Chapter 30

Yelenas pov:
Im in the middle of tackling her to the ground after she got too cocky. I saw it in her eyes, the silent look that shes doing well, that shes winning. Sometimes you have to knock that out of people, especially yn, cant have that getting to her head. Shes already got enough confidence as is. I straddle her, my legs sitting either side of her hips and my hands pinning hers above her as she struggles beneath me. I cant help the little flutter that spreads through my stomach at the thought of her in this position – at the thought of what we got up to last night. She takes a deep breath, trying to steady her breathing as she slowly stops struggling the longer we make eye contact. “Okay, you need to teach me how to do that.” Her words are slow and quickly forgotten by the look shared between us.

“I could teach you a lot in this position detka.” I watch the blush spread up her cheeks, a sense of satisfaction spreading through my stomach. I adjust so that i only need one hand to pin her and i get butterflies at the thought of what she’ll let me do. If she really wanted to, she could get out of this. I tuck a strand of loose hair behind her ear before i drag my hand torturously slowly over her sports bra and down the bare skin of her body. I pause just above her waistband, my body stilling as my mind runs wild. “Its a good thing youre wearing underwear today, i might be tempted to turn this into something else otherwise.” Its already something else. I can tell by the rush of excitement and the way nerves rattle in my chest.

“Who says i am?” She gives me that cocky grin. She knows how much that thought is going to torment me, even though it may not be true.

“Do you make it a habit to go out wihout underwear on?” I raise an eyebrow as a small smirk forms on my mouth, trying desperately to direct this away from the idea that the only thing separating my hands from her is the thin fabric of her sweatpants.

“Only around you. It saves me from losing my underwear.” Images of that night flashes through my head. The sounds she made makes me feel this wild untamed desire. My eyes flicker down to her waistband as my hand hovers just above it. I could find out now whether she was telling the truth or not. I could satisfy that deep desire that feels unbareable. I slowly lower my hand onto her hip instead, slowly dragging my fingers just under the waistband, teasing her with the thought that i might give in. I start to pull my hand away but she leans into my touch, her hips arching. That single movement tears away any self control that i may have had left and telling by the fire in her eyes, shes thinking the same thing.

I let go off her hands and she immediately sits up to kiss me deeply like its the only thing shes ever wanted to do, her hands roaming over my body as she does. I trail my hand over her abdomen, making my way lower. Just as i slide my hands into her waistband (finding out that she was in fact lying just to make me give in), the door swings shut loudly. I pull away, stopping kissing her and taking my hand out of her sweatpants, but i dont move from off the top of her. I just stay straddling her hips as she leans back, resting on her palms. I watch as nat stands there with her arms crossed and an annoyed look covering her face as she speaks. “Ive just had an ear full off of fury about how unprofessional it is to let you two train together. I assured him everything would be fine, but after seeing this…” she shakes her head and walks over, pulling me up by my arm so that i move off of her. “Im taking over yns training, yelena, you need to leave since you animals cant seem to keep your hands off each other.”

“Hey its not our fault you need to get some.” I physically recoil as the words leave my mouth, thats too fresh to make jokes about. I dont know what i was thinking. When yns around, i find it hard to think at all.

She shoves me towards the door, anger contorting her face. “Go. And wash your hands, ive seen where theyve been.” Her eyes flicker back to yn whos just getting up quietly from the floor.

“To be fair you interrupted before anything could actually happen.” Her jaw tenses and i roll my eyes, looking back to yn whos face is more red than sams was this morning. “Well it was fun while it lasted.” Nat takes a single step forward and i practically bolt out of the room. I dont know what to do. Normally i spend all my time with yn or thinking about yn. Maybe i should try and make friends outside of her? I wonder if caps eating any pastries. Oh and then i can play a prank on sam. It drives him mad because hes convinced for some reason that its bucky. Bucky once read the bible. For fun. Because of the ‘made up characters’. He doesnt exactly scream the kind to pull pranks.

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Yns pov:
Nat has me running until my lungs burn. Which takes a lot for someone who used to go on runs. I slowly stop, my breaths coming out as short wheezes when nat kicks my legs from beneath me, sending me crashing onto the mat. “God what the hell is wrong with you guys? I get hurt in every training session.”

