That feeling of stepping into a bizarro alternate universe came back to Danny when he walked to the wardroom only to stop just outside as he heard his sister, Tex, Tom and Mike all laughing their asses off. He knew Tom and Mike were human but he never imagined he'd hear them laughing so hard as if they were in tears. He wasn't sure he should step inside in case he ruined the mood. He also didn't want to be the only junior officer there.
"And 40 stitches later, he's still never let me forget it." Jess complained.
"How can I? You deadpanned the 'love hurts' lyrics to me right after you did and stole my gun." Tex told her, they all dissolved into laughter again.
Danny wondered how much he'd learn about his sister if he stayed outside and eavesdropped. The ship was buzzing with gossip about her and Tex. He didn't like it as everyone was asking him questions about her. It was annoying because he knew he was going to go from being Lt Green to Jess' little brother.
"Excuse me, I have to powder my nose." Jess said, the men settled down. Danny scrambled to look like he just arrived when Jess stepped out of the wardroom. She smiled at him in an annoying manner like she knew he'd been there all along. She didn't say anything as she walked by him and Halsey. Halsey looked torn as he clearly wanted to follow Jess but the draw of food was too strong as he headed into the wardroom.
Danny followed Halsey, he greeted the men as he moved to his usual seat at the end of the table. Halsey was already sitting beside the chair waiting for his dinner. Danny wished some of the other officers were there for him to not look so weird for going to the opposite end of the table. But luckily they didn't ask him to join them. He grabbed his dinner and Halsey's before he sat down.
"So, what's the plan after you get a vaccine?" Tex asked.
"Go home, find more labs to produce more and then distribute it. For now, we just let the doctors do their jobs and support them in whatever way we can." Tom answered.
"They tell you how long it would take for a vaccine to be made?" Tex asked.
"I asked, but the basic answer is Dr Scott doesn't know but with Morley being immune, we can hope it's sooner rather than later." Tom said.
Danny quietly ate his meal while Tex peppered Tom with questions about the future and what he could do on board to help out. Danny had to change his opinion of Tex, but only slightly as the man genuinely wanted to help instead of pretending it was a pleasure cruise.
"One thing I find amazing is the tight quarters you all live in." Tex said.
"You'll get used to it. Now, if you'll excuse us, we have some things we need to look over." Tom said, he and Mike rose from their chairs and left the wardroom.
"You gonna sit there all quiet like all night?" Tex asked Danny, he cleared up the empty plates and placed them through the galley window for cleaning before he grabbed their cups and moved up the table to sit opposite Danny.
"Just eating my dinner." Danny said.
"The chefs on the ship are top notch, I haven't had a meal this good in months." Tex said.
"Mmm," Danny said noncommittally.
"Where did Tom and Mike go?" Jess asked as she came back into the wardroom.
"They had to get back to work." Tex answered.
"Fair enough," Jess said, she moved to sit next to Danny, which he wished she hadn't. "Hey, I heard about Frankie. I'm so sorry, he was a really great guy." Jess said softly, she gave Danny's arm a comforting squeeze and empathetic smile.
"Yeah, he was." Danny said, his voice thick with emotion as still didn't know how to process the loss. It was also the last thing he wanted to talk about. "So, you're married to Tex." he said, he changed the topic.
"Yes." Jess said, she moved to sit next Tex and picked up her cup of coffee and took a sip. Halsey got to his feet and went to Jess' side.
"So, I guess congratulations are in order." Danny said as he stabbed a piece of fish a little too hard and ate it but he was trying to get his emotions under control he went from grief to resentment with one question. There was so much about his sister that he didn't know, she didn't seem the slightest bit guilty about lying to him.
"Thank you." Jess said softly, she appreciated that he was trying not to lose his shit at her. She stroked Halsey's head as he rested his head in her lap. Halsey looked up at her with sad eyes, she knew the dog was grieving as much as Danny was. It was why she was cutting Danny some slack.
