25Disclaimer: I do not own the MCU franchise.
The doctors kept him under watch for a few more days before Steve was finally deemed well-enough to be released and returned home. That is, under the promise to seek therapy and mental help for his anxiety and PTSD, an idea which Natasha backed completely and whole-heartedly. She even recommended going to Sam's sessions for veterans that he had recently begun. Steve told her he would consider it.
With new medication and emergency protocols if something like that happened again, Steve entered his apartment for the first time in a while and was pleasantly surprised to find it all neat and tidy.
"I hope you don't mind that I cleaned up a bit." Natasha was hesitantly waiting outside of Steve's door, not sure if she should come in or not. She crossed her arms and leaned against the doorframe. "When you gave me your keys so I could get the rest of my stuff, I wanted to clean up a bit cause I know you like things to be a little neater. I hope I didn't intrude." She hoped that when Steve stepped inside the new and clean little home, he wouldn't be reminded of the night that triggered it all. The cleaning was almost cleansing.
"Of course I don't mind." Steve looked around the apartment complex in awe before finally resting his eyes on her. "Thank you, Nat."
"Thanks for trusting me to come into your house alone," Natasha joked, finally feeling confident enough to step inside.
"You are always welcome." Steve rummaged through his kitchen drawers. "Speaking of which…" He pulled out a key and held it out to her. "This is my spare key. I want you to have it."
"You trust me that much?" Natasha was surprised. People tended to hide from her and doubted her intentions. She was slick and cunning and she knew what she wanted; she got there, regardless of the cost. These were characteristics people deemed untrustworthy and even she believed she wasn't to be trusted. She couldn't put her trust in anybody and nobody could put their trust in her.
"I do now," Steve responded.
Natasha took the key from his hands and held it in her own. The tiny silver piece of metal was a promise. For what, she didn't know, but she knew Steve was going to be a part of her life now, whether she liked it or not—for better or for worse.
She looked up at him and smiled as she curled her fingers around the key and held it tightly in her palm. "Thanks."
She didn't really know what else to say. She hoped Steve would understand that her little "thanks" was code for "you trusting me means the world to me and I'm sorry I don't know how to express that in actual words."
He nodded, but his head seemed elsewhere. The couch seemed to be his center of distraction and Natasha knew that memories of that night were haunting his thoughts. In an attempt to distract him, and also physically show Steve that she trusts him back because she was so obviously incapable of vocalizing it, Natasha said, "You know, I've been in your apartment so many times, but you've never been in mine."
"That's because you've never invited me."
To be completely honest, she never invited anyone in. She did… and she didn't. It wasn't him; it was just that she didn't really let anyone into her space. Even while she had roommates, rule number one was that no one was allowed in Natasha Romanoff's bedroom.
"Well, I'm inviting you now."
"Well, I accept."
"Good," Natasha stated.
"Great," Steve responded.
"Alright then." The two of them walked out the door and a couple of feet over to get to Natasha's door.
Opening the door to her apartment, she was greeted by a familiar sight. Her home was clean and pristine, but looked lived in. There weren't many pictures on the wall, just one of her old roommates and her at a carnival.
"I thought you said you were messy," Steve commented as he looked around.
"I said my roommates were messy. Not that I was." Her ward would have killed her if she left even a crumb or a mess. She was raised to never leave a mark or a trace of anything wherever she went.
A sound coming from her room caused Steve's head to pop up. "Is that—?"
A moment later, the sound came again. "SQUAWK!"
Natasha gave her usual sly side-smirk. "You wanna meet my temporary roommate?"
Steve raised his eyebrows and gave her a concerned look, which Natasha couldn't help but laugh at. She started walking to her room and motioned for Steve to follow. "Don't worry, Cap." She opened the door to the room and looked back at him. "He doesn't bite." Then she grimaced. "Actually, that's a lie. Come on in."
Steve cautiously walked in to find a large cage in the corner of Natasha's room. Inside the cage was a giant red bird with beady yellow eyes and a black-tipped beak. The bird ruffled its feathers when it saw Steve and he could have sworn it was planning an attack on him. "Holy shit," was his only comment.
"He's not mine," Natasha explained as she walked closer to the bird-beast. She stuck her fingers through the cage and scratched the bird's neck, something the bird seemed to like and want more of. However, those beady, suspicious eyes never left Steve's. "His name is Redwing and he's Sam's. I'm pet-sitting for him while he's on vacation. Clint and Laura refused to keep him, they absolutely hate this falcon."
"I wonder why?" Steve grimaced.
"They prefer hawks," Natasha joked, remembering Clint's nickname on the archery team he was in during university.
