Bleed, Patch, And Keep Moving - An Apex Legends Story

Chapter 97 - A Date?

Elliot vigorously cleaned glasses behind the bar as the others returned safely from their mission. Ajay checked everyone and patched them if needed it. Ajay found it particularly hard to sit around and do nothing but she really didn't have a choice in the matter. She watched as Renee got up and walked behind the bar to Elliot. Renee's words were flat and uncaring, "You seem tense." Elliot gave Renee a weird look, "What? Yeah. No. Am not... what do you know?" Renee slapped him on the back of the head, "More than you might think. Now calm down."

Elliot smiled and began making Renee an apple-tini, "Here it comes. 189 Reasons why all the versions of myself are bummed out." He poked fun at her as he handed her the drink. Renee cracked a small, quick smile and took the drink, "Only need one reason. It bothers you that Loba knows your Mom's secret." Elliot shrugged, "Better that's out now then have to worry about it later."

Ajay looked down at the bar top for a moment. "It seemed like Loba knew about everyone's secrets." She didn't really care that Loba knew about her parents but she felt like if Anita found out about her parent's indiscretions that she might hold it against her. Ajay was surprised when she heard Alexander's voice chime in, "She is similarly aware of the allegations against me; all patently false and absurd, of course. That these cretins continue to mistake me for a corpse is preposterous!" Alexander was angry and tense, more than he usually was.

Octavio slammed another empty glass down, "And what's she gonna do for me, huh? Help me run faster? Ey... can she do that?" Elliot passed Octavio another drink. Ajay sighed as she looked at Octavio, "Is he drunk?" Ajay quickly looked away. She really didn't know how to act around him when they were taking a break. In fact the last time they took a break was when he went off to Harmony to become a daredevil. He had his own show lined up and then he became obsessed with beating the record for The Gauntlet. After that things were really never the same until he came back to the Apex games. She tried to push back her fears of him burning and leaving her again but it was the same pattern of behavior as before.

"Bunch of marks. All of you." Anita's voice was loud and stern as she addressed the room. She spit on the floor shortly after. "She bats her eyelashes, and you all fall in line. Advancing into unknown territories to obtain some trinket. We don't even know what this hunk of junk is." Hyeon Kim looked up from the handheld computer that he had been on since this whole ordeal ensued, "I've been studying it, and it looks like it's encasing a matrix, but it needs its other half to fully..."

Anita interrupted him, "That wasn't a question. Only reason I went to that awful place was to make sure none of you ended up in a body bag... or as Alexander's latest experiment. No, instead we get to be Loba's little errand boys." She paused for a moment, trying to calm herself, "I don't know about all of you, but I didn't sign up to take orders from some two-bit thief when I signed my Legend's contract. If the IMC was still running the show, she'd be halfway to the brig by 0-500." Ajay grew a little tense when Anita mention the IMC. Renee gave Anita a not so friendly look, "So what's the plan? We walk away?" Renee's face was twitching a bit.

Anita shrugged, "Then we're more in the dark than before. For now, follow her lead... but we do our own private reconnaissance." Octavio stood up, "Yo, I've got a date with a girl named Yoko from Hammond. Think they know each other?" Ajay was paralyzed for a moment. "A fucking a date." Elliot looked at Ajay and then at Octavio, "A date?" Octavio nodded, "Yeah, for the mission." The room was quiet until Ajay finally got the courage to speak, "A date? G'wan wit'cha. Does this girl know what she's gettin' herself into?" She tried to play along. Anita took a drink of her vodka that Elliot laid out for her, "Octavio, do you even know this girl?"

Octavio shrugged, "She asked if I wanted to get a drink. I was thirsty and said sure, but she meant tomorrow. I mean, I'll be thirsty tomorrow too. But I don't know, man. She wants me to wait for things. Like, wait? Just... around?" Ajay rolled her eyes, "Yah NOT goin' on this date. Girl doesn't deserve attitude like that." Anita turned to Ajay, "Yes, he IS going. Never turn good intel down, and right now, your boy's our only way to get our hands on some." Anita turned back to Octavio as she spoke, "Octavio, we need you to find out what this meeting between Loba and Hammond was all about. And I need proof, so she can't deny the whole thing. Anything they've got."

Ajay stood up and looked at Octavio, "Yah gonna let this poor girl sit through the torture of this date for intel?" She was getting frustrated with the whole situation. Octavio smirked and downed his drink, "SHE'S tortured?! I have to wear PANTS!" Ajay just stood there and stared at him as Renee looked at Elliot, "And you think I'M intense?" Elliot smiled at Renee, "I know better than to answer that question." He gently tapped Renee's nose with the tip of his finger. Renee grabbed his finger, "Do that again and I break it." Elliot laughed in pain, "Don't break one of the things that brings you pleasure." Renee released Elliot's finger, "I mean what I said."

Ajay shook her head and made her way out of the bar. She needed a break from all this. Maybe Octavio was right, maybe they needed a break from one another. The cool air touched her bare legs as she walked into the alleyway behind the bar. She punched the brick wall of the bar out of frustration and anger. "Bad choice." Her hand throbbed and her knuckles bled. 

"What's wrong kid?" Anita was standing beside her with Bloodhound at her side. Ajay rubbed her hand, "Nothin." Anita raised an eyebrow, "I hope not because we need to get this shit figured out. So don't ruin it." Bloodhound stood there with their arms over their chest. Ajay watched Bloodhound for a moment. "Anythin ya wanna add?" Both Anita and Bloodhound turned and walked away. Ajay sighed and tried to focus on something else besides punching the wall again.

She heard footsteps approach her in the semi-dark alley. "What now?" As the familiar footsteps hit the pavement she emotionally prepared herself for another argument. Octavio met her in the alley way, standing only a foot or so away from her. She watched him sway in place. "Is he really this drunk?" She closed her eyes and rubbed her face for a moment. She felt like she was revisiting a bad dream. One in which Octavio was drunk and/or wasted all the time and she tried to make excuses for his behavior. She needed to go back to the apartment and spend some time by herself. She was beginning to think that he was right about spending some time apart.

Ajay could feel the heat from Octavio's face against hers. He leaned in to kiss her and she turned away. He smirked at her. She turned her body to move away from him but she was caught off guard as he pushed her against the cold, hard wall. She sighed, "Ya drunk. Knock it off." She tried again to move away but his hands caught her wrists and pinned them against the wall near her sides. His face was right against hers again, "Isn't this what you want Che?" He pressed his lips against hers and kissed her.

Her heart raced as she watched him. She didn't kiss him back as she stood there, frozen, against his grip. She could taste and smell the alcohol from him as he pulled away. He gave her a semi-confused look and then leaned in to kiss her again. She turned her head away. He laughed and kissed her cheek and then her neck. She swallowed hard and whispered, "Please stop."

Octavio kissed along her chest, pushing his body against hers. She forced her body against his, "Tavi. Stop." Octavio pulled away and released her wrists. She never called him 'Tavi' ever. He could only recall one other time that she called him that. He was caught off guard when she called him that. He took a few steps back and looked at her. 

She looked almost fragile as he looked over her, "Che..." She cut him off, "Go get some rest. You have a date tomorra." Ajay folded her arms across her chest and walked alone back to the apartment. She figured Octavio was staying with Elliot but she really didn't care at this point. She stopped by the liquor store on the way back to the apartment.