K/DA looked at the object on the coffee table like it was a timebomb counting down to their demise. Hawk leaned back and took a long pull from his cigar. Akali was gripping your wrist so tight that you were certain it had drawn blood, but given the circumstances, you didn't blame her. You stared down at the object with the same trepidation as everyone else, expecting it to erupt and destroy you any second.
Evelynn: I could just destroy it. We could go on with our lives like nothing ever happened.
Hawk: That would be the wise decision.
You bit your lip and glanced at each face in the room. They were all glaring daggers. If the mere idea of it had caused this reaction, then it meant a few things. The first was that they obviously wanted to keep you safe, something you found very touching, like a pack of wolves shielding an injured cub from a bear. The second thing was that it established everyone in the room was on your side in this matter, even the ones that knew both involved parties – meaning Ahri, Hawk, and obviously Akali. The third and final thing this meant, was that what you were about to do was a very bad idea.
Akali: You're sure?
Y/N: I have to know. If I don't then it'll haunt me forever.
Kai'sa: You could just move on with your life. It would be the grownup thing to do. It'd spare everyone's feelings, especially a certain someone's.
She coughed and looked in Akali's direction. You lowered your head in shame. Akali released her grip and quickly covered your hands. You looked into her eyes and saw concern. It tore you up inside.
Akali: I don't have to worry. . . do I?
Y/N: Never. I'm here. I'm staying here. But I have to know what happened. I wasn't drunk, I know I wasn't drunk. Something happened to me that night.
Akali: Then I trust you.
Your girlfriend smiled her fakest, most reassuring smile. The phone on the table buzzed softly and quickly found a kunai dug into the wood directly next to it. Ahri grumbled about the table being expensive but no one responded to her. The room held its breath, no one went for the beeping device for a long moment. Eventually, Hawk swore and scooped up your phone.
Hawk: Noon tomorrow, small café by the water. She asked for Y/N, Akali, and myself. Said she'll explain everything once we get there. . . and. . . dear lord.
He turned the phone with a look of pure repulsion. Sona had put a small heart emoticon after the message.
Y/N: Fuck. She remembered my hatred of emojis. This is worse than I feared.
Akali: Sorry, are we going to ignore the fucking heart?!
Ahri: She sends hearts after most messages.
She pulled out her phone and found her last conversation with Sona, showing Akali that – indeed – there were hearts after each conversation ended. The only difference was that those were emoji-style hearts instead of emoticons.
Y/N: If she sent emojis then we would be in the clear. But since it's not. . .
Hawk: She still has feelings.
Akali: Cunt.
Kai'sa: Language.
Akali: Bite me.
You swiped your phone and texted back that you would all be there. It was a selfish move. You were putting Akali and yourself at risk by letting her speak her peace, but you had to know what happened that night. Sona had cut contact and you hadn't heard a word from her since, so that she would randomly pop up now was unsettling.
Y/N: It's done.
Hawk: Then I'll make the arrangements. Damage control will be on standby.
Kai'sa: Why would we need damage control? Seems like we're being a bit dramatic for a group of former friends getting coffee.
Hawk: Let me lay this out. Sona is one of the most recognizable stars on the planet. That was part of the problem with Y/N and her's relationship. If someone recognizes Sona then it'll be a mess; Korea is famous for its crazy star culture and fans would be rushing to the scene to get a glimpse at her. Then we have Akali over here, who is part of the most trending group in the country. Who just released a single that has topped every chart in the country. And not only will we need someone to make sure the crowds don't swarm us, but we also need a medic and a good legal team on standby for Sona.
Everyone perked up and eyed him strangely.
Ahri: Why would we need that?
Hawk: Because – and let's be completely honest with ourselves – Akali is going to beat that bitch's face as blue as her hair.
There was a moment of stunned silence as his words soaked into the room. He seriously believed that Akali was unhinged enough just randomly attack a helpless girl in pub-. . .
It seemed that the others had come to a similar conclusion as Kai'sa shifted awkwardly.
Kai'sa: I mean. . . I could see it happening.
Akali: What?! I'm not some psychopath! If she tries to take him back or make a move I- I'll probably get defensive. But I won't hurt her! Geez!
She swore in. . . Korean? You couldn't tell. But you did have to disagree with your cousin on that part. Akali was a good person. She wouldn't attack Sona without extreme provocation. Akali could be just as gentle, sensitive, and sweet as the songstress – even more so. She had even gone through character development as well during the last arc dammit!
Akali: But I will stab that bitch if she touches you.
Or not. . .
_______________________________________
Akali decided to dress down for the meetup. She wore a grey hoodie and black yoga pants. She considered that most people would have dressed up when going with their partner to meet an old flame, but that wasn't the case here. Sure, it was easy to say that you were better than your competition by dressing up in some designer clothing with gold and silver adorning every finger. Your makeup could be perfect and your hair could draw the eye of every passerby. Or you could decide to not do any makeup in the morning, you could dress in casual clothing and tie your hair in a knot. You could do that as well and – in Akali's mind – it was an even bigger flex.
Going out looking casual and slightly disheveled had a power to it. It showed that either you didn't care what everyone else thought, or that you were comfortable enough with your partner that you didn't need to impress them anymore. And Akali was comfortable enough with Y/N for that even though their relationship was only roughly a month old. Well, she was mostly comfortable with it, they hadn't actually gone on an official date with just the two of them. . . yet.
It was fine. This romance was her dream come true. . . even though there hadn't been much romance to speak of. There was no sneaking into each other's rooms late at night, or staring up at the stars on the back patio. . . or affirmations of love. They did kiss pretty often, light kisses that put her in a good mood. No deep make-out sessions or passionate fits of lust. She was able to cling to his arm and they cuddled occasionally. . .
