THANKSGIVING, FOR RHETT, WAS ALL ABOUT BEING THANKFUL FOR WHAT HE HAD. He and Nicky didn't participate in Black Friday, neither of their families ever had, so all that mattered for them was focusing on the idea that there was a day when they were obligated to sit down and think about what they were thankful for.

What the two found was that, more than anything, they were thankful for still being alive.

"Did you record the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving Special?" Nicky asked from the kitchen, Rhett finishing up his work in the living room.

"I've had it recorded since last week, we're all set," Rhett called out idly, flipping through the short stories he'd had the kids write.

Turning in his seat, he held up one that had frightened him when he had been reading earlier that night. "Nick, can you psychoanalyze a second grader for me?"

Nicky blinked. "Wait, you teach second grade?"

The conversation fell into more trivial things, Nicky making commentary on the maturity of some of Rhett's students, especially when he learned they were only in the second grade, only to be even more shocked when he read the horrifying story that was clearly written by a second grader, but in such a way that he couldn't believe that it was.

"Okay, we're just gonna set this aside and you can talk to the kid's parents, okay?" Nicky finally decided, "Because I am officially terrified. Also, we need to run to the store because, turns out, I forgot to buy the steak."

Rhett blinked. "How do you forget to buy the one thing that we eat during Friendsgiving?"

Nicky threw up his arms. "I'm a busy man, Rhett! And I was sick, if anything, this is your fault."

The blond scoffed, rising to his feet. "Alright. Let's go buy the steak before I have to run and drag Steve out of his apartment."

"I can't believe we're celebrating Friendsgiving with Captain America," Nicky gushed, walking backwards as they exited their apartment, "Should we get some apple pie or something? What does he like?"

Rhett paused, frowning. "I don't...know? I mean, we talk a lot, but he never really says super trivial stuff like that. Though I think he told one of the kids that he likes pumpkin pie."

Nicky snorted, shaking his head, walking down the stairs. "You don't know what your boyfriend likes to eat? Wow, I'd break up with you."

The older man scoffed, bumping shoulders and nearly sending Nicky slamming into the wall. "He's not my boyfriend and, lucky for me, I know what your favorite food is."

"What is it?" Nicky asked, rubbing his arm.

Rhett just ran away.

º º º

The two came home with steak, three pies, and a large gingerbread mansion that Nicky insisted they buy despite Rhett's insistence that it was only Thanksgiving.

"Back in my day, we didn't have gingerbread mansions," Rhett grumbled, kicking the door closed behind him, "We didn't even have girl scout cookies since they had to start rationing the sugar and all that other shit."

"Well, we have to start making up for lost time," Nicky announced proudly, reaching underneath the kitchen and pulling out a jar labelled 'GIRL SCOUT COOKIE FUND.'

Rhett just stared at it, never having felt such a large surge of disappointment as he had in that one instance. He opened his mouth and raised his hand, as if to speak, only to close his mouth and let his hand fall limply at his side.

"I-I can't," he sighed, stammering as he made his way to his room, a hand shielding his eyes, "I-I just can't. Why-why are you like this, what have I done to deserve this?"

"I'm being responsible with our money, I don't want to blow it all on those cookies," Nicky called after him, only to have a door slam in response. He sighed and put away the jar which, if Rhett had looked at it closely, was filled with Monopoly money.

With a small sigh and a smile, Nicky leaned against the counter, mumbling to himself, "I'm thankful for my roommate and the fact he's still alive."

In his own room, Rhett was leaning against the door, unable to keep from grinning widely as he thought about Nicky, shaking his head and whispering, "I'm thankful for my roommate and the fact he's still alive."

º º º

The sun was setting, but there was still time before Rhett had to go pick up Steve. Because of that, the two men decided to watch some movies, the classics that they only watched together; although they were both fond of Steve, there were just some things that weren't meant to be shared.

