It seems like i'm always apologising for how rubbish I am at updating this story. The annoying this is that I have the entire story written in my head but I just don't have the time to get it onto paper but i can promise you that I am trying!

I've had so much lovely feedback in the past couple of months and it honestly makes me so happy that you guys are reading this and actually enjoying it! I am so grateful for every single message/review/follow that I get and I just want to thank everybody that has taken the time out to let me know what you think!

So, on to the chapter, this one is mega long, but it didn't really make sense to split it up! I hope that you enjoy it! Let me know what you think!

Big kisses xxx

"Room for a small one?"

I opened my eyes and squinted at the figure towering over me before closing my eyes and nodding. "Step into my office." I gestured to floor beside me as I snuggled back into the wall on which I had been using as a makeshift pillow. "But for the record Soap, you really don't count as a small one."

Nope. There was absolutely nothing small about Soap.

He slid down the wall and landed next to me. "Love what you've done with the place Lo." He laughed. "Very homely."

I smiled to myself. "I went for an industrial theme." I said. "Because who really needs luxuries like chairs and light? Not me, that's for sure."

"I think my favourite part is the unrelenting glacial wind."

I opened my eyes and turned to look at him. "You're telling me."

Generally speaking, I really didn't mind the cold but there was something to be said for the specific chill that one felt when flying at 36,000ft on board a cargo carrier.

It was as if there was no warmth left in the world and the only thing you could do was make yourself as small as possible and hope that your organs didn't freeze together.

I wriggled around to face him, careful to keep all my limbs as close to my body as possible. My arm brushed against his and the heat from his skin jolted through me.

"You're warm!" I hissed.

"Only on the outside." He protested. "I can promise you that my bones are rattling on the inside."

I stared at him. "I feel like I've spent the past two hours treading water in the Arctic Ocean whilst wearing an outfit that is fashioned entirely out of ice cubes." I whined. "There is no part of my body, inside or outside, that is even remotely close to being warm." I shifted and pressed myself against him. The heat was amazing. "You've been holding out on me Travis!" Coming over here and pretending that you're cold! How dare you!"

"Would you like me to leave?" He asked. The shit eating grin on his face told me that he already knew the answer to his question.

I nestled my head against his shoulder. "No. I can still be mad at you when you're sat next to me and keeping me warm."

"No, no... You're right. I need to go away and think about my actions." He moved and I latched my arms around his thick bicep.

Those biceps.

"Move and I'll kill you and wear that beautiful carcass of yours as a sleeping bag."

"Well when you put it like that, how can I say no?" He laughed and softened, allowing me to slide my arms around his torso.

I could feel the bumps of his eight pack beneath the four layers of clothing that he had on.

"Shhhh..." I hissed. "Time to go to sleep."

We had another three hours flight time remaining before we arrived back at base and now I had Soap AKA The Human Space Heater (worst superhero ever?) next to me, I'd probably be able to grab some much needed sleep. On my last walk through of the cabin I had noticed that all of the lads, including Price, were asleep and I felt annoyed that I was missing out.

I had fought the urge to wake them up and had burrowed myself away in the smallest space that I could find in the hope that I would somehow be able to ignore the fact that it felt as though I was in the process of turning into a walking, talking iceberg.

"I'm not supposed to let you go to sleep, remember? Captains orders."

I looked up at him. "You're not one of those people who believes their own lies are you?" I asked. "Because I'm worried that you think that I actually hit my head." I closed my eyes and returned my head to his shoulder. "There is literally a zero percent chance that I have a concussion."

"But Price doesn't know that, does he?" Soap's voice dropped. "And I think we'd both rather he didn't find out what actually happened back there."

I opened my eyes. "Which part?" I whispered, my voice sounding smaller than I had intended it to.

It was there, hanging over us. The elephant in the room.

That kiss.

The one that had made all the others before it seem so pointless.

The kind of kiss that I'd think about in thirty, forty, fifty years time and still get butterflies over.

The kiss to end all kisses.

My stomach flipped at the memory of his lips against mine and I was suddenly very aware of his presence next to me and my arms around his waist.

I'm pretty sure this didn't count as the Friendship Zone.

"You know that answer to that, Lo." He whispered. "We both do."

I nodded against his shoulder. The tone in his voice had told me all that I needed to know.

"It was a momentary lapse in judgement." I told him.

He waited for a few seconds. "Which one?"

I swallowed heavily. "I don't need to say it, Soap."

