#sova x reader

The doors to the debrief room slide shut with a muted hiss

You don’t sit. And neither does Sova. The hum of the lights fills the space between you, thick and suffocating. Outside, the other Valorant agents are still moving about. Phoenix’s laughter is too loud for someone who almost didn’t make it back. And Jett’s voice carries too—joking, deflecting. But both still alive

Because of you

Sova’s jaw is tight. He hasn’t taken his gloves off yet. That’s how you know he’s angry. Not explosive—never that—but restrained, pulled so taut it could snap, just like his bowstring

For a moment, neither of you speak. “What happened out there today…what you did was reckless,” he says finally

You blink. Once. Slowly

“They were cornered,” you reply. Your tone is even. “I made a call.”

“You broke formation.”

“I pulled them out.”

“You exposed yourself.”

“And yet they’re still breathing.”

Then silence. Heavy. You can feel your pulse behind your eyes, the lingering ache of overused radiant energy humming under your skin. You’d felt it tear through you when you reached for them—when you bent space, just enough to drag Phoenix and Jett out of the line of fire

Sova exhales through his nose. “You always do this.”

Your shoulders stiffen and you softly scoff. “Do what?”

“Decide alone.” His gaze sharpens. “You don’t signal the others. You don’t warn us of your next move. You just—act. And the rest of us are left reacting.”

“You trust my aim on the field,” you say quietly

“I trust your skill,” he corrects. “That is not the same thing.”

That lands harder than you expected

You look away, jaw ticking at that. The wall is bare, sterile, safe. Safer than his eyes right now. “If I hadn’t—”

“They almost died,” he cuts in

You snap your head back to him, an 'are you serious' expression etched on your face. “I know.”

The words come out sharper and harsher than intended. For a moment, something flickers in his expression—regret, maybe—but it’s gone just as fast

“You could have died too,” he says

There it is. Not anger. The fear.

“And I didn’t,” you say

“But you could have,” he insists. “You keep pushing like you’re expendable.”

“I’m a Valorant agent. It’s my job.”

“You are my wife.”

Your voice drops. “We’re agents first in the field. You know this.”

“And off the field?” His tone hardens. “Do you remember that then?”

You swallow

The younger agents look up to you. To both of you. The perfect pair. The composed strategist and the quiet powerhouse. Proof that love and duty can coexist in this world

You keep your back straight. Your face neutral

“I did what I had to,” you say

Sova steps closer. Not invading—just enough that you feel him. “And if next time you don’t make it back?”

“Then they live.”

His breath stutters

“That’s your answer?” he asks incredulously

You almost hesitate

Then something in him shifts

“Why did I even marry you,” he says quietly, “if you are so willing to throw your life away?”

The way he speaks to you is soft

But his words devastate

You feel it then—the crack. The fracture running straight through both your carefully built facades. Agent. Radiant. His wife

Your hands curl into fists at your sides

“I didn’t know loving me meant owning my choices,” your voice slightly wavers

“That’s not what I meant and you know that”

“But it’s what you said.”

Silence again. Much thicker now

You force yourself to breathe. Slow and steady. Back in control. You will not break here. Not when Viper or Brimstone or anyone could walk in. Not where the myth of you could shatter

“I saved them,” you say, voice steady despite the tremor threatening beneath it. “If that’s something you can’t forgive—”

Sova’s shoulders sag, just a little. The anger drains, leaving something raw behind

“I’m afraid,” he admits. “And you make it easy to be cruel when I am.”

That almost hurts more

You close your eyes for a moment. When you open them, the shine is gone. The mask is back in place

“Fear doesn’t give you the right to question why you chose me,” you say softly. “Especially when I chose you knowing exactly who I am.”

