Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Christmas was fast approaching and Skylar was nowhere near done buying presents for friends and family. Then again, she never even started. But with a final break from work, she finally has the time to do it. And she was happy that Ash was accompanying her.

Ash was in the bathroom finishing up braiding her hair, while Skylar sat on her bed fumbling through her phone as she waited. Since it was going to be a busy day she thought it be best to just wear a pair of jeans, her checkered vans and a plain black t-shirt.

She was far from excited for shopping so close to Christmas, the crowds, and the obnoxiously rude people weren’t her favorite things to deal. Traversing buildings, and being outnumbered sounded far better than deal with those things.

“I’m almost ready.” said Ash as she came out of the bathroom and went to her dresser. Her red hair was in the usual messy side braid that she came to love.

“You don’t need to rush Eliza, the longer the better.” She chuckled and locked her phone - setting it down next to her.

She stood up to stretch, leg joints cracking back into place. The sun shined through the curtains, illuminating the small room they shared. It looked to be a nice day out, and no doubt cold as the arctic.

“Of course that’s what you would say.” She scoffed and shook her head as she pushed in the last stud earring. “If you don’t want to go shopping, then why don’t you do it online?”

Skylar sighed - walking over to where Ash was and leaned against the dark wooden dresser that was identical to hers. “I just wanna get off base for a bit, that’s all. You know how it gets being cooped up with some of the other operators.”

Ash rolled her eyes and shook her head again. Her eyes scrutinizing Skylar more as she stared at her. “Or could it be the fact that you want to avoid Alexsandr?”

Her head snapped over to her, mouth slightly agape. “Why would I be avoiding him?”

She laughed, pushing herself from the dresser and walked to her bed where she sat down. Skylar fiddled with her hands, she knew what she meant by avoiding, it wasn’t hard to figure out what happened two nights ago. She walked over to her own bed and sat down across from her.

“I think you had a little too much vodka at the holiday part and found yourself in his bed.”

She groaned and scrubbed a hand down her face, then sighed in defeat. “Okay, yes I am avoiding him.”

A small smile tugged at her lips as she thought back on that night. It was an annual holiday party where everyone was together, catching up with friends and having an all around good time.

Skylar was looking forward to relaxing, having a few drinks and talking with friends. Her plan quickly went tits up when Alexsandr brought vodka to the party. Vodka was always Skylar’s kryptonite. She refrained at first, trying to occupy herself with talking with Meghan.

Eventually her mind gave up on the drink and she started to enjoy her night some more. Then she heard that familiar Russian accent behind her. Next thing she knew she was in a corner of the room taking shots with him. She still couldn’t recall what happened before they made it to his room, but she could recall what happened in there.

“So why exactly are you avoiding him? Is it because of the crush on Jordan you have?” She arched a brow in her direction. Skylar hated when Ash put her on the spot with personal matters, it always made her feel embarrassed. “Or was the sex really that bad?”

She fell back onto her bed with a groan, looking up at the off white ceiling above. She sat up a moment later, looking Ash in the eyes. “No Ash, the sex was really really good. And I do not have a crush on Jordan.”

“You can’t lie to me Sky, I’ve seen the way you look at him.” She leaned over, placing a hand on her knee and smiled at her. “Jordan can wait for now, but I don’t see why you’re avoiding someone because the sex was really good.”

She looked down at the hand that rest on her knee, then up to the person it belonged to. Her red hair reflected the light coming in through the window, making look shinier than it already was.

Her eyes darting to the window, looking out to see cumulus clouds drifting with the wind. She looked down at her hands, and finally sighed. “The last time I hooked up with someone, we both enjoyed it and I found myself going back to him again and again. In the end I got hurt and I don’t want that to happen again.”

Ash retracted her hand and nodded. “You should probably tell him that instead of avoiding him. I’m sure he’ll understand.”

Skylar looked up at her, a small smile tugging on her lips. As much as a pain in the ass Ash can be, she was a good friend who helped her when needed. “Yeah, I will. After shopping though.”

“Whatever you say Sky.”

She rolled her eyes and stood up, checking her hair to make sure it wasn’t too frizzy before grabbing her purse and black leather jacket at the edge of the bed. Pulling the jacket it on she zipped it up and tossed her bag over her shoulders. “Okay, I’m ready.”

She turned to see Ash was ready and patiently waiting for her. Somehow she always ends being the last one ready, even when she’s the first to get ready.

They started to make their way out of the base, but as soon as they rounded the corner leading to the front door, Skylar stopped in her tracks as soon as she saw Jordan in the hallway talking with Alexsandr. But before she could do anything Jordan spotted them.

“Where are you girls going? And Phoenix, Tachanka has been looking for you.”

Ash glanced over at her, giving her a small smile before walking over to where the guys stood. She sighed, rubbing the back of her neck as she too made way to where they stood.

“We’re do some Christmas shopping together.”

Jordan’s face lit up, making Skylar’s nerves, become more persistent. “Well that’s where I’m headin’. Why don’t we take the same car and go together?”

“Sure, but don’t complain if we taking too long.” said Ash, shooting Jordan a look.

He threw his hands up like he was surrendering, and chuckled. “I won’t, I won’t. If I do, you girls can use one of my exothermic charges on me, okay?”

Skylar looked up at Alexsandr, giving him a sheepish grin before turning to Jordan. “I’ll hold you to that. Why don’t you guys head to the car, I need to talk to Alex.”

She heard Jordan laugh as he and Ash walked out the door, leaving her and Alex alone in the hallway. She turned to him, her hazel eyes locking into his grayish-blue eyes. He stood 7 inches taller than her, but his stature made it seem twice as that.

“I didn’t scare off the little kotyonok, did I?” He crossed his broad arms, smart phone in one of his hands.

“No, you didn’t scare me off--.”

“Then why have you been avoiding me.”

Skylar darted her eyes to the ground, then back to his. She felt intimidated under his gaze, if it wasn’t his stature, it was his voice. “It’s complicated, I’ll tell you when I get back. I promise.”

His arms fell to his side as he walked closer to her. He brought his hand up, moving a strand of chestnut brown hair behind her ear. His thumbed traced her jaw, and she saw the satisfied smirk on his face. It made her heart skip a beat, and her knees weak.

“Looking forward to it kotyonok, I’ll be sure to have another bottle of водка with me.”

Skylar rolled her eyes at the suaveness in his voice. “You do know I don’t need alcohol to sleep with you again right?”

Her eyes went wide at the words she just spewed out.

Then she made a mistake by looking back up to the man in front of her. The big shit eating grin on his face made her both happy and angry all at the same time.

“Lyubimaya I’ll see you tonight then?”

“Yeah, you will.” She rubbed the back of her neck - smiling at him. “I should get going, I’m sure Thermite is driving Ash crazy.”

“Mmm”

She gave him one last smile before walking out the door. Upon walking outside she immediately saw Ash and Thermite waiting in Ash’s car by the front door. She was happy she parked away from it so they couldn’t see what just went on.

She opened the passenger side door to get in and sat down with a sigh.

“Make sure to bring some vodka, you’re gonna need it Phoenix.”

Chapter Text

“-So what’s the deal with you and Tachanka? Did you get on his bad side?” Thermite fixed his ‘bandages’ on his hand, as his eyes caught Skylar’s in the rearview mirror.

She quickly looked away, eyes darting to look out the window. Watching the building’s of the city flow by as the car got closer and closer to their destination. She was happy Ash was driving and Thermite was in the back seat of her car.

“What do you mean?” She turned to look at him, eyebrow quirked. He was seated in the middle, legs spread a mile wide. She rolled her eyes at that and waited for his reply.

Jordan leaned back - crossing his arms as his eyes scrutinized Skylar more. He knew she was hiding something, and he knew she couldn’t keep the façade up for long. So he was going to let her have her fun.

“Oh, nothing. Just that Tachanka isn’t one to go looking for people and you seemed pretty smitten when you were around him.”

Her mouth fell open as she looked at the older man in front of her. The big gaping grin was starting to annoy her, but she was in no way going to tell Jordan the truth about what happened at the holiday party between her and Alexsandr.

It was times like these where it brought her back to her childhood, her older sister’s always pestering her about something. She missed them, quite a lot.

“I was not smitten. And why do you care so much Jordan?”

Skylar could see a small smirk starting to form on Ash’s face. She turned her attention back to Jordan who just shrugged his shoulders. “Just curious, we don’t need the FBI SWAT and Spetsnaz to be on each others bad sides because of something you did. Remember what happened between the GIGN and SAS?”

“This is completely different Jordan, just relax.” Ash shook her head and if Skylar could see her face she knows she also rolled her eyes.

“Yeah, everything is fine...well about to be fine between me and Alex.” She gave him a reassuring smile and turned back around in her seat.

“About to be fine?” He sighed and from the rearview mirror she could see him scrub one of his bandage hands down his face. “What does that mean?”

She shook her head - looking out the window again to see they finally made it into the city. The brightness of the sun reflecting on the snow made the sky look crystal clear. It was days like these that reminded her of home. And for this time of year the traffic wasn’t as bad as she thought it was going to be. Now she just has to deal with at least 15 more minutes of Jordan’s antics until they hit the mall and hopefully he goes his own way.

“Look, Jordan. I understand you want to know what’s going on between me and Alex, but it’s pretty personal and I don’t feel comfortable sharing it.” She caught his reflexing in side view mirror, seeing the uncertainty etched on his face made her sigh. ”It’s not going to affect anyone by the way, just me.”

The uncertainty quickly faded into a smile - he leaned forward in his seat, resting each elbow on the their seats. “Did someone get a little frisky with the lord?”

“Were you always this annoying?”

Jordan scoffed and leaned back in his seat rubbing at one of his wrists. “No. I’m just nosy, there’s nothing really going on in team rainbow and I figured if Tachanka is looking for you it might be worth finding out.”

He shrugged his shoulders and Skylar laughed, she turned around to look at him again, the one thing she like about Thermite was that he could be lighthearted when not on missions, and how he could just relax and not be professional at all hours of the day.

“Alright enough about me and Alex, who are you buying for?”

“Parents and I need to buy some personal stuff as well. What about you guys?”

Skylar turned to Ash, her attention still on the road in front of them. “Yeah Ash what are you buying?”

“Parents, grandparents and essentials for myself. What about you?”

“Parents, siblings, essentials, and probably some snacks.”

Eliza and Jordan nodded. The rest of the drive to the mall was relatively quiet and she was thankful he gave up on the issue between her and Alex. But Jordan was right about one thing, maybe she should pick up a bottle of vodka, she did kinda drink a lot of it, more so than Alex did. It would be the polite thing to do, then again she’s sure he has a secret stash for himself and for the rest of the spetsnaz.

They ended up in some department store in the mall after nearly dragging Jordan away from some hardware store. Skylar and Ash both knew they wouldn’t be able to get him out of there if they left him be.

Skylar was pushing the shopping cart filled with what they were both buying. So far it was just essentials and the presents for Ash’s parents. Skylar was having trouble figuring out what to buy for her family. It didn’t help that they didn’t talk much with how much work has taken over her life and the time difference didn’t help either.

“Should I just pick up a damn gift basket and call it a day? I have no clue what to buy them.” She groaned and laid her head down on the handle of the cart.

“Well what do they like?” Ash turned to her with the coffee mug she was just looking at in hand. “I’m sure you’ll be able to think of something.”

“My parents would be happy with anything, but my sisters’ are harder to buy for. Ones a lawyer and the other is a therapist, what do I buy for them?” She glanced toward the shelves where all the coffee mugs were, most were holiday themed and some others were plain. Coffee mugs would make a good gift, or she could make them a customized gift basket of things they like. The latter seemed like a better option. “I think I’m just gonna make a customized gift basket for my sisters’ and pick out something nice for my parents.”

“That’s thoughtful and easy enough.” She placed one of coffee mugs in the cart, then looked around with a stern look on her face. “We’ve lost Jordan.”

Skylar shrugged. “Around here somewhere. Let’s get our stuff first before looking for him.”

“Yeah, good idea.”

They continued shopping around the store, picking up the things they needed or wanted. But still no sign of Jordan, they both hoped he was still in the department store and didn’t sneak away to the hardware store, which would be the better bet.
It couldn’t have been more than 30 minutes until they decided it was best to buy their stuff and put the bags in the car before looking for Jordan.

“Ash why don’t you check the department store and I’ll check the hardware one. And we are never going shopping with him again.”

“Ain’t that right and okay, meet me in front of the department store in an hour.”

Skylar nodded before departing. She quickly made it to the hardware store, luckily it wasn’t packed full of people so finding him should be easy. She began to look up and down the isles, hoping to catch a glimpse of a certain somebody. When she couldn’t spot him in any of the isles she went towards the back end of the store.

She let out a sigh of relief when she saw him. “There you are I was worried.”

Jordan turned around when he heard her voice, a cheeky grin graced his face. “Awe you were worried about me, how sweet!”

She hit his shoulder with enough force to make him clutch it in slight pain….and shock.

“Well when you run off and don’t tell either Ash or me, yeah I get worried.” She pulled her phone from her pocket to message Ash. “We’re done by the way, what about you?”

“I still need to pick up some stuff at the department store.”

“Okay, I’ll tell Ash to wait in the car if she wants and I’ll wait for you.”

They began to walk towards the front of the store for him to buy what he came here for. “You don’t need to, I can find the car when I’m done.”

“Awe you don’t want to spend time with me? Ouch that hurts.” She chuckled and shook her head. “I need to go back anyways, I decided it would be nice to buy Alex another bottle, I did drink a lot of his at the holiday party.”

“Yeah I saw you in the corner with him taking shots.” She saw his eyes widen as realization took over his features. “You slept with him didn’t you? That’s why you were avoiding him.”

“Ugh fine, yes I did sleep with him. Happy now?”

“A little, but why are you avoiding him? Did someone not please you enough?”

She waited for him to be done with buying his stuff before answering him. They walked out into the mall - heading back towards the department store.

“That’s personal and he pleased me just fine.”

Skylar could tell he didn’t look convinced, but kept his mouth shut nonetheless. She followed him to the health and beauty section of the store, waiting for him to pick up what he needed.

They made their way to the Christmas isles, where Jordan was looking over the many different gift basket options. She was leaning against the isle, looking through her phone to pass the time. That’s when she notice she had a text from Jack, she opened it to see what he wanted.

“Hey do you mind picking up a bottle of Jack Daniels? I’ll pay you back?”

“Yeah, I can do that.” She put her phone back in her pocket and crossed her arms.

“So Skylar what made you join the marines? Truthfully you don’t seem like the military type.” He placed the shampoo bottle in the basket before turning to her.

“By the time I was a senior in high school my parents ended up going through a rough money patch and didn’t have enough to send me to college, so I decided the military could help with that. I joined when I was 17, did a few tours then went to college for biomimetics. I ended up getting into FBI SWAT because my commanding officer filed over my paper works from my two tours and I got a call not long afterwards.”

“Wait, so you were in the FBI SWAT while you were in college?”

“Yup. It was hard, but rewarding.”

“Well you did something right since you’re on team rainbow!”

Her mouth fell open and shock was etched onto her features. “Was that a compliment?”

“I do give compliments every now and then. When people deserve it.”

“Sure.” She scoffed.

They finally made their way over to the alcohol section of the store where she picked up a bottle of Jack and Vodka.

“Who the bottle of jack for?” Jordan judded his chin at the bottle in her hand.

“Pulse. He asked if I could pick him up a bottle.”

“Oh.”

They were finally back at the base and in their rooms putting their stuff away. Skylar sat on her bed, organizing the things she bought for her sisters’ before heading off to find Pulse and Alex.

“Do you think it’s tacky that I got them little storage bins to put their stuff in?” She looked over at Ash who was lying on her bed reading a book.

“No, it’ll be more durable in the mail and they can use it after.”

“True.” She got up to stretch, then grabbed the two bottles of alcohol. “I’m gonna get this over with.”

“Good luck!”

She rolled her eyes then headed out the door. She easily found Pulse in the cafeteria with Castle. She walked over and placed the bottle next to him. “Here you go.”

“You’re a lifesaver, thanks Skylar. Uh I don’t have my wallet on me, I can swing by your room later?”

“You can just give the money tomorrow, I have some unfinished business to attend.” She held up the bottle of vodka in her hand.

“Ah, okay. I’ll leave you too it then. And thanks again Skylar.”

“You’re welcome! And have a good rest of your day you two.”

“Thanks!” They said in unison as she walked away from their table.

Skylar took a deep breath before knocking on Alex’s door. Her nerves were creeping up on her and the vodka bottle in hand was looking more and more tempting.

It couldn’t have been more than 5 seconds before the door opened, she looked up at him with a sheepish grin. He leaned against the door frame with a smirk on his face, looking her up and down. Without saying a word he grabbed her hand and pulled her into his room.

Now that she was sober, she could take in the fullness of his room. There wasn’t much, a laptop on the desk with a bunch of papers and a few pictures scattered around the room. But she envied that he didn’t have to share it with anyone, guess that’s the perks of being one of the older soldiers on base.

“Oh I bought you a new bottle since I felt kinda bad drinking a good chunk of yours.” She chuckled and handed it to him.

“You didn’t have to, I have a bunch hidden away but the gesture was nice.” He set the bottle on the desk before walking over to her. His hands grabbed her hips, stilling her where she stood. Her heart began to beat faster, palms becoming sweaty. He leaned down until he was mere inches from her face and feeling just his body heat radiating off himself was enough to make her want more. “Now is the kotyonok gonna tell me why she’s been avoiding me?”

Skylar let out the breath she didn’t realize she was holding in, and shook her head. She easily got out of his hold to walk over to his bed to sit down. Her fingers grazing the fabric of his blanket, though identical to hers it felt more appealing to the touch. A few seconds later he joined her.

“It has nothing to do with you, I really enjoyed that night, at least what I remember. Years ago there was this guy I was friends with benefits with, it seem like a good choice at the time until my feeling became a lot more prominent. I ended up getting badly hurt and vowed to myself I wouldn’t hook up with people again. That obviously didn’t work out well.”

She looked over at him to see he was nodding. He moved closer to her, trailing his fingers up her thigh until he came to her arm that rest there. “I would like for this to go on, but if you don’t want to I’m not going to force you too. That night was good kotyonok.”

“That’s the thing Alex, I do want this to continue.” She stood up, walking over to the mounted RP-46 degtyaryov machine gun that sat in the corner of his room. Her fingers grazed over the metal exterior of the gun. “Maybe I should just stop living in the past.”

She walked back over to him, straddling his muscular thighs and wrapping her arms around his neck. She leaned down, placing a firm kiss on his lips. His hands snuck beneath her shirt, feeling up every curve and scar she owned. He pulled away to take off her shirt, discarding it behind her on the floor.

Alex looked down at her neck - licking his lips before kissing his was down her jaw to the sensitive skin just below her earlobe. Skylar let out a soft moan, her hand fisting the white cotton shirt he was wearing. And in a single motion, one of his hands came up to unhook her bra. She let the material fall down her arms and into her lap before tossing it behind her.

“Ya khotel tebya ves’ den’” He whispered in her ear. She knew jack of what he was saying but she couldn’t deny that him talking in his native language always sent a shiver down her spine.

“I still have no clue what you’re saying.”

One of his hands lowered to the small of her back, easily flipping their positions. She landed with a soft thud, her eyes gazing into his. He leaned down, giving her a quick kiss. “I can teach you if you would like?”

“I think I would like that.” She smiled up at him, her hands trailing under his shirt, feeling his taunt abs beneath.

“Good, that’s going to have to wait. I have other plans for us tonight lyubimaya!”

Chapter Text

Skylar’s eyes shot open when she felt something heavy drape over her waist, her eyes meeting the blank white wall in front of her. She cocked her head to look down at the arm that was draped over her waist - a small smile starting to tug on the corners of her lips.

She momentarily forgot she wasn’t in her room, and that arm draped over her brought back some really good memories of last night.

She settled back down, this time on her back, letting Alex’s arm rest on her stomach. She glanced to her left to see the older man sound a sleep next to her, his face relaxed and lips slightly parted. He looked peaceful.

From the corner of her eye she saw a familiar black device lying between the sheets. She chuckled and picked up his smartphone - thinking he must have been browsing his favorite website and fell asleep. She easily unlocked his phone to confirm she was right, then locked it again. But could she really consider it ‘locked’? He doesn’t use a pin, all you have to do is swipe.

She placed it under her pillow for safe keeping, she didn’t want him to lose it or accidentally break it. She placed an arm under her head and sighed, she felt like she should leave and give him his bed back as silly as it sounds. But she knew he wouldn’t be happy if she ‘ditched’ him like last time.

The arm the rest on her stomach started to move, she looked over at him, just in time to see an eye peak open. “It’s late lyubimaya, go back to sleep we have training in the morning.”

Alex pulled her closer to him, then closed his eye. Skylar smiled to herself and settled down in his arms. “You were the one that woke me up by throwing your arm on my waist.”

He snuggled into the crook of her neck - Skylar hummed in response. “I’m sorry I startled you, maybe I could get Six to give me a bigger bed.”

She snorted and turned around to look at him, both of his eyes were now open. He looked up and down her naked body, a smirk forming on his face. She rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Yeah I’m sure Six would agree to that once she finds out your true intentions. Besides, I think this bed is fine, we have enough room.”

“That’s humble of you.” He sat up, letting the blanket fall into his lap. “I did not take you to be one.”

Skylar arched a brow, she wasn’t sure how to take that assumption. She sat up, but kept the blanket wrapped around her body. “We we’re all raised differently, just because I come from an upper middle class family doesn’t mean I don’t know how to be humble.”

“That came out wrong, I just meant……”

“It’s fine Alex, I know I have a certain demeanor. I guess I’m so used to being a marine that I forget how to be….just, me.” She scrubbed a hand down her face, and sighed, then rest her back on the headboard.

Alex leaned back against the headboard of his bed, his fingers tracing over one of her scars on her arm. “Let down that wall Sky, I’m not going to hurt you.”

They locked eyes, sending a shiver down her spine. She wished it was that easy, to knock down any wall she had up for her own protection. She wanted too, wanted to fully let him in. Not be some distant wannabe.

“I want too, I do. I like you, and I enjoy our nights together, it’s just I don’t know how too.” She gave him and apologetic smile, bring her knees up to her chest and hugging them. The feeling of being exposed….emotionally wasn’t something she liked, she liked to have that tough demeanor like Eliza does, not letting anything get to you.

But this was different, Alex was the first person she slept with in years - igniting those feelings she’s always had for him.

She looked up when she felt his hand rub up and down her bare back, trying to calm her down. It was weird seeing him being so caring, then again she’s only known him for 5 months and has only spoken to him a handful of times.

“Seeing you like this, I realized we shouldn’t have slept together.” He leaned over, picking up her underwear and shirt. Then pulled on his own boxers. She felt hurt by that, was he regretting this now? Or was it something else?. She pulled her shirt on, then her underwear and sighed. “It’s evident that I like you, and it is evident that you have a big heart. Let’s get to know each other first, and take it from there, da?”

“You’re sweet and I would like that. Truthfully I don’t want to exactly stop having sex, considering this is the best sex I’ve ever had. Maybe just cut down a little?” She chuckled as she looked up at him. His eyes softening under her gaze.

“The best malysh? You are making this old man feel a lot better about pleasing his partner.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, bringing her closer to him.

“Partner, huh? I thought we were only in it for the pleasure? And what does malysh mean?” She scrunched her face at the horrible pronunciation, she was in need of a ton of practice to sound more authentic.

He let out a throaty laugh, making his broad chest move up and down. “I would like to be more, If you are okay with that. Malysh means baby.”

“Baby!” She repeated the word, a small smile tugging on the corners of her lips. “I didn’t take you for a relationship guy. Why me? I’m the newbie, and there are so many other prettier women here.”

“Yerunda!” His voice boomed in the small room, startling Skylar a little. “You’re beautiful, funny, and have lots of vigor in you. Are you saying I don’t have good taste in women? I would have to strongly disagree.”

Skylar moved away to get a better look at him. She scanned his face looking for any indentation that he was lying. But his face stayed strong and sure, not once changing in any way.

“No I’m not saying that, relationships haven’t been my strong suit. But thank you for that compliment.”

“Those men were not that smart then.” He leaned forward until he was mere inches from her face. He could feel her breath on his nose, his eyes glancing down to her lush lips, then back to her eyes. “What do you say Sky? Are you willing to give me a chance?”

She leaned forward even more, closing the gap between them with a firm kiss. Feeling him smiling into it, made her too. She broke the kiss with a laugh, a big smile gracing her face. “Yes, yes I am.”

He kissed her forehead and hummed. “We should get some sleep, we have to be up in a few hours.”

“Hmph. Okay.” She slid down until her back was against the mattress, readjusting the blanket around her.

Alex followed suit, the bed dipping under his weight. Once he was comfortable enough Skylar snuggled up next to him. This time Tachanka shut off the light, engulfing the room in darkness.

Skylar yawned as she stretched before her run, trying to limber up her sore limbs. Eliza was doing the same, and so was the rest of the SWAT team, luckily Jordan was too busy talking to Jack and Miles to ask about last night.

“Since the boys are occupied are you going to tell me about last night? You didn’t come back so I figured you and Alex were having another wild night.” She smirked then glanced over to Alex who was also outside training with the rest of the Spetsnaz.

Skylar too glanced over to him, a smile tugging at her lips. “We’re together. Like together together.”

She stopped ogling over Alex and turned back to Eliza. Shock was shown on her face, along with some disbelief. It made her laugh.

“I wasn’t expecting that, Tachanka doesn’t look like the serious relationship kind of guy. How’d that even go down?” She stopped her stretching, putting her full attention on Sky.

“He saw that I was putting up a wall and that maybe hooking up wasn’t the brightest idea because of what happened in my past.” She glanced over at him again, seeing that he was in a midst of a conversation with Glaz. “I said I didn’t want to fully stop having sex since he was the best I’ve ever had..”

“That probably boosted his ego.”

“A little. He said that I was making an old man feel better about pleasing his partner. I thought we were just in it for the pleasure and he wanted to be more. Asked if I wanted to and I said yes.”

They began a slow jog, trying to warm up their cold bodies and to keep their conversation afloat without being hassled by Jordan that they weren’t doing anything. Then again he was the one standing and talking with Jack and Miles. Not actually training like they were.

“Wow, are you sure though? I don’t want you to get in too deep and get hurt.” She gave her a small smile, then stopped jogging. Making Skylar stop too.

Skylar looked down at the ground, contemplating her words for a moment. Eliza was her first friend since joining, and no doubt her closes. But seeing her be concerned over it made her rethink.

“I do like him...a lot. And he surprisingly seems to like me too. At this point I don’t want to miss out on something due to fear. If things don’t work out then they don’t.”

Eliza smiled at her, this time it was genuine. “Good! I hope things work out between you two, just don’t ditch me every night so you can get in a little quickie.”

“Thanks, I hope they do too. And I won’t be ditching you, ‘cause trust me I’m sore enough as it is. This girl needs a little break.” She chuckled, but it quickly faltered when she saw Jordan, Miles and Jack walking their way. “The boys are coming.”

Eliza rolled her eyes - glancing behind her. Jack was the first to join them, resting his arm on Skylar’s shoulder. She scoffed and looked up at him, shrugging his arm off her shoulder. “I’m not an armrest you know.”

“Sorry. What are you ladies talking about?” He glanced between them, then kept his eyes on Skylar. “I heard you and Tachanka had a fun night a few days ago?”

She sighed then glared at Jordan. “Are you gonna tell everyone my business?”

“No, just Jack and Miles.” He shrugged his shoulders, fueling Skylar’s rage a bit more. “And like he’s not telling Glaz, Kapkan and Fuze about the hook up. Everyone is going to know eventually.”

“Skylar does have a point, you shouldn’t be telling her business to people.” Miles looked over at her and winked. “Your secret's safe with me.”

“Thank you Miles.” She turned to Jack, looking up at him. “What about you?”

“I don’t care either way, I was just interested if you actually fucked him or not.”

“I can deal with that. Can we get back to training now? I feel weird talking about my sexual encounters.”

“I was going to take a few laps around the track, you wanna join?” asked Jack looking down at Skylar.

“Sure, I need to get the blood flowing it’s freezing out here. Eliza are you coming?” She turned to her, secretly hoping she would say yes. From her peripheral she could see Jordan and Miles heading back inside, probably towards the gym.

“I’m going to pass this time. I’ll meet you in the gym for a sparring session later?”

“Definitely, I’m gonna need one after Jordan’s shenanigans.”

Eliza started to walk away…..”Okay, see you in a bit.”

Skylar watched her walk back into the building, leaving her and Jack outside in the freezing cold. She rubbed her hands together to warm them up, even with her fingerless gloves on they were still freezing.

“You want to jog to the track or walk?” She finally asked, looking back up at him.

“Let’s walk.” He took a step forward, followed suit by Skylar. “You’ve been here what 5 months and I hardly know you.” He chuckled and rubbed the back of his neck. “I would like too, if you’re cool with that?”

“We are team mates, we should get to know each other. We’ve been on how many ops and we’ve had like what 3 full conversations?” She laughed - glancing back over to where Alex was. He was wearing his camouflage balaclava, but she could still see that little smirk beneath it.

“Yeah, but it can’t be easy being thrown into something like this at such a young age. How did you become a part of team Rainbow anyways?”

“It was out of the blue, I was back in L.A doing some paperwork and I get a call, from Six. She read my files and thought I would be a good fit, recruited me right then and there.” She shrugged her shoulders - glancing over to him.

“Nice, and you’ve been a nice addition to the team. And you’re one hell of a soldier, I can’t believe you took down nearly 30 guys single handedly when you were still in the marines. That’s crazy.”

They made it to the track, starting off on a light jog as a warm up. Skylar could see the sun peeking behind some of the buildings, turning from night to day. She shook her head and scoffed.

“That’s over exaggerating it, it was like 20 people tops. And the only reason it happened was because most of them were drunk. Also I wasn’t alone.”

“Eh, well still, that’s still badass.”

“Thanks.”

They started to pick up their pace, going from a light jog to a causal run. Both staying quiet for the time being.

Growing up in Maine, Skylar was use to the cold and snow. Then again she had layers on, not some thin workout material and a beanie. But if she overdressed while working out she would get hot, going into a cycle of being too hot and too cold. And that was something she didn’t like.

They did about 3 laps on the track, and she was a lot warmer than she was in the beginning. It was also getting late and she should head in to do her sparring session with Eliza.

She went from sprinting to walking in the matter of seconds, making Jack stop and turn to her with and arched brow.

“I think I’m gonna bail, I’m sure Ash is waiting for me. And I would like to get in a quick shower before breakfast.”

“Okay, I’m gonna take another few laps and then get my weight lifting in. Thanks for the run.”

“Anytime.” She smiled at him before departing back to the main building.

On her way back she noticed that Timur and Maxim were the only ones outside still. No signs of Alex or Shuhrat. She didn’t think much of it, thinking they just went inside to get their other workouts in as well.

She pulled open the door - being greeted by a rush of heat. Transitioning from a cold environment to a warm one always sent a shiver down her spine. She made her way towards the gym - upon rounding the first corner she spotted a familiar Spetsnaz soldier leaning against the wall with his balaclava in hand.

He looked up from hearing her footsteps, a smile gracing his face. “Lyubimaya moya.”

She returned the smile and walked over to him. “Were you waiting for me?”

“Why else would I be waiting in this hallway?” His hand came up to cup her cheek, thumb caressing her cool skin. “You looked upset earlier, I wanted to make sure you are okay?”

Skylar smiled, then kissed the inside of his palm before grabbing his hand and intertwining it with hers. “I’m fine, more annoyed than upset. Jordan thought he had the right to tell Jack and Miles that we slept together.”

He gently pulled her down the hall towards one of the storage closets . She rolled her eyes and chuckled as he opened the door - pulling her inside, then shutting and locking it.

She flipped the light switch, illuminating the dark room.

She saw a bunch of random old desks, and a few old weaponry cases. She walked over to one of the desks, wiping the dust off of it and sat down.

“Don’t let Jordan’s incompetence ruin your day.” He walked over to her, positioning himself between her legs. His arms on each side of her.

“I’m not. I think he’s afraid that I’m going to screw something up and there’s going to be bad blood between SWAT and the Spetsnaz as silly as that sounds.” She scratched at her chin as she looked up at him.

His brows furrowed in confusion - contemplating her words. “Why does he think that?”

“When you were looking for me he thought I did something wrong. Why else would lord Tachanka be looking for me?” A scoff left her lips and she rolled her eyes once again. Something she’s been doing a lot of these past few days. “At the holiday party he saw us taking shots together, then put two and two together and figured it out. Maybe he thought telling Jack and Miles I wouldn’t do it again.”

“We should take a video next time and send it to him. Showing his assessment was very wrong.” His hands grabbed her hips, pulling her towards the edge of the old desk. “Have you told anyone about us?”

Her arms came up and wrapped around his neck, her fingers brushing through the short strands of hair. “That would be a great thing to do, send Jordan our sex tape and then everyone would have it.”

Alex could hear the sarcasm in her voice, making him smirk.

“So far I’ve only told Ash. What about you?” Her eyes widened, panic seeping in. “Shit, I forgot I was supposed to spar with her.” She groaned and scrubbed a hand down her face. “She’s gonna be pissed.”

He moved to the side, motioning for her that it was okay to leave. “I do not want to keep you from your sparring session with Ash. We can pick this up later.”

Skylar hopped down from the desk, a small apologetic smile on her face. “How about we pick this up during dinner?”

“Ya by predpochel, chtoby ty na uzhin.”

She crossed her arms and arched a brow. “You know I understood absolutely none of that. But judging by that smirk on your face it was something sexual.”

He laughed in enthusiasm - cupping each side of her face and kissing her forehead. “I’ll see you at dinner. When should I meet you?”

Alex watched her face contort in different facial expressions as she thought on that question, then her eyes locked onto his. “I don’t know, all I’m doing today is training with Eliza, shipping out the Christmas presents for my family and cleaning my guns. That’s only going to take me a few hours and it’s not even 7 in the morning yet.”

“When you are done shipping out your families presents come to my my room, and bring your guns.” He let his hands drop down to her arms, his thumb caressing the nylon fabric of her shirt.

“Okay, I’ll see you in a few hours then.” She tugged on his shirt, pulling him down to place a firm kiss onto his lips before departing out of the storage closet.

Skylar was pulling off her fingerless gloves as she made it to the gym. Not many people were in it, surprisingly. She could see Elias being Dominic’s spotter while he did some weight lifting, and Jordan was running on the treadmill. Eliza was seated on one of the benches with her sparring sticks in hand, looking bored out of her mind.

She walked over to her and sat down. “I’m sorry. He was waiting for me when I came in.”

Eliza fiddled with the sparring sticks in her hands, then looked over to her with and arched brow. “He was waiting for you? It’s both disgusting and cute that you guys are in the honeymoon phase of your relationship.”

“I forgot how the honeymoon phase felt.” She chuckled nervously - glancing over to Blitz and Bandit for a brief second. “I kind of hate it, ‘cause I want to spend a lot of time with him, but deep down I feel like I’m neglecting my friends.”

She looked over at her, an apologetic smile on her face.

Eliza laughed and swatted her hand in the air. “You’re making an effort now to be with a friend, so I don’t think you’ll have trouble dividing your time between the new boyfriend and friends.”

“Thanks. Now you want to get to our sparring session? I kinda want to blow off some steam from earlier.” She shot Jordan a glare - shaking her head.

“That would be great, unless you want to run off to your boyfriend.”

Skylar grabbed her sparring sticks and stood up. “Ha ha, very funny. I’m seeing him later.”

“Of course you are.” She stood up with a sigh. “Let’s go.”

She followed Eliza to the mats, she needed to get her head back in the game, but her mind was clouded by Alex. She couldn’t have him being a distraction, even during harmless training with a friend. People are counting on her to have a clear head, and if she doesn’t people could get hurt or worse.

She took a deep breath, clearing her mind.

When she opened her eyes she saw Eliza was making the first move, Skylar quickly brought up her sparring sticks to block the incoming hit. The wooden sticks meeting together with a clank. Eliza smirked and back away a little.

“Keep your head in the game Sky.”

This time Skylar made the move, using agility more than strength. Eliza quickly anticipated the hit, bring the sticks up to block her chest, but at the last minute Skylar moved down to hit her in the stomach with enough force to heal her over.

“What was that? I should keep my head in the game?” She arched a brow, only Eliza didn’t see with still being heeled over. Her face faltered, thinking she didn’t hit her that hard. She got closer to her, a hand brought out in an attempt to help. “Shit I didn’t mean…”

Skylar landed on her back with a thud, her eyes looking up at the ceiling in shock. She took a few deep breaths, trying to regather hers.

Next thing she saw was Eliza bent down over her body, a smirk gracing her face. She lended a helping hand. Skylar swatted it away with a scoff - standing up on her own. “Jeez, take me off guard why don’t you.”

She rubbed at her chest trying to relieve the tight sensation in it.

“At least I haven’t lost you completely.”

“Can we just get back to this or are you going to beat me up some more?” She grabbed her sparring sticks off the ground - twisting them around.

“I’m good, besides I’m sure you get quite a good pounding from Tachanka so I’ll go easy on you.” She arched her brows, egging Skylar on some more.

She stared at her, mouth agape. “Well thank you for being so generous.” She rolled her eyes and laughed. “And last time I checked I was the one always winning.”

Eliza narrowed her eyes, swinging her foot under Skylar’s leg making her unbalanced then with a single push, Skylar was flat on her back again.

She groaned, slamming her hands down on the mat.

“Maybe we should pick this up another time.” She held out a helping, this time Skylar grabbed it. “When you’re not acting all cocky.”

She brushed herself off and scoffed. “Yeah, yeah. I have some presents to wrap and send out. I’ll see you later.”

The wrapping only took about 20 minutes, a little less with how fast she rushed it. All she wanted to do was get it done and ship it out back to Maine, knowing it probably won’t get there in time either way.

Now she was heading to Alex’s room with her M1911 pistol and M4 machine gun that was in a desperate need of a cleaning.

She rounded the corner leading to his room. With a closed fist she rapped on his door a few times. From inside she heard something drop and a loud ‘дрисня’, and by the sound of his voice was probably a swear. She chuckled to herself, trying to picture what he accidentally dropped.

The door swung open, his face automatically softening upon seeing her. “I did not expect to see you so soon.”

He moved to the side, letting her come in. She heard the door close behind her, then the lock. A quick glance to the floor to see if she could spot what he dropped, but nothing. She walked in further, putting both gun cases on his bed.

“Our sparring session got cut short.” She turned to him, eyeing up and down his body. “I’m not complaining though.”

Alex walked closer to her, hands gripping her hips, pulling her up against his body. She looked up at him, her hand resting on his broad chest. His hands moved over the curve of her ass, easily picking her up. Her legs wrapping around his waist automatically.

He lent down, nipping at her earlobe. “Ya tebya khochu.” He started to kiss down her jaw, stopping at the base of it.

“This isn’t cleaning our guns.” She pulled away with an arched brow. “And I thought we were cutting back a little? Or did you forget about the talk we had last night?”

“I did not forget kotyonok.” He kissed her nose, then set her down. “Are you going to tell me why your sparring session with Ash got cut short?”

She moved her gun cases to the side to sit down on the bed. “Ash and I were just joking around and we realized we wouldn’t get any training in if we kept going like that.”

Alex walked over to his desk grabbing cleaning equipment and sat down next to her. His RP-46 Degtyaryov machine gun was lying against his night stand, like he was already getting things set up for them.

“We could train together, if you are willing?” He grabbed his Degtyaryov, setting it in his lap before looking over at her.

Skylar smiled, grabbing the case that homed her M1911 pistol. “I would like that, but won’t Maxim, Timur and Shuhrat get a little jealous that their lord is spending more time with someone else?”

She opened the case, relieving the gun from it’s spot in the case.

“They already know about us, so no, they won’t.” He set the cleaning stuff in the middle of them - Skylar sitting crossed-legged on the bed next to him.

“Oh so you did tell them! So far I haven’t told anyone else, and do you think some people would consider us unprofessional?”

He locked eyes with her, seeing the sudden fear and worry in them made him feel a little angry. “That is their problem, not ours. I am not going to stop this relationship because someone thinks it’s unprofessional.”

“I wish I could be as blunt as you.” She leaned over, giving him a quick peck on the lips. “And thank you, I needed to hear that.”

“Anything for my kotyonok!”

Skylar set her gun down, then moved his from his lap so she could straddle him. His eyes filling with excitement. “I think the guns can wait.”

Skylar was on her stomach with the sheets wrapped over her body as she looked through the pictures on Alex’s phone. He was showing her his collection of Degtyaryov and Mosin-Nagant guns that he owned. There was quite a lot, and some she would love to get her hands on.

“How long did it take you to collect these?”

He stopped polishing his gun to look at her, the toothbrush never leaving his hand. “Years. Most I got from when I was still in the Red Army, others I had to track down.”

“Wow.” She flipped through some more pictures, loving how they were perfectly set up at his place back in Russia. “I would love to see them in person someday.”

“Next time we are on leave, I’ll take you back to Russia. You can do more than see them lyubimaya.” He went back to polishing his guns while she keep going back to the pictures of each gun.

“You would let me fire some of your prized possessions? But after we would have to stop in my hometown or I’ll never hear the end of it from my mother.” She handed him his phone back and sat up, making sure the sheets didn’t fall off her body.

“Yes I would. I would not mind that, seeing the town you grew up in would be a nice vacation.” He stood up, placing his Degtyaryov on it’s mount. “How will your parents feel about us?”

He put the toothbrush back in the case with the rest of the cleaning supplies, and sat down.

Skylar looked at him with both amusement and disbelief. “Is that worry I sense in you Alex? They’ll be fine with us being together. Actually they’ll probably be ecstatic knowing I’m in a relationship.”

“No, that was not worry. Concern, yes. I haven’t had to meet someone's parents in a very long time.” He looked away and sighed. It was almost uncharacteristic of him to be so….closed off.

Skylar moved closer to him, resting a hand on his bare shoulder. “You’ve never been afraid of telling people how you really feel. Whatever it is I can deal with it.”

“Skylar, you have been the first person I’ve like…..romantically in a very long time. I don’t want to lose something I have just been given.”

His eyes scanned her face - seeing her features soften under his stare. He lost count of how many times he found himself staring at her from a distance. Whether it was in the gym, a briefing or in the cafeteria. He always found himself staring.

Of course it was her beauty that drawn him in at first, then as he slowly got to know her whether hearing from other operators or talking with her, he knew his feeling for her were more than just sexual.

“You’re not going too. I think you’ll get along famously with my parents, and you might even be able to help my dad with something.” She chuckled at the confusion etched on to his face. “The business he owns is a local brewery. It started off with wine, then beer and now he wants to add vodka to the list. It hasn’t worked out well.”

“I like your father already.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulder - kissing her temple. “What does your mom do?”

“Freelance writer. She kinda stopped once I went into the service.” She scratch her nose and sighed. “She didn’t like me joining very much.”

“Why is that?” He craned his head to see her better.

“Probably was afraid that I was going to die. Thankfully she’s over that phase and is happy with what I do. Not like she could stop me from doing this anyways.”

“You save people, I am sure she’s proud of you.”

She smiled to herself. Joining the marines nearly put a rift between her and her mom and the endless arguments on ‘better’ options to find money for college. There was one feeling her mother will never know. Watching the hostage you just save being reunited with loved ones, how over the moon they look to see each other once again. She could never fully describe how that feels, and you’ll only get to experience it by doing that job.

“I hope she is.”

Chapter Text

“-I need you to be sniper support with Glaz while Blitz and I secure the hostage.” said Thatcher as they continued walking towards the cafeteria. He handed her one of the two files in his hands. “Read over this and we bug out at 0200.”

“Yes sir.” She was about to head into the cafeteria until Thatcher told her to wait. Then handed her the other file.

“Do you mind handing this to Glaz? I need to attend some other matters.”

She took the other file from his hand. “Yeah, no problem.”

Thatcher bowed his head, then headed down the hall.

Skylar looked down at the file and sighed, hoping Glaz was in the cafeteria. She wasn’t in the mood to go looking for him around the base. So she decided to peek her head in and glance around the room. Then she spotted him, sitting at his regular table…..with Alex and Maxim.

She groaned and scrubbed a hand down her face - knowing she would need to go over there and hand Glaz the file. Except this would be the first time speaking with them since her and Alex became an official couple. Then again, why was she nervous? If they disapproved Alex would have told her.

She composed herself then glanced around the room again. No Ash yet, which was good, since she was going there to meet her anyways and she didn’t need to get the daggers just yet. Then walked into the room.

Skylar made her way towards his table, fiddling with the files in hand. Maxim was the first to see her, giving her a nod and a small smile before getting Alex’s attention. He looked over his shoulder - face softening immediately once he saw her.

“Lyubimaya, I wasn’t expecting to see you yet.” He moved his jacket from the seat next to him so she could sit down. “I thought you were training with Castle?”

She placed the files on the table, sitting down with a long sigh. “I was, until Thatcher called me over.”

“Getting on Thatcher’s bad side isn’t such a good idea Phoenix.” said Kapkan, arching his brow.

Skylar’s attention was shifted over to Maxim. Even though years of stressful situation aged him more, he wasn’t so hard on the eyes. In her eyes his age marks made him look more attractive.

“Ha, I’m not. It was for an upcoming mission tonight.” She slide a file over to Glaz. “Thatcher wants us at the chopper at 0200.”

Glaz took the file and opened it. She watched his eyes scan over the first page, before setting on her. “Sniper support? I did not know you were a sniper?”

“Technically I’m not. Yes I’ve had training with a sniper and was pretty decent at it, it’s just not my preferred weapon.” She tapped her fingers on the table, glancing between Glaz and Kapkan. “I don’t do well staying still for a long period of time, I get too antsy.”

Alex moved her chair closer to him, then wrapped an arm around her shoulders. She rolled her eyes - smiling to herself. PDA wasn’t something she was use too, her affection was always behind closed doors. But it made her heart skip a beat by how proud Alex was to ‘show’ her off.

She shifted in her seat, leaning closer to him as she opened up her file. Scanning over the front page like how Glaz was. It was a typical rescue the hostage mission. Land a few clicks outside the hot zone, track the rest on foot, fight your way through a bunch of tangos and secure the hostage for extraction. Nothing she hasn’t done a few dozen times.

“Being a sniper is not for everyone, I’m sure you will do fine.”

“I know, thankfully hostage missions don’t normally take too long.” She turned towards Alex, his eyes already on her. “It looks like you’re going to be sleeping alone tonight.”

He scratched at the stubble on his cheek, then let out a deep sigh. “I’m not happy about that. Why couldn’t Thatcher pick someone else?”

“You can ask him that, I was just planning on getting some training in with Castle. I didn’t ask to be put on this mission.” She chuckled. “Besides I think you’ll survive a few days without me.”

“If he can’t then our lord has lost his ways.”

Alex shot Maxim a glare making Skylar muffle a laugh. “Ya vyzhivu khorosho.”

Skylar glanced between Maxim and Alex, then leaned over to Glaz. “What did he just say?”

Glaz looked up from the file as soon as he heard her voice. “He said ‘I’ll survive fine’.”

“Oh okay. Thanks.”

Glaz nodded then went back to the file. She knew she should look it over more, get all the details she could before they left tonight. But she knew Thatcher would call them in for another briefing an hour or so before they left, to go over every objective they had to do.

“As much as I would like to stay I should check over my sniper before tonight.” She closed the file and stood up, only to be followed suit by Alex.

“I’ll go with you.”

“You don’t have to you know?” She picked up her file and turned to him.

“I know, but I want too!”

“Yes your highness.” Skylar smirked and started to walk away. From a distance she heard him mumble something in Russian then his booted feet pitter pattering across the tiled floor.

Skylar opened the door leading to her room - followed by Alex who was right behind her. He let the door close on it’s own, then sat down on her bed near her night stand while she grabbed her sniper case from underneath the bed. She placed it on top with sigh and opened it.

It didn’t need much cleaning, she barely used it, but she would need to make sure everything was working accordingly before tonight.

She looked over at Alex - seeing him look at the few pictures she had out on her night stand. He picked one up, examining it, then look over at her with a smile.

“Malysh is this your family?”

He showed her the picture, it was the last family photo they took before she joined Rainbow. It wasn’t anything fancy, just taken on her parents couch. She was sat in the middle, with her sister Chloe, her boyfriend and her mom and dad to the left and her sister Valary with her husband Evan on the right. They all looked so happy.

She nodded and sat down next to him. “We took that a week before I came here. My mom was always keen on taking pictures of us, whether as a family or separately. It’s funny to think I was the only single one there.”

“Not anymore.” He set the photo back on her night stand, then picked up another one. Skylar smiled to herself as she watched him carefully look over the picture.

“That seems like a lifetime ago.” She picked up her MK 14 rifle and started to check it over. “It was taken a few months after I joined…...god I look so young.”

“You still are.” He set it back down, then turned to her. Her hair was up in a bun, revealing that big scar on her neck that dipped into her collarbone. The same scar he would trace with his fingers when she was asleep beside him.

“Sometimes I don’t feel like it.” She sighed as she set the rifle aside. “It sucks what being in the military does to you.”

Alex nodded and grabbed her hand, intertwining it with his. He knows exactly what being in the military does to people. It’s like being swallowed, chewed up and spit back out. Nothing will ever prepare you for the horrors of it, the only thing you can do is hope it doesn’t break you.

“No one can prepare you for the horrors of it, all you can do is hope it doesn’t kill you.”

“That’s the worst of it, but I also can’t deny that I love the adrenaline I get during ops. Being in danger, close calls. Always gets my blood pumping.”

Skylar watched his face falter, making her eyes go wide for a brief second. Even though they’ve gotten a lot closer in the past few days, she still saw him as the extroverted, speak his mind type of guy that she came to love. So seeing him lose his ‘façade’ when they were alone was something entirely new. But none the more attractive.

“Am I going to need Glaz to look after my kotyonok when I am not there?”

“No. I’ll be perfectly fine. Though that did ruin my chances of running straight into a bomber.” Skylar laughed, then placed a quick kiss upon his lips. “I find it cute that your worried.”

Alex let go of her hand, resting it on her thigh. Her cotton sweatpants felt soft and smooth under his palm. He watched her grabbed her rifle, checking it over again - facial features relaxed under his gaze.

“Would you rather I not be worried?” He arched his brow, taunting her.

Skylar scoffed and set her rifle back down again, then looked at him. “I like that you’re worried, it shows you care. I guess I’m not really used to seeing you like...this.”

“Romantic?”

She placed her hands in her lap, looking down at them and chuckled nervously. “Yeah.”

“There’s a lot we don’t know about each other lyubimaya, we have just started dating.”

“It’s not that.” She maneuvered herself so her back was against the wall, then plucked at a string on her blanket. “You just have such a strong public persona that it’s kinda hard to see past it.”

Alex maneuvered himself so he was sitting next to her against the wall. He looked down, meeting her gaze. Her chestnut brown hair was in a messy bun with a few strands dangling down. He took one of the strands of silky smooth hair - placing it behind her ear.

“No argument there.”

Skylar rubbed her right eye as she glanced at her rifle that laid beside her. “I actually don’t want to go on this mission. I hate doing sniper support.”

“Glaz will keep you company.” His hand grasped her thigh again, working it’s way up towards the band of her sweatpants. “I can occupy the kotyonok until then.”

She placed her hand on top of his, moving it back to his lap. “Not here.”

Before Alex could say his next word the door opened, making them both turn their attention to the door. Ash and Thermite walked in seconds later, Ash automatically saw her and Alex sitting on her bed and said nothing, Thermite however stopped in his tracks looking confused.

“I was going to text you and say I was going to be late for lunch but you clearly found a way to occupy yourself.” said Ash as she sat down on the bed, shooting Skylar a smirk as she opened the file in her hand.

She glanced over at Thermite who too had a file in hand. “Yeah, well training got cut short thanks to Thatcher. I see you guys got a mission as well.”

“Yeah a high value target one.” Thermite opened his file and sat down next to Ash. “You said you got a mission as well?”

“Hostage extraction with Glaz, Thatcher and Blitz. Should be fun.” She placed her rifle back in it’s case and closed it. “Who are you going with?”

“Thermite, IQ, Sledge, and Maverick.” Ash looked up from her file, locking eyes with Skylar. “That’s a pretty small group for a hostage extraction.”

“I know. Probably because Thatcher wants us to do it as stealthy as possible. I’m doing sniper support with Glaz.”

“That explains the sniper rifle on your bed.” said Thermite motioning to the case. “So what’s the deal between you two?”

Skylar brought her knees up to her chest and scoffed. She knew it was only a matter of time before he said something. But she knew it would be better to get it out of the way now then dragged it on.

From her peripheral she could see Alex cross his arms and sigh in annoyance. “The kotyonok and I are together.”

“Together, together? Isn’t she a little young for you Tachanka?”

She looked over at Alex, seeing the rage roll off him like a cloud. But he didn’t budge, just relaxed his body a little bit. “That’s not for you to decide.”

“Jordan just let it go, it doesn’t concern you anyways.”

He turned to Ash, disbelief showing on his face. “You can’t be telling me you knew about them?”

Ash looked up from her file, a little annoyed by the pestering. “Yes, she told me yesterday. I don’t know why you’re getting all worked up about it, it doesn’t concern you.”

She rolled her eyes and went back to the file in hand. Skylar muffled a laugh again until she locked eyes with Jordan. She could see the betrayal in them which she didn’t understand. Why would he feel betrayed or was it something different all together?

“You do realize this isn’t going to stop me from doing my job, right? I do know how to prioritize.”

“Hopefully you can live up to that.” He went back to his file, not paying any mind to her or Alex.

“I know you think you’re the ‘leader’ of the SWAT team but you’re not. Ash is, so stop trying to act like you have any say in what I do. Or specifically who I date.” She leaned back against the wall and scoffed.

She looked over at Alex, a small smile gracing her face. She was half surprised and half not that Alex wasn’t making more of an ordeal out of it, then again he knew it wouldn’t do any good to put a rift between the Spetsnaz and SWAT.

Ash closed the file and set it aside, completely ignoring Jordan on her left. “So when are you leaving?”

“Have to be at the chopper by 0200. What about you?”

“About an hour.” She turned to Jordan, grabbing his attention. “That means we should get ready.”

“Yeah.” He closed the file in his hand, taking a last glanced at Skylar and Alex before standing up. “I’ll meet you in the armoury.”

She watched him leave, waiting for the door to close before looking back over at Ash. “I knew he was going to be the only one who would have a shit fit over this.”

“I’ll sort his shit out during the mission.”

“Let him wallow in it for the time being. You know him, he’ll drag this out for some reason.” She scrubbed a hand down her face and sighed, then turned to Alex. “You’re being uncharacteristically non hyperverbal about all this.”

“I would have made things worse if I did.”

“And you called him out pretty good as well. Never thought that the quiet Skylar could have such a mean streak.” Ash smirked then got up from her bed.

“Only when I’m really annoyed….or angry.” She stood up from her bed to stretch - arms raised above her head. “Jordan just gets under my skin so easily. He’s like that annoying big brother that I never wanted.”

Skylar looked over at Ash who was fumbling through her draw to find her uniform. She pulled out her black pants and a black shirt - throwing them on the bed.

“I like seeing that part of you kotyonok.”

She turned her head towards him, a smile gracing her face. “Hopefully you won’t see it as much. I’d rather not spend a lot of my time being annoyed or angry.”

Alex got off the bed, quickly towering over her. “That is true! You want to take some of that anger out at the shooting range?”

“That’s sounds like a good idea.” She grabbed her M4 Machine Gun from under her bed, then turned to Ash. “I’ll see you in a few days and smack some sense into Thermite will ya?”

“I’ll try and see you when you get back.”

Skylar walked out of her room followed by Alex who was closely behind her. The shooting range sounded like a good idea, blow off some steam before the hostage extraction tonight. She didn’t need to be all worked up with doing sniper support.

“Are you going to use your degtyaryov or something else?”

He cocked his head in her direction as they walked down the empty hallway. “I was going to let you use it.”

She stopped dead in her tracks - mouth agape. “Are you serious?”

“Dovol’no.”

“Still have no idea what you just said.” She grabbed his hand and started pulling him down the hall. “But let’s go get that gun.”

“Da dorogoy.”

The rounded the corner, heading down yet another empty hall. She started to wonder where everyone was. But that wonder was quickly interrupted when the comms went off.

“Glaz, Phoenix and Blitz to the briefing room.” Thatcher’s voice rang out. She groaned and let go of his hand.

“Postpone it?”

“Of course. I’ll bring your M4 to my room.”

“Thanks.” She handed him the case and sighed in annoyance. “If I have time I’ll stop by your room before I leave.”

“If you can’t….just don’t run straight into a bomber while you’re there.” He smirked, making her shake her head.

“Funny.” She leaned up giving him a quick peck on the lips. “I should get going before Thatcher has a fit.”

“Mmm. I’ll hopefully see the kotyonok later. If I can’t then...be safe Skylar.”

Her face soften after hearing him say her name. It rolled off his tongue so nicely, like it belonged there.

“Always!”

She began to walk away, only to be stopped by Alex grabbing her hand. She looked back at him with an arched brow, then he pulled her in for a hug. The sudden embrace was nice, and she wanted nothing more than to stay in his arms.

“Job now, hug later.”

Skylar tried to muffle her laugh as she heard that familiar German accent, but failed. She let go of Alex and turned to see Blitz walking down the hall towards them.

“Hi Blitz.”

“Hi Phoenix, Tachanka.” He stopped next to them, his strikingly blue eyes glanced between them. “Since we are already here, could I accompany you to the briefing room?”

“Yes you can!” She turned to Alex one last time, giving him another kiss, this time on his cheeks. Then headed down the hall with Blitz.

Chapter Text

“-You and Tachanka huh?” Blitz turned his head to look at her as they continued down the hall, his blue eyes sparkled under the fluorescent lights above. “I never thought he would be in a relationship.”

Skylar looked at the tiled floor as they continued on - a small smile creeping up on her face. “Yeah, it’s kind of a long story.”

“I’m sure it’s a good one!”

“Maybe I’ll tell you about it someday.” She winked at him as she walked into the briefing room.

She heard him laughing behind her as she took her seat at the table. Thatcher was standing by the whiteboard with his arms crossed against his chest - patiently waiting for everyone to come in.

Blitz took a seat next to her, giving her a quick smile before turning his attention to the whiteboard with the missions plans drawn on it. And all they had left to do was wait for Glaz.

She looked over at the board, burning each black mark into her head. Thatcher drew two sniper nests on each side of the building with ‘Phoenix’ and ‘Glaz’ written in parenthesis, it looked like Glaz was covering the west while she covered the east. And Thatcher and Blitz would enter from the south.

The plan looked good, the positions her and Glaz would be in would give them enough coverage of the house to cover Thatcher and Blitz while they secured the hostage. Though plans could quickly change from here on out.

A few seconds later Glaz walked into the briefing room, all glade in his face paint and fatigues. He took a seat across from Skylar, giving her a stiff nod as he did.

Thatcher saw that everyone was accounted for and went over to the whiteboard. “Alright laddies and lass listen here. If you’ve read the file than you know we have a hostage situation in the Caucasus Mountains.” He grabbed one of the black markers circling the spots on the board where ‘Glaz’ and ‘Phoenix’ were written. “I want Phoenix and Glaz covering the east and west side of the building while Blitz and I enter the house from the south.”

He turned towards the table where everyone nodded that they understood.

“The chopper will drop us off five clicks from the location. Alright we bug out in an hour.”

Skylar slowly pushed the chair away from the table to stand up to leave after everyone else did. She was happy that they were leaving in an hour, that gave her enough time to change into her fatigues, grab her weapons and spend a little more time with Alex.

She smiled to herself as she left the briefing room only to jump a mile in the air when she saw Glaz leaning against the wall, waiting for her. “Jesus Glaz don’t scare me like that.”

He walked over to her, handing her a piece of paper. “Sorry! Alex wanted me to give this too you.”

“Thanks.” She grabbed the piece of paper from his hand and opened it. The note read, ‘if you can, meet me in my room before you leave, I have something for you.’ “Can I ask you something? It’s been kind of bothering me and I’m kind of embarrassed to ask Alex.”

“Anything! What is it?”

“What does ‘kotyonok’ mean? That’s what he calls me the most and I’m curious.” She chuckled and shoved the note in her pants pocket.

“It means kitten.”

Skylar looked down at the floor, shaking her head. Then she looked back up at Glaz with a smile gracing her face. “Kitten! Wow, that’s actually kind of cute.”

“It is! You should get ready, knowing Alex he’ll hold you up and we don’t need Thatcher on your ass.”

“No we don’t. I’ll see you at the chopper.” She gave him one of those half-ass salutes and headed to her room.

The first thing she did was pull out her black fatigues from her dresser and toss them on the bed. Then went for her thigh holster. As quickly as she could she got dressed, more intrigued on the little present Alex had for her than the mission.

She clipped on her thigh holster than pulled on her purple boots and tied them up. Then grabbed her rifle and pistol and headed out the door.

She knocked on his door as she placed her pistol in its holster. It only took a matter of seconds until the door opened, she smiled up at him and showed him the small post-it-note between her fingers. “Glaz said you have something for me?”

Alex moved to the side to let her in. “Yes I do.”

Skylar placed her rifle against his desk and turned to him. That’s when she noticed his phone in his hands, no doubt looking for another LMG. “Are you ever going to buy a new gun or do you just like browsing the website?”

“When I find one I like.” He placed his phone in his pocket and walked over to his night stand.

Skylar sat on his bed, fiddling with her hands as she waited to see what her present was. She heard one of the drawers open and the sound of paper being moved around as he looked for it. Once she heard the drawer closed she looked over at him.

“Give me your hand lyubimaya.” He sat down on the bed next to her with her present hidden away in his hand.

She gave him her hand, watching him tie a paracord bracelet around her wrist. She wouldn’t have thought much about it except it was purple, her favorite color. “You didn’t have too Alex. But I love it, so thank you!”

“You’re welcome kotyonok.” He moved closer to her - kissing her temple. “You never know when you are going to need one.”

She stopped fiddling with her new bracelet, looking up at him. To any normal person getting a paracord bracelet from someone wouldn’t be a big deal, but to Skylar it was. It wasn’t just a bracelet, it could potentially save her life one day. And knowing that Alex knew that made her heart fill with love.

“You’re always going to be protecting me, even when you aren’t there.”

“Always!”

Skylar placed a hand on his chest, then tugged at his shirt until he was mere inches from her face and placed a firm kiss upon his lips. “I’ll give you a proper thank you when I get back. Also it’s really cute that you call me kitten, but why?”

“Ah so the kotyonok figured it out finally, huh?” He let out a throaty laugh that made Skylar shake her head, and laugh nonetheless. “And why? Because you’re small and cute like one.”

She averted her eyes to the floor briefly, not wanting Alex to see the embarrassment on her face. “I uh asked Glaz what it meant and he told me.”

She turned her attention back to him, seeing the sparkle in his eyes made her feel a little more at ease….and less embarrassed. “Why didn’t you ask me? You know I would told you malysh.”

“I don’t know, I guess I was a little bit embarrassed.” She laughed and rubbed the back of her neck. “You’re the first person I know that uses kitten for a pet name, but I like it, I think it’s cute.”

“Good because I wasn’t going to stop calling you that.”

Skylar laughed and her eyes averted to the clock on the nightstand. “I should get going or Thatcher will have a fit.”

She got up to grab her rifle that was still lying against his desk, as soon as her fingertips touched it she felt a hand grabbed her wrist and spun her around. They locked eyes and then she found herself in a passionate kiss. Alex pulled away after a moment, resting their foreheads together.

“Pozhaluysta, bud’ ostorozhen.”

She didn’t know exactly what he said but judging by his voice, deep down she knew. She pulled back, forcing him to look down at her. “I promise.”

Skylar was posted on top of a hill, just beyond the treeline where she remained in a prone position. The wind was minimal, giving her a better chance on hitting her target and where she laid made her unseeable to the enemy.

She scanned the area for any enemies, spotting a handful of them patrolling the eastern part of the house. She scanned towards the front of the building, seeing an additional 5 or more people patrolling the front.

Skylar went for her comms, turning them on. “Glaz I have at least 10 terrorist on my side from what I can see, what about you?”

“I have the same, we should be able to take them out with ease.”

“Did you get that Thatcher? Just tell us when to engage.” She looked through the scope again, scanning between all the enemies trying to figure out their routes. Most of them were spread out which gave her a better chance at killing them all.

“Roger Phoenix and not yet, survey the house before lighting the bastards outside up.”

She heard his radio go off then began surveying the house. It was well lit inside and the top floor had a few floor to ceiling windows, giving her the perfect advantage of seeing inside.

From her side of the building she spotted 6 men downstairs and another 7 from the second floor. Who knows what Glaz was seeing and no one knows how many were in the room with the hostage.

She looked through her scope once again, this time looking for any C4 that might be laying around somewhere in the house. But with how the men were walking around it proved there wasn’t any. Inside the building at least, and she already knew there wasn’t any on the outside either. All doors and windows were clear.

Skylar went for her radio again, turning it on she immediately heard static before it went to the clear channel. “Thatcher I have 6 tangos downstairs and another 7 up, no C4 in or outside the house.”

“Good work Phoenix. Glaz what about you?”

“I have 8 upstairs and about 4 down.” Glaz said after a moment.

“Alright, light em up and rendezvous in front. We’ll surprise the ones inside.”

Skylar smirked as she aims her gun at the guy farthest away from her. Then all she heard was a crack and the enemy falling to the ground. The first 5 were an easy kill, all were spread out enough to not cause any disruptions.

She turned her rifle towards the front, taking out the two that were farthest apart and easy. The other three were a tad bit difficult, they were all huddled together and she had no vantage point.

She groaned and slowly moved to a crouching position, staying behind the treeline and in the dark to not be noticed. She began to walk quietly and carefully, not wanting to step on a twig and have it snap. When she got a good vantage point to hit two of them simultaneously she went back into a prone position. That left one person and she wasn’t that quick of a shot on the rifle.

Just when she thought her luck ran out, the men started to disperse. She waited until they were a ways away from each other before firing her gun.

CRACK…...first target down.

CRACK…….second target down.

CRACK…….third target down.

“Done, moving to the front.” Skylar said as she watched the last body fall to the ground.

She began to make her way down the hill leading to the building, from a distance she could see Blitz and Thatcher coming out of the darkness. It wasn’t hard to spot Blitz’s big shield that reflected the lights of the building.

They stacked up on the right side of the door, Skylar could feel Glaz’s presence behind her as Thatcher set a breech charge on the door. She shouldered her rifle, grabbing her pistol from it’s holster.

“Breeching.” They all turned their heads while the breach charge went off with a loud bang, sending wood and metal flying.

Thatcher and Blitz were the first to enter the house, the enemy too confused and blinded to see what was going on. When they finally came two all they saw was a barrel of a gun.

With the first wave taken care of, they made their way upstairs to secure the hostage. They knew the men were barricading themselves in with the hostage, making it more difficult to get to him without injuring him in a crossfire.

At the top of the stairs Blitz broke out a drone, setting it on the wooden floor. “Drone out.”

Skylar fiddled with her pistol while waiting for Blitz to finish his reckon. The mission was going well and to her liking, for the most part but she couldn’t deny that she wanted it to end a little bit faster.

Glaz looked down at her left wrist seeing the purple paracord bracelet tied around it. He shouldered his weapon and gently grabbed her wrist to get a better look at it. “He did better than I thought. Alex is not the most creative man.”

Skylar turned her head to look at him, eyebrow raised. “You knew he was making it?”

Glaz let go of her wrist - she let it fall to her side with a thunk. “Yes, he’s been working on it for weeks. At first I thought he wanted to pick up a different hobby than looking for a new LMG. When I saw he was using purple, I knew it was for you.”

“Wow, I never knew that, then again it’s not like we had a luxury of time to talk before we left. That’s sweet that he’s been thinking about me for that long!” Her other hand grazed over the rope again, a small smile inching across her face.

Glaz nodded - grabbing his pistol from it’s holster. “I can tell he really likes you! Whatever you did, made him fall, fast and hard. It’s nice to see!”

“The one hook up I don’t regret.” She chuckled, then looked down at the stairs they were standing on. “I’m just not sure how I’m gonna feel when all of Rainbow finds out about us.”

“Don’t worry about that Skylar, if anyone has a problem with you and Alex, he’ll be the first to let them know it’s none of their business.”

“That’s true. That’s also one of the things I like about him, is how blunt he is. I’ll never have to question if anything is wrong in our relationship.”

“What’d you have Blitz, we ain’t got all day.” Thatcher said seconds later, making Glaz and Skylar look over at him.

“Sorry Sir. I count eight hostiles in the room, all manning each of the entrances into it. The hostage is in the middle of it.” Blitz but his phone away and the drone before grabbing his gun.

“Okay. Glaz, Phoenix I want you guys to traverse the building and surprise the bastards from the windows. Blitz and I will breach each of the doors here. And try not to hit the hostage.”

“Yes sir.”

Glaz and Skylar made their way down the stairs and out the front door. They circled around the back towards the windows leading into the room where the hostage was. The back of the house was pitch black, giving them a good chance of surprising them.

Skylar was about send up her grappling hook but Glaz stopped her. She looked over at him confused, and it didn’t help she couldn’t read his face, but his eyes were conveying all she needed to know.

He didn’t say anything, just pointed up. She looked to where he was pointing and sighed. Each window had two bricks of C4 in them, making it impossible to breach from the windows without blowing themselves up.

“Thatcher, we have a problem.” Glaz said over the radio after a moment.

“What is it?”

“There’s C4 on the windows, we can’t breach from this end.”

“Bollocks. Alright come back inside. Glaz you’ll cover me, Phoenix, you’ll cover Blitz.”

They made their way back inside, stepping over the dead bodies as they went back up the stairs.

Glaz got behind thatcher, while Skylar got behind Blitz. She trusted each man there with her life, but Blitz’s shield made her feel a tad bit more safe. At that moment she was quite happy Six tasked her German friend with this mission.

“Breaching in...3….2…...1.”

She followed behind Blitz, gun raised as they entered the room. Blitz grabbed Skylar’s shirt, pulling her down as he covered them with his shield. That’s when she heard the ting, ting, ting of the bullets hitting it.

She aims her gun to the left, getting one of the men in her sight before pulling the trigger a few times. Watching his body fall to the ground made her quite satisfied while Blitz took out the other guy.

Thatcher and Glaz took out the men by the windows, and with luck on their side, the breach charge on their side of the room killed the two men manning that way in.

Once the shooting stopped, Skylar stood up and holstered her weapon. She looked around, seeing all the work they just did - then watched Thatcher go for the hostage. She heard him talking to the guy they came here to save, but didn’t pay that much mind to it. Instead she went back out into the hall and leaned against the railing overlooking the downstairs foyer.

It wasn’t long until she felt a presence next to her, thinking it was Glaz but it wasn’t, it was Blitz. He set his shield down against the railing and turned to her. “It’ll be an hour before our extraction gets here. That gives us enough time for you to tell me how you and Tachanka came to be. If you want to, that is.”

Skylar laughed, and faced him. “Okay, okay. It happened at the holiday party about a week ago. All I remember is talking to Meghan, then Alex came over and asked if I wanted to do shots with them. I agreed and next thing I know I’m waking up in his bed.”

“There has to be more than that.” His blue eyes lit up and he motioned for her to continue. He looked like a little kid listening to a really interesting story. It made her laugh.

“A few days later, after I kind of avoided him we confessed that we both wanted to be more than just friends with benefits. And viola, we’re together.” Her hand went back to the paracord bracelet on her wrist, and she smiled to herself.

“Well I’m happy for you. It’s always nice to see friends find somebody!.”

“Thanks Elias!”

About 5 hours later they were finally back at base and exhausted beyond words. Thatcher was reporting to Six, Blitz and Glaz were off to the showers and most likely bed afterwards. And all Skylar wanted to do was take a shower and pass out as well. Before she could do that, she wanted to tell Alex they were back. So that’s where she headed.

She glanced into the cafeteria first, checking to see if he was in there with Maxim and Shuhrat. When he wasn’t there she went directly to his room. She knocked on his door, hoping he was in there and not outside or in the gym. When she saw the doorknob move, she knew she was right.

“Kotyonok, you’re back!” He grabbed her hand, pulling her into his room. “How was the mission?”

Skylar set her rifle and pistol down on his desk and turned to him. “It went well, hostage is safe and sound. And Blitz knows about us now.”

Alex sat down on the bed, then grabbed her hand and pulled her towards him. She stood in between his legs while his arms wrapped around her waist - head resting on her chest. She smiled and wrapped her arms around him and began playing with his blonde hair.

“That’s good! You don’t have plans for this Friday do you?” He looked up at her, his grayish-blue eyes scanning her face.

“No, why?”

“I’ve been wanting to take you out on a proper date for a while now and since we’re already together I figured it was time.”

She stopped playing with his hair and sat down on his lap, her arm wrapping around his shoulder. “Where are we going and do I need to wear anything formal?”

“Dinner and a movie. The restaurant is a surprise, and semi-formal.” He tilted his head, giving Skylar a few tame kisses on her neck.

“Dinner and a movie? Old fashion, I like it. What are we seeing?”

“I thought it’d be best to choose together.”

“Okay, but a little later. I’m spent and in a desperate need of a shower, though a bath sounds way better. I wish we had a bath on base.” Skylar groaned and rubbed her tired eyes.

“Since you’re already here, I’ll get the shower ready for you.” He picked her up, setting her on the bed.

She watched him get up and head for his bathroom. “No, Alex you don’t need to. I don’t even have any of my stuff here. Or a change of clothes.”

He stopped at the doorway leading to his bathroom, then turned to her. He pointed to the bottom drawer of his nightstand and crossed his arms. Skylar arched a brow and opened it, spotting a change of clothes and her shower essentials. She shook her head, taking out her shampoo and conditioner, along with her change of clothes.

“Were you planning this?”

“No, Ash did. She knew you wouldn’t go directly to your room after the mission, said it was fine to grab some of your stuff from your room. So I did.”

Skylar chuckled and scrubbed a hand down her face again. “So that’s how she’s gonna play it.”

“Play what?” Alex let his arms fall to his side as he walked over to her. He sat down next to her, his eyes gazing into hers.

She sighed, pinching the bridge of her nose. “Because she’s not here, she’s gonna be fine with me spending almost all of my time with you. When she’s here I won’t hear the end of it. Now I can say it’s her fault, since my shower stuff is in here.”

His hands cupped her cheeks, gently pulling her closer to him so he could kiss her forehead. His lips lingered there for a moment before he pulled away, looking down at her. “She cares about you kotyonok. Now shall I get the shower ready for you?”

“I know she does, and yes please!”

Alex got up and headed for his bathroom while Skylar started to untie her boots and set them aside. Followed by her pants and socks. She heard the water running as she worked on the buttons of her shirt, pulling the sleeves down her arms and tossing it with the rest of her stuff that laid on his chair.

She stood up and stretched, reaching her arms above her head. Alex came out a few seconds later while she took off her bra, leaving her in her underwear and black tank top.

He walked over to the bed, grabbing her shampoo and conditioner.

“Will you be joining me?” Skylar asked as she tossed her bra in the chair.

“Does the kotyonok want me too?”

“Yes!” She walked into the bathroom, checking to see if the water was at the right temperature for her. She turned the knob slightly to the right, making the water cool down just a bit.

She watched him put her stuff next to his before leaving the bathroom, then she checked the water again. Since it was now to her liking she took off her tank top and underwear, leaving them on the floor. She was about to get into the shower until she realized her hair was still up in a pony. She took out the hair tie, setting it on the sink, and got in.

Skylar closed her eyes as she let the hot water beat down on her. It felt nice and relaxing after a long mission - only to be snapped back to reality when Alex wrapped his arms around her waist, swaying them back and forth.

“I see you kept your present on.”

She turned her head to get a better look at him - the water trickling down his neck. “I’m never taking it off.”

Alex let go of her waist, turning her around to face him. She looked up and down from his broad chest to his face. Seeing a scar here an age mark there, she wondered if any of the scars he got from when he was back in the Red Army.

His hand came up and cupped her cheeks once again, his thumb caressing her smooth skin. “Ty sdelal menya ochen’ schastlivym, kotenok!”

“I understood ‘kitten’ and that was it.” She chuckled and smiled up at him. “What did you say?”

“I said you have made me very happy.” He leaned down and crushed their lips together. His hands ravishing her body as hers wrapped around his neck. He hoisted her up, leaning her back against the cool shower wall.

Her legs wrapped around his waist, feeling his growing arousal on her thigh. She pushed him away, trying to catch her breath. “I’ve made you happy?”

Alex stopped his attack on her neck and locked eyes with her. He didn’t like the uncertainty in her voice or that she didn’t think she made him happy. “Very! Out of everyone on this base, I’ve wanted you the most. You are not the unlikeable women you think you are Sky.”

“I’m just use to being nobodies first choice, or they find someone better in the long run. I guess I’m still wrapping my head around the fact that anyone would actually want me.”

She looked down at his torso and sighed - closing her eyes to let the few tears fall down her cheeks. Alex placed his thumb in the dip of her chin, gently raising her head. “You’re my first choice, kotyonok. Eto nikogda ne izmenitsya.”

“What was that last part?” She chuckled, trying to grab onto his wall for extra support.

He saw that she was slipping, grabbing her hips in a tight yet firm hold and kept her in place. “I said ‘that’s never going to change’.”

Skylar leaned back against the wall - sighing. “Don’t make promises you’re never going to keep Alex.”

Alex wasn’t someone to be taken aback by someone's words, he would just let it roll off his shoulders for the most part. This time was different, hell he even felt slightly hurt by her words. “And how do you know I won’t keep that promise Skylar?”

“I don’t.” She looked away from him, and to the water beating down at their sides. As much as she hated being exposed emotionally, it was even worse when she was exposed both physically and emotionally.

“I’ve wanted you for months Skylar, trying to get closer to you as much as I could without being a bother.”

Skylar turned and looked at him, her hand came up and grazed over that purple paracord bracelet once again. “You were never a bother Alex, I always enjoyed our conversations together and every time one would end I couldn’t wait for the next one to begin. It was your bluntness that made me fall for you. Not having to question what someone really thinks was a plus, yet here I am, questioning everything.”

“What happened between you and the other guy, kotyonok?” He moved her damp chestnut hair behind her ear, looking down at her - conveying concern in his eyes.

“All he cared about was getting laid, so he lied about everything. When we finally had that big blow out, that’s when he confessed.” She wiped the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand - letting out a shaky breath. “He said he didn’t want to be with me because he didn’t like how smart I was and he didn’t want to be the ‘dumb’ one in the relationship. It also puts a damper on ones self-esteem when you’re told you’re only good for one thing.”

She watched his jaw clench and brows narrow into a line. This was the first time seeing him get visibly upset over something, and it was a sight to behold. Skylar was so use to him being laid back, not having much of anything get to him, so seeing him like this was new and to put simple nice to see. It made her feel more hopeful that he seemed to care so much.

“Chert s nim, ty zasluzhivayesh’ luchshego.” He leaned down placing a few kisses on her lips before locking eyes. “Kotyonok, you didn’t deserve that! I’m not that mudak, I will never treat you like some worthless piece of ass. You are much more than that to me.”

If it wasn’t for the sincerity in his voice, she might not have truly believed him. She quickly wrapped her arms around his neck - resting her head on his shoulders. “I’m sorry for doubting us…….for doubting you.”

“No need. Heartbreak is….heartbreak, we all deal with it differently.” He held onto her tightly, rubbing up and down her bare back.

Alex couldn’t help the smile that graced his face. It’s been decades since anyone had caught his eye romantically and deep down he knew she was too pure for him, to good. And maybe she would be better off with someone who had a heart of gold like Blitz. But there was a snowball's chance in hell that he would ever let her go.

After a moment Skylar lifted her head off his shoulders and smiled up at him. “Well this heart-to-heart dampened the mood.”

He set her down, letting her stretch her legs. “That was weighing you down. It’s best to get that off your chest instead of having sex in the shower.”

“I do feel better now and at peace with everything.” She put her head under the water, getting her hair nice and wet.

“I’m glad!” He watched her for a moment, burning every detail he could into his brain. How the scar on the back of her right shoulder would move every time she moved that arm or how she would put more weight on her right hip when just standing still. They were simple things, but they made her. Her.

Skylar turned around to grab her shampoo bottle, except Alex stopped her. “Let me.”

She nodded and turned back around. He grabbed the bottle and opened it, squirting a decent amount into his hand. He started massaging her scalp as he lathered her hair in the fruity concoction that was her shampoo.

“Back at the holiday party, I remember you coming over asking if I wanted to do shots with you, Timur and Maxim. I also remember us having really good sex and waking up next to you. But I don’t remember what happened between the shots and going to your room.”

He continued massaging her scalp, getting the shampoo on every inch of hair. “We snuck out while Timur and Maxim were arguing over something, I don’t remember what. We went outside, sat down on one of the benches watching the snowfall.”

Skylar’s eyes widened as that night came back into her mind. “Wait didn’t I go out in the snow?”

“Yes. You threw a snowball at me and laughed.”

“I remember now. We ended up in a snowball fight, and somehow ended up on the ground with you on top of me. We kissed.”

“You can wash the shampoo out now.” She turned around to look at him while washing the shampoo out of her hair. “Yes we did.”

“That was a good night! For someone who isn’t afraid of saying what’s on his mind, why were you waiting so long to ask me out?” She got the last bit of shampoo out of her hair - setting all her attention on him.

“I didn’t know how you would feel with someone significantly older than you asking you out on a date.” He washed the remaining shampoo off his hands and went for the conditioner. “I didn’t want to make you feel uncomfortable.”

Skylar turned back around so he could put the conditioner in her hair. The massaging of her scalp was starting to lull her to sleep, it felt good and calming. “You also didn’t know if the feelings were mutual. That was really sweet though, and on the contrary you were the first person I had a crush on.”

Alex stopped rubbing the conditioner in her hair and washed the remainder of it off his hands. “Then the feelings were mutual, kotyonok.”

“Yeah, yeah.” She swatted her hand in the air and laughed. “Are you by any chance going back to Russia for the holidays? I know a lot of the other operators are going home for the holidays this weekend.”

She crossed her arms and leaned against the shower wall while the conditioner set in her hair.

“No I’m not, I’m staying here. Are you going back home?”

“I’m staying too. I didn’t want to make that eight hour flight - mom was kind of upset but understood.”

He nodded and crossed his arms as well. “Does the kotyonok know when she’s gonna tell her parents about her blossoming relationship?”

Skylar rolled her eyes and scoffed at the merry tone in Alex’s voice. “Christmas! I can finally call them up and say ‘Merry Christmas mom and dad, I have a boyfriend’. And then to get bombarded by a thousand questions.”

Alex let out a booming laugh, uncrossing his arms to hoist her up once again. “I see we have a sassy kotyonok here. I might have to do something about that!”

“And what would the Lord Tachanka do to his precious little kitten?” Her hand found his semi-erect cock, stroking his length from base to tip.

The low grunt she heard from the back of his throat sent a surge of confidence through her. She grabbed his thick cock in a firm hold and begins to stroke it until the older man became rock hard from her touch.

Skylar looked up at him, seeing his eyes closed and lips slightly parted. The soft moans he was letting out were the icing on the cake. She leaned forward leaving light kisses on the small scars on his chest.

“Yebat’ , chto chuvstvuyet sebya khorosho.” He opened his eyes, and met hers.

His grip on her hips tighten as he sunk to his knees, moving her legs over his shoulders so her crotch was right in front of his face. She felt his hot breath on her clit, then his mouth pressed into her wetness.

She leaned her head back, moaning. His grip tightened even more, no doubt leaving little bruises on her hips as his face pressed further into her. Feeding off her like he’s been starved.

Her fingers threaded his hair, making it more disheveled than it was.

“-Fuck me, this feels amazing.” Skylar moaned out as she let her arms fall to her side.

“In a moment, kotyonok. I’m not finished eating you.” He dove right back in, leaving no room for her to catch her breath.

Her chest began to heave, legs trembling. Alex pulled away, bringing her legs down and standing back up. Skylar looked at him, mouth agape. She saw his chin glistening with her juices and the satisfied look on his face, that irritated her in that moment.

“Alexsandr Senaviev what that hell was that?” She looked at him flustered, annoyed, the whole nine yards.

He laughed, leaning down to crush their lips together. She tasted herself as his tongue slipped into her mouth, moaning into it. He broke the kiss to whisper in her ear. “The only way my kotyonok is getting off is around my cock.”

His arm reached for the condom he had lying next to where the shampoo bottles were. Tearing the wrapper with his teeth, he spit out the packaging onto the shower floor and rolled it on his length while still keeping a good grip on Skylar.

With a slow snap of his hips, he sunk into her. Both softly moaning as he bottomed out. He stilled himself, making sure she was used to the stretch.

Alex kissed along the large scar on her neck that dipped into her collarbone. Skylar rolled her hips, silently telling him she was ready. He felt the bridge of her nose in the crook of his neck as he thrusted up into her.

A whimper escaped her lips as her arms wrapped around his neck, holding onto him for dear life. She kissed along his jawline and down into the crook of his neck, feeling his chest reverberate every time he moaned either her name or kotyonok.

“Oh...Alex!” Her legs trembled around his waist as she came.

He was pummeling into her now, harder and sloppier than before. She could tell he was close to his own orgasm. Then he stilled, his fingers digging into her hips as he came with a moan of her name.

Both now panting and gazing into each others eyes. His grip loosened as he pulled her off of his cock and set her down. Her legs now weak and felt like they were going to give out. She leaned against the shower wall, trying to keep herself sturdy.

Alex tossed the condom in the trash and turned to her. He leaned down, placing a few light kisses on her lips. “How about we get out of this shower kotyonok and curl up in bed?”

“Yeah, that sounds better. Except, I can't walk and I need to wash the conditioner out of my hair.” She chuckled and tried to stand up straight, only to lean back against the shower wall. “Let’s forego having sex in the shower for a bit, eh?”

He walked over a few steps, helping her up. “Take your time. I wasn’t too rough was I?”

“No, it was just how we always are. I’m just use to being on a bed, that’s all.” She moved her hand under the water, that was now cold. A sigh left her lips and she stood up. Her legs still wobbly, but the want of getting out of the shower was outweighing her wants of sitting down.

She quickly washed the conditioner out of her hair, then turned off the shower. Alex was already in his boxers and had a towel ready for her. She got out, wrapping herself in the big blue towel and grabbed another one for her hair.

Skylar grabbed her hair tie from the sink, sliding it onto her wrist and went to leave. But Alex stopped her - picking her up bridal style and headed back into his room. She chuckled as he set her down on the bed and sat down next to her.

“I’m really looking forward to that date! And having the base nearly empty.” She got up to get dressed. Letting the towel fall to the floor as she pulled on a clean pair of underwear and the sweats Alex got from her room. Then pulled on the navy New England Patriots shirt and sat back down.

She grabbed the pillow that was on her side, and laid down. The bed felt like the most amazing thing in the world to her at the moment. Missions always tired her out, and sleep was the first thing on her mind when getting back to base. Now sleep was the farthest thing from her mind, all she wanted to do was lie in bed with Alex and let the day slowly pass bye.

After pulling on a pair of sweats, Alex joined her in bed. “I am too! It will be nice getting off the base for a few hours, just the two of us.”

“It will! So can you please tell me where we’re going?” She pouted her bottom lip at him. “Pretty please?”

He wrapped his arm around her waist - pulling her against his chest. She took a deep breath, taking in his scent. He always smelled like citrus with a lovely balance of warm, woody-musky sounds with a hint of amber gray…….and a faint stench of sex from their coupling a few minutes ago. It was warm and inviting.

“Sorry baby, it won’t be a surprise if I tell you.” He nuzzled his face into her drying hair, taking in the fruity smell of her shampoo.

“Fine.” She huffed. “I am looking forward to seeing you in semi-formal clothing instead of our normal work clothes though.”

“It’s nothing special, kotyonok.” He kissed the top of her head and hummed. “I know you’ll look beautiful.”

“Mmm, thanks!” Skylar cursed herself under her breath at the embarrassing reply she just gave. She was never good at handling compliments all that well. “I meant that’s sweet and I just don’t know how to take compliments.”

Alex let out another booming laugh - pulling her even closer to him. “You’re cute, kotyonok.”

Skylar nuzzled into his chest, trying to get closer to him. “You’re cuter.”

“Yerunda.” He chuckled and kissed the top of her head. “Didn’t you say you were tired? Why don’t you take a nap and I’ll wake you up for dinner?”

“That sounds good.”

Skylar was taking her guns back to her room before she met Alex in the cafeteria. The little three hour nap she had did more harm than good. Now she was more tired than she was before.

She rounded the corner leading to her room where she spotted Jordan leaning against the wall. She sighed and pinched the bridge of her nose. “If you’re here to argue I’m not in the mood.”

Jordan looked at her once he heard her voice, pushing himself off the wall. He saw that she was carrying her weapons and arched a brow, only to have it fall seconds later after he realized.

“I’m not, I came to apologize.”

She stopped in her tracks, mouth slightly agape. “Okay, come on in.”

She opened the door and sat her guns on her bed as she retrieved the cases that were still in the spot she left them. The door closed seconds later and Jordan sat down on the edge of her bed.

“I know I have no say in who you date or what you do. And I’m happy that you found someone, even if he’s a good few decades older than you. But I look at you and see this….innocence, and I don’t want to see it get taken away.”

He watched her close her rifle case, pushing to the side and sitting down next to him. “You can’t be that naive Jordan? That innocence was taken away years ago, I just put on a facade so I don’t need to feel that guilt.”

“What guilt?” He say her face falter and eyes close tight.

“Back when I was a marine my platoon and I were escorting civilians to our base after their village was attacked. They convoy was hit, I was the only one who survived.” She opened her eyes, glancing over at him. “When the first humvee was hit with an RPG, we stopped, got out to see where the hostiles were. It was dark and couldn’t see shit in front of us. The second RPG hit the humvee closest to me, sending me flying through the air and down the dirt hill. I woke up a day later in the infirmary with my neck and collarbone stitched up.”

“Fuck.”

“Yeah. There’s not a day that goes by where I don’t think I should’ve died along with them.” She wiped the tears from her eyes - letting out a shaky breath.

“Maybe you were meant to survive to be here. Saving people from terrorists with Ash, Pulse, Castle and I.”

Jordan nudged at her arm with his elbow, making her laugh.

“When you’re not a cocky son-of-a-bitch you can be quite compassionate.”

“Eh, when it calls for it.” He scratched at the stubble on his chin and chuckled. “You definitely shocked me a few days ago. I never pictured you having such a mean steak. At least you didn’t punch me.”

“You may get annoying Jordan, but it’ll take a lot more than you disapproving of my relationship with Alex.”

He held his arms up in a defensive manner, eyes slightly widening. “I don’t disapprove of your relation with him….anymore. Just something I’ll have to get use to, that’s all. And don’t forget about your friends, lunch won’t be the same without you.”

Skylar stood up, grabbing her rifle case and putting it under her bed. “You guys act like I’m gonna abandon you. That’s not gonna happen.”

“Good.” He laughed and stood up. “We good now?”

“We good!” She placed her pistol in its case and set it under her bed, then stood up. “Alex is waiting for me in the cafeteria, I should probably get down there.”

“Awe a dinner date? How cute.” He opened the door, letting her go out first.

“Ha ha, funny. Our first official date isn’t until Friday.”

“I’m sure you two will have fun. That’s if you even make it to your destination.”

Skylar stopped in her tracks and turned to him, a smile gracing her face. “Is that jealousy I hear in your voice Jordan? Don’t worry, maybe someday you can join us.”

Jordan watched as she turn around to leave down the hall. Leaving him in the middle of the hallway...stuned.

Chapter Text

The cafeteria wasn’t as filled as she thought it would be, only about ten people were in the room and that was including her. She could see Jackal passed out in the corner, arms crossed, mouth slightly agape. Lion and Finka were seated in the far left of the cafeteria chatting away.

She was surprised she didn’t see Glaz, Kapkan and Fuze sitting at the table with Alex, they’re usually there at this time. She shrugged it off and sat down next to him.

“Where’s the boys?” Skylar pulled her tray closer to her, grabbing the water bottle to open it. “They’re normally here. Wait, did you tell them not to come?”

She narrowed her eyes at him, taking a sip of her water. He put his hands up in a defensive manner - laughing. “No, Glaz and Kapkan are getting some late night training and Fuze is in the workshop. Would the kotyonok be mad if I did?”

“Mad, no. Upset, maybe.” She opened her salad container, setting the lid to the side. “I understand why you would since we don’t get a lot of privacy, but it’s still not nice. And we’re in the cafeteria, filled with other operators so it wouldn’t make sense anyways.”

“Well I don’t want to upset the little kotyonok. You have my word, I won’t do that.” He smirked, holding his hand out for her to shake.

Skylar laughed, shaking her head, but shook his hand nonetheless. “Good. It’d be ashamed to end our relationship so soon after we just started dating.”

Alex’s face went white, mouth slightly agape. He dropped his fork on the tray, moving his legs from underneath the table, so he was looking directly at her. She finished mixing in her dressing and turned to him, quirking a confused brow.

“Would you end our relationship if I did that?”

She put the lid back on the empty dressing container, setting it back down on her tray, then turned to him. “Do you really think I would break up with you for something as little as that? No way, my deal breakers are cheating and if you ended up being a complete douchebag. Not because you told your friends not to come to dinner because you wanted to spend some alone time with your girlfriend.”

She watched him visibly relax in front of her, swing his legs back under the table. “You had me worried, kotyonok.”

“I know.” She giggled. “It was all over your face.” She took a bite of her salad, trying not to make herself choke by laughing again. More and more people started to flood into the cafeteria. Some glanced over to them, raising a brow at how overly close Tachanka was to her. Other’s ignored them or didn’t seem to care and for once Skylar wasn’t nervous about them finding out. “I think people are figuring us out.”

He looked over his shoulder, glancing around the room, shrugging his shoulders. “Good.”

“I wonder who’s going to be brave enough to ask us about it.” She chuckled, glancing around the room once more.

“Ask you, they know better than to ask me about my personal life.” He turned, grabbing her chair and pulling her closer to him. He leaned back against his own, resting his arm around her shoulder.

“I don’t think they’ll ask me either, Blitz only asked because he saw us hugging in the middle of the hallway.” She grabbed her water again, slowly taking off the cap. “I’m not nervous about people finding out about us, most of the aren’t going to care anyways. The few who will, will probably bring up the age difference like Jordan did and blah, blah, blah.”

Alex turned his head, eyes scanning her face. “That sounds like a personal problem, something they’ll have to learn how to deal with.”

“Yeah I know.” Her eyes widened when she remembered about the conversation she had with Jordan before she arrived. “Oh, Jordan apologized.”

“Did he? I’m surprised he did.”

“Yup, he said it’s not his place on who I date and it’s something he just has to get use too. He also said he didn’t want to see me lose my innocence, but unfortunately that happened years ago.”

She sighed, tapping her fingers methodically on the table. Alex looked at her, worry etching onto his face. “What do you mean?”

“I’ll tell you later.”

Later that night they were both sitting on Alex’s bed going through the movies that were showing at the local theater. Neither of them were eager to see any of the movies that were showing, so instead of going to the movies before dinner, they opted to just walk around town before then.

Alex closed his laptop, setting it back on his desk. When he turned around he noticed Skylar staring off into space, her eyes looked distant like she was off in a land of her own. He walked back over to the bed, sitting down next to her. He took his hand, placing it on top of hers. That seemed to snap her back to reality ‘cause she flinched and turned to him with an apologetic smile on her face.

“Sorry.”

“You don’t need to apologize. What’s wrong kotyonok?”

Skylar let out a shaky breath, looking him in the eyes to see the concern written in them. She moved back further onto the bed, Alex following suit. “Something happened to me when I was a marine, it’s actually the story about how I got this hideous scar on my neck and collarbone.”

He could hear the hurt and anger in her voice, not like from before, this was more personal, more private than the argument she had with Jordan. She was breaking down a wall for him, a wall he knows isn’t easy to let down.

“My platoon was escorting some civilians back to another village after theirs was destroyed. There was a Humvee in front, the civilians in the middle and another Humvee, with me at the end.” She closed her eyes, taking in a deep breath to calm her nerves. “We were heading up this mountain when an RPG hit the first Humvee. My Humvee stops on a dime, we all get out, returning fire. Most of the platoon was covering the civilians or on the other side of the Humvee, I was on the side closest to the hill. The next RPG hit the civilians car, turning it into a ball of flames. When the third and finally RPG hit the Humvee I was at, the blast sent me flying down the hill. The next thing I know, I’m waking up in the infirmary with my neck and collarbone stitched up, a few broken bones. I was the only survivor.”

She wiped the tears from her eyes and sighed. “There’s not a day that goes by where I don’t wish I died along with them.”

Alex could feel his own heart breaking in his chest, probably for the first time ever. He quickly embraced her in a hug, his arms wrapping around her in a firm hold. “I’m happy you didn’t, if you did we wouldn’t have ever met. You have made me a happier man Skylar, and I’ll never take that for granted.”

She looked up at him with tear filled eyes and a small smile on her face. “You’ve made me happier too. And I will never take that for granted either. I always wondered why I survived, and maybe it was because the universe wanted me to be here, with Rainbow. Since coming here I have met my best friend, rescued countless people from terrorists and met this incredible guy that treats me like a queen.”

“You are my queen.” He kissed the top of her head, lingering there for a moment. “Since you’re staying here for the holidays I was wondering if you would like to take a quick trip back to Russia?”

“I would love too!” Her eyes lit up, and a big smile graced her face. “What’d you have in mind?”

“I’m not sure yet. I have a small one bedroom apartment there and I could show you around Saint Petersburg?”

“That sounds perfect. We can figure out what to do once we get there.” She leaned over, placing a firm kiss onto his lips. “When are we leaving?”

“I’m hoping this weekend if seats are opened on a flight. Are you okay with that?”

“Yeah.”

Just as soon as Alex was about to say something, the comms rang out.

“I need Tachanka, Phoenix, Hibana and Pulse to my office, now.” Thatcher said over the comms.

They both raised a curious brow and got off the bed to head down to Thatcher’s office. If it was just them being called down, Skylar would be nervous thinking that Thatcher had found out they were romantically together and wanted to talk about that and how they ‘need to be professional out on the field’. Since Hibana and Pulse were called, she knew that wasn’t the case and that there was another mission about to take place. But she couldn’t help wonder why she was called again, she just got back with Thatcher not even a day ago, did he trust her that much to call her for yet another mission in such a short span of time? She was about to find out.

“Why do I have a feeling he’s going to ruin our date plans by having us go out on a mission, kotyonok?”

“Hopefully it’ll be a quick mission. I’m just wondering why I’m getting called so soon after the other one.”

They made it to Thatcher’s office, walking in to see Hibana and Pulse already in there and seated. Skylar smiled at them both and sat down next to Hibana. She noticed she was wearing the heart necklace that Pulse had given her and chuckled.

“It’s cute that you always wear the necklace Pulse gave you.”

“I never take it off!” She held it in her hand, a small, proud smile gracing her face. “He told me about you and Tachanka, I never thought you’d be into older men.”

“It’s not about age with me, it’s about personality and heart. Sometimes you just have to follow it.” She glanced over to Alex who looked bored and annoyed, making her laugh.

Pulse leaned over a moment later. “You’re not upset that I told her about you guys right?”

“No. I was going to tell her anyways, you just beat me to it. We are friends remember Jack?”

“You three can finish your conversation later.”

“Yes sir.” They all said in unison.

“Now to business.” Thatcher leaned back in his chair, swiveling it slightly. “I need the four of you to drive into London tomorrow morning to pick up some supplies.” He handed each of them a list, all scanning it over. “The destination is written on the paper and I’d advise you to take two separate cars, most of that stuff is big. Dismissed.”

They all got up to leave, once in the hall they all looked at each other. Skylar and Hibana were still reading over the list, the shipment was mostly weapons and some other things for the base.

“At least it wasn’t a mission.” She looked over to see Alex looking grumpy. She poked his stomach and pouted her lips like a child. “Don’t be so grumpy, you’ll be spending six hours in a car with your favorite person.”

“I’m not grumpy about that, kotyonok. I can think of a lot more ways to spend my day then to drive to London.”

Skylar grabbed his hand, then turned to Hibana and Pulse. “We’ll see you guys in the morning.”

She pulled him out of earshot of them before turning to him with a mischievous smile on her face. “If you don’t complain about this little errand we have to run tomorrow, I’ll surprise you with something when we get to St Petersburg.”

“What would that surprise be?” He grabbed her hand, pulling her closer to him. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw the way he was looking at her - a mix of lust and something else, she couldn’t put her finger on it.

“Well it involves me, you, a bed and lots of lube.”

“Do we have to wait until Russia?”

“Depends on if you’re good or not tomorrow.” She grabbed his hand again and started walking back to his room. “I know it’s going to be a long, tiring day tomorrow, think of it as a plus. We get some privacy.”

“You’re very optimistic.” He glanced down at her and chuckled when he saw the cheek grin spread across her face.

“Well, yeah. I mean we work together and live in the same building, but there will always be times where we don’t see each other or can’t spend time together for one reason or another. So I’m just happy with any alone time we can get.”

“I am too, that will never be a problem. I just don’t like using free time that could be used to do something different and more meaningful.”

Skylar stopped in her tracks and turned to him, gazing into his blue-gray eyes. “We put our lives on the line every time we have a mission, not knowing if that will be the day we die. I don’t care how we spend our time together, whether it’s in a car for six hours or in your room….or even out on the town. I just want to spend it with the person I care about the most!”

Alex just stared at her in complete wonder-struck. He wanted to give her everything under the sun and more, to shower her in gifts and take her out on romantic little vacations. Skylar didn’t need any of that, even if he was the one that wanted to give it to her and not the other way around. She didn’t care about materialistic things, all she truly cared about was him and spending time with him.

Maybe he was hiding that fact from himself, to make it easier on him in the long run. Buy her love with gifts and such so she won’t find someone younger and better. He cursed himself thinking he needed to do that in the first place. Skylar was a beacon of hope, a glimmering star in the night sky, showing him the way. Showing him that he wasn’t alone.

Chapter Text

“I get why Thatcher wants you, Hibana and Pulse to go to London to grab supplies, but why Tachanka? No offense.”

Skylar walked out of the bathroom after washing her face to see Ash getting ready to go for a run. She knew she had a point, why did Thatcher want Alex to go with them, it wasn’t like they couldn’t get the supplies with three people, or was it the fact they were going to London and Thatcher wanted the ‘buddy system’ since the supplies needed to be divided between two cars? Both were plausible reasons.

“None taken.” She chuckled. “I think it’s the buddy system because we’re splitting the supplies between two cars and one of us would’ve been driving back alone. I’m not complaining that he got called for this little errand, I could be stuck in a car with Thermite.”

“Of course you wouldn’t be complaining, you are the one dating him.” Ash opened a drawer in her nightstand, grabbing her headphones. “Speaking of Jordan, he told me about what you said to him when he apologized.”

She turned to sit back on her bed, plugging her headphones into her phone. Skylar laughed as she tossed her purse onto her bed, then sat down. She was making sure she had everything with her before they headed out. Wallet, check. Phone, check. Keys, check. Other random things, check.

“Hey I wouldn’t be upset if Thatcher chose you instead. Oh god, I was joking. Do you really think Alex would be okay with having a threesome with Jordan? Wait a minute what did Jordan say?”

“He’s Russian Skylar.” Ash shook her head and rolled her eyes. “He told me you said he could join you guys someday, I think he’s taking it to heart.”

“Oh Alexsandr is Russian? I never noticed.” She laughed as Ash threw one of her pillows at her, hitting her in the chest. “I did say that, but it was after I told him about the date Alex and I are going on this Friday. He said that we wouldn’t get to our destination, I then joked that I heard jealousy in his voice and he could join us someday.”

Skylar threw Ash’s pillow back at her, then got up to grab her shoes. It was only 5:30 in the morning and they were supposed to be on the road by six to hopefully get to London by 9:30-10 o’clock. Depending on traffic.

“Oh, he’ll forget about it in a few days.” She stood up, sliding her phone into her jacket pocket. “I”m gonna get this run done with, I’ll see you later tonight.”

“He better or I’m gonna be in a pretty big pickle. And okay, see you tonight.”

Ash headed for the door, as soon as she opened it Alex was standing on the other side with his fist in the air like he was just about to knock. She stepped aside, letting him go in, then left the room.

“Hey, I’m almost ready.”

“Take your time, we don’t leave for another thirty minutes.” He sat down next to her, playing with her hair as she tied her shoes. “So why is my kotyonok going to be in a pickle?”

She nearly choked on air as soon as she heard him say that. Recomposing herself she turned to him, quirking a brow. “Are you eavesdropping on your girlfriend Tachanka? No, I’m kidding it was about Jordan. When he came to apologize yesterday he joked that we wouldn’t make it to our destination for our date. I then joked that I heard a little jealousy in his voice and said he could join us someday.”

“Ah, and does the kotyonok want Jordan to join us?”

“No, I don’t. If there was a person I wanted to join us, it would be Glaz.” Her eyes widened and she became flustered after she admitted that. “I just meant…..I’m gonna stop talking.”

Alex stared at her in shock and disbelief, and the more he did, the redder her face got from embarrassment. He never would have guest she liked Glaz, she never made it seem like she did, then again she wasn’t the type to outright say who she likes. Romantically or not.

“Glaz, hmm? I’m sure he wouldn’t mind joining us for a little fun.” He smirked and gently nudged her arm, making her laugh. “I didn’t even know you liked him.”

“He’s sweet and pretty hot, but I clearly like you more. And please don’t tell him.” She sighed and scrubbed a hand down her face.

He chuckled, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and kissed her head. “I never said you did. And your secret is safe with me, just tell me when you want Glaz to join us, I don’t mind.”

“You don’t?”

“Why would I? I’ve seen the way he looks at you, kotyonok. It’s up to you in the end.”

Skylar shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know. Uh what do you mean by that?”

“I’ll tell you in the car.” He let his arm drop, then stood up.

She glanced over to the clock, then groaned. It was ten minutes to six and they needed to meet Hibana and Pulse before getting on the road. She stood up, grabbing her purse and slinging it over her shoulder. Walking to the door, she stopped with her hand on the door knob and turned to Alex who was right behind her. She smiled up at him, tugging his shirt until he was mere inches from her face and kissed him.

“Before we get on the road. It’s going to be a long day with little to no contact.”

Alex scoffed and grimaced. “Don’t remind me, I’m already hating it.”

“Awe, you’ll survive.”

She heard him scoff, then chuckle as she opened the door and headed out. Stopping a few feet away from the door, so he could come out, close the door so she could lock it.

“I know I’ll survive, I just don’t like it.”

Skylar threw her keys back into her purse and rolled her eyes. As they walked down the hallway side by side Alex kept brushing his hand against her, like he was going to hold it, only to pull it away a second later. After a few more attempts on his part, she sighed through her nose then intertwined their hands together.

She looked up at him to see a proud smile across his face, like it was his plan all along. She turned away and smirked. “Grown ass man doesn’t know how to hold his girlfriend's hand.”

He narrowed his eyes down at her, sighing through his nose. She met his gaze, quirking a brow as to taunt him. He looked away, lips pursed like he was thinking of a good comeback, but none came, he just kept quiet. It made Skylar smile.

They made it to the front of building, Pulse and Hibana were already waiting for them. She let go of his hand the closer they got so she could hug Hibana. Hibana always smelled of white flowers, berries and crystalline musk, whatever perfume she had Skylar was a fan of.

