Straying from the Path

Nico leaned against the balcony railing of his apartment, the city stretching out beneath him, alive with lights and the sounds of traffic. From up here, it all seemed so far away, so impersonal. That's how he liked it, removed, untouchable. The perfect vantage point for someone who lived in the shadows. But lately, he felt like he was losing his grip on that distance.

And it all came back to her.

Mia.

He had already tried to kill her. He had had her in his sights, ready to pull the trigger, but in that split second when he should have taken the shot… he didn't. He still couldn't explain it. The job had been straightforward: take her out, no questions asked. He had done it a thousand times before. But for some reason, when it came to her, something inside him broke.

That moment had haunted him ever since. It was more than just failure, it was a crack in the armor he had spent his entire life building. He wasn't supposed to care. He wasn't supposed to feel anything. And yet, the image of her standing there, unaware of how close she'd come to death, had stayed with him.

He paced the small balcony, trying to shake the confusion. He had already decided. He wasn't going to kill her. That much was clear. But what came next? He had never backed out of a job before, never let emotions get in the way. It wasn't like him to leave something unfinished, especially not when he was this deep in.

But he couldn't do it. He couldn't hurt her.

The problem was, now he didn't know how to fix this mess. He had let her live. That should have been the end of it. Walk away. Disappear. Go back to the life he knew. But no matter how many times he told himself to forget her, his mind wouldn't let go.

He kept thinking about the way she had looked that night. She hadn't seen him, hadn't known how close she'd come to dying. But as he watched her through the scope, there was something about her—something real, something raw. He couldn't put his finger on it, but it stopped him in his tracks. And it scared the hell out of him.

Nico wasn't built for these kinds of feelings. Emotions were for other people, people who had the luxury of living in the light. He had buried his long ago, back when he decided that the only way to survive was to shut everything out. He had always told himself that his work wasn't personal, that he was a tool, a means to an end. But Mia had cracked that lie wide open.

Now, every time he closed his eyes, he saw her face. He saw the way she laughed with her friend, the way her eyes lit up when she was in her own world. She wasn't just a target anymore. She was a person. And that realization was what made everything so damn complicated.

He had spent weeks watching her, studying her every move, waiting for the perfect moment. He knew her routine, knew her life better than he should. But in doing that, he had seen sides of her that he wasn't supposed to see. The moments of vulnerability, the small gestures of kindness, the way she always smiled at strangers on the street.

There was something about her that was so… real. She wasn't like the other people he had been hired to eliminate. They were always corrupt, powerful, dangerous in their own way. But Mia? She was different. She was just living her life, trying to get by like everyone else.

And now he couldn't stop thinking about her.

The rational part of him knew he had to cut ties. He wasn't supposed to be feeling this way. The job was over, and the smart thing to do was disappear before anyone noticed he had failed. But the part of him that had kept him from pulling the trigger wasn't letting go that easily.

He could walk away. That was the plan. But for some reason, the thought of leaving without knowing why he had hesitated gnawed at him. Was it because she was innocent? Or was it something more?

And more importantly, what did that mean for him? Nico had always lived in the shadows, doing what had to be done without question. But if he couldn't kill her… what was he now? Could he still be the man who never faltered, who never let emotions get in the way?

He clenched his fists, frustrated with himself. He was wasting time. Thinking like this would only make things worse. But the truth was, he wasn't just thinking about her, he was thinking about himself. About what kind of man he really was.

Was he still the assassin, the cold, unfeeling ghost who followed orders without question? Or had Mia shown him something more, something he had long forgotten he could feel?

He couldn't deny it any longer, she had changed him. In that single moment, when he had spared her life, something inside him shifted. Now, every thought, every plan he tried to make, came back to her.

But what was he supposed to do now? Go back to his old life, pretending this never happened? Or was it too late for that? Was he already too far gone?

Nico stared out at the city, feeling more lost than he had in years. He had always been so sure of his path, so certain that this was the only life he could live. But now, for the first time, he wasn't sure of anything.

One thing was clear: he couldn't go back to who he was before Mia. And that scared him more than anything.