The Forsaken Truth (Marvel's Avengers)

Trouble in Paradise

"Okay that's nice. Hold.....hold. That's it.....anddd release."

It had been almost two entire months since the ordeal at the shopping mall, and within the span of that time, I found myself growing closer to the redheaded assassin, becoming a fan of her as the days went by.

As of now, the Tower was occupied only by me, Natasha and possibly Bruce. The doctor's appearance was scarce, and I never knew if he was around or not.
That man was more anti-social than me.

As for Tony and Pepper..... Well, they were out on a date.

"That's all for today." Natasha's voice broke me free of my thoughts. "You did good, Aylin."

I nodded. "Thanks, Tash."

She had been teaching me the basics of ballet, after she had caught me doing yet another failed practice, one fine evening. Suffice to say, I was in for a surprise when I got to know that she was a ballerina herself and one imploring look later, she offered to train me.
That was about two weeks ago.

By now, I had tried ferverently to perfect my balance. And I was proud to say that I no longer fell over on my face, which had happened quite a lot of times in the beginning.

Natasha suddenly snapped her head towards me and I frowned at the unreadable expression on her face.

"What did you just call me?"

"Wha-"

I cut myself, eyes widening in embarrassment and fear as I realized what I'd unknowingly addressed her as.

Gurl..... you dead.

"Oh shit! I- I'm sorry." I stammered, hands gesticulating wildly.

"It just slipped out. I didn't....." I trailed off before asking in a low tone. "Are you mad?"

Astonishingly enough, her lips quirked up in a small smile. Barely there, but still perceptible.

"No."

My shoulders sagged in relief.

"Oh. Thank goodness. I was kinda worried that you'd punch me." Then as an afterthought, I added. "So...can I call you Tash?"

This time, she smirked, lifting her shoulder in a casual shrug and I took that as an agreement.

I smiled at her, before quickly completing the cool down stretches she had shown me in the early lessons. Then I plopped down on the bench, exhaling deeply with both relief and exhaustion.

"Here. Stay hydrated." She handed me a bottle.

As I drank the water, she settled down beside me.

"I'm leaving today."

I almost choked, struggling to contain my shock as I faced her. "What?"

"I'm leaving." She repeated. "Fury has my next mission ready."

Director Nick Fury.
She had mentioned the name a couple of times and I knew that he was the boss of the agency she belonged to.
SHIELD, she said it was, an acronym whose full form I had already memorised.

"You can't stay, can you?" I asked, even though I knew the answer.

When she nodded, I only felt dejected. Over the weeks, I had found a sense of companionship in the woman and while it wasn't necessarily large enough to be considered an attachment, I was still fond of her.

It had been too long since I had had a female figure to look upto, and Natasha's presence in my life allowed her to take that place.

"Well, then. You'll come back, right?" I questioned with a worried frown.