The Hidden Directive

The Safehouse

Lou held his head low as the safehouse came into view. The structure was brown over smoothed wood, two stories with only four windows, a few large oak trees perfectly placed around the structure to protect it from being seen with a small pond just a few meters behind it. With Mimori fast asleep on Lou's back, he let out a sigh of relief with Elaina, Bethany, and Marcus in tow.

"Someone want to go clear that before we all just rush in there and get ourselves killed?" Lou whispered as he c****d his head in the direction of the structure.

Bethany and Marcus headed to the structure and secured the building before signaling that the coast was clear. Heading in, feet dragging, they set their bags down on the floor. Lou's arms ached from having to carry Mimori.

"Marcus, let's go find Wilson. He should be close to this location by now." Marcus nodded in Bethany's direction as he switched on a few lights, revealing an open layout with a kitchen tucked away in the corner of the large living area, hardwood flooring with accent rugs, a coffee table, and a large sectional with additional couches.

Without a word, they both took off, locking the door behind them in search of Bethany's husband and Marcus' best friend. 

--

"Go set her down in one of the rooms upstairs. You two can stay in the same room; I trust you'll be a gentleman." Elaina raised her eyebrow in Lou's direction. 

"You don't have to worry, she's the love of my life, and I vow to protect her with everything in me. Maybe even my dark." Lou headed up the stairs, turning the corner and using his foot to open one of the bedroom doors. The layout of the room was pretty simple for the size of it. A full bathroom was situated in the corner. A wardrobe stood on one wall. There was still plenty of space for a king-sized bed with a canopy frame and a couch beneath a large window. 

He used his foot to move the comforter aside, then sat on the edge. Releasing his hold on Mimori's legs, Lou gently laid her down on the bed, removed her shoes, and tucked her legs under the comforter. He pulled the edge of it up to cover her upper torso. 

"Sweet dreams, babe," he whispered, leaning down to kiss her forehead before slipping out of the door. Lou left it cracked as he headed back downstairs to help Elaina with organizing everything. 

"It's a little after midnight. Where are they?" Elaina took hold of a red, diamond-shaped pendant hanging around her neck, fiddling with it. 

"I'll go find them. Just keep an eye on my future wife, will ya?" Lou smiled as he headed for the door. Unlocking the deadbolt, he slipped through the door before she could reply. The smile spreading across her face was the last thing he noticed as the door clicked shut behind him. 

As Lou took a big whiff of the air, catching onto his mothers', Marcus, and his father's scent, he took off in that direction. There were traces of blood mixed in with his father's scent, which worried him. It wasn't long before he found them, muffled gasps of pain, letting him know he was close.

"f*****g hell!" Wilson mumbled through gritted teeth as Marcus used his healing ability to reposition bones in his arm, hand, and upper thigh. 

"What the hell happened?" Bethany knelt beside him. 

"There were too many of them. I took out as many as I could and took off before they could get their trackers on me. I don't know who the hell that man was, but he's got a dark on his hands, and she's just… not someone I think you nor I could take on." 

His gaze turned upward towards Lou. "You need to be prepared for when he comes back. He will find us again; it's just a matter of time now. She's good, but not as good as your mother." He smirked before his face distorted once more as Marcus' dug his fingers into one of the gaping wounds on his leg. His hands glowed as he focused on mending the broken bone, torn muscle, and skin. 

"What the hell did they hit you with? It's taking too long to heal these. Lou, help me get him back to the safehouse. We cannot be out here in the open." Both men lifted Wilson and carried him back with Bethany not far behind.

--

Mimori began to stir as she noticed she was no longer being carried. Her head was spinning, and her body felt weak. She drifted in and out of consciousness, catching bits and pieces of Lou's voice before the door opened and shut. When he called her his "future wife," she smiled internally and rolled onto her side. When the front door flung open downstairs minutes later, she waited and listened for the voices. 

"Elaina, close the door, please, and seal it," Marcus called as hurried footsteps rushed through the door. When Elaina sealed the door, the building would disappear from its current location. Their scent would disappear along with it. 

"I'll keep us in limbo for a little while. I need to find a new location since ours is compromised," Elaina stated. 

--

Lou and Marcus set Wilson down on the couch. Marcus sat down in front of the couch, facing Wilson. "Almost there," he whispered to him while Lou headed back upstairs to check on Mims. 

Elaina looked to Marcus, Bethany, and Wilson and chuckled. "Did you know that Lou called Mimori his future wife? Oh, this is going to be great! It's not like we aren't already family, but now?" She squealed.

"What, no way!" Marcus said with excitement in his voice. 

"Would you look at that?" Wilson smiled up at Bethany. 

"Looks like you raised him right, love." Bethany smiled, leaning down to kiss him. 