He doesn’t answer

You step past him, the door sliding open as you leave. The noise of the hallway rushes in—life, motion, proof that the mission didn’t go wrong enough to leave ghosts behind

Behind you, Sova remains in the debrief room alone

And for the first time, you wonder if the quiet distance between you will hurt worse than any battlefield ever could

───────

You’re holding site when it happens

Comms crackling with half-finished warnings as footsteps flood the choke. You don’t retreat. You can’t. Someone has to buy time

So you do

Energy burns hot under your skin as you brace against the wall, vision sharp despite the pain already screaming through your body. Your shoulder went out minutes ago—dislocated with a sickening pop when you were thrown back by an cluster grenade. You shoved it aside. No time. Scratches line your arms, bruises blooming dark beneath torn fabric

You hold

Shot after shot. Ability after ability. Every second counts

Your breath comes ragged when you hear it—Sage’s voice, strained, sharp with panic

“I’m pinned—can’t move—”

You can see her on the opposite site, trapped behind shattered cover, enemy fire chewing the wall to splinters. She’s crouched low, glowing faintly, healing herself as her weapon lay forgotten on the ground

You don’t hesitate

“I see you,” you say into comms. “I’m coming.”

You can hear Viper swearing through comms. Breach shouting a warning. And Yoru’s footsteps shift, trying to reposition himself to help you

You launch yourself forward anyway

The pain in your arm nearly blacks out your vision, but you grit your teeth and reach—space warping, force bending just enough. You pull Sage hard, ripping her from danger and dragging her into cover with you

She gasps as she holds onto you

And then—

A shot cracks out

White-hot pain explodes at the side of your head as the bullet grazes the left side of your forehead. It doesn’t lodge. But the impact alone sends you flying back, body slamming into the ground

Your head hits the floor with a sickening thud

For a second, there’s nothing

Then warmth spreads beneath your cheek

Too warm

Sage is screaming your name

Your vision blurs, lights fracturing as blood pools rapidly against the concrete, dark and unforgiving. You try to move. Your body doesn’t listen. The world tilts

“Stay with me—please—stay with me—” Sage’s hands shake as she pulls you close, glowing desperately as she presses against your wounds. “Backup is coming—just stay—”

You hear Breach’s explosives. Viper’s toxins hiss as she backs up to assist Sage. Yoru tears through space

Then nothing

You don’t wake up

Not on the transport. Not in the med bay

───────

When Sova returns from his own mission, it’s Sage and Viper waiting for him

That alone sets his nerves on edge

Sage looks wrecked. Blood still stains her hands, dried and dark. Viper’s mask is off, jaw tight, eyes hard—but there’s something shaken beneath it

“Sova,” Sage says quietly

He knows before she finishes

“Where is she?"

Sage’s voice breaks. “She saved me.”

The words feel distant. Wrong. Like they belong to someone else

“Where Sage,” Sova demands.

Neither of them answer right away.

Viper responds. “Intensive care.”

The world drops out from under him

You’re surrounded by machines when he finally goes to see you

IV lines run into your arm. A tube is inserted into your mouth, breathing for you with a soft, relentless rhythm. Bandages wrap your head, your shoulder, your torso—white against skin that looks too still. Too fragile

You don’t look like an agent

You look small

Sova finds himself stopping in the doorway

He can’t move. Can’t breathe. The words he threw at you replay in his head, sharp and merciless

Why did I even marry you

He steps closer, slowly, like you might disappear if he moves too fast

Your hand is so cold when he takes it

“I am sorry,” he whispers, voice cracking as he bows his head to your knuckles. “I was afraid… and I made it your burden.”

The machines hum and beep. Unforgiving. Steady. As if taunting him

“I should have said I was proud,” he continues softly. “I should have said I trusted you. I still do moya lyubov’”

His grip tightens, careful not to hurt you

“Please,” he murmurs. “Come back to me.”

Outside the room, the younger agents wait in silence. Neon and Jett picked out your favorite flowers, Sage herself insists on keeping a close watch on your vitals from the medbay

Inside, Sova stays at your bedside—watching over the woman who saved everyone else, hoping desperately she will save herself too

tejo

— probably would not notice your jealousy immediately

— its more than likely because the cause of your jealousy is ingrained in a deep conversation with tejo, and he's thoroughly enjoying the topic of it

— that being said, he is quick to catch onto your jealousy after the fact. usually happens when he subconsciously pulls you in mid-sentence or turns to ask you a question. sees the frown on your face, or the furrow in your brow, and especially notices the way you're not-so-sublty staring at the cause of your jealousy with a pointed glare

