What people think when you tell them you are joining the Avengers is how you'll get to tag along during important missions, spending your days fighting, and your nights alone in your apartment. They picture a statue of yourself made as a sign of sacrifice or hard work. They imagine you lying in the dirt during an important intel mission for days, only taking breaks to take a piss and share your rationed food.
What they fail to imagine, and what even you yourself failed to imagine is the normalcy that sometimes reluctantly squeezes its way into your life. From cooking dinner to folding laundry, surprisingly, none of it miraculously disappears just because you have an important job to do.
And for some goddamn reason, nobody realizes that this job requires you to live on site with the rest of the team. Every time this small detail makes its way to light, people don't even take a deep breath before expressing their surprise and genuine interest at the fact. People always ask, "What's Tony's lab like in real life?!?" or "Is Natasha just as cold hearted as she seems?" but the truth is, life is just the same as it was before, the only real difference is how you don't need to worry about rent... well, as long as you do your job.
Right now, sitting alone in bed, you can't help the boredom that so desperately wants some attention. Trying to disarm it, you read. Then you watch a show. Then you fold your laundry. You find ways to try tricking your mind into believing it's entertained so hard that by the time you're ready to face it head on and acknowledge its persistent existence, you've worked up an appetite. Walking into the living area and kitchen, the unusual quiet atmosphere catches your attention. Strange, but not unwelcome. Seeing the prep of dinner left out on the granite counter tops Tony insisted on installing, you can't help but express a sense of confusion. Peppers thinly sliced sat on the surface, cut so precisely it didn't take long to realize who had done it. Tomatoes, cilantro, jalapenos, paired with simple salt and pepper lay motionless and uniform, waiting to be combined into something more. Almost all of the pieces to this puzzle were so painfully presented in front of you, yet you were unable to put them together without seeing the final picture.
Taking a few steps closer, the familiar burn in your eyes confirmed one of the many thoughts clouding your head. An almost completely diced Spanish onion rested gently on a cutting board waiting to be finished. Neighboring it was none other than the sharpest chef knife present in the kitchen. It was then, once you had noticed its incomplete presence that you found her.
You had had your eyes on the girl for a long time. Since moving in with her and the rest of the team, it was hard not to notice. Your little gay heart, so confident in yourself, yet so afraid of rejection. You were completely unable to do anything about your feelings. There were plenty of perfect opportunities, from movie nights where the two of you cuddled close under a shared blanket, to rainy days spent in each other's company quietly reading or completing work. You liked her so much, but not knowing if she liked you back in that way was enough to deter you from doing anything about it.
You found her sitting still on the floor, her back to the kitchen cabinets beneath the sink. Her head lay between her knees while her elbows rested above them providing leverage for her hands. Wanda didn't notice you were there. Either it was because of your quiet footsteps or because she was trying her best to distract herself with any thought imaginable. Finally putting the pieces together, you were close enough to notice the red hugh tinting the blank section of the cutting board. Was she hurt?
Before you even had confirmed the thought, you quickly sprung into action.
"Hey, you okay Wands?" The pet name was something that just slipped out at this point. It wasn't the first time you had said it, but the ease at which it left your lips almost made you smile. Her head lifted from her legs, but her eyes remained closed, her head facing straight forward. It was then that you noticed the pale color of her face. Before waiting for her answer, you sat at her side facing her with concern. Her lack of response only worrying you more.
"Are you hurt?" You asked. The words softly left your lips laced with care as though you were afraid to startle her. Taking in a deep breath of air, she "reassuringly" replied.
"I'm fine. I'll be fine." She didn't look fine. You knew she wasn't fine. That's just something people say when they don't want to talk about it. You weren't buying it.
"Wands, you're bleeding. Let me help." Again, with the pet name, this time it came out on purpose and with confidence. Please let me help. This time, she didn't respond at all. Her finger was wrapped with paper towels held on with her other shaky hand.
"I'll be right back, okay? Don't go anywhere." Placing a hand on her knee, you stood from the ground and rushed to grab some supplies, but not before pouring a glass of cold water and leaving it at Wanda's side reminding her softly to drink some. Fuelled with adrenaline, it didn't take long to gather what you thought you needed: some cotton balls, a bottle of alcohol, some gauze and a big bandaid. She found you at her side again no more than 5 minutes later.
