Faint Heart [Steve Rogers]

11. The One With the Dead Butt Syndrome

She didn't complain at first. At first. The first four hours of the Fellowship of the Ring had been great actually, Natasha found herself fully engrossed in the movie, even cheering when Aragorn began fighting the Uruk-hai all on his own. Then came The Two Towers. Natasha couldn't say she wasn't entertained because she was especially during the fight at Helms Deep.

"Did you see that! That's my Leggy!" Reigna squeals when the scene shows Legolas shield boarding down the stairs all the while, shooting with his bow. Natasha chuckles while shaking her head at how excited Reigna was even after sitting through a three-hour movie. Her eyelids begin to feel heavy and she presses the info button on the remote and her eyes nearly bulge out of her head when she sees there is still an hour left of the movie.

"I can feel the grey hairs growing because of this," Natasha groans and receives a gentle slap on the shoulder.

"It's not that bad. Come on, you were so pumped ten minutes into the first movie!" Reigna says, keeping her attention on the screen.

"Well, that's because movies usually last an hour and forty minutes, not four hours." Reigna couldn't help but giggle at the way Natasha began to toss and turn. "I think I'm going to have dead butt syndrome after this and guess what? I'm sending you my hospital bill."

"Oh, hush. You baby." Reigna keeps her focus on the screen and just as the screen turns black, signalling the end of the movie, a knock is heard.

"Come in!" Natasha says and rubs the sleepiness from her heavy eyes. She blinks a couple of times, finding it very hard to keep them open as they were begging her to go to sleep and she wasn't complaining about doing so. She looks up to the ceiling and mouths a, "thank you, universe," when Steve walks in.

"Hey, Nat. Have you seen Re– oh, hey," He smiles warmly when he sees Reigna's figure laid down on her side next to the redhead.

"Hey," Reigna greets, scooting up a bit. Natasha stifles a laugh as she notices the schoolgirl glint in both of their eyes.

"Is it okay with you if I take her for a moment?" Steve asks, only briefly turning to look at Natasha.

"Yes, please take her. My ass is deadened and I want to sleep," Natasha grabs the remote and exits the application. "We'll keep watching the Crown of the King tomorrow."

Reigna gets up from the bed and shakes her head, hand pinching the bridge of her nose. "It's called the Return of the King, Natasha," she smiles fondly at the exasperated whine her friend lets out. Reigna leans down and presses a kiss to the top of Natasha's head. "I'll see you tomorrow." Natasha nods in response and closes her eyes. Her hand trails down to her butt and she rubs the left cheek, groaning when she feels the pins and needles coming to life.

"I better not have dead butt syndrome after this," she mumbles aloud. Natasha then fluffs her pillow a bit, eyes still closed and a smile forms on her lips, now more than eager to welcome the sleep that quickly engulfs her.

Steve and Reigna walk alongside each other. She turns to look at him and notices he's in gym gear. "Did you come from the gym?"

His hands find their place in the pockets of his joggers, a small smile on his lips as he nods. "I did. I also came to get you because I wanted to ask you something."

They come to a stop in front of Reigna's room. A sense of nervousness and curiosity bubbles up within her and she nibbled on the inside of her cheek, giving him a nod to continue.

"This is long overdue and all, but..." Steve inhales deeply and he really doesn't know why he's so nervous but he felt as if his hands were trembling. "would you like to go on a first official date with me?"

In her mind, Reigna released a breath. She felt relieved and despite the sleepiness gaining on her, she smiles, and her hand comes up to rest on his shoulder. "I'd love to." It came out as a whisper and Steve could feel goosebumps rise on his skin because it sounded almost... sultry. He didn't know what came over him then, but there wasn't much contemplation going through his mind before his eyes trailed from hers down to her lips and Reigna didn't miss this.

A step forward. That's all it took and any space that had been between them was now closed. The atmosphere shifting to match the scene.

The tip of their noses bud against each other and their breath now coming in audible huffs. Reigna's hand trail up his arms, goosebumps arising with their path, before resting on his biceps. Meanwhile, Steve's hands cupped her cheeks, the pads of his thumbs caressing her soft skin. Their gaze intense and the tension builds. However, he couldn't help but wonder what it would feel like, what her lips would feel like against his, what they would taste like. So, he leans in. And so does she. Their lips meet and moved in perfect sync, slowly and allowed them to memorize the feeling. But their body temperatures rose, and his right hand leaves the skin of her cheek and created a blazing path down to her hip and around to her lower back.

The kiss now becoming more heated, something neither of them experienced before and they almost had the mind to break away and pinch themselves to see if this was a dream. But the way she's now pressed against the wall, hands running through the hair at the back of his head, and their tongues take turns mapping out every edge of the other's mouth lets them know it's most definitely not a dream.

They pull away soon after, both panting and foreheads resting against the other. Skin on fire and minds dazed. "How about Friday at 7?" He asks breathily. A breathy laugh leaves Reigna's lips before she bites down gently on her bottom one, nodding.

They move away from each other reluctantly. "Sounds great," she says. There was a flash of contemplation going through her mind, and she didn't know if it was because of the kiss or because of the sleep that filled her body, but she threw caution to the wind. Her hand rested on his shoulder and she takes a swift step forward. She leans in his ear and whispers, "Captain." Reigna giggles at the way his lips part and his eyebrow raises, watching as she makes her way into her room. Needless to say, Steve hadn't expected the encounter to end with a certain friend bulging in, or out.