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Natasha’s muscles ache as if they’re engulfed in flames, the aftermath of a grueling training session commissioned by SHIELD. Beads of sweat drip down her forehead, leaving a trail of exhaustion in their wake. Even with a bastardized version of the super soldier serum coursing through her veins, her strength and endurance are no match for this workout.
She’s not alone in her weariness; the other trainees groan in unison, collapsing onto the padded floor, their energy utterly drained.
The leader of the training, the legendary Captain Carter, stands tall, not a single sign of fatigue on her. With the original super soldier serum, her vigor and endurance are unparalleled, something that Natasha begrudgingly envies as she catches her breath. Carter exudes a calm confidence as she concludes the intense training that leaves Natasha and several of her comrades depleted.
After the session, Natasha makes her way to the showers, the warm water soothing her fatigued body. The training hadn’t pushed her to her limits, not even close. It hardly managed to scratch the surface of years and years of the Red Room’s training.
As she emerges, towel wrapped around her body, she notices an abnormally tall figure leaning casually against her locker.
Natasha narrows her eyes at her girlfriend whose lips curl into a playful smirk.
Peggy, clad in black trousers and a navy blue button up with the sleeves rolled to her elbows, watches her change into jeans and a green tank top that she conceals with a brown jacket.
“Shall we?” Peggy asks, holding an arm out with her hands in her front pockets.
Despite her exhaustion, Natasha couldn't resist the magnetic pull of her girlfriend's natural English charm. She wraps her hands around her upper arm, smiling. “Lead the way, Cap”
On their way home, they stop by a local Indian place to pick up some food since Natasha doesn’t feel like cooking and Peggy couldn’t cook a good meal if her life depended on it.
Peggy opens the front door to her apartment with the hand she holds their takeaway with so she can still hold Natasha’s hand with the other.
She steps aside for Natasha to enter and hang her jacket by the coatrack.
While Natasha unclips, takes off her bra and trades her jeans for a pair of comfy shorts, Peggy opens the food containers and sets them on the table along with two plates.
Peggy takes off her own shirt, revealing a white spaghetti strapped top and toned muscular arms, before sitting down at the table.
Natasha whistles as she sits down opposite her. “Shame we bought all this food when there’s a four course meal right in front of me”
“Thought you’d be spent after the training” Peggy says, adding basmati rice, garlic butter naan and butter chicken to her plate.
Natasha bites into a samosa, the crunch audible and clear. “I’m not that tired. Correction, I’m never that tired” She smirks.
Peggy rolls her eyes, fondly. “Pipe down and eat your food”
They eat in a relatively comfortable silence. Peggy’s halfway through her second plate when Natasha finishes her first and last. She receives a sheepish smile when Peggy makes a full plate of chicken biryani shortly after finishing her second.
“Sorry”
Natasha holds her hand up. “How many times have I told you to stop apologizing?” She asks, rhetorically, as she stands to put her plate in the sink. “It’s not your fault you have to eat so much to sate your high metabolism”
She leans with her back against the sink.
“Let’s watch something on TV”
Peggy hums, putting an enclosed hand over her mouth. “I’m still eating”
“I know. Bring your plate”
Once on the couch, Natasha makes herself comfortable on Peggy’s lap. She can’t help feeling like a ventriloquist dummy propped up on the ventriloquist’s lap if she thinks too much about their size difference. Which is why she doesn’t and turns on the TV.
She settles on some adult cartoon about a guy and his family working at his burger restaurant.
Peggy occasionally feeds her spoonfuls of biryani. When her plate is empty, her eyes fixate on the animation in front of her.
When the end credits play, they get up.
Natasha clears the table and puts their leftovers in the fridge while Peggy does the dishes.
“Hey, where do you keep your passport?”
Peggy dries her hands with a towel before grabbing Natasha by her her hips and lifting her up with ease to see over the refrigerator top.
After being set down, Natasha stares at the ground for a moment. “Well, that was surprisingly arousing. Also, who keeps their passport on a refrigerator?”
“Those of us who are tall enough” Peggy quips with an amused smirk as she touches the tip of Natasha’s nose. “Don’t be angry because you’re vertically challenged, Nat”
“First of all, I’m the average female height so,” Natasha flips her off. “And second, you’re only six-foot-five because of the serum so don’t act so high and mighty, Carter. No pun intended”
“I was five-seven before the serum. That’s still four inches taller than you”
Before Natasha has a chance to respond, Peggy’s lips are on hers and she forgets what they were talking about.