Spending your birthday in the middle of the escalating events the Avengers had to go through didn't feel necessary - but they, and especially Natasha assured you that spending a little bit of the party in the middle of it all would only make people happy. So there you all sat, in an expensive restaurant, eating tons of food. Tony was paying for your birthday, others made the entertainment.

Natasha had taken you under her wing since day one, and she had seen you grow stronger, become better, be more confident with fighting. She was like a big sister to you, and you always playfully teased each other when you were on a scouting mission together. You had learned most of your fighting skills from Natasha, she had taught you how to move, when to dodge and when to attack. Moving was an essential part of fighting, and as much as the Black Widow had been taught to not get attached to anyone - you were the first one she got attached to. You just had an aura of some kind which just made her trust you, care about you. Other Avengers had been a bit puzzled to see Natasha being so gentle with you, sitting with you on the sofa at the Avengers tower and laughing as you chatted. When Tony had first met Natasha, she had been a bit cold and talking mainly about business, but with you she had started to bloom like never before. She just bonded with you incredibly quickly.

Bonding with you and becoming so close wasn't easy though, she hadn't really gotten used to being so close to anyone, to care about someone so much she would have considered them as her actual family. So she was always worried about your safety, and only during the past year she had learned to completely trust that you know how to take care of yourself. You had grown up, you had become skillful enough to go on your own missions, you didn't need help. You asked for it if you wanted, but she had learned to let you go on some smaller missions alone without fearing something goes wrong. She knew that if something did go wrong, you'd get away from there, be back with a few bruises at most, or maybe a small wound. And now when Natasha looked at you, she was proud. She was proud of the person you had grown into. You had saved so many lives with the other Avengers, and you would save many more. And when you turned to look at her and thanked her for her present to you, she snapped out of her thoughts and after a second she smiled at you and tilted her head to the side.

"You're welcome."