DISCLAIMER: A Sea Patrol story based of The Academy Is...album 'Fast Times At Barrington High'. I take no credit for either the characters created or the BRILLIANT work of William Beckett and the crew from TAI
Lyrics are BOLD and ITALIC || Thoughts are ITALIC
Please Note: I will try to keep these characters true to the series in regards to personality. But, that being said, it mightn't happen in places. Just so you know.
AN: I would just like to say how amazing it is to see people reviewing, adding my stories to favourites or alert them, or to even alert or favourite ME as an author! im touched truly.
in response to Vanessa's review:
how much did that ep suck? in an 'im so let down' kind of way? *sigh* i still think there is something going on between Kate and Buffer, however. Even though it may be influenced by my own imagination :D I was kind of worried when i didnt get a review from you *blushes* but im glad the problem is all sorted out now :) Just FYI (and any other readers who are reading this), i might write some oneshots and such, since ive found someone on the sea-patrol forum who also really enjoys my writings and would love to read some more. All i need is some inspiration or a challenge etc.
If there is anyone who has an idea for a Kate/Buffer fic, yet can't seem to get it written nicely, throw me an email [ ellen (dot) walker (at) live (dot) com (dot) au ]. That goes for you too, Vanessa :P it would be easier to converse on emails rather than here since you're not a member ;)
Now... enjoy...
RUMOURED NIGHTS
Kate threw her head back and laughed, free of any cares, as she and Buffer moved to leave Hammersley. They had just returned to home port for a weekend's break, before setting off early Monday morning. Buffer, in reply to Kate's laugh, just grinned like a school boy.
"I don't see what you find so funny, Kate," he muttered softly, saluting Thor as he walked up the gangway. Once on dry land, Pete turned to look back. Kate was walking towards him, she too saluting Thor, with a large smile spread across her face. "Seriously, X; we'd gone out for drinks, we passed out, we woke up the next morning with bandages on our arse cheeks..." Buffer's voice trailed off, as Kate let out yet another guffaw of mirth. By this point, Buffer was struggling to keep a straight face. "Alright, you win," he told her, relishing in her look of pleasure. "We were stupid, it was funny. You can quit laughing now."
Kate was still struggling with holding back laughter as they walked towards a waiting taxi. She and Pete were planning on dropping their bags off at Kate's place, since it was closer, before going out for a drink. Opening one door, she slid into the backseat as Buffer followed her in. Looking at his face, Kate was only just able to keep another bout of laughter from bubbling back up.
"Oh come on, Pete! There were five of you, and you all woke up with matching lightning and hammer tattoos on your left arse cheek? How can you not find that hilarious!" she exclaimed, before rattling off the address for the taxi driver. Shooting a small glimpse across at Buffer, Kate once again was overcome with a fit of giggles. In reply, Buffer simply rolled his eyes and looked out the window, gazing back at Hammersley. He was never going to live this down. Ever.
~*~*~*~
I walked you home most days
To beat the traffic after class
With all my best intentions.
But when the weather changed,
Like fine print, you were hard to read.
Blind-folded, eyes wide open,
Staring through me.
~*~*~*~
In their absolute focus on one another, both Kate and Buffer had missed the looks being shot at them by the rest of the crew as they departed the ship. Very few of them had ever witnessed any side of the XO which wasn't stiff and in command, let alone her being totally care free and laughing. The fact that it was the always professional Buffer who brought it out of the X was even more astonishing. Many of said crew, including the other four members of the Hammer-club, thought it was about time that Buffer and the X had some fun. Too long had they been purely and simply married to their jobs, but now that seemed to be changing. A couple of months on their new Armidale class patrol boat meant the crew were no longer in each other's pockets and a lot more was slipping through the cracks.
