#Alejandro nearly met Johnny

[lefttoesucker]

*Throws this at you and runs away cutely*

The card in question:

I hope y'all know this one

[vcnillazelda]

hello! i'm pretty sure your requests are open but i'm not sure if your write for all the cod characters if possible could you write for a reader who does beauty pageants/is a beauty queen and is really famous because of it. Thank you!!!!!

ghost team/141 with a beauty queen s/o

tags: established relationships, reunions, fluff, jealousy, talks of death/kidnapping, no actual death or gore, general chaos

characters: simon, johnny, gaz, price, alejandro, rudy, farah

a/n: this wasn’t exactly specific so i’m assuming it’s their s/o, i’m sorry if that’s wrong 😭

✞———————❖———————✞

ghost

he never actually talks about you

if word got out at all he knows he’d be putting you in danger

so everyone in his squadron is surprised when they touch down and a beautiful woman is standing there

they’re immediately gossiping, accusing each other of holding back on a relationship status- no attention lands on simon

johnny genuinely thinks you’re gaz’s girlfriend due to how young and vibrant you look (which mildly offends simon- is he saying he looks old 😭)

gaz on the other hand thinks you could be dating alex or rudy- who immediately gets flustered whereas alex laughs and said he wishes

this annoys simon, so he walks away from them, towards you. no one seemed to notice- but when you call simon’s name excitedly and fling your arms around him they’re all stunned

johnny SPRINTS over, wanting to meet you and tease his friend- simon punches him in the arm

“you’re beautiful by the way, i’m johnny. so how long have you been seeing this grumpy ass- ow!”

simon rolls his eyes, whereas you shook johnny’s hand and met all his colleagues

of course, they all complimented you, giving you wide smiles and sweet words

simon feels a spark of jealousy, protectiveness- he wants to pull you away but that would be extremely out of character

you notice simon’s discomfort and hold onto his arm, deciding on telling them the basics such as your name, occupation, how long you’d been seeing simon and the fact you were his fiance

johnny and gaz go wild- literally trying to get more information- yet price pulls them back

“sorry about them. have a nice evening, ma’am. you too, si’.” he smiles, and simon finally gets to leave

pampers you over you pampering him- he loves taking care of you

washing your hair, cooking for you, all that domestic stuff drives him wild <3

will only allow you to give him a massage when he’s half asleep, lord knows he needs one- but he will allow you to wash the fading face paint from around his eyes and press kisses along his lips and face

he’s very happy to be back with you, hugging you tightly and swaying with you

if you came home with another trophy from a pageant he’ll congratulate you then say sorry for missing it- so many kisses, he’s so proud!!

johnny

OH MY GOD THIS BOY LOVES YOU SO MUCH

will NOT stop talking about you

shows many pictures of you to the team- they think he’s lying 😭

simon teases him about having a ‘fake girlfriend’

gets so defensive of you, if someone even tries to say your images are ‘photoshopped’ he goes off on one saying how they haven’t met you and how you’re really pretty!

as soon as he can, he gets you to meet his friends :)

he hates feeling like he’s leaving you out of things when he goes out with colleagues, so he finally brought you along when your schedule was clear and literally everyone nearly fainted from shock

“so johnny wasn’t lying, huh?” “seems that way.”

he’s so prideful- HE pulled YOU, he’s so proud and loves you so much

keeps an arm around your waist, leans into you, kisses your cheek- loves pda

he makes sure to watch EVERY single one of your pageants- he gets upset at other models trying to one up you

the others just thought he was really into it because he has 3 older sisters, but they didn’t actually know it was you in them so they were really mean about it 😭

LOVES helping you pick out costumes or outfits, LOVES IT

will beg to do your makeup- he was used as a model for his sister’s stuff when he was younger so he knows the basics about makeup

it’s a little sloppy tho, he doesn’t practice so you’ll look a little… off

if you had to join some sort of reality tv style beauty show, he will kick EVERYONE out of the rec room to watch every episode and records every episode he misses on his phone 🫶

he loves you so much and is so supportive

-

gaz

he’s only open about it if people ask him if he’s dating anyone

so of course, johnny being johnny, asks one day

“hey are you seeing anyone?” / “oh yeah, my girlfriend back homes waiting on me.”/ “WHY DIDNT YOU TELL US????” / “no one asked..?”

when he shows everyone a picture of you, they’re all so shocked

“y/n l/n??? are you sure?!” “nice try kid, she’s a literal celebrity” type attitudes all around

he silently plots to prove them all wrong

texts you asking to meet him when his mission is over ‘because he misses you’ when in reality he wants to rub it in his friends’ faces- he’s so mischievous

as soon as johnny sees you he trips and falls out the jeep- he thought he saw a ghost or smth

“baby!” you grin, engulfing your boyfriend in a hug. he twirls you around as you kiss his cheeks saying that you missed him

“i missed you too. come meet my friends.” he’s so sweet

smug little smile as you talk to everyone, holding your hand, eyeing each of their surprised faces with pride

his plan worked perfectly and he was in such a good mood

anyway- as a general lover, gaz is so sweet

he’s got some spare cash- so he likes to spoil you

literally loves buying you dresses or makeup palettes and accessories, even if you can buy it yourself

adores your pageants- doesn’t understand them, but watches them anyway just to see you smile

if you get all ‘oh don’t look at me, i haven’t got ready yet’ type of person, he puts a whole ass rule on the house saying you’re not allowed to dress up fancy- he wants to see you however you look because he loves you no matter what <3

-

price

is very secretive. more than simon. doesn’t want you getting tracked down, linked to him or worse

comes home silently in the dead of night and kisses your face gently

you wake up when he gets in bed, rolling over and hugging him tightly.

“you should of told me you got home” / “no, no. it’s okay. i don’t want anyone affiliated with me seeing you… you’re too precious.”

so protective, when someone recognises you in public he’s got a hand on your lower back- if anyone asks about him you literally just flat out say he’s your husband (because he is), as much as he doesn’t like it

he understands you may want to be public about your relationship, but he doesn’t want the wrong people seeing it and coming after you- it’s his worse nightmare

he’s literally had nightmares of you dying, is so paranoid sometimes that he forgets to relax and spend time with you

as badly as he wants to keep it under wraps… he loves you too much. if you wanna go to dinner, he takes you. wanna go shopping? sure, where do you wanna go?

loves pampering you, like the others, but his pampering is much more personal or gentlemanly (not that the others aren’t) he loves showering with you, zipping up the back of your dress, holding the door for you, etc

literally the definition of gentleman, he loves doing things for you

calls you beautiful and gorgeous every time he sees you

can’t always watch your pageants because he’s such a busy man, but he does his best- he definitely forgets everyone’s names and does not understand anything

-

alejandro

you were a big face in las almas, but no one in his life other than you, his and your families and rudy knew about him being your husband

johnny saw your face on a billboard modelling something and immediately was like “she’s so pretty omg??”

alejandro grew very jealous, but understood people would react that way to you a lot considering you’re a beauty queen

like price, he keeps everything under tight secret- he’s dealing with a literal cartel, he can’t say a peep about you in any presence in case the wrong person hears it- your life is literally on the line

when he’s home with you, gives you gentle kisses and hushed words on how much he loves you

as much as he wants a normal life, he can’t take you out to places, el sin nombre has eyes and ears everywhere and if the cartel were to see you it would mark you as a target immediately- however, he does want to take care of you and give you a semi-normal life

he goes out, buys takeout for you, little gifts, ect

loves how your eyes light up when you see him, it’s what he lives for

doesn’t get to watch any pageants you’re in, but loves hearing you talk about them and you’re experiences

hugs you tightly at night, he’s so protective and silently scared- he doesn’t want you to get hurt. his worse nightmare is waking up and you’re dead or missing

such a clingy lover, he’s so romantic too. he wants you to know he genuinely loves you

brings rudy around sometimes, it’s always lovely because you and rudy are like best friends (i.e sneaking off to plot a prank whilst alejandro is terrified thinking something happened to you)

he adores making homemade food for you, it’s one of his passions, not to mention his food is amazing and it’s the least he can do for you

gets so involved in any gossip you have, literally sits on the couch with you gossiping and expressing his feelings on the situation/drama

will repeat the gossip to rudy on missions because he’s awful with drama, loves talking about it (in mexican spanish so the others don’t really understand it)

-

rudy

same as alejandro, he’s petrified something could happen to you

unlike alejandro, he loves going out to places with you

he’s a pushover too, if you wanted to go on a day out for your anniversary, he’s all there

keeps his pistol on him because he doesn’t want any trouble and wants to protect you

calls you his mariposa (butterfly) because he thinks butterflies are beautiful like you :,) <3

avid cuddler, yet he’s the one on your chest, head resting on you as you talk about all the drama going on with other models/beauty queens

adores you, stares at you with lovesick eyes because you’re just so pretty!!

doesn’t have a lot of money, but saves up a lot to buy you nice things :)

he’s reluctant, but after johnny nagging him he introduces you to the team- much to alejandro’s disapproval because he’s like your older brother and wants to protect both you and rudy

rudy will one hundred percent spend some time in and out of missions looking at pictures of you, you fuel him and give him a reason to fight to survive when he’s away

one hundred percent has a locket with your picture in it- the picture is of the two of you on your first anniversary with rudy smiling brightly and you kissing his cheek- but he isn’t stupid and leaves it at base just in case anything happened to him

watches your pageants on his phone, absorbs every drop of information so he can talk about it with you either on the phone or when he gets home

he’s such a dedicated lover too, spend so much time with you because you’re his favourite person :)

-

farah

gushes about you around base

like literally brags

“yeah that’s cool alex, but have you seen my girlfriend?” / “yes. as a matter of fact we all have”

rerun nights? rerun nights

will rewatch everything you’ve been in with you, face masks, junk food- she wants you to be a normal person outside of your ‘beauty queen standards’ that the company you’re under force onto you

never expects you to uphold those standards around her, she loves you and wants to let you be yourself <3

adores how you look no matter what- her gallery is full of candid shots of you and selfies of the two of you

nights out!!!! loves going out with you, especially if alex comes along because you guys are a triple threat

if you’re not from urzikstan like her, she wants to introduce you to her culture and wants you to do the same, loves cooking traditional meals for you and wants to know everything about your country

her wallet has pictures of you two in a photo booth, it’s her favourite things to show everyone around her

she CRAVES that domestic life with you, but also craves the chaos that comes with your fame

wanna chase paparazzi?? she’s leading the charge and will bark at people- she’s going the full mile

the public love her, they literally adore you two

interacts with your fans a lot too :) she loves watching them go wild when you post a pic of the two of you on a date night

[multi-fandom-imagine]

Hello hope you are feelling better❣️ if you have mood can you do price with younger s/o and how 141 react to it?

A/n. I love Price and his stupid bucket hat

It wasn’t that much of a shock to Gaz nor the 141 task force when John let it slip he was married. To be honest no one really remembers how they even gotten onto the topic, it was a shock however when the group had found out you were an American, Johnny seemed to love teasing the man, joking about a Brit falling for an American.

Of course that all changed the moment you slipped into the bar where they were all drinking. Alejandro made a quiet comment about how pretty you were though it was Johnny that loudly called to you. Your head quickly snapping towards the voices. A bright sunny smile on your face despite the gloomy London weather.

“Gaz.”

“Hey Y/n.”

Tipping your head to the three mean you stepped closer to the table. “You going to introduce me or should I do it myself.”

Clearing out his throat, John pushed the chair away then walked over to his. His arm slipping around your waist. “This is Y/n…my wife.”

Johnny nearly choked on his beer, the man still reeling the Captain could pull someone like you, Alejandro tried to hide his shock but he still gave John a smile, the man did look happier now that you were standing next to him and Simon seemed to be the less shocked. Having seemed to already know this information.

Snapping out of his shock, Johnny blinked a few times. “I..so why did you.”

“I work for Laswell….before you all get your panties in a twist.” You gave the man a teasing smile. Johnny flushed turning his head away as Simon let out snort.

“So what is it that you do.”

Before you could answer, you felt Price tighten his hold on your hip, Gaz answering the question for you.

“Y/n is one of CIA’s best agent, hack into anything. You should see em decoding, it’s kinda memorizing.”

Johnny still trying wrap his mind around it,he shifted in his seat as he watch Price keep you close, he watched the man place a small kiss to your neck as you let out an airy laugh.

“That how you two met?”

Sighing, you glanced up at John then smiled pinching his cheeks. “Met him thanks to Laswell, it was a bit rocky at first. You wouldn’t believe how stubborn this man is but one thing led to another and well I guess I’m a tea drinker now.”

John let out a snort, he doubted that he could ever stop you from drinking coffee, though he wasn’t going to complain. Not when you left the U.S for him.

“Have tea? Is there what they call it now?” Johnny teased.

“Soap.”

Price flushed then let out an annoyed grunt as you let out a soft laugh giving the man a smirk. “Don’t go giving all my secrets away.” You lent back into your husbands embrace, John tugging his hat further down his face.

It was plainly obvious to the 141 tasks force that you both loved each other deeply and that all that really mattered to the team.

[cod-imagines-fanfiction]

Jealous Alejandro kidnaps Valeria's girlfriend part 6 (2k words)

Summary: What happened to Y/N since Valeria infiltrated the Mexican Army's headquarters. Note at the end Warnings: violence Link to A03 Links to part 1, part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5

[set right after the alarm went off, before Valeria arrived at the container, Y/N POV]

A chaotic cacophony raged beyond the walls of your container. It was a lot to process. The yells of men, their footsteps and commands, the gunshots, an explosion. It felt like demons had emerged from the pits of Hell and were wreaking havoc on Earth. It was all getting a bit muffled now, as though they had left the place your container was in. You supposed that the rest of the headquarters were more important to guard in a situation like this. You were a low priority in the grand scheme of things, after all. You were no drug lord, like Valeria. Or a Colonel, or a Captain, or a Commander. There was nothing really at stake resting within your container, you thought.

