A/N:I don't own anything.

Yes, another one, that small stories of Cassian and Jyn just won't leave me alone. Once again I would Iike to thank my friend Marta who helped beta this one. Thank YOU!

#5 If there was any other way

Cassian had a bad day and just needed something to make him feel better. He didn't like the way the last mission, he was on with Jyn, ended and what he was forced to do. He was almost sure Jyn didn't like it either. They haven't spoken since they went back and Cassian was dreading for that conversation.

Jyn was furious. She was feeling positively pissed off and she couldn't quite name the source of her anger. Well to be honest she could name the source but she didn't want to admit to herself that she is mad at Cassian. Not exactly at Cassian but she is mad because Cassian...and last night mission on Blibringi. She hated that mission ever since it began but the events of last night adventures were still very much vivid in her brain. How could he be so at ease with all that happened? And what was more alarming how many times he had done things like that before...because to be honest he was too calm for this being his first time.

...

Blibringi, two days before

"Are you kidding me? We're not 'fine'." Jyn yelled at him trying to gain his attention. "The time she died couldn't be worst"

"Seriously Jyn is there a good time to die?" Cassian asked her amused.

"It's not the point Cassian, now we don't have the access to the mansion and to the governor and this whole mission is a failure." Jyn informed him angrily scrolling over her datapad furiously. She was thinking intently on another plan.

It supposed to be an easy mission, there was a woman called Bax, Alliance contact on Blibring she was supposed to work in governor's Tanys Flynn mansion and gained them access to the tonight's party. And now Bax was lying dead in the city hospital and they were in deep trouble. The woman died of old age if anyone was wondering but it wasn't very helpful to Jyn and Cassian's plans.

"We will get inside." Cassian informed her going for his bag and started extracting some fancy clothes for the night's party.

"Oh yes? How may I ask? Do you happen to know Jedi minds tricks?" Jyn was looking at him wondering about his plan.

"No, but I know some other tricks that may work." Cassian said and started to pull his jacket and shirt off.

Jyn was so transfixed by the show in front of her eyes that she was momentary speechless. Since when Cassian didn't even pay attention where he is changing? Since when they are changing clothes in front of each other with so much ease? Jyn was wondering staring shamelessly at his bare chest. She was grateful that it was dark in the ship because she was sure she was blushing furiously right now. Cassian put on some fancy white shirt, didn't even bother to button it up and grabbed a black jacket and trousers from the bag. If he is going to take his pants off I'm bolting, Jyn was thinking frantically but Cassian, as if hearing her thoughts grabbed the rest of the garments and headed for the refresher. Thanks the force Jyn signed in relief. But she almost lost her ability to breathe again when Cassian emerged from the refresher all dressed in black suit, his hair silk and pulled back, his stubble gone.

"Wow, you clean up nice do you have a date or something?" Jyn said jokingly, her brain still on hiatus.

"Exactly, the governor's wife has a soft spot for me I think and I'm going to explicit it." Cassian informed her stuffing his other clothes back into the bag not really looking at Jyn.

"And where am I supposed to be then?" Jyn asked angrily. She didn't know why she was so angry right now. There was something happening with her insides like someone had kicked her in the guts. She didn't like the idea of Cassian parading in THIS outfit hand to hand with some imperial damsel. She really didn't like it.

"You will be waiting on my sign when I got the key card. You will be the one who will steal the plans." Cassian told her finally looking at her. Force, he was handsome all cleaned and dressed up. Jyn had to shake her head to rid of mental imagines which were so much indecent right now.

"You were meant to be watching him." She said referring to the former plans.

"Yes but right now, without Bax's help we need to improvise." Cassian said to her and handed her one of the commlinks. "Stay in touch, hide as we planned and wait for my signal."

"I don't like this plan." Jyn informed him her eyes a mixture of worry and something hot.

"Me either, but there is no time for another one, we only have this night." Cassian said and left the ship.

…

The plan was simple, well the new made up plan was even simpler, but Jyn didn't especially like it, Cassian needed to get the governor's wife attention and charm his way into the party. Not that Cassian didn't do it before, he did, plenty of times. With his look Draven was sure to explicit that factor on numerous occasion. But Cassian has never done it with Jyn Erso in his head, to be specific in his left ear, where a small hidden commlink was sitting. It would be fun, or torture, Cassian thought to himself, took a deep breath and mingled with the crowd in front of the entrance to the governor's mansion.