Redwing squawked loudly and powerfully making Steve take a step back to the point where he wasn't even in the room anymore. "Woah, woah, woah!" His eyes widened at the sight of Natasha opening the cage to let the falcon out. "What are you doing?"
"Are you scared, Steve?" Natasha's eyes twinkled humorously as she allowed Redwing to climb up her arm and onto her shoulder. "Come pet him."
Steve took a tiny step towards her and another and another until he finally was within arm's reach of the bird. He stared at the falcon and the falcon stared back. Redwing narrowed his eyes as if challenging Steve to try anything.
"Steve, you were literally in the military and you're scared of a little bird? Where's that proud American bravery, Captain?"
At that challenge, Steve reached his arm out and paused as if to ask Redwing permission. It took a few seconds, but the bird finally relented and bowed its head to allow Steve to pet it. Redwing's feathers were soft and shiny. Looking at the majestic bird up close, Steve could admit it was a beautiful creature. Redwing moved from Natasha's shoulder to Steve's arm.
"There's the Captain America I was looking for," Natasha teased. "You know I'm kinda surprised he didn't peck you. He usually doesn't like strangers."
He should have been shocked, but the words that came out of Natasha's mouth did little to surprise him anymore. "Did he peck you when you first met him?"
"That's classified, Rogers. But he did peck Clint and Laura." Natasha grinned at him while Steve continued to focus on petting Redwing. "He really seems to like you. Maybe it's because you remind him of Sam. You ever think of getting a service animal?"
At that comment, Steve looked at her with surprise. "This bird is a service animal?"
"Sam's a weird guy, what can I say?" Natasha shrugged.
"Maybe I should get one." Steve went back to scratching Redwings' feathers and the falcon nuzzled against his fingers. "A service animal, that is. Probably not a bird though."
"A dog." Natasha stated without hesitancy. "Your favorite animal."
"Definitely." He wasn't even surprised she remembered.
"We should go on Friday and pick one out for you!" Natasha furrowed her eyebrows when a sheepish look crossed over Steve's face. "What is it?"
"I can't on Friday. I followed your advice," Steve said slowly. "I called Sharon and asked her out on a date. We're going out this Friday night."
"The cute nurse?" Natasha gaped. "You asked her out?"
"Yes." Steve gently put Redwing back in his cage and turned to face Natasha. "You look mad."
"That's just my resting face. I'm happy for you, Steve." She pursed her lips into a strange, superficial smile and started to walk to the kitchen. She needed time to fix her mask; she was slipping. "I'll make us some tea and you can tell me all about how an awkward guy like you actually managed to talk to a female without messing it up."
"I talk to you every day." Steve commented, slightly offended at Natasha's belief that he was completely incompetent with the ladies.
"I'm different. You don't see me as an attractive, viable partner, so there's no reason you would be nervous and awkward around me. I mean, you were nervous at first." Natasha let out an uncharacteristic giggle. "You called me 'ma'am' the first time we met."
Steve groaned and put his hand to his forehead. "I did do that and I was just at the point of forgetting. Sometimes, I really hate the fact that you remember everything. By the way, what makes you think you're not attractive or viable?"
"I meant attractive to you. I know I'm smoking hot, Rogers, don't worry." She gave Steve a wink and patted his cheek. "Also, even if I didn't remember everything, I would still remember that you called me, a woman who is literally your age, 'ma'am'." Natasha noticed something sitting on the counter and her heart skipped a beat. "Steve, can you go back in my room and check if Redwing's cage is locked?"
"It is," Steve said. "I was there when you locked it."
"Just check it again. I don't want him to fly away," Natasha snapped.
Shrugging, Steve complied. "Alright."
As soon as Steve was out of eyesight, Natasha leapt into action and took the box that was sitting on her counter and hid it in one of her kitchen drawers. Her boss, Nick Fury, had given her an idea of getting a "zipper-upper-helper" devices from one of those As Seen On TV commercials. She had ordered it as soon as she had come home after Steve had unzipped her for the first time. But the device had taken a while to be delivered and by the time it came, Natasha was so used to knocking on Steve's door and getting to know him, she didn't want to give that up. So the box stayed on the counter unopened, unused, and un-unzipped.
She had something better than an unzipping machine. She had Steve.
After she had hidden away the secret box, Natasha started on making the tea for the two of them. She had just set the kettle on the stove when Steve walked back into the kitchen.
"It was locked."
Natasha nodded. "Great."
They were silent as the two of them waited for the water to boil. It was a comfortable silence as they were used to each other's presence.
While Steve was in the hospital, Natasha spent all of her free time in the hospital with him. They talked and he shared things about his life, like the fact that his best friend Bucky was currently in a Psychiatric hospital after the trauma of war and that his mom died when he was young and he believed it was because he got her sick, and that sometimes he just felt so disconnected with the world and out of place—like he didn't belong.
