A/N: This special bonus chapter is written from Sam's POV, as requested by gusbus275 ! As suggested, it will take place earlier in the story: after the "fake-out" at the bar when Natasha is recovering in the hospital. Some of the dialogue from the original chapter will be the same but other interactions will happen.  This chapter will begin to develop Sam and Emery's character relationship.

Next up, bonus chapter as requested by Avengers_Captain !

I hope you enjoy! And thanks again gusbus275 for the recommendation!

~Han

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Natasha had been in the hospital for two days already and Steve was going out of his mind. I tried to distract him by going on runs with him, but his heart wasn't in it. At all.

After I had returned from my run on the second day—Steve had bailed last minute, saying he wanted to stay at the compound—I found Steve in the kitchen.

"Hey, man. Have you heard anything about Nat?" I asked, grabbing some water from the fridge.

Steve nodded. "Yeah. Emery just called and said she's ready for visitors. I didn't want to announce it to the whole compound just to give her some time to adjust."

"You mind if I come with you?" I asked.

"Let's go."

Twenty minutes later, we arrived at the hospital, went through security clearance, and met someone who I assumed was Emery in the lobby.

"How is she?" Steve asked.

"She's tired, which is to be expected," Emery said. She turned to me. "I don't believe we've met. I'm Emery, I was at the bar when Nat got hurt." She paused, seeing my confused expression then continued. "I'm also an agent."

"Ohhh. That makes sense." I stuck out my hand. "Nice to meet you. I'm Sam."

Emery smiled. "I know."

"Can we see her?" Steve asked impatiently. After what I had witnessed with him over the past two days, I expected nothing less.

"Yes, of course. Third floor, room 318. I'll be up in a minute," Emery told him.

"I'll catch up with you, Steve," I said.

He nodded and headed toward the elevator.

"So, Emery, you're an agent," I said, directing my attention to her. She wore the same black ensemble I'd seen Natasha wear many times.

"Yes. Here I go by Agent 31, but you can just call me Emery."

I nodded. "How is Nat doing?"

Emery sighed. "She's ok. The weapon that Alexei—I don't know how much of the story you know but he's someone from her past—used on her at the bar is very dangerous. The doctors were able to extract the tracking device the weapon implants into its target, and we have SHIELD agents who are examining the properties of it as we speak."

"This tracking device...how much do we know about it so far?"

"Not much. I'm digging up as much as I can on Alexei because that is most important. We know Natasha has a past connection to him and she's not ready to talk about it yet."

"Understandable. Is there anything I can help with?"

"Actually, yeah. Let's talk in my office." She led me through the hospital to a connecting area that was filled with offices. She scanned into the elevator.

Welcome, Agent 31. Visitor blocked from access.

"Override, Agent 31."

Override granted.

"That's a pretty high tech system," I commented.

Emery laughed. "Don't you have something similar at the compound?"

"Yeah, but it's never denied me access."

"Well, this place is more secure than the compound. C'mon, let's get you a visitor badge." She talked to a security guard at a desk who typed something into their computer before handing me a temporary badge.

"Emery, I have to ask. Is Natasha in danger?"

Emery sighed. "We don't know. She needs a security detail while she's here and we have our best agents on it. But when she's released from custody here? I don't know. She's gonna be in a lot of pain, and I don't just mean from the injury."

"What do you mean?"

"Just...the way she reacted to Alexei. My guess is that he's some sort of ex from her past in Russia. But now that he's on the loose, I don't know how she's gonna react."

I nodded. "Knowing Nat she'll probably want to go after him."

"Right," she agreed. "Director Fury put me in charge of surveillance and tracking Alexei down since I had the most recent relationship with him."

"That's good at least. Oh—you said there was something I could help with."

Emery nodded, handing me a file. "Now, Natasha doesn't know this quite yet, but she's not going to be in the field for a while. The injuries she sustained at the bar...it's hard to predict anything right now. The only good news we have is that the tracker is out."

"I don't like the look of her ankle," I said, nodding to the photos in the file.

"Yeah." Emery grimaced. "She's gonna need physical therapy. And Director Fury wanted me to ask you if you'd be willing to take on the task."

"Yeah. I mean, if you think she'll agree."

"I think she'd rather have you than anyone we assign here."

I laughed. "That's true. How long do you think it'll be until she can go out in the field again?"

"It depends. But with rigorous therapy, maybe a month? Then she can work up to being out in the field. But a month to get started.

"Sounds good."

Emery checked her watch. "We should go see her."

I nodded. "Ok. Let me make a quick call first to Tony."

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

We made it up to Nat's room a few minutes later. Steve was sitting in a chair beside her bed. They both looked happy.

"Hey, Natasha. How are you feeling?" I asked.

"I'm doing ok. But it sounds like I'm gonna be out of commission for a while." She turned to Steve. "No more training for now. That's what the doctors have told me."

"I talked with Emery and she seems to think we could have you back to normal within a month," I said. "She wants me to work with you on physical therapy."