Is this what love is like for adults? Ugh! It's so dull.
Then again, she wondered if he might have been too timid to make the first move Yes, that was it. He was simply not wanting to rush her and was being gentlemanly about it.
Y/N: Akali, keep up.
Akali snapped out of her trance, realizing that she was falling significantly behind the rest of the group. She appreciated the way everyone was arrayed as they wanted toward their destination. They formed a shield in front of her and Y/N. They might not have looked intimidating, but boy it was good to have all of the supernatural freaks in her life on her side.
Everyone had dressed incognito for the meeting.
Evelyn wore one of her thousands of wigs, a long black one. Her shirt was a band shirt that had 'Sevendust' in faded bold print on the front. She also wore blue contacts that gave her eyes a greenish look when combined with her natural yellow. Black pants and combat boots clad her legs and feet. She also kept glancing at Akali in a weird way, almost like she was. . . concerned?
Ahri wore a white hoodie that perfectly hid her ears. She wore black aviators to cover her eyes and carried a blue bag. She had cut a hole in the back and stuffed her tail in it. She looked like a hungover college student on her way to class. That may have been what she was going for as she wore simple sneakers.
Kai'sa. . . Kai'sa did not get the memo it seemed. She kept her purple hair – dyed that way for the Pop/Stars music video – out for the world to see. She also had on a pink crop top and black shorts. . . short shorts. She wore golden rings and a heavy diamond necklace. It was uncharacteristically over the top. She looked like she had stepped right out of a music video, but that may have been the point.
Hawk was the most incognito, oddly enough, just blending in with everyone else wearing their black business suits. He slowed his pace to fall in step with her behind the rest of the group.
Hawk: You look nervous.
Akali: Nah I'm good.
Hawk: You sure? It's not too late to talk him out of this. Lord above knows I want to.
Akali: Then why are we going along with this? I'm all for ghosting her and getting ice cream instead.
Hawk: Their breakup was bad, like really bad as far as I could tell. The music industry blew up about it.
Akali: Yeah, I 'member. That's how I knew I could take him in the first place.
Hawk: So this was all part of your master plan? Damn, you really were playing the long game.
He gave her a cheeky grin that earned him a smack on the shoulder.
Akali: Laugh all you want. I won. He's mine and she's never taking him from me.
Hawk: I don't think it'll be her we'll have to worry about.
Akali: What's that supposed to mean?
Hawk: His guilt is what I'm afraid of. You've known him long enough to see it, it hangs on him like a cloud most of the time. I think-
Ahri stepped between them and all but pushed them against the wall of the nearest building. Akali was about to protest but the fox cupped her mouth and nodded toward the small café on the other side of the intersection ahead of them. At a table just inside the window sat an elegant woman with aqua twin tails and a modest blue dress with golden embroidery.
Ahri: Y/N said that he'll head in first and then you two follow immediately after. We'll get a table nearby just in case.
Akali: Does this feel like déjà vu to you at all?
Ahri: Like a role reversal of last month? Yeah. Hopefully, the stakes are less world-ending this time.
Hawk and Akali did as they were instructed and waited until Y/N had sat down with the disgusting harpy before entering. Hawk gave her a reassuring pat on the back as they entered, something Akali was grateful for.
Sona saw them immediately and waved at them before getting to her feet and giving Hawk a very delighted hug. He returned the gesture in the most modest fashion he could do. Akali swore she heard a low hiss from across the room. Sure enough, Akali glanced back to see her bandmates at a table on the other side of the café. Ahri's glasses were downturned and she was giving Sona the coldest golden-eyed stare. Sona – thankfully – didn't notice.
Sona then hugged Akali and Akali put on her best enthusiastic smile.
Akali: Sona! So good to see you. It's been too long.
Bleh! Someone dig my heart out with a rusty spork. Sona made a motion in the air which confused Akali. Oh FUCK. I forgot she was mute!
Akali rubbed her neck awkwardly and shuffled her feet, thinking about how to approach it. It might be best to just nip it in the bud and save herself the embarrassment later.
Akali: Sona I'm so sorry. I haven't practiced sign language in years I barely remember any of it. . .
The blue bimbo looked a bit sad a that but clapped a hand on her shoulder with a nod before returning to her seat.
Don't put your hands on me, you boney troglodyte.
Y/N: Yeah, I forgot that you and Hawk didn't really learn that much sign language. . . oops. It's fine, I'll just relay what she says. I'm used to it.
He laughed awkwardly, pointedly avoiding Akali's gaze.
Sona looked confused, signing something.
Y/N: Oh, Colt changed his name to Hawk. He. . . I don't think you ever actually told us the reason?
Hawk: Oh, right. It was the name my grandmother wanted me to have but my parents decided against it. Apparently, it's a phoenix thing – naming yourself after a noble bird that is. After I moved to Asia for a fresh start, I just started going by it instead. Just felt right. It started to stick and I ended up changing it legally sometime after I turned nineteen.
Y/N: Really? That's it?
Hawk: Yeah. Why? Did you think I had some big story behind it?
Y/N: I mean kind of. You're so insistent on going by it that I just figured your old name carried some heavy baggage or something.
Akali: Yeah, why are you so dramatic, Colt?
Hawk: Ex – fucking – cuse me?
Y/N: Ahem. Now that the pleasantries are out of the way. I want to know two things, Sona. One, why did you wait so long to contact me? And two, what do you know about what happened in Germany?
Sona sighed deeply and took a minute to collect herself.
Sona (Through Y/N): Last month. . . I met some people I didn't expect.