Vacation

Day Six

It never ceased to amaze Cooper how much someone who talked to so often with the kids could say so few words in every other situation. There they were, spending their last nightly dinner talking nonsensical things with children. Granted, it was still early in the evening by either of their standards, but she was acting like they'd still be there when the kids woke up in the morning. It was enough to make him feel bad for the tykes.

When dinner was over, the sisters hustled the kids off to their classwork, while Kirsten fell silently into the task of cleaning up. Cooper fell in beside her without a comment. It was almost comfortable between them for a while; right up until someone cleared her throat in the kitchen's doorway. Kirsten started like a spooked rabbit, her hand falling to her hip in a reaction of muscle memory. Sighting Mother Angelica, Kirsten relaxed instantly. The tiny, ancient Mother Superior fixed them both with a disapproving stare. For the life of him, Coop couldn't figure out why it affected him so harshly.

"You're leaving tonight?"

"Tomorrow actually," Kirsten returned softly. "Our flight leaves at oh-four-hundred hours."

The woman's lips pressed into a thin line. "This isn't fair to the children."

Coop backed away slightly, as Kirsten heaved a sigh before answering. "They need to get used to it. My new unit deploys at a moments notice. No leaves are guaranteed." Angelica's brows rose. Cooper could picture the eighty-year old woman as a young spitfire. No wonder she was so highly respected around here. "This was a medical leave, Mother Superior. Strictly enforced." Kirsten pressed on, trying to make the woman understand. She jerked her thumb toward Cooper. "Look, I promised him a drink, so we're headed into town. Sister Bernie knows when to expect us back."

Angelica seemed taken aback at being called Mother Superior to her face. Kirsten nudged Cooper gently with her foot. Taking the cue, he began to move past the elderly nun, only to be held in place suddenly by a stern glance.

"You listen to me, and you listen well, son." Angelica murmured when Kirsten turned back to the dishes. "You take care of her. She has a purpose in this life that far exceeds your squabbles in the military. You keep her safe."

Numbly, Cooper nodded, and was summarily released from the stern gaze. As he made his way upstairs, he heard the elderly nun head into the chapel. For a brief second, he thought he heard her crying. Angelica made no further appearances, even as the children were shuffled off into bed, and tucked in summarily. Kirsten touched Cooper's arm at one point as they passed each other in the hallway.

They'd be back on base by noon the following day. They'd be back to calling each other by call signs, and code names; back to the subtle divisions between branches of service. All in all, Cooper wasn't looking forward to the change. Maybe, he pondered as he shoved clothes into his ruck, just maybe he was getting tired of the service. He immediately dismissed that as a ridiculous notion. Glancing at the clock, he realized he only had another twenty minutes before Kirsten was taking him out for his fabled beer. He supposed he was passable. No stains on his shirt, no holes in his jeans. He raked a hand through his hair a few times, trying to get the curls on top to lay flat. It was near time to get the whole mop buzzed right off again.

A light knock on the door frame alerted him to watchful eyes. Kirsten's mouth was curved up in mirth as she watched Cooper primp before the mirror. He checked the buttons of his cuffs before grabbing his leather jacket and following her out. Kirsten didn't say anything as they sneaked through the dormitory halls to the main floor. Sister Bernie was in the chapel, her head bent, and her hands folded as they slipped by the big double doors. Once they reached the truck, Cooper had managed to identify the quiet little thrill running up the back of his spine. It was the sort of thrill a teenager gets sneaking out on a date. He cast a quick look at Kirsten before he climbed into the truck.

There was a moment where she was smiling like a contented cat. It faded for a moment, as she settled herself into the seat, replaced with minor concern. Coop wanted to react, to reach out, ask her how her back was, but it seemed that once she had settled in, she was completely fine. The content smile came drifting back slowly. She didn't say anything as she started to drive, but he found he was perfectly happy with that. Neither one of them had ever found it necessary to fill the silence with noise. It was really the core of their training, and some took to it to heart. Cooper instead watched the road, and the surroundings. He'd only been off the children's home grounds once for the barn raising.

They passed the skeletal structure of that same barn on their way to the town. The moon had risen behind it, giving the beams and lattices a haunting backdrop. That same moon reflected off the cornfields, turning the green growing fields into cool silver oceans. The town itself was small enough that if you blinked while driving through, you'd probably miss it. A central traffic circle marked downtown, complete with a flagpole. The flag, illuminated from beneath by a pair of small floodlights, made Cooper smile.

She pulled into the one lonely gas station in town, the open sign flickering weakly in the front window. Glancing back into the town, Cooper wondered just what was going on. It was that second look that allowed him to notice there was no bar in town. She left the truck running as she slipped out, leaving Cooper alone with his thoughts. He could count down the hours until their flight left, but he found that he dreaded the passing of time. Kirsten was only gone for a few moments, and in the time span that she crossed the threshold of the store, she'd undergone such a drastic change that Coop couldn't believe she was the same woman.