Natasha knew that mindless words of comfort weren't really going to make things better. She knew she would have never wanted anyone to try to minimize her pain with meaningless chatter, so she didn't respond with words. Instead, she held Steve's hand in her own and they sat together in beautiful silence. She knew if she was where Steve was, she wouldn't want to be alone. She didn't want Steve to be alone either.
The whistling of the kettle shook them out of their daydream and Natasha got out two cups for them to drink out of.
As she prepared their drinks, Steve tapped the counter shyly. "So, I know I told you I had girlfriends after Peggy…"
"But you lied?" Natasha finished. "I kinda figured. You're not great at the whole lying business."
"Where should I take her? Sharon, I mean." Steve gazed at her desperately after Natasha handed him a cup of tea. "What should I wear? How do I—?"
"Woah, Captain." Natasha held one hand up as she sipped her tea from the other. "Let's take this one question at a time. First, take her to a fancy restaurant. I'll show you my favorite one, it's just down the block from here. Two, if you're going to a fancy restaurant, make sure you wear a suit and tie—I don't want sloppy khakis or polo shirts anywhere near you."
"A… tie?" Steve asked wearily.
"Yes, a tie. Is there a problem?"
"I've never actually…" Steve trailed off, feeling embarrassed.
"You've never worn a tie before?" Natasha bewilderedly asked.
"In my defense, I joined the army straight out of high school and I've never really had a fancy occasion to wear one and—"
"Alright, I get it, I get it."
"I do own a tie though… I've just never had a reason to use it."
"Good. So first date, you'll use it." Steve continued to tap at the counter and Natasha rolled her eyes impatiently. "What is it now?"
"I don't know how to tie a tie if I've never worn a tie!"
"How am I supposed to know how to tie a tie? I'm not a guy!"
"Polo shirt and khakis it is." Steve sipped his tea.
Natasha pursed her lips and rolled her eyes. "Go get your tie. I refuse to let your relationship sink on the first date."
Steve nodded happily and went back to his apartment to get the silky accessory. When he returned, he found Natasha sitting cross-legged on her couch, her cup of tea in her hands, and her laptop resting on the coffee table open to a video on YouTube.
"Let's learn how to tie a tie, Captain."
It took them a while but they had learned the method to tie a perfect tie. Well, Natasha learned how to do it. Old man Steve just couldn't get the technique down. His defense was that the "video was moving too quickly," even though they repeated the instructions a bazillion times and slowed the video down to half its normal speed.
"You just string it through the loop, tie, and tighten. It's not that hard." Throughout the time she explained how to put the accessory on, she was actually demonstrating around Steve's neck.
"Wow, thanks, Romanoff. How about you unzip your own dress for once? You just reach over and pull the zipper down. It's not that hard," Steve mocked.
"Low blow, man. But fine, I see your point." She finished tying the tie and adjusted the knot in the front to make sure it fit snugly against the collar of his shirt. She dusted some imaginary dust off his shoulders and looked at him proudly. "Now that is a beautiful Windsor knot if I do say so myself."
Wanting to see for himself, Steve walked towards the bathroom mirror to look at himself. "Not bad," he commented, studying the tie carefully.
"Not bad?" Natasha called out from the couch. "It is absolutely amazing. It's a work of art. You should know, Captain Graphic Design."
Steve poked his head out of the bathroom. "So you tie my tie and I unzip your dress?"
Natasha pretended to think about it. "Sounds like a plan. You undress me and I tie you up." She wiggled her eyebrows, teasingly seductive.
He groaned at her word choice. "Why do you have to say it like that?"
"What? I'm just gonna tie you up, Captain. Real tight."
"You're disgusting."
"You're a prude."
"You're too sexual."
"You literally unzip my dress every day. How is that not sexual? It's friendly sexual."
"Friendly sexual is not a thing! And I don't unzip you sexually!"
"It's a little sexual." Natasha pinched her fingers almost together to show how much.
"It is not."
"It kinda is."
"Romanoff…" Steve warned.
"Rogers," Natasha said back in the same tone. She grinned at him. "Relax, I'm just joking. You are so easy to wind up, you know?"
"I can't believe we are having this conversation." Steve shook his head as he tried to loosen his tie.
Natasha noticed his struggle and stood up to help him unravel the knot. "I can't believe I get to tie you up before your first date with a hot nurse."
Steve looked at her with wonder after Natasha managed to get the tie off him and handed it to him. He had truly never met anyone who was as casually flirty as Natasha. "You're unbelievable."
"Thanks, I get that a lot."
