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batofburnside · 1 year ago

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"Tell Me" Part 3

Gekko x (Fem!)Reader

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3

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Hi everyone! This is the third part of my first Gekko fanfic and my first fanfic posted on tumblr. I just posted part 2 at the same time, so I'm excited and nervous to see what y'all think so far. I really enjoyed writing these. Like last parts, I used google translate for most of the Spanish that wasn’t just a few words so I apologize if anything gets lost in translation, I am not fluent. Words: 8.0K

TW: Character Death, Guns, angst, (kinda?) manipulation, Kidnapping, Blood

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mateo sat on a bar stool in the kitchen, eating a bowl of cereal while resting his head on his hand. He was exhausted. Not being able to fall back asleep, he sent you an early good morning text, and then headed right into the training arena. Spending a few hours practicing his aim on the training bots until he couldn’t see straight anymore. After a quick shower to wake him up, he headed to the kitchen for breakfast. It was now nearly 9 AM. A few agents have come and gone while he has been in the kitchen. Sage, who is usually an early riser, entered the training arena as he was leaving, giving the young agent a nod of approval for getting some early morning training in. Mateo had tried to keep his worry and anxiety off of his face, he didn’t want to give anyone a reason to pull him off of the mission. Passing Omen and Fade in the hallway he gave a quick hello to the two. Yoru had come into the kitchen to grab breakfast as well. Mateo gave the dimension walker a nod and the older man exchanged the pleasantry before leaving.

Mateo looked up from his cereal that he was more so playing with instead of eating as Neon made her presence known, “There you are, Mateo!” She said as she made her way further into the kitchen and started to prepare her own breakfast. He looked around, making sure that no one was near to be able to hear his real name, “Lo lamento, you were looking for me?” He questioned.

“Yeah, I heard you yell last night. I went to make sure you were alright, but you weren’t in your room.” She said, grabbing her food and sitting down next to him. “Reyna said she hadn’t seen you yet, either.”

Mateo’s face flashed red with embarrassment. Neon had heard him yell out after his nightmare. He guessed it would make sense that she would be the one to hear it as their rooms shared a wall, but he wondered how loud he truly was and hoped no one else had heard anything. “Wait, what did you tell Reyna?” He said with urgency. If Reyna knew something was bothering him, she might tell Sage or Brimstone to pull him off the mission.

Neon raised a brow, confused by his sudden worry. “I just let her know I was looking for you and was going to check up on you?”

“Maldita sea” He whispered, resting his head in his hands.

“What dude? You’re being weird. What's going on with you?” Neon said, taking a bite.

“Nothings wrong. I had a nightmare last night. Eso es todo. I can still go on the mission, everything's FINE. Bien.”

Neon swallowed, smirking, “ahhh, okay. So that’s what this is. You’re psyching yourself out!”

“Que!? No- I’m not- uh” Mateo sighed, shaking his head, “I had a nightmare about (y/n). I died on the mission and she found out that everything since I’ve been here has been lies.”

Neon furrowed her brow, “You know Sage can bring us back? You don’t have to worry about that.”

“I know, but what if she can’t.”

“Well…” Neon started, “That hasn’t happened yet. But, I bet Brimstone will handle it, and give your family something? I’m not sure.”

Mateo shook his head, “That’s the thing. Nothing Brimstone can give (y/n) will undo any of the hurt I caused. She won’t see me as a hero once she finds out the lies it cost.”

The two of them sat in silence for a minute before Mateo spoke up again, “I’ve been thinking, and I think I’m going to tell her. About us and what I’m doing.”

Neon choked on her food, “You’re going to what!? Mateo you know you can’t.”

“She won’t tell anyone, I trust (y/n).”

“You don’t understand, Mateo. Of course our Omega counterparts know who our loved ones are. There aren’t many discrepancies between who we know and are related to. And the only thing keeping them safe is their ignorance. My parents only know where I am, and even that information could put them in danger.”

Mateo bit the inside of his cheek as he thought he was at a crossroads here. He couldn’t put you in danger. But, like Neon’s parents, his mom knows. Reyna told her months before he joined the Protocol and she’s been safe. There must be exceptions. “I won’t put her in danger, but I need to do something about this.” Mateo said, standing up. “Don’t tell Reyna or anyone until I figure it out, por favor.”

Neon looked up as Mateo stood, holding a steady gaze, “I won’t tell anyone, but I sure hope you know what you’re doing.” She said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was a relatively uneventful week for you. Right now you are in the middle of mundane chores. You had just gotten home from grocery shopping for your dad and had begun to put the goods away. The only thing that made today different from the others was, to your surprise, Mateo texting you good morning around 5 AM. You were curious why he was up so early and he told you he just wanted to get an early start to his day and get into a better routine. Something you had wanted to do before but always gave up a few days in. Walking up anywhere between 8AM-10AM is usually how it went for you depending on your classes. You noticed Mateo seemed to have more time on his hands today with random “I miss you”s, “Te amo”s, and check-ins coming in more frequently than they had before. Your heart fluttered as you wondered if he was finally finalizing his schedule and not letting the college have such a strong pull on him.

You had decided a few days ago that you wanted to try and surprise Mateo for a visit in the upcoming weekend. Since he left you had been putting away extra money from each of your paychecks in order to purchase a train ride up north. The only problem was, you couldn’t remember the name of the city that Mateo is in. Whenever you looked up the college you saw that it had campuses in both Seattle and Portland. And whenever you tried to ask him to remind you, he either wouldn’t hear you or had something else on his mind he wanted to talk about.

After you finished putting the groceries away you leaned on the counter, grabbing your phone you dialed Mateo’s mother, waiting for her to answer as it rang.

Two rings in you heard and enthusiastic voice on the other line, “(y/n!) Que bueno saber de ti! How are you cariño?”

“Hola, Mrs. De La Fuente. Es bien, and you?” You asked.

“Oh cariño. I am doing really well. It was hard to adjust with how quiet the house has been. Don’t tell Mateo but I’m thinking of getting a cat” Mateo’s mom laughed.

You smiled, you had missed Mateo’s mom and were disappointed in yourself for not calling her sooner, “I’m sure he wouldn’t stop you.” you giggled.

“No, that’s the problema! He would bring an amigo home for it! But, una is enough for me, confía en mí” The woman laughed and then let out a small sigh. You could tell she missed her son as much, if not more than you did. “De todos modos, (y/n). Did you need something?”

“Si, Mrs. De La Fuente. I was wondering what city Mateo was in. I can’t remember if it was Portland or Seattle?” You asked.

Mateo’s mom paused, “...oh, why’s that, cariño?”

You hesitated, confused by her sudden hesitation and change in tone, “well, I um- I’ve been saving up a lot of money. And I finally have enough money to buy a train ticket and surprise him.”

Again there was a pause, “Miel, I don’t think that’s es buena idea.” She said.

A pit opened up in your stomach, “I’m sorry, Mrs. De La Fuente, but why?”

“Mateo is mucho busy, (y/n). I just think you should wait.”

You frowned, “But it would be on the weekend? I only would have gone up there for a day.” You heard his mom inhale, another pause stagnant in the air before she spoke again, “I just… think it’s for the best, miel.” Before you could question her again she spoke up again “Oh, (y/n)! The oven is going off, that is mi Bizcocho. Tengo que ir! We can talk about this more later. Mantente segura!”

The line clicked as she hung up, the pit in your stomach resting heavy as your thoughts added onto it. The tone change in Mateo’s mom’s words sounded like worry, almost like his mom was covering for him.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

There were less than 15 hours until the mission on Haven and Mateo was back to back with Phoenix as the two of them engaged in aim training at the training arena. So far they had been doing well, if they continued like this the duo might make it to one of the top spots on the leaderboard.

“Watch your eyes!” Phoenix called out for a flash, as Mateo sent out Wingman to stun a few of the bots that were surrounding them.

“So.” Phoenix started as he took out two bots, “I heard you’re having girl trouble, aye?”

Mateo tensed up, switching places with the man and firing his gun at the robots, “Qué!? Who told you that?”

Phoenix chuckled, rolling as he dodged some of the bullets, “So it’s true!” he bantered.

“No es verdad! It’s false!” Mateo said, pressing up against a wall as a few bullets went buzzing by his shoulder.

“Well, Jett told me that Yoru was givin you a tough time.” Phoenix responded, smirking as he occasionally took his eyes off the robots to see Mateo’s flustered expression.

Mateo sighed slightly, he was nervous Neon had said something to someone. But, if this was just about his encounter with Yoru then it didn’t bother him too much. “Yeah, that happened.” He said, leaving his place on the wall and taking out another bot.

“Well, don’t let him get to you mate. We’ve all been there with our relationship struggles. Oy behind you!” Phoenix said, taking out a bot that was running up to Mateo from behind.

“Thanks”, Mateo said with a small nod and smile to both the words of encouragement and for having his back during their training. Although Phoenix’s words weren’t exactly what he needed as a pick-me-up, he was still grateful for the effort put in.. Phoenix returned Mateo’s nod, “Ready to finish this?” He asked.

Smirking, Mateo responded, “Sí, amigo. You know it.”

“Alright let's go!” Phoenix said, his skin glowing a faint orange as he mowed through the rest of the bots with Mateo, thrash stunning a cluster for phoenix to take out. When no other bots came to confront the two, they gave each other a fist bump. “Now that has to be a top score, for sure!” Phoenix enthused.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After the aim training Mateo had taken an early dinner and gone to his room to chill for the night. He had already received a message from Jamie strategizing how they could achieve an even higher score next time. He had also received what he assumed was a sarcastic or playful message from Jett asking why he stole her aim training partner from her. Changing into some comfortable clothes, he laid down on his bed and gave you a call. Wingman snuggled up to his arm and Mateo moved a bit to get Wingman out of the frame of the video, causing the creature to mumble. “I’m sorry buddy. Not yet okay. Very soon she will meet you. Prometo. For now, if you stay down by my arm, you can sit in and listen in. Como es que, amigo?” Wingman purred and Mateo chuckled, “Alright just remember to be quiet.” Dizzy, Thrash, and Mosh also made their appearance, giving Mateo a curious look. “Alright, you three as well. But the same thing I told Wingman. Estar muy tranquila. Okay?” Dizzy and Thrash nodded. Thrash took up a spot near the end of the bed at Mateo’s feet, Dizzy laid on Mateo’s stomach, and Mosh cuddled up next to Wingman.

You answered the call to Mateo smiling and laughing, “Hola, Mi Teo. What’s got you in a good mood?” You returned his contagious smile.

“Well, the fact that I’m talking to mi amor might have something to do with it.” He smirked.

The two of you chatted for nearly an hour uninterrupted and you both savored that time that you had together. The longest your last video call was so far had been about 30 minutes max before Mateo got pulled away by something else. You laughed with each other when you caught him up to speed on the shenanigans your friend group was up to together. He asked about your father and your sister. You told him you were thinking of cutting your hair and he playfully begged you not to, but promised that you would look beautiful with any hairstyle you chose. He said you could even shave your head and you would be the most beautiful girl in the world to him. You laughed and told him to be careful what he says or you just might go ahead and do it, but he knew you would never. He knew how much fun you had styling your hair in different ways, it was something you had used often to express yourself.

