8 months later

There was no hiding it now. With her belly hindering her from doing anything with ease, Holly depended too much on Annie and Clint. Director Fury had to force her to take time off during the final weeks of her pregnancy after Clint was unsuccessful in convincing her to do so and, even at home, she continued to work while balancing a bowl of popcorn on her bump.

Clint was falling asleep on the couch beside the desk in his apartment after pouting at her for half an hour when she refused to take a break. His eyes drooped and his head dropped from the heel of his palm, the sudden loss of support on his head shocked him awake, and he sat upright. With a yawn, he looks over to find Holly munching on her popcorn, but her attention was now on him. Seeing her laugh, even if it was at him, delighted Clint; he breathed a relieved sigh at the sound of her giggle and found it incomparable to the sound of her requesting him to rub her swollen feet.

"Can I have some yet?" He reached out for the bowl and Holly spun her chair just out of reach before lifting it up to show him.

"What popcorn?" Sure enough, the bowl was empty and the remaining handful she had soon disappeared into her mouth. Clint stretched and yawned before helping her to her feet. "What's for dinner?" He looks at her out of the corner of his eyes.

"You just ate an entire bowl of popcorn." She shrugs, hanging on his arm.

"Yeah, but I keep getting pains around here," she rubs the lower half of her bump and gently pats it, "baby's gotta eat too-" She grunts and stops in her steps, doubling over as well as she can. "Baby's getting restless."

"Is that even a thing?" Her grip on his arm tightens, her nails digging into his skin as she grits her teeth. With her sudden change and the droplets of blood on his bicep, Clint's smile drops, and he holds Holly. "Honey, what is it?" She groans, leaning her head against his chest.

"Call the midwife," she begins to take steady breaths and attempts to head back to the sofa.

"What..." Holly glares at Clint, he digs his mobile from his pocket and follows her eyes to the puddle on the ground. Of course, he hadn't heard her water break, of course. With Holly clinging onto one hand while she lay on the couch, Clint was listening to the midwife. "Yeah, her water broke. Yes, she thought they were hunger pains... call the hospital? Okay." He hung up and then proceeded to call the hospital. As he waited, he watched Holly and rested their intertwined hands atop her bump. When she made eye contact with him, he could only smile. "Yeah, my uh, my fiance's gone into labour." He winks at her wide eyes as he gives their address and calls the midwife back.

"That is not how you're proposing to me, Barton."