ONLY YOU » STEVE ROGERS [EDITING]

34 /| best decisions

thirty-four

*•.*

"IF I DIDN'T KNOW YOU SO WELL," Geneva began, leaning on the wall of the old motel. They'd been waiting for Clint and the other people willing to help them to arrive in Germany for a long time, and hiding out here had seemed like a good enough idea as any. "I'd ask you 'is this who you are now?' 'Is this who you've become?'"

Steve didn't reply, but he stood, going into the small bathroom. He didn't close the door, so she took it as an invitation to follow him. "But I know," she continued. "I know that you don't do anything if you don't think it's right. Doesn't matter if it's against the law. It doesn't matter if the whole world comes crashing down on you. You'll only ever do what you think is right."

No matter who he hurt in the process.

Steve leaned over and turned on the shower. "I never said I was perfect," he said once he was standing straight again. "I just need to do what I believe in."

She took in his dirt smudged face and swallowed. "And I just need you to not get killed in the process." She blinked a few times as the steam from the shower began to become visible. "I can handle a lot of things, but not that."

"I'm not going anywhere," he murmured, taking the tops of her shoulders in his hands. She almost shivered at the feel of his callused hands on her bare skin. She'd shrugged off her jacket the moment they'd gotten in the room, leaving her in a dark tank top. Too thin and impractical for the weather, but she'd been in a rush that morning.

His blue eyes watched her intensely, willing her to believe his words, but Geneva couldn't shake the creeping feeling of despair. The group of super soldiers in Siberia were, according to Bucky, more dangerous and deadly than him, and Geneva couldn't fathom how that was possible. They could kill anyone if that doctor woke them up.

To make matters worse, Ross had all but promised to kill Steve when Tony's 36 hours were up, and the act itself would be a lesson to all.

The Avengers were not above the law— not even Captain America.

She wrapped her arms around herself, tempted to turn off the shower, but also tempted to kiss him until they both turned blue because she was beginning to fear that she would never get the chance again. "Promises, promises."

He squeezed her shoulders slightly, almost desperate now. "I'm mean it, Gen, because I know how much I can't lose you, and if you feel even a little of what I feel, then I know that even the thought of it is unbearable."

"Unbearable," she agreed.

"I'm sorry," he murmured after a second, the soft patter of the water hitting the floor of the shower quieting his voice. "I haven't made the best decisions—"

Geneva sucked her teeth in a teasing way. "So you admit it?"

"—but I don't regret them," he finished, his lips lifting apologetically at the corners.

"I know you don't. I told you, I know you too well." She let the tips of her fingers come up to his waist. "Which is how I know that you're hurting right now, Steve, and when you've got the time to talk about it, I'm here."

"And what about you?" He asked quietly, his blue eyes a storm of emotions, too hard to decipher.

"What about me?"

He let out something between a laugh and a sigh of frustration. "You took Lagos hard and you were still more worried about my feelings—Wanda's, Olten's—than you were your own."

After a second of silence, Geneva reached over and finally turned off the shower. Steve's hands slipped away from her. "They're young, and they don't have as many people to care about them as they should." She ran a hand over her forehead. "Sometimes people just need to feel like someone's putting them first... But I'm okay, I promise. I make sure that I am."

"And if you're not?"

"You'd be the first to know."

He leaned down to her height so that he could hug her properly. "Thank you," he whispered.

She watched herself in the mirror, noting the way her brown eyes were marred with tiredness and the way her dark brown skin held a slight sheen. A result of the shower steam, she was sure. Her hair was curled at the edges, and she almost wanted to cringe at the thought of how long it had taken her to get it flattened into a bun. She pushed the thought away, allowing her others to run rampant.

Geneva had more to say to him.

She spoke up slowly, her words carrying over his shoulder, where her chin rested. "Two years ago, I asked you, if it came down to it, to choose yourself over Bucky, and you didn't. I see now that maybe that was for the best, and maybe—maybe choosing Bucky is your way of choosing yourself." Gen shook her head. "I don't know. I'm not sure what you've promised him. Just... just remember that you made me promises too."

Steve's arms tightened around her. "And I have every," he paused, placing a kiss to her shoulder, then at her neck, "intention of keeping them."

They made eye contact for a split second as he pulled away, only to immediately latch his mouth onto hers. She leaned her head backwards, her eyes fluttering closed. His lips slid over hers in a way that had her holding back a gasp.

She couldn't seem to get closer to him.

Her teeth grazed his bottom lip, and he let out a quiet groan before reaching out and closing the door to the bathroom, shutting them in the small space.

It seemed as if he didn't plan on letting her go.

Hi!! This is short but the fight's in the next chapter. Comment if you guys want an extended version of this chapter :). Thanks for reading!!

-syd