I dropped a paperback into my duffle and zipped it up, glancing around the room, uneasy.

Now that I'd packed up my meager belongings for the two weeks at K-Unit's, it really did look like a guest room. I made the bed, hobbling around, reluctant to use my crutch. I knew it was irrational, but I didn't really want to use my crutch in front of K-Unit—I didn't want to seem any more vulnerable than I already felt. I knew Bear would make me take it, but I could just leave it in a corner for the duration of my stay, or something.

Damn. Snake would probably make me use it, too.

I paused, sinking back onto the bed, getting my pictures and my gun out of my nightstand. I still didn't have a picture with L-Unit, but I was too embarrassed to ask for one. I just…didn't like not having one, for some reason. I didn't like knowing that they were going away, and I would have effectively no tie to them.

I scowled. I sounded like a little kid. I felt like one, too.

I'd woken Lion and Bear last night with a nightmare, which had been thoroughly humiliating. I'd shouted once in my sleep before I'd fully woken up, sweating and shaking, and Lion had burst in just a few seconds later, followed by Bear; they'd thought someone had broken in.

I'd assured them I was fine. It wasn't very convincing, as I'd been sweating and trembling and pale, but I'd stuck to the platitude anyways. Bear went back to bed quickly (he always had a hard time waking up) but Lion stayed for a few minutes until I finally kicked him out. Tiger, unsurprisingly, slept through the whole thing.

The nightmare had been different, and as I lay in bed trembling in the wake of it, I realized I had made a lot of mistakes, and this was one of them.

This was the first nightmare I'd had where L-Unit was killed.

My nightmares, instead of working through stress or the things I was worried about, were usually vivid recollections of one of my many traumas. Maybe it was a bit altered, maybe my mind conjured some extra things, but everything in the nightmares had roots in true events. They were horrible, but they were based on fact.

This one was different.

I lay in bed, blinking at the ceiling, my breathing still jagged as I tried to calm down. My leg ached, my chest ached, and my hands shook.

We'd been on a mission, the four of us. I'd screwed up. They'd died.

The details, already washed out by the reality of consciousness, didn't matter, but the message did.

I thought, and thought, and thought furiously. I considered all the ways I'd changed over the past few months with them and how much I loved being here and being safe and being with them. I thought of how I'd reconciled with Tom, how I finally had a—an almost-family to call my own, how even though I was still terrified of SCORPIA and MI6, I had a place and people and a life now.

And, for the first time, I truly considered just how dangerous that was.

My thoughts continued raging, and sleep was slow to come. The absence of nightmares, instead of comforting, was reminiscent of the deadly calm before the deadlier storm.

Now, I sat on the bed, pondering my place here and with K-Unit and in Cookham. I sat and I thought, but my mind kept going in circles. The smartest thing to do would be to run. Now. Stupidly, this was the perfect time—once L-Unit was in the midst of their mission, K-Unit would be unable to contact them. L-Unit would have an easier time finding me than K-Unit. It was the liminal period I needed to disappear.

And I was well and truly fucked, because I couldn't seize that moment.

I'd promised Tom. I'd promised Tom, and I'd promised myself. I'd promised L-Unit. I'd devastate them—Tiger and Lion and Bear.

I couldn't bring myself to leave them.

So now, in the wake of the startling reality that was my precarious existence, I was trapped.

"Almost ready?"

I started at the voice in the doorway, my heart thudding erratically until I met Lion's concerned eyes.

I nodded, lips pressed into a thin, resigned line.

Lion's gaze darkened, concerned and displeased. "We can still find you somewhere else to stay, Alex. You just have to say the word."

"I…it's really fine," I said, the warble in my voice less than convincing. "I just…it's weird."

Lion looked more than a little skeptical, but sighed. After a moment of hesitation, a hesitant hand carding through his hair, he took a deep breath. "Can I talk to you for a minute?"

"Sure."

Lion pulled the door just shy of closed, shoving his hands in his pockets. His face was stonily blank—that was the first thing to put me on my guard. "Lion?"

He sat down next to me, leaving a bit of space between us. He opened his mouth, then closed it again, his eyes tightening in indecision. I waited, teetering on the edges of curiosity and suspicion. He usually didn't have such a hard time starting conversations, even hard ones—that was more Tiger's trademark.

