Chapter Text
The Akron, Ohio daily news blares loudly on the television in the living room.
“People are finding little bits of what is to be believed, moon dust on the gro-” Melina sighs and flicks the volume down to where it’s just barely audible. Nothing of interest is playing, so she takes the dull moment to check on the girls.
‘I wonder what they’re playing today?’
She opens the creaky front door and peers out to watch the two girls across the street with the neighborhood children. Yelena hangs upside down on a tire swing while Natasha holds a stopwatch in her hand.
‘They’re playing the “who can hang upside down the longest without getting dizzy” game.’
Of course Natasha will easily win; her training in the Red Room, as well as being the older girl, gives her quite the advantage. But Melina knows that deep down, Natasha lets her little sister win out of love. Try as she might push it away, it's evident that the she adores Yelena.
“Natasha, Yelena! Dinner is going to be ready in five minutes! Please be on time! Natasha?”
Natasha gives a thumbs up.
“Thank you!”
Shutting the door, Melina strides into the kitchen and grabs four dinner plates from the cupboard. She sets the table and goes to get the silverware when she hears a quiet “Breaking News!”
‘Maybe it will be something interesting tonight.’
Heading into the living room, she snatches the remote and turns up the volume.
“Breaking News! This just in, on Akron, Ohio, daily news. We have received a report that a vehicular accident just happened at 5:36 PM today, August 12th. It appears as though the automobile skidded off the road and hit a massive oak tree.”
Melina's eyebrow raises as she turns up the volume.
“The car supposedly lost a tire and spun out of control; the hood of the car completely caved inwards. The driver has been declared dead on impact.”
Melina frowns. This was more than she expected.
‘This happened where we live. In fact, we’re not far from the news station.’
Her eyes flicker over to the clock – 6:13 PM. Turning back to the television, she increases the volume even more to make sure she hears every detail.
“Authorities have said that the crash site is on Minfore street, in the outskirts of Akron. The car is reported to be a white, long-wheelbase Lada Niva five-door with a tan colored interior.”
Her breath stops short.
‘What does our car look like? It’s not white, it’s cream. It has brown seats, not tan. Oh, and it’s technically a five-door but not really because of the broken trunk. So, it has to be a different car. It’s probably just a coincidence.’
She skeptically shrugs it off, but her heartbeat rapidly increases.
Her index finger starts to twitch.
“Minfore street has been closed down for further investigation. Oh, we have an update. Please wait one moment.” The broadcaster leans off screen and nods.
Melina's throat feels swollen.
The broadcaster turns back to the screen.
“One body has been recovered.”
Launching off the couch, Melina gets as close to the television as possible. Her eyes can’t see the screen clearly, but the sound is blasting through her ears.
This moment is crucial.
“No identification has been discovered at the moment. But we await further updates.”
Slamming her hand on the floor, she shouts in anger.
“Come on!"
“-Alex, chestnut brown hair, about 230 pounds and presumed to be around 6’3. Wearing a pair of black glasse-”
“No."
"No."
"No!"
"No!"
She scans the tv and continues to listen for any sign of hope.
“Paramedics found no heartbeat and declared him dead at the scene."
Melina’s hands gently tremble and the television screen blurs.
“Identification has been found and confirmed. Alex S. Thomson, age 39.”
Everything goes silent. She can only hear her heartbeat.
In.
Out.
In.
Out.
Faster.
Quicker.
Panicked.
Melina loses herself to thoughts slamming into her brain. There's one less person in her world. But that person never had that much of an impact on her.
Did he?
‘We were just partners.”
Before deployment, both of them agreed to keep a strictly professional relationship. No feelings, no intentions, no nothing.
But somehow beneath the arrogant and boisterous man, there was a kind-hearted person. Someone who wasn't afraid to have a good time. Someone who seemed to care about more than just carrying out a mission.
Why and how did he get to her?
Resurfacing from the bog of intruding questions, she firmly shakes her head and rises from the floor. But there's nothing firm about her at the moment.
For the first time in her life, she has no idea what to do.
‘Is this all over?’
She just stands there. Hands at her side.
