pt 42- something is different about you...

                                    

                                          
There are patches of light in my room as the sun shines through the curtains. I slowly open my eyes to the brightness. As I stretch the sheets pull against my skin as my legs are tangled in them. A pair of strong, familiar arms tightens around my waist, bringing them closer to the warm torso of whom they belong. I smile to myself as the memory of last night fills my head. The kisses, the passion, the love that was shared between the two of us. I roll over to face him, his eyes still closed with sleep. I trace along the lines of his face with my finger and he gently opens his eyes. As our gaze connects he smiles at me and pulls me even closer, holding me tight in his grip.
                          
"Good morning beautiful," he says quietly, in a gravely morning voice. I smile and take a deep sigh before replying.
                          
"Morning baby," I lean in and tilt my head so our foreheads touch. We stay there for a second before he puts a finger under my chin, raising it until our lips touch in a soft kiss. I wiggle my arms around him so we are both holding each other. I am almost asleep again when he lifts me on top of him. I give a surprised giggle as he does, which makes him chuckles. I think about saying something, but keep my mouth closed, and instead we just look at each other.
                          
It feels like an eternity has passed when the silence is broken by his groggy voice.
                          
"So last night..." he doesn't finish his sentence. I take a second to think about how I want to respond and then finish it for him.
                          
"Was amazing." I say simply, not wanting to over complicate things. He smiles at me and closes his eyes.
                          
"Yes, it was. But I want you to know that it wasn't just about...that. It was about you." His response somewhat surprises me. I don't know what I was expecting him to say, but it wasn't that. I smile back and reply.
                          
"It wasn't about...that for me either. I wanted it to be you." I look him directly in the eye so he knows I mean it. He wraps his arms around me and puckers his lips in a cheesy way. I roll my eyes before I lower my lips onto his. When we separate he looks at me and lets out a small laugh.
                          
"What?" I ask confused.
                          
"Your hair. It looks like you were struck by lightning." He says as he gently pulls at one of the strands, which is sticking straight out from my head. My eyes widen as my hand finds its way into my mane and he's right. Just by touching it I know that it's going to be impossible to run a brush through it. I stand up and throw on my t-shirt from last night before I go into my bathroom. After looking in the mirror I know that there is no hope. I let out a sigh and turn to see Peter standing in the bathroom doorway in his boxers.
                          
"This is a disaster. I'm not even going to attempt to fix it without showering first." I say and then turn on the shower, giving it time to warm up. 
                          
"Yeah, probably a good idea," he agrees. "I'll let you do that while I go get changed. I'll meet you downstairs, everyone else is probably already up." He leaves and shuts the door. I hop in and let the warm water run all over my body. I take my time washing my hair as I try to work all the knots loose with my fingers. Once I finish I decide that braids is going to be the best option. I carefully work a comb through my hair and quickly do two dutch braids going down my back. I put on a pair of sweats and an over-sized t-shirt, one of the countless I've stolen from my dad and Steve over the years. 
                          
I make my way downstairs and see Peter sitting at the island next to Nat and Steve. They're talking so I quietly grab a banana and sit next to Peter as I start eating it. Steve and I exchange a glace as I sit, but Nat looks at me a little longer than she probably should. In the middle of Steve and Peter's conversation she interrupts. "Something is different about you..." she lingers on her last word, almost like she's trying to figure it out while she speaks. I give her a shrug brushing off her statement since there really isn't anything different about me. She looks away after my shrug but her gaze slowly lands back on me throughout breakfast. 
                          
"All right, I'm gonna go hit the training room for about an hour." Steve announces as he stands up from his stool. 
                          
"Oh, mind if I join you?" Peter asks. I give him a look as Steve nods.
                          
"Wait, why are you going? We don't have to do anything till tomorrow." I say.
                          
"Well it's been a few days since I did anything and I don't want to be dying tomorrow when Mr. Stark tries to kill us all in training." he says as he cleans up his breakfast. He gives me a peck on the forehead and them catches up with Steve as they go down to the training facility. I throw away my banana peel and go sit in the living room, Nat's eyes on me the whole time. She gets up and follows me to the living room and sits at the other end of the couch, still looking at me. I try to ignore her but after 5 minutes of her still looking at me it's getting annoying.
                          
"Can I help you?" I say, quite annoyed at this point. 
                          
"Yes, what is different about you? And don't tell me there's nothing different because something is and I can't figure it out and it's driving me nuts," she gushes. I look at her wide-eyed because Holy. Crap. What is wrong with her?
                          
"Uh..." I'm stumbling, trying to think of anything noticeably different about me today. "I mean, my hair is braided but I do that all the time. Um, I haven't worn this shirt in a while. Oh, is it that you noticed I lost the last 3 pounds? If it is, I guess I should say "Finally!" because that happened like two days before my party." I rattle off a bunch of other stuff but she just keeps shaking her head. "Well if it's not any of those then I have no idea what you could be seeing," I say giving up on trying to help her. She looks dumbfounded but I just ignore as I pick up my phone and start scrolling on Instagram. After 10 minutes of silence she asks, "Did something happen between you and Peter?", and I don't know what to say.