OOM: afternoon coffee

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

Even people who pride themselves on supporting independent shops end up at Starbucks sometimes.

There's one within walking distance of Steve and Orpheus's apartment -- there are more than one if you're up to walking a bit more -- so Steve brings Felix there, so he can see what it's all about if nothing else.

It's a quiet Sunday afternoon. Steve has his sketchbook, but he hasn't opened it yet in favor of looking through a copy of the Express someone left on the table instead.

Comments

[mr_gaeta]

Gaeta's eyebrows rise. Intellectually, it's one thing to know Steve's a superhero, famous in his own right; it's another to hear they're making a whole museum exhibit about him.

"Can I see?" he asks, beckoning for the paper.

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

Steve hands it over. "I always thought when the war was over I'd be... just a memory, at best. Came to find out they went on publishing the comics and people wrote biographies, and apparently this is part of some big archive project..."

[golden_lyre]

"I think you're going to have to come to accept what a hero you've become, lovely," Orpheus says to him, hand moving from Steve's leg to his shoulder, thumb rubbing gently.

[mr_gaeta]

"'Opening at the Air and Space Museum due to space constraints at the American History Museum,'" Gaeta mumbles aloud as he reads the article. "Huh."

He always got the impression that Earth didn't have enough spacegoing experience to warrant a whole museum.

Gaeta glances up at Steve. With clear sympathy, "I can see how that'd be weird."

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"Very," Steve says. "But I suppose it is history ... and people have been pleased to have me around again, as far as I've seen."

[golden_lyre]

"I don't know why they wouldn't be," Orpheus offers, leaning back in his chair.

[mr_gaeta]

"Gods know I can't speculate," says Gaeta, a bit dryly. Folding up the paper, he passes it back to Steve.

And then, after a beat, "Are you going to go see it?"

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"I don't know." He opens the paper to the article again. "Right now it feels like a reminder that all of them are gone, not a celebration of what we accomplished."

He adds quietly, "All but one, I mean."

[golden_lyre]

Orpheus gives his shoulder another squeeze. "One?"

[mr_gaeta]

Gaeta stays silent, but the same question is reflected in his face.

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"Agent Carter is in a rest home in Virginia," Steve says quietly. "She's the only one left, besides me."

After a moment he explains to Felix, "We served together in World War II, and she helped found SHIELD, the organization I work for now. We were... very close, back in the day."

[golden_lyre]

Orpheus' hand moves from Steve's shoulder to rub slow circles over his back. "That's quite close, isn't it?"

American geography is still not a thing he's particularly well-versed in.

[mr_gaeta]

And while Steve hasn't aged a day, Agent Carter would have aged every single one of them.

We've both lost our homes; just in different ways.

He hesitates, unsure if his next question would press too much. "Have you been to see her?"

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"It's a little to the south," Steve tells Orpheus, leaning back into his hand. He says to Felix, looking a little ashamed of the fact, "No, not yet."

[golden_lyre]

"Do you want to?" Orpheus asks gently.

[mr_gaeta]

Gods know that'd be a difficult question if Gaeta were in Steve's position.

He tries not to fiddle with the straw of his drink as he watches him.

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"Yes," Steve said. "I know it's going to hurt, but yes."

[golden_lyre]

Orpheus keeps up the slow circles on Steve's back. "Then you should," he says simply.

[mr_gaeta]

Gaeta nods agreement.

Then, with a wry quirk of his mouth -- I know this isn't really going to help, but it's all I've got -- he says, "If you come to Milliways after, I can make you some soup."

Months of cooking dinner for Louis, as Galactica falls apart on the other side of the door, has fostered some new instincts in Gaeta: when in doubt, feed somebody.

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

"I will," he says quietly, and smiles at Felix.

"I'd love for you to make me some soup."

[golden_lyre]

Orpheus leans over to press a soft kiss to Steve's temple. Any other comfort he can offer he takes as given.

[mr_gaeta]

"Room 372." He smiles. "Door's open anytime."

It's the very least he can do, considering Steve opened his home to Gaeta.

"And, uh, in the meantime..." Very sheepishly, he holds out the remains of the frappucino. "Want the rest?"

[thekidfrombrooklyn]

Steve laughs and takes the cup. "Happy to."

[golden_lyre]

Orpheus peers over at the drink. "Of all the things you could order..."

[mr_gaeta]

"It was in the name of cross-cultural experience," says Gaeta, as primly as he can when he's close to laughter himself. "Steve told me about them, I had to see if the poor coffee really was mistreated so badly."