Chapter Text
Ring! Ring!
Doctor looked up from his desk as he heard the familiar ring of his phone, snapping him out of his trance. He put his pen down, placing his paperwork on hold as he answered his phone with a soft "Hello?" From the other end, an enthusiastic Irish voice answered.
"''Ey, Ollie!" Annihilator cheered from the other end, Doctor smiled and attempted to say something back, but Annihilator was already speaking again. "Whatcha up ta?" He asked.
"Oh, just finishing up these contracts before I turn them in tomorrow, I should've had these done a few days ago but I got distracted with... family stuff. Thankfully, I'll be able to turn them in tomorrow once we head back to the base so we can prepare for our mission." The British man answered, leaning back in his chair with a small stretch and a quiet yawn. "...Enough about that though, what are you doing right now, friend?" Doctor questioned, crossing his arms as he awaited an answer from the other line, relaxing his posture.
"Ah, nothin' right now. Just called ya ta ask if ye wanted ta head te the bar up near 17th street with me." The demolitionist chuckled. "I know it's kinda stormin' right now and this is on short notice, but I got nothin' to do, plus it might be fun to get a lil' scuttered tonight, hah!" Doctor raised a brow before letting out a small hum as he looked back at his work, he had been working on these papers since he got up, he hasn't even left his desk much, and him and his friends haven't really been able to spend too much time together due to all the fighting and work they've had to do... The thought of spending a day to just relax with his friend and not worry about their tiring work sounded rather delightful to the Brit.
"How long will you be free for?" Asked the Doctor after a bit.
"The bar's open 'till 10pm, so until then." Doctor nodded in response at Annihilator's answer, taking a few seconds to think, comically putting a hand on his chin to accompany his thoughts.
"Hm... well I still have some work to finish..." The Doctor hummed, his face scrunched up somewhat. "I should be finished in like... another hour or two?"
"Bloody hell, how long ye been workin' on those damn papers?" Annihilator asked, his voice breaking up a bit from the bad connection due to the storm outside, but it wasn't too big of a deal.
"I... haven't kept track." Doctor lowered his phone a bit to look over to his wall clock, and... "Oh my heavens, it's 4pm?!" Doctor gasped as he sat straight up in his swivel chair, he recalled that he got up at around noon, maybe 11am, to him it felt like 2pm! "Ah, hahah... Perhaps... Perhaps a break would be nice..!" Doctor chuckled nervously, tugging his shirt collar as a sort of stim, something he usually does when nervous.
Annihilator tsked. "How did ye never notice the time?"
"I never thought about it I guess... Usually when I work I block out other things around me to keep myself focused, it's a habit of mine." Doctor murmured, looking down at the papers in front of him, still having a decent amount he needed to fill out. The two stayed quite for a bit until the Irishman let out an impatient "Soooo..?" catching the brunette's attention.
"Oh! Apologies, give me... thirty minutes? I'll finish what I'm working on so far and be right over!"
"A'ight! See ye there, lad!" Annihilator gleed before the two friends hung up. Doctor sat back up in his chair, sighing as he picked up his pen again, still having a couple more papers to finish up by tomorrow. He decided to simply finish the one he was currently working on, then he'll meet up with Annihilator, once the two are done with their hangout, Doctor will get back home and finish up for tomorrow! Some time passed, and Doctor placed the now finished contract in a pile of other papers to turn it to the higher ranks, afterwards, he sorted his desk a bit more, making sure everything is in perfect order - as always - along with changing out of his t-shirt into a dark turquoise hoodie, and then finally left the house and getting in his car to meet the Annihilator at the bar.
"I'm sorry! I got lost in traffic!" Doctor panted as he entered the bar and ran over to Annihilator who was waiting by the entrance, the Brit's hood was up and drench in rain water. "The rain was causing some problems so I-I couldn't make it in time-!" Doctor scrambled to make excuses, stuttering over his words and his tone pleading, but Annihilator, after the initial confusion wore off, just started laughing, bringing the Doctor's rambling to an end with a confused stare.