"Lion?" I said again, getting nervous.

He sighed, scrubbing a hand through his hair again. "I don't—I don't want to dredge anything up, or start anything just before we leave," he started carefully, "but I think I need to…talk to Snake, or Fox, if that would make you more comfortable. About…what happened."

I blinked, a little confused. "Snake already knows about my injuries. He's been helping Bear. And Fox knows a bit anyways."

"Not that."

I blinked again. "I don't understand."

"Alex, you tried to—to—shit. You tried to hurt yourself not three weeks ago, and now we're all leaving for two weeks," he finally admitted, words mashed together in a rush of air, so quick I had to strain to understand him.

But I did. I did, and it was…sobering.

The realization was somewhat striking, and I had to take a couple seconds to let it sink in. I could—kind of understand. I hadn't thought about it, I'd repressed it as best I could because it was terrifying to even think about now, but—I'd been almost completely committed to ending my own life three weeks ago, and I'd been prepared to allow myself to bleed to death on a dark bridge alone.

And now that Tom was back in Italy, the only people who knew who could do anything about it, should my mind descend back into that awful place, would be unreachable.

I swallowed, the gravity of the situation hitting me all at once, and steeled myself.

"You don't…you don't have to do that," I tried to assure him, but it sounded weak even to my ears. I cleared my throat. "That is—you don't have to worry."

"Recovery isn't that quick," Lion said, looking at me intently, eyes steadfast and careful and so much more concerned than I deserved. "You're not going to be able to reach us, and I'm really scared to leave you without someone who knows. I just—" He scrubbed a frustrated hand down his face, looking uncomfortable and frightened all in one go. "I knew, and I still couldn't stop it last time. I can't make that mistake again."

I flinched, looking away, and tried to gather my thoughts. I couldn't let K-Unit find out. Not so soon, not when I still didn't really trust them—that was far too much for them to know, even if it was just Snake and Fox. But the wrecked look in Lion's eyes when I'd woken up half-dead on the couch just a few weeks ago, the blaze of fury in Bear's eyes as he cataloged my injuries, the defeated nature of Tiger's posture as I admitted my intentions…I could understand, a little bit, their concern.

I didn't know how to make Lion understand that it wasn't his fault, was never and would never be his fault, but…I figured that was a conversation for another day.

"You don't have to worry," I said quietly, but I packed the small sentence with all the affirmation and determination I could muster. I caught Lion's eye as he looked at me, still unsteady, but listening. "I promised. I promised Tom I wouldn't leave him again, and…and that counts. And I—"

I stopped, blinking, tightening my throbbing fingers in the bedspread I'd just smoothed out. I glanced around the room—the room that shouldn't be mine but was becoming so at a startling pace, in the flat that wasn't home but came dangerously close, with the people that shouldn't be family but were perilously similar.

I looked back at Lion, swallowing my survival instincts, and said, "I couldn't do that to you. Not again."

For a long moment, Lion searched my face. I held his gaze even as his eyes bored into me, on the verge of desperate as he looked for something to contradict my words. I supposed he didn't find anything, because something in Lion's tight shoulders clicked loose, and they slumped, accompanied by a whoosh of air completely at odds with the soldier's usual demeanor. I remembered that look from that day after—after what I'd almost done.

"Okay. I—okay," he conceded, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Okay. If that changes—promise me you'll call Tom, or tell someone, or—hell, call the Sergeant and tell him you need us. Just don't try to take it on alone, like last time."

I flinched at his last stipulation, and he saw. Of course, he saw—while Bear could be startlingly obtuse at times, and Tiger wasn't very observant, Lion almost always saw.

"Alex?" His voice had a tone of muted warning and wavering worry.

My nightmare flashed in my eyes, a negative of a painfully vivid atrocity, and I blinked the fluorescent splotches away.

"I promise to tell someone," I said carefully, watching his reaction.

Lion's eyes narrowed. "But you don't promise to let someone help you handle it."

"I can't promise that," I admitted. "But I can promise to…to try. And if I have to leave, I can promise to come back, when it's safe. Or—or contact you, or something. But…no, I can't promise that."

