The Medic and the Freelancer

He wouldn't leave. Not ever. It suddenly dawned on her that he probably would never leave. The whole prospect appeared absurd now that she thought about it a little more carefully. She raised her head from where she was sat, and cast her gaze across the team she had been placed with. The shades of blue varied as she looked down the line in front of her, aqua, blue and cobalt. Beside them was a light shade of grey mixed with yellow, who now leant over towards her, his emerald eyes gazing into hers.

"Tennessee?" He asked, suddenly, snapping her out of her little fantasy. "Are you okay?" Tennessee stared at him, her eyes filled with a hint of confusion, before she suddenly smiled.

"Yes, Wash," She replied, her voice calm. "I'm fine." Her gaze fell upon a soldier in purple armour, who looked away from her as her attention turned to Him. Wash turned, following her gaze, before turning back and raising an eyebrow.

"Do we need to have a talk?" He murmured, and Tennessee shook her head, not muttering a word. He put a gloved hand on her shoulder and squeezed it, before turning back to the Blue Team. As she looked up again, He turned with a scarce glance at her. She watched Him leave, turning His back on herself and the Blue Team, his purple armour shining in the light of Valhalla. She wondered, for a second, if it was worth the hassle, keeping all her emotion inside her, but she quickly realised she had no choice. She'd begun to notice Him more after the incident with the A.I. Omega, who had taken over His body and forced him to stab her. Omega reluctantly left his body not long after, to which He had the chance to heal Tennessee. The two had talked, even if it wasn't for too long. After the incident, they began to smile at each other, the odd conversation here and there.

Tennessee jumped down from where she was sat, and began to walk down to the creek, feeling the Blue Team's soldiers' eyes on her back as she did so. When she neared the water, she sat down, hugging her knees to her chest, and losing herself in thought. She observed the water carefully passing jagged stones that poked out of the water, the tips of them dry unlike the surrounding liquid. She reached forwards and brushed a gloved hand against a glossy rock – the fabric on her glove made it incredibly slippery, and she was grateful her shoes weren't made out of the material. Her blue-brown eyes cast upwards, strands of her mouse-brown hair in front of her face. She pulled out a pair of dog-tags from under her armour and pried them off of her neck, looking down at the inscription on its metallic face. Her thumb brushed over it lightly, a lingering memory she kept with her: Her best friend, Agent North Dakota, who died only recently in the battle for Valhalla. Tennessee held back a grimace - He was the most precious to her, and the only one who knew her unforgiving secret. She would never forget him, no matter what happened to her. Distracting her yet again, His figure appeared in her head again – She envisioned His purple armour glinting in the sunlight, and His floppy brunette hair that covered part of His symmetrical face, glasses framing His blue-grey eyes. In her head, He was smiling - A totally different person than what He is now. Perhaps, she pondered, that maybe she should attempt to move on from this position she'd stuck herself in. After all, He was a Medic, and she was a Freelancer. They were just too different. She looked up again, this time at the sound of someone approaching – at the other side of the bank, there He stood, His helmet under his arm and a lopsided smile plastered on his face. His lips were parted slightly, as though He was trying to say something, but the words weren't there. All the same, she couldn't shake that feeling that rose in her stomach as he stood before her – the longing feeling to reach out and hold him. Tennessee didn't understand what she was feeling any more. It was absurd in more ways than one, and it confused her greatly. Then, he spoke – his voice soft and alluring, as though he was shy and caring, yet slightly curious at the same time.

"May I have a moment, Agent Tennessee?"

Doc…

He walked away from the Blues and the two Freelancers, his heart racing in his chest. What was that? He had looked at her, and his heart felt like it was going to jump out of his chest. Doc lifted a shaky hand, and pulled off his helmet before wiping his forehead with his free hand. Ever since O'Malley had left his head, his emotions flooded back into him, and he had felt a wave of uncertainty hit him as he had knelt over Tennessee's bleeding body. Nonetheless, he had healed her. Doc was used to healing many Soldiers that had gotten themselves shot, stabbed, perhaps even close to death, but never had he healed someone and gotten a feeling so rewarding before. She had smiled at him and said her thanks many times – her smile, her face… It was embedded in his memory, and was even deeper than O'Malley's wrath. Whatever he was feeling, it was making him giddy, and he liked it. Brushing his hair out of his face, he headed to Red Base, and quickly confirmed none of the soldiers were hurt, before heading back up the valley on the other side. He decided to cross the creek, as there were stones there that he could easily hop across. However, when he turned to walk towards the parting of land between water, he noticed Her sat at the bank, her head down: She was here. Alone. Tennessee was never alone, which, to him, meant only one thing – she was upset. Doc tried to think of a reason as to why, and he was quickly able to note the dog-tags in her hand. Putting two-and-two together, he remembered her reaction to the Freelancer North Dakota's death. Doc swallowed the bile in his throat and made his way towards her. To his dismay, she looked up at him as he approached, so he stopped walking and stood across from her awkwardly, a probably stupid smile across his face. His lips parted for a moment, as he tried to find the words to say, then he choked out the friendliest sentence he could.

"May I have a moment, Agent Tennessee?" Real smooth, Doc. Real smooth.

Tennessee stared at him like he had dribbled on her or something. Doc was completely unsure as to what to do, and he almost turned and left, but Tennessee gestured to the space on the grass next to her and nodded.

"Sure, go ahead." Doc's heart sank in his chest - Such a blunt response from her. He began to wonder, that maybe he shouldn't feel this way. Tennessee looked back down at the dog-tags in her hand, before putting them around her neck again and under her armour.