"Ollie, my lad, calm down, it's fine!" The Irishman grinned, standing up straight and off the wall he was leaning on. "Ain't no reason ta panic. Jesus, ye act like this every time yer a wee late te somethin'?" Annihilator laughed, placing his calloused hand on the medic's shoulder, who let out an awkward, yet relieved chuckle as he took off his hood, bits of his hair wet from the rain.
"Heheh... well, I'm always worried I'll upset people if I'm late, so..." Doctor shrugged, his hands holding one another, nervously, his fingers fidgeting with each other. Annihilator smiled at the shorter male, briefly looking over at the rest of the bar before turning back to the Doctor.
"C'mon, let's go sit, I've been standin' forever!" Annihilator grabbed Doctor's top and pulled, making the British man let out a light gasp before regaining his footing and following the demolitionist. The two headed over to the long bar counter, taking a seat in a couple padded bar stools that were next to each other. The building was nicely, and fancily decorated, nice jazzy music and the chatter between folks overcame the sound of the rain outside, it was a cozy, and upbeat vibe, perfect for a bar. Soon enough, the two Europeans took their orders, with Annihilator ordering a standard alcoholic drink, and Doctor... just ordering some iced tea. As the bar tender left, Annihilator gave a side eye to the Brit.
"Iced tea? Really? At a bar?" Annihilator asked, smirking deviously.
Doctor chuckled nervously, swooping a little bit of stray hair out of his face. "Ah, sorry, I don't drink." He said, with Annihilator raising a brow in response.
"C'mon lad! Yer at a bloody bar for god sakes! Order somethin' hard!" The Irishman elbowed the smaller man, not that hard, but still causing the medic's glasses to become crooked. Doctor glared up at the demolitionist as he fixed his glasses with a dramatic 'hmph.'
"Well excuse me, but I would much rather not poison my body with such rubbish!" Doctor countered, crossing his arms, though his tone sounded harsh, his expression was rather playful, a slight smile and thin eyes. Annihilator's face twisted into a grin.
"C'mon ya eejit! Live a little! Or are ya just a yellow-bellied coward?!" The demoman's tone was boisterous as the Doctor gasped.
"How rude!" Doctor yelled dramatically with a pout, causing the Annihilator to laugh heartily, finding the medic's tone hilarious. He eventually placed his fingerless-gloved hand on the younger man's shoulder as he calmed down, knocking the smaller man forward a little bit from the sudden pressure.
"Haha! Ah, don't ya worry, I'm just messin' with ya, I know this stuff ain't fer ye." Annihilator smiled, shaking the fellow mercenary's shoulder a little bit playfully. Doctor let out a shy chuckle before sitting up straight in his seat, smiling as well.
"I, ah, had a slim feeling you were just messing with me dear, I know you'd never truly be upset at me for something like that!" The Doctor giggled. "But if I will be honest, I never got the appeal for alcohol. I understand some people might like the feeling of being hammered, but that feels too dangerous for my liking..." Doctor said as the two received their drinks. "Just far too risky..."
"Yeah, heh, some people tend ta act up when they're drunk." The demolitionist took a sip of his ale, Doctor took a drink of his own glass as well, a quite refreshing one. "I was a bar tender when I was younger and the amount of fist fights, knife fights, and gun fights I witnessed was mad!" Annihilator laughed, placing his glass back down, quite hard and causing a small amount to spill. "Had te get the police involved at times."
Doctor look quite astonished. "Oh my... how could you work in a place like that? I'd be terrified every day!" Doctor questioned with wide eyes. The Irishman snickered, taking another drink of his liquor.
"Well, when ye grow up in the bad side of the city, criminal activity ain't that shockin'." The Annihilator answered before taking yet another large sip, emptying the glass, swiftly ordering a second round. "Still definitely surprisin' though!" Doctor nodded in understanding, adjusting his glasses.