I pushed my head against his shoulder and closed my eyes. His body remained rigid for a few moments before he relaxed and wrapped an arm around my shoulders pulling me closer. It didn't take long for my eyelids to droop as the warmth from his body began to thaw out my insides.

"For the record..." He said, his voice quiet. "What you did for that boy? I think it was incredibly brave."

I opened my eyes and pushed myself up. He was looking at me with most sincere of faces.

"It wasn't brave, Soap." I told him.

He shook his head. "Maybe not to you, but it was to me."

I closed my eyes and returned to my position with my head against his bicep.

"How old was he?"

"Too young to die." I answered, sharply.

I could feel him nodding. "It was the right thing." He mumbled.

"I'm not worried about it being the right or wrong thing, Soap." I told him.

"So why do it then?" Why make a decision that could get you in trouble?"

"You wouldn't understand." I whispered.

"So enlighten me, Lola."

I moved once again, sitting up and looking him directly in the eyes.

"Why do you care?" I asked. "Why does this affect you so much?"

"Because I lied to Price for you."

"I didn't ask you to."

"That's not the point here." He said, clearly exasperated. "I just want to know what's going on inside that head of yours."

"Fine!" I rolled my eyes. "It's about feeling like a human being every now and again."

He pulled a face at me. It clearly wasn't the explanation that he had been expecting.

"I'm not scared of much Soap..."

"Yeah, I'd noticed."

I looked at him. "But every now and again, I am completely overwhelmed by this intense sense of dread that I'm going to forget that there's a world outside of the SAS." I paused. "And one day, providing I'm not killed in action, I'm going to have to learn how to become a part of that world again, because this -" I gestured around me. "-this crazy little parallel universe has a ticking time bomb attached to it and it isn't going to accept me forever." I looked up at him. "And when that time comes, I am absolutely petrified that I'll have forgotten exactly what it is to be a normal human being who doesn't do this kind of job and hasn't seen the awful, disturbing things that we are privy to on a daily basis. I did what I did today so that I could feel human again."

His eyes bore into mine. Wide and full of an emotion that I had never really seen from Soap. I was achingly aware that it was the most honest that I had been with anybody for a very, very long time.

It surprised me that baring my soul to Soap seemed like a completely normal thing.

"I should have put a bullet straight through his head." I told him. "But I just couldn't. It's what we're trained to do and I just couldn't bring myself to do it."

"I thought you were going to shoot me." Soap mumbled. "I swear that my heart stopped beating when you trained your gun on me."

"I have that effect on people." I gave him a small smile.

"Having stared down the barrel of your gun, I can confidently say that it really is the strangest thing that I have ever experienced." He gave a small laugh. "I couldn't decide if I should be afraid or turned on."

"I think we know the answer to that." I looked up at him and he blushed.

"It's not my fault that you're so incredibly beautiful when you're mad."

Those pesky butterflies started swirling around my stomach again.

I rolled my eyes at him and nudged him with my elbow. "Such a charmer."

"Just telling the truth." He shrugged. "Even though I'm pretty sure that I saw hell fire inside of your eyes and the devil himself waving at me."

I laughed. Louder this time. He grinned and swivelled his head around to the belly of the plane, checking to see if we were being watched.

It all felt so secretive and wrong.

We giggled in unison as he turned back to me.

"Oh that's just Dave." I grinned. "I've asked him to stop waving at people but he seems to think it's funny."

"Hey, at least you know once your SAS days are numbered that you'll be able to walk into a job with the circus."

"I'll be a Goddamn star." I laughed. "Dave and I on a one way ticket to the big time. Nobody will be able to stop us."

"Will you remember me as that really handsome Scottish man who kept you warm on that awful flight home from Azerbaijan?"

"Only if that really handsome Scottish man stops all the yammering and lets me sleep." I gave him my sweetest smile.

He laughed. "Who could say no to that face?" He tapped his shoulder, signalling for me to reassume my position on his shoulder. "If Price asks I'll tell him that I stayed awake to keep an eye on you."

I sighed contentedly and nestled back into his shoulder. "I knew there was a reason that I liked you so much Travis." He wrapped an arm around me, the warmth spreading across my back and cancelling out the arctic chill of the aircraft. "Although..." I sat up and poked his bicep. "Muscles don't really make for the best pillows." I pouted. "Couldn't you have just one flabby arm that is reserved solely for use as my pillow?"

