ᄂΣƬΉΣ [Soldier76 x Reader x Reaper]

3 [[ The Past Comes Back to Haunt You ]] 3

"No. Really?" (Y/N) chuckled softly, incredulous to the fact that, according to Jesse, his cyborg friend had to run around the whole base to escape her wrath. Heaven forbid she did anything too brash.

"No joke!" the cowboy testified. "You were mighty scary, Captain! Genji had ta run a whole mile all cuz he ate yer pie!"

The two shared more laughter under the clouded night sky. The stars had hidden away shyly. The clouds were softly lit by the lily-white moon and same is true for the cliff side they strolled along. In orchestral rhythm, the waves crashed against the rocks, giving Jesse and (Y/N) the privacy they needed.

"That should have been some excellent pie for me to get so angry about. What flavor was it exactly?"

"Cherry. Ya made the best pies but nothin' can beat yer cherry pie."

The compliment blazed her skin with a faint tint of red. A soft breeze blew her hair not so gracefully over her face, and she found herself having to pull it away from her mouth.

Once the wind had died down, (Y/N) raised her head to look at the man, mouth opened to raise a question, but the nostalgic expression on his face had her mouth shut. His hair was blown all over his over visage, but he cared none for it. The look on his face was unfamiliar and new. It was proud but melancholy all the same.

"It was the favorite thing they liked ta eat after a long day, and they ain't sharin' it. You'd have ta make three pies," he chuckled softly, raising his hat and brushing his hair back.

For the time she's been here, (Y/N) has known Jesse to be the ever goofy cowboy, all smiles and all sarcasm. He seems to always keep track of time....

But what he is now is just.... genuine. As if under all the toothy grins, a wise man is keeping to himself, unwilling to let any slither of deep emotion find anyone else's eyes. He knows more than he should, and it was clear to (Y/N). Maybe, once upon a time, she knew what goes on in the man's mind. Just not anymore.

After a moment of solid silence and basking in the soft moonlight, Jesse cleared his throat, adjusting Bessie, as he calls his hat, on his head.

"Ah, we got sidetracked," he chuckles, his hands dipping into his pockets.

"Right, right. This.... Jack and Gabriel. You mentioned a rivalry of some sort. But they were best friends. With me in the middle. How does that happen exactly?"

Jesse shook his head, leaning over (Y/N)'s wheelchair. Unsure of the right words, he clicked his tongue, searching the sky for the answers. "Don't know how it started, but I sure as hell know how it ended. They finally owned up, and when they did, ya didn't know how ta answer. Said somethin' about them bein' sweet and all, but ya just weren't gonna make the choice. Ya said ya couldn't. The commanders were bummed out," he said, scratching his unkempt beard.

"How.... How are they doing now?" you had to ask, wondering if these two men were still brewing over the fact that neither of them got what they wanted. However, Jesse couldn't answer. Not for a while at least. He choked up, sighing as his body visibly slumped against his crossed arms.

"Never gonna know. I don't think even super soldiers coulda survived the explosion."

Jerking from the shock, (Y/N) had felt her heart jump in its place, her breath hitching in her throat. For a moment, she was incapable of speech and being able to process the information.

Jesse had told her that these two men had done so much for her. At least, done so much for (Y/N) (L/N), Overwatch's first field medic. If there were two people able to return her memories, help her get back such a big part of her life, it was Jack Morrison and Gabriel Reyes. But the unfortunate news tells her how impossible meeting them would be.