The governor's wife Prennis Flynn was standing at the steps of her house greeting the arriving guests. Cassian could see two security officers at the door.

"I'm off now, so they wouldn't detect any transmission." He spoke to Jyn.

"Good luck." Came the answer whispered to his ear.

From her position on the roof of the mansion Jyn could see Cassian strolling casually around the people. It was like watching a totally different person; he was walking differently with a manner of a man who owned half of the galaxy. Jyn noticed how easily he was starting a conversation with total strangers, like he had known them for years. Jyn hasn't had the occasion to see Cassian on missions like that, how perfectly well he could blend in a high ranking imperial society as it was his second nature. She made a mental note to ask him about his training in that area.

And then there was the governor's wife – Prennis, Jyn had checked her file. Typical imperial wife, good education but nothing to say as it comes to free will or personal opinions. Just a nice addition to her husband on parties. To Jyn's annoyance Prennis was also pretty, some people would say that beautiful was a better word. She has long blond hair which was cascading in soft waves down her back and she was wearing a long dark dress which was fitting her perfectly in all the right places. Jyn couldn't even imagine herself wearing things like that she would look hilarious. Finally Cassian made a move on Prennis and Jyn was tempted to switch on his commlink but she's known better. So she only focused the lenses in her binoculars, she could see that Cassian was smiling and chatting with the woman and judging by the look on Prennis's face it was working. How could it not? Did you see him wearing all that fancy clothes? Jyn thought darkly, you probably needed to be blind not to droll on the sight of him. To Jyn surprise she could see that Cassian could be charming and flirtatious. Jyn felt a sting of jealously she would very much like to be at the receiving end of Cassian charm and flirt. What? Where did that thought come from? Jyn was startled by the way her brain was forming thoughts regarded to Cassian lately. She suddenly started debating in her head about how dark and handsome his eyes were, and how close she could get to him without being improperly close. Not that Cassian had ever paid attention to proper personal space since they met. Jyn could swear that the invisible 'proper line' didn't exist between them even before they become partners and co-officers in the Alliance. He was always close, a little too close Jyn thought. Jyn started noticing strange things – how his hands lingered little too long when he was handing her the datapad. But he never said anything to her, like the things were happening without his conscious mind. Cassian is professional, strict, by – the – book – intelligence officer and her friend Jyn scowled herself in her mind. She needed to stop fooling herself and focus. Yes, this was what she needed to do, to focus on the mission.

Jyn looked again at the stairs and was forced to watch as smiling Cassian was walking hand to hand with Prennis into the building. Jyn hated the way Prennis's hand was wrapped possessively around Cassian's forearm.

It will be a long mission Jyn thought darkly. Then suddenly Cassian's voice interrupted her dark mussing.

"I'm in."

"I could see that." Jyn answered her voice a mixture of anger and hurt. She needed to stop that; she must focus and be off that kriffing asteroid field... and away from Prennis as soon as possible.

"Jyn?" Cassian questioning voice informed her that he heard her tone.

"Nothing, it's uncomfortable here, hurry up." Jyn lied to him flatly. She couldn't tell him that watching him flirting with other woman made her want to vomit or scream. Yes, definitely she couldn't tell him that.

Jyn could hear through the commlink the way Cassian introduced himself as Damien Kast. What was the most surprising there was no trace of his Festian accent in his voice. Jyn was astonished how much his voice could change for the mission and she discovered, to her much dislikes, that she missed his accent deeply.

There were a lot of nonsense chats Cassian was forced to have with the people on the party, so Jyn stopped paying attention to it until a woman's voice caught her attention. To Jyn's deep displeasure she could hear that Cassian was talking to Prennis again. Between some static and some indistinct words Jyn could hear that Cassian had gained his access point. There was too much giggling and whispered words on the line for Jyn's liking.

After like a half an hour of indistinctive laughter and whispered sweet talks Jyn was ready to rip her commlink out of her ear preferably with her ear and the part of the brain that was forced to hear and proceed what Cassian was doing downstairs.

It hurt her inside.

