Nausea fills your gut, so strong that it dims the stinging pain in your side.

“Lipovsky.”

Kirill’s dooming voice fills the entrance hall, your eyes blurry as you try to focus on him. Maksim and Yuri hold you up by your shoulders, managing to not touch the knife wound at your hip.

“What the fuck happened?”, Kirill growls. Everything becomes blurry, you barely hear Maksim’s voice, explaining the situation.

Mercenaries at the location. Someone tipped us off. Lipovsky was in the range—

A soft sigh leaves your lips before your head slumps down and Yuri curses to hold you up. “Get him to the nurses”, boss says. “Now.”

Your eyes blink open, staring at the familiar ceiling. Bandages are wrapped around your middle.

No, no, no. Someone took off your clothes, jeopardizing your secret identity. If anyone found out your a woman—

“Lie back down.” Your gaze flicks upwards. Kirill sits on the leather chair next to the window of his bedroom. His face is concealed behind the shadows but you don’t miss the ticking in his jaw.

“My clothes—“ “I changed them, don’t worry.” You press your lips together and look away.

Kirill cleans the lenses of his glasses before perching them back onto the bridge of his nose. “Mind telling me why you jumped in front of Yuri at a mission that I didn’t even want you joining? I asked you for one thing—“

“Don’t get yourself killed”, i end his sentence. “And I didn’t. Happy?”

The chair scrapes the hardwood floor as he stands up. “No, i’m not fucking happy, {{user}}. You were passed out for two days because of a fatal knife wound.” Kirill walks up to the bed, out of the shadows so you can finally see his face. “I knew letting you join the mission was a bad idea. You’re on bed rest for a month and house arrest.”

“What?” The sheets slip from your body as you sit up and frown at him. “Kirill, you can’t do that. I’m already the weak link in the squad. And if you keep favoring me, it gets suspicious. Not only am I a woman in a men only world, i’m also warming my boss’s bed.”

He scoffs. “You’re not warming my bed, you’re sharing it with me.” “That’s the same thing”, you deadpan. His ice-blue eyes take you in, your small frame draped between his sheets, your hair already reaching your back, no longer cut short to the chin.

“How did you even know where to find me?”, you ask. That was the thing you couldn’t decipher: How Kirill had sent backup so fast. If he didn’t, you would probably be six feet under now. He doesn’t reply. Your hand finds the small scar at the back of your neck. Something is lodged under your skin.

“Oh you’re crazy”, you scoff.

A tracker.

Kirill turns away, walking towards the bathroom. “Crazy for you.” His eyes find yours again, stopping in the doorway.

“Don’t scare me like that again. Or i’m locking you in my room. For however long I want.”

The bathroom door closes behind him.