Chapter Text
Shaw's inappropriate intimacy with her co-worker began about half a year ago.
After a job, Shaw went to a bar in the area for some food; she would have preferred getting some Chinese takeout and eating in the comfort of her solitude, but it was already past 1AM and Sameen was just too tired to care. Root decided to invite herself to a late night dinner with Shaw, and Shaw didn't resist.
They barely made last call, and Shaw ordered 2 burgers and beers for them straight off the bat. No words were exchanged as Root and Shaw sat at the bar, eating the food placed in front of them. Or rather, Shaw was half way done with her burger whereas Root was merely playing with her side of french fries. Shaw stared hard at the wall of hard liquor as she took another mouthful of her bacon cheeseburger. Root kept stealing glances at Shaw as she nibbled on her fries. Shaw had a few bites of her burger left when she finally set it down on her plate, sharply turned to face Root, and exclaimed "What."
"Nothing, I was just watching you eat," Root cheerfully replied, with her signature playful smile, "I like watching you eat." Clearly unamused, Shaw rolled her eyes and wiped her mouth with a napkin. "Has anyone ever told you that it's rude to stare? Besides, you're not even hungry. Shouldn't have followed me here if you're not gonna eat." Shaw chugged the little beer that was left in her glass. Root's face lit up even more as she prepared her retort.
"Well, I am hungry. Just...not for food," Root was in her insufferable flirt mode, and Shaw knew that the faster she got out of there, the better.
Shaw sighed as she got up off the bar stool and put on her jacket.
"Root, what you do in your own time is none of my business," Shaw blandly stated as she reached into her pocket for a 50 dollar bill. She smacked it down hard on the bar surface, brought her face close to Root's, and growled in a stern tone, "And I am not your business." Shaw felt some cathartic satisfaction as she turned around and walked towards the exit. Shaw was beginning to feel that Root was making herself too comfortable around Shaw as of late, and she felt better knowing that Root would know her place now.
Shaw was walking on the snow-covered street in front of the bar when she heard Root's voice behind her shout, "I need a place to sleep." Shaw stopped in her tracks and scowled. 'Really, Root? That's the best line you could come up with?' Shaw thought in disbelief as she turned around to face Root. She threw her arms up in the air and shouted back, "Then go get a motel room. Do you really expect me to believe that you, of all people, can't even get a place to sleep for the night?"
Root walked over to Shaw and explained, "The account she prepared for me is frozen at the moment. It's being investigated for tax evasion." Root was referring to the Machine allowing Root access to the accounts of past perpetrators for business expenses. They usually siphoned money from rich criminals, and of course, these being the accounts of convicts, they were usually under some sort of government scrutiny. This meant they were valid for use for 3 months at most, which resulted in their "account-hopping."
Understanding the situation better, Shaw's voiced softened a little, "Don't you have a back-up account or something? Why can't you just -" Shaw's voice trailed off as Root handed her a small piece of paper. It was a receipt from an ATM, which had the numbers "$ 5.44" printed next to the words "Total Account Balance."
Shaw scoffed. "Ask her for another account."
Root reluctantly replied, "She won't talk to me."
There was definitely something comedic about this situation: one of the most lethal people in the world working in collaboration with an all-knowing, all-powerful artificial intelligence, and yet, having only five dollars in her bank account. However, Shaw couldn't find it in herself to laugh.
Shaw sighed, and examined Root. Her face didn't give anything away as per usual. She could be lying and manipulating the situation to be in close proximity with Shaw for the night, whatever her intentions may be. But Shaw knew Root well enough to know that she wouldn't stoop this far to get what she wants. Root had too much pride in herself for cheap tricks like these. Shaw looked at her phone. It was already ten past 2AM. Shaw sighed again, "Fine, come with me."
-----
Shaw closed the door to her spacious and empty loft, and threw the keys on the coffee table. Root was slowly circling around and examining the place. It was an old factory building that was more recently transformed into a living space. Most of the building's original material was retained, and the only things that were renovated were the electrical wiring, vents, and pipes. It very much seemed like a warehouse, still.
"So, this is your home. It's nice. Very....simplistic, I like it," Root cautiously commented as she looked at the coffee table, two chairs, and the bed. There were no other pieces of furniture; no TV, no couch, no shelves or tables of any kind.
"No, it's not. It's a crap hole, and I know it. I just come here to sleep," Shaw replied curtly as she hung her coat in the closet. She motioned to Root for her coat, and Root absent-mindedly passed it to her, still studying the loft.
"I think it resembles you, in a way," Root continued. "A well-built structure that's seemingly dilapidated, but sophisticated in design." Shaw was barely listening as she was looking for clothes to lend to Root. "It's beautiful." Shaw sensed a change in Root's tone, and looked over at her to find Root staring back at her. There was something in her eyes that made Shaw hold her breath.
Snapping back to reality, Shaw cleared her throat as she handed Root clothes to wear to bed. "These might be a bit small, but it's better than nothing," Shaw commented, clearly referring to their height difference. Root was noticeably taller, and Shaw wasn't particularly thrilled about it. An awkward pause later, Shaw opened her lips again as if she had decided something.
