The Metropolis Not!Vengers in... Location, location, location!

[stands_for_hope]

[continued from here]

Steve wakes up slowly, happy and warm and content enough he's not sure where he is at first. The clues he gets initially aren't helpful because they're such universal parts of his life, as far as his hindbrain is concerned, that they're just a part of 'how he should wake up'.

There's a warm body up against him, deep brown hair pressed up against his nose and mouth that smells like home, a ratty old mattress beneath him that's too firm for anyone but someone like him--

And a metal arm across his stomach. Huh. That shakes some things loose.

It doesn't halt the grin on his face, though. That's... probably never going away, or at least it won't be budging anytime soon (probably until Jim looks at him, disgusted, and tells him to 'stop lookin' like a loon'). Instead, he just reaches over to grab his phone from the the bedside table (amazing the things that survive a plain crash when they're kept in the right pocket) and peers at the time.

Huh. Nearly two. That's fair. But--

"Hey, sleepyhead. You get some good rest?"

Comments

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"No more flying planes, I promise."

And he absolutely didn't lean into the hand in his hair.

[kolodnoykovki]

"Gonna hold you to that," he warned. And he did not covertly brush the back of Steve's neck on the way down. "And I gotta say, you did good on this, Steve. You really did learn to cook. And I don't think anybody's gonna call you a housewife for it here."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"Well, if they do, I'll take it as a compliment," Steve said with a little smile.

[kolodnoykovki]

Jim chuckled and reached out to dish himself up some salad with bits of sausage alongside his pasta.

[justakidfrombrklyn]

Steve took some of both once Jim was done, then passed the bowls to Diana.

[kolodnoykovki]

A little dressing later and Jim set in to eat, his foot nudged up against Steve's.

[justakidfrombrklyn]

Steve leaned into the touch, as he seemed apt to do every time. While he wouldn't initiate contact, leaving Jim to lead the way, it was obvious that he encouraged and drank in every bit of it.

[kolodnoykovki]

"Funny how we all get quiet with food in front of us," he mused before filling his mouth again. The sausage was really surprisingly tasty, and the baked pasta was as good as he could've expected at a restaurant. "Must've been hungry."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"Best compliment a cook can get," Steve nodded.

[kolodnoykovki]

"Better than boiling everything by a mile," he agreed, spearing a piece of sausage. "Be glad the rest of you weren't around when we ate like that."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"Still boiled the pasta," Steve pointed out with a grin.

"But the foods definitely better now."

[kolodnoykovki]

"Boiled the pasta - but didn't boil the eggplants or the sausage. That would'a been standard back then."

[stands_for_hope]

Clark raised an eyebrow.

"Any particular reason?"

Steve looked up from his plate.

"Because you could use the water for soup afterwards."

[kolodnoykovki]

Jim nodded. "The more stuff you boiled in it, the more flavour you could get with your soup. Or broth, depending on how much you could leave in it." He looked over at Steve knowingly and fondly. "How many winters did you survive on broth?"

[stands_for_hope]

"Most is probably the best answer there. Can't remember a winter where I wasn't suckin' down as much of it as I could to keep my chest warm."

He looked sideways at Clark and Lois.

"You don't even want to know how many times most of our coffee grounds got used."

[kolodnoykovki]

His nod this time was slow and continual. "Eventually it was scented water," he laughed. "Hot water that smelled a little like coffee. Like potato soup was water and chopped potatoes and some salt and butter. You ate what you got."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

"It was still good soup," Steve insisted.

"Many of my sisters remember times so lean as those. It is one of the reasons why we guard ourselves and our island so dearly. Our paradise was hard won."

She smiled at Jim and Steve both, admiration soft in her eyes.

"As was yours, I have come to see."

[kolodnoykovki]

"It wasn't a cakewalk," Jim agreed, "but even if times were skinny, so was Steve, so he didn't eat as much as me." That got a playful nudge. "And we made it."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

Steve nudged him back and lifted his glass with a look around the table.

"To making it here," and he smiled warmly at all of them.

Clark and Lois raised their Cokes, followed by Diana.

[kolodnoykovki]

"To friends - and found families." Jim followed suit, smiling and clinking his all around in the toast.

[justakidfrombrklyn]

Steve pulled his glass back and took a long pull, as did the others, before glancing down at his plate.

"And I am happily full," Steve said with a happy sigh, "full enough for just one piece of pie."

And Clark laughed as Lois snerked into her hand.

"Some things are universal," Diana noted, "and one of them is room for dessert."

[kolodnoykovki]

"Well, let's see here." He stood with that smile still in place, putting salad and sausage leftovers into the fridge, and pulling out the banana cream pie, which was placed in front of Steve, the chocolate, which was put in the middle, then the apple and blueberry - and the blueberry was put in front of Clark. Then came the ice cream, and after that-- "Okay, who's making whipped cream?"

[justakidfrombrklyn]

Steve stood up, but there was a blur before the sound of a couple of clatters and a bowl of whipped cream was deposited on to the tabletop.

Steve looked sideways before sighing dramatically.

"Is this where I say 'whippersnappers'?" Steve asked with a grin.

Clark just grinned and watched Steve settle back into his chair.

"You already cooked dinner. And now we can all enjoy the lovely dessert."

[kolodnoykovki]

Jim laughed. "Clark does the best magic tricks."

He pushed a spoon into the ice cream and got knives for the pies - and then settled in. "Two cold pies, two warm pies. Some good ice cream and fresh whipped cream. Let's have dessert."

[justakidfrombrklyn]

Pies were sliced, dessert was served, and there was once more quite a bit if silence around the table as everyone enjoyed their pie. And if Steve nudged Jim's foot just a little, well...

It was a good little meal with the lot of them.