Probably the last update I'll do for a while since school already started.

I'm going to be busy again for the next weeks so, I'm really sorry! But I'll try to update as soon as I can!

  ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬ C H A P T E R T H I R T E E N ▬▬▬▬▬▬▬

Right after they had blown up one of their tanks, all hell broke loose.

The soldiers were doubling up in massive numbers more than ever. They were firing everywhere, screaming in a language they couldn't comprehend, and they were at a slight disadvantage when they were being held back at the front lines. They couldn't advance.

"Tony!" Steve yelled through his earpiece, dodging another blast from the grenade that one of the soldiers just threw. "We need the location now! We can't hold all these soldiers for long."

"Keep your pants on, Capsicle. I'm on it. Hold on."

Natasha kept close to him, as he was providing cover for the both of them. He concentrated on taking out the soldiers advancing on them while she shot the ones across the line. And not once did she miss a shot.

"Cap, we're not getting anywhere if we stay here," she said. 

"That's why we need the location on the hostages now." He replied, making sure to emphasize it so Tony would hear him. He smashed his shield on one of the soldiers and leaped in the air to aim a kick to the two more behind him. "Sam, how are you guys doing there?"

"How do you think?" Sam asked, sarcasm dripping off his tone. There were a couple of explosions heard from the other side of the comm. "Hate to burst your bubble, Steve, but splitting up may not be your best idea."

Steve sighed, obviously thinking the same thing too. "Have you guys found anything? Tony's being a slow ass for taking so long."

"Hey!" The said billionaire protested. "You should know that this thing takes quite a long to do. Hacking into a foreign country's security files is complicated enough, but hacking through a terrorist group's files in a foreign country is much more than that."

Natasha grunted in disapproval. "Stop your rambling and just tell us what we need to know, Stark." 

From the corner of her eye, she saw the fellow agents having trouble to grasp for cover. Allie and Page were pressed behind a wall, reloading their ammo while Whitmore and James were crouched down behind a truck, covering for them.

Her eyes then drifted off to one figure shifting above them, leaning over the roof of a building while his rifle was aimed clearly on one of them. On instinct, she switched her tactics and fired a shot at the man. Her aim was a bit off, only managing to hit his shoulder. He dropped his rifle over the roof.

"Got it! The hostages are two miles up north from where you guys are. They're being kept in a warehouse." Tony informed them.

"On it," Steve said. "We're heading there now."

"Copy that," Clint responded, shouting over the comm. "Wha—Wilson! Stop using your wings! You're not a damn bird! You'll get shot the second we crossed the borders."

"Like your arrows are any better! They'll probably stick it in our asses once they got a hold of one of those." Sam returned.

"Shut up!" Natasha demanded, stopping them both at once.

"Eyes on the targets, guys." Steve reminded, catching his breath while he jumped over the hood of a car and slid down to get to the agents. He saw them bring out another tank, this time, much bigger than the others. The missile that was aimed at them looked a lot deadlier too.

Natasha seemed to notice what he was looking at too. "Steve, we need to move. Now." She took out one of the bigger grenades on her belt.

Steve caught onto what she was thinking. He spoke through his comm. "Sam, Clint, you think you can plant one on these tanks?"

"Just give us the signal, Cap," Sam responded.

"Stand by and wait for my word. Once we get a clear shot, we run like hell towards the borders." He ordered, turning around to the fellow agents. "Follow our lead. As soon as the tanks explode we're getting out of here."

Allie and James could barely hear their father's orders through all the noise ringing out in the air. Even with their comms on, it was still hard to make out the words with everything that's going on. They weren't even getting to the rescue mission yet but Allie could feel all her muscles and limbs strained and aching badly.

James looked slightly better but he wasn't holding it out much either. Dirt now streaked his face and she could see a slight cut above his lip. She didn't even know when he had got it because she was so busy trying not to get shot at.

Sweat trickled down her face and neck, and she was sure her hair stuck out in all places. She smelled like gunpowder and ash. 

All she wanted was a hot shower later on.

"Cap, they're moving quick," Clint informed, sounding slightly agitated.

