Two Years earlier:

Mel and her best friend and also colleague Katie were in the US on a congress for military medicines. One evening they went to a bar with some girls from the Naval Medical Center. They had drunk quite a lot and were making jokes. Tomorrow they will have much time to sober up. After a few beer and tequila Mel had to go to the toilet. Katie decided to come with her. Giggling like teenagers they went arm in arm in serpentine lines to the restrooms. When they wanted to go back to the others they collided in the door with two guys in uniform. Lake and Red.
Katie stared in Lake`s blue eyes. And Mel did in Red`s. The girls weren´t able to say a thing. Just holding on each other. Lake broke the silence first: "Easy prey, Red. And what a pretty.." Katie, drunk as she was, holding her bottle beer under Lake`s nose. "Beer?" she grinned over her face. "You´re quite tanked up, huh?" said Red. Mel turned over to Katie, who scope out Lake. "Yop, we definitely are! But for you two, we might get sober!" The two women gave them their most precious smile.
Lake took Katie`s arm from Mel´s shoulder and hang it round his neck. Red helped Mel back to a table and sat her on a chair. The girls with whom they were here, started to cheer and raise their glasses to them. "Hey Sweethearts!" one shouted through the bar." German girls only take the best we´ve got, huh?" Katie and Mel just shrug their shoulders. " We`ll see! You`re just jealous, Babe" Mel answered as loud. Another girl from the table, who also came from the restroom passed them. She leaned down to the two and said: "Seals are the definitely the best we have! Congrats, ladies!"

"Katie, we are really lucky girls!" Mel noticed to Katie in german. Lake looked to Red „What did she said?" "She said that they are lucky girls, 'cause they got us." He understands a lot of languages, what was often convenient during a mission. Lake did too, but German just wasn`t his.

In the next morning, Mel cuddles the soft, warm pillow.. It smells so good. But unknown. She startled up, looking around. Where the fuck is she here? Then her headache let her remember. The bar, the tequila- and him. She pushed slowly aside the blanket. Ok, a nice one, but definitely an asshole. She got angry. This damn guy exploited that she was clocked out yesterday. She jumped off the bed and wanted to put her uniform on. That wasn`t so easy, 'cause her clothes were dispersed through the room. As she finally had closed her boots and wanted to leave, a strong hand grabbed her arm. "Wanna leave yet?" She turned around. She had to look up to see him in the eyes. Red saw the anger in her face. "What? Am I wood?" "Ok... I´ve got a small hangover. But I am bent out of shape! You used that I was drunk!" she yelled at him. "What? I did not!" he said offended. "We only reached 2st base, ok?- Why should I screw ya, if you can´t remember and tell your girlfriend how good it has been?"
She still looked angry, she doesn't believe him. "Let me go! Now!"
"I can´t." he said. "I suppose my heart will stop if I let you." She gave him a hard bitch smack. "DO-NOT-NEVER-EVER lie to a woman or tell emotional tales when you just wanna have a fuck!" Mel tore herself away and went out of the bedroom.
Red followed her. He grabbed her again. This time at the wrists, turned her around in half a second, pressed her against the wall with his body and said low in her ear: "You´re right. I shouldn't lie to a woman. And I did not. Please stay a while. We could go to 3nd base if ya like." She was too surprise to defend. He kissed her neck, waiting for an answer or reaction from her. Her heart was beating faster. He smelled so damn good. She just couldn´t resist him any longer.
"Don't disappoint me! I´m a demanding person." she breathed to him. His hands got to her waist, lifted her up a bit so she could wrap her legs around him. "I won´t.." he whispered hoarse.

They stayed in bed for hours.. She met a lot of men before him, but he was different. Mel fell truly in love with him as he did. She loves him, because he was exactly her type man. Tall and handsome. He always wanted to make sure she's fine.
Mel loved the feeling that he will protect her, whatever should happen. Whereever, whenever. His strong hands, touching her. They surely had killed not once, but to her they were soft and soothing.

He loves her because she could understand what it means to be away from home for a long time, possibly, someday forever. They spent every free minute together, because in three weeks she had to go back to work in Germany. He might will to go to work even earlier. Mel knew about the dangers in war when a bullet hit her left arm. She tried to fix up a wounded soldier in Kosovo when a sniper hit her. "He was a noob, otherwise it's not explainable I'm alive" she laughed,shaking her head.
Flea and Silk laughed their ass of. "Distance?"Flea wanted to know. "Maybe 50 yards I guess"- "Goddamn, what an idiot. In this case he could throw eggs ..." Flea almost died laughing.- "I had such a jerk in Kosovo, too" said Silk. "Was the same situation.. The doc was in a bombed house when she got hit." And Mel said: "..and yelled for a sniper"
"Yeah! Not for a medical- She asked for a sniper and continues the wound care for the soldier. I said: Ma´am, asked for help? Without looking at me she pointed to the window and said: See that asshole, about 11o'clock, second floor? Fuck him up and everyone near him shooting at me and my patient! Damn, what a pity, I didn´t ask for her name…"
Katie sat on Lake`s lap. They had found each other too. "She`s sitting right here next to you ", Katie said "That's Mel!"
Mel gave Silk big grin. Red looked at her: "That's no story?"- "No. But next time, hopefully you´ll be there to protect me." He hugged and kissed her. "I pray, that day will never come. But I would die for you."

She got back to reality. " I would for ya, too" she whispered while holding and kissing his hand. She hoped he would awake and get well soon, but also she was afraid of his reaction. Would he send her away because he don`t want her to see him like this or because she was the one, who had the idea to finish? Would he recognize her, at all? And there still was a big risk, that he starts bleeding massive again. Things were everything but not ok, yet..