"What are we doing here, Lee?" Lacy asked as they walked into the bar together. It was loud and full of rowdy people. Lee spotted Gunner and Sara near the back. When she saw him, she looked relieved and waved him over. He could tell Gunner was not thrilled to see him.

"Fancy meeting you here," Sara said as he got closer. Lacy hung back a moment, giving Sara a blatant stink eye.

"Yea," Gunner chimed in. "Imagine that."

"Scooch over," Lee ordered, sitting next to him. Lacy reluctantly sat beside Sara, keeping her elbows tucked in close and not looking at her.

"Hello," Sara said cheerily to her, ignoring the ice queen behavior. "I'm Sara. Nice to meet you. Lacy, right?"

"Uh huh," Lacy answered, begrudgingly shaking Sara's hand.

"You're intruding," Gunner pointed out to him.

"There's nowhere else to sit," Lee retorted.

"I'd be fine to go somewhere quiet," Lacy said meaningfully. Lee knew what she wanted. He was having a hard time trusting that she wasn't seeing other people still, though. Something was niggling at him about it for some reason.

"Listen to the lady," Gunner said to him pointedly.

"Ah, not until the wings are gone," Sara said as the waitress set them on the table. "I happen to know they are one of Lee's main staples."

"And how do you know that?" Lacy asked. Lee lifted a brow at her. Was she seriously acting jealous right now? She ignored him, staring at Sara and waiting for an answer.

"Oh, I lived with him for two months," Sara answered casually, making Lacy splutter and whip her head to look at Lee next.

"Excuse me?" she asked, outraged. "When was this?!"

Lee wondered what the hell Sara was doing right now. She was giving him a look he couldn't quite decipher. It seemed to say that she believed he could do better than Lacy, and she was going to help him out with that. He was beginning to wonder if that had been her plan all along.

"In that cabin in the woods, right?" Gunner added, throwing gas on the fire now to get Lacy riled up to make her leave and Lee go after her. "Nice place. Rustic...romantic..."

Lacy made a sound that was indescribable but clearly pissed off.

"Calm down," Lee said to her. "Barney had me train her. That's all."

"Unbelievable, Lee," Lacy snapped, getting up. "You lied to me!"

"You seriously gonna do that?" he asked, making her stop. "After everything?"

"Are you seriously going to throw that in my face every chance you get?" she countered angrily.

"Lace..."

She stormed off, and he sighed.

"You better fix that," Gunner said to him. Lee shot him a look, and then he gave Sara an apologetic one.

"Sorry," he said. "Gotta go."

"Do you really have to?" she asked. "I think your prayers just got answered."

"Or were they yours?" he retorted. He saw Gunner stiffen in his peripheral, but he didn't care. He had Sara metaphorically pinned to the wall, and he was waiting for an answer.

"She's almost to the door," she said instead. "You better hurry."

He moved to leave, not looking back. He wasn't going to engage in whatever this was she was doing. He caught up to Lacy just outside the door.

"Hey!" he called, making her turn to see him. "Hold up."

"Lee, I'm not interested," she said, moving to walk away again.

"She means nothing to me," Lee advised, and Lacy slowed to a stop again. She didn't turn around, though. "She is on the team, and I trained her. That's all."

"How do I know that's true?"

"You'll have to just trust me, like I have to trust you. Right?"

She turned to look at him again now. He could see her thinking about it hard. He moved closer to her, and she let him.

"Why did we come here tonight?" she asked.

"Sara didn't want Gunner to think this was a date," he answered with a shrug. "That's all."

"Because she's interested in you?"

"No," he lied. He knew Sara was interested in him and pretending not to be just like he was with her. She hadn't exactly kept that a secret, and neither had he. But he had to get past his little flutters for Sara because they couldn't go anywhere. They were only ever going to be work partners, nothing more. He moved closer to Lacy still, and she looked at him quietly.

Lacy let him kiss her, and he did his best to feel it fully.

"I trust you," she said after. "Don't let me down."

"Ditto," he replied. He kissed her again. Then she took him to her place, and he did his very best to not think about Sara anymore.

...

"So, I get the feeling you're trying to tell me something," Gunner said after Lee had left. Sara fidgeted with her fingers on the table top before sighing.

"I'm sorry, Gunner," she finally said. "I like you, but not like that. I didn't know how to tell you."

"It's alright," he replied, sounding disappointed. "I get it. Who wants to be with this disaster." He forced a laugh.

"You're not a disaster, Gunner," she told him, reaching to rest a hand over his. "You and I just wouldn't work. Now that's a disaster waiting to happen. There's someone better out there for you. I know it."

