Disclaimer: I only own Lola. Valve owns everything else, except for Australia. Valve doesn't own Australia.
Sweat dripped down Scout's brow as he glared at the woman in front of him. The Hispanic woman wore a plain white tank top and baggy cargo pants, that were clearly meant for a man. On her right hand was a baseball glove, and in her left hand, a baseball. Scout stood still, with his hands gripping his baseball bat, waiting for the woman to make the first move.
The woman, who was chewing gum, blew a bubble and popped it before she finally moved,throwing a baseball at him. Scout gritted his teeth as he took one step forward, and swung, hitting the ball clear out behind his opponent.
"Aw geeze," The woman, Lola, groaned as she lowered her hands to her sides. "I was supposed to catch that!"
"Sorry Chuckles," Scout dropped the bat and wiped his forehead, knocking his cap askew. "I still have the best swing." He smirked at Lola.
"Don't call me Chuckles, you jerk." She rolled her brown, almond shaped eyes, and turned her head to look behind her. "That's gonna take me forever to find."
"Then you should get started, Chuckles," Scout said, laughing. Lola clenched her fists in anger, with her olive skin turning a nasty shade of red.
"Don't call me that!" She stomped her foot in anger. Scout didn't respond; he was doubled over laughing at his own wit. Lola let her anger get the best of her, and she ran at Scout with a speed that almost rivaled his and tackled him. Scout instantly stopped laughing and let out a cry of surprise as his head slammed into the ground.
Lola straddled him and started punching him repeatedly. Scout tried to push the woman off of him, but quickly found she was much stronger when she was angry. She didn't budge, but lucky for Scout, he was still much more experienced in a fight than she was. He managed to block her punches by grabbing her wrists, and gripped them tight.
"Ya done yet, princess?" He asked, amusement written all over his face.
"No, I'm just getting started you dirt-bag," she snapped. With her hands unusable, she leaned forward as far as her arms would allow, and head-butted Scout. Grunting in pain, Scout let go of her wrists and rolled over, clutching his forehead. Lola slid off of him and punched him in the stomach, which caused Scout to curl up in pain.
"Geeze, calm down ya freak of nature!" Scout grumbled in irritation. It was Lola's turn to laugh.
"That ought ta teach ya who's better," she said. "Chucklenuts."
"Oh, tough guy, aren't ya?" Scout sat up, cracking his neck from side to side. "You wanna go? I'll give ya a good fight." Standing up, he clenched his hands into fists and readied himself, with his lips pursed in anticipation. Lola copied his stance.
"Yeah I'm tough," she said. "I've been practicing all week."
"Great," Scout replied. "Let's go." He swung his fist out and clocked her in the cheek, almost throwing her off. Lola quickly recovered and blocked Scout's second punch, and then threw one of her own, hitting him in the eye. Scout dropped low, and retaliated with a kick, which knocked Lola to the ground. She rolled over and grabbed his leg and yanked. Scout's arms windmilled as he struggled to keep his balance, but he lost the fight and toppled over.
Lola drew her fist back and went to aim for the spot between the legs, but Scout kicked her in the chest, knocking her onto her back. The girl started to get up, but Scout had beaten her to a standing position, and he planted a foot on her stomach.
He raised his arms and grinned, turning from side to side as if a crowd was watching him. "The scout wins!" He yelled. "Oh yeah, you got owned lady!"
Lola rolled her eyes. "Fine, you win," she said, shoving his foot off of her. Scout bent down and grabbed her hand, helping her to her feet.
"Damn right I win," he said. "I do this for a livin'," He grinned and adjusted his cap. "I'm always fighting chuckle-heads. Ya can't beat me in a million years."
"Oh yeah?" Lola raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah," Scout said with a chuckle.
"Then beat this!" She lunged forward again, and tackled Scout again. He flailed, trying to get Lola off of him and keep himself upright at the same time. Lola elbowed him in the same eye, and Scout reached for her arm, but all he grasped was air. Blinking, Scout looked around and was mildly surprised to see her a few feet away, holding his bag. She was also holding his baseball bat. Scout looked down, realizing why he felt somewhat lighter.
