I nervously pace the room. I didn't even get to leave it! One by one, everyone left to go on their occupations, and Erza came in to review the retrieved files with a new air-gapped laptop.

Cassian left for a few minutes too, but he was back, asking Ezra questions, wanting to know more.

I did too, as it was technically my job, but Cassian was so on top of everything.

So I let him take point. I look at his chin. Cassian is such a gorgeous man. And so nice!

As we make progress on the files, I recall the two times I made a fool of myself trying to seduce him. I tried another time, but that time, I didn't fail as much.

Maybe one day?

I don't think I am the only one with a crush on him, but as far as I know, I am the only one who actually tried to go somewhere with it.

Well, I can't blame them. He is the number one wanted man in America, after all, and doesn't hesitate to kill when needed, but I never cared for that.

I knew him before he was Vexx. Perhaps it's why I am so different?

Of course not. It's because we tried dating back then. He realized we didn't work, but I didn't have the same point of view.

We were from a small social hacking anarchy group. God, we were awful. We thought we could change the world by hacking it. That we would be the next WikiLeaks, but active, not passive.

Skipping in Europe from student hotels to camping grounds, I exploited servers while Cassian used social engineering to get access. Linda would seduce powerful men, and Kurt would break in at night. We each had our part.

When Linda and Kurt fell in love, I got closer to Cassian. Not enough to have sex, but enough to kiss, and my God, is he a good kisser!

It's not that we broke up; it's that Europol busted us. Well, three of us; Cassian was out. Kurt resisted; he didn't make it out.

They didn't let Linda survive to her trial. She had seduced men who were far too powerful to leave her alive, and I was just the nerdy hacker.

Did 3 years in jail until they realized I was better on their side than in jail. They didn't expect Cassian to find me and bust me out.

Of course I fell into his arms. He was my savior! But he was firm. He was in another place, with new priorities.

I didn't know he was Vexx. I didn't even know who Vexx was. Not at first.

When I did, I tried again, and I was shut down like a bird with a buckshot.

Entered a deep depression. What do you do when the man you love cannot love you back "because he needs to remain single."

That's bullshit.

I told him! He is allowed to love, but he stayed firm.

Until one of his guys betrayed him. He was furious! Not at the guy. At himself, for not doing enough to convince the guy of our mission.

I found him in his cabin that night. I talked to him. "Cassian, we were both hardcore anarchists, but these kids, they are not. Many don't believe in our cause; they believe in the money they can make from the cause."

"Then, I am a failure."

I held him in my arms. He took naturism a lot easier than I did. Well, I am comfortable nude; that's not my problem. My problem is that I don't do as well as the others with the division between sex and nudity, so that hug, initially to reassure him, escalated.

Enough that on that night, we had sex. For the first time, but according to him, also for the last time.

I had to take Plan B the next day, even if I am on the pill. "I can't have an heir; it would breed nepotism."

I laughed. "Cassian, remember in Europe? We didn't care about tomorrow, just about today."

I'll never forget what he replied to me. "Back then, we thought we didn't have anyone depending on us, and two of us died. I can't do that again. I have too many people I take care of. Kids now, even."

We hugged. That wouldn't be the last one. But I knew, even if my heart belongs to Cassian, he can only do his job by putting his heart away.

All I can do now is to be there for him.

"So, we have everything?" asks Cassian.

"I believe so. We don't even need to log in to their servers again. We have the credentials and access information for the government databases direcly."

"Good. Thank you, Ezra. You can get back to your desk. Leave the laptop; we'll decide on the next step and call you for the execution."

"With pleasure. Thank you, Cassian."

I am alone with Cassian soon enough. My favorite moments of my work. He calls the meeting in this room from his watch.

"Do you have a plan? Because if not, I do", I tell him.

"Hey, we have the same plan, I think. Shall I bring the others?"

"You could just decide. You are the boss."

"I could. But by consulting them, I bred loyalty."

"You always knew how to handle people, Cassian."

"I don't like that term. Handle. I don't handle them. I listen to them."

I laugh. "You do more than listen to them."

"Sure, but by listening to them, I can pick who has aligned values with ours, and that way, find a path where our objectives align."

I laugh. "Do you remember when we were anarchists?"

"We still are."

"Not in here."

"No, but when Europol hit us, I realized something."

"What?"

"Pure anarchy cannot work. Absolute chaos cannot work. So, in here, we have an almost fascist structure created to build anarchy out there."

I laugh. "The Vexx Paradox."

He laughs. "Yeah."

Patrice is first. Doesn't surprise me. When Cassian made me part of the successor selection team, she was floated as the first choice for his replacement.

