"I swear if one more grandma hits me with a purse I'm going to lose my shit."

Shopping was going... well interesting for lack of a better word. The mall was packed and Nat was becoming more and more frustrated by the minute as people bumped into you left and right. Going shopping for some maternity clothes had seemed like a good idea initially, but now you were both wishing you had stayed home and done all of your shopping online. Thankfully, you only had one more store left on your list.

"Alright, I'll take the one with the cane on the left, you take the one with the pearls on the right," you said, pointing to a pair of elderly woman walking in your direction.

"That's ridiculous, she could use the cane as a weapon, I'll take left and you take the right," Nat responded, and you couldn't help but laugh when you realized she was being serious.

"But the other one could use the pearls to choke me," you teased and she either hadn't noticed the humor in your tone or just didn't care because she pursed her lips nodding in thought, as if she was still plotting her way towards taking down the elderly and innocent women.

"We can't fight them Nat they are like 80 years old," you chuckled, torn between wanting to clarify that you weren't in fact about to start a fight with the older ladies and finding the whole situation amusing.

"Well we could, but I'll restrain myself," she muttered as you moved to the side so the grandmas could pass without hitting you. Nat glared at them but kept her promise, following you into the store.

"Good because I think Steve would kill me if I tried to start another fight after the whole shit show with Sharon," you admitted, strolling over to the nearest rack of clothes.

It felt nice to just hang out with another girl. Time had flown by so quickly since the fiasco with James and Amanda that you hadn't realized how long it had been since you had done something so normal. Not that you were really complaining, you felt so incredibly grateful for having found the most amazing man in Steve, and the sweetest new best friend in Peter. But still, there were some things in life that only another woman would really understand and it wasn't until you spent time with Nat on your own that you realized how much you had missed that.

"So, Sharon was that bad, huh? What did she actually say?" Nat asked, holding up a black sweater over your frame, frowning slightly and placing it back on the rack before continuing. "I tried to get it out of Sam because I know Steve told him but he wouldn't tell me."

You opened your mouth to answer honestly but stopped yourself, remembering what Sharon had said. Nat was great, she really was, but you weren't sure you were ready to share all your insecurities with her just yet. You really wanted Steve's friends to like you. Despite Nat having insisted earlier today that Tony didn't have a problem with you, it was hard not to feel otherwise based on the interactions you've had with him. He had never really been directly rude to you, but that didn't explain the weird looks he would give you or all the strange secret meetings with Steve. Regardless, if what Sharon had said about Steve's friends all thinking you were lying about the baby was true, talking about it would be incredibly awkward. If Sharon had just made it all up, bringing it up would just cause unnecessary drama. Besides, Steve had promised you that he trusted you and that he didn't need any proof and you believed him. There was no need to involve any more people in the situation and make it any more complicated than it already was.

"It doesn't really matter anymore, she just knew how to push all of my buttons. I'm not normally a violent person, but I swear if Steve hadn't stopped me..." you trailed off, recalling how close you had been to Sharon before you had quite literally been swept off your feet by the handsome man you now called your boyfriend.

Thankfully, Nat didn't pry any further, seeming to have understood that you didn't want to go into detail about the ugly events that had transpired. You made yourself busy, moving to the next rack of clothes, pulling out a few pairs of pants you thought would do the trick for everyday wear. You didn't feel the need to buy too many new things since once you were done with school you would be spending the rest of your pregnancy relaxing at the tower. With these few items and the clothes Nat had already picked out for you, you figured all you needed was a few cozy sweatpants and some oversized t-shirts and you would be good to go.

"Sharon is a highly trained government agent. You wouldn't have stood a chance," Nat commented as she followed you around the store.

She was holding a few bags from purchases she had convinced you to make at other stores. The entire day she had been shoving clothes in your arms before you even had a chance to look at them and you had long since decided to just go with whatever she picked. Clothes and fashion weren't really your thing anyway, as long as they were cozy and comfortable you'd be fine.

"I thought you were on my side," you teased, the pile of clothes in your arms steadily growing.

Raising an eyebrow, you watched bemused as Nat tossed some red lace lingerie on the pile in your arms. You gave her a look as if to say 'really?' and tossed it back at her. When you felt your phone buzzing in your pocket, you put the pile of clothes on the nearest clothing rack to see who was calling.

"I am honey but my money is still on the she-monster," Nat said walking over to where you had laid the clothes down and scooping them up into her arms so that they wouldn't get wrinkled.

You shot her a quick, soft smile of gratitude for her help, before turning back to your cell. "Traitor," you mumbled in response to her joke about the blonde woman that seemed to keep popping up in all your conversations. You were about to make some comment about how you were stronger than you looked but you trailed off, quickly becoming distracted by the name flashing on your phone screen.

