{26} : "We Could Make-Out?"
Michael's POV
"We won't be able to catch the hacker," I said as I buried my head in my hands.
Sandra put her hand on my shoulder as she sat beside me, "Michael, we're close to getting the hacker and that's why he's panicking and telling you to drop the assignment. Stay positive. We're going to get him very soon."
I looked up to Sandra and said, "I hope so."
I just want to get to the hacker before he gets to Rachael.
I dialed Ashton's number. I wanted him to assure me that Rachael is alright. I wanted him to tell me that he will protect her with his own life. I wanted him to tell me that he'll keep her safe no matter what. I just needed to be assured.
"Hey Michael," Ashton said.
"Ashton, how is Rachael? Is she alright?" I asked, fear taking over me.
"Yeah, she's alright. You sound worried. Is everything okay?" my best friend asked.
"Today, I got a call from the hacker...." I told him everything that I talked with the hacker.
"Michael, don't worry. I won't let him get to Rachael. I won't let anyone hurt her," he said and I believed him. That's all I needed to hear.
But I couldn't stop myself from saying, "When it comes to Rachael, panic and worry takes over me."
"I know but don't worry. You can trust me on keeping Rachael safe. I can even sacrifice my life for her."
I knew that Ashton meant every word he said. I could totally trust him.
"Can I talk to Rachael?" I asked him. I just wanted to hear her voice.
"Yeah, sure," he said. I heard him handling the phone to Rachael.
"Michael, are you alright?" I could sense concern in Rachael's voice.
"Yes, I'm fine. Just a little worried about you," I told her.
"Michael, don't worry about me. I'm safe here with Ashton," she assured me.
"I know but I can't help but worry about you. You're my sister and I care about you."
"I know and I care about you too," she said. "Please finish the assignment and come back soon."
"I will," I said to her.
After a while, she said, "Ashton told me that when Special Squad wanted to start my training of becoming a secret agent, you said no. Why did you say no?" I could sense a hint of anger in her voice.
I rubbed my forehead. Why did Ashton tell her that? Now, she will pester me for becoming a secret agent. I know my sister very well. If you tell her not to do a particular thing, she will exactly do that.
"That's because I wanted you to be away from danger," I said.
"Michael, I'm tired of hearing that. If you would've said yes to my training then I would've been a secret agent by now!" I could tell by her voice that she really wanted to become a secret agent.
Rachael loves anything related to "secret agent" stuff. And now, when she knows that secret agents exist, she will want to become a secret agent. She will pester me for that. I should've banned her from watching James Bond movies. It's messing with her head now.
If I had stopped her from watching those movies, she wouldn't have the craze of becoming a secret agent.
"Rachael, we'll talk about it later," I told her.
"Why not now?" she asked.
"Because I have lot of work to do. I promise that we'll talk about it when I return."
"Okay," she said reluctantly.
"Okay, I should go now. Stay safe," I told her.
"You too," she replied.
"Bye."
"Bye."
I ended the call.
"Are you happy now, after talking to your sister?" Sandra asked.
"Kind of," I told her honestly. "She knows that I said no to her training and you know how she is. She has some obsession with the secret agent stuff. When I will go back, she will probably kill me because I said no to her training."
Mark chuckled and I glared at him.
Rachael's POV
"Okay," I said reluctantly.
"Okay, I should go now. Stay safe," Michael told me.
"You too," I replied.
"Bye."
"Bye."
I ended the call. I gave back Ashton's phone.
"You shouldn't have told Michael that I told you about him saying no to your training. Now when he'll return, he'll kill me," Ashton said.
"I'll save you from him," I said as I tried to wink at him but I ended up closing both my eyes.
He looked at me with amusement. I bet I looked pretty funny when I tried to wink at him.
I agree that I don't know how to wink and I was embarrassed about it. I kept my mouth shut to save myself from further embarrassment.
For a few minutes, we continued to sit in silence.
After a while, Ashton asked, "Why are we sitting in silence?"
I shrugged.
"Do you want to do something?" he asked.
"Like what?" I asked back.
"We could make-out?" he suggested. And my jaw hit the floor. Was he serious? When did he become so forward all of a sudden?