Title: Just the Thought of You
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: ~3,800
Characters: Pietro/Darcy
Prompt: text post (link on tumblr and AO3 versions)
Summary: She knew was going to meet him. She didn't know it was going to be today.
For: heyfrenchfreudiana
A/N: A continuation of the "Why is it so much easier to write for my crackships than for my otps?" series.
Just the Thought of You
Being the personal assistant to the Avengers is about as exciting as you'd expect—so, very.
And Darcy is technically Maria's assistant, but seeing as Maria oversees operations across every department, Darcy carries out tasks for just about everyone. It's a lot of little things – managing calendars, fetching coffee, processing paperwork – but it lets the others focus on the important stuff, and she likes making their lives easier, so whatever. She doesn't mind being the errand girl, especially since she doesn't get treated like that, either. She even has her own office, with her name on the door and everything, and she's getting paid this time, which is a pretty big plus. She misses Jane (duh) but the woman is traveling and doing what she loves, and Darcy is insanely proud. And it was Jane who recommended her to Maria, so.
It's a pretty good gig.
... ...
"Hey, Maria, was I supposed to forward this e-mail to Steve? Because you sent me one, and then Steve sent me one with the exact same attachment, and—you're not Maria."
The corner of his lips twitch in amusement. "No, I'm not," he agrees, and he sounds kind of like he's being an ass, but also like he could just be humoring her.
(She's not sure how to feel about either.)
"Pietro," she greets. Because yes, she knows who he is. Well, she recognizes him from the images and surveillance videos compiled for his files, but they've never met. He'd been recovering in their private hospital for a month and a half, then was discharged by Helen for two more weeks of rest. Now he's technically cleared to work, but both Steve and Maria wanted to put him through a training plan to get him back into the swing of things, and they'd included Darcy in their e-mails as a third opinion. Darcy knows almost nothing about whatever it means to be in fighting shape, and all she's ever taken was a spin class and like, yoga. She did some research, but she has no idea how helpful her two cents had been.
She knew she was going to meet him. She didn't know it was going to be today.
"The one and only," he says, grinning. "Maria said she'd be back in five minutes. She's got"—he glances at his wristwatch—"forty seconds."
"Thirty-eight, actually," Maria corrects, appearing in the doorway. "Looks like someone's running a little slow."
Pietro chuckles, holding his hands up in surrender (and Darcy so does not glance at the sliver of skin that gets exposed when the hem of his shirt rides up). Maria touches Darcy's elbow before walking passed, which is Darcy's cue to follow, and she can feel Pietro's gaze on her the whole time. Darcy stares right back at him, eyebrow arched. His grin just widens.
"You've got your keycard, right?" Maria asks. Darcy scoffs. (Keeping her keycard on her at all times was Lesson #1.) "Perfect. Then you'll be giving him a tour."
... ...
She's not sure how to feel about Pietro.
He talks a lot, and interrupts her a handful of times, but it's not as irritating as she pretends—mostly because she knows she can be the same way. And she can tell through some parts that he's not totally paying attention, but that doesn't really irritate her, either. She knows that he's just itching to get in the gym as soon as possible so he can be cleared for field work. But then they get to the labs, and he starts touching all the machines to see what everything does, and she can't help but laugh because she remembers Tony letting her do the same.
Wanda nearly tackles Pietro in a hug as soon as they're inside the gym, and he squeezes her close. "You're all sweaty," he chuckles, pressing a kiss to her forehead.
"Yeah, that happens when you actually get out of bed," she retorts, and then he pinches her side, making her squeal and jump away. Darcy laughs.
(Okay, so he's not that bad.)
... ...
"Coffee run?"
Darcy's head snaps up from her phone as he presses her free hand over her heart. Holy crap. She hadn't heard him get on the elevator.
He's smirking a little. She's guessing that was the point.
"Yeah," she answers. "Want to tag along?"
She's mostly joking, because she knows that he spends almost every spare moment these days in the gym. Wanda's a lot further along in her combat skills than him, which makes sense since she has at least a two-month head start, but still. One thing they're all learning is that the twins are competitive on almost every level. It's cute, if a little ridiculous.
But then he hits the button for the lobby, grinning when she meets his eyes. "Sounds like fun."
... ...
"Will I regret letting you drink caffeine, Roadrunner?" she asks as they step off to the side of the counter after ordering.
He smirks a little, shrugging his shoulder. "Probably," he admits, and then reaches up, tucking a few stray strands of hair behind her ear.
She swears the girls at the table next to them practically swoon. Darcy's right there with them.
... ...
It's been getting warmer and warmer out, which she thinks is supposed to happen with summer coming, but it still shouldn't be this hot in the middle of May, right?
