Untangling a Future

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At first, Steve had worried that the incentive for solo missions would send Natasha off on her own again, but there was a change in her after the HYDRA base she single-handedly took down. Not only was Natasha improved after telling Steve about her history with Bucky, but it seemed she had closed a chapter by the destroying the outpost. Whatever she'd needed to get out of her system had been gotten and she had a certain settledness returned to her.

One day as Natasha was headed toward the lab after her morning coffee, she noticed one of the bedroom doors slightly ajar. At first she wondered whether one of their teammates had returned without her notice, but the stillness that surrounded the room suggested otherwise. Natasha's curiosity got the best of her and she poked her head in the crack of the door to look around.

There, lining the walls of the empty bedroom, were the personal effects of their Dusted friends, boxed up and stored away until some unforeseen future time. Most were piles of a few boxes each, proportionate to the belongings that person'd had: Vision's couple of boxes, as well as a small tool box he'd collected for conducting light repairs on himself; Wanda's larger pile, necessitated by her more extensive nesting, had a guitar leaning against the side; Sam's few boxes that Steve had packed up in Wakanda while Natasha was intermittently breaking down over the course of their last day; and one final box that she recognized by the handwriting on the side she knew as her own- 'JBB'.

From down the hallway and around the corner, Steve heard the quiet grunting and struggle of someone fighting with a large object and ran to help. Arriving at Natasha's door, he was surprised to see her holding the large box he'd tucked away from her view, while struggling to turn the knob.

Grunting as she balanced the box in her arms, Natasha nodded her head toward the door. "Oh thank goodness! Can you get that for me?"

"Uhhh, yeah..." Steve's eyes widened in concerned, as he turned the handle and pushed it open.  "Nat?"

Natasha stumbled her way inside and plopped the large box on the floor. She didn't remember the box being so heavy, weighed down with all of James' books. But on second thought she realized she'd never actually picked it up after packing it.

Turning to face Steve, she gave him a small smile. "Thanks, Steve! Did you need something?"

"Ummmm..." Steve ran a hand through his hair anxiously. Last time Natasha had waded into that box, she had fallen apart for days. "No, but..."

Natasha knelt down beside the box and ripped off the taped securing the top. But before she could open the flaps, Steve slapped a hand over them. "I'm not sure this is such a good idea."

"Steve, I'm fine. Really."

"But last time..."

Natasha looked up at Steve, her features relaxed and bright. "Last time was... too soon. But I don't want him to live in a box. There were too many years after when I first lost him where I had nothing. This time, I can keep him around if I want to..." Natasha smiled, "And I do want to."

Steve didn't move from where he was standing, still studying Natasha's face even after her explanation. Something in his stomach still felt uneasy about what this could do to his friend and how it might hurt her all over again.

"Would you feel better if you stayed here while I go through everything?"

Considering the offer, Steve took a deep breath and nodded, removing his hand from where he blocked her access to the box. Natasha patted the bed next to her and Steve settled on the spot, hands folded awkwardly in his lap, feeling like he was about to watch someone undress.