Chapter Text
It was such a sickly sweet thought that ran through her mind.
It was entirely her in the fact that she hated it.
She missed him. Sasha had said it to him before, and it was still true. Maybe it had been difficult to notice when he was gone, only showing up in inklings when she would think about it too deeply, but it was only until he showed up that it was very apparent that he had been missed. Sasha couldn't help the smile that crossed her face when he showed up in Hollow Point a day after Fiona left, off on some vault hunting business that Sasha had been growing used to.
Rhys looked...the same. It was relieving, actually. He didn't look worn down, he didn't look like the typical CEO that she would picture in her mind when she thought about the companies that were always present on Pandora. He looked like himself, tall, somewhat lanky, brown and gold eyes staring up at her, silver fingers appearing out of the jacket he wore that twitched slightly at his side. There was still that apparent awkwardness in him that he always carried, which was also something that she had missed, admittedly.
Yet, it was still a surprise that he was there.
“I'm surprised you were able to get up there with your arm like that,” he commented, Sasha raising an eyebrow at him from the small landing that she sat on, perched on the outside of a building. She sat with her legs stretched out in front of her, feet crossed at the ankles with her back pressed against the wall behind her.
“Well, it was pretty easy, considering there's a ladder over here,” she replied, gesturing towards the small gap between the two buildings with a quick lean of her head. The smirk on her face only grew once Rhys' confidence seemed to drop as he glanced towards said ladder.
“Oh, yeah, I guess that's...” he muttered, the words almost inaudible from where she was sitting.
“I'm surprised to see you here,” Sasha said, propping her good arm on her knee as she brought one of her legs up to her chest, “I was starting to believe we would never be able to pry you away from that facility of yours.”
“Well, I remember Fiona had said something about getting busier, I just thought...maybe you'd want some company.”
“She asked you to come visit, didn't she?”
“...Yes and no,” he said, crossing his arms across his chest as he looked up at her.
Sasha let out a small snort, taking a moment to look at the tall and looming walls of the cave that held her hometown. She wanted nothing more than to leave this place, she thought that she would finally get the chance after the vault, but those things took time. Fiona told her she would make good on her promise, and Sasha knew she would. It still didn't keep frustration at bay.
It didn't help that Fiona, for a while at least, had shifted from an overprotective older sister to an almost overbearing mothering figure to her. It had been such an odd change that Sasha felt awkward around her sister for the first time in many, many years. At least she seemed to have returned to her normal self after a few outbursts from Sasha herself. Though, she guessed she couldn't blame Fiona for that, really. Things had gotten pretty...scary for a short while back at the vault. Sasha's memories of the event were a little foggy, too. She could remember the vault monster, the plan that they had in place to take it down. She could remember being inside The Traveler, jumping out of the caravan. The rest after that was a little difficult to recall. She could remember the pain, hearing someone scurry to her side, Rhys' and Fiona's faces looking down at her, the tears and the good-byes.
Felix, as much as he was still a betraying bastard in her eyes, had really came through in this regard. The fact that she had actually been...gone, even for a few moments, was something that did scare her if she thought about it too deeply. As much as she hated to admit it, she could give Felix that one.
She still didn't enjoy the drop on a broken arm and ribs, though.
Sasha seemed to pull herself back into the present, glancing away from the rundown town and back towards Rhys, who was shifting from foot to foot as he looked around himself.
“It's awkward talking down at you, come up here,” she said, gesturing with her free hand. She figured that if he was here to visit, it would be better they weren't calling down at each other from a rooftop. If you could even call it that, though it was apparently high enough to give Rhys pause as he looked up at her.
“It's really open up here,” Sasha said in an attempt to be reassuring, “you're not going to fall off unless you get pushed.”
“Are you going to push me?” Rhys asked, his arms still crossed. Despite the cockiness he tried to show in his voice, this uneasiness seemed just as easy to read as it had always been. He seemed to be a little more sure of himself these days, which was nice to see. Still, the awkwardness around her seemed to have stayed the same. At least he hadn't changed too much.
“Only if you deserve it,” Sasha retorted, completely teasing, “It's not as high as it looks, I promise.”
Rhys continued to look up at her for a few moments, Sasha raising an eyebrow. For a few moments, she believed that she might have to scoot closer to the edge to talk down at him, but a smile broke across her face as Rhys moved to slip into the small area where she had said the ladder was located. She shifted and pulled herself up to a stand as he heard him climbing up the ladder, Sasha extending her good arm towards him once he stood on the roof with her, Rhys wrapping his arms around her in a tight embrace.
“Mmph, the arm...” Sasha warned, feeling the throbbing pain from where her arm was pressed against his chest. Still, she could admit to herself that it was nice to see him again. It had been a few months since the vault ordeal, her ribs healing up pretty quickly, but her arm taking its time. Everybody had seemed to be settling back into their lives once again, richer than before, but for Sasha it was a little...different.