"You're in love with Lee, aren't you?" he asked.

"No," she answered, not sure if she was being fully honest. "He's my partner, and he's got what's-her-name on his hip anyway."

"Hm," Gunner said, not buying it, but he didn't push. They finished their meal, and Sara was glad he was still able to joke and talk with her. She felt bad for letting him down, but it was better than leading him on. She caught the eye of a man halfway through dinner, and she felt the vibes from him all the way across the room. Maybe she didn't want something serious or ruin her working relationship/friendships with the Expendables, but she could still get satisfaction somewhere.

"Hey, baby," the guy said when she sidled up next to him when Gunner went to use the washroom before they left.

"You up for it?" she asked.

"Always." He handed her a card. "Call me. Or show up. Your choice." She took it and tucked it into her pocket, stepping away before Gunner could come out and see.

Back at Tool's, she slipped outside for a smoke. She'd been trying to quit, but it was hard to do, especially when she was stressed out. She'd try again later. She absently played with her lighter, floating it up and down. She knew she had to be very careful to not let anyone see her do that. It would raise far too many questions she couldn't answer without giving everything away.

"You're out here late," Billy said, coming outside then. She let the lighter drop as if she'd tossed it in the air, and she gave him a smile before tucking it into her pocket.

"Yea. Just thinking," she answered. She liked the Kid. He was sweet and funny. He talked about his fiancée in France all the time.

"You haven't been here long, right?"

"That's right."

"How do you like the team so far?"

"They're...a dysfunctional family," she answered truthfully. "I haven't exactly found my place in it just yet."

"Me either, but I think we will." He smiled. She returned it.

"I think you're right."

"I call the crazy cousin," he said with a wink as he started to walk away.

"Aw, come on!" she called after him. He laughed, and she smirked as she put out her cigarette. She eventually went inside, trying not to think about whether or not Lee was spending the night with Lacy. In the end, she found herself at the man from the bar's home. When he answered, he wasn't surprised to see her.

"What's up?" he asked.

"Look, I'm not looking for a relationship," she began.

"Neither am I," he said.

"Then you're good with casual?"

"Yea." He gave a shrug.

"Good." She moved in to kiss him, and while it wasn't the person she really wanted to be with, it was still someone to keep her distracted and feel something familiar. She was no stranger to one night stands and casual flings. It had been her job for a while anyway.

And she really just didn't want to be alone tonight.

One Year Later—November 2011

Lee walked into the bar with his arm around Lacy's neck. He found his team at a table, talking and laughing amongst each other.

"Hi, boys," Lacy said, flashing her hand around. She received comments a moment later, and then Lee got ribbed for wanting to get locked down.

Things had progressed between them in the last while. Lee wanted a life outside of killing people. He wanted to get married and have a family. He wanted to be normal, and Lacy gave him that chance. He knew not everyone agreed with him, and that was okay. He didn't need them to.

"You're kidding me, right?" Sara asked, finding him at the bar where he was getting drinks for Lacy and himself.

"Nope," he answered.

"She's not your girl," Sara advised. "And you know it." He turned his head to meet her gaze, and he nonverbally dared her to say what was really on her mind. But she didn't.

"Thanks, partner," he said finally. "But I've got this."

"No, you don't."

"You went out with Rick, and you didn't hear me say anything about it," he shot back. That had irked him a little, but it had been short lived. At least, he thought so. He wasn't entirely sure. Sara had made it clear they were just "messing around," whatever that meant, but he still saw them talk at the bar sometimes. It hit his sore spot despite trying to deny he even had a sore spot.

"You're saying something now," she pointed out, making him growl in frustration.

"Look," he said, moving closer so she could hear him over the noise. "I know you hate Lacy, but I love her, so get used to having her around. She's gotten used to you being my partner, so I know you can get used to her being my wife."

"You're making a big mistake..."

"Sara, stop," he ordered, gripping her shoulder tightly now and giving her a slight shake. "Let it go." He released her and went back to Lacy. She gave him a questioning look, and he just smiled and kissed the side of her head before putting his arm around her. She leaned into him, listening avidly to the men talking. He barely noticed when Sara went to the dance floor and found some random man to dance with. He barely flinched inside when she began to make out with the man. He hardly cringed when she walked out with him ten minutes later. She could do what she wanted. She was a grown adult.

So why did it affect him this much?

...

Sara was smoking as she walked, one hand in her jacket pocket. She hadn't succeeded in quitting yet, and she knew she frustrated the men when she did and then started again. Caesar had literally slapped a nicotine patch on her arm once when she bitched out Toll for breathing wrong, but that clearly wasn't enough to make her stop for good. She kept going back for more. She guessed it was because it was the only constant she had right now with her situation.

