Natasha Romanoff x Female Reader

nightmare - natasha romanoff

You had no idea what time it was when you were awoken by muffled, pain-filled cries coming from the room across from yours.

You knew who it was instantly and lay awake, waiting for the heartbreaking noise to subside.

Natasha had nightmares pretty much every night, it made sense after everything she'd been through.

Usually, you would hear Yelena's footsteps as she quickly entered her sister's room to wake her up and comfort her.

However, this time, after a couple of minutes, you realised something. Yelena was out on a mission.
In a matter of seconds, you were up and out of your room. You knew that the door to Natasha's room wouldn't be locked, so you quickly pushed it open and rushed to kneel by the side of her bed, not wanting to startle her when she woke up.

"Nat," you spoke quietly, "Wake up, it's just a dream. It's okay. You're okay."

At first, your words did nothing. Instead, you placed your hand on her shoulder, shaking her gently while still whispering to her. Slowly, her incoherent mumbles and tortured cries died down and she opened her eyes, which were unsurprisingly filled with tears.

Natasha sat up and quickly hid her face in her hands when she saw that it was you who had woken her up instead of Yelena. She didn't want you to see her in this state, weak and vulnerable.

"Go back to sleep, I'm sorry for waking you up," she muttered.

Her voice sounded shaky and was riddled with guilt, which broke your heart.

"No, I'm staying here, Nat." You swiftly hopped onto the bed beside her and took one of her hands, forcing her to stop hiding her face.

She glanced at you inquisitively while silently thanking the heavens that it was too dark for you to see the blush that had risen to her cheeks, even in her state of distress.

"Do you wanna talk about it?"

She shook her head firmly before sighing. "Just the same stuff as usual."

The two of you sat in comfortable silence, still holding hands. After a while, you felt Natasha's head fall onto your shoulder, as if she was too exhausted to hold it up.

"Tired?"

"Exhausted," she confessed, giving you a small smile.

You were almost disappointed to have to leave, but you knew Natasha needed rest, so you swung your legs over the side of the bed, intending to go back to your room.

"Wait, Y/N," she called suddenly, "Can you stay? I mean... can you sleep here with me? You don't have to, I just..."

You giggled quietly as her voice trailed off due to uncertainty. Laying down and tucking your legs under the covers, you shuffled closer to her, sighing happily as she immediately wrapped her arms around you, allowing you to rest your head on her chest. You felt her body tense slightly, but she relaxed again when you brought a hand up to play with her long red hair.

No longer worrying about overstepping any boundaries, she placed a delicate kiss on the top of your head.

It didn't take long for the two of you to fall into a deep slumber. You felt safe together and, even though neither of you voiced your true feelings, you both secretly hoped that this wouldn't be the last time you would fall asleep in each other's arms.