Hunt (Tej Parker 1 of 2) 139 Dreams

☾ ⋆･ﾟ:⋆･ﾟ: ⋆.:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ:. ☁

You sighed deeply as you walked away from Han's grave toward your car. He was a good friend to you and he left a huge hole behind that would never fully heal. You kept finding yourself hoping that you'd wake up and this would all just be a Dr. Pepper-induced nightmare, but there was that little voice in the back of your mind that told you it was definitely not a dream.

"Baby girl, wait up."

You quickly wiped at your eyes, trying to get rid of your tears before you turned to face Tej. You tried to smile, but you just didn't have the energy to do so successfully. "Hey..." your voice was barely above a whisper and hoarse from all of the crying you had been doing.

He frowned, reaching up to brush away your tears with his thumb. "You okay?"

You nodded but it quickly devolved into a shake of your head as fresh tears filled your eyes. You stepped back to lean against your car, pulling a pack of cigarettes from your pocket. It was a nasty habit that you and Han had worked hard to tackle together, but now... you didn't see the point. "It just doesn't feel real, you know?"

Before you could bring it to your lips, he snatched it from your fingers, giving you a stern look. "Don't throw away all of your progress like it's nothing. Han wouldn't want that and you know it."

You frowned at the pack in your hand, bent and torn from being shoved in your pocket for so long. You knew he was right, but -

A black SUV squealed to a stop beside you and two heavily armored military guys jumped out. Tej stepped in front of you protectively as the others came rushing over to see what was happening. Another SUV arrived seconds later, this one carrying just one man. He stepped out, looking at all of you from behind thick sunglasses.

"Come with us," he stated. "Toretto is waiting for you."

The group exchanged worried and confused looks, unsure whether or not to trust this man.

"I'm calling it," Rome spoke up, lifting his hand. "This is a trap."

Good thing he didn't bet on that because it wasn't a trap.

The men brought you to a military base in El Segundo. Dom was there as promised, standing around a large table with a man in a blue suit - obviously the head of whatever operation this was. The building was crawling with military officers, weapons, and armored vehicles. It was the last place a group of criminals wanted to be.

You slid out from the back of the SUV, sharing a wary look with Tej before you scanned the room.

"This is crazy," Rome commented loudly. "The hell is going on in here?"

The men led your group over to Dom and the suited man introduced himself as Mr. Nobody before filling you in on why he needed your group's help specifically. "Our intelligence suggests that Ramsey will be transported by an armored motorcade through the Caucasus mountain range. Now, if they clear this range and reach their destination, Ramsey is as good as gone."

"So let me get this straight," said Rome. "There's only one road that leads in or out, sheer drops on every side, a motorcade from hell protected by a small army from one mile in either direction?"

Mr. Nobody nodded. "Yeah, that's about it."

"You done?" Sheppard, the commanding officer that was helping the team make their plans, stepped forward, giving Rome an annoyed look.

"No, I'm not done."

You stepped closer to Tej, peering over his shoulder at the game he was playing on his phone. It was a good distraction from Rome's complaining.

"So, you all wanted me to break into a police station. Fine. Then you asked me to stop a tank. I wasn't happy about it, but I did it."

Your eyes flickered to Tej's face and you felt your face growing warm. The scent of expensive cologne mingling with pine filled your nose - you adored that scent. It always put you at ease and made you feel warm and safe.

"Then you came up with this brilliant idea to shoot down one of the largest airplanes ever. I shot that shit out of the sky." He used his hands to fire an imaginary gun at the sky before humming. "It's nothing."

Tej sent you an exasperated look as Rome continued on, handing you his phone. This wasn't anything new. Whenever the two of you got together, he would often start a level and play to the halfway point before handing it over so you could complete the other half. This had happened dozens of times and yet you still felt nervous about it. What if you dropped his phone? What if you fucked up his progress? His fingers brushed against yours when you took the phone and your heart skipped a beat. Could he hear it?

"But this right here, my friend, happens to be the stupidest idea I've ever heard of in my life."

"I forgot that you were the only one to bring the plane down," Tej replied sarcastically.

"No, no," Brian added with a grin. "The only thing I've ever seen him take down was, uh, 'no knees' Denise. Remember? At prom?"

"Really Brian? You're gonna do that right here?" Rome gave him a look of disbelief as Brian and Tej shared an amused look, barely holding back their laughter.

"It also wasn't in the sky," you muttered, trying to focus on the boss you were fighting.

"What?"

You glanced at Rome. "You said you shot it out of the sky, but it wasn't in the sky, it was on the ground."

"What do you mean? The wheels were off the ground, Y/N."

"Just barely."

