Office Shenanigans
Genre: Romance / Drama
Theme: Office AU
Main Characters: Lux & Talon
Summary: They cannot stand one another. They cannot work together. They cannot stay around one another for more than a few minutes, before anything happens. So how can they be expected to work together, to ensure the success of this important project? Well, life finds a way.
Long strides stopped abruptly while passing by the huge wall-sized windows of a dimly lit hall, just as lightning stroke somewhere nearby, momentarily breaking through the heavy clouds.
A shiver ran down the small back of a thin figure, as a heavy sigh left her lips and she hugged some documents she was currently holding close to her chest. Black kitten heels guided the young woman towards the big windows, so she could take a displeased look at the weather outside. She threw a look at her shoes, revelation striking her as she had suddenly worn the wrong pair of shoes that morning. That, and the fact that she had forgotten to check the weather for the day, when she left for work in the morning.
She made a face, before realizing that her entire outfit was wrongly chosen for the day altogether. Assorted with the small heels, she also wore a pair of loosely fit black cigarette pants, ending high on her waist, a beige blouse with a cute knot at the front, with a suit jacket matching her pants.
Golden locks of blond neatly tied in a high bum at the top of her head, her brows drew together as baby blue eyes were clouded with momentary worry. She had thought she looked quite pretty that morning, before the weather had to come and ruin everything.
Clicking her tongue, she remembered once again why she disliked Noxus so much.
"The weather is insufferable," she cried in her mind, before releasing yet another sigh.
Yet, there was little she could do about her current situation. There was a solid reason as to why her presence was needed there, and the fact that it always rained in Noxus would not become an obstacle to her reaching out and grabbing her dreams.
She heard her name called at the other end of the hall, just as she was about to turn on her lovely kitten heels.
"Lux!" The familiar voice of another female made the blonde turn her head in the other woman's general direction, while her facial expression relaxed slightly. "The meeting's about to start. Let's go." The other woman chimed, and with a short nod and polite smile, she started walking towards her companion.
Easing her face into a neutral smile, Lux greeted the other woman once she got closer to her. "Good morning, Quinn. Looks like you are in high spirits today, despite the weather."
Quinn made a face, before waving her hand in a dismissive manner. "I hate it as much as you do. No wonder Noxians are all grumpy and pale and all they do is glare at you while they judge you in silence." She stopped for a moment, just to play out a shiver at the visual assistance of the things she'd listed. "Ugh."
Lux couldn't help but chuckle slightly, silently agreeing with her companion's description. Noxians did tend to be silent and judgy, cut-to-the-point kind of people, but Lux doubted it had to do with the geographical location of the country.
And, at the same time, she couldn't help but notice how different Quinn and her were dressed, the other female sporting a pair of comfy sneakers, a pair of pre-washed jeans and an oversized hoodie with a silly print on it. Not to mention that her short, brown hair was loosely tied in a ponytail.
Clearing her throat and cutting other unnecessary thoughts from entering her mind, Lux verbally signaled to the other woman. "Shall we? I still need to leave these documents at my desk and grab my agenda and laptop, for the meeting."
"Oh yes, definitely Let's go." Quinn replied sheepishly, feeling slightly awkward about standing in the middle of the hall, without heading towards their section of desks.
The Du Couteau Enterprise was a growing business, which started to bloom right after the Noxian-Demacian came to an abrupt end. A war between two political states, which has been dragged on way too many fronts over the course of years had finally come to an end a couple of years prior, after a mutual agreement between the state leaders, as well as some political figures.
And, to commemorate the peace marking, and stepping into a new era, two of the most elite families from both states had formed an alliance, both in the business world, as well as privately.
Lux, as well as Quinn were originally from Demacia, but after the Du Couteaus reached out for help in certain fields of the industry to the other elite family, the Crownguards, Lux was tasked to serve the Enterprise with the new line of work they wished to excel in.
"By the way, how are things with the Logistic Dept? Any news from Shauna?" Quinn asked as they were walking towards their quarters.
Lux shook her head slowly, while pouting slightly. "I need to hold another meeting, separately with the Logistics, Customer Support and IT, sometime this week. Apparently there's something wrong with the equipment, and the customer support website can't launch if we have nothing to work with, but apparently the programs provided by the IT aren't compatible with the computers required for the tasks, due to some difference in programming. Or so Vayne has told me. I plan to gather everyone related to this for a short briefing, see what we can do to speed things up." She then explained while shaking her head slowly and heaving yet another sigh.
Quinn looked at her pitifully, while patting her on her shoulder, in a comforting gesture.
Lux smiled sweetly as she kept walking towards her own desk, while throwing Quinn one last glance.
But, much to her utter misfortune, she didn't notice in time that someone was walking hurriedly towards her from the opposite direction, mug of hot coffee in hand, and an unstoppable force collided with an unmovable object. The result was a crash, shortly followed by a loud shriek coming from Lux.
As both of them were not paying enough attention to their surroundings, they ended up bumping into one another, which also resulted in hot coffee being spilt all over Lux's chest, arm and hand. To make matters worse, to her it seemed as though she ran into a wall and the repercussion was that she fell back instantly, landing on her butt.
The other workers around the office were all surprised by the crash and they momentarily stopped whatever they were doing, just to see what was going on.
Tears dwelled in her eyes, as she felt the beverage burn her skin on multiple parts, the impact of it all being too much of a shock to her. Yet, she still somehow managed to rise, just in time Quinn arrived to aid her, and Lux glared angrily at her aggressor, just as she was swatting her coffee-stained blouse, was Quinn was frantically blowing on her burned hand.
And that's when she noticed just who exactly it was. Before her, with an identically annoyed expression and angry glare, stood the one and only Dark Lord himself, Talon du Couteau. Never mind the fact that he seemed more pissed about his spilt coffee than the fact that he hurt somebody – even though it was both of their fault –, he still had the audacity to glare at her!
Lux felt her blood boil in her veins.
Talon du Couteau was the adopted and only son of Marcus du Couteau, one of the shareholders of the Enterprise. Tall, dark and mysterious, he was the typical kind of IT guy: oversized black hoodie, jeans and sweaters made up most of his wardrobe. Never mind the long and messy strands of dark hair covering his neck and most of his features, nor the strong jaw and sharp features and amber eyes and thick lashes and slightly creamy skin and those broad shoulders and long legs and big hands and –
"It had to be you to ruin my coffee. Great." He grunted under his breath, in a brutal, ruffian way which sent thrills down her spine and Lux was momentarily left gaping, before it all turned to fumes.
"How dare you!" She bit back almost instantly, holding back her tears as best as she could, given the situation. "This wouldn't have happened if you had been more careful. Now I've gotten myself burned and my clothes are ruined." She cried in disbelief.
Talon looked at her from head to toes, eyes lingering momentarily over the small of her revealed ankles, only to draw them rapidly towards her stained blouse, and finally, at her face. That kind of messed up face suited her, he decided. He had had enough of her strolling around, swaying those thin hips of hers left and right in loose pants, shouting orders like a supreme leader, or biting those plump lips in annoyance, or the way she'd set her glasses back into a more fitting spot using her pen.
Stopping his train of thought, he cleared his throat and took a more domineering stance by straightening his back and lifting his head a bit, just so he could literally talk down on her.