However, standing on the upper deck, Mike Flynn watched the departing taxi with a small amount of longing. He, alone, was the only person who had seen this side of Kate before. But that had been years ago, when he was idealistic and Kate was innocent. It had seemed, when she was first posted onto Hammersley, that Kate was an entirely different person. Mike had feared that it would be uncomfortable and awkward having Kate aboard, but everything was civil. Feeling like he had a chance at reconciliation, Mike continuously looked the other way whenever Kate was in the company of the ship's Buffer; preferring to blur the lines of reality rather than face the truth that was right in front of him.
~*~*~*~
I never heard the words that were spoken,
with the rumoured nights, with the rendezvous.
I never thought the whispers were true 'til now…
~*~*~*~
"Buffer! Move!" yelled Kate, as she dived into some undergrowth. The Hammersley had been called out to aid in disbanding a political riot. However, once they had landed on shore, the situation quickly escalated out of control. Team X-Ray had been split in two, whilst team Sierra had been pushed back to the dock. A sudden thump off to Kate's left announced the arrival of Buffer. The other two of her team, Spider and ET, were on the other side of the clearing.
"X," Buffer whispered into her ear, sending a shiver down Kate's spine, "we need to get out of here, try to make it back to the Hammersley." Buffer had crept over to Kate's left hand side while she had been surveying the surrounding jungle.
"Way to state the obvious, Buff," Kate muttered, reaching for her radio. "Sierra-82, this is X-Ray 82, over?" Kate radioed, as Buffer had his gun trained on their surrounds. He glanced back over his shoulder towards Kate, hoping for an answer. After not receiving a reply, Kate tried again. "Sierra 82, this is X-Ray 82, do you copy? Over."
After a minute, a small amount of static was heard before Swain's voice came through the radio. "X-Ray 82, this is Sierra 82. We're holding the dock at the moment; a RHIB is on its way over. Spider and ET are just running down now, Over," Swain told them, his voice tight and tense, obviously looking for any dangers that might surround them on the dock.
"Copy that, Swain. Buffer and I are stuck undercover. We'll try to make our way to you, Over," Kate replied, getting to her feet slowly and moving towards Buffer. All sounds around them had halted, indicating that the hostiles had backed off, or they were waiting to make their move. Buffer, still with his gun trained on the surrounding jungle, motioned to their right, his eyes telling Kate to move. Just as they started moving, the jungle around them erupted with gunfire. Kate and Buffer instantly dropped to the ground, looking for any kind of cover from the bullets. Their Kevlar vests would only go so far.
Not very far off, a large explosion made Kate jump. Her head swivelled to the right, honing in on the location of the noise. 'It sounded like it came from...' "The PORT!" Kate exclaimed softly, fear rippling through her body. Just as she was thinking the worse, her radio crackled to life.
"X-Ray 82, this is Charlie 82, do you copy? Over." The distinctive voice of their CO, Mike Flynn, came through the radio. A small surge of relief passed through Kate as she returned the Commander's call. "Listen, X. Hammersley's come under fire; they're shooting out at the ship. Team Sierra, Spider and ET have all returned on the RHIB. We've needed to move out of range," Mike told her, in a rush. Kate's face fell as she looked over at Buffer. For all his strength, even Buffer was starting to feel a little uncomfortable being pinned down on an unknown island whilst coming under fire from an unknown number of hostiles.
Taking a deep breath, Kate picked up the radio and replied, "Charlie 82, what do you want us to do?" Her voice shook slightly, causing Buffer to place a firm, comforting hand on Kate's shoulder. Within seconds, Mike was replying.
"Kate, stay safe. We're moving the ship around the edge of the headland. Is there any way you and Buffer can make your way to the south-western side of the island? It's got thick bush and a large stretch of beach. If you can get there for tomorrow morning, we can easily give you cover fire as a RHIB comes in to pick you up."
Kate was silent, trying to comprehend staying overnight in this wretched place. She heard Mike's call, asking if they copied, but couldn't make her voice work. Throwing an anxious look at Buffer, he nodded before using his own radio. "Charlie 82, this is Bravo 82. Copy that. We'll rendezvous with you on the south-west point tomorrow morning; first light. Over and out," Buffer replied, kneeling down next to Kate.
