Captain's Hart

Chapter 13 Two Steps Back

January 17, 2013

Steve stormed through the Triskelion, completely fed up. He'd thought about Natasha's words and grudgingly decided that maybe she was right. Maybe he needed to talk with Arianna calmly. Of course, that was easier said than done, especially when it was virtually impossible to talk with said woman at all, let alone calmly.

He'd tried to be patient, looking for her every day in his free time. But two weeks was more than any sane person could search through silence, and Steve was at the end of his patience. Today, he'd reported himself on break to Fury and he stormed through the whole building. He was determined to find Arianna if it was the last thing he did.

Steve scoured through the entire building, going through every room on each floor. He finally headed down to the training rooms, and his wearied heart picked up as he heard the distinct thunks of knives hitting targets. Steve walked through the doorway just as Arianna threw the last knife, hitting a direct bull's-eye.

Her head whipped around as she heard his footsteps, and her face blanked in shock and her shoulders tensed. Her hazel eyes were fixed warningly on him as she stood, sweat pouring down her face as her shoulders heaved from her workout.

Steve walked over slowly, meeting her eyes evenly on her even though his own muscles tightened as he read the strain in her eyes. He noticed, making his muscles tense even further, that she wasn't wearing her locket, the one he'd given to her for her birthday. He'd never seen her take it off, and it made him even uneasier as he came to a stop before her.

"So," Steve began as he folded his arms expectantly, "mind telling me what's been going on?" "Nothing's been going on." Arianna answered, but her tone was cold and Steve's eyes narrowed. He'd heard her use that tone before, but she'd never had to use it with him since they became friends.

"Then how come you've been avoiding me?" Steve demanded and immediately her face filled with tension. She was trying to keep her face as emotionless as possible but he could see her anxiety through the cracks as she began tightly: "I've just been busy, I'm not-"

"Don't you dare lie to me." Steve warned sharply. She fell silent as he took a deep breath and Steve tried to keep his tone even as he continued: "I know you've been avoiding me on purpose, but I really need to talk to you. About what happened at New Year-"

"Nothing happened." Arianna said somewhat sharply. Steve's eyes narrowed in anger, but her eyes were equally as flinty as she said tersely: "Fine, I'll admit I didn't really want to see you. I was worried you might be getting the wrong message, so I thought I'd us a favour."

Steve's heart clenched at her words, but his eyes were still narrowed as he stared deep into her eyes. They were cold, no hint of the warmth he was used to. Steve's jaw locked and he bit out: "Is that really what you think? Are you sure you're not just scared of actually caring for someone?"

"I care for people." Arianna answered shortly, and Steve said in exasperation: "You know what I mean. Ria, I'm being serious, I l-"

"Love is for children." Arianna interrupted tensely and Steve snapped back, annoyed: "Is that you or Romanoff talking?"

"This is me, and if you thought anything else, you don't know me." Arianna shot back. But Steve's eyes were locked on hers, and her eyes betrayed her as they filled with a hint of fear and desperation.

She'll lash out. Natasha's words echoed in his head, and Steve realized this might be what the redheaded assassin was talking about.

As he deliberated, he was suddenly aware of how close she was. In their anger and agitation, both had leaned slightly forward and Arianna's face was almost level with his. She also seemed to become aware of how close they were and Steve saw her eyes dart down to his mouth.