Requital
A/N: Finally back in Blackinnon and oh it feels so nice to be writing these two again! October through now has been insane and I've barely been keeping my head above water but things have slowed down and now I can give this ship the attention it deserves again. :)
A/N: Saudade, my canon compliant collection of Blackinnon one-shots, was also updated today, and EnthusiasticSloth and I have been posting our second BlackinnonAU story together called Like the Storybooks. Slowly there's more Blackinnon coming! =D
A/N: About this one-shot. One day, when I was eighteen, I was driving and got cut off by a guy in a white sedan. I determined, in my angered state, to show him how upset I was and pulled alongside him with the intention of flipping him off. As I pulled alongside him I was shocked to find one of the best looking men I had ever seen, and my poor eighteen-year-old self had no clue how to handle that. I immediately looked away and I did not flip him off. I just kept driving to where I was going and freaking out that I'd almost made a scene. That's not a very good story, but I hope what follows is. ;)
It's one of those few moments during the mid-morning, after rush hour but before the lunch surge of traffic when the roads are manageable without wanting to kill anyone, that Marlene finds herself with an unexpected four day weekend and an impromptu plan to go someplace other than the local supermarket and coffee shop she haunts regularly. She had simply pulled the highest rated coffee shop off her phone after a lazy morning and switched on the directions while her favorite playlist plays through the car stereo. It's the kind of morning she'd call perfect.
That is until the jackass in the black sports car just cut her off and nearly caused her to run off the road.
Usually, Marlene doesn't have the luxury of time when things like this happen on her way to and from work. She blares the horn and flips them off and that's the end of it. But today is different for some reason. Maybe it's the nearly eleven hours of sleep she got, or perhaps it's knowing that she doesn't have to be into the design office until Monday, it could also be that she hasn't had caffeine yet; whatever it is, Marlene closes the distance enough between her car and his that no one will be able to merge between them and she switches off her GPS guiding to her to the no longer important coffee joint. It's insane what she's doing, and Emmeline will probably kill her when Marlene gets around to telling her about it, but the adrenaline rush has hit and her anger about this rich brat driving like an idiot has started to boil and Marlene's committed to this crazy mission to give him a piece of her mind. He doesn't seem to notice that she's following him and that just makes it better as Marlene starts playing through possible ways to tell this idiot just how little she appreciated his total disregard for anyone else on the road.
It's nearly ten minutes before the man pulls into a parking lot among several office buildings of one sort or another, and Marlene has a moment to think before she acts. This could potentially end with her in the Atlantic, but she's been brooding and playing this scene out in her head for the last ten minutes and her anger pushes her to be bold. So as he pulls into an empty place, Marlene parks her car behind his, creating a T and blocking any escape he might attempt.
"Did you forget how to drive the minute you got behind the wheel today or did you have to bribe the examiner to get your license?" Marlene steps from her car as he emerges from his.
The man spins and for a moment she's taken aback. He's taller than her, which isn't hard, but by much more than most. His black hair is striking when paired with his gray eyes, or perhaps his gray eyes are striking when paired with his black hair. His leather jacket and blue jeans seem to elongate him even more - that's when Marlene is able to pull herself up short. She's pissed off with this arsehole, good looking or not.
"You cut me off, nearly ran me off the road!" She storms. "You're lucky it isn't warm enough for me to be on my bike. You would have killed me!"
The dumbfounded look on his face slowly turns into a smirk and Marlene steadies herself because damn it all he was good looking a moment ago and now he's downright distracting.
"Have you been following me? Since I cut you off?" His voice betrays his amusement which only seems to infuriate Marlene. He apparently thinks it's funny that she's trying to point out what a complete ass he is.
"Well someone had to make you aware that your driving is worse than a fucking drunk!"
His smirk only seems to grow. "My apologies, Miss...?" He gestures to her, expecting her to fill in her name.
Marlene narrows her eyes and contemplates a moment whether or not she really wants this man to know her name.
His smirk tightens as he rolls his eyes, "I'm not going to call the bloody constable; if you recall, I'm the one who cut you off."
He has a point, but this event is becoming far more civilized than she wanted it to be, and Marlene only bends so much.
"McKinnon," she answers tightly. "And you have yet to say anything resembling an apology or show even the semblance of remorse. Are you as arrogant as you are stupid?"
The smirk on his face seems to loosen a bit but his gray eyes hold her ice blue ones as he slowly approaches her. For a split second, Marlene feels a tinge of panic that she's cornered a psychopath. But once the dolt is standing in front of her, he drops to his knees on the pavement.
"From the bottom of my black heart Miss McKinnon, I apologize for being a wanker and cutting you off this morning."
Marlene stares down at him, floored by this dramatic and quite ridiculous display the man is putting on. He looks up into her blank face expectantly and Marlene nods.
"Thank you," she replies rather lamely.
He stands, smiling down at her, and she's captivated that it's softer than his smirk; it makes him look so genuine that she speaks before she thinks.
"I'm Marlene, Marlene McKinnon. I, I'm sorry if I ruined your day by chasing you down and yelling at you."
His smirk returns and he leans against the boot of his car, "Nice to meet you, Marlene. I'm Sirius Black. And don't worry; I know the perfect way for you to make my day a bit brighter after this incident."
Marlene bites her lip, partially ready to slap Sirius if he tries for something completely beyond acceptable. "And what would that be?"
"Let me buy you a coffee or tea or something," his eyes hold hers in what almost feels like a challenge and Marlene suddenly feels like she's back in A Levels and the kids are all daring each other to perform ridiculous stunts or divulge their deepest secrets. But she never backed down then, and even though Emmeline will definitely kill her, Marlene isn't backing down now either.
"Only if I drive," Marlene stares back, daring Sirius to challenge her demand.
Sirius laughs, a short laugh, but it pulls a smile to Marlene's lips as well.
"Well obviously, because the only way I think you'd let me drive at this point would be if I were on my motorcycle." He walks over to the passenger side of her car and slides in.
Marlene laughs, she can't help it. There is something disarming about Mister Sirius Black. Something charming that pulls her in and makes her excited to go grab a coffee with him. She climbs in and turns the key in the ignition as she pushes in the clutch.
"So, Sirius," Marlene smirks at him, "tell me what kind of bike you ride."