The woes of being Sombra

»» Who is Sombra?

»» To the system? She's nobody. She doesn't exist.

»» People were easily manipulated, and the key was information.

»» Information is power, and getting it was a need, an addiction.

»» No one has ever noticed me, I'm like a shadow.

»» I'll find their weaknesses and how to exploit them, and when I do, I'll be the one pulling the strings.

»» Who is Sombra? You'll never know.

That's where the first page finished. Satya was holding an open notebook, on its cover it said 'Los secretos de Sombra'. "Oli, what does this mean? What system are you talking about? Which strings will you be pulling? Why did you cross out some sentences?" She looked up at her girlfriend. "You just told me you like to go by the alias of Sombra, so isn't the last sentence misleading?"

Olivia opened her mouth to answer but she didn't know what to say. "It's a… uhhhh." She thought for a second, not really sure why she had written all that in the first place. "It's some sort of monologue, you know? To make my alter ego look cool."

"To make Sombra look cool? To whom?" Satya inquired.

"I think it sounds cool." Olivia scratched the back of her head shyly.

"Oh, so it's a subjective matter based solely on your perception." Satya said as a matter of fact.

Olivia wasn't sure how to answer to that when she noticed the small glint in Satya's eyes, the one that meant that she was teasing her. "Shut up!"

Satya let out a few giggles.

After three months of dating and while they walked through the college campus, Satya had asked Olivia why wasn't she more open to her and Olivia didn't know what to answer.

"What do you mean, Saty?" Olivia asked nervously.

"It's the fact that you haven't told me much about your life. Is there any reason I haven't gained that level of trust yet? I am your girlfriend, after all."

Olivia hesitated. "We agreed to take it slow. That's what I'm doing."

"You haven't answered my question." To any bystander, it would've seemed that there was no emotion behind Satya's words, but to Olivia, who had been getting to know her for the past five months, it was clear that Satya was slightly annoyed.

Olivia sighed. "I trust you like no other person. It's just… sorta hard to explain. What if you come by my place later today? Then I can tell you more about me."

Satya stayed silent for half a minute when she just nodded.

After their classes were over, Olivia brought Satya to her apartment, although she made her wait outside for a minute or two while she frantically tidied up the place a little bit.

The first thing Olivia did once Satya was inside the apartment was showing her the notebook of Sombra, an alter ego of hers that she tried to explain on the way there but failed miserably.

"So, from what I gather only from the first page of your notebook, you insinuate that you collect information from several people for your eventual benefit?"

Olivia's eyebrows rose in surprise. "Y-Yes, pretty much." Her 'monologue' had been disjointed and inconsistent, but Satya clearly saw what Olivia had tried to convey, even if it was apparently nonsense. Olivia wondered how well did Satya know her at that point. "That is basically what I do all the time. You keep yourself busy either coaching the debate team, or kicking someone's ass in the chess club, or studying even though you don't actually need to. I only go to school, pretend that I'm learning and then I go and do my thing."

"Collect information?"

"That's right."

Satya turned the pages of the notebook and it was filled with Sombra's 'discoverings'. She skimmed through them with a critical eye. "If these are Sombra's secrets, I assume she obtained them without their owners' consent, am I right?"

Olivia nodded.

"Oli, this seems a little bit… crazy, like you say. Why would you choose to do this?"

"It's… complicated." Olivia thought for a second. "Maybe I can show you, kinda. Can I borrow your phone?"

Satya handed her phone to Olivia.

"Now, can I unlock it?"

"Yes. The password is—" But before Satya could tell her, Olivia interrupted her.

"I don't need the password. I just need your permission to unlock the phone."

Satya looked confused at her girlfriend but nodded her approval.

Olivia held down the power button and one volume button while she introduced a passcode in the lock screen, the screen turned into a menu and she introduced a series of numbers in it. When she finished, she was on the main screen, and she showed it to Satya. "This is what I used to do, back when I was in Mexico."

"Unlock phones?" Satya asked while retrieving her phone.

Olivia snorted. "No. I can hack my way into most things." She grabbed Satya's hand and guided her to the old but comfy couch that was next to the door of the apartment. "Look, when I was a kid, I discovered I could manipulate my way into any kind of software, from phones to government sites. I did it mostly for fun, and I didn't harm anybody… I think." Olivia said the last part in a lower voice. "Anyway, I was stupid and got involved with a local gang, Los Muertos. It was small and I thought that hanging out with them could be fun."

