by J. B. Craig
Kelly laughed and said “Here’s some water. You’re not dead, and you owe me a breakfast. Suck on this straw, soldier boy.”
With a relieved smile, Pete looked down at Bannon and asked, “Hey, brother, how do you feel? Because you look like shit.”
“Like I got run over by a herd of elephants,” Bannon groaned.
“Pretty good, then. You’re alive, and don’t deserve to be,” Pete said. “I just need to know that my medical skills didn’t make you a cantaloupe-head. Can you tell me what happened to you?”
“Got blown up,” Bannon said tiredly. “Locusts were coming at the gates, and I went out to flank them.”
“Good stuff,” Pete agreed. “What’s your middle name?”
“Timothy,” Bannon answered, without hesitation.
“Two out of two,” Pete said. “One more and you pass. What’s 73 times 48, plus 398? I need the answer with both possible sets of parentheses.”
“One is just under four thousand,” Bannon said with a smile. “The other is...fuck you.”
“Eh, you’re close enough on the math,” Pete said, grinning. “You’re not leaving that bed any time soon, though. And don’t laugh. You have three broken ribs, and I’m tired of patching up your lung.”
Bannon reached out to Pete and clasped his arm, tears in his eyes. “Thanks, buddy. I always knew you were a better fixer than killer. I’m glad you were here for me.”
“Don’t mention it,” Pete said. “You know, Miss O’Keefe here stayed with us the whole time. She’s the one you should really be thanking. She took good care of your scrawny ass.”
Bannon looked over at Kelly with a dopey, adoring smile. “She helped me over the wall last night, too,” he said. “You gotta help me get her a really good first breakfast.”
“That was three days ago, champ,” Kelly corrected, beaming at him. “You’re a little late. But I guess I won’t hold it against you.”
Bannon tried to laugh, and then winced. “Maria?” he asked. “Thought she’d be here.”
“I’m here,” Maria called from the doorway. She stepped closer to her cousin’s bedside, so he could see her without lifting his head.
“She’s been here as much as Kelly, and I’m afraid they’re becoming friends,” Pete teased. “And you just left me here outnumbered. I’m pretty sure they’re, um, scheming.”
Kelly gave Pete a friendly half-smack upside the head. He was already moving away in anticipation. “Shut up, Doc, don’t tell him all our secrets,” she joked. “Maria, why don’t you and I go together to get lunch? With four people, you might need help carrying it. Pete, you make sure the hero is going to live long enough for our breakfast date.”
“That’d be great,” Maria agreed. “Pete, will he be able to eat?”
“He can, but he’ll need soft, bland foods, and lots of liquids,” Pete instructed. “Oatmeal would be good, if you guys can find any. I haven’t actually been to the mess in a few days so I’m not sure what we’ve got.”
“Lucky for you, oatmeal is all we have, what with our surplus of winter wheat. I’ll be right back; don’t you die on me.” Kelly leaned over and kissed Bannon on the cheek. “I’ll bring you a toothbrush and some toothpaste, too. You don’t get any tongue until then.” She winked at Bannon, who smiled and waved at her.
“Anything else you can think of that you need?” Maria asked.
“Sleep and pain meds,” Bannon said. “I’m tired.”
“I’m on it,” Pete said. He waved at Maria, and she gave him a little smile and wave back before following Kelly out the door.
29. Status Report
In the mess hall, Maria and Kelly worked together to fill two large trays of food, grabbing plenty of oatmeal for Bannon and a variety of meats and veggies for the rest of them. The two friends worked their way back to the infirmary, only to find Bannon’s eyes peacefully closed.
“Wow, right from standing me up to falling asleep on me! Next time I’m swiping right.” Kelly smiled as she put her hands on her hips.
Maria burst out laughing. “Yeah, he grows on you,” she agreed. “I don’t know who’s going to eat all of his oatmeal, though.”
