Breaking Free | Natasha x OC

Chapter Thirty-One

"Unprocessed trauma does not just disappear. It is stored in your body."
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It had been three weeks. Since they'd lost everyone. Since they'd lost.
Natasha found herself ridiculously desperate to be near her wife almost constantly, as if scared she'd disappear too.

And Tara seemed to want to be as far away from everyone as possible.

Their opposite and conflicting reactions to this weren't working together, leaving them at a slight impasse.

Natara came in then and sat on the floor, resting her back against Natasha's legs in a way that made the blonde Avenger take a deep breath at the sudden touch. She hadn't felt it in a while.
This was good, small, but good. She'd take what she could get.

Tara raised her hand up a little and Nat quickly got the message, holding it in her own. The slight affection made her heart race.

The blonde spy gently lay a kiss on her wife's head. "How are you doing?" She asked.
It was the wrong thing to ask as the redhead stiffened against her and let go of her hand, Natasha's body immediately aching at the rejection.

"How do you think I'm feeling?" Natara was trembling, with anger or hurt, she didn't know. She took a breath.
"They're all gone, Natasha. All of them. T'Challa, Wanda, Shuri, Laitha, Solomon-" Her voice broke on the last name and Natara sucked in a harsh breath to try regain control.

She'd spent ages trying to get ahold of him before Alessia had called-- at least she'd survived-- and said he'd disappeared too. That was the very last straw before Tara gave up entirely.

"I know, baby, I know-"

"No," Natara interrupted. "You've always been better at this than me. I can't hold myself together, Nat. Not now. I can't make myself be okay like you do. I just- I can't. I've tried and I just can't."

"Is that what you think I'm doing?" Nat asked softly, eyes filled with tears. "You think I'm doing okay? We lost everyone, Tara. Clint's whole family is gone and I can't find him, half of our team is gone, my sister-" She took a shaky breath, a tear falling. "Yelena's gone too. I know how you feel, I do. None of us are okay. Maybe you'd know that if you ever asked me instead of trying to shut me out-"

A low rumbling coursed throughout the compound, both of their bodies flinching as they remembered a war their mind still hadn't fully comprehend.

"It's an aircraft," Natara breathed, getting over her panic and trauma response slightly faster than Natasha.

She got up quickly, leaving the room and running into the rest of their team as she exited, clearly all having the same idea.

Steve looked at the two women, seeing Nat hastily wipe her eyes and frowning slightly as he looked between them, knowing something was going on.

They all walked forward quickly, heading outside.

A large orange aircraft was being lowered to the grass, a glowing figure under it and slowly bringing it down.

"Carol," Natara breathed, a small smile breaking through as she looked at the ship. "She found them."

Pepper looked at her and Tara offered a quick smile, going forward to squeeze her hand, the blonde CEO's eyes watering with hope and fear.
"We've got you," Natara whispered.