This collection of ficlets was completed in French a few years back and I never took the time to finish translating it to English. Well, now is the time! Please note that I am not a native speaker; don't hesitate to point out any mistakes, kind criticism and reviews are always welcome.

Love is for children

He slammed her against the wall, his eyes looking for hers, their skin so close it prickled their senses. Way too close, if you'd asked her. She could feel his breath graze her mouth and, when lowering her gaze, she could see how dry his lips were.

"Barton," she warned him, her voice threateningly low, yet hesitant.

He remained silent. Natasha's gaze went up again, leaving his lips to focus on his eyes. This bare movement was enough for her lashes to brush gently her partner's cheek. She ignored the shiver slithering down her spine as she dove into the greyish blue of his pupils and warned him again, her tone gentler: "Clint."

He sighed, closed his eyes briefly, and released some of the pressure he was keeping Natasha's shoulders. The strain did not disappear though. She could still sense how tense his muscles were.

"They love each other. They do not deserve to die like that," he eventually said in a low voice.

This mission was about people just like them, except that they were not only partners but also a married couple. The brief said they were part of a European agency that had impeded some of Fury's plans. But Clint had a whole other intuition regarding this subject: What if this whole mission was a warning, a way to make them understand that they'd do better if they avoided all kinds of excessive romantic feelings?

There was something not right about this mission. He didn't want to kill those people, not in such a cruel way, not using this specific weakness to make them talk. Because deep down, he knew that he would give anything up to save Natasha's life. When he had mentioned that they could recruit this couple, Director Fury just leered at him.

"Love is for children, not for agents and spies," retorted Natasha coldly.

He did remember the beginning of her sentence. He played the scene in his head, down to the inflection of her voice. Love is for children. He knew it from the recording of her improvised questioning of Loki.

Was this all a game to her? Were missions more important than her sense of ethics? Was she the least moved? Was she playing a role or revealing her true self? Was she heartless, or did she try to protect Clint from his own deepening feelings? He didn't dare ask those questions aloud. He'd rather have them haunting his nights than hearing the answer, rather than admitting his weakness.

He laughed; a mere breath of disillusion between his lips. The only way he knew how to hide his disappointment.

Some parts of him wanted to uncover the thoughts she was hiding, to know if she was as conflicted as he was. They had been playing this dangerous game for a while now, yet never spoke of it. Every time they'd given something away, every time they had crossed the boundaries, they had immediately recoiled, fighting against the attraction while embracing it at the same time. This never-ending tango-like dance was keeping them sensually apart, without really separating them.

He took a step back.

"As you wish, Romanoff."

His cold, sarcastic self was back.

She bit her lower lip, trying her best to look unfazed, only offering him a determined stare.