Full summary: As Caitlyn's best friend, Jayce had always wished for her happiness, thus when Vi came into their lives, no matter his fears, he could only hope for the best when a wedding was announced. Then Jinx came into the picture.

Sadly, Jinx still doesn't know how to behave without looking for ways to mess with someone, and given the occasion, her only letout happens to be Jayce... in more ways than one.

OR the one AU where Jayce and Jinx discover that the best way to fuck over someone you hate is to actually fuck them.


Disclaimer: Arcane, League of Legends and its characters are not my propierty. This work of fiction has no purpose of profitting from itself, only that of entertainment.

CONTENT WARNING: jayce, while being a caring guy, has fucked up and isn't aware he's still fucking up. also, he's a condescending twat, and given this is his pov, don't take it personal how he treats jinx. also, there are discussions of trauma, criminal life, the jinx-vi family drama, jayce and jinx's pasts and unintentional ableism as well as some REALLY aggresive (but consensual?) sex. if any of this upsets you, i PLEASE beg you to think of your well being, close the tab and find something that you'll enjoy.

This work has been crossposted on my AO3 profile, localtuqueque.


a broken glass balloon


Jayce was happy for her. Really— he was.

To be fair, it wasn't as if he hadn't seen it coming: everyone with two eyes and more than one brain cell knew that the moment Caitlyn laid eyes on Vi that was it, even if everyone warned her against it— himself included.

"I'm just making sure you won't regret this" and he meant it, he did. Jayce had been by Caitlyn's side from the very beginning, so much that those who didn't know them often mistook them as siblings— even he couldn't keep himself from thinking about her as such.

He never had siblings and neither did Caitlyn, it was bound to happen that over time they took care of each other. Even if it could annoy, or worse, enrage the other.

And Jayce could take her anger, he could take anger better than tears, than disappointment. He knew them too well and Caitlyn, while smart, was too coddled to know how to take on them. The moment Caitlyn said she was seeing Vi, however, Jayce had to doubt if she was that smart, while bracing himself the moment sharp blue eyes laid on him as if he was a target.

"What do you mean?"

"Please, Cait, are you really gonna make me say why dating an ex-convict isn't such a hot idea?"

Caitlyn had a good judge of character (she had stood by his side even with his spectacular failure at his first attempt on mechanical engineering, when he had not only cost her family money, but Piltover's Mechanical Institute's as well), yes, but she was naïve. She wanted to believe that things would be solved if you just tried hard enough, she didn't know how far some could go for a chance at a better life. And sure, if you took Vi's criminal record away (which wasn't little, mind you), she seemed like someone alright but he knew better— things just couldn't be perfect.

"As far as I know, she's not dating you for you to care so much, Jayce."

"I care for you, Caitlyn."

"I didn't ask you, did I?" And Jayce had to swallow his ego and his hurt, because he knew right then where it would go.

"You don't, sadly. But someone has to point out that someone like that has baggage: as noble as Vi is, I don't really think someone comes out of somewhere like Stillwater Prison unscathed."

"You mean from Stillwater, or from Zaun?"

Jayce had to repeat to himself that he'd take her anger rather than her disappointment, than her hurt. Caitlyn didn't know hardship, and he'd rather have her not to.

Even if at first she could, certainly, hate his guts.

"Look, Vi seems fine," and she better be more than 'just fine', he cursed to himself. "But that's the surface. Sooner or later something will come up, I swear."

"Well, in such a case, my dearest Jayce, I'll tell you when it does. Or better yet: when I need your help."

As much as such words hurt his insides (and the memories that came with them) Jayce did take her words. Knowing Caitlyn, he knew that after such conversation he could only push the subject so much but only on such precise moments so she wouldn't outright actually cut him out of his life to make room for Vi.

And he had to be fair— after he tried to talk some sense into Caitlyn, she had been right. Whatever problems Vi could bring from Zaun or the prison or both , she never showed them to Caitlyn, and whomever she used her fists on were whatever petty criminals both she and Caitlyn found while on duty.

Jayce couldn't say that he felt relief, as he never stopped worrying that the moment everything where it all went wrong would come, but at the very least, Caitlyn had said the truth (in every painful meaning of it).

And sadly, so did Jayce.

It hadn't come immediately. In fact, he had almost thought himself the loser in the imaginary bet he had going on against Caitlyn, and by extension, with Vi. Maybe it had been the amount of work to do as a member of the Faculty's council, maybe it had been that once again Caitlyn had started to message him again and accepted his attempts at reconciling over lunch, or maybe it had been the fact he got along with Vi surprisingly well— but the moment the name 'Jinx' appeared on the conversation as Vi looked at the verge of vomiting, that was the moment Jayce knew he might have been right all along.

Sooner than later, he knew he was for a fact.

It hadn't been Caitlyn who told him the news, for she valued way too much the hard-earned trust Vi gave to her— it had been Caitlyn's very girlfriend who had come home to him, pale as a sheet of paper and with eyebags that rivaled those he wore whenever he spent nights at the laboratory. Vi had always been a big woman, capable of intimidating men as tall as Jayce and yet, he could swear she looked like one of those stray kids from one of Zaun's worse streets.

And there was something in seeing someone as brave and confident as Vi so shaken and downright afraid that was, as well, capable of making Jayce fear for the worst. Just what the hell could be so bad to scare Violet like that ?

"It's… her name's Powder," Vi twisted her lips and breathed as if she downed a bottle of poison, and just before Jayce could ask who-the-hell-is-Powder-and-why-they-would-name-someone-like-that, Vi answered whatever question he left unsaid. "The… the criminal, Jinx. Her name's Powder, my… sister, I mean."

Well, afraid as she was, she still kept herself straight to the point.

It had to be said that, even if Jayce relished on the satisfaction of proving himself right in front of someone (and if it could be in front of a crowd, even better, thank you very much), Jayce was still human, and those who indulged in pleasures, no matter how small, often found themselves victims of it. Certainly, he wasn't a stranger to it, he still could see Viktor's void, mechanical glare looking right through him in the back the moment he worked up from the glory of admiration on the back of his head, and just like before, Jayce couldn't even find the right words to say.

