i'm with you, every step of the way

Chapter 1

"Thank you," she said carefully alliterating each syllable, shy to let her accent slip out. She leaned over and pressed a kiss on his right cheek to show how grateful she is.

Steve squeaked out a, "You're welcome," face red, before running out to the playground.

After that, Steve brought it upon himself to always accompany Natasha in at school. Sure, he and Tony are still friends because their families are friends, but he gets irritated at him at school. That guy needs to be nicer to other people. Besides, Steve likes Natasha's company more than Tony's anyways. At first, she was quiet, reluctant to really converse, but she got used to his presence and opened up to him more. They would play hopscotch together, Steve would help Natasha cross the monkey bars by holding on to her and making sure she doesn't get hurt, and Natasha always makes Steve draw images on her notebooks. Steve loves drawings and he likes it even more when he does it with Natasha and the suggestions she gives him.

As the years went by, so did their little group. What used to be the two of them now consists of Natasha's cousins, Wanda and Pietro Maximoff, as well as James Barnes, or Bucky, as they affectionately call him, joined their group. Bucky used to hang out with Tony until the fourth grade, where the latter accused him of stealing and resulted with Bucky being suspended for a week. Of course, Tony lied because he was mad at Bucky for accidentally breaking his favorite Iron Man action figure. That resulted to just the five of them forming and always playing at recess and eating lunch together, inseparable as they are also all in the same classes throughout elementary school.

Everyday after school, Steve would walk home with Natasha as their house are just across from each other. They would do homework, play, draw, and just hangout together until their parents decide that it's too late and they have to go to bed. Sometimes, on weekends, the five friends would all gather together at Natasha's house where her parents would set up a tent on their backyard and they'd have a mini camping/sleepover party.

Sadly, as sixth grade came to an end and so does elementary school, their little group diminished. Wanda and Pietro are going to a different middle school because they moved about an hour away, two towns over. Bucky also said his goodbyes as his parents got assigned a job at another state. The last day of school, promotion, was tearful for the five of them as Natasha clutched Wanda tightly and cried.

"Why are you getting so sad, we're family, we're always gonna see each other," Wanda said, her voice playful but also laced with sadness. She's blinking the tears out of her eyes, her smile wavering. She wants to be strong for Natasha because she knows that she's her cousin's only girl friend, and she won't have her as close anymore.

"I know, but I want you to be always here," Natasha muttered, her voice muffled by being pressed at Wanda's shoulder, and heavy with tears. They eventually broke off and Natasha decided to hug Bucky next.

Bucky smiled warmly at her and enveloped her in a big hug. "I'm gonna miss you too, sweetcheeks." He whispered at her, seemingly replying to something she said, and his eyes closed for a second, his head over hers. They could tell Bucky was close to losing it and he's only holding it in. Pulling away, Natasha chuckled through her tears and flattened Bucky's shirt again, which was a bit crumpled.

Bucky hugged Wanda as well and gave Pietro a pat in the back. When he reached Steve, he threw his arms over the guy's shoulders. Steve, although already 12 years old, was still a bit small for his age. Bucky squeezed his Steve's shoulder where his hand was resting on, giving him a small smile. Steve smiled back, his face sad, and the tips of his ears red. Bucky has been his friend for as long as he can remember. They took their first baby steps together, got their first haircut together, pretty much everything together ever since they were babies.

"Til the end of the line, pal, alright?" Bucky said, his voice cracking towards the end.

Steve nodded and avoided his eyes. "Til the end of the line," he whispered back, blinking and letting a tear fall.

Steve and Natasha walked home together in silence that day, their hands tightly intertwined. Steve walked Natasha up to her front porch and stopped before they got inside. Natasha had to get ready because she's leaving for Russia that night, just for the summer, and she still has to pack. She wordlessly hugged Steve tight and he did the same.

"Don't worry, I'll get you souvenirs," Natasha joked as they pulled away, her eyes now clear and bright, but her face looks tired.

"You better," Steve replied, both knowing it was an empty threat. He leaned and kissed her forehead lightly, pulling away quick and the next thing Natasha knew, he was across and inside his house in no time.

--..--

The summer passed by quickly and the next thing they know, 7th grade has started. Natasha felt bad that she missed Steve's 13th birthday over the summer for the first time in 5 years so she got him a platinum watch. There's a star in the middle of it, a symbol of him being born on the Fourth of July. it's been a running joke between them two, she being Russian, and him being this "all-American boy". She dashed off to his house the minute they arrived at her house to give it to him. Steve gave her a huge smile and she was shocked at the sight of him.

Steve grew at least 3 inches over the summer, so he is now a bit taller than him. He's still skinny, but she has no doubts that it will change sooner or later.

"Thanks Nat, I loved it," he said, opening the box and she can see his eyes twinkling in happiness. Steve is the most sincere person she knows and also the most brutally honest. He doesn't have to wear it to show that he loved it, she trusts his word. On the back of the watch, there's a small engraving of a symbol of the black widow spider. Two years ago, they went to a field trip at a zoo and Natasha decided that her favorite arachnid would be the black widow because of its badass-ness. She grinned and waved him goodbye, she has to go and unpack, but with the promises of catching up later.

For the first time since the two became friends, they didn't have any classes together in 7th grade and since the school has two different lunch times, they didn't get to see each other then too. This made the two incredibly sad at first, but they have no choice but to deal with it. They would still walk home together before and after school though, and try to hangout as much as they can.

However, as the school year progressed, the two became busier and busier. Natasha became a part of their school dance team and Steve joined the football team to help him overcome his asthma. They both have practices after school so this even more diminished their time together.

7th grade ended and the two just drifted even more apart. Natasha met new friends, Maria and Pepper, who are both in her dance team. Steve became close to the football team and started hanging out with them. He was with the jocks: Thor, Clint, Sam, and surprisingly, Tony. This cycled continued on even as they started high school, where an old friend came back.