A/N: This chapter is really short, apologies. I'm afraid I got to scarecrow in the shower dripping wet and naked and found that I couldn't really think coherently enough to continue…
Anyway, just thought I'd quickly point out that this story is M for a reason, not that there's any content that would particularly warrant that rating in this chapter, but down the road there could very well be, depends where I want to take it. Also, depends on what you want, let me know! As I tried to point out in this chapter, Schofield is a bloke and they say they've only got one thing on their minds. Though I'd hope he'd be a little more refined than that, but still, definitely a bloke.
Chapter three
The remainder of the unit tumbled into the room a little over an hour later to find Mother and Shane casually sprawled out on the sofas, chatting quietly, two pizza boxes on the low table beside them.
"Hey," Rebound protested, "You can't have a pizza party and not invite everyone else!"
"Be my guest," Schofield replied, waving his hand at the boxes, one of which was still half full.
"Somebody couldn't eat all his," Mother said teasingly.
"Somebody ate an entire large pizza with every topping she could think of and it put me off," Schofield retorted with a relaxed smile, "I mean, pineapple and sardines. You're disgusting."
"And you're too skinny," Mother quipped back.
Schofield arched one brow disdainfully at her. It was a skill that never failed to irritate Mother, who couldn't quite accomplish it. So naturally, Shane used it all the time.
Rebound looked torn for a moment but then shook his head.
"I just couldn't," he said regretfully, "I ate too much at dinner."
Astro on the other hand had already dropped onto the couch and grabbed a slice.
"What?" He said as all eyes turned to him.
"You ate all your own dinner and half of mine and you're still gonna eat that?" Book II asked incredulously.
Astro just looked at Book as though he was an idiot. Surely the question was a no brainer.
"Leave the kid alone," Sanchez said with a smirk they'd finally learn actually conveyed his amusement, "He's probably still growing.
Meanwhile, Astro had already eaten half his piece in one mouthful.
As someone grabbed the TV remote, Schofield and Mother sat up, allowing everyone else to settle down with them and watch whatever inane programme on that night. Schofield noticed someone who'd been hanging around the edges, clearly unsure of how to fit in with the close group dynamic. He would have groaned aloud if he desperately didn't want to attract anyone's attention to the struggle going on in his head.
What the hell is Jack doing here? He thought to himself. After all, he was an officer and officers didn't usually end up in the barracks unless they'd got themselves in trouble, like Schofield had.
The television had decided to play up and was stuck on a flickering version of Discovery channel, must to the annoyance of the majority of the group. To make matters worse, they were playing old reruns of Mythbusters, as opposed to something vaguely cool like top gear. A small part of Schofield however - the side that actually knew that the Enhydrina schistosa was a sea snake, the side that he would probably never admit to - actually quite liked the show. On one hand, an evening of explosions and Jack's presence sounded quite pleasant. On the other hand, it also sounded like hell on earth.
"Well, I think I'll return to my husband and perfectly functional TV," Mother said loudly as she stood up and stretched. She tapped Schofield on the knee as she passed him. "Behave," she said pointedly but quietly.
Schofield decided to heed the warning and so he grabbed the dirty plates and empty boxes and headed towards the kitchen. Jack, however, stopped him.
"Do you need a hand with those?" He asked.
Shane froze.
"Um, no, thanks," he said slightly awkwardly. "Don't think Mother used hers anyway."
He managed a small smile as he walked around him and over to the sink. After all, half the reason he'd stood up was so Jack could sit down with the others. They needed to get used to him and he needed to find his place in the unit if he was going to be their commanding officer once Schofield was gone.
All the same, he might have dropped the dishes in the sink a little harder than he intended.
"Sorry, slipped," he said as they all turned to see what had caused the clatter. Jack, he noticed, was still standing.
Schofield washed up and slipped out of the room as fast as he could.
He rushed up the stairs, thankful that as an officer, even a disgraced one, he had still been given a private bedroom with a small ensuite. He intended on having a very long shower because he needed to clear his mind. He figured that going to bed with a head full of Jack was probably not a good idea. It only occurred to him once he was in the shower, that thinking of Jack whilst dripping wet and naked was probably not a very good idea either.
"Fuck," he moaned aloud, leaning his head against the slick tiles and letting the water cascade down his back. Mindless physical attraction he could handle. He was, after all, a male surrounded almost constantly by other marines – marines who were practically the definition of physical perfection – and they'd showered together and changed together before. So it wasn't as though he'd never been attracted to a co-worker before. He'd just become a master of control. Mindless physical attraction he could handle, yes, but something about this Jack bloke was really getting under his skin and if there were actual feelings involved, well that certainly complicated things.
"Fuck," he repeated, banging his head lightly against the tiles. "Pull yourself together, Scarecrow."
With that, he reached out and cut the water off abruptly, stepping out into the sudden cold of the bathroom.