Author's note: It's been rough getting this chapter done as I settle into my new routine, but I'm refusing to not get it done. Even though it's difficult, I think I'm starting to get a feel for balancing my new daily responsibilities and my writing. It's difficult to write when I find the time rather than just setting aside an entire day to get a chapter done as I have a hard time focusing on the flood of ideas coming to me when I have to go hours between writing single paragraphs. I think I've got it down, though; I'll be trying a few things to attempt to adjust my writing process to this new routine and work around it.

I want to again thank all of the friends that continue to keep me occupied when the frustration gets the better of me and I need some time to clear my head. I also want to again thank everyone for sending along their best wishes and support as I work through all of this. As of right now, I'm planning on spending the rest of my weekend getting the next chapter ready to upload on either Sunday or Monday.

1. "Comin' Home" by Hum

Nine seventeen.

Angela sat on the sofa in her suite, staring blankly at the time displayed on the tablet that she had been using the night before. Though she had just sent Fareeha off minutes earlier, Angela was checking her watch for the third time since she'd forced herself to allow her to walk away. She felt ridiculous for feeling so apprehensive, but it was all but impossible for her to view the situation logically. She knew that Fareeha was just going back to her hotel room to place a business call and it couldn't have been more clear that she wasn't going to be wasting any time or effort in putting it behind her and returning. Despite that, Angela felt uneasy. The single bedroom suite suddenly felt like a vast, echoing cavern now that she was alone in it. Only minutes earlier, it was full of life and an air of hopeful anticipation. Now, however, the single bedroom suite felt cold and empty. She had the feeling that she was in a vast, echoing cavern now that she was alone. It just feels...wrong. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she managed to spare enough room in her thoughts to be amazed that she'd gotten so attached to the idea of having Fareeha there.

With logic having failed her, Angela used the tablet to watch the morning news simply for something to do. It was a part of her daily routine to start her day with getting caught up with everything of significance that had happened in the world since she'd gone to bed. Though she couldn't have cared any less this morning, it would hopefully at least keep her thoughts occupied long enough for her to get her head on straight and make a business call of her own. As she started scrolling through news feeds for a familiar outlet, her thoughts were almost immediately derailed as her eyes were drawn to the sunlight glinting off of the ice bucket still sitting on the coffee table. Looking at the bottles sitting in the polished steel bucket now filled with water, a moment of curiosity led her to pick them up and shake them. Hearing splashing coming from inside of one of them, she took a closer look at the bottom and found nearly enough wine for a full glass. Though it seemed like shamefully terrible form to wake up drinking, she couldn't deny that she was relieved to find that the bottle wasn't entirely empty. More than that, dealing with the fact that there was no one around to see her was what made her think of it in the first place. Shaking the melted ice from the bottom of the bottle, she poured the wine into the empty glass she had been using the night before. The lukewarm wine had lost much of its appeal as it sat there throughout the night, but it was enough to help calm her nerves.

Again, Angela felt foolish for being so desperate to see Fareeha. Worse, she was vaguely reminded of her past and the way that she threw herself into her relationships. Closing her eyes and taking a deep breath, she waited for the wave of panic to pass before considering the memories again. It was difficult to think about them again, but it was entirely necessary. For the first time that she could remember aside from the night before, Angela was refusing to turn her thoughts away from her past mistakes. The possibility that she was repeating them was far worse than simply remembering them. Despite her best efforts to draw parallels between the past and the present, however, she couldn't make a definitive comparison between the two. It just wasn't the same. Even after considering the thought that every new relationship felt different, the likes of Audrey and Julia simply couldn't be compared to what she had now with Fareeha. Though the thought had occurred to her in the past, she was relieved to once again think that the problem wasn't that she was overlooking warning signs; they simply weren't there to be found.

