You and Adler had a long history.

Partners since the days of the military academy, you quickly got into each other. Similar views on life and service have brought you as close as possible, creating strong bonds of friendship. You were inseparable, solving one case after another as if it was nothing. Legends about the genius duo began to circulate in the CIA, and your authority among your superiors grew rapidly.

And then the cat-and-mouse games started. You were attracted to each other, but neither of you wanted to admit it. And when someone did try to take the initiative, the other retreated, unwilling to give in.

You crossed the line in Vietnam, in that damn jungle of horror and disappointment. Then you felt good, then you found solace in each other, looking for other goals to break through the enemy, except for your country. Proximity inspired you, gave you new strength and opened up a second wind. The dampness and the roar of the shells were no longer oppressive, and the nights were no longer so dark. You seemed to have found the peace you've been looking for all your life, out there in a jungle full of Charlie and communists.

But it didn't last long. You were transferred back to Washington, and that peace disappeared into oblivion. The final point in your story was put by assigning you to different jobs. The era of brilliant teammates ended when you was left at HQ, and Alder flew overseas to Europe, replacing warm intimacy with cold silence.

Although the dot turned into an ellipsis when you received a notification for a new appointment. West Berlin. Adler was given the freedom to assemble his own team from everything there is, and he did not skimp on professionals. You had to chase a semi-mythical communist who was preparing something terrible. What could be better?

The atmosphere in the team was positive, even friendly. Adler has always been great at gathering a circle of like-minded people around him. The work was slow but steady. More and more pieces of the puzzle were being revealed, and Perseus no longer seemed like an unrealistic dream.

If anything seemed unrealistic, it was your good relationship with Adler. Even if there were no quarrels between you, the silence of several years on both sides did not add bonus points to you. The relationship between you was professional at best, although it was clear that you both miss the old days. You both wanted to rein in that fire inside, but you didn't dare cross the line again. Your interactions became more awkward day by day, balancing between mutual respect and friendship. The tension was getting tighter and tighter, and you didn't know when it would finally snap. You preferred to avoid this topic, for your own good.

Today turned out to be a particularly difficult day, full of brainstorming and guesswork, and the team was pretty exhausted. It was already dawn when you finally decided that enough was enough for today. Most of the team had already gone to bed when you decided to get some air. The smoke from your cigarette dissolved in the cool early morning air as you sat on the hood of the car. Your head was an absolute mess of data, endless reports, and the picture was swimming in front of your eyes, so you didn't immediately realize that the door slammed behind you and a figure sat down next to you.

"Got a light?"

Adler.