Chasing Ghosts | Natasha Romanoff

Chapter 25: Family

Some of you asked for a little throwback moment from the day they took Maya in, so I thought, why not make a whole chapter about it? So this is a small throwback chapter for you :)

Five months ago

The same goddamn alarm woke Katya up at six, blaring through the room too loud this early. She groaned and pressed her face into her pillow. But it only took her a second to realize something was wrong. It was too cold under the sheets and the alarm wasn't shut off, which Natasha always did.

Lifting her head and glancing at the left side of the bed, Natasha was indeed nowhere to be seen. Katya's heart fell as she reached over to slam the button on the alarm. Normally, they would lay for a couple minutes in the warmth and comfort of the bed and each other, slowly waking up. But Katya had no reason to do that now, because Natasha only left bed before the alarm for a couple reasons:

She had a nightmare, she had never fallen asleep in the first place because she was stressing about something, or she had to use the bathroom. But no light shone from underneath the bathroom door. If it wasn't any of these things, she would always just lay with Katya until six, because it wasn't pressing.

Wiping the sleep from her eyes, Katya trailed down the stairs. ''Babe?'' No answer. And no noise in the house either. She tried not to worry, but her heartbeat spiked on its own. If Natasha had gone for a run or something like that, she would have left a note. But there was nothing on her pillow or the kitchen counter.

A bit panicky, she walked through the house. One room after the other was empty, so Katya quickly established that Natasha wasn't inside. Maya's room, which was at the front of the house, was Katya's last stop. And she turned to leave when Natasha wasn't here as well. But through the open windows, her eye fell on something by the lake.

A breath of relief left Katya's lips, and she smiled softly at her wife's figure on the edge of the dock.

On her bare feet, in the light of dawn, Katya jogged down the stairs, out the front door and through the grass they desperately needed to mow.

Her feet made no sound on the wooden planks. The planks which were freezing, because it wasn't summer, it was still more dark than light out, and a cold breeze skimmed over the lake. Katya wished she had wrapped up in a coat, but there was no way she'd go back now.

Natasha didn't startle when she spoke up, indicating she knew she stood there.

''You scared me for a second.'' Katya's voice was gentle and she had a soft smile on her lips when she sat down next to her, dangling her feet just above the water. The look on Natasha's face didn't surprise her, but that didn't make it any less sad. Something was on her mind, and it wasn't anything happy.

''Is it six already?'' She questioned, only glancing away from the lake to see Katya nod. ''Sorry, I didn't realize.'' How long had she been out here already? She wasn't shaking, but must be cold to the bone.

Katya wrapped her fingers around the edge of the wooden planks, watching the reflection of the sky in the lake. Beautiful colors bounced off it, mixing with the black of the night. Katya sometimes wondered if any of the stars she saw were close to the alien planets she had been on.

''Why are you out here this early? What's on your mind?''

Natasha shrugged, trying to play it off. ''Just nervous I guess. It's not every day you adopt a child,'' she muttered. Her hair softly blew in the wind, but Katya was pretty sure she braided it last night, so she must have pulled it out to run her hands through it. A nervous tic she had herself as well.