“I wish I was there with you” Mateo said, he noticed the locket he gave you before he left around your neck, he was hanging next to your heart, but he wanted to wrap you up in his arms. A month away had felt like an eternity.

“I wish you were too.” You said, sharing his look of longing.

“Well, I find out when I’m able to leave soon. But before then I can send you a care package. I can put one of my shirts in it and some snacks from the area.” He grinned.

You smiled, “I’d like that.” Your words drew off slightly at the end of the sentence, as you thought back to your conversation with his mom. Hesitating, you wondered if you should tell Mateo, ask why she was being so weird about you wanting to visit.

Mateo noticed your hesitation and raised a brow, “what’s wrong, mi amor?”

“Well….” You started but bit your tongue. “So I saved up money from my recent paychecks and I figured with that money I would buy a train ticket to see you. Like a surprise. But then I couldn’t remember what city you said you were in or if you ever said the city you were in. So I called your mom and asked her. I told her my plan but she didn’t think it was a good idea and she also wouldn’t tell me the city and she also wouldn’t tell me why.” Catching your breath after your ramble you waited for him to answer, your cheeks flushed red. He stared at the phone, his mouth opening like he was going to say something, but then closing. “I just felt like she was hiding something from me?” You added on.

Mateo frowned, his gaze faltering before looking back at the screen, “(y/n), I have to tell you something.” He said, in a tone you had never heard before.

Your anxiety spiked, “oh okay… you’re making me a bit nervous. What is it?” You asked.

“So I’m not in Seattle… or Portland. I’m-“ the phone went black. Mateo grumbled, pressing the power button but to no avail. “Merida! Stupid phone” he cursed. Suddenly it powered back on, the screen flashing with a familiar symbol. Mateo narrowed his eyes. He went to your contact and tried to call you back, but an error flashed up on the screen once more with that familiar symbol. He tried to text you but was met with the same fate.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Cypher!!!” Mateo yelled as he ran down the halls. He made it to the computer room where he knew Cypher was most likely to be. He flung the door open and found the room empty. He cursed again, leaving the room and heading down the hallway.

“CYPHER!” He called again, he passed by Neon who looked like she was on her way to her room.

“Woah, Gekko. What’s going on, are you alright?” She asked.

“Not right now, Tala. I’m looking for Cypher.” He said, keeping his steady pace.

Neon followed behind him, “He’s with Reyna in the strategy room. But-“ he cut her off, “Thanks.”

“But Gekko-“ Neon tried to get his attention but he was focused on one thing.

Mateo flung open the door to the Strategy Room, seeing Cypher, Reyna, Sage, and Brimstone huddled over a holographic map of LA. Reyna’s eyes darted over to the two. “Neon! Gekko is not supposed to be in here right now” She said.

“I tried damn it!” Neon said, raising her hands up.

“I don’t care about whatever secret classified mission this is!” Gekko said, anger in his words. “I just want to know why, he child-locked my device!?” He said, pointing to Cypher.

“Cariño, cálmate.” Reyna said

“I activated the fail safe, because you were close to revealing yourself.” Cypher added in.

“What!? You were listening in on me!? Spying on me!? Esto es ridículo. ¡Esa fue una conversación privada!” Mateo exclaimed, Wingman and Dizzy appeared from his bag after Mateo's noticeable rising anger. “How would you even know to listen in?” He asked.

Cypher remained quiet, sharing a glance between the 3 older agents in the room.

Mateo turned around towards Neon, “ You told them! Didn’t you?” He accused.

Neon crossed her arms, “what!? No I didn’t.” She huffed

“Fui yo, cariño. It was me” Reyna spoke up.

An expression of hurt and betrayal flashed across Mateo’s face, as Wingman and Dizzy made a sound, similar to a faint cry but almost as if they were asking Reyna why.

“Que? Por que Reyna. Why would you have Cypher spy on me?” He asked.

Sage made her way closer to Mateo, “Reyna came to us a few days ago. We agreed that you are being pulled in two different directions. You need to have your whole mind and spirit here, Gekko. With your heart split, you can make dangerous decisions. Brimstone and I tasked Cypher on making sure you were making the right decisions. And Cypher is the one who heard you tell Neon your plan in the kitchen this morning.”

Mateo took a step back in anger as he cursed to himself. Placing a hand over his face, he shook his head. How stupid was he for thinking that Brimstone and Sage didn’t have eyes everywhere around the protocol, watching them at all times. Or that Cypher, the man who can scrub clean any mention of them from the internet within milliseconds wouldn’t be able to listen in on his private phone calls. Wingman walked up to Mateo, placing his hands on the man’s leg in an attempt to comfort.

“Gekko, we’re here to help you if you need it. I know some things are hard to understand why we do it. But it is for the best.” Sage added.

Mateo stood idle for a second, his eyes darting from person to person in the room. His mind was clouded with hurt, anger, and frustration. The silence lingered, no one having anything else to say. Mateo picked up Wingman and turned around towards the door, pausing in the doorway before speaking to those behind him, “You know, Reyna. You could have come to me first. Actually talked to me. Nunca pensé que irías a mis espaldas. Especially you of all people.” He said as he saw his way out.

The remaining agents exchanged a few glances as the tension Mateo left still hung in the air. Reyna sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “He will be okay,” she said to the group, while also reassuring herself. She was disheartened about breaking Mateo’s trust, but there were more important things at hand and she knew this was for the best, “We need to get back to our findings”.

“Yes.” Sage said, looking at the holographic map of LA that was laid out before them. “Your recon mission with Neon and Yoru revealed a big deposit of Radianite under the city, here.” She said pointing to the map.

“That’s close to Gekko’s home.” Reyna said, thinking of her friend. Not wanting to let Mateo down anymore, she needed to make sure this Radianite remained secure. “We need to make sure that a spike does not get detonated here”

“We also need to keep our eyes on Kingdom as well. They could already know about this.” Brimstone said.

Neon was looking towards the door after Mateo left, he was hurting and now he probably felt more alone than ever. Sighing, she turned around and looked towards the group, her eyes widening at the hologram as she made her way to the group. “Woah” Neon said as she walked up to the map, eyeing it in curiosity, “if a spike goes off there how many casualties will that be?”

