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For the first two days after Caleb Harcourt stabbed him, Zev spent most of his time sleeping. The blood loss had been considerable, and his body demanded recovery. When he did wake, it was to eat something Nenet had cooked, to shower, or to change his bandages.[break][break]

He had expected her to spend the night after she'd agreed to stay with him, but when she remained in his apartment even after morning had come, the surprise had been pleasant and welcome.[break][break]

The contrast with Caleb's betrayal sharpened. Zev found himself thinking of Nenet more and more in his conscious moments, especially in this new light.[break][break]

On the third day, he woke up feeling more energized than before. He pulled back the curtain covering his bedroom window and blinked at the morning light. The smell of fresh coffee permeated the apartment, the sign that Nenet was making breakfast.[break][break]

Zev pulled on the previous day's T-shirt and gym shorts so he could smoke on the balcony after eating. Leaving his Lycanroc, Luna, to snooze longer on the bed, he made his way into the kitchen area. There, he found Nenet already seated at the table, coffee mug cradled in her hands.[break][break]

"Thanks," he said, voice thick with lack of use, before leaning down to kiss her cheek. The more he recovered, the more he remembered to wear his civilian mask in front of her. "Good morning to you, too."[break][break]

Then Zev poured himself a mug of steaming coffee. A tentative sip of the hot drink coated his tongue with familiar bitterness. Unlike his girlfriend, he liked his morning caffeine without sugar or milk.[break][break]

"What's for breakfast?" he asked as he sat down across from Nenet.

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NOTES

- Zev Harcourt.[break]
- Mission: Zero to One Hundred.[break]

MADE BY GUNSMILE

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Knowing Nenet, oatmeal with fruit was not a bland, mushy bowl of sadness. She would make the most decadent, delicious bowl of oatmeal Zev would ever have — which was saying something, considering his own skill at cooking.[break][break]

But his healing body craved protein, and tons of it. "Eggs," he decided.[break][break]

He lifted his mug for another sip but paused when Nenet's fingers alighted on his wrist. Turning his hand toward hers, he basked in the contact. A twinge of disappointment ran through him when she withdrew.[break][break]

"Not great, but better. My body still aches but I feel like I have more energy today."[break][break]

Zev finally took a second sip of his coffee. He'd managed to stave off the caffeine and nicotine withdrawal during the past two days with quick balcony trips, but even then, he'd felt like a wreck.[break][break]

Finally, on that third day, he felt recovered enough to enjoy both things.

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NOTES

- Zev Harcourt.[break]
- Mission: Zero to One Hundred.[break]

MADE BY GUNSMILE

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Zev ignored Nenet's reminder about his smoking habit, not willing to get into an argument with her while he was still uncaffeinated. So he sat at the table while she cooked, sipping gratefully on his coffee in silence.[break][break]

As soon as she placed the plate of eggs in front of him, he picked up his fork and started digging in. Nenet had cooked them to perfection, as always.[break][break]

Barely eating for the last two days had made him ravenous. Zev scarfed down two forkfuls before the sound of his name prompted him to look up at his girlfriend.[break][break]

Her expression was unreadable.[break][break]

"What is it?" he asked after chewing and swallowing.

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NOTES

- Zev Harcourt.[break]
- Mission: Zero to One Hundred.

MADE BY GUNSMILE

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Zev watched Nenet hesitate with a growing sense of apprehension, the same tension that filled him at the brink of fight or flight. He assumed, then, what was about to happen. She was going to ask a question that would define their relationship.[break][break]

Just two nights ago, Nenet had insisted she cared about him. Not only that, but she'd stayed with him after he'd asked. And even now, as the words left her lips, she reached out to stroke his hand in a soothing, reassuring way.[break][break]

Needless to say, her question caught him off guard. People who got to know him — people like Cillian Quinn, Caleb Harcourt, and Isaac Merlo — understood Zev was different from other people, but they never confronted him about him. They accepted it quietly and adjusted their expectations.[break][break]

So the surprise that flashed across Zev's face after Nenet asked her question was genuine. He stared at her for a long moment, the wheels of his mind turning at a rapid pace.[break][break]

She was clever — far too clever for her own good. She'd seen through enough of his lies on the night he returned home from Dewford Town. And yet she was still there, making him breakfast, tending his wound, caressing him at night.[break][break]

Zev dropped his gaze to the gentle touch of her fingers along the back of his hand. Slowly, he drank another sip of his coffee.[break][break]

When he lowered his mug and looked into Nenet's eyes again, his expression had changed. The surprise was gone, replaced with an unsettling coldness he'd never shown her before. His lips curled into a slight smile that did not reach his eyes, the movement smooth, well-practiced.[break][break]

"I'm a sociopath," Zev admitted, his voice devoid of all the warmth from moments ago. He turned his wrist again and brushed his knuckles against her fingers, a silent communication, a subtle reward.[break][break]

Blue eyes watched Nenet's face closely for her reaction. "Does knowing that bother you?"

