In Spying, Love, and War: A This Means War Fanfiction Story
Chapter 6:
The next morning, in Trish's and Lauren's house...
Trish is sitting on a wide dark green couch: With a bunch of stuffed animal toys and a hand sized stuffed Noah's Ark across it. The couch is in the back of the living room, with double window screen double doors off to the left. The dining room is just past a little hall in the right corner.
Lauren is standing very nervously by the couch, breathing heavily. She's also teary eyed.
Trish is wearing Cheetos stained blue jeans and a white lace dress with matching straps over her shoulders. She's also wearing pineapple slices like very pale gray earrings.
Lauren has her hair mostly tied back in a bun. She's wearing a black sleeveless top and worn out blue jeans.
She keeps murmuring under her breath, "I feel like I'm going crazy. But, I'm not waking up."
Not taking it anymore... Trish calls out, "oh my god: I know! Just... Heavy sigh. Just breathe in and out. And, come sit down. Please. You're getting me worried, Lauren."
She's a little teary eyed herself.
Lauren nervously sighs as she finally sits down.
She faintly smiles: Faintly physically relieved at finally sitting down.
After a bit... Lauren turns to her.
She somberly wonders, "what do I do, Trish?! I loved dates with these guys. Then... Hard sniffle! I find out they were secretly at war over me."
Trish very faintly smiles. She tries to be assuring, "you know, some girls would think of it as the greatest form of flattery. Maybe you could just pick and..."
Lauren mutters back, "well, not everyone wants to go to a strip club. It's not that easy with these guys!"
Some silent tears fall from her face. She sniffles hard.
Trish puts her comforting hands on hers.
She supposes, "I know it isn't. But... What if it soon gets to be?"
Looking very nervous and confused all at once... Lauren says, "what?"
Trish very faintly chuckles.
She figures, "I already called my friends in the F.B.I. like you told me. They'll be there to protect you. Even if both of those guys try something, I'm sure the worst is over."
Lauren wipes some teariness from her eyes. She very faintly smiles.
She concludes, "okay. Maybe that's true. But...I'm still worried."
Trish comments, "that's okay. I know you do. But...why don't we get into decision-making mode?"
Lauren brings up nervously, "you mean for choosing a guy? You sure?"
Trish points out, "I know you're not sure now if you should. But...what if you walk in and find out they're still both good guys? Then what? You're going to not stay out there and get flexible? I want you to be happy."
Lauren realizes kind of awkwardly, "wow. You're right. Faint chuckle. Maybe it'll be helpful too: For what ever happens at Trucco's Pizza."
Trish more lightly says, "that's the spirit. So...who are you choosing?"
After a bit of thinking it over though... Lauren suddenly seems nervous all over again.
Trish's four year old son Linus comes over to Trish.
He has medium dark brown hair. He's wearing a mostly light blue T-shirt with a AT-ST on it and carrying a kind of torn up baseball mitt.
Trish faintly smiles. She says, "hey, buddy."
Linus asks, "mom, can you fix this?"
Trish pats him lightly on the head.
She mostly assures, "in a few minutes. You can get the chocolate bar in your room."
Linus smiles. He says, "all right mom."
He leaves them be, excitedly running up to his room.
Lauren very faintly smiles, watching him go.
Trish puts down the baseball mitt to the side as he heads up.
Then... Lauren wonders, "do you think it's possible to love two people equally?"
Trish tilts her head to the side a little as she faces her.
She figures, "love? Yes. Be in love with two people and they love you back? Moderate sigh. Sorry. I'd like it to be that easy for women everywhere. But... Spy or no spy, that's never a easy coupling."
Lauren faintly nods. She sighs nervously though.
Trish adds, "I know what I think you should do to choose."
Lauren openly concludes, "all right. Go ahead."
Trish faintly smiles. She adds, "you're welcome."
Lauren very faintly chuckles.
Then... Trish reflects, "I'd think: Don't choose the better guy. Choose the guy that'll make you go on as the better couple. Very faint chuckle. I mean, I know Bob was fat and ridiculous. But, he was my fat and my ridiculous. And, I liked the way that I was with him: Spying, tartar sauce, balls, and the birds and bees. Just please promise me something."
Lauren faintly smiles.
Sounding a little better... Lauren kind of nervously asks, "okay. What?"
Trish gets teary eyed again. She puts a sympathetic hand on hers.
Trish more solemnly says, "who ever you choose...please make sure he's not gonna die on the job. I don't want you to go through that."
Very nervously... Lauren murmurs, "oh my god Trish. Heavy sigh. Hard sniffle. I know you mean well. But, that's not helpful now."
Trish awkwardly apologizes, "I'm sorry." Lauren insists, "it's okay."
Then... Lauren concludes, "I mean... I hope so, Trish."
Trish adds, "so do I."
Trish gets up, going up the stairs with the baseball mitt.
They both very faintly smile to each other as she goes up.
As 12:30 P.M. draws near...
FDR and Tuck are wearing black suits and matching silvery spy watches. Tuck is wearing a dark blue collared shirt. FDR is wearing a light blue collared shirt.
