My alarm clock went off. I rolled over still dazed, slapping the hell out of the snooze button. I slowly rose; not wanting a repeat of yesterday morning. I kept reminding myself that I didn't want to be late again, like it was a mantra. I finally got up, trailing over to the bathroom to freshen up.

-

I made it to the office early, which was my goal. I made my way through the practically empty lobby. As I got to the elevator doors, a light hand rested on my shoulder, earning a violent shake from my body. I slowly turned to meet the person who'd dared to so much as bother me in the morning, let alone this early in the morning. Everyone here knows that I'm not a morning person at all; its either I'm clumsy or I'm not a very nice person, never anything in between. I was greeted by Laswell's sharp and cold eyes. I completely fixed my demeanor the best that I could, earning a soft chuckle from her.

"Sorry to startle you Belle, I was coming to tell you that there was a bit of a schedule change." She paused, glancing at the ground and then back at me. I gulped down the lump that was starting to form in my throat. She continued, "You and Ghost will be working in the field together with your groups." I felt my stomach turn in fear. I hated the thought of being anywhere near that man for more than 5 minutes at most. I tolerate working in the same building as him but the fact that I must spend all day with him is the absolute worst. It felt as if Laswell had just handed me a literal death sentence.

Before I even had the chance to protest, Laswell continued, "If you would've stayed later like you usually do, I would've told you this yesterday." She tilted her head downwards, raising her eyebrows up at me. I chuckled nervously, avoiding her eye contact. She noticed that I had left my office early last night. Now I couldn't protest this arrangement. She removed her hand from my shoulder. "Don't bother going up to your office right now, you can go back to your room; get some extra sleep, you look like you need it". She grinned, before walking away back down the hall.

Wow, well she didn't have to tell me that twice. I started to turn around, but I was reminded of König and how he wanted to join my team. The things I do for people. I called out to Laswell, slightly jogging over to her. "Sorry to stop you Cap, but I wanted to talk to you regarding one of the Kortac members." I stated, my tone as professional as it would get. She turned her body to face mine before crossing her arms.

"Go on." I nodded before continuing, " His name's König ma'am, he came to me yesterday-" she held up a hand, signaling for me to 'hold on a minute'. " Yes, I am fully aware of that situation, that boy was insistent on joining your team, he's all clear." I blinked, shocked. He really wasn't lying yesterday. "I suggest you test his skills, see just how good Kortac claims he is." I nodded in agreement. "Last thing ma'am. What about the arrangements for the other soldiers?" A sigh escaped her lips, "That's already settled. Hutch gave up his position in return for a spot-on Stephen's team."

I dropped my gaze to the floor. "Is that all lieutenants?" she asked, a small amount of impatience was hinted in her tone. I looked up at her in a hurry, "Yes ma'am, thank you for your time." I bowed and she nodded in return before continuing her own trek to her office. I heaved a sigh, starting to walk towards the elevator. Apart of me was sad that Hutch was traded in for König. The dynamic trio would never be the same in my eyes, even in the short time that I'd known them.

The elevator dinged and I entered, still held up in my thoughts. I pressed the button for the second floor almost as if I was in a trance. I trudged absentmindedly all the way to my office, I had forgotten when I even got off the elevator. That didn't really matter. I unlocked my office door, shoving myself inside before closing the door behind me, not bothering to lock it. It was early in the morning, and no one was even here, so why not? I walked over to my desk, throwing myself into my soft swivel chair. I threw my head back, reclining into it. I glanced at the time, 5:45 AM.

  Great, I have a good 4 hours to sleep. I slumped down in my chair, grabbing a random book off my desk, slapping it on my face. I slowly drifted off, hoping to sleep away my annoyance at the new arrangements.

-

I heard light knocks rattle my door. I didn't move. I couldn't move, I was too tired. So, I sat there, not moving an inch. The knocks started to get fiercer before stopping altogether. I heard my door squeak open. I prayed that whoever it was would just go away; but my prayers were unanswered. "Lieutenant, Belle?" A soft yet shaky voice called out to me, I ignored them as I tried to go back to sleep.

I heard my door being pushed open further. A loud thump was heard on my wall causing me to jolt a bit; I almost abandoned my horrible sleeping act. "Ouch, Scheiße!" the voice sounded a bit gruff, the sound of a foreign language followed quickly after. I felt a smile creep up my lips before it fell into a frown. What the hell is König doing here? My thoughts were interrupted by the sound of König's boots hitting my wooden floor. He softly closed my office door, as I heard it 'click ' closed.

His footsteps were surprisingly light in comparison to his size. I heard him creep up, and around my desk before stopping. I could feel his body looming over me. He wasn't going to try and pull anything right? No, no he wouldn't, at least I trust him not to. I kept my composure as he stood over me for what felt like eternity.

  Was he trying to see if I was asleep for real? I heard him rustling with something and a slight weight was added to my body. He adjusted what felt like rough but soft fabric until my entire upper body was covered. It's so warm. A shiver that I was unable to suppress, ran up my spine because of the sudden temperature change. He jolted back and paused for a bit before continuing. I felt large his gloved hand slide on my cheek and the other hand held my book steady. His one hand alone could cover my entire face.

I had hoped he wasn't going to remove the book that shielded my face, and he didn't. Instead, he repositioned my head; pulling what I assumed to be his jacket, up to my neck. A scent I wasn't familiar with swept over my nose. It smelled like pine and gunpowder. Not a bad combination. His hand swept away my hair that was caught on one of the pages of the book. "Sleep well...Liebling." 

His deep accented voice rung in my ears as I started to doze off, feeling my eyes getting heavy again. I heard his footsteps retreat from around my desk, move I listened to see what he would do next. I heard him plop down in one of the chairs that was right in front of my desk. Somehow, knowing that he didn't leave was quite comforting. I drifted off into a deep sleep.

-

I jolted awake knowing that I was late, I didn't know what for, but I just felt like I was late. The book that covered my face fell into my lap. I sat up, my blurry eyes adjusting to the brightness of my office. "Rise and Shine, Ms. Belle." I whipped my head around, remembering that König was here. I heard a low chuckle come from him; his eyes were locked onto mine. "Morning König."

My voice was croaky as I rubbed my eyes. Had he stayed here the entire time I was asleep?  As my eyes adjusted to the brightness, I looked down, catching sight of König's jacket. "What's this?" I blurted out loud, in my drunken, sleepy state. König shifted in his seat for a while before speaking up, "That is my jacket, you looked cold, so I put it on you. I'm sorry, that was rude of me." He kept his gaze on the ground as he fiddled with his fingers.

I looked up at him, realizing that I messed up by saying that "No, no, thank you for this König." He looked up at me, his eyes showing doubt. " I'm serious, thank you!" His eyes seemed to smile as he looked down, fiddling with his fingers again. "You're welcome, Miss Belle." I could tell he was smiling. A smile of my own formed on my lips as I watched him play with his fingers. He gave me his jacket because he saw that I looked cold, how sweet of him. Just then a knock was heard at my door before it swung open.

I started to form a frown before my entire face dropped. It was none other than Simon. No one else dared to pull a stunt like that but him.

(1621 Words)

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