Averi's throat felt dry, as if stuffed with cotton.
Yes, it was her who broke up with him.
Not far away, Leon coughed unnaturally, "Um, I think I see David and the others."
Since Averi pounced on Dallas and bit him, he had silently walked away. If not for the worry that their state might be seen by others, he wouldn't have spoken up either.
If he hadn't misheard, there was a period when the two seemed to be kissing, quite intensely.
Averi, as if waking from a dream, pulled out of Dallas's embrace, stepping back two meters, quickly wiping her face clean.
Dallas, looking at the empty space in his arms, also wiped away the blood left on his lips by her.
David indeed appeared soon after, followed by two other team members. Seeing the three of them unharmed, his expression visibly relaxed. There was another team at the foot of the mountain conducting reconnaissance, and upon confirming safety, they would notify them to descend.
Leon, still buzzing from the close call, recounted the harrowing moments to David with vivid excitement. David played along, tossing in plenty of exclamations and nods of amazement.
Averi followed behind them, her expression indifferent, out of place in the cheerful atmosphere.
Dallas walked behind her, taking up the rear, his emotions equally unreadable.
At the foot of the mountain, Dallas's car was in a terrible state: one side mirror was missing, and there were bullet holes in the door. It wasn't hard to guess what he had gone through, and David and the others' gazes towards him held a few more degrees of genuine respect.
David asked, "Captain, did you get hurt?"
Not calling him by his surname but as 'Captain' was enough to say it all.
Leon frowned in regret, "Right, I forgot to ask. Dallas, how are you?"
"Nothing serious, just some scrapes."
Though he spoke to David, his gaze quickly swept past David's face and moved towards Averi, who stood behind the group.
Averi was also looking at him; they locked eyes for two seconds before she looked away.
Voices of David and Leon alternated: "I gotta hand it to you, David."
"You're a damn lunatic."
"In fact, the company does have a system for selecting captains."
"Rubbish, if you were our captain, we would have been wiped out long ago."
Averi's eyebrows furrowed slightly.
The more they praised his bravery, the angrier she became.
Back at camp, Leon tended to Dallas's wounds. Noticing the two deep, bleeding bite marks near his shoulder by his neck, he paused, then half-joked, "Didn't realize Averi had such a strong bite. Not every guy could sink their teeth in that deep."
Dallas felt embarrassed and turned his head away.
"So, Averi—is she your ex or something? Kissing, biting, acting like strangers but clearly knowing each other… What's the story here?"
After a pause, Dallas replied, "No."
Leon held back a belly full of questions, glanced at his indifferent expression, and didn't press further.
After applying the medicine, Dallas kept making phone calls, even visiting the peacekeeping forces' camp across the way for a while, no one knew what he was preparing until he returned to the room around midnight.
In the darkness, Dallas sat on the edge of the bed, gently brushed a strand of loose hair from Averi's face, and softly called her name, "Averi."
Averi opened her eyes, turned to look at him, her gaze as clear as ever.
After a moment of eye contact, Dallas said, "The place where we found the rebels today is too close to the camp, it's no longer safe here. The peacekeeping forces are also considering moving. If they do, we'll need to assist with the evacuation. It would be dangerous for you to stay with me."
Averi remained silent, only looking at him.
"I got in touch with the airport. There's a flight to Morocco tomorrow afternoon with available seats. You, Karter, and Jordan will leave tomorrow. Head to Morocco first, and from there, find a way to get to Germany."
He curled his fingers and gently stroked her hair, comforting her, "It might delay us a few days, but Morocco is very safe. Jordan's medication is ready, you can help her change it."
After a long silence, Averi responded with a soft "Mm."
They lay side by side, embracing, listening to his breathing and heartbeat, but Averi couldn't fall asleep.
This was their last night together, leaving Rinya, it was unknown when they would meet again.
Probably, they wouldn't see each other again.
Such an encounter could hardly happen twice.
She would never appear in a war-torn area again in her life. As for him, would there ever be a day when he left? And in what state would he leave?
Suddenly, the chest behind her vibrated, "Do you want to watch the sunrise?"
Averi said, "Yes."
They got into the car in the dark, drove eastward for about ten minutes, and stopped at a small hill with a wide view.
It was still early, the sky cloaked in darkness, with the air thick with the damp freshness unique to dawn. A faint chill lingered, and the soft scent of dew hung in the quiet stillness, hinting at the coming light.
Dallas glanced at his watch and said, "There are fifteen minutes left. This is a place I discovered during my runs when I had insomnia. From here, you can see the whole process of the sun rising above the horizon."
Averi asked, "Why do you have trouble sleeping?"
Dallas smiled and said, "I wasn't used to the climate here, it's too humid, always feeling like my nostrils were blocked by a wet towel, waking up breathless in the middle of the night."
Averi couldn't help but laugh, "Same here, I felt my breathing was obstructed as soon as I got off the plane. What about now, do you still wake up breathless?"
"No, I've adapted."
"Maybe when we go back, we'll complain about it being too dry."
Dallas said, "The air's just too dry in the capital."
The light-hearted atmosphere came to an abrupt halt, and both fell silent.
Once she returned to the capital, their paths would never cross again.
As the sky began to show a hint of blue, Averi suddenly spoke, "Dallas, come back with me."
Dallas's pupils constricted sharply, his entire back stiffened, and he stared at her in silence.
Averi lowered her eyes in surrender, smiling gently as she met his gaze, "I need you."
Seeing no reaction from him, fearing he hadn't heard clearly, Averi repeated, "Dallas, I need you."
Dallas fixed his gaze on her, his lips pressed tightly together for a long time before curving into a helpless smile, "Averi, I told you, don't play with me."
He couldn't bear to be toyed with like this.
If she didn't mean it… he feared he would lose his mind.
Averi stepped forward, wrapping her arms around his waist, her gentle eyes reflecting the sunrise into an almost unreal amber-brown, "I'm serious, dead serious. Dallas, stay by my side, okay?"
She had never imagined herself saying these words when she wasn't with him. Once they parted, they parted; she wasn't the type to regret.
But, they had encountered each other again.
She weighed the issues all night, considering how much trouble and risk it would entail. Milo, Cristopher, Odin, Teagan… Their names alternated in her mind, each telling her: forget it, it's not worth it.
Every time she resolved to let go, her mind wouldn't cooperate, always circling back—what if the rebels caught him, what if today's bomb hadn't been a dud, what if there was no Dallas left in this world… too many "what ifs."
In that moment just now, she finally understood where all her ifs came from—she didn't want to lose him.
