A/N: Here's the third drabble. I love these nerds. They're ruining me.
Inspired by the prompt: "Don't be mad, but _. "
Also, MommaBabe gives me life.
This is done purely for fun; I mean absolutely no offense by any of it! I hope no one is offended. I have nothing but the utmost respect for these men.
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Part 3: You, Me & Everyone Else
It had been a few weeks since Gene and Sam had solved the 'Soulmate' issue that was between them, and Sam still didn't quite believe it was real.
She'd always been resigned to the fact that she'd either be alone for the rest of her life, or get lucky and find someone like her who had no words to hold them down. This…thing with Gene, whatever it was—fate, the universe throwing her a bone, she didn't know—was still hard to accept, but every time he wrapped her in his arms, she found it a little easier to believe.
Now, as she strode around her apartment, desperately trying to figure out what the hell to wear for dinner with Gene's roommate, Babe, she was wondering if maybe she wasn't cut out for this whole 'relationship' thing.
Gene was sitting on the couch, lazily flipping through channels as he munched on one of her granola bars—where the fuck did he get that? She thought she hid those from him—and looking very unconcerned with his Soulmate's frantic dashing from room to room. "Calm down," he drawled when she passed in front of the TV for the fifth time, hands grabbing at her hair. "It's just Babe. Ya already met him and he likes ya. I think you're blowin' this all out of proportion."
"And I think you're way to calm about this, Gene. I can't wait 'til you meet my mother so I can get some sweet, sweet revenge."
Gene swallowed his bite of granola and grinned. "I think you like me too much to wanna subject me to that kind of torture."
"Oh ho ho, no way, mister. I will enjoy every second of watching you squirm under my ma's 'you're-not-good-enough' glare."
"You are cruel and unusual."
"No, you're unusual," Sam grouched back from her bedroom, before she reappeared holding a blue blouse and a black flutter top. "Okay. Be honest. What the hell am I supposed to wear to something like this? Babe is like…really important to you…I feel like I'm meeting your boyfriend or something."
Gene actually honest-to-God choked on his granola bar, and Sam couldn't stop the wicked smile that curled over her face as he glared at her. "Co faire…? Ugh, look, Sam, it's jus' Babe. He's my friend and a fellow soldier, and he likes you already. You've met him, he's met you, and there's no reason to be so nervous." He finally stood from the couch, throwing down the clicker and gently pulling the black top from her hands. "But if it's such a big deal that you get my opinion, then I think you should wear this one. You'll look good in anythin', really, but that one will blow his damned mind."
Sam eyed Gene dubiously, taking the top back from him with a huff. "Why would I want to do that? I already have you, after all." She squeaked as Gene grabbed her around the middle, lifting her off her feet with an eager kiss.
"True, you sho' do."
"Now that we have that established…Put me down, you nerd, or we'll be late."
Gene hummed, as if he was actually considering her demand. "But what if I don' wanna?" he asked mischievously, and Sam sighed dramatically, letting her entire body go slack and her forehead bump into Gene's as she tried to slip from his arms. He nearly dropped her in surprise, but he'd gotten wise to her ways of wriggling away from him when he was being affectionate over the past few weeks, and he didn't let her go. "That ain't gonna work. I'm onto you an' yo' tricks, Sam," he said with a grin, which turned into a laugh when she pouted at him in annoyance.
Gene was a lot more than the quiet doctor-in-training that Sam had come to know; he was kind, compassionate, sweet, and he actually had a fun loving side that honest-to-God surprised Sam the first time he'd acted playful around her. She doubted other people had been privy to that particular part of Gene, and she was a little awed and amused that he trusted her enough and was comfortable enough to show that side of himself to her so soon (she was his Soulmate, so she supposed it made sense).
She wanted to demand he put her down—she still had to make herself look somewhat presentable for their dinner—but he silenced her protest with a kiss, and Sam didn't think she could argue with that.
"Babe won' mind if we're a lil' late," Gene drawled easily, arms tightening around her waist and slowly walking backwards to the couch.
So this whole 'Soulmate' thing was new to her. And damn it, if she didn't enjoy every second of it.
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'A lil' late,' as Gene had said, was a bit of an understatement.
Neither he nor Sam had been paying much attention to the time, if he was honest. He figured Babe probably wouldn't care if they were an hour off schedule, but knowing his roommate, the soldier from Philly might actually throw a fit about it. He just hoped he wouldn't scare Sam off; she was already fretting about the dinner enough as it was, and she'd smoothed her shirt and skirt down enough times that he was certain there wasn't a single wrinkle in it.
