Flashlight
Chapter nineteen
"Yo!" Natasha's elated voice sounded from the speaker of your phone. It echoed through the kitchen as you started getting your breakfast ready.
"Yo?" You replied, a little confused by her attitude at this early hour.
She chuckled, followed by a crunch, and you knew she was munching down on her favourite cereal. Natasha prided herself on changing her morning routine frequently; she was convinced it was beneficial for her health. You weren't certain if that was true, but you knew she always returned to the same type of cereal after a little while.
"I need you to keep next Saturday free," she said after a few moments and a very audible swallow. She was teasing you— she knew how the sounds of someone chewing and swallowing loudly could raise the hairs on the back of your neck. You tried to ignore it, not willing to give her the satisfaction. Though, if she kept it up, you both knew that there'd be a groan or a snippy remark leaving your mouth soon enough.
"Mhhm okay," you finally said after quietly counting to ten."May I know why?"
"It's a surprise." You could practically hear the smirk in your friend's voice. Her surprises were always a little out there. Which could go one of two ways, really well or really bad. Her intentions were always good— the execution not exactly.
"A fun one?" You asked, hoping against hope that she would give you a hint.
"Absolutely," Natasha said confidently. She was giddy and that worried you a little.
What did she have planned for you? She wouldn't make you do something you didn't want, right? Your mind instantly went back to the time she decided on the colour that you were supposed to dye your hair in an attempt to annoy your parents. It was supposed to be a wash-out brand, but Nat had decided on bright blue, and apparently that colour was tough to get out. You ended up actually having to get your hair dyed to get the colour out, which really annoyed your parents at the time, though they laugh about it now.
Then there was the time where she had convinced you that the rollercoaster you were getting on wasn't that wild or scary. A terrible decision that left her holding back your hair as you threw up in a bin around the back of the ride.
Natasha knew you better than anyone, and she worked hard to get you out of your comfort zone, to be a little more daring. You smiled at the memories, because even if it did not always pan out, your life would have been a lot more boring without her. You would most likely have never taken a single chance in life. You would have never been brave enough to kiss Bucky during a school dance, which was what prompted him to ask you out on a date. How different your life would've been without your demanding, daring, caring, and confident best friend.
With that being said, when Saturday rolled around, you were extremely nervous. After spending the better part of the week trying to get some information from Natasha, you were none the wiser. She was good at keeping secrets. A great quality in a friendship, except when she was keeping something from you, of course.
Natasha had come over the night before, eager to make it a sleepover, since the men had decided on having a boys-night out. Your alarm would ring at seven in the morning and she knew better than to expect Clint to be quiet as he rolled into their bed at five. Which was the usual hour after these nights. So the two of you had dinner, watched a movie and then went to bed rather early at Natasha's request.
Natasha woke up first and was already fully dressed by the time she shook you awake in a not-so-gentle way. Groaning, you turned away from her and complained loudly when she did not relent. Chuckling, she pulled you up and ushered you into the bathroom. It wasn't until you were in the shower that you realised that your alarm hadn't even gone off yet. Annoyed, you leaned into the warm water and vowed to go through your routine at a more leisurely pace than usual. As if that was her punishment and not actually for your own delight. It wasn't until Natasha knocked on the door, urging you to hurry, that you realised that you had been massaging shampoo into your hair for the better part of five minutes. Rushing through the rest of your routine, you were dressed and at the breakfast table by 7:30.
There you were greeted with an elaborate breakfast provided by Natasha. To make up for the early morning, she had made your favourite breakfast dish— blueberry pancakes. And while you appreciated the gesture, it also made you wonder just what she had in store for you today.
By eight o'clock you were in the car, moving towards the highway out of town. Natasha had told you that your appointment was at ten, so the ride would be long, but you never needed much to have fun together. You adjusted the seat to your preference and stared out of the window as Natasha turned on the radio. At some point you must have dozed off, until a catchy song on the radio woke you up. Natasha smiled as you sat up straighter, and she turned the volume up with a wink in your direction. Not long after that, you were both singing along to the lyrics at the top of your voice.