"You crashed into me. If you were actually watching where you were going, this wouldn't have happened." He said with a characteristic eye roll, then went on ahead and grabbed his mug.
Luckily, it didn't shatter. Blessed be whoever decided to carpet the whole floor.
"You insufferable animal." Lux flared uncharacteristically, eyes burning with rage and mostly pain, heart pounding in her tiny chest. She was very much determined to slap him and deliver a knee to where it would hurt him most right after.
"Okay, okay. I take the blame." Quinn interjected shakily, while looking around in panic, asking for help through her eyes. "'Lux, let's go get you cleaned. The meeting's gonna start in a few minutes. Please?"
But nothing she said would reach the blonde woman, as she was currently in a death stare contest with the guy who happened to be a head taller than her.
Just as Talon was about to retaliate, they heard a ruff voice call out into their general direction. "The meeting's going to start in 5. Prepare your stuff and come to the meeting room."
Taking his cue, Talon was the first one to leave, turning his back at Lux who was a shaking mess of anger mixed with the feeling of crying.
"Okay, is everyone here?" The man with the ruff voice asked once again, doing a quick sweep of the attendees.
His figure was imposing enough, without the addition of the deep, intimidating voice. He was tall, big and broad. His white shirt was rolled up to his elbows and tucked into black slacks, while his whitening hair was neatly pulled behind. His face had the characteristics of a boss nobody wanted to piss off.
He also happened to be the Head of Departments, Darius.
"Where's Luxanna?" He then asked, when he noticed that a certain blondie was running late, despite the meeting being somewhat centered around her department and ongoing projects.
Nobody said a word, as they were not aware of her current surroundings.
"She had a small incident right before the meeting, sir. She should be here soon," Quinn rose and answered sheepishly, fidgeting with the hem of her hoodie.
Darius clicked his tongue in displeasure, but waved at her to sit. "Alright. We'll start the meeting without her then we'll continue with her topic once she arrives." He continued, while rubbing his temples. A visible lock of white hair was adding to his grunt look, and mostly everyone had guessed it formed due to stress. "LeBlanc, how are things at the Investment Dept?" He then asked, while looking at the woman sitting closest to him.
She opened a file on her laptop and after a few clicks she was able to deliver her report. "We're ready to launch this project whenever we get the 'go' from Service. Our partners have reasonable requests, and our investments, although a bit risky now, could pay off big time on the long run."
Darius nodded, acknowledging her status report. "Quinn, what about the Marketing Dept?" he then urged towards the brown haired woman.
She choked a bit and messed up her documents, but she managed to gather herself by the time Darius finished his eye roll.
"After the market research that we did both in Noxus and Demacia, we were able to conduct a survey based on the general needs and we started a marketing plan based on those needs. Advertising has begun on all sorts of channels and from the feedback we've gotten so far, the people seem to be looking forward to this project."
Just as Darius opened his mouth to move on with the briefing, a shy knock was heard on the glass doors to the room. Looking in that direction, Darius saw Lux slowly open the doors, stand there for a moment after stepping in and offering him and everyone else a short courtesy nod. After that, she wordlessly went to occupy the only open seat at the table. Fixing her suit jacket to make sure it was buttoned up, she opened her laptop.
Darius crossed his arms and looked at her sternly. "What made you run late to this meeting? Do I need to remind you that we're all stressing about this project, trying to make it work because it was proposed by you, in the first place? You're the main reason we've all had sleepless nights and hellish work to do for the past months, and yet you come late to one of the most important meetings? Do you need reminding that we're slowly running out of time and that the launch day is creeping closer? Are you aware that there are problems with your department still?"
He was going to continue with the scolding, but Darius stopped after his last sentence, as he noticed that Lux's right arm had a rather big patch covering most of the back of her hand.
"Status update, Luxanna." He then added, while sitting back on his chair.
"Apologies, sir." Lux said, not lifting her eyes from her laptop. She was this close to breaking down and crying her soul out. She hated everything about this place. "The customer support plan is properly set, I've sent you the schedule of it last week. There are some minor issues with the equipment our personnel is going to use, as it turns out it's not compatible with the programs the IT has made, that we, as well as our website will be using. I will hold a smaller meeting with all the involved parties the upcoming days to sort it out so we can start the project."
"When was the equipment decided and ordered?" Darius asked.
"12 months ago." Lux replied, looking at her laptop.
"When did the IT start working on the programs and the coding?" He then asked, eyeing the Head of the IT department.
Silence filled the room.
"Talon." Darius pressed, his tone obviously annoyed.
"8 months ago." His voice – quite annoyed in turn – echoed against the room.
"Who had to go through the specs for the equipment?" Darius insisted, no emotion in his voice.
"IT." Talon replied monotonously.
"Who issued the software and the programming?"
"I did."
"Right. Well, then." Darius leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. "I guess Luxanna and Talon can figure this out together."
At his words, Lux's face paled and she looked at Darius with bewildered eyes. Her day was getting worse and worse. She wanted to up and leave, run as far away as possible. She wanted to return home, where she belonged. She wanted to walk the cobblestone streets of Demacia, breathe in the fresh air and bathe in the sun.
And yet, she had to eat insults and smart remarks, had to be made a fool in front of everybody, have her work disrespected and her humanity stepped on. She wanted to cry.
"No need." At his interjection, Lux's baby blue eyes glued to his frame and casual posture. "I'll fix it myself. I can recode and run some tests on a sample. I need two weeks."
Then his eyes met hers, and something tugged at his heart. Her eyes were slightly swollen, as if she had been crying, her round cheeks were rosy and she had distress written all over her face.
Yea, she wouldn't want to work with him either. The feeling was mutual.
"Let me repeat myself, in case you couldn't hear me properly the first time." Darius' stern voice made the both of them jerk their heads towards him. "You two will fix this. Together. Have I made myself clear?"
"B-but, sir," Lux tried to argue, but he cut her off almost immediately.
"Have I made myself clear?" He repeated his question, not budging.
"Yes." Lux replied disheartened, lowering her head into her laptop.
Talon's response was a displeased nod.
"Good. You have two weeks."
"Mind sharing what this morning was all about?" His ruffian voice echoed through his office, slightly making the woman sink in her seat. "Luxanna?" He called her name quizzically, raising an eyebrow as a dark set of eyes buried into the small of her form.
Having been requested to Darius' office a short time after the meeting, Lux was a pack of nerves. Yet, she tried her best to hide it away behind her composed figure. Sitting in front of him, she carefully placed her left hand over her right, covering the patch. Her jacket was buttoned up so the coffee stain wasn't visible either.
Yet, she wondered whether she could get away with it all without having to turn it into a bigger scene than the one from the same morning.
"It was nothing, sir," she didn't meet his eyes. "I had some coffee spilled over me in the morning, and I burned my hand slightly." She finished, without mentioning her chest. It wasn't that big of a deal, as she had worn a brassiere as well as a top underneath her blouse. "Apologies for running late into the meeting."
A sigh left his lips as Darius leaned back against his chair, locking his fingers on his lap. "Luxanna, we both know that isn't what I want to hear." His voice sounded a tad bit disappointed – tired, even – given her unwillingness to give in.
Lux frowned lightly as she finally looked up at the man's face, for the first time that day.
"Then what is it that you'd like to know, sir?"
