Evening of January 3rd. The weather has picked up a little throughout the day, and the strong moonlight has been dampened by the clouds gathering above.
#SteveRenalaApartment – November 9, 2023
Renala arrives at the apartment after another long, coffee-fueled day of creating and solving problems in the Redrock HQ server room. She hangs up her winter coat and crouches down to take off her winter boots without uttering a greeting.
Steve is seated on the couch with some manner of news on the TV that he seems to be paying little attention to, instead looking over a datapad. The sound of the door opening draws his attention Renala's way. "Evenin'." he greets, attention turning back to his datapad briefly before something else seems to draw his focus back to Renala. "Brought a pizza home. Plenty left so just take what ya want." he explains. A pizza box
lays open on the kitchen counter. Counting the slice on a plate on the coffee table in front of Steve, it looks like he's already worked his way through about a third of the pizza.
Renala makes a beeline for the kitchen after getting out of her shoes. "Thanks," she mutters before opening the fridge to grab herself a can of beer. She then finds a plate and stops by the counter to grab a slice of pizza when the datapad grabs her attention. "What are you reading?"
Steve gives a nod of acknowledgement before dipping back into his datapad. "Just-... goin' through some paperwork for the Dam." he says before realizing that doesn't really explain much. "Since I've just been fillin' in at the Respite on Mercier's days off, I've been buggin' Wolfe and the Chief for more shifts. Well-... I guess Kaya split without much of a heads up so I'm gonna be coverin' some holes that left in the
Renala raises an eyebrow. "Huh, I don't think that's crossed my desk," she said. "Maybe they disabled her account themselves." Or it slipped her mind, which is equally likely. She stacks three slices of pizza on the plate and makes her way over to sit on the couch. "Any idea why she took off?"
Steve looks up fully from his datapad, cocking a smirk Renala's way. "Don't know. Don't care." he assures her with a snicker before tossing the datapad onto the coffee table and reaching for his slice of pizza. "Surprised she lasted as long as she did, to be honest." he mutters before taking a bite.
Renala nods. "Just wondered if something serious happened between coffee breaks," she says, then shrugs, "but I guess Uvena would have told me if there was, whether I wanted to hear or not." Renala sighs and takes a bite of her pizza.
Steve snickers. As Renala finishes with her bite, he casts a glance her way. "Whaddya think?" he asks, eyes pointedly shifting to the pizza in her hand. It's your run of the mill junk pizza, loaded with all of the Respite's popular toppings. "Guy came in right when the kitchen opened and ordered a pizza, was already three sheets to the wind." he snorts, leaning back in his seat, "By the time the pizza was ready, the
sonovabitch was nowhere to be found. Must've forgot he even ordered the damn thing and wandered off. Wasn't about to let a good pizza go to waste, so-...." he shrugs, looking over the slice in his hand before taking a second bite and tossing it back on the plate sitting on the coffee table.
Renala chuckles. "Well, he's missing out," she says. "It's not fine dining, but it's energy-dense and hasn't gotten me sick yet." She puts the slice down and takes a long swig of her beer. "Anything else interesting happen at the Respite?"
Steve snorts, giving a single nod as he reaches for his beer. He takes a quick sip, brows furrowing briefly as he considers the question before ultimately shaking his head. "Quiet day on my end." he says. "How 'bout down at the office? They still runnin' you ragged?" he asks in turn.
Renala frowns. "Yes," she says. "I've made a mess repairing the mess I've made before, but that's not the problem. It keeps me employed, because I think the bosses would love any excuse to show me the door after the car mess." She takes another long sip of her beer and sighs. "It's the big picture that's fucked," she continues, the composure from earlier starting to crack. "What am I doing out here?"
Steve winces at the mention of the 'car mess', covering his reaction with another sip of beer. The followup question, which takes the heat off of his part in said 'car mess', is more welcome than it normally would be, given the subject matter. He draws in a breath, bringing his beer to his leg and letting it rest against his knee. "Workin'? Usin' your skills to make better credits than you would in most places that don't
come with a risk of takin' a stray round?" he offers, well aware by now where this line of questions stems from: "This about Aeyna?" he asks, his tone cautious.
