4:30 A.M. — Organization Aircraft, En Route to Moscow, Russia
Jody woke up in the middle of the night, suddenly thirsty. She blinked her eyes open into the darkness of the passenger cabin, then slowly reached for the water bottle beside her seat. But just as she was about to take a sip—she realized it was empty.
Guess I'll have to get one from the fridge outside.
Carefully, she pulled off the blanket and got up, making sure not to wake Sera sleeping next to her. Half-asleep, Jody shuffled toward the center of the plane—the narrow hallway connecting the girls' section to where the guys were sleeping. That was where the small fridge was located.
But as she passed the guys' cabin, she noticed the faint glow of a phone screen lighting up from one of the seats.
Someone's still awake?
She glanced at the digital clock on the wall, rubbed her eyes, opened the fridge, grabbed a bottle of water, and quietly approached the mysterious light.
As she neared, her eyes adjusted to the darkness.
Peeking her head in, she saw it was none other than Syd Barrett—her beloved teammate and self-proclaimed mentor.
He was sitting cross-legged in the seat, headphones on, completely oblivious to her presence.
Toshi and Mickey were sprawled out asleep across the seats, typical guy fashion.
Jody crept closer from behind. Stealthy. Silent.
From his body language, it looked like Syd was totally engrossed in whatever was on his screen.
What's he watching?
She leaned in and looked over his shoulder.
He was watching Power Rangers.
"..."
On screen, the color-coded heroes were calling their mecha robots to battle a kaiju. Explosions, flashing lights, dramatic theme music—full Saturday morning cartoon energy.
And Syd was into it. He beamed at the screen like a six-year-old watching his favorite show, completely unaware that Jody was now leaning on the back of his seat watching with him.
Until he saw it.
Out of the corner of his eye, Syd caught a tall shadow reflected on his screen. His smile died. He immediately flipped the phone face-down and whipped around—headphones still hanging from his ears.
"..."
It was the first time Jody had ever seen Syd Barrett, hot-blooded, fearless, perpetually cocky—completely caught off guard.
His eyes widened. His brows slowly lifted, every second that passed screaming: Oh shit…
"..."
They locked eyes in silence across the dim cabin. Nothing but the hum of the AC between them.
They both knew. Now it was a matter of who would speak first—and lose.
Syd tried to hold his ground.
"...Why are you still up?"
Smooth delivery. Casual tone.
"You first. Why are you still up?"
"That's... not important. When did you get here?"
"Right around the time the Red Ranger called his robot to fight the monster."
"….."
"..."
"...It was an ad."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"It plays before the actual video. I—uh—I'm using a Japanese VPN. It was an ad for toys. You know, those dumb kids' toys."
"..."
"..."
"Do you really think I'd watch some dumb little kids' show?"
"..."
"..."
His brow twitched.
"Don't fight it."
"..."
"..."
Syd finally pulled off his headphones and tossed them aside, turning to face her.
"You're not telling anyone about this. Got it?"
"...Wait—they don't know?"
"Stop asking questions. What just happened never happened. You hear me?!"
"They really don't know you're into kiddie cartoons?"
Jody's lips curled up in a devilish smile. She covered her mouth in mock-shock.
"It's not a kiddie cartoon, dammit!"
Syd grabbed her shoulders and pulled her in, eyes wide.
"It's Gokaiger! GOKAIGER, okay?! Get the name right! Show some respect!"
"..."
Her smile grew even wider. That smile of a victor. The expression Syd hated most—because it meant he'd lost. Again.
"You're the ideal little brother, Syd…"
And with that, her hands cupped both his cheeks and squished them hard.
"You're adorable."
"F*ck off!"
Syd swatted her hands away.
"Don't ever speak of this again. If you tell anyone—I swear I'll kill you."
"Syd~ You watch Power Rangers. I never would've guessed... Honestly. Not in a million years."
"And what's so wrong about that?! Huh?! Why is that a problem?!"
"Whoa, whoa—I'm not saying it's wrong!"
Jody rushed to clarify.
"I just love how you try to cover it up by trashing the show you obviously enjoy."
"..."
"..."
"Like... you really thought you could trick me by calling it a kids' cartoon? That I'd just drop it and never suspect you'd actually watch that stuff? You even trashed the toys. Haa~ too cute."
"Whatever. I don't care. Just don't tell anyone. If this gets out… there'll be consequences."
"Syd… you're turning eighteen next year—"
Thud!
"Ow ow ow! Syd! No—I'm joking! I'm joking, stop!"
Jody tried to push away the boy's hands as he reached out to grab her by the throat.
It seemed like he was actually mad this time. Syd leapt out of his seat and pressed her against the cabin wall beside the plane's lavatory, his arm braced across her neck.
Have you ever tried teasing a friend for fun… only to accidentally push them too far?
That moment of "Oh crap."
Yeah. Jody was definitely feeling that.
She realized he wasn't playing anymore—he was genuinely pissed. And no matter how she resisted, the truth was clear.
A regular person couldn't outmatch a trained spy. Especially not one like Syd.
And with her condition—brittle bone disease—Jody knew she couldn't risk resisting with full force. If she fell the wrong way, her hip could snap.
