Two Ships [rp for neverwrongagent]

[posterboymarine]

After the call, he'd said he would stay put. And he did, right until he got word of where she was coming in. Then he throw his things back into his bag and made his way to the nearest Couch Canada station. He took the bus and found the cheapest motel he could. He got a room on the backside of the building, and he waited.

He tried to sleep, something he'd been mostly unable to do since he'd called her. But every time he closed his eyes, he imagined he felt the burner phone vibrate and he jerked awake. Finally, he just gave up and turned on the TV. It didn't manage to hold his interest, at all, but it was background noise.

With that noise quieting the doubts in his head, he waited.

Comments

[posterboymarine]

Things would have been very different. He would have been disappeared and no one would have missed him. His return wouldn't have had enough of an impact on his family to have ruined them. THey certainly wouldn't have been together.

But maybe everyone would have been more sure of their place in the world.

[neverwrongagent]

They might have argued about what would have happened, but she was feeling more sanguine about it than he was. Either way, he wouldn't be worrying about what they were worrying about. She kept whispering the nonsense for a long time, letting him rest, until she felt her stomach start rumbling a little.

She kissed his forehead and started to work her way out of his arms. She didn't really want him to get up, she wanted to see him resting. "Just going to make food."

[posterboymarine]

He clung to her for another few moments before shifting and letting her up. He settled on his belly, his arms tucked under the pillow, and turned his head to watch her. He wanted to insist that she stay, that the food wasn't a requirement, but he knew she would be more forceful in her insistence that it was. So he laid quietly, half awake, and watched her.

[neverwrongagent]

It made her chest ache to see him watching her that way. He was as at rest as she'd seen him in a long time. She could still see the tension in his shoulders. Focusing on the meal would help her not drop it all and sit with him. They needed to do something normal for a little while.

He didn't have much, but she'd brought some staples with her. Enough that she could make a decent eggs and bacon on the little stove the motel provided. And she made plenty of fresh coffee. When she went back to him, she set the plates on the side table, then sat beside him and put her head on his shoulder. "You have to eat all of it."

[posterboymarine]

He watched her cook with only one eye open, just taking the time to enjoy being still for a bit. When she came back over, he pressed into her hand even as he groaned softly. "All of it?"

[neverwrongagent]

She nodded firmly, giving him the smallest smile. The plate wasn't overloaded because she knew he wouldn't be up to eating too much. She was going to steadily feed him over the days they were together. And love him. "Every bite, big boy."

She leaned over and kissed his cheek. "It means sitting up and I'm sorry for that."

[posterboymarine]

He groaned. "Okay. But just this once." He shifted and got himself sitting up, eyeing the food suspiciously. "Every bite?"

[neverwrongagent]

"It's not going to bite back." She teased him with a roll of her eyes. But then she handed him the plate and watched him firmly. She wasn't messing around about this. "Take your time. I have coffee."

[posterboymarine]

He perked up a little at coffee. "But I have to eat this to get it, don't I?" He sighed heavily, then resigned himself to eating.

The first few bites were tough, simply because he was not used to being able to enjoy his food. Instead, he had been eating on the run and not even bothering to taste it. So it took a few minutes to realize that he wasn't going to have to leave as soon as he was done because he thought someone had recognized him.

[neverwrongagent]

When she saw him start relaxing, she passed him his cup of coffee. But she had every intention of taking that cup right back off him if he slowed eating. She also kept an eye on how well he ate to see if she could sneak some more food into him.

Because she didn't want to spook him by watching too carefully, she rested her free hand on his hip and rubbed gently.

[posterboymarine]

AT the touch of her hand, he glanced at her, then smiled. The contact was nice and it helped him relax a little more into eating. With a sigh, he took a long sip of coffee, then attacked his food with a little more gusto.

[neverwrongagent]

She might just have figured out a trick or two on keeping him happy over the time they'd known each other. That it was working made her smile right back at him. Seeing him eat was all she needed. Suddenly her coffee tasted a lot better. She leaned over and kissed him lightly, carefully timing it between his bites.

[posterboymarine]

She might have and the smile was just another of those things, and the kiss. He managed a wink for her before he set his plate down to enjoy his coffee for a few moments. Then he glanced at her and grinned. "Did you bring tea?"

[neverwrongagent]

She flushed a little, pleased at his reactions. He could be incredibly flirtatious, if he was doing well. She nodded slowly. "How could I take care of you properly if I didn't bring that?" She ran a hand over his thigh. "Just thought you could use the coffee first. A bit stronger."

Much stronger the way she made it.

[posterboymarine]

He nodded. "Coffee good." With a sigh, he leaned against her and smiled. "Thank you. Not just for coming or for cooking, but for everything."

[neverwrongagent]

She shifted so she could get an arm around him and sit quietly with him for a while. "Don't feel like I've done much, but I'm glad if it helps." She rubbed his leg. "We'll have to figure out better ways of being in touch."

It would take work, but they could do it.

[posterboymarine]

He certainly wasn't going to argue that. Being out of touch was just too hard on him. He knew he could not really do it, but he'd faked it for her. Or, at least, he'd tried. Clearly, since she was there, it had been unsuccessful.

He licked his lips, then looked at his plate. "Is there any more?"

[neverwrongagent]

"God, yes, absolutely." She practically jumped up to refill his plate. By her nature, Carrie wasn't really that domestic or nurturing on a personal level. She had always channeled that more toward recruiting assets. Being this way with him was odd, but good. "Anything you want."

[posterboymarine]

He almost pressed that, biting his tongue before he asked her to stay and never go back. "Thank you," was his response, instead. It was safer.

[neverwrongagent]

It was a good thing he didn't ask, not because she'd have had to say no but because she would have been unable to give a coherent answer at all. She wanted to be there. Or, she wanted to be with him, wherever they could be.

She came back to him with a fresh plate of food, sitting close while he ate so she could pet him. "That beard, though..." She ran her fingers over his jaw between bites. "Maybe if we trim it up some." He needed it to change the shape of his face, but it tickled. "A goatee? Handlebars?"

[posterboymarine]

He reached up and scratched at his beard. "I'll leave that to you, then." He kissed her, then rubbed his cheek against hers. Then he returned his attention to the food.

This plate went down a little slower, but he did finish it and his cup of coffee.

[neverwrongagent]

The little cuddle made her crave more. She really wanted to hold him again and get a feeling for how much he'd improved since she got there. Watching him finish more food helped. Once he was done, she took the plate away before crawling back into bed with him.

She snuggled close and put her head on his chest. Holding onto him felt good.

[posterboymarine]

He wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. "Missed you."

[neverwrongagent]

She pressed harder against him and nodded slightly. Giving him a detailed listing of all the ways she missed him probably wasn't going to be helpful. "Maggie keeps catching me staring off into space. Can't tell her that I'm thinking of long limbs and a sweet smile."

[posterboymarine]

He laughed softly. "Well, you could..." He looked at her and smiled, just taking in the lines of her face, the way she looked when she was with him.

"Land? Really?"