Friday night came sooner than expected and Natasha had just slipped into her business casual outfit when a knock came through. Fixing her earrings and tightening the backs, Natasha looked through the peephole to see Steve nervously fidgeting, a long silky piece of fabric twisted in his hands.
With a wide grin on her face, Natasha threw the door open. "Look who's come a knockin'."
"Today's the day," Steve had a nervous energy that was reflected in his jumpiness and constant fidgeting.
"Relax, Steve." Natasha took the tie out of his hands and began the process of tying it around his neck. "Just be your calm, cool self and the second date will be here sooner than you know it."
"Do you think this is a bad idea? What if I embarrass myself?"
"That's all part of the first date experience." Natasha tilted her head to look at him as she finished tightening the tie. She adjusted the collar and held it in her hands before using the tie to drag his head down to her level. "You are going to be just fine," she reassured him.
When she released him from her hold, Steve stood up straighter and ran his hand through his hair. He then nodded at Natasha's unzipped dress. "You need any help there?"
She turned around to give him access. "You have to ask?"
"I can't just grab you and turn you around now, can I?"
"No, that would just be sexual… not friendly sexual like we are."
"Don't tell Sharon we're 'friendly sexual' or whatever. I don't want her to get the wrong idea."
"Don't worry, I'll save that for the second date." She turned around to face him after he finished zipping her up. "So she's picking you up. What a gentlewoman."
"We live in the 21st century." Steve crossed his arms defensively. "The guy doesn't always have to pick the girl up."
"Uh huh," Natasha agreed.
"And the restaurant is walking distance from here…"
"Uh huh."
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Steve snapped.
"I'm not looking at you like anything!"
"Yes, you are! You're judging me!"
"For what?" Natasha laughed at Steve's paranoia. "I have no reason to judge you. You aren't doing anything wrong."
"Exactly!"
"You're being dramatic." Natasha snickered. "When is hot nurse Sharon getting here?"
Steve looked down at his watch, but the footsteps on the stairs made both their heads turn. The woman in question had just arrived and looked absolutely stunning in her tight red thigh-length dress and glittering jewelry.
"Hi," Sharon said, a dazzling smile on her face. She first looked at Steve and then focused on Natasha, acknowledging the fact that she was there. Natasha and Sharon had gotten to know each other a little better while Steve was in the hospital, so Sharon knew that she and Steve were not romantically connected at all.
"You look beautiful," Steve complimented, his face flushing.
A part of Natasha grew resentful because Steve had never complimented her on any of her dresses. Shaking her head, she quickly discarded those thoughts from her mind and greeted Sharon. "That dress is amazing," she complimented as she leaned against the door to her apartment, sending the girl a friendly smile.
"Thank you!" Sharon's eyes lit up as she talked with Natasha. "I actually found it in the cutest little boutique that was right near my house. I love your dress too! Black really suits you."
"Yeah, sometimes I wish I could wear red like you, but I could never pull it off."
"You totally could!" Sharon encouraged. "I had a cousin who had the most beautiful red hair, just like you and—"
Steve cleared his throat to let the two women know he was still there. Natasha took that as a sign to get out of his hair. "Ah," she looked at the new couple. "You know what? I better get going."
"Where're you headed off to this late?" Sharon asked curiously. "You got a hot date too?" Steve looked half squeamish and half pleased at being referred to as the "hot date."
"I wish, but no. Sadly, I pulled the short straw and I have to mediate a transaction overseas at work. Working on international times is the worst."
"Working the nightshift in general is the worst," Sharon agreed, being a nurse whose worked many nightshifts in her career. "I feel your pain."
Natasha liked Sharon more every second. "I hope I see you around more, Sharon." She turned to look at Steve and he knew he had to be prepared for whatever was coming his way. "You be good, Steve. I don't want any funny business."
"Okay, we got it." He began to lead Sharon down the stairs to the exit while Natasha followed behind.
"And be safe out there! It's a dangerous world. You kids know how to practice safe sex, right?"
"Natasha!" It was like junior prom and Natasha was the nagging mom who wouldn't stop taking pictures of her teenage son and his new girlfriend.
"Condoms save lives!" She called out loudly in the lamp-lit street. "Or they do the opposite! Either way! Have fun!"
"Thanks, mom!" Sharon called out and she and Steve disappeared around the corner.
Natasha grinned as she hailed a cab to take her to work. She really liked Sharon; hopefully, Steve did too. She would be good for him.
After working the nightshift, Natasha finally made it back home in the early light of day. Exhausted and not really wanting to bother Steve, if he was even home, Natasha fell right asleep in her dress and stockings. A couple hours passed and when she awoke in the morning, she regretted her actions immediately. The dress was so tight and constricting and her stockings had major tears in them from the friction of the sheets.
