Checkmate - Sam (POV)/Lara, Min/Bree - SFW

By Asynca

Set between Chapter 45 of The Dreaming & the Epilogue.

"Worst holiday ever," I said as I flopped back into the armchair in our hotel room. Our last night in Australia, and it had to be the middle of a record-breaking heatwave. It actually felt like someone had just put a giant vacuum cleaner over Darwin, sucked out all the air and replaced it with hot.

Over my head, the ceiling fan spun uselessly. The hotel was air conditioned, but it must have been about fourteen million degrees outside because it was no match for the heat radiating through the floor to ceiling windows. Between draping myself over various items of furniture I'd noticed the view of Darwin was totally amazing, but I was too exhausted to even stand up and get a few seconds of footage of it. That's how I knew it was really awful weather. "Like, I know people say Australia is dangerous but I didn't seriously think I'd actually nearly die here." I gestured loosely at the sun glaring through the windows. "First of the whole Natla thing and now this."

"I'll turn up the air con in a moment," Lara told me as she tried to shove a pillow down behind Min.

The night before, Bree had been exercising her new-found legality by purchasing a whole bottle of banana vodka and because Min and Lara weren't big drinkers and I wasn't even allowed to drink for another four weeks, she'd downed it herself. All of it, in just under an hour. Then I'd got some hilarious footage of her trying to jump Min in front of us while she slurred and giggled. Min had just been sitting there sighing and very neatly peeling Bree off like it might be something she did on a fairly regular basis. Eventually Bree had passed out and Min had somehow managed to wheel them both into the second bedroom.

Bree was still unconscious this morning, but probably at least part of it was a godawful hangover.

But now that Bree was out of it, Lara felt guilty about Min and was hovering around her and stressing. Min had been comfortably reclined on the couch minding her own business, and did not look pleased about Lara's sudden need to take care of her. She was giving Lara the same tired expression she frequently gave Bree.

When Lara went to 'help' Min rearrange the cushions again, Min stopped just silently enduring her and took her arm. "Lara," she said flatly. "I'm lying here because it's fucking hot, not because I couldn't sit up if I wanted to."

"But I just thought that—"

"I know you did, but I'm good." I saw Lara's eyes pass over Min's wheelchair beside the couch. So did Min. "I know you're trying to help, but you don't need to," she told Lara more gently as she let her arm go.

Lara just stood up and looked kind of lost for a moment before settling down in the other armchair opposite the TV. There was some totally boring serial on and it was shot by people who had no idea how to direct. They were using basically one angle the whole scene and if I wasn't so angry that people were actually paid to film this crap, it would have put me to sleep. Unfortunately, despite the heat, it wasn't putting Lara to sleep, either. She was sitting staring at the TV but kept glancing uncomfortably at Min.

Eventually her latent guilt got too much for her and she couldn't contain herself. "Are you sure you don't need anything?" she asked. "Because it's no bother for me to get you a water or something."

Min looked across at me, and her expression made me burst out laughing. She looked like she was seriously about to kill a man. When she spoke, though, there was no trace of it in her voice. "Actually some water would be good."

When Lara leaped up and practically skipped into the adjoining kitchen, I yelled after her very pointedly, "Yeah, I could use some water, too, Sweetie, thanks for asking!"

Min had this strange expression on her face, like crossed between pain and concentration. "No offense, but your girlfriend is driving me fucking crazy."

I snorted. She couldn't talk. "You're dating Bree," I reminded her. "So isn't that kind of what you're into? And, besides, on the scale of normal to Bree, Lara is about negative a hundred."

Min narrowed her eyes at me, but couldn't say anything to that as Lara returned with two glasses of water. At least she had the decency to serve her girlfriend first. I was already taking a big mouthful when she gave Min's glass to her.

Min peered critically down into the glass for a few seconds. "Wow, this water's gross. Maybe I'll have a coke instead. I could use the sugar, anyway."

"Really?" Lara asked. "It looks alright to me. It tastes alright, too, just a bit warm. I had some earlier." She leant over to examine the water for herself. Even though she obviously couldn't see what Min was talking about, but went back into the kitchen for the coke anyway.

Min watched her go and then drank the entire glass of water in one movement. When Lara came back in with the coke, Min casually handed her the empty glass and then stared at the coke, looking a little disappointed. "Could I have it in a mug instead?" she asked innocently. "Do you mind? It's just easier for me to hold, and without the nice big handle I might spill it all over me…"

Lara did actually look a little frustrated, especially as her eyes darted between Min and the empty glass of water she'd been given. She didn't comment on it, though, she just smothered whatever reaction she was having and trekked back into the kitchen again.

When Min looked over at me, her eyes were twinkling.

My jaw fell open. Min, no way! "You are not messing with her, are you?"

She just grinned and put her index finger over her lips. "Oh, I so am."

Lara returned with the mug and passed it to Min, who then pretended to 'accidentally' spill it all over her clean t-shirt.

I lost it and nearly sprayed water out of my mouth. Min's face rested in this glorious deadpan, you'd never in a million years have thought she was anything except completely genuine. "Shit!" she said, pretending to be horrified by the coke stain on her white t-shirt, "Shit!" Lara hurriedly took the mug from her and put it on the table.

"It's okay, I'll get some paper towels!" she reassured Min, rushing back into the kitchen again and then loudly and frantically rummaging around in the cupboards in there.

"You're terrible," I told Min, but I was laughing at Lara's panic. "Lara's just trying to be nice!"