~*~*~*~
I saw things that I shouldn't have tonight, tonight.
I know now what I couldn't have,
I've gone too far to turn it back
I've gone too far to turn it back
~*~*~*~
"Kate," he whispered, his warm breath tickling her ear. Shivering slightly, Kate turned her face towards Buffer. "We need to pull back; get out into the jungle and away from the town," Buffer told her, softly gripping Kate's arm and gently began to pull her to her feet. Keeping his eyes on the surrounds, Buffer raised his gun as Kate steadied herself and raised her own gun.
"Yes," she replied, slowly, moving to place her back to Buffer's. Motioning off into the jungle, Kate and Pete made their retreat into nature. Within ten minutes there was total silence surrounding the pair of sailors. Relaxing slightly, Kate lowered her weapon and placed a hand on Buffer's shoulder. "What should we do now? Head to the rendezvous point and camp there the night, or stay here in the jungle?"
Buffer, while he would never admit it, was slightly touched that the X would ask his opinion; theoretically, she could purely order him to follow her directions. Being objective, Buffer knew he had more experience in this sort of situation; Kate, while improving, had still only been on patrol boats for little over eight months. Taking a look around them, Buffer thought a moment before replying, "Well, X, I suggest we start making our way towards the south-west before it gets too dark. We have no idea how hard the going will be. If we find a secluded area off the track with sufficient cover, we'll camp down for the night."
Nodding once, Kate followed Buffer's lead as they moved slowly through the jungle. Just as night was falling, they came across a small clearing surrounded tightly by trees and shrubs. Looking around, Buffer realised it would be a decent to camp for the night. Voicing his opinion on the area, Kate just replied with a nod before crumpling down to the ground. Panicked, Buffer ran to Kate's side to see what the problem was. Fearing the worst, his hands began searching for bullets or blood. After a few seconds, however, his hands slowed once he gathered that Kate wasn't injured. With one hand, Buffer slowly raised Kate's head and moved her hair aside.
~*~*~*~
Followed you home halfway,
over the fence to your backyard,
with all my best intentions.
And through your window frame,
outstretched and lying on your bed,
Blind-folded, eyes wide open,
staring through me.
~*~*~*~
Once they had decided where to camp for the night, everything overwhelmed Kate in a rush; the gunfight, being stranded, struggling to keep it all together. In an instant, Kate's facade fell and she crumpled to the ground. She couldn't think straight and couldn't recapture the calm exterior once she had lost it. Vaguely, in a distant part of her brain, Kate felt Buffer's large hands beginning to search her body for some kind of injury. But, no matter how hard she tried, Kate just couldn't voice any kind of objection or state the search was unnecessary. The large hands slowed their movement and she finally felt tears start to make their slow decent down her face.
One of Buffer's hands cradled her head as the other brushed across her face, moving the curtain of hair that had hidden Kate's irrational (or perhaps somewhat rational) breakdown. Looking up into his face, Kate felt like she was living in a silent movie. Opening her mouth to say something, her voice just wouldn't work. After a couple of moments, she shut her lips tightly as more tears fell.
~*~*~*~
In an instant, Buffer had Kate gathered in his arms as he moved to rest against a sturdy tree. Cradling her small body in his lap, Buffer slowly rubbed her back whilst muttering soothing words in her ear. Guessing what had brought this on, Buffer could only commend Kate and her ability to only break down once they were safe. Feeling her breathing equalise and deepen, Buffer softly lay the XO down on the ground, before taking a quick inventory of their gear. Wincing at their meagre supplies of both ammunition and food, he reloaded his gun before settling himself back on the ground.
'May as well take first sentry,' he thought to himself. Alert for any form of movement or noise, Buffer almost jumped when he saw and felt the small form of the XO shiver beside him. Smiling grimly, he placed his gun on the ground before gathering Kate back in his arms. It was getting cold once the sun had set, and they only had their body heat as protection.
