Disclaimer: I don't own Bones and I am sure as heck not making money off this.
Bonesgirl4ever: That's just about one of the sweetest things ever! Thank you for taking time from your limited internet access to read my stuff. Even if you don't get to review. Oh, there's more discussions that a riot to come in the sequel. Of course there's some not so salami discussion too. Dun dun duuunnnn...
Loverofbones: Lol yeah you just have to find the right psych doctor. Took me a while to find mine but love her to death. Personally I thought the punch to the doctors pride at saying he could find a better one was pretty good. =D
Nichellemarie: Naahhhh, I didn't think you were calling me an idiot but ya know sometimes I am one. We all have those days LOL.
Luckywynner86: Don't we all (well or at least we did at some point ~ just in case my husband is reading this) ;-)
Mendenbar: Everyone is short compared to Legates LOL. Yeah, I do write a rather good asshole which is kinda scary =/ Truth be told I think it comes from people watching. We have a large tourist population here and they're used to not being nice then they come here and well down in slower lower DE we try to be nice to everyone =D
Angelbach: Yeah, couldn't have all fluff. Heehee glad I could help with your hitlist!
Mlbrunell: I wouldn't call this encounter amusing. Just Romero being a douche per usual =)
Yenyen76: Unfortunately, I've seen that the doctors do that sometimes and it's not a good thing =( When they see you as a disease instead of a patient or a file in their hand. It could be any of the reasons you mentioned but either way it's a shame.
Nertooold54: Some of it was required but the arrogance at thinking that he could commit involuntarily was rather asinine. Yeah, unfortunately I made Jacobs out too be more of an ass than I really wanted. Whoops.
Chapter 66 - Mikayla
Legates opened his eyes to see Techie pulling up to the emergency room doors.
"Come on, let's get out of here," Legates said, dropping another kiss on her head.
She nodded but remained silent. Legates opened the back door and lifted Michelle into the truck. She scooted across the back seat, giving Legates room to slide in. He climbed into the truck and pulled the door closed.
"Where to?" Techie asked, glancing in the mirror.
"Dorms," Legates said, pulling Michelle into his body.
"We need to get anything before we get there? Clothes? Ice cream? Chocolate?" Techie asked, pulling out of the emergency room parking area.
"Actually, I'd love some chocolate. How about you, Baby?" Legates asked, looking down at Michelle with a grin. She nodded her head but didn't look up.
"Chocolate it is, so we can hit the Target near the dorms," Legates said.
"Good, I need to get some underwear if ya'll are going to be around," Techie muttered. Michelle giggled then burrowed in closer to Legates.
"Please tell me you are not driving my truck while going commando," Legates muttered.
"Only partially commando. My left nut is hanging out of a hole in my boxers," Techie said cheerfully.
Legates smacked his palm to his forehead and groaned. Michelle wanted to laugh, she really did but she couldn't force it to come out. Sighing, she snuggled even closer to Legates. When Techie pulled into a parking spot at Target, Legates poked Michelle.
"Come on, you're picking your own chocolate," he said.
She sat up straight and waited for him to get out of the truck. They exited the truck and walked into the store. Techie took off to get his underpants and Michelle grabbed a basket. Heading to the food section, she found the candy aisle and slowly walked down. She stood back a little and her eyes cataloged her choices. She set the basket in the floor and put her hands on her hips.
As Legates stood next to her looking at the candy, he saw movement from the corner of his eye. Snapping around, he looked to see what it was. A dog was peeking around the corner then the dog's head disappeared. A moment later, a man in a wheelchair came around the corner. A great dane wearing a working vest walked next to the wheelchair, her head, ears, eyes and nose all going at the same time. Legates recognized the dog's attempt to sniff out danger of any sort. He himself was constantly in the same state.
Legates relaxed and turned back to the shelves. Putting his hand on Michelle's back, he gently pushed her forwards so they weren't standing in the middle of the aisle. The man came down the aisle and nodded at Legates. It was at that moment that Legates knew the man was a soldier. And by his age, Legates could assume the man had seen time in Iraq or Afghanistan. He rolled down the aisle and stopped near Michelle.
