We're more alike than you think

111. Feelings

A tear fell down your cheek. Not because you were hurt, sad, or scared, but because you were touched by his words. You felt a sense of relief and happiness. You had for a while felt safe with Zemo, but emotionally you were still holding back. Hearing him so sincere talking about his feelings for you made you feel like it was hope for the two of you. You wrapped your hands around his neck leaning your lips into his. A smile curled up on your lips.

"This little bird would love to only sing for you," you whispered with a little laugh, your voice shaking by all the adrenalin you felt running through your body. It was hard to keep calm when everything felt so overwhelming. He smiled at your words and smiled proudly as he laid his other hand on your cheek.

"Looks like I'll be the one to surrender to thou," he whispered gladly towards your lips. He couldn't hold his excitement back any longer. He craved your lips. He tilted his head to the side and lifted your face softly up. He pushed you gently up on the desk before he crashed his lips into yours. You wrapped your legs around his hips, locking the space between the two of you. It felt amazing to have him close to you, without any worry. It all felt natural with the two of you. It was still overwhelming to you. You were not used to feeling safe, not like this.

You let your hands tighten around him as you felt a sudden rush to just wrap him into a hug. Your pulse was skyrocketing as you breathed heavily. You felt the tears streaming down your face. God, you hated how soft Zemo had turned you. It didn't even take a second before he tightly wrapped his hands around your body. He held you tight, not letting go. He was not gonna repeat his old mistakes with you. No matter what happened he was gonna be standing right by your side. He was more than aware that the two of you had a lot to work out between each other. It was not only gonna be a dance on roses, it was gonna be a challenge, but a challenge he had no issue with fighting.

"I love you," you said when you finally were able to calm down. You moved back so you were able to see his face. It was very few you had said those three big words too, and as much as it scared you, it felt good. It felt like it was meant to be in the most cliche way. Like you were meant to say those exact words to Zemo and no other person. He looked into your beautiful eyes. You could see that even Zemo was a softie now, almost tearing up himself.

"I love you," he repeated. You smiled at his words and laughed. The two of you must sound like two idiots repeating the same three words to each other. Guess both of you found it reliving to say the word and actually mean it. You had a feeling that Zemo hadn't said those words to many either, so it felt special. It felt pure. You leaned your forehead against his and wrapped your fingers together. You tilted your heads softly, laughing low.

"Okay, so I'm just gonna jump right into it... Do you maybe wanna move into my apartment? I mean, of course, you can stay here if you want to, but I happened to have a full apartment with stuff that we ordered together, so I thought maybe you would like to, you know, live there instead of here, but again it's totally up to you," You rushed as you got a bit too eager and nervous as you spoke. Zemo laughed at you. You were such a dork sometimes.

"Of course, you couldn't possibly think that we bought that Sokovian carpet and not have me living in the apartment," he said, shaking his head. You immediately started to laugh.

"Jerk," you said playfully.

Zemo didn't say anything against it, he didn't need to. He knew he was a jerk from time to time, but now he at least was your jerk. He couldn't help himself around you. He had been through so many years, almost a decade feeling emotionally dead, and you had woken up a whole other side in him again. With you, he felt like he could relax. As much as he enjoyed thinking, planning, and using his brain, it was nice to have a person he could just simply be free with. He smiled towards your lips before he looked out into the room.

"Any ideas about the... team?" Zemo asked, putting pressure on the last word.

He had no issue admitting that teams weren't exactly his thing. Yes, he had been in special operations in the military, but that was different. Everyone had their own roles, and your girlfriend wasn't the boss of the team. Not that he had a personal issue with you being his boss, more the fact that it was more people than him there. If he could choose he would rather have you by himself, but at the same time, he was so incredibly proud of you. You leading a team all on your own was a big deal, especially at this size. He couldn't wait to see how far you would go. He leaned up against the desk beside you and crossed his arms.

"I have some ideas...I know the first person I wanna ask" you said with a smile and crossed your arms. Zemo laughed low and lifted his eyebrows. He was intrigued, to say the least.

"Any hints?" he asked playfully.

"We need some luck on our team," you answered with a smirk.