Strawberry Laces

Adelaide

—-

I jumped into the scalding hot shower, letting the water burn my skin. When I climbed out, my skin was bright pink. I shrugged on Romano's shirt which still had the lingering scent of him, one that I had grown to quite like, and his boxers which I still hadn't returned.

What did he have to gain from this?

A soft knock echoed through the room.

—-

I slowly slid the door open and peeked my head through the gap. The person I saw made guilt swirl around in my stomach.

Jamie.

"I'm sorry."

His voice was full of remorse, something that Jamie didn't often show. I outwardly sighed. I couldn't be mad at him. I rarely ever lash out at people the way I did to him tonight, and I would be lying if I didn't say I felt terrible about it.

Everybody makes mistakes, right?

He extended his hand and in his palm was a packet of strawberry laces. My eyes widened at the sight and I quickly snatched the packet of sugary goodness, opening the door wider for him before turning around and sitting on the bed.

I crawled to the middle of the fluffy bed and dove under the duvet, watching Jamie as he awkwardly sat on the edge, looking away from me.

Silence engulfed the room and Jamie let out a deep sigh, putting his head in his hands.

"I don't know how I made the mistake. I knew that the guy was in the country but I didn't know that he was going to go to the restaurant."

His voice was void of emotion and instead was quiet and breathy. Not giving any indication as to whether he was lying or not.

I opened the pack of strawberry laces and looked at the contents. Every time I took a hit in MI6, I would be rewarded with a packet of strawberry laces and a small payment of money. Mr T would come into my room, pat me on the back, hand me some money alongside the packet of laces before leaving. It was almost as if he was apologizing to me in his special way.

I wonder how many people I've killed?

"Who was he then?" My voice was softer than I would've liked it to be as I posed the question.

I placed the opened packet of strawberry laces on the bedside table, untouched.

"One of his business partners."

He looked over his shoulder back over to me, his eyes settling on the untouched packet of strawberry laces.

He kept his answer short and sweet.

I wanted to believe him, I really did but something in his story wasn't adding up. Surely, if one of Fawkner's business partners were in the same city he would follow up on it. That seemed like the obvious thing to do.

Yet, here he was, saying that he had the knowledge that this man could've and did, ruin the mission and he didn't follow up on it.

I probably would've believed him more if he said that he didn't even know who the man was.

"I gathered that they were partners. Who is he?" Instead of coming out as a question, it sounded more like a demand. I shifted forward in the bed, leaning forward.

A minute of silence passed.

"If you're not going to answer that question, will you entertain another one?"

He turned so that he was fully facing me now. His face was stoic, a trait that I used to adore but now seemed more of a menace. Why could I never figure him out?

He gave a small nod.

"What did you do for Romano before I came?"

He scrutinised my face for a minute before answering.

"The same thing I'm doing now. Looking up people. Background checks. Tracking shipments. Tracking people."

I sat back and leaned my head against the back of the bed. I kept my face impassive. If Romano knew I was being tested if he knew that it was me, why did he assign Jamie to the same project? Surely, there could be other things for Jamie to do.

He turned to the space in the bed beside me, "Can I sit?"

No emotion.

I nodded and he positioned himself under the duvet. He let out a long sigh and I felt his body relax against the backboard. We both sat facing the massive tv that was hung on the wall.

"What happened to us?" I heard him whisper beside me.

I felt the heat from his arm that was resting next to mine. With my head still leaning on the backboard, I looked over to him.

"You died."

He turned his head to look at me. Not one emotion was painted on his face.

"You died, and then I did too." I continued, looking into his deep brown eyes.

For a fleeting second, his eyes softened before turning stony again.

"Can we watch a movie together? Like old times?" His voice pleaded with me and I felt my defences crumbling. How did he have this effect on me? I reached over to my bedside table and grasped remote laying beside the bag of sweets.

I absentmindedly flicked through various Italian channels before finding a channel in English, which just so happened to be a James Bond movie. I snorted to myself.

I was a much cooler secret agent.

I snuggled further into the duvet, allowing myself to be intoxicated by Jamie's woody scent and the warmth that was emitted from his body. I peeked up at his face and saw a small smile there as he wrapped his arm around my body. Relief washed over me. He was finally showing me an emotion I could decipher.

The events of the day seemed to catch up to me all at once, leaving my body tired and worn, begging me to slip onto the darkness many like to call sleep. And I let myself slip into it.

When I woke up, I was greeted by a cold bed and the smell of glorious food. My eyes weren't drooping and my body wasn't aching. For once, I felt well-rested. I threw the covers off, swung my legs around the edge of the bed and padded down to the kitchen, following the glorious scent of cooking food.

Rounding the last corner, I looked into the kitchen and saw Jamie sitting at the kitchen island, a cup of steaming something in his hand, Jaekyung leaning against the island, watching Romano who was frying what looked to be French toast.

"Morning." I croaked out, my voice hoarse and begging for the sweet relief of a hot cup of coffee.

I brushed last Romano over to where a steaming pot of coffee was waiting for me.

"Good morning, mia stella." Romano said before serving up some French toast on a plate. I filled up a mug of coffee and put in a teaspoon of sugar. I grabbed the plate of deliciousness and sat one seat away from Jamie.

If Jamie took offence to where I had chosen to sit, he didn't show it, keeping his eyes on the cup of coffee in front of him. I took a small sip of my own coffee.

Romano took the pan off the hob and placed it in the sink, turning around to face us.

"I've deposited the money for the hit last night to all of your bank accounts except yours, carota."

I felt three separate pairs of eyes settle on me as I scooped up a bit of French toast and slowly chewing on it.

"You never gave me your bank details, stella. Can we sort that out after you've eaten so we can get started on the next person on my list?"

I looked back down at the coffee in my mug before meeting Romano's friendly gaze.

"I don't have a bank account," I stated, suddenly embarrassed.

The look that flashed through Romano's face was one of pure shock. He was so shocked that he took a step back and put a hand over his heart.

Such a drama queen.

I looked over to Jaekyung who was staring at me with a intense gaze full of curiosity. Jamie hadn't taken his eyes off of his coffee.

"How old are you?" Romano asked.

"24."

Romano breathed a sigh of relief. Dumbass.

"How did they pay you in MI6?" Jaekyung spoke up for the first time since I stepped into the room. Gone was the previous curiosity, replaced by a serious tone.

"After every kill I used to get 50 quid and a pack of strawberry laces. Why?"

Silence overtook the room and I was confused beyond belief. What was so wrong with that payment? I'd never really thought about the money that I got in MI6. I mean, I knew that I got less than people in other departments but I thought that that was because MI6 provided a place to eat and sleep to their assassins.

Jaekyung couldn't hide her shock at my previous salary, her eyes wide and her mouth hanging open.

"Ads, is that all they gave you?" Jamie questioned, his voice soft and full of pity.

"Yes, that's all they gave me." I seethed.

I tore my gaze away from Jamie, suddenly pissed off at him.

"Can't you just give it in cash, mafia man?" I asked him, itching for this conversation to be over.

He let out a loud laugh and leaned over the counter.

"La mia preziosa stella, you will need a bank account for the amount of money that I am going to give you. You cannot simply stuff it in the closet or wherever you kept the pocket money they gave you in MI6."

He had a boyish grin that was steadily growing by the second. A uncertain feeling in my gut grew alongside his grin as he motioned for me to come beside him with his finger, similar to the way I did so to him, only to threaten to kill him minutes later.

I slid off the stool and walked around the island, curiosity getting the better of me. How much could he possibly pay me?

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