A Second [Clint Barton x Reader]

Don't Give Me Hope

Part 7
***
It'd taken a lot longer than you thought to get back to your jet. By the time you'd snuck past the two groups you came across and dragged Natasha's body into the woods, over uneven ground, under branches and through thorns, you were exhausted. It took the last ounce of your strength to roll Natasha onto a bed.

Once she was secure, you simply just collapsed to the ground, all the emotions you'd buried trying to come back to the surface. At first, you tried to ignore them and keep your mind clear and focused, but it wasn't long until you felt yourself slowly slipping. You allowed your emotions to surface a little after a while of fighting them off, too tired to try anymore. Clint's words started to replay over and over in your head...

"Just forget about me and go. I made my choice to leave, and I'm not changing my mind. It's just better this way."

How was it better? You couldn't understand how he possibly thought that this was better. Sure, you couldn't argue when you were worlds apart, but the empty hole in your chest didn't allow you to see any positives like that.

More tears came to your eyes as you stared up at the ceiling of your jet, and you felt yourself starting to crumble. Your heart ached in your chest, and it felt like everything was just squeezing your heart. The only thing that brought you out of those thoughts was a soft moan from Natasha.

Wiping at your eyes and nose quickly, you sat up and went to her side, watching as her head rolled around a little and her eyes scrunched together. It looked like she was fighting to wake up.

"Come on, Nat. Come on." You tell her softly, snapping back into action and moving her limbs to be more comfortable on the bed. One of her legs had been hanging off the side, so you moved both of her legs to rest more comfortably in a straight line. Next, you worked on booting up the medical systems to get her vitals on display.

By the time you'd gotten her hooked up to the machines and everything working properly, her eyes were opening just a little. You stopped what you were doing when you saw them open and went back to focusing on trying to get her awake.

"Hey, Natasha. Can you hear me? It's ok, we're back on the jet." You tell her, grabbing a flashlight and shining it just a little in her eyes to test for a reaction from her pupils. They responded to the light, which was a great sign.

"(Y/n)?" She asks, your name sounding a little slurred as she said it. "How'd we get here?" She looked around as much as her head would let her, observing the medical equipment around her.

"We got ambushed back in that alleyway. Someone shot you with a knockout dart and a group of men attacked me. We would have been screwed if it weren't for..." you stopped a moment, the last few words dying on your tongue. The whole reason you had come here, and you'd let him get away...

Natasha was looking back at you now and looking a lot more awake. Her eyes were already clearing up. You weren't sure if she was recovering so quickly just because it was Natasha or if it was because of the serum that Clint had given her. "How'd we get out of there?" She asks, almost as if she knew this was going to be vital information.

"Clint..." You answer slowly, looking down at the floor. His face was coming back into your mind. When Natasha didn't interrupt your thoughts, your eyes went back to hers and saw she was waiting for you to elaborate further. "He was there... He came and fought them off... killed some of the men. He gave you something to help fight off whatever they injected into you and then... then he was gone. He just left." You finish, feeling your heart break in your chest a little as the image of him walking away came back into your mind. "I-I just let him go... he doesn't want to come back with us." You add, voice cracking now as it all became too much. The cry got caught in your throat and you tried to quickly wipe away the tears from the corners of your eyes.