Winds of Destiny: Falling ~ {Hawks x OC}

Chapter Thirty: Why They Call It Falling

Late Monday morning at the headquarters of the Hero Public Safety Commission was a little brighter than usual, as Misaki walked merrily into the President's office to collect her empty morning teacup while smiling softly and humming to herself.

"I take it your date went well?" The President asked with a tilt of her manicured eyebrow at her secretary's unusually upbeat attitude.

She grimaced slightly in response before asking, "Is it that obvious?"

The President smirked and shook her head. "You've hardly been able to keep the smile off of your face all morning."

Misaki smiled back and dropped her gaze as she softly told her, "It was an amazing weekend."

The gemstone in the young woman's necklace caught some of the sunlight streaming in through the wall of windows behind the President's desk, drawing her attention. Misaki hardly ever wore any jewelry at the office, so the sight of the small, golden pendant hanging from her neck was a bit of a shock. She cast her secretary a knowing glance as she commented, "I notice you have some new jewelry. A gift from the mysterious boyfriend?"

Misaki glanced down at the pendant fondly. "Turns out he had the same idea you did."

She leaned over a bit to show the President her necklace and the older woman lowered her eyes to appraise the piece of jewelry. The swirling fire opal in the center gleamed and sparkled in the sunlight, casting a colored shadow around the edges of the two golden feathers wrapped around the top and bottom of the stone.

Her smile abruptly dropped from her face like an anvil off the edge of a cliff.

"Well... It's quite a statement," the President trailed off tersely.

Misaki straightened, apparently too distracted by her musings to notice the President's sudden change in demeanor as she continued, "We agreed not to get each other birthday gifts unless it was something we could both share or benefit from. He passed it off as a memento to remind me of our feelings for each other; said that it would give him peace of mind while living so far away. And I'm totally rambling, I'm so sorry!"

The more the young woman spoke, the more she confirmed the President's sinking suspicion.

She offered her a tight smile as her sharp blue eyes glared suspiciously at the small golden pendant and said, "I wish you two the best."

"Thank you, Madam President. That means a lot," Misaki replied sincerely before gathering up the empty teacup and walking out of the office.

The President stared after her with a concerned expression. The message behind that gift had been as clear to her as the cloudless sky spread out behind her, as well as the obvious feelings of the man who had gifted it to her. She clicked her tongue and turned to stare out the wall of windows behind her desk; she thought he would have known better than that.

The state of affairs concerning Hawks's current assignment made it difficult for her to feel any appreciation for them. He had accepted the difficult assignment they'd asked of him with a bit of reluctance, but she never would have suspected that he'd have done so while engaging in such a close, personal relationship with someone. He knew the stakes involved with that kind of work. To think that he'd wittingly drag an innocent into the crosshairs with him... It didn't seem like something he would even consider, let alone actually do; which told her all she needed to know about how serious the situation was.

He really had pulled the wool right over her eyes. And there wasn't a doubt in her mind that he'd done so intentionally. For nine months, Misaki had been working for her. She didn't know exactly when their relationship had taken such a serious turn, but it was highly unlikely that it had been anytime soon. They were both far too busy to have developed such a deep bond so quickly. Putting Hawks's proclivities aside, she knew that Misaki tended to keep her emotions pretty close to the vest.