Chapter Text
“Please tell me you’re joking.” Lexa pleads, shaking her head in denial at her boss’s plan.
Smirking victoriously, Costia replies, “I’m afraid not, it’s currently the biggest story and you’re our best, or so you like to repeatedly tell me, so get to work.”
“You know I’m terrified of heights, why do I have to fly there? They don’t need me in the helicopter to film the scene.”
“I don’t care, do as you’re told or quit.”
“Costia, please I’m begging you don’t...”
“Please, doesn’t mean anything between us now does it? So why should I do what you ask when you ignored me when I begged you to give me another chance.”
“You cheated on me! And not just once but our entire relationship!”
“I told you I was sorry and that it wouldn’t happen again, I begged you to give me another chance, but you were the one who told me, from now on it’s strictly professional between us. So it is, get your ass on that helicopter, overseeing the filming of Bedford’s “New River” and then get yourself looking pretty and film your live segment word for word from that document I just handed you.”
“Cos, please..” Lexa tries again. She knows her ex-wife is angry with her, understands the divorce caused her embarrassment, more so when Lexa refused to accept a payoff to leave BBC News, but her career was important, and she simply didn’t do anything wrong. Well, other than falling in love with a woman who slept her way into the position of her boss, all whilst they were married, and yes, she knew deep down Costia’s threat of making her working life a nightmare wasn’t an empty one, but forcing her to fly to a story scene that she could easily drive to. That, usually driving would be expected, the helicopters used for filming only. Well it was a step too far and she wasn’t sure she’d be able to grin and bear it like she has with everything else over the past six months.
“It’s not an unfair request, we need to film the footage of the “New River” and higher ups have requested a live segment filmed on site. Using the helicopter that is already going there, just makes the most sense, traffic is a nightmare due to the flooding, and all the closed roads. I am not punishing you; I am helping.” Costia smirks, knowing that Lexa hasn’t a leg to stand on for a complaint, when it’s been put that way, using the helicopter is meant to help them be practical. Despite Lexa knowing the truth, it’s Costia’s latest attempt to get Lexa to quit.
If writing Lexa’s scripts personally, and ensuring Lexa has to follow them verbatim, making sure Lexa looks like the uneducated bimbo, Costia has tried desperately to convince everyone Lexa is, ever since the divorce was finalized, wasn’t bad enough. Now she’s using Lexa’s one debilitating fear against her.
Before Lexa can try and plead with her, Costia grins, that sinister grin, she seems to aim at Lexa every time someone isn’t looking, then struts away, hips swaying, desperately trying to draw Lexa’s eye. But Lexa just scoffs angrily, and makes her way towards the helicopter, where the pilot and her film crew, Monty Green and Jasper Jordan are waiting for her.
She doesn’t know how she manages it, and is certain she has nail marks so deep, they are bleeding on her knee caps from where she dug them in so hard, trying her best to not show her colleagues how truly terrified she is, but she made it, and after a twenty minute flight, she hears Monty and Jasper excitedly talking about how quick the journey was, and how they wish they could fly in the helicopter for every trip.
But she tunes them out, hoping she will never have to step foot in this helicopter again after today. Instead, reading over the script Costia provided again, despite already having it memorised.
Hearing Monty and Jasper discussing the footage they were currently filming of the “New River” below them. Which she truly hopes is as impressive as Costia’s script suggests, dreading the idea of landing, preparing to say, “60 million litres of water” and expecting to see the equivalent of a swimming pool on one of Bedford’s major roads and carriageway’s. Knowing Costia would love to watch her look like a fool, declaring what is basically a large puddle as 60 million litres of water.
But she can’t bring herself to look, knowing she’s at least 10,000 feet off the ground.
“Lexa, you need to look at this!” Jasper’s excited voice breaks through her thoughts.
“No, I’m fine, I’ll watch the footage later, I need to memorise this.”
“You know, you know that script verbatim by now, you have a photographic memory.” Monty laughs gently, “come on Lexa, have a look, you may never see something like this again.” Jasper adds.
“No I’m fine thank you.”
“I know you’re scared of heights, but…”
“What?!” Lexa screeches, embarrassed she hasn’t hidden her fear as well as she thought, hating the idea of her colleagues seeing her as weak.
“Costia told us, repeatedly, that we would have to look after you because you are terrified of heights, but too stubborn and impatient to get your face on the news to travel by car like she suggested, like everyone expected.” Jasper huffs angrily.
“But whatever the reason we are seriously grateful, right J? This is AWESOME!.” Monty adds, elbowing Jasper hard enough to nearly drop the camera.
“Yeah, this is cool, but you’re missing it, come on if you are going to use your power over our boss to land a bloody helicopter, at least make the most of it, have a look.” Jasper adds grumpily, jealous as usual, he had the biggest crush on Costia when he started, but of course she paid zero interest in him, falling in love and getting married, only for Costia to be so miserable in their relationship, she looked for attention and love elsewhere, but forcing him to keep their connection a secret, to protect Lexa’s feelings, even when Lexa made up a bunch of lies about the reason for their divorce.
“That’s not what..” Lexa starts, only to get interrupted by Jasper pointing out the window and shouting, “wow look at that car!”
“Wow that’s crazy, that means the water must be, what 14 feet deep at least, right? A standard car is roughly 15 feet, right?”
Without thinking, Lexa instinctively looks, wanting to know what they’re talking about, ignoring the rush of fear the distance from her to the ground is, she can’t help the gasp that leaves her lips, when she sees “Bedford’s New River”, which wasn’t exaggerated at all, what was once a very busy road, is now gone, and it has been replaced by what she now believes is in fact 60 millions of water as stated in her script.
Her eyes moving along the water to find one lone car’s boot, from one of the car’s abandoned during the flash flood, the car clearly having tilted, so the nose is on the ground and the boot is just barely sticking out of what must be at least 14 feet of water.
But as she looks closer, she notices something, snatching the camera off Jasper and zooming in, she lets out another gasp.
“Is that a human hand?” She asks, her voice barely a whisper.