Fallen 1: Berlin

Chapter XIII: The One

"This place is amazing, Sage. I can't believe your company is issuing such classy accommodation--or is it just you?" Martine hummed contemplatively.

It was Sunday morning and Sage had a visit from Martine and Phoebe. Apparently, they wanted to know where she was going to live to protect her from predators. Sage was glad to have them over because that meant she acquired herself some cheap labor to help her unpack. She only needed to feed them and keep them entertained while they unpacked her boxes.

"I'm not the only one living in the company's apartments. Plenty of other employees are here as well." Sage rolled her eyes and sighed as she brewed some coffee in her new shiny coffee machine that came with the house.

"My boss's P.A. had to find his own accommodation, you know. Not to mention he takes the bus to work," Martine explained tentatively.

"It's because your boss is not Berlin. Martine, your company is not even on the list of top one hundred companies in the world." Phoebe laughed. "How do you expect to compete with the GB group?"

Martine made a disgruntled face and Sage chuckled softly. The three of them managed to make a big breakfast to catch up on what had been happening throughout the week. Sage was still a little worried about Berlin. Though when she called Lucian that morning he assured her that Berlin was out for the day and that he was doing fine, she saw how vulnerable he had appeared last night and wished that he took more time to rest.

"Anyways, where is Austin? I talked to him yesterday evening and he didn't tell me anything about missing breakfast this morning." Sage frowned as she got her cup of coffee and went to join her friends at the breakfast island in her open-plan kitchen.

"The girl he has been crushing on asked him to go on a weekend trip with her," Phoebe replied behind her glass of juice and both she and Sage turned to Martine, who was busy scrolling on her phone.

Sage knew that Martine had a crush on Austin for the longest time. Sometimes she felt like Austin knew about Martine's crush but decided to ignore it. Sage always thought that they made a great couple and many times she and Phoebe hinted that to Austin, but he remained indifferent to Martine's feelings for him.

"Why are you two looking at me like that?" Martine said when she looked up from her phone and discovered the two pairs of eyes gazing sadly at her.

"Are you okay with Austin seeing someone else?" Sage settled down beside Martine and sipped her coffee.

Martine frowned and shrugged her shoulders. "Why wouldn't I be? I mean, yeah I had a crush on Austin, but that has been over a long time ago. We are just good friends now."

Sage didn't believe it even for a second. She had caught Martine gazing at Austin as if her entire world was revolving around him many times. Sage was sure it wasn't a crush anymore. Perhaps they were looking at love. "But why have you kept it from him all this time? If you had told him about your feelings back then, perhaps you two would have been together right now."

Martine chuckled. "I didn't say anything because I knew I was going to outgrow it. Austin and I aren't compatible. Our lifestyles are very different and that is why I prefer having him as a friend than a boyfriend."

"I'm just sad that Austin would choose Vivian over you. I mean, we have known each other for such a long time. You would expect that familiarity would keep him close to home. Instead, he goes to someone who has had him on a leash from the word go." Phoebe muttered angrily. "Vivian doesn't love Austin and I know the ending is going to crush him, but I just hope he will learn from his mistakes."

"Instead of wishing such a bad thing to happen to Austin, we should be positive here. I mean, if he really loves Vivian, then let's hope that she loves him back--" Sage started, but Phoebe interrupted.

"If a person truly loves you, they will not call you when it is convenient for them," she said.

"Ladies!" Martine exclaimed. "We are not here to argue. We are here to have a good time and tonight we are going to go clubbing and get wasted. Let's not waste the day discussing a full-grown male and his choices in life, okay?"

Phoebe and Sage clamped their mouths closed and continued with breakfast.

"By the way, Sage, you didn't tell us about what happened at the dinner last night." Martine changed the subject.

Sage sighed tiredly, recalling the confrontation she had with Nellie. It was so absurd, but then again, every workplace had its own drama. "Oh, it was great...until it wasn't."

"Oh?" Phoebe turned to her. "What happened?"

"Well, for one, Berlin fainted." Phoebe and Martine gasped in surprise. "He must have been working too hard and his body just couldn't handle it. His brother was there though and he helped out--ooh!" Sage jumped up when she remembered Elise. "Berlin's girlfriend was there and she felt the need to shoo me away from her man."

