So, I know i said I was going to attempt an update a week but hey, nobody ever sticks to their new years resolutions, right?

To say a sorry i am updating with TWO chapters tonight. Soap and Lola's first interactions! Finally they meet! I promise there's a love story in here somewhere! I'm working on the next chapter tomorrow so if all goes to plan I should have another update for all you gorgeous people by this time next week.

Had so much lovely, lovely feedback and some new followers so I'm absolutely over the moon that you're all enjoying it! You'll be able to see that the story does still focus on MW1 but kind of deviates from the plot of the game a little bit. And, hopefully the Grey's Anatomy fans amongst you will notice the little nod to Dr. Hunt who is portrayed by Kevin McKidd who provided the voice for Soap in the MW series. Just me having a little fangirl moment.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy these two chapters! Let me know what you think!

Big kisses xxx

"Nice! Your fruit killing skills are remarkable."

John looked up at Gaz. He had seen Price's second in command once whilst he had been undertaking selection and had quickly come to the opinion that Gaz was a quiet, yet formidable man. He stared at John now, a small smile on his lips. It wasn't that Gaz was particularly scary looking, he was actually about as plain as a person could get. Dark eyes, dark hair, bit of beard, always wearing a cap... No, nothing about him particularly stood out, but there was a quiet power to his stance, his eyes were always flickering around, analysing every single noise and movement. He had been told by some of the lads that Gaz was fiercely loyal to Captain Price and had no qualms in dropping anything – or anyone – that looked to be a threat.

John had met a couple of the lads last night when he had finally unpacked all of his belongings. He was supposed to be sharing a room with the other lads that passed selection, but as he was the only one, he had organised his belongings in stony silence. He was more than grateful when a couple of lads that he had met in the Para's stuck their heads around the door to greet him. Wallcroft was a character. Loud, brash and with a mouth that would make even Edan blush right down to his little toe, he was exactly what John needed to calm the nerves that had settled in his stomach. He had passed selection. He was in. But Price's grim warning hung in the air above him like a smoke grenade. John hadn't supposed that actually being a soldier in the SAS would be easy, but in his haste to pass selection and stand out as somebody who was going to be a vital member to the team, he hadn't really thought about just how dangerous his life was about to become.

Wallcroft had introduced him to a few more of the lads in the canteen. He was normally good with names but they had escaped him quickly. His brain was working overtime taking in all the sights and sounds of Credenhill. He spotted Price walking past him, muttering furiously to Gaz.

He heard the word soap. Wallcroft kept saying it. Soap. Soap. Soap. John's head whipped around as a hand touched his arm. "Soap."

"Why do you keep on saying Soap?" He asked, looking up at Wallcroft. He grinned.

"Whenever there's a new selection starting, we have a briefing with Price. He shows us the lads we have to keep an eye out for."

John hoped he'd been in Price's list. He'd been the only one that had passed selection so he deserved to be.

"Anyway..." Wallcroft continued. "Your picture came up and the old man had a bit of a memory block with the old moniker." He was laughing now. "We were all having a bit of a laugh with him, joking about the old memory not being what it was and he tells us that he remembered asking you to bring soap with you."

John groaned. He knew what was coming. He'd already been referred to as the NFG.

"So it's just stuck really." Wallcroft slapped him on the back. "Soap."

"Is anybody going to call me John?" He asked.

"Wouldn't bet on it mate."

Brilliant.

"It's not the worst name ever." Meat said. He remembered the name Meat. It was kind of hard not to. "LJ had it worse."

"Who's LJ?" John looked up. Wallcroft was glaring at Meat who looked away sheepishly.

"Nobody important." Wallcroft said quickly. "You'll probably be introduced tomorrow before the CQB test."

John narrowed his eyes at the group. He was tired. His body ached with a constant reminder of the trauma that it had just faced. He hadn't slept properly in months. But John was smart. He knew there was something going on. Something about this LJ.

"Anyway, mate..." Wallcroft diverted the conversation. "You managed to ring your folks yet? Tell them the good news?"

His head snapped up quickly. "I didn't know I could."

Wallcroft grinned and fished something from his pocket. A mobile phone. "Just keep the details brief. Don't mention the SAS or selection directly and you'll be golden." He pressed the phone into John's hand.

"Thanks mate."

He pushed himself up from the table and began his walk from the canteen. As he pushed open the door he threw a quick glance over his shoulder at the group of lads. Wallcroft was glaring at Meat. John's intuition sparked up again. Who was LJ? He stepped outside into the fresh air. The sky was beginning to fade into inky darkness. He looked around his new home. Credenhill. Fuck. He was here. He looked down at the phone in his hand and began to type in his parents number. He held the phone to his ear as it began to ring. He thought about his mam. She would be rushing to answer it. Their picture remained in the breast pocket of his new SAS regulation black jacket. He was holding his breath. Why was he holding his breath?