"A month without training is like a month without running for Steve," Natasha said, leaning back against her pillows. "But I guess it's better than nothing."

"You'll be back home in a few days. I've already talked with Tony and he's willing to take Emery on in the compound to stay with you. Of course, I'll be on the floor below if you need me and Steve will be there too," I said.

"About Tony—is he coming to the hospital today?" Natasha asked.

"I think he was on his way when I called," I said.

Natasha and Steve exchanged nervous glances.

"Sam, would you let Steve and I talk alone for a minute?" she asked.

I nodded. "I'll be in the hall. And I'll signal if Tony gets here."

"Try to stall him," Steve said.

"I will." Emery and I left them alone to talk.

"I hate to see them lose what they have," Emery said once we were in the hallway.

"What makes you think something is gonna change?" I had noticed the change in demeanor too, but I didn't think this would drive them apart.

Emery smiled sadly. "You're a guy, Sam, so I don't expect you to understand. But there was a sadness in Nat's eyes just now. She and Steve...well, I hope they make it. Their relationship is inspirational."

"I have a plan," I told her.

Em raised her eyebrows. "Don't tell me you're gonna 'Parent Trap' them if they do break up?"

I smirked. "Nah, nothing like that. I was just thinking that if Nat stays with Steve in his room, and our rooms connect...I'll be right there if she needs anything during the night. And Steve will be too."

"Well, hopefully this talk that they're having is a good talk." My eyes flickered to the door as it opened and Steve stepped into the hallway. His eyes were red.

Uh oh.

"Hey, man. What happened?"

"We broke up." His voice cracked. He took a shaky breath.

"I'm gonna go check on her," Emery said, nodding to me and placing a hand gently on Steve's shoulder.

"Steve, I'm so sorry."

"Let's just go. I need to clear my head." He started down the hallways without me.

"Cap, wait up!" I ran after him. "What exactly did she say?"

"She put us on hold because she didn't want me to get caught in the middle of all of this."

"Well, on hold is better than a full-on break up," I tried to reassure him.

He shook his head. "Sam, as much as I appreciate the optimism, I just can't lose her. I love her." Steve sat down on a bench and put his head in his hands.

"Give her some time. She'd never want to lose you, either."

Steve sat up and looked over at me. "Thanks, Sam. We're gonna reevaluate in a few weeks, but...I don't know. Why is it that everytime I fall in love I lose the girl?"

"You haven't lost her, Steve." I paused. "How would you feel—if she agrees, that is—to let her stay with you when she's released from the hospital?"

Steve brightened. "I would love that. But of course, she has to agree."

*    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *    *

Indeed, a few days later, Natasha called to tell me she was coming home and she wanted me to pick her up since Emery was out on surveillance.

"Please don't tell Steve," she begged.

"Why?" I asked. I thought he'd be the first person she'd want to know.

"I just...I can't. Not yet. I need this to happen on my own terms." She didn't have to explain—I knew what she meant.

"Ok, I promise I won't say anything. I'm heading over there now." I hung up the phone.

"Heading where?" Steve asked. I jumped, turning to see him standing in the doorway of my room.

"I, uh, gotta pick something up for Tony. It's a surprise for Pepper." I cringed at the excuse, hating that I had to lie to Steve.

He grunted. "Have you—nevermind. I should go." Steve walked away.

"Steve—" I called after him, grabbing my keys and closing the door to my room behind me.

"Sam, it's fine. Whatever you're up to...you don't have to tell me. I need to clear my head," he said.

My eyebrows knit together in worry. "Are you doing ok?"

Steve gave me a fake smile. "Yeah. Fine. Great. I'll see you later."

I headed to my car, punching in Emery's number on my phone and placing it on speaker. "Em, we might have to 'Parent Trap' the situation. Steve is miserable."

"Well, maybe he should be the one picking her up," Emery suggested.

"She made me promise I wouldn't tell him."

"Oh. Well, what did you have in mind?"

"Something simple. Have them run into each other occasionally around the compound. Make some subtle comments. Drop a few hints. Do anything it takes for them to realize that they are still crazy about each other."

There was silence on the other end. I clicked my turn signal to pull into the parking garage at the SHIELD headquarters hospital.

"We can't push them together too quickly, Sam," Emery finally said on the other end.

"I know. We need to give them time. But if we're subtle enough, it could work."

"I'll agree to it. For now. I can't promise Natasha won't figure us out."

"Ditto about Steve. So, are you ready to get the world's greatest couple back together?"

"Challenge accepted."

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A/N: remember, this was just a "flashback" scene reflecting earlier interactions that we didn't get to see from a new POV, so it reflects the lead-up to the six-week break that Nat and Steve took much earlier on in the book. I really enjoyed the challenge of writing from someone else's perspective (besides Nat and Steve) for a change, it was a lot of fun! I hope you enjoyed it! Again, the next part will be another bonus chapter so stay tuned :)

~Han