All she could do was grip his arm with both hands and try to ride it out.
"Syd—! I—I can't… breathe…"
He didn't say anything.
Her struggling burned through her energy, and soon she was panting hard…
"Haa… haa… haa…"
Warm breath from her lips brushed against his face. Their faces were barely five centimeters apart.
"...…"
"Haa… haa… haa… haa…"
Silence settled between them.
The dim cabin lights. The dark ambiance. The closeness. The tension.
And then… awareness.
Syd suddenly became conscious of the position they were in.
Just the two of them. Alone.
The cold air around them, the shadows, the hush… but they were so close. Eye to eye. Face to face. Everything so clear…
And then the scent.
Because of how near they were… he could smell her.
She'd been in battle all day, yet—
Why… why does she still smell like this?
It wasn't soap. It wasn't shampoo. It was that natural scent, unique to each person. Something deeper. Something personal.
From her breath… her skin… the curve of her neck.
And her—she could smell something too.
A soft, warm sweetness from him. Like the kind you get from kind, cozy men. The sort of comforting smell that clashed completely with Syd's rough, loud personality.
And yet… it was there.
Something primal stirred between them—an instinct neither of them could resist. Even Jody, with all her maturity and control, couldn't fight it.
In this moment… the other seemed unusually attractive.
They were usually logical. Rational. Always thinking two steps ahead.
But now… that part of their brains had shut off.
"...…."
"...…"
"...…"
"...…"
"...…"
It was quiet. So quiet Syd could feel her pulse, thudding through her skin against his arm. He could feel her heartbeat racing.
And he knew immediately…
Jody's heart was pounding.
So was his.
She was breathing faster. Harder. Her hand reached up, curled behind his neck—
And then, gently, she pulled him down toward her—
And their lips met.
Currently, both of them could feel the warm breath exhaled heavily between them... and then came the soft tongue—Jody's—making the first move, slipping into the young man's mouth.
Jody wrapped her arms tightly around his head, and naturally, Syd responded in kind. His hands were already wrapped around her waist, fingers slipping beneath the edge of her blue shirt to trace the bare skin of her hips. The touch made Jody's breathing quicken... and it made his do the same.
Their bodies pressed tightly against one another, every inch closing the gap, rubbing and shifting together with only thin layers of clothing in between. The heat from their bodies and their breath mingled in the space between them with every soft touch and caress.
Because they were about the same height, Jody could look straight into his eyes. And at that moment, their minds blanked. It was like they couldn't think anymore…
It was something they both knew had been there since the first two or three days Jody moved into his house. Just never spoken. Did you really think they hadn't found each other attractive since the beginning? No way.
After all, they were only human. With human instincts. And it was only natural that they were doing exactly what nature had wired them to do.
They'd held back for so long… ever since that day… at Syd's dining table… And now here, they were finally letting it slip through…
Quiet little moans and sighs escaped from both Syd and Jody as their lips and tongues pressed and tangled harder and deeper. Her hands roamed his back, and he nearly lost himself in her scent, inhaling it deep into his lungs—it only made him more aroused.
His grip on her tightened, hands sliding with friction over her clothes. Then, Syd shifted, targeting her neck instead.
"Ugh…"
Jody almost couldn't hold it in.
But then—
They both heard footsteps. Someone else was walking past.
And it really happened.
It was none other than Sera, sleepwalking groggily through the dark toward the back of the plane—to the restroom…
Sera's presence snapped the two of them back to their senses.
Syd and Jody quickly pulled apart... the wild emotions that had just exploded faded fast. Her tongue was still tingling with his taste; his was still tinged with hers. Both of them scrambled to clean up, to return to being their "normal," public-facing selves.
Sera didn't see them. Honestly, she probably couldn't see anything at all in the dark.
So they let her pass.
"...."
"..."
Their thoughts finally caught up to their bodies. And then, Syd realized what they'd just done… and what could've happened if no one had passed by…
It was dead quiet for a long moment—until Syd decided to speak first.
"...."
"....."
"... So… uh..."
"....."
"... Hmm..."
Jody wasn't in much better shape. Her cheeks were flushed red, and it felt like her inner engine was trying to cool down slowly...
"... That was…"
"...."
"....."
"...."
"I didn't mean to…"
He admitted.
"... Me neither..."
"...."
This was, without a doubt, the most awkward moment either of them had ever experienced. They had no idea what to say after what just happened.
From that moment on, they didn't look each other in the eye again.
"....."
"... I, uh..."
"...It's fine... panting It's fine…"
Jody raised a hand, signaling she was okay.
"... We should... go back..."
He suggested.
"...Agreed..."
She replied.
"..."
"..."
"...Get some more sleep..." he muttered.
"Yeah... me too..."
"....."
"...That was... an accident, right?"
He asked her.
"...Yeah... Yeah. An accident..."
"...Okay. Then... we shouldn't tell anyone, right?"
"Mhm... of course..."
"...Including the Gokaiger thing too..."
"...."
"...Y-Yeah... alright..."
Even though they said that... neither of them could fall asleep again.
Not until the sun peeked over the horizon of the new day in Russia.