— he'll take you off to the side, excusing the conversation he was having, and ask you what was wrong

— when you mutter a "she was staring at your arms..." or "he's touching you too much," he'll understand what's going on here

— admittedly does chuckle a little bit. not because he believes you're unjustified, quite the opposite, but because he's amused over you being jealous when its so painfully obvious that you two are secure in your relationship

— nevertheless tejo absolutely takes your instincts to heart, maybe its something he was not seeing or simply paid no mind to (because he doesn't think of anyone like that other than you). trusts you wholeheartedly and if you feel there's a problem, there probably is a problem

— excuses himself from whoever he was talking to, making it painfully obvious he wishes to spend time with his partner. pretends to not notice when they get huffy about it, walking away with a hand on your waist

— if you end up feeling guilty, because the conversation they were having was innocent, he’ll shut it down almost immediately

— “there are plenty of other people out there who can have a conversation without needing to excessively touch me, cariño.”

— the next time you two go out, he’s glued to your side, making it obvious to any bachelor(ette) that he is absolutely smitten with you and you alone

chamber

— to be honest, chamber is likely used to positive attention that is slightly more than just friendly

— he's had a lot of people flirt with him throughout his life, whether it was due to ulterior motives or due to the fact that they actually found him attractive

— so when he starts dating you, he’s typically on alert over who is flirting with him and who is actually looking to have a friendly conversation

— though there are times where he can get carried away on a topic he is interested in, like his guns or the arts, and not notice the advances being put towards by the person he is talking to

— there is someone who is aware of it, however, and that someone is you

— whoever is flirting with him must be one brave individual, considering how he’s the one man whose favorite past time is to peacock you around. so you’re hanging off his arm, chiming into the conversation at his insistence, looking just as perfect as ever

— vincent only notices when you go silent, and he turns to see you glaring at the other person with a scowl he rarely ever sees

— he’ll pull you off to the side, both out of worry and preventing you from tearing into the other person, and ask you what is wrong. did they say something you didn’t take kindly to? are you not enjoying yourself, mon amour?

— when you finally tell him about the person flirting with him, how they were complimenting him too much or staring at him too much, he’s honestly a bit surprised

— he’s happy you said something, though, because he’d rather you tell him then let him suffer in his obliviousness

— after reassuring you, he gets a cheeky grin on his face. you know he’s plotting something, and its obvious when he brings the two of you back over to the person

— now, this time around, he’s doing nothing but talking about you. every new topic the person brings up he somehow relates back to you, singing your praises. he’s not obnoxious but its pretty obvious that he’s in a relationship

— eventually they excuse themselves, flustered, leaving an amused and smug chamber

— from then on out he makes it clear to anyone that he loves you and you alone

sova

— sova is sweet, but not oblivious. everyone knows that, and you are no exception

— normally he can figure out when someone is conversing with him in a less-than-friendly manner. he’ll politely tell them that he’s in a committed relationship and if they get fussy about it he’ll move on

— sometimes, however, its simply not something he will catch on to

— more than likely due to the fact that the person isn’t direct with their advances, just thinly veiled compliments and obnoxious laughing at the words that he says

— what sova does notice, however, is the glare from across the room coming from you. there’s a frown on your face, and you aren’t paying any attention to what your friends are saying around you

— it concerns him and he immediately gets up and goes over to you, asking what was wrong. he thinks something happened to you

— when you point out the cause of your jealousy, who is now staring at you with a pointed and confused glare, he immediately catches on. he’ll pause for a moment, wondering what he missed, before going back over to them

— without missing a beat he calmly apologizes for any mixed signals, explains to them that he is in a happy and committed relationship, and that he does not appreciate the advances they are displaying

— doesn’t even wait for the flustered explanation before walking away from them and back to you

— if you end up feeling bad about it, knowing it was a relatively normal conversation before the other person started flirting, he’s not interested in a word of it

— “anybody else can have a conversation and respect boundaries, любовь. they could not.”

