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Strange Logic

The day has been particularly tiring. Two hours of additional training had been included on their daily schedule starting from today. As expected, all of their previous marks will have to be improved during the next few days.

The new trainer had decided to impress them with the tough-guy routine and ended up injuring three members of his unit in the process. He had the slight impression that after his formal debrief to Colonel Sullivan regarding Justin Crane, their brand new Muay Thai instructor, Crane was not going to be part of the happy Manticore family anymore.

Sullivan might have seen it coming; because really, if one was to consider that three of the members of his squad ended up in the infirmary that afternoon, himself included, the decision of firing the guy was the only way to go. A broken wrist, two fractured ribs and a sprained ankle had sealed the fate of the instructor.

His wrist didn't bother him that much anymore and wouldn't be a problem tomorrow; being ambidextrous really had its pros. Besides having something broken did not equal being free from training. They can always find something to occupy your time if you were deemed not fit for physical exercise. Once he had been stuck a whole day studying Russian literature as a result of a broken leg and punctured lung.

She might end with a similar task tomorrow; two fractured ribs were not going to make it easier physical training for her. He suspected that there was more than that; he could have sworn he'd seen some blood drops on the mat. She probably also had some internal bleeding, but as usual she decided to forget to mention that. She was definitely the kind of person that most part of the time you don't know if you want to hug or kill. That girl could really be infuriating sometimes and he still wonders why he puts up with her.

He laughed inwardly at his own thoughts. They were friends, probably best friends, and that was the sole reason of why he put up with her crazy antics and stubborn behavior. He's not sure when she became so important in his life, when she started to be the voice of reason when his own judgment is clouded. The important thing is that she did and he's glad that it happened; things had worked better since they started to work together instead of against each other, the balance finally achieved.

He's grateful for their friendship. That's a fact. It's only that his life will be easier if she wouldn't turn his world upside down on a weekly basis. It was frustrating that every single time her crazy logic attacks, she will just walk away calm and relaxed as if nothing had happened, leaving him with the task of figuring out her odd behavior. He will spend time replaying whatever she did or said, time after time in a vane attempt to decipher her reasons; because on top of everything, she had to be the queen of vague answers, never able to give a straight reply even if her life would depend on it.

She was a walking contradiction and will be the end of him.

Five hours, thirty three minutes and eight seconds ago she had entered his room and climbed into his bed. It was not an unusual situation between them. In all the years they grew up together he was used to comforting her when she was angry, sad, tired or just plain bored. This time he was aware that she was tired and sad.

Her head had fallen over his shoulder as she entertained herself watching the shadows of the trees projected on his wall. They usually don't talk, silence between them tends to be comforting. And then, as if it was a common occurrence she had raise her head, lock her eyes with his, smile, murmur softly something along the lines of 'Thanks for being here' and pressed her lips against his for exactly three seconds. After that, she hadn't made any comment, just turn again and fell asleep beside him.

And here he was five hours, thirty three minutes and eight seconds later, still trying to figure out what had happened, or at least why? In the end, it wasn't such a big deal. He can't understand for the live of him why he's torturing himself thinking otherwise. If he was going to be honest with himself it hadn't be a life changing experience, it had barely lasted three seconds at most. How can something so brief cause such a commotion in his mind?

It has started to rain and sunrise was still hours away. If he wants to get some sleep, he will need to find the answer or at least a credible explanation. He sighed and brushed his hand over the bangs on her face causing her to stir. From previous experience he knows that if she's half sleep there's a better chance for a straight answer.

"Why did you kiss me?" His voice whispers as his fingers trace her face.

"Valentine," she mumbles and pushes his hand from her face, covering it with her arm to avoid the contact.

Then it clicks in his mind, today was Valentine's Day.

494 smiles in the dark of his room. Rain is still falling outside, sunrise is still hours away. They're still friends and just for once he agrees on her crazy logic for celebrating holidays. Whether or not things will still be the same between them, he still plans on bugging her about the kiss tomorrow.

'Happy Valentine's day,' he murmurs, before falling asleep next to her.