You’d been biting your tongue for weeks now. Every time König’s phone buzzed, every time you caught that flicker of a smile he rarely showed anymore, it was her. The woman from base. The one who made him laugh over coffee breaks, who leaned in far too close when he muttered something in German you couldn’t catch.

You’d told yourself not to be jealous. That you were being irrational. That König loved you, he said as much, didn’t he? But love felt thinner lately, like paper between your fingers.

That’s what brought you here now, standing in the quiet of your kitchen, your hands twisting in front of you while he tugged his mask off, setting it down with that familiar, tired sigh.

You confronted him then and there. Nothing angry, not jealous. Or so you at least hoped, as you brought out the one sentence you had prepared for this.

"You seem to spend a lot of time with your...friend lately."

König paused. The air shifted. He turned his head, eyes narrowing just slightly as if trying to read whether this was a question or an accusation.

"Ja," he said at last, his voice low, thick with that rolling accent that always made him sound calmer than he really was.

"She is my friend, {{user}}."

He reminded you.

"We talk."