Chapter 3

He had promised-no sworn not only to Nicky, but to himself that he would never return to the CIA no matter what, and yet, here he was, sitting across Landy and Cronin waiting for Irina to make her appearance. He, Jason Bourne, was indeed nervous. It had been well over a year since he last had seen her and what about her? What would her reaction be? Last time he had gone looking for her to apologize. Everything happened so fast that he knew that it had all come as a shock to her and too much to take in at the time that there was no way for her to act at the moment. What about now? She had time to think, she had time to come to terms with her feelings and was now fully aware of the situation. How would she react now? Now that she was in the hands of her parent's murderer?

He scoffed. Here he was, nervous upon her arrival when all this time he had failed to realize that the most affected person in this situation had been and still was her. She could have secretly brought a gun or some form of weapon to get rid of him as a way of revenge, although the odds of that were highly improbable. She could try to kill him with her bare hands, strangle him to death or find some other forms of carrying out her revenge. The possibilities were endless!

He smiled inwardly. Nicky had in no doubt, rubbed off on him. Nicky always thought everything in a most exaggerating form. Then again, after everything they had experienced, maybe it wasn't so exaggerating. Nicky was just very...cautious. That was it, as was him. Running and hiding from the CIA had thought you to be.

A door creaked, followed by some light footsteps, alerting the occupants of the room that they were no longer alone. He noticed Landy offer a smile and Cronin give a slight nod. He had his back towards the door and he didn't know whether to turn or to stay in the same position. However, his thoughts quickly faded as he heard the door close and saw Landy extending her arm, motioning to sit down. Shuffling, then a chair being pulled back and lastly, someone clearing their throat very softly.

There was silence in the room for what seemed an eternity to Jason. No one said anything but merely looked around, expecting the other to break the ice. Finally, Jason could no longer take it and turned to face her only to be met by a pair of brown eyes staring back at him. He was taken by surprise. He hadn't expected to have her looking over at him. Truthfully, he had believed that she would be shy, scared, nervous, unable to even glance at him, a total wreck but that was not her. She was indeed stiff, and he could tell her pulse had quicken, but the look in her brown eyes could not be deciphered.

It was then that someone cleared their throat and then they spoke, breaking the tension or at least some of it.

“Jason, this is Irina Neski.” she said softly, pausing before she continued. “Irina, this..is Jason Bourne.” Landy spoke once more in that same tone.

“Yes, we had met before.” she spoke, softly but firmly.

At that, both Landy and Cronin exchanged confused looks. Apparently the CIA had not been aware that he had gone to meet her before. Well, that's a first.

By Landy's inquisitive expression he could tell she wanted to know more but before saying anything, she merely shook it off and proceeded.

“Well, as we all here present are aware of the situation at hand, I believe the best thing to do now is to carry out with the plan. There is no time to lose and we must act quickly in order to stay on top of them.”

There was no need to ask who “them” were. Everyone was well aware that it was the 'terrorists' as Jason had come to refer to them, that were threatening Irina. Although no one spoke a word, it was made clear that everyone agreed.

“Good...now that that's settled, I leave you to it. Of course, we will maintain contact, we must all be informed of new developments and make sure everything is going according to plan.” Landy stated in that same tone she used when she meant business.

She gathered her files and made her way to Irina. She let out a sigh and placing her hand on Irina's shoulder, she looked her fixedly in the eye before she assured her that “everything would be okay.” Irina merely nodded softly, not too convinced. Landy smiled back before she turned, glancing towards Jason and heading out the door followed by Cronin as usual.

They were now alone in the small room, Irina's quick breathing about the only thing that could be heard. They both stood still as if hoping that in doing so the other would simply disappear. He didn't know what to do. Should he strike up a conversation? Should he simply ask or order her to follow him to her new destination?

Unsure of what to do, he simply gazed at her. She looked the same since he last had seen her. The same blond hair, brown eyes, pale skin, slender figure, and that fragile look of hers that made his guilt return. For some reason he kept on thinking that it was the fact that she had grown up without her parents the reason to her vulnerability. Even more difficult yet was the fact that it had been him who took them away and deprived her of so many things.

Irina stood still a few feet from her parent's murderer. It was difficult for her to do so but not as difficult as everyone thought it would be. Surely enough, if she had been the girl they thought her to be, she would no doubt had broke down once she entered that room, screamed in rage, thrown herself at him, hoping to inflict some of the much damage he had inflicted on her. However, that was not her. It did hurt, it was difficult, it did required strength, but growing up without her parents had helped her deal with many of those factors. It had helped to make her stronger, braver, and cautious.

However, that day, a little over a year ago when she learned the real truth to her parents death's...she broke down, later after he left. She had felt so many emotions at once that it had been much difficult for her that time. She felt relieved and happy to know that it had not been her mother who had ended both of their lives and left her to herself, but sad, and angered that they had their lives taken away. Not only that but that that same man had shown up at her house, years later to confess the truth. Whether it was a relief, it still pained her and she had felt angered at herself for letting him escape. For not having acted sooner and avenged her parent's deaths, and yet, here he was, standing a few feet away and all she could do was stand still.

She wasn't entirely sure that she could grow to trust this man although something deep inside her told her otherwise. He had gone looking for her to apologize, well to tell her the truth. He must have imagined how difficult it had been to grow up thinking your mother killed your father and then committed suicide. He had done something brave in having to go look for her and that had to count as something didn't it? It was all too confusing and her head was beginning to hurt. She felt herself become dizzy instantly, and she reached down towards the table to steady herself.

Jason had been studying the young woman before him when he noticed her reach out to keep herself from collapsing. Instantly he reached out to support her on reflex but just as their skin came into contact, she immediately pulled away and he followed suit. Her eyes had shot open and she was caressing her arm as if he had burned her. She had a panicked expression that clearly stated he had done wrong. He supposed he could be angered at her reaction but he wasn't. He understood her perfectly. In her eyes, he was still not trustworthy and it seemed that it would stay that way for some time. It was completely fine with him, so long as it didn't get in the way with his mission.

She seemed to open her mouth to say something but could find no words. Instead, he spoke before they lost time, it was already late and he had still to take her to her new place, allow her to familiarize herself with it and rest.

“Irina...is it okay if I refer to you that way?” he asked before he continued.

It could be a silly thing to ask but perhaps the girl could feel uncomfortable and he had no intention of making her so. Perhaps she would prefer if he referred to her in a most formal way.

She seemed taken aback at first before she nodded softly.

“Okay, well you can call me Jason...or Bourne, it doesn't matter.” he said in a matter of fact tone.

“We should go, we still need you to get settled.”

He didn't need to say anymore. She knew he meant for her to follow him which she did, a couple of steps behind him but still trailing behind. They did not fail to attract the attention of every man and women in the CIA as they made their way out. He was still known for being the best, whether as agent or assassin it did not matter. Most of the people present feared him and then there were those who were intrigued by the situation. He was to look after the girl who's parent's he murdered years ago. It all seemed too incredible but it was real. He had screwed up before and he would not do it again.

---

A/N: I'm really sorry I took so long to update but I really could not find time to work on this or any of my fics. Anyway, although it may take time before I update, I can say that I do not plan on abandoning any of my fics. I plan on finishing them all, hopefully soon. Well, I really hope you like this chapter and hope you review. Of course, thank you to those who did review before. This went out to you all!