Venomous

38. Trust Fall

(Natasha's POV):

To my slight surprise, AV was agreeable to my suggestion to allow Parker to ride behind me. Honestly, I wasn't sure they could fit on the back of a motorcycle, but they seemed strangely eager to try. As the liquid-looking substance retreated and Parker's features once more became visible, I watched her closely to catch the reaction I didn't want to miss.

"Oh, hell no." She murmured, looking down at my motorcycle, folding her arms across her chest and shaking her head. I smirked, which widened into a full smile as I watched Parker tilt her head to the side and frown. AV was talking to her, no-doubt telling her to get on the bike and to stop complaining, if I had gauged their personality correctly. Parker shook her head stubbornly. "No," she repeated. Instead of responding, I shrugged my shoulders, slid my leg over the bike, sliding forward in the seat and gunning the engine. I glanced back over my shoulder; eyebrows raised.

"Are you coming, or are you going to be a baby all night?" I knew I was pushing my luck, but sometimes Parker needed a decent shove in the right direction. And by right direction, I mean my direction, of course. I swore that I could have heard a growl emanate from her throat, but she played it off nicely. I smirked as I saw AV's familiar white goop sliding down Parker's arms as if they were going to take matters into their own hands. Literally. Begrudgingly, Parker's arms flapped in irritated consent, and she hesitantly climbed onto the back of the bike, settling into position. "You might want to hold on," I smirked, speaking before lowering the visor on my helmet.

"Don't get cheeky, Natasha," she retorted. Nevertheless, her hands rested on my hips. I chuckled, gunning the engine and peeling out of the parking lot. We got about twenty minutes outside of the city before I realized that taking the motorcycle was a mistake. At some point in our journey through the countryside, AV decided that I wasn't driving fast enough. I looked down, widening my eyes as white, fluid looking hands hovered over mine before grabbing the handlebars. I felt Parker shift forward slightly in her seat, leaning forward as she murmured into the helmet microphones. "I warned you. They like motorcycles."

"Don't be a cocky shit," I murmured back, not able to miss the sensation of Parker's body vibrating in laughter behind me. Who was I kidding? I loved it when she was a cocky shit. I caught myself leaning backwards in the seat, leaning back against her slightly as I let go to enjoy the ride. She just squeezed my hips lightly in acknowledgement. What the hell was happening right now? AV graciously allowed me to drive my own motorcycle as we entered the city. The business district – at least part of it – was generally empty around this time of night except for the die-hard employees that would believe they were hallucinating if they thought they saw something funny.

A few minutes later, the motorcycle tucked away in an alley, AV and I stood in front of the tallest building we could find. I rested my hands on my hips, raising my eyebrows. "What now?" The smile on AV's face was nothing short of sinister, yet playful. I was sorry I asked as white tendrils wrapped their way around my waist securely before we were suddenly airborne, AV moving up the building as fluidly as their form appeared to be. I've rappelled up and down enough things to understand the sensation, but this was something new. It took them mere minutes to reach the very top, one hand hanging onto the spire as we spun around, admiring the view.

"That was amazing," the sentence left my mouth before I thought about it. AV's already-larger than normal mouth widened even further, their tongue licking their lips at the compliment.

"Want to have some fun?" They asked. I frowned slightly.

"There's more?" The smile widened even further, the giant eyes narrowing in excitement. They nodded, reminding me of a small child that had just been given a precious gift like a shiny piece of paper. I tensed momentarily as the tendrils securely holding me in place spun me around, pinning me against their chest. I could feel the muscles rippling just beneath the skin and it was a feeling I couldn't describe.

My eyes widened in surprise and I clung to the tendrils holding me tightly as AV suddenly let go of the spire and we were falling forward. They widened even further when AV's feet made contact with the building we were falling down, propelling us forward even faster. Tendrils shot out, attaching to the next building over, swinging us easily between them, dropping a few feet before catching again We swung easily from alley to alley, and once I familiarized myself with the sensation, it was actually enjoyable. I caught myself studying their movements, the way their body adapted to anticipated needs before it could consciously decide to do it.

AV moved so easily that it had to be merely instinctual. I relaxed easily into the sensation, noting that AV's breath never increased, nor did the steady thump of their heartbeat behind me. If this was not an exertion for them, what would be? Many hours later, I found myself perched on the top of the Statue of Liberty's torch, AV crouching easily on one of the crown's points, seeming to be very satisfied with themselves. "Hey," I murmured with a smirk. Their wide eyes turned towards me, a smile growing on their face.

"Hey yourself," they responded with something that could only be called a smirk. It's like they were constantly updating and responding to the facial expressions of others in order to use them. I frowned, wondering for a minute if AV was snarky because of Parker, or if Parker was extra snarky because of AV. Regardless, they gave my sarcasm a run for its money, and that was saying something.

"How good are your reflexes?" I smirked, backing towards the edge of the torch. AV flashed their teeth, their crouch lowering, already ready to spring into action.

"Try us." I stepped off the edge, waiting only a fraction of a second before I felt strong arms wrapping around me, tendrils flinging themselves against the statue's arm until they got their feet under them again easily.

...

(Parker's POV)

I couldn't hide my yawn as Natasha and I both leaned against the walls of the elevator, making our way back to our rooms. She smirked at me, but almost immediately yawned herself, chuckling.

"I have the feeling I'm going to sleep like a baby tonight," I grinned. Natasha chuckled, her green eyes sparkling in amusement.

"Did you get worn out, Brock?" She teased. I rolled my eyes, glancing up as the elevator door dinged open on her floor. She seemed slightly surprised but didn't complain when I followed her out, preferring to walk her to her room. We paused at the door and she turned back to me and smiled.

"Thank you for today, Parker. It was fun to hang out with your counterpart." She added. I blinked at her stupidly for a moment before smiling.

"It was fun for us, too," I assured her. She shook her head slightly, chuckling. She cocked her head to the side, waiting for me to say what I wanted to say. I gulped for a minute before coming up with something snarky instead. "Always falling for me, aren't you Natasha?" The familiar sparkle in her eyes was unmistakable.

"I know you'll always catch me."

It happened before I realized what I was doing, but I leaned forward on instinct, pressing my lips to her forehead at the hairline. She inhaled sharply, and I pulled back immediately. "Natasha, I'm sorry," I murmured, turning away from her without being able to look at her directly. I didn't want to wait for the elevator, so I opted for the nearest stairwell instead, bounding up several at a time until I was safely in my room. Then I slammed my fist against the wood. "Well, shit." I murmured.

You still like her. For the first time in as long as I could remember, I jumped at the voice of my internal friend.

"No shit, Sherlock." I muttered, watching the skin on my bloody knuckles heal itself. I sighed.

She likes you too, stupid.

"Hey!" I muttered, frowning. I flopped face-first onto the bed, half-wanting the pillow to suffocate me in my sleep, knowing that AV would never let it happen.