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Caitlyn heard the yelling before she rounded the corner.
“Fuck you, asshole!”
Oh, no. She sped up her steps and indeed, there she was, pink hair bright in the sun, red jacket announcing her non-enforcer status to everybody. Hands balled into fists, whole body tense with repressed aggression, Vi looked incredibly dangerous. Suddenly, the sun seemed to be a little hotter than before, the air a little heavier. Caitlyn wanted to loosen her uniform a little. She shook her hand out to stop her fingers from twitching up to her collar.
The enforcer trying to stop Vi from entering the building had no idea in what danger he was judging from the arrogant grin on his face. Caitlyn wanted to punch him a little too.
“Vi,” she tried to distract the other woman. No reaction. This wasn’t good. When Vi was angry enough, she didn’t listen anymore. Well, there was no other choice. Caitlyn took a deep breath and stepped up to the seething woman. Ready to try and dodge a punch any moment, she reached out and grabbed Vi’s shoulder. Whirling around, snarl on her face, Vi’s eyes bored into her with a burning intensity that made something soft and vulnerable inside of Caitlyn tremble. A thrill zipped through her body like an electric shock. Outwardly, she kept her expression passive and collected.
“Come with me,” she demanded and started dragging Vi away by her grip on the strong shoulder. Her hand was brushed off with an angry noise and more force than would have been necessary. She didn’t comment. It wouldn’t do anyone any good if she provoked Vi any further. Instead, she let her to her office without even looking at her.
“Wonderful,” Vi snipped as soon as the door closed behind them, “I should have known you would be on his side. I don’t know why I expected you to have my fucking back. You enforcers are all the same after all. Pretending to stand for justice and honor when you really think people are beneath you just because they’re not some pampered, rich brats.” She kicked a chair with enough force that it toppled over, but her expression wasn’t any more complacent.
“Fuck. You just saw his fucking uniform and immediately thought it would be my fault.”
Caitlyn sighed. “When have I ever said that any of this is your fault, Vi?”
The other woman glared at her. “You didn’t have to say anything. I didn’t see you dragging this asshole away by the collar like an unruly child.”
“I only dragged you away because I didn’t want you to get into trouble. This enforcer is known to provoke people from Undercity and dish out unreasonably harsh punishment if they dare to react to his taunts.” Caitlyn rubbed her temple.
“And you still let him work as an enforcer, Cait?! What is fucking wrong with you people? He should be the one behind bars.” Vi kicked the chair again, this time there was an audible crack and Caitlyn leveled her with her best now-you’re-acting-like-a-child look.
“Assholes can be found everywhere, Vi. Being an enforcer doesn’t cure you of being a douchebag, however, he doesn’t act outside of legal bounds so nobody can do something. We can’t fire people just for being an asshole unfortunately.”
Vi stepped closer to her and Caitlyn had to repress the urge of shrinking back. “That’s bullshit and you know it.”
“Obviously,” Caitlyn agreed. Vi’s eyes leaned towards grey when she was angry, like a metal wall, cold and hard, impenetrable.
“You’re part of this. You are supporting this,” Vi accused her, one finger poking Caitlyn in her chest. When she brushed Vi hand away, the pink-haired woman crowded her even more until she was forced to take a step back or topple over. Caitlyn couldn’t help the slight twitch of her eyebrows at those words. She didn’t support this kind of behavior at all and she had every intention of reporting the incident to the higher ups, but Vi seemed determined to believe the worst of her.
“Oh, you don’t like this,” Vi observed, slight cruelty in her voice, satisfaction in her eyes, “did I hurt your precious feelings, cupcake?” The way she spat out the nickname, like an insult, made something inside of Caitlyn crumble.
“Don’t you dare act all high and mighty, Vi. You’re nothing better just because you’ve suffered. I’ve seen cruelty and injustice too and I decided to do something against it. Just because I chose a different way to do so than you did, doesn’t mean that I’m morally inferior to you. At least I don’t punch my way out of every situation that I get myself into.” She was unfair, she knew it. Her starting position in this world had been a completely different one than Vi’s, but the way the other woman looked at her, self-righteousness and cruel satisfaction in her eyes made her want to hurt Vi just as much.