"And it wasn't?" Satya asked.

"At first, it was. But the gang turned bigger and eventually they wanted to use my abilities to bring down society into chaos, so they could 'establish the true anarchy'." Olivia raised her hands and air quoted the last phrase. "So I had to flee."

"Are they after you, looking for revenge?" Satya's expression was neutral, but there was a tinge of worry in her voice, imperceptible almost to no one. Except Olivia.

Olivia smiled. "Nothing so dramatic. I think you've watched too many action movies. No, I faked my death and traveled without course for a while, at least until I got here."

"How is faking your death not 'dramatic'?"

Olivia laughed. "Ok, I wasn't clear enough. I just created a fake obituary, altered a news announcement about a highway crash and showed those to them."

"Show how?"

Olivia shrugged. "They were sorta dangerous but not very smart. There was a gossipy boy that 'found out' about the highway crash while surfing on the web. Pretty sure everyone in the gang knew about it in less than a day."

Satya sighed, relieved. She turned her attention to the notebook. "This still doesn't answer my question."

"Right. What I did with Los Muertos was dangerous, but it was my choice. I liked to hack into any system, to see if I could do it and discover whatever secrets lay beyond the security firewalls… I still do. It is an addiction, you see, nothing extreme but an addiction nonetheless."

Satya looked back at the notebook and it started dawning on her.

"This…" Olivia pointed at the notebook. "…is my way to cope. I still hunt for secrets, but these are way safer and usually more innocent than what I'd find stored inside a computer."

"And what do you do with these, aside from gathering them?"

Olivia shrugged. "I use them for my benefit, I guess."

Satya thought about everything she had just learned and stayed quiet for a while. Olivia went to the kitchen to get some water for both and wordlessly handed a glass to Satya. After five minutes, Satya spoke. "Tell me how you obtain these secrets."

Olivia opened her mouth to answer and closed it again. She hesitated. "I can tell you, but every secret requires a different approach, so maybe if you choose one from the notebook, I can explain it to you."

Satya skimmed through the notebook and found a short sentence. "'L. O. has the hots for the French teacher's aid. E. W. too.' What does that mean?"

"Heh, I discovered that by accident, though it was pretty obvious if you knew where to look at."

: : :

Sombra entered the languages department while no one was inside. She had memorized all the teachers' schedules and knew when their office cubicles would be empty. She carried an empty envelope just in case that there was someone inside, as an excuse to 'deliver a project' to these or that teacher and not get caught.

This time, as predicted, no one was there. Sombra didn't have a specific target this time, but she hoped to collect any information deemed valuable to her. She had her lockpicks on her, but she tried each cubicle door first, because stupidity and carelessness were faster than lockpicking.

The door to the German teacher's cubicle was unlocked, and Sombra smiled. "Gotcha. Step 2 of infiltration complete." She liked to talk to herself while she did her investigation.

She scanned the small office for anything unusual. A framed picture of the professor and his wife on the desk, a huge mug that said 'Best Uncle in the World' on top of the file cabinet, for some reason a fishing rod in the corner… nothing piqued Sombra's interest.

There was what seemed like a handwritten letter on the desk, and Sombra started reading:

»» Oh, my Egyptian goddess
»» My love for you burns like a thousand suns
»» Your naked body still makes my knees go weak
»» And I cannot wait for you to take me like last time
»» The way you…

Sombra abruptly stopped reading before slightly shivering. "Professor Wilhelm can keep that secret all to himself… and his wife, I guess." She left the letter exactly where she had found it. She thought about inspecting the desk drawers or the file cabinet, but she didn't think it was worth it. "Maybe next time."

She closed the door of the cubicle and was about to try the next one when she heard someone at the department's door. Without a second thought, she jumped out of the window; thankfully the department was at the ground floor. She crouched and pressed her back to the wall, listening intently. The hedge that circled the building was perfect to hide her from curious eyes.

She could listen clearly to two women. A teacher and a student, maybe?

"I don't understand it, Lena. You attend all the classes and seem to pay enough attention, but you always come for tutoring lessons." Said the first voice.

"I know, Miss Guillard. But I simply cannot seem to grasp French." Said the second voice.

Ever curious, Sombra took out her phone from her jacket, opened the camera app and turned her upper body to her left so she could see who was speaking. This was an uncomfortable position given that she was still crouching with her lower body pressed to the wall, but there wasn't much room to move thanks to the hedge.

