"What?"
"I love you."
"Seriously?"
"Yeah seriously." She can't help releasing a little chuckle. Only Sonny Quinn would have a reaction that questions if she really means it. "It's okay if you don't…"
"No I…I…"
"It's okay, really. You don't have to say it back. I just had to let you know since you're…"
"I…I love you too."
"Seriously?" This time even Sonny had to join in the laughter at how this conversation was going. They both just admitted—out loud—how they truly felt about each other and neither could believe what the other was saying.
"Yeah, I was gonna tell you before we left for Manila. I just didn't know if…see, I didn't think you'd…"
"Sonny, stop talking."
"…and then after Stella broke up with Clay, he told me to never to fall in love while we were in Mexico and now I'm sitting here, saying it to you and…" God he was even more adorable when he rambled. By mistake, she stopped listening a while ago, but he was just too cute when his words started tripping over each other and he couldn't stop himself. "…if this is…"
"Sonny…"
"…don't know…"
"Sonny…" as much as she enjoys seeing him so flustered, before he can take another deep inhale and continue rambling she stops him with a kiss.
"Can you…"
"Can I what?"
"Can you say it again?"
"Like the way it makes you feel?"
"Yeah." He leans back cool on his elbows, his torso on full display for all to see. Now with the perfect view, she can use her trained eye and see the evidence left behind after a spin-up. He's got tan lines that begin and end perfectly where his uniform would be, faint markings on his shoulders from his parachute and slight trauma on his left side she's almost positive is from one of the bombs that brought Clay back stateside.
"I love you." She watches him fall back into the couch and close his eyes, a completely satisfied and content look on his face.
"I love you too cake eater."
"Hey!"
"Just kidding. You're my cake eater," he pauses to stretch before leaning back up, "come on."
"Where we going?"
"It's bedtime somewhere right?"
"I thought we were meeting the guys for drinks?"
"Yeah," he drags out the word, lifting her in a one easy motion, "we might be a little late."
—
Later that night, everyone gathers at the usual bar, partly in memory of Brett Swann and partly to catch up with everyone back home. Even though Davis and Sonny walked in together, they had a little routine worked out. If they walked in together, like tonight, they cooly parted ways almost immediately, hoping to convey the assumption that they simply rode together and nothing more. They didn't want to give anyone reason to suspect anything, like that less than an hour ago, there was something else she was riding…
Sonny hitching a ride with her wouldn't arouse suspicion from any of the guys. More often than not, he pretty quickly crossed over the legal limit to drive and got a ride home from someone. On her way to the bar, she begins to smile and smile wide. In a few hours, she could "offer" to take Sonny home and make sure he didn't get in trouble. She could put her arms around him of course under the guise of "helping" him, but knowing damn well Sonny could hold his liquor just fine. Maybe he'd get in on the action and pretend to be extra drunk in order to get extra close to her and they could both giggle at the shameless display of PDA. That possibility alone was putting her back in a great mood.
"There she is. Sorry we missed the ceremony, but Clay told us all about it."
"Raymond Perry, you're a sight for sore eyes. How're Naima and the kids?"
"Everyone's good. How was OCS?"
"Hell, but you know, I crushed it."
"We didn't expect anything less."
"It's good to see the guys back in one piece. You too."
"Thanks."
She looks out at the back table and watches the guys catch up. Clay and Trent re-telling and over-exaggerating the stories they told their Filipino counterparts, Jason at the bar ordering more pitchers with Brock and Sonny downing his glass, teasing Clay whenever the waitress came back around. "So lemme ask you something because if there's anyone who knows what's goes on with this team on the personal level, it's First Class Yeoman Lisa Davis." She snaps her attention back to Ray, but when she catches the ear-to-ear smile on his face, she laughs, "excuse me, Officer Lisa Davis. May I ask you, Officer Lisa Davis, a question?"
"Of course you can Senior Chief Perry. What's up?"
"What's up with Sonny?"
"What do you mean? Something happen to him over there?"
"No, no nothing like that. He was actually the stable one while we were in Guam and that's what's up. When Sonny Quinn is the stable one in Bravo you know something's up—with the rest of us and with him." She had to stifle a laugh.
"That's true."
"Right? I'm sure you know what was going on with me and Jason and how what happened to Clay affected all of us. Sonny was still calm and damn near level-headed through it all. Something's up with him. I'm not saying it's something bad, but he's different. You know why?"
She takes a moment to glance in his direction again, watching Clay tease Sonny right back when a different waitress comes to the table, placing a tray of hot wings down. It's driving her insane she can't hear what's being said, but she resists the urge to go over and kill the waitress when she sees her play along with the guys and her hands intrude on what Davis now considers hers. The waitress' hands remove his hat and run a hand through his hair. The hands take a full pitcher of beer passing by and drop it on the table, her hands disappearing from view for just a few seconds, but it's a few seconds too long for Davis. That little disappearing act followed by the "whoa" she could clearly hear from Sonny over all the noise followed by the roars from the guys was enough. He was hers and that waitress better learn her place.
"I don't know, but it won't take me long to figure out."
"Well when you do figure it out, make sure you tell us. We pressed him, but he didn't budge."
"Can't be anything serious. Judging by what I just saw over there, he seems to be the old Sonny Quinn to me."
