The robotic arm squeaked as it rotated hundred degrees counterclockwise to install a circuit board into the AH-64D, which was one out of five in the hangar. High decibel squeal came from an electric drill, far right corner. Looked like the mechanics were still looking for clues on why the rotor overheated randomly.

Akira made a beeline through the bustling crew, almost got elbowed by one of them when he took an unexpected turn.

"Sorry." Something brief before she dashed off. Eyes scanning around for a certain plump guy in white coat.

She raised her arm and turned her wrist. The hands on her watch almost joined below twelve. Had she not gotten caught by the management to standby for a press conference, she would have thrown in the report and left that place an hour ago.

"What did you do to my rocket?!"

Akira skidded to a stop. That was definitely the howl of their Chief Scientist.

She sighed, braced herself, before pivoted on her heels.

The deafening noise died, except the robots which continued to function. All living organisms in that hangar stopped everything they were doing.

Akira blinked. The man in white coat was too far away from her, and he was not looking at her. The crew was blocking whoever that was talking to the chief.

"Chief Himura, I don't think the company needs to explain to you how the assets are used." Akira heard another voice as she moved closer.

"It was already a risk when we didn't have the time to pilot test it. And you just thought it was a good idea to make a cocktail of CRc bomb? If you are such a smart ass, why is the company keeping a team of two hundred PhDs? You might be better off doing everything yourself."

Akira watched the puffy face all reddened.

The man in the suit, however, remained unprovoked. "I guess you have not told him, Mado."

Her back pricked.

"What did you just say?" Himura knitted his brows. He finally noticed Akira, who was only five steps away from them.

Akira narrowed her eyes and stepped up to the man in suit. "Yamada, that is enough. You had what you wanted. Now leave."

Yamada took some time returning the stare to Himura, before he angled himself and lowered his eyes to the shorter woman. "For the record, I don't take orders from you, Mado."

It was her last day. There was no reason to dirty her hands for a douchebag. So she watched him leave.

"Akira! How could you?" The chief scientist was blowing his top. "I trusted you."

Akira went to Himura and grabbed his arm. The latter swung her hand away.

"I had it under control, okay?"

"Save it, Mado!"

"They are going to make a show with or without us. One of us had to be onboard to minimize the damage."

"You could have told me!"

"You wouldn't have agreed."

"I'm sure as hell—Oh, you are right." Himura's temper dissipated instantly and fell back to his analytical mode. "No! No! No!" He threw his hands up, almost to cover his ears. "I'm not going to forgive you for this. Not this time." He stomped back to his office while Akira followed along.

"It's okay, Himura." She watched the door flung open and she slipped in right before it closed. "You can vent your anger on me."

Himura knew too well to take her words literally. Thanks to her training, he had picked up some tricks to decode her message.

That slight curl on her lips; her eyes that narrowed on him—Himura had never seen a coyote that up close. "I hate you!" He jumped over a stack of files and zigzagged around the boxes to his desk.

"That's an improvement." Her olfactory picked up the sweet aroma. Her head turned. Eyes staring at a coffee pot sitting just right beside the door. "Compared to the first time we met."

"How many times do I have to tell you that it was an accident?" Himura hands shook in sync as if he was chopping some invisible meat. "The board meeting was a warzone. I couldn't have known—Hey!" He finally saw what she was doing. "You are here just for the coffee, aren't you?"

Akira smirked. The taste that lingered in her mouth was her victory.

Himura pushed his glasses up and squinted at her. "Woman, you really look like crap."

She did not really know what he meant by 'crap', because how she looked had not been her concern since a long time ago. The fact that Himura only dropped that comment now might just be his way to get to her.

Or he might not be seeing clearly with his glasses slipped to the tip of his nose. But who cared about the details anyway?

Himura, on the other hand, refused to let her off the hook. "How many cups already?" He glanced at the paper cup in her hand. "Ten?"

"Five." She chugged the black liquid down her throat and let out a satisfying breath. "They were so little and won't even fill your mug." She squinted through the gap between her index finger and thumb.

"There's a reason it is called espresso." Himura emphasized the last word. "And you always get yourself double-shot."

She squeezed the cup and threw it into the metal trash can behind Himura. "Last one just to get me through the report."

"You're always 'last one'. Do you want to O.D. over some caffeine?" He picked up a pen and clipboard and started flipping the papers. "That's a pretty lame reason to die."

"Don't worry. It's my last day." Akira waved the lanyard around her neck. "You won't see me again after I turn this in to HR in a couple of hours."

Himura dropped his hands. The clipboard and pen struck the desk. He was staring at her again.

"Why?" The cogs in her head turned as she tried to figure what else she did to earn that disapproving look.

"I'm going to miss you, you know?"

That was what Akira liked about Himura. Although the brain was a short fuse at times, he often forgot what he had been upset with within minutes. Well, that was if that person spoke his language.

"I'm sure you'll find someone else to laser beam. How about Yamada?"

Himura arched his brow. "You know what? I really might." He turned to the windows where he could see the chopper, and opened it. "IF ANYONE TRIES TO TOUCH MY PROTOTYPE AGAIN, I'LL FREAKING LASER BEAM HIM TO ASHES. YOU HEAR ME?!!" Himura slammed the window close. It was a miracle the glass did not break at all.

Endowed with a serious pair of lungs, Himura earned himself the nickname—Grizzly, which supposedly fit his bodysize, bushy brown beard, and hairy arms. Perhaps that was one of the reasons the management did not replace him, no matter how much they did not like him.

Akira slowly opened her shut eye. She would never get used to that roar.

"Sorry." Himura huffed and puffed, both hands at his waist. "I should pick up yoga."

"You do that." Though she doubted it would help.

"So this is it, huh? Sure you are not going to miss it?" He turned and gazed at the Apaches again. "Those babies are kind of yours."

Akira too followed, admiring the machines. "Didn't you say you have full ownership?"

Himura rolled his eyes. "You are not adorable at all. Remind me: how you got yourself a boyfriend?" He sat down.

"He thinks I'm cute and worth protecting." She never even paused or thought twice before she said it. It was the truth. Well, at least the last part of it.

Truth or not, it meant nothing to Himura besides making him gag. "Enough. Enough of this." His palm was waving at her frantically.

Himura's cooperative yet dramatized responses would be something Akira missed most when she left. "Goodbye, Himura." She put up her best smile, out of respect to the only friend she had in that dog-eat-dog company. "It's been a pleasure."

"Akira…" Himura reached out his hand. "Keep in touch, okay?"

"Will do." Their hands joined in a firm grip. "By the way, I was joking about laser-beaming Yamada."

"Just get out of here, will you?"