hello! do you maybe write angst? i was wondering if you could write a wandanat x f!reader ( or it could be just nat x r, or wanda x r, whatever you like ) where they're both constantly prioritizing their works and other people, and everytime r tries to make them stay or at least spend a little time with her, they always get mad and make her feel like their worlds doesn't revolved around r. and then one day, r just loses it and stopped caring. wanda and nat noticed the sudden change because she's not the way she used to. not as clingy as before, doesn't text them anytime she gets and want, and everything.
the rest is up to you ( if you want to make it a happy ending, that's totally fine!! ) thank you!!
Neglected
ScarletWidow x Fem!Reader
Your girlfriends have been neglecting you lately
[A/N] – Thank you for the request! I’m happy to write angst but I do struggle with not having a happy ending so I’m glad you gave me free reign there 😅 I really enjoyed writing this though so thank you, hope you enjoy it!
You blow out the candles, resigning yourself to the fact that your girlfriends aren’t joining you. There are tears in your eyes as you switch the main light back on – what’s the point in a romantic ambience if your girlfriends aren’t here to appreciate it?
Last week you’d told your girlfriends’ you were feeling a little neglected. Natasha and Wanda had listened carefully and reassured you that they did still love you but they were just really busy with work lately. You knew their jobs carried a lot of responsibility so you tried not to nag them… But lately they seemed to be taking on more and more. They were rarely at home and when they were they seemed distracted, constantly looking at their phones or discussing work issues between the two of them – conversations that you couldn’t join in with.
They’d checked their calendars and had agreed to come home early tonight for dinner. You’d been so excited – you’d gone shopping in the afternoon, walking up and down the aisles, happily planning the romantic dinner you were going to cook for them. You’d found a recipe called ‘Marry Me Chicken Pasta’ and you’d decided that would be the ideal dinner to reconnect with your busy girlfriends. You’d returned to the apartment you shared with them and had spent the afternoon cleaning and tidying, wanting every detail to be perfect.
Once the dinner was cooked you’d kept it in the oven to keep it warm, expecting your girlfriends’ home at any minute. You’d lit candles and dimmed the lights, setting the table, wanting everything to be perfect for the moment they walked in. And then you’d waited. And waited and waited and waited. Three hours later you had to accept the hard truth – they hadn’t left work early. In fact, they were coming home later than usual.
You put away the dishes and peak in the oven at your now lukewarm chicken pasta. You don’t have the heart to eat the food you’d lovingly prepared by yourself so you grab a microwave meal out of the fridge and eat that instead, watching an episode of your favourite sitcom on TV whilst you try and hold back the tears threatening to spill over any minute.
It gets so late that you begin to worry something has happened to your girlfriends’. Just as you consider calling them you hear the key in the lock and the sounds of them taking their shoes and coats off. You get up and go into the hallway, watching them both. They barely look at you. Eventually you clear your throat “Hey… I thought you were finishing early today.”
“Oh was that tonight?” Natasha asks absentmindedly, already checking her phone as she brushes past you “There was an emergency briefing at work, we had to stay late.”
“Oh,” You say quietly “Well, it would’ve been nice if you could’ve text me, I was waiting-”
“Funnily enough texting you wasn’t top of our priority list Y/N.” Wanda mumbles, also brushing past you.
You feel a pang of hurt at that comment and you watch as they head into the bedroom. It’s true they’ve been busy lately but they’ve never blown you off like that before. You stand in the doorway “I made chicken pasta. It’s a little cold now but I could warm it up-”
“Tony bought us in some food.” Natasha says, changing into an oversized t-shirt.
“Oh…” You shift your weight from one foot to the other “Well, I’d love to hear about your days, I could maybe pour some wine-”
“Y/N, can’t you tell that we’re beat? We’re going to bed.” Wanda sighs, also changing into her night clothes.
