"You're coming to my birthday tomorrow, right Steve?" Billy asked him for the half-dozenth time that week before continuing their game of Uno, "Skip Emma."

Emma made a point to remind her brother, "You mean our birthday."

"Of course I am," Steve responded, sounding like he was trying to hide a laugh, "But can I tell you a secret?" Steve's tone had hushed slightly as he said this.

Liz overheard the exchange as she was preparing dinner for the four of them in her apartment. The twins' mother, Catherine, needed to finalize the details of a big surprise she had planned for tomorrow's festivities (a surprise that was a mystery even to Liz), and Liz was keeping an eye on Billy and Emma for the evening. Liz paused from stirring a boiling pot of spaghetti to look curiously through the archway to her living room. Billy, Emma, and Steve sat around the coffee table playing the card game that had once kept Liz occupied for hours on end when she had been about the same age as the twins.

Steve continued in a hushed tone as he placed down a card, "Tomorrow is my birthday, too. Reverse to Emma."

This was met with excitement from the twins:

"No way!" said Emma.

"We have the same birthday as Captain America!" Billy almost shouted.

The two of them had cornered Steve in the shop a few weeks ago the afternoon following the news report much in the same manner that Liz had. Steve had been honest with them, and they had agreed not to spread the fact like wildfire that Captain America was their upstairs neighbor. The twins forgave him easily and then got to their real motive: asking as many questions about his super-friends (primarily Iron Man and Black Widow) as possible.

The fact that tomorrow was also Steve's birthday was met with slight panic from Liz. I've almost finished the twins' gifts, but now what about him? What on earth do you give a superhero for their birthday? Liz returned to the stove, racking her brain for ideas.

* * *

"Can you hand me another heat shrink?" Liz asked Steve as he returned to his stool at the workbench. He had just changed the record that had been playing in the background on the old tabletop player Liz had finally gotten around to rewiring earlier that week. The two of them had come down to the back room of Dolan & Son's Antiques once Catherine had picked up the twins after dinner. Liz was completing the final bit of electronics work for the Black Widow and Iron Man gauntlets for Emma and Billy, and Steve had been curious about the process.

Steve handed Liz a short rubber tube no more than an inch long. "I can't believe you've made these from scratch."

Liz shrugged and placed the tube over a point that she had just soldered together, joining two pieces of wire; a piece that connected a small speaker to a soundboard she had programmed with noises to emulate Iron Man's hand repulsor rays. "I've always liked making and fixing things," she paused as she warmed the tube with a lighter. The rubber instantly shrank down to hug the soldering point snugly, ensuring that no metal on the wires was exposed.

Liz then quickly mounted the speaker in the gauntlet, then added batteries to the battery pack she had attached earlier and mounted that inside as well. She slipped the entire gauntlet on her hand and turned it towards Steve, then pulled her hand back so that her palm faced him. A pale blue light began to shine as a charging sound emitted from the speaker. Liz could not help but start to smile. She pressed her thumb inward, and the light flashed brighter as a repulsor sound was triggered. "By Dumbledore, it works!"

Steve was smiling at her success as well, "Dumbledore?" he questioned.

Liz sighed, "You need to read and watch Harry Potter." She started slipping the Black Widow gauntlet on her other hand.

"I'll add it to my list," Steve replied.

Liz looked at him curiously, "Do you have an actual list?"

"A mental one," he admitted.

There's a gift idea... Some kind of journal, maybe? Liz pondered if it would be enough and thought against it. She took great pride in finding the right gift to give someone. And for Steve, it had to be something special. Liz turned back to Steve with the Black Widow gauntlet she had finished the night before. She switched on the battery pack, which made some highlights glow blue dimly on the hand section; a feature Liz had added as a style choice for Emma to compete with Billy's flashy Iron Man repulsors.

"What do you think? Do they look accurate?" Liz asked, slipping off the replicas and handing them to Steve. She watched him smile as he turned them over.

"It's been a while... But from what I remember, this is pretty close." Steve's hands were too large to try on the arm pieces himself, so he manually triggered the thumb button on Emma's gift. The gauntlet resonated with an electrifying sound as the highlights flashed a brighter blue. "The twins are gonna love them."

