Our girl belongs to the bbc. The show and it's characters were written by Tony Grounds.
"Hello Charles." Molly replies in a steady voice having regained her composure. Matthew and Charles nod in greeting at each other but stay silent.
Fingers and Brains finally snap out of their trance and jump up from the booth with wide grins on their faces. Matthew smiles at their enthusiasm and moves to the side as both men sweep their former medic into a hug.
"Dawesey, you're quite the sight for sore eyes. We've missed seeing you around." Brains says as he takes her in.
"What he said. You look bloody fantastic Dawes!" Fingers agrees.
"Thank you lads! I've missed you too." Her green eyes sparkling with mirth. "This fella here is my husband Matthew Geddings." She says hooking her thumb to where Matt stands waiting patiently.
"Nice to meet ya mate." They greet with smiles and shake Matthew's hand.
"We'll have to catch up soon." Molly says. "But if you don't mind I'd like to chat with the boss man first."
"Sure thing Dawesey. That will give us a chance to tell your husband here a few stories." Fingers grins wickedly.
Matthew laughs. "I've got a few funny stories from her days in basic training that you might enjoy."
Matthew kisses Molly and looks into her eyes silently checking to see if she is still ok to have this talk. She nods her assurance and slowly releases his hand as he turns to lead the two men over to the table with Katie and Luke.
"I'm going to regret introducing them." Molly mumbles as she as she watches them walk away.
Molly sucks in a breath and turns back to Charles. "You look good Charles." She studies him. "Like the man I met on that first tour to Afghan, confidant and in control."
Charles smiles slightly at the reminder of their time in Afghan. "I don't think I'll ever be that man again. Too much has happened since then. I did get the help I needed. Now I'm just focusing on being a good dad to Sammy. Being a good Captain for my men and winning back their respect."
"Sammy loves having you around again. We still text all the time and I take him out for pizza once a week. I wasn't sure if he or Rebecca told you that we did that. I'm glad you got help for your ptsd. You were always a good captain, Charles. You just got lost for a while. The fellas all saw your struggle. I'm sure they've forgiven you."
Classic Molly. Charles thinks as he picks at the label on his bottle. Always encouraging and uplifting others. Even the ones who hurt her the most.
"I owe you an apology Molly." Charles says as he looks up, meeting her eyes. "I should never have shut you out. I should have stayed home and dealt with my issues. I'm sorry for cornering you into agreeing to a divorce. Most of all I'm so sorry for pursuing Georgie and for the humiliation you had to endure when it all came to light."
Molly rapidly blinks away the tears gathering in her eyes. "It was so hard to watch you walk out the door that last time. I knew then that it was the end for us. I already suspected that you were having feelings for Georgie. I should have fought harder to get you to stay home, but I figured that it was a lost battle. I gave into the divorce so easily because I thought it was kindest thing to do. Let you go be with the person who could make you happy again. But when I heard the stories about what happened between you and Georgie on tour it was like flashing back to my 18th birthday again catching the two people I trusted most going at it behind my back. I was so angry. I thought you'd at least wait until after our divorce was final to get with her. Especially since you were on tour and you were usually so determined to uphold army regulations. But I guess she was more worthy of risking your career for than plain ole Molly Dawes." Molly spit out in anger.
Charles flinches back. "Molly you are worth more than a thousand Georgies. I wasn't thinking clearly. If I had been in the right state of mind I never would have looked twice at her. What I thought were feelings for her were really just a distraction from the grief I felt at the loss of Elvis. If I could go back and change things I would stay with you. My heart was always with you. I'm in love with you now."
"I forgive you Charles. I truly do. I believe that you weren't in the right frame of mind. You never should have been on that tour. I share responsibility for that. I should have reported your behavior. I love you. I probably always will. You were my first real love." She looks across the room to where Matthew sits. "But I'm in love with Matthew. He isn't a consolation prize or a second choice. I love him with my entire being. I feel secure with him, in way that I never did with you. Me and him we just fit. I hope you can find someone who makes you feel the way I feel with him. I want you to be happy." She smiles at him through teary eyes.
"I know you're in love with him. I can see how happy he makes you. I'm happy that you're happy. Maybe one day I'll get there too." Charles gives her a soft smile.
Molly wipes her tears and slides out of the booth. She leans over kissing Charles on the cheek. "Goodbye Charles. Take care of yourself."
"Goodbye Molly. You take care too." He stands there watching as she walks over to her friends, taking her seat beside her husband and intertwining his hand in hers.
"Alright, you wankers. What kind of stories have you been sharing about me?" He hears her ask with laughter in her voice as he slips out the door into the night.