Steve raised his shield for cover and threw an incoming soldier in the air as he crashed on one of the windows of a building. "Not yet. Wait for my word," he responded.

They could hear a sound of something whirring. Like something was being powered up. The siblings' eyes widened when they saw the largest tank planted on the center coming to life. It moved, angling sideways and upwards until it stopped to aim right in front of them.

Well, shit. As soon as they fire that missile, they would be nothing but burnt barbecues on a stick.

So much for playing matchmaker for their mama and daddy.

"Steve..." Natasha was beginning to worry too, clutching the grenade tightly in a fist.

One of the soldiers' leaders shouted something again, causing everyone to stop firing their weapons and instead held themselves in guarded positions. 

Steve raised a hand, signaling to stop her, "Wait." he said, lowly. 

The captain's quiet yet venomous voice got the siblings' heart pounding more loudly. They were damn terrified. No one was moving. It was as if one slight movement would trigger a bomb beneath their feet.

James gulped. "I think I'm gonna shit my pants." 

Allie remained perfectly still. "No kidding."

Steve then started counting down. "Three," Their leader shouted something again, prompting the soldiers to point their guns at them. They were everywhere. They were surrounded. "Two," The tank then started to come to life, and just when it was reaching it's highest point, Steve shouted out, "Now!"

Natasha pulled the clip of the grenade and chucked it in Steve's direction. If this was a baseball game, the grenade was the ball and his shield was the bat. In one swift motion, he swung his arm out and hit the grenade as strong as he could and sent it plummeting straight into the hole of the tank.

At the same time, several arrows and a few missiles flew in the air and aimed for the two tanks behind the biggest one.

"Take cover!" Steve shouted, making his towards the young agents and planted face first in the ground, making sure to provide cover as much as he can. Natasha rolled over the ground beside him and the other agents were crouched down on the ground, hands over their head as they tried to shield themselves.

After a few deathly seconds, the massive explosion broke out. It threw all of them in different directions. Steve got slammed down on a car, Natasha had hit her back on the pavement, and the other agents got thrown across a couple of posts and cars too. 

Smoke and powder quickly filled the air, and soon enough, their lungs. Seconds later, most of them broke out into a coughing fit.

Steve was the first to get up, grunting in pain as he pushed himself off the ground. Worry and fear quickly washed past him while he tried to check on his team.

Natasha seemed alright, other than the blood dripping on her temple and the bruise forming on the corner of her lips, she was fine. He turned to the other agents, inspecting for any signs of serious injuries before they get moving again. He almost let out a sigh of relief when he found all of them okay until he realized the Rogan siblings were nowhere in sight.

"Where's Allie and James?" he asked, anxiety filled his tone.

Natasha's eyes widened as well. "They were here right before the explosion happened." Her words soon turned into a rasped cough, her eyes were stinging from the smoke. "Allie? James? What's your status?" she asked, pressing a hand to her comm.

"Please don't tell me you guys lost them." Tony suddenly spoke, panic was evident in his tone.

"What? You guys lost the both of them?" Clint asked in disbelief, feeling the fear trickle up his spine as soon as he heard it.

He was ignored when a high pitch chimed in their conversation. It took a few seconds for a voice to respond. "Cap! We're—" It was Allie. A static distortion filled their comms followed by an ear-piercing sound. 

All of them winced. "Tony, clear it out!" Steve demanded, trying to shake off the painful noise in his ear.

"I'm trying!" he said.

For a moment, there was no answer. Allie's voice finally returned. "Hit by—" It went out. Then back again. "—the arm! I can't hear—"

"Allie!" Steve yelled through the earpiece. "Where are you?"

"... James is hit! He's hit!"

The comm went dead.

  —————————————————————————————      

"You're so stupid! Do you know that? A complete jerk!" Allie fumed, ripping a part of the cloth tangled on one of the post lines and wrapping it around his arm. "Why would you do that!?"

James groaned, gritting his teeth in pain. He was sweating like crazy, his face nearly turning white. The warm red liquid trickling down his arm while a bullet wound on his arm wasn't exactly an everyday thing he deals with. Thank his parents for the serum that he heals fastly than a normal human being.