You nod, the tears from earlier still simmering beneath the surface. You’re desperate not to let on how upset you are though so you continue cheerily “Yeah, okay, sounds good. Maybe we can cuddle for a bit-”
“Oh my God, can you just leave us alone for five fucking minutes?” Natasha snaps “We’re tired and all you’ve done is whine and make everything about you since we got here. Get off our backs. We’re too tired for cuddles and for talking and for whatever else, we’re going straight to sleep.”
You freeze, your stomach twisting at the tone of Natasha’s voice. You look to Wanda, hoping she’ll say something to defend you, that she’ll tell you that she wants to cuddle but she just keeps her back to you as she climbs into bed.
Natasha gives you a look as she goes to switch off the light so you quickly step backwards and she closes the door, leaving you alone in the hallway. You stand staring at the door for a long moment, your stomach swirling with guilt and hurt as you process what just happened before eventually padding down the hallway to the living room. You sink down onto the couch, flicking your favourite sitcom back on. You’re not paying attention though – you hug your knees to your chest and cry.
You spend the night on the couch, not wanting to disturb your clearly overtired girlfriends. The next morning you hear them moving around in the kitchen and you sit up slowly, stretching your arms over your head. Today is a new day and you’re sure that yesterday was just a blip – Natasha and Wanda were clearly stressed from the emergency meeting. They hadn’t meant to take it out on you. You’re sure they’ll be ready to apologise this morning and you can rearrange your romantic dinner.
You go into the kitchen where they’re both sat at the table drinking a coffee. You stand in the doorway for a moment before smiling “Morning! Did you guys sleep okay?” Neither woman replies and you feel that horrible feeling in your stomach again. You clear your throat “Do you guys have a minute for breakfast? I could make us something-”
“We’ll grab something on the way to work, we’ve got a long day today.” Natasha says “Probably work late again.”
“Oh… Okay.” You hesitate. Neither of them has said a word about you sleeping on the couch all night “Hey so um… I don’t wanna… I know you guys are stressed and everything but we did agree to have a romantic dinner last night-”
“This again,” Wanda groans “It was an emergency, we told you-”
“I know, I know, sorry!” You quickly put your hands up in surrender “I just… I’m just saying, maybe we could rearrange, I was really looking forward to it-”
“Yeah, we’ll rearrange, whatever.” Natasha says, draining the last of her coffee “But we’ve gotta go. Things at work are hectic at the minute.”
“Well maybe we could do something at the weekend,” Your girlfriends’ brush past you to start putting their shoes on and you follow them into the hallway “A new escape room opened up at that place we like, and we could always go out somewhere for food too, maybe that taco place-”
“Jeez, Y/N, can you give it a rest?” Wanda snaps “Our worlds don’t revolve around you; we can’t just drop everything for your stupid little dates or whatever. We actually have responsibilities, you know, jobs, important jobs.”
The horrible feeling in your stomach increases. They’ve never spoken to you like this before. The comment about their jobs particularly stings – a couple of months ago you’d lost your job. You’d worked for a magazine and you’d loved it. They’d announced layoffs and you’d all had to re-interview for your jobs. You hadn’t made the cut. You’d come home and sobbed into your girlfriends’ arms, telling them it felt like your world was falling apart. It was them who had convinced you this could be an opportunity. You’ve always been interested in writing and they told you that you could spend this time working on the novel you’d been talking about for years. You’d felt bad about not contributing to the bills but they’d both reassured you it was fine, that they had it covered.
But now you suddenly feel like a burden.
You watch in silence as your girlfriends’ finish getting ready and then leave – not giving you a kiss or a hug or even a ‘goodbye’. Only silence save for the door slamming shut, as your girlfriends leave you alone in the apartment for another day.
The following weeks don’t get any better. Every attempt you make at reconciling with your girlfriends’ is met at best with apathy and at worst hostility. At the weekends your girlfriends aren’t even busy with work, they just make promises to see people who aren’t you – Natasha is helping Bucky to restore an old motorbike and Wanda is giving extra training sessions to Peter. You try again to bring up the fact that you’re feeling a bit neglected and lonely, and they both tell you to meet up with friends.
