Rose for a Trooper
Kathleen frowned at the flower. She was sitting on her cot where she'd found it. After coming back from her shower she'd found the single red rose sitting on her pillow. She wasn't even sure what to think of it, not to mention who had left it there. She turned as the door to the barracks opened. She was going to hide away the rose but stopped when she spotted Will. She thought for a moment, he was a likely candidate.
Will moved over to Kathleen and opened his mouth to say something but stopped. He looked down at the rose. "Nice flower. Did Fred give it to you?"
Kathleen frowned. It was odd that he would jump to Fred as who gave it to her. Or was it? Then again maybe Will had given it to her and was doing that thing where he tried to help give Fred credit for things. She decided to get answers. "Did you give this to me?" Will looked surprised as he sat down beside her. "Is this another one of those things where you do something sweet and give Fred credit?"
Will put his hand on his heart. "I swear that I didn't give it to you. Though I wish that I had. That would have been the perfect thing to do. Would have gotten Fred quite a few brownie points."
Kathleen shook her head. "You know he doesn't need your help. He's doing just fine on his own. You should be more worried about your chances."
Will didn't look all that worried. "I did come to visit you on your birthday. He take you out for a night of fun and fornication?"
Kathleen smirked at Will. "So you were watching? Didn't know you were into that kind of thing." A look of surprise crossed Will's face. "Like I told you, he doesn't need your help. He's doing just fine on his own."
Will seemed rather upset. "You do realize that you're only fourteen. Aren't you a bit young?"
"Fourteen and soon to become a soldier in the front lines. We both know that they aren't going to wait until we're eighteen to start us in action." Kathleen looked down toward the rose. "I feel like these will be our only chance. Like we'll never be this peaceful again."
Will opened his mouth to speak but the door to the room opened and Fred walked in. The two trainees stared at their team leader who was walking toward them. Will leaned a bit toward Fred. "So where did you get it?" Fred raised an eyebrow, not understanding. "The rose." He motioned to the flower in Kathleen's hand.
"Oh, me and John stole a few from Tango company. Took some convincing but I wanted a look out while I stole them." He moved to stand before them. "Thought that them being stolen would also make them a bit more special."
"So John gave one to a girl?" Fred simply shrugged, not really having a definite answer to Will's question. Will glanced toward Kathleen and she was glaring at him. He got the idea. "Well, I'm going to go…do something." He stood from the cot and quickly made his way out of the barracks.
Fred took his spot and leaned a bit toward Kathleen. "So, do you like it?" He didn't get a verbal response. Instead Kathleen pulled him to her, kissing him as she pulled him further forward so she was lying on the cot and he was on top of her. The two of them opened their mouths, engaging in the familiar fight for dominance.
"You know you two should do that somewhere less public." Fred pulled away from Kathleen and they both looked toward the voice. Neither of them had heard Kelly enter the barracks. She raised an eyebrow. "Where'd you get your rose?" She held up her own crimson flower.
Kathleen reached up, placing a kiss on Fred's cheek to indicate it was him. She smirked as red spread over Fred's cheek. "I'm guessing John gave you yours."
Kelly rolled her eyes. "I think." She moved through the room to her own cot. "Though really, you should save that for a place where people can't walk in."
Kathleen suddenly sat up, forcing Fred to move out of the way. "Thanks for the advice." She stood up, grabbing Fred's collar and pulling him up before dragging him out of the barracks.