He reached over and grabbed her hand firmly in his to stop her from doing it again as they pulled onto the road leading to his and Babe's shared home. "You look beautiful, chére. Don' you worry none. It's jus' gon' be me, you, and Babe. Nothin' too hard to handle."
Sam shot him a grateful smile; he gripped her hand tighter when she looked at him. It still made him a little weak in the knees. "Sorry," she admitted sheepishly. "I just…this is a big deal to me, okay? It's second to having dinner with your family and-" She paused as she looked back down the road ahead, narrowing her eyes slightly. "-Gene. Didn't you…I thought you said it was just gonna be me, you and Babe?"
"I did," he agreed easily, before he caught sight of what she was looking at and swore under his breath in French.
The driveway of his home had three cars parked in it, and he knew Babe only had one truck. Plus, his should make two cars total, not four altogether; the fact that the other two cars were familiar to him made him curse even more as they pulled up to the curb and parked. As he turned his car off, he sat back against the seat and sighed. "I hate my job," he muttered.
"Which job?" Sam asked with a raised eyebrow. "The one at the hospital, or the one…?" She motioned vaguely to the cars in his driveway, and Gene grumbled under his breath.
"That one, yeah. Don't be mad but…it ain't gonna be just us. Why couldn't they jus' leave us alone for one night? Jus' one. It's not too much to ask, is it?" He turned and fixed Sam with what he hoped was a pitiful look. "How about we go back to your place and pretend we never left? I'd rather do that than deal with…whatever the hell is waitin' on us in there." He turned the pout on full force, leaning over slightly. "Please?"
Sam laughed and swatted playfully at his arm. "Ohhhh no you don't," she chirped, unbuckling her seatbelt and opening the door. "I spent way too long trying to make myself look presentable after you distracted me. I am not letting all that work go to waste."
Gene had to grin at her remark; yeah, he'd probably done a pretty good job of distracting her, to be sure. Between continually annoying her with kisses while she was trying to put on what little makeup she wore, and sneaking a hand under the back of her shirt (he made her yelp and smear lipstick across her cheek), he made damn sure Sam found it almost too difficult to leave the house. He honestly would have been okay with staying home, but he had promised Babe they'd be there, and his friend was excited to get to know Sam officially. So Gene had torn himself away from her, combed his hair, and let her finish getting ready in peace.
Now that he'd pulled up and saw how many damn cars were in his driveway, he was thinking that he should have tried harder to distract her.
Sighing, he unbuckled his seatbelt and stepped out of the car, hurrying to the other side to help Sam the rest of the way out. She raised an eyebrow at him, and he shrugged, sliding his arm around her waist. "You look beautiful," he remarked, grinning as she blushed prettily in the moonlight. "I don' think I told ya that."
"No, it never hurts to hear. I'm not too used to skirts, but I figure I should at least make an effort to look like something more than a sexy lump of scrubs and granola bars."
"You always look better than a lump a' scrubs. But I think you might be in a two-way-tie with granola bars."
"Ha, ha. I hate you."
"Noooo ya don'."
Sam poked his side and he laughed as they made it to the door, and Gene could hear the sound of familiar voices just beyond, laughing and carrying on. Mentally, he cringed; he had hoped it would be a nice, simple dinner for Sam to really get to know his good friend and then they could go home and do whatever the hell they wanted for the rest of the evening (A movie, the couch, a blanket, maybe snuggling?). Unfortunately, it didn't seem like Gene was going to get his wish.
He silently said a prayer for his poor soul as he pushed open the door and they stepped inside.
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Sam had been expecting a nice dinner. She was nervous as all hell, but she figured if it was just Babe, she could probably manage just fine.
It was, however, not 'just Babe.'
Sam had visited Gene's house once or twice, pretty much when Babe wasn't home, of course, but for the most part he stayed at her house (it was private, and they didn't have to worry about anyone 'annoying the shit out of them' as Gene was adamant Babe would do), so she was a little surprised his home could hold so many people.
She felt Gene's arm tighten around her, and she could tell he was annoyed. If she could manage, she'd just roll with it, so she could at least keep his mood light and fluffy; he had a tendency to get broody when something bothered him, and broody Gene could only be tempted back to the land of normalcy with lots of chocolate, wine, and surprisingly, cheetohs. Sam was not willing to share her stash (especially her chocolate; he was like a fucking squirrel with that, and she kept finding wrappers in really odd places in her house), so she would keep him 'un-broody' for as long as she could.
Frannie and Bill were there, and they'd dragged along George Luz, Joe Toye, Skip Muck, Buck Compton, Alex Penkala and Donald Malarkey. Sam was familiar with Joe, Bill, George and Frannie, but the other men she wasn't too well acquainted with; she'd heard names mentioned occasionally, but she'd never met them face to face.
