Just a Touch
"Too often we underestimate the power of a touch, a smile, a kind word, a listening ear, an honest compliment, or the smallest act of caring, all of which have the potential to turn a life around."
― Leo F. Buscaglia
He swipes his hand across the reader, still slightly surprised when the door complies with the command. A short chuckle escapes and echoes through the lab which is starting to be prepared with some of the latest technology he's only dreamt of working with. His legs lead him into the see-through laboratory that been given to him. He can't quite believe he agreed to stay. Perhaps he's finally gone crazy, to match the rest of his life.
His shoes click on the tile floor, echoing through the space. His hand runs along the cool bench, convincing himself this is real and not a dream. The room feels a tad sterile, the temperature moderated to keep the machinery which will be installed from over heating. This is better than any military or university level lab he's ever worked in, including the one where he had the accident. When Tony mentioned his R and D labs spanned ten floors, Bruce thought he'd be sharing with the other scientists not get his own lab next to Tony's personal one in the living quarters.
He turns on his heel, scratching the back of his head as he tries to ignore the glass walls which give the space a fish tank quality. This doesn't feel real. A few days ago, he was dodging the army in the back streets of Calcutta. Ducking in and out of alleys, covering his tracks and limiting the work helping those who can't access medical treatment.
Now he's in New York embarking on restarting his career with the world leading technology developer. He's been in the States for a matter of days and he's managed to break his year-long streak twice and helped save the planet. The Other Guy huffs contentedly in his head, pleased with his accomplishments. There's a lot of damage which was impossible to avoid. At least he gets to share that burden with the rest of the misfit crew who, somehow, managed to avert an alien invasion.
He's still fuzzy on the details, the Other Guy granted him a few flashes of his antics during the transformation. Slapping Loki around being the clearest and the one he's most comfortable with. Bruce chuckles a little at that memory, thankful for being permitted it. He's grateful for a lot more, actually. Hulk behaved. Complying with the others, took orders from Steve, limited the risk to civilians. Even the transition back was easier once Hulk was certain Loki was neutralised.
They were actually in sync for once.
He's not conceited enough to think their problems are solved after one incident. They're still a danger to those around them but there's something soothing about being here that makes him optimistic, less suspicious than previous offers. Maybe it's Tony's honest, often embellished, observations; maybe it's being reintroduced to a relatively stress-free lab – he considers the Helicarrier a good experience till it blew up. He believes Tony is interested in his research rather than his monster. Though SHIELD weren't forthcoming with all of their secrets, they kept their distance and waited till it was absolutely necessary to recruit him. He's cautiously confident they will continue to give him space when he takes up residence in the Tower.
Which reminds him, he should probably double check if Ross has clearance for the building. His insistent, military-enabled shadow is notably quiet considering Bruce's sudden reappearance, especially after such a public display.
"Hey Doc."
Bruce spins at the sound of Agent Romanoff's voice, turning to face the woman entering the lab – his lab – behind him. He stops abruptly when he comes face to face with the assassin who was sent to retrieve him a couple of days before, her red hair bright against the backdrop of blank surfaces. He ducks his head a little at being caught in an empty lab. Her mouth slants as her eyes look him up and down. He feels like he's fifteen again and he's had the misfortune to be discovered by the cool girl emerging from the chess club at school.
"Hey," he returns hollowly, stuffing his hands in his trouser pockets. He swears her mouth twitches at his body language. Her arms cross over her chest.
"Moving in?"
"Uh, I would but my stuff isn't here."
"I'll get your things transferred from the Helicarrier," Natasha promises with an understanding nod. She glances around the lab, her gaze darts beyond him for a split second and he resists the urge to follow her eyeline though he figures he can save himself the embarrassment of being on show for everyone in the grand living quarters.
"Thanks," he murmurs, beginning to find her stare unsettling. "Is there anything I can do for you Agent Romanoff?"
She hesitates.
Well, that's the only way Bruce interprets her pause. Definitely unexpected and it's obviously a foreign concept for the spy who looks downright confused by her own reticence. He saw the same look in her eyes the first time they met, when he scared her. It's not his usual style to provoke operatives sent for him and he was irked at being caught off guard by her tactics. She led him to the edge of the city to work him, and damn him, his interest was piqued. In less than two minutes she had reeled him in with talk of tracking the Tesseract. She was unflappable, too confident she could persuade him and he wanted to even the playing field so he played on his strengths, evoked his anger and unnerved her on purpose.
"Thor's ready to return to Asgard," she informs him, shrugging off her hesitation.
"Do you think it's wise to let him take Loki?"
"I doubt Thor will leave without him. He promised Loki will answer to Odin for what's happened," she assures him. "You're going to stay with Stark?" She wrinkles her nose at the mention of the billionaire.
Bruce chuckles. There's certainly no love lost between the spy and his fellow scientist. "I'm trying something new; hiding out in the open. Thought I'd give it a shot considering I was never really lost in the first place."
A hint of a smile graces her features as she nods understandingly. "It'll be harder for Ross to make you disappear when you're surrounded by the publicity which comes hand in hand with Stark."
"Apparently, you were able to dodge it." Tony mentioned his previous encounters with spy when she was assigned to shadow him. She saved his life, though Bruce was sworn to secrecy over Tony's appreciation for that.
"Thankfully," she sighs.
"Look, I'm sorry for the other day on the Hellicarrier," Bruce says after a long minute of silence. He can't think of anything else to say to her.
"You already apologised, it's fine. I'm used to it."
"That's not as reassuring as you think it is," he sighs, unappeased by her easy acceptance of being chased by a rage monster like it's an everyday occurrence. "You almost got smeared into a wall by him and-."
