A Different Beginning-Chapter 18

AU and it starts at the mini series. I am writing this story solo, so I apologize for the mistakes.

A.N.-I am sorry if this chapter is kind of all over the place. I am trying to get everyone where they need to be for future chapters.

Chapter 18

[BREAK]

Apollo made it just in time to watch Starbuck put her viper between Crashdown and the raider, taking the shot that had been meant for him. Time felt like it had stopped as he watched her viper get hit. He remembered the last time she had been shot at by a raider causing her to lose a wing and how she had landed right before blacking out. Lee quickly shook those thoughts away, as much as he needed to see if Starbuck was okay he needed to get to Crashdown first, the raider was going after him again. Before he could get there Crashdown had flipped his viper back toward the raider and started firing and didn't stop until he had blown it up and used up all of his ammunition. Apollo didn't know if it was shock, reflexes, retribution for Starbuck or the determination to live that had caused Crashdown to turn back and face the raider.

Apollo kept flying through all the debris until he could see that Crashdown's viper was okay. He then caught sight of Starbuck's viper intact for the most part and thanked the gods that Kara believed in. He immediately tried to get her over the comm "Starbuck are you okay?"

When she didn't answer his heart started beating rapidly as he pulled closer to her viper he continued calling out to her "Starbuck can you hear me?" a second later and it was " Kara are you okay?"

She still hadn't answered so he flew closer to her and that's when he saw that the front of her viper was almost blown off, after he flew around her viper checking for more damage as he had done the last time she was shot at by a cylon raider he flew in beside her so that he could look into her cockpit.

That's when he saw her and knew she was alright, she must have lost her comms along with losing the ability to control her viper. Lee let out a huge sigh of relief. He saw her pointing up and he knew she was going to eject. Apollo knew Starbuck would never eject if there was any possibility she could get the viper back to the Galactica.

He nodded that he understood " Racetrack prepare to pick up Starbuck she is going to eject "

Lee knew he needed to contact the Galactica especially since he had been ignoring their hails " Galactica, Apollo everything is under control "

Lee knew what was coming " Apollo this is Acutal you need to hurry up out there, we have to jump "

Apollo knew that, but his commander was crazy if he thought he was going to land before Racetrack had Starbuck aboard and they landed first. "Crashdown head back to the barn, I am going to escort Racetrack back "

Crashdown wasn't leaving either, not after what Starbuck had done for him " Apollo if it's okay with you I would rather wait with you "

Apollo knew Crash was blaming himself for what happened, even though he shouldn't. It was his first CAP as a viper pilot and sometimes things just happened, even to veteran pilots. It seemed like it was becoming a regular thing for either him or Starbuck coming close to being killed lately. Lee knew it was almost over, he could see Racetrack's ECO getting ready to pull Starbuck in " You can wait Crash it's almost over anyway "

As Lee sat there watching he knew he should be upset with Starbuck for what she did, but he also knew it wouldn't do any good. She was always going to try and protect the other pilots even if it put her life in jeopardy, just like she had done for him at Ragnar. It also made him realize that he was going to have to put an end to this so called friendship thing. Either one of them could die at any time and he didn't want to waste any more time just being friends with Kara.

Racetrack interrupted his thoughts " We have Starbuck on board and we are ready to land "

The Galactica cut in " Racetrack this is actual, is Starbuck okay?"

Racetrack looked over at Starbuck in the seat next to her thinking she would answer and when she didn't Racetrack knew she would have to " She seems okay, but by the looks of her viper I'm betting she got knocked around pretty good "

Apollo cut in before anyone could say anything else, he wanted them to land so he could see Kara " Alright everyone back to the Galactica, now "

The Galactica jumped as soon as they were aboard. Lee got out of his viper as quickly as he could and saw Cally standing there with her checklist trying to hand it to him " Not now Cally " was all he said as he walked past her heading to Racetracks raptor.

Racetrack and Skulls were already doing their checklists. Racetrack must have seen him approaching because she nodded to the front of the raptor.

Lee knew something was wrong or Kara would have already been on the deck. He went to the front and found her sitting in the passenger seat still buckled in. Lee sat in the pilots seat before reaching across to touch her arm " Kara, are you okay?"

