A/N: So once again the bingo square fit perfectly for another expendable short that had taken up residence in my brain.
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Bingo #2 Apartment Hunting
Pros and Cons
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Steve: Tonight?
Myla: Ugh. Maybe. I have op prep. Can spare an hour.
Steve: We need to decide
Myla: :p then don't sched me on ops
Steve: Not me this time. Blame Hill.
Myla: I will be certain to show her my displeasure for impinging upon my personal life :
Steve: LOL let me know when so I can get it on video.
Steve: 2000?
Myla: Tac review. 2130?
Steve: Meeting with Hill. Probably about your op I now realize
Myla: Oh dark hundred it is then.
Steve: Sleep?
Myla: I'll sleep when I'm dead.
I handed her a cup of liquid consciousness after she flopped down onto the cushion next to me. She'd already changed into what she considered sleepwear, just tossed one of my sweatshirts on over it in deference to the cooler temps I preferred in my rooms. I'd also prepared food, and by that meant I'd raided the Compound's kitchens for all her favorite late night snacks.
She grunted in thanks, took a sip, then leaned over to give me a kiss on the cheek. "So where are we?"
I leaned forward, flipped open the file folder and spread the sheets of paper within across the coffee table she currently had her feet on. Not that we really needed the physical images to remember any of them. The act of going through them of more importance as a way to be together in this decision. "We've got a dozen options here." I pulled out one, a condo in Boston. "Yay or nay?"
"Nay," she stated. "It was nice but way overpriced for the area."
I nodded slowly in agreement. Not that we couldn't afford it but she had a point. "Agreed." I held up the next one. "The farmhouse."
"I like that one. It's far enough from the Compound they won't be knocking on your door, but close enough we can get there even by car within a reasonable amount of time."
"And there's more than enough room to land a quinjet in the backyard if needed." Yes, I'd stolen the idea from Clint. Not that at that time I ever expected the opportunity to live in a house with a woman I loved, but I'd take full advantage of it now that it had presented itself.
"So, yes?"
"Yes," I agreed setting it aside in our 'definitely maybe' pile.
We whittled down the list one by one resulting in three finalists. Farmhouse. Beach front-ish down near Hilton Head. Her personal pick and that we'd taken a look at when she'd kidnapped… abducted me for a much-needed vacation last summer. I'd liked the area well enough, and more, liked that the locals wouldn't much care if another rich and famous moved into the area. The place modest compared to the McMansion we'd stayed in, but far enough from neighbors to give us the privacy we needed.
The last my pick. A converted warehouse apartment. Condo technically since we'd be owning not renting. Huge though. An entire half of a top floor with actual views over the river and right on the edge of my old stomping grounds in Brooklyn.
Guess I could afford to live there.
I shoved the others back into the folder and left our top three on the table.
Myla settled back into the cushions and tipped over to lean against my shoulder.
"Tired? We can make a final decision later."
"I'm good. Pros and cons of each."
I shifted to reach for a pen and she snickered. I think we can remember these, unless you really, really feel the need to old school this."
I glanced over at her, eyes filled with merriment. "And if I do? I mean this is a big step for us. I'd kinda like to… I don't know, do more than just remember it, I guess."
She turned her head to rub her face into my shoulder. "You are so old-fashioned sometimes."
For an instant the comment came across as disparaging but then she added, "We'll frame the winner, notes and all and hang it in the new place. How's that."
I shifted and cupped her cheeks before placing a delicate kiss on her lips. "Perfect. I want to make memories with you, Myls. Want the world to remember us as more than just Avengers. We're people too, as you so often remind me."
"Now you get sappy and romantic?" she complained, happily I presumed even though she had crinkles in the middle of her forehead that decried otherwise.
"What's wrong with now?" I'd always tried to do the romantic thing, but our jobs prevented that most of the time. The majority of our date nights involved staying home and ignoring calls while making dinner together. Always fun, but lacking the romance for the most part. "I was thinking I'd step back a bit from the whole Avenging thing. They don't need me here day to day."
She gaped at me. Literally. Eyes wide, mouth open.
I chuckled softly, impressed that I'd managed to surprise her.
"Spend more time with you."
She blinked. Her mouth shut with an audible snap. "Holy shit. You're serious."
I nodded. "Your training program has been quite effective, aside from improving the battle computer, there's little for me to do these days." I leaned over to kiss her on the cheek. "Thank you for that."
She shivered from head to toe. "Well then let's get to work on this."
I grinned. "Farmhouse."
"Pro: close to the Compound. Con: close to the Compound."
I snorted. "Pro: More than enough room to land a 'jet. Con: needs updating, especially security."
