A Chance Encounter

Part 2

Author's Note

I apologize deeply for the time it took to update with such a meager count of words. Life, as well as minor Writer's Block, had me buckled down lately and these past three weeks have been the busiest three weeks in my entire life. This chapter was meant to be twice the size it is now, but I've since given up my end-of-June deadline for the story and will continue it on my own time now.

I apologize for the inconvenience, but I hope you enjoy what I manage to put out.

Without further adieu, enjoy. :)

"Wot in God's name…?" Was all Lena could mutter.

"Errr." Was all Bolt could even let out.

A hurricane was devastating London, picking up in pace and power as the seconds dragged on. Sure enough, some buildings would be alright for the most part aside from water damage and the widows, but anyone on the streets? It would be a death sentence to go out there. Even Lena acknowledged that fact, albeit unwillingly, when her friend reminded her of such. It was an easy surprise to the young woman when a stranger breezed through the door, clothing soaked and dripping, her hair a raggled and sopping wet mess of ginger. Her mere presence struck Lena stupid for a solid minute as it did with all the patrons and employees.

Even a few rushed in from the back to see who was so crazy as to take a stroll in a hurricane.

"Are ya daft?" She shouted, her voice rising easily past her natural pitch. "Are your phones workin'?" She repeated herself, pointing a shaking finger at the Omnic. There was no proper response that the Omnic could give besides his emotionless stare. Visual processors blinking as he stood there, was it confusion? No one could tell.

"Did you just-" The rude gent from earlier piped up, pausing as the disbelief fell over him. It was obvious he felt the same as Lena. The woman glanced his way, a glare boring from her skull into his.

"I need a working phone right now!" Lena jumped, the woman having shouted her panicked demand once again. This seemed to cause the other few patrons to jump as well as they only opted gawk at her. It wasn't unfounded, this surprise. But Lena found herself more surprised by the fact this woman braved the so-called "hurricane".

Not even Michael wanted to do that, and Michael was as bold as they got. He proved that to her almost every time they went dancing or drinking.

Eventually the Omnic barista managed to find his words, taking cautious steps towards the newcomer as they shook and shivered in place. A pool steadily growing around their feet as their clothes dripped with the remnants of the outside.

"I-I'm sorry, ma'am… But our phon-" He stammered, still finding disbelief in the situation. Lena already knew what he was going to say and shook her head in a brief manner. She couldn't help but cast a glance to the phone sitting idly on a counter far in the back; an employee with dreads just standing with unsure eyes. Lena managed to meet his gaze for a moment, and he knew what she was thinking. He shook his head, signifying that the phone was indeed having its own issues.

Bolt closed the distance slowly, trying his best to keep her from shouting and scaring the patrons further but he even he knew she wouldn't like his answer. He tried changing the subject, worry infecting his mechanical voice. "Listen, ya need to have a seat you're… you're absolutely freezing!"

The woman shook her head, trying to keep a calm attitude yet it was clear her attempts had failed before she had even entered the shop.

"N-no. I'm fine." She admitted with an exasperated breath. "I just need your phone. Right now."

"Ma'am, I can't-" The Omnic stammered. "Just-just take a seat and calm down."

Lena's eyes trailed slowly to her idle cellphone. A thought springing in mind.

"It's a little under 'alf percent…" She thought. "Wot would be the harm?"

"No, ya don't understand…"

"Ma'am, you're panic isn't helping anyone. You're freezing, it's cold out there, an' you're wet. Just 'ave a seat, I'll… get you something warm to drink just ca-" The Omnic approached her, switching the paper between hands to hold out a friendly and inviting hand. He was trying to help.

The woman wasn't having any of it.

"I'm in charge of someone else's kid right now!" She shouted, her brows arching upwards as her panic continued to surge. The barista backed away in sudden shock, metallic hands risen as if to protect himself from potential danger. Even Lena felt a little shocked at the sudden outburst. "I-I need to call a friend! Someone…" She continued, her voice breathy and scattered as she attempted an explanation. Lena's eye drifted slowly to her idle phone once more but the woman's resurging voice captured her attention once more.