"Tex told me Mom and Dad didn't take it well." Danny said he didn't know why but he felt a perverse sense of sibling satisfaction to know his sister wasn't perfect.
"That's an understatement. Why do you think Mom hasn't spoken directly to me for the last 3 years?" She asked wryly.
"I thought she was mad because she found out you helped Simone." Danny said, their parents had not approved of Simone's life choices and cut her off financially. But Jess had quietly stepped in and helped their sister. Their parents had known, but Danny and Keeley did.
"They've been pissed about that for years but I told them what I do with my money is my business. But no, Mom wanted me to marry Chet Sullivan. It was all arranged that I would take a desk job in DC. Start dating Chet, marry him 6 months after and support his political career and he'd help propel my career after the 2.5 kids were born." Jess said in an unamused manner, Danny was reminded how diligently their mother planned out their lives.
He was only three years off of marrying some rich socialite with the funds to support his mother's political ambitions for him. But he couldn't understand why Jess felt the need to marry another man to flout their mother's plan when she'd been ignoring their Mom's prodding for 6 years.
"Seems extreme to marry a stranger." Danny told her.
"I've known Tex for over 13 years. He's not a stranger." Jess said, before Danny could digest that information the door to the wardroom opened, Burk and Kara stepped in. They had been talking but stopped when they saw the others at the table.
"Hey." Burk said as he came in with Kara and grabbed themselves dinner and sat down at the table. "I'm Burk and this is Foster." he introduced himself and Kara.
"I'm Tex, this is Morley. Yes, she's immune and my wife." Tex confirmed even though no one asked.
"I love how you're just staking your claim." Jess told him, she smiled as she bumped her shoulder playfully into Tex's.
"There are over 200 sailors on this ship who have not gotten laid in over 5 months. I'm saving us both from a lot of unwanted sexual advances." Tex told her, Jess' smile broadened.
"Trust me, everyone knows you guys are happily married after that reunion on the flight deck," Kara said in amusement, she had the most beautiful smile Danny had ever seen. He was in deep with her, maybe too deep as Jess reminded him of his mother's plans.
Kara only ticked a few of the boxes his mother believed his future wife should possess. Intelligent, beautiful, graceful and elegant in her bearing. Submissive when it mattered, he hated that phrase. But he knew Kara lacked in many ways that were very important to his mother and her goals for him. He reminded himself that being with Kara had started as a meaningless fling like the majority of his past relationships. But somewhere in the past month she'd come to mean more to him and he honestly didn't really know how to handle it.
He looked to Jess and Tex, as they happily chatted with Kara and Burk. He wasn't even paying attention to the conversation as it washed over him. He mulled over Jess and Tex, he tried to understand what Tex had going for him beyond convenience. But as he watched them, he saw the subtle details in their body language and how they looked at one another. They loved each other.
It was strange to see Jess actually express such emotions in an unreserved manner. As a kid, she had always been quiet and studious. There was always this part of her that was so emotionally remote like nothing could touch her. He wished he had that talent she did when it came to comportment. Their mother always told him that she wished he would control his emotions like Jess could. The old 'why can't you be more like your sister?' phrase used to make him rage as a teenager.
"Earth to Green." Burk said, Danny pulled his attention back to the group as he found them all looking at him.
"Sorry, I spaced. What was the question?" Danny asked.
"How you and Morley know one another." Burk said.
"Don't be coy, Danny." Jess teased, Danny scowled as he knew she was messing with him. He saw Kara's expression as she looked between the two. He should just tell the truth but he wasn't ready for the fallout yet.
"I don't know why it's gotta be secret." Tex said frankly which only spurred Burk's curiosity and before Danny could think of a plausible lie, Jess spoke first.
"We grew up in the same small town and our parents knew each other. They'd have dinner together on the regular." Jess said cheekily.
"So, you're pretty close." Kara said, she looked between Jess and Danny.
"Nope." Danny said.