With twenty minutes to spare, Natasha pulled into the parking lot of a small airport, and your heart began to race. What was she planning to do here? Natasha beamed at you and got out of the car, waiting patiently for you to follow her. Which took you a moment as you breathed deeply in and slowly out, wiping your suddenly sweaty palms on your jeans. Somehow you did not believe that she had brought you here for a simple flight. If you had known just how right you were, you would have locked yourself inside the car right then and there. Instead you just stepped out and let her lead you towards a small building where a tall middle-aged man greeted the two of you with a bright smile and a few kind words.
Before you could truly register what was happening, you had been through some instructions and ended up strapped into a harness and hooked to an instructor as he moved you through the small plane and towards the opened door. Wind whipped at your hair, pulling fly-aways out of your braid. It tugged at the jumpsuit you'd put on earlier, and despite the padding, you were chilled to the bone. Though that might have been from fear and not actual cold. Your stomach churned and you wondered if you were really going to do this.
By now your feet were dangling over the edge, and you were certain that your bladder was about to give out— even though it was surely empty. You were mere seconds from pulling out when the instructor began his countdown, preparing you for the jump. Glancing to the side, Natasha gave you two thumbs up as she smiled brightly, excitedly. She was truly enjoying this. You, however, were not.
The worst part of it was, this had been your idea. Sort of. You had been so stupid to mention this during the brainstorm session with Natasha and Wanda, though you had been joking. Apparently, the joke was on you now. Which was exactly how you felt, a joke. Worse, the punchline to a bad joke. You were such an idiot. You could have bowed out on the ground, but you hadn't. A part of you had thought it would be fun. Scary, but fun. So you had stepped onto the plane. How you regretted that now.
"One!" Called the instructor tied to your back, and he pushed off. Both of you dropped from the plane and plummeted to the ground.
The wind pulled at your skin, taking your breath away, as well as any ability to scream. It took some effort to close your mouth as you watched the ground come closer and closer, realising just how high you had been. You were still scared, so incredibly scared, and yet, for a single moment, as you fell, it was also exhilarating. There was a weightlessness to it, a freedom fuelled by adrenaline. Suddenly all your worries were gone, pushed from your mind; nothing else seemed to matter— nothing but this weightless freedom. Nothing but the parachute and the desperate hope that it would work, that your instructor would manage to land you both safely on the ground. Which should be an easy feat for the experienced man behind you.
In the plane you had gotten a full explanation on how the landing would go and as the ground neared, the instructor yelled out a few reminders. You nodded, unable to speak with those winds still whipping at your face. He gave you his signal and while he pulled the toggles to slow the speed of your descent, you pulled your legs up against your chest. It felt very counterintuitive to curl up as the ground came closer, but you told yourself that this was necessary for a safe landing. Otherwise you'd risk getting your feet tangled with those of the man behind you, and that would definitely cause problems. The landing was over in seconds, and you found yourself seated on the dry grass with a huge smile on your face.
Natasha landed mere moments after you, and as soon as she was free of the bindings that had tied her to her own instructor and their parachute, you wrapped her in your arms while laughing loudly. Exhilaration overpowered every other emotion now, and the adrenaline was still coursing through you. You jumped around together in a small circle, happy that you had dared to take this plunge.
"Can we go again?" Natasha asked the men as they began folding the parachute, a pick-up visible in the distance— their ride back to the airport.
"Quite the kicker, isn't it," one of them replied with a chuckle, and you could only agree with him, wholeheartedly.
Though you still vowed to never do it again. This was one of those things that you only wanted to experience once. You were glad that you had done it, but that was it. There was no need to repeat it. Natasha on the other hand seemed fully prepared to do it several times over. She always had been the more daring of you two. The most daring of the entire group really. Balls of steel, that woman.
When you'd gotten yourself out of the jumper you'd been made to wear, Natasha took you to lunch at a quaint little diner about fifteen minutes away from the airport. There, you both spoke excitedly about the whole experience and the first item of your bucket list that you could check off.
You were just swallowing your last bite when your phone began to buzz. Slightly surprised that the world was still out there, you picked it from your pocket and glanced at the screen. An unknown number. Confused, you answered, and you nearly dropped your fork upon hearing who it was and why.
