Diana leaned against the balustrade of the promenade by the beach, her back turned to the beautiful sunset over the Mediterranean Sea; carefully observing the small crowd in front of her instead.
It had been a highly unusual request for her to follow her agent to Sapienza. Under normal circumstances, it was considered way too risky for agents and handlers to be at the same location, let alone in the field just days before a hit.
The annual Festival Del Paese was the reason for this risky arrangement. It would be nearly impossible for them to communicate the usual way; the loud live music would interfere with both 47's earpiece and his mic.
There were no hotel rooms available on a short noticed since they'd have to share the safehouse for this occasion only, the ICA had suggested them to pose as a couple during their stay. It would at least keep the neighbourly gossip at bay, caused by a man and a woman obviously living together, but pretending to not know each other as soon as they left the house.
The ICA had no idea how close to the truth their suggestion was. Not that she and her agent actually were a couple, of course not. She'd come to accept that he wasn't interested in human interaction a long time ago, but that didn't mean that she ever managed to suppress her own feelings for him. Instead, they had only grown stronger with each year they worked side by side, with each unnecessary phone call that lasted longer than the work topics they had to discuss, with each secret handover meeting in busy places that only allowed her a quick glance or two at him.
She spotted him as she left the church, Father Francesco at his side. They were engrossed in their conversation when she got closer to them, both talking in Italian.
Before she could join in and greet Father Francesco in slightly less fluent Italian than 47 was able to speak, the priest turned to her and greeted her in English, welcoming her to Sapienza.
"Thank you, Father," she replied, instinctively speaking the language she'd been spoken to.
Father Francesco turned to 47 again, his voice low but rich and now with an audible smile. "Is this the woman you've been talking about for years?"
47's eyes darted to Diana, before he nodded sheepishly. "This is her, the love of my life." Didn't he know she spoke Italian?
"You weren't exaggerating." He laughed and gave 47 a pat on the shoulder that quickly turned into a fatherly hug. "I'm happy for you, for both of you."
He'd been talking about her for years? This couldn't have possibly been him playing the long game, in case they'd ever end up undercover as a couple. Her throat went dry and her heart started to race. Perhaps there was a chance for them.
Father Francesco excused himself, not without giving 47 another heartfelt hug and wishing them both a wonderful time at the festival, in English so Diana could understand what he was saying.
As they walked back towards the marina square, arm in arm like the couple they pretended to be, the couple they could actually become, Diana's mind finally caught up, and she made a decision that would change their lives forever.
The live music from the stage picked up again, a slow, romantic love song this time. It would've been a shame not to dance. They were swaying gently to the music, her arms wrapped around this neck, his hands resting on the small of her back.
Diana brought her lips to his ear. "Can I tell you a secret, 47?"
He nodded and leaned in closer.
"Parlo italiano."
47 turned to her, his eyes widened in shock, his muscles tensing as his body prepared to flee the scene.
Before he could follow through, she whispered "anch'io ti amo" and kissed him sweetly.
Thank you for reading!
I've written many more Hitman fics, and you can find them all on AO3! Same username as here, Diana47