Disclaimer: I don't even think I own the pen that I wrote this with, so I certainly own nothing relating to Marvel.
Join me aboard to Romanoff train. Not entirely sure where this came from, but I hope you enjoy!
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Natasha Romanoff use to think that people who suffered from nightmares were over dramatic when it came to their immediate reactions of them. But, things had long changed since then. And that particular night, she awoke from another one, shooting straight up in bed. Typical, she was even short of breath, gasping for air, eyes adjusting to the poor light in the room. Her hand slowly loosened its assassins grip on the bed sheet, she pulled the excess sheet further up her exposed body.
A hand reached over from her let side, splaying out over her stomach in a weak attempt at comfort.
" It's okay" Steve muttered from where he laid next to her in the bed. He had hardly woken up, and was still face down, almost eating his own pillow.
But hearing his voice was assurance enough, and her hand rested on top of his. The other hand attempted to quickly clasp over her mouth before a rogue sob escaped. But, it was too late, and that on its own was enough to wake up Steve.
" Nat" he pushed himself up on the mattress, " what happened?"
She gently laid herself back down, trying to find comfort in the aftermath, " just another nightmare" she whispered, scooting herself closer to him, " I'm sorry I woke you."
Steve flipped onto his back, stretching his arm as an invitation for her to cuddle, " don't be sorry."
And cuddle she did. Her head rested on his chest as his arm wrapped instinctively around her. Even after so many nights next to each other, she was still overwhelmed with the feeling of comfort she got just from laying so close to him. The warmth from his body, and simply the feel of his weight laying next o hers.
" Do you want to talk about it?" he asked, so softly that she mostly heard his voice form having her hear on his chest.
" It's nothing different" her fingers traced along the raised skin under the fabric of his shirt. Fresh wounds that were still healing from the events back in Washington.
But, he didn't want her mind to wander there, not again, not for another sleepless night. He began to gently caress her back, " I didn't die, I'm right here and I'm not going anywhere", he already knew the details of her nightmares.
Her back slightly arched towards his hand, the motions causing the fabric of her shirt to scratch her skin, " we don't know who is going where, Steve."
Natasha was also not one to doubt or be uncertain about anything, at least on the outside. After the disaster in the Potomac River, Steve was missing for four days. It was assumed that he had drowned or was otherwise dead, with his body being lost in the wreckage. Both Natasha and sam refused to accept that, and searched the surrounding area for days. And it was Natasha who found him unconscious in the river bank, bruised and broken from his fight with the Winter Soldier. Though Steve was convinced thats who pulled him out of the water in the first place.
There had been no trace of the Winter Soldier since, and due to extenuating circumstances, Steve's search for him was put on hold. Despite everything that was currently going on, Natasha knew it picked away from him, even if he did choose to keep that part to himself.
" Now isn't the time to give up" he said, mouth then pressing to the top of her head.
That, she could agree with, especially since they should have both been dead several times by now. " I'm not giving up, I just don't want to push any further and somehow lose you."
" You won't lose me."
Natasha curled her arm around his waist, " what do we do now?"
The breaths in his chest became deeper and more drawn out, " we wait, and I know you don't like waiting, but we need to hold still. Just for a little while."
He soon fell asleep, and even though he was still there, it felt like he had left and she was alone. Not as alone as she would have been had he actually drowned, and she was grateful for that. Just like she was grateful that Sam had stayed in the hospital with her while Steve was there, still unconscious.. Natasha was present when Captain America was discovered, and when SHIELD went through the process of defrosting him, after the initial shock that he was even alive to begin with. The incident in the Potomac was different, because he was no longer Captain America, the hero centered around all the stories that everyone was told over the years. Now, he was Steve Rogers, at least to her.
And that was something much more important. He had a habit of not dying, not leaving her, and she wanted to make sure that it stayed that way.
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about a week later
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A sleepy Steve Rogers stretched his arms and legs, in what he assumed were the late morning hours. Very late, actually, and he knew that before he even fully woke up. Mid-stretch, he realized that the other side of the bed was empty, and it certainly wasn't a surprise that Natasha didn't oversleep. In fact, he was surprised enough that she let him sleep in, and when he finally did open his eyes, he saw that she wasn't even in the bedroom.
It was a gray day, certainly not something they were used to. The house was more windows than anything, giving them a daily glimpse of the surroundings- the beach, and empty beach at that. No one and nothing around them for miles, only the wide open ocean. Their hideout was cleverly disguised as a lovers paradise.
Steve wandered downstairs to the kitchen, not concerned about finding any additional clothing to put on. The palm trees outside danced in the harsh breeze, and the house was close enough that he could see the waves were capped with white foam. If he was certain of their exact location, keeping track of the weather would be much easier, but that was not the case.
He was pouring himself a glass of juice when he saw Natasha, clad in running gear, coming up the steps to the back door, and retrieved another glass form the cabinet. She threw pen the glass door, heaving for air, and yanking her headphones out of her ears.
" The way you've been running, I'm worried one time you just won't come back."
