Work Text:
Juno leaned against the bathroom door, slowly sinking to the ground. He held his head in his hands as his heartbeat pounded loudly in his ear. He forced himself to breathe in and out evenly, willing his heart to slow.
He felt the door rattle slightly as Rita knocked, calling out a tentative, “Mistah Steel?”, but didn’t say anything in reply.
“Mistah Steel, are you alright? You were holding that glass, and I know you dropped it, but honestly it ain’t that big a deal, I cleaned up the mess already you don’t gotta worry about that, and-”
“I’m alright, Rita.”
She paused, and he could almost picture her on the other side of the door, her face a picture of concern as she tried to decide what to do next. Juno adored her for that, but today that concern just felt smothering.
“Okay, Boss, if you’re sure.”
Her voice sounded so soft and sad and Juno almost broke, almost opened the door, but he heard her footsteps walk away again. He let a breath somewhere between a laugh and a sigh and let his head tilt back, resting against the door with a slight thump. God, things had been going good, he’d been fine, but then… That stupid cup of coffee, it had just. Ugh.
He held out his hands in front of him, watched the tremors shaking them. It had been like this ever since the THEIA Soul. Whatever that thing had done when it clamped into his nervous system, it apparently wasn’t over yet. He’d managed to keep it from Rita, writing off the accidents as clumsiness from being tired, but today he’d been trying to take a drink of coffee while looking over some old case files and all of a sudden his hands had just. Stopped working.
Juno balled his hands into fists and pushed himself up from the ground, lurching over to the sink to splash some water on his face. He wouldn’t do it, wouldn’t let them win. He’d already lost an eye, he wasn’t about to lose his hands too.