Risk

Twelve

Clint Barton had completely found his calling travelling the globe, and had come a long way from being the little dweeb that used to ping nerf guns and toy bow and arrows at her when they were younger.  His sandy coloured hair had lightened with the sun, along with a tan over his skin from whatever exotic place he'd recently been too. He was clean shaven again, tall and toned in a white T-shirt and worn leather jacket over it, which she had stolen maybe once or twice in the past. The year and a half had done him wonders.

He dropped his large backpack by the door as he hugged Wanda, causing a fresh stream of tears from her. Natasha nodded to him in greeting which he returned with a small smile, and she left them a moment to boil water for tea. Tea helped everything, right?

Wanda managed to tell the whole story to Clint while Natasha handed out cups of tea and they stood around the kitchen. Clint was far more skilled at handling Wanda than Natasha had been, he didn't need to shower her in comforting hugs since he seemed to know exactly what to say. Maybe because he had lost a brother too, before he'd met them. He had told Natasha one night when it was just the two of them, perched on a rooftop abroad with four empty beer bottles around them. She shook her head at the memory. She wasn't sure he'd ever admitted it to anyone else, so she kept her mouth shut, leaving him with Wanda while she got herself washed and dressed for the day.

She joined them once she was done, still in the same spots where she had left them but quieter than before. The subject of death becomimg too heavy to bear once more. Wanda eventually excused herself to shower, needing some time alone and exhausted from the trauma going on in her mind. It left Clint and Natasha alone in the kitchen, a beat of uncomfortable silence between them as Wanda left into the bathroom.

Did she talk to him the same as she had before everything? Pretend the last year and a half of him disappearing with little communication hadn't happened or affected her? Ignore the awkwardness and pain the events leading up to him leaving had brought, the feelings fresh as his arrival reopened that wound she kept buried deep down. She wasn't angry or upset anymore, not like she had been. She preferred to keep those emotions far away, for her own sake. In the end, she spoke first. Giving in to her want for things to be semi normal for them.

"This can't be easy for you." Natasha said softly, eyeing him with as much concern as she had with Wanda. She leaned back against the counter across from him so they were facing one another, keeping her voice low despite the faint sounds of running water suggesting Wanda was already in the shower.

He gave a small shrug, offering up a smile. "No, but I can handle it. What about you?" He asked, eyes narrowing slightly in concern. "How are you coping?"

"Fine." She nodded, her lips tightening into a line as she hummed once and looked away. He wasn't an idiot, and he knew her better than to assume she was on top of this. He sat his tea down, stepping forward to place his hands either side of her shoulders so she looked up at him, a slight frown as he crossed any boundaries she had put up between them.

"Tasha..." He said knowingly, and just like that she crumbled. As simple and as easy as it was for him to slip back into calling her by her nickname he'd blessed her with. Her next blink caused a cascade of tears down her cheeks, and she looked away urgently as she wiped them from her face. He guided her into his arms as the wave of emotions crashed against her, a mixture of sadness and confusion along with the shock and excitement that he had appeared.

She didn't want to feel and act like this, especially not in front of anyone. But he was her best option.

Clint held her, and she found his touch wasn't as foreign as she thought it would be despite how much she rejected it at first. His strong embrace was so comforting that she couldn't help but want to open up to him, blurt out all her secrets and worries and hurt because she knew he'd make her feel better. Her arms coiled around him and she buried her face against his shoulder for a while, riding it out. When she finally calmed herself, she didn't move from his arms right away. Instead, she rested her head against the wet stain from her tears on his T-shirt and let him gently run his hand up and down her back.

"I still think you're a complete shit head." She huffed, feeling his chest trembled as he chuckled.

"I know." He said, listening to her sniffle a little as she stopped her tears. "I agree that I acted like a complete shithead."

She pulled back with a sigh, running her hands through her hair. "You should have called more."

"I thought you didn't want me too?" He frowned slightly and she did the same in response.

"Well, I didn't. But obviously that meant that I did. You should know that."

He grinned, amused at her stubbornness, "Noted for next time." His large knuckles gently brushed tears off her cheeks, causing her to tense for a short moment. He wasn't sure if it was his touch, or his wording of the assumption the past would repeat itself. "I've missed you," He admitted, softening his tone so she understood the sentiment of his words.

She missed him too. Had missed him. Except now he was here, she wasn't sure she had ever stopped. She pulled back a little too urgently and cleared her throat as the thought scared her.

"Well then, you should have called." She gave him a smile, changing the subject. "You must be starving, wanna go grab some food? See if Wanda is up for it?" She suggested.

"Please." He sighed dramatically. "I'm dying for a big old New York styled burger or five." He smirked, the hint so obvious she couldn't help but roll her eyes and smile.

"God, you are such a creature of habit. Five Guys it is." She quirked a brow. "But I'm only buying you one, the rest you buy yourself. Expect no sympathy when you regret your third, fourth and fifth burger."

"Like you said, I'm a creature of habit. Expect me to buy your sympathy with a milkshake." He wrangled his eyebrows playfully at her, causing her to grin.

"You really know the way to a girls heart." She laughed, shaking her head as he grinned proudly at her. A cheeky, knowing little grin that had her lips twitching into a brighter smile.

God, had she missed this dork.