Michelle scooted over reflexively closer to Legates. The man's mouth pulled down slightly at the corners. Then he relaxed when his dog cautiously approached Michelle. Stopping, the dog backed up and sat down next to the wheelchair. The man reached out and rubbed the top of the dog's head. Michelle began pulling chocolate candy down and Legates' face spread in a large grin at the amount of candy going in the basket. The man in the wheelchair shot Legates a grin and shook his head. Legates shrugged in return.
Legates heard people in the main aisle and suddenly there were ten people in the aisle. Michelle froze, her eyes wide with fear. Legates tensed defensively as the people began to move down the aisle towards them. Legates' mouth fell open as the large great dane moved forward and placed herself between the man in the wheelchair, Michelle, and the large group of people. She nosed the group of people away from Michelle and the man in the wheelchair, giving the two of them a wide space around them. The dog began to pace in front of the three of them and people either scooted by giving the pair wide berth or turned and left the other end of the aisle.
Legates' eyebrow rose as he looked towards the man in the wheelchair. Legates saw the man's eyes wide and his pupils dilated. Legates looked between Michelle, the dog, and the man in the wheelchair. When the people left the aisle, the dog moved first to the man in the wheelchair. Sitting down, the dog lifted her paw and tapped on the man's leg with his paw. He watched the dog repeat the action when the man didn't respond the dog shoved her head under the man's hand as if asking for a pet. After several nudges, the man's hand began to pet the dog.
"Good job, Mikayla," the man said hoarsely.
Legates approached Michelle and wrapped a hand around her wrist gently. She jumped out of her skin and her eyes darted about.
"Hey, easy," he said, pulling her against his chest.
When he looked up, the man with the dog was gone. Legates had never seen a dog do that before. He'd seen the dogs that led the blind but this was something completely different. Shaking his head, he looked down at the basket then back up at the shelves. Grabbing a bag of dark chocolate covered espresso beans and an entire box of dark chocolate and orange candy bars, he tossed them into the basket with one hand while holding Michelle with the other. He heard a noise and jerked his head around again, his body going tense, making Michelle whimper slightly.
"Shhh, just seeing who was coming. It's Techie. We're going to get out of here," he whispered. Techie walked up and frowned at Legates' defensive posture and Michelle's panicked burrowing indicating she was upset.
"Let's get the hell out of Dodge," Legates said, nodding towards the basket. Techie leaned over and picked it up. He snorted as he spotted the huge amount of candy in the bottom.
"Did you want some chocolate, sweetheart?" Techie asked with a smirk.
"Yes, just a little," Legates said, grinning at Techie.
Techie carried the basket to the checkout counter and dumped it on the belt. Legates stepped around him and snorted. Michelle was still clinging to Legates' side and he used his free hand to dig around for his wallet.
"Schnookums, can you get my wallet out please, it's in the lower pocket on my left thigh," Legates said, grinning at Techie. The woman at the register snickered as she continued to ring up the candy. She could see Michelle tucked in against Legates and knew he was teasing Techie.
"Sure," Techie said, walking around the pair and dug in Legates pocket
Pulling out Legates' wallet, Techie opened it and started digging through it. Legates reached out and snatched the wallet from his hand. Techie grinned at him and walked back to where his underwear were laying on the belt. Legates pulled out his debit card and looked up at the grinning woman.
"Is that everything?" She asked before hitting the total button.
"Yes, ma'am," he told her.
"Your total is 35.42. Credit or Debit?" She asked after hitting the total button.
"Debit is fine," he said, swiping his card.
He went through the process then took his receipt and grabbed the two bags of candy. Techie quickly paid for his purchase and the three of them left the store. As they were walking across the parking lot, they saw the man in the wheelchair strapping his dog into a vehicle. Legates shook his head, smiled and kept walking. He was sure the man didn't want them staring. After they loaded back up into the truck, Techie pulled back out onto the road, heading towards their dorms.
"Do you have her meds?" Techie asked, making Michelle groan.
"Yeah," Legates said.
They had put bottles with a few extra pills in it in his night stand. After she had started spending large amounts of time in the dorms with him, they discussed it and decided to keep some of her medication there just in case. They had to wait until she got a refill since Xanax was a controlled substance but it was now paying off. Techie pulled into the parking lot and parked Legates' truck. Getting out, they headed into the building and up the stairs. As they were walking down the hall, Maggs popped his head from Oaks' room.