At least, not the right words to avoid the beating of his lifetime by his best friend's girlfriend.

And Jayce could have acted with swagger, or better yet, with scorn, because as much as one could appreciate Vi it would be Caitlyn who would have to ultimately deal with all of this, it would be Caitlyn who always helped everyone and got the short end of the stick, Caitlyn who was already risking everything by being with an ex-convict. One could think that Jayce would've thought that despising Vi for her luck with family members would save her best friend's image and well-being, for he had done so before.

And because he had done it before, Jayce tried to think a little of Caitlyn's happiness before speaking, swallowing his worry and trying to find Vi's avoidant eyes. Even if, while doing so, he had massaged his temples and sighed loudly, as if he was in front of an alpha version of a project and not with someone clearly asking for advice.

"Vi, I like you, I like your work and you've been great to Cait and the city, but I'm pretty sure that such an opinion isn't extended to…"

"I'm not trying to justify her, Jayce," and there she was again, the woman that could punch a mob boss's face away and not bat an eye glaring right at him, and Jayce only hoped she could notice he hadn't tried to be condescending. Really. "I-I know what she did, I know what she's become."

And so Vi said, but the way she struggled to hold her gaze and wrapped herself in her arms told Jayce she wasn't so sure about it, and that was his problem— not that Vi was an ex-convict, not that Vi was all impulse and no thought whereas Caitlyn always thought everything through, but how far Vi could go to protect something she should left in the past.

But he still thought of Caitlyn, of her happiness— Jayce thought of how he himself let people go because he couldn't give a thought about their protection. Not a true one, at least.

And as such, Jayce only collected himself, inhaled deeply and tried to let go of whatever tension he had on his body. Of course, that failed spectacularly.

"I… I see," or at least, he was trying to. "What do you want to do about it?"

"Her." The way Vi snapped back at him was a clear warning sign, one he took note of.

"Okay— her, I get it. What do you want to do about her ?"

As Jayce would see over the course of time, it wasn't something he thought someone like Jinx deserved, that was for sure.

He of all people knew that second chances had to be given, he of all people should know that people made mistakes, that they had the best intentions. When Vi told him of their childhood, of what Jinx (or Powder, as she often made the distinction, as if somehow that would magically absolve her of everything) had caused, he understood: he knew firsthand the cruelty of the dynamics between Zaun and Piltover (or at least, he wanted to think Viktor himself had been proof enough), he knew what the judgment of those above you could do and he could only try to imagine how it would be for a young girl, to be all along after an accident that took away all the few she had left.

He knew as well that his sympathies could only go so far when he gave a glance at what Jinx, the criminal, the adult , had chosen to do and become. To Vi's fortune (or misfortune, as he thought only to himself), it got enough to warrant that Jinx could get a parole, all under the condition that she would be attending severe therapy and under the watchful eye of whatever parole officer could handle her, as well as under Vi's care.

And Jayce didn't want to be a pessimist, because he knew very well that the moment he would open his mouth to let it know how an awful idea it would be to trust the idea that Jinx would comply, not only he would lose his jaw, but he would lose the few people he had left. All over again.

No, if anything, Jayce had learned that when it came to Vi and Jinx, the best course of action would be to take care of things once they happened.

Which of course, it lasted until Vi and Caitlyn announced who they would let attend their wedding.

"Caitlyn, please—"

"Don't."

"Just listen !"

"I already know what you'll say, Jayce, I've heard it before, thank you very much . "

"Are you really gonna let it happen? Are you really gonna let her "

"Yes, I am!" the way Caitlyn slammed her palms against her desk and stared right into him made sure Jayce stood silent, even for a moment. "Do you reall y think I don't know? I 've followed her case, Jayce. I was there when Vi found out what happened to her, I' ve seen what she has done, the people she hurt. She hurt me, Jayce, me . Do you actually think that I want her there?! Do you sincerely think I want my bride to be around someone liker!?"

It wasn't until she finished that Caitlyn realized that she had been yelling, judging by the way Jayce's jaw stood hanging. She blinked and Jayce could see her eyes had been glassy, and he felt how his chest became so tight he thought that he should stop his breathing to cease the sharp pain that raked through it. He had wanted to apologize, but he let the silence fill the room, for he could not get the words through his lips as much as he tried.

"Does Vi know how you feel?" was all he could manage to say, and Caitlyn closed her eyes shut to get rid of any tear that dared to slip. She gave a sigh, and stared at him, and though he couldn't find any anger in her eyes, he thought she looked years older for a second, tired from all. He couldn't blame her even if he had wanted to.

"Of course she does," she huffed as if Jayce had told a bad joke. It was better to have Caitlyn annoyed at him than to see her crying and yelling, after all. "Vi can be rash, and defensive when it comes to Jinx, but she's not blind to it. She has made it very clear to me and to her that this is her last chance. Just one mistake, one tiny step into the wrong direction and that would be it."

"And do you believe her?" Jayce could only ask himself how many mistakes could Vi allow to Jinx, just how many people could get hurt, Vi herself included, to make the girl realize her own sister was done with her.

But Caitlyn sighed, not as a sign that she didn't believe Vi— but a sign that she knew very well that she spoke the truth. And as for Jayce, he wondered if all that Vi was doing for her sister had been the same measures that Viktor and Mel took with him years ago, all before they gave up on him.

"Believe me, Jayce. As much as I'm tired, no one is hurting worse than Vi is with all of this. There's only so much you can take before you break, and I know for a fact that not even someone like Jinx would have that happen to Vi."

"So that's your plan, then?" he raised an eyebrow, seeing how Caitlyn was breathing more evenly, but she'd rather stare into some paperwork than at Jayce. In all those years knowing her, Jayce knew that it wasn't a sign of indifference as much as a sign that she wanted to calm down. "Trust that Jinx is sane enough to not piss off Vi?"

"Well, that was exactly the plan I used on you when I started dating her, and look at us."

