Cassie sat up in her bed, the lamp illuminating her mum's face in a golden glow.
"I," Cassie stuttered, her mouth opening and closing trying to figure out what to say, part of her hoping that her mum would brush it all aside and not mention it again. Her mum sighed.

"Mum?" Cassie's voice was a soft whisper, pleading with her mother.
"You know," Cassie's mum sighed, folding the letter and placing it on top of the book. She walked over to the bed and perched on the side, her hands folding over the book - and the letter - that now sat in her lap. Cassie watched her mum who looked at the floor intently.
"I met your dad when he was at Sandhurst, I worked at the school, fresh out of training," she smiled as she reminisced, "I didn't really know what I was signing up for, the long hours, the nights awake when he was on tour, the new army lifestyle. An officers lifestyle." She took a deep breath, looking away from her daughter. "Gosh," she smiled, turning her head to her daughter, "When I was pregnant with you it was the best and worst time of my life, he was stationed away when I found out and he returned two weeks before you were born, but I feared that whole time that I'd be without him when you came along." She smiled weakly, reaching for Cassie's face, softly cradling her cheek, "What I'm trying to say is, that you know this path, I didn't, is it really how you want your life to go?" she asked, dropping her hand back on to the letter, nudging it slightly.
"I don't even know what is going to happen mum, no one does, I don't think he does," Cassie flung her hands over the soft duvet, her fingers instantly picking at the fabric.
"What will your dad say?" Her mum asked, raising her eyebrows.
"Dad isn't going to know… for now." Cassie's eyes met her mothers, pleading and demanding that this conversation stay between them. She bowed her head in acknowledgement before standing and putting the book back in the shelf. Cassie watched her mum walk back to the bed in silence, she reached down and placed a kiss on her daughters forehead, leaving the letter on the duvet before leaving the room.

Grabbing the letter Cassie and put it in her bedside cabinet draw. She retreated under the covers with a sigh, she wished more than ever that she wasn't in this position, that she could move on and have Charles as a mere passing through from the past, but she ached for him. Her chest tightened at the thought of not having him in her life, her heart thumping at her chest and the tears threatened to fall. She was in love with her Captain.

The notes on his page were unrecognisable, the pad in his hand blurry and lightweight, like it wasn't even there. Charles looked up, his eyes meeting the blondes' her shout for him echoing in his brain. He watches as she paces towards him, her body a blur, her face panicked. The shot rings through his ears and the pair fall to the ground with an almighty thud.

Charles woke startled, his heart pumping against his chest, a layer of sweat sticking to his skin, his breathing heavy. He racked his brain, trying to figure out what had happened, she was fine, out of the woods, why all of a sudden was he dreaming about the shooting? Swinging off his bunk Charles grabbed his toiletries and a towel and headed to have a shower, he wasn't going to get back to sleep now, so better get ready for the day.

The water dribbled from the shower head, enough pressure to allow him to clean himself of the night sweat and wash as much sweat, sand and dirt from his hair. The water was warm, but Charles couldn't wait to be home in only two weeks to feel the strong jets of water against his skin and to finally find a time to sort his head out.

It was approaching a year since his and Molly's divorce was finalised, and although they seemed like they could bare each other - Charles wouldn't call it friendship yet - he still felt that since the divorce a piece of him was missing.

Shoving his head under the dribbling shower Charles closed his eyes, scrubbing his face and hair, ridding the shampoo from his locks. With his eyes closed he thought of Cassie, he was transported back to her flat, the pair tangled in her duvet, laughing and giggling, her eyes glistening back at him.

"Fuck." Charles groaned as he pulled from the water, opening his eyes. His mouth was a gape, the water dripping from his growing hair and down his face.

