another chill chapter w/ a drop of fluff & angst. sorry for almost missing this week's upload, I'm back to work now. as always, enjoy!

TWENTY FIVE

Natasha was the first to move out, followed by Sam. Steve struggled a little bit more finding a place; he wanted to stay in Brooklyn, but it was very pricey, causing him to settle in the Avengers tower for the meantime. Gemma tried not to be hurt that he didn't stay living with her; it was different now they were a couple and not friends. Not that it mattered too much, the trio was too busy sniffing out HYDRA bases with the aid of the rest of the Avengers. Tony thought that the reunion called for a party.

Initially, neither Steve nor Gemma were planning on going, for these kinds of parties were not their thing, but somehow Natasha had managed to convince them.
"I'll teach you flair bartending," Natasha offered.
"How did you know I've always wanted to learn flair bartending?"
"It's on the bucket list on the fridge," Natasha reminded her.
"Oh, yeah. Fine. But if I fail this exam, that's on your conscience." They were working in a communal office, following up on a lead. Gemma was studying for her final assessment to join the FBI.
"Well, then, I'm sure we could do with more of you here." The current agreement Gemma had between the Avengers and her new job was that she worked mainly at her day job unless the Avengers required her for a mission/meeting. It mostly worked. Mostly.
"Also, that means Steve has to go now," Clint added. They looked over at the super-soldier, who's head was buried in paperwork.
"Hmm?" Steve hummed, not even looking up.
"We could say anything right now and I don't think he'd hear," Natasha muttered.
"This seems like a fun game," Clint said. "I'm in." They both looked to Gemma, who shrugged.
"Don't blow it out of proportion," Gemma warned, shuffling in her chair.
"We won't," they said together excitedly. Gemma thought they looked a little like children in a candy store.
"Okay, the winner gets ten dollars," Natasha decided. "I'll go first." She sat for a moment, thinking of what to say. "I've decided to move to the Arctic." Nothing.
"That wasn't exciting," Clint told her. "Watch and learn. I'm sleeping with your mom." Steve hummed, but they still didn't get his attention.
"Would that not be offensive, considering his mom is dead?" Gemma asked, frowning.
"Don't hate the player, hate the game." Clint held his hands up as Gemma raised an eyebrow.
"Okay. My turn?" They nodded. "Erm. I'm pregnant."
"You are?" Clint asked after a moment of radio silence, although all they got was another hum from Steve.
"She couldn't be," Natasha defended, "you have to have sex to get pregnant."
"Okay, hilarious," Gemma retorted, rolling her eyes. "It's your turn."
"Hmm. I have a foot fetish." Still no response. "He's playing really hard to get."
"My go. I'm in love with Thor," Clint said. Nothing. "Hmm."
"That was a whole bump down from your first go," Natasha commented.
"I know, I kinda faltered at the last second."
"I feel like doing a heist," Gemma stated.
"I'm sorry?" Steve said although he didn't raise his head. Gemma clapped her hands together and then raised them in victory fists, and Natasha and Clint groaned.
"Suck it, sluts!" she exclaimed. They all looked at her, including Steve. "I'm so sorry, I'm so excited to be owned ten dollars." Natasha sighed as she handed the money over.

The party was kind of fun. Natasha had upheld her promise of flair bartending, and so the pair were behind the bar together, trying not to break too many glasses. Bruce and Sam were observing and drinking the prepared drinks. Even Tony stopped by at one point in the night.
"I might have to hire you two for my next party," he said, which cause Gemma to struggle slightly with Natasha, who wanted to throw her drink on him.
"They're good drinks, though," Sam said, raising one he'd just gotten from Gemma.
"No, I can do the bartending, it's the flair I wanted to learn," she reminded him, shaking the metal in her hand. "It's a little exhausting."
"I thought I trained strong arm muscles into you!" Natasha exclaimed, pouring out another drink.
"In training, maybe, but out of training I ask Steve to do literally everything else."
"You've got him wrapped around your finger, huh?" Bruce asked, taking the offered drink from Natasha. Gemma did not miss the wink Natasha gave him or the blush that appeared on Bruce's cheeks.
"No, they just make the jam jars really tight and I like jam on my toast," Gemma answered, turning around to place the accessories down.
"He calls you doll," Sam and Natasha pointed out at the same time.
"It's a cute little nickname," she defended. Gemma looked across the room to where her boyfriend was stood, chatting with Maria and Rhodey. The 'keep-it-to-ourselves' rule went out the window pretty quickly after Natasha found out. "I like it."
"Romance makes me sick," Natasha joked. "Look at that smile. You're killing me."
"How did you two even get together?" Sam inquired, downing the last of his drink. "You guys know I'm new to the party."
"Really, I'm the genius that got them together," Natasha said, holding her hands up.
"What? No, you didn't. You just got us to kiss undercover," Gemma retorted.
"She almost died a couple of times, he nursed her back to health a couple of times, they kissed a couple of times, he moved to Washington, she lied about staying home, and what do you know?" Natasha summarised.
"It- actually, that wasn't bad," Gemma said, nodding her head. "I mean, after the Battle of New York, we started to spend so much time together, and he is very good looking…" She raised her shoulders in a half shrug, admiring her boyfriend from afar.
"But when was the exact moment?" Sam questioned. When they all looked at him, he shrugged. "What? I love love."
"I don't know." Gemma knitted her brows together. "I mean, for him, it must have clicked when I got really drunk at Nat's birthday and told him no boyfriend I ever had would compare to him."
"And for her, it clicked the next day when I told her she told him that," Natasha said, smiling. "And now she's never gone higher than competitive five-drink-Gemma."
"That Gemma's a backstabbing bitch." Bruce choked on his drink.
"But are you guys in love?" Sam asked.
"Jesus, Sam, calm down!" Gemma exclaimed. "It's not been very long. This is so new to me."
"Are you scared of love?" Sam challenged, tilting his head. Bruce and Natasha also intently stared at Gemma.
"What- no, you're not tricking me into therapy again," she said firmly. "I think that's my cue to make a timely escape." She ducked under the bar entrance, bidding them all goodnight. Gemma wasn't going to head home, exactly, because she wanted to say good night to Steve, but she did want to spend a little time outside. For someone who hated heights, she loved balconies. And she loved seeing New York like this; the twinkling lights of the city winking at her.
"This sight could never make me regret moving here," she said, resting her elbows against the railing of the balcony.
"Any other reasons?" Steve asked teasingly, coming to stand next to her. She turned her head to look at him.
"I don't know. I got a job I loved, met a certain soldier… realised that there was nothing for me back home," she responded as teasingly, putting on a Southern accent. Steve chuckled.
"Can I ask you a question?" he said earnestly.
"Sure." Gemma extended her arms, listening carefully.
"You don't have to answer, but have you ever gone back home since you left?" Gemma sighed, facing the view of New York.
"No. To be honest, I couldn't and I never found a reason to go. My aunt moved out of the country so I never really had to. But I love it here so much," she answered gently. At some point, Steve's arm had moved around her. She leaned into his chest.
"Do you think you'll ever go back?" he asked, resting his chin on the top of her head. Gemma sucked at her teeth.
"Not soon," she added, placing a hand on his chest. "Not anytime soon."