"Indeed. The guy's definitely got a way about him. Never mind he's a hot mess, the ladies love him. Must be the Texas drawl," she gives a little laugh with Ray before he continues, "come on, let's get back to the table." It is the Texas drawl. It's the drawl, the beard, his muscles, his brute strength and unapologetic nature, but there's more and she knows she not the only woman to see it. It's his sensitivity, fierce loyalty, desire to be more emotional even though they ended up as endlessly adorable rambles and willingness to sacrifice himself for those he cared about.
"Looks like Sonny forgot all about that girl he was hung up on the entire time we were Gucci." Ray declared, taking a seat next to Jason, she next to Sonny and Trent on her other side.
"Oooh really? Sonny Quinn was hung up on some girl? Who was she?" Damn right she was still boiling from what that waitress did, but she was gonna have a little fun with him while he was still stateside.
"Good luck getting an answer. He's been dodging that question for weeks now," Brock answered before Sonny could.
"What's with the obsession into my life?"
"Because you're not the same and we wanna know why." Jason spoke next.
"Yeah and you were never so secretive before. What's so different about this chick compared to all the others?" Trent added on.
"Nothing."
"Were you not the first one to pack up and be ready to go? Last year in J-Bad I had to do everything short of light firecrackers next to your ears to get you out of bed and onto the plane." Jason explained further.
"Yeah, I wanted to get home and as far away from Shaw as possible. And of course to see Clay."
"I'm touched Sonny. Really. Come here," Clay stretches his arms out, ready to have a full-on embrace with Sonny who tries and fails to dodge Bravo six, slipping into his hug that looks more like a headlock. "I love you man, really I do." Sonny doesn't acknowledge his love profession and Clay doesn't let him go. "And?"
"What?"
"Admit it. Admit you love me too."
"Never."
"Fine, tell us the name of the girl who took stripper-loving Sonny Quinn from us and replaced him with boring, stable Sonny Quinn." The laughs extend around the table and even Lisa can't help it. She loved Sonny and the guys. Obviously, two different kinds of love, but it was still love nonetheless.
"Screw you."
"Is that what your new girlfriend did to you after we landed?" Sonny doesn't answer. "Come on, what's her name?"
"Davis…" Clay let's him go and the table erupts, even she spits out some of her beer at the shock of hearing her name.
"Be serious Sonny." Trent.
"She's too good for you." Jason.
"Yeah right." Brock.
"You'd never take the kind of risk." Ray.
"Sure Sonny, sure. Nice distraction tactic to get outta me kicking your ass." Clay.
"Jokes on you idiots, I knew it'd work and you'd let me go. Sorry Davis."
"No apology necessary. Nice to see you all hold me in such high regard. I feel honored."
"You should be. We know you're an officer now and everything, but you're still Lisa Davis. You're better than all of us degenerates," Jason compliments so eloquently she has to pause and look down.
"I'll drink to that. Cheers." Sonny raises his glass, followed by the rest of the guys and Davis who clank glasses and take swings. "Oh and Clay," he quickly picks up a half full pitcher, flips off Clay's hat and pours it over his head, "I love you too." The table and entire bar erupt in resounding laughter and "ooh's," but it doesn't take long for Clay and Sonny to hug it out. "Alright, I guess the next round is on me. Be right back." After Sonny leaves with the empty pitchers, Clay is the first to speak up.
"I should've known he'd use some trick on me. I never thought he'd use your name Davis."
"Ah, no biggie. Sonny's got his moments of brilliance."
"Would you ever though?" Brock broaches the topic before getting slapped by Ray.
"Hey, come on now. Don't go there."
"It's ok Ray. What do you wanna know Brock? Want me to do the fuck, marry and throw off a bridge game with you guys?" Brock heeds Ray's warning and doesn't answer, just shrugs his shoulders. "So what did Shaw do to the rest of you?"
"Screw Kill Joy." They all same the sentiment at nearly the same time, the only variation being the harshest curse word they say at that moment.
"He didn't really bring the hammer down on us, it was directed more to Sonny."
"Are you kidding?" If it was possible to be more angry, Davis was now there.
"The rest of us are pretty much grounded. I'm training new medics, Ray's back training green teams and Brock's with the K-9 units." Trent drinks straight from the pitcher that has one last gulp left at the bottom.
"Right now the only people officially Bravo are Jace and Clay." Ray puts a hand on Jason's shoulder and rocks him back and forth. She watches Jason smile, but the look in his eyes tells her everything. If it wouldn't get him court-martialed, he'd kill Shaw and she's pretty sure the rest of Bravo would help.
"So what happens if you guys have to spin up?"
"We'll still spin up as Bravo."
"So what's the point of all of this?"
"We think he's trying to limit the time we spend together. Like all of this is really gonna make a difference." Clay doesn't hide his agitation either, his foot shaking up and down on the stool so high, his knee could flip the table like a pancake.
"Sorry guys."
"Don't worry about it. This is gonna blow up in Shaw's face when this is all over." Something in Jason's voice told her he meant it.
The next thing Davis hears is a bottle shattering and people screaming.
A/N: Thank you for all the reviews/follows and favorites, they mean the world to me. Let me know what you think of this chapter/cliffhanger and don't worry, you won't have to wait long for part two :)
