Becoming a Maximoff

Chapter 60: Hawkeye's legacy

Pov y/n

A lot of people came for the grant opening and I feel my nerves rising up again. Luckily, I don't have to give a speech or anything but I am still nervous about how people will think about what we created. Mom and Laura really put a lot of work into this and I really hope that all of that will be appreciated by the people. 

I also put work into this but not as much as they. We're currently behind a curtain of the little stage we built up for this occasion. Behind us, there is the entrance and the sign with the name that we haven't revealed yet. I will have the honor to uncover it after Mom gave a speech and Laura greeted the guests. Wanda won't do anything, she's just here to stand by my side and smile. She didn't mind though, she is happy with that. 

There's a lot of chattering on the other side of the curtain and I start to twist my ring around my finger, a habit I started having once we got engaged and I regularly wore a ring. 

"It's gonna go well." Wanda says, rubbing my arms up and down with her hands. I nod and glance towards the curtain. 

"What if the sheet gets stuck though and I will embarrass myself?" I ask, my voice a little unsteady. Usually, I am not very nervous when it comes to speaking in front of a crowd, or in this case, presenting something. But I really don't want to mess this up because this is for Clint. 

"It won't. And in case it does, I will help you." Wanda assures me, letting a few red swirls dance around her finger tips and I nod, taking a deep breath. She's right, she can help without it being obvious, so it's all good.   

Around ten minutes later, we get into position and the curtain opens. My eyes look over all the people that came to the opening of this. I don't know if they are here for the archery school or to honor Clint but either way, it makes me happy and touches me that so many people came. Clint probably wouldn't have like that much attention but he for sure deserves it, being underrated for years. 

"Hello and welcome to the opening of our archery school in honor of Clint Barton, aka Hawkeye." Laura starts, standing in front of the crowd and talking into the microphone. 

I spot a few familiar faces in the crowd while Laura welcomes the guests. Tony, Pepper and Morgan are pretty much in the front row. Morgan beams up at us and when she sees me, she waves, which makes me smile and my nerves settle down a little. Behind Tony, I also see Steve and a few of the others, making me smile. They all came to honor Clint one last time. My grip around Wanda's hand tightens a little more and I try to hold back a few tears that threaten to build up. Wanda's thumb starts to rub gentle circles onto the back of my hand and she side glances at me with a little smile.

After Laura's welcoming speech, it's Mom's turn and she steps forward and talks about what an honor it is to do this and how much Clint would have loved this as he was always happy to share his passion with other people, especially in a safe environment. 

My eyes don't stop looking over the crowd, still a little baffled that so many people came. There are parents with their children, adults, teenagers and their friends. I notice one brunette girl, standing in one of the first lines, looking at Mom and nodding along as she talks about how great Clint was. The girl seems to be around mine and Wanda's age and is wearing a bow over her shoulder and I'd bet a quiver on her back.
As I'm thinking about whether she can already handle an arrow and bow or if she wants to learn how to do so, Wanda squeezes my hand a little, pulling my attention back to what's happening on stage. Mom's speech is close to the end and I let go of Wanda's hand to grab the cord that's attached to the sheet that's covering the name.

"And without further ado, I am happy to present to you..." She looks back and it's my sign to pull. I do so and the sheet falls off the sign without a problem and a wide smile tugs on my lips.
"...Hawkeye's legacy!"