"So, uh, you wanna go get dinner or something?" Between soft tender kisses, Sean awkwardly asked Alex. He didn't need to be so shy, especially not after what they had just done in the recruit room. But he didn't want to pressure her into anything she didn't want to do. If all she wanted to do that night was continue to kiss him in the doorway, half redressed and hair mussed, then he'd be perfectly fine with that. It was simply that when it came to Alex, Sean always wanted more. He wanted to be with her in every single way, not just sex. They should be in a relationship- a real one with dates and romance. And, most importantly, love.

"Usually a date happens before sex," Tugging Sean even closer to her, Alex teased against his lips. He smiled as he kissed her. They should really move from the recruit hallway. They should finish getting dressed, fix their hair, and finally leave Division. Yet kissing and embracing just felt so good. It was like a sense of blissful finality. Sean and Alex finally crossed the threshold together. They were together. They could kiss and hold one another with abandon. The two should also continue talking, but that could come after making out.

"Well, we're not normal," Sean chuckled. Although Alex rolled her eyes, she smiled brightly and kissed him again and again and again. The two were more languid and tender in their affections than they had been in their hurry to crash onto a recruit bed. There was no rush. They didn't need fiery passion or desperation at that moment. The new couple could simply enjoy one another. After all, it felt so good just to kiss. Wrapped up in each other's warm arms, hands roaming and lips burning, there was no other place Alex and Sean wanted to be. Even a real date could be delayed just to kiss a little longer.

While Alex and Sean were so absorbed in one another that the rest of the world seemed to disappear, Nikita and Birkhoff walked down the hall. The two were on their way to the hacker's 'office' to review the information he had found. In the meantime, Nikita poured over the intel he had on his tablet. They weren't paying attention to their surroundings either. They had serious things to discuss concerning Michael's hand. Though, Birkhoff did eventually react to noises he heard down the hall. He looked up from the tablet and saw Sean and Alex making out in the doorway of a recruit room. Pausing, he called for Nikita to do the same, "Nikki…"

"Whoa," Nikita couldn't help but blurt once she looked up. Finally, the couple noticed that Birkhoff and Nikita were in the hallway, and they hurriedly jumped apart. Alex hid behind Sean, mostly so she could obstruct the other's view of her underwear and so she could right her clothes. It took him an extra second, but soon Sean realized that he should button up his shirt as well. The damage had already been done, however. Nikita had seen all that she had needed to to know what had happened between the two. She grinned wickedly, "So all it took was a concussion to make you come to your senses. I should've given you one months ago."

Sean glared at his sister. Although a part of him was grateful that he didn't have to go through the awkward conversation of telling Nikita that he and Alex had gotten together, he hated her all-too-knowing gaze. She was going to taunt them mercilessly for hooking up in Division. Or worse, give them one of those overprotective/threatening talks. Sean could already see how that was going to go. Because of his previous actions, she was going to bully him instead of Alex, "Wow. So you're gonna do that thing where you threaten your little brother and be overprotective of your best friend. Apparently you do have favorites."

"I don't need to say my threat out loud for Alex to know it," Looking past her brother's shoulder, Nikita directed her glare at her best friend. Unfortunately, the young woman had known her long enough to understand what that expression meant. If either Sean or Alex hurt one another, they'd both be dead. If anyone else had leveled that threat, no one would've taken it seriously. But even though Nikita smirked, there was real meaning behind her unspoken words. Alex hurriedly finished dressing and made Sean do the same. It was time to leave.

"Come on, Sean," Alex grabbed Sean's hand and yanked him out of the hallway. After their kiss in the backseat of Ryan's car, they should've known better than to perform PDA. They should've made out behind a closed door, or they should've left Division. Nikita catching the two after the act was better than an actual conversation about them being together (even with Birkhoff there laughing at them). Yet Alex didn't want to stick around to hear any more threats or taunts. Dinner with Sean sounded great. And it'd be much better than staying in that hallway.

"Can't believe I worked my shit out with Sonya before they ever did," Once the new couple completely scurried away, Birkhoff quipped. He chuckled at his own joke, yet Nikita barely cracked a smile. She simply ducked her head and mindlessly scrolled on his tablet. He would've thought that she'd have a stronger reaction than that to her brother and best friend hooking up. She had tortured them for hours after they had kissed. Yet she stayed largely silent then. She couldn't have been that distracted by the information he had for her. Something else was racing through her mind, "What is it?"

"Nothing. I'm happy for them. I really am," Nikita fought to keep her smile as real as possible. She was happy for Sean and Alex. She was glad that they had worked things out and decided to be together. She knew that'd make them so much happier. All she wanted for her brother and for her best friend was for them to be happy, especially after what they had each recently gone through. However, she couldn't help but think about her relationship with Michael. They weren't nearly as happy as the new couple. In fact, they just might be falling apart.

