THE BOSS AGENT

6. IT'S TIME.

Agent Eighteen's POV:

To say Ben's reaction was priceless would be an understatement of the decade. He got up, coughing water, his vision disoriented from the sudden wake-up call. He blinked at us who were gathered around him.

Alex and Liam burst out laughing as Meghan grins widely. I don't feel much of a concern for Ben right now cuz it feels like payback for what he has done to us.

"Ha...That's what you get to steal my food, and put eggs in my shoes," Liam doubles over and laughs harder.

Ben narrows his eyes with confusion clouding his mind. He turns and stares at all of us and then at his clothes drenched in water. Realization flashes in his eyes. The very next second, he jumps out of the bed and pounces on Liam. They both fall to the ground.

"I put eggs in your shoes and the next thing I see is you splash water in my sleep? That's not fair. I am supposed to be the prankster not the other way round," he points toward Liam.

One thing is clear, Ben prefers to prank all of us which I am not really a fan of. He even went to an extreme to fake his death last year. I wonder why he does this. Maybe because he is in his teens which is the most annoying phase of life, according to me. But I can't say that for sure. He's unpredictable.

On the other hand, Liam is no less. They both have some stupid prank wars all the time. Though they call each other best friends, they fight with each other the most.

I personally prefer them fighting with each other because if they sign a peace treaty, it means we are their targets and there is no escape.

Liam pushes Ben off him and dusts himself with his hands as he got back on his feet. "Let me state the universal fact, my hobby is to prank people," he says with a shrug.

"It might be your hobby but it's my ambition," Ben replies seriously as if he is giving a speech on world peace.

Liam opens his mouth to say something. If I let them fight, we definitely are not gonna reach the heliport on time. And I am definitely not willing to get another set of scolding from the chief just because of these two idiots who want to have a verbal fight over something completely useless.

I interject by standing between them. "Children children, we can continue this later. And Ben," I turn towards him and speak to him with a serious tone, "No more pranks."

Though Liam and Ben are worse, when a comparison is made, Ben crowns it all. Liam tends to shut up when I throw a glare and threat. But Ben, he knows me too well that my threats are meaningless.

Even now, despite strictly forbidding him from pranking us, he raises his hands in mock surrender which contradicts his mischievous smile. I sigh. It's gonna be a long day.

I turn around to walk back to my own room but pause when I hear Ben's frustrated voice.

"Why in the nation did you think it's a good idea to wake me up this early? It's four!"

It sets me off. First thing first, I never wanna take them all in this mission. Secondly, it was the chief's decision and not mine.

I turn around with a glare, "I know. Your all-time favourite superhero or should I say chief decided to assign us on a mission. Why don't you go ask him for yourself!" I say in a bitter tone.

He stares at me intently to find some emotion but he finds none. Of course, he won't find any as I buried them long ago and built walls so high that it won't resurface again.

"So, it's time," he says with a frown, looking at the floor. All of a sudden, he lifts his head and looks at me, his eyes flashing with a profound confidence.

"We are gonna win this mission. I know we are not ready but we can give our absolute best."

I nod my head and decided to leave to my room. I absentmindedly scan my fingerprint, not bothering to close the door as I walk towards the balcony. I rest my hand on the railing to support myself because I feel like a huge mountain is placed on my shoulders. I take a deep breath and let it out, turning my gaze towards the stars. I close my eyes and reminiscence the time when she asked me not to be scared.

"The fear is an illusion created by your own brain," she says slowly with a simple infectious smile.

"What if something happens to you?" I ask the question I always dread of. She tilts her head to the side and taps my nose twice.

"Then I can die in peace knowing that someone is breathing."

I open my eyes as I try my best not to let the fear in my mind override me. This had been the moment I'd been waiting for so long and now I don't prefer to step back.

"It's time to make them pay for what they did to you. They started the war and I am gonna end it."