This is why we can't have nice things/ Adler X Bell

CH.15' Free Bird

As I tied my boot laces, I drank out of the small, bottom rigged glass cup. I needed some liquid courage to make myself feel like I could let myself go for a while and talk to Adler about what I remembered. It was hard to remember the documents but with each day, it felt like they were coming closer to me. Sometimes I would blink and see things that were questionable, like red dots, blood, people. I wasn't sure in my own mind and it scared me.

I finished tying my boots and I grabbed my denim jacket off of the door hanger. My boots thudding across the floor, I heard the front door open.

"Bell!" Adler called out to me and I made my way to the front porch.

"Here." I smiled and stretched my arm out to his waist and he greeted me with a warm embrace.

"You're beautiful tonight." His eyes were soft and shining from the evening sun as the wind blew around us. It was quite humid for a hot summer night, the sun still blasting weak in the orange, yellow pale sky.

"Where you two lovebirds going?" Park asked with a laugh in her tone.

"Out." Adler almost snapped back at Helen, leaving both Helen and I stunned for a second. He sounded really pissed off and I wanted to know what had happened.

He grabbed my hand and we stumbled out off the wooden porch and into his pale sedan.

"Everything alright with you and Park?" I buckled my belt in while farrowing my eyebrow with a cigarette blowing in the car from Russell.

"Just fine," He breathed in and then started the car. "She got these files without me knowing and she doesn't know that I know she's got them." His eyes rolled for a second as he drove the car down the pathway hill.

The sky was absolutely breathtaking. Oranges, light purples, yellows and reds mixed in with each other softly, soft fluffy looking clouds lacing into each other.

The air was thin, the heat was immaculate and the feeling of Adlers hand on my leg was making me feel comfortable.

"Are you hungry?" He asked with a smile and those sunglasses blocking out the evening sun.

"I sure am," My hand rested on his and I wanted to speak my sentences but felt like I needed to hold off since I already had stuff to tell him. "Don't let that Park thing get you down, I'm sure you'll figure it out."

"I'm not too worried, Bell. I just want to spend tonight with you." His soft voicr trickled through my veins as I smiled whenever he held my hand tighter. This man was something else, a beautiful sculpted man whose scars told stories, those eyes were stars, and his blonde hair was ravishing.

My arm was rested up on the window of the car as the air flowed through my hair and my hand waved through the humidity. Life felt amazing. I had good people around me, Mason, Woods, I took a sigh of relief.

Hudson mentioned that pings were popping up around the country of Stitch being around, whether or not that was true, we weren't sure. It wasn't something we were worrying about but if it got closer, then I'd be redeployed somewhere else for the safety of myself and the team. I wasn't going to let it put me into a stressful position. It wouldn't be worth it in all fairness.

Before I drifted away from my thoughts, we were at a diner on the east side of Berlin. It was beautiful, cobble street and the diner sat at the end with a neon, circle sign. The large windows had the sky reflection, pin up ladies walked around the diner holding dark green trays with drinks and food lining them.

"I didn't know where else to go," Adler nervously laughed and his hand connected with his neck shyly. I didn't take him to be like that, but he's a surprising man. I chuckled and walked over to his tall figure and grabbed his hand. "I have another thing planned too."

My cheeks felt like they were burning up and my chest felt heavy. "It's cute. I like it." I muttered and leaned into his jacket. The smell of tobacco and oak infiltrated my nose making me scrunch and I kept by his side walking to the diner. I really felt good about this, about us. Maybe it would flourish into something beautiful. I hope so, I thought.

We casually strolled into the diner and got directed to a booth that already had cutlery and napkins waiting.

"What drinks can I get you started started?" A girl with beach blonde hair, pinned up with hair pins and a red and white spotty bandana, came up and stood beside me with a pen and paper. Her accent was southern for sure, definitely not from Berlin.

"Can I get a soda please?" I replied with a warming smile and she hummed while the pen glided across the white sheet of paper.

Adlers deep but calm voice spoke after, "Make that two please." It was silky.

The waiter went to get our drinks and we looked at each other with a smile.

"How are you feeling today? Mason said you've been doing well with the training again, and sniping." He appointed and I could see the movement of his legs under the table. Was Russell Adler nervous?

I nodded and scratched an itch on my arm. "I'm getting better. I'm not amazing again but I will be soon," I winked at him and then the waiter came with our drinks. "Thank you." I said, and Adler thanked her too.

"You'll get there, may take a while. Old debriefs from your files that I found say that you were the best out there. Every damn team wanted you." I let out a laugh and smirked at his comment.

"I wouldn't say that. I did get a lot of offers, but I can't remember much even about that."

We kept conversation going before it got deeper into what we were really here for and honestly I felt free for a while. I was afraid of him treating differently when I told him what I did remember because I didn't want that to happen with him.

The waiter came back, took our food orders, then scooted back off to the kitchen.

"I don't know, Ad. I wish I did properly, but nothing comes back to mind about the documents." I twiddled with the napkin in my hands and looked at him with a disappointed look. I didn't know what else to do and I felt beyond guilty that I couldn't remember the documents for him.

"It'll get easier with time. It's nothing I'm too worried about right now and although it would be good to have them, we can't change what happened," The man of many words smiled and sent me a lovey look. Soon enough our food arrived and we dug in. All the stress I'd endured that day was making me really hungry and Adler seemed to be the same.

He cleared his mouth before beginning to speak again, "Frank told me you knew your real name. Why don't you tell me everything you remember?" He stuck out his hand and made a welcoming gesture and I nodded in return.

"My name is Diana," His eyes widened and a soft smile appeared on his lips that I couldn't stop dreaming over and those blue eyes swept me away. "I knew I was a specialist in sniping," I continued talking and shrugged my shoulders at some of the things he already knew to my account. "I worked in London on and off and often came here for work that no one else knew about. I stayed on my own for years on end and always had been."

Food came unexpectedly and Adler smiled listening to every word I was speaking. It was an unspeakable aroma, comfortable, warm, loving almost. I couldn't help but break out into a grin.

"It sounds interesting. Do you want me to call you Diana?" Adler asked and started eating his food slowly.

"No, I'm comfortable with Bell. As far as I'm concerned, Diana died a long time ago." I spoke the last few words before digging into my own food.

I knew that Adler was always going to be there-well I sure did hope. I had hope, I had people around me that cared, a nice home, a good job. I was more than happy in my life and wanted it to stay that way.

I just needed information on the documents. ⁰⁵⁷¹³