Embarrassment. That's all you could feel, flushing into your cheeks and burning up your insides as you sat in the back of a beautiful, expensive, luxurious car, Soap sitting absentmindedly to your right without a care in the world. You tried to keep your back straight instead of hunching forward with anxiety, the way you typically did when you felt so exposed.
You looked down at yourself, which didn't help anything at all. It felt like you were wearing another person's clothes.
You thought back to the hours you'd spent preparing for this night. Making sure your hair was meticulously put up in an elegant updo. Makeup bold, eye-catching. But the most bold and eye-catching thing about you tonight was this dress, which you had to admit was absolutely gorgeous. You just didn't enjoy wearing it.
The dress was made up of a beautiful deep red, glittering with sequins that danced in the light, a deep cut at the thigh that allowed your legs to show through as you walked. Pressed up against your too-exposed-for-comfort chest was a shimmering diamond necklace with glittering earrings to match. And at your feet, skin-toned high heels that made your legs look even longer. How much this outfit had cost, you didn't want to know. You'd had the opportunity to put it all on the Task Force debit card - Laswell had told you, "Don't worry about prices." It was a look that could kill, if only you felt comfortable wearing it.
Although you knew you looked good, it was always hard for you to shirk off the military uniforms and allow your coworkers to see you in clothes that made you look… attractive. Something about catching the attention of the men you worked with just didn't sit right with you, so you'd always avoided it before. That being said, you felt like a fish out of water and could barely bring yourself to step out of your room to meet Soap and the chauffeur waiting outside. Even though it was dark out and unlikely for anyone to see, you'd still stepped out of the house with a blanket wrapped around your shoulders in case someone might catch a glimpse.
That didn't make it any easier when you finally had to take it off, getting ready to head inside the formal gathering with Soap. When the blanket fell away from your shoulders and exposed the outfit underneath, his jaw had partially dropped. It was true, no one in the unit had ever seen you dress up before. Your cheeks had burned with the way his eyes swept over your body. "You're embarrassing me, Soap," you had whined quietly in the back seat.
"Sorry, Y/N. It's just… you look stunning," he replied back, causing your cheeks to burn even more. You couldn't even muster up a "thank you" in response, just crossed your arms and continued gazing nervously out the window.
When it was time to finally step out of the car, you took a deep breath. Soap slid out of his seat before walking around to your door and opening it for you the way you'd practiced back at home. He could see the blush on your cheeks as he took your hand and helped you out of the car. He looked good too, wearing a handsome formal suit that accentuated his muscular features underneath. He looked confident and proud. When you noticed that, you'd finally managed to mutter out a compliment to him in return. "You look nice, Soap," you'd said distractedly, taking careful steps out of the car.
As the two of you began to approach the building you found yourself staring up at it in an attempt to distract yourself from the curious looks you were receiving.. It was a huge building that towered before you, reeking of pretentious rich folks and millions of dollars. You didn't feel like you belonged here.
Your hand was gripped around Soap's bicep, allowing him to lead you into the building. It was your job to take over once you got inside. Warm yellow light pierced your eyes as you both entered. It was difficult to keep a straight face, having never been in such a beautiful building before. It was like a fairytale ball room with all sorts of gorgeous people milling about, sipping drinks and chatting pretentiously.
Soap brought you over to a table where you took a seat, and then he promptly left your side. You could feel some eyes on you as you sat there with your back straight. Curious people, wondering who the stranger was. You did your best to appear as if you belonged there, as if you were really invited. Your heart thumped in your chest. A waiter approached you with a glass of champagne and you took it from him gratefully. You took a sip, trying hard not to down it in one go, feeling like you desperately needed that liquid courage.
After waiting idly for another minute or two, you were relieved to hear Soap's voice finally come over the earpiece hidden in your ear. "Eyes on the target. Back left of the room. Go now, his company is leaving."
Immediately you stood from the table, making your way to the area. Glances from curious strangers' eyeballs fell upon you as you walked by. You imagined yourself turning around and dashing right out the front door. But instead you continued forward, taking deep breaths and willing your hips to swing as you walked, remembering that 141 was behind you, keeping you safe. All you had to do was gain this guy's trust and get out.
