Scarlett Johansson | One-Shots (1)

⚠️ NR - Stroke

Warning: angst
———————————————————————
Natasha:
My wife, two kids, and I all sit in the living room playing a game of Monopoly. Cal and I go easy on our kids while Dallas doesn't hold back and Greyson cheats off of his mother. We're not playing teams but Grey and Callie are basically a team while Dallas and I do the same. 

"Shit," Callie curses when her dog piece lands on one of Dallas' owned properties.

"Honey, language," I mumble.

"Sorry," she chuckles.

"You owe me money, Mom," Dallas says confidently.

"Yeah yeah. How much?"

"Um. 50."

"Jesus." Cal hands her the money and now it's Grey's turn.

As Grey is taking his turn, Cal gets distracted.

Callie:
A soft vibration in my pocket causes me to pull out my phone. On the screen, a name I haven't seen in a long time. Oliver Atwood. My older brother.

"I'll be right back," I tell my family as I get up.

"Is everything okay?" Nat asks.

I just nod and rush out of the room to answer the call. "Hello?"

"Hey... Cal. I know it's been a while. I should've reached out sooner," Oliver starts sadly.

"It's okay. What's up?"

"Yeah... Um. It's about mom."

"Is everything okay?"

Natasha:
Cal takes a while in the other room. We've already taken our turns so we're just waiting for her to come back. Close to ten minutes later, she does. I turn with a smile but it quickly fades when Cal's face is as pale as a ghost.

"Are you alright?" I ask.

"I... I think I'm done playing for the night," she tells us, her voice cracking at the end.

Both of our kids whine but I accept and pack up the game. When it's in its box in the game room, I send our kids to do whatever they want. I find my wife in our room. She's sitting on the edge of the bed with her head in her hands, elbows leaning on her legs.

"Hun, are you okay?" I drop down in front of her.

She finally looks up at me, eyes filled with tears. "I... My mom died," she squeaks.

"Oh my god." I immediately embrace her in a tight hug as she breaks down.

She sobs into me. I bring us onto the bed, getting behind her so I can hold her closer.

"What happened?" I finally ask.

"She had a stroke," Cal cries.

"I'm so sorry."

"I'm flying to Maryland this weekend for the funeral. Oliver said you should be there. You don't have to go, though. I know how my dad can be and now that my mom-"

"I'll come. I'll be there with you. I won't let you go through this alone," I assure her.

"I don't know about the kids though."

"We can leave them with Steve or someone. Everyone loves them."

"Okay," she whispers, sobbing heavily into me.

-One week later-

Callie:
With a small bag to carry my and Nat's dresses in, I sadly get the family into the car. We only have to make one stop before we head to the airport. The kids stay silent the whole ride. I had to tell them about their grandmother dying and Dallas took it the hardest. Since she's older, she understands she has to live the rest of her life without my mom. Grey is still young so it has yet to set in his head. Nat has been an angel with all of this. She's been understanding, loving, supportive. When the kids ask questions about their grandma, Nat answers for me, knowing I'll break down if I talk about her. We drop the kids off with Wanda and Vision. Wanda hugs me tightly before I leave. She's always been my best friend. She met my mother a few times and each time, they have bonded great. I can tell Wanda is hurt from her passing. Now, Nat and I drive to the airport.

-Cumberland, Maryland-

In our black dresses, Nat and I walk into the church of my mother's funeral service. I'm immediately greeted by Oliver and his wife, Mazie.

"I love you," Oliver says in my ear as we hug each other tightly.

I fight back tears. "I love you too."

Mazie hugs Natasha then we switch places, I hug Mazie while Oliver hugs Nat. When all of this is over, we make our way inside where more extended family greets us. It's a good thing that Nat can speak Russian because mostly everyone here chooses the Russian language over English. We're only here because my dad wanted to have the funeral service where Oliver and I grew up rather than in Russia where we were born.

My dad's the first to speak. Of course, his entire eulogy is in Russian. Everyone's is. Next, Oliver. Then me. I don't think Nat has ever heard me speak this much Russian in one go. I wish it were under different circumstances.

*in Russian* "I remember when Mom told me not to ever cry at her funeral. I'm clearly doing a bad job." A few chuckles from my family. "As much as we were a Russian-speaking family when we moved here, Mom was the one to teach me English. I would pronounce everything wrong. Even simple words. Dad would laugh at me but Mom was always supportive. I remember when I was learning how to ride a bike. Dad taught me. But there was a time I fell and I was sobbing hysterically. I was completely fine. Do you remember this, Oliver?" He nods with a broken smile and tears streaming down his face. "Dad laughed at me but Mom ran out with the first aid kit thinking I was bleeding out. I didn't have a scratch on me but she put a dinosaur bandaid on my knee to humor me. She was my hero when everyone laughed at me. Her strength is what kept me going." I share a few more memories then eventually wrap up my heartbreaking eulogy. "I'm thankful the family I started was able to meet her before her passing. I know her impact will stick with all of us." I glance at Nat who has a tear rolling down her cheek then turn to my mother's casket. "I love you, Mama."

I return to my seat next to Natasha. We listen to a few other family members speak about her. My aunts, uncles, etc. It's sweet but so upsetting. After all the speeches, the indoor service is called to an end so I follow Oliver to the front to help carry my mom's casket to the hearse. At the graveyard, we watch the casket get lowered into the ground.

"Ya tebya lublu {I love you}," my dad says into the light hug when we're saying our goodbyes.

"Ya toze tebya lublu {I love you too}," I cry in response.

With a heavy heart and eyes full of tears, Nat and I head home.

-New York-

"Wanda's coming over in a few to drop off the kids," Nat mentions to me as we're walking into our dark home.

"Okay."

"Hey." She grabs me before I can walk away. "I love you. I know today was so incredibly hard."

"Yeah," I squeak, resting my forehead on her collarbone.

She wraps her arms around me and we stand in the foyer of our home until Wanda and Vision walk in. We gave her a key. Our two kids instantly run up to us.

"Hey," I greet them softly, kneeling down to hug them.

"I'm sorry about Grandma," Dallas says to me.

"It's okay."

"I love you, Mom," Dal whispers into the hug.

"I love you most." I kiss the side of her head.

Nat places her hand on my shoulder as she talks to Wanda and Vision. When my kids get tired of hugging me, I stand only to be grabbed by Wanda. She hugs me tight.

"I hope they were good to you," I say to her.

"Don't even worry about it. They were angels. But today is about you," she objects lovingly.

"Thank you, Wands."

"Don't mention it."

Wanda and Vision stay a while. Our kids play in the middle of the living room while we sit on the couches, just talking. It's nice to be surrounded by the people I love. It's been a long day so I rest my head on Nat's shoulder, allowing myself to feel things and cry a little.