Note: I probably should have mentioned this in the first chapter, but Sabina did not leave at the end of Eagle Strike, her dad wanting to be somewhere familiar to heal.

Alex cheered as Chelsea scored another goal, Sabina screaming her approval at his side. We both fell back into our seats, laughing.

"Don't you dare miss that goal…What? Oh come on, you bloody son of a…!"

"Popcorn!" Jack yelled loudly, cutting off Sabina 'subtly.' Alex and Sabina laughed at her as they took a second bowl.

"Fancy watching the game with us Jack?" Alex said, smiling cheekily. He knew how much patience she had for British sports. Her eyes narrowed, taking in Alex's barely suppressed grin, Sabina giggling at his side.

"No thanks, I'd rather cook." She said, walking away. Alex was slightly surprised. There was nothing she hated more than cooking. As if she read his mind, Jack stopped at the doorway.

"Well, maybe not cooking…" she sighed, and left the room. Alex and Sabina laughed again and got back to the game. In the other room, she listened to them and sighed happily. She hadn't wanted to know the details about what happened after Venice, but he had told her about his father and his undercover work in Scorpia. She couldn't believe that he had been a spy, but if his brother had been, it must run in the family. M16 had decided it was Alex's turn, and Jack was worried sick about what it was doing to him. But now it all seemed to be behind him and his life had taken a turn for the best. He was happy, back at school and with Sabina constantly. She remembered the day Sabina had come to visit, a week after the Scorpia incident, after Alex had gone back to school.

***

Three weeks earlier…

There was a knock at the door, and Jack went to answer it. Alex looked warily towards it, turning away from the mirror where he had been inspecting the hand shaped bruise on his face. Its colour had begun to lighten, but it was still quite noticeable. Jack shivered at the thought of someone slapping Alex like that, but she tried not to think about his missions. She knew he suffered ten times worse than that, physically and emotionally.

Jack's eyes widened in surprise as the young Sabina Pleasure grinned at her.

"Is Alex here?" she asked.

"Sabina!" Alex exclaimed happily. He hadn't seen her a lot lately. Her dad was still in hospital after the Eagle Strike incident, and she had devoted herself to taking care of him.

Sabina turned her smile to Alex, but it abruptly faded. She stared with wide eyes at the hand shaped bruise on his face and the burns on his arms.

"Alex, you haven't been…" she whispered, not bothering to finish her sentence. He knew what she was talking about. Alex frowned, looking at the ground. There was a short, awkward pause.

"I'm sorry Sabina. I had no choice with this one."

"Why not, Alex? You've nearly been killed over and over again. Why would you want to go back to that world?

"An organization, not a good one," Alex explained, pointing to the bruise on his face, "had information about my dad, and my mum. I had to find out, Sab, but it turned out more dangerous than I planned."

Sympathy washed over Sabina's face. "I'm sorry, Alex, I didn't know. I would have done the same thing."

Alex smiled at her gratefully. "So what are you doing here Sab? I thought you were taking care of your dad."

"We took him home a few days ago, and mum's taken the reigns, and I decided to get out of the way for a while. You'll be seeing me a lot from now on."

Sabina smiled and walked in. Alex grinned. He wasn't complaining.

***

Present

Jack smiled again at the sound of Alex and Sabina cheering in the other room. It seemed there team was winning. Jack jumped at the sound of the doorbell. She looked at her watch and frowned. Who would be paying a visit at this hour? She suddenly got an uneasy feeling.

"I'll get it Jack." Alex said as she walked into the living room. "You've done enough. And besides…" he grinned, tapping at his watch and standing up. "It's half time." Little did Alex know he would not be watching the rest of the game.

"So you don't want to watch the cheerleaders Alex? Good, I wouldn't let you anyway." Sabina grinned and laughed.

Jack looked at the peaceful scene before her. She looked at Alex's happy and calm brown eyes, which usually looked serious and hard, thanks to M16. They'd forced him to go on horrible, life threatening missions, and he'd seen too much, much more than a fourteen year old should ever have to see. On impulse, Jack yelled, "Don't open the door Alex, please."

Alex and Sabina looked at Jack in surprise. "Why?" Alex asked, bewildered.

Jack bit her lip. "Because… I don't know, I just… what if it's M16, Alex! Look how happy you are, if it's them, they'll black mail you into another mission and you'll come back to me scarred, beaten and hurt, if you come back at all!"

There was a pause. "I don't want you to answer the door either, Alex." Sabina said quietly. Alex stared at the two of them in astonishment. The notion seemed ridiculous, yet he suddenly realised how much his assignments affected and hurt them. It was probably also due to how much he changed when he came back. Alex noticed it himself, and they must have to. Over the last few weeks, he had slowly turned back into the Alex he wanted to be. And the two girls didn't want that to be ruined. Suddenly, Alex didn't want to answer the door either.

Alex slowly sat back down on the coach. "I guess I'll be watching the cheerleaders after all." He said, grinning at Sabina cheekily. And bless her, she got back into the previous mood straight away.

"Not if I can help it. I'll blind you with popcorn if I have to!" She grinned, and threw a handful in his face. Alex laughed, and threw one back. She was about to throw the third bunch when the doorbell rung again, followed by a loud knock. We froze, glancing nervously at each other. A minute later, there was no more knocks or rings and the three of them relaxed; too soon.

Sabina screamed as a loud gunshot rang threw the air, and they heard the front door crash off its hinges. Who ever it was, he doubted it was M16, and they'd be in the living room any second. Alex acted very quickly.

He grabbed Sabina and threw her as gently as he could under the coach.

"Stay there and keep quiet." He growled at Sabina, standing up and shoving Jack into the kitchen.

"Hide or get out of here, Jack. And don't try and help, you'll get you and me killed."

"Alex…" she whispered as the kitchen door swung shut.

I spun round just as the living room door burst opened. The person shot as soon as he came in. Alex had no time to act. He felt something hit his chest hard, and he fell to the ground without even realising it. The room spun and stars erupted in front of his eyes. He could just make out the sound of a girl screaming, and another door crashing open, but it all seemed quite far away. Alex closed his eyes as darkness engulfed him.

Ha ha, hoped you liked it! I wouldn't have updated so soon if it wasn't for the extreme shortness of the first chapter... so REVIEW REVIEW REVIEW if you want chapter 3!