Chapter: 11

Sorry for the long wait everyone, hope you enjoy.

The two of them had barely gotten into the movie when Tony had to quickly reach for the trashcan sitting next to the couch. He held it up to Natasha just in time. She took the trashcan into her own hands and though his stomach was twisting and turning, Tony managed to man up enough to hold her hair back with one hand and rub small circles on her back with his other. He tried to offer her any support he could. It took a good fifteen minutes for it to stop and around another ten for her to stop dry heaving. When she was finally finished Tony put the trashcan to the side, trying not to gag himself, and watched her collapse against the back of the couch.

"You alright?" He asked her after a moment. Natasha opened her eyes and tried to smile up at him the best she could.

"Are you?"

"Ah," he replied with a small tilt of his head "it was a bit traumatizing. I might not get over it." A small chuckle escaped her.

"I'll pay for the therapy." She said simply and Tony nodded.

"As you should, it's all your fault" he said standing up "I'm gonna make some more of that tea." He said "also gonna make some chicken noodle soup that you're gonna love." It was said as a statement not a question.

"You can't cook Stark."

"From a can Romanoff," he said back to her as he retrieved the can from the cupboard. "Even I know how to work the magic of the microwave." Natasha just smiled and listened as he moved around in the kitchen. Not many people ever saw this side of Tony Stark, she considered herself privileged to be part of that small group. It didn't take him long to return with the bowl of soup in one hand and a coffee mug in the other. By that time the elevator announced its arrival and a man stepped out that Tony nodded to.

"Evening Mr. Stark," the man said.

"Hey Hart, how's the upstairs situation going?"

"All cleaned it's just airing out now. I set up some automatic air fresheners and your computer is getting the fans going real good in there. It should be all good to go in no time."

"Great, thanks Hart."

"No problem," the man replied and turned to Natasha with a warm smile "hope you get to feeling better."

"Thank you," she replied and he nodded back at her.

"Tell Ms. Potts I said hello," he said to Tony "see ya around."

"See ya." Tony replied then turned to Natasha and gestured towards the man's retreating figure with his thumb. "Great guy," he said and placed the coffee cup on the table. He held the bowl out to Natasha and she slowly took it from him. Her stomach rolled just looking at the contents. "You should feel special not everyone gets the privilege of eating a meal prepared by the great Tony Stark."

"I'll be sure to remember that." She replied with a slight roll of her eyes. He watched her as she picked up the spoon and swirled it around the bowl.

"Um, you're doing it wrong Romanoff," Tony said then pressed play on the movie and turned his attention to the TV screen. It was one of the things she liked about Tony, that he could give her the space she wanted but at the same time keeping an eye on her like he wanted. Natasha knew that he was still watching her though his focus seemed to be on the screen and though it made her stomach roll she scooped up a spoonful of the soup that wasn't quite warm enough. She could feel her stomach protest but forced herself to swallow then scooped up another bite. She too turned her main focus on the movie to give her something else to focus on. Out the corner of her eye she could see the small tug of a smile on the billionaire's lips.

"Thanks Tony," she said quietly.

"No problem little red."

"I don't like that name." She said then took another bite out of the soup.

"Of course you do." Tony replied with a wider smile.

By the time the movie had ended it was almost three o' clock. The bowl of half eaten soup and an empty coffee cup sat forgotten on the table and Natasha was fast asleep. Tony turned off the TV and looked towards his sleeping friend. The way she was curled up on at the other end of the couch made her look so small and vulnerable, the second word he had never thought to honestly use when describing the deadly assassin. She hadn't gotten sick again after eating which was a plus in his head he hoped that the medication she took earlier might actually be working for her.

Tony's attention travelled down to the small bump of her stomach. Though she hadn't gotten much bigger yet he noticed that the shirt she was wearing was tighter against her and he made a mental note to mention it to Pepper. Maybe she could take Natasha shopping, if the medication was in fact working then it might be good for the woman to get out of the tower. Fresh air could only help right? It also made him wonder if she had thought to buy anything for the baby such as a crib and other necessities, was it too soon to be thinking of that stuff? He shook his head to calm down his thoughts and turned his attention back to the present. His eyes drifted to the medicine bottle still on the table.

"JARVIS,"

"Yes sir?"

"What time was it that Romanoff took her medicine?"

"It was twelve fifteen sir,"

"When is she supposed to take it again?"

"Dr. Banner prescribed her to receive two tablespoons every six hours."

"Will you set an alarm for that?"

"Yes sir."

"It's really early for her to be asleep," He said to no one in particular.

"I believe it is either from a lack of sleep due to her sickness or from her body's deterioration due to her pregnancy." The AI replied and Tony reached up to rub at his eyes and hoping that it was from the first option.

"Yeah, thanks J," he said and about the same time the elevator announced the arrival of someone else. Tony turned to see Captain America emerge, still dressed in his workout clothes from where he had been out running.

"Hey Tony," he said running a hand through his hair. "I was wondering if you we were planning to get together for dinner or…" he trailed off once he caught a glimpse of Natasha's sleeping form. "How's she doing?"

"She managed to eat something," he replied.

"It's a start," Steve offered and Tony nodded.

"JARVIS will you inform Dr. Banner that his presence is requested?"

"Yes sir,"

"Thanks buddy." Tony replied then looked to Steve. "Well Legolas is AWOL at the moment, Pepper had to leave earlier to go to a conference that she won't get back from until late, Point-break is out with Jane, and I doubt Nat is going to eat anything, so it looks like it's just you, me, and big green tonight. I was thinking Chinese." Steve nodded his agreement then gestured to where Natasha was asleep.

"Maybe we should try and wake her up, at least try to get her to eat some more?"

"Nah, let her get some sleep," Tony replied. "She tried her hardest to get all of the soup down earlier I don't think she'll be able to take anymore." The elevator arrived once more and Bruce Banner stepped out to join his friends. "Hey Bruce, Chinese?"

"Um, sure sounds fine."

"Great so now that that's settled you guys want to watch a movie or play a game or something?" Tony asked and Steve shrugged and looked to Bruce. He looked to Natasha's sleeping form then to Steve and Tony.

"I'd rather go look at…"

"I think that the medicine is helping," Tony cut in "she only got sick once after taking it and it wasn't as bad as it has been."

"Was there any nausea?"

"Yeah but she managed to eat a little."

"I still want to look at…"

"You've been going at it non-stop doctor," Steve cut in "I think you might need a break." Knowing that it was two against one Bruce finally just nodded in agreement.

"Ok then," Steve said "I've got her." From past experiences they were all very cautious when dealing with either of their two resident assassins when they were asleep. As gently as he could, Steve nudged her shoulder then took a step back. Much to everyone's surprise she remained still. Steve shook her a bit harder "Nat…Natasha…" she stirred slightly and opened her eyes but Steve and the other men could tell that she was still not fully awake. "Let's get you somewhere more comfortable ok?" He said softly before scooping her up into his arms and heading towards one of the spare bedrooms that was on the common floor. He pulled the covers up over her and left her to get some rest.

For the men, the rest of the night was spent watching random movies and trying their best to relax. They ordered some food from a restaurant that Tony had recommended and tried to make some small talk among each other. All in all it was a quiet night. When an alarm, sounding like what a normal alarm clock would, went off both Steve and Bruce were startled but Tony just quietly got up from his seat, grabbed Natasha's medication from the table, and disappeared into the guest room. A silent understanding went through the other two men.

"I'll take the next round," Steve said once Tony returned.