Her previous lack in conversation gave you an idea of how she was feeling and how you would expect the rest of the interaction to go. She would sit there, trying not to pass out, while you explained to her what it was you were doing to help ease her nerves. At least, that's how you expected it to go.
At the sound of you arriving back at her side, she mustered up the strength to talk to you a little.
"I cut myself." She said as if she thougth you didn't already know.
"I can see that," You replied jokingly. She didn't quite laugh, but you chalk that up to her being caught up in the situation.
"You're an ass." You poured some alcohol onto the cotton swabs.
"Yeah, but I'm the one here making sure you don't bleed out."
"Ugh, don't say that." This time she was serious.
"Seeing my own blood makes me squeamish. The onion had slipped because my hand was wet. As soon as I felt it happen, I locked my eyes shut and covered it. Then I kinda wanted to pass out... so I sat down." Her ashamed tone didn't go unnoticed by you.
"Hey, accidents happen. Especially when you're the team's best cook using the sharpest knives in the world." It was a little bit of an exaggeration, but also, not really. She took a deep breath thinking about what you had said.
"Do you know how hard it is to find paper towels in this kitchen with your eyes closed?" She asked you humorously.
"Real-" "Pretty freakin hard Y/n" she cut you off, making you both smile. Taking a moment to think before moving forward and tending to her wound, you continued the conversation.
"Well, I'm glad I found you before It was too late." Your voice was laced with sarcasm, joking insinuating that she would have died if not for you.
"Yeah, you couldn't have gotten here ten minutes sooner?" Wanda joked back. You smacked her arm playfully and chuckled.
The rest of the time spent on the floor, you work slowly and silently trying your best not to cause any more pain or discomfort to the red head. While you work to cover her wound, reality grabbed a hold of you making you painfully aware of how you're practically holding her hand... not that it's in an overly romantic context... but still, this is the furthest you've gotten with Wanda. It sort of makes you start to sweat.
With Wanda's finger strategically cleaned and securely wrapped in a tight bandage, your focus turned from her hand to her face. Red hair flowed freely over her shoulders framing her face. Some pieces rested gently covering her eyes, the urge to tuck them away so you could see her beautiful face without distraction abruptly came over you, but you resisted not having the guts to. What really caught your attention was the way her face still hadn't found its color. She looked like a ghost.
When her eyes met your concerned ones, Wanda's eyebrows furrowed in embarrassment.
"I'm fine Y/n. Don't look so nervous. I'm fine."
"Really? Because it sounds more like you're trying to convince yourself instead of me." A moment of realization washed over her.
"I'm just a little overwhelmed." You listened yet remained quite encouraging her to continue.
"Dinner is nowhere near done and I told everyone I would take care of it." She didn't want to let the team down. Hearing this made you sad. The team could never be disappointed in her, especially when she's the one always taking care of dinner.
"I just... I don't know if I can do it all on my own and get it done on time." Does she really think that she has to do this all on her own?
"Well then it's a darn good thing that i'm here" You said cheerfully as she looked up in confusion.
"What? You don't think I can cook?" Of course I can't, I'm completely dependent on other people. The look on Wanda's face proved she thought otherwise.
"Ok. Maybe I'm not the best chef. That's why you'll be the chef. I'll be the sous. Cool? Does that sound cool? I think so, it'll be fine. Let's go." Not giving her the chance to respond, you stood up, reaching to grab both of her hands and pulling her up off the ground. Ignoring the strong questioning look on her face, you rubbed your hands together eager to begin.
"Where should I start chef?" leaning on the counter with a doubting expression, she figured she'd give it a shot.
"Go wash your hands." She firmly told you like it was the most obvious place to begin.
From then on, the two of you worked together. You did all of the chopping of course, while Wanda took care of the actual cooking. The best part was being able to take little nibbles here and there when you thought she wasn't looking. The few times she caught you, she grabbed the nearest utensil and put you back in your place by lightly knocking you over the head with it.
All was going swimmingly until you heard a yelp from behind you.
Immediately dropping what you had been working on, you swiveled to see what had gone wrong.
From the looks of it, she had grabbed the hot pan on the stove full of cooked ground beef too close to the base, resulting in a nasty burn on the palm of her hand.
