Chapter Text
Give me a good reason (to fall for you)
Chapter 12
Vi has a plan.
Well, maybe not a plan just yet, but she has a goal. She thinks she’s kind of winging the whole thing because planning is hard and she also gets distracted when she starts thinking too much about it, but at least her end-goal is very clear:
She wants to kiss Caitlyn.
She’s almost a hundred percent sure that Caitlyn wants to kiss her too. Ever since that day in the arcade where Vi saw the look on Cait’s face as she watched her kick that game’s ass, Vi’s been paying a little more attention, and there’s definitely been a few more-than-friendly looks in the last couple of weeks. Which is thrilling – not at all terrifying. There’s been a lot of ‘moments’ lately, and Vi is pretty sure she could have kissed Cait at least half-a-dozen times and perfectly gotten away with it every time.
Like that moment, three nights ago, in Cait’s bedroom.
It was Cait’s second lesson on fighting, and she was doing great, but Vi still hadn’t managed to get her to punch her for real. Her sweet Cupcake had no problem punching unsuspecting pillows, but as soon as Vi broached the subject of actually punching real human-beings – namely, herself, although maybe she could borrow Mylo’s very punchable face sometime –, Caitlyn categorically refused, shaking her head vehemently and crossing her arms over her chest.
“I am not punching you, Vi,” she stated very seriously, a little out-of-breath from punching pillows all night.
“Come on,” Vi retorted, grinning at her friend’s stubbornness, “you’re not gonna hurt me I promise, punch me Cupcake!”
“I am not punching you, that’s ridi–”
“Aww, come on,” Vi cut her, and smirked when Cait glared. She moved closer, stepping into Caitlyn’s space, and grinned to herself when she spotted Cait’s cheeks grow a little pink because of it. “I know how annoying I can be,” she said teasingly, like sharing a secret, and Cait rolled her eyes, her lips stretching into an involuntary little grin. “Don’t you wanna punch me at least a little?”
“No, of course not!” The little grin morphs into an offended frown, and Vi chuckles.
“Even just a little bit?”
“Absolutely not. I will not punch you Vi, you’re my friend.”
“Your annoying friend.”
“You say you’re annoying, but–”
“Punch me Cait,” Vi interrupted again, with that smirk that always gets a roll of eyes out of Caitlyn. If Cait thought Vi couldn’t be annoying, she definitely was in for a surprise. She’d learned from the best after all – yes, that would be Mylo. “Come on Cait, punch me!”
“No.”
“Punch me! What, are you scared, Cupcake? Punch me, punch me, punch me, punch m– OUCH!”
To be perfectly honest, maybe it did hurt just a tiny bit, because somehow Vi didn’t see it coming. Caitlyn had that fondly annoyed look on her face the entire time, but in the last split second it morphed into a deeply focused expression, and then she’d punched her square in the face. As soon as Vi yelped though, Caitlyn’s expression switched to horrified and she gasped, rushing to cup Vi’s cheeks to apparently inspect her face.
“Vi! Oh Vi I’m so sorry are– are you alright, you–”
Cait was stammering, her blue eyes wide in horror as she didn’t let go of Vi’s face. She brushed her aching cheekbone with a careful thumb and Vi’s heart positively leapt in her chest at the tender gesture. “I’m fine,” Vi said, wheezing through barely repressed laughter, but Caitlyn must have mistaken her reaction for pain because her face grew even more horrified, looking on the verge of tears somehow.
“I’m so sorry, I never wanted to hurt you I–” She trailed off as Vi let out a little cough to try and muffle her chuckle. Cait narrowed her eyes at her, looking suspicious all of a sudden. “Are you… are you laughing?”
“Laughing? No!” Her words meant nothing as she let out an accidental snort, and Vi bit her lip, barely holding it in anymore.
Until she caught Cait’s eyes darting to her lips that is, a sight that took her breath away more efficiently than any punch she’d ever taken.
Caitlyn’s frown deepened, but somehow she didn’t let go of Vi’s face as she shook her head in deep annoyance. “I hate you,” she mumbled grumpily, making Vi grin. She was standing so close that Vi could feel the little puff of air from her sigh on her own lips.
They stood there in silence for a few seconds, staring into each other’s eyes, and Vi knew that she could kiss her best friend right here and there and that it would be amazing. She knew that Caitlyn would kiss her back, and she could almost already feel how much her heart would be hammering if they did. It would be amazing, she knew it, but it wouldn’t be perfect.
And somehow, Vi’s convinced herself that she has to make everything perfect for Cait.