But, whatever. She's been itching for the rainy spring days to burn off soon, anyway. She likes spring showers and all, but when she's curled up under a blanket inside her apartment. Traveling in rain is a whole different story. Plus, she has a few cute summer dresses that she got for a great deal on clearance in the middle of winter, and now the she can finally put them to use while she's still excited about the warmer weather. That part only ever lasts for maybe a month, and then she's hating the heat and counting down the days until fall.
"Morning," Natasha greets as Darcy walks into the conference room. Saturday morning meetings are not her favorite, at all, but at least Tony brings a killer breakfast spread.
Steve glances her dress up and down, and like, he's pretty much the only guy that can do that without seeming like a pervert. "You look great," he compliments.
"Very cute," Wanda agrees. Beside her, Pietro sits up a little straighter.
"Thanks," she says, grinning a little too widely as she turns her attention to the donut table.
... ...
Jane's in town to lecture at a conference in the city, but her flight gets in the morning before her first day, so Maria lets Darcy clear her schedule so the two of them can catch up.
Darcy takes her to the diner a few blocks down from her apartment complex, and she knows Jane sees right through her nonchalance when the elderly waitress is seating them at a booth and asks where Darcy's "fella" is today. Okay, so they don't get to eat-in very often, but they order-out all the time, and Pietro almost always insists on tagging along whenever Darcy's out picking up coffee or lunch. It's not her fault that people just assume they're a thing because they're always together. She just doesn't bother correcting them, either.
"There's no fella," Darcy says, because she can practically feel Jane staring from over her menu. "She just makes assumptions."
"Okay," Jane replies, unconvinced.
And it's like someone is trying to mess with her, because after lunch, Darcy suggests that they check out the outlets before stopping by the facility so Jane can say hi to everyone and check in on the labs. And of course they actually run into Pietro there.
She sees him before he notices her, but she only really has a second to realize that that's him when his gaze meets hers, and then he's smiling, lifting his hand in a wave.
Jane raises her eyebrows. "Is that the fella?" she asks. "He's hot—like, ridiculously hot."
And, well, yes he is—especially in his cutoff shorts and muscle tee and Ray Bans. But she's not saying that when he's walking right for them.
"Hey, Roadrunner," Darcy greets.
"Hey," he replies. He's holding a paper shopping bag in one hand and has the other tucked into his pocket, and his gaze lingers on Darcy long enough for Jane to shoot the girl a look. But before she can ask him why he's staring, he turns a smile towards Jane. "You must be Jane," he says, taking Jane's hand and squeezing gently. "I've heard so much about you."
"Oh?" Jane asks, grinning. For a moment, Darcy thinks she's going to say how she hasn't heard anything about him, but then she goes, "And you're Pietro—Wanda's brother, right?"
"I am," he answers, pulling his hand back. "I'm actually shopping for her right now," he adds, lifting his bag.
"What's the occasion?" Darcy asks.
He shrugs. "Nothing. Saw this in the window, thought of her, came back to get it. It's nice to be able to just buy things for her now, you know?"
That's… actually really sweet. Darcy knows how he is with Wanda, so it's not like this should be surprising, but still.
"Well, I'll let you ladies get back to your quality time," he says, reaching up to touch Darcy's arm. She nods, and Jane tells him that it was nice meeting him, and he gives a two-fingered salute as goodbye before continuing down the sidewalk. Darcy glances over her shoulder, watching him walk away, until Jane links their arms together to grab the girl's attention again.
"He's a great fella," she teases, and just Darcy laughs.
... ...
She doesn't usually have to stay late, because the amount of paperwork she gets on a daily basis can be knocked out in about an hour, but it's been a crazy week with Tony here to upgrade equipment. Maria never asked her to babysit, the woman couldn't do it herself, and someone needed to make sure they didn't blow up the facility, right?
He shows up at her office a quarter after six, balancing two mugs of coffee and half a dozen croissants on a tray. "Came here to drop off a snack?" she asks, sitting up a little.
"Came here to keep you company." He sets the tray down on her desk, then drags the armchair close and settles in.
"This could be a while," she points out.
"I know," he says, and then bites off a piece of croissant. Darcy feels herself smile.
(Maybe he is kind of great.)
... ...
Wanda corners her in gym.
Well, not really. She's already in there when Darcy walks in, and whenever she's there while Darcy is to squeeze in her twenty minutes of cardio, Wanda will run on the treadmill alongside hers, so that's what happens. They chat as much as they can while trying to regulate their breaths, and it's usually about nothing important, because important things always have to do with work and Wanda's like, the only other person that doesn't always want to talk about tracking down rogues and investigating extra-terrestrial activity and figuring out enhanced genes.