~*~*~*~
I never heard the words that were spoken,
with the rumoured nights, with the rendezvous.
I never look at you as I used to now…
~*~*~*~
Sometime through the night, Kate woke to the warmth of a large body along her side. Slowly regaining consciousness, she felt strong arms encircling her somewhat cramped body and a pair of thumbs making slow circles on her right hip. Kate jumped slightly at the touch, making the arms tighten slightly before loosening their grip. Turning her face to her warm captor, green eyes bet brown. The sleepy face of Buffer looked down at her, relief flickering briefly in his eyes.
"Hey," he muttered softly, moving one arm to rub his eyes briefly. "How are you feeling?" he asked her, his arm returning to its previous position. In his drowsy state, he missed the slight blush that settled on the mantle of Kate's cheeks.
Finally remembering about his question, Kate opened her mouth to reply 'fine', when nothing came out. Coughing a couple of times to clear her throat, she finally strangled out the words. "What happened? I remember getting here and then..." Kate's voice trailed off, her mind trying not to focus on the movement of Buffer's thumbs. She was slightly shocked at the ease of which their touches had gone from purely professional and friendly to something a lot more private and personal. Because, if she was being honest, being held in Pete's arms was the safest she had felt in many years. Shivering slightly, something that was in no way connected to the cool night, Kate felt Buffer's chin come to rest on the top of her head as his arms tightened protectively and warmly around her body.
"I think you just had a little too much excitement for one day. It looked like you broke," Buffer told her, softly, trying to keep himself alert. It was harder when Kate was dead to the world; now she was awake, Buffer felt like his own drowsiness was dissipating. The thoughts that had been running through his head prior to Kate waking up were definitely not helping Buffer to keep their relationship purely professional.
~*~*~*~
I saw things that I shouldn't have tonight, tonight.
I know now what I couldn't have,
I've gone too far to turn it back
I've gone too far to turn it back
~*~*~*~
A small gurgle of laughter escaped Kate's throat at Pete's explanation. Composing herself slightly, Kate fidgeted to get herself into a more comfortable position. As she moved, Buffer released his arms slightly, giving her free movement. As soon as she had settled, however, his arms tightened back up again. This time, however, Kate placed one of her hands on top of his. If there was anyone looking at the scene in front of them, no doubt would they believe it was just a couple snuggling. That is, if they didn't have RAN uniforms and Kevlar vests.
"Do you know what time it is?" Kate asked, softly, feeling herself waking up after her short nap. Remembering how exhausted her body had been compared to how it was now, her mind instantly snapped to how Pete must be feeling. With his reply of 'almost 1am, Kate', she put a hand on his chest. "You should try and go to sleep, Pete. I can keep watch until morning," she told him softly, reaching towards the gun that was resting on the ground besides them.
Buffer protested slightly, sluggish in his sleepy state, until a small hand came to rest over his mouth. Looking down into sea green eyes, Pete stilled and slowly nodded. "Fine, Kate. You win," he added, in a humorous tone, when she moved her hand away. "Just, make sure you keep the Kevlar on, and wake me if you sense anything," he told her seriously. Kate nodded and brushed his cheek lightly, before turning around and started scanning their surrounds. Buffer smiled at her actions briefly, before submitting to the calls of slumber.
Kate was smiling to herself as she felt the strong lines and breathing of Pete's body slowly relax and deepen. For the first time, Kate started really listening to the surrounding jungle. There was breeze through the trees, as well as the noises made by various nocturnal creatures. It was this relaxing silence that really made Kate focus on how her relationship with Pete was evolving.
~*~*~*~
Back on Hammersley, the crew present in the bridge were getting tense. The CO had been short and snappy whenever anyone had tried to talk to him, obviously worried about his XO and Buffer stranded on land. Currently sitting in front of the radar, Nikki glanced up from the screen to look at the pacing captain. He had been doing as much for the past two hours, only stopping briefly to ask for an update before starting again.