"Luxanna." He started, eyes holding hers firmly. "I am aware that you have trouble accommodating into this environment, despite moving to Noxus almost a year ago. I am also aware that you have difficulties communication with most of your colleagues. But I'd like to remind you that this project, 'Mental Health', is a project you proposed to Katarina, right after the merge was announced between the Du Couteaus and Crownguards. This project is meant to offer counseling and assurance on a psychological level, for citizens over the two states –Noxus and Demacia for starters, but then is planned to launch over the entire continent. Katarina pushed for the addition of a specific department into the Enterprise, for the sake of allowing this project to come to life. And to respect her wishes, we've all been pushing for this project as our main concern ever since."
Lux already knew the background of this. But to her, it seemed as though Darius was voicing his displease regarding the whole thing.
"I'm not saying it's not a good perspective. Nor am I saying that it's not profitable for the company. And I'm definitely not trying to suggest that your idea only got through because our main shareholder's daughter is married to your brother." She lightly winced at the last part.
'Of course he has to bring it up.' She told herself bitterly.
"All I'm saying is, that this is a workplace, and what we're currently focusing over 80% of our resources on is a big shot to change the perspective of the population, as well as the way they see mental health. I know that you're hardworking and have been continuously pushing for the sake of this project and company." He held a small pause to gather his thoughts and make sure that he doesn't misplace any words, which could result in harming her. "But if you want to fully earn everyone's trust and respect, you have to work twice as hard as the rest of us."
Darius noticed how her eyes shook and watered slightly, after he finished his sentence. He swore internally, regretting his lack of finesse in moments like these. He had a vague guess as to what Lux might have been thinking at that time.
And he was right.
Lux knew exactly what he meant. Before the two states formed a political pact and became allies, she had been considered Demacia's sweetheart, having been raised in an overprotective environment, never having to work a day in her life. When the war got to an extreme and most of the population was starving, she was still served the finest teas and the richest foods. And when she demanded for food ratios to be shared with the poverty-stroke corners of the state, everybody waved her pleas off.
Her brother was the one who stepped up to the Crown Prince and demanded truce with Noxus. He was also the one who accepted a political marriage with Katarina Du Couteau, to serve as leverage for the peace between the two nation states. He had also been the only one to listen to her plans to rebuild the mentally and physically abused population.
Yet, he was also the one who sent her away to Noxus, as a private liaison which would mark the ties of the two families to the rebuilding of the modern society.
And, as such, everybody still looked at her as a damsel in distress, unable to properly do her tasks and simply being a hindrance to everyone.
"I understand, sir." Lux then said, unsure how much time slipped by ever since Darius spoke.
Making a face in discomfort, Darius went on. "I saw the scene between you and Talon this morning." She shivered at that. "I'm not trying to defend him, but Talon has always been reserved and rough around the edges. Especially after his sister's marriage. Of course, that's no excuse for his behavior today." He paused, having no idea how to relay to the young woman what he wants to say anymore. It seemed that whatever words would come out of his mouth could just easily break her. "What I'm trying to say is, I really need the two of you to work together, and to fix the remaining issues, so we can launch the project."
Lux nodded absent-mindedly, uncertain whether his request would come true or not.
"I understand, sir."
"Okay. You may go."
She rose and bowed towards him.
"Have a good day, sir."
She then left quietly and headed towards her section in the office.
For the remaining hours of the day, as well as the following two days, Lux gathered some data based on the programs they were supposed to run as well as the equipment they would use. She also ran some tests with Shauna Vayne on one of the samples they received and the alpha version of the program, just to see what causes the bug when trying to use the software they developed.
After multiple failed attempts at making the said error to occur and extracting the necessary logs to be analysed, eventually they did manage to make the error pop up when doing simulations. They also successfully recorded it.
The next day after that, Lux wrote a thorough analysis on what they found out, as well as the source of the bug, and, she emailed the one and only Head of the IT department, Talon, with the information. She included a thorough version of her analysis, a shorter, summarised version of it, as well as multiple files of the generated error with logs, code and all sorts of technicalities.
All that was needed to be done is to come up with a solution which could alter the code and not affect the equipment, nor the programs.
Lux sighed heavily after she wrote the email, leaning back in her chair. This task was not hers to make but since she was the instigator of all of this, he could at least do this much. Unfortunately, she wasn't very familiar with coding, so she couldn't offer anything in that regard.
She just hoped that Talon would be smart enough to not resort to any smartass comments or whatever his style of communication was.
"Hey, wanna go grab some lunch?" Quinn's sheepish voice broke Lux out of her reverie and she nodded at the woman with a small smile.
"Yes, please. I am famished."
Unfortunately, as the desks of most department heads were located on the same floor and were not separated, when she and Quinn headed out for lunch, they passed by Talon's desk.
And a set of amber eyes was closely glued to her, as if he was about to eat her up alive.
Upon returning from lunch break, Lux was greeted with a reply from Talon.
Thanks for your efforts, but they were useless. I already figured out the bug way before you did all this unnecessary stuff.
Let me clean up this mess while you sit back in silence and be a good girl.
Lux was fuming at this point.
' .He.' Sure, she didn't inform him of what she would do about finding the cause of the error, but neither did he. What's more, he didn't even talk to her about any of it.
Yet, he dared to tell her to sit back?
That was it.
Placing her palms on her desk in a loud way and pushing back her chair, Lux stepped angrily towards Talon's desk, which was towards her right, at the end of the hall. She had had enough of his attitude.
Slamming a palm on his desk and making him slightly jump as he had been oblivious to her presence until it had been too late, and now he was met with an angry Lux leaning in towards him.
"Break room, now." She growled with narrowed eyes, and Talon was left momentarily stunned, unsure whether to feel amused or intimidated by her display of dominance.
But as Lux turned on her heels and started walking towards the break room, Talon soon found himself following her in complete silence.
And, as he was walking behind her, he couldn't help but notice the tight jeans she was wearing that day – something unusual, given her usual choice of loose pants – mixed with the silver sating blouse and, especially those cute kitten heels which barely covered her ankles, with silver ribbons at the back, just above the straps.
For some reason, he had always failed to notice just how small and thin that woman had always been. Maybe her mouth and personality always came first to memory, whenever one thought about her. Yet, her small shoulders, thin waist and modest curves could barely go unnoticed by his eyes, at that particular moment. Not to mention the fact that her long hair – had it always been this long? – was neatly braided and dangling on one of her shoulders.
Arriving at the break room, which was mainly consisted of a kitchenette for employers to make coffee and whatnot, a small table, a couch and a vending machine, Talon closed the door behind him as he looked at her small, furious frame.
And Lux looked back at him. He nearly choked when he noticed how blue her eyes were, how her rosy lips pouted in such a lovable way, and how she could slit his throat without hesitation if she heard just what was running through his mind.
And the more she glared at him, the more she couldn't understand how a man could look good wearing a dark hoodie with silly cartoons on it, some jeans and sneakers. And the way his hair was long and tied messily at the nape of his neck and how his fringe was covering those amber eyes, and how strong his jaw was and how his features seemed to make her stomach turn somehow.
She mentally gasped, swatting such thoughts away. She needed to remind herself that she was furious at him for his behaviour.
"I don't need you to clean up any messes, Talon." She started, breaking that… whatever that was, what happened just moments ago between them. "Darius clearly told us to work on this together, which is why I did what I did on my own accord."
