Chapter 57: An Unexpected Guest

Chapter 57: Chapter 57: An Unexpected Guest

Morning came over Valemont, sunlight filtering through the curtains and laying thin gold lines across the bedroom floor.

Felix opened his eyes, stared at the ceiling a moment, and muttered, "Morning," to no one in particular before stretching and getting up.

No alarm needed, years of training had given him a better internal clock than any device could.

He showered, dressed in a plain dark T-shirt and worn pajama pants and headed into the kitchen, tying on an apron.

Cooking was one of the few fixed points in his mornings when he wasn’t on a mission.

Today it was an egg-and-vegetable dish, pan-seared meat with herbs, fresh bread, a creamy soup, and something small for dessert.

He moved through it, like he always did, chopping and checking the stove and was putting the finishing touches on the last dish when the doorbell rang.

He stopped. "Who—"

It rang again, and he glanced at the clock. Unexpected, at this hour. He turned off the stove, wiped his hands, and went to answer it.

He opened the door and froze completely.

Seraphina stood outside, unmistakably her and unmistakably different. Her silver hair hung loose over her shoulders, catching the morning light. She wore a fitted black dress, elegant and falling gracefully to her knees, shoulders and arms bare, delicate fabric tracing her collarbone. Simple black shoes. A small handbag in one hand.

Nothing like the silent prisoner he’d first met. Nothing like the fighter in raid gear.

Just an ordinary young woman standing at someone’s front door, except extraordinarily beautiful.

He just stared. She stared back, and then noticed the same thing in reverse, not the healer in perfect uniform from their sessions and not the high-rank combatant. Plain T-shirt, pajama pants, an apron, his hair a little messy, a faint smudge of flour on one cheek.

*He looks—* Her face warmed. *Like a husband.*

Neither of them said anything for what stretched into nearly a full minute before they both blinked at roughly the same time.

"Seraphina—"

"Are you not going to welcome me inside?"

That snapped him out of it. "Oh... yes, of course." He stepped aside.

"Come in."

"Thank you." She crossed the threshold, and her eyes started moving the second she was through the door: the living room, the furniture, the shelving, the windows, the balcony, the kitchen, the hallway. Memorizing everything.

*So this is where Felix lives.*

He shut the door behind her. "Make yourself comfortable, I just need a few more minutes on the food."

"Okay." She sat on the sofa, watching him move around the kitchen, checking dishes and tasting the sauce, until curiosity got the better of her and she got up to look over his shoulder.

"So you actually cook."

He glanced sideways. "Hm?"

"Yeah." He stirred the sauce. "One of my hobbies. I like it."

"I didn’t know that."

He looked at her properly. "So, first leave?"

"Yes."

"And you came here first."

"Yes." A pause. "I wanted to surprise you."

"Mission accomplished."

Her mouth curved slightly. "Mira mentioned where you live. I don’t know anything else about this city, so I thought—" She hesitated.

"Am I intruding?"

"Not at all," he said, checking the stove again.

"Honestly, I’m glad you came. Sit at the table, food’s almost ready."

"I can help."

"Nope." He crossed over and, before she could argue, guided her toward the table and pulled out a chair. "You’re a guest today. I don’t make guests work."

She looked at him, then sat. "Okay."

A few minutes later he carried the dishes over, he’d originally cooked for one, so a quick extra dish had joined the lineup.

"You made more."

"Obviously. There’s enough for both of us."

"Thank you."

"You’re welcome."

They ate. For Seraphina, it was strangely peaceful. Felix across the table, eating breakfast like it was any ordinary morning.

She took another bite, then looked over. "Felix. Are you free today?"

"Nothing scheduled."

Her eyes brightened. "Then, could you come with me?"

"Where?"

"Anywhere." A little embarrassed now. "I’ve never actually seen this city."

He thought about it, then smiled. "Sure."

"Really?"

"Of course."

"Thank you."

"No problem." They kept eating.

---

After breakfast, Felix started clearing the table.

Seraphina stood immediately. "I’ll wash."

"No."

"I always wash my own dishes." He was already at the sink before she could argue further, water running over his hands as he worked through them one by one.

She stood behind him and watched, her ears slowly going red, her imagination wandering somewhere.

*He cooks. He does his own dishes. He handles everything himself.* Her face warmed further. *If we lived together—*

She cut that thought off hard. Looked away.

He kept washing, entirely unaware of the effect he was having.

*I need to calm down,* she told herself.

She did not calm down.

---

Once the dishes were done, Felix dried his hands. "I’ll go change."

"Okay."

He came back a few minutes later in a clean dark shirt, fitted trousers, a light jacket. She glanced over, then away fast. *Why does he look good in everything.*

He picked up his keys. "Ready?"

"Yes."

Outside, a sleek black car sat waiting in the quiet residential lot.

She eyed the vehicle with mild surprise. "You own a car?"

"Yeah," Felix replied, unlocking it with a click.

"Hardly ever touch it, though."

"Why not?"

He pulled open the passenger door for her. "The Association shuttles handle all the mission deployments. And if I just need groceries, walking is easier."

"Why walk if you have this?"

Felix walked around to the driver’s side, slipped behind the wheel, and pressed the ignition. The engine came to life with a quiet hum. "Driving gets boring fast. At my top speed, I could outrun half the city traffic on foot anyway."

She blinked at him, caught off guard, before a small smile touched her lips. "Fair enough."

The car smoothly rolled out of the lot and joined the main road.

Sitting in the passenger seat, she felt a quiet flutter in her chest. She had pictured a day like this: free from concrete cells, without armed escorts, and without alarms waiting to ring. Just the open road, Felix, and her.

She looked over at him while he steered into the midday traffic, the cool breeze from the cracked window tugging at loose strands of her hair.

A real day off. My first date.

"Where do you want to head first?" Felix asked, keeping his eyes on the road.

She took a moment to savor the question, her smile softening into pure contentment.

"Anywhere you want."

She was holding onto something she thought had been stolen from her forever: an entirely ordinary, peaceful day.

---

Picture.