Natasha shows up at Steve's door to find him listening to old records. Or just records to him, she supposes.

"I thought you were gone," he says, moving aside so she can come in.

"Not yet," she says, "I wanted to see you first."

"Oh?" he says as he picks up his beer from the coffee table and gets another one out of the refrigerator for her.

"Yeah," she says, perching on the arm of his couch rather than on the couch like a normal person. That's her though, he thinks. Always ready to move. "I've been wanting to ask you something, and since we might not see each other for a while…"

"Okay." He sits down, takes a swig of beer, and looks up at her. She drinks half her beer and sets it down.

"You're not still bugged, are you?" He laughs.

"No! Well, ninety-nine percent. Fury told me where they were so…" She nods, and takes a long sip of her beer.

"Steve, are you a virgin?" He reaches for his beer and almost knocks it off the table.

"Wow point blank, huh? Are you serious?" he says, and damn it he can feel his cheeks burning. He picks up his beer to occupy his hands. Seventy years and he still can't deal with women.

"Oh you really are," she says. She's a bit stymied by his reaction, but she presses on. "Because I just thought—you know, as friends—we might…" If possible the red in Steve's face increases.

"Wait. You're not really-?" Steve stands and looks at her. "Natasha, I don't know if you've noticed this about me but I'm sort of old-fashioned. Just because you feel sorry for me, that's not a good reason to come over here and offer me pity sex. It's not that important. It'll happen when I meet the right person." She smiles because it sounds like an excuse that he's practiced. She starts to respond, but he cuts her off, "And yeah, I know. I'm old. I think you should go."

"You're wrong, Steve," she says, standing to apologize (which isn't as impressive as she's about half a foot shorter). "First of all, it's not because I feel sorry for you. Second of all, sex isn't a big deal these days. It can be something that two good friends do together." He shakes his head.

"Really? I thought you were trying to be better than this," Natasha realizes with a pang that he's read all about her. Just like everyone else. There's a much older person behind his gaze and she suddenly understands why men look at him the way that they do. It's because he is a much older person and he's the sort of person whose respect you want to earn. She feels very small all of the sudden. She puts a hand on his arm and leans up to kiss him on the cheek like she did at Fury's grave. This time however, Steve turns into the kiss and she finds herself kissing his lips for the second time.

"Steve?" she pulls back and looks at him. Her hands are still on his chest, and she drops them.

"I was just wondering how serious you were," he says and touches the side of her neck. She thinks she can feel the strength in his limbs just from that touch, and she wonders if she's ever been this unsure of herself with a man before.

"Nat," he prods, "Why are you really here?"

"Maybe I wasn't ready leave you yet," she says and leans in again. He stops her.

"Natasha, what about Barton? Aren't you and he together? I thought—"

"He's my best friend," she says simply. He touches the delicate arrow necklace she wears and notices the clasp has slid to the front. He holds the arrow pendant and moves the clasp around so it rests against the back of her neck. He says, "Okay."

"Listen," he starts, "I would be lying if I said that I didn't want to do this with you," and he feels his face reddening again, "But Natasha, like this? Just some meaningless sex before you leave for who-knows-how-long?"

"It's not meaningless! That's what I keep trying to tell you. Steve, you and I went through things together that few people do. To be honest, I don't trust very many people with my life. I trust you. I care about you. A lot. Maybe not as a boyfriend or whatever (and trust me, I don't really think of anyone that way) but my really good friend that I'm also sexually attracted to?" She lays out all the cards and grins at him. He laughs.

"I'm running out of arguments here," he says. But I didn't really want her to let me talk her out of it anyway, Steve thinks, I just didn't want to take advantage of my friend. Natasha smiles and takes off her jacket. He watches her pull her boots off and rubs the back of his neck. She watches him as she pulls off her tank top and he tells his face to calm the hell down. Bashful or not, this is happening.

Natasha unzips her jeans and Steve is surprised that her underwear is plain cotton. He thought women like her either didn't wear any or if they did it'd involve more lace. Then he remembers that he doesn't know what kind of woman she is. He trusts her though, as a soldier and as a friend. He knows what her lips feel like; what she smells like.

