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"C’mon, a blind date never killed anyone," said Dan Tucker, Colt's best friend and former boss.
"I'm sure there are serial killer victims out there who would beg to differ with you," Colt countered.
Dan sighed, "Okay, but you can take care of yourself. You survived Tom Ryder, didn't you?"
"Don't remind me." Colt said irritated at just the mention of the actor's name. "Besides, I wasn't dating that asshole."
"No, but your brother was, and he came out of it alright, too!" Dan said, desperately trying to put a positive spin on this conversation. Colt glared at him and Dan abruptly seemed to remember just why his brother's status post breakup with Tom Ryder was such a sore subject. "Right, sorry. Maybe that was partly Ryder's fault. Look, regardless of all that, you really need to get out there again. It's been months since you and Jody split and I am sick of you being all mopey about it."
"Fine, but if this goes poorly, you are never allowed to set me up again." Colt finally conceded. "What are they like? How did you meet them?"
"Yes, I knew I could wear you down!" Dan rubbed his hands together in glee. "He's really cool. Definitely your type. Fit, active, could keep up with you physically no doubt. Very easy on the eyes. I met him on job while you were out with your back injury. He was a consultant helping us get some military stuff right."
"If he's all that, why aren't you dating him?" Colt asked, suspiciously.
Dan shrugged, "Sorry, I'm too much in demand with the ladies to start chasing after pretty men, too!"
Finally Colt asked, "Right, and does this mystery guy have a name?"
"His name's Steve. You want me to tell him you're interested?" Dan asked, clearly sure that he had already gotten what he wanted out of this conversation.
**********
A couple days later, Colt was seated on the patio of a cafe waiting for his blind date to arrive. Out of nerves, Colt had shown up half an hour early, so he was already seated and waiting, watching everyone who passed by on the street. He felt his phone buzz in his pocket and checked it to see a message from Dan. "He said he just got there. Good luck!"
Colt looked up from his phone just in time to see a man walking up to him. He was wearing his Miami Vice Stunt Team jacket, which was what Dan had told Steve to look for to locate him. "Excuse me, are you Colt?" asked the man, who Colt instantly recognized as Steve Rogers. Dan had set him up with Captain America?!
"Uh, hi, uh, yes, I'm Colt. Colt Seavers. Uh, nice to meet you," Colt was stumbling over his words so much he worried that Steve was going to think he was drunk.
Steve smiled down at him, "Hi, I'm Steve. Mind if I join you?"
Colt's brain nearly stopped working entirely when Steve smiled at him. He'd long had a crush on the superhero, a fact which Dan very well knew, and here he was on a date with him?! He was smiling at him?!
"Yes, please." Colt managed to say without tripping over his tongue. He was at a loss for what to say next, though.
"Dan tells me you've worked together for a long time," Steve asked, thankfully taking initiative and breaking the ice. "How do you like stunt work?"
Colt resisted the urge to breathe a sigh of relief at having a topic he knew how to handle. "Oh, I love it! I've always been a bit of a daredevil and this line of work lets me do ridiculous stuff like get set on fire or dropped off a twelve story building somewhat responsibly."
"Only 'somewhat'? Sounds dangerous!" Steve laughed.
Colt sobered a bit, "Well, the twelve story drop did leave me with a broken back, so ya know…"
Steve winced at that. "Oh man, sorry to bring up painful memories."
"Don't be, I'm the one that mentioned it. Could have mentioned car rolls or combat sequences or anything else honestly," Colt said shrugging it off. "Dan tells me you two met working on a movie together. How was that?"
"It was really fun, actually. I was mostly there to consult for historical accuracy," Steve paused and actually winked at him, "I hope older men aren't a turn off for you, Colt." Colt's heart leaped to his throat in reaction and he just swallowed and nodded in what he hoped was an encouraging way, "Anyway, I got to consult with a lot of different departments on the film from costume to props and scripts. My favorite was the stunt work though. Dan has an excellent way of explaining what's going to happen and how he's going to keep everyone safe. It was really amazing to watch."
"Oh yeah, Dan's great. I've been trying to get my own stunt company off the ground—pardon the pun—and he's been an invaluable resource. He's a really good friend too." Colt smiled and continued, "my only complaint is that he didn't tell me your last name when I asked who I was meeting today. I almost fell out of my chair when you walked up to me."
Steve smiled knowingly, "Would you have come if you'd know the full truth?"
Colt hesitated. "I don't know. Maybe not. Might have been too intimidated."
"See, this is why I don't date very often. Everyone always gets too scared. I'm a nice guy, I promise!" Steve said, maybe a little theatrically.
"I wouldn't say that too much on a first date. It has a weird connotation these days," Colt said. "Some jerks decided that the reason they weren't getting as much sex as they wanted was because women didn't like nice guys and they made it a whole issue. Very gross."
"This is the kind of important information no one thinks to tell a guy after they've been on ice for decades!" Steve said. "I think I need a dating coach to help me figure out how to do this again."
"Wow, already writing me off before we've finished our first date," Colt quipped. "I guess maybe I should get going and save us both the time…" he said, making as if to stand and leave.
"No, no, that's not what I meant. I mean, I barely know what I'm doing right now, and I don't know how to behave for a second date or a third, and so forth," Steve said, waving pleadingly for Colt to stay. "Please don't go. I want to keep getting to know you."
"Well, when you put it like that, I guess I could stay a while," Colt said, winking at the man across from him. "Although, rather than sitting here all day, how would you feel about us getting some coffee to go and taking a walk? I get antsy if I sit for too long. Hurts my back, too."
