Disclaimer: As if it needs to be said, neither of us own or have anything to do with Blizzard or Overwatch.
Author (Kate) Note: I cannot explain how many times I told Alec "That is not how French works". Despite this struggle, going through this experience has been fun. I have enjoyed writing so far and more so appreciate all of the comments and support we have received. Thank you, all of you, and I hope you enjoy the newest installment.
Chapter 2: Je Désire une Nouvelle Vie
Lena had been out all day scouring the streets for new apartment listings. Much to her dismay, luck had run out; coming up empty handed once again, with no possibilities within her current budget. With only two hours before work was to begin and a growing pain in her leg, the option to go home and rest seemed more and more tempting with each block.
The wheels of the bike clicked lightly as she pushed it down the street, pace beginning to slow as she approached her apartment building. Amongst the middle of the block was the crumbling reminder of complexes past. Standing five stories high, the darkened and stained facade had crumbled overtime, paint chipping off to reveal and expose the lain brickwork underneath. Littered amongst the walls sat rusted fire escapes and thick, exposed pipes, neither of which had been inspected for years, allowing the metal to fester and deteriorate. Accompanied with every window was a set of bars poised over the thin glass, thick and dark draped pulled tight, shutting out all light from the outside world.
As she approached the stairs, Lena lifted up the frame of her bike, picking the wheels off of the ground as she made her way up the few steps towards the nicked and scratched front door. The wheels touched the ground again as she reached into her pockets, pulling out a lanyard before rifling through her keyring, selecting the correct one before shoving it into the lock and pulling the door open. Entering, she closed the door behind her, looking down the hall, lights flickered overhead from dying bulbs, illuminating the old, stained carpet covering the floor. Around her, the drywall had started to chip off, exposing the brick within.
Halfway down the hall, she approached her door, quickly switching keys before placing it into the lock, twisting the knob open. As it swung open, she was greeted by the sight of a man with dirty, blond spiked hair sitting cross-legged in the middle of the stained carpet flooring "Shut the damn door!", he barked, his head shooting towards her, all form of concentration broken in an instant. Lena did as she was told, clicking the front door shut before sliding the golden chain lock into position. With how many times this scene had happened before, she knew the drill by now. The man was hunched over a lighter in his hand, poising it under a bent spoon, allowing the flames to lick at the curve of the metal. His hands shook, amber eyes opened wide as his face drew closer, watching the light sprouting from the plastic lighter in his grip.
Lena gave him a smile, ignoring the scene in front of her. "Good to see you too, Jamison." The only light provided was the small flickering flame in his hand, the rest of the room swallowed by the darkness, not allowing clear visibility. She glanced around, searching for the other roommate. "Where's -" she paused, her question gaining an answer when she saw a large mass slumped on the couch, the coffee table in front of him littered with empty bottles and used needles. "There you are, Mako", she said in a sing-song voice. With the two roommates never being keen on small talk and casual conversation in this state, Lena made a turn to the left, deciding to head to her own room. The hallway was littered with piles of open and ripped cardboard boxes, each overflowing with miscellaneous items never put away and allowing the mess to fester. Despite being shoved to one side of the hall, Lena couldn't help but feel cramped as the precarious boxes pushed her into the yellowed and peeling wall on the other side.
As she made her way, Jamison's voice could be heard, always loud in its nature. "She's a weird one, ain't she?" He asked, breaking concentration to look over at the lump on the couch. Mako groaned at that before shifting to the left and shutting his eyes, falling back to sleep. Jamie continued, inspecting the contents of the spoon in hand. "I swear she's got a screw loss or two." The lighter turned back on and he continued, unsatisfied with the spoon's current state.
Lena entered her room and turned on the overhead light, shutting the door behind her and propping the bike against the wall. Much like the rest of the apartment, the paint in her room was similarly yellowed and peeling, the window cracked and covered with strips of duct tape in attempt to seal the wounds. Despite this, Lena's worked to make the room as colorful and welcoming as possible, decorating it with what little bits she had.
Lena threw herself onto her bed, landing on her back as she looked up at the ceiling, the surface littered with several water stains from the apartment above them. She sank into the blue and green flowered and squishy comforter below her, taking a second to close her eyes and allow her body to relax. During her moment of rest, her mind wandered, thoughts conjuring the mantra of plans for the near future. Wait a month or so before asking for more hours, find a new place, make friends at work and maybe get another job, hopefully not through, right? Each thought cycled through her head, a mental sigh following the last one.
Lena's shift was starting just before the dinner rush, leaving her with one of the last nights of training. As usual, everyone was running around in preparation for the expected influx, everyone setting up and mentally putting themselves in the zone. Lena stood close to Angela as she helped the main dining room get ready with setup, handing her medium stacks of perfectly white dinner plates off of a pushcart as she configured around the table.
The last two nights Lena had shadowed, everything worked out perfectly. As the teaching continued, Angela's direct influence lessened with every passing hour, almost leaving the new hire alone once she got into the hang of things. After picking up so much information so quickly, Lena knew that this was her last night being this close to Angela, part of her preparing herself to make the most of it while she was still there.
Amélie came out of her office with typical clipboard in hand, eyes searching over the wait staff "Where's Lucio?" Her voice was enough to stop the rush of the staff, the tone alone being enough to halt the flow in and out of the kitchen. She glanced over everyone expression,seeing that everyone had as much of a clue as she did. The scattered "I don't know"s provided no aid, Amélie's irritation only growing as result. Her glowering eyes bore down on Lena, simply standing next to her mentor, a small stack of dishes in hand. "Angela, is she ready?"