She just wasn't too sure what to do with herself. Fiona had her vault hunting, Rhys had Atlas, Vaughn had his colony to run. Even Loader Bot and Gortys had disappeared for a bit, Sasha wondering about them from time to time as well. She just needed to figure something out eventually.
Rhys pulled back from the embrace and, even in her pain, it had lingered a little longer than it should have. Yet, Sasha found herself not really feeling that until she had her arms to herself once again.
“What's so interesting up here, anyway?” Rhys asked as Sasha sat herself back down again, cradling her arm a little bit as she settled, her shoulders lifting up in a small shrug.
“Not much,” she said, “It's a place to think, I guess.”
She hated being cooped up, too. It was hidden enough that it was away from prying eyes, yet she could see enough of the town that it wasn't claustrophobic. There didn't need to be anything special about it, it was a place to sit by herself when she needed it. Well, it usually was. She glanced towards Rhys as he sat himself down beside her, mirroring her position as he stretched his legs out in front of him, Sasha's gaze moving from him to the area around herself once he had settled.
As the silence seemed to stretch on, she could practically feel Rhys itching to break it. Sasha was alright with silence, but with him sitting beside her, even she felt it starting to grow a little awkward. Things were always awkward with Rhys, she figured that was how it would be, but in a way she seemed to like it as well. It was a little endearing from time to time.
Frustrating a good portion of the time as well, but she couldn't really do much about that, either.
“So,” Rhys finally said, Sasha turning her head to look at him, “I may have lied a little about Fiona. I knew that she was leaving and everything, and I still wanted to see you, but she didn't exactly...tell me to come visit.”
“I figured,” Sasha said with a nod, Rhys finally looking at her then, “You don't need an excuse to come see me, you know.”
“I know, I know, I just...” he trailed off slightly, scratching at the side of his neck somewhat, “I may have also told her that I was...interested in you. Not like yesterday, or anything, but back at the vault.”
Sasha inclined her head slightly, a small and somewhat confused smile crossing her features. “How'd she take it?”
“Well. Really well. I mean, she threatened me, but...she did give me her blessing.”
“Oh.”
Instantly, her hand went to work at the skin of her pointer with her thumb, her hands clasped together in her lap. It was a little surprising that Fiona seemed to be pretty accepting of that, though it wasn't exactly a surprise to her either. Sasha had kind of always knew that there was...something between her and Rhys. Maybe not at their first meeting, she had certainly hated him enough during that time, but she hadn't been expecting them to grow into friends, much less...
Was there anything really there between them yet? She liked him enough, and with what he was telling her, he was hinting pretty hard that he felt the same, yet it wasn't anything...solid. At least, from Sasha's point of view.
As she mulled over her thoughts, she realized that the silence was carrying on a little too long, and it certainly wasn't lost on Rhys.
“I'm-I'm sorry, I shouldn't have even-” he started, Sasha's focus returning to him. Instantly, her hand reached out to grab at his shoulder as he looked to be standing up, another quick grin crossing her face.
“No, no, it's...it's fine,” she said, feeling Rhys relax a little under her hold. Sasha removed her hand, letting it rest in her lap, “I just...didn't know what to say, I guess. You managed to catch me off guard, for once. You should be proud.”
“Sasha...”
“I'm just...wondering why you told me that.”
“I don't know,” Rhys said, letting his arms rest against his knees as he brought his legs up to his chest somewhat, “It was just something I wanted you to know.”
Sasha nodded her head, turning her head to glance out at Hollow Point once again. Wow, this was awkward, and she couldn't help but feel that she wasn't reacting correctly to this situation. Was there a correct way to react to this? She wasn't even sure. The closest she got to an actual relationship in a very long time was with August, and that was built off a con and lies. She guess it made sense in regards to her and Rhys, though. There was only so much teasing and secret glances people could take at each other before it made some lick of sense in getting together, and yet...
She just wasn't completely sure. Sasha liked Rhys, she could admit that there was possibility there...
“I do want to see you more,” Rhys said, the Pandorian glancing over at him as he spoke, “After what almost happened to you, I can't help but...”
“I want to see you more, too,” Sasha said with a nod, “I guess that...could be a place to start?”
“Yeah, I'd like that,” Rhys said, giving her a genuine smile, one that Sasha couldn't help but return.
The visits would be a good. Honestly, with Fiona starting to leave more and more frequently, she couldn't help but feel a little more at ease with the idea that she wouldn't have to spend all her days alone.
The two of them sat in silence for a few more moments, Sasha leaning into him to nudge at him with her good shoulder. She needed a way to dissolve the lingering awkwardness, a teasing smile crossing her face.
“Speaking of. Healing tears, huh?”
“I can't believe you're going to hold that over my head,” Rhys retorted, sounding vaguely defensive, though Sasha's smile didn't falter.
“I think it was kind of cute.”
“Really?”
“I'm only saying that once.”