Chapter Text
Prompt: “I told you I’d save you a seat in hell,”
There’s nothing like summer in the city. D.C. was busy in the summer and the heat oppressive. You wanted to have words with the people who decided a swamp was a good place for a city. But even in the middle of the city, your neighborhood was quiet. Kids played outside on their own. A little park was close by, but you could still see the Washington Monument from your window. Steve lived around the corner from you and you had taken over his apartment, it was one of the only on your block that still had air conditioning. An overnight storm had dropped limbs on power lines and knocked out half the street. Steve had left for a mission and as soon as the temperatures started rising in your apartment, you used your spare key to get into his. You wandered through his apartment searching through his refrigerator.
When was the last time you went grocery shopping? You have no food you texted before ordering a pizza. You weren’t exactly sure how you became so close to Steve Rogers. You moved into your apartment on the same weekend. He had offered to help you move in your furniture that your asshole ex had left for you to manage. He helped, you gave pizza and a beer and at the end of the day you had a best friend.
Why are you at my apartment and the last time we went grocery shopping all the groceries ended up in your fridge, Steve answered. You rolled your eyes and leaned against the refrigerator. Unfortunately he wasn’t lying. You wanted to deny it, but that was an argument you were bound to lose. Slowly you slid down until you were on the floor, the cool tile against your bare legs.
Power’s out at my place. You still have air. I’m melting. I have a front row seat for hellfire. I’ll save you a seat. You responded. He never told you where he was or why; missions were secret. Not only were you not involved with SHIELD, but Steve was also protective. Overprotective some would say, but you didn’t mind. He was great at crowded bars, if anyone knew how to split a crowd down the middle it was Captain America. He was also excellent intimidation when creeps got a bit too close and wouldn’t take no for an answer.
Other than Steve, your life was quiet. You brought quiet to his life. He didn’t have to talk business with you and you didn’t want to know. Your friendship kept him grounded, a fact he thanked you for often.
You groaned at the doorbell. The pizza was here but you didn’t want to get up off the floor to get it. Practically crawling to the door, you eventually answered. The delivery boy’s face fell as soon as he saw you.
“Sorry, isn’t this Captain America’s place?” He asked as you handed him his tip.
“Nope,” you answered swinging the door shut. Steve’s apartment was an urban legend among pizza delivery drivers. You always answered the door and they always asked. Eventually they’d get the message, but until then you were in charge of dispelling rumors. He’d never ask you to do it, but if it gave him some peace you were more than happy to burst bubbles. You flopped down on the couch, slice of pizza in hand, and turned on the TV. Contrary to what most people assumed, Steve not only had a grasp of the technology world, but he was on par with anyone else in the world. One of the best decision you had made was introducing him to video games. That boy could kick ass in Mario Kart.
You scrolled through the TV guide looking for something to watch when the TV suddenly went black. The lights turned off and air conditioning slowly wound down until the air was still.
“You’ve got to be fucking kidding me,” you groaned, one of your legs falling off the couch, your bare feet brushing against the carpet. Your skin already felt sticky and hot from the humidity. You’d have to get creative if you were going to survive.
5 hours later
The lights were still out when Steve came in. He didn’t hear anything when he dropped his bag by the door.
“Y/N?” he called out and followed the groan to the kitchen. You were spread out on the tile in just shorts and a sports bra.
“I told you I’d save you a seat in hell,” you told him from where he was looking down at you.
“So the tiles are cooler than the carpet…” he started and you nodded along, “but why my tile instead of yours?” he asked fighting a smirk that would only get him berated. He knew exactly how to tease without starting something he wasn’t ready to finish. Both of you played tug-of-war with that line and with this battle super strength wasn’t an advantage.
“Cause my tile is down the street and your tile was right here,” you responded. You took in the slightly discolored splotches on his face. He had taken hits that probably would’ve broken your face in a million pieces. But Steve wasn’t even going to bruise. Once you had asked him how hickeys worked, but he refused to answer.
With a quiet groan, Steve laid down on the floor next to you. Several minutes went by as you suffered.
“You need to eat the rest of the pizza in there. It’ll go bad sitting out too long,” you commented. He didn’t answer for a few seconds.
“You couldn’t have told me that before I got down here?” He complained. He pulled himself up from the floor and found the pizza box half open on the counter. Slice in hand, he sat down next to you. Sometimes it was weird to think about your life. How you managed to end up lying on Captain America’s floor with him sitting against the fridge munching on pizza. You also weren’t sure at what point you accepted this as your life and didn’t question it.
You fell asleep on his floor. How you managed to do that, you weren’t a entirely sure, but you woke up on his couch. You put your foot down after the third time that you fell asleep at his place. You found Steve scrunched up on the couch after having carried you to his bed. It was fine the first couple times but after that you couldn’t do it. It was his apartment, you’d be fine on the couch and both of you would be comfortable instead of just one.
You threw your legs over the side of the couch and stood up. The power was still out, but Steve had opened up a window. A breeze came through the apartment as you wandered to Steve’s bedroom. He was sitting up in bed, his laptop was open but mostly ignored.
“What’s your plan when that dies? Is the porn really worth it?” you teased. He rolled his eyes as you climbed onto the bed lying across the foot.
“I gotta stay on top of the Cap fan message boards, you know?” he threw back. You rolled your eyes at his quips. You sat together in silence just the sounds of the city in from the open window. Glancing over you watched Steve’s face. His mind was a million miles away. Sometimes you worried about him when he came back from missions. He always seemed a bit heavier than the Steve you were used to and it made sense. You didn’t know the details of his missions, but you knew the nature of them. It took a toll on him, he was a man with a good heart who couldn’t always save everyone.
A loud click made you look up as the power came back on. The air blasted on and the lights turned on.
“Thank god,” you groaned rolling over and pressing your face into the blanket, the cool air on your back.
“You going home or staying?” he asked. You crawled over to the side of the bed he wasn’t using.
“Nope,” you didn’t want to leave him without really knowing what headspace he was in. You didn’t need to know, but you didn’t want him to be alone. “Either we’re going to sleep or we’re watching Netflix,” you reached over him and grabbed the TV remote. “Did you ever finish Stranger Things?”