Having had enough, Nav sighed loudly and stood in front of the CO, causing him to stop suddenly. "Sir, seriously!" she exclaimed, making Mike back up a couple of paces. "You aren't doing anyone any good pacing around with a surly look on your face," she told him, sternly. His official shift had ended an hour ago, yet Mike had stayed in the bridge, making everyone uncomfortable.
~*~*~*~
Uninvited, no one knows
how much I care, how bad you are,
How good we'd be, but you won't let me in
Goodnight I'm leaving.
~*~*~*~
Somewhat outraged at Nav's outburst, Mike opened his mouth reply. However, Nikki got there first and held up a hand. Surprised at her own stubbornness, Nikki made herself relax and take on a calm exterior, hoping that she wouldn't be too heavily reprimanded. "You're doing all you can, Sir. We're currently on schedule for making the rendezvous point by sunrise." Taking a deep breath in, Nav looked into the stricken face of her CO. "Go downstairs; make a brew, or grab some sleep. I'll make sure to call you if anything changes," she told him, softly, placing a comforting hand on Mike's arm. "Buffer and X can take care of themselves. If there was anyone stuck out there, those two have the most experience," she added, with a small smile.
Mike took a breath and looked at Nav, then around at the rest of the crew in the bridge. Seeing his defeat, Mike nodded slowly. "Alright, crew. I'll be in my cabin. Nav has the ship," he told them and, with one last look out the windows, headed downstairs. Just before he closed the door, Nav's voice carried, "Nav has the ship," to his ears.
~*~*~*~
Sighing, Kate leant further into Pete's chest, feeling the steady rhythm of his heartbeat thumbing beneath her head. Kate knew that she had deep feelings for Hammersley's Bosun; they had been growing since that first night they spent talking out on deck, almost eight months ago. That being said, however, Kate definitely understood and respected the fraternisation rules between shipmates that governed life in the Navy. She groaned at her unfortunate experience with men. 'Why must they always be in the navy?' Kate asked herself, somewhat angrily.
As the morning slowly wore on, the hours passing from 1am to 4am, Kate's internal monologue slowly became spoken; her distress at what had happened the day before; the surprise at waking up in Pete's warm arms; their brief conversation and Kate taking over watch. As the sky was gradually changing from midnight blue to include a hazy grey in the east, Kate arrived at the confronting truth that she would do everything to stay with Pete. Shockingly, she realised she would even leave the Navy altogether if need be.
~*~*~*~
I never heard the words that were spoken,
with the rumoured nights, with the rendezvous.
I never thought the whispers were true, til now...
~*~*~*~
This revelation caused Kate to bolt upright, unsurprisingly jolting Buffer from his slumber. Thinking the worse, Buffer's mind immediately sprung to attention, head swivelling around to find the danger. It wasn't until a few seconds later that he realised there was no danger. He looked down to see Kate stroking his chest and trying to sooth him. Relaxing back against the tree, he was startled to notice the sky beginning to lighten. Taking a deep breath, he once again rested his arms around Kate whilst looked down at her face.
"What happened?" he asked her, sleepily, slowly feeling his body wake up normally. He felt Kate shiver beneath his arms, and began to rub his hands up and down her arms, thinking the cool morning had gotten to her. Feeling Kate shake her head, Buffer looked down into her face; really look at her for the first time since this debacle began. Seeing uncertainty and confusion flickering in her eyes, Buffer loosened his grip for the first time in hours. "What's wrong, Kate?" he asked her, softly.
