Nat stood there for a moment in the middle of her room, she wouldn't let this be it, not after everything that had happened. Heading out of the room, Nat grabbed a photo frame that had been tucked in one the draws of her dresser.
Storming down the hallway, Nat ignored the others, who were all hanging out in the communal area trying to act as if they weren't paying close attention to what was going on right now. Nat caught up with Y/N in the main foyer of the compound.
Seeing Y/N walking away, heading towards the doors, it caused Nat to see red, her emotions reached a boiling point. One moment she was gripping the photoframe tightly in her hand, the next she was hurling it with all her strength directly at Y/N.
It slammed into Y/N's head before falling to the ground, the glass cracking.
Y/N whirled around, lifting their hand to the back of their head, their eyes wide in shock.
Standing there, Nat debated tackling Y/N to the ground and physically knocking some sense into their stubborn hard headed arse but she held herself back. She watched as Y/N knelt down and picked up the broken photo frame.
Y/N turned it over and looked at the photo it contained. It was an old polaroid, the moment it captured had been the day after the pair of them had finally confessed their feelings for each other. They had been sitting on the balcony of the Budapest apartment and Nat had wanted to remember that moment, the first time in so many years that she had felt truly happy and loved.
Looking at it, Y/N realised that Natalia must have somehow gone back to the apartment after they had been taken in order to retrieve the photo that had been on the side table in Y/N's bedroom.
"You don't get to just walk away from me and act like it's totally okay, that it's what's best for us! Do you remember the day we took that photo?" Nat demanded as she stepped closer to Y/N, "You promised me that day that no matter what the world threw at us, we would face it together. But now you're choosing to just leave, to act like I would be better off without you. I spent years without you Y/N, I can't do that again."
"Of course I remember" Y/N replied as they looked up from the photo at her, "All I want is for you to be safe Natalia. I... I couldn't live with the guilt, if something were to happen to you because I was selfish and stayed here with you."
Nat shook her head, she wasn't going to accept this.
"After everything I have been through, one of the things I have learnt is that life is too short and when I got a second chance at it, when the soul stone was returned in exchange for my life, I promised myself that I wouldn't take it for granted that I wouldn't have any regrets" Nat spoke her voice breaking slightly as she thought back to what had happened on Vormir, "Losing you all over again, that would be something I would regret forever Y/N."
Y/N looked back down at the photo, at both of their smiling faces. They could be that happy again, that was what scared Y/N the most though. For so many years they had refused to let themself have hope, to let themselves believe they were destined to be anything but a fucked up mercenary. They had instead held onto bitterness, anger and pain, surely that was all they deserved after the things they'd done even if all of those things had been at the order of the Red Room or a criminal client?
"Why would you want to be with someone like me Natalia?" Y/N asked with a creeping sadness in their voice, "My ledger, it's filled with so much red. I lost who I was during these last ten years, I've done awful things and never thought twice about it. How can I wipe out that much red? Why should I have a chance at happiness after what I've done?"
"Y/N you spent most of your life being tortured and trained into being a ruthless killer, that was never your choice, it was never my choice either. You can't blame yourself for that" Nat said gently as she moved closer to Y/N, "But you're free now and you get to make your own choices, ones that could be the start of clearing some of that red in your ledger. Let me help you."
Nat reached out and took hold of Y/N's hand, smiling softly at them.
Maybe it was time to accept their past, maybe they needed to stop fighting the past so hard. Y/N had let it it constantly control them, making them think they deserved to be alone and broken because of all the things that had happened.
"I just need some time Natalia to figure things out, to figure out who I am" Y/N explained, "You're right this is the first time I've ever truly been free and I need to work things out. I want to be better for you Natalia, I'm not leaving because I don't want to be with you. That's all I want but the person I am right now doesn't deserve you, I'm not good enough for you Natalia."
Nat's heart hurt hearing how little Y/N thought of themselves, that in their mind they were still clearly a villian and that because of that they couldn't believe that someone would want to be with them or that they deserved having a shot at happiness. Letting go of Y/N's hand, Nat moved and wrapped her arms around Y/N, hugging them close, breathing in their familiar and comforting scent.
"What if this was the other way round? Would you let me walk away from you like this?" Nat asked softly as her forehead rested against Y/N's, their eyes meeting.
"No I wouldn't but you have always been the more reasonable one out of the two of us" Y/N replied as they wrapped their arm around Nat's waist, "I'm going to go back to my apartment in the city, I just need a couple of days to clear my head. I promise then that we'll figure things out, we'll figure us out, okay?"
Nat knew what Y/N was asking was reasonable but a selfish part of her wanted to fight with Y/N about it, to say that they could stay here and still figure things out. But Y/N had spent enough time with people making decisions for them, so she would agree to this simple request, it was the least she could do for them.
"Alright" Nat agreed, "I'll come and see you in a couple of days."
Y/N leaned in and kissed Nat softly. Nat melted into the kiss, kissing Y/N back slowly.
"Deal, but no more throwing photo frames at my head alright?" Y/N said as they stepped back and held out the photo frame to Nat.
"Keep it" Nat took the polaroid out of the broken frame and handed it back to Y/N.
Y/N smiled as they slipped the photo into the inside pocket of their leather jacket. Before anything else could be said between them, Y/N turned and carried out walking out of the compound.
**
Nat went to walk back toward her room and as she looked round she found Yelena and Wanda both standing at the bottom of the stairs. Yelena had a grin on her face, whilst Wanda gave her a more sympathetic smile.
"Have the pair of you been lurking here the whole time?" Nat asked with an arched brow.
"Maybe? But can you blame us? When you stormed past the lounge you looked beyond pissed, we just wanted to make sure you didn't hurt Y/N. Though the whole photo frame throwing thing, that was funny" Yelena laughed as her sister walked over.
"I need to go and have a conversation with Y/N before they go. Steve reached an agreement with Fury about Y/N's freedom but there are some conditions. I'll fill you in on them when I come back" Wanda explained to Nat, who gave her a slight nod before watching as Wanda headed in the same direction Y/N had gone.
"Want to go and drink some vodka and shoot stuff" Yelena asked, nodding toward the direction of the gun range.
"Yes" Nat replied without a hesitation.
**
Wanda stepped out into the grounds of the compound and found Y/N sitting on one of the motorbikes from the garage, they had a helmet tucked under their arm.
"Here to give me the lecture on the conditions of my freedom from the Raft?" Y/N asked with a small smirk.
"You really expect me to buy the cocky arrogant assassin act after what I just saw between you and Nat in the foyer?" Wanda asked as they approached Y/N.
Y/N gave a small shrug, they weren't in the mood to discuss it with Wanda.
"Fury has agreed that you will not have to return to the Raft. However that doesn't mean you get free reign to go off and disappear to cause any more trouble. I've adjusted the spell, you'll get to keep that rune for awhile longer, it contains you to the state of New York now" Wanda explained to them, she had unbound the spell in Budapest when Maze had said Y/N hadn't made it but it had been simple enough to recast it earlier.
"Is that everything? Are you going to tell me I have a curfew next?" Y/N started the engine on the bike, moving to put the helmet on.
"Don't do anything stupid. Don't break her heart again Y/N" Wanda warned as she watched them.
"That's what I'm trying to avoid doing" Y/N replied before shutting the visor on the helmet, ending the conversation there.