Natasha smirked, accepting the juice from him, " I did a ten mile radius, so far, just us around here."
Steve's eyebrows jumped as he took a sip from his own glass, " ten? you just did eight last night."
" Not all of us were gifted with metabolism thats, what, four times faster than the average human?"
" That's true."
She brushed past him, almost purposely wanting to make contact, " I'm starting to feel flabby, sitting around here all day"
" Is telling a girl she's not fat the same as it was in the forties?"
Natasha found his attempts to flirt both adorable and hopeless. Fortunate for him, she was already interested. And, she reminded him of that by perching herself on tip toe and kissing him on the cheek. " I do appreciate the gesture" and Steve felt proud of that, " any news?"
She would ask the same thing each day, at any given chance. It was Nicky Fury who sent them into hiding, and it would be the same person who would notify them on what to do next- though she would settle for any kind of update. And yet, no messages, no phone calls, nothing. The same would be for today, as well, Steve shook his head to confirm that.
And she groaned with frustration, " we're sitting ducks. Useless sitting ducks. How do we know something isn't happening, something we could be helping with? Especially since we don't even know where we are to begin with."
Despite her anger, Steve did admire her ambition. " A lot of people think we're the bad guys, laying low may be the best option for us right now."
" We're not the bad guys" Natasha pouted, " and I thought you would be the anxious one, not me."
Steve shrugged, " not much I can do about it right now. And at least I have you, that's one person I can guarantee their whereabouts "
Natasha watched as his expression began to soften, her mind set did as well. She pushed herself off the counter to stand in front of him, fingers gently tugging at the front of his shirt, " he was a renowned master of people not knowing where he was, and that kind of training sticks with you no matter what, believe me. Bucky knows exactly how to lay low, and that's exactly what he'll do."
He looked up at her, she was waiting to meet his gaze, " I hope you're right" he said softly.
She enjoyed hoping she was right, as well. " Once we're able to, we can find him, and I will help you find him. Anything that we can do to help, we will do."
" Thank you" he said, " I just hope he's safe."
" He's probably safer than we are right now."
He pulled her closer into a hug, " I'll keep you safe."
She smiled against his shirt, " and I'll protect you."
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" Steve! Lets go!" Natasha yelled from the back patio, " you're worse than I am, I swear you are."
Natasha had spent half the day figuring out the hot tub that had been located on the property, and then the rest of it convincing Steve to go in it. He still wasn't fond of the idea, more so when she found bathing suits in an upstairs dresser (slightly odd considering they were not sure who had ever been in that house before them). She had found herself a neon green bikini, almost looking like something she would have picked out for herself to show off, but she certainly didn't.
There was, however, only found that was found that had any chance of fitting Steve. The agony of that became expressive when Natasha snickered as Steve stepped onto the back porch, and her attempts to cover her amusement were not quick enough. The white board shorts he wore were covered in red stars, and were just a little too short on him. Never the less, he was sulking.
" I'm sorry" she cried, still laughing, and poorly attempting to hide it. She walked over to him, arms brushing against the waistband of the shorts, " I'm sorry, I don't mean to laugh. They look really patriotic on you, you should be proud."
Steve let out a groan, " I much rather be wearing what you have on" Natasha snorted, " and I told you that you still looked great in a bikini."
Her hand closed around his, " thank you" and he began to lead him towards the jacuzzi, " I can't believe you've never been in one of these before."
" There hasn't been much time for relaxation since I woke up."
Natasha stepped into the hot water first, he followed her down the steps, "fair enough, but you'll love it." She motioned for him to sit , while she pushed a button on the side to activate the jets, which took Steve a little by surprise, much to her amusement. She sat along the plastic edge, pushing herself so that she was straddled behind where Steve sat. He was forced forward as her body slid in behind his, sinking under the surface of the water, instantly soothing any discomfort she had.
" What the heck are you doing?" he asked, almost sounding annoyed as she situated herself behind him. Her arms and legs encircled around him, her legs resting on his thighs, " no, no, I can hold you" he insisted.
But she wasn't falling for that. Natasha kissed his bare shoulder, above a patch of freckles, " no, I got you."
They sat in silence, at least among themselves. There was the rustle of the whirlpool jets, and, in the not so distance, the ocean. Steve touched any part of her that he had access to, mostly her legs. Natasha kept a strong hold on him, considering the size difference. her hands roamed up and down his chest, nuzzling his neck.
" What are you doing?" he whispered, realizing that she had both untied and removed her top, now pressing her bare chest on his bare back.
" I just want to be close" she answered.
Steve turned his head as much as he could to be able to see her, " I wish you would tell me whats going on in your head sometimes."
Natasha leaned forward to close the distance between them and kissed Steve. The kiss lingered long enough that he turned to the side, relieving any strain as he returned the gesture, the movement caused her to slip further into his lap.
The two of them had become adjusted to being alone, their only contact being with one another since they were forced out of Washington, so it did come as a shock when Tony Stark was suddenly standing on the back patio, looking over the jacuzzi.
" Well, well, well, what do we have here?"