Complicated -- An Avengers Fanfic

Chapter One

Natasha was absolutely brilliant, and I was nothing like her.

Of course, to accompany all of her amazing traits; she was also a morning person, and she always scheduled our sparring lessons early. It forced me to get up at an ungodly hour every couple of weeks to meet her, though it wasn't really that bad, since we didn't do this very often. She was always off on her missions around the world, but she somehow managed to make time for me every couple of weeks.

I let out a small sigh, and continued my trek down the SHIELD building's hallway. The lights were dimmed, as it was still dark outside, and I only passed a few people as I walked forward. I managed to make it to the gym without being late; 4:30 on the dot.

Natasha was standing on the other side of the gym with her hands held behind her back, studying the ground below her. She turned when she heard my footsteps, and nodded briskly at me.

"I have to be half way across the world in less than five hours, so let's try to make this quick," She spoke.

I gave her a slightly drowsy smile, and stretched out my arms gently, trying to get them ready for combat. If I was still stiff when we started sparring, she would take me down in no time at all. After a few minutes of some basic stretches, I jumped up and positioned myself into an offensive stance. I was usually the one who was on the defensive side, waiting for my opponent to make a mistake; to give me an opening that would give me the upper hand. It was a fine tactic, but I had to include more offensive moves if I wanted to make a real impact on the person I was fighting against.

Natasha was on me in an instant, and I only barely had time to block her strike.

That was something that I would never get used to no matter how many times I sparred against her, the fact that the Widow was so fast. She let out a flurry of movements as easily as if she were dancing, and I tried my best to block all of them, but a kick managed to hit my unprotected side, and it successfully knocked the air out of me.

It only took a moment before the sleepy feeling completely left my body, and my training fully kicked in. I stopped myself from thinking too much, and instead reacted, using my natural instincts to get ahead. I feigned an attack to her left, and nearly struck her, before turning and landing a kick to her stomach, causing her to stumble backwards.

I tried to take advantage of her momentary weakness, and punched outwards. It would have hit her had I been a split second faster, but as it was, she grabbed my hand and twisted it to the breaking point. Wincing, I knelt down and swerved my body around so that I could use my momentum to break her hold. I pulled away, and went to throw a kick at her legs, but she moved away from me, and countered with her own kick that successfully managed to knock me down onto the padded floor.

I jumped back up, but she sent another punch my way, one that I was only barely able to block in time. She threw another one, and it forced me onto my knees. I held my hands up to protect my face, trying to fend off all of her attacks. She kept striking me, and it seemed like the fight was lost.

She knew that all I could do now was block her attacks, but she didn't stop. She never stopped without me saying something to her, which wasn't something I was about to do. My pride may end up being my downfall, but I'd be damned if I admitted defeat to her. I wouldn't. I could not. Somehow, throughout the process of me getting my ass handed to me, my thoughts wandered over to Clint, and I came to a sudden realization.

My brother could hold his own in a fight with Natasha, so why couldn't I?

I began to get angry, completely unreasonable I know, but just knowing that my brother could do something that I couldn't, made me mad. My cheeks heated with my fury, and I darted up from my kneeling position, swiftly thrusting my leg out and hitting Natasha in the stomach once again.