Kara could taste the whiskey on Lee's mouth as they celebrated the discovery of the thirteenth colony, and when his lips moved to tickle her neck, she wondered if he could taste the rum that had been sprayed on her in the chaos of their success.
Kara could taste the whiskey on Lee's mouth as they celebrated the discovery of the thirteenth colony, and when his lips moved to tickle her neck, she wondered if he could taste the rum that had been sprayed on her in the chaos of their success.
The celebration was pure chaos as years of tension finally faded away. The weight of the world was no longer on her shoulders, and Kara let herself breathe for the first time in so long.
Lee pulled away from her, and Kara let out a loud scream of joy at the familiar sight of his smile. She had missed this.
In the beginning, she didn't even realize it was fading. They still joked and laughed those first few months, but then the novelty of being alive wore off. In its place stood the knowledge that the responsibility of being alive was on their shoulders. No one else could save humanity. No one else could keep them worthy of saving.
She didn't see Lee smile a lot after the day she voiced that horrible thought.
Her eyes scanned the hangar bay as Lee pulled her into another hug. She knew she should be the one slapping everyone on the back and congratulating them. It was probably in the official job description of CAG somewhere between what to do in the event of a holocaust and how to handle being in love with your commanding officer's son.
How to act in the event that you found salvation from extinction. Kara would love to know what that entry would sound like.
Her eyes caught with Sam's. He was standing on the other end of the hangar, enjoying a drink with a few of the Marines and deckhands. His hand came up in a small wave, and Kara gave him a smile. It had taken a long time to repair things between herself and Samuel Anders.
She had once thought nothing could be more painful than when she lost Zak. She was wrong. Somehow she had ignored the blissful closure that the death of her fiance had given her. Dealing with Anders, knowing what they had once had and not knowing how it had gone wrong, was the most gut-wrenchingly painful act she had ever had to do.
That little wave was a product of years of hard work.
A spray of something wet hit her back, pulling her attentions away from Sam. She jumped away on instinct, out of the reach of Lee's arms. The stickiness of the alcohol was already causing her tanks to stick to her. A soft chuckle filled the air. She wasn't surprised to hear it. She knew it was Karl long before she turned around to face him.
Helo was braced for a vicious right hook, which was why he was caught by surprise when she flung herself into his arms. His shoulders relaxed as his arms tensed, and Kara felt her feet leave the ground as he crushed her against him. "I really didn't think we'd both make it," he admitted after a moment.
"Me, too. The Fleet frak-up and the toaster lover, that's an unlikely pair of survivors."
Helo set her down on the ground. He paused for a second before leaning in to sniff her hair. Kara tried not to laugh at the phony look of disgust plastered across his face. "Kara, you haven't smelled this drunk since Scar." He smirked. "It suits you."
Kara smiled and leaned in to kiss his cheek. "Karl, I haven't been this happy since… well… ever."
Another round of cheers rang through the hangar, and Kara felt a familiar pair of hands wrap around her waist. Before she could turn, she felt her feet leave the ground again, only this time she was being picked up completely. She let out a laugh as a few pilots nearby started catcalling and pulled Lee's lips down to hers.
The kiss was gentle but firm, his quiet way of telling her that everything was going to change now, no matter if she wanted it to or not. She couldn't help but sigh at the feeling of having him so close. He made her feel protected.
"We did it," Lee whispered, resting his forehead against hers.
She felt her smile widen. "Yes, we did."
What she had with Lee was nothing like what she had had with Sam. Sam gave her stability, something to look forward to. He was a potential future, a way to make her life better than what she always thought it could be. Sam was a desire, a need to fight. He had filled her thoughts from the second she left him on Caprica to the moment she returned to find him alive. She had learned to love him through the distance of space. He was the smart decision, the man who was ready to offer her anything she wanted. There was nothing he did that reminded her of Lee.
Samuel Anders and Lee Adama were the opposite in every way, and in the end, that was what the most painful decision of her life was based on.
Sam was a glimmer of hope in the back of her mind.
Lee… Lee was in her blood.
Kara smiled and pulled her XO into another kiss, this time making it worthy of the catcalls they were receiving.