Looking at the time, she figured she might as well check up on Steve and see how his date went.
It took a couple of knocks, but Steve opened the door, dressed in checkered pajama bottoms and no shirt. She tried not to stare.
He rubbed at his eyes and Natasha turned around so he could unzip her. "Still sleepy, huh? So I take it your date went well."
Steve yawned. "Yeah, I guess. I didn't completely embarrass myself and Sharon's nice."
"Wow, you seem so excited," Natasha stated sarcastically. She turned to face him, relieved to be released from the confines of the dress. "Seriously. How did it go?"
"I told you it was fine. We're even going on a second date. Can I pet Redwing?" Steve didn't wait for a reply and walked into Natasha's home while she trailed behind.
"A second date? That's great! Where to?"
"I don't know."
"When?"
"No idea."
"Do you at least know who you're going out with?" Natasha asked dryly as she began pulling off her stockings.
Steve gave her an impassive look and took Redwing, who had squawked excitedly at the sight of him, out of his cage. "We just agreed on it before she left. We didn't get details or anything yet."
"Left? You mean she didn't stay the night?" Natasha began to pull more comfortable clothes out of her drawer while Steve continued to pet Redwing. While his back was to her, she began to change, donning on some sweatpants and Steve's old military shirt that she decided to keep indefinitely.
"No, I want to take things slow."
"But you do want to take things… somewhere?"
He finally turned to face her, just as Natasha had pulled the shirt on, and looked at her strangely. "If you're asking if I have moved on from Peggy, I think I have."'
"So you've moved on… with Sharon."
Natasha could see his hesitancy as he continued to stroke the red falcon. "Yes, I think so." He didn't sound very confident, but she didn't want to push him.
"That's good."
"Yeah."
A second date turned into a third. A fourth, fifth, and a sixth date passed and Natasha could have sworn Sharon lived in the apartment, the number of times she came by.
Natasha found herself turning to the pantsuits more and more often so as to not interrupt the couple next door, even though she hated the itchy feeling of a blazer and the long pants that never fit right on her.
Sometimes she and Steve would check their mail at the same time and it would not feel the same as before. At least to Natasha.
He would say "hi" and she would say "hi" and he would try to continue the conversation, but she would already be gone. Steve and Sharon invited her to come over to hang out with them, but the idea of being a third wheel absolutely revolted her, even though she never had a problem being around Laura and Clint.
One Thursday night, the room next to her was silent and Natasha grew excited at the idea of Steve being alone for the day. She quickly found a dress that she hadn't worn in a while and changed into it, ready for her neighbor to zip her up.
She pulled on her stockings and fixed her hair, happy to have a reason to visit her neighbor once more. She knocked three times and waited for him to open.
"Who is it?" Natasha could hear Steve ask from behind the door.
Before she could open her mouth to respond, another voice spoke up from Steve's side of the door. "I think it's the pizza. That was quick." Sharon's voice was like knives to her chest. "I'll go get it."
Natasha's eyes widened at the sound of Sharon's footsteps coming to the door. She didn't want Sharon to see her standing in front of Steve's door with an unopened dress in the back. Even though they were technically doing nothing wrong, she didn't want Sharon to get the wrong idea and not trust Steve. Jumping back into her apartment, Natasha quickly closed her door with a quiet click and waited for Sharon to open the door.
"Huh, that's weird." Sharon poked her head out the door and looked around confused.
"What is it?" Natasha could faintly hear Steve ask from inside the other room.
"Nobody's there. Must be some kids in the neighborhood playing a prank or something."
Natasha breathed a sigh of relief from her own home and rested her head on the cool door. After a couple of seconds, Natasha decided it was time to break out the big guns. Walking into the kitchen, she pulled out the box she had hidden and avoided using for so long. The Zipper-Upper3000 was a shiny long string that had a clasp which attached to the slider and a handle to pull on.
She unwrapped the device from its cover as she walked to her bedroom. She took her dress off, attached the slider to the accessory, and put her dress back on. Now that the east part was done, all she had to do was use the string to pull the zipper up. She held the string with both her hands and pulled, but she realized that instead of pulling up, she was pulling the slider out and away. Why her hands refused to be flexible and go up, she had no idea. She twisted and turned trying to pull it up, but ended up looking like a dog chasing its own tail.
"Squawk!" Redwing sounded as he watched her futile struggles.
Natasha grimaced at him. "What are you looking at?"
Redwing's only response was another squawk, which sounded as close to a mocking laugh as any squawk could.
"Dumb bird," Natasha muttered to herself as she finally pulled the string above her head. Her head popped up and she yelled, "I did it!"
