Beginnings

Happy New Year

Natasha wouldn't have cared if Clint and Phil had a fight, if it didn't affect her. Since Clint found out Phil was Santa, things weren't so great between them. And somehow, Natasha was in the middle.

"Natasha, tell Phil I am still mad on him." Clint said while he ate his sandwich.

She rolled her eyes and turned her head to the left. "Clint says that he still is mad on you."

"Tell him that I'm sorry. I didn't want to hurt him.It was the opposite! "

Natasha sigh. "Phil said that—"

"Tell Phil that for two years I was ridiculed by every agent because i believed in a lie! Two years! People were laughing at me!"

"I did it because I wanted you to have a little Christmas magic!"

Natasha couldn't take it anymore. She took her trey with food, dumped it in the bin and walked towards her room. The whole situation was annoying to her. Since Christmas, Phil was nicer to her. Obviously,that was because he wanted to be back on Clint's good side.

A knock at the door interrupted her reading.

"May I come in?"

Phil.

Natasha closed the book with a little to much force. She wanted to threw it in Phil's face, but she knew the director wouldn't be happy if she did. Especially because Phil was his right hand.

"Yes, come in.."Natasha rolled her eyes.

Phil came inside, wearing a smile on his face. Did him and Clint become friends again?

" So....You know about the party on New Year's Eve. "

" Yes, sir. Agent Barton informed me that is normal to have a party to celebrate that years pass."

"Good. I think you don't have an appropriate outfit for the occasion. I thought I could go with you to choose a dress." he took a keycard form his suit. "We can go to the Costume Department."

Like that, Phil dragged her to the Costume Department.How did she got in the middle of it? It was like she was cursed. She and Barton were cursed to end up in trouble.

She chose a comfortable red and black ombre dress which was knee length.

" Sir—"

"Call me Colson, agent Romanoff."

"The dress was a distraction to get away from agent Barton, wasn't it?"

"No. I wanted you to not feel different from the other agents.It would have be awful if everyone there will wear something elegant and you will wear SHIELD T-shirt and pants. Total disaster."

Natasha was surprised to see that he, most probably, wasn't lying. But he wasn't telling the whole truth either.

" And? "

" What and? "

" That's not the whole truth. "

" You really are good. "

Natasha raised an eyebrow." You had doubts? "

Phil laughed. Why was he laughing?

"God, Romanoff! You are something. Yes, I was avoiding Clint. It got worse since lunch. We fought. I got soup on my favourite shirt....I want to be back on the same page.Could you talk with him? "

Natasha smiled proudly that she figured out. "So that's what you wanted all along!"

"What?"

"Stop acting dumb. This is why you have been so nice with me since Christmas . I'm going to talk with Clint." she walked satisfied.