An apologetic Steve was begging for both your discretion and your time. Not a regular request, but he sounded rather urgent, and you were willing to help him in any way you could. So you asked for an explanation, while Natasha quickly went to the register to pay for your food. Steve was quick to explain that the four of them had gotten into some trouble and were currently being detained at the police station a mere ten minutes from your place. You groaned, not even bothering to ask what had brought them there. Instead you told him you were quite some ways away from home, but that you were on it. Arrangements would be made to get them out as quickly as possible.
Natasha came back from the counter and quickly collected her things, a smile tugging at her lips as she sighed.
"They got in trouble, didn't they?" She said with a scoff, and you could only shrug. This wasn't the first time and it wouldn't be the last, you imagined. Especially not now that they were complete again. Those men were trouble personified when they got together.
"I just wonder why they called me," you wondered out loud as you made your way to the car.
"Steve called?" You nodded and she chuckled.
"Well he wouldn't call Sharon—he's still easing her into our group of degenerates. Sam would've been adamant not to call Maria, because she'd chew his head off. And I'd just laugh at them. It was either you or Wanda. And Wanda's working today."
"I feel so special now," you laughed and searched your purse for your phone, only to realise it was already in your lap. Natasha started the car and checked the mirrors before exiting the parking spot. You had offered to drive but Natasha had just smirked, saying that they had called you, so it was now your job to inform Maria. You'd groaned loudly, not looking forward to that conversation at all. Even though it was a call she was probably already expecting. After all, she would have noticed that her man hadn't come home that night. And she would have put two and two together.
These boys' nights were infamous amongst your group—and to anyone that knew you long enough. There was no way to predict what they would get up to, but it was often trouble. Naturally, the so-called innocent Steve was often the instigator. He was reckless, strong-willed and he never backed down. That stubbornness had gotten him into trouble so many times as a kid, but it had never changed. Bucky had taken to jumping in, trying to salvage whatever he could, which rarely worked. Clint, on the other hand, knew just how to egg everyone on—he liked a little chaos every now and again. After Sam had joined your little group, there'd been a short moment in time where you hoped he would have been more sensible. He wasn't. He was just as bad as the rest of them and he loved every second of it.
It often resulted in four severely hungover men with crazy stories, like the time they were attacked by a swan because they had thought the animal needed help building her nest. The bruises had been real. As had your laughter. You had tried to explain that good intentions didn't mean much if the execution was bad, but it had done nothing to enlighten them—though they had checked the next morning to see if the animal was alright.
You had loved teasing them those mornings, speaking a little too loudly or laughing a little too much as they battled the effects of the alcohol. You never quite enjoyed mornings as much as you did during those moments. It was like they all turned into idiots that couldn't recognise their limits at all when they got together like that.
You remembered the first time something had occurred; it had been near the end of high school and had ended with Bucky serenading you underneath your bedroom window. Steve and Clint had been hiding in the bushes, but by the time they'd woken the whole neighbourhood up, those two had skedaddled—hanging Bucky out to dry. Your father had been so angry, but you hadn't been able to stop laughing. It had taken some time after that for Bucky to win your father over again.
And you would never forget the Halloween that they teepeed the house of some bully—which they had gotten away with, since they'd managed to hide in Natasha's shed afterwards. Her parents had known, though they played dumb. Everyone knew of the reputation of the bully, and that his parents would just sweep it all under the rug if anyone ever caught him.
Their—perhaps misguided—crusade for justice had only increased once Sam joined their nights. They had spent many a night creating places to sleep for the homeless, not caring that they were vandalising government property. You imagined just how glad the local politicians must have been when the men joined the army. Of course nobody could have predicted that they would only come home with one more trouble maker amongst them. And now on their first night out with the four of them in years, things had obviously gotten out of hand.
And now it was up to you to inform Maria of this. Not because you were telling on Sam— you were certain that Maria already knew what happened, but she knew the law better than any one of you. She was a paralegal and would be able to get them out of trouble most of the time. Which was also why she would be angry with Sam. She'd tell him that he should've known better. Which he did, until those other boneheads joined in.
By the time you reached the precinct nearly two hours had passed, and you were well-informed of the stupid antics that they'd gotten up to the night before. Though you couldn't even be really mad at them.
