"You're distracted."
Erin barely dodged out of the way of Natasha's fist. She unfortunately couldn't get out of the way of the kick that followed and she landed with a thud on her back. Breathing heavily she wiped the hair from her sweaty brow. "You know, I actually didn't miss you cleaning the floor with my ass. When I said we should meet, I was thinking more like lunch."
The big fallout had been six months ago. In that time Erin had concentrated on teaching Peter everything that Natasha had passed down to her. Not that he was very good at it. He was much more of an acrobat than anything. Still, she worked with him as much as she could. She also helped with Rhodey's rehabilitation and Vision's slow and methodical exposure to pop culture and society at large. It was two months ago that she had received an encrypted message from Nat asking her to meet. When she had seen the redhead (now blonde) for the first time in four months she couldn't help but run into the older woman's arms. And then promptly punch said arm for leaving.
"Careful, you sound like your brother." Nat smirked. "And don't change the subject. Where's your head at." The older woman offered Erin a hand and pulled her from the ground.
"Nowhere. Right here." Erin brushed away the dust from her clothes, not meeting Nat's questioning gaze. She didn't know why she even tried. Natasha was a superspy after all, if she wanted to know something, there was little Erin could do to keep it from her.
"Mmm hmm," Nat raised an eyebrow. "So, you're gunna stand there and tell me you're not thinking about a certain spandex wearing teenager." The two set up to spare again.
Erin blushed red and opened her mouth to reply but before she could Nat was on her. She threw a punch aimed at Erin's middle, which she barely blocked with two hands. Erin swung back her right arm to strike her closed fist against Nat's temple, but she ducked down, swinging a leg out to knock Erin's own legs out from under her. Erin landed on the floor again with a loud thump and growled in frustration. She scrambled to stand.
The two danced around each other before Erin went in with two quick successive sidekicks. She landed the second one and Nat doubled over slightly with a huff. Erin smirked, didn't have time to feel much satisfaction, however, when Nat came running at her.
Nat took a running leap and wrapped her legs around Erin's middle, the momentum took her off her feet and the two women went flying to the ground. Somehow, Nat landed gracefully on top of Erin and the younger girl scowled up at her.
Breathing hard, Erin said, "I think I like sparring with him more, at least I don't end up on my back nearly as much."
"Oh, I think you'd like it very much if you ended up on your back with him." Nat smirked.
"Natasha!" Erin seethed. She could feel her face become impossibly hot. "Get off of me!" She squirmed, but Nat just smiled more widely and barred down against the teen's shoulders.
"Erin and Peter sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-,"Nat didn't get the chance to finish her teasing.
Erin braced her feet against the floor and then wrapped her legs around Nat's middle, rocking them like a wheel and reversing their positions. She raised her fist, the threat of a punch there, but Nat just giggled from below her. "Come on, Erin. You can tell me."
Erin dropped her fist and sighed. She didn't feel much like fighting anymore. She got up and offered Nat a hand. "How's everyone doing?" She asked instead.
"Well, we're hopping around from safehouse to safehouse, so no one's really that happy. Except for Sam, he's always in a good mood."
Erin smiled, remembering Sam's perpetual silver lining attitude. "I heard Clint's on house arrest."
Natasha nodded. "Honestly, it's a good thing. It was either that or come on the run with us." She shrugged. "What about you guys. How Rhodey?" Nat's brow scrunched in concern.
"He's doing better," Erin nodded. "Really, I think he likes being half machine. Makes him feel like a badass." Both girls laughed lightly. "Vision keeps disappearing, though. I'm not sure what he's up to."
"Mmm," Natasha gave her a look like she knew more than she was letting on. "I've got some theories." She didn't elaborate.
The two were silent for a long beat, sipping from their water bottles and toweling off the sweat from their workout. Finally, determined not to meet her eye, Erin asked, "How do you know if someone likes you. Like, like likes you."
