JAEGER

The rain hadn't died down even by the time I returned. 

"These will do till your clothes dry," I told Izzy, handing her the clothes.

"Thanks," she made sure not to touch me as she took the clothes.

I wondered how long she was going to be able to keep up that front of hers. I couldn't help but wonder that if I kissed her, would she kiss me back?

I put on the dry shirt I'd bought for myself, then turned around.

"Why are you turning around?" She asked.

"Why?" I faced her, "Do you want to face each other as we change?"

"I—no, I meant—that's not what I meant."

I already knew that, I just enjoyed teasing her. "As you can see there's no bathroom in this cabin and you need to change out of those clothes of yours."

She looked around, only noticing now that there was no bathroom, "what kind of cabin doesn't have a bathroom?"

I shrugged then turned around again, "you turn around too so I can change."

"Let me just—wait," she considered, "how can I trust you won't peak?"

"Peak?" I faced her again.

"You could turn around while I have my back to you for all I know," she crossed her arms over her chest.

"The fact that such a thought passed your mind means you were thinking of doing just that."

"I—" she stopped, flustered.

"Dirty, dirty Izzy," I laughed, "But fine, now that I don't trust you enough, you face my back while you change, and then I'll face yours when I change to make sure you don't peak." I turned around again. "Go ahead."

There was a slight pause before I heard the ruffle of clothes and knew she had started changing. She removed her wet shirt, then dropped it to the ground, and then put on the dry one. Then she began—

"Can you stop making so much noise?"

"I didn't say anything."

"Change quieter, I can hear everything."

"Then block your ears," she suggested.

"That won't help much."

She didn't answer but continued changing and I could still hear everything. "Done."

"Now you turn around so I can change my pants."

She turned around, and I got my wet pants off, putting on the dry ones.

"Okay, I'm done," she faced me again and we stood facing each other in silence for some time. "Warm enough?" I asked, breaking the silence.

"Yeah, they'll d—" her words were cut off when a sudden abnormal sound escaped her mouth.

"What the hell was that?"

"I sneezed."

"That was not a sneeze," I couldn't help the pull of my lips.

"Yes, it was—" the irregular sound cut off her words again.

"Tell me that's not how you actually sneeze," my voice was breaking as I failed to hide my amusement. I bit my bottom lip, trying to suppress my laugh but my lips started quivering.

"Are you trying not to laugh right now?" She asked, analysing me.

"Of course...I'm not."

"Why are you turning your back on me then? I can see your shoulders shaking!"

"It's... because of the cold... that's all," I said, trying to hold back my laugh.

"It's not funny Jaeger!" She yelled, a light chuckle betraying her seriousness as she beat her fists against my back.

"Okay, okay," I surrendered in laughter, facing her again, "I can't help it. Your sneeze sounds like a dying dog trying to bark."

"That is not funny," she chuckled, shoving my shoulder.

"It was like a..." I tried to recreate her sneeze making the both of us laugh.

"You aren't funny," she said after we'd recovered from the laughter.

"You seem to find me hilarious."

She snickered, rolling her eyes.

"You're such fun to tease." I brought my hand up and started patting her head, an action I'd gotten so used to doing.

Before, when I pat her head the typical reaction was she'd yell, telling me not to touch her then she'd try to kill me. But now, it was different. We stood there looking into each other's eyes, our smiles slowly fading as we both realised how close we were to each other.

"You are okay though?" I asked, my voice low, "you don't have a cold or anything."

Izzy's gaze flicked down to my lips then quickly back up to my eyes. It was fast, but not fast enough for me not to notice. She noticed me noticing and took a step back.

"You—you shouldn't say things like that."

"Why not?" I asked, my gaze flicking down to her lips this time.

"Because we need to focus on the task at hand."

I looked back up at her eyes, "if you haven't noticed, it's hard to stay focused when I'm around you, especially since I have to hold myself back all the time."

"Hold yourself back from doing what?"

"A lot of things."

She cleared her throat, stepping back and exhaling, her breath weak. "We should create boundaries."

"Boundaries?"

"I don't like being too close to you," she said, "you make me..."

"Make you?" I asked when she didn't finish her sentence.

"I can't be sure I'll be able to... "

"To?"

"Doesn't matter," she dismissed. "We need just need to create boundaries."

"Why?"

"Because we're enemies."

"Izzy," I said, a grin spread across my lips, "enemies don't do the things we do, and neither do they feel the things we feel."

"After this whole thing is over," she said, ignoring my previous statement. "We'll just go back to how we were before."

"Is that what you want?"

"I—I don't know what I want," she admitted.

I knew, that despite our history, despite what my mind was telling me, I wanted Izzy. She never shunned me for what I was. She never treated me differently when she knew what I was. She didn't try to kill me, she didn't push me away, she pulled me closer. She accepted me for what I was, she'd kissed me even after she'd known what I was. She made me feel things I couldn't even explain, she made me hope for things that someone like me shouldn't hope for.

I wanted to know she at least felt that much for me too, that I made her feel things no one else could. Things she couldn't explain. I wanted to know she wouldn't just disappear.

"Izzy," I whispered looking right into her eyes. She shifted her weight, bringing her legs together. "Once the task is complete, and we get to the Zas, would you leave, or would you stay?"

"I—" she paused, "leave. I'd leave and we go back to the way we were."

"We weren't anything before."

"Exactly. We go back to that, to being nothing but strangers."

"We weren't strangers before."

"Then we become strangers."

"How long are you going to keep your distance?"

"I'm not keeping a distance."

I took a step closer to her, making her step back in the process, "you and I can't be strangers."

"Yes we can, we..." I took another step, making her step back, "we just kissed."

I stopped, "just kissed?"

She hesitated, but still said, "it was just a kiss."

I looked back up at her, "so should I give you just another kiss?"

When I'd kissed her, I'd let her in. There were walls that I'd built that I didn't want anybody breaking down, yet she'd broken them down as if they were nothing.

"Should I break down your walls Izzy?" I took yet another step and she took yet another step back. "Should I break down your walls like you broke mine down? Or..." I stepped and this time, the wall stopped her from going any further, "are your walls already down but you're not accepting it? Are you futilely trying to pick up the bricks one by one?"

"And what if I am. What are you going to do about it?"

I broke the distance between us, my face inches away from hers. Her chest stopped rising as she held her breath.

"Nothing," I said, leaning back and taking a step back. "I can't do anything remember." Because of that damn promise I'd made her.

"Why not?" 

"Why not?" I echoed, my lips curving. "Do you want me to do something?"

"No," she blurted, swallowing.

"You know I've never had trouble keeping a promise, but now..." I shook my head.

"Now what?"

I opened my mouth but closed it again and only shook my head, turning around to walk away, because I knew if I stayed a little longer, I'd break.

"Don't hold yourself back," she suddenly said and I faced her again. 

"What?"

"You told me earlier that you had to hold yourself back all the time. Well, don't. Because you're right"

"About?"

"Everything. And I hate you so much for it." Then she stepped toward me, cupped my face, rose onto her toes and planted her lips on mine.

I was surprised for only a moment before I kissed her back.