#send help-

None that people voiced out, but you knew that you were under scrutiny by many people. Everybody that works for Natasha, especially the ones that are close to her, questioned your presence and compatibility with Natasha. 

Of course, no one was stupid enough to outright judge or comment on your relationship, but Natasha did let it slip that some people did ask her why she chose you. 

And to be clear, it wasn’t about you not being pretty enough or good enough for her, they were just curious what exactly Natasha saw in you, that made her so interested in you since the first time you met her. 

From the outsider’s perspective, you were just a girl that managed to get herself out of a sticky situation - which earned you some points in their eyes, but still, just a girl. 

You were a force to be reckoned with, but they knew nothing beyond that. 

When you asked Natasha how she responded to them, she smirks before murmuring I told them all the same thing, ‘you’ll see’.

And they did see. 

You didn’t go out of your way to please them or gain their validation or acceptance. You were never an insecure person, you knew your worth and as long as Natasha shows you her dedication and love, nothing can come between the both of you. 

But you were still only human, so of course you hoped that her closest friends and family would come around on their opinions of you. 

Some of them took a few days and others took a few weeks, but eventually they did get used to your personality and presence next to Natasha. You’re not everyone’s favorite, but they understand what Natasha sees in you and also respect you enough as a ‘mini boss’ as what Kate calls you. 

[Yelena]

You’ve been out for the morning, having breakfast with a new friend that you met at a club last week - Rio. She was the bartender that worked in the club and while you were busy dancing and drinking with Natasha and her friends, she was eyeing you up and down from across the room. 

When confronted by Natasha, she laughs and nods at the brunette sitting at the booth before saying that she’s actually taken, and was only appreciating your beauty and the breathtaking synergy you and Natasha exudes together. 

And god damn it she was so charming. 

Even Natasha had to agree. 

So you quickly bonded with her, loving how easy she can break down people’s walls with her blunt and sincere personality. You enjoy bantering with her, and when she eventually introduces you to her girlfriend - Agatha, you kind of understand how they work so well together. 

You see a bit of yourself and Natasha in them. 

It just works. 

So you got their phone numbers and promised to hang out soon, which happened a week later when you invited Rio for breakfast - Agatha is busy working in the morning and unfortunately, you have date night with Natasha lined up. 

When you got back home, the house was surprisingly filled with people. But your girlfriend was nowhere to be seen. 

“Where’s your boss?” you asked Sharon when she walked by. 

She tilted her chin down the hallway, “Resting, she’s in her office.”

Nodding your head in thanks, you walk towards the office, eager to see your girlfriend. 

Reaching her office, you were incredulous when the person standing guard caught your hand, “It’s not a good time to go in, she’s in a mood.”

Fixing your gaze on the hand that was gripping your wrist, you tilt your head in warning, “If you don’t let go of my hand and let me in right now, then I will be in a mood.”

The person is not someone you remember, so clearly it wasn’t one of the closer ones that Natasha keeps around her. 

But then a voice came from down the hallway, “Let her in.”

You turn and see Bucky walking pass, he squints when the person hesitated again, before she let go of your hand.

You’ll need to keep an eye on this person. 

Shoving your way into the room, you close the door behind you and go in search of your girlfriend. Rounding the corner, you find her slumped over the table and resting on her arms, “Natty?”

She stirred a little, before mumbling a soft “Not a good time, princess.”

Hearing the way her voice was hoarse and weak, you went closer to catch a glimpse of her, “Are you okay?”

She wasn’t responding much, which concerned you because your girlfriend can deny it all she wants but she is obsessed and utterly whipped for you. 

You find her face flushed, red down to her neck. Her breathing was light but her face contorted like she was having trouble breathing. Immediately alarmed, your hand finds her forehead and you feel the heat the moment you graze it. 

“Natty, you’re heating up!” you leaned lower, hand feeling her neck and cheek as well. They were all hot to the touch, she definitely caught a fever. 

