Chapter 2
By: MysticFantasy
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Beep...Beep...Beep...
Steve reached over and turned off his alarm. He was already awake before the alarm even went off. He hadn't been able to really sleep all night.
Normally, he would be up and getting ready for a morning run but he didn't feel like getting out of bed today.
He couldn't even really remember the last time he had slept in or just didn't get out of bed for whatever reason. Definatly before he'd been accepted into the Army.
Maybe he should try to remember what it felt like to not do anything all day.
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Clint pulled back his sleeve and looked at his watch.
5:13 A.M.
"He's always running through here at this time." he said. "Maybe he's late?"
Natasha looked at her partner with a skeptic look.
"OK. Maybe not." Clint admitted as he turned his attention back to the view from the branch they were perched on and continued to look out at the park in hopes of spotting the captain.
"I'm really worried about him, Clint." Natasha admitted. "Something is really bothering him."
"What do you think it might be?" the archer asked. "It has to be something big to get him in the mood he's been in lately. He's hiding himself from us, he won't talk to us, he thinks we don't care about him... What do you think?"
"I don't know." Natasha answered. "But I may go over later and try to talk to him."
"Think he'll let you?" Clint asked. "After the way he was yesterday?"
"I think he may try to ignore me but he's too much of a gentleman to do that. He might listen to me."
"Chilary is dead, my a**." Clint said with a smirk.
"You could learn a thing or two from Steve about that." Natasha said as she stood on the branch.
"But then I wouldn't be that same amazing Hawkeye that everyone knows and loves."
"I'm willing to take that risk." Natasha said.
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Hours later, Natasha was walking down the hallway toward Steve's apartment. She was glad that SHIELD had provided the soldier with a very nice apartment.
She knew a house had been offered to him but for some reason the soldier had turned it down. She figured that he didn't want to live in a big place when it was just him.
Coming to his door, Natasha knocked and waited.
She waited a moment and soon heard three different locks come undone and then the door open a little. She gasped at how awful he looked.
His appearance was always perfect.
His hair was always perfectly combed, his face free of any facial hair, his clothes perfectly ironed...over all perfect.
But now his hair was a mess, a light stubble covered his chin and cheeks and he was still wearing wrinkled pajama's.
"What?" he asked.
That further surprised Natasha. He always greeted her with phrases like 'hello, ma'am', 'good morning, ma'am' or 'nice to see you ma'am'. For him to just flat out get to the point was very concerning for Natasha.
"I was hoping we could talk." she answered.
"So talk." Steve replied through a sigh.
"You going to let me in?" Natasha replied.
"No." he answered bluntly.
Natasha gave him a concerned look which he seemed to pick up right away on what her real reason was for being here.
"Look, I'm fine. Still on my feet, still breathing and still in my right frame of mind. Have a nice afternoon, Natasha." he said before practically slamming the door.
Ok. I'm really worried now. Natasha thought. Although she had been trying since day one to get Steve to call her by her name, he had never done it. Being too much of a gentleman, he always called her ma'am or miss. Every now and then he would call her Agent Romanoff.
But she could count on one hand how many times he'd addressed her by her first name.
"Steve!" she said through the door. "Open the door. Please? I just want to talk to you. I swear that whatever we talk about will stay here."
"Go away, please." the soldier replied.
Well, at least he still has some manners. Natasha thought.
"Steve, please, you know that I can get in if I want to but I want you to let me in on your own. I know exactly what you're going through. You think you're alone, the world is against you and you have no way of making anything feel normal again."
She remained silent for a moment, believing that Steve may have moved to a point in the apartment where he might be able to hear her. But she was quickly proven wrong when the door opened and she stepped in.