“Too many.” Brimstone responded, his voice laced with an edge of concern and also exhaustion.

~~~~~~~~~

“...Teo?” You asked, as his face froze on your screen before the call ended, an error signaling that the connection had dropped. You tried to call him back but was only met by his voicemail. Resorting to a text, you sent ‘What happened, are you alright?’ only to get an immediate response saying that the message was unable to be delivered. Staring at the screen you blinked, trying to process what had just happened. You looked around through your phone to make sure that everything else was working, and found that you had a full connection to the grid. Whatever happened was on Mateo’s end. You found it odd that as soon as Mateo looked like he was going to confess something that the call dropped. And now suddenly you were unable to contact him back? Did the internet wherever he was suddenly just drop, since he did say that he wasn’t in Seattle or Portland, so where was he?

You sent Mateo a few more texts telling him to call you back if he was able or to let you know that he was okay. You debated on calling Mateo’s mom to let her know about the weird disconnection of his phone. But, with what Mateo had started to say, it had all suddenly made sense of why his mom was acting so weird on the phone. She knew he wasn’t in either of the two cities he had mentioned, she just was trying her best to avoid telling you.

The rest of the night for you drew on longer than you thought it would. You laid in bed, curled up on your covers while scrolling through various forms of media, checking every 30 minutes for a message to Mateo, while also sending one or two to test the connection. So far you had sent around 13 messages, signaling that it had been over 6 hours since your video call with Mateo. You had skipped dinner, your appetite gone and replaced with worry. Around 8:30 you had heard your dad leave for work, and around 11:30 you had heard your sister leave to go to a party. Neither of them bothered you before they left as you said you wished to be left alone.

It was nearing 1 am and your eyes were starting to get dry and heavy with sleep. You continued to stare at your phone screen, mindlessly scrolling, not even focusing on what was in front of you as you fought the urge to sleep. The thought of Mateo messaging you back as soon as you fell asleep would be your luck, and you wanted to make sure that wouldn’t happen. You would stay up all night if you had to, even if that meant you would miss your classes.

All the struggle you put up against falling asleep seemed to be in vain as your eyes shot open to the sound of your doorbell going off throughout the house. You rubbed your eyes in a daze as you checked your phone, “What the hell? It’s 3 AM.” you grumbled to yourself, closing your eyes and throwing your pillow over your head to drown out the ringing. Whoever was at your front door seemed to be holding down the button.

After a few more seconds you yelled, throwing your blankets off of yourself as you stood up. Exiting your room, you looked across the hall to your sister’s room. The door was wide open, and through the faint light shining inside you could tell she hadn’t made it home yet. “I swear, Gwen, if you forgot your key and locked yourself out I’m going to kill you” you grumbled. Heading towards the front door.

You yawned as you looked towards the peep hole to view who was outside, but the image you saw completely woke you up. “Teo?” you whispered to yourself. It felt like your heart stopped for a second, time slowing as you reached for the door to unlock and open it.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The helicopter ride to Haven was uncomfortable at most for Mateo. Luckily, he was allowed to stay on the mission. Though if it were up to him he much rather would have been anywhere else, so was it truly luck? Having Reyna leading his mission completely ruined all the excitement he had when he was first assigned a week ago. He avoided her gaze as much as he could, still feeling the hurt from her broken trust just hours before. He continued to listen in on the debrief that he had heard many times throughout the week, giving her the respect as if they were just co-workers.

It was quiet when they arrived at Haven, giving the team the indication that they had beaten their Omega counterparts to the location. Reyna gave one last debrief before she dismissed everyone to set up their sites. The layout was fairly similar to Mateo’s dream, which made him slightly nervous. The only difference was that Killjoy was to be holding garage, her turret pointing at mid while Omen helped Reyna on A.

“Mateo,” Reyna said, grabbing his attention as he went towards his site. He turned around and paused, walking back up to her. “¿qué?” He asked, showing no emotion.

She sighed, "Escúchame Gekko, I know it doesn’t seem like it. But, I am with you.”

Mateo inhaled, pondering on her words, “mis disculpas when I said that it’s hard to believe that right now.”

“I am sorry that it has felt like you have to do this alone. Nunca deberías sentirte así. Y porque lo haces, es mi fracaso como mentor.”

“Eres una gran mentora, Reyna. I am just upset my privacy was infiltrado.” He sighed.

“I know cariño,” Reyna said, “And I am truly sorry.”

“Gracias, Reyna.” Mateo said, his nerves starting to settle slightly. He began to leave again before he was stopped once more.

“Also, Gekko-” “Si?” He asked.

“fuerte y feroz. They will not hesitate, you must not either.” Reyna said, her voice sturn and steady as she believed if Mateo took to heart anything that she said, she needed it to be this.

“Lo sé, Reyna. I know” he nodded, taking her advice in. He gave her a slight smile before he went and made his way to his position at C.

Mateo had scoped out his site, walking down C long and looking for the angles that Harbor had mentioned would be crucial to hold and would most likely be an area that their Omega counterparts would hide in if cornered.

Holding with his Vandal, Mateo aimed down site at C long, staying alert and ready for anyone to appear. His eyes were starting to strain as he had been focused already for 15 minutes at least. “Any signs of movement anywhere?” Killjoy said over her ear piece.

“Negative” Omen responded. “Nope” Jett added in “Gekko?” Reyna questioned. Mateo was about to speak before he saw Omega Jett peak up into C long. He fired his gun but she quickly dashed back from where she had appeared from. “Jett spotted!” He held his aim ready for her to peak again only to be met by a double peak with Jett and Sova. Mateo quickly ducked back behind boxes, The Omega archer sent a tracer dart flying landing on the wall in the back of C site, marking Mateo. “Sova spotted as well, my location has been marked, requesting backup!”

“I’m on it!” Killjoy responded, peaking out C short and throwing a grenade to stop the infiltrators from pushing up any further. From behind the box, Mateo threw up Dizzy who quickly scanned the area, blinding the two enemies. Mateo peaked out from his cover, aiming his gun at the Sova who was now blind in long with nowhere to hide. With three body shots to the chest, the archer was down. Mateo tried to catch his breath, this had been his first kill that wasn’t on one of the training bots. He had to get his breathing back under control and steady himself. One was down but there were at least 4 more to go.

‘fuerte y feroz’ he repeated to himself the words of advice that Reyna had given him.

“There’s someone A” Reyna said through the coms.

“Sending cover” Omen called out as he placed a smoke down protecting the A site from a quick entry.

“I believe the Jett has rotated,” Killjoy said. Jett spoke up, “I spotted her- uh me- In window! I’m holding.”

Mateo heard gunfire from across the area, indicating that A site had begun to be fought over. He continued to stare down long, just to make sure they weren’t being faked, until he heard otherwise. Killjoy began to move back into garage to help Jett hold her Omega counterpart.

On A site, Omen peaked heaven with an Operator, peaking into short while the smoke still covered long. Reyna shot through the smoke, taking cover behind boxes as bullets sprayed blindly towards her. A quick flash the two had never seen before, made up of white and yellow sparkling lights, blinded them instantly. They took cover as the omega agents entered the site, forcing Omen and Reyna to fall back. “We’ve lost the site.” Omen growled into his communicator.

“Gekko, Killjoy. Begin your rotation to A, stay alert as I believe they have sent the new agent, Lux, with them.” Reyna informed the rest of the team.

Killjoy began her rotation from garage through the window and the connector to B, leaving an alarm bot behind her incase of an enemy push or rotate. Mateo gathered dizzy up from where she was idling, quietly praising her for the work she did to help him with the Sova.

He quietly made his way to the C and B connector, where he would join up with Killjoy on B so that the two could arrive at A together. Before he could walk to B, a wall made of a white and yellow swirling energy came up, completely blocking off the entrance. This was something that Mateo had never seen before. He turned around, scanning his surroundings and saw nothing. “Be careful,” He spoke into his com, “I think the new agent put up a wall blocking off my entry on B.” “I see it too, but I don't see any other enemies. Still keep your guard up, we don't know how far their range is for their abilities.” Jett said.

Mateo stared at the wall before him, it didn’t look solid? It had a similar movement about it like Phoenix and Astra’s walls, though contained to one area as it took up the entire entry way. He carefully reached a hand out to touch it, but hissed in pain as the energy making up the wall instantly burned his flesh with contact.

He closed his eyes, shaking out his hand as he heard the sound of a revolver hammer locking behind him. He froze, feeling the sensation of someone watching him.

“Careful-”, They spoke. Mateo’s eyes widened, he knew that voice but there was something off.

“-Mi, amor. Wouldn't want you to hurt yourself.” They said, venom laced with their words.

Mateo raised his hands in the air, as he turned around and was met face to face with your Omega counterpart. His heart increased, she looked just like you only she was staring at him with an expression he had never seen from you before; Hatred mixed with amusement. “Lux?” Was all he could murmur

“Lux, (Code/Name), (Y/N), any of those work.” She sneered, holding her Sheriff out so that Mateo was staring down the barrel.

“Gekko, status update.” Killjoy was heard over the intercom.

“I-” Mateo started, but he was interrupted by your double.

“Shhh. Let’s not give away our position, now.” She hummed as she walked towards him, circling him like a Lion does its prey. “You seem so much more fun than my Mateo,” she lulled, “Let me guess, you actually made a move on my counterpart. Lucky her. Mine couldn’t take a hint if it hit him in the face.”

Mateo’s heart was racing, he never once thought that when he looked at the enemy he would see you. The (y/n) he knew wasn’t a Radiant, or so he thought. He remembered Brimstone's talk about discrepancies. But, wouldn’t you have developed your powers by now if you were?

He remained stunned in silence as your double paced around him, keeping the sheriff aimed at his head, his eyes following her. She walked up to him, placing a kiss on his lips, while pressing the cool metal of the gun to his temple. A wave of panic shivered down his spine causing his hairs on the back of his neck to stand up.

She pulled away and took a step back, “Well, I’d love to keep this conversation going, Gekko-”

“-They’ve planted the spike!” He heard Jett yell into his earpiece.

“- But it seems like we’re out of time.”

Your double pulled the trigger on the sheriff twice, sending two rounds flying directly into Mateo’s shoulder. He yelled out in pain as the bullets burned through his flesh. Falling to the ground he squeezed onto his shoulder with his unburnt hand, trying to control the bleeding. He could hear commotion over the earpiece, but all of the words were deafened by the fire he felt on his shoulder.

Wingman jumped out of Mateo’s bag, running towards your Omega counterpart and stunning her, causing her wall blocking B to fall. As soon as it did, shots from a Vandal could be heard flying over Mateo and towards your double, but it wasn’t fast enough. Before the shot could land, your double vanished into a curtain of light, teleporting out of the area of danger.

Mateo squirmed on the ground in pain, Wingman ran up to his shoulder and pressed against Mateo’s hand, as if to try and help stop the bleeding. The two felt the ground shake below them, before an eruption of darkness shadowed them, indicating that the spike had gone off.

Omega had won. He let out another anguished cry as a wave of fire spread from his shoulder and down through his arm. “Gekko’s down, but he’s conscious” someone next to him said over the ear piece. He hadn’t realized it but Killjoy had taken a place, kneeled beside him. She must have been the one to try and stop your double.

The ground rumbled as Killjoy spoke, started to shift and break apart on A where the spike had gone off. “Shhh, shhh now, Gekko. It’s okay. You’re going to be just fine” the girl said, taking off one of her straps and preparing to use it as a makeshift splint to try and stabilize his arm.

Mateo squinted his eyes, trying to force back another wave of pain, “what about- the- others-“ he said through clenched teeth. “Where’s- Reyna-“

“She’s coming, Gekko, don’t worry. She’s alright. You’re doing good, keep that pressure.”

“The- new- agent-“ Mateo started, only to be cut off by KillJoy.

“Shh, don’t talk. Save your energy, Gekko.”

“Gekko! Mi cariño!” Reyna yelled out, kneeling next to Mateo across from Killjoy. Mateo looked upwards to see Omen making his way not far behind Reyna, in his arms was Jett, her arms laying heavy, swaying as Omen walked. Mateo’s eyes widened at the site of Jett’s unmoving form lying in Omen’s arms, her shirt drenched in blood. His adrenaline started to spike in that moment, his heart racing. He tensed up, trying to sit, grimacing as he did., “Jett- what… is- is she-“ He tried to speak, wincing with every word.