She was slightly lethargic last night, but she seemed fine before you left the house this morning. Maybe you should have stayed home and taken care of her… 

Furrowing her brows, her eyes finally opened a little and landed on you, “Don’t fuss, just leave me be…”

Frowning, “You need to go home and rest.” 

You were insistent. 

You’ve learned that your girlfriend can be stubborn when she wants to, but so can you. Two can play this game. You’ve always pride in winning when it comes to competing stubbornness. 

“Leave me be,” mumbled your girlfriend once again, but she ultimately still lost when you declared, “Natasha, we’re going home,” before leaving the room and getting some extra help from people that you knew would be on your side. 

Yelena and Bucky were both honoured and snickering when you made them help you half carry and half drag your girlfriend’s weakened body into the car, and back home. 

---

Throughout the day, you’ve been trying to take care of your girlfriend. You brought up the food that Colette prepared for her, insisting that she keeps a bit of food in her system. You also pushed her to sip some water whenever you went over to take her temperature. 

You’d be lying to yourself if you say seeing her so disheveled didn’t shake you a little. Your girlfriend also seems so big, and commanding; to see her struggling to breathe and face flushed for the whole day, you really just wanted her to get better as soon as possible. 

If only someone wasn’t such a terrible patient. 

You did all the things you wished you had someone do for you when you were sick and young, preparing food, bringing water, offering cold towels to bring down your temperature, a palm to your cheek and just some company in the room. 

You however, didn’t realize that this might not be something that your girlfriend wants or is used to. 

“Fussing over me every fifteen minutes isn’t going to fix me, princess!” she snapped when you got on her nerves too much that day. 

You froze, taken aback by your girlfriend’s raise of voice. 

She’s raised her voice at you before, but never to this extent, and never with this much annoyance in her voice. Her back was facing you or else she’d have seen the hurt that flashed through your eyes for a split second before your gaze hardened. 

“I’m sorry that I’m trying to take care of my girlfriend when she’s sick,” you gritted out. You left the glass of water that you brought for her on the bedside table, maybe a little harder than intended, the distinct clink of the glass reverberating in the room.

Stubborn as ever, “I do not need you to take care of me, what I need is some sleep and alone time!” 

You glare at Natasha’s back, feeling a little dejected that your attempts to take care of her were dismissed and rejected so easily, “Since you can take care of yourself then you can sleep by yourself in the room until you’re feeling better or can at least fix your attitude.” 

And with that you walked out the room, a little hurt from your girlfriend’s outburst but otherwise not taking it too personally. You went to the living room and spent some time watching TV, and when it was time for dinner, you had a wonderful meal that Colette prepared - one of your favorites in fact, which made you think everyone in the house kinda knew about what happened earlier with Natasha. 

Before going to sleep in your own room - you do have your own room with a bed and all, but you have gotten used to spending the night in Natasha’s bed instead, you went to the kitchen cabinet and grabbed some pills and a glass of water for Natasha. 

Which was also when Yelena caught you, “What are you doing?”

“Preparing medicine, and water,” you answered, grabbing a cooling pack from the fridge as well, knowing that your girlfriend quite liked the cold wet cloth you got her earlier. 

“Didn’t she kick you out of the room just now?” she asked, the classic deadpan tone that you’ve gotten used to was familiar enough that you know not to take offense at it. 

You raised your brows and turned towards her, “Yeah, and?”

“You still care for her?” came the question. 

It was…an odd question. 

But then you’re reminded by what Natasha told you, about how she became ‘sisters’ with Yelena by taking care of each other after Yelena lost her parents.

Yelena is undoubtedly one of the most caring people you’ve met, despite her aloof personality and humor; however, she can sometimes be a bit clueless at how human relationships work. 

Natasha told you that Yelena has never gotten a chance to explore much about human relationships, and thus is a little bit more curious and outwardly confused by most human interactions. 

She doubts people’s intentions, but still sees the good in people. 

It was one of the reasons you adore Yelena so much. 

