Chances

Voice

He wasn't sure why but he awoke early that morning. Too early. The watch on his night table marked 2: 36 a.m. in bright red numbers. The sun wouldn't even be up any time soon, and still his eyelids refused to close. For what seamed like hours he laid on his bed, something bothering him in the back of his head. A little voice telling him to get up already. At first he tried to ignore it. He needed his sleep in order to be able to function later on. But it insisted.

In the end he gave it's way.

With heavy, annoyed footsteps he passed through the hall into the common room in which they had the dinning table,and most importantly, the coffee machine. He poured himself a nice cup of the dark brown liquid before heading back to his room when something stoped him. It was that little voice again wich told him to stop on his tracks and listen.

There where soft whimpers, sounding like a door being pushed by the wind, staining the midnight silence. He followed the sound until he reached a door at the left of his own.

The light was turned of, but he knew Private was there.

"Skippah?" Skipper hated how his voice cracked when he cried. It made a knot to his stomach and stung in his heart. He listened to the boy sitting up in his bed and sniffing before speaking again.

"Is everything alright?" He asked. Damn, Skipper cursed the pain in his voice. It just wasn't right.

"Yes," Skipper said before acknowledging the scenario. "I mean, no. There's something really wrong here."

He took a few steps closer, caring not to bump into anything, until he was close enough to hear Privates heavy breathing.

"It's nothing, really." He tried to lie to his Captain. Skipper's natural instinct snapped back.

"When I say something's wrong, it's because it is!" His voice had ceased to be soft and caring, suddenly throwing up his attitued. He rectified again, cursing himself mentally. "Sorry, Private."

There was a long pause in which the only sounds where their breaths and Private's sniffing. The Penguin Leader placed an arm around the younger man and rubbed gently. Trying to set some comfort for his operative. Yet, as Private's sobs weren't getting softer, Skipper felt the growing urge to help him.

"Feel like talking about it?" His voice was soft, and very quiet.

Private replied shaking his head slowly, but since Skipper couldn't see him he raised his voice.

"Not really Skippah, not really."

Skipper felt powerless and expendable. And guilty, being that how he probably made Private feel most of the time. He retrieved his hand away from Private. The little voice told him that was what he was crying about. He hated himself for it.

The larger figure cleared his throat.

"Get some rest," He said. "Training's cancelled for today."

As the older man left the room, Private sat in his bed with his eyes wide open. He knew that there was indeed something very wrong happening. Skipper's voice only cracked when he was crying.

Chalk

One morning, when they awoke, there was chalk outside their Head Quarters. He knew the components of chalk. Had used it once or twice on his experiments, but he hadn't ever placed himself to count the uses to chalk in a way Rico did. The little white block, probably left behind by a child, to Rico was a mountain of wonder.

He was astonished to see the things he could paint, the exact angles and shapes he could create with such a simple compound.

The scientist watched as his slightly psychotic friend tried to teach the youngest operative into drawing a face. He had split the chalk in halve, and soon both of them where painting masterpieces over the dull grey wall. Tracing invisible patterns over the bricks.

He wondered then how could there be a different side to him, how was there a way in which he wouldn't be creating something as beautiful as he was now.

For hours he sat behind him. Even when Private, bored, had turned away to watch the T.V, he had staid. Only staring as the wall took color. Thought technically there was only white over the usual grey.

But suddenly it stopped. The magic had somehow ran out, and left the an open space on the wall. Kowalski stood bewildered.

"Why did you stop?" He asked staring at the chalk lines rather then his friend.

"It ran out." Rico answered simply.

Kowalski stared at the blank side of the wall. The one Rico hadn't touched. It felt empty, cold.

As the months, and even years went by, he never sat on that side of the room again.

Precedence

Everything in his life had a precedence. Whether it was black coffee over that sugary brown liquid they dared call coffee, to when it came to his credo over everything else.
Then one time, someone, he couldn't bring back who, had asked him something that broke his balance. She, or He, had asked which of his subordinates he prefered.
Never before had he held such precedences. For most of his life team work, strength, and courage had been top of the pyramid. Never had he imagined such simple situations, doors he never knew he crossed, that took him to where he was today. Never once did he regret it.

It had been a particulary long day. After a whole month's work, they had closely traced a line of organ dealers to Boston, being close to death more then once, and then flown back to N.Y. All in a day.
Now they sat in a cafeteria, a single block away from the airport.
The youngest team member had taken the initiative to order the coffee while the remaining members of the team found a comfortable table to seat at. Being him the healthiest after the mission all of them had complied.

Whene Private came back with the four long cups of coffee he took a seat besides his captain.
While Rico and Kowalski thanked Private for his kindness Skipper had taken a sip from his cup and made a disgusted face towards the liquid. He noticed it was not the black coffee he had asked for.

"Private," He said, "I think I might have your order here." He held the cup up to Private, who shook his head softly.

"It's your's Skippah," He said, and the alluded grimaced. The younger man lowered his eyes, shame clouding his features. "It's just you worked so hard today Skippah, I though you deserved something sweeter."

That day Skipper's heart took a leap on a way it hadn't ever done before. His whole world shook so hard, that for a moment, he forgot all about precedence.