So instead of leaning in like she almost desperately wanted to, Vi snorted loudly. “Yeah right,” she said cockily, earning herself another roll of eyes. She took a step back then and grabbed Cait’s hand off her face to take a look at it, her heart jumping from the obvious disappointment on her friend’s face. “How’s your hand?”
“Good,” Cait said quietly, after a few seconds worth of hesitation, “it doesn’t hurt at all.”
“That’s because you put your thumb here like I taught you, good job Cupcake.”
The pleased look on Cait’s face then had been rewarding enough, but Vi definitely knows now that she needs to act fast and just kiss her already, in the most perfect, wonderful way, before it becomes too tempting to just do it at random.
Maybe it sounds stupid and disgustingly romantic, but it’s all Vi’s been thinking about these last few days. She’s not even trying to pretend like she’s not. She’s overwhelmed with feelings for her best friend, and she thinks it’s mostly okay, despite her being a topsider, despite them being so different, despite everything really. She thinks the L-word most probably apply to her situation, and it’s scary, but then again she’s okay with it, because Caitlyn seems to feel the same way.
It’s thrilling and terrifying, but she’s got to do this.
Hence why she’s now standing on Cait’s roof a few nights later, rehearsing her speech in her head for the last time. She’s thought about it a lot, and remembered the little story her mother used to tell her about how she and her dad met, and now she’s got a plan.
Hopefully it goes well. Hopefully she finally gets to kiss those lovely lips she’s been thinking a lot about lately, the ones that just happen to be her best friend’s.
She just wants things to be perfect.
No pressure.
“’Sup Cupcake?”
Caitlyn pretends like she didn’t just jump in surprise at Vi’s greeting, looking up from the homework she’s doing on the floor as always. “You’re late,” she informs her primly, and Vi grins in amusement, jumping off of the windowsill. Cait is still dressed and wearing her hair up tonight, which means business, and which also means that Vi gets to stare at the lovely curve of her neck every now and then.
(Yes, she likes doing that, whatever.)
“You look busy enough,” Vi retorts with a smirk, leaning against the wall and crossing her arms over her chest to hide her shaking hands – yes, she’s nervous, she has to admit it, if only just to herself.
“I’m not.” Caitlyn snaps her book shut and stands up, eyeing Vi from head to toe as she walks closer, and Vi feels her cheeks warm up for some reason. “You’re up to something.”
It’s an easy statement, paired with an assessing frown, and for a split second Vi is caught off guard and just stares at her in surprise. Then she clears her throat and shrugs, easing off the wall to walk closer too. “I want to show you something,” she admits quietly, biting her lip in amusement when Caitlyn raises a curious eyebrow at that. “But it involves getting you out of here and walking a bit, so–”
“I’m in.”
Vi cannot even contain her smile at that. She nods once, heart jumping in her chest, and Cait nods too, looking deadly serious and ready. Vi wonders if she’s suspecting something, but then her heart starts hammering at the possibility of Cait expecting and wanting this, and she forces herself to not think about it at all.
“Got comfy shoes?”
A handful of minutes later, they both silently step out of Cait’s window and slide down to the ground. Vi jumps in surprise as Caitlyn grabs her hand and tugs her in the right direction to get out of the Kiramman estate without being spotted, and then somehow they keep walking hand in hand in the quiet Piltovian night. It feels right, and exhilarating, and Vi is almost too distracted to guide them properly. She lets go of Cait’s hand to focus just as they make it to the edge of the river, and doesn’t glance at Cait because she thinks that wouldn’t help with her nerves.
“Where are we going?”
Cait’s voice is just a whisper, murmured in Vi’s ear in the calm summer night, and a shiver runs down her spine for no reason. “Trust me,” Vi retorts with a little wink, and grins to herself when Cait just rolls her eyes like ‘duh, of course I trust you’. “We’re almost there.”
They’re almost all the way across the bridge now, and somehow for the first time Vi starts doubting her own plan. What if there aren’t any, what if Caitlyn doesn’t like it, what if there’s actually nothing perfect about seeing stupid glowing insects over the trenches? What if Caitlyn doesn’t actually want her to kiss her, what if–
A group of loud people – topsiders coming down to the Undercity for a good time, if Vi had to guess – walks past them, and Caitlyn slides her hand in Vi’s again, and somehow everything falls right back into place. There’s a worried little frown on Cait’s face, and Vi’s heart almost aches in her chest because of how cute she looks. She tugs on her hand and grins when their eyes meet, nodding encouragingly, and the little frown recedes, giving place to a small grin.
“It’d better be worth it,” Cait tells her sternly, but Vi knows there’s no bite to it. She doesn’t reply anything, but she’s definitely hoping the same.