Jayce chose to let her laugh at his expense than to try to convince her out of such a thing. He wouldn't have been able to, anyway. He never was.

One silver lining he could find to this whole debacle (and Jayce tried hard enough to convince himself it wasn't the only silver lining) was that whatever stress the wedding could cause it fell onto whatever stress Jinx could cause. Days became weeks, weeks became months, and Jayce would've never thought of how relaxing choosing a wedding dress and preparing every detail in the room alongside Caitlyn and her mother would be.

It had to be said that Jayce, like many, often got carried away when in a good luck streak. As such, he did not take kindly on the fact that the very person he dreaded would actually show up at the wedding reception.

"I warn you, Jayce, behave ," he didn't need for Caitlyn to scold him like a child, not when he was the oldest of the two and not when someone else was the actual elephant in their room. "Vi has worked hard in making progress with her sister, and I certainly don't need it to blow it up."

"Oh, yeah, I forgot that last time I was known for lashing out and pull a gun to someone—"

" Jayce. "

He scoffed. "Fine, I'll behave, but don't expect me to do so if she pulls one of her… antics."

"If it comes to it then let Vi handle it, she's the one in charge, not you."

"I know that since the first time I stayed the night at you guys' place, thank you very much."

"And please refrain from mentioning any of those in front of her. Especially in front of her."

"You act as if I want to speak to her."

"Then avoid her, I'm serious, Jayce," she managed to pick a runaway strand of hair and tie it back into the bun in her hair. Looking at her, Jayce could barely believe Caitlyn was the same teenager that used to poke fun at him while studying for midterms, and hoped that Jinx would hold her end of the bargain. She turned around, showing herself in the full extent of her wedding gown like it was some new outfit she bought, and not her bloody wedding. "How do I look?"

Jayce could only laugh, even if Caitlyn stared at him with a mix of annoyance and a reluctant smile. "I don't know why you get so worked up on this, Vi is gonna mess it up once the reception is over." After all, Caitlyn knew he had his own way of telling her she couldn't look even more perfect even if she tried.

Not only that, but trying to hold whatever normalcy they could get out of this would be the very least Jayce could do for her.

One could be fooled into thinking that the Kiramman's wouldn't let her only daughter marry herself off without throwing the best wedding money could afford. While he could certainly see the influence of Cassandra Kiramman on the blue and silver decorations, Caitlyn had certainly made sure the reception would make Vi and her friends feel welcome, as the best man, Ekko, had told him. Jayce, being the man of honor, stood in front of Vi as both her and Ekko waited for Caitlyn at the aisle.

Jayce didn't have siblings, his father dying on a blizzard while saving them took away that possibility since her mother didn't try to remarry, but whatever sibling he could've hoped and dreamed of wouldn't hold a candle to Caitlyn. He didn't need to be his brother in blood to feel his heart grow warm at the way Vi and Caitlyn looked at each other, nor to refrain himself from yelling at Cait to kiss her bride already.

Vi hadn't been the girl he had imagined Caitlyn to be, but as they held and kissed each other, Jayce told himself that it would be fine— until he saw a pair of bright blue eyes staring at them with a mix of sadness and reluctant longing, all before such eyes rolled and the girl started to clap with the rest of the attendants.

He had never seen Jinx (or Powder, they never told him how he should refer to her and Jayce knew enough to not push further than needed into the subject around Vi and Caitlyn) in person, only whatever pictures the Piltover Police Department could get into her file. Jayce remembered that the first time he saw the picture of the blue-haired girl, he had wondered to himself how someone so dainty and small could've become one of the most dangerous criminals in Zaun. Not only that, when Vi told him the truth, he could only wonder how someone so frail could be family with Piltover's finest.

He knew how she looked, and it helped that the neon blue hair was easy to spot, but one could have looked at someone's pictures over and over and yet, the moment you saw them in person would erase all of those photographs from your head. For a second, Jayce felt the urge to get close to her, even if to subtly try and tell her to behave, but the moment Jinx caught him staring and tilted her head before smiling a little, he realized that in doing so it would be to fall into a trap— her trap.

No, he told himself as he tried to smile again and focus on the couple as if nothing happened. Unlike her, Jayce had his fair-share of screwing things over, thank you very much.

Jayce didn't know wether if Jinx was like a parasite taking hold of his head and thoughts, or if he was hyperfixating on the subject as much as Caitlyn had implied all this time, but as the couple walked down the exit during the recessional he found himself struggling to not follow Jinx. Jayce rationalized that he was only doing so to keep an eye on her, to make sure she would keep herself in line, and that he definitely didn't have a need to prove himself right.

Even if he found a sort of twisted satisfaction the moment Jinx walked behind the couple and reached inside her purse. Sure, Caitlyn had told him to not set her off, yes, but she hadn't said anything about not stopping her from setting things off.

"I'm sorry, are you searching for something? I could help you find it," he clasped her wrist with his hand, careful not to harm, but surely Jinx could realize she shouldn't mess around. Though, being fair, Jayce hoped Jinx would have caught onto that way back. "If it's a gift, I could help you leave it with the rest, I'm sure."

He was actually sure Jinx wouldn't have anything akin to a gift, especially one for Caitlyn, near her. Both Vi and Caitlyn told him the girl was actually quite smart, but Jayce hoped she would catch his drift and refrain from whatever petty and sick antics she wanted to pull on her sister's wedding day. The way she looked at him in anger and then smiled made him wonder if he should be worried or angry.

(It also made a voice inside his head, one suspiciously similar to Caitlyn's, tell him to back off and get away from her. The farthest, the better, to be precise.)

"Awww, if I had known my sister had such caring friends I would've tried to meet them before!" quickly, she escaped Jayce's grip, and he struggled to keep the fake smile he pulled for her. Jinx, on the other hand, smiled so much that it only got on his nerves more and more. "But nope, sorry, I don't have any gifts for them. Such a shame."

