Lost at Sea ✔

Chapter 3

Lost at Sea

Chapter 3

The Funeral

     "Take all the time you need, Captain," A navy cadet saluted Steve as we walked by. Steve nodded his head to the cadet.

     He walked through the plane until he came to the door leading to the cargo hold. He closed his eyes and took in a deep breath before opening the door, and walked in.

     The only occupant was a coffin draped in red, white, and blue. Steve slowly made his way to its side. Two officers carefully removed the flag. They swiftly made their exit. Although moving fast, the officers didn't make a sound out of respect for the deceased woman and her grieving husband. They stood guard on the other side of the closed door.

     Steve took a moment before lifting the seal of the coffin.

     He watched as light illuminated her beautiful, pale face. If you happened to be walking by, you would've mistaken the woman to simply be asleep. Her lips were dashed with dark red, light blush was applied to her cheeks. Gold eyeshadow adored her eyes with light eyeliner overtop. Her gorgeous, red-brown locks were put up in a neat bun. Instead of the traditional black, she wore a navy blue dress that went down just below her knees. A golden belt wrapped around her waist with a little golden butterfly holding it in place.

     Even in death, she was still the most beautiful woman he's ever seen.

     Steve stared at her. His face was a mask of stone, but his eyes were gateways to the spirling emotions within.

     Rage. Sadness. Grief. Disbelief. Guilt.

     Rage. What happened? How did this crash happen? Why weren't there any answers to his questions? Why was he being left in the dark?!

     Sadness. Why him? Why Emily? Why Mariana? Why-why-why why-why???

     Grief. Why were Emily and Mariana's lives taken away? For what purpose? Why did they die? They didn't deserve to die.

     Disbelief. Was he really standing here next to his wife's body?

     Guilt. Why did he leave? Yeah, he had a mission, but they could've flown back with him. He should've gotten them on another flight.

     Here, in the privacy of the cargo hold, Steve allowed the perfectly sculpted walls inside his mind to come crumbling down. It began with a single tear, but the floodgates gave way. His body was slammed with choking sobs as he leaned onto the coffin for support.

     "Oh God, Emily," He sobbed. "What happened to you? My sweet, sweet darling." He brushed some stray hairs out of her face; something he did when she was still alive. "Were you suffering? I can't imagine the kind of pain you were going through in those moments. Where you even aware of w-what wa-was hap- happening?" The sobs made it hard for Steve to speak properly. He wiped away his tears as he continued to sob.

     Steve looked away from his wife, trying to regain his composure. "Emily," He cleared his throat before continuing. "Where's Mariana? Hmm? Where's our precious little girl? Why isn't she here? Why aren't you here?" He was racked with sobs again.

     He lost feeling in his legs and slowly fell onto his knees. He placed his head in between his hands. "Why did you both leave me?" He wailed.

     The officers held back their own sympathetic tears as they watched Captain America crawl up into a ball.

~{++}~

     There was a light knock on the door. "Captain Rogers?" A voice called out as the door opened. "It is time."

     Steve wiped away the remaining tears before he turned towards the officer. He nodded his head before standing up. He pressed his lips to Emily's forehead one last time. He mouthed a silent 'I love you' as he sealed the coffin shut.

     He saluted the officers as he exited. "Thank you for escorting my wife home." They nodded.

     "I give you my deepest condolences, Captain Rogers." One of them said. Steve nodded his head in a silent thank you before leaving.

~{++}~

     "My sister, Emily Cunningham Rogers, was a kind spirit and possessed a heart of gold." A strawberry-blonde woman announced to the attendees. "She was a friend to all. Race, ethnicity, gender, and sexual-orientation were only words to her. She judged a person by their character instead of identification. Growing up, I rarely--if ever saw a frown on Emily's face. Somehow, she was always happy and was very adamant about spreading her sunshine to the world. Her life motto was, 'nothing is impossible. The word itself says 'i'm possible''. She seemed to make the impossible possible so many times that I've lost count. My siblings and I lovingly referred to her as the mother hen of the Cunningham bunch, despite her being the middle child out of six." There was some laughter. The woman smiled as she talked about her sister.

     "Emily treasured her family more than anything. She once said that being with her husband, Steve, and daughter were her greatest accomplishments and I know she wouldn't have traded anything for a life without them or her friends."

     She had to stop for a bit before continuing. "Emily loved being a mother. That's all she ever wanted to be. She was ecstatic when she found out she was pregnant with Mariana whom she named after our late mother. I remember seeing Emily hold my niece for the first time. She was crying tears of joy while exclaiming, 'my precious baby girl!'. Those memories are the ones I'll cherish the most. May she rest in eternal peace." She choked on a job as she concluded the eulogy. She walked back to her seat next to Steve.

     He was silently crying as he looked forward. "Thank you, Elizabeth." He whispered.

     "That was really beautiful, Elizabeth. You did an amazing job." Natasha said to her as she passed her a pack of tissues.

     Everything afterward was a blur to Steve. He found himself standing in front of his wife's final resting place all too quickly. He suddenly collapsed to his knees. Natasha stepped forward to help him up, but Tony grabbed her shoulder, stopping her in her tracks. She moved to make him let go but froze when she met his gaze.

     Let him do this alone. He silently communicated. Natasha understood. Tony released her shoulder. Together, they silently watched the captain grieve for his family.

     "It's going to be a long and hard road ahead," Natasha commented.

     Tony hummed in agreement. "Indeed it will." 

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