What Happens in Vegas Does Not Stay in Vegas
Steve Rogers X Reader
A/N:This is my contribution as part of @teamcap4bucky‘s 2K celebration. My prompt was “I don’t see how it could get any worse.” “Hey look, we got married last night!” “I stand corrected.” Hope you enjoy and check out @teamcap4bucky
Summary: When a mission goes drastically wrong, can you and Steve bear the brunt of the fallout? Mostly angst, but fluffs up at the end.
Warnings: Some swearing.
The blinding sunlight had startled you awake, warning you that something was wrong. You were usually up and about before dawn like clockwork, to the point that you could not remember when you last slept in. You quickly sat up to see what the time was, but you sat up too quickly and waves of nausea hit you like a freight train. Your head began pounding as you tried to put together the hazy pieces of the night before.
You and Steve were in Vegas on an undercover mission. After months of chasing tips and leads that ran dry, you were meeting with Jasper Sitwell, hoping to gain more intel on the location of the Winter Solider. You could remember that the evening had started well, but then after the second drink it became fuzzy and you could not recall how you got back to your hotel room. Except...
You were in Steve's room, not yours. Panicking, you jumped out of the bed and started looking for your things. Thankfully you were still in the figure-hugging black dress you had worn the night before. Make no mistake, for years you had dreamt of waking up in Steve's bed, but not like this. Anything but like this. You thanked your lucky stars that Steve was not currently there to see you in this state. Before you could wonder where Steve was, the bathroom door opened throwing you back into reality.
Despite just having a shower, Steve looked as rough as you felt. Dressed in a pair of sweats an old t-shirt he looked like he had gone ten rounds with The Hulk. His piercing blue gaze met yours and you noted how full of hurt and regret they were, your heart sank. He sat at the foot of the bed and motioned for you to sit next to him.
“So” he started nervously, “how much do you remember of last night?”
“Honestly, hardly anything” you replied. “I remember the beginning of the meeting with Sitwell, but then he pushed that second drink on us and then it's all just a blur.”
“Just as I suspected, it hit you a lot harder than it did me-”
“What did?” You butted in, Steve was starting to scare you.
“Someone must've tipped us off” he began. “Those second drinks were drugged. I don't know what the substance was, but it affected me pretty quickly and if I was effected-”
“Then I had no chance” you finished. “Do you remember what happened afterwards?”
Steve gave a sigh that confirmed your suspicions, the mission had been derailed. “Sitwell took advantage of our condition to get away, but that was not the worst thing that happened” he started.
“I don't see how it could get any worse.”
“Hey look,” he started nervously, trying to find the right words “we got married last night.”
“I stand corrected” you contemplated. “Wait- WHAT did you just say?!”
“Well guess I can call you Y/N Rogers now” Steve said attempting to lighten the mood.
“Don't you give me that shit Rogers!” you expressed your anxiousness giving way to anger. “It's not funny when Stark pulls this and it certainly isn't funny now. Tell me how this happened!”
“Well...um...” Steve started. His eyes were avoiding yours.
“Tell me now Rogers, I do not have all day!”
Steve took a deep breath. “You see we were trying to look for Sitwell, when we bumped into a group of girls who said that we made a cute couple.”
“Why did they think we were a coup-”
“-I don't know, but after they said that we were talking about what a great team we were and you said that seeing as we worked well together and we weren't getting any younger-”
“- We might as well be married” you finished in horror, the memories flooding back. Not only had the drugs cost you your biggest lead on Bucky in months, but they had caused you to betray your deepest desires. Feelings that you had expertly kept locked away, except in those rare, quiet moments when you were alone. Steve read the expression on your face, and reached out to grab your hand.
“Don't blame yourself Y/N” his thumb drawing circles on your palm. “It was the drugs and I should have stopped myself from getting carried away.”
You sighed and found the courage to look into his eyes, confirming your fears. He didn't want to be married to you. Not now. Not ever. Of course you didn't want to be with him like this. You had loved him since the day you were recruited to the S.H.E.I.L.D/Avengers joint taskforce dedicated to finding the Winter Solider. As the pair of you had worked together and became friends your feelings had deepened. You knew that you could never tell him how you felt, but there was that small part of you that lived in hope that he felt the same way. But now looking at his eyes full of remorse that hope was gone.
“So what do we do now?” You asked, breaking the awkward silence that had descended.
“I've already given Fury the heads up and the legal team are working on getting this annulled as we speak.”
“Oh” you uttered, not really knowing what to think. “I should probably head back to my room and have a shower.”
“Y/N-”
You got up and left before Steve had the chance to say anything, hoping he didn't see the tears streaming down your face. You did your best to keep some control of your emotions until you were in the shower, where you broke down and sobbed. Heartbroken and humiliated, you beat yourself up for being so stupid. How could you have not realised that the drinks were drugged? How could you have completely let go of your inhibitions? How on earth were you ever going to live this down?
-
As you suspected, what happens in Vegas does not stay in Vegas. It did not take long for what happened that night to get out when you both returned to the tower. The pair of you had royally fucked up and the higher ups had demanded answers. Between the many debriefs, tests to find out what the mystery substance was and of course, the annulment; inevitably everyone knew exactly what had happened.
You were able to take the teasing from Stark, Romanoff, and the rest of the taskforce as you were able to shut them up with a witty comeback. But you couldn't stand the constant staring and whispering that followed you around. It was just what you needed on top what you were already feeling. You had started to avoid Steve wherever possible, but soon you were both back to working together and it was beyond strained. Every time you looked at him, all you could think about as that night and the look on his face the next morning. It was too much.