"You're thinking too hard, Rogers," she says, giving him that close-mouthed crooked smile. He opens his mouth to reply and closes it again. "Relax!" she says with a laugh, and throws her bra at his head.

"Oh…" He finds it in him to laugh a little as she comes over to him. He's kissing her again before he can even fathom the idea of her bare chest. He settles his hands into the dip of her waist, then decides to be brave and he reaches up and cups her breasts. She throws her arms around his neck to encourage him.

"Have you got a bed around here somewhere?" she says against his ear. He replies by picking her up and carrying her back to his bedroom. Natasha laughs a little when she sees it's a regular old bedroom.

"What?" he says, dropping her on his bed. She stretches out on her belly and immediately manages to look at home. She watches him pull off his shoes and socks and says, "Well, I was half-expecting a one man barracks. It's kind of nice to see this."

"Yeah well, I'm not always a soldier," he says and pulls his shirt off. He kneels in front of her and touches her shoulder. "Still hurt?" he asks, trying not to think about Bucky.

"No it's not so bad," she says and grabs his face. She pulls him to her and kisses him. He rolls her onto her back and he feels her legs go around his waist. He pulls back, breathless, when she tugs on his belt. Suddenly he's nervous again and he wants to stall. Before she can ask him what's wrong he kisses her, kisses beneath her jaw, kisses her neck, and kisses her collarbone. She lets out the smallest of appreciative sighs and he closes his lips on one of her nipples with a rush of pride. He knows he's doing it right when her fingers appear in his hair; running through it, then tugging a little. He swaps his lips for his hands and plants kisses down her stomach. He makes sure to leave one on the reason she says she no longer wears bikinis, and he swears she's smirking at him as he does it.

She sighs his name as he hooks his fingers into the waistband of her panties. He looks up at her, appreciates the angle, kisses one thigh, then the other, and tugs them off.

Now he's not going on much here. Some possibly outdated advice that Bucky once gave him (that he was really wishing he'd paid more attention to now) and some brief internet porn searches, but again he decides to be brave. He slips one finger into her, and follows it with his tongue. She moans and clutches at his hair again. He feels her clitoris under his tongue and he licks circles around it as he massages her with his fingers. He glances up at her once and she's totally gone. Her eyes are closed and she's running her hands over her chest in time with his fingers. She's biting her lip and moaning so loud he half-hopes that the old lady down the hall can hear it. The one who always looks at him sadly when he says that no, he still doesn't have a girlfriend. He relaxes. He's doing alright.

The muscles in Nat's stomach are shaking and he has just enough time to think, well that was fast, before her thighs tighten around his head and he feels her clench on his fingers. She's breathing hard. When she gets her breath back, she says, "Where did you learn how to do that?" Steve smiles, kisses the inside of her thigh, and merely says, "Internet." She laughs, and he kisses her swollen lips.

He feels her fingers around his cock and doesn't recall his belt coming off. She slides his pants down with her feet and then they're both naked. He tugs one of her knees up and gasps as she squeezes him gently.

"Sorry, Cap. I need a minute." She slides her fist up and down a few times and he buries his face against her neck without intending to. He kisses her beneath her jaw, along her shoulder, and she laughs breathily next to his ear.

"Alright," she says and brings her legs up around his waist again. He moans against her mouth as she guides him into her. Wow. He figures out the rhythm pretty quickly. He thrusts as Natasha digs her fingers into his biceps. She moans encouragement and he holds out as long as he can. Sooner than he'd like, he's coming and Natasha covers his face with kisses. He pulls out and finds her clit again with his thumb. He wants to see her come again without her legs wrapped around his head. Eyes open this time, she moans his name, and after another minute, she comes beautifully undone.

Natasha shifts so she's lying next to Steve. "Wow," she pants. He laughs.

"Not too shabby," he says, which earns him a punch on the arm.

"I meant me!" he protests, and they both dissolve in laughter.