Natasha (spidrintheroses) wrote in chances_rpg, @ 2022-04-23 17:20:00 |
|
|||
Entry tags: | mcu: bucky barnes, ~ex mcu: natasha romanoff |
April 2
Natasha Romanoff ✦ Bucky Barnes
Shoppting for an expresso machine PG Complete |
Somehow this felt like a big step which made no sense. It was an espresso machine for god’s sake. It wasn’t like they were buying a house or a car or something else that couples bought together. Then again, Natasha wasn’t still entirely certain they were a couple. The only real thing that had changed between them was that more often than not, they shared a bed. Hers or his, it didn’t matter. They talked more, she was a lot freer with her expressions of affection but they hadn’t actually discussed their couplehood. She certainly felt that they were and if she were being honest, it was what she wanted. It had been a long time since she’d been in a relationship, she wasn’t one to open herself up to many people thus her last real relationship had been Clint which was a long time ago. Their friendship had survived the ending of the romantic side of their relationship and she was grateful for that but she knew that wasn’t always the case so she had stuck to the superficial, dating, maybe a brief fling but mostly she had just worked. The Accords and the Blip had changed everything and she had accepted that she was likely to live out her life alone while pretending to everyone that she was fine. Until now. Bucky had been on the periphery of her life for years, they were acquainted with each other, but most of what she knew of him, she’d learned from Steve. Finding herself in San Francisco had offered her a chance to get to know him and she found that they had far more in common than she’d ever realized. Finding themselves where they were now was not a disappointment at all, she was happy and she believed that Bucky was too but despite the fact that Nat didn’t mince words, she was having a hard time asking a simple question. Are we a couple? If Natasha thought it had been a long time for her, Bucky had a few decades to beat her by. He hadn’t been in a relationship with a woman- an actual relationship since before the war. At least a year before. Truth be told, the man had spent much of his early adult-hood wooing girls for less-than-serious relationships. So this was completely new to him. Maybe it was more like the blind leading the blind. But going out to buy a coffee maker didn’t feel that strange. It felt natural with her. Maybe that’s why he hadn’t thought twice about it. Being with Natasha was easy (in a good way). She didn’t pester him and they understood each others…quirks. Sliding from roommates to friends to dating felt right. Honestly, it was the best thing that had happened to the guy in decades- well, one of the best things. Right up there with remembering Steve. But he hadn’t really gone through the ‘are we a couple’ question himself. No, that wasn’t something guys like Bucky thought about- even before he got brainfreeze. As it were, he’d followed her suggestion and they were currently browsing a William Sonoma (a place where Bucky felt very uncomfortable- and it probably showed). He’d picked up a small glass apricot, turning it in his hand and trying to figure out what the hell it could be used for before putting it down when he saw the price was $29.99. Jesus. Turning back toward Natasha, Bucky frowned. “We should have gone to Target, first.” Natasha grinned. Even she had been a bit taken aback by the prices and she’d expected them to be not so cheap. But for the money they were asking for the simplest espresso machine, they could have gotten a professional grade one at a warehouse store. “I am not going to disagree with you on that,” she said and looked up at him. “I picked this place because it sold kitchen stuff. I didn’t realize that their idea of kitchen stuff was the fancy kind you don’t really use, you just sit it on the counter so people can be impressed that you have it.” She hadn’t gotten out much after the blip and when she did, it was just to do something simple, like buy groceries and even at that, it didn’t take a lot since it was usually just her and Steve at the compound and some of the others if they were in town. Much of the time, it was simply her. “We should find a Target or at least some kind of secondhand store. Hell, a Goodwill would even be fine with me. There’s probably one around here somewhere.” Bucky shook his head, but he was trying his best not to smirk at the notion that Natasha Romanoff was almost admitting she was wrong. Not quite, but almost. He really wasn’t a fancy guy. Sure, he knew how to impress a girl on the town back in the day, but he was never the type to know what to buy for his home. Or how to work it once he bought it. Target was good, though. Goodwill might be better, though he wasn’t sure they’d have what they needed. However, they didn’t get far before they were intercepted by the sales woman and Bucky almost winced before explaining they just wanted coffee and, low and behold, they were shown the impressive array of machines. With big price tags, but the woman assured them they were well worth it. Picking up a tag, Bucky read the price and glanced at Nat before casually starting. “Kinda feels like a big investment. Here I thought people usually had anniversaries before this, huh?” he was half-kidding. Not really thinking about what he was saying, and (as usual) probably putting his foot in his mouth without even realizing it. “It does, doesn’t it?” she said. “But I’m all for a smaller investment than this.” Natasha thanked the woman politely and taking Bucky’s hand, led him toward the door. “Jesus, that was a lot more than I expected. We definitely need to find something cheaper.” It wasn’t like they couldn’t afford it since the visit from the leprechaun and her wish for unlimited funds but it still seemed ridiculous to spend that much much on a coffee machine unless you made coffee professionally. Once they were outside the store, she let go of his hand and pulled out her phone and quickly googled to see what stores were in the area. “Let’s see, there is a second hand appliance store about three blocks that way,” she gestured toward the sidewalk they were following. “It says high quality second hand appliances, whatever that means. Hell, as long as it works, I’m good.” Bucky just gave the saleswoman a small grin then shrugged and followed Natasha out, happy to go with her lead and not fall into the trap of investing in a $1000 espresso