"Oh, I'm so sorry..." he laughed. "I should have known that one day Princess Lola would walk into my life and demand to use my arm as a pillow."

"I accept your apology."

He shook his head. "Of course you do." He paused. "What about if you put your head in my lap?"

"I think that you'd have to buy me dinner first and tell me how pretty I am." I opened my eyes and peered up at him innocently. "Maybe buy me some flowers too. Peonies are my favourite just for future reference."

He rolled his eyes. "You know what I mean."

I blinked at him. "Not sure that I do, Travis."

He smirked and shifted himself so that his legs were straight out in front of him. "There's a time limit to this offer, Princess." He laughed. "So I'd close on the deal if I were you."

I narrowed my eyes at him before sliding my body onto the floor, positioning my head in the crook between his hip and thigh.

It wasn't as soft as a cloud but it was the most comfortable that I had been in a long time. He moved and my head rolled back and forth.

"Soap!" I began scolding him. "Can you stop-"

I paused as I felt something warm covering my body. I looked down to see his jacket.

"Better?"

I looked up at him with a nod, before closing my eyes. "I hope Price lets us keep you." I mumbled, pulling the jacket up towards my chin. It smelt like him. Not that I really knew what that smell was. It was just... him.

He laughed softly and brushed a loose strand of hair out of my eyes. "I hope so too, Lo." He sighed heavily. "I don't ever want to leave."

"But a bandage would make your fake injury look so much more realistic." Hunt grinned at me. "And look, because I like you, I'll even let you pick which colour you have." He picked up a pile of fabric. "I have pink!"

I rolled my eyes at him. "Maybe I really did hit my head because I seem to have forgotten the part where I reverted back to being three years old. Do I get a sticker too?"

"Well that depends..."

I glared at him. "On?"

"On how much of a brave girl you are!" He ruffled my hair with a grin.

I laughed. "Oh, I think I've got the brave thing covered, don't you?"

He sat down in his chair and swivelled to face me. "Okay, you've got me there." He conceded. "How about a lollipop?"

"Now you're speaking my language."

He opened his desk drawer. "I'm assuming you want strawberry?"

"You know me so well!" I grinned, catching the lollipop that he tossed at me.

"It could be that, or it could be that I know which flavour lollipop you like because the last time I offered you a flavour that wasn't strawberry, you threw it back at my head."

I shrugged and pulled a face. "Owen..." I paused. "If hating cherry flavoured lollipops is wrong, then I don't want to be right."

He laughed and slid his own lollipop into his mouth. "So how's your head?"

"I've never had any complaints."

He stared at me. "You've spent too much time around these lads."

I shrugged and he gave me an exasperated sigh. Opening the lollipop, I stretched out on the medical bed he had in his office. It was probably the closest I was going to get to sleeping in my actual bed until Price came back and Hunt told him that I wasn't going to die on the spot.

Luckily for me, Dr Owen Hunt and I had formed a pretty strong bond in the seven years that I had been in service. I referred to all of the lads as family, and they were, but Hunt was something completely different. Hunt was like Steve or Charlotte. He had filled the best friend gap pretty well and whilst one the base, he was my person. I trusted him with all my secrets. Namely, because anything that I told him within the confines of his office was subject to Doctor/Patient confidentiality which even Price couldn't interfere with but also because he was just one of those people who radiated loyalty. He didn't care about gossiping or being the first to know everybody else's business. He cared about his job and the people close to him and that was about it. Most people would describe Hunt as being a "salt of the Earth" type and I would agree. He liked simple things and small pleasures and didn't concern himself with much else.

"Oh, just make yourself comfy Lo." he told me. "It's not like it's four am and I was dragged out of bed to treat your non-existent head injury or anything."

After we had landed, Price had frogmarched me towards the medical wing and had left me alone to be examined.

"She's smacked her head." He had told Hunt.

"Has it knocked some sense into her?" Hunt had joked, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. I had narrowed my eyes at him.

Following Price's departure, it had only taken Hunt five seconds to deduce that I wasn't even close to being injured. Not that he had spilled the beans to Price. He understood the relationship that I had with the Captain was built upon a need to know basis. If Price thought I was injured when I really wasn't, there was going to be a good reason for it.

"She went dark and went and hid upstairs in the building we were in." Price told him, his voice clipped and sharp.

It was as good an answer as Hunt was going to get. Despite his nap on the plane, Price was as crabby as ever.