Nat smirked. "Well," she began. "There are subtle tells. The pupils will dilate. They stand close to you, with their front facing you, or they find excuses to touch you. Attraction can lead to anxiety so they might fidget. Emotionally, they're invested in what you have to say, which leads to long conversations. They notice the little things about you. They're comfortable being vulnerable with you." Nat got a far away look in her eye and then shrugged, smiling. "They buy you a pint of your favorite ice cream because you mentioned it once."
Erin blushed and squinted her eyes at her. "How did you know that?"
Nat smiled wickedly. "I have my sources."
Erin sighed heavily, thinking of what Nat had just told her. Peter touched her a lot, but that was only because most of the time she was teaching him combat moves. And he was invested in what she had to say, but again, that was because she was teaching him something. He fidgeted, but Erin had learned over the last couple of months that Peter was a pretty squirrely guy. She thought about the conversations they had when they were not sparring - about her life with the Avengers, the fall out, his balancing act between being Spiderman and being a normal high schooler. But that didn't tell her anything. And yeah, he had bought her a pint on her favorite ice cream, but that was just Peter; so nice, so thoughtful.
"You could always just ask him. Or kiss him," Nat said. Erin stared at her in absolute horror. Nat laughed and held up her hands in mock submission. "Okay, okay. But in my experience that always seemed to work out pretty well."
"Yeah, well not all of us can be Natasha Romanoff." Erin hung her head.
"Well, I don't think Peter's looking for a Natasha Romanoff." She winked. Erin rolled her eyes.
Natasha's look turned serious. "What about you, kid? What do you feel? Do you think you might like like this Peter Parker?"
Erin contemplated Nat's question. At some point Erin had become aware that she looked forward to her time with Peter. In fact, he had become one of her favorite people to spend time with. He was fun and funny. She liked listening to him go on about certain things he found interesting. He was smart and animated and passionate. On top of that he was just good. Unwavering in his ideals and straightforward with his intentions. Not to mention, Erin could be herself around him. She didn't have to hide her abilities or skirt around her connection to Tony.
Did she like him? How could she not? He was unlike anyone she had ever met.
She met Natasha's gaze and nodded. The older woman just smiled at her warmly and wrapped an arm around her shoulder.
She didn't know if Peter liked her like that, but she couldn't necessarily rule it out. And like any good hypothesis, she needed more data to come to a conclusion. She'd just have to pay closer attention.
"Thanks for meeting me, Nat." Erin said. "It's nice to have someone to talk to. About...stuff." She shrugged. "I miss you."
Nat's eyes got uncharacteristically misty. "I miss you too, kiddo." She pulled her closer. "And don't worry. Everything is going to work itself out. Eventually." Nat pulled back and contemplated her. She brushed a bit of red hair out of Erin's eyes. "You've gotten a bit taller, haven't you?"
Erin laughed. "Maybe you're just short."
"Don't make me kick your ass again."
Three days later, Erin walked into the training room, her shoulders set with determination. It would be the first time she would see Peter after her conversation with Natasha and she was determined to figure out if he liked her too. Not by asking him of course, that would be embarrassing. She'd gather intel using the queues that Nat had told her about.
She set out the mats they'd be using and got to stretching while she waited for Peter to show. Her back towards the door, she reached down to touch the tips of her toes.
She told herself to keep a cool head. Her mission was deeply personal, but she couldn't let that affect how she did her job or interpreted her data. She would come to a conclusion, one way or the other.
So lost in her own thoughts, she nearly toppled over when she heard the sound of a throat being cleared by the doorway. She glanced between her legs and saw the inverted image of Peter standing at the doorway, his eyes averted with red cheeks, Tony standing behind him with a hand clasped to his shoulder. It was Tony that had interrupted her thoughts, and Erin rolled up to glare at him.
The past few days had been particularly brutal with Tony. He had taken to teasing her about her training sessions with Peter. When she had pointed out that it was him who had suggested the set up in the first place, he merely ignored her. She had vaguely wondered if Tony knew about her secret meeting with Nat, and if he knew about their topic of conversation. She loved Tony, but good Lord, could he be annoying.
"Can I help you?" She asked Tony.
He just smirked and patted Peter on the shoulder. "Just found a spider lurking at the doorway."
Peter glanced back at him nervously, "I don't think you could really call it lurking, I just got here."