You thought about her question before giving her an answer, “Just because I’m annoyed at her attitude, doesn’t stop me from caring about her. We all have shit days.”

Yelena processed your words before nodding, “I’m surprised you didn’t just fold over, many people would’ve,” she said, grinning when you rolled your eyes at what she just said. 

“I’m not about to let your sister treat me like shit, I can care about her and still call her out on this crappy ass attitude.”

You wouldn’t know that this was the sentence that solidified Yelena’s approval for you as her sister’s girlfriend. 

She loves that you take care of her sister, loves that Natasha has been very outwardly happier ever since you came into her life. But what she loves the most is that you are not just another girl that will fold under her sister. 

Yelena understands that her sister can be intimidating to other people. 

She herself sometimes will shrink under her sister’s sharpened gaze, especially when it is about anything serious, but there is a difference between respecting her and giving her a pass for anything and everything. 

Most of the girlfriends that Natasha had previously, Yelena was not a big fan of because of how they tend to fold under Natasha. 

There is no fight, not equal balance, no…spirit. 

It was like they just handed over everything to Natasha and let her be in control of everything in life. 

Yelena hates seeing that. 

You are different. 

You have your own personality, your own ego, your pride. 

And none of it comes at the expense of caring for her sister. 

It was around ten that night when Yelena caught her sister walking out the room with a long robe wrapped around her body. 

Natasha took one glance at her before saying, “You don’t have to say it, I know I fucked up.” 

Yelena leaned against the wall opposite the redhead, “We all know you’re a shit patient.” 

Natasha looked like she was about to defend herself, but stopped herself after reflecting on what happened earlier that day. She sighs, “This is the first time she’s seeing me sick, I’m surprised she kept coming back in.” 

Yelena laughs, “Yeah well she knows when to call you out on your bullshit.” 

“Is that respect I hear in your tone?” asked Natasha.

She has been waiting for the day that Yelena understands why she’s so infatuated with you. Although Natasha doesn’t act like it, she does wish her sister would approve of her relationships. 

All her past relationships, she knew for a fact that Yelena was never a big fan of them. Granted, they weren’t a good match for her anyway, given that they all ended in pretty much the same way. 

But you were different. 

Natasha really finds herself envisioning a future with you - which was a scary thought, but one that Natasha keeps circling back to. 

Yelena nods, “She is good. She doesn't let you treat her like crap, and still cares for you even after you’ve been shitty to her.”

“I’m glad you see it now.” 

---

Natasha finds you standing at the balcony in your room, looking out at the city and thinking about your girlfriend and what happened earlier. You looked ethereal in her eyes, a satin robe hanging off your body as the soft wind blew on it creating a soft flutter. You were nursing a glass of wine - if Natasha had to guess, as you stared out at the city lights. 

“Princess?” her voice startled you out of your thoughts. 

You whipped around and found your girlfriend wrapped in a similar robe leaning against the balcony door, “What are you doing out here? It’s cold!” 

Natasha hid her laugh at your immediate fussing, and instead said, “Come over and warm me up then.”

You left the glass of wine on the little table outside, before walking towards her and dragging her into the room, closing the balcony door behind you. 

You led her to the bed and she dragged you down onto her lap after she took a seat, you huffed out a breath, “That was cheesy.”

“It worked didn’t it?” came her cheeky response. 

You shake your head softly, before you finally take a good look at her. Glad that her skin no longer feels like it’s on fire, and her breathing seems to be back at a regular pace. Your hands find themselves wandering around Natasha’s body and face, itching to be near her once again. 

But you were still waiting. 

Waiting for her. 

And she knows it too. 

“I’m sorry for how I acted earlier, I’m not used to…people taking care of me,” came her soft apology. 

You know. 

You know that she grew up needing to take care of herself. 

You know that she is strong and independent and can take care of herself. 

You know that she resorts to pushing people away because she’s not used to other people caring for her. 

“Then start learning cause I do care about you, and nothing is changing that.”

It will take a lot more than an outburst like today for you to stop caring about her. 

