A/N: I'm just dipping my toes back into the Last Ship Fanfic Pool. It's a one shot story as it's an idea I've been turning over in my brain for a longer fic. So, I figured why not put a taster out and see how the season ends before I commit to anything. Let me know what you think in reviews. Hope you all enjoy and thank you for reading!
"I can't believe this." CW02 Tina Almas A.K.A. Slider said with joy as she was enjoying watching her CO and friend Maddie Rawlings A.K.A. Brawler squirm. Nothing made Maddie squirm more than the topic of romance and her non-existent love life.
"Please let it go." Maddie told her as she couldn't believe her dumb luck. She took a deep inhale enjoying the aroma of the freshly brewed coffee in her cup. She needed the caffeine.
"Are you kidding me? You-" Tina paused as she tried to find the right words to remind Maddie how she had slept with a 4-Star Admiral without realising it. "line danced with…" Tina struggled.
"Please stop struggling to find euphemisms for both our sake." Maddie told her drily, in her defence; Admiral Mike Slattery hadn't been wearing his uniform. The bar had been dark, she had been drinking and only approached him for one purpose. Any information beyond his name, marital status and if he was interested had been irrelevant at the time.
He seemed like minded as he hadn't asked any questions about her job. It was just one hot and passionate night, they hadn't even exchanged numbers. It was perfect, perfect because she didn't have to feign interest in breakfast or a relationship. It was quite a fond memory of hers, at least it was until she saw him today six months later. She plastered on her usual smile and shook his hand. He showed no sign of remembering her.
Sure, it stung her ego to be so forgettable but in this case? It was probably a good thing. Maybe she'd survive this with the skin of her teeth. She needed her job, she didn't want to get herself or Mike into trouble over a one-night stand. One that if it got to be public knowledge could be bad for them both. She didn't need rumours of fraternisation following her.
"How did we not recognise him?" Tina asked her in a low and incredulous voice.
"Are we talking about that guy Maddie banged like six months ago? Cause I told you who he was. You both wouldn't believe me. Though Maddie was thinking more with her pussy than her brain. Tina, you were all 'Go get it, Girl' drunk and supportive." ASW3 Kitty Wallace A.K.A. Stinger said as she sat down with her tray of food at their table.
"Thanks for the recap." Tina said drily as she didn't like Kitty's impersonation of her.
"You didn't tell me anything about him that night." Maddie told Kitty, she had to admit the conversations on that night were mostly blurry. Majority of her memories were R-rated.
"Trust me, I have an excellent memory." Kitty informed her before she took a bite of her apple. She looked at the end of the table where a beautiful Ensign sat. She smiled at her, the Ensign gave a polite smile before she went back to her lunch.
"That's garbage as you can barely name the last woman you slept with." Tina told Kitty.
"Stacey." Kitty told her.
"Her name was Amanda, I know cause you gave her my number. I had to listen to her for over 2 hours as she was so heartbroken over the amazing weekend you had and that she couldn't reach you." Tina reminded Kitty who gave a nonchalant shrug. Maddie smiled behind her cup as Tina scowled at Kitty.
Kitty was the player in their group, she was young and like to play around and explore her passions. She had no qualms in being cold about dumping her partners. Tina was the shy one who loved romance and was very traditional when it came to her views on dating and sex. Maddie was just pragmatic and somewhat emotionally numb to life in general. Men expected too much from her, between her career, family and friends; she just didn't have time or the capacity for a long-term relationship.
So, she had an itch every few months, she went out and scratched it. She tried to keep her one night stands outside of her postcode and work place as she liked to keep a good wall of separation. She didn't want a man thinking just because they had a one-night stand that it equalled a relationship or would lead to one.
"I thought I gave a random number. I was wrong and I apologised. So, is this going to be a fun visit or awkward?" Kitty asked changing the topic away from herself and placing it firmly on Maddie and her conundrum.
"It's fine, he doesn't remember me." Maddie told them, she remembered Mike's warm welcome but he spoke to her as if it was the first time they had met. Kitty and Tina exchanged looks of disbelief.
"Didn't look that way to me." Kitty commented before she took a sip of her water.
"Same, he remembers." Tina told her, Maddie didn't rise to the bait as she knew Tina wanted a response. Or Tina wanted to romanticise the situation. That Maddie would fall in love and be swept off her feet as she had hopes like that for all her friends.
"Well, it doesn't matter as we're not going to be here long enough to find out if he does or doesn't." Maddie said in a matter of fact manner.
"Probably right, but you never know... it's a small ship." Kitty deadpanned.
"Speaking of, try to keep your flight suit zipped." Maddie told her in a low voice. Kitty pouted in a comically manner.
"Come on, you're no fun. This ship is filled with beautiful women." Kitty informed her.
"The men aren't that bad either. I heard the XO is fine and single." Tina drawled with a smile. Maddie knew that Tina didn't have the guts to fraternize. She was all talk and no action which was good for Maddie as she hated when she was pulled in because of Kitty's inappropriate behaviour.
"You two are killing me." Maddie said playing into the joke. They all smiled and chuckled. A burst of shouting happened behind them. Maddie turned to see Cuban soldier laying into a Mexican officer. The men were shouting slurs in Spanish as they fought with each other.
Maddie rose from her chair, trying to decide if she should step in and break it up when the fight spread through the mess. She gave a sigh of acceptance as the decision was made for her. She took a sip of her coffee and placed it on the table. She hated this kind of petulant behaviour and she didn't need to understand the source. She just wanted it to stop so she could enjoy her lunch and coffee.
She stepped into the fray, within seconds she had the fight defused and had four men laid out on the floor. One of them tried get up and she gave him a kick for good measure.
"You're a disgrace to the uniform." She told the Cuban soldier on the ground. The Nathan James crew stepped in to pick up the fallen men and the mess returned to some semblance of order and peace again. Maddie returned to her seat and shook her head.
"Men." Maddie grumbled in disgust as she took another sip of her coffee. Most people assumed that she was called 'Brawler' because she started them but the reality that she stopped them. She had grown up with four brothers which taught her how to fight and stop a fight quickly.
"Your man was watching you." Tina said in a low voice. Maddie glowered at her.
"I don't know what you're talking about." Maddie said as it wasn't a big deal. She had seen at least five other Nathan James crew members step into the fray.
"I think it revved his engine." Kitty said in a tongue in cheek manner.
"It's definitely not over." Tina mused. Maddie said nothing. She just rolled her eyes in response as she knew there was no way of convincing Tina that she was wrong or that fairy tale endings didn't exist.