Several weeks later

Even someone like Cammy needed a break every once in a while. With how demanding her job was, she appreciated places she could go and essentially turn her brain off for a few hours, letting herself focus on something other than her latest, usually high stakes assignment. Overtime, she found that places like museums and art galleries were especially good for that; they were typically quiet, easily accessible and something she could go through at her own leisurely place. That and it helped that she would invariably be learning something in her time there.

All these years later and the world still felt like such a mystery to her.

The thing is, she typically visited these places alone. This time, she had some company.

"So, what exactly is going on here?" Kostas asked her as they stood before a vast painting in the National Gallery. In it, a muscular man had fallen asleep in the lap of a beautiful maiden; as he slumbered, someone was cutting his hair, with the maiden simply allowing the act to transpire.

"The bloke's name is Samson," Cammy said. "Long story short, he was this great hero who fell in love with that woman you see there, Delilah. He told her the secret behind his strength was his uncut hair and well…this was the result."

He had to look at the painting a little while longer, but the meaning soon seemed to click with him. "Ah, I get it now," he said. "But why his hair?"

"I don't know. I didn't write the Old Testament."

"I mean, I didn't read it either. Which verse says that if he loses his Godly locks or whatever, his muscles would just deflate?"

In spite of herself, Cammy smiled. Even more than that, she had to stifle a laugh; it was such a ridiculous question that it made her wonder if he actually understood the painting's symbolism or if he just said he did to avoid looking like an idiot.

"I'm sure there's one in there somewhere," she said after a little while. "Probably with more sophisticated wording than that."

"Naturally," he said, after which the two of them simply stared at the painting for a little while. "You'd never give me an unwanted haircut, would you, Cam?"

Cammy couldn't help but glance at him out of the corner of her eye. He was clearly asking her this in jest, but to her, it ended up being a lot more…profound than he intended it to be.

Looking back towards the painting, she posed him a similarly unserious question. "Would that take away your power?"

"No," he replied. "But it would make me very, very upset."

This time, Cammy couldn't help but laugh. "Oh, I can't stomach that," she said.

"Then I guess that means I can rest easy tonight."

"Mm-hmm…"

If nothing else, she could now be certain he'd grasped the painting's meaning, not that she should've doubted such a thing in the first place. From the moment she met him, she got the sense that Kostas was quite smart - smarter than probably even he knew. But this relatively harmless exchange exposed another aspect to him that she hadn't really given much mind to until recently.

Looking back towards him, she couldn't help but think back to something he'd confided to her during their video call a few weeks back - how he felt like he hadn't earned his accomplishments. He'd shifted subjects before she could get a better handle on his feelings, but everything pointed to a much deeper problem.

He didn't think very highly of himself. His constant downplaying of his achievements could be mistaken for humbleness, but she knew the truth now. He felt like he didn't deserve any of it.

Why? That was what Cammy was trying so hard to figure out.

"Come on," she finally said to get his attention. "There's still a lot more to get through."

For the last hour or so, the two of them have been going through the gallery at a fairly subdued rate, taking the time to properly admire each work on display. At least, that was the idea. Kostas obviously wasn't a connoisseur of the arts - and to be fair to him, neither was she - so simply looking at paintings wasn't going to do much for him. So, to keep him engaged, she tried getting him to engage with the pieces, so to speak. Tell her what he saw in them.

The results were…interesting. There naturally weren't any profound insights or deep philosophical discussions, but she found herself carefully listening to what he had to say regardless. It was a good way of seeing into his head, if just a little. Plus, it fit with her cover story - after all, it was her job to understand how people think.

It wasn't her first time playing tour guide either. When they were first freed, Cammy had taken Juni and Decapre to some of her favorite museums in London, if only to give them something to take their minds off the stress and uncertainty they felt. Seeing their looks of awe upon seeing a completed dinosaur skeleton or a masterfully crafted sculpture was a truly special sight. She'd reacted much the same way back in the day, with almost childlike wonder.

She told him that story somewhere along the way, albeit with many key details excluded. Cammy knew that it was the right thing to do, but it left her feeling so…slimy. She'd lost track of the number of half-truths she'd told him in their time together, which is to say nothing about the number of outright lies. It was all necessary, she knew that. But this wasn't a mission, and he wasn't a target, or at least, he wasn't supposed to be.

