Bonus chapter II:

Rora and TF-141 playing UNO

The team loaded onto the plane that came to pick them up from Las Almas. Rora sighed as the air inside seemed so much cooler inside than the hot Mexican air outside, sweat already dripping down right next to her spine. She hated being this hot, and her full gear did nothing to let her skin breathe.

"Thank fuck we're leaving," Rora sighed as she pulled her vest off her body, eager to lose some layers. She didn't even care about the boys anymore, she just wanted to cool off.

"I'm going to miss them," Soap frowned, his eyes lingering at the ramp. He had such a great time here, Rora almost felt bad for tearing him away. But they had a bald fucker to hunt down, and she was ready to kick MacTavish's ass if he would delay their mission any further.

"I'll keep you entertained," Rora smiled at him, already having a plan in mind. "You guys up for some games?"

"What games?" Gaz asked from the corner, his head snapping towards them with a curious glint in his eyes."With a beaming smile on her face, she pulled out a deck of cards from her velcro pocket, waving it around in the air for the others to see. It was the same cards they played a few nights ago, which caused Johnny to groan out loud.

"Not those bloody things again!" Soap threw himself on the bench on the left, shaking his head at the woman. Gaz raised an eyebrow at the pair, feeling left out of their inner jokes.

"I told you I'll beat your ass!" Rora skipped towards him, the ground shifting under her feet as they rose from the ground. She got used to planes and helicopters so much that it didn't even make her sway that much.

"Lt., save me from this She-Devil," Soap pleaded as he turned his head towards Ghost. Both of them watched as he set his rifle down on the opposite bench, barely glancing their way. "I feel like dying."

"Dramatic ass," Rora kicked his boots, settling beside him as she pulled out another card from her pocket. This time it was a much more familiar card, Uno plastered on the front of it.

"How many more do you have?" Soap chuckled, shaking his head at her. "Like a fucking wizard, I swear."

"I have many tricks up my sleeve, Soap-boy," Rora sang, him releasing another light laugh at the newfound nickname. Her eyes involuntarily wandered over to the tall shadow lingering a few feet away from them. "Care to join us, lieutenant?"

Her teasing tone caught his attention, taking a glance at the pair, and Gaz soon joined the two. Rora sat on the cold floor for more space so they couldn't cheat off of each other. Price was currently busy talking with their pilot, but Rora planned on including their Captain, too. She knew how seriously he took Uno.

"C'mon, Lt.," Soap egged him on, a mischievous smile tugging at his lips. "It will be fun!"

The look they received from Ghost said otherwise. Rora was ready to take back her offer, the threatening look in his eyes from the mountains still clear in her mind. Ghost wasn't the person to mess with, that was clear as day. But he was a person at the end of the day, and people needed some fun in their life. And Rora was one of those people who never let someone linger alone, she always at least made an effort to bring a group together.

"I'll clean all your weapons if you win," Rora offered, feeling like that was a pretty good offer. Personally, she didn't like cleaning guns and stuff; it was a tedious job and she didn't have the patience to sit still and clean for hours. And Ghost usually carried more weapons, so it would take even longer. He seemed to consider her offer.

"That's a pretty good deal," Gaz mused from the bench, an easy smile playing on his lips.

"You never offered to clean my guns," Soap muttered, his eyebrows furrowed as his smile disappeared. Rora punching him in the shins with enough force to shut him up.

"Deal or no deal, Ghost?" she tilted her head back, thinking that sitting on the floor maybe wasn't the best idea, him towering over her like a mountain. He was already a tall man, but like this, he seemed like he could carry the whole world on his shoulders.

"Deal," he finally gruffed out, taking a seat on the floor next to her, the four of them now forming a circle.

Her heart skipped a beat at his action, not expecting that he would choose to sit beside her out of all of them. He extended one of his legs while bending the other one, his arm lazily thrown over his knee. She couldn't help but notice how long his legs were.

"I see you pick your favorites, Lt.," Soap's tone was offended, but the smile on his face told otherwise. Ghost sent him a look.