"I hope so, though I'm afraid Catherine might worry the two of them will get a bit wild with these..." Liz was trying her best to contain a smile.

"As opposed to their typically tame demeanor?" Steve commented sarcastically, sniggering slightly.

Liz shook her head and rolled her eyes, knowing all too well how rambunctious the twins could be, but she would not have it any other way. Liz was glad that her friendship with Steve seemed to have bounced back after the night they cleared the air of all the Captain America business. Liz had been so angry at the start of that evening. She was unsure if she would be willing to forgive Steve for not being completely honest with her from the start. Looking back on it now, the complete emotional ride of that night had been nothing short of extraordinary. Liz still toiled, however, with whether she should have acted on her growing urge to kiss him. In that fleeting moment that they had locked eyes on the couch after tending to his eyebrow, Liz's trust in Steve and herself had wavered. The sheer fact that Steve was Captain America meant that he could be whisked away from her at any moment. Liz was not sure if she could handle the strong possibility of rejection if she made a move, not to mention the idea of losing Steve to some dangerous situation down the road.

With her project now complete, Liz's awareness of the room had finally expanded past the end of the workbench. "What on earth are we listening to?" Liz questioned. She realized that Steve had just changed the classic rock record that had been playing previously to something similar to what she had heard in Pops' apartment countless times. It was an old-timey sounding, big-band tune.

"Harry James?" Steve offered with a quizzical look.

Liz shook her head again and shrugged her shoulders. The name was lost on her.

"Hold on a moment— You mean to tell me... I know something from popular culture that you don't?" Steve was getting a little theatrical.

"I would hardly call this popular culture," Liz defended. No doubt that I wasn't even born when this was recorded.

"It was, once... Is this how you feel all the time? When you know something and I don't?" Steve finished smugly. He was obviously relishing this rare moment. This was the first time that Liz had seen Steve excited to share something with her from his past instead of remorseful. Who would have pegged Captain America to be an audiophile? Liz mused. She knew for a fact that there was no music playback device in Steve's apartment whatsoever.

Liz shook her head yet again, smiling, "I'll add it to my list," she said cheekily.

* * *

The following afternoon, Liz found herself on the rooftop of the apartment building with Steve, Pops, Catherine, and of course, Billy and Emma to celebrate with a small birthday / Fourth of July barbecue. The twins' father, Mark, was currently still deployed overseas, and the rest of the Schaeffer's family lived out of state. Due to the holiday, Catherine usually arranged a more formal gathering with the twins' friends later on in the week to avoid scheduling conflicts, but Billy and Emma were excited nonetheless.

Pops, the self-proclaimed resident Grill Master, was showing Steve a thing or two about barbecuing burgers and hot dogs when the twins convinced their mother it was a good time to open presents. They had been eyeing the stack of gifts sitting on the far end of the picnic table since they had all finished bringing up the food.

"Very well, but let me get my camera ready before you both dive in!" Catherine laughed at their enthusiasm, pulling out her smartphone. She seemed to be in exceptionally high spirits today as well.

Liz decided to help with getting things ready, "Catherine, why don't you let me take pictures so we can get some of you all together?"

Catherine smiled appreciatively, "Thanks, Liz. That would be wonderful. Emma, Billy... You two sit in the middle of the table here, and I'll pass out the gifts."

Liz whipped out her own smartphone and got the camera ready as everyone took a seat at the table.

"Here we have something from Pops, and it's a big one! It's for both of you." Catherine narrated as she set the slim, rectangular parcel in front of the twins. They quickly tore through the paper to discover a wooden knock-hockey game that they could play on a tabletop in their apartment.

"Cool!" Billy exclaimed while Emma said, "Thanks, Pops!"

"I figured the two of you could use some more creative ways to keep yourselves entertained on rainy days and burn off some energy," Pops commented with a smile. The twins spent a few moments ogling over the box before their mother reminded them that more presents awaited.