Kara turned her head so that she could see his face, she then shrugged " Getting there, it was a close one" she chuckled lightly "Ejecting has never been one of my favorite things to do as a pilot "

Lee knew she was shook up and stalling for time until she could be Starbuck again before she stepped onto the deck. Lee wondered when he had figured out the difference between Starbuck and Kara. He didn't understand it when he first met her, but he did now.

He decided to try and lighten things up a bit. " I guess that explains why you always find a way to land your broken birds "

Kara chuckled, Lee's joking helped her more than he knew " You now know one of my secrets Apollo, so I expect you to tell me one of yours in return "

Lee laughed and reached to unbuckle her harness " I promise to tell you one after you go to life station and let Cottle check you out " he saw she was getting ready to say no " I'll make it an order if I have to Starbuck, you seem to be okay on the outside, but the Doc needs to check you out thoroughly "

Kara finished getting out of the harness " Fine, but just so you know I will be expecting that secret of yours soon "

Lee squeezed her shoulder " Come on Starbuck " as they started walking out of the raptor Lee spotted Crashdown standing across the bay looking their way " Kara " when she looked at him, as he knew she would, when he called her by her name he continued " I think Crashdown is blaming himself for what happened to you "

Starbuck looked at Apollo " Why, it's our job to protect each other when we are in the air?"

Apollo nodded " It is, but you went above and beyond simple protection and he knows that"

Starbuck started walking towards Crashdown so Apollo followed, they stopped right in front of him " Nice job on taking out that raider Crash "

Crashdown didn't know what to say except " I'm just sorry for not taking it out sooner Starbuck, thank you for what you did "

Starbuck shook her head " That's our job Crash to watch out for each other, just remember what I said earlier, take what you learn each time you face the cylons and use it the next time you face them "

Apollo needed to get her to life station " Starbuck you need to go and get checked out "

Crashdown decided it was time for him to leave " I gotta go, thanks again Starbuck " and he walked away

Kara turned to face Lee, she hated to ask him this " Lee will you go with me in case your dad shows up?"

Lee wanted to tell her that it was time for her to face the commander again, but as one of his pilots he should go with her anyway " I was already planning on it "

[BREAK]

After they had arrived at life station one of the nurses put Kara in a room and told Lee to stay in the waiting area, which is where he was when his dad walked in.

Adama spotted Lee and walked over and sat across from him " Is she okay?"

Lee shrugged " She seemed okay, but I think they will know more after they check her out, they will probably run a few scans on her "

Adama looked at him with a frown " Why would they need to run scans?"

Lee stood up to stretch his legs " You wouldn't have to ask that if you saw her viper, she could have something wrong internally, frankly I don't know how she survived the hit in the first place "

Adama crossed his arms " What happened out there Lee?"

Lee knew it would be at least a day before any reports would be filed " After Starbuck took out her raider she came back to assist me and Crash, by the time she reached me I was taking mine out so she headed to where Crash was " Lee paused as he sat back down " I'm not sure what happened before I got there " Lee shuddered as he remembered " When I got there she was flying her viper between Crash and the raider and took the shot that was meant for Crash "

Adama jumped up then " What the frak did she do that for, she could have been killed?"

Lee looked up at his father and even though he felt the same way, he knew it wouldn't change things " Starbuck was doing her job commander, you of all people should understand that "

Adama looked down at Lee " What do you mean? "

Lee rolled his eyes " Didn't you give her an order at Ragnar that could have resulted in her death "

Adama merely shrugged " That was different "

Lee looked straight at his dad " Why, because I am your son?" when Adama didn't answer Lee continued "It might be different for you, but Starbuck will do whatever she has to do in order to protect any pilot, you should know that about her "

Adama sat back down he did know that, but he wished she wasn't so reckless with her life. They sat there in silence after that.

They both looked up when Doc Cottle walked in " There is nothing wrong with her other than a headache which is probably from being bounced around in her viper and a few bruises, she was hurt more the last time she got shot at."

Lee couldn't believe how lucky she was, he half expected something bad had happened to her considering she basically placed herself in front of a kill shot. He wasn't going to complain though he was too happy she was alright. " So she can still fly?"