GEKKO ━━━

gekko has like. a normal amount of jealousy?

he’ll bite back the small senses of it whenever you’re giving another guy a little more attention that he would like you to

or he’ll politely explain to you that he doesn’t really like you doing something because of how it makes him feel and you’ll talk it through

not because he doesn’t trust you, he just needs that extra little reassurance

if you’re willing to give up doing something to give him that peace of mind? all the better. if not? he can work on it, no questions asked.

overall 10/10 v good communication skills i love him

━━━━━━

you could tell that gekko was uneasy. from the way his nails picked at his fingers and the constant bouncing of his knee, to the avoidance of eye contact and the way his speech was quiet and mumbled, gekko’s demeanor screamed something was wrong.

you watched him carefully as you sat back down at the table. again, his eyes didn’t move from the place they were locked onto.

a few moments passed as you thought of what could have been wrong. the two of you were at some company party, with loud music coming through the speakers and an unholy amount of people piled into the room. everyone was dressed formally in either dresses or suits, their makeup done perfectly and not a hair out of place.

maybe that’s what was wrong. perhaps the music was too loud or his suit was too tight.

“mateo?” you had to yell over the music, despite wanting your voice to be soft as you spoke to him.

he finally looked up to you, soft eyes scanning your face. he didn’t speak, but he hummed to acknowledge you audibly.

“is everything alright? you seem a little off.”

the question seemed to stun him for a few moments as he pulled his bottom lip between his teeth and looked back down to the table. after a deep breath, he finally answered. “i just felt a little… i dunno. saying i was jealous feels a little funny, but there was this guy earlier you were talking to? he was kinda tall, darker hair. and uh- anyway, you went to grab a drink and he seemed to be really funny i guess. you didn’t stop laughing the entire time you were talking and before you left he kissed your cheek.”

you thought about it for a second, trying to recall the interaction, before you let out something like a laugh.

“he’s from mexico, he told me it was a common thing there? i dunno. i’ve known him since i joined the protocol.” you said, smiling at him. “it’s nothing, but if you don’t like it i’ll tell him next time. i highly doubt there’s gonna be any hard feelings about it on his end. is that alright?”

he nodded, sending you a soft smile. his face had relaxed significantly in the past few minutes. "thank you, amor."

SOVA ━━━

he rarely gets jealous,, he thinks

he has a hard time exactly placing the emotion, and it’s mostly shrouded in protectiveness more than anything

he loves you, he knows you love him, and there is not a doubt that trickles into his mind

…..for the most part, anyway

there is the occasional time when that warmth spreads in his chest and the overwhelming urge to take you under his wing spawns, only to realize you aren’t in any danger

so why does he feel the need to protect you?

━━━━━━

sova had never had any ill-will toward phoenix. the two of them weren't particularly close, but they had worked and lived together for long enough that they were closer than one might expect.

maybe thats why sova agreed to play games with he and a few others the other night. they played stupid ice-breaker games, despite mostly having known each other for years. a few embarrassing stories of his friends' youth were shared, including the time jett ate brownies without knowing weed was baked in, and the time raze got caught sneaking out in her teens.

at some point, sova was asked who he had feelings for. it was the late hours of the night, and you had long since passed out on the couch next to him. he'll never figure out how you slept through the laughing and talking, but you did. without saying a word, sova had smiled softly and nodded over to you.

there were a few gasps, and then there was the laughing and cheering of a few others. phoenix held out his hand, to which jett passed him twenty bucks with a disgrunted face. evidently, they had had a bet about his feelings.

little did he know that telling them--phoenix, in particular--about his feelings toward you would go on to be one of the worst decisions he could have made.

ever since that night, phoenix had made it his goal to flirt with you as much as he possibly could when sova was around. he would send the russian a wink and a smile after every interaction with you, driving the stake deeper. though you thought he was just being friendly and joking around, the interactions never failed to spark a sick feeling in his gut.

and currently, he was almost at his limit.

he was normally fairly calm, but his patience with phoenix had been run thin over the past few weeks and the interaction between you two was getting a little too close for his comfort. not that he had some sort of claim over you; you weren't dating, so why did he have this feeling?

