Queen's Princess

Chapter 67

"Am I doing this right?" Jay asked as I was showing her how to use some of the equipment.

"Yeah, you're doin' it right. Just focus on the blades and not on me. I don't want ya cutting a finger off or something more than just your finger."

"Gotcha," Jay said and paid close attention to the blade of the saw that was spinning faster than we could see.

Since this was the first time of her using any of this equipment, we were starting with simple shapes to cut out. It was just enough to get her used to working with the equipment. Of course I wasn't going to throw her into the frying pan after I gave her step-by-step lesson on how to use the equipment. My grandfather was like that with my father, but my father was not like that with me because of how accident prone I was when I was in the warehouse. I'm surprised my father didn't baby proof the entire warehouse when I was first learning how to work everything. 

"Easy," I said as I saw Jay was getting stiff. "The last thing ya want to be when working on one of these machines is stiff. The stiffer ya are, the more tension you're gonna create."

"A-Are ya able to help on this?" Jay asked.

"Yeah, of course," I said and walked behind her. She was about to take her hands off of the metal, but I grabbed them and gently placed them back onto the metal.

"I want ya to feel the difference, alright?"

"Alright."

I placed my hands on top of hers and helped her loosen up. As soon as she loosened her grip, the metal that was being cut started to glide through like how scissors glided through paper.

"Feel that?"

"Yeah."

"Feel how smooth that is?"

"Yes."

"That's how it should feel. If ya ever feel the metal giving you some push back, you're gripping too hard and you're being too stiff. Just gently glide the metal through the saw, there, just like that."

The sheet of metal ended and Jay turned off the blade before grabbing the half she cut. She placed it onto the work bench and I showed her where she had gotten stiff with the metal.

"See how it's a bit jagged and not as smooth as the rest?"

"Yeah."

"That is the end result you'll get if ya don't release the tension and are being too stiff with the metal. Understood?"

"Yeah. Mind if I do it again?"

"Yeah. We can do this as many times as ya want. Remember, I'm helpin' ya get comfortable with working with the machines here. And don't think that once ya learn I'm gonna leave you high and dry. If ya ever need help or feel like ya need assistance, I'm always gonna be here."

"I-I appreciate it very much, Y/N. Thank you."

I smiled, placing a hand on her shoulder, "One thing ya don't gotta worry about us, Jay. We're not going to abandon ya in your time of need."

"That's really the one thing I can ask of ya and Odessa."

"And that is the one thing we we will not do. Sure we might not be the best parents since we're new to this whole thing, but we'll try our best."

"Believe me when I say this, Y/N," Jay looked into my eyes. "You're doing far better than my parents."

I smiled sadly, "If only your parents could see the real you. The you where you're happy, thriving, and flourishing after coming out. When I first met ya, you were timid, shy, and a bit unsure of yourself. But after you finally came out and now that I've gotten to know ya a bit more, ya appear to be much happier."

Jay lightly chuckled, "I've known for a while that I was different from what my parents wanted me to be. I wasn't their perfect daughter the minute I started to like the things that I do. Especially when it came to weapons and wanting to learn how to wield one. But there was something about Odessa when I saw her fight in the Reckonin' that made me realize, I was different. I started to look at things differently. And that's saying something for someone who was five years old. I was one of those kids that Odessa taught shortly after the Reckoning and when you reopened the warehouse and started to do repairs and stuff, I knew what I wanted in life. I wanted to be like Odessa in terms of fighting for those who can't fight for themselves. Protect others and such.

"So I waited patiently those ten years, secretly coming up with what my weapon to look like and by some miracle, Odessa remembered me from when I was younger. She took one look at what I wanted to create and told me that it can be done and that she will be willing to train me. At twelve years old, I was overjoyed to have the queen herself train me. She was someone I looked up to since that day and to not only be trained under her, but to be taken care of by her, it just feels like a dream come true. Did you feel like that when you two came together?"

I smiled, nodding my head, "Ever since I met Dez in the Wastelands, she was saving me from a bunch of asshole boys, I knew I had a massive crush on her. And we were young too, so I just thought it was admiration towards her for saving my life. But after we trained forever and we got to know one another, I knew that crush I formed the minute I saw her was real and it was growing even more massive than before. She really knew I had a crush on her when she saw how flustered I became around her and how I easily melted at the sight of her."

"How could ya not?" Jay chuckled.

"My thoughts exactly!" I laughed. "But one thing I am grateful about having Odessa as my wife," I looked out the door to see her and Hammond were making their way into the warehouse. "I'm grateful that out of all the people she could have met and made her wife or husband, I was the one she fell for. And I am grateful for everything she has to offer for me."