She smirks looking down at me. “Thats how you know its working. Over time youll get less and less hurt.” She extends a hand, helping me to my feet as my shallow wheezes turn into actual breaths. “This feeling right now? This is how it feels to be out there. Youll be out of breath without a second to breathe or to recover, you just have to keep going, you have to keep fighting.” Holy shit, this is getting serious. I suppose i shouldve known what i was getting myself into, most of their day consists of training. Well not yelenas, but shes been given a lot of leeway lately. Im assuming its to do with how worried they were about her whilst i was gone. “I want you to go on runs every day. Start with 5 miles and then increase it, it would be great if you could take yel too. She could really do with getting out of the tower and back into the field.” I just nod, storing it away in my memory. My whole body hurts. She had me doing circuits with burpees earlier and that killed me off and then she made me run until i physically couldnt keep going. The muscles in my legs are spasming as i stand. “Okay, trainings over for today. Oh and yn? The next time you want to fondle my sister, maybe lock the door. Or do it somewhere more private.”

My face burns with embarassment but i just shrug my shoulders, shooting back a not very witty reply. “She was fondling me actually.” She just shakes her head and i take that as my cue to leave. Just as i reach for the door knob, the doors fly open and yelena comes running in, shoving her back against the wall by the door. I tilt my head as my eyes dart between her and the door. “What are you doing?”

She puts a finger to her mouth, shushing me when the door opens again. Sam halts abruptly when he sees me on the other side of the door. His shoulders are tense and his fists clenched. “Sorry, have you seen yelena? I need to quickly kill her.”

I roll my eyes and nod down the hall. “I think i heard someone running down the hallway a few minutes ago.”

His eyes widen and his mouth parts slightly. “Arent you gonna ask what this is about?”

I sigh, rubbing my eyes to portray exhaustion. “I really dont want to get in the middle of whatever this is.” He just gives me a quick half smile before taking off down the corridor. I shut the door softly and look back at yelena expectantly.

“Okay, so i mightve been the one playing pranks on sam and he may have thought this whole time that it was bucky because he didnt think i actually liked it here enough to do that.” Yep that sounds like something she would do. And judging by the paint covering her, im guessing she was planning on pulling another one but got caught.

“You owe me an outfit.” I say with a warm smile as my eyes drag over her body. I push off the door and walk over to her, my hand reaching for her waist out of habit. “You want to go out later?”

She wraps her arms around my neck while her eyes study mine like shes memorising every part of me. “What like a date?”

“Well yeah, but we dont have to name it if you dont want to, no pressure.” She gives me a soft smile before leaning in and kissing me. I smile into the kiss before pulling away. “Ill take that as a yes.”

“Where are we going?” Her hand moves up to the scar on my cheek, her thumb stroking over it in that way ive missed.

“I dont know yet. Somewhere casual though.” I kiss her once more before moving away towards the door.

“I hope you know you two are sickly dont you?” Nats voice echoes in the empty gym as she gives us a disgusted look.

“Do you not remember you and wanda? Now that was sickly.” Yelena blurts out the painful reminder just as she had earlier. I take that chance to pretend i heard nothing and leave, the echoes of their shouts mixing together as i walk away.

I head into the lab, sitting down at my desk like i belong here. I dont feel out of place here like i thought i would. At that apartment i always felt like i was doing something wrong simply by being there. I pull out the plans and work from yesterday, picking up the discarded pieces of metal that litter the table. Things are starting to make sense now. I have some foundational pieces, just a few more and i can start piecing them together and see if this thing actually works. “Hey, everything okay?” I startle, spinning around abruptly. My shoulders relax when i see his soft brown eyes. “Sorry, i didnt mean to scare you, i just thought you might want to talk.” His tone is impossibly kind, like that little kid ive known for years has finally returned.

I hesitate before placing down the metal back on my desk. “Pete, its been a while. Im good thanks. How are you?” I still, speaking in a hushed tone, worried that i might scare him off.

I half expect a scoff in return and that cruel, barely restrained demeanour ive grown so used to. Instead he sits in the chair at his desk, a small smile stretching painfully on his lips like hes forgotten how to smile. “Yeah, yeah i am. Me and pietro are doing really well. We actually went on a date yesterday just to get away from the chaos.” Im guessing thats what has caused the random change in attitude. “Im sorry about how reactive ive been. I was unusually irritated because of this mission ive been working on.”