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NOTES

- Zev Harcourt.[break]
- Mission: Zero to One Hundred.

MADE BY GUNSMILE

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Years ago, when Zev received the diagnosis, his parents had argued with each other over cures, treatments, denial, disbelief, and the question of his humanity.[break][break]

He remembered the way they looked at him — skittish, skeptical. They did not know what to think of their son who did not smile or laugh, who had a fascination with knives and corpses, who came home bruised and bloody because of fights at school.[break][break]

And Caleb, that fool. Zev remembered the way he begged other kids to believe him that Zev was not weird or different, just misunderstood. How he tried to delude himself about Zev's true nature.[break][break]

How he realized the truth too late and was forced to swallow it like a hateful pill.[break][break]

The teachers at school, the doctor at the hospital, his parents, his brother — they all tried to change him. To control him. To turn him into the person they wanted him to be: a normal child. A normal, obedient, meek little boy.[break][break]

Nenet closed her hand over Zev's and answered with such plain acceptance that he couldn't help the chuckle that escaped his lips. "Somehow, that doesn't surprise me."[break][break]

The tension left his body. He grasped her hand, lacing their fingers together. His smile took on a note of genuine delight, but there was still something wrong in the expression.[break][break]

"I didn't think you could be more endearing, Nenet, but I actually like you even more now." A rare admission. "I'm not lying when I say that, either."[break][break]

His thumb idly rubbed her knuckles. Her skin was warm, inviting, and Zev didn't want to let go, especially not after this. Humming thoughtfully, he downed the rest of his coffee before answering her.[break][break]

"I think you've earned the right to know that I'm not just a bar owner. My main career for the past ten years… well. I take contracts to kill people. I'm a hitman."[break][break]

It explained all the scars, both old and new, with which Nenet was intimately familiar.

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NOTES

- Zev Harcourt.[break]
- Mission: Zero to One Hundred.

MADE BY GUNSMILE

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Nenet didn't pull her hand away, Zev noted, even when the amusement fell away from her face. He watched her expression as she contemplated this new information.[break][break]

And then, much to his surprise, she seemed to come to an internal acceptance.[break][break]

Zev shook his head at her question. "No. I only take the contracts I want, and I have no reason to take jobs in Alola when there's plenty of work here."[break][break]

Then he considered the question she wasn't asking.[break][break]

"I don't see why anyone who wants me dead would target your family, either. If anything, they'd try to use you against me," he added, expression thoughtful.[break][break]

The League government could try coercing Nenet into revealing information about Zev, if they realized she knew things about him they did not. Even revealing that he was a sociopath was a huge risk.[break][break]

Thankfully, he fully believed he could outwit them.

[attr="class","ooc"][break]

NOTES

- Zev Harcourt.[break]
- Mission: Zero to One Hundred.

MADE BY GUNSMILE

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Nenet's calm but contemplative retreat to her side of the table did not alarm Zev. She had already accepted the truth about him, seemingly unwilling to change the nature of their relationship because of it.[break][break]

As she tapped away at her phone, he resumed eating breakfast. The eggs had grown a little cold, but they were still delicious.[break][break]

Zev's gaze snapped up to her face at her sudden request. Upon seeing the total seriousness in her expression, he glanced at her phone's screen.[break][break]

Marriage documents.[break][break]

He listened as Nenet dispassionately explained her reasoning. He had to admit: her logic was perfectly sound. And, he noted, it was perfectly selfish, too.[break][break]

She wanted protection for herself and was even willing to end their relationship if he refused her original offer. Her little "please" at the end was the only indication of the human emotions beneath her mask.[break][break]

Zev considered his options. And then, because he was a perfectly selfish creature, too, he smiled.[break][break]

"Okay, I'll marry you. And let me guess: you don't care for a big party, cake, any of that?" he asked. He'd known Nenet for long enough now that he was familiar with her preferences. "The courthouse isn't open on weekends, so… next Monday?"[break][break]

Just in case they needed to get certain affairs in order.[break][break]

He chewed another forkful of eggs before tacking on, "I still want to live separately. Come over whenever you want, but my work is here and your work is in Mossdeep. Until something changes, it makes sense to keep things the way they are."

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