Reflecting Words

Dawson smirked to herself as she saw Steve lock his door and walk down the steps. She kept her jogging pace and soon caught up to him.

“Oh, hi Steve. How are you?” She asked as she slowed down to match his walking.

“I’m fine. What are you doing here Miss Brooks?” Steve asked warily.

“I was just going for a run when I saw you and I wanted to talk to you.”

“I’ve already told you, I don’t want to do an interview.”

“I know. You made that perfectly clear so I wasn’t going to ask again. I just wanted to talk to you because I feel as if we got off on the wrong foot the other day so I wanted to see if we could start again. Hi, my name is Dawson Brooks. I’m a friend of Natasha’s,” Dawson smiled as she held out her hand.

Steve shook her outstretched hand as he said, “Hi Miss Brooks. I’m Steve Rogers but you may know me as Captain America.”

“Nice to meet you Captain. You can call me Dawson by the way. So where are you headed?”

Steve gave Dawson a curious look. “The boxing gym. Why are you asking me all these questions?”

“I’m just trying to be friendly and get to know you better. So, you box?” Dawson asked as an idea began to formulate in her mind.

“No, I just go to the gym to watch others box,” Steve smirked.

Dawson laughed. “Touché. Hey, I have a great idea. What if we make some sort of deal? We can box and if I win you have to do an interview with me but if you win I’ll stop bugging you about it.”

“I thought you already said you were going to stop bugging me.”

“Well there’s a slight problem. My boss thinks I’m interviewing you.”

“Is lying a regular occurrence for you Miss Brooks?”

“No.”

“Sure seems like it.”

Dawson glared at Steve. “I was kind of in a tight situation so I panicked.”

“I’m pretty sure it still counts as lying,” Steve said.

“Ok, I shouldn’t have said what I said. I realize that now but there really isn’t a way out of it.”

“You could try telling the truth.”

“It’s complicated.”

“Well I’m sorry Miss Brooks but I can’t make that bet with you. There is no way I can fight a girl. What if I hit you too hard?”

“I’m tough. I can handle it,” Dawson tried to convince him.

“I still wouldn’t feel good about it. I come from a time when men are supposed to be chivalrous and punching a girl definitely does not fit into that category. In fact, I believe it’s illegal.”

Dawson rolled her eyes. “It’s not illegal if it’s a boxing match. Since you don’t feel comfortable hitting me what if I just do the hitting and you can block.”

“I still don’t feel completely comfortable with it but it’s better.”

“Ok. So how about we say if I get five hits in five minutes you’ll do the interview. If I get less than five hits I’ll never bother you again.”

“I have a feeling you won’t stop bothering me until I agree to this bet,” Steve sighed.

“You know me so well, Captain,” Dawson smirked.

“Fine. I agree to your bet. If you hit me five times in five minutes I will sit down and do the interview. Does tomorrow work for you?”

“Tomorrow works perfectly,” Dawson smiled. “I’m so glad we were able to agree on something.”



“Good morning Captain!” Dawson called out as she walked into the boxing gym the next day.

“Good morning Miss Brooks.” Steve nodded at her.

“Why do you keep calling me Miss Brooks?”

“It’s an olden-days-trying-to-be-a-gentleman thing,” A man said as he smirked and clapped Steve on the shoulder. “Hello, I’m Tony Stark.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Dawson Brooks, a friend of Natasha’s and soon-to-be boxing opponent of the Captain.”

“What are you doing here, Tony?” Steve growled.

“Well Natasha said she was going to come here to see what happens since she’s friends with both of you so the rest of us decided to come too. Thor is upset he wasn’t able to make it. He’s busy being a demigod and protecting his planet though.”

“You guys need to get better lives,” Steve rolled his eyes. “Are you ready to get started Miss Brooks?”

“Ready whenever you are, Cap,” Dawson said as she threw her hair up into a ponytail.

“Ok. I’ve asked one of the guys who works here to be the official for us so we can be sure everything is fair.”

“Sounds good.”

The two got into the ring and waited for the sound of the bell. The official rang the bell and the pair began their match. Steve was better than Dawson expected but that just made her focus even more. By the time the official had called out there was only thirty seconds left Dawson had already gotten in four hits on Steve. She was close to winning the bet and refused to lose when she just needed one more hit. Dawson got the fifth, and final, hit as the official called out they were at the ten second mark. Amidst the cheers from the other Avengers Steve whipped off his head protection and glared at Dawson.

“You’re good. Have you boxed before?”

“I learned how to box when I was ten,” Dawson shrugged.

“But…but…you…why didn’t tell me?”

“You never asked,” Dawson smirked.

Steve looked as if he was about to lose it but he paused and took a deep breath before speaking. “While I do not appreciate being tricked, you still won. I’ll see you on Friday for our interview.”

“You are the only person besides me that can push Steve’s buttons this much,” Tony said to Dawson as they watched Steve walk away.

“You better be careful, Dawson,” Natasha warned. “Steve is one of the nicest people I know but even nice people can be pushed too far.”

“Don’t worry so much, Nat. I’ll do this interview with the Captain and then I’ll never bother him again. I promise,” Dawson reassured her friend.

Little did she know though, that was one promise Dawson wouldn’t be able to keep.