Natasha Romanoff: Killer of men, Lover of women

20

We finally arrived at Cannes, and by the time we got there, it was late-afternoon. I got us a room for two, but opted for two single beds rather than a double, not knowing how comfortable Iris felt with me anymore.

We left most of our things in the car, bringing just a few bits we'd need for the night. When we got into our room, I noticed Iris frown for a second, but hide it quickly.

Does she not want to share a room?

"Are you ok?" I forced myself to ask, despite my shyness.

"Um, yeah, it's just the beds, I thought ... never mind" she shook it off awkwardly.

A lot of the time, I found it difficult to understand her. I just couldn't tell what she was thinking. And, a lot of the decisions she'd made since we'd met, confused me.

Even though it wasn't that late, we were both kind of exhausted from the difficult few days we'd had, so decided to call it a day.

I let Iris pick the bed by the window, she told me that she liked seeing the outside now that she was out of that window-less, underground cell. It broke my heart knowing how much being trapped there hurt her, knowing that it was all because of me.

She still hadn't shared what they did to her, but I imagined it was torturous, considering what they did to me. And I was only there for an hour.

I let Iris get ready first, changing and brushing her teeth in the bathroom, before doing the same myself when she was done.

When I got back into the bedroom area, I couldn't help but smile at her cute little bundle of blankets curled up cosily in bed.

"Comfy there?" I asked, playfully. I saw the blankets move slightly as she, I assume, nodded her head.

"mmhmmm I missed being warm last night." she hummed softly.

"Yeah, I know Sweetheart." I sighed, climbing under the covers of my own bed and resting my head to sleep.

We lay in silence, and I was just starting to doze off, when a quiet voice woke me up.

"Natty?"

"Yes?" I asked into the dark room.

"I - I can't sleep. I can't stop thinking about.." she broke off, her voice cracking as she started to cry.

Now, I was fully awake, sitting up and turning my body to face her, even though I couldn't really see in the darkness.

"Hey, it's ok, it's ok, I'm here. You're safe with me now." I whispered soothingly.

I could hear her sobs and had to try very hard not to rush over and squeeze her tightly and tell her everything was going to be alright, I didn't know if she'd want that.

"I know, I know. I - I just feel so, alone." she whispered back, her voice weak.

"But I'm right here Sweetheart" I tried to reassure her.

"But I can't see you, or feel you." she breathed softly.
"Please, can you come and stay with me?"

That was the invitation I was waiting for, pushing off my covers and rushing to her bedside.

"Are you sure?" I checked.

"Yes! Now get in here!" she giggled. It was nice to hear her a bit happier, I didn't want her to feel sad.

She lifted her blankets and I climbed into bed next to her, squeezing in on my side as there wasn't a lot of space.

Due to the narrow bed, we were now lying eye to eye, our faces millimetres apart.