It was a loud kind of silence. Tamara almost missed the constant humming of the Tower's fluorescent tubes, she had forgotten that light was meant to be quiet. Only every once in a while the light bulb hanging from the ceiling flickered briefly before resuming its flow of electricity.

I should be excited, she thought, I'm actually going to get out.

She was not very excited.

Somehow, the promise of freedom left her stomach uncomfortably twisted. If Milano's unusual optimism was to be trusted, she would walk out of the building an actual, existing, legal citizen of the Nation. And then what?

All her life Tamara had never expected to ever be out in public unaccompanied, and in less than a year this safe yet suffocating idea had evaporated.

She shot an unsure glance over at Milano. The team leader appeared as lost in thought as Tamara was (which was an unusual sight for her), leaning back in the thinly padded chair with his eyes resting tiredly on a point far behind the opposing wall. For a moment she wondered what he was thinking about.

"What are you gonna do now that the base is gone?"

Milano blinked in confusion before snapping back to reality. He didn't answer immediately.

"Well, since the contract states that my duty is completed either after three years or 'if the Nation deems the checkpoint compromised', it looks like I'll start sniper training a year earlier than I'd planned." He chuckled.

Even though Tamara knew it shouldn't surprise her, she felt a sudden sting in her chest thinking about how this man seemed adamant on playing a part in this whole mess.

"So you're gonna be asharp shooter a few months from now, huh?"

Milano nodded absently, "Most likely".

"Don't you... want to go home? You know, after everything-"

The faintest sound of laughter escaped the soldier's throat. It was a bitter one.

"You tell me."

Tamara hezitated. The last thing she wanted was to strike a nerve and part with this man on bad terms, not when she had put in so much effort to gain his respect.

"I made a decision long before I joined. And I'm intending to see it through. I'd be an idiot to quit now."

Milano rose from his chair with a sigh. Calmly – tiredly – he made his way over to the lone glass door, straightened his back and proceeded to watch the ever black pine forest stretching out under the equally dark sky. His hands were fixed neatly behind his back. Force of habit, Tamara reckoned, he really is cut out for this.

"What about you?", heasked dryly, without turning around.

No coherent words would form in Tamara's throat. It was hard enough just thinking about this question.

"I-"

She was interrupted by the motion of Milano's hand signaling her to come over. Wordlessly, Tamara followed.

She took her place beside him and joined him at staring into the night, wondering what the hell this was supposed to be about.

"What do you see?", Milano asked.

Must be a trick question. Tamara squinted as she tried to make out anything as interesting as the silhouette of a pine tree, but with her eyes adjusted to the bright light of the room the best she could do was estimate where the horizon separated land from sky.

"Nothing", she answered truthfully. Something inside her told her that this wasn't the time for sarcasm.

She flinched barely noticeable when she heard Milano suddenly move next to her.

Tamara watched as the soldier – in his usual, orderly manner – pulled down the zipper of his uniform's jacket, freed his upper body from it and before she had a chance to resist, gently placed it it on her shoulders.

Her back needed a moment to adapt to the unfamiliar weight (and for a moment Tamara felt a faint sting in her right shoulder), yet she couldn't help but find comfort in the pleasant warmth washing ove  rher.

"How about now?"

Now, she was truly speechless. Where she had previously searched the nothing behind the glass door, a girl was staring back at her – a short girl with big, surprised eyes in an over-sized military uniform, just a few feet across from her, next to a blond man sporting an expression she wasn't sure she'd ever seen on him before, one she could only interpret as... smug satisfaction?

Before, Tamara had not even noticed their reflection in the glass, nearly a sclear as a mirror, and no matter how hard she tried, she could not force her eyes to look through it again.

"Just as I thought", Milano grinned, "looks good on you."

A few heartbeats passed, and when she still hadn't responded, he added (in a more sincere tone of voice): "What do you think?"

"You'rekidding", Tamara said, half laughing, as she struggled to grasp what this man was implying.

"I can't-"

"Why not?"

"I'm a woman."

"They don't issue passports with inability certificates anymore."

"I'm like... barely five feet tall!"

"Think the final exam is a basketball game?"

"Well, maybe I don't want to!"

"That's that, then."

Tamara opened her mouth, ready to fire back with another argument. She hadn't expected Milano to give in so quickly.

"I don't want to",that's how simple it could be. All she had to do was say "No thanks, I'm good", and nobody, not even this idiot soldier with an apparent death wish, would be able to do anything about it.

Then why isn't it that simple?

The girl in the mirror seemed as puzzled as she was.

"Who would even want me on their team?"

Milano's smile changed ever so slightly.

"I can think of a guy."

(Okay ignore that in the picture it's a mirror instead of a door; I doodled this concept sketch WAY before I knew what the scene was going to look like haha. Have some edgy power fantasy for a midnight snack tonight.)