Having spent several minutes staring blankly at the screen and not taking in anything that she had seen, Angela jumped in surprise when she heard her own name called. She was surprised to find that she had tuned in to one of the news stations covering the continuing story of her date. Still? Surely something of more significance has happened in the last full day. Though her immediate reaction was annoyance, curiosity compelled her to wonder what they could still be finding that was worth reporting. She watched as a man standing near the front doors of her hotel spoke in German, doing his best to be heard above the relatively small crowd that had gathered around him. He spoke endlessly about the events of the previous evening and repeated the speculation from several of her more popular fansites outside of the front doors of her hotel. Rather than saying anything of importance, he seemed almost bored, as though he was reading from a prepared script that he had been rereading for hours. As she thought about it, Angela wondered if that wasn't the case. It seemed as though he was merely stalling for time while waiting for something worth reporting to happen. Thinking about this, a thought occurred to Angela as she checked the time again. Fareeha had only left her several minutes earlier. Factoring in the time it would take for her to make her way to the lobby and the several minutes of broadcast delay, it was likely that, to the audience, she would be stepping through the front doors of the hotel at any moment. Angela's irritation was immediately forgotten as she sat up straight and stared at the tablet intently with new interest. As if on cue, the reporter stopped in the middle of his sentence in response to a growing commotion in the crowd.

Angela's troubles were suddenly a distant memory as she saw a harassed Fareeha slowly making her way out of the hotel doors. She politely gave a practiced wave to people calling her name as her driver and a hotel employee shielded her from the crowd slowly closing in on them. Despite her best effort to look friendly, however, it was clear that she had just put a long night behind her. Her face was clean and her hair was again immaculate, but her dress still displayed a menagerie of wrinkles and she looked utterly exhausted. Dark circles under her eyes made it clear that despite being up and about, her actions went entirely against her desires. More than anything else, she was clearly still the Fareeha that Angela knew so well, uncomfortable with both crowds of people she didn't know and being the center of attention. Even though Angela's heart ached at the thought of Fareeha's dismay, she found it impossible to not smile at the sight. More than once, she had spent late nights replaying news footage of the legendary Pharah in the wake of reports of her most recent successful mission. Though it seemed odd to Angela at the time that Helix would be willing to disclose quite so much information about their operations to the public, she couldn't help being grateful for the chance to see her Fareeha again as she anxiously awaited her next leave and the next vacation they would have to spend together.

All too soon, Fareeha had made her way through the crowd and was hidden behind the tinted rear windows of her transport. As the reporter started a new round of speculation based on Fareeha's fatigued appearance and morning departure, Angela tossed the tablet aside in frustration. It was infuriating to hear people attempt to use the two of them as a means of making their wild fantasies a reality. It is the same as it has been since upper secondary. People never change very much, do they? Worse than that, she found herself once again left alone with her thoughts. She almost wished that the wild accusations being tossed around were enough to hold her attention; it would have nearly been better than once again finding herself frustrated with not knowing how much longer it would take for this time to pass. Once again simply looking for something to do to pass the time, Angela attempted to guess at how much time was left before Fareeha returned. She quickly reviewed what little she knew about the call that Fareeha was returning home to make and remembered the name Fawzy and that the call had something to do with the company image.

Angela's face turned into a grimace as she remembered the one time she found herself speaking with Fawzy. As much as she detested the woman, she was amazed that she hadn't immediately recognized the name when she first saw Fareeha's message even in spite of the after effect of the wine. Despite her neat and orderly appearance, Fawzy proved herself to be a horrid woman inside of only a few sentences. As Angela had first recommended Fareeha to Overwatch and was acting as her sponsor, she had directly done much of the early negotiation with Helix regarding her contract. At one point, that meant meeting with the head of their public relations department. As she and Fareeha sat in the small office, Fawzy questioned them both about every minute detail of Overwatch. Being the head of public relations, Angela had been expecting it to an extent as it was necessary to understand as much as possible about Overwatch if it was to be determined how being associated with them would affect Helix's public image. Despite the professional tone of the conversation in the beginning, however, the questions quickly turned into an attempt to dredge up material for cheap gossip. Angela had done her best to politely deflect questions about the personal lives of the members, but Fawzy either didn't recognize the attempted diplomacy or didn't care. The mining for details about the personal lives of Overwatch agents seemed to go on for hours. Fawzy asked about everything from Lena's favorite foods to exactly how the Horizon Lunar Colony fell. Angela felt like she was being interviewed by a reporter from a celebrity gossip site to have so many seemingly inconsequential questions leveled at her.