"Bad break up." Burk said in a commiserating tone, Tex choked on his coffee. Jess laughed as Danny scowled.
"Not even close." Jess assured him.
"Why is it so funny?" Burk asked, confused as he really didn't get it. Jess looked at Danny with a cocked eyebrow as she left the floor open for him.
"She's my older sister." Danny said, he shot Jess a dark look as she smiled in amusement. Burk and Kara looked genuinely surprised by this information. He did note that Kara looked a little relieved, he felt like an ass as he hadn't talked about his family with her. There was a lot he left unsaid as he never thought to share them. He wondered how much he compartmentalised due to the nature of his job or was it because Jess was right about their upbringing.
"Eldest sister." Jess corrected, Danny inwardly groaned as she was oversharing now.
"There are more Green siblings?" Burk asked.
"Why do you sound so surprised?" Jess asked in amusement.
"I really had Green pegged as an only child." Burk said. He looked between Danny and Jess as he seemed to finally see the family resemblance as they had the same sandy blond hair and hazel eyes.
"I think he wishes he was." Jess said, Danny rolled his eyes.
"Can we not make a big deal out of this?" Danny asked them.
"Sure, I get it. I have an older brother." Burk said with a shrug. "But I do have one question." he said.
"That is?" Danny asked cautiously.
"Are any of your other sisters single?" Burk asked with a grin. Danny realised in that moment that there was something way worse than being compared to Jess.
"As far as you or any other guy on this ship is concerned? No." Danny told him, the others chuckled at his dark mood.
A couple hours later, Jess and Tex found their way outside and were strolling the deck. It was a warm and humid night despite the afternoon storm that had come through earlier.
"You'd think it was still summer." Tex said, breaking the silence, he stuck his hands in his pockets as he was trying hard to not reach for Jess. He wanted to take her into his arms and reacquaint himself with every inch of her. But there were cameras and people everywhere. He needed time to suss out the ship and find out where they could be truly alone.
"Yeah, you know, Dr Scott thinks she'll have a vaccine soon thanks to my immunity. When they do, we'll get them to drop us off in Florida. We'll find our way to Jackson from there." Jess said, Tex smiled in the darkness as Jess was always thinking three moves ahead.
"Bobby told me that you got word to Kat and Claire." Tex said. He felt that ever present knot of anxiety in his chest that had settled there ever since the pandemic turned deadly. Sometimes, it faded to being background noise but when he thought of his daughter, it came to the forefront. He rationally knew he couldn't get the ship to change course for Florida and that he was closer to getting home than he had in months. But it didn't stop or ease the moments of anxiety and panic he felt as a father separated from his family.
"Claire did not like talking to me, I think she wanted to hear your voice. For you to talk to Kat." Jess said, Tex grimaced as he could only imagine the conversation.
"Kat hasn't wanted to speak to me since we got married." Tex said, he remembered when he told Kat and Claire about his marriage to Jess. Claire had been wary of Jess, she thought it was just another of his impulsive life decisions she'd have to tolerate.
Kat, well she had been incredibly upset believing he'd excluded her from his life and somehow Jess was taking over his life leaving no room for her. He tried to talk to her, but she was young and hurt by his choices. They had fought, words were exchanged and Kat had told him she hated him and to get out of her life. It was possibly the lowest point in their relationship and Tex even three years later didn't know how to mend things with his daughter. He tried, but she was stubborn, something she got from him.
"I think she really hoped that you and Claire would get back together." Jess said, it wasn't the first time she'd suggested it to Tex.
"We were never really together except those two weeks when Kat was conceived. But I think Kat always thought I'd come home to her and I didn't. What if-" Tex started, but Jess cut him off as she grabbed his upper arms and stepped in close.
"Don't, don't go there." Jess told him, she rubbed his arms. "We'll find them, they will be ok." She told him, he wore a sad smile as they both knew the chances of Kat and Claire being alive were slim. Tex wrapped his arms around her, he pulled her in close and took a deep breath to try and ease the ache in his chest.