"But?" Birkhoff stopped Nikita from walking off. It didn't take a genius to know that it was more than that. Nikita might've been happy for Sean and Alex, yet it was clear that something was preventing her from being truly ecstatic. The hacker assumed (correctly) that it was all because of Michael. It was difficult to be happy for another couple when your own relationship was strained. It probably stung even more that after her fight with her fiancé, Nikita walked past her brother and best friend lost in so much bliss. If she just talked to Birkhoff about it, then maybe he could help her- truly help her, and not just supply her with empty hope.

Nikita sighed. She shouldn't drag Birkhoff into her troubling thoughts. He was already doing so much by helping her secure a better prosthetic for Michael. He didn't need to be in her drama as well. After all, it involved more than just her fiancé. Her whole family was plaguing her thoughts. Those were things she needed to keep to herself. She tried to at least. Despite her efforts, the thoughts soon came tumbling out, "It's just that… I know Sean. And I know how serious he is about Alex. So his next move will be to have her meet our sisters as his girlfriend. And sometimes I just… I don't know. I forget I'm still not really a part of the family again."

Whereas Birkhoff moved closer to Nikita to comfort her, she shrugged her shoulders and shook it off. She had been upset over the fact that Michael couldn't meet her sisters since they had first gotten together. Although it hurt more then, with Sean moving forward with Alex and Michael never at home, it remained the same pain. Nikita still couldn't be with her family. Who knew when she ever would again. She'd just have to keep dealing with that fact, move on despite her struggles and dark thoughts, "But it'll be alright. Tell me more about Heidigger."

"Heidecker. And he used to sell tech to Percy. The killchips and face masks and probably the regiment came from him. But in exchange for all those things, he'd take samples back with him. You know, like, biological information on agents. Kind of like we were his test subjects," Birkhoff did as he was asked. There wasn't much he could say to comfort Nikita anyway. He didn't know what it was like to have a family out there you wanted to be with but couldn't. And having a brother that could drift between the two worlds probably didn't make it any easier. Birkhoff should stick to helping Nikita with Michael. He at least understood the technology.

"So mad scientist," Nodding, Nikita returned her attention to the tablet. She also continued her trek to Birkhoff's hacker cave. He had to scramble to catch up to her. Gathering intel on Heidecker was something Nikita could control. She was losing Michael. Her family was out of her grasp. But she could research and plan for a mission. She knew an operation was in her future. Birkhoff wouldn't have been so skittish with the intel if a better prothetelic was easy to obtain. The former rogue probably had to steal it from Heidecker.

"Yeah. One we probably shouldn't be dealing with," Trying to slow Nikita down, Birkhoff advised. He was all for helping Michael. And if it fixed the rift between him and Nikita, then the hacker would do everything he could to assist. But he didn't like Heidecker. Anyone who willingly worked with Percy wasn't to be trusted. Especially if they were behind such awful tech and tested them on agents who were already subjected to horrendous things against their will. Nikita shouldn't get involved with that guy. What would be the point of getting Michael a better prosthetic- or even his hand back- if she got hurt or killed along the way.

"You brought it up," Nikita snapped. Birkhoff couldn't do that to her. He couldn't claim that there was a way for Michael to get his hand back, then tell her not to pursue it. He was aware of what they were going through. They didn't have to tell him; he had spent enough time with the engaged couple to know when they were struggling, even from afar. Birkhoff had offered Nikita a way to make it better. He knew keeping it to himself would only make things worse. So he couldn't back out then. They had to go through with whatever mission the intel led them to. She needed that opportunity.

"Right. But you still need to see how dangerous this is. These aren't people to mess with," Sighing, Birkhoff amended. He couldn't stop Nikita. He had known that when he had given her the information. She was never going to stop until everyone she loved was happy; Michael was hurting, so she was going to fix that the only way she knew how. It was too late for the hacker to stop her. The best he could do then was ensure she wasn't reckless. She was allowed to be safe and happy too.

Finally entering the Nerd Cave, Nikita tossed the tablet onto the desk. She didn't need to be reminded of how dangerous things were. Everything she did was dangerous. She lost her easy, safe, comfortable life long ago. Just like the fact that she constantly had to be away from her family, she was always going to have her life threatened. Yet none of that was going to stop her from doing what she had to. She'd take the precautions, she'd do the research, but she was still doing it. What would be the point if she didn't. "I have to try. You know that."

"Don't try so hard you lose everything else," Pausing in the doorway, Birkhoff warned. Yes, he'd help Nikita; he had mentioned it, so he had to follow through with it. But he'd only listen to her if she listened to him first. Danger was a normality in their lives, however, that didn't mean death had to be. Nikita couldn't throw her life away, nor could she make a deal with the devil. That wouldn't help anybody. She had to stay as smart and as clear-headed as she did on other missions. That couldn't be the one that sent her overboard.

"Just give me all the intel you have," It took some effort, yet Nikita soon made herself calm down. Birkhoff was only looking out for her. He didn't want to see her destroy herself, or get hurt by associates of Percy. But she would be alright. She was more focused than desperate. She had to be with hope on the line. It wasn't the operation for her to screw around and mess up. She needed to gather as much intel as she could, trust Birkhoff's assistance, and think. Nothing was going to stop her from doing right by her fiancé, especially herself. Michael would have something better, and maybe the screaming would stop in her head.