Ryot Naime's POV

Fenix pulled me down behind one of the blockades, making me crouch there. I stayed put as bullets skimmed over the block, Fenix crouched down beside me. "Can you hold a gun yet?" He asked, seemingly impatient.

"Hey, cut her some slack, Marcus," Baird snapped, kneeling down beside me. "Can you hold a rifle?" He asked, calmer than Fenix.

I nodded. "I'm fine, I can hold what I need to," I said, trying not to snap at him. Even though I wanted to be mad at him, he was being kind and worrying about me.

"Okay. Be careful," he said, pulling a rifle from the holster on his leg. He pried open my hand gently, putting the rifle in it. "Please be careful. We need you to go around and get the Locust off the troika. We'll attract their attention."

"I can do it, Damon, I'll be fine." I said, jumping from behind the blockade over to a column of a building. The rifle burned in my hand, but I didn't drop it. They were counting on my, that was obvious. As I slinked through the inside of the building to flank the troika, I noticed Dom had been shot in the shoulder.

Damon Baird's POV

"Maybe I should go with her?" I suggested worriedly, firing at as many Locusts as I could. I tried to look and see if I could find Ryot, but she wasn't in viewing sight. When a few Locusts shot upwards, I knew that's where she was. I looked up and saw her, crouched on the roof with her Lancer in hands. Her leg was bleeding, blood staining her baggy army pants. "Fenix, she's hit," I said urgently.

"She'll be fine." He answered.

"Fenix. She's bleeding," I said, dragging out my words to let it sink in.

"The best thing to do is kill these Locusts and then help her," he snapped, looking at me momentarily. "If this girl is going to be such a distraction to you, I'll dismiss her and she can go live with the Stranded."

"You're a sick bastard, aren't you?"

"Shut up and do your job, Baird."

I rolled my eyes and looked back to the emergence holes. It had closed, thanks to a frag Cole had thrown, and there were but two Locusts left. Fenix shot one down and began shouting orders to the others, but I wasn't listening.

I watched Ryot slide down from the roof and land on her shot leg. She let out a yelp and fell back on her ass. The Locust that had been manning the troika came towards her, aiming whatever type of gun he had.

I'm not sure how, but I killed him before he could kill her. Luckily there were no more after him, so I was quick to make my way over to her. Without either of us saying anything, I placed my arm under her shoulders and helped her walk on her one leg.

"You okay?" I finally asked after a bit of walking.

"I've never had a bullet in my leg this long before, and all I can say is it hurts like hell. I don't like the war."

Ryot sat beside me- well she sat in my lap, when we got inside a safer room to make plans. There weren't enough seats for her.

"How's your leg?" Fenix asked, interrupting the silence that had been taking place the entire time.

"Great, no thanks to you," she snapped, leaning back against my shoulder.

"Yeah because dumbass there is definitely helping you by cuddling all over you."

"Better than telling everyone to leave me because I'll be fine!"

"Not my fault you're dumb enough to get yourself shot," he shrugged.

That's when I remembered that she had my rifle; because she cocked at him. "I'm pretty sure you're dumb enough to get yourself shot, too."

"Woah, woah, woah," I said in her ear, reaching around her to take my gun back. "Chill out. Although I've been wanting to do that to him since the moment I met him."

She narrowed her eyes an gave the gun back to me, sighing and ignoring the rest of us to examine her burns and bullet wound.

"I say we stay here for a night. We need the rest and Naime can't do much with her leg like that. Which reminds me," Dom said, "someone's going to have to pry that bullet out of her leg."

"I say we make Baird do it." Fenix sneered. "She is his girlfriend after all."

"She is not!" Both Ryot and I shouted at the same time. She sat up in my lap and straightened her back, narrowing her eyes at him.

"Whatever. Baird you fix her up anyway. The rooms in this hall should all be clean at the moment. Feel free to take any of them. We'll stay for a night and then tomorrow morning we move on."

I took a piece of cloth off a sheet and wrapped it around her mouth, knotting it in the back. "This is gonna hurt and you can't be loud," I said. Ryot nodded slightly, pulling her pantleg up just enough to reveal the bullet wound in her outer-thigh. The bullet wasn't lodged in too deep, so it'd be easier to get it out. I pulled my metal gloves off and gently brushed my thumb over the bullet hole, causing her to wince. Trying to be quick and easy about it I rolled the bullet out. She made a series of whimpers and yelps and I felt bad, but I knew it was helping her.

"I'm sorry," I said, untying the cloth from her mouth so I could clean up the fresh blood from her leg.

"It's fine. Thanks." She said quietly, looking at me. "Hey I have a question."