‘Call the police.’
Her face makes a "i'm stupid" expression.
'You're the dumbest person ever.'
The police would want to search their records.
Find anything about them.
Discover their identity.
Ruin the plan.
No.
‘Stay focused.’
She drops onto the couch and pulls her legs up to her chest. Unable to do anything but sit there, she stares at the television screen.
‘What do I do now?’
The air around her goes stale. It’s like a strange presence of darkness encasing the room. She feels heavy; her brain foggy and blank.
‘I'm lost.’
As the reality of Alexei’s death begins to set in, worries flood her mind and she feels her index finger begin to twitch again. It always twitched in the Red Room whenever she became scared. But that was the only sign of fright that she ever expressed.
Until now.
‘What will happen with the assignment? Does she take over and retrieve the necessary information? Does she report back to Dreykov? Does she contact Dreykov? Does Dreykov know about this?'
Of course Dreykov knows about this.
Suddenly, an intrusive thought crosses her mind.
‘Run. Escape. Flee. Take the girls and go.’
She shakes her head.
She can’t run away.
Dreykov would kill her before she could even set foot out the door.
'He would kill me, then take the girls.'
Just like that, her Ohio mission looks as if it’s over. Natasha and Yelena will be transported to the Red Room. Melina will be transferred to another location. Alexei?
“Into the ground.” She breathes out.
As her strong barrier slowly crumbles, the front door slams open and the two girls come tramping in, playfully bantering to each-other.
“We’re home!”
Pushing herself up from the couch, Melina grabs the remote and switches the television off. She plasters a fake smile on her face.
“Are you ready for dinner?”
They nod and run over to the kitchen counter to see what Melina prepared.
“I guess we need to heat up the food because it got left out a little too long.”
Brushing aside the recent Alexei news, Melina grabs three plates from the table. She hands one to Natasha, and the other to Yelena. As Natasha reaches to take hers, she notices Melina's finger twitching at the edge of the plate. She eyes Melina suspiciously.
Something's going on.
“We’re having chicken and salad tonight. How does that sound?”
“With corn?”
Melina grins and places a corn cob on Yelena’s plate. She puts a little bit of salad on her own plate and sits down at the table.
Natasha watches her every move; eyes switching from the twitching finger to Melina's quick glances around the room.
Something’s going on.
“Mama, can you help me?” Yelena stretches up to the microwave but can’t reach it. Melina gets up and puts the food down on the table, Yelena following behind her.
“Come on, Natasha.” Dropping into her chair, Melina begins to eat her salad, leaf by leaf.
Natasha sits down across from her and subtly watches.
“How is it, Yelena?” With corn stuck in her teeth, the little girl smiles.
“Really good!”
Melina lovingly pats Yelena's cheek and chuckles. Natasha’s slowly eating her food, but she remains locked on Melina’s every move.
Something’s going on.
“So, how was your day, girls? What did you do?”
Yelena puts down her finished corn cob and grabs a napkin.
“We played with Ophelia and Rosalie! Oh, and Blake and Leo. Except Leo wasn’t very nice unless he got the swing. But Rosali-'' Yelena goes off on her daily tangent, her mind recalling the earlier events that day.
Melina half smiles, still playing around with her salad. She’s eaten three bites but can't choke down any more. Natasha notices.
Something’s going on.
“Yelena, it sounds like you had a lot of fun today! I'm glad that Rosalie made Leo share the swing. Now, since you played so hard, I think tonight is going to be an early bedtime. Okay?”
Yelena begins to protest, but Natasha glares at her and reminds the little girl,
“You said you were tired a while ago.”
Yelena sighs and keeps eating her food.
"Okay. But can you tell me a story when we get in bed?"
“Okay.” Natasha agrees, her eyes still on Melina.
Something’s going on.
Yelena quickly gets over her disappointment and asks,
“Mama, where’s Dad?”
Melina chokes on the non-existent food in her mouth and she grabs a glass of water.
“He’s at-He’s at work. He has to work late.”
With a nod, Yelena plunges her fork into her chicken. Natasha’s eyes narrow and she stops eating.