Min just shot me that charming smile. "I know," she said at the bottom of her voice. "But admit it, Sam, you're enjoying it." There was no mistaking the mischief in her voice. Was she actually…? She was flirting, I think. But I'm pretty sure she was only doing it to mess with me.

I rolled my eyes at her. "By the way? That suave thing you do totally doesn't work on me."

She flashed me some teeth with the next grin. "Not even with the cute accent?"

I groaned audibly. "Oh, my God," I told her. "You're as bad as a guy."

She was still watching me, and it was unnerving, even if I totally wasn't into her and she knew it. "I'm surprised it's not working, then," she said neutrally, and then copied what I'd said before with exaggerated intonation, "Isn't that kind of what you're into?'." While I was just glaring at her, she winked. "And, thanks, by the way."

If I wasn't practically dying of heat exhaustion, I would have run over there and strangled her. She was not allowed to use that wink thing. I did the wink thing, that was my thing!

Lara came rushing back in with the roll of paper towels, tearing off a handful of them mid-stride and then pushing them all against Min's chest. Min looked over and me with a smug, well-concealed grin. After only a few seconds, Lara remembered that Min wasn't a guy and that in blotting Min's chest, she was, well, blotting Min's chest. She stood up, panicking. "Sorry!" she said, giving all the towels to Min. "I didn't thing that—I mean, I—"

I was laughing. Min was bad, and although I was totally going to get revenge on her somehow, watching her so easily playing Lara was the height of entertainment.

At my open laughter, Lara stopped, looking over at me and then back at Min. Min had the most blank, innocent expression – how in the hell did she even do that? It made me laugh even harder.

"Are you having me on?" Lara asked us eventually. "Both of you?"

Min shook her head earnestly. "Of course not, Lara."

Lara's brow was wavering as she looked back over at me. I was laughing so much it was really hurting the wound on my stomach. I put my hand over it and tried to laugh more gently, but that just made me feel like I was going to give myself an aneurism.

Unfortunately I've always been totally transparent and Lara got her answer just by looking at my face. She turned sharply to Min. "You are," she accused her, and then wrenched one of the cushions from under Min and smacked her across the head with it. "I was worried about you!"

Min threw her hands up to protect herself, the completely deadpan expression cracking as she started laughing as well.

When Lara was through pretending to beat Min up, she tossed the cushion back at her. "Okay, okay," she said, walking over to sit on the chair she'd been on before. "You've made your point."

Min put the paper towels on the table next to her and folded her hands behind her head, relaxing against them. "Good," she said soberly with a warm smile. "Because, like I keep saying, I actually am fine and you don't need to worry about me."

Lara smiled back at her like they were sharing something. I didn't like this whole bonding thing at all. Like, I was happy for Lara to have friends, but I didn't want them to be too close, because wasn't I supposed to be her best friend?

"Yeah," I said pointedly, "she's not the one who nearly died. And I don't have some weird pride thing about people doing stuff for me." I pressed gently over my stitches just to test if I'd torn anything while I was laughing. It was tender like it always was, but it seemed okay. My stomach growled, though. "And actually, I'm kind of hungry. Maybe something that resembles a burger?"

Lara glanced over toward the window at the hot sun and sighed. "Okay," she said reluctantly, standing out of the chair and looking miserable at the prospect of heading out into the inferno. "I'll go look about and see what I can find. No burgers, though. You're not even supposed to be having animal proteins yet."

"That's right," I grumbled, remembering the nephrologist's instructions, which were basically to stop enjoying life for six weeks. "Although those cheesy burgers from downstairs almost look worth the risk."

"I will kill you if you eat one and die from it," Lara said, dropping a kiss on my head and then grabbing her wallet as she headed out onto the surface of the sun. She made a face as she closed the door. "Even the hallway is awful."

After she left I looked back toward Min to catch Min's eyes lingering on the door, at waist level. She caught me looking and watched me soberly for a few moments. She didn't say anything, though. She didn't even try and joke about it. She just smiled at me, and I'm pretty sure it was real.

I nearly had an aneurism again. I really wanted to be angry with her for checking out my girlfriend, but not only was it too hot to think, that smile was basically like, 'I know, I like you both and I'm going to keep my hands off'.

Ugh, just ugh. And that stain on her shirt was totally mocking me. "I hope you realize you wrecked a perfectly good t-shirt for the sake of messing with Lara."

Min looked down and it and shrugged. "Worth it," she said. "And to be fair, Bree will probably ruin it by washing it with my jeans in the next week or two anyway. Its days as a white t-shirt were already numbered. I just gave it a heroic death."

That, I had to laugh at, despite the fact I wanted to be angry. "I love how casually you say that: 'Bree wrecks my stuff'."

Min chuckled. "She does. That's worth it, too. All of it."

Then stop checking out my girlfriend, I thought. I was being ridiculous, though, since she was pretty clearly flagging that she wasn't going to do anything, and I knew I could trust Lara not to, anyway. And that's if Lara was even interested, since she certainly hadn't seemed interested. Just oblivious. Still, that whole messing-with thing and now the checking-out thing… Well, two could play at this game.

I got up up carefully, minding my abdominals and just stood there for a moment waiting for her to ask me what I was doing. She didn't, but she did look quizzically at me.

"I'm going to go and sleep with Bree," I announced. I didn't mean it like that at all, but watching her for the fraction of the second she thought I did mean it that way was so worth it.

Take that, I thought, feeling pretty pleased with myself.