#overwatcher

There were a lot of things you didn’t like in the world: violence, war, when people were rude to staff, to name a few. Another thing you couldn’t stand was your body.

In reality, you weren’t bad-looking by any standards, but you jiggled too much for your liking. And although no one on your team had ever made a comment about your weight, you feared they thought it.

As you stood in your room, shirt clutched to your chest as you admired your reflection, you couldn’t help the forlorn sigh that escaped. Would you ever get his attention?

Him, being the object of your affections since the day you met him. Lúcio had made you feel less nervous about suddenly being thrown into the organization. His personality was always a beacon of positivity, never seeming to let a situation dampen his spirits.

You two had become quick friends in no time. Eventually, however, you started to realize you wanted to be more than that.

“Who am I kidding?” You mumbled to yourself, shifting your body at different angles. As much as your dreams were plagued with sweet images of him holding you, calling you his, or even waking up next to him, that’s all it was. Hopeless dreaming. There was no way someone as amazing as Lúcio would look twice your way.

You sighed, half from low spirits, the other half from the early hours of the morning; it’d be some time before another soul was awake. It was more peaceful around the base in the morning like this; there was less shouting and people around.

You grabbed your carefully packed bag, making your day down to the training grounds. It wasn’t much, just a few weights scattered around a fenced-in plot of land, but it was something you all made do with.

Putting Lúcio off your mind was a lot harder than you’d thought it’d be.

Just when you would get into the zone, your mind would somehow ease back into the way his eyes would crinkle when he laughed or how he was always teasing D.Va; the two of them were close, closer than you were, and although you were never jealous of their friendship, you wished you looked an ounce as beautiful as she did or had her skill in video games—you always kind of sucked at them.

Maybe it was because of the handsome and friendly Brazilian man that you didn’t hear the fence creak as someone entered the training grounds—or because you didn’t pay much attention when you were in the zone—but you didn’t register the warm hand until it was too late.

You jumped high into the air, your hand letting go of the weapon you’d been training with. If that wasn’t embarrassing enough, the weapon landed on your foot, causing you to yelp out in surprise and pain.

The pain hurt worse than getting struck with one of Junkrat’s bombs, effectively waking you up more than any coffee could. You hobbled backwards, yelping again when a pair of strong arms caught you.

“Shit, I’m sorry, Melodia*,” the voice tickled right by your ear, sounding urgent, “Don’t move.”

Of course it had to be Lúcio. Why wouldn’t it be anyone else? Your words died on your tongue. You could only gawk as you felt the man’s strong arms wrapped around your waist.

“Sorry,” the Brazilian man quickly apologized, as rushed as the movements of his hand. “I didn’t mean to curse—or to scare you. Are you alright? That looked like it hurt,” he said, already bending over to check your foot. His warm brown eyes met yours. “Can you move it? I didn’t expect to see anyone out here so early… I didn’t even bring my equipment,” he said. You finally noticed he was missing some of his equipment, mainly his sonic amplifier.

“Yeah.” You knew you were lying to yourself; even the smallest movement of your foot sent an uncomfortable jolt up your spine. Still, you gritted your teeth and tried to ignore the nagging and hissing voice in your ear.

He’s going to make fun of you, you know.

It was a thought, simple as that. It didn’t actually exist; it was only your mind and deepest insecurities attacking you. You shook away the invading thought, giving Lúcio a weak smile. “No,” you admitted. Your breath hitched as Lúcio’s hand brushed over your own. You pulled back your hand as though you may taint him. “You should go grab it!”

Lúcio smiled at you, shaking his head. “Afraid I can’t do that,” he said. Everything about him was so sincere—the way he leaned into you, not in a way that invaded your space, but as if he was letting you know he was there. You cherished the small touches like this. It was perfect. Well, at least it would be, if your foot wasn’t throbbing with pain. “Can’t leave my friend all alone. Can I, Melodia?”

Just like that, the perfect moment vanished. It was moments just like this that made you realize why you’d been falling for him. It wasn’t a mutual feeling—he thought of you as only a friend.

“You can go get it,” you mumbled, trying to shift out his arms as best as your injury would let you. You moved your arms back against your just, trying to seem natural and like his words hadn’t deeply affected you.

Was it because of how you looked? Is that why you didn’t stand a chance with him? Or maybe he and D.Va were more than just friends? There were no ill feelings towards either of them, just the nagging sensation of your heart breaking.

“Nope!” Lúcio cheerfully said, already looking for something to help with your foot. “It doesn’t look like it’s broken, but we’ll have Mercy get another look at it, okay?” He asked, propping your foot on his knee to check over on it. He wasn’t a doctor like Mercy was, but he liked helping you out, even if you sometimes disagreed you needed it.

“I’m okay,” you said, a little too forcefully for your liking. Lúcio’s face made you feel even worse than the pain had. “I’m okay, really,” you said, your tone softer than before. “It’s just a little bump, after all.” “Okay,” the man said, not once letting go of your foot. He continued to look over it, trying his best not to cause you more discomfort.

“Okay,” you replied, starting to feel a little self-conscious from the way he held you.

Neither of you spoke as he continued to look over your foot, and he never looked back up at you. Your teeth shifted over your lip anxiously. Should you say something? Did he hate you now?