It was merely annoying until the questions started becoming more personal. Hearing Fawzy ask exactly what happened to Amélie Lacroix made Angela's blood run cold; she could feel the carefully maintained polite smile on her face fall apart in an instant. The best response she could manage was to state that the matter was classified and suggest that they discuss matters that were public knowledge and directly affected Fareeha and Helix. Angela got a sinking feeling that suggested that Fawzy had failed to take the hint when apparent curiosity caused her face to light up. She was glad that she was sitting at the time; the next words out of Fawzy's mouth asked if there was any truth behind the rumors that Jack Morrison was Fareeha's biological father. Ignoring the chill that ran through her, she looked to Fareeha, more out of fear than curiosity. The sight was far worse than what she imagined. Fareeha was entirely silent, but her glare was utterly terrifying despite being directed at Fawzy rather than at her. Her carbon fiber hands gripped the wooden arms of her chair so tightly that she could hear the wood splintering underneath her fingers. For the first time since Angela met her, she became the voice of reason between the two of them. She scrambled to recall the official prepared response to such inquiries and stammered a reply, stating that Overwatch didn't keep official records of the details of agents' personal lives and that it was best to direct such questions to the agents themselves. Angela regretted having suggested it as soon as she got the words out, but it didn't seem to matter. In the time that she had been speaking, Fawzy had followed her gaze to Fareeha's face and seemed to be completely paralyzed with fright. As near as Angela could tell, Fawzy hadn't heard a word that she'd said. She only stared back at Fareeha, unable to tear her gaze away as she visibly trembled. She looked like a rabbit that had been cornered by a wolf. Angela was thoroughly disgusted with Fawzy at this point after hearing her ask about a subject that even she never brought up herself. Still, it was difficult to not feel pity for her as the seconds of silence turned into minutes. Though Fawzy had finally managed to look away from Fareeha, she was now merely looking down at her desk and clearly attempting to control her breathing. It took several minutes for her to finally manage to begin speaking again. Even then, she only spoke just above a whisper long enough to say that she was satisfied and signed a document officially giving her approval for continuing negotiations with Overwatch. It took several attempts to sign the document as her hand was shaking too violently to keep the pen in her hand steady.

Angela suddenly recalled the panic that had run through her earlier that morning when she saw the message from Fawzy that caused Fareeha to return to her hotel room to return her call. The thought that someone was already potentially attempting to interfere with her relationship with Fareeha made her blood boil, but at the time she was afraid that it might actually happen. Thinking of Fareeha's passionate response to that concern and remembering the history of her interactions with Fawzy made Angela feel ridiculous for ever thinking that it may have been a possibility. It was laughable to think that Fareeha would be talked out of what she wanted and she'd made it clear that what she wanted was Angela. Not only that, but it was just as hard to imagine that Fareeha would ever lose an argument to Fawzy. Angela laughed aloud, suddenly feeling some measure of sympathy for Fawzy as she thought about the conversation that she would be having with Fareeha at any moment. Weeks after their meeting, Angela was finally sure that Fareeha was calm enough for her to ask if she'd had any further trouble from Fawzy. Fareeha had said that Fawzy was as pompous and arrogant as ever, but she was obviously more careful in choosing her words. If she was having any thoughts of attempting to talk Fareeha out of this relationship, at the very least her sense of self-preservation would make her keep them to herself.

Still laughing, Angela felt as though a weight had been lifted from her shoulders. Though she still felt uneasy without Fareeha around, it was much easier for her to focus on the future. In the time it took for her to go back to her hotel, change into her dress uniform and return a phone call, she would be on her way back with luggage in tow. A new kind of nervousness flooded Angela as she drained the wine glass and carefully stood to make her way to the bathroom to shower. Though it was certainly necessary, she regretted having to wash away the night before. She could just barely detect the fragrance of Fareeha's perfume in her hair from the night that she'd spent in bed with her head resting on the lace that covered Fareeha's chest. She intended to rush through the shower and make herself presentable for her call to the French embassy as quickly as she could, though she wasn't nearly as interested in the work as she was in getting it done. She didn't want there to be anything else to get in the way of the remainder of her vacation after Fareeha arrived. Doing her best to ignore the throbbing in her head, she quickly reviewed every polite and professional way of stalling for time that she had ever used. With the rumors that were circulating, it was going to be obvious why she was delaying further conversation despite the importance of the topics of discussion, but that did nothing to change her course of action. It would be difficult, but it was of the utmost importance that she simultaneously express an interest in continuing the discussion and put it off until after her vacation. Whatever I say, it all translates to, "Fareeha comes first. The rest of the world will have to wait."