"Understandable, Still quite bizarre to me." Doctor took another sip. "Do you mind if I ask a question?"
"Go fer it."
The medic tsked, subtly tapping the desk. "Why did you invite me here? Of course, I'm delighted you have and I'm not complaining in the slightest! But I'm also rather curious on why since... we don't usually hang out too much." Doctor questioned the demolitionist, who was running a finger along the rim of his empty glass.
"Ah, just ta have a bit a' fun with ye! As ya said, we don't get te hang out much, and I just want ta spend more time with ya!' Annihilator answered quite enthusiastically, his smiling turning into another grin, displaying his unnaturally sharp teeth. Doctor smiled warmly in response.
"Well, I'm glad you have!" Doctor giggled, hand on his chest. "I'm already just having fun from being with you!" Annihilator giggled with Doctor, clearly, the two were sharing the same glee, just two mercenaries taking a break from their hellish work environment to just enjoy a nice day out, it was lovely for them both, but soon enough, Annihilator's smiled lessened.
"Heh... well if I'll be honest..." Doctor let out a small Hm? before turning his attention to his friend. "The main reason why I wanted ta invite ye out here was because... heh." The Irishman's expression softened, looking down at his cup with not nearly as much life as before. "Ya've seen very down recently. I ain't usually one te comment on that sorta stuff, but I don't like seein' ye down." The demolitionist chuckled awkwardly after his sentence, as if what he said was stupid, though Doctor's heart felt warm hearing those words... "Afta' seein' how much ya help the team out and the hell ye go through ta keep us up, I don't enjoy seein' ya upset 'er frustrated."
"Oh... well, that's very kind of you, my friend!" Doctor smiled, patting the ginger's shoulder, who smiled back, keeping his expression soft. "I'll admit, my mood has been rather dampened as of recent due to... various matters..."
Annihilator raised a brow. "Like what?" Doctor took a second to respond, rubbing his temple.
"Some reasons are... rather personal, but one major one is that..." Doctor trailed off, not finishing his sentence, kind of just staring off into space, coming back when Annihilator called out "Ollie?"
Doctor blinked and then shook his head. "Sorry, uhm... Well, my sister, she's been hospitalized for a few months now due to an illness, and I've been really worried about her..." Doctor looked down, fiddling with his fingers, his face somber. "Especially because she's been getting worse recently... Her and I have been really, really close since childhood, and I don't think I'd be here if she wasn't with me... I'd love to visit her, but I can't for obvious reasons."
"...Damn, sorry about that." Annihilator placed his hand back on the medic's back, the touch was rather comforting... "Hope she gets better."
"I hope as well... and if she doesn't, I just hope I can at least visit her once last time..."
"..."
"Sorry, I-I didn't mean to turn this conversation sad, it's just-"
"Nah lad, yer fine, if ya gotta let it out, let it out." Doctor looked back up at the Irishman, his expression still soft and comforting, not like his usual one at all... "Loss ain't easy, 'specially when it's someone ye love dearly, even the possibility of it's scary, so if ye got issues regardin' loss, don't be 'fraid ta let out yer worries, 'cause it's the most valid thing you can be concerned about... At least, that's what I think, heh." A small brief period of silence rested between the two mercenaries, Annihilator looking back to his refilled glass. "I've lost some people in my life as well, my dad, my brothers... I know how it feels."
Doctor stood still for a second, he knew basically nothing about Annihilator's past - other than the fact he grew up in Ireland - but eventually nodded. "Thank you, Riley, I appreciate it." Annihilator nodded back, taking a sip of his glass. A word wasn't said from either of the two mercenaries for a bit, an awkward silence still between them, save for the sound of them sipping their drinks. Eventually though, Annihilator spoke up again, shifting the topic to something less saddening, catching the Brit's attention.