You don’t really have many friends. Most of them had been your colleagues at the magazine but after you’d been made redundant they’d stopped contacting you. You had a couple of friends from college but they were busy with their own lives too. And besides… You wanted Natasha and Wanda to show you some affection. To get rid of that horrible feeling that had settled in your stomach ever since that night of the ruined romantic dinner.
One day you take matters into your own hands and go to the Avengers Compound with a picnic. You’ve visited the compound a few times, you have clearance and in the past Natasha and Wanda have always been happy to see you. You bump into Steve who seems happy to see you and when you ask where your girlfriends’ are he cheerily tells you they’re in the gym and that he hopes you have a nice lunch.
Natasha and Wanda are less receptive when you eventually track them down. They’re training together and instead of their faces lighting up when they see you as they would’ve previously done they look… Irritated “What are you doing here?” Natasha asks as she throws another punch at Wanda.
“I thought we could have lunch together.” You say brightly “I packed a picnic and it’s a really nice day. It’d be nice to sit outside for a while. You’ve been working so hard that you deserve a break-”
“We’re busy Y/N.” Wanda says, not even looking at you as she blocks Natasha’s punch and throws one of her own.
You feel that familiar pang of hurt. The gym is empty – the rest of the Avengers are out having lunch. Why are they choosing to continue with training rather than taking a little break with you? You take a breath and continue, trying to keep your voice light and positive “Well… I can wait until you’re done training. I could go pick us a spot outside. You don’t need to rush-”
“Y/N!” Natasha snaps, turning to you, her eyes blazing “We’re working! We don’t have time for fucking picnics or any of your cutesy nonsense right now! For fucks sake, you’re so goddamn needy.”
“God, you’ve been insufferable lately.” Wanda says “We’re really stressed with work and all you’ve done is make it about you and how you’re feeling. We’re sorry we can’t drop everything to be with you 24/7 but people are counting on us.”
“Just go home Y/N.” Natasha turns back to Wanda “And don’t interrupt us at work again.”
Your heart absolutely breaks and you suddenly feel so stupid and embarrassed, standing in the Avengers gym with your picnic basket. Both women continue sparring and training, neither of them acknowledging you anymore. You take a deep breath and then place the basket next to the mat before walking slowly out of the gym, tears spilling down your cheeks. There are a thousand thoughts swirling around in your head but one sticks out the most – you will not allow yourself to ever feel this stupid again.
A few weeks go by and Natasha and Wanda slowly start to notice a change in you. Most nights when they get home you’re not there. A couple of times they’ve been watching TV in the living room and you’ve walked in, walking straight past them to the kitchen, whereas before you would’ve gone in and squashed yourself in between them. They would’ve groaned but ultimately let you, both of them wrapping you in a big hug. You’re not showing them any affection at all anymore. In fact, you’re barely talking to them.
One night Wanda is in bed when she suddenly sits up and looks down at Natasha who’s lying next to her “Hey… When was the last time Y/N slept in the bed?”
Natasha rolls over to look at Wanda, her nose scrunching for a moment as she thinks “I don’t know. Not for the past few days at least…” Natasha yawns “Come to think of it… We haven’t seen much of her lately at all.”
Wanda nods “She’s been texting you, right? Letting you know where she is.”
“No, I assumed she was texting you.” Natasha sits up “You mean you have no idea what she’s been doing?”
“No, I was busy with- You know, everything.” Wanda jumps out of bed and quickly crosses the room, going down the hallway and into the living room. You’re not home yet and she feels a stab of panic. It’s late, where the hell could you be? Where the hell have you been going?
Natasha appears behind Wanda, chewing her bottom lip worriedly “Fuck, she could be anywhere right now.”
Wanda sighs and pulls out her phone, scrolling through it and dialling your number. It rings and rings but there’s no answer. She groans and hangs up “I’m checking her location.”