At this, she was taken aback, almost afraid to answer as if approving of her abilities was akin to pushing the new hire in front of a bus. Despite the reluctance, Angela nodded in response. "I believe so, ma'am. I'll keep an eye on her throughout the night."
"You better", Amélie commented simply before for turning around and heading to the kitchen, ensuring proper preparations were being made on time.
Angela regretted her action instantly, beginning to panic internally; worried what would happen if Lena were to mess up after her word was given. Placing a hand on the new hire's shoulder, she gave a reassuring smile to the shorter girl. "You're going to to do great. I just know it". Her tone was light and soft, masking any fear or doubt.
Lena smiled up at her, full faith placed in her abilities. "Don't worry, love. The cavalry is here." She straightened herself up, adjusting her tie and smoothing her apron for further proof of her professionalism. It took a moment for her to realize what she said, a small chuckle letting its way out alongside it. To hear her catchphrase was a foreign memory, one she hadn't visited in awhile. "Don't worry, I won't let you down. You taught me well."
Angela was unsure of how to react as of the moment, anxiety sitting in the back of her mind. Lena's optimism, however, began clouding any worry she had, putting Angela's nerves to rest. "Alright, but if you need anything, I'll be right here when you need me. I have full faith in you."
Lena nodded, a cheerful demeanor playing across her face. "Yes, ma'am."
As the night carried on and the dinner rush began, men and women began to file in, the tables soon becoming filled and the air lighting up with chatter. Lena made her rounds through the assigned tables, never faulting to take orders, pour more water, give the correct food to the right person, or even to make subtle side chatter when commenting about recommendations. Her normal mannerisms remained, addressing the guests as "love," and allowing her informality of speaking to carry over with her "what'cha"s. This made Angela worried, but Lena's customers didn't seem to mind. In fact, some even enjoying it, finding the young Brit and her lingo to be rather charming. Amongst a few of the tables, the more experienced server could hear them whispering about her as Lena left, commenting about how friendly the staff was.
As the night continued, the pain in Lena's right leg began to radiate, becoming an almost unbearable sharp shock shooting up her system. She decided to take an early break, sitting on the concrete curb outside of the kitchen, rubbing and down her leg slowly as she attempted to ease the screaming muscles. She hissed a little in pain as her thumbs hit a particularly tender spot, wincing as she dug in, working to soothe and calm. Between apartment hunting and the commanding workload, she knew she pushed herself too far.
A beam spread across the cement, the yellow light staining the ground in front of her as the back door to the kitchen swung open. As soon as it had appeared, the light sunk away as the door closed, a large, shadowy figure standing slumped against it. They began to reach into the breast pocket of their shirt, pulling out a carton of cigarettes before pausing, noticing Lena hunched over on the curb only a few feet away. Slipping it back in, s took a few steps forward, the larger women taking a seat next to Lena. "You alright?" She asked, her voice, although soft, held strong and deep .
Lena looked up at the woman, looking her over in the low, overhead light; easily recognizing her as one of the bartenders. "Yeah, I'm fine, just an old injury." She paused, her eyes running over the taller woman beside her, getting her first close look. "I don't think I've properly met yet", she commented, holding out her hand. "I'm Lena"
The woman took her hand in hers, the sheer size dwarfing the smaller one. "Aleksandra, you can call me Zarya." She glanced down, watching as one of Lena's thumbs rubbed a small circle into her knee. "May I?" she asked, offering her hand out again to take Lena nodded cautiously. Zarya reached her palm under the new hire's ankle, lifting it up slowly and gently before moving it closer to her. Once stretched comfortably in front of her, the woman took the limb in hand, wrapping her fingers around the sensitive muscles as she worked her thumbs around it, pushing firmly and slowly in a downwards motion, starting towards the top and ending at her ankle.
Despite the strong, firm grip, Lena could not help but feel her eyes roll to the back of her head, the pleasure of relief finally washing over her. She relaxed fully for the first time that day, relishing under the hands of the larger woman. Lena let a slow breath out as Zarya worked the tender sides of her knee, the pressure lessening as the knots slowly began to release. As the absence of pain began to wash over her, the younger woman jolted forward, realizing exactly how long she had been out there. She retracted her leg and gave her ankle a short roll, part of her not remembering the last time it felt this good. "Thank you so much. I feel much better now, but I need to head back in."
Zarya gave a short nod, fully understanding the demands of the restaurant "You sure you're alright?"
Lena smiled and hopped up, giving herself a quick brush, dusting off the back and sides of her pants, paying close attention to the small apron tied snugly around her hips. "Yeah, I owe you one, love. I'll see you around", she said, giving a small wave before pulling open the door and disappearing inside. As it slammed shut, Zarya couldn't help but chuckle, pulling out the carton from her breast pocket and wedging a cigarette in between her lips before setting it alight. Taking a drag and releasing the breath slowly, she couldn't help but think about how odd the other woman had been acting.
Author (Alec) Notes: Thank you to the people who favorited and followed. You make all of this worth it. While writing this I got a review from a guest that really kept me going. They brought up that they were skeptical of the AU. I'm not good at descriptions and I want to make this sound as appealing as possible. If anyone is good at writing descriptions I would love some pointers and/or ideas, just PM us. Thank you again, our next chapter will be the next day, not tomorrow.