I've had this idea for a while now, and just got around to finishing it. I hope you guys enjoy this.
I don't own Marvel.
It had been two weeks since Clint had been to his apartment, Fury finally allowing him the vacation he had been asking for. It was refreshing and gave him time to think about where he stood at the moment, both in SHIELD and with his friends.
He unlocked the door to the small place he called home and gently stepped inside, only to have a gun to his head. He reacted by doing the same, pulling out the rarely used sidearm and aiming it towards whoever had broken into his apartment, only to lower it when he saw who was in there with him.
"Nat?" Clint said, dropping the weapon as soon as he saw the supposedly friendly face. It wasn't so friendly though; she had bruises on her face and a cut against her cheek. She looked both terrified and angry at him. He didn't know what was up with her though, and it frightened him as well. "What's going on? What happened to you?"
"Shut up!" Her hand trembled as she stared at him "Are you friend or foe?" He tilted his head, confused at the question. He hadn't heard her be this afraid of him, hell, he'd never heard her this afraid period. He reached to touch her, but she flinched away and tightened her hand on the trigger. This made him wonder what happened to her in the two weeks he'd been gone.
"Natasha, I don't know what's going on. What happened to you while I was gone? Did something happen with Cap?" He wanted to understand why she was being so cold to him all of the sudden. He felt they were moving off the path of merely friends and partners towards something more, but now that he had returned, they seemed to move back to the day he found her; when she had been mistrusting of him and of everyone.
He could see the uncertainly leave her eyes as she dropped her weapon to the ground. "I can't trust anyone, Clint, not even you." The words were like a knife through the heart for him, but he kept on a calm mask "SHIELD is being torn apart, and I need to know which side you're on."
He was even more confused than he was before. How could SHIELD, one of the most powerful groups in the world, be torn apart? What happened in the two weeks he took as a much needed vacation? He almost didn't want to know what was going but it was important. "Tasha, what's going on?"
She took a few hesitant steps toward him before sitting down in a chair at the table. He joined her, sitting at the other side of the table. He didn't want to push his boundaries with the friendship they once shared. He placed his hands onto the table as Natasha delved into the story of how she, Steve and this other guy, Sam, got into a shit ton of trouble with SHIELD, which turned out to be concealing agents of Hydra. He grasped at the table, throat swelling when he heard that Fury had died in the battle. He had known the man for years, and felt that if he hadn't taken that vacation, nothing like this would have happened.
"Oh wow, Tasha, that's…" He honestly didn't know what to say to her. He could tell by the look on her face how broken up by all this she was. Both of them cared about Fury, but he had been the one to save her from the Red Room. She had considered him like a father figure after that. He got up and moved to the seat next to her. He hesitantly reached over and took her hand in his.
He watched her stiffen and one hand clenched under the table, probably around her gun. He knew her too well and knew that she wouldn't be so trusting of anyone after all that happened. His hand dropped to his side.
"Tasha, you know me better than anyone. I'm not part of Hydra, and if I was, I'm sure you would have figured out that something was up. I am on your side, trust me. I would never lie to you." He reached up and swept her hair back behind her ear. He saw her cheeks turn slightly red, and she moved her head so he couldn't touch her.
"I would hope so, Clint, but I don't know who to trust anymore. Steve's entire team was working for Hydra. I trusted them. How do I know you aren't playing me? You aren't trying to get me to trust you and then just stab me in the back later." He cringed at her words. An idea popped into his head and he took a deep breath.
"Tasha, let me try something. It's going to make you want to punch me; I know that for a fact. I want to prove to you that you can trust me, but I can't think of a better way." He grabbed her gently from behind her head and pulled her close so their lips touched. Unlike what he thought, she met his kiss with equal force. He pulled her onto his lap so they were close to each other.
As they separated to catch their breath, Natasha placed her forehead on his, eyes closed. Neither wanted to interrupt the perfect moment, but something needed to be said about what had just occurred between the two of them.
"How long have you wanted to do that?" Natasha asked, opening her eyes to meet his. He brushed her hair behind her ear, keeping their eyes locked.
"Since the incident at New York," Clint responded "When we had the heart to heart after you snapped me out of whatever magic Loki had me under. Something stirred and I…realized that I loved you." At his words, her face hardened, but there was a light blush on her cheeks.
"Clint... I can't say I love you too, not yet, but I do feel something towards you." She brushed her lips against his again "Are you going to try and be in a relationship with me? Because I'm not… emotionally stable. I've been through hell and back, and I just don't know if I am relationship ready."
"Tasha, I would never force you into anything. But I know that you are emotionally stable as far as I can tell, but if you aren't ready, I will wait for y-mmph," She cut him off with a kiss, shifting herself over to his lap and pulling away to meet his eyes.
"If you think you can trust me enough to be in a relationship with me, I won't say no, as long as this does not interfere with our work lives." She stated, no trace of a joke in her tone as she stared at Clint.
"I won't let it interfere." He said "Now I have to ask you, am I friend or am I foe?"
"Friend, definitely friend."
Sorry for the cheesy ending. Please review and no flames.