Phoebe laughed. "Of course, she had to be careful. I mean, who in their right mind can ignore our gorgeous temptress Sage Hilary? Remember how boys used to flock around you in college to try and do your assignments or carry your bag?"

Sage cringed when she remembered those nightmarish days. She didn't understand why it happened but she had several boys who displayed stalkerish characteristics. "Please don't remind me."

"Isn't it that she is insecure about her man for her to do such a petty thing?" Martine frowned inquisitively.

"I would be insecure if my man worked very closely with a beautiful and single woman like Sage," Phoebe pointed out.

Sage pouted and sipped her coffee. "Hey! That's not fair."

"Tell me you haven't fantasized about being with Berlin and I will stop incriminating you." Phoebe challenged with a smirk. "I have seen that man in the magazines and he is gorgeous. I am envious that you get to see that juicy piece of ass in real life--"

"Phoebe!" Martine laughed out loudly as she looked at Sage. "Though she does have a point. You have been daydreaming about your boss, haven't you?"

Sage felt heat flare up in her cheeks. "I don't know what you two are talking about--"

"Oh!" Phoebe and Martine exclaimed together. "You have, you dirty little w***e!" Phoebe exclaimed in laughter.

"It is only natural to lust after such a man. I know I would." Martine wiggled her eyebrows at Sage, who rolled her eyes.

"You two are vulgar and I don't know how I have remained friends with your asses all this time. I am not lusting after my boss. If anything, I am truly grateful because he saved me from malnutrition and an early grave."

"Is he alright though?" Phoebe asked after the laughter tamped down. "Did you check up on him today?"

Sage nodded. "Yeah, I spoke to Lucian and he said that Berlin was up and about. That means he has recovered."

"Good." Phoebe sighed in relief. "We don't want your dream job to be a short experience."

Sage snorted inelegantly and asked, "Dream job? I thought Robert was nasty--but then I met Nellie, Berlin's secretary. She is scary. She is very sure I slept my way to the P.A. position."

"I wouldn't judge you if you did, Sage," Martine commented, patting Sage's hand supportively.

"Are you kidding me?" Sage exclaimed incredulously. "You know me better than that, Martine."

Martine grunted in agreement. "Unfortunately, I do. So, Nellie believes you are not capable of securing such a position on your own? Is that the mechanism she used to secure her position?"

And savage Martine came out to play. Martine was not good at sugarcoating anything. She was brutal with her truth and she was reckless when she was angry or hurt.

"I don't know and I don't care but she is out for my blood. Something tells me that she expected Berlin to promote her to the P.A. position but I suddenly showed up. She wasn't so enthusiastic about that," Sage said.

Phoebe hummed and she ate her pancakes, then said, "Secretaries are not the best people in the world. You should be careful with her. She might cause Berlin to mistrust you."

Sage was sure of that and she had planned on being as open as she could with her boss. She didn't want Berlin to misunderstand her because of Nellie. She just hoped Nellie didn't go around spreading false accusations about her and Cairo.

"You know, I work with a lot of celebrities and they sometimes have these annoying anti-fans. They have people that take care of them, so if you ever want me to help you out--" Martine started.

"Martine!" Both Phoebe and Sage exclaimed in shock, but Martine merely shrugged.

"What? I didn't mean anything like murder--you just take care of them in a...civilized way. Gosh, you two have a wild imagination." Martine chuckled softly...then sobered up and added, "But if that is what you want--"

"Martine!" Sage exclaimed again in laughter.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"What are you doing here?" Berlin asked as he pulled on a t-shirt and turned to Cairo who was trespassing in his room. "I thought you'd be halfway across the world by now."

Cairo nodded as he curiously looked around Berlin's room. "Yeah, I thought that too, but something tells me that this is the place to be. Not to mention that the others are converging as we speak."

Berlin's head jerked up in surprise. He couldn't remember the last time the five of them were at the same place. He had missed the others but he didn't dare tell them that, especially after what he did to them.

