A/N: Alright, then! Next Chapter. This one was particularly hard to write (I need practice writing arguments), and so I would looooove any and all reviews, advice, and constructive criticism. Finding the crappy bits in the story is the first step to fixing them, after all!
DISCLAIMER: I don't own those hooligans and ruffians.
Chapter Two
Scout had always been blessed with a certain single-mindedness since his birth. He had always been able to drown everything out, barrel through, and keep his eyes on the prize. No amount of childhood restraints, playground bullies, or men with large, painful weapons could stop him from getting at what he wanted. It was, in fact, the exact reason he was being paid a salary that had made him choke on his own spit when he first heard the number.
Of course, most blessings were also curses, and as far as it went, single-mindedness was certainly one of the bigger ones. Because now that Scout had what he wanted, he honestly didn't know what to do with it. He had found her. He had made sure it was her. And instead of just walking up to her and asking why the hell she hadn't contacted him as soon as she had crossed the line into Dustbowl County, he hadn't. Instead, he'd been half following her around for nearly two weeks. Stewing. Squirming. Letting things get to him. There was only a handful of crap that could really, really, take root under his skin, and 'suddenly seeing a girl who had been like family from the time he was four show up and then not tell him' was right under 'the idea mom dating, ever', and just above 'the sound of tinfoil getting crunched up'. Ugh.
He knew he had sent her his address. And even if he hadn't, Scout was positive that his Mom would have told her mother where he was. It was just a given that the two women would have shared that information, and it would have gotten back to her. He just couldn't fathom why she wouldn't have told him she was here. It twisted inside him a little to think she was just hiding from him in his own backyard, and now for the first time since he'd shoved her first boyfriend down the stairs when they were twelve, he was hesitant to approach her.
Huffing a sigh, Scout pulled his bike- the first thing he'd bought when he got his first RED check- into the church parking lot. He parked it in the shaded spot by the western side, brushed off all the road dust, and started around to the entrance.
Our Lady of The Desert rose out of the dust and sand like a small pink cake, bell ringing to call the county to service. Scout wasn't much for churches, but he had to admit the Lady was beautiful. He only admired the little church for a few seconds; Mass was going to start soon and he didn't want to be last in. At the top of the short steps, he took his hat off, straightened the damned tie around his neck, and silently hoped that the place didn't collapse around him when he entered.
Scout hadn't gone to church for years. The last time he'd been in one had been for a wedding, one that hadn't even happened. Though undeniably Catholic, his mom hadn't dragged her brood into service every Sunday. No, for the MacBride children, Mass was something that only happened on Christmas. It meant sitting still, being quiet, and shaking hands with Old Father Murphy at the end of the service. The smell of hot wax and incense that made his nose prickle. And now, he felt like an interloper. This didn't belong to him, not really.
Awkwardly, he dipped his fingers in the font and crossed himself. The majority of the people crowding the pews were tiny old women in prim hats and stiff-shouldered old men. Here and there were a few young families, and in one corner Scout saw a pair of sweethearts standing close to each other and whispering. He smirked with the boy leaned in for a kiss and the girl pulled back and scowled. Heh.
He picked a spot at the back of the sanctuary, and, as the ushers closed the heavy doors to the outside, he picked her out of the crowd. She was a tiny figure in a lively green dress, her hair tucked under a small straw hat. She was near the front and to the left; he could just see the curve of her face.
Mass was long and tedious; Scout was glad he had sat at the back, where no one could give him dirty looks for flipping disinterestedly through the hymn book and tug at his stolen tie. He didn't stand when the rest of the congregation did, he didn't repeat after the Father like the others did. He hadn't come to Mass for Mass, after all. He had come to see her, and to wonder about what the hell he was going to do with her.
While riding the short route to Our Lady of The Desert, he had decided that he would finally make it known that he knew she was here. Right here in the gravel parking lot, while surrounded by all those blue-hairs in their Sunday best. But now as the service ended, he felt himself getting nervous. He, Scout, the guy that never broke a sweat, that never paused to have first thoughts, let alone second ones, was having second thoughts. It was pathetic. Laughable. Embarrassing. But just before Mass officially ended, he slipped out and stalked to his bike and then started to pace angrily. He had to do this. Needed to do this. It wouldn't be hard to just go up to her and poke her in the arm. He had done it when they were four, after all.
Right. He was gonna do it. He was really, really, really serious this time. Scout squared his shoulders, straightened his tie, and waited just at the edge of the church's shadow for her to come down the three little steps. He took two steps into the sunshine, and then growled and turned back, stalking back into the shade and kicking at the dirt in frustration. It wasn't the right day. He had work tomorrow. She probably had work sooner than he did. He would wait. Maybe send a letter instead. Or get her phone number, if she had a phone yet. He just...he couldn't bring himself to face her yet, if only because she might tell him to go the hell away. He might not have been afraid of dying every day, but facing a tiny little girl from home was oddly terrifying, especially because he had no idea what he might have done to deserve her being here and refusing to tell him.
Swearing under his breath at himself for being a coward, for her for simply being here, and for just about everything else under the hot, bleaching sun, Scout mounted the bike, threw the kickstand up, and pedaled resolutely back to the base.
By the time he got there, he was still frustrated, and it had slowly swelled into an uncomfortable anger. He wanted to scream. Pick a fight. Break something. So when he stomped into the main building and up the steps to his room, he was in no mood to have Soldier fall in step with him and clap him soundly on the back.
"I just wanted to congratulate you, Private," the older man started, oblivious to the glare Scout had settled on him. He shrugged out from under his hand and ground out, "What for, ol' man?"
