She shuffled through her drawer to find a roll of tape but soon realised, she still needed to learn how to organise. She grabbed the item she was looking for from within the mess and closed the drawer as she fought a melancholic smile.
Natasha was the opposite, her room was always well kept. You could tell there was a set order that ruled her life, whereas Yelena’s was touched by chaos.
She fidgeted with the edge of the tape, lost for a couple of seconds, not sure why she was looking for tape in the first place.
“Is this your sister?”, she heard Bob and it brought her back to reality.
He stood in front of her desk, a photo frame in his hand. If it had been anyone else, Yelena’s immediate reaction would have been to grab the picture out of their hands and tell them off for touching things that wasn’t theirs. But to her surprise, she stood by his side to view the photo together.
“That was the last time I saw her.”, she reminisced. She smiled as she recollected a moment but held herself back.
“Tell me.”, he nudged her softly. But she never did this. She never spoke of her, if she continued to share pieces of her, soon she’d be left with nothing to remember.
“Let’s look at that shoulder.”, she quietly pulled away the frame to place it in its place and guided Bob to take a seat on her arm chair.
She felt the heat of his gaze, never leaving her face, boring into her. He didn’t want to push her and yet he wanted to know, to understand and get to know her.
He settled into the seat and she drew closer, this closeness between them had become normal. He held onto the edge of his shirt and pulled it over his shoulder when he winced again. Yelena huffed a laugh as she saw him stuck mid way, his arm over his head, his face lost in his shirt.
She helped him pull it away as it tousled his hair across his face. He smiled looking up at her, his torso in full view as he set his hair in place. Suddenly what felt normal, felt new again. She averted her eyes in the hopes the blush on her cheeks would stop.
“Hold still.”, she instructed him, he pursed his lips and nodded.
She leaned closer, sticking the muscle tape in such a way it would ease his strain. She did it all the time after a fight, it fastened the healing process. But the softness of his skin distracted her, the smell of clean linen, she felt off balance. Making matters worse, almost as if he could read her mind, she felt his hands on her waist as he steadied her.
“How it is that you survived a whole barrage of bullets and have somehow managed to mess up your shoulder?”, she asked as she looked at the bruises.
“If I drew strength from the sentry, I would heal sooner.”, he responded.
“But with everything that happened the last time I was him, I thought it would be better to stay away from it all.”, he continued.
“Have you ever tried since then?”, she asked, her eyes briefly looking at him to find his gaze already set on her. He looked away as though he had been caught. She stepped away, his shoulder was all taped up, his gentle hold still in place as she stood in between his legs.
“I didn’t want to be alone.”, he said with a sheepish grin. “When I tried to get into that headspace again.”
His fear was valid, it was quite intense last time.
“Your shoulder should be alright now.”, she gestured and he shook his head in agreement, removing his hands from her hesitantly. She bit back her smile, he never disputed anything she said. Always was in agreement, in tune. It was absurd how this connection had found her when she most needed it.
“It feels better already.”, he said as he searched her eyes. Somehow both of them still stuck in this threshold of each other’s worlds.
“Do you wish to see her?”, he asked, averting his eyes as he gulped as though he was unsure, as though he had overstepped his bounds.
It took Yelena by surprise, the good and bad resurfacing, the control over her emotions were lost. She wanted to and then held back. She looked at him. His soft spirit elevated the unease.
“I don’t want you to get hurt.”, she said knowing well what he was willing to do for her.
He grew more confident, for her he would risk it. With her, he believed he was stronger, that he was good. The least he could do after everything she had done, was confront his past that lingered around him like an electric fence. Maybe together, he could break free from it.
“I won’t.”, he assured her as he took her hand in his and stood up.
Her heart was racing, gentleness was not part of her life. She grew up devoid of it. For all the kindness in her spirit, the world never treated her with softness. But Bob made up for it, his gentle hold on her always making her crave for more.
He closed his eyes and she followed suit, some part of her still yearning for closure. Her heart skipped a beat as she felt a shiver down her spine, like the very first time she saw Bob in her mind.
She could tell the air had changed around them, a vacuum sealed them in, she began to breathe heavily. A part of her was afraid and another part of her was excited. She didn’t want to open her eyes, she took a step closer to him, her body instinctively craving his protection. She felt him take a hold of her hand and place it over his chest, the steady rhythm of his heart easing her.
“I’m here, you’re not alone in this.”, he said quietly. She opened her eyes, he still stood in front of her but the world around them had changed.
“Bob.”, she said his name as she held onto his hand tightly. She sensed her.
“You have someone waiting for you.”, he smiled and gestured behind her.
vaporwave
kianamaiart
kaledo-art
turnnoffyourmind
andulkaphoto
discoholicmusic
jbbartram-illu