There was a light breeze, just cool enough to warrant longer sleeves for a bit. She'd left her one night stand sleeping at his apartment to wander the streets for a bit. She didn't really know why she'd done it other than she'd wanted to hurt Lee. She didn't really know if he cared. It had been nice to have the company for a bit all the same. She could have called Rick, but she didn't want him to think she was missing him because she wasn't.

She'd ended things with Rick about three months after it began. She hadn't wanted it to become something more, and she sensed that Rick was beginning to feel something stronger for her. He'd been understanding, and they still talked. He was currently dating someone new now anyway, and it looked like it could become serious. Why mess that up for him with her mess?

She was a bit envious, if she was honest. Billy had Sophia, who he went to visit here and there. Toll had his lady. Lee had Lacy. Caesar had his wife. Gunner had flings here and there. Hell, even Barney went off to see Sandra when he thought no one knew about it. And don't even get her started on Tool. She had no one, and she was lonely.

She had five more years to go. If she was honest, the first year had gone rather quickly. The jobs had kept her busy, and she'd spent a lot of the down time with the men. She'd also spent a lot of time in pain and crying alone in the dark, but no one knew about that. Then there was Lee. The two of them had this thing between them that neither of them acted on, and it drove her nuts. She understood why he wasn't doing anything about it, and she knew why she wasn't, but it made things complicated at times. Every look and touch felt like it meant something more than just casual, and she longed for a normal life where she could try it out and see if she really was deserving of a normal relationship despite the raging voice in her head that said she wasn't.

She sat on the top of the picnic table in the backyard at Tool's, holding her son's picture in her fingers to look at. The ache to see him was pulsing hard tonight. Distractions didn't ever take her mind fully away from missing him.

"Feeling all right?" Tool asked, coming out to join her. He lit his pipe and puffed on it a few times before leaning back and resting his elbows on the top of the table. Sara hugged her knees with an arm, still holding the photo.

"You look at that an awful lot," he commented. "Someone special to you?"

"Yea," she answered, putting it away. Only Barney and Lee knew about Cid, and she was keeping it that way. Well, Joe knew about him too, but she hadn't seen him in a while. She'd pestered him a month ago about the next job, and he'd snarled and said he had no idea and that she should just back the hell off until he came calling.

She'd resisted punching him in the face. Barely.

"Alive or dead?" Tool asked.

"Alive, just far away," she answered truthfully.

"Why don't you go visit?"

"I can't right now."

"Ah."

She felt a tear slide down her cheek, and she wiped it away. She was not one for crying in front of people. Some would say she'd had a hard life, and they weren't wrong. She'd overcome a lot, but she didn't let it define her or make her depressed.

"Got a job for you all," Tool said after a moment. "Extraction. Italy."

"That's cool." She'd always wanted to go to Italy. "When?"

"Day after tomorrow."

"Okay."

"Get some rest, girl," Tool said, patting her leg fondly before getting up. "You're gonna need it."

"Thanks, Tool."

She rested on her back on the table top, looking up at the stars. That's where she eventually fell asleep.

...

Lee stood by Sara's head as she slept. It was rather odd to find her outside sleeping on the picnic table, but he was one to talk. He slept in random places at times too.

"Hey," he said, nudging her. She opened her eyes and sat up fast.

"What?" she asked, annoyed. He saw her realize where she was, and she reached to adjust her shirt, which had twisted a little in her sleep.

"We good?" he asked. It bothered him when they were at odds, which wasn't often and was mostly over Lacy. He watched her rub her face and sigh roughly.

"Yea, we're good," she answered. He held her gaze, and that twinge was still there. In his mind, he could see himself grasping her face with his hands and kissing her hard. It made him blink. This was not good.

"Barney wants to go over the schematics of this job," he added, mentally shaking his head. He was marrying Lacy. End of story.

"Alright. I'll be in in a second."

Lee left her there. He joined Barney in his office where his friend was flipping through maps and photographs.

"She coming?" he asked, not looking at Lee.

"Yea."

Sara scuffled in a moment later, flopping into the chair next to Lee's. Barney lifted his gaze to look at her for a second.

"Thanks for joining us," he said sarcastically.

"Get on with it," she said with a groan. Lee bit down his smirk as Barney rolled his eyes.

"Alright. We got a kidnapping situation," he started. "This is the layout of the place he's being kept at."

"A kid?" Lee asked, sliding the photo across the table. He looked up to see Sara's fists clenched and her jaw tight. He already knew how much this was going to impact her.

