[OPEN] apple pie is officially banned from this party, aka Steve Rogers' birthday

[anotheroldsoldier]

who: ANYONE
what: 616 Bucky, Peggy, and 616 Tony throw a birthday party for Steve.
when: July 4th, afternoon into the evening
where: A nice park
warnings: Birthday fun. :v


Steve Rogers, former (and still) Captain America, was born on the Fourth. It was pretty much fated. That said, he deserves a party that has nothing to do with Independence Day, and that's what Bucky, Tony, and Peggy set out to do. They rented a nice little park with some good open, grassy space perfect for a pick-up game of football (American, of course). On one end of the park, in the relative shade of a couple of large trees, they've set up two long tables - one for food, and one to deposit presents for the birthday boy on. The picnic tables already in the park have nice blue tablecloths to eat on. A banner hung between the trees proclaims, "Happy Birthday, Steve!", in blue letters on white.

The decor tries to stay away from Fourth of July colors - there isn't a speck of red, just shades of blue and white, and it's all very put-together and classy looking (thank you, Peggy and Tony). It's the sort of party they thought Steve would want, outdoorsy and casual, just a gathering of friends and whoever else wants to come by to wish the birthday boy a happy one.

Invites
Invitations have mostly been word of mouth and texts sent to people Steve is friends with, nothing too fancy. They just say to drop by and wish Steve a happy birthday, have some food, and spend some time hanging out; Rogers wouldn't want anything fancy anyway. That said, they won't turn anybody away from the barbecue if someone decides to just crash the party, as long the behavior stays respectful.

Food
The food is mostly standard American barbecue fare. Two large grills have been set up near the tables and someone (often Bucky) is usually cooking on them - an array of burgers, hot dogs, steaks, even some ribs and chicken. Side dishes are laid out on the food table, the usual simple things. Here and around the picnic tables are a good place to mingle; there's plenty of food for everyone, and metal tubs full of ice and bottled soft drinks. There isn't much alcohol present at this party, though, just one of the tubs set aside with beers in it.

There's also a massive cake for Steve, with close to a hundred candles dotting its layers - Bucky's idea, payback for the time he couldn't see his own cake for all the candles.

Tossin' the Old Pigskin
They're all (mostly) adults here, so there aren't 'party games' necessarily, but there are a couple of footballs and some frisbees in the grass for anyone who wants to play a game in the lush field. Just be careful if the heavy hitters decide to arrange a game, it could get pretty out of hand.

Comments

[wingedman]

[To be fair, even if Tony hadn't invited Steve, there's still a decent chance Sam might have dragged him along. While he knows how Steve feels about his birthday, at least he doesn't have to be the center of attention when there's two of him there.]

Sure.

[Sam grins at Steve, taking the ice cream from him and dropping a scoop on a piece of pie.]

Anyway, you just have to press your tongue against the top of your mouth. Though that might not apply if your tongue's frozen, too.

[Is he really making a joke about being frozen? Look, Steve went there first.]

[stevegrogers]

[ Before the ice, Steve used to have a very lowkey celebration with his ma and Bucky on his birthday, ending the night with the fireworks. Since then, he usually preferred to ignore his birthday as much as possible because it hurt too much. It reminded him of how much he lost and all the ones who were gone from his life.

But he didn't want to be a downer or anything.

Grinning softly at Sam, he reached out to steal a bite of the man's pie. What were boundaries? ]

Or I'll just have to try to stay out of large bodies of water. [ He shook his head. ] I'm really glad to see you.

[wingedman]

[If there's one thing Sam's probably used to by now, it's Steve stealing food off his plate. So he just rolls his eyes at both the joke and the blatant food theft.]

Yeah, have you met you? I wouldn't count on that.

[He grins and reaches over to squeeze Steve's shoulder with his free hand.]

Glad to have you back, man. Things just aren't the same without you around. For one thing, I don't have anyone to keep out of trouble.

[stevegrogers]

[ Thoughtfully chewing the bite of pie, he sipped more of his ice cream float a few moments later. It reminded him of before the war and when life made a lot more sense but waking up in the new time had given him plenty of things as well, including the man standing in front of him.

He couldn't imagine a world without Sam Wilson in it. ]

Keep out of trouble. [ Steve repeated, looking thoroughly shocked by such an accusation. ] I think you mean get into trouble. You're the bad influence here, Sam. One of these days people are going to see past that smile of yours.

[ In all honesty, his smile tended to be what kept him out of trouble when he landed into sticky situations. ] This place isn't as bright as New York at least.

[wingedman]

Me? A bad influence?

[Sam bats his eyelashes innocently. Come on, Steve, you wound him.]

Let me tell you, that smile kept me out of plenty of trouble as a teenager. Almost as much as it got me into in the first place.

-Yeah. It's got more trees, for one thing.

[stevegrogers]

[ With a smirk, he stole another piece of pie, eating it messily with his fingers. Manners always took a backseat to something tasting delicious. Plus, food taken from someone else always tasted better. Scientific fact. ]

I know. It's helped us a lot. I can never decide if you or Tony has more charm when it's needed. [ A wistful look ran over his face for a moment but it quickly disappeared. ]

Never really been a fan of forests. They always hold too many secrets and I can bet this place has a lot of them.

