Melissa Mao paused outside the door to Tessa's quarters on Merida Island and regretted that she had forgotten to brush her teeth that morning. Come to think of it, she could use a shower and a change of clothes, too.
After the mutual bust at the warehouse, she had come clean about Kurz to Sousuke. As her teammate and friend, he deserved the truth and an apology. Considering the situation, Sousuke had handled it well. Melissa could thank Kaname's embrace for that. At the end, he agreed to avoid Tessa for a few days because Melissa couldn't ask him to cover for her and Kurz. Although Sousuke wasn't the type to volunteer information like a neighborhood bitty, she didn't want to take any chances. Tessa needed to know, and Melissa wanted to be the one to tell her.
Of course, ratting yourself out to your captain and surrogate little sister is much simpler in theory than practice, so Melissa had built up her courage with a case of beer at a friend's private cottage on the north side of the island. She told herself that she needed a couple days and a neutral place to get her head back on straight, but it didn't hurt that a certain sniper wouldn't know to look for her there either.
Melissa took some sick pride in her terrible way with good-byes.
She had sent word to Tessa the night before, requesting a meeting in the morning. In retrospect, she should have asked for something later in the day. The hangover felt like hell, but it didn't matter. Telling Tessa would suck hard-- headache or not.
At least Melissa had given the girl a heads-up about the bad news. Tessa would know something was wrong even before Melissa could say "Hey". The young captain had offered a key to her rooms to Melissa over two years ago for the expressed purpose of taking the formality off their friendly visits. By sending word in advance, Melissa had telegraphed that something wasn't right.
Melissa ran her tongue over her teeth in a futile effort to wipe off the sticky taste of sleep before slipping the key into the lock and letting herself in. It was much too bright in the hall for her post-bender eyes.
"I'm here," she announced, pausing to kick off her boots. Tessa had taken up the Japanese custom of leaving footwear at the entry, and Melissa thought she could try to do one nice thing today for her captain today. She padded into the kitchen in her socks.
"That smells like coffee, so you are officially a doll," she offered as she rounded the corner.
"Odd compliment, but I'll take it."
Melissa forgot to breathe when she realized that it was Kurz, not Tessa, at the small kitchenette table. He had cut off his long hair and ran a hand through it self-consciously as she stared.
"Is it that bad?" he grinned. Melissa noted that he forced the smile.
"Weber, where's Tessa?"
He took a sip of the coffee and offered her a seat. More specifically, he kicked a chair out from under the table and tipped his head toward it. Reluctantly, Melissa plopped down across from her former lover and dumped some milk into her mug of coffee.
"Tessa is having breakfast with Sousuke and Kaname," he replied.
"Are you going to tell me what's going on, or do I have to guess?" she griped.
"Here's the deal, Mel," he started. He set down his mug and held out his hands, like a poker player showing his hand. "I'm going to put it all out there."
"You told Tessa," Melissa interrupted as the pieces snapped into place through the brain fog of her bad morning. "Goddamn, Kurz."
"Don't get mad just yet. Hear me out," he said.
Melissa rolled her eyes. It was too early for serious Kurz.
Outside, a gull cried as the wind picked up. Heavy clouds blotted out the sun, and it looked like the rain would roll in at any moment.
Melissa leaned back, put her feet up on the table, and gulped her coffee. It was a rich, bold blend-- her favorite kind. It only lacked some Irish whiskey.
"So talk," she grumbled.
"I got a promotion and a transfer," he said flatly.
Melissa tapped her foot against the laminate table as she processed the new information.
"To what and where?"
"Sergeant Major. The new Indian Ocean SRT unit. They are re-building and offered me the chance to move up," he answered.
Melissa couldn't stand the way he was watching her.
"Congrats. Good for you," she said dismissively as she turned her eyes back to the window. The wind tossed around the trees, but the rain was waiting for a grand entrance.
"I'm sorry that I told Tessa. She asked if why I was leaving the Tuatha De Danaan when I brought her the transfer forms, and I didn't want to lie to the girl."
"How sweet," Melissa sneered.
Kurz slammed down his empty mug on the table that so hard that it shook one of her feet off. She tipped forward and sloshed hot coffee down her front.
"What the hell!" she yelped.
"What is your malfunction, Mel? I'm not the bad guy here," Kurz yelled back.
"No, you're a fucking white knight. Am I supposed to be thanking you for saving my ass or swooning or both?"
The sky broke, and the rain sounded like radio static on the roof. Melissa took the moment to drain her cup before using Tessa's pristine, white cloth napkins to mop up the mess on her shirt.
"You could have told me before you signed yourself away," she said in a low voice as she worked at the stain. "Christ. I thought we were friends."
That word hung in the air because it was a lie. They were friends. Before San Miguel. Before she kissed him and made everything complicated. She had no idea what they were now. She sniffed hard and reminded herself that Melissa Mao never cries.
"I'm sorry," he said at last.