I held his gaze, steady and unwavering. I couldn't promise to knowingly put them or K-Unit or Tom in danger if I could avoid it. Not ever, but especially not after last night. I had no idea what the future held for me, but I refused to let it ruin their lives—what these incredible soldiers had built for themselves after being dealt shit hands. I couldn't live with myself.

Lion sighed through his nose, holding my gaze. It was deep, and thoughtful, but it was resigned, nonetheless.

"…okay," he conceded. He palmed the hair back from my forehead, letting his hand linger on the crown of my head, and I gave him a smile, trying to reassure him. "You're gonna put me in an early grave, kid."

The smile was wiped from my face with startling efficiency.

That time, he didn't see.

K-Unit's flat was both startlingly similar to and fundamentally opposite of L-Unit's.

The layout was mostly the same—four bedrooms and a bathroom packed in one back hallway and a short foyer that spilled into an adjacent kitchen and living area. Pockets of personality dotted the space: a couple pictures, a wilting plant (so oddly reminiscent of the perpetually wilting plant in the center of L-Unit's glass table that I had to do a double take), and other knickknacks and books.

Unlike L-Unit's sofa, their couch conveniently held a pull-out bed, which was already done up with fresh sheets. I was willing to bet every penny to my name that it was Snake's handiwork.

There was another stark difference, one that left me feeling almost weak in the realization—every time I walked through L-Unit's front door, an incomprehensible feeling of safety washed over me. It had happened so many times I'd almost grown used to it.

Now, walking into the almost identical flat without that feeling, the difference was painstakingly obvious.

K-Unit was waiting when we arrived. It was a mostly professional greeting, though I exchanged smiles with Snake and Fox. Fox took my bag and put it by the bad as we walked in. Bear had made me bring my crutch, so I staggered along behind my unit as we filed into the living room.

"Sorry, we can't stay long," Lion said with an apologetic smile. "Sarge wants us on the move in the next half hour. Jag, do you have everything you need? Meds, books, whatever?"

I nodded after a second of thought, glancing between the three of them with something like fuzzy desperation that I kept caged in my mind. I couldn't let them see how badly I wanted them to stay, or how badly I wanted to go with them. This was their job, and they had to do it, and I was injured. Those were the facts that led to the current situation.

But the thought of them in danger without me, though stupid and childish and immature, was crippling.

"Snake has all your dosages and exercises, right?" Bear asked, looking between me and Snake. "He's a bit inconsistent with his meds."

I scowled, smacking his hip—the only thing I could reach sitting down—with my crutch.

Eagle snorted as Snake smirked a little. "Yeah, I've go' i' all. Not getting out o' this one, Cub."

I rolled my eyes, and Wolf laughed under his breath.

"He's not going to be any trouble, right?" Tiger said with a pointed look in my direction.

"God, you make it sound like I'm going to throw a bloody rager with all the nearest university students," I muttered, pinching the bridge of my nose.

"I think we can handle it, whatever it is," Fox commented with a grin in my direction, ignoring my sharp look. "We'll take good care of him. You focus on whatever your mission is."

Lion hesitated, then nodded, the barest of smiles on his face. Well, at least he was beginning to warm up to Fox. "Yeah, we will."

Bear glanced at his watch. "We should get going. Traffic into London is going to be a bitch."

I'd expected the words, the departure, but it still felt wrong.

"I'll walk you to the door," I said decisively, hefting myself onto my crutch and moving in that direction before anyone could stop me.

They stopped just outside the door's threshold, and I knew I was being bloody dramatic, but it felt like a chasm.

"By the way, I gave Bella your number," Bear commented, leaning against the doorjamb. "In case there's any news on Jessie and her mum."

I blinked, surprised. "Oh. Thanks." That was all I could manage. Anxiety was a writhing mass in my stomach, and it was so stupid and childish, but I couldn't tone it down.

"It's going to be fine, Alex," Bear said, sensing my anxiety. He ducked his head a bit to look at me, smiling. "Just be your broody self and you'll hold off the questions just fine."

I smirked a little, looking away, then back. Nervousness ate at my fingertips. "You're coming back."

Once again, I couldn't ask the question, but I could let them confirm the answer.

"We're coming back," Tiger affirmed with a serious nod. "Before you know it, kid. Just don't get into any trouble while we're gone."

