The Worst is You and Me

"You know what, I learned from someone… very special… that no matter what happened in the past, it's never too late to build something new… someone worth building it for."

Jinx glanced at the strange device slung around Ekko's shoulder, her curiosity piqued by the ring of pink toy monkeys slowly revolving near its base.

"You should leave. Go. Before I do something I regret."

"I'll be the one regretting everything if I leave. I already left you once. I gave up on you. I won't give up on you ever again."

She gazed into Ekko's eyes. She had never seen him looking so sad before. Not even during that night on the bridge. She would never forget that look in his eyes back then.

Yet, his gaze now contained something else that she couldn't read. Hope. Kindness. Care. Affection. And perhaps... Perhaps...

"You've changed. Something happened to you. It's written all over your face."

"It wasn't something. It was someone. I met someone who gave me hope. Hope for Zaun. Hope for me. Hope for you."

Jinx sighed and slumped cross-legged on the floor, leaning her back against the wall. How did he seem to know what to say – to draw her in and stop her from ending everything, even though she knew he was just trying to buy a few seconds of time? He had lines.

She deactivated the grenade.

"Fine. Let's talk. Who's this someone?"

"Powder."

"Still dreaming about your crush? I told you, she's never coming back. I'm Jinx now."

"I was sent to another world – another timeline. I met Powder!"

"Oh please," Jinx rolled her eyes as she got up to walk over to the ledge again. "What's next? You became the boy who leapt through time? I think we're done here."

"It's true! Here, I'll prove it… Go on."

"Go-" Jinx paused. "Wait, how did you know-"

"Know I was going to say that," Ekko interrupted.

"Look, that-"

"That doesn't mean anything, boy saviour!" Ekko interrupted again. "Do you believe me now? I'm rewinding time as we speak. And in four seconds, your goggles will fall off the table. Four… three…"

"We've known each other our whole lives! Just because we can finish each other's sentences doesn't mean-" Jinx jumped when a small tremor shook her hideout and caused her goggles to clatter onto the floor with a loud crash.

"You…" Jinx was lost for words. "How did you predict that?"

"You may want to sit down. It's a long story," Ekko patted the floor, sighing with relief when she finally sat down next to him.

"So let me get this straight, you met me in that world, except I was Powder."

Ekko nodded.

"Mylo, Claggor, Benzo, Silco and Vander were alive."

Ekko nodded again.

"The undercity and topside were united and peaceful."

Ekko nodded a third time.

"You and Powder were dating."

"That was Powder and my other self… wait, how did you know? I didn't tell you that!" Ekko went red.

"What else do two people do when they're in love? You've always had a crush on Powder. Powder had feelings for you too. I figured our other selves would be no different from us."

"You mean that you…"

"No! That Powder is gone!" Jinx spat, while a reddish tint slowly formed on her cheeks. "I thought you of all people would understand. I'm not Powder! There's no good version of me!"

"That's not true. I know there's still good in you. Powder is still part of you!"

"Oh yeah, buster? Is that what this is about? You want me to change?" Jinx dusted her pants and moved to get off the floor, only to be stopped when Ekko grabbed her hand to stop her from leaving.

"No, no, I just… you aren't the kind of person who runs away when the people you care about need you. Your ideas change the world. I can't shake the feeling that's who you're supposed to be."

"Things are terrible enough, Ekko. I hate my life. But still I don't want to lose what makes me 'me', chasing some wild dream you had about a person I'm not and will never be."

"I don't want you to become Powder!" Ekko gripped her hand, but loosened it when she winced.

"Look, you know why I chose to leave that world? It had everything I used to dream of. Peace in the Undercity. Happiness. Love. A world where you and I weren't enemies. It was the perfect world. But going there taught me that I had been consumed by all the ways this world wasn't. So I had to leave. Because I'm not going to give up on this world again."

"And as for Powder, she had a smile that lit up the room. But she wasn't you. I want to change things here so I can see you smile and laugh like she did, with the same joy."

"You're a fool for giving all that up for me, you know that?" A hint of a smile crept onto her face.

"Sometimes taking a leap forward means leaving a few things behind."

"Mm. He's got lines. Gosh, what on earth are we even doing, talking like this? I feel like I woke up in the wrong universe. We were enemies before today."

"You know what they say. Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Powder was my best friend. You're my beloved enemy."

"You're a real mystery, aren't you, mister?" Jinx shook her head. "Alright, out with it. What do you want from me?"

"Let's get this airship fixed up. We have two cities to protect. Those ugly twins. Genius and madness."

"The worst is you and me."

Ekko silently watched as the small sheet of burnt paper with Powder's name on it floated through the air. Piltover and Zaun were in mourning for those who had given up their lives during the war.

