Hi guys!

Sorry this took me so long to get up. Instead of writing more over spring break like I should have last week, I slept in every day and spent too much time on Netflix. But, I definitely know what the next few chapters of this are going to look like, so that's a plus. I will try to get the next one up soon, but there's 5 weeks of school left, and I'll be insanely busy, so updates will come later probably.

I don't own Captain America.

Enjoy!

-:-

Bucky fiddled with his pocket knife as he waited for Natasha outside of Colonel Phillips office. They'd gotten back on base yesterday, and he'd noticed that both Steve and Natasha had been unusually quiet the whole way back. Considering what Bucky had seen—Natasha fulfilling her debt by saving Steve's life—it wasn't all that surprising. Bucky hadn't felt like talking much after the fact either.

He'd realized, while fighting by her side during the mission, that they had a good dynamic. They worked well together. In fact, the three of them—him, Natasha, and Steve—they all worked well together. They had become a team of sorts, all initial hate or distrust on his part aside. She'd wedged her way into all of their lives and he knew they would all feel it when she left. Especially Steve, who he hadn't seen since they'd gotten back to base. Bucky knew he would feel it too, the loss of Natasha.

There was still, most definitely, a part of him that was so easily infuriated by her, but at the same time, he felt a pull to her, deep in his gut. He had narrowed down both feelings down to kindred spirits. Whether he liked to admit it or not, they were alike. More so than he would have ever originally thought possible. Because of that he knew they were destined, in the end, to be enemies or friends. Nothing in between. He was glad it turned out to be the latter.

When he heard the door to the Colonel's office open, he closed his knife and slipped it back into his pocket, watching as Natasha emerged from the office. She spotted him right away. If she was surprised that he was there, her features didn't show it.

"Waiting for me?" she asked, a slight twinkle in her green eyes.

Bucky nodded. "Thought I would escort you—"

"Ooh," she cut in teasingly. "'Escort'? How fancy."

He scoffed as they started to head down the hall. "Anyway," he started again. "Just thought I would bring you back to your bunk, see if you need help packing anything up."

She gave a short laugh. "Just can't wait to get rid of me, can you?"

Bucky laughed, but when he spoke, his voice was serious. "Actually…if I'm being honest, it'll be kinda tough to see you go."

The surprise was clear on her face this time as she twisted her head to look at him, but she schooled her features quickly. "Really?" she asked, voice almost uncertain.

"You've become one of us," he said simply.

Now it was her turn to scoff.

He gave her a look. "I'm serious. You're part of the team. Maybe not completely, but in all the ways that matter."

Natasha didn't reply. He noticed her hands ball up into fists momentarily, before loosening them with what seemed like at least a little bit of effort.

Bucky turned back to looking straight ahead as they continued to make their way to her bunk. "I saw what you did, you know. For Steve. Saving his life."

He felt her tense up beside him. "Yeah," she said, tone clipped. "It was nothing. I did what anyone would have."

"Yeah, except nobody else was looking to fulfill a debt to him."

"I didn't see it as fulfilling a debt," she admitted. "That whole debt thing was just the best excuse Rogers could come up to keep me on base."

"But it worked, didn't it?" he prompted.

"I had my reasons for staying, other than that stupid deal," she replied vaguely, eyes staring straight ahead, back straight, shoulders stiff.

"I figured that," Bucky told her. "We all kinda figured that. Steve's deal was a pretty shitty one. I mean, getting you to stay here because of a life debt? For someone as smart as him I would've thought he could come up with something better than that."

Bucky looked over and saw that she'd cracked a small smile at that.

"Still," he continued as they made it to her bunk, stepping inside and shutting the door. "No matter what reasons you had for staying, deal or no deal, debt or no debt, I don't take what you did lightly."

She turned to look at him, eyes intent on his face as she listened. She crossed her arms over her chest and gave him a little nod, urging him to continue. He sat down on her bed, hands braced against his knees.

"You saved Steve's life," he said. "I've been pulling his ass out of the fire since I can remember, and I wasn't close enough to him to do that the other day. You were. I don't care about some dumb debt either. I care that he comes out of battle in one piece." Bucky paused, hands tightening around his knees. "Look…I think you and I got off on the wrong foot—"

"That's an understatement," she muttered.