Jyn felt almost physical pain at the memory of those sweet words that Damien Kast was selling to unsuspicious Prennis. Prennis was coquetting as much as she could and Cassian was repaying her by responding to her flirting words with equal commitment. As if Prennis was the only one that he thought of his whole life, the right amount of compliments, assurances of extraordinary beauty and this unforgettable talk of loneliness in the big galaxy. And she was his. Jyn could confirm this because just by listening to his words so far away from him she was able to buy his great method.

Jyn had never in her life felt like that. She felt as something heavy and dark swirl inside her. If she wasn't so well trained to hide her emotions and to deal with pain either physical or the emotional one, she would start to cry. And it was the first time in a long time Jyn felt the need to cry. She was so angry with herself for being this emotional weak girl right now. And she was angry with Cassian who was preforming oh so well at wooing that woman and she was mostly angry with Draven that he taught Cassian that and used him for missions like that. It was low, it was playing on the cheapest emotions and going outside the lines but judging by the results she could hear in her ear, Cassian was fluent in that game.

"Be in the last room on the third floor in the east wing in 15 minutes." Cassian voice sobered her form her dark place. She shook her head and mustered all her strength to sound casual.

"Confirmed 15 minutes, Erso out."

Going to the last room in the east wing, Jyn couldn't imagine what was going to happen there. To be honest, she didn't even want to imagine it. Her imagination suggested her possible scenarios that could be played between Prennis and Cassian, but she really would not even think about it. What would she find in this room? A half-naked pair too engrossed with one another to see her when she would have to steal this access card? I don't know if I could. She thought sadly. For the first time in her life she wouldn't be able to do the task she was supposed to do, because some obscure feelings for a man. Jyn ran across the fluffy red carpet to the designated room quietly praying to any force in the galaxy not to see too much.

But she did.

When she opened the door she definitely did see too much.

Cassian, who was standing his back to the door, was kissing Prennis, purposely or not, blocking her the view of the door.

Jyn lost her ability to breath, to walk, to even make any bit of sound to acknowledgment her presence to him. She just stood there in the doorway staring at the sight in front of her fighting the urge either to kill her (or him, it was yet to be decided by her frozen brain) on the spot or just bolt. But then she saw that Cassian was doing something strange with his other hand, the one which wasn't involved in rumoring around Prennis's body. Jyn saw a small syringe being pulled form Cassian's pocket. He injected it to the woman's arm; she didn't even make a sound. One minute she was trying to chew Cassian's face off, in the next minute she was hanging loose from his arms. Only then Cassian turned around to see Jyn standing in the doorway.

"H-how long have you been standing there?" He asked his voice hoarse and so much Cassian, with all the accent and tone.

"Long enough." Jyn answered trying to sound causal but falling miserably her voice low and hurtful. Something flashed in Cassian's eyes but Jyn refused to acknowledge that. She wanted to be off with all that, like now preferably, her mind didn't decide whether she wanted to kill any of them and since Prennis was out she would have to kill Cassian. It was a tempting thought looking at his mussed look and a smug of Prennis's lipstick on his jaw.

"It wasn't what you think it was." Cassian defended himself.

"Of course it wasn't, it was one of the spy technic to extract information from a target. Using that often? When would I be able to learn that?" Jyn said trying to sound sarcastic not hurtful and almost managed.

"Jyn..." Cassian started but she cut him off.

"We don't have time for this now, Cassian. Give me the card." Jyn huffed at him, finally moved inside the room and yanked the key card form Cassian's hand. "Ten minutes. You better wait here, if anyone would see you, you should be preoccupied with the wife not wondering around."

"Jyn…" Cassian started again but she just spun around and walked away. "Ten minutes and we go, you should put her to bed Cassian or your arms would hurt." Jyn didn't even look at him when she left.

She was positively furious. And hurt. That hot and overwhelming feeling inside her was hurt and…jealousy.

And Jyn had absolutely no idea what to do with these feelings.

Ten minutes later Jyn founded Cassian sitting at the edge of the bed where unconscious Prennis was lying. He got rid of his jacket and mussed his hair in their usual look and it made Jyn even angrier at him. A very small part of her was trying to explain him, that it was Damien who did all that, and there was no Cassian in it, but now seeing him there looking more as himself made her want to scream at him, or hit him…or kiss him in the same way that stupid sleeping woman minutes before.