But then she goes, "So, you and my brother," and Darcy makes a face. It's not that she doesn't want to talk about it. She just doesn't know how.
"Um," Darcy breathes. "Yeah, I don't – really know what's going on there."
"He likes you," she says, and Darcy nearly trips, that's how quickly her gaze snaps onto Wanda. The girl is staring forward, but she's practically beaming, too. "And you like him."
It's a statement, not a question.
"Um," Darcy says.
Wanda reaches for the panel, decreasing her speed. They've still got another two minutes until the recommended twenty minutes of cardio, but the girl is so slender and totally in shape. She probably get away with cutting a corner this time. The belt slows her to a fast walk, and she grabs her towel, dabbing at the sweat on her forehead.
"We think you two should try doing something about it sooner than later," she says after a moment. Darcy doesn't want to ask who "we" is. "Just, don't mess with him."
"Or you'll go all witchy on me, right?"
"Of course," Wanda teases, wiggling her fingers at Darcy.
Darcy breathes out a laugh, because she knows the girl would never hurt her. But she's still slightly terrified by the idea.
... ...
Pepper invites them to their beach house for the long weekend, which they know was actually Tony's idea, since the guy's been trying to get them to come over since his last visit. It would be great to get away for a little, especially with all of them together, but it's not as if their jobs are always nine-to-five. It's hard for everyone to be gone at the same time, and she knows Steve has given this explanation to Tony a number of times already, so it's a little surprising that the guy gives in this time. It's been kind of quiet for a while, which doesn't mean that things will stay that way, but it makes Steve feel a little better about being away for a few days. And he says that they need to be able to rely on all of their agents, because they are capable of handling things. He also made Tony agree to keep communications open so that they could be reached in the event of an emergency, so it's not like they won't be available.
"And it's, you know, your birthday," Sam chimes in. "So you get to do whatever you want."
Steve laughs, glancing at Natasha, and it's enough to convince Darcy that Steve didn't come to this change of heart on his own.
(Darcy would totally call him out on it, and she can tell Maria really, really wants to, but hey. They're not about to argue with a free vacation.)
... ...
She knows neither Pietro nor Wanda have entirely warmed up to Tony yet, which is fine considering their history, and the fact that Tony is just a hard man to warm up to. Darcy thinks that this might affect whether or not they come along for the weekend, but then Wanda invites her to go shopping for a bathing suit. So that kind of answers that.
"You sure you'll be okay?" she asks. Pietro's sitting on the couch in the dressing room as she stands in front of the mirror and tries to get her bikini strings to not dig into her shoulders.
Wanda left to grab a different size, and Darcy wanted to wait until it was just the two of them to ask this, because Wanda's a little more open towards Tony than her brother and they can all tell that this bothers him sometimes. Not that it's anyone's fault, but Wanda's just been around Tony a little more often, and the two of them talk, sometimes, if he happens to be in town and she finds herself alone with him. And she spends a lot of time with Steve and Natasha, who'll never make excuses for Tony, but they will do what they can to advocate for him.
It's a complicated situation, and none of them expect it to go away overnight. But they're civil with each other and that's all they could really ask for.
Pietro exhales, and for a moment, she thinks he's pissed.
But then he gets up, comes to stand behind her and then tugs the knot undone, and she squeals, hands coming up to keep her bikini top in place. His lips twitch in amusement, and she seriously comes this close to slapping him, but then he starts adjusting the strings. She doesn't move her hands, though.
"I'll be fine," he says. She watches him through the reflection. He seems like he's being serious. "Especially if you'll be wearing this," he adds, and then she grins, because there it is.
He meets her eyes in the mirror and winks, knotting the strings back into place. She pulls her hands away and shit. It fits perfectly now. How did he do that?
... ...
"Welcome to our humble abode," Tony greets when he answers the door. The house is massive, with glass walls that make it seem even more spacious, and they have a huge pool and a whole stretch of ocean to themselves in his backyard. Humble probably isn't the right word for this place.
He steps aside to let everyone in, and when Pietro's in the doorway, he looks at Tony, and Darcy takes his hand. Pietro squeezes her fingers.
"Thanks for inviting us, Stark," Pietro says.
"Thanks for coming," Tony returns. Pietro nods, continuing forward, and Tony catches her gaze as she follows him in. He glances down at their joined hands, then back up at her, one eyebrow arched. Darcy winks.
... ...
"I read that anything higher than SPF50 isn't actually as effective."
"First rule of the internet, Cap: don't believe everything you read," Tony replies.
"It was a scientific study."
"I'm a scientist, I study, and I'm pretty sure you still don't believe everything I tell you, right?"
