Summary: If Natasha knew Sam was planning on asking Maria to move in with him, she would have killed him in his sleep. It's too late now, though, so she's stuck helping her best friend move out of their shared room and no, she was not crying last night no matter what Maria says.

Natasha hated this. The boxes stacked up on Maria's bare bed and the empty half of the closet that used to be hers were horrible to look at. She'd made sure Maria knew she was upset about her decision, but she also made sure she wasn't making Maria feel too bad about it. While she absolutely loved rooming with her, she didn't want Maria to regret taking the next step in her relationship with Sam (even if she did give the latter an earful).

"That's everything," Maria sighed, closing up the last box and turning to look at Natasha. She'd been packing for the past three days, but now she had everything packed up and labeled. "You know you can visit, right? Like, every day. Cause if you don't, I'm going to kidnap Steve and make you come over."

"I'm going to visit, trust me," Natasha said, glaring at the box closest to her. "Getting me to stop visiting is going to be your problem."

"I doubt I'll really kick you out," Maria told her with a small smile.

Natasha rolled her eyes.

"You will when you and Sam want to have sex but I'm still watching raunchy rom-coms on your bed and getting popcorn everywhere," Natasha told her.

Now Maria rolled her eyes.

"How about we play it by ear?" she suggested.

Natasha shrugged and slipped off her bed, grabbing a box and resisting the urge to hold it ransom. A quick investigation revealed that there was nothing important in the box and holding it up for ransom would just be stupid.

Maria picked up a box as well and both girls walked through the bedroom door. As they passed through the living room, Steve and Sam stopped their conversation to go grab some boxes of their own. Natasha managed to trick Clint into carrying a box, passing hers to him with the excuse that she needed to tie her shoe. It wasn't until Clint noticed she was barefoot that he realised he'd been tricked and followed Maria downstairs to Sam's car.

With five people carrying boxes to Sam's car, it didn't take long for them to move everything. In fact, only the boys took two trips while Natasha and Maria played Tetris with the boxes and made them all fit in Sam's car. When the last box had been brought down and Maria was climbing into Sam's car, Natasha frowned.

"Hey, it'll be okay," Maria said softly, hugging Natasha tightly. The second she'd realised Natasha was upset again, she'd jumped away from the car and thrown herself at her friend.

"I'm coming over tomorrow, just so you know," Natasha said, her voice muffled by Maria's shoulder.

"There'll be tea on the stove," Maria replied. They stood in silence for a few seconds before Maria slowly pulled away. "Keep the boys in line, yeah?"

"What else am I gonna do with all my free time?" Natasha laughed, wiping at her eyes before her tears could trickle down.

Maria bit her lip and hugged Natasha again.

"I'm not crying," she grumbled.

Maria laughed.

"No, there's something in your eye," she replied. Natasha nodded and they both laughed. "I really do have to go now."

"Fine," Natasha relented, stepping back so Maria could finally get in the car. "Good luck."

"You'll need it more than me," Maria teased, slipping into Sam's car.

Sam started the engine and Maria waved at Natasha as they drove away. Natasha grinned, watching the car until it had disappeared. After they had turned the corner, her shoulders dropped and she turned toward Steve.

"You should have moved in with him," she whined.

Steve just laughed and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. He kissed her head and led her into the apartment complex.

"Please, it will feel like I have to by next week with how often you'll be over there," he teased, receiving an elbow to the ribs.

"You're an ass," she muttered. Steve grinned widely and stepped onto the elevator.

"But you love me."

"Actually, the jury's out right now. I could swing either way."