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𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐄 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐊 𝐇𝐀𝐓𝐄𝐃 𝐇𝐄𝐑 birthday. For the longest time, it was simply because her family was too financially unstable for proper celebrations that it was treated as any other day. But her opinion changed after her mother died and Howard left. Suddenly, she was alone with her abusive father who was waiting for the day she would turn eighteen. And when she did... it was memories she buried deep in her mind, never telling a single soul of the details she had suffered at the hands of her father.
From that moment on, birthdays were never her favorite days. She loved celebrating others but whenever somebody tried to celebrate her own, she hid away and went silent.
Grace woke up to the sound of the smoke detector going off and she pulled away the covers from her face. She looked up at the ceiling with a confused look on her face before she rolled out of bed.
She poked her head outside of the bedroom and saw Steve frantically waving a sheet of paper toward the ceiling.
"What happened?" she asked, walking over to the blonde who looked to be struggling. "Steve... a piece of paper isn't going to do anything to turn off the alarm." She grabbed a pillow off the couch and waved it at the machine until it turned off. "That's better," she sighed.
"Sorry..." Steve apologized, moving over to the stove. "I knew today was your birthday so I was trying to make you something to take your mind off of it. But, uh... it didn't really go well."
Grace smiled at his thoughtfulness before joining him at the stove. "What were you trying to make?"
"Oatmeal."
She nodded and peeked inside the pot of boiling water. "Oh, my gosh... you've actually managed to burn water. How do you even burn water?" she asked, looking over at him. "I thought you were kidding when you said that would happen."
Steve shrugged. "I told you."
Grace pursed her lips in amusement before pouring out the pot. "How about we go out instead?" she suggested. "I can give you a little tour of modern-day DC."
"Well, I never knew DC in the forties, but sure," Steve agreed with a nod when there was a knock on the door. "I'll get it."
Grace peered back at the pot as Steve went to answer the door. "Seriously, how does someone burn water?" she asked herself, tilting her head. "That man needs cooking lessons."
"Um..." Steve's voice made her turn away from the pot and look over at him. "Did you order anything?"
"No, why?" Steve returned with a large bouquet of flowers and he set them on the table. "What on earth is that? It's massive. I can't even see the vase."
Steve handed her a small piece of paper. "It's not from me, I know that much."
Grace snorted as she opened the small envelope and pulled out a card. "Oh, it's from Tony," she said before quirking an eyebrow upward. "Oh, he did something that I won't like."
