Body and Soul: The Endgame Fix

Part 11: Big Love

Bruce nearly jumped when Natasha put her hand on his shoulder. She'd pulled on his old blue plaid checked shirt she'd claimed earlier. Her platinum blond hair was a little tousled and he noticed her auburn roots were showing like a touch of phoenix flame. He was happy to notice some of her spark seemed to have rekindled, too. Bruce thought she looked gorgeous, especially when Friday automatically brought more natural light back into the room. He wanted to hold her close and protect her, but he was just as concerned about smothering her.

She stepped in close and rubbed the back of his neck. "I recognize that guilty, conflicted look. What's up?"

"I was checking to see what you'd need to do to get the official back-from-oblivion paperwork started, and then I put your name on one of my bank accounts without asking you first. Sorry. I get on these jags where I try to fix everything." He took off his glasses and smiled at her apologetically.

She chuckled, "Remind me to hit you up when Girl Scout cookies go on sale."

"I have a freezer full," he admitted. "I don't do 'No,' so well. Not for a while anyway."

She slipped her arm around his bare shoulder and gave him a hug and a kiss on his temple. "Hate to tell you, but you've hardly ever said, 'No,' to a friend or a box of Thin Mints." She well knew Uncle Bruce used to be one of Lila Barton's best customers. "So how much can I take you for, Doc?" she joked as she looked over his shoulder.

"A lousy ten grand in that little cookie jar unless you open up a line of credit. Then the sky's the limit, Babe," he drawled in a bad James Cagney impersonation. She rolled her eyes. "I'm not worth as much as Tony, but I can support you in the manner to which you're accustom, Ms. Romanoff." This time she giggled. He could have bought her anything she wanted, including an island or two, and possibly a planet if Rocket wasn't scamming him for fun. "You have to be feeling better, right? Geeze, I've missed that smile, Nat. I've missed your voice."

"Ditto!" She stretched her arms above her head and rolled up on the balls of her toes. "Yes! Surprisingly, a three-hour nap helped." She closed his laptop, and he pushed his chair back from the desk and extended his bare muscular legs. Nat smiled when she saw he still preferred blue cotton boxers.

"You're not angry with me, are you? I'm a little more compulsive than I once was," he admitted.

"If it means you're a little more spontaneous, I don't see a problem with it." She played with his hair, thinking it was one physical thing that hadn't changed except for a little more gray like he'd brought back from Sakaar, but she missed his curls from years ago. Maybe he'd grow it out again if she asked.

Bruce almost shivered with excitement at her touch, he liked the feel of her hands on him so much. "I'm . . . I don't want to take away your autonomy. I did that to Hulk for years, so I have to be careful about it creeping into relationships." The fake Natasha had also accused him of doing it to her, so Bruce was admittedly sensitive about the issue. His default was to step back because he'd become more deliberative and weighed his options with care now that he had breathing space and a clear head. He knew how intimidating he could be without saying a thing since he literally was the Hulk in the room.

Nat chuckled, sounding more and more like her old self. "Banner, I'd like to see you try." She moved his computer well to the side and sat down on his lap, and he leaned back a bit more in his chair, shifting to accommodate her. They were still both studying each other, taking in changes and adjusting. It occurred to her his skin really wasn't a uniform shade of light green at all. Natasha ran her hands over his abdominals and up his ribs to his chest and shoulders to the scars he'd earned in vain while trying to bring her back. As rough as his right arm and shoulder looked, they were apparently a big improvement. He didn't flinch when she explored the scars, but he studied her face intently for her reactions. Nat realized that even after all the Skrull had put him through and the pain it had caused, Bruce had still loved her that much anyway. He'd never given up hope in them finding their way back to each other.