[Natasha makes a quiet sound in her throat, almost a laugh but not quite. A little too broken. A little to unsure.]
The Blip.
[They couldn't come up with a better name? The Blip sounded so... trivial. Little a minor inconvenience—the power going out for a minute, or the picture in a movie. But in the same words, Barnes confirms they're back—not just him, but Sam too, and Yelena.
They could call it whatever they wanted, as long as everyone was alive again.
Everyone but Natasha.
She scrubs her finger under one eye, holding back tears that she thinks are mostly happy.]
I haven't seen them yet. You're the first.
[There, she can break the problem down into smaller parts. Focus on them one at a time.
If she and Barnes were closer, she might have hugged him. She might have been tempted to hug him anyway, if he didn't look like twelve miles of bad road. The scruffy beard and lank hair aren't lost on Natasha, even now.]
no subject
The Blip.
[They couldn't come up with a better name? The Blip sounded so... trivial. Little a minor inconvenience—the power going out for a minute, or the picture in a movie. But in the same words, Barnes confirms they're back—not just him, but Sam too, and Yelena.
They could call it whatever they wanted, as long as everyone was alive again.
Everyone but Natasha.
She scrubs her finger under one eye, holding back tears that she thinks are mostly happy.]
I haven't seen them yet. You're the first.
[There, she can break the problem down into smaller parts. Focus on them one at a time.
If she and Barnes were closer, she might have hugged him. She might have been tempted to hug him anyway, if he didn't look like twelve miles of bad road. The scruffy beard and lank hair aren't lost on Natasha, even now.]
What's wrong with Sam?