Sorcerer in the Marvel Universe

"Do you mind?"

"I do mind."

"You said you didn’t!"

"How could I possibly not mind?!"

Evenson watched as two people in their nineties somehow managed to turn a disagreement into the opening scene of a tragic romance.

He finally couldn’t take it anymore.

"Okay, hold on. What exactly are you two arguing about? Just tell us. Maybe we can help you work through it."

Both Captain America and Peggy Carter turned to stare at him.

The look in their eyes said very clearly: Why would we tell you anything about our marriage?

Evenson had been planning to leave five minutes ago.

Then inspiration struck.

"Talk!"

Everyone jumped when he suddenly raised his voice.

"Seriously, just say it out loud! Secrets fester. This is the emotional detox stage!"

A minute ago, Evenson had been desperate to escape.

Now?

Not a chance.

This was premium gossip. At this point, even having to contribute to Steve and Peggy’s eventual wedding anniversary fund would be worth it.

"Do you know why couples fight?" Evenson launched into his impromptu relationship lecture. "Because there’s distance between them. Unspoken things. Resentment. Misunderstandings. You need to put everything on the table, be honest about what you’re feeling, understand each other’s perspective, and then you can either go back to living happily together..."

He paused.

"...or head to divorce court with a clean conscience."

It actually sounded reasonable.

Steve and Peggy exchanged a glance.

They had reached a point where keeping the issue bottled up was clearly doing more harm than good. If they kept dancing around it, the resentment would only grow until there was no fixing it.

Peggy sighed.

The tension in her shoulders finally eased, and she returned to the couch.

"I... was married before."

"That’s it?"

Dottie looked genuinely baffled.

"I already knew that. He was a Royal Air Force officer. You were engaged, though. He died in the war before the two of you officially married."

She looked at Steve.

"And that happened before you met this idiot. Is that what he’s upset about?"

Dottie’s expression suggested that if Steve really was offended by something Peggy had no control over, then he had officially crossed the line from romantic into petty.

Thankfully, Peggy was currently more than capable of beating him into a reasonable state of mind.

"No. Not that."

Peggy shook her head, a trace of embarrassment crossing her face.

"I mean the time I actually got married. Five years after Steve disappeared."

Steve nodded.

There it was.

That was the thing he minded.

Steve Rogers had always been a deeply sentimental man, and his feelings for Peggy were no exception.

When he learned that Peggy had married someone else while he was presumed dead, something inside him had twisted in a way he couldn’t quite explain.

He knew neither of them had done anything wrong.

As far as the world knew, Steve Rogers had died.

Everyone believed he was dead.

Peggy had every right to find someone else, build a life, and pursue happiness. There was nothing he could reasonably blame her for.

In fact, Steve believed that if he’d somehow remained conscious beneath the ice, knowing Peggy had moved on would have been something he could accept.

He would never have wanted a woman like Peggy to spend the rest of her life mourning a man everyone believed was dead.

Understanding it didn’t make it easy.

He could accept the logic.

He could respect her decision.

But somehow, he still couldn’t stop himself from feeling bothered by it.

It was like an itch he couldn’t reach.

Getting angry about it would be ridiculous. Decades had passed.

But ignoring it entirely didn’t make the feeling disappear, either.

"What?! You got married back then?!"

The shout didn’t come from Evenson.

He was still processing the revelation.

It came from Dottie.

She stared at Peggy in utter disbelief.

"You actually married that... that... that cripple?!"

"Don’t call him that."

Peggy frowned.

"He was a good man."

Her expression softened as memories surfaced.

"He lost a leg during the war, but he still insisted on going into the field with the Strategic Scientific Reserve. Everyone treated him differently because of his injury. He didn’t care. He worked twice as hard as everyone else and made sure every assignment was done properly."

She smiled faintly.

"Eventually, his colleagues came to respect him."

Peggy’s gaze drifted into the distance.

"He was a lot like me."

And that was probably why it had happened.

In 1950s America, discrimination against women was still rampant. Peggy was a highly decorated and exceptionally capable agent, yet within the Strategic Scientific Reserve, she was often relegated to administrative work.

Answering phones.

Pouring coffee.

Delivering lunches.

And because she had once been associated with Captain America, many people assumed she’d been given her position out of pity or respect for Steve rather than because she had earned it.

Then she’d met someone who understood exactly what it felt like to be underestimated.

Two people carrying similar burdens had found each other.

It was hardly surprising that they’d been drawn together.

"I cannot believe I didn’t know about this!"

Peggy’s revelation had apparently broken something inside Dottie.

Unlike Steve, who was managing to maintain a relatively composed expression, Dottie was practically having a breakdown.

"How did I not know you married that cripple?!"

"Because you were hiding in Hungary when I got married!"

Peggy immediately fired back.

"And why exactly would I have invited you? You would’ve shown up to my wedding carrying an AK-47 and probably hidden a bomb in the cake!"

"Oh. Right."

Dottie gave a sheepish nod.

"I did hide in Hungary."

She paused.

"But that’s because you forced me to!"

"You were wanted by the United States government."

Peggy shrugged.

"We were enemies. Hunting you was literally my job."

"And afterward?"

Dottie took a deep breath, visibly trying to calm herself.

"Why didn’t you tell me afterward?"

"Because the next time we saw each other was fifteen years later."

Peggy sounded increasingly exasperated.

"By then, he was already dead. You were busy trying to get intelligence out of the American ambassador to Sweden. And how was I supposed to know you didn’t know?"

She spread her hands.

"Anyone who watched the Captain America memorial film knew I had a husband. I was in the film, Dottie. They literally mentioned that I had married."

"Why would I watch that movie?"

Dottie planted her hands on her hips and started pacing around the room.

"I wasn’t interested in some idiot wearing a theatrical costume! And you were still alive! Why would I go watch a movie about you when I could just come see you?"

Evenson covered his face with one hand.

He watched Peggy and Dottie continue arguing, then glanced over at Steve.

For a moment, their eyes met.

Evenson could only think one thing.

Man. I almost feel sorry for you, Captain.

Almost.