It was nightfall as Hope laid on the comfort of her own bed, in her childhood bedroom. After abandoning their house as it was searched by the FBI, her father had miraculously and secretly shrank their house, and now their house was placed by a remote, secluded beach side. She was unable to fall asleep, after the chaotic events in the past two days, adrenaline still coursing through her body. She spent the whole day catching up with her mother, sharing stories with each other, while her father sat by their side the entire time, contented with having his whole family back. But now as she lay awake, her mind drifted towards Scott, the man who she had not seen for the past two years but who had never left her heart. Suddenly, she wanted to see him, desperately and badly. She turned to her side, covered a pillow over her head and let out a loud sigh.

They had parted ways hastily after the events that had happened. Him, back to his house before the FBI arrived, and her, back on the run again with her parents. It bothered her that they never got to say goodbye properly and she wondered if he had managed to get home in time. Once again, she delved into her feelings for him, thinking long and hard. When she had found out about his little adventure in Germany, all she felt was an array of emotions. She was furious that he took the suit without her knowledge, furious that he acted impulsively and irrationally, but at the same time, she was more upset and disappointed that it didn't cross his mind to ask her to be his partner in the fight, that he didn't think about her or even his daughter. At that time, he was already imprisoned at The Raft, sorting out the terms and conditions with the national security for his release while she was already on the run with her father, building up protective walls again, pushing aside any romantic feelings that she had felt for him.

After two years of radio silence, receiving the emergency phone call from him had been unexpected, and had thrown her emotions off balance once again. Seeing him in person, had only confirmed her affection for him, that she had genuinely missed him. Overwhelmed with her emotional turmoil, she sat up on her bed abruptly, the desire to see him right now burning within her. And so she put on her suit, and flew off into the darkness, heading towards his house.

The lights were still on in his bedroom as she landed on the window sill, so she stood there, observing him. He was standing in front of the mirror, half-naked, inspecting his injuries. There was a cut at the side of his right chest that he had sustained during his fight with Ava. He turned around, his eyes sweeping through the bruises that were now forming on his back, and she noticed a long scar near his shoulder blade, a scar she had never seen before. She was however, relieved that his ankle monitor had been taken off. She flew in the room, and with the press of a button, she grew back to her normal size. "Hey. You need help there?"

"Jesus! Hope!", he exclaimed, nearly jumping out of his skin as he heard the mechanical whirring of her suit turning back to size and her voice. He turned around to look at her. "You scared the shit out of me.", his eyes widened with fright.

"Sorry.", she apologised and shrugged her shoulders, she bit her lip as she smiled sheepishly.

He smiled, his composure relaxed as he stared at her, her presence giving him a sense of comfort. His gaze fell on her temple where a bruise was starting to form. "Are you okay?", he voiced his concern as he scurried to her side, squinting his eyes and gently held her chin, tilting her face sideways, examining her injury. His gesture so natural that she was surprised that she didn't flinch at his touch.

"I'm fine. It's just a bruise.", she brushed it off, although moved by his concern. To be honest, she was starting to feel the aches and pains from the fight, but she had spent some time examining herself for injuries in the shower, and it was nothing she couldn't handle.

"Are you hurt anywhere else?", he scanned through her but it was hard to figure out while she was in her suit. It had been a rough two days. It scared him to death when she almost got knocked over by the Quantum vessel during her fight with Ava and he couldn't bear to think of the consequences if it really did. "Maybe you should take the suit off so I could have a better look...", he trailed off as he noticed she was staring at him suspiciously, eyebrows raised. "No, no, that's not what I mean, I mean maybe I could help to tend to your injuries, if you let me.", he gestured frantically, explaining his intentions.

"Scott, relax, I'm fine. Really.", she calmed him down.

"Why are you here? Is everything okay?", he was worried at her suddenly showing up at his place.

"I just wanted to see you.", she replied softly. She just wanted to make sure he was alright.

"Oh.", a lopsided smile tugged at the corner of his mouth. "I...I miss you too.", he stammered.

A smile blossomed on her face, her green eyes looking at him affectionately, while she rubbed her hand at the side of her neck, not knowing what to say. She diverted her gaze, taking in his lean chest that had a few patches of darkening bruises, and the cut that wasn't actively bleeding. She moved closer, fingertips grazing his injuries, while he stood frozen, slightly surprised by her touch. She turned her attention to his back, to the scar near his shoulder blade.