"That sounds like an excellent idea," Steve said.
Twenty minutes later, they were strolling through the city together, sipping their coffees and talking easily as if they'd known each other for much longer than an hour or so. Steve understandably had older tastes in music than Colt did, but when introduced to the work of Taylor Swift, he was suitably appreciative. They talked of their favorite books and movies, their hopes for the future, what type of food they liked to eat and what types of workouts they enjoyed. They hit on many different topics of conversation and it seemed to flow naturally and effortlessly.
At one point they were so involved in their conversation that Colt lost track of where he was walking and walked straight into a bench, slamming his shin right against the side of it. Instinctively, he let out a "Shit!" and leaned down to see if he'd done any serious damage to himself. Steve, also operating on instinct said, "Language," and then immediately flushed in embarrassment. Colt didn't notice the embarrassment because his mind drifted to his brother instead. It was the sort of comment that Ryland would make if he was visiting his class at school and accidentally swore. The sudden memory of Ryland in front of his classroom, gently scolding him for forgetting to watch his tongue and the knowledge that Ryland would never get the chance to tell him off for anything again, inconsequential like that or otherwise, hit him hard. Without realizing what was happening he sank down on the bench and just started bawling.
Steve froze and the cautiously joined him on the bench, initially just sitting close by and eventually putting a gentle hand on Colt's shoulder to steady him. After what felt like an eternity, Colt reigned in the tears and slowly composed himself again. "Sorry about that," he sniffed. "I, uh, wasn't expecting to turn into a puddle there."
"No worries," Steve said. "Are you okay? I didn't mean to make you feel bad for swearing, it's just an unconscious habit of mine. I keep trying to loosen up about it."
"No, it's just that you reminded me of my brother," Colt said. "He was a middle school teacher and even though he used to swear like a sailor when we were younger, he trained it out of himself when he started teaching."
"Oh, I see. When did he pass away?" Steve asked gently.
"Well, that's the thing. He hasn't yet? But he's on a suicide mission and I know I won't ever see him again," Colt said, fighting back tears again. "We're twins and I don't know how to handle growing old without him."
"Do you mind if I ask about his mission? Are you sure there isn't anything that can be done about it?" Steve asked, obviously very concerned about Colt's twin.
"I'm sure you've already heard about it," Colt said. "He's on the Hail Mary."
"Oh. Dr. Ryland Grace is your twin brother?" Steve asked.
Colt nodded, "Yeah, that stupid brave asshole. Sorry, there I go swearing again."
"I think it's more than warranted in this situation, Colt," Steve replied.
"We didn't even get to say goodbye. He thought I was dead at the time of the launch and there was an accident which is why he was sent last minute anyway. He was supposed to just train the astronauts, not go to space," Colt was beginning to feel like he was really dragging this formerly great date down. They'd been getting along so well and now he was forcing Steve to be an impromptu therapist for him.
"Sorry, he thought you were dead? Was this after that 12 story fall you mentioned earlier?" Steve asked.
"Not exactly," Colt said. "It's kind of a long story."
"I don't have anywhere else to be, and I like listening to you talk. I'm all ears, Colt," sheesh, Colt really did like hearing the man say his name. It made him feel warm and fuzzy inside,
Colt did his best to explain the whole sordid story of his employment with Tom Ryder and how the man had grown obsessed with Ryland. Ryland and Tom had dated for a while and Tom blamed Colt for any argument they had. On the day that he tampered with the equipment for the fall rig and Colt broke his back, Ryland had argued with Tom over the fact that he didn't let him spend any time with Colt. So he gave him all sorts of time to help Colt over a near fatal injury. And then the whole Metalstorm debacle came about after Ryland had been missing for months on the Petrova Taskforce and Tom just assumed that Colt had made Ryland ghost him. His reaction to that was to try and make Colt be a ghost. He'd ended up faking his death to get away from Ryder and his goons and it had made international news. Before he could set the record straight and let Ryland know he was okay, Ry was on his way to Tau Ceti, replacing the science crew that had died in an unfortunate explosion. The only consolation that Colt had in all of this was that Tom had also died in an explosion. No one really felt his was all that unfortunate.
"You know, I was worried that you wouldn't be able to handle the drama of dating an Avenger, but I think you might be more suited for it than I am after all that," Steve joked in an attempt to lighten the mood. It helped a little and Colt smiled at him.
"So, what I'm hearing is that you're interested in more dates, Steve." Colt said, resisting the urge to make it a question. He needed to regain some confidence after crying in front of his crush like that and here was a good way to start.
"Yes, I do believe that is what I'm trying to say. I may be a little out of touch, but I believe that it's still customary to begin by exchanging phone numbers?" Steve asked playfully.
"Of course," Colt replied. "I can add my contact to your phone if you'll let me." Steve unlocked his phone and handed it over. Colt added his number and then texted himself to make sure he had Steve's number as well. "You know, I was kind of wondering if they'd managed to make you a rotary smart phone to help you feel more comfortable with the technology," Colt teased.
"Shh, don't say that too loud. One of the other Avengers might get the idea and then Stark would absolutely exchange my phone for some monstrosity like that!" Steve said in a conspiratorial tone and then they both laughed at the absurdity of the idea.
Dan the Man
So, how did the date go?
You forget to tell me a crucial detail when you set this shit up, Dan?
What? Inconceivable!
Don't you quote The Princess Bride to me like it will make me gloss over you forgetting to mention you were setting me up with Captain America.
As you wish!
Ugh, you suck!
But seriously, how did it go?
It's looking like there will be a second date in my future.
I knew it! Oh, you two are going to make such a cute couple!