"I'll take that as a no..." Hunt mumbled.

"Just make sure she isn't about to keel over and die." Price instructed. "I've already got a shit storm of paperwork coming my way. I don't need anymore."

"Oh, Price..." I held my hand to my heart. "I had no idea you were capable of such poetic words."

Price had turned to me with a look of annoyance. "Not now, Lola." He deadpanned, turning back to Hunt. "Remember when she wasn't such a massive pain in the arse?"

"No?" Hunt replied quickly.

I stuck my tongue out at him.

"I'll be back to check on her soon." He turned to me. "I'm warning you now Lola... I'm not going to be in a good mood."

I took all my inner strength not to roll my eyes at him.

"Why?" Hunt asked.

"Because I'm about to get my arse handed to me by the MoD because we didn't do our job." He gave me a meaningful stare. "And the last thing I need is for you to be another problem on my list." He stared at me imploringly. "So please, God, just let the good Doctor fix you."

"Define, 'fix'" Hunt mumbled. "Because, honestly, I can't perform miracles."

Price had given him a small smile before sweeping from the room barking orders at whoever was waiting for him on the other side.

I understood his annoyance. I really, really did but, as far as I could tell, we had both come to the same conclusion and we had made the call on Al-Asad together. It wasn't just me that had failed the mission.

Hunt had waited until he heard the doors to the medical wing slam shut before he had asked about the fake injury. It took me thirty seconds to fill him in on what had happened in Azerbaijan.

"Oh, and there's another thing..." I bit down on the lollipop, crunching the delicious sugary strawberry goodness between my teeth. "Soap kissed me."

Hunt stared at me.

When I said that I trusted him with my secrets, I had meant ALL of my secrets. Even the big Soap shaped ones.

He was frowning. "Come again..."

"Well, no..." I pulled a face. "He's good but he's not that good."

Hunt rolled his eyes. "No. I mean... What? Like... Are you sure?"

I stared at him. "Am I sure that he kissed me?" I laughed. "Yes. Pretty sure." I sighed. "The big Scottish love God strikes again."

He pulled a face. "Okay, so first thing's first – I did not okay that name so please don't ever call him it again."

I laughed. "If it was you that he was kissing, you'd understand the nickname."

"If it was me that he was kissing then I would have more issues than the nickname, Lola." He shook his head. "Didn't you both agree that you were putting an end to all of that tomfoolery?"

I stared at him. "I'm sorry... did you actually just describe sex as 'tomfoolery'?"

He glared at me defiantly. "Yes, I did Lola."

"Oh, it's just... I hadn't realised you were actually a virgin born in the 1800's." I held my hands up. "I hope listening to my sex stories hasn't tarnished your virtue."

"Stop changing the subject Lola." He ran his hands through his hair. "I thought it was all over between the two of you?"

"So did I..." I shrugged. "I don't think he actually planned on doing it though. It was all very spur of the moment." I paused. "Very hot and angry."

He held his hand up. "Lola, I love you like you're my own flesh and blood. Please spare me the gory details."

"Oh, I'm sorry Captain Virgin." I laughed. "I really don't want my story to offend your delicate ears. I was simply making the point that I think our mutual understanding still stands."

He sighed. "So what happened then?" He held a hand up to me. "The PG version of events please."

"He was shouting at me because I turned my headset off." I told him. "He was angry because I didn't stop to think that the whole thing with Javid was all part of some highly elaborate plan to put a bullet through my head."

Hunt sighed. "He's right." He stared up at me. "You're so much smarter than that."

I rolled my eyes. "Oh, God, not you too...!" I laughed. "I'm still here aren't I?"

"Unfortunately."

I grinned and flicked my lollipop stick at him. "Anyway... he was shouting at me and I was shouting back and then all the shouting stopped and we were just staring at one another and then he said 'fuck it' and he kissed me."

"Fuck it?"

"Fuck it." I nodded. "You can change the word 'fuck' to 'fudge' if it offends your sensitive ears." I smirked at him.

He scowled at me and leant back in his chair. "So he was shouting at you because he was worried?"

"I guess so..." I shrugged.

Hunt sighed and span around in his chair. "You know what I'm going to say, don't you?"

"Lola, it is my duty in life to bring you strawberry lollipops whenever you want them?" I asked. "Because if so, I would like one now." I grinned.

"I said 'know'... not 'hope'." He laughed, fishing another lollipop out of his drawer and throwing it at me.