"You neither," I agreed. I was about to give them a final goodbye, one last wave and a hesitant smile and a prayer to Lion's God that they'd make it back in one piece, when I remembered.

I must have started physically in the realization, because Lion's eyes narrowed. "Wait here," I said before they could say anything. "Just—just don't leave yet." I ignored Bear's admonishment as I abandoned my crutch to the corner and hobbled back to my duffle fishing around inside it before I emerged with my prize, ignoring K-Unit's stares.

I got back to the doorway and retrieved my crutch, my leg aching from the movement, and handed the object to Lion.

He took it, his eyebrows drawn in confusion. "What's this?"

It was a hefty silver watch with several buttons hidden in the links and on the sides, a specially crafted gift from Smithers—a parting gift, he said, since he doubted he'd get to make me anymore gadgets.

"Just in case," I said, taking it back in my hands. I'd never wanted to use it, never really needed to, but I figured it would protect them just a little more than I could. "This button will send out a distress signal to the nearest national intelligence agency in two hundred miles," I said, fingering the faint red spring between the second and third links. "This one will automatically pull up a map of the surrounding terrain, this one will activate a bug-sized drone to carry information or messages, and this one—"

I paused, remembering the sober look on Smithers' face as he explained it. "This one will contact—someone who can help." It would directly alert MI6 of my location, no matter where I was. I'd been hesitant to accept the watch over that fact alone, but he'd assured me it wouldn't be activated without my permission, if and when I needed it. It would appear with my name—MI6 would come running. It didn't really matter that they wouldn't find me, but L-Unit—they'd launch an investigation for my name, and they'd probably find me. But…if they needed to use it that badly, I'd much rather deal with the aftermath than the alternative. "They'll have the resources and manpower to get you out quickly, if you really need it. But it's only for the worst of the worst situations."

I handed it back to Lion, looking up when he didn't take it. His eyes were wide in surprised concern. "That sounds like something you may need," he defended, putting up his hands as if to ward off the watch. I watched the curiosity flit across his eyes, replaced with confusion and concern. "I don't know why you have it, or who made it, but you might need it. And it sounds important."

"Then you'll have to make sure to return it to me," I said, pressing it into his hand before he could protest again. Bear and Tiger watched with curious concern, glancing at me and the watch. "I haven't used it yet. I'll be okay for two weeks. This will make me feel better."

"But what if you need it?" Bear asked pointedly, shoulders a little tighter than before. "They found you once. They can find you again, even if you're here."

"I'll be fine."

Lion's eyes were tight in hesitance and indecision. "Alex, I don't know—"

"Please," I said finally, swallowing my pride. If this was all I could do for them…I had to do something to ease the blistering anxiety in my gut. "Just take it."

Lion fingered the watch, then took a slow breath, slipping it onto his wrist. It snapped into place, and he looked at it, then at me. "Okay. Just—God, just be careful, kid."

I released a breath of relief, closing my eyes momentarily. "Thank you. I will."

Lion lingered another moment, eyes fixed on me like I would disappear, then finally turned to leave. He didn't look back. I had a feeling, from our conversation earlier, that he didn't want to leave me almost as much as I didn't want to leave him.

"Take care of yourself," Bear said, ruffling my hair with a surprisingly gentle hand. "We'll be back soon."

Tiger nodded, and gave me a shadow of a smile, and they descended down the staircase after Lion.

And they were gone.

"If you don't stop bouncing your bloody leg, I'm going to tie you down," Wolf muttered from one of the recliners, tapping the remote in his hand. "You're driving me mad."

I froze, sending him a glance. Slowly, I forced my left leg to quiet, tapping my fingers instead.

I couldn't stop bloody shaking, but I could hide it.

I supposed I'd underestimated just how reliant I'd become on the presence of L-Unit. It made me nervous in and of itself—the startling level of dependence brought to light by their absence—and I knew how incredibly dangerous it was. I was willing to bet money that any psychiatrist worth their salt would call it an unhealthy attachment.

Unfortunately, I couldn't do anything about it now, especially not when they were gone.

"They're probably no' even en route to the mission location yet," Snake commented, glancing up from the kitchen table, where he had a couple textbooks and some notebooks sprawled in front of him. He gave me a calm smile, which slightly eased the writhing mass in my gut. "Try to save some o' that worry for later, yeh?"

