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( three. little guy )

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Imagine her joy and relief when she finally got a job as a nurse.

Becca had been keen on her word of taking her to the SSR and help her finally get a job. Shockingly, there weren't any requirements at all that asks to see her medical degrees or something (thankfully, because she has no idea how on earth could she fake one). She just needed to go through examinations and practical exams held by the medical staff of the SSR.

Being a spy, she was required to know a lot about medication. She knew about first aids and emergency medication even in the worst possible situations. She didn't know complicated stuff like a real doctor would per se, but she knew the basics enough to survive.

While she was inside the SSR, she seized the chance to try and find Howard Stark, only to be disappointed when she found out that he was actually being stationed at another unit in the base, since he was in the technical field rather than the medical field.

She figured the Stark Expo was her last shot at seeing him.

Later that night, she hurried to get ready. 

She wore one of her newly bought clothes, a white blouse and a printed skirt that just reached below her knees, paired off with black pumps. She secured a pin to her hair and put on minimal makeup, applying a rich-red shade of lipstick on her lips. Once she was done, she took a glance at her appearance.

She was pretty owning this 40's look by the way.

With a satisfied smirk, she grabbed her (Becca's, she had let her borrow it) purse and stalked out of the living room. "Becca, I'm heading out now!"

Ellie must already be fast asleep when Becca came out of her room, nodding her head in approval at her outfit. "You look great."

She didn't see the reason to be smug about it and settled on a genuine smile. "Thanks."

"You're still wearing the watch though?"

She glances down at the watch, her heart skipped a beat. Earlier today, she took the chance to take a look at the battery percentage and was dismayed to find out that it was already around 95%. If what Tony was explaining back then turned out to be true, then she needed to find a way to get back as soon as she can.

"If my brother tries to make a move on you, you have my permission to smack him in the face."

She laughed softly, "Hopefully not." And how she desperately hoped, not.

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Natasha took a cab to the Expo and it took her around twenty minutes to get there, all the way from Brooklyn to Queens. Immediately, once she reached the entrance, the first thing she saw was Bucky leaning against the wall, still clad in his uniform. Was that a requirement for all soldiers?

She took a deep breath before taking a step forward, closer and closer, until he had finally seen her figure approaching.

"You made it." The delight on his face was very noticeable, and she felt her hands becoming sweatier in nervousness (disgusting, right). "I was starting to think you got lost or something and almost kicked myself for not taking you here myself, but, you just missed the main show."

"It's fine, James."

"Bucky is fine."

No, it's not fine. She was in no place to call him that. "I prefer James."

He looked startled, both from her declaration and the coldness that resonated with her voice. "Okay then..." he said, shifting awkwardly.

Shit.

The tension around them was getting thicker, and it wasn't a good sign. God, this wasn't getting any easier for her. "Besides, you seem so bothered by it and I figured it would annoy you." Okay, that was a reasonable excuse. It would have to do for now.

And it worked, thank the heavens.

Bucky laughed lightly, the stiffness of his body previously was now wearing away, "You're not wrong about that."

Natasha tried to strike up a normal talk, pushing her raw emotions for him at the back of her throat. This was no time to consider any personal feelings.

"Where's your date?" she asked, noticing that she didn't see any girl hanging onto him when she arrived.

"Oh, they're probably inside, I'm just waiting for my friend. He needed a time out." He explained.

"Ah."

Silence.

"So," he started casually, "I didn't know you were a friend of Becca's."

"I didn't know you were her brother."

"Touché. Well, I dropped by to tell her that I'm being shipped off tomorrow, it's my first duty since I got in."

"Oh," she actually didn't know how to respond to that. Good luck? Don't die out there? "Uh... be safe, I guess." She wanted to kick herself for sounding so lame.

"Thanks." He thought otherwise though, giving her a short smile, "So, how'd you and Becca meet?"

"You ask a lot of questions don't you?"

He didn't seem offended, casually shrugging his shoulders. "At least I'm keeping this conversation going."

Well, okay, he was right about that. 

So, she gave him the same answer she gave to Becca. 

"I'm actually not from around here," She said, and his eyebrows furrowed in mild curiosity. "I used to be a caretaker but... I lost my job when the foster home I was working for decided to close down—lack of funds, probably, and without the job, I didn't have anything to pay for my apartment. The owner kicked me out while I was trying to explain. I didn't have anywhere else to go, and that's why I ended up sleeping that night in the alley with Ellie finding me the next morning."

She was actually nervous to find out what his reaction was to all this, and because she knew that soldiers were actually good on seeing through people—learning it personally when she became Steve's partner in SHIELD.

But she was the Black Widow, as bad as it sounded like, she was the master of lies. Lying was her specialty, and it damn well made her survive till now.

"Oh, Anne... I'm sorry." Bucky gave her an apologetic look, regretting even asking in the first place.