Other people may have felt small and despaired at the thought, but it made you happy. There were special people in this world. But they were not you. Yes, you felt important in the way that all living things are important. And yet some people were made to rule, like your wife did. You couldn’t picture Valeria ever having a quiet life. She was simply not built for it. No, she was built for this world, the world of terror and drugs. She was cunning and smart, cutthroat, and strong. She was unbreakable. And so were the others, people like Alejandro, people who forged themselves from fire and blood. The hunters of the world. Looking around the container, you felt like you belonged with the hunted. The lamb hiding with the wolves. The next best thing for someone like you was to live in the shadow of someone like Valeria. You knew that people thought that about you. That you chose the easy way out of work, that you became a drug lord’s housewife, so you didn’t have to make your living out there just like everyone else did. But that was not true. There was strength in your quietness, in your order and in your love. Somewhere beneath your tense fragility was an unyielding strength and, like the viper hiding behind a flower, it was dangerous because it was unexpected. Here you were, intimidated and frightened, and yet never giving in to the demands of tyrants. You were one of those people who, quick to laugh, are slow to anger. And yet when that anger came, it emerged unexpectedly and threatened to envelop everything in its path.

The sweetness of the breakfast bar still lingered in your mouth when you heard deliberate footsteps outside your container. You perked up at the sound and dared to hope that Valeria, or someone else from the cartel, had finally found their way back to you. The chain outside your door rattled and dropped to the floor; the door opened. You nearly jumped off your seat when the image of a human skull emerged from behind the door and looked within. It was the man with the skull mask, the one you'd met earlier. El fantasmo. His skull mask was terrifying to behold. It was a replica of a human skull that ended the lower jaw, and the rest of the image was completed by a drawn balaclava mask. Behind the mask, the skin was drawn black with paint and his dark, focused eyes looked right at you.

"She's still here, Johnny." He said and entered the room. He walked towards you, his hands reaching behind him and pulling out a set of handcuffs. "Covering you, LT," a voice said from the outside. You realised it was the man with the mohawk, the Scottish one. El fantasmo, you realised, was Lieutenant Ghost. "Get up." He said and grabbed your forearm, not gently, and lifted you out of your seat. He was massive, tall enough to tower over you and wide with muscle. His hands felt strong as he moved yours behind your back and promptly handcuffed you, tightening them enough to make them hurt. "What's happening? Where are you taking me-" "What the fuck is this?" His voice was deep, and it drowned out yours when he spoke. He reached into your breast pocket and pulled out the wrapping of the breakfast bar. He held it in his hand and the other man entered the room. "Somebody's been feeding her?" The other man, John, asked. "Looks like it. Call it in." Ghost let the paper fall on the floor. "Come here," he said and dragged you with him as he began walking out of the container. The other man spoke to his earpiece. "Soap here. Found some food wrapping on her. Look's like somebody from the inside reached her."

You felt embarrassed like you were caught doing something wrong. But they didn't blame you for it. In fact, they hardly acknowledged you at all. "Copy that, moving out now." The man said again and looked at Ghost. The masked man held your arm tighter as he dragged you after them. The sounds of gunfire hit you as you stepped out of the container and you stopped in your tracks. The absurdity of it all hit you; the violence and bloodlust, all the fighting. All for you.

“You as much as try anything,” Ghost whispered in your ear, “and I’ll break you.”

You didn’t have time to respond before he began dragging you after him with the other man trailing after you two, protecting you with his gun.

Despaired coiled around your heart like a python, tightening its grasp on you. You struggled to breathe as you were dragged into the line of fire. The rapid fire of gunshots echoed amongst the headquarters, which you had never seen. Men ran up and down the place, you stepped over fallen bullet shells which littered the floor, making it glisten like gold. You were not one of those people who found these sorts of things beautiful, someone who could polish guns and admire their beauty, the handiwork that went into them, the ways they could be customised and designed. Valeria would often tease you about it, calling you soft. Now, as you saw these guns be put to use, you could see them as nothing more than the murder machines that they were. And they were aimed right at you.

"Shit," Ghost said whilst he made both of you duck behind a wall of concrete. The other man was quick to follow behind you, firing a couple of shots in retaliation. "Why the fuck are they shooting at us?" Asked the Scottish one. "'Cause they haven't seen her yet," said Ghost. By 'they,' you guessed he meant the cartel staff. More shots were fired at you. The Scottish man forced your head down with his hand, the bullets having barely missed your head. "We're moving. Be careful, Soap, they'll try to separate us." The other man chuckled. "Let them try."

Soap fired another shot and whoever was firing at you stopped. With a pang, you realised that the other man was killed. The world blurred after that, you only moved because you were being dragged forward. Your mind could not stop wondering if you knew that man. Was it one of those that you saw come in every day to talk with Valeria? Was he one of those who, though you never met in person, had met a part of you when he ate your cooking? On special occasions, Valeria would ask you to cook a lot and invite some of her men over, a treat for those who excelled either in loyalty or performance. You were never present, but Valeria still managed to show you off when she presented all the delicacies you had prepared. Was that man there? All this death, all this blood, all this loss - for you.

A feeling of self-disgust arose and, for the first time since Alejandro puts his hands on you at the estate, you resisted. You couldn't do much with your hands cuffed behind your back, but you tugged away from Ghost, not enough to make him stop walking, but enough to make him lose balance. It wasn't because you were strong, but because, he realised, he did not expect you to do anything. You didn't stop there, you kept tugging back and forth, trying to break free of his grasp. It was not much, but this small commotion made the three of you slow down long enough for you to be recognised.

"Senora!" Someone yelled, someone from the cartel. Ghost growled angrily and slammed you against the nearest wall. "Didn't I say I'd break you if you tried anything?" His breath was hot on your skin. One of his hands was on your neck, but you felt hot too; you blazed in anger. "I'll have you killed!" You yelled at him. Surprise flickered behind the lieutenant's eyes. It made you even angrier, how dare he be surprised that you hated all this? That you could be threatened again and again, that you would be bruised and exhausted and just sit there and take all of it. How complacent did they think you were? "You hear me? I'll have all of us killed!" He didn't take his eyes off you as he spoke. "Soap, clear the way forward." But there was no reply.

Both of you broke from your locked gaze and looked to the side in surprise - the other man was not there. You realised how quiet it suddenly was, an oppressive silence that made you even more painfully aware of how trapped you were beneath Ghost's body. Rapid footsteps sounded close to you and suddenly, Ghost was slammed to the ground by someone. "¡Por aquí!" Someone said and grabbed your hand. "Senora, you okay?" You didn't know who he was, but you knew he was one of your people. "Yes," was all you could say as you ran away with him. You only caught a glimpse of Ghost being tackled by multiple people, struggling beneath the weight of all these men.

"This way, Senora. You know the way." He said and eventually stopped running. You looked around and saw, on the floor, a hole. "El Sin Nombre said you know how to use this. I'll be right behind you, Senora. Our people are on the other side." Hearing those words made you so happy, you almost cried. "What about Valeria? Is she here?" You asked. The man saw the tender look in your eyes, the desperation behind it. It was too much, he looked away. "She'll be right there, Senora." And with that, you plunged yourself into the cold darkness of the tunnel. You moved far enough for the man to come in after you. You had no torch on you, after all. But the man never followed through. "Senor?" You asked, but there was no reply.

All of a sudden, you became aware of how bad it smelled in there. But it was not the smell of dirt or of animals. It was the stench of cigars, a smoke that threatened to choke you but yet held a sweetness that was unlike the sharp smell of regular cigarettes. A light flickered in the darkness and you realised there was someone smoking in there, waiting. "Yeah," said a deep, British voice. He took a long puff from his cigar, the orange light burning brightly in the darkness that enveloped both of you. From that little flicker of light, you could see two piercing blue eyes staring at you, and a face covered by a well-groomed beard. The world above was muffled, gone.

"I'll take it from here, sweetheart." He said and lunged for you. Only darkness followed.

When you finally came to, the day was already over. Groggily, you awoke to find yourself in a transportation van, your hands and feet shackled by chains. Opposite you sat the man you saw before, the one with the cigar. "Sorry for the trouble, miss. But you know how these things are." Captain Price saw the frantic, lost look on your face and felt something he hadn't felt in quite some time; pity. "You're being transferred to prison. You'll be settled soon enough, new clothes and everything." You didn't even look at him, though he knew you could understand him. Instead, you gazed outside the window. The Captain only ever heard you say one word:

"Valeria."

"If it makes you feel any better, she's in the van behind us."

Note: I'm struggling with Y/N, I feel like I made her too passive, even though that's kind of what I was going for with her. In the next part, she gets reunited with Valeria (finally!) We're reaching the end of this fic, thank you for reading so far x I'm struggling with writing at the moment because I started my master's and I'm having some health issues, but I'll try my best! I'm also thinking of doing a spin-off with Valeria and Y/N on how they met and ran away.

tag list: @justmare @silas-222 @m0rganit3 @blarba-girl @sleepiemain @caffeineliker @ashy-kit @00ops1e @lesvii @therapyneeds @lez-zuha @starre-eyes @7smexy7diva @hello-kitty-festival @konigmeu @cassiecasluciluce @gay-ass-country-boy @starwars-theclonewhore @bi-witch-bxtch @somnoslvt @ashthepillow @b3ns0ne  @idiotwrites @danart501 @deakyspuff @mistresssiri @angethehimbosimp @@sae1kie @00ops1e

[queermentaldisaster]

“The Hunt Is My Muse”

And it is fluff time people! this chapter kinda just...ran away from me, but that's okay, it's enjoyable!

Tags: @forestshadow-wolf @meowmeowriley @spicyspicyliving @bringinsexybackk69 (if you wanna be added or removed, tell me!)

No cws, just tooth rotting fluff, honestly. A little hurt, but it's okay!

Chapter Three: I Only Want You Near Me

Ghost opened the car door and Soap leapt off his shoulders. Ghost snorted as Soap landed face first on the concrete. “You good?” He asked as he got out of the car himself. Soap looked up at him with a grin, before running off towards the door of the main building. Ghost laughed, running after him. “Soap! Get back here!”

Soap weaved through the Vaqueros and Shadows, and Ghost stopped, that feeling building up in his stomach once more. He let out a breath. He knew this would happen, it always did. Every time he saw Gaz or Price shifted, his shift started to bubble up. He shoved it down though, and ran over to a nearby crate, using it to grab onto a nearby pole and swing towards where he last saw Soap. 

As he landed on his feet, he heard Rodolfo chuckle from nearby. “Well done, hermano! You sure you ain’t a shifter?” He asked. Ghost huffed and spoke, the practiced lie easily falling from his lips. “Yeah. I used to work with a lot of big cat shifters so their tricks rubbed off on me.” That caused Rodolfo to snort. “Yeah, I’m the same way with Alejandro. Some of his ‘cat specific’ habits have rubbed off on me.”

Ghost chuckled. “Hey, you haven’t seen Soap run through here, have you? He shifted on the way here and then took off running and I’m trying to find him before he gets into trouble.” Rodolfo huffed. “Lookin for your foxy boy?” He teased. Ghost rolled his eyes. “He wishes.” He muttered, looking around. Rodolfo shrugged. “He may have caught Graves’s scent. They’re both foxes after all.”

Ghost arched an eyebrow under his mask. “Graves is a fox shifter?” and Rodolfo nodded. “Si, hermano. Grey fox, if I recall correctly.” He murmured. Ghost hummed. “Interesting. Well, I’m going to find Soap. See you later, Rodolfo.” He said as he turned to walk off. Rodolfo called after him. “Call me Rudy, Ghost!” 

Ghost nodded, and walked off. He looked around the base, and ended up finding Soap scaling up what looked to be an oversized cat tree. He crossed his arms and leaned against the wall, watching Soap try - and fail - to get to the top. After about five minutes of numerous failed attempts, Ghost went over and picked Soap up, bringing him up to his face. “The fuck are you doin, you damned tod?” He teasingly asked.

Ghost’s shoulders tensed, and Soap cocked his head to the side. Ghost set Soap down, and turned away, putting a hand to his head. He got a whiff of Soap’s scent, which only made his panther more antsy. Then, he felt Soap’s hand on his shoulder. “Lt? Ye solid?” He asked calmly, and Ghost let out a breath, shoving it back down. “Yeah. ‘m solid, Jo-Soap.” Johnny had nearly slipped from his lips there. Soap clearly heard it, but didn’t bring it up. “Aricht. Maybe ye should go lay down. ‘S been a long day after all.” He murmured, patting Ghost’s shoulder. Ghost nodded. “That’s a good idea, sergeant. Take your own suggestion.” He said, his voice clear as he walked out, only hearing an “aye” in response.

Soap’s blue eyes sparkled, and his ears turned outwards and his tail flicked into a horizontal position with the tip raised upwards. Ghost chuckled, tilting his head. Soap rubbed the side of his face on Ghost’s mask, like cats do. Ghost chuckled, the tension in his body immediately dissipating. He ruffled Soap’s fur, and Soap yelped, a clearly playful sound, but it still brought Ghost’s urge to shift up.

Protect. Danger. Hurt.

He was never washing this mask again, he knew that much. But he couldn’t understand why Soap was affecting him this much. No one had ever reached him like this. The last time he’d seen it had been…god, way back when Tommy first met Beth. That made Ghost shoot up in surprise, his heart pounding. There was no fuckin way. He’d thought himself too broken to ever feel love. But…maybe for once in his life, luck was on his side. He wasn’t too optimistic, however.

Ghost went into the room Alejandro had lent him, an empty room that was clearly meant to become a barracks. He collapsed on the cot, taking his mask off. He looked at it, bringing it up to his nose and taking a whiff of the scent.

It was Johnny’s scent.

                •✧---------------------------------------------✧•

The next morning, Ghost came out of the room, only to smell…pancakes? He followed the scent, to find a nice little kitchen, with Rudy, Alejandro, and Graves all gathered around a table, and Soap cooking. Ghost arched an eyebrow as he sat at the table. “Soap, you cook?” He asked in confusion. Soap looked up and nodded. “Aye, my ma taught me.” He said, proudly. Ghost chuckled, his heart seeming to flutter at the pride in Soap’s voice. “Well it smells delicious.” He complimented.

Ghost looked at Graves. “Any news from Laswell?” He asked coolly, and Graves nodded. “Yep. They’re heading there now, we’ll get news if anything changes.” He said, and Ghost nodded in turn. “Alright.” He grunted, and as Soap brought over pancakes with a fuck ton of bacon and sausage, Alejandro spoke up. “So, Soap, what was that last night?” Ghost took his plate, thanking Soap. Soap chuckled, handing Rudy his plate. “What do ye mean, Alejandro?” Graves looked curious as well as he took his plate.