Jayce thought that all the effort she could muster into lying convincingly went into her smiles, as well as getting on his nerves. 'Don't set her off' were words he struggled to remember around her, even if it had only been seconds.

"It is looked down upon to show up to a wedding without a gift," and Jayce smiled, this time genuinely, the moment he caught on her gesture faltering even for a second. 'Don't set her off'. " But I'm sure there must be a reason for the lack of a gift, I mean, I might be an only child but I know you would've done everything to give a gift to your sister."

Jayce had seen the way her smile broke down, how her eyebrows furrowed together and waited for the insults. Too long had he heard about the girl that managed to haunt both Vi and Caitlyn and just then, he realized he had been aching for the chance to put her in her place, to be the one to stop her.

Instead, Jinx only forced another smile.

"Oh, but what kind of maid of honor would you be, hmm? I mean, as kind and brave as you are, you wouldn't hold off the flower girl for yourself, would you?'' Just then, Jayce looked down onto her bag and took a peek into the flower petals piled together. Fuck. "I mean, I'm suuuuure many guests would love to hang out with Piltover's golden boy, but seriously mister, you could let a girl do her job first."

And Jayce had wanted to tell her that he could see right through her, that she could try and be more appreciative of what Vi and Caitlyn and him had done for her. He would've loved to wipe the smile off her face with some insult, but he caught a glimpse of Vi's stare at the end of the door. With great struggle, he tightened his smile and took a step back.

"Well, you're right that I could indeed go and search for fine company," gods knew he had to restrain himself to not make the jab even more obvious, but there was something about Jinx that made it hard for people like Jayce to control themselves. But no, he wouldn't give in to it, unlike her. "In fact, I should thank you for letting me know that I should not let our dear flower girl try and lose her time with, ah, yes, Piltover's golden boy."

As he turned around and changed direction, Jayce made an effort not to give in and turn around to see Jinx's expression. His heart raced, and like a dangerous experiment, Jayce told himself that there were some things that they would be better off alone.

The moment Jayce stepped into the wedding reception, he noticed with a smirk how Vi had stepped up and put her touch all over it. From the vibrant colors in the decoration and the lights to the playlist, he could almost see Vi shutting down every attempt for a posh Piltovian wedding party, as he saw the way a girl with bright green hair dragged Ekko to the dance floor with excitement.

"I think it went rather well, dont'cha think, pretty boy?"

Caitlyn managed to conceal her laugh at the way Vi startled Jayce, while her wife made little to no attempt to relish in the way he jumped to her voice. However, Jayce smiled at them, wasting no time in hugging them as congratulations.

"You girls will never let that go, will you?" He was joking, of course, but knowing the way Vi could hold a grudge (maybe one of the few things both her and Jinx had in common, after all) and the way she could get worked up when it came to her family, Jayce would rather not take a chance. Nevertheless, Vi managed to shrug her shoulders.

"And miss a chance to poke fun of Piltover's golden boy? One would think that after all this time you would know me well enough, Talis." Jabs over fists was a fair deal, especially if they were Vi's fists.

"Well, I told you he would behave, didn't I?" Vi could only hold Caitlyn closer to her, and Jayce received the smile Caitlyn gave him with warmth and relief.

Of course, all good things had to come to an end.

"Oh, one would think you don't have that much faith in your friends, Sheriff! You should certainly work on those trust issues with your wife, sis." to top it off, Jinx had the nerve to put a hand on his back, not because she thought of him as a friend (god forbid so), but to mess up with him.

He certainly wasn't the only one affected negatively by Jinx's arrival, but he did notice the way that Vi sighed was certainly more relaxed than the wreck of a girl that had come to his place looking for advice. It was a good sign, and as much as he disliked the presence of the reforming criminal (a feeling that appeared to be mutual, it seemed), Jayce remembered the progress Caitlyn had told him about.

If this was progress, he was glad he wasn't around when they started the process.

"Thanks for your concern, Pow-Pow," Jayce could almost swear that Vi seemed at ease around her sister, and more noticeably, that Jinx seemed amicable towards the newlyweds. Just a little, anyway. "Though, I was the one with those issues."

"You hear that, Goldie?" Jayce refrained from rolling his eyes at the nickname, and tried not so subtly to escape her strangely firm grip. Just to what extent had the criminal life affected her? "One could say you aren't to be trusted." and she smiled towards him, barely concealing her mockery as Jayce could only think of the many ways to wipe off the smile from her face.

(Just as much as he tried not to think of how similar her words sounded to those of Viktor and Mel's.)

"Powder," the way Vi's voice rumbled through the music reminded him of the way she snapped in his house. At first, the way Jinx's expression faltered gave him the same pleasure as when they subtly fought a while ago, but whatever pleasure he felt faded a little the moment he saw her gulping with what seemed like genuine fear. He wasn't the only one, as he could see how Vi softened her glare and cleared her voice. "Wouldn't you like to introduce yourself first?"

Jayce was pretty sure both of them knew who the other was already, as well as that both of them were aware that the other must've known the other. To him, it was clear and even rational that he would resent her- she had been a dangerous criminal that managed to severely injure many officers and that furthered the extent of Silco's drug empire in Zaun. But just what right had that girl to look at him with such content?

What did she think he owed to her?

"Alright, alright, jeez, you make me look as if I'm some feral girl," Jayce bit his tongue to not spout that she herself was doing a poor job about it without Vi's 'help', but the looming gaze of Caitlyn reminded that he should act the part if he was gonna boast about his self control. He felt the absence of her grip on his back, and soon a pair of bright blue eyes stared right at him. "Jinx, a pleasure."

The way Jinx offered her hand to shake only reminded him of the bait before a trap, one he couldn't help but oblige. Jayce stared at her, examining the girl before him for the first time in the night: if it had been any other woman, Jayce would've thought that the long blue and grunge-inspired dress, while a little out of place in the wedding, complimented the wavy blue hair nicely. However, it was Jinx who wore the clothes, and as such, whatever compliment Jayce could come up would be reluctant at best.

And judging by the way she looked at him, Jayce could tell she didn't think highly of him either.