Finally, you spotted him. His eyes were already on you, watching you carefully as you approached. He'd noticed you coming from across the room. Your heart pumped faster and faster as you came closer to the table, his eyes eating up your figure quite unabashedly. He didn't even try to hide that he was ogling you. What a creep.
Still, you didn't falter. You made it look like this was something you did all the time, sauntering up to him as if you were the type of person who was actually meant to be here.
When you neared the table he stood, his eyes giving you one last up-and-down gaze before outstretching his arms to welcome you to the party. "Alvira," he cooed the fake name you and your team had given him and your skin crawled. "So nice to meet you." His voice was thick with a heavy Russian accent.
"Likewise, Vladislav," you responded, trying not to wrinkle your nose as the man's hand trailed lightly down your back, sending shivers of discomfort down your spine.
At least he already likes me, you thought to yourself, holding back a disgusted grimace.
"Let's go somewhere more private, yes?" He offered you his arm and you took it, throwing a glance over your shoulder to see Soap standing with a small group of people. He was watching you carefully. Your eyes met and he sensed your fear. He gave you a quick nod that said We're here, you'll be okay.
You pursed your lips as you followed the Russian man around a corner, growing more and more tense as the crowd lessened. "How long have you been in the area?" He asked as you both began making your way up a flight of velvety maroon stairs.
"Only a few days," you responded, having studied your lines one hundred times over before the mission.
Don't say more than you need to, Price had warned you before you left.
I don't need you to tell me that, you snapped back more rudely than you'd intended to.
The man tugged you somewhat hurriedly down an elegant hallway, flashing a keycard before a large mahogany door and then ushering you inside. His excitability was very off-putting. It seemed like he was in a rush to get you alone.
You stepped in after him, your eyes sweeping over the beautiful sight before you. This was unlike any hotel room you'd ever seen before, except in the movies. A huge bed, an elegant study area, beautiful bookshelf, walls adorned with paintings that must have cost tens of thousands each with marble sculptures to match. Two huge windows faced the outside, looking out into a cold, chilly night with a large moon visible above the treeline. It gave you an odd sense of comfort to see it.
As you turned back toward the room after taking it all in, your eye caught on something of interest: a laptop lying out in the open on top of the soft bedspread. You quickly made a mental note of it, holding back a smirk as you realized how quickly and easily you'd gotten your foot in the door. Maybe Price was right. You were a shoe-in for the job.
Still, it took a lot to hide the shakiness of your hands as you followed the man to a small round table in the center of the room, taking a seat with him and setting your glass down gingerly. The worst you could do is let this man sense your nervousness.
"So," you began. "I'm grateful that you entrusted me enough to let me meet you here." You leaned forward in your seat, crossing your legs so he could see them, hoping to distract him from taking note of anything else.
"Of course," he slurred slightly, seemingly already inebriated even though the party had only just begun. How unprofessional. "My friends told me you are trustworthy. And also exceedingly beautiful. Why would I pass up on this offer?" He laughed, leaning back in the chair and taking another sip of his own beverage.
You smiled, red lips pulling back against white teeth. Anyone who truly knew you would be able to tell it was a fake smile. But this drunken idiot could not. "So, Vladislav. Where are the devices? I have to see them before I purchase anything."
"Ah, yes!" He clapped his hands together as if he had completely forgotten the entire reason for your meeting. He reached into his pocket, pulling out a cell-phone sized electronic device that looked like nothing you'd ever seen before. Your eyes grew wider when you saw it, surprised that he had brought it out so quickly and without question. Price and Laswell must have some really good friends. He handed it to you, and you took it gingerly. "Does this meet your expectations?"
You flipped it around in your hands, studying it. You checked for all of the specifics Price had told you to memorize before the mission - four device options, marked by four distinct symbols and four different colors - holes and ports that looked like communication receptacles - and finally, that infamous symbol engraved on the back. Yes, this was what you were here for. "Yes, it does. When can we arrange for a shipment?"