The wood floor creaked as Lou poked his head through the crack of the door, scanning the bed to see if she was awake. 

--

As Mimori was attempting to wake up, a vision played a scene she feared was too close for comfort. A woman stood before her with darkened eyes, her hand outstretched, covered in blood, grasping a still-beating heart. 

Her eyes fluttered; her breathing became heavy. Unable to catch her breath, Mimori jolted up on the bed, clutching her chest, tears streaming down her face. 

"No, no, no, no, no, that can't be! No, no..." she whimpered to herself. 

Lou rushed to her side, embracing her in his arms. "What happened? You had another vision, didn't you?" he questioned. 

"She's coming. She's going to kill everyone! I, I..." Panic stole her breath. Her hands gripped her hair as she brought her head between her knees, shaking and hyperventilating.

Lou tried to restrain her by wrapping his arms around her, but she thrashed around, crying uncontrollably. Unable to calm her down, he grabbed her chin and brought his lips to hers. 

Instantly, her heart rate slowed. Mimori's breathing became shallow as their lips parted. "What did you do that for?" she sniffled, keeping her eyes closed as she lowered her head in embarrassment. 

"It was the only thing I could think of. You're my future wife, after all, right?" Heat rose in Lou's cheeks as he turned away, blushing. "C'mon, my dad is back." Reaching over, he grabbed Mimori's hand, gently pulling her to her feet. 

The pair headed downstairs. Mimori met her mother's gaze and saw in it the same feeling she felt in her own gut. 

"Glad you're ok, Wilson. You gave us all a scare, and your wife is going to kick your butt one day for doing that." Mimori chuckled in relief. 

"I know, I know, but I wasn't going to make it to the door in time, and you guys know it. I'm glad their troops sucked this time around." Wilson sobered. "But whatever they hit me with, it wasn't good. I'm not healing right, and my shield is almost depleted. I don't think I'll be able to give you guys a shield any time soon." He sighed, frowning at how vulnerable they all were without his full protection. 

"Don't worry, Wilson, whatever was in your system, I'll get it out of you," Marcus reassured. 

"Alright, everyone, I think that's enough excitement for the evening. Mims, I need to talk to you." Elaina finally spoke up, turning away from the window towards Mimori and Lou.

"Mims… your eyes." Elaina pointed to her eyes. "They've changed." 

Lou paused and turned to look for himself. "Woah, babe, you got something there," he says, pointing to his own eyes. A blue ring had formed around Mimori's eyes. It wasn't glowing, but it was a change that could not go unrecognized. 

Marcus, Bethany, and Wilson stopped, turning their attention to Mimori. They all gawked in admiration. "Oh dear," Bethany squeaked out, bringing her hand to her chest. She glanced at Elaina, a look of concern on her face. "We will talk about this later, Elaina, but we need to get Wilson upstairs."

As Marcus and Bethany helped Wilson up to a room, Mimori, Lou, and Elaina strode into the kitchen. Grabbing a bottle of water from the fridge, they sat around the breakfast bar. 

"I know you saw what I saw a little bit ago. The look on your face and your body language confirm it. What are we going to do about her?" Elaina wrung her hands. "We need to figure out who she is and pray we can persuade her from working with those bastards." 

"But mom, who are those people? Why are they coming after us? It just doesn't make any sense!" Mimori whispered back, holding her head in her hands as Lou brought his hand to her back, rubbing it in circles. 

"These guys seem to be a bunch of pains in the asses. Also, what is going on with your eyes?" He chimed in.

Elaina sighed heavily, peeking around as if to see if anyone was still awake. Everyone else seemed to have retired to their rooms. "They're called the Directive. They've been kidnapping everyone with an ability and injecting them with this… serum. It's supposed to rid you of your abilities, like Wilson. I pray your father got to him in time. But rumor has it they have an army of, well, us. Trackers, vision, shields, and now the one dark you saw in your vision earlier." 

She sighed once more. "They use us like lab rats, confining us to rooms that a transparent cannot go through, strapping them down to these chairs with heavy metal chains we cannot break. It's unsettling." Elaina wrapped her arms around herself and shivered at the thought, completely disregarding Lou's question about Mimori's eyes. 

"And with that, I'm going to call it a night." Lou finally spoke up, stretching his arms to the ceiling, stifling a yawn. "C'mon, Elaina, we'll walk you upstairs." Lou moved around the breakfast bar, guiding her towards the stairs. Mimori followed behind, catching her yawns in the process.

When Elaina split off toward her room at the other end of the hall, bidding the teens goodnight, Lou scooped Mimori into his arms and carried her to bed. Laying her down gently, he then walked to the other side of the bed, undressing himself down to his boxers before crawling into bed beside her. He pulled the sheets up, clearly waiting for her to get undressed.

"Lou, what are you doing?" she squeaked, pretending to cover herself even though she was fully clothed. 

