Winterwidow One-shots

The Hospital

Natasha glanced down at her watch. 7 p.m. James was now officially an hour late for their date. She'd been sitting patiently at the restaurant, looking like she'd gotten stood up for the entire time. Had she been? This was her second date with him, but he could have just said that he didn't like her instead of going through the trouble of planning a date and humiliating her by standing her up. Needless to say, Natasha was pissed. She told herself she'd wait an hour, and that was what she did. She'd received no phone calls. No messages making excuses. Just radio silence. She didn't know which would have been preferable. Silence or excuses. Either way, James was going to get his ass kicked the next time she saw him.

She began to collect her things and leave the restaurant. The looks of pity from other customers was the worst part. "What," she asked firmly. The strangers turned back to their meals. Natasha rolled her eyes and sighed. That's when her phone rang. She took it out of her pocket and read the caller ID. "New York Community Hospital," she mumbled. Puzzled, she answered the phone. "Hello?"

"Yes, hello," said a friendly, but unfamiliar voice. "I'm calling from New York Community Hospital. About an hour ago, a friend of yours was brought in from a car accident. He's alright, but was very insistent that we call you." Natasha was speechless. She had many questions, but was mainly trying to figure out where to direct her anger from before. "I'll- I'll be there in thirty minutes. Please tell James." She then hung up and picked up her things along with the leftover food she'd put in take out boxes. She then ran to her car and drove as fast as she could to the hospital.

Once she arrived, she had to wait awhile in the waiting room before she could see James. She bounced her leg and looked at the clock every few minutes. After a while, a short woman in scrubs came out from behind the doors. "Miss Romanoff? We're ready to see you. Natasha rose and grabbed her things. The nurse led her down the hallway and into a recovery room. Natasha hated hospitals. They always reminded her of the horrible procedures she had endured or watched others endure during her time in the Red Room. Being in them always gave her chills.

As she walked through the corridors, the nurse explained to her what had happened. "Your friend was brought in a bit ago from an accident. From what we know, it wasn't his fault. Just some driver trying to make a light that was already red. That driver was completely fine, but your friend got a little banged up. Just a few bruises and some cuts from glass. We'll be ready to let him go home soon. I have to tell you, he was very insistent we call you as soon as humanly possible," the nurse laughed.

When she entered the room, the nurse smiled and gestured to a bed where she saw James lying with his eyes closed in a hospital gown. She nodded her thanks to the nurse who promptly left to attend to other business.

Natasha walked over to the bed silently. She gazed upon James with the softest expression. He had a very nasty bruise on his left cheekbone and his hair was very tousled. James did not appear to notice Natasha at first, but when he saw her, he jolted and began apologizing profusely. "Nat! I'm so sorry for missing our date. I mean it. I can't tell you how-"

"James, I don't care that you missed the date," Natasha said with a laugh. "I care that you were in a car accident. What do you think of me? Am I that cold-hearted? I'm just glad you're okay. You honestly gave me a little bit of a scare there, Barnes." James looked down and smiled softly to himself. Natasha thought she might have even seen him blush a little. "You look really nice," said James in an attempt to change the subject. Natasha chuckled to herself. "I wish I could say the same for you," she said, teasing.

"Ouch," said James with a laugh. "That bad, huh?" Natasha smiled and went to sit in a chair by his bed. She then grabbed the plastic bag with the food from the restaurant. James tilted his head, puzzled. "About thirty minutes in, I ordered dinner for both of us. I know what you like," Natasha explained. She pulled out a dish in a styrofoam container and opened it to reveal a couple of piroshkis. The little pockets of cheese and meat were still steaming.

James smiled. "Piroshki. Well done. You know me too well." The two shared a laugh. That's when James got an idea. He pulled a large retractable tray around and onto his bed as a sort of table. He then moved a vase of flowers from the side table onto the tray. "Still up for that date," he asked, grinning at Natasha. She rolled her eyes playfully at his gesture, but she was already getting out her own dish and putting it next to his on the tray. They talked and laughed for over an hour before James was told he could be released to go home. The two left the hospital hand in hand, having just had the best date either one had ever had.