She understands her friend’s nervousness, she’s never actually taken her to the Undercity by night, and the entire atmosphere is a lot different than what it is during the day. There’s always more people, more weird or plain disturbing things to witness, but then again Vi isn’t taking Caitlyn somewhere crowded. Hopefully it’ll just be the two of them. Just the two of them, hopefully lots of firelights, and then maybe some kissing too? Oh wow this is terrifying. Vi’s mouth is very dry, for some reason.
It’s not a long walk from the bridge. Vi’s heart somersaults happily in her chest when Caitlyn lets out a small gasp of surprise. The weird little insects are at the rendezvous point, like they were the two previous nights when Vi came scouting the place. Her cheeks hurt a little from grinning too much when Cait slows down her steps to stare up at them in wonder. Her lovely face is basked in the greenish light, and she looks beautiful.
“What are they?”
“We call them firelights,” Vi simply responds, matching Cait’s hushed tone. “D’you like them?”
She shouldn’t be so nervous, she thinks to herself, but she definitely is.
Cait’s lips stretch into an easy grin and she nods. “I love them, Vi, this is beautiful.”
“Not as pretty as your starry sky topside,” Vi shrugs, feeling her cheeks grow hot as Cait stares at her with an unreadable expression, “but yeah, they’re pretty neat.”
They lean against a railing, shoulders touching, and stare down at the trenches the firelights are flying out of. They keep quiet for a long time, as Vi tries to gather the courage to do what she’s set herself to do, but in the end it’s Cait who breaks the comfortable silence.
“I’ve been thinking for a while,” she starts, and Vi’s heart leaps for no reason, “and I think I need to tell my parents about all this.”
It’s hard to keep her shoulders from slouching in disappointment, but thankfully Cait’s gaze is fixed on her clasped hands and she doesn’t seem to notice. “Oh?” Vi says eloquently, mentally slapping herself as she does. “This… being what?”
Caitlyn shakes her head and glances at her looking apologetic for some reason, and Vi raises an eyebrow, not entirely sure what’s going on. “What we’ve been doing,” she clarifies, although Vi still doesn’t quite get what she means, “you know, what you’ve shown me of the Undercity, of what it’s like to live here, all the wonderful things down here that are worth fighting for…” her voice trails off, and Vi just stares at her. There’s a small silence, and then Cait looks up, looking determined, and somehow there’s no more doubt left in Vi that she’s in love with this girl. “I think we need to tell people about all this, the council more importantly, to get them to finally do something for the Undercity, because–”
Vi doesn’t think. She just acts. She doesn’t care anymore if things aren’t as perfect as she wanted them to be. All she cares about is showing Caitlyn how she feels. How she loves everything that she is and says and does, and how she’s been dying to kiss her for ever it seems.
She leans forward and presses her lips to Cait’s, heart stopping in her chest entirely. It barely lasts a second before the idea that had seemed so appealing and perfect before suddenly doesn’t feel as much anymore. Vi gasps and Cait does too, and then she leans back and takes a couple of steps back, cheeks burning.
“I’m– I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have– I mean I– I should have asked–” Vi is stammering and panicking, her heart’s settled in her throat, and she can barely think any coherent thoughts. Her lips feel as if they’re pounding, the ghost of their kiss lingering there, and she can’t quite believe what she just did.
She gulps, avoiding Cait’s eyes because she has no idea what’s in them and if she even wants to see because it’s too nerve-wracking. She thinks she’s messed everything up, but then…
Caitlyn steps forward and into her space, cups her cheeks and meets her eyes, and then softly kisses her too.
The kiss is soft, and warm, and wonderful. Caitlyn cannot believe what’s she doing. Vi grabs both of her elbows, keeping her hands in place on her cheeks, and Cait’s fingertips feel like they’re tingling with how warm Vi’s skin is. Caitlyn is kissing Vi, and Vi is kissing her back, and Cait thinks a swarm of firelights must have taken flight in her own stomach. She never wants this moment to end.
They eventually part for air at some point though. Vi lets go of her elbows and Cait’s hands fall back at her sides, as she tries and fails to catch her breath and calm the pounding of her heart. They’re still standing very close, and Vi is staring at her with so much awe in her gray eyes Caitlyn has to eventually let out a soft little chuckle. She feels her cheeks go warm as Vi blinks twice, her lips distractingly parted and still so very close.
“You kissed me.”
She sounds almost surprised, and Cait bites her lip in amusement at how awed she seems. Then Vi’s gaze darts to her mouth, and her heart skips a pleasant beat. “Well you kissed me first,” Cait finds herself saying, and this actually gets a grin out of Vi.