To make matters worse, Cammy was genuinely enjoying herself. Looking at how he was acting, you wouldn't think that Kostas was only here because he lost a bet (something she couldn't help but tease him about). He was in no hurry to go anywhere, staying by each painting they passed until neither of them had anything else to say about it. It was obvious that he was humoring her and really couldn't care less about what they saw, but the effort was certainly appreciated.

Never has the line between business and pleasure been so blurred.

At some point, the two of them took a seat on a bench facing a collection of portraits. Food and drinks weren't permitted in the gallery, so all they could really do was sit and observe, quietly. Cammy welcomed the silence, taking the time to sort through her increasingly disjointed thoughts.

"Have you ever thought about getting your portrait done?"

Needless to say, Kostas was visibly confused by her question. "Not really," he answered. "Do people even do that nowadays?"

"Important people do," said Cammy. "Prime ministers and the like."

"Well, guess that rules me out, then."

There it was again. Just a few weeks ago, she wouldn't have thought anything of this sort of self-deprecating humor, but knowing what she knew now, she couldn't help but think he wasn't doing it because he wanted to be modest about himself.

"A portrait isn't just a status symbol," she said to continue the conversation. "A good one can tell you a lot about a person, or at least, how others might perceive them. Could be good, could be bad; depends on how petty the artist is, really."

"And what if they're very hard to read?"

Cammy noted that he turned to look at her as he posed this question; naturally, she couldn't help but consider her reply much more carefully than she normally would have. "No one's exactly as they appear to be. You're allowed a little creative liberty here and there."

"Hmm…" Kostas looked like he wanted to say something, but instead, he simply looked back towards the paintings. Cammy would have done the same, and probably should have done the same, yet she wasn't content to let their conversation end there.

"Do you worry about how others perceive you?"

As expected, this drew his attention back. "Well…" he started to say before trailing off for a moment.. "I mean, who doesn't?"
"Touche," she conceded. "But some people care more about that sort of thing than others."

For a few precious seconds, Kostas simply sat there and stared at her, saying nothing that could confirm or deny her suspicions. She got the sense that he knew where she was going with this and simply wasn't comfortable going down that road, but she opted to wait and see what he had to say.

At the same time, his eyes seemed a lot more…analytical than they usually did. He had his own questions about her, she could tell. He was just scared to ask them.

"I didn't expect this trip to get so deep," he finally said. And she figured that was that.

"You're right, I'm sorry," Cammy said. "My inner art snob's coming out."

"Don't be. It suits you." "Oh, you think I'm a snob, do you?"

With a small laugh, he leaned in just a little closer and said, "No, Cam, I think you're very, very smart."

It was a genuine compliment dressed up in a bit of teasing. There wasn't anything that special about it, but for the first time that day, Cammy found herself feeling just a little flustered. She never was the best when it came to receiving compliments, and him using the pet name he'd picked out for her didn't help matters either. It made it feel so much more personal.

There really wasn't anything she could think to say at that moment, not for lack of trying. Maybe she should've offered him a compliment back, if she could think of one that sounded even remotely natural. It really shouldn't have been so difficult, but as she had admitted to him not too long ago, she was still a stranger to this type of concentrated affection.

"How…nice of you to notice," she said lamely. Much to her surprise, he didn't have anything witty to say back. He just kept looking at her, smiling. "What?"

"You're adorable."

If she wasn't flustered before, she definitely was now. "Oh, stop it," she exclaimed, giving him a gentle shove almost without meaning to. The thing was, this only seemed to amuse him more.

"I mean it!"

"I know you do," she said. "That's the problem."

"Is it a problem?" His words still had that silly undertone to them, but she could tell he also meant it as a somewhat serious question.

"No, not really," she assured him. "I can get used to it."

In response to this, he just shook his head. "You know, sometimes it feels like I'm meeting you for the very first time."

Cammy raised a curious brow. "Meaning?"

"I don't know. It just feels like there's a lot of different angles to you. I'm still finding new ones."

Unsure of how to respond to this, or even whether she should take it as a compliment or not, she simply sat there and stared back at him. She supposed he meant that he was still learning new things about her, but her mind couldn't help but turn to more ominous possibilities. But surely she was just being paranoid. There was no way he was onto her.

"I can promise you I'm not that complicated," said Cammy.

