"Hi, Howard. Merry Christmas."
Seeing Howard descend on the food like a starving dog, Steve awkwardly picked up a portion of ham from in front of him and set the plate before Howard. He felt that if he did not feed Howard quickly, the man might starve to death.
"Mmph... uh, why are you here too?"
Howard did not know why anyone ate steamed buns at Christmas, but they really were delicious. Only after his blood sugar returned to normal did he notice Steve sitting at the table as well, dressed in a festive red sweater.
"Today is Christmas Eve. I do not have any other family, so it is perfectly normal for me to be here." Steve answered calmly. He stood up, poured Howard a glass of water, and patted his back.
Howard tilted his head and sniffed hard. "Where is Peggy? Didn't she come?"
Steve shook his head, returned to his seat, and speared a piece of meat with his fork. "You know more than I do now. You're the Chief Scientist of the Logistics Directorate, while I draw comic books. You should be the one telling me where she went."
The food on the table looked, smelled, and tasted wonderful, and the lighting in the room was warm, but Steve felt more defeated than ever.
Howard seemed not to notice. He continued stuffing food into his mouth like a starving ghost. "There are some matters at home. She's been on leave for several weeks. Why don't you ask Fury?"
"No need. Peggy is my girlfriend, yet I have to learn her whereabouts from someone else? Forget it." Steve forced out a bitter smile. Of course, he knew that beneath the Logistics Directorate's seemingly calm surface, undercurrents were churning. He also fully understood Peggy's determination to preserve world