for you. This is just a blip. You have more important things to do, than be here wasting time with me."
"Hey," the blond frowned, as his hands cupped your face. His intense blue eyes searched yours, in an attempt to fathom why on earth you thought so lowly of yourself. "I'm right where I'm supposed to be. The war will still be there when I get back. You're far more important."
It was your turn to frown."The needs of the many outway the needs of one sickly person."
The spy leaned in close to you, as you lay helplessly on your assigned bed and kissed your on the nose. "How's about I concentrate on the needs of you and we let the others ficus on themselves?"
You rolled your eyes. "Yeah, like that's going to happen."
"(Y/N)." he warned you.
"I'm serious, Steve." you sighed, exasperated. "I've been in this damn hospital for a week and I am no better. It's likely I'm not going to be any time soon. The world needs you. I'll still be here when you finish your mission. This is wrong, Steve. You should be out there saving people, not wasting vital minutes here."
Steve took you pale, cold hand in his and brought it to his lips. "You're scared and I get that but please, please don't push me away. Please. You know what the doctors have said. The IV should start kicking in soon and you'll start feeling much better. You just need to give your body time to heal. And you will be home soon, just not until your body receives the medical attention it deserves." he kissed it. "As for the world, Diana know's what she's doing. Knowing her, she'll have ended the conflict by the time we leave here."
You groaned in frustration. Damn that handome man! He was right. "Fine." You closed your eyes. "I'm sorry." you grumbled.
"Nothing to be sorry for." he chuckled.
"Steve?"
"Yeah?"
"I love you."
He smiled at you affectionately. "I love you too."