In her excitement, she had pulled too hard on the string and had pulled the slider right off her dress along with the Zipper-Upper3000. She looked at the device that had the most important piece of her zipper in complete disbelief. She had paid a whole ten dollars (plus shipping) for the useless thing only for it to break one of her favorite dresses.
She fell on her bed and stared at the ceiling, her dress still open in the back and missing a slider. In her room, she could hear the faint sounds of laughter from Steve's room. She could recognize Steve's laugh from anywhere. It was low and masculine, but almost shy. It was so wonderfully Steve.
She could listen to him laugh all day, if only his laugh wasn't being overshadowed by that of Sharon's.
Natasha pulled a pillow over her face and yelled. When she pulled the pillow off, her head turned to see Redwing rustling in his cage, studying her.
She blinked at him and he tilted his head in an almost understanding fashion.
"Keep looking at me like that and I'm eating Kentucky Fried Falcon tonight," she threatened.
If birds could laugh, that was certainly what Redwing was doing. With great disappointment, Natasha got out of bed and began to find another pair of pants and a blouse to wear for her shift at work. She could already tell today was not going to be a great day.
One pantsuit day turned into a third. A fourth, fifth, and a sixth day passed.
Every workday passed by like a dull blur. But this day was worse than most. Her negotiations didn't go as well as she planned, an annoying intern spilled coffee on her, and her pants' fabric kept rubbing weirdly against her legs causing something she hoped would not become a future rash.
Coming back home was like a breath of fresh air. She had changed out of her work clothes and had once again opted to wear the shirt Steve had lent her. It was beginning to be her favorite go-to in-home attire. Just about settled in for a night of classic Russian films and warm tea, a knock at her door interrupted all her plans.
Inwardly groaning at the disturbance, she trudged to the door to greet whoever was responsible for her not being able to enjoy her day-in.
Throwing the door open, she was surprised, to say the least, to find Steve standing there, looking worn out and mentally exhausted. She'd seen that look before. "You just come back from therapy?"
Steve didn't confirm nor deny her theory. Rather, he said, "Let's go get a dog."
Changing into casual jeans and a flowery long sleeved blouse, Natasha hesitated for a second as she watched Steve through the kitchen serving hatch. He looked tired, but comfortable in his cotton shirt and khaki pants, and she couldn't help a small warmth blossoming in the pit of her stomach. It was a kind of affection she had never experienced before.
Before she could think twice and doubt her decision, she opened one of the miscellaneous drawers in her kitchen, pulling out a small, metallic object which she quickly shoved into her jeans pocket (back pocket of course, because god forbid woman's jeans came with actually functioning front pockets) and left the kitchen to join Steve. The two of them then caught a brief ride to the adoption center for service dogs.
It was comfortable silence in the car, which Natasha didn't really mind, but she knew something was wrong with Steve that he would decide to get a dog all of a sudden.
They walked into the center and were greeted by a myriad of excited barks and tail wagging. Natasha could sense Steve's mood lifting almost immediately. The corners of his mouth moving up into his classic dimpled smile.
They were introduced to the people in charge and then were allowed to spend however long they liked with the dogs to be able to find the perfect one for them.
Steve seemed to like them all, but Natasha had a few criteria she wanted the dog to pass.
"Too loud," she commented as Steve played ball with a bulldog.
"Too furry," she critiqued as the collie shook and hair fell everywhere.
"Too… ugh, friendly." Natasha crinkled her nose as the golden haired boxer puppy jumped up all over Natasha and began licking her.
"Really, Nat?" Steve laughed as he looked up at her from his seat on the ground. "Your problem with the dog is that he's too friendly?"
"I'm not really a dog person, did I mention that?" She had her hands on her hips and looked at the cute balls of energies with an air of disdain.
"That's right, you're a black widow kind of gal."
"I see I'm not the only one who remembers things."
"It's hard to forget anything about you, Nat."
"I guess I'm not trying hard enough."
Steve tried to read her expression, but couldn't tell what she was thinking. "Come sit down next to me." He patted the hard floor to his right. "We're not leaving till we find a dog that both you and I like."
She complied easily and sat crisscross next to her neighbor. While the other dogs came and went, the energetic boxer which Natasha had deemed "too friendly" did not stop coming back for more. The puppy attempted to climb on Natasha and whenever Natasha tried to pet him, he would skirt away and pant his tongue out at her. After Natasha stopped trying to pet him, the pup would come back and try to climb onto her once again.
"I think he likes you," Steve commented as he watched their interaction.
"He won't let me pet him," she muttered, frustrated. "He keeps dodging me."