"Jayce Talis, the feeling's mutual, it seems." if any of them tightened their teeth as they forced their smiles, one could hear the bones cracking. As Jinx shook his hand, he noticed her nails grazing his flesh, something that, knowing Jinx, was no accident.

"Oh, but I already know aaaaaall about you," as every Piltovian and Zaunite in the last ten years, no doubt. And yet, Jayce didn't like one bit the direction Jinx wanted to take. "Though how couldn't one know about you and your partnership with that Viktor guy, right? I hope he's invited, I've been dying to meet him."

Of course.

Of fucking course she would mention that, why wouldn't she?

He was pretty sure that even in whatever slum Jinx and her gang of lowlives would've known about the fall-out of the Piltovian-Zaunite alliance, about how Jayce had failed his life-long partner for not taking the course of action needed to save his life. He could even picture them laughing at the tabloids that spoke about how he even lost his fiancé and thus a seat on the council.

But Jinx, as well as all those hungry for other people's misery, would never know how hard Jayce tried to prevent it. They'd never know the nights he spent trying to make all of his and Viktor's plans work, how he tried to plead to Mel to listen to him just once , they would never know that he still sought for them from time to time as he came to work. They wouldn't know, and Jayce was pretty sure they wouldn't care.

"I thought you'd know that Viktor prefers to keep as… little contact as possible, nowadays," he could feel Caitlyn and Vi stare at them. The little criminal wanted to play? Good, Jayce knew how to play. "But I'm sure you've brought someone as well. I cannot even think that you came here all alone."

The moment he caught Vi stepping in, not sure if to stop him or Jinx, was the moment Jayce knew that he was venturing in dangerous territory. But could they blame him, truly? Or was he supposed to take every blow Jinx could come up with just for the sake of someone who didn't care about his?

Looking into her eyes, for a second, the thought that maybe he had gone too far crossed Jayce's head, as he saw the way her stare flickered between them and points in the hall while her lip quivered. But Jayce reminded himself that this was no little girl, but a full grown woman in front of him, one who seemed to still do everything in her power to mess up the wedding if just a little.

The way she managed to smirk at him yet again only confirmed this.

"Oh, but here I was hoping I could dance with you. "

And Jayce had to swallow hard, hoping he didn't pale at those words like some scared little boy. It wasn't that he was afraid of her, nor afraid of a dance, but he was right to be wary of whatever scheme her mind could come up with.

Jayce could've come up with an excuse— he could've perfectly told her that he was tired (of her), that he was an awful dancer (a lie) or that he had a date already (he hadn't, and certainly didn't need Jinx noticing it). He could've come up with something, yes, but he knew the kind of person he had in front of her: whatever excuse he could come up with, Jinx would've blown it out of the water.

That, and that deep down, he didn't want to give her the satisfaction of seeing him scared of her. So, his best course of action was to give her a smile worthy of a romance movie and to take her hand in his.

"Gladly." and as soon as those words left his mouth, Jinx moved him towards the dance floor.

As they made their way to the dance floor, Jayce felt in a daze. He hadn't forgotten how to dance, and he certainly wouldn't concede control to someone like Jinx, but he was perfectly aware (despite the two glasses of champagne) that it was something that wouldn't happen under any other circumstances— more importantly, something that shouldn't happen. But Jayce knew the kind of person Jinx was, he already saw her looking for ways to screw things over.

Besides, he knew himself— this wasn't any kind of sacrifice, not when he knew he could handle the little criminal, and judging by her surprised stare and little tumbling, he was certainly on the right path.

"I must say, I was quite impressed," Jinx, through all the disgust she showed to him once Vi's stare over her left, showed a smudge of curiosity at his words. "I mean, I've heard so much about you, I didn't take you to be the dancing type."

"Jee, I can only imagine what Sheriff told ya 'bout me," and Jayce didn't like one bit how Jinx referred to her new in-law, but given what he heard, he tried to keep the line of thought that it was better that he heard it, and not Caitlyn and Vi. Both of them stiffened when the crowd of people brought them closer, too close for their comfort, in fact. "Not all of us can hear praise after praise, Goldie."

"You can when you've earned them." 'Careful' he could almost hear Caitlyn's voice inside his head, and yet, the only thing he could focus on was the younger woman's angry stare. Jayce noticed that, despite the fact that both Jinx and Vi had the exact same blue eyes, Jinx's were more alluring— it was hard to hold her stare, but hard to break contact as well.

He couldn't stop looking, he wouldn't stop looking even when he felt her movement become more sudden. Jayce had to focus harder, as he felt himself tumbling over his footsteps as Jinx took the lead. He heard her giggles as he tripped ever so slightly, and yet, all Jayce could do was hold a grunt.

"I don't think you've earned a compliment with that, Goldie." he struggled with the thought of pressing his nails into her skin, to mess up her dress. Jayce prided himself in being a non-violent man, but Jinx? Jinx had the magical ability to take out the worst of those around her.

Sure, he could hold himself from doing something he would regret, but he still managed to grab Jinx by her lower back and hold her down. However saw them would've think they had more in common with a police officer catching a criminal, and in that moment, Jayce could only think the analogy served them right.

"It's Jayce." and yet, Jinx only scoffed with a mischievous laugh.

"Oh, but 'Goldie' suits you much better. I mean, it's much more fitting for being Piltover's lap dog."

'There it was' he thought bitterly as he pressed his nails onto her, earning a grunt from her as well as a slight knee onto his legs. Jayce remembered perfectly what Caitlyn had told him, Jayce knew perfectly what Caitlyn would say and Jayce knew perfectly that whatever he would say or do, Jinx had earned it from the very beginning.

"You know, I was wondering when I would see the Jinx everyone told me about," she tried to take the lead, but Jayce's grips prevented it. Years in his family's factory doing hard work had earned him strength, and years in the council before his catastrophic fallout with both Viktor and Mel had given him the capacity to deal with nonsense such as Jinx. Did she think that she could push him around and he would oblige? She was dumber than he thought— Jayce never had the need for stupid tricks or brute force to put others in their place. "For months I couldn't stop hearing about you, the menace from Zaun, Silco's right hand. And yet all I can see is a sad girl, who can't appreciate that her sister is trying to help her just because things aren't going her way."