“You always smell so good Hibana.” Skylar chuckled and pulled away. “You guys ready for a long day?”

“Beats being out on a mission Sky.”

Skylar nodded in agreement, Pulse was right, it did beat having to be out on a mission. No terrorists to kill or a hostage to save, just a long drive down to London to pick up supplies before everyone headed off home for the holiday’s. Well mostly everyone.

“Thank you! It’s Keiko Mecheri Hanae, a japanese perfume.”

“I’m definitely going to have to buy some.”

“Until you do, I’ll let you borrow mine if you want?”

“I don’t normally wear perfume but I do have a date tomorrow night.” She glanced over to Alex who was scrolling on his phone, no doubt wanting to get on the road sooner rather than later. “And it’ll be nice to switch things up. I also think we should get going before someone has an aneurysm.”

“Yeah. We’ll meet you guys at the warehouse.”

“Okay.”

She watched Pulse and Hibana leave the building before turning to Alex and grabbing his phone from his hand, forcing him to look at her. “Look I get you’re angry that Six chose you for some measly errand, but can you please act a little happy?”

His face soften under her glare, and he sighed. “Yes I am a little angry that Six chose me to run some measly errand. Me, one of the older members to Rainbow and I get stuck on errand duty. The only reason I didn’t make a fuss is because my kotyonok is coming along too.” He took a few steps, placing both hands on her hips. “I promise I won’t be angry about it anymore.”

“Thank you!” She handed him his phone back, giving him a small smile. “I’m just happy it wasn’t Thatcher who chose you to go or I probably would’ve been stopping a fight.”

Alex grabbed her hand, gently squeezing it. “No, you wouldn’t have. I would’ve told him how I felt, but I wouldn’t have punched him.”

“That would’ve been something I would pay to see.” She intertwined their hands together and walked outside, pulling him along. “I think we should take your car, it has more room in it than mine.”

“We can take yours, it’s not a problem.”

He started to head over to where her car was parked, Skylar planted her feet on the cold cement, hoping it’ll stop him from moving. “No, no it’s fine. We can take yours.”

Alex stopped, turning to her with an amused brow. “Why doesn’t the kotyonok want me to see her car?”

She groaned in defeat, letting go of his hand to shrug her shoulders. “I haven’t clean it in a while and I don’t want to go to the warehouse with a bunch of trash in the backseat. And I don’t want you to see how much of a slob I can be.”

She averted her eyes to the ground, cheeks tinting red by how embarrassed she felt. She looked up when she heard him laugh, blushing even more when she saw the gleeful smile on his face.

“Do you think I care about that stuff? I don’t, you should’ve seen me at your age.” He grimaced as he thought back on his younger adult years, making her giggle. “But we can take my car if it makes you feel better.”

“It does.” She smiled up at him, grabbing his hand and pulling him to his car.

She let go of his hand as they neared his car, patiently waiting by the passenger side door for him to unlock it. As soon as she heard the clicking of the lock she opened the door to get in and away from the cold weather outside. Closing the door beside her she placed her purse by her feet, not really caring if it got dusty or dirty.

“I don’t know why I pictured you driving a truck and not a SUV type of car.” She chuckled as she click her seat-belt on, then grabbed her phone from her purse. Glancing at the time, they were already 30 minutes behind schedule. Good thing Pulse and Hibana were already on the road.

“I used to drive a truck, had to upgrade once I got here. It’s not easy getting four big Russian’s into a three seater truck.”

Skylar pictured Alex, Glaz, Kapkan and Fuze trying to squeeze into a three seater truck, struggling to all fit in. She couldn’t help but laugh at the thought of one of them having to sit on another one's lap, just so there would be enough room.

“Did no one else have a car?”

Alex put on his seat belt and put the keys in the ignition, turning it on. “Fuze did, it was piece of shit though. Always stalling.”

“Reminds me of the car I owned in high school.” She unlocked her phone, deciding she would reply back to the message she got from her mom. Once she read it, she sighed and decided against it. “You know how I told you I said my parents were okay with me staying here for the holidays?” He nodded. “Well I lied, I haven’t told them yet and my mom keeps wondering when I’m coming back stateside. I don’t know how to tell them.”

“Just tell them the truth, what’s the harm in that?” He pulled out of the parking lot and into the street, glancing between her and the road in front of them.

“I know my parents won’t get mad as to the why I’m staying, I just don’t want to upset my mom. She gets so happy to see me, that this will crush her.” She grabbed her phone again, taking a deep breath before calling her mom. “I’ll just call her and get it over with.”

It didn’t take long for her mom to answer the phone. “Skylar, it’s about time you called me.”

“Sorry mom it’s been a hectic week. How’s dad?” She snorted when she heard her mom scoff, then the sound of glass clinking together. Knowing her mom she was either putting away dishes or getting some plates out for lunch.

“Your father has been trying and failing on getting that vodka he wants to sell at the brewery. I’ve woken up in the middle of the night to find him downstairs in the kitchen trying to ferment potatoes. He’s fine on the other hand and misses you.”

Skylar glanced over at Alex, a small smile tugging on her face. “I miss him too. And I actually found someone to help him with the vodka, he said he wouldn’t mind doing it.”

“Really? Is he someone you work with?” She heard the sound of the dishwasher door being slammed shut through the phone. “Is that a car I hear? Skylar Elle you better not be talking on the phone while driving.”

“Mom do you really think I would drive and talk on the phone? I’m not driving Alex is.” She rolled her eyes, feeling a little embarrassed by getting yelled at by her mom in front of Alex.

“Okay, just making sure. Alex? He a friend of yours?”

“Yeah he’s a friend of mine, a really close friend.” She mumbled the last part of the sentence, hoping her mom was to preoccupied with whatever she was doing now to notice. Then glanced over to him to see him smirking.

“A really close friend, huh? Is he your boyfriend? And is he the one who is willing to help your father?”

She playfully hit Alex’s arm when she heard him softly laugh, trying to make him stop - scrubbing a hand down her face and groaning. “Yes mom, he’s my boyfriend and no mom we haven't been together that long. And yeah, he is the one willing to help dad with his vodka problem.” She let out a content sigh, happy about confessing that but she needed to get to the elephant in the room. “Mom, I’m not coming home for the holiday’s and no it has nothing to do with Alex.”

“Oh, why not? Everyone was excited to see you.”

Skylar closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. She opened them once she felt a hand on hers, giving it a gentle squeeze - looking over to see Alex giving her smile of encouragement.

“I just don’t want to deal with all the questions from our relatives, they don’t understand that the majority of what I do is classified and they have no right to know. How many Christmases have I gone through that doesn’t end up in some verbal argument? Not many since I joined the marines. I’ll see of I can come home for my birthday though.”

It took a few moments before her mom got back to her, making her heart beat rapidly in her chest.

“I know our extended family can be quite…….nosy and I understand why you want to stay on base. I’m not trying to change your mind, but the family holiday party isn’t at our house this year, it’s at your aunts. If you decided to come, you don’t have to go to that party and Alex is more than welcome to come too.”

“I’ll talk it over with him and give you an answer tomorrow. Today is a little too busy and we won’t be back at base until later tonight.”

“Just tell me in the morning.”

“Okay, and I should get going, long day ahead.” She chuckled, rubbing her ear from holding it too long while switching sides.

“Alright, I love you.”

“I love you too.”

She hung up the phone, letting out another content sigh. Placing her phone in her lap she turned to Alex. “That went a lot better than expected and how much did you hear?”

He intertwined their hands together, keeping on the steering wheel. “I told you it would and everything.”

“Then what do you want to do? ‘Cause I still want to go to Russia and that would be a big pit stop to go to Maine first.”

Deep down she was hoping he wasn’t ready to meet her parents so they didn’t have to go back to Maine, but she also wasn’t fully ready for him to meet her family either. There was still a lot to tell her mom before they even got on a plane. The age difference being the main thing and she wasn’t sure how they would take it.

“We have nearly three weeks off, kotyonok we have enough time to go to both places. It’s up to you though.” He gave her a quick glance before keeping his eyes on the road.

“I’ll think about.” She gave him a small smile. “Now I want to know what you meant by how you’ve seen the way Glaz looks at me.”

Alex snorted and shook his head, but kept his eyes on the road since they were finally getting on the highway. She couldn’t help but wonder if Glaz liked her too and didn’t make a move because he knew Alex liked her too and didn’t want to make thing awkward. Glaz was sweet, and she could see him doing that.

“I noticed him checking you out a few times, I didn’t think much of it until he started looking at you like a ripe piece of fruit ready to be eaten.”

“Well you beat him to that.” She winked at him then chuckled, think back on their little shower fun they had a few days ago. “I do like Glaz and wouldn’t mind him joining us someday, it’s just…..I’ve never had a threesome before and I’m not sure if I’m ready for Glaz to see me naked.”

“Honestly, I’m not in a hurry to have him join us, I very much like having you to myself. If you ever feel comfortable one day about it then I’ll happily oblige.”

“Then you do care, which is fine. It’s not like I’m gonna run out and fuck Glaz anyways, that would be considered cheating and cheating is bad.” She chuckled, changing her position in the seat she was sitting in.

With her free hand she grabbed her phone, unlocking it again to check her social media that she’s been neglecting for weeks. Most of it was just checking up on her sisters’ and seeing what they’ve been up too and the few close friends she made with her time in the FBI back in L.A before transferring over to Rainbow.

“Okay, I care a little.”

“Why?” She locked her phone again, letting it fall into her lap. When she looked over at him, she saw a certain sadness in the corner of his eyes, a sadness she wasn’t even sure exists in the older man. “Whatever it is, I’m not going to get mad as to why it bothers you.”

“He’s younger, that’s all.” His grip on the steering wheel got tighter, making his knuckles turn white. Glancing over he saw the concern etched onto her face, his face soften and grip loosening around the steering wheel. “I’m sorry.”

Skylar covered his hand with her free one, giving him a small smile. “It’s okay. Just...what’s wrong? You never seem to have any issue with Glaz before….Oh.” As she spoke it finally came to realization on why he was that upset. “Yes Glaz is quite attractive but I don’t want him, I want you and that’s not going to change Alex.”

His eyes widened in surprise, glancing between her and the road numerous times before she had to snap him out of it. “You do?”

She could help the small laugh that escaped her lips, making him turn to her with a curious brow. “Of course I do, you’re the first person I’ve like in over two years. You’ve already been there for me more times than I can count and we just started dating. And you’re helping me let go of all the shit I’ve been holding in - you’re making me a better person. I don’t care about your age, never have, all I care about is how you are as a person.”

He put the turning signal on indicating he was switching lanes, he did so until he pull along side of the road, then turned on his hazard lights and set the car in park. She watched him with curiosity as he turned to her with that gleeful look in his eyes. He leaned forward, crushing their lips together - pulling away a moment later.

“Ты мой рай, ты моё небо, ты моё солнце. You’ve made me a better person too, kotyonok. I know I shouldn’t think that way about Glaz, and it was wrong of me to get so upset about it too when I didn’t know how you really felt about him….me. I’m sorry.”

Skylar leaned over, giving him a quick kiss. “You have every right to feel how you feel, sometimes our emotions drive us more than we would like them too. It’s also better to get it off your chest now then to deal with this in the future.”

“Good point, kotyonok, good point.” She shut the hazard lights off, set the car in drive then got back on the highway. “Are you hungry by any chance? We left base pretty early and I don’t know if you’ve eaten anything or not.”

“I haven’t eaten anything yet, wasn’t enough time. I’m a little hungry, but I can wait until we get to London or we can stop at some store to pick up snacks. Either works for me.”

“We can stop somewhere if you like, it wouldn’t be a problem, kotyonok.”

Skylar rolled her eyes and scoffed, making Alex glance at her with a raised brow. She knew what he was doing and as much as she would enjoy going to some restaurant for breakfast with him, it wasn’t fair to Pulse and Hibana if they got to the place late.

“There’s nothing more I would like than to go out to breakfast with you, and if it was just us I’d say go for it. But we have Pulse and Hibana with us and it wouldn’t be nice to show up late to the warehouse.” She heard him mumble something in Russian, then narrow his brows. “I was thinking about calling Thatcher later and lying about having a flat tire, telling him that we might have to grab a hotel for the night but you seem fine with just running the errand. So I won’t both him.”

He whipped his head to her so fast she thought he would’ve had whiplash. He looked at her with a sparkle in his eyes and a gleeful smile. “Skylar, I didn’t think you would lie to your mentor like that. That’s very sexy and you should do it, kotyonok.”

The next second that past by her phone started to ring, she looked at the caller ID to see who it was, her heart sinking a bit when she read it was Thatcher.

“Hello.”

“Change of plans Phoenix, the shipment was supposed to be there at 11. Due to the weather and unforeseen fooking events, it won’t be there until 5 tonight.”

“Are you serious?” She pinched the bridge of her nose and sighed. “It’s fine, I’m sure we can figure out something to do to pass the time.”

“Okay, and since it’s coming in so late I don’t expect to see you guys tonight, get a hotel and come back in the morning.”

“You sure Thatcher?”

“Yes. It’ll take a few hours to get the stuff loaded on with all the paperwork and with the holidays coming up, the roads are going to be busy. I don’t need any operators or supplies damaged. Just come in the morning.”

“Okay then, we’ll see you in the morning.”

They both hung up, she would've called Hibana but figured Thatcher had already did that or was about too. Setting her phone back in her lap she turned to Alex who was glancing at her with a curious brow.

“Change of plans. The shipment isn’t coming in until 5 tonight and Thatcher said to just grab a hotel and come back in the morning. Luck is on our side tonight.”

“Are you serious?”

“Yup, and I can already bet that you have at least a few condoms in your pocket don’t you?”

Alex smirked and went into his pants pocket, pulling out three of them. “Yes I do. I come prepared, kotyonok.”

“Three? You really came prepared.” She joked. “I’m surprised you didn’t bring the whole box with you.”

“I thought about it but I think three’s enough, don’t want to tire out my kotyonok.”

Skylar scoffed, setting her phone in the cup holder that was closest to her. It wasn’t hard to get tired out when you’re in bed with Lord Tachanka, his libido was quite high for a guys his age and it didn’t help that she was so much smaller than him. But she could still hold her own against him, and last a good four rounds.

“Someone’s getting cocky. I can also hold my own against you, thank you very much…..I just have a hard time walking afterwards.”

“That you can! Do you want me to ease up, ‘cause I can?”

“No, no it’s fine.” She tapped her fingers methodically on her knees, wondering if she should outright ask him what she wanted too. “So...do you have any family? I understand if you don’t want to talk about it, I just want to get to know you better.”

“Not really, both parents are dead and I’m an only child. I do have some extended family still alive, but I hardly see them.” He gave her a quick glance, a small smile on his face. “They live in another city and work usually gets in the way. Didn’t you say you have siblings? Sisters’?”

“Damn, I’m sorry!” She intertwined their hands together again, giving him a small smile in return. “Yes I do. Valary and Chloe, Val’s married to a guy named Evan who I’ve known since I was a toddler.” Alex raised an amused brow, making her chuckle. “She’s 12 years older than I am, when they started dating she was 14 making me 2. And Chloe is 10 years older than me, she’s also engaged to her long time boyfriend.”

“That’s quite an age gap between siblings.”

“Yeah it is. I wasn’t supposed to be born so late, there are just somethings that are out of our control. My parents always called me the miracle baby.” She saw the confusion etched onto his face, making her shake her head. “My parents were married straight out of high school and by their late 20’s they had my sister’s. A few years after Chloe was born they decided they wanted another child, but nothing happened. They went to the doctor to see if anything was wrong, there wasn’t, she just wasn’t getting pregnant. My mom told me they tried for years to have me and then they just gave up, figured it wasn’t meant to be. Until finally it happened. The strange thing is that it took a decade for me to be born, and during that time nothing happened.”

“Wow, you really are a miracle baby.” His eyes widened briefly as he contemplated her words. “That is strange.”

“Tell me about it. It’s one of those things you’ll never know for sure.”

The rest of the drive to London was filled with small talk and listening to music. Alex did the wrong thing by giving the AUX cord to Skylar, so their music ended up being a mix of pretty much every genre of music, minus classical and jazz. They met Pulse and Hibana at some cafe for a mid morning breakfast, which was good because by the time they got their Skylar’s stomach was growling up a storm.

Alex parked the car next to theirs, Skylar grabbed her phone and purse, then got out and stretched. Her limbs thanking her as she did. “Did you two have a nice drive?”

“Can’t complain. Did you have a nice drive?” Pulse glanced between her and Alex, shooting her a suggestive look. “I’m surprised you guys even got here on time.”

Skylar shot Pulse a look and shook her head. “Funny. I’m sure Thatcher called one of you and told you the change in plans?”

“Yeah he called Hibana. So what are you guys going to do to pass the time? We decided to hit the mall and look around.” He glanced over to Hibana who was looking through her purse on the hood of Pulse’s car.

“The kotyonok and I haven’t decided yet.” He crossed his arms, then leaned against his car. “It’s up to her.”

“The mall sounds good to me.” She shifted her weight from her heels to the pads of her feet, smiling over at Alex like a little kid. “I do like shopping. Also can we continue our conversation indoors? I’m getting cold.”

“Yeah, let’s head in.”

They all headed into the Kennington Lane Cafe, it was cute and quaint and thankfully not packed. Deciding to sit at a booth, Skylar and Hibana took the seats next to the window while Alex and Pulse too the ones on the isle. Skylar set her purse aside and took off her jacket - Hibana doing the same.

A few seconds later the waiter came over with some menus and go their drink order. Pulse and Alex got coffee’s while Skylar and Hibana got tea. It stayed quiet between them while they browsed the menu, deciding what they wanted to eat. It didn’t take long for her to figure out what she wanted to eat, so she set the menu aside.

“Sky, you getting the vegetarian?”

“How’d you know?” She joked. “Yes I am. Are you? Or are you getting something a little more meaty?”

“A little more meaty for today.” Pulse set his menu down and took off his jacket. That’s when she saw he was wearing an FBI shirt, and chuckled.

“You’re a vegetarian kotyonok?” Alex also set his menu down, taking off his jacket and turned his attention to her.

“No, pescaterian actually. It’s like a vegetarian but I also eat fish and on rare occasion chicken and turkey.”

“Oh, good to know.”

She pulled his jacket from behind him and put it with hers. Next thing the waiter came back over with their drinks and took their orders. Skylar and Hibana got the vegetarian dish and Pulse and Alex built their own, both ended up with mostly meat on their plates.

“I’m glad you decided to join us, now Pulse won’t be alone and bored while we shop.”

“We’re probably going to bore them. It’s a good thing you’re going anyways, I need to look for a shirt for our date tomorrow night.”

“You didn’t bring any formal wear with you, kotyonok?”

“Nope, I have some nice things that could work for tomorrow, but I don’t like any of them.” Alex shook his head and laughed. Skylar looked over to see Pulse with a curious look on his face, like he wanted to ask something but wasn’t so sure if he should. “What is it Jack?”

“Oh, it’s nothing.” He brushed it off like it was nothing, but she could see right through him.

“Jack it’s fine, just ask.”

He set his coffee cup down, putting his hands up in defense. “Okay, okay. What does kotyonok mean?”

“Really? That’s all you wanted to know? Anyways, it means kitten.”

“That’s so cute! And sweet!” chirped Hibana with a big smile on her face.

“That is actually cute. So you’re like his little kitten?”

“Yeah.” said Skylar with a big smile on her face. “I am.”

“Well I want to know how you guys came to be? Because truthfully I didn’t even know you two liked each other.”

Hibana was all giddy, like a little child. It made Skylar laugh at how happy she was to hear about it. She just wished her and Alex’s beginning of their relationship was a bit more romantic.

“Well we sorta hooked up at the holiday party, then I avoided him for like two days afterwards.” She chuckled, glancing over at him. “It wasn’t until he started looking for me, wondering why. After the little shopping trip with Ash and Thermite, I met him in his room and we just confessed everything, that we wanted to be more than just friends with benefits. That’s pretty much it, not all that romantic but still good.”

“Oh, so that’s how it happened. I just knew you slept with him.”

“Yeah, thanks to Jordan.”

Hibana glanced between Skylar and Pulse, raising a brow. “What about Jordan?”

“When Alex went looking for me he ended up getting to Thermite first, at the exact same time when Ash and I were leaving base. We invited him along since we were going to the same place, that was the first mistake. “She chuckled. “After I talked to Alex for a few minutes, when I got to the car it didn’t take long for Thermite to open his mouth. At first I told him it was none of his business, but he was so afraid that I did something to put bad blood between the FBI and Spetsnaz because it’s not like Tachanka to go looking for someone. I told him we slept together to get him off my back, then he told the rest of them.”

“Jordan really freaked out about that?”

“Yup, it was quite funny. Then he kinda freaked about the whole relationship in general - he’s like that annoying big brother I never wanted.”

Everyone laughed. What she said was true, Jordan was that annoying almost over protective big brother. Yes she understood where he was coming from, but at the end of the day she is a mature adult and can make her own decisions on who she dates.

“Why was he freaking out about your guys relationship? He looks to be the type to not care who dates who.” Hibana took a sip of her tea, gently setting the cup down on the coaster.

“At first it was the age gap between us, then he confessed that he didn’t want to see my ‘innocence’ taken away. I’ll tell you that story someday.”

Luckily their food arrived, cutting their conversation short. They turned the conversations over to small talk while they ate. It was mostly about what their plans were for the mall...or shopping center. They still had a good 6 hours to kill before they had to get to the warehouse, and Hibana and Skylar weren’t trying to bore the living daylights out of Alex and Pulse by spending that time shopping.

Alex brushed it aside and said he was fine following Skylar around while she shopped and Pulse didn’t have much of an opinion.

They finished eating, paid and then headed back out to their cars. They made a plan to meet in the middle of the shopping center after an hour or so, since there were a few stores Hibana and Skylar wanted to go to separately. Then meet up and figure out what to do from there.

“-I think today turned out to be a very good day.” Skylar looked up from the rack she was browsing and smiled over at him.

He walked around the rack, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissed her cheek. “It did turn out better than I thought. It also helps that I get to spend the day with my kotyonok.”

She stayed in his arms, completely immersed in the swaying of their bodies. Until her eyes caught a glimpse of a blouse a few feet away. “Oooh.” She broke out of his hold, walking over to where the blouse hung.

Alex chuckled and followed her, leaning against the wall as she examined it. His eyes never leaving her, watching how she looked over the white blouse in her hands. Her eyes tracing over every stitch, searing everything into her brain. He watched her walk over to the mirror a few feet away, holding it up to see how it would look on her.

Skylar glanced over to him, seeing that he’s been watching her the whole time, but the look on his face made her heart skip a beat. He smiled over at her, and she returned it, then held up the blouse again to show him.

“What do you think? Truthfully.”

He pushed himself off the wall and walked over to her. “I’m the wrong person to ask this because I think you’ll look beautiful in anything. However white does bring out the color of your eyes. I think you should get it.”

“Okay, and white brings out my eyes? No one has told me that.” She placed the blouse over he arm so it wouldn’t drag on the floor and she would have a free hand to browse around some more.

“Do you wear white that often?”

She shook her head. “No, I’m always afraid that I’m going to stain it. I do like white though and have quite a bit of white, i just hardly wear them.”

“That makes sense. I’ve stained enough white shits in my life time to stop wearing them.” He chuckled. “White does bring out the green in your eyes and softens the brown. As does the colors blue and purple.”

“They do?”

“Just because I didn’t make a move until months later doesn’t mean I haven’t been watching you when we were in the same room together.” He laughed and shook his head, wrapping his arms around her - gazing into her hazel eyes. “I just didn’t make it obvious, kotyonok.”

She leaned up, giving him a peck on the lips. “It’s funny that you mentioned it, because I always felt like someone was watching me, but could never figure out who. I’m glad it ended up being you.”

This time he leaned down, placing a firm kiss onto her lips, momentarily forgetting they were standing in the middle of a store and not in his room back on base. It wasn’t until he tried to deepen it when Skylar snapped back to reality. She placed her hand on his chest, gently pushing him away.

“Not here.” She felt her cheeks become warm, no doubt red as well. “I’m done here, so you wanna go?”

“Yeah, lead the way.” Skylar turned and headed towards the cashier. “You’re cute when you get all flustered like that.” She just shook her head and continued walking. By the time she put her shirt up on the till Alex was already taking his wallet out of his pocket. “I’ll pay.”

“Alex it’s fine, you don’t have too.” Her hand was already in her purse, fetching her wallet.

“I want too.”

Skylar nodded and took her hand out of her purse. As sweet as it was, she didn’t want him to buy everything for her, there was no need when she had more than enough money to buy it herself.

“At least let me carry the bag.” She grabbed it off the counter while he swiped his credit card to pay.

The cashier grabbed the receipts and a pen. “Sign here and here’s your receipt.”

He grabbed the pen, quickly signing his name and took the receipt. “Thanks.”

“Have a nice day!”

“You too!”

They walked out of the store and into the grounded shopping center. Skylar automatically intertwining their hands together, so she wouldn’t get lost from him. The holidays always gave her slight anxiety, especially shopping during the holidays. Everything was so chaotic, and it didn’t help that they still had an hour until they met up with Hibana and Pulse. Then another 3 hours until they get the supplies they came for in the beginning.

Alex glanced over to her, seeing the uncertainty etched on her face. “Kotyonok, you alright?”

“Yeah, can we go somewhere with less people?”

“Of course.” He led them throw the plethora of people until they came to the food court with hardly any people in it, which was shocking. He walked them over to a table, Skylar sat down with a content sigh, and he took the seat across from her. “Better?”

“Much better.” She slung her purse from her shoulders and placed it on the table. “I get anxiety with big crowds.”

“Good thing you told me, now I can make sure we avoid big crowds.”

“Well we don’t need to avoid crowds all together, just shopping ones around the holidays.” She laughed, then put the bag with her shirt in it in her purse. “I’ve been thinking about what we talked about in the car, about going back to Maine and Russia. I think we should, and it’ll get rid of the anxiety I have of introducing you to my family. Are you still okay with going?”

“Yes I’m still fine with going, it’ll be a nice vacation before work starts up again.” He grabbed her hand, thumb caressing her knuckles. “Are you really that nervous about introducing me to your family?”

“That’s the thing, I know they’re going to like you, that’s not the issue it’s….”

“The age difference, right?”

He seemed hurt by that accusation, making her feel a little bad about it, but these were her parents he was meeting, not friends or work acquaintances that don’t really have a say. She also knows her parents very well and knows that once she tells them there’s an age gap between them, they’ll be fine with it in the end. All they care about is how he treats her, nothing else.

“The one thing I like about my parents is they don’t care about looks, or age, all they care about is how you treat me. When I call my mom, I’ll tell her about the age difference and she’ll be fine with it.” She tried to conceal the big smile that was threatening to show, but failed. “Now you look cute when you get all nervous like that.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He swatted his free hand in the air, and smiled over at her.

They met up with Hibana and Pulse not long after, all deciding the should get their rooms for tonight at a nearby hotel before they went to grab the supplies knowing they’ll all be exhausted afterwards.

Skylar plopped herself down in the large chair in their hotel room and groaned, she was already tired enough and didn’t want to leave in another two hours. That’s when the invisible light bulb above her head went off, she nearly launched out of her seat and went to the bathroom, flipping the switch on.

Alex watched from couch in amusement, seeing her face light up once she saw what she was looking for in the bathroom. She flip the switch off, walked over to him and straddled him. “There’s a tub in the bathroom, an actual tub. I can finally have that bath.”

He failed to conceal that booming laugh of his, finding it both hilarious and cute that she was this happy about a bathtub. “I was hoping you would figure it out.”

She looked down at him in disbelief, and lightly shoved at his shoulder. “You didn’t? You got this room for me?”

He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him. “I did, I thought it would be a nice surprise. I know you’ve been wanting this for a while now, couldn’t pass up the opportunity to please my kotyonok.”

“I would say you didn’t need too, but I know the answer. You wanted too.” She leaned down, kissing him passionately before pulling away. “I’ll show you my thanks later. After I have a bath that is.”

“You can show me your thanks in the bathtub.” He gave her a suggestive look, making her roll her eyes. “I wouldn’t mind.”

“And get water everywhere? I’ll think about it.” She got off his lap and sat down next to him. “I can’t wait until our vacation.”

“Me too.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulder. “It’ll be nice to see where you grew up.”

“Don’t get your hopes up, it’s not that fantastic.”

It was actually quite the opposite, Bangor wasn’t a huge place but it did have a few museums, parks, a casino, the pavilion that held concerts in the summer and the famous Stephen King house. Besides those, it was a pretty boring place. But it was home to her nonetheless and she would be lying if she wasn’t excited to show him where she grew up and all the places she frequented while living there.

“I highly doubt that. Every place has its perks.”

“Has anyone told you you have a somewhat of a acerbic outlook?”

She looked up at him, he looked like he was thinking about what she said. “No, not that I can recall.”

“Ha ha. Very funny.” She scoffed. “I am excited to show you around Bangor, only downside is it’s winter and most of the ‘tourist’ destinations are closed.”

“That’s fine, kotyonok. Not like it’s going to be the only time we go.”

She just nodded. He did have a point, they would probably go back here and there throughout the year. As long as they both had time off at the same time. The one thing she was looking forward to was taking a long walk at the Bangor City Forest in the spring, seeing all the flowers in bloom and hearing the birds chirp.

“There’s a tradition in my family, every spring the fam and I would take the day off and go hiking and spend the day at the Bangor City Forest. I would like you to come next year, if you’re willing.”

“I would like that!”

“Okay. It’ll be fun, it’ll start off nice and quiet, than ends with me being in an argument with one of my sisters’.” She chuckled. “Happens every time.”

“Are you being serious?” He scanned her face, looking for any sign she was lying but found none. “Okay why?”

“No, I’m just joking we don’t fight that much. There is a lot of bickering though.”

Alex’s face faltered, making Skylar fall over laughing. All he did was stare at her dumbfounded and shook his head. “I should’ve known the little kotyonok was lying.”

He spread her legs apart, placing himself in between them. Her laughter died down as she stared up into his eyes, grabbing his shirt and tugging him down, crushing their lips together. He pulled away panting a few moments later, looking down at her with lust filled eyes.

Skylar smirked and showed him the little blue packet the was between her fingers. “Come on we ain’t got all day.”

He snatched the condom from her hand and began working on the button of her pants as she did his. “I see we have a feisty kotyonok, I might need to do something about that.”

Skylar was trying to ignore the slight ache between her legs while she stayed in the front of the warehouse with Hibana and Alex while Pulse took care of all the paperwork with the guy before they could load the supplies.

She just wanted to get this over with and go back to the hotel room for a long deserved bath. And get a little payback. She was now regretting the little comment she made to him, knowing she wouldn’t be able to do anything until they got back and it irked her to no end.

A few moments later she felt a little tug on her jacket, she turned to see a little girl that looked no older than seven. She smiled down at her. “Hello there!”

“Hi. I think you’re really pretty and I like your jacket.”

“You’re so sweet, thank you! I also really love your shirt. Are cats your favorite animal?”

She watched the little girls face light up at her question, it made her happy to see how happy she was. “You’re welcome! Yes they are, I have two at home. Do you like cats?”

“Wow two? What’re their names? I love cats, I grew up with them and miss having them around.”

“Yup, their names are Cookie and Midnight. Why can’t you have cats?”

“Cookie and Midnight are perfect names. I use to have a cat named Cookie too when I was younger. Where I live I can’t have animals, it sucks.”

The little girls face lit up again, it was such an innocent thing but seeing how happy she was at something so small just put a smile on her face.

“That does suck. If you can’t have pets why do you live there?”

“Grace, love leave that young lady alone.”

Skylar glanced over at the man with Pulse who turns out to be the girl father then to the Grace who pouted her bottom lip.

“Oh no it’s okay. She’s not a bother.”

“Are you sure?”

“Completely.”

“Okay.”

Skylar smiled back down at her. “So your name is Grace? That’s a very pretty one. Mines Skylar.”

She nodded. “Yes it is. Thank you, Skylar is pretty too. Are they your friends?”

Grace judded her chin towards behind her where everyone else was. “You’re welcome! Yes they are my friends. The one with your dad, his name is Jack, the other women with me, her name is Hibana and the man sitting in the chair on his phone, his name is Alex.”

She looked behind Skylar and towards Alex, then back to her. “I think Alex likes you. He keeps looking at you with googly eyes.”

“I think Alex likes me too.” She glanced over her shoulder to see him smirking and trying to conceal a laugh.

“How do you know?”

“Well he’s my boyfriend.”

Grace gasped. “Does your dad know you have a boyfriend? My dad said I can’t date until I’m way older.”

Skylar couldn’t help but laugh. “Yes he does know I have a boyfriend. And that’s good, you shouldn’t date until you’re way older.”

“That’s good.”

“Hey guys we can get the supplies now.” She glanced over her shoulder to see Pulse standing in the middle of the room trying to get everyone's attention.

“Awe you have to leave?”

“Not yet, we have to load up the supplies into our cars.”

“Can I help?”

“Ask your dad okay.”

Grace nodded and ran over to her dad. Skylar slowly walked over to where they were while Alex waited at the entryway. She mouthed ‘one moment’ before leaning against the counter.

“I see Grace has taken a liking to you.” He smiled down at her, making her a little embarrassed. “Are you sure you’re okay with her helping you? I’ve seen the supplies that came in for you guys.”

“She’s sweet and very nice.” She gave her a big smile, that she returned. “I’m sure there’s a few things she can help carry out.”

He nodded and turned to Grace. “Okay, now you listen to her and don’t touch anything unless she tells you too.”

“Okay!” She ran around the counter until she was next to her, with a big smile on her face.

They both walked over to where Alex stood, she was expecting for Grace to become a little shy around him, but she didn’t, she kept her very happy-go-lucky personality. “Alex, this is Grace. She’s going to be helping us. Grace, Alex.”

“Hi Alex.”

“Hi Grace. An extra helper is always a great thing.”

They followed him into the warehouse, seeing Pulse and Hibana already getting some of the larger stuff onto a trolley. Skylar began looking over the boxes, most of them were a decent size and too big for her to carry. She sighed and put her hands on her hips.

“We’re going to start with the bigger boxes, then work down okay?”

“Okay.”

Alex pulled the trolley closer, then picked up one of the bigger boxes and set it on the trolley. She watched as Grace’s mouth fell open and eyes go wide. “Wow, he’s really strong!”

“He is strong.” She looked over to see him picking up another box. “Do you need any help?”

He set the other box on top of the first one. “No, I’ve got the bigger ones. You can look through the others to see what’s light enough for our little helper.”

“Okay.”

While he gather the few other huge boxes, setting them on the trolley she looked over at the smaller ones, crouching down to examine them. Grace was right beside her sitting on the floor as she patiently waited.

Skylar opened up a box, making sure nothing harmful was in it. “Do you help your dad often?”

“Yeah. He’ll pick me up from school and he’ll buy me ice cream before coming here. But I have to finish my school work before I can help him.” She groaned and crossed her arms.

“I know school work can suck, but it’s important you do it to get good grades.” She slide the box over to her. “Is that too heavy for you?”

Grace stood up and picked up the box with ease. “Nope.”

“Okay.” Skylar grabbed a slightly bigger box that had some ammo cartridges in it. “Follow me.”

She walked out of the backroom of the warehouse, followed by Grace until they came to Alex’s car. He was already loading the big boxes into the trunk, and she was now thankful they did take his car instead of hers. There was no way she would be able to fit all the supplies in her tiny little Honda Accord.

“Should we just put these in the back seat?”

Alex turned to them after sliding the last box into the far end of the trunk, wiping the sweat off his brow. “Yeah, the smaller ones can go in the back seat until I get the last two big boxes.”

Skylar walked over to the passenger side door, balancing the box on one arm as she opened the door. She placed the box behind the driver's seat and pushed it to the middle. “You can set the box on the seat or the floor, whichever you prefer.”

Grace set the box down on the seat, then crawled into the car, pushing the box to the middle of the seat and placing it on top of the one Skylar put in. She crawled her way out and jumped down. She shut the door and they headed back inside.

Skylar began looking through the boxes again, most of the stuff was pretty heavy and it left very little for Grace to help. Alex was getting the two other big boxes loaded on to the trolley. She stopped browsing the boxes, getting a little too distracted by watching him pick up the last couple of big boxes they had left. Noticing how his muscles flexed as he picked them up, that’s when she realized he wasn’t wearing his jacket.

“Skylar, you’re staring all googly eyed at your boyfriend.”

She snapped back to reality when she heard her whisper that into her ear, making her a little flustered. “Sorry.”

She went back to looking over the boxes, hearing Grace giggle beside her. Luckily she found another handful that she could help carry out to the car. She grabbed one, handing it to her, then grabbed a box herself.

As they headed towards the car, Alex was already coming in with the empty trolley. He smiled over at Skylar, and chuckled. “Yeah Skylar don’t stare all googly eyes at me while we have work to do.”

“You were staring all googly eyed first.”

She heard his booming laugh as he continued walking into the warehouse. With this box being a little bigger than the first, she placed it on the ground before opening the door, sliding it in next to the other box. Grace did the same thing as before and placed the smaller box she was carrying on top of hers.

After Grace was done placing her box in the car she turned to Skylar, biting her bottom lip and fidgeting with the hem of her jacket. “You can ask me.”

“Are you sure?”

“Positive.”

She relaxed a little, then pointed at the scar on her neck. “What happened?”

Skylar took an intake of breath and leaned against the car, crouching a little to be more at Grace’s height. “I got really hurt when I was a marine, I got hit with metal plating when something exploded. I don’t remember much of what happened, just a big bang and next thing I know I was waking up in the hospital.”

Grace stared up at her with her mouth agape, and shock etched on her face. “Was Alex there to protect you?”

“No, I didn’t know him at that time.”

“Oh.” She slumped her shoulders and pouted her lip. “I’m sure he would’ve protected you if he was there. And did it hurt when you got hurt?”

“Let’s head inside.” Skylar pushed herself off the car and they both began heading in. “I’m sure he would’ve protected me too. I didn’t feel anything in the beginning but I had to have a lot of stitches and they itch after a while.”

“Yeah, stitches do itch. I had to get 5 of them on my leg last summer, I was riding my bike and fell.”

“I’m sorry to hear about that. It’s no fun getting hurt during the summer.”

“Thanks, and no it’s not.”

“You’re welcome!”

When they got back into the warehouse, Skylar noticed that Alex had loaded up almost all of the remaining boxes, leaving a few for them. “I’ll just let you take care of it next time.”

“Just making sure the kotyonok can get back to the hotel soon so she can have that bath she’s been dying for.”

“What does that mean?”

Alex pushed the trolley with the remainder of the boxes, minus a few by Skylar and Grace. Skylar shot him a look and shook her head before turning to Grace. “Kotyonok means kitten in Russian.”

“Oh so that’s where he’s from.”

Skylar couldn’t help the laugh that escaped her lips. Grace was such a wonderful and funny little girl, having her around had definitely made getting the supplies much worth it.

They walked over, grabbing the last few boxes and followed after Alex. He was already loading the boxes on the other side of the car, leaving their side opened. Skylar walked over to the car, placing both of the boxes on the floor, closest to the door while Grace set the last two on the seat.

“I thank you for being such a big help Grace!” She closed the door and smiled down at her.

“You’re welcome! I’m glad I could help, are you going to come back someday?”

“I hope I do. Do you want me too?”

Grace nodded her head frantically, a big smile on her face. “YES!”

“Well Alex and I are going on vacation in a few days, before we go back to work we’ll stop by okay?”

“Yay!” She jumped up and down in excitement - it was heartwarming. “Where are you guys going?”

Skylar grabbed her hand and began walking them both back inside, out of the cold winter weather. “First we’re going back to my hometown, Bangor Maine to visit my family, then we’re going to his hometown in Russia.”

“I hope you guys have fun.”

“Thank you! I think we’ll have a lot of fun.”

They came to the lobby where Hibana and Pulse were talking with Grace’s father. She let go of Skylar’s hand and ran over to him.

“Daddy, daddy Skylar said she’s going to come visit again.”

Skylar leaned against the counter next to Hibana, smiling down at Grace who was tugging on her father’s shirt. Pulse and Hibana looked over at her, a smile gracing both of their faces.

“I see you made a friend Sky.”

“Yes I did.”

Her father look down at his rambunctious little girl, then over to Skylar. “Did she? We’ll that’s very nice of her.”

“I couldn’t say no to her and it’s not a problem, I’m going on vacation in a few days and told her I’ll stop by before I get to base.” She felt a hand on her hip, knowing exactly who it was behind her.

“We should get going, a long road ahead.” Jack put his wallet back in his pocket and they all pushed away from the counter.

Grace ran around the counter again and hugged Skylar around the legs. It made everyone stop and watch them. “Bye Skylar, I’m glad I met you!”

“I’m glad I met you too Grace!”

The warm water of the bath felt amazing against her muscles, not really noticing how tense her muscles were until she got into the water. A shower could only do so much to relax them, but a long hot bath was the key.

Alex walked into the bathroom in just his boxers a few seconds later. She moved down a bit to give him more room to get in. He pulled his boxers down, discarding them on the bathroom floor, then got in. He let out a relaxing sigh as the warmth penetrated his muscles, relaxing them.

Skylar moved over to straddle him again, the water swaying with her as she moved. He sat up a little straighter, wrapping his arms around her body - kissing a part of the scar on her neck.

“You’re good with children, kotyonok! Grace really likes you.”

“She was such a sweetheart!” She chuckled, tracing one of his scars on his chest. “I always found that funny considering I’ve never really been around children. They just seem to gravitate to me.”

His grip around her tightened, pulling her closer to him as she could go. “It comes naturally to you. I could easily tell when I saw you with Grace, how at ease she was around you, for someone she had just met. You’d make a great mother someday.”

“If I even have kids…..but thank you!”

“Never say never, kotyonok. You might meet a very handsome Spetsnaz soldier and change your mind.”

Skylar moaned as he began to kiss and nip at her neck, his hands ravaging her body while hers wrapped around his neck. “So Glaz then?”

He immediately stopped his attack on her neck and looked down at her with his mouth agape. “Someone older than Glaz.” He saw her opening her mouth to speak…”And older than Fuze and Kapkan.”

“Hmph.” She dropped her shoulders and pouted her bottom lip. “You got me.” She chuckled and kissed him. “I’m kidding. You know that.”

“I know, doesn’t mean you didn’t surprise me with your answer.”

“I saw the opportunity and I took it.” A hand slid down his chest and into the water, gripping the shaft to his semi-erect cock. “Like I’m gonna take the opportunity to get payback from earlier.”

Later that night Skylar fell asleep in his arms, like all those other times they’ve shared a bed. He couldn’t sleep himself, no matter how much he wanted too, so he just spent that time watching a sleeping Skylar still in his arms.

She looked peaceful in her slumber, and occasionally he would see her smile, hoping she was dreaming something good.

He started this day off in a sour mood, not too keen on running an errand. But he’s happy the day turned out amazingly better than he could have expected and it all had to do with one FBI operative asleep in his arms. Now he can’t wait for their little two week vacation together, two full weeks together, no other operators, no work, just them. Nothing could make things better.

Chapter Text

“-It looks like the only available flight is Monday morning at 10.” Skylar sat down on the bed, moving over to snuggled against Alex.

They still had a few more hours to kill before they could check out and head home, so to pass the time they were spending it in bed. Skylar was a little upset that they had to leave, but if it wasn’t for the fact they were both going on vacation soon she would’ve made some excuse to bid more time.

“That’s fine, kotyonok. Didn’t you say it was an eight hour flight?” He set his phone on the bed, and kissed her head.

“Yeah, if there are no delays we should be in Maine by six. I’m just happy I have my own apartment because I don’t know how I would feel about having sex in my parents home.”

She chuckled, the last time that happened she was 17, just before she joined the Marines and her parents weren’t even home. But Alex was a very vocal man, not just in nature but in bed as well and it wouldn’t take a lot to figure out what they’re doing.

“I’m sure your parents wouldn’t mind. So what are the plans?” He looked down at her, seeing the wheels in her brain turn.

“I know they wouldn’t, it’s just weird. I think once we get there, we’ll stop at my place first and drop off our things, then head over to my parents. Or they’ll come over since we traveled. Other than that I don’t know.”

She was leaning more towards the latter, her parents would only say it’s fair that they go to her and not the other way around. Since she was the one that traveled to come visit.

“Sounds perfect! I am looking forward to seeing my kotyonok apartment, making some new memories there.” His hand slid down her side to grab her ass, she gasped and slapped his shoulder playfully.

“For a man who’s 50 you have a libido of a damn teenage boy.” She chuckled, moving his hand off her ass. “Also no, we can’t be late and we have a date tonight remember?”

Alex let out a booming laugh that echoed off the walls of their hotel room, then leaned down and kissed her. “Is it so bad that I want you so much Skylar? I would never forget an important thing like that. Yes I remember.”

“No, it’s actually quite great you want me so much” She smiled up at him, then leaned forward and kissed him. “It makes me feel all fuzzy inside.”

Truth be told she felt it was a miracle that someone liked her this much and wanted to spend so much time with her. Someone who was willing to help her through her struggles and let go of the past. Alex wasn’t a perfect man, but he was perfect to her.

“Good, because it’s not going to change, kotyonok.”

“I hope not.” She laid her head on his chest, sighing in content. “I should probably call my mom to tell her we’re coming. And we should probably buy the tickets too.”

Skylar grabbed her phone and sat up, running her fingers through her hair as she hit the speed dial button for her mom. Alex sat up, placing his phone on the night stand beside him. While she waited for her mom to answer the phone he grabbed her waist, lifting her up and setting her on his lap.

She smiled as his arms wrapped around her waist, swaying them back and forth as he laid his head on her shoulder.

“Hi sweetie.”

“Hi mom, just wanted to inform you we should be there Monday evening. That’s the earliest flight we can get.” She shook her head when he started kissing at her neck, slapping his arm to make him stop.

“That’s fine, just call us when you arrive at your place and your father and I will come over for a few hours. So I assume Alex is coming too by the ‘we’ part?”

“Yes, it’ll be a nice change of scenery. We’ll be staying for the week then heading over to Russia the next and we have to stop back in London for a quick visit. And what about my sisters’, they won’t be with you?”

“Val and Chloe have last minute work before Christmas to take care of, they’ll see you the following morning. Russia? Why there?”

Skylar muffled a laugh and shook her head. “Alex is Russian mom, he’s going to show me around his hometown of Saint Petersburg. And speaking of Alex I should also mention he’s older than me, by a lot. Oh I should’ve known they would be working.”

Alex stopped swaying them, he kept his head on her shoulder, listening to hear what her mom was going to say. He believes Skylar that her parents aren't going to care about the age difference, but deep down he still worries. The last thing he wants is too lose her.

“That’s sweet of him, and take pictures. Skylar you know your father and I don’t care how old he is, as long as he’s treating you good that’s all we care about. By the sound of your voice, I’d say he is.”

“I will, don’t worry.” She smiled, feeling his lips brush against her neck. “He treats me better than good mom, he treats me like a queen. I’ve never met someone so caring, and in a way he reminds me of dad and how he is with you. I know you guys don’t care, but there’s always that little fear you will.”

Skylar heard one of the kitchen chairs slid across the floor, knowing her mom was about to sit down.

“If he’s anything like your father, than he’s a good man with a big heart. Someone who’s willing to go above and beyond for the people he cares about. You’re worried we won’t accept him, aren’t you?”

“A little.” She sighed, pulling Alex closer to her with her free hand. “I know it’s a ridiculous thing to think, knowing that you will accept him. I don’t know it’s a weird feeling.”

“Oh Skylar you were the one to overthink things.” She chuckled. “Would it make you feel better if I knew how old he was?”

She craned her neck to look at him, making sure he was okay with it. All he did was nod his head and mouth ‘go for it’.

“That’s true I always was the one to overthink things. And um Alex is 50.”

She felt her heart beat rapidly in her chest, her mom taking longer to answer than anticipated which didn’t help with her small case of anxiety. She was either contemplating what she just said or was thinking up the right words to say to her.

Alex rested his forehead on her shoulder, closing his eyes as he too waited for a reply. He was so use to having a joyous outlook on life, not really caring about the bad stuff, but this, this was different. He’s never cared for someone so much as he does Skylar and if he even has to prove it to her parents, he will.

“That doesn’t bother me Sky.” They both let out a breath and chuckled. “I don’t care how old he is, from what you said he’s treating you good and that’s all I care about. And you should know he’ll be a part of this family in no time.”

Alex held her tighter, planting tiny kisses upon her neck. She craned her neck again, gazing into his blue eyes, then gave him a peck on the lips. “I know, I know. And that is true. Oh before I forget I met the sweetest little girl yesterday while we were picking up the supplies. She helped Alex and I put them in his car.” She sighed through her nose. “Dammit, I should’ve gotten a picture. Oh well next time, we’re seeing her again in a few weeks.”

Skylar could hear her laugh on the other side of the phone. She could even see the smile she had on her face.

“Kids did always gravitate to you, and you were never the one to push them away. That shows you’ll be a good mother someday.”

“Well that’s not gonna happen anytime soon. Kids are a lot of work and I’m not sure if I’m ready for that responsibility.” She glanced at the clock on her nightstand and sighed. “I should get going, we need to check out of the hotel soon and head back to base.”

“Okay, call me Sunday and we can arrange what we’re doing when you guys come. I love you.”

“I will and love you too.” She hung up the phone then tossed it in front of her. “That went way better than expected holy shit.”

“Kotyonok, even I am relieved it went that well.”

She moved off his lap to get a better look at him, his blonde hair was still disheveled from when they slept, not bothering to brush it yet. Hell both of them weren’t even dressed yet, Alex was still in his boxers and Skylar was in her underwear and the shirt she warn yesterday. She starting to kick herself for not buying another pair of close for the night.

“Now we don’t have to worry about any of that, we can just focus on tonight and then packing for Monday.”

“Our first official date, something I wanted for so long kotyonok.”

Skylar smiled, crawling over to straddle him. Her arms wrapped around his neck as she settle onto his lap. “Me too, even if I was trying to hide my feelings for you. I’m also excited to see the place you picked since you won’t tell me anything.”

His arms wrapped around her torso, resting just above her ass. “I think you’re going to like it. Or at least I hope you do.”

“I’m sure I will, I love food.” She slid his hands down to his chest, feeling his heartbeat beneath her palms. “I was also thinking that maybe tomorrow we could go for that breakfast date you wanted so badly yesterday.”

“Really?” He quirked his brow and smirked. “What made the little kotyonok change her mind?”

“I never said I didn’t want to go to breakfast with you, I said it wouldn’t be nice if we went when we had Pulse and Hibana with us. You dumb dumb.” She shook her head and laughed, then picked up her phone again. “Do you a specific place you want to sit on the plane?”

“Dumb dumb?” He grabbed her hips, yanking her towards him with ease. She gasp at the sudden contact and fell on her back, he was on top of her mere seconds later. “That’s not a very nice thing to say Skylar.” His index finger trailed down her shirt and over the front of her panties, hitting her womanhood. “I might need to teach you some manners little kotyonok.”

Skylar looked up at him, then sighed - bringing her hand up to his cheek and gave him a few light taps. “You can teach me some manner later, now we need to pick our seats for the plane ride back to Maine.”

Alex let out another booming laugh, at this point she was positive he doesn’t know how to be a quiet man. Heaven help her if they ever have children.

She wiggled out from under him and sat up, unlocking her phone with a chuckle. “I like the window seat, hopefully there’s one still available. I guess you don’t have a preference since you didn't answer my question.”

She glared up at him and shook her head. Skylar was starting to get a little annoyed that his mind was always on sex and not more important matters.

“No kotyonok, I don’t have a preference. You can pick the seats.”

“Thank you. Now that wasn’t so hard you big ole sex fiend.”

Alex’s mouth fell agape, eyebrows knitting together in a curved line. He watched her worked her phone while she picked their seats for their flight on Monday, still in shock at what she said. He never expected Skylar to be such a firecracker and he would be lying if he said he doesn’t like it.

“Sex fiend and dumb dumb? I’ll get my payback later Skylar, don’t you worry.”

She didn’t look up from her phone, too busy with buying their plane tickets. Once that was done she set her phone aside and looked up at him. “Keep it up Alexsandr and I’ll be sleeping in my own bed tonight.”

He narrowed his brows at her and sighed. It made her laugh that she could make the blunt Lord Tachanka at loss for words. It wasn’t an easy feat and Skylar kind of thought of it as a little victory.

She moved over to straddle him, arms wrapped around his neck as she settled down on his lap. “Do you really think I’ll be sleeping in my own bed tonight?”

“I was hoping not, kotyonok!” He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him - kissing a small portion of the scar on her neck. “I don’t like being away from you. It doesn’t feel right.”

Skylar’s face softened, a small smile spreading across her face. She was at loss for words, no one had said anything like that too her before, but she couldn’t help but wonder why it didn’t feel right to him to be apart from each other. Even for a few hours.

She leaned down, placing a passionate kiss upon his lips and brought him in for a hug. Her head resting on his shoulder as his arms that were wrapped around her torso kept her in a firm hold. “Why doesn’t it feel right?”

Alex went quiet, trying to pull her even closer to him. “This last week has been the best week of my life. All of this seems like a dream and I’m just waiting to wake up and find out we aren’t together. I don’t want that, I don’t want to go back to how it was before. I want to keep waking up next to you every morning, wrapping my arms around you and kissing you awake. Hearing you mumble something incoherent, only to have you turn around to face me with a smile on your face.”

Skylar lifted her head off his shoulder, wiping away the few tears that were threatening to fall and gazed into his eyes. “I’m happy this isn’t a dream, that we can wake up next to each other every morning.” She gave him a small smile, then sighed. “You have me Alex, you always will.”

“And you have me kotyonok, you always will.”

She leaned down and crushed their lips together - pulling back with a big smile spread across her face. If there is a God up there beyond the clouds, she has no idea what she did to deserve someone like Alex. Someone who cared for her so deeply. Whatever God it was, she was in his debt.

“How did I get so lucky?”

Alex moved a hand to the small of her back, easily flipping their position. She landed on the mattress with a soft thud - eyes locking together. “You’re not the only one who got lucky, kotyonok. I feel like the luckiest man in the world to have you by my side!”

She leaned up, planting a firm kiss on to his lips. “Why do you have to be so perfect?”

“I’m far from perfect.” He leaned down, kissing her forehead before getting off of her.

Skylar sat up, sitting cross legged on the bed as she watched him pull on his pants and sit back down. “You are to me. You’re everything I wanted and more Alex.”

He turned to her, a small smile spread across his face.

“There were nights, before we got together where I would lay awake, looking up at the ceiling wondering if I would be the right man for you. If I would be able to give you everything you wanted. I spent so many nights tossing and turning over that issue and hearing you say that, means everything to me.”

“You’re such a hopeless romantic and I love it.” She moved over to the edge of the bed where he was sitting, resting her head on his shoulder. “I never knew that really bothered you. Can you tell me why?”

Alex glanced over at the clock, sighing. “I’ll tell you in the car, it’s getting late and we need to check out.”

“Already?” She lifted her head off his shoulder, looking at the clock. “I love spending my time with you but I hate how fast the time actually goes.” She got off the bed to grab her pants that were thrown over the back of the chair by the desk and pulled them on. “I swear if our vacation time flies by, I will probably cry.”

“We’ll make the best of our two weeks together, kotyonok.”

“I know.”

They were finally back on the road heading back to base. She enjoyed their time in London and couldn’t wait to come back and see Grace again. As much as she couldn’t wait to come back, she was looking forward to going back to base, unloading all the supplies and getting ready for their date tonight. She was excited to see where Alex had picked.

“So is my wonderful boyfriend going to tell me why he’s worried about not being able to give me everything I would want?” She looked over at him with a raised brow, making him chuckle. “Because I don’t think you should be worried about that, you’ve already given me more than I could have asked for.”

With a blind eye he grabbed Skylar’s hand, holding it in his. “Kotyonok, there might be something in the future you might want and I might not be able to give it to you.”

“Okay you’ve been acting weird since we left the warehouse last night, the casual mentions of…..oh my god. Is that what you’re worried about Alex? That you might not be able to give me a child someday? I don’t think that’s something to be worried about right now.”

“You’re right, it isn’t something I should be worried about right now.” He sighed and tapped his fingers along the steering wheel. “Yesterday when I saw you with Grace and how natural you were with her, it ignited something within me. I thought about the future, our future. What if someday down the line we decide to have a family and it doesn’t work out because of my age.” He glanced over at her , giving her a small smile. “I would give you the world if I could, kotyonok.”

“I know you would.” She noticed a rest stop coming up in the distance. “Turn into that rest stop please.” He nodded, turning into the rest stop, putting the car in park and turned it off. Turning his attention over to Skylar, she leaned over, crushing their lips together. She pulled away, shaking her head with a smile on her face. “We’re both healthy, I don’t think we’ll have issue in that department and if we do, so what? I’m not going to feel embarrassed because we needed a little help with starting a family.”

“You wouldn’t?”

“Of course not. Why do you think I would be embarrassed or mad or anything like that? The whole idea of starting a family is to have a baby, I don’t care how I conceive said baby.” Her eyes widened a little, then she chuckled. “You know baby talk use to freak me out, just the thought of how big of a responsibility it is. Yet here I am, talking about our future child or children and I feel calm. It’s funny what happens when you meet the right person.”

“That is true, kotyonok.” He chuckled and kissed her forehead. “I never knew I wanted to be a father until I saw you with Grace. A lot of things I didn’t know I wanted until you came into my life.”

Skylar looked out the window, watching the few people talking in the distance. “I never knew I would meet someone who cares for me as deeply as you do, who would actually want to have a family with me someday. I was conflicted between us in the beginning, I like you, yes. But I was so afraid I would get hurt again. I’m happy now that I took this chance, if I didn’t this would have been my biggest mistake.”

“The last thing I want to do is to hurt you.” He glanced out the window, looking up at the overcast sky. “I have a surprise for you back at base, that I was going to give you during dinner. Now I think it’s best to give it to you when we get back.”

“I know and I know you would never hurt me.” She leaned over again, giving him a quick peck on the cheek. “And a surprise? Well I’m intrigued and excited, let’s go!”

They were finally back at base, unloading all the supplies. Skylar was becoming impatient and wanted to know what the surprise Alex had for her was and the only way she would find out is if they got done, faster. And thankfully they were almost done, just had about 5 more boxes to bring in.

“Kotyonok, you can head up to our room if you want? I can deal with the rest of the boxes.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay. I’ll meet you in ‘our’ room.” She smirked at him and chuckled before leaning up to kiss him before she left.

She grabbed her bag and phone from his car and headed inside. The first order of business would be grab a fresh pair of clothes and her phone charger before going to Alex’s room. She was in desperate need of a shower, a change of clothes and to charge her phone before tonight.

Opening the door to her room, she noticed Ash wasn’t there. Then again it was late in the morning and who knows what she had to do today. She tossed her bag on the bed, taking out her new shirt to hang up. Grabbing a coat hanger from the closet, she hung the shirt on the top drawer of the dresser. She knew she was going to wear it tonight, why not keep it out.

Skylar then grabbed a fresh pair of clothes along with her phone and charger and headed for Alex’s room.

His room was just like they left it the night before. Some clothes on the floor and bed half made. She placed her clothes on his desk, plugging her charger into the outlet by his bed to charge her phone. Kicking off her shoes, she laid down on the bed with a sigh.

Her mind started to wander over to the conversation they had in the car, about having a family someday. It seemed surreal that he was already thinking about that, only a week into their relationship. What else has he thought about? Or better yet, what was the future he pictures for both of them? She wanted to know, but at the same time she was afraid to ask.

It wasn’t long until the door open, she propped herself up on her elbows to see Alex shutting the door behind him. He walked over to the bed and laid down beside her with a sigh.

“That better be the only thing workwise we need to do for the next 2 or so weeks.”

“You’re cute when you get all grumpy.” She maneuvered herself so she could see him. “Remind me to go see Doc before we leave, I need to talk to him about something.”

“Okay. And why does my kotyonok need to see Doc? Is it something I should know about?”

Skylar scoffed and rolled her eyes. “Just my birth control. I want to see if I can take it early because we won’t be back on base for the next two weeks and I don’t exactly want to be called mom yet.”

“I do wear condoms Skylar.” He chuckled. “Wait why do you have to see Doc for your birth control? Aren’t you taking a pill?”

“I know that silly.” She lightly shoved at his chest and laughed. “I’m not on the pill, our lifestyle is too chaotic for that. I take the depo shot. It’s quick and simple, one shot every three months. The pill you need to take everyday and if you miss a few days, you’re more susceptible to getting pregnant.”

“Oh, I didn’t know that. What if you miss a shot?”

“I can miss it by a week and I’ll be fine, anything longer than that, we might be parents.”

“So you can miss the shot by a week and you’ll be fine, but you have to take the pill everyday because if you don’t you can get pregnant? That doesn't make any sense.”

“Tell me about it. So….that surprise? Can I see now?”

Alex laughed and Skylar moved to let him sit up. She waiting patiently and excitedly for whatever his surprise was. Watching him get up to go to his dresser, opening the first drawer, he rummaged through it until he pulled something out and shut the dresser drawer. Walking back to the bed that’s when she noticed the black rectangular case, the kind for a necklace. He sat down and handed it to her.

Her fingers went over the velvet feel of the case, then slowly opened it. Staring at her was a silver dog tag, with an engraving on it written in purple. She took it out of the case to read it.

“Kotyonok. I promise to be faithful to you, to cherish you, to commit to you and support you. My heart will be your shelter and my arms will be your home. Ты мой рай, ты моё небо, ты моё солнце.”

Skylar looked from the dog tag in hand over to Alex, then back at the dog tag. Tears began to well in her eyes and she threw herself into his arms. He quickly wrapped his arms around her, kissing the top of her head.

“I didn’t believe you that you were this serious about our relationship - I was stupid to think like that. I’m sorry.” She pulled away, wiping the tears from her eyes. “What does the last part say?”

“I’m very serious about us Skylar, have been since the beginning.” He wiped some of the lingering tears from her eyes with his thumb. “You don’t need to apologize, kotyonok, sometimes actions speak louder than words. The last part says, you are my paradise, my heaven, you are my sun.”

“I’m at loss for words. I I, you have no idea how much this means to me babe. Actually you probably do. “She chuckled. “I don’t know what I did to deserve someone like you and I thank whatever God that is up there for bringing us together!”

Alex leaned down, placing a passionate kiss up on her lips. “I knew you had trust issues and as blunt as I am about...everything, I knew my words wouldn’t be enough. With our lifestyle I figured a promise ring wouldn’t be practical, I decided a dog tag would be better and you can wear it everyday.”

“A dog tag is better fitting for our lifestyle.” She looked it over again, fingers tracing over the engravings. It’s perfect, moya sladost’!

Her heart began beating at a rapid pace, so much so her hands began to shake. None of this felt real, it all felt like a dream, a dream she never wanted to wake up from. She spent so many years thinking marriage and a family would be out of reach, who would want to be married to a woman with trust issues? Or survivors' guilt? But Alex, he was patient, showing her time and time again he was in it for the long haul. She never believed it, thinking it was only a matter of time before he got sick of her or found someone better. Like every other relationship she had, casual or not.

Now looking down at his promise, engraved in a silver dog tag, for both see, she finally believed him.

He took the dog tag from her hand, motioning for her to turn around. She obliged and maneuvered herself to sit in front of him with her back turned. He undid the small chain, bringing the dog tag in front of her and clipped it shut around her neck. She brought her hand up to feel it again, then moved beside him and snuggled up against his chest.
This dog tag meant more to her than she could explain. All those fears were put away by the inscriptions on this dog tag, because she knew it was true. Alex has shown her time and time again that she could trust him and he was right. He has been nothing more than good to her and she’ll always be grateful for that.

Chapter Text

Later that evening Skylar headed back to her room to get ready, when she opened the door she saw Ash was sitting on her bed and a sigh of relief left her. “Oh thank god you’re here. I have some crazy stuff to tell you.”

Ash smirked and sat up, sitting cross legged as Skylar walked over to her and sat down in front of her. “I’m intrigued, what has your boyfriend done now?”

“First off he’s meeting my parents in a few days.” She undid the dog tag and handed it to Ash. “And then this happened.”

She took the dog tag from her hand and read it. Skylar watched her in anticipation, waiting to see what she had to say. A moment later she looked up, handing the dog tag back to her.

“I’ve never seen Tachanka like this and now that I think of it, his flirting stopped when you two started talking. Not dating, talking. He’s been courting you since the beginning Skylar. How do you feel about this?”

Skylar sighed as she put the dog tag back on around her neck. “I’m happy because I thought no one would like me that much, but it’s also kinda scary in a sense. A lot can happen between now and a year and what if we break up or one of us dies? I don’t want to get my hopes up that one day we might be married and have it go up in flames.”

“Have you told him that?”

“Yeah, we’re still taking it slow.”

Ash nodded. “Now a more personal question, do you want to marry him?”

She shook her head and laughed, but she couldn’t hide the smile on her face, no matter how hard she tried. “Yeah, actually I do. He makes me feel happy, safe, I don’t have to question our relationship….I mean I still do, but that’s another topic of discussion. I can picture a life with him, that’s never happened before.”

“Then I think you should marry him. He’s good for you Skylar and he’s clearly head over heels in love with you.”

Skylar hooked the dog tag around her neck, letting it fall against her chest. “You really think so?”

Ash rested her hand on top of hers - locking eyes. “I know so! This lifestyle is stressful and we have a 50/50 chance on coming back every time we have a mission. Alex looks at you like you’re the only women on the planet, he loves you and I know you love him. It’s a no brainer Sky.”

She removed her hand from hers and Skylar took a deep breath and nodded. “I do love him and I want to spend the rest of my life with him. And you’re right, this job is stressful, it’ll be nice to come home from a mission or training to him and vice versa. To eventually start a family. Maybe taking it fast isn’t such a bad thing after all.”

“No, no it’s not.” Skylar got up and headed for her dresser. “Just hold off on the baby making part for now, I don’t think the world is ready for any small Senaviev’s just yet.”

She turned to her pouting her lip. “Awe well that ruins the fun.”

“Pfft, just get ready for your date you lovesick puppy.”

Skylar draped her coat over her arm as she walked back to Alex’s room. She was looking forward to seeing what semi-formal wear he was wearing, wondering if it will be exactly like in her mind or different.

She came to his room, rapping her fist against the wooden door a few times. While she waited for him to answer, she doubled checked her purse for everything she would need. Wallet, keys, her phone and a few miscellaneous things she keeps in there for emergencies.

The door opened, making her look up. As soon as she laid eyes on him her mouth slightly fell agape, it was exactly how she pictured him. Black form fitting slacks with a white button down shirt neatly tucked into them. He even had the first few buttons near the collar undone.

She leaned up, placing a firm kiss upon his lips. “Wow, you look so handsome!”

He smiled down at her, pulling her into his room. She set her coat and purse down on the bed, then turned to him with a smile on her face that quickly softened when she saw the look on his face.

“Kotyonok, you look absolutely beautiful!”

“I do?”

He looked her up and down, she paired the white blouse she just got with a high-waisted black skirt, both showing of her shape.

“Would I lie to you?”

“No, no you wouldn’t.”

He walked over to her, holding both of her hands in his - noticing she still had the dog tag on. “You’re still wearing it.”

“Of course, I’m never taking it off. Well maybe for missions because I don’t want it to get dirty or covered in blood.” She leaned up and kissed him again, both humming into it. “Other than that, it’s never leaving my neck.”

“That’s good, it looks good on you anyways.”

He let go of one of her hands, pulling her to the bed. She sat down with a content sigh, resting her hand on his thigh. Skylar never thought she would be this happy, or that all it took was for her to join Rainbow to find the perfect man for her. Who surprisingly wants her just a much.

“Thanks.” She chuckled. “Do you ever think about living off base?”

She looked up at him, seeing that cheesy look on his face that made her roll her eyes. Every time she tried to be nonchalant about something, he saw right through her.

“I didn’t think you would want to take such a big step so soon, kotyonok.” He placed his hand on top of hers and gave it a small squeeze. “Are you sure about this?”

“Yes and no! Yes because I do miss having my own place and no, because I don’t want to do all the cooking and cleaning and such that comes with living in your own place.”

“And who says you’ll be doing all the cooking and cleaning? You’re my girlfriend, kotyonok not my maid. It’ll be split evenly between us, when we do move in together.”

She gave him a small smile then stood up, walking over to his degtyaryov. She traced her fingers along the butt of the gun. “Should we get a two bedroom, one for us and one for your beloved degtyaryov?”

Alex let out a booming laugh and stood up. Walking in front of her, he stopped on the other side of his gun, looking down at her with a smirk on his face. “No, the degtyaryov can stay here in my locker. The second bedroom will be needed for something much more important.”

Skylar blinked her eyes a few times, contemplating what he had just said. Ever since she came to Rainbow she saw how he treated this gun, like his pride and joy. Everyone in Rainbow kept really good care of their weapons, but Alex took it to a whole other level, hell no one besides him was aloud to touch it. So hearing him say he would put his beloved degtyaryov in his locker instead of their own home was a shock to say the least.

“You would really put this gun in your locker? Alex that second room isn’t going to be occupied for a while, it can home your degtyaryov until then.”

He looked down at his gun and sighed through his nose. Thinking back on all the blood, sweat, tears and money he had spent on this gun. How every Sunday he would polish it and make sure it was working perfectly. Back then, it was his pride and joy, and it still is in a sense. But a gun is materialistic, anything that happens to it, he can replace. Skylar, is not. She’s a human being, and they can’t be replaced.

“There was a time where this gun was the best thing in my life. I even treated it like it was my first born child.” He chuckled and locked eyes with her. “Maybe it still is in a way and I wouldn’t have batted an eye at the thought of having a room for it. When we do move into a place together, I don’t want that extra room to go to this gun, I want it to go to something different.”

“Honestly, we don’t need two bedrooms, at least not now.”

“That’s true.” He leaned over his degtyaryov and kissed her forehead. “We should head out or we’ll be late for our reservation.”

“Right, don’t want to be late for that.”

He laughed once more as Skylar went to put her coat on.

When they pulled up to the Castle House Skylar nearly slapped him. “The Castle House? Really? You picked the most expensive place in all of Hereford for our first date?”

“I did! I think it would be nice to have an actual nice dinner instead of what we get at the base. And it was an excuse to see you all dressed up.”

Alex pulled into a parking space and shut off the car. She couldn’t help but smile to herself, even though she hated him spending so much money on her. And she should have known it was going to be at the Castle House once he said semi-formal wear.

“Clever. And we’re splitting the bill this time, no ifs and's or buts about it Alexsandr.”

“Uhm, kotyonok….”

“Sometimes I don’t know if you’re just old fashioned or that you have more money saved up then you would like and you don’t know what to do with it. So you spend it on me.”
“Both?”

Skylar laughed and kissed him. “I liked that you’re old fashioned, you don’t see that much anymore these days.” She sighed and looked over at the building. The House Castle, one of Herefords more pricey restaurants. “I know you’re not going to listen to me if I tell you to stop spending your money on me, so I’ll say this. Please don’t spend this much money on me, you don’t need to woo me with expensive things Alex. I’m happy enough to just spend the day with you doing nothing.”

Alex grabbed her hand, making her turn towards him. “I know you are and I am too, it’s….I never got the chance to spoil anyone before, and I want to spoil you!”

She gazed into his eyes, giving him a small smile. As a kid she wasn’t spoiled, the only times either her or her sisters’ were spoiled were during their birthdays and holidays. And a part of her wanted to have him spoil her rotten, the other still wanted to be humble and not have him spend money on her. It was a vicious circle.

“Alright fine, just don’t over do it please? Our money is gonna be needed for more important things in the future you know.”

A big grin spread across his face, pure joy contorting his features. It made it hard for Skylar to not mirror it.

Decades, it took decades for him to find the one person he wanted to spoil. Actually it took him decades to find the one person he wanted to spend his life with, to start a family with. Fancy dinners and customizable jewelry was just the beginning, Alex had more ideas up his sleeve and he’s sure to get them all out eventually.

“What other important things is our money going towards, kotyonok?”

“Uhm, mortgage, cars, our future children. Family vacations. That sort of stuff.” She chuckled then glanced over to the building. “We should head in or your kotyonok is gonna become a Popsicle.”

“Дрисня, yeah let’s head in or I might need to warm up my kotyonok beforehand.”

He smirked, making her shake her head as she got out of his car. Upon getting out she heard his all too familiar laugh that made her smile.

They made it inside and we seated at their table, or rather booth. Both of them sliding into the same one, to stay close to one another.

Skylar took off her jacket, setting it to her side and took his. The place looked gorgeous and had a nice atmosphere to boot, it made their first date even more amazing. The waiter came over with their menus and took their drink order. To her surprise Alex ordered a bottle of wine, how romantic. After the waiter left, she turned to him.

“Wine? I didn’t take you for a wine drinker babe.”

He set the menu down and turned to her. “I’m not, I just thought it would be more romantic.”

“So you bought a bottle of expensive wine to be romantic?” She chuckled. “You’re lucky you’re cute and I like you more than words can express. But it is romantic.”

“You’re cuter!” He chuckled and looked down at the menu. “What is my beautiful kotyonok going to get?”

“I am going to get the ‘Crisp Gnocchi’. What is my handsome looking man going to get?”

He turned back to the menu, scanning it thoroughly. The fancy wording of the menu made the food sound not that appetizing to him and it made it hard to choose. Or maybe he was just use to simpler meals.

“I’m gonna get the ‘Fresh Range Chicken Breast’, don’t want to overdo it tonight. Can’t make love to you if I’m in a food coma.”

Skylar shook her head and laughed. “I’m sure whatever pain you’re in, the will to make love to me will win. Also are you allergic to nuts by any chance?”

“No, why?”

“We should share the ‘Honey & Walnut Cake’ for dessert. It sounds delicious.”

“Sharing dessert? That’s romantic too kotyonok.”

The waiter came back with their wine and took their orders, then left to give it to the chef.

Alex grabbed the bottle of wine, easily opening it and grabbed two glasses. Pouring each of them a glass, he handed Skylar the first as he set the bottle on the table. She swished the liquid in the cup and took a sip.

“Not bad.” She set the cup down on the table. “Now is my wonderful kind hearted boyfriend going to tell me about himself?”

He set his cup on the table as well and turned to her. “What would you like to know?

“Anything and everything!”

He nodded - thinking back on past years. He has so much he wanted to tell her but didn’t know where to start. Should he just start from the beginning or at random? There was so much to choose from.

“When I was still a boy I used to get envious at the other kids for always spending time with their papa’s. It got so bad I ended up hitting some poor kid, and I was 7. Being born into a military family has its pros and cons, the big con is not being able to see the person in the military for long periods of time.”

She rested her hand on his, giving him a small smile. “Did you have a good relationship with him?”

“For the most part, yes. I joined because of him, he was even the one to introduce me to the degtyaryov. He was also strict, and I didn't have much growing up, he didn't like materialistic things.”

“That explains why you want to spoil me. And why you put so much effort into enjoying life.” She leaned over, giving him a quick kiss. “What about your mom? What was she like?”

She watched his face light up again, thinking he must have been a lot closer to his mom than his dad.

“My mom was amazing! She was a nurse for the Red Army, that’s where she met my pa. She worked up until she got pregnant with me, the retired to be a stay-at-home mom. Though she never did fully retire, she did help from time to time. She was kind, loving and pushed me to do the best.” His happiness quickly faded and he sighed. “I wish she was still alive, she would have loved you!”

“And I her.” She brought him in for a hug and kissed his temple. He wrapped his arms around her, resting his head on her shoulder - this was where he felt the happiest, in the arms of the woman he loved. Skylar made him feel at ease, at peace and beyond happy.

Skylar pulled back and smiled at him. “The one thing I hate about being born so much later than my sisters’ is that I’ll never get to spend as much time with my parents as they have. Hopefully none of our children have to go through that.”

“I hope not either.” He looked around the room, seeing other couples and friends having dinner and talking. “I use to dream about this, taking you out on a fancy date, seeing you all dressed up looking beautiful. The real thing is much better!”

She could feel her cheeks slightly burn, no doubt turning red. “You use to dream about me?”

“Almost every night. Now I don’t need to dream about you, I have you!”

“I had a dream about you a month or so ago. It was really random, but sweet.”

His eyes lit up and he rested his elbow on the table, looking at her with curiosity. “You have? What was it about kotyonok?”

“We were on a mission with a few others, and for some reason you thought I died.” She chuckled. “When I came out you were so relieved and happy that you started acting like a bumbling idiot. Then you kissed me and I woke up.”

“That’s a strange dream.”

“Tell me about it.” She chuckled.

There food arrived seconds later, both looking absolutely delicious. During dinner she got him to open up about himself more. How he utilizes the international collector’s market for replacements or will mill his own components when parts can’t be located or are not cost-effective to acquire. His favorite color is green and he was transferred over to the Spetsnaz when he was deployed in Afghanistan before the collapse of the Soviet Union.

When dessert finally came around Skylar’s mouth was watering. That cake looked incredible or maybe it was due to the fact she hasn’t had chocolate in weeks.

Alex grabbed a fork, as did she. She took the first bite and moaned, it was way better than she expected. The cake was moist, the frosting was thick but not too much and you could taste the honey and walnuts.

“You look like you’re about to have an orgasm kotyonok.”

She didn’t say anything but got another piece and offered it to him. He took the bite from his fork and his eyes widened for a brief second.

“Oh that’s really good.”

“Yeah! The best cake I have ever had.” She took another bite, wishing there was more than just the slice they got to share. “I love when cakes are moist like this and not dry.”

“There’s a Russian dessert I want to make for you when we’re on vacation. I think you’ll like it.”

“I can’t wait! For any Russian dish you make me.”

She leaned over and kissed him before going back to the cake. The rest of the night they talked more about random things until they decided to head back to base. On the way back to his car, she locked arms with him, trying to keep warm from the cold wind.

Alex quickly unlocked his car and Skylar hopped in, waiting for him to turn the heat on.

“We should do this more often, date nights!”

“I think so too, kotyonok. Maybe a new place every week, until we find the places we like best?”

“That sounds perfect!”

As soon as they entered the base, Skylar took off her heels and walked barefoot back to his room. Not wanting to wake anyone up, it was already late as it was.

Once they got to his room, she shrugged off her coat and held it in her hands while she waited for him to unlock it. When he did, he motioned for her to go in first. She obliged with a smile, walking in and placing her coat on his chair and her purse on his desk. Then turned to him.

He shut the door behind him and locked it, walking over to her and picked her up. Her legs wrapped around his waist, hiking her skirt up even more. He kissed down her neck as he made his way to the armchair in his room and sat down.

“Did the kotyonok have a nice time?”

She ran a hand down his chest, stopping the waistband of his pants. “I always have a good time with you! It doesn’t matter what we do, just being with you makes me happy and I’m really glad we get two weeks all too ourselves.”

He leaned forward, crushing their lips together. Hours of hardly any contact was driving him crazy, and he wanted nothing more than to strip her of her clothes and make love to her on the bed. Like every night before. But there was also a slight guilt in the pit of his stomach, was she alright with all the sex they were having?

He pulled back, moving some hair behind her ear. “That’s what I want to do, kotyonok. Spend every waking minute with you - forget about work and other priorities. I just want you!”

“And you have me, you always will!” She laughed and kissed him again. “I can’t express how much you mean to me, we’ve been together for a week and it seems like years.” She looked down at his waistband and sighed. “I thought I wanted to take this slow, but I was wrong. I don’t want to take this slow. I want to move in together, to get married, to have kids, our job is stressful and every time we have a mission there’s a chance we won’t come back. I don’t want to look back and wish I did some things differently.”

Alex was stunned with what she just said, as he has for a lot of things. Skylar was still a mystery to him, a mystery he would love to unravel for years to come.

“Kotyonok, are you sure? You really want to go through with this? All of it?”

She nodded her head, eyes glistening over. “I am, well the moving in part. Marriage we should wait a little bit, because I do want you to have a good relationship with my family before that big step. And kids I don’t fully know about that one yet.”

He crushed their lips together once again, this time deepening it. Her hand came up, cupping his cheek, caressing his freshly shaved skin. He pulled back, giving her a bunch of smaller kisses around her face that made her giggle like a schoolgirl.

“So we’re doing this? We’re really moving in together?”

She shook her head and kissed him again. “Yes! I think after the new year we should start looking for an apartment.”

“What made you change your mind?”

“Ash. After I showed her the dog tag she said she never saw you like this before and that if you look at me like I’m the only woman on the planet than you must care about me very deeply. So she said fuck taking it slow. And she’s right.”

Alex grabbed her waist and stood up, walking over to the bed and laid her gently down on it. He moved the strands of hair out of her face and kissed her deeply.

“I care about you so much that it hurts, if anything happened to you I would never forgive myself. I won’t let anything happen to you, ever. And I can’t wait to start this new life with my beautiful kotyonok.”

Chapter Text

Sunday finally rolled around and tomorrow would be the day they finally left for a much needed vacation. 5 months of almost non stop missions were tasking, and both Skylar and Alex were looking forward to relaxing for the next few weeks. And both of them were praying they don’t get called for a mission.

Skylar was walking back to his room with her bag in hand. She didn’t have much to pack considering they wear their different uniforms for 90 percent of the year. However the clothes she did bring with her she wanted to swap with new ones from home and maybe bring over some other accessories as well.

She opened his door and walked in, setting her bag by his desk. “I got off the phone with my mom and she said when we get in tomorrow night to just take it easy and we can go over to their place for brunch in the morning. She also said there will be a surprise waiting for us at my place.”

She sat down on the bed while Alex packed his things, he seemed to be having more trouble than she was.

“A surprise? What do you think it is?”

“Hopefully her homemade cookies, because I miss them.” She looked over at his bag, seeing the all too familiar black box. “I see you already packed the condoms.”

“Those are essentials, kotyonok.” He pushed the bag aside, sitting down next to her. “Why don’t you make them while you’re here?”

“I could but I’m lazy.” She leaned over him, grabbing the box of condoms. “I only had one other boyfriend, minus you that took protection seriously. But you take the cake.”

She handed him the box and he put it back. He looked down at her, watching her fiddle with her hands in her lap. The more she opens up about past boyfriends or lovers, he found himself getting angry. How could anyone hurt or take advantage of someone like Skylar? Someone who is so full of love! He just didn’t get it.

“How could anyone do that to you? Hurt you, take advantage of you. You didn’t deserve that kotyonok, not one bit.”

“I don’t like confrontation and I give in. It was stupid, I was stupid.” She looked over at him with a small smile gracing her face. “I’m glad I don’t need to worry about all that stuff now. You’re the most caring boyfriend ever and I’m happy your mine.”

He moved closer to her, wrapping his arms around her in a firm hug. “You will never have to worry about such things anymore, kotyonok. Never!” With a strong arm he picked her up, having her straddle him as he maneuvered them both farther up the bed. “And you know I’m happy your mine.”

“I do know that!” She leaned down and kissed him. “I can’t wait for tomorrow.”

“Me too! Two weeks, just the two of us. I have a lot planned for us when we get to Russia, kotyonok.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck, moving closer to him. “I’m really looking forward to that! Seeing Russia for the first time with the most amazing boyfriend ever.”

Russia was on her bucket list of countries to see. She always wanted to go, just never had the chance or someone to go with her. Until now that is.

“I can’t wait to show you around, take you to all my favorite places! Make new memories with my future zhena in a place that no longer feels like home.”

Skylar’s face soften, her hand resting on his chest. “You don’t consider Saint Petersburg home?”

“Not since my mama died. She was the only reason I went back there.” Sadness started to convey in his blue eyes and Skylar embraced him in a hug. “It’s okay, kotyonok, you’ve given me purpose to go back.”

She pulled back, gazing into his eyes. “If you’re not fully ready to go back, that’s okay. They’ll be many more opportunities.”

“No, it’s time I go back, besides I have my kotyonok with me!”

“You’ll always have me!” She trailed her finger down his chest and sighed. “I’m actually kind of nervous to see my family.”

Alex gently grabbed her hand, kissing her fingertips. “Why do you feel that way?”
She shrugged her shoulders and glance up at him. “I don’t know, I always feel this way before I see them, it’s weird.”

“It’s not weird kotyonok. Everyone feels a little nervous when they haven’t seen someone in a long time.”

“Yeah you’re right about that.” She bit her bottom lip, drumming her fingers on the small bulge of his pants. “Are you ever going to let me be on top? Or am I just going to have to deal with the missionary position for the rest of our relationship?”

“Does the kotyonok want to be on top?”

He grabbed her hand, guiding it more towards the slowly growing bulge of his pants. She smirked and started to stroke him.

“I do, very much so!” She removed her hand from his growing arousal, pushing up the black tank he had on to unbutton his gorka pants, pulling down the zipper to free his cock from their restraints. “And I also want to try something else.”

She got off him, toeing off her shoes before pulling her pants, along with her panties down. Alex watched her get back on the bed, licking his lips as she straddled him again.

“What was the other thing you wanted to try?” He leaned forward until he was mere inches from her face, making her heart beat faster than before. “I’m always in the mood to pleasure my kotyonok!”

Skylar giggled than crushed their lips together, hearing a soft moan in the back of his throat. She pulled away - gazing into his eyes.

“It’s more of me pleasuring you. I just needed to figure out if you could fit in my mouth or not.”

She watched as his eyes turned black with lust, a smile spreading across his face. Grabbing his shaft she began stroking him again, never leaving eye contact.

“I didn’t think you would be into something like that, such a dirty kotyonok.”

She let go of his cock and got off the bed, grabbing his bag and placing it on the ground, then took off her shirt, standing bare in front of him. He quickly realized what she wanted and slid down to the edge, untying his boots as fast as possible and took of his gorka pants along with his boxer and tank top. He laid back down on his back, fixing the pillows behind him and watched as she straddled him once again, this time hovering over his erect member.

“Only for you moya sladost'!” She slid down onto his member until he bottom out, leaning her head back trying to cover the slight pain on her face. “Oh god I’ve never had you this deep before, you’re feel a lot bigger this way.”

Both hands grabbed her thighs, rubbing up and down them in a comforting manner. She looked down at him, a small apologetic smile on her face. “Move when you are ready kotyonok, there’s no rush.”

Skylar nodded her head and let out a sharp breath. She was starting to think she bit off more than she could chew by trying to ride him. Alex watched her carefully, keeping still and patient as she got used to his full size and width, but the pain never left her face.

He moved his hand to the small of her back, flipping their positions. He gently laid her down and pulled out, watching her slightly wince as he did. “You did very good kotyonok! Don’t be upset about what happened, you did very well!”

She turned and looked up at him. “I thought I could do it, I guess I need more practice.”

“You don’t need more practice, your body isn’t used to taking my fullness that’s all.” He leaned down and kissed her, then pulled away to gaze into her hazel eyes. “Do you still want to do it?”

“Yes, just please go slow.”

“Of course kotyonok, I would never hurt you!”

She watched him go into the top drawer of his nightstand and pull out a bottle of lube. He flipped opened the top and poured some onto his cock, then used his hand to slick himself up. Setting the bottle down, he moved his cock head to her opening, and with a slow snap of his hips entered her.

Skylar moaned, wrapping her arms around his neck. He kept his pace slow and sensual, never leaving her gaze. She leaned up a bit, placing soft kisses along his jawline until she came to his ear. “Don’t pull out.”

He nudge her leg up a little farther, quickening his pace. She slid her hands down his arms, grabbing onto his biceps. The mattress creak and the bed frame hit the wall, though neither cared about who could hear them, only enamored in each other.

Alex bent his head down, nipping and kissing down the scar on her neck. He pulled away, gazing down into her eyes. And with a single snap of his hips, they both came with moan.

He moved some gelled on hair from her cheek behind her ear as his cock throbbed inside her. Having unprotected sex was never his thing, but with Skylar it felt….natural. It would also be something he needed to get used to anyways, you can’t have kids if you’re using a condom.

When Skylar’s shaking ceased he pulled out, collapsing onto the bed beside her. On instinct she snuggled up next to him, resting her head on his chest. She sighed in content, tracing her finger along one of the scars he harbors.

“I know you care about me and my wellbeing, I just never thought it went as far as when we have sex.” She looked up at him, meeting his gaze. “You knew I wouldn’t be able to take you like that, didn’t you?”

“Kotyonok, you are so much smaller than me and the last thing I would want is to hurt you during a time that is supposed to bring you pleasure.” He kissed the top of her head and pulled her closer. “Don’t say things like that, you’ll be riding me like a pro in no time!”

“Well I was hoping that would be today.” She chuckled. “Someday though.”

“That’s my kotyonok! Now is she going to tell me how she knew what ‘moya sladost’ means?”

He looked down at her with a raised brow, making her laugh. She sat up a little, not before giving him a tame kiss.

“I googled it. I wanted to have a cute pet name for you since you always call me kotyonok and I liked it. My sweetness, it’s very fitting for you.”

Alex smiled over at her, placing a hand on her cheek and caressing her smooth skin. He never had anyone call him by a pet name before, it was always Alex or Alexsandr. Then again, he never got close enough to anyone for that to happen. The way Skylar spoke it, made his heart flutter. He could definitely get used to being called that, only if it came from her.

“Moya sladost', I can get used to that! I must say I am very impressed on how authentic you sounded, like a true Russian!”

She moved to sit up, bringing her knees up a little and leaning against her thighs - cheeks tinting red. “I did? Half the time I feel like I’m butchering the language.”

“Nonsense.” He sat up, playing with a strand of her chestnut hair. “You’ll be fluent in no time my krasotka kotyonok!”

“Oh you’re too kind.” She rolled her eyes and chuckled. “Doesn’t krasotka mean gorgeous?”

“It does mean gorgeous.” He pulled the blanket from underneath them, covering them both. “Is someone who is not me teaching you Russian?”

Skylar laughed and kissed him. “No. When I can’t sleep at night I just find websites for learning Russian, if they’re accurate or not I’m not sure.”

“You’re not sleeping well?” Concern covered his features as he stared down at her. Skylar averting her eyes anywhere but his gaze. “Kotyonok I wish you would’ve told me this. We can go see Doc and see if he has anything to help you sleep?”

“I’m okay, it’s nothing I just have a hard time sleeping sometimes, that’s all.”

Skylar hoped he would leave it at that and not question it more, but deep down she knew he would. It wouldn’t be in his fashion to leave things, especially if it had to do with her wellbeing. There were just some things she wasn’t ready to open up about just yet.

“Skylar, please tell me what’s wrong.”

“When it gets near the anniversary of when I lost my squad I get overwhelmed with survivors guilt and some mild nightmares. That’s all.”

He wrapped her in his arms and kissed the top of her head. “I wish you would have told me. You know I don’t care if you wake me up in the middle of the night, I just want to know if you’re alright.”

Skylar looked up at him, a small apologetic smile graced her face. She leaned up, placing a chaste kiss upon his lips and snuggled into his chest.

“I didn’t want to be a burden.”

“KOTYONOK!” The sound of his booming voice startled Skylar so much she flinched away from him. An immense sense of guilt filled him when he saw the slight fear in her eyes. “I’m so sorry kotyonok, I didn’t mean to scare you.” He slowly reached out for her, wondering if she would even let him touch her. A relieved sigh left him when she moved closer to him. “You are not burden Skylar and never will be. It upsets me you even think that way about yourself.”

“It’s okay, just please don’t do that again.” She looked up at him through hooded eyes. “I don’t like bothering people with my problems. They don’t know how to deal with it.”

Alex placed his fingers below her chin, gently moving her head up to meet his gaze.

“Civilians will never understand the horrors we face or do in our line of work, I do! I know what it’s like to be riddled with nightmares, the guilt. Kotyonok, I have spent over three decades in the military, I know what it’s like to stay up night after night because nightmares consume you and I will never hesitate on staying up the night with you when you have one.”

“You would really do that for me?”

“I would go as far as to lay my life down for you, kotyonok!” He gently grabbed her hand, holding it in his. “You mean the world to me and I will never abandon you. Even if you try to push me away, I will never leave your side.”

Skylar flung her arms around his neck, resting her head on his shoulders as the tears welled in her eyes. Alex smiled to himself as he wrapped his arms around her small frame, rubbing gently up and down her bare back.

“Thank you, for always being there for me. For caring!”

As he held her in his arms, the more he wanted to say those three simple words. Because they were true, he does love her, more than anything in the world. Skylar came into his life and claimed his heart and soul. He ached for her. Alex was completely and utterly in love with her! And there was no turning back.

“What kind of boyfriend would I be if I didn’t care so deeply for my girlfriend?”

“A pretty crappy one.” She chuckled, then pulled away to look at him. “I...are we going to tell my parents the truth on how we came to be or make something up? I just want to change the subject please.”

“I think it would be best to tell them the truth, don’t you?”

“You’re right we should, it’s just….it was during the holiday party where we drank then fooled around in the snow, we kissed and ended up having some really good sex. I woke up and sorta freaked than avoided you for two days.” They both laughed and Skylar could feel her cheeks start to warm up. “Which is actually a very hard thing to do.”

“I’m sorry I did that.”

He kissed her forehead, lingering there for a moment. “It’s okay, I know why you did it and I can’t blame you for that. I was going to ask you out in the morning though, when I woke up you weren't there.”

“Yeah, that was stupid of me. At least everything turned out for the better and I ended up being with the man of my dreams.”

“It did!” He leaned down and placed a passionate kiss upon her lips. “And I ended up with the women of my dreams!”

Skylar was resting her head on Alex’s arm as she skimmed through a magazine. They still had around four hours left until they landed in Maine and she was already bored out of her mind.

Alex was looking through the pictures on her phone, she didn’t mind and offered it anyways. In complete silence he scrolled through her photos, smiling at the ones of them they took together, reminiscing on that day. He chuckled when he came to the picture of her and Ash. How similar their FBI uniforms were, except Skylar wore purple boots instead of red. He thought it was cute.

He swiped through more of her photos, coming to the ones of her and her family. That’s when he noticed she looked like a perfect mix of her parents.

“Kotyonok, you look like both your parents. And are you ever going to tell me about them?”

Skylar laughed and sat up. “My dad’s name is Carl, he owns the family brewery. And my mom is Sarah, she was a freelance writer but she became a stay at home mom when she got pregnant with me. Didn’t want to miss anything since I’m the ‘miracle’ baby.”

He nodded his head and handed her her phone back. “What about your sisters’?”

She slid the phone back in her pocket, turning her body towards him. “Valary is a divorce lawyer, her husband Evan is construction worker. Which is a big help when you need something done and don’t want to call a professional. Chloe works the finances of the brewery and her fiancé Jackson is an editor at some journalist place.”

“How do you think they’ll take to you being with an older man?”

She heard the uncertainty in his voice, the fear of being rejected by the family. It made her feel kind of bad he felt that way. Trying to prove yourself to a family isn’t an easy feat, but Skylar knows her family and she knows they’ll accept him with open arms.

“Evan will automatically love you because he’ll now have another manly man to drink with. Chloe will be fine, she honestly doesn’t give a crap who I date, she’s too busy with her life. Jackson will be intimated by you at first than warm up to you. It’s Valary I’m worried about.”

“Overprotective?”

“Yeah. But my parents will love you so that’s all I care about.” She leaned over and gave him a chaste kiss. “Don’t worry, everyone will come to love you!”

“Okay kotyonok.”

“You’re cute when you get all worried.” She laughed and gave him a quick kiss. “Are you nervous though? Truthfully.”

“As nervous as I was when I was placed in my first battle.”

Skylar cupped his cheek, caressing the stubble on his jaw. “There is no need to be nervous moya sladost'! Everything is going to work out fine, trust me.”

“I trust you, you know I do.” He grabbed her hand, pulling it away from his face and kissed her palm. “I’m just afraid of losing you.”

“You’re not going to lose me! My family is going to love you and no other man is gonna grab my attention. You and only you make me happy.” She leaned over and placed a firm kiss on his lips. “I can’t picture my life without you, and I don’t want too!”

Alex cupped her face in his hands, leaning over the armrest, placing a bunch of kisses onto her lips. She could barely contain the giggles that escaped her. Getting to know him on a more intimate scale was life changing to say the least. Who knew the blunt Lord Tachanka was a hopeless romantic at heart?

Meeting him changed her life for the better. She’s much happier than before and was slowly becoming at peace with past experiences. Skylar never knew she could love someone as much as she loved Alex and truthfully, that scared her. But she trusts him with her heart and soul and she believes him that he’ll never hurt her.

“I don’t want to picture my life without you either! You’ve made me a better and happier man, kotyonok. I will never take that for granted, I will never take you for granted!”

“I think you’ve told me that before!” She chuckled. “I’ll never take you for granted either!”

He leaned over again and kissed her forehead before wrapping his arm around her shoulders and pulling her closer to him. “Kotyonok, are you going to show your parents the dog tag I got you?”

“I want too, but I don’t think I will. At least not until they ask to see the new dog tag I’m wearing.” She moved her head and looked up at him through hooded eyes. “I don’t know though, it can change once I’m there. Do you want me to show them? I mean we might get bombarded by a bunch of questions for the future.” She blinked a few times and pulled away once she realized what he was doing. “Oh my god you want to prove yourself, don’t you? Prove to my parents and family that you’re not going to break my heart.”

“Is that a bad thing I want to prove myself?” He averted his eyes and sighed, than gazed into hers. “Skylar, I…”

He was interrupted when she crushed their lips together, she pulled away and smiled.

“It’s not a bad thing that you want to prove yourself. But you don’t need too and you never will.” She gave him another quick kiss and shook her head. “I never thought I would get to see you nervous about something, you were always so joyous when it comes to stressful situations. Now, sitting her seeing you get this nervous over meeting my family is both endearing and funny.”

“I just don’t want to lose you.”

“And you never will, ever! The one thing my parents always taught me was to go with my gut and heart, with everything. And my heart wants you, they’ll know that very soon.”

“Kotyonok, you have made me very smitten, you know that?”

“And I love it!” She chuckled. “You’ve made me very smitten too, moya sladost'!”

They pulled into Skylar’s driveway and she took a deep breath. She hasn’t been here in over 5 months and she was overcome by a bunch of emotions. She shut off the car and pulled the keys from the ignition.

Turning to look over at Alex, she saw him checking out building, it put a smile on her face that he seemed so interested. “It’s not much, just a small condo.”

“It’s your home, kotyonok.” He turned to her, meeting her gaze in the darkness of her car. “I’m excited to see it.”

“It’s really not much, but let’s head inside before it starts to get cold.”

They both got out and Alex went to grab their bags from the back seat, while Skylar waited for him by the door. He shut the car door and headed over to her.

Skylar locked the car, then went to unlock the front door. It seemed weird being back home, the last time she was it was a week before she departed for Hereford and now she was back for the week, with her new boyfriend.

She opened the door, and with a blind eye flicking on the light switch, engulfing the room she hasn’t seen in months in bright lights. “Welcome to my humble abode. You can put our bags anywhere.”

She stepped aside and let Alex in, then shut and locked the door behind her. He placed the bags by the black leather couch you see when you first walk in and glanced around the room.

The living room was a decent size for a small condo. It housed a nice black leather couch, a small glass coffee table, a TV with a decent size entertainment center. There was small bookcase on the right side wall with a few pictures on it. He walked over to look at them.

“Is this your old team?”

He held up a picture of when she was still a Marine and she nodded. “Yeah, it was taking a month before the ambush.” She walked over to him, glancing down at the picture in hand. She pointed a young woman next to her in full tactical gear. “This was Molly, we were roommates when we first joined. She quickly became my best friend, kind of like Ash in a way. We used to talk about everything, from our families to past hookups. When we weren’t training or had a few days off we would get all the girls together for drinks and play some beer pong to get the stress and tension out. And now she’s gone.”

Alex set the picture down, and brought her in for a hug. “Losing friends is the worst part of this job. Yet we still find reasons to push on.”

“It is!” She looked up at him meeting his gaze. “Did you lose anyone?”

“I did! It was the early summer of 91, a few months before the collapse of the Soviet Union and a month prior before I was transferred over to the Spetsnaz. My friend Nikolai and I were doing a sweep in Afghanistan, standard stuff. Next thing I see is a blinding light and I’m being tossed a few feet back, after hearing a deafening crack.” He sighed and pulled her closer to him. “It really puts things into perspective when you see your friend blow up in front of you.”

“Jesus, I’m so sorry moya sladost'!” She held him a little tighter, and gave him a small smile. “It’s ironic in a messed up way that both of our friends died almost the same way in the same country. Well I guess they did die the same way, they blew up.”

“It’s okay, kotyonok.” He leaned down and gave her a chaste kiss. “It was a long time ago.”

“I know, but still it sucks.” She looked over at the other pictures, than picked up the one of her on a horse. “I never told you but I have a horse.”

“You have a horse?”

Skylar let him go and showed him the picture of her on her mare, Midnight. “Told you! It was taken before I came to Rainbow, the last ride I went on too. Her name is Midnight and yes because she’s black.”

Alex laughed and took the picture from her to look at it better. She was mounted up on her horse, Midnight with a big smile on her face.

“I never said you were lying kotyonok. And Midnight, fitting. Do you live on like a farm?”

“No, it’s my aunt and uncles farm. They have all sorts of animals, horses, chickens, cows, a pond with a bunch of ducks. They never had kids so once my sisters’ and I arrived they taught us to ride from a young age, then got us are own horse.”

“No cousins then?”

He set the picture down and turned to her, only to have her grab his hand and lead him to the couch. Alex sat down with a content sigh, flying was always something he hated, being the size he is made it more difficult to get comfortable. He’d much rather be on a chopper.

Skylar straddled him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “Nope and with the way things are going I’ll probably be the first one out of my sisters’ to have kids.” She grabbed the metal tag of his jacket and pulled it down. “How about we skip the house tour for now and go upstairs so I can give you a massage? I can see your muscles are tense from the flight.”

She got off his lap, offering her hand. She waited patiently while he took off his jacket, leaving it on the couch and grabbed her hand. Now hand in hand she lead him up the stairs and into her bedroom she hasn’t seen in months. Still looked like how she left it.

Letting go of his hand, she took off her own jacket, tossing it on the foot of the bed, then turned the light on. “I’m gonna need you to take off your shirt and sit on the bed. I’ll be with you after I get my pants off. Remind me to not wear skinny jeans on an eight hour flight, please?”

Alex laughed and walked over to her. He wrapped an arm around her waist, hand resting on her ass, then pulled her closer to him. “Kotyonok, you should’ve known better than to wear tight fitting pants when flying.”

“Oh shush.” She scoffed. “You liked it, don’t lie moya sladost'!”

“I like you in everything, kotyonok!” He leaned down, placing a hard, passionate kiss upon her lips. “How about we postpone the massage and we try round two of you riding me?”

“I couldn’t the first time, what makes you think I’m capable of doing it this time?”

He grabbed her hips, picking her up with ease, her legs coming up to wrap around his waist. He kissed her again, a little more hungrily than before as he made his way to her bed. Still entangled in a kiss, he laid her down gently and pulled away to look down at her.

He began to push the hem of her shirt up her body, kissing up her stomach as he went along. He pulled away, moving her shirt over her head and discarding it on the floor behind him. Skylar bit her bottom lip as she undid her bra while he took off his shirt, both pieces of clothing meeting her shirt on the floor.

Alex was on top of her seconds later, kissing her deep and hard, his hands ravaging her body. Eight, plus hours of little contact was driving him mad, he was starting to wonder how he’ll deal with the sixteen hour flight to Saint Petersburg.

He moved his body slightly off hers to work on the button of her pants as she did his. With a blind eye she found the metal tag, pulling the zipper of his jeans down. She freed his aching member from its restraints, stroking it softly.

Letting out a soft moan, he broke the kiss. Skylar smirked when she saw the lust filling his eyes, making a surge of heat rush down between her legs. He pulled back, and took off her pants, leaving her bare in front of him. Then pulled his pants the rest of the way off.

Skylar moved up the bed, spreading her legs for him a little too eagerly. She would’ve been embarrassed by that, but they’ve been fucking like bunnies since the beginning.

He crawled between her legs, kissing the sensitive skin on her thighs until he came to her most sensitive part. Gripping her hips in a firm hold, he inched closer, she could feel his warm breath on her, making her shudder in response. Without warning he dove in, feasting off of her.

Skylar let out a loud moan, arching her back. “Moya sladost', a little warning next time.”

Alex pulled back, seeing her juices glistening on his chin. “Where’s the fun in that kotyonok?”

He went straight back in, not giving her time to catch a breath. It was no denying she was now undoubtedly wet and wanting more than his mouth. He seemed to have read her mind, by plunging two fingers into her wet heat, making her gasp.
Pumping his fingers in and out she quivered beneath him. After one last lick of his tongue, he pulled away, but kept pumping his fingers in and out. “You’re such a wet and needy kotyonok. Aren’t you?”

She nodded her head vigorously and moaned. “Only for you, moya sladost'!”

He pulled his abused fingers from her and leaned down to place another hard kiss upon her lips. When he pulled away he laid down on his back, his cock already pooling pre-cum from the tip.

Skylar straddled him, grabbing his cock and slowly slid down until he was fully inside her - a soft moaning escaping both their lips. This time she wasn’t going to wait to adjust to his full size, she began her slow pace, rocking her hips gently up and down his member.

“Mmm fuck, why do you have to be so big?” She looked down at him, seeing the confusion on his face. “I’m not complaining, you feel amazing and you were right! I could ride you.”

He intertwined both their hands together, thrusting up into her. “I always knew you had it in you. Now let me take over before your legs get tired out, kotyonok.”

She bit her bottom lip and nodded. He wasted no time on taking over, his cock grazing over the bundle of nerves over and over again. Letting go of his hands, she hid her face in the crook of his neck as she cried out in pure ecstasy.

Alex wrapped his arms around her, taking a fistful of chestnut brown hair loosely in his hands. His thrusts becoming rougher and sloppier. And with one more thrust of his hips, Skylar came with a cry, her body quaking on top of his as her walls convulsed around his member.

That was his undoing, another thrust later, he stilled, cock throbbing as he spilled inside her.

With shaky limbs, she moved to lay her head on his chest as his cock still throbbed inside her. He rubbed his hand up and down her back as she came down from her high. Her breathing was labored and her body still shaking, she laid on him completely quiet.

“Are you okay, kotyonok? You’re usually not this quiet.”
She looked up at him as he pulled out, giving him a few chaste kisses. “I’m fine, just exhausted that’s all. We should make love like this more often moya sladost'!”

“We should!” He sat up, and kissed her, more deeply this time. “You’re so beautiful, kotyonok!”

Skylar could feel the heat in her cheeks rise, most likely turning red as she gazes into his eyes. “Why do I get so damn flustered with compliments? It’s annoying.”

“Because the men you were with before me never showered you in them. I will, from the moment we made this official to the day that I die.”

Her face softened and she sighed. “I wish you would just say it, moya sladost'!”

“Say what kotyonok?”

“That you love me!”

Chapter Text

Alex stared at her, mouth slightly agape. Twice now she had made him at a loss for words, just like a cat, she was sneaky. His eyes scanned her face as she patiently waited for him to speak, but no words came and he cursed himself.

“Because, I love you! I spent years thinking I wasn’t worthy of being loved, why would I when I was so used to being used and discarded like I was nothing.” She gazed into his eyes - a few tears sliding down her cheeks. “Then you came along and showed me that wasn’t true! That I am worthy of being loved. In the short amount of time we’ve been together that’s all you have shown me, love and compassion. I love you Alex, so much that it hurts!”