"That kid is sitting 'ome all alone in a bloody hurricane! Give me your goddamn phone!"

That was all Lena needed to hear.

"You can use mine!" She offered, turning in her stool to face the woman fully. The woman looked to her, the young Brit's voice cutting between theirs easy. At first she didn't seem to register the offer in full, a confused brow showing it clearly. But a momentary glance between her and the Omnic gave her the seconds she needed to understand in proper.

"R-really?!" She asked, unsure briefly if she had heard it right. "Oh, thank you! Thank you!" She offered as she made her way to the young pilot. Each step a squelch as her boots left imprints on the flooring. The rug by the door was absolutely ruined by the water. She passed by the tall rude gent, bumping into his table in her haste, but he didn't seem to mind it. Indeed his confusion drowned out any further brusqueness he could offer. Lena wanted nonetheless to sneer as she noticed this but couldn't keep her eyes off of the soaked woman. Both worry and surprise still infecting her mind.

Lena grabbed hold of her phone, picking it up and unlocking the homescreen as the woman extended a hand to take it. She was still muttering a silent thanks as her mind raced with possibilities of what was occurring at home and to a degree this worried Lena. Whatever was going through her head was enough to instill a constant panic that was quickly set unease the once calm room. But it was for a legitimate reason.

Lena could only hope the child was in a secure building.

She looked up, smiling at the young lady before her. A small reassurance to show her everything would be alright. And as she moved to hand it to her, she paused as her big brown eyes shifted to the newcomer's hands.

She withdrew the phone, giggling as the lady's expression went from one of thanks to one of confusion.

"Ah, ah, ah!" Lena giggled. "Dry your hands first!" She caused no amusement to the newcomer.

Instead she looked at her with confused eyes the color of a deep amber, withdrawing the dripping hand to look over. She then huffed, unsatisfied with Lena's action. It seemed rather selfish and childish, but then again she didn't know the extent to this Brit's cheeky attitude.

"You can't be serious…" She said, clenching her hands tight as an annoyance entered her panicking system.

"Luv, this is my only phone. I ain't havin' it ruined now, yeah?." Lena smiled. "Dry your hands and I'll give it over." She grinned, lowering her eyes as to the jokingly challenge her. The woman did not and instead she scoffed, looking in between Lena and her phone a moment as if she was attempting to make a decision. She eventually came to that decision as she quickly shook her dripping head in a move of compliance with the realization that she was wasting time.

She didn't say a word, just a small annoyed huff as she reached for a bundle of napkins sitting idly across from the young time traveler. Her foot grazed the anchor by her stool and she glanced to it, her eyes going wide as she realized it was there and muttered an apology - one that Lena accepted with a glum roll of her eyes; as if she really didn't care - and dried her hands, handing the wet clump of napkins to the waiting Omnic who had slowly trailed her. He was still unsure of what to do.

"Uhh, Marcus…" Bolt called out to the man with dreadlocks. "Could you… go see if we 'ave anything… for this?" He asked, motioning to her as he could not properly find the words to describe the situation. The other employee slowly nodded, backing away out of sight to find whatever it was that would help. Even the newcomer seemed surprised by his wording.

She opened her mouth to speak but relented, instead opting to look at Lena with her hands extended.

"This good enough for ya?" She pointedly asked. Lena only chuckled and handed her the phone, surprised that the woman didn't just snatch it out of her hands.

"Bloody 'ell this is just unbelievable…" She murmured.

Despite that thought Lena was indeed glad the woman didn't act on anything. She didn't exactly want confrontation today and this was already pushing it. Lena easily forgave her though as the situation was clearly not in her favor.

She watched as the woman frantically dialed a number on her phone, turning away from the young Brit as she awaited anxiously for an answer on the other end. Cursing and begging for whoever she was calling to pick up as quietly as she could.

The patrons in the coffee shop had returned to their individual business, each one and all. The tall rude man had began playing on his phone, sipping away as his espresso and forgetting the whole encounter had even occurred. The couple on the far side of the shop, while at first were speechless, had followed the same route. They no longer cared, the situation in hand well taken care of and posed no threat to them or their growing conversation. One of them had begun laughing, a small series of chortles that caught both Lena and the newcomer's attention but they didn't pay too much mind once they saw who was unleashing it.

