Don't Let Me Forget

VIII - Please Don't Hurt Me

"Love is the inexpressible comfort of feeling safe with someone." - Unknown

It had been a rainy week in New York City, and Natasha was exhausted. One of her co-workers had been sick for the past week and a half, and Natasha had been called in to take her shit. She loved her work, she really did. But watching over the children for thirteen hours in a row, the days were now very long.

She hadn't been able to take her usual walk in Central Park due to the rain, and she was missing it. She had tried on Monday but she ended up being wetter than anything else. Today was Friday, and Natasha felt thankful she would be able to be home in less than three hours.

Now that Steve had stopped working at the children's hospital, the days were longer than usual. Of course, they were texting each other for the past week and a half since they exchanged numbers, but they hadn't been able to see each other since. Natasha's work schedule had been exhausting, and Steve understood her work was also a priority.

Instead, they were talking about seeing each other on Saturday, and Natasha couldn't wait. She still hadn't decided how much she wanted to let Steve in, but she told herself she would figure out with time.

Arriving at her apartment, the only thing Natasha wanted to do was to go straight to the bed. She wasn't really hungry for dinner and she needed a proper night of sleep. Even though she knew the nightmares would definitely be here tonight since she was really exhausted.

Getting herself ready to go the bed, she checked her phone to see if she had any texts or notifications she had miss during the day. She brightly smiled when she saw Steve had texted her an hour ago. "Can't wait to see you tomorrow, hope you're gonna get some rest tonight :)."

Smiling to herself, she was now ready to fall asleep. She had closed her eyes for less than ten minutes when she heard a loud knock on her front door. Sighing loudly, she got up to see who would bother her when the only thing she wanted to do was to sleep.

"Oh my god! Why are you already in your pajamas? Don't tell me you forgot about tonight ?" She heard her best friend Maria saying once she opened the front door.

"What about tonight ? Did we plan something ?" Natasha replied slightly annoyed because she knew she wouldn't be able to get rid of her best friend.

"Girl! Yes! It's Friday! Of course we have plans. Sam is gonna pick us up from your place in twenty minutes. You better go get ready babe." Maria said to Natasha, making her way into her apartment.

"Maria, look I'm sorry but I don't feel like going out tonight, I'm exhausted, I need to sleep." Natasha replied, she really wanted to stay home and cuddled in her blankets.

"You'll get your sleep, don't worry. Once Sam and I will drop you off at your place in a couple of hours." Maria said smirking at her best friend. "Now, go get ready please, I don't want to make Sam wait for us."

"Fine." Natasha said annoyed, heading to her closet so she could get dressed. "Remind me what are we doing tonight ?"

"Movie night at one of Sam's friend's place but I don't know which one. He said there will be around four of his friends, and he nicely suggested that I could ask you to join so I would feel more comfortable around all of that testosterone. Gosh, I love this man. He's the best." Maria said smiling to herself. "Alright, Sam is gonna be here in ten minutes, hurry up girl."

Natasha didn't want to go out tonight, especially if she had to be around mens she didn't know. Being around Steve was comfortable for her, simply because Steve was Steve. Right now, she had no idea what she was getting herself into.

Getting herself ready, she simply opted for a simple high-waisted skinny black jeans, with a really comfy but cute black sweater, her hair in a messy bun, and wearing a simple pair of sneakers. She felt lucky she didn't take the time to take off her makeup from the day. No need to do it again, she thought to herself.