“Okay, I’m gonna get dressed.” Natasha goes back into the bedroom, pulling on a pair of skinny jeans beneath the t-shirt she was going to wear to bed.
Wanda appears a moment later, also getting changed “She’s at some address a few blocks away.”
Natasha pauses by the chest of drawers, flicking through the top drawer “Hey… Half her stuff is gone…”
Wanda puts her arms through the sleeves of her dress and stands next to Natasha, her eye-brows furrowing “Yeah…” She fishes through the drawer, pulling out a couple of your t-shirts. Your most favourite ones are gone, leaving behind a few that you only occasionally wear. Wanda presses a hand to her forehead “Fuck, this is bad.”
“Let’s go to that address and see what’s going on.” Natasha says, pulling on her boots.
Half-an-hour later they pull up outside an apartment building. Natasha sighs, chewing her bottom lip again “She could be in any of those apartments.”
“That one up there still has lights on.” Wanda says “That could be a start.”
Natasha nods and the pair get out of the car. The front door to the apartment building is broken so they let themselves in and then climb up to the top floor, knocking on the door where the lights are still on. Inside they hear a giggle and then the door opens, revealing a short girl with dark hair. Her smile falters when she sees Natasha and Wanda, and she sighs, calling over her shoulder “Y/N. Your girlfriends are here.”
Wanda and Natasha are unnerved by the fact they have no idea who this girl is but she clearly knows them and more to the point, she clearly knows you. You appear in the doorway, wearing your favourite pair of pyjamas, the ones with your favourite cartoon characters on. Natasha’s expression softens as she sees you – she always thought you looked cute in those pj’s “Baby… What’s going on? You’re spending the night here?”
“Who is this girl?” Wanda asks.
“She’s my friend… What are you two doing here?”
“We came looking for you. We were worried; you didn’t tell us where you were.” Natasha reaches out to put her hand on your arm and is startled when you pull back.
“Half of your clothes are gone.” Wanda says quietly “What’s going on?”
“What, you suddenly care?” You ask.
Natasha’s eye-brows furrow “Of course we care, you know we do.”
You don’t say anything and Wanda continues “It would’ve been nice to know where you were. We’ve come out here in the middle of the night-”
“I didn’t ask you to do that.”
Both women are surprised by your tone. You don’t sound angry or even upset, just… Tired. Resigned. Natasha reaches for you again and sighs as you pull away again “Baby, come on, come home with us.”
“We don’t know what’s going on but we can talk about it.” Wanda says.
“We can talk about it… Right…” You fidget with the hem of your pyjama shirt “It’s just that, when I wanted to talk, when I tried to tell you how I felt… You made me feel like a fucking idiot.”
Wanda and Natasha exchange a glance and Wanda reaches for your hand “What do you mean?”
You pull away and both women realise something is seriously wrong. Your friend puts a hand on your shoulder “You’ve been taking her for granted, you've actually been pretty rude-"
“I’m sorry, who the fuck are you?” Natasha snaps “We’re here to talk to Y/N, not you.”
“She’s not wrong.” You say quietly “I’ve been staying here for the past week. Did you even notice?”
Natasha and Wanda exchange another glance because the truth is… No, they hadn’t really noticed. They’d realised you were withdrawing a little but they hadn’t realised just how much you’d withdrawn “Of course we noticed,” Natasha lies “Look, we’re here to bring you home.”
“We can talk about this and sort it out, okay? I’m sorry we weren’t listening before but we are now.” Wanda says.
“It’s too late.” You say quietly “I’m not… I’m not coming home. I’ll find some place to live and I’ll come back for the rest of my stuff but-”
“What? No. No, no, no, you’re not doing that.” Natasha’s voice is desperate now, both women finally realising just how badly they fucked up “Look, Y/N, baby, this is crazy. Please come home with us, please. We can sort this out.”