"I never said you were," Kostas replied.

"Then what are you saying?" "I already told you; I don't know. But I like it."

Either he was giving her the world's most roundabout compliment or she genuinely did just baffle him at every level. Cammy wasn't really sure which one she preferred, but it did get her thinking. At this point, she felt like she understood Kostas fairly well, but also, not really at all. She knew where he was headed, but as for what exactly brought him here? What drove him forward? That, she very much did not know, and perhaps she didn't need to know. But she wanted to.

"Can I ask you something?"

She decided to be a bit more straightforward instead of relying on speaking in riddles, something that seemed to surprise Kostas. "Sure," he said.

Cammy was still trying to figure out how she should pose the question to him or whether she even should. She was this close to walking it back, but ultimately, she decided to take the risk. "Your family. I know you have your cousin and your uncle back home, but…" Again, she hesitated, somewhat spurred by seeing how quickly his expression soured when the subject was raised. But that told her there was indeed more to that story.

"I guess I'm wondering if there's anyone else."

By now, it was clear she'd raised a touchy subject. Kostas remained dreadfully quiet and as the seconds ticked by, Cammy couldn't help but feel like she'd overstepped her bounds. Just as she was about to retract the question and apologize, he gave her a brief, but loaded answer. "Not anymore."

His smile was all but gone now, and Cammy started to think that perhaps she shouldn't have pried. But even so she couldn't keep herself from posing a simple, but very personal question.

"What happened?"

She said it quietly, to the point she wasn't even sure it had graduated from a thought in her head. But Kostas heard her and after another preparatory silence, he decided to provide some semblance of an answer.

"So you know how I live with my cousin, right?" In response, Cammy gave a tentative nod. "Yeah, it wasn't always that way."

A subtle sense of dread creeped up on her. The fact that his family was the first thing he mentioned in such a discussion was hardly a promising sign. Nonetheless, she let him continue.

"Before all that, I lived with my mom. Never knew my dad, which is probably why she always gave off the vibe that she wanted nothing to do with me. It didn't matter what I did; didn't matter what sports team I made or what grades I got, she just didn't care. Nothing was ever good enough for her. And that was all if she was in a good mood."

There were no doubt many more unsavory details he was leaving out, no doubt because they were simply too painful for him to share. And Cammy didn't force him to. He'd told her more than enough to let her paint the full picture for herself, and it wasn't pretty.

"I'm…" "I know you are," Kostas interrupted her before the words could even leave her lips. "You don't have to say it. You're not her."

There was a distinct lack of emotion in his voice upon saying that final word. She expected venom, hatred; definitely not what could only be described as a subdued acceptance. Yet despite never having met this woman and hearing only the bare minimum about her, Cammy felt nothing but contempt for her.

When it became clear he wasn't going to say anything more - couldn't say anything more - Cammy put her hand on his. "You got away though, didn't you?"

This time, he seemed more surprised by the sudden contact than anything else. Once he got over that, he provided a fairly forthright answer. "My uncle was never the biggest fan of hers," he said. "But he tried to keep himself from getting involved directly. When he finally did get involved, it was because Michael talked him into it."

"Michael?" She had expected him to be involved, but somehow not in the way he described.

"Yeah," he confirmed. "He was always telling me that I deserved better, but I always wrote him off. When it came down to it, he basically had to drag me away from mom. But after he did, well…I never looked back."

"Good," Cammy said without hesitation. "What your mother thinks of you doesn't matter. It never did, because you clearly never mattered to her. There's absolutely nothing you need to prove to her."

Even now, he remained silent. But as he stared back at her, she could see the gratitude in his eyes. Deep down, he must have known what she said was true and had known it for a long time; he just couldn't accept it. A mother's scorn was perhaps the worst thing a child could ever experience - even she, with no mother of her own, could understand that. And as she saw now, it was something he had never fully recovered from.

"Cammy…" he started to say. He looked like he was on the verge of tears, but he by some miracle managed to hold himself together. "Sorry, I really shouldn't have…"

"No," she firmly said, squeezing his hand just that little bit tighter. "Listen to me. Only you get to decide your worth. It's your life to live."

That was what she knew he needed to hear, something that she herself had to learn once upon a time. She wanted to tell him that she understood how he felt - all the doubt and confusion about what his place in the world was - but this wasn't about her. It was about him.