"Sure, kid." Tony said something that only Peter could hear and then pushed him forward. Peter walked stiffly across the mats to meet her.
"Tony, this is a training session. It's a little below your paygrade." She couldn't exactly conduct her survey if Tony was around, he made Peter too anxious.
"Don't worry, Er. I'm just passing through." He sent one last look towards Peter, who got busy fiddling with his web shooters, before disappearing around the corner.
Erin sighed heavily and motioned for Peter to get ready. "Come on," she muttered. "Let's go over the move from last week." They got in position and waited a beat before Erin charged at him.
When they had first started, Peter had been awful at defending himself against someone who actually knew how to fight. He had agility and perfect reflexes, which helped him greatly, but Erin had speed and training. Now he could anticipate her kicks and punches and was pretty good at deflecting them.
She started with two successive front kicks. Her foot flew up to be blocked by his hand, and then he backflipped away from the second. She moved to meet him and clipped him on the shoulder with a punch. He grabbed her arm and spun her around. The momentum sent her spinning away and he shot a web at her torso. She felt a pull as Peter yanked her back towards him. Dizzy at the quick movement, Erin realized too late that he had sent another jet of webs at her, this time at her hands, sticking them together and making them useless. He caught her, swiping a leg under her to knock her down. Before she could hit the mat, however, he caught her and lowered her safely to the ground.
Peter knelt above her and Erin's heart gave a little flip. "Good job," she said. With a strain of her arms, the webs around her hands ripped.
Peter offered her a hand and lifted her easily from the floor. He smiled, "You make the webs look like silly string."
Erin laughed, "Well, hopefully you won't go up against anyone with superstrength. Just neighborhood stuff for now, right?"
Peter shifted uncomfortably, "Yup, keeping it small time."
They continued to practice. Each time Peter managed to incapacitate her she praised his hard work. He had certainly become more precise in his movements and the use of his webs. "Good, you only have a finite amount in those canisters and you really should reserve twenty precent for emergency exits."
Peter rolled his eyes at her. "What kind of hero would I be if I ran away?"
"Maybe a smart one," she intoned. "Don't get cocky, and don't underestimate your enemy. It's not weak to retreat and regroup."
Erin considered her words and then scowled at herself, she sounded like Nat. What was worse, she was saying all the things she hated hearing from the older woman. Considering the look on Peter's face, it wasn't something he liked to hear either.
"You're fast and your agility is off the charts, as long as you can stay ahead of them, it won't matter how strong they are." Erin circled him and he turned to match her movements.
"So you're saying I could actually take you out?" He smirked. "I know you're holding back. How strong are you, really?"
Erin shrugged. "Strong enough."
"Come on," he teased. "I can't get better if you don't challenge me."
Erin smiled at his playful tone. "Okay, Spider-ling. But remember, be careful what you ask for."
Peter scowled at her, "It's Spider-Man - Woah!" He jumped back just in time to miss the kick aimed at his head. He sent a web in Erin's direction but it spun away into the air. She had dodged it with ease and came at him with much more speed than he had yet to see from her.
Peter sent a web up to a metal beam that crossed the ceiling and swung away from the redhead. He landed at the far wall, sticking to the vertical surface before coming back at her with the intention of striking her with his extended legs. Erin dodged out of the way and Peter flipped in the air to land in a crouch behind her.
Erin didn't give him time to reset, she was on him in a flash, a volly of hits aimed at him. He was able to block or dodge most, but a few met their mark. Erin saw an opening and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck. She drove her knee up into his thorax and Erin heard the air leave his lungs in a woosh.
Peter stumbled backwards and Erin launched herself at him, intent on using the same move Nat had used on her earlier in the week. She wrapped her legs around Peter's midriff, but in a surprise twist, he wrapped his arms around her legs and used her own momentum to send her spinning through the air. Erin landed hard on the mat, rolling twice before stilling. Her elbow tingled from the landing and she hissed in pain.
Huffing in frustration, Erin leapt to her feet. Peter squared off against her. She ran at him but at the last second dropped down to slide between his legs. Spinning on her knees, she kicked a leg out and swept him to the floor.