"Don't. I didn't think it would go this far, you know?" Melissa rubbed her nose. "What the hell was I thinking? God, this sucks."
She turned to him when he reached across the table, took her hand, and pressed a kiss into her wrist. He breathed his words into her palm. "I'm in love with you."
Melissa's mind went blank, but her hand balled into a fist reflexively. As the moment lengthened into awkwardness, she blurted out the first thing that she could think to say. "Shit."
He didn't react right away, and Melissa hoped that maybe, just maybe, he hadn't heard her. Then, he got up without a word and escaped with their empty mugs to the kitchen. Melissa could barely hear the water from the faucet over the rain. A mad impulse tried to talk her into making a break for the door, but she couldn't. This was Kurz, not some random one-night stand, and Melissa could count her true friends on one hand.
She got out of the chair and went after him.
"I didn't mean it like that," she apologized to his back.
He set the mugs on the counter to dry but wouldn't look at her. She had really screwed up this time.
"Yeah. Well, unless you're going to say that you love me too, it doesn't really matter," he muttered.
"You're not in the love with me," she tried.
He turned to her with a shrug.
"Yeah, I am. Crazy bad in love, babe," he attempted to joke.
"You got the crazy part right," she muttered. "I can't believe you volunteered to re-build a unit. That'll be a serious time-suck."
"It won't be all bad. Maybe I'll be too busy to think about the girl who shot me down."
His voice cracked a little on the last word, and Melissa finally accepted that he wasn't kidding around. She had been hoping it was just a prank. Melissa mirrored his position, arms crossed, eyes averted, and leaning against the laminate counter, so they were shoulder to shoulder.
"I think I need some time," she started to explain.
"Time, huh. You got another offer to consider?" he complained, and Melissa felt no remorse when she slugged him in the side.
"I've let one guy touch me in the past five years, you moron. You! Do you have any idea what that means? Do you?" she raged.
Kurz let her hit him a few more times before stopping her by touching her cheek, and Melissa realized that she was crying. It felt like waking up to discover that an extra arm had sprouted in the night- surreal and horrible. He opened his mouth to say something, but she beat him to it.
"I care so much about you, you worthless jerk. I just need some time to figure out what that means. So don't accuse me of looking around. I wasn't even looking for you in the first place, and you...you..."
He looked so heartbroken that she couldn't help it. She kissed him and regretted it immediately because he started to break down right there in her arms. Misplaced kindness hurts as much as cruelty.
She had watched friends die, and yet Melissa Mao had never felt so helpless or so shitty for what she was doing to Kurz Weber. She could only hold him and repeat "I'm sorry" until he got it together enough to push her away.
"Go make up you mind, Mel," he croaked. "Try to hurry, okay?"
"I like the haircut," she blurted out, and then ran.
The downpour caught Kaname by surprise, but Tessa had thought to bring an umbrella. As they left the officer's club, she offered to share it with him, but Kaname's scowl warned Sousuke off. After a brief tussle, Sousuke pushed the fiery-tempered girl under the umbrella's wide brim with Tessa and insisted on walking in the rain. It soaked through his jumpsuit in the short distance from the eatery to Tessa's flat, but it was a small price to pay to keep the girls from squabbling. Somehow, he always ended up the big loser in their fights.
Despite his misgivings about dining with both girls, Kaname and the captain behaved all through breakfast, catching up and chatting the way that girls do. Perhaps the distinguished company of Mithril's high-ranking commanders kept Tessa's flirtations in check, or maybe Bear's demanding training schedule had made Kaname too tired to take offense. Either way, Sousuke enjoyed the good quality of the food in relative peace. They never served eggs benedict in the mess hall.
"We should make a lot of noise before we go in," Kaname said when they reached Tessa's door.
"Why?" the young captain asked. Her furrowed brows shot up when she caught Kaname's meaning. "They wouldn't!"
Kaname laughed wickedly, gave the key another jangle in the lock, and opened the door. They paused in the entry way to remove their footwear. Sousuke noted the absence of any boots and hoped the Melissa and Kurz were long gone. While he had adjusted to the thought of his friends as a couple in the past two days, Sousuke harbored no desire to catch them in the act again.
Tessa got her simple, low-heeled pumps off first.
"Wait here while I get you a towel," she told him while Kaname yanked off her boots and followed after her. Sousuke remained by the front door, dripping.
"Mr. Weber?" Tessa's voice floated back to him. "What happened?"
"Crash and burn, Madame Captain," Kurz reported. "So now that I'm back on the market, if either of you ladies..."
The voices dissolved into murmurings, and Sousuke couldn't catch the words, only the tone. It seemed Kaname's plan had failed. He thought about joining them, but the ring of rainwater pooling on the floor around his feet reminded him that he ought to wait for the promised towel. After a few minutes, he decided to take off his boots to kill time. Then, he checked the small coat closet for something suitable to use to dry off and noted Kurz's boots inside; his friend had probably hid them there to avoid tipping off Mao. The sound of the closet door closing must have reminded Tessa about him because she turned up soon after with a bath towel and an apology at the ready. Sousuke wiped away what moisture he could and made a mental note to avoid sitting down.
