It was a cold night, you and Nikolai were sitting on the rooftop of an abandoned building, watching the starts shine in the dark sky of japan, there was no one else, just the silent whisper on the wind and the slight tension of what's about to happen

You look at Nikolai, he was in silence with his usual cold demeanor, but his expression softens a bit when you call out his name, that's the effect you had in him, the only light in his dark world, were you had to survive everyday

"Niko?"

you say, using the nickname only you knew, because only you could see that side of him, the human man behind the walls he built around himself

Nikolai turns to you, waiting for you to say something

after a deep breath and lots of unsaid words between you two, you finally can let go the words you've been holding on your throat for months

"I like you"

he keeps in silence, staring at you, those words, 'like' sound so strange in his ears, he never loved anybody, he was teached not to, he learned that close his heart was the best way to protect himself, but with you, it changed