machine. Cheaper was good. Though, he couldn’t help but feel a little bit disappointed when she let go of his hand and checked her phone. “Yeah, let’s check it out.” He started to walk, sticking his hands in his jacket pockets on instinct as the breeze whipped around them and they started down the street in the direction of the shop. It was a beautiful day. Sunny, but cool, with a few people bustlig about on the sidewalks. It was never quite as busy as New York. Most people here used cars or trollies to get around the city, but there was definitely a vibe that was unique to California. Something Bucky could never quite put his finger on, but it was always there. He was starting to like it. “Thanks, by the way. I mean, not a lot of women would agree to bargain hunting for a coffee maker as a date.” She slipped her arm through his and gave his shoulder a playful bump. “Have you not figured out by now that I am not like most women? If I were, you would probably be bored out of your mind. I make things interesting,” she grinned at him. It was true, Natasha had played a lot of roles in her life, there were times when she wasn’t even sure who she really was but with time, she’d finally started to figure it out. There would always be things in her past that she would regret but she had learned to put those aside. She couldn’t change them but she could move forward and being here had helped her see that. So had the man next to her. They walked in silence for a bit and then she stopped and looked up at him. “You know I don’t beat around the bush, I never have and I’m not about to start. I like this. Us, I mean. I like us being an us. If you want that, of course.” she shook her head. “I’m not great at this, it’s not like I’ve ever really had a relationship. Not one that wasn’t complicated, hell most of them weren’t even real. But anyway, about that us thing. Are we? Because that’s what I want.” It was not the most eloquent way of asking someone if they wanted to be in a relationship with you but Natasha thought that all things considered, it wasn’t half bad. At least he hadn’t run screaming into the streets. Yet. Walking next to her, feeling her come closer, Bucky just enjoyed the warmth. And then she started trying to explain the us thing and, he almost stopped. Almost. He was considering what she said, staring ahead and thinking it through. Were they an ‘us’? He hoped so. He really wanted it. Funny from the guy who was such a bachelor in his youth. And her confessions about relationships hit home because he’d been there. He had girlfriends, sure, but nothing serious. Nobody he lived with. But with Natasha, it felt natural. Like that wife he used to dream about back home. But he was getting ahead of himself. “I wanna think so,” he looked at her and smiled. “That we’re an us. But I gotta admit, I’ve never done this, either. I mean, nothing serious- and the last time I had anything close was back in the 1940s, so…” He nudged her back. “You’re sure about this?” She started to crack a joke but then she realized just how much she wanted this and how sure she was. Natasha had been guilty of second guessing herself when it came to personal matters in the past but this time, she wasn’t going to. “Yeah,” she said softly. “I’m sure. I’m more sure about this than I’ve been about anything in a long time.” Not caring that they were in the middle of the street, she reached up and gave him a quick kiss. Far be it from Bucky to argue with that. He grinned as she assured him this was what she wanted, the smile a little broader after the kiss and maybe, just maybe he was pulling her a little bit closer, into his side. “So uh, guess we’re doing this.” He didn’t seem upset- quite the opposite. “When do you think we should tell everyone? Should we bother?” He half-wondered if Steve had figured it out by now. Probably. But there hadn’t exactly been a discussion about it. Even if Clint seemed to think they were inevitable for whatever reason- that was weird enough. “Yeah, we’re doing this,” she said with a big grin. The thought of telling anyone hadn’t really crossed her mind but he had a point. “We need to tell our roommates although I wouldn’t be surprised if Yelena has figured it out. I say we just tell them and let everyone else figure it out. I mean we’re grown ups and we’re happy so that’s all that matters. If it bugs anyone, I really don’t care.” Natasha had always been that way. Her life was her life and others opinions didn’t bother her unless they affected the big picture. There had been times when she’d had to care about what she did and said but not here. “Besides we’re so damn cute, how could anybody give us a hard time?” she stepped a little closer and put her arms around his waist. “Although if we don’t start walking again, people might wonder what we’re doing. Or we could just forget the espresso machine and go home and make this officially official if you know what I mean.” That was a sit down conversation to have. Bucky half-wondered how he could make it go over smoothly. Hey, so I’m screwing your sister. We’re a couple. Questions? Don’t care. He didn’t really care what others thought- well, he cared about what Steve thought, but that was another matter. Odds were, the guy would be happy for them, right? That felt very…Steve. But for now, he was just going to lean into it and trust Natasha. “Pretty sure it’ll be fine as long as they don’t catch us having sex in the living room or anything…though, now I kind of wonder…” Especially at the mention of making it ‘official’. “We could probably find a better deal for one online, anyway…” “Yeah, I kind of wonder too,” she grinned. It wouldn’t be the best idea probably but it would be a hell of a lot of fun. “We should spring that on them sometime just to see what happens.” The idea of going home right now seemed like a great idea and she reached out and squeezed his hand. “We should go home and look for one then…..after.” There was no need to specify just what she meant by “after”, the look in her eyes said all that needed to be said. And then some. Bucky at least had the decency to go a little red at the idea, though it didn’t stop him from grinning. He didn’t outright tell her no, either. “Yeah. I mean, gotta live a little, right?” His arm had slipped around he waist, tugging her back toward the Station- or in that direction, anyway. “After. Right,” he winked at her and started back down the sidewalk. “You know, this is already going down as one of the best shopping trips I’ve ever had.” |