Chapter 2
’One day,’ Jinx thought darkly to herself, ’I’m gonna blow up that stupid fuckin’ thing.’
The window was placed perfectly for that great big ball of fire to hit Jinx right in the face with its dastardly rays of sleep-banishing light. What she wouldn’t do for an eclipse right now.
At least the bed she’d woken up in was comfortable, far better than any bed she had ever slept in before. The mattress felt like it was on the verge of swallowing her up and she never wanted to lift her head from the heavenly pillows.
But despite her drunkenness the night before she was still extremely aware that she was in Caitlyn fucking Kiramman’s house, so she reluctantly cracked her eyes open only to hiss when the sun hit her poor corneas and instinctively roll away.
A yelp passed her lips and her eyes fully flew open when she realized she’d rolled a bit too far and threw herself and the covers wrapped around her crashing onto the floor.
“Oww.” That’s one way to wake yourself up at least.
She grumbled as she fought the covers off of her and exclaimed in victory when she finally untangled herself from the clingy piece of sheet.
’Piece of sheet, get it? Like piece of-’
’Yeah, I get it. That has got to be the worst joke you’ve ever made, Me.’ Jinx shook her head in disapproval at her own lame pun.
A grimace appeared on her face feeling morning breath and the film of whatever she’d had last night on her teeth. But at least her head didn’t feel like it was about to split open so it didn’t come close to her ‘Top Ten Worst Hangovers’.
The shirt Caitlyn had given her hung off her shoulder and reached down to her thighs. For some unknown reason she raised it up to her nose and had her nostrils assaulted by the scent of honey and something floral, very Caitlyn, very much not something Jinx wanted to like.
The shirt fell back on her and she stretched her arms above her head to bring some life to her stiff limbs.
’I’d kill for one of those medieval people-stretcher things right now.’
Her back cracked and Jinx’s arms fell back to her side. There wasn’t any sign of the pile she’d left her own clothes in, annoying, but if her lack of pants bothered Vi’s ex-cupcake then that’s just too bad.
The soft carpet covering the hallway felt nice on her soles so she took her sweet time making her way to the stairs, or at least where she vaguely remembered the stairs were.
The smell of something yummy put some speed in her steps when she got to the stairs and she skipped down the stairs towards whatever that smell was with a watering mouth and a growling stomach.
<><><><><>
Caitlyn had heard the thud from upstairs followed by the quiet patter of bare feet on the stairs so managed to not jump ten feet in the air in fright when Jinx seemingly appeared on one of the stools behind the kitchen island out of thin air.
“Hey, toots, watcha’ cookin’?” An impish grin covered Jinx’s face but Caitlyn was far more interested in the way Caitlyn’s old shirt hung off her, baring a shoulder and teasingly offering just a flash of blue ink when Jinx shifted around to get comfortable.
To prevent herself from being caught ogling, Caitlyn turned around to the stove, flicking off the heat and scooping the last of the pancakes onto the plates.
“I…thought you’d want to eat something after last night, before I drive you back.” Caitlyn tried to keep her voice steady as she deposited the pan in the sink and grabbed the two plates of blueberry pancakes.
Why does she have to make an effort to keep her voice steady at all?! It’s just Jinx, Vi’s sister, Caitlyn’s ex’s sister!
...Caitlyn’s ex’s sister who was wearing one of her old shirts and looking like the most delicious thing Cait had ever seen-!
No! Bad Caitlyn! Do not think of Jinx as delicious! She’s a person not a pastry!
“Wow, Princess, you treat all the girls that stay the night like this or am I special?” Caitlyn really wanted to tell Jinx to stop because she was not helping her keep a lid on the weird feelings she was experiencing.
A plate of pancakes was pushed in front of the blue-haired girl and barely waited for Caitlyn to hand over a fork before digging in with the ravenous hunger of a bear just coming out of hibernation.
Caitlyn took more measured bites of her own breakfast after sitting down across from Jinx. The girl –woman, she reminded herself– practically inhaled her stack, barely breathing between bites, and Caitlyn felt a flash of worry over her choking.
Her worry was unfounded as Jinx let out a satisfied puff of air, leaned back and patted her stomach.
“Damn, Caity-Cat, if this whole law thing doesn’t work out you should consider doing this for a living.” Jinx remarked, the closest thing to a compliment Jinx has given her since she was fifteen and Jinx –then just Powder– had asked for her help in braiding her hair after seeing Cait’s own hair in an intricate braid.
“Serving pancakes to the hungover you mean?” Caitlyn’s mouth quirked up and she raised an eyebrow.
“Yeah! You could name it” “Cait’s Cakes for the Hungover and Hangry”!” Jinx waved her hands with a theatrical flourish as she spelt the name out in the air. “You’d rack in millions, I promise, nothing like something this good in the morning to make someone forget all about the head-hurting consequences of a night of fun!”
The animated way Jinx spoke was endearing and Cait recalled a younger Jinx doing the same during the times she’d been invited to join Vi’s family for dinner. The youngest always eager to show off a new gadget or idea she had. Back when her and Vi’s fights were few and far between instead of occurring every other day.