The sun kind of glares in their eyes as they walk down a corner of sidewalk.
Tuck sighs heavily. He wonders offhandedly, "should you explain first, or...?"
FDR very faintly laughs. He comments kind of nervously, "you tranquilized me just before I was about to call you and call it off. You tell me."
Tuck just shakes his head annoyedly and keeps walking.
Kind of annoyedly... FDR asks lowly, "what?!"
Tuck adds kind of coldly, "forget it, Franklin."
Soon, they both come up to a glass door. Some government agents wearing black are sitting on a bench across the street, pretending to read books with white THs on the black covers.
Through the glass door, there's a neon sign with Trucco's Pizza in red over a white blocky wall.
FDR and Tuck nervously walk through the door. Tuck goes first.
A cobblestone fireplace is in back. The counter and cashier are silvery, reminiscent of a popcorn popper.
The semi-casual lounge like area has black chairs around black and white swirled tablecloths on tables.
Most of them are vacant with most people having just finished lunch. But, some government agents without black sunglasses are all sharing a table: Eating a large pizza together to try to not arouse suspicion.
And, sitting in a reserved table for three by herself...is Lauren.
She's wearing her black sunglasses and has her hair down. She brought her handbag with her.
She seems to be kind of sweaty from just how nervous she is. But, she keeps sitting up: Not looking away much at all from a certain direction.
FDR nervously gulps.
Tuck start to says, "um...hello. Could we...?"
Lauren is quick to say, "yes. Please."
FDR and Tuck nervously sit down in the two chairs.
Then... Lauren checks worriedly, "you sure you are not going to try to kill each other?"
Trying to sound casual... FDR says, "it's a crying shame you don't trust us. But... Heavy sigh. I guess we deserve it."
Lauren somberly mutters, "you sure do."
There's a very nervous silence between the three of them.
After a few long minutes though... Lauren sighs in some relief.
She takes off her sunglasses, revealing her teary eyes under them.
Almost at the same time... FDR and Tuck ask, "are you okay?"
Lauren very faintly chuckles. She comments, "good grief. We came to talk about your war over me, and that's all you can say to me?"
FDR and Tuck nervously tap their fingers on the table, looking down.
After a bit... Lauren says, "okay. I got a notepad and pen. It might help."
As she gets out her notepad though... FDR suddenly gets up.
Some F.B.I. agents from the other table kind of frantically try to clean up their hands with hand sanitizer.
But... FDR calls back, "it's okay, men. I'm not trying to get a gun or something."
He puts his hands out as he says it.
Looking fairly confused... Lauren asks, "FDR? What are you...?"
FDR heavily sighs. He gets teary eyed.
He says, "it's all my fault. Faint sniffle. Tuck and I agreed that if I let dating compromise me, he'd take me out. I should go hand in my resignation."
Lauren stares at him, wide eyed and shocked.
Tuck starts to argue, "FDR? What are you...?!"
FDR somberly concludes, "I'm really sorry. I should have never gotten into the picture. Faint sniffle. Good luck, Tuck. She deserves you more than I ever could."
He leaves his pistol on its side on the table.
He starts to walk away, fighting the urge to cry.
Lauren starts to say, "Tuck? Is this...?"
Tuck gets teary eyed.
Just then... He says kind of loudly, "no. It's both our faults."
Just then, in a jet black van...
Karl Heinrich is driving down the street.
In his rearview mirror... He sees Trucco's Pizza...and FDR starting to walk away.
Karl Heinrich smirks to himself.
Over a mostly gray Chinese walkie talkie... He says, "we got them now. You know the plan."
He drives around the back of Trucco's Pizza...while fourteen more jet black vans are parking around the place.
Back with Lauren...
FDR pauses. He sighs heavily.
He reluctantly turns back to Tuck and Lauren.
And, he mutters, "shit. I was just trying to..."
Lauren finishes the thought, "...protect Tuck."
FDR sits back down.
He admits very nervously, "yeah. But...I hit the safety button with a dart. That means I started the whole thing. Faint sniffle. I took reconning me with you too seriously."
Lauren sighs heavily into her hand.
After a bit... She realizes, "okay. Okay. Now it's all getting to be kind of rational to me."
She puts away the notepad.
Turning to Tuck... Lauren brings up, "you sent a paintball surprise of your own to FDR, didn't you?"
Tuck faintly nods. He says, "yeah. Yeah, I did."
There's a nervous silence.
Suddenly... Lauren wonders nervously, "you know why I still called you?"
Tuck and FDR both say no.
Lauren somberly admits, "well... When I first found out what Bob does for a living... Heavy sigh. It was my senior year in high school. I started worrying more: About a lot. I started constantly calling Steve, constantly stalking him. And then, a few weeks later...he left me. Hard sniffle! Through high school, I already left my friends and family behind to spend all my time with him. Trish was a new friend. But, she... She's the only one who didn't leave me. Hard sniffle! I never thought I'd meet another guy to really love. But, now...where are we? Two otherwise amazing guys walk into my life, and I was about to leave you. I'd hate myself if I didn't at least try to make peace with you."
Almost at the same time... FDR and Tuck say, "oh god."
