driftfleet | April System Mingle

But it is a nice change.

[ comfortable, cozy, a relaxed end to an otherwise hectic, painful day. He passes her a cup, warms his hands around his. ]

You gotta admit, it sure is something.

[ mostly because it's theirs, a result of a painful argument that brought them here - side to side, warm and together. ]

Lovely -- [ peggy confesses. and, after blowing a stream of air onto her cup of tea, she tastes it and offers her verdict on that front as well: ] So, too, is the tea.

[ a little on the fragrant side, maybe. nothing like the stiff cups of her youth. but there's a charm in the change as well. peggy sits near enough to him that their sides press together. elbows in each others' ways.

a minute of companionable silence passes. ] I shouldn't have stormed off like that. You'd think I'd know better by now.

You needed your space, that happens.

[ but that is the main reason why they never pick arguments over petty notions and day to day matters. They're not two ordinary people learning the slopes and obstacles of bringing their lives together. Most couples fear a first parting, he and her already know that road, what life seems like in each others absence. It leads to a certain kind of maturity - every day fights become unnecessary and understanding the importance of forgiveness and acceptance is that much easier.

The same fear had plagued him all day. If this would have been the time for her to be ripped away from him, the last thing he did was to accuse her of patronizing him and letting her walk out of his life.

It's natural but he's unwilling to let it take over their lives, inspire this guilt in her. ]

You came back. That's what matters.

[ it could be whiskey, and not tea, for all the gusto with which she drinks it. a long, stiff pull -- indifferent to the heat on the back of her throat. how many near-boiling mugs has she necked in her time? whether because she was in a rush...or because she had to finish the mug before michael stole it.

the white leaf leaves a pleasantly bitter taste in the back of her throat. ]

More like you called me back. [ goddamn. ] My pride might have kept me away until morning, you know. Could have been the war all over again.

[ how many months were lost to that stupid fight over private lorraine? over howard? peggy shakes her head. ]

What a wretched day it's been without you.

[ not that she means it literally. there are plenty of days where most hours are spent out of each others' company -- but there had been a particular pallor over these hours, knowing they'd parted on poor terms. ]

Damn awful.

[ he'd give her that. The remaining 78 bags of tea and the pedantic way their host's closet are now arranged are a proof of that. ]

But it's been a day and it's over. Come on, next month we're going on a year. Gotta hand it to us, one fight in a year? No weapons this time?

[ his fingers settle on the crook of her elbow. ]

[ a grumble in the back of her throat. he gropes for the silver lining -- and when she squints, certainly, she can see it. one fight in a year. not on disagreement or one flash in the pan or one conflict, 'cause they've had plenty of those. but only one drag-out, teeth bared fight. both of them, spiraling towards their worst. pretty damned decent statistics.

she leans into him -- cheek just above his ear. ] You're lucky I didn't come armed. And no shield on you, this time. Wouldn't that have been bloody tragic.

You like me too much.

[ cheerful and cheeky as you please, he angles his head, kisses her cheek. ]

I am the one who keeps giving you tea.

I'm afraid I have terrible news for you, my darling. [ her torso twists just enough to facilitate her palm dragging gently across his jaw -- finger hooked soft behind his ear. ] You're not the only one who keeps giving me tea.

Better start carrying that shield again.

[ he hums, warm and content and quite happy to accept the risks of her temper and his stubbornness when faced with her love. He likes just about anything on her lips, steve most of the time, Captain when the mood is light and flirty, Rogers every now and again but then there are times like these and she says my darling and steve can melt against her in seconds from how true it rings. It's easily his favorite, inspires him to find her lips, kiss a layer of her lipstick off. ]

Improve my chances.

[ -- so that's what a proper reconciling kiss feels like: a little penitent, a lot grateful. she feels her gratitude match his when she leans in. her hand finds his side (grabs; grips) and she stops herself before she drags him into her lap, although the instinct isn't a subtle one when she pulls and plucks at his waist. greedy, but hesitant.

she tastes red when her lipstick smears. ]

Shut it. [ another kiss. ] It was never about the shield.

Not even a little?

[ there are traces of deep, vibrant red at the corners of his lips but he hardly minds them. He's much happier to concentrate on the insistent tug at his waist. He knows that one, he spends half an hour every morning doing exactly that, trying to tug her back to her place by his side.

A whole other agenda now but he complies rather eagerly, shifting closer, slotting his hips in her lap. All the better to lean in and smudge that lipstick a little more. ]

[ she steadies him in place -- enjoying the novelty of his slighter frame perched above hers. her arms wrap around the small of his back, pinning him where he is. keeping him, although she knows there's little fear of him fleeing. the responsibility is hers, now, to keep her core muscles engaged and to keep them from toppling into a helpless heap. ]

Not one bit.

[ peggy lifts her chin to catch his kiss. ]

You know, it's the one thing I wished they hadn't done when they found me. They cleaned the shield, took down the marks.

[ he made a point to instruct them to leave those three bullet marks on back in the day. ]

I kinda liked having them there.

[ a reminder of a lesson learned, maybe. ]

[ she laughs. why shouldn't she? the concept is laughable. ]

Did you, now? [ truthfully, she can remember those marks most vividly. she can remember the smell of gunsmoke threading through the bunker's stifling below-ground air. ] I'm no psychologist, of course, but I can only imagine that says a great deal about you. And you dare to call me mad.

Only a bit mad.

[ this sort of affectionate proximity always feels necessary but doubly so right now. One fight in nearly a year is not a lot, he had determined, but in the wake of forgiveness and a fear of lost time there is also a need for closeness. Steve presses close, cups her cheeks, thumbs against her cheekbones. ]

In the best possible way.

Well. [ she watches him with eyes that rarely waver. peggy finds her smile pulling at this fingertips -- she kisses the edge of his palm. ] I can do you one better. Quite mad myself, I spent a small fortune on clothing while I was out. You'll have your pick of outfits come the morning.

You went shopping? for me?

[ it would have made more sense if she went shopping for her, small fortune or not at least those would still fit in a week. still, he did spend his entire afternoon trying free sample in a tea shop before spending an insane amount of money on all those tea bags. he's only happy she seems to favor them. ]

--- how did you guess which size to buy?

[ he's actually curious now. ]

I had the help of a rather narrowly-constructed fellow. Another Englishman, actually. He agreed to be something of a clothes horse on your behalf.

Nice of him.

[ he decides not to ask how that conversation went. How does one go about asking another person something like that? Who even knows. ]

And awfully sweet of you.

[ sweet! she grimaces. sweet certainly isn't the sort of rebuke she's been looking for. ]

Don't say so until you've tried them on.

At worst we'll alter them. I'm pretty good at it. A few pins and we'll be good to go.

[ cheerfully ]

That's very sporting of you. [ she braces him in place with a hand on his back -- unwilling to let physics slide him away from her when she reaches for her well-brewed cuppa. peggy drinks deep, grimacing pleasantly through the heat, and then sets the mug on the floor beside her. ]

[ very amused: ]

Are you working around me?

[ he shifts back ]

I can move, you know.

[ her hand tightens against the small of his back -- palm flat, but pressure firm. ]

Don't you dare.

Really?

[ an arched eyebrow. ]

Gotta say it's an interesting reversal of roles.

[ he did make a bit of a career of keeping her within hold. ]

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