"What is taking her so long!" Tord slammed his hand against his office desk, an exasperated sigh leaving his mouth.
He was alone in his office, lucky for him as he hated losing his cool in front of his soldiers. He paced around the room, his mind going back to (Y/N). He worried for her, but he was torn between worrying about her or the mission.
"What am I going to do with her?" another exasperated sigh leaving his lips as he slouched in his seat, pinching the bridge of his nose.
Tord's back straightened and his expression turned to one of shock as he noticed the picture frame that stood on his office desk. It was a picture of him and (Y/N), before the incident. (Y/N) had a hand over her face, shielding herself from the camera as Tord wore a huge grin on his face, teasing the girl for her camera-shyness.
His eyes softened at the memory or more so, memories he shared with (Y/N).
-
Tord made his way into the shooting range, paying for his usual hour with his rifle in hand before making his way to the shooting range.
As usual, he put on eye and ear protection as he got ready to begin his shooting. He kept his eyes on his own target, like usual, but this time. Someone caught his eye, it was a girl.
She seemed to be having some trouble with her aiming. Tord couldn't bear to watch the scene of the girl missing every shot, so he walked up to them.
"Hey, having some trouble with aiming?"
The girl turned her head to Tord with a shocked expression. They gave a nod as Tord asked for their gun to which they hesitantly handed over.
"Your stance is wrong. You have to keep your feet somewhat apart and control your arms to help steady your aim as well as for recoil control,"
Tord did exactly as he said, the handgun steady in his hand.
"Having a good grip on the gun helps a lot in aiming. Your forearms should line up with the gun, this helps with absorbing the gun's recoil. Now the hands, one should grip the handgun securely while the other covers your grip entirely. Now, squeeze the trigger smoothly and..."
Tord put his advice to use, taking a deep breath before exhaling and shooting the target right in its head, "Don't forget to breath,"
The girl stared in amazement as Tord handed the handgun back to them.
"That was amazing!" the girl said.
A blush covered his face as his confidence slowly withered away at the compliment. He rubbed the back of his neck as he muttered out a thanks.
The girl put Tord's advice to use and succeeded as she placed a shot at the torso of the target, her aim better than before.
"I'm (Y/N)! Thanks for helping me..."
"Tord, the name's Tord,"
"Tord, it has a nice ring to it!"
Once again, Tord felt his cheeks burn up at (Y/N)'s compliment. "Thanks, your name is nice too,"
-
Tord chuckled at the memory of their first meeting.
"God, I was such a nervous wreck back then,"
He picked up the picture frame that was on his desk, remembering back to when the specific photo was taken.
-
"C'mon, (Y/N)!" Tord said, holding a soft hold of (Y/N)'s hand with his phone in hand. The two walked along the park's stone trail and talked about their interests for a while, until Tord spotted an ice-cream truck. Now they were running to the ice-cream truck with Tord dragging (Y/N) along.
"Two ice-creams please!" Tord exclaimed as they reached the truck.
"What flavor?"
"Vanilla, and [Ice-cream Flavor] for her," Tord stated as he was handed the ice-creams before taking out some money in a flash. "Keep the change,"
Tord handed (Y/N) her ice-cream, a large grin on his face as they walked to a nearby bench. They sat down and finished their ice-creams, making occasional small talk. Tord loved these small moments he shared with (Y/N), his feelings for the girl grew every second they spent together, yet he never had the courage to tell her how he felt. In fear of ruining the friendship they had.
"Hey, let's take a picture," Tord pulled out his phone and opened the camera app, "You know, to remember this day,"
Tord placed his hand around (Y/N)'s shoulder and pulled her closer to him. (Y/N) placed her hand, covering her face as Tord chuckled. "Aww, you're so cute!"
The sound of a picture being taken could be heard as Tord showed (Y/N) the picture. (Y/N) huffed, crossing her arms at Tord's teasing.
"Oh, c'mon (Y/N). You know I didn't mean it!" (Y/N) sighed, laughing a bit with a smile on her face.
-
Tord's smile faltered, his eyes saddened as he placed the picture faced down on his desk. He leaned back on his chair, covering his eyes with his arm. "Why can't we go back to what used to be?" He stayed that way for a while, unsure of what he should do.
Though Tord was now in charge of a powerful army, it wasn't always like that and it was never something he really wanted. But in the end, that's what he got.
-
"You wanted to see me, sir," Tord stood up straight, nervous about his meeting with the general, who sat in their chair with an elated expression when they noticed Tord. The general stood up from their chair and walked up to Tord, patting the boy on the back.
"Lawson! Glad you made it!" the general said, their hand on Tord's shoulder as they spoke.
"Of course I did, sir. I wouldn't miss this for the world," the general laughed, giving Tord one last back pat before making their way back to their chair, signaling Tord to take a seat. Tord did as he was told, still tense at how the meeting would go. The general let out a deep sigh, the mood changing from light-hearted to serious.
"I'm retiring. And I'm going to be handing my position over to one of my generals," Tord felt himself getting engrossed in what the general was telling him, "That includes you,"
Tord's eyes widened as he tensed up even more. "Why me, though?"
"Because you're the best soldier here and I trust that you will keep this army running once I'm gone,"
"Sir, I can't... you can't possibly be serious?" Tord said with furrowed brows, trying his best to stay calm, though his eyes and body expression said otherwise. "I'm not fit to lead,"
The general placed a hand upon Tord's shoulder causing the Norwegian to flinch at their touch. "One last time,"
Tord lifted a brow to what the general was implying as he felt them remove their hand from his shoulder and walk back to the office desk. A few minutes passed as the general placed two glasses and a bottle of wine onto the desk. "Relax, have a drink with me,"
Though Tord was anxious, he knew the general always meant well. So, in honor of their retirement, Tord decided to accept the offer as General of the Army. A smile on his face, Tord watched as the general poured some wine into a glass and handed it towards him. "One last time," Tord muttered as the general cracked a smile.
After that day, Tord had become the general of the entire army. He enjoyed the army, of course, but that didn't make it any easier for him to break the news to (Y/N) as to why he wouldn't be seeing her as often. Once he did break the news, (Y/N) surprised him with her response.
"I'll join you,"
-
Tord was unsure if letting (Y/N) join the army would be a good idea, but in the end. (Y/N) joined the army, rising above the ranks and becoming Tord's right hand woman. That was until, the power started getting to the leader's head.
His attitude shifted from unsure and nervous to confident, more so cocky, and commanding. Many didn't like the change, but they stayed silent as they all knew the power Tord had over them and how unstable the Norwegian had gotten over time. If they had to be honest, (Y/N) was the only person keeping him sane and content.
As his feelings for (Y/N) had never faded, they only grew and it was getting to be a bit unhealthy. Tord knew his love for the girl was getting too obsessive, so he tried his best to contain those feelings, but with the lies of him being her lover. It made it hard for him to not think of making that a reality.
"Sir, I think you may want to hear this,"
"What do you want?!" Tord said through gritted teeth.
"It's about (Y/N)," this peeked Tord's interest immediately. He urged the soldier to continue speaking. "We did as you requested and found some evidence of deceit,"
Tord noticed a file was slid across his desk as he picked the manila folder and opened it. A dark look in his eyes as he scanned over the pictures and notes in the file.
All the time she had been telling him that her mission was close to completion, she had been lying to him. "You may leave,"
The soldier made their way out the door, afraid to upset Red Leader anymore.
"Well, I guess we'll just have to do this the hard way,"