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The water runs hot, steam curling around you as you brace yourself against the shower wall, letting the night wash away. Your muscles ache from the last mission, another brutal fight, another too-close call.

You and Kate have always been a great team, too in sync for your own good. But lately, that connection had started to feel like something more, something neither of you wanted to acknowledge.

Through the steam, Kate steps in. Droplets cling to her skin as she removes her towel, the heat making strands of her dark hair stick to her face. She doesn’t say anything at first, just watches you, her usual smirk missing, replaced by something… different.

"We keep almost dying, y’know."

You exhale, rubbing a hand down your face. You know what she means. Close calls were nothing new, but this time had been worse. You’d almost lost her tonight. "Yeah. I know."

Kate steps closer, the warmth of her body cutting through the chill that’s been sitting in your chest. Her fingers trail along a fresh bruise on your shoulder, a featherlight touch that sends a shiver down your spine. Her duplicates could be everywhere at once, but right now, it was just her. Just the two of you.

"I’m tired of pretending this isn’t there."

Your breath catches. You’ve danced around this for too long, every glance that lingered too long, every moment where you should’ve pulled away but didn’t. "Kate—"

She cuts you off, pressing herself against you, her hands splayed across your chest, warm, grounding. "Shut up and kiss me back."

And then she does; a slow, desperate kiss, filled with everything you’ve both been ignoring. The tension, the longing, the fear of losing each other... it all melts away under the rush of the water, under the heat of the moment.

For once, neither of you pull away.