Disclaimer: me own no halo of existing in that it is. hAlo of one in that which is of owned by me that it is not.
Chapter 3: A Small Favor
"… and that, is all I have to teach you," Johnson concluded proudly. It was a moment before he noticed a sick feeling Master Chief with the tray containing his lunch pushed to the side and his head laid down in the crook of his arm. When he did notice, he put a hand on the Spartan's back. "You okay Chief?"
The super solider's head popped up quickly and he held his face in his hands.
"I'm fine." Johnson patted his back and got up.
"Since you've eaten, we need to get you dressed for your date tonight," the Sergeant laughed. At the mention of … that word… Master Chief was on his feet in an instant looming threateningly over his friend.
"I do not have a date! Now keep that kind of talk down before you get rumors started," he growled quietly. He hoped that the burning in his face wasn't his cheeks turning red. Judging from the smirk on the shorter man's face, he decided it was.
"Okay, it's not a date," the older man said with a smirk. "But you still have some work to do. You're as white as a ghost so you've already got a couple points against you. Now what we need to do for you is-"
"Um, thanks Sarge, but I'm gonna go check on Nimori now. I'll find you once I'm done and then you can … yeah. I'll talk to you later." Johnson kinda started to give something like a nod and the Spartan shot off like a rocket to get away from him. Nothing scared him more than Sergeant Johnson with a gun like Sergeant Johnson and fashion.
Once he was safely away from the mess hall, the Chief slowed to a more reasonable pace as he headed for the infirmary. Why was he going to the infirmary? It wasn't the friendly conflict that bothered him. He'd damn near killed three ODST's his first time working out after his augmentation and barely flinched. Maybe it was because she was a little girl and he wasn't accustomed to fighting women. Or it was possibly because the long period of peace had dulled his soldier's stoicism.
A little voice in the back of his head whispered. You're horny…
He shook his head in denial, but the voice persisted. You're a horny old soldier… fifty year old virgin. He was mocking himself and couldn't do a thing about it. It was useless trying to argue with his subconscious; it kicked his ass every time. But if he wasn't going to argue, then he was saying that he wanted to …
The sight of the infirmary up ahead allowed him to cut off that very dangerous train of thought as he thought once more of Nimori's health. The way she doubled over his kick rather than just breaking in half was proof enough she was tougher than even the Helljumpers, but that much force would bring a Hunter to its knees. He doubted that even a singularity like her would be up and about by dinner time.
The door hissed open and admitted him into the room. It was comprised of four rows of beds, arranged into two aisles with the foot of the beds in one row facing those of the row opposite. There were a lot of beds, but most were vacant. Far in the back was a bed with the curtain drawn around it, so the Chief decided to start there. The nurses offered him help enthusiastically, all but grabbing his '/throat clears\' to get his attention. He gave them a polite verbal response with a serious look. Soon enough they realized he wasn't there for them.
He reached the back bed and drew the curtain back. Inside Nimori lay on the bed beneath a drab olive hospital blanket and another young girl sat in the chair beside the bed. This other girl was as small as Nimori was, looking as though she didn't reach five feet in height or one hundred pounds in weight. She had amber colored hair that didn't quite reach her shoulders, a small nose, full pouting pink lips, and light brown eyes. Her look was pleasing to the Spartan, though it was nothing like the attraction he imagined most men would feel when they looked at her.
"You!" she hissed when she saw him. "You did this asshole!" She jumped from her chair and began hammering away at his chest. But that didn't last long as his hard muscles hurt her delicate hands. She started slapping at his face but that ended the same way as before. She looked like she was about to resort to a fierce tongue lashing but Nimori sat up and the girl was back at her side in an instant.
"Lay back down Nimori. Even you need to rest sometimes you know." The girl took Nimori's hand and tenderly stroked it. The teenager shot a smile at the Chief before laying down again. This earned him a steely glare from the other girl.
