It's a promise

Chapter 35

Rylee's POV

It was a couple days later when I was sitting on the jetty reading a book. I couldn't help with building the time heist and definitely not with the suits. I had languages and weapons on my schedule, not engineering and time travel. I could shoot with every weapon and speak five languages fluently but I was already over-strained when I put together the bike for Cooper's sixth birthday.

I tried to focus on the book. It was a book about true crimes in Europe but I couldn't really concentrate. My mind was still with the little interaction with Clint and we haven't talked since then. I looked up and saw Nat coming my way with a mug in her hands.

'You're sitting here for hours. I brought you coffee'

'From all the times you brought me coffee, I could call you my personal coffee fairy' Nat started to laugh before she sat down in front of me.

'You don't work without and you need it to live. The thing that keep you alive is coffee... and your Captain. One thing wakes you up while the other one keeps you awake all night' Now it was my time to laugh. We were sitting there for a few minutes and enjoyed the silence before I looked back at her.

'You didn't come with coffee just because you wanted to be nice. I guess this is some sort of bribery.'

'It's a peace offer. Before you're getting mad at me, listen.' I was confused. 'The last days I talked a lot with Clint'

'Why should I be mad about that? I know that he's your best friend and you gave him hope.' I wasn't mad. She was his friend before I even knew her and I understood that he needed someone as well. She told me how broken he was when she found him.

'I wasn't afraid you would be mad about that, I'm afraid you are when I say what I want to say. Just don't interrupt me. You should talk to Clint' I opened my mouth but closed it immediately when Nat glared at me. I would let her speak.

'Yes, he left and he didn't contact you. You're disappointed and hurt, but try to understand him. He lost his wife. You know how much Laura meant to him. And he lost his kids. There is nothing worse than a parent losing his kid. Did you ever think that him killing Walker and the other guys was a way to protect you? Maybe after he left he didn't know how he could come back, so he watched from the distance. I don't expect you to forgive him, but let him explain.'

Nat waited for an answer but I didn't know what to say, so I just blurted out the first thing that came into my mind.

'I gave up my badge.' Her eyes opened wide. 'His possible try to protect me, took the one thing from me that I wanted since I was a kid. It was the only thing I had when he left.'

'But you have us. You have Steve'

'I know but If I didn't have you, Clint would still have killed Walker. He would still have gone after the bad people. And I would still have given up my badge. The outcome would be the same. I'm glad to have Steve and you and even Tony in my life but... I cannot forget that he left when I needed him.'

'I don't want you to forgive him. I'm still mad as fuck at him myself.' I snickered. 'I just suggest talking with him. Tell him how shitty his behavior was and then he can tell you why he acted like the idiot he was.'

She clasped my hand for a moment and then left me alone with my thoughts. I definitely couldn't concentrate on the book anymore so I just looked over the lake and let my mind wander. Why should I seek a conversation with him when he was the one who left?

I stood up and walked inside to bring my mug back to the kitchen and left the book on the kitchen counter before I made my way to the hangar. I was curious what they were all doing but I interrupted a discussion on time traveling with Bruce, Scott and Rhodey.