After a couple seconds, I gave what probably sounded like a frustrated sigh, trying to calm my fidgeting hands.

"Yeah, fine," I mumbled, digging a paperback out of my duffle. There wasn't much to do—it wasn't like I could really go out alone, because they probably wouldn't let me and I couldn't travel very far, and it's not like I had a room to retreat to. The living room would be my space for two weeks. That would kind of suck—I'd grown quite used to having a place of privacy. It reminded me of the shelters and halfway houses in America, in an uncomfortably poignant way.

I supposed if I couldn't do anything about it, I could at least distract myself.

The first half of the first day had passed in surprisingly tolerable silence. Eagle went to his girlfriend's quite early, which seemed to be the norm for him when he was home, and Fox had sat with me for a while before going on a run. He'd been smart enough not to ask my any compromising questions around the others, but the look in his eyes—the look that said I know for a fact there are things you aren't telling me and I'll get my answers eventually—still made me nervous. Somehow I didn't think Bear's advice of being broody and silent would be enough to ward him off.

Wolf made breakfast, as L-Unit had dropped me off ridiculously early, and it wasn't too bad. Snake was cramming for some medical exam, and had been for several hours—I supposed it was coming up soon.

I managed to get a few dozen pages into my book before Wolf growled softly, flicking off the tellie. "I can't sit here and do nothing for much longer before I tear my hair out."

I almost told him he didn't have to stay here on my account, but I had a feeling I was the last person he wanted to hear that from.

"Ye could always clean the bathroom like I've been suggestin'," Snake muttered into his textbook.

Wolf spared a moment to flick Snake a dubious look. "Do I look like a maid?"

"Do I?" Snake shot back, giving him a long-suffering sigh. "I've go' this exam coming up, and I can't keep cleanin' the whole bloody flat myself. So you can clean, or wallow in your own filth."

I was somewhat impressed by how Snake managed to keep his voice even and quiet, and still make the ultimatum sound like a rather dire decision.

Wolf screwed his eyes tight in dissatisfaction, grumbling to himself. I flicked my eyes between them like something from a tennis match, and they widened despite myself when Wolf tossed the remote in my direction. I caught it with clumsy hands, watching in awe as he rose.

"I'll do the bloody kitchen, then," he muttered. "Eagle can do the bathroom."

I blinked owlishly as Wolf startled bustling around the kitchen, cutting a glance at Snake, who smiled into his textbook in triumph.

"How'd you manage to leash him?" I asked, fully aware I was pushing the envelope.

"Time and the patience of a saint," Snake mumbled without looking up, scribbling something into a notebook.

"I can hear you," Wolf muttered.

"Less hearin', more cleanin'," Snake said.

I blinked again. I wasn't sure how Snake was still alive at the moment, but Wolf just muttered something under his breath as he fished the ammonia out from one of their cupboards. I supposed he really had grown up.

"I thought we had a rather good system, you know. I cook, you clean. Seemed proper enough."

"No, I clean, ye sulk, I bully ye into cookin'." I couldn't imagine Snake bullying anyone into anything, but I continued to watch the easy exchange. "Pull yer own weight before I decide to let ye figure out how the laundry machines work."

I almost laughed at that, hiding a snort in my hand. This was much better entertainment than my book or the muted tellie, anyhow. Snake seemed pretty comfortable around the others—I supposed he had to be, with how close they were—but he was a lot more talkative than he was around L-Unit, from what I'd seen.

"I don't see you giving Fox and Eagle a hard time about it," Wolf defended.

"Fox is a decently clean human being, and Eagle is a lost cause. You're salvageable, somehow. God bless your poor mum."

That earned a tight scowl, but I could tell Wolf wasn't really offended. Wolf seemed pretty close with Snake, too. I knew, from limited exposure, small things—Eagle was close with them, of course, but he spent most of his breaks with his girlfriend—from what I'd heard they were quite serious. Fox was…well, Fox. A little rough around the edges, but fairly easy-going, I supposed. I didn't think Wolf and Snake would be so close—their personalities seemed more than at odds, but they seemed quite comfortable with each other.

"Cub?"

