Chapter 3 - Bands of Gold

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It was their third kiss, trapped in the corridors of the SDF-1 that had made something once murky within Rick become as clear as the sunny skies of his youth. His third kiss with Lisa, this time given freely and savored in a way the others before hadn't been allowed to be, and it was as sweet and as familiar as coming home.

Here she is, his heart whispered as his lips touched hers. She was right here all along.

They hadn't wasted much time after that. War and conflict had a way of rushing things along and with every shared touch, every shared look, he fell a deeper in love with her. But there was a cloud that hovered over him too - every time he went out in Skull One he wondered if he would come back, every launch into battle left him uneasy. Lisa had already lost one love… he didn't want her to lose her smile if she lost him too. He considers briefly backing off, to spare her the risk, but he's selfish and he wants her and he clings to Lisa a little too tightly.

Yet she doesn't seem to mind.

And then… and then a miracle - and suddenly she's his and their future together beats under his palm and wraps around their fingers.

She runs a hand over his bare skin as the sweat from their love making dries on their skin. Her lips curve as she smiles at him in the low light of her quarters. The newly minted wedding band he glimpses makes his heart full even as it splinters with the knowledge of her upcoming departure.

He wonders if he's brave enough to let her go, then realizes he doesn't have a choice.

"I'm going to miss you so much," he whispers roughly, lowering his head to hide the sudden dampness that fills them. He breathes her in and savors her warmth.

"I know," she says softly and her short nails rub against his scalp as she cradles his head against her. "I'll miss you too. But remember why, Rick. Remember the reason why…"

Then she shifts under him and draws him close… and he prays it won't be the last time.

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He hates the way he's forced to watch the shuttle disappear into the distance in a sparkle of stars against the black, but he hates it more when the call comes and he's scrambled to intercept. He knew this mission was a mistake, he knew it! And then he's hightailing it through space to reach her. He fights like a demon possessed, ignoring the fact that the armored veritech is untested, ignoring the fact it's just him against the enemy to hold the line until they finally give up and retreat.

But he can't ignore the approaching blue planet on the edge of his vision.

Lisa, he sighs inwardly as the shuttle banks and disappears into the atmosphere and he's forced to turn back. He wants nothing more than to follow her, maybe even drag her back to the SDF-1, but he also knows the mission is bigger than all of them.

So he returns to the SDF-1 even as his heart makes its way to Earth.

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He feels Lisa's absence keenly in all the spare spaces of his life that aren't taken up with the fight against the Zentraedi but even more so in the spaces where it is. Sammy's voice rings in his ear now, Sammy's voice echoes through the ship when they're called to battle and afterwards, he lingers in the mess hall and writes his wife's name in his mashed potatoes. The subtle weight of his wedding ring is threaded onto a chain around his neck and hidden under his uniform. He wishes he could wear it on his finger where it's supposed to be but it would bring too many questions he isn't allowed to answer.

So he saves that honor for when he's alone.

Max tries to cheer him up, dragging him to an arcade where the noise and the bright lights drown out his melancholy for a while. He watches Max in a digital duel with a green haired beauty then returns to his quarters alone where he finds himself flicking through the meagre handful of channels available to the ship, landing on Minmei's familiar face.

"Oh, you must mean Rick Hunter," she's giggling on the screen. "He was just a friend!"

Rick admires the way the gold band seems to sit so perfectly against his skin. He comforts himself with the thought that wherever Lisa is, she wears the matching counterpart.

"I guess maybe I was," he muses to himself. He wonders if Minmei's words should sting more than they do, but there's nothing there but a dull echo, easily drowned out by the thoughts of the woman he now calls his wife.

He flicks off the broadcast and flops back onto his bunk with a heavy sigh. Sleep eludes him but it doesn't matter anyway, because Max is soon knocking urgently on his door.

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"Well, if it isn't Lieutenant Hunter as I live and breathe," Claudia says teasingly when she finds him in the observation lounge watching the Earth turn slowly out the view port. If he waits long enough, Alaska will come into view, and he'll be able to torture himself trying to mentally calculate just how far away Lisa is from him, wondering if she's missing him and hoping she's safe wherever she is.

"Oh. Hey, Claudia."

