Chapter Thirty Six

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Genji and I wanted to keep the whole pregnancy thing under wraps for now. Genji knew just how upset his family would be once they found out, since they were super strict about that kind of thing, but I knew that when I finally told my mother, she would be overjoyed.

But Hanzo was a hardass. He would probably try to kill Genji or something if he found out.

The only ones that knew at the moment were the two of us (obviously) and Kai and Pepper. We were all a tight group of friends, so there was no reason to keep it from them.

Kai seemed slightly dejected at first when I told him the news, but he was happy in the end, and wished me the best of luck with it. I had always assumed that he had moved on from his feelings for me in high school, but perhaps it still stung a little.

I wondered how I was going to balance all the work of my program on top of harboring another life, but knew it would all come into place on its own.

I was happy. Truly happy.

I danced up to the pot of soup I was cooking at the moment, spreading a pinch of salt throughout the steaming mess. It smelled like heaven already, reassuring me that I had definitely perfected the recipe.

I was balancing en pointe, humming to myself and spinning as I grabbed the necessary ingredients from the counter tops. When my belly got bigger, I wouldn't be able to dance like this anymore, so I had to make the most of the time I had.

"Smells good," Genji commented from the dining table. He was writing some kind of report for school, but was occasionally glancing up and sniffing the air as I cooked. Kind of like a dog.

I placed the lid on top of the pot to let it all simmer, and strode over to the dining table,sneaking underneath Genji's arm so I could sit in his lap. He laughed as I snuggled against his chest, peering down at the paper on the table.

"It'll be done soon. What're you working on?"

"Equations. Horribly difficult ones, too. And I can't think right now."

"And why is that?"

He grinned childishly at me, wrapping his arms around me, pulling me in closer to him. "Well, I've been thinking about what the baby's name is going to be!"

I chuckled, raising an eyebrow. I wrapped my arms around his neck, staring at his brown eyes that seemed to be bulging out of their sockets with excitement. "Don't you think it's a little early for that?"

He leaned closer, a small smile on his face. "No! So, what do you want to name it if it's a girl?!"

I thought about it for a second. What would I name her if she was a girl? There was literally an entire universe of possibilities to choose from. I shrugged. "Dunno. What would you n-"

"If it's a girl, how about Rosa?! Or... Akari?! Or maybe Juniper after my grandmother or something badass like Shinare or Matsuota-"

"Dude, chill!" I laughed, booping his nose with my finger. "We'll figure it out at some point, I promise."

He looked down with an exasperated sigh, running a hand through his hair briefly. "You're right. There's plenty of time."

I nodded affirmatively, and noticed that my pot of soup was boiling. I got off Genji's lap and reached for my ladle before plunging it in and stirring the contents a little it. I turned the heat off, and clapped my hands together, satisfied with my success.

I grabbed a bowl for myself and began shoveling huge spoonfuls into it, wanting to fill it to the top.

"All done!" I announced, half-expecting Genji to lurch out of his seat to immediately grab a bowl like the fatass that he was. "You can eat now!"

But he didn't. I heard nothing from him. Which was unusual, since he seemed like he really wanted something to eat.

I turned around, wondering what the issue was. And that's when I noticed that he was staring away from me, at the T.V. His eyes were glued to the screen.

I was about to make a joke about how I'd eat all the soup if he wasn't interested, but upon seeing the look on his face, and the way his skin had been drained of color, I held my tongue. Genji's playful mood had been replaced almost instantaneously.

I set down the bowl, feeling a cold, foreboding feeling creep up my spine. The last time I had watched T.V. with that kind of expression on my face, it was because of that terrorist group... Talon.

I thought of the lady with the purple/blue skin, the col expression on her face... and found myself wanting to know if the newscast was about her.

Wiping my hands on my apron, I turned around as well to see what it was that had gotten him so serious. When I saw what it was, my hand flew up to my mouth with horror.

There, on the news, was live footage of one of the biggest headquarters for the government of Japan, called the Akira, in flames. Pieces of rubble were breaking away from the main building and falling onto the concrete sidewalks below.

Though everyone on the streets, ragged and covered in soot, were trying to run away from the collapsing building, some of them were being completely crushed by the pieces of the building.

I cringed as I saw a young woman, terror in her eyes, trip and fall. Just as she tried to get up, a large shard of glass from the windows broke away and pierced her back graphically, ensuring that she wouldn't.

Genji and I looked at each other, mirroring the same expression of unease. "What the fuck..." Genji muttered.

"The attack, which was a devastating missile, that impacted just moments ago is believed to be the work of the terrorist group Talon, who will likely take responsibility for it soon," the newscaster announced, doing her best to keep her voice steady.

I spent a few more minutes watching the live footage of citizens struggling to escape. Listened to the sound of their blood-curling screams, the deafeningly loud sound of the building falling apart, the sound of the firefighters and police struggling to give orders. And I realized something.

The Akira building usually had a defense system, for instances just like this. A radar that would let them know of any incoming projectiles. It was part of my curriculum to know this stuff.

But officials sent out a report a few days ago to everyone working for the government, something about the defense system being under maintenance. It was scheduled that today would be the one day it wouldn't be up and running.

The one day that the defense system wouldn't be able to see anything coming.

There was no way Talon would be able to know that. Every report was classified to employees and students in the program only. So if they knew to attack today, that could only mean one thing.

I ran to my cellphone, hurriedly unlocking it and scrolling through my contacts. I was shaking, but not with fear... with anger. I finally found who I was looking for: my teacher, one of many certified strategists. If there was anyone who would think like I did, it was him.

Genji got up, noticing my abrupt and rushed movements. "What are you doing?"

"Calling my teacher. I have to see if everyone else knows."

The phone was dialing now, and I waited impatiently for him to pick up, tapping my foot anxiously.

"Knows what?"

I gritted my teeth and took in a breath, making eye contact with Genji's worried irises. "That Talon has someone on the inside."

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