At that, he simply rolled his eyes and stepped closer to her.
Lux felt the need to step back. But she didn't, she held her ground.
"And I don't need you running around doing unnecessary things. I know fully well what needs to be done. I will do my part and let you know when it's finished. Then you can go on with this silly little project of yours." His voice was dark and rich, like melted chocolate.
Somehow, Lux felt shivers run down her spine and her whole body tensed. She could also feel musk and smoke from him. Was that the way he smelled?
"I'm not doing 'unnecessary things'," she quoted using her fingers, "I simply went through things and shared what I found relevant. You don't have to be an ass about it. You have no right to look down on me." She lifted her chin in a defining manner.
Talon wasn't exactly sure what had come over him at that particular moment, but he felt the need to prove her wrong. So, he stepped closer, effectively closing the distance between them. He was literally looking down on her, the difference in height being quite obvious. He also couldn't quite miss the way her breath hitched in her throat.
"You don't get to tell me what to do, princess. And just like now, I will keep looking down on you. So you better get used to this fact, let me do my job to finish with this damned project and then return to your lovely country where you can do nothing but read books and dream about white knights all day long."
A vein twitched at her temple, and Talon found that cute.
Much to his surprise, she rose to her tiptoes, moving her face dangerously close to his. He could feel her warm breath against his jaw. It caused a tingling sensation to go rampant all over his body. He could also smell lavender.
Intoxicating.
"Listen here, you! You don't get to boss me around. I'm not pleased to do this either, as you've proven to be an insufferable animal since day one. However, I don't plan on quitting being a professional just because of your taunts, and mark my words, I will see this project to be a success. With, or without your help."
He'd rather make her shut up, she seemed extremely lovely with her mouth shut, lift her up and throw her against a wall, or the kitchen counter or the couch and make sure he tames that one wild kitten with his co – hold up.
What?!
He blinked twice and shook his head, a little puzzled by the images that ran through his mind moments ago.
Then he sneered at her.
"Princess," he teased, placing his index under her chin, visibly shaking her defenses, "that is very cute of you to say, but let's not forget who the real professionals are in this field." He grinned her way in a dark, twisted way. "I've been working here since I finished high school, the emphasis being on working. Meanwhile, you and your beloved Demacians have been having tea parties and garden parties and evening parties and pool parties and winter parties and whatnot. Then, somehow your family gets to be credit for playing an important role in ending this war and is lifted to the same level as mine." He sneered. "And your brother gets to marry my sister just because." He leaned in dangerously close to her. "Know your place, Luxanna. You are nothing here. Everybody's just dancing to your tune because we all want you gone as soon as possible."
At that, something broke inside of her.
Tears threatened to fall from her eyes but she had known better than proving his point the very next second.
So, instead she slapped his hand away with more force than initially intended, and used both of her hand to give a push at his chest. Of course, her barely budged but still.
"Don't get ahead of yourself." She warned, her tone dangerously low. "It was your sister who specifically asked me to come here." She laughed, but it was a dark, twisted sound, which reflected perfectly in her glassy eyes. "But then again, what could one expect from someone's who's had a sister complex all his life? Then was forced to watch her get married to some random guy, only for that guy's little sister to come along and act like she owned everything."
Lux huffed angrily, catching her breath.
"Well, guess what, Talon? I want to be gone as soon as possible too. That makes two of us, at the very least."
She then said, voice cracking by the end of her sentence and she walked past him like a flurry of snow, carried away by the wind.
If she stayed any longer, she'd end up crying.
Rain had never been unusual, especially not in Noxus. It rained more than the sun shone, and if it didn't rain, then it would be cloudy in one way or another. The point being, these kinds of days were part of the norm.
Yet, for some reason, he couldn't help but feel that something was off. Not for the fact that a certain someone had been working from home for the past days ever since their argument, nor that he had an unsettling feeling in the pit of his stomach.
It's just, Talon seemed grumpier than his usual self.
As he was gazing out one of the wall sized windows and looking at nothing in particular, as they were surrounded by similar looking tall and grey buildings, he failed to notice someone's steps behind him.
He was currently at one of the lounges, dazed and confused, and if not for his silly hoodie and messy hair and 'don't approach me' kind of aura he was emitting, he could have been considered attractive.
"Talon," a woman's voice brought him back from his thoughts.
He steadied himself and turned around to meet the one who disrupted his disorganized thoughts, only to be met with Cassiopeia, his other sister and the Head of the HR department.
"Cass. Hi." He greeted her awkwardly.
The woman rolled her sapphire eyes as she stepped closer to her brother, crossing her arms over her chest. She was tall and lithe, with sandy blonde hair falling in lazy waves around her shoulders, wearing a white dress shirt, a long pencil skirt that ended under her knees – it still didn't fail in hugging her curves though – and decent, high heels accepted by office standards.
"How's your work going?" She then asked out of courtesy, although Talon doubted she cared.
"It's going well. Heading to a definite solution." He answered blankly, turning his head away from her in favour of looking out the window again.
Cassiopeia hummed in understanding. "Have you heard from Luxanna?"
His sister's question caught him by surprise. Talon looked at the woman with a deep frown, showing his confusion.
"No? Why would I?"
Cassiopeia held his gaze for a moment, analysing his stance, his expression, the way he held his jaw tightly, and eyes narrowed.
Heaving a sigh, she stepped closer to her brother. "Look, Talon," something in her voice gave away the fact that she was impatient and slightly irritated about something. "I will tell you something that's been on my mind for a while now, and I hope this can help you fight off any invisible demon you have conjured around the little missy."
Talon looked at his sister in confusion.
"I overheard Father speak to Kat, more than a year ago about Luxanna. It was right before they made the decision to send her here." At the sound of her name, Talon suddenly froze. He didn't care. Her case was not relevant to him, in no way. So why would his sister…? "Apparently, Kat had befriended Luxanna back in Demacia, that's how they ended up talking about this silly proposal of hers. And when Kat told Father about it, he had also agreed. The marriage was closing in, and when Kat discussed this with Garen and his father, they were all thrilled at the idea of it. Kat simply wanted for Luxanna to get the praise and contribution she deserved, because of this. But the Crownguards took it very differently, it seems." Cassiopeia stopped for a moment, carefully picking her next set of words. "Father initially proposed for Luxanna to visit us every now and then, when there were some important meetings or things to discuss, as he didn't want to be seen like taking her from the Crownguards for granted. Kat's choice was her choice but…" She shook her head, not finishing that one thought. "The point is, the Crownguards took it as an exchange. They'd be getting Kat for themselves so they sent Lux over, even though it wasn't needed. From what Kat told Father, they didn't grasp the project in its entirety but they wanted to be a part of everything, so they pretty much sold their own daughter. They sent her here on her own, without hearing her thoughts on the matter."
Talon stayed for a few seconds and stared at Cassiopeia with a blank expression on his face. "So?"
Cassiopeia made an irritated sound, and, while massaging her temple, she spoke again, her voice much sharper this time around. "So, that means that she's all alone in a city where she knows nobody, working in a semi-hostile environment and her family doesn't even bother checking up on her."