"Come over here Chief so I can see you," Nimori instructed as she indicated a spot on the opposite side of the bed as her other visitor. "Chief, this is my best friend, Yuki Matsuda." He looked over to the girl and she smiled widely and bowed her head long enough to say "Nice to meet you," then it was back to glaring. "Yuki, try to be nice to the Master Chief."
"But look at what he did to you for going easy on him!" the amber haired girl retorted. Her voice sounded as though she'd already given up the argument.
"I told you a hundred times I'm just laying here to keep from having to do my job. I mean-!" Nimori coughed to cover what she'd just said, which was a very poor attempt at hiding it. She looked over to him with a look slight look of fear in her eyes. "You won't tell will you Chief?"
"Of course he will! Everyone knows he puts military protocol before anything else!" Yuki answered for him when he opened his mouth to speak. He didn't like being interrupted.
"If I'm so bound by military protocol, then why would I agree to fight Nimori?" She stuttered for words but since it was clear that she had no answer Master Chief turned his attention to Nimori. "I won't tell anyone. Consider this little respite a favor from me." Seeing her face light up like it did was more satisfying than it should've been.
"Aw… how touching! First you take care of me until the med team arrives and now you're doing favors!" Nimori's comments were revealing things that the Spartan had been trained to hide from himself. "Who knew you'd be such a sweetheart?"
"You. Outside. Now." Despite the fact that Yuki had no authority to order him around, the super soldier had decided that he wasn't comfortable around Nimori anymore. Saying he would be back to check on her soon, he left Nimori's bedside and followed Yuki out into the hall.
"What do you want girl?" he asked sharply once they were outside.
"I wanna know what you're trying to do to my best friend," she responded firmly as she crossed her arms beneath her breasts and glared up at him.
"I'm trying to get her to leave me alone," the Chief answered simply. Yuki scoffed and shifted her weight to one leg.
"And that's why you came to see her in the infirmary?" This girl was pissed for some reason, but Master Chief couldn't figure out what it was. Then he remembered something that Johnson had said, and carefully thought over his next statement.
"She looked like she was hurt pretty bad when I last saw her. I wanted to make sure that I hadn't killed her." He kept his voice calm so as not to upset the girl.
"After all the killing you've done, you come back to check on someone who might be dead?" Yuki asked cynically. This girl's persistence was starting to get on the Chief's nerves.
"I like to be thorough." That shattered her 'I'm gonna kick your ass' posture. The sadistic smile was just to seal the deal.
"Okay, but don't try anything funny." The Chief found himself laughing despite everything. This girl was truly defensive. It seemed Johnson had been right about that.
With that they both headed back in to find Nimori walking around somewhat unsteadily. Yuki was by her side in a flash, trying to gently force her back to the bed. Nimori showed she was still strong though, easily fending off her girlfriend. Sighing, Chief took the matter into his own hands. He tried to pick her up, but she fought against him with a lot more energy than he'd thought she had. After taking a step back to massage a freshly punched jaw, Chief stepped in more strongly this time. She was scooped up into his arms this time, fighting to get free for just a moment before becoming eerily peaceful in his arms. Suddenly she seemed to weigh a ton.
After the (mile long) walk back to the bed, Chief laid her back down.
"Don't do that anymore. You'd better save your strength if you're planning on making it all the way to my quarters to have dinner," he joked lightly. Not surprisingly, her smile grew at the comment.
"I'll try, but it's just so boring laying here all alone," there was a glint in her eye but she looked away as Yuki found her seat once more. "Do you ever get bored Chief?"
He started to say 'Of course,' but then he realized he never had had to worry about recreation.
"Not necessarily. I feel like I need to do something, but it doesn't bother me," he answered after a moment.
"I see…" Her tone said that that wasn't the answer she was looking for. What'd she want him to say? He only answered the question she asked him. Then another of Johnson's teachings came to him. He'd said to look for hints, but what was that supposed to mean? Why was he worrying about it? Argh!!
"Is there anything you want me to do?" And he immediately wished he had it back. That did not come out right.
