Chapter Text
Caitlyn’s POV
“Hey, Cait! How’d it go?”
“We saw you on the Trust Haul! Pretty fearless if you ask me.” Jayce is helping Mel climb down the highest rock wall while I’m attempting to not slap both of them across their faces. Mel’s feet find the ground and Jayce holds her in one of his arms.
“You guys left me! I had a panic attack up there!” I’m breathing heavily again. “You could’ve at least stayed and watched to make sure I was alright.”
“You look alright to me,” Jayce says, patting me on the shoulder. “I’m sorry you struggled so much, but look! You’re alive.” He pulls me into a hug and some of my anger disappears. “We’re very proud of you Caitlyn,” Mel joins in, squeezing my hand when Jayce lets go.
“I’m still angry at you two, but… thank you.” I give them a tight smile.
“Are you glad you did it?” Jayce raises a brow, kind and curious. Knowing that I’m alive and well even after being around fifteen meters high makes me feel… good. Like being up there won’t really kill me. Are heights still terrifying? Yeah, but maybe, fifteen up isn’t so bad? Plus, Vi. Vi . With her encouraging words and reassurance. Oh, Vi!
“Um, I kind of am-“
“See! Exposure therapy: it works! See there’s a science to this-“
“Yeah Jayce, that’s great,” I interrupt, patting myself down, trying to find my phone in one of my pockets. I find it in the back of my pants and check the time. One more minute. “I’m kind of beat for the day. Going to go and find something to eat, call me when you want to head back, it won’t be long.” I’m struggling to get out of my harness. Not the kind I’m used to.
“You mind waiting up for us? I’m quite famished myself,” Mel says, rubbing her stomach lightly.
I’m already on the way to the front desk before she can finish her question. “Sorry, I feel horrible after being so high up! Need to head out now!”
I drop my harness off with a thank you and I swear I see the blue-haired woman roll her eyes and feel her yank it out of my hand. Vi’s already at the front entrance waiting for me. “Hi,” I say, opening the door for her. “Hey.” Her voice low and pleasant.
“Are you going to tell me where we’re going or is this a kidnapping situation?” I ask, not being able to hold in my smile.
“Kidnapping situation for sure. Want it to be a surprise.” She winks before guiding me around the corner. “Almost there.”
After a few beats of silence, I feel the need to say something, pry for a bit of information. “We could make this a much less scary situation. Tell me about yourself.” Vi glances at me and smiles brightly. “Not much to really know. My dad has owned The Last Rock since I’ve known him. Jinx, I’m sure you’ve seen her, lanky with long blue braids: that’s my sister. I grew up with them and my two other brothers, Claggor and Mylo, here in Zaun. They work behind the scenes.” She pauses, looking as if she’s looking for more things to say. “And… sweet over savoury any day,” she points out. I laugh at how serious she says it, as if it’s a very intense dilemma.
“Why choose? I’ll take both,” I say matter-of-factly and she raises her eyebrows at me. “Wow, how insatiable, how greedy,” she says, faking being taken aback by holding a hand to her chest. “Can’t be surprised with the posh accent.” She imitates my accent and I snort at it.
“Not greedy, just indecisive and very hungry.” Now, we find ourselves in an unkept strip mall. The first small store has ‘Jericho’s’ in lights above the door, that’s where Vi leads me. She kindly opens the door for me. What a gentlewoman. “Prepare to have your mind blown Cupcake.”
I smile in excitement until we enter the vicinity and the stench hits my nostrils. “Oh… wow.” I clear my throat and Vi leads me to what seems like the front desk.
“Vi!” A loud, gruff voice calls out. The voice comes from a large, yet tender-looking brute. They wear an apron around with a nice little bow in the center of their stomach. “Jericho! I have a first-timer,” Vi says, sending a wink my way. I blush at her words before Jericho speaks up, voice booming. “Perfect! Half off just for you guys! Tuesday special?”