"Why, on your acquisition of a woman, son," Soldier declared heartily, slinging his arm back around the younger man's tense shoulders. Scout had been mere feet from his room. Seconds away. But Soldier's booming voice had stopped him in his tracks, so abruptly the veteran had kept going and nearly tripped.
Scout could feel the back of his neck getting hot and he glared at his teammate. "What."
Soldier seemed to only then cotton on to Scout's displeasure, and though his smile faded a bit, he pressed forward anyway. "Your sweetheart, of course. The one you've been sneaking out to see every night for almost two weeks!" He scratched his stubbly chin and peered out at the boy from under his helmet. He still hadn't realized that Scout was in the mood to pick a fight already, and he had just stumbled upon the one subject guaranteed to get him angrier.
"I. Don't. Have. A. Sweetheaht," the Bostonian ground out, his accent thickening just a little.
"Yes, you do," came Soldier's clipped reply. "Otherwise you would not be sneaking off-base every night. I hope she's a keeper, son. And do not forget to be careful. Don't want to lose you to Fatherhood at such an early age. Maybe Medic would help you with that subject."
By this time, Scout had given up actual words for a low growl. Not only did the team know -he didn't doubt it had gotten around to everyone if Solly had found out about it- but he thought he was sleeping with her. He didn't know which was more embarrassing, but he did know that getting embarrassed just made him mad. And Solider wasn't privy to the fact that Scout's temper was quickly reaching the boiling point.
With a snarl, the boy snapped. Scout pushed Soldier a pace back and cried, "Shut ya mouth! Ya don' know what th' hell ya talkin' 'bout!" His face was red and he looked ready to tear something apart.
Solider stumbled into the wall, startled by both the volume and the vehemence in the boy's voice. His own temper flared quickly, feeding off his younger teammate's. Stepping back towards him, his voice rose to the pitch only used during lectures and arguments. It rang off the concrete walls and down the hallways, carrying perfectly to nearly the entire main building."YES I DO, PRIVATE! YOU HAVE A GIRLFRIEND! I HAVE SOLID PROOF OF HER EXISTENCE AND TO DENY IT WILL GET YOUR SORRY ASS COURT MARSHALED!"
Both men were breathing heavy and glaring at each other as the older man's threat hung echoing in the air. "Like hell ya got proof, jackass," Scout snarled. He didn't realize that they had a small audience now, Engineer hanging out his door, goggles pulled around his neck and watching the two warily.
"I do," the blocky man countered. "I have a full name and address for one-" Soldier didn't get any further, because Scout had let out a strangled yell and punched him square in the jaw. "I can' believe ya! Ya wen' in my goddamned room!?" Soldier fell back square on his butt from the impact, and his helmet went clattering down the corridor. He scrambled back up, though, and made to punch the boy back. Scout ducked, and it only grazed his shoulder. It didn't put the fight out of the boy, though, and he screeched and wound up his arm to swing at the older man again.
He didn't get a chance though, because Engie and scrambled out and grabbed the skinny kid by his waist, nearly dragging him of his feet and shoved him into the wall. "MY GODDAMNED ROOM," he hollered, trying to climb Engie in an attempt to get to Soldier, who seemed to be just as eager to get back to the fray himself. He had been waylaid by Pyro, who had heard the commotion as well, and was half-dragging the man out of reach.
When it became apparent to the Texan that Scout wasn't going to calm down with out some help, he reared back and landed an open-handed slap to his right cheek. "Now why don' we all jus' shut right the hell up for a sec?"
Scout glared at him, his face getting a livid red, but it did in fact seem to hush the boy. He kept his hand firmly on his chest, though, just in case he tried to get away again. Behind him, he could hear Pyro's muffled voice and Soldier snarling over top of it to let him at the little whelp so he could show him who was boss around here.
"Okay," Engineer growled, "Explain, one of you."
Immediately Scout burst into a fit of accusation in a high-pitched and thickly accented voice, so Engineer could only here a few words. "Bastahd...my DAMNED ROOM...Don' got one...friggin' snoop...lemme at 'im..." were all he caught, while Soldier exploded into a similar but somehow louder scree of words. "TRAITOR...LITTLE WHELP...CONFIRMATION...SPY MATERIAL..."
"SHUT UP!" Engineer let the command echo for a second, relishing the fact that both men had, in fact, been stunned quiet. Then he poked Scout in the chest. "You. Explain. Slowly, and in a pitch I can act'lly hear, kiddo."
Scout heaved a huge breath and glared daggers at the Texan. "Tat bahstid righ' thea tinks I've gotta gal an' went snoopin in my room ta prove it!"
Soldier growled at this and flailed his arms wildly. "I DID AND I FOUND IT AND THAT'S WHY HE'S SO PISSED OFF!"
"I Don' gotta wone!" Scout screamed, lunging at the man even though Engineer's solid hand pinned him to the wall.
"THEN WHY DID I FIND A NAME AND ADDRESS ON YOUR DRESSER?"
"SHE'S NOT MY GAL! SHE DON' EVEN KNOW I BIN FOLLOWIN' 'ER!"
There was a perfect, stunned quiet that came after that statement, and even Soldier, who was in the process of retorting, couldn't find anything to say to that.
Pyro dropped his hands and turned to look at the boy, still leaning sullenly against the wall even though Engineer had let him go, the eye sockets on his mask shining quizzically. "Mrrph?"
Finally, Sol sighed and tucked his hands in his pockets. "Son," he said, "I never thought I'd have to say this, but I think it's time we had a talk about how to court a lady."
Scout, red from anger and embarrassment, simply made a strangled noise. He shoved off the wall, ducked around Engineer, and stormed back out of the base, leaving the three of them behind to stare at each other, eyebrows raised. Finally, Engineer cleared his throat. "Well...uh...d'you think Medic needs to know about this?"
