Who: Steve Rogers and Veronica Mars What: Waking Up Married When: Monday morning Where: Clifty Inn Warnings: nope Status: Closed/Complete
Waking up wrapped around Veronica was becoming something that Steve didn’t immediately process as out of the ordinary. It wasn’t a regular happening, they had their own houses and kids to look after and spending the night together took a little more work than just deciding to do it. But it was enough that, when he woke up pressed against her back, he didn’t think anything of it for a second.
Only a second. In the next he opened his eyes to the hotel room, a suite overlooking the river, as close to a honeymoon destination as they could get under the dome and with their kids and their lives waiting for them. And the realization that they were there because it was supposed to be a honeymoon. Because they’d had a wedding.
“Enculer,” he murmured, mostly to himself. While he’d thought of maybe one day asking Veronica to marry him, they weren’t there yet. They were very far from being there. Their relationship had barely even begun and now there was an unfamiliar band around his finger and his signature next to hers on a document already filed. This wasn’t good.
And not something he should try to figure out on his own. Looking at Veronica, Steve sighed. It could wait until she woke up. What was done was done.
***
It was always nice waking up next to Steve. Sleeping with him was sleeping with her own personal heater, which was a good thing for a California girl who hated the cold midwest winters. Veronica curled back against him with a content noise. She had no idea what time it was, but hopefully they didn’t have to get up and moving too soon. Their mornings together were few and far between and she hated when they had to rush.
She tried to remember what day it was and what she had going on when she was struck by a strange thought and opened her eyes. This wasn’t her house or Steve’s house. Memories hit her fast and furious of a bachelorette party and a wedding. Was it all a dream? She held out hope until she glanced down at her hand and saw a slim gold band on her left hand.
Oh boy. This was going to be beyond awkward.
“You awake?” she asked, afraid to roll over and face him.
***
Did she really have to ask?
“Yeah.” Steve was usually awake first, usually woke up at the slightest thing and didn’t sleep very much after all his time in the ice anyway. “Waiting on you.” He’d never just wake her up unless it was actually important, preferring to let her sleep. He liked listening to her breathing.
Her question probably meant, he figured, something more like wanting confirmation he remembered what she did, something like they should talk about it. They should. Where did that conversation even start? What conversation was there to even be had? It was done, and to Steve that meant done. What was left were the details he remembered still having to finish sorting out. Where they were going to live, what they were going to do with the kids in the meantime.
***
Veronica had no idea where to start either. The dome had messed with them before, but never with consequences this serious. They were married. This was huge. From a legal standpoint, she knew that they could easily file for an annulment since they hadn’t quite been themselves when it happened and it would likely be granted, but she wasn’t sure if that was the right response.
“So. That happened,” she said, moving her hand to cover his and running her finger along his wedding band.
***
“Not exactly how I imagined it.” Which wasn’t completely true. The wedding itself, the state of mind he’d been in during it, was exactly the way he would have wanted it to happen. A couple of years with someone, completely sure spending the rest of his life with them was what he wanted. Willing to take the risk of doing it knowing full well that this place might take her away at any time. Saying it was worth it to be able to call her his wife. That was exactly the way he wanted it.
But not this. Not waking up and not feeling that same confidence, wondering if it was a mistake. He shouldn’t have to wonder if they’d been pushed into making a mistake.
Having it undone never struck his mind.
“We’re not….” Ready for that. At all.
***
“Yeah,” Veronica said. “We haven’t even been dating for six full months. Marriage is…”
Not in the cards anytime soon if you asked her before this past week. Definitely a huge leap forward that she didn’t know if she was actually ready for. Steve was a great guy and she could definitely imagine staying with him as long as the dome let them, but having been burned twice by people she loved leaving, she couldn’t imagine jumping into marriage so fast.
She finally rolled over because this was definitely a face to face conversation. “No wonder all of our friends were so confused.”
Why hadn’t the fact that everyone around them acted like they had no idea what was going on been a clue?
***
Steve was more bothered by the fact that no one had tried to stop them. It was one thing to be confused, it was another altogether to just let it happen despite knowing something was off. Steve couldn’t think of one instance when someone he knew and trusted had tried to talk him out of it. Not that he would have listened to them if they had.
“I’m surprised they all went along with it.” He was going to have to have a very serious talk with his friends. The four who had stood up with him for the ceremony in particular.
“Anyway, it’s done now. We’ll have to figure it out.” Plenty of people had gotten married before really knowing each other in the past, and a lot of them had been perfectly happy. At least Steve and Veronica had the advantage of actually liking each other.
***
It was strange that no one tried to stop them from going through with it, but Veronica knew that nothing anyone said would have made a difference. Whatever happened made them believe that they’d been together much longer than they really had and convinced them they were ready for that step.
“I mean, legally speaking, we’d have a pretty solid case for an annulment,” Veronica said. The only sticking point there was the fact that they had definitely consummated the marriage. “If that’s the route we want to take, we could probably talk to Kristof.”
***
Brow creasing, Steve shifted to sit up. “Is that what you want?”
He hadn’t even thought of annulling the marriage as an option. For him, it wasn’t. For him, marriage was final. Not because it hadn’t been something that happened in his era, it had been, he’d known about marriages ending, probably more than people would expect. But that wasn’t him. Steve made a commitment and stuck to it.