In a drunken stupor, they had gotten into a fight with another group. Bullies, according to Maria. Which would normally not get them arrested, except they were trained combatants and therefore outmatched the other group easily. They were held to a higher standard. They had also been rowdy, the police informed you. To calm matters down, they'd arrested the lot of them. Nobody had been severely injured—just some minor abrasions, bruised eyes, and bruised egos—leaving the boys with a mere misdemeanour charge. Your hope was that Maria could get those dropped if she explained the situation.
Which she then proceeded to do, though only because the officer in charge had gotten the full scoop on the story and he had never intended to give them much trouble. Naturally, not one of you had any intention of letting these men know. They better show some gratitude to their saving angel, Maria.
"Hello there, boys!" You exclaimed as you walked up to the bars that caged them in. It was late in the afternoon, but with their sleepless night, you were certain that their hangover would be particularly bad this time. It was all the incentive you needed to be as chipper as you could possibly be.
"Shush," Clint said. "No need to scream."
You smirked as you looked at him, tilting your head to the side and winking. He groaned and slumped on the hard bench he was sitting on. Sam and Bucky had already covered their ears as soon as you opened your mouth, keeping a careful eye on you—scared that you'd start speaking again as soon as they uncovered them. This was not unthinkable.
Only Steve seemed genuinely happy to see you, unfazed by your loud voice. He always did recover easiest from a night of drinking. Which was unfair, since he was usually the one to persuade others to match him beer for beer. Only Maria ever managed.
"Drunk and disorderly, huh?" You asked, perhaps still a little too loud, and Clint muttered some angry words under his breath. You chuckled, before turning back to Steve.
"We really weren't that bad, I promise," Steve offered and you laughed, one of those full-out belly laughs, loud and boisterous, because you knew them. Even if you had not been aware of exactly what they had done, you would never expect them to be angels. They were more like warriors. For justice, as they liked to claim. They simply lacked the finesse that would keep them from being arrested. You cocked an eyebrow and shot him a pointed look, which was enough to make Steve groan. He knew the jig was up; they were busted.
"Did you bail us out?" Sam asked after a short moment, hopeful eyes looking your way.
"Oh hell no, I don't have that kind of cash," you chuckled, not bothering to inform them that no bail had been set. They had not been arraigned. His hangover must have been worse than you thought.
"Did you just come to gloat?" Clint groaned as he stood up and walked towards you. You smirked again and winked.
"Gloating is part of it, yes, but I also arranged for Maria to come, and she's currently trying to get the charges dropped," you finally told them, taking mercy on them.
"You called Maria?" Sam seemed genuinely worried, and you laughed. He made it seem like she would smack him around for this. She'd be angry, naturally, chew him out, but he'd apologise and things would work out just fine in a day or two. Clint sat down beside him and patted him on the back.
"Yep," you said, popping the P, "Sorry, buddy, but you knew you couldn't hide this from her."
Sam just nodded. You were right. Of course. Besides, you would have never been able to get much done for them, whereas Maria was a force to be reckoned with in situations like this.
"Wait, you don't gloat. That's not your style," Clint said, sitting up. "How did the surprise go over?" A mischievous glint appeared in his eyes, and you knew there was no hiding your own misfortune.
"Well, let's just put it like this; I'm glad I did it, but if I ever get any ideas again—just shoot me."
Clint barked out a laugh, earning him a punch from both Sam and Bucky, before Sam realised that he had no idea why the man laughed. Sam wasn't the kind of person that was often left out of a joke—he needed to know the gist of it.
"Wait what did you do?" He stood from the bench and joined Steve by the bars, cocking his head to the side as he took you in. It surprised you just how quickly he had forgotten about his hangover.
"Nat took her for a parachute jump," Clint said, and laughter erupted from the others, to which you just shook your head because you couldn't even blame them. They all remembered the puking after the rollercoaster from hell. Ever since, you had not been in search of adrenaline quite as much.
"And this was your idea?" Bucky asked incredulously, finally opening his mouth.
"Unfortunately." You shrugged and cocked your head to one side again, making no effort to suppress the smile that broke out on your face. Bucky just shook his head with another chuckle.
A/N: I found a new beta and she was kind enough to work quickly, so I could post this weekend! Thanks gnomewithalaptop on tumblr!
And as always, feedback is appreciated!