"You changed." It was the first thing that came to her mind.

"I decided that I have enough of Damien Kast for the night, and preferably a lifetime." Cassian said darkly not looking at her, but on a very fluffy white carpet in front of the bed. It made Jyn to take an involuntary step in his direction, some small part of her wanted to comfort him, but she stopped herself just in time. It was not the time and place for such a conversation. If that time or place would ever existed.

Cassian raised his eyes form the carpet and locked his eyes with her. Jyn froze in spot seeing the look in his eyes, she could see hurt and regrets flashing at her from his deep brown eyes a silent 'I'm sorry' she wasn't ready to accept, not yet.

"Let's go before anyone starts looking for our sleeping beauty." Jyn said to him trying very hard to sound casual and this time it was almost believable.

They went out through the roof, the same way Jyn had got there before the party. The way back to the ship was silent and stressful. Neither of them knew how to start talking and to be honest they didn't even wanted to talk. Cassian was having a moral hangover of a lifetime, and Jyn was still deciding if she was going to explore the new found jealousy inside her. When they boarded the ship it was like a silent agreement not to talk about that.

There was no way to talk since K2 was waiting impatiently for their return and ever since they were on cargo hold he started complaining about how late they were and how dangerous it was to wait for their return. He didn't pay much attention to the two very silent and very gloomy passengers.

Safely in hyperspace Cassian mustered his strength to try to talk with Jyn but he found her sleeping in the cargo hold her head resting on a hard metal of the ship wall. He didn't know if she was sleeping or only faking it, for the sake of not talking, but either way he shrugged his jacket and draped it over her shoulder. In was cold, he was justifying his action in his mind. Jyn could feel everything but she dared not to open her eyes.

He went back to the pilot seat and tried very hard to rest but a pair of hurt green eyes was hunting him chasing his sleep away.

Echo Base, Hoth

Present time

The sound of the key code being pressed at his door was what alarmed Cassian at first. There were only three people who knew his code, one being the droid who was currently maintaining the ship, the second being Kyle who was on Kuat if Cassian remembered correctly, and the third one (only recently added to this small group) was Jyn.

Cassian sat bolt upright from the bed he was currently lying mopping over his situation, he knew who was outside his door. It would not be a pleasant conversation.

The door slid open and a very angry looking Jyn stepped inside. So it was finally that time to face the music as they say Cassian thought and got up.

"You must be mad, coming here like this. Am I supposed to be scared now?" Cassian said jokingly but judging by the look on Jyn's face it didn't work. She was mad at him, and he knew why, but she didn't have the right to be mad at him, because it was a damn mission not his choice. He would make a very different choice.

Actually his very choice for the night like that was standing in the doorway of his room very much pissed at him right now.

"Did you enjoy yourself last night?" She accused him damaging answers. She spent long hours thinking about last night. She didn't speak a word during post mission briefing, she only answered questions regarding to the mission and then she just left. She wasn't ready to talk with him then, and looking at him right now she wasn't sure if she was ready to talk to him now.

"What?" he asked in disbelieve. "Why are you asking me that?"

"It's a simple question." Jyn said waiting for his answer.

"Are we really going to talk about this?" Cassian asked to be sure if she was actually ready to hear some dark parts of his life.

"Apparently we are." Jyn started angrily and suddenly like something has broken inside her, she hunched her shoulder and lowered her eyes to the ground. "I don't know why I need to know that Cassian, is that… did you do it before?"

Cassian signed in surrender, but seeing her all sad and broken made him want to tell her everything.

"If we're really going to talk about this I think you need to sit down."

"Is this that bad?" She sounded scared.

"What?" Cassian asked in disbelieve. What was she thinking about him, that he was exploiting multiply women on every mission he took? "No, it's a longer conversation"

She sat, at the very edge of the only chair in his room and only that told Cassian that she was mad at him. Whenever they had met before to plan something or to talk about strategy or simply to teach Jyn some military information she always crawled onto his bed shamelessly taking as much space as she could. And now she was perched at his chair ready to bold through the door in any minute. Yes, she was definitely mad at him.

"Sometimes it's easier that way Jyn…" Cassian started but was unable to finish because she sent him a dark look, a mixture of hurt and disbelieve in it. As if she was saying - What?, You call that easy? with her eyes only.