"Don't you always?" I teased, a small smile on my face. "Go ahead, ask."

"Do you ever take all that armor off?"

"Yeah. When I sleep." I shrugged, raising an eyebrow.

She laughed a bit, although I could tell her heart wasn't in it. "How do you even sleep during all this?"

I shook my head. "With one eye open."

Ryot managed a smile, one I knew was real. "Where are you going to sleep tonight?" I asked her, curious.

"Where are you sleeping?" She answered, smile fading. "Honestly I'd prefer to not sleep in a separate room down the hall be-"

"It'd be so much easier to just say you want to sleep with me," I joked, "just admit it right here, right now."

"Why are you so cocky?" She rolled her eyes, smiling as she stood up. When she walked she limped a little, barely stepping on her right leg. "Where're you going?" I asked, watching her.

"I'm gonna sleep on the floor," Ryot answered, sitting down against a wall. "You take the bed."

I looked at the large, queen-sized bed and then back at her, raising an eyebrow. "At least take the blanket and pillow." Before she could protest, I threw them to her. "Take it."

"Fine." She laughed, laying the blanket down and the pillow on top of it, presumably so she could lay on it instead of the cold floor.

"Baird. Baird," I was woken by Ryot's whispering and shaking my shoulders. I jumped awake, trying to see her in the dark. Whatever little bit of light that came from the moon reflected over her face and my blue goggles on her head. She had been crying; I could see it on her face and hear it in her voice.

"Are you okay?" I asked, placing my hands at her cheeks, using my thumbs to wipe whatever that was left of her tears away. I felt her shake her head no rapidly. "What's wrong?"

"My leg. I was shot twice, not once, and I guess I managed to get the bullet in deeper. Can you help me?" She asked, her voice soft and trembling.

I stood up to help her lay back on the bed. I couldn't see any part of her leg so instead of trying to get it out I said, "It's too dark to see anything. I'll be able to get it out in the morning before we leave, so for now just lay here and I'll make sure you don't move too much in your sleep."

Ryot Naime's POV

His armor fell to the ground with a thump, his blue eyes the only thing I could see in the dark. He was staring straight at me, movement frozen. He had barely finished pulling his metal boots off when he briskly made his way to me, leaning over the bed so he could reach me. Baird took my face in his hands, firmly, and looked me in the eye. He was waiting for me to say yes; that this was okay. Sitting up a bit and wrapping an arm around his neck seemed to be an appropriate answer. He leaned forward, his head tilted a bit, and let his lips brush against mine. "You've still got my goggles on, and quite frankly," he whispered, "I like them on you." He kissed me again, or I kissed him, I don't remember. I slid my hand down to rest against his apparently bare chest. His heart beat wildly in his chest; I could feel it. It caused me to wonder if he knew how nervous I myself was.

"Damon," I breathed his name quietly, like I'd never said it before. "I don't think tha-"

"Just go with it," Baird said softly. "I don't care what happens."

So I kissed him. Again and again and again and again because I felt like I should and I thought I wanted to because hell he was so amazing at times, forget the obnoxious behavior, screw it, I liked Damon Baird no matter what I tried to tell myself and I realized how long I had really wanted this to happen; since the beginning, from when I met him. Even when I was angry at him, I still liked him because there's this thing about Damon that makes him likable- like you needed to like him or you felt like you were wrong.

At one point, I forget when and how, I ended up laying on my side, as did he, facing him. I pulled away from the kiss to smile a bit and looked at him. I was still only able to see his crystal eyes. They seemed to be brighter than usual, although I didn't really care, I just wanted to see if he was smiling. Maybe he didn't like this. Maybe he secretly hated me. Or maybe he felt like it would make up for what happened with Desperaux.

He interrupted my thoughts, "I've wanted to do that for so long," he whispered softly, kissing my nose once.

"Would it be odd to tell you I've wanted that for a while too?"

"Well considering everything you say is odd-"

"Oh hush," I laughed softly as I nudged his side with my elbow, leaning my head in the crook of his neck, where it met at his shoulder.

"What are you doing, Blondie?" Damon whispered, chuckling. His left hand stroked my hair back while his right stayed at my waist, holding me close to him.

"Sleeping, stupid," I whispered with a yawn, tilting my head up to kiss his jawbone. "What are you doing?"

"Sleeping. One eye open of course." He chuckled. "To keep you safe. I want you in my sight from now on. I don't care what Fenix, Dom, or Cole say. You're not part of their team. You're mine, and mine alone, and I want you safe. And I really, really, really don't like the way Fenix looks at you."

"Wait, how does he look at me?" I asked, looking at him.

"The way I do. And only I can look at you that way or so help me I will put a bullet through his head."