Soap set down his and Alejandro’s plates, and moved to sit down as Alejandro said; “The thing with Ghost. Was that you trying to court him?” Soap froze, looking back at Alejandro. “Excuse me?” He demanded. Ghost looked up in confusion, his balaclava rolled up to his nose. “What?”

Soap looked at Ghost and just immediately sat. ‘What the fuck is happening?’ Ghost thought. Rudy snickered, Alejandro gave Soap a knowing smirk, and Graves rolled his eyes.

[fixfoxnox]

Pyre - Part 3

Description: Soap and the 141 have just captured Hassan. Their interrogation is interrupted by a mystery man tapping into their comms.

Warnings: Blood, minor character death, mentions of throwing up, self depreciation

Read it on Ao3

"Something about you is soft like an angel

And something inside you is violence and danger

I knew from the moment we met, you are a dangerous thing"

"A Dangerous Thing" by AURORA

“I don’t like this,” Soap spoke the words low, just muttered under his breath so that only the man next to him could hear. Ghost didn’t move from where he was pressed just a touch too close at his side. 

Soap didn’t know how to explain what he was feeling at the moment. Of course, there was an odd sense of pride that always came with a mission well done. Hassan was in their grasp and they were off to the middle of fucking nowhere to question him. There was a sense of camaraderie, a happy thing to have. Pressed in a car with men he trusted and liked. Graves, Alejandro, Ghost. Those were the good things, the things that Soap would never mind feeling. 

The odd part was the little thing in his gut screaming at him that something was wrong. He couldn’t put a finger on it. Call it a sixth sense, call it a hunch, call it paranoia, whatever you called it, it was eating at him. It gnawed at the lining of his stomach and, no matter how much he tried to shove it down, it seemed content to work its way up his throat until he was barely keeping it off of his tongue. 

He glanced through the rearview mirror, noting the same headlights that had been following the group for nearly thirty minutes now. He never considered himself someone who would take such careful stock of the vehicles around him, but something was different. He couldn’t put his finger on it, but he was sure that this person was following them. They were in the middle of nowhere, this person had to be following them. 

A hand landed on Soap’s leg, causing him to jump. He relaxed a moment later when he realized who it was. Ghost shot him a glance out of the corner of his eye, watching him closely for several moments. He gave a comforting squeeze to Soap’s thigh before carefully responding, “Relax.” 

It was a simple word, a simple word, but, spoken by Ghost, it seemed to work its way through his mind and help him calm him just a bit. It didn’t get rid of the lingering fear in the back of his mind or the way that he kept glancing back at the car behind them, but it worked well enough. 

“Doesn’t this feel off to you?” He kept his voice quiet, his eyes shooting up to where Alejandro and Graves were chatting quietly in the front seat. Soap didn’t mind Graves, he actually liked him alright, but it was clear to see that Alejandro wasn’t his biggest fan. Still, the man was quite civil and Graves was either oblivious or he just didn’t care. “Something isn’t right.”

Ghost was quiet for a moment before responding, “You’re looking too deep, Johnny.” He paused for another moment. “I don’t think we can hold Hassan. If that’s what you’re worried about.” 

Soap gave a brief huff, “That’s actually not what I was worried about, but thank you for making me worry about it now.” He could see the amused glance that Ghost sent his way and something in his chest warmed at the man’s gaze. They hadn’t been together long, but already these sweet amused little looks that Ghost would give him were enough to make him feel a blossoming of happy calm in his chest. It was easy to be calm if Ghost was calm. 

Soap glanced back at the rearview mirror, watching the car behind them again. After a moment, the car's blinker came on and, with no further preamble, it turned off onto a side road. He was able to breathe a sigh of relief as soon as the lights were gone. The car wasn’t following them. He felt a bit silly for thinking it was in the first place. 

He took in a deep breath and allowed himself to focus on the warmth of Ghost’s hand on his thigh. Everything was going to be alright. He had nothing to worry about. Everything was going to be alright. He had nothing to worry about. 

Repeating the words to himself still couldn’t cover the lingering anxiety in his throat. 

Soap was the one to help Alejandro drag Hassan from the van they were in. He held tight to Hassan’s arm, refusing to let up his grip for even a moment. He hated to say it, but a part of him was afraid. A part of him was still choking on the worry that something terrible was going to happen. He brushed it off and forced Hassan to his knees with a quick bark of, “On your knees.” He had work to do and work came before any of the ever-present anxiety in his system. 

There were several moments of quiet as Graves set up a camera and video feed, propping it up on the hood of their car so that the headlights would illuminate the view of the man they’d forced to the ground. Soap stood tensely, watching Hassan with careful eyes. He couldn’t really shake that feeling deep in his gut that said that something was wrong here. 

Ghost moved carefully past him, observing the hills far behind his head with watchful eyes. As he moved past Soap, he just brushed their hands together, letting the man know that he was there. He was right there and everything was going to be okay. Everything was going to be alright. He had nothing to worry about. 

Finally, Graves managed to get the picture working and Soap could see both Laswell and Shepherd in crystal images over the computer screen. “Y’all got a clear picture?”

“Crystal.”

“All set.”

“All right,” Graves turned back to the group with a lazy grin of sorts on his face, “We are live, folks.” He strolled over toward Hassan and started to slowly circle him.

The terrorist didn’t miss a beat before asking, “Do you speak Arabic?”

Graves paused for a moment before responding with a quick, “No.”

“Farsi?”

“No.” Soap could see as Graves worked his jaw for a moment, obviously already annoyed by Hassan’s questions. 

“Course not,” Hassan scoffed before giving a brief patronizing smile up toward Graves, “Then I’ll speak your bastardized medieval English because you are all uneducated street dogs.” 

Soap couldn’t keep himself from rolling his eyes at the man on the ground, a flash of annoyance shocking up his system. He was not a fan of the man and he could tell that Graves was feeling the same. 

“Ah see,” Soap could hear the annoyance in Grave’s voice and he could see it painted across the man’s face, “we’re getting off to a bad start here, Hassan.”

“You are talking to a Qud's force officer.”

“You’re the commander of a foreign terrorist organization.”

“I could say the same to you.” 

That seemed to give Graves pause for a moment. He stopped briefly before continuing his pacing, his eyes just glancing over to the computer where Shepherd and Laswell were watching the interaction. “What’s your target, 'Major'?” Graves asked through clenched teeth.

“What was your target when they sent missiles to my land?”

Graves gave a short chuckle, “Oh well, wild guess, to nail your ass.” 

“So insolent and foul-mouthed,” Hassan looked up and gave a small smile toward Graves, “You will learn to respect me when your nation sees fire.” 

Soap could see the fury that washed over Graves's face. The way that his face twisted up in rage and his body seemed to grow far too tense for a man who wasn’t on the verge of snapping. He moved toward Hassan quickly and leaned down to get in his face as he bit out, “You are in bed with the cartel, Hassan. If you disappeared, no one would know where to look for the fuckin’ stain.”

Despite how close they were, despite the clear threat in Graves's voice, Hassan only laughed. He laughed in Graves’s face before responding, “I have no doubt you’ll take pleasure in torturing me.” 

Soap rolled his eyes and shook his head. He forced himself to focus, even as Graves continued to glare Hassan down. He knew he needed to say something, needed to break up the tension before Graves snapped and did something unnecessary. “Who’d you get American missiles from?”

The question brought Hassan’s attention away from Graves and to him, allowing Graves to push himself up and start pacing around again. There was hardly a moment for Hassan to respond before Shepherd called out, “I don’t care who they’re from, I wanna know where they’re going.” 

Soap raised an eyebrow at that. Shouldn’t they want both? Where the missiles are at was, of course, the most important. Still, stopping whoever had been distributing the missiles seemed just as important for them. After all, if they didn’t figure it out, then it would be more than possible that they’d find themselves here again, chasing a terrorist with access to American missiles. 

There was a noise in the distance, coyotes howling. It made Soap turn his head, his eyes gazing over the dark hills in the distance. He paused for a moment at one spot in particular, watching it carefully. Something in his mind wouldn’t let him look away, even as Graves spoke, “Take a look around, Hassan. Now you can either become part of the food chain or you can start talking.” 

“I’m a hostage here. This is illegal.”

The words forced Soap to wince and brought his attention back to Hassan. They all knew the man was right. Still, Alejandro tried to help, “You are a prisoner of war.”

“Iran is not at war with Mexico,” Hassan was quick to shoot back, “I’ve broken no laws. These men and their commanders are the law-breakers.” 

Soap scoffed, “You and your beloved General Ghorbrani broke every-”

“Do not speak his name,” Hassan yelled the words, jerking forward to glare harshly at Soap. It was the first break in his calm mask the group had seen. “You executed him and you will pay for your crimes.” He mumbled something in Arabic, the words not ringing as familiar to Soap’s ears. 

Shepherd’s voice was harsh as it rang through the air, “I want this bastard in permanent custody or looking up at the damn grass.” 

“Now now, General, you know good and well that can’t happen. You wouldn’t want to possibly start another war, would you?” 

The voice was unfamiliar and made everyone freeze. It came from the computer, and both Soap and Graves took careful steps toward it. “What the hell was that?” Graves tapped a few buttons on the feed, but still, it only showed Shepherd and Laswell on the call. 

“Laswell,” Shepherd’s voice was careful but harsh, “is there someone else with you?”

“No sir,” Laswell was quick to respond, her own face serious. 

“Then who was that?” Soap questioned quietly. He shot a careful look back at Ghost and, much to the dismay of his rising anxiety, the man looked tense. Tense and far too serious. Soap turned back to the computer, watching the screen silently. 

“One of you knows me,” the voice cut through again and everyone could hear it clear as day. “One of you recognizes my voice, but right now he’s thinking, 'No, that’s not possible, I’m hearing wrong.' You aren’t hearing wrong.”

“Who are you?” Shepherd bit out the words carefully, “This is a government meeting, you understand that?”

“I do understand,” There was a twinge of an accent to the voice, as Soap was quick to pick up on. “I know everyone who is on this call. General Shepherd. Kate Laswell. Two of the members of Taskforce 141. Colonel Alejandro Vargas. Hassan Zayani. Commander Philip Graves. I’m only here for one of you.” There was a brief pause before the man added, “For now. I’d kill Hassan too if it wouldn’t start a war.” 

“He’s watching us,” Alejandro spoke the words carefully, his eyes darting around to the darkness of the hills. “We need to leave.”

“Try it and I’ll shoot more than one of you.” Gone was any of the playful calm that the voice had been laced with moments earlier. Now it was serious, dark, focused. “Trust me, I can do it too. It’s rare that I miss.” 

Soap found himself frozen in place. He knew that something like this was bound to happen. He knew that the day would not go by easy for him. He could feel dread pooling in his gut and it was so great that he worried for a brief moment that he may end up throwing up. They were in the middle of nowhere with a terrorist on his knees and someone they couldn’t see threatening them. Threatening one of them. It wasn’t a good situation, and Soap found himself tempted to move his hand toward his sidearm. He was desperate for some sort of comfort. 

There was a long moment of silence before Graves, with clenched teeth, asked the question, “Who are you?”

A low chuckle filled the air, “You know who I am, Commander.” 

Graves seemed to stutter over himself for a moment and it became clear to everyone there who exactly this mystery person was after. Soap watched Graves closely and noted the way that his face twisted up. He noticed that, despite the frustration, there was a twinge of recognition there. Recognition and disbelief. “I’ve got no idea who you are,” Graves croaked after a moment, “other than a dead man walking.”

“An apt description.” Soap could hear how the other man’s lips quirked up at the words. “Let me help jog your memory, shall I?” Graves clenched his hands against the computer, his entire body tense. “Three years ago, I promised you that I was going to find you and kill you. In this life or the next, I’ll be the one to kill you.” 

“That’s not,” Graves's voice shook, “that’s not possible. I killed you. I shot you twice before I burned your fucking body in a ditch.”

“It didn’t stick.” Soap could see how the words affected Graves. He didn’t know what was going on, he didn’t know who the man on the line was, but he knew that whoever he was, Graves knew him and Graves thought he’d killed him. “Your fault for thinking you could kill me. I didn’t get my name for nothing.” 

There was a long pause as Graves stared at the computer, stuck between something close to anger, disbelief, and horror. Soap didn’t know what to do. He didn’t know what was going on, but what he did know was that this wasn’t good. It wasn’t good for Graves and it wasn’t good for them. 

“Graves,” he managed to start after a long moment, “who is he?”

There was another long pause as Graves seemed to stare harshly down at his own hands. Soap, in the years that he’d worked with the man, had never seen him like this. He’d never seen the man look so terrified, so worried, so shocked. Philip Graves always seemed like he had everything figured out. Like he was steps ahead of anyone around him. Now though? Now he seemed like a man lost. 

“Philip,” Shepherd’s voice betrayed his own nerves. It was clear that he’d never seen the man like this before either. “Who is he?”

Graves’s voice came out quiet, quiet, and shaky as he responded to the question, “Roach.” 

No one had a chance to ask any further questions. No one even heard the shot. They could see when it hit, though. The moment that a bullet buried itself into Graves’s skull, sending blood and skull splattering out before the man’s body followed it to the ground, crumpled into an unmoving picture of death. 

Immediately, the group rushed into action. They all ducked low to the ground before setting off. Alejandro and Ghost worked quickly to grab Hassan, pulling him with them behind the vehicle, on the side, away from where the shot came from. Soap was the one to grab Graves, taking tight to his vest and yanking his unmoving body behind the vehicle. Blood leaked onto his hands and his clothes. He paid it no mind as he checked the man's body quickly.

A clean hole through the side of his head. One shot. One kill. 

“Team?” Laswell’s voice was desperate as she called to them over the system, “Team, come in.”

“Graves,” Shepherd’s voice was harsh and desperate, “What the fuck happened?”

“Shot’s fired,” Ghost called out to the computer. He gave a quick look at Soap’s shocked face before his eyes trailed down. He didn’t have to be close to know what happened, “Graves is down. I repeat, Graves is down.” 