Reyna used her hand to avert Mateo’s gaze from his fallen comrade. “Sage will help her, Ahora necesitas quedarte con nosotros, Gekko.” Reyna looked at Omen and Killjoy as bits of derbies from A could be seen floating in the distance, the cracks in the ground spreading towards B, “We need to get out of here. Now.”

The next moments for Mateo moved in stop motion. He heard Reyna and Killjoy speaking to him, but their words merged together, unable to penetrate his ear drums. He blinked and they were helping him up, his good arm over Reynas neck as she helped him stand up. He blinked again and they were helping him into the helicopter, Omen placing Jett’s body on a makeshift infirmary bed before covering her up completely with a blanket. Another blink and he felt Killjoy pressing gauze up against his shoulder, while Reyna watched on, an emotion he couldn’t read in her eyes. He heard himself cry out in pain as Killjoy cleaned his wound, but it was almost like his voice was coming from someone else. Blinking once more, he saw his arm bandaged up, Omen walking up to him with Wingman in his arms. The wraith gently placed the creature down close to Mateo, who wasted no time to run up and cuddle into the crook of his uninjured arm.

As Mateo went unconscious, Reyna made her way next to where he lie, sitting down beside him she watched his chest rise and fall. “Lo siento, Mateo.” She said, giving him a kiss on the top of his head before brushing his hair back off of his forehead. “Eres un luchador Lo superarás.” Wingman looked up at Reyna from his place tucked in Mateo’s arm. She smiled at the creature, “Lo hiciste bien pequeña. Thank you for watching after him.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Teo!?” You asked as you opened the door, a mixture of excitement and confusion in your voice, still groggy from sleep. “What are you do-” you continued, pausing as he took a step back. From behind him you saw a small pink creature begin to make its way to you. You let out the start of a scream as it jumped at you, the sonic wave it sent out from its body rendering you unable to move or speak. You winced slightly, feeling the paralyzing energy moving through your body. “mis disculpas, (y/n). Or what your Mateo calls you, ‘Mi amor’?” He smirked.

Your eyes darted around before meeting his gaze once more, in fear. What did he mean, ‘Your Mateo?’. You had heard of the incident years ago in Venice of a dimension traveler attacking. Was this one of those instances? But if so, what did you have to do with any of this? None of this made sense, you had to still be dreaming. Working against the paralyzing energy through your body, you were able to slowly close your eyes, trying to wake yourself up. Suddenly, you began to feel a burning sensation throughout your body. A mixture of heat and energy shooting through your limbs, leaving you wondering what the creature did to you. You opened your eyes to meet ‘Mateo’’s gaze, his smirk faltering as he saw your normally (e/c) eyes, a golden yellow. He suddenly looked nervous. “Apurarse, Omen.” He said, looking behind you. Unable to see what he was looking at, your heart started racing. You felt hands on your wrist as your arms were pulled behind your back, and fastened with a ziptie. You let out a small groan of frustration as you tried to fight your way free, but your body was not listening to you. Continuing to try and struggle, you were able to let out a small “Why?” that was cut off as a piece of fabric was placed over your mouth. 'Mateo' looked at you as he stepped closer, brushing a strand of hair behind your ear “Lo lamento, Mi amor. But, a mission is a mission.”

A cloud of purple smoke started to surround you and your vision, you found yourself almost weightless for a second before the smoke dissipated. No longer in your house, you looked around as the paralytic was staring to wear off, 'Mateo' nowhere to be found. You didn’t get a great look at the room you were in before another strip of fabric was placed over your eyes, taking away your vision. What you could briefly see told you that the room was some kind of operating room, with various computers on the walls. The hand that had bound you reached out, somewhat gently, and led you to a chair and fastened your ankles to the legs. You yelped and tried to move from your bindings as you felt a prick of a needle on your skin. “I’m sorry.”, your captor said, as he drew your blood. The sound of his voice was haunting, but his words seemed sincere.

You moved in the chair, trying to free your hands. Although the paralyzing effect from that creature seemed to subside, you still noticed the slightly burning, almost electric feelings radiate through your mind and body as your adrenaline continued to pump. The sound of a door swinging open, accompanied by 2 sets of footsteps signified that you were no longer alone with your captor. You held your breath, as if out of instinct to try and go undetected. Never imagining you would be in a situation like this, you were feeling helpless. You weren’t a fighter, but you were smart, you needed to wait until you had resources to use and right now with your senses being taken away from you, the only thing you had to go off of is what you were able to hear.

“Let me see that sample” a woman said as she walked to the far side of the room, her voice sounded aged, and muffled almost as if it were coming through a microphone. A machine whirred up followed by sounds of typing.

The three stood in silence, as one person, you assumed it was the woman, typed.

“What did you find?” The third person spoke up. A male, their voice older, gruff, and sturdy.

“It’s positive. She’s radiant. A discrepancy here must have caused her abilities to not activate, which is how they must have missed her and skipped to recruiting Gekko” The woman said.

Your eyes widened behind the fabric, were they talking about you? No, you couldn’t be a Radiant. Radiants are the ones who attacked Venice, and killed thousands in the city. Radiants are the ones who took your mother away from you. You weren’t one of them.

A new set of footsteps drew your focus back into the group. “Alright, perfect. That means we’re able to move on to phase 2 then?” The voice sent a shiver up your spine. This voice sounded like yours but it couldn’t be. The footsteps began to make their way closer to you. Feeling a pair of fingers loop onto the fabric and pull it down below your eyes, you took in your surroundings. In the room, a woman with a short black haircut wearing a mask around her nose and mouth, a hooded figure who seemed to be glowing, and a bearded man with a muscular build looked on from the background. Though, your stomach dropped when you saw your own smirking face staring back at you. The only thing letting you know you weren't truly staring at your own reflection was the faint glow of a yellow/gold on the inner iris of her (e/c) eyes, “it’s about time I finally get to look in the mirror” she said.

Your chest rising and falling as you began to hyperventilate, “who are you?” You tried to ask, but it only came out as a mixed mumble through the fabric covering your mouth. Your double began to hyperventilate as well, mocking your mumble before laughing, “Sorry, (y/n). Just trying to get into character.” She smiled, something about it sending a chill down your spine.

She began to reach towards your neck and you tried to squirm away from her hands only to be stopped by the chair you were bound to. She unclasped the locket you were wearing. The gift Mateo had given you before he left. You tried to protest, but your movements were unsuccessful as she removed the jewelry from your neck and placed it around her own, “Don’t worry. I’ll take good care of it, and him.”

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Reyna entered the infirmary, to see Sage hovering over Jett, a blue glow emitting from her palms. The outgoing girl who now lay still had begun to breathe again just hours before, but there was still more work to be done. Sage had worked on Mateo earlier, his gunshot wound being a more easy fix than the wound that took Jett. The healer had praised Killjoy and Reyna for the work they did on the field to keep Mateo’s breathing controlled, as it likely saved his life.

“How is she?” Reyna asked. She was always fond of Jett. The young agent had such an upbeat attitude about the world. Similar to Mateo.

“Better.” Sage said, a wave of exhaustion coming through her words.

“You should rest. recupera tu energía. I can watch them until you return.” Reyna looked over to Mateo’s sleeping form as well. Wingman sat at the edge of his infirmary bed, looking on with an expression of concern and worry as Sage worked on Jett.

“I will be okay, Reyna. Jett needs me right now. Besides, I have had great company.” Sage replied, looking up to smile at Wingman.

Reyna sighed, “You can help her more once you have rested. She is breathing now, I will alert you if that changes.”

Sage paused, looking up at Reyna and nodding, “Thank you.” She said, giving her a reassuring touch on her shoulder before leaving.

Walking over to the two beds, Reyna looked at Jett a moment before pulling a blanket up over the sleeping woman’s form. These two in the infirmary were too young to be the ones injured on this mission, and even Omen had agreed. Had Reyna called a retreat earlier, perhaps Jett wouldn’t have dashed in as a last ditch effort to try and defuse the spike only to be ambushed by an Omega Cypher and an Omega Harbor.

Grabbing a chair, Reyna pulled it up next to Mateo’s bed and sat down, Wingman quickly hobbling over to her. The woman gave the creature a quick pet of affection before resting her hand on Mateo’s. She should have realized quicker that he hadn’t been heard on the communicator and wasn’t in the gunfight. She should have been more alert that something had happened to him. She had promised his mother she would protect him, and now he lay in the infirmary after his first mission that she had led. “lo siento, no estaba allí, Mateo”

With her free hand, Reyna continued to pet Wingman, who had quickly fallen asleep under her touch. Lost in her thoughts, Reyna continued to listen to the rhythmic beeping of the machines that both Jett and Mateo were hooked up to. Eventually, Wingman began to stir slightly as he woke up, and as if on queue Mateo began to move as well, mumbling as he fought for consciousness, “…(y/n)” he groaned.

Reyna perked up, “Mateo, it’s okay, mi cariño”, She said in a soft voice, trying to calm her protege.

“(Y/n)….” He repeated.

“ella no está aquí, but you can contact her later”

Mateo opened his eyes and quickly sat up, as if waking up from a nightmare. He winced as he grabbed his shoulder, now alert he looked at Reyna, doing his best to ignore the waves of pain shooting through him.”

“No, Reyna... it’s (y/n). Lux is (y/n).” He said.

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batofburnside · 1 year ago

Text

"Tell Me" Part 2

Gekko x (Fem!)Reader

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Hi everyone! This is the second part of my first Gekko fanfic and my first fanfic posted on tumblr. I am very exciting that I have received good feedback so far, and I'm glad you guys are enjoying the story! I'm nervous and excited to post part 2 and 3! But I hope you enjoy:) Part 3 is up as well! Like last part, I used google translate for most of the Spanish that wasn’t just a few words so I apologize if anything gets lost in translation, I am not fluent. Words: 6.2K

TW: Character Death, Guns, angst, (kinda?) manipulation

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It had been about 3 weeks now since Mateo joined the Valorant Protocol. Before his arrival he had chosen his Codename. He wished he could have brainstormed it with you. You’re so creative and he knew that you would have helped him choose something perfect. After a lot of discarded ideas, he had landed on the Codename “Gekko” which he thought fit him pretty well, although it took him a second to get used to it. So far, he had been getting along with all of the other agents on the Protocol. He had become particularly close with Tala and Jamie, otherwise known as Neon, Reyna’s other protege, and Phoenix, due to them being the closest in age to him. Other than Reyna, Sage, and Brimstone they were the only ones who knew his real name, after he was quick to trust them. Some days after training he’d find time to commune with them in the shared kitchen. Bantering and talking about their home life.

His little crew definitely helped break the ice, Neon and another agent named Jett wasted no time in trying to recruit Wingman into helping them with their pranks against other fellow agents, mostly Yoru and occasionally Omen. On Mateo’s third day he managed to catch Wingman with a small butterfly knife comb in his hand, which belonged to the dimension walker. Obviously this did not make a great impression with the black and blue haired agent. On the other hand, Neon and Jett thought that added to the prank making it better. Though Mateo wasn’t sure if it was worth the risk being on Yoru’s list this early.

So far Mateo had kept his word to you, he worked insanely hard to make it to his scheduled video calls with you, and he had succeeded at almost everyone, only missing 2 or 3 by 15 minutes at most. It didn’t matter how stressed he was from all the information he was trying to learn about Omega Earth, or how tired he was from training, every time he saw your face on the other end of the screen he forgot about everything else in the world. Of course, your video calls didn’t compare to being there physically with you. He wanted nothing more than to be wrapped up in your arms, your warmth against his. His crew had been getting more and more difficult to round up before the phone and video calls with you since the little creatures shared Mateo’s longing to be by your side. He felt bad hiding them from you and vice versa, because if he was feeling this way, he didn’t want to imagine how worse it was for Wingman, Dizzy, Mosh, and Thrash since they were forced to stay a secret and hidden from you.