Nearly an hour later, Angela was again sitting on the sofa and feeling robbed of her strength. The conversation had gone quite well; she was expecting that her immediate attention would be demanded as usual given that the French ambassador had been so quick to drop everything to speak with her when she called, but he seemed to be quite understanding about her wanting to wait for a later date to continue the discussion. If anything, he seemed to be amused. He wore a smile throughout the conversation that suggested that he was only just barely managing to keep his excitement under control. Angela could only assume that he'd been following the news reports of the previous evening as closely as everyone else was. It was hard to be irritated by the thought, however, as it seemed to have worked in her favor. She found herself suddenly hopeful that Fareeha's call was going as well as her own.

Checking her messages again, Angela groaned when she saw that she'd missed another three calls and seventeen more messages from colleagues, both past and present. They all seemed to follow the same theme as the ones she read when she first woke up, the intent to ask for a detailed account of her evening with Fareeha thinly veiled by a business letter format and suggestions of a desire to discuss "matters of importance" at her earliest convenience. So much for the bright side of gossip. Putting her irritation aside, she quickly drafted a form letter stating that she would be unavailable until she returned from her personal holiday. She replied with it to all of the messages that she'd already gotten , then set the letter to automatically respond to any messages that arrived before she returned to work. She breathed a sigh of relief as she found herself finally able to put the thought behind her. As any messages of any significance would come through on either her personal line or a separate line dedicated to Overwatch, it was a relief to not have to worry about anyone else that might start pestering her. Though it was finally behind her, she was still annoyed by the thought. She immediately went to work cleaning up the mess that she'd been too exhausted to consider the night before just to force her mind elsewhere. Though it wasn't much work and she had no desire to do any cleaning now, either, she didn't want to wait until the last minute to get started on it. Fareeha would be heading her way soon and, though she wanted the day to be as casual and relaxed as possible, she still wanted everything to be perfect.

Just as she was picking up the Eiswein bottles, she heard the speakers in the suite chime to announce an incoming message. She groaned loudly, regretting having relaxed quite so soon. I must have put a hex on myself. Her annoyance was immediately replaced with curiosity as the voice came through the speakers.

"Incoming message from Lena Oxton."

Angela put the bottles down and picked up the tablet to read the message. Curiosity turned to confusion as she read a short list of ingredients. "Vodka, pasteurized eggs, tabasco sauce, Worcestershire sauce, salt, pepper...what on Earth does this mean?"

At the bottom of the list was a short message from Lena. Get it all if you can. Pharah will know what to do with it. Trust me, she's gonna need it. It probably wouldn't hurt you, either. Her curiosity was hardly satisfied as she wondered what Fareeha would want with such an odd assortment of things, but she was glad that it wasn't anything more pressing than a grocery list. Before she could relax, however, the speakers chimed again.

"Incoming call from Mei-Ling Zhou."

Angela unconsciously braced herself for another wave of irritation, but it didn't come. Even if it was a business call, it was always nice to hear from Mei. More than that, she would certainly understand that any matters of business could wait until her vacation was over. If she was calling today, it could only be something that couldn't wait. She issued a command to accept the call, then returned to cleaning as two small cameras left their station on a far wall and hovered in front of her face. As it focused on her face, a holographic display flickered to life beneath it showing a smiling Mei sitting behind her desk and the late afternoon sun shining brightly behind her. It was hard for Angela to decide which looked more cheerful.

"Good morning, Doctor Ziegler! I'm sorry to bother you today...do you have a few minutes to spare?"

Angela smiled as her suspicions were confirmed. "Yes, but only a few."