As silence settled over them once again, Cammy took a little time to process what he'd told her. Whichever way she looked at it, Michael objectively changed his life for the better, giving him a chance to realize his true potential. But even so, she kept coming back to the same question. "To what end?"

Obviously, she had yet to meet the man, but that didn't stop her from forming an image of Michael - needless to say, it was not a very flattering one. Would she say this new information challenged that preconceived notion? Perhaps, perhaps not. Something just didn't feel right.

And then it hit her. What Kostas had confided to her during their video call suddenly made sense, about how his cousin had basically inspired his every action. He was desperate for Michael's approval, and he surely knew it.

Looking at Kostas now, Cammy felt her resolve deepen. He didn't deserve the lot he'd been saddled with, being left feeling worthless every step of the way. Like she'd told him, there was nothing for him to prove; not just to his mother, but to anyone, including himself. If she could just get him to see that…

Cammy decided then and there that she would, no matter what.

"What do you say we move on to phase two?"

Kostas' eyes narrowed in surprise. "We haven't gone through everything already, have we?"

"We don't have to," she said with a shrug. "Besides, we've been here for well over two hours. I could use some air."

"But what about the…?" "Forget about the bloody bet," she interrupted, knowing full well what he was going to say. "Now come on, let's get down to the rink before it gets too busy. Alright?"

She kept her voice gentle, keeping his hand clasped in hers. It finally occurred to her how long she'd been holding it and a part of her felt compelled to pull it away, but she didn't. She'd said she wanted to be more "open" with him and so she would be. More than anything else, he wanted to matter to someone. And he mattered to her.

For the first time in what felt like hours, Kostas smiled back at her. "Alright."

They didn't leave right away, stopping a few times to check out a few paintings they had missed in their tour before stepping out of the gallery into the chilly December air. It was around 4:15 PM on a Thursday, when most people were still waiting to get off work, making the usually crowded London streets just that little bit more navigable. More importantly for them, that meant the National Gallery hadn't been that busy, and with any luck, Somerset House wouldn't be either.

The skating rink was within walking distance of the gallery, so the two of them headed straight there. There ended up being a short line for rental skates when they did arrive, so when they finally did get their hands on them, the sun was already going down. The temperature naturally went down with it, but Cammy had been sure to bundle up for that very reason.

"So, do you, like, know how to skate?" Kostas asked when they were both well into the process of putting their skates on.

"Not really," she admitted while tightening up her laces. "Hell of a time to ask, I must say."

"I just assumed you did, with how much you were insisting on it," he said with a shrug. The two of them continued to tie their skates in silence for a few more seconds, with Cammy just about finishing with her left skate before Kostas suddenly posed her a different question. "Need some help?"

She was reaching for her second set of laces when she heard him speak, causing her to stop just before she could touch them. It didn't take her very long to figure out what he was really asking. "I know how to tie my shoes, Kostas."

"I'm sure." There was that cheeky smile again, something that grew ever so slightly more endearing every time she saw it. Maybe she was already too tired to argue, maybe he was just exceptionally good at wearing her down, but whatever the case may be, he didn't need to say anything more to convince her.

"Alright, fine," she said with a sigh.

Without so much as a nod, Kostas got up from the bench they were sharing, knelt down in front of her and started doing up the laces on her right skate. As for Cammy, she awkwardly placed her hands on her lap and watched him work. "Let me know if it's too tight," Kostas told her.

"I will." She should've hated being coddled like this, but there was something oddly endearing about what she was witnessing. He really was going the extra mile to ensure she didn't end up hurting herself; that was all well and good, but after everything she'd been through, it just felt so comical.

"You sure you don't need a helmet?"

"I'll manage," she assured him yet again. "Besides, you'll be there to catch me if I fall, won't you?"
He paused what he was doing for a second in order to look up at her, smirking before getting back to work. "Let's hope I won't have to," she heard him say.

"Oh, don't tell me I'm gonna have to catch you, too," she continued to tease him.

"I promise that you won't," he said with a small laugh. "Otherwise all those years of playing hockey will officially have been for nothing."

"Did you play well?" "I like to think so. Then again, I don't anymore, so…"

"You might be rusty?" Cammy finished for him.

"Guess we'll see." Soon after this, he finished doing up the final knot on her skates. "That good?" he asked her.

