They weren't alone.

The realization made Senna's heart drop to the pits of hell. Her blood froze and she didn't even dare to breathe as she listened. It's been a little over five hours since König's been asleep and Senna kept a careful watch over everything. She made sure her loaded rifle lay in close reach as the woman rested her back against the wall.

To stop herself from falling asleep mid-duty, Senna read from the poem book she kept with herself as a break from all the work. She was supposed to make sure nothing could ambush them or come even close to hurting them. She didn't plan on moving from her spot till sunrise, making sure he got a few more hours of sleep.

But as Senna's hand flew towards her rifle, fear making blood drain from her face, she knew this wasn't going to be an easy night. The woman held her breath back as she listened for any noise: she wasn't sure if it wasn't only her mind playing tricks on her. She was awake for too long and she had suffered too much in the past few days, so it could be just her delusions. Projecting the horrific ghosts of her mind into the real world.

She held her breath for so long her lungs started to hurt and she started to feel light-headed when she heard it again. There was a faint metallic sound emitting from below, and now the woman was sure it wasn't just in her head. She wasn't crazy.

I'm not crazy.

The realization that it wasn't in her head made her hand shake. Because it meant that whatever was down there making noise; it was real. And she had to face it. Which was so much scarier than admitting she lost her mind. That meant there was a real threat waiting for her. For them.

Senna darted forward and killed the light that kept her company throughout the night. Darkness fell over the room, stealing her breath and making her chest squeeze painfully. The woman pressed a hand over her mouth to stop a whimper from coming out, eyes already tearing up. The darkness and distress brought forward the memories of the night before, the night when everything went to shit. Dread pressed against her chest, her lungs incapable of getting enough air into her lungs.

In her most desperate attempt to get a grip on her sanity, Senna got on her feet, and with the agility of a cat, she approached the sleeping figure on the other side of the room. Even with the darkness and shadows wrapping around her like a cold, slimy hug, the woman made sure to avoid the creaky spots on the floorboards. Her breathing was shallow and quiet, and she almost lost her balance near the steps.

The brunette approached König's sleeping form, lying in the same spot for hours now. Rapidly blinking, she tried to make her eyes adjust to the dark as fast as possible. Senna got on her knees right next to him, and she reached a tentative hand towards him before she pulled it back. Embarrassment made her cheeks flush as she lowered herself to her heels, contemplating whether she was really doing this. This whole ordeal felt ridiculous and she was acting like she wasn't a trained soldier.

But on the other side, she was scared. She was terrified it was the remaining Shadow coming back for revenge. No matter how badly she wanted to be the person Farah would be proud of, she just couldn't. Not right now.

"König?" Senna's voice was barely a whisper, so the fact that he didn't even move wasn't that much of a surprise.

Letting out a shaky breath, Senna raised her hand again and leaned over, putting a hand on his shoulder. She just didn't expect him to react so suddenly.

With the speed of light, König's hand that was under his head just a moment before now flew towards her. It was only thanks to her reflexes that she was able to get a hold of his arm and slam it down on the ground. She had to tip her whole body weight on him to keep him down, the sheer amount of his strength making panic rise inside her. Her grip on his right arm tightened, pinning his arm above his head as her knee pushed his upper body down, eyes widened with fear.

The threatening glint of his knife winked at her maliciously, still clutched in his right hand. Maybe a moment of hesitation and her crimson blood would be dripping from that very blade.

"Calm down and stay quiet!" she hissed at him, the blood buzzing in her veins making her ears ring. Her tongue felt too heavy to utter out any more words.

Their faces were only a few inches apart, her wide dark eyes staring right into his. Both of their chests rose and fell rapidly, breathing labored and adrenaline buzzing in their veins. The end of her braided hair brushed against König's chest, slightly moving back and forth between them as they stared at each other. König's bright eyes flickered between hers, realization making them shine brighter.

With a soft thud, he let his knife fall on the floor as he stared up at the woman above him. Suddenly, he became hyper-aware of the fact that half of her body was pressing against him. A shaky breath escaped his lips as he tried to put some distance between them, needing some air to regulate his thoughts.

He almost just killed her.

Noticing the small shift in his eyes, Senna loosened the grip on his arm that got pinned above his head and pulled away slightly. But she remained close enough to be able to whisper the words that made a chill run down his spine.

"There's someone here."

There was no need for any more words. What was spoken was more than enough, and both of them knew they were running out of time.

König didn't hesitate to jump from the floor and snatch his shotgun. Barely glancing down, he loaded a few rounds and snatched back the knife he dropped before. Meanwhile, Senna remained in her previous spot and stared up at him. She wasn't even aware how her whole body shook and König decided not to comment on it.

"Stay here," his soft voice reached her ears as he was already heading towards the stairs.

Senna frowned at him, even though there was no way for him to see it. She wasn't some damsel in distress. There was no way she would stick behind like a coward. The last thing she wanted to be was a burden on his back. She wasn't about to play the broken girl role, that's for sure.

"Dream on, asal," Honey, the woman muttered as she got up from the floor, snatching her handgun as she followed him.

