Glaz sat by the fire, letting the warmth run through his body. It's been a few hours and he should be waking Skylar up, but he just couldn't. She already went through so much, the last thing he wanted was to wake her. He'll let her sleep just a little bit longer. Skylar deserved it.
While she was asleep he went over their supplies and to say they were fucked was an understatement. The only food they had were the few power bars they took from base and one and a half canteens full of water. If they don't find a way out or any food and water soon, they'll die down here. But Glaz wasn't giving up anytime soon, he'll find a way to make sure they both live. And to make things worse, both of their radios and phones broke on the fall down.
This was supposed to be a simple hostage extraction, nothing else. Who would've thought they were standing on an underground mine? Neither of them. But a mine has an entrance, and Glaz is determined to find it. Skylar needs medical attention, and the sooner they get out the sooner she can get the treatment she needs.
Skylar began to move, making little noises that sent the sniper up to his feet and over to her. She slowly opened her eyes, seeing the red and orange flames in front of her and Glaz to her side. Slowly sitting up, she squinted at the pain in her abdomen and sighed.
"Milaya, how are you feeling?"
She maneuvered herself to lean against the wall of the cave, squinting again at the pain running through her body. "My whole body is in agony."
He sat against the wall with her, picking up his jacket and covering her with it. "I wish I had something to give you, but neither of us had any Tylenol. Just rest and take it slow for the next few days and then we'll find a way out."
Skylar groaned as she rested her head on his shoulder, moving his jacket up closer to her neck. Glaz smiled to himself, not expecting her to do that, but he also didn't want to get his hopes up. She could just be doing this because she's hurt and needs comforting, and he's the only one there.
"Is there a way out?"
"Well we're stuck in a mine so I'd say there's a good chance."
She moved her head off his shoulders, mouth slightly agape. "A mine? We fell into a mine."
"Yes we did." He chuckled. "There's an opening in the cave over there."
"I wanna see."
She began to stand up, but Glaz gently pushed her back down against the cave wall. "A little bit later okay? I don't want you opening up any wounds right now milaya."
Skylar settled back down against the wall of the cave and sighed. "Yeah, yeah you're right."
It went quiet between them, just the crackling of the fire wood was heard. The quietness was almost too eery, no wind, no rats, just….nothing. It sent a shiver down her spine. She wants to repay this debt to Glaz, for saving her life. If he listened to her and let her go, she would be dead right now. Bleeding out in an abandoned mine wasn't how she pictured herself dying.
"When or if we get out, drinks are on me."
"When! When we get out Sky." He fixed his jacket around her, keeping it from fall off her bad shoulder. "I'll hold you too it, only after you see Doc and get the right treatment for your wounds."
"For someone who's not a doctor, you did a good job." Her eyes darted to the fire, tears slowly swelling in them. "As I sit her, feeling all this pain run through my body I can't help but think….I would be dead right now if it weren't for you. I'll never be able to repay this debt."
"I don't want you to repay me for what I did." He wiped the tears from her eyes with his thumb, giving her a small smile. "I did it because I didn't want to lose someone I care about. You're my friend Skylar, I would never leave you behind!"
"I wouldn't leave you behind either Timur!" She moved closer to him, and as best she could, covered them both up with his jacket. "And I care about you too." She looked up at him with a smile, that he couldn't help mirror back. "You still have your face paint on."
He moved a glove less hand up to his face, feeling the consistency beneath his fingers.
"Oh I forgot I even had it on." He chuckled. "I'll take it off later, don't worry."
Skylar sat up more, letting his jacket fall a little. "Let me do it! You already helped more than once. Let me help you with this."
"Okay!"
He got up to retrieve a makeshift rag and one of the canteens. Skylar moved his jacket on to her lap as she sat up a little straighter, ignoring the pain in her abdomen. When he returned he sat down in front of her, placing the rag and canteen in her lap while he took of his black hat, ruffling his black hair.
Even though her arm was in a sling she could still unscrew the cap of the canteen and pour some on the rag. She rang it out with her good hand, then began getting the face paint off Glaz's face.