There was a stack of DVDs—physical copies still in their cases—that were set aside in Nicky's room and were never touched except on certain occasions. There were stacks for Thanksgiving, Christmas, Valentine's Day, and their birthdays. Some, such as the birthday ones, were smaller than others, but their Thanksgiving and Valentine's Day stacks were the largest.

They were generally the movies that Nicky had shown to Rhett around that time during the first year of knowing each other. They were heartwarming movies that they could watch and never grow tired of, as the two would just sit next to each other and appreciate that he had someone to be with.

The commentary was light and the jokes few and far between, but there was heart to the silence and the two men didn't want to lose what they had, no matter what paths life laid out for them.

"You won't leave me if you end up dating Steve, right?" Nicky suddenly asked, breaking the silence. Rhett opened his mouth, but was interrupted, "I get you don't think you will, but just answer me. If you do, will you leave me?"

Rhett shook his head, moving closer to the younger man, pulling him close, smoothing down his hair the way his mother used to, his heart breaking at the way Nicky melted into the touch, searching for it. "He'll just have to move in with us. He likes more people around, we'd just share a room."

"Even if I'm just there, bothering you and taking up room on the couch?" Nicky asked, closing his eyes.

"It's a big couch, we can all fit," Rhett mumbled, wishing that the conversation never even happened; he was thankful to have Nicky, that was all he needed.

He felt the man's shoulder's begin to shake and he shushed him, his other arm going to rub his arms. "Aw, c'mon now, kiddo, no crying, it's Friendsgiving."

Nicky shook his head, clinging onto his shirt. "Y-you can leave if you want."

Rhett frowned, pulling away and forcing him to look him in the eye. "Hey. Hey, look at me." Nicky bregrudigngly opened his eyes and looked at him. He continued, "You are the only reason that I'm still alive right now, and I mean that in so many different ways. I'm not leaving you as long as you want me around."

Nicky sniffed, wiping at his eyes. "I'm always gonna want you around, you idiot."

Rhett laughed, pulling him into a hug, ruffling his hair. "Same here, smart ass."

There were more words to be said. More words to be kept. Thoughts to emerge and feelings to appear, but that would be left for a later date when they became more relevant. For the time being, they laid dormant, lying in wait for the perfect time.

While Nicky finally pulled away, Rhett flicked his chin, glancing at the clock. "I gotta go pick up Steve, I'll be back soon. Get all the food ready, I'm gettin' kinda hungry since someone wouldn't let me have any popcorn." He kicked the man slightly as he stood, stretching.

"You'll ruin your appetite that way," Nicky argued, sniffing as he tried to hide the rest of his unshed tears, forcing himself not to cry. Rhett knew he'd probably cry while he was setting up dinner and said as much.

"I'll be fine," he coughed, "I promise, I'll just cry and we'll be good. I swear." It seemed as though he was trying to convince himself as well.

Rhett ran a hand through his hair, giving him a pointed look. "Call me if it gets bad."

Nicky gave him a lazy salute, pained but recovering. "You got it, boss. Go on, don't wanna keep him waiting."

With one last look at Nicky, Rhett closed the door and headed off to Steve's.

º º º

It was a nice place, but it wasn't amazing, and it was right by his old neighborhood. Rhett didn't know what came over him, what was it that caused him to remember, but suddenly he was on the ground, taking deep breaths as he tried not to get too overwhelmed because his past was coming back all at once, and he didn't know what to do.

"Come on, Reiser," he muttered to himself, head between his knees, hands fisted in his hair, "It's just a street, it's not like—" his voice cracked as he heard the voice of his mother calling him in for supper. He swallowed a lump in his throat. "It's just—"

"Rhett?"

Rhett's neck snapped up as he turned and found himself staring at Steve. He was dressed nicely, in clothes Rhett didn't recognize, standing on the sidewalk and looking at him, concerned. He was wearing his glasses, though he almost looked ready to take them off.

"What's wrong?" he asked, walking towards him and bending down, helping him to his feet, holding his arms to keep him steady.

