43

-----(time skip)------

Ashlyn's pov:

It had been another few days since Maya's return. Ash, Maya, and Liam had spent the time at the Avengers Tower. Steve had insisted they stay at least until the funeral and Ash didn't bother disagreeing. Ash had ended up being the one to tell Liam was Jack was dead, Liam hadn't taken it well. Ash had also heard Maya crying as she passed her room in the halls. Ash hadn't cried, although she had wanted to. Jack was just gone, she hadn't let herself fully except that. Sure she had watched the Hydra agent shoot him, but it was all a dream, right? Jack would be back, of course, he would.

Ash was currently standing in the cemetery. In front of her was a tombstone with Jack's name on it. They hadn't had any big service or anything like that, Lucas, Ryder, and Henry came to pay their respects but other than that Ash and Maya just watched as they put his body into the ground. Ash had given herself time. She had kept telling herself over and over for the past few days that Jack wasn't gone, he couldn't be gone. But with Maya grieving and Liam who had been trying not to seem too sad, it was getting harder to push it away. Today was the last day of Ash's break. Starting tomorrow Ash would put all her focus on her mission, ending the orphanage.

Ash took one last look at the grave in front of her and sighed. In the corner of her eye she could see Steve standing in the distance, he was standing next to a different tombstone. Ash made her way towards him.

Steve looked up when he heard approaching footsteps and he smiled at Ash. Ash looked past him toward the grave.

The words 'Katherine Riley' was engraved on the rock.

"Is this her?" Asked Ash, Steve nodded.

Ash looked down at the grave, there were fresh flowers placed there that Ash was sure Steve had just put. There were a few weeds and other plants nearby showing that the grave had been there for a least a couple of years.

"Riley" Ash tested the name on her tongue, she liked it "Ashlyn Riley"

Ash had a question she wanted to ask but it would ruin her whole 'not caring' persona. But Ash was feeling sentimental at the moment so what the heck?!

"Can you tell me a little about her?"

Steve's pov:

"Riley, Ashlyn Riley"

Steve realized that this was the first time she learned about her last name. Steve mentally slapped himself for not remembering to tell her sooner.

"Can you tell me a little about her?"

Steve froze, he hadn't been expecting that question. Ashlyn kept her gaze on the grave and Steve smiled.

"I don't know where to start" Steve admitted as he also looked down at the grave.

"The beginning is always nice."

Ashlyn took a seat on the grass and Steve followed her motion.

"Well, Katherine Riley was nineteen when I met her. She was always the life of the party, always excited to learn" Steve laid back and closed his eyes as he remembered exactly how she was seventeen years ago.

"She was dating this guy, Cody, I think was his name. He was a jerk, the total opposite of her. Always getting into fights and stuff but as much as I tried to get her to leave him, she never did. Katie and I became good friends, she helped me move on with the past, showed me how to get used to the way life is now. Eventually, I fell in love with her"

Steve could tell that Ashlyn was looking at him, but he kept his eyes closed and continued.

"Don't know how anyone could know her and not fall in love with her, she was beautiful, inside and out. When I told her how I felt she confessed her love for me too, I was so happy. The only problem was, she was still dating that jerk, Cody. I started taking her on dates and fun little adventures, I knew it was wrong since she was still in a relationship but he was always away with other girls anyway and she deserved somebody to take care of her."

Steve remembered the cafe they would go to, and the picnics they would have at the park, he smiled.

"At the time, she was studying to be a nurse, always wanted to help people. Her parents, your grandparents pushed her to get good grades and to get a good job with a good husband, they wanted her to marry Cody, they didn't know about me. About a year later, Katherine found out she was pregnant, when Cody found out he told her to get rid of it, he couldn't take care of a child, especially with all the other girls he was seeing. They had a big fight over it, eventually, Cody just packed his bags and moved away. Your grandparents were not very happy about that, they told Katherine that she wasn't ready for a child, after all, Cody was gone and she was only twenty years old and still in school. I tried to help her as much as I could but she let her parents affect her choice and when the baby was born, she had her mindset of giving her up for adoption"

Steve remembered the day Ash was born like it was yesterday. The first time he saw her, got to hold her, Saw those big green eyes open.

"I was there the day you were born Ash, a beautiful baby girl with bright green eyes. For the first few hours after you were born, Katherine held you in her arms and she would humm to you. I could tell she didn't want to let you go but her parents were there and she was scared. I didn't know how to help her, after all, it was her choice and I wasn't going to take that away. So she let you go."

Steve opened his eyes and looked at Ash. She was now also laying on the grass looking up at the sky listening to Steve's story.

"What happened then?" Ash's voice was steady and natural, no sign of emotion anywhere, but Steve knew better.

"Well, she moved out of her parent's house, she couldn't stand living with them anymore. And she moved in with me. She continued working as a nurse, trying to help as many people as possible. She would help the Avengers too, anytime one of us got hurt she would be there to stitch us up. She never stopped thinking about you though, always regretting her decision to let her parents take you away. After a few months she decided that enough was enough, she wanted you back, she wanted to raise you, and watch you grow up. So she went back to the orphanage to adopt you."

Steve now stopped talking, he wasn't sure how to tell Ash the rest, he didn't know how she would react. Ashlyn was looking at him expectantly as if waiting for him to continue and Steve sighed.

"They told her you died Ash, They showed her your report and everything told her that your heart stopped beating. She was so heartbroken"

Ash was listening intently to what he was saying. Her face was expressionless and Steve couldn't tell what he was thinking.

"A few months later she caught a disease from one of her patients. She got sick, it was really bad. There was... no cure"

Steve took a deep breath. He hated remembering her in the hospital bed, she was very pale and there was nothing Steve could do to help her.

"She died a few weeks later."

Ashlyn's pov:

"She died a few weeks later"

Ash had listened to her mother's life story without interrupting. It was weird, she always thought her mother just didn't want her, then she found out that her mother was dead, she just found out that her mother actually had wanted him but the orphanage had told her Ash was dead. Ash's hatred for the orphanage increased.

-----(time skip)-----

Ashlyn was currently sitting on her temporary bed in the Avengers Tower. Ash and Steve had returned from the Cemetery, Ash was currently waiting for dinner to be ready.

There was a small knock on the door. Ash gave a "come in" and the door opened.

Steve walked in with a small box in his hands.

"Tony told me to call you for dinner, but I also wanted to give you this."

Ash gestured for him to sit on the bed and he did. Ash took the small box in her hands and opened it. Inside was a beautiful silver necklace, attached to it by a few small crystals was a small emerald.

"It belonged to your mom, but I think she would want you to have it"

Ash didn't know what to say. Steve took the necklace out of the box and motioned for Ash to turn. She turned and moved her hair out of the way. Steve gently clasped it. Ash looked down at the emerald now dangling from her neck.

"Thank you," She said to Steve and she meant it. Somehow this made her feel better. Steve smiled and stood up, walking to the door. He was about to walk out when he turned back,

"Come down when you're ready, I hear Bucky made cookies"