"Same difference." I shrugged.

He looked at me with serious eyes. "No, what I'm going to say, is that you've really played with fire here, Lo." He stood up and walked around to perch on his desk. "Price and Gaz were both downstairs in the same building. Either one of them could have stumbled across he pair of you."

I flicked my hand at him. "It was a momentary lapse in judgement, Owen." I bit down on the lollipop shattering the sugar between my teeth. "No big deal."

He stood up and walked over to me. Taking a seat on the bed, he reached for my hand.

"You're honestly sitting here and telling me that him kissing you meant absolutely nothing?"

I opened my mouth, before shutting it again quickly.

I don't think I'd actually taken the time to really consider exactly what the kiss could have meant. I'd been so keen to brush it off as a bit of a blip on mine and Soap's quest to a platonic friendship that I'd potentially blocked any true feelings that I had towards him and that kiss.

But it was completely meaningless.

Wasn't it?

It was just a rash move that was governed by my disappearing act.

Hunt raised his eyebrows at me as if he had a live feed into my inner monologue.

"Your silence is speaking volumes here, Lo."

I opened my mouth to respond but was interrupted by Price flying into the room. Hunt jumped. I didn't flinch. I had grown used to Price's very unique way of entering a room. It was what he was known for. The man could be stood behind you and you'd never bloody know about it. You only knew that he was there when he wanted you to.

"How's the patient?" He glanced at the lollipop in my hand and opened his mouth to make, what I can only assume to be, a witty remark before closing it again rapidly.

Something was wrong.

I raised an eyebrow at him and he pretended not to see.

Hunt, fresh from his mild heart attack, had returned to his desk and was jotting down notes on a piece of paper that, I assumed, was acting as my medical chart.

"She's fine." He told Price. "Vitals are strong and reflexes are the same as always. A good night sleep and she'll be back to normal." He paused and looked up at me. "Or at least she'll be back to herself."

I glared at him.

"Good job, Doc!" Price smiled at Hunt.

I narrowed my eyes. Was he high? Price rarely ever smiled. Something was definitely going on.

"Do you mind if I speak to her alone for a minute?"

I don't think I'd ever seen him acting this politely.

He was being... nice?

My stomach dropped.

There's no telling how long he had been standing outside Hunt's office, the crafty little bastard. Had he heard us talking about Soap?

"Yeah..." Hunt gave me a look. "I'll just go and make a cup of tea." He turned towards the door.

I sent him a silent plea with my eyes but I knew that there was nothing that he could do. Price got what Price wanted and Price wanted a quiet word with me, apparently. He perched on the bed in the same spot that Hunt had vacated moments earlier.

"I'm afraid you'll have to postpone that good night sleep."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Why do I get the feeling that you're going to ask me to do something that I don't want to do?"

He sighed. "I spoke to the MoD."

I sighed and leant my head back against the bed. "And?"

"They're not very happy."

"Shock horror..." I mumbled, petulantly. "What's the damage then?"

"They're letting the American's have a crack at Al-Asad."

I jolted upright and stared at him. "They can't do that. We didn't make an attempt on him. We still have the primary until actually miss him."

Price laughed at me, his eyes crinkling at the corners. Clearly, I had amused him. "You and I both know that the MoD can do what they want girl." He gave a deep sigh. "Even if it isn't necessarily in our best interest." He gave me a look.

"So what is it that they want, Price?" I asked him.

I already knew exactly where this conversation was heading. I had known it when he had walked into the room. They wanted me. I was his favourite bartering tool and my reputation in the SAS meant that he didn't have to look too far before he found somebody that wanted to get me on board with one of their objectives.

"The Yanks are going after Al-Asad's oldest boy." He glanced at me. "They're going to make a lot of noise in the hope that it will draw him out of his compound for long enough that we can take him out."

"We?" I hissed, raising an eyebrow.

"You." He looked directly into my eyes. "The Yanks know that you're better than anybody they've got."

I rolled my eyes and pushed my fingers through my hair. "Flattery isn't the way to go here, Price." I sighed. "How long?"

"Eleven weeks."

I sighed and closed my eyes. "With the provision that I can come back early if I get the job done early?"

Price shook his head. "You're out there for the full term." He said. "They've got a long list of targets that are causing the concern." He paused. "Which means that they'll probably cause us concern at some point so you should really just look at it as getting one step ahead of the game."

"Funnily enough, that isn't how I'm looking at this Price." I stared at him.