“Hey,” his voice was low, breaking the uncomfortable silence that had fallen over you both. Your heart leapt in your chest, wondering if he was going to yell at you. “Why were you training this early, anyway?”

Well, at least he wasn’t going to yell at you. But your heart still fluttered in your chest, wondering what kind of excuse you could muster for training so hard.

“I wanted to get better,” you replied quickly. You shifted away from his touch, unable to look at him after the blatant half-truth you’d just told.

“What?” He sat up slightly. “Why?” His big, brown eyes, full of concern and confusion, met yours. “You’re already so amazing at what you do! I think you’re amazing at what you do!”

If it wasn’t for earlier, you’d blush again. How did his simple praise have such an effect on you? You played with your lip between your teeth. There wasn’t an easy way to tell Lúcio the truth—you weren’t happy with yourself; you were on the chubbier side, but it seemed no matter what kind of exercise you did, you couldn’t shed those pounds.

You didn’t want to get better for Lúcio; you wanted to gain some confidence in your abilities and yourself; you wanted to feel better about yourself. That’s all.

“Melodia?” He set down your leg as gingerly as possible, shifting so he could look at your face. “Look at me…” He said. It wasn’t an order, as much as it was a request. Your eyes slowly met his, only to look away again. “You can tell me anything, you know.” His hand slotted to your shoulder. “That’s what I’m here for.”

Even if you wanted to, it was so hard lying to the man. “I wanted to better myself,” you said, your voice barely over a whisper. “I’m too…” You were mortified to continue and instead motioned over yourself.

The man followed your hand, his brows furrowed as he tried to understand where you were coming from. “You’re kidding, right?” He cringed when he saw you flinch. “That was… that was not what I was trying to say,” he followed up, a nervous tiddle. “Look at you, Melodia!”

You raised your eyebrow, slightly surprised at the certain gusto Lúcio’s words had. It was like a fire had been lit under him.

Lúcio moved his hands in front of him, as if miming a curvy body. “You’re drop-dead gorgeous! I mean, anyone would be happy to have your body!” As soon as the words left his mouth, the Brazilian man’s face looked flustered. “I mean—anyone would love to have a body like yours!” His voice lowered as his eyes rose, looking abashed. “You’re beautiful.”

Your hands rested on your thighs, your fingers tightening around the fabric. “I don’t feel it,” you admitted. It felt silly, admitting such a little thing. To you, trying to feel enough was the hardest thing you’d ever do.

You hoped—you really did—that Lúcio actually did find you beautiful. It was the hope that made you smile. But as much as you hoped Lúcio found you beautiful, the demons telling you you were too much—too overweight, too unloveable, too you—was too much.

Lúcio’s eyes softened, a soft sigh escaping his lips. He moved closer, hand ghosting on your arm when you went to pull away from him. “Can I?” His brown eyes, filled with an emotion that made your heart sore, met yours.

Your mouth felt incredibly dry at his proximity, but you nodded, your heart skipping a beat as his hand cupped your chin and brought you closer to him.

“You’re beautiful, Melodia.” His fingers brushed the apples of your cheeks, sending a shiver up your spine. “Every inch of you is completely lovely,” he whispered, a warm breath fanning your face. You found yourself leaning into his touch, comforted by the feeling of him. “That’s why I love youuuuuu—” He trailed off, his voice an almost perfect imitation of the sirens when the payload closed in.

“What was that?” Your head slowly lifted, unsure if what you thought you heard was just hopeful thinking.

There was no way he actually meant what you thought he said, yeah? Maybe the pain was making you delirious.

He slowly pushed himself away in an embarrassed stupor. It was quite unlike the man; normally the roles were reversed. Lúcio seemed to be chasing after his own words.

Lúcio stuttered as he paced around, his arms moving in all directions. “I…” He wore a nervous grin, almost unbecoming of the healer. “I like you? Like…. A lot!” His shoulders didn’t stop moving as he juggled air, giving you a lovestruck smile. “I like you a lot.”

Maybe it was the rudeness of the confession or from the pain having disappeared, but you started laughing. You couldn’t help the peals of laughter that shook your chest, making you lean your head down against your legs. Each laugh felt like bliss. He liked you. He actually LIKED you!

“Uh…” Lúcio waved a hand in front of your face. “Earth to Melodia. You okay there? Did I break you?” He half-joked, his hand resting on his hip.

Wiping a stray tear from your eye, your laughter subsided. “I never knew you felt that way,” you confessed. You couldn’t help it. You were literally glowing with joy. “I never thought in a million years you’d feel the same way that I did.” It was Lúcio’s turn to laugh, his shoulders bouncing with each boisterous chuckle. “What are you talking about? I’ve been trying to flirt with you, Melodia!” He moved his hands. “Come on, all the long, stolen looks, talking to you… the music?”

Within seconds, the both of you were on the ground. He looked over at you, you looked over at him, and you burst out into another peal of laughter.

“Wait, are you serious? You were flirting?” You laughed between words, unable to believe the absurdity of the situation. This whole time, Lúcio had feelings for you? “Of course! I thought you were the most amazing person.” He rested on his elbow, warm brown eyes glancing over you. The corner of his lips quirked as he pushed your hair from your face. “I still do,” he whispered, his hand moving from your face to your shoulder until his arm was wrapped around you. “Really?” You whispered.