He shook his head. "See, ya'll trying to get me off my point. All I'm saying is, I'm tired of everybody around me making all the decisions. This time, I lead."

"Oh brother," you groaned. "We're all going to die."

Tej chuckled, nudging your shoulder. You were so caught off guard by this that you forgot to dodge the boss's mega attack, losing a large chunk of your health. Your heart needed a serious break so you slowly stepped back away from the group. They were so invested in the planning that no one even noticed. No one except for Tej, who watched you disappear with concern lingering in his eyes.

☾ ⋆･ﾟ:⋆･ﾟ: ⋆.:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ:. ☁

The retrieval mission was a success and the hacker, a beautiful young woman, was now safe and under the protection of Dom's crew. However, she mailed God's Eye to a friend in the United Arab Emirates and your crew was tasked to retrieve it by Mr. Nobody.

While waiting for Ramsey's friend to arrive, the crew made themselves comfortable on the beach. Well, most of them were comfortable. You, on the other hand, were quite the opposite of comfortable. Because of your heavyset frame, you didn't feel comfortable in a swimsuit so you stuck to shorts and a t-shirt. It was ungodly hot, though, and the black cotton was acting like a beacon, calling out to the sun.

"It's hotter than I thought it would be," Rome commented and you glanced over at him. He was sitting in a lounge chair wearing slacks and a long-sleeve button-up shirt.

"Yeah, well, we are in the desert so it would be hot," replied Tej. Your eyes flickered to him, scanning his shirtless body of their own accord. You swallowed hard, forcing yourself to look away before he caught you staring.

"Oh no, I ain't talking about the weather."

You followed Rome's creepy stare and frowned. He was watching Ramset as she stepped out of the water wearing a small bikini that really complimented her figure. You honestly felt torn. She was a really nice person, but you were also intimidated by her. Smart, beautiful, skinny... how could you not be jealous of her? Your eyes flickered back to Tej. He was watching her, too, and you felt your heart clench painfully.

Ramsey was honestly perfect for him.

And you? You weren't even close to his type. Your weight aside, you also lacked confidence. Partying and drinking were not things you enjoyed doing and you weren't too fond of large crowds, either. You were a gamer at heart and a major tomboy. Your clothes were usually baggy and you wouldn't be caught dead in a dress, skirt, or heels. You knew Tej's type. He liked skinny women who were overflowing with confidence that liked to dress up and show off their figures. He enjoyed women that he could parade around at a party and drink the night away with. You never stood a chance with him. You knew that from day one and yet... you still let your heart fall under his control. It honestly hurt much more than you would have thought.

"Now that is a woman that's worth falling out of a plane for," Tej stated, his eyes scanning her body.

Tears stung at your eyes and it felt as if a bullet had just pierced your heart. You quickly stood up from your seat and walked away from the group, trying your hardest to stop the tears from falling. I'm such an idiot. I knew I never stood a chance with him, so why am I getting so upset over it? I should just be happy he keeps me around at all...'

Once you were a safe distance from the group, you sat down on an empty lounge chair, running your hand through your hair. It felt like people were staring at you, laughing at you, mocking you. Why did you agree to come along with them? 'Because I wanted to spend time with Tej... I should've just stayed home.'

"Hey."

You glanced up as Letty approached you and you quickly wiped away your tears. "Hey..."

"You okay?" She stopped in front of you with a frown on her face, arms crossed over her chest. "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing... really." You forced a smile, looking away from her, knowing that she could see right through you.

"You sure?" She knew you were lying, but she didn't want to force you to talk if you didn't feel comfortable. "You can talk to me about anything, you know. We're family."

You smiled again and this time, it was genuine. "I know. Thank you so much, Letty."

"Of course." She returned the smile before pausing, chewing on her lip thoughtfully. When she spoke again, her voice was soft. "You should tell him how you feel."

"What?" Your eyes widened, snapping up to her as your heart picked up speed. "What are you..."

"I know what it looks like when someone is madly in love," she smiled warmly. "It's a beautiful thing. You really should tell him."

"No way," you laughed bitterly, shaking your head. "I can't!"

"It was just a suggestion."

"You're not going to..."

"Never," she told you seriously. "I would never do that to you."

Your shoulders relaxed a bit. "Thanks..."

She nodded before finally changing the subject, filling you in on the details you had missed. Ramsey's friend, Safar, was going to get the crew access to the building, but a change of outfit was required to get you in the door.

A sense of dread filled you at this last little bit of information.

