Foreword: Blitzliebe is a story about Monika and Elias before they joined Rainbow. GrimGravy's See You Soon inspired me to make a story about these two! I will try to make their relationship as realistic as possible, after all, they are professional counter-terrorist operatives. Anyway, enjoy reading.
Übung mit Monika - Exercise With Monika
The cold February wind slapped her face like it did yesterday. Every muscle in her body moved— her hair was swept aback, like a flag catching the wind. Beads of sweat occasionally cascade down her forehead. She was definitely alive.
But the citizens of Sankt Agustin, by the Rhein-Sieg-Kreis, were still yet to start their day. To Monika Weiss, it was perfect for another morning jog. Waking up at three o'clock in the morning had its perks. For example, every stoplight became obsolete as swarms of cars were yet to occupy the roads. The silence of the streets paved way for a peaceful jog from one end of the city to another. Everyday since the end of grueling police training, Monika made sure to seize the day as early as possible, and what more could a light jog offer?
As her legs started to feel the light but manageable cramps, the song playing on her MP3 started to fade away, queuing the next song. If her gut was right, the next piece of music that would play will be Übungsfreuden, a trending song that had recently reached top charts. It was one that she would deem unprofessional and childish, but here she was, anticipating it. Who could blame her? It was as catchy as a fever.
It started, and she hummed the notes. She had no disregard for the possibility of someone hearing her, for as she covered block after block, nobody was there to see her.
A few seconds had passed when she realized something peculiar. She stopped humming, and it dawned on her— like an echo, somebody else was humming to the song! Not only that, but to her right, the sound of soft rapid clomps began to rise, too! She turned to its direction, and her eyes widened with surprise.
It was Elias Kötz— and he was jogging beside her! A friend from the GSG-9; someone that would tease her non-stop— and he had heard her singing such an embarrassing song!
Her sneakers skid to a halt. "Kötz!? What are you doing here?"
Elias halted too. He turned to Monika, and upon seeing her flustered face, he burst out of laughter like a bomb. It looked like he was trying hard to contain it.
"Bwahahahaha!" He wiped a tear from his eye. "Oh god... that... that song! Hahahaha!"
Blood rushed to Monika's cheeks. She mentally cringed at herself. This was bad. Really bad. She could already feel her sisters shaming her, though they were many miles away.
"You— argh!" she pushed him, but Elias's athletic build had kept him from moving in his place. "You're not going to get away with this, Kötz!"
The man wiped a tear from his eye. "Who would've thought the you of all people would be listening to... to Übungsfreuden?"
Monika had covered her face at that point. Elias Kötz himself was calling her unprofessional— the audacity of such a thing. Still, she kept her temper like a well-mannered person would do.
"It just came up," she said. She turned her gaze away, and into the somber streets beside her.
Elias's laugh started to fade away with every breath. Already, silence had washed upon the pair as Monika's cheeks failed to stop heating up like an overworked processor. Elias realized this.
"Hey," he said. He playfully punched her arm. "I listen to it, too."
Monika heaved a sigh. "No doubt."
Elias took a glace upon his watch. "It's seven in the morning. I reckon you're finishing up your exercise?"
"I am. So, do you mind answering my question?"
"The question of whether I should or should not bring this up ever again?"
It was Monika's turn to punch his arm. "No! I meant why are you here?"
"I was going to eat by the diner. Then I remembered that you told me your jogging routes, so I decided to stop by, greet you, make you flustered—"
"I'm not—" Monika's words were cut short when she felt for her cheeks. "That is unfair, I WAS exercising."
Elias chuckled. "I know."
The blonde woman scowled at him. "I won't forgive you unless you buy me a meal."
A smirk formed in Elias's lips. "Come on, let's buy you a salad."