Vi turns to me as if asking if that is what I want… like I even know what that is. I shrug before saying something. “Sure, that would be great.” I give Jericho a smile and they respond with an enthusiastic thumbs up before disappearing behind the door that was beside them.
Vi nods me in the direction of a small table that hosts two chairs. She pulls a seat out and stands there, waiting for something. “Come on Cupcake, sit, I’m trying to make a good impression.” I chuckle and try to hold in a smile. Vi waits for me to get comfortable in the chair prior to tucking it in slightly. “I guess I should be working on my impression too.”
“It’ll probably take around fifteen minutes before the food gets here. Take your shot.”
“Okay, well… wow, there really isn’t much to me. I grew up in Piltover with my mom and dad as an only child. Closest I had to a sibling was Jayce. I studied law at Piltover Academy, now I intern at Zaun’s Law and Protection while also assisting Jayce and his co-worker Viktor at Hextech Labs. I plan on eventually getting a permanent-paying job at Zaun’s. And… pineapple on pizza is honestly very good.” Vi’s smile continues to grow the more I add and the little wrinkles at the side of her eyes make me almost trip up on my words. She’s expecting more. “I’ve always wanted to be the voice to people who seemed to be born without one, that’s what pushed me into doing law and applying to Zaun’s. Is there a reason you decided to work with your father instead of venturing out?” I told my head, awaiting a response. It seems as if Vi snaps out of some sort of trance, blinking away distraction. “Oh well, um he needed help over there, and you know with me V eing a complete parkour god and all. Maybe once he retires, I’ll be the owner, but you never know.” She’s rushing through her words until there’s a pause. “First of all, you work at Zaun’s Law and Protection? Some of my friends work there, I’m surprised I’ve never seen you. Second of all, you like pineapple on pizza? Are you insane?” I snicker at the fact that that’s what caught her ear. “It’s quite over-hated in my opinion. People just have closed mindsets.”
“Fruit does not belong on pizza,” she says, reclining back in her chair, acting disgusted that I would even dare to say such a thing. “I would’ve thought that you out of all people would have an open mind. You respect my fear of heights, but not my food preferences?” I raise my eyebrow in question and she scrunches up her face. “Cupcake, you’ve lost me. I don’t think this is gonna work.” She leans forward, like she’s pushing out the chair from under her to exit and I only shake my head at her antics. “You are ridiculous.”
“And you are so grossly sweet.”
“You’ve said that already,” I say smiling.
“Well, the whole “I want to give a voice to people who were born without one”? Come on Cupcake, you’re only proving me more right.” Her grin and signature wink make me bite my lip anxiously. I can prove my sweetness in other regards too. Wait. Jeez, Kiramman, thirsty much? We laugh together before Jericho reappears, dropping one bowl in front of Vi and one in front of me. The smell all of a sudden hits my nose again, but way harder . “Thank you,” I say gently. Vi nods and beams in gratitude. Jericho nonchalantly bows before us, vanishing behind the door again.
“You ready?” I’m staring into the bowl of… strips? Wet and slippery with some sort of mystery sauce in my dish. “Don’t worry Cait. It might look intimidating now, but once you put it in your mouth, it’s pure heaven . I swear Jericho is magical. He’s been taking care of us in Zaun for years, it’s fine, relax.” I take a deep breath. “On three?” I ask, not wanting to do this alone. Vi chuckles before giving in. “On three. One…” I look for cutlery and notice there is none. Oh boy . I pick up a piece in between my thumb and index finger. “Two…” I continue while bringing the piece closer to my face. “Three!” Vi immediately tries fitting a whole piece in her mouth while I take a tiny bite out of mine. Then… it hits. It’s like a full-body experience. I shiver travels from my chest to my toes. It’s tangy, sweet, savoury, and a bit spicy all at the same time. Vi was right… pure heaven . All that from such a minuscule bite. I’ve never had anything like it. “Wow,” I exclaim, biting off a larger piece this time. “Right!?” Vi tries countering, mouth full. I smile at how at peace she looks, enjoying the atmosphere and Vi’s presence. My phone buzzes and I’m reminded that it’s not just her and I in existence.