"Can I finish?" he asked.

"Oh, please do," she shot back.

"I just…to be honest I didn't think that you were actually going to do it. Save his life, I mean. If anything I thought you were going to be the one to pull the trigger. But I was wrong. And I'm sorry. I misjudged you, and that wasn't fair of me. I didn't even know you, and I allowed myself to listen to rumors instead of getting to know you first."

Natasha was silent for a moment, before a smirk pulled up the corners of her mouth. "Wow. I think that's the nicest you've ever been to me. I'm impressed. I wasn't even sure you had that in you. You're not gonna explode are you?"

"Oh, shut up," he muttered, exhaling as he stood. "You would've gotten to see be nice some more if you weren't leaving."

She looked steadily at him, a small smile on her mouth, and he had a feeling she knew something he didn't. Hell, she probably knew a lot that he didn't, but this was different. This was something relevant that she knew.

"I'm not leaving, James," she said softly.

And there it was. He was so surprised by what she'd said that he was barely fazed by her using his first name. "What?"

"I'm not leaving," she repeated. "Not yet, anyway. That's why I was talking to the Colonel. I've got a few things to put together still, some contacts to sort out, before I leave. Figured I would just stay here in the meantime. Besides…it's not so bad being part of a team."

She looked up at him from under her lashes, that teasing smile still playing on her full lips. Bucky just stared at her as he processed.

"That's…that's great," was all that he could come up with.

She just laughed and rolled her eyes. "Thanks. Don't sound too enthused."

"Still processing," he muttered. Then he smiled at her. "You called me James."

She met his gaze evenly. "Steve and the others call you Bucky. I may be part of the team, but I'm not them."

"No, you certainly are not," he told her softly. He held her gaze for a moment longer, before ducking his head, glancing down at his feet before looking back up at her. "I should probably go. Um, you should really tell Steve. He'll be glad to hear you're here for a bit longer."

She nodded in acknowledgment. "I will."

He stopped by the door on his way out. "Goodnight, Natasha."

She smiled at him. "Goodnight, Sergeant Barnes."

He laughed, and then left, shutting the door quietly behind him, feeling better than he had in a few days.

-:-

Peggy got to Natasha before she had barely stepped outside of her room. Peggy didn't even need to say anything, Natasha just knew, and headed back into her room, plopping down on her bed, where Bucky had been sitting just moments before.

"Let me guess," Natasha started, looking at her friend. "Barnes told you."

"Oh, I was on my way to see you anyway," Peggy waved her off, pulling up the single chair Natasha had to sit right in front of her. "But I was coming to see you off, and now I'm just glad that I don't have to."

"Yeah," Natasha trailed off.

Peggy didn't seem fazed by her lack of a response, though. "So? What changed your mind about leaving?"

"I've still got some contacts to get a hold of, a few things to sort out before I leave," she automatically told Peggy, using her go-to response for the question. It was the excuse she used on Colonel Phillips, the same one she gave Bucky. It was an easy answer. It made sense.

And yet, Peggy wasn't fooled, and gave her a disbelieving look.

Natasha knew that Peggy was smart—brilliant, actually—but it really showed during moments like this, when Peggy had no qualms about calling her out on her bullshit. Natasha also had to give Peggy credit for actually figuring out, in the short time that they'd known each other, when Natasha wasn't being completely honest.

"He got to you, didn't he?" Peggy asked knowingly.

Natasha shrugged, trying to act casual. And it annoyed her to no end when she felt her pulse spike for just a moment at Peggy's question. "I don't know what you mean."

"Bloody hell, Natasha," Peggy muttered. "That's worse than telling me that you're sticking around because you still have 'a few things to sort out'."

Natasha kept her mouth shut, refusing to answer. She was behaving ridiculously, like a child, but hey, she was stubborn.

Peggy rolled her eyes and huffed out a breath in exasperation. "Good god, you're just as bad as Steve. And that's who I'm talking about, though I know you already knew that."

Natasha tilted her chin up, keeping her gaze anywhere but on Peggy.