Cottle chuckled " Yes, although I would give her a day before letting her jump back into a viper "

Cottle was waiting on the commander to say something, it wasn't like him to be so silent especially since it was Starbuck they were talking about. He finally spoke up though " Can we see her?"

Cottle shrugged his shoulders " Sure, but we are already in the process of releasing her " he said as he walked away.

[BREAK]

Kara had finished getting dressed when Cottle left the room. She could hear him talking to Apollo and the commander and knew they would both be in soon. After dressing she sat on the edge of the bed waiting. She would have left except she was waiting on the nurse to give her something for her headache which was getting worse. She really did not want to see the commander right now, but she knew it was unavoidable.

Lee came in first with the commander trailing behind him. She sat still as the commander walked up to her and reached out as if he was going to touch her cheek, but stopped before he did letting his arm fall back beside him " How are you feeling Starbuck?"

Kara wasn't stupid enough to act rude " Other than a bad headache I'm okay sir "

Adama sighed " That was a very brave and foolish thing you did out there Starbuck "

Kara felt like he was blaming her for something, so she looked straight at him " I didn't plan it sir, my instincts just took over "

Lee jumped in before anything else could be said " Are you feeling well enough to do your maintenance shift?"

Kara stood up when the nurse came in and took the pill she gave her before answering Lee " I'll be fine, plus I have an hour before it starts since CAP got cut short "

Frak Lee thought as he turned to look at his dad " I completely forgot, did another CAP get launched?"

Adama nodded " I had Tigh have one ready to launch as soon as we came out of the jump "

Kara was ready to get out of sickbay she was still feeling a little jumpy after the whole ejection thing " I am going to lie down before my shift starts"

Lee looked at his dad again " I need to go and change before I head over to Cloud Nine "

Adama nodded " And I need to head back to the CIC, let me know if you need anything Starbuck "

Kara was more than ready to get out of there now, this whole conservation had felt awkward " I will sir "

Lee was walking with Kara since she would have to pass by his office on her way to the bunk room " I don't know about you Kara, but that was awkward "

Kara agreed " My thoughts exactly "

Lee sighed loudly " Kara you are going to have to start talking to dad, he has been asking me what is wrong with you "

Kara looked down but kept walking " I know Lee and I will soon, now about that secret of yours "

Lee chuckled " You are not going to let it go are you?"

Kara looked sideways at him " Did you really think I would? "

Lee shook his head " No, but you are going to have to wait until I get back tonight "

Kara smirked " Just one more reason for me to wait for you in your office, huh?"

Lee grinned because they had reached his office. Before she could move on he grabbed her hand and pulled her into his office and shut the hatch.

Kara was confused and wondering what was happening " What are you up to Lee?"

Before answering her he backed her against the wall and placed his hands on either side of her head and looked right into her eyes. " Kara you do realize you could have been killed out there today, don't you?"

Kara was distracted by how close he was to her and could only nod.

Then he leaned in and kissed her. For a moment she just stood there before kissing him back, getting lost in the moment.

Lee stopped the kiss and stepped back then winked at her " I'll explain that tonight also "

Kara didn't know how to respond to that as she watched Lee go and open the hatch " Go lie down Kara, I need to get changed "

Kara would have argued with him as he seemed to be basically telling her to leave except the pain pill had started working and she couldn't seem to form a coherent thought. However she did manage to give him a frak you look before she left.

[BREAK]

Lee piloted his own raptor to Cloud Nine because he didn't know how long he would be there. As he was landing he decided to talk to Kara some more about his dad tonight. He figured since he would have her somewhere private he might as well talk to her about it along with everything else. The most important topic was going to be their just friendship thing.

Lee started walking the outside area on Cloud Nine looking for possible sniper positions. He spotted a few and made a mental note to have those areas covered. He then scouted all the entrances into Cloud Nine, which was only four thankfully, the front, the back, an emergency exit on the second floor and an open entrance into the restaurant.. There was two floors on the ship, the bottom which held the restaurant, a ballroom, and several smaller rooms. The top floor had a couple of bars and the hotel guest rooms. He made another mental note to get a copy of the hotel guest lists starting from today through the event. It was entirely possible that someone would already be on board so they could avoid security.

