Lol, quite a few people have asked me about my gender, or have mistaken me as being a boy. Let's clear things up. I'm a girl. Most definitely and undeniably a girl. Or at least I was the last time I checked.

Change

So we've been outnumbered, raided and now cornered, it's hard to fight when the fight ain't fair.

"We've been compromised! Get out, get out!" Jake roared into his throat mic. Through their earpieces they could hear the other two back-up units scrambling away from their current positions, getting to safety. Jake looked down at Desiree.

The girl held her gun at her side in tense hands. She kept peeking out from behind the wall which they'd sought relative safety behind. Sensing that she was wanted, Desiree turned her crystal blue eyes up to meet Jake's gaze.

"We're not going to make it out, are we?" She whispered. There was no fear in her eyes, only acceptance.

Jake shook his head grimly. "There's a good chance we won't. Especially not if we stay together..."

Dessi's eyes widened, anger flashing behind those cool blue depths. "I'm not leaving you behind!" She hissed hotly.

"You don't have a choice. Any moment now, they're going to find us. If you don't get the bomb in place, this mission will have been for nothing."

"Jake, that's suicide!" Desiree glared at her field partner. "You can't expect me to just leave you here and –"

"That's an order, Agent Swan," Jake hissed. Desiree paled.

Multiple gunshots sounded from the doorway, far too close for comfort. Jake glared at Desiree, doing his best to hide his own fear. He just needed to make sure that she got away safely. He had to make sure of that. Even if it was the last thing he did.

"You can't expect me to just go," Dessi said, her eyes sparkling more than usual, "I can't...I can't lose another...not now...not so soon..."

"Dessi, look at me," Jake said gently. When the girl refused he sighed, before cupping the girl's chin in his hand and forcing her to look up at him. "I don't like this anymore than you do, but someone has to detonate that bomb. I don't know how to. You're the only one who does. Please, Dessi."

The girl blinked several times, but she couldn't hold back the few stray tears that escaped from her eyes. Wet trails appeared down her face, before they were gently wiped away by Jake.

"Dessi?" The boy whispered.

Desiree sniffed softly, jerking her head away from Jake's touch before rubbing her eyes. The gunshots had closed in, and with it came the sound of loud shouts, ordering them to step away from the main controls.

"Dessi?" Jake whispered again, crouching down slightly so that he could see into the girl's eyes.

Desiree glared at him, holding his gaze, before she threw her arms around him in an uncharacteristic hug. Jake tightened his own arms around the girl, unable to stop the few tears from leaving his eyes.

"I'm sorry," Desiree whispered, her face buried into Jake's shoulder. The man knew at once that she was talking about the kiss.

He sighed. "Me too." I didn't mean to push you, he mentally added. Jake could feel Desiree nod into his shoulder before she pulled away, meeting his eyes with her own.

The shouting had grown louder. Bullets now rained against the wall which they'd sought safety behind. Bits of the wall started coming loose, causing the girl to flinch slightly as they showered down upon the two.

Desiree glanced back in the direction of the deadly gunfire, before turning to Jake again. She pushed her gun into his hand, knowing he'd need it more than her. Before Jake knew what was happening, she'd reached up and pressed her lips against his. Then she whispered something for his ears only, something he'd wanted to hear for almost all of his short life.

The girl left almost like a ghost, darting away while she could. Leaving Jake to fend for himself. Tears trailed down her cheeks as she rushed into the control room, slamming the door shut to buy more time if needed. And to try and block out the noise of the fierce gun battle.

Desiree pulled out the tiny bomb, placing it carefully under the main controls before detonating it with a series of complex manoeuvres.

Five seconds until detonation.

Jake's screams echoed down the hallway, screams of a dying man. Desiree paused, throwing a desperate glance backwards, torn between disregarding orders and going back, or fulfilling Jake's wishes and getting out.

Two seconds until detonation.

The girl swore. Shut her eyes and whispered an apology to her leader, her best friend. Her family. Her partner.

Bare moments before the bomb detonated, she threw herself out the window, the glass shattering in all directions. A fireball erupted behind her, chasing the girl all the way down to her descent into unconsciousness. The explosion ripped right throughout the building, completely destroying the control room, the men who'd tried to protect it, and Jake's already dead body.

However, when the back-up units came with a pack of ambulances to find Desiree's unconscious body lying on the ground, something still lingered in the air. Soft words, spoken just moments before death, hung in the still air, echoing across the charred remains of the factory. Protecting the body of the one who'd given up his life to save hers.

I love you.

.:X:.

* Author hides in the corner, whimpering*.

Please don't kill me for killing Jake! It was never meant to end this way! *Ducks several rotten tomatoes aimed at author's head*

I know this was a short chapter, but I'm hoping emotional impact will outweigh word count...

Please let me know what you thought of this chapter. I'm a little insecure over here...

Love Chariots99