"Well, look who decided to grace us with their presence," Maggs said teasingly. Michelle said nothing and continued to walk by.
"Well, you could at least say hi," he pouted.
She walked back to where Legates was standing in front of Maggs and attached herself to her boyfriend. Maggs' face showed a little shock at Michelle's lack of response and clinginess.
"We had a bad day," Legates said, rubbing his hand down her back.
"Which means?" Maggs asked, frowning up at Legates.
"It means Michelle uses Legates as a piece of furniture, throws up, eats crackers, drinks sprite and doesn't talk," Oaks said from behind Maggs. Michelle scowled at him from her place against Legates.
"Oh, so nothing abnormal then," Maggs said, teasing again.
Legates let out a sigh and shook his head. Michelle snatched back from Legates, walked closer to Maggs, pulled her foot back and kicked him in the shin. Turning on her heel, she stalked towards Legates room door where Techie was standing with the door open.
"Yeah, I forgot to warn you about that," Oaks said, laughing at Maggs who was clutching his shin and hopping around in pain.
Turning, Legates headed to his room his laughter trailing behind him. He found Michelle already in the bathroom and Miss Congeniality one and two laying on the bed. At least they weren't complete chick flicks, they had Sandra Bullock wearing dresses and guns at the same time. He dug through the bags of candy that Techie had thrown on the bed and pulled out several of the types of chocolate.
Rummaging through them, he pulled out what he wanted and carried it to the freezer. Digging around, he found a huge plastic serving bowl that Andrea had bought when she was there at Christmas. Walking back to the bed, he opened everything but the espresso beans and dumped it into the bowl. He shook his head, the bowl was halfway full of candy. Shrugging, he threw the garbage away. Walking back to his dresser, he opened it and frowned at the clothes in the drawer.
"Dude, what are your clothes doing in my dresser?" Legates asked, glaring at Techie. Techie grinned and shrugged.
"It's not like you were using it. It was completely empty. In fact, all the clothes the pair of you have here fit neatly in the largest drawer on the bottom and your ACU's are in the closet," Techie said, pointing to the drawer then the closet.
Sighing, Legates leaned over and pulled open the drawer. Digging out a pair of shorts, a pair of underwear, and a tee shirt, he set them on the bed. Grabbing a towel, he scooped his clothes up then walked to the bathroom door. He knocked and waited for an answer.
"Michelle," he called softly through the door.
He heard the locks disengage then her shuffling steps moving away from the door. He opened the door and slipped into the bathroom. He put his towel on the rack and set his clothes on the edge of the sink. Michelle was sitting on the toilet with the lid closed. Her face rested in her hands and he could sense the fear, despair, and frustration rolling off her. Squatting down in front of her, he pulled her hands away from her face.
"Baby, we'll get through this. The treatment that Dr. Sweets has been giving you is not working. So it's time to try something new," he said quietly. She looked up at him and his heart broke at the sight of the hopelessness in her eyes.
"You're not done fighting, I'm not done fighting, we're not done fighting," he whispered then gave her a gentle kiss. She slowly shook her head then looked down at her hands.
"Go put your movie in and I'll be there in a minute. I need to shower, I stink," he said.
She let out a dry, almost toneless laugh. He stood up, stripped and climbed into the shower. He flinched when he turned on the shower and the cold water hit his skin. When the water heated up, he closed his eyes and let it wash over him. This had been bad, really bad and he wasn't sure what they were going to do. He'd call Dr. Nabhan after taking his shower. Maybe he was still in his office.
After soaping up, Legates rinsed off and got out. Drying off, he got dressed, grabbed his dirty clothes then walked out into his room. Michelle was on the bed, nested in a pile of covers with the bowl of chocolate clutched to her chest. Dropping his clothes and towel next to the bed, he sat down on the edge of the bed. Digging through his pants, he scowled then cursed under his breath.
"Baby, I have to go get my phone. I'll be right back," he told her, looking over at her.
She nodded slowly and turned back to watching TV. He stood up and slid his feet into a pair of shoes. Walking to the refrigerator, he grabbed his keys from the bowl on top and quietly left the room. Legates walked down the hallway his mind going a mile a minute. Maggs stepped out of Oaks' room and stopped Legates by putting his hand up.