Steve chuckled as the "dodging" puppy finally came to Steve and let Steve pet him with no problem. "He reminds me of you."
"How so?"
"He wants to let people in and wants to play, but every time someone tries to pet him, he backs off and dodges it."
"You think you know me so well." Natasha couldn't help but get irritated at Steve. "You think you have me all figured out, don't you, Rogers?"
"Actually, I think I do. I know it was you at my door before you left for work a few days ago. You always come around that time to be zipped. Why didn't you stay?"
Natasha knew there was no point lying. "I didn't want Sharon to get the wrong idea about the two of us and I didn't want to interrupt the two of you."
"That's the only reason?" Steve questioned, still petting the dark golden boxer. "You haven't been around in a while and I thought maybe it was because—"
"Because I'm dodging you? Because I'm pushing you away?"
"Yes."
"You're insane." Natasha rolled her eyes.
"Am I? Because you're wearing jeans right now."
She scoffed. "So?"
"This is literally the first time I've seen you wear jeans. You hate jeans! You say you can't move freely in pants and I was there to zip you up. I could have zipped you up. But now you don't want me to. I don't know why, but you're pushing me away."
Maybe he did know her better than she thought. "Maybe I was… trying to avoid you." Natasha sighed as she gave in and revealed the truth. "Maybe I tried to. I can't depend on you to help me with everything. I can't come to you with all my problems." She and Steve knew this was more than just about the dresses.
"What's wrong with having someone to depend on?" He asked her seriously.
"I just… I just think it's better if I'm alone."
"Is that what you really want?" Natasha didn't answer, so Steve continued. "After Peggy died, I thought that everything I wanted before—family, stability—I thought it all died with her. Someone else came out. Someone who was cold and stuck in the past. I didn't think I could ever move on."
Natasha let out a watery laugh as she looked down. "And you said you couldn't find anyone with shared life experiences." Truth be told, everything about her—from her standoffishness, the way she would only let people in skin-deep—it all stemmed from her childhood, from the orphanage. Natasha had never told Steve about it, but from the way he talked, Natasha knew he had put some pieces together. "You did move on though, Steve. Didn't you? With Sharon."
"Sharon and I broke up," Steve admitted, scratching the back of his head.
"What? But you two were laughing and joking around the other day! I heard you. You guys seemed fine." Natasha sounded more dismayed at the news of Steve's breakup than Steve himself.
"Okay, I'm not going to comment on the fact that you spy on me, but we decided to stay friends," Steve said honestly. "She was relieved when I broke things off because she said she's been meaning to do it for a while."
"That's a lie. It's just a thing girls say when they get broken up with to make things seem mutual when it's really not." She had been there and she had done that. "Why would you do that, Steve? You were finally moving on from Peggy! You could have been happy!"
"Why does it matter so much to you that I've moved on?"
"You're my friend. I thought we established that."
Steve stared at her trying to gauge a reaction, but Natasha had her walls up, as sturdy as ever. Somehow, she felt that Steve saw right through that. He took a deep breath in and continued. "I do think I have moved on from Peggy. Just not with Sharon."
"Then who…" She had a talent for reading people. She had a knack for sensing emotions and motives and by the way Steve looked at her, "Oh…"
Steve broke eye contact with her and looked down at the dog. "Yeah." He continued to scratch behind the boxers' ears as the pup once again moved between Natasha and Steve, finally settling in front of Natasha.
Knowing that if she tried to reach out and pet the dog he would only try to run and dodge her affection, she waited and let him come to her. At long last the feisty boxer climbed into her lap and cuddled in for a little nap. Natasha's heart warmed at the sight of such a small innocent creature trusting her so much to sleep on her. While the dog napped, Natasha used her fingers to feel the softness of his fur and the way his whole body moved up and down while he breathed. He was perfect.
"I think this is the one," Natasha said. "This little Dodger is the one."
Steve looked at her with softened eyes and smiled when she leaned down to pet the golden-brown dog on the top of his head. "I think so too."
After filling out all the necessary paperwork and waking Dodger up from his nap, the two of them (plus the newest member of their Neighborhood trio) began to walk back to their apartment, opting out of catching a cab. The walk would give them plenty of time to stretch their legs and it would help Dodger get used to the area.
Steve held the leash while Natasha walked beside him, close enough that her fingers sometimes (just barely) grazed by his. They hadn't talked much after Steve admitted he had moved on from Peggy to somebody else and Natasha knew it was her turn to make the next move.
"So," Natasha said, her voice wavering slightly, "You've moved on, huh?"