She pressed the phone to the wall and slowly slid it up until the camera lens was just above the windowsill. Visuals acquired. She thought. In the room she could see two familiar faces, even though she hadn't properly met them: freshman student Lena Oxton and senior student and French teacher's aide Amélie Guillard. Chip butty girl and Miss Croissant.

"It's strange that you always have doubts when Monsieur Lacroix is busy and I'm not." Amélie said.

Lena hesitated for a second. "It's a… a… a coincidence. I don't know why would that be. And Mr. Lacroix has been very busy since the birth of his son."

Sombra snickered to herself. Smooth, girl.

Amélie thought about it. "Yes, you are right. Still, it is also strange that you have doubts in different topics whenever we meet. As if you were unlearning previous acquired knowledge."

Lena stuttered, unsure of what to say. "You see, I… uhm…"

For her part, Sombra was enjoying this and wondered if 'Miss Croissant' had noticed the blush on Lena's cheeks. So focused she was that when a cat walked passed her, she was slightly surprised and lost her balance, almost falling face first on the hedge, but she stopped her fall with her free hand. A hand that landed on something soft, wet and warm. Apparently, cats weren't the only animals that wandered among the hedge.

Sombra couldn't help it. "¡Ewww, mierda!" She hissed.

Lena's stuttering stopped and Sombra almost brought her hand to her mouth. She stopped just in time but grimaced at the nauseating smell. She made a huge effort to not retch then and there.

After a few long moments, she heard Amélie speaking again. "Look, Lena, I am busy today but not tomorrow. Meet me at 4 in the library and I will help you."

"Thank you, Miss Guillard."

There was a shuffling of papers and then the department's door opened and closed. After about 20 seconds, Sombra gave a sigh of relief. She peeked through the window and confirmed that the department was empty once again, but her plans on collecting information had gone down the drain.

She stood up, put away her phone and looked at her hand. "No mames, de todos los lugares donde podrías haber cagado, maldito perro…"

Sombra wanted to wash her hand on the first bathroom she could find and then return home for a long, long shower. She jumped over the hedge with some difficulty and ran to the closest building; she turned a corner and collided with someone, with both of them falling on their asses.

"I'm sorry. I'm sorry. I wasn't looking where I was going." Sombra said and stood up. The redhead she had accidentally knocked down did the same.

"I wasn't looking either."

There were a few paper sheets on the ground that belonged to the redhead and Sombra began gathering them. That's when she noticed one of them had really good sketches of Amélie Guillard. Her profile had been drawn several times, but the biggest sketch covered half the page and it belonged to Amélie's perfect ass.

The redhead quickly took away her drawings from Sombra, her face red like a tomato. "Thank you."

An idea sprung in Sombra's mind. "If you're having trouble learning French, you should know that Miss Guillard is going to help a few students tomorrow at the library at 4."

Redhead looked funny at Sombra and was about to reply when something else got her attention. "What is that smell?" She covered her nose and made a face.

"¡Qué la…" Sombra said exasperated before running away to find a bathroom.

: : :

Satya was looking intently at Olivia's hand, as if she was judging it.

"Girl! That was months ago!" Olivia said.

Satya thought about it for a moment and nodded. "So Lena and Emily were infatuated with Miss Guillard. Why did you set them up?"

"Not much of a setup. I just thought it would be funny. Surprisingly they became a couple, though I think they still pine over Amélie."

"How do you feel about them being a couple?"

The question took Olivia by surprise. "What do you mean?"

"Your actions potentially led them to meet each other and subsequently that led to a relationship. How do you feel about that?"

Olivia considered it. "Good, I guess?"

Satya looked at her girlfriend with an unreadable expression, and Olivia wondered what was going through her mind. Finally, Satya spoke again. "Oli, have you broken into the president's office?"

Olivia almost choked on the water she was drinking. After coughing a little bit, she asked. "How did you know?"

"You find your alter ego's life thrilling. It stands to reason that the greater the risk, the greater the thrill."

"Damn, Saty. Am I that transparent to you?"

"Transparent? I don't understand."

Olivia smiled. "I just meant that you seem to know me very well, maybe better than myself."

"I don't think that is plausible."

"Oh, it is." Olivia kissed Satya's forehead, which made the latter blush a little.

Satya regained her composure and asked. "Where is the secret involving the president?"