"Yea," Barney confirmed. "His parents work for this guy: Trey Vincent." He set another photograph down. "It would appear the father got into some trouble with Trey by not doing what he was asked, and Trey took his son hostage as a result."

"What does Trey want him to do?" Lee asked.

"Oh, you know, make a chemical weapon."

"Fabulous," Lee muttered, dropping the photograph of the boy back onto the table. Sara leaned forward to snatch it a moment later. He watched her study it carefully.

"He must be so scared," she said to no one in particular. Barney gave her a look and then Lee.

"You gonna be good to do this?" he asked her.

"Of course." She set the photo down again and leaned back in the chair.

"What's his name?" Lee asked. He liked to know before going in so the victim felt a sense of safety due to their name being known. He frowned slightly as Barney glanced covertly at Sara before looking back at him. Then he cleared his throat.

"Sidney," he answered. "But he goes by Sid."

Lee felt the hairs on his arms and neck prickle, and he didn't even have to look at Sara to know what her reaction was. He eventually did look at her because he was beginning to wonder if this child was actually her son.

"Life is full of irony, isn't it?" she said, her voice a bit unsteady.

"He's not your son," Barney clarified.

"No, he's not. You've seen his picture."

"I have."

Lee felt slightly disgruntled. How was it that Barney had seen Cid's photo and he hadn't? They'd spent two months living together for crying out loud.

"When are we going?" she asked, putting her tough look back on. Lee only ever caught snippets of vulnerability from her these days when they were alone, which was only fair since he didn't much either.

"Tomorrow morning 0500," Barney answered. "We'll spend today studying the layout and making a plan." She gave a nod while Lee tucked his hands into his jacket pockets.

"I will get packed," Sara said, going to leave. Barney waited until she was gone before looking at Lee.

"Keep an eye on her," he ordered.

"That's the plan," Lee confirmed. He just hoped that Sara wouldn't lose her head on this job and cost them all their lives.

...

Joe was growing restless with waiting. When was this next job coming? He hated living in limbo like this, wondering what was happening to his wife. He hated that he was even in this position. How had the drop been given to him? How had he not seen it coming? He thought he'd retired, but Abe clearly had other plans for him. He knew it was delayed punishment for trying to kill that kid, but Joe didn't know why that kid had to die. His future self had obviously known, and it had obviously been worth killing the kid and the mother for, so who did that kid become? Perhaps Abe had sent Joe back here before he could find out and finally understand after all this time why he'd done such a horrific thing.

Maybe Abe had something invested in that kid that he needed to survive for.

Joe would never know, and now he was stuck here waiting.

...

The plane ride had been a typical one. Sara gritted her teeth and tried not to vomit (she still didn't do well flying) while the men joked and laughed and swapped gruesome stories with each other. She envied that Lee got to sit up front with Barney and avoid this. She'd tried to take his spot once, and she'd nearly gotten booted off the plane. Apparently, it was an unspoken rule that Lee sat up there for the rest of eternity.

When they landed, she was trying to stay calm. Rescuing a boy named Sid was making her jittery and on edge, but she had to be stable. She couldn't let Barney down. She said nothing as she geared up, noticing that Lee kept taking looks at her periodically. No doubt Barney had told him to look out for her. She tried not to bristle inside. Did he not know that she could handle herself by now? That she hadn't gotten hurt again since the last time? She wasn't going to fall apart over this. She'd be just fine.

"Okay," Barney said now. "Caesar, Yang, and Toll, you go left. Gunner and I will go right. Lee and Sara, you take the back. Billy, you're eye in the sky."

Everyone chorused their confirmation of their positions, and Sara tried to steady her heart rate.

"Come on," Lee said, leading the way. She followed quietly. If she was honest, she was still thinking about his engagement to Lacy and trying to figure out why it irked her so much. They'd established they were never going to act on anything between them, so why shouldn't he move on?

Chaos ensued not too long into their mission. Sara groaned. She'd been hoping for an easy job. Apparently, that was too much to ask for. She ran for cover and took out the men coming after them. In the end, she and Lee were the ones to find the boy in the bedroom they were keeping him in. She and Lee crashed into it before hiding behind the wall on either side of the door. There were bars on the window, so their only way out was how they'd come in.

A cry made Sara look to see the boy crawling underneath the bed out of sight.

"Go," Lee ordered, keeping up the covering fire. She went to the bed and lowered herself onto her stomach on the floor.

"It's okay, Sid," Sara said, reaching for his hand. Bullets were still flying, and the boy was terrified. "I'm going to get you out of here, okay? I promise."

"I'm scared," Sid said back. Sara could see her son so clearly that it almost scared her. She swallowed.

