CHAPTER ONE
Sonny was happy to be back on base, after spending 4 days onboard the ship. He was less than thrilled to be headed straight to the base hospital. And, he was downright pissed off that he was strapped to a gurney with an oxygen mask on his face.
The only concession the guys would give him was allowing him to sit up, instead of laying flat on his back. He told the guys it helped his breathing, and it did. Kind of. But really, he wanted to look tough, and didn't want everyone staring down at him with sad eyes, asking how he was doing. Looking like a badass while strapped to a gurney wasn't something that Sonny could pull off in his current state, and he was grateful for the small concession.
Ray walked beside Sonny on his left side, with Clay to the right. Jason and Blackburn took position at the rear, deep in a heated conversation. Sonny didn't know what they were saying, but he heard his name more than once, so he had a pretty good idea they were talking about what happened on the sub, and what was going to happen next.
The group only managed to get a few yards from the plane before they saw the rest of Bravo team hurrying towards them. Cerberus lead the way at a fast clip, followed closely by Brock and Trent. Mandy wasn't in sight, but Sonny wasn't looking for Mandy, and wasn't offended by her missing the show.
Sonny was scanning the blacktop for one person, and one person only. He finally spotted Davis hanging back, looking worried, just as Trent reached his side and began bombarding the group with questions about Sonny's condition. Cerberus had already given Sonny a quick once-over and deemed him well enough, but the dog's diagnosis wasn't enough for Trent. Brock was content with a high-five and a slap on Sonny's back, which quickly sent Sonny into a coughing fit. After several apologies Brock called Cerberus to his side and they led the group towards the building.
Satisfied with the few answers he got from the group, and knowing he wasn't going to get any more medical details from this bunch, Trent took off at a fast job to get everything prepped before Sonny arrived at the hospital.
Sonny had lost sight of Davis in the storm of questions, barks and high-fives, but quickly found her standing in the same spot she was in before. She still looked worried, and the sight of her caused his breath to catch in his chest, for reasons completely un-related to his adventures at sea. As the group got closer to Davis, Sonny pulled the oxygen mask from his face and grabbed Ray by the sleeve, and pulled him as close as he could. Sonny looked into Rays eyes and asked "give me a minute, Ray. I gotta make it right".
Ray stared at Sonny confused and tried to shove the oxygen mask back on his face, which only irritated Sonny more. Ray finally caught sight of Davis standing 10 yards ahead, and realized what Sonny was talking about.
Ray had no idea what was going on with Sonny and Davis, they had been colleagues, teammates and friends for 10 years, becoming closer and closer with each of those years. He knew they were best friends, but he could sense a distance between them the last two weeks. There was a fire in their eyes at the sight of each other in meetings, instead of the playful smirks, and quick jabs.
No one would forget the words that were exchanged as Sonny was losing oxygen, and Ray knew that if it was important enough to be the last thing that he told his brothers before signing off, it was important enough to give Sonny a minute to say what he needed to say.
Ray looked down at Sonny and nodded, but told him, "you got 5 seconds. Make it count."
Sonny needed days to tell Davis everything he wanted to say. And he hoped she would give him the time to say it all, eventually. But he would take what he could get. And if Ray was give him five seconds, he would make it count.
As the group approached, Lisa stepped closer and was surprised when Ray stopped and pulled her to Sonny's left side. The look Sonny gave Davis could only be described as pleading. He had barely spoken at all since the sub, his breathing too labored and his throat too sore. He looked into Davis' eyes and croaked "I'm sorry, Lisa. Please forgive me," before he started coughing again and Ray pulled the oxygen mask back on his face.
Lisa stood shell-shock on the blacktop for a second, unsure what he best friend's words meant. The only thing she was certain about, was that her best friend was still her best friend. Lisa quickly jogged to catch up with the group, giving Ray a questioning look. Lisa was met with an equally questioning look on Ray's face.