Steve let out an embarrassed huff of breath as he tightened his leash on Dodger. "Listen, I didn't mean to say that and I know you don't feel the same way and if you want to forget I ever said that then we can forget it and never talk about it—"
"Hold on, Rogers." Natasha stopped him and put a hand up to his chest while the boxer took a pee break by the fire hydrant. "First of all, you know I remember everything, so I could never forget that. Second of all…" she licked her lower lip nervously. "Who said I don't feel the same way?" Her confidence building, she gave him a sly smile. "You think you have me all figured out, don't you, Rogers?"
"These past few weeks when you've stopped coming by. I've missed hearing your knock on my door. I've missed unzipping you." He closed his eyes and shook his head in disbelief at what he was about to say, "Friendly sexual style."
Natasha smiled at his honesty. "I've missed being unzipped by you." She chuckled. "Friendly sexual style."
"So you'll come by more now?" Steve inquired as the two of them began walking again, making their way back home. "You won't hesitate?"
"I won't hesitate, bitch." She tossed a little treat to Dodger and chuckled when the pup tried to jump up to catch it.
"Quoting vines now, huh? That's classy."
"Old man Rogers who listens to old people music and eats beans out of a can actually knows vines?" Natasha mocked.
"I gotta stay up to date on the latest trends! Have you heard they released the prototype for the new StarkPhone?"
"You gonna get it?" Natasha asked.
"I'm a college student, you think I can afford it?"
"Touché."
They easily fell back into their old banter. Exchanging playful quips and basking in their dry and dark humor. There was even a touch of lighthearted flirting that Natasha realized had always been there, but she had just never really noticed. She never talked to Clint or Sam like that, and she certainly never talked to Fury like that. No, her flirting with Steve was in a completely different ballpark that Natasha didn't even realize she was playing in.
When they reached their apartment complex, it hit her that she never actually played her next move. She had it in her pocket the whole time, but she never used it. As they stood in front of their respective doors, Natasha reached into her back jean pocket and pulled out her key. She handed it to Steve while he looked at her puzzled.
"It's my spare," she explained, while she used her own fingers to wrap Steve's against the silver metal. "I want you to have it."
"Natasha Romanoff trusts me." Steve smiled as he stood there proudly, Natasha's hands still covering her own.
"I do now," was her response.
Steve opened his door for Dodger and let the boxer explore his new home before turning back to Natasha. "I think I want to kiss you now."
"Our neighbors could be watching." Natasha said, her voice getting quieter as she leaned in to Steve and stood up on the tips of her toes to get closer to him. "Public displays of affection makes people very uncomfortable."
"Yes, they do." Steve whispered back as he dipped his head down to reach hers. "I don't really care."
"Me neither."
Their lips finally met in a passionate kiss and Natasha wondered why she waited so long to kiss him in the first place. He may not have kissed many women in his lifetime, but he sure did know what he was doing.
Her hands snaked around the back of his head and held him closer to her, peeking neighbors be damned. She never wanted to stop.
"My jeans," she said in-between Steve's kisses.
"What?" He asked hoarsely, as he continued to kiss her.
"My jeans," she repeated. "Technically, they have a zipper."
"Do they now?" Steve asked as he kissed down her neck.
"Mhmm," Natasha confirmed, her eyes closing and head tossing back to give Steve more entry. "And you told me not to hesitate to come to you with any unzipping problems."
"I did." Steve agreed, as he reached a spot that made Natasha audibly gasp. "How would you like it, Romanoff?" He mumbled into her neck. "Non-sexual? Friendly sexual…?" He grabbed the underside of her thighs and lifted her up, allowing her to wrap her legs around his waist, finally making her the taller one in their make-out session.
Natasha grabbed his hair and tugged to pull his face up to meet hers for one more kiss on the lips. When they finally parted, she grinned as Steve tightened his grip around her. "Maybe just a little sexual." Steve kissed her again as he backed into his apartment; Natasha took back her comment. "Or a lot."
"Yes, ma'am." Steve whole-heartedly agreed as he shut the door of his apartment behind him with a loud bang.
Many things were unzipped that night, but really Steve had been unzipping her from the moment they met. Little by little, element by element, Steve had opened her heart to trust and friendship, releasing her from the confines of her past and her insecurities. He got past her inability to let people in and broke down all the barriers one by one.
He had unzipped her completely and she let him. He had unzipped her completely and she never wanted to go back.
She was finally free.
Author's Note: Call me an oak tree cause this fic got sappy real fast.
I have a couple of ideas for a third chapter (an epilogue of sorts) that is just complete fluff I wasn't able to add to this chapter, so let me know if that is something you would like to read and I might write it! Like maybe... domestic romanogers? married romanogers? romanogers as... parents? Who knows, hehehe.
As always, I would love and appreciate it if you could leave a review and let me know your thoughts on the fic!