Romanogers - Oneshots

See you in a minute

Let's pretend everyone survived Endgame except, you know, Thanos. Oh and Nat.

"Okay, he's coming back in, I'm getting the signal." Bruce announces to the camp.

The rest of the Avengers are sitting in various chairs around Tony's lawn. They all look up as a low hum begins. It's only been a minute, and yet Steve could have been gone for hours, days, years, even. It's still hard to get their heads around that.

"Any second now..." Bruce twiddles with a dial. Suddenly there's a small flash and he appears, just as he did when he went, standing tall and holding his shield. He feels their eyes, though filled with relief, slide off him to his side, and then to the ground, to their shoes. He knows what they wanted to appear, who they wanted to appear, and his heart breaks all over again. They were hoping for her to be with him, for him to have found some way to bring her back, no matter how many times Clint told them it was impossible. Their eyes drop to the ground in disappointment. Wanda hastily brushes away a tear that has rolled down her cheek and the hears Tony swear under his breath and turn away, "God damnit."

Steve steps off the platform. "It's done." His voice sounds hollow. They all nod, but their faces are far from content. He feels like crying, dropping his shield, kneeling on the ground and sobbing. She's gone. She's really gone.

She turns her head, a playful smile on her face. "See you in a minute." She says. He smiles back at her. His heart feels full. Was it possible to get cuter? 'Cause she just did. Was it possible for him to fall any deeper? 'Cause he just did. She turns back to the centre, but he stays looking at her until the mask covers his face and he is zapped back to 2012. When she smiled at him, he felt like he was soaring. His heart hurt with emotion. And that was the last he would see of her.
He is zapped back. His heart feels like it's going several hundred miles an hour, and he's not sure that's just the thrill of the portal. They're zapped back into the present day. Barely a minute has passed. He looks to his left, expecting to see her grinning and laughing with the exhilaration. He finds empty space. His smile fades. He looks to Clint. He stands stock still, staring at the ground. Steve's heart drops to his boots. There are no butterflies in his stomach; now they feel like piranhas, eating him from the inside out. The world starts spinning a little. The others notice the silence from the other half of the circle they went in. Their smiles too change to worry when they spot the empty space. Clint starts to speak. "She...uh, she...". A tear rolls down his cheek. His head feels light, like he might pass out. It's not possible. Where is she? She can't be-
"Nat's dead." Clint cuts short his internal frenzy. "She, uh, she gave her life for that stone."
The others look shocked. Shell shocked. Rocked to their core. But that is nothing compared to how Steve feels. He suddenly gets such a pain in his heart it takes everything not to cry out. A tear silently rolls down his cheeks. And another one. He turns away, silently weeping. Tony swears under his breath, "God damnit."

He feels empty. Hollow. There's silence as no one says anything.
"I did try, you know. Really tried. I begged for him to give her back." He stutters, voice tight.
"We know." They murmur collectively. "It's permanent."

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Okay so I got halfway through this chapter and realised there were two possible ways this could end, but I couldn't choose between them, so I split it into two halves, with two different endings. That's where the first half ends, if you want a more depressing story, or the nicer one ends in the next half.

He feels empty. Hollow. There's silence as no one says anything. Then the machine starts whirring. Humming loudly, high pitched. Bruce runs back towards it, confusion washed all over his face. "I'm getting new frequencies. Someone's trying to enter our area."
"But how?" Sam asks. "Who? We're all here." That hangs in the air. Everybody knows it's not true. Steve wants to throw something. All that are left. There's one missing.
"An intruder?" Someone says. Nobody moves, but muscles tighten and knuckles whiten.
"The signal's getting stronger. They'll be here in a few seconds."
And right on cue, there's a small flash. Everyone jumps out of their seats.
There stands Natasha. Confused, scared, dazed, bewildered. But Natasha. Steve barely hears the gasps of the others behind him as he turns to face her. The others start to get up, but are pushed back by Wanda and Tony. They'll get their turn. This is a moment.
Steve walks forward, not believing what his eyes are telling him. Natasha can't be here. She's dead. Gone. Forever. Irretrievable. But evidently not, as she's standing a few steps in front of him. Her eyes focus on him.
"Steve? Where am I? How am I here?" She implores. He doesn't answer. He's too shocked.
He walks until they are about a foot apart. Then he plants one finger on her chest and pushes her lightly, as if to make sure she's real. She can't be. He's prodding air. He must be hallucinating, right?
She rocks back on her heels, uncertain, eyes still trained on him, head tilted slightly upward to his face. Then he envelops her in a hug and squeezes her tight. It takes her a second to respond; she's caught off guard, but responds in equal measure. They squeeze each other tight, like they'll never let go. A tear slides down his cheek. They pull apart. They're only a tiny space apart now, the toes of their shoes touching.
He tilts his head to look down at her. He's struck again by how beautiful she is. Her eyes glittter and her cheeks are rosy with emotion. A few locks of hair have fallen free of the plait they were arranged in, and hang around her face, framing it. The world stands still for them. They are in their own little bubble. One hand cups her face, thumb stroking her cheek.
"I thought I lost you." He breathes, ragged.
"I told you I would only be a minute." She replies, smiling softly.
They gaze into each other's eyes and their heads get gradually closer, until their foreheads bump. They breathe for a second, savouring the moment. Then both of Steve's hands cup her face and guide their lips towards each other. At first the kiss is soft, sweet, drinking each other in, until they get gradually more comfortable and it becomes more passionate, more emotion, more feeling, more desire behind each. Their bubble is burst as the Avengers cheer. Actually stand up in their seats and clap. But the kiss doesn't break. His hands find her waist, and one snakes up her back and into her hair, tangling it to pull her closer. Her arms loop around his neck before they pull apart a minute later. Their eyes close and they relax their foreheads against each other. Cheers still emanate from the crowd, wolf whistles ringing out across the lake.
"I love you."
"I love you too."

I think it's fair to say that ended on an altogether happier note.