"Hey, those are mine!" He said pathetically. Lola just smirked at him.
"I don't see your name on them," she retorted. "I like this bag, I think I'll take it with me next time to ballet."
"Yeah right," Scout brushed dirt off his clothes. "I can run faster than ya."
"I know. But I still won something."
"I'm stronger than ya."
"I still outsmarted ya."
"Well...Chucklenuts," Scout said lamely. He was losing this verbal battle.
"Dirt-bag."
"Ballet dancing freak."
"At least I'm limber."
"I can still run faster."
Lola started to retort, but instead she started laughing. Her laughter was infectious, and Scout found himself laughing as well. He approached her and playfully punched her in the shoulder. She responded by tackling him, again.
–
After another playful romp in the field, the sun was starting to inch closer to the horizon. Lola sat next to a reclined Scout, with her knees drawn close to her body, resting her chin on her knees. Scout lay on his back staring up at the sky, with his hands behind his head.
"How's the war going?" Lola asked after a couple minutes of silence.
"It's goin' great," Scout turned his gaze to her. "I love beating those chuckle-nuts up."
"It sounds great," she said. "But I worry about you."
"Nah, I do great there," Scout turned to his side and picked at the dirt. "Nothing serious happens."
"You mean the..whatever you called it, the respawn?" Lola tilted her head in confusion.
"Yeah. Nothin' permanent happens to me, so I'm good."
"That's crazy technology," Lola looked up. "Is that from Australia?"
"I guess, I don't know really, I just know I can stab a guy in tha chest and a minute later he comes right back out for more." Scout looked at her and tilted his head. "You really that worried about me?"
"I guess, I don't know," she said. "What if that respawn stuff doesn't work?"
"Nah, the administrator won't let that happen. She likes ta toy with us too much ta let us die that easily. Even if it did, I'd go down fightin' just like I always wanted."
"Sounds good for you," Lola snapped. "I don't like that idea."
"Aw come off it," Scout sat upright and pushed her. "I thought you were made of tough stuff. Don't let all that imagination crap get the bettah of you."
"Sorry," Lola smiled sheepishly at him. "You're one of my best friends. I guess I just get sentimental when I think about you."
"Don't start mushy talkin' me. I ain't good with feelings and crap." Scout shuddered and made a face, which Lola laughed at.
"You look stupid right now."
"Have you seen a mirror lately?" Scout patted her on the head. "Ladies love me, I ain't so sure about you."
"You're such a jerk," Lola retorted, but there was affection in her voice.
"You're just a dumb kid, what do you know?" Scout said, trying to sound arrogant. But he smiled at her anyway, and they sighed at the same time.
With a lull in the conversation, Scout looked up at the sky and sighed again. "I gotta get goin' back," he inched away from Lola and prepared to stand up.
"Already?" Lola whined. "You've only been here a few hours."
"I know, but I gotta go before I miss curfew." Lola thought she saw exhaustion on his face. But he was grinning again. "Gotta busy week ahead, and it ain't startin' without me."
"Fine," Lola sighed. "Get going then, I don't want to be around you anymore." She looked away, pouting.
"Hey, you're gonna be so busy with ballet and your own job you won't have time ta miss me," Scout said. Lola looked back up at Scout, and he was giving her his usual lopsided smile. Despite her annoyance, she grinned back.
"Fine, but you'd better be here next weekend," she said. "Or you'll be in big trouble."
"Yeah, right," Scout said with a snort as he swung his bag over his shoulders. "I should punch the ugly outta you for trying to be all tough."
"I gave you a black eye, that's more than what you did to me today," Lola argued. She pointed at his face. "You're uglier than me."
Instinctively Scout brought his hand up to his face. He hasn't noticed before, but tenderly touching his left eye, he felt a slight bit of pain. He grinned. "Well guess you did. Next weekend I'll return the favor." He started to walk away.
Lola stood up and brushed the dirt off her pants before watching Scout retreat. "Don't forget!" She called. "This time, next weekend!"
Scout didn't turn around. He just waved.