Chapter Text
October 6th 2026 – Kennedy Residence.
Leon grunted when his phone started ringing on his nightstand, groggily picking it up and shutting the alarm off before tossing it back unceremoniously and rubbing his forehead. Mornings were never his thing, especially not when on days off, but he had work to do. By his side, Ada shuffled, scooting closer to hug him and press a soft kiss on his lips.
“Hey, handsome.” She murmured, leaning her on his chest, listening to his heartbeat.
The younger man turned his head, burying his nose in a mix of dark greyish and black hair, inhaling the familiar scent of chic roses she carried everywhere. Ever the non-morning person, his only way of greeting her was a tired hum against the top of her head, followed by a trail of kisses that made her chuckle discreetly. Even after nine years of marriage, she still managed to hide genuine softness from him. But he wasn’t fooled anymore.
The ex-mercenary propped herself on one elbow, slender fingers tracing the fine stubble on his chin, her eyes lost in the distance. That made his heart clench, and he sat up, gently pulling her in his lap, peppering kisses on her cheek.
“Don’t do that.”
“Do what?” Her voice was filled with a slight tremor, weaker than usual.
Leon took her hand, the one where her wedding ring shone proudly, pressing another lingering kiss on its back. “You’re worried again.”
The Chinese woman sighed, resting her chin against his shoulder, her free hand tracing the dark spot on his neck with an uncharacteristic nervousness, one that had grown more present with every passing day. She didn’t say anything, yet it was loud between them.
I can’t loose you.
The DSO operative’s hand combed through her hair, a grounding presence by her side, a rare moment of quiet in their house, especially with a child ready to barge in at any instant. As if on cue, the door slammed open, a little fury jumping in the bed between them and giggling. Rare quiet, indeed.
“Mom! Dad!” The young girl exclaimed as Ada reluctantly scooted away from Leon, a smile curling her lips. “The field trip is today! Can I go? Pleaaaase!”
The mother went dead silent, subtly biting her bottom lip. Instinctively, her husband reached out to take her hand, brushing his thumb on soft skin before looking at his daughter, his expression soft but firm.
“Ming, you know the rule. Not before high school.” He reminded, sighing as the young girl pouted.
“That’s in a super duper long time!” She complained, folding her arms and moving away from her mother defiantly just as the latter was about to ruffle her hair. “It’s no fair! Other parents allow my friends to go! They can even go on sleepovers!”
The ex-spy frowned, closing her eyes with a clenched jaw. The man by her side gently squeezed her hand, sighing.
“Ming, no deba-”
“Fine. You can go.” Ada cut, exhaustion piercing through her voice, sharp as a knife.
The eight-year-old looked at her mother, flinching at the tone she used. She looked at her feet, swaying in embarrassment, muttering a quick thank you before leaving the room with little steps. Leon turned to his wife, sighing and brushing a dark strand of hair out of her face, concern flicking on his.
“Are you sure? You don’t have to give in…”
“It’s fine… I can’t… stop her from living.”
Hearing the familiar trembling in her voice, Leon pulled her back in his arm, resting his chin on her shoulder. His hands found hers in her lap, squeezing them reassuringly as he peppered kisses on her cheek and along the column of her throat.
“Our team has eyes everywhere… No one will get to her. They’ll protect her, just like they protect Rui.” He murmured against her skin, feeling her relax against his chest. Her shoulders were still tense, though. “That dream again, huh?”
She nodded quietly, a shuddering breath leaving her lips. After a short while of remaining in his embrace, she moved away, standing from the bed and adjusting her nightgown. Her husband stood as well and stepped closer to her, leaning down to press a tender kiss to her lips.
“Ready to face the day, Mrs Kennedy?”
“Right behind you, Mr Kennedy.”
They exchanged a lighter smile, hands lacing together on the way towards the kitchen. Ming Yue was sitting at the dinner table, awkwardly eating a bowl of cereal, or rather rummaging her spoon in it mindlessly. Across from her, a young man sat hunched over a book, scribbling on a notepad beside it. Ada smiled faintly at the display letting go of her husband’s hand to let him reach the love of his life — the coffee machine — while she stepped in the dining room, sneaking behind the young man.
“Bao Bao, you’re working hard again.” She commented proudly, leaning down to ruffle raven hair that looked so much like hers years before.