Frannie was, of course, the first to greet her and immediately whisked her away from Gene's side. Sam ignored the way he grumbled in French, allowing herself to be led into the kitchen.
"Sam!" Frannie greeted, leaning in and giving her a fitful hug. "You guys are late. We were waiting for you." She wiggled her eyebrows in a look that Sam was sure she'd borrowed from Bill. "A whole hour, huh?" She leaned in and whispered: "I see the honeymoon phase hasn't worn off yet."
Sam blushed, choking on her words and shaking her head, trying very hard not to look over at Gene, who had been greeted by Bill and Joe with a hearty slap on the back that nearly had him pitching face forward into the carpeted floor. "Frannie," Sam hissed, before she was swept into another unexpected hug by Gene's roommate, Babe and Frannie abandoned her to his clutches. Sam recognized him from the bar, but she still stiffened at the contact, awkwardly patting his back. He held her at arm's length and grinned.
"Thank you so God damn much for taking this asshole off my hands."
She heard a muttered "Hey!" from Gene in the living room behind her, but ignored him in favor of Babe. "Uh…You're welcome?"
"He never appreciates all the effort I put into keeping him alive. If it weren't for me, he'd never eat a normal meal. He thinks that the four basic food groups are microwaved, canned, frozen and pre-packaged. Come on, come on. You guys were late, but I bet ya haven't eaten dinner yet. You like spaghetti?" He didn't wait for Sam to answer before he was grabbing a plate and handing it to her. "'Course ya do. Here."
He heaped a large pile of noodles on her plate, leading her down the line at the stove and cabinets, piling on garlic bread and some salad to the side. Sam was helpless to refuse, especially when Babe shot her the brightest, sweetest look she'd ever seen. "My ma taught me to cook, so I made all this for tonight. None of these bums helped at all!" He said that last part a little louder, and the men in the living room raised their respective drinks with a cheer. Babe shook his head. "Fucking ingrates. Anyway, Sam, eat! Tell me whatcha think."
"Um…" Sam looked down at her plate, before Babe brightened again and seemed to remember.
"Oh, shit. Here." He turned and pulled open a drawer, handing her a fork. "You want somethin' to drink? Come on, siddown at the table. You an' I got some talkin' to do about your intentions towards Gene."
Sam laughed quietly, startled by his humor and took a seat at the table, setting her plate down as Babe rummaged in the fridge. "Ya want a beer? Lemonade? Water?"
"Lemonade, if you don't mind."
Babe nodded and sat down beside her a few moments later with a large glass of lemonade, sliding it towards her. The chair on her other side scraped along the floor, and George Luz plopped into it, grinning widely at Sam, who quickly stuffed a forkful of spaghetti in her mouth to avoid an awkward conversation.
The moment she bit down, however, she was surprised at how amazingly good the food was, and her eyes widened as she stared at her plate. Babe was leaning forward eagerly, anticipating her reaction as Sam slowly lifted her gaze towards him. "Holy fuckin' shit, Babe. Marry me," she muttered, and he nearly fell out of his chair with laughter, George doing the same as Sam stuffed another bite into her mouth.
"No seriously," she muttered, chewing happily. "This is legit the best spaghetti I've ever had. Eugene should have officially introduced us earlier. I guess he didn't because he was afraid your culinary skills might force me to run off with you."
"I really like this girl," Luz remarked, taking a swig of his beer. "You fit right in with the rest of us. Gene hit the jackpot with you."
Sam leveled him with a flat look, chewing more spaghetti. God bless Babe Heffron's mother's foresight for teaching her child to cook.
"I'm glad ya like it, Sam, honest," Babe remarked, leaning forward on the table. "No one ever 'preciates me. Maybe now that you and Gene are together, he can bring ya around more often for food. You're probably a lot like him, huh? You don't cook much and probably only eat out of a microwave."
"Hey now. I eat granola bars too. You can't microwave those."
Babe rolled his eyes. "Ten bucks says some idiot has tried, though. Anyway, sorry 'bout all the guys bein' here. It really was gonna be you and Gene and me. But they just sorta…I'm gonna be honest and say that I think they fuckin' bugged our house and that's how they found out about this." He glared at George across the table, but the wise-cracking soldier just grinned and saluted him with his beer. "Yeah, you asshole."
"Guilty as charged."
"I fuckin' hate this company."
"You love us, and don't ever deny it."
Sam was looking between the two, an amused smile on her face as she continued to work her way through her plate. "Babe," she muttered. "If you ever try to move away or leave, or try to transfer out of Easy, so help me I will hunt you down and drag you back. Now that I've tasted your food, there is no way I'm letting you get away."