Taking a deep, shuddering breath, Kate turned her head up in order to fully face Pete. "What are we?" she asked him, unsure of everything in that moment. The loss of his surrounding arms left Kate more exposed than she could believe; such a small gesture, having someone's arms wrapped around you, had made her feel so safe for their night in a possibly hostile jungle. Looking up into Pete's face, expecting an answer, she saw confusion. Trying to clarify herself, Kate added, "I mean, us; together like this. What are we? Friends? Or..." her voice hitched briefly, before she swallowed. "Are we friends, or could there be something more?"
Seeing the small flash of hope in her eyes as she voiced her last question, Buffer knew he would have fallen over if he had been standing. However, allowing himself that one high moment of realising this woman of his dreams wanted to be with him, it all came crashing back down when he thought of their careers. He sighed slightly and, without thinking, lowered his face to place a kiss on the crown of Kate's head.
"I would love nothing else but to have a relationship with you," Buffer whispered, tickling Kate's ear with his breath. He felt Kate exhale a breath she must have been holding, waiting for his response. Knowing it wouldn't go over too well, Pete knew he had to voice a major problem for both of them. "But Kate, what does that mean for our careers? It's crazy to believe we could hide something like this on Hammersley, it would be difficult for us to uphold a relationship if we're on different boats, and you could never make me believe you would be happy riding a desk somewhere on shore," he told her, honestly. "I certainly couldn't stand it, Kate. So where would that leave us?"
~*~*~*~
I saw things that I shouldn't have tonight, tonight.
I know now what I couldn't have,
I've gone too far to turn it back
I've gone too far to turn it back
~*~*~*~
She knew it was coming; as soon as she heard the 'but' pass through his lips. However, in saying that, Kate still relished in the feel of Pete's arms around her and the ghost lips which still graces the top of her head. Breathing slowly, Kate brought herself back down to earth, and reality. Nodding slightly, Kate looked out into the jungle and was shocked at how light it was getting. They would have to get moving soon, but this conversation needed to be concluded.
"I know what you're saying, Pete, I really do," Kate replied, softly, trying to gather her thoughts. 'Should I just be out with it, and say I am willing to leave the Navy? Or should i...' Deciding on the safe, tentative, path, Kate began to detangle herself from Buffer's body. Once standing, she began to stretch her body out from the cramped position it had been in all night. Turning back to Buffer, she reached her hand out in order to help him up. When they were both standing, barely a hairs length separating them, Kate tilted her head back to look into Pete's face.
"Do you know, the last time I was in a situation like this, I got myself burnt," she muttered, softly. A small amount of confusion passed over Buffer's face, before Kate powered on. "This is a big decision, for both of us to make," she told him, slowly snaking her arms up and around his neck before pulling his face down to reach hers. Kate hesitated a moment, before moving forward to capture Pete's lips with her own.
In an instant, the kiss went from quiet and chaste, to hot, steamy and opened mouth. After a couple of moments, Kate finally came back to her senses and began to pull back. Once the kiss was broken, however, their bodies remained closer than ever. Taking a steadying breath in, Kate smiled. "Wow. That was... uh... wow," she said, the smile spreading across her face. Buffer's own grin was the largest, and purest, she had seen gracing his face. "There is definitely something between us, Pete. And I don't want to just give that up for a career that will eventually end," Kate told him, as honestly as she could.
Buffer nodded, his mind reeling as to all the possible meanings in what Kate was telling him. The kiss, while unexpected, was electric. "I don't want to push you into one or the other," Buffer told her softly, wrapping his arms around her shoulders.
Kate nodded, turning her face to the side so her cheek was flush against Buffer's chest. "I think we should take the time to know everything about each other, off the Hammersley and away from work, before deciding the course of action," Kate told him, struggling to keep her emotions under check. Somehow, she felt rather than saw Buffer's nod of agreement.
"I agree, Kate. We shouldn't be rash," Pete told her, surprisingly happy with the outcome. In his opinion, there was always the future. Why ruin two perfectly good careers by making premature decisions. "Now come on," he said, breaking his embrace to retrieve the gun. "We still have a bit of a hike to get through."