“Hey, dont mention it, i mean i guess i had been soaking up a lot of the attention around here.” I see his jaw tick and a flash of anger in his eyes. He just swallows his emotion, quickly covering it up. Somethings wrong. Hes faking being nice but i dont know why.

“No, you deserve to have a family too.” He doesnt believe that. I can tell. I could always tell when pete was lying through his teeth. Someones poisoning his mind. Its the only thing that makes sense to me. I wont believe that he has become this way on his own.

My eyes wander from the face i no longer recognise to his work that covers his desk. “What are you working on?” The pain in his eyes doesnt go away, but it dims as he directs his attention to his own genius.

“Im toying with EMPs, trying to create one that can be used for villains suits like scorpion or vulture or rhino.” This is the most normal hes seemed since david went to prison. He even sounds a little like me when he starts to ramble on about the science behind it. Even when hes been led astray hes still being a hero.

“That sounds brilliant. I mean potentially dangerous, fatal even depending on how the electricity reacts. But completely brilliant. We could debilitate the criminals before we even land a hit.” He grins, his eyes finally shining as he looks over his project for the 5th time since we moved onto the topic.

“This is my pride and joy. Its gonna make me rich.”

I huff a laugh as i watch his reaction carefully. “Since when do you care about the money more than the science?”

An involuntary scoff slips from his throat, catching even himself off guard. “Yn, we arent as close as we used to be. Theres plenty that you no longer know about me.” Ive felt the drift ever since he first joined. I couldnt explain it, i couldnt understand the distance he forced between us. I always just thought it was normal teenage hormones. Now i cant help but feel guilt at the thought that he was handling all of that alone.

“Im sorry theres such a drift pete, i shouldve faught harder to be involved in your life.” He just nods, his jaw visibly tense. I turn back towards my project, letting the thick silence settle in the room as i work.

It isnt long before the chair opposite me creaks and i look up to see her leant on her hands, watching my work carefully. I dont know why she likes to come in here when she doesnt understand any of it, but it makes me feel more settled when shes around. It feels like that moment after i had walked for miles from that lazarus base and i finally saw her face again. “That still doesnt look very hoverboardy.” She leans back in her chair, tucking her legs into her chest as she pulls out a book.

“Give it time lena, ive only been working on it for 2 days. I already have 2 little components for it. Well 1 and a half.” I pull the magnifying glass over the little piece as i melt pieces of metal to each other and add little wires.

She glances up from her book, just watching my steady hands. “Figured out where we’re going yet?”

“Yeah, its very casual, trust me. I thought we could go somewhere we’ve been before so that theres less pressure on it being our first date, date.” She gives me a grateful smile as she goes back to ‘reading’ her book, clearly not reading it as she turns the pages too quickly. “Isnt that my book?”

Her face reddens, clearly caught out. “Uh yeah, i dont own any.” She slows down on turning the pages but she started half way through and i know that book hasnt been missing from my room.

“You know, it might be really interesting if you actually read it.” She huffs, shutting the book and placing it on top of some old plans that cover my desk.

“I dont like to read its so boring. I dont get how you do it. First you have to sit still just to read words on a page.”

I chuckle as she leans back in her chair, spinning it from side to side. “If you gave it a chance, you would know its better than that.” She raises a skeptical eyebrow but doesnt pick up the book again. Instead her eyes just find mine and that deep, heart consuming stare has me feeling weak. I let out a shaky breath as my nerves propel to the surface. I forget how she can make me feel undone by a single stare or movement. The whole room disappears around us. No one else exists when shes around.

Thats until peter pulls us out of our little live bubble. “Get a room.” He scoffs, turning his back to us as he continues his work.

“Hm, good idea.” Yelena smirks, grabbing my hand as she pulls me in the direction of the door. Peters groan can be heard from the hallway as we pad down towards my room, excited giggles bubbling in the air. Its strange to hear yelena giggle, but when it slips out of her mouth, its the only thing i want to hear. She quickly covers her mouth with her hand though, immediately regretting the lack of control. Its nice to see this rare side of her – it reminds me that she lets herself be vulnerable around me, that she feels comfirtable enough to just be herself.