She stood there her entire body feeling as if she were about to collapse from sheer panic. Why was he being so forward? As she stared into his soft eyes they reflected what she thought could possibly be genuine admiration. Though with Sousuke she wasn't quite sure if he knew what admiration really felt like...at least admiration for a girl.
For some reason something inside of him nagged him to explain himself. She was the only one who had that effect on him. “Kaname,” he whispered looking down at his feet. “I never want to lose you.”
Wow, she thought. He was saying things she never dreamed she would hear from him. He just wasn't the type of guy who expressed himself romantically and she was always accepting of that—until lately. Her heart swelled inside of her chest and she could swear she felt her eyes filling with tears.
“Back in Hong Kong when I thought you were dead...I...I wanted to die.” His words were low and shaky and Kaname could swear she heard tears in his voice.
“Oh, Sousuke,” she whispered approaching him taking his face in her hands.
He looked up his eyes sorrowful as he gazed down at her. His Kaname, he thought. The woman he swore to protect with his very life, not out of duty, but out of what he now knew was love. Love, his mind echoed. Such a strange feeling, so foreign, so odd yet he wouldn’t trade it for anything in this world. He wouldn’t trade her for anything. He wanted to see her every minute of every day of every year, right beside him where he felt at home.
He took one of her hands in his and placed it over his heart and she could feel the soft thumping beneath her fingertips. So warm, so surreal, she almost wanted to press her ear against his chest so she could hear it better.
Suddenly, his mobile phone started ringing and he winced with annoyance. He wanted to ignore it but it might be headquarters and he couldn’t miss the call. “One minute, Kaname,” he told her calmly pulling it out of his pocket and stepping away from her.
She stood there, her own annoyance very clear on her face. Typical Sousuke, she thought. Would she ever be first in his life? Or would she always have to compete with Mithril.
“Sousuke Sagara,” he said with the phone planted to his ear. “Yes...affirmative...I see...”
She watched him wondering what could possibly be so important. Several different tiny glimpses of expressions crossed his face and she chewed her lower lip in anticipation. She spun around tapping her foot impatiently making a couple irritated sighs loud enough for him to hear and secretly smiled when he looked over to check on her.
She was toying with a small rock on the ground with her shoe when he came up behind her. “Kaname, we have to leave.”
“What?” she asked confused spinning back around.
“That was Kurz,” he began to explain as he escorted her by the arm down the street. “I need to get you to Melida Island as quickly as possible. It is the only place I feel you will be safe.”
Suddenly, she could feel the panic rising inside her. She knew all too well to listen when Sousuke sounded this way. “Someone’s after me again?” she asked her voice quivering.
“I’m not sure but I can’t take any chances,” he said glancing suspiciously in several directions. She grabbed his hand holding on as he lead her quickly down the street. There was no time for packing, he informed her, only enough time to meet up with Kurz and Melissa and catch their ride at the designated rendezvous point.
Once they were on a helicopter he sat closely beside her as stiff as a board while Melissa and Kurz sat across from them with suspicious smiles. And Kurz kept winking at Sousuke which made him feel even more uncomfortable with them all there.
“So, Kaname,” Kurz began with a devilish chuckle, “are you gonna say yes?”
Her eyes flew open wide and she blushed thoroughly down to her toes. Melissa took one fist and jammed it as hard as she could into Kurz’s face and he let out a painful groan. “What did you do that for?” he asked rubbing his jaw.
“When we get back to base, I’m gonna kick your ass, Weber,” was all she said staring out at as the deepening blue ocean passed beneath them.
Kaname shifted nervously beside Sousuke not daring to look up in fear of seeing the expression on his face. It was as if something has changed drastically between them just minutes ago on the street. He had said things she never thought he was capable of conveying to her, things she had always suspected but was never prepared to hear. The loud propulsion of the propellers drowned out any other sound but she swore she could still hear his heart beating softly.
Just as she was about to keel over from embarrassment, she felt his hand cover hers and squeeze gently. His skin was rough yet warm against hers and she suddenly felt all the tension just melt away instantly. Being his girlfriend was beginning to be a novel idea in her mind. She could get used to feeling this way with him. Sure it was different and scary but there was something about belonging to him this way that made warm chills spread up her back to her shoulders.
He felt her relax considerably beneath his touch and it made him feel like he was doing his job; to make Kaname feel safe. This whole business of being a Whispered had to be very confusing and taxing for her. He couldn’t imagine how the knowledge of it all made her feel and wondered how she ever dealt with something so phenomenal and extraordinary. He thought she was the bravest person he knew.
They landed on Melida Island sometime later with a warm welcome from everyone. Commander Mardukas stood on the launch pad awaiting their arrival, his stance rigid as always. Sousuke, Melissa and Kurz all stopped just feet from him and presented their salutes in response to his.
“I apologize for the abrupt change in plans, Miss Chidori,” he said his voice solid and fixed. Kaname smiled kindly in return, a silent acceptance. “Captain Testarossa is awaiting you all in briefing room four. Enjoy your stay here, Miss Chidori.”
“Thank you,” she said following them taking note at the tense way they were all hurrying to the briefing room. Sousuke especially, she thought. He was a pretty tense guy to begin with so if she noticed he was even tenser, he really must be worried about the situation.
“Do any of you know who is after me?” she asked as they continued into the building.
“They didn’t tell us anything yet,” Kurz said with a scowl, “just that we needed to get you somewhere safe.”
“Tessa will explain everything,” Melissa said over her shoulder to Kaname with a smile.
But it wasn't reassuring enough that she was here and under constant protection. Just the thought of someone being after her again made her skin crawl and she inhaled deeply trying to calm herself. The last time Sousuke wasn't there and she had to take care of things herself but this time he was right by her side and that made her feel a lot better—even if they were in the middle of sorting out their feelings for each other.
They entered the briefing room and Tessa was standing there with her back to them but spun around quickly when she heard their footsteps. Everyone except Kaname straightened and saluted her. “At ease,” she said with a smile.
“Kaname!” she cried rushing toward her. “It has been far too long.” Her voice was soft and kind, not the slightest hint of hostility. She looked exactly the same as the last time Kaname had seen her. Those eyes, she thought. They looked innocent enough but she knew better than to trust the little temptress. You would have to be a moron not to see the way she devoured Sousuke with her hungry stare.
“Please, all of you come in and sit. We have much to discuss,” Tessa said waving at the many chairs in the room. “I wish we could have had this meeting on better terms but time is of the essence.”
They all took a seat. “What exactly is going on?” Kurz asked leaning casually back in his chair.
“Our sources have revealed that the enemy is much closer than we thought,” Tessa began looking gravely serious. “In fact, we are in the process of flushing out a mole.”
“Another mole?” Melissa asked aggravated.
Tessa folded her hands in front of herself and sighed deeply. Black technology falling into the wrongs hands was like handing terrorists nukes and telling them to be careful. She knew there was no easy way to explain it.
“It’s Amalgam,” she whispered.
To Be Continued...
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