Untangling a Memory

A friendly spider

"Well, look who's finally up!"

Steve smirked as Natasha entered the common area that was a floor below where her suite was. Even though it was nearly 1pm, Natasha was wiping the sleep out of her eyes as she walked down the steps into the common area. Still dressed in pajamas, she walked over to Steve who was standing in the open kitchen, pouring her a cup of coffee. She took it, happily sitting herself on a stool at the kitchen island, her wonderfully bitter, caffeinated beverage in hand.

"Yeah, yeah. You're just jealous you didn't get the same kind of beauty sleep that I did." Natasha smirked through half-opened, still sleepy eyes.

"Beauty sleep or hangover sleep?" Steve teased and Natasha responded by throwing a piece of fruit at him. He tossed the banana back to her, knowing she would actually want it. "BLT?"

Natasha nodded. Steve was well of her food preference after a late night of drinking. Though she didn't feel terrible, a BLT sounded perfect right about now. While she waited for him to put it together for her, she sat on the stool, started on the banana, and drank her coffee.

She almost didn't even realize that Bucky was in the adjacent living area until she heard him turn a page. He had his head in a book, with his large frame sunk into a big chair. Natasha squinted to see the cover- Charlotte's Web. She couldn't help but smile to herself at the choice.

Natasha picked up her coffee and walked over to the living area. She threw herself down on the corner of the L-shaped couch, across from where Bucky was sitting, almost splashing her coffee on herself in the process.

"Whatcha reading?" Natasha directed her voice right at him, intentionally loud as to make him jump.

Bucky jumped in response. "Charlotte's Web. Have you read it before?" He hadn't even realized she had downstairs, let alone given any notice to her whole conversation with Steve.

"I think so, but I can't remember. Remind me," Natasha said with a smirk.

"I'm still in the middle of it, but it's essentially about a pig who makes friends with a spider, who's trying to help him from being slaughtered by the farmer." Bucky closed the book on his lap, folding over the corner where he had left off. "Ha ha, that's a very simple summation of what I've gotten to thus far. I'm trying to read the books on one of those 'Top 100 books of the last 100 years' to get caught up a bit."

Bucky smiled and looked around to bring himself back to what was currently going on around the room. "How was your sleep, Natasha? I didn't even realize you were up."

Natasha smirked. "I'm a spy. You aren't supposed to notice when I'm in a room."

"Right up until the point when she groans for her coffee!" Steve chimed in from the kitchen.

Bucky took a deep breath of wonderful smells wafting from the kitchen. "Steve, is that bacon?"

"Yup, making Natasha a BLT. She requires them after liquor-filled evenings. You want one?"

Bucky nodded his head. He couldn't remember the last time he had a BLT, but the smell was incredible. He wondered why he'd never thought to make himself one since being in the palace or even in his small apartment in Bucharest. Things like this only had started to occur to him now that he was readjusting to a regular life. He'd have to remember to write this down in his notebook when he had a moment, not in front of the others.

Bucky looked back down at his book. He was still getting used to spending time with people he didn't know and learning how to make small talk. He smoothed out the cover with his fingers, feeling the worn edges, and noticing every crease and flaw.