𝐋𝐚𝐬 𝐕𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐬, 𝐃𝐚𝐲 𝟒
Steve and Bruce were the only two people that could wake up early that morning. The scientist was sitting in front of the television with a bowl of cereal and a cup of tea. Steve was about to cook his breakfast, but decided that it would be better if he ordered from room service.
The doorbell rang twenty minutes later, and the room service guy came with his breakfast. Steve sat down in front of the television with Bruce before eating his food quietly. The doorbell rang again ten minutes later.
“I will get that.” Steve said and jumped over the sofa before running to get the door. He opened it only to find Natasha standing there in her casual safety attire that made Steve wonder what she had inmind for them today.
"Okay, Rogers. Bring your Gopro. We will go laser tagging today."
“Morning.” He replied. “And isn’t it too childish for us to go laser tagging?”
“Nothing is too childish! Also, this one is a team building exercise and I need my partner in crime to be in sync with me.”
“Need I remind you that we are in our mid-twenties?”
“Don’t ruin the mood and stop arguing with me. You have a bet to fulfill.”
Steve groaned and grabbed his things. He told Bruce that he was heading out and would come back after noon.
“Why did you come so early this morning?” he asked when they were alone inside the elevator.
“I have to go to work this afternoon and am probably go back to stripping tonight since the hickeys have all faded.”
“That’s too bad. I really want to spend more time with you.” Steve pulled a wry face at her. “Maybe I probably should put more of them on so you can stay with me.” He bent down, trying to kiss her neck, but Natasha pulled away and pushed at his face.
“Lover boy, don’t.” She warned him but her eyes gleamed with amusement. She definitely enjoyed this game as much as he did.
“Yes, ma’am.” He agreed but he couldn’t resist pressing his lips on her neck one time before pulling away.
Natasha shivered and felt her legs wobbling even as Steve lightly kissed her there. Her hands grabbed his arms to help her stand because she doubted that her legs were able to support her weight anymore.
He pulled away only to find Natasha’s face reddening and he had to take note how cute she was when she was on the other end of the teasing. Natasha mumbled something that sounded like a protest to his actions. Steve kissed her forehead again and dragged her out of the elevator.
“Warehouse Wars, please.” She told the taxi driver.
The couple proceeded to boast about their laser tag skills. Steve said he used to go laser tag with his friends every week, but since they were grown-ass adults now, he didn’t do it anymore. Natasha only warned him that she was really good at it.
“I don’t believe you for a second.” Steve doubtfully said. “A beautiful woman like you enjoying laser tag? Oh! On second thought, I should believe you because I will probably get my ass kicked by you again.”
She laughed melodically. “Yeah, you’re damn right, baby.”
Steve adored her so much and pulled her by the shoulders and kissed her temple. When they arrived, Steve paid for the cab fee and the driver told them that they were a cute couple. Natasha didn’t bother to correct the man, but pulled Steve into the building with her.
“Hey! Welcome back, Natasha!” A male staff at the counter greeted her.
“Hey, Malcom.” she greeted back. “Two games for both of us, please.”
“Of course. I will give both of you a special price. Since Natasha here is our hall of famer and one of our most loyal customers.” Malcolm boasted, handing them the tickets.
Steve paid for the fees and followed Natasha to the weapons locker where they got their armor and laser tag gun. The two of them would go against other pairs. Natasha gave Steve all the details she knew about this place and the spots that would give them a strategic advantage.
Steve wasn’t exactly paying any attention to her because he was so amazed by her. She never failed) to amaze him. He loved her excitement and her enthusiasm. They were things that had captivated him from the first time he’d gotten a chance to know her and had probably made him attached.
“Hey, are you listening to me?” She poked his arm with the gun. “Why do you keep staring at me?”
“Because I’m paying my attention to you.”
“Nah, you’re just staring dumbly at me and are probably not listening to any word I’m saying.”
Luckily for Steve, the staff called them to take their positions at the starting point so they could begin the first game. Natasha help Steve attached his Gopro camera to his helmet to record everything. She had one of her own too.
“You look ridiculous.” Steve noted, which earned him a slap on his arm.
“Shut up.” She mumbled.
Then the security briefing appeared on the television before the game started. The video told them about the security measures taken to prevent the player from getting injured and then proceeded to explain the types of game they were playing. It was a last man standing match and they had to eliminate every single one of the opponent team in order to win.
“I saw our opponents’ face. They aren’t people from around here so we have the home field advantage.” Natasha said.
“Yeah, I have you.”
Natasha smiled. Then the buzzer went on, signaling the beginning of the game and the door into the arena opened. The maze was dimmed, almost as dark as night time, but there was still some light to lead the way.
“Follow me and stay as low as possible, okay?”