Twenty minutes passed, Doctor was on his second glass, drinking slowly and focused much more on talking then actually drinking. Annihilator on the other hand, was starting on his fifth glass of the same poison beverage, with the effects definitely showing through as the two talked more.
"A question I've been wanting to ask you, though I've never really had the chance to, is where did you get your scars from?" Doctor asked, gesturing at the larger man's arms. "Were they possibly from your old job as a bartender? All those fights?" Along Annihilator's burly arms were many, many scars, small ones, large ones, long ones, short ones, jagged ones, you name it, all of which were spread across the demoman's muscular limbs, there was even a fine one on his neck and under his left eye, which were both usually covered as Annihilator often wore turtlenecks and most people saw him with his goggles on. Annihilator's amber eyes darted down to his arms, then back up to the medic with an oddly placed smile upon his lips.
"Geheheh- hah... M'ybe some, but like, m'st were fr'm my *hic* childhood..." Annihilator slurred, hunch over in his seat with half-lidded eyes.
Doctor raised a brow, placing his drink down after a quick sip. "Your childhood?"
"Yeahhh, wwwwwhen I was y'nger, I got in... a lot a' ffffights... 'specially with m' brothers..." Annihilator rubbed his eyes, taking a drink of his newly refilled alcohol.
Doctor's face scrunched up. "Your brothers? Why?" The medic asked, wasn't he mourning them earlier? Annihilator's slurring and hics didn't go unnoticed by the medic asking a quick "Are you drunk?" after his initial sentence.
"Ugh, I d'n't know. But... yeah, me 'n' my brothers never got al'ng." The Annihilator's face posed a smirk, letting out a hic before continuing his sentence. "Hahh... 'least those pricks 're dead now."
"...Excuse me-?"
"They alw'ys said s'ch annoyin' stuff... 'nd kids at school 'lso hated me." A unstable chuckled left the Annihilator, wiping his mouth which was a little splashed from his drink. The Doctor cringed, he knew Annihilator's drink tolerance was pretty low, but really underestimated how low, not to mention what he was saying... He recalled a conversation he overheard between Brute and Mechanic a few weeks ago:
"It's kind of crazy, heh, he'll have like three shots and be completely wasted! I'm tellin' you brother, I always have to drag him home from bars."
"Gosh, must be annoying, huh? Hauling that wreck around."
"Eh, it's not that bad, plus he sounds pretty funny when he's drunk because his accent pops out more, but he does say some really personal stuff about himself..."
Doctor sighed, yep, he's definitely drunk, guess he'll be driving him home...
"...An'ther thing..." Doctor perked up, looking back up at his friend. "I was *hic* r'lly actin' the m'ggot when I was a wee lad... hehehe... I would sneak out ‘n’ l’ke, steal m’ d’ds cigarettes fr'm his truck, and h's booze.”
“…You, what-?" Doctor asked, taking a second to piece together Annihilator's broken sentence. "How old were you?!”
“Mmmmm… like… s'xteen…”
“…Sixteen?! And you were drinking booze and smoking?!”
“Yeah- Geh- *hic* ah! Dad neva' cared but ah, what w'll ye do."
Doctor stared aghast, not even knowing how to reply to that, guess what Brute had said about Annihilator saying personal things about himself when drunk was right as well. "Okay... I think it's time we head home..." Doctor said nervously, standing up and lightly tugging Annihilator's sleeve. Annihilator grunted, looking towards Doctor, then back at his drink.
"One m're drink." The drunk demolitionist slurred as he attempted to reach back towards his glass, but Doctor slapped his hand away.
"Riley, no! You're really, really drunk. I don't want you-"
"I ain't dr'nk! I'm j'st a lil' woozy!"
"Listen to yourself! My heavens, you're skipping half of your vowels!"