Before either Laswell or Shepherd could respond, the man’s voice cut through again as he warned, “General Shepherd…you’re next.”

With that, the voice cut out, leaving everything silent for several long moments. Finally, Laswell’s voice cut through. She sounded serious, and even around the shock that seemed to have paralyzed him, Soap understood her words. 

“Team,” she went quiet for a few moments, “Get back to base as soon as you can. I’ll contact Price,” she hesitated for a few moments before adding, “Stay vigilant.” 

Soap could hear the click that signaled that the call ended, but he hardly paid it any mind. All he could focus on was the feeling of wet, sticky blood as it soaked through his pants and colored his hand crimson. He let his eyes trail down to Graves’s still body again and, in his mind, he reminded himself that this was what happened when he didn’t trust himself. This was what happened when he let his guard down. Death and blood and silence. 

Soap hadn’t been able to sleep. How could he?

He’d tried. The others had seen his face, they’d seen the blood on his hands and his clothes and how he seemed to be crumpled in on himself. Ghost and Alejandro had shared a look. Soap hated it. He didn’t need them to think that he was incapable, to think that something like this would break him down into a man who couldn’t do his job. He could grieve later. For now, there was work. 

Still, it didn’t stop Ghost from gently grabbing his arm and guiding him out of the room where Alejandro and Rudy were setting up communication and research stations. When they were far enough away from the door, far enough away from any other people, Ghost stopped. There was a moment that passed before the taller man pulled him into a gentle embrace. 

Soap felt frozen for a long moment. It wasn’t often that Ghost showed such overt affection to him. The most he typically got was a brief hug in private or a soft, quick kiss pressed to his lips after a mission gone well. But this was different. This was slow and long and deliberate. It was warm, and it was comforting, and it was all that it took for Soap to practically collapse against the man. 

He didn’t want to cry. He didn’t even know when he started, but what he did know was that within a few minutes, his head was hurting and Ghost’s shirt was wet where he’d buried his face in the man’s chest. He’d considered Graves one of his friends. They’d worked together before, they knew each other, and now? Now the man was just gone. Gone because of some sick revenge fantasy. 

His chest seemed to constrict with that knowledge. The knowledge that, in an instant, the life of someone that he cared for could just be gone, all at the whim of one person. He wanted to scream at the knowledge, but he couldn’t. His chest constricted and with it, all of his words seemed to be compressed into a short sob. He’d known, of course, he’d known it could happen. It came with the job and he’d been unlucky enough to experience it before. Still, there was a difference between knowing and experiencing, especially when it came to a friend. 

“Come on,” Ghost muttered the words lowly, just against his ear. Just quiet enough that only Soap would be able to hear. He didn’t have to speak so quietly, they were alone in the hallway, standing by themselves. Still, he spoke in that quiet tone, the one that told Soap that the man was afraid of what any louder speech would do to his stability at the moment. 

A part of Soap wanted to say no. A part of him wanted to insist on staying up with everyone else, waiting on Price and Gaz to arrive so they might come up with some plan of action. There was so much to worry about. So much they still had to deal with. 

Hassan, the missiles, the man who killed Graves, AQ’s connection to the cartel…there just wasn’t enough time for him to separate himself. 

The other part of him knew he needed to take a moment. This part of him knew he wouldn’t be of any use to the team right now, that he couldn’t be of use. He knew all he would do was end up being nothing more than a body in a room if he didn’t take some time to breathe and recover. He needed a break if he wanted to be useful to the team. 

That was the thought that allowed him to let himself be guided by Ghost toward one of the rooms on base, likely one of the ones that they were all meant to stay in that night. He didn’t question how Ghost knew the way or how Ghost knew which room to put him in, he trusted the man too much for that. Instead, he just allowed himself to be guided into a room and pushed down to sit at the edge of a little bed. 

There was a short moment that passed where he just sat there, staring forward. Anxiety rose up in his chest for a moment before calming when Ghost dropped into a squat in front of him. “Soap,” the man placed a warm hand on his knee and gave it a short squeeze, “Lay down. Try to sleep.”

“Price-”

“I’ll come and get you as soon as Price and Gaz get here,” Ghost met his eyes carefully, “I promise.” There was a moment that passed between them, something soft and careful. Ghost moved to stand up, but Soap stopped him with a hand tight on his vest, keeping him from moving very far. 

“What about you?” He spoke the words carefully, “You should sleep too. I know.” He hesitated for a long moment. He knew what he wanted to say and yet he couldn’t force himself. It frustrated him in a way, he wanted to speak his mind, to just explain his own worry for Ghost. He wouldn’t, though. He wouldn’t because, despite their relationship, they weren’t at that point. He wasn’t brave enough to push yet. So, instead, he just slowly dropped his hand from Ghost’s vest and gave a short nod of his head. “Right.” 

Ghost watched him for a long moment, just staring in the way that he did sometimes. The way that said that he was analyzing, thinking, piecing things together. Soap could never understand what exactly he was always thinking about. He couldn’t understand whatever connections the other man made. Finally, Ghost gave a short sigh, “Try to rest, yeah, Johnny?”

Ghost stooped down to press a quick kiss to Soap’s lips. It was short, just a careful press of their mouths together. Still, Soap understood the significance. He understood the softness that came with it and the care. He understood what Ghost was trying to get across to him with that simple press of lips. After a short moment, Ghost stood back up fully. “You’ll be alright.”

Soap gave the man a short nod. He watched as Ghost moved to leave the room, his eyes tracing the details across the back of Ghost’s vest carefully. He noted the man’s posture, how he was tense. He noticed how Ghost paused in the doorway to the room for a few careful moments before stepping out into the hallway, closing the door behind him. 

It snapped shut with a resounding click and Soap found himself sitting in the dark with a tense stillness around him. He didn’t like the silence. He didn’t enjoy being alone. He could hear a voice bouncing around his skull. He could see the moment that Graves was shot. He could feel the helplessness. 

He laid down. He tried to sleep. He could see crimson behind his eyelids. He could still feel blood on his hands. He didn’t sleep. 

Soap didn’t get woken up by Ghost. Instead, after several hours of fighting to keep his eyes closed to allow himself to drift off, Soap gave up. He couldn’t do it. Sleep just wouldn’t come for now. Maybe later, maybe once they’d found the person who’d killed Graves, maybe once there weren’t still missiles on the line. Maybe then Soap could allow himself to sleep. 

It was a terrible curse, not being able to sleep. Every part of him felt weighed down, as though he’d added an extra fifty or so pounds to his clothing. Everything was too heavy. There was a feeling behind his eyes, one that threatened to pull them down but never made good on those threats. It was like his own body couldn’t decide what it wanted to do. 

Then there was his head. There was a pounding ache there, one that hit just above his temple in continuous steady bursts, matching the beat of his heart. He felt like his mind was fuzzy on the edges. Focused, but unfocused. Like everything was clear, but somehow his mind couldn’t fully grasp it. It made him feel crazy. It made him tug at his hair and rub at his eyes as he moved, desperate for something to wipe the feeling away from him. 

Then there were the feelings. The anxiety that pounded at his chest and slipped up his throat. He didn’t even register that it was anxiety at first. It was so strong that he was sure that he was just sick, that his body was upset that he hadn’t eaten anything. He’d picked up more than the anxiety though, the fear and the anger were what gave him away. It was a deadly concoction that had him feeling green, even as he navigated his way through the hallways of the Vaqueros' base. 

It was tough to navigate with the fog in his brain and the feelings that continued to bite into his neck and tear into his skin. He was only thankful that they couldn’t draw blood. It took him time to navigate back toward the little room that Alejandro and Rudy were putting together as a sort of mission room for them. Still, he eventually made it and he knew he’d found the right place when he heard Price’s voice giving a careful greeting to someone in the room. He assumed the men had just arrived. 

It took him a long moment, but eventually, he could shove open the door to the room and stumble inside. He was sure he looked a mess, and the soft concerned look that fell over Gaz and Price’s face when they saw him was enough to confirm. He brushed it off. It didn’t matter at the moment.

“Soap,” Price acknowledged carefully, “How are you feeling, son?” 

There was a brief quiet that fell over the room, Soap could feel everyone’s gaze fall to him. In a way, it made him angry. He could handle himself. He needed them to know that. “Ready to catch the bastard that did this,” was his simple response. He straightened up fully, trying to make himself appear taller and more confident. 

He could tell from the way that Price pursed his lips that it hadn’t exactly worked. Still, he held his head high and refused to give away how he was feeling. He wasn’t going to add to whatever belief that they had that he was too upset to do his job. He wanted to help find the man who’d killed Graves. Finally, Price responded, “Alright, Soap, alright.”

Soap let out a slow and quiet sigh of relief. Even if Price was worried about him, the man trusted him and he was going to let him do his job. Soap appreciated it more than he thought the man would ever know. “Do we have any new information?” 

Price motioned for the team to gather around one of the little tables and soon they were grouped up. The 141 plus Alejandro and Rudy, all settled around with little computers and papers for notes in front of them. “Laswell is still doing research into the man on the line. She’s searching all known databases for anyone with a nickname or callsign of 'Roach.' It’s slow going, but it’s going.” 

“And Hassan?” Ghost asked the question from his place next to Soap. It brought Soap’s attention to him, but he noticed that the other man seemed resolutely focused on Price, refusing to even glance his way. He knew why. This was a meeting after all. Still, he couldn’t help the disappointment he felt at hardly even being acknowledged. 

“That is,” Price shook his head, “Something interesting.” He and Gaz shared a glance for a brief moment and the move sent Soap leaning forward in his chair. They knew something, he could tell from their faces. “After Laswell contacted us in the middle of the night, she received an email from a blocked account. Encrypted with two items.” 

“Do we know what they are?” Alejandro was the one to ask, his arms across his chest, “Are they connected?”

“We think so,” Price rolled his neck and took a moment before telling them, “One of them, the one Laswell has managed to open, supposedly has the locations of Hassan’s remaining missiles on them.” 

“Remaining missiles?” Ghost asked carefully, “As in more than one?”

“As in two,” Price confirmed. “Two more missiles. Supposedly, one is being currently smuggled into Chicago via the cartel. We were given an exact location and date for the arrival. Laswell has a squad on it, Delta force. They’ll intercept and see if it’s true.” 

“And the other?” Rudy raised an eyebrow at Price, “Tell me it’s somewhere easy to get to.”

“We could never be so lucky,” Price shook his head, “Gulf of Mexico. Offshore oil platform.” There was a moment of silence that fell over the group as they each took in Price’s words. The other missile was an easy case. If it was supposedly being brought onto American soil, they could easily intercept it. But an oil platform in the Gulf of Mexico? They had to be sure that the information that they had was true before they just went and raided the place. 

“How certain are we that this information is good?” Ghost was the one who finally posed the question. “And,” he added after a moment, “How much time do we have to even make sure that we’re certain?”

“That’s the million dollar question,” Price looked around the table at them, “The information came from a blocked account, we’ve got no way of verifying who they are. Laswell’s already tried to track it. She said whoever it was covered their tracks well.” He gave a deep sigh and rubbed at his face. 

“So,” Rudy chimed in, “Theoretically, this could be someone from AQ who sent these to you as a way to distract us. Point us in the wrong direction so they have time to actually move the missiles onto US soil.” 

“Or,” Gaz spoke up carefully, “this could be the guy who killed Graves.” Those words had the entire table going silent. Gaz paused for a long moment, looking everyone over to make sure they were alright before continuing, “Laswell said he mentioned killing Hassan.” 

“He did,” Alejandro confirmed. “Said if it wouldn’t start a war, he’d kill him too.” There was a brief silence that fell over the table. Soap could feel a few eyes fall to him, but he ignored them with only a clench of his fists to show that he’d even noticed their wandering gaze. 

“So,” Gaz spoke carefully, “Clearly this guy wants Hassan gone too. You said he was American. Maybe he’s giving us the information in hopes that we handle it.” Gaz stood up from where he was leaning against the table and gave a short shrug. “I mean think about it. He gets a terrorist that he’s against killed or arrested and buys himself time to fuck off somewhere.”

“It would certainly be one way to handle things,” Rudy tilted his head and shot a glance to Alejandro. “A very clever way to handle things.” 

“The guy tapped into our comms,” Ghost tilted his head, “I think we can assume he’s clever enough to do something like this.” There was a long moment of silence that laid over the table before Ghost spoke again, “You mentioned there were two things in the email. What was the other?”

“We aren’t sure,” Price shrugged, “Laswell hasn’t been able to crack it yet. She says that whoever designed the code for it was very serious about not having it opened before it’s meant to be.”

“Before it’s meant to be?” 

“It has a timer on it,” Price answered Soap quickly. “Says it’ll auto unlock in four days.” 

“So,” Soap reached up to tug at his hair in annoyance, “What’s happening in four days? I mean, if that’s when the timer is set, then this guy must have something planned, right?” 

“Shepherd,” Ghost spoke the man’s name carefully. It rolled off of his tongue and hung in the air over the room for several long moments. Something about the name seemed wrong on Ghost’s tongue, something about it grated at Soap’s chest and made his head hurt something fierce. He didn’t like hearing the name come from Ghost. He couldn’t place why. “The man who killed Graves, he told Shepherd he was next.” 

“So,” Price nodded his head carefully, “Four days could be when he intends to go for Shepherd. The other document could be something made to distract us, get us far enough away that he can kill the man.” 

“That’s all good to know, but do you think we can trust him about the missiles?” Alejandro leaned against the table and looked around the group, “We know he has reason to keep us distracted, but do we think the information is correct?”

Soap answered before anyone else could, his voice sharp. “I don’t trust it. I don’t think we should trust it,” he shook his head, “this is the guy who killed Graves. It could be a trap for the rest of us.” 

“If he wanted the rest of us dead, he could have just shot us then,” Ghost spoke quietly, drawing Soap’s attention toward him. “I know the shot he took. He’s a good shot. Told us himself. I know if it was me, I would have been able to get at least two of us. Maybe three because we had to grab Hassan.” 

“What are you saying?” Soap asked through a clenched jaw, anger burning through his veins. They couldn’t seriously be thinking about trusting the information. They couldn’t seriously be thinking about putting themselves in danger like that. He couldn’t handle it. He wouldn’t be able to handle it if something happened to one of them again. Not when he knows. Not when he could stop it. 