Jayce was sure that if they were anywhere else, Jinx wouldn't have hesitated to try and slap him in the face, judging by the sheer anger in her face. She could try, he thought, for all that he cared it would at least prove to both Vi and Caitlyn that for all the therapy and rehab she has taken, she was still a nuance to keep around. True to her namesake, he thought.

But Jayce couldn't stop looking into her eyes, even when he thought she was seconds away from tearing his and that his head would ache for how much of a scowl he was pulling onto his face. He couldn't stop looking into Jinx's eyes, and for a second, he found something else besides anger and mischief. Something that Jayce knew very well, but thought meaningless coming from her.

"Oh, poor Jayce Talis, he can't stand that he's not the only one allowed to massively fuck up," she taunted, and yet, he felt it more akin to a desperate response from a child trying to fight kids bigger than her. "Talk about me aaaaall you want, goldie, I'm not the one that needs everyone to love him or else he'll try to-"

"-Try to what, exactly?" He wanted her to say it, to give him an excuse to keep on this fight and just get her out of there. just as much as he wanted her to shut up and stop spewing lies. "As far as I know, you've tried to shoot your own in-law, you drove everyone away because you refused help. As far as I know, you don't deserve this at all."

Jinx didn't have to answer him, she just pushed him onto one of the waiters and have him drenched in liquor before vanishing from sight.

Jayce would've liked to say he felt better, that some kind of relief washed over him, but as the blue-haired woman stomped away he felt something twisted inside him, the need to scream and pour his anger as well as a deep sense of disappointment within himself. Vi coming after her sister before making it clear that he had to make it up somehow was just the top of a wonderful night for Jayce.

Somehow, he had managed to find an empty room in the Kiramman Mansion in which to clean himself (perks of living in there while he got his degree in mechanical engineering), though the blue tinted liquor had seeped into the fabric of both his blazer and his shirt, and a change of clothes was out of the question. As he saw himself into the mirror and the stench of alcohol mixed with his cologne, Jayce thought that Jinx had rubbed off on him— a thought that made him both nauseous and angry with himself.

How could he allow to get so carried away? He had promised to Caitlyn not to engage in whatever Jinx could tell him, but how couldn't he? Every word, every insult, even those bloody remainders she sent his way stung like poison— was he really supposed to take it all in stride? He hadn't wanted any of this, he had only responded to what she threw at him, and he was the villain?

And to mix in his… accident during college. Was he so wrong for lashing out as well?

But the worst part wasn't that Jayce tried to find excuses, the worst part was that he wanted to feel like it wasn't his fault, but the thought that he was acting exactly as he did the moments before Viktor and Mel decided to cut contact with him didn't leave his head. Jayce knew that if that was the case, the best he could do was to apologize and avoid her, to truly act as the better person, but Jinx had something within her that just asked him to keep going, the damned witch.

He tried to see the bright side— that no one except Vi and Caitlyn had noticed, that Jinx had to be somewhere in the house and that he could do right. He could be better , and better than Jinx, even while he felt drained to actually try and search for her.

Jayce would never allow the chance for the both of them to be the same.

He let himself rest a little on the room's bed, all while trying to convince himself that no, he couldn't fall asleep even to get some energy (because he was sure as hell he would need it to deal with Jinx again). Yet Jayce would lie if he said he didn't find some sort of relief in the solitude of the room. He could almost hear Mel poking fun at him, since he always spoke of how much he loathed loneliness, and as soon as her memory came he felt an ache in his chest.

Of course, whatever moment for reflection he had was doomed the moment Jinx opened the door.

He wanted to think that, at least, he wouldn't have to go around the house trying to find her, but given that Jayce could barely think about Jinx without feeling his stomach twist and a need to throw her out in the worst way possible, he could only stare like a speechless kid at how she groaned.

"Great." At the very least, she said something he could agree on.

Jayce knew he had to talk to her, but he didn't trust himself around her after their verbal spat in the dancing room. He owed that much to both Caitlyn and Vi, but Jayce would lie if he said he genuinely felt sorry for saying all the things he said. If they talked, he was pretty sure they would fight, and being fair, he had no intention of screwing up even more.

As such, the logical decision he came to was to stand up and walk out of the room. It turned out as smooth as it could, given that Jinx's glare held little to no love for him, until the door closed in front of him. Of course .

"Please tell me you don't want to be alone with me." The way Jinx clicked her tongue gave him a little hope, but Jayce knew better.

"Of course not, Goldie, but I came for an apology," did Vi send her? He knew it was better now than ever, but right now, Jayce only wanted to be alone, some peace. Did he have to give that up for her right now? The way she locked the door made for a clear answer. "So go on, give it to me."

He didn't want to. As awful as it sounded, Jayce had no other intention to apologize other than to save both him and his friends the trouble of whatever relapse Jinx could have. Not only that, the thought of being like her lingered on his mind, just as the memories of those who called him friend did. As far as he knew, Jinx was his own personal image of what he should avoid to become.

So, in the end and as much as he dreaded to, he convinced himself it was just to utter some words, to let her be content and try to spend the rest of the night trying to enjoy the celebration before the brides left. "I am sorry, Jinx." But as soon as he tried to reach for the knob on the door, Jinx put her whole body in between. She's got to be kidding.

"To what for?" he had to swallow, sure that she was only doing this to piss him off further and not because she actually wanted an apology. He wouldn't be like her, Jayce told himself, he would not.

But what should he apologize for? For responding? For defending himself? For calling her out? He hadn't been the one shoving people into a waiter until they got fucking soaked in liquor , he hadn't been the one that spend the entire celebration trying to get on other people's nerves— and the more Jayce thought about it, he didn't want to apologize (he never wanted to, not to her anyway) as much as he wanted to keep going.

And that was the difference between them: he would not. He just couldn't.