"Where did you get this?", she whispered, her fingers gently trailing the length of the scar.

"When I was at Germany...", he paused quickly, realising it was a sensitive topic. Immediately, he felt awful that he had betrayed her. He couldn't see her expression, but he imagined her staring daggers at him. He waited for her reply, but she didn't say a thing. Instead, she frowned, tight-lipped, expression pained, wishing she could have been there for him despite being angry at him.

She turned to face him again. "I think you need more help than I do. That, need stitches.", she pointed to the cut.

"It'll heal.", he disregarded it.

"It's deep. It'll get infected.

He was about to open his mouth to argue but she cut him off. "Just go to the bed Scott. I'll get the first-aid kit.", she walked away from him and searched through the cupboard, still familiar with the surroundings in his room. She walked back to him, with the first-aid kit in hand, and placed it on the edge of the bed. Figuring it would be impractical to be in her suit the whole time, she decided to take her suit off.

"What are you doing?", he looked at her with shock and averted his gaze away from her quickly.

"I'm just taking my suit off.", she stated nonchalantly, while she stripped off her suit, leaving her in a simple tank top and a pair of workout pants. He took in the sight of her, reminding him of the workout clothes that she used to wear every time they trained together. God, she still looked so sexy. She kept her suit in the necklace that she always wore around her neck. She turned her attention to him and caught him staring at her intensely. "Are you checking me out?", she teased.

"It's been a while since I've seen you in those.", he grinned. He always enjoyed flirting with her.

She just shook her head and let out a short laugh, not minding one bit that he was looking at her. "I think it's better if you lie down.", she instructed.

He did as he was told and laid down on the bed with a thump, making himself comfortable.

"It might sting a little.", as she dabbed the wound with a gauze that was soaked with a saline solution.

"Bearable.", he shrugged it off.

"Good. Because this might hurt.", she took out a fine surgical suture from a suture kit and looked at him.

He cringed slightly at the sight of the needle. "Where did you get that? That's definitely not in the first-aid kit.", he questioned.

"When you're on the run Scott, you need certain medical supplies because we can't go to a hospital if we get hurt.", she commented sarcastically.

"Right. And you carried it along with you all the time?", he swallowed a lump in his throat.

"I figured it might come in handy.", she quipped, delighted at her own instincts. He was still staring at the needle, with a fearful expression on his face.

"Are you afraid of needles Scott?", she peered at him.

"I might be." He hated needles since he was a child, injections specifically. He still remembered when he had to take Cassie for her immunisations and he would flinch slightly at the sight of the injection while faking a brave face.

She chuckled. "Don't move or I might stab you at the wrong place.", she joked.

"Hope!", he whined, but she had already started to place the first suture in. He took a peek at the cut and winced a little. "Shit, it stings.", he complained. The cut was deeper than he thought.

"You're like a princess.", she snorted as she continued to suture the wound with full concentration. He kept his mouth shut and turned his gaze to Hope instead for distraction, eyes flicking through her delicate features, taking in her face that he had come to love so much. A heavy silence filled the room while she continued to work on him.

"Did you really kiss me on the docks or were you just giving me breathing support?", he jokingly asked, breaking the silence.

Upon hearing his question, she froze briefly before resuming again. He remembered. "Well, if you can't tell the difference then why does it matter Scott.", she replied snarkily.

"It matters to me. Your kiss I mean.", his reply was serious as he looked at her softly.

She had just finished the last stitch and she tilted her head up, meeting his gaze. She inhaled deeply, ready to speak her mind. "The honest truth is, I was afraid of losing you again.", she confessed. "I've already lose you once, I can't deal with it again. It hurts.", she sighed as tears pricked her eyes. She blinked back the tears, she wasn't going to cry in front of him. "And yes it was a kiss.", she muttered, while she kept away the first-aid kit and put it under the bed.

"Hey.", he sat up abruptly, and cupped her cheek, noticing the glistening tears in her beautiful green eyes as he gently caressed her pink cheek with his thumb. "I'm here. And I'm just grateful that you're here with me. It means a lot to me. You mean a lot to me Hope.", he pulled her into his arms, letting her head rest on his chest, the warmth of his embrace and the sound of his heart beat comforted her. "I know I've done some wrong things in the past, but let me make it up to you. I promise I will never make you feel hurt again.", he hugged her and planted a kissed on her head.

