Captain America: Professional Best Friend

The Breaking Point

Back at the lodge, Emma can't stand the silence of the large house with just her and Steve living there. It takes her weeks to adjust to it being just them again. After Emma and Steve both take time to try and get back to normal, they decide to make a little memorial for Sam and Wanda at the lodge since they both spent time with everyone there as a family. They set it up by the lake near the tire swing that they both loved so much.

On more than one occasion, Steve wakes up in the middle of the night to see that Emma isn't in bed and finds her sitting out on the grass just talking to the memorial as if they were there with her. Nights like these are when Steve learns how to make Emma's favorite tea perfectly so she has a warm drink to comfort her while they both sit outside by the lake.

Eventually, Steve can't handle not interacting with other people, so he decides to take a page out of Sam's book and start a support group for people who lost loved ones in the snap as well. He holds the group in the big city, a little bit of a drive from the lodge, yes, but he just bought a new motorcycle from someone in town, so the freedom of the road helps him when he gets too bogged down in his thoughts.

"Hey Em, did you wanna come with me today?" Steve asks as he gets ready for his ride into the city for his group.

"Not today, I'm sorry..." Emma tells him quietly. Over the last few months, she hadn't done much of anything because she just didn't have the motivation to do so, and that included going to Steve's support group.

"Hey, it's okay," Steve replies as he leans down to press a kiss to her forehead. "No rush for you to go, just tell me when you're ready and I'll take you."

Emma nods and tells him, "Have a good meeting, I love you. Be safe on the road."

"I will be. I love you too, Em," Steve tells her and kisses her on the lips before heading out.

Once Steve leaves and Emma is alone with her thoughts again, she needs a distraction. She looks around the living room and her eyes land on the piano that she hadn't touched since before everything went down. She sighs and tells herself out loud, "Might as well try to distract yourself, Baker..."

Emma sits down on the piano bench and pulls out a few books from Grammie's collection to start playing. The simple yet beautiful pieces keep Emma distracted for what only feels like a little while but turns out to be hours. In the middle of an older piece, Emma suddenly hears Steve's voice from behind her saying, "Hey I know that one. My mom used to play it when I was little."

"Oh yeah?" Emma asks with a small smile as she looks back at Steve.

"Yeah," Steve tells her as he sits down on the bench beside her. He wraps his arm around her waist and kisses her cheek before saying, "I missed your playing."

"I did too," Emma admits. She lazily plays a made-up tune while Steve runs his fingers along her thigh for a few minutes. After those minutes, Emma asks, "How was your group today?"

"It was good. We're all still hurting, but what can you expect? It's good to hear other people's experiences and know we aren't the only ones struggling," he tells her. After a few seconds of silence, Steve takes a chance and asks, "Have you thought about joining me next week?"

Emma thinks for a second about how much playing the piano has helped today, but decides that she still isn't quite ready for going to his support group, so she tells him, "Maybe sooner rather than later, but I'm still not ready."

"That's not a no," Steve replies and kisses her temple. "Take your time, sweetheart."

A few weeks pass and Emma has ventured into crocheting to keep herself busy on top of her piano playing. She still hasn't gone with Steve to a meeting, but she has started to make a point of video chatting with Natasha once a week at least so they can keep each other company.