"Oi, wait a sec!"

At the sound of his voice, she had whirled around in terror. Her gaze trailed up his long arm, stopping at his collarbones before she willed herself to look him in the eye, mouth agape like a fish.

"I needa talk to ya."

She squints her eyes shut and swallows, steeling herself. So much for steering clear of him and not slipping into another episode.

The way her lips press together and her eyes squeeze shut make Junkrat's stomach swim. Her fingers twitch and pull at the hem of her parka, and she stands knock-kneed and pigeon-toed.

Was she trembling?

He clears his throat, discomfort scuttling over his skin like spiders. Apologizing was an art Junkrat had not yet mastered.

"Jeez, mate, I'm not gonna fuckin' eat ya.", he mumbles, cowed by her shrinking appearance. He scuffles his booted foot on the ground, chest tight for some reason.

She cracks one eye open, but doesn't look him in the face.

"Now...I dunno what I did...but it seemed to spook ya pretty bad. And….that was shitty."

Mei blinks, astonished. Was he going to apologize to her?

"But I don't see what the issue was. I think ya hair looks fine when its down."

Her stomach sinks. Oh.

Was he seriously this dense?

Her skin prickles.

Or was…..

Or was he making fun of her again?

Her lips seal into a tight little line and anger bubbles against her chest. When she finally looks up into his face, her eyes shoot ice into his veins.

"You're a monster."

He jolts suddenly, as though he were thrown into arctic water.

"W-...what?"

She stalks toward him with solid shoulders, breathing loudly.

"I don't know what possessed you to crawl out of that irradiated wasteland you came from, nor what struck Winston to recruit the two of you lowlives, but I'll have you know that my work is important. The things I do are for the benefit of mankind, not just for some cheap sadistic thrill like the ruin you bring with you wherever you go. No one needs nor certainly wants you around, especially not me. Kindly stay out of my life."

A shudder runs through him.

Mei could've sworn she saw hurt flash against his eyes- but then they grew dark. He unfurls his chest and shoulders, standing to his full height. His trembling hand reaches slowly, tentatively forward, before shooting forth to fist the fur of her collar in his hand, pulling her close. His golden canine is bared among his exposed teeth in a snarl and his eyes burn in the dim light of the hallway.

"You don't know shit, girlie. I suggest ya learn some fuckin' manners if ya know what's good for ya."

Intrepid, she draws nearer to him, eyes like steel and face inches from his. The cold mouth of her Blaster nips his exposed flesh.

"Back away, Jamison. Now."

He swallows, the chill of the metal sending cold blood down the veins of his arm.

Her aim gnaws at him.

Her gun is poised against his collarbone, carefully avoidant of his subclavian artery. She could kill him here, if she wanted to- an icicle at this point-blank range would be an easy end to him. But her gun was not pressed to his heart. If she shot him now, she'd only wound him at best. Ten minutes in the clinic, sitting in the glow of Mercy's staff, and he'd be fine.

He eyes her then- she's not a stupid woman. She knows what she's doing.

She wouldn't shoot to kill, and it gnaws at his guts

He backs away, giving her shoulders a quick, short shove to create some distance.

"Tch."

Junkrat turns to face the hallway, and she can only see the shadowy patterns left by his spine and wiry back muscles in the failing fluorescent light. His breathing is steady and his posture is as straight as a string.

"You sure got a big mouth for someone who's too chickenshit to even aim straight, mate."

This catches her off-guard, causing the hand that gripped her blaster to slide down to her side.

"W….what?", she squeaks.

He laughs spitefully, twirling to face her in a drunken, dancing sort of way. His expression is bitter and his voice is dry.

"Not like you're wrong, mate. I'm basically just alive for the fun of it at this point. And yeah, sure as shit- nobody needs me here. But I'm having a blast, so if you're gonna be the end of me, ya better bring one hell of a finale to the show, yeah?", he rasps, lips pinched taut.

She's speechless again, and he snorts, smiling wryly, before turning back around to make his way down the hall and to his quarters.

Mei's heartbeat slowed.

This was wrong. His voice, his expression- it was all wrong.

Junkrat was loud, obnoxious, and boisterous. Sarcasm fit him well enough, but this? This hadn't been sarcasm. This wasn't quippy or biting, as was typical Junkrat fashion. His eyes and tone had been flat and hollow. The joke was there, sure, but there had been no humor to it. This was nonchalance, apathy. As if he truly didn't care whether he lived or if he-

If...he...

She sucks air back into her lungs, the thought gripping suddenly at her heart. Her lips part and she summons her voice to call his name.

"Junkrat, wait!"

He hears her, but he doesn't turn around, only lifting his arm lazily to wave to her from behind and continuing to walk away.

"Cheers, Snowball.".