Thank you so much for the reviews! I love that you guys are loving the story so far! I'm sorry if this chapter feels a bit all over the place. I know you guys are loving them when they're young but I'm just way to excited to share what I have planned for high school. Anyways, here's chapter 4!

Every week seemed to be an obstacle course Clint and Natasha had to accomplish to get to their weekend play dates. Every Saturday, Natasha would be at Clint's house from mid-morning until roughly nine o'clock at night. In the span of time that Natasha spent at Clint's house every Saturday, the duo would gather all of the blankets, pillows, and couch cushions they could find and they would build a super secret fort in the middle of the living room.

The school year was especially hard on them. Being in different schools was tough, but before they knew it, it was summer, and Natasha would be entering Stroudsburg Middle School in the fall. Clint had also hoped that he and Thor would be reunited with Steve. Having different teacher wasn't really working for them. Clint and Thor barely saw Steve, and they had hoped that having different teachers wouldn't put a strain on their friendship.

The summer passed by in a blur and before they knew it, school was starting back up again. Luckily, Clint, Steve, and Thor were all placed in the same sixth grade classroom. Unfortunately, they were going to have Mrs. Giffel, an extremely strict teacher whom Barney had when he was in sixth grade. Barney had been a troublemaker when he was in sixth grade, so Clint hoped Mrs. Giffel wouldn't assume Clint was the same way.

There was no recess at Stroudsburg Middle School so Clint and Natasha wouldn't get to see each other during the school day, but they always had the bus ride home to look forward to. Clint, Steve, Thor, and Natasha were still on the same bus route, so the bus ride to and from school always made for the most interesting part of the day.

The group of kids passed their respective grades with flying colors. Barney and Tony were moving on to bigger and better things at Stroudsburg High School. It was strange how quickly they had to grow up as soon as they left the middle school.

The summer before seventh grade, Clint, Thor, and Steve started discussing sports. Aside from archery, football was an extra-curricular Clint was interested in. Every year when his family visited for Thanksgiving, they played a game of football in the backyard. It was usually adults versus kids; the kids always won for some suspicious reason. Clint was a decent football player so he was considering trying out for the middle school's football team. Thor and Steve agreed to do the same.

Natasha wasn't pleased with this tidbit of information. She didn't want to seem selfish, but if Clint was at practice and games, that would mean she would have to spend more time in a house with parents who paid more attention to who was winning the latest argument than they did to her.

"But if you're at practices and games, we'll never have time to hang out," Natasha said one day when Clint brought up the subject.

"Don't worry Nat. I'll make time," Clint said with a small smile. "Besides, you're going to come to the games, right?"

Natasha smiled and nodded.

In the beginning of August, before seventh grade started, Thor, Clint, and Steve trekked to the middle school football field to try out for football. It was a long and grueling day, but in the end, they knew it would be worth it if they made the team.

A couple days later, Clint received a phone call from the coach informing him that he had made the team. Clint was ecstatic. A few hours later, Steve and Thor had both called Clint to tell him that they had both made the team as well.

Natasha was happy for Clint, but when he had called her on the phone to tell her the good news, he could tell something was wrong.

"Nothing," she mumbled when he had asked.

"Tasha, I know you. What's wrong?" Clint said.

"I just don't want to spend time at my house anymore than I have to," she said.

"Nat, don't worry. This won't change anything. I promise," Clint reassured her.

Clint was right. Football didn't change anything. If anything, Clint and Natasha had managed to spend more time together than they did before Clint had joined the team. When Clint had practice after school, Natasha would find a spot in the shade out of the way of the football players and she would work on her homework until practice was over. Natasha would then get a ride home with Clint and his mom. Most of the time, Natasha would join Clint and his family for dinner.

Natasha hated to admit it, but Clint was pretty good at football. She knew absolutely nothing about the sport, but from what she could tell from the praise the coach shouted at Clint after a play was done correctly, he had to be good at it.