After walking the entire ship inside he headed to the restaurant to talk to Mark. Lee stood just inside the door and scanned the room looking for Mark. He didn't see him, but he spotted someone who looked like a waiter by the kitchen door. Lee crossed the room and stopped right next to the waiter who when he turned to look at him jerked slightly. Lee saw a brief look of surprise cross his face before he composed himself " Is Mark around?"

Frak Adam thought when he saw Lee Adama, he was going to have to be more careful now that Mark was friends with Lee and Kara. He should have known that either one of them could show up at anytime. " He is in the back I will get him for you "

Adam left and walked into the kitchen heading to Mark's office. He knocked once then let himself in to find Mark at his desk working.

Mark looked up when he heard the knock which was followed by Adam walking in looking frazzled " What's up Adam?"

Adam sat in the chair across from Mark " Lee Adama is waiting for you in the restaurant "

Mark looked at him " Okay, do you want to tell me why you look so shook up?"

Adam shook his head " It's nothing I was just surprised to see him here "

Mark got up " I told you he might come by for dinner "

Adam stood up also " Yeah, but I thought he would have called before coming over "

Mark patted him on the shoulder as he was walking out " Look at it this way, now you get to check him out yourself "

Adam nodded, Mark was right, besides Lee Adama didn't know who he was. " I will be your waiter tonight "

Mark smiled " This should be fun "

Adam gave him a stern look " This is not some kind of joke Mark, I told you how important this was and I need to get close to Lee Adama in order to figure out what kind of man he is "

Mark rolled his eyes " I'm just kidding Adam, you need to lighten up a bit "

Adam didn't comment he just headed back into the kitchen.

[BREAK]

While waiting on Mark Lee sat down at a table near the outdoor entrance. He watched people walking the grounds outside enjoying the fake scenery. Being here was so different from being on the Galactica where everything seemed dark and gray. At least as a pilot he got to fly in the skies and at night among the stars. Lee knew other members of the military like the deck crew, the marines and the CIC did not get a chance to leave the ship very often. He would work on making sure those people got passes more often. At least the dance was coming up in the next two days. Lee was so lost in thought he didn't realize Mark had walked up. He jerked a little when Mark spoke.

Mark saw Lee was deep in thoughts and wondered what he was thinking about. Mark took a seat " What were you thinking about Lee, you seemed a million miles away?"

Lee turned from looking outside to face Mark " Just that so many people from the Galactica rarely get a chance to leave ship, unless a pass comes up, which it rarely does "

Mark nodded " I guess I never thought about it, I mean I don't think most civilians think about it, we just assume the Galactica will protect us and never think about the people involved in it, I'm sorry "

Lee shook his head " That's alright, I hope you don't mind me dropping by unannounced "

Mark looked around and saw that there wasn't that many people here yet. " No that's okay, would you like to eat even though it's still early evening?"

Lee realized he was hungry since he had skipped lunch with everything going on at the time " Sounds good, I missed lunch "

Mark looked at him before motioning the waiter over " We have some spaghetti left over from lunch is that alright?"

Wow Lee thought " That would be great, spaghetti is actually one of my favorite meals "

Lee saw Mark motion for the waiter he had saw before. Lee sat back watching the waiter while Mark told him what they wanted. Lee knew he didn't know the man, but something felt a little off about him. The man also kept taking quick glances at him. After Mark had ordered their food and a couple of drinks he looked his way " Lee I would like you to meet my friend Adam " Mark glanced at Adam "Lee is a viper pilot "

Adam knew he shouldn't bring attention to himself but, he had to know, he looked straight at Lee " Is it true that a pilot was in an accident today when the cylons showed up?"

Mark glanced at Adam " I didn't know anything about that, how did you?"

Adam was still focusing on Lee " Talk wireless "

Mark turned his attention from Adam back to Lee " Is it true?"

Lee was trying to figure out why they were so interested because things like that were pretty normal now since they kept having run ins with the cylons. Then he figured that maybe they never had anybody to ask before. Lee was starting to notice a lot of distance and separation between the military and the civilians, so he answered their question. " We were on CAP patrol when the cylons jumped in and Starbuck lost her viper defending Crashdown, she took a shot that was meant for him "

Lee noticed Adam's hands tighten into fists at the same time Mark asked " Are they okay and who is Starbuck and Crashdown?"