Mateo always answered your calls with something exciting to talk about, whether he tried this new cafe near him, or some gossip about his new friends. You were able to swallow some of your jealousy, since you love to see him so excited and happy about the new things he was experiencing. So far you know he had met two friends, Tala and Jamie. He had sent you one or two selfies with them and you wanted to find something off about them, but you couldn’t from just a picture. They looked like nice, fun, and normal people, and you hoped to meet them too one day.

Your school had also started its semester and Mateo always asked how things were going with your classes. You were usually a straight A student, but the first week you found yourself drifting and getting distracted without Mateo there to ground you. It wasn’t something you couldn’t come back from, but it definitely wasn’t like you to forget various assignments. Although it wouldn’t be the same as it was before, Mateo suggested that you guys could have over the phone study sessions, and you were grateful for that. The only thing that was still bothering you is that every time you asked him when he would be coming home to visit, he would change the subject, hesitate, or say he was too overloaded with school. You tried to not be mad about his answers or overthink that he just didn't want to see you. But, you couldn’t grasp why he couldn’t just pick a weekend to come back to you. In your mind it was almost as if the school was holding him hostage.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A group of 5 emerged from the training facility into the lobby. Raze wiped her brow while slinging a vandal over her shoulder, “Man KJ, you must be buffing these bots in between each session! I swear their reaction time is getting faster.” She said. KillJoy chuckled, putting her unused grenades into her locker, “I know! I’m so proud of them.” She said with glee, seeing how her AI has been adapting to learning, hopefully helping the agents continue to get the best training without it getting too repetitive. Raze chuckled while shaking her head. She thought it was cute how her partner was able to geek out about her creation nearly killing them all.

Mateo entered the lobby, giving a tiny fist bump to Wingman before digging into his pocket to retrieve some treats for his tiny critters after their hard work during training.

“Hey new kid!” Jett said, walking up to Mateo to get his attention, “Qué pasa, Jett?” He replied, handing a small piece of radivore food to Wingman before looking up to the white haired woman.

“You did great out there!” She exclaimed, giving him a firm pat on the back, nearly causing him to stumble out of surprise. “Oh! Gracias!” He responded, “but I gotta hand most of the credit to Wingman and Dizzy here, they’re the real MVPs of those rounds in there” he smiled. “Well, them and you definitely had us on the winning side in there. It’s good to have you on the team.” Jett looked over to Harbor who had just made his way out of the training arena, “Yo Harbor, you should be proud of your protege.” Jett said, watching as Mateo lifted Wingman up and placed him on his shoulder.

“Jett is correct, Harbor, Gekko” Sage added on as she made her appearance known after watching the team from the viewing area. “Gekko has indeed made a first impression, in no small part to your work with him. Great work, both of you and all of you.” Sage said, commending the training session with Raze, Kill Joy, Gekko, Harbor, and Jett. “You are dismissed or you may stay and watch the next sessions from the viewing area.” She continued.

Harbor thanked Sage for the praise before turning to Mateo who was packing up his locker to be dismissed, “Gekko, I’d like you to stay and watch the next few training sessions. I’ll stay with you and we can discuss certain strategies while watching.” He said.

Mateo had a sense of urgency flash in his eyes. “Coach, I’m sorry but I really can’t stay” he said. Harbor crossed his arms, “what, do you have something else planned?” He asked. Mateo took a breath, before looking down at the ground, “Sí”, He said.

“Well, you’ll just have to miss it.”

“Por favor Coach! I really can’t miss this. I made a promise.” Mateo said, slight desperation in his voice. An accompanying gargle emerged from Wingman as he also tried to communicate the urgency in Mateo’s request.

“Gekko, you need to get all the training you can, I know you’re young but we’re running out of time before your first mission, and you need to be fully prepared. I don’t know what can be more important than that.” Harbor responded, with a raise of an eyebrow. The mentor wasn’t mad, instead he was worried about the different responsibilities on the young man’s mind. Being distracted out on the field could mean life or death, and he wasn’t sure if Gekko had grasped that yet. He needed to make sure Gekko was here 100%.

“He wants to call his girlfriend” a voice said from behind.

Gekko and Harbor glanced behind them to find Yoru leaning on a wall near the entrance to the training lobby, using his comb, previously stolen by Wingman, to brush back his hair .

“I agree with Harbor, Gekko. As well as you did today, it couldn’t hurt to watch another team in action.” Sage added in.

Defeated, Mateo nodded. “Yes, Sage. Yes, Coach.” He would have to make up to you for missing your call. He had hoped the training sessions would be over before you went to bed. But, for now he had to think of an excuse.

Harbor and Sage left to the viewing area while the previous team continued putting their gear away as the second training team began to make their way in and get set up. Mateo shut his locker and grabbed his sash, beginning to walk away before Yoru spoke up.

“I give it another week, maybe a month max.” He said, twirling his knife.

Mateo paused and raised an eyebrow, “Give what a week?”

“Before your girlfriend breaks up with you” he shrugged.

“What are you talking about?” Mateo responded, a bit of a tension on his words. “If this is about your comb I already told you I-”

“It’s not about the comb.” Yoru said, his eyes fixated on the butterfly knife as it spun around his fingers. “A relationship won’t last here. At least not with an outside, and a non radiant at that. I’ve seen it before, it never works.”

Rolling his eyes, Mateo began to turn away “yeah whatever, thanks for the input, but you don’t know what you’re talking about.” Wingman started to growl slightly, and Mateo reached his hand up to calm the yellow radivore.

“Leave him alone, Yoru! I think it’s cute.” Jett said, walking up to the two and giving Yoru a quick smack to the shoulder.

Yoru brushed off his shoulder where Jett hit him as If he was brushing away dirt, “I’m simply just letting him know so that he can prepare.” The man said before heading towards his locker to get his gear.

Mateo began to leave again and Jett caught up to him, “Hey! We haven’t really gotten to know each other yet, just your little buddies.” Jett said, reaching up and giving Wingman a little scratch that he nuzzled into. “How about I watch the next sessions with you and Harbor?” She asked.

He shrugged, “Sure. I guess”. He was distracted by Yoru’s words. The past few weeks everything with him had been lies on his end and it was starting to eat at him. Reyna had been on recon for a week so he had no one to talk to about how he was feeling. Of course, Reyna never agreed that he should lie to you. She knew it wasn’t fair, and he knew it too. But, the only other option was to end the relationship and that was just something that he couldn’t even imagine and he wanted to try everything he could to avoid that outcome. So, even if she was here, he most likely wouldn't get the advice he was looking for. Mateo just couldn’t get over the fact that he was hurting you, when he was supposed to be protecting you and it was weighing on his shoulders like a ton of concrete.

“Don’t let him get to you.” Jett’s words snapped Mateo out of his thoughts.

“I’m not.. I’m just- It’s hard and- I just- I don’t know.” Mateo stumbled over his words, sighing as the two entered the viewing area. “I’ll be fine”

Jett nodded, not wanting to pry too much into the new recruits personal problems. “Well, if you want to talk about it. There are a lot of people here who will listen.” She said.

Mateo smiled slightly, “Gracias, Jett. I’ll make note of that.”

The two entered the viewing area, Jett whispered to Mateo. Not wanting to interrupt Sage and Harbor who were currently discussing the strategy of the next team which consisted of Phoenix, Yoru, Cypher, Skye, and Omen. “Want to make this interesting?” She asked.

He raised an eyebrow, “Interesante? How so?” He replied curiously.

“I bet you that Cypher gets knocked first and that Phoenix makes a fool of himself.” Jett smirked.

“You’re on.” Mateo replied, extending his hand for a binding handshake.

The two younger agents watched the training session as Harbor narrated to Mateo, mostly focusing on how Skye was utilizing her abilities as her and Mateo played the same role. He watched how the red headed Australian gained intel using her hawks to blind similar to Dizzy, and her tiger to scout for enemies and stun like Wingman..

After 10 minutes into the session, Mateo felt his phone start to buzz in his pocket, Wingman jumped down off Mateo’s shoulder and pulled the device out of Mateo’s pocket. His heart sank seeing your contact name and photo illuminating the screen. He sighed, staring at the call that was idling on his phone.

“Is that your girlfriend?” Jett whispered, as she looked over.

“Sí” Mateo responded, grabbing his phone from Wingman and putting it back in his pocket.

“She’s very pretty.”

“extremadamente” he smiled.

A few minutes later his phone buzzed again, and he repeated his motion of checking his phone to see your name and contact photo there once again. He frowned, it wasn’t like him to miss a call.

“Gekko, are you paying attention?” Harbor asked.

“What? Oh- Si Coach!” He said, glancing up and then down at his phone one last time.

“Oh there it is! Gekko look! You’ll miss it.” Jett said, excitement in her voice.

Mateo turned his phone off before looking up again, just in time to see Phoenix flash both Yoru and Cypher on accident while trying to enter onto the makeshift site for a retake. The dimension walker quickly teleported back to safety, groaning in frustration, leaving Phoenix and Cyper on the site. Omen quickly tried to place a smoke down, but Cypher was tagged 3 times by the robots guns, indicating that he was out for this round.

“Yes!!” Jett exclaimed. “Well done Phoenix, just how I figured it would play out!”

Sage and Harbor looked towards the girl, disappointment showing on Sage’s face.

“What I mean is… that was a bad move by Phoenix.”

Mateo rolled his eyes, chuckling as Jett tried to cover for herself.

Before Sage was able to reprimand Jett for praising her teammate’s failures for her own gain, Brimstone entered the viewing area, requesting an urgent audience with Sage in his office. Jett and Mateo shared a quick glance as Sage nodded, standing up before following Brimstone out, leaving the 3 agents to continue watching the training sessions.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Laying on your stomach in bed, you squint your eyes at your phone. It was nearly an hour after he said he would call and your third attempt to reach Mateo didn’t go through at all. You weren’t stupid. Your first and second call went through perfectly fine, so you knew he turned his phone off. Grumbling, you toss the device to the other side of your bed, and rested your head on your arms. ‘Maybe his class ran late.’ You thought to yourself. You had been doing a lot recently to give Mateo the benefit of the doubt. With him being in a new place, you were very patient with him adjusting to a new schedule. But you would be lying if you said you weren’t a bit frustrated with him missing your calls here and there. Maybe it was a bit selfish of you? He was living his own life. But, you knew this was just your way of trying to deal with the hurt of him not being here.

After spending some time clearing your head, you grabbed your phone and got up, making your way into the kitchen of your house to fix up a snack. Opening the fridge you stared at the contents for a few seconds before giving up and moving on to the pantry only to be met by a similar disappointment. “Dad! We don’t have anything to eat!!” You called out, waiting for a few seconds before a voice answered you yelling from upstairs, “What!? Yes we do! Make a sandwich or something, I’ll go shopping tomorrow.” You groaned, grabbing some bread from the pantry and various ingredients.

Your dad hurried into the kitchen, quickly grabbing a banana and pouring some coffee into a cup. “I’m running late, but remember I’m switching to the night shifts this week, your sister is out with some friends so you’ll be here at the house by yourself for a bit.” He said as he gathered his work supplies.

“I’m not a kid anymore dad. I’m 22, I think I can handle it.” You smirked.

Your dad chuckled, “well, since you’re not a kid. Maybe you can go to the store this week instead.”

You rolled your eyes while smiling. “Fineee” you dragged out your voice faking exhaustion. “I guess I can do that.”

You dad gave you a comforting squeeze on your shoulder as he began to leave the kitchen, “I appreciate you taking the time out of your ever-so-busy day to do that for me” He grinned. He headed towards the front door of your house. “Love you, text me if you need anything.” He called out behind him, leaving you alone in the now quiet house.

You finished constructing your sandwich and started to put everything away as well as wash your utensils before you sat down to eat. You looked up at the window above your sink, while you rinsed off a butter knife the darkness of the night causing your reflection to stare back at you. You froze when you thought you saw a figure dart past your kitchen entryway. Taking a deep breath you stared at the reflection, waiting to see if something else appeared.