"He got to you, didn't he?" Peggy repeated the question, more softly this time. "Steve? He's the reason you're staying, right?"

Natasha inhaled and exhaled slowly, keeping her eyes on the ceiling a moment longer. Finally she looked back at her friend. For a moment she expected to see Peggy gazing at her triumphantly, like she'd just won some kind of contest between them, but that wasn't the case. Peggy was giving her a soft smile, not exactly sympathy in her gaze, but a sort of mutual understanding. Natasha didn't know much about Peggy and Steve's past, but in the moment she knew that Peggy had gotten hooked, completely drawn in—perhaps unexpectedly—by Steve's utter charm and his morals and his loyalty and everything else about him that made everyone around him want to be a better person. Even Natasha, who was about as damned as they came.

"Yes," she answered Peggy finally, her voice hardly louder than a whisper. She cleared her throat, hating how small and weak she sounded. "Yes," she repeated, louder. "He got to me, all right?"

Peggy's smile grew, but it wasn't mocking. "I figured as much. He has that effect on people."

Natasha scoffed, because that was pretty much an understatement. Steve's personality was practically magnetic, sucking people in, whether they wanted to be or not. A smile, a smart-ass comment, and a selfless action was usually all it took to put people under his spell. And the worst—or perhaps best—part of it all, was that he had no damn clue. Well, maybe he did, but if that was the case, he sure didn't flaunt it or act all cocky about it. That's why it worked. He was just the way he was because that's who he was. He wasn't trying to impress anybody or be somebody he wasn't. He was Steve Rogers, and that was it. though most people now saw him as just Captain America, star-spangled in red, white, and blue, it was the man under the uniform that made Captain America a hero.

And Natasha had been sucked in like everybody else, and she'd hardly realized it until now and the thought of leaving had given her an odd feeling, one that she still couldn't place.

"I just figured I would see this through," Natasha told Peggy.

It was half the truth. She did want to finish this, and see Hydra burn to the ground. She'd sleep a little better. But, if she was being honest with herself, it was because of Steve himself. No other motive, just him. Saving his life once didn't feel like enough, and the least she could do was stay, if only to show him how much she appreciate what he'd been doing in trying to save her. Because a small part of her knew that he had saved her. Not completely. But a little. Her staying was proof of that.

"He'll be happy to hear that," Peggy told her.

"Just don't tell the Colonel," Natasha told her with a smile. "Because I gave him the same excuse I gave you: that I was staying until I could finish getting things together."

Peggy laughed a little at that. "Your secret is safe with me." Peggy stood up then, smoothing out her skirt, and gave Natasha another smile. "You should really go talk to Steve."

Peggy threw one last smile over her shoulder before she left, quietly shutting the door behind her. Natasha let out a breath, leaning forward and bracing her hands against the edge of her bed. Her pulse fluttered, a shot of nervous warmth flooding into her stomach as she thought about Steve. She shook her head, letting out a similarly nervous laugh. This is fucking ridiculous, she thought. She'd been taken off the street by her Red Room superiors too young to really experience that first school-girl crush, but she assumed this is what it felt like. But she wasn't some love-sick little girl, she was the Black Widow, and Captain America was the last person she should have a crush on.

She kept trying to tell herself it wasn't a crush, that she just felt like she owed him, but it wasn't really working. She couldn't deny that there was a part of her that was very much attracted to him. What wasn't there to be attracted to? He was a damn near perfect specimen. (So it was an attraction, not a crush, she decided). And despite his god-like physique, he was one of the most human people Natasha had ever met. He was kind and selfless and honest and he'd given her a second chance when she'd least deserved one. And because of that, she couldn't let whatever attraction she had for him go beyond that. He wasn't some target she was seducing, and she figured that she would leave, eventually. No sense in getting any more attached than she already was.

And yet a small part of her nagged that some things were easier said than done.