The teenager's head spun around and her eyes locked to his. There was a new look in her eyes. Not the naïve happiness that was there before, but a more … pleased look.
"I do have one thing in mind," she answered with a devious look on her face. "The leg I slammed into the floor during our playtime is a little sore. Could you massage it for me?"
The Chief's jaw hit the floor with a thud. How's that possible? Then he realized the thud was Yuki falling out of her chair. She began screaming something at Nimori in Japanese, but the injured teen remained calm with a satisfied smirk on her face. Eventually she managed to calm Yuki, though the amber haired girl still looked angered when she left.
Then she poked her head back in and directed something that sounded angry at the Chief in Japanese.
"The Chief doesn't speak Japanese sweetie," Nimori said pleasantly to her friend.
"Don't try anything Spartan. I'm just going outside this curtain," she managed to say in English this time. He nodded to her seriously, but she took it as sarcasm and huffed before going back outside the curtain.
"There should be some lotion beneath the bed," Nimori informed him as he sat there rather cluelessly. He lifted the sheet and grabbed the lotion from the lower platform of the bed.
"Where do you need it?" he said unsteadily. She smiled at him like a mother smiles at her child learning to walk. Then she pulled the sheets back and lifted her gown much higher than he decided was necessary, revealing the light golden skin of her legs all the way up to her hip. The Spartan found his chest very tight at such a beautiful sight.
"My calf hurts a bit. That'd be a good place to start." He didn't like the way that sounded. Or how quickly his hands moved to touch that smooth skin. But as his hands began working the lotion into her muslces, he couldn't deny that this was the most enjoyable thing he'd ever done. As his fingers pressed small patterns in the girl's leg, he could feel her relax. After he'd gotten a little more comfortable, he was able to concentrate and actually use the little bit of a massage he'd learned.
"Mm… higher…" When the pleasured moan first escaped her lips, the Chief didn't believe she'd said that, so he kept right on with her calf. That is, until she shoved her leg through his grip so that he had to go higher. He massaged around her knee for a bit, once more feeling tension drain from the teenager's body.
"Ah…. a little higher now…" she said more clearly this time, but that still didn't keep the Chief from hesitating. His hands slid up to her thigh, keeping very near the top of her knee so as not to go … too high. But he wanted to go higher. He wanted to cover every inch of her body with his hands, and if it wasn't for his strict self control he may have done it. Her moans were piercing to something that lay dormant inside him, and her choppy breaths weren't helping. If she didn't decide enough was enough soon then he would-
"Oh yes… higher… higher!" The girl was totally out of control now. Her body writhed as the same primal desires that tormented the Master Chief attacked her. Though in her case, they seemed to be winning. His hands slid up a bit, but he realized he would do something he'd regret if he went any higher. He'd done all he would.
"Yuki! Get in here!" The girl was inside the room in a flash. "You wanna take over for me?" She looked at him incredulously before gingerly taking his place.
"Aw… you leaving already?" Nimori said sadly. She must've really been disappointed as she didn't give him that smile he'd grown to like. "But you were doing so well."
"There was something Johnson wanted to talk about and I've already delayed him once," Chief responded. She flashed her smile at him and he found himself smiling back.
"Okay. Lean down a little closer." He did. She brought her small hand up, gently caressing his face. There was a faint urge to lean into her hand, but he figured it was just to resist the pressure and ignored it. "Yep. It's official. You're ugly."
He was shocked, to say the least, but it didn't bother him. Most of the females on the ship practically threw themselves at him, but this was the one that saw him some other way. Maybe that was why… okay Chief, don't go there.
"Hmph. What am I gonna do with good looks?" he questioned. She laughed and squeezed his nose. She sounded, and acted, like a child, but oh! her laughter was a sweet sound.
"You've got a point. Now go away before you scare away my good looks!" she said as she pushed his face away.
"I might come back to check on you later. And thanks for the help Yuki. It was nice to meet you." Nimori's friend was left shocked as Chief headed out.
See John? I told you! You're a horny old bastard! The voice taunted him once more.