June

Bruce draped his coat over an arm as a nurse escorted him into a recovery room. Outside may have been the middle of June, but inside the waiting room felt colder than the last winter storm. He approached the bed where Natasha lay and was surprised to see she was conscious. "Hey," he grinned as he pulled up a chair. "I was told it went well." Bruce reached for her hand that lay closest to her side. Natasha's glassy eyes made him assume the anesthesia was still going strong. "You're not in much pain, are you?"

Her free hand lightly caressed her lower belly. "I felt everything," she murmured.

Bruce smiled and wondered if he should record Natasha's drugged stupor, but she'd kill him if she ever found the blackmail. "The nurse said we can leave in a few hours," he promised. "Then its bed rest," he strictly ordered. "Nothing strenu-…"

"I felt it all," Natasha breathed. She turned to Bruce with tears clouding her eyes. "Ev…everything." She swallowed back the lump in her throat. Bruce looked at her as if she kicked him in the gut. "I-I'm sorry…"

"Oh my god..." His voice hitched as he bolted up from the chair. "Natasha, I-I'm so sorry!" He carefully cupped her face between his large hands. "It's all over now," he soothed. "You're okay." He leveled his gaze with hers before he kissed her.

"I shouldn't have said that," she groaned, placing a hand over his. "But it was awful… And I feel like shit."

Bruce felt a tad more at ease now that Natasha was sounding more herself. "I'll get you some ice cream." He knew it wouldn't take away her trauma, but with everything said and done, there was nothing more he could do.

"Kinda feeling like take-out," she replied with a smirk.

"You know I'm spoiling you," Bruce promised before kissing her forehead. "I just can't believe that happened. I've heard it's a rare occurrence…"

"Must be a side effect of the serum," she mused.

"At least it went smoothly," he reassured. "This will all be worth it," he added, lowering himself into his chair.

Natasha closed her eyes and tried to ignore the prickling soreness in her gut. "I hope so."

"You're making me dread my own surgery," he joked. "That's…not a part where a man wants an incision."

She rolled her eyes and smirked. "It hurts to laugh."

"Maybe I should make it hurt for you," Natasha commented as Bruce walked beside her with a slight limp. She felt fully recovered after last week's procedure, but still envied how pain-free Bruce felt. Between the couple, they had two surgeries down, and another two to go until they would know if any Hulklings would be pattering around their apartment.

"I wouldn't hold that against you," he chuckled.

"So they found us some baby Banner candidates?" she asked as they neared the reception desk.

Bruce hesitated and rubbed the back of his neck. "My count is low, but they took what they could get." The procedure took twice as long as what he was told, but it was better than nothing.

"Looks like it's up to me for eggs, then." She stood up on her tiptoes to give Bruce a quick kiss.

"This is about us, Natasha," he gently reminded her. "We're in this together."

Natasha laced her fingers with his as she approached a woman working the front desk. "Natasha Romanoff. I'm scheduled for four o'clock."

"Funny how our baby is starting off as a lab experiment," Bruce mused. After a long fifty-three hour wait for results, they were informed that five embryos had formed and were ready and waiting on Natasha.

"That's not funny," Natasha retorted as she stared out the car window. "And if we get a kid from this, don't talk like that. Experiment," she huffed.

He briefly glanced over at her as he drove. If not for the traffic, Bruce could've driven to the hospital blindfolded. "Sorry," he breathed. "I just… Lab humour…" His voice trailed off as he stopped at a red light.

"Speaking of labs…" She watched Bruce from the corner of her eye. "Does Stark know?"

He stole one last glimpse at her as the light flashed to green. "No. Does Clint know?"

Natasha shook her head. "I'd rather not mention anything until we're sure."

"It's hard to not let them in on it..."

"And even if I do get pregnant, we're waiting three months," she ordered.

The thought had Bruce grinning like a restless child. "Twelve whole weeks?"

She narrowed her eyes in his direction. "I've read into this, Bruce. I don't want us getting excited over a baby and end up losing it."

"Natasha…" His joy was drained in an instant.

"Just because we have an embryo doesn't mean my body will accept it. It takes couples multiple tries, and even that doesn't guarantee a kid."

Her attitude made him wonder if now was the best time to start their family. He expected Natasha to be sending nothing but positive vibes to their unborn. "We've made it this far," he comforted. "Part of me didn't think we'd ever get this close."

Looking at Bruce made her remember why she was doing this in the first place. Time wasn't going to stop for him, and she refused to let him leave her harboring any last regrets. "The hormones they've got me on have me going nuts," she sighed. "But we've gotta keep the possibilities open."

"There's still adoption," he mentioned. "If we don't get a baby within a year, we'll register with an agency and give someone the parents they deserve," Bruce suggested with a soft smile.

The car turned into the hospital's parking garage.

"One year," Natasha agreed.

She was told to call back in two weeks after taking a pregnancy test. All she and Bruce could do for the time being was wait. "Not sure how I should feel," Natasha commented as she sank into the couch. "We've got a potential kid in here," she continued, rubbing her flat stomach.

Bruce wrinkled his nose as he sat down beside her. "Don't say 'potential.' We don't want that negativity in here."

Natasha relaxed against his chest. "'We' me and you, or 'we' you and baby?"

