dark corners of the cruel world▪mitch rapp

♧ istanbul ♧

In the next four days, Alexa trained for 6 hours a day, completely redefining her current physical state, and getting herself back on form. It was difficult to get back on track considering the countless slip-ups she has had over the past few years since she fled Hurley's boot camp and left everything she has known behind. The slip-ups varied in severity, be it several consecutive day-long benders or countless men she has slept with, or depressive episodes that spanned everywhere between three days to six weeks- her slip-ups were not far and few in between.

Everything went to hell once Ronnie went running into that trap. He was genuinely like her other half ever since they met during their training. With him, nothing was ever as serious as everyone made it out to be. Except being better assassins. That was something they took seriously; something that defined who they were. It was like a secret, unspoken competition, always trying to gain an advantage over each other in training and in the vast variety of ways they could get on Hurley's nerves. In the end, it was why Alexa blamed herself for Ronnie's death.

Now she couldn't help but feel like she was a part of the cause behind Ronnie's risky, vengeful acts. Stealing plutonium wasn't something she would expect of him, but it wasn't something that entirely surprised her. She knew him the best, which is why she knew that once he was fueled by pure rage and bitterness- nothing could stand in his way.

"Alexa?" Hurley's voice interrupted her train of thought. "Alexa."

She turned her gaze away from the window to look at him in the passenger seat in front of her. "Yes, I'm listening."

"You're with Rapp- our eyes on. Viktor you're with me," Hurley commanded, "We got 48 hours."

She looked at Rapp just as she felt his gaze on her. She gave him one of her wicked smiles, "Better make it quick and clean."

***

The day was hot and humid, a typical summer day for the Turkish climate. Istanbul's streets were bustling with tourists, supplying a perfect cover for two assassins from America. They were ordered to sit still and look as ordinary as they could, although Rapp's clenched jaw and murderous glare could've given them away ages ago if their targets knew to look.

Alexa looped her arm around his, forcing a smile onto her face. He didn't even realize she was touching him until she spoke. "You know, Rapp, seeing as this is your first time in Istanbul you could at least attempt to appreciate the experience."

The murderous glare was now redirected towards her, but she kept her eyes on the target. "And if you knew how to stop screwing around, maybe I would relax," he snarled at her, making her blood pressure spike up from the audacity he had.

"Sweetie," she put her head on his shoulder, "I never screw around during a mission. Now stop being a testosterone-driven airhead and calm down. We don't want to blow our cover because of your inability to control yourself."

Rapp grumbled and took in a deep breath and just as she thought he was going to take her advice; he gently shook off her arm from under his and stood up. "I'll be right back."

"Where do you think you're going?" she said, but he was already halfway across the street, approaching Sharif's assistant in a couple of determined strides. She wanted to rip his guts out at once, but just as her fight or flight reflex kicked in, Rapp bumped into Kamil and the two exchanged a couple of heated words before walking in opposite directions.

"Idiot," she muttered under her breath and collected herself before heading in the same direction Rapp walked off in. She quickened her pace as she saw him make a turn into a small side alley between two buildings. "What do you think you're doing? We are supposed to keep an eye on that scumbag and you just-"

She shut up as soon as he held up a phone right in front of her face. "Surprise."

***

She stared at the yellow tiles in front of her. They were almost glowing in the semi-darkness of the small bathroom while the icy water supplied her only the comfort of the stinging cold on her back. It was better to empty her mind, to not think of the shitshow waiting on the outside of those yellow tiled walls for just a moment. When did she lose her assassin's skills? It used to be only tunnel vision- get out on the field, complete the mission, and wrap it up. It was that simple. She thought she still had it in her after the years she spent away, but something changed. Ronnie died; she couldn't pretend that was not it. Although- his return from the dead was another undeniably challenging factor that kept throwing her off repeatedly. Her mind kept going back in circles, first the blame, then resentment, rage, emptiness, and finally- the stinging feeling in her chest that made her want to dig through it with her army knife.

Yet now there was another factor- the infernal, son of a bitch Rapp. As if she did not have enough on her mind, Hurley had to throw that incompetent pest in the mix. Pair her up with him on a mission as if they were doing a mindless group project.

A knock on the bathroom door brought her back from the trance.

"Yes?" she called out, turning off the shower to hear the person on the outside.

"Alexa you've been in the shower for an hour. Can you do me a favor and get out?" the pest yelled out.

"No," she yelled back, "You can piss behind the house."

She could hear his head thump gently against the door. "Please? I want to shower as well so I can sleep soon." He sounded helpless, exhausted from all the debilitating insults and scolding he received from Hurley earlier that evening.

Although she appreciated the peaceful approach from his end, she could not care less to return the favor. "Get lost, Rapp," she replied, turning the shower back on and closing her eyes as she felt the cold water cascade down her back once again.

However, the peaceful oblivion of the freezing shower didn't last long; she heard the door unlock and open a mere two minutes later. "What the-" she peered behind the shower curtain and saw Rapp starting to brush his teeth. The piece of shit picked the lock. "Rapp. Get out before I shove that toothbrush down your throat."

He made eye contact with her in the mirror and shook his head, calmly continuing with his dental hygiene.

"You're such a pain in the ass," she muttered, turned off the shower and got out onto the warm tiled floor. She made a point of not putting on a towel as she walked out of the bathroom. His gaze almost warmed her bare skin, the warmth gone only when she was completely dressed and facing his way once again.

Alexa joined Mitch back in the bathroom, quietly brushing her teeth as he was finishing. Instead of leaving the bathroom, he stepped away from the sink and took off his shirt, unbuckling his pants next.

"There's no warm water," she said once she spat out the toothpaste, making eye contact with, now completely naked, Rapp through the mirror, "I used it all up."

He smirked and clenched his jaw, "It's okay," leaning forward, closer to her ear, he said, "I need a cold shower anyway."

She hummed in response and continued brushing her teeth as he turned around and stepped into the shower. 

a/n: well. there ya go. the chapter's short and kinda useless, but i am currently avoiding studying for my exams and what better way to waste time than write this. anyway, y'all want smut next chapter?