LEO
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19/02/2003
Panay, The Philippines
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"You need to stop damn pushing yourself," I mumble as she slowly strides past me, walking like fucking Bambi.

She shoots me a glare that represents nothing short of irritation, "I'm not pushing myself."

I sigh, leaning my head down and scraping my hands through my hair. She doesn't get my fucking point, she only woke up yesterday and now she thinks she's a damn track-star. And from the lack of mention about the elephant in the room, I guess she can't remember the fact that I kissed her. Or the fact that she wanted me to.

At least I think.

That's probably for the best. It was reckless, impulsive. Because really, deep down? I did think she was going to die. I would've put almost everything on the gamble she wouldn't have made it out of there alive. The wound was horrific.

But here she is, prancing around like the stubborn little shit she is.

"If you keep moving around like that you're going to get hurt, again." I grumble.

A completely over-exaggerated groan escapes her lips as she lowers onto the edge of her bed. "Walking around the med-bay isn't going to get me stabbed."

"Maybe not, but you're still weak. You could black out and hit your head or something." I murmur, and I know I'm right. Blood pressure drops after something like this can be a bitch, and I guess she's pretending she hasn't swayed on her feet a fair few times when standing up.

"You know when you were in captivity, Tara told me that you barely got fed and barely got the chance to move around. Is that right?" She asks, folding her arms.

I hum in response, pacing the room.

She shrugs. "And you still managed to fight, even when you were that weak. Consider it the same thing."

Now I groan, "it's not the same fucking thing, Nova. You've been in a goddamn coma!"

"Rosa said the best thing to do is to try and move around. You were literally fucking there when she said it, stop acting like you're the goddamn medic here!" She hisses, eye twitching in annoyance.

Before our bicker can intensify, Marv appears at the door and strolls into the room with a tray of food. We both fall silent immediately.

"Everything okay?" He raises his eyebrows, placing down the tray of food next to her bed to which she smiles gratefully.

"Marv, can you tell Leo that it's perfectly fine for me to try and walk around?" She interjects before I can get a damn word in.

I glance at Marv who nods slowly, "sure. As long as you have somebody with you, theres no problem," he smiles, Nova shooting me a smug grin.

I roll my eyes, pacing over to the seat next to her bed and falling into it as Marv dismisses himself.

We both watch him leave the room, our gazes instantly snapping back to each other the second the door swings shut.

"You're 'gonna be the death of me one day, Shields. I need damn extra pay for the amount of times I've saved your ass." I mumble as she picks up her fork, aiming it at me with a grin.

"I didn't ask you to save my ass," she shrugs, swooping her fork down and stabbing at some pasta.

"There was never going to be another option," I shake my head.

She stares at the ceiling for a few seconds, chewing her food in thought as I gaze at her. I'd pay damn good money to know what's going through her brain right now, what clockwork is ticking behind those emerald eyes.

She's just, so-

"I'm sorry," she mumbles after swallowing her food, ripping me out of my thoughts.

"For what?"

"For being rude to you yesterday when I woke up," she sighs.

I can't stop the deep snicker that erupts from deep in my throat, her eyes meet mine in a confused glance.

"If you're going to apologise for being rude, you've got a whole lot more times to apologise for." I grin, she scoffs and rolls her eyes.

"You say that as though you haven't acted exactly the same." She turns away, but I can't miss that smirk she tries to bite down.

She bites her lip, and something hitches in my throat.

I clear it.

"Maybe I have, I'm not going to deny it." I raise my hands defensively as she turns to look at me again, shoving up another fork of pasta.

"It's not just that though, Tara told me you donated blood." She mumbles through her food before swallowing.

"Tara is damn right, I did. You needed it," I shrug.

"You also needed it, Leo. You'd been through hell," she huffs, shaking her head.

I'll spare her the details about how I was fucking drunk on weakness for two days afterwards. Donating a pint of blood after not eating anything but a few crackers a day for over a week probably wasn't the best idea.

But it was worth it, and I'd do it again for her in a heartbeat if I had to.

"Well, you're just lucky I'm 'tough as nails." I smirk, lightening the situation.

"Well, thank you," she smiles slightly, looking at the clock hung up over the door. "Alright nurse, your shift is over here. You can tell Tara to come in and take over." She surprisingly jokes, muffled by some more food she shovels into her mouth.

"And what if I don't want my shift to be over?" I grin, cocking an eyebrow.

"Why wouldn't you want it to be? I'm hardly that interesting when I'm hooked up to a few machines." She shrugs.

Because I think I'm actually a little bit fucking obsessed with you.

"Because I want to ask you about what happened," I lie. It probably wasn't my best fucking excuse since she narrows her eyebrows, and now I have to actually ask her about it.

Our conversation was going well up until now.

"What about it?"

"Well, how are you feeling now? I asked you yesterday, but I think you were still pretty damn out of it," I speak as though I'm stepping on fucking eggshells.

She swallows her food, glancing off to nowhere in particular. "I mean, it's completely shit. I would have preferred it if my Mom had just ditched us, rather than have been killed."

Her grip around the fork tightens significantly, whites of her knuckles bulging out.