George cackled and Babe just grinned. "Have it your way, Sam," he agreed easily. "Consider me your personal chef for the rest of your life."
"Yessss. Excellent!"
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Gene was dying to know what the hell was so funny in the kitchen. And he was hungry, damn it.
But he'd practically been assaulted by the men who were waiting for them in the living room, and he resigned himself to sitting awkwardly on his own couch between Penkala and Muck. They'd passed him a beer, and he'd immediately taken a sip; Christ, he felt like he actually was introducing Sam to his family. At least she seemed to have gotten comfortable; he could just see her around the corner of the wall that separated the kitchen and the living room, talking and laughing with Babe and Luz and, thankfully, getting a plate full of food in the process.
"Sorry we intruded on your dinner, Gene," Frannie told him, sitting in the armchair across from the couch. Bill was sitting on the arm of the chair, an unrepentant grin on his face that made Frannie's words fall almost flat. "Bill and Joe caught wind of it, and they wanted to invite the whole company, but I firmly told them no and put my foot down."
"And when Frannie says no," Buck continued for her, grinning from his own place on the floor where he was leaning against the wall beside Malarkey. "She means no. She didn't want to overwhelm you or your lovely lady friend. Congrats, by the way, doc! I'm really happy for ya!"
"Hear, hear!" Muck crowed, raising his beer and taking a swig. "You are one lucky bastard, ya know that? An Irishwoman and a nurse? Quite the combination, I'd say."
"How do ya know she's Irish?" Gene asked, raising a brow and leaning forward on his knees.
"Oh, come on," Malarkey quipped. "Her last name is 'Branigan,' she's got red-hair, and she looks like she'd probably punch like the devil. She's definitely Irish."
"No doubt," Joe agreed, raising his beer.
Gene snorted, taking a drink of his beer and peeking over at the kitchen; whatever Sam had said had nearly caused George and Babe to fall out of their chairs with laughter. He couldn't help the smile that curled over his lips; he knew they would love her. He just hadn't intended to introduce her to his 'military family' so soon.
As he watched, she finished what food was left on her plate (she was a fast eater and loved food, he'd discovered, especially if it didn't require microwaving) and Babe cleared her dishes for her. She caught his eye and grinned, lifting her lemonade cup. She disappeared around the corner towards the stove, and when she reappeared, she was carrying another plate full of food. She brought it and her lemonade with her as she headed towards the living room, following by Luz. She stood timidly near the corner of the kitchen, fingers tightly gripping the plate and cup. Gene could tell she was a little uncomfortable with so many people; she'd been the same way at the bar. He knew very well that crowds made her a little jumpy.
Yet another reason he'd been praying it would have been only Babe when they'd arrived.
Penkala immediately got up from his seat, motioning for Sam to take it. When she shook her head and politely refused, he insisted.
"Really, I'm okay Alex." George must have filled her in on the who was who; she knew names, but she hadn't known faces too well before today. Gene mentally thanked Luz for helping out. "You keep your seat. I can stand."
"Nonsense!" Penkala snorted, gently taking her elbow and guiding her to sit. She did so, but only on the edge of the couch, looking highly uncomfortable. Gene immediately reached out and drew her against his side, and she squeaked as their hips and shoulders bumped. She handed over the plate of food to him, and he took it eagerly, leaning against her as he ate.
"And call me 'Penk.' Only my mother calls me 'Alex.'"
"Yep!" Skip agreed. "And you can call me Skip. Doc here only ever uses our last names; he won't use any nicknames, no matter how hard we try to force him. He is one stubborn little French son of a bitch."
"Rude," Gene mumbled around a mouthful of spaghetti, but smiled nonetheless as he took a drink of his beer, feeling Sam begin to relax against his side. He didn't want her to be uncomfortable, and he gently rubbed her arm with the back of his hand.
"I'm Buck," Buck introduced from where he sat, and clambered to his feet to walk over and shake Sam's hand. "That red-head over there is Don. You already know Joe-" Toye nodded at her with a faint smile. "And o'course, Bill and Frannie. Sorry we intruded on your dinner date with Babe and Gene."
Babe shouted a "You never apologized to me!" loud enough from the kitchen that they all heard, but Buck ignored him.
"We were eager to see our favorite doc and meet his Soulmate properly. It was too good of an opportunity to pass up."
"Speak for yourself," Luz remarked. "I came for the free beer."
Gene mentally sighed and buckled down for a long night; he knew the men would never let them leave early. He might as well get comfortable. But with Sam sitting at his side, the tension easing out of her as she laughed at Luz's jokes and the men's good natured ribbing, he decided that it really wasn't that bad after all.
