insurgents | OPEN POST.

"I'll help."

She starts to collect papers as well occasionally glancing at a few words here and there even though she tries not to.

"You know, I think you have finally reached the same levels as some of my fans when it comes to obsessing over me."

She's just kidding of course, she would never actually make that comparison in earnest.

He doesn't mind her reading them, honestly. They were meant for her, after all. But he doesn't want her to feel like she has to for some reason, so he figures they're best kept out of sight.

Once all the papers are gathered, he slides them into a drawer, grinning lopsidedly as he holds a hand out to take the ones she's picked up.

"Great, I'm officially a celebrity stalker now. Maybe I'll have the cops knocking on my door soon?"

What door Bruce, you don't have a place to live in New York anymore, remember.

"You mean our door?"

Smoothest way ever of saying that he can come live with her if he wants to?

"No, I think we can avoid that."

He stops for a moment, quiet, glancing at her before he dips his head in a faint nod.

"Right."

Not that he minds living with her. Rather the opposite, even, and it wouldn't be all that different from how things were before he left, right? More often than not they spent the night over at each other's places, but they never actually talked about moving in together.

"And you're... okay with that?"

True, Bruce doesn't have a lot of options, but he could figure something out. He doesn't have to move into her place if she's not comfortable with it.

She considers making a joke about that being the best way of knowing where he is, but this really is a serious matter so instead she settles on simply saying:

"Yes."

It will probably take her a while to not come home vaguely anxious that he just... Won't be there, but she can deal.

He lets out a soft exhale when she answers, only then realizing he was kind of hold his breath in. Shoulders relaxing, he smiles at her, giving her a surer nod.

"Alright."

And that's it. With only a handful of words, they take a step and make a decision that Bruce would have thought would need a much longer and more thorough conversation.

Under other circumstances more talking would probably have been necessary, yes, but as things stand? It seems like a fairly easy decision to make, and it's not like it has to be permanent. If Bruce wants to start looking for a place of his own when they get back to New York, Trish won't be offended.

For the moment though, Trish just makes her way over to Bruce to give him another tight hug.

"Good."

Things don't always have to be complicated.

Well, it certainly will be a new first for them, so they'll have to see how things work out. But Bruce is feeling cautiously optimistic, for a change.

He wraps his arms around her when she hugs him, pulling her close again, turning his head to the side and pressing a lingering kiss to her cheek.

"What have you been doing all this time? To keep yourself fed with a roof over your head I mean."

She can't let him go. It feels too good to hold him again, to have his lips pressing against her skin.

It's almost alarming how much she has needed it.

"Medical help, mostly. People in these places don't always have enough money to go to a hospital, or even a hospital to go to. I've done a few other odd jobs in factories and the like, nothing much. I don't need a lot to survive, anyway."

And he's had practice before, too. This time around it hasn't been as difficult either, speaking in practical terms rather than emotional. It's only been some months, though - who knows how he'd be after a few years.

He pulls his head back a little, just enough to look at her face, a hand moving up so his fingers sift through her hair. A corner of his lips twitch, and he speaks up with some amusement.

"I'm gonna have to go on an actual job search now, aren't I?"

"Oh, definitely, I fully expect you to keep up with my expensive tastes."

As if she would evwr expect him to move into her ridiculous apartment and actually pay half of everything.

She leans in to give him a sweet, lingering kiss.

"You'll figure something out."

Hey, he could make some pretty good money! He used to, before. Alright, maybe not even close to half of what she spends on her place every month, but still.

"I know."

There are colleges in New York, research institutes, labs, a myriad of places for Bruce to apply to. He's not entirely sure whether his status as a former Avenger will do him any good, but he's hopeful.

"I promise I'm very low maintenance. And I don't take up a lot of space." A pause, then with an amused little lilt. "I also don't shed all that much."

"I don't know if I believe that, I've seen your fur."

She is currently taking an unreasonable amount of pleasure in teasing him. All part of what she's missed.

His grin widens and he lets out a laugh, licking his lips and nudging her on the side a little before he pokes some fun right back at her.

"Well, I won't shed any more than you with that big blond mane of yours, so there's that."

"Are you house trained though?"

And would it be alright if she just kissed him for about a million years because that is what him licking his lips makes her want to do.

He would have absolutely no complaints about that, honestly.

"As long as you take me out for walks regularly, you'll be alright."

Getting the mental image of Bruce on a leash yet? Well. Enjoy that, why won't you.

Yup, that sure is some mental imagery right there. Boy howdy is it ever.

"We'll have to get you a nice collar."

Yeah it was definitely time for another kiss. A very, very thorough one.

He parts his lips to answer her, only to have her mouth pressing to his in a kiss. With a surprised hum, he returns it, tilting his head to the side to deepen the contact. There's little will in him to pull back, though he does so after a little while, just to regain his breath a bit before he tentatively brushes his tongue across her lips.

"That's always handy... in case I ever get lost."

"Mhm, it'll have a little tag on it that says 'if found return to Trish Walker'."

Her voice is husky and a little breathless, and she runs the fingers of one hand lovingly through his hair.

She is never going to lose him again.

He smiles warmly at her, eyes half-lidded as his gaze falls to her lips, then back up to her eyes.

"Good. I guess that's how you can be sure you'll never lose me again."

Said with a hint of humor but also a lot of truth to it, even if he doesn't mean she actually needs to put a tag on him or anything. She won't lose him again, it's what he means by that - he won't ever leave, even if he might get the urge to just as desperately as he did after Sokovia.

She swallows hard, both because she knows that look and because he just made her very emotional.

"Which is good because I don't think I could take it."

Of course she could, she's strong as an ox but oh boy, the struggle it would be.

"I won't. I won't leave, I promise."

Just words, he knows, but he's made her promises before, and he did all within his power to keep them. It'll be the same with this one, no matter what. He couldn't bear to break her heart again.

He moves his hands up, his arms folding between them so he can cup both sides of her face, leaning in again to press a slow and lingering kiss to her lips, warm and passionate, as if to seal the promise he's just made.

Her hands rest on his hips, fingertips digging into him a little.

"Well, when you put it like that."

That was a pretty convincing kiss. Or maybe it's just that her brain kind of stops working when he kisses her like that.

He smiles when he pulls back, his fingers brushing over her cheeks, tucking strands of hair behind one of her ears, his hands then sliding down her arms.

"Want to get settled in? I think there's hot water today, if you want to take a shower. And I don't have much in the way of food, but I could make some scrambled eggs?"

"Both of those things sound great, thank you."

She is pretty damn sure that for all its simplicity, Bruce's bathroom will probably still be a lot more appealing than the one in the motel.

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