“True,” she nods, then lets out a nervous little laugh.
There’s a small silence then, and it’s not exactly awkward, but it’s different than usual, and somehow it has Cait panicking just a little bit. “I was kind of hoping this would happen,” she admits after a moment, earning herself a raised eyebrow, although Vi still looks quite distracted – and maybe flustered? Cait isn’t sure, she definitely gets why Vi is distracted though, because everything about this is extremely distracting.
“Really?”
Cait nods, bites her lip, but somehow words are just coming out before she can stop them now. “I was… I was a little mad at you these last few days.”
“You were?”
Vi’s eyes grow a little worried then, although she still looks quite dazed, which Caitlyn finds terribly endearing. “Mmh,” she hums, nodding slowly and grinning to herself when Vi’s eyes dart to her lips once again, “I thought there were a lot of… moments, where we could have… kissed, but every time–”
“I wanted it to be–” Vi cuts herself, biting her lip as if she was about to say a word but then thought better of it, “–great.” She takes a sharp breath, and this time it’s Cait’s turn to glance at her lips without thinking.
“Great?” she repeats, feeling her cheeks all warm and her heart all fuzzy.
“Special?” Vi makes a face, reaching to scratch the back of her neck. “I don’t know,” she shrugs, looking a little embarrassed, and Caitlyn grins, earning herself a small glare. “Don’t laugh.”
“You’re a romantic,” Cait retorts, delighted to see Vi’s cheeks redden.
“I am not,” Vi retorts forcefully, looking perfectly offended, and Cait laughs. Vi’s eyes lighten up before she pretends to frown and look annoyed again, and Caitlyn thinks her heart might be melting.
She knows it’s not scientifically possible, but it still feels that way. Vi wanted their first kiss to be special. Everything about this sentence is nothing short of life-altering really. Maybe Cait’s exaggerating, but she couldn’t care less. “It’s cute,” she tells her, reaching up to brush a light finger on Vi’s cheek. Vi gasps and blushes hard, glaring up at Cait but they both know there’s no bite to it at all.
“You’re cute,” Vi mumbles grumpily then, like the greatest come-back ever, and Caitlyn bites her lip to contain her amusement. Then Vi seems to realize what she’s said, her eyes widening for a second before she pulls another face, crossing her arms over her chest. “Shut up.”
Cait chuckles again, and Vi pouts, and then somehow the air around them seems to shift, going from teasing to tense in a split second as Caitlyn glances at Vi’s mouth again. Her lips are parted, and so very, very tempting, and wow Cait really wants to kiss her again. Vi must have had the same thought because they both move at the same time, meeting in the middle in what Cait thinks is most definitely the most mind-blowing kiss she’s ever had.
Granted, she’s never kissed anyone else before, but this is just… perfect.
Maybe perfect isn’t the right word, semantically speaking. The kiss is clumsy at times, and for a moment neither of them seems certain of what to do with their hands, but it still feels perfect to Cait. Vi’s lips are so soft, so eager against hers. The little gasp she lets out against her mouth when Cait threads her fingers through her hair is electrifying. Shivers run up and down Cait’s spine as Vi’s hands settle on her waist, and then their bodies are touching as they hug each other close, and Cait cannot even think anymore.
She has no idea how long they stay like that. It doesn’t last half as long as she wishes it would, especially after she feels Vi’s tongue shyly brushing the seam of her lips for the first time. Soon after their tongues are dancing around each other, stealing Cait’s heart and breath and mind away like nothing ever did before.
They do have to part eventually though, again, and at first Cait isn’t sure why – breathing has become inconsequential, she’d be happy to not do that anymore if it means kissing Vi more – but then she remembers where they are, and most importantly her ears start working again.
There are voices coming their way. Loud, rough, rude conversations make their way to them, and Cait opens her eyes, meeting Vi’s. She looks a little dazed still, her lips all pink and kiss-swollen, but her gray eyes are darting around anxiously as the voices grow louder and closer. She voices ‘let’s go’ and Caitlyn nods without hesitating, taking a step back and looking around to find the quickest way out of there.
She doesn’t need to. Vi grabs her hand and tugs her after her, and Caitlyn follows her without a moment’s doubt, knowing she’s safe with Vi. She knows the Undercity better than anyone, even Mylo agreed to that, that one time. She follows Vi in the dark, the firelights long gone now, and slowly but surely the voices recede, giving place to the expectant, wary silent that Cait’s grown accustomed too since her first visit in the Undercity.