“He is.” Pete said. “He needs food more than sleep after three days. You can wake him up - just try not to poke his ribs or his head.”
“I’m on it,” Kelly said. With a mischievous grin on her face and a twinkle in her eyes, she set the tray of food down on a nearby table, and walked around to the far side of the bed. She then leaned over and whispered something in Bannon’s ear. His lashes fluttered, and then he dragged his eyes open with a visible effort. “Doc here says that can’t happen for a week or so.”
“You’re damn right I do,” Pete agreed, grinning. “In fact, whatever she told you, add another week or three. You’re going to be out of commission for a while, brother.”
“He’ll make it up to me later,” Kelly said sweetly. She stepped closer and said “I’m going to prop you up a little bit so you can eat. Let me know if it hurts, okay?”
Maria helped Pete to hold him steady and upright as Kelly tucked and fluffed a stack of pillows behind him. Judging by the look on his face, and its proximity to her breasts, Bannon’s ribs weren’t hurting him too badly. He couldn’t help but blush at her low-cut tank top. When she stepped back, his dazed expression made Maria crack a smile as she sat down on an empty bed with her tray.
“Come over and eat lunch with me, Pete,” Maria said. “Or is it ‘Doc’ now?”
“Pete is my name, Doc is my job,” Pete said, as he took a seat next to her. “Haven’t been been called that before this week, but I guess doing surgery with glue and fishing line means I’ve crossed some kinda threshold. I like the ring of it, but I prefer to be Pete to you, darlin’.”
Kelly pulled up a chair next to Bannon and grabbed their tray. As the four ate, Maria, Pete and Kelly caught their injured member up on what had happened over the last three days, which was mostly clearing out the woods and burying the bodies. Many of them had knife wounds - apparently, Bannon had mowed through them in typical Dragon style before he had gotten hit. He heard that, and nodded sadly. “They didn’t really have a chance.”
Kelly was attending to Bannon’s every need, spoon-feeding him, fluffing his pillow, and frequently giving his arm or shoulder a gentle but reassuring squeeze. Watching them moon over each other was cute, and made her think about what she had with Pete.
She and Pete definitely hadn’t been love at first sight - at least, not on her end. Thinking back on it, her heart had been half in love with him from day one, but her head had been on and off, mostly because it never seemed like the right time to begin anything. At least, that had been how she felt before last week, when she’d let all of her inhibitions fly out the window and kissed him.
Maybe, Maria mused as she watched Bannon and Kelly stare into each others’ eyes, she was a little overdue for letting her heart take over. She loved Pete now; that much she was sure of. Maybe she’d take him with her and give the budding lovebirds a little privacy. “Kelly,” she asked, “If I take Pete to tour the perimeter with me, would you be able to keep an eye on Ban for me?”
“What’s the threat situation?” Bannon asked, immediately all business.
“Absolutely nothing, cuz,” Maria soothed, and smiled at Pete. “He’s been on shift all day, and I just wanted to take him for a little walk, get him some fresh air.”
Pete stood, brushing off his shorts. “Even if there was a threat situation, you’re to have absolutely no part in it,” he ordered. To Kelly, he added, “This one’s trouble. You make sure to keep a close eye on him.”
“Oh, I will,” Kelly agreed, winking at him. Turning her attention back to Bannon, she realized that he’d been admiring her body while she’d been distracted. “My eyes are up here, soldier,” she teased. As she offered another spoonful of mush to him, she said, “Eat up. You’re going to need your strength in a week or two.”
“Yes, ma’am.” Bannon smiled
sheepishly, suitably chastised. “I’ll catch you later, Pete and Cuz.”
As they left the room, Pete called, “Kelly, just to warn you, the people in their family can’t seem to keep their eyes above the shoulders; I keep telling Maria the same thing. She looks at me like I’m a piece of meat.” A sharp elbow to his solar plexus made Kelly giggle, and he was grinning shamelessly even as he said “Ow! Okay, okay, I give!”
