Whatever it Takes: Civil War

Chapter 4

That evening Bruce seemed more nervous than usual, and Natasha knew it had nothing to do with the accords or Ross. Her boyfriend had been jittery and smiled at her like he was nervous, but she could see the adoration in his eyes.

Once they put the dishes away after dinner she asked, "Bruce, what's wrong? You've been quiet all night and you look tense."

He seemed to hesitate before sighing and looking at her in the eyes, then saying, "I love you."

That was the first time he had told her those words. They had said they adored each other since Ultron, but not the word love.

All she could get out was, "How- how long?"

"Before Ultron, but I didn't admit it to myself until Thor found me. I wanted to tell you after I got back to Earth, but the snap happened and I didn't think it was fair to be selfish when the world was in chaos. Then I needed to figure out what was happening with the Hulk and merge myself with him. When I saw you in the Soul World I wanted to tell you, but I didn't think it was fair to either one of us. Then this happened and I wanted to give our relationship time before telling you how I felt. I know adore means something to you, but the word love means something to me and I just wanted to tell you how I felt."

She could see the tears welling in his eyes and cupped his face. The truth was, she loved him too, but it was difficult to say it out loud. The Red Room had taught her not to feel anything and the strongest word in her dictionary was adore.

"You don't have to say it back," he continued. "I just wanted you to know. I've always loved you Natasha and I fall even more in love with you every day."

She told him she loved him too in Russian, hoping that he would understand that saying it in her mother tongue was easier to say than in English.

She knew he understood when his face lit up and he kissed her. When they parted, she pressed her forehead to his.

"I promise, I'm not letting you go this time unless you tell me otherwise," he said in a soft voice.

"And if we need to run?"

"We run together. As far as you want." He closed his eyes and scrunched his face, as if having a conversation in his head. When he opened his eyes he explained, "Hulk. Right now, it's almost like I can tell what he's feeling. We're both in agreement that Mexico is not an option this time and we don't want to hurt you. He also wants to be stronger."

She knew that Brue and the Hulk coming to any sort of agreement was a big step. It took Bruce months after Ultron to come to the realization that the Big Guy existed to protect him. Natasha was glad he was finally seeing that the Hulk had his own thoughts and feelings after denying him anything for so long.

Natasha moved to look him in the eyes better, "About the accords. Ross told me if I signed, he'd give you a better deal. Tony was put in a similar situation."

"Figures," he said. "I know Tony signed them the first time, but based on his speech down there he still thinks they're a good idea."

"He just wants to keep the team in check. So do I until I, but Tony's going to go about everything the wrong way. These next several days are going to be chaotic. Steve and Tony are going to be at each other's throats and everyone else is going to get into the crossfire. Then there's the whole thing with Bucky."

"Tony told me about that after the snap. It sounds like it wasn't Bucky's fault, but I understand where Tony was coming from. Watching your mother get killed does something to you, but I also know what it's like to not have any control over what you're doing. Just... promise me that you'll be careful around Ross."