When nothing else showed in the reflection, you set your dishes down quietly in the sink while trying to take calm and deep breaths. Turning around you slowly grabbed a kitchen knife out of the block sitting on the counter. Taking gentle steps you made your way down the hall towards your and your sisters bedrooms where you thought you saw the figure go, the knife clenched tightly in your grasp near your side. You passed your sister's room first, her door was wide open and you quickly turned on the lights. Your knuckles turning white as your grip tightens. Scanning the room, and looking under the bed, you didn't find anything. The room was empty, with only posters on the wall of your sisters favorite bands staring back at you.

Making your way to your room you took a deep breath before placing your hand on the door handle. Quickly, you swung open the door, stepping into your room and looking for any intruders. Seeing no one in your room you relaxed slightly, making your way over to your shared bathroom, you ripped the shower curtain open, revealing nothing more than the sparkling clean bathtub.

You placed the knife down, leaning on the counter of the bathroom as you stared into the mirror. “I’m losing my damn mind.” You said out loud, running your fingers through your hair. Your brain was playing tricks on you, that was the only reasonable explanation. Unless there was someone who could disappear into the shadows, there’s nowhere that anyone could have gone to hide if you truly saw someone. Still, the hair on the back of your neck was standing as you felt like you were being watched.

Your phone started ringing in your pocket, causing you to jump slightly. You pulled it out to see Mateo’s contact name and photo, bringing your anxiety down slightly. You answered the call and was met with his glimmering hazel eyes and bright smile, “Mi amor!! I’m lo siento mucho that I couldn’t take your calls and I missed our scheduled time. I had to stay late after class and my professor wanted to talk to me. I’m lo siento mucho. I will make it up to you I swear. Cruza mi corazón. We can-“

“It’s okay Mateo, I love you and I’m glad to see you” you said, cutting off his rambling. Your heart had finally slowed back to normal and your breaths had become less raggedy.

“(Y/n), are you alright?” Mateo asked, sensing that something was off.

You laughed, heading towards the kitchen to put your sandwich away as your appetite for the night had disappeared when your adrenaline rose. “Si, Teo. I’m just home alone and my eyes are playing tricks on me. I thought I saw something, but there’s nothing here”

Mateo raised an eyebrow, “well if you need anything. Call me, I can send someone to check up on you.” He said, a bit of worry in his words since he wasn’t there to protect you.

“I’m fine, Teo. I promise, but I’ll tell you right away if I hear or see anything unusual.” You said. “Gracias for worrying about me”

“Siempre. Always.” Mateo responded. “You’re one of the most important people in my life. Your safety will always be important to me, mi amor. Even if it's nothing, I still don’t want you to be scared. I would be on my way to you right now if I could”

You smiled, he always knew the right words to say. “Thank you, Mateo. And me to you, mi amor. But, I’m fine now” You said, as talking to him had seemed to calm your nerves.

You carried your phone back into your room and sat down at your desk. You propped Mateo up so that you could see him while you began to work on your homework, while Mateo talked about his day. As you opened up your laptop and began to navigate through your apps, your computer seemed to freeze up, a red screen flashing every few seconds with words appearing and disappearing too fast for you to read them. The screen flashed once more before everything returned to normal. “That’s strange…” you mumbled, wiggling your cursor.

“What’s strange?” Mateo asked.

You shook your head, “sorry I was talking to myself. My computer was freezing. But… it seems to be working fine now?”

“That is Strange.” Mateo responded. “But as long as it’s working, that’s good then? Right?”

You nodded, making sure everything opened properly, “yeah. Everything’s working. My essay is still here so nothing crashed.”

“Glad your work is still there.” Mateo smiled. His smile faltered when he looked over towards his window. “Hey, mi amor. I have to go.” He said.

You frowned, “so soon? Why? It’s only been a few minutes.”

He sighed, he didn’t want to leave. He was already concerned with what you had mentioned about possibly seeing something in the house. But, a message had popped up on his window ‘All agents to the strategy room immediately.’ “I know. Trust me I don’t want to go. But I have too, I’m needed.” He said.

“But why? Who needs you?” You protested. You wanted to talk to him for a bit longer, even if just for a few minutes.

“The people in my dorm... It’s a community meeting and I need to be there.”

“Bullshit, Mateo. Mierda! Why would you have a community meeting this late? It’s almost 10 pm. And I need you here…”

He looked down at the screen trying to think of what to say, “i know (y/n). I’ll be-”

You cut him off, “I've been really patient Mateo Armendáriz De la Fuente but, something about you school isn’t adding up, and it’s not fair. I think you’re lying to me and I hate thinking that way. Just tell me what’s going on! Please!”

Mateo’s eyes widened in hurt after hearing the harshness of you calling him his first name. He sighed, trying to find a way to explain himself “(y/n), por favor. I promise you, everything is true. I know it’s weird and I’m trying to adjust to it too. Te amo, but I have to go. If its not too late, I’ll be back as soon as I can.” He said, as he hung up.

You set your phone on your desk and pulled your knees up to your chest. Tears were welling up in your eyes as you tried to hold them in. You regretted what you said, you should have just let him go, but now the call you were looking forward to all day ended in a small fight. You had rarely fought with Mateo, and each one had been about something stupid, but this didn’t feel like the others. You hated this feeling. “Screw this damn school” you whispered, hugging your knees even tighter to your chest, you let the tears fall.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Mateo sat on the edge his bed, trying to catch his breath before he left his room. So far all of these meetings and alerts have had terrible timing. He wiped his eyes with his arm. He couldn’t cry, not right now. Not before heading to this meeting where everyone would see the new recruit with bloodshot eyes. Leaning his elbows against his knees he rested his head in his hands. Seeing how much you were hurting struck Mateo in the heart like a knife. And worse, he doubled down on his lies.

Sensing his distress, Wingman appeared from his resting spot in the shash, walking up to Mateo and snuggling against his arm. He wiped his eye once more before patting Wingman on the head, “thanks buddy. I just hope that this all works out in the end. I’m worried that Yoru is right. But I don’t know how to fix this without putting anyone in danger” he said.

Before Wingman could answer, a few loud knocks rang out on Mateo’s door. “Gekko!! What are you doing!? We’re waiting for you, get your ass out here, dude.” Neons voice rang out. Mateo stood up, grabbing his sash and placing Wingman on his shoulder. He opened the door to greet Neon, “I was on my way.” He responded.

Neon smirked looking at Gekko’s expression, “whatever, lover boy. They said this was important. And everyone’s waiting for you, even Reyna is back.” She said, turning on her heel has to lead Mateo to the strategy room.

Mateo blinked in surprise, as Neon began to walk away. Reyna was called back from recon for a meeting? Not knowing what to expect he jogged slightly to catch up to the blue haired girl, “Yo Neon! Wait up!”

Neon and Mateo entered the strategy room together, closing the door behind them. Brimstone and Sage were standing at the front of the room, before a holographic wall with many screens. Everyone else was seated throughout the room. Mateo noticed two empty chairs next to Reyna and made his way over to her with Neon. He looked around and noticed the only person missing was Chamber, who he had only met briefly as the French gunman seems to have the most leeway in being able to leave frequently.

“Good. Everyone’s here.” Brimstone said. “Let’s begin.”

“First off we want to prepare everyone. Sometime ago Omega Earth has recruited a new agent who’s abilities we are not aware of.” Sage said. Shock rang out through various members in the crowd, and a quiet murmuring began. Even though Mateo was new, he was aware that a new agent so soon after his recruitment was very out of the ordinary.

“A new agent?” Harbor responded, “how can this be? We just recruited Gekko less than a month ago.”

“Discrepancies between our worlds seem to be increasing the more that Omega interferes.” Brimstone responded. “This just happens to be one of them.”

“The information we retrieved has no date on it as well.” Sage added, “We have no idea when this agent was recruited. We only know it was in the last few months.”

Brimstone nodded, “That is correct. On future missions, we need to keep our guard up more than ever with the possibility of facing this new agent head on.”

“Do we have no intel on this new agent or the abilities they could possess?” Viper added.

Sage shook her head, “we do not. Cypher was able to retrieve one file from the Omega database, but it has further encryptions than previous files we have managed to retrieve in the past. Until Cypher is able to unencrypt the file, we know nothing other than that their placeholder name is Lux.”

The murmuring continued as everyone theorized what the new agent was capable of and when we would see their counterpart on our team.

Brimstone coughed to get everyone’s attention, “moving on to the next order of business…” he said, flipping through some files. “During the same data retrieval, we discovered intel that Omega is planning a raid on Thimphu, Bhutan; Codename: Haven. The team for defending against this raid will be Reyna, Jett, kill Joy, Omen, and Gekko.”

Mateo perked up at his name. This would be his first mission, the moments he had been training for had been leading up to this. “Alright! first mission!” Neon whispered, nudging Mateo with her elbow.

“Harbor will prepare you on the makeup and general knowledge of the area beforehand. The raid was scheduled for a week from now, but we will be on the lookout for more information. Use this time to prepare. With that you are dismissed” Brimstone finished, closing his file.

Everyone started to stand up and Mateo turned to Reyna wanting to catch up and possibly get her advice on the problem he was currently facing., “mi Reyna-“ he started, but was interrupted by Sage “Reyna, can Brimstone and I speak with you to discuss recent findings?” She asked.

Reyna looked at Mateo, “my apologies, Cariño. We will speak soon.” She said with a smile, excusing herself as she walked up to Sage and Brimstone who were looking at a holographic map on the table before them.

“Come on, let’s go get something to eat. I’m starving” Neon said to Mateo in a voice that seemed like she wouldn’t take no for an answer. Mateo nodded, following the blue haired girl to the kitchen.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“How many have you recorded?” Reyna asked Brimstone and Sage as she looked at the map after they were the last three alone in the strategy room..

“Just two.” Sage responded, “one was a few weeks before Gekko was recruited. And the other was just today. But both alerts of Omega agent teleportation have pinged right outside Los Angeles city limits.”

“I see. Do you think they are looking for him? Or do they know he is with us now?” Reyna asked.

“Unknown on if it's about Gekko of the general area. But if they have plans for Los Angeles, we need to find out as soon as possible. Between now and the Haven mission, you are in charge of organizing a small recon force to see if you can find anything.” Brimstone responded.

Reyna nodded, taking her orders.

“Also, Reyna, Do not tell Gekko. I do not think it would be in his best interest to be a part of this recon.” Sage added, “with this being so close to his home, we do not want to add on to any stress he might be facing as he adjusts to his life here and prepares for the mission at hand”

“I agree, Sage. That is for the best. One less thing to draw his mind back home.” Reyna said.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It all happened so fast.

Mateo was left to hold C on Haven with Reyna and KillJoy on A, Omen holding Garage, and Jett on top of Boxes on B. He remembered being nervous on and before the helicopter ride to Bhutan. Harbor had given him a pep talk before they packed up to leave, but it only helped him calm his nerves slightly. Jett had given him some words of encouragement too, telling him how she felt like she almost screwed up her entire first mission. He knew she was trying to help but it only made him feel worse.

“There’s 3 pushing A site. Hold your positions until told otherwise.” Reyna spoke over the earpieces.

Mateo stood backside, aiming a vandal down C long as he took partial cover behind boxes, Wingman and Dizzy at his ready.

“Omega Skye is downed!” Killjoy reported, gunshots heard in the distance signified that the fight was not over.

Jett came in over the coms, “I saw Omega Phoenix peak mid window, and I heard footsteps in mid!”

“Gekko, Omen, rotate to B with Jett” Reyna instructed.

“I’m on my way” Mateo spoke into his earpiece, gathering up Wingman and Dizzy as he made his way towards the site, while Omen made his way through garage doors to mid, smoking mid window.

“My turret’s down and I’m hit!” Killjoy grunted through her mic.

“KillJoy stay in cover.” Reyna demanded, a few gunshots could be heard over the coms, “Omega Sova is buried. Seems like I’m the hunter now” She sneered. With Sova now down this left one alive on A, Phoenix near Mid, and another unknown agent last heard near mid.