Wanda clenched her fist and squeezed her eyes shut to block out the world, until you met her at her side and took control of the situation.
"We gotta run it under cold water." When she didn't respond, you took liberty in starting the sink and guiding her towards it. She resisted, looking up at you with pained eyes slightly brimmed with tears. The sight made your heart break. Your eyes softened as hers held a look of trust.
"It will feel better once it's under cold water. I promise, trust me." Once she did as she was told, an audible sigh of relief made its way through gritted teeth.
Holding her hand in yours, you lost track of time. The only thing to worry about was if she was okay.
Eventually, the water had done its work and Wanda's hand was beginning to feel relatively normal. She opened her eyes and watched the way her hand fit so nicely in yours. She took note of how gentle your grasp was and how even though the water was ice cold, she could still feel the heat from your hands beneath hers.
When you noticed she had finally opened her eyes, your head turned slightly to catch a glimpse of her face. She must have had a similar thought because at that moment her head turned as well.
As her face met yours, a calm familiarity flushed over you. Catching a quick glimpse of her green eyes made your breath hitch.
Not expecting the close proximity, both of you jumped slightly. Not daring to look away, the two of you just stared at each other, Wanda looking up at you slightly to accommodate her leaning stature.
The two of you stayed still trying to make the moment last as long as possible. Your eyes locked on hers, occasionally moving to her lips, light pink and soft, before returning to her eyes again.
The trance that pulled you under lasted until your nose picked up a smell that stole your attention.
"Is the beef burning?" you whispered, beginning to worry. When she didn't respond, you grabbed her attention.
"Wanda?"
Finally broken out of the trance she was in, her eyes left your lips and met yours once again.
"Huh? Oh! The beef. Umm, probably." Wanda muttered out, catching her breath. Turning your attention to the beef that had recently started smoking, you could hear Wanda continue muttering quietly, almost to herself.
"Oh gosh, what was I doing? Right. My hand. I can't believe I just forgot what I was doing?" She had a little conversation with herself trying to get over the fact that she was distracted by you. Over hearing, you decided to step in cockily.
"I have that effect on pretty girls." Was it ballsy? Yes. Were you afraid to say it? Terrified. But you simply couldn't pass the opportunity up, and it practically just slipped out. After realizing what you had said, you both froze, not daring to look each other's way. It was true, you were the reason Wanda was so distracted, but saying it out loud made it so much more real.
"Shut up." She said playfully, but through the tone of her voice you could tell she was flustered at being seen straight through.
The beef was saved and by some sort of miracle was only slightly charred. Dinner was already late, but since no one had come down to complain yet, there was still some hope left. The rest of dinner was coming along, but there was still plenty of work to be done. Wanda's burnt hand was held close to her chest, while her bandaged one attempted to grab a knife. Stepping in quickly, you were able to disarm the threat.
"What do you think you're doing?!?" Gently taking a hold of her wrist, your other hand met the small of her back preparing to guide her away from the kitchen.
"I'm finishing dinner. What are YOU doing Y/n?" She allowed you to bring her away with only slight resistance.
"You, darling, have lost your kitchen privileges for the night so you don't end up dead." You started cheerfully, but she started to get angry.
"This is basically my kitchen, you can't just take my chef rights away." She crossed her arms.
"Oh, I'm not taking your chef right away, I'm just not allowing you to do the actual cooking right now. You'll be the eyes, and I'll be the hands."
"What?!? That is obscured! I cannot believe this!" She ranted, but she followed your instruction and sat down at the other side of the counter on a bar stool. Picking up the knife she had let go of, you began to cut the avocados to make homemade guacamole. You stayed silent and listened to every word she had to say while being sure to nod every now and then. Your eyes remained focused on the knife in your hand.
"It's not my fault I'm so clumsy in the kitchen right now, I've got a lot on my mind. And it's also not my fault that you make me so nervous!" She blurted out. One hand went to cover her mouth with embarrassment as you paused and looked up at her with eyebrows raised. Seeing her wide-eyed expression made you want to mask your surprised one.
"Good nervous or bad nervous?" You asked curiously.
"I don't even know." She said after sighing a big breath, she continued.
"Just. Nervous." In an attempt to take the pressure off, you looked back down and kept chopping. Silence ensued as you began to overthink.