"You're right, I thought you were dead and here you are." Tex said. He felt the knot in his chest ease a little as Jess rubbed his back.
"I am, so are you." Jess reminded him.
"God, I want to find an empty room with you and while away a few hours." Tex murmured. Jess lifted her head from his shoulder and looked at him.
"There has to be somewhere." Jess said in a low voice.
"What happened to 'all business, no pleasure'?" Tex asked, surprised at her different tune from when she was talking to Tom earlier today.
"Well, you are my business." Jess stated, Tex laughed as he loved it when she played semantics to bend the rules especially this one. They heard a door open, reluctantly let each other go. They watched as a sailor stepped out onto the deck, he seemed oblivious as he lit up a cigarette. Jess looked at Tex, they knew it was time to move on, they left in the opposite direction to head to their bunks for the night.
"Lieutenant Green." Kara said, the p-ways were empty as majority of the crew were either in bed or on duty. they knew this as they timed their meetings to make sure the chances of being caught were low.
"Lt Foster." Danny said, he smiled softly as they slipped into their private little alcove. He wanted to draw her into his arms and hold her but he felt like he had pushed his luck for the day. Kara seemed to sense it as she didn't rush into his arms like she normally did. Instead she folded her arms across her chest.
"So, Jess is your sister." Kara said, she broke the tense silence between them. He realised she wasn't sensing his luck running out but displeased with his lack of openness.
"She's not how I remember her." Danny said.
"She seems like a great person." Kara said with a closed lip smile.
"She is exceptional." Danny said bitterly, he saw her wide eyes. "Sorry, it's a long story."
"Maybe you could tell me, I've known you... or I thought I did for five months now and I'm just learning you have a sister and other siblings." Kara said.
"I have three sisters. It's complicated." Danny sighed, not expanding on it. He could see Kara was disappointed in him. He felt like an ass but he was used to being tight lipped about it that it was hard to just open up even to her.
"I'm a pretty intelligent person, I'm sure I could understand. I told you about my Mom and my family. I never pressed you about yours because I figured you'd open up in time. But now, I'm feeling like a bit of an idiot for assuming too much of this." Kara said as she gestured between them. Danny opened his mouth to say something but closed it as he could sense she was breaking up with him. He wondered if maybe it was for the best but mentally shook the thought away as it was the coward's way out. He was not a coward.
"I don't talk about my family because people see me a different way when they learn the truth. I want to be seen as I am, not for the family I come from. I honestly would've told you, once we were off the ship." he lied, as he had no idea what his plans would've been once they left the ship. He wanted to believe their relationship would survive the transition from ship fling to a possibly serious relationship but he didn't know. He just felt so mixed up from Frankie's death and Jess being alive that he hadn't had time to untangle his thoughts and feelings.
"Well, I heard your sister is pretty tight with Captain. Do you know that she has history with this ship?" She asked him, veering the conversation slightly away from them.
"She was having dinner with the Captain and the XO tonight. They all seemed pretty cozy. I didn't realise it went back further than today." Danny said as he rubbed the back of his neck. Yet another delightful discovery of his sister to add to the list. "It's why I think we need to cool this down for a little while." he added, he winced as he looked away feeling like a jerk.
"I was thinking the same." Kara said, Danny looked at the pain she was trying to cover in her features. He reached out and took her hand in his. Her grip was limp in his as he knew she was conflicted. He never lied to her, but he never been open with her.
"I've really messed this up." Danny said.
"It's nothing that can't be fixed." Kara offered with a sad yet comforting smile.
"So, I'll see you around the ship?" he asked.
"Yeah, maybe you could tell me more about yourself and your family over coffee or dinner." Kara suggested, Danny nodded as he felt hope bloom inside him as she squeezed his hand. "I'll see you around, Lieutenant Green." she said, she let go of his hand and left their alcove. Danny watched her go, wishing not for the first time that everything could be different.