"You'd better, because if not, I'm going to make you work for it.", she looked up at him.

A small smile appeared on his face. "I would do anything for you." It was true. She looked at him tenderly, while he leaned forwards, closing the distance between their faces and kissed her on the mouth with fervour.

She placed her head on his chest again, her fingers drawing comforting circles on his chest. "Does it hurt?", she asked.

"Not when you're with me.", he cuddled her tightly, another hand stroking her hair as his eyes start to droop, the feeling of exhaustion taking over him. Her mouth curled upwards forming a smile, while she closed her eyes, fatigue starting to wash over her, as she relaxed and vaguely hearing him murmur 'I love you Hope', before she fell asleep in his arms.

She woke up, startled, awaken by his alarm clock. She opened her eyes lazily, as she turned to her side, her hand stretched out searching for the offending object on the bedside table and managed to switch it off. She flipped to the other side, opening her eyes fully, hoping to see Scott, but the bed was empty.

"Scott?", she called out but was met with silence. She climbed out from the bed, stood up and stretched. Suddenly, a hand shot out from under the bed and it grabbed her ankle. "What the hell!", she yelled and jumped, reacting immediately, her martial arts reflexes kicking in, almost kicking off the hand when Scott popped out from under the bed.

"Gotcha!", he cackled.

"Scott! I could have killed you!", she glared at him, tempted to kick him. "Did you actually wake up early and hide under the bed just to scare me?", she questioned. God, she was in love with a child.

"Yes I did! Set and alarm and everything!", he replied as a silly grin appeared on his face.

"It's like dating a ten-year-old.", she rolled her eyes.

"God I hope not. But you would still love me anyway.", he mischievously winked at her. The truth is, he wanted to make her happy by being his goofy self.

She couldn't help but smile, her dimples deepening. She knelt down on the floor, and gave him a kiss. She was about to stand up but he held her wrist, lightly pulling her back. "Don't go. We could lie in bed all day and do nothing.", he suggested, grinning.

She lightly shook her head, smiling at his suggestion. She got on the floor again, one leg swinging over him, and sat on his torso, careful not to touch his wound, her thighs wrapping the sides of his body. His face lit up with excitement, as he slid both of his hands up, holding her hips. She leaned forwards, placed her palms on his bare chest, and pressed a kiss on his lips again. "But you're on the floor Scott.", she whispered in his ear, her hot breath tickling him. She slapped his chest and got up, turned around and glanced at him playfully.

He hastily scrambled up from the floor, swiftly wrapping his arms around her waist, twirling her over so that she was now facing him. "Now where were we?", his voice deep and raspy. She giggled as he lightly guided her backwards to the bed, his strong hands supporting her back, and they landed on the bed with a light thud. Her giggles had now transformed into unintelligible noises as they kissed passionately and fiercely, their bodies melting into each other, their hands roaming around forbidden places, sending shivers of pleasure to each other.

His naked body spooned perfectly around the small curve of her back and bottom, his arm curled around her waist, as they laid on the messy sheets, their sweaty skin cooling off in the morning air. He placed lingering kisses on the back of her neck, her back and upper arm, her eyes closed, enjoying his touches.

"I need to go.", she murmured lazily.

"So soon?"

"I didn't tell my parents that I was coming to see you.", she fiddled with his fingers.

"So rebellious.", he smirked, pressing another kiss on her shoulder. "I feel like we're teenagers in love."

She let out a laugh and turned around, while he laid on his back at the same time, as she settled herself comfortably on his chest, her arm hugging his upper body, his hand gently toying with the ends of her long, soft, dark hair. She wanted this moment to last, but they were still on the run, and her parents would be worried if she didn't turn up soon. "I'll see you soon?", she smiled as she got up and kissed his shoulder, and climbed out from the bed.

"Hey.", he rose up on his knees and crawled to her, gently pulling her wrist towards him, as he leaned forwards and kissed her again. "Definitely.", he smiled at her, and watched her put her clothes on and lastly her suit. She closed her helmet, shrank and flew away through the window, leaving him lying on the bed, as he flipped over and laid on his stomach, taking in her lingering scent on the bedsheets.