They're both shaken, teary eyed.
Some silent tears fall on the table.
The teariness in Lauren's eyes start to dry.
Lauren kind of assures, "that's okay. I think I'm mostly over him now...now that I really know why he left me: Now that I know better than to make a really big mistake by walking away from you."
FDR very faintly smiles. He kind of casually points out, "well...we aren't at war now."
Tuck very faintly smiles. He adds kind of casually, "yeah. We're really not."
Lauren puts sympathetic hands on both of theirs.
Lauren very faintly smiles. And, she says, "and I'm glad."
There's a calm silence.
After a bit... Lauren wonders more casually, "so...do you guys want to know my decision?"
FDR says, "yeah. Whoever you pick, I can take it like a gentleman."
Tuck asks, "are you kidding? Trick question. We really do."
Lauren faintly grins.
She starts to tell, "well..."
Then, suddenly... Shots are fired.
Tuck calls out, "get down!"
At the same time, Tuck kicks the table down on its side.
Glass windows, the glass door, Lauren's sunglasses... They shatter from the bullets.
Some people run frantically for the back door.
Bullets make holes through the fallen table. But, none of them hit Tuck.
Tuck, Lauren, and FDR duck behind it. Tuck and FDR get out their pistols.
Ten guys with sleek gray jackets fire their assault rifles at the F.B.I. agents. Most of the F.B.I. agents left and right fire their pistols at them.
Two on both sides fall dead.
Three guys with sleek gray jackets are about to fire more bullets from their assault rifles.
But, just as quickly... FDR and Tuck fire pistols.
All three of Heinrich's men bend down, clutching their dark red liquid dripping legs and dropping their rifles.
FDR checks, "are you okay, Lauren?"
Kind of loudly over the bullets... Lauren concludes lightly, "yeah. I got two incredible spies to protect me from harm."
FDR and Tuck faintly smile back to her.
Then... Their smiles fade.
Caught off guard in the moment... They're both punched down violently by some of Heinrich's men.
Lauren cries out, "no! ! !"
She gets teary eyed.
She rushes over to look for a fork, a knife... Anything to stab with.
FDR and Tuck groan violently on their sides, struggling to get up.
FDR violently punches away two of Heinrich's men.
One of them crashes into the crashing down neon sign. He falls unconscious, with heavy bruises and burns on his head.
Tuck violently kicks up one of Heinrich's men into another.
They both crash into the counter. They both fall unconscious, with heavy bruises all over.
Twenty more men with sleek gray jackets walk in...firing assault rifles at the F.B.I. agents, Tuck, and FDR.
Frustratedly... FDR calls out, "shit! Where are all these guys coming from?!"
Tuck calls back, "I'm not going out and asking them! You want to?!"
FDR and Tuck duck tumble behind the counter...seconds before more bullets make little holes in it.
The F.B.I. agents are all groaning violently on their sides. Some of them fall dead in seconds.
A little out of breath... Tuck suddenly asks, "Franklin?"
A little out of breath... FDR says, "yeah Tuck?"
Tuck realizes, "where's Lauren?"
FDR and Tuck look at each other very nervously.
Around then...
In the back of the building... Lauren screams, "let go of me!"
She's being dragged away by three of Heinrich's men.
Karl Heinrich and another of his men open up the back of his van.
Karl coldly figures, "that's where you're wrong. I don't want you: I want FDR and Tuck."
Even as Heinrich's men put Lauren down in the back... Lauren very faintly chuckles.
Karl asks, "something funny about this to you?"
He gets back into the van, taking the wheel.
Lauren confidently says, "I don't know you. But, I know they're going to save me. I believe in them."
Karl faintly laughs. He mutters bitterly, "they can try."
Soon, most of Heinrich's men are falling back: Getting back into the vans to follow his van for the highways.
Not long after...
Soon as they see a clear path to the backdoor... FDR and Tuck run out the back.
But, by then... All that's left there is Lauren's tossed aside handbag.
They run back inside.
But...they quickly realize Heinrich's men are gone.
FDR clenches his fists.
He mutters under his breath, "damn!"
Tuck puts a sympathetic hand on his shoulder.
He says, "it's okay man. It's okay: I..."
Then... Both their cell phones ring.
They quickly pick up.
Almost at the same time... They both say, "hi?"
On the other end... Karl says, "FDR, Tuck. Hello."
FDR and Tuck both realize, "Heinrich."
Karl concludes, "yes. I was busy taking over the Asian underground. Some turned up moles, some dirtied tailored suits... The spy world can be murder. But, I'm still angry for you killing my brother Jonas. He was more than my brother: He was my best friend. Faint laugh. I'll kill Lauren. Girlfriend, sister... It does not matter. She'll fall on a speeding car...just like my brother. I'll kill everyone else you care about and then take back that invisible missile! Then you'll know how it feels to have no best friends in the world. That's how I want you."
He then hangs up.
After a bit... FDR turns back to Tuck, "so...what were you just about to tell me?"
Tuck faintly smiles.
He raises his arm with his spy watch.
The center light up red arrow on the watch's face is already mostly pointing northeast.