Untangling a Memory

Family time

Natasha walked into the kitchen feeling refreshed. She had started her day with a gym session and run, followed by a nice long shower. Having the windows open while enjoying the rainfall shower was a truly incredible experience. She'd then spent some time reclining on the terrace outside their common area, just enjoying the sun and light din of city noises. When she walked into the kitchen, hair still a little wet from her earlier shower, dressed in just leggings and vintage t-shirt, she felt completely relaxed. Natasha predictably poured herself a third cup of coffee and started putting together a PB&J, one of the few things she could "cook."

"Oh hey, girl! Look at you waking up on time this morning!" Sam walked into the kitchen, tossing out sassy comments per usual, followed by Steve and Bucky. Sam went straight to the fridge, grabbed some bottles of water and tossed them to Steve and Bucky as they sat down at the counter. Natasha just smirked, as she started chomping on big mouthfulls of her sandwich.

"How were the stairs, fellas? Anybody the big winner?" Natasha scanned around.

"Well, we know who lost..." Steve quipped, he, Bucky, and Natasha all looking at Sam as he took a big gulp.

"Hey! Not all of us are superhuman. At least, I made it without taking breaks..." Steve and Bucky raised their eyebrows at him, "...too many times."

Sam leaned against the fridge, still exhausted, and gestured to Steve and Bucky. "Between those two, who knows who won! They spent the whole time elbowing each other out of the way. It's a wonder no one fell down the whole thing."

Natasha raised an eyebrow and said with a big smirk, "I guess I'll just have to come watch you boys some time and decide who really is the faster super soldier."

Steve and Bucky looked at each other, eyeing each other up and down, and nodding their heads. Clearly, they were up for the challenge.

"Ok, I think it is time to shower up!" Sam said to Steve and Bucky.

"Yeah! You guys smell disgusting. Stop stinking up our kitchen!"

"Whatever. Not everyone can smell as wonderful as you, Nat." Sam said with a flirty smile as he walked down the hall back towards his room.

Steve and Bucky got up to follow, but Bucky hung behind for a second.

"Hey, Natasha?" Bucky was still a little sheepish, but slowly becoming a bit more confident. Clearly, their time watching TV yesterday was starting to make him feel more comfortable with her.

"What's up, Bucky?"

Bucky made a point of looking her in the eyes, even as he was a little nervous to ask for something. He didn't like feeling like a burden. "Could we watch a movie today, if you have time?"

"Ha ha, I have nothing, but time! Sure, that sounds great. Do you have a movie in mind?" Natasha's smile was warm. This put Bucky at ease.

"I have a list of movies that people keep telling me to watch, but I trust you to pick something if you think of something good. You did well yesterday with 'You Love Lucy.'"

Natasha laughed harder and shook her head. "It's 'I Love Lucy!' As in, you would also call it 'I Love Lucy.' But we'll work on that. Let me think about it and by the time you guys get back, I'll try to have something."

"Ok, great. Thanks Natasha."

Natasha nodded warmly and Bucky walked towards his room. It was so strange for Natasha getting to know Bucky all over again and under such different circumstances. Good strange, at least so far. But she was keeping her feelings in check. She knew better than to let her heart overwhelm her head. She'd done that once with Bucky and she would let herself get that hurt again. She was excited, though, to help him through his recovery and maybe even gain a friend in the process.

"So, what did you come up with?"

Bucky came into the common area and walked towards the fridge. Natasha was already buried in pillows on the corner of the couch where she always sat. Bucky smelled lightly like fresh cotton, but she tried to ignore it.

 Natasha turned to face him as she spoke. "Have you ever read Pride and Prejudice?" Bucky shook his head. "It's a classic novel, so hopefully you'll enjoy the movie version. It isn't as good as the book, but it's enjoyable nonetheless. Not a book from the past 100 years, but worth your time at some point regardless." Natasha's face lit up as she talked about it.

"That sounds great. Do you have a copy I could borrow sometime?"

Natasha smiled sweetly and nodded in return.

"Anything I can get you while I'm up?"

"A water would be perfect. Thanks." Clearly, Bucky hadn't lost any of his gentlemanly manners from his younger years.

Bucky brought Natasha the water and carried an apple for himself. He situated himself in the same place as yesterday on the far end of the couch.

Just then, Sam launched himself over the back of the couch and in between them. "What are we watching?" He had a big grin on his face as always.

Natasha rolled her eyes at his closeness. He took every opportunity to flirt with her, so sitting next to her was very typical. Bucky, on the other hand, thought about moving. He was still uncomfortable being so close to someone he didn't know so well, but he forced himself to stay where he was. This was another opportunity for immersion therapy.

"Pride and Prejudice. And before you start chiming in about watching something else, we aren't changing it." Natasha knew just how to shut Sam up and he put up his hands in surrender.

Steve walked over to the other end of the couch where Natasha's feet were, moved them, and sat down with his sketch pad. He was perfectly content to keep sketching, while half-watching the movie and enjoying everyone's company. Natasha had made him watch this movie before, so knew he didn't need to play close attention anyway.

About halfway through the movie, Steve got up and started making family dinner for everyone. He was an excellent cook and was happy to do little things like this. He quietly prepared spaghetti and meatballs in the kitchen, a dish he knew had been Bucky's favorite as a kid. Steve hoped that introducing little things like this would help to trigger memories for Bucky without being too pushy about it. He wanted to be helpful, but also figured out from their conversation on the first night that Bucky would need space to get to things in his own time.

The movie wrapped up and everyone headed out to the terrace to eat. It was a beautiful night, as it seemed to always be in Wakanda, perfectly warm air with a light breeze. They talked about the movie, talked about their day and plans for the week, and talked about nothing in particular, just laughing and enjoying each other's company.

Natasha smiled to herself, thinking- so, this is why people take time off and spend time with their families. Clint had always been great about that, making time to spend with Laura and the kids. Natasha had visited the farm many times and they were an extension of her family, too. But she was starting to better understand that taking the time off wasn't just about getting away from work. It was about actually enjoying your life.

Listen to: "Movies" - Alien Ant Farm