Talon narrowed his eyes and Cassiopeia felt like beating him to a pulp right then and there. No matter how dense a person can be, Talon's oblivious face made it seem like nothing. But then he regained focus through narrowed eyes, and he asked something.
"What do you mean semi-hostile environment? Everybody's practically drooling at her feet whenever she walks by."
Cassiopeia stared at him. And stared. And stared some more. She was genuinely curious whether her brother was an idiot or pretending to be one.
"You're, kidding, right?" She then asked while making a weird face.
"No?"
Talon's reply made it worse. She regretted the fact that she stepped in, trying to mend things.
"Dude, you're the semi-hostile environment." She affirmed flatly.
Talon cocked his neck at the side, looking at her quizzically.
"I know about the coffee incident. I ran into her in the bathroom that morning and helped her patch up her hand." Talon looked away slightly ashamed, at the mention of that specific incident. Good thing she didn't know what happened in the break room. "Then there was the break room –" Talon's eyes quickly snapped back at her face, his previous nonchalant expression overridden by panic.
Cassiopeia looked at him knowingly, but decided not to pursue it any further.
"My point is, you've given her a difficult time lately. And so did most of her colleagues. They still can't accept her presence, simply because she's Demacian and mainly because everybody considers her a little princess needing saving. Everyone's overlooking the fact that she came up with a thorough and sophisticated way to care for the mental health of the population. And that, my brother, is the future."
"So what do you want me to do?"
Cassiopeia smiled her most plastic of smiles. "Be a decent human being."
Talon grimaced inwardly.
But then his sister turned on her heel and was ready to leave. Before doing that, however, she stopped for a moment, to tell him one last thing.
"And you better apologise next time you see her. Last time you told her you cannot wait for her to leave. Did you know that she has nowhere to go? The Crownguards don't plan on taking her back." With that said, she walked away.
Talon was left more confused now, than he was before she came along.
Lux had a peculiar dislike when it came to driving. She disliked driving almost as much as she disliked… well, everything else. Add to it the fact that it was still raining, that she had pulled up at the company sometime around 11pm on a Saturday, and that the traffic seemed spiked for whatever reason.
She could hardly understand as to why would there be traffic at such hours on a Saturday, close to midnight, but she had to remind herself that this damned city was almost as big as her home country altogether, population wise.
Heaving a sigh and shutting down the engine, she crawled out from the driver's seat, grabbed her necessities and locked the car. Heading towards the elevator from the underground parking lot, one could only question her presence at the office, and at such unholy hours – during a Saturday, at that.
Ignoring the fact that she was wearing an oversized sweater with light pink sweatpants and some sneakers, having her hair tied in a messy bun and clearly not in the mood to socialise, she was at least glad that the chances of her running into anyone were close to none.
Getting in the elevator and pushing for her floor, she inwardly cursed at everything that pushed her into coming to work. She was almost certain that she would be able to wrap up some papers and send out emails regarding some things that required her immediate attention, but who would have thought that she had IP limitations at home, so there were things and folders that could only be accessed from the company's cloud, which, in turn, meant that she had to show up at work.
She was bad at dealing with people, especially certain people. She didn't feel like she needed to prove herself to anyone, she didn't want to mend any situation, nor did she want to talk things out. She just wanted to be left alone.
As the elevator made a stop at her floor, she noticed how eerie everything looked in the dim light. Only some secondary lamps were running, which gave the empty office a creepy and silent feel. Not that it bothered Lux that much. Worst case scenario, she'd be murdered by a vengeful ghost, effectively ending her suffering also.
She chuckled darkly at that thought.
"Oh, well," pushing such thoughts aside, she headed to her desk, placed down her Pusheen backpack next to her and fished out her laptop. Turning it on, she looked for the files she needed and started working on her part.
The plan was to wrap this up entirely, wait for the live go and then leave the company. When she first brought up her proposition to Darius, he didn't seem to mind. Why would he, after all? His only request was to leave an address or any contact information behind, just in case.
Sometime around 3 am, Lux felt that she had to take a break. Straightening her back, she took off her glasses, slowly rubbing her eyes. Rising to her feet, she also took off the Pikachu modeled neck pillow and headed for the break room.
Some coffee wouldn't harm anyone, she decided. She could stay in the whole Sunday too, if she wanted to do that. People never drop by the office during the weekends anyway.
Lux was lost in thought as she headed to the break room, her personal mug in hand. She turned on the lights and went straight for the coffee maker.
She did this every now and then, come by during the weekends just to do some extra stuff or catch up on some tasks. And minus some weird episodes every now and then, nothing major had happened before.
But, as it happens more often than not, there is a start for anything.
Although Lux was mostly focusing on the sound of the coffeemaker while it was brewing some of its heavenly beverage, allowing its scent to enter her nostrils, she heard some low grumbling behind her.
It would have been an understatement, to say that she was horrified at that moment. So, she grabbed a spoon and turned around in frenzy, body lightly shaking from fear and adrenaline. Then, in the half light, she noticed some movement from the couch, at the other side of the break room.
Her first thought was that some homeless broke in and was taking a nap. Still, if she wanted to run, she had to pass by the couch, as the door was close to it. She cursed inwardly at herself for not noticing anyone else in the room in the first place.
"Do not make a move, or I'll call security!" She tried to sound menacing, although her voice was shaking and her weapon of choice was a measly spoon.
But, as the other individual rose from a sleeping position, still groaning under their breath, Lux realised that she actually knew that person. Much to her chagrin.
Rising to a sitting position and being obviously annoyed, Lux was faced with none other than Talon, who was glaring at her.
The two shared a few moments of awkward staring at one another, neither of them unable to grasp a proper understanding of the situation.
"What are you doing here?" Lux asked with a deadpan expression, lowering the spoon and hiding it behind her in slight shame.
Talon needed another few moments to fully come to his senses, but upon noticing the woman in front of him, he looked away, scratching the back of his head. "Taking a nap. What are you doing here?"
"Working." Came her flat response.
The coffee was done by that time, and Lux quickly turned to tend to it, filling her mug with the wonderful beverage.
The whole situation was highly questionable, but Lux thought better than to question someone else's life choices, especially since she did something weird herself. Still, Talon was the last person she wanted to run at that moment. He was the sole reason she decided to remain at home the past days, in the first place.
"Is there any leftover coffee, by chance?" His voice made her slightly jump, mainly because it reverbed dangerously close behind her.
And since he had just awoken, there was something raw about him; the way he carried himself so lazily, his face which was unable to focus, the way his hair was so messy but had given him such an alluring look. Just what was going on with her?!
Lux shook her head, then decided to reply verbally. "I made more. Help yourself." She then said, scooting away from him while she was adding sugar and cream to her coffee.
"Thanks," he said with that deep voice of his, grabbing a mug for himself and filling it with coffee.
And, much to Lux's guess, he liked his black. She had no idea why she could have guessed so much, but the fact that Talon Du Couteau liked his coffee black came as no surprise.
She kept stealing glances at him from the corner of her eye, reminding herself that he was a paradox of the IT guy image. Sure, he dressed the part, and the behaviour, aka the lack of communication, but there was something about him… Something she couldn't quite comprehend, which was lulling her in.
Having finished preparing her drink, Lux was about to excuse herself and return to her desk, ready to wrap up everything as soon as possible and return home. She felt weird around Talon. He was rude, lacked proper communication skills and she made her stomach tie in knots whenever he was nearby. Her body was reacting to him instinctively, and that bothered her.
