kindnesssalways:

Yes! Steve and Peggy knew each other for almost two years before Steve died, which is why it drives me crazy when fans say they barely knew each other. The timeline isn’t well-explained in CATFA, but here’s my rundown of events: 

Steve is recruited by Erskine on June 14, 1943. The year is also confirmed by the newspaper in that scene. He meets Peggy a day later, when he arrives at Camp Lehigh for his training. It’s love at first sight for Steve, but it’s not long before Peggy starts noticing him, too:

(I should mention that the flag at Camp Lehigh says it’s 1942, so mistakes in the MCU are entirely possible. Moving on!).

Steve is chosen for the SuperSoldier project within a few days of arriving at camp. Before the operation, he and Peggy have a heartfelt talk about the discrimination they face in the military, and she begins to fall for him (…even though Steve tries to flirt with her but kind of insults her instead. Oh, Steve). But her crush is especially noticeable after the serum, because… well:

Yeah.

According to a newspaper in the film, Captain America is born on June 23, 1943! (Okay, technically it would be June 22 because the paper would be the next day, but semantics). It’s been 9 days since Steve was recruited, and 8 days since Steve and Peggy first met. Mutual crushes have been established.

After Erskine’s death, Steve tours the east coast of the USA and parts of Europe from July – October 1943, selling war bonds. Peggy is sent to London during this time, but it’s possible they kept in touch. Or, alternatively, the Captain America tour poster states he would be in “London, Bristol, Manchester, Allied Bases in Europe, and North Africa”, in that order, so maybe they met up in London before reuniting at the Allied Bases. Regardless, they’re comfortable with each other when we see them again at the base in Azzano.

In November 1943, Steve learns that Bucky has been captured by HYDRA, and he and Peggy plan the illegal rescue mission. This is really the first time Steve and Peggy flirt with each other, not just little glances and smiles (”You’re late!” becomes their Thing). The day Steve brings Bucky home is November 24, 1943, according to Steve’s condolence letter:

Everyone moves to London a few days later. It’s here where things become serious: Peggy flirts with Steve while wearing a gorgeous red dress, and they promise to go dancing after the war (which becomes a euphemism for their future, with ‘the right partner’ line). From the moment she walks into the bar wearing that dress, her eyes only for Steve… they’re going steady, in my mind. Especially because Steve tells Bucky “Maybe she’s got a friend”, as if he and Peggy are already together. It explains why Peggy is so pissed when she sees Steve kissing a woman in the bunker a few days later – she thought they were a done deal. At this point, they’ve known each other for five months (which is around the time you would get serious with someone. Just saying!).

From December 1943 to early 1945, Steve leads the Howling Commandos through all their famous missions. Peggy is part of this Special Ops team, shown in the wartime montage in CATFA. Steve carries a photo of her in his compass, like she’s his Girl, so they’re serious about each other. 

Their time together is also mentioned in CATWS, in the video at the Smithsonian; Peggy talks about a mission they did together in the Winter of 1944. Plus she’s still upset talking about Steve, eight years after his death, which speaks volumes about their relationship:

So we can assume that they worked side-by-side for the entirety of 1944. Maybe they were in correspondence throughout each mission and met in London between them (going off the bombed-out pub scene)? Although I’m betting Peggy joined in on a few of those missions, too!

(BTW, by my best guess, Bucky dies around Feb-Mar 1945, but it’s completely up for debate. I know the Smithsonian tribute says he died in 1944, but… it doesn’t really fit with the timeline of CATFA, so I’m electing to ignore it).

Finally – Peggy and Steve share their first (and only) onscreen kiss right before Steve’s last mission, which is in ‘45. We know this mostly from CATWS; Natasha teases Steve with “Was that your first kiss since 1945?”, which suggests it’s a known fact that Steggy macked (maybe Colonel Phillips wrote about it for the history books?!). Most people accept that VE Day in the MCU is the same as real life (May 8, 1945)… which means Steve probably died sometime in April 1945.

So! This means Steve and Peggy knew each other for almost 2 years (June 14, 1943 – April 1945), and were ‘going steady’ (or at least only had eyes for each other) for ~1.5 years. That’s a pretty long time, especially in the 1940s when most people were married within a year of ‘steady’ dating – even less during wartime. And while it was cool to casually date, it wasn’t cool to sleep around or even have makeout sessions, which weren’t popular until Car Culture in the 1950s. Many couples in the 1930-40s wouldn’t have done much with each other before their marriage night, even if they had been Serial Daters before getting together. 

So when people say “Steve and Peggy weren’t serious because they only kissed once!” …it’s not a valid argument, in my mind. TWO YEARS, MAN. That’s a longterm relationship!