Lee looked at Mark when he asked him that and somehow he knew Kara would have never told him her call sign. She had to be Starbuck so much of the time on the Galactica she rarely got to be just Kara. Lee chuckled " I should have known she wouldn't tell you, Kara is Starbuck "

Mark stood halfway up with his hands on the table and after taking a quick glance at Adam looked at Lee " Is Kara okay?"

Okay Lee thought was it just his imagination that Mark seemed a bit wound up or not, and it seemed by the fisting of his hands that Adam knew Starbuck was Kara and Mark did not, now that was odd " Everything is fine, she was cleared by the Doctor and can get back in the cockpit tomorrow " Lee paused as Mark sat back down and the waiter Adam had uncurled his fists " I don't know how she survived the hit in the first place, then came out of it with nothing but a headache and a few bruises, but then again we are talking about Starbuck "

Mark finally got his wits back and told Adam to have their food prepared and waited until he walked away. " Do things like that happen often with Kara, I know she is a pilot and takes a chance each time she goes out, but you don't seem too upset about it?"

Lee face took on a hard edge " Do not doubt that I am upset about it, but Starbuck has her own set of rules when she fights the cylons and even though I am her CAG she tends to ignore that fact when it comes to fighting the cylons " Lee paused " Starbuck will always put the other pilots life before her own, just like she did for me at Ragnar " Lee paused again before saying " You have met Kara, but you have not met Starbuck "

Mark was confused " I don't know what you mean "

Lee laughed " I didn't either, even when my dad try to explain it to me when I first met her and I only realised today that I had figured it out somewhere along the way "

Mark nodded " Okay I guess I'll just have to take your word for it, what happened at Ragnar?"

Lee explained everything that had happened at Ragnar and how she got his viper back onto Colonel One also.

Mark looked stun " Is she insane?"

Lee chuckled " No, she is beyond insane, Starbuck either has nine lives like a cat or her Gods are watching out for her "

Mark thought to himself or she has a destiny.

When Mark didn't say anything Lee asked after Adam had came and gone bringing them their drinks " How well do you know Adam?"

Mark picked up his drink that Adam had just brought to the table " When I came to work here five years ago he kind of took me under his wing and three years ago we went in together and bought this place "

Lee gave him a look of confusion " If he is part owner why is he waiting tables?"

Mark put his drink down " I own most of the percentage of this place and he prefers doing odd jobs around here including waiting tables "

Lee asked " Has he met Kara?"

Mark seemed to think about it for a moment before answering " Not as far as I know " Mark knew he needed to change the subject "How is the just friends thing going between you and Kara?"

Lee chuckled " She told you about that, huh?"

It was Marks turn to laugh " Yeah, but I think she was just trying to convince herself of it "

Lee sighed and got serious " After what happened today with her almost getting killed I decided the friendship thing was no longer an option "

Mark picked his drink back up " Have you told her that?"

Lee shook his head " No, but I plan on telling her tonight when I get back, along with a lot of other things we need to discuss "

Mark didn't know what to say about that except " Good luck "

They both stayed silent for a while.

Lee was wondering why he was telling all of this to Mark, he barely knew him. He then realised that if he had a friend besides Kara he would probably be telling them these things. Lee looked at Mark who seemed lost in thought himself. So far Lee liked Mark and thought maybe they could be friends. Kara had told him before that she thought he would like Mark.

Mark had been thinking also during their silence. He wondered what would happen to humanity if Kara ended up getting killed in a battle with the cylons. He also noticed that Adam apparently knew that Kara was Starbuck. He would have to ask him about that later. In the mean time he needed to say something to break the silence " Are you and Kara coming to the dance after the election?"

Lee nodded " After we get off duty, we are both on security detail " Lee paused to take a swallow of his drink " What about you and if so will you be bringing someone?"

Mark saw Adam heading their way " I am going after I close up here, but I am going alone, I don't really know that many women "

Lee chuckled " There will be some women from the Galactica coming, they will of course be mostly military "

After Adam sat their plates down and left Mark asked " Will any of them be like Kara?"