“I’m saying,” Ghost gave him a careful look, “That I don’t think he wants the rest of us dead. This hit on Graves was a revenge shot. You know that, Johnny.” There was a long moment of silence as Soap tried to come up with a response. Something to refute Ghost. Something to get him to stay. Something to keep him out of the line of fire. Nothing came to his mind and, in the lack of response, frustration bubbled up. He wondered why Ghost couldn’t see how dangerous this was. After a long moment, Ghost turned his attention to Price, “If we need a team, I’ll go.” 

“I’d be willing,” Alejandro called out, his arms still crossed carefully, “I’d like to help your team see this through, Captain.” 

“I appreciate that Colonel,” Price gave Alejandro a quick and careful nod. “That makes four of us. Ghost, Alejandro, Gaz, and myself.” 

“I can round up some Vaqueros,” Alejandro nodded, “Round out the team with some backup. My men will be more than willing to help with this.” Soap gaped at the group for a good long moment. He couldn’t understand why none of them seemed worried about the man who’d killed one of their own. He didn’t know the answer, but he knew he wasn’t willing to let his team go into a situation like that alone. 

“If Ghost is going, I’m going,” he brought the attention of the entire group toward him. There was a moment of careful silence. He watched how Price seemed to glance toward Ghost before back at him. He glared at the man for it. Ghost wasn’t his keeper. If he wanted to go on the mission, he should be allowed on the mission. Whether Ghost thought he should or not. 

“Soap,” Price started carefully, “We need someone to stay back. Stay in contact with Laswell and help Rudy with research.” He gave Soap a careful look, one that told Soap that he wasn’t sure about him coming, not because they needed someone to stay back, but because he didn’t think he could handle it. “I need someone I can trust to stay back.”

“You’re benching me?” Soap gave him a withering glare, something ugly and mean and angry roaring up in his chest. “I can handle myself. I want to be there to help!” 

Price pursed his lips for a long moment, glancing back at Ghost before responding, “You’ll be better help to us from here. There’s nothing wrong with staying back and helping from base.” He paused for a long moment before adding, “Besides, you don’t look in any state to be holding a gun right now, lad.” 

Soap scoffed and crossed his arms over his chest, “And what does that mean? You don’t think I can handle myself, is that it?” He turned to look over the entire group. “You all think I’m just on the edge of breaking down because of Graves, yeah?”

“Soap,” Ghost’s voice was low, dropped into a warning tone. Soap ignored him. 

“I am fine! I can do my job perfectly well and the fact that you all don’t think so is nothing but disrespectful to me.” He knocked his hands against the table angrily, “I can handle myself, I want to help, I’m not going to fall apart! I want on the mission.” 

There was a long pause as everyone at the table just stared at him. Price gave nothing away on his face, he just kept a mask of perfect neutrality. It was almost more frustrating for Soap. At least if Price would show something, anything, he would be able to tell what was going on. But the man showed nothing on his face. He just watched Soap for a long moment. 

“You’re staying here, Sergeant.” Soap went to complain, but he was stopped by a quick hand raised to him. There was a long pause where Price just watched him before continuing, “Not because I don’t think you can do your job. Not because we think you’re going to fall apart. It has nothing to do with Graves and all to do with you. You can’t come because you look like shit. Bags under your eyes and don’t think I haven’t seen the way you’ve been rubbing at your head.” Price tilted his head at him and Soap turned away from the man, unable to hold his gaze for any longer. “You’re exhausted, Soap. You’re staying here. That’s final.” 

The silence that hung over the room was tense. Soap avoided everyone's gaze, he didn’t want to see them. He didn’t know that he could look at them without getting angry again. He saw the way they’d looked at him. He knew what they were thinking. He could read it on their faces and, whether he was exhausted or not, he knew they were all worried about him. He knew they thought he was too stressed, too hurt, too impacted by Graves' death to handle himself. He hated it. 

Price gave a deep sigh. “Right, well, let’s gear up. If we’re trusting this message, then we need to leave as soon as possible.” Soap stayed still as the group moved around him. He could hear as Gaz and Alejandro passed him. There was a short moment before a hand landed on his shoulder. Soap gave Price a quick glance before returning his gaze to the table, his hands clenched. Price didn’t say anything, he just stayed like that with his hand on Soap’s shoulder for several minutes before he gave another short sigh. He gave a quick squeeze to Soap’s shoulder before ending off with a few quick pats as he moved past him. 

There was another moment before Soap could feel someone on his other side step closer to him. He didn’t have to look up to see that it was Ghost. He could tell from the man’s presence alone. “Soap,” his voice was low and careful, “I’ll see you when I get back, but I need to know…are you going to be okay?” 

Soap closed his eyes for a moment, shaking his head just slightly. He wanted to scoff at the man, wanted to ask why he thought he had a right to ask him a question like that, especially when it was so clear that Price had looked to him for an answer of if he could go with the team or not. The thought brought anger back to him. He pushed it down and instead gave a simple, “You should go. You wouldn’t want to drag the rest of the team behind.” 

Ghost stood at his side for another moment before stepping away from him and leaving the room. Soap wasn’t sure if Ghost leaving just like that made him feel more relieved or angry. It didn’t matter. He was gone. The team was gone. Soap was left behind.

Soap didn’t know how long he’d been just blankly staring at the computer screen in front of him. Minutes maybe? Hours? He couldn’t be sure. What he could be sure of was that he hadn’t actually done anything useful. He’d just been staring at a blank database for what felt like hours. 

He didn’t know what he was doing. He didn’t understand the database, and he didn’t understand what type of research he was supposed to be doing. He knew the reason. He knew the reason he’d been left behind wasn’t for research, but rather for the hope that he might actually get some sleep or rest with the time that he would have on base. He hated to admit it, but part of him was still sitting at the computer, watching it out of spite more than anything. The last thing he wanted was to let Price and Ghost get away with their attempt to subtly take care of him. 

He gave a deep sigh as he stared at his blinking cursor on the computer. He wanted to do something. He wanted to move. He wanted to be on the mission with the team, but instead he found himself here. Sitting in a quiet room with a computer in front of him. After a few moments, he gave another sigh. 

“Alright,” Rudy closed his computer with a clack from beside him, pulling Soap’s attention toward him. He watched as the other man crossed his hands politely over the computer before meeting him with what Alejandro had affectionately referred to as one of his “I’m done with your shit” looks. “Soap, why don’t you go into town and get us something to eat? Hmm?”

Soap scoffed, “What? So now I’m a secretary. Should I get you coffee while I’m out?” He crossed his arms over his chest and shot a glare at Rudy. The man didn’t move, he just gave him an unimpressed look. 

“If it keeps you from sitting here and pouting like a child?” Rudy tilted his head at him. “Then yes, I’d be more than glad to have you be a secretary for the day. I’m tired of your sighing every two seconds. You’re tired of sitting here, so stop being a stubborn little shit and go into town to get us something to eat.” 

Soap gaped at the man for a long moment, surprised by how blunt he’d been. Finally, he pushed himself to stand, a grumble in his voice as he did so. “Suddenly, I understand why Alejandro warned us about your mean streak.” He paused for a moment before boldly asking, “Has anyone ever told you that you can be a bit of a bitch?”

Rudy opened his computer back up carefully, a small smug smile pulling at his lips as he focused his attention back on the task at hand before responding, “Yes, quite often, in fact.” Soap had to admire the absolute lack of shits that Rudy gave about him or what was going on in that moment. The man had a job to do and if Soap or anyone else were bothering him or in his way, he seemed more than willing to just say fuck it and call them out on their shit. Soap respected it and, honestly, appreciated it more than the way that the others had been practically dancing around him. 

“I’m going,” he conceded, “but only because I’m hungry. Not because you told me to.” 

“Mhmm,” Rudy didn’t even look up at him, “Sure, hermano, sure. The keys are in the bowl by the door. Have fun.” Soap resisted the urge to send a rude gesture his way and instead just marched his way to the door, grabbing the keys there before pushing his way outside. 

At least like this, he wasn’t just sitting and staring at a computer. At least like this, he could do something. 

Soap was apparently destined to just have a terrible time during his trip to Las Almas. That was just the way that it was. The world wouldn’t give him a break and he just had to try to stick it out. He hated it. He certainly wasn’t handling it as well as he’d like to be, but there wasn’t much that he could do about that other than tough it up and shove his feelings even further down his throat in an attempt to hide them. It didn’t work. They always inevitably found their way up his throat. 

“Great,” Soap muttered the words to himself as he pushed his way out of the rather busy little restaurant in town. Rudy had ordered ahead for them, at least that’s what his quick and to-the-point text had told Soap. Something about helping him out since he didn’t speak Spanish. But, of course, the man had chosen one of the busiest places in town. 

Soap had arrived and immediately been overwhelmed by the sheer number of people inside of the small restaurant. He’d waited patiently and tried to keep himself from focusing on the crowds around him by admiring the surrounding decoration. Eventually, he’d made his way to the front and asked for their order, only to be told it likely wouldn’t be ready for another thirty or so minutes. 

So now he’d found himself pushing out of the restaurant with thirty minutes to wait for their food and, based on the full table around him, nowhere to sit and nothing to do to pass the time. 

He gave a deep sigh and buried his face in his hands. Annoyance bubbled up through him and he couldn’t help but wonder what he’d done to encourage so much to happen to him within a short span of two days. He’d lost a friend, his other friends seemed to think he was incapable of holding himself together, and now he was faced with such a minor inconvenience that he felt like he was crazy for feeling so much anxiety and annoyance and anger rising in his system. 

“Bad day?” A somewhat familiar voice rang through the air, pulling Soap’s attention to a nearby small table. One of the few outside seating options, it was occupied by a man that Soap was sure he’d never seen before in his life. Still, the sight of him rang as oddly familiar for some reason. His voice was familiar as well, though Soap couldn’t place why. 

“You have no idea,” he answered back simply. He turned away, intent on trying to figure out somewhere to go to wait. He would need somewhere close by, but anywhere less crowded would be preferred. 

There was the sound of a seat scraping and, when Soap turned, he found that the man had pushed a seat out, “Need somewhere to sit? I have a free place here if you want.” 

Soap looked between the man and the offered seat for several moments, trying to decide if he should just bite the bullet and sit down. On one hand, it was odd that a random American in the middle of Las Almas was just offering him a seat at his table as though they were old friends. On the other hand, the seat was a good offer. It was covered by a bit of shade and right outside the restaurant, so Soap wouldn’t have to go far. 

After a moment of consideration, he took careful steps forward and moved his way into the seat. “Thanks.” The two were silent for several moments, allowing Soap a long second to observe the other. Despite the heat, the man was dressed in pants and a long-sleeved button-down. Sunglasses shielded his eyes from Soap’s view, and Soap noted the luggage that lay by the man’s feet. His keen eyes also noticed a scar of some sort. One of the sleeves of the man’s shirt had risen up, just enough that Soap could get a look at the mottled skin that seemed to rise up his arm. The man tugged his shirt down to cover it moments after Soap spotted it. 

He held a hand out to Soap, “Gary Sanderson.” 

Soap stared at it for a long moment, not quite sure whether he should accept it. The man seemed harmless, maybe just lonely. And, Soap reminded himself, that the man had offered him a seat. Finally, he settled on a compromise between his warring mind. He accepted the man’s hand. “Soap.” 

“Soap,” the corners of the man’s mouth shot up, “cute nickname. I like it.” The statement shouldn’t have made Soap go red, and yet it did. The reaction only seemed to pull another smile from the man in front of him. 

Soap cleared his throat, feeling oddly nervous about the man in front of him. “Thank you, by the way. For the seat.” 

Gary gave him a short nod, that smile still sitting on his lips. “Of course, I have room at my table, why not help someone out?” There was a short moment that passed before Gary asked, “I’m guessing you aren’t from around here either? At least, maybe not originally.” 

“What gave me away?” Soap questioned with a grumble. To his surprise, his rather grumpy response only pulled a chuckle from Gary. Most people would have been a bit annoyed at his sarcasm. Hell, even Ghost would get annoyed with his sass on occasion. This man just chuckled, amusement clear to see on his face. 

“Here getting something good for lunch? Maybe hoping it will make your bad day a bit better?” Soap watched the man for a moment, trying to determine where his interest came from. This, of course, could just be the questions of a kind stranger trying to find someone to help him fill his time. Soap’s mind had never been hard-wired to believe that, though. Cautiousness came before friendliness, every time. 

Rather than answering him, Soap redirected, “Something like that. What about you, just trying for lunch?” 

“Trying for lunch,” the man agreed. The small smile on his face told Soap that he knew exactly what he’d done, but he clearly didn’t mind from the way that he continued talking. "Waiting for my car."

“For your car?”

“I’m going to the airport,” the man explained, “My flight got canceled and my assistant booked me a place to stay in the 'closest town' she could find. She’s apparently not very good at finding things if she thinks this is the closest town.” He paused, looking around him at the people and the buildings, “Prettiest, maybe.” He turned his attention back to Soap. “I’m hoping not to miss my next flight. I’d hate to be late for my next meeting.” 

Soap relaxed at his words. He was a businessman. A businessman who, by the sound of it, had a rather unfortunate streak of luck. Certainly not as bad as Soap himself, but bad enough that he was looking for someone to chat with. Soap could certainly chat with him. 

“I’m,” he hesitated for a moment, trying to find a proper lie, “having relationship problems.” 

Gary tilted his head at him, his eyes observing Soap carefully for several moments before he spoke. “I’m sorry to hear that. What type of problems, if you don’t mind me asking?” 

There was a brief pause and Soap considered not answering the man. Gary had given him a way out, permission and a lack of pressure. He was free not to answer if he wanted to. And yet, a part of him wanted to tell someone. A part of him wanted to share with someone else what exactly was going on. “To be honest?” He hesitated for another moment, “My boyfriend and I lost a friend recently. I’m afraid he doesn’t think I can handle myself because of it. It’s like him and everyone else think I’m falling apart at the seams and I hate it.” 

“Have you told them that?” Gary asked him. “I mean, obviously I don’t know your friends, but talking about why you’re upset with them could certainly help. If anything, you can get those emotions out there.” 

