Chapter Text
Light rain pattered against the large window after a long evening of scattered storms. Mel watched the raindrops slide down in an uneven pattern, taking a sip from the short glass of bourbon she had poured to ease her nerves. She swallowed slowly, wanting to savor the strong liquid taste as it coursed smoothly down her throat.
She looked out onto the city below, lit up by colorful lights, all mixing into each other like an artistic collage. Piltover kept up its lively appearance even throughout the night, with people still out and about at late evening hours. A performative attitude, Mel saw it as, trying to overcompensate for an illusion of freedom and happiness.
Mel scoffed to herself, taking a long drink. Her first years living in Piltover were spent adapting and learning the posh, competitive culture. How to keep up appearances, form beneficial deals, and collect accolades like petty tokens. It all became a draining game, one that relied on strategy and vision.
“The city of progress.” Mel murmured to herself, crossing an arm over to cradle the other at the elbow, holding the bourbon.
Ambitious minds thrived here, where a hunger for power and politics remained unsatiated. It was all what Mel had chased for after leaving Noxus, wanting to make her own name and mark in a place her mother, Ambessa, had yet to touch. She chased after the Piltover’s definition of success, becoming one of the well-known elites – people who had lived in the city their entire lives could only keep dreaming about.
However, once at the top, success became a state of mind that was fragile at best. It was a cutthroat, cold life that if not handled with a hardened spirit, could break even the strongest.
Mel looked down at the buzzing city from the high rise building she owned, in an office she customized specifically to her taste, and laughed to herself. There were few people to trust in this famous lifestyle and even then, those people had to be kept at a distance before future scandals turned them into informants. It was lonely. Empty. A few night flings here and there over the years still wasn’t enough to fill the space a relationship would.
It was hard to find a trusted lover in this line of business, even harder to be vulnerable. Mel swirled the bourbon around in her hand, letting out a frustrated sigh, before gulping down the rest of the drink. She needed to get laid. And soon. This hellish work week needed a happy ending. A soft knock at the door turned Mel’s attention away from the window.
“Ms. Medarda, the paperwork for the last client is complete. Everyone’s taking off for the weekend. Anything else you need from me?”
Elora peered around the doorway, one foot halfway in, letting the yellow fluorescent light from the hallway light up the dark office. Mel hadn’t realized she had been standing in the dark like a vampire and even squinted a little at the bright light.
“No, that will be all.” Mel answered, running her fingers along the edge of her desk. Elora nodded in quick response and started to leave.
“Elora.” Mel called out, suddenly forgetting something important.
Elora’s head popped back in the office with a curious look on her face.
Mel flashed a warm smile, wanting her point to come across as genuine as possible.
“Great work this week, Elora. I appreciate you and everyone’s dedicated efforts at this firm.”
Elora blinked, taking time to register that Mel had just offered praise and not words pertaining to clients or office work. She took a step through the door, still holding onto the handle to keep it from completely closing behind her.
“Thank you, Ms. Medarda.” She said, a slight blush creeping into her cheeks. “It means a lot coming from you.”
“Mel. Call me, Mel, Elora. No need for such formalities when it’s just us two.” Elora froze in the doorway, her cheeks turning a deeper shade of red, as if Mel had just told her the color of her panties. She caught her breath with a deep inhale and stammered out.
“Yes, ma’am, Ms. Medarda. I mean Mel.”
Mel looked over at her, gently. For years now, Elora worked dutifully as Mel’s assistant. Never getting too close, but always a breath away.
Mel caught the shy, quick glances when she wore outfits meant to make people stare or command a room’s attention with her undeniable presence. It would take nothing to spend a night with Elora. But work was meant to be just work. Including the people in it.
“Have a great weekend, Elora.” Mel said, her honeyed voice causing Elora to grip the handle tightly.
“You as well… Mel.” Elora replied, leaving out of the office before her blush could darken even further.
Mel sighed. The office became dark once again except for the glittering lights from the city below. She crossed over behind the desk, peeling off the black trench coat laid over the back of the chair. She shrugged it on, typing a quick message to her driver.
The hallways of the firm were silent at this hour, a stark contrast to the busy air that took place earlier that day. Changes in client’s cases, new events occurring, and deadlines to be met all brought workers walking back and forth through the hallways.
Now the clicking of Mel’s kitten heels against the floor were the only sounds to be heard. Her phone buzzed in her coat pocket, a new text from the driver confirming to be parked and waiting downstairs for Mel.
