CHAPTER TWELVE — ( You've been asleep, Cap. For almost 70 years. )
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"Curveball, high and outside for ball one. So the Dodgers are tied, 4-4. And the crowd well knows that with one swing of his bat, this fellow's capable of making it a brand-new game again."
Steve Rogers' eyes opened, adjusting to the light above him. He listened to the radio, the broadcast sounding familiar. "Just an absolutely gorgeous day here at Ebbets Field. The Phillies have managed to tie it up at 4-4." He looked at his surroundings. A fan on the roof, plainly painted room, windows open outside. He seemed to be in a recovery centre but couldn't be fooled easily. He knew something was wrong.
"But the Dodgers have three men on." Steve sat up in his bed and swung his legs to the side. "Pearson beaned Reiser in Philadelphia last month. Wouldn't the youngster like a hit here to return the favour? Pete leans in. Here's the pitch. Swing on. A line to the right. And it gets past Rizzo. Three runs will score. Reiser heads to third. Durocher's going to wave him in. Here comes the relay, but they won't get him." He looked towards the radio, realising something.
He attended this game.
The door opened beside the radio, and a lady who appeared to be a nurse entered the room. She smiled at him, "Good morning." She closed the door behind herself and walked further into the room. "Or should I say afternoon?"
"Where am I?" Steve asked.
"You're in a recovery room in New York City," she folded her hands across her front.
"The Dodgers take the lead, 8-4. Oh, Dodgers! Everyone is on their feet. What a game we have here today, folks. What a game, indeed."
"Where am I really?" he asked again.
The lady gave a light laugh. "I'm afraid I don't understand."
"The game. It's from May 1941. I know, 'cause I was there," Steve told her. The lady's face instantly dropped, realising she was caught. Steve stood up from the bed and slowly began to approach her. "Now, I'm going to ask you again. Where am I?"
The lady pressed a button. "Captain Rogers..."
"Who are you?"
Men in black walked into the room and made their way over to Steve. He quickly threw them towards the wall, expecting them to slide down. However, they went straight through the paper-thin wall into another much larger room. Steve jumped through the hole in the wall and stood in a large, spacious room. The lady called for him, but he started to run.
"All agents, code 13! I repeat. All agents, code 13!" The lady sounded out to the base as Steve ran. He knocked every approaching agent out of the way until he reached the outdoors.
Once outside, he ran into the middle of the road and looked around. Something seemed wrong. Nothing was the same as before. He ran through the streets and towards where he knew Times Square to be. He suddenly stopped in his tracks and looked around. Bright, electronic billboards were everywhere, advertising things he had never seen. Then he looked down. People were wearing vastly different clothing, some much more revealing than he remembered fashion to be. The cars were not as he remembered. Soon enough, Steve stood in the middle of about half a dozen large black cars.
"At ease, soldier!" a man called from behind Steve. Steve turned around and watched as a man in black clothes and an eyepatch emerged from one of the vehicles and walked towards him. "Look, I'm sorry about that little show back there, but we thought it best to break it to you slowly."
"Break what?" Steve asked.
"You've been asleep, Cap. For almost 70 years."
He couldn't believe what he was hearing. In a coma for seventy years? Why was he still the same? Why hadn't he aged? How was he still alive? Were his teammates still alive? What was this new world like? How would he live through this new age without the guidance of anyone he knew?
"You gonna be okay?" Fury asked.
"Yeah. Yeah, I just..." Steve took a deep breath and shook his head. "I don't know how I will get through this alone."
"Well, you won't be alone," a voice he hadn't heard in a long time said. Steve whipped his head towards Fury and noticed a black-haired, green-eyed woman walking beside him. It was Evelyn. "Hi, Steve."
"Evelyn?" Steve asked, almost breathless. He walked over toward the woman in shock. His eyes were wide, and his mouth agape. He had to stand in front of her to ensure he was seeing her properly and not just imagining her. But it was her. It was Evelyn, looking as gorgeous as the day he met her. Her hair had gotten longer, and she no longer had red-painted lips. She wore a plain blue shirt with black pants and black boots. Evelyn looked much more casual than Steve had ever seen. "You're alive?"
Evelyn smiled gently. "Yes, I'm alive."
"I don't-I don't understand," he spoke.
The two gazed at each other, feeling their hearts racing as if they were beating a hundred miles an hour. "That's okay. I'll tell you what happened," she said. "But there's a lot that has happened since the war, Steve, and it'll take more than a day to make sure you're caught up with everything. Do you wanna go grab a coffee?"
Steve blinked and then frowned. "I don't..."
"Would you like to go to the cafe with me and have a coffee?" Evelyn asked again.
He nodded his head, and a small blush rose on his cheeks. "Yes-yes, of course. I'd love to go to a cafe with you," he said. Evelyn smiled and held her hand out for him to follow her, and he did without hesitation. He didn't know what to expect or what everything was going to be like. All he knew was that Evelyn was by his side, and he definitely wasn't going to leave her until she ordered him to do so.
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AUTHORS NOTE Part 1 finally complete 🕺🏻 I hope you enjoyed some of the changes I made and I can't wait to leap into the Avengers movie next!!! Pheebs/-rosepetal
