ic inbox;

[chernyy]

"Busy. Leave a message."

action | text | voice | spam

Comments

text

[wipedclean]

rumlow's here. did you see?

text

[chernyy]

[ It comes after almost half an hour has passed. ]

Yes.

[wipedclean]

he seems to be anti-hydra now.

but i don't trust him.

text;

[fossils]

Hey.

[ He's back. ]

text;

[chernyy]

Hey. You're back?

[ She shouldn't be nervous about what he might remember. But Ultron was a pretty huge mess... ]

[fossils]

Yeah. Got a few extra years on me this time.

[ Ultron is the last thing on his mind right now. ]

Anything new here?

text | un: stark

[gbpp]

You are hereby cordially invited to the first Stark House Party.

Bring your own whatever. Food, drink, swimwear. Starts at eight. Finishes whenever I say so.

text; sent in the afternoon of Jul 2nd

[avengeme]

You've been cordially invited to Daisy Johnson's birthday party at[Coulson's apartment building and number here]. There's going to be pizza. Feel free to bring more booze.

text; backdated like whoa

[chernyy]

Roger that.

What about cake?

action

[fightlikehell]

[It's a familiar trek actually. Matt has come to know it well. With or without sight he's sure he could make it there. The conversation peaks and flows as they walk. The closer to her apartment the more a heavy brick of nerves settles in his gut. How far is this going to go? How far are they going to go?

They've made it to the lobby and the elevator up. She knows the way from here and still...]

Listen, I know things are still precarious.

[chernyy]

[ All during the walk, Natasha goes through the mental list of why she shouldn't let this go any faster than it already is. She knows they should be slower this time. Matt did lie to her about a lot of things. About a huge facet of his life and person.

It turns out it's a short list. And every time, there's a small voice that reminds her of how much she's kept from Matt. Either by omission or always sidestepping the subject.

And, beyond all that, she misses him. Misses his presence, his voice, his warmth and laugh. They've spent days apart by now. Almost two weeks of barely meeting or talking. A few texts here and there, now meeting at a carnival.

And now he was walking her home. She turns and looks at him when he speaks, ]

But?

[ He obviously wants to say something, she'll give him the chance in case what she suggests may end up seeming 'too fast'. ]

[fightlikehell]

[Weight it all out is the smart thing to do. And Matt adores the fact that she is smart. It's obvious he adores many things about her. Now they're right outside the door of her apartment. Have they even bothered letting go of one another's hands? Not by his choice.

He should let her be. He should go home and think. Maybe search his heart to see if he can ever really offer her anything she'd need emotionally. Matt Murdock has his own baggage that sure as shit is not lightening up any time soon. He rubs his mouth before answering her question.]

There's no but. I just want to say I'm aware and I accept that you need your space whenever you want it.

[Maybe like now because of how he's leaning closer to her. Close enough to hear her blink.]

[ text; un: barton ]

[arcum]

Your boyfriend's okay. I guess.

[chernyy]

What did you do.

[arcum]

Chill. I didn't kill him. I just talked to him.

[arcum]

I'm going home, Nat.

[chernyy]

[ There's not a response for a while. She's kinda been avoiding him since she got back. (There's no "kinda". She has been.) ]

I'm sorry.

[arcum]

Don't apologize. It's not your fault. I don't blame you for anything. Promise.

text | 2.25

[myownwoman]

Could you please meet me at the studio?

text > action

[chernyy]

[ She's a little surprised at the text but doesn't hesitate to type back: ]

Sure. Give me a few.

[ And, just as she said, a few minutes later and she's walking through the door. She gives Gaby a little smile and nod when she spots her. Walking over. ]

Hey. What's up?

[myownwoman]

[ gaby is tucked behind the reception desk, fiddling with a match box car replica of some 60s german car that usually sits on top of the desk. she straightens up when she sees the redhead come in, offering a faint smile. ]

I'm going home. [ okay so not even a preamble there cool ] I'm not sure for how long or if I'll even come back. My incentive... [ she shrugs. saving her dad is important to her. ]

[ text ]

[recruited]

You're always busy huh? Work, work, work.

[ text ]

[chernyy]

You say that like it's a bad thing.

Riiiiiiiiing!

[fightlikehell]

[He is already out the door, in a sprint. The cane is tucked up under his arm, the phone pressed to his ear. His heart is pounding. There are only so many places she would be at this hour.]

[chernyy]

[ She's seen the Mayor's post on the Network and honestly can't bring herself to respond to it in any fashion. Not where people can see. Alone in her dance studio - she finally got her own dance studio - she wipes at her eyes over and over, trying not to cry. Refusing to.

But those damn tears keep persisting.

She jumps slightly at her phone ringing and she shouldn't be surprised it's Matt. Just makes the ache in her heart more intense. She hesitates in picking it up but just manages to before it goes to voicemail: ]

Yeah?

[ Trying to keep the emotion out of her voice. He'll probably be able to hear it anyway. He usually does. ]