perhaps the silence reflected upon his discomfort. always a worshiper, seemingly overstepped his own role. what a cruel reminder from the likes of god to know his place. this is where you are meant to be, achilles. even demigods must pay for their misdoings. " oh, " intelligent, surely, " i didn't realize you needed me for this, commander. i apologize for my negligence. " perhaps he should have assumed he may be needed for a meeting. " --... was there anything else, sir ? "
THIS WAS not how it was supposed to be.
a long time ago jack had once stood there with a posture so arrogant he might have had a crown wrapping around his skull. far from kingly, but he challenged all the same, his entire existence spent on resisting & pushing against boundaries & expectations in the way jack morrison did. ( * sorry i missed the meeting, but not all of us are losers what had happened to you, little spark ? )
dusty regret rested on his tongue & reyes didn’t look up, eyes cast away to avoid to avoid. for want of something to focus on, his gaze ran over the panel in front of him, fixated on the pixels of text flashing past as he scrolled through each report & document. a small frown crooked at his lips, twisting into an ugly sneer as he battled for the right words to say.
anything to alleviate the stone caking his lungs & shattering against his ribs. it was more than mere disconnection. it was more than a sudden gulf suddenly prying them apart when not even a hairsbreadth of distance sat between them ( * reyes & morrison. gabriel & jack. overwatch had always had two triangles in its design ). it was more because disconnection could be fixed. could be mended with bridges & stitched back together until the seam was flawless & the fabrics almost, almost, matched perfectly.
this was destruction & nothing was supposed to do that. not to them.
❛ no, ❜ he said eventually, and the voice was cold pitch & tar. there was a strange cavity in his throat, as close to empty he had been in a very long time. ❛ that is all morrison. dismissed. ❜