But, just as she was about to step towards the door, his voice made her halt.
"I apologise."
Lux blinked a few times, debating whether he really said that or if it was simply her imagination.
"I'm sorry?" She turned around slowly to face him, a look of pure confusion printed all over her face.
She caught his eye but he quickly averted his gaze, opting to look at his mug instead. Lux brought her brows together and bit at the bottom of her lip. What was going on? Was this another elaborate prank of his?
Instead, Talon cleared his throat and looked back at her. There was something in his eyes, something that Lux couldn't quite place her finger on, but whatever it was, it held her firmly in one place. She found herself unable to move, talk or even look away.
The intensity of those amber eyes made her feel as though she was fully coated in honey.
Such thoughts made her shudder.
"I'm sorry. About the coffee incident, about acting out towards you when you sent me that data, as well as saying hurtful things to you in the break room. I know my actions weren't the best, and I'm sorry for taking out my stress and frustrations on you."
This was… uncharacteristically direct. Coming from Talon.
Lux couldn't help but feel that something was off, that this was an elaborate plan to lower her defenses and backstab her afterwards, but… The way he was looking at her, drinking her up from head to toe, she felt spellbound.
"I, I'm sorry too. For the way I acted and for what I said." She spoke rapidly, sounding like a total idiot.
But by the way his lips curved into a small smile just before he tried to cover it by drinking coffee, Lux sensed he might be thinking something else. Her cheeks reddened in the slightest and she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, nervously. Then she remembered what she was currently wearing and wanted to crawl underground in shame.
Talon, on the other hand… Well, much to his own surprise, he thought she was adorable.
"Okay, well," Lux fidgeted nervously with the hem of her sweater, "I think I'll head back to work." She said that, but didn't take a step.
As if she was waiting for him to say – to do – something. As if she was waiting for him to pull her back.
"Alright."
Her heart sank at his curt reply.
"But before that, I'd like to show you something." Talon then said, slowly walking past her and exiting the break room.
Her heart skipped a beat and Lux soon found herself following him. Just what was going on with her?
Talon led them both to his desk then pulled up a chair for Lux to sit on, next to him. At that time, he thought little of the effect such a small gesture could have on him. But he would soon realise the impact of his actions.
"So, I fixed the error with the program." At his words, Lux looked at him gasping.
"Really? What was the issue? Was it what I sent you?" She could barely hold back the excitement in her voice.
Talon chuckled under his breath and mentally repeated that word which he described her as. Lovely.
"It's actually thanks to you, that I managed to do it so fast."
At his words, Lux looked at him quizzically.
Talon held her eyes for a moment then shrugged. "The stuff you sent did help me figure it out and find a way to fix it." He then explained casually.
Lux was still confused about the whole thing, but deep inside, she felt a tad bit happy that she managed to be of help.
"What did you do?" She then asked enthusiastically.
Talon tried to ignore the way she was leaning in to see his desktop, the way her shoulder brushed gently against his, and how that friction sent electric bolts thorough his whole body.
Instead of dwelling on such thoughts, he decided to focus on the more important things. Such as, explaining what he did.
"So, the program is supposed to gather answers from customers based on a questionnaire and based on that, to create a virtual support for them. Based on their personalities, hobbies, fears, strengths and witnesses." Talon began, but he simply went through the basics of the program. Lux nodded. "And we have the main 5 personality traits, to which we have a virtual support assigned: Sona, Janna, Nami, Braum and Taric." He continued, while opening up some files on his laptop.
"Yes," Lux replied absent-mindedly, feeling a weird tingle wash over her body at the sound of his voice.
"Also, for the program we have the option for customers to either chat with the VS, or to talk to them through the phone. From the stuff you sent, the issue was with Janna, through chatting. The 'heal' command would glitch whenever it was to be combined with the 'knock-up' one, which practically means to pause certain things. If she was healing but the customer requested a pause for other things, these two commands would override and cause an issue. Yet, during calls it never happened because the system would rearrange the order. As in, it would prepare the 'knock-up' beforehand and release it during any other command, without interrupting the rest. Which I found weird, as the code was supposed to act the same way through all channels. So, what I ended up doing was to go through the code for calls and compare the differences in commands, and then to replace the chat code with the call code. And it seems to have fixed the issue. I still can't figure out why the code acted out but the important thing was to –" he trailed off when he noticed he had been going on and on and on.
Lux was looking either at him or his screen with some newfound amazement so she didn't quite mind.
"Sorry, I'm talking too much." He then said sheepishly while looking away.
Lux couldn't help but smile, especially at the way his ears reddened slightly, and how subtle it was in the dim light.
"It's nothing, really. It fascinates me. And besides, without you my ideas would have been just that, ideas." She spoke slowly, her voice lightly shaking at her words.
She meant that.
Talon turned to look at her, and he couldn't help noticing the small of her frame, her heart-shaped face, baby blue eyes and slightly puckered lips as she looked up at him. Her hair was a cute mess, and those casual clothes looked so good on her.
She was… lovely.
"It was thanks to you. You sent me the error in the first place." He then replied sheepishly, not breaking eye contact.
"You did all the work." She spoke in a half whisper, glancing between his eyes and lips, unsure on which to settle.
Her heart was drumming against her chest and for a moment she wondered whether he could also hear it, in that deafening silence. Still, she couldn't stop. She was mesmerised by him. Things that she hadn't noticed before were rushing over her in those moments. Like the slight stubble he was sporting, or how nice he smelled, or how warm his breath was against her skin. Lux wanted to curl up in these sensations his body provided.
"Couldn't have done it… without you." Talon said in a daze, eyes fixated on those lovely lips of hers.
Her breath caught in her throat and those pretty eyes trembled, like a flower shaken by raindrops. Instinctively, she leaned closer to him, unable to tear her eyes from his. Her whole body was pushing her towards him, as if he was some dark star ready to swallow her whole. She was gravitating out of control, and in his general direction.
Without realising what he was actually doing, Talon lifted a hand and rested it against the side of her face, gently cupping it. Her skin was burning against his touch.
"Lux," he whispered her name, in a way that set her whole body ablaze, as his fingers sneaked behind her neck, gently caressing her nape.
Her response was closing her eyes and letting out a heavy sigh.
And as Talon leaned in, his breath tickling her face and heart beating uncontrollably, Lux opened her eyes all of a sudden, and quickly pulled away from him.
"I-I'm sorry. We shouldn't be…" She jumped to her feet and said hectically.
She panicked and didn't know what to do. Things took such a rapid turn all of a sudden, that she wasn't sure what was happening anymore. She was no longer in control.
Yet, looking at Talon's surprised and somewhat hurt expression, her heart started to ache.
He cleared his throat and rose to his feet as well. "You're right. I have no idea why I did that. Apologies." He said awkwardly, not meeting her eyes.
Lux didn't know what to do either. She just stood there awkwardly, fidgeting with her fingers.
It was Talon who broke the silence.
"I'll go get some air. You should also get to work, if you want to finish it anytime soon."
Lux nodded slowly, and with that he hurried out of the office.
The following hours included both of them working separately and not really interacting with each other. Lux felt embarrassed and awkward to be around him, as she couldn't quite pinpoint what everything she was feeling meant.