Looking at the bottles she was throwing away and the polished steel bucket on the coffee table behind her, Mei smiled shrewdly. "Does that mean that last night hasn't ended quite yet?"

Angela smiled shyly, surprised by her own reaction to the inquiry. She already knew where it was going, but it wasn't at all annoying coming from Mei. If anything, she was excited to share the information with someone she actually wanted to talk to. "No, not yet. Fareeha had to return to her hotel, but she will be back shortly."

"Oh!" Mei clapped her hands together, her teasing smile replaced with an excited one. "In that case, let me get business out of the way! I just got a call from Winston. It seems that the French embassy just contacted him to schedule a meeting. Since we need at least two senior agents present, he wants me to go with you. I'll only be in Xi'an for a few more days, so I can meet you in Zürich when your holiday ends."

Angela was relieved that it wasn't anything that required her immediate attention, but she couldn't help being curious. "Why did he not contact me directly about it?"

"He said that it wasn't necessary. He...well..." Mei's face took on a red tint as she cleared her throat, stalling for time as she searched for the proper words to continue. "He didn't say much other than that he didn't want to bother you with it just now. He...wasn't really expecting you to be up very early this morning."

Though embarrassed, Angela couldn't help appreciating how considerate Winston was. "I will have to remember to thank him properly. I never considered the possibility before he contacted everyone to recall them, but being in charge seems to suit him."

Mei frowned as she nodded. "I suppose it's necessary since...well...Commander Morrison..."

"I would not worry about that."

Angela's matter-of-fact response caused Mei to raise her eyebrows. "Do you really think that he's still out there?"

"I am certain of it."

"Still, it doesn't help if we don't know where he is."

Angela smiled as she remembered an article that she'd saved recently about a criminal element rapidly losing its grip on a city in Mexico. "I could hazard a guess. Perhaps we could look into it once we've finished with our meeting."

Remembering the meeting, Mei's expression suddenly turned apologetic. "I'm sorry. I wouldn't have called you about that meeting, either, but...well..." She fidgeted uncomfortably, suddenly taking an interest in playing with a pen on her desk.

Angela smiled as she rushed to make it clear that she wasn't being a bother. I am actually quite glad you called to ask. "It was a wonderful evening. Your advice is largely to thank for that."

Mei's gloomy expression disappeared in an instant. "Really? She liked the dress, then?"

"Yes, but it was not just the dress. We...had to help each other. I do not know if the night would have been such a success if you had not told me that."

Mei's excitement faltered slightly as her expression turned into one of concern. "Is anything wrong?"

"Yes, but not with the evening. It just seems that we both have circumstances to consider where relationships are concerned."

As she cleaned, Angela gave the most brief account of the evening that she could manage without leaving out anything of importance. She briefly spoke of the conversation that the two of them had about their past and their effect on the present, then quickly explained how that could potentially hinder their progress moving forward. By the time she had finished speaking, she had finished her cleaning and was in the bedroom, moving clothes out of drawers and back into her luggage. She occasionally stopped to inspect clothing, considering it for a moment before shaking her head and placing it into a suitcase.

"What's wrong?"

It wasn't until she heard Mei's question that Angela realized that she had stopped talking and was staring blankly at the blouse in her hands. "It's nothing, really. I was just wondering what to wear when Fareeha comes home."

"Home?"

Angela looked up, her cheeks already turning crimson. It was clear that the damage was done; the mischief in Mei's smile was unmistakable. "Well...when Fareeha returns, she will be bringing some of her things with her. She will be...staying here. With me."

The squeal that Mei let out was startling, but Angela couldn't help smiling. She was pleased that someone was interested in celebrating with her rather than just looking for gossip to spread. Mei took a few seconds to calm herself before looking at the blouse in Angela's hands. "What will you be doing today?"

"Not much of anything, I imagine. We went through quite a bit of wine last night, so neither of us is feeling up to doing much other than going back to bed."

"In that case, you should wear...hmm...how about those?"

Before she could ask, Angela's eyes fell on an open drawer behind her. Remembering the dress from the night before, it wasn't hard to guess what Mei was thinking. "I can't even remember buying those. Wouldn't that be a little...?"

