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m00nc4kes · 5 months

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A Chance. (pacific rim! au)

hobie brown x gn!reader

word count: 2k

summary: Hellion Riser. That's the jaeger you wanted to pilot. The only problem? The remaining pilot isn't accepting requests for a co-pilot at the moment nor... ever.

warnings: arguing, swearing, sparring, hopefully hobie isn't too ooc (his accent is a nightmare for me, bear with me pls)

notes: the reader doesn't have a specified gender (at least I tried to make sure they didn't, lemme know if I specified at some point); my readers are always black coded even if it's never mentioned, but anyone can read it! uhhhh I took some creative liberties so you don't have to know anything about pacific rim lololol

[part 1] (ur here :p) [part 2]

"And just what makes you think you'd be able to handle her, hm?"

You startled from your place on the metal bridge that overlooked your potential jaeger, Hellion Riser. And to your luck, the one thing stopping you from ever piloting her was walking up behind you.

You flicked your gaze over your shoulder, simply acknowledging his presence, before looking back at the jaeger. You watched as people tinkered with her, the buzz of drills and shrills of metal being dug into filled your ears.

Hobie stepped up beside you and mirrored your position on the railing. You knew he was still waiting for an answer, but you didn't think you could give him one without getting upset all over again. Instead, you asked your own question.

"Why haven't you found a co-pilot yet?"

"Why ask questions you know the answer to?"

This asshole. You resisted the urge to roll your eyes. "Maybe you'd know the answer if you let me in your head." You tapped your forehead, referencing the drift that would settle everything once and for all. He just looked at you with those warm amber eyes of his. They told you nothing about how he felt, instead they blinked lazily at you.

He stood up straight to stretch before turning around and leaning his back against the railing, facing away from the jaeger. He shrugged. "Maybe I don' need to kno' that bad."

You huffed and shook your head. "What's the point of being a pilot for her if you don't actually want to pilot, Hobie?"

"To make sure no one else pilots her."

You clenched your fists. The blood rushed to your ears and you tried to curb your rising frustration with deep breaths. You didn't need to do this again. Not with him. But you couldn't help but— "How fucking selfish is that?"

And, oh, you could see his eyes switch from being nonchalant to a sudden sharp fury. "Selfish?" You'd struck a nerve. "What's fuckin' selfish about makin' sure no one else dies piloting that bloody thing?" His brows were furrowed as he crowded into your space. Luckily for him, you had no problem matching his energy.

"Everything," you spat. "Everything about it is fucking selfish! The entire point of those damn jaegers is to risk our life to make sure that an innocent one isn't taken instead."

That made him turn away from you with a scoff. You grabbed his arm to make him face you again, but he stubbornly kept his face turned away from you.

"If it weren't for those death traps, I wouldn't be in front of you, pissing you the fuck off and pushing your buttons. I'd be dead like every other innocent person who never had a chance against the kaijus! Just because you're scared, doesn't mean that you should stop someone else from being saved."

He latched onto your wrist and you expected him to yank you off of him, but instead he gently removed your grip. Then, with a somber expression on his face, he asked, "You've never drifted with someone before, have you?"

You leveled your gaze at him. “No. Not yet, anyway.”

He appraised you for a moment before flicking his eyes over toward Hellion. “They’ll tell you that your minds become one and you’ll fight in sync and all tha’ good stuff. But,” he hesitated, “they won’t tell you what it’s like being completely connected to your co-pilot. In an instant, you’ll kno’ them inside and out. You’ll kno’ wha’ makes ‘em tick and wha’ makes ‘em break. You’ll be in their head at every moment, you’ll feel ‘em even when ya not in the jaeger.

“I was still connected to Karl when he was torn outta the jaeger. Felt everything he felt. How scared he was. How much pain he was in. All of it. Then there was nothin’. Complete and utter silence.”

He reached forward and tapped your temple. His gaze steeled you where you stood.

“And I don’t think you’re ready for allat.”

You waved his hand away. “We don’t know that.”

He huffed as if he were talking to a small petulant child. “Why’re you so adamant on pilotin’ with me? There’re plenty of single pilots lookin’ for somebody.”

Now wasn’t that an amazing question? Frankly, it was a question you really didn’t want to answer. At least, not in all honesty. “For one, Hellion was the one who saved my life when I was younger and I’ve always wanted to pilot her. For two, I think we’d fight pretty well together.”

“Is that so?” Hobie’s tone was dubious. You didn’t appreciate it.

“Yes, that’s so. Stop lookin’ at me like that.”

A small grin danced along his lips. “Not lookin’ at you in any typa way.”

You made an irritated noise in your throat. “I’m serious about what I said before, Hobie.”

He sighed. “I kno’ you were. So was I.”

There was so much you wanted to say in the moment, hoping you’d be able to change his mind, but you rested your case. There was no point in arguing with a brick wall. You tilted your head to look at Hobie, really look at him. “The trials are tomorrow. I’ll be there.” You stepped away. “If you really don’t want to be there, I won’t understand in the way you want, but I’ll leave it be. Okay?”

The two of you stared at each other for a quiet moment before you finally turned and walked away.

That night, you laid in your bunker and wondered if you were truly ready for the vulnerability that came with drifting. Especially with someone like Hobie. The man had set records with his drift partner— his best friend. Their bond wasn’t something that could ever be competed with. Who were you? Some random jaeger technician that dreamed of being a pilot.