It's not him, it's not him, it's not him...

"I know you are, but you're with me, and I will keep you safe," she said out loud.

"Sara!" Lee shouted. "Let's go! Now!"

"Please, Sid," Sara begged. "I don't want to leave you here, and we can't stay here."

The boy looked like he was going to shake his head and crawl away from her farther into the corner, but then he reached for hand, letting her grab it and haul him out.

"Stay behind me," she ordered, moving towards Lee. He was taking cover behind the wall, leaning forward to take shots every so often. He looked at them when they got closer.

"Ready?"

"Yea," she answered. He nodded and moved out, letting her push Sid in front of her and keep him between them as they went down the hall. More men appeared, and the three of them were forced into a different room. There were no windows.

"What do we do?" she asked. They were trapped in this room, and she suddenly felt scared.

"There's a laundry chute," Sid piped up behind her, making them both look at him.

"Where?" Lee asked.

"Over there." Sid pointed to the small door in the wall down from them. Sara felt stupid for missing it.

"Go," Lee ordered her. "I'll be right behind you."

Sara didn't hesitate, moving to the door and pulling it open. She shone her light down there to see what they were dealing with. She didn't exactly like tight spaces, but it looked like a soft landing at least with all the laundry in there.

"Hurry up!" Lee yelled at her, twisting to avoid a bullet whizzing past his face. Sara had no time to feel afraid for him. She had to get over her claustrophobia.

"Okay, you go down and I'll go right after you," she told Sid. He nodded. He climbed in and pressed his hands and feet against the sides, slowly shimmying down. Sara waited a moment before getting in after him. She felt like she couldn't breathe as she made her way down. Gunshots and shouting occurred above her, and she hoped that Lee was all right. She made it to the bottom to find that the door was locked. Her anxiety spiked.

"What do we do?" Sid asked.

"Kick it open," she answered. Both of them put their all into it, and eventually, the door splintered open. She urged Sid out first. "Go, go, go."

She looked up when she heard Lee coming, and she knew he was just going to drop straight down there, and if she didn't get out of the way, he would crush her. At least there was a bunch of laundry to break his fall. She crawled out seconds before he landed at the bottom.

"Bloody hell," he growled as he rolled out onto the floor. Then he was on his feet. "Let's go."

Sara held Sid's hand as they ran behind Lee. They made it a bit before getting shot at again. Voices shouted their location next.

"What's going on? Talk to me!" Barney's voice shouted into their comms.

"We'll meet you at the rendezvous point," Lee said back, skidding around the corner with Sara and Sid on his heels. "Just get the hell out of here."

"You got him?"

"Affirmative!" Lee yelled over the sudden burst of noise around them. Sara yanked her head to see an explosion of some sort had gone off just to their left. That's when she saw the man holding the rocket launcher.

"LEE!" she screamed, and he turned to see it.

"Take care of it!" he shouted back, ducking for cover behind crates. Sara shoved Sid towards him and pulled her compact bow from her back. She steadied her breath, aiming at the man as he reloaded quickly. She only had one shot at this. She held in her breath and released the string. The man went down hard, and she lowered her bow and moved to join Lee when a bullet struck her in the chest. She cried out as she went down, and Lee moved to shoot and kill her attacker. He grabbed her by the top of her vest and dragged her behind cover with him. There seemed to be a small reprieve from gunfire, which was nice.

"Is she okay?" Sid asked, worried.

"Just a scratch," Sara grunted with a gasp for air as Lee examined her. He gave a grim smile as he recognized her referencing his famous line.

"You'll live," he surmised. "Vest took it."

"Why thank you, doctor," she replied, still trying to catch her breath, and he shook his head, his smile a bit more genuine now, and reloaded his gun.

"Do you guys have a plan to get out of here?" Sid asked, making them both look at him.

"Sure we do," Lee answered, lying through his teeth. Their plan had gotten derailed the moment they'd gotten separated from the others. Sara could hear more men coming for them, and she looked around wildly for a way out.

"There," she said, spying a jeep. Lee nodded, and the three of them made their way towards it. Sid was covering his head with his arms as Sara guided him alongside her. She got into the backseat with him while Lee jumped into the driver's side to hotwire it. Sid cried out when bullets hit the jeep doors.

"You wanna take care of that?" Lee said, still trying to get the vehicle going. Sara popped up and took out each gunman she saw. Then Lee got the jeep started, and they tore out of there.

No one chased them in a vehicle, and after a while, Sara started to relax. They were home free. She was about to reach and pat Lee on the shoulder for a team effort when they were broadsided and shoved off the side of the cliff.