Tori

Everything is bittersweet. Everything sweet comes from Steve, such as his loving words and gestures when I am drifting to sleep. Everything bitter usually comes from my nightmares.
     I sprint down the tunnels, water squishing underneath my feet. I am frantically searching for something, but I don't know for what. My heart races and my breaths are ragged. The taste of blood fills my mouth. Visions of Steve flash on and off. His eyes don't light up, anyone that could them would know that he had died inside. They were bloodshot from sobbing.
     I turn a corner of the tunnel, almost tripping over my own two feet. Silence fills my ears, but it is soon lost.
     "Victoria," a haunting voice hisses. "Victoria."
     My heart beats faster. I gulp and continue to sprint. The voices multiply, causing my ears to ring with them calling my name over and over again.
     "Victoria,"
     "Stop," I choke out. "Please."
     I turn down another tunnel, causing the voices to stop. I stop running and look around. There is no one. I begin to run again. I go down the short, but infinite tunnel and turn left. I stop in my tracks when my eyes lay on the scene.
     Steve, who wears his Captain America suit, sits on the floor sobbing. Someone's lifeless head is in his lap. He strokes the person's hair, whispering things to them. That person is me. My eyes are closed, most likely because Steve closed them. My chest is still, like the rest of my body. My right hand rests on my abdomen, which are both soaked in blood. We are in a pool of my blood.
     "I'm so sorry," Steve quakes. "I-I-I wasn't here to safe you. I'm s-s-so sorry."
     My eyes dart to the lifeless H.Y.D.R.A. agent that is sprawled on the ground near the exit of the tunnel. A gun is near his hand, which is covered in blood.
     "I-I-It was all my fault," Steve stammers. "Please forgive me, Tori."
     "Steve," I say. "Steve!"
     He doesn't hear me. He continues to stroke my dead self's hair as tears run down his cheeks. I rush to him, stepping over his helmet that lays on the ground.
     "Steve, look at me," I command him. "Steve!"
     I try to set my hand on his shoulder, but it merely floats through his body. My eyes widen and I repeatedly call his name. I attempt to take his face in my hands, but I am like a ghost.
     "You died because of me!" he shouts.
     "No, Steve, I'm alive!" I reassure him. "I'm right here."
      "Now, I will never see your smile or hear your voice anymore," Steve cries. "We can't carry out our plans. We were going to be a family. We were going to have kids. And now, w-we can't."
     "Steve," I whisper, tears starting to prick my vision.
     "I-I-I was gonna propose, Tori," he says. "We were going to go home and I was going to take you to the beach. We were going to walk along the shore and I was going to get on one knee and take out the ring, like this."
     He digs into a pocket that I never knew about in his uniform, and pulls out a small velvet box. He opens it, showing an engagement ring. The ring is beautiful. It is so simple, yet so perfect. The diamond sparkles in the faint light.
     "Yes, Steve," I exclaim. "I-I-I'm right here. We can still do everything! I'm here."
     Steve lifts my dead body's left hand and slips the ring onto my ring finger.
     "I know you would've said yes," he says. "Even Tony told me that he knew you would."
     My heart breaks at the mention of my brother's name. He knew, Steve consulted with him before all of this. Steve smiles and presses his lips to my lifeless ones.
      "I love you, Tori," he whispers. "I will always love you. T-T-Tell Phil that I said hi."
     Steve kisses my other self's forehead one last time and gently sets my head on the ground. He ambles towards my ghost body. I spot a red splotch on his uniform, over his heart. He walks through me, like I'm not there. He fetches his helmet off of the stone floor and steps over to my body. He puts it on my stomach and sets my left hand inside of it.
     When Steve begins to leave the tunnel, I feel a warm, comforting hand on my actual shoulder. I whip my head around to see Steve, in normal clothes and a smile plastered on his lips.
     "We can still do it, Tori," Steve says, taking me into his arms. "I'm here now."

•••

     My eyes swiftly open, taking in my bedroom. The stars and the moon shine brightly outside in the darkness. I lay on the bed with someone. I feel warm arms around me and hands stroking my hair.
     "You're the one who wanted to watch the movie," Steve jokes. "And you fall asleep halfway through."
     I snap my head to glance at the screen. Sure enough, the credits roll on the television. I look back up at Steve.
     "Steve?" I ask, taking his face in my hands.
     My hands don't float through him. Thank god.
     "Tori?" he replies, a smile crawling across his lips.
     "W-What happened?"
     "You mean in the movie, or me?"
     "You,"
     "Well," Steve sighs. "You fell asleep on me and I watched the rest of the movie."
     "W-What?" I whisper to myself.
     "It was a dream, wasn't it?" Steve questions me.
     "Y-Yeah," I say. "It was different than the usual nightmares, though."
     "It's okay," he coos. "I'm right here."