Maria let them get a little ways away from the infirmary before she asked the question that’d been nagging at her. “Pete,” she asked quietly. “Truthfully - what’s Bannon’s situation?”
Pete was serious again in an instant, rolling with the abrupt change of mood. “I really think he’ll be fine, if we can keep infection from setting in,” he said. “I think we’re past the danger zone - he was decently attentive even with the pain meds I gave him, and his ribs and leg wound will heal. He’ll have scars, but judging by Kelly,” he quipped, “Chicks dig scars.”
Maria grinned, relieved. “Those two are going to be a mess once he’s healthy,” she said. “How long do you think his recovery will take?”
“At least two weeks.” Pete said. “That’s dead minimum. Maybe longer. It depends on how fast a healer he is, and how strict he is about keeping himself on bedrest. ” Shrugging, he added, “I’ve seen him bounce back pretty quickly from the minor cuts and bruises, but people’s timelines on serious injuries can vary massively, so I don’t want to give you any false hope. We could be stuck here for a while.”
Maria bit her lip. It was a hard truth for her to accept when they were so close to Rock Harbor, but that was about what she had expected. “Well, we’re a team, Pete,” she said with a resigned smile. “We don’t go anywhere without him.”
“Yeah,” Pete agreed. “We’ve got some other stuff to do in the meantime, anyway. We still need to find a boat, for example. Restock our supplies. We’ve probably got a while before anyone else is dumb enough to make a run at such a well-fortified campus, but I don’t think we’ll be bored.”
“And we could use the rest,” Maria said. “We’ve all been burning the candle at both ends. When we were so close, I think all of us were ready to push through to the end, but if we have to wait anyway…”
Pete nodded and wiped a hand over his face. “I know I’m tired,” he said. “I’ve been glad to be able to help out at enough places, but it’s been...hard, to be in high demand so often. Everywhere we go, it’s stretched thin. Everywhere we go, we have to get creative with our supplies.” Looking down, he said, “I always feel a little guilty about it, but sometimes a man’s just gotta find a bed.”
“I know, Pete,” Maria laughed. “Why do you think we’re going for a walk?”
Pete visibly tensed. He looked at Maria with wide eyes, like he was terrified and confused but daring to hope. “Really?”
“Well, I mostly meant to sleep,” Maria said. “But...yeah. Okay. Really,” she added, deciding to be brave. Before she could second-guess herself, she tugged Pete down by his shirt, grabbed his face, and kissed him.
30. Pete’s Heaven
Pete forgot about everything that was wrong in the world, and just enjoyed the minutes he had with this beautiful, strong woman he had been in love with for so long.
Finally, Maria broke the kiss and looked him in the eye. “Thank you, Pete. I’ve wanted to do that again.”
“Well, what took you so long, beautiful?” Pete asked. “Thought you had to know by now I was open to it.”
“I’m not sure,” Maria said. She tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. “We’ve both been busy - but watching Bannon and Kelly made me admit that I think that was partially just an excuse.”
“You know I’m never too busy for my best girl,” Pete said. “I don’t care what I’m doing. You can always come to me.”
“I know, I know,” Maria said quickly. “I just - I think I’ve been afraid to start anything in the middle of all of the violence. What if one of us died, you know?” She wrapped her arms around herself. “I didn’t want the survivor to be broken.”
“I think we’ve got to accept that as a possibility,” Pete said. “People are going hungry. People are hurting. We’re all playing a survival game, and before things settle down...some good people are gonna lose, no matter what.” Acting on instinct, he reached to pull her closer, and was relieved when Maria came in easily for a hug, wrapping her arms tightly around his waist. “What changed your mind, Cap’n?” he asked.
“You did,” Maria admitted. “I’ve never seen you as cool as when you were fixing up Bannon. You were so focused and calm, even under so much pressure.”
