Maybe Steve was just imagining it, but it almost seemed as if the other guys were clearing out purposefully to leave them alone. If he didn't know better, he might see it as some kind of threat, but Rumlow and the rest of the team were as close as he could get to friends in a professional sense. Steve had a tendency to keep people at an arm's length, and it was something he should probably work on, but it wasn't always that easy.
He couldn't dwell on the people that he'd left behind in 1945, he knew that. And he had an entire team that he'd grown close to here, the Avengers. But other than Clint and Natasha, Steve hadn't seen the rest of them in months. Sometimes he had a movie night with Natasha, or they went out for sushi, but other than that? Steve would head back to his apartment, or go to the gym. His life was fulfilling enough, he did things within SHIELD that made a difference, but there were definitely plenty of days and nights when he felt lonely.
This wouldn't be the first time that Rumlow had suggested they spend time together while off the clock. They didn't often get the chance; usually one of them was on assignment, at the least. This happened to be a special occasion where they actually did have some downtime, and Steve had to squash down the urge to refuse automatically. After a lifetime of being rejected by girls, he had to admit that most of the time he had difficulty taking this kind of thing seriously.
Rumlow appeared to be sincere, though, and the suggestion of baseball was a nice touch. He'd done his homework, apparently. Steve ducked his head under the water to wash the shampoo out, taking that moment to stall as he thought it through. There was no rule against it, and he had never stood by protocol in the first place. Maybe it was worth a try.
What would the harm be?
"You mean tonight?" he asked eventually as he turned his back to the spray to wash the remnants of soap and shampoo off. "Shouldn't you spend that time healing up?"
no subject
He couldn't dwell on the people that he'd left behind in 1945, he knew that. And he had an entire team that he'd grown close to here, the Avengers. But other than Clint and Natasha, Steve hadn't seen the rest of them in months. Sometimes he had a movie night with Natasha, or they went out for sushi, but other than that? Steve would head back to his apartment, or go to the gym. His life was fulfilling enough, he did things within SHIELD that made a difference, but there were definitely plenty of days and nights when he felt lonely.
This wouldn't be the first time that Rumlow had suggested they spend time together while off the clock. They didn't often get the chance; usually one of them was on assignment, at the least. This happened to be a special occasion where they actually did have some downtime, and Steve had to squash down the urge to refuse automatically. After a lifetime of being rejected by girls, he had to admit that most of the time he had difficulty taking this kind of thing seriously.
Rumlow appeared to be sincere, though, and the suggestion of baseball was a nice touch. He'd done his homework, apparently. Steve ducked his head under the water to wash the shampoo out, taking that moment to stall as he thought it through. There was no rule against it, and he had never stood by protocol in the first place. Maybe it was worth a try.
What would the harm be?
"You mean tonight?" he asked eventually as he turned his back to the spray to wash the remnants of soap and shampoo off. "Shouldn't you spend that time healing up?"
It wasn't a yes, but it wasn't a no.