The elevator doors opened with a ding, and she walked inside, clicking open her phone to scroll through media apps. She stopped at a recent story update of her best friend Shoola holding up a scratched lottery ticket. Mel replayed the short video a few times, smiling at Shoola screaming excitedly about winning a ticket to Caitlyn Kiramman’s island vacation. She sent her a text of congratulations and an offer to help her pack. The elevator stopped with a soft halt, the doors opening to the building’s lobby.
“Mel Medarda & Associates” etched in cursive writing across a long wall, facing opposite of a framed painted portrait of Mel. It was meant to assert a sort of dominance that whoever stepped into the building was now on Mel’s turf and must abide by her way of handling things.
Her reputation of being Pilitover’s best fixer for political disasters remained impeccable, taking on only the best lawyers or graduate students from Piltover University to work at her firm. It was an honor to work under Mel, a privilege that wasn’t handed to just anyone. The security guard, Steb, peeked over the several monitors lining the entrance desk, when hearing Mel pass by.
“Always first one in, last one out, huh Ms. Medarda?” He said casually, looking between different feeds from cameras installed inside and outside the building.
“One of the many things that come from being the boss. Don’t work too hard this weekend, Steb.” Mel replied, throwing a quick wave over her shoulder.
Upon exiting the building, a brisk, cool wind swept through Mel’s body, causing her to shiver and pull the flaps of her coat tighter. The rain had let up, leaving behind dampness and puddles. She walked quickly to the awaiting luxury vehicle, breathing a sigh of relief to the warmness that greeted her once inside.
Her driver looked in the rearview mirror at Mel, asking whether she wanted to go straight home or stop by Leonard’s store beforehand. She debated for a second, feeling the need for rest, but wanting to stick to the routine of checking in on her longtime friend at the end of every week.
“Yeah, take me to Leonard’s please.” She said, opening her phone once again. She glanced every now and then out the car’s window, watching the change of city scenery as they cruised from upper Piltover to downtown. Modern highrise office buildings, all competing to see who could get closest to reaching the sky, soon blended into shops and corner stores. Brightly colored signs lit up doorways, with merchandise lining the windows to draw curious eyes and wallets to them.
The buildings were a lot shorter, fitted side by side, with some even having an old architecture to them. Sidewalks weren’t spacious any longer, having barely enough room for two people to walk comfortably past each other. Trees were nonexistent, leaving behind a concrete feeling to downtown Piltover.
It was as if someone had created an imaginary line between the rich side of Piltover and its poorer counterpart. The district of Zaun began where downtown Piltover ended.
Mel’s demeanor, however, did not change. She lived a lavish lifestyle, but could understand the struggles of those living well within their means. It was important to humanize people regardless of their income. Mel smirked at the remembrance of Shoola’s words, always staking her councilor’s position as one for the people and fighting against oppressive legislation other councilors wanted to pass for their own greedy, personal gains.
Shoola always impressed Mel with her endurance to fight, time and time again, for those who couldn’t, pushing her to take up a seat of power to tackle the problems as honest partners. Mel though was comfortable at being the head of her firm, knowing a councilor’s seat came with great access, but a dangerous power.
You must aim higher, Mel. Greatness is the only thing to be pursued as a Medarda. Not mediocrity.
Mel rolled her eyes at the sudden intrusive words of her mother. Legacy was all her mother cared about, not showing any signs of slowing down, even after the death of her brother, Kino. His death all but charged Ambessa more, putting the heavyweight to uphold and continue the Medarda legacy on Mel’s shoulders.
Mel squeezed the bridge of her nose at the thoughts swirling in her head. Her mother always carried a negativity with her that Mel consistently wanted to stay away from, even in her own thoughts.
“Um, Ms. Medarda. We’re here.”
Mel opened her eyes, taking in the white lights spilling out of the store front’s windows. She grabbed the straps of her purse and pulled it over her shoulder, opening the car door.
“It will only be a few minutes, Ava. Do you need anything?” Mel asked, waiting patiently with one heel already set on the pavement outside.
“No, ma’am. Take your time.” Ava gave a two-finger salute to Mel and started to switch to a podcast station on the radio. Mel stepped outside of the car, carefully avoiding a wide puddle of rainwater next to the street curb. She made her way up to the convenience store’s entrance and opened the door with flair.