Cammy shifted her foot around a little to test out the tightness; she wouldn't really know if it was ideal until she was on the ice, but for now, it was enough. "Good."

"Perfect."

Standing up, Kostas offered her a hand, his earlier smirk being replaced with a genuine smile. After a few seconds, Cammy accepted his helping hand up; she soon found herself grateful for his support, as actually standing on her skates proved a bit more difficult than she expected. If he noticed her minor stumble, he didn't say anything and started leading her towards the ice.

When they finally did step out onto the ice, Cammy's struggle increased two-fold. If it weren't for the fact she was still holding onto Kostas, she probably would've glided right along the ice, unsure of how to stop herself. This time, he very much did notice her lack of balance, mostly because of her instinctively tightening her hold on his hand.

"You good?" For all his earlier teasing, she could see his concern starting to build up.

"Yes, yes, of course," she insisted, making sure to loosen her hold on him. "You can let go now."

With a bit of reluctance, Kostas pulled his hand away, leaving her to fend for herself. For the first little while, neither of them moved from their spot, no doubt waiting to see if the other would start moving first. A few other skaters maneuvered around them, but it wasn't busy enough that the two of them caused any substantial traffic.

"Go on," Kostas prompted. "It basically works exactly like you think it does."

"Not much of an instructor," she said under her breath, and judging from the way he laughed, he heard her loud and clear.

"Sorry, but I don't know how else to explain it." Suddenly, he started moving, skating around in a small circle before returning to her side. "If you know how to walk, then you can learn to skate," he said in the midst of his little demonstration. "And how did you learn to walk?"

It was far from the most original or inspiring metaphor in the world, but Cammy decided to go along with it. "By doing," she answered, but not without rolling her eyes first.

"Exactly," he said, paying no mind to her unimpressed tone. "So let's go. I'll be right behind you."

It took a while before she did much of anything. It's not like she was scared; she'd been in much, much more perilous situations than this and hadn't even blinked. But of course, he didn't know that. For all he knew, this was the biggest risk she'd taken in months, maybe even years. And bless his soul, he was genuinely concerned for her - she could see it in his eyes.

And she couldn't bring herself to tell him not to worry. If he wanted to be a gentleman, she'd let him.

Finally, Cammy tried to move. Taking what she'd observed from him, and some of their fellow skaters, she tried moving in alternating strokes, one foot in front of the other.

"Lean forward a bit," she heard Kostas say just behind her. Sure enough, he was keeping pace with her, not that that was a very impressive feat. Her movement was unsurprisingly sloppy, but not to the point she felt she was in danger of falling.

Even so, Cammy took his advice, leaning forward ever so slightly in order to steady herself. The added balance helped her settle into a much better rhythm, allowing her to glide across the ice more and more seamlessly.

"That's it!" She could hear the pride in Kostas' voice, but she resisted the urge to look back in his direction. Not out of any concern she might accidentally ram into another skater, but because there was absolutely no way to hide how much she was blushing.

Cammy felt ridiculous. The whole situation she found herself in was just ridiculous, and all she could think about now was how it had ever come about. It's not like she had any shortage of excuses. She needed to stay close to Kostas, which by extension got her just that little bit closer to his scumbag of a cousin. That's what this was all about, right?

If only it was that simple. In the days leading up to today, and every waking minute during it, she had to contend with a somewhat startling realization. She wanted to be here.

Suddenly, Cammy fell. Maybe she genuinely lost her footing, maybe she purposefully tripped herself up for the sake of appearances; it honestly didn't matter. It wasn't a complete wipe out, but she did feel a slight tinge of pain as she landed on her side, sliding across the ice before coming to an awkward stop. Before she could even prop herself up on her elbows, Kostas was at her side.

"Cammy!" he exclaimed.

"I'm fine," she assured him. "I'm fine. Just got a little distracted."

"By what?" "Don't worry about it."

She could tell he was worried, and so she smiled up at him to help dispel a bit of that worry. She wasn't sure if it worked, but he didn't pester her with any more questions about her well being and instead returned her smile before offering her another helping hand up, which Cammy gratefully accepted. Due to her lack of experience, standing up on the ice proved somewhat tricky and for a moment it looked like she would fall right back down. But Kostas was able to hold her steady and soon enough, she was back on her feet.