"But-"
"No buts! You're going home." Doctor helped Annihilator stand from his seat, the larger of the two leaning on the smaller one to keep himself stable. Once the drinks have been payed, the two left the bar, sloppily stepping through the parking lot, Doctor decides on the way that he'll drive Annihilator home in his truck, afterwards he'll walk back to the bar to drive himself home in his own car, which shouldn't be too bad as there's no more rain, though it depends on if Annihilator will even let him drive his car. Once they reached the Irishman's truck, Doctor asked the question.
"...Do you mind if I drive your truck?"
"Why c'n't I do 't? Ain't it *hic* m'ne?" Asked the drunk, eyes squinting.
"...I really don't mean to be so blunt, but you'll probably just drive yourself through someone's yard. I want you to get home safely and... not do that. Also you would get in trouble with the law." He answered, adjusting his glasses to rest more comfortably on the bridge of his nose. Annihilator smirked, attempting to reach for the door, but Doctor restrained him, it was pretty easy because of how off balance he was. "Give me the keys."
"Nnnoo!!" Annihilator said while laughing, making the younger huff out of actual frustration, not like before when they were teasing each other.
"Riley, please cooperate with me!" The brit demanded, but the Irishman just laughed again.
It took much asking and shoving for Doctor to finally get the keys to the truck, and to get Annihilator in the passenger seat, who was still woozy and sloppy with his movements. He got comfortable in the front seat, had to spend another minute trying to get Annihilator to actually put his seatbelt on, then drove off, thankfully he knew where Annihilator lived, trying to pull his address out of him in this state would be a whole different kind of trouble, he'd probably just give up and allow Annihilator to crash at his place until he sobers up. As the medic drove, a thought came to mind... The two only hung out for half an hour, and a part of him wished their hangout was a bit longer, it was fun to talk to Annihilator due to his honesty, playfulness, and his ability to make any conversation more fun, maybe going to a bar together wasn't the best choice.
Soon, the two arrived at Annihilator's home, Doctor helped the larger out of the passenger seat and helped him reach the front door. "I would... like to hang out with again sometime, just... not at a bar. I do not want to deal with you while you're hammered again." Doctor said, hoping that whatever he said was actually being heard, probably not since the Irishman was looking out to the street before turning back with a smirk.
"Y'kn'w those l'ke... movies or wh'tever where the k'ys get thrown inta tha storm dr'in?" Annihilator slurred, clutching the medic's hand, attempting to fish the keys out of the brit's fist, which were thankfully being held on tight.
"Oh my word- Riley!" Doctor shouted, pulling his hand away and failing to get the other, larger hand off his own.
"C'monnnnn! Let's rea- *hic* -nact it! It'll b' fun!" Annihilator continued to try and pry the keys away from the Doctor with zero success.
"My friend, I do NOT feel like digging into a disgusting, dodgy sewer system all because you thought - while you were drunk! - to throw your keys, in a drain." Doctor retorted, squeezing his fist around the keys harder to the point it hurt. "Just go inside and lay down, because, honestly, you're a wreck right now."
Annihilator frowned dramatically before finally letting go of the keys, his arm flopping down. "Fineeee..." He groaned, going back to just leaning on the medic like a ragdoll. Doctor sighed again, unlocking the door before pushing it open, ushering his drunk friend into the house.
"If I give you the keys, do you promise not to throw them away?" Doctor asked, head tilted. Annihilator simply yawned before letting out a shaky "yes." Doctor gave the demolitionist the keys, cautiously, before leaving the house, wishing Annihilator a goodnight as he left. Before the door shut, the ginger put back on his smug smirk before the door shut. Deciding not to question it, the medic began to walk back to the bar to pick up his car, thankfully it shouldn't be too long of walk, maybe even quite relaxing... Hopefully he can finish his remaining papers, it was roughly only 5pm, so he should have time if he doesn't get distracted. Hopefully tomorrow at work, he and Annihilator could spend their breaks together, wouldn't be much, but still should be fun He knows any conversation with Annihilator will be positive.