February 4, 2010

Somehow, Phil didn't know how but he praised anyone who could be listening, he was pulled off Tony Stark for an extended weekend and was able to return to the District for a bit. By the time Laura picked him up at Dulles, he was beginning to wonder if he might have been better off staying in New York: a blizzard was bearing down on the region and it looked like it would be a doozy.

When they got back to Laura's car, he automatically went to the driver's side. Laura hated driving in poor weather conditions, and since he had experience driving dangerous roads, he automatically drove. This ended up being a good thing, since Phil could feel the wheels sliding ever so slightly on the already-slick road. By the time he pulled into their driveway, there was nearly two inches of snow on the ground and visibility was next to nothing.

As they shook off the snow in the garage, Laura mentioned, "I have some stew all ready and keeping warm on the stove."

"That sounds amazing right now! You had time to make it?"

Laura nodded and he followed her into the house. "Yeah, OPM called closures late last night so I didn't have to go in today. I probably could have put in a half day, but I'm not going to complain about a free day off!"

Phil chuckled with her as they went up to the bedroom to change into more comfortable clothes.

"So how's Tony Stark been?" Laura asked, shimmying on a pair of sweatpants.

He unbuttoned his shirt, shrugging. "He's a pig-headed pain in the ass."

Laura snorted.

Phil raised an eyebrow. "You haven't met him."

"Oh, I don't need to. I've seen him on tv," she called from the bathroom where she was running a wet comb through her hair.

He pulled on his own sweats. "Actually, Pepper wants to meet you."

She walked out of the bathroom, an incredulous expression on her face. "Pepper Potts wants to meet me?"

"Well, remember when she tried to set me up with someone she knew? Stop laughing- it wasn't funny at the time! Anyway since I told her we were together, she's been after me to meet you."

Pulling on one of his old SHIELD t-shirts, Laura nodded. "Well, from what you've shared about her, she sounds lovely. I'd love to meet her!"

Phil grasped her wrist and pulled her close with a smile. "You realize that means you're going to have to meet Stark then, right? He finds out I'm not single and that Pepper's met you, he's going to be insufferable until he meets you himself."

Laura laughed, wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him. "Please, I've dealt with people just as jumped up as Tony Stark."

He kissed her back. "Yeah I know. Just forewarning you."

Suddenly, there was a crack and a thud, and a moment later the lights went out.

Phil, pulled away, suddenly alert. "Stay here."

As he approached the window, Laura whispered, "It's probably just the snow. A tree branch fell on a power line or something."

"I'm going to look around." He took his off-duty weapon with him, just in case. He was grateful that Laura recognized he was in 'Agent Coulson' mode and didn't question him. Sure, he was probably being paranoid and she was right and it was just a downed power line. But there was a reason he was still alive and it wasn't because he was in a habit of ignoring his instincts.

He silently cleared each room and then checked the snowfall from the window in the living room. The snow was coming down hard and there was easily four or five inches on the ground now.

Wonderful. They were going to get snowed in.

When he returned to the bedroom he found Laura sitting patiently on the bed. Phil raised a brow at the baseball bat that was within her easy reach. She shrugged in response.

"It looks like we're going to get snowed in. Are we good for food for a few days?"

Laura nodded. "Yeah, when I saw the forecast I went to the store… with the rest of humanity. Anyway, we're good. Having a gas stove is wonderful for times like this."

Phil started gathering up blankets. "Let's get some stuff down to the den. We're going to want to be in front of the fire tonight."

"Ooh! Cozy!" She picked up an armful of pillows and followed him downstairs.

As Phil set about starting a fire, Laura lit some candles for more light. Over dinner, they chatted about mundane things: him sharing what he could about following Tony Stark around, her about the panel talk she moderated with women members of Congress the other day. They were interrupted when her cell phone rang. He watched as she took it into the kitchen. It wasn't anything serious, just a neighbor checking in on them.

Not for the first time, Phil considered just how lucky he was. Here was a woman he loved and who loved him back equally. It was a marvelous existence. He got up to clear the dishes. When Laura got off the phone, he was back at the couch waiting for her.

"C'mere," he gestured.

She snuggled up next to him and he pulled blankets around them. As he pulled her into his arms, he wished it could just stay this way— just the two of them, in front of a fire and watching the snow fall.

A/N: Yes this is Snowmageddon. (For those of you who are unfamiliar with it, it was a massive blizzard in February 2010 that crippled Washington, D.C. and the region.)

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