"For… treating you poorly, and bringing up subjects I shouldn't have, and that certainly weren't my business." Jayce could only recite those words because he had a very clear image of what Vi had wanted to say (though, being fair, Vi would've made it more… colorful), as saying them outloud over the muffled up music was already hard enough.

He tried to think that the smirk on Jinx's face meant that she was satisfied, that she certainly didn't want to keep this going. She was human, after all— as much of a trainwreck of a person as she was, even Jinx had to want some sort of peace.

Sadly (or not) for her, Jayce didn't plan to see it. And by Janna did he want to curse everyone in the damn house that even thought of letting her in when he, once again, tried to open the door only to find that she wouldn't let him go.

"Would you— what more do you want?" he asked sincerely, even if he felt himself on the brink of insanity. Was this her plan all along, to mess with him until he cried of frustration or lost his temper? "You wanted an apology, didn't you? I gave you one."

"Oh, Goldie, I've never said I wanted an apology, I only said I came for an apology," was she for real? Had Jayce gone mad? No, this was her plan all along, one just had to give a glance at her coy expression and mischievous posture. "I mean, you're a real piece of work, thinking you can treat me like trash and think I would've let you go with a slap on your wrist."

That was it.

"Me, treat you like trash?" he bit his lip so hard in order to not say she was indeed trash he almost bled. He couldn't believe it, he just couldn't— he could almost pity her, thinking that if this was progress then just how damaged she truly was. But in here, no one would look at them, and as much as Jinx could push him around, then Jayce could respond properly.

He just couldn't take it anymore— he wasn't a violent person, and as much as she made him lose his temper, he wouldn't retort to violence, even when the way he cornered her against the door made it seem like it. Jayce wanted to say it was just a pretense, that he was just trying to make his point known, but the truth was that he was done.

"You were the one to come in here trying to ruin the wedding! You were the one that came and started to take jabs at me, at Caitlyn, hell, for all that I've known you would hurt Vi if I hadn't come to stop you!" but as angry and hurt as she looked at those accusations, Jinx didn't cry, didn't shove him again. She only snorted with all the cynicism in the world.

And Jayce knew, Jayce knew that in real life you could tell people the truth, you could list all the right reasons on why they weren't even worth the powder to blow them up and that even then they would just keep going . But he could see her expression, a part of her knew deep down that he was right, that she was indeed the one that came in with the intention to make it as miserable for everyone as it was for her. And she just ignored it.

"Oh, now you want to play hero with my sister?" of course she would throw it back at him, that's all she knew to do it seemed— to twist what everyone gave to her until there was nothing else. How could she ever try to think he was remotely like her. "You don't care about my sister, I know your type, Goldie, thinking all of us are trash. Or what? Did you think that after the noxian girl left you could try something with Sheriff, is that it?"

He only wanted to yell, to scream until his lungs and throat ached as much as he wanted to take her in his hands and tear her apart. How could she say that about Vi, about Cait, about Mel? It was so ridiculous, so maddening it only made him laugh.

"Dear lord, they told me you had issues, but I never thought you couldn't be so damn blind ," Jayce passed a hand through his hair, noticing a strands of hair loosening onto his eyesight. He wouldn't break his stare. "Unlike you, I'm not so desperate for a warm bed to lock herself up with a guy."

He was aware of how childish that sounded, that not even Jinx would step into such kind of insult and above all, that he didn't need to. But it was so easy, and seeing her contorted and bewildered expression, it worked on her and it gave him a grin. Good .

"As if I would even try anything with a guy like you," she sneered, but the mental fatigue had started to slowly work his way into him— and what better course of action than to ignore her after that? He even heard Jinx's footsteps behind him as he tried to walk to the room's bathroom. "I bet you couldn't even satisfy the Noxus girl, huh? I mean, you look exactly like the kind of guy that would last, what? Fifteen, maybe even twenty seconds? Oh, no, I'm being too mean— perhaps you even lasted thirty!"

"Oh, sure, because you totally look like the kind of woman that everyone would love to have in bed, let alone be around. " but a thought appeared to him just as he turned to watch her— why was he still responding?

Just why couldn't he stop around her?

"Like you're the one to talk, Goldie. Tell me, just how exactly are you soooo different? Because, last time I checked, Sheriff is the only one that stood by you. Machine boy wasn't the only one who left, your little girlfriend did as well, and before them, the whole of Piltover left you."

There she was again, trying to evoke a response from him, and as much as it worked, as much as kept himself around to see what she came up with, even Jayce could see she didn't have the advantage anymore. In that room, with just the two of them, it was as if he was slowly tearing her down.

Just as much as she did with him.

"I'm not gonna talk about my life with someone like you."

"Oh-hooh, someone like me!" Jayce tried to ignore her, wanted to, but she didn't even need to pretend a childish tone as she did in that moment for him to keep noticing her. As much as he loathed it, he just couldn't. "Poor little Jayce Talis, he has to talk to the big bad Zaunie!"

"Yes, I'm not gonna talk about my life with someone that was a mob boss right hand, I'm not gonna talk about my life with a girl that can barely hold a conversation without driving everyone away and then crying about it." No, he told himself. He had decided it, he had promised— he knew where this would lead to and it would lead to her, to everything she was.

Deep down, he didn't want to go. Deep down, Jayce had to admit he didn't want to go away, that he wanted to blow her up because she fucking deserved it for giving him something he shouldn't— insults, violence, memories he had never wanted to surface or relive again.

And as he reached for the bathroom door, Jinx made clear she didn't want it either.

"Don't— don't fucking act as if you weren't looking for this!" He had guessed she was stronger than she looked like before, but he could only ask what kind of girl she was being so small yet able to turn him around. He would mourn for his teared up shirt later, though, seeing her cheeks as red as her lipstick. "You think you're so fucking good, that you're some sort of saint because you helped in giving me parole, but guess what? You were waiting for this, Goldie. You were out there waiting for the moment you could fuck me up."