"Yeah...I spoke to Bucha last night and he said that he would be arriving this evening with Ottawa. Nebbie is taking care of something first before she can manage to come." Cairo said quietly, knowing just how sensitive the situation was.

"Is it because of what happened to me last night?" Berlin asked.

"It's about your P.A., Berlin," Cairo assured him. "At first I thought what happened to you was because of Elise when she touched your hand, but later I learned that it wasn't her. It was Sage."

Berlin turned to Cairo and saw just how serious the male was. "What do you mean?"

"I think you reacted that way because your guardian was retaliating to Elise's touch. I felt something crazy when I touched Sage last night." Cairo said, and Berlin felt his guardian stir in his head.

"You touched her?" He growled.

Cairo's eyebrow arched up knowingly. "And this is the reason why I need to stay here. It seems you react more to her than I do. Does she know about you, Berlin?"

Berlin tried to control his anger. "She doesn't know what I am and I would like to keep it that way."

"Why did you choose her, Berlin? I bet you felt a certain urgency when you met her and you felt your guardian side come out, wanting to shelter her from the dangers of the world." Cairo speculated.

"Is that what you felt when you touched her?" Berlin asked with his heart thumping so hard in his chest. He never wanted to expose Sage to the others, because he felt that whatever she did to affect him would also happen to the other guardians and he was right. Now that Cairo was exposed to her, his guardian was awakening too. So, did that mean that Sage was their ticket home? But at what cost?

"Yes," Cairo answered truthfully. "And every nerve in my body tells me that I should fight you for her. I want to take that chance, Berlin--but somehow I feel like it will all be in vain."

"Why would you say that?" Berlin asked Cairo.

Cairo sighed and ran a hand through his pale hair. "Because...you met her first. Do--do you think she's the one?"

Berlin never thought it that way. After so many disappointments he suffered throughout his existence on earth, he didn't think there would come a day when he would meet the one who would save him from damnation. Only true love was supposed to grow his wings back and return the divine weapon to him so that he was allowed to ascend to the Skies. With the way Sage scurried around him like a scared kitten, how was it even possible to make her love him? Add Elise to the equation and Berlin was sure it was cemented that he was going to die there with the humans when the time came.

"I doubt that. She is just someone who needs my guidance for the time being. She has her whole life ahead of her and I doubt we will be a part of it once her trial is complete." Berlin assured Cairo as he put on his shoes and made his way towards his door. "Are you going to stick around here the whole day?"

"I've run out of cash and I need accommodation." Cairo smiled sheepishly as his team leader.

Berlin grunted in surprise. "You are a terrible liar, Cai. I know you just want to stick around so that you can monitor my changes. It's too bad that I won't be around since I have cargo to retrieve."

"Let me stay for the time being and I'll tell you where your cargo is," Cairo suggested.

"I knew you had something to do with its disappearance! What do you want with it?" Berlin snarled at Cairo, who retreated because Berlin's awakened guardian was far stronger than Cairo. Upsetting Berlin was a death wish for Cairo.

"As I said previously, I'm not responsible for its disappearance but I know who has it. Let me stay here and I will retrieve it for you."

Warning bells kept blaring when it came to Cairo. He was versatile. They had been living apart for a long time, to the point that Berlin didn't know much about the kind of life Cairo led. Berlin didn't have anything against the lifestyle Cairo chose for himself. Living for as long as they did, made life a little boring and that gave them the reason to change their professions every once in a while.

However, Cairo was unpredictable. Though he said that he wanted to help Berlin figure out why his guardian awakened and how Sage was involved in it, he was sure that Cairo had a hidden agenda. He couldn't trust him entirely, especially since Cairo still blamed him for being stuck on earth for all those years.

"You have a week," Berlin said. "Now, get the f**k out of my room."

"Sweet." Cairo chuckled as he followed Berlin out.

LATER THAT DAY...

Cairo approached the large male clad in black jeans and a leather jacket with a grin on his face. Beside him was a female he hadn't seen in a very long time. The two of them walked with purpose across the private plane landing strip with their bags.

"Bucha! Ottawa! Great to see you two in one piece," Cairo exclaimed.