She is learning to let people take care of her. 

You are learning how she needs people to take care of her. 

You’re both learning about each other.  

“I’ll try.” 

[Maria]

You really don’t know where you stand with Maria. 

The woman was generally stoic and unfazed at anything that happened, you’ve seen exactly 3 emotions on her face. Anger, annoyance, and frustration. 

Most of it was never directed at you, she generally treats you with enough respect like how a server would treat a customer. Nothing dramatic but also nothing to warrant your displeasure. 

You would prefer if she can soften up a little, and at least be charmed whenever you want to cause chaos around the place, but alas, you’ve not gotten to her yet. 

That was until you caught her off guard one time. 

It was a situation that you wished didn’t happen, a robbery gone wrong. Someone was stealing something from Natasha shipment, and a fight broke out. 

You briefly overheard your girlfriend on the phone where someone was shot and was sent to the hospital, and that was the first time you saw Maria react so strongly at something. She double confirmed what your girlfriend said, her face was pinched together and she swallowed harshly before turning around. 

Your girlfriend had a look that told you it was probably someone that Maria cared deeply about - a close friend maybe. The others in the room all had similar sombre reactions to the news, but none reacted as strongly as Maria did. 

“Maria, can you send her home for me? Then you’ll head straight to the hospital. We’ll settle the situation at the port first, we’ll meet you at the hospital once we’re done,” came the order from your girlfriend.

“Yeah,” was the quick and short reply from the brunette. 

Natasha gave you a kiss before telling you softly, “Go back with Maria first, I need to settle this.”

“Be careful, Natty.”

“Always.” 

You grabbed your stuff and then turned towards the others in the room, “You guys too, take care of each other out there.”

“Let’s go.”

Taking the elevator down, you can feel the way that Maria was standing at the back of the elevator trying to hold herself together. From the blurry reflection, you can see her head tilting upwards and the way her hands were clenched around her biceps, nails digging deep into skin. 

And before you know it, you were doing something that you once saw from a television show. 

You know she needs a little space to react before she can compartmentalize and send you back, before checking in on the person at the hospital. It was a feeling that you were familiar with, the need to hide every emotion. 

To put on a mask. 

But sometimes, it’s hard. 

So you pulled on the emergency stop button in the elevator, and let it hang on floor 13th for a while. You didn’t turn around, didn’t offer her placating words, didn’t even tell her why you did it, but she seemed to understand. 

She turned around, and you can hear her taking in a deep breath, her hands swiping over her face. You hear the soft sniffling that she tries really hard to cover up, and the way she tries to clear her throat. 

And you just stood there. Content to let her have a moment to gather herself before she has to act strong again to face the world. 

You remember the first time you saw someone do this on the show, and you felt like it conveyed more than those meaningless ‘I’m here to talk’ conversations. Especially for someone who isn’t necessarily close with you but someone you truly do care about. 

By the time Maria had her moment, she came back closer to you and cleared her throat. 

“You good?” you asked with a voice that was softer than normal when speaking to Natasha’s friends. You might not be close to Maria but you consider her enough of a friend to care about her. 

“Yeah,” came her response, her voice just a little raspier than normal but you know for a fact that if you turned around and looked at her, you wouldn’t even realize that she just had a little mental breakdown in an elevator.

You pushed the emergency button and the elevator continued its way descending down the building. 

But ever since that day, Maria sees you in an entirely different light. 

You were no longer just Natasha’s princess, spoiled, hilarious and occasionally bratty; you showed Maria a side of you that commanded her respect. It was less about you caring about her, but more so the fact that you knew exactly how to care for her. 

Anybody who cared could have easily asked her to talk about it, or offer placating words like ‘he’ll be alright’, but that is not something that Maria would’ve wanted to entertain at the moment. 

You knew that. 

You knew that Maria wasn’t someone with many words, knew that she wouldn’t take verbal conversation well at the time, and offered something that she needed instead. 

You were definitely more than what she expected.