Skylar found herself in a passionate kiss, her arms wrapping around his neck. He pulled away, looking down at her with glistening eyes.

“I love you my kotyonok! I should’ve said it days ago, but I was scared. I didn’t know if me saying it would scare you away, so I just didn’t say it.” He shut his eyes, letting a few tears escape his eyes, then opened them again. “You have had my heart from the moment I laid eyes on you all those months ago. I would lay in my bed every night wondering what it would be like to have you in my arms, to make love to you, to wake up every morning grateful that you’re mine! I never wanted to be married or be a father until I met you. I want us to have a big wedding filled with family and friends, I want us to have a family someday. When I look at you, I don’t see my girlfriend, I see my wife! I see the person I want to spend the rest of my life with, to build a family with. I love you Skylar and I don’t want to live without you!”

“You never will!” She leaned over, making their lips meet in another passionate kiss. When she pulled away, she noticed a weight had been lifted off his shoulders, he looked even more happy than before. “I want to be your wife, and have your children. I want you to be the first face I see when I wake up and the last before I go to bed. I want to cook dinner together, I want to laze around our home together. I want to raise our children together. I picture my future only with you!”

“I love you, kotyonok!”

“I love you too, moya sladost'!”

He leaned over and kissed her once more. Skylar smiled and got off his lap, offering her hand. He quickly obliged and she pulled them into the bathroom.

She turned on the water to get a bath going, then grabbed some toilet paper to clean herself up with. Once she was clean she threw the used toilet paper into the trash and sat down on the edge of the bathtub.

“What do you think we’ll have first. A boy or a girl?”

Alex walked over and sat down next to her. “Both!”

“Both?” She chuckled. “So twins then?”

“Exactly! How many kids do you want, kotyonok?”

Skylar contemplated his words as she shut off the water and got in. Followed by Alex a few seconds later. The warm water felt amazing against their cramped muscles from the flight.

She moved over and straddled him again, settling down in his lap. “I don’t know, I guess I’ll have to wait until I’m holding our first born in my arms.”

Alex nodded and brought her in for a hug. She laughed as she rested her head on his shoulder, feeling his hand rub up and down her back. They both felt at peace, the hardest part was over and he could now say he loved her whenever he wanted and so could she.

“I can’t wait to see that, you holding our child! All safe and warm in their mama’s arms.”

“And I can’t wait to see you change a diaper.” She chuckled and moved her head off his shoulder. She bit her bottom lip, staring at a scar on his chest then met his gaze. “I’ve been thinking about stopping my birth control after new years.”

“Kotyonok, are you sure?” He glanced over her body, slight concern etched on his features. “I know I’m excited to finally start having children, but you’re still young. Are you truly sure you want to take on that big of a responsibility this young?”

Skylar gave him a small smile, then gave him a peck on the lips. “I’m very sure I’m ready to take on that big of a responsibility! Don’t take this the wrong way moya sladost', but you’re kind of up there in age and I want our children to get a few long decades with their papa.”

“You would really do that for me Sky?”

“Yes, because I know what it’s like. And I don’t want our child to go through what I’m still going through.” She closed her eyes and sighed. “It’s not easy being the youngest by a decade.” She opened her eyes, only to meet his worrying gaze. “Yeah there’s a lot of perks being the youngest, until you realize that I won’t get the same amount of time with my parents as my sisters’ did. I don’t want our youngest to get hit with the reality of you might not being there for all the important stuff.”

“You didn’t join the military just to pay off your tuition did you, kotyonok?”

“No.” She found herself in his embrace again, his hand rubbing up and down her back. It was calming being in his arms…..almost peaceful in a way. “And no, me distancing myself from my parents has nothing to do with me wanting to get married and have children sooner.”

“You shouldn’t distance yourself from them, kotyonok.” His grip around her tightened a bit and he nuzzled his face in her hair. “You don’t want to look back and regret not getting every moment you can with them.”

“I’m not really distancing myself from them, I do go home every chance I get. Maybe I just want to be a little more independent and know what life will feel like once they’re gone.” She lifted her head off his shoulder again. He watched her as her eyes widened, like she forgot something. “Crap I was supposed to call them once we landed.” She scrubbed a hand down her face and chuckled. “We could drop by their house if you wanted? They won’t mind and I’m sure they’d be ecstatic to see me and meet you.”

“Yeah, let’s go.”

They pulled up in front of her parents' house that was all decked out for Christmas. She can still remember being little and coming out with her dad to put up the Christmas lights outside. And once they were done, they would go back in for some hot cocoa.

“Festive.”

“Wait until you see inside.” Skylar said with a laugh as she shut off the car. “My family usually goes big for the Holiday’s.”

“I kind of like it. I’m sure it made your childhood fun.”

“It did.” She smiled to herself, then glanced up at him. “Why don’t we head in.”

Alex nodded and they both got out of the car. Her heart was pounding a bit as she walked up the sidewalk leading up to her parents home. Going up the stairs she saw the Rudolph statue they had since before she was born, sitting in the same spot on the porch.

Skylar would’ve just walked in and surprised them but she knew the door would be locked by now and she didn’t want them to know someone was there by unlocking the door, so she rang the doorbell instead. And on cue she heard the sound of the all too familiar barking of their dog.

“You didn’t tell me they had a dog, kotyonok.”

She looked over at him with a small smile. “Sorry, I forgot to mention it. You like dogs right?”

“I do.” He chuckled. “But I am more of a cat person.”

“Haven’t noticed.” They both chuckled and turned their heads when they heard the door opened. She smiled when she saw her dad at the door, completely in shock. “Hi dad!”

“Skylar?” He came out to hug her, all tight like he did before she left for Hereford.” I wasn’t expecting to see you guys until tomorrow.” He looked over at Alex, giving him a warm fatherly smile. “And you must be Alex.”

Her dad let go of her and held out his hand for Alex to shake. “Yes, sir.”

“You’re the sir here, you can just call me Carl.” Alex nodded and they let go of each others hand. “Why don’t we head inside, your mother is gonna be ecstatic to see you Sky.”

They both followed him inside, Alex shut the door behind him, glancing around the entryway. He could see a small closet to his right and a few pictures lining the wall. They rounded the corner, heading into the living room where her mom was and their dog was. The pooch quickly got off one of the couches and bolted straight for Skylar with her tail wagging.

“Hi Dixie I’ve missed you.” She gave the pooch a few scratches behind the ear, then looked over at her mom. “Hey mom!”

“Oh my...Skylar, I wasn’t expecting you until tomorrow.” She got off the couch to hug her. “And you must be Alex. It’s nice to finally meet you, I’m Sarah.”

“It’s nice to meet you too, Skylar has told me a lot about you.”

Sarah let got of Skylar to hug Alex. Skylar looked over at them with a smile, she loved how her parents were already accepting him into the family and they just met not even five minutes ago.

Skylar grabbed his hand, leading him over to the couch to sit down. She sat closest to the armrest and Alex took a seat right next to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulder and kissed her temple.

“Did you guys have a nice flight?” Sarah asked as she sat down, her father joining beside her.

“It was fine. Just crowded, but that’s too be expected when flying on Christmas day.” said Skylar with a chuckle. “I have a good travel partner though, so it could have been worse.” She placed her hand on his thigh, looking up at him with a smile. From her peripheral vision she could see the small smile on her parents' faces, making her slightly grown and turn to them. “Please stop.”

“Stop what?” Her father asked arching a brow.

“I see the smirk on your face dad, you know what I mean.” She chuckled.

He put his hands up in defeat and laughed. “Okay, okay. I just haven’t seen you this happy in a long time. It’s nice to see.”

Alex’s arm tightened around her shoulder, rubbing up and down her arm. She glanced from her parents to him, then back to her parents and sighed through her nose. Her parents watch them closely, seeing Alex console her as soon as he saw her in distress. A small proud smile formed on both their faces.

“It’s nice to feel this happy again. Joining Rainbow was the change I needed, I’ve met some of the most incredible people and I feel like I belong again. Something I haven’t felt since I was a Marine.”

Alex’s face softened, along with her mom and dad’s. Three people in her life that knew what she went through and how much it affected her. Alex might not have been there when it first happened but he was going to be there when the memories come back to haunt her.

“We may worry about you a lot with your line of work, but we’re proud of you. You’ve found your calling in this world and that’s all we can ask for.”

“I wish you could see what we do, but you would also have a heart attack so maybe not.”

Alex laughed and shook his head, then looked over to her parents. “I’m happy she joined Rainbow, she’s made the team and my life a lot better.”

Skylar’s face softened and she looked over at him. “That’s so sweet!”

“It’s the truth kotyonok!”

She sighed in defeat and glanced over to her parents who both looked confused. It only made her laugh. “Kotyonok is Russian for kitten.”

“Kitten?” Her mother asked with a raised brow and an amused look on her face. “That’s cute for a pet name.” She looked from Skylar over to Alex. “Where’d you come up with that one if you don’t mind me asking.”

“Not at all.” He looked over at Sky, smiling down at her. “She’s small, cute and feisty like one. It suited her perfectly.”

“Yeah that does sound like my daughter.” Her dad said with a laugh, making her roll her eyes at him. “So did you guys work together a lot?”

“Actually no. We’ve been on one mission together, other than that we would just talk occasionally when we saw each other around base.” She glanced over at Alex, a small smile on her face. “But those conversations were always the best.”

“They were, kotyonok. It also made us have something to look forward too.”

“Mmm it did.” She nodded. “Now we have better things to look forward too.” Skylar glanced over to her parents to see that loving look on their faces. It made her laugh. “Oh my god.”

“I won’t say anything.” said Carl with a laugh. “Truthfully Skylar I’m just happy you found someone who cares about you as much as Alex does. Especially after the other guy.”

“You mean my next target practice for my LMG?”

Carl looked over at Alex with a raised brow, but an amused look on his face. “She told you about him I take it?”

“Yes she did.” With his free hand, he gently grabbed her hand that rested on his thigh, giving it a small squeeze. “I don’t understand how anyone could treat someone as loving and caring as Skylar like that. It makes my blood boil. She didn’t deserve that.”

“No she didn’t. I’m just happy he’s out of the picture, for good.” He gave Alex a small smile then looked over at Skylar. “I’m just surprised she even told you. I thought she would keep that hidden forever.”

“I needed too. I needed to explain why I did something, which I now feel bad for, but it makes a funny story.” She chuckled and shook her head. “It’s also embarrassing.”

“It’s also how we became a couple.” Alex chimed in

“No, more like the starting process of us becoming a couple.” She looked over at her parents’ and sighed. “I can’t believe I’m telling this. It happened during the Holiday party, we were taking shots with some friends, we snuck away to get some privacy away from a room full of people. And later that night I found myself in his bed and I woke up in the middle of the night, had a slight panic and left. I then avoided him for two days.”

“Skylar, why would you avoid him?” Her mother asked.

“I sorta vowed to myself that I wouldn’t sleep with anyone I wasn’t dating. I just didn’t want a repeat of last time, and instead of being an adult and talking with him, I avoided him.”

“Skylar!”

“What? Hey either way, it worked out. So there.”

“She does have a point Sarah.”

“Carl!”

“Sorry dear.”

Skylar laughed. It felt nice to be back again, back in the house she grew up in for the first seventeen years of her life, with her parents’ that she missed dearly. It almost made it difficult to go back to Hereford.

“Do you guys have any special plans for your time off?” Carl asked.

“Not really, I wasn’t even planning on being here for the Holiday’s. Let alone there really isn’t much to do here during the winter.” She looked over at Alex, a small smirk spreading across her face. “I do know this one has a lot planned for us when we go to Russia.”

“Da, I do. Unfortunately I can’t tell anyone, it’ll ruin the surprise.”

Skylar crossed her arms. “Hmph.”

“You’ll find out soon, kotyonok.”

“Not soon enough.”

Alex laughed and kissed her temple again. “You are not very good with surprises.”

“She’s actually the worst.” said her father. “For her eighth birthday we told her we had a surprise for her. She kept bugging us for the whole week asking what it was. Never tell her you have a surprise for her, unless you want her asking what it is a bunch of times.”

“Mmm, I’m finding it out now.” He laughed. “She’ll find out very soon.”

Skylar glared at him for a brief second then turned to her dad. “So how’s the business and my pain in the ass sisters’?”

“The business is good, I suspect it’ll be busy until after new years. As for your sisters’ Valary and Evan are having some marital problems, other than that they’re good and Chloe and Jack are in the middle of planning their wedding, but they’re good too. They’re all excited to see you.”

“Val and Evan are having marital problems?” Her eyes widened a bit. “I never thought that day would come. They always seemed to have their marriage in working order, then again I don’t know what happens behind closed doors. And uh, do they have the date for their wedding yet? I need to know or we might not be able to make it.”

Skylar maneuvered herself so her legs draped over Alex’s thighs, resting her back against the arm of the couch. Her dad chuckled and shook his head at how relaxed she was, just like she never left home.

“They’ve actually been going through a rough patch for awhile now.” said Sarah. “They’ve been seeing a marriage counselor for almost a year. It seems to be helping, whatever the problem is. They don’t have a date set yet, you could always ask her tomorrow.”

“True and you don’t know what the problem is? Val usually tells you guys everything.”

“Not this time kiddo. She wants it to be kept between them.”

“Understandable.” She grabbed Alex’s hand that was resting on her lap and sighed. “I have a theory on why they might be having marital problems.”

“You do?” asked her parents in unison.

“I think it has to do with children.” She glanced over at Alex who had his full attention on her, then over to her parents’. “Val would have to put her career on hold to have one and she doesn’t want to, at least not yet. Let alone they’ll be turning 38 soon, that means more problems will arise when it comes to having said child the older they get. I think Evan wants to start a family while Val doesn’t and that’s what's causing the problem.”

“That does seem plausible, Val never really wanted kids in the first place.” said Sarah.

“Exactly, now I’m wondering if she lied to Evan about it. I mean Alex and I just started dating and we already talked about any future kids we might have.”

Skylar snorted when she saw the amused looks on her parents' faces, then shook her head and laughed.

“We have, along with all the other important stuff.”

“In your line of work, I can see why you would talk about that stuff so soon. Then again your mother and I talked about marriage, a family while we were still in school. It all depends on the couple.”

Skylar looked over at Alex, a smile etched on her face. “That’s true. We already plan on moving in together after the holiday’s, get off the base to have a lot more privacy.”

“Are you even aloud to do that?” Carl asked. “I thought the military had rules for that?”

“Da, they do. Rainbow isn’t your typical military, it’s an Anti-Terrorist organization that only deals with one thing. We don’t need to live on base if we don’t want to.”

Carl nodded his head. “You have to stay close to base right?”

“Yeah, we’ll still be in Hereford, not like we can move to London.”

“I’m sure Grace would love that, kotyonok.”

“She would!” Her face lit up at the thought of Grace at the warehouse, how she helped with loading up the supplies and became slightly attached to her. “She was the little girl we met at the warehouse. She said I was pretty and liked my jacket, then we talked about cats and how if my dad knew I had a boyfriend. Oh and that Alex was staring all googly eyed at me.”

“And she helped load up the supplies with us.” Alex chimed in.

“That’s cute! Like I said before Skylar, children always did gravitate to you.”

She rolled her eyes and laughed. “I know mom. I guess the experience will help with any of my future kids too.”

“That’s very true. You know you were the only one out of your sisters’ to want children, and someday I hope you do!”

Skylar could feel Alex’s eyes on her, no doubt with a soft look on his face. There was a part of her that wanted to tell her parents’ the truth, that her and Alex weren’t going to take things slow and they could for the most part be grandparents within the year. For some reason she couldn’t.

“I do want kids, I want a family someday and I hope it happens someday too. Just deciding when is the hard part.”

Sarah laughed and glanced between them. “There’s no perfect timing on starting a family Sky. It’s whenever you and Alex feel like you’re ready.”

Skylar glanced over at Alex to see the gleeful look on his face, or it could’ve been surprise, either way it was kind of cute to see him like that. She turned back to her parents with a small smile on her face.

“What if we never actually know?”

“Trust me you will.”

She nodded her head, then glanced back over to Alex. The little conversation they had earlier kept replaying in her mind, now she had some concerns running through it. She wanted kids, Alex’s kids to be exact, but now she wasn’t so sure she was fully ready for that now.

They spent another hour at her parents’ house talking about some embarrassing things that happened in her youth that she knows Alex will never let her live it down and other random things that happened in the past five months she’s been gone. All in all it turned out to be a good night.

Every since they got back to her apartment Alex could sense something was wrong. And now that they were cuddling in bed after having a very late dinner, he finally asked.

“Is everything okay kotyonok?”

She looked up, meeting his gaze. “Yeah, just thinking.” She leaned forward, giving him a chaste kiss. “I’m not sure if I’m going to stop my birth control now. A part of me wants too, and the other is being more realistic. What if I don’t know if I'm pregnant and something happens during a mission? I wouldn’t be able to forgive myself.”

“You never needed to stop your birth control in the first place, I don’t care how old I am when we welcome our first child into this world kotyonok. I’ll be ready whenever you are.”

“I know that.” She moved her head to rest her chin on her hand as she looked up at him. “I don’t know how to explain it.”

“You don’t need too, I think I understand.”

“Hmm, I love you!”

“I love you too kotyonok!”

Skylar slid her leg over his waist, straddling him. He sat up wrapping his hands around her hips and pulling her closer. She felt his breath on her neck as he kissed along her scar, forcing a soft moan from her lips.

“I really hope our sex life never dwindles, even after having kids.”

Alex stopped kissing her scar to gaze into her eyes. “Never! I’ll make love to you whenever, wherever you want kotyonok.”

“Same goes for you moya sladost'. Well for the most part.” She leaned down placing a firm kiss upon his lips. “There will be a week out of the month where we won’t be able too.”

“That still leaves three weeks for a ton of love making, kotyonok.”

He went back to kissing at her scar, her hands traveling up his back to grab a fistful of blonde hair. “I know and I love it!”

“One more round before bed?”

“Absolutely! Like I would say no to that.”

The sound of Skylar’s phone going off woke her from an almost dreamless sleep. With a blind hand she reached over to her nightstand to grab it. When she finally opened her eyes to look at the screen she saw a text message from her mom.

“We’re going to have postpone brunch until tomorrow, your dad had to work and so did Chloe. And I’m sure you and Alex still have jet lag, so get some sleep and I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“Is everything okay kotyonok?”

She set her phone back on the nightstand, turning over to see Alex awake. She gave him a small smile and a chaste kiss. “Yes, brunch got postponed until tomorrow. Dad has to work and so does Chloe. Now we have more time to recover from jet lag.”

He nodded his head, and placed his hand on her hip, trying to pull her closer to him. Skylar chuckled when he couldn’t and moved over to him, nuzzling her face against his chest as his arms wrapped around her.

“I forgot to tell you last night that you were right, about your parents’ accepting me.”

“I told you they would.” She chuckled. “They easily saw how much you love and care for me. And I’m sure the PDA helped too.”

“I do love and care for you kotyonok! I will until the day that I die.” He looked down at her and kissed her forehead. “You don’t mind the PDA, do you?”

“The same goes for you too моя милая! I love and care about you too, will for the rest of my days.” She leaned up a bit until their lips met in a more passionate kiss. “Not at all, I actually really like it.”

“Okay good, because I wasn’t going to stop anyways.”

“Good, I didn’t want you to stop anyways.” She softly laughed and gave him another quick kiss. “I just want to stay in bed and do nothing. It’s nice to have some time off.”

“It does feel nice.” He tightened his hold around her, nuzzling his face into her hair. “It’s even nicer that I get to spend it with my kotyonok.”

“What would you be doing right now if we weren’t together?”

“Working on my LMG, maybe go back home for a quick visit. Nothing special.” He sighed. “What would you be doing?”

“Relaxing on base, get some training in. Bugging Thatcher, who knows.” She looked up at him through hooded eyes, gently turning his head so he was looking at her. “I know you were lonely before and the holiday’s probably sucked because of that. You don’t have to worry about that anymore moya sladost', you have a family again.”

His eyes started to glisten as he gazed into her hazel eyes. A family! Something he really hasn’t had in years. Yes he considered Kapkan, Glaz and Fuze his family, but they had their own family. Parents, siblings, aunts and uncles who would love to see them for the holiday’s. Alex didn’t have that, not since both of his parents’ passed away years ago.

Now he did, all because of Skylar.

“I do, don’t I?”

“Yes you do! And next thing you know that family will grow, and that loneliness will become a distant memory.”

“That’s true kotyonok. But it already is becoming a distant memory.”

“Good!” She sat up, making sure the blankets didn’t fall down her naked frame. “You’ve been there for me since the beginning, and that goes both ways. If you ever want to talk or just lie in bed cuddling, I’m here!”

His face softened as he sat up, letting the blanket fall limp in his lap. His hands grabbed her hips, gently picking her up and setting her on his lap. “I know you are, and I’m sure days like that will come.”

“I know I never said it and I just wanted you to know! After we found out about my sister’s marital problems, I don’t want us to hide things from each other, even if we might hurt each other’s feelings here and there.”

“Kotyonok, I would never hide something from you. We can talk about anything and everything.” He grabbed the dog tag that laid limp against her chest, feeling the engravings under his finger. “You didn’t have to say it, I already knew.”

“Well I wanted too!” He let go of the dog tag, wrapping his arms around her waist. “As much as I love you and love being together, I wish we met sooner.”

“I feel the same kotyonok!” He moved them to a lying down position, with Skylar’s body resting on top of his.

She laid her head against his chest, hearing his calming heartbeat. She just wanted to stay there, forever in his arms. Not worry about work, or other priorities, just them and a warm bed. This was perfect.

“What was your mom’s name moya sladost'?”

He rubbed his hands up and down her back, like he did every time they laid like this. It was comforting to the both of them. “Marianna!”

Skylar heard a faintness of sadness when he spoke her name, wishing he still had her in his life.

“Then I know exactly what we should name our daughter.” She lifted her head off his chest, a soft, warm smile on her face.

“You would name our daughter after my mama?” He scanned her face, looking for any signs she might change her mind.

She leaned forward, giving him a chaste kiss. “I can see how much you miss her and I would love to name our daughter after her. It’s a beautiful name!”

“Thank you, kotyonok!”

“You’re welcome moya sladost'!”

The rest of the day and well into the night was spent lying in bed under the covers in each other’s arms. Watching movies, eating and a few rounds of very passionate sex. Lounging around was doing well for their tired bodies, and spending it with each other was the icing on the cake. The beginning of their vacation was looking promising, and it could only get better from there.

Chapter Text

The sun was peeking through the purple curtains, illuminating the room in bright rays of sunlight. It was early morning, they still had a few hours to kill before heading over to Skylar’s parents’ house for brunch. Now they were just lying in bed, both on their phones.

Alex was scrolling through whatever website he uses to look for new LMGs and Skylar was checking her social media and having a small conversation with Ela. Apparently there were already rumors going around about her and Alex, and Ela wanted to know if it was true. Now she was just waiting on her reply back after telling her yes, it is.

“There’s already rumors going around base about us.” Skylar chuckled and turned to him, seeing his brow raised, but still on his phone. “Ela just asked if we’re together.”

“Who do you think started it, kotyonok?”

“Probably big mouth Thermite. He was most likely talking to someone and blurted it out.”

“Hmm. What did Ela say?”

“I don’t know, she hasn’t answered back yet.” Skylar put her phone down on the bed, then wiggled herself under Alex’s arm, watching him scroll through the website. “I could get used to this. Lying in bed all day.”

“We shouldn’t though, we’ll be back to work before we know it!”

She turned to look at him, eyes narrowing at him. “You just had to ruin it, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t ruin anything kotyonok. I was just saying…”

“We shouldn’t get used to it. I know but I miss being lazy and not having something to do everyday. We’re either training or out on a mission and I’m just tired.”

She didn’t mean to sound so whiny, it was the truth, she was tired. Physically and mentally and needed this break. And as much as she loves her job, the grind can become too much for her.

He set his phone down, moving a strand of hair behind her ear. His hand fell down to cup her cheek, caressing the skin beneath his thumb. “I didn’t know work was affecting you this badly.”

“It’s...not.” She leaned into his touch, a small smile forming on her face. “I just wish we could have a day off where we do nothing. Missing one day of training isn’t going to kill us.”

“Why don’t you talk to Six about it?”

“Maybe I will!” She draped herself over his torso, laying her head on his chest. “Hopefully she’ll consider it. Or we could have the weekend off, that’d be better.”

“I don’t mind either way.” He smirked at her. “And since my precious little kotyonok hates training so much, maybe I can help with that.”

Skylar let out a laugh, propping her head up on her elbow. “We would never get a full training session in, you know that. We would fool around and then probably have sex right on the mat. Regarding if anyone was still in the gym.”

Her phone went off with a ding, moving slightly off his torso to grab it, then settled back down. On her lock screen she saw a message from Ela.

“I always knew you were into older men Sky! And I give major kudos for tying down a man like Tachanka. I want to hear everything when you get back to base.”

Skylar scoffed and shook her head. “I’ll take that as a compliment. I have so much to tell you, also who started the rumor? And who else knows?” She clicked her phone shut and turned her attention back on him. “It was Ela.”

“You make it sound like having sex in the gym is a bad thing.” He chuckled. “What’d she say?”

“It’s not a bad thing, not very sanitary. Just that she always knew I was into older men, that she gives me major kudos for tying a man like you down.” She chuckled at that. It was a little miraculous that she was the one to make Lord Tachanka stop being single, and think about the future. “And she wants to know everything when we get back to base.”

His hand slid over her hip, resting on her ass. Well more like kneading it. “Is Ela saying I’m whipped?”

“Mmm.” She made herself look like it was a more complex question than it was, that it needed more thinking too. “Yes!”

“Good because I am! Anyone who thinks being whipped is bad, doesn’t care about their significant other.”

She leaned over, crushing their lips together. While still being entangled in the kiss, she maneuvered herself so she was straddling him. He hummed into the unexpected kiss, sliding his hands down her sides. A moment later she broke it, gazing into his blue eyes.

“I love you!”

“I love you too!” He sat up, pulling her a little bit closer to him. “And nothing is going to change that.”

“Even when have like ten kids?”

“Ten?” His eyes widened, making her laugh. “That’s a lot of kids, kotyonok.” His brows furrowed in a line, eyes narrowing at her. “Of course I’m going to love you when we have kids. What kind of question is that?”

“I’m joking on both. Ten kids is too much for me and I know you’ll still love me when we do have kids. I just wanted to see your reaction.”

He shook his head, a small smile still formed on his face. Skylar did have a strange sense of humor. “Good. Ten is a lot and we would have to start now if we wanted that many. You did say I was old and wanted our children to spend a good few, long decades with me.”

“First of all we don’t have a set limit on how many kids we want. And two, yes I did say that. It’s not my fault you were born twenty-six years before me.”

“It was my parents’.” He laughed and kissed her nose. “I know we don’t have a set limit on kids yet, kotyonok. You were the one to say you’ll know how many we’ll have once you hold our first born.”

“I think I might recall saying that.” Her phone set of another ding, making her lean over to grab it.

“Thermite was talking with Smoke and mentioned it. Everyone that’s left on the base knows. Smoke, Thatcher, Lion, Mira, who happened to be very happy about it. She thinks you guys make a cute couple. Jackal and Sledge. I’m sure you know everyone will know by the time vacation ends.”

“I really don’t like Thatcher and Smoke knowing and I’m going to murder Thermite when I get back.” She closed her phone again and groaned. “I was right it was Jordan that started it. And everyone still on base knows now.”

“You don’t sound too happy about that kotyonok?” He moved a strand of hair that fell on her face behind her ear.

“I’m not upset that people know, they were going to find out eventually anyways. It wasn’t his decision to tell anyone, it was ours.”

“You’re right, it wasn’t Jordan’s place to tell anyone about us. What’s done is done, no point in getting worked up over it.”

Skylar let out a sigh, running her hand over his bare chest. “You just accept things, so easily. For some reason I can’t.”

He placed his hand on the small of her back, flipping their position. He gently set her down on the bed, moving the strands of hair that fell in her face. “You don’t have to. I’ve lived long enough to know when to accept something and when I shouldn’t. Besides I don’t mind my kotyonok complaining.”

“That’s good because I tend to complain a lot.” She laughed and leaned up and placed a chaste kiss on his lips. “Well when there’s something to complain about.”

“Like when Jordan outed our relationship?”

“Exactly.” Alex laughed and leaned down to give her a quick kiss before getting off her. She moved onto her side, propping her head up with her elbow. “I would text him and yell at him for it, but it’s not worth the energy.”

“It really isn’t kotyonok.”

She draped herself over him again and propped her head up with her elbow. “Anyways, so far Thatcher, Smoke, Mira, Ela, Lion, Jackal and Sledge know about us. Smoke and Thatcher are the ones I’m worried about.”

He placed his hand on her hip and the other held his phone. He opened his camera, taking a quick pic of her laying across him. “I’m sure they’re not gonna care kotyonok.”

“You better not show anyone that picture Alex.” She narrowed her eyes and laughed. “Well Smoke will become annoyingly nose-y and it’s just weird Thatcher knows. Mira is very happy about us though, she says we make a cute couple!”

A small smirk started to form across his face, and the hand that resided on her hip slowly started to move down closer to her ass. “What picture do you speak of kotyonok?”

“The one you just took of me Alexsandr!”

“Awe, why not? It’s cute.”

“You know why.” She chuckled. “Would you like me showing some risky picture of you to my friends?”

“Only Jordan, I’m positive I’m bigger than he is and I want him to be jealous.”

Skylar sighed through her nose and just narrowed her eyes at him. “I’m going to forget you ever said that.” She glanced over at the clock, another sigh leaving her lips. “We should start to get ready.” She got off the bed, grabbing a clean pair of underwear and a loose fitting shirt. “I’m gonna take a shower...alone this time.”

Alex crossed his arms and scoffed. He watched her walk into the bathroom, closing the door behind her. He leaned down, finding his discarded boxers and pulled them on. A shower was in the itinerary for him as well, he didn’t want to go to her parents’ house smelling like sex.

He pushed himself off the bed and grabbed his bag off the floor. Setting it back down on the bed he pulled out a fresh pair of boxers, socks, a pair of jeans and a plain black t-shirt, setting them aside he sat back down on the bed, eyes glancing back at the door while he searched for a little black box in his bag. When he found it he pulled it out.

A small smile started to form as he opened it, seeing the diamond ring staring back at him. An engagement ring was a fairly new phenomenon in Russia, normally you would just exchange wedding rings, which happened to be golden bands. He liked it, liked the idea and the meaning behind it. It was a symbol for two people to share, a symbol of their dedication, love and commitment to each other.

Now he just needed to figure out the right time to ask her father for her hand, without her hearing and find the perfect time to ask her if she’ll marry him.

Every time he thought about that, his heart would race. With fear and excitement. Asking her father for her hand would be a step away from asking her, but there was still a small chance he could say no and that frightened him.

He closed the small box and put it back in his bag, then set the bag back on the floor. It wasn’t that long ago where marriage was a foreign subject to him, now he openly talks about it. Like Skylar said before, finding the right person does change you.

Grabbing his phone he leaned back against the headboard of the bed, he continued scrolling through the site he was on, seeing if there were any Degtyaryov he doesn’t own for sale. For the most part he own the majority he was seeing and the few he didn’t were on the more price-y side. And he wasn’t sure if he wanted to spend that kind of money.

The bathroom door opened and Skylar came out wrapped in a towel with the clothes she brought in there in her hand. She tossed the clothes on the bed and went to her dresser, she pulled out a pair of black jeans, and a white cami, then went to her closet and pulled out a purple plaid shirt.

“I was surprised you didn’t join me. I was half expecting you too.” She sat down next to him, adjusting the towel around her.

“You said you didn’t want me too.” He set his phone down in the nightstand and sat up more.

“Yeah, but you didn’t have to listen.”

“So you would’ve been okay with me joining you then?” He quirked a brow and crossed his arms.

“Yes. I would.”

“Then why’d you say no in the first place?” He threw his hands up in the air and let out a small laugh.

“I don’t know, to see if you would actually listen.” She shrugged her shoulders. “I was hoping you wouldn’t.”

Alex’s lips slightly parted and he scooted over to her, hand sliding up her thigh, hiking up the towel that covered her. “Ah, my kotyonok wanted another round, didn’t she?”

He didn’t wait for an answer, he just grabbed her hand and pulled her back into the bathroom.

They were both dressed now and Skylar was letting her hair air dry which wasn’t the best idea during the winter when she has to leave her house and bare the cold. But they still had an hour left and her hair should be completely dry by then.

As they waited they decided to spend their time downstairs in the kitchen, that’s when Skylar saw the little surprise her mom left them. She pulled off the tinfoil and saw the cookies, grabbing two she walked back over to the counter and handed one to Alex.

“Here. You need to try these.” She took a bite, moaning in satisfaction.

He grabbed the cookie from her hand, looking down at it. “Are these the ones your mom makes?”

She nodded and took another bite, then watched him. He took a bite, eyes slightly widening as he looked down at it in his hands. “I know!”

“These are delicious, do you think she can make some to take with us to Russia?”

“Yes, she loves to bake so it won’t be a problem.” She watched him glanced over at the plate behind her and chuckled. “How about after brunch at my parents’ house we just spend the evening inside watching movies and eating the rest of those cookies?”

“Sounds perfect, kotyonok!”

Skylar pulled in on the street her parents’ lived on, parking in front of their house. That’s when she noticed her sister’s car parked in front of her. “Well Val and Evan are here. Not sure about Chloe and Jackson yet.” She looked around trying to see if she can see their car. “Don’t see their car.”

“We are early, kotyonok.” He undid his seatbelt, as Skylar shut off the car and undid hers. “Or they could already be here, maybe they bought a new car?”

“Good point. I guess we’ll find out when we go in.”

Alex chuckled and both of them got out of the car. A cold breeze blew by, making Skylar shiver and jog to the porch. She turned around to see him shaking his head and casually walking up the porch steps. She smiled up at him, then opened the front door and walked in.

He closed the door behind him while Skylar took off her jacket and hung it up. “Let me take yours.”

Alex shrugged his jacket off and handed it to her. “Thank you, kotyonok!”

“You’re welcome moya sladost'!”

They both laughed and headed towards the kitchen. It was a little too quiet for Skylar’s liking, so she knew someone was going to try and scare her. “Don’t even think about scaring me. I have a Tachanka and I know how to use him.”

“You have a what now?” said Evan.

Skylar chuckled and rounded the corner, seeing Evan sitting at the table with a raised brow. Next to him was her sister, but no signs of Chloe and Jackson. And her mom and dad were by the stove. “No Chloe yet?”

“They’ll be here later. Now are you gonna tell me what a Tachanka is?”

She didn’t say anything, just pointed at Alex. Evan just glanced up to him and back to her. “No Skylar that’s your boyfriend.”

She snorted and sat down, Alex following suit. “I know and his callsign is Tachanka. But a real Tachanka is a horse drawn machine gun. Anyways, Alex, Evan. Evan, Alex.”

Evan reached his hand over the table to shake his. “Nice to meet you.”

“You too.”

“And this is my very quiet sister Valary. Why are you so quiet?”

“I’m working.” Val lifted her head up from her phone, giving Alex a small smile and shook his hand. “Nice to meet you.”

Skylar could sense something was off by how she said ‘nice to meet you’, but didn’t want to start anything so she dropped it. Alex moved Skylar’s chair closer to him, wrapping his arm around her shoulders.

“How’s the construction business going?”

“Slow with it being winter. How’s your work life?”

“Busy. We’re either training or on a mission. I’m just happy we have some time off.” She glanced over at Alex with a small smile on her face, hand resting on his thigh.

“I bet, I couldn’t do what you guys do. It has to be scary.”

“It can be, especially when things don’t go as planned. But you can’t lose focus, lose focus and you could die. Or worse get one of your teammates killed. There’s also a lot of good things that come with this job too. I love seeing a hostage I just helped rescue being reunited with loved ones and how happy and relieved they are.”

“That was one.”

Skylar looked over at her sister with a raised brow. “Huh?”

Valary looked up, placing her phone on the table. “You said there were a lot of good things that come with your job. You only said one, what are the others?”

“Here we go.” She sighed through her nose and glared over at Valary. “Do you even realize what I do for a living or do you just think we put our lives on the line for no reason?”

“Don’t you?” She leaned back and crossed her arms, Evan glancing over at her with a worried look on his face.

“No, we don’t. Rainbow is an anti-terrorist organization, we stop terrorists from setting off bombs, saving hostages and arresting or neutralizing terrorist. Skylar and I make the world a safer place by what we do.”

Skylar looked over at Alex, a small, proud smile spreading across her face, but that smile didn’t last long.

“Neutralize? As in kill.”

“Yes Valary I’ve killed people, Alex has killed people. Who happened to want to kill us too.”

“Will you two knock it off.” Her dad looked over at them with an annoyed look on his face. “Valary your sister is only here for the week, could you please act civil?”

“Fine.”

“Thank you.” He shook his head and went back to helping with the food.

Alex grabbed her hand, gently squeezing it. Making sure she was okay. She looked over at him with a small smile, indicating she was. That’s when she got an idea. “Mom, how long until we eat?”

“About twenty minutes.”

“Okay.” She got up from her chair, and looked down at Alex. “Come on, I want to show you something.”

“Okay, kotyonok!”

He got up and followed Skylar. They headed upstairs, on the wall leading up the stairs he glanced at the pictures. Most of them were when Valary, Chloe and Skylar were little, some more recent. When he got to the top of the stairs he saw a purple bedroom door with Skylar’s name on it.

“I take it you’re showing me your old bedroom, kotyonok?”

“Yes.” She stopped and turned to him. “It hasn’t changed since I left for the marines. And I wanted to get away from my sister for the time being.”

“Is she always like that?”

“Only when my work is brought up. She hated that I joined and has tried everything she can to make me retire. Hasn’t worked in her favor. But seeing you call her out on her bullshit was nice to see.”

She turned around, opening her door to her old childhood bedroom. It brought back so many memories. The nights sitting at her desk doing homework or drawing, watching movies with friends and all the time her and her ex spent in here. It was a bit bittersweet.

“I should’ve known your bedroom would’ve been purple.” He chuckled. “That must be annoying, and no one disrespects you in front of me, I don’t care who they are. What about your other sister? Was she happy you joined?”

“Of course, purple is my favorite color.” She sat down on the bed, Alex following suit. “I should’ve told you about that, how Valary hates me being in the military. But Chloe had her concerns in the beginning, like my parents’ did. Now she’s fine with it.”

Alex looked around her room, seeing a few posters hanging up on the wall and on the window seat a bunch of stuffed animals. “If you didn’t feel comfortable telling me, that’s fine, I'm not going to force you to tell me something. That is something she’s going to have to deal with, it’s not your problem, kotyonok.”

“I know you wouldn’t, maybe I just thought it would be different this time. And that’s true, it is her problem.” She looked over at the window seat, a small smile began to spread across her face. “I used to spend so much time sitting on that window seat, looking out the window while I drew. Music going on in the background.”

“Simplistic. Sounds just like my kotyonok!” He leaned over, placing a passionate kiss upon her lips, hands traveling down her body.

Skylar smiled into the kiss and giggled. “We shouldn’t, but..” She broke the kiss, walking over to the bedroom door, closing it and locking it. “A quickie wouldn’t hurt. Plus it’s a turn on, you fucking me in my old bedroom with my parents’, sister and brother-in-law all downstairs.”

Alex stood up, walking over to her. His hand found the button to her jeans, easily undoing it, then he found the metal tag of the zipper and pulled it down. He spun her around, bending her over her desk as he yanked her pants and underwear down to her ankles.

She looked over her shoulder, seeing him undo his pants and pulling them down far enough to get as his groin. When his cock sprang free from its restraints, she licked her lips at how hard he already was, and the slight ache between her legs grew.

He grabbed her hip, sinking himself into her with a slow thrust of his hips. Both of them moaning as he bottomed out.

He grabbed both of her hips, beginning a slow and sensual pace. Skylar leaned her forehead down on her arm, her free hand grabbing the edge of the desk. She didn’t want to be too loud, but the harder Alex was pounding into her, the harder it was.

His arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her up against his chest. Her hand grabbed onto his thigh while the other onto the arm that was wrapped around her waist. He leaned down, nipping at her ear. “You feel so good, kotyonok!”

“Oh I’m gonna come.”

His hand traveled down between her legs, and he whispered in her ear. “Then come for me my kotyonok.”

And just like that her legs began to tremble and she let out a cry as her walls clenched around his cock. Alex, holding her in a firm grasp as she rode hers out.

A few thrusts later, he stilled and came with a groan. Skylar stopped shaking and her breathing was labored, she steadied herself against the desk as Alex pulled out. She leaned down, pulling up and buttoned her pants again, then turned around to look at him with a satisfied smile.

“That was amazing, moya sladost'!”

“It was, kotyonok!” He tucked himself back into his pants and leaned down, giving her a few tame kisses. “We should head down soon.”

“We still have a little bit of time, and I want to go down stairs looking the least disheveled.”

She walked back over to the bed and sat down, Alex following right behind her. He sat down next to her, hand on her thigh. She liked how he always needed to be touching her, whether it was his leg right against hers, his arm around her shoulders or a hand on the thigh, it felt nice. Nice that someone actually wanted her so badly. It seemed like a fairy tale.

“I’m not sure if all the sex we’re having is good or bad.” Skylar laughed and looked over at him. “Like I feel I’m gonna have withdrawals when it’s that time of the month again.”

“Kotyonok, it’ll only be for a week tops. Then we can get back to the fun. And don’t hesitate on asking me for anything, chocolate, a blanket, a hot water bottle, whatever you want, I’ll get it for you.”

She moved over to him, linking their arms together and resting her head on his arm. “I know you will. Sometimes they can get really bad, that I get laid out for the week. It’s not fun when we have to work. I should also warn you that I get major baby fever.”

“Then I’ll make sure my kotyonok is a comfortable as she can be.” He raised his brow, a small smirk spreading across his face. “Baby fever hmm?”

“Good! Yes, it’s not my fault, it's all the hormones.”

Alex laughed, and kissed her head. “Don’t worry kotyonok, I’ll give you that child soon.”

She turned her head to look up at him, eyes sparkling and she had a gleeful look on her face. “Really? How soon?”

“Whenever the time is right.”

“That’s rude.” She unlinked their arms and stood up. “We should probably head down.”

She started to walk away, only she was stopped when Alex grabbed her hand, pulling her into a firm kiss. Seconds later he broke it, looking down at her. “You know I would give you that child in a heartbeat, kotyonok. But only when you are fully ready for it.”

“I know, maybe just talking about it so much has made me a little bit more baby fever-ish.” She wrapped her arms around his neck, giving him a peck on the lips. “I just can’t wait until we bring the first little Senaviev into this world. But there’s still stuff we need to talk about before that happens.”

“Like what?”

“Later, when we’re back at my place.”

Alex nodded and she let go of him, grabbing his hand and lead him back downstairs. They took their seats at the kitchen table, the smell of Belgian waffles, bacon and eggs filled the room, forcing a grumble from Skylar’s stomach.

Alex turned to her with a raised brow and amused look on his face. “Hungry kotyonok?”

“Yes.”

“It’ll be ready in a minute Sky.” said her dad.

The sound of the front door opening interrupted everyone’s conversation, then that all too familiar voice was heard.

“Where’s me little sis?” Chloe rounded the corner, spotting Skylar automatically. She wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug. “I’ve missed you.”

“I’ve missed you too Chloe.”

Chloe let her go and looked over at Alex. “And you must be the boyfriend? Alex is your name, right?”

“Da, I am and it is.”

Chloe chuckled at how blunt he was and held her hand out. “Nice to meet you, I’m glad someone can handle my obnoxious little sister.”

He shook her hand and glanced over at Skylar. “Nice to meet you too and I don’t think she’s obnoxious.”

“Hmm, give it time.” She turned over to the man behind her, and with one look Alex could tell he was a businessman of some sort, they all carried themselves the same way. “And this is my fiancé Jackson.”

Skylar watched Jackson fiddled with his hands before shaking Alex’s hand that he held out. She could already tell Jackson was intimidated by Alex, it made her laugh. She wondered if it was because he was military just like her or was it because he was Russian? Or maybe it was the fact he was a lot more burly than everyone here. Either way it was still funny.

Chloe took a seat next to Skylar and Jackson the seat in between Chloe and Valary. As Skylar looked around the table, seeing everyone with their significant other, she couldn’t help the small smile spread across her face. The family was all together!

After they all got a plate and sat back down, Skylar grabbed some strawberries and powdered sugar, adding them onto her waffles. Things were quiet as everyone ate, but Skylar could see the glances from Valary, making her quite annoyed.

“Mom do you think you could bake some more cookies before we leave for Russia? You have a new fan of your baking.” She smirked and glanced over at Alex.

“I can do that, and I do?” She looked over at Alex as he finished chewing.

“They’re delicious, best cookie I ever had in all honesty.”

“The best? Well that means a lot, thank you Alex!”

“You’re welcome Sarah!”

Skylar tried to hide the big grin that started to spread across her face, seeing Alex kind of kiss up to her parents’ was funny, cute and heartfelt. She loved seeing him try to win them over.

She glanced over at Valary to see her roll her eyes over the small conversation between Alex and their mom. She put her fork down on her plate and looked over at her. “Valary can I talk to you, privately?”

“Can it wait? I don’t want my waffles to get cold?”

She grabbed her fork again, fiddling with her eggs. “Fine.”

Chloe glanced between Skylar and Valary, sensing the tension between them. “So Sky, I would love to hear about how you two started this blossoming romance.”

Skylar whined and gently tossed her fork on her plate, hearing the metal clank against the class plate. “Okay fine and since you’re all here I won’t have to repeat myself. It started during the holiday party where we did shots and then snuck away. We fooled around in the snow and eventually made it to his room. I woke up in the middle of the night, kinda freaked over it, left and then avoided him for two days. When Ash and I were going shopping, I kind of ran into him and Thermite in the hallway and later that I told him the truth and the morning after we were together. That’s pretty much sums it up.”

“Wow.” Chloe shook her head. “Well there’s a story to tell your future kids. Mommy was an idiot and avoided your father for a few days because I freaked out after we had sex.”

She retrieved her fork from her plate, taking a bite of her eggs. “I’m never gonna live this down.”

“No you’re not.” Chloe chuckled and took another bite of her waffle.

“Yay.” She rolled her eyes and chuckled all the same. “It is a good story to tell our future kids though. When they’re old enough to understand.” She glared over at Chloe, seeing the confused look on her face.

“What?”

“Oh c’mon you know you would mention that story by the time that child is like two.”

“It’s not like they’re gonna remember Skylar.” She glanced between her and Alex, then took a sip of her water. “Wait? You said our kids, does that mean you guys plan on it? I know you’re an adult and can choose for yourself but isn’t it kind of early in the relationship to be talking about that?”

“For a lot of people, yes it would. For us, no. So far we’ve talked about marriage, a family, we want both someday. Whether it be a year or five from now. We put our lives on the line every time we have a mission, and what if one of us dies and we’re stuck living with the what ifs? We don’t want that, yet there’s still a lot we need to discuss before we even decided to bring a child into this world.”

“That also shows you both are serious about the relationship. But when you get married, I call dibs on being maid of honor.”

Skylar looked down at her lap, avoiding eye contact with her. “Yeah about that..”

“You already chose someone? Who? And why?”

“Uhm Ash. Because she’s my best friend?” She didn’t like the look she was getting from Chloe, so she set her fork down on her plate and slide over to sit on Alex’s lap. “I don’t like the look you’re giving me.”

Chloe snorted seeing Skylar sitting on Alex’s lap like a little child. “You could probably kill me with your pinky finger yet you climb onto your boyfriends lap for protection from someone who can’t even open a jar.”

“I could, I just don’t trust you and mom and dad wouldn’t be too happy if I did.”

“Good point. Now are you gonna sit and eat or are you just gonna sit on his lap for the rest of brunch?”

“Maybe both.” She got off his lap and went back to her seat, hearing a small whine of disapproval from Alex. It made her chuckled and patted his thigh a few times.

The rest of brunch went well, everyone was talking about the past five months and what had happened since Skylar left so she could get caught up and vice versa. Well the stuff Skylar could tell them about, mission stuff was classified.

Eventually everyone moved to the living room, leaving a pile of dishes in the sink. While everyone talked Skylar and Valary made their way upstairs for their little chat that Skylar was dreading to have. They went into the first room they saw which happened to be Valary’s old room, how convenient.

As they entered the room, Skylar shut the door behind them for more privacy while Valary sat down on the bed.

“I know you don’t like him.” She crossed her arms and leaned against the desk in her room.

“Your much older boyfriend? No I don’t.”

“You don’t even know him.” Skylar scoffed and shook her head. “Why don’t you like him? That’s what I want to know.”

“He’s way too old for you Skylar, you couldn’t have chosen someone younger? And I guarantee he’s not in the relationship for what he says he is.”

“I don’t care about his age and neither does mom and dad, they know Alex cares for me.” She let her arms fall to her side, grabbing onto the edge of the desk. “And what is that supposed to mean? No, wait, you probably think he’s only in it for the sex. You’re wrong.”

“Does he actually care for you? Or is he playing you? Oh we’ll see about that.”

“Yes. He. Does. God compared to the last guy, Alex treats me like a queen. He’s always there for me, never pushing me to do something I don’t want to do.” She pushed herself off the desk, heading for the door. “I love him Valary, and I do plan on marrying him and having his children in the future, so you better get used to him being around.”

Skylar left the room and headed back downstairs where everyone was. Walking into the living room she sat down next to Alex, bringing her knees up to her chest and sighed. She wrapped her arms around her legs, resting her head on her knees.

Alex looked over at her, eyes softening. He placed his hand on her back, gently rubbing up and down in a soothing manner. “Kotyonok, are you okay?”

She turned her head to look at him, but she didn’t answer him, just shook her head.

He moved closer to her, leaning down to place a few tame kisses on her neck. “Does it have to do with the talk you and your sister had?”

“Yes, I just want to go home now.” She lifted her head and let go of her legs, sighing.

“We can if you want? I do not mind, all I care about is you feeling better.”

“Okay, I think getting away from Valary is for the best.” She stood up, glancing over at everyone else. “We’re heading out.”

“Why?” Chloe whined.

“Let’s just say I don’t want to be around our sister right now. I think it’s best I leave before things get really out of hand.”

“Figures she would start something and I’m sure I know what it’s about.” She stood up and hugged Skylar goodbye. “I’m not working tomorrow, why don’t we spend a few hours together tomorrow? Just the two of us.”

Skylar let her go, giving her a warm smile. “I think I’d like that.” She turned to Alex, her smile growing. “Will you be okay being by yourself for a few hours, моя милая?”

“Yes kotyonok, I’ll be fine.” He shot her a glare, only to chuckle nonetheless.

“If he doesn’t want to spend it alone at your place he’s more than welcome to help me tomorrow. I have shipment coming in and two people will get it done faster than one. It’s up to him if he wants too.” said Carl

Alex stood up, placing his hand on the small of Skylar’s back and looked over at him. “I wouldn’t mind, gives me something to do while she’s gone.”

Skylar turned to him, raising her brow. “You said you would be fine with me being gone.”

“I did and I will be fine. Going with Carl will just give me something to do rather than look for a new LMG.”

Her mouth fell open, looking at him like he just told her the most magnificent thing in the world. “You don't want to look for a new LMG? Alex are you feeling okay?”

“I’m feeling fine kotyonok. There hasn’t been any new ones lately, I’ll wait a few days.”

Skylar nodded her head, then turned back to Chloe. “Text me later with the plans.”

“I will.”

After they all said their goodbyes Skylar and Alex left the house. Once they got into the car Skylar let the door close by itself and sighed, gripping the steering wheel to make her knuckles white.

“Tell me what she said, kotyonok.” He placed his hand on her cheek, moving so she was looking at him. “It’s clearly bothering you, just tell me.”

“She thinks you’re in it for the sex and nothing else.”

“You know that’s not true Skylar, you know that I love you.” His hand fell from her face, gently grabbing her hand.

“I know, I know.” She gave him a small smile. “It still hurt though, I found someone who’s actually good and it means nothing to her.”

“Come here.” He brought her head to his chest in a bear like hug, rubbing up and down her back. “Don’t worry about this now kotyonok. She’ll just have to get used to me being around.”

She chuckled and looked up at him through hooded eyes. “I told her that and I told her that I loved you and plan on being married and having your kids someday.”

He gave her a passionate kiss before letting her go. “I’m sure she was happy to hear that.” He chuckled.

“I don’t know, I left before she could give an answer. Probably not though.” She pulled away, starting the car. “At least Chloe likes you. Jackson on the other hand is completely intimidated by you, which is funny.”

“Don’t you find it ironic your sister is gonna marry a guy who’s name is your last name?” He chuckled. “I noticed that too, he seemed to ease up a bit during brunch.”

“Yeah, there was an ongoing joke when they first got together. It died down now, unfortunately.” She put the car in drive and headed out. “That’s good, but it would be funny to see him be afraid of you for no reason other than you’re burly.”

All Alex did was laugh and intertwined their hands together.

Back at Skylar’s place they ended up lying on the couch under a big blanket, watching a movie and eating the rest of her mom’s cookies. Her leg was over his lap and head resting on his chest. Her couch wasn’t big enough for two people to be lying on it, but they made due.

During the movie Alex would leave a few kisses on the top of her head and forehead, and rubbed his hand up and down her arm, like he was still trying to make her feel better from the argument she had with her sister. But there was still one thing on his mind, and that was what she meant when she said they still needed to talk about some more things before any children came into the picture.

“Kotyonok?” He sat up slightly, moving her up with him.

She looked up at him through hooded eyes. “Yeah?”

“What did you mean about we had more stuff to discuss before we have kids?”

He sat up, resting his back on the arm of the couch as she sat up, making sure the blanket was still covering them she grabbed his hand, holding it between hers. This wasn’t even a conversation she should be nervous about, yet she was.

“A few things. One would be where do we want to raise our family. Our work base is in England, I’m from the U.S and you’re from Russia. Do we just stay in Hereford or nearby and visit between the other two countries. Or do we live somewhere else?”

Alex started to contemplate her question. Truthfully he never even thought about that, home has always been a military base to him and that’s no way to raise a family. But there was still a part of him that wanted to raise his family back in Saint Petersburg.

“I never thought about that. Wouldn’t the smart thing to do would be to stay in Hereford? And split our time between there and our native countries?”

“That’s what I was thinking, it would be easier. I also want to talk to Six to see if we can work something out where we don’t get called on a lot for missions or to at least have one of us home with the kids.” Her eyes averted to his chest, fiddling with the blanket in her hand. “I think I’m gonna retire once I find out I’m pregnant.”

He chuckled, forcing her to look up at him with a raised brow. “I knew you would kotyonok! If you want to be a stay at home mom, you know I’ll be okay with that. I would rather have our children being with their mama than a nanny.”

“I know you would be fine with it, in my head I feel like I’m having doubts about it. Like I’m not sure if I want to, but I know once I’m holding that child I know my decision will be the right one. I don’t know, it’s weird.”

She chuckled again and moved over to straddle him, laying her head on his chest as his arms wrapped around her. Both of them sighing in content.

“Kotyonok, you’re the most loving person I ever met! And I know our children will have the most loving mama in the world!”

“That’s because I was saving all my love for a specific person named Alexsandr Senaviev!” She lifted her head off his chest and gave him a chaste kiss. “They’re also gonna have the most caring and understanding papa!”

He leaned forward, crushing their lips into a passionate kiss and he pulled her closer to him. When he broke it, he looked into her eyes with nothing but love and admiration that sent a wave of bliss through Skylar’s body.

“I’m never going to take your love for granted, I’m never going to take you for granted! I will always be here for you kotyonok, through thick and thin.” He wrapped her in a bear hug, nuzzling his face in her hair. “Ya lyublyu tebya vsem serdtsem!”

Her bottom lip began to quiver and tears started to well in her eyes. For the majority of her dating life, her love was taken for granted by men who only wanted one thing from her. It made her guarded and she was afraid to show how much she could love someone because she knew it would never be returned.

She never understood why she attracted a certain type of person, the ones who acted like they truly cared only to show their true intentions week into the relationship. Now to hear Alex say those made her feel so emotional.

She pulled away from him, wiping the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand and softly laughed. “Thank you моя милая! I-I needed to hear that.”

“You’re welcome kotyonok!” He gave her another chaste kiss and moved a strand of hair behind her ear. “I know right now our relationship is nearly perfect, and the longer we’re together, the more things will change. There will be days where we argue and fight and I just want you to know, no matter how bad it gets I will never stop fighting to keep us together.”

The tears quickly came back and Skylar threw her hands around his neck and began to sob. He quickly wrapped his arms around her, rubbing up and down her back and gently swaying her. He closed his eyes, trying to fight his own tears that welled in his eyes. Seeing her upset will never be something he’ll get used to, but seeing her completely break down was horrific. It made him want to find every single person that hurt her and show them why that was the wrong choice.

It might seem hypocritical since he knows he’ll hurt her eventually. It’s inevitable, but he’ll do whatever he can to fix it because Skylar has given him the one thing he thought he had lost. A family!

Skylar started to calm down a bit, her sobs became more of sniffles and she stayed where she was. Safe in his arms. Truthfully she felt a little embarrassed to look at him now, after breaking down over something like that.

“I never told you this kotyonok, after you joined Rainbow I went to Six to see if I could mentor you instead of Thatcher. She said no.”

She laughed and pulled away, wiping the tears from her eyes. “You did?”

“Da, it was the perfect opportunity to get close to you. It didn’t work out in my favor.” He gently grabbed her hips, holding them as he maneuvered them into a lying down position that was comfortable for the both of them.

“That would have been nice if you were my mentor, I wonder why Six said no?” She sniffled and wiped some more tears from her eyes.

“She said you were already used to Thatcher and giving you to someone else would make it more difficult.” He scoffed and mumbled something in Russian under his breath. She couldn’t tell what he said but by the sound of his voice it was most likely a bunch of swears.

“I think she knew your true intentions moya sladost'.” She laughed.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about kotyonok. My intentions were always good.” He slid his hand under the band of her pants and grabbed her ass, hearing her gasp in response.

“Sure they were.” She rolled her eyes and laugh. “Are you going to keep your hand in my pants?”

“Da.” He looked down at her, with a raised brow. “Do you want me to remove it?”

“Only for a moment, I need to do something.”

He removed his hand and Skylar got up off the couch. She unbuttoned her pants, sliding them down her legs as she took them off, only leaving her shirt and underwear on. Climbing back onto the couch to her original position, Alex placed his hand right back where it was.

Her hand trickled down his torso, with one hand she unbuttoned his jeans, grabbing the metal tag and pulled it down. She cupped his bulge, giving it a gentle squeeze to hear a soft moan escaped his lips. He moved his hand that rested on her ass between her legs. She angled her leg to give him more room as she freed his cock from his boxers.

“The kotyonok is getting frisky I see.”

“Maybe.” She gave him a few long strokes. “Or maybe I just really want to give you a hand job right now.”

Skylar’s phone rang before she could continue on, forcing a groan from both their mouths. Alex leaned over and handed her her phone, looking down at the caller ID she saw it was Chloe.

“Hey.” She removed her hand from his shaft and tapped her fingers on his chest, rolling her eyes.

“Hey, I just had a little conversation with our sister and she’s very upset with you.” She heard Chloe chuckle from the other end of the line. “It’s pretty funny, I don’t understand why she’s so butthurt over you and Alex. I just met him and I can already tell how much he loves you.”

“Hold on let me put you on speaker.” She sat up, as did he, tucking himself back into his boxers at most. Then she switched to speaker phone. “Okay. I have a question: do you know why her and Evan are having marital problems? I have my theory, but she’s always been closer with her so.”

“It’s about kids, Valary doesn’t want them anymore and Evan does. They’ve been going in circles for a while now.”

“I knew it, I wonder why she changed her mind?”

“That I don’t know, I do know it was a pretty abrupt decision she made.”

“Abrupt? That’s not like Val.”

“It’s not, but that’s all I know. On the other hand I’m sure you’ll make me an aunt way before Val does if she ever changes her mind again.”

“Yes I will.” She looked over at Alex with a cheesy grin on her face, making him laugh. “And I’m sure they’re gonna get spoiled by auntie Chloe.”

“Well of course, what are aunts for?” Chloe laughed. “What time should I pick you up tomorrow?”

“I don’t know, do I look like an aunt to you?” She chuckled. “Any time after noon is good.”

“Oh shush and alright, I’ll call or text you when I’m on the way.”

“Okay. Wait what are we even doing?” Alex slid his hand between her legs, grazing at her clit before plunging two fingers inside her. She bit back a gasp and shot him a dirty look. All he could do was smirk as he began pumping his fingers in and out. “Actually Chloe I’ll call you back.”

She snorted. “Alright, I’ll talk to ya later then.”

“Okay. Bye.” She didn’t give Chloe enough time to reply before she ended the call, tossing her phone on the ottoman before glaring at Alex with daggers in her eyes. “What the hell babe just plunge your fingers into me while I’m on the phone with my sister.”

He pulled his fingers free, grabbing her hips and yanking her down on the couch. She giggled as he leaned over her, nipping at her neck. “You were the one that started it kotyonok.”

“I did, now are you planning on finishing it, or what?” She shot him a suggestive look, glancing down at his crotch. “You’re already hard.”

He leaned down, kissing her hard before throwing her over his shoulder and making his way up to their room, leaving the TV on downstairs.

Night soon came ending another day. Skylar was lying on her stomach as she waited for Alex to get out of the shower. She would’ve joined him but her legs were pretty sore and she had a hard enough time standing while taking her own, she has no clue how she’s gonna survive being out with her sister tomorrow.

Being back home made her long for the days where her and Alex will have their own place, decorated how they want. Where they can cook and bake together, wake up and fall asleep together and eventually raise a family together.

She hugged the pillow tighter, nuzzling her face into it, he was taking his sweet time and she was beginning to miss him. Luckily she didn’t have to wait long before he came out in just a clean pair of boxers.

He smiled over at her as he walked to the bed, sitting down beside her. “Sorry I went a little too rough kotyonok.”

“I told you it was fine, it felt amazing anyways. My legs beg to differ.”

“I know, I still feel bad.”

“You don’t need too. Now come to bed please.”

He got off the bed, pulling the covers off to get into them, then snuggled up against Skylar. She nuzzled her face into his chest and closed her eyes, letting sleep take over. He stayed up for a bit, watching her peacefully sleep in his arms. His mind kept thinking about tomorrow and how he was going to spend a few hours with her dad, giving him the perfect opportunity to ask for her hand. Now he hopes he doesn’t chicken out.

Chapter Text

The next morning Skylar woke up a tad sore and definitely had a limp that was quite noticeable. She hopes she can walk it off before she leaves with her sister, not wanting to deal with that conversation. It was futile either way.

As she made her rounds around the couch she would occasionally glance over at Alex making them breakfast in the kitchen. She couldn’t help but smile, thinking that this will be their lives everyday. Minus the limp. Waking up next to each other, cooking breakfast together, some really great sex. Just a simple kind of life, well as simple as it can be for them.

She walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist and rested her head on his back. “Can you believe this is gonna be our lives soon moya sladost'?”

Alex hummed, flipping over the draniki. “It already feels like it is kotyonok!”

She let go of him, walking over to lean against the counter at his side. “It does. I like it.”

“I do too, truthfully kotyonok, I just like spending my time with you.” He leaned over giving her a quick kiss before going back to the cooking. “How’s the limp?”

“A little better, I’ll just have to face the music with my sister.” She chuckled. “Maybe I should’ve stretched beforehand.”

Alex laughed, shutting off the burner. “Or tell me to slow my pace down. Breakfast is ready.”

“Where’s the fun in that?” She chuckled and walked over to the small kitchen table and sat down.

She watched him make their plates, a small smile gracing her face. It wasn’t that long ago where she was cooking for herself in a one bedroom apartment in Los Angeles, living a pretty mundane life. Even for someone in SWAT, she didn’t see much action back in LA. Most of the time she was stuck behind a desk. Now her life is nothing short of action.

He walked over with two plates in his hand, setting Skylar’s down in front of her and his on the spot next to her and sat down. “If I slowed down my pace you wouldn’t have a limp right now kotyonok.”

“Well I didn’t want you to slow your pace down moya sladost'. I like it rough.” She took a bite of her draniki. “Oh wow, that’s really good.”

“Mmm.” He took a bite of his, watching Skylar briefly before taking another bite. “Sometimes I forget how kinky you are. You have such an innocence to you.”

“People say it’s because I have a baby face.”

“You do have one, kotyonok.”

“Fair enough.” She took another bite staring off into space. “I keep having this recurring dream about you.” She turned her attention back to him, seeing the amusement etched on his face. “I feel like it’ll probably come true one day knowing you.”

“What’s it about.” He set his fork down, keeping his full attention on her.

“We’re in Russia and I’m home with our son while you went out to get a big surprise for him. He’s ecstatic and I’m wondering what it’s going to be. Then you walk through the door with the surprise, and it ends up being a kids size LMG.” She glared at him, then laughed. “And that’s when I usually wake up. But I do see you buying a kids size LMG for our kids to play with.”

“They just want to be like their papa, kotyonok.” A small smile formed on his, picturing his future son with a mini version of his beloved LMG. “I would have to get it custom made.”

“And it’s safer than the real thing.”

“That too.”

They went back to eating in silence, Alex couldn’t stop thinking about that dream she had, him coming home with a kid size LMG like his own for their son. He wondered what he looked like, did he have chestnut brown hair like his mama or blonde like his papa. Did he have the same colored eyes as him? Did he look like him or did he look like his mama or a mix of both parents. So many questions ran through his head.

“What did he look like? Our son?”

Skylar chuckled as she finished chewing her food, then grabbed her drink and took a sip. “He looked like a spitting image of his papa. Blonde hair, gorgeous big blue eyes, but I could still see myself in him as well. It felt so real.”

“It will be real someday kotyonok.” He grabbed her hand, gently giving it a squeeze. “You and me in a nice little home in Saint Petersburg with our children.”

She sighed and gave him a small smile. “I know it will моя moya sladost'!” He mirrored her smile and let go of her hand. “Our lives are gonna be so chaotic once we have children, the best kind of chaos though.”

“The kind that won’t get us killed.”

“Like I said, the best kind.”

Alex watched her for a moment, seeing her play with her food. But her eyes were conveying uncertainty. “You still don’t know, do you?”

She set her fork down and pushed away from the table and stood up, walking over to the island and leaned on it, hanging her head. She hated this feeling, the feeling that something was lacking in her life and that dream keeps throwing ‘what’ right into her face and she hates it. More than the terrorists she fights.

“I do know, and I’m not ready right now.” She looked up at him and sighed. “I just hate how that dream is making me want it so badly. I feel like it’s right in my grasps to only have it yanked away.”

“Come here kotyonok.”

Skylar sighed and pushed herself away from the island and walked over to him. He took her hand and pulled her onto his lap, wrapping his arms around her waist and kissed her temple. “It’s quite endearing you want to be a mom so badly and someday I will make you one, I promise. For now I think we should just enjoy it being us before our lives are filled with ‘the best kind of chaos’.”

“Look I know you’re right, but my brain is saying other things. I’m sure this whole severe baby fever will subside when we’re back at work.” She gave him a quick peck on the lips and sighed in content. “I’m just happy I can be so open with you, so I don’t have to conceal these emotions no matter how strange they may be.”

“Being opened is a good thing kotyonok. I wouldn’t want you to hide any emotion you have, no matter how weird it may seem.”

Her face softened and a small smile started to spread across her face. “I love you!”

She leaned down, giving him a firm kiss on the lips.

“I love you too!”

Skylar got off his lap and sat back down in her seat, taking another sip of her drink. As they went back to eating she couldn’t help but think back on past lovers who weren’t so keen on her emotions and how, for the most part kept them to herself or ranted about it to a late friend. Having someone as loving and caring as Alex was a dream come true. There were some days where she still couldn’t believe he was hers.

When breakfast was over she headed upstairs to get ready, Alex following behind her. She had no idea what she was going to wear, let alone where her and her sister were going. Though a part of her knew it would probably be to the mall or driving around like they did when she was a teenager. Talking about anything and everything.

She walked out of her closet with a shirt in hand, tossing it on the bed before she sat down, collapsing onto her back. “I have no clue what I’m going to wear.”

“You’ve picked out a shirt, that’s a start.” He sat up, placing his phone on the bed. “Wear whatever you want, kotyonok. It’s not like you’re going on a date, you’re just spending time with your sister.”

“I know that silly.” She laughed. “I’m just not sure if I want to wear something baggy or form fitting, knowing you won’t be with me.”

He narrowed his eyes, and leaned over her, his hand traveling down her torso - stopping between her legs. “That’s fine kotyonok, wear something form fitting. I’ll just think about a million different ways I could get pay back. And how to get you out of those clothes.”

“That’s perfect, I’m gonna love knowing you’ll be thinking about getting me out of my clothes when you’re with my dad.”

He scoffed and moved off of her, letting her sit up. “I think he knows we’re having sex, kotyonok.”

“He does? Who told him that?” She laughed at the unamused look on his face, then leaned over placing her hand on his chest and gave him a quick kiss. “I hope you know this is what it’ll be like when we’re married.”

Alex smiled down at her, grabbing her hips and maker her straddle him. “I can live with that.”

“That’s good, it would be kind of bad if you couldn’t.”

“Alright little miss sarcastic.”

“You know you love me.” She chuckled and got off his lap, heading over to her dresser.

“I know I do.”

Skylar looked through her jeans trying to pick the right pair that would hug her body enough to make him lust after her throughout the whole day. Knowing he couldn’t do anything about it until later.

“Ah, here we go.” She pulled out a pair of dark wash jeans and tossed them on her bed, and shut the drawer. When she turned around she saw Alex looking them over, arching his brows. “Is there something wrong moya sladost'?”

“Not at all kotyonok.” He set the pair of pants down just in time to see her sit down next to him. “Why would something be wrong?”

“Hmm.” She leaned closer to him with a small smirk on her face. “I don’t know, it’s just I’m gonna be wearing some really tight pants and I don’t know if you’ll be able to handle being away from me.” She leaned closer, whispering in his ear. “Knowing you won’t be able to touch me for hours.”

Alex huffed, feeling his blood rush south. He loved and hated how well she could tease him, just enough to make his cock start to get hard and his heart racing, only to have her retract and go back to what she was doing beforehand. Leaving him hot and bothered.

She stood up, pulling down her shorts she had on and kicked them to the side. Grabbing her pants, she glanced over at him, seeing the slight bulge in his pants and how quiet he was. She chuckled as she pulled her pants on, then leaned over to kiss him.

“I’m really loving this affect I have on you моя милая. Don’t worry you can have me all you want tonight.”

“Promise kotyonok?”

“On one occasion.” She crouched down, grabbing a small box from underneath her bed, setting it in front of him. “You use one or more of these on me tonight.”

Alex opened the box looking in it, a smirk started to spread across his face and his eyes lit up like a Christmas tree. Inside the small box was a few adult toys, some lube and a box of condoms that should most likely be expired by now.

“Skylar, you surprise me more and more each day!”

He fumbled through the box as she sat down, grabbing the box of condoms to look at the expiration date. “What can I say I’m a mystery waiting to be revealed. These condoms expired back in February of 2016.” She snorted and tossed them in the trash.

“That you are, kotyonok.” He pulled out the bottle of lube, setting it on the nightstand, and went back to looking. “Wasn’t that condom pack unopened?”

“Yup and I was living in Los Angeles at that time too. So I have no clue why I bought them to begin with. Actually, I probably bought them for the toys, I did visit a bit here and there and it’s easier to put a condom on it, than cleaning it after every use.”

“Can we take some with us back to Russia and Hereford?”

“No, I’m not going through customs with a dildo in my bag. I’ll buy one instead.”

“Whatever works for you kotyonok.”

She shook her head and stood back up to button her pants, then put on her shirt. Since it was going to be a pretty laid back day she opted to put her hair up in a ponytail. When she was done she sat back down next to him.

“I can’t wait until we’re living in our own place. Just you and me and nobody bothering us.”

“We should probably look for a place, you were the one who wanted to move in together after new years.” He slid the box away and moved closer to her. “I am looking forward to living with my kotyonok. It’ll be a nice change from living on base.”

“I was going to say we can start tonight but we’re gonna be quite busy.” She chuckled. “Honestly it’s gonna be a great change moya sladost'. Now I can easily avoid some people.”

“Thermite?”

“Yes.” She laughed. “And some others.”

“No argument there.” He kissed her temple, and wrapped an arm around her. “It’ll be nice waking up in our own place, I can cook you breakfast before we go to the base for training. We can cook dinner together, spend the night on the couch watching movies until it’s late and if you fall asleep on the couch I can carry you to bed and tuck you in.”

“You would tuck me in?” She looked over at him with puppy dog eyes. “That’s really sweet.”

“No Skylar I would leave you on the couch instead of bringing you up to bed.”

“Oh shush.” Alex laughed and her phone dinged. She reached over hoping it was her sister, upon closer glance it was not so she set it back down. “Just a notification.”

“Of course I would tuck you in kotyonok. What kind of person do you think I am?”

“A very attractive one that makes me feel loved and cared for.” She looked down at her hands for a brief moment, when she turned her head she locked eyes with him.

He slid his free hand underneath her legs, easily picking her up and setting her on his lap. “I’m happy I can make my kotyonok feel that way! I would have to do some heavy soul searching if I wasn’t making you feel loved and cared for.”

“It comes naturally to you.” She looked up at him, giving him a peck on the lips. “It’s like rooted into you, to take care of your family.”

“I do want to take care of my family. I guess that’s another thing I inherited from my papa, the want of taking care of my own family. The family I didn’t even know I wanted or needed.”

“He raised a good man, not everyone is like that.” Before he could answer Skylar’s phone started to ring, when she picked it up she saw her sister’s caller ID on it. “Hello.”

“I’ll be there in thirty minutes, Evan is doing an oil change on my car.”

“You do remember dad teaching us how to do our own oil changes right?” She chuckled.

“Yes, or I could just have our brother-in-law do it for me.”

Skylar scoffed and got off Alex’s lap to grab her shoes. “That works too. I’ll see you in thirty.”

“Okay.”

She laughed and hung up, tossing her phone back on her bed.

“You’re gonna break your phone if you keep doing that kotyonok.”

“Eh it’s warranted. Chloe will be here in thirty, and I wouldn’t doubt if my dad is right behind her.” She sat back down, putting on her boots. “Not counting Valary but I’m really happy everyone likes you. Truthfully I was terrified of you meeting them.”

“You were terrified? Why?”

“Deep down I knew my parents’ would love you. You’re kind, loving, protective and most importantly you care for me. There was always this deep rooted fear of what if they don’t for whatever reason.” She finished lacing up her boot and grabbed the other. “I think I’m just afraid of losing you.”

“You’re never going to lose me, actually I think you’re stuck with me. Forever!”

“Good. I don’t want it any other way!” She leaned over giving him a firm kiss on the lips than put on her other boot. “I’ve been thinking, my birthday is coming up ...at the end of February and I’m tired of snow and cold weather. I want to soak in the warm sun, on a beach somewhere.” She finished tying her boot and looked over at him, biting her bottom lip. “Do you want to go on a little tropical vacation?”

“Hm, let me think. Stay back in cold, snowy Hereford or spend a few days on the beach with my future zhena. Such a hard decision.” He shot her a look and she rolled her eyes. “I choose option two. I’m not passing up the opportunity to see you in a bikini.”

“Okay smart ass.” She stood up and stretched, feeling some of her joints crack back into place. “You’ve seen me naked Alex, a lot. So seeing me in a bikini isn’t really all that different.”

“I can marvel at you more kotyonok.”

Skylar laughed, and held out her hand for him to take. Then she helped him up onto his feet, pulling him downstairs.

There was a few minutes to spare before Chloe got there and Skylar was making sure she had everything she needed in her purse. Phone. Check. Wallet. Check. Other miscellaneous things. Check. Just as soon as she zipped it backup there was a knock on the door.

Chloe walked in seeing Skylar hunched over her purse and Alex sitting beside her. A small smile spreading across her face, she loved seeing her little sister so happy...and in love.

“You almost ready Sky?”

“Yeah, I just need to get my jacket.” She looked around her…”That’s still upstairs. I’ll go get it.”

Skylar left to retrieve her jacket from upstairs, leaving Chloe and Alex alone downstairs. Chloe watched her leave, waiting until she was out of earshot of them. “I don’t have long before she comes back down. I have a favor to ask of you.”

Alex looked over at her with slight amusement and curiosity. What was this favor she wanted? “Okay, what is it?”

“Just take care of her please! This world has put her through the meat grinder over and over again. She deserves all the happiness and love you can give her.” She glanced over to the staircase and sighed. “Skylar means the world to me and I’m happy she finally found someone who treats her right and loves her. No one has ever looked at her like the way you do, with pure love.”

“I promise!”

“Thank you!”

Skylar came down the stairs seconds later, jacket in hand. “Okay I’m ready.”

She put her jacket on, zipping it up and grabbed her purse. Alex stood up, walking her to the door. “I love you and have fun kotyonok!”

“I love you too, moya sladost'!” She leaned up giving him a kiss goodbye. “I’ll see you in a few hours and have fun working with my dad.”

“I will, maybe I’ll get him to tell me some embarrassing stories of you.”

She scoffed and swatted her hand at him. “Oh yay.”

Alex laughed and kissed her forehead. “I’m just joking, now go have fun with your sister.”

“Yeah yeah.”

He watched them leave, sighing in content when the door shut behind them. Not knowing how long it’ll be until Carl gets there, he didn’t know what to do, so he just sat back down on the couch and scrolled through his phone, looking at all the pictures he had of Skylar.

Being with her had opened his mind to so many possibilities, to a life he never thought he wanted. Hell he never even thought he could love someone as much as he loves Skylar. He would move mountains for her if he could, and give her the world. Skylar, his kotyonok, is such a beacon of light that helps him go through this crazy thing called life.

Skylar and Chloe stopped at a restaurant for lunch before going to the mall. Chloe picked Chilis since it was her favorite restaurant and Skylar didn’t really care where they went, she just wanted food. After ordering their drinks they were looking over the menu, even though Skylar was on vacation she was still going to eat somewhat healthy, she’ll be back to work before she knows it.

When she figured out what she wanted she set the menu aside and took a sip of her water. Waiting for Chloe to figure out what she was having. “I have a question: when is your wedding date? I need to know so I can get the time off.”

Chloe set the menu down and looked over at her. “June 26th. I gave you a plus one, which I take it will be your future baby daddy?”

“Future baby daddy.” She scoffed. “Of course he’s gonna be my plus one. Who else would I take?”

“I don’t know, your friend Ash.” She shot Skylar a glare, reaching for her water. “Skylar I’ve seen the way you look at him and you guys have already been talking about children and marriage. He’s your future baby daddy.”

Skylar looked down at the table, a smile spreading across her face. She looked over at her sister, seeing a small smile on hers. “Chloe, I don’t think I’ve ever loved someone as much as I love Alex. He’s everything I’ve wanted in a partner, someone who is caring, compassionate, protective. I don’t have to hide my true self from him. But at the same time I’m scared, scared of losing him.”

As soon as Chloe was about to say something back the waiter came over, forcing the conversation to a halt. They gave their order and handed back the menus, waiting for the waiter to leave.

“Skylar you have no idea how happy I am that you finally found someone who loves you for who you are. The way he looks at you speaks volumes, the only thing you can see etched onto his face is love. I can tell he would do anything and everything for you.” She reached her hand out, giving Skylar’s a little squeeze. “Love is scary, you give your whole heart over to someone in hopes they don’t break it. But love is also amazing, it makes you feel happy, content. To be with someone that makes you feel at home, it’s better to love than to not love at all.”

“You know I knew you would be happy about my relationship with Alex, I was more worried about Valary.” She sighed through her nose and tapped her fingers on the table. “You’re right though, it is better to love than to not love at all. Being with him has opened my mind to so many possibilities, the possibility of being married with a family one day, to travel, to have someone who knows how to deal with the horrors of being in the military. Alex is perfect in every single way.”

“Don’t worry about our sister, she’ll come around eventually.” She gave her a reassuring smile, that Sky mirrored. “I can still remember you playing with your dolls pretending to be their mom, and I do hope you and Alex settle down with a bunch of kids someday. You both deserve happiness and some peace away from the military life. And just be a normal family.”

“I hope she does or family dinners are going to be very awkward.” She chuckled. “Thank you Chloe, I hope that day will come soon.”

“You’re welcome, and I’m sure it will, with the way you two look at each other I don’t doubt you’ll be mom and dad within a year.”

“It’ll be a little longer than a year.” She chuckled. “We still need to move in together and right now we just want to enjoy it being just us, before we add a new addition to the Senaviev family.”

“Okay fine, two years.”

Skylar rolled her eyes, but still smiled nonetheless. “You’re not helping with the major baby fever I have right now. And I’m so happy I’m not using the pill as a form of birth control.”

“Skylar!” Chloe’s eyes widened and she laughed. “Are you saying you would sabotage your own birth control? What would Alex think of that?”

“My god Chloe, no I would not. We also use condoms so, no little Senaviev’s for awhile.” She shook her head and took another sip of water. “I was saying I would probably forget to take it because my mind is clearly on something else.”

“Like reproducing?”

Their food arrived before Skylar could answer, so she just glared at her sister until the waiter left again. She took a bite of her sandwich, still glaring at her. As much as she is excited to have children with Alex one day, she wouldn’t go so low as to sabotage her own birth control. That’s just wrong.

“No, not reproducing Chloe.”

“Whatever you say Skylar.” She took a bite of her soup, glancing behind her. “Whatever you say.”

Fifteen minutes after Skylar left, her father came and got him. And for once, he actually felt nervous.

Now they were sitting in the warehouse waiting for the shipment to come in. It was going to be a little late because of the weather and they had a little over an hour to kill. Carl was going over some paperwork at his desk while Alex was debating on checking up on Skylar or not. He didn’t want to interrupt their time together.

When he heard a sigh he looked over at Carl to see him setting his pen down. “A little advice, you and Skylar should never open a business. It’s not worth all the paperwork.”

Alex scoffed and set his phone back in his pocket. “Try being in the military, there’s paperwork for everything.”

“I don’t doubt that.” He grabbed the paperwork that sat on his desk and put it back in the filing cabinet. “I’m sure you’ve figured out I didn’t just ask you for your help. There’s something I want to talk to you about.”

“About Skylar?” He straightened himself up in the chair he was sitting in. “Did I do something wrong?”

A sudden foreign fear settled into the pit of his stomach, he didn’t like that her father asked him to help him just to talk about Skylar. It sent up red flags in his head, and he hopes his worst fear doesn’t come true.

“On the contrary, you're doing everything right.” He chuckled, then glanced down at a picture on his desk, a sudden sadness taking over his features. “Since the day she was born Skylar was always happy, always smiling. And very optimistic.” He turned his attention on Alex, a small smile spreading across his face. “When she was little if anyone was having a bad day and was in a sour mood she would walk over, pat them on the back and say it’s going to be okay. Sky has always had a big heart. Then she joined the marines.”

Alex watched him, waiting for him to continue. He knew where this story was going, it was self explanatory for anyone who’s been in the military. You join one way and come out the other, only a few stay the same.

“After the incident with her team something broke inside her, she was no longer that happy little girl. I can’t blame her from what she’s been through, but as a father it hurt to see her that way.” He glanced over at the photo again and sighed. “Knowing I couldn’t do anything to make it better. Then she joined the FBI and later Rainbow. I’m happy she loves what she does, it’s just…”

“You hate that it took her innocence away.” Alex interrupted.

“Yeah.” He met his gaze, another sigh leaving his mouth. “After you and Skylar left that night, and I saw how genuinely happy she was, I did a lot of thinking.” Alex's heart started racing in his chest as Carl’s face softened. “There will come a day when you look down at your own baby girl in your arms, thinking no one will ever be good enough for her. Until someone is.”

Alex started to figure out what he meant, shock spreading across his face. “Are you implying ...?”

“Alex, you have my blessing!”

“Really?” He believed him, but it still didn’t seem real that he just got his blessing to marry Skylar.

Carl laughed, sitting up a bit straighter. “It’s no secret that you love her, a lot. I could see it in your eyes every time you looked at her. And I know Skylar loves you because it’s the same look I give her mother.” He leaned back in his seat, Alex on the edge of his, listening to him like a little kid. “I don’t care that you haven’t been together long, when you know someone is right for you, you just know.”

“I do love her, more than anything! I have before we even started dating.” He chuckled, face softening as he thought of her. “I’ve spent over twenty years in the military, going from base to base, never calling anywhere home. Eventually I joined Rainbow, not really thinking much of it. Two years later Skylar joins and I’m smitten. I fell in love with her the moment I laid eyes on her and it grew the more I got to know her.” He grabbed his phone from his pocket, looking down at his lock screen that was now a picture of him and her with a smile on his face. “I gave up on finding someone to spend the rest of my life with, truthfully I didn’t even know I wanted to be married or a father. Until Skylar! I can picture a life with her, a future. When you asked for my help yesterday I was going to ask you for your blessing today. Now I know.”

“Whenever you get the courage to finally ask her, you won’t have to worry about me saying no.”

“Were you nervous when you asked Sarah?” He slid his phone back into his pocket and sat back in the chair.

“Yes and excited. Once she said yes, that was it, then you’re in for the long wedding planning.” He leaned back in his chair as well. “I’m sure the wedding planning is a bit different in Russia?”

“It’s actually very similar, we’ve adopted some of the western traditions over the centuries. However, engagement is fairly new to us. I like the symbolism of it.”

Carl nodded his head and sat up a bit. “It’s pretty great. I suspect you have a ring already? Considering you were going to ask me for my blessing.”

“Da, I do. I left it at Skylar’s place, it’s not too extravagant knowing she would yell at me for it if it was.” He chuckled and shook his head. “You’ve raised her to be very humble.”

“I may have raised her to be humble, but she loves being spoiled. Even if she says otherwise.”

“She told me to not spend a lot of money on her because it’ll be used for more important stuff. Like our homes, vacations, future children.” He maneuvered himself a bit in the chair, and softly sighed. “I respect her opinion on being spoiled or not, at the same time I want to spoil her. She deserves it!”

Carl laughed and leaned forward, setting both his arms on his desk. “Advice, start off small. I’m sure the reasoning is because you’re not married yet, once you are, go all out. Not all at once, she might get mad at that.”

Alex laughed, knowing he was right. “No argument there. She yelled at me for picking the most expensive restaurant in Hereford for our first date. The night went perfect after that.”

“She’ll get used to it after a while.” There was a honking outside that forced their attention. “Looks like the truck is finally here.”

Once lunch was done they headed over to the mall, Chloe wanted to buy a few things for her home and Skylar wasn’t about to go crazy, knowing she would be leaving in a few days. And there wasn’t exactly a lot she could buy at IKEA.

“It’s weird to think Alex and I will be doing this soon, décor shopping.” She chuckled and leaned against the shopping cart. “I have a feeling he’s gonna let me do all the choosing.”

“You sound annoyed by that.” She didn’t look up from the plates she was looking at, instead she kept glancing at her options.

“A little, I know it comes from a good place, but I want his sincere input. We’re going to be living in that apartment together, I don’t want the décor to just be my aesthetic.”

“He just wants to please his future baby mama.” She grabbed two plates and walked over to set them in the cart. “The best thing to do is to talk about it, talk about what you both like, Alex seems like the person who sincerely listens. Just talk.”

When Chloe met her gaze she saw the glare on Skylar’s face. “I’m gonna ignore that. Yeah I know, first we need to actually find a place to live. Somewhere close to base too.”

“House hunting can get tedious fast, or apartment hunting.” She began walking, Skylar following closely behind. “Don’t sweat it, I’m sure the apartment will only be temporary until you guys get married and want a house for all the little ones.”

“Yes, but it’s also going to be home for who knows how long, I want it to feel that way. I don’t even know how many kids we’ll have, haven’t decided.” She chuckled.

“Good point. And haven’t decided.” She scoffed, giving her the side eye. “You know you want a big family, stop lying to yourself.”

“I may want a large family, is it practical in the line of work I have?” She shrugged. “Probably not. And Alex is up there in age, I want our children to get a few long decades with him before he bites the dust.”

“True, I never thought about that.” She stopped and turned to her, eyes softening. “You’ve really thought long and hard about this, haven’t you?”

“Well yeah. It’s not easy being the youngest by a decade, I’ll never get as much time with mom and dad as you and Valary do. I don’t want my children to go through that.”

Chloe grabbed Skylar’s arm and pulled her to the side of the aisle to get out of people’s way. Skylar watched as her eyes showed sadness and some concern, that only made her feel somewhat worse.

“You really feel that way?”

“I have since I was sixteen.” Her eyes averted over to a bed that was on display and sighed. “I remember just sitting in my room thinking what if they aren’t here for the important stuff. When I get married, have kids of my own. I know they’re not that old, but the feeling is still there.”

“Oh Skylar.” Chloe took both of her hands into hers and softly smiled at her. “Mom and dad have decades left on this Earth, they will be here for when you get married, have a family of your own, and much more. They’re not gonna miss out on being grandparents.”

Skylar’s face softened and she smiled back. “I know you’re right and I know my feelings are stupid because deep down I know they will be here. For all of that.”

“Your feelings are not stupid. It’s not easy being the younger sibling, and I’m sure it’s a lot harder for you.”

“There are some perks being the younger sibling.” She chuckled. “Some days are, it was a lot worse when I was younger. Now that I’m an adult, it’s easier, now I can drink with you guys.”

“Oh dear.” Chloe rolled her eyes and laughed. “I remember those family parties we used to have and you were so mad about your non-alcoholic drinks.”

“Can you blame me? I was the only minor there, while everyone else either had wine, beer or some other type of alcohol. Mom and dad didn’t let me touch any until I was eighteen.”

“I’m pretty sure it’s because of our other relatives.”

“Probably. They would’ve flipped if they caught mom and dad giving me alcohol.”

Chloe laughed. “Yes they would have. Now come on, I need some new art for the home.”

Skylar shook her head and chuckled as she followed behind.

After they unloaded all the glass bottles from the truck and set them in the warehouse, it was time to fill them. That was the easiest part of the job, not much hassle only issue is putting on the cap sometimes. As Carl filled them, Alex capped them and set them to the side.

“What’s it like...being a father?” He capped another bottle, sliding it over to the rest. “I know once Skylar and I are married, a child will soon follow! It’s kind of enduring she wants to be a mother so badly.”

Carl grabbed another bottle, and turned to him. “It’s the most amazing thing in the world! And the hardest. No one teaches you how to be a parent, people can give advice but it comes down to you. How you want to raise them. It’s also the most rewarding!”

Alex nodded his head and waited for him to fill up the bottle. “Were you nervous?”

“Wildly.” He filled the bottle up and handed it over to Alex. “I don’t think I’ve ever been more nervous than the day I became a father. Of course that nervousness subsides and you’re overwhelmed with all this love you never knew you had.”

He nodded and capped the bottle, setting it with rest. “Skylar’s not even pregnant and I’m already nervous, and excited. She’s going to make an amazing mother someday!”

“Normal emotions.” He chuckled. “She will make an amazing mother someday, I could easily see that when she used to babysit when she was a teen.”

“She baby sat? She never told me that.”

Carl grabbed one of the stools nearby and sat down, forgetting about the rest of the bottle for the time being. “It was our neighbors kid. She babysat that little guy from the age of three months to almost two years old. She was very attentive, nurturing, wanted to do everything on her own. In the two years she babysat, that child did not cry once.”

“Not once?”

“Nope, she knew his schedule like the back of her hand. Knew when he needed to be fed, burped, when to put him down for a nap. It’s a rare talent.”

“Wow!” He took his phone out of his pocket and placed it on the table. “When we were at the warehouse getting supplies for work and I saw her with Grace, it was so natural for her. There was no shyness or awkwardness from either of them.”

“Children always seemed to gravitate to her, no matter where she was if a child was there he or she would soon end up talking with Sky eventually.”

Alex laughed and rubbed the back of his neck. “This whole talking about Skylar being an amazing mother someday isn’t helping with holding off on kids. I’m just happy that she's not here to hear us talking about it.”

“Hey you started it.” Carl chuckled. “Honestly Alex, I wouldn’t complain if I became a grandfather soon.”

“Let us move into our own place first, than Skylar and I will talk about making you a grandfather.”

“Fair enough.” He grabbed the bottle again, moving over to fill it, and handed it back to him. “The only thing I won’t like when you guys do have kids, is living so far away.”

Alex grabbed the bottle, along with a cap and capped it. “I’m sure you’ll get a lot of pictures and videos. The door is always open, come stay with us whenever you want.” He slid the bottle next to the rest, hearing it clank upon impact of one of the others. “I’m positive we’ll be visiting a lot anyways. Skylar said she’ll retire once she finds out she is pregnant.”

“I’m sure she would, being away from her kids would kill her.” He finished filling up another bottle and handed it over to him. “I’ll remember that. By the sounds of it, you’ll stay in Hereford and split your time between there, along with Maine and Russia?”

“Da. Skylar is very adamant on our children knowing their heritage.”

“You sound unsure about that.” He set the bottle in his hand down and sat on one of the stools across from him. “Wouldn’t you like for them to know more about their Russian heritage?”

“Of course, I want them to be proud from where they come from.” He tapped his fingers on the counter, and sighed. “Even when some of our history is bad.”

“The United States isn't perfect either. Having our children know about the history from where they come from, the good, the bad, it’ll help them make the world a better place for their kids and on and on it goes. The best thing to do is to talk with them about it, tell them why it’s bad and what can be done to change it.”

Alex nodded his head, he was getting more advice from a man he only met a few days ago than he did from his own father, he could blame his upbringing for that. Carl on the other hand was very laid back, wanting to give his kids everything he could. And deep down that’s what Alex wants to do, to spoil them, make them have a better life than he had. And of course, spoil Skylar.

“How’d you do it? Raise your children to be humble, and also spoil them to a point. I grew up in a strict military household, not having much. I don’t want my kids growing up like that, I want to spoil them, I just don’t want them being…”

“Spoiled brats.” finished Carl. Alex nodded and laughed. “Reward them. If they did something good like got good grades, scored a goal in a game, or finally accomplish a long time goal. That’s what I did, and of course we went all out on birthdays and holidays. It’s also important to make sure those rewards aren’t too expensive, I wasn’t about to buy my daughter a new computer because she got an A on a test.” He chuckled. “I kept it at most twenty-five dollars. Some toys and stuffed animals are very expensive. But the most important part is making sure they know not everyone is lucky enough like they are. And that it’s good to give back. I’ve lost count how many times Skylar either wanted to donate or volunteer somewhere instead of getting herself something.”

“That’s smart, it teaches them to be humble and to do good. It also puts a lot of perspective on Skylar’s love for her job, she’s always wanted to do good and she can with Rainbow.”

“She does and I’m proud of her, more so than she will ever know!”

After stopping at yet another store Skylar was just happy to be back home, but she didn’t like that Alex wasn’t back yet and she misses him. So after she put her stuff away she decided to head over to the warehouse, wondering what exactly they were doing. Then again it wouldn’t be unheard of if her dad got a big shipment in.

Pulling into the driveway she saw her dad’s car parked there, she parked next to it and got out. As she walked towards the entrance she couldn’t help but smile, this warehouse homes so many memories, good and bad. When she got to the door, she heard them talking inside, about how her dad started the business.

The door dinged when she opened it to walk in, heading towards the back.

Alex noticed her first, his face lit up as soon as he saw her. “Kotyonok!”

“Hi!” She laughed and walked over to give, giving him a quick kiss before sitting down next to him. “I thought you two would be done by now?”

“Big shipment, I need to replenish a lot of stock because of the holidays.” He shot her a knowing look. “Are you upset that I’m keeping your boyfriend longer than expected?”

“Maybe.” She kept a neutral face and shrugged her shoulders. “I just spent over an hour in IKEA with Chloe, how do you think I feel?”

“I’m sorry you can have him back now.” He rolled his eyes and chuckled. “Did you get anything?”

“I did, a new journal for drawing and a stuffed shark.” She laughed at the strange look Alex was giving her. “What? It was cute.”

“I didn’t say it was bad, I just didn’t picture you buying stuffed animals at twenty-four.”

“Well I do and I might take my new shark friend back with us.” She linked their arms together and rested her head on his arm. “He can help us move in together.”

Alex let out a booming laugh that echoed through the warehouse and kissed the top of her head. Even after everything she’s been through he loved that she can still be childish to a point and not take things too seriously.

“He will be a very big help kotyonok.”

She looked up at him and narrowed her hazel eyes. “I take back what I said earlier...about tonight.”

“No! Kotyonok I didn’t mean it in a bad way.” He looked down at her in shock and distress, that made her chuckle.

“I’m joking I just love making you freak out.” She let go of his arm and stretched. “Ready to go back?”

“If you are, than I am too.”

Skylar nodded and stood up, followed by Alex. “We’re leaving, will you be alright with the rest or are you done?”

“We were done for now, I think we did half the shipment I’ll get Evan to help with the rest tomorrow.”

She snorted. “I’m sure he’ll love that...actually with the whole marital problems he probably will.”

“Skylar.”

“What? You know Valary just as well as I do and you know she can get very bitchy when things go south.”

“No argument there.”

“Told you. We’ll stop by tomorrow or the day after.”

“Alright. I love you, and thanks for helping Alex!”

“I love you too!” She looked over at Alex, a small smile creeping up on her face. She liked how close he was getting with her parents’ and for right now it seems like everyone is getting along. Which was the best she could hope for.

“You’re welcome! Next time we’re here, I'll help you with the vodka problem.”

“I would really appreciate that, thanks.”

Skylar could sense something had changed in Alex since they got into the car, he was a lot more happy. She didn’t consider it a bad thing, just a little strange, it made her wonder what they talked about. And now that they were back at her apartment he was exceptionally happy.

“Okay.” She angled herself to look at him better, and raised a brow. “You’ve been exceptionally happy ever since we left the warehouse, what did you and my dad talk about that would make you so happy?”

“A lot of things kotyonok.” He leaned down, giving her a chaste kiss. “He told me you babysat when you were younger, and I asked him for advice on something.”

“On what?” She snuggled up against him again, moving the blanket that covered them a little higher on her body.

“You know I had a strict upbringing, without much. I don’t want our children to live like that, I asked him what he did to raise you and your sisters’ that made you turn out humbled, but you were also spoiled to a point.”

“He told you about the reward system he did.” She looked up to see him nod his head. “Moya sladost', I know you had a rough upbringing but that doesn’t mean you’re gonna be the same to our kids. You are already fun and loving and you take a great deal to just enjoy life, that’s one of the best things our children can ask for. A father who would rather spend time doing activities with his kids, than sitting in front of the television all day. Besides you already want to spoil me, I’m sure you’ll be the same with our kids.”

“He did tell me about the reward system he did, I thought that was a good idea. Maybe we can do that with our kids?” His arm that was wrapped around her shoulders started to caress her arm. “Thank you kotyonok, I really appreciate that! We don’t want them to be too spoiled, they don’t need to be brats.”

She swung her leg over his lap and straddled him, then laid back down on his chest. His arms came to wrap around her body in a firm grip, and he kissed her forehead. As much as he loves having a few weeks off, he hated how fast the days were flying by, all he wanted to do was spend the rest of his time off in her arms or vice versa - forgetting about work priorities that would soon resurface.

“It’s the truth moya sladost', you could’ve grown up to be exactly like your father but you didn’t. You decided things should be different for you, that you were going to enjoy life no matter the cost. However we spoil our children they will never be brats, we’ll raise them with love and laughter and make sure that sometimes materialistic things aren’t that important.” She looked up at him, giving him a more passionate kiss. “I think we should do that reward system my parents did, it’ll be fun to see what they want to do.”

Alex placed his thumb in the dip of her chin, gently pulling her closer to him to place another passionate kiss upon her lips. “You are going to make one amazingly loving mama to my children someday kotyonok!”

“And you are going to make an amazingly loving papa to mine someday!”

Skylar crushed their lips together again, this time deepening it, when she pulled away, she saw a sparkle in his blue eyes.

“I love you!”

“I love you more!”

“I love you more kotyonok!”

“I love you too Pluto and back моя милая!” She sat up, trickling her fingers down his bare torso.

Alex sat up, grabbing her hips and pulling her closer to him. “I love you all the way to the Andromeda galaxy and back kotyonok!”

Her mouth fell open and brows narrowed. “I can’t beat that, wait, what's the next galaxy after that?”

“I don’t know. You don’t have to beat it, I know how much you love me.”

“Good!” She crushed their lips together once again. “Now, why don’t we get our night started?”

Skylar shot him a suggestive look and rolled onto her back.

“I don’t think I’ll be able to walk ever again.” Skylar looked up at the ceiling as she tried to even out her breathing. The past hour and a half she had more orgasms than she ever had and every time she thought she couldn’t anymore, she proved herself wrong. “I can’t be that deprived of orgasms, I’ve been sleeping with you for the past two weeks now.”

“Da, we’ve sleeping together for the past two weeks.” He turned on his side, propping himself up on his elbow. “We’ve both had a long dry spell before we got together kotyonok.”

She looked up at him and turned on her side. “I know, but still this was ridiculous I never expected to have so many in such a short amount of time.”

“We can take a short break if you want? I don’t want to overstimulate my kotyonok too much.”

He leaned forward giving her a chaste kiss. The past hour and a half was his second favorite thing of the day. The first was getting her father’s blessing to ask for her hand, which puts him in a very good mood.

“I think that’s a good idea, at least for a few days.” She moved the covers from under her and got under them. “Now I think I would rather cuddle with my wonderful boyfriend!”

Alex laughed and joined her under the covers where she quickly snuggled up against him, head resting on his chest. His hand came up to play with her hair, forcing a content hum from her.

“Moya sladost', are you having a good time?”

“I’m having a very good time! Why do you ask kotyonok?”

“Just wondering, Bangor isn’t that fun during winter that’s all.”

“Da, it’s nice to see the town you grew up in, but Skylar I’m here for you and only you!” He leaned down and kissed her forehead.

“And to meet my family!” She chuckled.

“That too!” Skylar went quiet for a moment, staring off into space, it made him a little worried. “Kotyonok? Are you okay?”

She snapped out of it and shook her head. “Yeah, sorry I was just thinking about something.”

“Like what?”

“You! Don’t worry it was good.” She maneuvered herself so she was laying across his chest and gave him a small smile. “I was just thinking about us having our first night in our own place. I can’t wait!.”

“Mmm.” He nodded. “Neither can I, it is going to be so nice waking up in our own place instead of on base.”

“That rhymed.” She laughed.

Alex smiled, moving a few strands of hair behind her ear. “I’m still wrapping my head around you wanting me! Why would a beautiful young women want someone like me?”

“You’re kind, funny, affectionate, and very very loving! Not to mention very attractive. I want you because you make me feel happy and loved and cared for. I will never have to question what you want or how you feel and I love that clarity. I want you Alex, all of you from now until...forever!” She leaned forward, giving him a quick kiss. “Now who’s the uncertain one?”

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her up his chest more. “I will admit I do feel a little uncertain about us from time to time. I just have a feeling deep in the pit of my stomach that won’t go away.”

“Why don’t you tell me about it? Maybe that will help.” She smiled up at him and kissed his nose.

“You’re young, and very beautiful. I fear one day some younger man will come along and you’ll like him more than me or figure out someone younger than me is a better option.”

Skylar saw the hurt in his eyes and how they glistened. She sat up, cupping his face with her hands. “That will never happen, ever. I don’t want anyone else, I only want you. You and you alone! You’re the only one that I want to spend the rest of my life with, to build a life with and have children with. Moya sladost', nothing will ever change that!”

Alex quickly wrapped his arms around her in a firm hold, and held her as humanly close as he could. He hated feeling like she would eventually find someone better, someone younger like Glaz. Someone who would be able to grow old with her. Hearing her say that was a load of bullshit and that she wasn’t going anywhere, that she wanted him. It helped ease that nagging anxiety within him, and make him feel more at peace.

“I love you kotyonok, so much!”

“I love you too моя милая, so much!” She closed her eyes, listening to the sound of his heartbeat and smiled. “And nothing will ever change that!”

Chapter Text

It was finally the night before they boarded another plane for a sixteen hour long flight back to Russia. Skylar was beyond excited to see Alex’s home town, and for whatever surprises he had in store for them, she just wasn’t excited for that long flight and that their vacation was starting to come to a close.

“Remember kotyonok, wear comfortable clothing this time.”

Skylar shot him a glare from her dresser and shook her head. “Shush I’m not making that mistake again, this time I’ll be wearing sweats.”

Alex laughed and set his phone on the bed to watch her rummage through her clothes. She just finished packing for the trip and was now figuring out what to wear for the flight, he never realized she had so many clothes to choose from.

He leaned back against the headboard, a small smile spreading across his face as he thought back on the conversation between him and Carl. He was beyond happy that he got his blessing to propose to Skylar and to his surprise that he was also okay with them having a child so soon. But there was still so much they needed to do before they welcomed any children.

Skylar looked over at him, seeing him stare off into space. “Moya sladost', you okay?”

That seemed to snap him out of it, as he blinked his eyes a few times and settled on her. “I’m fine kotyonok, just thinking.”

She tossed the shirt she had in her hands on the bed and walked over to him, sitting down on the edge of the bed. “About what? Ever since you helped my dad you seem to have a lot on your mind, it makes me curious.”

He sat up a bit, covering her hand with his. “He said he was okay with us having a child so soon in our relationship.”

“Is someone having second thoughts now?” She smiled at him, and arched a brow. “Because I am so okay with it if you are.”

Alex laughed, leaning down to kiss her forehead, his lips lingering against her skin. When he pulled away he met her gaze, a small smile spreading across his face. “Not exactly. We still need to move into a place kotyonok, then maybe after we can discuss adding a child.”

“Hmph.”

He smiled and picked her up, kissing at her neck to make her giggle. He set her beside him so she could snuggle up against him, resting her head on his chest. Alex sighed in content as his fingers traced over her smooth skin.

“Wouldn’t you rather not stress over moving if say, you were pregnant? Kotyonok I’d rather move in first rather then place any added stress onto you.”

“I get that and moving in first is the best option.” She moved her head and looked up at him. “There’s something I need to confess to you.” She moved away from him, bringing her knees up to her chest and hugged them. “I didn’t just lose my squad back when I was a Marine, I lost my child too.”

Alex sat up, his eyes softening as he rubbed up and down her back. “You were pregnant?”

“Yes.” She looked over at him, a small smile spreading across her face. “I found out after the ambush and it was the assholes kid but I didn’t care. I remember sitting in the infirmary just thinking about what I wanted to do, it was no longer about me. Then it happened, the painful cramps and bleeding, then I’m getting told the news I miscarried.”

“I’m sorry kotyonok!” He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her against him, kissing the top of her head. “Thank you for telling me and it makes me understand why you so desperately want to be a mom.”

“Thank you! And I do want to be a mom but it’s not fair to you that I keep trying to push something like that onto you, especially something so big.” She looked up at him an apologetic smile on her face. “I’m sorry!”

“It’s okay, I’ll never blame you for wanting something you’ve lost!” He picked her up, setting her on his lap. “Besides kotyonok, I do plan on making you a mama one day.”

“I know!” She chuckled. “We’re gonna make really cute babies.”

“Our children are going to be perfect!” He wrapped his arms around her, nuzzling his face into her hair. “And very loved!”

Skylar hummed, a small smile forming on her face. “They will! I’m really happy I finally told you about the miscarriage, it feels like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders.”

“I’m happy you told me!”

She looked up at him, gazing into his blue eyes. “I love you!”