"Hm?" I said on reflex, glancing at Snake from where I was lounging on the pulled-out bed. "I'm sorry, I missed that." I supposed I'd spaced out a little. I always got a bit more spacey when I was on edge.

"No, I was just asking if you had anything in particular you wanted for lunch," Snake said, taking a sip of coffee. "No need to be sorry."

I faltered. Well…that was nice to say. "Right. Um…I'm really fine with anything. Is it cooking or takeaway?"

"Wolf will cook," Snake volunteered, ignoring Wolf's protest. "He's not as good as Lion, from what I've heard, but it's decent."

I blinked. Lion had a certain element of domesticity in his natural personality. Wolf was…the last person I'd expect to be a good cook. "Oh. Alright. Well…I'm fine with whatever."

"That's a dangerous game, Cub," Wolf said from the kitchen. "I've been known to experiment."

I blinked again.

It certainly wasn't L-Unit's flat, but there was an alarming amount of domesticity that I couldn't really reconcile with the K-Unit from Brecon Beacons two years ago.

I didn't have time to reply, as Fox got back then. He huffed through the door, hair and long-sleeved shirt soaked through with sweat, despite the dropping temperatures. "It's cold as bollocks out there," he complained, brushing frost from his hair on the entrance rug, wiping his slush-caked trainers on the mat. "My toes are falling off."

"Take your shoes off," Snake chided without looking up. "I just mopped."

"Yes, Mum. Wolf, are you cooking? Make something with a lot of meat."

"God, you're all insufferable," Wolf muttered, and I heard a distinct increase in the rather violent banging of pans in the kitchen. "Fox, get in here and help me when you're done changing, or whatever. I'm not cooking for everyone without help."

"Why me?"

"Because apparently you're a decently clean human being with no other responsibilities in this damn flat, so you're gonna bloody well do something."

"I didn't say it quite like that," Snake mumbled, laser-focused on some sort of diagram.

I couldn't quite stifle the laugh at that. I was still on edge, but they were…well, a lot more normal than I'd expected them to be. I supposed even after so much time, I expected them to still be the strict, tight-lipped jerks they'd been in Wales, but I'd miscalculated. I was already familiar with Fox's sometimes brusque nature, well-acquainted with Wolf's abrupt, asinine personality, but I didn't expect the dynamics between such different people to be so…well, easy.

Perhaps Lion was onto something—the Sergeant really was more of a matchmaker than a high-ranking government official.

"How're you, Alex?" Fox asked from the bathroom. I heard him scrubbing his hair with a towel, I supposed trying to brush out all the frozen sweat. Damn. I hadn't been on a run in a long time, not with my leg, and I missed the adrenaline, the head-clearing buzz of exhaustion. "You still comfortable?"

"Yeah, I'm alright," I said, returning to my book, ignoring the tellie. I was still on edge, but the easy conversation had helped distract me somewhat. It was still painfully easy to glance around and feel the wrongness of Tiger and Bear and Lion's absence, still too easy to think of something and turn to share it with one of them before remembering that they were on their was to a dangerous, hostile environment in Budapest. But I supposed it had only been half a day—I'd be worried for quite a while. But at least they had the watch, and they were capable soldiers.

"Do you have any pills you need to take at lunch?" He asked, poking his head around the door from the bathroom to glance at me.

"No," I said at the same time Snake said, without looking up, "Immune booster, antibiotic, optional painkiller."

I turned incredulous eyes on Snake, who seemed completely unperturbed.

Bear may have a rival in his neurotic worry, after all.

Fox laughed, even as I scowled, realizing how difficult these next couple weeks would be under constant surveillance. "Don't even try, kid. Nothing gets past Snake."

"I thought you had the memory of a goldfish," I muttered.

"I do, unless it comes to something of actual importance, like your health," Snake said pointedly.

I looked away, embarrassed. Fox snorted.

"Right, well, Eagle's bringing Evelyn over for lunch, so again, I'm not cooking for six people without help. Fox, move your bloomin' arse a little faster, would you?" Wolf griped over the sounds of creaking cabinet doors.

I faltered, glancing quickly at the kitchen, but Wolf wasn't looking at me. Neither was Snake, for that matter. The feeling was startlingly reminiscent of how nervous I'd been meeting Lion's family for the first time, and even though that had been fine…well, L-Unit was a little more aware of how uncomfortable I was around people I didn't know, also.