And Bolt had taken a place behind the counter once again, returning to his work fulfilling the very few orders he managed to take.

Suddenly the silent murmurs grew into a quiet, frantic appraisal of the situation.

"Dear God, finally! I didn't think I was going to be able to reach you!" She tried speaking with a low tone, doing her best to not disturb the clientele any further than she already had. "The bloody storm's worsenin' down 'ere! Jesus!"

Lena could've listened, there was nothing stopping her from eavesdropping. It was her phone after all, but she really didn't care. This woman had been through enough already, Lena could already see that and she didn't want to add any further stress, and Lena knew well that some stranger listening to a private conversation would certainly add to it. Any reason would pale brightly to her situation so she turned away, simply content to take hold of her creamy espresso and a nearby straw.

But instead of simple drinking the concoction, she instead dipped the straw inside before dragging it back out, licking with a wide grin the whipped cream that followed the straw on its exit. Her eyes sparkled as she did this, a childish sight to some but to the Omnic barista this was nothing new and he would chuckle every time he caught her doing it.

"What're ya?" He asked, chuckling lowly as he was readying another drink. "Four? Five? Six?"

Lena giggled, playfully holding up three fingers while dipping the cleaned straw back into the drink for round two.

Bolt shook his head, the childlike wonder of this woman never ceasing to amaze him. Sure, Lena was only twenty years old. She often boasted of this whenever Bolt got her talking. The Omnic having only been active for a miserable seven years in a stark contrast, he never truly understood how she could always be so happy and vibrant especially when the world seemed so bleak, this thought being furthered by his own severe mistreatment at the hands of the humans, Lena was always a proper breath of fresh air whenever she breezed into his place of work looking for a warm drink or just a place to hang out.

If he could smile, he would do it right now.

She giggled, licking the straw clean again and staring with glee at all she has left. She hasn't even scratched the tip of the iceberg."Oh, you spoil me, Boltiful!" She teased him, dipping the straw again.

"Enjoy it, Lena. Normally it's a pound more, you know this." He reminded her. However there was a slight twinge in his voice that gave off the hint that he was teasing back.

She rolled her eyes with a smile. "One thing you could always count Bolt on is his "professional conduct"."

Lena toyed with her drink a while long, enjoying the whipped cream in a way that only a child could. The coffee inside becoming nothing more than a side note as the main course became something different. It wasn't long however until she began to catch herself eavesdropping, the woman being only a few feet behind her muttering just loudly enough for her and Bolt to hear.

"Listen, I-I know it's a huge favor but you live right down the hall… Please, I wouldn't be askin' if I had any other way of gettin' up there!" The newcomer stammered as she spoke, catching Lena's ear for a moment as her nosiness got the better of her. "P-please… Will just… I… Can you go to my room, key's under the matt, just grab Johnny and take 'im with ya, please? I'm scared this storm-yes yes, I understand but please this is important!"

The Omnic glanced Lena's way, well aware she was eavesdropping.

"A nice thing you did, Lena." He commented. "Lettin' 'er use your phone. Saved us all unnecessary trouble."

Lena, however, wasn't exactly moved by this endorsement for the Omnic could've easily let her use their phone, yet the other employee, "Marcus" as he was called, gave a clear indication something was off. Lena couldn't exactly put her head around it, yet she asked anyways.

"Uh, Bolt… Boltiful?" She asked, catching his ever changing attention. She coughed, eyeing the phone behind the counter and tried her best to indicate that she was curious about it but the Omnic was as clueless as he was friendly. He blinked, adding in a shrug.

She tilted her head, giving out a loud cough and staring daggers at the device, to which the Omnic still didn't understand.

Lena could only deadpan at the robot, shocked at how clueless he was being right now and sighed with bent frustration poisoning her mood.

"What's wrong with the bloody blower?" She finally asked while doing her best to remain quiet as to not disturb the newcomer.