And when she was, Cammy found herself exceptionally close to him, their bodies practically pressed against each-other. Looking up, she met his eyes, and almost immediately, she was struck by quite a few things.

The first was how much taller he was than her. Usually, such a thing would only register in her mind if she was going up against an opponent that dwarfed her in size - just another factor she had to weigh during the mission at hand. But in the moment, she found it oddly comforting. It made her feel secure, an odd thing to feel considering she was the last person in the world who needed defending, but she felt it nonetheless. It was…pleasant.

And then there was what she saw in his eyes as he looked at her. There was of course the concern she noted before, but there was something else there - a distinct warmth. She couldn't describe exactly what it was, but she found that she couldn't look away. That remained true even as Kostas slowly leaned in closer; even amidst her confusion, Cammy recognized what was happening.

And so, she let it happen.

Gently, Kostas kissed her. Her mind was abuzz with activity, urging her to do something, anything, but it was like her body had gone completely slack. Instinct eventually took over, and she tentatively kissed him back, or at least, she tried to. It wasn't that long before they broke apart, no more than ten seconds, but after Cammy finally opened her eyes and found him looking down at her with that affectionate glint, it felt like hours passed before the weight of everything crashed down on her all at once.

"Damn! Damn, damn!"

Cammy lowered her head, finding it difficult to continue looking at him. Despite that, she couldn't bring herself to pull away from him, and she was too tongue tied to even speak. And that was to say nothing of the mess of feelings that she was currently trying, and failing, to process.

To her surprise, Kostas said nothing. No questions, no words of comfort; nothing. Instead, he used his free hand to hug her around the waist, bringing them ever so slightly closer together. His body heat gave her a much needed sense of comfort, and against her better judgement, she rested her head against his chest. Very soon, she could feel his other hand on the back of her head, gently stroking her hair through her winter hat.

"You want to take a break?" Kostas quietly asked her. He must've thought she was dying of embarrassment - the innocent, inexperienced girl who'd just had her very first kiss. The truth was, that 'milestone' had barely even registered to her. It was everything surrounding it.

But removing all those external factors from the equation, she found she was glad she got to share this moment with him. He had never shied away from showing his affection for her, but he'd never once violated her admittedly stringent boundaries. Perhaps it was her lack of dating experience clouding her judgement, but she doubted very many people would've been even half as patient or understanding as he had been.

A slight smile found its way onto Cammy's face. She could hear the steady rhythm of his heartbeat, something that grounded her in the moment and helped expel those troublesome worries. She'd have plenty of time to stress over them later, but not now.

"No," she finally answered. "No, this is quite alright."

Kostas' only reply was a quiet, understanding hum. He kept holding her, no doubt savoring their embrace as much as she was. She was sure they got a few curious stares from the other skaters as they passed by them. When she fell, Cammy had ended up sliding a bit closer to the center of the rink, making it so they weren't obstructing anyone by staying where they were. Perhaps they should've been somewhere a little more private, but just as it was back in the art gallery, the setting was irrelevant. He was her sole focus.

The two of them did get back to skating eventually, with her technique steadily improving until she felt confident in racing him around the track - he went easy on her, of course, but as always, he relished the spirit of competition. Soon enough, the sun had fully set and they kept on circling around the rink, arm-in-arm. They didn't say much of anything to each-other. They didn't need to.

So yet again, Cammy lost herself in her thoughts. It went without saying, but things felt different now. Before today, she could never say where exactly her feelings lay when it came to Kostas. Ever since she learned of his circumstances, she felt compelled…no, obligated to help him. That was what the driving factor behind her staying with him, but the thing was, she had no practical way of doing that, at least not yet. So really, she was spending time with him just for the sake of it. That obviously threw a bit of a wrench into things, but what else was she to do? Besides, he was a decent person. Why shouldn't she spend time with him?

But today gave her some added perspective on the whole affair. This commitment he showed her - and it should have been obvious to her in hindsight - it was because he felt like she well and truly accepted him as he is, something he wasn't used to. And more than that, he trusted her. He trusted her deeply. Why else would he confide in her as much as he had?

To know he treasured their connection that much, well...it made her see things differently. It made her happy. And she supposed that's what made the truth finally catch up to her.

She wasn't pretending to be his girlfriend. She just was.

...