"If he wanted me dead, I think I would be," Natasha explains knowingly. "The Big Guy seemed fine with me yesterday."
He gives her a hard look. He only remembers the explosion then the pain of transforming. He could sense her on the edge of his space shooing others away. She has a point. His other half is capable but Bruce suspects she's just as capable if she managed to dodge Hulk before someone who is a match for him could turn up. She kept his attention on her.
"Thanks."
"For what?"
"For distracting him, putting yourself between him and the crew. He could've done a lot more damage than he did if he wasn't focused on you dodging him. You did the same in Calcutta, I focused on you while your team was moving in."
"I was doing my job Bruce," she shrugs it off. Her eyes drift over him, reluctantly admitting, "You're not what I expected."
"You thought I'd run," he assumes. She doesn't tell him he's wrong. He was tempted to ride off in the opposite direction.
"We all did," Natasha admits. "Except Stark. I'm glad I was wrong."
He's not surprised they had all written him off, he done so a long time ago; he's surprised that he proved her wrong. "I figured they would do more harm if I wasn't there."
"They would have. We saved more lives because you were with us," Natasha tells him. "Hulk had a unique way of dealing with Loki. I'm jealous."
Bruce snorts. "I guess it's one step closer to balancing my long list."
That sparks something in her eyes, making him pause as he is struck by a realisation. He's heard rumours about her past. But he doesn't put stock in rumours or anyone's judgement, only his own. He knows how rumours distort the truth. He made presumption when they first met, thinking she was just like any other agent sent to recruit him. She's not.
"You're different than I thought you'd be Natasha," he tells her meaningfully, understanding his opinion will do nothing to pacify her own of herself. Maybe they have more in common than he thought.
Their silent stand off continues, the tension palpable that he wants to break it. "You wanted to know my secret?" He proposes lightly.
"Didn't you tell us yesterday? Before you knocked out that gigantic alien?" Her brows crease briefly, her vibrant green stare turning suspicious.
"Not everything," Bruce replies, a small flutter at her curiosity. "Though I suppose I can make an exception," he offers, crooking his fingers to encourage her.
Her arms drop to her side as she steps forward to meet him in the middle of the room as he removes his hands from his pockets. The yellow cuffs already rolled up to mid-forearm – he didn't actually choose yellow, it's too bright, but the newest set of borrowed clothes appeared while he was in the shower- as he presents his wrist to her.
It hovers between them, both staring at it, both uncertain.
"My heartbeat is the other key to the transformation," he starts, dropping his voice. "When I figured it out, I used to monitor it obsessively. I've done it so many times now, I don't need a device to track it anymore."
Her head tilts up toward his, assessing him and the information he's giving her. He starting to get an idea of how her mind works and he can see her processing on how to use it. He'll let it go for this instance, he owes her. This is risky and he hopes the Hulk gives him this moment without embarrassing him. A cruel snicker replies and he gulps.
"I keep to a routine, try to avoid anything unexpected. I can control it in most situations," he sighs. "But I haven't quite got a handle on explosions," he continues apologetically. He nods at his wrist, moving it a little closer to her.
"Maybe you just need more experience with them," she huffs with a quirk of her brow, her lips turning upward briefly. "Which you will, living with Stark."
He chuckles. "You don't say?"
"I'm not even talking about Iron Man," she replies with a good-natured grumble. "Fires and explosions are an everyday occurrence in his lab. If Loki hadn't sent for his brainwashed crew to spring him, it was only a matter of time before Stark blew something up. How he's stayed alive is beyond me."
"Really?" He smirks, unable to stop himself, "Didn't you help with that once?"
She smirks back. "Word of advice, Doc, keep the fire extinguisher close."
Hesitantly her fingers find his pulse point, her touch becoming more confident as the beat remains steady under the tips of her fingers. For a long minute, they remain like that, a tingling sensation where their skin met. It's been a while since he's allowed anyone close enough to touch him.
She keeps his stare and he takes a deep breath as he lets his heart beat accelerate to prove he's telling the truth. Her eyes widen when she feels the pace change and he knows she can see his turn green; he can feel it. He can feel the Hulk raring to go but then her fingers move, soothing over his wrist instead of letting go like he expects her to. Like she should.
His monster quietens as he feels the rage settle, replaced by warmth which emanating from where her fingers rest on his wrist. Seconds later, the threat passes completely leaving him feeling tranquil; a lot quicker than he expected. Unsure of why, he still works through his techniques to quell a transformation, afraid any change will set the Hulk off.
He breathes deeply to sync his heart with it. She refuses to let him look away. He can't help
He blinks, only just managing to hear the slight hitch in Natasha's breathing. He watches in fascination as the soft pink glow blooms on her cheeks.
"Thanks for the demonstration," she averts her head as she says it, composing herself. He steps back, giving her space.
"Thanks for distracting him," he swallows thickly. It means more to him than he can describe; she minimised the risk by putting herself in his path. He's not happy that anyone was in danger at all but the incident was easier to process than it could've been.
"I'd do it again," she informs him softly.
"You would?" Bruce croaks out. She had been so wary of him when he drove up to the bridge.
"It'll be fun," she shrugs, walking backwards away from him. "We better get going, the others are waiting for us downstairs."
She loiters in the door, waiting for him. He casts one more look around his new lab before joining her. As they walk away from the see-through room, Bruce lets his thoughts wander back to the moment they shared. The warmth of her touch lingers on his skin as they move through the corridors. The calm aura which befell him still remains and he can't fathom why.
After all, it was just a touch.
'Touch has a memory.' ― John Keats