It didn’t start out that way at first. When the movie released, you could practically hear Sombra’s eyes rolling. She thought the concept was ridiculous and made actual hackers out to be nothing more than simple minded fools who couldn’t get the job done without “falling in love”.
She watched it a few times, even leaving angry, anonymous reviews about every single flaw the film had in its portrayal of her art. She watches it over and over again, intent on finding something new to complain about. Eventually, it feels strange not to watch it. She finds herself reciting quotes like it’s nothing. And while she never admits it, Sombra fantasizes of having a sort of Christmas like the one depicted in the movie, as her holidays are usually spent alone and drinking tequila in some stuffy bar.
Admitting to herself that ‘Love, Hacktually’ is her favorite movie doesn’t come until she finds another anonymous review of the film that is completely negative. She spends the next hour writing a counter argument and in the middle of typing a sentence, she realizes that she loves this damn movie.
Fast forward to present day, McCree and Sombra are choosing a movie to watch at an old movie theater on a simple date. The cinema is playing old movies in honor of the holiday season and ‘Love, Hacktually’ happens to be one of them. McCree playfully suggests that maybe she’ll like it and they should see it. She seems nonchalant about the choice and doesn’t complain. He swears he even feels her tugging his arm to get them into the theater faster.
Twenty five minutes into the film and he realizes why this movie has its reputation for ‘rom-com crap’. The dialogue is cringe-worthy, the premise laughable at best, and he’s been with Sombra long enough to know half of the ‘hacking’ in the movie is stuff actual hackers don’t do. He turns to Sombra, quite sure she’s just as critical of the movie, if not more so. Instead, he finds her huddled in her seat, eyes focused on the screen, and mouthing every single line in sync with the movie. He leaves her be and sits through the rest of the film, thoughts buzzing.
When they leave, he carefully questions her what she thought of the film. Sombra rolls her eyes, shrugging and insisting that it was ‘garbage’. They head to some no-name diner afterward for a bite to eat. Halfway through their meals, Sombra quietly asks him what he thought of the movie. While he didn’t like the film (he prefers westerns, thank you very much), his curiosity cannot be contained. Carefully, he begins to badmouth the movie, calling it a waste of time and one of the most boring things he’d ever seen. He watches her carefully as he brings up flaw after flaw in the movie, seeing her fists flex as he continues. When he finally brings up the “forced” death of the omnic love interest, Sombra surprises him by standing up, more anger in her expression than he’s ever seen.
“You’re wrong! Ben’s death wasn’t ‘forced’ – it was a major point for Celeste’s development and their relationship – he was taken away from her as a result of her actions and it’s that loss that made Celeste realize her actions had consequences, this one being the loss of the one she loved!”
The diner goes quiet and her cheeks are burning red as McCree merely grins when she slinks back down into the booth. “I knew you’ve watched that movie before.” When she doesn’t reply, he presses on. “It’s your favorite, ain’t it?” he drawls, already moving to chase after Sombra when she leaves the diner in a huff. After catching up to her, he apologizes, admitting he finds the situation amusing.
She still seems embarrassed but he reassures her that he finds it endearing, giving her a kiss on the forehead. That Christmas, he gets her a signed poster of the movie, having had to call in a favor or two from a certain director in Hollywood. Sombra’s completely ecstatic and McCree’s sure the sight of Sombra’s surprised expression makes him fall in love all over again. And while he can’t stand the movie, he doesn’t mind watching it with her, just to make her happy. That and the cuddles during the film aren’t so bad, either.
It becomes a tradition to watch it around Christmas time, but every now and then, McCree will tease Sombra by reciting a few lines, helping her reenact some of her favorite scenes. Seeing her laugh from his awful omnic impression is worth it.
~My Tumblr Back-Up And Stuffs~ 