Next Target: Clint Barton

15 - "Was it love?"

"You know, you could try actually sleeping instead of just staring at me." She mumbled with her eyes still closed.

"Can't help it. My girlfriend's just too beautiful." He smiled at her even though she couldn't see it.

She chuckled and nestled deeper into his chest. "God you are such a sap, Rogers."

Even though she was teasing him, she knew something was wrong. There was a reason he wasn't sleeping; she could sense it. She knew him better than he knew himself sometimes and was able to point out things he wouldn't be able to admit. To her, he was everything. But to him, she was everything and more.

"You can't sleep on the bed. Can you?" She opened her eyes to look into his. So much love in both party's.

He tried to pass it off, not wanting to seem vulnerable in front of her. "No, it's fine. I'm just not tired." He smiled at her, as if that would make his lie more convincing. She didn't buy it though, but she also wouldn't force him to talk about it.

"Uh huh." She began to get out of bed as Steve gave her a confused look. "Come on." She got out of the bed with a pillow and blanket and headed for the open space next to his bed. She knew that he had been sleeping on the floor for the past months; she walked into his room one time to talk to him and saw his pillow and blanket on the floor while he was taking a shower. She never said anything; she knew he didn't want to talk about it, but she never forgot.

"Nat, I am not letting you sleep on the floor." He protested, not wanting her to sacrifice her own comfort for his, but she was stubborn.

"Too late, already here." She mumbled as she laid on the floor with a pillow and blanket and got ready to go back to sleep. "So are you gonna sleep up there with no blanket or are you gonna join me?" She asked cockily with her back still turned to him which in turn just made him smile and roll his eyes.

He grabbed his pillow and laid down next to her, hugging her waist while she turned around so they were face to face. She smiled at him and gave him a quick kiss on the lips, then closed her eyes again. He listened to the gentle sound of her breathing until he began drifting off to sleep himself. Unknown to him though, she wasn't asleep yet, she stayed awake to make sure he actually went to sleep. Only when she was sure that he actually fell asleep this time did she try going back to sleep herself.

She slept terribly that night. She kept waking up because of the ache in her back caused by the hard wooden floors, but she never left. Nor complained. She just stayed there the whole night, while he slept peacefully. This time she watched him sleep, and she couldn't have been happier to do so.

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Natasha smiled at the peaceful memory. "But, things didn't last. We dated for a little over a year and I broke up with him."

Yelena raised her eyebrows at her, curious as to the reason why.

"We just... weren't compatible. He was too cautious with me when we were on missions and on the battlefield. Undermined a lot of my orders and decisions. He meant well but... I don't know, things just didn't work out." Her voice showed no signs of sadness even though she still carried feelings for him. She was over what happened, but she still loved him.

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"Dammit, Steve! You completely ignored my orders back there!" Natasha said in a stern and angry voice.

"I know, I'm sorry! But I couldn't just leave you there."

It had been an hour since their mission together. Things started out well; they were supposed to be rescuing child hostages from a bunker in Bahrain where black market dealers took them to use as a distraction in their escape plan from the local police. Natasha and Steve were called in to lead a Strike team to rescue them.