He can't hide the dejection in his tone and Claudia raises a brow. before she takes a seat beside him. For a moment they sit in a companionable silence and watch the planet turn.

"So what are you doing out here in the middle of the night anyway, hmm?"

Rick shrugs weakly. "I couldn't stay in my room."

"Not really the best way to spend a honeymoon, is it?" she says to him softly.

Rick gives her a thin smile. "Not really. Guess I didn't think that one through."

Claudia eyes him warily. "No regrets I hope?"

"No," Rick says sharply as he sits up. "Not a chance."

Claudia's smile is secretive and pleased behind her hand. "I'm glad she has you," she says after a moment. "Don't worry, she'll come back to you. She'll come back to all of us."

Rick's gaze catches the swirl of white and blue outside. "I hope so, Claudia. I really do."

"Lisa is a fighter, Rick. You can be sure she's going to fight like hell to win a future for you and your baby," Claudia says as she stands up.

Claudia shuffles off, leaving Rick missing Lisa more than ever.

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He misses her when Max comes to him and tells him he's found love of his own. He misses her when Max marries Miriya to the fanfare of the entire ship, snorting silently to himself when the news reports tout it loudly as the 'first wedding in outer space'. He wishes Lisa were here, so he could take her hand remind her that honor was privately theirs and maybe no one will ever know that fact but it doesn't matter because they do.

He misses her when Max and Miriya's giggles leak through the walls and he has to press a pillow over his face to drown them out.

"I miss you, Lisa," he says out loud, then closes his eyes as exhaustion steals him away into sleep.

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The small Zentraedi delivers the devastating news with a resigned calmness. Millions of ships, the same fleet Lisa had been so anxious to record to bring back for their report – not that it would have made a difference, they weren't believed anyway. Rick spies Miriya taking Max's hand and overhears their quiet vows to fight side by side to the end and it makes Rick's chest ache. Even Minmei, on the other side of the room, is cocooned against Kyle as the situation becomes clear.

And Rick can only think about Lisa and the painful tug against his chest, the regret that he wouldn't get to see her one last time. He tries to comfort himself that at least Lisa wasn't going to be on the com to hear it if the fight finally claims Skull One. She has a better chance at survival on Earth than he does, he has to believe that.

He's suiting up when door opens and Minmei stands in the doorway. She's small, demure, eyes downcast. He's surprised and more than a little confused to see her.

"Rick," she says softly as she enters.

"Minmei, what are you doing here?"

"I needed to see you. I… I wanted to apologize to you Rick. About Kyle."

Rick raises a brow. "It's not really your fault. I should have let you know what my feelings really where when I had the chance. Besides, it all worked out in the end. You have Kyle and I…"

He shakes his head and wonders why they're talking about this now when there's a giant armada amassing around the Earth. He wonders why he's not more panicked. Perhaps he's used up all his panic over the years. After staring death in the face so often, it feels surreal to think this one could be the big one. He's almost numb, until he remembers he might never see Lisa again, that they won't get to live a life together, that Lisa is going to be left broken hearted for the second time and then the regret rushes in loud and painful.

He shouldn't have been so selfish, he thinks then tries to console himself with the fact at least Lisa won't be alone this time. She'll have something they created together, just the two of them, to nurture and live for and Rick tells himself that somehow it will be enough.

Minmei gasps softly. "But I-"

"Oh, Minmei, it's alright. I'm a pilot, and you're a big star now." He catches a glimpse of the ring on his finger. If this was going to be his last fight, then he wanted it to be where it belonged. A symbol of what he was fighting for… but it occurs to him that Minmei doesn't know he's moved on. She doesn't know he's married to Lisa now.

How do I tell her?

He picks up his helmet and avoids her eye. "You know it wouldn't have worked for us anyway."

She sniffs as her eyes track his hand, zeroing in on the gold band. "Rick, what is that?"

Her despair threatens to wash over him but before he can answer her, the space around them turns gold and fills the vision beyond the viewport. Rick gasps and runs to the window, planting his hands down to hold himself up. The Earth is captured in an all-encompassing shimmer of sparks that might have been beautiful had he not known of the destruction pouring down.

"Oh no…" he whispers brokenly. "No… Lisa!"

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