The team's first game was the third weekend of September. Clint and his mom were going to pick up Natasha before they headed to the field. It was a perfect fall day. The temperature was in the low 60's. There was a slight breeze, and the sun was shining.

Natasha was excited to see Clint in action, in an actual game. Even if the team lost, she knew that all of them would be able to come out of the game knowing they played a good game.

Unfortunately, the team did lose, but it was only one game. They still had 19 more to go for the season. Either way, after the game, Natasha joined the team on the field and congratulated Thor, Steve, and Clint on a job well done on their very first game.

The football team ended the season with 19 wins, and only one loss – the very first game they lost. After the first game, Natasha watched them at practice as they reviewed their strategies and fixed what they had done wrong in the first game. Whatever they had fixed had definitely worked. They didn't lose a game following that practice.

Natasha had to admit that she felt a little bit like a loner since everyone else was getting involved in school activities while she just waited around for Clint to finish practice. She vowed that when she started seventh grade that she would definitely get herself more involved with the school.

Sixth and seventh grade ended for the group of friends, and once again they were faced with a summer of rest and relaxation. Once again, Natasha and Clint would be faced with their last year together in the same school, but Clint promised to make it worthwhile.

Eighth grade was quite possibly the most exciting grade to be a part of in the middle school. There were so many events and opportunities the school offered for the students who would be spending their last year together before high school. There was the harvest festival in October, Cupid's Ball in February (which only admitted seventh and eighth graders), and the farewell dance at the end of the year.

Natasha had managed to fill up her schedule for seventh grade. Not only had she managed to take the maximum amount of classes, but she was also a representative for Student Council, a Student Ambassador, and a member of the French club. She was always busy, but never too busy to hang out with Clint. She hadn't even realized that Clint was finished with football and that it was the middle of February when she started to notice the flyers and decorations for Cupid's Ball.

"What is all of this?" she asked pointing to the streamers adorning the entrance to the auditorium.

"Where have you been for the last couple of weeks?" Steve asked.

"Doing my school work, and attending Student Council meetings, and planning the bake sale for the French club," she said haughtily

"It's for Cupid's Ball," said Thor. "It's on Friday."

"Friday? This Friday?" Natasha asked, confused.

Thor nodded. "Yeah, are you not going?"

"I don't know. If I have time I guess," she said shrugging her shoulders.

"Nat, come on. You are working way too hard. I think you need a little time for yourself," Clint said sincerely. "We're all going together in a group. Please just come. I'm really not in the mood to go without my best friend."

Natasha shrugged her shoulders again. "I don't really have anything to wear, and you of all people know I can't afford anything unnecessary."

"Ask Peggy or Jane. I'm sure they'll be able to loan you something," Steve suggested.

Natasha groaned. Cupid's Ball seemed like an incredibly ridiculous plan to make singles feel lonely, and to make couples feel superior. Sure, it was only seventh and eighth graders but in this day and age, there were kindergarteners going steady.

"So is that a yes?" Clint said encouragingly.

"Fine," she said and stomped off to her next class.

It was finally Friday night and Natasha was getting ready in her bedroom for the dance. She had exactly 20 minutes until Clint and his mom arrived at her house to pick her up. She had spent the entire day at Jane's house sorting through all of the dresses her and Peggy owned. She had decided on a dark red dress with thin straps and a black ribbon that tied around the waist.

Natasha had never been a girly-girl, but she wasn't a tomboy. She dressed average, did her hair every-so-often, but never wore make-up. Tonight, she was pulling out all the stops. She had done her hair so that they hung in loose curls that brushed just above her shoulders. She had raided her mom's bathroom for some mascara and eyeliner, which she applied to a minimal extent. Finally, she pulled on the red dress and looked at herself in the mirror.

It's nothing, she thought. It's just me in a dress. What's the big deal?

Natasha heard the phone ringing in the kitchen and she rushed to pick it up. She was thankful that her parents were out to dinner with some co-workers. If they had seen her rushing to pick up the phone, they would have thought she was a lunatic.