“Mooom! I was trying to focus. Ming Yue already interrupted me in my assignment. Twice.” He complained, though he moved his chair back to stand and pull his mother in a hug — towering well above her now.
His little sister pouted, spoon rattling in her bowl anxiously. Sighing, the young adult circled the table, ruffling her hair fondly.
“Alright, alright. No pouting, you’re forgiven.”
Leon stepped out of the kitchen, leaning back against the wall and watching the scene with fatherly pride and something like longing. The time when their son was shorter than Ada wasn’t that far away, yet it felt like ages ago. Sensing his emotion, Rui walked over to him, tapping his shoulder with unconcealed amusement.
“Relax, we’re still having a pizza next monday.”
“Your mother’s going to judge us again, you know that? We’re stealing a pizza her heart every time we don’t eat her cooking.” The father replied, effortlessly catching a pen his wife threw at him upon hearing him. “Daddy’s still got it.”
Ada shot him a glare, shaking her head in exhaustion, though a discreet smile tugged at the corner of her lips. She disappeared in the kitchen for a minute, coming out with a tea her lover prepared for her. Rui chuckled at the banter and returned to his assignment, rubbing his temples at the book, while his parents sat on either side of the table, everyone enjoying their drinks quietly for once…
“So… I can still go?” Ming Yue asked tentatively, not daring to meet her parents’ gazes at her question.
The couple exchanged a glance, holding hands tightly under the table. Then, the ex-mercenary spoke up, voice slightly strained from worry.
“Yes, you can.” The little girl cheered, already moving to stand quickly. “BUT. You’re taking your phone. No wandering around without an adult. message during lunch and on the ride home.”
“Thank you!! I’ll go get readyyyy!”
Rui watched his little sister skip towards her room, muttering something unintelligible in mandarin before turning to his mother, running a hand through his hair.
“Erm Mom… Just reminding you I’m sleeping at a friend’s place tonight. Should be back tomorrow morning.”
Ada sighed at Rui’s words. He had grown so much over the years, yet she still struggled to let him leave the house, despite all the protection the DSO put up for him. Sensing his mother’s tension, the young man stepped closer, resting his hands on both of her shoulders in a grounding gesture.
“Ma’, I’ll be fine. No drinking, no hanging out in sketchy places, and I’ll text you regularly. You’ll barely realise I’m not home.”
“You know that’s impossible, bao bao.” The Chinese woman replied, ruffling his hair like she used to when he was still a boy and giggling when he pouted at the action. “Be careful out there. What time should you be back?”
He pulled out his phone, checking his messages with his friend before replying.
“Probably around ten. She’s always late to class if I don’t pull her out of bed.”
Leon felt the change in atmosphere the second the words came out and stepped next to his wife, resting a hand on the small of her back, silently praying whatever was out there to protect his son from her fury. Rui, blissfully unaware of the beast he just pulled out of its rest, squeezed his mother’s shoulders one last time before turning to his father and smiling. The older man gave him a subtle nod, leading his son towards the door after giving the woman a cautious look.
“Take care of her, will you? She’s drowning herself in work again.” The young adult murmured, picking up his bag he had kept ready in the hallway and shoving it on his shoulder.
“You know I will.” The DSO operative replied, patting his son’s shoulder and smiling. “Hey, one of these days, bring the girl home. Would help your mother warm up to her.”
Rui scoffed, glancing at his mother who was now busying herself with making Ming’s lunch box while muttering something in mandarin about the ‘damn lover girl’.
“Yeah, I think I’ll pass.” He replied, looking down at his buzzing phone. “Gotta go, She’s already at the café”
Leon opened the door for his son, a smug smirk tugging at his lips as he watched the young man step out.
“You two be careful!”
“Still not like that.” The half-Chinese man shot over his shoulder before getting in his car.
The father chuckled, closing the door and turning around just in time to face his — already pissed — wife as she prepared their daughter’s school bag. Aaah, the joys of marriage.
“What?”
“You’re allowing them.” She muttered, hissing in annoyance when the lunchbox refused to slip in its usual pocket.
Wordlessly, Leon plucked the box and the bag from Ada’s hands and slid it where it belonged, frowning. Kids’ bags, they always seemed to get smaller with time. The Chinese woman sighed, leaning her back against the hallway wall with a defeated expression.