The cities were heavily damaged. They looked nothing like the thriving places he had seen from the same vantage point in the other world, where he and Powder had talked and even kissed. But hope was not lost. The high council had agreed to give Zaun a council seat. The people would rebuild it all. They had a future worth fighting for.

The burnt paper eventually disappeared into the night sky. He was finally ready to let go of Powder, both the one in this world and in the other world. He was letting her go for someone even better.

"You're thinking about her again, aren't you?" a voice called out from behind him.

"Jinx! I…"

"You're beyond help," Jinx said, sitting down next to him. "Say, how about we build a machine to go to that other world. I bet the other Ekko will sweep me off my feet."

"No way! I'm not going to do that!"

"Whoa, relax, jumpy. Are you seriously getting jealous of yourself? Understandable I guess, it would really hurt if your other self stole your girl, twice."

"I… I just want to thank you. You know, for everything. You gave me the strength to fight through all of Viktor's machines. I'd have given up resisting his evolution without you."

"I've never seen you give up on anything, Ekko," Jinx replied. She leaned over and lay her head on his chest.

"You ever wish you could just stay in one moment?"

"Sometimes taking a leap forward means… leaving a few things behind," Jinx relayed his own words back to him.

"I will never be able to forget this."

"You better not."

They stared into one another's eyes as they leaned closer, only for Jinx to pull away at the last moment.

"This isn't your first time, is it?"

"You… Fine, I admit, Powder and I did kiss in the other world, but I'm here now. I left the perfect world just for a chance to be with you. Plenty of men lie that they would give up the world for the one they love, but I actually did just that! Can we just... pretend like it's the first time?"

"Who's the better kisser? Her or me?"

"How do I even answer that?" Ekko scoffed. "You've never-"

Jinx interrupted him by clapping her hands right in front of his face. He shut his eyes out of reflex. He was about to retort when he felt something soft pressing against his lips.

His heart accelerated. Jinx's lips were just like Powder's. They were the softest things he had ever touched. Softer even than velvet. He felt her hand caress his cheek and he responded by wrapping his arm around her waist to pull her closer.

The moment ended all too soon when Jinx pulled away.

"I've always wanted to do that. If I had my Z Drive I'd rewind that moment, go through it again."

"No need for that - I'm right here," Jinx breathed. "Let's always pretend like it's the first time."

Their lips met again with passionate fervour, separating only when they had to pause for air, breathing heavily as they leaned their foreheads against one another.

"There's just one more thing we need to do to make this night even more memorable," Ekko whispered.

"What's that? Hey…" Jinx protested when Ekko got up and walked away, his back towards her. "Quit goofing around. It's not funny."

Ekko stopped after ten steps and turned around to face her. He held his stopwatch from his left hand, swinging it on its chain from side to side like a pendulum. His right hand held the minute hand from Piltover's clock tower.

Jinx's eyes widened with incredulity, but she would never back down from a duel with him. She stood up, facing him sideways, her pistol loaded with paintballs.

"It's always a dance with me, right Ekko? And you've still got two left feet. Well, if the boy saviour wishes to fight me, I will oblige to dance with him. Come at me!"

To Jinx's surprise, Ekko caught his stopwatch in his hand and, instead of starting the timer, dangled a metal ring from the other end of the chain. He knelt down on one knee.

"Is that…"

"If I win this duel, then you must agree to marry me!"

Jinx shook her head and chuckled, wiping a tear from her eye.

"I accept! But if I win, then YOU will marry ME!"

"Deal!"

Ekko started the timer with a click and dashed forward. Four seconds later, their weapons were on the floor as they held one another in a slow dance, Ekko's ring fitting perfectly on Jinx's finger.

You're the best thing to ever happen to me
But also the worst thing to ever happen to me
On that day when I met you, maybe I would rather
That it never happened to me (To me)

The worst of all blessings
The best of all curses
I should stray away from you
But as the saying goes
"Better than alone, is to be in bad company"

You know what they say
Stay closе to your dearest friends
But also
Evеn closer to your adversaries

But my best enemy is you
Flee from me, the worst is you and I
But if you keep searching for my voice
Forget me, the worst is you and I

Why does hearing your name hurt me
When it hides right there in the vicinity?
What kind of emotion, is it hatred
Or pure sweetness when I hear your name?

I had told you, not to keep looking behind
Your past will follow you and wage war on you

But my best enemy is you
Flee from me, the worst is you and I
But my best enemy is you
Flee from me, the worst is you and I

(English translation of Stromae and Pomme's 'Ma Meilleure Ennemie' from genius website)