"She won't look at my cards like you did the few past rounds, you dimwit," Ghost snapped back, mindlessly rolling up his sleeves. Gaz let out a light chuckle, always finding the bickering amusing. Soap's eyes widened as he opened his mouth to say something back, but Rora sticking her tongue out cut him off.

"Oh, you'll have your asses handed to ya both, just watch me," Soap pointed at them, earning a laugh from Rora. If anything, he will be the first to lose.

Still smiling, Rora started opening up the package, only for her hands to freeze and her smile to falter when she noticed the words on the back. Spanish words.

Rora had a difficult childhood which was different in many ways from other children's. Instead of collecting toys she only got to collect empty bottles after her mother and daddy issues.

That means, she never even played Uno, she just hijacked this pack from the Los Vaqueros base. She was sure everybody had their own Uno deck just like some had their own tarot cards. An Uno cult.

"Can we start playing, like, today?" Gaz poked at her, letting his head fall back against the cold metal walls.

"Well," Rora licked her lips, feeling the heat rise to her cheeks. "What happens when one doesn't know how to play Uno...?"

"Dammit, Rora," Ghost groaned from beside her, her cheeks now full-on tinting to a darker shade. That deep rumble and the way his head fell back a little did something to her she wasn't really proud of.

"Are you takin' the piss?" Soap snapped, not believing his ears. With wide eyes, he looked at Gaz for help, who only stared at the woman sitting on the floor with a dumbfounded expression on his face. Soap threw his hands in the air in defeat. "How could someone live like this? This is a crime."

"I'll put you in the news if you don't shut up," Rora pointed a finger at him, finally making him shut up. "I hoped I could just read the instructions on this fucker but it's all in Spanish."

And again, she cursed herself for not picking up on any Spanish during her stay in Mexico.

"Give it to me," Ghost grumbled, holding a hand out toward her. With a questioning look, she sized his hand up, noting how big his hand seemed even in gloves. Then the memories of their night spent playing cards in the kitchen replayed in her mind.

He has very nice hands. Strong and veiny ones. Rough ones, too-

"Wells," his deep voice snapped her out of her dirty thoughts, embarrassment washing over her. Her thoughts after that night just got way more unacceptable which deeply disturbed her. She just couldn't afford to be attracted to one more emotionally unavailable man.

Rora passed him the deck, her fingers fleetingly brushing against his gloved ones, sending sparks up her arm. She pulled away as he burned her, even going so far as scooting away a few inches subtly.

All hell broke loose when Ghost started reading the back of the box as well.

"What the fuck is this?" Soap hollered, jumping up from his seat in disbelief. "You're joking. You don't know how to play Uno, either? This car already had one defect, we can't take another one."

"Hey!" Rora yelled, swinging her fist right against his knee. With a yelp, Soap fell back on his seat, scooting away from the angry and hurt woman, asking Gaz to protect him from the crazy American woman. Gaz only smiled at them, having no intention to get on Rora's bad side. "I had a shitty childhood, Shampoo. Not everybody got the privilege of family nights there."

"Me too," Simon muttered, his words barely audible, but Rora caught them. Her eyes softened as she looked at him, watching as his dark eyes scanned the text in the back.

"Since when do you know Spanish?" Rora's eyebrows furrowed in confusion once she realized he wasn't just pretending to read.

"A few months in Mexican captivity does the trick."

Oh fuck.

Silence fell above them, his heavy words slightly killing the mood. Rora's eyes jumped to Soap for answers, but the way he stared at the floor with a glum expression she gathered that much that whatever happened to Simon in those months was probably not good.

Rora cleared her throat, the heavy silence pressing against her chest like a ton of bricks.

"I hope you gathered some juicy gossip with that hidden talent of yours," Rora bumped her feet against his shin, causing him to look up from the instructions at her.

She sent him a gentle smile, one that was different from the other ones. One that said, It's okay, you're safe now. That pairing with her clear eyes and sudden physical contact made him forget how to breathe for a second.

Quickly, he diverted his gaze back to the text, the weight of her gaze being too much.