“Yeah”
Steve had to crouch down in a painful way to hide his big, muscled body behind the wall just like Natasha had, but it wasn’t an effective way to hide and was probably the cause of friendly fire.
“You are too big for this thing,” she screeched. “You’re gonna make me lose this game.”
“I told you I’m a grown up!”
“Shhh!”
Steve could see how this laser tag game would end. It would end badly because all they did was arguing with each other. Some of the opponents could hear them and came their way. Steve and Nat had to turn on the ‘stealth mode’ and hide in a place that could cover them both. They heard footsteps getting closer and closer. They looked at each other before jumping out of the hideout in synchronization and taking down two opponents.
Natasha landed on Steve who had used his chest to prevent her from falling hard onto the ground. The redhead giggled uncontrollably on his chest as the two stayed down for a couple of minutes to hide from everyone else. Nat loved how warm and cuddly his body was, and and took advantage of it by hugging him tightly.
“Are you hurt?” he asked, a bit worried that she didn’t move.
“Nah, we have to hide until we’re sure that no one’s looking for us.” she replied.
“Okay.”
Steve wrapped his arms around her and craned his head up to look around. They were lucky that the corner they currently occupied was dark and secluded. Finally, Natasha reluctantly let go of him and got to her feet, pulling him up with her.
“Ready to do some hunting?” she asked.
“Yeah, let’s go.”
The couple killed it for the first thirty minutes of the game. They hunted down their opponents and brutally killed them. They were both as good as they had boasted. Natasha took pleasure and pride in seeing every man’s face when they realized that they had had their asses handed to them by a woman. Natasha laughed in their face as a payback for all the comments they’d made about her before the game.
“See ya in hell, suckers!”
Steve was kinda okay with it because Natasha was happy and he was proud of her. It came to the last pair of opponents. They were so close to winning but Steve made the mistake of slipping and they tripped on each other. Steve was quick enough to maneuver himself so Natasha landed on top of him but her lips landed on his. The electricity ran through their bodies again. They both knew it was wrong but they didn’t move away, relishing in the taste of each others’ lips and continued kissing. Steve’s hands went to cup both side of her face as Natasha parted her lips to let him in.
The sounds of their armor interrupted them as the other couple shot at them,bringing them out of their reverie. The game master announced that the game was over and that their opponents had won.
Steve and Natasha still laid on the floor, still staring at each other, panting. Both of their face were red.
“I’m sorry.” Steve uttered. “We shouldn’t.”
“Don’t worry about it, Steve.” She said. “But it will never happen again.”
“Okay…”
“Come on. I think we have a rematch.”
“I couldn’t agree more.”
They got up and headed out to prepare for another round. This time it was a team match that turned into a one-on-one match when they eliminated half of the players. The couple discussed about who they should take out first and who probably posed the most threat.
The second game started and the couple killed it. They singlehandedly took out half of the players in twenty minutes. The second buzzer rang to warn them that the rules of the game had changed and they were now in a one-on-one match. Steve and Nat separated but made a pact that they would take everybody else out first before they fight with each other.
“Don’t die before I get to shoot you, Rogers.”
“You too, Nat,”
They walked in opposite directions and did as they promised to each other, staying alive. They were so good that their opponents didn't stand a chance of taking them out. When it was down to them hunting one another, it took them a lot of time and energy to find each other in the maze and engage in a duel.
"Don't just hide there, Rogers! Show your face!" Natasha yelled from the barricade she hid behind.
"You're the one to talk," he replied before rolling on the floor to another corner, closing in on her. "Come on, Nat. I'm hungry.Come out here so I can kill you." Steve poked his head out. Suddenly, Natasha jumped on him and took him down. Her gun pressed onto his chest before firing the kill shot at him.
"I did say I would kick your ass, right?"
"Yeah, you just did." He smiled at her. "You're the best."
"Of course." Natasha bent down to kiss his cheek before getting off of him.
The game master announced that game was over and Natasha was the winner of this round,maintaining her high score of the arena. Natasha did her victory dance just to mock Steve. He just smiled and chuckled at her.
“Come on. Let’s find something to eat. I’m starving, dear,” he said and held his hand out.
Natasha took his hand and they went to the snack bar to fill their stomachs before Natasha forced him to go to the indoor trampoline park.
Steve stood still at the door as if he wasn’t sure of what he was doing. Natasha laced their hands together and looked at him as if she wastrying to give him strength to overcome what was holding him back. He smiled at her and lightly squeezed her hand before they entered. They started bouncing up and down but nothing too extreme because they were afraid of emptying everything from their stomachs.
“You wanna talk about it?” she asked.
“Talk about what?”
“I noticed how you froze up at the door.”
“Nothing can escape your eyes.”
“Yeah…so, you wanna talk about it?”