"Man, what the hell happened. The guys are all weird and Michelle is all weird and you're all weird," Maggs said, looking up and down the hall making sure that no one was listening.
"She had a bad flashback. She got stuck in it," Legates said, his voice getting choked. Maggs gestured for Legates to walk and he followed his friend.
"Stuck?" He said quietly with a worried frown. Legates swallowed two or three times, trying to clear the lump of fear in his throat.
"You know how you hear about Vietnam vets that go all weird and don't know where they are? They shoot people because they think they're VC's," Legates said just as quietly. Maggs head rocked back and he turned to look at Legates.
"Holy shit," he said.
"Yeah, we went to the hospital and the doctor there wasn't treating her right. He was treating her like..like..." Legates paused, not sure how to explain it.
"Like she had a different kind of psychological problem?" Maggs ventured with a frown.
"Yeah," Legates said. Maggs groaned and shook his head.
"Okay, man, I'll see you later," Maggs said when they reached the stairwell.
Maggs went up and Legates went down. Legates let out a deep breath and made his way out to his truck. Opening the door, he pulled his phone out of the console. Going through his contacts, he found Dr. Nabhan's office number. Hitting the dial button, he waited as the phone rang. His eyes widened in shock when Dr. Nabhan, and not his receptionist, answered the phone.
"Uh, Dr. Nabhan, this is Corporal Legates," he said.
"Corporal Legates, office hours ended half an hour ago," Dr. Nabhan said smoothly.
"Look, I wouldn't have even called but this is kind of an emergency and I don't want to wait until Monday unless I absolutely have to," Legates said in a rush.
Dr. Nabhan's eyes narrowed at the slightly frantic tone that Legates was using. Corporal Legates had been nervous but never frantic.
"What is happening?" Dr. Nabhan said. Office hours be damned, if these guys needed his help he'd give it to them.
"Look, Michelle, I've told you a little about her. Well, she had a serious flashback. She got stuck in it for almost two hours. Her therapist, Dr. Sweets says it's more than he can handle. He doesn't have the expertise to deal with PTSD, it's not his specialty. I was wondering is there someone you can suggest in the private practice field?" Legates said, chewing on his lips and praying Dr. Nabhan could help.
"I actually have a private practice. I'm only contracted to the Army. I do have a few weekend hours in the afternoon," Dr. Nabhan said, opening his PDA he began flicking through his Saturday hours.
"I have a two o'clock open," Dr. Nabhan said.
"Yeah, we'll take that. Her Trazadone should be fully worn off by then," Legates said, mentally calculating. Dr. Nabhan put Michelle's name in with a note that she was taking Trazadone.
"My office is over next to where Walter Reed used to be. It's the brick building directly adjacent," Dr. Nabhan said.
"Okay," Legates replied, remembering the building.
"So, I'll see Michelle at two then," Dr. Nabhan said.
"Thanks, Doc," Legates said, a sigh of relief slipping from his lips.
"Tomorrow then," Dr. Nabhan said then hung up the phone.
This would be an interesting patient as Legates and Michelle's PTSD symptoms and causes were so intertwined, Dr. Nabhan thought.
Legates slid his phone into his shorts pocket, grabbed his duffel from the back, closed the doors then locked them. He headed back into the building and stopped when he heard his name called. He stopped in the door of the lounge and scowled when he only saw Romero.
"Saw on the news that your chick had a mental breakdown," Romero said, snickering. Legates' eyes flared then turned three shades darker. His jaw clenched and he glared at Romero.
"Romero, if I ever hear that drivel out of your mouth or from anyone else saying they heard it from you, I'll have Brown hack the government server and send out an email to every person that has a government email. The cat will be out of the bag..no a better phrase would be out of the closet," Legates snarled.
Romero rocked back and his eyes flared in panic as his face paled. Turning on his heel, Legates strode from the lounge and up the stairs. It took everything he had not to pound Romero's face in but at this particular moment that came second to Michelle. As he walked down the hall, his unit trailed out of their rooms and down the hall after him. Ignoring them, he entered his room. They followed him into the room and flopped down in their favorite spots on the floor.
Legates walked around the bookcases and toed his shoes off. Michelle was laying in her nest, the candy on the floor next to the bed, staring sightlessly at the TV. Pulling his phone from his pocket, he set it on the night table. After turning the light on, he crawled into the bed. She scooted as close as she could get without crawling into his clothes with him. He wrapped an arm around her.