She climbed on top of his back, pinning him to the ground. With a knee on either side of him and his arms twisted behind his back in her vice-like grip, Erin smiled in victory.
It was at that moment, however, that Erin realized Peter was a long stronger than she had been led to believe. Before she knew it, she was the one on the ground with Peter looming above her. Her arms were suspended above her head and Peter webbed them up to keep them there. The position was awkward and her shoulders strained uncomfortably.
"Son of a bitch," she seethed, chest heaving.
"Woah, language," Peter said with laughing eyes.
Erin sighed in concession. "Good job."
"You're a lot stronger than I thought," he admitted, still perched above her as they caught their breaths.
She quirked an eyebrow. "You too." Erin realized the position she was in and she squirmed under him. "You maybe wanna…?" He stared at her for a beat too long before jumping up suddenly.
"Yeah, sorry. Oh jeez," he muttered. With a heave he ripped the webs around her hands and helped her to her feet.
They stood awkwardly for a moment both unable to meet the other's eye. Erin thought desperately of a topic to break the silence. Before she could however, something caught Peter's eye.
"Oh, shit." He said, grabbing her arm gently. A warmth bloomed in Erin's chest and her breath caught as he brushed a thumb over the back of her arm where a bruise was beginning to form. "Erin, I'm so sorry!" He met her eyes with sincerity and Erin had to laugh lightly.
"It's just a bruise, Peter."
"Yeah, but…" he still hadn't released her arm. He looked at it again with regret.
"You can't tell me you've never left this training room without your share of bruises from me." Erin smiled at him. "It's okay, Pete."
"Well, when you put it that way," he joked.
Erin grinned and turned to head back to the mats. Peter moved to follow her and she suddenly remembered what Nat had said about those tells. She turned to his left and he followed to face her, smiling. She took another step to the left and he mimicked her. They had made a one hundred and eighty degree rotation before Peter began to look a little worried.
"Are you going to attack me again?" He asked.
"What?" She asked, caught off guard. "No! Um, I just thought I saw something, is all." She brushed past him and he followed her to the mats. They began to clean up, stacking the mats against one wall.
"It's getting pretty cold out," Peter said offhandedly. "Wonder if it will snow soon."
"Oh, I hope so," she replied.
"That's right, winter's your favorite, isn't it?" She gave him a puzzled look. "That's what you said before."
"Yeah," she murmured. "I just didn't think you'd remember."
Peter shrugged, toying with the hem of his shirt. "I remember everything you tell me."
Erin eyed him. That was at least three things now that met Nat's criteria - four if you counted the fidgeting. He touched her when it wasn't strictly necessary, he faced her, even when she changed directions, and he remembered even the most mundane facts she told him.
Holy shit, she thought. Could it be possible that Peter actually liked her? Her heart thudded erratically and she tried to remain calm.
"Yeah, I always look forward to winter. Tony throws this amazing Christmas party. It's so much fun. Everyone just lets loose. One time, Thor brought this Asgardian mead with him…" she giggled at the memory of even Steve being a tad drunk off of the stuff. Her mirth died when she realized this year would be quite different with everyone gone. "Well, it was fun anyway. Everyone's gone, so I won't have anyone to hang out with." She tried to keep the disappointment out of her voice.
"Well, I'm going to be there." Peter said quickly.
"You are?" She asked, surprised. She hadn't realized that Tony had extended an invitation to the web-slinger.
"Yeah, I mean," Peter scratched the back of his head, his eyes flitting between her and the floor. "We could hang out. During the party, I mean." Erin nodded. It wasn't odd for them to spend time together, they often did after their training sessions came to an end. Then Peter added, "We could like, go together."
Erin dropped the mat she was holding in surprise. Her cheeks heated as she picked it up again, unable to meet Peter's gaze.
"Yeah, that would be cool," she tried to say nonchilantly, but her voice sounded strained, even to her. "I mean, if we're both going to be there, might as well."
"Cool," he nodded, eyes wide like he couldn't believe what just transpired. He wasn't the only one.
Did Peter just ask me on a date?