isabel's back!
"Are you feeling any better than last week?"
Yelena sighs, "I don't want to talk."
"Then you should've called out sick."
Yelena pulls at the sleeves of her hoodie, "If I called out sick, Kate Bishop would worry. I don't need that."
"Is she worried about you?" Isabel asks, stirring her coffee around with her straw, "Is worried an appropriate emotion for anyone to have about you right now?"
"I don't know," Yelena says quietly, really wanting to get today over with. She's tired and really just wants to go to bed.
"How are your meds working for you?" Isabel asks this time, seemingly pivoting from the topic entirely.
Yelena knows better than that, though. Isabel's obviously seeing something wrong and asking about her meds as a source.
"I take them every morning. And every night. Just like I'm told to," Yelena responds, fidgeting with her hands now. If this were four months ago, she'd be sitting with her legs crossed and have easier access to her docs, which she's not wearing because that's a nightmare in and of itself, and play with the laces. But she's in her wheelchair and one of her legs doesn't exist so one of her shoes isn't worn anymore and everything is terrible.
"Do you think they're still working?" Isabel asks, and Yelena shrugs. "This is how today's going to go?"
"Maybe."
"You're like my ten-year-olds," Isabel comments, taking a sip of her coffee, "Have you spoken to your psychiatrist?"
"No," Yelena huffs, the desire to go back to bed for maybe forever even stronger now. She really just doesn't want to talk right now, why does that have to be so horrible?
"How's Kate?" Isabel asks, and Yelena really just wants her to shut up. She doesn't want to deal with the stupid questions that dance around everything and she doesn't want to be here and Jesus Christ, she should've just called in sick.
"Can we just... play checkers or something?" Yelena asks, irritated. She doesn't want to talk.
"We can do whatever you want, Yelena," Isabel replies.
Yelena nods, enjoying the small victory, "Then let's play checkers."
Isabel pulls out the board and sets up a table and it doesn't take long for them to play a couple of games.
Halfway through what Yelena thinks is their sixth go-around, Isabel starts talking again, "What's your sister up to?"
Yelena grits her teeth but responds anyway, "She's packing, probably. She and her family are going to the Bartons for Nathan's birthday. He's turning six."
"Why aren't you going?" Isabel asks next, eyes never leaving the board in front of them as they continue to play.
"Didn't want to," Yelena deflects, not bothering to mention how she doesn't want the kids to see her the way she's been. Lila's far too perceptive to miss the dip in her mood and she would probably kill herself if she knew that she freaked Nathaniel out. Everything will be fine by summer, she knows, she'll be up again and able to move around as she wishes without the restrictions of a wheelchair.
Isabel hums and they fall into some weird silence again, playing checkers and ignoring the rest of the world for a few minutes.
Isabel knows that Yelena hates silence. Yelena wonders if she's going to use that to her advantage.
God, some things were so much easier when she was subjugated.
"I don't want to scare the kids," Yelena finally confesses as she wins, sitting back in her chair and drawing out a big breath, "I know I'm not okay and I don't want to scare them."
YOU ARE READING
till forever falls apart
Fanfictionyelena never expected to hate being right as much as she hates it now. she knew something was wrong, she told isabel, she insisted. she knew it. she just didn't expect that something to be cancer.