"I was afraid you were gonna ask that." Olivia took the notebook and flicked through its pages. She found the secret and showed it to Satya.

Satya began reading. "How did you find out about this?"

"Believe me, I almost regret that day."

: : :

Sombra was crouched in front of president Morrison's office door. She was trying to lock pick her way in, a skill learned back in the day when she was with Los Muertos.

The school was practically empty because it was the start of a long weekend, the perfect time for some information retrieval. President Morrison's office was at the end of a hallway, so Sombra had placed a small spy camera on the opposite end that broadcasted directly to her phone. File cabinets flanked the door, hiding Sombra from curious eyes.

With a flick of the wrist, Sombra heard the lock mechanism open and a moment later she was inside the president's office. "Phase 1, complete. Infiltration was successful. Proceeding to phase 2." She said. "Let's hunt for some secrets."

The office wasn't too big and Sombra quickly ruled out the bookshelves and the file cabinets that were farthest from the desk, which were bound to contain boring administrative documents. That left only a file cabinet behind the president's chair and the desk drawers.

A quick look at the cabinet revealed that it was locked, but the desk wasn't. Sombra chose the quick option and started rummaging through the desk contents. "What is all this crap?" She said while quickly examining it. "Golf balls? A collection of old coins? A planner…? A motherfucking phone book? Who in their right mind would still use it? Get with the times, gramps." She contained the urge to toss everything over her shoulder and instead put it back exactly how she found it.

Sombra was about to check the second drawer when movement caught her eye. Her phone was showing two people walking down the hallway: president Morrison and his executive assistant, Reyes. "Shit." She looked around the office but knew that it was in vain; the entrance was the only exit… unless she jumped out the window and magically grew wings to survive a 50-feet fall.

Praying that they were heading to Reyes's office —opposite to Morrison's— Sombra ducked under the desk. It was a bad hiding place but it was the only one, and it would be better than nothing. The back panel of the desk was big enough to cover her as long as they didn't bend down to look under it.

Sombra put away her phone and swore under her breath when the door opened. She could see Morrison's feet from where she was, followed by Reyes's. The latter slammed the door closed and shoved the former, hard.

What's happening? Are they fighting? Sombra could only see their feet.

Morrison turned around fast and Sombra expected to hear them throw punches, but instead Reyes closed the distance between them and… and… What? Sombra listened intently and after a few seconds she realized what was going on. They are making out? In this office? With me under the desk?!

Now that Sombra knew what was happening, she was trying to block every sound that came from Morrison and Reyes with no success. Every time they drew breath, every time the kisses turned sloppy, every time they murmured each other's names, Sombra was there documenting every last bit of it, and she hated it with a passion. God, I know you don't exist, but please, make them stop. She thought in her miserable spot under the desk.

As if someone had listened to her prayers, Sombra noticed that indeed they stopped. They were catching their breath but apparently they were done. Yes! Now please go away so I can leave this place. Sombra was really uncomfortable confined to that tiny spot, unable to move lest she made a sound.

"I really hate that I cannot kiss my husband whenever I want." Reyes said.

"You know the rules we agreed upon." Morrison replied.

"Yeah, yeah. That doesn't mean that I hate this any less, Jackie."

They started kissing again and Sombra noticed this time was more heated than before. She groaned internally and rolled her eyes. But then she heard something else: the tinkle of a belt buckle. Sombra's whole body tensed up in a second. Don't do it, hoe! She saw how Reyes's pants fell to his feet, along with his underwear. The scream that rang in Sombra's head was astounding.

"Gabe… we… shouldn't… not again…" Sombra's eyes went wide at the last part. She had touched Morrison's stuff with her own hands.

"You say that… but you're not stopping me…" Reyes lunged forward, pushing Morrison and the desk back a few inches. Another belt was being unbuckled.

¡No mames! ¡Van a coger! ¡Y yo voy a escuchar todo!

¡TODO!

: : :

Satya was on the floor, wheezing uncontrollably, and Olivia had to interrupt the storytelling. Despite the fact that she almost died in that office (not literally, but it felt like it at the time), Olivia was happy to see her girlfriend laughing that way. It was worth everything she went through.

Olivia went to the bathroom and when she came back, Satya had calmed down considerably, although she was still giggling from time to time.

"Please continue."