She didn't know which was more sickening—the fact that he actually felt pity for her or the fact that she felt pity for him for believing her story.

"It's fine." she brushed it off dismissively.

Really, it was fine.

Bucky seemed to sense that she didn't want to talk anymore, so he kept quiet. The uncomfortable silence stretched between them again. It had been like that for almost five minutes until Natasha brought up that his friend might be taking a little too long in his 'time out'. He had, apparently, noticed too and decided to go back his (and Steve's) date, not wanting to let them think he had forgotten them.

Their dates seemed a little annoyed to find her walking with Bucky, and she had to roll her eyes at their ignorance. He told them he'll be right back and was just going to find out where his friend went to. The ladies grudgingly obeyed, especially when they saw that he was taking her with him.

Bucky muttered a string of curses, "Damn it. Where could that punk went to right now?"

Natasha had to pretend that she didn't know his friend, much less even seen him yet. "What does he look like?"

"Uh... short, like 5 foot 4 kind of short, scrawny, and deathly pale, like vampire pale—"

"Why do I feel like you keep answering me with insults?"

"No, really. He really looks like that."

She bit back a retort. She knew all about Steve's condition right before he was given the serum, and sure, he might be weak and asthmatic like he described himself to be when she asked him about it one time, but he couldn't be that bad, right?

"Steve!" Bucky finally waved a hand to get the attention of his friend.

Natasha followed his line of sight and her eyes soon landed on a small figure standing on the top of the stairs. And by the time they got nearer, she had to restrain herself from letting her jaw drop at the sight.

Bucky got to him while she remained at where she is. Even from a distance, she could get a perfect view of Steve's appearance. On second thought, he does look exactly like what Bucky had described him earlier to be.

"You know you're kind of missing the point of a double date." Bucky told him, "Come on, there's someone I'd like you to meet."

And for a split second, she felt her heart skipped a beat when Steve's gaze wavered over in her direction. She wasn't entirely sure if he had seen her, but she definitely saw him.

Somehow, she was suddenly nervous yet excited (what?) at the same time of meeting him now, like this, not as her teammate, not as her commanding officer, and certainly not as Captain America—just as Steve Rogers, as the little guy from Brooklyn.

But her excitement deflated when she heard him say, "You go ahead, I'll catch up with you."

She waited patiently until their bickering died down. She didn't know what they were exactly talking about but from she could pick up, Steve is planning to enlist again with Bucky going against the idea.

"Bucky, Bucky, come on! There are men laying out their lives. And I've got no right to do any less than them. That's what you don't understand, this isn't about me." She heard him say, and it sounded a hell of a lot like the Steve she knew.

Bucky looked at him tersely, "Right, 'cause you got nothing to prove."

He fell silent at his best friend's words and watched as his expression shifted from irritation to shame to defeat and finally to a look of determination.

She was too caught up in their banter that she didn't even notice the two ladies from before come up behind her. "Hey, Sarge! Are we going dancing?" One of them shouted at Bucky.

Bucky turned at her voice, flashing a cheeky smile, "Yes, we are!"

Natasha couldn't contain the amusement on her face. Seriously, how was this guy friends with Steve? If she hadn't known better, his charm and flirty demeanor could actually be compared to Tony's, but that asshole's level of flirting is an entirely different issue.

As the two were finally done with their friendly banter, Bucky came back down to stop on her way first while Steve stayed behind. "Well, I was psyched for him to meet you but damn punk is still as stubborn as ever."

She actually tried to take a look at Steve and instantly regretted it when she saw him looking in her way again. They actually locked gazes for a moment, his same blue eyes staring back at her with an emotion she couldn't decipher. Curiosity? Interest? And her stomach twisted and turned in knots that she didn't know could happen before.

She had been the one to broke their staring contest, not wanting to let this- whatever this was- lingered any longer. "Is that your friend?" she asked.

Bucky nodded. "Yup, his name's Steve."

"He seems..." She struggled to think of the right word, a gush of warmth reaching her cheeks as she thought about him, "Nice."

"He's an idiot." Bucky sighed, his eyes suddenly flashing with a mixture of worry and exasperation. "Told him the army's not going to accept a guy who can barely run for more than a few miles without having an asthma attack but he still won't listen. It's going to be too late for him to realize that he's bitten off more than he can chew."

Natasha bit her lip, actually glancing back to where Steve was only to find out he was no longer there. She wasn't given a chance to say anything more about that when the two ladies grabbed Bucky by his arms. "Come on, Sergeant Barnes, take us dancing." One of them flirted.

She didn't want to feel like a limp hanging around them while they enjoyed their time. She was even thinking of going after Steve, but quickly decided against it when she realized she shouldn't make her presence be important for him to remember.

And then, finally, she saw him.

He was wearing a tuxedo, a pathetic smirk plastered on his smug-looking face, while a crowd of reporters was swarming around him like a bunch of parasites. It didn't bother him though, he even seems to be enjoying the attention.