Mom.

She had been trying to contact you for a few weeks now but you had been dodging her at every chance. You still hadn't told her about the pregnancy or the fact that you were now living with and dating the father of your baby. It's not that you didn't want to tell her it was just that your relationship with your mom had always been strenuous to say the least. Biting your lip nervously, your eyes stayed glued to the screen.

You thought a mother should always support their daughter, but you couldn't help but feel that you had disappointed her at every turn. Whenever you had messed up or were struggling with something, she wasn't concerned for you but was constantly focused on how whatever you had done this time affected her. Like when your prom date stood you up, she wasn't worried about how you must be feeling, but was busy wondering what her friends would think when her only daughter didn't show up to the dance. Or how she had told you she stayed married to your dad for your own sake when in reality she just didn't want to have a failed marriage on her hands. You were simultaneously the biggest cause and biggest scapegoat of all her problems.

You knew your mom loved you, and of course you loved her, but you didn't want to make your future baby ever feel the way that your mom made you feel. One day soon you would have to face the music and tell her the truth, but you weren't ready to see the look on her face when she realized her only daughter was having a baby with a one night stand, turned boyfriend.

"Don't pay any attention to Sharon (Y/N), she's just jealous. I don't know what you're doing to Rogers behind those closed doors, but I don't think I've seen him smile this much since he beat Tony at Monopoly for the first time."

Nat's voice pulled you out of your thoughts. You sent your mom to voicemail, looking up at Nat to see a concerned expression on her face. Realizing she must have mistaken your expression as concern about what had happened with Sharon you quickly regained your composure.

"Yea yea.. I still think I could take her. I have a theory that having this baby has given me superpowers," you laughed, sliding the phone back into your pocket. Grabbing your clothes back from her, you tilted your head towards the cash register, signaling you were ready to checkout. She smiled back at you, all concerns fading to the background.

"Now that's a fight I would pay to see."

Two cinnamon and sugar pretzels and a 30 minute car ride later, you found yourself back at the tower. When you walked out of the elevator, heading into the familiar living room, you hugged Nat, thanking her again for taking you shopping. The two of you had made plans to go get your nails done the following week after she insisted you needed to take time for yourself. You had quickly agreed, as between your classes and getting ready for the baby you barely ever had a minute to breathe. Waving goodbye at Nat as she headed for the doors to the lab, you smiled happily. You could see why Steve liked her so much, she really was great and you figured all the men she worked with could really use a presence like her in the group. She truly was a badass, a fighter, and a fierce friend all wrapped into one.

"What the hell??"

You turned towards the sound of the voice, startled by the loud noise as you thought you were now alone.

"Oh, hey Peter, you scared me," you said, smiling at your best friend and heading towards the hallway that led to your room so you could unpack all your new clothes. Peter trailed after you looking like a lost puppy until you pushed the bedroom door open, dropping the bags on the floor and flopping down on the bed so you were staring up at the ceiling.

"What were you doing with Nat? Have you replaced me already?" he said in a joking tone, but his voice squeaked lightly giving away that some part of him was actually concerned that you preferred Nat to him. You propped yourself up on your elbows so you could look at him. His nose was scrunched and his eyebrows creased together.

"Relax dumb ass, it was just some good old fashioned girl talk. You know you're still my favorite," you said, sending him a wink.

"I can do girl talk!! Come on, talk to me!" he implored, arms waving in the air, still looking nervous.

The boy was so cute, getting jealous about you having a new friend. As much as you had loved hanging out with Nat, Peter had become one of the most important people in your life. Your friendship had fallen into place so effortlessly and seamlessly. Not to mention, he had been able to help you with your trust issues, or as you liked to refer to it, he had been persistent enough to annoy you into finally letting your guard down. But in that way, he had made your newfound relationship with Steve and friendship with Nat possible. You would eternally owe him for that, and praised whatever god sent him into that pharmacy the day you found out you were pregnant. Even if you weren't fully fixed yet, you weren't letting Peter go any time soon. After all, you could never pass up on the chance to tease him until his cheeks turned red.

"Oh alright, so last night in bed Steve did the most amazing thing with his-" you started, but he quickly cut you off.

"STOP!! Stop okay I take it back, I don't want to hear this," he said, finally cracking a smile, and blushing shamelessly.

He soon flopped down next to you on the bed, where you spent the rest of the evening showing him the new clothes you bought. You didn't know what you had done to deserve a friend like him, or a boyfriend like Steve for that matter. It almost felt too good to be true. In the past, whenever you felt this happy it was usually followed by the familiar feeling of uneasiness, and impending doom. But this time felt different. It seemed like you had finally found your people. The people that accepted you for who you were. The people that would never hurt you. You were falling hard for them, and you wouldn't change that for all the chocolate in the world.