“He’s grown too much, Leon.”
“I know…”
“At this pace, he’ll be introducing a girlfriend and leaving the house for good soon…”
The man shook his head, putting the bag on the side table and gently pulling his wife into his arms, kissing her forehead.
“He’s always at her place. Was I that bad a mother?”
“Hey, you did a great job. But he’s an adult. The best thing we can do now is give him the space he needs to build his life. Besides…”
Loud tapping echoed down the hallway as Ming ran towards them, giggling and practically skipping.
“I’m readyyyy!”
Right. Bringing the little fury to school.
October 7th, 8pm
Even though he hadn’t been present when Rui was abducted all those years ago, seeing the aftermath in his and Ada’s lives had awoken a protective feeling in Leon’s chest, one that Ming’s birth had only reinforced. While he usually tempered Ada’s nervous ticks like checking locks or even checking in too often on their son, sometimes even he felt the dread invade him like a snake.
So when Rui didn’t come back at the time he had told Ada, doubt flickered in the father’s chest, even as most of their enemies had been slaughtered by the BSAA and the DSO over the years. He denied himself the right to panic, though, instead texting his son to ask if he had changed his mind and was sleeping another night at his friend’s place.
But by the time he heard Ada’s key in the front door and her heels clicking down the hallway, the message didn’t even read as delivered. The DSO operative didn’t immediately look at his wife, frowning. She didn’t need to ask. By her side, Ming looked confused, swimming bag clutched in her hands.
“Mommy, daddy?” Her voice was trembling. She had always felt shifts in the air and right now, there was a big one.
Leon turned to his daughter, kneeling in front of her despite the pain it caused him — hell, he really wasn’t twenty anymore.
“Ming, can you give us a minute? You can go play in your bedroom for a bit.”
She nodded quietly, putting her schoolbag and swimming bag on the shelf before running to her room under her mother’s protective glance. The ex-mercenary turned around, meeting her husband’s gaze as he stood up, and she immediately sunk into his arms, heaving a long sigh.
“Something is wrong, isn’t it?… He never comes home later than planned…” She murmured against his shoulder, voice breaking slightly with a sob she refused to let out.
“We don’t know that…” He tried to rationalise, meeting her gaze and cupping both of her cheeks. “I know who he hangs out with, I’m sure we can find out. Maybe he simply stayed there another night. And if he didn’t, his friend will probably tell us what she knows.”
She nodded shakily, pulling away to wipe the tears that had rolled down her cheeks in a desperate attempt to appear composed, even as anxiety took over her. Leon pulled out his phone, scrolling down his repertory until his finger landed on the number he was looking for. It took barely one tone after he dialled it to hear the warm voice on the other side.
“Ayyy, amigo! It’s been a while!” Luis exclaimed joyfully, the clatter of dishes audible behind him. “What’s up?”
“Hey Luis. Is… Rui with you?”
The pause after his question felt all too long, too heavy, almost final. He could faintly hear the Spaniard dry his hands on a cloth and step out of the room he was in, his voice dropping slightly.
“No he isn’t here. But it’s funny you ask. Sylvia’s roommate told me she go back to her dorm either and she isn’t returning any of my calls.”
Even though Ada couldn’t hear the conversation on Leon’s phone, call it motherly instincts maybe, she immediately lifted her head, meeting her husband’s gaze. Both unresponding. Both missing. Again.
“Could they be out together? You know, university life is wild, maybe they’re enjoying themselves.”
The question seemed to sting the Spaniard more than his friend expected, the tone in his reply almost bitter and filled with resentment.
“She wouldn’t. Sylvia spends most of her time here with us, ever since Nova got sick. That T-virus thing, like the other survivors.”
Leon felt more than saw the way his wife flinched at the news. They hadn’t known, hadn’t asked, really. Too caught up with work, with raising Ming, to catch up. Too classical.
“Leon… If this is starting again… We need to find them.” Luis urged, his voice softening slightly.
They were all the same. Terrified parents, sick parents.The couple exchanged a glance before the DSO agent nodded, sighing. The nightmare was back, and a short glance at his wife made him scared for more than just their son.
Can she really handle it all over again?…