"Hello?"

He exhaled deeply at the sound of her voice. "Mam. It's me. It's John." Fuck. There were tears pricking at his eyes. He began to walk away from the canteen towards his room. He couldn't be the new guy with the nickname Soap, who also cried when he spoke to his mam. He'd be a laughing stock.

"Oh, my boy..." He heard her voice crack. "Edan!" She hollered. "Edan it's Johnny!"

He heard cluttering and swearing in the background. His dad was probably trying to run towards the phone and had fallen over. John had seen it happen far too many times.

"Laddie" Edan's voice came into his ear.

"Hi old man." He smiled. "I hope you've not done yourself an injury there."

"Nothing serious." his dad laughed. "Just torn off the good leg. Worth it to speak to my boy."

John laughed. "That's okay then. I'm sure you'll get about fine with just the one bad one."

"Eh, the bastards can't keep me down."

John smiled. There was a silence on the line. His dad knew that John couldn't tell him. He knew the way it worked. Knew that it was a fundamental part of his new life. But the silence spoke volumes. He knew that his dad would understand what had transpired. The was a choked sob on the other end.

"I knew you'd do it boy." Edan's voice cracked. "There aren't enough words to tell you how proud I am of you. I love you son."

"I love you too pops." John had found his room, had leant on the door to close it and had sunk to the floor, clutching the phone against his ear. "I love you both so much."

"How many?" Edan asked.

"Just me."

"That's my lad!"

"I'm not sure when I'll be able to come up and see you both..." He sighed. "Things will be a bit hectic from here on out."

"Don't worry about it love." Blair's voice chimed in his ear. "You just keep yourself safe. Wear clean socks everyday."

John laughed and wiped a rogue tear from his eye. "What the bloody hell kind of advice is that woman?" Edan said. "Our boy is is the SAS and you're telling him to wear clean socks?!"

"I'll wear clean socks mam." John said, leaning his head back against the door.

"Personal hygiene is important." his mother sniffed.

"Hey, you'll never guess what nickname they've gone and given me?"

"The Destroyer?" His mam piped up.

John was really laughing now. "Almost as good as that." He wiped away more tears that had formed on his cheeks. "Soap."

"Eh?"

"They've called me Soap."

"Christ, maybe your advice is necessary after all, love." Edan said to Blair.

There was a knock at the door. It would be Wallcroft looking for his phone. John pushed himself to his feet.

"I have to go."

"Okay, love." His mam's voice trembled. "Take care of yourself. Be safe. Be brave. Be strong."

"I will."

"Shoot any fucker that points a gun at you." Edan said. "And always check the kill."

His dad's advice was practical, but he could hear Edan dissolve into a fresh batch of tears.

"I love you both and I'll see you soon."

"Bye laddie."

John ended the call quickly and wiped his face. Opening the door, Wallcroft was grinning at him. "The first call home is always the hardest. If I were you mate, I'd go to bed, sleep off selection and get ready for the real fun to start in the morning. You've got weapons training with Gaz at 8am."

John snapped out of his daydream. He was still staring at Gaz. The other man was regarding him with a confused look on his face. "Captain Price wants to see you. Next hangar along. Say hello to LJ for me."

John's head snapped up. Gaz was smirking at him now. John turned away and left the weapons hangar. Who was LJ?! Why did all the lads smirk when they mentioned the name? He walked the short distance to the next hangar quicker than he normally would do. He was intrigued. As he turned towards the hangar, the doors opened. Captain Price was stood in a huddle with three other lads who were wearing the full SAS gear. Gasmasks included. The three lads turned to look at him. At least, he thought they were looking at him. He couldn't see their eyes behind the masks. Was LJ one of them? Behind the group was a makeshift structure. A ship, maybe? He had done a CQB before. There would be targets to take down, obstacles to overcome. He was going to be good at this.

"It's the FNG sir." Gaz's voice came from behind John. "Go easy on him. It's his first day."

"Riiiight." Price looked at John as if he had never seen him before. Had John imagined the conversation that they had shared on their way to the barracks? "What the hell kind of a name is Soap? How'd a muppet like you pass selection, eh?"

Yep. Conversation forgotten. John fixed his posture. Stood strong and tall. He got what Price was doing. He was trying to put him in his place. Fine. He'd be the FNG. He'd go along with the stupid nickname. He wouldn't complain.