“Leonarrddd!” She sang out, walking to the check-out counter. Sitting behind it on a wooden stool was an older, tall man who jumped a little at Mel’s sudden appearance in front of him. His eyes lit up with happiness at seeing Mel’s face, stepping off the stool and stretching long arms across the counter.
“Ah, my favorite person is here!”
Mel leaned over into the open embrace, patting him gently on the shoulder with a chuckle.
“How did this week go, Leonard? I hope the owner next door is not giving you trouble anymore.” Mel said, adjusting her coat after the warm hug.
“Well, I don’t know what you said to him after you went over there and had that chat last weekend. He just gives me a mean side eye now every morning when I open my store up. I still say hello, though the bastard seems to be unhappy no matter what.”
Mel gave Lenoard a wink, a smirk playing on her face.
“Let’s just say, I am very good at persuading people to act accordingly.”
The shopkeeper next to Leonard was all but friendly when Mel went over last weekend. He immediately started complaining about the types of “grimy” and “unruly” customers Leonard’s store attracts.
He wanted nothing to do with them, in fear that they would be more inclined to steal rather than pay for items. However, his judgmental attitudes resulted in lack of business, which fed more into jealousy than frustration. The proper man seemed to shrink as Mel tore into him about his discriminatory judgements and promising to ensure his shop will no longer have any kind of customers, if he continued to insult Leonard.
Leonard’s shop was a staple in the tight knit community. Never one to turn down a helping hand to anyone in need, even for Mel, becoming a beacon of light during her first years in Piltover as a struggling college student. With no family ties or friends to rely on, it was the small extension of graces from people like Leonard who kept her from completely going under.
She stopped by his shop frequently, along the same route to the waitress job she worked during that time. He would even refuse payment from her sometimes, knowing how hard food and rent were to juggle on top of draining schoolwork. It was only right to keep in touch with the man who helped Mel get to where she was now, always willingly to give back in any way shape or form.
She peered at the newly set up poster behind the counter, advertising lottery tickets for a Kiramman Isle vacation. It was quite odd that she hadn’t heard or seen anything regarding this free vacation from such a prestigious family name until today.
Shoola having a ticket already should have raised an alarm then, but work had been a rollercoaster the past week. It could have slipped past Mel, having to pay attention to more pressing matters.
“Selling new lottery tickets, Leonard?” Mel asked, pointing to the advertisement behind him. A wide smile spread across his face when turning to view the poster.
“When I tell you those tickets sold out like hot cakes in the middle of winter! It was crazy in here, Mel! Folks I had never seen before were buying 5 tickets at a time. Sadly, I’m all sold out. Though, I kept the first ticket out of the stack sold to me. I wanted to see if I was lucky enough to win a free vacation.” He exclaimed, digging into a metal box on a shelf below the counter.
He placed a medium sized, glossy piece of paper on the counter. A large letter K sat at the top of it, with a supposed family crest printed behind it. Rows of bubbled, hidden numbers ran down the rest of the paper.
Mel turned the ticket over in her hand, reading through the fine print and suspiciously eying the concealed winning number combination. There was no mistake that this came from the Kiramman family, but specifically a vacation sponsored by the mysterious daughter and heir, Caitlyn Kiramman.
Mel raised an eyebrow at the ticket, placing it carefully back onto the counter.
“Well, I wish you good luck Leonard. You deserve a vacation. I wonder who you would leave to take care of your shop. Hopefully, not Maddie. That girl has a meanness to her Leonard, you just don’t–” Mel trailed off, looking into Leonard’s glowing eyes.
“When was the last time you had a vacation, Mel?” He softly asked, placing a hand over the ticket. Mel eyebrows furrowed, quickly understanding Leonard’s true intentions.
“No, Leonard. I will not take that ticket. Come on, you have earned this. Take the chance for yourself.”
He shook his head, pushing the ticket towards Mel.
“I think you might be right about Maddie. Best I stay to make sure everyone gets the same kind of treatment in my shop. Besides, I got a feeling about this ticket. I think it might be a winner.” He looked at Mel with a kindness that made her heart melt. “Just like you, Mel.”
Mel felt a lump forming in her throat and cleared it immediately, trying to control the rush of emotion surging through her. Her father’s face and Leonard’s starting to blur together in her mind. She shook her head in a way to ground herself and focus her mind away from images of her late father.
“Fine. But when I come back here in a week or so from the vacation, don’t be jealous.” Mel teased, picking the ticket up and placing it in her purse. “Oh, and before I go, can you ring up a bag or two of those Nerd Cluster’s?”