"And you're a saint, aren't you?" he needed Jinx to shut up, to stop. At this point, Jayce knew he couldn't do it himself.

"But there it is," she laughed, like she always did, thinking she had some sort of victory over him. He was sick of it, of her, of him for not wanting to go away on his own. "You're not denying it!"

"Fuck," he covered his ears like a madman, hoping she would stop. "Just shut up!"

"Shut-me-up."

And the most logical way Jayce thought of doing so was to grab the sides of her face and slam his lips onto hers.

As much as he dreaded someone like Jinx, Jayce waited for her to slap him, to throw insults after insults and screams that would include every curse in whatever tongue was spoken in Valoran— he wanted her to stop him and to stop them from something the both of them couldn't walk out.

Then Jinx grabbed him by the hair and bit his lower lip before kissing him this time.

From the moment she parted her lips and smeared both her spit and lipstick onto his face with a mix of hatred and lust, Jinx made very clear in her own way that whatever competition, whatever insult they had for each other a while ago it, would be translated onto whatever they would do the rest of the night. Her nails raked through his face and she stuck his tongue as he yelped, but instead of throwing her off of him, Jayce could only feel his cock stiffen inside his trousers. His logical response was to yank her hair and bite , to leave her neck with as many bruises and marks as he could.

And dear Janna , Jayce didn't know if he hated how much both of them enjoyed doing this to each other or that Jinx made him fall for her twisted games and, what was worse, that enjoyed it. As he bit and suck onto the inhumanly pale skin of the woman, Jayce could only loathe how her loud, vulgar moans only made him tremble with anticipation, made him though of how much he wanted to shut her up, how much he wanted her to drown her moans and whimpers on a bed mattress.

"Beg." he ordered, parting away from her. Of course, Jinx looked right at him as if Jayce had just insulted her— again. She was right in some way, Jayce thought as he wrapped his hand tightly onto blue strands of hair and pulled back. "I said beg."

Whatever curse Jinx could've let it out would have to wait, as she whimpered lewdly the moment he sunk his fingernails onto her tigh and parted her legs to push . It was a fairly basic teasing, but back in university he had learned that sometimes the simplest of solutions could be the best ones. Nevermind the fact that causing Jinx to shut up and just moan out as she felt his cock felt better than a mere mathematical solution, even if her lust-filled eyes told him to drop dead already.

Good, the feeling was mutual, then.

"What?" he tried not to stammer on his words, because good-fucking-grief she wasn't the only one affected by this. In between his imagination and her body just pieces of fabric away from his, Jayce's old habits of getting carried away when in bed could get the best of him. Still, his grin prevailed. "You seemed to, ah, enjoy yourself, I only figured you'd want m-more. Want to carry on?" he gave another push from his hips, one that insinuated how he would fuck her. "Then be-"

His words died out the moment her dainty hand gripped the bulge inside his trousers. It wasn't meant to hurt Jayce, that would be predictable, but instead she moved her hand in a way that made his knees buckle as Jayce bent forward, his jaw hanging as whimpers came out of his mouth. And Jinx? As for her, she was smiling through her teeth.

Of course she would pull something like this, of-fucking-course.

"Beg? Hmm, I don't think I'd like that, Goldie," Jayce couldn't help but moan and watch as she came closer, her hands snaking through his pants until they came across the belt buckle. Jayce bit his lip before he could give into the urge of telling her to hurry, as he saw Jinx's sadistic grin the moment she moved until he felt her mouth on his cheek. He could only mutter every curse known in Piltover and Zaun as he felt her tongue on the shell of his ear. "Call me creative, but I can see right through you: you wanna act all tough and mean, but look at you— you're so close, you only wanna be inside me until you cum, dont'cha?"

Good Janna, he couldn't hate any more the fact that, despite everything, she was right.

He realized he had been getting carried away (as well as trying to conceal it the best he could) the moment he had to put a hand on the wall for support. Jinx had spit on her mouth as soon as she pulled down his pants and freed his cock, and Jayce could only curse his luck that Jinx of all people somehow knew how to jerk him off the way he liked.

And what was worse was that he didn't just like it— he liked that it was Jinx pumping his dick, he liked the way her hand moved up and down, he liked that he wanted to just fuck her mouth until she choked on spit and cum before fucking her cunt, all because both of them knew she would spit it at his feet, trying to upstage him until one of them won. He hated that he liked this twisted game she pulled both of them in.

Damn her, damn her to fucking hell.

"So," Jayce had to bite his lip to suppress the grunt that wanted to come out as soon as he saw Jinx spit on his dick, a resolve that lasted until he felt how she massaged her spit onto the head of his cock. "Will you be a good boy and do as I say?"

Jayce's only response was to find his way in between her legs, pulling the fabric of the underwear aside before hooking up two fingers inside her wet slit. He couldn't help but laugh at the way she trembled and closed her eyes, swearing he heard Jinx moan his name.

"Keep dreaming, Jinx."


a/n: the title was inspired by the lyrics of 'hermit the frog' by MARINA, which i think describes a good aspect on how i envision the jayce/jinx dynamic.

also, in my defense, i rarely write anything, let alone conclude it- so i apologize if this seems rather bizarre.

i don't have many canon x canon shippings, but after obssessing over league's characters while coping over a depressive episode that lasted almost 6 months, i started shipping these two. then months later i thought of this, and instead of writing this while i had two months of vacation, i said to myself 'screw my midterms, this ship has like 5 fanarts and just one story'.

as for how... colorful i painted their dynamic, i have to say two things: 1) while i find how probable their 'fuck you and fuck you' dynamic could be as a ship, i DO think they could work as a semi-functional couple under the very right circumstances; 2) while i had a blast writing their arguments, i know how toxic of a dynamic they are and how draining treating someone like that would be in real life, and not only i do NOT condone nor endorse any of this behaviour, but i encourage you to please not repeat anything from this work in your daily life.

that being said, i hope that you've had a pleasant time reading this, which you can comment me about in reviews. and if you don't, well, reviews don't have to be positive (just please be respectful). love, petta.