The city lights blurred as Swayam drove, gripping the steering wheel with white-knuckled intensity. Kira lay in his arms, pale and still, blood seeping through the torn tactical suit on her shoulder. Her breathing was shallow, but she was alive—and that was all that mattered.
Every honk, every pedestrian, every flicker of streetlight felt amplified. Time itself seemed slower, stretching painfully with each heartbeat.
He ignored the sirens of distant vehicles, weaving through the streets with precision, calculation, and a single unyielding purpose: get her to the hospital.
Her comm, still clipped to her suit, crackled faintly with static, but he didn't answer. Words would do nothing. Action was all that mattered.
By the time he skidded into the hospital parking lot, adrenaline had drained much of the exhaustion from his limbs, but concern gnawed at him in ways he hadn't expected.
He carried her through the sliding doors, ignoring questions, security, and stares. Doctors and nurses followed his movements, alarmed by the sudden arrival of a severely injured patient.
"Emergency! Trauma unit!" he barked, his voice low, controlled, yet laced with urgency.
Inside, the team moved like a well-oiled machine. Stretchers, monitors, and a flurry of medical staff. Swayam followed closely, his eyes never leaving Agent 01's masked face.
Finally, they reached the ICU. Doctors whisked her inside, and Swayam stayed just outside the doors, his arms still tense as if letting go would somehow undo everything.
It wasn't long before the rest of her team arrived—Arav, Purvi, Neha, Rohan, and the others—faces pale, breaths uneven, eyes wide with fear and concern.
"She's alive?" Purvi asked first, her voice barely above a whisper.
Swayam didn't answer immediately, his eyes fixed on the closed ICU door. "She's stable," he said finally, his tone clipped, but carrying more weight than he realized.
Arav exhaled sharply. "We should've been here—"
"No," Swayam interrupted, voice low, almost warning. "She's in good hands now. Let the doctors do their job."
Neha and Rohan exchanged glances, worry etched deep across their faces. None of them had ever seen Swayam like this—silent, controlled, but every inch of him taut with concern.
Hours stretched slowly. Outside the ICU, the team waited in tense silence. Every footstep, every muffled beep from the machines inside, set their hearts racing.
Swayam remained near the door, a shadow among shadows. He hadn't spoken more than necessary, yet his presence radiated something none of them could ignore: unwavering vigilance.
The mission, the explosion, the near-death moments—they all seemed to fade in comparison to this one truth: Agent 01's life now rested in the hands of strangers, and Swayam would do anything to ensure she survived.
Even if it meant standing alone outside the ICU, holding back the torrent of emotions threatening to break through.
And as night deepened, the waiting stretched, everyone silently praying that the woman who had risked everything… would wake again.
The ICU lights glimmered softly in the sterile night. Machines beeped steadily, a calm rhythm in contrast to the chaos that had preceded it.
Inside, Agent 01's eyelids fluttered. Slowly, deliberately, she woke. Her first breaths were shallow, tentative, as though the world itself had to remind her she was still alive.
Outside, Swayam paced restlessly, his jaw tight, fingers curling into fists. Hours had passed, but the weight of the wait was unbearable. Every moment she remained unconscious, every second spent staring at the sterile doors, felt like a countdown he couldn't control.
Then, the ICU doors opened. Arav, Purvi, Neha, and Rohan stepped out, their expressions unreadable, but firm.
"She's awake," Purvi said softly.
Swayam moved forward instinctively. "Let me see her. I—"
"No," Arav interrupted, his tone sharp. "You and your team—stay back. We'll handle her from here."
Swayam's brow furrowed, incredulous. "I brought her here! I—"
"You did your part," Neha interjected, stepping closer. "Now she needs rest, treatment, and care. That's what we're here for. You're not helping by crowding her."
Rohan's arms crossed, gaze steady. "Go. Get some rest. We'll take it from here."
Swayam's fists loosened slightly, but the tension didn't leave him. He swallowed hard, trying to mask the frustration bubbling inside. He wanted to storm past them, demand to be let in, to see that she was truly okay—but he didn't.
Because deep down, he knew they were right. For now, she needed them more than she needed him.
He glanced back at his own team, who stood silently behind him, eyes reflecting the same frustration, the same helplessness. None of them spoke. Words would do nothing.
"Fine," Swayam muttered finally, voice low. "But if anything happens—"
"Nothing will," Arav interrupted, firm. "Go."
Reluctantly, Swayam turned and walked away, each step heavy, each heartbeat echoing with the unease he couldn't shake. Outside, he leaned against the hospital wall, staring at the faint glow of the ICU lights, replaying every moment—the explosion, her injury, her unwavering will.
He couldn't help the twist in his chest, the frustration mixed with something deeper, sharper. He had saved her. He had carried her to safety. And yet now, he was forced to stand outside, powerless.
Inside, Agent 01's eyes opened fully, taking in the white ceiling, the steady beeping of the monitors. Her mind, even foggy with pain, flickered to him—Swayam, standing somewhere beyond the doors, the one who had risked everything for her.