On top of the writhing mess of nerves from their absence, I felt nauseous at the thought of meeting someone else new, and barely refrained from twisting my face at the discomfort.

"If Evelyn and Eagle are coming, maybe you shouldn't make so much meat," Snake reminded. I'd heard Eagle mention he was a vegetarian, but I didn't know if Evelyn was the same.

"What? No, I called the menu today," Fox called from his bedroom. I assumed he was changing clothes. "They can eat the salad, I don't care."

"Maybe someone should ask our guest what he wants to eat?" Snake said pointedly.

It took me a full three seconds to realize he was talking about me, and I glanced at him, surprised again. I didn't like how off-game I was—I really needed to get a handle on my nerves. It was K-Unit, who I didn't trust but knew wouldn't hurt me, and Eagle's girlfriend. It was highly unlikely that she was an assassin or operative of any kind. "Oh, no, I'm…really fine with anything. Like I said."

"Oh. I did ask, didn't I? Sorry, I'm all over the place today," Snake said distractedly.

"…it's fine."

"You sure you're alright?" Fox asked, lowering his voice a bit as he sat beside me on the couch, cheeks still pink from the frigid outside. "You're pale."

I paused, glancing at the kitchen, and nodded slowly. "I just…uh…you know. New people, new place, I'm just…I think I'm overwhelmed," I admitted, fidgeting with the hem of my shirt, adjusting my position. My leg was propped on the bed, which was beginning to get uncomfortable. I itched with the need to move around.

"And worried," Fox observed, clinical eyes homing in on my restless hands and my squirming.

"And worried."

"They'll be fine, Alex. They were a good unit even before you got there. Besides, most missions go off without a hitch, and the Sergeant's always careful with assignments." He patted my shoulder. "Try to relax a little. If you keep working yourself up so much, it's going to affect your health, and then we'll have to explain to your guard dogs why you're in worse shape than they left you in."

I smirked. "Guard dogs?"

"Yes, guard dogs. I thought Lion was going to deck me the second I laid eyes on you," he griped, eyes pinched in negative remembrance. "Bloody arse."

"Don't worry, he doesn't like you either," I commented, glancing idly at the kitchen. "You know, I thought if anything, Wolf would be the ones giving them problems."

"I heard that," he called.

"I think you were meant to," Fox responded, looking a bit put out. "Well, we'll figure it out eventually. I don't have to like him to work with him." He tousled my hair a little more aggressively than I was used to, and I swatted at his hand on instinct. I used to swat at L-Unit in the beginning, too, and the reminder was a little funny.

"If you're done gossiping, I could use some help," Wolf yelled again, sounding on the verge of exploding. "You've got ten seconds before I kick your arse to next Sunday."

Fox scowled, but made his way into the kitchen, and I followed. I dutifully used my crutch, but Snake still gave me a look. "You alright?"

"It's been almost three weeks," I commented as I looked at the counters, where the cabinets had evidently thrown up. "I'm fine to walk around a little. I can't sit still anymore."

"Excellent, I have two slaves," Wolf said. "Start chopping."

My eyebrow twitched.

Yes, the differences between this flat and L-Unit's were becoming more apparent by the second.

Upon my first impression, I determined that Eagle could live a thousand lives and never be completely deserving of Evelyn.

Evelyn ("Oh, sweetie, call me Evie, everyone does") was five foot nothing with strawberry blonde hair, icy blue eyes, and a smattering of light freckles across her nose and high cheekbones. She was pretty, with small, fairy-like features, but she looked fairly muscled, from what I could tell.

She worked as an Emergency Medical Technician and nurse, alternating between the two depending on what was needed most whichever day. My heart skipped a beat when she said she worked at St. Dominic's, but luckily, she was mostly posted in labor and delivery while on nurse duty. Besides that, she seemed really kind, but she also walked in and started ordering four gigantic SAS men around like children, so she seemed capable, too.

I'd been nervous, and I guess it had shown, because Fox dropped an arm around my shoulder as Snake got the door. I jumped, unprepared, and shot him a look.