This question caused the automaton to blink again and he glanced between the young woman clad in black and the telephone, registering her meaning as she looked on. He eventually understood the question and gave a loud "Oh!". This only added to Lena's frustration.

"Nothin'." He admitted as if it was nothing uncommon. "Management just doesn't want the customers using it. Somethin' about savin' money and whatnot." He shook his head, shaking up a coffee cup. Liquid sloshed as he did so, and the young, usually bubbly, Brit scoffed at this revelation.

"Well that's fucking stupid, innit?"

The Omnic paused, glancing back at her and chuckling lowly as he processed the words.

"A rather brash response, innit?" The Omnic mocked her. He was trying to imitate her, and this only swelled her cheeks slightly as the robot teased her. This response gave him all he needed to laugh. She only shook her head, letting loose an exasperated sigh followed by her own distinct giggle.

"Bloody 'ell, dear Boltiful, if you ever act that clueless again I might have to one-up ya!"

He laughed again, the quick-wit of this woman being a continued fresh breeze in an otherwise tense moment. The cheeky young woman was more or less a child in an adult's body, not wanting for any real confrontation or anger and always quick with the sass or a joke to undermine any serious talk. Even when she seemed to get mad or just downright displeased she always maintained a level-head and popped a joke.

The Omnic knew that she must be well liked at Overwatch.

Yet as the moments dragged on the robot had returned to his hasty work, leaving Lena to fiddle with her straw while her coffee got watered down by the ice slowly melting away - the whipped cream being a huge roadblock for the woman and, for the life of her, she couldn't stop licking it off the straw. She didn't care if anyone looked at her funny, either. Yet it was all pale in moment when the distraught voice of the ginger-haired lady continued to capture Lena's attention. Her tone worried her, and her words only made it worse. She was begging and pleading with the person on the other end, and it seemed that it wasn't working.

The straw in her mouth, she let her eyes hit the floor as she heard the next set of words fly from the ginger-haired woman's mouth.

"I...I was out getting somethin' to eat for the lad, but that isn't important! If the hurricane shatters one of my windows he's gonna go into a panic, please I am beggin' ya!" The woman pleaded. It sounded to Lena as if the other end was apprehensive with the request.

She sat in silence a moment, listening to nothing but the jazz and thumps at the windows. The rain was bearing heavily on the glass, but no one felt afraid. It was likely it would hold, many businesses had reinforced their windows - by government mandate - on this side of town in the case of a riot unfolding.

Lena expected the woman to plead some more, the sound of her voice was desperate enough and it seemed as though she was on the verge of tears. But as the seconds dragged on Lena got a somewhat unsatisfying answer.

"Nevermind what happened to my car, just know there is no way in furious 'ell that I'm going back to it. I almost got swept away tryin' to find shelter and thank God that some places are still open out here!"

Lena gasped, almost daring a glance back at the lady.

"That'd be terrifying!" She thought.

"Jacklyn, please… I promise I'll pay and everything!" She pleaded once more, her voice shaking with easy distraught. "Please..!"

A moment passed, and Lena only dreaded to hear what would come next. Her attention was so wrapped up in the affair that she didn't notice the bundle of towels being sat in front of her, as well as Bolt's departure to secure further freebie orders. And a few seconds more of the jazzy silence did the woman speak again, her voice very much the same as before, yet….

"Oh God, thank you Jackie, thank you!" The woman nearly broke down, her voice straying further from the calm that it could be. "Merissa would kill me if her son got hurt, you have no idea… Please, just watch over 'im I'll get up there as soon as I am able…. Thank you Jackie, thank you!"

Lena couldn't help but smile, the relief the woman was feeling easily bled into a contact high as Lena, who was only a few feet or so from the distraught and dripping mess, sighed as the woman essentially voiced the answer she got. An answer she wanted. An answer she had hoped for.

It was an answer even Lena wanted to hear. She would dread knowing that kid was home alone but she wasn't really ready to see a woman die. Going out into that supposed hurricane was a surefire way to do that and at the very least the child would be at home in a potentially safe location.