She started by his nose, slowly moving the rag over the paint. It glided smoothly under her fingers, revealing pale skin underneath. Her breath got stuck in her throat as she piece by piece got his face cleaned up. She's never been this close to him or this intimate and it felt...right.
As Glaz watched her his heart kept beating rapidly in his chest, his breathing becoming sharp. Having Skylar this close to him was sending the snipers heart into overdrive. How many times has he daydreamed about her doing this, helping take off his face paint after a mission? Too many to count. Now that she was, he just wished it was in his dorm room rather than a mine.
"There, that's much better!" She smiled over at him, setting the rag on the ground. "Now I can see those pretty blue eyes better."
He laughed and rubbed the back of his neck, trying to tame his beating heart. He always hated having crushes, the nights lying awake thinking about them or the hours spent daydreaming up random scenarios he wishes would come true, but deep down knows they won't. It was always the same outcome for him, they never happened. And he doesn't want that to happen with Skylar. Thankfully things seem to be going in the opposite direction, for once.
"So, what actually made you join the marines? You don't seem like the military type."
She laughed and leaned back against the cave wall. "I didn't think I was one either. I graduated when I was 16, took a gap year before going to college. During the gap year a pretty bad hurricane struck Maine, ended up destroying my dad's business. I joined because I wanted to pay for my tuition, I didn't want my parents to use money on me when it should go into getting the family business back up and running. After I joined I found it was my calling, where I was meant to be."
When she turned to him, she saw the small smile on his face. It made it hard not to smile back. "That was very compassionate of you! What are they like, your parents?"
Skylar smiled to herself as she thought about her parents, they were both very loving and helped their daughters' to become the best they could be.
"They're amazing! They're both very loving and were always there for me or my sisters' when we needed them. Very laid back. But the one thing I love the most about them is that they never freaked out over any question we had. Or say we weren't old enough to be talking about that. They're the parents I aspire to be, when or if I have kids." Her smile kinda faded as she thought about them. They didn't know she was down here and it would be a while before Six sends a search team for them. "What are your parents like?"
"They sound very nice! They raised you and you're one of the kindest and caring person in Rainbow! My parents were pretty laid back as well. Though my father was a little more strict than my mama was." He rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. "But they were loving and caring and that's what matters. You're young Sky, you have plenty of time to have kids."
"I'd say they did a job job of raising you. You're the most gentlemanly gentleman in Rainbow." She chuckled and gave him a small smile. "I know I still have time to have kids, I just want to be with the right person before bringing any little ones into the world. Do you want kids?"
Glaz leaned against the wall of the cave, looking into the flames of the fire, then back to her. "I never really thought about children. I have to agree with you, being with the right person before having children seems like the right way to go."
"Regardless of when or if we have kids, you'll make a great dad!"
"And I think you'll make a great mom someday!"
A small smile formed on both their faces, and Glaz gave her good hand a small squeeze.
The cave was starting to get cold, making Skylar wonder if it was turning to night outside. It sent a shiver down her spine and goose-flesh on her skin. Glaz noticed the shiver and put his arm around her and covered her more with the jacket.
"It's getting cold." She snuggled up against him as best she could. "If it gets any colder we'll be using each others body heat and the fire for warmth."
"Like now milaya?" He looked down at her, meeting her gaze. "I kept telling myself I wanted to spend more time with you, I just didn't expect this would be it."
He sighed and Skylar's heart skipped a beat. She moved away from him to get a better look at him, whatever a better look is when your stuck in a dark cave with the only light source being a fire. She could still see him almost perfectly from the glimmer of the fire, how his eyes were conveying sadness and lips pursed.
"You wanted to spend more time with me?"
Glaz gulped, his heart beginning to beat rapidly again. That's all he ever wanted to do, was spend more time with her. He didn't care what they did or didn't do, he just wanted to spend some quality time with her, without the prying eyes of friends and co-workers.
"I do. I always wanted too, and every time I would see you and start up a conversation…"
"We're getting interrupted by someone or something." Skylar finished.
"Yeah."
She laughed, then groaned in pain, watching Glaz raise a brow. "What's funny?"