You shook the insecurity from your mind. This meant too much to you. This wasn’t just for you. It was for your cousin. For Riri.

The thought of her made you flip onto your side and shut your eyes. Whether or not you cried would be between you and your wet pillow.

The trials were always an exciting event since it didn’t happen very often. People from all over the base would gather to watch the next potential jaeger partners spar it out.

It was a simple concept. First person to four hits won. Although the main goal was to win, the trainer would be watching for compatibility.

You maneuvered your way through the tightly packed hallway. People chatted excitedly to each other, ready to witness whatever was to come. You did your best to ignore them until something caught your attention.

“I wonder if Hobie’s gonna show up—”

“You already know he’s not!”

You felt your lips turn up and you pushed yourself into the sparring room with a little more force than necessary.

It didn’t take long for everyone to get situated around the mat. The room buzzed with anticipation as you scanned the area for Hobie. When you didn’t find him, you did your best to curb your disappointment.

The single pilots all wore a white tank top with a pair of sweats and stood in a row along the side of the mat. Some of them tapped their staff nervously or swung it around to get used to its weight.

The trainer, Jess, stood to her full height. She tapped her clipboard and said, “First up, Miles Morales. Let the trials begin.”

The rounds that followed were impressive to say the least. The single pilots won some and lost some while Jess took notes. Maybe you would’ve been more excited about it if your dream of piloting the Hellion hadn’t been crushed so quickly.

The last competitor’s back landed on the mat with a solid thud and Gwen stood to her full height. Jess gave her a nod before acknowledging the crowd.

“Before I officially conclude the trials, would anyone else like to try their luck?”

A silence fell over the audience and you half considered standing up for the hell of it, however, the sound of footsteps coming from the hallway stole everyone’s attention.

Suddenly, a head full of wicks appeared around the corner and set your heart ablaze. Your pulse skyrocketed as the crowd fell into a loud commotion.

Hobie, on the other hand, looked absolutely bothered that he was present in the first place. He wore a black tank top that stopped right above his belly button and a pair of dark sweats. He locked eyes with Jess who raised her eyebrows at him.

“Oi, mind if I borrow one of them sticks?”

Gwen stepped off of the mat. “Hey, use mine.” She tossed it to him and he caught it with an outstretched hand.

“Thanks, Gwendy.” He gave her a grin before scanning the crowd. “Now, I’m fightin’ one person and one person only. If that’s alright with ya, Jess.”

“I have no objections to it.”

Suddenly, his staff was being pointed in your direction. “I got a score to settle with ya.”

Being put on the spot did a number of things to you, most importantly, however, it put you on autopilot. You wasted no time rising to your feet and marching over to the mat. Pavitr, the sweetheart, handed you a staff.

Hobie scrutinized you as you slid off your shoes and took a deep breath. Then, he gave you a knowing look. “Don’t think I’m doin’ this to be nice. Just provin’ a point.”

The grin that spread across your face was determined. “I’ll be provin’ a point too, m’kay?”

He hummed and swung his staff up to get into position. “I won’t be goin’ easy on you.”

“Neither will I.”

Jess’s voice cut through your banter. “You may begin.”

There were several things you had noted as you watched Hobie pilot Hellion Riser. Appearance-wise, he was tall and lanky, but he held strength in his defined arms and legs. On the other hand, he was reckless, yet every move he made was tactical in the long run.

Your back hit the mat before you could even blink. Hobie’s staff hovered over your face, deliberately making a point.

“One-zero,” he stated and let you get back up.

Another thing you had noted was that he loved to banter as he fought. Though, this match had none of it. It was as if he was determined to show that you two were incompatible— that he wouldn’t allow someone to be compatible enough to be in his head again.

But at the same time, he would’ve proved that point by not showing up in the first place.

You stopped your staff mere inches from the side of his face.

“One-one,” you said with a smirk, then stepped back.

And that’s how the back and forth went. Your staffs would connect with each other with loud clicks and clacks until the other misstepped. That’s how it went until sweat dripped down your bodies and you were getting sick of the other meeting your strikes.

Then, you were tied.

Three to three.

Your breaths were heavy as you waited for the other to make a move. You decided to head in first with a feint to his ribs, but he saw it coming and you barely had time to dodge his staff. It became a frantic tango with the both of you adapting to each other’s next move.

Though, you knew it wouldn’t last long. Hobie was adaptable and could fall into a routine in how he fought. However, along with his recklessness, he thrived off of unpredictability.

Which was how you ended up being flipped over his shoulder and back on your back.

His staff hovered over your face once more. He panted and wiped his forehead. “Four-three. I win.”

There were cheers from the crowd, but you tuned them out as your attention turned toward Jess and the expression she wore on her face.

In all your days at the base, you could count on one hand the amount of times you had seen the trainer wholeheartedly smile from pride.

And this had been the first.

Hobie stuck out his hand to help you up and you took it. After he pulled you up, you motioned for him to turn around and he did. You saw him stiffen at the sight of Jess’s grin. Even though the results wouldn’t be posted until later on, somehow you already knew.

The match had only proved your point.

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psssttt, lemme know if yall want another part

I love this little idea hehehehe

#hobie brown x black!reader #hobie brown x reader #hobie brown #atsv #pacific rim au #across the spiderverse #spider punk #writing

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