When the canteen opened Charles went in alone, grabbed some breakfast and sat with a cup of coffee, hoping the food and caffeine set him up for the rest of the day.
"Boss man." The cockney accent rung through Charles ears, a smile on his face. It had been a long time since he was called that.
"Dawes," Charles responded looking up to see her bright smile on her face.
"You're here early, trying to nick the food before everyone else can get it?" Molly chuckled slightly, grabbing a piece of toast from Charles' plate and taking a large bite.
"Says you." Charles raised his eyebrows at the Sergeant, her lips turned into a grin as she chewed on the toast. Charles watched Molly as she perched on the seat opposite him, continuing to eat his toast. He was surprised that in all these years she hadn't changed, she moulded into the army type when she needed to, but she was still Molly, outspoken, cheeky, brash, he was glad that she was still the same.
"Couldn't sleep." Charles said softly, pushing the plate across to Molly, another slice of toast sitting waiting to be eaten. Charles grabbed his mug and wrapped his hands around it, taking a small sip of the warm brew. Molly didn't say anything, she just gave a look, her eyebrows furrowed, her smile diminishing, she was waiting to hear why.
"I dreamt, or maybe had a nightmare," Charles said in hushed tones, people had begun to meander into the canteen and you never know who'd be listening, "About the shooting," Charles added,
"Yeah?" Molly gestured for him to continue,
"Everything's a blur, and I see her face, I hear the shot and then I wake up as soon as my body hits the ground,"
"This is the first time you've had this?"
"No." Charles responded, his eyes meeting hers, his face hidden by the mug as he took one final gulp of the remaining coffee.
"Charlie, talk to someone." Molly reached out her hand and squeezed Charles' before stepping off her chair and leaving. He knew she was right, he needed to speak to someone before this all got out of hand. Charles knew that he never resolved the issues he faced once Elvis died, he never confronted why he slept with Georgie, and he'd never got his mind fully off his divorce, until he met Cassie. But no one could save him from his own thoughts, they'd only grow and boil inside until something else happened - like Cassie being shot.

Cassie stood back in her flat, looking out of the window onto the car park. She was happy to be back in her own space. Time had passed and she was now no longer need of supervision, she was getting stronger and fitter each day and she was yearning to go back to work, but she was given time off until after Christmas.

She felt her father's presence beside her, looking out the window. His hadn't reached round his daughters frame and pulled her into him.
"Everything OK?" Cassie asked as she hugged her fathers side,
"Yeah," he said softly, silence prevailed between the pair as they stared out the window, "I'm being moved from Sandhurst," he broke the silence. Cassie stepped from her father's hold and looked up at him, in shock.
"Why?" Cassie asked,
"I go where they ask me." He said, his heart was wrapped in the institution, much like Cassie's was. But hers had begun to unravel, to see the bigger picture, to realise that a life of service didn't mean a life of loneliness. Giving a soft sympathetic smile Cassie gave her dad a small hug,

Her parents left her shortly, Cassie now free to be in her own space. She watched them as they left, her eyes following the car as it drove down the street, a softly smiled to herself. Her stare changed to the line of trees that lined the road, she squinted, an anomaly amongst the trees that she had looked at numerous times. The tall figure moved slightly in the distance, moving quickly further back into the dense forest. Knitting her eyebrows together Cassie continued to stare, trying to find more movement, but the nature only swayed in the soft breeze. Shaking her head she closed the curtains, trying to remove the thought from her mind.

Falling down into her plush sofa Cassie moulded into the soft cushions, she hadn't realised she had missed this comfort so much. She sipped at her freshly brewed tea before pulling her phone from her pocket. Now she had time to herself, she had time to work out her future. Gulping, her heart began beating against her chest as she looked at the contact page for her CO. She chewed at the inside of her lip, pressed call and put the phone to her ear.

"Price, what pleasure do I owe this call?" Her CO answered,
"Sir, I just wanted to ask you a few things, would that be OK?" She asked,
"Of course, Price, how can I help?"
"Sir, I just want to know what options there were for my future," she began, "I know my dad has had some choice opinions, but I want to go down a different route…" she paused,
"Go on…" her CO egged her to continue her thought, Cassie chewed at her lip before continuing.

Sitting in Waterloo station Cassie waiting for the site of the action man that was Ben Williams. The section had been home for just over a week and as soon a they stepped foot on British soil Ben had arranged a night out. He had arranged for them to stay somewhere and even agreed to pay for dinner to get Cassie to join them all.