His jaw twitched. I was pushing his buttons. We both knew it. But then again we both knew that I was right.

"It makes sense, Lo." Price muttered, his words clipped and sharp. "We're all working towards a common goal here."

"World peace?" I smirked, breaking the horrible tension between us.

He laughed and rubbed his beard. "Something like that."

"So when do I go?" I asked.

"0600."

I turned to him in exasperation. "An hour, Price? Are you being serious?"

He nodded.

"Fine." I hissed.

There was no point in fighting it. I was going. No amount of pouting and petulant surliness was going to change that.

"Good." He smiled and patted my knee. "I knew that you'd see sense."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "I'd love to stay and chat but I have eleven weeks' worth of things to pack and only an hour to do so."

Price stood up with a nod, an eyebrow raised at the sharpness in my voice. I was grateful that he didn't rise to it as he turned to leave.

"Oh..." He turned to look at me. "I wanted to speak to you about Soap."

My blood turned to ice.

Poker face. Poker face. Poker face.

"What about him?"

He frowned. "You looked very cosy together on the plane."

I didn't flinch.

"So?" I deadpanned.

"So..." He stared at me. "I think he's got a bit of a thing for you."

I rolled my eyes. "Based on what exactly Inspector Price?"

He steadied himself against the doorframe. "I've noticed a couple of things." He said, ignoring my jibe. "The way you were sleeping together on the plane... the way he dived on you when that grenade went off..." He paused. "And the fact that he could barely shoot straight when you went MIA. He kept looking for an excuse to go upstairs and find you. He wasn't too concerned with the people trying to kill him which is a bit odd."

I shrugged, acting as nonchalantly as I possibly could given that my heart was racing and my palms were sweating. "I was absolutely exhausted, Price and I'd sleep on any of the lads in the same manner." I said. "Even you of you didn't look as though you were going to burst into flames every time somebody touches you."

He laughed.

"The grenade?" I started. "He was doing what we've all been trained to do." I paused and looked at him defiantly. "I'm pretty sure that I've thrown myself on top of you to protect in the exact same manner. It doesn't mean that I have a thing for you, it means that my gut reaction is to protect you from anything that could hurt you. It's what we do, Price, it's who we are." I glared at him. "I can't speak for Soap but I know that I would do the same thing for any of the lads."

"And the last one?" He asked. "Seeing as your going through them in order?"

I narrowed my eyes and gave him a hard stare. " Maybe the question isn't about why Soap was worried about me disappearing and more about why you weren't."

He pushed himself off the doorframe immediately. "I didn't say that Lola. Don't put words in my mouth." He frowned, the mask of indignation that had been plastered across his face for the best part of our exchange, slipping for the first time. I looked into his eyes. He looked pained at the idea that I thought he didn't care.

"You didn't need to say it, Price." I hissed, jumping down from the bed and brushing past him. "See you in eleven weeks." I turned and looked at him. "Or, y'know, maybe not." I delivered the final blow with enough vitriol and fury that Price visibly sagged.

"Don't say that, Lola." He whispered. "This is a part of the job. We all have to make sacrifices..."

"Except some of us seem to be making more sacrifices than others." I straightened up and folded my arms across my chest haughtily. "But what would I know, I'm never here for long enough to see what everybody else is doing."

I span around and walked towards the door at the end of the long corridor in front of me, my fists clenched together, my heart swelling in my chest and my chin tilted towards the ceiling. It was the only way to stop the tears brimming in my eyes from freeing themselves and rolling down my cheeks.

I listened as Price called my name as I walked down the seemingly never ending expanse of corridor. He wasn't going to chase me, experience had told me that, and if I was being honest with myself, I really didn't want him to come after me. I didn't want to hear the excuses this time. I didn't want to hear how this was a part of my job and something that I had to deal with.

Price and I had argued before. We were very similar in that we were fiercely stubborn and prone to these emotional outbursts. We walked this same road whenever Price offered my services to another country. We would butt heads, flinging angry words at one another like hurtful truth bombs and then we would spend time apart and the argument would be forgotten.

Recently, I had taken to apologising to him before I left for my latest stint as part of somebody else's squad. I was only too aware of how quickly life could be snatched away and had always hated the idea that I would leave one day in a flurry of anger and would return to find that something had happened to him.

But this time was different.

This time I was marching towards the door with only one thing at the forefront of my mind and it certainly wasn't Captain Price.