I returned to Orisa and sat down again. "Sorry about Jamison, he usually isn't such an ass. I guess he's just being protective of me, " I said with a sigh. "We've been friends since we were both kids, shortly after I moved to Junkertown we met and he was my first friend there. Surprisingly he didn't change much. I mean, his hair got worse, but..." I laughed. Orisa giggled softly.
"It is nice to hear that you two were friends for so long. Especially since from what I heard, Junkertown is not a nice place," Orisa said, her eyes showing she was happy.
"Oh, it wasn't. But what do you expect from a wasteland? It reminded me of a really really old movie I remember reading about. I think it was called Mad Max. That movie is super old. But yeah, everyone fought for everything. It was a very rough and tumble kind of life. I am honestly still wondering why my family moved. But it made me who I am today: an ex-criminal turned Overwatch hero." I laid back in my chair. "I miss the good old days sometimes. The days before I joined Jamison and Mako on their petty crime sprees. The days where all I had to care about was trying to sneak into the freezer of my parents' pub with Jamison to find the ice cream they kept there. But look at me getting all nostalgic. I should stop. You seemed like you wanted to talk to me about something earlier."
"No, feel free to continue if you wish. You looked genuinely happy when you were reminiscing," Orisa said, "Besides if we are to become better friends, it would help to know more about you." I heard the footsteps of someone else approaching and turned around.
"Keira, what's up, love?" Lena said with a wave. I smiled and waved back. She warped toward Orisa and me and grabbed a seat. "Where's Junkrat- er I mean Jamison? I keep forgetting that he has a very gentlemanlike name. Usually, you two are wandering around together."
"Oh, he got pissed about me deciding to hang out with Orisa. He was tired, I presume, so I told him to go take a nap or something. He always forgets to sleep," I said with a shrug.
"I see. So, we are going to go on a mission soon. We're going to see if King's Row is safe from any Omnics," Lena said with a smile. "Would you like to join us?"
"Sure. I'd be happy to!" I said, brushing some of my hair away from my face. "Who else is going on this mission?"
"Well, Jack, Winston, Jamison, Angela you, and of course, me! We'll be leaving in a week to get there!" Lena stood up and smiled at me and Orisa. "I can't wait to go on my first mission with you!"
I cracked a small smile and nodded. "I can't wait to go on a mission with you, either. It would be fun."
Orisa nodded. "I feel like it would be a great experience for you. You are very skilled at combat, and from what I heard about you, you are very caring about those who need help."
I sighed and nodded. "Yeah..." With the mention of my compassion for those in need, I started to remember how I met the blond junker I later called my friend.
Flashback
I walked out of the pub my parents' owned. Mom gave me a bit of gold to spend to watch a Mech fight. I've always wanted to see one, and now that we finally got settled into Junkertown and got our family business up and running again, I could! I sprinted to the scrapyard, ducking through the crowds of adults who normally would be fighting. That was the one thing I didn't like about Junkertown. All the fighting. I fell to the ground, having bumped into someone. I grunted slightly, my red hair falling in my face. "Oi!" The kid I bumped into yelled. He was rather tall and thin with messy, spiked blond hair. He turned to face me, and the first thing that caught my eye was the dirt and grime covering his body, along with what could barely pass as an outfit. He simply wore a pair of green cargo shorts with various patches on it.
"S-sorry! I didn't see you, I was just trying to dodge all the fighting. What are you doing here?" I said, standing up and brushing myself off.
"What are you doing here?" He returned the question at me, "And what's with your voice? You aren't from Australia, are you?"
"I'm from Ireland. I was just going to go to the mech fight," I said, looking the tall boy over.
"Oh, right! You're the kid of the people who run the new pub, yeah? You guys don't have any nicknames around here. That's weird!"
"Nicknames? What do you mean by that?" I looked up at him, noticing a large smile on his face.
"Yeah! Nicknames! They call me Junkrat, for example! It's kind of a theme here." He put his hand on his chest and smirked, proud of his alias.
I laughed at his absurd nickname, which sounded more like an insult than anything else. "Well, my dad calls me Aendat, if that counts." I fiddled with the gold in my hands. "Did your parents give you that nickname, Junkrat? Where are they, anyway?"
"No, and I don't need my parents around me! I'm 13! I can fend for myself! Anyone comes near me and I'll blow 'em up!"
"Right," I rolled my eyes. "You want to come to see the mech fight with me, Junkrat? My parents gave me enough gold, and I want to try to make friends here, too." He nodded, his amber eyes seeming to light up at my suggestion as if he had never even been offered something like that before.
"Yeah! C'mon!" He yelled, "I know my way around this place like the back of my hand! I even know where the best seats are!" His voice dropped to a whisper and he leaned over to me, "I sneak in to see them a lot. Follow me, Aednat!"
I laughed and nodded, feeling accomplished about making a new friend, even if he seemed like a troublemaker...
Flashback end
"Keira!" Lena yelled, shaking my shoulder gently.
"Oh, sorry, I zoned out for a second. I was just remembering something from my childhood. Sorry Lena," I laughed, my face red.
"What was it?" She asked, tilting her head slightly.
"Just when I first met Jamison. I was ten, he was thirteen. I accidentally ran into him when I was trying to dodge all the fighting," I sighed. "It was a different time then."
"You... miss Junkertown, don't you, love?" Lena asked softly. I shook my head.
"Nah, trust me, that place was a shithole. A shithole I call home, but a shithole none the less," I laughed.
"Well, we need to get ready for our King's Row trip! Come on, I'll help you pack," Lena said with a smile. I nodded and stood up.
"You two have fun," Orisa said, gently fist-bumping both of us. I walked to my room, passing by Jamison's open door. I peeked in. Just as I thought, he was knocked out, fast asleep in the mess he called a bed.
"You care a lot about Jamison, don't you, Keira?" Lena teased, elbowing me.
"He's a friend and an associate. Yeah, we didn't do the most legal things, but we were there for each other through thick and thin. He's like... I don't know, my best friend. God, I hope he didn't hear me say that." Right as if on cue, Jamison sat up with a yawn.
"Hey, sheila, don't ya know the meaning of privacy?" He laughed. I rolled my eyes.
"Lena was just going to help me pack for our King's Row mission. I suggest you do the same... If you even have more than one pair of shorts..." I mumbled the last part in disgust, though the idea wasn't shocking. I turned around and closed his door as I walked away and continued with Lena to my room. This mission was going to be interesting...