"You're going to wear that to bed? I mean, c'mon, it's not like we aren't going to get married someday. Might as well get comfortable now." He exposed a cheeky grin over the comforter and leaned over, helping her out of the sweater and jeans. "Don't worry. I won't do anything. I already promised your mom I would wait for you." 

When he stuck his tongue out at her, Mimori giggled and pulled the covers over herself. She laid back down, her back to him. She smiled to herself as she felt a hand slip around her waist, pulling her closer to him, his breath on her neck, they drifted off into dreamland.

--

The families lived life as they did before the attack, playing games, training, cleaning, and rearranging. Time seemed to move faster than anticipated those three months until Lou's awakening was scheduled for the next evening. Elaina had finally placed their safe house in an undisclosed location long enough for Lou's approaching birthday and awakening. 

Lou and Mimori were the last to wake as the giggles and boisterous laughter echoed in the home. The adults told each other the same stories, time and time again. Laughs echoed upstairs once more. From the current conversation, they were planning a party.

Mimori was still in bed, laying in the fetal position when Lou shuffled out of bed, heading for the bathroom in just a towel, preparing for his shower. 

--

Mimori stirred as the warm rays of the sun peeked through the window onto her face. The shower clicked on, and she c****d her head to the side. Mimori bought her legs over the edge of the bed as she sat up, arms stretched. Mimori looked to the bathroom door, her insides told her to go in, but her head kept telling her to wait. Looking down at herself, she realized she was wearing one of his t-shirts and nothing else. 

Placing her feet on the floor, she approached the bathroom door, knocking lightly. Receiving no answer, Mimori placed her hand on the doorknob. She turned it, and to her surprise, it was unlocked. Taking a couple of steps in, she was brought face-to-face with the steaming naked body of Lou, who, in return, seemed as shocked as she was. 

"So, you're awake, huh?" Lou casually walked over to where he placed his towel and grabbed it, wrapping it around his waist as he tried to hide his blushing cheeks. 

"I had to uh, oh my. I… umm, good morning?" She stumbled over her words, all but drooling over his body as she scanned him from head to toe. Embarrassment burning her cheeks, she glanced down and turned around. 

With a wave of his hand, Lou forced the door shut. 

Mimori froze, a cold shiver rising. She squeezed her eyes shut to calm her nerves, only to feel his hand snake around her waist and pull her away from the door. 

"What are you do..." Her words were cut off mid-sentence as he spun her around. She stood face-to-face with her childhood love. Her eyes widened as he grabbed her chin, forcing her to keep his gaze. 

"You know, we should get you cleaned up." Lou finally spoke to break the silence with a smirk on his lips. He reached over from where he was standing and turned on the shower once more.

He leaned over, grabbing the hem of her t-shirt, slowly pulling it up. The tips of his fingers ran ever so slightly against her skin as she raised her arms for him. 

Her core swirled at this point. She would have tomatoes jealous of how red her cheeks were. Mimori moved her hair to cover herself once her shirt was removed. There she was in all her glory. 

"Um, are you going to be joining, too?" she whispered as she slowly turned to step into the shower. 

Lou's hand snaked around her waist and pulled her to him, her bare chest against his as her hands rested on his biceps, their faces just inches apart.

"Where do you think you're going? Don't think I'll let you off that easy." He lowered his voice as he whispered in her ear. Her breath became hitched as she tried to pull away. He leaned in closer and captured her lips in his. They both closed their eyes, taking in each other's scents, their hands exploring each other's bodies. 

He lifted her, wrapping her legs around him as she bit his lower lip. He gladly parted them as she slipped her tongue into his mouth. He slid his hands under her thighs, holding her up as the kiss deepened. 

Their breathing grew heavier. He slipped one hand between her legs, and with his middle finger, he stroked the wetness between her lips, his thumb on her c**t, rubbing in circles.

Mimori's sweet moans filled the bathroom with the rising wave as his fingers slowly pushed into her flower, gaining speed. 

Lou shoved her up against the wall. He broke the kiss. Lowering his head to her neck, he kissed and sucked on her collarbone, the crook of her neck, and under her chin while he fingers her flower. 

A knot formed as she tried to hold back her moans. Mimori wrapped her arms around Lou's neck and bit onto his shoulder as she reached her climax. She held back her scream as she released her juices all over his hand and onto the floor. 

With her eyes closed, gripping onto his shoulders for dear life, her legs shook uncontrollably around him. Mimori finally managed to catch her breath as she moved her head from his shoulder, leaving behind broken skin from her clenched jaw. 

She brought her head back and closed her eyes, listening to the pounding of her racing heartbeat. 

"I want you." Lou's voice was primal, his eyes full of lust as he positioned his member at her entrance, kissing her neck. "May I?" 