"Did you take your Trazadone?" He asked in a low tone.
She nodded a yes and let out a mournful sigh. Techie saw several of the guys flinch at Michelle's sigh. Most of them didn't know why and to be honest they didn't care. All they knew was Michelle was hurting and when she hurt Legates hurt. When Legates hurt, they hurt too.
"You're going to see Dr. Nabhan tomorrow," Legates whispered against her temple.
She clutched his shirt and dug her nails into his sides. Legates felt the fear roll off her in waves.
"I'll go with you if you want," he offered. She nodded and slightly relaxed her hands.
"You're going to have to talk to him," Legates said gently.
She nodded again and sniffed. Gently running his hand across her head, he let out a sigh and kissed her temple. He felt her frame relax into sleep and heard the almost snore sound she made when she took the Trazadone. When he was sure she was asleep, he let the tears slide from his eyes. Frustration, anger, and pain rolled down his face in the form of tears.
After the movie was over, Legates drifted into a light sleep and didn't hear the guys as they left the room. Techie jerked awake to the sound of Legates mumbling. With a grunt, Techie threw his arm over his eyes and hoped he wouldn't have to go wake Legates up. He lay listening to his friend's ragged breathing and wondered how Michelle slept through it. Legates jerked upright with a silent scream in his throat.
Panting, he wiped his hand down his face. Why were the nightmares changing? Why were they still coming? He carefully slid out from under Michelle, who reached for him even in her drug induced sleep, and pulled on socks and shoes. Slipping quietly from the room, he hit the streets running. Techie lay waiting after Legates slipped from the room. It took no more than five minutes before he heard Michelle moving around in the other bed.
"Techie, where's Josh?" Michelle asked, her voice slightly slurred from the Trazadone.
"He went for a run. He'll be back in an hour or so. Go back to sleep," Techie mumbled.
He heard Michelle shuffling around in what Legates had told him was nesting. A few moments later, he could hear her deep even breathing from the other side of the book cases. He drifted back into a light sleep until he heard Legates enter the room again. After Legates had returned Techie sunk into a deep slumber that wasn't interrupted until sunlight filtered through the windows.
Legates on the other hand, lay awake with his arms wrapped around Michelle. He couldn't, wouldn't, go back to sleep. Having that dream again would probably break him down into a crying baby. And he couldn't afford that now, he needed to be the strong one. He watched the light slowly filter into the room through the windows. He continued to lay there wondering what the hell they were supposed to do. Sounded like it was time to go squinty and get some information.
Michelle watched Legates watch the light crawl across the wall. He didn't realize that she was awake and she didn't care to inform him. She was happy to just watch, it was peaceful. As she lay thinking, she came to the conclusion that maybe if she told someone about what had happened then the green house situation would not repeat itself. Maybe the nightmares would stop, maybe just maybe. With a mental sigh of resignation, she gave in and decided it was time to talk to the doctors.
"When is the appointment?" She asked in a quiet voice, making Legates jump at her unexpected question.
"Two," he said, his voice a little rough.
"I need to exercise," she said quietly, her voice husky and rough at the same time.
"Want to go for a run?" Legates asked, hoping she didn't want to go to the gym. It was too public for her at this point in time.
"Yeah," she said, "coffee first."
He grunted then slid out from underneath her head. She let out a quiet sigh and curled up tight. Legates rubbed his neck as he walked to the coffee pot. After coffee was started, he walked to his closet, opened the door and rolled his eyes.
"I swear you'd think a bunch of women lived here," he mumbled.
"Nope just one," Techie mumbled then smirked at Legates.
"I know you think you're pretty but that don't make you a girl," Legates said, shooting Techie a simpering look. Techie grunted, rolled from the bed and walked to the bathroom.
"Techie," Legates barked, making Techie pause and look at him.
"Dude, cover up. You bought new underwear, wear them. That is way more of you than I wanted to see," Legates said, turning back to the closet.
"Aww, but, honey bunches," Techie said, grinning.
Michelle's soft giggle drifted from the other side of the bookcase. Legates' face softened at her giggle. Techie shook his head, grabbed a pair of shorts and pulled them on.
