in the shadows ? steve rogers

067 ? the first three months

She rested her hand on the car door as she opened it and the ring on her left hand shone in the sunlight. Tony's gaze shifted to it, feeling a twinge in his chest.

"She came here with news, didn't she?" he asked, watching her car pull away from the house. Grace gave him one more glance before her car disappeared from his view. "Right?" Pepper tore her gaze away from the retreating vehicle and nodded slowly. "Does it have to do with the ring?"

She nodded again. "Yes." She walked up the stairs to him. "I know you're still dealing with everything, but she does care about you, Tony. Don't forget that."

Steve stared at the poster boards set in front of him, crossing his arms while his eyes danced around the contents. "Okay, so this is one option for you," Adelaide was saying, pointing to one of the boards with a laser pointer. How she got a laser pointer on short notice, Pietro had the answer. "It has some good natural lighting and greenery—"

"Is this for wedding venues or a house?" Steve interrupted, furrowing his brows. "Because you sound like a real estate agent."

Adelaide looked back at him. "As I was saying," she continued, turning back to the poster that she had forced Pietro to hold. "This one has good lighting and greenery, but this one—" She shifted the pointer to the second poster he was holding. "—this one is cheaper."

"Right." Steve turned his head when he heard the door open and Grace walked in, pausing when she saw the mess that appeared in her absence. "Oh, good, you're home. Apparently, we need to make decisions because Addy says we do."

Adelaide nodded. "You two are severely behind in your wedding planning," she confirmed, looking up at Grace who furrowed her brows.

"We got re-engaged yesterday."

"Which means you are severely behind in wedding planning," she repeated with a nod, dropping a large binder in the brunette's arms as she sat down on the couch beside Steve. "I've taken the liberty of doing some work for you. Consider me your unofficial wedding planner. I can take payment in the form of either boxes of chocolate or coffee."

Grace puffed out her cheeks. "Addy, this is—" She pressed her lips together before glancing at Steve. "Do we have to do this right now? I mean, I don't really know if I want a big wedding or a party or—or anything. It just... doesn't feel right. Especially right now."

"But people need something happy," she argued, gesturing wildly to the poster boards she had put together. "With everything going on, people need an excuse to get dressed up, dance the night away, and have some good cake."

Steve tilted his head. "Well, she—she may have a point," he said and Grace looked at him. "Something happy with all this sadness?"

She shrugged. "Alright," she agreed reluctantly, dropping the binder into his lap and standing up from the couch. "But not too big, Addy."

"No promises!"

⸻ ~~~ ⸻

month two.

𝐆𝐑𝐀𝐂𝐄 𝐋𝐎𝐎𝐊𝐄𝐃 𝐀𝐑𝐎𝐔𝐍𝐃 𝐀𝐓 the piles of flowers that had filled her apartment and she sighed to herself, sitting down at the kitchen island. She looked to be drowning in a sea of lilies and daffodils; it was almost suffocating her.

Somehow her wedding was meant to be the happy occasion that so many people needed. She was more than happy to give them a happy moment, but she was struggling to be happy about it. She had never envisioned for her wedding to be so large and extravagant. Her wedding dress was so big that she couldn't see her feet.