Before It Melts
Three years. Three years they had been partners and Clint still managed to surprise her. They were collecting information on some strange sightings in a small town when, out of nowhere, he grabbed Natasha's hand and briskly started dragging her off the sidewalk and across the street. Easily adjusting to his quickened pace, she looked down the road and through the windows of nearby houses, unable to identify a threat. Out of instinct and trust she let herself be pulled. Hawkeye was the one known for his ability to spot things before anyone else.
They stopped in front of an ugly, boxy, sky blue truck as Clint pulled out his wallet. Children's music was being played out of tune from a speaker above the vehicle. Fiery red hair bristled lightly in the breeze as she tried to piece together what the heck was happening. Her partner handed a few crumpled bills to the guy inside and a moment later he was holding two chocolate ice cream cones. As a truck pulled away, he handed her a cone and smiled like a child. Distrust was in The Black Widow's blood. She glared at the melting object in her hand, waiting for it to melt her skin or blow up.
"Barton what the hell! Don't eat that! It could be poisoned!" she hissed as he took a bite. How could someone so clever be that careless? Even toddlers knew not to take food from the cars of strangers. With the snack halfway to his mouth, he froze and stared at her with amusement.
His tone was somewhere between disbelief and delight as he stated the seemingly obvious, "That was an ice cream truck." Of course it was. They were in America, the melting pot of assorted cultures or whatever. "You know, exploiting kids' lack of control around sugar to make money?" he watched as the gears turned in her head and everything fell into place. She'd heard of them in books, but never actually believed they really existed. Never saw them in any other country. "Oh. Always thought they were made up" Natasha mumbled with a ghost of a smile before she tentatively tasted the dessert. The little things always managed to bring them the most joy.
Heh this idea came from a friend of mine who happens to reside somewhere that isn't the US. She didn't know ice cream trucks actually existed. One draft of this is on my tumblr, I take suggestions on there and here!