All Mimori could do was nod her head. A moment later, she felt a sharp pain in her core. She let out a sharp cry of pain as he plunged himself into her.

Lou froze. "Oh my god, I'm so sorry." He pulled his head back and looked Mimori in the eyes. 

A single tear strolled down her cheek. "It's ok." 

With that, he slowly thrust in and out of her, letting out his own moans and grunts. Grabbing the back of her neck and pulling her into a kiss, his other hand supported her as he continued to thrust. Mimori's core drew close to climax as his moans signified that he was, too. 

A wave of pleasure shot through them both as she clenched her flower around his member. With one hard thrust, they become one. 

He pulled himself from her, his seed streaming down her legs onto the floor, her body visibly shaking. Lou carried Mimori into the shower. He set her down in the bathtub, sitting behind her, and carefully washed her from head to toe. 

Once she was clean, Lou grabbed a towel for himself and Mimori. After wrapping himself, he gently wrapped it around her. He picked her up and stepped over to her side of the bed, laying her down gently. He pulled the comforter over her as she drifted back to sleep.

He slipped over to the wardrobe as quietly as possible so as not to wake her. Grabbing a simple white tee and dark-wash jeans for himself, he also grabbed a lilac-colored sundress to layout for her, including a pair of matching lace panties and strapless bralette that he thought she would be comfortable in. 

He stood silently. Gaze roving over her, he smiled to himself, thinking, she will be fully mine one day, I promise. He stood there for an hour, caught in his own thoughts. Finally, Lou tiptoed to her side of the bed after dressing himself. Leaning down, he gave her a quick kiss on the forehead. "Good afternoon, sleepyhead; it's time to wake up." 

--

Mimori began to stir, rolling over onto her back. She stretched her arms and legs. Letting out a moan as she relaxed her arms above her head, Mimori opened one eye in his direction. "Good afternoon? What time is it?" she playfully fussed, rolling back onto her side before finally swinging her legs over the edge of the bed. 

"It's uh, noon," he replied, crouching down in front of her after glancing at the clock on his phone. Sighing heavily, she placed her feet on the cold hardwood floor and tiptoed to the bathroom, shutting the door behind her. 

--

Lou headed downstairs to join in on the conversation in the living area. "Morning, everyone, or should I say afternoon?" Lou smiled as he made his way down to the semicircle of couches. 

"Oh, Lou, good afternoon!" Marcus and Elaina spoke in unison.

"Son, we were just discussing your birthday party and awakening. I hope you're prepared for your big day," Wilson said sternly.

Lou just shrugged his shoulders, unsure of how to respond. "Well, it's not like I'm going to die; I'm only turning eighteen. But I'll be prepared, nonetheless," he replied casually as he plopped down on the nearest couch. 

"Hey, Lou, is Mimori awake yet?" Elaina asked, turning his direction. 

"She's in the bathroom getting cleaned up. Did you want me to go get her?" Lou pressed his arms into the chair, preparing to lift from his seat. 

"Oh, no, it's ok. She's had a rough last couple of months. I don't want to pressure her. It's just that we wanted to celebrate both of your birthdays at the same time since you're only a few minutes apart." Elaina replied softly. 

"Honey, she's worried about taking the spotlight away from you. If you don't want to celebrate with Mimori, it's ok," Bethany said. 

"No, mom, I want to celebrate my birthday with her. It would be an honor." He paused.

Light footsteps approached from the top of the staircase. Everyone in the room turned their attention to Mimori as she made her way down. She wore the lilac-colored dress Lou had picked out; her hair put up into a simple ponytail and her skin glowing.

Lou's expression was pure love. 

"Did I miss something?" Mimori glanced herself over, then looked back up. "You're staring." She blushed. 

"No, sweetheart, you're glowing! Wait… Did you and Lou? Never mind…" Marcus broke the moment of silence as he motioned for her to sit in the last open seat. 

Mimori rushed down the stairs and plopped down on the couch, bringing her legs onto the cushion as she leaned back. "So, what's the topic?" she asked with a smile. 

"Oh, we were just discussing the party tomorrow," Lou chimed in. 

"What color scheme would you two like to go with? Decorations? I mean, it is your big day after all!" Bethany spoke up, leaning in and crossing her legs. 

"We could go with something lighter?" Mimori peeped.

"Why not something dark? It'll set the mood." Lou raised an eyebrow at Mimori.

"Oh, no, you don't. Everything is always dark! We need more colors than black and blue," Mimori retorted.

"You're a girl, of course, you want light colors." Lou rolled his eyes, huffing.

"Well, I'd better be a girl, or that would make you...gay," Mimori whispered.

"You two are going to make the perfect married couple." Elaina and Bethany chuckled as Marcus and Wilson shook their heads, sighing heavily.