"Hello?" she breathed.

"Nat! We'll be there in about five minutes," Clint said on the other line.

"Okay! Great!" she said, her voice cracking a little bit. Was she nervous? No, what did she have to be nervous about? She was only going to a Valentine's Day dance with her best friend…and the rest of their circle of friends.

Before she knew it, she saw the headlights to Clint's mom's car pull into the driveway.

Should I open the door? Or should I wait for him to ring the doorbell? He did give me a heads up, Natasha thought.

The sound of the doorbell ripped her from her thoughts, and she was suddenly extremely scared to answer the door.

Reluctantly, she opened the door and there he stood. Natasha hadn't even realized how much he had grown up. His shoulders were broader thanks to the laborious football practices and he now towered over her by several inches. He was dressed in a crisp red button down dress shirt and black pants. His shoes were shined and his usually unkempt hair was brushed.

Clint took in Natasha's appearance as well. He had never really seen her so dressed up before, or so grown up. Her fiery red hair was curled just enough to let it brush her shoulders and the red dress complemented her hair.

And is she wearing make-up? Clint thought.

"H-hey Nat," he said, managing to slightly compose himself.

When did his voice get deeper? Natasha thought.

"Hey," she said. "Ummm, I just need to grab a couple of things if you'd like to come in."

Clint stepped over the threshold and shut the door behind him. Natasha padded back to her bedroom to grab her shoes and bag, and she could sense Clint right on her heels.

"Cool room," he said from the doorway.

"You can come in," she said, grabbing things from her dresser and shoving them into her bag. She was in such a rush that she even didn't notice the piece of pink construction paper that had flutter off of her mirror. Clint bent down to pick it up and was in for quite a surprise.

"Is this that Valentine I made you when you were in kindergarten?" Clint asked.

"Ummm, yeah," Natasha said, trying to brush it off.

"You kept it after all these years?" he asked, shocked.

"Did you really think I was going to throw it out?" she said, shoving her black sandals onto her feet. She was trying to avoid as much eye contact with him as possible.

There was silence between them again, but only because Clint thought it was better to stop distracting her so she could get her things together and they could get to the dance. When she finally looked ready, they headed to the front door.

"Oh wait!" Clint said. He had almost forgotten about the corsage he was holding.

"I asked my mom to get this," he said, pulling the corsage out of its container. "I just thought you deserved one."

She offered him her wrist and he slipped it on.

"Thanks," she said, eyeing the flower. "It's beautiful."

"No problem," he said. "So, I guess we should get going."

Natasha nodded and they headed out the front door and loaded into Clint's mom's car to head off to Cupid's Ball.

"This is so incredibly tacky!" Natasha exclaimed as she looked around the gym.

There were balloon arches, streamers, and pictures of Cupids taped to the wall. There was the stereotypical snack table with its stereotypical punch bowl. Natasha secretly wondered if someone had spiked it.

"What did you expect?" Clint said with a laugh.

They had joined Thor, Steve, Jane, and Peggy at a table on the outskirts on the dance floor. They were currently having some Twizzlers they had swiped from the snack table and taking a break from dancing. They watched as the students swayed, jumped, and spun around to the beat of the music.

Suddenly, the music took a turn for the worse. The DJ had decided now was the perfect time to switch over to a sappy love song for a slow dance.

"I love this song!" Jane squealed. "Come on Thor! Come dance with me!"

"O-okay," Thor said as Jane pulled him onto the dance floor.

Steve and Peggy followed suit without a word to Clint and Natasha. The best friends awkwardly sat at the table in silence as they watched their friends sway back and forth with each other.

"Would you like to dance?" Clint asked Natasha.

Her jaw dropped open as her heart began to race. He had just asked her to dance and she was sitting there staring at him with her mouth hanging open.

"Ummm, sure," she said. She watched as he rose from his chair and offered his hand to her. She took it and he led her to the dance floor.