Ottawa snorted as she rolled her onyx eyes. As Cairo made the attempt to hug her, Ottawa raised her hand to stop him and asked, "How's Berlin?"

"Why is everyone worrying about a grown-ass male? He is not dead! He is up and healthy," Cairo exclaimed.

Ottawa's amber-colored veins emerged onto her ebony skin. They crackled with anger as she looked at Cairo. "It's not what we felt."

"I thought he was having a heart attack." Bucharest gruffed as he ran his hands through his copper-colored hair. "And the energy surge that occurred afterward was surely nothing less than the awakening of his guardian."

Cairo hummed in agreement as he eyed the two people he had not seen in over a century. Bucharest was a heavily muscled male with copper hair and hazel eyes. He had olive-colored skin that portrayed him as someone who loved the outdoors. He was the tank of the team, always going in ahead before anyone else. He was also the peacekeeper. He always knew how to calm everyone down when they argued about something. Bucharest was usually a calm guy, but when he was angry, he could bring down mountains and cause molten lava to run on the earth like a river.

Ottawa was the little dynamite of the team. She kicked ass first and asked questions later. She always went straight to the point. She was on the lean side with ebony skin and black eyes that sparkled with power and intelligence. She was the navigator of the team. Ottawa's hair fell around her back and shoulders in tight curls and every time Cairo looked at it, it reminded him of a lion's crown. That evening she was dressed in military green pants with a black t-shirt and black boots. The last time Cairo checked, Ottawa owned a classy pub back in her city.

"Do you know what happened, Cai?" Ottawa asked him in concern.

Cairo sighed. "Straight to the point, huh? Fine. He was exposed to someone. I was too, but my reaction to her was not of the same magnitude as Berlin's."

"Her?" Both Bucharest and Ottawa exclaimed in surprise.

"Yep." Cairo led them to the waiting car. He threatened Lucian to let him borrow it while Berlin was away.

"Could she be someone War has brought to punish Berlin?" Ottawa speculated.

Cairo shook his head. "I doubt it because War also reacted to her." He remembered seeing Sage with War at the professor's dinner.

"Then what is she?" Bucharest placed the bags in the back of the car and turned to Cairo in confusion.

"She's quite human if you ask me. Even though Berlin doesn't want to hear this, I think she is the one," Cairo said.

Ottawa's eyebrows came down in a frown. "When you say that you think she is the one, I hope you are not talking about her being Berlin's true love."

"Why not?" Cairo asked, and Ottawa scoffed.

"You actually believe in that fairytale? How long have we existed on this plane, Cai, and how many times had we thought that we would find the one but that never happened?"

Cairo shrugged his large shoulders. "This has never happened before and that is the reason why I think that it means something."

"The Power can never make things that easy. Do remember that we were the Skies' Elite team and we betrayed them. The Power will do everything to keep punishing us. The Power holds our fate in their hands and they can manipulate it however much they want." Bucharest explained. "So, I doubt they can suddenly throw Berlin's true love right into his arms."

"But what if the trial is to get her to naturally fall in love with him? Right now, her judgment is clouded because of another female who stated that she is Berlin's girlfriend although we all know that she doesn't truly love him--otherwise, he would have grown his wings. Not only that, but our nature always leaves humans mesmerized, yet none of them have tried to truly look at us and accept us without the ethereal aura around us." Cairo explained.

"Do you know this female, Cai?" Ottawa asked as they entered the car.

Cairo nodded. "She is working as Berlin's P.A. at the moment. I looked into her background and her father died a few years ago and left behind debt that she had been struggling to pay. She has a mother but her mother is sick."

"She sounds like a charity case." Ottawa pointed out, and Cairo nodded.

"She was...until Berlin took her under his wing."

Ottawa chuckled. "Sounds like Berlin alright. Now, I am quite curious about this human female."

Bucharest just grunted as Cairo started for Berlin's place. Sage was special and she was important, not only to Berlin but to all of them. While Bucharest was good at getting information, Ottawa was good at supporting. Having them there was a blessing in disguise. Cairo wanted them to find out all they could about Sage, while he found information about why Seoul paid someone in Berlin's company to steal cargo for him.