Lee laughed loudly " No, there is no one else like Kara, I'm pretty sure the Galactica could not handle two Starbucks " Lee took a bite before talking again " There are a few women though that you might like "

After Mark swallowed he asked " What do they do on the Galactica?"

Lee started to answer, but changed his mind " I had better let you just try and meet somebody you might like, because the two I have in mind Kara doesn't like them very much, one in particular "

Mark seemed interested " Why does she not like them?"

Lee looked up " They both flirted with me quite a bit when I became part of the crew and my dad tried to set me up with one of them, please don't mention this to Kara, she is still upset with my dad about that "

Mark nodded " I asked Kara to save me a dance, I hope you don't mind "

Lee chuckled again " I don't care, besides Kara does whatever she wants to do "

They ate in silence for the rest of their meal and after the table was cleared Lee looked at Mark " Kara told me about you warning her about the cylons looking like humans "

Mark wasn't going to deny it " I did, only out of concern for her as a friend "

Lee nodded " She also said you seemed pretty sure about it "

Mark picked up his refilled drink " I did and I still do "

Lee picked his drink up and after taking a swallow asked " I guess you still won't say who told you?"

Mark put his drink down and looked right at Lee " No Lee I won't, but I believe them and I know you can't say anything one way or the other and I respect that "

Lee stood up " Okay but I had to ask, Kara and I both will be over here tomorrow to finalize the security plans, maybe we can meet for a drink during one of our breaks "

Mark had got up also " Great just drop by and let me know, and tell Kara I said hello "

Lee spoke one last time before leaving " I enjoyed the meal and the company Mark, we'll see you tomorrow "

[BREAK]

Kara had finished her maintenance shift and spent some time making sure the raider would be ready for tomorrow's jump test. She had taken a shower and changed before heading to the mess hall for dinner. After she got her plate she looked around and went and took a seat at a table where Duck, Crashdown and Racetrack were sitting.

After plopping down into the chair and putting her plate on the table " Hey guys what's up?"

Duck spoke up " We were just talking about that insane move you pulled on CAP "

Kara really wished people would quit calling her insane " I didn't do anything any of you guys would not have done "

They all three looked at her and just shook their heads.

Kara shrugged her shoulders " Whatever " and started eating

Racetrack spoke up " I heard you pulled security detail "

Kara looked at Racetrack and realized she still liked her even after her attempts to flirt with Lee, unlike Dee who did not seem to know when to quit. " Yeah, even though I hate security detail in general I really hate it when it involves politics "

Crashdown who had been quiet spoke " Are any of you going to the dance?"

Duck answered " I think if you are not on duty it is required, right Starbuck?"

Starbuck nodded " That's what I was told " Kara decided to put them on the spot " So who's going with who?"

Racetrack looked startled " We have to have a date to go?"

Duck knew what Starbuck was doing so he played along " I'm afraid so Racetrack "

Racetrack sat back " There is no one I want to go with " she looked around the table " Do any of you have dates?"

Duck nodded " I do "

Kara stated " I don't have a date, but I'm going anyway "

Crashdown and Racetrack both said " Then I am too "

Duck asked " Who's the CAG going with?" they all looked at Kara

Kara put her fork down " What the frak are you all looking at me for?" then added with a grin " I have a meeting with him tonight so I'll be sure and let him know that certain people want to know who his date to the dance will be "

They all three looked at each other and Duck spoke up " Forget we asked Starbuck "

Then Kara thought about Mark " Hey Racetrack I'll introduce you to a friend of mine if you want, he is unattached and good looking " she sure as hell did not want Mark to end up with Dee

Racetrack looked at her " Why would you do that, what's in it for you?"

Kara was not going to mention Dee " Nothing he is a friend of mine and he doesn't know many people, except Apollo and me and he is having dinner with our CAG as we speak "

That seemed to confuse them even more cause everyone knew other than Starbuck their CAG didn't have any close friends.

After Duck and Crashdown left the table Racetrack looked at Starbuck " What's the real reason behind you wanting me to meet your friend ?"

Starbuck pushed her plate away " I really do just want you to meet him, he is a nice guy "

Racetrack needed to know more " Okay, why me then?"

Kara smirked " I would much rather you meet him than Dee "

Racetrack smiled " Would it not be better if she met your friend and if she liked him she might leave Apollo alone?"

