Hard Time Chapter 1

~{Hard Time Part 29}~

When the fall of the night had cast its shadow upon the base, Hanzo swung by the infirmary to check on Jesse for the last time of the day. The curtain was pulled back showing the gunslinger with his mouth slightly open and his eyes closed shut. He looked to be at peace and by the looks of the clean bandages around his torso Lucio must have done his rounds before heading to bed. Approaching the sleeping southerner, Hanzo stopped short of the bed rails. His hands grasped around them taking in the sight before him. "So it would seem you are too tired to talk, hm?" Hanzo whispered with a softened gaze. He leaned forward slowly resting both elbows on the rails while his hand lured towards McCree's fragile cheek. During his chat with Genji, McCree had been brought up towards the very end which got Hanzo believing this would be the best for his well being. McCree would soon come to learn that his dear friend would be leaving Overwatch to find a new life he had been searching for.

"I had made up with Genji. . ." He started to whisper, "we had a good conversation." His fingertips drew back, guiding up to move a strand of hair gently behind the other's ear. "It was about as awkward as you might expect it, but it was very meaningful. I managed to gain a lot out of it and have finally understood what might make me happier." Hanzo exhaled from his nose. The sigh felt more dense against the air. It didn't occur to Hanzo at the time that leaving Overwatch meant departing from Jesse's side. The comforting bond they shared would have to be halted, but surely this wouldn't be the end of the partnership. Time is just a relative concept that was interpreted differently in frames. The idea made leaving the Base less impactful than if he were to think about what it would be like to leave his family and friends. It is all just temporary, he reminded himself. If he did find a life outside the organization, then so be it. There were no rules that suggested he couldn't come by to visit every now and then.

"There is much I need to talk to you about, but for now I will wait until you are better and healed." Leaning down further his lips brushed against the top of Jesse's forehead. They remained there for a good minute before Hanzo tightly closed his eyes and pulled away. "Good night, Jesse McCree." Turning, the archer left the medical bay to call it a night.

Just as the curtains could be heard rustling, the patient in bed started to smile softly. The warmth radiating from his forehead became hard to resist, so Jesse let his act go, smiling constantly where he laid. "Good night, darlin'." Jesse whispered into the vacant air.

The summer months started to emerge from the other side of the world. The temperature started to increase with each coming week. It started fluctuating between 65 to 78 degrees Fahrenheit (18 to 26 degrees Celsius) during June. Each day had been a new one for Jesse as he started getting into the process of recovery. The first week he was able to sit up with some assistance and eat on his own. His energy levels were still undoubtedly at a minimum, but with time and physical therapy surely his strength would return. During the second week Jack had called in most of the team to chat about the events that had conspired with Talon. In recent news, Talon had gone under the radar again, but Jack was able to get some more information related to the new recruit of theirs.

"His name is Siebren de Kuiper. He goes under the alias Sigma. He's an Astrophysicist that used to work for The Hague. I managed to get some data from his employer. While he used to work with Netherlands most highly credible research facility, he is an experiment gone wrong. I wasn't able to get too much details, but after his incident he was somehow able to harness gravity."

"Which would explain the weird floaty powers of his." D.Va commented.

Jack nodded in agreement. "As a result of his accident, he was quarantined in a government facility where he was detained until further inspection of getting his newfound powers under control. Though before that could happen--"