"You crazy?" he gasped out, panting hard. "Then you'll get shot."

"No, I won't. I had it under control and was diving for cover already when you decided to be a good little hero and took a damn bullet even if it was completely unnecessary." She scolded, feeling her blood boiling.

As soon as after the explosion happened, they were tossed far away from where the others were. Despite the pain spiking up across his spine, he quickly shot up as soon as he saw a soldier aiming his mark on her sister. Allie had seen it too and lunged at her right to take cover behind a brick wall but James was faster. He knew that she was too late and the bullet would be hitting her any second now.

So, he did what he needed to do.

He jumped in front of her and got hit instead.

Allie kept her eyes narrowed at him, tears welling up in the corner of her eyes. Her lip was quivering. "You're an idiot. You're a moron and an ass and an idiot." she pointed a finger at him accusingly.

Even through rasped breaths, he managed to give her a sickeningly small smirk. "You're welcome, sis."

She shook her head, blinking the tears away. And for a second there, James felt his heart warmed up at the idea of her being so terrified of losing him. 

"Allie! James!"

They whipped their heads at the voice and was relieved to see their dad running towards them. He didn't look as bad as they did, save it for the dirt and cuts on his face. "What happened?" he asked, kneeling down. Concern filled up his chest. "You guys disappeared after the explosion."

Natasha was standing beside them too while the other agents loomed behind. They were all staring at the scene before them. Worry was common to see on all of their faces.

"Some soldier tried to shoot us. Up there on the roof. I was supposed to get hit but James jumped in front of me and..." She explained, sucking an intake of breath. "This happened."

Natasha's eyes landed on the bloody mess on his arm. "Did you get the bullet out?"

Allie nodded. "I did."

"With great difficulty," James complained, trying to get his breathing under control. "I thought I was gonna pass out. She's the worse nurse ever."

"And you're the worse partner! This could've been avoided if you hadn't tried to be a damn hero again!" She belted out in fury, clenching her fists. "Always needing to be a hero."

Now, James could feel irritation overshadowing his pain. "Hey, don't blame me if I'd rather get myself hurt than my sister."

For a second there, Steve's mind went off with a click. Another set of recognition dawned over him at how familiar the words sounded to him. It was vague but the clear understanding from James's point of view made him realize that he was, almost, like him.

The self-sacrificing and selflessness (that sometimes actually led to stubbornness) will prevent the people you care about from getting hurt. That you'd rather deal with the sickening pain all by yourself than let anyone else take a part of it.

That sounded a hell of a lot like Steve Rogers.

Somehow, he was seeing more and more of himself in James. And he didn't know why, but it surprised him every single time.

Allie was pretty much thinking the same thing. How on earth could James have trouble seeing their dad in him? He was every bit as stubborn and an idiot as their dad. And she was a lot like her mom, always there to remind them and ground them back in their senses whenever they were keen on playing the hero card too hard.

Natasha sighed, helping him sit up straight when he let out a grunt of pain. "There's nothing wrong with that. But remember what I said back on the jet? Don't forget to look out for yourself too. Trust the women when we say that we've got the situation under control." She then turned to give Steve a knowing look, a teasing smirk on her lips, "Isn't that right, Steve?"

Steve suddenly turned red, flushing in embarrassment. He knew exactly what she was talking about. He had dealt with this talk numerous times ever since he got partnered up with Natasha during his days in SHIELD. And it was not a pleasant talk. "Uh..." The unwillingness to admit defeat was still inside him.

He shared a look with James who was shaking his head at him and mouthing a 'No'. His look said it all, 'Don't you dare wither under a girl's stare'.

Natasha's smirk then slowly turned into a frown. Her eyebrows furrowed into a glare.

James had to keep himself from laughing. If only had his phone to take a picture of what his mom and sister looked like now. They were practically twins. 

Steve swallowed, mustering up a smile through his wince. "You're right." He looked at James, sighing in defeat. "Face it, women are always right. Can't do anything about that."

