Work Text:
I had a beer with death tonight
He turned and said to me,
“Clint, someday I’ll come for you
But unsure when that will be.
I’ve come for family, I’ve come for friends,
I’ve seen you so many times,
But know some day I will come for you
And then you will be mine.”
I nodded as I downed my glass,
Not sure of what to say
What do you even say to Death?
He always gets his way.
“That doesn’t mean that I won’t fight,”
I said, as I ordered another beer,
“And I know someday that you will come,
After all that is your right.
But let me ask you something,
Something I do not know,
Will there be someone waiting
When it is my turn to go?”
Death laughed and shook his head at me
With sadness in his eyes,
“It’s something I can’t answer, Clint,
Only when you die.”
That answer seemed to suite me
And as I rose to walk away
“You know that when I die,” I said,
“There will be hell to pay.
I’ll fight as long as I can, my friend,
Even though I know you’ll win,
And when I finally breathe my last
I’ll see you at the end.
But I’ll also see my brother,
My father and mother, too,
And maybe even Coulson,
If that’s alright with you.”
Death simply shook his head
And I know not what it meant,
But as I left I wondered
How much time had I spent?
I would never know how much time was left
Or in whose life I made a dent,
But I do know people are waiting
To say “welcome home, Clint.
You can finally rest, my friend,
You can finally put down your bow.”
And I will tell them straight away
“I’ve missed you more than you know.”
Coulson would simply laugh at me
With his funny little grin,
“It took you enough, Barton,
But I knew that death would win.
I know how hard it’s been, my friend,
What you could do to fight, you did,
But I want you to know at the end of it all,
You did real good, kid.”