"You know you're just jealous of my dongles," Techie said, grinning as he walked past the bed Michelle was on.
"If I connect you to a computer what will I get from your dongle?" Legates asked, making Michelle giggle again.
She sighed almost contentedly. Even when she was at her worst, they could always make her laugh and she loved them to death for it. She let a slow smile spread across her face and a soft glow entered her eyes. She was in love. Legates came around the corner and saw a contented smile on Michelle's face that spread all the way to her eyes.
For now, she looked happy and he was okay with that. Not wanting to question why, he set the cup of coffee down on the table next to her. She sat up and gave him a shy smile then reached for the coffee he brought her.
"A run, huh?" He asked, grinning at her. She shrugged as she took a sip of her coffee.
"If I go to the gym, a bunch of people are going to want to talk to me and I really don't want to talk to any of them. I really need to do some exercise it might make me feel better," she answered, staring down into her coffee.
"Sounds good to me. Think you can keep up with me?" He asked, wearing an even larger grin.
"Hell no, your legs are way longer than mine and you fricking run for fun," she grumbled good naturedly.
"I'll run slow," he teased.
She rolled her eyes and thought about giving him the finger then decided to drink her coffee instead. Techie came out of the bathroom and walked to the coffee pot.
"So, what are you two love birds doing today?" Techie asked from around the bookcases.
"Running then doctors appointment," Legates answered.
"Have fun," Techie said with a snort.
"You don't like to run? I thought all you military guys liked to run," Michelle said, still sipping her coffee.
"Hell no, I run when I have to because I have to. I run enough that I can pass the PT and maybe just a hair more and that is it," Techie grumbled, "I hate running."
Legates laughed and shook his head. Standing up, he walked around the corner and poured himself a cup of coffee. After they finished their coffee, Michelle changed into a pair of her shorts and a tee shirt then scrunched her nose at her shoes. Walking to the closet, she opened the door, got on her hands and knees. Legates watched her dig through the pile of shoes she had created in his closet. He laughed as shoes were pulled out and set to the side.
"Aha," she said, pulling out a decent pair of sneakers.
She chunked the other shoes back in the bottom of the closet and rolled into a sitting position in front of the closet door. She looked up at Legates as she pulled on her shoes.
"What are you doing?" She asked, watching him stand there with a leer on his face.
"Enjoying the view," he said, grinning at her.
"You're bad," she said, standing up.
"You know it," he returned, still grinning.
"Let's go, bad boy," she said, laughing.
"You two perverts have fun," Techie said, waving as they walked out the door.
They hit the street running and Michelle kept up with the pace Legates set.
"Impressive," he said, between breaths.
"An hour on the elliptical three times a week does a body good," Michelle returned with a smile.
As they were finishing their run and approaching the block where his dorms lay, he shot her a grin.
"Race ya," he challenged.
"You're on," she shot back and took off like a shot.
Legates took off after her laughing at her sprinting ability. As they got to the building, he was right behind her. He reached over her head and thumped the door with his hand a mere second before her.
"That's cheating," she panted.
"Nope, I just used what God gifted me with," he said, laughing.
She scowled and opened the door. She took the stairs two at a time and Legates laughed at her fake anger.
"Josh is a cheater," she yelled down the hallway after opening the door.
Goodman stuck his head out of his room door with a perplexed look on his face.
"I am not. It's not my fault that your arms are shorter than mine and I reached the door first," he said, laughing.
Goodman shook his head and went back into his room. The pair bickered down the hallway to Legates' room and entered still bickering. Glancing at the clock, Michelle scowled, fell silent then walked around the room gathering her stuff for a shower. With a small grunt of frustration, Legates did the same. He followed her into the bathroom, checked the locks and stripped. Stepping into the shower, he found her using her arm to lean against the wall and she was staring at the floor.
"Come on, Baby," Legates said, turning her to face him and backing her into the spray of the shower. She looked up at him and worried her lip with her teeth.
"I don't want to do this," she said softly.
"I know," he said, gently tipping her head back and wetting her hair. Pouring her shampoo into his hand, he gently rubbing it into her hair.
"Easy," she reminded him. He softened his touch even more.
"Sweetheart, I know you don't want to talk about it. I'm all for the waiting until you're ready but, Baby, yesterday was bad. Really bad," he said quietly.
