I turn to look at him, my arms still crossed. "Remember when I was in that chair?"
The corner of his mouth curls up into a knowing smile. "Damn right, I do. Remember it as if it were yesterday." He lets out a content sigh, though his smile fades into a serious expression as he looks back at the ground. "Would you have done it the same way if you knew what would happen?"
I look at the ground too, my hair falling back to cover my face and creating distance between us while doing so. "I would've changed some things."
"What would you change, then?"
I push the hair back behind my ear before looking up at him again. "I wouldn't even have considered following through with that initial plan," I say, seeing his face light up. "If I knew the outcome."
He looks at me silently, eyes inspecting every single one of my features as he leaves my skin tingling beneath his gaze. 
"I wouldn't have tried to push you away," I continue. "Though I'm not sure if I could," I add, "I mean, it was your words that told me what I needed to hear. I can see that now." 
"Listen," Soap starts gently, "I know I don't know everything about what you went through, and I do want to, if you come to a point where you'd wish to share. But I guess I just want you to know how you deserve so much," he says. "You're incredibly talented, Alex. Really. Even Ghost admitted it, and you know how hard that man is to get compliments out of. I just hope you realize that there are more things to enjoy in this life, and I hope you let yourself experience those things," he says, that familiar smirk appearing on his face, "And you know I'd love to be there to experience them with you."
"God, when did you turn into such a romantic, Johnny?" I can't help but grin at him. "That's adorable."
"I'm serious, Alex," he says, smile turning brighter. "I know I turn it into a joke most of the time, but I'm serious."
My own smile fades too when I notice how his expression has turned so sincere that it feels wrong to smile. I feel the need to talk as he looks at me gently, like he's just happy to be there alongside me. "I know," I say. "And I should tell you that I'm really grateful for the way you handled this entire situation." A sigh escapes me, thinking back to the absurdity of it all. "God knows I wouldn't even have considered forgiving me if I were in your position. Maybe that's my weakness," I say, somewhat smiling. 
"It's not," he says. "Maybe I shouldn't have forgiven you. Just couldn't help myself when that pretty face started appearing in my daydreams."
I chuckle out a laugh, placing my hand back on the table as I lean back. Johnny does exactly as I hoped he would, placing his hand right down to cover mine with his. His touch immediately grounds me, but as I look back at the two guards who remain unmoved, something inside of me switches.
Suddenly, my mind starts going over all the ways this could go wrong.
What if it doesn't work?
The disabler made by Fraser could only go so far. But newer chips had been processed already. It wouldn't stand a chance against those. 
How on earth would we find a way to get rid of it all?
My hand twitches beneath his, and he's quick to lift my hand off the table, wrapping his fingers around it tightly. I try to keep my expression from telling on me, but when I feel his eyes on the side of my face, I know he can read my expression immediately. 
"What's going on?" 
"Nothing," I say. "It's fine."
He tilts his head down, his lips pressed together. "Come on. Don't do this. What's wrong?"