"You saw that nothing happened, I had that syringe ready I just needed a little distraction." Cassian said quietly, trying very hard to explain himself.

"Yes, it worked perfectly, I could witness that." Jyn informed him her voice stern. She didn't look in his eyes; she kept her eyes focused on her hands on her lap.

"And that was very unfortunate." Cassian sighed. He really was sorry that she had to witness some part of this mission he would very much kept in the dark.

"Why?" She asked half angry and half sad. Why didn't he want her to see what a skillful spy could do with all the resourced he had? 'All' being a key word here.

"Jyn, there are some things in my line of 'work' I'm not proud of, and I definitely didn't want you to find out about them like that way." Cassian said to her getting a little angry, he was hoping she would at least try to understand him. That wasn't his idea, that was taught to him to use it in situations like that.

"Find what?" She didn't scream but her cold voice was as if she did. "That you are… I don't know… using women to get intel."

"I'm not using them; at least I'm trying not to." Cassian defend himself, he didn't really believe in half of the words he was saying but he was hoping that someday he would felt that way.

"So how did you call that?" Jyn asked her tone still stern.

"A means to an end." Cassian finally answered not really looking at her. But it was truth or he was forcing himself to believe that it was the truth.

"I can believe you are saying that…" Jyn said in disbelieve finally looking into his eyes. And Cassian finally broke.

"What you want me to say. That I regret that, yes I do, every time I'm forced to do it. And I prefer to think that it is not me who is doing that, as for me it was Damien Kast who invited her to the room, not me. If I would start thinking about it as it was actual me I could not survive the consequences."

The silence that lasted after his last sentence was defying and extremely heavy. After quite some time Jyn finally spoke her voice quiet and almost apologetic.

"Did you ever need to…?"

"What?" Cassian spat at her. He could hear that he was harsh to her but that conversation opened some old wounds he was not ready to go to. Especially not with Jyn.

"You know…" She waved her hand looking pointedly in his eyes, and he knew what she was asking. The imminent question, the one he was dreading to hear ever since they returned from Bilbringi.

"Yes, and it was only once if you must know, after that I felt awful and since then I had that very handy syringe arm and ready." Cassian confessed darkly not looking at her. That conversation was even harder than he expected it would be.

"Was she that bad?" Jyn asked in disbelieve. She didn't know why she was asking him all that questions.

"On the contrary," he started saying his voice sad and heavy on the accent. "She was beautiful and sad, and I hate myself even more that I had to left her where she was…" he finally looked at Jyn sending her a silent plea for forgiveness, she nodded her head lightly and Cassian finished talking. "…and now it's the time I say I don't really want to talk about this"

"I'm sorry…" Jyn finally said and she was truly sorry that she made him explain himself to her. She had no right to question him and his duties and especially what he did with women. She has no right to ask these questions, she understood that now, it was only Cassian's kindness and patience with her explosive nature that he answered all her questions and not kicked her out of the room.

"Don't be," he answered honestly locking her with his serious gaze. "I just don't want you to be mad at me…if there was any other way."

"I know." She spoke softly, and she actually knew. It was enough doom, gloom and personal growth for one night. So she added to lighten up the mood. "And just for the record the way you flirt is shameful." She ended and after a long pause when there was no reaction from Cassian, Jyn was afraid he got offended, but he actually narrowed his eyes, in that special way that made her heart skip a beat, and burst into laughter. When he stopped laughing he spoke to her, a mischievous spark in his eyes, the laughter still clearly sounding in his voice.

"That's because you have never heard Cassian Andor flirting, only that pompous ass Damien, I hate the guy."

Jyn also smiled, a broad, happy smile and raised form the chair. Without saying a word she just sat next to him on the bed and started looking at the abandon datapad with the next briefing scheme.

As nothing happened.

And deep inside her heart, Jyn hoped that she would have a chance to hear Cassian Andor flirting…preferably with her.

A/N Please tell me what you think, and as my mind is constantly informing me … there will be another chapter of Misunderstanding …soon.

And yes, there was a direct quotation form Damon from the Vampire's Diaries, anybody notice? Let me know (I LOVE THE GUY)

And anyone who read Rather be me, there is a sequel coming but first thing first.

Thanks for all the support, You guys rock!