"I know," she half moaned half gasped.
He pulled her against his chest and stepped back into the water to rinse her hair. She opened her eyes and he wanted to cry for her. The pain and fear there made his heart clench literally in pain. When the soap was rinsed from her hair, he released her waist and reached over to grab her conditioner.
"I can do it," she said.
"Let me," he said quietly. She stood there feeling vulnerable, weak and broken. He dropped a kiss on her forehead.
"It's not because you can't, it's because I want an excuse to put my hands all over your body. Starting with your head and going all the way to your toes," he told her with a leer.
She shook her head and smiled. It wasn't a laugh but it wasn't that broken look she sometimes wore on her face. He worked the conditioner into her hair and gently massaged it in.
"What happened to your comb?" He asked, looking around for it.
"Dunno," she shrugged, leaning into his hands, arching her back in pleasure.
He chuckled then picked up her body wash. As he ran his hands over her body, she leaned, arched and moved towards his touch.
"Just like a cat," he laughed. She smiled and stepped under the water to rinse.
"If I was in a better mood I'd purr for you," she said quietly.
"Eh maybe later. Lots more showers to be had," he said, grinning at her, as he moved her out from under the water.
She stepped out of the shower and he quickly washed. One thing the military did teach you was how to effectively and efficiently wash in short order. He stepped out of the shower and wrapped the towel around his waist. Gathering up his dirty clothes, he unlocked the doors and headed back into the room. Michelle was sitting on the bed, drying her hair and staring off into space. He quickly dried then dressed. Turning, he saw Michelle sitting there holding the towel she'd been drying her hair with in her lap.
"Come on, Baby. If I have to drag you in there dripping wet, I will," he said with a touch of humor.
"Huh, yeah, okay," she said, getting up and starting to get dressed. He watched her carefully as she got dressed and as she walked to the door.
"We going or what?" She asked, looking at him.
He looked down at her metallic orange toenails peeking from under her jeans. She looked down and sighed. Walking to the closet, she opened the door leaned in, grabbed a pair of sandals and slid them on her feet. Legates looked down at her sandals then up at the ceiling.
"Should it be weird that my girlfriend has a pair of sandals that match her toenails in my closet?" Legates asked the room in general.
"My Born Tiniri sandals are a pair of my favorites. Actually, I have them in several colors. It just so happens that the pair I left here match both my toenails and my shirt," Michelle said, staring at him with her arms crossed.
"Okay, okay," he said, holding his hands up palms out towards her, "let's go." She spun on the heel of one sandal and walked to the door. Shaking his head, he followed her out the door.
"We'll be back later, honey bunches," Legates said, closing the door.
"Should it bother me that my boyfriend calls another man honey bunches?" Michelle asked teasingly over her shoulder as she continued down the hall.
"Uh no, he was my honey bunches before you were my girlfriend," Legates said. Michelle froze, spun on her heel and gave him a huge look of disbelief.
"That didn't come out right," he muttered, rubbing the back of his head.
Spinning on her heel again, Michelle headed out the door at the end of the hallway. Legates sighed and followed her out the door and down the steps. When he stepped out of the dorms, she was standing next to the truck waiting on him.
He unlocked the truck and she opened the door then scrambled in. Sighing, he walked to the driver's side and got in. Starting the truck, he pulled out and started to drive towards Walter Reed.
"Sweetheart, that didn't come out right," he said softly.
"No, I understand," she said just as quietly.
"Really?" He asked, looking over at her.
She gave him a small nod and a sweet smile. He reached over and pulled her hand so he could hold hers. She absent mindedly rubbed her thumb across the back of his knuckles as she stared out the window. It seemed to take only minutes to reach their destination and Legates parked next to the building where Dr. Nabhan's office was located. After turning the truck off, he turned to look at her. She was staring down at their entwined hands.
"Ready?" He asked, his voice soft with just a hint of worry.
A/N: The question is are YOU ready? Because tomorrow will have...panic, symptoms, service dog, impressions, protection, Vanderbilt University, Paxil, Imagery Rehearsal Therapy, peas, hide and seek, black clothes, bobbing, weaving, ducking, mud, tweaking, high ground, a kiss, M*A*S*H, urine, growling, and sprinting.