James tsked in disapproval. "You said it."

"If you guys are done with your little chit-chat group talk, we've got some hostages to rescue." Sam deadpanned.

    —————————————————————————————       

The grenade that set off the explosion wasn't just a normal grenade, it was specifically made by Stark Industries that it would emit smoke thick enough to incapacitate your opponents for a short period of time.

That's why they're using the distraction to take advantage of the situation. Both teams had met up at the borderline as soon as they got past the perimeter and the countless soldiers guarding the place.

There's no saying that they're clear yet, but they got past the first block.

Steve, as always, took the lead and followed Tony's instructions of heading up north. They barely made a mile close to the warehouse when shots starting firing everywhere again. 

James and Allie took cover behind a barricade while the 'adults' did the best they could to fire back. The older sibling was having a little bit trouble aiming a good shot considering slight movement would send a jolt of pain up his arm. But he tried to shake the pain away. He needed to get this mission done and help as much as he could.

Suddenly, he heard it. 

A short cry for help. With the help of his enhanced hearing, though not as good as his dad's that's for sure, he heard it. It was a girl's voice. And it sounded like she was in trouble. His head darted around to try and look for the source and found a nearby house that was almost crumbling to pieces.

Allie didn't hear it. She had a part of the serum too but it was obvious that she hadn't reached the extent of her abilities yet; the peak of her sense's enhancements unlike him.

James glanced back at his dad, whom he was hoping to gain a reaction because he was sure that if he heard it, then Steve definitely did too. But no, he was too distracted by the continuous firing of guns and God knows what kind of weapons that Maute group was throwing at them.

Before he even knew what he was doing, he was already up on his feet and ducking his way towards the house.

"James!" He heard Allie's cry. She sounded frantic and furious at the same time. "Where are you going!?"

With their comms, he was able to hear her over the noise. "Someone's here. They need help." He returned, ignoring the constant stab of pain rising up in his arm. 

"No one's there, James! All hostages are at the warehouse!" Allie chastised, gritting her teeth in anger. "Mr. Stark told us himself!"

"Jamester, get back in your position and stick to your captain's orders." Tony scolded, trying to dial the worry in his tone a bit. "Agent Rogan!"

James sighed in annoyance. "I know what I'm doing!" As soon as he got to the front door, he kicked it down and slammed it open with his good arm. He heard sounds of protests from Allie, Tony, and soon, he heard the captain calling him out to fall back. But he ignored them.

Dodging the falling debris and dust inside, he inspected the house for any sign of a person. He knew there was someone. He couldn't be wrong about this. "Hello?" He called out through the chaos. "Is someone here? I'm here to help!"

Only the sound of explosions and firing outside was what answered him.

"Is someone here?" he tried again, passing through one of the doorways.

Then he finally heard it.

"Help!"

Turning around, he bolted towards the source of the voice and found himself in the kitchen part of the house. A pile of debris was scattered on the floor and uneven concrete blocks were piling on top of it. It was a mess.

His eyes landed on the girl buried in this pile of mess. 

Panic erupted through his chest. "Shit," He got to her as fast as he could, digging through the pile and tossing the huge debris pieces away to the side. The burning feeling of his bullet wound only doubled up but he didn't mind it.

His hands were beginning to bleed from the splinters and cuts but as soon as he freed the upper part of her body, he used all his weight to move a massive piece of concrete from the girl.

Oh, God.

Her skin was mostly covered in blood, and he was pretty sure that her feet looked twisted and swollen so he would assume the worst and think it was broken. Her elbow was scarred and cut too, and James had to stifle a gag when he saw her arm burnt and smelling like raw skin. A large gash was on the side of her head as red liquid continued to seep out of it.

She was barely conscious, eyes half-lidded and glazed.

And oh, she was pretty much naked.

Suddenly, he couldn't feel the pain on his arm anymore after seeing the poor girl. "Hang on, hang on. I got you." He averted his gaze away from her torn clothes and settled on concentrating to pull her to his arms.