Olivia smiled. "There I was, trapped under the desk…"

: : :

Sombra regretted having slipped into president's Morrison office. How I miss having poop smeared on my hand… That was almost ok compared to this! She took out her phone, the only thing she could try to use to get out of there. She thought on dialing Morrison's office, but what if they didn't pick up? What if they did pick up? It's not as if she could talk under the desk. That's when she saw Morrison's pants fall to his feet and she sent all the fucks out of the window.

¡Ni madres! ¡Ni pinches madres! Sombra was frantically accessing the school's network through her phone. She left the hacking for emergency situations only and today's events qualified as one. Fuck it, I'm hacking the fire alarm system. I just need to be quick.

Right before she could trigger the alarm, the office's phone rang. "Leave it…" Reyes said, panting.

"You know I can't." Morrison sighed. "I'll be quick." Sombra heard how he picked up. "President Morrison. Oh, Ana, what a surprise… No, of course not. I was actually about to leave the office… I swear, we are on our way." There was a long pause and then Morrison's tone turned somber. "Meet you there." He hung up.

Reyes tried to start where they had left, but Morrison stopped him. "If you didn't notice, we are going to meet Ana and Rein, right now."

"We can be a little bit late." Reyes was gently shoved back.

"We can't. We've cancelled on them twice and Ana sounded…" Morrison gulped. "We need to leave now."

Reyes scoffed. "What is she gonna do, Jackie?"

In the most serious voice, Morrison replied. "Don't you remember what happened last time?"

Reyes froze, and he had nothing to say about that.

Sombra's finger was hovering over her phone, one tap away from triggering the fire alarm, waiting expectantly. The few seconds of uncertainty felt like a year to her, but finally she saw how Reyes pulled up his pants and Morrison did the same.

"We have the worst timing." Reyes said.

They took a couple of minutes to look presentable again and they left the office.

Sombra watched them from her phone and when they left the hallway, she sighed deeply. "Puta madre." She said tired but relieved. She came out from under the desk, careful not to touch anything unless it was absolutely necessary. She checked her phone again and, seeing no one, she quickly exited the office.

Sombra skipped down the hallway, almost ran. She grabbed her spy camera and left the building as fast as she could. She didn't want to take a step into the president's office —or his executive assistant's— ever again.

: : :

"'J. M. is married to G. R.' They mentioned it once while you were… listening." Satya tried to hide her smile, but failed. "Are you sure?"

"Yes. I did some public records digging and found out it was the case."

"I assume you haven't used this information to your advantage."

"You would be, eh…" Olivia hesitated. "…technically true."

Satya squinted her eyes for a moment. "You did use this information. How?"

Olivia raised her arms defensively. "I did nothing bad, I swear. I just sent an anonymous email to president Morrison urging him to check on Efi Oladele."

Satya's features softened. "The child prodigy?"

"Yes. She was being bullied by Moira O'Deorain. Nothing really bad, but it was almost an everyday thing, and I was getting sick of it. I told the president about the bullying and hinted that I knew about him and Reyes… I wish I could have seen his face when he read the email. Anyway, I don't know how he handled it but Efi has been left alone since then."

Satya mulled over Olivia's words. "What did you get out of the situation with Efi?"

"I don't know… Nothing, I guess. I mean, I can still use the secret marriage card on the president, but…" Olivia shrugged.

"Do you remember when you asked me to distract Angela a few months ago, just when biology class had finished? 'Make her stay a little bit longer,' you said."

Olivia nodded.

"I didn't see any harm on it, so I did as you requested. You left the classroom in a fake hurry and knocked down the other woman's pencil case, towards Angela."

"Oh, so you did notice that." Olivia laughed nervously.

"I didn't find it curious enough then, but now I do. Why did you do that?"

"It was painful (not literally) watching Fareeha and Angela pine over each other for two whole weeks. And they weren't close to make a move! I noticed earlier that day a small tear in Angela's pants, a perfect opportunity for making them talk for real, even if it turned awkward. I just needed them both alone in the same place at the same time, and it worked like a charm! Now they are joined at the hip."

"No, they aren't joined at the hip?" Satya said, confused.

"I mean inseparable."

"Oh. Right." Satya stayed quiet a few minutes, collecting her thoughts. At last she spoke again. "Olivia, do you realize that so far you've given me examples where you used your newly acquired knowledge, those secrets, to help other people?"

Olivia was speechless.

"Furthermore, you seem to enjoy helping others."

"I don't think that's true, Saty."

