Natasha is quiet as he sleeps, getting coffee, doing things on her laptop.
It's all just a way to pass the time. There' snot much that needs her
attention this very moment and while it's sort of nice, it leaves her a
little restless too.
She knows she has the capability to stay up for as long as she needs to but
it, in all honesty, is pretty dull.
He wakes another few hours later - it's 2 AM and he's restless. He pushes open the closet door and peers out curiously, before standing and exiting. Before her, and after them, he'd had to scrounge and wander all hours of the day and night, eating barely enough to keep himself alive and sleeping only when he was too exhausted to stand any longer.
It's so different now - he's warm, and can sleep, and she feels safe. She doesn't expect anything from him, unlike Steve. He feels like he can let her down, while he can't let Steve down or fail at all.
About a week passes with nothing interesting coming up. She takes him out
at one point to acquire clothes and that's about it. Things are mundane
and she's still trying to get used to that.
Having this much downtime makes her feel like she's forgetting something,
even though she knows she isn't.
Eventually groceries have to be acquired and she finds herself wondering if
he'dlike to come. Looking up at him for a moment as she makes a list of
what to get, she points her pen at him.
"In the mood to go out for a while? We'll pick up coffee on the way."
He jumps when she addresses him. He's curled up on the couch, watching How It's Made on TV avidly. His hair is brushed and tied back out of his face (her doing) and he's got a little more color back in his cheeks, but he's still sleeping in the closet and no identifying by any name. But he's in clean clothes and has learned how to bathe himself.
He still hasn't seen Steve face to face, but there had been a few panicked, late-night conversations over the phone, unsure if he'd been remembering or imagining a certain thin.
"Where are we going?" He asks, unsure. Coffee is still a great lure for him, but he doesn't to go until he knows for sure where they're going and how long they'll be out.
"Groceries," she tells him, spinning th eben between her fingers. "We're
out of....most things really." She's still getting used to maintaining a
place of her own like this and groceries, while useful, were not on the top
of her list of things to do most of the time.
"And we can pick up creamer. It makes your coffee taste like all sorts of
things. Hazelnut, chocolate, mint and a ton of other stuff. I think you'd
like at least a few of them."
Why yes, she has realized that part of the way to his heart is through
caffeine.
He has to think about that for a moment. He rests his head on his hand, watches the tv for a few more seconds, then nods. "Okay. Can we stop and get a coffee, too?" He'd started to like the coffees that Steve brought Natasha more than the coffee that came out of the pot, though it was all still good.
He stood slowly, and headed for his boots - those were something he refused to let Natasha replace - they were military boots, the leather still good, broken in to his feet. He didn't want to let those go at all and slipped into them. He was still in sweatpants and a t-shirt but he pulled on one of the jackets she had bought him, wrestling his left arm through the sleeve.
She laughs a little, nodding her head and setting the pen down. "Yeah, I
was planning on it." She hated shopping and tended to reward herself with
coffee anyway, so it wasn't as if it was out of the way for her.
Getting to her feet, she grabbed a brush and ran it through her hair, then
threw on a pair of boots herself and grabbed her jacket from behind the
couc.
"Ready to face the world," she questioned, only half joking. She knew it
wasn't easy for him to go out and if they needed to take a few moments,
hell even longer than that, she was ready and willing to do so.
He hesitates at the door, tucking his left hand into his pocket. He takes a deep breath, then another. He turns to face away from the door and closes his eyes shut tightly. Then he nods and turns back. "Okay."
She offers a reassuring smile. "We'll be in and out, I promise. I made a
list for that exact reason."
Opening the door, she exits the apartment, moving to wrap her arm around
his elbow after he does the same. It's meant to be a reminder, a silent
promise that she's right there and she won't let anything touch him if she
has anything to do with it.
He nods and is glad for her touch and support. He curls his hand around her arm and moved in close - he doesn't want to get too close and trip her up, but the physical contact still helped tremendously.
She lets him stay close, holding onto him and guiding him through the
street and towards the coffee shot. Caffeine first and then tackling
groceries.
