A Spider's Web ll Natasha Romanoff

You Can't Save Everyone

After handing off the Tesseract, Loki's scepter, and of course, Loki, we all drifted off to go our own ways. Currently, I was in the lobby on the ground floor of Stark Tower. I was anxious.

It wasn't that far from here. I could make it there and back quickly.

I wanted to go. I needed to check. Just to make sure. Just to satisfy my curiosity. Would anyone really notice me gone? I was basically a shadow. I just...

I need to go.

Glancing around the room discreetly, I edged myself closer and closer to the entrance. I was going to do it. Once I was close enough to the door, I opened it and took off down the street. I ran and ran and I didn't stop.

I dodged debris that littered the broken ground and jumped over holes that tried to slow me down. It was only two blocks away. It wasn't a long run, but it felt like it took forever. I couldn't get there fast enough it seemed.

The sign came into my view. It was right there. With one last burst of energy, I sprinted to the front of the building only...

It wasn't much of a building anymore. It was reduced to rubble from the battle.

The little coffee shop was completely caved in. Anxiety surged through me and I stepped on what used to be the walls, searching. Where was she?

I moved the rubble to the side, trying to get to the counter, where the barista worked. Where was Emily?

I kept moving the rubble and finally I got closer to the counter, but as I got closer I saw something sticking out of the debris. A hand.

I jumped over it and quickly started digging around the hand to reveal the body. Golden blonde locks stained with dirt were seeping through the cracks of the debris and I stopped. I knew. I just knew. I didn't want to move the rest of it. I didn't want it to become a reality. My eyes stung as tears fought their way to my eyes.

Against my better judgement, I moved a large board to reveal the body's face. Emily's face. I sucked in a breath examining the face. The blonde hair was spread around her head in a halo. Her once joyful brown eyes, dull. Lips blue and chapped. A small stream of blood painted the corner of her mouth and ran down to her chin.

My fingers moved to the artery on the side of their neck. Nothing. There was no movement. Not even the smallest twitch. I removed my hand and I shut my eyes, tightly. My head dropped and I just sat there. I sat there in the middle of a destroyed coffee shop on my knees, surrounded by dead bodies buried underneath debris, but more importantly, I sat next to the body of someone who was the closest thing I had to a friend.

Emily was dead.

My throat closed up. Sadness washed over me. But I didn't cry. I couldn't cry. What right did I have to cry over someone who didn't even know my real name? I knew her, but she knew nothing of me.

.: Flashback :.

"Watch it, asshole!" I screamed at some guy that ran into me, almost knocking me to the ground. He didn't even look back, just kept walking. I scoffed at the ignorant man. He's lucky I am trying to keep a low profile, otherwise he would have disappeared.

I continued walking. I had no specific place I was going. I was new to Manhattan and had no idea where anything was. I was making a new life for myself. A sign caught my eye and dragged me from my thoughts.

"I could really go for an iced coffee." I thought to myself. I made my way over to the front of the building and walked in. It wasn't crowded. There were maybe four customers at most sitting at tables and the staff behind the counter.