"Anne?" Bucky called, making her snap her head towards him. "I asked if you wanted to come?"

"Uh..." Then she saw Howard Stark starting to walk away from the reporters, already making his way towards his car. No! She had to talk to him. She needed to. "It's fine, James. You guys enjoy your dance. I uh—actually remembered I have this thing to buy, so, yeah, you guys go ahead I uh... bye."

She knew it was rude to walk out of a conversation halfway but she didn't have time to think about that now. She was suddenly out of their way, not even giving Bucky a chance to speak, and headed in the direction of Howard Stark.

"Mr. Stark!"

Oh, God. The name sounded so weird coming out of her mouth. She quickly envisioned herself calling Tony that name. Jeez.

"Mr. Stark!" she called again, running as fast as her limbs could allow her. Finally, she caught up with him just as he was in front of his car. "Mr. Stark!"

Howard turned around and she had to stifle a gasp. Jesus, it was like she was looking at Tony herself.

A flirtatious smile made its way to his lips as his eyes took in her form, scanning her body. "What can I do for you, sweetheart?"

"I need to talk to you."

"Sure." He turned around and leaned against the car, shoving his hands in his pockets as he waited for her to continue.

She fought the urge to roll her eyes. "In private."

His eyes widened to the size of oranges, looking all horrified and intrigued when he assumed what she was asking.

Natasha had to swallow down the lump of distaste in her throat when she realized why on earth was he looking at her like that. "God, no. I don't swing that way, Mr. Stark. I'm just here to talk."

He gave her a doubtful look.

This time, she did roll her eyes. "Please?"

"Fine, you have five minutes."

"Make it ten."

She grabbed his wrist and led the both of them out of the sea of people as swiftly as she could, careful not to grab the attention of most of the people, especially the reporters. Finally, she spotted a maintenance closet and was relieved to find out it was unlocked. She pushed him inside and shut the door behind them.

What she didn't expect is to find a couple making out. And they were only one step away from wearing their birthday suits. Howard looked completely frightened yet turned on belief at the sight unfolding in front of them.

Natasha cleared her throat loud enough for them to hear. The woman pulled away for a brief moment to snap at her, "This room is taken."

She didn't say anything more when Natasha stepped forward and pulled their bodies away from each other. "I'm sorry but you need to get out." She only received a look of disbelief in response. When they still didn't move an inch, she sighed in frustration and kicked down the door to further emphasize her command. "Out!"

The couple quickly scurried away to get out of the closet and shut the door behind them.

She went to lock it and by the time she looked back at Howard, sweat was glistening across his forehead. "I am frightened... and aroused."

Natasha ignored his statement. "I need to talk to you."

"Yeah, I kind of got that."

"You have to help me."

His face turned into a look of fear. "Please don't tell me there's a little girl or boy waiting outside to meet their father."

"What? No."

He sighed in relief.

She felt her patience being long used up, squeezing her eyes shut in irritation. "Can you please try to be serious for even just a goddamn minute?"

"Woah," he looked appalled. "You got quite a mouth there, sweetheart." She glared at him and he quickly raises his hands in surrender. "Alright, alright, what do you need help with?"

She sighed, feeling nauseous about what she was going to do. "What I'm going to tell you might freak you out." He furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. "But I need you to listen to everything I'm going to say. Hear me out until the end."

"Okay?"

Natasha took a deep breath.

And she told him everything.

She didn't know if this was the right thing to do, because Tony didn't mention about anything about letting his father knew about the time machine, but she was already questioning the circumstances of the situation herself. Even up to now, she refused to believe that she was caught up in this mess, still hoping on to the fact that this was one fucked up dream, but no, it really wasn't.

And she didn't know how was she ever going to get out of this.

Putting matters into her own hands, she decided she needed to do everything she can to get back home. And with that watch serving as the only reminder of the remaining time she had left, she was going to try every option she has rather than lose everything.

By the time she was done, silence filled the room. Only the sound of their rasped breathing was heard in the closet.

She could actually hear the loud thumping on her heart as anxiety filled her chest, waiting to gauge Howard's response to her story. His expression was unreadable. It was somewhere along the lines of disbelief and being pissed off.

"You know if you weren't so crazy I usually enjoy being locked inside a tight-spaced room with a dame."

Of course, he didn't believe her.

Natasha's veins were appearing on her forehead, she was actually flushing in anger, "I'm serious!"

"No, you're completely wasted." He accused, getting around her to try and went to unlock the door.

"Stark!"

When he finally opened the door, he felt her hand grab his arm, he glowered at her, not wanting to hear another word of her crazy story. "I'm not hearing another more of your nonsense. You just let me waste enough minutes in my life."

"Just listen to me! You have to believe me!" she cried out, sounding so desperate and frustrated at the same time.

He tore his arm away from her hold. "No, stay away from me. I mean it."

Then he stepped out of the door, leaving her be.

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