Does this mean that she likes me too and I make her nervous because she wants me to like her? Wait... but what if she means that I make her uncomfortable. Do I make her uncomfortable? Is that what she means? Do I need to back off? Oh gosh, I didn't mean to come off like this. I need to chill out and let her be. Oh gosh, now I feel like a shitty person. I didn't mean for her to feel like this. Dammit.
As if she read your mind, she rushed to reassure you and describe her feelings once and for all. Taking a deep breath gathering the courage to express herself, she began.
"Not bad nervous. I don't really know if I'd call it good nervous because it catches me off guard and kind of makes my heart beat really fast and I almost feel like I want to scream, but it's definitely not bad. Just... unexpected... and a little bit scary." She finished her rambling by using her hand to demonstrate "a little bit" by separating her pointer finger and thumb roughly an inch.
Understanding where she was coming from, you decided between making her feel comforted and reassured... or maintaining this tension and possibly progressing it.
"Like you have a crush?" Of course, you had to intensify it. Her cheeks blushed bright red, but you remained composed wearing a straight face. She needed to know that you weren't trying to tease her, but were curious. When she didn't say anything, you tried to ease some tension... tried to at least.
"Because I have a crush. So... I get it." She knows I have a crush on her, she must. There's no way she doesn't.
"Who do you have a crush on?" Wanda asked nervously while also trying to take the pressure off of her.
"A really pretty girl... and I think I make her nervous, but I could be wrong." It was mostly sarcasm. She literally just told you that you make her nervous. Wanda's smile widened, looking away to get a break from your stare.
"Hmm, good to know."
After your confession, things in the kitchen went pretty quiet. The guacamole you were making was nearly finished and the rest of the team had begun filtering into the room. No one complained about dinner being late. Instead, they did their best to help out. Nat set the table, while Sam and Bucky poured out water. Steve had put some random vinyl on the record player and Tony was patiently waiting, completing the sudoku on today's paper. Just as everything was wrapping up in the kitchen, Natasha watched through with some questions.
"Did you cook this whole meal Y/n?" She was shocked.
"Well... not quite. Wands pretty much talked me through it. She was practically a hazard in here by herself, you should have seen her." You explained.
"Would you help me bring this stuff to the table? I would ask Wanda, but with her recent track record I'm afraid she might trip and break a leg on the way." Wanda's mouth fell open not long before she pushed the top half of her body over the counter so she could smack you on the arm.
"Ouch! What was that for" She glared at you tilting her head.
"I was just looking out for you dear..." You explained.
"Asshole." She finished, trying to hold back her huge smile.
Dinner was set and everyone had dug in. Compliments about the meal were shot out left and right per usual, but every time you redirected them reminding everyone how you couldn't have done it without Wanda's help. She may not have been able to do it without yours either, but let's not talk about that.
After dinner was finally over and everyone took care of their plates and began leaving the room, you stayed back to take care of the mess that was the kitchen. It took a lot of convincing on your part not to have Wanda help out any more than she already had, but nevertheless, she insisted. Together, you put away leftovers, cleared the counter tops, and while you cleaned the dishes, Wanda dried them.
"I really had a lot of fun cooking with you Y/n." She said out of the blue, breaking the comfortable silence.
"I'm glad you enjoy my company."
"I really do." She paused, looking up at you. You continued working on the plate you were cleaning, deep in thought, before pausing and looking back at her.
"Can I take you on a date?" Nervousness flooded your voice and your heart rate increased awaiting a response.
"I thought you'd never ask." Wanda thankfully responded laughing lightly.
"So I can?" You asked again to be sure, not convinced she really said yes.
"As long as you cook." The smile that erupted on your face was soon matched by Wanda's before your attention turned back to the soapy dish in your hand. Rising it off and handing it over to Wanda, your grip slipped early and the plate fell gracelessly to the floor shattering into a million pieces.
Your gaze slowly met Wanda's skeptical one before she spoke.
"Maybe we'll both cook." She reassured.
"Yeah, maybe thats a good idea." You both laughed trying to come up with the best way to pick up the shattered porcelain, but at the end of the night, the both of you went to your rooms thinking about how even though the night was a bit of a disaster, you wouldn't have wanted it to go any other way.