"I wanted to spend more time with you too! I was going to ask you if you wanted to go into town after the mission and do something, just to get off base and away from the annoyance named Alex."
"You were?" He blinked his eyes a few time, contemplating everything. "You do?"
"Of course Timur, I always wanted to spend more time with you! Get to know each other better." She closed her eyes and scoffed. "I thought it was a coincidence at first, Alex just showing up when we're talking, I don't think that's the case anymore. He has to know when we're together."
"I always thought it was weird he knew we were together every time we were, like he didn't want us to be." He chuckled. "I'm good with details but figuring that man out is a feat of its own."
"No one will be able to figure him out." They both laughed. "Whatever his reason is better stop before I steal his beloved degtyaryov from him."
"I would pay to see that happen."
"You can keep the money but I just might do it once I'm healed up." She bit her bottom lip, making Glaz raise an eyebrow. "I'm gonna need your help to do it though, you in?"
He sat up a little straighter with a big gleeful smile on his face. No one would try something like this against Tachanka. Stealing his beloved degtyaryov was a death sentence, but Glaz knows Skylar is fierce and can deal with whatever Alex dishes out.
"I'm in! What do you need me to do?"
She smiled back when she heard him agree to work on this little prank with her. She only trusted him with this job, Kapkan and Fuze would just outright tell Tachanka and that would ruin it.
"I'm gonna need you to distract him, without telling Maxim or Shuhrat. We both know they'll tell him. I don't care how you do it, just keep him away from his room, and I'll sneak in and grab it."
"Easy enough! He's going to flip out when he finds out and will be on a warpath, you sure about this?"
Skylar scoffed and swatted her hand in the air. "What is he going to do once he finds out it's me? Nothing!"
"That's true! He won't expect it from you, and will probably be shocked."
"I'll be sure to have my camera ready to take pictures." She chuckled. "Oh this will be fun."
"That's good, we should print out the picture of his reaction and frame it too."
"Even better!"
They both laughed, but it quickly died down between them. There was a throbbing sensation from where Glaz cortourized her wound, and as long as she doesn't open it she doesn't care.
She looked over at him, grabbing his hand and gave it a little squeeze. "So what's the damage?"
Glaz moved over to her, wrapping his arm around her shoulder and made sure both of them were covered with his jacket - her more so.
"Bad, very bad. Both our radios and phones broke on the fall down, we only have a few power bars and one and a half canteens full of water."
"Fuck." She looked up at him, seeing the worry in the sniper's blue eyes. "So what's the plan?"
"Right now I just want you to rest and gain your strength back up. The first thing we should do is find water, that's more important. Food comes second."
Skylar averted her eyes to the ground, at that moment she wished Kapkan was with them, he would know what to do. "I agree, water should come first, we need that to survive."
"Yeah."
Tears started to well in her eyes, her heart jumped to her throat making it hard to breath. She didn't want to cry, she wanted to be strong, for Glaz, for herself. Finding out that their chances of survival was limited didn't help her cause, now she felt hopeless.
He notice the change of body language, and brought her head closer to his chest. That's when Skylar bunch his shirt up in her hands and started to cry. He knew nothing would help, so he held her close, rubbing up and down her arm trying to comfort her.
"I'm, I'm sorry I don't have better news milaya. I wish I did."
Her grip on his shirt loosened and she looked up at him with tear filled eyes. "It's not your fault, none of this is your fault. If it's anyone's it's mine."
"Ne govori takiye veshchi, this is not your fault. How could we have known we were standing on an abandoned mine."
Skylar moved away from him, wiping her eyes and sniffled. "We couldn't have. I just feel bad that we're down here, the boards broke under my weight."
"They did." His voice cracked, making him close his eyes and sigh through his nose. If only he was as blunt as his friend Tachanka, then this wouldn't feel like thorn in his side. Why couldn't he just tell her the truth? "It's still not your fault Skylar. If you were down here alone I wouldn't have left that hole up there, I would've died up there than leave you."
"Why?"
"Because I care!"
She wiped the rest of her tears away with her good hand, then leaned over and kissed his cheek. "You're a good man Timur and I'm thankful you did what you did!"