“I love you too kotyonok!” He leaned down, placing a passionate kiss upon her lips. “Do you have anything else you would like to confess?”

“No.” She laughed. “Well...as much as I hate that it happened, a part of me is happy that it did. I might have never joined Rainbow if I had that child and I would have never met you! And in a way that thought scares me, I already can’t picture my life without you!”

“You don’t know that for sure, you could’ve still joined and we still could’ve ended up together.”

“Yeah, maybe you’re right.” She leaned up giving him a quick kiss before getting off his lap. “I like it when you become very optimistic.”

Skylar grabbed the shirt she tossed onto the bed and went back over to her dresser. She fumbled through her shirts, trying to pick out one that was the perfect amount of loose for the flight tomorrow morning. The joggers she was going to wear were already picked out and placed nicely on her chair.

“Kotyonok, you act like you having a child would deter me away from wanting you.” He leaned back against the headboard, placing both hands behind his head. “Which I think is ridiculous, I would want you either way.”

“I know! Because I’m awesome!” She gave him a cheeky smile and winked at him.

Alex laughed from his spot on the bed, then got up, walking over to her and wrapping his arms around her waist and gave her a kiss on the temple. “I won’t argue with that.”

Skylar laughed, leaning her head against his chest. “I can’t wait for tomorrow. I know we have to get up really early, but I can’t wait.”

“Sixteen hours on a flight, sixteen hours where I can barely touch you. I’m not looking forward to that.” He kissed her cheek and let her go. “I am looking forward to showing you around Saint Petersburg though.”

Skylar turned around to face him, a smirk forming across her face. “I’ll make it up to you when we get to Saint Petersburg!”

“You don’t have to kotyonok, it’s my problem I can’t keep my hands off of you.” He rubbed the back of his neck, and looked down. “You don’t mind all the sex we’re having, right?”

The chuckle that escaped her mouth forced him to look at her with a raised brow. She set the shirt she had in her hand back in the drawer than wrapped her arms around his neck and looked up at him. “Moya sladost', I love that you can’t keep your hands off of me and I very much love all the sex we’re having. Besides our relationship isn’t built on it, it’s built on trust, understanding and ...love!”

He wrapped his arms around her waist, leaning down to kiss her forehead. “I just wanted to make sure, since a lot has happened to you by that zasranec.”

“A lot has happened to me because of him, but that’s not going to deter me away from having the best sex of my life as much as possible with the most amazingly loving man I have ever known.”

His hands slid over her ass, grabbing the back of her thighs and lifted her up. She instinctively wrapped her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck, giggling.

He walked over to the bed and sat down, gazing into her eyes. “Am I really that good kotyonok?”

She softly hummed as his lips traced down the scar, leaving feather kisses against her skin. “Yes, yes you are! You not only stretch me in all the right places, you know what turns me on, what makes me beg and shutter underneath you, crying out your name in pleasure. No one will ever be able to please me like you do!”

“When you put it that way, it makes me very happy I can please my kotyonok so greatly!” He kissed up her scar to her jawline, kissing along her jaw until he came into contact with her lips.

She smiled over at him, and gave him another quick kiss. “As much as I do want to be a mom, having a child so soon would make our very great sex life dwindle quite a bit and I’m not really sure I’m okay with that right now.”

He mirrored her smile, moving some strands of chestnut hair out of her face. “It would only dwindle for a little bit. It would go back to normal after the child is born and you’re healed, kotyonok.”

“Maybe.” She lifted and dropped her shoulders. “It’s just now that I’ve told you about the miscarriage, I suddenly don’t want a child right now and am perfectly happy with waiting and enjoying it being just us.”

“I think your mind was stuck on the fact that with all the sex we’re having you could have another accidental pregnancy so you made yourself believe you wanted a child a lot sooner than you want.”

He kissed her forehead, then laid down on his back - bringing her down with him to lay on his chest and rubbed up and down her back. She sighed in content, a small smile spreading across her face. Sometimes she would forget how quickly Alex could figure out an answer for whatever problem that arises, even if it might not be fully true.

She moved her body off of him a bit to get a better look at him. “That does make perfect sense now that you mention it. Even though I made sure I used a form of birth control that was harder to fail me and we use condoms, there’s still that little fear it might happen again.”

Alex gazed into her hazel eyes, his hand coming up to cup the side of her face. She nuzzled into his touch, and sighed. “And if it does happen at some point in our relationship, you wouldn’t have to worry about it. Kotyonok I would be a hundred percent okay with it.”

“You would?”

“Da!” He sat up, wrapping his arms back around her and pulled her closer to him. “It doesn’t matter if our children are conceived on purpose or not, they will still be loved and well taken care of!”

Skylar didn’t say anything, she just wrapped her arms around his neck and laid her head on his shoulder. Closing her eyes she thought back on one of the worst nights she had with her past ‘lover’, the tears slowly started to seep from the corners of her eyes.

She pulled away, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand and met his gaze.

“Alex, you’ll never know how much of a saving angel you are to me!”

His blue eyes softened, then he maneuvered them both into a lying down position on the bed, where she snuggled up against him, fisting the shirt he was wearing. Whatever memory that came back was haunting her and Alex hated to see the pain and sadness in her eyes.

“Explain it to me kotyonok, please?”

Skylar took a deep breath, nodding her head. “Okay.”

Four and a half years ago…….

Skylar leaned against some crates as she uncapped her water and took a sip. The Afghanistan heat was a nightmare to deal with, even when night fell and wearing almost fifty pounds of gear didn’t help. Luckily her shift was almost over and she could shower and change.

She looked up, seeing the stars in the sky. A smile started to form on her face by how beautiful it looked, it was something she wouldn’t be able to see back in Bangor. The only plus side of being deployed in the desert.

“Beautiful isn’t?”

She twisted the cap back onto her water and set it down. “It is, I wish I got this view back home.”

“Me too.” Molly leaned against the crate next to her, sighing. “I suspect you’ll be seeing him tonight after your shift?”

Skylar could hear the detest in her voice, making her looked down at the rocks and sand below her boots. “Yeah.”

Molly moved to stand in front of her, taking both hands into her own, forcing Skylar to look up at her. “I love you like a sister Skylar and if it wasn’t for strict military protocol I would have killed that son-of-a-bitch for placing his hands on you long ago.” Skylar’s face faltered, forcing a small smile from Molly. “Don’t think I don’t know about the bruises, I know that’s why you take forever in the mornings to get ready, you’re trying to cover them up.”

“I’ll lose my job if I do.”

“What do you mean?”

“If I stop sleeping with him he’ll make sure his dad has me discharged.” She let go of her hands and turned around to lean against the crates and hang her head. “And it doesn’t help that he scares me.”

Molly walked over to her, placed her hand on her back. “Henry is an asshole, his father is an asshole and he couldn’t get you discharged anyways. He would have to go to the higher ups and they don’t have anything on you. I hate seeing you coming back during the night completely drained and in pain. I’m not going to force you to stop this, I just hate what he’s doing to you.”

Skylar turned her head to look at her, her hazel eyes glistening. “Let me think about it, I don’t need to give him an extra excuse to beat me some more.”

She nodded, but there was a sense of sadness in her eyes. “Okay.”

After her shift was over Skylar took a quick shower and started to get ready to head over to Henry’s room. Thanks to his dad he didn’t share it with anyone meaning she couldn’t really come up with an excuse on why she didn’t come, and if she didn’t show up, the consequences would be ...bad.

She looked in the mirror seeing the bruise on her left eye that has started to fade to a sickly yellow. All it took was for her to be ten minutes late to get slapped in the face, hard enough to throw her to the ground. The next morning she had a decent sized black eye, luckily it’s been healing quite well and fast.

She sighed, looking down at her body. There were a few hickey’s covering her breasts and more bruises the size of his fingers covering her hips. Henry was a less than gentle person, truthfully he got off on her pain and it didn’t help that he was over a foot taller than her and very muscular. It was a lose, lose situation when she was in bed with him.

She didn’t care about the other bruises, those she could cover up, the one by her eye she couldn’t. Then again she could just cover it up as a training accident, a weapons kick. No one would question that.

Skylar took a deep breath, putting her hair up into a high ponytail and headed out into her room to get dressed. Opting for a pair of sweats and a t-shirt since her clothes would be quick to come off.

Once she was dressed she headed out the door.

As she turned the corner heading towards Henry’s room she saw him at his door in full gear, looking like he just got done working which meant she was in for a long few hours. She took another deep breath and walked over to him with a small smile on her face.

“Find any action out there?”

“No.” He scoffs. “But I’m gonna find a hell of a lot of action right now.”

She looked down, fiddling with her hands. She hated how he only saw her as someone to sleep with and nothing else, how she would lay in bed listening to him rant and ramble about his day only to have him shut her up about hers. Maybe Molly is right, maybe she should stop it. “I don’t think I want to do this anymore Henry.”

“What was that?” He placed the key inside the lock and turned it, opening his door.

“I said, I don’t want to sleep with you anymore.” She looked up at him, meeting his icy stare that sent a shiver down her spine.

Henry turned the doorknob, opening his door more, then roughly grabbed her arm and shoved her inside. Her heart started racing as she turned to him, seeing him shut and locked the door behind him.

She wanted to move away from him, far away, but her feet wouldn’t move. Next thing she felt was a hand across her face that sent her to the floor. She could easily taste the metallic taste of blood on her tongue. Bringing her hand up to her lip, when she pulled it back she could see the crimson on her hand.

He walked over to her, slowly, like a predator stalking its prey and knelt down. “You don’t get to say I stop fucking you, I only do.” He stood up, taking off his vest and set it down against the wall, then turned back to her. “And right now, that perfectly sculpted ass of yours is mine.”

Skylar narrowed her brows at him and slapped him across the face. She didn’t know where the sudden confidence came from but she immediately regretted it when his hand wrapped around her throat, picking her up and tossing her onto his bed. Before she had time to react he was on top of her, pinning her arms above her head. She wiggled trying to get free of his grasps.

“Let me go asshole.”

“Why should I do that?” He leaned down until he was next to her ear, sneaking his hand between her legs, making her squirm even more. “You were very stupid for slapping me Jackson, I think I need to teach you some discipline.”

“Henry get the fuck off of me.” She wiggled some more, almost getting her hands free of his grasp until she saw him pull his knife out. Her eyes went wide, tears welling in them and she stopped her struggling.

He placed the blade against her skin, tracing down from her collarbone to the band of her sweats. He finally let her arms go, knowing she was far too scared to move. The knife went under her shirt, hiking the fabric up. He looked down at her hips, seeing his own work on them and smugly smiled.

Her heart was beating a mile a minute, every single fiber of her being was telling her to flea, but she couldn’t. She couldn’t move, hell she could barely breathe.

Henry dug the tip of the blade into her flesh, drawing blood. She yelped in pain as he dragged it down her lower stomach, stopping at her hip bone. “My father keeps telling me I’m getting old and I should find a nice girl to settle down with and continue the family name. Old.” He scoffs. “I’m only thirty-two. I never really listened to him about that crap, but you’re young, you have a lot of child bearing years ahead of you. So I think I’ll obliged this time.”

He placed his knife back in it’s case, then leaned down until his head was right by her ear. “And there’s not a damn thing you can do about it.”

Present time……

“After an excruciating four hours I had Molly patch me up and hide my birth control. Because there was no fucking way I was going to have that monster’s child, but then I got pregnant anyways.” She brought her knees up to her chest and curled in on herself, feeling the tears well in her eyes. “I never told anyone the true extent of his abuse, if I told my parents’ this, it would’ve killed them. But I needed to tell you.”

When she turned to look at him, she saw something she never thought she would. His blue eyes dulled to gray, and the color of his skin paled, he looked completely broken.

Alex got up from the bed, pacing around the room speaking in Russian. Skylar watched him, seeing his face contorted in anger and fists clenched. Seeing him so riled up was both enticing and scary. If they were on base she was sure there would be a hole in the wall by now. She let go of her legs and sat up a bit straighter, holding out her hand. “Moya sladost'!”

He stopped and turned to her, that’s when she saw the tears in his eyes. Skylar motioned for him to come sit by her and he easily obliged. When he took his spot next to her, she wrapped her arms around her neck, resting her head on his shoulder. Next thing she knew she found herself in a firm, yet gentle hug from him.

“Kotyonok, I’m so so sorry! I never imagined you went through something so horrible, and you will never have to worry anymore. As long as I am alive, you will always be safe and most importantly loved!” Alex closed his eyes and let out a shaky breath - his grip around her tightening like he was afraid of losing her. He’s seen the scar from the story so many times now he lost count, now hearing the story on how she got it broke his heart. “I will never ever hurt you, I promise!”

“I know, I know you would never hurt me.” She pulled away from him, wiping the tears from her eyes. “The worst thing about it all was that I was nineteen. I was so young and to think I could potentially be married and have a family with him right now if certain things never happened scares the absolute life out of me. And as much as I hate losing that child, I’m happy I did because if he found out ...I I rather not think about it.”

Alex leaned forward, pressing their foreheads together. To now know that the woman on his lap, the love of his life went through so much trauma in such a short amount of time made his blood boil. Skylar was such a loving and caring person and to know someone took advantage of her and abused her that much made him disgusted. And as much as he hopes they’ll never cross paths again, a part of him wants to because he’ll show Henry what it’s like being afraid.

“Kotyonok you were so young and I don’t want to think about what your life would be like with him, it hurts too much to even think about.” He moved away slightly to kiss her forehead and brought her in for another hug. “I’m beyond grateful you got away and have giving me a chance! No wonder why you freaked out after we slept together for the first time.”

“I am too! You’ve given me so much hope and love and to see how much my life has changed for the better is a miracle. At that time I didn’t see a way out, I truly thought I would be stuck with him for the rest of my life. I just wish I didn’t have to lose so much to finally leave.”

“I love you kotyonok! And I’m sure Molly would be ecstatic knowing you’re free from him.”

“I love you too moya sladost'!” She kissed his temple and moved away and sighed. “She would and she would be ecstatic knowing I found someone who treats me like a queen.”

“No lord should be without his queen!”

A huge grin covered her face and she laughed. “Very true! Too bad we couldn’t live like royalty.”

“Maybe in another lifetime!”

“Mmm.” Her eyes averted down for a brief moment, and a small smile formed on her face as she met his gaze again. “Thank you, for everything! If it wasn’t for you I might have never let those walls down and probably be alone forever because it sounded a lot better than potentially being abused again. And now I don’t think I could live without you!”

“If it makes you feel any better kotyonok, I will never be able to live without you! Now that you told me about the abuse, what made you change your mind?”

“After the abuse I became very wary of men because Henry never showed signs of being abusive until he knew I was ‘faithful’, then his whole attitude changed. And that made me scared, so I distanced myself as best as I could for the past four years. But then it hit me one day, am I really going to live my life like this because one person traumatized me for life? Not everyone is going to be abusive, so I decided to slowly ease back into it, which of course was hard to break out of habit. Then I got the call and I thought joining Rainbow would be the fresh start I needed, that clean slate and it was. The moment I met you I felt safe and comfortable, something I haven’t felt in years. I couldn’t ignore that and the more we got to know each other over the past five months my feelings for you changed and having a crush after four years was an interesting feeling. “ She chuckles. “There was something inside me telling me you would never hurt me and it’s true. Even though I freaked out after we slept together that first time I’m really glad it happened because if it didn’t who knows if we would be together right now!”

Alex’s face softened, he moved a few strands of hair behind her ear, cupping the side of her face. She leaned into the gesture, a small smile spreading across her face as he leaned forward placing a passionate kiss upon her lips. She smiled into it, giggling as he tried to deepen it - pulling away he looked at her and laughed.

“Kotyonok!”

“I’m sorry, I’m just happy!”

“I am too!” He kissed her again and flipped their positions. “Now lets see if I can make the kotyonok extra happy.”

Waking up at three in the morning to get ready for a five in the morning flight was less than enticing.

Skylar walked out of the bathroom rubbing her tired eyes. “Maybe you shouldn’t have made me extra happy last night. Now I’m extra tired.”

She walked over and collapsed face first into the unmade bed. Alex, who was already dressed and ready to go laughed and laid down next to her. “You can sleep on the plane.”

“What if I don’t want to sleep on the plane?”

“Then you don’t have too!”

He leaned over kissing her temple, she hummed in reply. Ever since last night Alex had a newfound respect and love for her. Not that he didn’t respect or love her before, but finding out what she truly suffered and how she came out on the other side still compassionate, kind and loving made him fall for her even more. Skylar is officially the strongest woman he knows and no one will ever be able to top that.

It wasn’t just his newfound respect and love he found out last night, but how their relationship shifted. She seemed more bubbly and full of life, like that suppressed memory was holding her back because she was so afraid. She built up walls to protect herself, only to fully let them down for him and he’ll never take that or her for granted! Now she could truly be her loving self.

“I would but I can’t sleep on planes. And I would rather spend those sixteen hours talking with you.” She propped her head up on her elbow and smiled over at him.

“You talk with me everyday.” He chuckles. “You don’t need to stay up with me if you’re tired.”

“Maybe I want to talk with you everyday Alexsandr.” She moved over to lay across his chest. “For the first time in a long time, my life is better than my dreams.”

“It was only a suggestion kotyonok.” He gave her a small smile and rubbed up and down her arm. “I can understand that perfectly, because it’s the same for me too.”

Skylar yawned and got off him, fixing her top knot. “I know.” She looked down at the sheets and sighed. “Now that I told you about what happened between me and Henry, I used to be so afraid of him finding me again. And in a way I still am, it also doesn’t help that he's from Maine. Which I guess is one of the main reasons I was so excited to be joining Rainbow, we wouldn’t be in the same country. Even though I have no clue where he is right now.”

Alex sat up, his brows narrowing into a line. “You will never have to worry about him again kotyonok. I will make sure he never touches you!”

Her face softened and she jumped into his arms. “Thank you!”

His hand cupped the back of her head and he closed his eyes. It made him wonder how long she’s been looking over her shoulder, waiting to see him somewhere. Living in fear that he would show up at her doorstep one day. That was no way to live.

“I love you Skylar and I will protect you with everything I have!”

Her arms around him tightened and tears started to well in her eyes. Four years she spent living in fear, waiting for that day where Henry would find her again. She moved away from him, wiping her eyes with the back of her hand.

“It took me twenty-four years to find the love of my life, and four years to stop being afraid. It never seemed possible, until it happened!”

“You had every right to be afraid, look at what he did to you. After finding out what he did to you, I feel terrible over the hookup at the holiday party.”

Skylar placed her hand on top of his, and shook her head. “No, don’t be. I was sober enough to know what I was doing and I wanted to sleep with you because I knew you wouldn’t hurt me in any way. Besides, that night was really really really good! It felt nice to be wanted again, something I haven’t had since I was seventeen.”

“It was really really really good, wasn’t it?” A small smile started to spread across his face and he leaned down to kiss her. “Kotyonok, I will always want you! And seventeen? It sounds like you were with someone at the time?”

She laughed at the hint of jealousy in his voice, it was cute that he was jealous of someone she hasn’t really seen since she joined the Marines. “I was with someone at that time. His name was Wyatt and he was a lot like you, kind, compassionate, loving. Our breakup was mutual, I was going into the military and he was going off to college and it seemed better to go our separate ways than to try and make things work because at that time neither of us knew how.”

He nodded. “So he was good to you?”

“Very!”

“That’s all I need to know.”

Skylar laughed and shook her head as she got off the bed. “We should get going or we’ll miss our flight.”

He groaned as he got off the bed and stretched. “Yes, kotyonok!”

Alex carefully maneuvered himself in his seat, trying to get comfortable. They’ve already been flying for about six hours and he was getting pretty uncomfortable and he wasn’t about to wake Skylar up since she was sleeping soundly against him. He must have really tired her out last night if she fell asleep on a plane.

As she slept his mind wondered. How many of the scars on her body were from Henry and not work? And what else he did to her. He wanted to know, even if he tore his heart straight from his chest, but he would never ask her to tell him. She was the one that suffered by him after all. He’ll wait until she’s willing to tell him and he’ll be ready to listen.

He tightened his arm that was wrapped around her and kissed the top of her head. The other thing that consumed his mind was proposing. It was taking every single ounce of strength he had not to pop the question. He wanted to make the proposal romantic and he wanted to make sure she wasn’t expecting it, this was something he wanted to make a surprise.

Skylar started to move, and mumbled. He moved his arm to let her sit up and stretch, then she turned to him with a small smile on her face. “How long was I asleep for?”

He checked his watch, then looked back at her. “About an hour and a half.”

“Shit. I didn’t expect to fall asleep for that long.”

“Like you said, I wore you out last night.” He smirked, making her scoff. “Did you have a good nap?’

“Can’t complain. You make a good pillow though.”

“I’m glad I could be of service to you, kotyonok.”

She rolled her eyes and chuckled, then turned her attention to the window. She couldn’t see much besides clouds, making her wonder what they were flying over right now. Water or land?

She turned her attention back to him, and that’s when he saw the curious look in her eyes. “Do you think I would be able to get into Spetsnaz if I tried?”

His eyes widened and his heart skipped a beat, and he moved closer to her. “Kotyonok, I think you would get into the Spetsnaz if you tired. I beg you not too, I do not want you to go through that training.”

“I wasn’t actually going too moya sladost', I was just curious.” She leaned over giving him a quick peck on the lips. “The Marines have the hardest basic training and I wondered if I could get into Spetsnaz.”

She watched him visibly relax, making her chuckle. “That’s good to hear, you almost gave me a heart attack.”

“Oh you poor thing.” She leaned closer to him, the palm of her hand finding the fabric to the front of his pants. “I’ll make it up to you in ten or so hours.” She gave him a cheeky smile and retracted her hand from the front of his pants. The audible whine of disapproval that escaped his mouth made her chuckled. “I do love turning you on so easily. Just a single touch.”

“It’s hard not to get turned on by you kotyonok!” He gave her a small smirk, placing his hand on her thigh. “And how would you make it up to me Sky?”

She shrugged her shoulders. “I don’t know yet. I’ll figure it out during the flight.”

Alex laughed and retracted his hand from her thigh. “Okay kotyonok!”

Alex watched Skylar in pure admiration as she looked upon all the Christmas lights that lines the streets while they were stopped at a red light. She looked like a little kid in a candy store.

“It’s so beautiful!” She turned back to him with a smile gracing her face. “I think we should spend Christmas here every year. With a quick trip back to Maine to see my family.”

“It is, I’m surprised they’re still up!” The light turned green, forcing his attention back to the road. “If that’s what you want to do, I’m fine with it.”

She nodded and went back to looking out the window. The whole city was lit up with beautiful white, green, red and blue lights, and it looked a lot better than Bangor. It made her kind of envious but it also put her in the spirit, even if Christmas was last week.

Not long after they made it to his place, she looked up at the tall building with the balcony’s pointing towards the street. Making her wonder which floor he lived on, but when she turned to him she saw the uncertainty on his face.

“Moya sladost', you okay?” She angled her body to face him and covered his hand with hers.

“It feels weird being back, that’s all.” He gave her a reassuring smile, then kissed her forehead.

“Understandable. I’m sure this week will be great!”

“Everyday I spend with you is great, kotyonok!”

She slightly blushed under his gaze and smiled, loving how much her life has changed for the better. And to be with someone so caring and loving again, it made her feel all bubbly inside.

“I love you and can we go inside please? I’m getting cold.”

“I love you too and da, we can.”

They both got out of the car, Skylar grabbed her carry-on from the backseat while he grabbed their other bags. She wasn’t going to bring her carry-on, but changed her mind last minute when she wanted to bring a few extra things back to base with her. Most of the stuff was her drawing supplies and the stuffed shark she bought back in Maine.

She followed him inside, glancing around the lobby. There wasn’t much, just a few chairs, the little mailboxes and a few benches with some of those fake plants laid out around.

They made their way up to the sixth floor, eventually stopping at his door. She watched him unlock his door, pushing it opened and with a blind hand find the switch on the wall. He let her go in first, her eyes darting all around. The kitchen was to the left of the door, it was a decent size for an apartment, the living room took up most of the floor, she loved the openness of it, and across from the kitchen was another room. It looked like it was supposed to be intended for a dining room, but Alex had another use for it.

Her mouth fell when she saw his Degtyaryov and Mosin-Nagant collection, making him smile. “Holy shit!”

She set her carry-on bag by the door and walked over to them, glancing at each one. Alex made this space his personal workshop, there was a table in the middle, and he had a few storage containers against the wall, that probably had parts and other supplies in them.

“This is incredible Alex!” She walked closer to the M1891 rifle “How did you get your hands on this? The Mosin-Nagant M1891 is rare, most of these were sold to American’s before World War II and the rest were either captured by German’s, Austro-Hungarian or sold to Finland.”

He set their bags down, walking up behind her and wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing her cheek. “Kotyonok, you never cease to amaze me!”

She chuckled, and leaned her head back against his chest. “I’m a history buff.”

“You can hold it if you want.”

She moved her head off of his chest, and looked up at him. “Are you serious?”

“Da, I told you you could back on base, kotyonok.”

“I know, it’s just I know how you are with your guns and it wouldn't have bothered me if you said I couldn’t touch them.”

“You are the only one I trust with my guns.” He gave her a reassuring smile, that she mirrored. “Go on, I know you want too.”

The smile on her face grew bigger as she walked towards it, carefully taking it off the wall and brought it up to her shoulder. She looked down the sight like she would if she was normally using it, finger off the trigger. “Wow, this is incredible! It feels nice holding something so rare, not counting you of course!”

When she looked over at him, she saw he had his phone in his hand and he was smiling down at it. “Let me see.”

He walked over to her and showed her the picture. “It looks good on you! I’m rare, huh?”

“Very rare, the rarest of them all!” She laughed and leaned up to give him a quick peck on the lips. “That’s an okay picture, but I think you should take one of me actually posing.”

Alex laughed and shook his head, getting his phone ready as she got into her pose, then he snapped it. As he looked down at it, he smiled, it never once crossed his mind he would ever find some he trusts enough to handle his guns. Now he has a picture to prove it.

Skylar place the gun back on the wall mount and turned to him. “I want to see the picture please.” He turned the phone her way, and she nodded in approval. “Perfect!”

He placed his phone back in his pocket, grabbed her hand and pulled her to the couch. He sat down first, then pulled her onto his lap, kissing at her neck. She giggled, sliding off his lap down to the small section exposed before the arm of the couch. Looking around the room, there wasn’t much décor, that she expected. Just a coffee table, a TV mounted on a wall with a medium size TV stand below it, and a small table next to the couch with a lamp and a picture on it.

“I like it here, it nice and cozy and I’ve been wondering what Russian apartments looked like ever since you’ve told me you had one.”

“It’s not much, just four walls and a roof. I’m glad you like it though kotyonok!”

Her face softened, and she grabbed his hand and held it in hers. “I know growing up wasn’t easy, you had a strict father without many things and I can see it stayed with you into adulthood. You’re not materialistic and in a way that’s good, you won’t horde things. But that doesn’t mean you can’t change. This may be just four walls and a roof to you, to me it’s home. This is where we’ll be staying when were in Saint Petersburg, a lot more good memories will be made here. And hopefully it’ll cancel out all the bad ones you have for this place.”

“There not bad memories, just bland. That is true about what you said, new memories will be made here.” He looked away, and sighed. “When we were with your family, you had a life I always dreamed about having. And it made me want to do better, to be better. Not just for me, for you, for our future children. I just don’t know where to start.”

He looked back over at her, his eyes conveying a mix of emotions that tugged at her heart. She moved off the couch for a brief second to straddle him, wrapping her arms around his neck and kissed his forehead.

“What do you mean about being better?”

“My parents’ were married until my dad died, but they were never happy and in love like your parents’ are. Da, they did love each other and made things work as best they could. I don’t want our marriage to be like that, where we’re together out of habit rather than being together for true love. How do I make that happen? How do I make sure we won’t fall out of love in the future?”

“Moya sladost', I don’t think our marriage will be like that. We already have a healthy relationship, and that’s not going to change. If you want, call my dad and ask how he and my mom have stayed married and in love for so long. I’m sure he’ll be happy to tell you!” She gave him a reassuring that smile, and a quick peck on the lips. “Also I would never fall out of love with you! That would be like me swearing off my mom’s cookies, it ain’t gonna happen.”

He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her against his chest as he lay back against the couch, rubbing up and down her back. He let out a content sigh, holding onto her a little tighter. He knew she was right and he probably should call her father and ask because he wasn’t going to let his marriage suffer like his parents’ did. Once he says ‘I do’ he’ll mean it and make sure everything works out. For him, for Skylar, and for their children.

“You’re right kotyonok, our marriage won’t be like that because I won’t let it. I made a promise to you and I plan on keeping it!”

Skylar’s hand came up to touch the dog tag, a small smile spreading across her face. Lifting her head up, she crushed their lips together, humming into it. Alex gave an audible whine when she pulled away and got off his lap, holding out her hand. “You still haven’t given me the full house tour, moya sladost'.”

He let out one of his booming laughs and took her hand. Hand-in-hand he walked her to his bedroom, opening the door for her to see.

The first thing you saw was a queen size bed, a nightstand on each side and a dresser on the right side of the room. There was also a balcony off of the bedroom, that she just loved. She could picture herself sitting out there when the weather was warmer with a cup of tea and her journal.

She let go of his hand when a picture caught her eye, walking over she picked it up and examined it. “You look so young! Was this Nikolai?”

Skylar looked over at him to see him nodding his head and walking over to her. “That was long ago.”

“Yeah, I’m sure he’s happy for you!” She set the picture back down and turned to him. “I wasn’t calling you old by the way.”

“I hope he is, he would have liked you.”

Skylar sat down on the bed, feeling the cotton blanket beneath her fingers. Alex joined her a moment later. He was being unusually quiet and that worried her.

“Are you sure you’re okay? I can sense there’s something wrong, моя милая.” When he didn’t say anything she moved up the bed, laying against the headboard. “Come here.”

He looked over at her with confusion on his face. “What?”

“Come here.” She motioned for him to come closer, and he did, snuggling up against her and resting his head on her chest. She threaded her fingers through his blonde hair, hearing him hum. “Alex if there’s something wrong I would like to know. I won’t force you to tell me though.”

The arm that was wrapped around her waist tightened, pulling her closer to him. “I lied to you kotyonok.”

“About what?”

He looked up at her through hooded eyes, expecting to hear some anger in her voice, yet he didn’t. She was calm. “I’m not an only child, I have a younger sister. Her name is Anna, she’s a doctor, married and has a few kids. We don’t have a good relationship anymore.”

Skylar kissed the top of his head, and continued threading her fingers through his hair. “I’m not mad you didn’t tell me about her, but I’m happy you did. Is that why you’ve been acting this way since we got here? Are you nervous we might see her why we’re here?”

“Da.”

“Why?” She chuckled. “Does it have to do with me?”

“No, never.” He moved away from her, giving her a quick kiss on the lips. “My sister and I had very different ideas of what life should be like. She wanted to make sure her children had everything they desired and more, I didn’t agree with that. I might have been too adamant on my opinion and that pushed her away. That was twelve years ago, when she had her son.” He fully sat up, picking at the blanket. “After that we only talked during the holidays or birthdays, then it stopped all together. I was the one in the wrong and I never apologized for it.”

She sat up, grabbing his hand and placing it in hers. “There’s still time for you to apologize, tell her everything that made you change your mind and that you were wrong. I’m sure she’ll appreciate that, and I bet she would like her kids to know their uncle. Do it when you feel ready.”

He nodded. “Do you think she would even accept my apology? It’s been over a decade.”

“I do! You’re her brother Alex, I’m sure deep down she misses you. And yeah, you two had a falling out, but it wasn’t a terrible one. You were just an asshole.”

Alex chuckled, a small smile forming on his face. “I was, wasn’t I?”

“Yes you were.” She mirrored his smile and leaned forward to kiss his lips. “I think the best thing to do is to apologize and figure things out from there.”

“Okay, I’ll apologize.”

“Good!” She laid back down, motioning for him to join her. “Now come here, moya sladost'!”

Alex laughed and returned to his original spot, snuggled up against her. She went back to threading her fingers in his hair, making him hum in reply. They stayed quiet, the only thing you could hear was their breathing or the occasional sigh. Then she felt his hand sneak below the band of her sweats, a small smirk forming on her face the lower he got.

She would let him have his fun ...for now.

As he inched closer to her womanhood, she spread her legs apart to give him better access. When his cool fingers touched her womanhood she gasped, feeling a shiver run down her spine. “What do you think you’re doing?”

“Hopefully my girlfriend in the next few minutes!” He looked up at her with a smirk, making her smile.

Skylar pushed him down on the bed, and straddled him. Running her hands down his broad chest, stopping at the band of his pants and rolled her hips - hearing a low grunt come from him. “What are you waiting for?”

Alex crushed their lips together and flipped their position once more.

Both of them were snuggled under the covers post-coitus watching some Russian movie that was on. It was something he had seen plenty of times, but to see Skylar mesmerized by it was cute, her eyes never left the TV.

As she watched the movie his thought about what they were going to do tomorrow. The first thing would be to call his sister and apologize, hoping she’ll accept it. Because he does want to introduce Skylar to his sister at some point.

Tomorrow he was thinking about showing her around the city, and the places he and his family used to frequent growing up. Skylar was right, this will be their home a few weeks out of the year and it’s best to make it feel like home, rather just four walls and a roof.

He leaned down, kissing her forehead. “I love you, kotyonok!”

She turned her attention from the TV to him, a smile spreading across her face. “I love you too, moya sladost'!”

His blue eyes softened under gaze, making her leaned up and give him a kiss. “Thank you kotyonok, for everything! You gave my life more meaning and I’m entirely grateful you’re mine!”

“You don’t need to thank me, moya sladost'! Life hasn’t been kind to either of us, yet we found each other and I have never been more happy and in love! And you already know I’m entirely grateful you’re mine too!”

“Ya ne mogu zhit’ bez tebya koyonok! And I don’t ever want too.”

“Ya tozhe ne mogu zhit bez tebya moi sladik! And you never will!” 

Chapter Text

Jet-lag was the worst to deal with after traveling, getting your body adjusted to a new timezone took time. Skylar and Alex got maybe three hours of sleep before they were both up again, now it was early morning and their bodies were still on eastern standard time. That was no surprise though, it wasn’t like their bodies would adjust that quickly.

Skylar was still in bed, checking her social media and replying to the few texts she’s left unanswered. Alex was out in the living room, talking with his sister, she let him have his space while he did it so she stayed in the bedroom. Though she could easily hear him in the other room, speaking in his native language, that brought a smile to her face. She could only make out a few words here and there and her name, everything else was unknown to her, definitely needed to do more learning.

This was a big step for him, rekindling his relationship with his sister after not speaking for over a decade. She knew it wouldn’t make things automatically perfect, but it was a start, Anna would have to think about if she wanted to have him back in her life and she would need time to think about that. But it was a start, a start Alex might have never taken if it wasn’t for her.

She couldn’t imagine not being close to her sisters’ and because of that she couldn’t fully understand what he’s going through. All she could do was support him, and hope things turn out for the better.

A few moments later, Alex walked back into their room, rubbing at the back of his neck. He set his phone on his nightstand, laying down horizontally on the bed so his head was resting on her stomach.

Skylar gave him a small smile, threading her fingers through his blonde hair. “How’d it go moya sladost'?”

“Okay.”

“Okay?” She chuckled. “You’re not gonna give me details?”

“She didn’t seem too happy that I called, that’s all kotyonok.”

She leaned down, kissing his forehead, hearing a content hum from him. “This was hard for her too, it’s been over a decade since you two have talked. That’s a lot to take in, just give her time.”

“Yeah, that’s true.” He sat up, giving her a proper kiss this time. “What would you like to do today, kotyonok?”

“Hmm.” She sat up more, acting like she was thinking. “I don’t know. What do you want to do today?”

“I don’t know, that’s why I asked you kotyonok?” He arched a brow, and a small smirk spread across his face.

Skylar laughed and shook her head. “I’ve never been here and you ask me what I want to do? Why don’t we just take a stroll and you can show me around.”

“That sounds perfect!” The smirk on his face turned into a genuine smile and he leaned over to kiss her again. “Do you want to leave now or later?”

“It’s seven in the morning, it’s winter, let's go out later.”

Alex laughed, then laid down beside her. “Okay, kotyonok.”

She snuggled up next to him, a small smile forming on his face like it did every time. At this point in their relationship, it would feel odd if she didn’t snuggle up to him like she always did. And in all honesty, he loved it. He loved having her in his arms, day after day and waking up next to her. Nothing made him feel happier!

She moved away, maneuvering herself so she was laying across his chest. “After I told you about Henry, it made me realize how much I truly miss Molly. She was always there for me, cheering me on or calling me an idiot when I needed it. And now she’s gone.”

He watched her eyes avert behind him, staring off into space, think back on her long lost friend. Alex was no stranger to losing people, he’s lost a fair number of friends over the years and knows you never truly forget them, just push them away until their memory comes back to you. But the worst part about losing a friend on the battlefield is the guilt you get afterwards. Why did they have to die and she didn’t? The question that no one will be able to answer.

“I’m sure she’s looking down on you kotyonok!” He threaded his fingers into her loose locks, her own hand coming up to cover his.

“I’m sure she is and I’m sure Nikolai is as well!”

Alex pulled her up to his chest, wrapping their arms around each other. He kissed the top of her head, closing his eyes and sighed. He’s lost enough people in his life, he wasn’t going to lose her, he’ll make sure of it. And if he fails, well, they should dig two graves instead of one because there’s no point in staying on this earth without his Skylar.

“I love you Skylar!” He opened his eyes, letting out a shaky breath and looked down at her.

“I love you too Alex!” She looked up at him with worry in her eyes. He only said her name after the ‘I love you” if it was more serious, and that worried her. “What’s wrong?”

“I…” He looked down and sighed, cursing himself under his breath. “I’m afraid of losing you, that’s all.”

She placed her fingers under his chin, gently bringing his head up to look at her. “We’ve talked about this….”

“No, not like that. I mean losing you more permanently.”

“You won’t, I promise.” She crushed their lips together and straddled him then pulled away, gazing into his eyes. “Besides it takes a lot to kill me.”

“All it takes is one bullet or one misstep and…”

“Alex, moya sladost' nothing is going to happen to me.” She cupped his face with her hands and kissed his lips. “I’m not as reckless as I used to be. I have you to thank for that.”

“I love you kotyonok!”

“I love you too moya sladost'!” She laid down on his chest and he wrapped his arms around her, kissing the top of her head. “And thank you for being the best boyfriend in the whole wide world!”

“And thank you for being the best girlfriend in the whole wide world!”

“I try to be.” She lifted her head, giving him a chaste kiss. “I don’t want to go back to work, I want to stay here, in your arms.”

Alex laughed and kissed her nose. “You’ll still be in my arms when we’re at work, kotyonok. We share a room.”

“I know that silly. We still have to train with our respectful CTUs and not spent a lot of time together throughout the day.” She laid back down on his chest and sighed. “We’ll only see each other at breakfast, lunch and dinner.”

“Kotyonok, everything will be fine.” He rubbed his hand up and down her bare back, feeling her smooth skin, mixed with the indentations of a few scars. “We still see each other in the morning, afternoon and evening. At night we can cuddle up in bed, talk about our day, have some passionate sex and fall asleep in each others arms. I don’t see that being bad.”

“When you put it that way, that does sound nice.” She lifted her head again and sat up. “That’s probably how our life will actually be once we’re living together.”

“See. There is nothing to worry about.” He grabbed her hips and sat up, pulling her closer to him. “Yet you sounded unsure.”

“I just don’t want to be the couple who work all day, come home tired, spend some time together before going to bed and doing it all over again.”

“Kotyonok, you do realize we can ask Six to cut down on the missions we go out on. Training lasts a few hours in the morning, and we get the rest of the day together.” He leaned forward and kissed her forehead. “Work will never get in the way of our lives. We’ll have a happy marriage and a bunch of kids and we will make it work, I promise.”

Skylar hung her head a bit and laughed. “Are we just gonna go back and forth on being unsure about this relationship? Because that’s how it’s been for the past few weeks now.”

Alex slight scoffed, placing his index finger under her chin and lifted her head. “Look at what our lives were like before we got together. You were abused and I was...alone, being in a healthy and happy relationship is something we both need to get used too.”

“I know, I know. And my heart knows it, my brain just doesn’t.”

“Your brain is trying to protect you.” He leaned forward, kissing her forehead. “Give it time kotyonok, eventually your brain will realize what you have is good.”

Skylar wrapped her arms around his neck resting her head on his shoulders and sighed. Alex smiled to himself, wrapping his own arms around her - rubbing his hand up and down her back like he always did. It helped calm her and relax her, the simple gesture was such a lovely thing in her life, that now it would seem weird for him not to do it.

“When I joined the Marines I knew I would be leaving a lot different than how I started. And I was okay with that. I just never thought it would strip me of everything, I join to make a difference and I get abused for it. Physically, emotionally and...sexually, I didn’t deserve that, and...I’m still angry.”

He clenched his jaw, tightening his grip around her. Alex wasn’t the religious kind, but he prays that Henry guy gets his comeuppance and it’s by Skylar’s hands. No one else's.

“No you didn’t. You have every right to be angry about what happened Skylar and I hope you can find a way to make him pay for what he did to you.”

She lifted her head off his shoulder, gazing into his blue eyes. “I wish I could, but I’m terrified of him. He’s not a man, he’s a monster.”

Alex grabbed both of her hands, holding them in his in a light grip. “Kotyonok, you don’t have to do anything you don’t want too. I will be more than happy to do it for you.”

“What would you do?”

“Beat him with an inch of his life.”

“Sounds perfect.” A small smile spread across her face as fast as it disappeared. “He deserves to suffer.”

“Da, he does. And you deserve to have peace.”

“I’m getting there.” She wrapped her arms around his neck again, that small smile spreading back across her face. “I went to therapy on and off since I left the Marines, both for the ambush and the abuse. It helps, to a point, I just hate talking about what happened in detail. Some things I don’t want to relive, but they’re stuck in my brain for me to never forget.”

“As much as we hate it, there are some things we have to live with. I just wish you didn’t have to live with that.”

“Me too.”

Alex went quiet after that, gazing into her hazel eyes. She could sense he wanted to ask her something, something he wasn’t sure she wanted to answer too. Either way it made Skylar curious.

“What is it moya sladost'?”

“I..there’s something I’ve been wondering.”

“And? Alex it’s fine, go ahead.”

He nodded. “You were sexually abused, we’ve been having sex ever since we got together. Are you truly okay with it?”

“Before we got together I wasn’t sure if I would like sex still or if I would have PTSD episodes when I had it again and I hated when people would say that sex is a major part of making relationships work.” She slid her hands over his shoulders, down to his chest. “Then that night happened and it was a breath of fresh air. I forgot what it was like to have sex with someone who cares, about me, about my well-being. Every time we have sex it’s about us, not past experiences, just us!”

“I needed to make sure kotyonok, especially after finding out about that.”

Skylar nodded, then leaned over and gave him a chaste kiss. “I know, and don’t feel bad about not knowing either, that’s on me for not telling you right away.”

“Can’t blame you for that, it can’t be easy to tell anyone about what happened to you. Thank you for telling me though kotyonok.”

He maneuvered them into a lying down position where Skylar snuggled up against him, head resting on his chest while his hand rubbed up and down her arm.

“I wanted too, after everything we’ve talked about, marriage, kids, it was time to tell you. It feels like a huge weight has been lifted and I knew you wouldn’t think of me any differently.”

“Never.” He kissed the top of her head. “If anything, all this has made me want to do is find the one who hurt you and beat him.”

She looked up at him through hooded eyes, a small smile tugging at her face. “I hope you get that chance someday. And make him suffer.”

“He will kotyonok, he will.”

“Good.” She chuckled, and laid her head back down on his chest. “I was thinking, we should look for an apartment once we get back to base, if we see something we like we should grab it as fast as we can. Who knows how busy we will be in the coming weeks.”

“Hmm.” He moved them up a little, getting more comfortable. “That’s a good idea, moving in will take a while to do, and we have to buy almost everything.”

Skylar sat up a bit, looking over at him with a smug look on her face. “You don’t sound too happy about shopping with your girlfriend?”

She laughed at the offensive look he was giving her, then leaned over and gave him a more passionate kiss.

“I’m looking forward to spending time buying everything we need with you kotyonok, I’m not looking forward to the actual paying part.” He sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. “We have to buy so much stuff for our place, it’s going to be stressful.”

“You do realize I’ll be helping with the paying part right?” She chuckled. “It will be stressful, but I’m excited, this will be our first place together!”

“You don’t….”

“Don’t.” She narrowed her eyes at him and sat up. “Unless there’s a ring on my finger and my last name is Senaviev than maybe I’ll obliged on not paying for something. Until them we’re splitting paying for things we need equally.”

“Fine.” He huffed.

Skylar giggled, a smile spreading across her face. “I find it endearing you want to provide for your family already, and someday you will. I just don’t feel comfortable with it when we’re not married.”

“Is the kotyonok going to tell me why it makes her feel uncomfortable?” He sat up, fixing the pillows behind him.

She sighed through her nose and looked down at the covers before averting her eyes back to him. “It makes me feel like I’m using you.”

“You know that’s not true, I want to provide for you, now until the day that I die.”

“I know you do….”

“What did Henry do now?” His eyes widened by how cruel he sounded, and he reached out for her. “I’m sorry my anger wasn’t intended for you, I just hate what he did to you kotyonok and I want to show you how a real man takes care of his family.”

Skylar softly smiled, then got under the covers to snuggled up against him again and laid her head back down on his chest. “It’s okay moya sladost'. Henry confiscated my wallet and would only let me have it if I needed to buy essentials, even then he had to be with me when I purchased anything.” She looked up at him, seeing the anger etched onto his face. Knowing it wasn’t directed to her, she continued. “He talked about having a big wedding and how kids would come directly after that. His father was going to pay for the wedding, while my hard earned money was gonna go to the many kids we were going to have and his.” She scoffed. “Was gonna go to anything he wanted.”

Alex huffed and spoke in Russian, Skylar couldn’t tell what he said but knew it was probably a line of swears. “I don’t want to ask you this and a part of me doesn’t want to know, but I need to. What else did he do to you kotyonok?”

“Stuff I don’t want to talk about, at least not right now.” She didn’t look at him, just traced over a scar on his arm. “I don’t want to ruin our last few days of vacation.”

He wasn’t going to push her to tell him, she is the one who has to relive those horrific memories and by the sound of her voice, what she went through sounded like a nightmare. Which he already figured out by that story she told him the other day. Either way he was proud of her for even telling him. To go through that type of abuse for so long, at such a young age, isn’t something someone is going to tell another person unless they absolutely trusts them.

“Tell me when you’re ready, I’ll be here.”

Skylar looked up at him to see the small smile across his face that she mirrored. Leaning up she gave him a quick kiss. “I know, and someday you will probably know ever horrible thing that happened to me.”

“Only if you want me too, you don’t need to tell me every bad thing if it makes you feel uncomfortable.”

“I do want you too because I think it will help with the relationship when the ptsd gets bad, at the same time I don’t want to talk about it.”

“Baby steps kotyonok, you don’t need to tell me everything in one go, take your time.”

“What if I want to?” She chuckled. “No I’ll tell you about different things that happened as the weeks go bye. Some good, that’s usually with Molly and some nightmarishly bad.”

Alex sat up straighter, a twinkle in his eye. “Why don’t you tell me more of you and Molly?”

A smile started to spread across her face, she moved the covers over her and placed her hands in lap. “Where do I even start?”

“How about the beginning?”

“We met at boot camp in North Carolina, where we slept right next to each other in the bunks. During our free time we would just talk as we wrote letters to our families, I remember mentioning about going through a break up and she said she was too and it was such a funny coincidence at the time. As the weeks went by we went from being strangers to sister’s and we were both ecstatic we were on the same squad after boot camp.”

“Didn’t you say you roomed together when you were deployed?”

“Yes.” She chuckled. “It was both a blessing and a curse, but it was so nice to have her there especially when things got hard and to push me when I needed it.” She looked down at her hands and sighed. “Every morning during P.T we would have a little competition on who could finish the obstacle course first. She would win every time, not that I cared. It was fun and it made it more enjoyable.” She looked back up at him, eyes glistening. “It sucks she’s not here anymore.”

“I’ve lost people, friends during my time in the military. I’ve never lost my whole squad before and I can’t imagine what that must feel like.” He gave her a small smile, placing his hand on top of one of hers that rested in her lap. “I’m sure Molly is still with you.”

“It’s not a fun thing, losing your whole squad and being the sole survivor. But the guilt, the guilt is what sucks the most.” Tears started to well in her eyes, her breathing becoming shaky. “I remember visiting her grave after I was healed up for the most part and her parents came by too and as soon as I saw them, the immense guilt that hit me, it felt like the wind was knocked out of me. To see how broken they were after losing their child, yet there I was...alive. I should have died with her and I don’t understand why I didn’t.”

Tears started to slide down her cheeks and she let out a sob. Alex wrapped her in his arms, pulling her against his chest as she started to cry. He held her close and tight, gently swaying her in a failed attempt to help calm her down.

“I know this isn’t what you want to hear kotyonok, sometimes there isn’t a reason for why things happen, they just do. I’m no believer, if there is a God out there than he’s cruel, cruel for making you go through this. All of this.”

Skylar didn’t say anything, she just kept crying into his chest, holding onto him tighter. She never liked crying in front of people, only if they were her parents or siblings, but Alex. Alex was someone she felt truly comfortable with, someone she knows she can let down her walls and be vulnerable. And she liked that. No embarrassment, just freedom.

All he could do was hold her, let her cry out her pain in his arms. He wished he could more, much, much more, take away her pain for good. Yet he couldn’t, he has to watch her suffer, and that was the worst thing. Not being able to take away her pain so she can live in peace without it sneaking up on her.

His grip around her tightened, and he kissed the top of her head. “I’m here kotyonok, I’m here!”

It took a bit until she finally settled down, her crying ceased only to sniffles and she stayed in his arms, not wanting to look at him just yet. And Alex was perfectly happy with her in his arms.

He knew he wouldn’t be able to get her to talk yet, so he took it upon himself to tell a small story.

“I’m only a few years older than Anna, one winter it snowed the night, and the day before, both of us were excited to play in the snow after it was all done. I couldn’t have been more than eight at the time, Anna was six. We took the toboggan out because Anna kept bugging me about it the night before.” He chuckled. “We went up and down that little hill a few dozen times, every time we would laugh. Seeing the happiness on my sister’s face was the best part. After her tobogganing mood was done we went back to the house where she wanted to build a snow fort, I decided to make a snowman.”

He played with a strand of her hair while he talked, and even though she wasn’t looking at him, he could tell she was listening.

“While I worked on my snowman I would glance over to her and see how she was doing, then went back to the snowman. After I was done, I was drawing a little face on him until Anna decided to push the whole snowman on top of me. It knocked me down and I was covered in snow. After the initial shock I looked up to see her laughing at me. I asked her why she did it and she said because I wasn’t playing with her.” He smiled to himself, and softly sighed. “I liked that snowman.”

Skylar laughed, wiping her eyes and moved away from him. “Thank you!”

Her face was tear stained and her a little puffy, still she looked beautiful in his eyes. He gave her a small smile and kissed her forehead. “You’re welcome!”

“That was a cute story though. I enjoyed it! It also shows that you can have a fun time without spending money and being materialistic.” Her face lit up, a smile started to spread across her face. “We should go tobogganing, it’ll be so much fun.”

“You want to go tobogganing? I think I might be too heavy for that now.” He laughed. “I do have something planned for us in a few days. I was lucky enough a spot was even opened for this.”

Skylar’s face lit up even more, and the smile grew on her face. “What is it?”

“It’s a surprise kotyonok!”

She pouted her bottom lip and gave him the puppy dog eyes that made his heart flutter. “Pretty please?”

“Sorry kotyonok, but no.”

“Hmph.” She crossed her arms and looked away from him. Childish.

“Don’t be like that lapochka, I don’t want to ruin the surprise.”

“Can you give me a hint?” She turned her attention back to him, keeping her arms crossed and arched a brow.

“It’s something I reserved for us in Yelagin Park. It’s during the night so I was thinking we could go to the ice rink before hand.”

“The ice rink? I didn’t know you could skate.” She uncrossed her arms and moved closer to his.

“I can’t.” He said sheepishly. “I just thought it would be something nice to do.”

“Good thing I can skate, and it will be. Though anything we do together will be nice.”

“Can’t argue with that.”

Skylar laid back down on her side of the bed and sighed. At least she didn’t make herself feel sick from how hard she just cried, it did, however, make her hungry. “I’m hungry.”

“Me too, there’s a nice little café up the street we can go to and then we should probably go grocery shopping afterwards.”

She stretched and sat up. “That sounds perfect, it’ll be like a breakfast date.”

“Who says it’s not a breakfast date kotyonok?”

She lifted and dropped her shoulders than got up to get dressed. Grabbing her bag off the floor she placed it on the bed to rummage through it, picking out a clean pair of underwear and socks along with a pair of black jeans and a white long sleeve shirt. She placed her bag back down on the floor and grabbed her underwear and slid them on.

“This vacation has made me so excited for living in our own place. It has also made me wonder how awkward it’ll be on base since everyone knows about us now.”

“Waking up in our own place will do wonders kotyonok. I’m sure it’ll be awkward for some people, others won’t care.”

She began getting dressed as did Alex. “Yeah, that’s true. I can’t wait to find out who’s going to hate us being together. Not that I’m going to care because nothing and no one will be able to break us up. I’m just curious, that’s all.”

“Honestly, I am too. I can already guess Frost and Buck will not like it.” He scoffed and pulled on his shirt. “You know the reason.”

Skylar clipped her bra on, and grabbed her shirt and put it on. “I’m not so sure, they’re pretty open minded with other things. Who knows. I do know Finka will hate it and I can’t wait to see her face.”

“Probably.” He rolled his eyes and sat down on the bed while he waited for her to finish getting dressed. “She does have an issue with you.”

“She thinks I’m a liability because of my recklessness which I find ironic since her neuropathy is worse than my recklessness.” She pulled her pants on, and buttoned them up. “I just wish she would retire and fuck off. The less I have to see her annoying face, the better.”

“Skylar!” He laughed. “You’re getting feisty there. I like it. What do you mean about neuropathy? She’s never mentioned anything about it before.”

She sat down on the bed to put on her boots. “I went to see Doc a few months ago for a checkup on that small injury I had, while I was waiting for him I saw a paper on his desk with her name on it and the word ‘neuropathy’. I read it and she walked in. We had an argument and that was that. Now she hates me, but I really don’t care I never liked her in the first place.” She rolled her eyes and shook her head. “Of course she wouldn’t, if people found out they would treat her differently.” She sighed heavily and slid on her other boot. “This is one thing I hate about Rainbow, having people on this team who shouldn’t be on this team. Either way Six knows about our rivalry and won’t put us on the same team, thank the Gods.”

She finished tying her laces and set her foot back down on the floor and turned to him.

“There’s multiple people on Rainbow who shouldn’t be for one reason or another. I do agree with you they shouldn’t be, not when they can put the lives of others at risk. We just have to deal with it. And you don’t need to worry about her, she won’t be a problem.”

They both stood up and Skylar wrapped her arms around his neck and gave him a quick kiss. “I love you! And have I told you you’re the best boyfriend in the world?”

“I love you too!” He looked away from her, like he was thinking deep and hard about her question. “I think you might have, kotyonok.” He chuckled as did she. “No, of course you have, many times. Have I told you that you’re the best girlfriend in the world?”

“No, never.” She laughed at the offensive look on his face and gave him another kiss. “You know I’m joking, of course you have.”

“Let’s get some breakfast before I toss you back on that bed.” Alex leaned down to give her one last kiss before grabbing her hand and leading her out of the room.

She laughed and shook her head. “I wouldn’t have minded it.”

They made their way to Coffeeshop on Nevsky Ave, it was more than a little café and Skylar couldn’t wait to look around and see all the little Knick knacks and treats throughout the café. For now, her and Alex were seated at a table with some coffee and chocolate croissants.

She pulled off a piece of her croissant and ate it, looking around the café to see what she can spot. Though she couldn’t read anything since it was all in Russian besides the sign to the café and the menu.

Alex watched her as she looked around the café, occasionally glancing out the window to see passer byes and what other stores and buildings were in her view. He could see the wheels in her brain turning, wondering what was exactly going on in that head of hers.

“What are you thinking about?” he asked before taking a sip of his coffee.

Skylar turned her attention back to him, a small smile on her face. “Just looking, there’s so much to do in this city, it’s kind of overwhelming.”

“There is a lot to do.” He chuckles. “This isn’t the first time we’ll be back here. I’m sure sooner rather than later, we'll have our favorite restaurants, places to go, etcetera.”

“Looking forward to that!.” She took a sip of her coffee, setting the cup back down on the table. “Do you have any favorite restaurants or places?”

“There’s a few restaurants I like.” He took a bite of his croissant, waiting until he finished chewing to speak again. “Severyanin Restoran is good, the atmosphere is calm and welcoming, it’s one of my favorites in the city. The other would be Hood Street Food, it looks like your typical American café, but they sell more comfort food, burgers, all kinds and vegetarian stuff too.”

“Should I expect we’re going to both sometime this week?”

“Maybe. If the kotyonok is okay with it.” He raised a brow and smirked, making her scoff in reply.

“Of course, where else am I going to try authentic Russian dishes when my Russian boyfriend won’t make any.” She arched both brows, taunting him as she took another bite of her croissant.

Alex narrowed his eyes at her, and let out a huff. “A kotyonok is being very rude right now and I think she needs to be punished for her behavior.”

“Well I think that I love you!” She gave him a cheesy grin that melted the smug look off his face in an instant and made him laugh.

“The things you do to me Skylar!” He leaned over the small table and gave her a quick kiss before sitting back down. “All you have to do is give me that cheesy grin or look at me with those big hazel eyes of yours and my heart melts.”

Skylar’s face softened and shoulders relaxed as she gazed into his blue eyes. Then she leaned over the table, giving him a more passionate kiss than he did moments before. She pulled away and sat back down with a smile on her face.

“It should be illegal for you to be this perfect.”

“I’m far from perfect kotyonok, you know that.”

“Yeah well, you’re perfect for me hot shot.”

He laughs, reaching out for her hand than was resting atop the table. “You’re perfect for me too Skylar.”

After breakfast and another hour of looking around the café they finally made it to the grocery store to buy a week's worth of food they need to survive. They would have made it sooner but most of the candies and toys were in Russian and Alex had to tell her what it was. However when they got over to the small toy section Skylar caught the eye of one of the Matryoshka dolls. After she mentioned she always wanting one and Alex’s shock over her knowing what they were, which she found funny, he bought one for her. Now it was in her purse as she followed him around the grocery store, confused out of her mind.

“I really need to learn Russian, I can’t read anything.”

“Just tell me when you want a lesson and I’ll be happy to help.”

She linked their arms together as he looked at the meat and chicken. “Will there be a reward system?”

“Why would we need…” He turned to look at her with a confused look on his face until he saw the smug look on hers. “Oh. Of course we’ll have a reward system, what kind of teacher would I be?”

“A typical American teacher and we can’t have that.” He chuckled and placed some chicken in the cart. “You do know you don’t need to change your whole diet because of me right? I know I don’t like red meat because it messes with my stomach but it shouldn’t stop you from eating it.”

He stopped walking and turned her, seeing the concerned look on her face. “I know I don’t, I want to. Besides things that call for red meat and be substituted for turkey or chicken, it won’t be a big change for me. If I want red meat I’ll have it when we go out to eat. And we don’t know if any of our future children will have the same sensitivity to it as you do. It’s best to cut back now, slowly than cold turkey someday in the future.”

Her face softened and eyes started to glisten under the fluorescent lights of the store. The longer their relationship goes on for, the more Skylar can’t help but thank the heavens for sending Alex to her. He was everything she’s wanted and more. Someone who loves her for who she is and someone who cares about her, truly cares about her and her well-being.

She didn’t want to get sappy in the middle of the store, so all she did was hug him, a small smile spreading across both of their faces. “Thank you, for being...you.”

“Who else would I be?” He looked down at her and chuckled, get a chuckle out her too.

“I don’t know.” She let him go and sighed, looking around the grocery store. “Sometimes I think this is a dream, and I’m going to wake up any minute. It seems too perfect to be true, yet it isn’t. It’s real and I couldn’t be happier!”

“It’s very real.” He reached out for her hand, gazing into her eyes. “I too couldn’t be happier!”

She moved closer to him, leaning up on her tiptoes and kissed him - hearing hum into it. His hand let go of hers, gently grabbing her arm as he tried to deepen the kiss. Only to have her pull away and laugh.

“Did you forget we’re in the middle of a grocery store?”

“No.”

She arched a brow, and a smirk tugging on her face. “You just wanted to turn me on didn’t you?”

“....No.” Skylar laughed and kissed him again, sneaking her hand to the front of his jeans and gave him a good squeeze. He grunted into the kiss then pulled away. “Such a naughty kotyonok.”

“Only for you, moya sladost'!”

“Why don’t we get this shopping over and done with and head back home so I see how naughty the kotyonok can truly get.”

The smirk that formed on his face made her smile and knead the front of his jeans, feeling his growing arousal beneath her palm. “I might give you a taste of that when we get home.”

He grabbed her hand that was still kneading the front fabric of his jeans and brought it up to his chest. “You deprive me Skylar.”

“Deprive?” She laughs. “Sure, I definitely deprive you Alex.” She rolled her eyes and shook her head. “You’re lucky I love you and probably can’t go long without you on top of me. So I couldn’t actually deprive you if I wanted.”

“You deprive me of all your naughtiness kotyonok.”

“Well I’m not going to show you everything in one go.” She chuckles. “And I need to go back to being my old self. Before Henry.”

The smirk on his face shifted into a small smile, and he leaned down to kiss her forehead. “I may have only known you for five short months and will probably never know the woman you were before Henry. But if it’s any consolation this version of yourself, the version I know and see everyday is perfect!”

Her eyes started to glisten under the fluorescent lights of the grocery store as she looked upon him. She knows how much she has changed since she joined the military and enduring Henry’s abuse and she would sell her soul to go back to being the girl she was before any of it. Yet, she couldn’t, this was who she is, the broken shell of the woman she used to be. Or so she thought. This new version of herself made Alex fall for her, love her and having someone so caring and compassionate has made her feel like her old self again. Maybe as the weeks or months go by, more and more of her old self will come to light. She may never be that same seventeen year old kid she was joining the Marines, she can still get some of her old self back.

“I know I’ll never be the same person I was before everything happened, but knowing you think this version of myself is perfect, is enough.” She wrapped her arms around his waist and hugged him tightly. “Thank you Alex, I don’t know what I would do without you!”

“You don’t need to thank me kotyonok, from my standpoint I see someone who is very compassionate, kind, loving, funny, very good in bed and an all around good person. You are also someone that I care about, who I love! I know I’ll never be able to fix what he did to you, I can sure treat you like a queen, treat you how you were supposed to be treated on the first place.”

“You’re gonna make me cry in the middle of the grocery store моя милая!” She laughed and looked up at him, meeting his blue eyes. “I love you!”

“I love you too!”

Thirty minutes later they were back at Alex’s place. He was putting away the groceries while Skylar looked at his Degtyaryov collection. She couldn’t help but wonder what he would do with all these guns when they decide to have kids. Would they have a room specifically for them or would he just put them in storage?

Storage seemed a little far fetched for him, considering how much he loves them. He doesn’t let anyone touch them, especially his precious LMG, not even Mira, the person who is the director of the research and development of Rainbow. Yet he let her touch it, and some of his collection, even going as far as to let her shoot some if she wanted. Then again he did say he would put said LMG in his locker on base when they move into their new apartment. I guess she’ll just have to wait and see.

“Babe?”

“Yeah?”

She walked over to him leaning against the counter. “What are you going to do with your collection when we have kids?”

He placed what he had in his hands in the cupboard, closing the door and leaned against the counter as she was doing. She could see that he was thinking about it, knowing he probably never thought about it before.

“I...have no idea.” He turned to look over at his collection, seeing his hard work mounted nicely on the wall. “Having a separate room for them would be ideal, but we don’t know how many kids we’ll be having. That room could easily go to another child.”

“What about the attic? No one goes up there and it can be your own personal room.”

“Attic?” He turned to her in confusion. “We don’t have those here kotyonok, most of our living arrangements are in apartments, sometimes the family dacha if you have one.”

“I...did not know that. What’s a dacha?”

“It’s a little house in the suburbs, some families have them.”

“Oh that’s cute. Do you have one?”

He turned his attention fully back to her. “Not anymore. My father decided to sell it once Anna and I were older.”

Skylar grabbed his hand, pulling him closer to her. “I’m sorry, have you ever thought about buying another one?”

“Not until you came into my life.” He smiled down at her, seeing her face soften under his gaze. “I think having a dacha would be a better place to go than an apartment. The kids will have a small yard to play in. Not…” He gestured around him, a scowl on his face. “This.”

She wrapped her arms around his neck, locking eyes. “I think both are good places to live. This apartment is small, yes but it’s cozy and I like that. It makes me feel safe, secure and that will be something we need to make sure we succeed in with our children. Make them feel safe and secure.”

Alex scowl on his face turned to a small smile. “I love when you get all humble.”

“Would you rather me not be humble?” She raised her brows, trying to conceal a smirk on her face, ultimately failing.

He glared down at her and shook his head, having the small smile reappear on his face. “No, I like that you’re humble and I hope our kids are just like you.”

“Hopefully not too much like me. And I’m sure they’ll have a lot of their father in them as well.”

He grabbed her hips, lifting her up and setting her on the counter, than nudged her legs apart to stand in between them. “I would be very happy if our children took after their mama more than me. You’re compassionate, kind, funny, and a hell of a fighter. If our children are like that, it will make me the happiest man in the world.”

“So are you!” She gave him a chaste kiss, a soft smile spreading across her face. “You’re compassionate, kind, funny and very protective. It would make me very happy if our children are like that as well.”

“Maybe they’ll be the perfect mix of both of us?”

“They’re gonna be perfect nonetheless, but yes, I hope so too!”

He laughed, leaning down to kiss her again, deepening it this time - hands trailing up underneath her shirt to unclip her bra. A brief moment later he broke the kiss and before Skylar had time to retort he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder, walking to the bedroom.

He tossed her onto the bed, seconds later he was back on top of her, kissing at her neck. Hands ravaging her body as hers unbuttoned his jeans, gripping the metal tag of his zipper and pulled it down. She grabbed his shoulders pushing her off of her and forced him onto his back.

“No, I want to do something.”

She moved off his lap, settling in between his legs as she freed his semi-hard cock from it’s restraints. Alex watched her in both lust and curiosity, eyes going wide when he watched her head leaned closer to his cock, licking from base to tip. He threw his head back, softly moaning.

Skylar’s tongue swirled around his tip before she fully took his member into her mouth. The wet heat from it forced a moan from his mouth, grabbing a fistful of her hair keeping it out of her face as she bobbed up and down his length.

She pulled away with a pop, a string of saliva still connecting them. Licking her lips she locked eyes with him, getting a firm grip around his cock as she licked from base to tip, sliding her tongue between his slit - watching his head fall back, and moan. She bobbed her head a few times until he was to full hardness and pulled away.

“Kotyonok!”

She looked up at him with innocent eyes, her hand still stroking his cock. “Yes moya sladost'?”

“I never saw you as someone who likes to give oral. You’re very good!”

She smiled at him, still stroking his cock. “I’m not even done yet.”

She leaned back down, taking his full length into her mouth. Feeling her wet heat engulf his hard cock forced him to clutch the sheets, gripping them hard enough to turn his knuckles white. He wanted to buck his hips, feel her mouth fuck his cock. She must have read her mind because she started bobbing her head seconds later, feeling her tongue swirl around his shaft as her mouth moved up his length.

He couldn’t remember the last time he was in the position or with who, those memories were long gone. Now seeing Skylar, his kotyonok laying between his legs sucking his cock was a sight to behold. She never seemed like someone who would like to give oral sex, to him at least, then again she has shocked him before with how she is in bed.

The way she sucked at his cock like a delicious lollipop, sending waves of pleasure through his body was turning his breathing into labored, he was close.

A few more bobs of her head and he came, shooting hot, sticky gobs of semen down her throat with a loud grunt and mumble of her name. She waited until his cock stopped throbbing inside her mouth before she pulled away, swallowing what was left in her mouth.

She wiped the saliva off her mouth, smiling over at a depleted Tachanka. “Did I wear you out?”

He gave her a satisfied smile, chest heavy as he collected himself. “Kotyonok, that..that was amazing!”

“Really?” Her face lit up by his comment. “It’s been a while since I’m done that.”

“Yes really.” He chuckled. “You sucked my cock like a pro...and like the naughty kotyonok you were like at the store.” He smirked at her, forcing a laugh to escape between her lips. “Fondling me like that, making me get hard knowing I couldn’t take you right then and there. I love that side of you!”

“Not a lot of people see that side of me, almost seems like an alter ego.” She pulled her shirt over her head, discarding it onto the floor - followed by her bra. “I am also far from finished with you.”

Skylar undid her pants, pulling them off as did he, discarding his own pants and shirt on the floor. She straddled him, hovering over his cock that was glistening with her saliva. She was about to slide down his shaft, only to have Alex flip their positions.

“No, it’s my turn now kotyonok!” With a single thrust of his hips, his cock head pushed past her folds engulfing in more of her wet heat. Both moaning as he bottomed out. He brushed some hair out of her face, letting her adjust to his size and gazed into her hazel eyes. “You’ve done enough, and deserve to be pleasured.”

Skylar and Alex walked arm-in-arm through Yelagin Island as the sun set, right in the heart of Saint Petersburg. He’s seen all this before and to him it was nothing new, but to her it was, and to see the joy on her face was the best part.

They were walking past the ice rink, seeing people of all ages skating. Then she caught the eye of a young couple with their daughter, each holding her hand as they helped her along. It put a smile on her face.

“That could be us in a few years.” She pointed to the couple, smiling up at him.

He looked over where she was pointing, a small smile forming across his face. “Da, it could.”

They walked over to a nearby bench and sat down, watching the people pass by. Skylar moved closer to him, intertwining their hands together.

“It’s so beautiful here, all the lights, the big Christmas tree, it makes me feel all warm inside.” She turned back to him, giving him a quick kiss on the cheek. “I’m really happy we decided to come.”

“We’re only here because of you kotyonok!” He let go of her hand to wrapped his arm around her shoulders. She snuggled against him, resting her hand on his thigh. “I am happy we came, it’s nice showing you around.”

She looked over at him, a small smile spread across her face and she leaned up to kiss him, properly this time.

“A lot has happened for us in the past few weeks and I couldn’t be happier! I could be back at base right now, wallowing in my own self pity over what happened to me. I’m not, I’m here with the most amazing person I have ever met and I wouldn’t change it for the world!”

“Neither would I kotyonok, neither would I!” He gave her a quick kiss, his face softening as she looked up at him with those big hazel eyes. “As I look at the other couples walking by and on the rink, I can’t help but feel grateful. Grateful that I have the most amazing woman in my arms right now. The woman who will someday be Misses Senaviev and the mother to my children, all because she wanted me just as much!”

Skylar’s eyes started to glisten and face soften under his words. “I love you moya sladost'!”

“I love you too kotyonok!” He stood up, offering his hand, that she graciously took. “There’s more to see.”

She linked their arms back together as they walked down the path, hearing Christmas music in the distance. It made her heart happy hearing it, even if Christmas was over with. And to be strolling in a park, looking at all the Christmas lights and décor that was still out with Alex, made this one of her best and most memorable Christmas’ to date.

“I know I’ve complained and yelled at you for trying to spoil me and I was half expecting for you to have a Christmas present for me.” She chuckles. “And I think I’ll be okay with you spoiling me from time to time, just don’t go overboard. Please.”

Alex’s face lit up like a Christmas tree, his blue eyes twinkling as he looked down at her with pure joy. “I won’t I promise! What made you change your mind?”

“You did! Out of everything Henry did to me, the worst of it was making me feel like I wasn’t worthy of anything, even love. Then you came along and showed me that wasn’t true, I am worthy.”

“You’re worthy of this world Skylar and I would give it to you if I could!”

“Having you is enough for me!” She wrapped her arms around his waist, hugging him. “Though some hot chocolate would be nice too!”

His arms wrapped around her and he laughed. “There’s a little spot that sells some close by, let’s get you that hot chocolate.”

A few minutes later Skylar was sipping on a nice, hot cup of hot chocolate, humming in satisfaction. They found a table nearby to sit down and share some vatrushka that Alex got for them, mainly because she never tried one.

She took the first bite after a little hesitation, eyes going wide for a brief second as she finished her bite. “Oh that’s good. I wasn’t sure how I was going to like it since I’m not a fan of cottage cheese but that’s good.”

“That’s because it’s authentic tvorog and not what you Americans call cottage cheese.”

She rolled her eyes and took another bite. “Oh shush.” She looked out over at some lights, before settling her gaze back to him. “Of course it’s authentic, we’re in Russia.”

He narrowed his eyes at her as he took a bite and shook his head. “Sassy kotyonok.”

She laughed and gave him a cheeky grin that made him laugh in return.

“I can’t help but think about that couple with the little girl on the ice rink, only I picture that being us with our daughter.”

“Kotyonok are you having second guesses again?”

“No.” She scoffed. “Sometimes I can’t help but picture it. It’s the one thing in life I can’t wait to come true.”

“I would be lying if I said I didn’t picture it or dream about it.” He reached for her hand, giving it a small squeeze. “I can’t wait for the day you make me a papa.”

“You dream about it?”

“I do! It’s hard not too.”

Skylar nodded her head. “No argument there. Before we know it we’ll be bringing the first little Senaviev home.”

“I was never the one to get sappy over this kind of stuff, I can’t help it now. I can’t wait to see all the baby stuff around our home, waking up on and off through the night for feedings and diaper changes, and all the things that come with being a parent.”

“I’m always sappy for that stuff.” She laughed. “It’s nice though, that you are now, it makes me feel more confident you want it.”

He set his cup down, looking at her with a sad expression on his face. “Would I lie to you?”

“No, you wouldn’t.”

“Exactly.” He moved closer to her, kissing her temple. “I may have never really wanted it before, that was because I never found the right person. Then some beautiful young FBI operator joins Rainbow and that was it. I finally found the love of my life!”

“The universe knew.”

His face softened and a smile started to spread across his face. “The universe knew.”

Skylar was sound asleep next to him, he could hear her calm breathing in the silence of their room. He looked over at her, a proud, happy smile showing on his face, then he turned back to the ring in his hands. Ever fiber in his being was telling him to just ask her, she’ll say yes anyways, but he couldn’t. They haven’t even been together a month, yes they’ve talked about marriage and kids and both were very confident both would happen one day.

Skylar was sensitive and he knows some people won’t take their engagement well, saying you’ve only been dating a few weeks that’s too early or you barely know him. She was still healing from her past and he doesn’t want more people making her question his love. He’ll wait a little bit longer, long enough for people to have their meaningless opinions of them and then he’ll ask her ...and hopes there’ll be a ring on her left hand.

He quietly shut the case and put it back in the nightstand drawer, turning on his side to wrap his arms around her, pulling her close to him. He kissed the back of her neck, softly humming and closed his eyes - thinking how did he get so damn lucky.

Chapter Text

Skylar woke up to Alex wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer to him, nuzzling his face into the back of her neck. She smiled to herself as she felt his breath on the back of her neck, than his lips. Looking out the window she noticed it was snowing, strongly too, it made her wonder if the weather would postpone or cancel out what Alex had planned.

“Moya sladost', it’s snowing out.”

She could feel the bed move as he sat up slightly, looking over her. He groaned and laid back down, pulling her closer. “It better stop in a few hours or I’m not going to be happy.”

She laughed and turned around to face him, cupping the side of his face with her hand, caressing the stubble on his jaw. “If it doesn’t, it’s fine moya sladost', I’m sure what you had planned we can do in the snow.”

His face softened upon her gaze and he leaned into the gesture. He loved how nothing seemed to bother her when things changed on a whim, how she quickly accepted it and went on with her life. And, he’s usually the same, but with her he wants everything to go as planned, not have anything or anyone mess it up.

“We can kotyonok, I just wish it wasn’t snowing, I want it to be perfect.”

She smiled and shook her head leaning forward until their lips met. She could feel the tension in his body leave him as his body relaxed into the kiss. A moment later she pulled back with a smile on her face.

“Alex it still will be perfect, a little snow isn’t gonna stop us or me from having a good time.” She glanced down at his chest, licking her lips than looked back up to meet his gaze. “Just think, you can help warm me up when we get back home.”

He chuckled, wrapping his arms around her and pulling her closer to him. He inhaled a breath, taking in the scent of fruit mix with the slight stench of sex from the night before that still lingered in the room. “I suppose it’ll be fine, I can always get you back for the snowball you threw at me at the holiday party. And I’ll always keep the kotyonok nice and warm.”

Skylar wrapped her arms around him, nuzzling her face into his warm chest and hummed. “You know if you throw a snowball at me than I’m gonna throw one at you and start a snowball fight. Yes you do keep me warm, both in your arms and...other ways.”

“Other ways?” He pulled away to look down at her with a raised brow and a smirk across his face. “What other ways are you talking about kotyonok?”

“It’s nothing much, just something we do that’s more physical.”

He slowly nodded his head, making her chuckle. “There’s a lot of things we do that’s physical, can you elaborate more please?”

She fixed her pillow and laid down with a long sigh. “I don’t think I can, I think you can figure it out on your own moya sladost'.”

Alex let out one of his booming laughs and laid down beside her, gazing into her hazel eyes. “You always brighten my mood kotyonok!”

She mirrored his smile and kissed his nose. “I’m happy I can. And you always brighten my mood moya sladost'!”

He let out a content sigh, pulling her closer to him. “You are one of the only people who can kotyonok.”

Skylar gave him a quick kiss and snuggled into his chest, letting out a content hum. “Who’s the other people?”

“Huh?”

“The other people that can brighten your mood?”

“Oh.” He chuckled. “Just some people I work with.”

She moved away from him to get a better look at his face, narrowing her eyes at him. “And who are they moya sladost'?”

“Why does the kotyonok want to know so badly?” He propped himself up on his elbows, arching his brow in a taunting manner.

She propped herself up on her elbows as well and shrugged her shoulders. “I’m just curious that’s all.”

Alex slowly nodded his head. “Is someone jealous?” he asked tauntingly with a smirk on his face.

“No!” She said with a laugh. “I bet it’s Kapkan, Glaz and Fuze.”

“Maybe.” He sat up, fixing the sheets around his groin. “They may help ease my mood from time to time, but there is one more person that will always make me very happy.” Skylar sat up with an amused look on her face and secured the sheets around her naked frame. “She has long chestnut brown hair, beautiful hazel colored eyes. Is funny, very loving, recently joined Rainbow. I don’t think I could spend a day without her.”

The smile that spread across her face made his heart skip a beat. Then he found himself in a tight hug and his lips crushed with hers. He easily picked her up, letting her straddle him. A moment later she pulled away, inhaling a breath and met his gaze.

“I love you and I know I couldn’t spend a day with you!”

He wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him and kissed her forehead. “I love you too kotyonok! From now until the day I leave this Earth.”

“Hopefully that day will be in the very far future.”

“It will be, nothing is gonna take me away from you anytime soon.”

“Good!” She leaned forward, giving him a chaste kiss. “Because that would make me very sad.”

Alex face softened under her gaze and he moved a strand of hair behind her ear, cupping the side of her face with his hand. “Well we can’t have the kotyonok sad now can we?”

“No we can’t.” She tried keeping a neutral face, only to fail as she laughed at the smirk on his face. “I think me being sad would be a very bad thing. All I would do is cry and binge eat in bed, I don’t think you would want to deal with that?”

He let out another booming laugh and kissed her forehead. “If you were sad and wanted nothing more than to cry and binge eat in bed, that’s okay. I can keep you company!”

Skylar cupped his face with both of her hands and gave him a chaste kiss. “Have I ever told you you’re the best boyfriend in the world and that I love you?”

Alex grabbed her hands, moving them away from his face but kept them in his. His blue eyes softened as he looked upon her and smirk started to spread across his face. “I think you might have said something like that a while ago.”

She rolled her eyes and chuckled. “Oh shush.”

“I know you have and have I ever told you that you’re the best girlfriend in the world and that I love you?”

“No, I think this is the first time you’ve told me.”

He shot her an unamused look and shook his head, but Skylar could see the smile he was trying to hide. “Why don’t we get dressed and I’ll make us some breakfast?”

She gave him a quick kiss before getting off his lap. “Yes please, I’m starving. What are you going to make moya sladost'?”

Skylar went for her bag, tossing it on the bed to rummage through. She took out a fresh pair of underwear, a pair of sweats and a loose fitting tee shirt for right now. She just wanted to be comfortable.

Grabbing her underwear she easily slid them on, then grabbed her pants, glancing over to see Alex already in a pair of sweats that clung nicely to his hips and were form fitting enough to show a little bit of the outline of his groin.

“I’m not sure yet.” He turned to her, seeing her only in her underwear with her pants still in her hands and staring at his bottom half. “Kotyonok, you’re staring.”

She snapped out of it and shook her head in embarrassment, feeling her cheeks burn red. “Sorry.”

He laughed and walked over to her side of the bed and sat down on the edge. “It’s nothing to be sorry for. I know I look good.”

Skylar snorted and pulled on her pants. “I wouldn’t go that far, you look alright in those sweats.”

His mouth fell open as he watched her pull on her shirt, then grabbed her hand and pulled her onto his lap. “That’s not what your face was saying kotyonok.”

“And what was my face saying moya sladost'?” She turned her head and arched a brow in a taunting manner.

“You were drooling and your eyes were staring at my groin.” He arched his brow back in a taunting manner and smirked. “I think that speaks for itself kotyonok.”

She could feel her cheeks start to tint red and she looked away from him, rubbing the back of her neck.

“I wasn’t drooling.” She mumbled, then turned her head back to him. “And you can’t blame me for staring when your wear form fitting sweats in an area I very much like. So this is your fault.”

The smirk on his face turned into a smile and he picked her up bridal style and started to walk into the kitchen and living room area. “You like that part of me huh, kotyonok? I wonder why.”

He sat her down in one of the chairs and went into the kitchen. She watched him for a moment as he looked in the fridge, hearing him let out a long sigh. A moment later she got up, walking over to him and wrapped her arms around his waist and kissed his spine.

“I like every part of you моя милая, that specific part just brings me a lot of pleasure.”

She felt his back reverberate when he chuckled and he stood up straighter. “Every part of you brings me pleasure kotyonok!”

“How sweet.” She chuckled as she let him go. “So what’s for breakfast?”

“Syrniki.” He grabbed the tvorog from the fridge and the jam and shut the refrigerator door.

He walked over to the counter to set the ingredients down before grabbing the rest of them. Skylar sat down at the counter to watch him cook, or well ogle at him while he cooks. She couldn’t help it, he was shirtless and in form fitting sweats. She could see his back muscles move when he did something, like crack an egg or mix the ingredients in a bowl.

She propped her head up on her elbow as he bent down to grab a frying pan from one of the cabinets below, taking in the sight of his nicely toned ass. She let out a not so quiet hum of approval as he stood back up making her eyes go wide and for him to turn around with a smirk on his face.

“What was that hum of approval for kotyonok?”

“That sweet ass of yours!”

Alex’s mouth fell agape and he dropped the frying pan on the floor onto his foot, forcing a string of swears in Russian from his mouth. After a moment he recomposed himself and picked up the frying pan off the floor and placed it on the stove.

Skylar snorted and got off from her seat and walked over to him, cupping his face between her hands and gave him a few kisses on his face. “I’m moya sladost'.”

He laughed and gently grabbed her hands, pulling them from his face. “It’s okay kotyonok, I just wasn’t expecting you to be so forthcoming.” He leaned down and gave her a more passionate kiss. “Now why don’t I start breakfast?”

She laughed and smiled up at him. “Yes please.”

As he went back to the ingredients she went back to her seat at the counter to watch him.

It wasn’t long before the room smelled of what he was cooking making Skylar’s stomach growl. As she waited, she continued to watch him cook, loving the domesticity of their vacation and couldn’t wait for this to be a part of their everyday life.

He looked over his shoulder, grabbing her attention. “It’s almost ready.”

“Oh thank god.” She slouched back into her seat. “I’m starving.”

Alex chuckled and got two plates from the cupboard and set them aside the stove. While he made their plates Skylar went and got them both some water and sat back down, just in time for him to be putting the plates down on the counter where they’re gonna be sitting.

She grabbed her fork and cut off a piece of her syrniki and took a bite, humming in satisfaction. “This is good.”

Alex looked over at her with a grin across his face and chuckled. “You’re cute when you eat.”

She finished the bite in her mouth, feeling her cheeks tint a bit red. “No I’m not.”

“Yes you are! It’s cute when you hum in satisfaction every time you take your first bite.”

“I can’t help it.” She chuckled. “I like food.”

He let out one of his booming laughs and pulled her closer to him so he could kiss her temple. “Like I said you’re cute kotyonok!”

She gave him a small smile then leaned over and gave him a firm kiss. “I love you!”

“I love you too!”

The rest of breakfast was taken in complete, content silence, just enjoying each others company while they ate. So far Skylar has loved Saint Petersburg and wish they could stay longer than the week they have. She didn’t want to go back to Hereford, to work, she just wanted this vacation to never end. The only plus side she could see was, she was thankful her and Alex worked together.

After breakfast she helped him with the dishes and were now waiting to see if the snow would subside. So far it hasn’t.

Skylar was sitting by the window watching the snowfall down to the ground, covering it in a blanket of white. While Alex was sitting next to her working on polishing one of his neglected Degtyaryov he owns.

Moments later she felt his body lean on hers and his chin on one of her shoulders and he sighed. “It hasn’t stopped yet.”

She chuckled and moved to look at him. “It’s only been a few hours моя милая, just have some patience.”

He looked at her and hung his head in defeat. “Yes kotyonok.”

She moved over to him, linking their arms together and she laid her head on his shoulder. “Everything will be fine Alex, I won’t mind doing whatever it is that you have planned for us in the snow. And we can still get lucky and the snow can stop between now and then.”

He looked down at her with a small smile on his face and kissed the top of her head. “If you think it will be, then I believe you.”

She looked up at him with a gleaming smile that melted his heart and he couldn’t help but mirror that smile. “Good. If you want we could always go outside and have a rematch from the holiday party.”

Alex scoffed in response and then laughed. “We both lost that match remember?”

“Perhaps.”

“Perhaps?”

“I don’t remember falling on my ass in the snow and you falling on top of me. What are you talking about?” She tried to conceal her laugh as she looked at him, but failed. “I would’ve won though.”

“Whatever you say kotyonok!” He raised a brow when she narrowed her eyes at him. “What?”

“Whatever you say kotyonok?” She let go of his arm and stood up. “Okay hot shot, lets see if you’re right.”

Skylar began to walk away, heading for the bedroom where her boots were. Alex grabbed her hand and pulled her into his lap and kissed her all over her face making her giggle and squirm in his arms.

“No, I think we should stay inside where it’s warm. We don’t need a rematch.”

“Is it because you know you’ll lose?” She quirked a brow and smirked.

He rolled his eyes and scoffed in response. “Me? Lose? That’s ridiculous, I just don’t want to go out in the snow.”

“Hmm.” She scrutinized him further, watching his face stay neutral and then sighed. “So it’s because you know you’ll lose. Okay then.”

He let out one of his booming laughs and kissed her temple before letting her go. “Da, kotyonok, it’s because I know I’ll lose.”

“I knew it!” She gave him a quick kiss and got off his lap. “I. Knew it.”

Alex chuckled and watched her walk over to his gun collection. She placed her hands on her hips and looked at them all with awe and wonder. In a way it was a little overwhelming with all the old soviet weaponry in front of her and she didn’t know which one she wanted to get a better look at.

He leaned back against the couch, watching her for a moment before he got up and walked behind her, wrapping his arms around her waist. “Having trouble?”

“Maybe.” She chuckled. “There’s so many, it’s hard to choose.”

“Take your time kotyonok!”

She snorted and then looked to her left, seeing what looked like a few pictures of him with a few other men in a wrestling uniform. Wiggling out of his arms she walked over and picked one up to look at. “I didn’t know you were a wrestler. Should’ve known though, you have the perfect physique for it.”

He walked over to her, looking down at the picture in her hand with a small smile on his face. Skylar could tell he was reliving old memories. “That was during my Red Army days, before I was transferred over to the Spetsnaz. Being on the wrestling league earned me accolades because of my formidable frame and match strategy.”

“Good, you deserve them.” She leaned up to kiss his cheek then put the picture back on the shelf. As she looked at the other few pictures of him in his wrestling attire and a few decades younger she couldn’t help but wonder about all the memories he must have from his years in the Red Army. “You must have some good memories from your wrestling days?”

“Well, thank you kotyonok!” He picked up the next picture, looking down at it. “I do have a lot of memories from my wrestling days, mostly matches. I won quite a few back in my day.”

“You’re welcome моя милая!” She wrapped her arms around his waist and looked down at the picture in his hand. “I would be shocked if you didn’t.”

He snorted and placed the picture back in it’s spot and wrapped an arm around her. As he glanced around at his Degtyaryov and Mosin-Nagnant collection, he couldn’t help but feel a little uncertain. These guns used to mean the most to him, he treated them with the utmost care and spent hundreds if not thousands of dollars to acquire and bring them back to their former glory. Now as he looks at them, that wasn’t the case anymore.

Skylar looked up at him, seeing the content look on his face but also something else, something she couldn’t put her finger on. “Are you okay?”

When he heard her voice he looked down at her, seeing the slight worry on her face. “I’m fine. These guns used to mean the most to me. I spent hundreds, if not thousands on these weapons to put them back to their former glory. Now as I stand here, looking at them, that’s not the case anymore. You mean the most to me!”

Her face softened upon his gaze and she leaned up, placing a passionate kiss upon his lips. “I love you!”

“I love you too!”

She let go of him to grab his hand and pulled him back to the couch where they snuggled up next to each other.

Alex went back to the gun he was cleaning while Skylar went on her phone to pass the time since there wasn’t much to do while it snowed. That’s when she saw she had an unread message from Lion.

“Did you hear about the rumors going around about you and Tachanka?”

“What about me and Tachanka?” She set the phone aside to wait until he messaged back and looked out the window at the snow.

She wasn’t sure if Lion was still on base or went back home to France to spend some time with his son for the holidays. She knew Olivier had a rocky relationship with his son, couldn’t blame him for it either. He was young, shit happens but he’s trying his best and that’s what counts.

It wasn’t long before her phone ‘dinged’ to notify her of the new message.

“That you’re together, oui?”

She snorted and typed back a simple “yes” before setting her phone down again.

Skylar looked over at Alex to see him looking at her with a raised brow. “Who are you talking to kotyonok?”

“Lion. He asked if I heard about the rumors going around about us. I said yes, now just waiting for him to message back.”

“Ah, I forgot you’re friends with him.”

She could hear the jealousy in his voice and it forced a little laugh from her lips. She moved closer to him, linking their arms together and kissed his cheek. “Are you gonna get jealous of every guy I talk to that’s younger than you моя милая?”

“....No.”

She chuckled and let go of his arm and got up. She moved in front of him then straddled him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “How many times do I need to tell you that I don’t want anyone that is younger than you? I love you, I only want you, no one else!”

“I’m not jealous over every guy you talk to that is younger than me kotyonok.” He wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her forehead. “Why would I be jealous?”

Skylar chuckled and shook her head. “Because you think I’ll leave you for someone younger. Which is ridiculous, I don’t want anyone other than you!”

His face softened and he leaned forward until their lips met in a passionate kiss and he pulled her closer to him. “That thought has entered my mind a few times. I do believe you kotyonok.”

“It probably doesn’t help that you’re one of the older operators in Rainbow and you’re surrounded by younger men that could potentially woo me. Again, will never happen.”

She exhaled a breath and locked eyes with him, giving him a small smile that he mirrored. Only to have her attention change over to her phone when it went off. Without moving from her spot on his lap she reached over to grab her phone.

“Huh, I thought you would end up with Glaz. You two seemed close and you guys have a lot in common. Either way I hope it works out!”

Skylar snorted as she read the message, glancing over to see Alex raised his brow. “Lion said he thought I would end up with Glaz since we seemed close and have a lot in common. He also said he hopes it works out.”

She messaged him back a simple “thank you and it’s a long story, tell you back at base” then set her phone down next to her to give him her undivided attention. That’s when she saw the small case of fear in his eyes that tugged at her heart.

“Alex, what Olivier said doesn’t matter. Yeah Glaz and I are close, we’re both snipers and train together and we have an artistic background. But he’s just a friend, you’re my boyfriend, someone I love with my whole heart. You’ve given me something I never thought I would have again. Hope!”

He let out a small sigh, then pulled her into a hug, rubbing up and down her back. She smiled to herself and closed her eyes, relishing in the feel of his hand moving up and down her back.

“I love you too Skylar, more than you will ever know!” His grip around her tightened into a firmer hug and he let out a breath. “You’ve given me nothing but love and happiness and pure joy in the last five months!”

He closed his eyes and inhaled a deep breath, taking in her scent. He was trying to ignore the voice in his head that was telling him to just propose to her, what could possibly go wrong? She would say yes they’ve already talked about marriage and kids, just ask her you coward. But he couldn’t, because deep down he wonders if getting engaged so soon would make her run or make her more uncertain of their future together and he couldn’t have that. So he’ll wait, just a bit longer until he pops the question.

“You’ve made me feel happy, loved more than anything and filled with joy too. I’ll always be grateful that we met!” She pulled away from him with a big grin on her face. “And fell in love!”

Alex couldn’t help but mirror her smile and lean forward to kiss her forehead. “Yeah, that might be the best part!”

“I think it is too!” She got off his lap and sat down next to him, snuggling up to him with her back against the side of his body where he wrapped an arm around her chest.

They sat in silence for a while, only hearing each others breathing and the music they had been playing in the background. Skylar watched the snow for a moment and let out a content sigh. Last year she was in a different place, emotionally and physically, now she was happy, truly happy and in a place she never thought she’d be, with a person she never thought she’d be with. The universe has a way of bringing people and happiness into your life when you least expect it. She never thought it would be joining a counter-terrorism group and meeting a Spetsnaz operator named Alexsandr “Tachanka” Senaviev for her to feel this happy again.

“You’re offly quiet kotyonok, are you okay?”

“Yeah I’m fine, just thinking that’s all.” She turned to look at him, sitting cross legged on the couch beside him. “I was thinking about how different my life was a year ago and how much it has changed.”

“For the better, I hope.” He gave her a small smirk, then grabbed her hand and pulled her against him. Where she snuggled up against his chest with another content sigh. “I know my life has changed for the better since you came to Rainbow.”

“Of course for the better! Joining Rainbow, meeting you was the best thing to ever happen to me. It’s the one thing in life I’ll always be grateful for.”

“Me too kotyonok, me too!” He kissed the top of her head and let out a content sigh. “The one thing I will be forever grateful for, is you giving me a chance. You didn’t have to nor need to, yet you did and it has made me the happiest man in the world.”

She moved her head off his chest to look up at him, meeting his gaze. “I wanted too! All you did was be yourself and that was enough to make me fall head over heels in love with you. And you’ve helped me heal and become a better, happier version of myself! If I didn’t take this leap of faith, I would have regretted it.”

“I love you!”

“I love you too!”

The snow finally stopped a few hours later and they were now getting ready to head out to Yelagin Island for the surprise Alex had in store for her. She was beyond excited, like a kid in a candy store to see what it was and to finally have the impatience leave her.

As she went through her clothes to pick out what to wear Alex was already dressed and patiently waiting for her on the bed, then again she did take a shower beforehand.

She glanced over at him, giving him a small smile. “You know you didn’t need to get dressed yet. Now you’re stuck waiting for me.”

“I don’t mind kotyonok, you know that. Take all the time you need.”

She chuckled and grabbed a long sleeve shirt from her bag and set it aside. “I think you just like to watch.”

Alex set his phone down on the bed, moving his arms behind his head and had a smirk on his face. “Perhaps. Is it a bad thing I like to watch my krasavitsa lyubimaya devushka?”

“No.” She walked over to his side of the bed, sitting down next to him and placed her hand on his thigh. “I don’t think it’s a bad thing at all. I can tell you thoroughly enjoy it ...considering you already have a bulge in your pants.”

She smirked at him as her hand slid up his thigh towards the front of his pants, feeling his semi-hard cock beneath the fabric of his jeans.

He grabbed her hand, placing more pressure on his cock and softly moaned as she palmed his growing erection. She leaned forward, placing a passionate kiss upon his lips and moved over to straddle him. A moment later she broke the kiss and unbuttoned his pants, freeing his restrained cock.

She began to stroke him to full hardness, gazing into his eyes. “How long do we have?”

He glanced over at the clock and back to her. “An hour, enough time to have my kotyonok ride me if she so pleases.”

Skylar let go of his cock and moved her panties to the side and slid down onto his shaft. She moaned as she bottomed out and stilled herself for a moment to get used to his size. Even after all this time, she still needed a little time to adjust. Nonetheless she was very thankful he was gifted in that department.

“It pleases me very much моя милая!” She rolled her hips, hearing a low grunt from the back of his throat. “I like having you deep inside me as much as possible.”

His eyes turned black with lust and quickly flipped their positions so she was now on her back. He pulled his pants lower as to not have the zipper graze her skin and began a rough, yet sensual pace.

It was another gift he has, how he can be rough, yet very sensual at the same time. And Skylar loved every second of it.

He looked down at her, gazing into her hazel eyes, seeing the happiness, pleasure and love in them that made his heart melt like butter on a fresh out of the oven roll. He never knew what true, unconditional love felt like until Skylar, his kotyonok, much like how she must have felt before him. And now they have each other, now until his last days on this Earth.

Her hand came up to cup his cheek and he leaned into the gesture, making her smile up at up. She leaned up, giving him a few quick kisses and began to meet his thrusts.

It was long before she was a moaning mess underneath him and her walls started to clench around his cock. And with another snap of his hips, his own orgasm hit him and he moaned out her name as his face hid in the crook of her neck.

Skylar kissed the top of her head as her body slowly stopped trembling. “I’m very happy I wasn’t fully dressed.”

He propped himself up on arms as his cock still pulsed inside of her and gave her a cheeky grin. “Why is that?”

“Because I would have to change again because your semen would be on my clothing.”

“No kotyonok, my semen is inside you.”

She went straight face and licked her bottom lip, trying to figure out something witty to say back. “Well it’s not gonna stay in there, you know that.”

He kissed her nose and pulled out, collapsing onto the bed beside her with a content sigh. “Does the kotyonok want me to go back to using condoms?”

With a blind hand she reached for the tissues on the nightstand to clean herself up with. After tossing the used tissue in the trash she fixed her panties and sat up. “No. But we probably should when we get back to work and we’re living on base for the time being.”

“Why?” He placed himself back in his pants and sat up. “It’s no ones business what we do in the privacy of our own room.”

“I know it’s just...I don’t know.”

His face softened and he moved closer to her, placing a hand on the small of her back. “Skylar, you can tell me.”

She sighed and brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them. “I like having sex without condoms, but at the same time I’m afraid of having a repeat of what happened before.”

“You mean the miscarriage? You’re on birth control and even if you did get pregnant, it wouldn’t be like it was before.” He leaned over and kissed her temple. “You were stuck with an abuser who wanted nothing more than to break you down and use you for his own selfish reasons. Now you’re with someone who truly loves you and will always look out for you and our children.”

“When I found out about the pregnancy after the ambush, it was a lot to take in. Deep down I wanted that child, but I was terrified of Henry finding out. I didn’t want to be stuck with him for the rest of my life. Sometimes I wonder if my fear is what caused it or maybe there is a God and he heard my prayers.” She let go of her legs and picked at the blanket below. “Now that I’m with you, someone who I can’t wait to have kids with. Miscarrying our child would kill me. Even though I know I couldn’t do anything about it.”

Alex wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. “You shouldn’t worry about that now, you’re not even pregnant. Yes it would be saddening if we lost our child, but we can always try again until you’re holding the first of many little Senaviev’s.”

“Many?” She chuckled and looked up at him. “What’s your take on many?”

He shrugged his shoulders. “I don’t know, four?”

“Four? I’d say that’s a pretty normal size family.” She chuckled. “At least for Americans.”

“What’s your take on ‘many’ kotyonok?”

“Anything more than six.”

He went quiet for a brief moment, moving his arms from around her and sat up more, contemplating what she said. “That is many. Do you think we’ll have six kids someday?”

Skylar shrugged her shoulders and looked up at him. “I don’t know. Do you want six kids someday moya sladost'? It’s okay if you do.”

He laughed and shook his head. “I’m not sure it'll on depend on if you want six kids or not. I’m not the one who’s going to be carrying our children someday.”

She got off the bed and went back over to her bag. “I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”

She pulled out a fresh pair of underwear, along with a pair of jeans and began to get dressed. While she Alex got up from the bed and went into the kitchen. He opened one of the drawers and grabbed the small black box hidden in the back and opened it, looking down at the ring inside.

“Just ask her, she’s going to say yes. Stop being so afraid.”

“Afraid of what?”

His eyes widened once he heard her behind him, he shut the box and turned around, keeping it behind his back. “Kotyonok, you got dressed fast.”

She raised a brow and tried to look behind him. “What have you got there?”

“Oh it’s nothing.”

She took a step forward, giving him an unamused look. “If it’s nothing, then why are you hiding it behind your back?”

“I...it’s.” He rubbed the back of his neck trying to figure out an excuse that believable. “A surprise.”

He cursed himself under his breath as her face started to light up. “A surprise you say? Another one? So when can I see it?”

“Umm I’m not sure yet.”

“You’re not sure yet?” She raised a brow and crossed her arms. “How are you not sure?”

“What? Can’t a man be unsure of when to give his girlfriend a surprise? I want the timing to be perfect.”

He could tell she didn’t believe him by the look he was getting. All she did was uncross her arms and sigh. “I’ll let it go for now.”

She turned around and walked away back to their room. He let out a relieved breath and put the box back in the drawer, and headed back into the bedroom.

He walked into her putting on her boots and giving him a shake of the head. He couldn’t help but chuckle and sit down next to her. “You’ll find out soon enough kotyonok.”

“Not really.” She let out a small laugh and tied up her boot. “At least I find out one of the surprises soon.”

“Da, you do. And I hope you like it.”

She pulled on her other boot and tied it, then turned to him. “I’m a hundred percent sure I will love it моя милая!”

He leaned over and gave her a quick kiss on the lips. “Come on, let’s get going.”

She grabbed his hand as they headed out of the bedroom to grab their coats by the door. “So can you give me a little hint?”

Alex handed her her coat and laughed. “Sorry kotyonok.”

She pouted her bottom lip as she put her coat on and zipped it up. “Please?”

“No, you’ll find out very soon.”

“Ugh fine.”

He let out a booming laugh and they headed out the door.

They were at Yelagin Island now and as night drew closer and closer Skylar’s heart raced with excitement since they only had an hour to kill. She tried to guess what it was, but Alex wouldn’t give her any clues and that bugged her, luckily she didn’t have to wait long.

To pass the time they were sitting on a bench watching the people pass by and enjoying the evening air.

She linked their arms together and rested her head on his arm. “Thank you moya sladost' for such an amazing vacation!”

“You deserved it kotyonok!” He gave her a kiss on the top of her head, his lips lingered for a moment. “This was a much needed vacation for myself as well. I just need to meet the right person to go on it with.”

Skylar chuckled and let out a content sigh. “I’m glad I was the right person to go with.”

“You will always be the right person to go with kotyonok. From this vacation to all the other ones we take.”

Alex rested his hand on one of her thighs, giving it a light squeeze.

“You are too моя милая. I wonder what our other vacations will be like?”

“Hopefully just as good as this one or better.”

“I’m sure they will be just as good as this one, or even better. As long as we’re together anything we do will be good.”

Skylar’s face softened and she moved her head off his arm, leaning over to place a few kisses upon his lips. “I love you!”

“I love you too kotyonok!” He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her into his chest and kissed her forehead. “And I think after the surprise we should head back home and I can warm you up.”

She laughed and shook her head. “I think cuddling up in bed afterwards is a good way to end the night.”

“I I was thinking of something a tad more physical.”

“Yoga?” She arched her brow and smirked. “I never knew you would like to do yoga?”

“Yoga?” His face lit up and he laughed. “That was all you could come up with kotyonok?”

“What?” She laughed and shrugged her shoulders. “You said something a bit more physical, yoga is physical. Unless you were talking about a nice, long hot shower?”

She watched a big smile spread across his face and his blue eyes twinkled under the night sky. It made her heart flutter.

“Da, I was talking about a nice, long hot shower afterwards.”

“I knew it.” She chuckled and leaned up to give him a quick kiss. “Depending on how great this surprise is, you might get exactly what you hope for.”

“Only if you really want to. I’ll be just as happy cuddling in bed with you afterwards.”

“I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”

As they headed towards the surprise hand-in-hand, Skylar was giddy like a little kid. It made him laugh, and still feel a sense of happiness that she was so excited. Hopefully she’ll enjoy it.

In the distance he could see the horse and carriage, making his heart beat a little faster. When got about ten feet away, he stopped, which made her stop and look over at him with a raised brow.

“I hope you like the surprise kotyonok!”

Her eyes lit up and she looked around. “It’s here? Where?”

Alex chuckled and he pointed at the horse and carriage. “Right there.”

He watched her face softened and eyes slightly glistening under the night sky. She looked over at him in complete awe and it made his heart skip a beat.

“Seriously?”

“Da. I thought it would make for a romantic night!”

“A horse drawn carriage ride at night with the love of my life? Yeah I’d say that’s pretty damn romantic!” She grabbed his hand and pulled him towards it. “Come on.”

She let go of his hand as they got closer, fiddling with hers as he talked to the man. Her excitement was through the roof and she couldn’t wait to get under that blanket and snuggle with Alex for the whole ride. No other boyfriend of hers ever did something like this, maybe they never thought of it or maybe they thought she wouldn’t like it. Either way he went out of his way to make a reservation for one and it might be one of the best dates she’s been on.

A moment later he motioned for her to get on, but stopped her as she raised her leg for the step. Without saying a word he put up his hand for her grab it, so she had some extra help to get on. And to be chivalrous.

She chuckled and took his hand. “Thank you moya sladost'!”

“You’re welcome kotyonok!”

He grabbed the blanket in the seat and sat down next to her and covered them up. Skylar linked their arms together and intertwined their fingers, letting out a content sigh as she laid her head on his shoulder. A few seconds later, they were off.

It was quiet between them, the only thing he could hear was her breathing and the occasional “ooo” as they past something. All in all, he was just happy that she liked the little surprise. The surprise he nearly didn’t get and was very thrilled when he found out someone canceled their reservation for it.

She moved her head off his arm and looked up at him, as he gazed into her eyes all he could see was contentment and love. Then he found himself in a very passionate kiss that made his body melt into her.

A moment later she pulled away and had a beaming smile across her face. “Thank you for such an amazing night! And I think it’s safe to say you’re gonna get what you wanted afterwards.”

“You deserve it Skylar and I mean it! You deserve the world and more!”

“I don’t want the world and more, I only want you and your love! That’s all I’ll ever want!”

“You have that!” He leaned down to place another passionate kiss upon her lips, his hand coming up to cup the side of her face. “You always will!”

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and she snuggled against him, letting out a content sigh. “I love you!”

“I love you too!”