“I,” Soap tried to find the right word, “sort of did? I may have gone on a big rant today about how I wasn’t helpless and could still do my job and everything else without them thinking I’m going to collapse in on myself.” He gave a deep sigh and buried his face in his hands. “I don’t think it worked. I think it only made them believe I’m closer to breaking down than they thought.” 

“Maybe the unfortunate side effect of ranting about it.” Soap could hear a bit of amusement in Gary’s voice and the sound of it brought a blush high to his cheeks. “You could always start small?” He suggested, “Maybe try to, calmly, talk about it with your boyfriend first?”

Soap gave a snort into his hands and shook his head, “I don’t know how well that will work.” There was a pause as he rubbed at his eyes. He knew he should stop, he knew he shouldn’t be airing out his dirty laundry to some stranger he’d just met, but he couldn’t help himself. It was nice getting to talk to someone and something about Gary just made him easy to talk to. “I love my boyfriend, I really do, but he has an issue about keeping his emotions locked away to himself. It’s like,” he paused for a moment, chuckling to himself before he said, “it’s like he wears a mask all the time. Like I can’t get past his walls.” 

Gary gave a short hum at his words, his face twisting up into something almost melancholic for a few moments before returning to a calm sort of neutral. “How long have the two of you been together?”

“A few months now, though we’ve known each other for over two years at this point.” 

“You aren’t going to like my suggestion,” Gary started. Soap could see the edge of his mouth tug up again and part of him felt amused, like the other man’s energy was infecting him. 

“Let me guess,” he started playfully, “talk to him?”

“Communication is key,” he paused for a moment, “Maybe you should try to figure out what you want to say before you talk to him though. Take some time for self-reflection.” 

Soap snorted, “Self-reflection. Yeah, sure. I don’t think that’s for me.” 

“No?” Roach tilted his head at him, his eyes narrowed into something carefully thoughtful. “Why not? Self-reflection is good for you, you know.”

There was a short moment that passed as Soap tried to find the words. He’d always had trouble explaining himself, always had trouble figuring out his emotions until they were already out there. It led to many problems for him because, as he’d learned over the course of his life, he was a fairly emotionally driven person. An emotionally driven person who was shit at figuring out his own emotions until it was too late. It was a recipe for disaster, in his opinion. 

He hated it. He could read other people like open books most of the time. He could see through the strongest of walls and see right to the center of a person. Hell, he’d been able to read Ghost better than anyone else around him only days after meeting the man. Even through the mask, he could pick up on things that other people would hardly even be able to notice. And yet, despite all of that, he couldn’t read himself. His emotions were a mystery to his own mind until he was forced to face them point blank. He supposed it was a bit of a curse. Maybe some sort of downside to how well he could read others. 

Know others, but never really know yourself. That was the life that Soap was stuck in. Those were the cards he’d been dealt. 

“I’m…not exactly the best at reading myself.” He looked down at the table and ran his fingers over some of the designs painted over the smooth surface. The swirling reds and blues reminded him momentarily of fire and something in him rang painfully at the thought. He pushed it back down. “I don’t think I ever really know what I’m feeling. You know, I was anxious this morning, and it took me nearly an hour to even realize that's what I was feeling. It took me that long to figure out I was anxious.” He gave a quick scoff and ran a hand over his face. “How am I supposed to figure out what I want to say when I can’t even figure out what I’m feeling?” 

There was a long moment of silence and Soap felt exhausted. He didn’t understand why he couldn’t have been one of those super emotionally intelligent types. The ones who recognize what’s wrong with them and others in an instant and always had a solution to offer. It made him feel useless. How was he supposed to help others when he couldn’t even help himself?

Gary stretched upwards, and Soap’s eyes followed the movement. He noted the peek of those scars again and his eyes traced across the man’s chest, observing the sleek muscle that was hidden underneath his clothing. He seemed fairly strong for a businessman. “Have you ever tried journaling?” 

The sudden words shocked Soap out of his head and he snapped his gaze upward, meeting Gary’s eyes. He noted the amusement there and he could feel his face go hot. The other man had certainly felt him looking. He cleared his throat. “Journaling? What, like a little kid writing in their diary?”

Gary gave a slow chuckle at the words while shaking his head, “I suppose if that’s what comes to mind. Lots of people journal, it's a good way to get your feelings out there without actually having to share with anyone.” He pulled one of his bags from the floor and started to dig into it. “It could help you figure things out. You said you never know what you’re feeling until you burst. This offers you a safe place to put those outbursts without actually saying anything.”

“I don’t know.” Soap watched him carefully, hesitation clear in his voice, “I’m not really a writer.” 

“You don’t have to be a writer.” Gary finally pulled out a little leather-bound book from his bag. He leaned across the table and set it in front of Soap. “Your writing skill doesn’t matter. It’s about you and your emotions. Hell, you don’t even have to write. If you’re an artist, draw something.” He leaned back in his seat casually. The two sat for a few moments before he motioned toward the book. “Go on.” 

Soap looked at him for a short moment before hesitantly taking the book in hand. He picked the book up in hand and flipped through the pages. To his surprise, they were all blank. “I don’t,” he squinted at Gary, “I don’t understand, it’s blank.” 

“Exactly,” Gary gave him a small smile, “It’s for you. Use it. Something tells me you’ll like it more than you probably think.”

Soap looked back down at the leather-bound journal in his hand, his thumbs tracing over the plain leather cover. It was a nice journal. “I can’t accept this.” 

He tried to hand it back to Gary, but he was quickly waved off. “I’ve still got two back home that I haven’t even started yet. You’ll get more use out of it than me.” There was a small pause before he continued, “Besides, it’ll be good for you and I get to help a nice stranger out.” 

Soap’s heart seemed to tug painfully at the word “stranger,” though he couldn’t be sure why. There was no reason for him to be upset about it, not when it was the truth. Gary was a stranger to him. He was a stranger to Gary. Something in him wasn’t satisfied with that.

A car pulled up in front of the little restaurant they were sitting in front of and before Soap could react, Gary was standing from his seat and gathering his bags, a grin on his face. “Thank you for the conversation, it was really nice to meet you.” He leaned over the table and, for a brief moment, Soap thought that he was going to hug him. Instead, he just set a pen on the table next to the journal and gave a conspiratory whisper, “In case you wanted to go ahead and start.”

Soap watched him load his things into the car, his mind running over itself. Part of him insisted that he try to come up with a reason to get the man to stay. He had no reason though. They were strangers, after all. 

It wasn’t until Gary was climbing into the car that he found his voice. “Thank you! For everything!” 

Gary only gave him a small salute before climbing into the car. A moment later and he was gone, Soap’s eyes tracing the spot in the distance where the car had disappeared around. Something in him felt empty at the man's sudden absence. It was like a part of him that he didn’t even know he’d been missing had been filled by Gary’s presence. And, just like that, it was gone again. 

Now though, Soap recognized it. He could feel it clear as day, sitting in his chest. Nestled behind his ribs right next to his heart, sharing the space and the very blood that pumped through his veins was a spot. A spot where something was missing, something that was meant to help breathe life into him. Something that was meant to keep him warm. Something that he’d lost, then found, then lost again without even knowing. He reminded himself that Gary was a stranger. It only made the feeling stronger. 

He looked back down at the journal sitting in front of him before checking the time on his watch. He still had some time to kill. He picked up the pen and opened the journal to the first page. The least he could do was try. 

“Finally,” Rudy pushed himself up from his seat and rushed over to help Soap with the bags from the restaurant, “I was beginning to wonder if you ever planned to show back up.”

“It’s not my fault,” Soap grumbled, “You’re the one who decided to order from the busiest place in town. Did you know it was going to be nearly an hour wait when you called?”

Soap noted the way that the other man had a small grin on his face and that was all he needed as an answer. “I needed some time without you here,” he stated with a simple shrug, laying everything out on the table in front of him, “and I enjoy the food there.” 

“You’re a bastard.” Soap plopped down into his seat with an annoyed sigh. He tugged some of the food over toward him, his stomach rumbling a bit at the delicious smell of the food in front of him. He was fucking starved. He pulled the little journal from his back pocket and opened it to the page that he’d been working on. 

He hated to admit it, but Gary had been right. Journaling was helpful. Soap had managed to get all of his emotions ranted out onto the page within only twenty minutes and reading it back had finally started to help him get a grasp of what exactly he was dealing with emotionally. It was almost impressive how much the small little leather-bound book had seemed to help him. 

He hadn’t been able to continue after writing so much. Getting everything down seemed to have exhausted him even more, in an odd way. So he’d flipped to a clean page and, instead, started to sketch out the image of the man who’d given him the little leather book. He was sure he’d never see the man again, but some part of him demanded that he sketch the man. It demanded that he keep his memory alive in his mind. 

“What’s that?” Rudy leaned over the table to try and get a better look at the little journal and, in a flash, Soap had it tucked against his chest. He sent a brief glare to his friend. 

“Just a sketch,” he gave a brief huff before motioning to the computer, “Don’t ya have something better to be doing other than trying to catch a peek?” 

Rudy rolled his eyes at him before moving over to his seat. “I forget how sensitive artists can be about people trying to watch them draw.” He plopped down into his seat with a sigh, “And, actually, no. See, while you were gone I managed to actually get some work done-”

“Fuck you.” 

“And Laswell and I were able to actually figure out some things.” He crossed his arms over his chest and shot Soap a smug look. Soap rolled his eyes again, but couldn’t fight back the amusement that coursed through him at the conversation. Rudy had a bit of a bite to him, but he could be a lot of fun if you knew how to take it. 

“Really? Well go on then,” Soap stood from his seat and started over toward him, “Show me all the work that you and Laswell were able to do.” 

Rudy scoffed as Soap settled behind him, but he obediently started typing a few things on his computer as he explained, “Laswell and I pulled out anyone that could have anything to do with Roach, then we narrowed that field down to anyone who had worked with Graves.” He tilted his head up toward Soap, “Nothing.” 

“Could never be that easy.” Soap shook his head. 

“So I went back and listened to the recording of the video call again and realized that Graves thought whoever this Roach guy is, was dead. So I told Laswell to expand the list to military members who are listed as deceased or MIA and this is who we came up with.” Rudy tapped a few buttons on the computer and soon a picture was filling the screen. Soap could feel his heart stop. “Gary Sanderson, callsign Roach. Supposedly was executed and had his body burned by AQ a few years back. He was supposed to work with Graves, but Graves got there too late.”

Soap could feel something dark and terrified curling around his heart and squeezing. He just stared. He didn’t know what to do. What do you do in a situation like this?

“Soap? What’s wrong?” 

Soap didn’t know how to explain. After all, how do you tell someone that you’d just unknowingly had a casual conversation with the man who killed one of your friends? 

[callsign-bunnie]

Hi! For the Stalker! Ghost x Soap Au: Maybe some of soaps friends catch on that he has a stalker and Try to get ghost arrested, or soap or ghost cross a line with each other and there is angst! Or maybe Johnny stops replying to ghost and ghost shows up at his classes and causes a scene? Idk just some ideas cause I’m absolutely loving this AU!!

This is going to offer some exposition as to why Soap is like that.

--

Soap had tried to hide his relationship with Ghost from his friends. As a relationship, it'd moved rather fast. Soap had given up his dorm and now lived at Ghost's house. And... a lot of things made sense. For one, Ghost had a decent amount of money. More than he knew how to spend, apparently. Soap was constantly being given random gifts.

He knew Rodolfo and Gaz wouldn't understand. Even if Rodolfo was... look, there was something missing. Gaz would definitely under no circumstances understand.

So, Soap had tried to hide it. And thankfully, Ghost didn't seem to mind. Quite the opposite, in fact, he encouraged it.

Even still, Soap felt kind of lonely. He wanted to be able to talk to his friends about his boyfriend, tell them about all of the stuff they did. But... how could he? He couldn't even talk about how they'd met.

Then, of course, through shitty luck, they ended up finding out, anyway.

Gaz plopped down beside him in their science class, which they all shared. "Rudy! Did you know Soap has been hiding a secret boyfriend from us??"

Rodolfo immediately jerked his head to look at Soap. "What?? You didn't fucking tell us??"

Soap's eyes went wide and he turned to Gaz. "How did you know??"

"I saw you in the bookshop with that dude. He had his hood up. Rudy, he was giant. Twice the size of you, at least!" Gaz teased and Rodolfo shook his head.

"Soap, you asshole, why didn't you tell us??" Rodolfo frowned.

Soap cringed. "Because..." Well, he had to tell them now. "We have a weird relationship. We live together and stuff."

"A weird relationship?? And how long have you guys been together if you live together, now?" Gaz frowned, deeply.

"Three weeks..." Soap admitted, cringing. "Um... 4 months if you count the time he was pursuing me."

"Pursuing you?" Rodolfo was clearly not buying it.

"Stalking." Soap corrected.

Both immediately looked at him in alarm and he shrank back. "Look, he's really sweet and he just didn't know how to talk to me." Soap tried to explain to them. "He takes care of me."

"He's a stalker." Rodolfo looked incredulous. "Was this the guy you were having a problem with that kept breaking into your dorm??"

Oh, fuck. Soap forgot he had told him about that, once. "Yeah, but I was wrong about him. He really is super sweet and he's a really good guy."

Both boys stared at him. Rodolfo looked like he was losing his mind. "Soap! He's crazy! Clearly!"

"Crazy for me." Soap shrugged and then huffed. "You're one to talk, Rudy. You practically stalked your best friend."

Rodolfo went quiet and looked away. "That's different. Don't talk about him. He's still missing." He looked so upset and Soap genuinely felt bad. It'd been nearly three weeks since Alejandro disappeared and it was probably so hard for Rodolfo.

Gaz pat Rodolfo in sympathy and then turned back to Soap. "Soap... come on, this cannot be a healthy relationship."

"Mhm, just like you and Alex, right? It's been.. what, two months and you're already engaged??" Soap huffed, defensive. "What are you both gay mormons?? Hmm??"

Gaz winced. "That's... different. Alex didn't stalk me for three months before hand!"

"Practically." Soap muttered and looked away. "I don't expect either of you to understand. But... he's a good guy. He makes me happy."