Neither one of them had slow danced with each other before, let alone slow danced in general. Clint felt awkward putting his hands on her tiny waist, and Natasha felt the same way as she placed her hands on top of his shoulders. They looked around at the other students, most of them who looked just as awkward as them while they swayed back and forth to the music. Suddenly they didn't feel as awkward.

They were thoroughly enjoying the dance when all of sudden Steve glided over – with Peggy still holding on to him – to nudge Clint in the side. Steve nodded his head in the direction of Thor and Jane. Lo and behold they were kissing right in the middle of the dance floor.

"Their first kiss since Jane kissed him that day under the swirly slide," Steve said with a wink.

Clint chuckled and returned his attention back to the dance. Before they knew it, the song was over and they quickly pulled away from each other, blushing from embarrassment.

Clint's mom was pulling into her driveway when Natasha had woken up. She hadn't even realized she had fallen asleep. It wasn't even that late. Natasha peeked out the window and saw that the house was dark. Her parents were probably still out to dinner with their co-workers.

Clint's mom put the car in park and Natasha started to gather her things.

"Need any help Nat?" Clint asked from the other end of the back seat.

"Nope, I think I'm okay," Natasha said as she pushed open the door of the car and stepped out.

"Let me walk you to your door!" Clint exclaimed as he rushed out of the car to catch up with her.

Natasha kept walking but Clint soon fell in step with her. They climbed the steps to her front door but they stopped in front of the door. They both stood their awkwardly, both ignoring each other's company.

"Aren't you glad you went?" Clint said, breaking the silence.

"Oh yes, I would've been mad if I missed seeing Thor eat Jane's face," Natasha joked, and Clint replied with a laugh.

"I'm just glad you decided to come," Clint said.

"No problem. Anything for my best friend."

"Yeah, so…" Clint trailed off.

"So…" Natasha started. "I better get inside. It's getting late."

"Yeah, yeah," Clint said.

He watched as she pulled her key out of her bag and put it in the lock. She pushed open the door but only reached in and flicked on the light switch before turning her attention back to him.

"I guess I'll see you Monday?" Natasha asked.

"Y-yeah," Clint stammered.

He had never realized until this very moment how pretty his best friend really was. She was cute before, no doubt about it, but now she was pretty. Up until now, he had never really looked at her.

As for Natasha, she couldn't help but notice how gorgeous his eyes were. They were a grey color, but not just an ordinary grey. Not like the grey color of the sky when it's about to rain, or the color of smoke. She wasn't sure what she could compare them to, but the color was unlike any other she had ever seen.

She wasn't really paying attention to the fact that he was leaning in closer to her. She was too mesmerized by his eyes, but when she did notice, she didn't react. She didn't move. It even seemed like she was holding her breath.

Before she knew it, Clint had pulled back slowly and cleared his throat.

"So, Monday then," he stated.

She nodded. "Yeah, see you Monday."

Natasha watched as he bounded down the steps and slid into the front seat of his mom's car. She couldn't bear to be on the front steps anymore so she waved goodbye to Clint's mom and retreated into her house.

When Clint returned home, he was exhausted and ready for bed, but the last few minutes on Natasha's front porch were playing over and over again in his head.

Why would you do that and jeopardize our friendship? he thought.

He peeled off his clothes and changed into a t-shirt and shorts and climbed into bed, falling asleep instantly. As for Natasha, she stayed awake until four in the morning, wondering why Clint didn't kiss her.

So, yes, I am really sorry for making this chapter move super quickly but I hope you guys enjoyed Cupid's Ball! And I know, this was super long.

Tomorrow is pretty jam-packed. I'm going to see Prometheus before I go to work. And then I get off at 10. I'll try to start chapter 5 now, and then continue it tomorrow when I get off of work. If I don't post it by tomorrow night, it will either be up Sunday night or Monday morning.

As always, thank you so much to everyone who had read this story, added it to their favorites, and reviewed it so far. Once again, please tell me what you think!