The sound of Steve's heavy, pacing footsteps on the other side of the door to Brooke's room wasn't helping the situation of getting your daughter to talk to you; she knew that once you were done, he would be next, and she just wasn't ready for that. She didn't fear your reactions, because the two of you were probably the most understanding people she had ever known. What she did fear was the look in his eyes that he would try to hide; the glimmer of disappointment that would be there and would likely be there every time he looked at her for the rest of his life.

"This wasn't supposed to happen, Mom," she cried quietly, leaning against you, "it isn't how I wanted this to happen. We talked about getting married, and now that Ant did it, I feel better about it than I was, but with this everything is just a mess. I don't want it to seem like I'm getting married now because I have to."

"No one will think that, honey."

"But will anyone expect it?"

"What do you mean?"

"Dad," she sighed heavily. "Dad will expect it, won't he? I can't have a baby and not be married, he'll never be okay with that. He's old school, Mom."

"Give your father a little bit more credit, Brooke. The only thing that he's going to focus on is that you're both healthy, and that you're happy. You know that he would go to the ends of the earth for you and it's going to be the same for his first grandchild. Don't even get me started on how your own grandfather is going to be with this," you smiled, wiping her tears away. "Baby, we're going to do anything that you need from us. We're going to be here for you, and there's nothing you could do that would change that."

As if on cue, a gentle knock sounded at her door, when Steve couldn't wait another minute. "Can I come in? Please? I'll behave."

"Come in, Dad."

"Do you want me to go?"

"No, Mom, stay," she insisted, taking your hand. She held her breath at the sight of Steve as the door opened slowly and he peeked his head in first, gauging the situation before fully entering and closing it behind him. "Hey, Dad," she tried, but the words caught in her throat and choked away, leaving her fully engulfed in tears again and unable to say any more.

"Oh, honey, don't cry," he urged, moving quickly to kneel in front of her, "please. I'm not mad. I'm not disappointed. I'm just worried. The only thing I care about right now is my girl and knowing that she's okay."

"I'm sorry, Daddy, this isn't how it was supposed to go."

"I know." Steve held the silence for a moment, considering how to word his question so that he wouldn't scare his daughter into pushing him away, but he had to know the one thing that would make him drop his promise of always being the good guy; the one thing that could blur the lines between protective father and dangerous rogue Avenger. "Is he being a good man about this, Brooke? Because if he's not-"

The question straightened her posture and animated her quickly, looking back and forth between the two of you with a renewed energy to stop any misunderstandings immediately. "Oh, you guys, no...he's being wonderful," she answered emphatically. "He's never been more protective or attentive and he's always making sure that I'm alright. I'm the one who asked him to stay away until I was able to tell you about this. With everything happening here lately he's been doing anything I ask just to keep my stress under control. He wants to make sure that he lives up to your standards, Dad, trust me."

"Yeah, because that's attainable," Steve chuckled. "I'm a tough act to follow."

~~~

Steve led you to the dining room, where there was a table set up and decorated with dinner already served, candles lit, and a bottle of wine with two full glasses. You looked up at him and wondered how you were going to give him the news that he would never expect to hear, given that the two of you hadn't really ever discussed the possibility and now suddenly here it was. The two glasses sitting next to each other gave you a small wave of panic, and your words just tumbled out.

"I can't drink. I'm pregnant."

Complete silence was the only answer you received from your husband, other than the feeling of his arm tensing under your hand. You looked back at him but he was staring straight ahead with a faraway look in his wide eyes; his mouth opened to speak, but nothing came out.

"Steve, are you okay?"

"I...yeah..." he paused, "I...just...I was going to ask if you wanted to talk about starting a family over dinner, but...you kind of beat me to it." He smiled down at you, his grin widening as his excitement began to build and the realization was growing in his mind that this was really happening. "So, stomach bug, huh?"

"Not exactly, but not really a lie," you smirked.

"Clever girl." Steve leaned down and pressed his hand against your belly, trying to control his smile so that he could kiss you, only making him laugh at his attempt. Your nerves were quickly quieted at the sight of him being so happy, and you relaxed at the sensation of his fingers tapping over your skin. You put your hand over his and he looked down, sighing shakily as his emotions began to get the best of him and the joy was bringing tears to his eyes. He couldn't believe that a little part of him was growing with a little part of you, and that he never realized before how much he needed this.

"Hey, little bug," he whispered, "I'm gonna need you to be a little nicer to your mommy, okay? It hurts daddy's ego when she needs to throw up every time I try to kiss her."

~~~

With Steve and Bucky cured of their attempt at death, Anthony and Esihle felt less rushed to have their ceremony in Wakanda, and both Ramonda and T'Challa asked for more time to properly prepare. The young couple had left to help and so that Ant could learn his ceremonial responsibilities, with you and Steve and the rest of the family due to arrive by the end of that same week. With the day now here to travel, everyone was excited to celebrate in a much more relaxed environment, with no fear of who might not survive the next day.

Now that Brooke's news had come out and into the open, the team surrounded her, eager to do anything she needed, but most surprising of all was her ever-present brother, Grant. He was still hearing the echo of her words rolling through his mind, and he couldn't assuage the guilt that came from them. He wondered if everything hadn't have happened with their dad, and if he hadn't come home for it, would she have ever told him until the baby had arrived?

You and Steve were busy preparing to leave, so Grant made his way to Tony's room to talk to him about this, looking for reassurance where he thought he was sure to find it. The knock on his door wasn't answered right away, but before he could leave, FRIDAY opened it to allow him in.

"Grandpa?"

"One sec," Tony called out from the bathroom. Grant thought he heard a loud thud and something drop to the floor in a crash like glass shattering, but the door opened and Tony stepped out, looking as if it were nothing more than a misheard accident. "Hey, kid. You ready to go?"

"Yeah, just about. You alright? It sounded like you fell down."

"Oh, yeah...I just dropped something, no big deal," he waved the young man's interest casually away. "What can I do for ya?"

"I was wondering if you could spare a minute, though before we all head out?"

"Of course."

Grant didn't speak again right away, instead watching Tony move back and forth a few times from his closet and to his suitcase as he packed for the trip. His grandfather looked a little more tired lately, but it had been one hell of a week, so he had no room to blame him for it. "I was thinking about Brooke, and how I haven't really been here much over the last few years. I don't know if she would've even called me with her news if I wasn't already here."

"Okay?"

"Do you think I made a mistake joining the Four?"

"Woah, hold on," Tony stopped in surprise, dropping a stack of shirts on his bed, "that escalated quickly. Grant, no, you made a choice that was right for you. People change and people move on, that's life. You know that your sister wouldn't want you to change what you love to do for her."

"I just don't feel connected to them anymore, not like we used to be. It was always the three of us."

"Times change, kid, but that doesn't mean that your brother and sister feel any differently about you, or that they think you don't care about them anymore. I can't imagine anything that would come between the three of you."

"Ant's married now," the young man argued weakly, "and Brooke is pretty sure to follow soon enough. I just worry that I'm too late to make things right."

Tony moved to stand in front of him, taking both of his arms tightly into his grip and forcing him to look up and listen. When moments like these came along, he couldn't pass up the opportunity to impart a little wisdom. "Grant James, you listen to me. It is never too late. Never. I thought that with your mom once and look at us now, we've never been closer. Don't ever think even once that you've lost the opportunity to make amends, son. Life is too damn short."