A/N: the joy of inventing a war! You can invent a runners post and not completely stick to historical accuracy! And they are fighting Communist Russia, not the Germans.
He'd been running the last time, hadn't he? And there had been the smoke blinding him and Jack had been on his heals that time as well.
Only now they where on the same side and running from the commies but Ralph still forced his body to move faster when he could hear Jack's heavy breathing besides him and when they rolled in the trench together Ralph would roll away and lay face down staring at the things that swam, lice and other parasites, in the stagnant muddy water to get away from Jack and his bloody breathing.
And he slept a bunk away from Jack at the runners post and he couldn't sleep at night because that breathing invaded his dreams and all he could think of was the island and fighting with Jack the night when Piggy died and all he could hear was the sound of the bolder as it collided with flesh and bone and Jack's breathing in his ear.
People where dying each day. He new this and he'd seen them die, blown apart by bombs or poisoned by mustard gas, pieces of shrapnel or a bullet imbedded in some vital place.
And he also new he had a dangerous job as a message runner, going across no-mans land to the other trenches with messages about movements of the front line.
So he shouldn't have stopped, moments away from the trench to try and get one of those bullets imbedded in his head.
Jack cannoned into him and pushed him the last few inches and down into the mud, crushing Ralph beneath his weight.
Ralph struggled, against him panicking as his face was pushed further down into the muddy water and Jack grabbed the back of his shirt, laying across his backside to keep him down.
"What the hell where you doing?" he hissed angrily "Do you want to get yourself shot?"
He let Ralph up for air and between coughing and spitting Ralph managed to say "yes!"
"Why?" Jack hissed again and Ralph was silent for a moment before he began struggling and bucking to attempt to free himself of Jack again; the other man lost his grip and fell to the side of him and Ralph scrambled up.
He stood panting and glaring at Jack "I wanted to get myself shot so I could be rid of you, and rid of this war!"
"Your mad!"
"Why do you care anyway? You didn't care when you killed Simon or Piggy"
The words hung between them for a moment before Jack pulled himself to his feet, he looked at Ralph just once his eyes filled with unspoken fury before he turned on his heal and stalked off.
**
"Jack?"
Jack ignored the whisper and rolled over to face the wall; he stared crossly at it even when he heard Ralph's feet touch the floor and then pad across to him. Ralph stood next to his bed, arms crossed over his chest and biting his bottom lip.
"Jack?" he murmured.
Again Jack ignored him and continued to inspect the wall, the bed sheet lifted up and Ralph slid in beside him; he didn't touch him but lay next to him with his arms stiffly at his sides radiating heat Jack could feel even as he wiggled away from it.
"What are you doing?" he finally asked when he ran out of bed.
"I'm sorry" Ralph offered, Jack rolled back over to face him, leaning his head on one hand as he surveyed Ralph.
Ralph looked at him quickly before turning his head back to stare at the ceiling; Jack reached out a hand and took Ralph's hand closest to him feeling the other man tense up as he did.
"I'm sorry as well for everything I did then and for yelling at you today; I did like Simon and I didn't mean for ever of them to die"
"Lots of people are dying now" Ralph said slowly.
"Doesn't make what happened any better"
Ralph looked at him smiling and Jack leant over, grabbing the other hand before kissing him softly; Ralph froze for a few moments before he entwined his fingers with Jack's and kissing him back.
They broke the kiss and Jack growled, burring his hands in Ralph's hair and kissing his neck "Don't start strolling along no mans land again tomorrow!"
Ralph laughed softly "I wont"
TBC
Not to happy with this chapter, sex next chapter.