Her lips curved faintly into a knowing, almost teasing smile, despite the ache in her shoulder. Even unconscious, her bond with him remained unbroken, unspoken.
And outside, Swayam's frustration simmered, a storm waiting to ignite the moment he could be near her again.
The van rolled silently through the dark streets, the city lights reflecting off the rain-slicked windows. Inside, Swayam sat motionless, staring out at the blur of passing lights.
The mission had ended, the warehouses destroyed, the gang crippled—but victory felt hollow. Agent 01 was alive, yes, but her team had barred him from seeing her. She was in their care, safe for now, yet that fact didn't ease the tight knot in his chest.
His mind shifted, almost unwillingly, to Siya. The memory of her laughter, her warmth, her unyielding curiosity, tugged at him relentlessly. He had left her the night before, frustrated and silent, unable to reconcile his feelings, confused by her midnight meeting with the unknown figure.
Two people, two connections—both impossible in their own ways. Agent 01 had risked herself for him, her determination searing through the smoke of the explosion. Siya had opened her home, her heart, letting him glimpse a family he had never known, giving him a warmth he couldn't name.
Swayam's jaw tightened as he leaned back in his seat. I can't lose either of them. And yet… how do I even begin to manage this?
He closed his eyes briefly, the van humming beneath him. The base loomed ahead, dark and quiet, a stark contrast to the fire and chaos he had left behind.
When the van stopped, Swayam stepped out, stretching the tension from his muscles. Inside, his team waited, efficient as always, already analyzing mission debriefs, plans for the next operation.
"Status report?" Rahul asked.
Swayam shook his head, voice low. "Everything executed. Warehouses destroyed. Extraction successful. No loose ends, for now."
The team nodded, but their eyes lingered on him. He didn't offer more, didn't want to. His mind was elsewhere—floating between two women he couldn't stop thinking about, each pull tugging him in opposite directions.
He moved to the observation deck, looking out over the city skyline. Lights flickered in the distance, indifferent to human struggles. He ran a hand over his face, closing his eyes, trying to sort through the storm inside.
Agent 01—so relentless, so unyielding, yet human beneath it all.
Siya—so bright, so innocent, yet full of courage he hadn't expected.
Swayam exhaled slowly. I can't let either of them down. But how do I… even begin to balance this?
The night stretched before him, quiet, almost suffocating. Outside, the city breathed, alive and unaware. Inside, Swayam stood alone, trapped between loyalty, longing, and the weight of secrets he hadn't yet shared with anyone.
And for the first time in a long time, the cold, ruthless agent found himself wrestling with something he couldn't control—matters of the heart.
A week had passed. Seven days of missions, briefings, and endless analysis, but two things gnawed at Swayam more than any danger he had faced: silence from Siya, and no word from Agent 01.
The base hummed with activity as he finished the latest debrief. Orders, updates, surveillance—everything demanded attention—but his mind was elsewhere. Every spare moment, every idle thought, drifted to the two people he could not stop thinking about.
He decided to act. First, Siya.
The streets were familiar, and her home stood quiet, almost too still in the mid-afternoon light. He knocked at the door firmly. The familiar scent of her home reached him before the door opened, but the warmth of the space did little to soothe the tension coiling inside him.
Her mother appeared, smiling faintly but clearly cautious.
"Hello… Swayam," she said, voice tinged with worry. "Is everything alright?"
Swayam's jaw tightened. "Where is Siya?"
Her mother glanced behind her, then lowered her voice. "She… went on a college trip. We don't know when she'll be back. Don't worry—she's safe."
Swayam nodded curtly, masking the disappointment twisting his gut. He wanted to ask more—wanting to know every detail—but he didn't. He had learned long ago that pressing sometimes did more harm than good.
He left without another word, the chill of unanswered questions following him like a shadow.
Next, Agent 01.
He tried the comms, messages, even requesting access to see her, but her team was impenetrable. Arav, Purvi, Neha, and Rohan—each refused to allow him near her.
"She's resting. She needs time. Don't disturb her," Arav's voice had said firmly over the secure line.
Swayam had clenched his fists in frustration. Resting. Safe. Protected. But not for me to see. The words twisted in his mind, a bitter reminder of how little control he had outside the field.
He leaned against the wall in the empty corridor of the base, breathing heavily. The week had passed, but the absence of both women had created a tension he couldn't shake.
Siya… Agent 01… he muttered under his breath. Why do I feel like the world's keeping them both from me?
Outside, the night pressed in, and the hum of the base felt heavier. Swayam's thoughts churned, mixing frustration, longing, and unease.
He couldn't reach them, couldn't see them, and yet—he could not stop thinking about them.
And deep down, he realized with a knot in his chest: the next time he saw either of them, everything might change.
The silence stretched around him like a warning. Something was coming. Something that would force him to confront not just his mission, but the tangled web of emotions he had been trying so hard to ignore.
A week of absence, of waiting, had passed—but the storm inside Swayam had only just begun.