"Soap. It's your turn for the CQB test. Everyone else, head to observation."

The lads surrounding Price moved to a small stand to the left of the structure. Soap could see the monitors set up for them to complete their observations. Pressure was good. He liked pressure. He performed best when people were watching.

"For this test, you have to run the cargoship solo in less than 60 seconds." Price wasn't even looking at him, now. He was staring off into the distance as if this whole exercise was designed to waste his time. "LJ holds the current squadron record at 18.7 seconds. Gaz is just behind with 19 seconds."

Oh, LJ was obviously the best guy that Price had. If he could run the CQB in 18.7 seconds he had to be good. John's competitive side flared up quickly. He hadn't been beaten at anything for a very long time. He was the LJ of his old squad. He was going to be the LJ in this one too.

"Climb the ladder over there." Price nodded towards the ladder opposite. "LJ's waiting up there to sort you out with a weapon and some flashbangs."

John's heart thudded in his chest as he walked towards the ladder. He didn't need help picking up a weapon and flashbangs. He was perfectly capable of doing that by himself. He certainly didn't need any help from this LJ prick. John could feel his blood boiling. He wasn't used to this feeling. He wasn't used to people regarding him with such minimal enthusiasm. Price's words hung in the air as Soap began to ascend the ladder. He couldn't help but think of Wallcroft's glare, Gaz's smirk... What was it about LJ that made them act so strangely? He was nearly at the top. He couldn't wait to look at his competition. John was capable of so much more than people would give him credit for. If LJ did the CQB in 18.7, he'd do it in 17.7. He'd be better. He had to be. This was his chance. He wanted to make Captain one day. He couldn't do that if he wasn't the best. He pulled himself up with minimal effort and tensed his muscles. It was such a dick way to act but hey, it's the animal kingdom, it's all about the show. Looking up, he stopped dead in his tracks.

"Soap?" the girl stepped towards him. "Hi, I'm LJ."

He felt like he'd been hit by a sledgehammer. She stared at him. It wasn't that Soap had never seen a beautiful girl before. He had. But she... She was something other worldly. She pushed herself off the table that she'd been leaning against and walked towards him. Blonde, he estimated she was 5'9, maybe 5'10". Her eyes were the kind of green that you'd see on pictures of the sea in some gorgeous tropical location. And she glowed. He wasn't sure why. But she did. She was practically ethereal. She was wearing a thin black vest top and tight black trousers. It wasn't often that he came unstuck. But he was. All pomp and show that he'd been displaying when he reached the top of the ladder had dissolved. She raised an eyebrow at him. "Are you having a stroke?"

He shook his head.

"That's good." She said. Her voice was light and playful. She grinned at him. Of course she had perfect teeth. Her lips were enough to send all the blood rushing to his groin. "This is Price's little game that he plays with all the new guys. Don't take it to heart." She turned away and bent down to retrieve the MP5 that was laying against the table.

He was staring at her arse. He shook his head. He needed to snap out of whatever spell she had put him under.

"You're LJ?" He asked.

"Last time I checked." She fixed her gaze on him.

"But you're not actually a member of the squad are you?" He asked.

The SAS was strictly men only. Always had been. There was no way that this girl was a part of the squad. She was obviously a nurse. This was just a trick. She had said it herself.

"Why wouldn't I be?" She asked. She regarded him coolly, her gaze never faltering from his.

"Because you're a girl."

She straightened up and her expression changed. Furiously, she marched over to the side of the platform.

"HEY!" She shouted. "WHY DID NONE OF YOU TELL ME THAT I'M A GIRL?!"

Soap felt his face flush. He could hear the lads laughing.

"I THOUGHT YOU WERE ALL JUST LATE DEVELOPERS." she hollered.

"Stop torturing the lad." Price called.

She turned back to John and shrugged. "Apparently, they're aware that I'm a girl." she smirked. "And they seem okay with it."

"But you're a nurse or something?" John asked.

She laughed. "You're not getting this are you?" She asked. "I'm Price's little secret." She stood in front of him. She even smelt good. "I've been here for six years. I'm not a nurse. I'm a soldier and a very good one at that."

John shook his head.

"Now if I were you... I'd take this rifle -" she pushed the gun towards him, "- grab those flashbangs, get yourself ready, and then show Captain Price exactly what it is that you're here for." She blinded him with another smile. "And I'd worry about me, and my place in this crazy little world later."

John took the gun from her hands and picked up three flashbangs from the case. He turned back to look at the girl before stepping towards the rope that signalled the start of the CQB. She grinned at him. "I'm not going to let a girl beat me. I've worked too hard to get here."

She looked at him with a smile. "Good luck."