"It looks like these two are from Captain Rogers," Catherine handed each of the twins a surprisingly neatly wrapped package. The twins had to make an effort to break through some of the strong tape that held everything together, but it was not long before they were able to reveal the contents. At first, the twins did not seem to be sure of what they each held, but then it clicked for Billy.

"It's for our Tae Kwon Do belts!" He explained to his sister excitedly, and her face lit up as well.

Steve smiled, "Well, you both seem to be advancing pretty fast, so I thought you'd like a place to show off your accomplishments."

"Thank you, Steve!" Billy and Emma chimed in unison.

Catherine took the belt displays from the twins so that they had room for the next gifts to be opened. Catherine handed each of her children a medium-sized gift bag with tissue paper puffed out the top, "And these ones are from Liz."

"Just— Be gentle," Liz warned from behind her phone camera as the twins dove into their bags.

"Holy shit!" Billy yelled as he laid eyes on his Iron Man gauntlet for the first time. Emma was too elated for words as she immediately started slipping on her Black Widow arm piece.

"Language!" Liz, Steve, Pops, and Catherine all warned in unison, though admittedly, they were all trying not to laugh.

The twins figured out how to work the devices fairly quickly, "Lizzie, did you make these?" Emma asked, amazed.

"I sure did!" Liz admitted proudly.

Billy raved as he shot an imaginary repulsor beam out into the distance, "These are the best gifts ever! Even Emma's is super cool!"

"Hey!" Emma objected.

The adults at the table were still struggling not to laugh at the twins' enthusiasm. "Don't the two of you want to see your gift from Dad and me?" Catherine reminded them excitedly.

The twins looked at each other then back at their mother, nodding excitedly.

Catherine looked toward the end of the table for another present but looked surprised to see that the space was empty. "Oh, silly me! I left it downstairs," she said, getting up, "You two, don't move. I'll be back in a minute!" As Catherine walked behind the twins, she mouthed, "Keep it rolling!" to Liz obviously, then hurried through the rooftop door and down the stairs.

Liz was beginning to suspect that Catherine had something up her sleeve and was sure to keep her camera focused on the door where Catherine had disappeared. Liz started a video recording and could hear the twins off-screen whispering to each other about their guesses for what the present could be.

Not a minute later, the rooftop door opened. But it was not Catherine who came up from the stairwell, at least not immediately. Liz recognized Mark Schaeffer right away, still dressed in his army fatigues. She had forgotten how much the twins looked like their father, all with matching reddish-brown hair, chocolate eyes, and freckled faces. Liz gasped and covered her mouth with her free hand, re-centering her camera on Billy and Emma. Their eyes were wide with shock and happiness, and for a moment, they were frozen. They had not seen their father in person since Christmas.

"Happy Birthday!" Mark exclaimed with a huge smile. Catherine had appeared from the doorway behind him.

"Dad!" Billy was out of his seat before Emma. They both ran to their father. Liz was sure that the twins would tackle Mark completely in their excitement, but he scooped them up into the biggest of bear hugs that lifted them both off the ground completely. Liz was failing to hold back tears, watching the moment unfold. She felt Steve's hand settle on her shoulder reassuringly from behind her as Pops started clapping and cheering loudly.

"I've missed you guys! You've both grown so much!" Mark enthused, setting both of his children back on their feet.

"How long are you gonna be home this time?" Emma asked, still hugging her father tightly.

Mark loosened his grip on the twins so that he could look at them both. "This time? This time I'm staying right here with you and Mom."

Several more minutes of hugging for the Schaeffer family went by before Mark was able to make his way over to the table to greet everyone else. Liz had stopped recording at this point. Pops stood up and was met with a strong handshake before being pulled in for a hug himself. Mark skipped straight to the hug with Liz, thanking her and Pops immensely for helping Catherine look after Billy and Emma in his absence. Steve stood to introduce himself as well.

"Captain Rogers. It's an honor, sir." Mark said, shaking Steve's hand, "Billy and Emma speak very fondly of you," he added with a smile.

"The honor is mine, Lieutenant. They're great kids," Steve returned the sentiment sincerely.