“-and, hey, flash some skin and I’ll bet you’d have every lonely sap in Piltover lining up to spend their cash!” Jinx finished her speech with a crooked grin and a wink that Caitlyn did her best not to react to.
Caitlyn sighed and speared another bit of pancake while shaking her head, leave it to Jinx to break the nice little illusion Caitlyn had conjured in her head.
“I mean just the chance of a look at those melons of yours would even have Zaunites coming-!”
Melons?
“Jinx.” Caitlyn cut her off before she had the chance to fully turn this proposed ‘business’ idea into a strip club that served breakfast on the side.
Jinx stopped and just grinned back at her, making Caitlyn uncomfortable having probably been her goal the entire time.
She sighed and let her fork clatter on the empty plate.
“Your clothes are probably finished drying by now. I'll go get them and then I’ll give you a ride home.” Caitlyn stood up and averted her gaze because with how tall she was the new angle would likely give her an eyeful of what hid under Jinx’s borrowed shirt.
She left the room quickly and let out a shaky breath. She hadn’t talked with Jinx since before her and Vi broke up and now she’s being reminded of the reason she’d avoided the younger girl like the plague in the last years of her and Vi’s relationship, the reason Jinx thought she hated her.
→One year ago←
”-how you look at her, Caitlyn!” Vi yelled and Caitlyn felt her heart jump into her throat when the words reached her ears.
“I mean, what the fuck, Cait! You’ve known Powder since she was kid, since we were kids! And now every time you meet her I have to see you undress my baby sister in your head!”
“Wh-What?” She said meekly because how? She knew? Caitlyn had been so sure she’d been discreet with the glances, that she had hidden the strange feelings Vi’s little sister evoked inside of her well enough.
“Don’t play dumb!” Vi was seething, fist clenched and eyes blazing. “You think I don’t see how you look at my own sister? That I don’t see how you eye-fuck her whenever you think no one is looking?”
Caitlyn’s heart was thundering in her ears as her sins were recounted by Vi, unable to respond or defend herself because how could she when everything she said was true?
“I-I do-don’t…” Her tongue felt like lead. Because if there was one thing Vi wouldn’t tolerate from anyone it was going after her sister, the time some creep had tried to cop a feel of an unwilling Jinx sprang to mind, and then the mess the guy’s face had looked like after Vi had seen it.
→Present←
The memory stung and made her question why the hell she had thought it a good idea to bring Jinx to her home again.
”I don’t ever wanna see you near Powder again.”
That had been some of the last words Vi had said to her. It had been when Caitlyn had finished loading her belongings into her car and Vi had taken the key to the apartment back and returned the key to Caitlyn’s house to her.
She had loved Vi, maybe she still did in some way. But Vi and her had been fighting more and more with every year and when she saw the way Caitlyn acted around the beautiful woman Jinx had grown up to become, it all proved too much, the strain was too much for them to survive. Caitlyn couldn’t fault Vi for her reaction, how could she?
Gods, I thought I’d gotten over this. Caitlyn thought bitterly. But apparently it had just been lurking under the surface all this time and now Caitlyn was fighting to keep her eyes to herself, to keep her mind from wandering to filthy places when she thought of Jinx, half-naked and currently sitting in Caitlyn’s kitchen.
The dryer beeped, interrupting her thoughts.
She opened it and grabbed the now dry clothes, doing her best to not think about the fact that they had sat on Jinx’s body the night before.
<><><><><>
Jinx hated to admit that she kind of missed the shirt she’d borrowed from Caitlyn. The thing was well-worn and soft while her clothes from last night were brand new and still in the process of being broken in.
She tried to hide how uncomfortable she was back in her own clothes as Caitlyn drove back to Zaun, with Jinx’s address this time since she wasn’t full of crappy alcohol.
She’s still baffled at how they managed to fuck up the drinks that badly, they must have mixed in some weird shit like dish soap or liquid spite to get it so bad.
“So…” Caitlyn cleared her throat next to her. “I’d appreciate it if you didn’t mention the fact I brought you to my house while you were drunk to Vi.”
“Puh-lease! I was tipsy at best!” Jinx countered but the other woman’s face remained serious.
“Wait what? Why?” Jinx didn’t fake the confusion she felt. Why would Cupcake give a shit if she told Vi? The woman had made it clear she didn’t actually want anything to do with Jinx years ago but was she so ashamed to be associated with her that she didn’t even want Jinx’s own sister to know? That can’t be it, right? Right?
“Just,” Caitlyn grimaced, her hands gripping the wheel tightly, “please don’t tell her, okay?”
Jinx still didn’t get why she didn’t want Vi to know they’d met. Vi’s her sister! If she’d said don’t tell anyone it would’ve made sense, that would just mean she didn’t want it getting out that she hung around Zaunite street trash, but specifically Vi? If there was anyone in the whole world who wouldn’t judge someone for hanging around the trainwreck of a human being that Jinx was, it was her overprotective older sister.
Vi thought the world of her for some weird reason and hasn’t shut up about how smart she thinks she is since they were kids.
“Fine.” It was childish but Jinx pouted. Whatever, not her business if Cait didn’t want anyone, not even Vi, knowing she’d even talked with the jinx of the Lane family.
Like she cared.
Same as the night before the rest of the ride passed in silence.