The rest of the ride was met in silence and when it finally came to an end he heard a whine of disapproval from her and that made him laugh.

After they said their thanks and walked a little ways away Skylar stopped and looked up at him, crushing their lips together not a second later. Alex laughed into it and pulled away, taking her hands into his.

“Kotyonok, you don’t need to thank me for what I did. I wanted to do this for you because...well I love you!”

“What? I can’t kiss my boyfriend for such an amazing night?” She chuckled and shook her head, then sighed. “You’ve always been there for me Alex, since the very beginning. But now, you treat me like a Goddess. Something I never knew I would have, until you!”

“No Lord should be without one!” He leaned down and gave her a quick kiss. “Let’s go home!”

It was the middle of the night, Skylar could hear Alex’s soft snoring beside her. She slowly moved the covers off of her and quietly got out of bed. She headed for the kitchen, wondering if the surprise he had earlier was still in the drawer. He never went back into the kitchen once they came back, so it very well could be.

Her bare feet pitter pattered on the tiled floor as she came to the drawer she suspected it to be in. Inhaling a breath she opened the drawer, not seeing much besides random junk he kept in it. She fumbled through it until she felt something suede hit her hand.

“Huh.”

She grabbed the small suede box and held it in her hand. Her heart began to race when she realized what it was and covered her mouth to stop herself from speaking too loudly. Once she was composed enough she opened it.

Her mouth fell open and eyes started to glisten. Staring back at her was a decent sized diamond ring, not just any diamond ring but an engagement one.

Talking about marriage and kids was one thing, but to know he already has an engagement ring is another. Now a million questions were running through her mind. How long has he had it? When did he have the time to get one? And when did he plan on asking her? All questions she could easily as him, and won’t. She’ll wait until he’s ready. If he hasn’t popped the question yet, it’s because he doesn’t think it’s the right time. Either way she knows her answer and it’s yes.

She closed it and put it back in the drawer and slowly closed it, then turned on her heels to head back into the bedroom. Only to take a step before stopping in her tracks when she saw Alex standing in the entryway.

Chapter Text

“Hi, I wasn’t expecting to see you up.”

Alex didn’t say anything, he just walked by her and went into the drawer and pulled out the ring, setting it on the counter. “I knew you would come look for it at some point after this morning.”

She could see the worry etched onto his face and eyes, it made her face softened as she walked over to him and leaned up to give him a chaste kiss. “I couldn’t help it, it was cute to see you trying to hide it from me.” She looked over at it and then back to him. “I never expected for you to have one already and yes I know you have it now but that doesn’t mean we need to be engaged. You hid it because you thought it wasn’t time and I respect that.” She grabbed both of his hands and smiled up at him, and he mirrored it back. “I’ll wait however long until you think it’s the right time. Whether it’s three months from now or two years, the answer will always be yes.”

He let go of her hands to cup her face and crushed their lips together. Skylar couldn’t suppress the laugh as he kissed all over her face. A moment later he stopped, gazing into her eyes with a loving expression on his face. “Really?”

Skylar laughed and removed his hands from her face. “Yes really. My feelings for you will never change моя милая. And I can’t wait for the day I go from Skylar Jackson to Skylar Senaviev!”

“I love you!”

“I love you too!”

The smile on his face turned into a smirk and he picked her up and threw her over his shoulder, heading back into their bedroom.

She laughed as he tossed her onto it, then crawled on top of her, kissing and nipping at her neck. A smile spread across her face and she rolled her eyes - chuckling. “Not tonight hot shot. I’m still sore from earlier.”

He moved his head from the crook of her neck and looked down at her, then gave her a kiss and rolled over to his spot. “Are you sure I’m not going too rough kotyonok?”

“I’m very sure, and if you were I would’ve told you that.” She got under the covers and turned on her side in his direction. “I do love the ring you chose.”

Alex got under the covers and turned to face her, giving her a small kiss on the nose. “You do?”

“Yes.” She laughed and snuggled up against him. “You did a good job picking it out. It’s fancy, but not too fancy.”

“I knew you wouldn’t be keen on me buying you a huge diamond ring, even though you deserve it. Once I saw that ring it just screamed Skylar, it’s fancy, but not overpowering in a way that you’re bragging.”

“You know me so well.” She looked up at him and gave him a quick kiss before snuggling back into his chest and letting out a content sigh. “The only thing I’ll brag about is having you!”

His arms that were wrapped around her tightened, pulling her closer to him as if it were possible and he kissed the top of her head. “I’ll always brag about having you! In more than one way.”

“Alexsandr!”

They both laughed and moved their heads to look at each other, Skylar could see the smirk on his face that only made the smile on her face grow even more. She lightly shoved at his chest, pushing him down onto the bed and straddled him, trickling her fingers down his bare chest.

He placed his hands on her hips, looking up at her with amusement and lust. “I thought you were sore kotyonok?”

She bit her bottom lip, rolling her hips against the slowly growing bulge in his boxers forcing a low grunt from the back of his throat. “I am, but there are other ways we can have some fun.”

“What other ways are you talking about?”

Skylar snorted and rolled her eyes, she loved how he could act oblivious and know exactly what she was talking about, all because he wanted her to say it. She got off his lap and went over to his nightstand drawer and opened it, pulling out the bottle of lube that was in there and showed it to him.

“Lube up and you’ll find out.”

Alex sat up and she tossed it to him, giving him a wink before stripping out of her clothes and laying down on the bed. He looked from the lube bottle in his hands and then over to her, watching her roll over onto her stomach and slightly lift her ass in the air.

He smirked and set the lube aside to pull his boxers down to free his restrained cock that was rock hard at this point and very eager. Skylar watched him flip the cap open and pour a generous amount on his cock and stroked himself until his cock was slick enough to slide in with little to no effort.

The bed dipped under his weight as he got behind her, gently lifting her hips for her ass to be in the air. He took the excess lube that was on his hand and circled it around her asshole, and gently pushed it past the few layers of muscles.

She took in a sharp breath, but quickly relaxed as his finger circled around, lubing up her inside. It felt pretty nice, but his finger was a lot less smaller than his hard cock. And that she had somewhat of a hard time taking.

“Are you sure about this kotyonok?”

“....Yes.”

He pulled his finger free and looked down at her. “You didn’t sound so sure with that ‘yes’ you just said. We don’t have to do anal if you don’t want Skylar.”

“No I do, it wasn’t a good experience the first time, that’s all.”

“Henry?” She nodded her head and looked away from him, making him lean down and gently forcing her to look at him. “Let’s take this slow, da? There’s no need to rush this, we’ll both get our pleasure in the long run.”

She nodded her head again and softly smiled at him. He reached for the lube on the nightstand and pour a tiny bit more onto his fingers. And as if she could read his mind she got on her hands and knees to make it easier.

He pushed two fingers past the few layers of muscles and slowly pumped them in and out. “Are you in any pain?”

“No, it feels a little weird though.” She chuckles.

“It will for a little bit.”

He pumped his fingers a little faster, nothing too bad to make her feel any discomfort or pain. As he watched his fingers disappear inside of her he felt his cock twitch, but ignored it. Her comfort was far more greater than his need to get off.

When she started to push back on him and moan he added another finger, and gripped her ass with his free hand. The harder she pushed back on his hand the more he knew she was ready. He pulled his abused fingers free, getting a whine from her in reply.

“Lay down on your side kotyonok.”

Skylar eagerly laid down on her side and he joined her seconds later. He moved her leg up a bit, placing his cock head at her lubed up hole and slowly pushed past the few layers of muscle until his head was fully inside. He let go of her leg and wrapped his arms around her, sinking his cock deeper and deeper until he bottomed out.

“Oh...my god.”

Alex stilled inside her, kissing her cheek and neck. “Any pain?”

“A little discomfort.”

“Tell me when you want me to move.” He pulled her closer, nibbling at her earlobe and moved a hand between her legs. “I can wait.”

She softly moaned as she felt his hand between her legs rubbing at her clit in slow circular motions. She pushed back on him, telling him it was okay to move and he wasted no time on slowly rocking his hips.

He moaned into her ear as her muscles clenched around his cock, milking him for all that he had.

His pace began to fasten, and his cock was leaking pre-cum, slicking himself up even more. Skylar was moaning loudly and pushing back on him as he tried to keep his hand between her legs, but found it difficult with their moving.

He removed his hand from between her legs and maneuvered himself onto his back without pulling out and held her hips as he thrusted up into her. She loudly moaned and laid her head back, having her hair fall against his chest.

Her hand took the spot of his between her legs and she rubbed at her clit with added pressure. She could tell he was close and she wanted to come with him.

His grip on her hips tightened and he thrusted up into her once more - stilling as he came. Skylar followed soon after, body trembling as her orgasm overtook her body.

Alex moved them back into the spooning position and kissed her cheek before he pulled out.

“Holy crap that was amazing.” She turned over to look at him, giving him a chaste kiss. “I know I don’t need to say this but… thank you. You always put my pleasure in front of your own and I’m not sure how many people would do that.”

“Kotyonok you were abused and it would kill me if I ever accidentally hurt you.” He leaned down and kissed her forehead, lips lingering there for a moment before he pulled away and gazed into her eyes. “I know I won’t be able to erase all the bad things he did to you, but I can make sure you’re treated like a queen because after everything you deserve at least that.”

Her face softened under his gaze and she placed her hand on top of his. “You never could hurt me Alex, it’s not in your nature. Even when we have sex you watch for my cues if I’m in pain or not and if I am you stop and ask. You might not be able to erase what Henry did to me, no one can but your love has made me start to heal. Your love has given me happiness, pleasure and most importantly hope.”

His own face softened at her words and he leaned down to place a more passionate kiss upon her lips. “I love you kotyonok!”

“I love you too moya sladost'!”

“Why don’t we get cleaned up and get some sleep?”

Skylar nodded her head and got off the bed, scrunching her face as she stood up when she felt the lube and his semen start to drip down her inner thigh. “I don’t like this feeling.”

She quickly made her way to the bathroom to grab some toilet paper and clean herself up with, Alex trailing behind her. He grabbed some toilet paper himself and wiped off the excess lube from his cock and tossed it into the trash.

He leaned against the sink, watching her intently as she cleaned herself up. There was a lot more than he had and it made him a little guilty, maybe he should’ve worn a condom for anal sex. It would’ve made clean up easier on her.

Once she was done he picked her up bridal style. She giggled and wrapped her arm around his neck for support as he walked them back to the bed.

“How chivalrous.”

He chuckled as he made his way to the bed, stopping abruptly when he saw the mess they made. “Looks like the sheets need to be changed.”

She glanced over at the bed, seeing the decent size wet spot. “Yeah I think that’s a good idea.”

Alex put her down and she went to retrieve her panties and a shirt from the floor and put them back on while he went for his boxer. She watched him pull them back on and then head for the closet, pulling out a fresh batch of sheets for the bed.

He placed the new ones on the dresser before he pulled the comforter off the bed, leaving it on the floor. Skylar grabbed the pillows and placed them on the dresser next to the sheets so they wouldn’t get dirty from being on the floor. He stripped the bed next, bunching the top sheet into a ball and tossing it into the hamper, followed by the fitted one.

He grabbed the fitted sheet from the dresser and opened it up. She went on the other side of the bed to help, not thinking much of it but stopped when she saw him stare at her. “What? Those fitted sheets are a pain to put on by yourself.”

“No it’s not that. We’re making a bed, together. It’s domestic.”

Skylar laughed and a big smile spread across her face. “Yeah, it is pretty domestic. Our lives will be like this quite a bit when we’re living together.”

“I like it!”

“I’m glad you do, now can we please get this bed made so we can go to sleep?”

“Da, kotyonok!”

They both chuckled and continued on making the bed. Once the comforter was back on, she went for the pillows, tossing one to his side of the bed and the other to hers, then crawled under the covers with a content sigh. He chuckled and got under the covers with her, then wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to him and kissed the back of her neck.

“Goodnight kotyonok!”

“Goodnight moya sladost'”

The next morning Skylar was sitting at the counter looking at the ring again while Alex made breakfast. She didn’t get a good look at it last night due to not wanting to get caught, even though that failed and asked if she could see it again.

Now that she was looking at it in more detail and light she was astonished by its beauty. The cut of the diamond was in the shape of a heart and it sat on a shiny rose gold ban. She never mentioned to him that she liked rose gold more than the typical silver or gold you can get engagement rings in. Then again she did wear a lot of rose gold jewelry when off duty, it wouldn’t have been hard for him to pick up that it was one of her favorite colors.

“Moya sladost', this ring is absolutely gorgeous! You did a good job picking it out!”

“I did?” He turned around to look at her in time to see her nod.

“Yes you did! You’ve paid close attention to what kind of jewelry I wear and I know you picked the heart shaped diamond because… well you love me.”

She placed the ring back in it’s box and got up from her seat. Walking over to stand in front of him and wrapped her arms around his neck. “How did I get so lucky to have someone as amazing as you?”

He placed the spatula down on the counter and wrapped his arms around her waist and kissed her. “And how did I get so lucky to have someone as loving as you?”

She locked eyes with him, staring into his blue ones that reminded her of clear blue ocean water, that made you just want to swim in them. His arms however felt like home, they were safe and warm and nothing could touch her when she was in them, not a single soul or memory. She was safe and happy and that’s all she ever wanted.

“You didn’t do anything but be yourself, and you put your faith in me.”

“Faith? Kotyonok you didn’t need my faith, I needed yours. You could’ve easily ended this relationship before it even started, yet you didn’t. You put your trust in me from the moment we fell on that ice at the holiday party, and it has grown immensely since then. My faith was already there, yours had to grow and it had every reason too.”

“My trust in you was there a month after I joined.” She pulled away from him, eyes beginning to glisten. “Henry took everything from me, my worth, my dignity. My innocence. After I finally escaped him I realized he took my trust too, trusting comes a lot harder for me now and I tend to not trust people as a default.” She wiped the tears from her eyes with the back of her hand, letting out a shaky breath. It broke his heart to see her like this, hurt and he wished he could take it away. “Then you came along. You gave me my space the moment I got here, and you always asked if it was okay for you to touch me whether verbally or not. It didn’t take me long to figure out you knew something happened to me before joining, my scar shows proof of that.”

With a blind hand he shut off the stove before he burned their breakfast, but by the smell of it he already did.

He brushed some strands of hair behind her ear and cupped her face, caressing her smooth skin with his thumb. Her hazel eyes that reminded him of moss covered trees on a dewy morning gazed into his, then he wrapped his arms around her in a tight, yet gentle hug.

“People don’t get scars like that from just training, something horrific happened to you and I wanted you to trust me from the beginning. I never would’ve guessed you were abused in every aspect. And I’m so sorry you even had to deal with that in the first place.”

He kissed the top of her head and lingered there for a moment, taking in the fruity scent of her shampoo from her morning shower she had a near hour ago.

Seconds later he felt her body tremble against his and her legs gave out and sank to the floor - he never let go of her, only sank down with her and held her closer to his chest. He closed his eyes and exhaled a breath as her sobs made their way to his ears, then he maneuvered them so he was sitting down and put her in his lap.

“It’s okay kotyonok, I’m here, I’m always here!”

She grabbed his shirt into her fist and sobbed into his chest, feeling both embarrassed and relieved. Years were spent suppressing her emotions from her abuse, only letting them out if she was with her therapist or when the nightmares came crawling back in the night.

Those were the nights spent curled up in bed crying alone until she couldn’t cry anymore, feeling numb and distant. She didn’t have what she has now, a shoulder to cry on. Someone who will console her when the demons strike at night and tell her everything will be alright.

It took a little time but she eventually calmed down and her sobs turned into sniffles. She moved her head away from his chest and wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and looked up at him. “Thank you!”

He kissed the top of her head again and leaned back against the counter, pulling her back to his chest and rubbing his hand up and down her back. “Don’t get up until you want to kotyonok, I’m not going anywhere.”

She didn’t say anything just laid back down against his chest with a sigh. “I hate feeling like this.”

“I know you do. I would rather have you let it out then keep it in and have it eat away at you.” He put his index finger under her chin and gently moved her head to look at him. Her face was red and tear stained and her eyes were still glistening. “Kotyonok, you barely told anyone what really happened between you and Henry, you’ve kept all the pain inside of you for years and you had to deal with it on your own. I don’t want you to hide that pain with me, if those nightmares come back, tell me and I’ll be there. I’ll hold you through the night until they go away. I’ll keep you safe!”

More tears started to well in her eyes and she wrapped her arms around his neck and maneuvered herself to straddle him. “I love you Alex, more than anything in this world and thank you for not giving up on me.”

“I will never give up on you Skylar, never. You’re healing and if anyone thinks you’re not good enough because of that, then they’re not worth it.” He wrapped his arms around her, holding her tightly in them. “I will give my all to keep this relationship going, only death will break us apart.”

“I hope death won’t break us apart for a very long time. I don’t want to think of a world without you.” She lifted her head and planted a firm kiss on his lips. “And I will always give my all for this relationship too.”

Alex kissed her forehead and stood up, she wrapped her arms around his neck and her legs around his waist as he walked over to the couch and sat down, then moved them to a lying down position. “Death isn’t going to take me from you anytime soon, I promise you that kotyonok!”

“Good!” She snuggled up into him again, taking in a big breath of air and nuzzled her face into his chest. “I want us to live a long and happy life together. With a bunch of little Senaviev’s running around.”

He laughed, pulling her closer to him. “There’s not a doubt in my mind that there will be a bunch of little Senaviev’s running around our home in the near future.”

She chuckled and then went quiet, shifting the atmosphere in the room. Alex looked down at her with curiosity to see the absent look on her face. She looked lost in thought, thinking back on old memories or maybe of what could’ve been. A lot has happened in her short life and he couldn’t, no wouldn’t blame her for thinking on what could’ve been if something didn’t or did happen in her life.

“I know you said before that me having a kid wouldn’t have deterred you away from me, did you mean that?”

“Da, I never once lied to you kotyonok. The only difference would be we would be taking it a lot slower.” He kissed her forehead and gave her a small smile. “Would you have deterred away from me if I had kids?”

“No.”

“See. I know the last few years haven’t been kind to you and things could’ve happened differently. All I know is that my love wouldn’t have changed for you if you had a kid right now or not.”

Her face softened and a small smile started to spread across her face. She hated how much she needed to be reassured that he wanted her, yet there was this deep rooted fear that someday he might think she’s not worth it and that terrifies her. Who else would be able to deal with someone who has so much baggage? Not many.

“I’m sorry I keep needing to be reassured, I’m sure it gets annoying after a while.”

Alex wrapped his arms around her again and pulled her against his chest, kissing the top of her head. “No need to apologize for that kotyonok! You know I’ll always want you. I have a ring to prove it.”

Skylar chuckled into his chest and shook her head. “That you do.”

“You can wear it if you want to, I wouldn’t object to it.”

She propped herself up on her elbow, arching a brow at him. “Was that your proposal moya sladost'?”

“No, my real proposal will be much more romantic kotyonok!”

“I’m sure it will be.” She leaned over and planted a passionate kiss upon his lips. His hand slid down her side, resting at her hip. “But I’m not going to wear the ring, I might not take it off.”

She pushed him onto his back and swung her leg over him, laying her head on his chest. His hands came up to rub at her back and he sighed in content. Her laying on top of him was something he thoroughly enjoyed, having her so close to him that she could hear his heartbeat. The heart that belongs fully to her.

“I wouldn’t want you too!”

A smile began to spread across her face, though he couldn’t see it since she wasn’t facing him, but he could feel her cheek move against his chest. She knew he wanted to ask her to marry him, yet he didn’t for whatever reason unbeknownst to her. Maybe he wanted to wait a little longer, long enough for the base to know and not give a crap after a while. Or maybe it was just fear.

She lifted her head to look at him, face softening upon his gaze. “I know you want to ask me моя милая. And it’s eating away at you. I’m not sure about the real reason you’re not asking me, but it’s okay. Whichever day or year you choose to propose, I will say yes.”

He sighed in defeat and locked eyes with her. “Da, I do want to ask you, more than anything. I don’t care if people think we’re taking it fast, I just don’t want their repercussions coming on to you. It scares me to think I could propose right now, you would say yes and then people would talk about us rushing into things and maybe you might think it’s not the right time and call it off.”

“I would never call it off, ever! I don’t care what other people think, it’s not their decision anyways.” She sat up and he followed suit. “I have been raped, beaten and torn down until there was nothing left of me. Once I got away the thought of dating scared the hell out of me, who would want someone like me? Someone with that much baggage. Or when I tell someone about what happened they look at me with pity and disgust.” She wiped a few tears from her eyes and let out a shaky breath. “Then you came along and when I told you about the abuse you didn’t look at me with disgust or pity, you looked at me with love. I never thought I would meet someone who would care so deeply for me and I’d be damned if I ever let that go because of peoples unwarranted opinions.”

“I would never look at you in such a way. You were a victim, you didn’t ask for it and now you’re slowly healing. I don’t care how much baggage you have kotyonok, I’ll always be here for you.”

She gave him a small smile and looked down at her hands, beginning to fiddle with them. “I can still remember those nights laying beside him in bed, in pain wondering why me? What did he see in me to make me his victim? Yet there were times I would think, maybe it’s better to stay with him…”

“No.” Alex sat up, startling her a bit and locked eyes with her as she met his gaze. “That’s Henry talking, not you. You would have been miserable if you stayed with him.” He went quiet for a moment, glancing down for a brief second and back into her eyes. “And I wouldn’t have met you because you wouldn’t be in Rainbow.”

“I know, I know. I would have been miserable, times ten. I just have this deep rooted fear that no one will want me. I’m shocked that you even want me as much as you do.”

She closed her eyes and sighed, looking down at her hands and Alex’s torso. Her life has been nothing but great since she joined Rainbow and nothing short of perfect since she got together with him. He’s made her feel loved and wanted, has helped her start to heal and all of that seemed far fetched to her before she joined almost six months ago. She truly never thought she would meet someone who would do any of that.

“Skylar you’re kind, compassionate, loving, funny, and an all around amazing woman.” She looked up at him with glistening eyes and he cupped the side of her face. “Da, you do have some baggage, as do I. It’s too be expected from our line of work, but I fell in love with you because you are everything I’ve ever wanted in a significant other. You’re funny, loving, feisty and a hell of a fighter. The abuse you endured in the past will never not make me want you. You make me happy kotyonok, truly happy and content, that’s never going to change.”

More tears started to well in her eyes and she chuckled as she wiped them away. “I’m getting real tired of crying all the time.”

“It’s good for you to let everything out.”

“I love you moya sladost'!”

“I love you too kotyonok!”

Skylar’s face softened as she leaned forward to give him a kiss, then wrapped her arms around his neck and laid her head on his shoulders. “The one thing I’ve always wanted in a relationship was to know I’m safe. And now I have that.”

A small smile started to spread across his face as he wrapped his arms around her. “You will always be safe with me, I promise.”

She pulled away with a content sigh and looked at him. “I think I ruined breakfast.” She chuckled. “Sorry.”

“Don’t worry about that, we can eat later.”

She nodded her head and got off his lap to stand up, stretching her arms above her head. As much as she hated all this crying, Alex was right, it was good for her to get it all out. And in all honesty she was feeling a bit better, she no longer had to hide in her room or a bathroom and cry her eyes out when the nightmares or her PTSD came back. Now she has someone who will be there to hold her through the night, telling her everything will be okay.

A moment later she walked over to a nearby window and looked out over the city, or to the little bit of the city she could see from the five story window. She was quickly falling in love with Saint Petersburg and hated that they only had one day left until it’s back to Hereford.

The next thing she felt were a pair of arms wrapping around her waist. “See anything good out there kotyonok?”

“Not really.” She chuckles “No, I’ve only been here a few days and I’ve already fallen in love with the city. It sucks we go back to work in a few days.”

He leaned down and gave her cheek a quick kiss. “I know, why don’t we go out to buy some more vodka and snacks and stay in for the night.”

“That sounds amazing actually.” She turned around to face him, wrapping her arms around his neck. “A nice relaxing night in, just you and me before we have to deal with work.”

“And a long flight.”

“That too. So when do you want to go?”

“In a few hours.” His hand traveled over her ass and picked her up, kissing at her neck as he walked back over to the couch.

Skylar giggled as she felt his lips touch her neck, feeling his hand rest just about her ass as they sat down. “Always so horny.”

He stopped his attack on her neck, moving his head to look at her better. “Da, only for you.” He leaned forward with a devious smirk on his lips, nibbling at her earlobe. “Then again you do act like a kotyonok in heat.”

“Well of course, I do love when you mount and load me.”

A smirk spread across her face as he pulled away again, looking at her with lust. “I can mount and load you right now, if you’d prefer?”

“Later.” He pouted his bottom lip at her and whined in disapproval, making her laugh. “Aww you poor thing.” She rolled her hips for good measure, feeling his growing hard on beneath her panties. “Well I might need to help take care of this problem.”

Alex kissed along her jaw, moving his hand to the small of her back and flipped their positions. “Please kotyonok? I’ll make it worth your while.”

Skylar let out a loud laugh and looked up at him with a gaping smile. “My clothes aren’t gonna take themselves off now will they моя милая?”

He leaned back down, crushing their lips together as he pulled her panties off and tossed them aside.

It’s been a few hours and they were both getting ready to go out to the store to pick up some snacks and more vodka for their relaxing night in.

Skylar was sitting on the bed half dressed as she did her hair, making it into a braid like she almost always did before she put her pants on. As she brushed out the snarls in it from their coupling not that long ago she watched him get dressed, looking at his muscular thighs as he pulled on a new pair of jeans.

When he turned around, he noticed her staring absentmindedly at him while still braiding her hair. It made him chuckle. “Kotyonok?”

She blinked her eyes a few times as she snapped back to reality, looking up at him with a small smile. “Huh?”

“Nothing, you were just staring at me absentmindedly.”

“Oh.” She chuckled as he sat down next to her. “Well it’s not my fault, stop being so attractive.”

He let out a booming laugh of his and kissed her temple. “I can say the same for you, kotyonok.”

She tied the hair tie around her hair and laughed in return, letting the braid fall limp against her shoulder. She grabbed her pants that were laying next to her on the bed and stood up to put them on. Once she buttoned them, Alex grabbed her hand and pulled her in between his legs and wrapped his arms around her waist, resting his head against her chest.

Her hand came up to thread her fingers through his blonde hair, hearing a content sigh leave his lips. “Is everything alright moya sladost'?”

“Da, I just wanted to hold you.”

“You hold me everyday,” She chuckled. “What is it?”

“It’s nothing I promise. I just want to hold you!”

“Okay. I believe you!” Skylar wrapped her arms around him, rubbing her hand up and down his upper back. “Kind of.”

Alex snorted and looked up at her through hooded eyes. “I promise kotyonok, there’s nothing wrong.”

“Alright, alright.” She kissed the top of his head and threaded her fingers through his hair again. “I believe you moya sladost'.”

“Good.” He wrapped his arms around her tighter, pulling her closer to him. “I love you!”

“I love you too!” She held him a bit tighter, letting out a content sigh. “When I was little I always wondered who I would end up marrying. Who my knight in shining armor would be, cliché I know. Then I met Wyatt and we started dating, he was someone I could see myself marrying someday. Obviously we broke up when I went into the Marines. Next came Henry.”

When she went quiet Alex pulled away and looked up at her, seeing the broken look on her face again and pulled her onto his lap. “I have you, go on.”

Skylar gave him a small smile and continued on. “In the beginning things were good for the most part. Yeah he had some anger issues, but it was only raising his voice nothing more. Sometimes he would be a bit rough during sex, it was nothing that truly hurt me though. Then everything changed one night.”

His arms wrapped around her tighter, becoming more of a safety net. She took a deep breath and wrapped her arms around his neck.

“We both had training that day but his went sour because of one of the other men in his squad. And to blow off steam he wanted to have sex. I would have agreed to it, but I was so sore from training earlier and just wanted to sleep. When I told him no, he hit me and then ...”

“He raped you didn’t he?”

She nodded her head and looked down, tears welling in her eyes once again. She removed her arms from around his neck to wipe the tears from her eyes. “That was the beginning of a very long, grueling year. You grow up with fairytales and knights in shining armor, then you join the military and find out what people are really capable of. When I was finally free of him, my view of the world and men was jaded. Next thing I know you come along and I suddenly feel like I’m back to being a teenager again when I was with Wyatt. It’s such an amazing feeling to feel this way about someone again. To know I’ll be cared for and loved. And to picture a future!”

Alex kissed her cheek and held her closer to him, lips lingering there for a moment. She leaned into the touch, letting out a small hum.

“I’m sorry you had to go through all of that. You didn’t deserve it, but it also made you something, a survivor.” He moved slightly away from her, gently turning her head to look at him. “I’m happy I can make you feel that way again, and I will always care for you and love you! You are my kotyonok after all!”

A genuine, happy smile started to spread across her face and she leaned forward until their lips met, moving in perfect tandem. When she pulled away, he saw the smile still on her face and eyes much brighter.

“I never thought I could be this happy again, so many years of putting up a façade to make it seem like I was. Only to come here and meet you..fall in love. So as cliché as this is, thank you for being my knight in shining armor.”

He gave her another quick kiss, gazing into her eyes. “I never saw myself as a knight, however it does make me happy knowing I can be yours!”

“Forever and always!” She gave him one more peck on the lips before standing up. “I think we should get dressed and head to the store soon. I’m very much looking forward to our relaxing night in.”

“Right, I forgot we were leaving.”

Skylar snorted as he got up to finish getting dressed, then they were out the door.

Shopping was going relatively well, for Alex at least. Skylar was stumped on what to get, with so many Russian snacks to try she was having a hard time choosing.

She glanced over at him, seeing him leaning against the cart. “I need your recommendation, I don’t know what to get.”

He laughed and pushed himself off from the cart and walked over to her. “Why don’t I make you something instead? Or we can make it together, if you prefer?”

Her face lit up at the suggestion and she softly bounced on her heels. “What did you have in mind?”

“Plyushka. It’s bread with melted sugar on top, simple but very delicious. Or we can make pirozhki, they’re yeast filled dough with any filling you want. Baked or fried.”

“Both sound delicious, how about the plyushka? It sounds easier and quicker to make, we can always make the pirozhki together at our own place. Be the first thing we bake together.”

“Sounds perfect!” He kissed her forehead, hearing her giggle. “I just need to grab some flour and yeast and then we can go.”

“Okie dokie.”

Alex snorted and began walking, Skylar walking behind him slowly, looking at all the other stuff that she couldn’t read. Only to walk smack into his back, stumbling a little.
“Moya sladost' are you okay?”

She walked to his side to see his face went pale, then drifted her eyes over to what he was staring at. All she saw was a blonde haired woman, late forties in scrubs. “Who is that?”

He looked over at her, giving her a small smile. “My sister.”

She looked back over at her, etching her features into her mind. The more she stared, as bad as that was, the more she could see the Senaviev in her. Then she turned her attention back to him. “What do you want to do?”

Before he could answer, a voice spoke his name and they both looked over to see her walking towards them. “Anna, I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

“Neither was I.”

She glanced over at Skylar and back to him, speaking in Russian. It didn’t take a genius to know she was talking about her, most likely how young she was compared to him. And by the sound of Alex’s voice, he wasn’t happy.

Skylar fiddled with her hands as she overheard them talking, wishing she could understand what was being said.

“Anna I don’t care what you think of her, I love her and that’s all that matters!”

Her eyes shot up to look at them, seeing the anger and hurt on his face. She walked over to him, placing her hand on top of his. That seemed to ease his mood a bit.

Anna glared over at her, making Skylar quirk a brow in a taunting manner. “Fine, don’t come crying to me when she goes to someone younger.”

“You don’t know me, hell you barely know your brother. If it wasn’t for me he wouldn’t be trying to mend your guy’s relationship right now. I love him and that’s never going to change.”

She seemed to be taken aback by how forthcoming Skylar was, as was Alex to be honest. Even though she has been through hell and back the one thing that never changed was her being protective of the ones she loves. And she loves Alex.

“We’ll see about that.”

She walked away after that and Alex let out a breath. “That went well.”

“Don’t worry about it, she’ll come around. Maybe.”

He placed his hand on the back of her head, gently pulling her closer to him and kissed the top of her head. “Let’s head home.”

Skylar placed the bag on the counter while he did the same with the two he carried up. She couldn’t wait to start baking, though she wished he had a mixer to make the kneading a bit easier and quicker. Nonetheless she was excited to bake with him.

She pulled out the flour, yeast and the bottle of vodka from the bag, setting them on the counter. Then she watched Alex take out the other stuff they bought, mostly junk food and something more healthier for dinner. It reminded her of her teen years on the weekend, pigging out on junk food.

“I haven’t eaten this much junk food since I was a teen.” She laughed. “Hopefully I won’t indulge too much.”

“Indulge as much as you want, just try not to make yourself sick.”

“Damn, there goes that plan.” She shot him a glare and laughed. “So what was the whole conversation about at the store. I clearly know it was about me.”

Alex sighed and leaned against the counter, pushing some of the other snacks to the side. “She thinks you’re too young, that you’ll find someone younger than me sooner or later. And that I should find someone my own age, like that’s easy with my work life.”

She gave him a small smile, walking over to him and wrapped her arms around his neck, giving him a chaste kiss. “Well that’s never going to happen. I love you! I only want you! Like you said before we’re going to have a few people dislike this relationship due to the age difference. But I don’t care, I’m happy and that’s all that counts.”

His hands traveled to her hips, picking her up and placing her on the counter. Spreading her legs apart and placing himself in between then and crushing their lips together. She giggled into it, so much so she had to push herself away. Alex looked down at her with a smile, finding her giggly state to be adorable and kissed the top of her head.

“What’s so funny kotyonok?”

“It’s nothing moya sladost'.” She tried stifling a laugh, failing as he let out a booming laugh of his. “Okay okay, I just love how horny you get and so quickly. I don’t have to do or say much and you’re rearing to go.”

“Is that a bad thing? I don’t think it is.”

“No I don’t think so, I mean we are making up for lost time.” She leans up, giving him a more passionate kiss before pulling at his jeans. “I just never thought I would enjoy sex again, not after everything that happened.”

He gazed into her eyes, face softening. Out of everything she’s been through he knew their sex life could be a lot less active and he would be fine with that. All that matters to him is her comfort and he’s fine with her not wanting it.

“You know it’s okay if you don’t enjoy it all the time.”

“I know.” She looked down and sighed, thinking back on when she finally got away and wondering if she would ever be sexually active again. Afraid of what might happen if she said ‘no’ to someone, so she kept to herself for the most part, never going out. Then that hookup happened with Alex a few weeks ago and she hasn’t been this happy in ages. And thoroughly enjoying their sex life. “Of course there will be days where I don’t want it, and I don’t need to be afraid about that anymore. Because I know you’ll never hurt me.”

“Afraid?”

“One of the reasons I was so afraid of dating after Henry was knowing any relationship I had was going to inevitably have sex in it. I didn’t want to be raped again by saying no, so I just didn’t get close to anybody or went out much.”

“Then we happened.”

Skylar could see the small case of sadness in his eyes and the worry, making her grab his hand and hold it in between hers. “Hey don’t worry about that night, I was sober enough to know what I was doing. Truthfully I wanted to sleep with you, have for months at that point.”

“Really?” His face lit up and he scanned her face, looking for any indication that she was lying, but found none.

“Yes really. You were the first person I was sexually attracted too in a long time, hell I would get turned on by just hearing your voice.” She could feel her cheeks burn, not doubt turning red and she looked down at her hands. “Those nights usually ended with a long shower, since it was the only privacy I could get.”

His mouth fell open and he let out an amused laugh. “Kotyonok, I never expected you to do such a thing.”

She met his gaze and scoffed - rolling her eyes. “Like you didn’t masturbate to me before we were together moya sladost'.”

“Oh I did, a lot truthfully.”

“I knew it. I did too, well when I felt like it and had more privacy.”

“The real thing is so much better!”

“Agreed!” She leaned up, giving him a quick kiss before unbuttoning his pants. “How about a quicky before we get started on those plyushkas?”

“Don’t even need to ask.”

He crushed their lips together and went for the button on her pants and undid it in one fatal swoop.

After a bunch of kneading that left her arms a little sore they were finally sitting on the couch, in front of the television with a plate of warm plyushkas. Skylar couldn’t wait to try them.

She took one from the plate and took a bite, moaning in satisfaction. “These are really good.”

“They are.” He took one from the plate and leaned back against the couch, turning his head to look her over, smirking. “You wearing just your panties and a shirt is better.”

Skylar snorted and rolled her eyes before taking another bite and snuggled up next to him. She could still remember her and Wyatt doing this when they were still together, baking a cake or cupcakes and buying a bunch of junk food and spending the night together. In a way she missed it, but now she can do it with Alex, only they could have some Russian desserts and snacks too.

“I missed nights like these, just snuggling up on the couch with a bunch of good food and watching movies. And having some really good sex.”

He wrapped his arm around her as she snuggled up against, lightly groping her breast. She looked up at him with a smirk and chuckled.

“So you used to do this a lot?”

“I did when I was with Wyatt, those were the nights I longed for. After a long week at school and doing other things, figure skating for me and he played soccer, or football for you Europeans. It was just nice to have a Friday night where we went to the football game and then go back to my place and do nothing but pig out in front of the television.”

“Your parents’ were okay with that?”

“Yes, they knew I was having sex and they knew I was on birth control.” She chuckled again and cranked her head to look at him. “And they trusted Wyatt.”

“No, I get that. I just don’t know how I would feel if our daughter asked to have her boyfriend spend the night.”

Skylar sat up and turned to face him, placing her hand on his arm. “I wouldn’t mind having our daughter have their boyfriend sleep over from time to time, as long as we both like him. As much as they find this awkward at first, once they turn thirteen I want to really talk with them about sex. I want them to know everything and that it’s okay to not have it, to wait as long as they want to have it and to say no. Most importantly I want them to come to us when they feel nervous around a guy.”

“I think that’s a perfect idea. And I’m gonna teach our sons how to respect women and that no means no. I also want them to read cues, that if she’s nervous or doesn’t really know, he stops. No trying to force her into doing something she doesn’t want to do.”

“I think that’s a perfect idea too!” She looked away and sighed, feeling her vice get caught in her throat. “I was raped, I’m going to do my best to make sure the same doesn’t happen to our daughter. It would kill me.”

He placed his hand on the back of her head and pulled her forward, resting their foreheads together. “Don’t worry about that now, we still have some time to wait until we welcome out first.”

“That’s true.” She chuckled.

Alex pulled away and kissed her forehead, then wrapped his arm around her shoulders - having her snuggle up against him.

They went quiet, watching whatever was on the TV and munching on the snacks they bought at the store. Skylar maneuvered herself to laying her head on his lap where he began to play with her hair, forcing a content hum from her lips. He leaned back against the couch, letting out a satisfied hum as his fingers threaded through her hair.

The past few weeks have been nothing short of a blessing to him, to her. It’s been years since he’s felt this happy, and in love. Meeting her family, getting her father’s blessing and accidentally giving wind on the engagement ring he already had. But spending time with her was the thing he loved most about this little vacation, without the eyes of their peers and a lot more privacy. Now all that’s left is to head back to Hereford and then it’s off to London to see little Grace before it’s back to work. All in all, he would say these last few weeks were perfect!

Chapter Text

It felt a little bittersweet being back in Hereford now, but she knew the vacation was only temporary and they needed to go back to work sooner rather than later.

Skylar placed her bag on her bed and opened it, grabbing the matryoshka from the top and placed it nicely on her nightstand. As she pulled everything else out, she realized she might have come back with more than she had left with. Which was okay, she didn’t bring much to begin with since the majority of the time she’s in uniform. Most of the stuff she brought was more clothes since she was getting tired of what she brought and some other miscellaneous things.

She grabbed her shirts and walked over to her closet to hang them up, wondering where Ash was since she wasn’t in their room. Then again she is busy and could be anywhere on base, she’ll just have to wait and tell her everything later.

As she put her clothes away she heard the door open, turning to see Ela walking into her room and sit down on her bed. “I would like to know everything. Proszę.”

Skylar rolled her eyes and laughed, putting the shirt she had in her hand back in the closet. “Would you like me to start at the beginning?”

“Yes I would.”

“It started at the holiday party, Fuze left to go work on his cluster charges and Alex asked if I wanted to be his drinking partner. We eventually landed outside and I slipped on some ice, he fell on top of me and then. We, uh kissed.” She smiled to herself, thinking back on that day and how if it wasn’t for him asking her to go outside, maybe things would be a lot different right now. “We slept together that night, after more drinking in his room. I woke up, panicked and two days later we were together.”

Ela sat up a bit straighter, arching a brow and smirked over at her. “You panicked? Why? Do you not like one night stands?”

“No it’s not that.” She sighed and looked down at the shirt that was in her hands and tossed it back on the bed before she took a seat. “Something happened before I came to Rainbow, something that made me reserved and not trust people easily. Without going into full detail I had a boyfriend who wasn’t kind, he was a monster.”

Ela’s face faltered, something she never thought she’d see from the older woman.

“I never would have guessed. I knew you were a bit closed off and untrusting of some, I never knew it was because of something like that. Does he know?”

“Yeah I told him when we were in Maine.” She grabbed the dog tag he gifted her between her fingers, a small smile forming on her face. “Compared to my ex, he treats me like a queen. I never knew how affectionate he could be.”

She placed her hand on her shoulder, smiling over at her. “Do you love him?”

“I do, a lot actually.” She mirrored the smile on Ela’s face, thinking back on the ring. “I could see myself marrying him someday.”

The glint in her eyes disappeared, making Skylar a bit worried and she removed her hand from her shoulder. “While you were gone and Thermite started the ‘rumor’ about you two, it traveled quickly. Most people don’t care, your business is your business, others not so much.”

“I knew some people wouldn’t approve, for whatever reason. Most likely the age difference.”

Sadness overtook her face and she sighed through her nose. She knew she shouldn’t let this affect her too much, her and Alex got a whole lot closer during the few weeks away and she knows he loves hers, as she does him.

“I say it’s none of their business on who you date. Don’t let people's unwarranted opinions stop you from being with him. If he makes you this happy, don’t lose it.”

“Thanks Ela.” She gave her a small smile and let out a soft sigh. “I know I shouldn’t and even Alex said the same thing. He makes me happy, very happy and their opinions don’t matter.”

“That’s my girl.”

Skylar chuckled and stood up to put the rest of her clothes back into her closet. As she grabbed her shirt she looked back over to Ela. “Now you made me curious, who doesn’t like it?”

“Thermite, Finka - I’m sure you already knew that. Rook, he seems more confused than anything, Frost and that’s all I know so far.”

“Aww did I mess up Finka flirting with him? Well too bad he never liked her anyways.” She placed her shirt on a coat hanger and hung it up.

Ela laughed and nodded in agreement. “It was only to humor her. He looked bored of it truthfully, he looked way more into flirting with you. For obvious reasons.”

“I wonder what those reasons were?” She laughed and hung up another shirt. “I wonder why Julien seems confused, as you put it. I would ask him but I don’t want to make things weird for him.”

“He probably wonders why you fell for one of the older Specialists on base and not someone younger.”

“And he’s too sweet to say anything. Frost I understand since she doesn’t have a great relationship with the Spetsnaz. And Thermite, I kinda had a feeling he wouldn't like it.”

They both went quiet for a moment and Skylar went back to putting her clothes away in the closet. When she finally got all of her shirts away she went to go put her pants away in the dresser.

“He cares about you Sky, like a little sister, he doesn’t want to see you get hurt.”

She stopped what she was doing for a moment, her eyes losing the light in them, only momentarily. It never crossed her mind that he cared that much about her, yet it did make sense on why he seemed so defensive over her dating someone like Tachanka.

“I know he does, I just never knew he cared that much.” She placed a few of her pants in the drawer and turned to her. “Alex wouldn’t hurt me, you should’ve seen how he got when he realized I was abused in the past.”

“You should probably talk to him about that, maybe he’ll feel differently about it.”

“Maybe someday I will. I haven’t really told anyone about what happened.”

A knock at the door forced their attention to it, she walked over and opened it, seeing Alex standing outside of it. She chuckled and stepped to the side to let him in. “Why didn’t you just come in моя милая?”

“Kotyonok, I didn’t want to interrupt. I heard you talking and it wouldn’t have been nice for me to walk in.”

“That’s sweet, but we’re only talking about who already doesn’t like our relationship, you could’ve peaked your head in.”

“Next time I’ll just eavesdrop outside the door and figure out if I should peak my head in or not.”

“Fair enough.” She laughed.

Ela watched them both for a moment, seeing both of their faces light up when they looked at each other. She may have only known Skylar for a few months and Tachanka a few years but to see them both so happy and..in love was heartwarmingly disgusting.

“You guys are so in love it’s disgusting.” She got up and headed for the door, but before she left she turned back towards them. “I am happy for you two though.”

“Thanks Ela.”

“Nie ma za co.”

Ela left them alone after that, shutting the door behind her. Alex laughed and leaned down to kiss her, his hand sliding down her side and pulled her closer to him. She hummed into the kiss, pulling away from him and gazed into his eyes.

“I already miss being on vacation. I want to go back.”

She pouted her bottom lip up at him making him laugh and kiss her nose. “Sorry kotyonok, you knew we needed to go back to work at some point. Besides we still have to go see Grace tomorrow.”

“I know but it was so peaceful, not counting the handful of times I cried.”

He grabbed her hips and picked her up, her legs wrapping around his waist as he walked them over to the bed and sat down. “It was peaceful and it made me very happy to spend everyday with you.” He brushed some hair out of her face and cupped her cheek, feeling the smooth skin beneath his thumb. “Those handful of times you cried helped you kotyonok. Don’t forget that.”

“I think that was the best part, spending everyday together.” Her hand came up to cover his that rested on her face. “I know they did and I’m sure that wasn’t the last of it.”

Alex moved his hand from her face and moved them back against the wall, that’s when she got off his lap and maneuvered herself so her head was resting in it. He smiled down at her and began to thread his fingers through her hair. Such a simple gesture that made her feel so calm.

“I agree and I got to meet your family, got your dad’s blessing to marry you.”

“WHAT!?”

Skylar and Alex looked over at the door to see it open and Ash walked in. She laughed and sat up, seeing the confusion and slight shock etched across her face.

“No Eliza we’re not engaged.”

“Then how did you find out….” She turned her attention over to Alex once realization took over. “You have a ring, don’t you?”

Ash walked over to her bed and sat down, glancing between them.

“Da, I do. Skylar knows as well.”

“When I was getting dressed before we went somewhere I overheard him say ‘just ask her, she’s going to say yes. Stop being so afraid’ and he hid the ring from me. Later that night I went to snoop and found it. We decided that it wasn’t time yet and that whenever he finally asks me I’ll say yes.”

She nodded her head, the shocked expression leaving her face. “Of course you would go snooping Sky.”

She shrugged her shoulders and laughed. “It was cute seeing him trying to hide it from me. And he should’ve moved it afterwards anyways. So technically it’s his fault.”

Alex glared over at her - sighing through his nose. “I didn’t think you would go and snoop in the middle of the night.”

“That was your first mistake moya sladost'.”

He huffed and leaned back against the wall, crossing his arms. It made Skylar laugh and lean up to give him a quick kiss. “You know I love you.”

“I love you too.” His face and body relaxed and he gave her a small smile.

“Oh my god I think I might puke.” She stood up and grabbed her purse off the floor and headed for the door. “I need to run some errands, you two love birds have fun and by all that is good...please use a condom.”

There was a unison of ‘aww’ and all Ash did was shake her head and leave the room. Skylar chuckled and returned to laying down with her head resting on his lap. He threaded his fingers through her hair, and looked down at her with contentment etched on his face.

She smiled up at him, eyes crinkling at the side. “I love you!”

“I love you too!” He chuckled. “What do you want to do today?”

“I have to talk to Jordan later or maybe I should do it soon, get it over with.” She sat up and turned to him, shrugging her shoulders. “Other than that I don’t know, what do you want to do today?”

“Why do you have to talk with him? Is it because of us?”

“It is. I just never realized he cares for me to that extent. He doesn’t like us together because he doesn’t want to see me hurt in the long run.”

Alex nodded his head, contemplating her words. “I didn’t know he cared about you to that degree. I know he cares, I just didn’t think it was that much.”

“That’s what I’m saying. The talk isn’t going to change anything, just maybe he’ll come around eventually. My CTU already approves and I hope he does, but I’m not holding my breath.”

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her against him, kissing the top of her head. “If it happens, it happens.”

“Yeah.” She took a deep and sighed, curling up next to him. They just had one more day and then it was fully back to work. Back to the rigorous training, seeing the people she doesn’t like and having an almost strict schedule. But now she has a very handsome Spetsnaz soldier to share a bed with a blow off some steam after a hard day's work. “As much as I hate that we go back to work in a few days, I’m happy I can blow off some steam with you after a hard, long and tiring day. It’s nice to know I have someone waiting for me.”

“But kotyonok, I’ll tire you out more if we blow off some steam after work.”

She looked up to see the smirk on his face and the devious look in his eyes. She snorted and shook her head. “Yeah, but that’s a good kind of tired. A tired where I feel very satisfied afterwards.”

He hummed in reply, kissing the top of her head once again. “That is true.”

“Told you.” She chuckled, then moved away from him. “I think I should go find Jordan, get it over with. How about I meet you in your room and we can figure out something to do?”

“Okay.” They both got off the bed and he leaned down to kiss her. “If I’m not in my room I might be in the workshop, got to make sure my beloved LMG is all ready to go for work.”

Skylar snorted and shook her head, giving him another kiss. “Yeah, but you love me more!”

“That is very true and it will never change.”

After her and Alex parted ways, the first place she went to check was the workshop. He spent a good chunk of time in there already, but when she got there he was nowhere to be found.

“Huh.” She said to herself, then grabbed her phone from her pocket to dial his number. Not wanting to run around base trying to find him.

A few rings later he picked up. “Hello.”

“Hi, where are you?”

“I’m with Mira, I needed her help with my exothermic charges. Why?”

She left the workshop and headed towards the R&D. “I’m heading there now and I just need to talk to you that’s all.”

“Oh okay.”

She rolled her eyes and hung up, putting her phone back in her pocket. As she walked over there, she saw that most of the other operators were already on base, slowly getting ready to head back to work in a few days.

This job was a god sent to her, it changed her life for the better and she has met a lot of lifelong friends from it. However she does have some issues with how Six picks the operators. Just because they’re good at something doesn't mean you should ignore the red flags.

As she rounded the corner she saw Lion walking down the hall, unfortunately with Finka. She quietly scoffed and rolled her eyes, continuing on down the hall.

“Mon amie, I wasn’t expecting to see you back yet.” said Lion as he stopped to talk to her.

“Yeah, Alex and I decided to come back early, we have to go into London tomorrow and thought it’d be best to get a head start on the jet lag.” She chuckled. “How’s Alexis?”

“Alexis is good, a typical teenager. A lot better than how I was at that age, so I’m proud.”

Skylar gave him a small smile and lightly shoved at his shoulder. “That’s good, he has a lot of good people around him to guide him through this crazy thing we call life.”

“That’s true.” Lion chuckled. “So mon amie, when can I hear about how you and Tachanka ended up together?”

There was a smirk on his face and she rolled her eyes, glancing over to Finka who was standing off to the side. Half expecting her to say something about it, only she didn’t, she kept quiet. But by the look on her face she wasn’t happy about it.

“To make the long story short, it happened at the holiday party. Or well a few days afterwards we made it official.” She chuckled. “So far it’s been nothing short of amazing.”

“I can tell, I don’t think I’ve ever seen you this happy.” He crossed his arms and rolled back on his heels. “I take it Rainbow’s famous ‘lord’ is pleasuring you well enough then.”

“Olivier!” Her mouth fell agape and she laughed, shaking her head. “That’s personal.”

“So that’s a yes?”

“That’s a I’m not telling you.”

“It’s a yes.” He uncrossed his arms and laughed. “Well I’m happy for you.”

“Thank you! Now I have to go talk to Jordan.”

“Okay, I’ll see you later mon amie.”

She gave Lion one last smile and then headed towards the R&D lab where he was.

When she walked into the lab she saw Jordan and Elena working on his exothermic charges at one of the tables and walked over. “Hello, do you mind if I steal Jordan for a few minutes?”

Mira finished what she was doing and looked over at her. “Only if you tell me how the last few weeks were for you. Since you did spend almost all of your time with him, did you not?”

Skylar scoffed and pulled out a stool and took a seat. “I did and it was amazing. I haven’t been this happy in so long. We even plan on moving off base soon, to get more privacy.”

“Moving in already?”

“Yup.” She looked down at her hands and smiled to herself. “We talked about a lot the last few weeks. Moving in together, marriage and even kids.”

“Wow.” Mira gave her a small smile and a nod. “Alright you can take Jordan now.”
She laughed and stood up. “Don’t worry I’ll give him back in like twenty minutes.”

She and Jordan left the R&D lab after that, heading outside for more privacy. As she headed towards a bench the farthest from the door she wondered if she could tell him about her past, either way she couldn’t fully back out now.

“What did you want to talk about?” asked Jordan as he took a seat.

“My relationship with Alex that you clearly don’t like.” She took a seat next to him and sighed - holding up her hand to stop him from talking. “I just want to know why?”

Jordan sighed and looked down at his bandaged hands, then over to her. “He’s so much older than you Sky and I’m not saying he’s a bad person and he very clearly makes you happy. I guess I don’t want to see you getting hurt when he decides to go through a midlife crisis.”

“Alex would never hurt me Jordan, ever.” She looked away from him, back at the building, tears beginning to well in her eyes. “There’s something I need to tell you and you better promise not to tell anyone.”

“I promise.”

“When I was a Marine I was in an abusive relationship, the man I was with tore me down to nothing. When I finally got free of his grasp, and that was after the ambush I realized he took everything from me.” She took a deep breath and exhaled it a second later. “After that I was terrified of dating, because I was so scared of it happening again. Then I joined Rainbow and Alex came into my life. And ever since we met he has shown me nothing but love and kindness and that even though I was abused I was still worthy of being loved. He treats me like a queen compared to the other guy.”

Thermite’s face faltered and he had a look of disbelief on his face. A million things were running through his mind and a lot about Skylar as a person was making more sense. He just never expected for her to be so open with him and he respected that. Now he should return it.

“Fuck, I never would have guest. I’m so sorry Skylar, you didn’t deserve that.” He brought her in for a hug, a moment later he pulled away. “Thank you for being so open with me. I may never like the age difference between you two, but I am willing to let that go if he makes you this happy. He clearly did something right for you to let down those walls and let him in.”

“Thank you Jordan! And I can live with that.” She chuckled. “He’s doing a lot of things right.”

“So, moving in together?”

“Yes, we both think it’ll do some good. It’ll give us a lot more privacy and it’ll just be nice to have someone to come home to after work.”

He nodded his head and sighed through his nose. “You do have a good point. Alright, thank you for telling me and why don’t you go find him before he has a heart attack.”

She scoffed and stood up - rolling her eyes. “Yeah, yeah. And why don’t you go back to helping Mira work on your exothermic charges.”

Jordan stood up and laughed. “Yeah, yeah.” He mocked. “I’m going, I’m going.”

Skylar laughed and followed him back into the building, then they parted ways. She was happy the conversation went well and that he could put aside his feelings for her happiness and she was okay with him not liking the age difference. Now with that out of the way, it was time to go find Alex and most likely talk with Mira later on because she knows she would like all of the details of what happened the past few weeks.

The first place she’ll check would be his room, knowing full well he probably decided to work on his LMG there instead of the workshop.

It didn’t take long for her to get to his room, she made a fist and knocked a few times before peeking her head in. “It’s your kotyonok.” She chuckled to herself to see him sitting on his bed not working on his LMG, instead he was on his phone. “I thought you were going to work on your LMG moya sladost'?”

She shut the door behind her and took a seat on the bed. He sat up a bit straighter and set his phone aside. “Didn’t feel like it, I had something better planned.”

“Oh?” Her ears perked up. “What is it?”

“Do you want to shoot it?”

“Wait what? Are you serious?”

“Da, I’m serious.”

A big smile formed on her face and she jumped off the bed, grabbing his hand and pulling him to his feet. “Well come on then.”

He laughed and stood up, kissing her forehead. “You’re like a kid in a candy store kotyonok.”

“Well I’m gonna be shooting your beloved LMG, you don’t let anyone touch it and you’re gonna let me shoot it? Of course I’m gonna act like a kid in a candy store.”

“I trust you with my life kotyonok, so I trust you enough with my LMG.”

Her face softened and she took a few steps forward, placing a more passionate kiss upon his lips. “I love you!”

“I love you too kotyonok!”

He gave her another kiss before dismounting his LMG and placing it over his shoulder and grabbed the stand with his free hand.

Like a giddy child Skylar jogged over to the door and opened it, letting him go out first and shut it behind her. She never knew how excited she would be, just to shoot one gun. Then again, it wasn’t just some gun, it was Tachanka’s beloved degtyaryov, the one he doesn’t let anyone touch and now he’s letting her not only touch it, but shoot it. This made her beyond excited.

“So what’s the kick back on that thing?”

“The recoil isn’t bad, however I would recommend you keeping it tight to your collarbone at first.” He glanced down at her as they walked down the hall. “Think of it as your sniper rifle.”

“Okay.”

They made their way to the shooting range and the closer they got the more excited she became. She couldn’t wait to get her hands on it.

Alex had his own special one made for him, due to the fact that his LMG could do more damage and to test how it can destroy breachable walls. It was decent sized, with targets all around and a few walls spread out around the room with more targets behind them.

She watched him set it up with ease, picturing him firing it and how hot he looks doing so.

“Alright kotyonok, it’s all yours.” He stepped away and motioned for her to use it.

With a giant smile on her face she went over to it, getting a feel for it before pulling the trigger. It was a lot heavier than she expected, even when mounted. She’s wielded LMG’s before, but nothing like this. This was made to suit a man like Alex.

“I never realized how heavy it was, even when mounted.”

“You’ll get used to it.” He leaned down and gave the top of her head a kiss. “Now why don’t you fire it?”

“Yes sir.” She mocked as she looked over her shoulder to see him pulling out his phone. “Are you going to record me moya sladost'?”

“Da.”

Skylar laughed and shook her head, then pulled the trigger. Hitting the first few targets with ease, she turned to the first wall of her left, hearing the bullets penetrate it like butter. The kickback wasn’t bad, something she would have to get used to a bit, but over all she felt powerful using it.

She moved away and looked over at him with awe and amazement. “Wow, that was...amazing!”

He shut his phone off and placed it back in his pocket, then walked over to her. “Seeing you use that gun with ease and how gorgeous you looked while doing so was quite the turn on kotyonok!”

“Was it now?” she wrapped her arms around his neck and leaned up on her tiptoes to give him a kiss. “Thank you for even letting me shoot it. I really appreciate it.”

He wrapped his arms around her waist, letting his hands rest on the small of her back, hovering just above her ass. “It really was kotyonok, I think you deserve a reward later.” He gave her a smirk and a kiss on the nose, making her giggle. “I meant it Skylar, I trust you with my life and I love you more than anything in this world. And I only trust you with my degtyaryovs’.”

Her face softened and she leaned up again, giving him a much more passionate kiss this time. Still entangled in the kiss, he picked her up and pinned her against the wall, then pulled away - slightly panting.

“You’re one of the only people I trust here with my life Alex and I’m so happy you’re mine!”

“Forever and always kotyonok!” He leaned over to give her one last kiss before setting her down. “Now why don’t you shoot the LMG to your heart's content and I’ll wait for you out in the observation booth.”

“Okay.” She laughed and gave him one last kiss before he left the room.

Alex took a seat out in the observation booth and watched her. The gun was the perfect height for her and she seemed to be doing very well with it. But the more he watched her, the more his mind wondered, thinking about the future. He already knew he would marry her one day soon, and hopefully have a bunch of little Senaviev’s. That was also the issue. His age. He doesn’t want to be too old to enjoy his kids growing up, he doesn’t want to miss any of it.

He glanced back over to her, still hearing the bullets penetrating the targets around the range. It made him softly laugh to himself, seeing her so excited to shoot just one gun.

However the more he stared at her, the more he pictured her holding their newborn child in her arms, having them come to visit him while at work and having them waiting for him to come home. The more he imagined it and the more they talked about it, the more he was wanting it to come true. Sooner rather than later. It’ll be something he would have to talk with her about.

“Are you okay moya sladost'?”

He snapped out of his thoughts, blinking his eyes a few times to see her standing in front of him. “I was just thinking. I didn’t even hear you come out.”

“What was it about?” She took a seat next to him, linking their arms together. “I ran out of bullets and you don’t have a spare mag.”

“Oh, sorry.” He chuckled. “I was thinking about the future, our future.”

“It’s okay. So what was it about?”

“Our future children.”

She moved away from him, a smirk on her face and curiosity in her eyes. “What about our future children?”

Alex sighed through his nose and moved her arm that was linked with his to hold her hand instead. His eyes locked with hers, conveying a mix of emotions. Fear, a bit of anxiety, but also excitement.

“Could we talk about welcoming our first a little sooner?”

Skylar’s mouth fell agape and she looked over at him with shock and disbelief. Did she even hear him right? “Moya sladost', are you sure?”

“Da.” He nodded. “I’m already fifty, I don’t want to miss anything about our kids growing up. I want to be there for them, to raise them, to guide them.”

Her face softened and she cupped his cheek with her hand, feeling the stubble of his jaw on her palm. “You really are sure about this. Okay. I think once we find our own place, then we can start trying for that little one.”

He leaned into the gesture, nuzzling her hand. “You’re okay with this kotyonok?”

“Absolutely.” She moved her hand off his cheeks and sighed. “I don’t care what people think anymore, if they think we’re rushing things, that’s on them. We’ve talked about this for weeks, we both know what we want. That’s all that matters, and truthfully? I meant it when I said I wanted our children to get a few good, long decades with you.”

“That’s my kotyonok!” He leaned over to kiss her forehead. “I wasn’t entirely sure if you were ready for that yet. To become a mama.”

“I would already be one if that miscarriage never happened.” A small, sad smile spread across her face. She never fully admitted how much that affected her. “Secretly, I’ve always been ready.”

“You really wanted that child, didn’t you?”

She didn’t say anything, just nodded her head. That child would’ve been more of a blessing then a curse, even if she had a custody battle for years to come. That child would’ve been loved and spoiled by her and her grandparents’, aunts and uncles. Then it was snatched from her, like her team and like her dignity.

“That child gave me hope, then that was snatched away from me too.”

“I know I can come off as an iconoclast, but if there is a God out there, I think he was protecting you.” He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and pulled her closer to him - kissing her temple. “You would have been tied to Henry for a very long time, always battling him to protect your child.”

“I know and you’re probably right.” She sighed and rested her head on his shoulder. “It just sucks.”

“I know.” He laid his head on top of hers and took her hand into his. “It won’t be long now before you have a child in your arms. Our child!”

She smiled to herself and moved her head off his shoulder and looked over at him. “I can’t wait for that, looking down at our child all swaddled and safe in my arms. I know for a fact if we have a daughter first, she’ll wrap you around her little finger in a heartbeat.”

“No doubt about that kotyonok! Or we might have twins, a boy and a girl.”

“I don’t think you would be ready for that моя милая.” She chuckled. “You would be way too worried.”

“Da, this is true, I would worry about you. I also trust you enough that you wouldn’t push past your limits.”

Skylar laughed and shook her head, leaning over to give him a kiss. “I wouldn’t push past my limits, but I can also see you being a bit overprotective.”

“Would that be a bad thing kotyonok? You’re carrying our child, I don’t want anything to happen to you or our child.”

“Why don’t we talk about this in your room?” She stood up and stretched. “After you give me that reward you promised.”

Alex let out one of his booming laughs and stood up. “I think I can oblige and give you that reward.”

“Oh why thank you m’lord.” She rolled her eyes and laughed at the shocked look on his face.

He grabbed her hand and pulled her against him, crushing their lips together. “M’lord? Sounds like my kotyonok needs some discipline instead.”

She looked up at him, batting her eyelashes and pouted her bottom lip. “I don’t think so, I think your kotyonok needs a good love making session with their future baby daddy.”

A big smile spread across his face, and he leaned down to place a tamer kiss upon her lips. “The things you do to me Skylar!”

She chuckled and pulled away. “Come on, we have a bed to occupy.”

After loading up his LMG, they headed off to his room.

It’s been a few hours and Skylar was snuggled up against his chest as they watched some movie they found on Netflix. His fingers threading through her hair as he watched it, perfectly content on where he was.

She hummed in content, tracing a few scars on his chest, the ones that were very close to his heart. “Moya sladost'? What happened here?”

Alex gulped and sighed, those were scars he would love to forget about, it’s futile, he never will. He paused the movie and sat up, making her a bit worried.

“It was during a mission, November 13th, 2016 to be exact. I was on my LMG, waiting for them to breach, they did. Only they shot first before I could, a few bullets went straight through my chest.” He looked down and closed his eyes. He didn’t want to say the next part, but when he felt her climb into his lap and wrap her arms around him, he inhaled a breath, opened his eyes and continued. “I was declared clinically dead for two minutes, I don’t know how I survived. I did and I’m grateful.”

“I’m glad you survived too. I wouldn’t be with the man of my dreams right now if you didn’t.” She kissed his temple and pulled away with a small smile. “That explains the ballistics shield more. To make it safer for you.”

He nodded. “While I was recovering, Mira and a few others made it for me. After Six made sure the LMG was looked over to make sure it was up to code.”

“Well I’m happy it is and you have more protection. I can’t stand the thought of losing you.”

He grabbed her hand and pulled her against his chest, wrapping his arms around her and kissed her forehead. “I’m not going anywhere kotyonok,I promise.”

“That’s a big promise to keep moya sladost'.”

“It is, and I plan on keeping it.”

She softly chuckled and looked up at him, gazing into his blue eyes. “I hope so. Or we might not be having that child so soon.” She smirked and gave him a kiss before she straddled him, resting her head on his chest. “We should probably start looking for a place soon, because once I’m off my birth control you will definitely be a papa within the year.”

“So I take it, you don’t want to give birth to our first child on base?” He laughed and looked down at her unamused look on her face. “I’m only joking kotyonok, I agree we should find a place soon. We don’t need to start trying just yet, even though I know you want to.”

Skylar laughed and sat up, tracing a finger down his torso. “You know me so well.” She laughed. “I do want to start trying for that child as soon as possible, but I know in the long run it’ll be a hell of a lot better when we have our own place first. I won’t have to stress and I can just relax.”

Alex gave her a soft smile and covered her hand with his. He did find it quite endearing on how badly she wanted to be a mom, and he couldn’t blame her, she would already be one if that miscarriage didn’t happen. And as much as she wants to become a mom as soon as possible, she knows what would be better for them in the long run and is more than willing to wait the year or so before they even start trying.

“I’m not sure how fast we’ll be able to find a place with it being winter. Spring might be better.”

“You’re probably right, it doesn’t hurt to look though.”

“No it doesn’t.” He leaned over to kiss her forehead, and softly chuckled. “Why don’t we get some dinner?”

“Good idea, I’m starving.” She got off his lap and picked up her clothes off the floor and began to put them on. “I don’t know what I want to eat.”

He got off the bed and picked up his jeans from the floor and put them on. “We don’t need to eat on base if you don’t want to.”

Skylar clipped her bra and then put on her shirt, contemplating his words. Going out to eat did sound better, plus it gave them a bit more privacy. “Truthfully moya sladost'? I just want to relish the last few days of vacation. So yeah let's go out to eat.”

Alex laughed and put on his shirt, he was slightly worried about her, knowing full well she wasn’t going to be happy when they have to go back to their work routine. Which meant they couldn’t spend every minute together like they have the past few weeks. Deep down she knows she can occupy herself with other people, and he’s sure Ela or Ash will keep her company.

“Where would you like to go?” He glanced over at her, seeing her tying up her boots and went to go grab his. “I know you and Ash or Ela go out to eat a lot, so I’m sure my kotyonok knows all the best places.”

She scoffed and rolled her eyes. “It’s not our fault some of the food sucks here, and I do.” She checked the clock to see that it was almost 4 pm. “Damn, King Street Kitchen is closing soon. What about the Mediterrane Restaurant? It opens in a few hours and has some really good pizza.”

“That sounds good.” He sat back down on the bed to put his shoes on. “Will my kotyonok be sleeping in her own bed tonight or will she be in mine?”

“I think it would be smart to sleep in my own bed….but we will be living together soon and I think we should get used to it and used to forcing ourselves up when we’re in bed together and don’t want to.”

“Really?” He finished tying his shoe and placed his foot on the ground. “I was expecting you to sleep in your own bed.”

Skylar chuckled and shook her head. “Nope, I like waking up in your arms every morning. And I plan on keeping it that way.”

“Good, I’m happy about that.”

He tied his other shoe and heard her laugh again. It was like music to his ears, hearing her laugh or her voice in general made him so much happier. Making him very grateful that he could hear her voice everyday.

“I figured you would be!” She said with a smirk. “Honestly? I don’t think I could sleep alone again. I’ve woken up in your arms everyday for the past three weeks, I don’t want that to change.”

“It never will kotyonok.” He placed his hand on the back of her head and gently pulled her forward so he could kiss her forehead. “Unless you want it too.”

“I never will!” She gave him a small smile and kissed his nose, making him chuckle. “I will always want to wake up in your arms every morning.”

“Good! I will always want you to be in my arms every morning kotyonok!”

They were both looking over the menu to see what they wanted, Skylar was craving both the Margherita pizza and the Tagliatelle Di Funghi pasta dish, which were two of her favorites. But no way could she eat them both.

She looked up from her menu over at Alex. “What are you getting moya slaodst'?”

“I’m thinking of getting either the steak pepalola or the beef fungioli. What about you kotyonok?”

He looked up from his menu to see her taking a sip of her water. “I’m debating on either the margherita pizza or the tagliatelle di funghi pasta dish. Both are very good.”

He set the menu down and took a sip of his water before speaking. “Why don’t we share the pizza and you get your pasta dish while I get the beef fungioli?”

“You want to share a pizza? How cute.” She chuckled and set her menu down. “I think that’s a good idea, and a little romantic.”

“I am the romantic type kotyonok!”

He crossed his arms and smirked, it made Skylar roll her eyes and chuckle. She can give him that, he was a romantic at heart and she loved it. It also made her very excited to see what he would do for Valentines day.

“That is true.” She laughed. “And I love it!”

Alex laughed and leaned forward to grab her hand, caressing the top of it with his thumb and gazed into her eyes. “And I love you, don’t forget that kotyonok!”

“I never will!”

The waiter soon came over to take their orders and take back the menus, then left. Skylar looked around the restaurant, seeing all the people there eating as well and thought back on the first time she came here. It was with Ash and Thermite and Thermite thought he could eat two whole pizzas to himself. Spoil, he couldn’t and nearly vomited on the street afterwards. It made her chuckle.

She looked over at him, seeing him on his phone once again, only this time he was smiling down at the screen and that made her curious. “What’re looking at moya sladost'?”

He looked up when he heard her speak, smiling over at her. “Just something...for you. I know it’s early, it’s something for Valentines day.”

“Alex it just turned January a day ago.” She laughed. “And you’re already thinking about Valentine’s day?”

“Da, it’ll be here before you know it kotyonok! And I want it to be perfect!”

“That is true and since it is Valentine’s day, I wouldn’t mind if you go all out.” She watched his face light up and it made her laugh. “So spoil me to your heart's content.”

If they weren’t in public she was certain he would be jumping up and down, which would be a sight to see in itself. A fifty year old Spetsnaz soldier jumping up and down with joy because his girlfriend gave the okay to spoil her on Valentine’s day.

“I will definitely remember that!”

It wasn’t long after when their food arrived and they ate in comfortable silence for a bit. However Skylar was somewhat eavesdropping on the couple next to them, unfortunately the conversation wasn’t that good and put her full attention back on Alex.

“Oh I never told you how the conversation with Jordan went.”

“No you didn’t.”

She chuckled and fiddled around with her pasta for a moment. “It surprisingly went well. He said he can put his feelings aside if you made me this happy. He just doesn’t like the age difference and I can live with that.”

His eyes went wide for a moment and he swallowed the food that was in his mouth and set the pizza back down on his plate. “I wasn’t expecting that. Did you tell him about your past?”

“I did, I think he kinda got the gist. That if I went through something like that, then it was clear you did something right to make me let you in.”

Alex nodded his head and leaned forward, taking her hand into his. “What did I do to make you...fall for me? I know you told me before, but I can’t help but wonder if there’s more.”

Skylar sighed and looked away for a brief moment. “Not here, when we’re back in your room.”

“Okay.” He gave her a small smile and removed his hand, Skylar immediately missing the contact. “I can wait.”

She mirrored his smile and leaned over to give him a chaste kiss.

Dinner went well and they spent another hour driving around town before heading back to base. They just wanted some quiet alone time before heading back and to pick up some ice cream for dessert.

Now that they were back at base and she changed into something more comfortable, as did he, now there were both under the covers eating their ice cream and watching some random movie. Eventually Skylar broke the silence.

“When you go through something I did, and you finally get a crush on someone it’s terrifying.” She sat up more and set her bowl down in front of her, glancing over at him. “Henry had this façade, he was kind, funny, nothing made me think differently. Then he got me and things changed drastically. It made me so damn wary.”

“You thought I would do the same?”

She looked over at him and nodded her head. “Deep down though, I always knew you wouldn’t. Something inside me said you would never do such a thing, and it was right.”

He gave her a small smile and moved his and her bowl over to the nightstand and scooped her up and placed her in his lap. “I would never stoop that low, ever. How would anyone do that to someone they ’care’ about?”

“I know you wouldn’t, it’s not in you.” She looked up at him and gave him a chaste kiss. “Henry never cared about me that’s why. He cared only about what I could do for him.”

Alex wrapped his arms around her and kissed the top of her head. The more he found out about him and what he did, the more he wanted to meet him, but knew it was a slim chance. He would never be able to hit that abusive bastard in the jaw a few dozen times and that made him quite upset. Skylar deserved a hell of a lot better than what he did to her, and she might never fully recover from it, at least now she knows what it’s like to be treated with nothing but love!

“He needs a fist to the face a few dozen times.”

“No argument there моя милая.” She chuckled, only for it to quickly die down as she gazed into his blue eyes. “This may sound cliché, but thank you...for saving me!”

His eyes glistened over and he moved that one dangling strand of hair behind her ear. And the butterflies that danced occasionally in the pit of his stomach returned. He never saw himself saving someone, at least not in the figurative sense, but he’s happy that he could save her!

Chapter Text

The next morning while Alex got some training done with Kapkan, Skylar decided to spend a few hours or so with Mira in the R&D department. Knowing full well she would want some details on the past few weeks, and they both had time to kill before they left for London around noon.

She walked seeing Mira working on Blitz’ shield at a nearby table and pulled over a stool and sat down. “Hola.”

Mira looked up from the shield when she heard her voice and stood up a bit straighter. “Hola, about time you came to visit me.”

Skylar rolled her eyes and chuckled. “Sorry, I was held up last night.”

“I’m sure you were.” She gave her a smug look and set down the screwdriver she had in her hand and pulled up another stool to sit down. “How was your vacation?”

“The best I’ve had in a long while. He met my family, I somewhat met his and I just love him.”

She chuckled to herself when she realized she sounded like a lovesick teenager, not a twenty-four year old Marine vet. Alex hooked her hook, line and sinker and she couldn’t be happier.

Mira looked over at her with a content, yet happy expression on her face. This was the first time she ever saw Skylar this happy and it was nice to see.

“I can tell, I haven’t seen you this happy since I met you. How’d meeting the family go?”

“It went good, my parents’ love him, my older sister Valary, not so much.” She shrugged her shoulders and sighed. “She doesn’t like the age difference, thinks he’s only in it for the sex.”

She reached over and gave her hand a small squeeze. “Maybe she’ll come around.”

“I hope so.” She gave her a small smile and softly sighed. “How was your vacation?”

“It was good, I got a lot of work done in the lap and I even went back to Madrid to spend some much needed time with my father.”

“That’s good, I’m sure he was happy to see you!” She pulled her phones from her pocket and set it on the table, surprisingly seeing no text from him.

“He was, it’s been a few months since I’ve seen him.”

“You are busy a lot, probably one of the busiest people here.”

Skylar was speaking the truth, Mira might be one of the busiest people in Rainbow next to Six and Ash. Besides training and missions, she is the head of the R&D department and has a lot of the other operators gadgets to help work on and improve. She gives major kudos for doing all of that.

“Somebody has to do it.” She grabbed the screwdriver she was using and went back to work on Blitz’ shield. “Are you going to share a room with Alex now or are you still going to room with Ash?”

“I think we’re gonna share a room, we plan on moving in together soon. More privacy that way.”

Mira loosened a screw on the shield and looked over at her momentarily before going back to work. “That’s true, a lot more privacy if you move off base.”

“That and to have someone to come home too everyday. Or go home with everyday.” She laughed.

“That too.” She laughed. “Do you guys plan on staying in Hereford?”

Skylar tapped her fingers methodically on the table and nodded her head. “Yeah, I don’t see us moving that far away from base.”

She looked up from the shield and nodded her head. “True, you will most likely be here more than at home.”

“For sure.” Her phone buzzed with a new message from Alex saying he was done training. “Alex is done training. That was quick.”

“I think he would rather spend time with you Sky than train.”

She got off the stool and placed her phone in her pocket. “Most likely. And he probably stopped training early since we have to go to London.”

“Didn’t you say you were leaving at noon?”

“Yeah and it’s nine in the morning now.”

“He probably does want to get there earlier, it is a three hour drive.”

“I’ll find out soon. Have fun with Elias’ shield and I will see you tomorrow.”

“Have fun in London!”

Skylar gave her one last smile before leaving the lab to head back to her room.

When she got to her room she saw Alex sitting on the bed half dressed and looking at his phone. It made her softly scoff as she walked in, closing the door behind her.

“How’d training with Maxim go моя милая?” She walked over to him and gave him a quick kiss before sitting down next to him. “You’re done offly early.”

He set his phone down and stretched his neck. “Da, I’d figure it would be easier to get on the road earlier. I just need to take a quick shower.”

She nodded her head and moved back against the wall. “I had a feeling, and I agree, I think it’ll be a lot better to get there earlier.”

Alex leaned over and gave her one last kiss before standing up. “I shouldn’t be more than five minutes kotyonok.”

“Alright, I’ll be right here.” She chuckled.

He rolled his eyes and chuckled and then headed for the bathroom. She would join him, but the drive to London is three hours and there wasn’t time since neither of them were good with quickies.

She heard the shower being turned on and went to grab her phone to pass the time. There wasn’t much to do since she already checked her social media and replied to any text she had when she woke up. And no one had replied back yet. She sighed and set her phone aside and grabbed her journal from the desk to work on the sketch she was working on.

As she sat back down on the bed opening the journal she noticed the pencil she tucked away in it wasn’t there. With an annoyed sigh she got back up and went over to the desk to see if it fell out. Unfortunately Alex’s desk was filled with a bunch of paper and other miscellaneous things. He can keep most of his things organized, just not his desk.

She finally found her pencil and went back over to the bed, just in time for him to walk out of the bathroom in just a towel wrapped around his waist. “That was quick.”

“I told you I shouldn’t be more than five minutes kotyonok.”

She placed her pencil back in the journal and gave him a glare. “I know that, I was just expecting you to take a little longer.”

He ran his fingers through his damp hair and sat down on the bed. “If you wanted me to take longer then you should’ve joined me.”

“I was debating on it, but I didn’t want to leave base with wet hair.”

Alex let out one of his booming laughs and shook his head. “You still could’ve joined me.”

Skylar scoffed as he got up from the bed to get dressed, her eyes scanning his muscular body and was slightly regretting not joining him. Though they were staying overnight in a hotel so there will be plenty of time for that.

“Maybe later.”

“Later?” He pulled on a fresh pair of boxers and tossed the towel into the hamper and turned to her. “Tonight?”

She got off the bed and walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his neck and gave him a chaste kiss. “Perhaps moya sladost'.”

He wrapped his arms around her waist and arched a brow. “Perhaps? So that’s a yes.”

“That’s a perhaps.”

“So that’s a yes.”

“No it’s a perhaps.”

He laughed and leaned down to give her a more passionate kiss before pulling away from her to get dressed.

She chuckled and sat back down on the bed, watching him momentarily before speaking again. “Okay, it’s a yes.”

He pulled on a new shirt and looked over at her with a smirk spread across his face. “I knew it was a yes.”

Skylar rolled her eyes and scoffed, only to smile and softly laugh not a moment later. “Well can you blame me моя милая? No one can pleasure me as well as you can!”

He buttoned his pants and sat down beside her with that knowingly smug smirk on his face that made her chuckle. “I don’t think i can blame you kotyonok! You’re the only one I want to please.”

A smile started to spread across her face and she softly sighed in content. So many years have gone by with her being afraid, afraid to get closer to people. All because she was terrified of being abused again, and all it took was for one Spetsnaz operator to change that. Now she’s in the healthiest relationship she’s ever been in and has a very good sex life on top of it all. And she wouldn’t change it for the world.

“Good! Because you’re the only one I want pleasing me.” She leaned over, giving him a quick kiss before getting up to grab her bag from the chair. “Have you even packed your bag?”

“Da.” He leaned down to pull it free from underneath the bed. “We’re only spending the night, don’t need much.”

“I know that silly, I was just wondering if you packed or not.”

Alex stood up and slung the back over his shoulder. “Are you ready to go kotyonok?”

“Jacket.”

He stared at her for a moment, confusion etching on his face. “Jacket?” It took him a moment until he realized and set his bag down to grab his from the chair. “Oh, you meant for me to put on my jacket.”

“Yes, I don’t need you catching a cold.” She laughed as she put on hers.

“How sweet.” He placed his bag down to put on his jacket and then turned to her. “I’m ready.”

“Oh shush.”

She headed for the door and waited for him to grab his keys. Once he did she opened the door and walked out into the hallway, watching shut and lock his door and then it was off to the parking lot.

They’ve been driving for an hour now and still had two more to go until they were in London. And with school now back in session Grace wouldn’t be out until three, so they had some time to kill in the hotel room before then and Skylar knew exactly what to do to occupy them both.

She moved her leg up onto the seat and sighed as she looked out the window at all the traffic on the highway. “I wish we could do this all the time, being able to go wherever and whenever we wanted. No work, no responsibilities.”

“Sometimes I think you would rather retire kotyonok.” He gave her a quick glance, seeing her contemplating his words.

“No, it’s just been so long since I’ve been in a healthy relationship. I feel like a giddy teenager again.” She turned her head to him and gave him a small smile. “All I want to do is spend my time with you. Fuck everything else.”

Alex looked over at her, face softening under her gaze and he quickly turned his attention back on the road so he wouldn’t crash the car. “Hopefully we won’t have a mission so soon once work picks back up. Then we can spend almost all day together.”

“I like the sound of that. Or if there is a mission we don’t get picked for it.”

“That too.” He chuckled and then grabbed her hand. “There’s enough operators on base, hopefully we won’t get picked for a while. Even if I would love to go on a mission with you.”

Skylar maneuvered herself into a more comfortable position and leaned closer to him. She watched as the sun disappeared behind the clouds and laughed before turning her attention back to him.

“Moya sladost', you would be way too worried about me.”

“Da I would be worried about you, I would also look out for you.”

A smile started to spread across her face, picturing him being protective of her while out on a mission and would no doubt freak out if she decided to roam. “And freak when I decided to roam.”

He quickly glared over at her before turning his attention back to the road. “Da, I would. You could get shot or worse.”

“If it’s any consolation моя милая? I am hard to kill.”

“That may be true, but all it takes is one bullet and I could lose you for good.”

She covered his hand with her other and moved a bit closer to him. “Don’t think like that, you’ll worry yourself now.”

“I’ve always been worried about you when you left for a mission kotyonok. That’s not going to change.”

A soft chuckle escaped her lips and she leaned over to give him a quick kiss on his cheek. “I hope not. Looks like another overcast day.”

Alex looked over at the sky, seeing the gray clouds take over, hiding the sun behind them. He didn’t mind, in a way he liked overcast days and he got used to them while living in England for the past few years.

“Well we do live in England kotyonok!”

“Wait? We live in England? I had no idea, thank you for this brand new information Alexsandr.” She let out a throaty laugh and shook her head. “God I love you!”

“I’m so happy my sense of humor entices you so much kotyonok.” He laughed. “And someone is being feisty.”

She looked over at him with a smirk on her face and scanned his muscular body with her eyes. “What’re you gonna do about it?”

“You’ll find out tonight.”

“Will I now?” She let go of his hand and placed her hand on his thigh, slowly moving it up and gave his groin a little squeeze. “I’m looking forward to it.”

A low grunt was heard at the back of his throat and his grip tightened around the steering wheel. “You little tease.” He laughed. “Kotyonok you’re going to be in for one long night.”

“Hmm.” She looked out the window, acting like she was contemplating his words. “Seems like a fun filled night then.”

He let out another booming laugh of his and quickly looked over at her with a smile spread across his face. “I would think so. I hope it will be at least.”

“I’m one hundred percent sure it will be.” She looked back over at him, taking his hand back into hers. “All our nights together are!”

“They are, aren’t they?”

“Yes they are.”

The rest of the drive to London was rather quiet, just enjoying each other's company and talking about the conversation she had with Mira earlier. And now they have a few more hours to kill in their hotel room until Grace gets out of school.

Skylar was looking out the window at the traffic below. “We should come back some time and be actual tourists. I want to see more of London.”

“Maybe we should’ve picked a few days to come here?”

She pushed herself away from the window and walked over to the couch and sat down next to him. “Truthfully? It never crossed my mind until now. Besides I liked spending time in Russia.”

He softly chuckled and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “Fair point kotyonok. We have plenty of time to come back.”

“Exactly моя милая!” She snuggled up against him and let out a content sigh. “Maybe we can come back for my birthday?”

“Does the kotyonok want to come back for her birthday?” He looked down at her with a raised brow. “It surely sounds like it?”

“A little bit, yeah I do.” She chuckled. “Going around London with my favorite man in the whole wide world, having a nice birthday dinner at some restaurant and then finishing the night off in our hotel room. Sounds like a very good birthday to me.”

He let out a hum and nodded his head. “That does sound like a good birthday.”

She looked over at him seeing the wheels in his brain start turning. “Uh oh, I know that look. You have something planned? Don’t you moya sladost'?”

“I might be mustering up some things. It is your birthday after all.”

“This might be the one birthday I’m really looking forward to!”

Alex leaned down and kissed her head. He was already thinking of a few things to do for her birthday, and thinking it’d be best to have a long weekend to do it all. And he was very thankful they have a work life that can be quite flexible.

“You only turn twenty-five once kotyonok, got to make the best of it! It also gives me a reason to really spoil you that day.”

Without looking up at him she already knew he had a cheeky smile spread across his face. Skylar knew he had a point, her birthday was a window for him to really spoil her and truthfully? She would be lying if she said she wasn’t excited for it.

She finally looked up at him, seeing that cheeky smile on his face and his blue eyes lit up with glee. “That is true, you do only turn twenty-five one time. Oh dear, this should be interesting and I’m a little excited to see what you decided on.”

“I think you’ll like it!” He kissed her head one more time, making her chuckle and tightened his grip around her. “I hope you do at least.”

“You have a good track record so far.” She kicked off her shoes and brought her knees up to her chest. “I’m positive I’ll love whatever you decide to pick!”

“I do?”

“Yes.” She laughed. “You’re quite the romantic and I love that about you. You also know me моя милая and know what I like, you could never get it wrong even if you wanted too.”

“I don’t want to kotyonok, I want to get everything right!”

She moved away from him to rest her head on his lap, feeling his fingers thread through her hair. “Not everything can be perfect moya sladost', some things are out of our hands.”

He continued to thread his fingers through her silky hair as he thought back on the carriage ride in Russia and how upset he was that it was still snowing. So worried about the weather ruining his surprise and how it didn’t seem to affect her at all. It was something he could learn from her, to take things as they are and not make a fuss out of it.

“Da, I know! It looks like you could teach me a thing or two kotyonok.”

“I’m sure I can!” She smiled up at him, moving her arm to rest on her stomach. “And I know you can teach me a thing or two.”

“What would the kotyonok like to know?”

“Russian, and maybe how to cook Russian dishes. And more about you!”

“Hmm.” He let out a small laugh and looked down at her with a small smile on his face. “I think I can do all three.”

“Yay!”

They both let out a laugh and Skylar sat up, gazing into his blue eyes and then closed the gap between them with a passionate kiss. Still entangled in it he grabbed her hips and lifted her up so she was straddling him and deepened it. Her arms wrapped around his neck and she rolled her hips, hearing a low grunt in the back of his throat.

He pulled away, looking down at her red and bruised lips and licked his. “We still have a few hours to kill kotyonok, maybe I can help pleasure you?”

The smirk that spread across his face put a smile on hers. “And how would you do that moya sladost'?”

He leaned down, nibbling at her earlobe. “Let me show you?”

Skylar let out a content sigh as she traced the scars on his chest. “I think I’m very satisfied now moya sladost'!”

“I am too kotyonok!” He looked down at her with a content, happy and loving look on his face and began to play with a strand of her chestnut brown hair. “It’s always a pleasure to please my kotyonok.”

She let out a quick laugh and became quiet again, tracing along a scar on his chest. He looked down to see the absent look on her face, knowing she was thinking of something. “You alright?”

“Yeah, why do you ask?”

“You have that look on your face that says you’re thinking of something, something of your past.”

“There’s a lot to think about.” She moved her head off his chest and propped herself up on her elbow. “I can’t help but think about if I did have that child, they would have gotten a pretty spectacular father figure.”

“And I would have gotten a pretty spectacular child in return!”

A smile started to spread across her face. “You would have, wouldn’t you?”

He returned the smile and sat up ever so slightly. “Da, I think I would have.”

“Yeah, I have to agree.” She laughed. She laid her head back on his chest and sighed, running her finger along a scar on his chest. “Whenever we have kids I want them to learn how to ride, like I did when I was a girl.”

“Ride? As in the horse you have?”

Skylar sat up a bit to get a better look at him, seeing his blonde hair disheveled from having her fingers run through it. “Yeah, it was something I always wanted my kids to learn. There’s nothing like being on horseback and riding through the countryside. We should do that sometime, now that I think of it.”

A sudden nervous look spread across his face, making a more amused one spread across hers. “I’m fine with our kids learning kotyonok, I’m not sure if I’m suitable for that type of thing.”

She sat up even more, fixing the sheet around her. “Are you afraid of horses moya sladost'?”

“No, I just never been on one. I don’t think a horse would like to carry me around.”

“A horse can carry up to two hundred and forty pounds. And you’re what? About two hundred?”

“One hundred and ninety actually.”

“See, you’re perfectly fine to ride a horse.” She chuckled. “Midnight is really good with first time riders. If you ever decide to, she’s the horse to start off with.”

Alex nodded his head and sat up, stretching his arms above his head. “Can I think about it?”

“Of course.” She looked over at the clock and threw the sheets off of her. “I think we should both take a shower, we have to meet Grace in an hour.”

She went for her bag and pulled out a fresh pair of underwear and socks and grabbed her clothes from the floor. Alex doing the same, then they both headed into the bathroom.

Skylar was drying off her hair with a towel, she didn’t have time to blow dry it or straighten it, then again she didn’t even bring her straightener. She’ll just have to let it air dry and hope she doesn’t catch a cold.

Alex was already dressed and ready to go, just waiting on her. Of course he didn’t mind waiting, she does have a bit more to do than he does. And to pass the time he was on his phone.

She looked over at him and softly chuckled to herself. It made her wonder how long he was on his phone everyday before they even got together, hours perhaps? The only thing he used it for besides work purposes was to either get more parts for his guns or to look for another Degtyaryov. Nothing else.

“For someone who doesn’t use their phone much besides for work you’re on it quite a bit.”

He looked up from his and shrugged his shoulders. “Force of habit.”

“Yeah that’s understandable. It’s kind of like me checking my social media every morning when I wake up.” She chuckled and placed the towel in the hamper. “And replying back to anyone who messaged me during the night.”

“You do tend to spend a good twenty to thirty minutes in bed every morning on your phone kotyonok.” He chuckled and set his phone aside. “That’s less time than I spend on my phone.”

Skylar grabbed her pants and pulled them on, followed by her shirt. “I’m sure the time you spent on your phone dwindled a little bit since we got together.”

“It has.”

She leaned down to grab her boots from next to the bed and put them on. “That’s good, I don’t think it would be nice if you were on your phone a lot. Then I would be leaning over your lap like will you pay attention to me.”

He let out a laugh and sat up. “I’ve been paying attention to you since you got to Rainbow kotyonok. You’re a lot more important than my phone. But it would be cute to see you lying across my lap looking for attention.”

Skylar rolled her eyes at the cheeky grin on his face and chuckled herself. “I’m sure you would love me lying across your lap begging for your attention.”

“That does sound like quite the turn on.”

“Oh lord.” She finished tying up her boots and stood up. “Let’s head to the warehouse before you get any more ideas in that head of yours.”

Alex let out one of his booming laughs and stood up, placing his phone into his pants pocket. “I always thought my ideas were good, you seem to like them. A lot actually.”

“Some ideas of yours I like.” She grabbed his hand and pulled him to the door. “I’ll tell you about them later.”

“I’m looking forward to it.” He laughed.

“I’m sure you are.”

After a quick five minute drive from the hotel they made it to the warehouse. It almost seemed just like yesterday they were there getting supplies and meeting little Grace. Skylar was excited to see her again and hear all about the stories she was going to tell.

They both got out of the car and headed inside, but before they got to the door she could hear the doors on the car being locked.

As they walked inside she saw Grace sitting at the counter doing what she presumed was homework. She could still remember those days herself, coming home from school and having a bunch of it to do. Then again it wasn’t all that long ago.

Grace looked up when she heard the door open, a huge smile spreading across her face when she saw her. “Skylar, you did come back!”

She hopped down from the stool she was sitting on and ran over to hug Skylar.

A soft chuckle left her lips as she hugged her back. “Of course, I promised didn’t I?”

“Yes but dad said you guys are busy a lot and you might not be able to come.”

“We are, but we still have a day left of vacation until it’s back to work for us. So we decided to spend it with you.”

“Wow!” Her brown eyes lit up and a smile spread across her face. “Hi Alex!”

“Hi Grace!”

Skylar let out a small chuckle and smiled as she watched the little conversation unfold in front of her. It was cute seeing Alex talk with children, or try and talk with children. She could tell he was a bit awkward around them, then again she’s been around children a bit longer than he has.

“How was your vacation, did you have a good Christmas?”

“Yes, I got almost everything I asked for.”

“That’s good, I’m sure that made you happy.”

“It did but I didn’t get the pony I wanted.” Grace huffed and crossed her arm, forcing a smile on both of their faces. “Dad said we don’t have enough room and that ponies are expensive.”

She felt Alex’s hands grab her shoulders and lightly squeezed. “Well isn’t that a funny coincidence, Skylar has a pony..or well a horse.”

Grace’s mouth fell open and her arms fell to her side. “YOU HAVE A HORSE?!”

“I do, her name is Midnight.” She motioned for her to take a seat. “Why don’t we sit down and I can show you a few pictures of her.”

“Yes please!”

She very eagerly sat down in her original spot and Skylar took a seat next to her while Alex took the seat next to Skylar. She grabbed her phone from her pocket and opened her photos, scrolling down to the album with just Midnight in them. So many memories in those pictures, makes her wish she could go for a quick ride.

“Here you go.”

She took the phone and sat in silence as she flipped through the album, seeing Midnight in the pasture, Skylar mounted on Midnight before a ride with Chloe beside her on her horse and Midnight in her stall after being brushed after a ride.

“Wow, you’re so lucky! Do you live on a farm?” Grace looked over at her with curious eyes and wonderment.

“Ha Alex asked the same thing! No I don't, it's my aunt and uncles farm.” She slid the phone back over to her and Skylar placed it back in her pocket. “Maybe if your dad is fine with it during the summer you can come to Maine and I can take you to ride Midnight.”

Grace’s mouth fell open and she hopped down from her seat and ran into the back of the warehouse where no doubt her dad was.

Skylar laughed and turned to Alex to see the content yet proud look on his face that made her roll her eyes and laugh. “Yes moya sladost'?”

“Nothing, just seeing you with Grace is a nice sight.” He moved his arm to rest on the back of her chair and turned more towards her. “It makes me want to jump start on having a few of our own.”

“Does it now?”

“Da.”

“Once we find a place of our own I will take you up on that offer!”

He smiled and leaned down to give her a quick kiss, just in time to hear Grace running back to her seat.

“I have to wait to ask him, he has clients.” She let out another huff and leaned back into her seat.

“I’m sure it won’t be long before he’s done.”

“Hopefully.”

“Why don’t you finish your picture while you wait?”

She sighed through her nose and let her arms fall down to the side. “Okay.”

As Grace went back to her drawing Skylar leaned against Alex’s chest and let out a content sigh. The more she watched Grace work on her drawing it made her picture Alex and her at their home watching their own daughter draw. No doubt with music playing in the background and a plate full of cookies. The simple things she can’t wait to have, and who knows maybe it’ll come true very soon.

Or maybe it’ll be their son they’ll be watching color someday, or twins like Alex joked about that one time. But deep down Skylar knew he would be happy with having twins, a boy and a girl, then again he and her will be happy with either when that day comes.

A few moments later two brute looking men came out from the warehouse, not looking too happy and behind them was Noah, Grace’s father looking equally not as happy. He walked behind the counter as the other two men left the warehouse, mumbling something under their breath but she couldn’t quite hear it.

“Everything alright?” Skylar asked as she turned her attention to him.

“Yeah, it’s nothing to worry about just some idiots who don’t know the rules.”

“Ah.”

“Now that that is out of the way, Grace what did you want to ask me?”

She put down the colored pencil she had on her hand and excitedly wiggled in her chair. It made Skylar and Alex laugh to see her so excited.

“Skylar has a horse and said I could ride it and that if it was okay with you if we go to Maine this summer?”

Slight shock took over Noah’s face and she couldn’t blame him, then he turned to her. “Skylar you never cease to amaze. Are you sure?”

“She amazes me everyday too!” Alex quipped.

“Absolutely, but it’s up to you since you are her father.”

“I’ll have to check my schedule, rain check?”

“Of course.” She reached into her pocket and pulled out a small piece of paper and handed it to him. “Here’s my number, text or call whenever you figure it out.”

“Alright thanks!” He leaned down to grab a pen and a pad of paper and wrote down what she suspected was his number. “And here’s mine.”

She took the piece of paper and put it in her pocket for later.

“So is this a yes?”

“It’s a maybe princess, I have to make sure I’m not too busy. If I’m not then yes we can go.”

“YAY!”

Skylar let out a small chuckle and smiled over at her. Oh how she wished she could be that age again, where her innocence was still there and she didn’t have a care in the world. No responsibilities, no worries for the future, just care free.

“If you can come, maybe you can help me get a certain someone on a horse.”

“Is it Alex?”

Grace looked behind her at where he sat and she heard a slight scoff from behind her that made her laugh and turn to him. “Yes it is.”

“Are you afraid of horses Alex?”

“No I am not!”

Skylar covered her mouth trying her best not to laugh. It was funny to see Grace just ask him so outright.

“Then why don’t you want to ride a horse? It’ll be fun!”

“I think I’m too old to ride a horse Grace.” He gave her a small smile and placed his hand on Skylar’s shoulder.

“No, I think you’re young enough. Right Skylar?”

She turned to him with a cheeky smile on her face and giggled. “I think Grace is right, you are young and fit enough to ride a horse.”

“See, even your girlfriend agrees with me.”

Everyone laughed, including Alex at Grace’s accusation and he held his hands up in defense. It was nice to see Grace not being shy or intimidated around him, she could just be herself and Skylar enjoyed that. She knows how out there Alex can be at times.

“No, I won’t force him to get on a horse if he doesn’t want to.” She looked back over at him, giving him a small smile. “Maybe he’ll change his mind when the time comes.”

“Hopefully, it’ll be fun Alex.”

He let out one of his booming laughs, surprisingly not startling anyone and smiled over at her. “I’m sure it will be!”

After spending another two hours with Grace and Noah they were finally back in their hotel room, snuggled under the blankets in their bed watching a movie that was.

She maneuvered herself off his chest and looked up at him. “Thank you for such an amazing few weeks moya sladost'!”

He smiled over at her, then leaned forward to place a more passionate kiss on her lips. Making her hum into it. “You deserved it kotyonok! I had a lot of fun the past few weeks, it was nice just to spend everyday with you!”

“I had a lot of fun too! This vacation was therapeutic in so many ways. Getting to spend everyday with my favorite person, seeing my family, seeing Russia for the first time. Everything about this vacation was amazing and much needed.”

“I couldn’t agree more!”

Skylar leaned over to give him one more kiss before lying back down on his chest as the movie played on. This vacation was the best she had in a very long time, and now it was back to work. She couldn’t wait to see how they balance things out between work, missions and their personal life. Just hopefully things won’t be too hectic in the long run.

Chapter Text

“Jordan, how many times are you gonna run this? Each time you get worse not better.”

Skylar shook her head as she watched him reload his pistol once again to do the course. She has to give him credit though, he wouldn’t stop until he beat Pulse’s time in the pit, and so far he’s been at it for a good twenty minutes. Only his time gets worse, not better. And she would rather do something else than sit with the rest of the FBI watching him.

“Until I beat Jack’s time, I’m almost there.”

“You do realize Skylar has a better time than me right?”

Thermite looked over at him and let out an annoyed sigh. “Yes, I know, but I don’t want her boyfriend coming after me because I beat her time.”

“Dude he’s not gonna murder you if you beat her time.”

He rolled his eyes and glared at him, taking a quick glance at Skylar who was trying to stifle her laughs. “You sure about that? We’ve been back a few weeks and I swear he would probably hiss at someone for even coming close to her.”

Skylar chuckled and rolled her eyes. It’s been a few weeks since that much needed vacation came to an end and work took up most of their lives. In that time, the base found out about her and Alex’s relationship, then again they didn’t hide it to begin with. Training was going well, and her sparring sessions with Kapkan were going exceptionally well. A part of her week she loves doing. And Six made this close quarter combat arena for the CTUs to work with. She liked it and found it fun to watch some of the more competitive operators try to fight for the quickest time.

But her favorite part would be sharing a room with Alex. Waking up next to him every morning began her day on a very happy note, but coming back to their room after training was always a highlight of her day. To hear about how his training went and if anything funny happened as well. She just loved hearing about his day.

“Just run the damn pit Jordan.” She shook her head and turned towards Ash. “How long left do we have?”

Ash looked at her watch before answering, “The GIGN should be here in fifteen minutes.”

“Ugh.” She slouched in her chair and groaned. She just wanted to be done and to spend a little bit of time with Alex before she needed to meet with Kapkan.

“I think you can survive another fifteen minutes before seeing your boyfriend.” Ash rolled her eyes and crossed her arms.

“I know I can, I would just rather do anything else right now than watch Jordan do the pit for the twentieth time.”

A gunshot rang throughout the room as Thermite started the pit once again. The start of training was good, everyone got a few turns in the pit, learning the ropes. It was calm, fun and something new to do than the normal. Unfortunately things came to a halt when Pulse got a faster time than Thermite and his competitiveness got the better of him. Now they were all in their seats watching him run the pit over and over and over again. And Skylar was now regretting not bringing her journal with her to sketch.

“Don’t we all.” said Castle from a few seats over.

Everyone let out a hum of agreement and nodded their heads as more gunshots echoed throughout the room. Skylar would be happy if Thermite got the exact same time as Pulse and was satisfied, knowing him he wouldn’t be and she wouldn’t be shocked if he was here late at night after everyone has gone to bed.

Thankfully the time went by roughly fast and the GIGN came into the room, meaning the FBI’s time was done. She all just pretty much just jumped up from her seat and headed for the door.

She opened the door to her room to see Alex half dressed sitting on their bed. A small chuckle escaped her lips as she shut the door behind her and walked over to give him a quick kiss. “Are you trying to seduce me моя милая?”

“Perhaps kotyonok!” He let out a laugh and pulled her in for a more passionate kiss. “No, I just haven’t fully gotten dressed yet. How was the pit?”

Skylar let out an annoyed groan and sat down on the bed. “It started off good and then Jordan got competitive. So most of it was just watching him do it over and over and over again.”

“Who’s time was he trying to beat?”

“Jack’s. How was your morning?”

Alex scoffed and rolled his eyes. “Was Jack’s time the best time? Training was fine, Maxim and Timur got into a little quarrel. I wasn’t sure if they were gonna punch each other or kiss.”

“No, my time was the best time. He didn’t want to beat my time because he was afraid you would beat him up.” She laughed. “What was the quarrel about?”

“Beat him up because he beat my kotyonok’s time? Perhaps.” He let out one of his famous booming laughs and sat up a bit straighter. “They couldn’t agree on a solution on how to make the team better. Some of their weaknesses are the others strengths, hopefully tomorrow will be different.”

“Ah, well maybe they’ll think about it tonight and I have to meet Maxim in an hour anyways. I might mention it while we’re sparring.”

“Hopefully, if not then I might have to figure something else out.”

She looked over at him and gave him a small smile before leaning over to place a kiss upon his lips. “Hey don’t worry, things will fall into place. You’re a good leader Alex, don’t forget that.”

“Thanks kotyonok!” He leaned over and kissed her forehead, his lips lingering for a moment. “I don’t know what I would do without you.”

“Hmm probably crash and burn.” She chuckled and a smile spread across her face. “I love you!”

“I love you too!”

She got up to go to the dresser, opening the drawer and picked out a black tank top and a pair of gray sweats for sparring with Kapkan. She tossed the clothes onto the bed and sat back down to take off her boots. One of the things she hates about training is wearing their CTU fatigues and not just normal workout gear. So for a few hours every morning she has to wear her FBI fatigues and then change into regular clothes for the rest of the day.

“I still need to bring the rest of my stuff in here.” She placed her boots on the ground and stood up to change. “It’s been weeks and I have yet to bring in everything.”

Alex watched her, seeing her unbutton her shirt and toss it to the chair in the corner. The chair that seems to collect all their dirty clothes instead of the hamper. His eyes drifted down her body, lingering at the scar on her rib cage that’s visible just below her bra line as she put on her tank top.

“There’s no rush, we haven’t even found our own place yet.”

She hummed in reply and changed into her sweats. House, or apartment hunting wasn’t going well, nothing was up to their taste and since it was still winter not many places were for sale. Maybe they’ll just have to wait until spring to find a place, at least sharing a room will satisfy them until then.

She sat back down with a sigh and grabbed her phone, moving against the wall. “Maybe I’ll bring some stuff over later. I do want to get my stuff out of there before Six decides to bring in someone new and they need a room.”

“Hmm, good idea.”

“Yeah, good thing I didn’t bring much with me.” She checked her phone to see what time it was and put it down. “So it shouldn’t take me that long to bring things over.”

“I can help if you want? Make it quicker.”

“I’m fine with it, but it’s up to you.”

“Okay, then I’m helping you.”

Skylar laughed, already knowing he would help her grab the last of her stuff from her previous room and bring it here. Of course she didn’t mind and would love the help, like he said it would make it a lot quicker and she can just get it over with and figure out where to put it in their room.

Luckily they already figured out where their clothes would go. Skylar got most of the closet since Alex only kept his uniforms and more formal wear in there, which wasn’t much so he got most of the dresser minus one drawer, which went to her sweats, and workout gear.

“Alright moya sladost'!” She leaned over to give him another kiss. “I appreciate it!”