Kara looked at her like she missed the point " I said he was my friend and I'd hate to have to stop being his friend if he ended up liking Dee "

Racetrack laughed " You sound like your in grade school "

Kara shrugged " I don't care, plus I wanted to ask you if there was some place in the fleet to find a dress for the dance?"

Racetrack laughed loudly at that " You want to wear a dress, really?"

Kara leaned her chair back and crossed her arms " I have been known to wear one once or twice before, so will you help me find one or not?"

Racetrack could tell she was serious " If I were you I would check out some of the shops while you are on Cloud Nine there might be some still open "

Starbuck got up " Thanks and by the way my friend owns one of the restaurants on Cloud Nine, so should I mention you to him or not?"

Racetrack got up also " Is he really good looking?"

Kara smiled " He is almost as cute as our CAG "

Racetrack nodded " Count me in then and thanks Starbuck "

Kara looked at her " What for?"

Racetrack stood twisting her hands " For saving Crash, for not holding anything against me concerning Apollo and for wanting to introduce me to your friend "

Instead of brushing it aside like she normally would Kara simply stated " Your welcome "

[BREAK]

After leaving the mess hall Kara went to Lee's office to wait on him. She looked around the office then poked her head inside the small room that she knew had a cot in it and was surprised it also had a small shower stall. She then walked around looking at different things. She realised that most of the things in it belonged to their CAG that had been killed during the cylon invasion. Kara sat down in Lee's chair behind the desk and was looking over the pilot rotation for next week when she heard the hatch opening.

Kara waited until Lee noticed she was there, when he saw her she asked " How was your time away from the Galactica?"

Lee smiled when he saw her " It was okay, I wasn't sure you would be here when I got back "

Kara didn't bother with getting up " I couldn't wait to here one of your secrets and how things went with Mark "

Lee saw she was dressed in tanks and a pair of running shorts " Let me change, then we will talk "

She nodded as he went into his tiny bedroom to change.

He came back in dressed in tanks and a pair of cargo shorts. Without saying anything he took the chair across from her.

Lee was nervous about talking to her, so he decided to go with the easiest things first. "I have a few security issues I need to go over with you tomorrow "

Kara nodded " Okay, just as long as it doesn't interfere with my jump test "

Lee looked at her for a minute noticing that she had her hair down and how much it had grown out the last few weeks. " Your test is still scheduled for in the morning right?" she nodded " Then we will head over there after you finish up "

Kara put her elbows up on the desk interlocked her fingers and placed her chin on her hands then grinned " Sounds good, so about that secret "

Lee rolled his eyes " I will get to that in a minute, did you meet Mark's friend Adam?"

Kara didn't move " No, he just told me that a friend and him had bought the restaurant, why?"

Lee leaned back in his seat " I met him and he seemed okay, but something seemed off about him "

Kara took her elbows off the desk and leaned back also " What do you mean Lee?"

Lee shook his head " It's probably nothing but he seemed edgy when he asked me about the injured pilot he had heard about through talk wireless "

Kara still didn't know what Lee was trying to figure out " What else happened Lee?"

Lee looked at her " I told them and as soon as I said Starbuck Adam fisted his hands together tightly and then Mark asked me who Starbuck was and when I told him, he came half out of his seat with worry I presume " Lee paused " What was strange was that Adam knew who you were but Mark didn't "

Kara shrugged " I didn't tell Mark my call sign " she paused " Did you figure out if I should be worried about Mark's interest in me?"

Lee ran his hands across his face, he was tired " With Mark no, he likes you as a friend, but I am not sure about Adam "

Kara sighed " Since he is Mark's friend and they have known each other for five years I don't see cause to worry " she thought about Racetrack "Did Mark tell you he was coming to the dance?"

Lee needed to touch her, he got up and walked behind her chair and started massaging her shoulders " Yeah he is coming, why?"

Kara looked up at him over her shoulder and grinned " I found him a date "

Lee raised his eyebrows at that " We talked about that and I told him I knew of a couple of people "

Kara's grin turned into a frown " Who Lee?"