"There was a granny on the market who fancied you, Johhny," Simon said like it was the most casual thing ever. A surprised gasp came from Rora as she snapped her head to Soap, the same shock written over his face.

"And only now you tell me about this? I thought we were friends, Lt.," he placed a hand over his chest in fake hurt, Gaz whistling along with him.

"Those GILFs are something different, mate," Gaz said with a mischievous smile on his face, Rora gagging on the side.

"What's a GILF?" Price approached, a confused look on his face as he looked at the group.

All four of them looked at each other, panic in three eyes and confusion in one.

"Who's gonna tell him?" Rora whisper-shouted at them, Soap quickly pointing at Gaz.

"You traumatize him, he's already pissed at us," Soap hissed to him, Gaz's lips parting as he was ready to argue. But Price's long strides reached them sooner than anticipated, Rora flashing him an innocent smile.

°•○●⸸●○•°

"I will kill you!"

Rora threw her head back in laughter at Soap's outburst, Simon barely glancing his way.

"You bloody suck at this," he shrugged his broad shoulder, her smile widening.

Gaz was the first to put down his last card, Price had to quit mid-game to deal with 'adult stuff' as Rora and Gaz called it. Which was a bummer, in Rora's opinion listening to him curse was very much entertaining. Like, when you hear your parent curse in front of you for the first time.

Then there was Soap, always getting pushed farther and farther back in the game because Simon kept on putting down punishment cards. He and Rora silently made an alliance against MacTavish, because Soap made a comment about 'crushing him in everything' and Rora because she was Rora. She just loved pissing off people.

"C'mon, draw the cards, MacTavish!" Rora taunted, fanning herself with her remaining cards. She still had one that could make him draw even more, but it already looked like he was on the verge of a mental breakdown.

"Nah, I quit," Soap threw all of his cards next to him, finally leaning back. Rora's eyes met with Simon's and she couldn't hold back her laugh anymore.

"You only have like, 23 cards left, you almost won," Gaz tried, the sad voice of his not matching the way the corner of his mouth turned upwards.

"I'll kill you next," Soap pointed a finger at him before walking away, Rora's and Gaz's laughter chasing after him.

Rora could swear she saw the corner of Simon's eye crinkle, but he tilted his head down too quickly for her to take a better look. Her smile dimmed a little when she realized she will probably never see his smile.

"It's just you and me now, Ghost," Rora adjusted her position so she was now fully facing him, her crossed legs pulled underneath her. She really wanted to say his real name out loud, but now with the others around.

"Ready to clean guns all day?" he glanced at her through his lashes, turning to face her.

As he moved, her eyes jumped to his arms and chest. She never got to chance to check him out so shamelessly, up until the night before. And her newfound attraction towards him disturbed her deeply because it was so wrong on so many levels. But as she watched his muscles flex under his tight shirt, all the thoughts from her head vanished. Head empty.

He stretched his leg out after sitting in one place for so long, a low sigh escaping him. His stretched-out leg was so long his shin almost touched her knee, making her nerves go haywire. If she would move one inch, they would touch. And it made her crazy.

Gaz cleared his throat, which finally snapped her out of it.

"I will crush you," Rora retorted, although her voice missed its usual edge and wittiness. The way he tilted his head to the side and gave her a look made it clear that he noticed. She wanted to fight back. "I have a better idea. We could play Simon-"

Her little pause made his head snap up, his eyes darkening in a warning. The intense look caused her breath to hitch in her throat and she fell into a coughing fit as she tried to collect herself.

Gaz was kind enough to slap her back a few times while Simon watched her face turn red as she suffered, eventually leaning back and supporting his upper body with one hand.

Men with these proportions were a crime against humanity.

Her cheeks turned a shade darker at the pictures of him, like how he would look if she would be atop him. I need a church, damn.

"Y'know, Simon Says," Rora played it off, feeling the weight of Gaz's confused gaze burn a hole in the side of her head. "Soap's favorite game."

Simon snorted, looking down at his cards. He had only four while she had six. But still, she could turn this all around.

"Johnny sucks at taking orders," he said, Gaz letting out a chuckle.

