It was almost 2 AM. Amon stood at her door, deep in thoughts. He paced, contemplating whether he should knock, trying to find the courage. He was almost certain she was asleep.

He couldn't. He had to see her, but wasn't sure why. Everything just felt so final. He has written his will, of course, knowing very well he may not live past tomorrow. What scared him was not his own death. He couldn't imagine losing her. The thought of that made his stomach turn and his chest tight.

So he had to see her. Before tomorrow, before they put on their uniforms and march into hell. He had to see her right now.

So he rang the bell. A few seconds passed, and there seemed to be no answer. He held his breath, trying to listen. After another long, quiet minute, Amon turned and started walking. All of the sudden he heard the door open, and turned again. Akira was standing there, looking puzzled.

"Investigator Amon?" She sounded confused and he wanted to kick himself for this stupid, stupid act.

"Come in." She said, before he could say anything, and walked into the apartment. He followed her in. She was already in the hall. He closed the door behind him, and froze. His mouth felt dry, and he didn't know what to say, how to even begin to explain why he's here. She stood in front of him, on the step, waiting for him to speak up. Amon cleared his throat and looked down at his shoes. He bent over to remove them, when he suddenly realized how much closer Akira was now and looked up. Her expression was blank. The eye contact broke as she pulled his face upwards and her lips met his. Amon felt his chest overflowing with emotions, like a tidal wave. He pulled away quickly, trying to find the words only to find himself completely lost. Her hands were around his neck, and her breath was on his skin, and she was just way too close.

"I.. I can't promise you anything..." He pushed the words out.

"You know how it ends... Investigators..." He wanted to explain, but she cut him.

"No promises." She whispered, "Neither of us could keep them anyway." She smiled sadly. Amon opened his mouth to say something but she kissed him again, and he kissed back. Amon let everything wash over him, all the bottled up emotions, all the pain and fear, and just kissed her deeply. He pulled her close, wrapping his arms tight around her body. They broke the kiss for air, Akira's eyes sparkling with tears and she didn't speak, just took his hand and pulled him inside.