“Anything for my precious little kotyonok!”

A smile started to spread across her face and she laughed. “Oh my god, I’m gonna go meet Maxim, I’ll see you in an hour or so.”

The sound of wood hitting wood echoed through the room as Skylar countered Kapkan’s attack. Sweat dripped down her temples as she pushed back, swinging her right arm clockwise hoping to get a good hit on him. But to no avail he easily countered her attack, and grabbed her arm and threw her on the ground.

“Damn it.” Skylar groaned.

Kapkan placed both sparring sticks in one of his hands and offered her the other. With a sigh she obliged and he pulled her up to her feet. “You still have some stuff to learn Skylar, there’s no need to put your speed at the top. Watch your opponent for weak points.”

She went to grab her water bottle and take a drink, then tried to catch her breath. They’ve been at it for a good twenty minutes now and she’s won one round. But she wasn’t here to win, she was here to learn.

“I know, I know.” She looked down at the water bottle and let out another sigh. “Like Timur I’m good with details, only when I’m stagnant. When I’m moving my brain doesn’t seem to compute.”

Kapkan set the sparring sticks down and went for his water bottle, taking a few chugs of it before twisting the cap back on. “You’re like a predator stalking its prey, looking for their weak spots and deciding when to attack. Use what you know.”

“How about after a small break?”

He chuckled and took another sip of his water. “That’s fine, we’ve been at it for a good twenty minutes now, we both need a little break.”

She took a seat on the bench and took another sip of her water before capping it. Her heart was beating a mile a minute and she needed to catch her breath, over all it’s been a good sparring session.

“You like philosophy, why didn’t you go to school for it?”

Kapkan went quiet for a moment, leaning against the wall. “I never thought about it, I was always encouraged to join the ministry of internal affairs, never thought of much else.”

“That makes sense, have you ever thought about it?”

“No, this has been my life since I was eighteen. I may not want to go to school for it, I can always learn about it when I’m not working.” He set his water bottle aside and looked over at her. “Don’t you have a chemistry degree? That tells me you weren’t planning on staying in the military for long.”

She let out a small laugh and shook her head. “I joined the Marines to pay for my tuition, but you already knew that. I was planning on becoming a synthetic chemist.”

“What’s that?”

“Synthetic chemists test and develop chemical compounds to create new material for a specific purpose. They typically work in a lab and can develop materials for nearly any industry including healthcare, manufacturing and food and beverage.”

“Oh that’s cool.”

“Yeah.” She chuckled. “I was working with the FBI while I was in school, got my degree and was going to leave once I found a job. Only Six called me before I could and now I’m here. I wouldn’t change it for the world though.”

“I can understand why.” He gave her a smirk and a knowing look that made her laugh. “I don’t think I’ve ever seen Alex this happy.”

“I haven’t been this happy in years.”

“Then it seemed to have worked out.”

Skylar went quiet for a moment, thinking back on the last six months of her life. How she went from a small studio apartment in Los Angeles working for the FBI and going to school to living in England working for a counter-terrorism group from all over the world. She’s met and befriended some amazing people, grew as a person and soldier, and started a relationship she never intended in the beginning and now couldn’t be happier.

“Yeah I think it has! Wanna get back to what we were doing?”

“Are you sure? We can take a small break Skylar I don’t mind, and you still seem out of breath.”

“Just a bit, I can still kick your ass.”

He let out a laugh and rolled his eyes. “Sure thing Skylar.”

She leaned back and crossed her arms, letting out a soft huff. She knew he was right, she hasn’t been able to kick his ass yet and they’ve been sparring together for weeks now. But like the saying goes ‘practice makes perfect’.

“Okay in about five minutes I’ll kick your ass.”

Kapkan scoffed and let out a laugh before taking another sip of his water and setting it back down. In the past few weeks he’s gotten closer to Skylar, learning more about her and teaching her a thing or two here and there. She was a good protégé, someone who doesn’t complain a lot, or she’ll joke about it instead. It made it easier to get along with her, not that she was hard to get along with in the first place.

Kapkan countered her attack, pushing back to swing his right arm counter clockwise. She ducked her head just in time for his arm to swing near her neck and grabbed his arm, twisting it and sending him to the floor. She let out an amused laugh as she caught her breath and let go of his hand.

“Holy crap I did it.”

“Da, you did.” He slowly got up rubbing his upper arm. “That kind of hurt.”

“Sorry.” She chuckled. “Truthfully, I didn’t think I would be able to beat you.”

“I knew you would eventually, never thought you might take my arm off.”

Skylar glared over at him and shook her head, leaving him in the middle of the mat to go get a drink of water. She was beginning to feel parched and a bit hungry, maybe it was time for lunch. After a shower though, she was in a desperate need of one now.

“If I wanted to take your arm off I would do it from a distance.”

He stretched his arm as he walked over to her, grabbing his water from the bench and sat down. “Good point. Timur could probably do the same thing.”

She took a seat next to him, exhaling a breath and set her water down. “Yes, with more than one shot. Would be more painful too.” The confusion etched onto his face made her laugh. “My sniper is a .50 cal, his isn’t. I could take your arm off with one shot, Timur would need to use his whole clip if lucky.”

“That’s true, your sniper is a one hit kill weapon. Timur’s sniper isn’t.”

“Yeah.” She grabbed her water bottle and stood up. “I’m gonna go take a shower and then grab some lunch, I’m starving.”

Kapkan stood up and stretched his arms above his head and then grabbed his water from the bench. “That sounds like a good idea, I need to work on my EDDs anyways.”

“Okay, same time tomorrow?”

“Da.”

Skylar walked into her room and set the water bottle on the desk. “Well I finally kicked Maxim’s ass and do you wanna get some lunch after I shower?”

Alex set his phone down on the nightstand beside him and leaned forward with a smile on his face. “You finally beat him?”

“Yes, it took awhile but I finally did it.” She sat down on the bed and let out a content sigh. “Felt nice to accomplish that.”

“I knew you could do it kotyonok! I’m proud of you!”

“Thank you!” She leaned over to give him a more passionate kiss and set her clothes aside. “Now you didn’t answer my question.”

“Oh, right. Sorry!” He chuckled. “Da. I’m getting hungry anyways.”

Skylar laughed and gave him one last kiss before getting up and heading into the bathroom.

She turned the shower on and let it run as she took out her ponytail, setting the hair tie on the sink counter and grabbed her brush. She ran the purple brush through her chestnut brown hair, getting out any snarls she had from sparring. Once she was done she placed her brush back and stripped out of her clothes and got into the shower.

The warm water beats down on the back of her head and neck, loosing up the stiff muscles on her back. As the water continued to beat down on her, she reached for the shampoo bottle, but before she could open the top a familiar hand took it.

“I got it.”

“I knew you would come in.” She laughed.

She could hear the loud pop of the cap being opened and then his hands started massaging the shampoo into her hair. This part was always her favorite, it felt so nice and relaxing feeling his fingers massaging her scalp as he lathered the shampoo after an hour long sparring session with Kapkan.

“Of course.” He continued lathering her hair with the shampoo until every inch of it was covered. “I always jump at the chance to help you. You can wash the shampoo out.”

She let out a laugh and turned around to wash the shampoo out of her hair. “More like you jump at the chance to see your kotyonok naked.” He grabbed the bottle of conditioner and crossed his arms, acting like he was offended which only made her laugh even more. “You knew I was joking, you know I don’t care if you join me or not.”

“Well...da.” He opened the conditioner bottle and squirted a decent amount into his hand. “Can you blame me kotyonok?”

He began running the conditioner through her hair, making sure to get every inch of it like he always does.

“Hmm….no. Can’t say I can.”

“See.”

She laughed as he continued to lather her hair in conditioner, maybe more so than her hair needed but she wasn’t going to complain. It did make her hair feel extra soft after-all.

Alex removed his hands from her hair and washed off the excess conditioner that was still on them. Skylar on the other hand moved to the side, leaning against the shower wall to let the conditioner set in her hair for the next three to five minutes.

“Maxim got all philosophical on me today. So I asked him why he never decided to get his degree in it.” She crossed her arms and sighed. “He said he never thought about it. I can understand why, he was encouraged by his parents and others to join the Ministry of Internal Affairs first of all. School probably never even crossed his mind.”

“Half the time I don’t understand what he means, I never understood philosophical stuff.”

“Can’t blame you, some of it is just plain confusing.” She let her arms fall to her side, feeling the water on her hand. “If you had the chance to go back to school, what would you go back for moya sladost'?”

He crossed his arms and leaned against the shower wall as he thought about what she asked. That was the one thing he never got, a choice to do anything other than join the Red Army at the age of eighteen. He never really thought about what he would go to school for.

“Maybe history or something along those lines.”

“I can see that, you do have a knack for that kind of stuff. Oh or maybe a businessman, you already restore old Soviet weaponry, you could totally do that as a living.”

As she went to wash the conditioner out of her hair he thought about what she said. A businessman could be a thing for him if he ever decided to retire, he knows a pretty good amount on how to repair old weaponry. Then again, how many people actually own old weaponry? Probably a lot, now that he thinks of it.

“Da, I could if I ever decided to retire.”

She continued washing the conditioner out and chuckled. “I don’t think I could ever picture you retiring. At least not anytime soon.”

“I don’t plan on it.”

Skylar began to wash her body, noticing she was almost out of her body wash which was a little skeptical since Alex had his own. And she couldn’t fully prove he’s been using it since her body wash doesn’t have a scent like her shampoo does. Then again he was the only person she shares a bathroom with now.

“I see you’ve been using my body wash.” She chuckled. “Not that I mind, but we’re gonna have to get some more soon.”

His eyes went wide briefly, only for a split second. “Maybe.”

“Maybe?” She rang the loofah bath sponge under the water to get out the excess body wash before hanging it on the hook. “Hmm that’s interesting, I wonder why mine is almost gone and yours is pretty much full?”

“That is interesting, I have no clue, kotyonok.”

Skylar let out a laugh and shut off the shower before getting out, wrapping herself in a towel. She then grabbed another one to wrap her hair in, making sure it was secure and waited for him to get out. “I’m sure you don’t.”

He grabbed a towel and wrapped it around his waist, running his fingers through his damp hair. “It makes my skin feel smooth and soft.”

A smile started to spread across and she took a few steps until she was right in front of him. Her palm rested on his chest as she went on her tiptoes to give him a quick kiss. “I don’t mind if you use it, we might need to buy two bottle now instead of one.”

They both walked out into their bedroom and sat down on the bed, Alex letting out a content sigh and grabbed his phone from the nightstand. Skylar grabbed hers from the bed and saw she had a message from her mom that said to call her when she got the chance. She set it back down and got up to get dressed, wondering what she needed to talk about.

She tossed the towel aside, leaving the one on her head and pulled on a new pair of panties and a bra. As she reached for the pair of sweats she picked out Alex got up to get dressed too, watching him toss the towel and grab the fresh pair of boxers on the bed. She may have lingered her eyes too long considering he had a smirk on his face.

“It’s not very polite to stare kotyonok.”

“Oh shush.” She went to put on her sweats followed by a plain navy blue shirt and sat back down. “My mom said to call her when I had the chance, I wonder what’s up.”

Alex finished getting dressed and sat down next to her. “Call her and find out.”

All she did was glare at him before speed dialing her mom’s number. It rang a few times she picked up. “Hey what’d you wanna talk about?”

“Someone stopped by the house looking for you yesterday.”

“Oh? Who was it?”

“Your ex.”

Skylar’s ears perked up, not expecting for Wyatt to show up at her parents’ home. “Wyatt? I wasn’t expecting that.”

“Neither was I, he was back in town visiting his parents and stopped by to see you. I told him you lived in England and that you were here a few weeks earlier.”

“Dang it would’ve been nice to see him.” She would be lying if she said she didn’t miss Wyatt, they’ve been through a lot and would’ve loved to catch up with him.

“He was pretty upset that he missed you. I did tell him you might be back for your birthday next month, he might be able to come then.”

“Did he leave you his number?”

“No, I didn’t even think to ask him.”

“It’s okay, there’s always next time.” She let out a small sigh, it would’ve been nice to call him but oh well, there’s always next time.

“I’m sure you’ll run into each other at some point.”

“Only time will tell.” She looked over at Alex to see him on his phone and chuckled. “Mom I’m gonna have to let you go, I’m actually starving and lunch sounds good right now.”

Her mom let out a laugh that Alex could hear through the phone and chuckled himself. Then he set down his own phone and got up to stretch.

“Okay, call me when you can.”

“I will.”

“I love you and tell Alex I say hi.”

“I love you too and I will!” She hung up after that and turned to him. “My mom says hi.”

“Tell her I say hi when you talk to her next.”

She got up from the bed and stretched, then took the towel off her head and went for her brush in the bathroom.

The mirror was still a bit fogged up from the shower they had about fifteen minutes ago so she wiped it clean with her hand and began to brush her hair. In the next room she heard paper shuffling around, thinking he might be looking for something on the desk that was littered in it. Definitely need to organize better.

Once she was done with her hair she left the bathroom again and sat down on the bed. “Did you find what you were looking for моя милая?”

“Da, it was an old work form I haven’t filled out yet.”

“How old?”

“A few weeks.”

“Ah.” She chuckled and got up to grab her vans. “Do you want to get lunch here or somewhere else?”

As she put on her shoes she waited for him to answer, they’ve mostly had lunch and dinner on base, only going out once since work started back up. She guessed it was a good thing, not spending too much going out all the time and it gave them time throughout the day to catch up with friends.

“What do you want to do kotyonok?”

“It doesn’t matter to me, that’s why I asked you.”

Alex let out a sigh and grabbed his shoes before sitting down on the bed next to her. “Why don’t we go out if you’re alright with that?”

“Yeah that’s fine.” She got up to get her jacket from the closet, tossing it onto the bed while he put on his shoes and went to go dig her purse out from underneath all the clothes that resided on the chair. “We haven’t gone out in a while and it’ll be nice to get away for a bit.” She finally managed to find her purse from underneath the mountain of clothing just as soon as he finished tying up his shoes. “We should also put our dirty clothes in the hamper more often.”

“Or you can put your purse on the table.” He gave her a cheeky grin that only made her scoff and put her jacket on. “Where do you want to go kotyonok?”

“I’ve been craving Café Miro lately.”

“Craving?” He arched a brow as he went to grab his jacket from the chair by the desk and put it on. “Is there something you need to tell me kotyonok?”

She crossed her arms after slinging her purse over her shoulder and rolled her eyes. But she still managed to have a laugh escape from her lips. “Yes moya sladost', I’m pregnant. You should know by now I crave things.”

“Just a bit.”

She let out a laugh and grabbed his arm, pulling him out of their bedroom. It was that time of the month last week and she was doing a lot of craving, mostly chocolate and pizza and he was a saint. After work he went out and surprised her with a few of her favorite candy bars and some pizza from a local restaurant. Not after she complained for a good chunk of the morning though. Nonetheless she was grateful.

They were seated at a table sipping their drinks as they waited for their food to arrive. The café wasn’t as packed as they both expected it to be, only a few people were in it and the atmosphere was nice for a change. Way better than it was on base. They’ve only been back to work for a few weeks and people were already getting into arguments.

“Did I ever tell you the time I got mad at my parents at my aunt and uncle's farm and ran off?”

“No you haven’t.”

Excitement showed on her face as she leaned forward, it made him a bit more interested than he already was.

“I don’t remember what the fight was actually about, I was ten at the time. Anyways, I ran out and got on Midnight and went into the nearby woods. I was pretty far in and it was getting dark, then Midnight started to panic.” She took a deep breath, collecting her nerves before continuing. It was a story she didn’t like to tell all too often. “I knew animals can catch wind of danger way before us humans can. It wasn’t until she turned a bit that I could see what she saw. It was a Lynx in a tree, the first time I ever saw one and fear settled in.”

“Was that how you got those scars on your calf?”

He’s seen those scars a million times already, though mostly faded but if you look close enough you could definitely tell they were claw marks of some kind. He would be lying if he said he didn’t want to know where she got them, but knew it wasn’t his place to ask. She’s been through enough and he didn’t want to bring up old memories that she doesn’t want.

“Yes.” She looked down at her cup and sighed. “Midnight ended up throwing me off the saddle and ran away. I remember being on the ground, scared. I wanted to run, but knew running was a bad idea, so I slowly stood up just as the Lynx jumped down from the tree.” She finally looked over at him, seeing him listening to her with his full attention. It seemed like no one else was in the room with them. “It didn’t attack, it just walked over to me, sniffed me. Then I felt a paw on my leg and the claws came shortly afterwards and slowly went down my calf. My parents along with my aunt and uncle were there moments later.”

“Did they scare it away?”

“Yeah. The whole thing was just weird, looking back on it, it seems like the Lynx wanted to play. Or maybe it didn’t see too many humans and was checking me out” She chuckled. “Later my dad told me it looked like a juvenile.”

“You were lucky, it could’ve been a lot worse.”

“I know, got a cool scar though and on the way back to the house we saw a moose. They’re huge.” They’re food arrived a moment later, halting their conversation only momentarily. “Do you have any wildlife moya sladost'?”

“Two. I have more, but they’re not as exciting as these ones.”

The waiter showed up a second later with their food and Skylar’s mouth started to water, it smelled so good and she couldn’t wait to dig in. After they said their thanks and the waiter left she looked back over to him.

“I’d love to hear about them.” She took a bit of her mushroom burger and hummed in satisfaction. “Being a pescatarian has made me more appreciative on how delicious vegetables can be.”

Alex chuckled before he took a bite of his burger, a few things going through his mind as he thought back on those wildlife encounters. “Alright, it’s been years so some of the details are hazy.”

She nodded her head and took another bite of her food, waiting for him to continue on. It was always a treat to learn more of him the longer they’re together, he has so much life experience she feels like a little kid sitting cross legged on the floor listening with such awe.

“This was a few months after I was drafted, I was in the middle of the Siberian wilderness with my platoon. Training.” He rolled his eyes and shook his head, but she could tell there was more to it than that. “It was the middle of the night, I’m sleeping or trying to sleep in the freezing temperatures and I heard rustling outside. Didn’t think twice, thought someone left the tent to go to the bathroom. A moment later I heard a low roar, but didn’t quite register in my brain so I decided to go back to sleep.”

“A roar?”

He held his finger up as he finished chewing his food and continued on. “A few minutes later the whole tent wakes up in a start because someone is freaking out outside. Everyone throws the covers off themselves and runs outside into the snow. That’s when we saw what he was yelling about, a few Siberian tigers wandered into the camp. They weren’t attacking, just curious. We eventually got them to run off back into the woods.”

He looked over to see Skylar staring at him in such wonder, and a little bit of shock. It made him laugh.

“Damn, I would love to see a Siberian tiger though.”

“They’re beautiful animals!”

Skylar hummed and took another bite of her burger, looking around the café glancing at everyone there. It just felt nice to be away from base for the moment, new scenery and some fresh air always did her some good.

“I don’t doubt it. The closest I’ve ever come to a wild cat was seeing some lions at the zoo.” She laughed. “Safer I suppose.”

“You suppose?”

“Oh shush, you know what I mean.” She chuckled. “You know...I’m gonna change the subject for a moment. I used to put up a façade about being happy, now I don’t have too and it feels so good. It was so draining before, acting like I was truly happy and now I don’t need that façade anymore.”

Alex reached over the table to grab her hand, holding it in his. The military has put him through the ringer a few times, as it has with her, but he’ll never understand how it felt to be abused in every aspect. The horrors she had to endure at the hands of her ex and how much that messed her up emotionally and physically. No one should have to go through that and even though she’s been healing at a snail's pace since she was finally free of him, now she can start to heal better. He knows she’ll never be the woman she was before all that and he’s more than okay with that. He didn’t fall in love with past Skylar, he fell in love with the present one.

“That makes me happy, you’ve been through hell kotyonok and it’s good that you can finally find some true happiness!”

Tears started to well in her eyes and she gave him a soft smile. “Thank you moya sladost', and I have you to thank for it!”

“I just gave you that push you needed, it’s you who found what truly makes you happy!”

She wiped the tears away from her eyes and let out a shaky breath. “Yeah I suppose you’re right. You did nudge me in the right direction, then again it was me who decided to join Rainbow to begin with. Maybe it was just fate.”

Fate, something she always kind of believed in, but wasn’t so sure. To Skylar things always happened for a reason. And if the reason for her to go through that year of torture only to end up in the arms of a man who treats her like a queen and loves her, then she’s okay with that. She’s okay with living her life as a new version of herself, people change and that’s the wonderful part of life.

“I like to think it was! In a sense we both had reasons to not be here, together today. I could’ve died last year and you could’ve said no to joining Rainbow. We never would have met, and I don’t like thinking about that. You’ve changed my life kotyonok, for the better and I can’t imagine my life without you.”

“Okay are you trying to make me cry in public моя милая?” She laughed and wiped the tears from her eyes. “You’ve changed my life for the better too, and I don’t want to picture my life without you any time soon!”

“And you won’t have too!”

She leaned over the table and gave him a quick kiss before both of them went back to their meal.

They spent the rest of lunch just talking about how training went for the both of them. How Alex decided to change things up a bit to make the team work better as a team, little did he know it would end up with Kapkan and Glaz arguing like school children. In his defense it was entertaining. But he knew his comrades and knew they would be over it by tomorrow morning.

Skylar talked about how fun training was in the beginning, the pit being a new way to help her improve her skills and how she was surprised she got the quickest time after a few rounds. Followed by Pulse and Ash. Then it turned boring when Thermite couldn’t stand having a slower time than Pulse and she had to wait until the GIGN came in for theirs. However the first few times were entertaining, especially when he swore like a sailor when something didn’t go right.

After lunch they decided to take a nice long stroll in a nearby park before heading back to the base. The air was a bit cold, pretty normal for the winter weather but no less refreshing. The stale air at base can be a bit of a nuance from time to time.

Skylar linked her arm with Alex’s and softly sighed as she watched a bird fly by. “I think this has been a wonderful afternoon. What do you think моя милая?”

He looked around him, seeing the bare trees with some snow still on the branches and hummed. “I think it’s been a wonderful afternoon too, kotyonok. Didn’t have to worry about work or anything, just you!”

“Hopefully it was a good kind of worry?” She chuckled and walked over to a bench to sit down on.

Alex took a seat a second later, placing an arm around her shoulders. “Of course!”

“Good!” She snuggled up to him and looked around the park, spotting a few people sitting on a bench nearby, a man jogging with a baby stroller and a few people walking their dogs. “I can’t wait for the day where we can do this all the time. Like Spring.”

“Well, then you won’t have to wait long kotyonok!”

He let out a small laugh and she couldn’t help but laugh as well. “That’s true, Spring is right around the corner. It’ll be nice to see all the flowers and have some nice warm weather for a change.”

Alex hummed in agreement, the warm weather would be a nice change and very welcomed. “It will be a nice change and much needed.”

“It’ll also get us off the base more.” She looked over at him and softly smiled at him. “I think it’ll be nice to go for daily walks, get away from everyone and have some more privacy.”

He mirrored her soft smile and got lost into her hazel eyes, moving forward to place a more passionate kiss upon her lips. Skylar was about to straddle him, only to catch herself in the midst of it. She laughed and pulled away.

“What?” He laughed.

“Not out in public Alexsandr!”

“Kotyonok, you were the one who was going to straddle me. Not my fault.”

Skylar could feel her cheeks become warm, no doubt turning red like a tomato and then lightly shoved at his arm. “Oh shush. It’s not my fault, it’s yours for turning me on in public.”

“We can go back to the car if you want?”

A smile started to spread across her face as she watched his mouth twist into a smirk and she shook her head in disbelief. “Oh yeah that’d be a great idea in the middle of the afternoon, where people can see us.”

“What can I say kotyonok, I like living on the edge.”

“Oh my god.” She laughed and moved away from him, making him whine in reply. And that only forced a snort from her. “Clearly, but do you really want people seeing us? Or perhaps me slightly naked?”

His face faltered for a second and he sat up a bit straighter, leaning closer to her. “Now that you mention it, no I don’t.”

“I thought so.” She scooted closer to him, resting her hand on his knee. “And I’m pretty sure we would be arrested.”

This time he let out one of his booming laughs, slightly startling Skylar. He began to picture them in his car having sex and getting arrested for public indecency and more. It was a funny thought, but he knows his kotyonok and knew she wouldn’t do such a thing, at least not in the daylight hours. Night time was another thing.

“That would be a story to tell kotyonok.”

“My parents’ and sisters’ would flip out. And I could see Valary yelling at me for it.”

“I can see her doing that.”

Skylar snorted again and then stood up, offering her hand. “Let’s finish our walk!”

He obliged and stood up, intertwining her hand with his as they made their way down the path. The weather was unfortunately getting colder, and the clouds indicated a storm was on its way which put a damper on their nonexistent plans. So they headed back to the car.

“Looks like we might have a storm coming.”

She groaned and shut the door, fiddling with the seatbelt before putting it on. “I wish we could stay out more. Now I really wish we had our own place to go back too.”

Alex finished putting his seatbelt on and the keys in the ignition and looked over at her. She’s been her usual happy self, but something seemed off. Like deep down she had something on her mind that wouldn’t fully leave her, he wondered if it had to do with Wyatt or maybe this morning while training with the rest of her CTU.

“Are you okay kotyonok? You seem to have something on your mind.”

She buckled her seatbelt and looked over to him with a soft sigh leaving her lips. “A little bit, it has to do with Wyatt.”

He reached his hand over to her, caressing it with his thumb. It was such a simple gesture, but to her it was more than that. “Do you want to talk about it?”

She nodded her head. “I always thought we would get back together after I graduated college, then Henry happened and I’m no longer the girl he knew when we parted ways. I guess I’m more afraid of him looking at me differently because of what happened to me.”

He leaned over to kiss her forehead and pulled back to look her in the eyes. “If he cares about you as much as you say he does, I don’t think he’ll look at you differently. On the other hand he might be a bit shocked on who you ended up with.”

“Oh he’ll never expect us.” She laughed and leaned over to give him a small peck on the lips. “Not in a bad way. I hope so, I hate when someone you know so well just all of a sudden looks at you differently. It kind of hurts.”

“If it’s any consolation I’ll never look at you differently!”

“That makes me happy!”

“Good!” He leaned over to give her one more kiss before turning on the car. “Let’s head home.”

They’ve made it back to the base, just in time for it to start snowing. Skylar placed her purse on the desk and took off her jacket, tossing it onto the bed before sitting down with a sigh. She would’ve liked to stay out longer, but you can't compete with mother nature and she would rather be inside being warm.

Alex took his wallet out from his back pocket and placed it on the desk next to her purse and took off his jacket, setting it on the back of the chair before taking a seat next to her on the bed. He grabbed her hand and gave it a small squeeze, that made her look over at him with a smile on her face. Yet he could still tell something wasn’t right.

“Are you sure you’re okay kotyonok?”

Skylar hung her head and mumbled the words ‘no’ and then looked over at him with glistening eyes. “Henry’s been texting me, I have no idea how he got my number. I’ve been ignoring him but…”

“Skylar, why didn’t you tell me? How long has this been going on?”

“I’m sorry I didn’t tell you, I wanted to but I was scared.” She wiped the tears from her eyes, only for more to come. “It started shortly after work started again.”

“Kotyonok, why were you scared?” He embraced her in a hug and kissed the top of her head. “I would like to know if that abusive zasranec contacts you again. He’s not going to hurt you ever again, I promise.”

“I wasn’t afraid to tell you specifically, I was scared that even though we’re thousands of miles away, the fear he instilled in me is still there. The fear of what he would do to me if I told anyone.”

“Oh kotyonok!” He felt her body tremble against his and he slowly swayed back and forth, hoping to calm her a bit. “Just remember you're safe, here, with me. He can’t hurt you. I won’t let him.”

“Thank you moya sladost'!”

Her words were barely audible through her crying but he heard them clear as day. As her body trembled more he let out a shaky breath to keep himself from not crying as well. Just hearing her pain made his heart break and knowing Henry has been contacting her didn’t sit well with him. If he already found out her number, then who knows what else he could find out. The only thing that made him feel at ease is knowing how strict the base is for visitors.

Still, deep down he knew she should take legal action, get the police involved and make sure he doesn’t touch her or even come near her again. On the other hand they weren’t in America, so it might not work out well in England.

“Kotyonok have you ever thought about filing a report?”

Her trembling ceased and she looked up at him with a tear stained face. “No. I didn’t want to go through with it because I knew he would get off scot free. It’s not fair, the victim has to live with what happened for the rest of their lives while the abuser just walks off into the sunset without even a slap on the wrist.”

“No, it’s not fair kotyonok and I wish things could be different for you. Just please don’t hide things like this from me, I want to know. You don’t have to deal with this alone anymore.”

“I know and I’m sorry moya sladost'!” She wiped her eyes once again and exhaled a breath. “I’ll make sure to tell you from now on.”

“Thank you!” He pulled her in for another hug and softly sighed. “I love you Skylar!”

“I love you too Alex!” She pulled away and chuckled, wiping away the remaining tears. “I feel kind of bad that I couldn’t go to you for help. If I can’t go to you for help….”

“Don’t be, this is your first relationship since you left him. And old habits die hard. Before you know it you’ll be able to come to me for anything.”

Skylar looked down at her hands for a moment, letting his words sink into her brain. One day she’ll be able to come to him for anything, she knows that will come true someday and probably sooner rather than later. Yet, she already opened up a lot to him, things she hasn’t told anyone because she trusted him enough. But she couldn’t open up about Henry texting her and how it kept her awake at night and even made her cry herself to sleep a few times while he was sleeping soundly next to her. She shouldn’t have had to suffer on her own when she knew she had a shoulder to cry on a foot away.

“That’s the thing I should’ve been able to come to you with this.” She groaned and stood up, pointing at her side of the bed. “I shouldn’t have spent those nights crying myself to sleep because I felt scared, knowing full well you were right there next to me.” Alex’s face fell white and he stood up, grabbing both of her hands in his. When they finally made eye contact that’s all it took for Skylar to slowly collapse onto the floor, crying. He didn’t say anything, just followed suit and took her into his arms. “I’m so scared Alex and I don’t know what to do.”

Those words were what sent his own tears down his cheeks. He wasn’t much of a crier, but hearing the pain and suffering in her voice was enough to send him over the edge. Yet he still somewhat maintained his stoic nature. The one thing that hurt the most was not knowing what to say.

“It’s going to be okay kotyonok, I promise. I won’t let anything happen to you!” She didn’t respond back, just kept crying into his chest. It wasn’t a shock she was balling her eyes out after all and she would speak when she wanted too. Though an idea did pop into his head, he wouldn’t do it unless she was absolutely a-okay with it. It’s not his place to tell anyone. “Kotyonok I have an idea. I’m not entirely sure you’re going to like it.”

Skylar pulled away and sniffled, looking up at him with tears still running down her face. “What is it?”

“There might come a day where I won’t be with you, and I want someone who I trust to be able to watch over you.”

“What are you suggesting?”

“I or you tell Timur. I know how close you are with him and if I’m not there at least I know he could step in until I come back.”

She blinked her eyes a few times contemplating his words. Telling Timur? Maybe that was a good idea, but deep down she didn’t want him to look at her any differently after he found out. On the other hand it would be a good thing because if that dreadful day ever came she would have someone else to go too.

“I want you to tell him, I’m too emotionally exhausted to do so.”

“Okay, just tell me when.”

“I guess now. All this crying has made me tired, I think I might take a nap before getting the rest of my things.”

She stood up and he followed suit, leaning forward to kiss her forehead. “Okay, if you need me just text me.”

“I will!”

He gave her one last kiss before departing, when the door closed Skylar sat down to take her shoes off, tossing them near the desk. Before she got under the covers she went into the bathroom to clean up, when she turned on the light she grimaced at her own reflection. She looked like hell rolled over.

She turned on the faucet and let the water run for a bit as she used a tissue to wipe her eyes and tossed it into the trash. She sighed and cupped her hands under the water and splashed some on her face and turned it off. To her left she grabbed a towel to dry herself off and shut the light of before heading back into the bedroom.

All the crying drained the hell out of her and now she felt kind of numb, maybe a good nap will help make her feel better. If not, then she sees drinking in her near future.

She took off her bra and got under the covers, leaving the light on so Alex wouldn’t come back to a dark room and trip over something. And if she couldn’t fall asleep then maybe she could reorganize their room. God knows it needs it. Skylar made herself comfortable and then closed her eyes, hoping sleep would take her very soon.

Alex made his way to Timur’s room, thinking that’d be the best place to start. He just hopes Kapkan isn’t there, if he is he can always ask him to leave so he can talk to Timur alone. Normally he wouldn’t care if the other was around, this was different, this wasn’t his personal business it was Skylar’s, his kotyonok. And no one else is gonna find out unless she wants them too.

He came to his room that wasn’t far from his and knocked on the door a few times. It only took a few seconds for Timur to open the door, paintbrush in hand. “Alex? I wasn’t expecting you.”

“Can we talk?”

“Da, of course.” He moved to the side to let him in and shut the door. “Something wrong?”

“It’s about Skylar. I love her, more than anything and there will come a day where I can’t protect her.”

Timur set his paintbrush down and looked over at him with a raised brow. “You..want me too? I think she’s perfectly capable of taking care of herself. I don’t think she needs me to look after her.”

Alex scrubbed a hand down his face and sighed, looking over at Timur more sternly than before. “She can take care of herself. Before she joined Rainbow, back when she was a Marine she was in an abusive relationship. It broke her. That ex has now been texting her and she’s terrified. If that day comes I want her to have someone she can go to for help if I’m not here.”

Timur’s face went white and his heart skipped a beat. He never would have thought Skylar went through something like that. She always seemed so upbeat and happy, little did he know she was silently suffering. “I never would have guessed. I know how much you love her and I’ll protect her when or if the time comes. She’ll be safe!”

“Я очень благодарен!”

“It’s the least I can do, she’s one of my closest friends on base and I wouldn’t want anything to happen to her either.”

Alex took a seat on his bed and looked over at him with gratitude in his eyes. “No, you’re doing much more and she’s grateful for it. I just hope it’ll never come down to it.”

“Me too! Where is she now?”

“She’s taking a nap, she just admitted to me that her ex has been texting her for a few weeks and kind of broke down.”

He looked down at his hands and sighed, he wished he knew long ago and it made him feel bad for not being there for her when she needed him the most. It was even worse when they shared a bed and he didn’t even notice her crying in the middle of the night. How could he be so oblivious?

Timur nodded his head and sat down next to him. “At least she told you. You can’t blame her, leaving an abusive relationship is the scariest time for any victim. Now that he’s made his way back into her life those feelings came back. Give her time, she’ll open up more.”

“I know, that’s not my issue. I sleep a foot away from her, how the hell did I not hear her crying in the middle of the night? I’m not a heavy sleeper, you know that.”

He gave him a small smile and his bright blue eyes dulled. “She didn’t want you too. This is her first relationship, da?” Alex nodded his head. “I don’t think she knows where she stands, being an abuse victim and trying not to seem like a burden. She’s going to be dealing with this for the rest of her life, I think she’s afraid that maybe her emotions and PTSD will push you away.”

“That’s never going to happen.”

“Tell her that. It’s not my place but maybe you two should sit down and have a long talk about it. Set those fears aside.”

He went quiet and looked away from him as he contemplated his words. Timur was right, maybe a long talk would help, Skylar could tell him her fears regarding their relationship and they can figure things out from there. He’s also not going to push her, when she’s ready she’ll tell him.

“I’ll talk with her later, I’m not pushing her to open up. She will when she feels like it.”

“Obviously, you would push her away if you did that.”

Alex glared over at him and stood up. “I should get back to her, I don’t want to leave her alone for too long. Thank you again Timur, it means a lot!”

“You’re welcome Alex!”

He left after that, heading back to his room to make sure Skylar was alright or to see if she actually fell asleep. He hoped the latter, she needed some rest after all that crying and he’s sure she would feel better afterwards. Hopefully.

A few minutes later he came to their room slowly opening the door, only to see her wide awake and sitting on the bed. He walked in, shutting the door behind and took a seat on the edge of the bed. “I thought you would be sleeping kotyonok.”

“I tried, I just feel so...numb. For four years I’ve been running from my past and now it has finally caught up to me.”

He moved closer to her, grabbing her hand in his. “Skylar, you’re strong and a survivor. Don’t run away from it, show the past that you’re not going to sit around and let it bully you any longer.”

“How?”

“Because you have people who will love and protect you!” He watched her face soften and shoulders relax under his gaze. “A lot of people here care about you kotyonok, you would be surprised what some of us will do.”

“I think you care about me the most моя милая! And what would you do?”

“No argument there kotyonok.” He laughed. “That’s not for a lady to hear.”

Skylar laughed and that was like music to his ears. “I think I have some ideas.”

Alex laughed and leaned down to give her a quick kiss, he pulled after a moment and let out a sigh. “Kotyonok, can we talk?”

“About what?”

She sat up a little straighter, sighing through her nose. She already knew what it was about, what happened the past few weeks. Her crying herself to sleep next to him and not telling him what was going on, even though deep down she knew she should have. Like he said earlier, old habits die hard.

“It’s about what you did. I’m not angry or disappointed, I wish to understand more. It hurt me more knowing I didn’t even hear you, you needed me and I didn’t hear you.”

“Okay.” She inhaled a breath and exhaled it a few seconds later, trying to ease her emotions. “That’s because I didn’t want you too. Dating was never in my itinerary, then you just had to swipe me off my feet.” She chuckled. “I don’t want to hide my emotions from you, I don’t. I just don’t know how to ask for help.”

“If you have a nightmare or a PTSD episode or anything, don’t hesitate on waking me up.”

“You won’t get mad?”

Alex’s face faltered at her words and he watched her submit herself to him. Before him wasn’t the young specialist he knew, but the nineteen year old who's been through hell. The past didn’t just show up, it came barreling in without warning. Like a tsunami in the middle of the ocean.

“Never! I want you to feel safe, comfortable with me. You don’t need to tell me what happened unless you want too, I won’t put you through that. But I’m not going to sit by and watch my girlfriend suffer in silence when I’m a foot away from her. What I said on that dog tag was true, my heart will be your shelter and my arms your home.”

“I’m sorry!”

He moved closer to her and wrapped her in his arms. When he found out about her past he knew things wouldn’t be easy and maybe he missed something in the beginning, like boundaries. Maybe she might feel more comfortable with them in place, no matter what she says he was going to be fine with it.

“It’s okay kotyonok. Do you want to set some boundaries? I know I never asked after finding out.”

“I don’t think I need to set them, you seem pretty keen on understanding my body language. That’s enough for me.” She pulled away from him and reached for her phone, pressing a few buttons until she came to what she wanted. “I want you to read them.”

He took the phone from her hand and began reading through each text. They started off tame to only get worse and worse. It made his blood boil, he couldn’t even get through half of them before setting the phone down on the bed. Those messages weren’t just cruel, they were sadistic. They went into depth of what he did and was going to do to her.

“I can’t find the words. I..”

“You don’t need too, I have a pretty good idea what you’re thinking moya sladost'!”

“Have you thought about changing your number?”

“Yes, I was waiting until work became less hectic and I had more time.” Truth be told she never thought about changing her number, she was too worried about Henry being back in her life. “I’m just happy he doesn’t know where I am.”

“If he did know where you were then I’m beating him with my degtyaryov.”

“Sure moya sladost', you would definitely use your precious degtyaryov to beat someone.”

“Kotyonok I care more about you than I do that gun. The gun can be replaced, you can’t.”

Skylar didn’t say anything, she just moved the covers off of her and straddled him - wrapping her arms around his neck and resting her head on his shoulder. He wrapped his arms around her, embracing her in a gentle, yet firm hug. In a way she didn’t need to say anything, he understood just by the gesture. It felt nice to be so close to someone where all you need is a certain look or body language to understand.

“I hate feeling like this, I hate feeling that I would be better off alone. Who wants to date someone like me?”

“Don’t say that kotyonok.” He gently moved her head off his shoulder, placing his thumb in the dip of her chin. “Anyone would be happy to have you! Your PTSD is a part of you now, da. But you’re still compassionate, kind, funny, strong and much more. Your good qualities outweigh the bad ones. Da, some people may not understand fully what you’ve been through, and may only be able to help in certain ways. Kotyonok, that doesn’t mean you are any less worthy of being loved.”

The tears started to well in her eyes once again and she laughed, wiping them away with the back of her hand. “I’m really getting tired of crying. Do you really mean that?”

“With all my heart!”

“I love you moya sladost'!”

“I love you too my kotyonok!”

She sniffled and gave him a soft smile before leaning forward until their lips met. As they moved in tandem she grabbed his shirt and pulled him down onto the bed with a chuckle.

“Lay with me please?”

Alex laughed and laid down beside her, letting her curl up next to him. “Better?”

“Much better.” She let out a content sigh and fiddled with the collar of his shirt. “I’m grateful to have you!”

He moved onto his side, gazing into those hazel eyes he sees everyday and moved a few strands of hair behind her ear. “And I’m grateful to have you!”

Skylar’s smile grew wider and her face softened. She was agnostic, has been ever since she was a little girl, but this...joining Rainbow, meeting Alex. The actual love of her life. It almost seemed like a higher power was involved in it, like they were destined to be together no matter what.

“I’ve been thinking about telling my parents what happened, what truly happened. It’s going to kill them.”

“What did you tell them?”

“That he was emotionally abusive to a point. A part of me always wanted to tell them the truth, I just couldn’t.”

He nodded his head, he understood why she did that. She didn’t want to hurt her parents, and to find out what she’s been through would kill them.

“Do you want me to be with you when you do tell them kotyonok?”

“Yes! I’m gonna need the support.”

“Okay.” He laughed. “Why don’t you take that nap you were secretly waiting for me to come back for. I’m not going anywhere.”

She laughed, face turning slightly red. “How did you know?”

“I know my girlfriend!” He gave her a quick kiss and sat up. “Now get some sleep, I’ll only be a few feet away.”

“I hope you know I plan on marrying you one day!” She chuckled and got under the blankets, letting out a content sigh.

“Well I hope you know I plan on marrying you one day too!”

“Yay!”

Alex laughed and leaned down to give her a much more passionate kiss, that seemed to spark that invisible lightbulb above his head. “I just wanted you to know that if there comes a time where you don’t want sex, no matter how long. I will never be mad or upset. Our relationship isn’t built on that, it’s built on trust, understanding and love.”

“Thank you!”

“It’s nothing to thank me for kotyonok! I’m doing this because I care, sex doesn’t mean a thing if you’re not into it. We can have sex anytime you want, I can wait.”

“You’re already an amazing boyfriend and you’re going to be one amazing husband Alex, I mean it!” She propped herself up on her elbow. “I’m not a believer, but I can’t help thinking that a higher power brought us together. Like they knew exactly who I needed in my life!”

“I’m not much of a believer either either, if there is someone out there I’m grateful he did bring us together!”

It’s been a few hours, Skylar slept about two, feeling both better and a tiny bit worse, but she digressed. During those few hours Alex decided to organize their room some more, organizing the papers on the desk and putting their dirty clothes in a hamper, along with their jackets in the closet. She was surprised to see how clean their room was and they could now use the desk more.

“Wow it’s so clean.” She chuckled and rubbed her still tired eyes. “You did a lot while I slept.”

He looked over from the chair and placed the paper he’s been neglecting down on the desk. “Da, I thought it was time I cleaned this mess and to make it more welcoming for you.”

“Hey half the mess is mine too, work just gets in the way of things. Besides this room has always been welcoming, with or without a mess.”

Alex stood up, moving from the chair to the bed. “That’s true, and we seem to be more occupied with each other!”

The smirk on his face made her laugh. However he was right of course, they were enamored in each other rather than the mess in their room. And thanks to Alex it looked a lot better.

“Oh definitely! It looks good though, maybe we can try and keep clean from now on.” She scrunched her nose and shook her head. “Probably not.”

“Only time will tell kotyonok.”

She laughed and the smile that spread across her face melted his heart. “I suppose so.”

Alex mirrored her smile and leaned over to give her a quick kiss. “How are you feeling?”

“Better, a lot better. I also feel a little bit worse too. But better nonetheless.”

“Better is still good, it’s progress kotyonok.”

The smile on her face started to fade and she looked down at her hands. She didn’t know how to work with this new version of herself, before it was façade until she got back to her apartment. Now she’s in a place and with someone where she can be more open and act more like herself. Well the newer version.

“I don’t know how to work with this new version of me.” She looked back up at him, seeing his face softened and hand reach out for hers. “A part of me wants to go back to how I was, but I know that’s not possible.”

He gently squeezed her hand and sighed through his nose. “Kotyonok, do you mind if I be completely honest with you?”

“I would rather you be.”

“Kotyonok you’ve spent too long trying to heal on your own. I think it’s time for you to take that leap and get more professional help.” He scooted closer to her, surprised she didn’t seem taken aback by his words. “I think it will help, and you know I’ll be with you every step of the way.”

“I know, I know. And I know you’re right, maybe getting a new therapist will help. I’ll do that after I change my number.” She took a deep breath and relaxed her shoulders. “Now let's go get the rest of my stuff.” He let out one of his booming laughs as she got out of bed and went into the bathroom to brush her hair and put it up in a bun. Once her hair was to her liking she walked back out and put on her shoes. “Okay I’m ready.”

She looked through her stuff that was still in the room, mostly clothes, some jewelry and a few other miscellaneous things. Not much thankfully and it shouldn’t take long to move them to the other room. Skylar was now happy she moved her weapons to her locker when she did.

“I swear I had more stuff.”

“We did bring a lot of your stuff into our room a few weeks ago.”

She held a necklace in her hand, a small heart shaped stone in amethyst which happens to be her birthstone. She bought it at one of the shops in town while out with Ela. “That’s true. I forgot I even had this necklace.”

“I think I’ve seen you wear it once.” He laughed. “It’s beautiful!”

“It is, it’s also my birthstone.”

He laughed, which happened to make her raise a brow. “It’s kind of ironic that your birthstone is purple, knowing it’s your favorite color.”

She had to laugh at that too, it was ironic and she never even thought about it before. She put the necklace back in its case and placed it back on the bed. The clothes she left behind were some she didn’t really wear, and it made her wonder why she brought them in the first place.

“Y’know I would really like to go back in time and question myself why I brought some clothes I barely wear. What was the point?”

“Maybe you thought you would wear them more.”

“Perhaps. I should donate them, after I buy more clothes, that is.”

Alex chuckled and he sat down on the bed, glancing over at the stuff on it. “Do I sense a shopping trip in our near future kotyonok?”

“Oh yes.” The door opened, forcing their attention over there to see Ash walk into the room. Looking to be in a hurry. Skylar set down what she was looking at and turned to her. “What’s going on?”

Ash grabbed her duffel bag from underneath her bed and dropped in on top of her bed. “There’s something going on in New Mexico, some kind of outbreak. Six wants me to go do some recon on this outbreak and inform her on anything.”

Skylar gave a quick glance to Alex before looking back over to Ash. “Was it the White Masks?”

She went over to the dresser and opened a drawer, pulling out a few of her fatigues and placed them in the duffle bag. “We’re not sure, it doesn’t seem like it. I’ll know more once I get there.”

Skylar sat down on the bed with a sigh. “That’s all we need another terrorist organization to deal with. Keep me updated please, if you can.”

Ash looked over at her after she grabbed her wallet, passport and everything else she needed. “Sky, if this gets worse you’ll be in New Mexico with me.”

“I object, if she goes I go.” Alex chimed in.

She looked over at him and rolled her eyes. “Whatever you say Tachanka.”

He glared over at her and crossed his arms, hearing Skylar chuckle from beside him.

“Anyways I have a plane to catch and it probably won’t be long until I see both of you again.”

“Alright, be safe!”

“I’ll try!”

Skylar scoffed and stood back up, hearing the door shut as she placed the clothes in the bag she brought with them. She looked back over to Alex, face faltering for a moment. “I hope this outbreak can be contained, we don’t need a pandemic on our hands.”

“No we don’t, I’m sure we’ll find out more sooner rather than later.”

All she could do was nod her head.

As Skylar started to fall asleep in Alex’s arms, she thought back on this very eventful day. She was happy she told him about Henry, even if it took her weeks to do so. Things were beginning to look a lot clearer now, or at least she hopes. First she would have to get a new number. Second, find a therapist and start that long awaited start to full recovery.

She was kicking herself in the ass for that, the last time she saw a therapist was a few months after she left the Marines. That lasted until she joined the FBI a year later. She should’ve found one in Los Angeles, it was stupid to stop seeing one when she moved and now that did more harm than good. How could she think she would be able to deal with it on her own? She couldn’t and she found out the hard way.

At least she didn’t lose her compassion and could still be a pretty good girlfriend, that was important. Alex didn’t deserve someone who’s closed off and a bitch for what happened.

And last but not least, train her brain that Henry can’t hurt her anymore. He’s miles away, he can’t get to her. She won’t have to endure anymore agony from him and she knows Alex will protect her, no matter what!

A soft smile started to spread across her face as she felt his lips against her neck. She may have far to go, but she has Alex and people who love her and are willing to help her along the way. She’s not in this alone, never was to begin with!

Chapter Text

The next morning Skylar woke up with quite the headache, the source being from all the crying she did yesterday. She was hoping she wouldn’t get one, but nonetheless she did and was thankful she had a bottle of Advil on hand and didn’t have to go bug Doc for some.

She sat up and groaned, stretching her arms above her head. “I have a headache.”

Alex was sitting in the chair next to the desk as he put his shoes on, and he was already dressed for the day. She on the other hand was nowhere near ready, and truthfully she didn’t even want to train today. Thankfully her training was just with Glaz, so it should be easy and less stressful on her than training with her CTU.

He got up from the chair to sit on the edge of the bed and kissed her forehead. “I’ll get you some Advil.”

Skylar watched him walk to the bathroom and rubbed her temples, she hasn’t had a headache like this in a good year, maybe more. She looked over at the clock, still having a little over an hour until she needed to meet Glaz, just enough time for the Advil to work and hopefully take the headache away.

Alex came back with a cup of water and two pills, handing both to her. “Here you go kotyonok!”

“Thank you moya sladost!” She took the two pills from his hand and popped them into her mouth before taking the water and drinking it. “This headache better go away soon. My hangovers are better than this.”

He chuckled and took the cup from her hand, setting it on the bedside table. “Give it time, it should go away soon.”

“It better, or I’m not leaving this bed today.” She chuckled. “I’ll just lay here and sleep all day.”

“Wouldn’t we all like to do that?” He chuckled. “Just waste the day away in bed.”

“I know I would.”

He let out a laugh and leaned over to give her another kiss on the forehead, pulling away to see her soften features. Even though she looked content, she also looked tired, defeated in a sense. The look you would get after crying for a long time, maybe it would be good for her to take off the day.

“Why don’t you take the day off kotyonok? I’m sure Timur won’t mind.”

“I think I’m good, the fresh air could do me some good.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure.” She leaned over to give him a quick kiss on the lips. “If I don’t feel any better I’ll come back here.”

“Okay.”

She laid back down, fixing the duvet around her and sighed. “Now I’ll just lay down for the next twenty minutes and then I’ll get ready.”

All Alex could do was laugh and lean down to kiss her forehead once again. When he pulled away he saw the small smile etched on her face that made his heart feel happy. Any ounce of happiness she has, makes him feel happy. After all she’s been through, she deserves at least that. To be happy. And he’ll do his damnedest to make sure she is.

“Okay kotyonok!” He looked at the clock briefly and then back at her. “I have to meet Maxim and Shuhrat, I’ll see you later.”

“Okay, I’ll meet you for lunch.”

He leaned down to give her one more kiss before leaving the room to train with Maxim and Shuhrat. As he left Skylar softly sighed and grabbed her phone from the nightstand to pass some time. There wasn’t much to do, so checking social media it is. Even then, that wasn’t that productive since she was five hours ahead of everyone back in Maine. The only downside of living so far away.

She placed her phone back on the nightstand and sat up, running her fingers through her hair. This was the part of the morning she hated, Alex going to train and having an hour to kill until her and Timur begin training. This part made her bored.

And for some reason, whatever reason that was, went for her phone again. And directly to Henry’s texts. She was happy she told Alex, it took a ton of weight off her shoulders and she wanted to block his number, but she knew it wouldn’t do a damn thing. He would just get a new phone number and continue to hassle her, at least until she gets the authorities involved.

The fact that he found her scared her the most, she spent four years running away from him, hoping he would never find her, and now he has. He figured out her phone number and she wouldn’t be surprised if he figured out where she was. The only thing that made her calm was knowing that if he somehow swindled his way into Hereford, she has Alex. Someone who would protect her if need be.

With nothing much to do she got up to slowly get ready, walking over to the closet and pulling out her fatigues for training. She was thankful they decided to train inside today than out, knowing how cold it was. If she was back in the Marines and he with the Spetsnaz, both of their asses would be outside training.

She tossed the clothes on the bed and went into the bathroom to wash up. While she did she couldn’t help but notice how depleted she felt, all she wanted to do was sleep away the day. Unfortunately she couldn’t, she had to train, then again one day wouldn’t hurt.

Once she was done she shut off the water and the light and headed back into the bedroom to do her hair. She sat down on the bed, grabbing her brush from the nightstand and took out her ponytail and began brushing the snarls out. As she began brushing her hair her phone went off, alerting her of a text message.

Without moving she looked down to see it was from Alex and all it said was ‘meet me outside by the track’. She shrugged her shoulders and went back to brushing her hair, and not a moment to soon another ding went off on her phone. Still Alex and this time all it said was ‘Timur knows, don’t worry’. She set her brush down and texted back ‘okay be out in a few minutes’.

Skylar wondered what he had planned, he wouldn’t just call her down knowing she had training, as did he. She knew he had something up his sleeve.

She put her hair in a low ponytail and got up to get dressed. Now she was wondering if she should wear her fatigues or put on regular workout gear instead,,,,fatigues would be the smarter choice, just in case he only wanted to see her for a few minutes. Either way she quickly got dressed and left the room to meet him.

When she got outside it was quite chilly, which was expected for the time of year. She pulled her jacket tighter and started to make her way to the track. Not many people were outside, which was kind of shocking, you would see at least a few CTUs outside training, no matter the weather.

It wasn’t long before a tall, handsome blonde Russian came into view, forcing a smile to tug at her lips. “Hi!, you wanted to see me?”

“Da.” He linked their arms together and started to walk more towards the empty track. “I thought we could workout together, since you weren’t feeling too good.”

She chuckled and stopped walking to turn to him. “I will gladly take you up on this offer. But what about Timur?”

“He has Maxim, Fuze is working on his cluster charges.”

“I’m not even going to ask what you told them.” She laughed. “And since I’m not feeling too great I think a few laps around the track will be fine.”

“It wasn’t bad kotyonok.”

Skylar didn’t say anything, she just grabbed his hand and pulled him along.

Her headache was thankfully going away, somewhat, the cold wasn’t helping and she even had a hat on. A New England Patriots one to be precise, Alex knew nothing of American football, just what Thermite mentions during the season and even then, it confused him.

She looked over at him to see the confused look on his face, making her raise an eyebrow. “You okay моя милая?”

“Da, your hat made me think about something.”

“Why don’t you tell me about it?”

“Could you explain American football to me?”

A strong breeze flew past them, sending a shiver down her spine. It made her want to go inside, where it’s warm. “I can do that, but I’d rather wait until the actual season. It’ll be easier to teach you all the plays and stuff. Maybe I’ll even make you a Patriots fan, that’ll annoy Jordan for sure.”

“Perhaps kotyonok. Are they good?”

He watched her take a step back, looking at him like he just offended her greatly. Or brought dishonor on her family, maybe both.

“Are they good? Everyone pretty much hates them because of how good they are. The Patriots always make it to the playoffs and have a very good chance of making it to the Superbowl every year. Yes they are good!”

“I’ll take your word for it. Why don’t we go inside and get breakfast? I can see you’re cold.”

“Yes please, I’m freezing actually.”

“I..can warm you up if you want kotyonok?”

She smiled up at him, shaking her head at that smug look on his face. She knew what he meant about ‘helping her warm up’ and she just loves teasing him. “I can go for a cuddle session under a nice warm blanket, if that’s what you mean?”

“I think you know what I mean.”

“Oh I do, I just love teasing you about it. Mister I’m always horny.” She gave him a cheeky grin and began walking back to the building.

As she walked towards the building an all too familiar voice yelled out behind her.

“Can you blame me Skylar?”

She let out a laugh and turned back around, jogging back over to him to give him a chaste kiss. “No, I can’t blame you for that. And in a way I like it and I’m okay with you being horny twenty-four, seven. As long as you’re okay with me not wanting sex everyday.”

“No I didn’t mean…..I. I’m sorry kotyonok, I didn’t mean for it to come out that way. I don’t just care about the sex.”

She looked up at him, face softening as she cupped the side of his face. “It’s okay моя милая, it has to be different dating someone who’s a victim.”

He placed his hand on top of hers, leaning into the gesture. “It’s pretty much the same, I just have to do better to remember that you’re not going to want to have sex all the time like I do. I would rather have you be comfortable than anything.”

“Thank you!” She removed her hand from his face and softly sighed. “Want to get breakfast now?”

Alex let out one of his booming laughs and grabbed her hand. “I would like that.”

The cafeteria wasn’t packed as of yet, which they were both happy about. Just a few other people, those who didn’t have to train or had training later.

Skylar grabbed a bagel with cream cheese and some juice, then went to go sit down at their regular table. Alex went with more protein, probably the better choice but she just really wanted a bagel and some juice.

“Juice kotyonok, really?”

“Don’t judge me I like juice, it’s good and it reminds me of my childhood.” She took a sip, slightly glaring at him. “Sitting in front of the television with a juice box watching movies.”

He laughed and took a bite of his food. It was cute that she was being nostalgic, it made him learn more about her and her childhood. It was so different from his, not because of the age difference, though that has a little bit to do with it, but because of the different cultures. He was raised in a strict military family, she had a civilian life with non strict parents. He was drafted at eighteen and she joined on her own.

Two different lives, but somehow they work well together. That’s something he’ll never take for granted and knows she won’t either.

“What movies did you watch?”

She finished the bite of food in her mouth and moved her attention back to him and not on Doc who looked to be having a mid life crisis a few tables away. “It was mostly Disney movies, Snow White, The Lion King, Tarzan to name a few.”

“What was your favorite?”

“My favorite?” She took another bite of her bagel and thought about his question. There were so many movies from her childhood that she loved and could watch over and over again. It was hard to choose. “That’s a hard question моя милая. I would say it’s tied between Tarzan and Toy Story.”

He nodded his head and took a bit of his food. “Never watched either of them kotyonok.”

“I’m sure you’ll be watching them quite a bit whenever that first little Senaviev comes along.” She laughed. “I had a feeling since you would’ve been in your twenties, early thirties in the nineties. I don’t think you would be watching kids movies, unless you like that sort of thing, I’m not judging.”

Alex scoffed, though a small smile formed across his face. “I don’t doubt that for a minute, kotyonok. You are right though, I wasn’t watching any kid’s movies in my twenties.”

“Are you sure?”

“Da, are you watching kid’s movies in your twenties?”

“Occasionally, yes. With the way my life has been and the work we do, it’s nice to have something that’s fun to watch.” She sighed and set her bagel down. “And to have something to watch that doesn’t have what I’ve been through thrown into my face.”

He reached his hand over to grab hers and gave it a little squeeze. He felt for her, of course, it’s not easy to deal with PTSD and you never know when an attack will occur. The last thing anyone wants is to be watching TV and have it trigger it.

“That’s one of the reasons you don’t really watch a lot of television or movies isn’t it?”

“Yeah, it’s easier to re-watch things I know. It….” She abruptly stopped talking and looked around, noticing more people coming into the room. “I’ll tell you later.”

“Okay.”

After breakfast they headed back to their room where they both decided to change into something more comfy. Skylar changed into a pair of black sweats and a tank top and got comfy on the bed while he changed into something. It felt nice to be able to go back to a room where she felt the most comfortable, not that she didn’t feel comfortable with Ash, it was different with Alex, she could pour her heart out to him if she needed and there was something so calming about that.

Once he was finished changing he sat down on the bed next to her, moving a strand of chestnut brown hair behind her ear. “What were you going to say earlier?”

She brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them. “I was going to say it’s easier to watch things I’m familiar with. Being raped doesn’t help with the ratings, yeah it might say ‘strong sexual content’ but you don’t know if it involves consent or not until you watch it.” She inhaled a deep breath and slowly let it out before making eye contact with him. “I made that mistake once and I went into a full blown panic attack.”

“I’m sorry kotyonok!” He scooted closer to her and wrapped his arm around her in a hug, kissing the top of her head. “If you want I can be your...tester. I can watch whatever you’ve been wanting to watch and see if there’s any triggers in it for you?”

“You would do that for me?”

“Kotyonok, I’d go to the edge of the universe for you!”

Skylar looked up at him, features softening under his gaze. “How’d I get so lucky?”

Alex let out a soft laugh and kissed her lips. He’s been asking himself the same thing for the past month, it’s amazing how one person can come into your life and change it for the better. Someone you never expected. When Skylar joined Rainbow six months ago he thought they’d be friends, nothing more. Yet here they are, together, talking about a future and life in general.

“That’s something I’ve been asking myself for a while. Maybe it was just fate.”

Fate. The development of events out of a person's control, regarded as determined by a supernatural power. Skylar always believed in fate, even if she wasn’t religious. Some things happen out of her control and she’ll never understand why, but if fate was the reason she’s here now, then that’s enough for her.

“Fate, it damn well could’ve been.” She looked up at him, a smile spreading across her face. “Out of all the people I could’ve ended up with, I’m glad it was you.”

Alex mirrored her smile and leaned down to give her a more passionate kiss this time. A few seconds later he pulled away and sighed. “Out of all the people I could’ve ended up with, I'm glad it was you too.”

“Are you sure about that?

“Da, why wouldn’t I be?”

All she did was shrug her shoulders and look over at him. “I just come with a lot of baggage, that’s all.”

“Da, you do. But that doesn’t change the fact that I love you! We all have some baggage.”

“Some more than others.” She slowly exhaled a breath and looked away, over at the picture of them on the nightstand nearby. “I hate it, I wish I could go back to how I was before I joined the Marines. I know I can’t and I have to live with it.”

Alex moved his hand to cup her cheek, gently moving her head so she was looking at him. That’s when she saw his blue eyes had dulled and his jaw was clenched, she wasn’t if it was out of anger or something else.

“Skylar everyone here who loves you met you after everything had happened. We love you for who you are now, not who you were.” He grazed his thumb on her jaw line, feeling the indentation of her scar. “Who you are now is remarkable!”

“You really believe that?”

“Believe that? I know that!” He let his hand fall down from her cheek and grab her hand in his. “I don’t love easy, it was easy to keep people away from my line of work, but with you it's as easy as breathing! We both took a leap, and I say it worked out.”

Her face softened and a small smile started to spread across her face. “Yeah, I say it has.” She leaned over and gave him a chaste kiss. “Thank you moya sladost!”

“You’re welcome kotyonok!” He moved a few strands of hair out of her face and softly sighed. “What do you want to do today?”

“Hmm, that’s a good question.” Skylar moved to sit against the headboard and think about what she wanted to do. There really wasn’t much she wanted to do but lie in bed all day since she still wasn’t feeling too well. And any lack of physical activity was good with her. “How about we stay in bed all day? Maybe go for a little walk later?”

Alex let out one of his famous booming laughs, knowing exactly she was going to say that. “If that’s what you want to do, kotyonok?”

Without a word she got under the covers and sighed in content. “Yes it is.”

He let out one of his booming laughs again and kissed her forehead. The cheeky smile on her face was the icing on the cake, she really did want to spend the day in bed.

Skylar spent the rest of the morning and afternoon in bed and it made her very happy. Alex stayed in bed for a few hours with her until his leg started to cramp and he had to walk around for a bit. All they did was talk and start looking for a place to live, so far nothing really good popped up. That was to be expected since it was still winter, they would need to wait at least until spring or close to it.

“I’m hungry, I could go for some pizza.”

Alex turned from his seat at the desk to look at her. Her hair was disheveled from lying on her side for the past few hours, to him it made her look very attractive. She would disagree.

“You want pizza?”

“Yes, I haven’t had it in a while and I’m kind of craving it. Too bad we couldn’t get it delivered, but we can pick it up at the place.” She grabbed her phone from beside her, quickly unlocking it and looked back over at him. “Do you want pizza?”

“I’m not that hungry, if you want it though, get it.”

“I will.” She could hear Alex chuckle as she began to order her pizza. A basic cheese one, with cheese stuffed crust, her favorite. “That would be kind of funny, being able to get it delivered and the poor delivery guy going through a shit ton of security.”

“You would probably have to meet him at the gate.”

“Yeah you’re probably right.” She chuckled. “It’ll be reading in forty-five minutes.”

She leaned forward to grab her brush to fix her hair, this time putting it in a bun.

As she brushed her hair Alex watched her with contentment, there were times where he would forget they were on base and not in a place of their own. Just being with her made him forget things, all that was on his mind was her. He was thankful he could still do his work and not act like an idiot in love. Though he’s sure he wouldn’t hear the end of it from the rest of the team if he did act like that.

Skylar set her brush back down and looked over at him, seeing he was staring at her. A small smile began to spread across her face and she laughed. “See anything you like moya sladost'?”

“You know I do!” He winked and it made her laugh, and shake her head. A second later he got up from his chair to sit down on the bed next to her.

“That’s good because I like what I see too!”

Alex let out a content sigh and relaxed his posture. “Oh that’s good to hear. I was afraid I’d be in a competition with Timur.”

“I don’t like Timur like that.”

“I know, I just like teasing you about it.”

Skylar glared over at him, lips going into a thin line. “Just because of that you’re using your hand tonight.”

She watched his face falter, which put a smile on hers. It was fun teasing him and she loved his reaction each time.

“I…..”

She laughed and leaned over to give him a chaste kiss. “I love your reaction when I tease you.”

All he did was shake his head and glare over at her. “Let’s go get your pizza.”

Thirty minutes later they were back at base and in their room where Skylar was chowing down on her pizza. And in the middle of those thirty minutes Alex changed his mind and decided to have some pizza as well.

“This is so good.”

He looked over at her to see the happiness spread across her face. Who knew having some pizza would make Skylar this happy? It was also cute, like a kid in a candy store. He didn’t say anything but laugh and continue to watch her eat in happiness.

It was also good to indulge in junk food or not exceptionally healthy food every now and then. No one likes to eat healthy all the time, at least not Skylar.

“I need Specialists Glazkov, Basuda, Porter, Cote, Lin, Senaviev, Jackson, and Trace to my office.”

The happiness on her face quickly turned into annoyance and she set her food down on her plate. “This better be good.”

They both got off the bed to put their shoes one before heading to Six’s office.

As everyone started to funnel their way into Six’s office and take a seat, they all looked around at each other, trying to figure out what was going on.

“Does anyone know what’s going on?”

“That’s why we’re here, Jordan.”

Thermite glared over at Skylar and shook his head. “Thank you captain obvious.”

“I’m a sergeant...dingus.”

His mouth gaped like a dying fish and he turned away from her to talk with Smoke. It made Alex chuckle.

She scoffed and glanced over at Ying, giving her a small nod. Even though her and Ying don’t really get along they could put their differences away and work as a team.

The room went back to being quiet as they waited for Six to come into the room, all wondering what this could be about, then it clicked into Skylar's mind. Ash. Could this have to do with this outbreak in New Mexico? Now it made her even more curious and anxious to find out.

“Maybe it’s for a mission?” Skylar inquired. “It makes sense.”

Kapkan turned to her, nodding his head in approval. “That seems like the most plausible choice.”

After a few minutes Six finally entered the room, going directly to the front. She looked around the room, glancing at every operator in the room before she began to speak. “Yesterday I sent Specialists Cohen and Streicher to New Mexico to get intel on the sudden outbreak that struck the town of Truth and Consequence. I just heard from her a few hours ago, she’s asked specifically for Jordan and SKylar.”

Skylar and Thermite glanced over at each other with curious eyes. This was going to be interesting.

“You guys leave tonight, along with Specialist Senaviev. You’re our leading Spetsnaz operator and the most experienced, I’m sure you’ll be able to help Ash with what she needs. As for everyone else, I’ll debrief you now with what I know and you all leave in the morning.”

She looked around as everyone nodded their heads in acknowledgement. “Specialist Senaviev, Trace and Jackson you’re dismissed. Pack what you need, you guys leave in an hour.”

They all got out of their chairs and went out into the hallway, knowing all eyes were on them. Now something felt off, Six was in a hurry to get them to New Mexico, maybe this outbreak was bigger than she anticipated.

Skylar and Alex made it back to their room to get dressed in their fatigues and grab their things. She went straight for her M4 assault rifle that was under the bed and placed it on the desk. She wasn’t sure if she wanted to bring her M4 or sniper rifle, maybe both to be safe.

“Hey, moya sladost'? Should I bring both my M4 and sniper rifle with me?”

She looked over at him to see him tying up his gorka pants, it always made her wonder how they stayed up so well. All that held them up were two strings, he, along with Kapkan, Glaz and Fuze must have to tie them really tight.

“Da, just to be safe.”

She nodded her head and went to go grab her uniform from the closet, setting it down on the bed. “I kinda hate that we’re not getting debriefed until we get to New Mexico. Who knows what’s going to happen once we get there.”

“I know, but it looks like Ash wanted us fast.”

“Yeah.”

He looked over to see her staring down at her hands, he stood up and walked over to her, gently moving her head to look at him. “Don’t worry yourself now, kotyonok. We don’t know what’s happening in New Mexico, it could be nothing. And if it is something, I’ll be there to protect you!”

Her face softened and a small smile began to spread across her face, yet there was still some worry in her eyes. “Thank you moya sladost!”

Alex leaned down and kissed her forehead, lips lingering for a moment. “You’re welcome, kotyonok!”

She leaned up and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek before she walked away to get dressed. As she quickly got dressed she grabbed her boots from the floor, her mind reeling with so many thoughts. What’s going on in New Mexico that Ash wanted her there so quickly? Is this outbreak something they can contain? Will there be casualties? She tried her best not to get too worked up just yet, they’re not even there yet, but she was happy Alex was going to be there with her.

“I know I can protect myself, it’s one of the many things you learn being in the military.” She looked over at him, a small smile on her face. “I’m happy you’ll be there, to protect me if I can’t. It’s a nice feeling!”

Alex finished putting on the rest of his uniform and walked over to her side of the bed and sat down in front of her. “Always!”

“I love you!”

“I love you too!”

Skylar finished tying up her boots and sighed. “I guess we should get to our lockers and grab our guns before we leave.”

He leaned over to look at the clock, they still had some time to kill. “We have a good twenty minutes before we need to go to our lockers.”

“That works too.” She stretched her arms above her head and groaned. “I should message my mom telling her I’ll be on a mission and I’ll call her or dad when I can.”

She grabbed her phone to do just that. It was something she always did before a mission, to make sure her family didn’t worry about her if they haven’t heard from her in the next few days. And she always made sure to call her mom or dad and update them on anything she could when she got the time. Even if it was just a quick text message.

As the minutes ticked by the more anxious she felt, something deep inside her was saying something was wrong, then again it could be just pre mission nerves. She didn’t get fully briefed after all, she, along with Alex and Thermite, are going in blind until they meet up with Ash. Everything could actually be fine.

Alex stood up and looked over at her. “Time to go kotyonok.”

She sighed and stood up, grabbing her phone and M4 from the desk. “Let’s get this over with.”

Chapter Text

They ended up stopping on a Navy amphibious assault ship to refuel a few hours after they left base, the one stop of three before they reached Truth or Consequence. The last time Skylar was on one was when she did a mission back in her Marine days. Now her and Alex were sitting in the mess hall having some coffee to pass the time.

Skylar looked away to glance around the room, barely anyone was in there, mostly the ones who had a late shift and wanted to eat before getting some sleep. After a moment she turned back to Alex and chuckled.

“It’s been years since I stepped foot on one of these things.”

“You’ve been on one of these before?”

She nodded her head as she took a sip of her coffee, then set it back down. “Yup, back when I was a Marine. I’m sure you figured that out.”

“Da. Was it for a mission or just passing through? Like we are now.”

“It was for a mission, a mission I don’t remember.” She took another sip of coffee, glancing at the two men next to her. “Guess it wasn’t that good.”

He took a sip of his coffee and leaned back in his seat, crossing his arms. She knew how he felt, it was how she felt as well. Let’s just get to New Mexico and get this over with, not be stuck on two different layovers.

“I’ve had missions like that as well. It comes with the job, I guess boring and uneventful is better than highly eventful and injured.”

“No argument there. What was your most eventful mission moya sladost?”

Alex leaned forward, tapping his fingers on his cup as he thought back on the last few decades of his life. He’s been through a few wars and a ton of missions, a lot has happened in his life. Most eventful was tricky to come up with, the majority of his missions were eventful.

“The siege of Grozny during the second Chechen war. It lasted a little over a month, I was thirty-two at the time, a veteran when it comes to war. The civilian casualties were a bit high for my liking.”

“How many died?”

“Between five thousand and eight thousand if I recall.”

Her eyes went wide briefly, she knew all about losing innocent civilians and it sucked. They didn’t ask for this, they’re just caught in the middle. “Jesus. I still remember losing those civilians we were escorting. You think the drive will be fine and all of a sudden an RPG blows up the truck. Then you end up being the sole survivor.” She looked down at her cup and sighed. “I got used to taking people's lives, as bad as that sounds, but civilians are a different story.”

Alex leaned forward, grabbing her hand in his. “Try not to think about it, no matter how hard we try, they’ll always be casualties in war.”

“I know, I know.” She met his gaze and a small smile spread across her face. “So, what is a siege like? I’ve never been a part of one.”

“It all depends on the side you’re on. During the Grozny siege the Russian forces were attacking the Chechen capital, we had them blockaded in using an intense tank and artillery barrage. From December twenty-fifth nineteen ninety nine to February sixth two thousand we were supposed to hold back any tanks and armored personnel carriers and subject the entrenched Chechens to an intense heavy artillery barrage and aerial bombardment before engaging them with relatively small groups of infantry, many with prior training in urban warfare.”

“Were you using any of the heavy artillery?”

Alex watched her face light up, so entranced in the conversation. “Da, I did.”

She sat up a bit straighter, face lighting up again. “I’ve always wanted to fire one of the heavy artillery, not caring about kickback or recoil of it. I just want to feel powerful.”

A small smile spread across his face, he would love to see her use some heavy artillery, but she was already powerful, she doesn’t need a big weapon to show that. “Kotyonok, you already are!”

“I highly doubt that.” She looked back down at her coffee, then back up at him, eyes now more soft. “But, thank you!”

“You may not believe me, but it’s true kotyonok! You are powerful, you just don’t feel it right now.”

“I did feel powerful using you Degtyaryov.” She laughed. “Maybe I should steal it more often.”

He scoffed, rolling his eyes as he leaned forward. “Kotyonok, you could barely hold it.”

Skylar crossed her arms and looked away, she knew he was right; she could barely hold it. “You won’t be saying that when I work on my upper body strength.”

He couldn’t help but let out one his booming laugh, startling the poor men across the room. That made her giggle. No one was immune to the lord's booming laugh, well maybe she is, she is the one who hears it quite often. It has somewhat become a comforting sound to her.

“I’ll believe it when I see it.”

She scoffed and stood up, grabbing her coffee. “Yeah, yeah. I’m gonna head to the stern, get some fresh air and look at the view.”

“Okay, I’ll join you in a few minutes.”

The ocean air was cold, not shocking for this time of year. But the view from where she stood was beautiful, the stars were shining along with the full moon. You don’t get this kind of view from a city, too many lights casting under them. It reminded her of the view she got in Afghanistan when away from the brightness of the base.

She leaned against the railing, watching the waves hit against the ship as they moved along. With a blind hand she grabbed the dog tags Alex got her and fiddled with it as she let her mind wonder, like it always does.

“You alright kotyonok?”

“Honestly moya sladost, I don’t know.” She looked over at him, letting the tag go. “I can’t explain how I feel.”

He walked behind her, wrapping his arms around her chest and kissed the top of her head. It made her softly smile, knowing he already knew she needed emotional comfort than to talk. Sometimes just being in each other’s arms was enough. But she did hate how she felt, whatever that feeling was. Numbness? Fear? She doesn’t know, and maybe never will.

“That’s okay kotyonok. I’m here for you either way!”

“I know, and thank you moya sladost!”

They went quiet after that, just listening to the waves crashing against the ship and the small sighs that came from one another. It was peaceful, the calm before the storm. Skylar just hopes this storm isn’t going to be a hurricane.

A few moments later Skylar broke the silence and turned around to face him. “You know what I want to do when we can get some time off? Cage diving.”

“Cage diving?”

“Yup, with great whites.”

His eyes went wide for a moment as he contemplated the words ‘cage diving’ and ‘great whites’. It was one thing to swim in the ocean, it was a completely different story to be submerged in the ocean in a cage with sharks swimming around you. Then again, it is a once in a lifetime chance to be that close to the ocean's greatest predator.

“Why not, we only live once anyways.”

“.....Exactly.” She laughed. “I’ve always wanted to cage dive, but no one wants to go with me.”

“I wonder why?”

“I don’t know, might be due to the fact that sharks will be swimming around us.” She shrugged her shoulders. “Not that it matters, we’ll be in a cage. It’s not like they’re gonna bite us.”

Alex let out a small laugh, it was cute to see her so annoyed about people not wanting to cage diving with her. Then again, it might not be his thing to swim with sharks but if it makes her happy, he’ll gladly obliged.

“Not even Chloe? She seems like the type to do adventurous things like that.”

“No, she’s afraid of the ocean.” She shrugged her shoulders again and sighed. “Oh well, now I have you to do things with. So it works out!”

“Da, you do!” He wrapped his arms around her waist, kissing her forehead. “However some things I might be too old for.”

Skylar scoffed and wrapped her arms around his neck, gazing into his blue eyes. “Old or scared?”

“Old. I’m not as spry as I used to be kotyonok.”

“Hmm I don’t know, you seem pretty spry to me.”

Alex was about to retort until they were interrupted by Thermite saying the chopper was ready to take off. Skylar sighed and dropped her hands from his neck, grabbing his hand in hers and pulled him to the chopper. Now onto the next stop, hopefully one with a little more privacy.

The next to last stop before New Mexico was Fort Jackson in South Carolina. It was going to be a few hours wait until the chopper was once again fueled up, Skylar knew they wouldn’t get to New Mexico before dark. Not that it mattered anyways, they’ll get there, get briefed by Ash and maybe get some sleep before they get to work on the problem.

Until then, all three of them were seated at a table in the mess hall eating breakfast. While Alex and Thermite were talking about something that didn’t hold her attention she looked around the room, seeing more and more people flood into the mess hall for their breakfast. She was about to turn her attention back to them when a familiar face caught her attention instead.

“Keegan?”

The tall man wearing Marine workout gear looked over when his name was mentioned, then a smile spread across his face. “Skylar? I wasn’t expecting to see you here.”

Skylar got up from her seat and went to greet him. “I wasn’t expecting to be here. Had to stop to refuel before heading to New Mexico. What about you?”

“New Mexico? My new squad is using the base as are primary one, my commander is in the Army. I’m a part of a Task Force now.”

“Really? Congratulations!”

“Thanks Skylar! What about you? What have you’ve been up to since you left the Marines?”

She sighed and rubbed the back of her neck. “A lot. I ended up joining the FBI after I healed up and now, now I’m a part of the counter-terrorism group Rainbow.” She looked over at her table, seeing that both Thermite and Alex were looking at them. “Those two nosy men over there are my teammates and we’re on a mission, apparently. Won’t be debriefed until we get to Truth or Consequence.”

“Why does the blonde one look like he’s ready to fight me?”

“Oh that’s Alex.” She chuckled. “He’s my boyfriend, pretty protective. The other one is Jordan, he’s another Marine. Why don’t you grab your food and I can introduce you guys?”

“Yeah sure, I’ll meet you over there.”

“Okay.” She walked back over to her table, rolling her eyes at the two older men. “He’s a friend.”

“Were you stationed together?”

Skylar looked over at Thermite and nodded her head. “Yup, after I finished my basic training I was sent to Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center Twentynine Palms Base in California. I met him there, he actually taught me a lot. Almost everything I’ve learned in sniping was from him.”

“That is true.” said Keegan as he took a seat next to Thermite. “But I’m not taking all the credit, Skylar was the first woman to become a scout sniper in the Marines. I just taught her some other useful things.”

She looked over at Thermite who seemed,,,,,,lost, confusion etched on his face or he was contemplating what Keegan said, either or. “Oh yeah you would be the only female sniper in the Marines. I just released that.”

“Wow.” She shook her head in his direction, then glanced over at Keegan. “Anyways, dumb dumb over there is Jordan and the handsome man next to me is Alex. Alex, Jordan this is Keegan.”

“Hey man.”

“Hey.”

Alex gave Keegan a nod and looked back over to Skylar. “You never told me you were the only woman sniper in the Marines.”

“It never crossed my mind, honestly.”

He let out a small laugh, shaking his head as a smile spread across his face. “Well you haven’t been in the Marines for a while, so I understand.”

“That’s true.” She laughed. “That was some grueling training to even become one. I’m proud of it though.”

Keegan let out a groan, face grimacing. “I still remember my training and it’s been almost a decade. Being an actual scout sniper is a lot easier than the training was.”

“Ain’t that the truth.” She laughed. “I don’t get to do as much sniping as I would like. But I brought it with me just in case.”

“You’ll never know when you need to play defensively.”

She nodded her head, taking a bite of her food, and gently nudged Alex with her elbow. He’s been staring all lovingly at her through the whole conversation she’s had with Keegan. Either he was happy she found a friend from her past that didn’t bring pain or that he was happy about how much she was happy about seeing said friend. Maybe both.

“What was that for kotyonok?”

She looked over at him, a smile on her face. “I think you know moya sladost!”

Thermite got up from his seat, grabbing his tray of food and water. “I’m gonna leave before you two get too lovey dovey.” He looked over at Keegan before turning to leave. “It was nice to meet you keegan.”

“You too Jordan.”

Skylar laughed as he left the room, kind of wishing she said something before he did. Oh well, probably won’t be the first time he’ll catch them being all lovey dovey. Still she found it funny how fast he got up from them just staring at each other.

“When do you have to go back to work?”

Keegan looked up at the clock, then back to her. “Twenty minutes.”

She nodded her head and took another bite of food. “So what have you been up too?”

“Not much, I was stationed over in Germany for three years until I joined my new squad. It was nice, a nice change of scenery and I liked the country.”

“Lucky.” She chuckled. “I never got the chance to be stationed in another country, well until now that is.”

“If you stayed, you probably would have at some point.”

She looked over at Alex, softly sighing. He reached his hand out to grab hers and give it a small squeeze. There was a lot of what ifs in her life and this was just one of them.

“I needed to leave, it was the only option. I couldn’t stay.”

“No, I get that, especially what you went through.” He gave her a small smile that she returned. “So how long have you two been together?”

“A little over a month now.” said Alex

“Oh, wow. Quite recent then.”

“Yup.” Skylar looked over at Alex, giving him a cheeky smile. “I joined Rainbow back in July. But it wasn’t until the holiday party where things became official.”

Alex looked over at Keegan, holding up his hand to motion he was going to speak. “Actually, it became official two days later. Someone decided to avoid me.”

She shook her head and laughed. Even though she feels embarrassed over the situation now, it was still a funny story to tell.

Keegan looked over at her with a raised brow. “Why?”

“It’s a little personal, but we ended up in bed and I was a tad drunk. Woke up in the middle of the night and kind of panicked. Then I left and tried to avoid him for a few days.”

All he did was look at her with a straight face, no signs of emotions. “You know? I’m not surprised.”

She couldn’t say anything to that, she just crossed her arms and leaned back in her chair. She glanced over to see Alex looking at her, then he moved his attention to Keegan.

“What do you mean?”

Keegan looked up at the clock and sighed. “Unfortunately I have to go, but I’m sure Sky can tell you.” He stood up and grabbed his tray. “It was nice seeing you again Skylar, and it was nice to meet you Alex.”

“It was nice to meet you too.”

“You too!” As she watched him walk away she felt Alex’s eyes on her. “I don’t mind one night stands, I don’t. It’s just something deep inside me that has this,,,,fear. And that fear ended up being Henry.”

She finally looked over at him, sadness showing in her eyes. His face softened and he leaned over to give her a kiss on the forehead.

“You were afraid of sleeping with someone, thinking they were good people only to find out they were a monster.”

“More or less.” She quickly glanced down at her tray of half eaten food. “I’m done.”

“You sure?”

“Yeah.”

“Okay, well I’m not.”

She laughed and gently nudged at his arm with her elbow. “That’s fine, I can wait.”

While he went back to eating she went on her phone to see if anything new was going on. Her sisters’ social media pages were pretty bland, nothing exciting going on with her family. Her friends were the same, besides one who just got engaged to her high school sweetheart.

“Awe!”

Alex looked up from his tray and over to her, looking a bit confused. “Huh?”

Skylar looked up from her phone and softly chuckled at the slight confusion on his face. “My friend just got engaged to her boyfriend.”

“Oh. The way you said ‘awe’ I thought you were looking at a picture of a cat or something.”

“You’ll know when I see a cute picture of a kitty or a puppy, because I’ll squeal.”

“I can see that.” He laughed. “You squealed when we passed a dog when we went out that one time.”

“I did, didn’t I?” She laughed. “What can I say, I love animals. More so than people.”

“Can’t blame you for that, kotyonok! People haven’t been that kind to you.”

She went quiet, and looked back down at her phone. The thing about this world is not everyone is going to be nice, some people will be downright cruel for whatever reason. And even though she’s been at the other end of the spectrum, being a victim of someone who’s cruel, it only made her kinder and more aware. Trusting people easily can be a downfall, you’ll never fully know someone's intentions until it’s too late.

“No they haven’t.” She looked up and sighed. “The one thing I’ve learned is that trusting people you just met can be your downfall.”

“Da, it can be.” He pushed his tray away and turned to look at her, hand resting on her knee. “Always be wary of people kotyonok, they’ll disappoint you one way or another.”

“Ain’t that the unfortunate truth.” She relaxed her shoulders and sulked back into her chair. “We still have two hours to kill before we leave for New Mexico. I’m bored.”

“Mmm, too bad we weren’t still on base. We could be in our room right now.”

“Yes we would.”

“Well maybe we can find something to do until we leave.”

“Hopefully.”

They both got up from the table and headed out to see if they could find something to pass the time before they leave for New Mexico.

Skylar kicked at a rock as they walked around the base, well the spots where they were allowed too. There wasn’t much they could do to pass the time and it made Skylar realize how different being on a base as a guest was compared to actually living on one. Living on one you have a job to do, you train and you’re always doing something and if not you have a room to go back too. Being a guest on one, you can’t do shit.

“So моя милая, if you could have any animal in the world as a pet, what would it be?”

“That’s a good question, kotyonok.” He stopped walking, as did she and turned to her. “I think I would like a bear for a pet or a Siberian tiger.”

“Good choices. I would like an owl for a pet or a jaguar. Even a komodo dragon would be a cool one as well.”

“A komodo?”

“Why not?” She laughed. “They’re pretty cool looking. They can bite people’s calves.”

“So you want a komodo dragon to bite people in the calves?” He laughed. “Okay, I got it.”

Skylar laughed and shook her head. “Not exactly. That would be a hell of a bite since they’re venomous.”

“Kotyonok, sometimes you worry me.” he chuckled. “I can sense a lot of darkness in you that you try to hide.”

She sighed and found a place nearby to sit down, followed by Alex. “That’s because I do. And in a way I hate it.” The sound of birds chirping as they flew bye made her look up. “The amount of times I wanted to murder Henry for what he did or was doing to me is more than I can count. I could never go through with it and I hate myself for it.”

All Alex did was wrap his arm around her shoulders and pull her closer to him. No one will ever fully know what it was like for her during her time as a Marine, losing her whole squad and having to deal with all that abuse from Henry. It wasn’t a shock to him that she would have some sort of darkness inside of her. The want for revenge, but the good in her is always shown through.

“Kotyonok, he was abusing you and by the sounds of it he would’ve gotten the upper hand if you tried.” He placed his index finger below her chin and turned her head towards him. “That voice in your head saved you.”

“Yeah, I know.” She gave him a small smile and he removed his hand from her chin. “I still wished I killed him though.”

Alex let out a laugh and kissed her forehead. “I know kotyonok, I know.”

“I would say only in my dreams, but when he enters them they’re nightmares.” She sighed through her nose and relaxed her body. “Maybe in another life.”

“Maybe in the next one, or this one. You’ll never know until it happens, kotyonok.”

Skylar couldn’t help but laugh. “I love how you’re just completely okay with me murdering someone. Matter of fact, you’re encouraging it.”

“I’m only encouraging you to murder one person, kotyonok. If you can’t or don’t want to, I’ll do it.”

“As much as I would love you too, I’d rather you not. I don’t want you to be in prison for the rest of your life.”

Alex sighed and moved a strand of hair behind her ear. “I make no promises if I see him put his hands on you again.”

“I can deal with that.” She sighed and looked over at a squad doing their training. “It seems just like yesterday I was doing exactly what they were doing.”

“It hasn’t been that long since you’ve left the Marines, it’s been what, four years?”

“Yeah. I mean it hasn’t been that long, but sometimes it feels like it.” She shrugs her shoulders. “I’m sure it feels the same for you.”

“Da, it does.” He sighed and leaned back against the bench. “The years may go by fast, but some things still feel like they just happened. They never quite leave the mind.”

Skylar looked off in the distance and nodded her head. That was a hard living truth, somethings don’t leave the mind, no matter how long ago it was. For her, it’s been over four years since she got away from Henry, but she can still remember every single thing he did to her. And the memories she wants to remember seem to slowly vanish as the days go by.

“I wonder why the events we don’t want to stay with us do and the ones we do want to stay with us don't.” She turned her attention back to him and softly sighed. “It doesn’t make sense.”

“Neither does life kotyonok.” He leaned closer to her, resting his hand on her arm. “It’s one of those things that we’ll never know about, at least not in our lifetime.”

“Well that’s dumb.” She chuckles. “I just hate how I’ll always have those memories of Henry in my head, but the memories of Molly are vanishing as the days go by.”

“That’s one of the many unfortunate things about PTSD, reliving those traumatic events.”

She brought her knees up to her chest and hugged them, feeling a bit uncomfortable with her gear on. “You sound like you’ve dealt with this before?”

“Kotyonok, I’ve been in three wars, do you really think I’ve come away unscathed?”

“No, you just never mentioned it. And I wasn’t about to ask.”

Alex nodded and gave her a small smile. He knew she had a valid point, talking about trauma isn’t a good conversation starter, but since she’s been open with him it’s only fair if he is with her.

“Some other time kotyonok.”

Skylar nodded her head and said “Okay.”

The drive to the makeshift base outside of Truth or Consequence from Kirktland Air Force Base was almost two and a half hours long, by the time they get there it’ll be dark. And from what they’ve heard from Ash the Army was already there, making it a more of a military operation than counter-terrorism. But somehow Six talked them into letting Rainbow help with the situation. In a way Skylar wished they said no.

“So how bad do you think it is?” asked Thermite

“We’ll if the Army national guard is already there, then I say it’s probably bad.”

Thermite nodded his head, he knew just as well as Skylar did that the CDC, FEMA and the Red Cross were the first to get called during an outbreak. If the national guard is there, it’s a lot worse, they’re only called for looting or any crime that could happen.

“If the national guard is there then I’m sure we’re in for a fight.”

She groaned and leaned back in her seat. “I was hoping we wouldn’t have to.”

“We still might not kotyonok. We can be going there for many other reasons.”

Skylar looked over at him, seeing his eyes crinkle at the side from the only opening on his camouflage balaclava. She knew why he wore it, it made his helmet more comfortable, but to her, she wishes he didn’t wear it.

“I know, it just makes me a little nervous knowing the national guard is there and we don’t know why.”

“Ehh it’s probably some people getting riled up over what’s going on. Nothing we can’t handle.”

She gave him a small smile and began to relax her shoulders a bit, hoping what he said was true. Just people getting riled up over what was going on, that wasn’t shocking an outbreak is a scary thing and people do crazy stuff when scared. They’ll find out more once they get there.

“Goddamn hoss, where’d you dig that relic up?”

“From under a lot of dead bodies. They all looked surprised.”

“Same joke every goddamn time.”

Alex let out a laugh as they entered the tent Ash was in. She was in the middle of talking with Doc about what was going on, Skylar kept her eyes on the screen as she walked towards a nearby chair. Her eyes enamored on the arm Doc was examining, completely ignoring what he was saying. However ‘it makes monsters’ did catch her ears.

“Tell me this thing is contained?” asked Thermite

Skylar stayed silent, eyes drifting between him and Ash.

“For now, but it’s adapting faster than we can track. We upped the ordinance, it created this thing.”

That caught her attention and she got up from her seat, Alex following behind her. Still she had no words, what she was seeing wasn’t possible, was it? How can some virus turn people into those,,,,,monsters?

“What happens if it gets loose?”

“Mexico’s south of us.” She put a map of New Mexico on the screen, all of them looking at it. “It breaks quarantine and crosses the border, the worlds in for one long bad night.”

“What about nuking the town?” Alex let out a ‘heh’, making Thermite turn towards him. “What? Wouldn’t be the first time we used a nuke in New Mexico.”

“It’s on the table but we’re here to make sure it stays a last resort. Operatives are already on the field.”

Ash slid over two files, the first one belonged to Lion and that made her a bit more relaxed and happy. Then Thermite moved Lion’s file out of the way to show the other one and Skylar’s mood tanked even more.

“Are you kidding me? I have to deal with monsters and Finka?”

Thermite laughed. “Oh c’mon Skylar you know she’s your best friend.”

“I think the fuck not Jordan.”

Ash rolled her eyes and shook her head. “We need all the help we can get. This is where we turn the tide. Or drown.”

She sighed and leaned against the table and crossed her arms. Alex placed his hand on her shoulder, making her turn her head towards him with a small smile. As much as she hated all of this, at least he was with her.

“You two can leave, I’ll brief more after you get some rest. Jordan I need to speak with you some more.”

Skylar and Alex nodded their head and grabbed their stuff before exiting the tent.

They got to their tent after a few minutes, she placed her weapon cases near one of the cots and sat down with a loud sigh and ran her fingers through her hair. This wasn’t how she wanted to start the new year, she was hoping work would slow down a bit and it would be just her and Alex living their lives. But no, the universe had to put a big dent in their plans and throw a monster making virus at them.

Alex set his Degtyaryov down and walked over to sit down next to her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders. “I know you’re scared, kotyonok, and I am too. But I’ll protect you, I promise!”

“It’s hard to picture you being scared.” She chuckled. “I’m just glad you’re here!”

“Not a lot of things make me scared.” He gave her a small smile and kissed her forehead. “I am too!”

“What does make you scared?”

“Losing you.”

Skylar’s face softened and she leaned her head over to rest it on his shoulder. “Well I’m not going anywhere.”

“Neither am I, kotyonok. Neither am I.”

She lifted her head off his shoulder and softly sighed. Things definitely weren’t how she expected them to be and she wasn’t sure how this outbreak was going to pan out. Monsters? Something you only see in horror movies, not real life, maybe Thermite is right, they just get the remaining civilians out and nuke the town.

“Do you think Jordan is right, about nuking the town?”

He went quiet for a moment, then sighed. “Nuking the town would make things easier, but it would also take away any chance of a vaccine if this was to happen again.”

“I guess it’s a good thing it’s a virus and not aliens.” She laughed. “I feel sorry for the people that changed into those things. If we can figure out a vaccine, those people are already gone.”

“Don’t dwell on that, there was nothing you could’ve done anyways.”

“I know, it just sucks.”

Alex gave her a small smile and kissed her temple, wrapping an arm around her waist and pulled her closer to him. He knew, deep down she wasn’t ready for this, hell neither was he. But he wasn’t in his mid twenties like she was, she has a whole life ahead of her, a life he hopes to be a part of. Neither of them were taught how to fight monsters, but if it bleeds then you can kill it. And that’s what he plans to do.

“Why don’t you get some sleep?”

“After what I just saw moya sladost'? I’m gonna be up for hours.”

“Okay, dumb question.” He laughed. “At least get some sleep tonight kotyonok.”

“I will, I promise, just after my mind stops reeling.”

“Good. I need you to be fully aware out there kotyonok, I’m not losing you to those things.”

Skylar blinked her eyes a few times, contemplating his words. It wasn’t a surprise he would be worried about her wellbeing out in the field, but this time it was different, she could hear the fear in his voice.

“I’m a sniper, being aware is one of my specialties. I’ll be fine моя милая, besides I’m sure you’ll be with me.”

“I better be and if I’m not I hope Maxim or Timur are.”

“If Ash is calling the shots then I’m sure she’ll always have you by my side. No one wants to deal with an angry Tachanka.”

Alex slowly nodded his head, knowing she was right. “Da, that’s true.”

“I love you!”

“I love you too, kotyonok!”

Skylar sighed and leaned her head back on his shoulder. Fighting monsters might not have been in her plans, but as long as she has Alex by her side, she’ll be fine. Or so she hopes.

Chapter Text

The Afghanistan heat beamed down on Skylar as she loaded up supplies onto one of the trucks, she would rather do anything else other than stand in the blazing heat in full gear loading up supplies. And there was a lot to load up. 

She sighed and grabbed the next box, groaning at how heavy it was. From the boxes it looked like ammo along with other things like food and some weapons, most likely going to a nearby base. 

“Here, let me help you with ma’am.” 

Skylar looked up to see a very tall and quite handsome man, his black hair was neatly cut like all military personnel and his blue eyes shined under the sunlight. “Oh you didn’t have to do that sir, I appreciate it though.” 

“I saw you needed help and where would my manners be if I didn’t? Names Henry by the way.” 

“Skylar and pretty shitty if you don’t mind me saying.” She glanced down at his name tag on his uniform, raising an eyebrow. “Thompson? Are you related to the Colonel?” 

Henry grabbed another crate and placed it on the truck. “Matter of fact he’s my dad.” 

“Oh.” She grabbed a crate and placed it into the truck, wiping some sweat from her brows. “Yeah I can see the resemblance.” 

“So when’s your shift over?”

“As soon as I’m done with this, why?” 

“Dinner?” 

She placed another crate in the truck and turned back to him. “I think I would like that!” 

Skylar awoke with a gasp, throwing the blanket off of her and swung her legs to the side. She glanced behind her seeing Alex was asleep and didn’t seem to have woken a bit from her moving. A soft sigh left her lips as she scrubbed a hand down her face, sleep wasn’t going to come for a while, so she grabbed her pants, boots and jacket and went outside for some fresh air. 

The cool wind sent a shiver down her spine as she put her jacket on, she began walking to the farthest side of the makeshift base to get her privacy and to collect her thoughts. 

“I think I would like that? What the hell were you thinking Skylar?”

She couldn’t give herself an answer, he was a completely different person when she met him, still she should’ve seen the red flags before things got a lot worse. Deep down she knows that’s not on her, she was a victim, it’s hard to get away from someone who was a pro at manipulating. 

She sighed as she leaned against the barricade looking out onto the nearby town a few miles away, thinking she would rather be anywhere else rather than where she was right now. Her feeling reminded her of how she felt back when she first joined the Marines, scared and intimidated. Only this time, she could call her mom. 

Skylar grabbed her phone that was still inside her jacket pocket and called her mom, even if it was the middle of the night. 

The phone rang about five times before someone answered. “Skylar? I thought you were out on a mission?” 

“Oh hi dad, I was expecting mom to answer. Yeah I am, we were told to get some sleep and I just couldn’t sleep. Not with what I saw.” 

She turned around and leaned against the wall barricade, looking back at the base and all the people still bringing in supplies. Wondering when the others would get there. 

“I’m sure you can’t say, can you?” 

“I don’t even know if I can explain it, or if you would even believe me.”

“I always believe you, if you don’t want to talk about it that’s fine as well. Is Alex with you?” 

“Yes, thank god.” She laughs. “He’s asleep right now, and I’m sure you’ll see what’s happening on the news, there’s no way we’re going to be able to keep this a secret.” 

She slid down to the ground and pulled her knees up to her chest, most things they could keep hidden for a bit, until Six thought it was time to announce it to the public. This? This outbreak, no way, it’s already gotten out of their control and it’s only a matter of time before news choppers are above the quarantine zone. Hopefully Ash has a plan for that. 

“That’s good, I’m happy he’s with you! Please stay safe Sky.” 

“I am too, I don’t know if I could do this without Alex.” She sighed and a few tears started to well in her eyes. “I will dad, don’t worry!” 

“I’m sure you can do it if he wasn’t with you, you’ve been through worse before you met him.” 

“Yeah, I would rather not think about that.” She wiped away the tears from her eyes, resting her chin on her arm. “It’s nice to have someone who cares about my wellbeing, you know? Someone I can trust to have my back out there.”

Her father went quiet on the other end of the line and she couldn’t blame him, she would’ve done the same if someone mentioned that to her, not being able to find the right words to say. 

“I know Henry wasn’t good to you, but there seems like there’s more you’re not telling your mom and I?” 

The tears started to slide down her cheeks, her throat was becoming tight. She took in a deep breath and wiped her eyes again, looking into the distance. “There’s a lot I haven’t told you because I know it’ll hurt you.” 

“Skylar, what did he do to you?” 

“He took everything from me, my innocence, my dignity, my trust.” She hugged her knees tightly with one arm, and sighed. “And I really don’t think you want to hear the rest.” 

“Yes I do, I want to hear what the bastard did to my daughter.” 

Skylar sighed and leaned her head back, closing her eyes. This wasn’t exactly how she wanted to tell her parents, but she guessed it was now or never. “He abused me in every which way you can imagine, physically, mentally and sexually. The amount of bruises I had to cover up because of him was too many to count. And to think I could have his child right now scares the shit out me.” 

She opened her eyes and sighed through her nose as she moved her head from the wall. Telling Alex about her abuse seemed so much easier than telling her dad, then again no parents want to hear that their child has been abused and she can only imagine the horror on her dad’s face. 

“Jesus. You’ve been living with this for the past four years? Why did you never tell me?” 

The tears began to fall once again and she curled in on herself, letting out a small sob. “I’m sorry, I wanted to but I was embarrassed and scared.” 

“Skylar Elle you are my daughter, you know you can come to me about anything, especially something this severe.” He sighed on the other line, collecting his thoughts. “Does Alex know?” 

“Yes, I told him a few weeks ago. That was an emotional night.” She wiped her eyes once again and sat up a bit straighter, just in time to see Alex walking towards her with a concerned look on his face. “I’m just happy to have him, being treated like dirt to having someone who actually cares and is quite protective is amazing.” 

Alex softly smiled at her as he went to go sit down next to her, wrapping his arm around her shoulders and kissed her temple. 

“I’m glad he’s good to you, after what you’ve been through princess, you deserve it.” 

“Thanks dad, and I should get going and see if I can get some sleep before a busy day and night, most likely.” 

“Okay call me when you can and I love you!”

“I will and I love you too!” 

She hung up the phone and set it on the ground as she covered her face in her hands, loudly groaning. She slid them down her face and looked over at him with a tear stained face. 

“I woke up and you weren’t there, I was worried kotyonok.” 

“Sorry.” 

He watched her look away from him, curling back in on herself. Even in the dimness of the light he could still see how depleted she looked and it hurt. 

“You don’t need to apologize kotyonok, it wasn’t hard to find you anyways.” He chuckled. 

She forced a smile and scoffed. “Yeah, it’s not that big of a place. Unless I hopped the barricade and walked over to the next town, I’ll be easy to find.” She lifted her head a bit and locked eyes with him. “I told my dad about Henry.” 

“Oh?” 

“A part of me feels better,,,” She sighed and rested her head on his shoulder, snuggling up to him. “I just feel emotionally drained right now. I also had a dream about Henry.” 

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, kissing the top of her head. “Do you want to talk about it, kotyonok?”

“It wasn’t a bad dream thank god, it was about the day I met him.” She sniffled, wiping some tears from her eyes. “Why did I have to agree on going to dinner with him?” 

Alex knew that was a rhetorical question, no one knows the answer to that, not even her. It wasn’t her fault she agreed on going to dinner with him, he seemed like a different man at the time, only to find out the truth over time. That he was a monster. 

“I was stupid…”

“No you weren’t, kotyonok. You were manipulated, and you shouldn’t blame yourself for that.” He pulled her closer to him, a soft sigh leaving his lips. “It’s not your fault.” 

“Then why does it feel like it?” 

“He wants you to think that it was, even all these years later.” He removed his arm from her shoulders and turned to her. His thumb gently being placed underneath her chin and gently moved her head to look at him. “That’s what abusers do, they make it seem that the victim was the reasoning for what they did.” 

“You seem to be very familiar with this sort of thing.” 

“It’s a long story. I’ll tell you about it someday.”

Skylar nodded her head and stood up, brushing some dirt and dust off her pants. A sigh left her lips as she looked around, she knew sleep wouldn’t be coming any time soon and wasn’t so sure on what to do. Though deep down she knows she should try and get more, she’s needs to be alert for the mission and lack of sleep with fuck that up for her. 

“I don’t know if I can go back to sleep.” 

“How about we go back to the tent, cuddle and if you fall asleep you fall asleep. I’ll stay awake with you, kotyonok!” 

“I would like that!” 

Skylar sat down with a sigh as soon as they made it back to the tent. She took off her jacket, tossing it to the side before taking her boots off. She felt depleted and just sad, the only thing she wanted now was to snuggle in Alex’s arms. 

“I hate this.” She scooted over to where he laid and rested her head on his chest, hearing the calmness in his breathing. “This all sucks and I want to go home.” 

“I know, hopefully we’ll be able to go home soon.” He wrapped his arm around shoulders in a tight, yet gentle grasp and kissed her head. “I’m hoping this won’t take long.” 

“Those are monster’s моя милая, there’s no way we’re going home early.” 

He knew she was right, they were fighting monsters, that wasn’t hard to figure out. The thing he wanted to know was why Rainbow was here? Of course he’ll get more of an answer later, after they're forced to go out there, into that hell and grab more intel. Before all that he wants Ash to tell him everything she knows about this,,,,,outbreak. He made a promise on protecting Skylar and he wasn’t about to break it. 

“Da, they are.” He rubbed his hand up and down her arm and sighed. “I made a promise to you, I will protect you! Those monsters won’t harm a single hair on your head.” 

“Don’t make promises you can’t keep Alex, I don’t think I can handle that right now.”

A sharp breath got stuck in his throat and he glanced down at her. She hasn’t moved her head since she curled up next to him, but he could still slightly see her face. The depleted look still on her face. Maybe deep down he knew that promise was going to be hard to keep, especially now. That doesn’t mean he’s not going to give it his all to try. 

“Who says I won’t keep it?” 

All she did was shrug her shoulders and sit up, tears welling in her eyes. “I don’t know.” 

When he locked his eyes with hers, his face faltered and heart sank to the pit of his stomach. She was scared and not just scared, terrified. He couldn’t blame her for that, this wasn’t something anyone expected to happen, or to be facing. And without saying a word he leaned forward, giving her a kiss on the forehead and got off the cot. 

“I’ll be back, please stay here!”

“Alright.” 

Alex made his way to the tent Ash was in, he already expected her to still be up, most likely still going over plans. That he didn’t care for, he had something more important on his mind. 

A moment later he made it to her tent and walked in. “She’s not going.” 

Ash never looked up from the file she was looking at, all too familiar with that tone of his. “She’s an adult Alex, she can handle it.” 