"But she didn't say no?" Kaname was pressing Kurz as Sousuke joined them in the living room.
The girls had taken up position on either side of Kurz on the sofa as if they served as the sniper's twin guardians. The German looked like he could use the protection. Gone was Kurz's easy grin and flirtations. His red-rimmed eyes and slumped shoulders made him seem far older than his twenty-one years.
"Yeah, but don't get your hopes up. She's just letting me down easy," Kurz argued.
"You don't know that," Tessa replied as she patted him arm. "She might be telling the truth."
"Yeah," Kaname agreed. "I mean, if she meant no, she would have said so."
Kaname gave Sousuke that demanding look of hers, so he guessed that she wanted him to support her conclusion for Kurz's sake.
"Agreed. Mao says what she thinks," he stated.
Kurz shook his head. "She didn't say that she loves me."
"Give her time," Tessa comforted him.
"No offense, Captain, but I don't see how that will help. I took a chance, and she shot me down."
"So what? You're just giving up?" Kaname said, her voice rising with each word.
"What else am I supposed to do?" Kurz shrugged. "Wait around, all hopeful, for her to finish me off?"
"You're supposed to be proud, you idiot!" Kaname snapped. "You had the guts to tell her that you loved her. You asked for a promotion and took that transfer, so you could be together if she said yes. You did it all for her. You-- you-- you cut your hair!"
"She did say she liked the hair," Kurz remembered.
"You look very handsome," Tessa was quick to add.
"You do!" Kaname continued, her voice as loud as ever. "So what if it didn't go the best? You were honest and brave, and you tried!"
"I know, Angel. I'm not knocking your plan," Kurz sighed. "But maybe I shouldn't have said anything, you know?"
The sniper looked like he might break down again. Tessa and Kaname shared a panicked look. They seemed to have run out of options, and then Sousuke found himself speaking. "You showed Mao respect by letting her know how you feel. If it's true that actions speak louder than words, then you told her that you love her but your actions proved that you honor her as well. "
"At least I've got that going for me," Kurz groaned, but Sousuke noted that his friend no longer looked so desperate.
Kaname wrapped an arm around the sniper's shoulders. "I know it's bad now, but I think she'll come around. I mean, I saw how she was kissed you," she recalled.
"You care to show the captain a re-enactment?" Kurz dead-panned.
Instead of raging, Kaname laughed and threw her arms around Kurz. "That's the spirit!"
Sousuke swallowed back the bitter thing that rose in this throat at her words.
Kurz managed a grin as he hugged her back and said, "Keep those compliments coming, ladies. My ego is in critical condition. Tessa, feel free to tell me how 'handsome' I am a few dozen more times. Hang on while I get a tape recorder..."
They might have stayed all morning, but Kaname and Sousuke were due to join Aristo, Dibs, and Del for a First Years' meeting with Auntie. After the final test, the roles of their instructors evolved. Now, Bear was the one to push their limits with challenges, albeit the stakes were much lower without the threat of sudden death elimination on a scoreboard. They still called the Senegalian 'Bear' for the most part, although Sousuke stuck with 'Zio' out of respect and Aristo settled on 'Papa Bear'.
True to her word, Auntie's new role was much closer to advocate and adviser. She managed their schedules and set up special events, such as one-on-one QA sessions with high ranking personal. She also tracked their progress, and at the start of their second year, her ruling would be the final word on their area of concentration at MCA. Her primary role in the meantime seemed to protect them from burn-out. Her weekly meetings with the group focused on their well-being and conflict resolution. Sousuke looked forward to it, so he didn't understand why Kaname was dragging her feet on the way to Building D.
"We are running the risk of being late if we don't hurry," he prompted her.
Kaname nodded absently and followed him, but her gaze kept drifting up. The fragments of dark clouds scurried across the blue canopy, driven the high winds left behind by the sudden storm. She held out her hands to catch the breeze.
"Hey, did you mean what you said about honor back there?" she asked, her eyes still on the sky. "You weren't just saying it to make Kurz feel better?"
Sousuke considered the question. "I was trying to help Kurz, but yes, I think he honored Mao by telling her the truth," he answered frankly.
Kaname frowned for a fraction of a moment and then cackled that odd laugh of hers, the one that didn't sound quite natural.
"Who would have thought that Kurz could be such a respectable guy? Anyways, look at the time! We don't want to anger Auntie! Let's get a move-on, Sergeant Slow Poke."
Sousuke watched as she marched ahead of him, her long hair streaming out behind her, and thought about honor and love.
He didn't know the rest of the details yet, but he needed to ask Del for a favor. The plan that was forming in the corners of his mind wouldn't work at all without her help.