“Are you kidding me? I was fuckin’ - completely freaked,” Pete admitted. “I was glad you were there. Definitely the scariest moment of my life. I’ve seen worse injuries, but not to a friend.”
“Well, you didn’t show it. You’re not a bad shot, but you’re an amazing healer,” Maria said. “Having you by my side gives me hope that we’re going to make it - that there can be brightness beyond all the dark. You give everything you can to help others survive this crisis; you’re generous, smart, funny…” She smiled up at Pete. “You’ve managed to keep your kind heart when it feels like so many other people have lost theirs.”
Pete swallowed hard. ‘I love you,’ wanted to come bursting out of his mouth, but he felt like she maybe wasn’t ready to hear it. “Thank you,” he said instead, voice rough. “For believing in me, even when I fuck up.” He chuckled. “Maybe especially when I fuck up.”
“You’re pretty easy to believe in,” Maria said. She stared determinedly at a spot just over his shoulder, a blush rising over her cheeks. “I care about you, a lot. So.”
Pete opened and closed his mouth several times. Finally, after trying several times to think of something to say (and failing spectacularly), he gave up and tugged her back in for several more kisses. “I care about you a lot too!” he said finally - a little too loudly, as a couple of students passing by called out ‘Awww!’ and ‘That’s so cute!’ - and then buried his too-hot face in her hair.
Maria, for her part, just chuckled softly. “I know,” she said simply, voice muffled by his t-shirt as she hugged him tightly. “I’m a lucky woman.”
Mindful of the fact that they apparently had an audience, Pete pulled back slightly. “So,” he asked. “What’s next, Maria?”
Maria shrugged, eyes twinkling. “I guess that’s up to us,” she said. “For now - hold my hand, and let’s walk the perimeter? With Bannon down, I want to be sure we’re safe and secure.” Smiling up at Pete, she added, “And then maybe you and I can go find that quiet dorm room to sleep in. Or, you know. Do other things in.”
“Yes,” Pete said, with whole-hearted enthusiasm. Then he backpedaled, not wanting her to feel uncomfortable. “Or, you know, we don’t have to do anything,” he quickly added. “I’m sure you must be tired too, and it’s, well, I mean, I don’t want to make you feel like we’re moving too fast.”
Maria arched a brow at him. “More walking, less talking,” she said. If he hadn’t come to know her so well, he might’ve been hurt by her decidedly unimpressed tone - but her stone-faced expression quickly gave way to a sly grin. “I’ll race you to the bottom.”
As Pete took off at a flat run, he heard Maria’s sharp burst of laughter behind him. “What do I get if I win?!” Pete shouted.
“The grand prize of raiding the health desk for spare condoms,” she shouted. “And also my undying affection!”
It was Pete’s turn to burst into shocked laughter. Maria’s complete lack of shame at times was one of his favorite things about her. “I was hoping for the side-by-side refrigerator-freezer and a trip to Hawaii,” he joked as they went thundering down the stairs. “But I guess that’ll do!”
They kept up the sprinting as far as the ground level - Pete slapped the health desk in victory, stopping to let Maria jog up to him. “I win,” he announced, wiping the sweat off of his brow with the hem of his shirt.
&nb
sp; “Yeah, yeah, don’t gloat,” Maria said, panting for breath. “C’mon, let’s see what they’ve got for supplies.”
Pete admired the view as Maria bent over the desk, pulling open one of the drawers. “They’ve gotta be here somewhere,” she said, wrinkling her nose as she rifled through what looked to be a random junk drawer. “Right? I mean, it’s a college campus.”
“Probably,” Pete agreed. Reluctantly taking his gaze elsewhere, he began to help her search through the office area.
After going through multiple desks, Pete hit the jackpot with one of the opened boxes in the supply closet. “Found some,” he called over his shoulder, and Maria made her way over. Her eyes bugged when she saw the size of the box. “Oh my god,” she laughed. “Pete, you found a mountain of condoms.”