Oh, she wouldn't be Vexx. There is nothing in the rules that says that the leader out there, Vexx, has to be the leader in here.

We have Cassian, the man who can do everything, in charge. With Patrice, a new face out there will be chosen to be her avatar. I don't know who would take over as Vexx, but in here, it would be her, and it wouldn't be me. I am too much of an anarchist to have leadership responsibilities.

Tamara arrives soon after and really looks like she absolutely wants to remove her clothes. It's uncanny how that woman can be so brilliant and so nice at the resort and yet fit so badly in here.

It's only when Sabrina makes it that I realize my answer. As soon as Tamara's wife sits next to her, it's like she wakes up. She becomes a new person, warmer, more charming, and better in every way. At the resort, those two are inseparable, but in here, they have different jobs.

Olivia also makes it, as well as Frankie and Doyle.

When everyone has sat down, Cassian calls for attention.

"Thanks to our recent operation, we have retrieved a backup USB drive for an organization that sells student loan forgiveness. We knew they were hacking government servers to do so, pocketing the money they charged their customers at little cost to them. Catherine?"

"Thank you, Cassian. We now have a complete backup of the hacking infrastructure. We can easily retrieve all current student loans and forgive any that we choose."

Olivia asks. "In batch or one by one."

"They have a queue system. Looking at logs from tests, it looks like it takes about 6 to 8 seconds per loan," I say.

Doyle, speak up. "But there are multiple loan sources."

Cassian replies. "In 2010, the Health Care and Education Reconciliation Act consolidated all loans under the Federal Direct Loan Program. It doesn't include private programs, but those cannot be forgiven anyway."

Doyle speaks up. "Right, because we wanted to remove the loan forgiveness benefit for joining ICE. This is what it's all about."

"It is.", says Cassian. "But this is all theoretical. Do we just forgive all loans to cripple ICE? Or do we exclude people who actually support ICE or other authoritarian measures."

"I think everyone. Education should be a right," I say.

Cassian smiles. He always found it funny that I am an anarchist who supports free education. For him, you can't have free stuff and be an anarchist, since it means no taxes. For me, I prefer to just imagine that if the government didn't fund wars and a ridiculous police state, people would willingly fund free education with a voluntary tax. But what do I know?

Sabrina speaks up. "Well, I like the idea of forgiving all student loans, but what do we do with the next students? Isn't that, like, unfair for the new kids?"

Doyle replies. "That's a great point, Sabrina, but if you recall, we had solved previous issues like that with the idea that nothing prevents us from doing it again. We can't just not act because it's unfair for the future. We need to build a future without any student loans in the first place."

"Ok, then I am in," says Sabrina.

But Tamara has a better idea. "Can we forgive a partial amount?" She says.

I smile. She has an idea in mind, and usually. Her ideas are weird, and I love them.

"We can. And we have the balance, so we can forgive everything except, say, the last 10,000. Just give them some hope."

"No, $5.22," says Tamara.

Cassian laughs. "Oh, this is perfect!"

Sabrina laughs, but Patrice asks. "Why $5.22?"

"V is 5 in Roman numerals, and it's the sign that Vexx does when exiting an operation", says Cassian.

"Ah, and V is the 22nd letter of the alphabet," says Patrice.

I liked that. And May is coming up in 6 weeks, so on May 22nd, Vexx will claim responsibility for it. But Patrice has a better idea.

"Why not right now announce that on May 22nd, Vexx will speak to the world? Then, we wipe the student loans, but it might take a month anyway before people get their receipts. By then, the date and his announcement, which will denounce how kids can't get an education and that the student loan robs people more than he does, will make it clear it was him."

We all agreed on that plan, but Tamara had another issue to bring up.

"I want to change a rule."

"Which one?" Says Cassian.

"I want non-security employees to have the right to work nude in the complex."

"This isn't your first request."

"Well, we are improving security, so when nude, we can't smuggle things in or out, and it's stupid."

"It's to hide who is security and who isn't," says Cassian.

"Well, back then it made sense. Everyone was armed. But now, just by the weapons, you can tell," says Tamara.

"That is a good point, Cassian," says Patrice.

"Who else agrees?"

Sabrina, of course, did; it's her wife's proposal; I do too. In my case, I wasn't raised a naturist, but when I am nude, Cassian seems to like me more. I know he likes me in general... but anything to help.

Olivia agrees, Frankie eventually does, and Cassian doesn't wait for Doyle: we have a strong majority.

"Then Patrice and I will make a list of employees allowed to be nude, including Tamara, Sabrina, and Catherine", he says, but when he looks at me, I can sense a little something. Like he is happy he will work with me while I am nude.

I am not that young anymore, but he isn't either, and we have something none of the other women have; we have history.

This will be good!