This story uses characters and locations based on the Gunslinger Girl manga written by Yu Aida and published in monthly shōnen magazine Dengeki Daioh. The characters of Kara and Michele are original to myself.
"Yoake [夜明け]"
A Gunslinger Girl Original Story by Chris Wallace
"Heaven is not enough…if when I am there I don't remember you." – Yoko Kanno.
On a warm March Wednesday, in the passenger seat of a Lamborghini Gallardo Spyder parked on the side of the Autostrada 24 in a suburb east of Rome, Fleda Claes Johansson started to cry, her sobs drowned out by the flow of late afternoon traffic though Michele could see her chest heave and see the tears stream down her face. He removed a clean handkerchief from his pants pocket and handed it to Claes, who turned towards him with eyes red from tears and cheeks red from embarrassment.
"Gratzie," she said as she dabbed at her eyes and wiped her cheeks. She sniffled with a sharp intake of breath through her nose and her face set in a hard look, only a moment later to collapse into a fresh bout of crying. She buried her face in the handkerchief and willed herself into composure.
"Crying like a schoolgirl rejected by her crush," she said, her tone harsh.
"You were conditioned to love him. And now that you remember him, it's natural to miss him knowing that's he is gone," Michele offered.
"What we shared wasn't really love," Claes noted. "I mean I did love him because the conditioning made me, but it made him uncomfortable." She took in a few deep breaths to steady herself. "I'm okay now. We can go," she said.
Michele nodded and started the car. He waited for a break in the traffic and pulled out, setting course for the SWA compound.