An Unlikely Romance

Chapter 5

I was quivering like a broken bird in a half fallen building, when Clint Barton had looked at me and called me an Avenger. I hadn't believed him then, yet somehow his words had given me enough courage to go outside and fight the devil that I had helped create. While I was fighting with others to keep the city afloat, a small voice inside my head had whispered that maybe I wasn't doomed. Maybe I could be more than a monster that I had been moulded into.

That day, in middle of battling an artificial creation that wanted to annihilate the world, Clint Barton had looked at me and seen a rescuer instead of a predator.

Today, when he came to say his farewell, he still looked at me and saw an Avenger. He still managed to stir some hope in me.

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The smell of the strong coffee hit me first before I heard his footsteps. However, I'm sure that the noise was deliberately made because Clint could be as stealthy as his female counterpart.

"Didn't know how you took your coffee, kid. Don't laser beam me if you don't like it", he said in a mocking tone. He sat down on the bed next to me, giving me the steaming cup.

I didn't turn my sight away from the view of the city, visible outside the window. As a little girl, I had dreamt of traveling the world, to meet new people, to live outside the bounds of the small city my parents had called home. The dreams had faded away as soon as they had come, when my world had crumpled to nothing but dust. Now, after all these years, looking at the bustling city, I keep wondering what my life would have been like if I had chosen a different path. If I had chosen to mourn my parents and move on instead of choosing to hold and nurture that anger in my heart. If I had chosen forgiveness instead of retribution.

I know, that wondering about the 'what-ifs' wasn't going to fix anything. Time had already run out, mistakes were already made and all there was left to do was suffer the consequences.

I took a sip from the steaming cup and savoured the sweet taste. "Don't worry, no laser beams for you today", I tried to say in the same sarcastic tone, yet the words came out in broken whispers.

Clint sat next to me, sipping from his cup quietly. In the short time of knowing him, I had learned that Clint was someone who could talk your ears off and at the same time provide you with comfortable silence when you needed it. He was the only one in the tower who didn't make me feel like my every move was being scrutinised. I'm not naive enough to think that he trusts me but I can't seem to find any hint of wariness in him, when he is around me.

"I heard you were leaving", I said quietly. Another thing that I had learned about Clint Barton was that he had a family. A loving wife and two kids with another one on the way. I didn't understand how someone who had a family could find the courage to march everyday to battle, knowing that any one could be their last. When I had surrendered my soul to Hydra, I had no one left but my brother who decided to step into hell right with me. I wonder now, if he would have stayed back, if he would've said no, would I have left him behind?

I looked to my left, seeing Clint eyeing his cup with resignation. I knew he wasn't sad about leaving. I haven't known him for long but it was clear that he was thinking about leaving or as he would say 'retiring', for quiet some time. I was happy for him, he was getting to retire in peace, which I believe, not many in his field of work got to do. And yet, the thought of his absence filled me with panic. Clint, in many ways had been my anchor since Sokovia. I couldn't help but feel that I was losing someone again, even though I kept reminding myself that he wasn't my family or friend. He didn't owe me anything and I had no right to feel abandoned.

"I promised the Missus that this would be my last rodeo. Soon, the kids in the house are going to outnumber us by 3-2", he said, giving me a small smirk. "Plus, I think I'm getting too old for this", he added ruefully.