"'We' as in the three of us," he hummed as his fingers combed through her curls.

She closed her eyes and nuzzled against the crook of his neck. "It's gonna be a long two weeks."

"Don't take a test without me," he smiled.

"Only if you promise not to mention babies," she wagered.

Bruce chuckled. "I'll do my best."

Natasha came home with four plastic bags, two from separate drugstores, another from a Target she had never been to, and the fourth from a distant Wal-Mart.

Bruce set his book aside once he heard Natasha slam the door. "Long lines today?" The usual hour long shopping trip took twice as long as normal. He rose to his feet and followed the sound of rustling bags.

She rested the four separate bags on the counter and dug through each one until she found the home tests. "I took some detours."

He grabbed one of the bags from the pharmacy and found hand soap, powdered drink mixes, a birthday card… "Whose Birthday?" Bruce lifted the card with cartoon cats on it.

"I'll save it for Barton or someone," she muttered, removing her sunglasses before opening up box number one.

Bruce laughed and began rummaging through the Wal-Mart bag: deodorant, chips, men's socks… "Did you really turn this into an undercover mission?" he teased.

"No one needs to know our private life." Natasha scanned the instructions, then moved onto box number two. The test was a different brand, but she figured the "pee on the stick" rules were same as test number one.

Bruce helped in opening the next box. "99.9% accurate," he read. "Is the .1% difference the reason you needed backups?"

"They can give mixed results." Natasha reached for the final box. "You mind starting dinner while I do this?"

He smiled and reached for the Target bag. "I'll whip something up out of all the goodies you brought home."

Natasha lightly swatted his arm before gathering the tests.

Bruce took advantage of the hamburger buns she bought and found a pack of veggie burgers in the freezer. He brought out the skillet and some oil as he anxiously got dinner started.

Natasha returned moments later. She grabbed a cup and filled it to the brim with water.

Bruce watched her from the corner of his eye.

"It's gonna be a while till we know anything," she warned, feeling his gaze.

"You're in no rush," he noticed as he opened up the box of burgers.

Natasha sipped her water while putting away the items resulting from an afternoon of grabbing random findings off of shelves. She set the table right after, followed by a necessary bathroom break. "Two down," she droned upon returning into the kitchen. Natasha snatched a tomato and cheese from the fridge.

"Are you peeking?" Bruce wondered.

She found a knife and began slicing the tomato in uniform slices. "No, and you better not, either."

Bruce flipped the burgers in their pan while staring at Natasha. While his stomach was in knots, she seemed as collected as ever. He had been envisioning this day for the past two weeks. Natasha would show him a positive test and throw her arms around him. In other daydreams, she'd cry, and then he would cry. Right now, he was fixated on a particular daydream of them entering the bathroom to find all four tests positive. Bruce made a note to himself to sneak away after dinner to grab her ring. He couldn't think of a better time to propose.

Natasha took two bites out of her burger before realizing she really wasn't hungry. Between downing three glasses of water and the fear of disappointing Bruce, her stomach felt full.

Bruce was now sensing Natasha's nerves. They were contagious. "You should try eating some more," he nudged, despite his own burger being half eaten. "Your health is even more important now."

She tiredly eyed her empty glass before rising from the table. "Bathroom," she whispered.

He managed to finish his burger by the time Natasha returned. "Are you finished up with business in there?"

"Three minutes," she announced, taking her seat.

He quietly observed as she picked at her dinner. "Promise me that we won't give up if this doesn't work."

Natasha lifted her chin to meet his stare. "Only if you swear that you'll never hold this against me."

"Why?" he gasped, eyes wide. "Why would you think that?"

She ran a hand through her hair and glanced down. "You want this baby so much more than I do."

"Don't say that. Natasha…"

"Is adoption really going to make you happy?" Her eyes flickered to his. "Can you honestly tell me that someone else's baby will make you happy?"

He furrowed his brows. "They'll be ours, Natasha…" His voice caught in his throat. "Are… Did you check the tests?"

Her fingers curled into a tight fist. "One."

Bruce ignored the pang in his chest as he abandoned his chair to kneel before Natasha's. "It could've been wrong. And even if it's not," he quickly added before she could protest, "we'll try again." A hand reached out to stroke her cheek, but she jerked her head to the side. "I love you, Natasha. Baby or no baby, I love you. And I want to marry you," he swore.

Natasha opened her hand and waited for the warmth of his palm against hers. "I just want you to be happy," she breathed.

"You're my happiness," he promised with a meek grin.

Natasha knew that he was all talk. The strained sob in his throat when they found all four tests to be negative told her so.

"We'll…we'll wait a few more months." Bruce kept his head low. Despite his efforts, he couldn't hide his disappointment. "It'll be okay." He knew keeping his hopes high was dangerous, but he yearned for Natasha's smile and a positive test. Their efforts deserved a reward.

"We're getting another one injected after my period," Natasha decided. "No waiting."

Bruce gave her hand a rough squeeze. "Only if you feel ready."

Her free hand trailed down her middle. "I'm ready," she softly answered.

Natasha contacted Fury later that night to inform him that she was willing to accept her upcoming mission. He asked no further questions regarding her condition. So long as she kept taking on the dirty work, he would know.