How could she feel the way she did, be so helplessly attracted to a guy she argued with so many times before? She had no idea what was going on anymore.
Was she really that easy? Was all she needed some nice words to fall for someone like that? Why was her body even reacting to him the way it did? He wasn't even the type of guy she liked. Then again, she didn't really know what 'types of guys' she liked as she wasn't really interested in romance. Then again, that sounded much worse than it should.
So to say, Lux was very conflicted about the things that happened that night.
Still, she focused mainly on her tasks, noticing every now that Talon was either at his own desk, or in the break room, or somewhere else.
And, at one point, she had drifted off to sleep on her chair, being unable to stay awake any longer.
Sometime around the early morning hours, when daylight still hadn't properly crept through, she half awoke at her desk, but needing to sleep some more and in a more comfortable place, she dragged herself to the break room, without minding her surroundings much.
She had heard Talon say that he'd take a quick nap, or maybe she imagined it? Lux wasn't quite so sure anymore, and honestly, her mind couldn't function properly at that time.
So, walking in the break room, when the first rays of sunlight started to break through, she headed to the couch, feeling the need to lie down somewhere cozy. Tapping away on the couch, it felt way softer than she remembered it to be, yet still somewhat hard.
Still, she lied down, nestled against the coziness and warmth and quickly drifted away to sleep.
The couch groaned a bit, or better say, the other person sleeping there groaned, but being sleep deprived themselves and yearning for warmth, he wrapped his arms around the small of her back, pulled the blanket over both and cuddled her against his chest.
Which is exactly why, when Lux awoke to feeling someone's arms around her and warm breath against the top of her head and that intoxicating scent burning her every pore, she was more than shocked.
Her eyes sprung open in panic and she lifted her head to see just what was going on – she hardly remembered going to sleep with someone else – and much to her shock, she found Talon sleeping peacefully underneath her.
She gasped loudly and in shock and tried to pull away, but his arms were holding her too tightly for her to escape, and as they were both wrapped around a single blanket, somehow they managed to roll off the couch and onto the cold, hard ground.
Talon landed on his back with Lux on top of him.
He groaned, the motion clearly awakening him, but he also needed a few moments to register just what was happening. And adding to Lux's already rosy cheeks, his hold on her only tightened.
She was flush against his chest, legs tangled with his and her heart was doing constant backflips.
His chest was hard and wide, his shoulders broad and arms strong around her. She was pressed so tightly against him that she could barely breathe. Her whole body was flushed, burning with a weird sensation and the only thing she wanted to do to him right then was push him back and straddle him.
Crying out at such thoughts she quickly shook her head, the motion effectively awakening Talon as well.
"Wait, what?!" His confusion was just as evident. "Lux?" He then dumbly called out her name.
"Hi…" She said sheepishly, averting her gaze. "Uhm, would you mind if…?"
Talon blushed lightly when he noticed how tightly he was holding her to him, and almost in an instant, his arms flew open in a surrender-like gesture.
Without sparing him a second glance, Lux hurried to her feet and ran out of the break room.
Talon remained dazed, on the floor, when he heard her pack her things and run out of the office, without sparing him a glance or saying goodbye.
Well, he had fucked up.
What followed were a few days of intense awkwardness.
Initially, Talon had wanted to talk to Lux about their small encounter a few days prior, but she somehow always managed to slip away, whenever he tried to get close to her. It's like she grew some sort of 'Talon senses' which would always assist her in running away.
He felt desperate.
He knew that whatever happened that night changed both of them, ignited something inside which neither knew how to act upon, but… Somehow Talon was desperate to talk to her and apologise properly for what happened.
Talon stopped midway from sipping his beverage.
It was the big launch party for the virtual assistant program, so most of the elites from Noxus, Demacia and the neighbouring states were invited.
And in the middle of it all, there was Talon, in an uncharacteristic metallic grey suit with a white dress shirt and a burgundy tie, long hair tied and arranged nicely, revealing his features, while sipping some red wine.
There was one particular question that kept bugging him ever since that little encounter.
Did he really regret what happened between them?
Grunting and forcing the red liquid down his throat, he knew the raw answer to that simple yet complex question.
No.
Still, he had to find her, he had to talk to her and he had to apologise.
For everything.
Whether he wanted that tiny woman or not, that was his own weight to carry. And in the end, it all came to whatever Lux wanted. Hell, her behaviour ever since the event made for a pretty clear answer. She obviously didn't want him. Who in their right minds would even want him? Him, of all people!
Still, he had to apologise. Talon was pretty sure what Lux planned to do after the party. And he'd try his best to prevent that from happening.
He won't be the trigger for her to leave and disappear forever.
"Talon!" Darius' grunt voice brought him back from his thoughts and as he lifted his gaze to meet the older man, Talon noticed that he was accompanied by some important figures.
There was Swain, who was one of the biggest power plays in the whole of Noxus, ruling over the whole underground and more, as well as his other sister, Katarina and her husband, Garen.
Talon froze on the spot, mainly when he saw his sister. They hadn't seen each other for about a year now, ever since her wedding. Yet, he was pleased to see that her eyes were as green as always, and her hair red and untamed as it should be.
"Talon, hello!" Katarina exclaimed with excitement as she hurried over to give him a tight hug. "It's been so long! I missed you so much!"
Awkwardly, he also locked his free arm around her waist. "Nice to see you too, Kat."
Talon then exchanged greetings with Swain, as well as Garen.
"Grand General," Darius began, while looking at Swain, "one of the biggest pieces into successful realising this project is Talon here. It's all thanks to him everything is running smoothly."
Swain nodded approvingly and raised his own glass to Talon. He then reciprocated the gesture.
"What about the young lady you've mentioned? Luxanna was her name, I believe?" Swain then asked in a very inquiring tone, looking at Darius and Katarina.
"Indeed." Katarina spoke with a light frown. She then turned to Garen. "Have you seen your sister?"
Garen shook his head. "She said she'd be here."
"I'm sure it's just a minor inconvenience." Darius tried to change the subject, since a certain blondie was nowhere to be found. "How about we head to –" His eyes recognised the small figure of a woman, as his line of sight followed Talon's spellbound one. "Oh, Luxanna!" He then said aloud. "Could you please join us?"
The young woman looked a bit uncertain when her eyes meet a certain someone's from the group, but she had to be professional as it was a business party, so she headed their way.
In all honesty, Talon knew he was staring like a creep but he couldn't tear his eyes off of her. She wore a burgundy dress, shade similar to his tie, which ended just above her knees and framed her thin body perfectly. It had long, see-through sleeves, brought together and tied in a frilly fashion at her neck. She wore silver heels, matched with a silver purse, smokey make-up, which brought out the blue in her eyes, while her hair was tied in a messy.
"You might wanna not wolf her down in front of everyone, though," Katarina whispered with an amused tone, as she elbowed Talon out of his reverie.
"I did not." He replied, while glaring at her.
Katarina's response was a snicker.
Yet, as Lux shyly looked at him and then averted her eyes almost instantly afterwards only to greet the group, Talon felt butterflies rounding up in his stomach.
"Hello, Luxanna." Swain greeted her with a smile, which Lux returned.
She felt a bit awkward, being called to speak to random people and especially staying around Talon. Yet, tonight wasn't about her and her silly feelings, so she had to act her part.