"I mean, yeah. I understand that."

"And it makes it even worse that the bastard is still roaming around. I hope he fucking bled out," she hisses.

"We will get him, you know? You will get him." I reassure her, scooting my chair slightly closer to the edge of her bed.

"It just seems so far fetched now. He was right fucking there, and now we have no idea-"

"-Nova, we will get him. I promise." I interrupt, her mouth slowly closing. "Your main priority needs to be you right now. Not that bastard, you can't let him ruin your life."

"I just feel like he's always going to be there, y'know? Turns out he's had 'eyes' on me for all of these years, and I was completely fucking oblivious." She sighs.

"That wasn't your fault, okay? He won't get close to you again unless his head is at the barrel of your gun." I slowly extend my hand towards her forearm, expecting her to rip it right out of my grasp.

But she doesn't.

"My Mom never got a funeral, and my Dad can't even know the truth. I can't explain how I know," she mumbles.

I didn't think about that. She can't tell her Dad because all the information she's received has been through our operation, which is completely confidential.

That's fucking horrible.

"When do you get your year off?" I ask, tilting my head.

We can all apply for one year off duty every five years, gives us a chance to return home and spend time with our families, or what's left of it in Nova's case. It makes everything seem less suspicious about our careers.

"It starts this June, but I refuse to take it unless we hunt Nicholas down." She murmurs.

"You should take it regardless, drive back to Tennessee. It won't be a typical funeral, but it's something, right?" I force a smile, although I know that she will absolutely not rest until Nicholas is found.

"Maybe," she shrugs, rubbing her eyes with a yawn before putting down her fork. I furrow my eyebrows.

"You're seriously done with that? You aren't eating any more?" I gesture to the half full bowl of pasta, she shakes her head.

"I don't think my damn appetite has worked it's way back up to the nines yet," she snickers.

I go to take her plate but she stands up suddenly, staggering a few steps as I grip her shoulders to steady her.

"What in the goddamn hell are you doing?" I hiss, releasing my grasp as she regains her balance.

"Taking my plate back to the hall," she shrugs, picking it up.

"But-"

"No buts, Hendrix. I need to get out of this fucking room before I go insane." She interrupts my protest, already starting to slowly pace away.

"Want me to carry you?" I bite down a smirk as she looks over her shoulder, shooting me a glare.

"Oh yes. Please, please transport me to the food hall because I'm too fucking lazy to walk the twenty metres by myself." She says sarcastically with a small laugh, waving me off with her free hand.

I wasn't even completely joking. But, I can't fight with her because I'll never win. It is Nova, after all. With a frustrated huff, I stride out behind her.

——

"Novie, should you be out here?" Tara dramatically gasps as we stroll into the hall, lunging forward and grabbing her arms.

"If I want to keep my sanity, this is probably the best option," she chuckles.

"Novie, hm?" I smirk down at her, her now cold gaze travelling up and meeting mine as her smile fades into seriousness.

"Don't you dare start calling me that," she hisses, I can't hold back the snicker.

"Why not?"

"Because it's stupid," she mumbles, Tara shaking her head frantically.

"It can't possibly be more stupid than Tarantino," she grins, I cock my head in agreement.

"Yeah, Novie. She's got a point, it can't possibly be worse than Tarantino-"

"Hey, darlin'!"

I groan at the mere sound of Dylan's irritating voice as he hobbles over with a crutch, still somehow radiating his usual charisma. He wraps his free arm around her shoulders and I instantly want to snap it in half.

"Watch it, she only just fucking got used to walking again," I hiss, despite the fact it has absolutely no relevance at all.

Nova furrows her eyebrows, shooting me the usual 'I don't need you to speak on my behalf' glare.

"Dylan," She acknowledges.

"Still looking pretty even after a little coma, 'ay?" He smirks, she rolls her eyes.

For once in his life, he's not wrong.

"It wasn't exactly a priority," she snickers. I think she secretly finds his attempted flirts entertaining. His arrogance just pisses me right off.

"Well, luckily my kneecap is getting close to healin'! I bet I could've been a big use on that operation if I hadn't gotten it blown out thirty seconds in." He chuckles.

"Or a big problem," I sigh under my breath, he doesn't hear me unfortunately.

"Say, I would've taken that stab for 'ya, Shields." He shoots me a smug grin, but it's evident he crossed a line as we all fall into silence.

I go to snap at him, but Nova's gaze catches mine as she shakes her head ever so slightly, obviously having no patience to listen to us bickering.

"Wasn't the most appropriate thing to say, Dyl'." To my surprise, Tara speaks up.

He raises his hand that's still snaked around her shoulder in defence. "My bad, my bad."

Tara slowly links her own arm through Nova's and edges her away discreetly. "Come on, Novie. I have some stuff I want to talk to you about," she grins. It's so obvious it's a lie, just a way to get her out of the awkward situation.

"Alright, I'll see you both later." She gives us a small wave before pacing out of the hall with Tara.

I have absolutely zero interest in standing around talking to Dylan, so I stride out with a limp a few seconds after them.