Steve stopped bouncing and sighed. Natasha stopped as well to pay attention to him. Her piercing green eyes were fixed on him making Steve avert his eyes.
“Tell me, tell me, tell me!”
“Okay….” He sighed again “I was thinking about the time when my mother took me and my best friend Bucky to the trampoline park nearby our neighbor’s when I was a little kid. We loved it and had a very good time together.” He told her. Natasha noticed that his eyes were sad and his shoulders bowed. “I miss them.”
“Where are they?”
“They died six years ago.” He replied.
“I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be. It’s a long time ago now and being here reminded me of them.” He said gently. “It’s almost my wedding day and I want them to be there with me.”
Natasha pulled him into a tight hug and rubbed his back soothingly. “Hey…they’re always with you, Steve.”
“Thank you.” He whispered.
“It’s a happy memory, Steve. Keep it that way, alright?”
“Okay.”
Natasha pulled away and smiled at him. “Now show me your best moves, Rogers.”
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They had a really good time at the trampoline park, leaving Stevewith another good memory of it. Certainly it had something to do with Natasha. She captured photos of him, jumping around and smiling brightly in the way that he loved.
Steve said that he really was starving and they should havelunch before he ate everything in the snack bar, so Natasha took him to the nearby diner. The waitress greeted the redhead warmly and led them to Natasha’s usual booth. They flipped through the menu for five minutes and the waitress came and took their orders.
Steve looked at Natasha, expecting her to pick a salad dish or something healthy. He was dead wrong. First of all, she was Natasha Romanoff, unlike normal women and second, she was Natasha Romanoff and she always amazed him.
“I would like to have your signature double cheeseburger with extra bacon and he will have the T-bone, medium rare. And also your custard strawberry tart.”
“Of course, Natasha.”
“Thank you, Darlene.”
“Is this gentleman your boyfriend?”
The two looked at each other and shook their heads adamantly. “No, ma’am.” “No...no, Darlene, no, no, no.”
Darlene laughed at their reactions. “You two are cute together anyway.”
Darlene walked away and left the couple alone with their reddened faces. Natasha broke the awkward silence by showing him the videos and photos they’dtaken together. They had a good laugh at the video of Natasha taking down a bunch of men, who were screaming and trembling in fear.
“I have to admit, I thought you were gonna order a salad or something healthy.” Steve said.
“Why? Because I’m a girl?”
“No, no, I just thought that you would eat something healthy.”
“Like the way your fiancée eats?” Her green eyes pierced through him and she knew the answer. “Not allgirls are conscious about food.”
“You reminded me of my mother and how she always enjoyed eating pretty much everything but was also in great shape all the time.”
“It’s called eating what you want and working out as hard as you eat.”
“I love women who enjoy eating.”
She smiled teasingly and mockingly hit him on the arm. “Oh, stop it. I know you love me, Steve. Your friends seemed to be a bit of a protective mother hen last night."
"Yeah, they feared that I might make a bad decision."
“So I’m a bad decision now?”
“Not likes that. They are afraid of everything that I do because I am always optimistic and naïve.”
“That’s not a bad thing, Steve. It means that you can let people in and see the good in them,” she said. “I like that part of you. You never judge me by what I do for a living or anything.”
“Glad to hear that you like me.”
“Oh, you! Everyone who gets a chance to talk to you likes you.”
Steve laughed because that statement wasn’t true, but didn’t want to correct her at this point. Natasha didn’t know that he had a dark side. He wasn’t really that innocent and sweet.
The food came and they enjoyed it very much. The food was as good as Natasha had told him. They stole food from each other’s plates and had a fork war when it came to the last curly fry on Steve’s plate. (Steve let her have it because all he wanted to do was to keep the smile on her face.)
When it came time to pay the bill, Natasha insisted they would split the bill, as she could pay for her own food. Steve met her halfway, and said that he would pay for the dessert. Natasha agreed.
“I have to go back to the lounge at 3:30PM to get ready for the show at 4.” She told him. “My shift for stripping is at 7.” Steve made a disappointed face at her. “Not everybody is as rich as you and your friends, Steve.”
“I know…but…I want to spend more time with you.”
His confession made her smile. Then they had to head back to the Strip right away because of the unpredictable traffic. Natasha fell asleep and leaned her head against Steve’s shoulders all the way back to the lounge. Steve wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. He woke her up when they arrived.
“You can go back and get some rest, Steve.” She said. “Tomorrow will be a wild day if I can come up with something extreme.”
“I will stay here until you have finished your session.” he shrugged. “I can enjoy your voice and a good scotch here.”
“Suit yourself.” she said and led him inside the establishment.