"could you hand me my water?" you asked from your spot on the couch. you gestured to the bottle of water placed in front of phoenix, who was sitting beside you.

he watched as phoenix took your hand and brought it gently up to his lips, planting a kiss on your knuckles. "anything for you, my love." his voice was dripping with sultry as he spoke.

in a few quick steps, sova got up and grabbed the bottle before phoenix could. he stepped around the coffee table and handed you the bottle, sending a glare over to phoenix when he stepped away. the other man raised his hands in mock defense and leaned back into the couch. with a sly smile, he positioned his arm around the back of the couch and pulled you into his side. you laughed, but didn't push away.

"ok, fine." sova finally spoke. he had been glaring daggers at you and phoenix for the better part of two hours, and you couldn't figure out why. "what the hell is it for, phoenix? why are you doing this?"

you leaned up from where you were leaned against the man in question. "doing what?"

phoenix smiled impossibly wider and leaned forward. "yeah, doing what?"

sova grumbled. he huffed and took a moment to collect himself. "leave, y/n." he looked at you and his eyes softened. "please."

despite the look he sent you, you weren't leaving. you crossed your arms in defiance and glared. phoenix's hand came up to rub your back.

"that!" sova finally spoke again. this wasn't how he wanted to confess to you, but so be it. "i told you weeks ago that i had feelings for y/n and you have since made it your life's mission to flirt with them. you don't have the same feelings for them, so why? what do you gain?"

phoenix, painfully calmly, got up and walked to the other side of the room. "for one, you finally confessed. don't have to deal with your 'longing gazes' anymore. secondly, jett now owes me twenty more bucks."

OMEN ━━━

omen would like to pride himself in the fact that he was rarely jealous.

insecure? sure. a little self-depreciating? of course.

but jealous just wasn’t him. as much as he was dissatisfied with himself, he had full trust in you.

however, that didn’t stop the rare inkling of a feeling that you truly would be better off with someone else, especially when they flirt, and even more so when you don’t notice

━━━━━━

one more time. that was all it was going to take.

just one more time for that guy to slide his hand up your arm, one more stupid joke to roll off of his tongue, one more laugh from you. omen knew he didn't exactly initiate physical touch all that often, but that doesn't mean he dislikes it. he would kill right now to have that be him, for you to be so close to him, for you to be laughing at his every word like you were laughing at that guy's.

he had told you that he would come with you to grab some supplies. a kingdom worker had been at the facility at the time, however, and the two of you seemed to be getting along perfectly well. to hell with the company you had asked from omen, he supposes.

and of course there it was again, his arm coming up to rest gently on your back as he guided you down another hallway. omen was a few steps behind the two of you, not that either one of you seemed to be paying him any mind.

fine. he could go back to his room.

his disappeared into a cloud of smoke, materializing again in the darkness of his own room. the events of the last thirty or so minutes replayed in his mind, a taunting loop of your smile as you looked at the man responsible for it. its not that he hated seeing you smile -- he loved it. but it was a different thing entirely when you smiled so big because of a man he could never be. maybe in another life, but not now.

the thoughts swirled in his head for what felt like hours. it was likely barely half an hour in reality, being that it took fifteen minutes alone to get up to his room from where the two of you had been before and likely another few to finish your work.

finally, a knock on the door of his room regained his attention.

"come in." he spoke, not looking away from the ceiling tile he'd been fixed on.

"what the hell is wrong with you?" you asked, clearly angry.

the phantom sat up, looking over to you incredulously. "what?"

"why the hell would you leave?"

"wasn't interested in watching him flirt with you." he was curt, as always.

"oh, yeah," you said dramatically. you were walking over to him now, standing in front of him. "because i was enjoying it so much. loved it even more when my boyfriend got tired and left me alone with him."

oh. that makes more sense than you blatantly hitting on him in front of your own boyfriend.

"really? sure seemed to find him so funny."

"because what am i supposed to do? tell him that he's not funny and to shut up?"

"you could have told him not to touch you."

"i did! and you didn't see me brushing his hand away and walking faster so he wouldn't rest his hand on my back? or were you too busy wallowing?"

the reality of this set in on him suddenly. he really had been too caught up in his own mind to realize what was happening. he had left you in an uncomfortable situation all because he was too stubborn to listen to what was actually happening.

"i'm sorry." he finally spoke.