"I try to be milaya and you would've done the same."
"You don't need to try, it comes naturally to you!" She snuggled up against him, resting her head on his shoulder. "Yes I would have done the same."
They both went quiet after that, just enjoying each other's company in the darkness of the cave. Glaz leaned his head back against the cave wall, closing his eyes and cursing himself. This would be the perfect time to come clean and tell her he loved her, has from the moment he laid eyes on her. Was it the fear of rejection that kept him from doing so? Or something else?
"Can we go see the mine now?"
He chuckled at how innocent she sounded, making her look up at him with furrowed brows. "I'm sorry, you just sounded so….cute and innocent."
"Well you're the one adamant on me resting, but I just want to see the mine. I don't want to see much, just what you have seen."
"Okay, I suppose that would be fine."
She slowly started to get up, scrunching her face at the pain in her abdomen. "I think after we get out of here, we should take an extended leave time and go on vacation or do something. Because after this shit, we deserve it."
Glaz heart skipped in his chest as he grabbed one of the flash lights, switching it on. He loved the thought of going somewhere with her, whether on vacation or just around town, he didn't care. He just wants to be around her.
"What did you have in mind?"
They started to walk over to the opening in the cave at a slow pace. Skylar was still a little wobbly in the legs and her body ached all over.
"I don't know yet, we have a lot of places to choose. Is there anywhere you would like to go?"
"I've always wanted to go to Disneyland."
He looked over at Skylar to see her smiling at him, it made his cheeks burn and no doubt turn pink. He was thanking the darkness at the very moment for hiding it from her.
"I think Disneyland is a perfect choice. I haven't been there since I was a little girl." She walked closer to him, grazing his hand with hers. "I never saw you for a Disney guy. I like it!"
"I've never actually told anyone." He rubbed the back of his neck, chuckling nervously. "I'm sure I wouldn't hear the end of it from the guys."
"Well I think it's very attractive. I like it when a man isn't afraid of showing his softer side."
"You do?"
Skylar snorted and shook her head. Sometimes she wondered if Glaz was playing dumb or if he truly believed she didn't like a man showing his softer side. It was both sad and cute all at the same time.
"Yes I do! Why wouldn't I?"
Glaz shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know, usually women go for the bad boy type."
"Not me." She scoffed. "I dated one bad boy and that was enough. I'd rather deal with a hundred bombers than a guy like that again."
"That must have been a bad break up if you would rather deal with a hundred bombers."
"It was. I'll tell you about it someday, it's a hell of a story." She sighed and gestured to the opening in the cave wall. "Can we go now? I can't take the waiting anymore."
She chuckled and rubbed the back of her neck with her good arm.
"Yeah of course. After you!"
"How chivalrous."
Skylar slowly made her way through the opening, making sure not to hit her bad shoulder or open the wound on her abdomen, luckily the surface was smooth for the most part. And she had a few inches of space either way.
When she got to the other side she stared at her surroundings in awe. They really were stuck in a mine, not that she didn't believe Glaz, it just sounded...absurd in a way. A mine hidden in the Russian wilderness, what could go wrong?
She flipped her flashlight on and walked over to the elevator and flipped the switch. Nothing. "It was worth a shot."
"Skylar this has been abandoned for decades, did you really think the elevator would work?"
He shook his head and laughed, pointing his flashlight beam in every direction to see what he missed the first time he found this place.
"I had a glimmer of hope that there would be some juice left in the generators." She shot him a look and chuckled. "How old do you think this place is? And why is it hidden in the mountains."
Glaz looked around him, he wasn't good at architecture, but he was with details. But from where they stood, his surroundings didn't give him much beside a normal platform with a small staircase leading up to it. You could find in any mine or a place similar.
"If it's hidden than it wasn't used for good things. My guess probably early to mid 50's."
"Maybe we'll find out. What else is there to do beside resting and finding a way out of here?"
Glaz turned his head away from her and sighed. She watched him with slight worry, placing her good hand on his arm he turned his attention back to her.
"Skylar, there's something I need to tell you."