König had a few precious seconds ahead of her, and she tried not to curse under her breath as she followed him down the shitty staircase. No matter her best efforts to stay quiet, the abysmal structure groaned under her with every step she took. She had no idea how the 6'10 man managed to go down like a wraith with basically no sound at all. It amazed and terrified her at the same time. Just like the fact he managed to navigate himself through the pitch black like nothing.

Since she didn't want to blow her cover, she didn't bring a light with her. That decision made her pace much slower and she felt like having a gun on her was pointless at this point. She could barely see the moonlight shine through the narrow windows downstairs, there was no way she could shoot whoever broke in.

König's name burned the tip of her tongue like the flick of flames, but as she tried to swallow it, it burned the same way down to the pit of her stomach. Tightening the grip on her pistol, her slow steps carried her along the wall on her left, wide eyes searching for any movement.

It took her a few seconds to notice a huge looming shadow standing in the middle of the bottomless abyss.

Senna jumped and aimed her gun at the figure, holding her breath as she watched it move towards her.

"It was just a dog," König's smooth voice reached through the darkness, making the bricks that pressed against her chest vanish. Letting out a shaky breath, Senna lowered her arm and looked up at where she assumed his face was.

"How can you see so well in the dark?" the question slipped from her tongue, tiredness and adrenaline making her filter vanish completely.

With a low chuckle, he reached up and moved something on his head. Her eyebrows furrowed in confusion up until he stepped into the small sliver of moonlight that managed to reach through the window. Senna scoffed at the sight of night vision goggles, not believing that she didn't even think about grabbing her own before coming down. It would've been the thing deciding her fate if it ever came to fighting in the dark again. She made a mental note to not forget it the next time.

As the promise of a real threat was gone, Senna felt her body relax for once. She let her eyes rest on his form, the man who looked like a true nightmare standing right in front of her yet she couldn't help but smile. Especially as she noticed the careless way he threw his shotgun over his shoulder, the weapon resting on his broad shoulder like that was its natural place.

" I'm sorry. For waking you up," Senna averted her gaze, her face flushing. She felt stupid for crying wolf for nothing, disturbing the man for no apparent reason. She was scared of basically everything at this point, which was embarrassing.

"Don't be," he shook his head, but there was nothing he could say to make her embarrassment go away. "It was time to switch, anyways."

It took a second for the woman to catch on, only nodding at his statement. Then she remembered that he probably didn't see it due to the dark, so she cleared her throat and tried to swallow the need to argue about it.

She was exhausted and she felt like she was going insane from sleep deprivation at this point. There was no use of her if she was out of her mind.

"Probably a good idea," Senna voiced her thoughts before heading back upstairs.

Stumbling around the place, she was finally able to reach her lamp and turn it on. The sudden light, even though soft, became blinding for a few good seconds. The woman shielded her eyes as she cleaned up her space a little, getting more tired with every passing second. She was barely aware of the fact that König joined her a minute later, not that she cared too much. All she wanted to do was sleep.

The two of them got comfortable in the warm silence that wrapped around the upper level. König suggested for them to switch places, but Senna was adamant about sleeping next to her light. She didn't have to explain why exactly; he wasn't stupid. So, the man chose to stay quiet and not comment on it.

He knew the signs of PTSD, he saw it more than enough in his field of work. And he knew it was best not to comment on things, that would just make everything worse. If she wanted to talk about it, she will. That much was clear. The few days he had the pleasure of getting to know Senna Hakim made it clear that she was a woman of words. She wasn't afraid to voice her opinion, she liked to spark conversations and was always ready for a good chat.

The silent woman who rolled into a ball and didn't manage to get an ounce of sleep even though she almost collapsed from exhaustion in front of him before was a shadow of the Senna he knew. It hurts to watch someone fall apart like this.

For a good ten minutes, he occupied himself with studying the maps he was working on hours before. He noticed the small changes like Senna's added notes and small drawings, her delicate handwriting a nice contrast against his harsh ones. The man tried to be as quiet as possible, but even after fifteen minutes, she was still awake.

Glancing above his map, his eyes zeroed in on her small figure, her eyes empty and tired as they stared ahead. As he watched the woman in front of him, there was no sign of the cheery and confident one that greeted him at the airport. It made his heart squeeze.

"Do you want to talk about it?" König offered with a soft voice, not wanting to startle her too badly.

Senna's dark eyes moved to look at him, not moving an inch from her position. She was lying on her side, using her right arm as a pillow and with a jacket thrown over her legs as a blanket. It was a warm night but he could still see her body shake ever so slightly.

The woman averted her gaze, looking straight into the darkness that lay on the other side of the room, waiting and stretching towards them. When she spoke, all strength had left her words and only left behind a broken tone.

"Whenever I close my eyes, I see him."

König shifted in his seat, folding the corner of his map between his fingers. He didn't need to ask who she was talking about. He knew the feeling too well – pretending like everything was fine after losing someone. The only problem in this situation was that he wasn't a man of words like she was. He struggled to find the right ones, to say out loud what's inside his head. What his heart wanted to say.