"I was originally gonna have you sleep on the floor but..." her voice trailed off as she anxiously rubbed her hands together, "I have no mats or extra blankets. So, I'll let you sleep on the bed with me." Shaw looked into Root's eyes sternly, "Just this once. And you better not try anything if you want to live." Upon hearing this, a smile spread across Root's face, "I promise I'll keep my hands to myself."
Shaw gave Root a spare toothbrush to use, and let her use the bathroom first. As she waited, she changed into a black tank top and black shorts. When Root took longer than Shaw expected, she began doing pushups to pass the time. Shaw had counted up to 58 when she felt eyes watching. Shaw got up to her feet to find Root smiling at her.
"I love watching you move," said Root flirtatiously.
Shaw, slightly out of breath, had a small smile on her face as she passed Root to get to the bathroom, "Creep."
When Shaw got out of the bathroom, she found Root in the grey tank top and navy blue sweatpants she lent her, sitting on the bed. As expected, it seemed a little small on her, but not to the point of discomfort. When asked if she had a preferred side in bed, Shaw replied that she didn't care and continued sit down on the opposite side of the bed.
As they turned the lights off and got under the sheets, Shaw felt herself becoming unnecessarily tense. To alleviate the tension, she joked, "I hope you don't tase me this time." "Not unless you want me to, Sameen," Root replied in her typical playful tone. "Ha-ha, funny," Shaw added, drily. This little banter didn't ease Shaw's anxiety, but she felt better knowing that Root didn't seem to notice a change in Shaw's mental state.
A few minutes passed by, and it seemed that Root fell asleep already. She must've been exhausted from the night's mission, or maybe she's the type to fall asleep quickly. Sameen was tired as well, but she couldn't get herself to fall asleep as usual. The anxiety she's been feeling from earlier in the night persisted, and her body felt much too awake from the surge of adrenaline. Shaw tossed and turned for another half hour before she fell asleep.
Shaw's eyes opened as her consciousness re-surfaced from sleep. She felt groggy and dizzy. It was still dark outside the window. Shaw checked her phone. 5:27AM. They fell asleep roughly around 3, so she's had about 2 hours of sleep so far. She sighed as she sank back into her pillow. The only times Sameen had interruptions in her sleep like this were during times of duress. Despite the fact that the next few days would be her off-days, Shaw was still riled up.
She turned to the right to see Root still peacefully sleeping. She was facing her right side, her right arm above her head, her left arm anchoring the blanket to her body. The blanket was covering her body up to her stomach, and Root's chest was exposed in the air. Through studying Root's body, Shaw noticed that her clothes, which serve the purpose of covering the private parts of an individual, were not fulfilling its duties; her tank top was pulled to the right and was exposing her breasts.
Shaw had seen her share of breasts in her lifetime, and she had to admit that Root's pair were one of the most attractive ones she's seen. It's not that they were big and full; they just seemed very firm, and an appropriate size for the firmness. They also seemed very soft, like, if you palmed one, it would nicely fit in your hand and still feel like your hand is full of luscious flesh. Without thinking, Shaw reached out her left hand and lightly cupped Root's exposed breast.
'Oh, it does fit quite nicely,' thought Shaw. When she realized what she was doing, Shaw jerked her hand back to her side and rolled over to her left, seething in guilt and shame. She chastised herself repeatedly in her head. This was sexual harassment. She was sexually harassing a co-worker who was asleep. Yes, Shaw does have her fair share of mental problems, but raping someone who's unconscious was not going to be one of them. And to think, just earlier that night, she was the one telling Root to keep her hands to herself. Irony at its finest.
After calming herself down, she turned back to her right to face Root again. At least one thing was clear to Shaw now: she wants Root's body. She had found Samantha Groves attractive from the moment they met, but given the circumstances, it was much easier to understand her as irritating and threatening rather than attractive and sexual. Ideally, Shaw would never want to become involved, physically or otherwise, with a colleague, but Root was an exception.
Shaw's tossing and turning interrupted Root's slumber, and she eventually opened her eyes. She turned to the left to check on Shaw, and saw her wide awake, looking back at her. Root blinked a few times slowly and asked in a raspy voice, "Shaw, is something wrong?"
Shaw didn't answer. She couldn't. Her heart was beating so fast that she could hear it in her ears. Shaw slowly and gently placed her left hand on Root's cheek, and grazed it with her thumb. Not registering what's happening, Root asked again, "Sameen?"
Shaw closed the gap between her and Root, and after looking into Root's eyes a while longer, she placed a light kiss on her lips. She retracted right away and searched Root for some sort of answer. Still not understanding what's happening, Root remained still. Shaw kissed Root again, but this time, a little deeper and longer. When Shaw looked back at Root, she saw an expression of shock on her face. Her pupils were shaking, not sure of what to do. When Shaw kissed her for the third time, Root kissed her back. And the two continued to exchange kisses for a while in that fashion; soft kisses with breaks in between for the two to confirm through eye contact that this is what they both want.
This didn't go on too long before their desires grew greater, causing their kisses to become more rough. Soon, they were clawing at each other and rolling around in bed - desperately trying to close the distance between their bodies to feel each other's heat and flesh for pleasure. Within a matter of seconds, they were in their underwear, grinding against each other.