"Usual," she asked as they step inside. Her plan is to leave him in a
corner, order and then find him again but if it looks like he's not up for
being left alone, she'll keep him near.
He hesitates then asks, "Can I have something different?" He's looking at the promotional sign - Pumpkin Spice Chai Latte. "Can I have that?" He doesn't point, doesn't draw attention to himself, but he knows she'll know to look where he's looking.
She nods, scanning the shop then nodding towards the corner. "You can go
sit down. I'll be there in a minute." She doesn't order him, it is
absolutely voluntary if he goes and she'll only let go if he starts moving.
He nods and carefully detatches himself from her. He walks to the closes corner, one without a window, and sits gingerly on the edge of the chair. He looks around at the other people in the coffee shop, and the workers, and Natasha. He might be weak and weary now, but he's still full aware of his surroundings.
She gets the coffee and returns to him as soon as she can. Setting his cup in front of him, she leans against the wall, sipping her own drink.
She's taking a moment before offering him a hand and nodding to the door. "Let's get out of here?" She is quite aware that this, the whole being out in public thing, is not his favorite activity, so she's trying to be in and out as quickly as she can.
He takes the cup and nods. He takes a careful sip. "This is good." He took another sip then got to his feet, looking around warily. There was nobody that was immediately standing out to him as a threat, but he would be glad to get home once they had their groceries.
She moved so that one hand rested against his back and the other held her coffee, Gently, she guided him out of the shop and towards the corner grocery. She did a good job in picking her current location, most things were within walking distance.
"We'll be in and out," she assured as they stepped inside. "I promise. And if you want, you can wait outside."
He follows her into the store. "No, I want to stay with you." If they came for him and he was alone, he would be helpless to stop them. She was his guardian, his protector. Without her he was helpless.
They enter the store and she grabbed a cart, stropping her bag init and puling out her list.
"Right, we're only getting essentials right now. We can get other stuff later but we're in desperate need of a few things."
Pushing the cart down a few aisles, she occasionally found herself eyeing down people who watched them. She wasn't paranoid exactly but she wasn't going to be caught off guard either.
He kept an eye out around them even more than Natasha did, eyes constantly scanning. He stayed on guard but stopped dead when they went through the cereal aisle. Something was jiggling at the back of his mind about this. All these brightly colored boxes seemed foreign all of a sudden, though he had been here with her before and it had never seemed odd.
Something felt off, she coudn't put her finger on it but she trusted her
instincts and when he tried to get her attention, she looked up at him but
her attention was on everything.
She had a weapon in her bag, she would have been an idiot to not go out
without one, but she started to wonder i that was enough.
He, in the meantime, was feeling both deja vu and like, once again, time had shifted under his feet, while he was watching. He felt like he was looking in through a window at the world from the past but at the same time living in it.
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timeasmymeasure
no subject
Date: 2014-07-24 04:54 am (UTC)Natasha is quiet as he sleeps, getting coffee, doing things on her laptop. It's all just a way to pass the time. There' snot much that needs her attention this very moment and while it's sort of nice, it leaves her a little restless too.
She knows she has the capability to stay up for as long as she needs to but it, in all honesty, is pretty dull.
no subject
Date: 2014-07-24 06:00 am (UTC)It's so different now - he's warm, and can sleep, and she feels safe. She doesn't expect anything from him, unlike Steve. He feels like he can let her down, while he can't let Steve down or fail at all.
no subject
Date: 2014-07-24 06:31 am (UTC)About a week passes with nothing interesting coming up. She takes him out at one point to acquire clothes and that's about it. Things are mundane and she's still trying to get used to that.
Having this much downtime makes her feel like she's forgetting something, even though she knows she isn't.
Eventually groceries have to be acquired and she finds herself wondering if he'dlike to come. Looking up at him for a moment as she makes a list of what to get, she points her pen at him.
"In the mood to go out for a while? We'll pick up coffee on the way."
no subject
Date: 2014-07-24 06:44 am (UTC)He still hasn't seen Steve face to face, but there had been a few panicked, late-night conversations over the phone, unsure if he'd been remembering or imagining a certain thin.