Cassie was squished in-between two tourists who sat on the bench waiting for their train, their shopping bags sprawled at their feet. A duffle bag sat between Cassie's feat, holding her clothes for the night. She looked out at the platforms, scanning the crowd for Ben, the tall tan soldier. People tumbled from the platform into the main area of the station, parting ways as they split to enter the tube station or towards one of the many exits the station had. Tourists stopped and stared at the hanging signs, trying to figure out the way forward.

"Pricey!" She heard his bellow before she saw his tanned face, his grin big taking up the majority of his face. Cassie stood from her seat, flung her bag over her shoulder and walked towards the dark haired soldier.
"Benjamin," she smiled, opening her arms and wrapping in a hug. His strong arms engulfed her and picked her up slightly, her toes stretching to try and touch the floor.

The pair made their way through the underground, talking about anything and everything, commenting on the tourists that occupied the space looking lost and confused.
"Who is actually coming tonight?" Cassie asked Ben as they stepped from the tube station and onto the busy road. Ben pulled her arm towards the direction of the hotel he had booked, miles from anywhere they needed to be, but it was cheap. Ben's excuse was to pay for an adequate hotel to afford more for drinks in London.
"Schumi, Mikey, Jones…" ben began rattling names `off of people Cassie didn't know.

Cassie stood in the bathroom, staring at her own reflection in the large mirror that backed the wall behind the sink. She ran her bronzer brush over her cheeks once more before fixing the hem of her dress.
"Come on Cass, the kitchen is going to shut by the time you're ready." Ben called, he sat alone in the bedroom, watching whatever nonsense was on BBC One.

Cassie fiddled with her dress once again, moving at different angles to try and figure out if she could hide the scar on her chest for the full night. She wore a tight black dress with long sleeves, the hem stopped at mid thigh, it was short on Cassie's long legs and she hoped that she wouldn't be constantly pulling it down. It had a chunky zip down the front from top to bottom, the neck line was high high, but the zip was meant to be undone to show her cleavage. Cassie hoped that no one would feel the urge to push the zip down further.
"Do I look OK?" Cassie took a deep breath, her hair tied into a sleek knot at the bottom of her head, small strands delicately placed around the front of her face to frame it.

Stepping out into the room Cassie watched as Ben blinked, his eyebrows rising before coughing away his reaction.
"Beautiful." His smile was cheeky,
"Can you see my scar?" Cassie asked, it was still raised and pink,
"No." Ben shook his head, "Now let's go!" He said, falling off the bed, turning the TV and grabbing his wallet. Cassie pushed on a pair of blush heels and buckled the small strap around her ankle, the soles of her feet were already disagreeing with her shoe choice. Grabbing her bag she followed the tall soldier out the door.

It was odd seeing Ben out of uniform, especially in his pressed white shirt and dark blue skinny jeans. She rolled her eyes at the ease of his outfit choice, but she also knew that this ensemble would be worn by most men out this evening. The pair were going to grab some food before meeting the rest of the boys in a nearby bar.

"What's your plan now?" Ben asked sipping at his pint of beer, he patted his stomach as he pushed his empty plate away.
"With work?" Cassie asked, he merely nodded, taking another large gulp. Cassie picked up the fourth cocktail she'd been urged to try by the muscular man in front of her, she took a sip from the straw before pushing her plate back and resting her elbows on the table.

"I spoke to my CO..." Cassie said softly, she hadn't told anyone what her decision was going to be, "He'd already had many comments from my dad about where to put my in the barracks," she rolled her eyes, "but dad is being moved from Sandhurst." Cassie mentioned, Ben's eyebrows rose at the news, but he didn't say anything and continued to listen. "Anyway, I'd always tried to prove to him that I'm not a joke, that I can take it, I can do the role just as good as any man..." Cassie gulped, she took a large sip of her drink and looked into Ben's caring eyes.

"I'm going to Sandhurst." She said, Ben's mouth dropped open, "I've been allowed to go for a late entry commission, providing I pass a fitness test in 10 days." She added before chugging down the rest of her drink, Ben didn't say a word except smile whilst he thought of what to say.
"Just as long as your not my Captain one day." Ben broke the silence with a laugh, Cassie kicked him under the table which earned a yell from the dark haired man in front of her.
"That's a good 10 years away Ben, gotta get my commission first, you know how it is for late entry, and being you know who's daughter." Cassie rolled her eyes and fell back into her chair. It would be tough, she knew that, but she felt a lot better that she had shared it with a friend.