The golden rays of sunshine pierced through the decorated windows of Otto's Diner, illuminating the interiors with the glow of another morning. Only a few people, including Monika and Elias, were occupying the small lunchroom— as it was again for every breakfast they shared in the morning. It wasn't the bustling afternoon yet, so the pair could enjoy the sweet serenity of Rhein-Sieg-Kreis before the noise of civilization rises.
Elias took a seat adjacent to the wall, in the soft shadows where the morning sun couldn't bother their eyes. Monika plopped down on the opposite side of the booth, wiping the sweat from her forehead with a hand-towel. The word Bundespolizei plastered in the corner of the fabric.
The booth was very familiar. They had been here before. She remembered— it was the middle of a cold December, when Otto's Diner first opened. Echoes of past conversations, there in the same spot, were well ringing out with nostalgia. A year had passed since their friendship, as well as teasing and antics, blossomed.
"... of the French Consulate. Police have yet to find out the extremist group's motivation for yesterday's events, and extensive investigations are being made for the identities of the perpetrators. Just this morning, the National Police spokesperson released a statement saying that ..."
The news blared on the television. Monika took her eyes away from the ceiling-mounted TV, and focused on her salad.
"Jeez, really? That is France's second terrorist attack this month." Elias commented. He leaned backwards and stretched his neck, but his eyes kept on the news. "Good thing that Germany is well and good."
"For now," Monika said.
"Hey, don't jinx it, Monika!" Elias joked. A waitress laid down a tray on their table, containing a bland-looking cheeseburger and a cup of soda. "Ah! Thank you!"
"I am not jinxing it. First it was that resort in Spain, that building in Russia, then that employment agency in Poland. It's only a matter of time before those people reach Germany. We have to be ready when that happens." Monika said.
Unfortunately, the news would often talk about the rise of terrorism over the past few years, with each year having attacks more than the last. The perpetrators from all over Europe, Asia, and portions of North America were rumored to be one group. An international terrorist organization, most people would fear. Their identities, if found at all, have widely different backgrounds.
Elias shifted in his seat. "No doubt."
"So stop eating those burgers and be prepared, Kötz," Monika remarked. Elias's chewing was interrupted by her words.
"What's wrong with burgers?" He swallowed. "It's my favorite."
"It's unhealthy, and that's not what a soldier should eat. I guess I'm just concerned about you."
"Why? Do you love me?"
Monika almost choked on her salad.
Did she hear that right?
Her heart went from zero to a hundred, like a racecar. Already, like lightning, her cheeks flared up, though she wasn't able to fully comprehend what he just said. A slew of rigidness washed over her muscles.
"I— I just, you—" she stumbled on her words.
"Bwahahaha!" Elias burst into laughter.
The nerve of him!
"Kötz! You little—"
"You should've— hahahaha! You should've seen your face!" Elias's words being cut off by shorts of laughter and joy. A few cheerful seconds have passed and he was already holding his stomach.
Meanwhile, Monika couldn't face him. She avoided looking to his general direction, and instead gazed upon the rest of the diner, hiding her flustered face. That was the second time today!
She cleared her throat. "That was... unprofessional."
"Hmm? We're not in any workplace."
Monika took a puff. "Sure."
There was a pregnant pause.
Elias leaned in. "Are you blushing, Monika Weiss?"
Her eyes widened. "No!"
Elias leaned back. A toothy grin coated his face. "If you say so."
Am I losing again to Elias Kötz? Don't let your guard down, Monika. You're a genius, you should be able to find something to get back at him.
But so far, nothing sprang to her mind as the news reporter from the television continued to speak.
"... midst of rising political tension in the Middle East. Foreign intervention was considered by the UN as a 'necessary act' to contain growing acts terrorism in national borders, however, President Charles Prescott released a statement about his disapproval of... "
"Anyway, the Bundespolizei will be holding training exercises next week with the French National Gendarmerie. Have you heard?" Elias asked. To Monika's relief, he changed the topic.
Upon her realization of what he just said, she perked up. "With the French?"