Even if he hadn’t been in his right mind making it.
***
Veronica was a little surprised by his reaction. It was clearly not something he’d considered and he didn’t seem pleased by the idea. Yes, she knew that his faith was important and that’s why they got married in the church, but this was far from ordinary.
“I don’t know,” she said. “I mean, it’s an option. The other option is that we give this a go. Which means figuring out living arrangements.” Because there really wasn’t room for both her and Summer in the house where Steve lived now and she assumed that wherever Steve went, Bucky was going to follow, which meant there wasn’t room in her house either.
It wasn’t just about living arrangements, of course. Being married was a lot of work and they both had to be willing to put in that effort if they were going to really try.
***
It wasn’t even Steve’s faith that was the issue, most of the time he wasn’t even convinced that he had any. What was left was half from habit and a feeling that that was just how things were done.
“So we can figure them out.” They were going to have to do that anyway, and he and Bucky had put some thought into it the other day, thrown some ideas around. They could make it work. Living arrangements weren’t a reason to get out of this. As far as Steve could see, there was no reason not to put the work into making their marriage work.
***
“Okay,” she said. The marriage might be premature, but then again, in this town, anything could happen. Veronica certainly didn’t want to have any regrets, so maybe this was going to end up being a good thing. “I mean, I’m willing to give this a go. I think we can make it work.”
They had a pretty solid relationship so far. And the kids got along which was very important.
***
That was an easier decision than he would have expected given that annulment had come first to her mind. Steve wasn't complaining. Making it work was what he wanted. At least trying it for a while. If it wound up that they couldn't do it, made each other crazy, at least they’d have done their best. At least they would know it wasn't in the cards for them.
“I agree,” he said rather than asking if she was sure. “There's a lot to figure out, yeah, but we can talk it through.”
There was very little he didn't think they could compromise on.
***
Veronica nodded. “As long as the girls are in agreement,” she said. If Molly or Summer was against this whole thing, that would be a deal breaker. Especially Molly since it was only a year ago that Steve was supposed to marry her mom.
It seemed a little weird that they were having such a dispassionate conversation about something as emotionally charged as marriage, but she figured that they needed to approach this with some kind of logic since they hadn’t exactly been in their right minds when they did it.
***
“Of course.” Steve said it with a small smile, obviously pleased that she was on board. Molly was about as much of a concern as she’d been when they’d started dating, he knew she’d probably have objections, but hopefully he’d be able to talk her down, explain that it meant something to him and get her on his side.
Turning his smile on her, he reached for her hand. It was strange, looking at her, knowing he’d declared his love in front of a church full of people just the day before last and now be completely unable to say it. To not even feel it. He liked Veronica, a lot, cared about her, but love was a long way off too.
Still. “Wife, huh.” It was hard not to like that. “It’s got a nice ring to it.”
There’d been a time he’d thought he’d never have the chance at that. There’d been other times he’d dreamed of it.
***
“It really does,” she agreed, smiling back and leaning in to steal a kiss as she squeezed his hand. “Husband.”
Veronica knew it would take a lot of time for them to get used to this, to really be comfortable in a marriage when they hadn’t even been dating very long, but it wasn’t like she’d accidentally drunk married Dick Casablancas in Vegas or anything. That would be far more catastrophic than this.
***
There were definitely worse things that could have come out of this. Being married to his girl and staying married was actually about the best outcome Steve could have expected. Given the way things had happened, it was well within her rights to say no, say she didn't want this. Hearing the exact opposite was about as good as he remembered actually getting married to be.
One of the happiest days of his life all over again.
Still smiling he pulled her in against his side, arm going around her. “I'm glad this happened. I've spent too much time waiting.”
When it came to his personal life, Steve didn't really take the same stupid leaps he took otherwise, always too worried about getting his heart trampled. He'd missed too many chances, probably would've wound up missing more if this place hadn't intervened.
***
It may not have been something they planned or were one hundred percent ready for, but life was all about taking risks and especially in a place like this, sometimes you had to take the leap. Veronica curled against him, feeling comfortable and safe in his arms.
“We should celebrate,” she said, nuzzling his neck. “Before we face the teenagers.”
***
A big part of what Steve liked about Veronica was that she was willing to take the risks. A little more thoughtfully than he might, he knew his own tendency to dive in without so much as a single thought toward the consequences, but she took them all the same. The potential for that to get her in trouble that Steve wouldn’t be happy about was definitely there, but this time it was working to their advantage instead.
“This is supposed to be a honeymoon,” he said agreeably. It might not be exotic, or even very long, but even if he could have chosen, he probably would have gone with something like this anyway. “Better make the most of it while we can.”
***
“I like the way you think,” Veronica said, sliding her leg in between his as she started kissing his neck. “Maybe this whole being married thing won’t be so bad.”
***
Steve just laughed quietly, twisting so that he could catch her lips with his instead.
Not so bad was probably right. They couldn’t ask for great, not yet, not for a while, but not so bad he could hope for. And he could do whatever was in his power to make sure his wife was happy. His wife; that wouldn’t get old any time soon.