Multiple drinks in - Cassie had lost count - and numerous jäger bombs the boys were rowdy in the middle of the dance floor. Mikey and Jones were flirting with what seemed like a pair of twins, trying to wow them with their war stories and Ben and Schumi were scanning the crowd like a pack of hyenas. Cassie bobbed between Ben and Schumi feeling slightly awkward, but the alcohol was now starting to take over her body and began to make her feel a little more at ease. She'd shrugged off a few advances from some lads, and others showed minimal interest when she explained her wound - which was proving difficult to hide in the constant movement. Most the time she was just rolling her eyes at the patronising advances, but once they saw Ben or Schumi they soon disappeared. There was some advantages to having friends who could become intimidating within seconds.

They continued to dance a long to the music, laughs and smiles sat on their faces as they relaxed. The beat of the music tumbled through Cassie's body, and even though her feet were killing her from the pain of the heels she stood in, she was actually enjoying herself.

The group had slid from the dance floor and had filtered back to the booth Ben had stupidly booked, but it did benefit Cassie and her aching feet. A tray of drinks were brought back by Jones, the sticky tray dominated by little plastic shot glasses.
"Sambuca?" Cassie shouted over as she picked up a shot, furrowing her eyebrows at Jones, the aniseed scent running through her nostrils. He grinned.

With a quick countdown, the group who half sat and half stood necked the shots. Cassie let the strong liquid fall down her throat, her eyes squeezing shut at the taste. A cheer erupted around her but when she opened her eyes all she could see was them bundled in some awkward group hug, someone had arrived, but who? She looked to see who had joined them, wondering who was missing.

The boys soon dispersed, parting like the Red Sea showing the new arrival to the solo shot that sat on the table in front of Cassie. Her eyes met his bright smile and his glistening eyes, his brunette hair was perfect and his stubble had grown out just a bit more that usual. Charles. She watched as his smile left his face slightly, the gleam in his eyes disappearing. The boys wouldn't notice, but Cassie did.
"Captain," Cassie shouted over the music as she stood and took a few small steps closer to him, his arms instantly opening to engulf her in a hug.
"No need for formalities, I'm not your captain." Charles said over the music as his hands wrapped around her, "You look beautiful." He whispered into her ear. Cassie felt like the hug lasted too long, but she melted slightly in his embrace. She'd forgotten what it had felt like to be held by him, to have his warm body close to hers.
"For you." She turned quickly, grabbing the shot and putting it into Charles long fingers. "I'm gonna grab a drink." She gulped, her voice was so quiet that Charles only knew what she said because his eyes were planted on her lips.

Cassie weaved through the busy crowd, her heart pumping against her chest. The last time she saw Charles was before she headed back to the UK, the last time she heard from him was the letter. The last time they actually spoke, properly, was when he made the assumption of her and Ben, and she assumed he was getting back with Molly. She was giving him his time, but it still hurt that he didn't acknowledge her at all until now.

"Fancy seeing you here." The cockney voice slithered into her ear, Cassie froze against the bar as she felt his hand snake around her waist and pull her closer to him.

"Dodge." She said softly, her voice quiet that it was difficult for anyone else to hear. The last thing she needed was to cause a scene. She looked at Dodge through the mirror that sat behind the bar shelves, he was pale under the dim lights, his eyes dull with dark bags sitting underneath them. His cheeks were hollow and his lips cracked. His hand left Cassie's body before grabbing at her wrist and pulling her away from the bar. Turning her head Cassie looked for the boys, trying to see if she could catch anyone's eyes, but she couldn't. They were engulfed in chat at the booth, hugging and laughing, too engrossed in their fun to notice Cassie being dragged out of the bar.

A/N: Sorry for the long wait. Had a lot of work stress then had a small little holiday to have a break from everything. I hope you enjoy, as always comments/reviews are always appreciated. Hopefully it wont be a long wait for the next part! - M :) x