You are everything ⴵ [Natasha Romanoff]

Chapter 69

Chapter 69
Claire's POV

- A few days later -

"What is going on with you today?" Clint asked, seeming frustrated

You're not the only one frustrated here buddy.

"I don't know" I answered. "Let's just run it again"

I asked Clint to teach me some archery skills, really just because I was interested in learning something new. I wasn't bad with a bow, nothing like Clint and Kate but I could hit targets. I actually really enjoyed learning different skills that came with archery. Clint himself was a pretty good teacher. These lessons actually became a good distraction from everything that was in my head. The distraction had been nice, until it no longer worked.

We had been in the simulation room for over an hour now. This was a simulation we had done so many times over and over again in other training sessions, I normally completed it with little to no errors, but today was different. My anxiety was sky high and it causing me to second guess myself which resulted in me not focusing on the task at hand. I had recently mastered the hitting the flying target lesson while I was moving myself but today I just couldn't get it. If I wasn't missing targets I was getting hit by simulated weapons or falling off platforms I had never fallen off before. I was already self conscious about my skills before todays training lesson, now this was all just making it 10 times as worse. I stood up and grabbed the bow, getting ready for Clint to start the simulation from the start, again. I took a breath in and exhaled slowly, I felt my fingers grip the bow and I tried to focus.

"I think that's enough for today Claire" he said.

"No I'm fine, I need to show you I can do it, show myself I can do it" I replied.

"I know you can do it Claire, but today, I don't know, you don't seem like yourself" Clint observed.

"I'm just overthinking it all" I stated.

"I can tell. You're distracted and thats not helping you. Why don't we call it a day and you can go get out of your own head for a while" he suggested.

Yeah, like it's just that easy to do.

"Easier said than done" I declared.

"I know kid".

Clint gave me a small smile and then nudged me with his elbow as we walked out of the gym. I rolled my eyes after I tired to push him but he didn't budge, unlike me, when he pushed me I almost ran into a wall.

"Oh so you're not that tough I see" he smiled.

I grinned and shook my head at him as I regained my balance and moved to walk beside him again.

"Try that again Barton and I'll tell Nat" I joked.

Clint laughed. "I'm not scared of Nat".

I arched my brow at him.

"Ok maybe I am".

"Thought so".

We both laughed as we reached the door to the gym. Clint walked out and I decided to stay back a little bit.

I knew that I should go get some breakfast, but I really didn't feel like eating. My stress was almost making me feel too nauseated to even drink water. I sat down the back of gym just to hide away for a moment to myself.

Nat's POV
The meeting I had this morning, although it was only for an hour, seemed to just drag on and on and on. Tony and Steve, in there normal Tony and Steve way, couldn't come to an agreement about anything. Everything became an argument and somehow always ended in some sort of competition between the two. For most of the meeting I just sat there quietly, I could not be bothered trying to deal with those two. I felt like half of my job as an Avenger was to keep Tony and Steve from killing each other. Steve often felt like Tony wasn't being serious enough and Tony always said that Steve was taking things to seriously. There was literally no winning, nothing I did ever changed the outcomes of these meetings. I think one day I just won't show up and then let them sort it out by themselves.