"Isn't it? Let me quote you: 'It was painful watching Fareeha and Angela pine over each other. Efi was being bullied and I was getting sick of it.' In the end you helped them in your own way."

"I don't help people, Saty. I just gather information and use it." Olivia lowered her voice. "I'm… I'm not a good person." She fixed her gaze on the floor.

Satya grabbed Olivia's face and gently lifted it so their eyes could meet. "Do not be absurd, Oli. Of course, you are. I sense there are things you haven't told me because you haven't come at peace with them yet, but I have no doubt that you are a good person."

"I think you are wrong." Olivia averted her eyes from Satya's. "Do you know Lúcio Correia dos Santos? Star player of the soccer team, admired by students and teachers alike, practically an inspiration to everyone that meets him?"

"I've heard of him."

"Well, I'm hunting for a secret that may destroy that life of his. Would a good person do that?"

Satya bit her lip. "What kind of secret?"

"He may have another girlfriend! That means that he may be a filthy cheater undeserving of all that admiration."

Satya raised her eyebrows a little. "So you are angry on behalf of the girlfriend."

"Yes! What kind of person would cheat on their significant other?! That's so vile and despicable and—" Olivia cut herself off when she saw the smug smile on Satya's face.

"You don't want to 'destroy' his life, that's collateral damage. You want to make sure that his girlfriend or potential girlfriends are treated with care and respect. Am I correct?"

Olivia wanted to refute Satya's words, but the more she thought about them, the more sense they made.

Olivia lay down on the couch, resting her head on Satya's lap, and thought critically about every secret she had used to her advantage, and slowly realized that her girlfriend's reasoning was sound. She did exploit people's secrets to help others.

Satya began playing with Olivia's hair, and when the latter finally relaxed, Satya knew that Olivia had accepted the truth. "I'm never wrong."

Olivia smiled, feeling beyond lucky to have Satya as her girlfriend.

: : :

After an hour of quietly cuddling on the couch, Satya, while still embracing Olivia, asked. "Can you explain to me why you think Lúcio is cheating on her girlfriend?"

"He's been bragging to his teammates about a special girl that he will meet next week."

"Can't he be talking about his girlfriend?"

"Nah. They see each other every day, even if it's a short meeting. He's also asked his teammates not to tell Hana."

"That is indeed suspicious behavior."

Olivia nodded. "It's still not enough, I need to be sure and stop making assumptions. That's why I'm gonna follow him next week after classes. Apparently he's going to meet the girl at his place."

"Do you want some help?" Satya asked without hesitation.

Would you do that for me? Olivia didn't utter the question because she knew damn well that Satya was serious about it, so instead she said "Yes, I'd really appreciate it."

: : :

Sombra was walking a good 60 feet behind Lúcio, the soccer player none the wiser. She talked through her Bluetooth headset. "I am following the target. ETA is of about twenty minutes. What's your status, Symmetra?"

"I will arrive in less than five minutes, Ol— Sombra." Satya replied.

The couple had agreed that two people following one person was bound to attract more attention than just one, so Sombra had decided to follow Lúcio on his way home, while Symmetra got ahead of them and waited in front of Lúcio's place. The objective was to take pictures of Lúcio with his 'special girl'. The use of code names was of course Olivia's idea, although Satya had come up with her own.

"Good. I'll keep you updated on my progress. Notify me when you arrive to the destination."

Sombra followed Lúcio for several blocks without incident, although she had to casually stop twice when he greeted an acquaintance and once she had to change sidewalks to avoid suspicion.

"Sombra? I am here, in front of Lúcio's place… the destination." Satya said. "It's a small house. I see no one outside but there's a car parked outside."

"Understood. Stand by until the target arrives or I give you additional instructions." Sombra waited for an answer but none came. Satya didn't waste words, but if they were going to do this again, Sombra thought that she'd have to talk with her about proper espionage communication… not that there was such a thing in the first place.

Sombra turned around a corner and noticed that Lúcio wasn't in front of her anymore. She panicked. "I lost visual on the target!"

"What happened?"

"I don't know, he was in front of me right before we took that corner, he couldn't have gone too far." Did he realize that I was following him? Sombra kept going and when she walked past a small convenience store she saw Lúcio inside. The problem was that he saw her, even making eye contact for a brief second.

Sombra kept walking without hesitation. "Shit. He stopped to buy a snack and I didn't see him at first. Now he's noticed my presence and I have to take adequate corrective measures."