☾ ⋆･ﾟ:⋆･ﾟ: ⋆.:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ:. ☁

When the crew reached the mega mall, they split into two different groups. Ramsey and Letty were heading for the high-end women's boutique while the guys were going to pick out their suits. You held back a bit, following the guys in the hopes that they wouldn't comment on your presence but you should have known better with Rome's big mouth around.

"Whoa, where do you think you're going, girl?" Rome questioned, holding out his hand to stop you in the shop's doorway.

You scowled at him, folding your arms over your chest. "I'm trying to get into the store if you would move out of the way."

"Not happening. You need a dress, not a suit."

His loud voice was drawing attention from people passing by and you felt your embarrassment growing. " Move, Rome."

"You never dress up," he complained. "No way will they let you in the party if you're dressed up like a dude. You're gonna blow the whole mission!"

The words hit a nerve. You had also been thinking about this and you had even told Letty that you were thinking about staying behind, but she had convinced you not to, claiming that they would need your help if something went wrong and, with this group, it would most likely go very wrong.

"No," you told him simply, but your voice had lost its conviction, sounding small even to your own ears.

"Come on. I wanna see you in a dress. Go on!" He tried to shoo you back but Tej shoved him out of the way. "What the hell, man?"

"Leave her alone," Tej warned, eyes narrowed at the man. "She doesn't want to wear a dress. Respect that." He then nodded at you, stepping to the side so you could finally enter the store.

"Thank you," you muttered softly, ducking your head before rushing inside toward the back of the store. Your heart was racing, cheeks burning with embarrassment but you tried to empty your head and focus on the task at hand. It took you several minutes before you were finally able to calm down and you were the last person to choose a suit, torn between a traditional black or blue silk. The blue one had a faint white pattern on it and though it was barely visible, you worried it might be too much for a formal party.

"You should choose the blue one, baby girl."

You looked over your shoulder, finding Tej smiling at you.

"Blue looks good on you." He ruffled your hair before going up to the front to pay for his own suit.

You tried to convince yourself that you only chose the blue one because it's your favorite color and not because of his comment. Either way, you were smiling when you approached the counter to purchase your new suit.

The woman at the counter smiled, placing the suit carefully into a plastic bag to keep it clean and wrinkle-free. You pulled out your card and she shook her head, giving you a smile at your confused expression. "That gentleman already paid for your suit."

You followed her gaze, locking eyes with Tej who was waiting for you by the door. He smiled and nodded, causing you to quickly look away, releasing a shaky breath. 'This man is going to be the death of me...'

☾ ⋆･ﾟ:⋆･ﾟ: ⋆.:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ:. ☁

You looked at yourself in the mirror and frowned. The suit itself was gorgeous and quite comfortable, but you believed it looked terrible on you. Shaking your head, you forced yourself to step away from the mirror, knowing you could stand there torturing yourself for ages.

There was a knock on the door, most likely Letty coming to pick you up.

"Come in," you called as you sat down on the end of the bed, slipping your feet into the dress shoes you had bought.

Tej stepped into the room, looking gorgeous in his black suit. "You really should check who's at the door first."

You smiled sheepishly, hoping he didn't notice your eyes lingering on his form. "Yeah... sorry."

"You look really good."

You didn't believe him, assuming he was just being a nice guy. "Thanks. So do you." You stood up as he approached you, stopping in front of you before taking the ends of the silk tie. You felt nervous with him being so close but you glanced at his eyes, thankful that he was focused on the task at hand.

Once he finished with the tie, he brushed your shoulders with his hands and smiled. "Come on, the others are waiting for us."

You followed him from the room, stuffing your hands into your pockets, your nerves rising as the two of you waited for the elevator. "Hey, Tej?"

"Yeah, baby girl?"

You hesitated as the elevator dinged, the doors sliding open. "Thank you."

"For what?"

Everything, you wanted to say. 'For being my friend. For not looking at me in disgust. For making me happy just by existing.' You smiled at him as you followed him onto the elevator. "For the tie."

"Of course."

Silence settled over you as the elevator descended to the lobby, but that was okay with you. You were happy being alone with him, even if it was only for a few moments of silence. Your shoulder brushed against his, his cologne strong in the enclosed space, wrapping around you like a warm blanket. When the doors slid open, you started to exit but Tej took you gently by the wrist, giving you a serious look.

"Be careful, Y/N. Don't do anything reckless."

"Me? Reckless ? Never." You offered him a grin, getting a warning look in return.

"I'm serious."

"I know, I know. I'll be careful, I promise."

He nodded, letting his hand drop from your wrist. "Good."

It was time for the hunt for God's Eye to begin.

☾ ⋆*･ﾟ:⋆*･ﾟ: *⋆.*:･ﾟ .: ⋆*･ﾟ:. ☁

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