As the Omega Phoenix made it to site he sent out his flash, successfully blinding Mateo and Jett. Mateo ducked behind boxes for cover, and Jett jumped down, avoiding the gunshots. Omen was able to sneak up behind the Omega Phoenix and fire two shots at him, sending the counterpart to spin around and return fire. Omen grunted as he was grazed, before teleporting to a new line of sight. While Phoenix was still turned this allowed both Mateo and Jett to peak mid, Jett taking the final shot at Phoenix, sending him to the ground.

“Fireboy is down.” Jett said while staring at the body. Mateo had to look away. He knew it wasn’t ‘their Jamie’, and that they always came back, but he just couldn’t stop imagining the Jamie he knew lying there motionless on the grass.

Omen spoke up “That leaves 2 more, if they brought 5.”

“The noise at A has stopped, I believe it was a Harbor.” Reyna replied

“Nothing Mid” Jett said as she peaked through the area coming back to B.

Mateo held his position at B, looking towards the C connector. Just as he heard a Vandal click accompanied by a voice he knew all too well, “los siento, mi cariño”. Omega Reyna peaked from behind gong, where she must have snuck to when they were focused on Phoenix. Mateo turned around to aim but in one swift click from Reyna’s gun, the world began to move in slow motion. He heard Jett scream out for him, but he could have sworn she sounded like you. Within a blink of an eye his world was engulfed in darkness.

Through the darkness he heard crying, muffled crying in the distance. It was yours. The darkness began to lighten ever so suddenly, like a slow sunrise. He began walking towards the noise, the crying getting louder, and clearer the closer he got. He began to run, trees were materializing before him, grass was beginning to appear under his feet. The fog was clearing up, he ran faster. He finally made it to a clearing and he found you, but instead of being relieved he was met by sudden fear. You stood, back turned to him in a black dress. Falling to your knees you cried into your hands. Mateo called out to you, but you didn’t answer. He walked towards you and placed a hand on your shoulder, only to see it go right through. His heart started racing and his head felt heavy when he saw the writing of the tombstone you were kneeling in front of, “Mateo Armendáriz De la Fuente, beloved son” his heart felt like it was going to explode out of his chest, though he reached up and couldn’t feel a heartbeat.

“Why did you lie to me, you made me believe you were safe. Why didn’t you trust me, why did you hide this from me?!” You yelled at the tombstone. Mateo took a few steps back, grabbing onto his head. Wingman, dizzy, and thrash were nowhere to be found, and he couldn’t sense them. This couldn’t be happening.

You stood up and turned to face Mateo, looking right at him, “why did you put me through all this pain, Mateo?”

Mateo shot up in his bed with a yell, cold sweat running down his forehead. He reached his hand up to his chest and felt his heart beating extremely fast, but at least he could feel it. He jumped as something touched him in the dark only to be relieved after sensing it was Wingman. “I’m alright, I’m alright” he breathed. He checked the clock on his phone. It was 4:30 AM, Tuesday. “Okay. It’s only Tuesday… the mission doesn’t even happen until tomorrow” he said to Wingman, still catching his breath. “It was just a Dream…a pesadilla”

Turning on his light, he scanned his room, making sure it truly had been a dream and nothing was out of place. He looked at Wingman, who was now accompanied by Dizzy and Thrash as they had also sensed his distress.

“I have to tell her. I have to tell her everything”, he said.

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batofburnside · 1 year ago

Text

2nd Update on “Tell Me” Pt2

Ummm yeah so uh, I’ve been writing a lot (62 pages so far) and decided I actually wanted to release part two and three at the same time. So part two is completely done!! I have less than 5 more scenes left of part 3 and then they will both be out!!

So here’s a very tiny sneak peek

#gekko valorant #gekko x fem! reader #gekko x reader #gekko #Gekko x female reader

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batofburnside · 1 year ago

Note

Little Update on “Tell Me” pt 2!!!

Omg so it’s already double the size of part 1. I have about 5k-ish words already and I’m still not to the part where I want it to end. It will DEFINITELY have a part 3 I know that for sure. I’ve been taking breaks from writing to go in and rewrite/edit certain scenes. Here’s to hoping to see it posted in the next 48 hours!

Make "tell me" part two please, i enjoyed your writing alot and i wanna know what happends next

Thank you!! I’m glad people are liking it, I was a bit nervous posting it. I believe I’ve finalized how I want part 2 to go and am hoping to have it out in the next few days!!!

Again thank you so much 💚💜

#gekko x fem! reader #gekko x reader #gekko valorant #Gekko x female reader

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batofburnside · 1 year ago

Note

Make "tell me" part two please, i enjoyed your writing alot and i wanna know what happends next

Thank you!! I’m glad people are liking it, I was a bit nervous posting it. I believe I’ve finalized how I want part 2 to go and am hoping to have it out in the next few days!!!

Again thank you so much 💚💜

#gekko x reader #gekko valorant #gekko

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batofburnside · 1 year ago

Text

Tell Me

Gekko x (Fem!)Reader

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Part 1 / Part 2 / Part 3

Hi everyone! This is my first Gekko fanfic and my first fanfic posted on tumblr. I am hoping for this to be a 3+ parter. I used google translate for most of the Spanish that wasn’t just a few words so I apologize if anything gets lost in translation, I am not fluent.

TW: mentions of murder, angst, (kinda?) manipulation

Premise: Gekko is your boyfriend and has been for a few years. Before you made it official you were best friends and attached at the hip. You both attend the same college in LA. A few months ago he came to you and let you know he had received a scholarship to a prestigious and private university up north, and that he accepted it. What the reader doesn’t know is that there is no college and that he has been recruited into the top secret Valorant Protocol. He has been told by Brimstone, Sage, and Reyna that you and the people close to him are to know nothing about what he is up to. But as you start to sense his lies, will your relationship survive?

Words: 2.8K

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

“Ta da!” You exclaimed, removing your hands from the view of the person who sat in front of you, allowing them to get a full view of their new hair in the mirror.

“Woah, mi Amor” Your boyfriend, Mateo, whispered as he inched closer to the mirror, a smirk forming on his lips while he took in his new hair color. Green - neon green in fact. When he had called you over for a surprise you didn’t expect that he was going to dye his hair before he moved away for his studies. You definitely didn’t expect that he chose neon green of all the colors.

As you mixed the color and applied it, you had silently mourned his beautiful blonde that was now to be covered. But, seeing the glimmer in his hazel eyes as you met his gaze through the mirror made all of your worry go away. He was certain this is what he needed as he moved away from his mom and from you.

“Do you like it?” You asked, nervous about your work. You had really only dyed your own hair once before. You were worried about patchy areas or leaving it on too long.

“Like it?” He replied back, “Me encanta, cariño! I love it! Thank you” Mateo turned around and moved the chair he was sitting on out of the way, scooping you up in his arms and spinning you. Your laughter harmonizes with his. As he places you back down on the ground, he cups your cheek before giving you a quick kiss. You lean into his kiss, trying to savor the last bit of time with him before he leaves.

“You know…” you start to say as you pull away, “I’ll always support you, but you don’t have to change yourself for new people” you said in regards to this change in his hair as well as the new tattoo he has been hiding under long sleeves. Mateo tenses up slightly at your words, involuntarily rubbing his wrist where his new tattoo lay on his skin. He wants nothing more than to tell you about Kingdom, about the Valorant Protocol, about everything. But for your safety, he can’t. So, as far as you know, he’s going to a private university up north to finish up his degree.

“I’m not changing for anyone, mi amor. These were just things I’ve been wanting to do for a while.” He says as he reaches his hand out to you, pushing a strand of hair behind your ear. “What’s this?” He smiles, “¿una sorpresa?” seeing a bit of new color in your hair hidden by your nape, twirling the new strand of neon green hair around his finger as he changes the topic.

Your face flushes red “well… I had to do a test strand and… now I have something to always remind me of you while you’re away.”

He chuckled slightly and hugged you tight, “Now we match. But, no te preocupes, I’ll video call you whenever I can. I promise, (y/n).”

You leaned into his hug, “I know, Teo. That doesn’t mean I won't miss you any less” you closed your eyes as you held onto him tight, struggling to prevent any tears from leaving. Mateo sighed slightly as he rested his chin on the top of your head. He pulled you in closer to him, one hand on the back of your head, the other wrapped around your shoulders. The decision to join the Valorant Protocol had weighed heavily on Mateo’s shoulders. It hurt him to leave you, more than you would ever know. But, he had to do this. He had to do this for his mom, for Reyna, and especially for you.

He loosens the hug, looking down at you. “Ey, why don’t we show my mom my new cabello?” He smiles, trying to cheer you up. You shake your head, “Teo no! She’ll kill me!” You laugh.

“Nah! I’ll tell her it was all my plan. Vamos!” He grabs your hand before you can protest and hurries out of his room, dragging you with him, “Ey¡ Mamá¡ Tengo algo que mostrarte¡'' he yells, while you giggle as he pulls you through his house.

The reaction from Mateo’s mom was roughly how you expected it to go. You watched as she went through the stages of grief in regards to seeing her son's natural hair replaced with Green. You had tried to stifle your laughter as Mateo tried to sheepishly explain his reason and thought process all while she yelled at him in Spanish. Eventually she gave in and had Mateo set the table for dinner. The rest of the night was how it normally went when you had dinner at Mateo’s house. You loved his mom’s home cooked meals, and gladly accepted the seconds she forced upon your plate. As you ate, you smiled at the shared banter between Mateo and his mom, laughing at the remarks and jokes you could understand. Normally you picked up a few words here and there, and a select few phrases when Mateo and his mom spoke in Spanish, which is a big improvement from when he first brought you over for dinner 4 years ago.

As the night ended, Mateo walked you to your car carrying a bin of homemade tamales his mom had packed up for you and your family. He pulled you in for a kiss before sending you off. “Drive safe, cariño. And text me when you get home, por favor.” He opened your car door for you and you nodded “of course, babe. I’ll see you tomorrow?” You asked, as you were going to be taking Mateo to the bus station to see him off.

“Sí, señora. I’ll see you tomorrow” he said, giving you another kiss on the cheek. “Te amo”. You returned his kiss before getting into your car, “Te amo también” you smiled. His eyes glimmered in the streetlights as he smiled, he loved hearing you say the phrases he taught you. He loved sharing his culture with you.

You pulled your car away from the curb and started your drive. Mateo waved as he watched you drive down the street, waiting to go inside until he saw your car disappear as it turned down another street. He walked inside and to his room, reaching under his head he pulled out a sash, similar to an over the shoulder bag, and set it on his bed. “Mi amigos, you can come on out now” he whispered as four tiny animal-like creatures appeared from the central area of the sash. A yellow one that stood on two legs, a blue one that floated in the air and seemed to have a hard shell of sorts on the top. A green ball that hopped straight into Mateo’s hand, and a pink creature that seemed to swim above the ground like a shark. The yellow creature walked up to Mateo, sensing any distress and grabbed onto his arm, noises similar to gargles emerging from the small creature. The man smiled as he understood what the creature was saying, “Thank you Wingman. I just sometimes wonder if I’m making the right choice. ?Sabes¿”

The blue creature came up to Mateo and rubbed against his cheek, while purring. He chuckled, “thank you, Dizzy. Unfortunately, I can’t tell (y/n). It would put her in danger, there is no way I can do that to her.

The shark-like creature grumbled, Mateo turned to it, “I’m sorry Thrash, I know you don’t like being hidden from her… or anytime, but it would just cause too many questions. Don’t worry girl, after tomorrow you won’t have to hide anymore.”

Just then, Mateo’s phone buzzed and he smiled seeing the text from you; ‘Home safe <3’.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The ride from Mateo’s house to the bus station had your stomach filled with anxiety. You had been dreading the day he left, and had hoped somehow it wouldn’t come. But it was here, and in just a few minutes you would be dropping him off and would only see him maybe once or twice every few months. Mateo’s mom riding in the back of your car also did not help your anxiety. Of course you loved his mom, and you’ve known her for years, that still doesn’t mean that you weren’t absolutely terrified of embarrassing yourself in front of her.

Mateo noticed how stiff you held onto the steering wheel of your car. He reached over and placed his hand on one of your shoulders to try his best to smooth you, “(y/n), you alright?” He said. Before you could answer his mom spoke up, “Mateo! Don’t distract her while she’s driving, tu sabes mejor!”