He wasn't able to get a foot nearer when she suddenly flinched away, her eyes snapping open and fear and horror dawned over her. "No!" She screamed. James immediately stepped back, bringing his arms up in a surrender motion. "Please! Can't... don't touch me! I can't... no more."

James swallowed thickly, trying his best to calm the girl down. She couldn't be any older than Allie is. "I'm not going to hurt you. I promise." He said, gently, but still did not make a move to reach out and scare her. "I'm here to help. I'm with the Avengers. Do you know them?"

Her red eyes were red and sore. Tears were falling down her cheeks. "Avengers?" Her voice came out as a whisper.

He nodded. "We're here to rescue you, and the others."

"But the Avengers... they're not real." She accused, eyes narrowing while she hiccuped through her cries. She seemed even more guarded up now. "You lie. They're not real."

James was beginning to worry when more explosions started blasting the roof above them. If they stay here any longer, they were going to get crushed.

"James! Where are you? I'm coming to help." He heard Allie asked.

He pressed a hand to his earpiece, looking at the frightened girl in front of him and decided against it. "Don't. I got this. Stay there."

"Are you out of your mind?" She fumed.

This time, it was Steve's voice. "James, what's your location? I can send Clint or Sam—"

No. The last thing this girl needed was to feel being dominated over. He needed to handle this alone. "No." He cut his dad off. "I'm fine, Cap. Trust me when I say I got this."

Steve sounded like he was about to object but he only heard a sigh on the other end. "Just give us the word and we'll be ready in case anything happens."

"Roger that." He couldn't help but say out loud.

Tony's voice cut through. "You did not just say that." 

A smirk danced its way to his lips but quickly died away when he focused back on the helpless girl. His gaze turned softer, gentle, and pure. "The Avengers are real and they're the good guys, I promise. And I can get you out of here. I can help you." He said, desperate enough to make her believe him. "Just trust me. Please."

It was the most agonizing ten seconds of his life.

The girl was simply staring at him, clutching what's remained of her shirt and hesitating whether to go with his words or not. James didn't even want to know what happened to her but he could imagine the worst. Judging from her lack of clothing, and the fear in her eyes when she thought of him touching her, he knew what she had gone through was more than just being crushed in this pile of debris.

Slowly, he inched closer. When she saw no sign of protesting or moving away, he took this as a sign to wrap his arms around her lower back and the back of her knees and hoist her up as if she weighed nothing. Because she almost weighed nothing, in fact.

The blood in his arm was bleeding more furiously now, and he bit down on his tongue to ignore the pain pulsing through the wound. He needed to get this girl safe first. A bullet wound was nothing.

"You trust me?" he asked the girl.

She looked at him, saw the truthfulness in his eyes, heard the earnest of his voice, and decided that she could. She could trust him. Weakly, she nodded.

James offered a small smile, wrapping her closer to his chest. "Let's get you out of here."

   —————————————————————————————  

Finally, finally, after going through hell, they had managed to reach the warehouse that Tony was talking about.

James had put the girl in Steve's care halfway through their run since the burning sensation in his arm was heating up and he realized he couldn't carry the girl any longer or else he'd be slowing the both of them down.

It took a while for the girl to let go of him and be passed on to the captain. Steve carried her effortlessly, and soon, with her attempts at helping them out with directions, they found what they were looking for.

As soon as they got there, the girl had been reunited with her family.

James couldn't be happier to see the joyful cries of her parents and siblings as soon as they saw her. He felt a big weight fall from his shoulders.

The other hostages as well, Tony had miscalculated the number of fifty because there were about a hundred of them here, all erupted in cries and sobs of relief the moment they found out the Avengers were here to rescue them. To save them.

He felt someone punch his good arm. "Ow!" He rubbed the spot and glared at his sister who came up beside him. The medics treated his bullet wound now and was healing slowly. 

"That's for being a stupid ass and idiot this entire mission." She scolded, shooting him a look.

James's mouth fell open in disbelief. Like he was saying 'Seriously? After everything I did for you and for the team?' 