Turning to Kate, Buffer held out a hand with a raised eyebrow, asking a silent question. With a smile, Kate willingly took those closing steps to take the offered hand. With a brief, shared smile, they set off together to the south-west coast.
~*~*~*~
I walked you home most days.
~*~*~*~
"X-ray 82, this is Charlie 82, do you copy?" Mike had been on the radio for the past 30 minutes. It was 6:30am, and they were yet to hear back from their stranded sailors. By this stage, the whole crew were beginning to get rather nervous. It had been over 12 hours since they had contact from Kate or Buffer. Needless to say, some people were thinking the worse.
"You've been at that for half an hour already, Sir. Perhaps they ran into something, or someone, last night..." RO started, but fell silent at the numerous death glares being sent his way. "What? Just stating the truth," he muttered to himself, turning back to the radio console.
~*~*~*~
"Oh, god! How much further do you think we have?" gasped Kate, rubbing one hand over her forehead, whilst the other was still clasped in Buffer's large one. "The sun's already up! Everyone on Hammersley must be getting frantic," she added, somewhat needlessly. They had only realised how late they were running once they started walking that morning.
"They'll get over it," Buffer grunted out, taking another look at the compass to make sure they were on the right track. "I would be surprised that we haven't heard anything on the radios, if I didn't already know we generally need line of sight for them to work." Kate laughed for a moment, before they heard a small crackle of static and words erupt from their 2ways. They froze to the spot for an instant, before picking up their pace.
~*~*~*~
What seemed like an eternity later, the entire crew emitted a sigh of relief as the highly anticipated message replied to the CO's call. "Charlie 82, this is X-ray 82. Fine morning we have, isn't it?" came the XO's breathless voice. "We're almost at the beach. The rendezvous still a go? Over"
Everyone laughed at the XO's response, wondering what could have possibly happened overnight to make her emit such a joke so early in the morning. Waving a hand around to silence the chattering crew, Mike picked up the handset to respond.
"X, we'll have the RHIB over to you as soon as you get out onto the beach. Do you believe you've been followed? Over" he asked, whilst nodding to Nav to make the call for boarding stations.
"Charlie 82, that's a negative. We've been alone since yesterday evening. We're approximately 5 minutes away from the shore, according to Buffer. We'll see you shortly, over," she added, and to anyone really listening, with a smile on her face.
"Roger that. Charlie 82 out."
~*~*~*~
Stopping just behind the tree line, Buffer turned to face Kate. "Well, this is it," he said, heavily. "From now on, purely professional on board, right?" He asked, softly, raising a hand to stroke Kate's face. A single moment of longing passed across Kate's face, just like he knew passed over his own. He allowed that one moment for himself, before beginning to turn away.
Kate, who had other ideas, shot her hands out and grabbed the front of Buffer's vest before pulling him in close. With their faces only inches apart, their breath mingling in front of their lips, Kate strangled out a, "once more, for the road," before crushing her lips against his. Buffer smiled, before wrapping his arms around her small frame. Within seconds it was over, only a flush across both their cheeks remained.
Jogging through the remaining jungle, out onto the beach, Buffer instantly spotted the Hammersley, as well as the incoming RHIB. Sharing one last, knowing smile, Kate and Buffer made their way to the ocean's edge.
"What is this?" called a voice from the RHIB. A statement like that, including the humorous tone, could only belong to ET. "Since when did we become a taxi service?!"
AN2: WELL! thats it folkes :) i hope you enjoyed the ride. This is the last chapter of this story that i will be writing for a while. I know i have at least one useable song/plot worked out. when i have a couple more, i make sure to write and upload them.
For those people who, reading this as chapter 3, are majorly confused: i realised this chapter would suit much better earlier in the story, rather than later (as it is track 5 of the album). So, whilst being the third chapter plot wise, it is the last written.
I have thoroughly enjoyed writing this story. i hope you have enjoyed reading them.
Peace and Love, e-ellens