Both seemed to go quiet and then shared a look. "If he makes you happy... but are you sure it's not just... stockholm syndrome?" Gaz asked, gently.

"No, I don't think it is." Soap snapped. He shook his head. "Man, fuck you both." He gathered his stuff and stood, storming out of class.

--

Ghost frowned as he listened to Soap vent. "I just... I know they want only the best for me but... man. They tried to say this was Stockholm syndrome."

Ghost shook his head. "I don't think it was." He was going to have to get rid of them. They might potentially make Soap leave Ghost and he wasn't going to lose Soap. He pulled Soap closer, lifting his mask to kiss his temple.

"Exactly!" Soap curled up and huffed, clearly irritated. Ghost didn't like when he was upset. He was much better happy.

"I could talk to them?" He offered. "Show them I don't want to harm you..."

"You'd think either of them would get it!" Soap huffed, clearly ignoring Ghost's suggestion before sighing and slumping. "No... I can't expect that from Rodolfo. He's really going through it right now. His best friend went missing. He was practically in love with him and I'm sure it's been awful."

Ghost frowned. "Oh." He was still going to get rid of him, but he'd feel slightly more bad about it, now.

"But Gaz... He and Alex have only been together for two months and they're already engaged! He's barely 20! The wedding is next fucking month!"

Okay, Ghost would maybe spare Gaz. He didn't need some heartbroken fiance coming after him.

However, one influence on Soap would be easier to combat. Two? No, that was too much. He'd have to get rid of Rodolfo.

Soap sighed and quieted. "I guess we do have a pretty... unconventional relationship..." Soap cringed. Ghost could see that he was conflicted and that made Ghost panic.

"Maybe..." Ghost offered. He needed to turn Soap back to him. "I love you."

Soap seemed to just melt and smiled, looking up at him. "I love you, too." Ghost relaxed, immediately, and pulled Soap close, kissing him deeply.

He was definitely fucking getting rid of one of them.

-

Ghost broke into Rodolfo's apartment, easily. He was actually grateful he lived off campus, since it'd be easier to just kill him and get out. For someone as well known for being psychotic as Rodolfo, he certainly did not care that much about security.

Ghost slid through the window and quietly closed it. He looked around the living room, taken back by how neat it was. Fuck. Everything was perfectly clean. The baseboards... even the inside of the windowsill.

Not a speck of dust, not a crumb on the floor. Everything was perfectly and... psychotically clean. Ghost narrowed his eyes, looking around.

He tensed, hearing noise in another room. He got out his knife and started to inch towards the room, before immediately stopping and pressing against the wall as he heard the door open.

Ghost held his breath, waiting for Rodolfo to come out, before immediately pinning him up against the wall. Rodolfo's eyes widened and he tensed, immediately. Ghost pressed the knife to Rodolfo's throat. "Rodolfo, right?"

Rodolfo quickly nodded before he was looking at Ghost, oddly. Recognition filled his eyes and he relaxed, immediately. Ghost blinked at the change. Rodolfo leaned his head back against the wall. "I see. He told you I didn't approve of your relationship and now you're here to kill me?" His voice was dead neutral. Nothing was there.

Ghost glared at him. "I'm not having you convince him to leave." He decided not to question how Rodolfo knew who he was.

Rodolfo shook his head, clearly amused. "Imagine how Soap is gonna feel when he finds his best friend dead? Of course, who would kill his best friend? The man who was stalking him, maybe? So soon after he complained, too..." He mocked.

Ghost growled a little, because he was right. "Fuck." He looked into Rodolfo's eyes, almost startled to see they were as empty as his tone. Dead.

"Get the fuck out of my apartment."

"Back the fuck off." Ghost glared at him. "Soap is mine. I'm not having you convince him away from me."

Rodolfo looked like he was about to retort but both stopped when another noise came from the bedroom. "Rudy?" A man's voice called.

Ghost saw the change, immediately. Fear. Pure fear. Ghost narrowed his eyes at Rodolfo and let him go, immediately turning to the bedroom door and pushing it in.

Rodolfo got in front of him. "Leave-"

"Fuck off." Ghost shoved him to the side. He went into the bedroom and was... shocked to see Alejandro Vargas, he recognized him from the missing posters, was sitting in the bed, one of his wrists attached to the bedpost.

Ghost had to admit, he was kind of amused. So that whole psychotic thing had credence. Alejandro looked... well, embarrassed, for one. Ghost turned to Rodolfo, who was staring at him again, clearly gauging his reaction.

Ghost snorted, closing the door behind him as he exited the room. "Talk."

Rodolfo looked, for a moment, like he was going to refuse but then he sighed and slumped his shoulders. He took a shaky breath. "I... went to his apartment one morning. I had my mind up to confess that I was in love with him. I... couldn't take it anymore. And when I got there... he was in bed with some guy. I don't even remember his name I just... I remember getting so angry. So fucking mad."

He looked at his hands and his expression hardened. "I'd been there for him for so long... And he just did that to me..." He covered his face.

Ghost had to admit, the crazy in his voice was... frightening. Well, it would have been. To anyone but Ghost. He could appreciate it, though.

"So I killed him." Rodolfo's voice was dead again and he was looking through his fingers at Ghost. His knuckles were white and he dragged his hands down his face, leaving trails of white. "I got a knife and I blacked out. There was so much blood... Alejandro was in shock but I knocked him out rather easily and brought him here."

"You're a psychopath." Ghost laughed. "Fuck." Another timeline, this may have been arousing. No, he had a love. He didn't need another.

Rodolfo looked at him. "No, I still feel empathy, too much." He shook his head, almost sounding matter of fact. "I had a fucked up childhood. Knocked a few things loose."

Ghost held out a fist and Rodolfo hesitated before fistbumping him. "So. Here's what's gonna happen. You're not going to fucking tell Soap to leave me. You're going to fully support our relationship, or... I'm gonna make an anonymous tip to the police about where they can find Alejandro Vargas."

Rodolfo narrowed his eyes at Ghost and his face hardened. He glared at him for a while before he cursed and relented. "Fine."

"Good." Ghost took a deep breath. "Allies?"

Rodolfo looked Ghost up and down. "What about you? Why did you become a stalker?"

Ghost still didn't like that word. "Same as you."

"Allies." Rodolfo immediately agreed. "I'll... encourage Soap."

"And I'll be your alibi." Ghost nodded. "I can get a security system on the windows so he can't escape. If... you apologize to Soap for judging our relationship."

Rodolfo didn't even hesitate. "Done."

"I think this is going to be the start of a beautiful alliance." Ghost chuckled.

-

Look, if I'm going to keep writing this universe, I'm adding worldbuilding and a plot.

[intoxicated-chan]

Eres Mía

♡o。.✿ฺ Paring // Alejandro Vargas x F!Reader

♡o。.✿ฺ Summary // Alejandro invites task force 141 to a club with the sole reason of getting you back.

♡o。.✿ฺ (A/n) // This man has me running laps around my room and screaming! This was inspired by “Eres Mía” by Romeo Santos. Also are you guys interested in a Hannigram fan fiction?

♡o。.✿ฺ Word Count // 731

♡o。.✿ฺ Content Warnings // Female reader, obsessive behavior, intimidation, pet names (Cariño), alcohol use, smoking, mentions of cheating…

You were only listening to the story Gaz told about himself falling out of the helicopter. Smiling and drinking, laying your head on Soap’s shoulder whenever you wanted to dance with him. But you were tired, feet sore, and just wanted to drink the rest of the night away considering the man who invited you all to the club was your ex-boyfriend.

You and Alejandro have history together. You met when Laswell stationed you at Las Almas and you met Alejandro, the two of you got on well and dated early. But you broke it off since Alejandro was rather angry about you moving to Task Force 141.

It was more than awkward when you arrived back to Las Almas with Ghost and Soap, everyone could see the tension between you two and it was a rather bad one. Alejandro became visibly tense whenever you showed small acts of affection towards Soap and always tried to separate the two of you whenever he got the chance. Ghost was getting pissed that Alejandro kept distracting you and nearly told him off but Soap stopped him. Soap knew about your past relationship with him and wasn’t worried about it… Okay, he was getting worried.

Like when you all interrogated Valeria, she tried getting under Soap and Alejandro’s skin by trying to make the two jealous. Alejandro warned you all, especially you. When you got the chance to speak to him in private, he gave you a choice… Come back to him and be safe or you could continue risking your life for that man.

You still haven’t answered his question, you only came to the club so Alejandro could see your answer, you were happy with Soap, more than happy. You thought the club could also ease Soap’s worries.

You took another shot from the bartender, head still laying on Soap’s shoulder and one of his arms wrapped around your waist.

Alejandro came to the two of you, “Soap, (Y/n).” You gave him a tense smile, turning your attention back to the story, “Care to join me for a smoke, (Y/n)?” You looked back at Soap.

“...Just one.” Soap allows, giving your waist a squeeze.

And it’s where the two of you are now. Alejandro struggled to light the cigarette cursing in his language. You sighed, snatching the cigarette from his mouth and lighting it with yours, “Here.” You hand it back to Alejandro.

“If my eyes aren’t fooling me… That’s a ring.”

You look up at him confused before you realize what he’s talking about. You look at your right hand and smile, “Oh yes! Johnny proposed to me on the battlefield.”

“Did he now?”

“Yes, we were cornered in a building when Johnny got on one knee and used a grenade pin as a temporary ring. I have a feeling that he wants to do the same for our wedding.”

“I wanted to be the one to propose to you on the battlefield…” Great, now it’s awkward now, not like it hasn’t been from the start.

“Did you now?” You try to speak.

“Today. I’ve been wanting to for years, cariño.”

You stand to your feet, “Don’t you start, Vargas.”

“Cariño… You do remember that I love the way you say my name.” Alejandro blocks the way back into the club, “On your wedding day, I’ll laugh at Soap, he’s only borrowing the woman that I love. You’re still mine, (Y/n).”

“Enough.” You try to push past him but he grabs a hold of your shoulders.

“Give me one night, this night to show you.” Alejandro pleads, “You have two choices, walk in that bar you go with Soap or you could come with me.”

One hand cups your face, you slap his hand off you, “I love Johnny, not you.” Pushing him back, “I never want to see you again.” You walk into the bar with a huff, cigarette long gone.

When Soap sees you, you’re on the verge of tears, “Did he do something?”

“Alejandro wanted me to cheat on you.” You mutter, “Can we leave?”

“Yeah, let’s go.” Soap plants a kiss on your head, apologizing to the rest of the group before leaving with you. Alejandro remains outside, finishing his cigarette. He watches as you leave with Soap, hands intertwined.

“You know where your heart is, you’ll forever remain mine, (Y/n) (L/n).”

© Intoxicated-Chan, I do not allow my work to be copied, translated, modified, adapted, or put on any other platform without permission.

[ff7-has-taken-me-over]

Look I’m soft and I cannot handle angst with my boys 😭

So I’m changing the subject with a prompt I had soap being short and the struggles that come with it

I can imagine soap having to ask to get something off like the top self since he can’t reach (neither can I lol) and when he needs something from like a high self he’ll go on someone shoulders. Ghost (obviously) is like the first person he goes to because as much as he tease him he’ll help him with no problem ( ghost just likes soap thighs around his neck) but there are other that will help him (König , Alejandro, Rudy, etc they too like soap thighs around their neck) ghost doesn’t like that so he’ll always offer to carry soap anytime even when it’s not needed (soap thinks it’s cute) sometimes soap show that he can still get stuff with or without help (ghost finds his smile adorable after he gets what he reach for.)

Price actually is the one who puts stuff down where soap can reach so he doesn’t hear about all the nosebleeds, passed out men, or red, flustered faces soap cause just because he accidentally tightened his thighs against their neck

I love putting them through pain sometimes. It’s so much fun. But this was both hilarious and too cute and I got very carried away with it 😅

I can literally see Soap climbing the cabinets and shit to get things up high because he doesn’t wanna bother anyone and it’s too much effort to grab a seat and use that. Nobody knows he does this though since he does it when nobody else is around because he knows they’ll all make fun of him for being short.

So the first time Ghost walks in and sees Soap, half up a cabinet, precariously balancing on the open door and bench while reaching for a container, he just about shits a brick 😂 he full on, freaks tf out and speed walks over only to lift the man from the cabinets and put him back on the floor.

Soap’s upset and embarrassed and Ghost is wildly exasperated but he’s also so soft for those sad eyes and pout that he just offers to boost the man up on his shoulders. Johnny still looks reluctant but ends up accepting, embarrassment quickly dying and being replaced with excitement at being so tall.

And if Ghost finds that he loves having the man’s thighs around his head and is totally unbothered when Johnny asks if he can stay up there a little longer? Well that’s his business.

The next time Soap needs help Ghost isn’t around but König is, and the sergeant would be lying if he said he wasn’t curious about how it would feel to be even taller than what he was on Ghost’s shoulders.

The Austrian has no issue helping the man out, letting him up and smiling under the mask when he’s met with an excited little laugh and the man’s thighs squeezing a little tighter around his head. He can see why so many people would gush about wanting their heads to be crushed by big thighs.

Rudy ends up doing it because: 1) Gaz refused to do it and 2) Soap nearly cracked his head open when his foot slipped off the shelf. And he’s gotta say, he would happily die there, between those glorious thighs, with a half hearted apology to Alejandro for leaving him behind.

Of course Alejandro had to do it because Rudy kept ranting about how divine it was and how they should try and introduce Soap into their dynamic in some way. So of course he had to see what all the fuss is about. But when Soap needs help reaching something Ghost is there and won’t let anyone else help the man, even though there are some very enthusiastic volunteers for the job.

In the end Alejandro decides to just pick the man up of his own accord, completely ignoring the glare Ghost sends him in favour of relishing in the way Soap’s thighs squeeze tight in his panic to stay upright. Yes, him and Rudy would have to figure out a way to bring Soap into their dynamic. Ghost and his jealousy be damned.

Price has seen pretty much all of these instances and he’s so over all these men fawning over his pseudo son’s thighs. If he had it his way, everything would be stored down low so all those tall bastards would have to bend down to get things. But then that might cause a whole new problem since Soap didn’t crouch when he needed things from down low.