After a few seconds, her glare seemed to dissolve into a softer gaze. Her lips curved upwards and her eyes warmed up. "You made the right choice, you know." She nodded towards the direction of the girl he saved. "She owes you her life."

He shook his head. "She doesn't owe me anything." He glanced at her. "I saved your life and you certainly don't owe me anything."

She arched a brow. "Don't I?"

James smiled in amusement, shrugging innocently. "Probably an entire week of washing the dishes once we get back home would ought to do it."

Allie scoffed, rolling her eyes. "Jerk."

"I'm glad all of this is done." He said, watching as the hostages started to dance when the soft sound of music filled their ears. Someone was probably turning up the radio. "I can't believe how much these people suffered."

She sighed, deeply. "Guess mom and dad's jobs are harder than we've thought, right? It's not just about saving people it's... everything. Thinking about fighting, rescuing, and staying alive." She swallowed thickly, her eyes slightly watering. "Other than that, they've got us to think about. The fear of leaving us behind if they wouldn't make it..."

James stopped her, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. 

Allie glanced up at him, blinking the tears away. "James, they have to deal with that every time they go on missions. Can you imagine what that might feel like? They've sacrificed a lot for us."

His face fell at that too. He sucked in a heavy breath, after going on this mission, they were starting to know a lot more and understand more about their parents. About how it wasn't easy being an Avenger and being a mother and father at the same time.

"Now we know." He offered a short smile. "Now we know why they're trying so hard to protect us and keep us out of the field as much as they could. We get it now."

Allie sniffed, wiping the tears away and nodding. "Yes," She agreed, "I can't believe I was so stupid enough to get mad at them for thinking they were underestimating what I can do."

"Hey, it's not just you. I was more of the ass, right? I even..." James sighed, the guilt creeping back up to him. "I remembered getting mad, and talking back and... even yelling at dad." 

God, he was so stupid. To think that it was his impulsive side speaking again when he lashed out at his dad despite him being exhausted after coming home from a mission. He wouldn't allow him to go with his Uncle Tony for a simple mission in Siberia. Telling him that it was too dangerous for him and he was not ready to deal with actual missions.

And now, he finally understood why.

James sighed, not understanding why people even say he looked every bit as his dad. Sure, they meant physically. Genetically speaking, even. But acting and being close to his dad? He wasn't sure if he could live up to it.

His dad was way too much of a good man for him to reach. He could never be as good as him.

"I'm not like him." He suddenly blurted out, earning a confused look from his sister. His gaze focused on Steve, now talking with Sam while they helped out some of the hostages getting treated. "I can't live up to the kind of person he is."

Allie stared at him, puzzled. "No one's asking you to be like dad, James. Sure, you look like him but you don't exactly have to be him."

"I don't even know why people say they see dad in me." He muttered under his breath.

She looked at him in disbelief. "You kidding me? How about that stubbornness and heroic escapade you played earlier? That's very much like dad, James. Very Steve Rogers. No wonder mom's always getting riled up at him."

His shoulders sagged. Refusal still evident on his face. "I don't know, Als. You know how I am, right? How am I at school? During trainings?"

Allie knew exactly what he was referring to. Sure, James Rogers was a little bit wilder and outgoing than their Steve Rogers. While they knew their dad to be shy, awkward, and old-fashioned, James was nothing of those. He liked going to parties, liked staying out late and sometimes, even got to land a date with one of the girls.

But, never, would she consider her brother to be a player and an egotistical jerk as much as their Uncle Tony. Okay, that sounded bad, but hey, being Tony Stark was the worst that could happen right?

Despite being a flirt, James was a gentleman. He would never lead girls on. And even though he'd go out to parties, drink a couple of shots, he knew better than to disobey his parents and always follow his curfew time. Even though he was a lazy ass, he would never miss out a day in school. He never cut classes.

And he would never risk the people so important in his life to get hurt because of him.

"James, listen to me," She shifted on her feet so she could face him completely. "You took a bullet for me. You got in a collapsing house to save a girl without any hesitation even if you were practically bleeding your arm out. If that doesn't sound like what our dad would do, what Captain America would do? Then I don't know what else." 