"Dad! Steve! Will you play Avengers with us?" Billy was hardly able to contain himself. He was striking various action poses with his gauntlet.

"Wait! We have to give Steve his present. It's his birthday too!" Emma interrupted her brother.

"You got me a present?" Steve looked at the twins, genuinely amazed.

"Well, we helped Lizzie and Pops pick some parts of it out," Billy admitted.

Liz watched Steve look in her direction but quickly averted her gaze. She felt embarrassed by the moisture still welling in her eyes. "If by 'helped', you mean you ran around the back of the shop like a couple of maniacs pointing out ideas, then yes," Liz deflected, wiping a stray tear off her cheek, laughing. Liz was overjoyed that the Schaeffer family would now be reunited for the long term, But when did I become such a sap? She thought, getting up from her chair.

"Can't have a proper birthday without presents now, can we?" Pops stood to help Liz gather a very large parcel that they had stashed in the rooftop shed earlier that day. The twins tailed them, Liz giving them a slimmer, square package to handle.

"I can manage, Pops," Liz took over the full weight of the package from her grandfather. It was heavy for her, but she made her way back to the table, setting the neatly wrapped package down gently. Liz looked at Steve, who was now looking at the gift as if he were not sure what he was supposed to do with it.

"Well, go on," Pops encouraged playfully, "Let's see you open it!"

Steve stepped closer to the table slowly, "You didn't have to go through this trouble. I—"

"Oh, stop fussing and open it already," Liz nudged him with her elbow, looking up at him with a smile. She was excited to see his reaction.

A small smile grew on Steve's face in return. Liz watched him as he turned his gaze back to the present and gently removed the top of the colorful box. She saw Steve's eyes brighten and smile widen as he peered inside and reached in to lift out the antique record player. But then his expression quickly changed to one that looked worried.

"This is too much, I can't acc—" Steve began.

"You'll accept it, and you will enjoy it, lad!" Pops interrupted, waving the handle of his cane at Steve from his seat.

"Yes, sir," Steve allowed himself to chuckle, "Thank you, to both of you. I really mean it."

Billy started, "But wait!"

"There's more!" Emma finished.

They handed the slim, square parcel to Steve excitedly. He continued to smile as he peeled off the wrapping paper delicately to find a short stack of seventy-eights that he immediately began leafing through.

"Harry James," Liz pointed out with a smirk, "and Pops threw some of his favorites in, as did I, but I'm not sure if you're ready for some of them."

"I've heard the Beatles before, Liz," Steve laughed as he continued looking at the different album covers.

"Some of these are very different from the Beatles. You've been warned!" Liz retorted, watching him pass over albums from bands such as Led Zeppelin, Metallica, and the like.

"I'll approach them with caution," Steve looked at Liz, still smiling, their gazes catching for a silent moment, "Thank you, again."

Liz's own smile grew, glad to see that he liked the gifts, "Happy Birthday, Steve."

* * *

It was not until very late that evening, after all birthday festivities were finished and the last Independence Day fireworks had faded from the night sky, that Liz made her final of many trips down from the rooftop with some of the leftover food from the day. While she was putting away the containers in her refrigerator, Steve poked his head in the open door of her apartment with a soft knock.

"Liz?" he called, looking for her.

Liz closed the refrigerator door and stepped out of the small kitchen to meet him with a smile, "What's up?"

Steve looked at her from the doorway with a stoic expression for a moment before speaking. Liz found it difficult to read. "I just received a phone call," was all he said.

Liz waited for him to continue, but when Steve remained silent, Liz decided to press him, "From who?" Though, judging by the look on Steve's face and the knot growing in the pit of her stomach, Liz probably could have made a good guess.

"S.H.I.E.L.D." Steve paused again, "There's a... situation." Another moment passed in silence.

"What kind of situation?" Liz asked nervously.

"In the Middle East... That's really all I can say right now. I— I wanted to let you know that I'll be away for a little while. Not sure how long."

It was not until after Liz processed what he had said that she realized Steve was holding a small duffle bag in one hand. Liz looked from the bag back up to him, "And you're leaving right now?"