"That has more to do with your personality than your intellect," Steve replies, smirking a little when Tony scoffs. Rhodey laughs from where he's grilling, which earns him a glare from Tony, but the guy just brushes it off.
Darcy giggles and takes a sip of beer, stretching her legs out a little more. She and Pietro are sitting on the steps of the shallow end of the pool, the water coming up halfway to their shoulders. It's cold and feels refreshing, but the sun feels nice against her skin, too, and so does the sensation of Pietro's arm brushing against hers every time he moves—which is pretty often since the guy doesn't know how to sit still. She's half-convinced that he's going it on purpose this time, though, but every time she tries to catch him, he's looking away.
Tony starts up the debate again, when Darcy finally thinks they'll let it die down, and she's half tempted to swim over there and splash them.
But then she notices Natasha sit up in her lounge chair, reaching over to touch Wanda's shoulder. The girl looks at her and Natasha nods at Tony and Steve, and Darcy grins because she already knows where this is going. Darcy nudges Pietro, who catches on to what's happening, and he chuckles softly, shaking his head and taking another gulp of beer.
"I think," Natasha says, and both men flinch in surprise, "that you two need to cool it!"
Natasha shoves Tony at the same time Wanda shoves Steve, and the Darcy swears that half of the water must spill over, that's how big the splash is.
Everyone laughs.
Darcy nearly spits out her drink, and Pietro throws an arm around her, tipping his head back as he cracks up. Then Wanda catches Darcy's gaze, winking, and then she pushes Natasha from behind and practically sends her on top of Steve. He manages to catch her, sending them both under this time, and before Darcy can even blink, she feels the water slosh beside her as Pietro gets up and speeds over to his sister, pushing her in, too. Except, she somehow manages to grab onto his arm, tugging him down with her, and they laugh even harder.
Pietro pops his head up, shaking his hair out, and his eyes find hers in seconds. She's still laughing as she waves her fingers at him and he just winks.
... ...
They have dinner on the patio table, under the stars, and then Steve opens gifts. He seems totally amused by her World's Best Grandpa mug, and then, when everyone is prepping the fireworks, he slips her the $15 Starbucks gift card from part of Tony's present, which is awesome. He gets a kiss on the cheek for that.
The guest bedroom she and Wanda were designated has its own shower, and Wanda lets her wash up in there while she uses the one in the master bathroom upstairs.
She's still drying off her hair with a towel when she finally steps out, and she finds Pietro stretched out atop the bed, flipping through channels on the flat screen on the wall. He already showered and changed into his pajamas (does flannel shorts and nothing else count as pajamas? Not that she minds the view or anything) and his hair is still a little damp, too, so it's kind of in his eyes rather than flipping perfectly over his head. She climbs onto the bed and runs her fingers through it. His always feels a lot thinner and softer than hers. She's jealous.
"See," she says after a moment, and he tilts his head to meet her eyes. "It's not so bad here."
He hums in contemplation, lips tugging into a smirk. "No, it's not," he admits, and she grins, leaning back against the pillows.
He continues flipping through channels, so she thinks that'll be that. But then he switches the TV off, and, in one quick motion, she feels the bed dip, hears the door shut and the lock click into place, and feels herself get tugged onto her back.
She blinks, a little disoriented, and mutters, "Stop doing that," so he's already chuckling as he presses his lips over hers in a kiss.
... ...
(He takes his time with her, which is kind of frustrating, because now is when he wants to take it slow? And the noises she makes would be more embarrassing if he wasn't so good at working her up.)
(She yelps when he finally puts his mouth on her, and that's when she realizes it's going to be a long night.)
... ...
It's a little after three in the morning when she makes her way down to the kitchen. She really, really shouldn't be craving anything right now, but then she sees that the light is already on and she feels a little less guilty about giving into her midnight cravings.
Natasha is standing in front of the fridge with the door open, wearing a shirt that is definitely not hers. Her hair is tousled, and there's a bruise on the back of her thigh that Darcy is curious to hear about (but not enough to ask, because duh). Natasha hasn't turned around to see her yet, but she asks, "Want a slice, Darcy?" as she pulls out the leftover cake, and Darcy laughs a little as she answers yes. Natasha cuts them two generous slices of cheesecake onto two plates, hands Darcy a fork as she settles into the barstool beside the girl.
"So, you and Pietro," Natasha starts. Darcy gnaws on her lower lip, smiling. "You were kind of loud."
"So were you and Steve," Darcy replies.
Natasha winks, sticking a piece of cake into her mouth. Darcy grins and shakes her head.
... ...
(She doesn't feel bad about being loud. She does feel bad about kicking Wanda out of the room, though.)