"Nothing," he breathed, shaking his head, "I just...I don't know, it's been a very emotional day. Uh, how are you?"

"I'm good," Steve said conversationally, the two beginning to walk as Rhett pulled away, drawing his jacket closer to his body, "How are you, do you want to talk about it?"

Rhett shook his head. "No, not really. Um...yeah, no, I don't. Do you have anything you want to talk about, how was work?"

Steve, not needing his glasses to know that Rhett was desperate for a topic change, launched into a story he had heard from one of the bartenders. It wasn't his own, but he pretended it was, if only for Rhett's sake. He incorporated bits in to make it seem real, interesting, and if Rhett saw through the lie, he made no motion towards it.

When they were halfway to the apartment, they heard the sound of a struggle. Instantly, the two were on guard, looking across the street to see a man harassing a woman, catcalling her and grabbing her arm to keep her from getting away.

Just as Steve was about to cross the street and give the man a piece of his mind, Rhett shot out an arm, blocking his chest. The super soldier opened his mouth to strongly argue, but Rhett beat him to the punch. "You help her, I'll get the dick."

With a nod, Steve was off, trailing a little ways behind Rhett who was jogging over the man with a bright smile plastered on his face, waving his arm.

"Hey, Jeff!" the teacher called out, standing just between the man and the woman, "Long time, no see, how're you doin'?"

"Get lost," the man growled, shoving Rhett in the chest, sending him stumbling.

"Aw, Jeff, baby," Rhett drawled, undeterred, sauntering right back up to him, "C'mon, you know you missed me. Here, let's hug it out." He held out his arms to give the man a hug, only to be met with a punch to the face.

At least, he would have been if he hadn't dodged it at the last second, practically falling onto the ground, jumping right back up, grinning. "Aw, c'mon, buddy, we're all friends here, why you gotta be like that?"

Confused and frustrated, the man tried again, aiming another punch to his face which Rhett easily dodged, never ceasing his barrage of taunts. The dance continued like that for some time, Rhett mocking and stalling, letting Steve help the woman find a safe place to stay.

"Thank you," she whispered as he guided her away, keeping an arm out protectively, but not touching her, "Thank you so much."

"It's no problem ma'am, is there somewhere you need to be?" Steve asked, glancing back towards Rhett who was holding up well against the other man, now using the man's anger to his advantage, letting him hurt himself in his desperate attempt to take the blond down.

"My mother's, it's just over here," she breathed, rushing up the steps and pressing the buzzer. Steve waited patiently at the bottom until the gate unlocked to let her inside. She gave him one last look, as if trying to recognize him, finally just settling for a, "Thank you so much. Happy Thanksgiving," before rushing inside and closing the door behind her.

Satisfied that she would be alright, Steve raced back to Rhett, hoping that the man's luck hadn't changed. He skidded to a stop, watching the scene unfold. Rhett was still taunting the man, but was now sporting a cut lip. The other man, however, seemed to have cut his face after scraping it along the sidewalk, possibly due to a tackle gone horribly wrong.

Finally, as the man was about to punch him, Rhett caught his hand and twisted his arm behind his back, not enough to hurt, but enough to keep him in place. "You mess with any one else—anyone at all—you'll answer to me. Happy Thanksgiving."

With a shove, Rhett walked across the street to where he and Steve initially were standing, the super solider following him quickly, keeping an eye on the other man who seemed to have given up his endeavor to prove himself against the surprisingly strong elementary school teacher.

"How—" Steve began, shocked, but Rhett cut him off, shaking his head.

"Oh, we do not talk about it," he said, holding up a hand, "Let's just pretend that didn't happen and get to my place where we can have steak and talk about how much we love each other."

Steve shrugged, staring at the man as he walked ahead, filled with shock, awe, and respect. A million feelings at once and no way to understand them. "Yes, sir."

º º º

The food was good and the champagne mixed with apple cider left Rhett with a warm feeling. Not tipsy, just warm. He laughed along with Steve at whatever joke Nicky just told, the man having been perfectly composed by the time they arrived home.