[tehmichi]

Massages and Happy Endings - Part 1 - The Set-Up

Notes: Listen, I came up with this idea earlier this year and I'm halfway through. I'm still working on Soap's and I hope to finish it at some point so I can work on Ale, Ghost, and Price's. No spicy here but Part 2 does. At the end of this is a why choose/poly 141 kind of deal. Can totally be read as a reader insert. I used Stella(my OC) from The Assistant because I thought she fit the dynamic the best.

Pairings: Gaz/Fem OC(Reader), Rudy/Fem OC(Reader), Simon/Fem OC(Reader), Price/Fem OC(Reader), Alejandro/Fem OC(Reader), Soap/Fem OC(Reader)

Translations for Spanish words at the end.

__________________________________________________________

Five months ago…

“I’m exhausted,” Stella complained, groaning as she polished off her shot of vodka. “Chasing all these leads and getting absolutely nothing? Esto es una mierda,” Stella cried, exasperated. 

“We’ll get somethin’ soon enough, hen,” Soap reassured her. 

“We better fucking hope so,” Stella said, standing up. “I’d hate for Kate to think being here is a waste of time.” 

“It’s not,” Gaz reassured her. “We’ll find them.” 

“Maldita sea,” Stella cursed. “Alejandro, estos corruptos me acuerdan a la isla puñeta,” she added, standing up. “I’m going to bed. I’m falling asleep in the chair.” 

“Good night, Stella,” the team said in almost a unified chorus.

“Good night, boys. Be good, and don’t stay up late. I do not want to be nursing hangovers,” she said, waving as she walked out of the common area. Their eyes all lingered as she disappeared through the entryway. 

“That ass is fuckin’ gorgeous. I’ve been dying ta get my hands on it,” Soap groaned. They all froze, glancing at him. “What? I’ve seen how you lot look a’ her. Don’t lie to me,” he said, taking a swig of his drink. 

“Goddamit, Soap,” Alejandro cursed. “I can’t get over her smile,” Alejandro finally admitted. “She glows,” he added, pouring himself another shot of tequila. If they were going to talk about Stella tonight, he needed another one. 

“What about her freckles? You’ve noticed those?” Rodolfo said out loud, taking the bottle of tequila from Alejandro and pouring himself another shot. “She gets more of them when she’s out in the sun.” 

“Gods,” Gaz mumbled. “That little content sigh of hers,” he added. Almost everyone in the room groaned at the thought of it except for Ghost. He was keeping himself together well, but his eyes were starting to give him away. “And those thighs, respectfully, can choke me to death.” 

“That time she took down a shadow with a flying scissor,” Simon added, taking a swig of his whiskey. “Fuck,” he breathed. “That was the sexiest thing I’ve ever seen.” 

“He was baiting her, wasn’t he?” Gaz asked.

“An idiot,” Simon chuckled. 

“That he was,” Alejandro said, toasting to the group. 

“Price, you haven’t said anythin’,” Soap started. 

“I want to worship her,” Price finally admitted after a drag of his cigar. “Shower her with attention, take care of her,” he added. 

“We all do, don’t we?” Soap asked. 

“Yeah,” Gaz said. “Do you think she’d give any of us a chance?”

“She’d give all of us a chance,” Soap boasted. 

“And how exactly would you know that, Johnny?” Simon said with an eyebrow raised. 

“I took a look at her e-reader, I’ve seen her book library. Stella’s into ‘why choose’ romances,” Soap answered. Gaz quickly looked up the term on his phone, nearly dropping it when he read the definition. 

“What’s that?” Price asked

“One woman, multiple male love interests,” Gaz answered. They all turned to look at the exit she’d taken before glancing at each other. 

“Have you read any?” Alejandro asked.

“Yeah,” Soap admitted with shrug. “It’s always about her, and making sure her needs are met.” 

“Sounds simple enough,” Rodolfo said. 

“Communication’s important,” Price added. “Taste in books aside, do you really think she’d consider it?”

“We can ask her on a trial basis,” Soap offered. “Listen,” he continued. “This will only work if we all agree to be in it together. We want her happy, aye?” He scanned his fellow teammates' expressions, seeing them all thinking about it. “Up to this point, none of us have made a move on Stella out of respect for her and how loyal we’ve become as a united front.” 

“It’s all of us or none of us,” Alejandro said. 

“Agreed,” Gaz said quickly. 

“Fair,” Simon said, setting his whiskey glass aside. Price and Rodolfo also voiced their assent to the agreement, shaking hands amongst each other. 

“How do we talk to her about it?”

“We wait for the right moment. We’re still together for the next few months until we have to go on leave,” Soap answered Price. 

“Gods, I hope she says yes,” Gaz mumbled. 

“We all do,” Simon said, sighing. 

__________________________________________________________

Now…

“God, I could use a massage,” Gaz groaned as he put his whiskey glass on the table. The team plus Los Vaqueros were resting for the evening, celebrating the success of the completed mission and taking a small reprieve celebration before what came next.  

“Why haven’t you said so?” Stella said, finishing off her drink. 

“What?” Gaz asked, confused. “You know someone?” 

“Yeah,” Stella said as Alejandro poured her another shot. “Me,” she said confidently. Six sets of eyes stared at her incredulously. “What? I’m a licensed masseuse!” 

“Seriously?” Alejandro asked. 

“Yes,” Stella said, laughing. “I thought it’d be a useful skill to have. The therapeutic benefits are an added bonus. It’s partially why Kate looked me up specifically for 141.” 

“You didn’t volunteer this sooner,” Price said. 

“Well, you’re all large men, and we haven’t had a moment to breathe since this whole mess started. I’m a small woman. How about this,” Stella started. “This next week, we’re all here to relax, decompress, and the like, right?”

“Yes,” chorused the entire team in unison. 

“I’ll give you all one. One a day so I can dedicate more than an hour to take care of any problem areas you have,” Stella offered. “I have my massage kit with me.” 

“Really?” Soap asked. “You’d do that for us?”

“Of course,” Stella said with a smile. “I’ll start with Gaz since he’s the one who complained first. You all decide the order the rest of you want to go in.” 

“Do you want us to tell you?”

“Only if you want,” Stella said with a shrug. “Any sensitivities to scents or oils?”

“None,” Price answered. 

“Ninguna,” Alejandro said.

“Yo tampoco,” Rodolfo answered. 

“None,” Gaz said. 

“Me either,” Ghost said. 

“Not that I know of,” Soap answered last. 

“Perfect,” Stella grinned. “Any smells you don’t like?”

“Citrus,” said Gaz, Simon, and Price. 

“Great. I don’t carry those anyway,” Stella giggled. “Tomorrow afternoon, 3 pm work for you Gaz?”

“Yeah, it does,” Gaz answered with a smile. 

“Surprise us with the scents, sweetheart,” Price said, with a small smile. Stella’s cheeks flushed at the pet name, failing to hide it as she took her shot. 

“That I can do,” she said. “Now that I’ve polished this off, I’m leaving and going to get the stuff ready in the med bay. I might need to go shopping off-base to find a few more things. I’ll be back in time,” Stella said, grinning at Gaz. 

“Take your time, Stella. You’re the one taking care of us,” Gaz said. 

“Agreed,” Simon said. 

“You all are too good to me,” Stella said as she got up from her seat. 

“Not yet, hen,” Soap said with a grin. Stella shook her head with a sigh as she left the room, bidding them all good night. 

Once the door closed behind her, the men all huddled together to eagerly discuss the course of the next few days. While Gaz was decidedly going first, the rest of the order needed to be sorted out. While Ghost remained quiet in the corner as the other five deliberated, they ended up going with drawing the remaining days out of a hat. 

“Well, that’s decided,” Soap said as he wrote down the final order on his phone as a note. “Now, we’re all in agreement, no funny business unless she initiates or says something.” 

“Which is when we’ll have the talk,” Price said. Everyone nodded in agreement and shook hands, eagerly anticipating the week off.

_________ Translations:

Esto es una mierda - This is some shit.

Alejandro, estos corruptos me acuerdan a la isla puñenta - Alejandro, this corruption reminds me of the island, goddamit

Maldita sea - Goddamit

Ninguna - None

Yo tampoco - Me either

[ff7-has-taken-me-over]

Okay take two because I think tumblr didn’t let me submit this unfortunately but I won’t stop talking about baby girl soap!(Thank you for answering all my asks I get excited to bond over my interest with people and I love always seeing your writing <3)So let’s say prices goes on leave for a couple of days (man's need a vacation from dealing with everyone’s shit) and gaz just gets even more menacing when price leaves. Him and soap do bets and dare more than ever since price and gone even with ghosts tells them to stop (gaz see’s that as a challenge and plans to make the 2 weeks that price is gone living hell for the simps) . So he gets to work and dares soap to wear a ghost's hoodie for the day (ghost definitely ran to get soap, a hoodie he would forever deny that tho) and he literally loses it when he sees soap in his hoodie. The other beg soap to wear their clothes he does and quite often to the point it’s a regular thing and they lose it gaz takes it a step further to get the best blackmail he makes soap wear shorts, thigh highs with a matching collar that broke the dam so people try to flirt with soap they are immediately met with the most threatening stare from like 4 different guys.

Firstly) I fuckin love baby girl Soap. God damn is it good.

Secondly) Thank you so much!! I actually love responding to asks and people’s prompts, it’s so much fun. So I’m glad you’ve been submitting them 😁

Thirdly) I realised I’ve been writing these with the sort of idea of Soap getting with everyone (just Ghost being like the first or main) and I haven’t been tagging everyone else! Guys, I’m so sorry. I’ll fix it when I get the chance.

But onwards!! So I can imagine Soap actually trying to steal Ghost’s hoodie at first because he’s more than fairly sure the man won’t let him borrow it for the bet he just lost with Gaz.

Ghost catches him obviously and Soap very nearly loses his fingers for it but when he says he has to wear it because he lost a bet Ghost nearly carks it. Man’s freezes and stares and imagines the sergeant in every piece of clothing he owns and fuck… he’s gonna give it to him.

So there Soap goes, walking around base with Ghost’s hoodie for the day with said man following close behind. Soap’s pretty built, no doubt about it, but Ghost is even more so. So the hoodie sits a little loose on the younger, sleeves slipping past his palms and hem sitting just below his ass, it’s a sight that’s for sure.

When the rest of 141 see it they immediately try and ask him to wear their clothes. I reckon Rudy would try getting the man to wear his track pants because he likes wearing them a little tight whereas Soap wears ‘em loose, so the pants are just a bit of a squeeze for the man with an ass but he manages.

Alejandro likes getting him to wear his turtlenecks because while he’s taller than Soap the other is just a little wider than him. So Johnny fills them out really nicely but the sleeves and hem sag a little at the ends of his torso and arms and it’s really fuckin cute.

König I reckon gave Soap a hoodie once (because one look at the rest of his wardrobe and they were immediately out of the question) and the shorter was absolutely swimming in it. It was beyond adorable and everyone found themselves hard pressed to be jealous or disappointed when Soap was peeking out from under that hood with the brightest smile and sweater paws.

Johnny - poor, oblivious, adorable Johnny - has no idea why everyone is suddenly giving him clothes to wear and why half his wardrobe has now been replaced. He’s not really complaining because he finds it comforting to have things of his teammates with him. Likes the comfort of sleeping in König’s jumper when he’s going to sleep, and the way Rudy’s track pants and Alejandro’s turtle neck show off his hard earned muscles. He also loves curling up in Ghost’s hoodie when he’s had a rough day because it smells like him and it’s comfortable.

Now that Gaz knows Soap barely owns any of his own clothes he ramps it up a notch, positively ecstatic to send his captain this next batch of blackmail material because it’s absolutely glorious and he feels as if his captain might be getting a tad bit bored while on his leave. So he gets these footy shorts he saw while in Australia one time - they’re short, black and silky feeling - along with some thigh highs and a collar and a slew of other things.

Soap fuckin hates him for it but he’s a man of his word and he’ll be damned if he lets Gaz hold that over his head (never mind all the embarrassing outfits and humiliating scenarios he gets in)

So next time Soap walks into the mess hall, blushing a deep af red but holding his head high regardless, he very nearly causes some severe accidents. The bet this time was the footy shorts and Ghost’s hoodie, which means there’s only a strip of black showing at the edge of the jumper before it’s just pale legs and bare feet (cause Gaz is a shit and stole his shoes)

The 141 are in varying states of horny silence and utter shock while the rest of the base are in all sorts of disarray. Some guys are already making fun of him, pointing and laughing, while others are in the same boat as the 141. Soap’s a looker, it’s hard not to be attracted to him.

Then the thigh highs and matching collar come out and it’s too fuckin much. Rudy’s praying for strength, Alejandro is trying so very fucking hard to speak English but his brain has left the chat. König could very well be passed out on the table at the moment - nobody knows - and Ghost is about two seconds away from slinging the man over his shoulder and making an escape with him.

The 141 are quick to snap out of it when some rookie - a new guy from the latest squadron on base - goes up to Soap and starts flirting like his life depends on it. Now it wouldn’t be too bad if Soap was his usual oblivious self and just returned it with a smile and friendly nod, but he doesn’t.

Johnny ‘Soap’ MacTavish - maybe for the first time in his entire life - catches onto the flirting and returns it. He blushes and plays coy, hiding the bottom of his face behind the collar of Alejandro’s turtle neck as he laughs at whatever the fuck the rookie is saying and it’s enough to send the whole squad into a murderous rage.

Ghost is the first to move, hand already pulling a knife out as his eyes stay zoned on the asshole that’s got his hands on Soap. Rudy and Alejandro aren’t far behind cursing up a storm in Spanish as König lumbers after them.

Ghost uses his bulk to get between them, Rudy and Alejandro blocking Soap from the rest of the base’s eyes as the former takes off his jacket and hangs it on Soap’s shoulders. König uses his height and bulk to pick Soap up and hide him from view before leaving with him. It’s such an obvious claim and blatant ‘don’t touch what’s ours’ that the rest of the base quickly learn to avert their eyes whenever Soap enters a room dressed in anything less than military gear.

Gaz feels as if he should feel bad for what he’s done but honestly? It’s too funny. Plus, Price left him a very detailed message on what he would do to the guys if he came back and he was one military personnel short because of Gaz’s stupid bets and dares.