Vi makes her climb up to a rooftop, then another, and then Caitlyn lets out a little gasp as she finds herself staring at a breathtaking view of Piltover. The city is basking in the moonlight, warm pools of lights sprinkled all over the sea of buildings. The Academy’s towers stand tall and eerie in the distance, overlooking the rest of the city, as aircrafts dot the sky like darker, smaller clouds. “This would’ve been a great spot for a first kiss too,” Cait says without really thinking, then finds herself blushing when Vi actually snorts at that.
“I thought about it,” she admits, nudging her with a little smirk that messes with Cait’s heartbeat. She tugs on her arm and they both sit on the edge of the rooftop. “But then I remembered about the firelights and that felt– right.”
“The firelights were beautiful,” Caitlyn nods, keeping her arm pressed against Vi’s.
“My parents–” Vi trails off, and Caitlyn knows her enough by now to know that she just needs to be patient. Vi keeps quiet for a little while, her eyes lost in the distance, and Cait doesn’t say a word, staring at the side of her friend’s face – her girlfriend’s face? Now that’s something. “I remember my mum, telling me that when she met my dad he had a firelight perched on his shoulder and hadn’t even noticed because he was too busy gawking at her. I remember–” she trails off again, this time to grin softly, and Caitlyn’s heart skips a beat in her chest. “I remember my dad saying it was love at first sight, and my mum laughing at him, and I don’t know…”
“It felt right,” Caitlyn whispers, and Vi nods with another soft little grin. “Thank you, for taking me there, and telling me all of this.” She wants to tell her how much it means to her, how she’s loved every second of their night, but the words somehow get stuck in her throat under Vi’s fond eyes. They stare at each other for a little moment, sitting side by side on the dirty rooftop, and maybe Caitlyn is kind of hoping they’re going to kiss again.
“I’ve been wanting to bring you here for a while,” Vi says eventually, looking down at her hands. There’s a shyness in her once again, and Caitlyn somehow aches to hug her then, but she doesn’t, choosing to lean just a little closer instead. “I used to come here a lot, when I was younger, because of, well, that little guy.”
She’s nodding to something, and Cait follows her gaze, noticing a plush-toy stuck in between two power-lines. It’s a little rabbit, with long ears and a cute little face, and Caitlyn grins. “Was it yours?”
“Yeah, some asshole threw it up there when I was maybe seven or eight. I forgot about it eventually but–” she turns to Cait then, suddenly a little less shy, mirth glinting in her eyes which probably spells trouble, but Caitlyn doesn’t even care. “But then the other night when you grabbed all your pillows for our fighting lesson, I saw that you had one just like this, only it was a bear, I think?” She’s smirking now, and Cait pretends to glare at her, her cheeks feeling a little hot. “So I thought, well if Cupcake has one, might as well get mine back, right?”
“I’ll have you know, I’m pretty sure your poor rabbit would get along well with Mr. Fluffles,” Cait retorts primly, knowing it’ll make Vi laugh, and it does. She bursts out laughing, clasping her hand on her thigh, and Cait shakes her head in fake annoyance.
“Mr. Fluffles,” Vi snorts, pretending to wipe a tear away, and Cait nudges her hard while grinning hard too. “I don’t think mine even had a name.”
“Oh shut up this has got to be a lie,” Cait retorts, somehow offended on the rabbit’s behalf. Her cheeks are hurting from smiling too much though, and she knows that Vi is aware of how amused she is by all of this. “Who doesn’t name their teddy? That’s cruel!”
Vi snorts loudly again, and leans back on her hands, grinning at the stars as she chuckles again. Caitlyn turns to her, their thighs touching now, and Vi grows more serious then when their eyes meet. The air shifts around them again, and Caitlyn is only half-surprised at how much she wants to kiss Vi again.
A little grin plays on Vi’s lips, like she knows exactly what Cait is thinking about right now. She probably does, if the pink on her cheeks is any indication, the greatest thing about this being that Caitlyn knows Vi probably wants to kiss her again too. It’s even better than whatever she’s pretended like she wasn’t imagining these last few weeks.
“We should get you home soon,” Vi whispers in the not so quiet night, her eyes very obviously darting to Cait’s lips. “It’s late.”
Cait hums, moving a little closer, and relishing in the eagerness written all over Vi’s face at that. “I think we still have a bit of time before we have to,” she retorts, grinning, a shiver running up her spine when Vi moves a little closer too.
They stare at each other for a couple of seconds, with matching little smiles and expectant eyes, and Cait can’t quite believe this has become her reality now.
A sweet, lovely reality where she gets to kiss Vi, and Vi gets to kiss her, whenever they please.