Inside the store she put on a mask, full of laughter and joie de vivre. It seemed to transform her from being merely pretty into a stunning vision of beauty. But Cooper could see around the edges where that joy was tarnished, the little spots of fake that made her smile completely unattractive. He'd seen the honest light of happiness in her eyes, when she was surrounded by those kids, and what she showed in the store wasn't that. However, as soon as she left the environs, to climb back into the truck, the fake smile slipped from her features, and practically shattered off the weary military countenance.

Kirsten climbed back into the truck, and set a six-pack of beer on the seat between them. Rebuckling her seat belt, she dropped the truck into reverse and backed away from the gas station. Cooper watched her carefully, but out of the corner of his eye. He felt her relax as she put distance between the store and themselves, headed back out in the direction of the swaying cornfields. Coop wondered if he should ask about the clerk in the store, or if perhaps her silence signaled that she didn't want to discuss it. About halfway between the Clooney's farm and the Sister of Mercy orphanage, Kirsten began to decelerate. She found a break in the corn rows, and carefully turned on to it.

The truck crept along down the dirt road until they came to a break between the cornfields. Kirsten turned the truck completely around before she killed the engine and gestured for Coop to climb out. He grabbed the six-pack, while she rummaged around behind the seat for something. After a moment, she came up with a tattered old quilt, the moonlight washed it clean of all colors. But she spread it out on the ground, and lowered herself carefully onto it. Coop sat beside her, his long legs stretched out before him. Lifting two bottles from the case, he passed her one.

Still the silence around them was golden, built with warmth and comfort. The pop of the caps happened almost in unison, and while Coop fell to drinking his right away, Kirsten just held onto her bottle for a few more moments. She leaned slowly back, until her elbows supported her upper body. Her hair fell back as she tipped her head up to look at the stars. Cooper watched her, while he drained more than half of his beer.

Finally, she took a swig herself, making a face. So she wasn't a drinker, for some reason that took Coop more by surprise than he expected it to. She must have seen the shock in his eyes, because she laughed softly. "I was always D.D." The comment came with a wry look at the beer in her hand. "Something about being in control of my actions."

Cooper felt himself grin in answer to that. She made more sense to him, with each little revelation. "I'll drink the whole pack for you, if you want." He wondered if she would counter his offer, or take him up on it. Instead, she just chuckled, and shook her head slightly. Her eyes traveled back skyward, to wide-open spread of stars above. Coop followed her gaze, just studying the sky above while the silence crept back in comfortably around them.

By the time Kirsten had nursed her first beer completely empty, Cooper had finished three. He held his alcohol comfortably, just barely starting to feel the buzz. He reached for a bottle at the same time that Kirsten did, his hand coming to rest upon hers. He felt her soft intake of breath, not quite a gasp, and knew that when he looked at her, she'd be uncomfortable with the contact. She wasn't drawing away from him, though. He curled his hand a little tighter around hers, as he turned to face her.

Under the moonlight, her hair seemed silver, glowing. Releasing her hand, he reached up to brush that cloud back from her face. As his fingers grazed her cheek, she closed her eyes. It was impulse, but he cupped her face with his hand. The tiny, rational part of his mind that was still functioning claimed that he could easily blame his actions on the beer, pretend to be more drunk than he really felt. He slid the calloused pad of his thumb across her lips, and felt a shiver race through her.

Now or never. He realized. Slight pressure from his hand drew her closer, even as he leaned in. Gently, very gingerly, he pressed his lips to hers. He could count the heartbeats in the passing moments; she didn't pull away, but neither did she respond. Then in a final heartbeat, she pressed back, barely enough for him to feel, before pulling away. Coop waited for her to say something, feeling the silence between them begin to grow strained and uncomfortable. She looked away, placing her fingers on her lips for a few seconds.

Then, into the silence, her watch beeped. Three times, loudly enough that in the still quiet cornfield, it seemed to deafen them with noise. Kirsten started guiltily, and thumbed the button to silence the alarm.

"We should get going," she claimed, not looking in Cooper's direction. "Sister Bernie will be waiting for us." She was on her feet quickly, turning away from him, withdrawing. By the time he'd gotten to his feet, she had already gotten the old truck's engine running. As he climbed into the passenger seat, she spared him a glance. He smiled for her, but sobered when she didn't return the expression.

"I'm sorry," she whispered, focusing on her hands for a few moments, unable to look him in the eye any longer.

Cooper kept his laugh to himself, but reached out, giving her forearm a light squeeze. "I'm not."