Chapter Text
North, that's where they'd decided to go. In Ekko's rusted pick-up, living off gas station snacks and sheer willpower, they searched for safety on the open road. Jinx regretted snapping at him after her altercation with Silco, and she'd tried to apologize in whatever ways she knew how to: paying for gas, buying her own clothes at a Goodwill they passed so she could stop borrowing his, and putting up with his radio choices. Ekko didn't seem to hold it against her, even if the first day on the road was tensely quiet between them.
They'd crossed state lines and passed through too many small towns to count before Jinx started feeling safe again. Of course, that's when the truck started to stutter on the road.
"Old shitbox," Ekko grumbled as he pulled off the highway, following signs for a town called Piltover.
They reached the Main Street of Piltover without the truck fully breaking down. Jinx took it in. A little bigger than Zaun and cleaner too, Jinx felt a bit more at ease than she'd expected with the idea of stopping somewhere for a while. She spotted a sign for free meals and pointed it out to Ekko. He pulled into the gravel parking lot beside the building which Jinx realized was a church. She'd lost track of days on the road, was it already Sunday? With the fullness of the lot and the amount of people entering and exiting the building, she assumed it must be.
"What do you say? Wanna get some food?" she asked.
"Gotta figure this out first," Ekko said, slapping the dashboard grumpily.
"Maybe someone in there knows how to fix trucks."
"Maybe. I haven't been to church since my second foster family," Ekko told her.
"I haven't since the funeral. It'll be okay." She placed her hand over his knee. "We're in this together, right?"
Ekko smiled and leaned over to kiss her cheek. "Yeah. Together."
They climbed out of the truck and approached the tiny church. Inside, there were people milling about with plates of food. Hot food. Jinx's stomach rumbled at the scent and sight of fresh meals. They followed the signs into a side room of the church. A kitchen was at the back of the room with a bar-style counter separating it from the rest of the room. Crockpots and trays of different food lined the counter. There were round, fold-out tables randomly placed around the room, most of them full of people already enjoying their meal. Jinx didn't care if she had to stand, sit on the floor, or even take her plate back to the truck. She was salivating at the thought of a good meal after days of nothing but honey buns and chips.
"Need help?" an accented voice asked from behind them, making Jinx flinch in surprise.
Jinx turned to see a dark-haired woman maybe a few years older than her. Her hair was long and pin straight. There was an air of confidence around her that intimidated Jinx a bit, especially with the critical look in her eyes as she took in the sight of them both. Jinx knew they looked a wreck. Their hair was unkempt, clothes stale from being worn for multiple days, and neither of them had showered since leaving Zaun. Hotels were tempting but too dangerous until there was enough distance between them and Silco.
"We saw the sign outside," Ekko jumped in to explain when Jinx shrank under the weight of the woman's gaze. "Is the food free for everyone?"
She nodded. "Well, yes. Please, help yourselves." She motioned them towards the counter. Her tone was kind, but her face had been unreadable.
However, Jinx didn't need to be told twice about food. She beelined for the stack of thin, ceramic plates at the far end of the bar. She proceeded to load it up with anything that looked or smelled appetizing, which was most of it. Ekko was on her tail doing the same. There were people in the kitchen on the other side of the bar busied with refilling crockpots and doing dishes of emptied plates. A cooler sat on the floor at the end of the food counter, filled with canned pops and bottles of water. Jinx snagged a soda for herself while Ekko took a water.
They did end up finding a place to sit after all. The dark-haired woman was sitting with two older people, and she waved the pair over to sit with them. Jinx hesitated, but Ekko tugged her along. Maybe he was right in making friends here. It would be a good thing, if they were to stay. They could even fix the truck.
"Please, sit with us," the woman said once they were closer.
Jinx and Ekko took the remaining two chairs at the table. Ekko thanked her, and Jinx gave a nod. Then, they both dug into their meals. It was all delicious, and Jinx found herself mildly shocked. Free food wasn't meant to be good, was it? Not one to deny something good - especially after what they'd been through - Jinx just shoveled it into her mouth without care of her first impression on these people.
A chuckle broke her from her ravenous eating. Jinx looked up at the woman and the people on either side of her. They all looked similar, so Jinx concluded they must be a family.
"I'm Caitlyn, by the way. What are your names?" asked the woman they'd first spoken to.
She swallowed before replying, "Jinx."
"And I'm Ekko."
The older woman on Caitlyn's left stuck out her hand for them to each shake, which they did so awkwardly. "I'm Cassandra Kiramman. This is my husband, Tobias."
He shook their hands in turn. These people were weird, but Jinx couldn't deny she appreciated their kindness.
"You two must be new. I haven't seen you around before," Caitlyn commented.
"Just got here," Ekko told her. "Left home and haven't found a place yet."
"Our truck broke down, can you fix it?" Jinx jumped in.
Ekko shot her a look, but she didn't care. They needed that truck.
"Uh, unfortunately that's not something we'd be the ones to ask about," Tobias said with an uncomfortable laugh.
"Oh." Jinx deflated a bit in her seat. "Worth a shot."
"I wish you both luck in finding someone," Caitlyn said earnestly. "I'll be praying for you."
Need more than prayers, Jinx thought bitterly to herself, but she kept her mouth shut save for finishing off her plate.
The Kirammans seemed alright, but Jinx had an obviously hard time trusting anyone new. Once she and Ekko were done eating, she led them up to drop off their dirty plates to the volunteers working behind the counter.
"We should go," Jinx told him.
"We still haven't found anyone to fix the truck," he pointed out.
"Might be a repair shop around here. Food was good, but maybe a church isn't the right place to find a mechanic."
Ekko finally agreed and they slipped out of the building, avoiding any other awkward interactions.
They walked around the town for a bit. It was cute, Jinx had to admit. Part of her could see them settling down here. Planting seeds, growing roots, and thriving instead of simply surviving like they were on the road. She wondered how far they were from Zaun. She hoped very. As much as she liked Ekko's friends, it wasn't worth the risk to go back. Not yet.
In the end, they didn't find any auto shops, so they wandered back to their truck still parked at the church. They found the lot emptied out. Apparently after-church free lunch didn't last long. Everyone probably had families to return to. Lives outside of the church or something. Jinx envied that.
They decided to stay parked at the church for the time being. It was safe, and churches were hardly busy, save for Sundays. They'd be fine for now. So, they went through the new routine they'd developed of reclining their seats and covering up in the small blankets they had in preparation for sleeping in the truck.
It wasn't much, but it was safe. And Jinx had a good feeling about their luck in this place.