At that moment, an audible notification sounded from Steve's phone. He pulled it out of his back pocket and read a message. "My ride is already here," Steve said, returning the phone to his pocket, "I just didn't want to leave without saying goodbye."

"Don't say 'goodbye'," Liz scolded as if the word offended her. Liz knew that a day like this would come at some point. Even before she had found out who Steve really was, Liz had feared this since Steve first told her that he wanted to commit himself to service once again.

"What do you want me to say, then?" Steve asked softly. His eyes looked wounded.

Liz looked away from him as she fought back the welling she was beginning to feel in her own eyes. She thought for a moment, and then slowly, she pulled out the dog tags that were hiding inside her zipped hoodie. She pulled them over her head gently, then pooled the tags and ball chain into her palm.

Liz stepped toward Steve and took his free hand in hers, facing his palm upward. "Say, 'I'll be back soon,'" she pressed the tags into Steve's hand gently, "And promise you'll come back in one piece so that you can return these to me."

Steve looked down at the tags he now held, "Lizzie, these were your father's. I can't—"

Liz forced Steve's fingers closed. "Promise me."

Steve looked her in the eyes again, "I'll see you soon. I promise," he said with the utmost sincerity.

Liz heard Steve's phone sound again, "Go," she said gently, and, without even thinking, Liz raised herself on the tips of her toes to kiss Steve's cheek. Lowering back to the ground, she added, "and please be safe."

Steve looked at her, seemingly frozen, for a long moment. Finally, he nodded, "I will."

With a sad, half-smile, Steve turned away and bent to retrieve the shield he had left propped against the wall outside of the door. Liz watched him take the last few steps to the end of the landing, pausing to glance back at her for half a second before disappearing down the stairs.

Liz stood there on the threshold of her apartment, listening to the sound of Steve's footsteps fading away. She closed her eyes for a moment, an emptiness beginning to eat away inside, Why does this hurt so much? Liz asked herself, tears beginning to well up again. Silence filled the hallway. Because you love him, idiot, Liz finally admitted to herself as she stepped backward and closed the door. She blinked, and a tear began to fall unevenly down each of her cheeks. Liz wiped them away with her sleeve as she locked the door, hoping that Steve would return safely; hoping that she had not wasted what could have been her last chance to tell him her feelings.

Liz sighed, resolving to not let herself fully cry. She took a deep breath to compose herself before making her way to her room to get ready for bed. She stepped into the dark space, heading towards her nightstand to turn on the light. But before Liz could turn the switch, she felt herself being pulled back roughly. A hand covered her mouth tightly from behind as she began to struggle, pulling at the arm around her. Then, there was something sharp piercing her neck. Liz tried to call out, but her voice was stifled.

"I'm so sorry, Lizzie," Liz heard a familiar voice say in her ear hysterically, "But they gave me no choice... I'm so sorry!"

Liz felt her body beginning to go numb, her brain becoming hazy. Her legs began to wobble, and then her knees buckled. Liz slipped into unconsciousness before she hit the floor.

* * * Author's Notes * * *

Dearest Readers,

I would like to formally apologize for the extremely long wait for this chapter, which has been approximately a year and a half in the making.

The past two years have been full of change in my personal life. Good change, yet it has been very chaotic at times. Times where motivation has been difficult to come by. There have been many days where the idea of sitting down to write a worthwhile update seemed too overwhelming or exhausting, but I can honestly say that not a day has gone by where I have not thought about this story.

That being said, I have every intention of finishing this particular book and continuing Liz/Steve's story in future ones. At present, I have a roadmap that takes us up through the events of Captain America: Civil War. However, I can not say how long it will take to get there.

I am so grateful that so many of you have enjoyed the ride so far, and I hope that this most recent chapter lives up to your expectations. I want you all to know that while I may not be able to respond to every comment or private message, I do see them and they give me much-needed encouragement.

As always, I would like to thank my beta reader, whimsymuse. They have been an integral part of this story's creative process basically since it was first published, and have stuck with me through this very long hiatus.

I really hope that you all enjoy this chapter. I can promise that the next ones are going to be very... exciting ;-)

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