Eventually you couldn't take it any more and asked to be reassigned. While you were waiting for details of your new assignment back at S.H.E.I.L.D Headquarters, you had started ignoring Steve completely; figuring it was time to move on and avoiding any ungainly goodbyes. However, Steve had other plans.
-
A week later you were given the details of your next posting, and you started to prepare to make the move back to Washington, D.C. While sorting through your belongings you couldn't help but smile at the life and memories you had made at the tower. You paused temporarily to look through some Polaroids taken at a party about a couple of months before that fateful night in Vegas. The Avengers had taken down a Hydra stronghold in Sokovia. There had been no strong leads on Bucky's location, but the mission had been declared a success and Tony just had to throw a party to celebrate. Steve, looked impossibly handsome wearing a navy blue shirt and jeans; and you wore your favourite skirt and top combo that made you feel sexy and confident, That night Thor had managed to get most people drunk on his Asguardian mead, but you had turned it down and until recently it was believed that Steve was immune to all substances. So while everyone was trying to drunkenly lift Thor's hammer, you and Steve retreated to a quiet corner, where you put the world to rights.
You didn't realise that you'd started crying until a teardrop hit the photo you were holding. You and Steve had your arms around each other's waists, drinks raised in your free hands, laughing at something you couldn't quite remember. Before that awful night you used to look at photo and trick yourself into believing that Steve was looking at you like he loved you as much as you loved him. But now because of that awful night, you knew the cold, harsh truth and it reaffirmed your decision to leave.
A sharp knock at the door brought you out of your thoughts. Wiping the way the tears you went to answer it, and was shocked to Steve on the other side of the door. You noted that he seemed to be as nervous as you suddenly were. You took a deep breath to steady yourself.
“Whatever it is Steve, make it quick. I'm moving to D.C. In a few days and I need to be packed up as soon as possible.” Your words came out harsher than intended and Steve recoiled as if you had slapped him in the face.
“Y/N, we really need to talk about what happened in Vegas.”
“What is there to talk about Steve?” You snapped back. “We threw years worth of work down the drain, I made a complete fool of myself and you were so horrified by the idea by the idea of being married to me that you practically got the annulment before I had the chance to wake up!”
“Y/N -”
“But don't worry, in a few days I'll be gone, so you can find Bucky with no problems and you can forget that we were ever married!”
“Is this what this is about? You wanted to stay married?”
“No of course not Steve, but you should have given us a chance to talk thing through before acting and it doesn't make a girl feel good when she hears that their friend thinks that being married to you is worse than failing a mission.”
“Oh,”He muttered, the realisation of what he had said that morning dawning on him. “Y/N please don't leave because of a stupid comment, I was still processing what had happened and I wasn't' thinking straight.”
“No it's because of that comment I have to leave” You stammered tears threatening to fall again. “For years I have been living in the land of make-believe, but now I need to head back to reality.”
“Y/N I'm so sorry” Steve uttered moving towards you, attempting to pull you into his arms.
“No!” you almost shouted, stepping away from him, blocking his attempt at an embrace with your arms. Tears were cascading down your face now, but you didn't care. “Do you know how humiliating it is that everybody knows that I'm the last person you could ever want?! You might be able to live with the constant gossiping, but I can't. I need to leave. I need to move forward, I need to-”
Before you could finish, Steve had stepped forward, cupped your cheeks with his hands and brought his lips to yours. Initially you froze, but then you quickly relaxed into the kiss. When Steve sensed that you weren't going to push him away, he deepened the kiss. He kissed you with a sense of urgency as if he was trying to convey something words could not explain.
Eventually, both of you needed air and the kiss ended, Steve resting his forehead on yours. You looked into Steve's perfect blue eyes and saw that there were tears threatening to spill.
“I know I'm an idiot, but please don't leave, you're vital to the team, I can't do this without you, I love you.”
Stunned by Steve's confession, you pulled away. Your mind was reeling, and your heart was close to bursting out of your chest. He had felt the same way all along.
“I'm sorry I started the annulment before you knew what was going on. But I was scared and I thought that the longer it went on for the less chance we would have at being together. I was so nervous about how you were gonna react that I couldn't get my words out straight. I promise I wasn't rejecting you.”
He looked at you expectantly, waiting for you to say something; but you were still processing what he had just said. You had spent all that time wishing and praying, not noticing that he felt the same way.
“Say something Y/N, you're beginning to scare me.”
Instead of saying anything you grabbed his shirt by the collar, and pulled him towards you, brushing your lips against his. He put his arms around your waist and pulled you into him. You responded by putting your arms around his neck. Ultimately, the kiss came to its natural end, and you knew it was your turn to confess.
“I have always loved you Steve, but I guess that I thought that if I told you, it would ruin our dynamic and the mission.”
“So you'll stay.”
“I'll talk to Fury first thing, but I have one condition.”
“Name it.”
“Called me old fashioned, but I believe that you should date someone for a bit before heading down the aisle.”
Steve's eyes lit up as he chuckled.
“Y/N, will you make me the happiest man alive and go on a date with me?”
“I will” you answered beaming up at Steve, neither of you able to contain yourselves. Before you had the chance to say anything else Steve pulled you back in for another intoxicating kiss.