Steve ordered his usual scotch and a bottle of beer as he listened to Natasha’s angelic voice. She was definitely the best voice he had ever heard. She sang for one and half hours before they were off to get something to eat for dinner. This time she ordered a light dish because she would have to go back to stripping again.
He offered to drop her off at her strip club. Natasha was okay with that, even though she insisted that she didn’t need someone to protect her. She enjoyed Steve’s company. When they arrived, Natasha took him inside to have a little peek of her life as a stripper. Women smiled at him seductively as he walked past them in the hallway led to the changing room.
“I can’t let you in any further,” she said, “because it is a room full of naked women.”
“I understand.”
“You really didn’t have to walk me here.”
"I just wanted to make sure that you were safe."
Sharon was indeed a lucky girl to have such a sweet boyfriend like Steve, Natasha thought enviously to herself before giving him a small smile. “Thank you for always be so considerate.”
“I will go now and see you tomorrow, Natasha.” He said. “And…um—can you call me when you’re home so I know that you’re safe?”
“If it puts you at ease, I will.”
“Thank you, ma’am.”
Before Steve turned away, Natasha pulled him back in and kissed his cheek. Steve was stunnedfor a second. His face was bright red, but before he could react. Natasha pushed him toward the exit.
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Steve left to go back to his hotel and Natasha headed back to her changing room to prepare to get on stage. Maria, her closest friend, was waiting for her with a mischievous smile.
“Who’s that hot, handsome guy?”
“No one!”
“Really? You dragged him all the way here. You’ve never brought a man here before. Not to mention that he acted like a love sick puppy dog.” Maria continued to push Natasha. “Also, you’re happier than you normally are.”
“Alright, he’s a friend.”
“Hmm?”
“Fine, he’s one of my clients who turned into one of my friends because he was nice and sweet.”
“Maybe this guy is your match.”
“What are you talking about? He isn’t my match. He’s someone else’s fiancé.”
“Too bad, you guys look gorgeous together.”
"He's a pretty great guy. We have a lot in common." Natasha continued to explain, but Maria knew her friend better than that. She was trying to come up with an excuse just to get Maria off her back.
"I know that it's morally wrong, but I want you to steal him." The brunette suggested.
Natasha shook her head. "You know I won't do that."
"I know, but tell me that you don't think about stealing him too."
"I hadn’t until you forced it into my head." Natasha screeched. "I don't know, Maria.”
"Need I remind you that you didn't come to work for two nights in a row because you wanted to spend time with him."
"That's why, Maria. We're getting too close. We both need some space. We kissed again today and I can say that he was trying to seduce me as much as I was. I don't know how long we can resist it until one of us lose all good conscience."
"You like each other. What's the harm in being with the one you like?"
"I want to get to know him more as a person."
"Sometime you can be surprisingly naive, Nat. You and him can't be friends for long. You guys skipped all the steps and practically went all the way with each other. On a side note, it is very hard to find a guy who is that good with his tongue."
"I shouldn't have told you about it."
"He satisfied a lady twice with his tongue in one night!"
"I don't want to get my heart broken again."
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Steve came back and found a small note from his friends telling him that they would be at the casino if Steve was interested in joining them. Of course, Steve discarded the thought of going back to the casino after he’d lost $5,000 on the first day so he texted Tony that he’d already come back and would head to bed right away.
‘You suck :P’ was the reply from the genius billionaire.
Steve sighed and threw his phone onto the bed before heading to the bathroom to take a shower. He felt pretty sore from all the activity he’ddone with Natasha today. It was a nice day. He felt alive with this woman in a weird way he couldn’t describe.
And the kiss. Oh, the kiss had been so sweet and tender. The mere thought of it made his heart race. The way he’d felt her soft body press tightly against his. He admitted that he had to stop thinking about her as more than just a friend or it would jeopardize everything. He would love to act on his feelings, but this time he had to have better control.
It was too risky. It would hurt everyone if it played out badly. One thing he knew for sure was that he didn’t want to hurt Natasha.
Steve sighed and took a hot shower to help relax his sore muscles. Then he dried himself, dressed up and went straight to bed but he found that he couldn’t sleep anyway because Natasha’s lips were haunting his mind.
He wished they had met under different circumstances.
Fuck you, Rogers. You’re engaged to Sharon, so you’d better stop thinking about Natasha! He scolded himself, hitting his head hard on the pillow to shake the redhead out of his thoughts.
It ended up with Steve rolling around on his bed because he was still waiting for Natasha to call him and confirm that she’d arrived home safely. He tried to count sheep. It helped, but when he was about to doze off, Natasha called him.
“Hey, hope I didn’t interrupt your sleep.”
“No, not at all.”
“I’m home. Safe and sound.” She said. “See you tomorrow, Steve, and good night.”
“Good night, Natasha.”