“Because you fucking never had to! I bet nobody would have dared lay a finger on you, precious princess that you are.” Vi stepped closer again and this time she didn’t stop until Caitlyn bumped against her desk and had to reach behind herself to stabilize herself as Vi pushed her back with a hand on her collarbone. “All cooped up in a fancy bedroom with every toy you could ever wish for. A hard life indeed.”
Caitlyn pressed her lips together. She knew she had been fortunate, but that didn’t mean that she had everything. The words broke out of her like a gunshot broke through skin and bone. “At least you knew you were loved!”
Vi stopped. She looked at Caitlyn as if she had slapped her. “What did you say, cupcake?”
Caitlyn felt humiliation rise up inside of her. She tried to straighten herself again, to push Vi away and get some distance between them. However, the other woman was like a brick-wall, unmovable and just as hard.
“Nothing. Forget it. I’m sorry the Enforcer treated you like that. I have every intention of reporting him. You’re my guest after all. He should have let you in the moment you showed him my message.” She had to look away, couldn’t take the expression in Vi’s eyes. Just because she had been unloved all her life didn’t mean that she was anything but fortunate and lucky. She knew that. Vi had every right to criticize the world for the unfair distribution of security and wealth among humans. She had every right to yell at Caitlyn for being treated unfairly only because she hadn’t been born in Piltover to a rich family.
“Oh, cupcake,” Vi sounded so much more gentle all of a sudden that Caitlyn couldn’t stop her gaze from flickering up to those pale eyes that followed her into her dreams every night without fault, “I’m sorry I yelled at you. You don’t deserve my anger. I know you’re working hard and I know you’re a genuinely good person.” Vi brought one hand up to Caitlyn’s face and stroked her thumb over her cheekbone. The gesture was so tender that Cait felt her mouth open in a silent breath. She could see how Vi’s eyes dropped down to her mouth as she flickered her tongue out to wet her lips.
“I—,” she started but then the grip in her hair stopped her short. Her heartbeat picked up until it slammed against her ribs with a force that rattled her down to her bones.
“I’m going to kiss you now,” Vi announced, eyes once again fixed on Caitlyn’s, “stop me if you don’t want me to, sugar.” A strangled noise left Caitlyn’s mouth at the pet name, but she said nothing. She could feel Vi’s breath against her lips and her hand cradling her face. Callouses against her skin made goosebumps break out over her neck, noses brushing together made her eyelids flutter shut.
Vi’s lips on her own were softer than she had expected, warmer than she had imagined and more skilled than she dreamed of. The kiss didn’t last long, it was chaste and almost innocent, hadn’t Vi’s grip in her hair been so assured and her chuckle full of dark promise as she pulled back again. Caitlyn felt a little dazed by the whole situation as she opened her eyes and got treated to the view of Vi licking her lips suggestively. Cait’s breath hitched audibly.
“On my word, the reasons to call you cupcake keep piling up. You’re so sweet.” Then she tightened her grip in Caitlyn’s hair one last time, enough to make her scalp tingle, before removing her hand and stepping back. “So, you’re going to report him?”
Caitlyn cleared her throat, trying to get a grip, and replied, as businesslike as she could, “Yes. I saw parts of what happened, but if you’re willing to give me your description of the situation, it would be even better.”
“Of course,” Vi replied with a smirk and added, “you might want to take a look in a mirror, cupcake. Your hair is in a bit of disarray.” Caitlyn opened her mouth to reply something witty, but nothing came to mind.
“Uhm— I’ll be right back,” she declared and kept her steps to the door measured and calm. “There is tea and biscuits. Please, help yourself.” Slamming the door shut behind herself, she strode to the bathroom just across the hall, frantically patting down her hair. Her heart was racing, pulse hammering away under her skin, blood rushing loud enough in her ears that she couldn’t hear her own ragged breath. How was she supposed to work in these conditions?