"We can arrange for a shipment immediately," he responded, quickly snatching the device from your hands. "Although it takes a while for it to arrive in the country. There are a lot of holes we must jump through to transfer them securely. It will cost a hefty price."
"I know. We've already discussed this, Vladislav."
"Okay, then." He brought his hands together once again as if the deal had been made. "We can arrange the other details later. For now, why not sit back and relax with me a bit?"
It took everything within you to not recoil in disgust when his hand reached out to you, trailing down your arm that clasped idly at the champagne glass sitting on the table. You gave him what you hoped was a convincing smile, although deep down you felt like you could vomit. Price had warned you that he would do this, but you had kept on hoping luck would have it that he wouldn't. It dawned on you that Price was likely aware the man would only be interested in meeting you if he thought he could get something else out of it, too… hence why he'd been so adamant that you do the job. Not like he could come in here and flirt his way into some intel.
When you didn't respond to Vladislav's advance and only sat there looking awkward, he leaned forward and you caught a whiff of his alcoholic breath. "What is the matter, doll?"
You thought back to what the Captain had told you: keep him busy while Soap takes the opportunity to meet with Vladislav's friends. Don't do anything you don't want to, but do try to keep him distracted for a bit.
"Nothing's the matter. I think I may have drank my champagne too fast."
"Ah, I have something that will fix you right up." He reached into his suit pocket, and pulled out something that made your heart drop once again. A little plastic baggy with some white powdery substance in it. He poured it onto the table, using a card to form it into a thick line. You gulped, anxiety rising up once again.
"You have your fill, I don't handle cocaine very well," you said to him apprehensively.
He looked at you like you were crazy then. His eyebrow raised, staring at you for a second before shrugging and snorting up the line himself. You hoped that hadn't made you seem suspicious.
"Whoooo!" He chanted, the powdery substance taking effect immediately. "You're missing out, koscheka," he sneered, giving you a look that caused your hairs to prickle.
You regarded him with a side eye, becoming nervous around his erratic behavior. How much longer, Soap? You thought to yourself, wishing you had the opportunity to say something to him over the earpiece.
Vladislav stood from the table, face red and eyes beaming down at you. Your wide-eyed, fearful gaze was apparent but he either didn't notice, or didn't care. He gripped your wrist, yanking you up from the chair. You gasped, tripping forward and collapsing into him as your heel got caught in the carpet.
He caught you, holding you tightly. When you regained your balance you stood straight and moved away from him, but he held you fast with his arm snaking around your back and holding you forcefully in place. "Vladislav, stop!" You shouted at him as he leaned in, attempting to plant a wet kiss on your face. His arm was practically crushing you into him. You leaned back as far as you could, but he managed to land a greasy peck on your cheek before leaving a hard bite on your neck. He pulled back and stared into your terrified eyes, laughing at your fearful expression before yanking you to the side, throwing you down hard on the bed.
You stumbled and fell, landing on your back, staring up at him as he stared down at you with a wild, drug-fueled hunger in his eyes.
"Come on, love. You do not want extra fun with me?" He took a step closer to you, hands outstretched and getting ready to grab. You scrambled to get up and flee.
Then the sound of shattering glass filled the room. You screamed out in surprise as one of the windows exploded, raining down on you with shards that threatened to cut you to pieces. And then you saw it.
A bullet hole perfectly in the center of the man's forehead. Blood spurting out of it. His eyes bulging as he stumbled forward once before collapsing on top of you, gushing blood all over your beautiful dress.
"Oh my God!" You shrieked, hurriedly pushing the dead man off you. He rolled onto the floor with a loud thunk.
"Get to the window, Y/N!" Ghost's voice shouted in your earpiece but also somehow echoed outside.
The shock caused you to take a moment to process the voice you'd just heard. When you finally understood you jumped into action, grabbing the laptop off the bed and reaching into Vladislav's pocket to retrieve the communications device. Then you sprinted to the broken window, glass crunching under your heels.
You looked down and relief washed over you when you saw Ghost standing there, looking straight up.
He extended his arms upward. "Jump!"
You stood for a moment, the fear evident on your face.
"I said jump, Y/N!"