Elias nodded. "Yes. IF we're lucky, we'll see some of GIGN's finest. Plus, I'm learning their language as well! I can't wait to practice my French. Wanna hear my progress?"
Monika always admired this aspect of Elias, which was his ability to easily grasp a language's concept. Being fluent in Dutch, Monika had taught him for six months and he had easily acquired proficiency. If she remembered right, Elias once told her that he planned to become fluent among ten languages, like a polyglot. So far, he has mastered four. Apparently, the French language was next.
"French? Since when did you start learning it?" Monika asked.
Elias looked at the ceiling. "Erm, about a week ago."
"Okay... then let me hear what you sound like, Monsieur Kötz."
Elias smiled. Then, he cleared his throat. "Monika, tu es vraiment belle!"
He said it with elegance. The beautiful swerving of words; already, it sounded like it came from another personality. As if German Kotz and French Kotz were two separate people,
Monika had took a bite of her salad. She laid down her spoon and swallowed. "What does that mean?"
"Ehh, it's a secret," Elias said. A smirk had crept up on his lips.
It was probably a tease! "Hey!"
"Hahahaha! Don't worry, I didn't call you an egghead," Elias teased. It was on!
Knowing him, he probably called her something similar to that. Did Elias tease her... in another language?
"That is unfair. For all I know you could've been saying all colorful words about me." Monika huffed.
"Fine, fine." Elias muttered. He pulled out a napkin from the table and a pen from his brown leather jacket. After scribbling the words, he slid it across the table and into Monika, who had just drank water. "This was what I said."
Monika looked at the napkin once again. "Tu... es... vrai— vraiment? Tu es vraiment belle?"
She had completely butchered the pronunciation. Raising an eyebrow, she said, "Why don't you just say it?"
"It's better if you find out for yourself." Elias replied.
"But I don't have my phone with me."
"Then wait until you get home."
After an hour-long conversation with Elias, Monika was satisfied with her free meal. The pair had split, for the day had something in mind to give to both of them. Elias had to look over the Bundespolizei PSOCC all the way to Bremen, while Monika had to get back to her home— there was still a triple-band GNSS that needs to fit in a small hand-sized motherboard.
Monika opened the door to her apartment. Even the ambient noises of outside seemed to have drowned out in her home. The rays of sunshine had highlighted the dancing dust and particles that had only somewhat made her home a lot more... lonely. She didn't mind it, but the realization had came since she spent the past hours bantering with Elias. It was a stark and a fast contrast.
For some reason, she felt like the day wasn't going to be as productive as she wanted. She had been working for a week straight now. The Bundespolizei wanted a new model for the Spectre before their conference in March, and so far, she had only finished what seemed to be half of the final product she envisioned. She didn't know what it is. Was it a burn out? Was Monika Weiss starting to feel... lazy? She shuddered at that thought.
Elias told her he wasn't going to be seeing her for a week. Their goodbyes from earlier felt lackluster. Professional, but lackluster. Normally she wouldn't have been bothered by it— goodbyes and farewells were sappy unless it came from family.
But...
She sighed. Changing to a white shirt, she plopped down on her queen-sized bed, the mattress wavering from her weight. With her hand, she brought her phone in front of her face, and turned it on. Opening Google Translate was the first thing she did.
Remembering what Elias said, she typed the words 'Monika, tu es vraiment belle!' to see what the hell did he actually meant.
The English translation said:
"Monika, you are so beautiful!"
Her cheeks flared up once more as she turned the device off. She held it close to her chest, smiling sheepishly. A burst of energy sprung in her veins like lightning— she knew it: her day was going to be very productive.
Constructive criticism is always welcome! For now, this is a one-shot. However, if you want to see more, tell me. I have more stories for these two!
Also, assume that they're all speaking German. Dialogue is italicized when anyone is speaking another language. I want this to be an English story, but I also don't want to add German dialogue then having to type in the English translation after it. It's tedious, and it's best reserved for other kinds of stories.
Elias teases Monika on her taste in music.