In a normal world and if they were normal people, he would go over to her, wrap an arm around her shoulder, and say that everything will be okay. That things will get better, even if it doesn't seem like it right now.

But this wasn't a normal world and they weren't normal people. They were soldiers technically classed as war criminals trying to survive in the desert. And the thing inside his head, one of his greatest enemies labeled as social anxiety – at least a therapist said that to him a few years ago – clamped a strong hand around his throat, making sure nothing could come out. Nothing he would actually want to say.

"I know things will get better," Senna continued, her voice barely above a whisper as she stared at a crack in the floor. "I know it'll get easier with time. I just can't pretend like I'm fine anymore. He was my best friend and I couldn't do a damn thing to protect him. And it fucking hurts."

Her quiet sniffles were the only noise in the house, and the man watched with sorrow pressing against his chest, not having any idea what to do. König had no clue how to deal with a crying woman who just lost her best friend in such a horrific way. So, he did what he did best: listened to everything she had to say.

"I think what hurts most is that he died alone," Senna continued, wiping away a tear from the corner of her eye. "I wasn't there to hold his hand. I wasn't there to give him comfort. And I'll never forgive myself for that."

You can't blame yourself, he wanted to say. You couldn't have done anything about it. He already opened his mouth to finally say his thoughts out loud for her to hear, even if she didn't really need them. But she was faster, per usual. She always managed to say something before he could.

König wasn't mad about it, though. It seemed like he didn't even need to say what was on his mind, she just knew. She grabbed the words right from the tip of his tongue and set them free without the scorching burn of his anxiety. It was almost scary how she could predict what he wanted to say, but in times like this, it was a blessing.

"I know that look," a small smile stretched across her lips, her eyes staring right into his. "I shouldn't blame myself, right?"

A smile tugged at the corner of his mouth, shaking his head slightly at the absurdity. No matter how hard he tried to hide under his disguise, Senna seemed to see right into his head. He fixed his eyes at his hands which still fiddled with the edge of the map in his lap. Taking control of his hands, he smoothed the paper back out, eyes tracing the small creases he created.

"I didn't mean to scare you."

"What do you mean?" König tilted his head to the left, looking back at the woman. She adjusted her position, trying to find a more comfortable position.

"Before, when I woke you," Senna frowned a little, her cheeks turning a shade darker at the memory. She couldn't tell, but he did the same. "That was probably triggering."

The memory of the Shadow trying to slit his throat in his sleep resurfaced but vanished with a single blink. It wasn't a great memory and he became much more cautious when sleeping, but that wasn't that bad. Being more aware of his surroundings even when sleeping wasn't a useless skill in this field of work.

"It's fine. You did the right thing," the man shrugged his shoulder, easing into a more comfortable position next to the wall. "You should get some sleep."

A second of silence followed after his suggestion, Senna's eyes still hanging on him. Like she wanted to say more, ask about more. It took some courage for her to ask the next thing.

"Could you read something to me?"

König's breath hitched in his throat, the steady pumping of his heart getting louder in his ears. He pursed his lips together, trying to think of something of an answer.

"Or just talk," Senna blurted out, sensing the tension in him. She didn't mean to make him uneasy. "Or you can continue to work, just a little more louder? The silence is making everything worse."

With every word, her tone got more and more softer and unsure, turning into barely a whisper in the end. Her cheeks turned darker out of embarrassment because it was such an odd request, one she was ready to take back and jump out the window to escape.

"S-sure," König replied, the word feeling foreign on his tongue. His brain was running a thousand miles a minute. "What do you want me to read?"

A breath of relief slipped through her lips, her entire body relaxing at his words. A grateful smile appeared on the woman's face, eyes saying 'thank you' in a way a hundred words couldn't.

"Anything, really."

So that's what he did. König fished out his copy of Draußen vor der Tür by Wolfgang Borchert and opened it where he left off. He started it on his way to Urzikstan and hasn't touched it since, mostly because he was busy trying to survive. But it was a fine piece of literature, one that he could somewhat relate to in some aspects.

He started reading out loud to her, keeping his voice soft as his feet tapped a steady repetitive rhythm against the floor unconsciously. Firstly, he stumbled over his words a little, but after a few minutes, the soldier found comfort in his native language's words, the sense of familiarity slowing his heartbeat down.

Senna drifted off to sleep to the steady rhythm of his boots and his soft voice, the German words rolling off his tongue smoothly. König continued to read until the first rays of sunshine reached through the top window, his eyes flicking to the sleeping figure of the woman from time to time.

_________________________________

another update within a week? im amazing

there was not much happening here either but the two of them are starting to build a relationship. i love them sm

i hope you guys are not sick of senna yet. i know most fmc's are badass and immortal in this fandom, but i wanted to make it realistic. getting over a loved ones death is difficult and traumatic, no matter what circumstance. everybody deals with death differently so just please be patient.

i'd love to hear your thoughts about the story so far! or just tell me about your day, whatever you want xx