[wingedman]

Well, Tony can back his up with a few billion dollars, so his is probably more effective.

[Sigh. Sam just hands Steve the plate and fixes himself another, rolling his eyes a little.]

Uh-huh. You're preaching to the choir there, Steve. I always get uneasy when I can't see enough buildings.

[It's mostly a joke; Sam's spent enough time outside of cities - and trained in enough different climates - that he's used to it. But when it comes down to it, he's a city boy at heart.]

[stevegrogers]

[ With a shrug of his shoulder, Steve flashed a pleased smirk when he found the plate in his hands. Usually, Sam knew well enough to pile twice as much food on his plate for both of them. ]

Genuine smiles matter more in the end. [ A hint of other things going on in his mind but he kept quiet on saying another more. ]

[ Looking around for a moment, he slowly took a bite of the pie. ] How do you like the place? Is it - [ better than our home. ] Are you doing okay?

[wingedman]

[Better than being a fugitive in over a hundred countries, Sam almost says.]

It's a good place. I got a job, a house, friends...can't ask for more than that, you know?

[Sam's willing to put up with a lot as long as he has his friends there with him, and he knows Steve's the same way.]

[stevegrogers]

[ something steve will feel so guilty over when he finds out more of the truth. ]

What kind of job do you have here? [ it nearly felt like a ping of pain, considering sam formed a life for himself without him around. ]

[wingedman]

Same thing I did back home, sort of. I provide counseling for any Perimeter Guard members who need it.

[He pauses for a moment, then adds with a grin.]

I pick up a patrol shift here or there, too, if they're short-handed. Can't stay in the office all the time.

[stevegrogers]

[ Counseling. His nose crinkled a little, if only because he knew he should have talked to someone a long time ago. But not dealing with it all seemed to be working just fine, for the most part. ]

I joined the Perimeter Guard but that's probably not a really big surprise. [ He gave a slight shrug to his shoulder. ] But I can't imagine you not fitting in somewhere.

[wingedman]

[Sam just gives Steve a Look. It's a talk they've had before, and it's probably one they're scheduled to have again soon. Especially once he finds out what happens in the very near future back home.]

As opposed to you, you mean?

[Maybe a little pointed, and maybe not something he should get into on Steve's birthday, but Sam can't resist.]

[stevegrogers]

[ The biggest possible sigh. Sam, why. There were plenty of things he just didn't deal with but in his defense he never had the time to. There were always battles to fight, things to plan and just plan avoidance to embrace like an old friend. It left very little time for finding himself.

Outside of Captain America, he really didn't know. ]

I'm pretty sure it is illegal to psychoanalyze a person on their birthday, Wilson. I think you need more pie.

[wingedman]

Fine, fine. [Sam holds up his hands in surrender.] Although I don't know why everyone thinks I'm always psychoanalyzing them. If I did that, then y'all would be getting billed regularly, trust me.

[He just wants to get Steve to talk about his problems. But his birthday probably isn't the best time, it's true.]

[stevegrogers]

Oh, you charge us alright. [ With a smirk playing at his lips, he moved back over to the table with all the food to grab for another hot dog. ]

You really should worry less, Sam. Take in the sights, take a load off, eat some hot dogs.

[ Diversion techniques at the ready! Steve had plenty of them and they tended to work rather well for him. ]

[wingedman]

Steve, you couldn't afford me.

[There's a wry grin on his lips at that. Of course he could; they both know that. It's just banter.]

I'm not sure there are enough hot dogs on this moon to feed all the super-soldiers and Asgardians here. I'll pass, thanks. Leave some of the meat for the people who need it.

[stevegrogers]

[ A fond look filled his face and he reached out to squeeze Sam's shoulder. ]

You are really priceless, Sam, never forget that. [ There were so many times he wouldn't have made it through without Sam and he always wanted him to know how much he meant to him. ]

Well, enough with the food anyway. You owe me a dance, Wilson. Birthday tradition.

[wingedman]

Birthday tradition? Really?

[He gives him a skeptical look.]

You know anything newer than the Charleston?

[stevegrogers]

[ At least, this would distract Sam from the other things and prove the whole 'fine thing' all at the same time. A complete win on all accounts. ]

It is. Would I lie about tradition? [ He gave Sam a look, grinning widely. ] Lucky for you, I figured out how to work that youtubing place. I know the hip moves. [ Calling them 'hip' probably completely discredited the cool factor. ]

[wingedman]

[It really wouldn't, but Sam was willing to let the matter drop for now.]

Uh-huh. So now you're gonna break out in Gangnam Style, is that it? [Sam just sighs. Yes, Steve, he knows you know how to use the internet.]

[stevegrogers]

[ distract and deflect for the rest of time, thank you very much. ]

That's not real dancing. What do you take me for, Wilson?

[wingedman]

A guy from the 1940s who learned to dance from Youtube?

[Look, it's still better than twerking.]

[stevegrogers]

[ the smile continued to rest of his face. ]

I've always been a more hands on learner.

[wingedman]

That's the kind of flirting you're supposed to save for after the dancing, Steve.

[Which Sam is very Not Thinking About because Peggy would probably shoot him he's heard the stories.]

Fine, Rogers, show me how you dance.