Chapter Text
April 1946
New York
Daniel never knew quite how to respond to the minor celebrity status his war injury afforded him when he was discharged. Mostly, it made him uncomfortable. It used to make him really uncomfortable. But then he met Peggy Carter and Steve Rogers, and saw just how messed up celebrity could be. He’d never been so thankful to be mostly anonymous.
Daniel had heard the Captain America Adventure Program on the radio, just like everyone else, but now he switched it off. The idea of Peggy and Rogers carrying on like Betty Carver and Cap on the show was absurd. Daniel didn’t know if maybe there used to be something between them, or if it was all just completely fabricated. He sort of assumed the latter. Peggy and Rogers were ... civil. Sometimes they were friendly, but more than often, they just didn’t react to one another at all. Both of them were so closed off, so private that it was hard to imagine them with anyone, least of all each other.
Daniel could only guess at how much they both hated that radio show.
“Hey, Marge,” Jack shouted across the bullpen, “I need a file pulled.”
Daniel watched as Peggy crossed the room to Jack, smiling tightly. “And here I thought you were more than familiar with pulling things all by yourself,” she said. Jack frowned at her, handing her a scrap of paper. She took it and walked off, muttering “wanker,” under her breath.
Daniel had to agree with her assessment. Jack was an okay guy, but he gave Peggy hell. At least he’d backed off a bit. When she first started, there had been a lot of Captain America jabs and Betty Carver jokes. But when Rogers got reassigned right after the first of the year, all of that stopped. Not that Rogers was around a whole lot. They saw him maybe once a week. He was out on assignment most of the time. But you never knew when he was going to turn up. Jack had toned it down as soon as Rogers made it clear he didn’t think those jokes were funny.
Peggy walked by, carrying a file box, and Daniel immediately got to his feet. “You need help?”
She looked at him, giving him a soft smile. “Thank you, Daniel, but I can manage.”
He followed her back to her desk, watching as she sorted through the box. She pulled out the folders Jack needed and replaced the lid on the box. Daniel screwed up his courage. “Uh, Li and I,” he started, feeling like an idiot. “We’re gonna grab a drink after work tonight. You interested?”
“In a drink?” she asked. “God, yes. I could use a stiff one right now.”
Daniel swallowed thickly. “So, uh,” he fumbled, “uh, we’re just gonna head down around six. That work for you?”
“It certainly does, Daniel,” she said. “Thank you.”
Daniel felt like he shouldn’t have been shocked, but he kinda was. Carter could drink like a fish. And swear like a sailor. And he was pretty sure she could make a living as a card sharp if the SSR ever booted her out. She had no tells. It was uncanny.
So the quick drink turned into quite the outing. Carter found a table in a dark, smoky corner and proceeded to take everyone’s money, though she did it with enough charm that she managed to leave their pride in tact.
Daniel didn’t know when Jack and Rogers showed up. It looked like they’d been there for a while by the time he noticed them. Jack would occasionally glance over in their direction, but Rogers mostly seemed to be ignoring them, nursing a scotch.
Li stared over at their booth. “I guess I never imagined Captain America in a bar,” he said, frowning.
Carter snorted.
“What was that?” Daniel asked.
She looked up, expression innocent. “Pardon?”
Daniel narrowed his eyes at her, but she just stared back. No tells. She was a tricky one.
Li eventually had to head home. He had a wife and a couple of kids. Daniel stayed. He didn’t have anywhere to be.
Eventually the evening wound down.
“Daniel,” Peggy said. “I really appreciate your invitation this evening. It was a welcome change of pace.”
“Sure thing,” he said. “Let me walk you out.”
The air outside was a shock to the system. He hadn’t realized quite how much he’d had to drink. Carter seemed steady on her feet, but Daniel suspected that even if she was completely plastered, he wouldn’t know.
“You gotta car?” he asked.
“Ah, no,” she admitted. “I take the train.”
He looked around. “I’m not sure it’s running this late. Let me call you a cab.”
She shook her head. “It’s alright, Daniel, really. I can walk.”
“Are you nuts?” he asked.
She frowned at him. “Daniel, I served in the war. I am more than capable of walking myself home. Thank you for the offer though. You should leave before I reevaluate how enjoyable the evening was. I don’t need you, or anyone else, to protect me.”
He wanted to say something, he really did. But he knew she wasn’t bluffing. If he screwed this up here, that was it. He shrugged. “Okay,” he said. “See you on Monday.”
She gave him a smile and leaned in, pressing a chaste kiss to his cheek. “Goodnight, Daniel.”
She walked down the sidewalk, wrapping the coat more tightly around her body. Despite the large amount of alcohol she had consumed, the cold was still biting, even in April. She finally stopped in the middle of the sidewalk and sighed. “I didn’t need Daniel to walk me home and I bloody well don’t need you to walk me home either.”
Steve finally stopped lurking and stood next to her. “I was going this way.”
She glowered at him. “Brooklyn is over there,” she said, pointing.
Despite her object lesson, he did not look towards Brooklyn. He was staring at her. She finally had to look away. She proceeded down the sidewalk.
This time he didn’t even bothered trying to be subtle. He walked right next to her, hands in his pockets, his frown so intense she was afraid he was going to hurt himself.
“Go away, Steve,” she snapped. She needed him to leave. She needed him to leave now. Because if he stayed she was going to do something or say something she was going to regret. And she already had more than enough regrets.
She marched toward the tiny little apartment she shared with Colleen, but the combination of booze and a patch of ice were her downfall, literally. Her heel skidded out from under her and she would have taken a nasty tumble, except for the fact that Steve was there. He caught her.
She was there, in his arms, staring up at him, breathing hard, full to the brim with regret and anger. Slowly, he straightened her up, making sure she was steady on her feet. He was still far too close and his hands were still on her arms.
She stared down at her feet. “Please leave,” she whispered. “Please.”
He sighed and released her, but rather than leaving, he tucked her hand in the crook of his arm and started off down the sidewalk. “Saw Dugan yesterday,” he said conversationally. “He asked about you. Said to remind you that if you want a spot in the 107th, he’ll crack heads and make it happen. But consider yourself warned, he’ll find some horrible codename for you.”
She sniffled, ever so grateful for his chivalry. Damn him.
Her apartment was not nearby, so they spent a lot of time making idle chitchat. It wasn’t comfortable, exactly, but it made the hard little knot in the center of her chest uncurl just a bit. Which, really, just made things worse.
He finally stopped in front of her apartment building. She looked up at it and laughed mirthlessly. “Dare I ask why you know where I live?”
“You know exactly why I know where you live,” he said evenly.
She screwed her eyes shut. She wasn’t anywhere near drunk enough for this conversation. Oh, what the hell. “Li said tonight that he never imagined Captain America in a pub. I refrained from telling him what we did the last time we were in a pub together. Though I suppose it was probably Christmas that did it. Oh, the irony.”
He looked down at her. “Why are you doing this, Peggy?”
“To torture myself,” she said flatly, staring at the building. “And maybe you too.”
He sighed, sounding so very tired. “What’s up with you and Sousa?”
She shook her head. “Nothing.”
“But he ... wants?”
She shrugged. “Perhaps. It doesn’t matter. I’m damaged goods. Daniel may not be Captain America, but deserves more too.”
He squeezed her hand, but said nothing. They’d had this argument too many times to count. “Peggy I just don’t understand - “
“Please,” she said sharply. “Please don’t.”
He was breathing hard, but he finally shook his head and released her hand. “Be careful, okay?” he said.
She nodded. She couldn’t look at him. She walked inside, knowing he wouldn’t leave until she did. How the hell did she get in this mess?
END CHAPTER