Winds of Destiny: Rising ~ {Hawks x OC}

Chapter Eighteen: Clarity

She drew in a deep breath before tightening her lips into a thin grin, nodding her head and agreeing, "Okay."

His eyes widened and he relaxed his stance a bit. "Really?"

"Sure. Just let me grab my stuff," she said as she walked toward him.

He moved to the side to let her pass, leaning back on his heels as he readily replied, "Yeah, sure. I'll just be here."

She kept her eyes focused ahead of her as she hastily walked by before turning to make her way down the hall to her office. 'Ugh,' she thought to herself. 'Could that have been any more awkward?'

The answer was a resounding no. She hadn't exactly been dreading their next meeting, but she couldn't say that she'd imagined it going much better. Stopping at her desk, Misaki braced her hands on the surface and closed her eyes, drawing in a deep breath and slowly letting it out, hoping to expel the rest of her nerves along with it. If she hoped to survive whatever excursion Hawks had planned from them tonight, she needed to get a damn grip. She quickly shut down her console and slid her coat on before grabbing her bag and walking back toward the doorway, turning off the light and closing the door behind her as she left. Hawks was waiting for her when she returned, casually leaning back against the wall with his head tilted back and gazing up at the ceiling.

She quietly stepped up next to him and asked, "Ready to go?"

He swiftly turned his head in her direction and pushed himself off from the wall before replying in a jovial tone, "Let's do it!"

His eyes widened, a horrified expression crossing his face as he immediately rushed to cover his unintended double entendre. "I mean—! Not like, do it, I just meant—! As in, like, going! Let's go... Is what I meant to say..."

Misaki couldn't help the laughter that bubbled up out of her at his frantic attempt to cover for his poor choice of words. It felt like the clumsy rhetoric had released some of the tension hanging in the air between them, of which she was very grateful.

She walked up and hooked her arm through his, shaking her head as she giggled. "Okay, Casanova. Let's go."

"Okay," he sighed as he hung his head.

As they made their way out of the main entrance of the Hero Public Safety Commission headquarters, Misaki asked, "So, are you gonna tell me what tails is or are you gonna make me wait and see for myself?"

He glanced down at her from the corner of his eye with a sly grin. "I thought I might let you dangle for a minute."

Narrowing her eyes at him, she reached over and dug her fingers into his side to tickle him. He cringed away from her as he called out, "Okay, okay! How do you feel about checking out a movie?"

She pulled her hand back away from his ribs and shot him an incredulous look. "Really? That's it?"

"What, you wanted more?" He replied in feigned shock before casting her a sidelong glance. "So greedy all of a sudden."

She pushed against his arm. "Shut up! I just meant that seems kinda tame compared to what heads was is all."

He cringed suddenly, reaching up to scratch his cheek as he averted his gaze and trailed off, "So, about that..."

~*~

Ten minutes later, Misaki and Hawks stood side by side in a large hotel suite, complete with one large king-size bed, and a double-seated lounge chair sitting in front of a wall-to-wall projector screen that was surrounded on each side by theatre-style red velvet drapes. There was even a small concession stand with popcorn and candy displayed over a mini refrigerator with a clear door that housed several kinds of drinks, and even a few ice cream bars.