Of course, Lena shouldn't have been eavesdropping. This conversation was technically none of her business, but Lena being herself she couldn't exactly help it- not to mention it was being done on her phone. Plus she's done worse than eavesdrop on phone calls before. She's downright snuck into private meetings between commanders Reyes and Morrison just to hear some of the things they would have to say.

Lena would be mentioned at times and she would laugh whenever it seemed appropriate - albeit in a quieter tone.

She's never been caught either.

And it was so here she didn't really feel all that bad either, and in fact she felt downright happier for doing so. A child in distress finding safety with another was something that would make anyone feel relieved - more so if it was their charge. But Lena, with her heart set the way it was, would easily take it worse than others even if she had no idea who the child was.

"I promise, Jackie, as soon as everything calms down I'll come 'ome, I promise. This bloody hurricane…."

"This isn't a hurricane…" Lena murmured, stirring her drink as she listened.

"I saw a couple bobbies trapped in their car a few streets back. They're too scared to get out or even drive, it's that bad… Listen, just take Johnny an' keep him safe I'll be 'ome soon… I promise, thank you…" She paused, glancing back at Lena with wide eyes. Lena didn't meet them, opting to continue stirring her drink as if she wasn't listening at all. "Jackie… Jackie. I gotta go now, I'm not on my phone I lost it outside. This is someone else's phone an' I gotta give it back."

She paused and exhaled, the relief she was feeling becoming impalpable.

"Thank you again, you just 'ave no idea… Thank you Jackie. Stay safe."

And with that being said, Lena heard the unmistakable boop of a call ending, a small yet audible noise ringing from her phone. She didn't turn back to face the woman as she didn't want to show she was eavesdropping, but she heard the woman clicking her tongue. Nothing else aside from the smooth music and rain-battered windows was heard and a moment later she piped up, tapping Lena on the shoulder.

"Eavesdroppin's fun, yeah?" The woman commented with an arched brow.

Lena gulped, slowly turning to face her.

"Wot?" Was all Lena could ask, feigning her innocence as the woman handed her the phone. Lena took it gladly, albeit with a little hesitation and her eyes locked with the alternative. This little moment of reticence was enough to betray the lie openly, a portion of the woman wanted to laugh but the situation was tense enough to the point she couldn't even summon a smile.

Instead, she frowned, nonverbally chastising the young time traveler for the immature action.

"It's not polite." She remarked as well as noting Lena's steadily reddening cheeks.

But she was not without her own ability to see the fairness in the situation, and after a good moment of a disapproving and uncomfortable staredown between the two, the woman allowed herself a calm smirk.

"But thank you…." She allowed, lowering her head to hide the smile as she calmed herself. The visible distress she was in was evaporating albeit gradually as the important call she had to make bore the fruit she sought desperately. She turned away, eyeing up the shop around her as she searched for a place to settle in, understanding well she could not return outside. Her charge was in the care of a good friend, and now all that mattered was her own safety.

The coffee shop was pretty sturdy, as most buildings in this district were. Even she knew she'd be a fool to abandon it.

The woman made a move to walk away, spotting an area she could sit to contemplate both her situation and what to do next as the conditions in the outside worsened evermore. She only gained a few feet before the young time traveler piped up and stole the attention once again.

"Oi, wait a moment, luv!" Lena had called out to her, even garnering some attention from the other patrons, including the tall rude man.

"Listen lady, can ya at least tone it down a bit?" He asked, his voice grumbly and annoyed. But Lena ignored him and grabbed for the towels she finally realized were sitting in front of her. The calming newcomer approached her once again, receiving the towels with quizzical eyes.

"I think they dragged these out for you." Lena informed her, unsure even herself if that was true or not. But Bolt and Marcus didn't object. "Seems a bit appropriate, you're dripping wet right now."

The woman looked down at herself, and nodded a confirmation of her words. She was still soaked to the bone and all across the flooring was a pathway where the woman had walked, water dripping and spreading in a puddle all around where she had been only moments ago. She winced, the sheer embarrassment dawning on her rapidly as she realized she was ruining the floor with her mere presence.

She offered, despite the small confrontation, a word of gratitude.

"Thanks."