"Evelyn's great," Fox said, patting my shoulder before letting go, finally sensing that I was a little uncomfortable. From my experience, he wasn't really inclined to respecting people's personal space. "Besides, I'll protect you."

I scowled.

However, I needn't have worried. Evelyn (unlike Angelica, who'd hugged me straight away, not that I minded now) seemed to sense that I was a bit on edge, because she just smiled and introduced herself from a few feet away, accepting my terse nod and thin smile.

She really won me over when she glanced around the kitchen and said, "James, you're never going to find a girlfriend if this is what it looks like when you cook. Lord, what did you do to that poor squash? Get out of the way."

She proceeded to physically shoo a resigned Wolf to the sink for dish duty (I had a feeling this had happened several times before). Snake smirked at my surprised expression, whispering, "Evelyn's a force to be reckoned with. First time she an' Eagle met at church, she smacked him silly because he put a fake spider in her hair during the service. Screamed up a storm in front of the pastor, then slapped him right in front of the congregation."

There was no way I couldn't laugh at that. I didn't miss the triumphant look in Snake's eye as I laughed—I supposed he'd seen how on edge I'd been all day—but there was nothing I could do about it. That seemed like the kind of thing Eagle would do, and I had no doubt Evelyn gave him hell for it. Good for her.

"Matthew, are you sure you're okay to be moving around so much?" Evelyn asked after a few minutes of my peeling potatoes, glancing pointedly at the crutch I was leaning on. "I know Lewis's on top of everything when it comes to medical things, but you look like you're having a little trouble."

I didn't miss how Wolf's eyes cut quickly to me and away, pretending he hadn't looked in the first place. He was still banished to the sink. Fox and Snake had moved to the living room to give us some space, and Eagle was pestering his girlfriend for samples.

Before I'd gotten here this morning for my stay, I'd spoken to Fox on the phone and informed him of my situation, the barest amount that I could. I'd told him that I was hiding, from MI6 and someone else I'd managed to piss off during my endeavors, and I'd been living under the pseudonym of Matthew Smith for the better part of a year. I said I knew that the rest of K-Unit probably knew me as Alex, or Cub, and that was fine, but I couldn't be introduced to anyone else as anything but Matthew, or I wasn't coming.

Fox had teased my petulant response, but promised that he'd inform the others. I'd bet Fox or Snake told them not to ask, because surprisingly, they hadn't. I had a feeling that was part of the reason behind Wolf's glance just now.

"I'm okay," I assured her with a smile, more relaxed than before, but still guarded. "I've been sitting all day."

"He's a tough kiddo, Evie," Eagle said with a grin, kissing the top of Evie's head (he had to bend drastically low to do so) with a playful smile. "You don't need to be so worked up. It's your day off. Leave the medical analysis to the med student, hm?"

Snake and Evelyn rolled their eyes in such perfect sync I wondered if they'd rehearsed it.

The rest of the day went smoothly, as well. Lunch was a hectic affair—it had to be, with Eagle and Fox around—and Wolf was at his wit's end when it was finally over. I was more than a little surprised his explosion hadn't happened earlier, but when it finally did, it was seemingly catastrophic. He yelled at everyone in sight—including me—about the slightest things, but it seemed like I was the only one phased.

"He gets like this sometimes," Eagle explained, patting my shoulder at my dumbfounded expression. "Don't worry. He's all bark and no bite. Aren't you, Wolf?"

"Oh, I'll show you my bite, you son of a—"

"Wolf, I will call Tia Adelita in a heartbeat, and don't you dare think I won't," Snake threatened. I could practically see the vein in his forehead pulsing with each second. "God, you're an arse. Why the hell do we stand you?"

"He's a decent cook," Fox provided from the recliner, watching the scene with blasé interest.

I blinked, staring at the fuming team leader, the ex-spy whose sharp tongue would get us all killed, the calm medic with the patience of a saint but the temper of a volcano, and the easy-going comedian with the unconcerned insults that were obviously aggravating the situation, especially designed to do so. I glanced at Evelyn, who was clearing the table and humming in the middle of it.

I blinked again.

"Welcome to the flat, Cub," Snake said dejectedly, running a tired hand through his hair.

I supposed, instead of worrying so much about L-Unit, I should worry about myself, too, because I didn't know how I was going to possibly escape the next two weeks unscathed.