"God, he truly does," Gaz agreed as he laid down on the bench beside them, putting an arm behind his head.

Rora only knew him for a week or so, but she could confirm that statement. Especially if you asked him to do the dishes.

"So," Rora stretched the 'o' in a dramatic way, waiting for some reaction from Simon. There was none. "What if we made this game a little more interesting?"

"Like what?" he asked, still looking down at his cards. A mischievous smile stretched across her lips as she glanced at Gaz, then back at the man sitting in front of her. She put down a card.

"We already talked about what would you get if you win. I clean your guns. But what if I win, y'know?"

This finally captured his attention, his dark eyes finding her blue ones. For a moment, they just held each other's gaze before he spoke.

"What do you want?"

As her eyes scanned his body she got a few ideas.

"A wish."

"Do you take me to a bloody genie?" Simon tilted his head to the side, his eyes narrowing at her. The sudden burst of irritation made his accent pop more, which was more intimidating and sexy at the same time.

I can rub you the right way if you are.

"One wish," Rora held a finger up in the air, his eyes following. "Just one. But it could be anything, really."

"If you win," Simon clarified and the woman nodded.

"Deal?"

"Deal."

Gaz hissed as he sent a sympathetic look to the masked man, rolling to lie on his stomach now as he got more invested in the game from the bench.

"You just made a deal with the devil, mate," Gaz beamed, resting his chin atop his forearm.

And indeed he did. Because Rora never took a game so seriously.

As she got into the game more and more, she didn't notice when she leaned forward that she was now touching him. And Simon didn't pull away, instead, he let his eyes scan her features in the dim light and admired the way a few dark pieces that escaped from her braid framed her face.

Card after card, the tension rose around them. As she concentrated she adjusted herself in her seat and only then she registered she had her arm resting atop his leg for God knows how long. She pulled away like he burned her.

"Sorry," she muttered under her nose, embarrassment making her face redden. The only question she had: why didn't he mention it? Or pull away?

He was always so quick to put distance between himself and others. And she had witnessed many times how he told Johnny off whenever he got too touchy with him.

"Uno," she sang as she placed down a card, now only holding the last one in her hand. Her eyes lit up when she watched him draw another card from the deck between them.

"Goddamn," Gaz breathed, his eyes jumping between the two of them.

Then Rora placed down her last card.

"Fuck yeah!" Rora slammed her fist on the metal floor in delight, slightly jumping in her seating position, the loud noise making Gaz snap his head up.

"You won," Gaz said like he barely believed his eyes, even though he watched the whole thing unfold.

"You won?" Soap yelled from the back, she didn't even know from where. Even Price stuck a head out from the cockpit at the sounds. "My favorite Wellsy!"

"I'm still the only one!" Rora called out to him, rolling her eyes playfully.

"What's all this about?" his dark eyebrows furrowed at them, Gaz more than eager to tell him everything as he jumped up.

"Oh, this is fucking great!" Rora laughed as she stretched her arms above her head, finally being able to stretch the muscles in her back out. She failed to notice the way his eyes scanned her body. "You know what this means?"

"Tell me," Simon sighed, throwing his cards in the middle between them, now leaning back on both of his arms. Rora ignored the sarcasm in his voice.

"You have to fulfill my wish, big boy," the woman beamed at him, Simon's eyes narrowing at the nickname. She didn't leave room for argument. "You won't know when, or how. You'll just have to do what I say. Or want."

Simon wasn't a man that took orders from everyone. There were his higher-ups like Shepherd, Laswell, and Price, but in his personal life, he was his own man. Did what he wanted, when he wanted, the way he wanted it. But as he looked at the woman sitting in front of him, her smile wide and eyes shining like a million stars, he thought he could make one exception.

"Anything?"

"Anything," she repeated, her voice dropping low as many not-so-innocent pictures filled her mind.

And she couldn't wait to make her wish.

______________________

YOU THOUGHT I FORGOT ABOUT YOU??

i just miss them so bad you cant even imagine, so here i am with another bonus chapter just for the fun of it. i hope you enjoyed reading!

its been so long! is there anything new in your life? id love to hear about you guys!