When she still saw a trace of doubt in his face, she nudged him on the shoulder and gave a reassuring smile. "Trust me, if anyone's worthy enough to be called the son of Captain America, it's you, big brother."

Finally, he let out a smile, believing the sincerity in her words. "Thanks, Als."

She nodded in the opposite direction. "Come on, I'm saving dad the embarrassment of being called out of not knowing how to dance. The old man's gotta learn someday."

James laughed. "I don't know if dad's going to let you drag him to the middle of the floor and teach him how to."

"We won't know if we won't try. Besides, I saw him watching the other pairs with that distant look on his face. I'd rather teach him than let Aunt Sharon get the chance to." She rolled her eyes.

"Well, I always catch mom looking at dad every now and then." He voiced out, his eyes fleeting over to Natasha. As what he said, she was glancing at the couples dancing on the floor and then back at Steve's form.

Allie groaned in disapproval. "They're both the reasons why their relationship isn't going anywhere. Both are too stubborn to give in."

"Maybe it has something to do with the fact that they're committed to someone?" He reminded, slight sarcasm dripping from his tone.

She shrugged. "Sometimes, you've got to listen to your heart than your brain too. Now, be a good son and go ask mom a dance."

The eyebrows shot off from his face. "And why the hell would I do that? That's weird!"

"No, it's not. Come on, I'm teaching dad to dance and you keep her distracted so she won't feel out of place." She grabbed his wrist and started tugging him with her.

James tried to pry her grip off but she wasn't budging. "The last time you came up with a matchmaker plan, it completely backfired on us."

"It's a completely harmless dance! Don't chicken out now! You've danced with plenty of girls before!"

"Yeah, but certainly not with my mother."

"Would you just do it, please?"

He grumbled, feeling defeated over her harsh stare. "Fine," he grunted, trudging his way over to his mom. Taking a deep breath, he mustered up all the strength he had left and tried to act normal. Putting up a smile, he stopped in front of her. 

She was sitting on the floor, cross-legged. "Agent Romanoff," he greeted.

Her green eyes looked up at him, puzzlement filling her features. "Oh, hi, James. You need something?"

"I—well..." He glanced helplessly at his side where he saw Allie watching the whole scene unfold. She gave him a thumbs up and a smirk. James tried not to glare at her. He turned back to his mom. "I was wondering if you're up for a dance?"

Surprise struck her. Well, why wouldn't it? They barely even talked and know each other that well in her point of view, so if anything, he might have sounded off as a creep.

The awkwardness was rising up to a level when she just stared at him, not saying a word. He had to let out an uncomfortable chuckle. "It's fine if you don't want to. I just thought... well... you could uh... to clear our heads a bit?"

Natasha considered for a moment, then the faintest smile danced on her lips. "All right," she said, raising an eyebrow, "You aren't going to offer me a hand, though?"

Oh. His hand quickly shot up, his palm opened for her to take. "Sorry," he smiled sheepishly.

She laughed softly, taking his hand. "It's fine."

James knew it was weird, but the familiar touch of your mother's hand would always be there. No matter where or when you end up with, he would always recognize her.

And possibly, even for the slightest second, she must've felt it too. He felt her stiffen as soon as their hands touched. Her eyebrows furrowed, glancing down at their joined hands.

He tried hard not to look so bothered. "You alright, Agent Romanoff?"

"Yes, I'm fine... I just..." She shook her head, shrugging it off. "Nothing. Never mind."

As crazy as this may sound, James had just then realized that this was the first time he'd ever danced with his mom. He always thought that dancing like this, as a pair, was always meant for his dates. Girlfriends. Right partners.

But apparently, not all the time.

James smiled in content.

For now, he'd settle with his mom being his best girl.

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I'm sorry if there are no romanogers moments yet!

I kind of wanted to focus on James and Allie for a moment. How the realization sunk in on them that their parents' jobs aren't as simple and easy as they had expected it to be.

The next chapter will be a turning point for Steve and Natasha, though.

So, please keep in touch for the next chapter! :) Leave comments below! Thank you!