“She’s been through enough and she’s terrified. Give her a break.” 

“It’s not my call.” She finally looked up at him, setting her pen down and leaned back in her seat. “If you want to be out there with her, fine. But this is bigger than her and you know that.” 

“The hell it isn’t.” His blood began to boil and he crossed his arms. “You were the one to specifically ask for her. You are in charge of this operation.” He scoffed and turned around to leave, stopping at the exit and slightly turned his head towards her. “If anything happens to her, I won’t hesitate on burning this operation to the ground.” 

Ash watched him leave and scrubbed a hand down her face, sighing. Things were only going to get worse here on out. 

He made his way back to the tent, seeing Skylar pick at the blanket in front of her, a blank stare on her face. He walked over and sat down beside her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “I tried to get you out, that didn’t work. I’m sorry, kotyonok!” 

She stopped picking at the blanket and looked up at him, eyes tear stained. “It’s alright, моя милая. I’ll get through it, you tried your best and that means a lot!” 

“I should have tried harder, you don’t deserve to go through more than you already have.”

“No, I don’t. But I knew what this job was before I joined, I just never expected to be fighting monsters.” She sighed and looked down at her hands, seeing them slightly shake. “Fighting people is easy, monsters that we don’t know what they’re capable of, isn’t.” 

Skylar stood up, walking over to the desk that sat against one of the walls and leaned against it, back towards him. 

As Alex stared at her, glancing at the waves in her hair, he realized that her mention of fighting monsters wasn’t just about what they were fighting now, but also referenced Henry. His face softened and he got up, walking up behind her and wrapped his arms around her chest. 

“You weren’t just talking about what we’re dealing with now, were you kotyonok?” 

“No.” She clenched her hands into fists, looking down and closed her eyes. “I’m not only scared, I’m angry.” She opened her eyes and turned around to face him, tears welling back into her eyes. “I remember feeling this way when I went back home after being honorably discharged. Scared of Henry showing up at my doorstep and angry about everything that happened.” 

He placed his arms around her and brought her into his embrace. There, under the comfort and safety of his arms she let those emotions out. Tears began falling down her cheeks and her body trembled. She didn’t want to cry, knowing it’ll just make her even more tired. Like Alex said before, it’s good to let it all out. 

She slightly pulled away when she heard two familiar voices outside the tent. She wiped her eyes and sniffled as both Maxim and Timur walked in. 

Timur stopped as soon as he saw an emotional Skylar. “Are we interrupting anything?”

“No, no it’s fine. You guys can come in.” 

Timur nodded his head and stepped inside, followed by Maxim. “Ash said you were up and we decided to come see you. Telling you we were here.” he looked over at her, giving her a small smile. “Are you alright?” 

“For the most part.” she mirrored his smile but knew she looked like crap. “A lot of things are flooding back.” 

His face faltered, glancing over at Alex. “I’m sorry to hear that, Sky.” 

Maxim glanced between all three of them, knowing he was being left out of something. “What’s going on?” 

Alex and Timur looked down at her, and she gave them a nod telling them that she was okay with him knowing. 

Alex looked over at him, and sighed through his nose. “Before we got together Skylar was in a pretty horrific abusive relationship. She spent the last four years dealing with this on her own, now…..” 

“Now that I’m in a happy and a very healthy relationship, a lot of what I went through is coming back. It also doesn’t help that he’s been messaging me.” 

His neutral expression softened, suddenly he wasn’t that stoic hunter she came to know, it was another side to him that she never knew existed. But she liked it nonetheless. 

“That’s horrible, I’m sorry you even had to go through that.” he gave her a small smile and then a hug. “I can hunt him for sport if you want me too?” 

Skylar chuckled and pulled away, a smile creeping onto her face. “I would love that, if only I knew where he was.” 

“Kotyonok? How come Maxim can hunt him for a sport, but I can’t kill him?” 

“First off moya sladost'. I want to spend the rest of my life with you, I can’t if you are in prison.” 

Alex went quiet after that, lips pursed. “Da, kotyonok! You made a good point.” 

She laughed and sat down on her cot, feeling a bit better than she was before and a little tired. “Yeah, I think it’s a pretty good point too.” 

Maxim chuckled. “We’ll leave you two alone now, we need to get some sleep before the mission tomorrow.” 

“Okay, goodnight!” 

“Goodnight!” said Maxim and Timur in unison as they left. 

Alex sighed and sat down next to her, looking her over. She seemed a bit happier, though you could still tell she had been crying by how puffy her face still was, not to mention her eyes being red. 

“Doing better?” 

She looked over at him, nodding her head. “Yeah, a bit. Now I just feel tired.” 

“Do you want to get some sleep?” 

“Not yet.” she shook her head. “I want to clear my head first.” 

“Would you like to talk about it?” 

Skylar pulled the blanket over her lap, leaning down to grab the bottle of water that sat beside her cot and took a sip. “I don't know how I feel about seeing my parents’ now. I know they won’t look at me differently, but they’ll know.”

“I know and how does that make you feel?”

“I’m happy that you know, it makes you understand why I do what I do.” She sighed and put the cap back on her water, setting it aside. “My mom and dad, they’ll always know in the back of their mind that their little girl was abused and raped for a year.” 

He turned his body more towards her, placing his hand on top of hers and gave it a light squeeze. “You don’t know that, they might try and purge it from their minds, kotyonok.”

“I doubt that, I know they won’t mention anything unless I do first. That memory will always be in their heads.” She looked away from him, down at their hands, whispering. “Like it’ll always be in yours.” 

Skylar didn’t look up, keeping her attention on their hands. She didn’t have too, she could already see his blue eyes softened, and a small smile on his face. 

“That will never change the way I feel about you!” He scooted closer to her, thumb going to the dip of her chin and gently lifting her head so she was looking at him. “I will always love you! The only thing that comes to mind when I think about what you went through, is how angry it makes me.”

“It makes you angry?” 

“Of course. I know I only know a fraction of what you went through, just thinking about you in those situations makes my blood boil.” He leaned forward, pressing his lips against her forehead. “If there were no consequences I would murder him if I ever saw him.” 

“I know you would!” She moved away, presenting a small smile on her tired face. “Would you make him suffer first?” 

“Da!” 

Her eyes went dark, something Alex has never seen before and she only said one word, strong and firm. “Good!” 

A few hours had passed and Skylar was lucky enough to get six hours of sleep. It wasn’t as much as she would have liked, but it was good enough. She knows her adrenaline will kick in while being out in the field. And she’ll have Alex by her side to make sure she’s alright. 

She decided to stay in the tent for the day, to give herself some time to collect her thoughts and become more ready for the horrors they will face in the coming hours. However she did join Alex and a few friends for lunch and dinner, to get some fresh air and socialize a bit. Though she did find it hard to eat, with how nervous she was. 

Now she was back in her tent with Alex, with an hour to spare until briefing started. Both of them were already in their gear and Skylar was deciding which weapon she wanted to use, her sniper or M4. 

"Moya sladost? Should I bring my sniper or M4?” 

He looked up from his beloved Degtyaryov, glancing between both weapons in her hands. “What do you think, kotyonok?” 

“I don’t know, that’s why I asked you.” She chuckled, then glanced between her sniper and assault rifle. “Just to be safe I’ll take the M4, once I fully know what we’re up against I’ll bring my sniper.”  She placed her sniper back in it’s case and slid it back under her cot. “Maybe I’ll get lucky and find a time where I can accidentally pull the trigger at a specific person.” 

“Kotyonok.” He said in the most sarcastic tone. “You would never do such a thing.” 

She laughed and gave him a cheeky grin. “Or would I? Nah I wouldn’t, as much as I really don’t like her, she ain’t worth going to prison for.” 

“Good! I too want to spend the rest of my life with you and not with you behind bars.” 

She sat down beside him, the cheeky grin turning into a soft smile. “Well you won’t have to worry, I’m not going to kill anyone.” 

“I’m glad to hear that, kotyonok!” 

Skylar scoffed, glancing down at his Degtyaryov. “I know me, you, Maxim and Kapkan are all on this mission, who else is coming?” 

“Olivier.” 

“Right, I can’t believe I forgot that.” She shook her head and chuckled. “Oops.”

Alex laughed and placed his Degtyaryov on the cot. “We should probably get going.” 

“Ugh.” She groaned as she got up from the got, grabbing her tactical vest and put it on before grabbing her M4. “Let’s get this over with.” 

Chapter Text

As they made their way to the tent Skylar’s heart began to thud harshly in her chest, she took in a deep breath trying to calm her nerves, but when that tent came into view she stopped, grabbing Alex by his arm.

He stumbled a bit, turning his head to look at her. “Kotyonok, are you alright?”

“No.” She let go of his arm, sulking her shoulders as she glanced back at the tent. “I don’t know if I can do this.”

She watched as his face softened, taking both of her hands into his. The little gesture seemed to help a bit, then again just having him there was helping her even more. .

“Da, you will! Kotyonok you are the strongest person I know, those creatures have nothing on you.” He let go of her hands and embraced her in a firm yet gentle hug. “I’m going to be with you anyways. You’re going to be fine, I’ll make sure of it.”

Her arms wrapped around his waist and she sighed. As terrified as she was, she was beyond happy that he was there, to be that glimmer of hope that she so desperately needs at times. And this was one of those times.

“Thank you, moya sladost’!” She let go of him, smiling up at him. “I don’t know what I would do without you.”

“I’m sure you would be fine, you’ve dealt with worse before you met me. You’re strong Skylar, you always have been!”

“I have, but this, this is different.” She looked away from him for a moment, back at the tent before turning her attention back to him. “Thank you though, it means a lot even if sometimes I don’t feel like I’m strong.”

“You’re welcome, kotyonok! How about after this is done, I’ll tell you all the reasons why you’re strong?”

Skylar laughed, rolling her eyes. “I’ll take your word for it. Come on, let’s go before Eliza has a fit.”

She could hear him chuckle as she walked away, heading towards the tent to see what the hell their objective was going to be. Hoping it won’t be too bad, then again everything she has seen so far was worse, and whatever they’ll be doing will most likely be the same.

When she walked into the tent she saw the rest of the team was already there and seated. Which was a surprise to her since they’re was still five minutes before the briefing fully began, she was half expecting them to flood in mere seconds before it started.

“So nice of you two to join us.” said Jordan

“Oh, haha,” she took a seat next to Maxim, followed by Alex sitting next to her “Where’s Eliza?”

“On the phone with Six, she’ll be back soon.”

“Oh okay.”

She felt a hand grabbed onto hers, giving it a firm squeeze. She looked over at Alex giving him a small smile and placed her other hand on top of his. Her nerves were still riding high, would be for the duration of the mission, until they’re back in their tent. Safe and sound.

He leaned over, giving her temple a quick kiss, and kept her hand in his. This was going to be one long night, hopefully things will go fine and they’ll be back before they know it. As long as his kotyonok is alright, that’s the only thing that matters to him.

A few moments later Eliza finally came in, making everyone stop their conversations and look forward. They watched as she grabbed the remote control off the table, flipping through a few pictures until she came to the one she wanted.

As Skylar looked at the picture, seeing what looked like tendrils from floor to ceiling in that building. “So we’re taking out tendrils? Easy enough, I’m sure Jordan has come up with good enough explosives.”

“What you see here is Sierra Paradise, a once nice hot springs resort, now turned into a nursery for the virus. Jordan here has developed a nano-thermite charge to specifically destroy them.”

Eliza moved to the side, giving Jordan the floor. “With ongoing operations in the area we can’t launch any fire missions or predator strikes. So we’re gonna barbecue the nursery with these prototype nano-thermite charges before it goes online. Can I say barbecue? Six won’t care, none will she?.”

Skylar couldn’t help but chuckle, leave it to Jordan to say something about frying things up. From where she was sitting she could see the glare Eliza was giving him.

She turned away from him, looking at the five people sitting before her. “As you know the target is a hot springs resort, you all will be stocked with a few of these nano-thermite charges. Your job is to get to the hot springs resort, place the charges on the tendrils, and protect them. Once they know the nursery is under attack, they’ll swarm that building. Make sure they don’t get to those charges.” She looked around, seeing everyone nodding. “Okay, you guys leave in ten. Get what you need and good luck.”

Everyone got up and left, getting any last minute things they might need, except Skylar who slowly got up and left. The mission didn’t seem too hard, pretty cut and dry for the most part, the only thing she’s worried about is making sure none of those roaches get to the charges. But with five people holding down the sight, it should be fine. And with Olivier’s EE-ONE-D drone, they’ll be able to see what’s going on out of view.

She made it outside a few moments later with Alex patiently waiting for her. “You didn’t have to wait for me, moya sladost’. You could’ve gotten what you needed, I would’ve been fine.”

“I know you would have been,” he walked over to her, fiddling with her braided hair. “But I wanted too, kotyonok!”

“You’re sweet!”

She leaned up and gave him a quick kiss, grabbing his hand and led him back to the armory. She wanted to pick up some frag grenades before they left, thinking they might do some good out in the field. Only downside is she would have to use them sparingly.

“Grenades?”

“Yeah, why not?” She shrugged her shoulders and clipped them to her tactical vest. “They could come in handy out there.”

“That’s true they could come in handy.”

“Told you!”

He scoffed and walked over to the stun grenade container, picking up a few of them and placed them on his tactical vest. When he turned he saw Skylar looking at him with an arched brow.

“What? They could come in handy too.”

“I know, it’s just weird seeing you with stun grenades.”

“And it’s weird seeing you with frag grenades.”

“Okay, fair point. But I do have a grenade launcher on the end of my gun.” She walked over to him, giving him a small smile before placing a more passionate kiss upon his lips. “For later.”

“Later, kotyonok?” His gloved hand came up and cupped her cheek, thumb caressing her jawbone. “Will you even be up for that?”

Her own gloved hand came up to cover his, nuzzling into the gesture. “Hopefully! I guess we’ll just have to wait and see.”

He gave her a warm smile and softly sighed. “Oh, kotyonok! You know I would jump at any opportunity to make love to you. I think we should wait until we’re back at base, you are already scared of what’s out there. You won’t enjoy the pleasure as much since you’re using it to hide your fear.”

“I know, it’s just,” she let go of his hand, fiddling with her own. “That’s the one place I feel the safest, that nothing can touch me is in your arms. I know having sex doesn’t negate that, but it will make me feel something other than fear.”

His face softened and he laughed, removing his hand from her cheek. “Kotyonok, we can cuddle afterwards, no need to go the extra mile.”

“Okay, that works too!”

“How about we get going before we’re late?”

“I don’t mind being late.”

“I know you wouldn’t.”

Skylar scoffed and followed behind him, bringing her hands into fists to help calm her nerves. Things are going to be fine she kept telling herself, she’s not going to be out there alone, she has Alex, Timur, Maxim and even Olivier with her. People that need her to have her head on straight. Things are going to be fine.

As they made their way to meet up with the rest of the team she noticed that Alex only had his 9x19VSN submachine gun and not his beloved DP27. “Moya sladost? Where’s your beloved gun?”

He stopped in his tracks, staring blindly for a moment before he slowly looked down at the submachine gun hanging off his tactical vest. “In, our tent. I’ll be back.”

She laughed as he walked away, back towards their tent. Alex forgetting his beloved degtyaryov was something she never thought she would see in her lifetime. She turned on her heels and walked over to the rest of them.

“Where’s Alex?” asked Maxim

“He forgot his gun, you know the one he loves almost as much as me? He should be back in a few.”

“He forgot his DP27? The one thing he never leaves base without when going on a mission?”

“Yup. As we were walking here I noticed he didn’t have it, I told him and he went to go get it.”

“I never saw this day coming.” He sighed and crossed his arms. “He really forgot his gun?”

She couldn’t help but laugh at his disbelief, hell if she wasn’t the one who said something she wouldn’t have believed it either. Even before they started dating she knew how special that gun was to him. He never let anyone touch it, nor use it and never left it behind when he got called for a mission. Yet she came into his life and suddenly that gun became second to him, it was no longer that important. Still, it was hard to believe he would outright forget it, even if he was trying to help calm her down beforehand.

“Yes he did Maxim.”

Maxim judded his chin, making Skylar look behind her. When she turned she saw Alex walking towards them, DP27 in hand.

“I’m ready.”

“You forgot your DP27? Who are you and what have you done with Alex?”

“My kotyonok is more important!”

“I know I just never pictured you outright forgetting it.”

“Okay, let’s not get into an argument before the mission starts.”

“Sorry!” They said in unison

Skylar laughed as she got into the chopper behind Timur, and once everyone was seated they were off.

The chopper ride wouldn’t be more than ten minutes and after that it was boots on the ground. She glanced around the chopper, seeing everyone double checking their weapons and gadgets besides her. She was just trying to get her head in the game. It’s been years since she was in a warzone, but if she remembers her training she’ll be fine.

The chopper came to a halt, they were here!

“We’re here. The resort is only a few hundred yards from here. Good luck guys.” said Jager as he threw the rope down for them.

Skylar gave him a small smile before grabbing the rope and following Maxim down to the ground.

Once her feet hit the ground her mouth slightly fell agape, she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. The town was completely destroyed by the virus. Roads were destroyed, buildings covered in whatever the virus produces. Seeing everything so destroyed brought her back to Afghanistan, to those innocent villages that were destroyed in the crossfire. Innocent people killed, just like here.

She felt a hand on her shoulder, knowing exactly who it belonged to. She looked over at him, giving him a small smile.

“We got this, kotyonok!”

Skylar looked up at him, giving him a small smile, though keeping her gun very close to her. “Yeah I know. I just haven’t been in a warzone in a long time, it feels weird.”

“Well, kotyonok! That’s another thing we have in common.”

“Oh shush.” She laughed “Let’s go.”

She began walking away from him, towards the rest of the group, hearing him chuckle as she walked away.

Jager was right, the resort was only a few hundred feet away from where he dropped them off. That made things much easier. As she got closer to the rest of the group something caught her eye from the shadows, she slowly raised her gun, keeping her breathing calm and listening.

“Contact.”

Everyone turned their attention to her, seeing one of the infected come out of the shadows. Faster than they anticipated, but Skylar had marksman reflexes and took it out with a bullet to the head. She walked towards it afterwards, getting a better look at it. It was a man or was a man at one point, skin was much darker almost magma like, eyes red, their hands had turned into stakes like appendages and they had spikes sticking out of their backs. Not to mention the speed on them, much faster than a normal human.

She felt a presence next to her, looking up to see Alex right next to her. Even though he was wearing that camouflage balaclava and that helmet she could still see the worry on his face. This was going to be a long night for the both of them.

She gave him a small smile, grabbing the cuff of his Gorka. “Now who’s worried?”

“I’m always worried when it comes to you, kotyonok.”

“That’s true! Let’s get back to the mission, moya sladost’.”

He chuckled and they both jogged over to where the other three were.

She could see the building of the resort from where they stood, noticing some of the walls have been destroyed. Hell, pretty much everything she has seen so far has been destroyed by the virus infected people and the virus itself. Who knows what else is out there, besides whatever was in that photo Eliza showed them when they first came. That was something she doesn’t want to engage with in the future.

“Are you two going to be like this through the whole mission?” asked Timur

“Hey I’m fine, it’s mister I get worried when my kotyonok is in any danger. So yes.”

Timur slowly nodded his head, only to abruptly stop and look to the left, raising his rifle. “I saw something.”

They all turned with their guns raised to where he saw something run by, no doubt another roach. This was only the beginning.

“I don’t see anything.” said Olivier

“No, but we are being watched. I can sense it. We better get started before more company arrives.”

The team started to make their way towards the resort, Skylar took a moment to watch and listen to her surroundings. The eeriness of the silence was off putting, no wind, no sounds of birds or animals, or people. But there was no doubt they were being watched from the shadows, just out of view. They were watching, waiting, just like any predator would do, and once again she was the prey.

As she jogged her way back to the group she saw Olivier place his drone in the sky. It was nice to have more eyes, especially on the outside.

“Well, there’s no doubt we’re being watched. That feeling is too powerful to ignore. I suspect they’ll keep their distance in the shadow, waiting, watching and listening for the right time to attack. Like every other predator.”

“Speaking like a true hunter, Sky.”

The smirk on Maxim’s face made her scoff, she was no way near as good of a hunter he was. “Nah, that’s your territory. You just learn those abilities when you’re a sniper. The only person that has your back out there is yourself, got to make sure those senses are attune. Don’t want to get shot in the back or capture.”

“Either way it’s still good.”

“Thanks!”

Once Olivier’s drone was in the sky they made their way into the resort, being greeted by a few grunts as they entered. With ease they took them out, only to have a few more come at them.

Skylar took cover behind some rubble to reload her gun, hearing nothing but gunfire to every side of her. She dropped the empty mag on the ground, reaching into her tactical vest for a new one and popped it in. With the abrupt sense of feeling something behind her she slowly moved her finger on the trigger, and slowly turned around to see what was coming at her.

“What the…”

Before she could finish that sentence the cancer like growth on its infected spines on its back went from a yellow color to an orange. Without knowing or wanting to know what it was about to do she shot it, only to have it explode a mere ten feet from her.

The sound of the explosion forced Alex’s head to the spot, seeing no signs of Skylar. With a sudden fear rising in his body, hoping that she was okay and that explosion was anything but her.

“Skylar!” When he heard nothing, that fear inside him rose even more. “Skylar, please don’t do this to me. Say something.”

The sound of his voice snapped her out of the little trance she had going on and stood up, seeing him visibly relax when he saw her. “I’m sorry, it’s just Eliza never mentioned some of those fuckers blew up. I almost just died to one, if I didn’t sense something flanking me, well I’d rather not think about that.”

“I’m just happy you’re okay.” He gave her a quick hug, and softly sighed. “Blow up? The rest of the team should know and we found the first tendril.”

“Yeah, it surprised me too. Oh that’s good and yeah let’s go tell them.”

They walked through a few rooms, entering what looked like the dining room area of the resort, with a giant tendril in the middle of it. To the back was the kitchen, with what looked like good, solid walls that those breachers couldn’t come through. Good place to go for cover if need be.

“Since it’s quiet for right now, I have to talk to you guys quickly.”

“What is it?”

Everyone surrounded her with curious and worried faces.

“I think we have a new enemy on our hands. They look more human, quadruped with spikes sticking out of its back. The spikes have cancerous like growth on them that are yellow in color, but turn orange when they’re about to explode. They’re not hard to miss.”

“Why weren’t we informed about them before we got here?”

“I don’t think Eliza knew about them. Hell there’s a lot we don’t know about this.”

Maxim nodded his head in agreement. “We were about to plant the nano-thermite charge. Are you guys ready?”

“As ready as I’ll ever be.”

He turned his attention back to Olivier, giving him a quick nod and set the charges.

“How long do we have until it goes off?”

“A little over two minutes.”

“Figures.”

She scoffed and raised her gun to take out a few grunts that were running towards the charge. Jordan couldn’t have made the time a little bit shorter than? No, now they have to protect the charges for two minutes while waves upon waves of infected come towards them. What a joy.

“We spotted multiple heat signatures coming your way.” said Jordan “Hostiles arriving soon.”

“Hostiles have already arrived, Jordan.”

When Olivier set those charges those roaches came to it like a moth to a light. Warming it. Gun firing was heard in every direction with the team spread out around the room, making sure they couldn’t come in from either direction.

Skylar ended up taking out a few more before her clip ran dry. “I have to reload, cover me.”

“Kotyonok, I got you.”

She gave him a nod and took cover behind the wall of the kitchen, and reloaded her gun. “I should’ve picked up extended mags for this mess.”

The gunfire hadn’t stopped yet, she could still hear it all around her, along with the roaches closing in on them. When she peaked over her cover she saw one of those breachers flanking Timur as he reloaded his sniper.

“Hey sniping buddy, behind you.”

She watched as he grabbed his pistol and turned around, but she already had that breacher in her sights, and fired. This time it didn’t explode, just fell limp to the floor. That was a good thing, he was way too close to Timur for her liking.

“Thanks!” He said as he relaxed his body and went back to reloading his sniper.

“Thirty seconds until the charges go off.”

‘Oh thank god’ was all she could think about when she heard Olivier say that. Thirty more seconds of defending the explosive and one tendril would be down. That was major progress in her eyes. And she was quite pleased with how they were keeping the roaches off the explosive.

Skylar made her way out of the kitchen to help Timur cover the section he was in. This was a pretty shitty time to be using a sniper while being swarmed, the only good thing about his is that it was semi-automatic.

When she went to cover him while he reloaded, something came up from the floor. Female, at least the face looked female. Any hair they had were now spikes, as were the arms and legs. It was bigger than the two they have been fighting and it seemed like it teleported away as quickly as it showed up.

“Uh guys we have a problem. I think something just came up from the floor and teleported away.”

“Mon amie, what are you talking about?”

Before she could answer the explosives went off, destroying the first tendril, now two more to go. She let out a sigh of relief and turned to the rest of the team that all looked at her in horror. Something was behind her and it wasn’t a grunt or breacher, if it was they would’ve killed it by now.

She took in a deep breath and slowly turned around, becoming face to face with what she saw a few seconds ago. Now that she could see it more clearly, it was definitely female. Face and torso were still human-like, everything else was changed, modified by the virus.

Everything has been going relatively fine until now. The only thought plaguing her mind was why wasn’t it attacking her, she was in arms reach of that thing but it didn’t do anything. It just stared at her, and the rest of the team couldn’t do anything because she was in the line of fire.

Without making any drastic movements she went for her knife, plunging it into the neck of that thing. She watched as the blood spilled from it’s wound as it thrashed on the floor until it succumbed to its wound.

Once it was fully dead she healed over, taking in a few deep breaths. “Jesus christ.”

She heard heavy footfalls coming towards her, then a hand on her chin gently lifting it up. She met Alex’s glistening eyes, and softly smiled.

“I thought I was about to lose you, kotyonok!”

“But you didn’t. Let’s not dwell on the other thing, moya sladost’.”

“Are you okay?” asked Olivier

“A little shaken up, but I’ll be fine. Don’t worry.”

“This place is quiet now, why don’t you get to the next tendril. I’ll stay with her for a moment and we’ll meet you there.” said Alex

They all nodded their heads and dispersed, going to find the next tendril. Her heart was beating rapidly and her whole body was shaking, that was way too close for comfort. With help from Alex she slowly made her way to the table and sat down at the edge of it.

“I haven’t felt this shaky since I was in Afghanistan during my first deployment. That was way too damn close.”

He sighed and sat down next to her, giving her hand a squeeze. “It was too close. And I couldn’t do anything about it, I just had to watch. I could’ve flanked to the side and killed it from there. I couldn’t because I didn’t know if it would attack you or not if I did.”

“I know you would’ve come to my rescue if you could, moya sladost’! I’m not going to hold that against you, you’re doing what you can.”

He gave her hand another squeeze and sighed. “I know, I just wish I could do more. I don’t want you getting hurt, or worse, kotyonok.”

“Hey, I don’t want anything happening to you either, moya sladost’! The only way this feeling might go away is if we get this shit over with.” She sighed and stood up, holding out her hand for him. “Let’s go help the others.”

Alex smiled, though she couldn’t see it with him wearing his helmet and grabbed her hand as she helped him up. But the look on her face told him otherwise. “Okay, I’ll radio them and see where they are.”

While he went for his radio, she checked her weapon, making sure she had a full magazine in it. However once this is done she’s changing from a thirty round magazine to either a fifty or sixty. Thirty was not cutting it for her, she ran out way too fast and she didn’t need to be caught in a reload when a roach flanks hers.

“Kotyonok, Maxim said they’re upstairs in one of the rooms.”

“Okay, let’s get up there.”

They made their way through the building towards the stairs, hearing more roaches scattering around and gunfire that followed. Just one more tendril to go and they were free to head for the extraction point and get the hell out of dodge for a while. All she wanted to do was get cleaned up and rest for a bit.

The second floor of the building got the same treatment as the first, destroyed. Sections of the walls leading outside were out, most of the rooms destroyed. She wondered what it looked like before all this. Probably nice, some place her family would like to stay.

“This place was probably beautiful once. Such a shame.”

“Mm, I bet it was, kotyonok!”

It didn’t take long for them to reach where the rest of the team was, and low and behold the tendril was in the middle of it.

Even though she’s sure the rest of the guys did some recon on the floor, she had to check for herself. What she was seeing wasn’t something she was liking, not by a long shot. The second floor was way to open, to many angles for them to flank. When she saw the entryway to the balcony a thought came into her mind.

“Hey Maxim, can you put one of your uh, uh door exploding thingies on the entryway from the balcony?”

“Door exploding thingy? My EDD?”

“Yes that.”

From behind her she heard Alex chuckling and mumbling ‘door exploding thingies’ under his breath. That did make her chuckle herself, it did sound kind of funny that she forgot the name of Maxim’s entry denial devices at that moment.

“Doing scan.” said Olivier

While he did his scan Maxim went to place some of his EDDs in a few of the doorways around the tendril. That would give them a little help once they set the charges.

“Hostiles are gathering around the perimeter. We should plant now.”

They all nodded and Timur went to plan the charge on the tendril. “You guys know what to do.”

On cue they heard the roaches enter the building, making their way to the tendril. Skylar kept watch on one of the hallways by the bathroom, taking out any that come her way. The bathroom was a good place to run back to if she needed to reload or for whatever other reason she might need to retreat. The bathroom seemed sturdy enough and it had enough alcoves for her to hide in momentarily.

As she reloaded her gun a sudden explosion was heard from the balcony. She got up to go see what triggered it, finding a few grunts in a few pieces. With the EDD not hindering her from going out there, she peaked to see if any more were on it. There wasn’t.

She looked out over the grounds, seeing a few coming towards them. Bringing her gun up she took them out, only to have more coming her way. She sighed and grabbed a grenade off her vest, pulling the pin and chucked it. It might have been a bad idea to use one already, but she didn’t care if she could take out multiple with just one, she would be happy.

As the grenade went off a few seconds later, she saw it take out maybe two grunts and a breacher.

She sighed and grabbed her radio. “How long until it detonates?”

“Thirty seconds and we could use your help here.” said Maxim

“Coming.”

Skylar scoffed and headed towards them, taking out a breacher on the way. With their surroundings being quite dark and the enemy being kind of hard to see, the breachers were a nice change. You could easily see them in the dark hell they were in right now.

When she got into the room she saw two of those teleporting assholes, no wonder why they needed her in there. They were so hard to predict where they would come up from, and with all the gunfire going on, it was also a tad bit hard to hear.

She managed to find her way to Alex, helping him take out a few roaches just in time for the charges to detonate. A soft sigh left her lips, feeling a bit more relaxed that they were now done and could head back as soon as they’re done taking out the rest of the roaches that were still in the building.

In the near distance she saw Olivier taking out one of those teleporting assholes, just one more to go.

“Uh has anyone seen the other teleporting asshole? I lost sight of it and I saw Oliver take the other one down.”

“No I don’t see it, maybe we scared it off?” asked Maxim

Skylar’s shoulders went slack and she stared over at him. “You know as much as I do we didn’t scare it off. It’s probably waiting, we do have to leave this building eventually.” That’s when a thought came into her head and she turned her attention on Oliver. “Hey Olly can you do another scan, maybe we’ll be able to see it?”

Olivier nodded and began another scan, while he did that she turned her attention to Alex, whose eyes were already on her.

“Moya sladost’, how are you holding up?”

“I’m doing fine. How about you, kotyonok?”

“Better now that we’re pretty much done here. I just want to get out of here, you know?”

He walked over to her, grabbing her hand as she let her M4 dangle at her side. Looking up into those blue eyes gave her peace and comfort, she truly had no clue what would’ve happened if she didn’t have him here with her right now.

“Da, I know! Are you really okay? You don’t seem like it, kotyonok.”

“I….Not even close.”

She looked down at her hands and sighed. Every time she was out on a mission she was fine, no nerves, no nothing. Now she’s a nervous wreck, feeling exactly how she felt when she was in the desert. Terrified. All she knows is that the adrenaline and fear is keeping her alive, but for how long?

“I found nothing, maybe it died or maybe we miscounted.”

“Yeah, that could be it. It is kind of hard to see up here.”

“Hostiles neutralized. You guys can head towards the extraction point, Jager’s on route.” said Jordan

“Thanks for telling us.” said Alex

“Sorry, slight malfunction.”

“Slight malfunction my ass.” mumbled Skylar

They made their way down a hallway that was surprisingly still in good shape. When they got down the hallway she only saw Timur and Oliver with her, but she knew the other two were with them as well. She turned to see Alex and Maxim barricading the entryway to make it a little bit harder for any roaches to attack from behind.

“Thirty seconds out from the extraction point. What! Mayday, mayday, mayday I’ve been hit, losing altitude.”

They all glanced at each other with worried looks once Marius’ radio went out. No one wanted to think of the worst case scenario but when Jordan couldn’t get a hold of him, well she hoped his radio just broke when he crashed and he’s okay.

“We got a lock on Jager’s location, he landed in an autoshop about a block from you. The area is swarming with enemies, get over there and extract him asap.”

As they made their way onto the street they were already met with a few hostels. Oliver decided to do some flanking and kill off any on the right side of the road. Timur picked off any in the back and the rest of them took any that got into their line of sight.

“Heads up, roaches are incoming. Don’t leave any of them alive.”

“How many?”

“A few dozen. Shouldn’t be too hard for you guys.”

“Cheeky.”

They made their way through the streets, taking out any roach they saw. Skylar kept close to Alex as they moved their way through the streets, in a way she wished she brought her sniper; it would’ve helped taking some out in the distance and she could have swapped between the two if needed. Reloading after killing three roaches was growing tiresome, and all she had for her sidearm was her desert eagle.

Jordan wasn’t kidding when he said the streets were swarming with hostels. It made her wonder how many people survived this, in a city of close to six thousand people living in it, some must’ve survived, right?

“Stop moving.”

Skylar and Alex turned around, giving Timur a weird look. He had his sniper raised, looking through the scope, when they turned back they couldn’t see anything.

A few seconds later, Maxim and Oliver joined them. “What’s going on?”

Alex and Skylar both shrugged their shoulders, all of them looking back at Timur.

“I saw something farther back. It looked to be wearing a hazmat suit, more deformed than the other roaches.” He brought his sniper down, and took in a deep breath. “It looked to be calling in waves of the smaller ones.”

“We need to take that one out first.” said Alex “If we don’t we’ll be up to our necks in roaches.”

“I think we can all agree on that, moya sladost’! Can you still see it?”

“Da, it doesn’t seem to be moving. Why don’t you all get closer, take out any of the roaches you see. I’ll stay back and try to take it out from a distance.”

Skylar and Olivier slowly nodded their heads in agreement. That was a decent plan, have the majority of the group flank and take out the smaller roaches while Timur went for the big guy.

Before she decided to move, she reloaded her gun once more, then groaned. “Shit, I’m almost out.”

Alex grabbed the DP27 from his back and handed her his submachine gun. “Here, take mine kotyonok!”

“Are you sure you’re going to be fine with just your DP27?”

“Da! You need it more than I do.”

“Thank you!” She grabbed the submachine gun from him with a warm smile, letting her M4 dangle in front of her. He still had quite a bit of ammo left for his gun, so her assault rifle became more of a secondary. “It’s been a while since I used a submachine gun.”

“Now you can!”

She scoffed and started making her way towards the roach infested area, finger on trigger. She could hear Alex behind her with his heavy footfalls that gave it away. While they took the left flank, Maxim and Olivier took the right.

The roaches that were spread out weren’t that hard to take out. With how oblivious they could be when uninterrupted, a few headshots from a distance would do.

As they made their way closer to where Timur saw the big guy, all that could be heard was the single taps of their guns going off. As easy as it was now, they all knew it would get harder the closer they got, which would mean Timur better take that shot sooner rather than later.

“We’re getting close Timur, when can you take the shot?”

“Give me a moment, he moved. I need a better vantage point. Hang low for right now.”

Skylar sighed and crouched down behind some cover. The roaches haven’t noticed them yet, which was good, she just hopes Marius can hold out a bit longer.

Alex crouched down beside her, placing his hand on her knee. She covered his hand with hers and softly smiled at him, but her eyes conveyed a different emotion. “Kotyonok, I’m proud of you!”

It was barely above a whisper, but with the silence around them she heard it loud and clear. Hearing him say that brought a few tears to her eyes. “If you weren’t wearing that helmet and balaclava, I would kiss you right now!”

“Later, kotyonok. Later!”

She chuckled and gave him a cheeky smile before she looked away, back towards the darkness that surrounded them. In the near distance they could hear the roaches wonder around, though not getting close to where they were. However it did make her wonder where Maxim and Oliver were. Did they stop their advancement too? Or did they get closer? She picked the latter since she couldn’t hear any gunfire, if she did they would all be in a lot of trouble.

“I’m in position.”

Skylar sighed and glanced back at Alex, giving him a small smile before moving forward. She peaked her head up over the hood of the car, spotting a breacher and a few grunts mere feet in front of them. She knew once Timur took that shot, it would be guns blazing and she wanted to get the upper hand. That’s when her mind raced back to the armory, remembering that Alex took some stun grenades with him.

She turned to him, glancing down at the stun that hung from his uniform. She got closer to him, not wanting to be loud when she spoke. “When Timur takes the shot, can you throw a stun? I want the upper hand.”

He nodded and grabbed one, getting ready for the cue to throw it.

Mere seconds later the sound of his rifle went off, alerting every single roach in the vicinity. That was Alex’s cue to toss the stun before they got any closer, once they were stunned she stood up, taking the three on her right while he took the other four. The plus side of having a light machine gun, all the bullets.

The both could hear gunfire on the other side, and another crack from Timur’s rifle. She was hoping he was just taking out any other roach he saw and that the big guy was down. Unfortunately when they got closer, they could see he was still kickin’.

That specific roach was wearing a hazmat suit, very tall, and what was once legs, now look more like tentacles, like an octopus.

“Are you doing any damage to it?” asked Kapkan

“I should be. He’s just not going down.”

As Skylar watched Alex, Maxim, Olivier and Timur fire upon it, she watched it take a lot of bullets, it should be way past dead now. Her mind was reeling and she stumbled back, hitting the back of her calf into a car. They knew they needed to take that thing out, without wasting all their ammo. But none of them had a launcher, the only thing they had was Maxim’s entry denial devices, and he couldn’t exactly mount them anywhere.

She looked down, seeing the grenade attached to her tactical vest and back at that roach. A sudden, stupid idea came into her head. Deep down she knew if she didn’t do it, they would all die or get infected themselves. So she swallowed her fear, grabbed the grenade from her vest and flanked.

She was happy the boys were distracting it enough so it didn’t summon more grunts and breachers, it was just him. As she made her way behind them she saw a tear in the side of the suit, and a smirk began to show on her face.

Maxim was shooting it when he saw Skylar crouch walking behind it. His eyes went wide when he saw the grenade in her hand, then he watched as she pulled the pin. His heart seized in his chest, thinking ‘what the hell is she doing’. Next thing he knew she was getting flung back a few feet, hitting her back on a telephone poll and fell to the ground.

Seconds later the grenade went off, taking that roach with it.

Alex looked on in horror and rushed to her side. “Kotyonok, are you okay?”

Skylar groaned and slowly sat up, feeling the side of her temple stinging. She gently touched the area, feeling a little bit of blood. “I’m, I'm good. Back hurts though.”

“What were you even thinking about pulling some der’mo like that? What if you got hurt or worse?”

“Do we have to do this now? Marius is waiting for us. Let’s rescue him and then you can yell at me all you want, okay?”

He sighed and nodded his head, helping her up. She stretched her back, scrunching her face at the slight pain on her lower back. The only good thing was nothing was broken and she could press on.

“What the hell happened? Skylar are you okay? I saw you from a distance flanking it and next thing I see is you being flung, followed by an explosion.”

“It’s a long story, I’ll tell you after.”

Timur nodded his head. “Okay. I’m glad you’re okay.”

“Thanks, me too!”

“If you’re fine to move, we should. Marius isn’t far.”

“I’m good, let’s go.”

Olivier was right, Marius was only down the street and that brought her peace. Just a little bit longer and they were free, free to go back to base. Hopefully. She wasn’t going to put too much faith in it, just yet.

“That’s the crash site, Jager’s inside. Secure him and prep for evac.”

“Oh hallelujah.”

They all picked up their pace, getting to the auto repair shop as quickly as they could. Of course taking out a few roaches along the way. Once inside they saw Jager sitting on the ground, hand pressed against his abdomen.

Skylar went right over to him, crouching down next to him. “Hey Marius, are you alright?”

“Minor cut, nothing to worry about.”

“How’d you even get hit? No one else is operating in this area besides us.”

“I do not know, everything was fine and the next thing I know I’m getting hit by something.”

She nodded her head and stood up. “Well not long now and we should be good to go in a few minutes, right Jordan?” She turned her attention back to Marius “I’m glad you’re okay!”

“Helo’s on route for extraction, keep Jager safe until it gets there.”

She grabbed the purple desert eagle from the holster, handing it to Jager. “Just in case.”

He grabbed the pistol from her hand, giving her a nod. “Danke!”

“Du bist herzlich willkommen!”

The sound of more roaches approaching put them all in alert. Everyone else fanned out while Skylar stayed close to Marius.

In a matter of seconds grunts were coming in from all directions, Skylar grabbed her last grenade, pulling the pin and threw it towards the doors. Seconds later it went off, taking a few of them with it.

She kept them at bay from getting in through the front door, killing any that set foot through that threshold.

As she reloaded her gun she glanced over to see Alex, taking out any from the garage area. Even though he was upset with her for what she did, she couldn’t help but softly smile seeing him use his beloved DP27. They’ve hardly gone on missions together since she joined, so it was nice to see.

Maxim was helping Alex with the garage, while Olivier and Timur took the other area so they couldn’t flank behind them. They were all working so well together, it filled her heart with happiness, even if they were in a hell hole.

“How long until evac gets here?” asked Timur

“About twenty seconds, just hold out for twenty more seconds.”

Twenty seconds, just twenty more seconds and they would be safe. All of them!

None seem to be swarming the front entrance as of right now, so she took the time to go check on the rest, see if they needed any help. Alex and Maxim seemed to have everything on lock on their end, so she went to go check on the other two.

The hallway they were in was small, just enough room for the two of them so no accidents would happen. “You guys good on your end? Also can you do another scan?”

“Da, we’re good. Is Jager fine?”

“Yeah, no roaches were coming in on my end right now. Came to check if you guys needed any help.”

“Mon amie, you might want to get back out there.”

“Shit.”

She heard Maxim chuckle when she turned on her heels and ran out, back towards Marius. When she got there a few grunts and a breacher were closing in. She raised her gun, aiming it at the breacher first, better to take that one out sooner rather than later. Next up were the grunts that were starting to come in through the doors.

As gunfire rang through the air, Skylar heard what sounded like rotors of a helicopter. A sigh of relief left her as she saw it circle around the building. Evac was finally here, now the only thing to do was take out the rest of the roaches and go.

“Evac is here!” she yelled over the gunfire. “We need to take out the rest so he can land.”

“Scanning now.”

As Olivier did another scan she took out another three that were coming in, hoping there weren’t that many left. She just wanted for this to be over with.

“A dozen more incoming.”

That wasn’t too bad, twelve more and they would be good to go. She glanced over at Marius, seeing that he was still okay.

More gunfire rang from the garage area, then the area where Maxim and Oliver were. A part of her wanted to go help one of them, but she knew she needed to stay closer to Marius, he was an easy target.

From a distance she could see a grunt coming towards her, and fired. Instances like that are when she misses her sniper, where she can just swap and take out any hostels from a distance. A few more came her way, and as she fired she even heard the bang from her desert eagle.

All the noise that occupied the air vanished, and the rest joined them.

She glanced over at Alex, her eyes meeting his for a moment and she looked away. “I'll put down a flare for evac to land. Someone help Marius.”

Skylar sighed and grabbed a flare from her vest and walked outside. It was quiet, besides the sound of the helicopter above. She lit the flare and placed it on the ground, watching the helo finally land. She jogged over to it and jumped on, looking to see the other’s following suit.

Once everyone was on board, it took off. Back to base. That nightmare was finally over!

The ride back to base was quiet and she couldn’t blame anyone for that. What they just went through was literal hell, and everyone knew this was just the beginning.

Almost six months ago Skylar joined Rainbow for a chance for a new beginning, she met and befriended some amazing people, even going as far as starting a new relationship. She expected her job to be putting away terrorists, whether in prison or in the ground, she never expected to be fighting infected people.

Her and Alex finally made it back to their tent. Skylar unhooked the M4 from her vest, setting it aside and sat down. They’ve barely spoken since she did that stunt and it made her feel pretty bad.

“What were you thinking Skylar?”

She looked up, seeing his eyes on her. That’s when she noticed he took off his helmet and balaclava. “I had to do something Alex. Bullets clearly weren’t doing as much damage as they should have. What if we all ran out of bullets? We all would’ve died.”

“That doesn’t give you the right to be so reckless.”

“Maybe not, but what I did saved all our lives, Marius’ included!” Skylar sighed and stood up, grabbing her gun and went over to the table nearby. She took the magazine out, then the bullet that was still in the chamber. She could feel the tears started to well in her eyes, she blinked them back. “Look I’m not sorry for what I did, it was either him or us and I wasn’t going to let anyone die. However, I am sorry that I scared you.”

She turned around to face him, quickly seeing the tears in his eyes. “Do you have any idea what it felt like to see you get flung like nothing? That terrified the der’mo out of me, kotyonok. I could have lost you.”

“I know, but you didn’t.” She walked over to him, wrapping her arms around his waist. “Please try not to dwell on that, I’m fine, I’m here. I’m okay!”

He sighed and wrapped his arms around her, kissing the top of her head. “I can’t lose you!”

Skylar closed her eyes, softly sighing. She felt horrible for putting him through that, and knew it would be the same if the roles were reversed. As much as he wants to protect her, she does have a job to do out there and that’s making sure she comes back. No matter how reckless those decisions she makes are.

“Don’t put too much pressure on yourself, moya sladost’! I can’t lose you either.”

Alex chuckled and hugged her tighter. “I’ll try my best.”

She scoffed and pulled away, seeing that cheeky smile across his face. After the few hours they had, she wanted out of her uniform just for a few hours. They didn’t know what tomorrow would hold, all Eliza told them was to take the rest of the night off, which she happily obliged.

While she got some clothes from her bag, she heard the zipper to the tent, looking behind her to see that he was closing it. Fine by her, it gave them more privacy anyways.

She grabbed a pair of sweats and a random tee shirt, quickly changing into them. Alex did the same and a few minutes later she found him sitting next to her.

“I know you’re going to ask and I was terrified out there. Just like I was when I went out into the field for the first time in the desert.”

“You might have been terrified out there, but you did amazing, kotyonok! You never let that fear take hold of you, you kept a clear head through it all.”

She turned her head to face him, a small smile spreading across her face. “Thank you, moya sladost’! I really appreciate it. That’s the funny thing, no matter how terrified I am I always have a clear head. Maybe I’m just more terrified of dying.”

“You deserve it, kotyonok! It’s a good thing, it’s also a good thing that you’re afraid. You won’t get cocky and end up getting yourself killed.”

“Being reckless can.”

“Da, it can. From what I can tell and hear, you are only reckless when you want to protect the team. As much as it might frighten me, I can’t be mad at that.”

He watched as her eyes crinkle on the side as a smile began spreading across her face.

“I love you, moya sladost’!”

“I love you too, kotyonok!”

They both got up, getting the cots ready for bed. Skylar would much rather be sleeping in a bed, but a cot was better than the ground. So she’ll take it. She left her weapon on the table, feeling too tired to deal with it tonight. And snuggled into bed with Alex.

“Before we go to sleep I just want to say that I am sorry, truly sorry for terrifying you out there. I didn’t mean to!”

“I know, kotyonok. I know!”

He leaned forward until their lips met, and she smiled into it. Making him chuckle. Moments later, they were both out like a light.

Chapter Text

The few hours she slept was barely worth it, all she could see once her eyes closed were those things out there, the noises they made. It made getting some sleep not really worth it; then again she’s dreamt of worse before. And it helped having Alex right next to her.

Now the sun had risen, the birds chirping in the distance, the weather even quite warm for this time of year. It would be a nice day for her, if the destroyed and infected town wasn’t so close to them.

“Hey, kotyonok! I brought you some coffee.”

Skylar looked up from the rifle she was working on when she heard his voice, giving him a small smile. “Thank you, moya sladost’! Have you talked to any of the others yet?”

He handed her the coffee and sat down beside her on the cot. “I’ve only talked to Maxim so far, he was the only one in the food tent. He seems fine for the most part.”

She nodded her head and took a sip of her coffee, surprisingly how she likes it, though it could taste a bit better. “Ah, that’s good though. I’m going to check on Marius later, see how he’s doing.”

What’s out there might terrify her Marius was struck down and injured, that has to be more terrifying in it’s own right. Being alone in the dark, hearing the roaches nearby and hoping they don’t find you. She would like to know how his wound is and how he’s feeling, she couldn’t really tell how bad it was when they got to him last night and it was dark. Skylar just likes to know if her friends are alright.

"I think he’s still in the infirmary.”

“Okay.” She set the rifle to the side and took another sip of her coffee. “After last night I decided that I am now going to take my sniper with me and have a larger magazine for my M4. I didn’t like how I ran out of bullets and my sniper is a bit stronger than Timur’s.”

Alex chuckled, giving her a cheeky grin. “Don’t tell him that.”

“He already knows, I have a bolt action rifle that shoots .50 caliber bullets. They’ll sit your ass down no matter where I shoot you.” She laughed. “I was just expecting his sniper to do a bit more damage to that apex one last night, like killing it with a head shot.”

The smile quickly dissipated from his face after she said that. He may not be a sniper like Skylar or Timur were but he knew them well enough that they were a one shot to the head, like all weapons are. So Timur’s sniper should’ve taken that apex roach out in one shot, why the hell didn’t it? Could they really become more durable to head-shots? That wasn’t something he’d like to hear.

“I don’t like that. I don’t care where those things came from, they were human once; still are in a sense. A head-shot should automatically kill them.”

All she could do was nod in agreement. Nothing should survive a head-shot, especially if it’s coming from a sniper rifle. She grabbed hers that laid right next to her, taking the magazine out and looking at the bronze 3.91 inch bullet in her hand. It was a hell of a force to be reckoned with.

She grabbed one out of the magazine, fiddling with it between her fingers. “If this doesn’t take out an apex with a head-shot, then I’ll have some issues.”

Alex looked down at the almost four inch bullet between her fingertips. He’s seen what a .50 caliber bullet can do to someone, if you get shot anywhere in the upper region of your body you’re dead. There’s no way that apex could survive a shot to the dome with that.

“I’m sure you’ll probably get to test out your theory, kotyonok!”

“So am I.”

She placed the bullet back into the magazine and clipped it back into her sniper, setting it aside.

The coffee cup that sat between her hands was still steaming, must’ve been a fresh pot she thought. She took another sip, looking towards the flap to their tent. In their silence she could hear people running around, vehicles coming in and out and even a few helicopters. It brought her back to Afghanistan, back when she was at war and all the chaos that happened on makeshift bases. Or bases in general.

Skylar moved an inch or two closer to him, resting her head against his bicep. “Being here is starting to bring back memories. Being at war, being in these little makeshift bases. The worst part is, getting shot at, being ambushed, and losing people weren’t the worst things. I could deal with those things; the worst part was Henry.”

Being in this environment wasn’t helping. She was beginning to picture her life back when she was a marine, the way she wore a facade during the day to hide her pain, only to share a bed with a monster later that night. The things he would do to her, the bruises, the crying. She can still picture the smug look on his face when he’d walk into the tent, how his black hair was always neatly done and how his blue eyes sparkled during the day, but dulled into a more sinister look when his eyes locked on her.

Her hands began to shake, forcing her to put down her cup. Her heart thudded in her chest. Breathing became harder and harder as she tried to take in a breath. She needed to get out.

Without a word she stood up and left. Feeling the cool breeze ruffle her hair as she made her way to the farthest section away from everyone. Her stomach felt sick, almost on the verge of vomiting. The tears blurring her vision as she made her way through a few groups of people until she finally came to that wall she found a few nights ago.

Skylar pressed her palms onto the concrete wall, pushing against it to rock her body. Anything to help calm her. She blinked away the tears, looking onto the horizon of the late morning.

A hand gently grabbed her arm, pulling her around. “Skylar, are you alright?”

She shook her head, sliding down on to the ground. “I...I think I just had a panic attack.”

Jordan nodded and sat down beside her, wrapping his arm around her shoulder. He knew it wouldn’t be long before Alex found her, but he wanted to give her some comfort before then.

“It’ll be okay, just breathe. It’ll pass.”

As she brought her knees up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them her heart was still thudding. This hasn’t happened in years. Still, she can only repress her memories so much until they’re awoken again, like they were just now.

“Thank you!”

“I saw you moving past people a lot faster than you normally walk. I figured something was wrong.”

She chuckled, lifting her head up to look at him. “Well, you are right. Something was wrong, still is in a way.”

The sound of heavier footfalls came towards them, both of them knowing who they belonged to. She looked up, giving him a small smile as he sat down next to her, grabbing her hand and gave it a slight squeeze.

“I’ll let you two talk.”

Jordan got up and left, leaving them alone for their privacy. It did make Skylar happy that he even showed up at all, he helped calm her down a bit.

“I’m sorry I left so abruptly, it was a panic attack. I just needed to get out.”

“A panic attack? Was it triggered from what we’re fighting or something else?”

She let out a shaky breath, feeling those tears well in her eyes again. “It was something else. I was just sitting there then all of a sudden I looked at the tent flap in our tent. It made me think back to when I was a marine and the makeshift bases we would have on occasion. But all I could see was Henry coming into the tent. His black hair all neatly styled, his blue eyes turning sinister the moment they saw me.”

The tears started to slide down her cheeks and she curled in on herself. “The things he would do to me, the pain, the bruising. The bleeding. Pleading, begging for him to stop did absolutely fucking nothing, because he enjoyed it. I was his fuck toy to abuse all he wanted and I couldn’t do anything.”

When she didn’t hear a word from him she lifted her head, wiping the few tears from her eyes. That’s when she saw the anger in his, like the first when she told him about the abuse back in Maine. What she wasn’t expecting were the tears, the way his eyes started to glisten under the sun.

“Bleeding, kotyonok? He...until you bled?”

“Yeah.”

Alex blinked back his own tears, truly wondering what she saw in him to start dating after all she’s been through. “I can’t even imagine kotyonok!”

“It was beyond horrible. And it messed me up for the rest of my life.” She sighed, giving him a small smile as she moved closer to him. “I know you’re probably wondering why I chose you after all that I went through and if you told me four years ago I would be with someone, I’d laugh. I didn’t have to think twice about it, I feel happy with you, safe. How I felt being with you is how I felt when I was with Wyatt. Happy, safe and taken care of! The only downside is dealing with PTSD and I’m okay if you can’t deal with it from time to time.”

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders, giving the top of her head a kiss. “That’s not going to happen, kotyonok! If you have a panic attack, anxiety attack, nightmare; I don’t care what it is, I'll be there for you. I know you would do the same for me!”

“Yeah, you’re right. I would do the same for you!” Skylar sighed, leaning her head onto his bicep as she watched a bird fly through the sky. It felt nice getting some of these things off her chest, to have someone just listen. It was also difficult. “I’m lucky to have you!”

“I’m lucky to have you too, kotyonok!”

“That makes me happy!”

She gave him a small smile and whipped a few tears from her eyes. Having him in her life was a God send, she never expected to have someone be so kind, loving, protective, and cares about her well being ever again. She really was a lucky one!

“That makes me happy too!”

He gave her a cheeky smile that made her laugh. It was also nice to have someone try and put you in a better mood, and Alex always could.

Skylar wrapped her arms around her knees, and softly sighed. “It feels nice getting this stuff off my chest, even if it’s difficult.”

“Kotyonok, I’m just happy you feel comfortable enough even telling me. I know this can’t be easy, but I’m proud of you!”

She gave him a soft smile, eyes softening at his gaze. “It makes me feel a little better knowing that you know. I won’t have to put on a facade when things are bothering me, not like I used too. I know you’ll be there!”

“Of course I will, kotyonok! Nothing will change that.”

She softly smiled, leaning over and placed a soft kiss upon his lips. She was beginning to feel better, at least a little bit. Until the inevitable flashbacks come crawling back once again.

“Thank you, moya sladost’ for sitting with me!”

“You don’t need to thank me for that, you needed me and I’m going to be there.”

“I know, it’s just. I don’t know.”

Alex softly chuckled and stood up, reaching out a hand for her to grab. “Why don’t we head back to our tent and you can go back to your guns?”

Skylar reached up and grabbed his hand, easily being lifted up off the ground. “Okay. I’ll check on Marius later.”

The walk back to the tent was quiet, she expected as much. He knew she wouldn’t want to talk about personal things while they passed people. And she enjoyed the silence, the silence that was comfortable between them.

She walked into the tent with a soft sigh and went directly to her rifle. She picked it up and sat down, placing it back on her lap.

Alex took a seat next to her a moment later, handing her her cup of coffee.

“Oh, right. I forgot about that.” she softly chuckled

She took a sip, expecting for it to be lukewarm or close to it. It wasn’t, it was still pretty hot and drinkable. Which made her happy, she was looking forward to that cup of coffee.

He picked up his off the ground and took a sip, then placed it back down. “Kotyonok, do you want to take the night off?”

“What do you mean?”

“When I ran into Maxim, he said that Eliza already had another mission planned for tonight. I don’t know who’s going, if you don’t want to go. I can talk to her about it.”

She took another sip and sighed. “I would love to take the night off, but that doesn’t seem fair moya sladost’. If I have to go, I’ll go. If I don’t need to, I’ll stay.”

“Are you sure? I could tell how freaked out you were last night.”

“Yeah, I’m sure.”

“Okay.”

Skylar set down her coffee and grabbed her sniper, putting it away in its case and slid it under her cot. She was hoping Eliza wouldn’t need her tonight and she could adjust to everything going on for one night away from the action. If she has to go, she will. She wouldn’t feel comfortable getting a free pass while everyone else has to go. If she can endure what she did by the hands of Henry, then she will endure what this virus has in store.

She grabbed her cup of coffee and stood up. “I’m gonna go check on Marius. I’ll be back in a few.”

“Okay, I’ll check on the other comrades while you’re gone. See how they’re holding up.”

“Alright, I shouldn’t be more than an hour.”

After a quick kiss they went their separate ways. Skylar headed towards the infirmary, hoping he’d still be there. If not then she would check his tent or his chopper, which were two plausible places he could be.

When she came to the infirmary she saw him in one of the beds with a tablet in hand. Probably going over some things for his gadgets. “Hey, so what’s the damage?”

“Lost a bit of blood and needed some stitches. Otherwise I am fine.”

He didn’t look up from the tablet in hand. That was something she was already expecting once she saw it. Marius could be quite the workaholic when he wants to be.

“That’s good. At least it’s not serious, when can you get back into the action?”

“Whenever Doc says.” Skylar nodded her head and then met his eyes. “How are you holding up?”

“About as good as I can. It helps that I have friends here, and of course Alex!”

“I’m glad! Dealing with stuff can be hard, especially with things we’re not used to.”

“That’s very true! It’s nice having people around that care and that can be a listening ear.”

“That is also true!”

Skylar laughed and took a sip of her coffee. “Well, I’ll let you get back to whatever you’re doing. I’m glad that you’re doing alright.”

“You too, Skylar!”

She gave him a soft smile before she left the infirmary. When she got outside a cool breeze ruffled her hair, sending a few strands falling into her face. Now all she needed to do was find Alex, Maxim and Timur. The first place to look would be their tent.

As she walked she slowly sipped on her coffee so as to not spill it. She didn’t want a repeat of what happened a few years ago. It was still embarrassing to think about.

It didn’t take long for her to make it to their tent and before she even stepped inside she could hear all three of them talking about something. She couldn’t fully understand since they were talking in Russian and she only knew a few words.

“What are you boys talking about?”

They all looked towards her when they heard her voice, and Alex’s face lit up, making her smile.

“Kotyonok! I wasn’t expecting to see you so soon.”

“Marius was busy with something, I didn’t want to keep him from whatever he was doing.”

“How is he?”

“Fine. Lost a bit of blood and had to get some stitches, should be back out into the action soon.”

“That’s good. We were just talking about what was going on and how much it’s complete bullshit.”

Skylar snorted and nodded her head in agreement. What they were dealing with is bullshit. Who would create a virus like that? Couldn’t it just have made people sick and not mutants? Dealing with the sick is a lot easier than dealing with the infected they’ve been dealing with.

“No argument there.” She took another sip of coffee and sighed. “Who would’ve thought that the new year would begin like this.”

“I didn’t.” said Maxim “I thought it would be the same old stuff. Dealing with the White Masks.”

“I wish it was. This sucks.”

They all nodded their heads in agreement, she even heard a small hum from Timur. It’s safe to say no one wanted to be there, this wasn’t something they were used too or was accustomed to. That was also something they all had in common as well. They haven’t dealt with something like this before, it was new to them all. Which made Skylar feel a bit better. Being the youngest within Rainbow has its ups and downs, but knowing she actually wasn’t alone felt nice.

“How are you holding up Sky?”

“On the outside I’m fine, on the inside I’m freaking out. It’s exactly how I felt when I was sent to Afghanistan.”

Maxim nodded his head. “I understand that, we’ve all had our fears and worries when we entered the military or police. Through the years those same emotions are still there when it comes to new things.”

“Yeah,” She looked down at the drink in hand, a small smirk forming on her lips. “I wish they weren’t. Or maybe I don’t have that much experience to push those emotions aside.”

“It takes years of practice, kotyonok. Over time it’ll be the same for you.”

“I know, maybe I’m just being impatient.”

“Impatient?” chuckles Timur. “You’re the most patient person I’ve met. I can’t see you being impatient.”

“I can!”

“Oh shush, moya sladost’!”

Alex crossed his arms and laughed, it made her shake her head in return.

“Well, while your boyfriend seems pleased with himself. I wouldn’t want you to become used to those emotions. It shows how much you’ve been through, and you’re still very young.”

Skylar pursed her lips, softly sighing through her nose. “I have been through a lot, Maxim, just not in this way.”

She glanced over at Alex, seeing the cheeky smile on his face turn sour. Maxim and Timur may somewhat know about her abuse, but not like them and especially not like the person who went through it. Maybe, just maybe some emotions will always be there. No matter what. You’ll never learn to push them aside, they’ll be there like the annoyance of an itch that won’t go away no matter how much you scratch it.

“Still stands.”

She chuckled and took a sip of her coffee, scrunching her face at the colder beverage in her hands. “My coffee is getting cold. I don’t like it.”

They all chuckled at the frown on her face and Alex walked over to her and grabbed the cup from her hands.

“I’ll get you another cup, kotyonok!”

“Thank you, moya sladost’!” As he left the tent she turned her attention back to Maxim and Timur. “How long do you think we’ll be here?”

“Only time will tell. If I had to make a guess, probably a while.”

Skylar huffed, sending strands of hair flying from her face and sat down in a chair. Deep down she already knew they would be here awhile, it was obvious. They need to contain the virus and make sure they can figure out how to either make a cure or vaccine. Still there’s a few dozen specialists that work within Rainbow, can’t they just do shifts? A week here and a week back at base? Seems better than having a select few just staying there. Anything can happen.

“I know you’re right, but it still sucks.”

“Things will be fine.” said Timur as he grasped her shoulder. “Besides Alex won’t let anything happen to you anyways.”

She gave him a soft smile and looked away, fiddling with her hands. “I know he wants to protect me and I’m so grateful for it! They’ll come a day where he won’t be able to and we all know how much that’ll hurt him.”

Timur’s hand slowly slid off her shoulder and the room went quiet. Skylar has only known Alex six months while they’ve known him for years and they both knew she already understood him. He just wants to protect the people he loves, that’s just the kind of guy he is.

“We don’t need to tell him that.”

She laughed and looked back up, meeting his gaze. “Yeah, I think that’s the smart choice.”

“I think so too.”

Both Maxim and Timur chuckled which in turn made her laugh even more.

“What’s so funny?”

They all turned to him as he walked into the tent, coffee in hand. He walked over to Skylar and handed her it.

“Thank you!” She took a sip and hummed in delight. “Oh nothing, Timur just made a stupid joke.”

“I don’t want to know.”

She snorted and took another sip, feeling the warmth roll down her body. And with the lack of sleep, it was nice to have some caffeine get into her system. She took another sip, even though the coffee wasn’t that great it was hitting the spot.

“So what now?”

Alex shrugged his shoulders and crossed his arms, he sure fire way of telling her ‘I have no clue it’s up to you, kotyonok’. She didn’t mind and in the predicament they were in, they’re really wasn’t much to do.

“You choose, kotyonok.”

“I knew you were going to say that,” she chuckles. “I have no clue because what I want to do we can’t.”

“What would that be?”

“To leave.”

He softly sighed through his nose and let his arms fall down to his side, then grabbed one of her hands. “I have an idea, we’ll see you later.”

Skylar gave Timur and Maxim a confused look as she was dragged out of the tent by him. She couldn’t for the life of her figure out what he was planning, all she hopes is that it’s gonna be good.

“Where are we going?”

“Back to our tent?”

“Oh?”

“No, it’s not that.”

She let out a whine and tried to take another sip of coffee but couldn’t due to her moving. A part of her was thinking it was going to be sex, that would take her mind off of what’s going on for a little bit. There wasn’t any way they could savor it, too many people nearby and anyone could walk in at any time.

“That was my first guest. Now I’m curious.”

They made it back to their tent a moment later and the first thing she did was take a sip of her coffee. She was becoming very fond of that drink and will probably be upset once it’s gone. It brought her back to her teenage years, where she would drink a lot of coffee.

She walked over to her cot and sat down, looking over to him with curiosity. “So, what do you have planned, moya sladost’?”

He walked over to his cot and sat down next to her, looking her over with a soft gaze. It sent a small shiver down her spine.

“To talk.”

“Talk?”

“I know it’s nothing special, and we talk everyday. I…”

“Does this have to do about what happened earlier? The panic attack?”

“Yes and no. After hearing about what he did to you, I need to know if you’re okay with this. With all of this?”

She laughed and leaned over to place a kiss upon his lips. “Alex, I have never been more than okay since I got with you. Yes I will always have those bad days, but that doesn’t negate how I feel for you or the life that I have now with you in it.”

A small smile began to form on his face and he took her hand into his. “I just don’t want to cross a line, especially if we’re in bed.”

She placed her cup on the ground and placed her other hand on top of his, gazing into his blue eyes. “You have been the most gentle with me during sex since we’ve started having sex. You will never cross a line, I don’t think that’s in you.”

“Accidents happen, kotyonok.”

“You’re really worked up over this aren’t you, moya sladost’?”

“Da. As soon as you told me he raped you until you bled, I just needed to know.”

“Alex, moya sladost’. You will never be Henry, because Henry was a sadistic fuck who took pleasure in seeing me hurt. You are the complete opposite of him, you get upset if I’m hurt or sad. You are a better man than he will ever be!”

“I just care about you, a lot. I don’t want to hurt you and I know my size might cause some problems sometimes.” He gave her a small smile, then leaned forward and placed a more passionate kiss upon her lips. “Thank you, for easing my worries, kotyonok!”

“I know dating a survivor of abuse can be difficult, you don’t know what can trigger a flashback or something else. In a way I don’t even know, it’s sporadic. But I am happy I could ease some of that worry, moya sladost’!”

“Actually it’s quite easy. I’m just glad you’re open with me about it.”

“That’s because you make it easy opening up to you. You let me trust you on my own terms and in the end it worked out very well.”

“I think it did too.”

She chuckled and moved closer to him, linking their arms together and resting her head on his arm. Being single for the past four years wasn’t hard, it was rather easy. She had more time to herself, more time to paint and read and binge watch tv shows. But she would be lying if she said she wouldn’t get lonely from time to time, wishing she did have that significant other to do stuff with.

There was a chance for that back when she lived in Los Angeles,a guy she worked with. He was cute, funny and even seemed really nice. Her fear kept her away from that, from him. It was too soon after Henry, she wasn’t ready, not by a long shot. And now, as she sits intertwined with Alex, her boyfriend. It really has hit her recently how much she missed being with someone.

“You know how when you were a teenager and you would get a boyfriend or girlfriend and want to spend every minute with them? That’s how I feel with you.”

“Really?” he chuckled.

‘Yeah. Finally being with someone after four years has made me all giddy. It never really hit me how much I missed being with someone until I was with someone.”

“You went through hell, kotyonok. It makes sense on why you stayed single for so long.”

“I know.” She moved her head off his arm and took the last sip of her coffee and set the cup on the floor. “I wasn’t ready to date, not even close. It took me four years to slightly heal. At least enough to give dating another go.”

“And how is dating going for you?”

“I think it’s going okay.” The look on his face made her laugh, and a cheeky grin fell upon her face. “I’m joking. It’s going really, really well.”

“I was going to say I know you’re lying. I know you’re having a good time, it shows all over your face.”

“At this very moment I’m not having a good time. Overall, yes I am.”

He scoffed and gave her a side eye. “No one is having a good time right now.”

His radio went off mere seconds later. It was Eliza asking for him, James, Timur, and Sebastien. Once the radio stopped they both gave each other a worried look. They both knew what was coming, another mission and by the sounds of it, they won’t be together for it.

“I guess you were right, another mission.”

“Da, but without you.”

“It was bound to happen at some point. Why don’t you go see what it’s about, I’ll be here.”

She knew Eliza wouldn’t like it if he was late and it was best to get things over with.

Alex could hear the sadness in her voice, it pulled at his heart strings. He reached out, grabbing both of her arms, pulling her closer. “I’ll be back as soon as I can!”

“Okay.”

He leaned down, placing one last kiss on her lips before he left the tent.

Skylar sighed as he left, rubbing the back of her neck. This wasn’t what she was hoping for, now she’s going to be stuck alone for god knows how long until he gets back. It was a good thing that Maxim and even Jordan were staying behind, it gives her a better piece of mind knowing she has someone to go to if things get bad. Even if it won’t be the same. It was nice having friends close by.

She grabbed her cup from the ground and placed it on the table nearby. Those negative thoughts began flooding her mind, like what if something happens to him out there and she’s not there to help. Losing him was a thousand times worse than actually dealing with the infected.

She went back to her cot and sat down, looking over to his. Seeing the blankets nicely folded at the foot of the cot. She found it funny how somethings really do stay with you post military. Like neatly folding your clothes and having your bed neatly made, or calling people ‘sir’ and ‘ma’am’. But she stopped with the sirs and ma’ams unless it was higher ups she was talking too. It felt awkward to her.

The sound of a few helicopters flying overhead forced her to look at the tent's entrance. Either more people were coming back from their missions or starting theirs. Jordan mentioned multiple groups were out there, which was the reason they couldn’t call in any predator missiles. She wished they could’ve, it would’ve made things a lot easier.

Then again there’s probably survivors in the city, people held up somewhere. And they don’t want to destroy any valuable intel about this whole situation.

But what if they do break through the barricade? Somehow they couldn’t contain it and things just got worse, and like Eliza said ‘the world would be in for one long night’.

“God Skylar, stop thinking like that.”

She scrubbed a hand down her face and sighed, looking over at her bag. It could be a while before he comes back and she didn’t know what to do. Her mind was all over the place to work on any of her art, she wouldn’t be able to concentrate on it. Maybe calling her sister would help.

She leaned over, grabbing her bag and pulled out her phone. New Mexico was only a few hours behind Maine and it was almost noon now, so Chloe would definitely be up.

As she let the phone ring she picked at the mattress below her. Hoping Chloe wasn’t busy. When it went to voicemail she sighed and hung up. She could be at work or an appointment, she did have a busy life after all. Just like her.

With calling her sister being a bust she grabbed her sketchbook and pens from her bag. Maybe doodling would help occupy her mind until Alex got back.

She opened up to a random page in the book and grabbed a pen, clicking it a few times.

As she looked at the blank page, her mind was blank. For someone who could draw anything at a moment's notice she couldn’t think of anything. Her mind is too occupied by other things.

She sighed, more annoyingly this time and tossed the sketch book aside. If she was feeling this bad and he was only at a briefing, it was going to be a lot worse when he’s gone.

Without much to do she laid down on her cot, looking up at the army green tent above her. She wished she was going with him instead of staying here, it would make her feel better. At least Timur would be with him, that made her feel a sliver at ease about the whole thing.

Skylar didn’t know how long it was she was lying there and if she was correct she even fell asleep for a while. Because when she awoke she heard the tent flap opening. She sat up, rubbing her eyes as she saw him walk towards her.

“Did you fall asleep, kotyonok?”

“I think so.” she chuckled. “So what’s going on?”

“Gustave ended up convincing Eliza to rescue a Doctor Mackintosh from the local hospital. That’s what's happening tonight.”

She nodded her head and looked away, down at her hands. “Just, please be safe!”

“Of course! You don’t have to worry about me, kotyonok. I’ll be fine.”

“I know,” She turned her head, giving him a small smile. “I just worry.”

“Well, don’t worry yourself sick now. It won’t do you any good.”

“Oh shush.” she laughed. “So what do you want to do before you inevitably have to go?”

He softly sighed through his nose, giving her question a little thought. There really wasn’t much to do here, they couldn’t leave and they didn’t have any privacy for other things.

He turned his attention back to her, a small smirk on his face. “Just spend time with you before I go. That’s what I want to do!”

“I think I’m okay with that."
xXx

The next few hours flew by and the next thing Skylar knew it was time for him to go. And the sadness inside her began to rise.

As they slowly walked over to where the others were, Alex in full gear, it felt weird. Deep down she feels the need to go to be with him, to make sure he’ll be okay, but she was going to do her best to not worry about him. Like he said earlier, even if that was a big fat lie. She’ll worry because that’s what she does, worry about the people she cares about.

When the others came into view by the chopper, she sighed.

“Wow, you two made with about a minute to spare.” said Timur

She glared over at him and turned to Alex, her face softening upon his gaze. “Just, come back to me!”

His face softened and he grabbed both of her hand, rubbing his thumb over her knuckles as a way to help ease her nerves. “Always, kotyonok!”

“I love you, moya sladost’! Be safe.”

“I love you too, kotyonok!” He leaned down, giving her one last kiss before departing. “I will.”

She watched him as he walked over to the chopper, getting on after Timur and took a seat by the door. As nervous as she was, she knew deep down he would be fine. He’s been in the military longer than she has and thankfully the infected couldn’t use weapons. As long as they don’t get the jump on him, he should be fine.

As the rotors of the chopper turned on it sent a gust of wind in her direction. She watched as it rose higher and higher, seeing it head towards the city. Once it was out of view she quietly sighed and decided to walk around the base before heading back to her tent. She needed to clear her mind somehow.

The base was still busy as hell, no surprise there, they still had a lot going on and needed to be on alert.
She was passing a bunch of crates filled with supplies when a hand wrapped around her waist and pulled her behind a nearby tent. She turned around expecting to yell at Jordan for scaring and touching her without consent. That wasn’t the case, her heart ceased up, pulse rapidly climbing.

His black hair was neatly styled, like always. Blue eyes piercing into her hazel ones. Hand beginning to tremble as she stared up at him. The fear resurfacing.

“Henry?”

Chapter Text

Her heart was beating like thunder, a lump appearing in her throat. She wanted to run, run far away and never look back. 

Four year of running from him, trying and failing to forget about him. Forget about what he did to her, now he stands a mere foot in front of her, his hand grasping her wrist. How she wished Alex was with her right now. 

“How’d you find me?” 

“Does it matter?” 

“Maybe.” 

He let go of her wrist and scoffed; then started walking around her, like a shark circling its prey. Her body was still tense as she felt his eyes on her, and the tears welling in her eyes. The last thing she wanted to do was show weakness, things were already bad, she didn’t need to make it worse. She took a deep breath and blinked them away. 

“You’ve got some nerve running away like that, while I was gone.” He stopped right behind her, his right hand grabbing her throat, “The thing that pisses me off the most? You were pregnant.” 

Her heart sank into her stomach and he let her go, walking in front of her. “How’d you find out? No one knew besides the doctor.” 

“I have my ways.” He eyed her up and down and crossed his arms. “Now, you better tell me where my kid is or I’m going to make you wish you were never born.” 

“Do you think I would tell you? After everything you did to me, what you put me through?” 

She couldn’t get another word in before her palms hit the concrete and a burning, stinging sensation was felt on her cheeks and jaw. She slowly moved around to face him, seeing the pure anger in his eyes. 

“That was a warning Jackson.” 

“The pregnancy wasn’t viable, I never had our kid.” 

He crouched down in front of her, grabbing his knife from the sheath. “I don’t believe you.” 

“It’s true. That ambush put too much stress on my body, the baby couldn’t handle it.” 

“So it’s your fault?” 

She felt another hit, this time tasting blood. Skylar didn’t want to fight, not with him, it didn’t matter anyways. 

“Hey, keep your damn hands off her!” 

Henry looked up annoyed and quite angry, then stood up. “What I do with my girlfriend is my business, fuck off pal.” 

“Maxim, check on her.” 

He nodded and glared at Henry as he crouched next to Skylar. “Come on, you’re okay now.” 

She nodded and stood up, keeping close to Maxim as Jordan talked with Henry. She was extremely happy that they showed up when they did. 

“Girlfriend? Ah, you must be the abusive piece of shit Skylar told me about.” He looked him up and down, then crossed his arms. “You’re lucky it was me and Maxim who found you, if her actual boyfriend was here right now, I’d bet good money your ass would be getting a good beating.”

Henry turned around to look at her, his anger growing more. “Boyfriend? I thought I had you on a tight leash Skylar, I guess I was wrong. I won’t make that mistake again.” 

“You’re right, you won’t.” Skylar watched as Jordan’s hand grabbed his shoulder and forced him around, the other hitting him in the jaw. “Because you’re never placing a single finger on her again.” 

If she didn’t feel like her legs were going to collapse she would’ve thought the whole situation interesting. But all she wanted to do was leave and get far away from him. So she turned to Maxim who seemed all but ready to jump in if there was a fight about to break out. 

“I would like to go.” 

“Okay.” He motioned for her to walk first, eyeing Henry. “Jordan, I’m taking her back to the tent.” 

“I’ll come with you, this asshole ain’t worth it.” 

As they walked back to the tent Skylar couldn’t stop shaking, her legs felt so wobbly she was sure she would collapse onto the ground. Thankfully, both Maxim and Jordan kept close to her. 

Once they got back to the tent she sat down at the nearest chair, placed her face in her hands and began to cry. The tears streamed down her cheeks like a waterfall. 

“Jordan, why don’t you get some medical supplies to help patch her up? I’ll stay with her.” 

“Okay, I’ll be back in a moment.” 

As Jordan left, Maxim crouched down in front of her, trying to get a better look. He didn’t know what to say, he just felt sad. She didn’t deserve that, not by a long shot and he knew she was afraid. 

“Sky, no one will ever let him lay a hand on you again. I'll give you my word!” 

She removed her face from her hands, wiping the tears from her eyes. “I’m so scared, Maxim. He found me and I, I don’t know what to do.” 

The fear in her voice made his heart hurt for her, he’s never seen her so scared and terrified before, it made her seem like a different person. And now he sees how good and healthy her relationship with Alex is. 

“Right now just breathe. Try and calm yourself and we’ll figure something out.” 

Skylar nodded her head and sniffled, this was turning out to be the worst operation she’s ever been on. By a long shot. She just wanted Alex, that’s all she wants, to be safe and happy in his arms. Not crying in a tent after being assaulted by her ex. 

“I wanted to say thank you for showing up when you did, this could’ve been a whole lot worse if you guys didn’t.” 

“We were worried about you, we knew how hard it must be having Alex gone right now and we wanted to check up on you.” 

A small smile started to form on her face, she was so incredibly thankful to have such amazing friends. “I’m happy to have you guys as friends!” 

He mirrored her smile and grabbed a chair to sit down, it was better than staying crouched until Jordan came back. “What are friends for?” 

Skylar chuckled, she was starting to calm down but the shaking still persisted. That wouldn’t go away for a while, not with knowing he was nearby. She didn’t understand how he got in here, the Marines aren’t involved, it’s the Army. But she knows him well enough that he probably swindled his way in somehow. 

She looked down at her palms, seeing the few small cuts from hitting the ground. And that’s when she noticed the stinging sensation in them; her emotions were all over the place she didn’t even realize it. 

Jordan returned seconds later with some supplies, going right over to her. 

“Sorry for the wait, Doc has a few patients.” He gently grabbed her chin and turned her head to the right to get a better look at her eye. “You’re starting to bruise.” 

“Yeah, wouldn’t be the first time.” 

His face softened as he grabbed the ice pack and handed it to her. “Here, for the swelling.” 

“Thanks.” 

“Can I see your hand?” 

She handed him her hand and sighed, she couldn’t wait to see her face after. Knowing it would be the same as all the times before, a black eye. The thing she worried about the most is when Alex comes back and sees her face, she knows he’s going to flip. 

“So, how much did you hear?” They were both quiet for a moment, glancing at each other. She knew they at least heard the baby portion, considering they came seconds after. “I don’t mind that you did. I was pregnant at one point, ended in a miscarriage, so what?” 

“So what?” He finished bandaging her hand and placed the rest of the bandages on the table. “Sky, your life could be a lot different right now. You could be a mom!” 

“Do you think I don’t know that, Jordan?” She sighed and took the ice pack off her eye, looking down at it. “I’m sorry, but you have no idea how terrifying it is to be in a relationship like that and then to find out you’re pregnant.” 

The only issue is she always thought about that. What her life would’ve been like with that child, how different it would’ve been. Would she have taken that FBI job or would she have stayed in Maine? If she stayed in Maine there was a less chance of her joining Rainbow and less chance of her meeting Alex. And that she doesn’t like to think about. 

“No, I’m sorry. It’s just weird to think about, you being a mom.” 

“Tell me about it.” she chuckled. She set aside the ice pack and gave him her other hand to patch up. “Hey, we’re going to be matching now. We both messed up our hands.” 

Jordan laughed and shook his head. “Yeah, well at least yours will heal in due time.” 

“That’s true.” She looked down at her hands and back at his. “What happened to yours, if you don’t mind me asking?” 

“Chemical burn. A bad one, obviously.” 

“Ouch.” 

“Big ouch.” He secured the bandage and smiled over at her. “Done.” 

“Thanks.” 

She rubbed her hand, glancing over at Maxim who was pretty damn quiet for the last few minutes. Not that she minded he was a quiet person to begin with, this just felt different. It felt awkward, and she was starting to get why. 

“Maxim, are you okay?” 

“Yeah, why?” 

“You’re quiet, unusually quiet. It feels awkward.” 

He looked away momentarily, rubbing the back of his neck. “This whole situation is tough. I’m so used to seeing the quiet, sometimes cocky Skylar that I know, the one who cracks jokes from time to time, the one who speaks her mind. This is a whole new Skylar.” 

“Just for the time being.” She gave him a small smile, then looked over at Jordan. “Did you tell Eliza?” 

“No, she’s out on the mission.” 

“Wait, if Eliza is gone and you’re here, who's in command?” 

“Ying.” 

“Good choice.” 

“I thought so too.” 

Skylar grabbed her phone from her pocket and flipped on the camera to get a better look at her face. And like her intuition thought, she bruised exactly like she did in the past. The dark purple mixed with black covered most of her eye and a bit of her temple, swelling wasn’t bad which made her a tiny bit happy. Too bad she didn’t have any cover up. 

“Can we figure out how he even got here? And figure out a way to get him off this base.” 

“Yes we can, but I’m not leaving you until Alex gets back.” 

“Jordan go, I’ll stay with her.” 

“Are you sure? I don’t mind staying with her.” 

Skylar rolled her eyes. As sweet as it was that he didn’t want to leave her until Alex came back he really needed to go back to being in command. Eliza was probably confused why he wasn’t there. And it would just be better all around. 

“Jordan, I’ll be fine with Maxim. You can go.” 

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah.” 

“Okay, if you need me you know where to find me.” 

“Okay.” 

Jordan left after that, leaving her and Maxim alone in her tent. She was just happy someone was with her now, Henry wasn’t to be trusted by far and she’s one hundred percent sure he would’ve found a way into her tent. And that thought was a nightmare. 

“Alex is going to freak when he comes back.” 

“He’s going to be on a rampage when he finds out what happened to you.” 

“I’m going to see a side of him that I don’t think I want to see.” 

Alex has always been so upbeat and happy, the only time she’s seen him upset or angry was when she told him about her past and when they ran into his sister. This, this will be a different kind of anger. An anger in him Skylar is not so sure she’s ready to see. 

Maxim’s face softened and he gave her a small smile. “He loves you, a lot Skylar, he doesn’t want anything to happen to you. And truthfully? His anger will be justified.” 

“I know it will, I do. I’m just not used to seeing him full on angry.” 

“I’ve never seen him this angry either, this will be new to the both of us.” 

Maxim has been working with Alex for three years now, way longer than she’s been with him. And he’s never seen him angry, really angry, even with all the missions they’ve gone out on. Alex was never the one to get angry, at least not easily. He only chose what got him angry and this will be one of them. 

“The only time I saw him angry was when I told him about Henry and some things that happened.” 

“I’m sure he wasn’t happy about that.” 

“I thought he was going to punch a hole in my wall.” she laughed. “If he did he would definitely be fixing it.”

“That’s a sight to see, Alex getting so angry he punches a hole in a wall.” 

“Then gets upset because he didn’t mean to get so angry in front of me.” 

She chuckled and looked down at her hands. She admired that about him, that he took what happened to her very seriously. And that he was always quick to apologize for his sudden outburst, even if they were never towards her. He just hated what happened to her. That, she can’t blame him for. 

“I’m, I’m glad you have Alex. After what happened, he really does treat you right.” 

For the first time in the past half hour she fully smiled, eyes crinkling at the side. “He treats me like a queen. I’ve never been in a relationship like this, and I’m so happy to have him!” 

“I know he feels the same for you!” 

The hours ticked by slowly, agonizingly slowly. All she wanted was for Alex to be back, to tell her that everything will be okay and to wrap his arms around her and kiss her forehead. That’s all she wanted right now, and for Henry to not be here. 

She still had no idea how he found her, she’s barely told anyone about him. Yet he shows up out of the blue, at a place that only certain people access too. Like he says, he has his ways and there was no doubt in her mind that his dad swindled him in. 

As her mind reeled with thoughts, the swelling on her eye did go down thanks to the ice pack. It was still a little bit swollen, but nothing to hinder her eyesight. She would still be fine for any other mission that comes along. 

Skylar perked up when she heard a chopper above head, a smile gracing her face. “Alex!” 

She quickly stood up, Maxim following suit and followed her out the tent. He didn’t need to, but he did because he didn’t trust Henry, not by a long shot. He could be hiding in any dark corner waiting for her to walk by. And he promised her that no one was going to let him touch her again, that was a promise he was going to keep. 

She walked quickly to the landing pad, Maxim following behind. Her heart was beating rapidly with excitement, it felt like forever since she last saw him and she couldn’t wait to see his face. But when he came into view with Eliza and Jordan, her smile started to fade. Remembering that he was about to see her black eye. 

She sighed and slowly walked over to them, feeling like a little kid budding into a conversation. When she locked eyes with Alex, his face went white and he walked over to her. 

“Kotyonok, what the hell happened?” His thumb went to the dip of her chin and he gently moved her head to get a better look. “You were fine when I left.” 

“Not here.” 

He let her go and nodded his head. All five of them headed towards the command tent where they would get the most privacy. She leaned against the table in the middle and was soon surrounded by the other four. Jordan and Maxim gave her a small smile and urged her to go on. 

“Henry’s here.” 

“What?!” Alex dropped his helmet and clenched his fists. “He did this to you? I’m going to naveshat’ pizdyley, where is he?” 

No one had time to answer before he left the tent in search of him. A sudden fear rose in Skylar and she looked over to Maxim with pleading eyes. He didn’t say anything, he just gave her hand a squeeze and left the tent. 

Chapter Text

As Alex left the tent all he saw was red. The only thing he wanted to do was find Henry and beat the ever living crap out of him.

The sheer audacity he had for hitting her, hell for even looking in her direction, for talking to her. He put her through hell, did things to her that he doesn’t even want to think about. And he comes back, out of the damn blue and does that? He should’ve been here, he shouldn’t have left. Skylar would be fine if he stayed, now she has a black eye and is no doubt scared.

He stopped, looking around him at all the soldiers, trying to find him. Most were in National Guard uniforms, no signs of a guy wearing a Marine one. Then again, was he even in one?

He sighed and pulled off his balaclava, twisting it in his fists. Everything around him seemed to have spun up, like he was stuck in place, just standing there. Letting the world carry on without him.

“Hey, I know you’re angry and want to kill him.” Alex turned at that familiar Russian accent to see Maxim standing next to him. “Why don’t you put your anger away right now and go back to your terrified girlfriend.”

The sound of Skylar’s name snapped him back and he suddenly felt guilty for leaving like that. He knew he should’ve stayed to begin with.

“I...Shit.”

Maxim shook his head and squeezed his shoulder. “I can’t blame you for how you feel right now. But I think Skylar is more important than you going to jail for manslaughter.”

“I wasn’t thinking.”

“I could tell.”

They both headed back to the tent in silence, Alex feeling terrible for leaving in such a state knowing Skylar needed him. He was dumb and let anger get the best of him.

When he walked into the tent he went straight over to her. “I’m so sorry!”

“I know.” She gave him a small smile and sighed. “Eliza and Jordan are going to figure out what to do regarding Henry. I told them all they needed to know and we’re free to go back to our tent.”

“Okay.”

They both left the tent and headed for theirs; Skylar automatically linking their arms together and resting her head on his bicep. It felt so nice to have him back and she felt so happy she could cry. But she was also feeling a bit more at ease, her fear was slowly dwindling now that he’s back. She knows he’ll protect her.

Once they came to the tent he let her go in first, and then he closed the tent flaps fully, giving them more privacy.

“Oh, kotyonok.” He cupped her cheeks and leaned down to kiss her. “I hate seeing you like this.”

“The sad thing is I looked in the mirror, saw the bruise and I felt nothing.” She pulled away, tears welling in her eyes. “I’ve been hit by him so many times that I’ve become numb to it.”

Skylar wipes her eyes and sits down on the cot, it shouldn’t have gotten that far, she shouldn’t be feeling numb by getting hit by him. She shouldn’t be used to it.

His face softened and he walked over, sitting down next to her. His heart hurt for her and he hated seeing her right eye black and blue, if only he could actually do something for her. More than just being there, make her problem go away, permanently.

He kissed the top of her head and sighed. “I wish I could do more for you, kotyonok!”

“No, just being here is enough!” She moved her head and gave him a small smile and grabbed his hand. “Like all the times before.”

Alex mirrored her smile and kissed her forehead, his lips lingering a moment more. He’ll take her word and not do anything drastic, even if every fiber of his being wants to murder Henry. He won’t.

“I just wished I was here, if I was he wouldn’t have hit you.”

“No, if you were here he would’ve made it worse. That’s how he is.”

“Isn’t he charming.”

Skylar scoffed and rolled her eyes. “He was when we first met, which sucks. His facade was someone I could easily go for, sweet, funny, kind. Who knew he was a complete asshole.”

“No one until it was too late.”

She looked down at her hands, noticing the shaking in them. Has she been shaking this whole time and never noticed? If she was, he would’ve noticed by now, wouldn’t he? Even under all his emotions.

She shrugged, not really thinking much of it. “Ain’t that the truth. He thinks I had the baby and didn’t believe me when I said I miscarried.”

“Of course he wouldn’t, kotyonok. If you did have his kid he would have a means to be a part of your life again. You ruined that for him.”

“I’m glad I did. A year with him ruined my life forever, I wouldn’t be able to go through that again, especially with a kid.” She looked up at him and sighed. “If I did have his kid, he would’ve made it ten times worse because I ran.”

She looked back down at her hands, clenching them into fists. She could already picture what would’ve happened if he weaseled his way back into her life if they had a kid together. What she dealt with for a year would’ve been cranked up ten fold, and she’s sure she wouldn’t be able to survive it.

“Kotyonok, you’re sounding like I wouldn’t be in the picture? I wouldn’t let him touch you, it doesn’t matter if we were together or not.” He grabbed her hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. “A lot of other people would help you too, look what Eliza and Jordan are doing now.”

“I know, I know.” She stood up and began pacing back and forth in the tent. He watched her in silence, not really knowing what to say nor do, but it didn’t take her long to stop in her tracks and turn to him. “He found me, moya sladost’. I don’t know how, but he did and the thought of him trying to weasel his way into Rainbow terrifies me.”

“Rainbow?” Skylar’s heart sank to her stomach once she heard his voice and both her and Alex watched the zipper of the tent move and in walked Henry. “That’s where you’re working, it makes more sense why you’re in Hereford. There’s no way you could’ve joined the SAS.”

Alex began to move in front of her, giving more space between her and him. “I take it your Henry?”

Henry placed his hands in his pockets and rocked on his heels. “And I take it you’re the boyfriend?” He looked over at Skylar and back at him. “A Russian, really? Didn’t take you for a communist.”

“Hey! You do know not all Russians are communists, you dense fucker.”

“Watch your mouth Jackson, you know what I can do to you.”

Alex scoffed and before anyone could get a word in, he punched him. And by the cracking sound she heard, it was hard. “Because I promised her I wouldn’t murder you, I’d leave if I were you.”

Henry lost his footing by the punch and he stumbled back, chuckling. When he got his footing back he moved his jaw side to side, then smirked. He returned the punch making Alex stumble a bit in the process.

“Is that the best you got?”

“I can do a lot worse, just ask that bitch of a girlfriend you have.”

Alex huffed and swept his foot under his leg and slammed him to the ground. As he watched Henry cough from the impact he crouched down beside him and pulled out his knife, taunting him.

“How did you find her?”

“You think I’m going to tell you?”

He went to get up and Alex pushed him right back down. “I’m not in the mood to deal with your shit Henry. You already hurt the woman I love and I’m going to find out how you found her one way or another.”

From where Skylar stood it made her a bit happy seeing Henry on his ass and Alex crouched over him. Maybe for the first time in his life Henry was at a loss, he wasn’t someone to push or try to intimidate, especially when she was involved.

“How’d you find me Henry? You already got my number, someone has to be helping you.” That’s when a light went off in her head, she figured it out. “It was my phone, you’ve been tracking me.”

“Ding ding, we have a winner. Once I got your number it wasn’t hard to track you down.”

She walked over to him, crouching down next to Alex, “How did you get in here? It’s highly secured.”

“Not secure enough Skylar.” He stood up, wiping the dirt off his pants. “You’re just lucky those two idiots came when they did. I had plans for you.”

She stood up, followed by Alex. It was the same old threats, the threats he kept his word to time and time again. She knew if she was ever alone and he got to her, she would be in for a long, treacherous night. And that was something she couldn’t stand to have.

Henry gave Alex one last look and scoffed before exiting the tent, forcing a relieved sigh to leave Skylar. She felt like she was going to collapse, her legs felt as weak as they were when she and Maxim were walking back to the tent.

She walked back over to the cot and sat down, taking in a few deep breaths. “I can’t believe it never crossed my mind that he was tracking me.”

“And the only reason he never showed up to base was due to how highly secured it is.” Alex sighed and walked over to the cot to sit down beside her. “Don’t worry, kotyonok! I won’t let him hurt you.”

“I know!”

He wrapped his arm around her shoulders and kissed the top of her head. “Why don’t you get some sleep, I’ll stay up and make sure we don’t have any unwanted guests.”

She looked over at him, giving him a small smile, “I don’t think I can sleep, I’m too wired right now. I am hungry though I haven’t eaten since you left.”

“Let’s get you something to eat,” he stood up, reaching his hand out for hers. “I could use some food as well.”

She grabbed his hand and stood up, both heading out to get some food.

Skylar linked their arms together again as they walked to the tent that housed the food, the closer they got the more her stomach started to growl. With all the chaos that has happened in the past few hours she didn’t realize how hungry she really was.

When they entered the tent there were quite a few people in there eating, which was no surprise the shifts come at all hours of the day and night. And since sunrise was less than a half hour away she knew the people here were the night shift.

“What are you getting to eat moya sladost’?” She looked around at where the food was, a small sigh leaving her lips. “I think I’m gonna get a turkey sandwich and an orange.”

Alex chuckled as she walked over to grab her food, he followed suit behind her a moment later. He was hungry but not that hungry to eat a full meal so a sandwich seemed perfect to him as well. He grabbed his and both went to the nearest table to sit down and eat.

“What the hell happened to you?”

She looked up from the plastic container her sandwich was in to see James standing by the table.

“Uh…” She wasn’t sure what to say and she should’ve been expecting people to question the bruise on her eye, it was inevitable. “Well..”

“It was my fault.” They all looked over to see Maxim walking over to them, a small sigh of relief leaving Skylar. “We were sparring to get her mind off of Alex leaving and I accidentally smacked her in the face.”

James glanced between her and Maxim, shaking his head. “Dude.”

“I apologized and it’ll heal in no time.”

James looked back over to her, giving her a small smile. “You should get him back later, maybe steal his EDDs.”

She chuckled at that. “Maybe when we get back to base, I think we need those EDDs right now James.”

“Just a thought.” he shrugged his shoulders. “Have a nice rest of your night, I’m gonna get some sleep.”

“Night James.” She watched him walk away and then turned to Maxim. “Thank you! That was a lifesaver.”

“I overheard the conversation and thought I’d jump in to help.”

“I’m glad you did, I was a lost soul.”

He laughed and patted her shoulder. “I’ll leave you guys to your food, I’m going to take this apple and go to bed.”

“Goodnight Maxim.” they both said in unison.

She opened her sandwich, taking half of it out of its container and took a bite, humming in satisfaction. Not eating for ten plus hours did a good number on her, she knew she shouldn’t have gone that long without eating but she was just so nervous with Alex being gone that she couldn’t. And then Henry showed up, making things worse.

“How did the mission go?”

He finished chewing the food in his mouth before talking. “Surprisingly well. We only got swarmed two times which wasn’t bad, they were easy to take out. Found and rescued the doctor and exfilled.”

“I’m glad, I was worried.”

“I know.” He reached out his hand and grabbed hers, giving it a gentle squeeze. “I’m sorry, kotyonok.”

“There's no need to apologize, moya sladost’! It wasn’t your fault.”

“I know, I just feel bad because of what you went through when I wasn’t here.”

A smile began to form on her face and she chuckled. “It’s still not your fault, this was going to be inevitable no matter what. I was going to be a worry wart anyways, it was just worse because Henry showed up.”

“Yeah,” he chuckled. “I suppose I’d worry too if you were out on a mission without me.”

“Suppose?” she laughed. “You would be freaking out.”

He removed his hand from hers and shrugged. “I don’t think I would be freaking out.”

“You are such a liar and you know it.”

He let out one of his booming laughs and a big grin spread across his face, “I am lying, I would be very worried if you were out there without me.”

“Ha, I knew it.”

She went back to eating, glancing around the room. Even though the past ten or so hours sucked she was happy that he was back now, and her mood was increasingly becoming happier and happier. Though she knows it’ll only last for a little bit, having a hunch they’ll be another mission coming soon.

As she finished the last bite of her sandwich she was beginning to get a bit sleepy, a yawn escaping her.

“Tired, kotyonok?”

“A little. Maybe a nap wouldn’t hurt.”

“Do you want to leave?”

“After I eat my orange and you still haven’t finished your food.”

“I can eat the rest in our tent if you want to get some sleep, kotyonok.”

She began peeling her orange, placing the peels in the sandwich container. “I know, but what if I wanted to cuddle, moya sladost’?”

“Okay.” he laughed.

They both went back to eating, Skylar’s eyes scanning the room once again. This time in search of Henry, she knew he would come in here at some point and sit at a distance but still keep his eyes on her. That’s what he always did and she wasn’t stupid to think it would’ve changed in the four years she was gone. Luckily it seemed like he wasn’t going to show his face and that made her relax a little bit more.

“After this is done we deserve a vacation.”

“If we do get another vacation once this is all done, where do you want to go?”

A small smile started to form on her face as she peeled the last two orange pieces apart, “Back to Russia. That week we spent there just wasn’t enough time, I want to go back and see more.”

He finished his last bite of food and pushed the trash to the side to rest his elbows on the table and lean forward. “I think we can arrange that, kotyonok.”

“Yay!”

He chuckled and began to pick up his trash. “Why don’t we get you to bed.”

“Sounds good to me.”

She picked up her trash and stood up, both of them heading towards the trash can to throw away their trash before exiting the tent.

When they got outside Skylar stopped, turning towards him. “Before we head back to our tent, I want to stop by command and see what’s going to happen with Henry.”

“Okay.”

As they walked towards the tent she fiddled with her hands, heart beating a little bit faster with each step. A part of her was hoping Eliza and Jordan could figure something out to get him off the base and away from her, but deep down she knows it probably won’t happen, his father will pave his way like he always did. His precious Henry could never do any wrong.

The closer they got the more they heard Eliza on the phone with someone and she didn’t seem happy. When they walked in she gave a small smile to Jordan and walked over to him, leaning against the table next to him.

“I came to ask for any updates regarding Henry before I get some sleep.”

When he turned to her the look on his face told her all she needed to know, they couldn’t do anything and it made more sense on why Eliza was so angry on the phone.

“I’m sorry Skylar, the most we can do is press charges. We can’t force him off the base.”

“Yeah, I had a feeling. Thank you for trying though.”

“I wish we could’ve done more.” He gave her an apologetic smile and sighed. “Do you want to press charges?”

“I want to but no.”

“Kotyonok, are you sure? Pressing charges could be a big step.”

She sighed through her nose and turned to him, seeing the worry etched on his face. “I’m sure. Because it’s not going to mean a damn thing. I know Henry and I know his father, he’ll swindle his ‘precious’ son out of everything.”

“Is his father some rich fucking asshole?”

“I wish.” She turned back to Jordan, fiddling with her hands once again. “Just a general in the damn Marines. If I press charges, it'll go to a military court, I won’t win.”

“That’s some bullshit.”

“Tell me about it. I consider myself lucky though, not a lot of abuse victims can get away.”

“You should be able to get justice, kotyonok.”

“I know, I know.”

Her voice went quiet and she sighed. She does wish she could get some justice even if it’s just a little bit, but knows it’ll never happen. She’ll have to live her life knowing he’ll never be punished for his crimes and that made her angry. He can go on living like nothing happened while she has to live remembering all that he put her through.

“I’m gonna get some sleep.”

“Okay, night Sky.”

“Night Jordan.”

Skylar and Alex left the tent and headed back for theirs. All she wanted to do now was fall asleep for a few hours in his arms.

When they got back to their tent she went straight for their cot and sat down. She began taking off her boots as he came over and sat down next to her, doing the same. He also discarded his tactical vest, gloves and top, stripping down to just the shirt he was wearing. However he was still in his uniform pants, she thought he would change into something a bit more comfortable.

She got under the blanket after changing into a pair of sweats, Alex joining her a moment later.

He got in behind her, wrapping his arm around her waist and pulled her closer. “Comfortable?”

“Yes, very!”

“Good!”

He kissed the back of her neck before closing his eyes, both falling into a dreamless sleep.

Chapter Text

Skylar woke up a few hours later feeling a lot better until she realized she was in a tent and not back on base in their room. She slowly sat up, rubbing the back of her neck as she stretched it. Sleeping on a cot wasn’t always the comfiest and she tended to wake up sore and stiff.

She looked over to see Alex fast asleep on his cot next to hers. His blonde hair was a little disheveled on the side from sleeping and his features were twisting in anger. He was dreaming about something, something that clearly made him angry. She figured he was dreaming about Henry. It made sense why he looked so angry in his sleep compared to the soft look he always had. And he did just confront him not too long ago.

She swung her legs over the side of the cot, placing her feet on the ground and scrubbed a hand down her face. The fear she felt hours ago has subsided, not the anxiety she felt within her. That stayed, making her stomach ache and heart pound. She just has to keep reminding herself that she wasn’t alone, she has Alex with her. Someone who won’t let Henry near her no matter what.

With all the ruckus going on she was surprised she got any sleep with the noise going on around their tent. Then again she had been up for a while and her body was tired, once Alex was back no amount of noise was going to stop her from sleeping.

The feeling of a hand on her back nearly made her jump out of her skin. She turned her head to see him awake and his hand resting on her lower back. “Moya sladost’, you nearly gave me a heart attack.”

“I’m sorry, kotyonok. Didn’t mean to scare you.” He sat up, moving closer to her. “Are you alright?”

“As alright as I can be.” She gave him a small smile and placed her hand on his that rested on the cot. “I forgot how uncomfortable the cots are, I’d rather be back in our bed.”

“I know. Hopefully we’ll be back there soon!”

He leaned forward giving her a kiss that made her smile into it. A moment later he pulled away, a smile showing on his own face. Even with that black eye she was still gorgeous in his eyes. However, he’d be lying if he said it didn’t make him angry every time he saw it. That black eye had Henry’s name written all over it and that infuriated him.

“God, I hope so. I want to get as far away from this place as I can. And Henry.”

“Patience, kotyonok! We’ll be back home soon.”

Home. It rolled off his tongue so smoothly like it was a normal thing for him to say. And even though the base was home for right now, she couldn’t wait to have their own place. A place where they could have more privacy, decorate it how they want and live their lives in it. Hopefully that day will come sooner rather than later.

“I know, it’s just….” she sighed and moved herself to sit cross legged on her cot. “Things were mostly fine until he showed up. Now my fight or flight reflex is kicking in. I want to go.”

He grabbed her hand, giving her a reassured smile. “He’s not going to touch you again, I promise you that.”

“I don’t doubt that for a moment moya sladost’” She mirrored his smile and sighed. “I just need to keep reminding myself of that. That he won’t get to me.”

He gave her a warm smile before she found herself embraced in his arms. He kissed her temple and repositioned them so her head could rest on his chest. She brought her bandaged hand up to his chest, lightly drumming her fingers against his clavicle. All she could feel was comfort, something she needed in a time like this.

“I should really thank Jordan and Maxim for what they did for you. They showed up at the right time.”

Alex didn’t even want to think what would’ve happened if they didn’t show up at the right time. She suffers a black eye from that encounter with him, it could’ve been a hell of a lot worse if Jordan and Maxim didn’t show up when they did.

“I think they already know, moya sladost’!” She looked up at him through long eyelashes, her hazel eyes twinkling in the light of the lamp. “But, it would be nice if you did anyways.”

“I’ll do it later.”

She chuckled and felt his arms wrap tighter around her. She inhaled his scent as she nuzzled her face into his chest and relaxed a bit more. The sun wasn’t out yet and by the sky growing lighter and lighter it wouldn’t take long before it peaked in through the flaps of the tent. It was a new day and things will be different. She hopes at least.

“You know how you said we’ll be back home soon?” He nodded his head. “I know the base is our ‘home’ for right now. Why don’t we actually start looking for a place? I know work has been busy lately, I just want our own place.”

“If you want to, kotyonok. I don’t mind and our own place does sound nice.”

“It really does!”

She softly sighed through her nose, a small smile starting to grow. Renting their own place might end up coming sooner rather than later and to say she was excited was an understatement, she was ecstatic. Not only would they have their own place, but could do all the cute couple things, like cook together, decorate together and so much more. That’s what she yearned for, to have her own place with Alex, away from the base and others and just live their life outside of others views.

The sound of his laughter forced her out of her daydream, she shook her head and looked up to meet his wide smile. “What?”

“It’s nothing, kotyonok! You just looked very happy.”

