"Okay, Nat, let's go over this one more time," you paused, "what do you say if Steve asks why I'm not here?"

"You were asked to consult on a security...something... panel in...Washington?"

You hung your head and laughed, "a security commission panel in Japan. If he thinks that I'm still in the U.S., he might try to poke his nose around in my business. Say it back to me."

"You will be gone for four days to consult on a security...commission panel in Japan?"

"Seriously, Nat, what's going on with you? Why is this so hard?" You turned and threw your final bag into the back of the quinjet, now just waiting for Tony to join you. "Now that I think about it, you've totally failed at this twice already, and both times were with Steve..."

"I can't lie to him."

Your mouth hung open with a crooked smile at her admission; you couldn't believe that of anyone on the team, she would be the one with this revelation. "Natasha, you can lie to everyone. You lied to me three hours ago. What's so different about Rogers?"

"I don't know what it is," she groaned, a clear look of disgust in herself covering her expression, "ever since D.C. I haven't been able to do it. Like he gave me some weird honesty virus or something. I'm not happy about it." She turned and gave Tony a small wave of greeting when he passed by, carrying his bags in and prepping the jet. "Hey, what's the big deal anyway? You've been back at this facility for a month now and he's kept his distance. Why would he mind if you left for a while?"

"Because when I'm here, he can keep an eye on me. Just you watch," you paused, standing to grab the cane you had been using for the past two weeks, "as soon as I'm gone, it's gonna hit the fan. He won't admit it, Nat, but he's no less protective than when we were together. He thinks that I don't see him watching my sessions, or when he's staring at dinner, or when he's always right there to grab me if my foot slips or my ankle turns."

"Alright, kiddo, you ready to...wait...is that all you're bringing?" Tony asked, pointing at the cane in your hand.

"Yeah? Tony, this is all I've needed to walk for a couple of weeks now. Where have you been?"

"Um, at the tower, thank you very much. It's not like I get minute-to-minute reports on your progress down there, you know. I do have work to be done," he snickered, holding his hand out for you to enter the jet door. He spun and looked at Nat after you passed him, silently and angrily mouthing 'why didn't you tell me that?"

'Sorry!' she whispered back with a shrug of her shoulders. "So, (Y/N), what if I screw this up?"

You walked back to the door and peeked your head out with a sarcastic grin, "You know what, just tell him the truth. He'll never believe it in a million years."

"What," she scoffed, "that you're going to England to see his ex-girlfriend?"

"Do what you gotta do, Nat. Just keep him off my back."

~~~

Steve reached up and rubbed a spot on the side of his skull, blinking a few times with a shake of his head and a slight cross in his eyes. "How hard did you throw that? Why are there two of you?"

"I threw it no harder than the previous attempt, but if you recall, you neglected to move your head that time as well," Thor chuckled, setting Mjolnir on the ground and walking towards Steve. "Allow me," he offered, holding his hands out to check the Captain's supposed injury. "I see no blood. You'll live to fight another day."

"Seriously, man, there's two of you."

"Come, sit," Thor replied, taking Steve's arm and leading him to a nearby bench of the vast training room. "I'll bring Doctor Banner if you are so concerned. Wait here."

"I'm not concerned," Steve mumbled, "I just don't think I can take on both of you at once." He leaned back against the wall and closed his eyes, feeling a slight wave of nausea. He opened them again and felt a little relief, but it persisted. "Oh, not good," he said aloud, searching for anything he could put his head into before his stomach took over and made an unsightly mess. "Oh, very not good." The doors opened again just in time for the doctor and Thor to see him completely miss the small garbage can he was barely able to reach.

"Steve, I think you may be injured after all," Thor said, now becoming concerned that he had actually hurt his friend and teammate. "I'm sorry that I did not take you seriously."

Bruce pulled a small light from his pocket and looked at Steve's eyes one at a time, humming to himself in concentration as he checked reflexes and strength. "Okay, you're not gonna like this one. I need you slowly tip your head back and then forward until your chin touches your chest. Slowly, Steve, and keep your eyes open."

He tipped his head back and didn't seem too affected, but then he moved it forward and stopped abruptly, his eyes wide as he looked at Bruce. "Oh, no," Bruce exclaimed, reaching for the garbage again, but proving too slow to be of any use. "Alright, Cap. I think it's pretty definite that you have a concussion, and that you owe me a new pair of shoes."

~~~

"So, how's Clint doing? I haven't seen him since I left the tower."

"He's good," Tony replied from the pilot seat next to you. "He's asked about how you're doing, so I've told him." He stopped and laughed quietly, glancing over to you, "well, I'll have to update him again since Romanoff forgot to tell me about the whole cane thing."

"I thought you didn't get minute-to-minute reports," you snickered. "Something about having work to be done?"