Without another thought, you took a deep breath, clutched the devices in your arms, and jumped.
That feeling you had always hated so much. The feeling of falling, no control of your arms or your limbs, causing your stomach to flip until you landed forcefully within Ghost's arms.
The two of you came crashing down hard on asphalt, your heels raking across the dirty street as you bounced harshly on top of the man who caught you. The breath was knocked out of your chest, leaving you coughing and heaving for a moment before you remembered who you were laying on top of. You looked down and saw with horror that your chest was pressed right up to his mask. You quickly pushed yourself up by your hands, frantically shrieking out an apology. But before you could catch your own breath he was up and yanking you to your feet. His strong arm tugged you upwards and had you almost fully off the ground for a moment. When you finally regained your footing you stumbled along, being tugged by your wrist until the two of you came to a tall concrete wall that served as a barrier for the large building. You paused, staring up at it, knowing it would be impossible for you to jump over. You looked to Simon, who without a moment's notice grabbed you and hoisted you upwards, practically tossing you over the side of the wall. He'd thrown you hard enough that you were able to catch onto the ledge and pull yourself over it, the concrete biting painfully into your arms.
You landed on the other side, falling backwards and landing ungracefully on your butt as he deftly jumped over on his own. You kicked off your heels and hurriedly scrambled to your feet, legs being cut by thorns, rocks, and pine needles as you began sprinting through forested wilderness.
"Ghost!" you cried out in a whisper, struggling to keep up with him, tugging on his arm as you began to trip and nearly fall.
He looked back at you instantly, seeing your bare feet and partially tattered clothes. He slowed down for just a moment before effortlessly scooping you up off the ground, holding you tightly against him and tearing into the forest again. Your face smacked into his chest as you were jostled all around, his pace quickening as he ran through the trees. You bounced along in his arms, his long-legged gait tearing through the forest for quite a ways until he finally threw himself down to the forest floor, crunching heavily on fallen leaves, his back pressed up against a large tree.
You both sat there, still, panting. When the adrenaline began to subside a few moments later it dawned on you where you were sitting. Your back was pressed up against his chest, your bottom cradled in his lap, his arms circled around your waist. You trembled with exhilaration, cold, and fear. Your teeth began to chatter.
"Shhhhh," he breathed quietly, his masked lips pressing against your ear. His warm breath stole through the fabric of the mask, causing goosebumps to erupt along your neck. Then his arms moved from around your waist to blanket themselves over yours, wrapping you in a bear hug and effectively protecting your entire torso from the cold. You felt completely enveloped in his embrace, goosebumps forming along your body as you began to warm up. After a few more moments your teeth finally stopped chattering, although your legs still shook as the dress did nothing to protect them from the cold.
When your chattering teeth were finally subdued, you snuck a glance over your shoulder to see his eyes shifting left and right behind the skull-faced mask. He continued surveying for a few moments until he finally whispered, "I don't think anyone saw us." His right arm moved away from your shoulder as he reached up to toggle on his earpiece before returning it again. "Soap, how copy?" You felt his chest rumble against your back as he spoke. Your head began to swim. You didn't ever want to leave this spot.
Soap's response was instant. "Party's over. I made it out fine. En route back to base now."
"Get up," Ghost said hurriedly. You did as you were told, quickly pushing yourself up and off his lap, taking a moment to brush twigs and leaves from your dress. You winced as sharp rocks and branches pressed into your bare feet.
Suddenly you felt his hand on your shoulder, somewhat forcefully turning you to face him. His eyes were so deep and dark in the moonlight. You shrank under his gaze as he looked you over.
"You're a mess. We need to leave, fast." He looked once more at your feet, bleeding slightly from scrapes and scratches, before turning around and hunching over. "Hop on."
You stared at his awaiting back, wondering if this night could get any crazier.
Ghost gave a quick look over his shoulder. "Hurry up," he demanded brusquely.
You bit your lip, realizing you had no choice. You stepped forward, swallowing down any feelings of awkwardness or embarrassment you felt. You pressed your chest up against his back, wrapping your arms around his shoulders. He did the rest, hooking his arms behind your legs and standing straight up, doing a light jump to capture you snugly in place.