“That’s because I am, moya sladost’!” She removed herself off his chest and sat up, trickly a finger down his chest. “After what happened yesterday it’s nice to talk about something good. Like moving in together.”

He sat up, a small smile on his face and reached for her hand. “I’m just happy to see you smiling again!”

“Can’t stay down in the dumps for too long when I have you by my side!”

It was a little white lie. Having him by her side did help her mood a lot, but she’d be lying if she said she wasn’t putting on a brave face for him from time to time.

“That is true. Still you shouldn’t hold your emotions in for too long, they’ll eat away at you.”

“I know.” She sighed. “After everything I want to be happy. Not the depressed Skylar I was before.”

He gave her hand a gentle squeeze, and leaned forward to place a kiss onto her lips. He knew how hard it was for her to come out of that dump she was in, the fear that ate at her every time she left her apartment, wondering if she would see him. No one should have to live like that, always looking over your shoulder. And he’d do anything to make her happy.

“This feeling is only temporary, kotyonok! We’ll be back in England soon and things will go back to normal.”

She looked away and sighed. She finally found happiness and just when she thinks everything will work out, Henry shows up. Now that fear has resurfaced, who says he won’t figure out where she is stationed and comes for her there. He found her here, there’s no reason he won’t figure out how to gain entrance into Rainbow.

“He found me Alex, don’t you get that? I spent four years running from him, making sure I never left a trail and he still found me. Who says he won’t follow me back to England?”

“I don’t. Skylar, you’re not alone this time and you have plenty of people on that base who won’t let him near you.” He wrapped his arms around her and pulled her against his chest. “I know you’re scared, but everything will be okay.”

“I really hope you’re right.”

She sighed and wrapped her arms around him, resting her head on his chest. She really hopes he is right that everything will end up being okay. That was the last thing she wanted to revert back to how she was, the scared, looking over her shoulder every time she left her place Skylar. The only thing she wants in life is to feel safe again.

Alex rubbed his hand up and down her back, kissing the top of her head. His lips lingered for a moment, taking in her scent. There was a way to help her relax, take her mind off of everything going on. But he couldn’t, not with the lack of privacy they had. He couldn’t just lock a tent like her could their door back on base.

“If only we had an actual room, kotyonok! I could help you relax.”

She looked up at him, face softening. “And how would you do that, moya sladost’?”

Skylar already knew what he would do, the look on his face gave it away. She was contemplating it, just a quickie in their tent. No harm and it would take her mind off of everything for a tiny bit. They didn’t need to get fully undressed to have sex either, it was very plausible.

“A nice back-rub.”

“You’re such a liar.” She laughed. “I know exactly what you’d do, and I’m very much up for it. Even with the lack of privacy.”

“If you’re really up for it, kotyonok! I am too!”

She leaned forward, pressing her lips against his. Entangled in the kiss Alex gently pushed her onto the cot, finding the waistline of her pants.

She snuggled up to him, resting her head on his chest. “That was great, and much needed!”

“See, I told you I could help you relax, kotyonok.”

“And that you did!” She looked up at him with a smile on her face. “I always knew you could, moya sladost’.”

She placed her head back on his chest and softly sighed. If only she could stay in his arms like this forever, forget about what’s happening outside, forget about what they’re fighting against. It was futile, they’ll both be back out there very soon.

He laughed and kissed her head. Being like this with her snuggled against him made him very happy and much more relaxed. He didn’t need to worry about what was happening outside the tent, he didn’t care. All he cared about was the woman snuggled up to him post coitus.

“Kotyonok?”

“Yeah?”

She moved her chin to rest on her arm, looking up at him. He looked worried or concerned to be more exact. It made her wonder what was on in that brain of his.

“I..” He went quiet, lips pursed and sighed through his nose.

Skylar sat up with a concerned look on her face. “Moya sladost’, what is it?”

“It’s just, I’m glad that you’re alright!”

She softly smiled at him and leaned forward to give him a chaste kiss. “It’s nothing I couldn’t handle.”

“That’s the worst part, kotyonok.” He sighed and grabbed her hand. “I leave thinking you’ll be alright for the most part, only to come back and find you with a bruised eye and that your abusive ex is back. I shouldn’t have left.”

“You didn’t have a choice and neither of us knew he was going to show up. Don’t be too hard on yourself, moya sladost’, he could only do so much with how many people were nearby.”

He knew she was right of course, he didn’t have a choice, orders were orders. He had to go no matter what, but if he knew Henry was already here he would’ve asked Eliza if he could stay due to the circumstances. She would’ve understood and either found someone else or had Skylar go with them.

“It’s the thought, kotyonok.”

She reached her hand out to cup his cheek, and leaned forward to give him a kiss. He leaned into the gesture, softly sighing. She removed her hand a moment later with a soft smile on her face. It made her feel a certain way knowing how worried he is, she couldn’t explain the feeling inside her, not fully at least. It made her happy but also a tad worried. She didn’t want him to be overly protective of her.

“I know!”

She sighed and turned away from him, grabbing her discarded pants and underwear on the ground and put them back on. Even though they were in the privacy of their own tent someone could still walk in to tell them one thing or another. She just wanted to be prepared and not half naked.

Alex did the same. He swung his legs over the edge of the cot and grabbed his clothes to put them on. Skylar watched with softness showing across her face. His hair was still a bit disheveled and she could see his back muscles through his shirt, making her lick her lips. If only they had more time and privacy.

A chuckle forced him to look over at her, a half smile forming on his face. “What?”

“I was just thinking about something.” She moved to face him, sitting cross legged on the cot. “After all I’ve been through with Henry, sex was the one thing I hated. With you I’m enjoying it again and it feels nice. I just wish I could go back to before Henry, when I was more open to trying more things in bed and didn’t have PTSD.”

“None of that bothers me, kotyonok. Sex is sex, we don’t have to have a crazy sex life to have a good one.” He reached out his hand, cupping her cheek. “Your feelings come first.”

She reached up to cover his hand with hers and nuzzled into it. Their sex life was mostly simple, a little rough here and there but nothing extravagant. He was right of course, you don’t need to have a crazy sex life to have a good one. Because they already do and she wouldn’t change it for the world.

“I know you’re right, moya sladost’. We already have a good one, and I wouldn’t change it.” She took her hand away from her cheek and placed it in her lap. “I just thought things, a lot of things would be different.”

“Life has a way of throwing, what do you Americans say? Curveballs at you.”

“Yeah, that’s about right.” She said with a laugh. “C’mon hotshot I need some coffee.”

He laughed as he got off the bed, stretching his arms above his head. “After you.”

She headed out of the tent with him following behind. The sun was just starting to rise, engulfing the sky in a pink and blue light. Winter sunrises were always Skylar’s favorite, the way the sky looked, the cold air, the peace she felt. It was magical. If only she felt at peace right now and not scared, things would be different.

As per usual the base was on high alert, people running here and there, choppers lifting off, squads being set out to do god knows what. It was chaos, even more so in the town with the infected. At least for now Skylar and Alex were safe and that put her heart at ease.

When they got to the food tent she went right for the coffee, grabbing two cups and handing one to him. She grabbed one of the pots pouring herself a cup, the smell of a fresh cup engulfing her nose.

“You want to know what one of my favorite smells is, moya sladost’?”

He looked up for a brief second while he poured his own cup. “What is it, kotyonok?”

“Fresh coffee grounds.” She placed her cup on the table and went for the sugar. “Like when you pull open the seal of a new can of coffee, that’s a smell I love. Too bad it doesn’t last as long once the seal is off.”

Alex chuckled as he poured some sugar into his coffee. “Out of all the smells in the world you would've liked, coffee wasn’t one I would pick at first guess.”

She placed the lid on her coffee cup and laughed. “Not many people would guess that to be fair.”

“That’s true.”

She took a sip of her coffee looking behind him as the sun slowly rose. “Want to watch the sunrise?”

“If you want to, sure!”

They both walked out of the tent in silence, Skylar sipping on her coffee with each step trying not to spill any of it. She led the way towards the back where there was more of a view and more privacy. In her mind it would be romantic watching the sunrise with Alex with coffee in their hands. But the circumstances kind of ruined the romantic aspect of it, either way there'll be more sunrises to come.

Skylar took a seat on the concrete barricade followed by Alex, looking out onto the horizon. Both of her hands wrapped around the cup as she looked at the sun rising, a soft sigh leaving her lips. It was serene, just the two of them in their little secluded area of the base forgetting everything that was behind them.

“It seems like forever since I’ve actually sat down to watch the sunrise.” She looked over at him, a small smile forming. “At least I get to experience it with you!”

He scooted over to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “It is a nice one!”

“Mmm.”

She took a sip of her coffee blocking out all the noise that was behind them. The only thing she couldn’t block out was the anxiety she felt inside of herself. That was here to stay until she’s far away from this place and Henry. At least she has Alex and her friends here to make her feel less panicked.

“I know I’ve said this before and I’ll probably keep saying it, I just want to say thank you. For everything!” She sighed and held her hand up to continue before he said anything. “I know I don’t have to thank you for any of this, still it means a lot, especially now.”

A small smile began to form on his face and grabbed her hand. “You need me and I’m going to be there for you!”

“I know!”

She gave him a heartfelt smile as she leaned to rest her head on his shoulder. The small, simple gesture always puts a smile on his face.

As the sun rose in the sky engulfing it in blue they remained quiet, just enjoying each other's company and the coffee they had in hand. Even though she would rather be anywhere else but here, she was enjoying having more missions to go on with Alex, they barely got to go on any together and watching him work was fun.

“I don’t want to break up you two love birds, Eliza wants to see you guys.”

Skylar lifted her head off his shoulder and turned to look at Jordan. “Be there in a few.”

He nodded his head and turned back around. They both got off their seats and looked at each other with a raised brow, something was up and they were about to find out.

When they got to the tent no one else was there besides Eliza, she was half expecting Jordan to be there, that wasn’t the case it was just the three of them.

“You wanted to see us?”

“Yeah, we have another mission. Take a seat please.”

They both took a seat across the table from the projector, both anticipating what they were about to walk into. That whole town was crawling with infected and who knows what Eliza found out.

“Three days before the outbreak, NASA tracked a meteorite into the area.” She put up a short video of what was supposed to be the meteorite. “We got confirmation that a local named Boyd Brooks hauled it back to his salvage yard.”

Skylar looked over to watch it, seeing it enter the atmosphere and crash down onto land.

“Coincidence?” asked Alex

“No. He was trying to sell it online.” She turned the laptop towards them, showing them a picture of the capsule. “This is why I called you. Your highness.”

“Naturally.”

“Soviet. Very old. Wait… I’m Russian, so I’m supposed to know something about it?”

Skylar couldn’t help but chuckle. He sounded so offended that Eliza wanted him, the oldest of the Spetsnaz and most educated on soviet military stuff to get in the know of an old soviet era capsule.

“Hey, you should be glad she came to you with this. You are the oldest and wisest of the Spetsnaz afterall.”

He looked over to glare at her, only to fail when he saw the gleeful look on her face. And he could only smile and chuckle in return.

“I thought you appreciate the heads up. We can leave the politics to Six. Our job is to secure it.”

“Secure it? This should be fun.”

They could both hear the sarcasm in her voice. Secure the capsule that is most likely back at Boyd’s place where this infection started. They were about to head right into the nest of these things and Skylar was less than enticed to go.

“So what’s the plan?”

“We move in on foot and search the area starting with his house. If it’s not in there search the salvage yard, he couldn’t have brought it far.”

“When do we leave and who is coming with us?”

“Gustave, Maxim, Timur, Jordan, and…” She sighed and the serious look on her face was replaced by sorrow and that didn’t sit right with Skylar. “Henry.”

“No! He’s not coming, he’s not going anywhere near her.”

“I have no say in this, James was supposed to be going with you. I got a call from a higher up saying to replace a member.”

Skylar turned her body towards Alex seeing him slowly start to rage. She placed a hand on his shoulder in hopes of calming him down. “I know you’re upset that he’s coming along. He’s not going to try anything when the majority of the group knows who he is and what he did. The worst he’ll probably do is say things to get a rise out of you.”

He began to calm down a little bit, exhaling a breath. “I still don’t like it.”

“Neither do I.” She looked back over to her, and sighed. “When do we leave?”

“Tonight. Get some rest if you can.”

They both nodded their heads and left the tent. This was going to be a long mission and even longer one with Henry coming along. All she knows is that if he's in trouble, she’s not helping him.

The next nine hours flew by to her unamusement and they were all geared up and ready to go.

An hour before they left they all met in the command tent to be debriefed that they were walking into the nest, the most hostile part of the town. Skylar already figured that out earlier that day when she saw the capsule, that’s where it started and that’s where it started it’s nest.

They were just waiting for Jordan and as they were she was placing a silencer on her sniper. If she and Timur needed give overwatch she didn’t want her shots to ring out. She didn’t exactly enjoy the weight she was carrying, but both guns would be helpful with what they were going to deal with. It helped her before and it’ll help her now.

The one thing that did shock her was that Henry wasn’t saying a damn thing and that wasn’t like him. Maybe this mission won’t be as bad with him here after all, or he’s keeping his mouth shut right now and he’ll start his shit once they hit the ground. Either way she knows everyone here won’t take anything he throws at them. For once she has the upper hand.

Chapter Text

As the chopper flew to their destination the whole chopper was quiet, all that could be heard were the roar of the propellers. She looked up catching Henry’s eye and quickly looked down. Having him here made her feel uneasy, more so than being near the creatures. The creatures had motives easy to decipher, Henry did not, the only thing she knows is that he wants her back and he’ll do anything to make it happen.

She moved her head to rest it on Alex’s shoulders with a sigh. As the chopper continued to fly to their destination she looked over at Jordan, watching him fix the bandages around his hands and wrists, making sure they were secure.

He looked up, giving her a smirk and wink; it made her chuckle. From her peripheral she could see Henry roll his eyes, lean back and cross his arms at his chest. That made her scoff. She just wanted him gone and wouldn’t be upset if something happened to him while out on this mission. To her it will be karma well served.

She leaned against Alex with a sigh and secured her gloves onto her hands a tiny bit more. The ride was only supposed to be about twenty minutes, with Henry mere feet away from her it felt like an eternity.

Alex looked down at her, a soft smile gracing his face through the camouflage balaclava he always wears on missions. He could feel her arm tremble against his, both from fear and nerves that he’s certain. This time it was worse and no doubt it was due to Henry being here. Luckily he knows Skylar well enough to know she won’t let it affect her on the mission. At least he hopes.

“What are you gonna do after this is all over?”

“I’m taking a leave.” mentioned Skylar. “After all this I need a break. What about you Jordan?”

“No argument there. I don’t know yet, maybe go back to Texas for a little bit.” He glanced over at Alex for a moment then back to her. “I’m sure lover boy next to you will join in that leave.”

“Da, I will!”

Skylar laughed and a smile grew across her face at the sound of the sternness in his voice. Jordan should’ve known he would go with her, even before Henry came into the picture. It wasn’t rocket science after all.

“Oh c’mon Jordan, you should know by now.”

He looked up with a raised brow and shook his head. “You knew I was joking, of course I know.”

“I would hope so.”

He scoffed and went back to his bandaged hands, a smirk on Skylar’s face. She could always count on Jordan for a little humor in the worst times, it helped though. Helped loosen her up for the mission before them. If only it would last until evac, but everyone in that chopper knew what they were getting into and the good times were about to end.

It went quiet again after their little conversation, her head still resting on Alex’s arm. At least until their destination came into view. She lifted her head up as she watched the buildings get bigger and bigger as they hovered a mere few feet above the ground.

“Let’s get this over with.” she mumbled under her breath as she exited the chopper.

The touchdown was near a diner, close to their true destinations. The plan was to grab Thermite’s charges that were left by a former team before heading through patient zero's basement for the capsule.

“I hope you remember where you placed those thermite charges, Thermite?”

“Of course I do, it’s up ahead.”

All of them began to make it to the spot where the charges were placed to grab them, Thermite taking the lead. Skylar fiddled with her M4 in her hands as she made her way behind Doc, Alex by her side and Timur and Maxim watching their six.

She kept her eyes on Henry, carefully watching every move he made. He was up to something everyone here knew it, well besides Doc. And she was going to find that out one way or another. Why would he put himself at risk? Skylar knew him well enough to know he wouldn’t do such a thing; saving his own ass was what he does best. If it came down to saving any of them or himself, he’d choose himself.

She slowed her pacing down, going from a jog to a fast walk. Alex noticed her speed slowed down and slowed his as well, coming up besides her. “Are you okay, kotyonok?”
“Yes. He’s up to something, I don’t know what. But he is.”

“Besides trying to get you back?”

She came to a complete stop, turning to him. “I know him well enough to know he would never put himself into danger like this. He’s up to something and I’m going to find out.”

Skylar glanced over at the three in front of them, spotting Doc and Henry taking out some grunts. Her mind reeling with possibilities of why he was there and none of them made sense to his character. She would just have to watch him.

“We will find out.” He reached out to grab her shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze. “I’m not letting you find out by yourself. I don’t trust him.”

“I know.” She reassured. “Besides, two heads are better than one. One of us will figure something out without interrogating him. Yet.”

“That’s if he doesn’t die first.”

She laughed, hoping that would come true. “That’s true. Maybe he will, who knows what this night will bring.”

“Hopefully an end to this all as well.”

“I hope so. If not, I'm advocating for Jordan’s plan to nuke the town.”

“Are you guys having a secret meeting? If not, move your asses. I have the charges.”

They all turned their attention to Jordan who was waving the charges in the air with his hand, an annoyed look spread across his face. Alex scoffed and tugged on her sleeve to get her moving. Timur and Maxim following suit. When she got closer to them the sound of roaches approaching pushed her into gear.

Her grip around her M4 got tighter as she raised it up, surveying their surroundings. The dark surroundings made it hard to see and she wondered why they had to do it during the night, when it’s dark? Daylight seems like the best option, but the more she thought about it the more she knew it was for stealth purposes. Not like stealth was much of an option with these things.

The sound of bullets coming from her left made her whip her body in that direction, giving Doc and Thermite some cover fire.

The more that came around the more they spread out, taking out any and all roaches they saw. Skylar switched to her sniper to help Timur take out the ones farther back as they breached the perimeter. The grunts and breachers were the easiest to kill, they were barely a threat unless you weren't aware of your surroundings. The rooters, apex and smashers were by far the hardest. The rooters could teleport away when hurt, making their form of attack more sporadic. The apex can summon other grunts and overwhelm them if they can’t take it out fast enough. Then there’s the smashers, who might be the hardest to kill of them all. They are covered in armor and the other place that’ll do damage is the fleshy part on it back.

She sighed and switched back to her M4. “Smasher incoming.”

Alex loudly sighed and said something in Russian that made Maxim laugh. She couldn’t fully make it out and would ask him what he said, but the smasher was more of a top priority right now. She’ll ask later.

As the smasher got closer the thuds of his feet grew louder and louder. They needed to think up a plan quickly.

She looked over at Jordan as he placed the charges in his back. “Does anyone have a plan to take down the big guy?”

The inappropriate thought in Jordan’s mind quickly faded when he realized she was talking about the smasher and not her boyfriend. This was his first time in the field and he had no idea on what to do with the armored tank coming their way.

“They’re blind right? Why don’t we have someone get it’s attention and the rest of us shoot him in the back?”

“Who’s gonna be bait?”

Everyone looked around at each other, but when her eyes met with Alex’s he shook his head. She knew he wouldn’t want her to be bait, even though she’d be the best person with how agile she can be.

“I’ll go.” said Jordan

“Are you sure?”

“Yeah. One thing I’m good at is making a lot of noise.”

“Hmm, haven’t noticed.”

Jordan rolled his eyes, making her laugh. Besides James, Jordan was one of the louder operators within Rainbow. He would make the perfect bait.

More roaches approached with the big guy not far behind. Everyone spreaded back out as Jordan got the smashers attention. She made her way behind it, spotting the fragile part of its body and fired. Even after putting a full clip into that thing he was still kickin’. She reloaded her weapon, following the smasher and Jordan around and put another full clip into it.

“Oh my god will this thing fucking die already?”

She reloaded her gun once again, realizing she was down to one mag. Not wanting to waste any more ammo she opted for her sniper. It was hard hitting, so it should help take it down.

“I’ll help.”

Skylar gave Maxim a small smile and they both fired at the smasher that looked to be about to charge. With their combined ammo, they finally manage to defeat it, watching it fall to ground with a loud thud.

“Thanks!”

“No problem.”

Jordan walked over with sweat on his brow and took a deep breath. “Next time Henry is the bait.”

“I don’t fucking think so.”

“It would be the least you could do.” He grabbed a magazine and reloaded his gun. “Because no one knows why the hell you’re here. You can at least be helpful.”

Surprisingly Henry didn’t say or do anything after that, he just walked away in a huff. Skylar was expecting a punch at least, still nothing came of it.

“The house is just up ahead.”

She nodded her head before walking over to Alex. “Didn’t one of the teams leave extra ammo crates lying around?”

“Da, I saw one by the playground we passed.”

“Okay, I need to grab some since I’m almost out. I’ll catch up in a few minutes.”

He turned over to the rest of the group who were patiently waiting for them, well most of the group were patiently waiting. “We’ll meet you guys in a few minutes, Skylar needs to replenish her ammo.”

“Alright, don’t take too long. Just go through the gate up here and I promise I won’t start the charges without you.”

“No you can, that’s alright.” said Skylar

“Ha ha, funny.” joked Jordan. “Go get your ammo.”

She laughed as she walked away, Alex in tow.

Things were quiet, a little too quiet, it made the atmosphere feel eerie. It made her look around all panicked, like she was waiting for something to come out of the darkness. She sighed and shook her head, moving over closer to Alex. To make things feel less eerie she finally spoke.

“I thought Jordan was about to start a fight with Henry.”

“I did too.” He looked over at her, seeing the small smile fade from her face. “It looked like Henry was about to throw a punch.”

“I’m really surprised he didn’t. The one thing he’s good at is starting fights, this isn’t like him.”

They came to the ammo crate by the destroyed playground. She grabbed a few magazines, placing them in her tactical vest. Then she looked around while she had the chance, seeing all the destruction around them. How one thing could cause all this, how one virus could turn the world upside down if not kept in check. They needed to get that capsule or the world may never be the same.

“Maybe he knew he’d be outnumbered?”

“Perhaps or he knows Jordan could kick his ass.”

Alex laughed, making her laugh as well. She’s never seen Jordan actually fight, in a way he doesn’t look like the type to actually fight unless he has too. But if Henry did throw a punch she could see him kicking some ass. Maybe. The chemical burns he has on his hands might make it a tad bit difficult. Maybe.

“I would love to see Jordan kick somebody's ass, kotyonok.”

“Me too!” She chuckled. “Let’s head back to the group, I’m sure they’ll get worried.”

He motioned for her to go first, having her lead the way. It made him feel better, to be able to watch her back, quite literally. As they made their way back to the others, he watched her braided hair swing back and forth across her sniper rifle as she jogged. He was even more amused by how solid that sniper was while she moved, it barely budged.

They made it back to the others, just outside the fence of patient zero’s house. As she gave them all a small smile she saw the electrical hazard sign near the fence. Skylar guessed it made sense since it was a salvage yard, he probably didn’t want anyone sneaking onto his property.

“I got my ammo, where to now my good sir?”

“We have to deactivate the electric fence or we’ll all be snapped like a moth to a flame.”

“And let me guess, it’ll attract more roaches?”

“Skylar, we’re going into the nest of these things. It’s surprising it’s not more guarded.”

“Right, fair point.”

Timur flipped the switch to the breaker box, not a moment later they heard the screeches of the roaches. He and Skylar sighed in unison as they reached for their weapons, this was definitely going to be a long night.

“Clear out the hostels and then move forward.” said Eliza over the radio

‘Yes, thank you for that ‘Liza’ was what was going through her mind as she shot a breacher that was flanking her right. Clear out the hostels? She thought she’d just let them live and move onto the next objective. Seems easier than killing them.

When she turned her head she saw a breacher right behind Henry, looking like it was about to pounce. And it did, ending up knocking him to the ground as well. As he began to fight it off she just watched, a small smile on her face. She could shoot the breacher, having it explode right over him. All her problems would be gone in an instant. If Doc wasn’t there she would have, no one would question why she did it and they would’ve come up with a good answer as to why he died. They came under attack and a breacher snuck up behind him. No one would question it.

She snapped out of her thoughts as a grunt was approaching her, easily taking it out. Along with the few others that were closing in on her position. She quickly glanced over to see that Henry was alright, which made her grip her gun hard enough to make her knuckles turn white. Either he got the upper hand or someone helped him, but by the looks of it he got the upper hand.

She rolled her eyes and continued firing upon the roaches that came near her. It wasn’t long before they all ended up dead and they could continue on. She felt a presence beside her, knowing full well who it was. When she turned her head she saw Alex beside her, reloading his precious LMG.

“If Doc wasn’t here I could’ve killed him. He got jumped by a breacher, I could’ve shot it. You guys wouldn’t have questioned it.”

Saying those words out loud made her feel even sadder. The opportunity was right there, she could’ve ended his life, never having to see him again. But due to one person being there that has no idea what was going on between them, she couldn’t. Killing him wouldn’t get rid of the horrific memories she has of him, it would be a start.

His blue eyes softened as he reached out to cup her face in his hand. “Don’t be too hard on yourself, kotyonok. The night’s still young.”

“I know.”

She softly sighed and pouted her bottom lip as she followed the rest of the group to the steel door they needed to breach before continuing on to the salvage yard.
Once the charges were set it would take some time to burn through it, and no doubt more roaches would surround them. They were trespassing onto their nest after all, it wasn’t a surprise they were getting attacked.

“Everyone ready?”

Everyone nodded their heads indicating they were ready to go. Skylar on the other hand mumbled ‘no’ as she fiddled with her gun. It’ll just be the same old song and dance, a bunch of roaches will come and they’ll defeat them all and blah blah blah. She just wanted this night to be over with.

Jordan shook his head and placed the charges on the door, arming them. The sound of his exothermic charge melting through the steel door alerted the nearby roaches, sending them in their direction. They all began to spread out around the house, making sure they had no way of getting to those charges.

“If patient zero was smart, he would have a sniper's nest on the second story too.”

The words that just came out of Timur’s mouth gave Skylar an idea. She stopped, grabbing his arm to get his attention. “What you just said, a sniper’s nest on the second story. Let’s get up there.”

He gave her a cheeky smile and they climbed up the side of the building to get on the second story floor. Timur took one side while she took the other, both having the perfect line of sight from where they stood. Just in time too as the roaches began showing up around the perimeter.

All that could be heard were the sound of gunfire and the screeches from the infected. As she fired upon them she wished she asked Jordan how long it would take the charges to break through, she didn’t want to be doing this forever.

She glanced behind her at Timur as she reloaded her sniper, softly sighing. It was nice having a friend like him, someone who shared similar interests. Like art and being a sniper. It made training a lot more fun when he was around. Hell it even made what they were doing a lot more fun. Being on top of a destroyed building, taking out hostels. It brought her back to Afghanistan. Not that she would actually want to go back there, too many bad memories.

“Less than a minute to go.”

‘Oh thank god’ is what she mumbled under her breath as she shot at one of the grunts making its way towards the building. Still, there was much to do. They still needed to get to the salvage yard and acquire the capsule for Marius to bring back. She was expecting a more grueling fight there than what they’ve been used to. It was their nest they would be attacking after all.

As she looked through her scope she saw something moving in the distance. It wasn't a grunt nor a breacher, but the way it traveled distances only meant one thing. “Rooter incoming.”

She could hear the inaudible groan from the men below her. Their reaction was something she could agree with. The Rooters were a thorn in her backside alright. The worst of them all.

She looked through her scope again to see if she could spot it and hopefully take it out. When she spotted it, a few hundred feet away she fired at it without hesitation. As the shot rang out the Rooter disappeared just as soon as the bullet would’ve hit.

“Dammit.”

“What’s wrong?” asked a familiar voice.

She turned to see Alex standing next to her, concerned in his eyes.

“I shot at the Rooter, it disappeared as soon as the bullet would’ve hit.”

“They are sneaky little zasranec, that’s for sure.”

Skylar laughed and a small smile spread across her face. “No argument there.”

“The charges are finished, we can push on once we clear out the rest of these assholes.” yelled Jordan.

She placed her sniper on her back and went for her AR. “I guess we should help them out.”

He nodded his head in agreement and they both headed down to the first floor to give the others a hand in taking out the enemy.

When she got to the floor a bullet whipped past her head, hitting the wall behind her. An inch to her right and she wouldn’t be here right now. She whipped her head to see where the shot came from, half expecting it to be Henry. She wouldn’t put it past him, instead she saw it was Maxim with an apologetic smile on his face and mouthed ‘I'm sorry’. She gave him a soft smile and nodded her head, then went back to work.

There were still about a dozen or so roaches left to take out before they could continue on, but with the seven of them it took no time at all.

They made their way through the house to the other side, seeing the gate to the salvage yard. So close, yet so far. Still, they were getting closer to leaving this hell and Skylar just wanted to get back to base, have a nice shower, a hot meal and sleep. If she could sleep after this. Time would tell.

“We’re gonna need to use the crane to move the car on the other side blocking our way.” said Jordan “Try and find a generator.”

Skylar tugged on Alex’s sleeve, pointing her head in the direction she wanted to go. The lot between the house and the salvage yard was decently big, that was to be expected. And big enough so they wouldn’t be cornered by infected, they had room to spread out. Now, the objective was to find those generators.

“I don’t like being here, moya sladost’.”

“I know, kotyonok! At least the capsule is behind that gate, we’re getting close to heading home.”

She looked over at him, giving him a soft smile. “Thank god. Being here makes me feel uneasy. And it’s not just due to Henry being here.”

She looked around the yard for a generator, fiddling with the weapon in hand. If her trigger discipline wasn’t spot on she’d probably shoot at every noise she heard. Everything was just so quiet here that every noise that was heard made her heart jump in her chest.

“I don’t blame you, I even feel uneasy.”

“Really?”

“Da, why wouldn’t I? This whole thing is new to all of us.”
“I don’t know, you don’t seem to be phased by much. I wish I could be that calm.”

“It takes years of practice, kotyonok.” He gave her a small smile, even with his helmet on she could tell by how his eyes crinkled at the side. “I guess it also helped that I knew I would be in the military once I turned eighteen. I didn’t have a choice, why freak out about it?”

“You’ve made some good points, but. Being calm is just who you are, moya sladost’. I’ve barely seen you lash out at anyone that doesn’t deserve it. It’s one of the many things I like about you!”

“I appreciate that, kotyonok!”

She gave him a big smile, that meant a lot to her. However that smile slowly faded as her eyes glanced over to a generator a few feet behind Alex. “I found a generator.”

“Me too.” said Doc

She walked over to it with Alex right behind her and flipped the switch, hearing the roar of the engine. She was about to say she turned hers on, but with the sound of the other one starting she didn’t need to. It became loud enough to make it clear.

Once the two generators were started everyone made their way to the truck with the crane attached to it, Jordan turning it on. As the crane slowly moved to the car blocking the gate from behind, the all too familiar sound of roaches approaching filled the air.

Everyone dispersed like a flock of birds, fanning out within the yard. Skylar went towards the generator she turned on with Alex right behind her. Even though they were about to be bombarded with hostels she felt it was a good idea to stay by a generator. She had a good feeling they would try to sabotage them.

The sound of gunfire rang out across the yard as everyone began firing. This was becoming tedious and no doubt everyone wanted to go back to base. Well, she’s sure the majority of them want to go back to base, Henry was the wildcard. She has no clue why he’s here, the real reason why. It wasn’t just to get her back, there’s something more to it. That’s if he even wants her back, she could just be a distraction. If no one is truly paying attention to him, he could do whatever he came here to do.

As she fired off a shot, hitting the grunt mere feet in front of her, the light-bulb in her head went off. With a breather of space she walked over to Alex as she reloaded her weapon.
“I think I know why Henry is here.”

“Why?”

“The capsule. I’m sure he or his father wants that virus, to make it a weapon.”

Alex let out an annoyed sigh and fiddled the gun in hand. That was the last thing either of them wanted, to have Henry get his grimy hands on that virus. A virus that destroyed a whole town in a matter of days. If it got out the world would be in a state of hell. However, it also opened up a lot more questions for her.

“Do you think he would be able to get it?”

“I have no idea, it all depends on how secure it is once we get back to base. Besides I’m sure that thing is going to Area 51. He won’t be able to get in there without the right security clearance.”

“It wouldn’t surprise me that the US Military would put it there. Could he get the right security clearance?”

“That’s if the Russian government doesn’t want it back, but I’m sure Six is doing all the political stuff regarding it. I’m not sure, he might be able to but that’s more of an Air Force base and he’s a Marine.”

“So there is a chance he won’t be able to?”

“Da.”

“Good.”

She nodded her head in agreement, noticing everyone flocking over to where the crane was. It must’ve been done if everyone was moving over there. She motioned her head in that direction and began walking over there, no doubt with Alex following behind.

“Are we ready to go in?”

“Yes.”

With the van moved out of the way they made their way to the very destroyed barn to get the capsule. With giant tendrils rising out above the barn you really couldn’t miss it if you tried.

As they made their way inside there were three red tendrils holding the capsule together. She looked around the barn, seeing a car Boyd was most likely fixing, tools and other miscellaneous things lying around. There was also a small upper level, a perfect spot to give more overwatch for the team.

Skylar stopped for a moment to look at the capsule. It was definitely soviet, that was easy to tell, it also made her wonder what they were planning decades ago. Even though more and more questions were running through her mind, she was just happy to see that dreaded thing. It meant they were much closer to going home.

“We need to place the charges on each of the three tendrils.” Jordan began handing them out to two other operators. “Make sure none of the roaches get to them. We only have one shot at this.”

She nodded her head and took the charge in her hand to the nearest tendril. Which happened to be in a small room at the back of the barn. She didn’t have to look back, she knew Alex was right there behind her. Like always.

As she placed the charge on the tendril she saw another figure in her peripheral, when she looked over she saw it was Maxim. “The charge is in place and ready to go.”

“Let’s get this over with, kotyonok.”

She chuckled and ignited the charge. For a few seconds all you could hear were the three charges burning through the tendrils that held the capsule in place. It was a nice sound to hear. Unfortunately it was short lived as the sound of roaches approached the barn.

All three of them sighed as they spread out around the tendril, waiting for the assault. Skylar looked out the window waiting to see if any were making their way towards their section of the barn, when she heard gunfire she turned around.

A few roaches had already breached the barn, making their way to the charges. With such close proximity Skylar, nor Alex or Maxim could do much without injuring someone else. And that wasn’t part of the plan.

When the sound of something striking the door startled them they aimed their weapons at it, waiting for one of them to come through the door. She glanced around for a moment, noticing that three people in that small section was a disaster waiting to happen. Without a word she left and headed for the top level of the barn. But she knew Maxim was watching her.

Once she got up there she could see what was coming from their side. She raised her sniper up, firing a few shots at the breachers making their way to them. The door below her wasn’t made of much and a few hits by a few breachers would break it apart, sending shrapnel in every which way.

The gunfire began to ring out even more, as more and more roaches approached them. It wasn’t long before her sniper wouldn’t cut it, they were too close for her to use it. So she reverted back to her AR.

It helped as a few made their way to her, easily taking them out. A few more minutes of nonstop gun firing came to a halt as the charges stopped and barely any roaches remained. The ones that remained were taken out by simple pistol fire.

Everyone began moving towards the middle of the barn, except Skylar who took a moment to catch her breath. And sigh in relief. From where she stood she could hear Jordan call Marius for the chopper to pick up the capsule. That made a small smile spread across her face, it was finally over.

“Kotyonok, come down. We’re leaving.”

Alex watched her jump down, a smile on both of their faces. That smile quickly dissipated as he watched a Rooter come up from the ground impaling her abdomen from behind. For once he felt frozen in place, all he could do was watch her face twist in shock and pain as he watched her collapse to the ground.

“SKYLAR!” He dropped his gun and ran to her body, looking it over and then back to the group. “Doc, I need you.”

The sound of her name being yelled was enough to force everyone there over to where he knelt. Gustave was already there looking her over, but his attention was more on her.

Her blood pooled out of her, soaking his pant legs. He didn’t care, he just grabbed her hand, forcing her to look up at him. “Alex?”

“Don’t talk, kotyonok. Save your strength.”

She nodded her head and let out a trembling sigh. He could see the fear on her face and for once he was happy to be wearing his balaclava so she didn’t have to see the fear on his. It would only make the situation worse.

He looked over at Doc, not even beginning to understand what he was doing, nonetheless he was grateful he was chosen for this mission. As he put more pressure on the wound it forced her to cough, blood spitting out of her mouth. Seeing that made his heart sink into his stomach.

“Merde.” Her injury was too severe, he needed to get her back to base asap. “Jordan, call for an emergency medical evac. If we don’t get her out of here very soon, she’ll die.”

Jordan nodded his head and walked a few feet away to make the call. He could hear his voice in the distance, but paid no mind to it, all he could think about was what Doc just said. She could die if they didn’t get her out of here, and that made his heart break. She can’t die, she is too young, she has a whole life ahead of her.

“They’re sending a chopper now, ETA five minutes.”

“That’s too long, she’ll be dead by then.”

“What?”

This was the first time anybody has heard Alex’s voice break, even he knew deep down her wound was too severe. She was already losing a lot of blood. It was a miracle she was still conscious at this point.

“I’m sorry, her wound is too extensive and I don’t have the right equipment with me. My stim will only do so much, she needs an operating table.”

He closed his eyes and sighed, feeling his heart being ripped out of him. Not a moment later his eyes shot open as her grip on his hand ceased, falling lifelessly to the ground. He looked down at her to see her eyes were close, chest barely moving.

“Skylar? No, no, no, no, don’t do this to me.”

He got up to give Doc more room. As he began CPR, all he could do was stare at her lifeless body, feeling completely and utterly numb. This wasn’t supposed to happen, he promised he would protect her and he failed. All he could do was just watch, like a punchline of a bad joke.

“Kotyonok!”

Chapter Text

It’s been two days since that horrific day happened, and half of them haven’t been the same. No one could blame them, what they had to deal with wasn’t their typical White Masks, but something much worse. Something they weren’t sure they could contain in the end.

Everyone had some sort of trauma after that mission, even if they wouldn’t show it. But everyone close enough to Alex knew he suffered the most. It was a miracle that Doc ended up reviving Skylar after she flat-lined, it seemed almost impossible. Now she was lying in a hospital bed full of wires and a breathing tube down her throat. And he hasn’t left her side since she was airlifted out of that god forsaken town.

Doc did all he could at the base, but she needed multiple surgeries, surgeries he couldn’t do there. And with how severe her injury was it was better to put her in a medically induced coma. Once she was stable enough they airlifted her to Albuquerque.

With one surgery down, Alex was right by her side. He hated seeing her like this, covered in wires, a breathing tube, it was only a few days ago where she was fine, even a smile on her face. Now look at her? At least she was alive, which he’s grateful for. He has Doc to thank for that.

Alex sighed as he went to go rest his chin on his arm that laid on her hospital bed, looking up at her. He still needed to call her parents to tell them what happened, he just hasn’t found the energy to do so. He could’ve had Doc do it, he even offered, but he felt it would be better for them to hear it from him.

Still, telling Carl and Sarah that they’re daughter is in a medically induced coma was going to be hard. Would he even be able to tell them why she’s in that situation? The outbreak had to be on the news, right? Then again he doesn’t remember seeing any camera crew. He also wasn’t looking for them, he had other things on his mind.

A knock at the door forced him to look up, seeing Maxim and Timur with a bag of food in their hands. “Can we come in?”

Alex nodded and they walked in, setting the bags of food on a nearby table. “We brought you some food.”

“I’m not hungry.”

“You have to eat something. You’ve barely eaten anything since before the mission.” stated Maxim

He didn’t say anything, nor has he looked at them since they walked on. His attention is only on Skylar. Maxim and Timur hated seeing him like this, he was a completely different person. He no longer had that upbeat personality of his, it was taken over by the dark clouds hovering over his head. If she takes a turn for the worst, who knows what will happen to him.

“Skylar wouldn’t want you to go hungry, she would want you to eat.”

He sighed and looked over at them. They could also tell he was tired, probably hasn’t slept in days, nor has he eaten that much. “What did you get?”

“Burgers from a local restaurant.”

Maxim handed him the one they bought for him, followed by the drink. “Have you called her parents yet?”

“No, I don’t want to leave her side.”

He sighed, shoulder’s slouching. “Her parents need to know. How about after you eat, I’ll stay with her while you make that call.”

“Fine.”

“Good!”

The room went quiet as they ate, the only thing that could be heard were the beeping of the equipment she was hooked too. Alex looked down at the burger, but he couldn’t eat, his stomach wouldn’t let him. He was so damn scared about what could happen to Skylar, his kotyonok, those nerves made it hard for him to even eat. Timur was right, he knew she wouldn’t want him to starve himself, she would want him to eat. Even if it was just a little bit.

“What have I missed?”

“We got the capsule and as far as we know Doctor Mackintosh is working on a cure. They’re also not entirely sure if the people in that town can be saved.”

“Are they thinking about nuking it like Jordan offered?”

“I don’t think they’ll nuke the town, it would cause too many casualties.”

He nodded his head and took a bite of his burger. At least it tasted good, that helped, or it could be due to the fact he hasn’t eaten in a few days, anything will taste good after not eating for that long. However, the one thing he was dreading was telling her parents about what happened. There’s no easy way to tell them that they’re daughter is in a medically induced coma, he might as well just bite the bullet and tell them outright. It’ll be better in the end if he did and they’ll be in the city within a day or two.

Even though Skylar was stuck to a bunch of wires, Doc did say she looked to be on the road to recovery. It would just take longer due to the severity of her injury. Alex didn’t care how long it would take for her to recover, as long as she was alive everything was worth it. Right now, it didn’t feel that way.

He finished his lunch and got up to throw the box away. “I’m going to call her parents.”

They both nodded their heads as they watched him leave the room. Timur let out a soft sigh as he looked over at her, wishing a speedy recovery for his friend. Things just won’t be the same without her.

Alex went outside for more privacy, walking a little ways away from the door. He crouched down against the wall as he pulled his phone from his pocket. He sighed as he went to Skylar’s mother’s number and dialed.

A few rings went through before her voice came on the other end. “Hello.”

“Hi, Sarah. I need you and Carl to come to Albuquerque, Skylar’s been injured.”

“What? What happened? Is she alright?”

The sound of panic in her voice made this even worse, this whole situation sucked. “She’s in a medically induced coma. I know she would want you here.”

“Oh my god.” She went quiet for a moment, though he could hear a soft sight. “Of course we’ll be there in a day. Is there anything else we can do?”

“Yes, actually. Can you bring some clothes for her? Preferably some sweats and anything a little baggy for shirts. We didn’t bring much when we left England, and neither expected for one of us to get injured.”

“Can do! We’ll see you soon.”

“Alright, see you soon!”

He let out a relieved sight as he hung up the phone. Her parents will be here within the day and maybe he’ll be able to relax a bit more. It was just so hard for him to see her like that, in a way he should’ve expected it. Their job is dangerous as is and it was only a matter of time until one of them got injured. He was just hoping for a small injury, like a cut.

He placed his phone back in his pocket as he stood up and headed back inside. When he returned Maxim and Timur were talking about something, hunting maybe? He didn’t hear the full conversation just a small bit as he entered the room. But if it was hunting, Alex wouldn’t put it past Maxim to go after this shit show.

“Her parents will be here in a day.”

“That’s good!” said Timur “With them here you won’t have to stay by her bedside all the time.”

If looks could kill he would be dead.

“He just meant that you could grab a shower or something like that.” Maxim gave him a reassuring smile. “With her parents here she’ll be in good hands while you’re away.”

“Yeah.” He sat down in the chair he was previously in, glancing over at her. “Once her parents are here I might head back to England to grab some clothes and other necessities. I’m not leaving her side!”

“I can head back and grab some things for you? I’ll be in a better state of mind than you are right now.”

“You don’t need to, Maxim. I appreciate it, thank you!”

“What are friends for?” He chuckled. “It’s my pleasure!”

A small smirk showed on his face, and even a small chuckle came off his lips. He was grateful to have friends like Maxim and Timur, people who cared. He knew he could lean on them when he needed to, and right now he needed them!

Chapter Text

It’s been a little over a day since he called her parents, and they should be here within the hour. Maxim headed back to England to grab some more clothing and essentials for him, knowing he wouldn’t leave her side. And he offered.

He knew they would be here for some time between her surgeries and recovery, so having some of his things here were substantial. Skylar’s parents were bringing some of her clothing down from Maine, making her stuff taking care of. Other essentials they need can be bought at any nearby drug store.

In the past day he called Six telling her he was taking some time off to spend with Skylar as she undergoes multiple surgeries and to stay with her during her recovery. He knew he was going to be out of work for at least a year, maybe more. It all depends on how speedy her recovery is. It’ll be worth it though. And Six didn’t seem to mind having him take so much time off, then again there were over thirty other operators that work within Rainbow. Missing two of them wasn’t a big deal.

He also got a hotel room close to the hospital, not just for them but for her parents as well. They needed a place to sleep while they’re here. The one good thing about the hotel room was that Rainbow was covering it, he didn’t need to worry about paying for both rooms. Not that he would have to begin with, he had much more pressing issues to worry about.

Maxim should be back in a few days with his things, so until then it’ll be the same. Alex sitting by her side. At least this time he’ll have some company with her parents being here. The downside is having to tell them what happened. They deserved to know either way.

After picking up her parents at the airport they made a quick stop at the hotel for them to put their things away before heading back to the hospital. He wasn’t looking forward to them seeing their daughter in the state that she’s in. He remembered Skylar telling him that she saw her parents a few weeks after the ambush, saving them from seeing her in that state. Now there was no hiding it.

“Her room is here.”

He gave them a small smile and let them go in first. Alex could hear Sarah mumble ‘oh my god’ under her breath before she went to sit by her side. Carl didn’t say anything but his face did. Alex walked in, closing the door behind him and took a seat in one of the chairs.

A few moments later Carl sat in the other chair with a sigh. “How’d this happen? If you can tell us that is.”

“How much do you already know?”

“Just that there was an outbreak of some kind in New Mexico and that the coast guard was deployed, that’s all.”

Alex nodded his head, glancing over at Skylar. “Some of Rainbow’s operatives were deployed not long after it started, Skylar and I being two of them. We were met by hostile forces in the quarantine zone on the missions we went on…”

“Hostile forces?”

“Whatever this virus is, it has changed the inhabitants of the town into hostile creatures.” He chuckled. “Saying that out loud makes it sound made up.”

“Did one of those creatures do this to Sky?”

“Da, a few days ago. The mission was to secure the capsule that caused all this, it was going well too. Out of nowhere one came up behind her, all I could do was watch.”

He looked down at his hands and closed his eyes. They were mere minutes away from evac and being back on base, then that damn Rooter came out of nowhere. Skylar couldn’t wait to be back home, away from the action. Now she’s stuck in a coma.

“Don’t blame yourself for what happened, son. It’s not your fault, she knows that.”

“I told her I would protect her, I failed.” Alex looked up at Carl, sighing. “It doesn’t help that the capsule was Soviet made either.”

“If you try to protect her from every evil in the world, you’re just setting yourself up for failure. I know I’m her father.” He leaned forward, grasping his shoulder. “Don’t blame yourself for what your ancestors did in the past, it’s not your burden to carry.”

“Yeah, that’s true.”

What Carl said was true, it wasn’t his burden to carry. That capsule was made decades ago, probably before he was even born. There was no need for him to carry that with him, then again a part of him felt guilty. As silly as it sounds. But it also made him question what other atrocities his country has created in secret.

“This is hard for all of us. But she’s strong and will be better in no time.”

“She is! More so than she thinks.”

He chuckled, a small smile forming on his face. She’ll never fully believe how strong she actually is, but what she’s been through in her short life has made her one of the strongest women he’s ever met. From dealing with the abuse from Henry, the ambush back when she was a Marine to the outbreak in New Mexico. She tanked all of it without a second thought. Skylar will always be stronger than she thinks!

“Yeah, that sounds like her.” Sarah looked back over at her youngest, a small, proud smile on her face. “I wonder why she doesn’t believe it?”

“Most likely because of Henry.”

Carl looked over at him with a slight sadness in his eyes, and he softly sighed. That’s when he noticed he never told Sarah, making his eyes go wide. She looked over at him, slightly confused. “What do you mean?”

“Um..”

He didn’t know what to say nor did he want to even tell her. She’s already seeing her own daughter in a hospital bed in a coma, she really didn’t need to know about the abuse Skylar went through by Henry’s hands.

Carl looked over at her, grabbing her hands in his. “That’s a conversation for another time, dear. All I’ll say right now is, he wasn’t the kindest.”

She nodded her head but both could tell she was curious, that was understandable. Alex was kind of hoping he told her about it, now knowing he didn’t made things a little awkward. He was now wishing he said something different, like how the military isn’t the kindest. That would’ve made things easier.

Things went quiet between them, only the beeping of the machines Skylar was attached to could be heard. At least things didn’t feel awkward and he was just happy they were here.

“How long did they say she would be in a coma for?”

“A few weeks. They said it would be better in the long run for her.”

“She’s going to have a long road to recovery ahead of her, that’s for sure.”

Alex just hummed in agreement, she’ll be recovering for a very long time after this. Not just from the injury, but the post traumatic stress disorder she most likely got from it. Who knows if she’ll even go back to work once she’s fully healed, that’ll be a thought for another day. There’s still a long while before she even decides about that.

“How much time off did you get, Alex?”

“As long as I want.”

“Really?”

“Rainbow has over thirty operatives, missing two of them isn’t a big deal.” He looked over at Skylar, “Besides, no one can force me to leave her side.”

Sarah gave him a soft smile. “She’s lucky to have you!”

“And I’m lucky to have her!”

Chapter Text

Having Skylar’s parents here was helping, a lot more than he was expecting. It made him feel less alone because they were going through the same thing as he was. Skylar was their daughter after all and it probably pained them to see her like this. Alex on the other hand was used to the horrors of war and battle, even so it was still hard for him to see someone he loved stuck in a hospital bed.

He leaned back in his chair, the coffee cup he got from a local coffee shop in hand dangling over the arm of the chair. With not much to do his mind ran wild, thinking about all the things he wants to do with her once she’s fully healed. The one thing he was looking forward to the most was moving in together, actually moving in together. Forget about her staying in his room on base, he couldn’t wait to start searching for places around Hereford. Decorating it together, making those four walls a home!

He sighed and leaned forward, resting his arms on his thighs and holding the coffee cup in between them. Her parents weren’t there yet, then again he was there as soon as visiting hours began. He knew he couldn’t do anything, just sit by her side and talk to her. It helped though, not just for him but for her as well. She was more alert when he talked to her, even in her comatose state. Doc said that could happen, that patients in a coma could react more to people they know, and it was true with her.

The one thing he did wonder is if they dream while comatose or is it a deep, dreamless sleep? The sleep where you wake up feeling drowsy, the sleep that tells you you slept well. But he guessed she wouldn’t remember when they take her out of it. Not to mention the recovery of being in a coma. She was definitely on a long road to recovery.

He heard the door open expecting it to be one of the nurses, but when he turned his head to see it was her parents. “Good morning!”

“Good morning!” said Sarah

“When did you get here?”

“Once visiting hours were open.” He set the coffee cup down on the nearest table. “I don’t sleep well anymore. I’d rather stay with her.”

Sarah gave him a soft smile as she sat down in one of the chairs. She found it sweet that he would rather stay with her, but it also worried her. “Don’t forget to take care of yourself, Alex. Sky would want you too.”

“I’m doing the best I can under these circumstances.”

That was the best he could do. Everything felt off with her gone, he no longer had his other half with him. Someone he spent day after day with ever since they got together. He found sleeping harder without her by his side, always waking up every hour, turning on his side to see an empty spot. The spot where she should be, sound asleep.

This was only temporary, they planned on waking her up within a few weeks. Why was it so hard for him? She wasn’t dead, just in a coma. She’ll be fine, he keeps telling himself, yet he doesn’t believe the voice telling him. Maybe it’s because he almost lost her not too long ago. She died on that battlefield.

That wasn’t something he likes to remember, her dying in his lap. How her body went limp as the life drained from her. It was a miracle they were even able to revive her, yet Doc did and there she was, in a hospital bed. In a coma. He’d rather take that than having to plan a funeral.

“Aren't we all.”

He couldn’t help but nod. “I couldn’t even begin to understand from your perspective. She’s your daughter!”

“It reminds me of when she got injured during that ambush, getting that call and thinking the worst. Only to be told that she’s alive and will make a full recovery.” Her father went silent, staring over at her. “As a parent you want to protect your child from everything, but eventually they’ll be old enough to make their own decisions. Skylar chose this career path and I’m proud of what she has done. I would be lying if I said seeing her like this didn’t kill me.”

Alex couldn’t help but agree with that statement. It shows how life can be unpredictable, that even if you try to keep your own child away from harm, at some point they might choose a path that can lead to it. The military was one of them, he and Skylar could vouch for it. The amount of times he’s been injured was more than he can remember. The only difference was he didn’t have a choice. He was forced into military life and could have left after his contract was up, yet didn’t.

He regretted that part for a while, up until he retired and joined Rainbow. If he never joined he wouldn’t have met Skylar, and he became better because of it. It’s not like he hated his job, far from it. But there was always an inkling that he wanted something more. And with Rainbow he got it!

“When I first met her, she didn’t look like the military type at all.” He chuckled. “If you didn’t know her you would never guess she was a Marine.”

Sarah laughed. “That is very true. She doesn’t hold herself like a soldier, nor act like one.”

“It shows she didn’t get sucked into this life. And she has too big of a heart to act like one!”

Carl nodded. It was still a shock to him that she even enlisted at all, and at seventeen. With his permission. He wanted to say no, have her pick a different path in life. But she wanted to pay for her own college tuition once that hurricane struck Maine and made them tight on money. As much as he hated it, he couldn’t take that away from her.

“That I’m happy about.”

“I don’t blame you.”

“What was your reason for joining the military?”

“I didn’t have a choice, I was drafted.” He sighed. “I knew it was going to happen, it made me prepare for it.”

Still, knowing it was going to happen forced him into living his life differently. It also didn’t help having a strict father who was in the military. Even though it’s a law for every male from the ages of eighteen to twenty-seven to enlist for at least one year, he did wonder what his life would’ve been like if he wasn’t forced into it. Now that he has over twenty years under his belt of military experience, it’s harder to picture a different life.

“I’m sure that didn’t help.”

“Over in Russia every male has to enlist for at least one year. It’s a law. Has been for decades.”

“Wow, I didn’t know that!” acknowledged Sarah

“Not a lot of people do.”

“And there’s a way around it.”

They all looked at the door to see Maxim walking in with a duffel bag. He placed it on the floor next to Alex. “Here are your things and I picked up some of Skylar’s art supplies, figured she would like something to do once she’s awake.”

“Thanks!”

“No problem!”

Alex looked between Maxim and Skylar’s parents, thinking it’d be best to introduce them. “This is Maxim. Maxim, these are Skylar’s parents, Sarah and Carl.”

“Nice to meet you both!”

“Nice to meet you too, Maxim!”

He looked over at Skylar and sighed. It seemed just like yesterday Alex called her over after Shuhrat left, where he and Timur got into some friendly banter about knots. She was full of life back then, beer bottle in hand and now look at her.

“How long have you known Skylar?”

He looked over to Carl, locking eyes. “Same amount of time as Alex, obviously different relationship.”

From his peripheral he could see Alex roll his eyes. He could tell he wanted to say something sarcastic, but kept quiet. Which wasn’t like him at all, he understood though with all he’s going through. It would be hard to keep your normal behavior with something like this going on in your personal life.

“She’s a friend though, and she definitely doesn’t deserve this.” His eyes glanced between Alex, landing on Skylar. “There’s a lot of people here that would trade places with her in a heartbeat.”

Sarah and Carl looked at each other with a proud look on their faces. Skylar has done so much in her short life, but hearing how much people cared about her within Rainbow made their hearts fill with joy!

“That’s lovely to hear! It’s nice to know people care about her.”

“It’s hard not to.” He chuckled. “She has this aura around her that makes getting along with her easy.”

Maxim leaned against a wall, crossing his arms. “She reminds me of Timur, always able to get along with people of all personalities. Whether they like them or not.”

“Does Timur work with you guys?” asked Carl

“Da, he does. That’s Skylar’s sniping buddy, as she likes to call him.”

“That’s cute!”

Maxim pushed himself off the wall, clearing his throat. “I, unfortunately, have to go back to work. I’ll stop back later if I can.”

“Okay, thanks again Maxim.”

He gave him a small smile and waved goodbye as he left the room, letting the door shut behind him. Alex grabbed the bag and unzipped it, looking inside. He saw some more of his clothes and Skylar’s pad of paper along with her colored pencils, and pens. She would be enjoying this once she wakes up, knowing she’ll be on bed-rest for a while. It’ll at least give her something to do.

He zipped the bag back up and moved it to the side. He’ll bring the stuff back to his room and put them away, but for now he was content where he was. However, with nothing to do he opened the bag again and pulled out the pad of paper, opening it.

It already contained a bunch of Skylar’s sketches from even before they got together. There was one of a bird sitting on a branch, one of her late friend Molly, and even a few of her time in Rainbow.

As he flipped through the pages he stopped, a small smile on his face. It was a sketch of him, asleep. The more he examined it, the more he realized she did it here, in New mexico. Where he was sleeping was on the cot, not their bed back on base. Even though it wasn’t fully finished, he already loved it!

Skylar was a talented artist, and he loved watching her sketch whenever she did. Even if she was sketching some mundane object in their room, it was calming. He loved the serious look she always had on her face when she placed a pencil in her hand, the details she could pinpoint by just looking at an object. It was a skill, a skill he will never have. It was also cute, seeing the faces she would make while doing it, they always made him chuckle. He could still picture the glare she would give him every-time he did it.

The smile on his face faded and he closed the pad of paper. Even remembering good memories isn't helping, it is doing the opposite. He just felt worse.

Alex placed the pad of paper back into the bag and sighed. These were going to be a long few weeks! And he knew he didn’t need to stay with her all the time, but he felt bad whenever he left, even for the night. It was like his brain kept nagging on him, he left for a few hours and all he feels is guilt.

That feeling brought him back to when he was younger, when he first joined the Red Army, when he first took a life. He knew it was him, it was always going to be him. Still, taking a life isn’t easy, it stays with you. Even though they were on opposite sides, he was still a person and a person with a family. That guilt stays with you. Over time it becomes easier and that guilt doesn’t stay long.

The guilt he feels now is the same feeling he felt when he took a life. Yet, different. He promised he would protect her, he promised to keep her safe. He failed. But he also knew Carl was right, you can’t keep her safe from everything. No matter how hard you try. Maybe it was an unrealistic goal to have, no matter how much he loved her. Keeping her safe isn’t always going to be easy.

Chapter Text

A week and a half had passed and Skylar was now in for her second surgery. It was times like these when he would become the most nervous, not knowing if she would come out alive or not. Anything can happen during surgery, both good and bad. But knowing Gustave was the one doing it, made him feel a little more at ease.

And this time he wasn’t in the waiting room of the hospital, he was actually with her dad. He needed to run a few errands and Carl asked if he wanted to join. His first thought was no, he’d rather stay in the waiting room. But the more he thought about it the more he knew Skylar would want him to go out. Ever since she was put into a medically induced coma, he hasn’t been the same.

“I actually asked you to come with me for a reason.”

“Oh?”

“I know you love her, that’s very obvious. But seeing you like this, barely leaving her side, that makes me grateful. I know that she’ll always be in good hands when I’m not there.”

“I do love her, more than I can explain!” A small smile began to spread across his face. “I’ll never leave her side when she needs me the most.”

“Have you thought of when you’re going to ask her?”

He seemed a little taken aback by his words and that’s saying something. Alex isn’t the one easily surprised by things, this time was a little different.

“I was thinking about proposing at the Grand Peterhof Palace in the lower garden during the summer. With her being in recovery I don’t know when we’ll be able to go back.”

The lower garden was beautiful! Between the countless fountains, statues and flowers it was the perfect place to propose. It was the first place he thought of when he knew he wanted to, and planned on it after the hell they went through in Truth and Consequences. Getting back to Russia might be harder now. He can wait, Skylar’s health is more important.

“That sounds beautiful!”

“The place really is, especially during the summer.”

Unfortunately you couldn’t go during the winter, only the museum part of the palace. He would’ve shown her it when they were there the first time. There’s so much he wants to show her, create new memories. Over time it’ll happen and who knows maybe even with a few little ones.

“That day, whenever it may happen, she won’t forget it.”

“I hope not.” He chuckled. “I probably won’t either.”

“I still remember when I proposed to Sky’s mom. How the weather was that day, what she was wearing, the look on her face when she saw me on one knee.” A smile started to spread on his face. “Who knows that could be you in a few decades.”

“I hope so. I still remember the day we met.”

“Really?”

“Yeah.” He chuckled. “Six wanted all the senior operators to meet the new recruit, it’s pretty standard meet and greet. She walked in wearing her uniform with the dark purple boots, hair in that side braid she always wears and a smile on her face.”

At first glance he found her beautiful. The way her chestnut brown hair shines under the fluorescent lights, the way she carries herself and that smile. That smile that could melt his heart. They might have only said a few words at that time, but those few words were enough.

“I spoke maybe twenty words to her at that time.”

“Now look.”

“I know!” He laughed. “Sometimes things just fall into place.”

“No argument there.” laughed Carl.

Alex looked out the window, nothing really to see but cars driving, a few fast food places, a car dealership and other miscellaneous stores. It reminded him of how a certain part of Bangor looked. It made him wonder if most of the states looked like this. He wouldn’t really know only to have been to military bases if he ever did come to the US.

“What else do you have planned to show her?”

“Where do I even start?” He laughs. “Saint Petersburg is a big place.”

“How about your favorite spots?”

He nodded his head. There were a few places he was dying to show her, places he went to more times than he can count. Whether it was with his friends or family.

“The Mariinsky Theatre is one of the places I’d like to show her one day. It’s a musical theatre that my mom used to drag me and my sister to every winter. It’s still a beautiful place to go.”

Alex hasn't been to the Mariinsky Theatre since he was drafted, all those years ago. He can still picture the ballet shows, the orchestral music, and how bored he was at the time. Now looking back he misses those simple times of being with family and watching some talented people on stage.

“Musical theatre?”

“Yeah. It houses ballet shows, opera, and orchestral music.”

“I’m gonna be honest, I have no idea if Sky will like that or not.”

He snorted. “I’ll ask her when she wakes up. I do want to take her to the State Russian Museum. Have her learn more of Russia’s history.”

“She will definitely like that! Any chance to go to a museum.”

“Ah, so she likes museums?”

“You have no idea.” he laughed. “I took her to so many museums in Bangor that I lost count.”

They finally made it to the grocery store after hitting some traffic. Ah, the joys of living in a big city. Alex knew that all too well, at least in ST Petersburg they had the metro to help get them to places that were too far to walk and they didn’t have a car to get them there. American public transportation was a little different.

“That is a lot of times.” He chuckled. “I’m sure she loved every second of it though.”

“I know she did, the smile on her face showed it.”

Carl shut off the car and they both got out, Alex stretching as he stood up. For the southern United States it was much warmer, even during the winter months. He wasn’t complaining, it was much better than the snowy, cold Russian winters he’s so used to.

“Sounds like her.”

For the next hour they ended up getting some groceries at a local grocery store for the next week. Even though he hasn’t been cooking that much these past few weeks he did end up getting himself stuff he actually had to cook. No more take out, he was going to cook, unless he was staying late at the hospital.

Now back at the hospital, Skylar’s surgery went well and they should be able to wake her within the next few days. Alex was ecstatic to hear that, as were they all. She’s been in that coma for a few weeks now and he couldn’t wait to hear her soothing voice again!

Chapter Text

Today was the day and to say that Alex was happy would be an understatement. He was ecstatic!

The last few weeks were hectic for his mental state to say the least. Having Skylar in a medically induced coma was rough, seeing her like that was even harder. In a few hours that’ll be all over, she’ll be awake and he’ll finally be able to talk to her. To talk with her! That was more than enough.

He knew she would still be in the hospital for another week or maybe more. They want to make sure she’s healed enough to move without causing damage to her injury. Even so they weren’t planning on leaving New Mexico after she’s discharged from the hospital. They’ll be staying in the hotel for a while. Alex and her parents knew she wouldn’t be able to fly for a while and she'd be nowhere near ready to take that long car ride back to Maine.

To pass the time Alex was putting the clothing her parents brought down for her. He should’ve done it a while ago, he knew that. Times were busy, he’d either be at the hospital by her side or asleep. Now that she was waking up, he’d thought it would be better to finally put them away. Not that she would notice right away anyways.

He even made a small hospital bag for her, filled with all her art stuff, a book and her electronics that she would probably want. Anything to keep her occupied and comfortable.

As happy and excited as he was, he knew it could be a little while before she wakes up. Doc just started to ease her off the drugs and said it could take from 12-72 hours before she regains consciousness. He’s lasted almost three weeks, what’s another few days?

It’ll just be nice to see her without all those wires connected to her, no tube down her throat, she’ll be better. Or so he hopes. No, he can’t think like that. Skylar will be fine, they’ve been monitoring her vitals since she was put under. She’ll be fine.

The only thing Doc said was that she could be confused when she wakes up. That doesn’t sound too bad, she’ll regain her memory overtime and he’ll help her.

As he was folding one of her shirts there was a knock at the door, he softly sighed and placed the shirt down on the bed and went to the door. When he opened it he saw Carl on the other side. He moved out of the way to let him in and then shut the door.

“What’s with the bunny?”

“Oh.” he laughed. “This was one of Sky's favorite stuffed animals growing up. I thought she might want it for comfort.”

“That’s sweet! I’m sure she’ll be happy to have her little friend back.”

Carl handed Alex the bunny and he looked down at it. The once pure white fur was now an off white color from all the years of being handled. The bright blue plastic eyes still had a spark in them and the pink bow-tie had some wear and tear. All the stories this one stuffed animal could tell.

“Does it have a name?”

“Fluffy.”

“Fluffy?”

“She was two at the time she named her.”

“Ah, cute name!” He could hear her father chuckle as he placed the bunny on the bed and grabbed the shirt he folded and placed it in the drawer. “I’ll be sure to give it to her when she wakes.”

“Thank you!”

“No problem!”

Alex went back to folding her clothes as Carl looked around the hotel room. It was the same as his and Sarah’s, a queen sized bed, a small kitchen, a couch and a tv with a chair and a few small tables. Nothing special. He did notice he made the room look more like a home in a sense. There was some personal stuff on the bedside table, his cell phone was one, but what caught his eye was a picture of Alex and Skylar sitting against the lamp.

He got up and walked over, picking it up to examine it more. It was a photo of them back in Russia, snuggled up together for a picture with snow falling and the large Christmas tree in the background. They both looked so happy!

He turned to him, showing the picture in his hand. “You guys look so happy!”

“We were!” He placed another shirt down on the bed and grabbed another one to fold. “It was nice to take her around Saint Petersburg, show her the beautiful city.”

He set the picture back where he found it and turned to him. Sighing. “You know how I said I’m grateful that Sky has you?” He nods his head. “After everything she has been through. With Henry, it’s nice to know she actually found love.”

Alex’s brows furrowed, just thinking of that abusive asshole made him angry. The things he did to Skylar made his stomach twist. “I wanted to kill him for what he did. The way he treated her made my blood boil.”

“I don’t blame you. She didn’t deserve that, not one bit.” He sighed and sat back down. “When she was discharged from the Marines, I thought she’d reconcile with Wyatt, her ex-boyfriend. Now I know why she didn’t.”

He grabbed the pile of her shirts and walked back over to the drawer and placed them in it, closing it afterwards. “She told me about him. How their break-up was mutual and he was a good man.”

“That’s all true.” he chuckled. “Wyatt is a good man and he loved Skylar. She looked at him like she looks at you now.”

“Really?”

“Yes.” He turned his head to look at him. “She looks at you with that same adoration.”

That made Alex smile! He knew she loved him, that was obvious and he loved her. That too was obvious. But hearing it from her father made it seem a little more real. Like he wasn’t imagining it. Not that he was, their lives have been far too real as of late, it would be hard to imagine this.

“That’s nice to hear!”

Carl gave him a warm, fatherly smile. “I’m just happy she chose someone like you to be with! Someone who truly cares about her. That’s a father’s only wish when it comes to their daughters.”

“For them to be happy and loved!”

He nodded his head. That’s what he was planning to do, to love and cherish her. To take away all the pain she endured by Henry’s hands. She has suffered for far too long and now it was finally time for her to be happy, truly happy!

Before he could say anything more his phone began ringing on the bedside table. He walked over to grab and answer it. When Doc’s voice rang out on the other side it made his heart beat rapidly, not knowing if he was going to hear good news or bad. But when he heard that very good knews he thanked him and told him he would be there in a few minutes.

He hung up the phone and looked over at Carl. “She’s awake!”

Carl sighed in relief and they both headed out the door.

He pretty much jobbed down the hospital’s hallways to make it back to her room. When he got there he nearly cried from how happy he was. There she was, awake and alert.

He walked into the room and knelt down by her side, grabbing her hand. “Hi, kotyonok!”

She gave him a soft smile, tears swelled in her eyes. “Moya sladost’!”

Alex leaned over and gave her a kiss, the first one in weeks. It was tender and sweet! Just feeling her lips on his again made him so happy. That’s also when he realized there was another person in the room. He looked over to see Doc and stood up to talk with him.

“How is she?”

Gustave glanced between them both, giving Skylar a small smile. “Her vitals are great, there doesn't seem to be much memory loss, just what happened recently. And now she has a long road to recovery.”

“I don’t think I can ever repay you for this, Doc. Thank you!”

He gave Alex a sincere smile. “This is my job, Alex. My job is to save people. Now I’ll leave you two alone.” He looked back over to her. “I’ll check back in a few hours.”

She nodded her head and thanked him.
Alex grabbed the chair that was the closest and moved it closer to the bed and sat down. He grabbed her hand again, being mindful of the IV in it. “It’s so good to have you back!”

“I didn’t go anywhere silly.”

He softly laughed. In a way she was right, she didn’t go anywhere. “Da, that is true.”

She laughed, scrunching her face at the pain that ran through her body. He gently let go of her hand to cup her cheek. “Hey, hey. Careful now.”

After the pain settled she placed her free hand on her stomach. “This sucks.” She looked over to him, curiosity in her eyes. “What happened to me?”

He gulped, that was the one thing he didn’t want to answer. He didn’t want to tell her what happened a few weeks ago. And since she didn’t know then Doc must’ve not told her.

“What do you remember?”

“That we were out on a mission to get the Soviet capsule. With all those…..infected.” She sighed, wincing at the pain once again. “The last thing I remember is you looking at me in horror. Then I woke up here.”

He nodded his head and sighed. “The reason I looked at you in horror is because a Rooter teleported behind you. It pierced you through the abdomen. I couldn’t do a damn thing.”

She could hear the hurt and sadness in his voice. She reached out with her other hand to cup his cheek, smiling at him. “Moya sladost’, none of this is your fault. You did everything you could against an enemy we know nothing about.”

“I said I would protect you, kotyonok! I failed.”

“That’s bullshit Alex and you know it. You did protect me.”

“Then why are you lying in a hospital bed?”

She sighed and rolled her eyes. “What about Henry? You knocked his ass to the ground for what he did to me. You protected me then and you protected me out on the field.”

He went quiet for a moment, thinking of her words. She was right in a sense, he did protect her. The worst thing Henry did to her was give her a bruised eye, that has now faded entirely. Still, he wished he did more when it came to what happened in Truth & Consequences.

When he didn’t say anything she spoke up. “Moya sladost’, we were fighting things we weren’t used to. Things that can teleport and summon others for back-up, you did the best you could.”

He gave her a small smile, wiping the tears from his eyes. “I just wish this didn’t happen.”

“I do too, but it did.” She sighed and moved in her bed, trying to find a more comfy position. “Now we just have to move on and for me to recover.”

“Da, recovering is the main priority.”

She smiled up at him, even though she wanted to laugh at how he said it, almost in a sarcastic tone. “Yes it is.”

He returned the smile and leaned over to give her a kiss, this time more passionately. It seems like he just now realized he didn’t need to be careful with her face, just her torso. Where her injury actually is.

Skylar looked past him at the entrance of the door, seeing her parents standing there with a bouquet of flowers and something else she couldn’t see. “Mom? Dad?”

“Hi sweety!”

They both walked in and her father placed the bouquet of flowers on a nearby table. She craned her head to look at them, seeing a mix of different flowers. Like tulips, daisies, and a few lilies. They looked beautiful.

Her mom sat down on the edge of the bed while her dad took to the other seat. “How are you feeling?”

“Right now I feel fine, that could also be the morphine flowing through my veins.”

Sarah reached out for her daughter's hand, taking it in her own. “We’re so happy you’re okay! We were so worried when Alex called us.”

Skylar looked over to him, blinking her eyes a few times. “You called my parents?”

“Of course, kotyonok. They needed to know what happened to you, I wasn’t going to keep it a secret.”

“He’s a good man, Sky!”

She glanced between her dad and Alex, a small, proud smile forming. “I know he is!”

“Besides the flowers we got you a little present.”

He grabbed the gift bag and handed it to her. She placed it on her good side and looked at it. She could see a stuffed animal of some kind, it had gray and white fur. The first thought that came into her head was a wolf.

She pulled it out and she was right. It was a medium sized gray and white wolf that felt so soft to the touch. “My new friend is so soft! Thank you!”

“You’re welcome, sweetheart!”

She gave her parents a genuine smile and hugged her new stuffed friend. “So soft.”

They all let out a small chuckle as she snuggled with her new friend. She moved it slightly to her side, but still kept it close.

“Do you have a name for it, kotyonok?”

She shook her head. “Not yet.”

He nodded his head and hummed.

She looked down at the IV in her hand and followed the tube until it came to the bag that held the morphine in it. Just seeing it brought her back to the ambush, how she woke up in a hospital bed with a ton of stitches in her neck and collarbone. And in a ton of pain.

Right now she was content, even though her body felt tense from barely moving however long she was in the coma for. It’s the afterwards that’ll suck. When she’s discharged and no longer has that morphine flowing through her veins, just painkillers. The painkillers helped a lot the last time, she’s not so sure about this time.

“Sky, are you okay?”

She looked over at her dad and nodded her head. “Yeah. The last time I had morphine was after the ambush.”

“Is that a good thing?”

“For right now, yes.”

Alex looked at her with a slight sadness in his eyes. He knew exactly what she was talking about, anyone who had a major injury would know.

“You won’t have to worry, kotyonok! I’ll be there for you.”

She smiled at him. “I know, moya sladost’!”

Her parents glanced between one another, confused on what they were talking about. She couldn’t blame them; they knew nothing of the military or severe injuries, they’ve never had any. Thankfully.

“What do you mean?” asked Sarah

“The morphine right now will ease her pain.” stated Alex “Once she’s discharged she’ll be on strong pain medication. The ones that are known to cause addiction.”

“Were you on these meds before?”

“I was prescribed them, yes. I never took them, Advil was enough to ease my pain.” She sighed and looked down at her stomach. “This time I’m sure Advil won’t cut it.”

“Just be careful.”

“I will dad, don’t worry.”

There was a small knock on the door that made everyone turn their heads to see Doc standing by the door.

He walked into the room, closing the gap between him and Skylar. “How’s my favorite patient doing?”

“Don’t make me laugh, Gustave, it hurts when I do.” She softly sighed. “As good as I can be.”

Gustave nodded. “Don’t worry I won’t go poking and prodding just yet. I just came to see how you are.”

“I appreciate that!”

He gave her a small smile before he said his goodbyes and told her he’d be back later tonight. It made her wonder if he’s still helping with the problem in Trust or Consequences, she might have to ask him later.

“What’s going on with Truth or Consequences?”

“They ended up getting the Capsule and from what I’ve heard that Dr. Mackintosh is working one a cure. Unfortunately they don’t know if it’ll work.”

She nodded her head. “If they can't, are they gonna go with Jordan’s idea?”

“Maxim said they wouldn’t nuke it, too many casualties.”

“Predator missiles then?”

“Most likely.”

She nodded her head. It would make the most sense to use missiles than a nuclear bomb with so many neighboring towns. That would be way too many casualties. And if there are any surviving infected then they can just go in and do clean up.

“Wait. So how long was I in a coma for?”

“Almost three weeks.”

Skylar’s eyes widened, she wasn’t expecting it was that long. More like a few days, not three weeks. It made her wonder what else happened in her absence.

“Holy shit.”

Chapter Text

It’s been two days since Skylar was awoken from her coma. Her vitals and everything were doing well, which was good since she was going into her last surgery tomorrow. They didn’t need something to go wrong on the operating table. Alex couldn’t handle any more stress, he’s dealt with enough from the last few weeks.

On the brighter side of things, Skylar was able to sit up a little. At least enough so her face wouldn’t be looking at the ceiling all day. Thank god for those hospital beds. It also helped with wearing those hospital gowns so nothing was rubbing against her stitches besides her underwear. The only downside so far was the strict bed rest she was on and the fact she couldn’t eat a lot.

“I brought some goodies.”

She looked up to see Alex entering the room with a bag in his hand. It made her curious to see what it was. He sat down in the chair and handed her the bag.

“What is it?”

The question was rhetorical so he didn’t answer. She looked in the bag spotting her art supplies, or well some of them. Her sketchbook was in there as well as her pencils and pens, the ones she brought to this dreaded place. She also noticed her phone and a book.

She looked over at him, giving him a soft smile. “Thank you, moya sladost’! Now I won’t be as bored being bedridden.”

He leaned over to give her a kiss. “You’re welcome, kotyonok!”

She grabbed her phone and the book from the bag and set them aside. Right now she wouldn’t be able to sketch to her full ability while only being able to sit up a smidge. Alex grabbed the bag filled with her art supplies and placed it on the ground. With her taking the phone out he was expecting her to turn it on, only she didn't. She kept it at her side.

It made sense from his perspective, she probably didn’t want to be bombarded by all her sister's texts and voicemails that she undoubtedly has waiting for her.

“You should probably call them, kotyonok.”

“I know.” She fiddled with her hands and looked over at him. “I just don’t want to deal with the twenty questions.”
He laughed. “Why don’t you call Chloe after your surgery tomorrow?”

“You’re probably right, I should just get it over with.” She laughed only to wince at the pain shooting through her abdomen. “This is going to suck.”

He reached out and grabbed her free hand, giving it a gentle squeeze. This was only the beginning too, recovery will be tough and long. “I know! You won’t need to worry, I’ll be here!”

“I’m glad to have you!”

“You always will!”

“If I wasn’t in pain I would have you sit with me.”

“There will be time for that some other day.”

She gave him a soft smile and sighed softly. All she wanted to do was curl up next to him and cuddle, escape from the hell she’s been in. She wants to feel his arms around her, his hand rubbing up and down her back, taking in his smell. She wanted things to go back to normal.

“Hopefully soon!”

“You’ll be back in my arms before you know it, kotyonok!”

“Not soon enough.”

He chuckled and smiled over at her. He did wish he could just pull her into his arms and kiss the top of her head. This was just as hard for him as it was for her.

“Kotyonok, this is just as hard for me as it is for you.”

“Really?”

“Da. I would take you into my arms right now if I could.”

Her face softened and a small smile formed on her face. “Silly question.”

“It’s really not.” He got up from his seat and sat down gently on the bed. This was the closest he could get to being next to her without hurting her or her ripping her stitches. It would have to do, at least for now.

A knock at the door forced him to look over his shoulder to see who it was. He looked back over to Skylar and got off the bed.

“I came to see how you were doing?”

“As good as I can be.”

Jordan softly hummed and took a seat in the other chair. “At least you’re alive. That’s a good thing!”

She couldn’t argue against that. Yes she might be in pain and has a long road to recovery, but she’s still here. She still has a future in front of her. “That is very true! I was one of the lucky ones, along with Marius.”

“Yes, you guys were.”

Thinking back on the day where they rescued him after his chopper crashed, in the middle of hostile territory. She couldn’t even begin to understand how terrified he probably was. To be alone, injured. Not knowing when one of them would come out of the darkness and attack. She’s not sure if she could’ve done that.

Who knows though, maybe she could’ve. She’s dealt with worse before.

“I say Marius is a bit luckier. He didn’t get hurt as bad.”

Jordan nodded his head. “Yes, but he didn’t have someone staying by his side for hours upon hours.”

Skylar looked from Jordan over to Alex, her face softening upon his gaze. “You stayed next to me all that time?”

“Da, I wasn’t going to leave your side kotyonok!”

She smiled over at him. He really was a great boyfriend, even though she slightly regretted sleeping with him months ago she was happy she did. Things turned out way better than she planned.
“You at least took care of yourself, right?”

He knew he couldn’t lie to her, not even a little white lie. She would know, she always knows when or if he’s lying. “I did!”

She sighed, disappointment showing on her face. It made Jordan glance between them and stand up. “I’ll come back later.”

He got up and left the room so the couple could quarrel without him being present. As soon as he left the room her attention was back on Alex.

“Moya sladost’!”

“It was hard, okay?” He sighed and leaned forward. “Seeing you like that, knowing I couldn’t do anything besides sit here.”

Skylar went quiet. In a way she couldn’t blame him, she would’ve been the same if it was the other way around. Even so, she would’ve wanted him to take care of himself, not go down a depressed path because she was injured.

“In a coma or not, I would’ve wanted you to take care of yourself.”

“Timur and Maxim said the same thing.”

“See.” She chuckled, “They even knew.”

“Da, they did.”

He leaned back in the chair, a small smile on his face. Deep down he even knew she would want him to take care of himself, that should be his first priority. Not sulk in his guilt.

“You’re lucky you’re cute!” She shook her head and laughed, only to wince in pain once again. “I need to remember I’m injured.”

The morphine was really helping her forget she was, not being in much pain was nice. Forgetting how she got that injury was nicer. Until she laughed and a sharp pain struck her abdomen. This was going to be a very long recovery.

“You think I’m cute?”
She rolled her eyes and smiled. “Perhaps.”

“Perhaps?” he chuckled. “Well I think you’re cute!”

“Yay, I’m cute!”

He let out one of his booming laughs and smiled. “Da, kotyonok you are cute!”

“And so are you, moya sladost’!” She watched as his face softened and a small smile formed on her. Even though they sounded like children, it was still cute. Or the morphine was really hitting her. She looked back over at him, picking at the blanket. “Could you get me some tea please? I think a warm drink would do me wonders.”

“Yeah.” he stood up from his chair. “I’ll be back soon.”

She smiled as she watched him leave and then sighed. Being stuck in this bed was already beginning to annoy her, she wanted to walk around, stretch her legs a little. She couldn’t. The only time she was allowed out of this bed was to go to the bathroom. Other than that, she was on strict bedrest.

She reached for her phone that was placed at her side and unlocked it. There were already a dozen or so messages from her sister Chloe; she knew Alex was right and that she should reply back. Not now, not with another surgery looming in the near future. She’ll call her afterwards. She can already hear the worry in her voice when she calls, like all those times before when she got injured. And the yelling about her not being careful.

Ah, older siblings.

“Here’s your tea, kotyonok!”

She looked up to see him walking in with her cup of tea, she could even see the steam coming from the top. She placed her phone down on the bed and took the cup from his hands. “Thank you!”

“You’re welcome!”

He sat down in the chair with a thud that made her chuckle. The same way he sat down when they had to go debrief with Eliza before a mission. The exact one where Jordan said they should nuke the town instead of actually dealing with the situation. She understood why they couldn’t, but after this hell she wished they did. Would’ve saved her from a lot of pain and suffering.

She took a teeny sip of her tea in the hopes to not burn her tongue. It failed. “Hot.” She placed the tea on the table to let it cool down a little bit. “I’ll let that cool.”

He shook his head and smirked. “You should’ve been more careful, kotyonok.”

“Oh shush.” She went back to picking at the blanket that lay on top of her, wishing she had a warmer one. “By any chance did my parents bring any blankets of mine with them?”

“No, why?”

“These hospital ones aren’t that warm and I’m kinda cold.”

He glanced over her body, stopping at her hand. “I know they brought some long-sleeve shirts, unfortunately you have an IV in your hand.”

She moved that hand up, staring at the tape on her hand. “If this wasn't for the morphine I would ask if I needed this in.”

Skylar huffed and grabbed the cup of tea, taking another sip. Better. It wasn’t as hot as it was before and she could drink it now. Unfortunately she couldn’t change now even if she wanted to, not with another surgery coming up tomorrow. Perhaps tomorrow she’ll be able to change.

Alex chuckled. “I’m sure the nurse would’ve taken it out if you didn’t need it, kotyonok.”

She looked over and glared at him, shaking her head. “Obviously, moya sladost’.”

He knew she was being sarcastic, he could tell by the tone of her voice. The only thing he did was chuckle and smirk.

Chapter Text

It was the next day and Skylar’s last surgery was starting in an hour. She wasn’t nervous or anxious or any of that, she was calm and just wanted this over with. So she can just recover without having to worry about numerous surgeries in the future.

“I just want this over and done with.”

Alex looked over at her and chuckled. “Soon, kotyonok!”

“I know.” She sighed. “I’m impatient.”

“Haven’t noticed.”

She scoffed and looked away from him. “Rude.” She mumbled.

He laughed, reaching out for her hand. With the simple touch she turned to look at him, a soft smile on her face. “You’re cute when you’re ‘mad’.”

“Adorable!”

He laughed and leaned back in his seat, retracting his hand from hers. Even after all she’s been through it was nice to see that her sarcasm hasn’t faded. Nor has her smile. She was still the same ole’ Skylar.

Skylar sighed, looking down at the IV in her hand. One more, just one more surgery and she should be good. It’ll just be recovery afterwards, a long road to recover and strict bedrest, but recovery nonetheless. She could deal with it. She’ll have Alex, her parents and no doubt her sisters by her side. But mostly Alex!

The company would be nice; being bedridden for god knows how long would end up driving her crazy at some point in time. Having someone there to talk with, play games with, and watch movies with would help immensely. Because knowing him, he’s not leaving her side and no one is going to make him. They’ll be hell to pay for that.

“Kotyonok, what do you want to do when this is all said and done?”

“You mean like when I’m all healed?” He nodded. “Hmm, I don’t know, moya sladost’. Maybe go on a long deserved vacation.”

“Mm.” He chuckled. “No argument there. Do you have any specific place in mind?”

She went quiet for a moment, thinking up where she would like to go. There were so many places she’d like to visit, Greece, Italy, France; so many decisions. She would love to walk the paths in Zagori, visit Pompeii and walk the ancient streets, and explore the French Riviera.

“Greece, Italy and France are my top three places to visit.”

“Italy sounds nice.”

“It does. I want to visit Pompeii and walk those ancient streets.”

“Pompeii?” He cocked his head ever so slightly. “I wasn’t expecting you to say Pompeii, Rome perhaps. Not Pompeii.”

She laughed, only to clench her stomach in pain. “It’s the history I like. It’s a famous Roman city which was buried in ash for nearly 1,700 years after the cataclysmic eruption of MT Vesuvius.” She moved her hand away from her stomach once the sharp pain started to fade. “Excavation of Pompeii began in 1748, and the site has yet to be totally unearthed.”

“I didn’t know you were into history?”

“It’s fun learning about history. And cultures.”

He nodded his head. Learning history could be fun if you’re into that sort of thing. Alex really wasn’t into that sort of thing, but seeing her get excited over it was something special. The way her face lit up talking about Pompeii, the small smile on the corner of her mouth; he could tell she was passionate about it. Just as much as her art.

“When you’re healed, we’ll go. It’ll be a nice vacation anyways.”

“A much needed one too.”

“Very.”

She gave him a soft smile and sighed. Vacation sounded wonderful in her ears. To spend that time in a place unfamiliar to her with the man she loves sounded incredibly good. See the sights, experience new food, drink wine; just experience new things together.

“It’ll be nice to experience new things with my favorite person!”

Alex leaned forwards, taking her hand into his. “That does sound nice, kotyonok!”

It really did. After all this hell they’ve gone through the past few weeks, it would be nice to get away; forget about what happened and just enjoy each other’s company in a new place. Experience new things as a couple.

“It really does!” She gave him a soft smile, then sighed. “Now I just need to heal, after my next surgery of course.”

“You’ll be healed in no time, kotyonok!”

In a way he was right, she will be healed in no time. But she’s also not stupid to think this recovery will be easy, there’s no doubt in her mind that she’ll have plenty of bad days to come. She couldn’t even compare it to the time she had over fifty stitches in her neck. Yes, it was annoying and itched like crazy at times, but this wound affects her stomach and almost every other organ in her abdomen and pelvis area. This injury was a lot worse.

“Not soon enough, moya sladost’. Not soon enough.”

“Look at it this way, you’ll have something to look forward to!”

He was also right with that as well. Yes, recovering will be long and tedious, but afterwards she’ll have something to look forward to. Like visiting Pompeii with one of her favorite people.

“You have a point.” She chuckled. “I will have something to look forward to.”

“Exactly!”

Skylar was now in surgery which left Alex a few hours to kill before he had to head back to the hospital. To pass the time he was going through her sketchbook; looking at all the sketches she’s done over the past few months. There are a few of him, one with him and Maxim working on their respective gadgets, the other of him nodding off in a chair in their room. That made him laugh.

As he went through the book he found some sketches of other random things. Like a cat playing with a ball of yarn, a bowl of fruit and even a sketch of her own sniper rifle. Leave it to Skylar to have a sketch of her own sniper rifle, he was half expecting to see Timur’s as well.

The more pages he flipped through he came to one of Jordan, sitting at one of the tables in the cafeteria with his tray of food and a coffee cup sitting on the table in front of the tray. He was sitting back against the chair, legs spread out underneath and he was reading a file. Even though this was just a ‘simple’ sketch, the details in them were amazing.

After he finished looking at the sketchbook he placed it back on the nightstand and stood up with a sigh. He walked over to the keurig sitting on the counter in the kitchen and decided on making himself a coffee. What he really wanted to do was to work on his precious Degtyaryov; unfortunately Maxim brought it back to base when he left, figuring that he would find more peace if he knew it was back in his room.

Now, after Skylar’s injury, his precious Degtyaryov was the farthest thing from his mind. With that being said he was happy that Maxim took it back with him. He would be on a rampage if he knew someone was using it. Or even touching it. Everyone knew how he didn’t like people touching his ‘toys’ and with him not there to guard it he knew a few people would try. James Porter is one of them.

Once his coffee was done he added his sugar and creamer in it and sat back down in the chair. He took a sip and sighed. The room was quiet and still felt foreign, the hospital felt more at home than the hotel room. Perhaps it had to do with who was at the hospital, Skylar.

They’ve been together almost nonstop since they got together, now being a part seemed weird. It feels like when you’re so used to something it becomes a normal thing in your life, but once that specific thing changes it feels off. Not quite right. It reminded him of his time in the Red Army, how everyday was almost the same. Wake up early, train, eat breakfast, do whatever the higher ups wanted him to do, eat dinner, sleep and repeat.

Once he joined Rainbow he got used to ‘off days’; everyday was different. He liked it though, like not having to train each and every day. However he does work out every day to stay in shape. He may not be as young as he used to be and still needs to keep up with the younger operators. Mostly Skylar and the rest of the Spetsnaz boys.

Alex sighed and took another sip of his coffee. He was becoming bored and still had another two hours left to kill. He had no idea what to do. Should he get a nap in? Go hang out with her parents? Or perhaps go into the city and pick a gift out for her? He chose to go into the city and pick out a gift.

He was looking through a small jewelry shop on main street, looking for something small to get her. Like a bracelet or a necklace, something she could wear on a daily basis without being too invasive.

As he looked through the jewelry he came to a small necklace with a cat’s head in the middle. He chuckled and grabbed it off the stand.

“This would fit Skylar nicely.” He mumbled to himself.

Before he went to the cashier to pay for the necklace he decided to look around a bit, see if he could find anything else. A part of him wanted to see if he could find another ring for the engagement since Skylar has already seen the one he has. But, that was his mother’s ring and he would like for her to have it.

After looking around the store he didn’t really find much so he opted to head to the cashier and pay for the necklace. After a quick transaction and some small talk he was heading back to the hotel.

Once he was back in his room he placed the bag containing the necklace on the table by the door so he wouldn’t forget it when he left. Not that he was a forgetful person, just sometimes you’re in a hurry and forget things. So it was better for him to have it near the door, he wanted her to get it today.

He sat down with a sigh and scrubbed a hand down his face. Doc was going to call him once Skylar was out of surgery to tell him it was okay for him to come see her. The waiting was starting to drive him a little crazy. It would be a little easier if he had something to do or work on. But trying to get his Degtyaryov into this hotel was slim to none.

Without a lot to do he grabbed his phone from his jacket pocket and decided to scroll through his favorite website, express merch. Not that he was going to buy anything anyways, he’ll just scroll through and see what was new.

Not much apparently. He has already seen the majority of what was for sale, and most he already owned. But what was he expecting looking at old Soviet weaponry, that new ones would show up? He’s been on this Earth for a long time, most if not all of his Soviet weaponry was acquired in his late twenties to early thirties. With a few being later in life.

In the end it didn’t really matter if he found something he wanted. Buying old Soviet weaponry isn’t cheap and in his ‘old’ age that money could go towards something else. That hobby lasted him a few years, it was time to move on.

And just as soon as he was about to place his phone back in his pocket, it rang. Caller ID being Doc. He answered that call so quickly he doesn’t even know if two rings went through before he said ‘hello’.

Doc told him that Skylar was out of surgery and should be awake within the hour. Surgery went well, but he didn’t say anything more than that. That kind of annoyed him, but he understood.

After their quick phone call, Alex grabbed the bag with her gift in it and headed out the door.

Alex was once again back at the hospital, sitting in a chair waiting for Skylar to wake up.

He was leaning back in the chair, scrolling through random news sites to see if anyone had posted about the outbreak in New Mexico. Normally he wouldn’t care about this sort of thing, but the outbreak was different. However Eliza and Six would make it so no one would know what was going on. They didn’t want a global panic after all.

All he could find was that there was a chemical leak of some sorts and that Trust and Consequences was under quarantine. That made him laugh. A chemical leak? Was that the best Six could think of? Hilarious.

Deep down he knew that answer was better than anything he could think of, that’s why Six deals with the politics. He’s just a soldier. Still, it was funny.

Skylar began to slowly move in her bed, alerting Alex. He placed his phone back in his pocket and leaned forward, gently touching her arm.

She turned her head and slowly opened her eyes. The first thing she saw was him with a soft smile on his face. “Hi.”

“Hi, kotyonok!”

She moved her hand to rub her eye. She still felt drowsy from the meds; that was to be expected. “How long have you been sitting there?”

He softly laughed and sat back in his chair. “About an hour.”

All she did was hum her answer. She wasn’t sure if he was telling the truth or not and she was too tired and sore to question it. “I believe you. Somewhat.”

“Somewhat?”

“I know you, moya sladost’!”

“That’s true!” He laughed and lent his arm down to grab the bag with the gift and placed it on the bed. “I got you something.”

She gave him a smile as she reached for the small gift bag. She placed it on her stomach as she reached in to grab the smaller box inside and placed the bag aside. From the size of it she knew it was a necklace, it was too thin to be a ring.

He watched her open it, a cheeky smile beginning to spread across his face. She shook her head and looked over at him; though a smile on hers. “If I wasn’t in pain I would laugh.”

“Do you like it?”

“No.” She paused. “I love it!”

She shut the case holding the necklace and placed it back in the bag. “I’ll put it on once I’m able to sit up.”

Alex grabbed the bag and placed it back on the floor to give her more room. “You don’t have to wear it, kotyonok.”

“Nonsense. I’m going to wear it everyday!”

He laughed and leaned back in his chair. She was awake and in good spirits after her surgery. Now that was left was to see Doc and have him tell them the rest.

Chapter Text

“Chloe, I’m fine.”

Skylar rolled her eyes as she listened to her sister go on and on about her being hurt and how she should focus on recovering. Like she wasn’t doing that already. She knew calling her was a mistake, but she already knew from their parents that she had been injured and was in the hospital; it was inevitable. She would’ve called at some point or even show up to the hospital.

“I have Alex with me, he’ll make sure I take it easy.”

She looked over at him with a small smile on her face, and he winked back at her. That only made her smile grow bigger and for her to shake her head.

“Yes, Chloe I will call you once I leave the hospital.” She rolled her eyes again, beginning to get annoyed with her big sister. “I love you too! Bye.”

Skylar hung up the phone with a sigh and tossed it on the bed. This was exactly how she was when she got injured after the ambush, annoying. She gets it, she’s worried about her, but there are times where she can be a bit pushy. This isn’t her first injury in the field and it probably won’t be the last. It comes with the job description. She knows how to deal with them, as annoying as they are.

“I see that call went well, kotyonok.”

She scoffed. “This is going to be Afghanistan all over again.”

“You know she does it because she cares about you.”

“I know. It’s just that she can become pushy, like I don’t know how to take care of myself.” She sighed. “This isn’t my first rodeo.”

He leaned forward, gently grabbing her hand and once again being mindful of that IV in that hand. “Even so, you are still her little sister. She’s probably scared.”

“Scared?”

A small smile spread on his face as he leaned back, the slight naivety was kind of cute. She didn’t have to be born into this life, she chose it. There’s a difference.

“Ever since I was born I was destined to join the military, that’s Russia. Maybe that helped regarding my own family. You chose this life, kotyonok.” He looked away for a brief moment, gathering his thoughts. “Your family didn’t expect it, but they’re not stupid to think this life is easy. That you can get hurt at any given moment. That has to be a constant worry for them.”

Skylar went quiet, contemplating his words. “I never thought about it that way.”

“You’ve gotten accustomed to this life, you know what to expect. Your family doesn’t.”

“Yeah, good point, moya sladost’.”

He laughed. And she grabbed her phone, placing it back on the table beside her. She only had a few more days left in the hospital and then she could go ‘home’. She wishes she could go home, back to her own bed; but she’ll be stuck in a hotel room until she’s fit to travel all the way to Maine. That is going to be a long treacherous ride.

“I remember that one time I got injured on base and was stuck in the infirmary for three,” she stopped for a moment, taking a deep breath. “Molly stayed with me for most of those days. You, staying by my side, reminded me of that time.”

“She cared about you, I’m sure if she was still here today she’d be here.”

She looked over at him with a soft smile. “I know she would have been.” She looked away and sighed. “I miss her.”

“I know you do, kotyonok!”

After the ambush she didn’t care about her injury or how much pain she was in because of it. She just missed her best friend, the one that got her life cut short; just like all those civilians they were escorting. It wasn’t fair, not by a longshot. Why does she get to go on when Molly doesn’t? It was a cruel joke.

“I wonder what she would be doing right now if she was still alive.”

“What do you think she would be doing?”

Skylar went quiet and looked out the window. She has no clue what Molly would be doing right now if she was alive, she never mentioned anything about it. Maybe she was going to make the military a career or maybe she didn’t know what she wanted to do.

“I have no idea, she never mentioned anything about it.” She turned her head back to look at him, a soft sigh leaving her lips. “It could’ve been anything.”

She chuckled a few seconds later, shaking her head. “I joined the Marines to pay for my college tuition. I never even got the college experience. I was with the FBI SWAT.”

“You might not have gotten the college experience you wanted, but at least you went.”

“That’s true.” She chucked.

Still she wished she got to enjoy being in college like a normal person would. Living in a dorm, meeting new people, studying with friends in the library, going to parties. There was so much she had planned, but the universe has other ones for her. She knows thinking about the past doesn’t help; the ‘what ifs’ still cross her mind from time to time.

“If you got to go to college moya sladost’, what would you’ve gotten a degree in?”

He leaned back in his chair, his mouth forming into a thin line. College was never on his mind much, he never saw himself going. Now being asked the question, he’s not sure what he could’ve gotten a degree in.

“I don’t know, maybe engineering.”

She nodded her head. “I can see that.”

He chuckled. Now that thought was going to be in his mind for a while now, what would he have gotten a degree in if he did go to college after his contract was up? Who knows. He didn’t.

“Moya sladost’? Can you get me a cup of tea please?”

She’s been slightly craving one for a little while now and it was one of the things the doctors allowed her to drink, water, tea and juice. Coffee and soda were off limits for a while, which kind of bothered her. She loves coffee.

“Of course.” He stood up to leave, but before he did he leaned down to give her a chaste kiss. “I’ll be back shortly.”

She softly sighed as she watched him leave the room. She looked to her side, seeing her sketchbook and pencils spread across the bed. She could clean that side up, but couldn’t be asked too. Not when she gets a sharp pain in her stomach every time she turns that way.

However she did pick up what she could, placing them back in the bag Alex brought them in and set it aside. She was already starting to hate the recovery portion and she had a long way to go.

She leaned her head, closing her eyes and sighed.

“What’s the long sigh for?”

Her eyes shot open once she heard his voice. She moved her head to look over at him, feeling that lump in her throat and the sickness in her stomach grow bigger with each step towards her he took.

“Why are you here?”

She glanced down at the hand with the IV in it and covered it with her other. Her eyes never left him; she watched as he looked around the room, at the table with a tray of half eaten food, the bag next to her and eventually at the IV tube connected to her hand. He looked at it for what seemed like an eternity, then he finally sat down.

“I came to check in on you. See how you were doing.”

That was a fucking lie and he knew it. And for him to come into the room now, after Alex left says a lot. “That’s bullshit and you know it. Why are you here?”

Skylar scoffed when she saw the facade fade right from his face. Typical.

Henry smirked and leaned back in the seat he was sitting in. “We have business to finish Sky.”

Business? If he’s about to say what she thinks he’s about to say she’s going to rip out the IV in her hand and stab him with it.

She took in a deep breath, closed her eyes and sighed. “I swear to god if this ‘business’ is about the child I never had I’m going to lose it!”

“I highly doubt that.” She opened her eyes to look back at him, jaw clenching. “You were always afraid of me, you wouldn’t do anything.”
Even though she furrowed her brows she could still feel the tears start to well in her eyes. She quickly blinked them away not wanting him to see the ‘weakness’ in her. It would only make things worse.

He made her afraid of him. He was always a monster.

“She might not do anything. I will.”

A sigh of relief left her once she heard Alex’s voice. She looked over at him, giving him a soft smile.

Henry groaned and stood up. He turned to her with his arms spread out. “Your knight in shining armor is here.”

“Good!”

He put his hands down and glared at her before he walked out of the room. Both of them heard a scoff as he left.

Once he was out of view Skylar relaxed into the bed and not a few seconds later Alex was right by her side.

“Are you okay, kotyonok?”

“Yeah.” She nodded. “He didn’t have time to do anything.”

He handed her the tea he left to get her and sat down with what looked like a cup of coffee. “That’s good.”

She took a sip of the tea, setting it down on the table. “He said we still had business to discuss.” She rolled her eyes. “He really believes that I had his kid.”

Alex placed his coffee down on the table with a scoff. “He’s just angry because he has no way of controlling you anymore. You got out and that pisses him off.”

“I spent four years running away from him, always looking over my shoulder. Now that he’s here…”

She trailed off, the tears blurring her vision. She thought she was free of him, now he’s back and who knows what he has planned. She’s just happy she’s with Alex and works at Rainbow. That gave her some security.

“He’s not going to touch you, kotyonok. Not while I’m around!”

A small smile spread across her face as she wiped the tears from her eyes. Those words meant more to her than he will ever know. She was beyond thankful for him, ever since they met actually. He was there for her from the start!

The only downside to what he said is that he won’t always be around. She just hopes Henry bites the dust way before Alex does.

Chapter Text

It’s been a little over a month since the outbreak in New Mexico started. It was still going on and Rainbow was still kicking some ass. They have it contained which was a very good thing, they didn’t need the virus to cross the border. The world would be in one hell of a bad time if that was to happen.

As much as she’s happy to be recovering, a part of her wishes that she was still out in the field helping. Skylar felt kind of useless in that hospital bed, as silly as it seemed. She knows she should be recovering, it was the only thing she can do right now. However, it did make her happy that either Eliza or Jordan were keeping her in the loop. It helped knowing something about what was still going on. Even if she wasn’t physically there.

“I wonder how chaotic our lives would still be if we were still out in the field?”

Alex lowered the book he was reading to look over at her. “Very.”

“True.” She chuckled. “It was already chaotic when we got there.”

It reminded her of the time when she was with the Marines, hell even Swat. How your work life can turn into pure chaos within seconds. It made life more exciting that way. And also more terrifying. You never knew what could happen or when.

“Da, it was.” He set the book he was reading aside and re-positioned himself in the seat. “Out of all my years in the military, this was one of the harder missions I ever had to go on.”

“Now, moya sladost’ are you saying that because of what we had to face? Or because I got injured?”

He went quiet, looking down at his hands. She was too smart to think any differently, she knew the Archean wouldn’t matter to him. It was always her.

“Can you blame me, kotyonok? You died in my arms out there.”

This time she went quiet. She can’t even imagine what emotions he went through during that time besides pure sadness. When she found out he was confirmed clinically dead for two minutes a few years back that pulled at her own heart. Even though it happened before they even met, it was still hard to fathom.

“Okay, fair point.” She grimaced and shook her head. “I died out there.”

“Da, you did. But Doc brought you back and that’s all that matters.”

“I know, it’s just weird to say out loud. I died.” She went quiet for a brief moment before frantically waving her hands. “Please don’t tell my parents that.”

“I’m not dumb you know.”

She laughed at that. “Yeah, okay that was dumb.”

“Just a little.” He laughed.

A small smile spread across her face as she looked down at the sketch book in her lap. With the lack of stuff to do she decided to go back and finish up some sketches she was working on. Right now she was trying to finish the one she was making of Jordan. She started it a few months ago, when she was out of commission for a few days and had to sit back and watch them train. So in her boredom she decided to sketch Jordan.

“What were you working on?”

She held up the sketch book in his direction, showing him what she was working on. “The sketch I started a few months ago out of boredom.”

He stared at the picture, looking at each line she drew. The way she could make everyone look so real, even in the sketch phase was astonishing to him. Then again, art wasn’t his expertise, he doesn’t know squat about it. All he knows is that Skylar is a good artist, just like Timur.

“It looks really good, kotyonok!”

“Thank you!” She placed the sketch book back in her lap with a sigh. “I hope to have it finished soon.”

“You don’t need to rush it.”

“I know, I’m already close to it being done anyways, why not finish it off?”

“Good point. I’m not an artist so I wouldn’t know.” He laughed.

“If I was working on a canvas I wouldn’t even be close.”

Sketching was a lot easier and quicker for the most part. You don’t have to worry about the paints or messing up like you do with canvas paintings. Mess up on a canvas all you can do is wipe it down and start from scratch. The worst part about that for her is when she’s nearing the end of the painting and messes up, that ignites a hidden rage in her.

“Does it take longer?”

“Way longer. And that’s if I don’t mess up and have to start over.”

But she’ll always prefer to do a canvas painting in the end. She loves looking at all the art she has painted over the years and seeing how far she’s grown as an artist. And it’s nice to see her paintings in her parents home and the family brewery.

“When we get to go back to Maine, I’ll show you some of them.”

“I would like that, kotyonok!”

“Hopefully I’ll be able to walk by then.” She went quiet for a moment, only to let out a loud sight a moment later. “Crap, I’ll probably be on bedrest still.”

“You don’t fully know that, kotyonok. Things can change between now and then.”

“I guess we’ll have to wait and see, moya sladost’.”