Jayce
Where are you????
We’re leaving
Like right now
Oh right
You’re with Vi
You guys fuck yet?
I roll my eyes. “You need to go?” Vi asks, the tiniest bit of sorrow in her voice. “They can wait a couple more minutes,” I say, giving her a smirk while texting Jayce back.
Me
Haha
We’ll be a bit, so you guys can start heading back, I’ll find my way.
Have fun with Mel :)
Jayce
You are a wonderful wing-woman, my friend
You sure you can find your way back on your own?
We can just hang around
Me
No, it’s fine, don't worry
See you later
Jayce
Seeya
Call when you get home
“You think you can give me a ride to my place?” I ask, finally pocketing my phone and turning my attention back to Vi. “Inviting me over already? Dang, you move fast.” She’s finishing off her food and I can’t help but notice a small bit on the corner of her lips. “Well, I didn’t mean it that way, but if that’s how you want to take it.” I shrug, not taking my eyes off of the little piece of food. “Cait, my eyes are up here,” she chuckles, indicating where her eyes are with her fingers. “Yes, but…” I look around for any napkins and notice a dispenser on the front desk. I get up, grab one, and head back to Vi. I gently take hold of her chin, letting her head tilt up towards me while she sits and I stand. She looks at me quizzically, before a daze takes over her eyes. Her lips parted slightly. I try not to take note of that, but the look is now as permanent in my brain as Vi’s ridiculously sexy tattoos are to her skin.
Vi’s POV
Holy. Fuck. And I thought the food was heaven. Caitlyn’s soft touch, her piercing blue eyes, the way she fucking towers over me. Her smooth, rosy lips, so close yet so far. I try so hard not to pull her into my lap and kiss her until neither of us can breathe and let her wipe something off my face.
That look that she was giving me before she got up to get a tissue made me weak, and I swear if I weren’t sitting down, I would’ve fallen to my knees. “There we go.” She smiles and pulls away, but all I want to do is pull her back, and smell her sweet scent again. Sweet Janna, I am a creep .
“Thanks, Cupcake,” I choke out, feeling as if I should say something to break the silence. “It’s no problem. Anyway, I would love to ask if it’s my turn yet? I would like to take you somewhere as well.” She throws out the napkin and sits back down in her chair. “Not your house?” She shakes her head. “Okay, well is it far?”
“A solid twenty-five minute drive,” she says softly, elegantly continuing to eat. “Are you going to tell me what it is?”
“Nope, it’s another hostage situation.”
—-----------------
The walk back to The Last Rock is nice. It’s warm with a light breeze. We talk more about what we do, and what we enjoy. I learn that Caitlyn enjoys being in the kitchen a lot because as a kid, she used to cook with her dad. Now they only do it on special occasions.
I tell her about my dad teaching me how to box and how I never held a candle to him. “He’d hand my ass back to me in a good forty-five seconds.”
It’s not often where I use the word ‘enchanting’, but it’s the only one that’s worthy of describing Caitlyn’s laugh. The way she slouches forward and tries to politely cover her mouth.
We go inside and I tell her to wait a second.
“How was the hot date?” Ekko asks jokingly once I get into the staff-only lounge. He doesn’t look up from his phone. “You actually know her yet?” Jinx joins in, rolling her eyes. “Working on it, but so far, so good.” I ruffle her hair, walking past her. “She didn’t invite you home?” Ekko asks, obviously mocking me. He still doesn’t take his eyes off his phone. “Gonna drive her home after she takes me somewhere else,” I say smugly, smirking at them. Finally, Ekko meets my gaze before I’m rushing out, keys in hand.
“See you losers later!”