“We fucked up, okay?” Wanda says “Your friend is right, we took you for granted, we neglected you, we just- Being an Avenger, it’s so much pressure-”
“We know it’s no excuse but we- Fuck, Y/N, I’m sorry, we didn’t tell you but we fucked up a mission and we’ve been trying to make it up to the team ever since, okay?” Natasha’s eyes fill with tears “Working late, volunteering to help the team with stuff, extra training… It was bad, there was government interference, God they were even talking about detaining Wanda at one point-”
“What?” Your eye-brows shoot up “Why the hell didn’t you tell me?”
“I was embarrassed.” Wanda says quietly “It was… Like Natasha said, it was stressful; we were doing everything we could to make things up to the team, to show that we can still do this job…”
“We didn’t mean to neglect you.” Tears begin spilling down Natasha’s cheeks “We didn’t mean to make you feel unimportant, God, we love you, we were just so stressed. I’m so damn sorry…”
“It’s not an excuse, we know it’s not-” Wanda steps forward, taking your hand in hers and her heart soars with hope as you don’t pull away this time. She intertwines your fingers “Please come home. Please.”
You hesitate, looking between them both. Natasha is openly crying and Wanda looks close. You don’t know what to do – you love them both more than anything but you still feel that horrible, sick feeling in that stomach. You’d thought distance would make the feeling shrink but it’s only increased day after day.
Natasha steps forward, wrapping an arm around your waist, pressing her forehead to yours “Please baby.” She whispers “I’m sorry, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry.”
You let out a long breath before whispering back “Okay… Okay, I’ll come home. For now.”
Wanda sighs, relieved “Thank you… We can come back here for your stuff, let’s just… Let’s just go. Let's get you home baby girl.”
You give your friend a quick hug and then follow your girlfriends’ out to Natasha’s car. Natasha slides into the driver’s seat whilst Wanda slips into the back with you, wrapping her arms around you and pressing a kiss to the top of your head. Her arms are tight around you as if she’s worried you’ll slip out and run away.
You don’t know what will happen next. For now, you’re willing to hear them out but you want to know more about this supposed failed mission that caused all of these issues. You can understand the stress getting to them but you also know that their jobs will only bring more heartache and stress. And you can’t let them take it out on you again – they can’t neglect you like this and expect you to just wait until they’re ready for you again. Wanda presses a kiss to your teary cheek and you let out another breath. You’ll hear them out. You have to. Despite everything… You still love them. And you want this to work.
wanting was enough. for me, it was enough. to live for the hope of it all, cancel plans just in case you’d call. so much for summer love, and saying, “us” ‘cause you weren’t mine to lose.
i do not give permission for my work to be copied or translated on other sites. plagiarism is a crime!!
main m. list || whispers of heartache m. list || you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love m. list
note: don’t worry, i haven’t forgotten “begged” fic. to those who are waiting for the update, i promise i’ll post the remaining two chapters soon!
part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5
august always arrived like a promise no one intended to keep.
it came dressed in humid afternoons and dragonflies skimming the lake.
in cicadas that sang themselves hoarse beneath the pines.
in sunlight so golden it looked as though the sky had forgotten that autumn existed.
the world held its breath during august.
everything ripened.
everything softened.
everything learned how to leave.
years later, wanda would still swear the air smelled different whenever august returned.
not because of the season. but because grief had a scent.
it smelled like cedar wood and coffee left forgotten on the porch.
it smelled like lake water drying on sunburnt skin.
it smelled like detergent clinging to a black hoodie she had never been able to throw away.
it smelled like natasha.
the first knock came just after sunset.
wanda had been watering the herbs outside the cabin when three slow knocks echoed against the front door.
not hurried.
not desperate.
just… i’m here.
she frowned.
nobody came out this far unless they were lost.
she wiped her hands on the hem of her shorts and opened the door.
natasha romanoff stood there with a weathered duffel bag hanging from one shoulder.
her hair was longer than wanda remembered.
there was a healing cut beneath her jaw.
a bruise disappeared beneath the collar of a faded black t-shirt.
she looked exhausted.
she smiled anyway.
