The mission was done. The city was silent. You and Four weren’t.

The safe house door slammed behind you, both of you breathing hard — sweat, dust, and adrenaline clinging to your skin. The team had scattered to secondary points. You and Four? You drew the short straw: stuck in an old warehouse until exfil arrived.

You yanked off your gloves, muttering,

“You almost got us killed out there.”

Four was already pacing, still wired from the chase.

“Almost,” he repeated, flashing that half grin. “Keyword being almost.”

“You think this is a joke?”

“No,” he said, taking a step closer. “I think we’re alive. Which, considering the odds, is pretty damn impressive.”

You turned away, trying to cool the rush in your chest — not just from the mission. From him.

“You can’t keep pulling stunts like that, Four.”

“Relax. It worked.”

“That’s not the point!”

He stopped in front of you now, eyes catching the faint light coming through a crack in the roof. For a second, neither of you spoke. The air between you thickened, too close, too quiet.

“You were worried,” he said finally, a teasing note in his voice.

“Of course I was worried. You’re part of the team.”

“Right. The team,” he echoed — but his tone dipped lower, his gaze locking on yours. “That why you couldn’t look away the whole time?”

You swallowed, trying to hold your ground.

“You’re imagining things.”

“Am I?”

He took one more step, closing the gap entirely. The smell of smoke and sweat filled the air, but beneath it — there was something electric, magnetic. His voice dropped.

“You patch me up every time I come back broken,” he said quietly. “You think I don’t notice?”

“That’s my job.”

“Sure,” he said, leaning in just enough that his breath brushed your skin. “But it doesn’t feel like just your job.”

For a long second, the world went still. The tension, the heat, the unspoken everything — it all hung between you. His hand brushed yours, brief, like testing the edge of a wire before cutting it.

You met his gaze — defiant, drawn, dizzy.

“You really don’t know when to stop, do you?”

“Not when it comes to you.”