"Yes," Natasha answers, evidently unembarrassed by the revelation. Before she continues, she watches as he wraps his arms around his legs. At least she knows what signs to look for, now that he's opened her eyes to them. They're going to have to figure out some additional grounding skills, but it's not something that she feels like she needs to present yet. She has to imagine there's a certain newness to being allowed touch again.

So she sets her phone down on the table and moves into the room, kneeling behind him as she leans against his back. Her arms drape easily over his shoulders and fold in, hugging him from behind. "We worked together before we brought SHIELD down, but I don't think he trusted me. Not entirely. I don't blame him. He got pulled out of the ice and thrown into one conflict after another. And I'm an ex Soviet spy with a lengthy service record and a heavily redacted file. I asked him if he'd trust me to save his life while we were on the run and he said he would. I wanted to remind of him of that so he'd know I take this seriously."