Guardian Angel | Steve Rogers

11

"You really think we should crash a funeral?" Arden asked Natasha as they walked up the steps. 

"It's not really crashing when you knew her, and I'm just here for support for you and Steve. We'll just stand in the back." Natasha insisted, at the top of the steps. 

Arden sighed, following her in, sliding past a few people to find a spot in the back. Arden bobbed her head around, looking for Steve, spotting his tall figure in the very front row, moving her eyes to a woman making her way to the mic. 

"Isn't that Sharon, the girl that Steve had a small crush on?" Arden whispered to Natasha, pointing at the stand. 

"Sharon... Carter. I didn't even put that together, that's Peggy's niece." Natasha figured out.

"Steve was crushing on his ex-girlfriend's niece? That's gross." Arden scrunched her face. 

"Sounds like jealously." Natasha teased her.

Arden rolled her eyes, listening to the rest of the speech, along with others. Standing in the very back until the church was cleared, seeing Steve stand alone in the aisle near the front.  

"You coming?" Arden looked back at Natasha. 

"Go ahead." She replied.

Arden walking up behind Steve, her footsteps giving her away. Steve turning around to glance at her, leaning against the bench. 

"When I came out of the ice, I thought everyone I had known was gone. Then I found out she was alive. I was just lucky to have her." Steve mentioned. 

Arden give him a weak smile. "She had you back, too." 

He returned the smile, sighing as he looked towards the doors, spotting Nat and nodding at her. 

"Who else signed?" He asked Arden, changing the subject. 

"Tony, Rhodey, Vision." She answered. 

"Clint?" Steve added.

"Says he's retired." 

"Wanda?"

"TBD." She answered. 

"And you?" He asked her, looking into her eyes. 

"I'm a ghost remember? I'm not an Avenger." She reminds him. "The accords technically don't apply to me." 

"Then why stick around?" He sticks his hands in his pockets, truly curious. 

"Because it's affecting the people I care about." She admitted, looking into his eyes so he knew she was being genuine. 

"Nat?" Steve asked, looking over his shoulder, as she walked up to them. 

"I'm headed to Vienna to sign. Just because it's the path of least resistance doesn't mean it's the wrong path. Staying together is more important than how we stay together." Natasha expressed. 

"What are we giving up to do it?" He countered, and Natasha sighed.

She rubbed his arm, giving him a weak smile before walking away. 

"I'm sorry, I just can't sign it." Steve admitted. 

Arden sighed, nodding at him. "I know." 

"Then why are you here?" 

"I didn't want you to be alone." She sighed, looking up at his sad blue eyes.

She took a step forward, wrapping her arms around his broad shoulders as his wrapped around her waist, squeezing her tight, burrowing his face into her neck. She was going to try to convince him on getting on the jet with her, but she knew he wasn't going to change his mind. Instead, she headed to Vienna with Nat.