Renala tilts her head in thought, then shakes her head. "Only in the way that she'd be fine right now if I hadn't fucked off the way I did," she says. "I'm having a hard time quieting the nagging thought at the back of my mind that I can't keep doing this. I only get more shit on my back that I can't deal with, Steve, and it's a matter of time before something stupid happens."
Steve draws in another heavy breath, gaze turning down to his beer as he lifts it to his lips once more. "So, what's the play then, Ren?" he asks, allowing a moment to pass before continuing. "Thinkin' of packin' it up and headin' back to Thessia?" It's clear that he isn't too excited about that possibility. Renala has been the one person he's been able to count on since arriving in Freedom Falls. Given the limited trail
of bread crumbs left behind by Henrik after his... passing... there's no real telling what might be lying in wait for him tomorrow. Losing his only real ally isn't exactly a reassuring prospect.
Renala reaches forward to take a slice of pizza. "I don't fucking know," she says, her voice growing weary. "There's no right way here. If I stay, it'll be a matter of time before I shout at Uvena, or I...-," she tenses up, "no, not talking about that." She sighs, and hastily continues, "Leaving isn't right either. I've gotten involved with your past, and there's no telling if they're wise enough to cut their
Steve falls quiet for a few moments, gaze lingering on his drink. "Look, Ren..." he finally says, "...I ain't gonna lie. You leavin'? That puts me in a shit position. But-..." he sighs, "...it ain't my call. You've already gone above and beyond for me. I know that. So if you're lookin' for advice, you're prolly lookin' under the wrong rock." he snickers, "Cuz I'd say you don't owe Uvena- or any of the other number of
idiots at Redrock- shit. So next time she's gettin' on your back or wearin' down your nerves? Tell her to go fuck herself. S'what I'd do." he admits with a shrug, "....But. You-... well, you don't owe me shit, either." he continues, meeting the asari's gaze. It's not in his best interest to admit such a thing. His best interest would be to guilt the asari into putting his interests in front of her own. Hell, he's
done it before. But he'd be lying if he tried to deny that, at some point, their partnership moved from purely self interest into an actual friendship. Renala has been there when he needed her, and he's certainly taken full advantage of it. "Don't stick around on my behalf if it means runnin' your life into the ground, darlin'." he settles on, mustering up a small smile of encouragement that doesn't quite reach his
Renala listens to his words, putting the pizza back on the plate without taking a bite of it. "It used to be easy, Steve," she says. "Things got too hot, then new place, new name. A few little tweaks here and there," she makes some gestures with her free hand (her omni-tool hand), "and it's as if I was born there. I got pretty good at minimizing cleanup, too." She drinks the remainder of her can and tries to
toss it lightly onto the coffee table. Instead, it falls short and ends up on the floor. She'll pick it up later. "But now, everything I tied myself to knows my name, because I didn't think I needed an escape route," she says, "so even if I pack up and head off to Thessia, I'm living with all I've done here."
Steve's brows furrow in confusion for a moment before Renala's unspoken admission settles in. He's certainly no stranger to making a mess and then hitting the road, so it's certainly not judgement in his expression. More surprise. A short silence fills the air before he finally speaks up. "I ain't gonna put my nose where it ain't welcome, Ren." He knows all too well what it's like to be on the receiving end of that. "...But
Renala sighs. "Thanks," she says before standing up, and she starts walking towards the kitchen. "I considered asking if Cross' offer still stood. You know, put some distance between me and Redrock." She opens the fridge and grabs another beer. "But I feel that could be trading some short-term breathing room for a future shitstorm."
Steve tenses up at the mention of Cross, thankfully Renala isn't beside him to notice. "The guy's got credits, no doubt about that. But he's also got a lot of plates spinnin'." he says, tossing back the last of his beer before looking Renala's way and raising the empty can with a wiggle in a silent request for her to grab him one while she's up. "S'only a matter of time before a few of those plates come crashin' down. But,
shit, no reason why you'd have to stick around if the ship started sinkin', ya know? Course-..." he tilts his head, seeming like he's put far more thought into this than Renala might have initially assumed. There's certainly something he's not saying. "...Cross comes with his own baggage. Pick your poison, right?"
Renala is about to close the fridge door when the signal is received, and she grabs another beer can before doing so. "It becomes a big problem when those poisons mix," she says, walking over to put the beer on the table before him before reclaiming her seat. "Though, I have a feeling that might happen regardless."