"Smartass," he mumbled, changing a few random settings on the control panel, "I see that hasn't changed." When you didn't offer a reply, he finally turned to look at you, seeing you watching him with an anticipation and knew what you were wordlessly asking of him. "He's trying to move on. He's keeping busy."

You only nodded silently in reply, turning to look out the window at the dense clouds as you flew over. You had thought about calling or even just texting Clint countless times over the past month, but you could never bring yourself to do it. You didn't know where his feelings were anymore, and you couldn't risk causing him any further pain than you already had; it would be a certainty that you would never talk to him again if you did. You wanted to explain to him that you loved him, but not in the way that he wanted you to. It wouldn't be enough for him, so you decided to wait until it was, no matter how long that might take.

"He...um," Tony paused, clearing his throat nervously, "he has...a date."

~~~

Steve did his best to rest on the infirmary cot, but he was now so unaccustomed to feeling ill that he didn't know how to act or behave, only knowing that he didn't like it and wanted it to go away as quickly as possible. He had tried to escape several times with no success, so he had quickly earned himself a babysitter under the doctor's orders.

"I haven't seen (Y/N) yet today, have you?"

"I saw her earlier," Nat replied blankly, hoping he wouldn't ask too many questions and catch her in a lie. "Eat your jello, Steve."

"Okay, but she wasn't in the gym when we passed by. She's always there right before lunch."

"Maybe you just didn't see her," she groaned. "Eat your jello, Steve."

"Maybe you're hiding something from me."

"Fine," Natasha huffed, grabbing his spoon, "I'll tell you if you eat your damn jello."

He furrowed his brow and grabbed the spoon roughly, digging it into the wiggling goo with an inquisitive look on his face and the hint of disgust. "What flavor is this?"

"Green."

Steve shoveled the jello into his mouth so that it was gone quickly in order to get his answer about where you were. He didn't know what he'd do with the information once he had it anyway, but he felt calmer knowing you were nearby even if you hadn't been together in weeks. You had barely spoken more than a dozen words in that time, but to him, that didn't mean you weren't communicating on some level. "Ugh, there, it's gone," he grimaced, holding up the empty cup for her to see. "Now, where is she?"

"She went to England to visit your ex-girlfriend."

He began to choke slightly and coughed a few times into his napkin, pulling it away from his face to reveal a smile, sticking out his bright green tongue until she finally broke and laughed at him. "Yeah, that's a good one, Nat."

~~~

"Agent Carter?"

"Please, come in," she replied quietly from her bed, her silver hair draped gently over the pillow. "Call me Peggy. There's no place for formalities here, my dear. Besides, I feel as if I know you already."

You glanced back to Tony and nodded for him to go; he leaned in for a kiss on your cheek, watching until you sat down before leaving you alone. "Well ma'am, you have me at a disadvantage. I know of you, some that I've learned in training and some from Steve, but it's all really just superficial." Even in her nineties, she was really quite beautiful and had a glow about her; she had the kind of presence that drew you in and made you feel welcome. You could see why Steve would be so drawn to her; she felt safe, and a reminder of a time that he belonged in. "I'm sorry to bother you, but I could really use your help."

"I just want to start by saying, if I may, that he really loves you." You opened your mouth to reply, but she held her hand up to continue, "(Y/N), he will always have memories of me, and he will always have sadness about time that was lost, but when he was here to see me not so long ago none of that was discussed. He spoke only of you."

"I don't doubt that he loves me, and I never really have, but there are things...things that I don't know how to deal with. Of everything that we've fought about, and the vile words that were spoken, and even things that we've done," you sighed, with a flash of Clint's kiss passing through your mind, "he could've killed one of our teammates...one of our friends, in a jealous rage. How can I forget that? That look on his face? That's not my Steve."

Peggy reached out and took your hand, her worn skin soft and frail, "my darling, I think you should be asking him that question. He's mortified by his actions and knows that you may never forgive him, but he's too afraid to approach you."

Hearing that Steve was afraid of anything, let alone afraid of you, shocked you to your core and shifted how you saw him. Even after everything, why wouldn't he think he could come to you? You lived in the same building again, so it wasn't a matter of proximity. You hadn't fought at all since that terrible day in the gym. But then your racing mind suddenly stopped at a realization; you looked at her and sighed, "when was he last here, Peggy? For you to know about Clint, it had to be recent, am I right?"

"He comes here once a week, (Y/N). I've arranged for him to see an old friend of mine who specializes in the care of veterans of war. After the incident with your friend, he came to me in almost a panic."

The revelation nearly threw you from your chair, bolting you upright with a shock that had to be extreme in your expression. You had never once considered this; this wasn't even on your radar of options of why Steve kept coming here. You thought it was for Peggy, but that wasn't it at all.

Steve was in therapy.