“…hi.”
for one impossible second, wanda forgot how to breathe.
it had been four months.
four months since she’d last seen her.
four months since natasha had hugged her outside the avengers compound and said — “i’ll be back before the leaves change.”
the leaves had changed, then changed back.
and still… nothing.
until now.
“you disappeared.”
“i know.”
“you didn’t answer your phone.”
“i know.”
“you—”
“i know.”
natasha’s voice was quieter than usual.
almost guilty.
almost.
she shifted the duffel higher on her shoulder.
“i’ve got a week.”
wanda blinked.
“…what?”
“one week.”
natasha glanced toward the trees surrounding the cabin, like she could already hear the inevitable call pulling her somewhere else.
“they finally gave me leave.”
silence.
“a whole week?”
natasha nodded.
“they’ll call me back on the first.”
“september first?”
another nod.
“i didn’t know where else to go.”
something inside wanda’s chest betrayed her.
it opened.
like a flower stupid enough to bloom before winter.
she stepped aside.
“come in.”
natasha left her boots beside the door.
the cabin suddenly felt too small.
not because of the walls, but because every room became aware of her.
the kitchen noticed her.
the old record player noticed her.
even the silence noticed her.
natasha wandered toward the window overlooking the lake.
“you kept the curtains.”
“you hated them.”
“i still do.”
“they’re staying.”
natasha laughed.
god.
wanda had forgotten that sound.
she had forgotten how easily it reached places inside her that no one else ever could.
“i missed this place.”
wanda swallowed.
“you missed sleeping somewhere that wasn’t military housing.”
“i missed…” natasha looked out across the water. “…quiet.”
that answer hurt more than wanda expected.
because it sounded honest.
and natasha rarely allowed herself honesty.
dinner was terrible.
spectacularly terrible.
the pasta boiled over. the garlic burned.
natasha insisted she could fix it.
she couldn’t.
smoke filled the kitchen, and wanda was laughing so hard she had to lean against the counter.
natasha pointed a wooden spoon at her.
“this is your fault.”
“my fault?”
“you distracted me.”
“i was literally cutting tomatoes.”
“you looked at me.”
“i looked at the pan.”
“liar.”
wanda rolled her eyes and smiled, “oh my god.”
natasha smiled.
“there she is.”
“what?”
“i haven’t seen you smile like that in months.”
the laughter faded.
silence settled between them.
gentle.
careful.
wanda looked away first.
that night, thunder rolled somewhere beyond the mountains.
not close enough to storm. just enough to remind the sky that rain existed.
natasha took the couch.
she always did.
wanda had offered the bed but natasha refused.
“i’m not kicking you out of your own room.”
“you’ve slept in worse.”
“i’ve also slept in ceilings.”
“what...?”
“long story.”
wanda laughed.
again.
she kept laughing around natasha.
it was dangerous.
natasha made life feel ordinary.
and ordinary was the cruelest thing someone like natasha could offer.
because it was temporary.
around midnight — “wanda?”
“hm?”
“you awake?”
“obviously.”
“you wanna come outside?”
the porch overlooked the lake.
moonlight turned the water into melted silver.
neither of them spoke.
sometimes silence became another language.
natasha sat with her elbows on her knees.
“i forgot how loud the crickets are.”
“i stopped hearing them years ago.”
“they’re impossible to ignore.”
“you get used to anything if it stays long enough.”
natasha looked at her.
“do you?”
wanda felt those words somewhere beneath her ribs.
because natasha wasn’t asking about crickets. she was asking whether people ever stopped missing things.
whether absence eventually became normal.
whether loneliness settled into your bones until it no longer hurt.
wanda answered honestly.
“no.”
natasha looked back toward the lake.