"So you beat up a guy without ever actually hurting him?" Nicky asked, for the third time, shaking his head and looking over to Steve for confirmation, "Can you believe this guy? It's ridiculous."

"It was surprising," Steve agreed, glancing over to Rhett, giving him a small smile, "And pretty great."

Rhett hid his smile behind his glass, glancing down as a warm feeling spread throughout his body, but it wasn't the drink this time around. He heard Nicky groan beside him, standing up to get get himself more pie, proclaiming that this was Friendsgiving and forcing a friend into third-wheeling was prohibited.

When the conversation finally died down about an hour later, and the men were all incredibly full—though with the serum, Rhett wouldn't be surprised if Steve was burning calories as they spoke—Nicky spoke, serious now, and sobered up.

"Tony wanted me to give you something," he said, pulling out a small device that was new to Rhett, but clearly familiar to Steve.

Taking it, the blond placed it on the table and, after making sure it was alright, pressed the button in the center, a hologram of a familiar billionaire appearing, a sad smile on his face.

"Hey, Capsicle," he greeted, his smile tugging upwards for a brief moment, "Cap. Steve. Grant. You know." Steve laughed at that, never taking his eyes off the screen.

"Sorry, no Sam or anyone else, it's just me," Tony said, waving his hands in mock celebration, "Hooray! Though, knowing all of them, you probably got greetings from them already. So, um, Happy Thanksgiving! Yeah, um," he cleared his throat, looking down and tugging at his collar, "I just wanted to say that...I'm thankful. To have had you in my life—to have you now, but also back then. Thanks."

Rhett looked over at Steve who had a hand over his eyes, his lower lip trembling as he tried not to cry. Swallowing thickly, the man looked back up at the screen, laughing softly as Tony continued, saying, "Now don't go calling and crying over the phone about how much you love me, I already know you do, so save the energy. Happy Thanksgiving, Steve."

Then the video closed.

Steve took a steadying breath, pulling out his phone. "Sorry, I can I make a few phone calls?"

"Go ahead," Nicky said softly, kindly, and Rhett knew what he was doing, but said nothing.

While Steve made his phone calls, Nicky turned to give Rhett a pointed look. "Walk him home."

Rhett raised his eyebrows, taken aback by the commanding tone. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me," Nicky said, beginning to clear away the plates, "Here, stand for a second, I'm going to put something in your pocket. A few somethings. Then you're going to walk him home."

"What are you planning, Green?" the blond sighed, standing nevertheless and letting Nicky slip whatever he had been holding onto into his back pockets, hoping they weren't dangerous.

"I'm not planning, just keeping you prepared. Protection's always good." With a firm pat on his pocket, Nicky walked to the kitchen, leaving Rhett to narrow his eyes as he left, wondering what game he was trying to play.

"I think I should get going," Steve said, walking back into the room, wiping his eyes, hoping neither man would see.

Despite everything in his mind telling him to question Nicky, Rhett found himself speaking. "I'll walk you home."

º º º

"You didn't have to walk me all this way here, I don't really like the idea of you walking back by yourself."

The two were nearing Steve's apartment, having talked the entire way there. Steve told him about how he had gotten a call from Wanda earlier that day, the girl greeting him and thanking him for being a part of her life. Clint had taken the phone from him after that, giving a heartfelt, though casual greeting, and a reminder to stay safe.

He had also gotten a phone call from Sam, but that wasn't something he felt like sharing.

The phone call he had made back at the loft was to Tony, and Steve was surprised to hear the sound of people laughing and talking in the background, meaning that Tony wasn't alone for the holidays. When the man told him that he had found some people, Steve couldn't help but feel a wave of relief and joy.

That, he had told Rhett, who had given him a warm smile. He had to look away, feeling his heart race as he looked at the man who had become such an important part of his life in the amount of time they had known each other.