-:-

Steve had been idly—and maybe a little furiously—sketching when the knock sounded at his door. He exhaled, though it came out as more of a sigh. It was probably Bucky, checking up on him again, even though that was the last thing he wanted. He just wanted to be alone right now—

When he opened his door, though, it was not Bucky. Natasha looked up at him in greeting, half a smile on her face, and everything seemed to stand still for a moment. He felt his lips part slightly at the sight of her, half from surprise and half just because of her. He'd noticed, from the moment they'd met, that she was beautiful. Anyone could see it. And it wasn't just her looks that made it so. The confidence with which she carried herself was just as breathtaking. But even knowing how beautiful she was, it wasn't until more recently that he'd really started to notice it. They'd been working side by side for several months now, and he was getting to know her a little better each day, slowly filling her in piece by piece. And he wanted to keep putting her together. He'd started to solve the puzzle that was Natasha Romanoff, but he was beginning to realize that this enigma was one that was going to take some time. Which is one thing that he did not have.

"Can I come in?" she asked raising her eyebrows at him like she was confused that he was still just standing in the doorway, staring at her no less.

"Uh, yeah, of course," he said, flustered, stepping aside. He could feel the slightest blush creep up into his cheeks and he rubbed a hand across the back of his neck.

He shut the door quietly behind Natasha, and turned to find her looking around his room, her features soft, and more open than he'd seen them before, completely absorbed in her curiosity, and Steve realized that she hadn't actually been in his room before. It wasn't anything spectacular, and only slightly bigger than the other bunks. He did have some art supplies spread out on his desk, and the sketchbook he had just been working in was sitting on his bed, but other than that, there wasn't much personality to the room. A stack of books was piled neatly on his desk. His clothes and shoes were tucked away nicely. Natasha seemed fascinated, anyway. Most likely because she was getting another peek into the life of Steve Rogers when he wasn't in his Captain America uniform.

"So," he started, swallowing hard, shoving his hands into the pocket of his trousers. "Are you all packed?"

He couldn't completely hide the strain in his voice, and Natasha turned to look at him immediately. She scanned him up and down, and Steve tried not to squirm under her gaze. Her face gave away hardly anything, as usual.

"Steve," she started slowly. "You look like you're going to be sick."

He didn't say anything, because she was spot on. She had to know that. He had no doubt that his feelings were plastered all over his face, because they were twisting and somersaulting inside him, punching holes in his stomach and dropping his heart like lead. He didn't know why the fact that she was leaving made him feel this way, but he could barely contain it inside of him.

"It's gonna be tough to see you go, I guess," he said, trying to even out his tone. Her gaze softened a little, and she took a few steps towards him, closing the space between them so they were only a few feet apart.

"Yeah," Natasha mused quietly. She paused, and there was something almost teasing about the way she looked up at him. "Guess it's a good thing, then, that I'm not actually leaving."

Steve stared at her. His brain slowly, almost letter by letter, pieced together her words and the meaning they had once all strung together. Then he repeated it over and over in his head, just to make sure he got it right, that he wasn't imagining things, all while Natasha's expression grew more and more amused.

"You're…you're staying?" he finally managed to say.

Natasha gave him a soft smile. "Sure am."

"I—well, that's great! I mean, really, I'm glad, but…why?"

"Guess I just didn't want to leave without seeing this through," she told him earnestly, softly, and the weight of her words was clear. She was staying because, somewhere along the way, this mission became something more for her. It wasn't just his mission anymore, but hers as well. And he knew her well enough by now to know that she didn't leave anything half finished.

He looked at her with a small smile, because he really didn't know what else to say. That sick feeling from earlier had completely disappeared, and he almost wanted to pull her into a hug, except he knew she wouldn't appreciate that. She did return his smile, though. And then she stepped all the way up to him, and stretched up on her toes, softly pressing her lips to his cheek.

"Goodnight, Steve," she murmured when she pulled back. Then she gave him a little smirk, and left the room.

"Night, Natasha," he said, though she was gone and all he had left was the burning imprint of her lips on his cheek.

-:-

So like I said up top, I will update when I can, which is hopefully soon!

Thank you all so much for the feedback and the support, you guys are amazing, and I couldn't ask for better readers :)

Also, if there's typos, it's been a long day and I'm pretty sure my proofreading was not on point this evening, so I apologize.

Thanks for reading!

-DaughterOfPoseidon333