"Where are we going?" He asks, unsure. Coffee is still a great lure for him, but he doesn't to go until he knows for sure where they're going and how long they'll be out.
no subject
Date: 2014-07-24 06:55 am (UTC)"Groceries," she tells him, spinning th eben between her fingers. "We're out of....most things really." She's still getting used to maintaining a place of her own like this and groceries, while useful, were not on the top of her list of things to do most of the time.
"And we can pick up creamer. It makes your coffee taste like all sorts of things. Hazelnut, chocolate, mint and a ton of other stuff. I think you'd like at least a few of them."
Why yes, she has realized that part of the way to his heart is through caffeine.
no subject
Date: 2014-07-24 07:01 am (UTC)He stood slowly, and headed for his boots - those were something he refused to let Natasha replace - they were military boots, the leather still good, broken in to his feet. He didn't want to let those go at all and slipped into them. He was still in sweatpants and a t-shirt but he pulled on one of the jackets she had bought him, wrestling his left arm through the sleeve.
no subject
Date: 2014-07-24 07:06 am (UTC)She laughs a little, nodding her head and setting the pen down. "Yeah, I was planning on it." She hated shopping and tended to reward herself with coffee anyway, so it wasn't as if it was out of the way for her.
Getting to her feet, she grabbed a brush and ran it through her hair, then threw on a pair of boots herself and grabbed her jacket from behind the couc.
"Ready to face the world," she questioned, only half joking. She knew it wasn't easy for him to go out and if they needed to take a few moments, hell even longer than that, she was ready and willing to do so.
no subject
Date: 2014-07-24 03:13 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-07-24 09:56 pm (UTC)She offers a reassuring smile. "We'll be in and out, I promise. I made a list for that exact reason."
Opening the door, she exits the apartment, moving to wrap her arm around his elbow after he does the same. It's meant to be a reminder, a silent promise that she's right there and she won't let anything touch him if she has anything to do with it.
no subject
Date: 2014-07-25 03:07 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-07-25 05:59 am (UTC)She lets him stay close, holding onto him and guiding him through the street and towards the coffee shot. Caffeine first and then tackling groceries.
"Usual," she asked as they step inside. Her plan is to leave him in a corner, order and then find him again but if it looks like he's not up for being left alone, she'll keep him near.
no subject
Date: 2014-07-25 06:08 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-07-25 06:17 am (UTC)She nods, scanning the shop then nodding towards the corner. "You can go sit down. I'll be there in a minute." She doesn't order him, it is absolutely voluntary if he goes and she'll only let go if he starts moving.
no subject
Date: 2014-07-25 05:30 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-01 12:11 am (UTC)She's taking a moment before offering him a hand and nodding to the door. "Let's get out of here?" She is quite aware that this, the whole being out in public thing, is not his favorite activity, so she's trying to be in and out as quickly as she can.
no subject
Date: 2014-08-01 12:47 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-01 01:07 am (UTC)"We'll be in and out," she assured as they stepped inside. "I promise. And if you want, you can wait outside."
no subject
Date: 2014-08-01 01:24 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2014-08-01 01:46 am (UTC)They enter the store and she grabbed a cart, stropping her bag init and puling out her list.
"Right, we're only getting essentials right now. We can get other stuff later but we're in desperate need of a few things."
Pushing the cart down a few aisles, she occasionally found herself eyeing down people who watched them. She wasn't paranoid exactly but she wasn't going to be caught off guard either.
no subject
Date: 2014-08-01 01:52 am (UTC)"Natasha," he said quietly, looking around.
no subject
Date: 2014-08-01 11:49 pm (UTC)Something felt off, she coudn't put her finger on it but she trusted her instincts and when he tried to get her attention, she looked up at him but her attention was on everything.
She had a weapon in her bag, she would have been an idiot to not go out without one, but she started to wonder i that was enough.
no subject
Date: 2014-08-02 04:42 am (UTC)