Lee who had stopped massaging her shoulders started back " Don't worry I didn't tell him any names, I started to then I figured it might piss you off so I told him he would just have to meet someone himself "

Kara who was still looking up at him grinned " Good because I want him to meet Racetrack "

Lee stooped what he was doing and went and sat on the edge of his desk on her side so he could look at her " Wow I would have never guessed it would be her when you said you had found him a date "

Kara looked at him dangerously " Do you think it should be the other someone else you were thinking about setting him up with?"

Lee knew he needed to answer her very carefully " No, I think Racetrack is the perfect choice for him "

Kara reached over and slapped him on the leg " Good, now that is settled out with your secret "

Lee reached and grabbed one of her hands " First I wanted to talk to you about fixing things with dad "

Kara pulled her hand away and leaned back " I have already been thinking about it and I have decided to wait and talk to him after the dance "

Lee scooted down the desk till he was right in front of her and grabbed her hands and pulled her and the rolling chair toward him " What I have to tell you is not just a secret, but also a truth "

Kara looked at him curiously " What is it Lee "

Lee leaned down and gave her a quick kiss and moved his mouth to her ear and whispered " I don't want to be just friends anymore Kara "

Kara pulled back to look at him and found that he was serious " Lee I told you I didn't want to go to fast with this thing between us, I am afraid I will frak it all up " she hoped he would understand

Lee still held onto one of her hands " Kara we have both almost died on numerous occasions so how long are you willing to wait, because almost losing you again today made me realize I couldn't wait any longer "

Kara couldn't look him in the eyes any longer " I am scared Lee, I have not been in a relationship for a long time "

Lee placed a finger under her chin so she would have to look at him " So am I Kara, but I'm also excited about it and with the way things are right now shouldn't we get all that we can have right now?"

Kara thought about it, she wanted to be with Lee now also and they had both come close to dying this past week " If I agreed what would we do first ?"

He grinned and then she laughed " Besides that Lee, I think that's a given "

Lee pulled her up so she was standing between his legs " I want you to go to the dance with me " he put his finger up to her mouth before she could speak " The frat regs are gone and it would be a good time for dad to know that we are together " again she tried to speak and he stopped her " We did it your way last time and we both know that didn't work out at all "

Kara who had been staring at his blue eyes as she was listening knew that everything he said was true " Fine we will do it your way this time, it certainly can't get any worse than it already is " she kissed him quickly and pulled back " What else?"

Lee watched her closely before speaking " I want you to sleep in my bed tonight " he said blushing " I don't mean for sex Kara we can build up to that "

Kara was curious " Then why are you blushing?"

Lee started to deny it but didn't " The three times that we have slept together has been the best sleep that I've had since this war started and I need a good nights sleep "

Kara laughed " Me too, that's weird " she hugged him then stepped back " Fine, but you need to set the alarm so I can get back to my rack before anyone wakes up "

Lee watched Kara as she went into the bedroom, so he followed her and stood there and watched as she got undressed leaving on one tank and what he thought would be her military issued bottoms instead she had on a pair of light blue low cut panties. Lee's brain went spinning into a couple of fantasies involving those low cut panties which made him jump when Kara called out to him.

Kara had been waiting on Lee to climb into bed, but he kept standing there like he was lost or something " Lee " once more " Apollo " he finally looked at her " I thought you wanted to get some sleep, come on " she said as she patted a place on the bed beside her

Lee groaned internally he knew after watching what she would be sleeping in he would get no sleep now. He wondered if it would be okay to ask her to put her clothes back on. He laughed at that thought.

Kara raised her head up off the pillow " What are you laughing about Lee?"

He must have laughed out loud " Nothing " Lee finally made up his mind and took his shirt off but left cargo shorts on. He climbed into bed and pulled Kara close to him.

Before she laid her head down on his chest she looked up at him " Your forgot to take off your shorts "

Lee laughed " No I didn't, I either sleep in these or you will have to put your clothes back on "

Without looking up Kara giggled " You liked those huh?"

Lee kissed the top of her head " You are a tease, but you knew that didn't you?"

Kara kissed his hand that was around her " I did not know I would be sleeping here, so it's not like I did it on purpose, now go to sleep Captain " Kara didn't say that she maybe kinda planned on something happening.

Lee closed his eyes and pulled her closer " You too Captain "

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