"Nah, I'm good," Rhett said, the two of them making their way into the building and up the stairs to Steve's apartment, "I can take care of myself."

"I know," Steve said, the two making their way down the hall to his door, "But I like having you around. Thank you, again, for inviting me to Friendsgiving, it meant a lot to me. I haven't...I haven't really felt like a part of something in a while. Thank you."

"Thank you for coming," Rhett said, the two slowing as they neared his door, "You're really important to us, and you'll always have a something with us. We're all friends."

Steve smiled, pulling out his keys and sticking them in his lock, opening his door, but not stepping inside, his hand barely holding onto the knob. "Thank you. Friend."

Rhett stared at him, acutely aware of how close they were. Steve's hand had fallen from the doorknob and he seemed to be leaning slightly against the doorframe, as if afraid of what might happen if he doesn't anchor onto something.

His heart was beating faster than it had in a while and part of him knew why, and another part told him that he was dreaming, to calm down and get over it. But Steve was looking at him again, glancing between his eyes and his lips, and Rhett had forgotten his glasses at home.

"Just friend?" Rhett breathed, breaking the silence, but everything still in place.

There was another long pause and Rhett was sure this was going to kill him. He didn't know when he moved, but there was only so much space between the two of them and Steve wasn't going inside his apartment, despite how many times Rhett had glanced over to the knob, the man didn't move.

Steve carefully opened the door to his apartment, not quite stepping inside. He just continued to look at Rhett with the same indescribable expression that he had been for quite some time.

Then, out of nowhere, he spoke, sending everything crashing down.

"I think I like you too much for that."

Then Rhett kissed him.

Steve braced himself as Rhett surged forward, the two of them falling into his apartment as the man gripped his shirt, holding onto him like his life depended on it. He was vaguely aware of the door being kicked closed before he was on his feet and pushing Rhett back, right into the door.

Rhett struggled for breath as he just stared at Steve who was pinning him against the door, both of them shocked, but neither one particularly apologetic.

"Is this okay?" Steve asked, leaning forward, one hand coming up to Rhett's face, as if checking to make sure that he was, in fact, real. It was careful and kind and so overwhelming that Rhett wanted to scream.

"I should be asking you," he joked faintly, though there wasn't much of a jibe behind it, "I mean, I think I started this."

"Is this okay?" Steve repeated, ignoring the man's attempt at lightening the mood, "Rhett."

It was the way he said his name. The way he said it with such force, such familiarity, like he remembered him, that made his legs give out. Steve caught him, holding him against the door and he took a deep breath, steadying himself.

"Yeah, this is okay," he whispered, "This is really, really okay."

Steve's hand shifted away from his hip, locking the door with a swift click.

He laughed slightly and Rhett reached up to grab at his shoulders, because that was all he could do to control himself by that point. He looked back up into Steve's eyes, catching sight of his glasses somewhere on the ground.

Steve let out a short breath. The silence was broken and everything came crumbling down in a flurry of frantic movements and desperate kisses, rooted so deeply in familiarity that they were practically strangers, not even friends.

Needless to say, the rest of the night went very well.

AUTHOR'S NOTE

( 12.25.17 )

Alternate Title: Steve gets the D

Alternate Title II: Nicky and Rhett are Platonic Partners, everyone love my sons

Alternate Title III: Tisha Writes the WORST Ending Ever

Gosh, the way this chapter ended when I first planned it sounded so much better in my head like Steve says something and then Rhett kisses him and pushes him into his apartment, and the chapter is done, but I didn't want to end it with "Then Rhett kissed him" because that's just lame and a really bad transition to what happens next chapter, you feel? So I guess this ending was alright.

I keep writing scenes between Nicky and Rhett that should really occur during Part Two and I'm really annoyed with myself, but I can't take them out, so we have to live with them. Sorry this was such a long chapter, I at first wanted to actually write a lot, but then I ended up writing too much. But...this was a big turning point, so no one can blame me.

That's all I really have to say, so thanks for reading and I hope you enjoyed!