"Lovely project you've been working on. I can guarantee that it will have great success among most of us." He then continued, using the same polite tone as before.
Yet, for some reason, it kind of ticked Talon off.
"Yes, isn't she amazing?' Katarina tagged along the conversation.
Swain nodded in agreement. Garen showed his biggest of smiles.
"Maybe we can look forward to an application version for our phones in the future." Swain then suggested as he lifted his glass to Lux.
Talon couldn't help but notice how Darius' eyes lightened up at the hint. He wasn't sure whether it was a good idea or a bad one, though.
The conversation dragged on for a bit longer then Darius and Swain excused themselves to chat with other people as well. Katarina and Garen stayed with them for a while longer, talking about small nothings, but soon Lux found herself left alone with Talon.
She had been – not so subtly – avoiding him for days, and suddenly being around him without ways of escape made her a nervous wreck.
But she was confused about her own feelings, what she wanted, what she didn't want. What she knew and… especially what she didn't. She was a big, confused mess. And she didn't want to drag Talon into any of it.
Yet…
When he casually held a glass of wine for her, with those amber eyes bearing into hers, and looking so gorgeously dangerous, she couldn't find the strength to walk away.
That was the plan from the very beginning. Finish the project, leave Noxus. It was simple. It was easy to deliver and execute. So then, what was the unexpected element that changed everything?
He was standing right in front of her.
Nervously, she sipped from the beverage, which turned out to be wine. It was sweet, just how she liked it.
"Let's talk?" It was more of an invitation, and Lux couldn't sense anything malicious in his tone either.
So she nodded silently.
"Let's go to the terrace. It's a lot quieter there." Talon then added, waiting for her.
Lux frowned a bit. The hotel where the party was held at also had a lovely terrace and a back garden, but since it always rained in Noxus, Lux didn't even take that possibility into consideration.
Talon seemed to have caught on as he chuckled slightly then grinned in her direction. "The rain has stopped."
Lux pouted cutely and looked away.
His grin only widened. Holding out his hand at her, he invited her once again. "Come, princess."
With a barely audible 'hmph', Lux took his hand and he led them outside.
The rain had indeed stopped, so there was the specific scent in the air, after the rain. Yet, it was late in the evening so the weather was a bit chilly as well, with autumn slowly around the corner.
Once outside, Talon offered Lux his suit jacket. Although it was a good few sizes too big for her, there was some sort of pride Talon felt creeping through every fiber of his body, at the sight. She was wearing his clothes.
Yet, once his eyes met her hesitant ones, he shook himself back to reality.
Looking over the city, he took a few sips from his glass then dared to speak.
"I'm sorry about what happened the other day."
He wouldn't prolong his suffering anymore, nor would he allow his circus of awkwardness and avoidance to go on longer than it should. He would say everything he had to say, and whatever was going to happen, it would just happen.
Lux tried to hide behind her wine glass, but it offered little to no shelter.
"I'm sorry too, for avoiding you." She admitted, not daring to look at his face. If she did, her knees would give in. She could barely hold herself together, while inhaling his specific scent. "It was childish of me."
"I like you." Came his confession, out of the blue.
Lux's eyes widened as she stared at him with her mouth slightly agape.
She didn't notice how the glass slipped through her fingers and shattered on the ground.
Talon looked back at her, a mix of fear, amusement and a specific kind of hurt painted on his face.
"It's silly, really. I did some heavy brainstorming over these days, and that's the conclusion I arrived at." He then said, trying to sound as casual as possible, given the circumstances.
Talon knew the chances of her liking him back were close to none, but, he felt it would only be fair to share his side of the story.
"All the bickering and the games opened my eyes. I've liked you ever since I first saw you. I was just stupid enough not to realise any of it."
Lux wondered if he could hear her heartbeat. It was drumming so loudly against her chest. Her body was shaking, the butterflies were going crazy inside of her stomach. She could barely breathe.
"I," her voice was shaky, she couldn't even speak properly.
"Lux," her name a ghost of a whisper on his lips. "I know you want to leave." Those words hurt both of them more than either expected. "I didn't say this as an attempt to make you stay. I know the feeling's not reciprocated. I just wanted you to know, how I really feel about you, so that you won't have the wrong impression of me, at least."
She had no idea why her insides ached. Everything hurt. Why was she happy and sad at the same time?
"You're an amazing woman. And I'm an idiot. I hope you can forgive me for all the things I said, for the way I acted towards you, as well as the things I did." Talon then said with a small, somewhat sad smile.
He knew he had been a jerk to her. He misjudged her, he labelled her, and he was dumb enough not to let her properly prove herself. Yet, he had his own issues, so doing this meant a lot to him too. He didn't like socialising with people. He didn't like people.
Rubbing his neck, he realised that, ironically, she was the only one he liked. Truly.
But she hadn't said a word. And she looked pretty shocked. So, that must have been her answer.
Just as he was going to suggest heading back inside, her words halted his every muscle, every action.
"I don't think I'm going to leave." Lux said shyly, not meeting his eyes.
Talon looked a bit confused. "I'm sorry?"
She cleared her throat and slowly lifted her gaze, shying away from his lips and eyes.
"I like you too."
Talon wasn't sure whether he was hit by a lightning bolt, crushed by a rock or run over by a train.
He looked at her, blinking like a retard, making her blush deeply and averting her eyes.
"I said, that I like you too." Lux confessed with a cute pout of her lips. "I was confused about the whole thing as well…" Pulling his jacket closer around her, deceiving herself that it would offer any sort of comfort, she continued. "I'm sorry too, for the way I acted around you. I'm far from perfect myself and I'm still learning, so…"
"Be mine?" The words left his mouth without Talon could process the gravity of them.
Eyes widened upon realisation just as Lux's did, and amber melted with baby blue. But there was something else in their eyes, something which wasn't there before. A glimmer of something, and they felt both lost and found.
And he stepped closer to her and she closed the distance between them and his arms locked around her waist and she rose on her tiptoes and pulled him down by his shoulders and his lips were on hers and she forgot how to breathe and everything exploded in colours and need.
And she felt like she belonged.
And he felt safe.
So he pulled her closer while deepening the kiss, and she tasted sweeter than anything he'd ever had in his whole life.
She felt like her knees could give out at any moment, but she wasn't able to stop. She wanted to feel more and more of him. She wanted everything.
There was fire, there was ice, there was rain and there was sunshine.
But she wanted more, oh so much more. She was willing to give in to him and give up anything, just to grab hold of his everything.
"I'm yours."
The End
Ta-dah!
Hi. Hope you enjoyed. I've been trying to get back into writing, so this might not be exactly the smoothest or most romantic story out there, but there's Lux and there's a bit of a nerdy Talon and a bit of a sudden romanticist (I had no idea he had that side either, ngl). But, yeah. I personally like this story.
In case you find any typos, sorry. I did proof-read it beforehand but I might have missed some parts. Sorry
I also kind of wanted to include a bit of smut but then as the story progressed I realised it just wouldn't fit with the overall vibe, so I thought not to push it. Might take Swain's suggestion into consideration and work around that, if not.
But yeah, that's it from me. Hope you all enjoyed, and many thanks for the lovely Silver Queen's Goldfinch for being the amazing person she is :3
Bye bye and take care 3