"Pro: lovely views and has that sunroom that'll be perfect for you to paint. Cons: out in the middle of nowhere. We'll need to drive at least an hour just to get groceries."
A point, but a workable one. We'd been spoiled living here at the Compound where we literally could raid the kitchen for whatever we needed in our suite. If we needed something specific we simply put in a request and it magically appeared in short order.
"Still, it's peaceful, which will be a nice change of pace post-op."
"Not disagreeing, which is why it's in our top three. Next." She pulled out the pick of the beach house down near Hilton Head where we'd spent a quiet week together once I'd gotten over my abduction. Best birthday present ever. "That one has serious potential," I stated, "but my agent would get tired of beachscapes."
Myla sickered. "Too true. And all those pastels. Pro: far away from the Compound."
"Con: far away from the Compound."
She frowned slightly but nodded in agreement. "We can park a 'jet on the property, but yeah if they really need us in a hurry there's just no way to get back to the Compound fast. We'd have to keep a serious go bag on hand, which means a secure room, etc."
"Doable. Its got more than enough space to dedicate one room to work stuff."
"Except the ultimate point is to not have work stuff around." She tapped the table with one fingertip. "Maybe we can get Tony to create a southeast Avengers Compound. That would lessen our commute time."
"The Avengers aren't ready to expand. And being centralized has its uses," I pointed out.
"And disadvantages," she argued. "One small yield tactical nuke and you can take all of us out. Easy peasy."
I tapped her on the nose. "You have a very dangerous mind."
She shrugged. "Good thing I'm on your side then, huh."
I leaned in to kiss the tip of that nose. "Very good thing. I like this one, but think it might be too much vacation and not enough home."
She shrugged one shoulder, ceding me the point. "Still more than viable for our purposes. Wherever we end up it'll need updating to meet our needs. We can strip them to bare walls and rebuild the interiors if we want."
I shook my head. "I'd rather not do that simply because it'll mean more time before we can move in."
Her eyebrows bounced upwards at the determination in my voice. I wanted this, sooner rather than later. To see if we could really make this work, together, as a couple. I had passing thoughts of maybe, one day, getting down on one knee and actually proposing to her, but, with the way our lives currently stood, it wouldn't be feasible. We needed more us and less Avengers for that and that would not be happening any time in the near future. Getting a place, away from the Compound, just the first of many steps on a near-infinite staircase.
I swapped the beach house for the Brooklyn location. I liked this one. Really liked this one. I fought the wave of homesickness that tried to break upon me and drown me under its inexorable tide. "This one kind of splits the difference."
"Not too close. Not too far. Though the Tower is a stone's throw away, which could make it redundant."
"You want to move into the Tower with me?" I knew her answer. Hell, knew my answer and even though she had a point, I did as well.
"Uh, no. That would be living our work even if Tony does have one hell of a bar on site."
I snickered. Tony still threw parties there and Myla had been to more than a few. But none of us stayed there much these days unless work or life had us nearby for other reasons. "Good, I don't want to either. Con: no quinjet landing other than the Tower or Central Park."
"Well, there are some nearby lots, but that'd be for emergencies only, I figured. You'd get to ride your bike more. Any of these really, but it'll be really convenient in the city."
"Cons?" I asked, really curious as to what she thought of the place.
"It's New York, so traffic, crime, noise, but it's nothing I haven't dealt with before. The place has a decent security system so the upgrades will be minimal."
"And with Tower a stone's throw away we won't have any need for keeping body armor in the closet."
She laughed. "Unless you're into that sort of thing."
My cheeks instantly heated. There had been occasions where I'd been in desperate need of her post-mission and cleaning up or changing had been the furthest thing on my mind. So, while it would never be a 'thing' it had happened now and then.
She grinned at my reaction. Even after all these months, she could still make me blush and I found I didn't mind so much.
She yawned then, hugely, jaw popping audibly. She kissed me on the cheek then stood. "I'm heading to bed."
I waved at the printouts. "But which one?" Yeah, we still needed to choose one, but a glance at the clock made me realized how long just narrowing the field had taken.
She stretched her arms up over her head causing her shirt to rise up just enough to grace me with a view of the skin above her hips. "You decide."
"No. We need to do this together."
She gave me a tiny sweet smile. "We have, Steve. We like all three of them. I'll be more than satisfied with whichever one you feel works best for us."
"But–"
"No buts." She took the papers from me and set them aside, then she grasped both my hands and encouraged me to stand.
"What?" I questioned in honest confusion. "Thought you were going to bed."
"I am," she informed me. "You are going to play the part of the pillow while I catch a nap before my godawful early ass meeting."
Oh. Oh. "I suppose I can do that. For you." And just because I could I scooped her up into my arms, causing her to squeal in surprise and carried her off to our bed.
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finis