“me neither.”
the next morning began with coffee.
natasha stole wanda’s mug.
“you have your own.”
“yours tastes better.”
“it’s the same coffee.”
“it tastes different.”
“you’re impossible.”
“so i’ve been told.”
she smiled over the rim of wanda’s mug.
the lipstick stain wanda had left on the ceramic now rested against natasha’s mouth.
it shouldn’t have meant anything.
but it did.
god, everything did.
the days unfolded slowly.
morning coffee.
afternoon walks.
evening sunsets.
night conversations that wandered nowhere and everywhere.
they spoke about childhoods neither of them wanted back.
about books natasha never finished.
about the stars reflected across the lake.
about whether ghosts were simply memories that refused to leave.
neither of them spoke about september.
it waited outside the cabin like an unwelcome guest.
on the third day — “ready?”
natasha tossed wanda a pair of sparring gloves.
“you came here to rest.”
“i’ll rest after.”
“you say that every mission.”
“and?”
“and that’s exactly why you’re covered in bruises.”
natasha smirked, “they build character.”
“they build hospital bills.”
“you worry too much.”
“you don’t worry enough.”
“so…” natasha stepped closer, “you gonna hit me or lecture me?”
the backyard was uneven grass and stubborn wildflowers.
the sun beat against their shoulders.
natasha attacked first.
of course she did.
wanda blocked. countered. missed.
natasha laughed.
“slower.”
“i’m trying not to kill you.”
“please.”
another move.
another block.
another stumble.
natasha caught wanda before she hit the ground.
momentum carried them both sideways.
wanda’s back landed against natasha’s chest.
natasha’s arm wrapped instinctively around her waist to steady her.
everything stopped. even the wind.
wanda could feel natasha breathing.
slow.
warm.
their bodies fit together with an ease neither of them acknowledged.
natasha didn’t let go.
five seconds.
six.
seven.
too long.
far too long.
wanda whispered — “nat...”
“hm?”
“i think training’s over.”
natasha didn’t answer, instead, she only inhaled.
as though memorizing the scent of sunscreen, grass, and wanda’s shampoo.
then — too quickly — she stepped away.
“again.”
as though nothing had happened.
as though wanda’s heartbeat hadn’t nearly escaped her chest.
that evening rain began.
soft.
persistent.
the power flickered once.
twice.
then vanished.
the cabin dissolved into darkness.
“oh.” natasha laughed, “guess we’re roughing it.”
“i have candles.”
“you absolutely would.”
“i like being prepared.”
“you like pretending you’re eighty.”
wanda found the matches.
tiny flames bloomed around the living room.
the cabin glowed amber.
everything softened.
the shadows made natasha’s face gentler somehow.
less assassin. more woman.
they watched the worst movie either of them had ever seen.
halfway through — natasha reached for popcorn.
so did wanda.
their fingers brushed.
neither moved.
the thunder cracked overhead.
light flashed through the windows.
for one impossible heartbeat— their faces were inches apart.
close enough that wanda could count natasha’s freckles.
close enough to wonder whether every story she’d imagined over the last four months had been leading here.
natasha looked at her mouth.
then her eyes.
then back again.
wanda didn’t breathe.
she thought — maybe.
maybe the universe had simply been slow.
maybe timing wasn’t always cruel.
maybe —
natasha leaned back first.
reached for the bowl.
“don’t.”
wanda stared.
natasha kept her eyes on the television.
“don’t make this into something.”
silence.
“i wasn’t.”
“you were.”
“nat…”
“i can’t.”
wanda looked down at her hands.
“okay...”
one word.
small enough to fit inside a whisper.
heavy enough to sink to the bottom of the lake.
the movie kept playing.
neither of them watched another second of it.
outside — august continued.
as though it didn’t know it was running out of days.
as though endings weren’t already gathering at the edge of the trees.
as though love was something people always had time to name.
they didn’t.
and neither of them knew yet that some silences outlived the people who spoke them.