Something’s going on.
The rest of dinner is silent, and when they finish, Melina’s the first to stand up.
“Okay girls, I want you to go get ready for bed while I clean up. I’ll come in and say goodnight when you’re done. Just call me, okay?”
“Okay, Mama!” Yelena hops out of her seat and runs to the bathroom to brush her teeth. For someone who didn't want to go to bed early, she certainly seemed eager. Natasha gets up to follow but stops short.
Something’s really going on.
“Where is he?” She asks in a sharp tone.
“He has to work late. Now, go on.” Melina commands her, gesturing at her to keep walking down the hall.
Natasha turns around and makes her way to the bathroom, but her mind swirls with questions.
‘What’s going on with Melina?’
She joins Yelena in brushing her teeth, and starts to undo her braids.
Back in the kitchen, Melina grabs the dishes and places them in the sink. Turning on the water to "hot," she patiently waits for it to heat up.
An unanticipated thought runs past her mind, pulling at her heart-strings.
‘He’s gone.’
Holding the edge of the sink with her hands, Melina bends over as the water runs. She can feel her finger twitching again. Something gets stuck in her throat, no matter how many times she tries to swallow.
‘Completely gone.’
The dishes sit there with the hot water spilling over them, but another source of water drops onto them as well. Small droplets that appear inconsistently. They run down the plates and disappear down the drain.
‘What am I supposed to do?’
Melina feels a substance run down her cheeks. It’s warm and salty as it makes its way down her face. A few more trickle down as she blinks hard.
‘Why is this happening?’
Her chest feels heavy and she fights to gain a full breath. It's as if something is wrapping around her lungs and pulling them tight. She can’t fully breathe.
‘Why?’
She hears herself pant.
Gasping.
Her lungs are begging for oxygen.
‘Can’t. Breathe.’
The hot water still flows but Melina no longer cares. Her eyes close. Hunching over the sink, she sucks in a breath, but hardly anything gets in. It seems as if all the air has vanished.
Just as she sinks to the floor, Natasha walks out and sees her slide down.
“Melina!” She rushes over and turns off the water, rapidly dropping down beside Melina’s unsteady figure. She searches for wounds on Melina’s body but finds none.
‘I knew something was going on.’ Natasha concludes, but she’s still puzzled.
Melina's eyes appear hazy as her finger twitches even more. Her mouth moves as if she’s talking to something.
To someone.
“What’s going on? What is it?” Natasha asks, her voice wavering in fear.
Melina releases a sigh from the deepest part of her chest.
‘Oh.’
The veil of uncertainty lifts from her eyes.
‘He’s not working late.’
A harsh gasp cuts through the silence.
“He’s not working late. Is he?”
With one shake of her head, Melina covers her mouth with a hand. Muffled sounds of hard breathing exit through the cracks of her fingers.
“He’s not coming home. Is he?”
Melina shakes her head again and looks over with a saddened expression. She coughs and leans her head against the back of the cupboard.
“What happened?”
Yelena's voice can be heard from the bedroom.
“Mama! I’m done!”
Quickly getting up, Melina splashes her face with water and dries it on a towel. She gently pats her face to return some color to her cheeks as she walks away. Natasha remains on the floor against the sink, stunned and unsure of how to react.
“Mama? I’m ready for bed. Can you tell me a story? I know Natasha is going to, but I want one of yours too.”
Melina drops down onto the bed and pulls the blankets up to Yelena's chest. Clearing her throat, she shakes her head.
“Not tonight my love. Mama’s a little tired. But I will tomorrow.”
Yelena frowns but complies.
“Okay. Do you promise?”
“I promise.”
Melina delicately moves the hair out of Yelena's face and presses a kiss to the little girl’s forehead. Switching off the bedside lamp, she hears a little voice softly ask,
“Where’s Natasha?”
Turning to face Yelena, she stoops down once more and replies,
“She’ll be in bed in a minute. She just has to ask me a question. Now, go to sleep. I love you.” Yelena turns over in her bed and settles in as Melina shuts the door.
‘One girl down, one to go.’