Mateo groaned and pulled his hand away, turning his head towards the window as he rolled his eyes, “vamos mamá, está bien.”

His mom huffed, “no esta bien, Mateo! Es imprudente.”

“Mamá-“

“Sólo espero que no seas imprudente con el protocolo-“

You heard Mateo inhale as he turned around quickly in his seat, “¡No puedes hablar de eso! ¡tú lo sabes!“

“simplemente no quiero que te lastimes. Solo estoy asustada Mateo…”

He sighed, his voice changing from worry to understanding, “Lo sé mamá... Estaré a salvo, I promise.”

Mateo turned back in his seat and you looked in the rear view mirror to see his mom silently wiping underneath her eyes. “Is everything alright?” You asked in a whisper. Mateo nodded, “Sí. She's just worried about me being in a new place.” He said, telling part of the truth. “I understand that feeling,” you replied. “Well, like I told mamá, I’ll be fine, mi amor. I promise” he said resting a hand on your knee.

You looked back in the mirror again, to his mom silently trying to compose herself as more tears fell from her eyes and you wondered if that was truly what his mom was worried about.

After you pulled your car up to the bus station, you helped grab Mateo’s things out of the trunk while his mom pulled him into a hug while kissing his temple. “Mamá, chill” he laughed after the 4th or 5th temple kiss. He walked over to you and grabbed his bag from your hand, “(y/n) I got it! You should have let me help you.” He said as you handed him his skateboard. “I wanted to give you some time with your mom.” You smiled. He set his bag and skateboard on the ground before pulling you into a kiss, not caring that his mom was just 3 feet behind him, you wrapped his arms around him as you focused on how soft his lips felt. You wanted to memorize as much of his warmth, smell, and feelings before he left.

As you two separated, his eyes lit up, “I almost forgot! But I got you something.” He said as he started digging through a pocket on his bag. As he found what he was looking for, he pulled out a small jewelry box and handed it to you. You delicately took the small box and opened it to find a beautiful and tasteful heart shaped locket. Engraved on the back ‘for mi amor. Love, Teo’ “Oh my, Mateo…” you said, in shock. “How much did this cost you?” You asked, hoping he didn’t spend a ton of money on you.

“Don’t worry about it.” He said, grinning like a puppy, “open it.”

You took the pendant and saw the hinge where it opened. As it did you noticed the two pictures inside. One the left side was your first selfie with Mateo, shortly after you two began dating. He was kissing your cheek and your eyes were closed in a moment of bliss. On the right side of the locket held a more recent picture of you and Mateo. You two were both making silly faces at the camera, but it captured the essence of your relationship. “Those are two of my favorite pictures of us” He said, pulling you out of your memories. “I just wanted you to have something to hold close to your heart while I was away. I hope it’s not too…er..sappy?” he said, his face flushed as he rubbed the back of his neck.

“Teo, thank you so much. I love it. Me encanta!” You said before throwing your arms around him. He held onto you tight before you both heard a familiar and soothing voice from behind you. “Que dulce, Mateo.”

You released your arms from Mateo and he set you down before looking in the direction of the voice, and his eyes lit up. “Zyanya!” He said, walking up to the tall and intimidating woman before giving her a hug.

“Mateo, (y/n), great to see you.” Zyanya said before walking up to Mateo’s mom and giving her a hug. You had met Zyanya before. You knew she wasn’t related to Mateo, but that she and Mateo’s mom had a close bond, and that he had always seen Zyanya as an aunt. Other than that, you didn’t know much about the woman. She was always friendly to you, as she knew you made Mateo happy. You refrained from asking her much about herself, as she always had this intimidating aura when she was around, and you couldn’t quite explain it.

“We better get going, cariño. The bus will be here soon.” Zyanya said to Mateo. You had heard Mateo mention before that Zyanya would be riding the bus and then train with him up to his school as she apparently lived nearby. This arrangement was apparently planned by his mother to ease her worries about him traveling alone, at least that’s what he told you.

Mateo nodded, “Sí, we should probably get to boarding.” He said, a solemn look flashing over his face as he looked to his mom and then towards you. He grabbed your hand and pulled you close, wiping away a tear that had fallen from your eyes without your permission. “I’ll text you as soon as I get there mi amor. And then I’ll video call you and show you my dorm, and you can help tell me where to put some decorations. Trato?”

You nodded, sniffling as more tears fell from your eyes. You wrapped your arms around him. Pulling him into another hug as he kissed the top of your head. “I have to go no, mi amor. Te amo mucho. More than anything” he whispered to you, before giving you a quick goodbye kiss.

After he pulled away he went over to his mom and pulled her into a hug, giving her a kiss on the top of her head as well. He whispered something in Spanish, that you couldn’t quite make out, but saw as his mom nodded and gave him a kiss on the temple. His mom exchanged a hug and a few words with Zyanya before the two of them walked to the doors of the bus station. Zyanya was the first to enter, Mateo took a pause as he turned around and waved before entering.

As the doors shut behind him, you couldn’t help but shake the pit of dread that had immediately fell into your stomach. He was just going to school? He would be back before you knew it for a visit. So why did you feel so anxious? The fact that you couldn’t visit him there had upset you when he first told you about it, but it was something you quickly got over. You understood some schools had weird and random rules. Or, at least that’s what you were telling yourself.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After you dropped Mateo’s mom back off at their house, you drove straight home. His mom of course sent you home with some food, which you put into the fridge to save for later as you had no appetite at the moment. You texted Mateo that you had dropped off his mom and made it home yourself, staring at the screen you waited for the usual instant reply, but nothing appeared. You stared at the screen for a few more seconds before scrolling away, you and Mateo had never shared your locations with each other so there was no need to try and see where he was. Maybe he had fallen asleep on the train? Or maybe he and Zyanya had to switch trains and were busy boarding. There were many scenarios you could think of, but each one was starting to bring back the pit of anxiety that had burrowed into your core. You put your phone face down on your desk and turned on some music to try and distract yourself from your mind. You knew the absence of Mateo was only going to get worse, in four years you haven’t gone a day without seeing him at least for a few minutes. Before you two were officially dating he was your best friend. Whether it was him bringing you lunch to work during your breaks, or your date nights, and the occasional sleep overs at your house your life was always filled with an aspect of him.

Hours later your dad knocked on your bedroom door and opened it, finding you struggling with your bed as you had pushed it from one end of the room to the other.

“Watcha doing?” Your dad said, trying to speak over the music you had blaring in your room.

“What??” You said, as you continued pushing your bed towards the other wall, not hearing your dad over the music. Your dad sighed as he walked into your room and made his way through the maze of furniture you had created. As he approached your speaker he turned the music down, pulling you out of your trance. The resistance of your bed finally up against the wall had you sink to the floor, catching your breath as you turned and rested your back against your bed.

“So….” Your dad started, “redecorating?”

“Mhm” you answered. Resting your head in your hands, not realizing how much energy you had actually used in the last few hours.

“Has Mateo updated you yet?” He asked

You paused, trying to pretend like you didn’t hear the question before you let out a soft, “no.”

Your dad walked over to you, sitting down quietly so that his back was also resting against your bed. “He will soon, maybe his service is really bad. You did say he was going to be up in the mountains up north? Right?”, he said, reaching over to rub your back.

You shook your head. It had been hours nearly 13 hours since he said goodbye to you at the station, and he hadn’t even texted you back yet or that he was safe, “no he probably met some better friends, and he’s going to forget about me” you said through ragged breaths, tears starting to form.

Your dad pulled you close, “you know that’s nonsense right? I’ve seen how he looks at you. That’s not something you can throw away after a few hours. Ever since your mother, I’ve been scared of me not being able to see the signs of someone who is not right for you. But with Mateo, I saw all the right signs of someone who would take care of you.”

You leaned into your dad, it had taken him a while to learn the right things to say for two daughters when they needed help. And even when he didn’t quite get it right, it always meant a lot to you. The First Light had affected many families in many different ways and for your family, your mom was in the wrong place at the wrong time when she was a victim of an armed bank robbery by two newly radianite humans trying to test out their new powers. Your dad stepping into your moms shoes when she died after you were only 12 and your sister was 8 sure wasn’t an easy role. But, you had so much appreciation for everything he had given for you and your sister.

“I love you, dad.” You said, sniffling as you regained your breath.

“I love you too, (nickname)” he replied, ruffling your hair. You laughed as you struggled away from your dads grasp. The sound of your phone vibrating, gaining your attention, you jumped up and ran over towards your desk, jumping over the furniture scattered about. You walked back over to your dad beaming, “it’s Teo!” You said.

“Hey, what did I tell you?” He shrugged. You rolled your eyes as you started pushing your father towards the door of your room, “I love you dad, but get out. Now! Please!!”

“I’m leaving. I’m leaving.” He said, sighing as you closed the door in his face. “It was so much easier before boys came into the picture.” He muttered while looking up towards the ceiling.

You answered your phone to Mateo’s smiling face, “(y/n)!! Mi amor, Te extraño mucho!!” He exclaimed though his smile faltered when he saw your eyes were red. “Querida, have you been crying?” He asked

You shook your head, “I’m okay, I missed you too, mi amor. How was your train and spending time with Zyanya?”

Mateo knew you were lying about not crying, but he also knew you enough to know that if you wanted to talk about it, you would. He just hoped that you were alright. “It was peaceful” He said, “you would have loved the views” he wasn’t really lying. He was sure the view he had from the helicopter to the remote island of the Valorant Protocol was on level with the view of mountains from a train ride.

“I'm sure!” You said, “did you take any pictures?”

“Oh, um.. Sí!! Yeah I’ll have to send them to you when we’re off the phone.” He replied.

Before you could ask him about his hesitation, you heard what sounded like a gargle coming from behind him. “Mierda!” He quickly jerked his camera to the right before setting it face down on his bed. His camera turned black as you heard him scramble about his room muttering something you couldn’t make out.

“Teo, are you alright?” You asked.

It took a second before he came back. “Lo siento, mi amor. I was trying to hook up this retro gaming system and it randomly turned on with the volume all the way up.” He said. He was feeling guilty about how much he was having to lie to you, but he couldn’t show it on his face.

“Oh! I see.” You laughed, “that’ll be fun once it starts working when you want it too.”

He chuckled slightly, his eyes looking over to one side of the room. “Sí”

“So, show me around your room!” You said.

Mateo smiled and nodded, “Sí señora”. He had already hidden everything that had to do with the Valorant Protocol, and set his “window” to a nice wooded view. He turned the camera around and showed you the bare bones of his room. It was bare with just a desk, bed, closet, and a dresser. Though, you couldn’t help but notice… there was no gaming system in his room. It wasn’t like him to lie to you, so you decided to let it go.

“Seems spacious” you replied. “Lots of room for activities. So, have you met anyone yet?”

“Yeah!” He said, enthusiastically. “There’s some people I think we would get along with. They’re a few doors over to me but I don’t know much about them yet. They seem nice though!”

You couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy, you suddenly pictured all the times he would be hanging out with people he was meeting and how you would be left in LA. “That’s great.” You said

He noticed the sudden sullen look in your eyes and frowned, “(y/n), are you alright?” He asked.

As you went to answer him, an alarm went off in the background of his room and the lights began to flash red. “What is that!?” You asked.

“Uh.. Fire alarm!” He said loudly, an uneasy look on his face. “We were told it would be muy ruidoso. Don’t worry it’s just a drill but I have to go!” He said, trying to talk over the alarm. You noticed that there was a voice accompanying the alarm but you couldn’t make out what it said. “Te amo!” He yelled before the call ended.

“-Te amo-“ you tried to get it out in time for him to hear you but you were only left staring at the video image of yourself. You threw your phone down on your bed and sighed as you stared up to the ceiling. Something shady was going on. You didn’t want to believe it, but Mateo was lying to you about something, and you needed to get to the bottom of it.

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