Oh, my God, you thought to yourself, trying not to breathe too heavily into his ear. You could feel his muscular features flexing beneath your arms that were wrapped loosely across his chest."I'm not too heavy, am I?"
"No."
His boots crunched beneath him as he carried you onward. Moonlight glimmered down onto the two of you through the branches of the trees. You took a moment to think to yourself about how odd this would look if someone were to stumble upon the two of you. They'd wonder if it was Halloween night.
You took a look around, taking note of how much higher up things seemed. You hadn't really realized it before, but Ghost was absolutely an entire foot taller than you.
You kept your voice low, practically whispering in his ear just in case anyone could be around. "So this is what the world looks like up here, huh? Not bad."
"It's alright, seeing the top of everyone's heads," he drawled in that thick Manchester accent.
You were trying to make idle chatter, partially to relieve the awkwardness. But you also needed to shake off that disgusting feeling you had ever since you'd been attacked by that creep back there.
He kept crunching along in silence for a few moments before you spoke up once again. "Can I hear some of your jokes, L.T.?"
He thought for a moment before speaking. "Alright then." He hopped over a log, causing your forehead to brush lightly against the side of his mask. "…What do you call a Marine with an IQ of 70?"
"What?"
"General."
You chuckled quietly in his ear. "That's good."
Leaves and branches crunched beneath his boots as he took a few more steps before continuing. "How do you know if a Marine has been using your computer?"
"How?"
"White-out on the screen."
You giggled quietly, trying hard not to laugh out loud. Unbeknownst to you, he was also smirking beneath the mask, entertained with himself for making you laugh. He walked a few more steps, causing your body to lean this way and that as he went around large branches and rocks. "I've got one more."
You were still partially giggling from the last one. "Shoot."
"Do you know what Marine stands for?"
"No. What?"
"Muscles are required, intelligence not essential."
Your right arm tightened across his chest, your left hand flying to your mouth to stifle a full-blown laugh. Your head fell forward, your forehead pressing into the nook between his neck and his shoulder, your chest and shoulders trembling as you struggled to keep your laughter contained. You didn't realize you were squeezing him. "Alright, that's enough sir. You're going to make me blow our cover."
Your grin didn't disappear after you stopped laughing. You wished you could see whether or not he was smiling too. You were half tempted to trace his face from the outside of the mask to find out, but you had a feeling he wouldn't like that. You felt so small pressed to his back, carried along by the man you'd been swooning after for the last six months. This was something you only could have dreamt of a few months before. Somehow, this moment made the atrocities of the night worth it. If it meant you could remain this close to Ghost, you would happily do it again.
A gust of cold wind picked up then, threatening to rip your hair out of its updo. You clenched harder into Ghost's back, your forehead pressing into the crook of his neck once again, shivering.
Ghost paused before stooping down once again. "Hop off," he commanded.
Hiding your disappointment, you slid down off his back. You had your eyebrow raised in confusion when he turned to you, wondering if he was about to make you continue on in your bare feet.
"They didn't even give you a fuckin' coat," he muttered, unzipping his jacket. He stepped forward and tugged it off. He wrapped it around your shoulders and without a word you put your arms through, the fabric still holding onto his gentle warmth. You expected him to turn around once again but he didn't. He still stood there, towering over you. You looked up into his dark eyes.
"You all right?" he asked.
Your eyebrows raised, caught off guard. "Huh? Oh, yeah. I was really cold. Thank you for the jacket."
He shook his head. "No. I mean back there. Are you… okay after that? I saw the whole thing."
You shrunk again, trying not to feel embarrassment that Ghost had witnessed you getting fondled by that weirdo.
"Oh… yeah, that wasn't fun. But… I feel a lot better now." You looked down at your feet nervously, unsure if you should even say the next part. "Would have been a lot worse if you weren't there."
He shifted, still standing over you with his masculine frame. "Look at me." You raised your eyes from your feet and looked up to see the seriousness in his face.
"You will never be doing something like that again." His eyes burned with intensity. "I'll be making sure of it."