————————
26/02/2003
Panay, The Philippines

I may as well manually shove Dylan right up her damn ass.

He's been following her around like a lost fucking puppy for the past week, ever since she decided she simply 'didn't need' to be in the med-bay anymore and self discharged. Her skin wound is pretty healed apart from some stray stitches, apparently.

Rosa said they mainly take ten days to heal, and it's almost been eighteen.

Martin Shelley is trying to hook me and Yamato into a story about 'Jenny', but I really don't give a damn fuck. It's the most uninteresting chain of events my hearing has ever witnessed.

There's a difference voice I'd rather be listening to than this annoying yap.

"And then I said, 'well I'll be damned, sugar-Jen! You really lost your ring in the shower?!'" He erupts into laughter despite the fact it wasn't remotely funny, slapping his knees like an old damn farmer. All he needs at this point is a plaid shirt and a piece of hay between his teeth.

Me and Yamato share a glance before both forcing laughter. I take the chance to quickly dismiss myself, heading right for the sight that has been irritating my peripheral for the past twenty fucking minutes.

"Holmes, Shields." I address them as I approach, Dylan automatically taking a step back from being all up in her personal space.

"Hey, how's the leg?" Nova gestures towards my calf.

"Fine now," I reply, taking a deep breath.

She nods slowly, and now we're stuck in an awkward fucking silence until Yamato paces over, clearly also having escaped Martin's storytelling.

"Thank God I got away from that, I don't think I could bare hearing about 'Jenny' for any longer." He groans, earning a genuine chuckle from us all.

"I think we've all heard about Jenny at this point. It's like a standard procedure to know about her," Nova snickers.

"Unfortunately," Dylan chimes in.

I need to talk to her, alone.

"Can you come to the barracks with me for a minute, Nova?" I break the conversation and Dylan, being the annoying fucking prick he is, whistles.

"Whit-Woo, the barracks, 'ay? Wonder what's going to go down in there?" He bursts into laughter until Nova punches him in the arm, causing him to shut up and grimace.

"'Ay, what was that for? I thought you were still meant to be getting your strength back?" He rubs his bicep dramatically, she completely ignores him.

"It won't hurt you to be quiet for a minute. Let's go, Leo," she nudges my arm, taking the lead and striding towards the barracks.

I'm stood still for a moment before following in her tracks, surprised that she didn't hesitate. It feels unusual being led around by a woman who is almost a foot shorter than me, but I don't mind.

Because it's her.

She swings open the door of the barracks, shutting it behind me with a click once I've stepped inside.

"So, what's the matter?" She tilts her head and folds her arms across her almost-healed chest.

"Just come over here, for a second," I murmur, gesturing for her to come towards my bunk. I kneel down towards my bag, listening to her footsteps as she paces over behind me.

I pull out the duffle, unzipping an inside pocket and rummaging.

"So, what's going on with Dylan?" I ask in the meantime, digging through my clothes.

"Nothing?"

I'm about to reply until my fingers brush the familiar cold metal, pulling out my compass and turning my head around.

"I'm guessing this is how you found your gun? You were returning this," I hang the chain between my fingers, raising my eyebrows.

"Yeah, that's about right." She shrugs.

"How did you find it?"

"It was in the vest you gave me that day," she sighs, leaning against the wall. "You shouldn't have done that, you know? You were vulnerable."

"And you were vulnerable since you didn't have one in the first place." I retort, pushing myself to my feet and standing in front of her.

"That didn't concern you. You should've focused on yourself. If you hadn't given it to me, maybe you wouldn't have been captured." She furrows her thick, dark eyebrows.

I'm not going down this fucking wormhole, again.

"For once in your fucking life, can you just accept that sometimes you need goddamn help?" I hiss.

"I'm fine with receiving help as long as it doesn't put the giver in danger, Leo!" She snaps, green eyes twitching.

"For Gods sake, you're such a fucking nuisance sometimes. I helped you out. If I hadn't, you could've been shot dead that night!"

"And you couldn't have?" She scoffs before continuing. "It's not your job to protect me, it's your job to protect yourself and the people who really need it! That's what you've been saying to me all fucking week, how I just need to look out for myself."

"It's a completely different goddamn situation, Nova! I've been telling you to look out for yourself mentally."

"It isn't a completely different situation! You know, maybe if you attempted to take on board what I'm trying to say, we wouldn't be in this damn-"

I zone out entirely as she's having her rant.

Because there's only one thing that's claimed my attention.

"Nova, shut up." I mumble, she doesn't listen to me. Instead, she continues running that damn motormouth and flailing her arms around to emphasise her point.

"Nova. Shut. Up." I repeat with a bite in my words.

"No, goddamnit!" She snaps, jaw clenching as she resumes her fucking monologue.

Whatever the fuck has been igniting inside of me finally sets ablaze, burning right through my entire body.

I can't control myself anymore. And this time, she'll remember.

I start to stride right over to her, my rationality having completely fucking faded. "Fuck it." I finally crack. I don't think she notices since she's too busy rambling on.

At least she doesn't notice until my hands cup her face, I push her up against the wall, lean down and crash my lips right onto hers.