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Loid felt like he was back at the beginning of Operation Strix. The very beginning, when it had only been him and Anya. If he closed his eyes, he could see the van he’d been driving then, Yor sitting in the passenger seat and bullets flying around them. He remembered how he had proposed to her after, pulling out the pin of the grenade just to put it around her ring finger.
He smiled a bit as the memory came back to him. These were good times and —
“Loid! To the left!”
Yor’s hands were on the wheel next to his, pushing him to take a sharp turn to the left. The tires screeched on the asphalt and bullets planted themselves in the trailer behind them, the noise of metal puncturing metal loud in their ears.
Loid righted their trajectory and let out a sigh of relief. From the corner of his eyes, he glanced at Yor who was back in her seat. She was looking at the outside rearview mirror nervously, biting down on her bottom lip. He kind of wanted to kiss her but he knew it was neither the time nor the place. And the gesture would have seemed weird, coming out of nowhere.
Most of all, they had more important matters at hand.
They were on a mission. One they had decided to tackle as a team rather than as enemies. That was behind them now, even though none of their superiors knew of it.
They had had a lot to discuss after recovering Anya from her kidnappers. There had been tears and hugs and tucking the little girl to bed had never felt so relieving at the time. Once they’d been alone, they’d stood in front of the other and had exchanged shy smiles. Then they had sat down and talked for hours, way into the night, about what they had hidden from the other for so long.
That one time when they’d gone out and chased a thief in the streets. That other time when they’d met Bond for the first time. When they’d gone on a cruise and when Yor had been in such a sour mood Loid had taken her on dates to cheer her up.
They’d laughed after reminiscing so many of their adventures, discovering they’d acted as a team for a much longer time than they’d thought without noticing. But then had come the serious talk they both had needed. And they’d agreed quite easily on one thing: they had to be there, for Anya. They’d looked at the little girl sleeping on the couch at the exact same time. Their little girl, who had refused to go farther than a few meters away from them after being kidnapped. They’d had to protect her from their enemies. She had become a target.
“Loid, get down!”
Yor dragged him out of his thoughts, pulling him down with her. He heard the bullets zooming above him, the windows shattering on impact. He tried to protect Yor’s head as best as he could while still driving the truck, his free hand gripping the wheel despite his sweaty palm. But the truck was losing speed after that last burst of gunfire. A bullet had undoubtedly hit something under the hood.
“We had to get out of here!”
He gave Yor a hurried look and she nodded, a frown disturbing her pretty face. Loid followed her out and joined her in front of the hood, keeping a low profile as to not alert their pursuers.
They were the ones that had orchestrated Anya’s kidnapping. Because after settling their own issues, Loid and Yor had agreed on one more thing: they had to find who had been behind Anya’s abduction. That was their first official mission as a team. And it helped Loid understand what it was exactly that he was feeling for the young woman crouching next to him.
He laid his eyes on a graze that had left a streak of blood on Yor’s cheekbones, most likely caused by a shard of glass or a bullet missing its target from a few millimeters. Instinctively, he wiped his thumb under the small wound to collect the blood, Yor looking at him with wide sparkly eyes.
They kept looking at each other like they had all the time in the world, Loid’s stomach filling with nerves and, undeniably, attraction. But the truck they were using as a hiding place exploded, the warmth of the fire making him sweat instantly. He took Yor’s hand and guided her through the maze of streets.
They were still being tailed, guns being fired behind them, detonations resonating in the silent night. But Loid could only think of the hand squeezed in his, the fingers tightening around his randomly. Because he had not only chosen to stay with Yor and put his life and career on the line for her: he also decided he was not going to run away from the feelings he had for her. Not anymore.
But they still had to lose the ones after them. So he was going to find them a safe place to hide first. Maybe he would propose to her for real then. Yeah, that sounded like a good idea. The box he’d tucked away in the inner pocket of his jacket could not agree more.
He ducked behind a huge dumpster, taking Yor with him. He could use a smoke grenade to buy them some time before going for the run again. And with the confusion it would create, it would be easier for them to get rid of the men screaming orders at each other in the dark after they’d lost track of them.
To his right, Yor was ready to jump on anyone getting too close, a dagger clutched in the hand that was not trapped in Loid’s. He realized a bit belatedly that he had not let go and could feel his cheeks flushing at the thought. Yor had obviously noticed the change in his expression for she put the back of her hand on his forehead, careful not to cut him with her weapon.
“Are you alright? Did you take a bullet somewhere? You’re hot to the touch!”
Loid muttered something inaudible and chose to let her in on his plan. She seemed okay with the idea, her focus never once faltering. So Loid put his plan into action.
As he foresaw, their pursuers were put out by the smoke and its appearance. They barked a little louder at each other and, when the smoke started dissipating, Loid and Yor left their hideout. They had the upper hand over their opponents. Without being prompted, Yor took out three of them in one blurry motion, her speed making Loid gasp in admiration. But he had his own share of work to do. So when two men came his way, he didn’t waste time.
He knocked down the one on his left with one sweep of his leg, the man going down stumbling on air. The shot Loid took went straight to the back of the man’s head. His second opponent seemed smarter and tried to tackle him to the ground but Loid dodged his attempt with a calculated jump.
Into the pocket of his jacket, he could still feel the weight of one last weapon he could use. That, and the velvety box still safely hidden in his inner pocket. He took the remaining grenade and, not for the first time, was reminded of that first fateful proposal.
He looked to his right and saw that Yor was not done with her own attackers yet. She caught his eyes though, and with one look, Loid told her to hurry up ahead. She nodded and, with one last hazardous throw to unsettle her pursuers, she came to him. There were no signs of exhaustion on her face or in the way she was still running at a steady pace.
Loid was so screwed.
He fished the grenade out of his pocket and threw it above his elbow. He counted to ten in his head, his hand reaching for the velvety box inside his jacket inner pocket. He presented it to Yor without a word, just glancing at her briefly to gauge her reaction.
She was red in the face, her eyes sparkling both from visible excitement and from the flames burning behind them after the grenade had exploded. She was biting down a smile, her eyes travelling up to meet Loid’s.
He could feel a small smile tugging at the corner of his lips. The mood he was in, so completely in love and warm and at peace, drastically contrasting with the cries for help he could hear in the street they had just left ablaze.
“Will you marry me? For real this time?”
The simple nod she gave him was a sufficient answer. That, and the blinding smile he knew he could have blind faith in.