Mel stepped out of the store and shivered from the cold night air. A sudden tiredness washed over her, wanting nothing more than to lie down on the thick stack of cotton sheets spread across her bed. She plopped down in the back of the vehicle, still pleasantly warm from idling, and shoved the bags of candy onto the front console.
“Ms. Medarda, you didn’t have to–” Ava started, surprised at the candy.
“But I wanted to. Ava, please take me home.” Mel said, closing her eyes and letting her head flop backwards on the seat headrest. She felt the car pull away from the curve and begin a smooth drive to her penthouse.
The soft vibration of Mel’s phone awakened her a few moments later. Shoola had finally replied with a photo of an open suitcase with different clothing items already thrown in it.
Shopping trip this weekend?
Mel stared down at the text, contemplating if she wanted to deal with the weekend headache of Shoola dragging her to every expensive boutique Piltover had to offer. While she wasn’t against buying new clothing, the past work week had been draining. She clicked her phone close without replying, peering outside the car window at the familiar street.
Ava drove into the apartment building’s parking garage, pressing her badge against a card reader for the automated gates to open. The car eased to a stop in front of a polished elevator. Mel said a quick farewell to Ava, stepping out of the car with an exhausted sigh. The elevator ride seemed to take forever and Mel found it a struggle to even find her apartment keycard in her purse.
Once inside, the lights lit up the living space, detecting Mel’s motion. She threw down her purse on the kitchen island, reaching in the fridge for a bottle of sparkling water. The first sip sent a chilled wave through her body, relaxing the tension in her muscles. A feeling of relief settled in as she removed her coat.
She rubbed her forehead in relief, blinking a tired eye open to catch a piece of glossy blue paper sticking out of her disheveled purse. Was this really a winning ticket? Mel slid the ticket onto the counter, looking over it carefully. The two golden crossed keys forming the unmistakable shape of a K, shined brightly back at her in an alluring manner.
Mel took the water’s metal bottle cap and started scratching to unveil the winning numbers.
41 58 53 19 38
Simple enough. She immediately started scratching to uncover the rest of the hidden numbers, feeling a jolt of excitement. She could understand why gambling addictions happened so easily. Little strips of aluminum circled around the ticket from Mel’s feverish scratching.
She stopped at the bottom row, searching through the now visible numbers to find any matches.
“58…19...53” Mel quietly muttered, finding 3 out of the 5 numbers. Her fingers twitched with eagerness. She was so close. Two more numbers and a free week’s vacation on the Kiramman’s private island was all hers.
No wonder Leonard sold out of tickets so fast. This was a prize too good to be true. She slowly started scratching at the last row, revealing the numbers one by one.
“8…15...7”
Mel’s heart sank reading the 3 numbers scratched. Not one number was a part of the combination. Mel cursed under her breath softly, realizing there were only two hidden numbers left. She squeezed her eyes shut, taking in a deep breath.
She could feel her heart pounding from the intensity of being so close to winning.
I think it might be a winner, just like you, Mel.
Leonard’s words sounded through Mel’s head, building into a mounting motivation to finish the ticket. She scratched at the last two numbers with a hardness, bracing herself for disappointment.
“41. 38.” Mel whispered to herself. Looking around the ticket to confirm the rest of the numbers.
“41, 58, 53, 19, and 38!” Mel shouted, jumping excitedly around the kitchen space. She reread the numbers out loud, screaming the last number loudly. “I won! Oh, my goodness!”
Elation washed over her, soaking in a genuine happiness she hadn’t felt in a long time. She quickly pressed on Shoola’s contact, clicking on the speaker symbol and impatiently waited for the dialing to begin. Shoola picked up on the third ring.
“Mel? It’s late, is everything okay?” Shoola answered, her rich voice rang out across the kitchen. Mel wasted no time, excitement lacing through her.
“Shoola, you will not believe this! I just won a spot on the Kiramman vacation. You know, the same one you won earlier. I won it too!” Mel paced back and forth, glancing back at the ticket repeatedly. Shoola took a second to register what Mel had just told her.
“You’re fucking with me.”
Mel stopped pacing and looked at the phone with a shocked face.
“I am not, Shoola. I am being serious right now. This is real! We are going together!”
Mel didn’t give Shoola any more time to doubt her any further.
“Be ready, bright and early in the morning. We are going shopping!”