"In other words?" Symmetra asked.

Sombra turned around and saw that Lúcio hadn't exited the store yet. She kept walking. "I'll go ahead of him, hurry up and hide behind some bushes. He's been following his usual route home so he's bound to catch up with me. Then I'll follow him again."

"Tell me when you are behind the bushes."

"Sure." Sombra turned left on a narrow street and began jogging, but then stopped abruptly when she saw who was coming towards her. "Vale madres."

"Sombra?" Satya asked, a bit concerned.

"Give me a sec." Sombra was between the sword and the stone. She couldn't go forward else she'd be risking her well-being, but she couldn't turn back either because of Lúcio. She looked around for a place to hide and luckily there was one big enough for her. Unfortunately, it was a dumpster. "Why me?" She whined.

The two people in front of Sombra hadn't noticed her yet, so she quickly climbed up inside the dumpster and closed the lid. The smell wasn't so bad, but it was definitely a filthy place to hide.

"Oli, what's going on?"

Sombra ignored the use of her real name and answered her girlfriend. "I almost ran into a couple of fellas that think I somehow wronged them."

"Did you?"

Sombra scoffed. "Fair enough. But no, I did nothing to them. They just think I did, and this time it wasn't my fault. I'll wait for them to pass me by as well as Lúcio, then I'll keep on with the mission." Sombra turned quiet because she heard the two men approaching her.

"I tell you Roadie, cherry bombs down the toilet? That's nothing compared to what I got in store." Said the first voice. The second one was barely audible and Sombra couldn't understand nothing from that one. "What do you mean my bombs won't work, mate? I've tried them in the boonies."

The voice was awfully close for Sombra's liking, and to her dismay she heard how those two people climbed up onto the dumpster and sat there. No no no. This can't be happening.

She ignored what the two guys above her were saying, but she couldn't talk so she hung up and instead texted Symmetra.

»» I am trapped inside a dumpster. Lúcio is about to arrive. Take the pictures and then help me get out of here.

An 'ok' was the only reply she got. After that, it was a matter of waiting for Symmetra. This time there weren't any fire alarms to trigger and it seemed that the two guys ranting about who knows what were going to take their sweet time at it.

I was so close. But at least Symmetra is helping me. She smiled at the thought. I'll have to be patient, I think.

A quarter of an hour went by and Sombra wasn't sure how she was enduring the stink, but she hadn't passed out yet, so she was relatively ok.

"…and then you strap me to the chair and light up the fireworks…" The guy who was talking was interrupted.

"Excuse me, can you get off that dumpster?" A woman said.

Saty!

"Sure thing. Come on, Roadie. I'm gonna show you the tire I found in the junkyard. I think it's perfect for— No, not for that." Said the man.

Both men walked away and only when they were gone did Symmetra opened the dumpster's lid. Sombra climbed out of the dumpster, inhaling deeply the fresh air. "Thank you."

"Wasn't there any other place to hide?" Satya was a little disgusted.

"Believe me, girl. If there had been a better place, you bet I would have taken it." After getting rid of most of the filth that stuck to her, Sombra remembered why was she trapped in there in the first place. "Did you get the pictures?"

Satya nodded. "Yes. I got one that's very clear."

"Let me see, let me see."

Satya took out her phone and showed the picture to Olivia.

"¿Qué?" Lúcio was smiling in the picture, posing for the camera, hugging his girl tightly: a 60-pound Golden Retriever.

"That's his dog, Molly. His parents are visiting him for the weekend and brought her along. He didn't want to tell Hana because he wants to surprise her tomorrow. She loves dogs." Satya calmly explained.

"How— How did you learn all that?" Olivia asked, flabbergasted.

"I asked him."

Olivia's jaw dropped. For a brief moment she was mad, but then she started laughing. "All this fucking trouble over a damn dog. Unbelievable." After she calmed down, she added. "Well, at least he isn't cheating on his girlfriend. Hana doesn't deserve that."

"Was your face in contact with the filth inside the dumpster?"

"No? I only got dirty from the chest down."

Satya kissed Olivia's cheek, which made the latter blush.

Satya draped her jacket over her shoulders and offered one sleeve for Olivia to hold, which the latter gladly took. "Let's go. You need a shower."

"You tell me the most romantic things." Olivia said, teasingly.

Satya rolled her eyes, but couldn't hide her smile, which Olivia mirrored. They made their way home.