Mei shook her head. "You need a little bait, remember?"

Though she could feel the warmth spreading across her face, Angela couldn't deny that Mei was right the last time she'd said those words. "Well...I suppose...I just need to find something to match them with."

"Excellent!" Mei excitedly clapped her hands together. "Hurry and change! She'll be there soon, won't she?"

Angela glanced at the clock on the wall. "Yes...I hope so. It has been quite a while and she only had one call to place. She will message me when she is on her way." Remembering the conversation, she recalled that there was still something that she needed to do. "Come to think of it, I should let the kitchen know that I'll be ordering brunch."

"Good, good! We'll talk more when your holiday ends...oh! That reminds me...as long as we're dealing with business with the embassy, we should also review some of the candidates for recruitment."

"True, we should not let that go undone for long. We are going to need all of the help we can get. You are sponsoring a candidate, are you not? I believe her name was Aleksandra Zaryanova?"

Mei inexplicably blushed as she nodded. As she opened her mouth to speak, she suddenly looked up and away from her screen when she heard her office door open. Someone was making their way in with a tablet and already starting to give an enthusiastic report when he felt a chill run up his spine. He stopped in the middle of his sentence and looked at Mei, who was looking back at him with an unusually stern stare. His eyes fell on the screen in front of her and went wide. Though it was turned away from him, he could clearly hear Angela asking if everything was alright. Seeing Mei's right hand twitch and the heavy picture frame next to it on her desk, he seemed to change his mind about the importance of his report. He slowly backed out of the office and closed the door, looking as though he'd just narrowly avoided stepping on a snake.

"Mei? Is everything okay?"

"Yes, it was just a report about the status of the cryostasis chamber. I suppose he was trying to catch me before I left for the day, but it can wait." Mei's smile slowly returned as she added, "but Pharah can't. You should go. We can talk business later."

Remembering the color that came to Mei's cheeks, curiosity compelled Angela to ask for more information before she continued. "True, but first...about the candidate you're sponsoring..."

"Y—yes?" Sensing inexplicable danger, Mei finally looked at her screen to meet Angela's gaze. She immediately regretted her decision when she saw that Angela's face was twisted into a terrifying grin.

"Do you remember our conversation yesterday?"

"Yes..."

"And just a few moments ago?"

"O—of course."

"Then I am certain that you will understand that it is now my turn."

Though she was filled with embarrassment, Mei couldn't suppress a giggle as she nodded and ended the call. It was clear what Angela was thinking; it was also clear that there was no point in attempting to deny that she was right.

Angela pulled out the clothing that Mei suggested and looked at it nervously for a moment before starting to change. As she looked around for something to match, she was interrupted by the suite's speakers, again chiming to signal an incoming message.

"Incoming message from Captain Fareeha Amari."

Angela excitedly ordered the message to be displayed on the television screen. As always, Fareeha's message was simple and direct, conveying nothing but essential information. On my way back. ETA: 30 minutes. Angela couldn't help smiling. Though she wished that Fareeha's messages were a little more personal, it was comforting to see anything that was unique to her personality. As she was about to turn away from the screen, she noticed that there was a file attached to the message. When she opened it, she saw that it was another song. (1) Though she wasn't familiar with it and a quick search for the lyrics didn't do much to explain what it meant, it wasn't hard to guess why Fareeha had sent it.

Angela quickly finished changing and put on more perfume, then called the kitchen to order brunch and request the items from the list Lena sent earlier in the morning. Though she wasn't cooking, the thought of having a meal ready when Fareeha returned reminded her of the feeling of sending her off for the day and anxiously waiting for her to return. She struggled to restrain a laugh and keep her mind clear as she considered being a dutiful wife for the first time in years. Thinking of it brought an old daydream to mind. When the receptionist asked if there was anything else she wanted to order, after wrestling with her thoughts for a moment, she quickly added, "do you have any aprons? Any one will do." With blood rushing to her face, she quickly ended her call and rushed to finish preparing for Fareeha's return. As she continued clearing space in drawers, the same thought echoed in her mind. It is time...my Fareeha is coming home.