"What did you want to talk about?" She asked, looking at him in the eyes. Doc struggled to keep the eye contact, but he forced himself to hold it. Doc felt himself heating up from the nerves that were running through him – he felt like he was a live wire, everything rushing through him at once. Awkwardly, he pushed his glasses up his nose and cleared his throat. Whatever he was going to say, he prayed that it would be the right thing.

"Well, I couldn't help but noticed you were alone here." Yup, he'd fucked it up already, but still, he continued, his heart racing. "And I also noticed you are not often alone… May I ask why? I am not intruding, am I?" Tennessee looked away and down at the water, before shaking her head.

"Not at all." She replied, lacing her fingers together as she watched the intricate patterns in the water flowing slowly past them. "I'm alone, because I wanted to think about something." Doc held his breath – surely that meant he was intruding? Apparently, he'd asked that out loud, because Tennessee laughed a little.

"No, I was thinking about…" She trailed off, and her smile faded. "I was thinking about North. About how I miss him." Doc looked down, now.

"I am very sorry…" Tennessee looked at him carefully.

"You don't need to be." She murmured softly. "It's not your fault. North was just defending us… He didn't realise he needed more than a sniper, I guess." She chuckled once, but Doc heard that sadness that reined it. Hesitantly, he put an arm around her shoulders. To his surprise, she leant into him a little, although he suspected it was unintentional. The two sat there for a while, watching the rushing water before them, before Doc turned and looked down at her. Simultaneously, Tennessee's gazed flicked up to his, and a shy smile appeared on Doc's lips. His heart thudded in his chest. Should he say it now? Or would she just think he was a freak? His gaze remained locked onto hers. Tennessee sat upright, looking away for a moment. Doc withdrew his hand, and placed it on his knee, but Tennessee met his eye contact again, and her lips twitched – Doc was unsure how to speak his mind, and his cheeks suddenly turned a little pink, but as he went to speak, Tennessee placed her hand on his, ducking her head away from his view. Doc looked at their hands carefully, before lacing his fingers with hers, and shifting his body round and leaning towards her. With his other hand, he reached for her hair, and pulled back the strands that fell around her armour.

"Why do you hide, Tenn?" He murmured, a new kind of tone in his voice. Tennessee turned her head a fraction, and closed her eyes, biting her lip. "You have no reason to hide."

"I'm scared." She replied, and Doc's hand tightened around hers.

"Scared?" He repeated, and she turned to look at him properly now. "What do you have to be afraid of?" Tennessee looked into his eyes for a few moments before replying, searching for the same emotions she held.

"I'm scared…" She said slowly, her voice shaking as she forced herself to speak. "I'm scared to love…" Doc sat back, his gaze hardening a little. To love? What does that mean?

"You shouldn't be afraid of that." He replied. "Whoever you love, if you love someone, is very lucky, and you should tell them that you feel that way. They'd have no reason to say no." Tennessee laughed forcefully.

"Our rankings would differ." To this, Doc scoffed, and chuckled a little.

"Rankings have nothing to do with the person." His smiled at her again. "A rank should never tear you from your true feelings. Say…" He hesitated, taking his advantage. "What rank does said person have?" Tennessee stiffened, and looked away, her gaze resting on the grass.

"They…" She swallowed the bile in her throat, and then looked at the water. "They are a Medic." Doc fell silent for a second. It couldn't be him! … Could it? He looked away in thought, his cheeks tainting a little pink, before blurting out a stupid question.

"Is there another Medic?" Tennessee stifled a chuckle.

"No."

"You… Love me…?"

"Y- yes…" Doc looked back at her, and she looked at him hesitantly. The two of them stared at each other, Doc being bewildered and Tennessee nervous. After a few moments, Tennessee withdrew her hand, and stood up, turning away.

"I- I'm sorry." She stammered, and walked away briskly. Doc jumped up, and ran up behind her, a hand outstretched towards her.

"No! Wait!" He called, but she didn't stop walking away until he caught up with her, and grabbed her wrist. Tennessee whirled round to him, stopping suddenly. Unprepared for the sudden halt, Doc stumbled into her, and they both landed on the ground in a heap. Doc looked down at Tennessee, who, awkwardly enough was underneath him. Tennessee didn't seem to struggle, but her eyes were shut tightly, as though he was about to murder her. Doc bit his lip, and lifted a hand to her face, stroking it gently.

"Don't be sorry." He replied, and her eyes opened hesitantly, the blue-green soft with a hint of fear. Doc smiled softly, his eyes shining with it. "It's not your fault you feel that way. You shouldn't feel guilty of it either. I've been considering such a thing myself, ever since you came to me wounded after that battle." Doc moved so he wasn't so close to her. "Even though I nursed you back to health, I felt like it wasn't enough. I wanted to give something more to you. The way you smiled, and spoke to me… you made me feel like I never had before." Doc closed his eyes briefly, and looked away. "I apologise for the way O'Malley treated you in that battle. What he did to you, using my body. I tried to stop him, but he overpowers me. I hope you have not lost trust within me, for my feelings are now my own, which also means I can tell you how I feel." He looked back down at Tennessee, a small smile hinting at his lips. "Tennessee, I love you. And I will strive this body of mine into the ground to protect you." Tennessee looked at the Medic that was atop of her with disbelief, and as he began to sit upright, she moved with him, so that they were sat mere inches from each other.

"You really feel that way?" She breathed, and Doc met her gaze again, giving her a small nod. With that confirmation, Tennessee put a hand to his chestplate and placed a kiss on his lips. Doc instantaneously melted into this kiss – something he'd been waiting for, for a very long time. Although it was brief, and contained an inevitable softness, the two sat under the sun for hours in each other's arms.

But for the Medic and the Freelancer, it was the next best thing.