"Hey! What do you think you're doing! Get your own pie!"
"Awww, come on, Snow White! Share!"
"I will stab you with this fork!"
"Woooow! Violent!" Trent exclaimed, looking over at the couch were Jess and Sonny sat side by side. The girl had her fork poised and ready while Sonny wisely hesitated, hand mid reach for her plate.
"She ain't serious," Sonny laughed, ruffling Jess's hair playfully with his other hand.
"I am not bluffing!" She stated firmly. "This is mine. You ate the last of my ice cream yesterday. You're not getting this pie."
"Metalllll!" Sonny called over his shoulder, staring at Jess with a mix of pride and concern. "You're a bad influence!"
"What'd I do?" Metal came down the hall from his room, exasperated by the group of knuckleheads that invaded his house the last few days. He couldn't wait for them to get back to work. They were getting insufferable. Maybe they all needed a trip to the Bulkhead.
"She's threatening to stab Sonny with a fork." Brock laughed.
"Over what?!"
"Sonny's trying to steal my food!" Jess told him, not taking her eyes off the Texan's hand and still ready to strike with the fork clenched in her fist. "This is my favorite pie. Naima made it. I'm not sharing!"
With a shrug, Metal huffed, "Sounds like Sonny should leave your food alone."
"Damn straight!" Jess stated fiercely, like a kitten who thought it was a big cat.
"See, now I'm torn between wanting to see if she really can stick that fork through my hand and just leaving it all alone." Sonny sounded genuinely indecisive.
Looking him square in the eye, Jess said, "If I stab your hand I'll cry…and likely pass out."
"Damn it, I hate it when you cry. Alright. I'll leave your pie alone."
"Thank you." Jess shoveled a mouthful of the prized dessert into her mouth and added, "I also would have cried if you stole my pie."
"Why are you so emotional!?" Sonny complained. "And stop usin your tears as a weapon!"
"I'm not! It's just a fact that I would cry! And it's good pie, it's been a long day and why do I need a reason to be emotional?! I thought that wasn't surprising to anyone anymore!"
"It's not," Metal grumbled.
"Oh, hey, do you want some of this before I finish it?" Jess held up her plate to him.
"Now why the hell are you sharing with him and not me?! That's just rude!" Sonny spluttered.
"Because he lets me live with him, dummy, and it's the dessert tax."
Jess let Metal take the plate and fork from her to help himself to a decent bite. He did it purely to mess with Sonny and they both knew Jess was messing with the Texan in her own diabolical little way too.
"What's the dessert tax?" Clay asked.
"You clearly didn't have siblings," Said Trent. "It's the unspoken agreement that if you want an alliance with a sibling, or if you want to get away with something and they don't tell on you, then you let them have your dessert."
"So why does Metal get a dessert tax?" Sonny huffed.
"I told you, he lets me live with him," Jess accepted her plate back, visibly happy there was still plenty of pie left for her.
"You can live with me if it means I get a dessert tax!"
Jess paused, studying Sonny with a half anxious, half amused expression.
"Sonny, I love you, but I don't think I could live with you. From what I've heard you're kind of a hot mess and I need stability in my life. Besides, you would just eat my food anyway!"
A cry of amusement and teasing rose in the air as Sonny tried to be insulted and failed.
"Awww, fair enough," Sonny leaned back and lifted his chin. "The life of Sonny Quinn would likely upset your delicate nature."
"I am not nearly as delicate as I used to be," Jess answered with a frown.
"That is true," Brock had to agree. "You don't give Sonny those dirty looks anymore when he burps."
"Yeah…he's actually the bad influence," Jess sighed, patting Sonny on the shoulder like a horse and then giggling when he swatted the back of her head lightly. "Not that I'm not loving having you all here so much, but when do you go back to work?"
"We're cleared to get back to training on Thursday, but we aren't back to work properly till next week," Clay groaned.
"It could not come fast enough." Trent sighed. "Oh, but in the meantime, Jess, I brought my computer. We should play that game!"
"You did!?" The way Jess's face lit up with surprise and excitement was adorable. "I thought you forgot!"
"Not a chance. I said I wanted to play it with you and I meant it."
"Oh, I'm so excited!" Jess bounced off the couch and tossed her dishes in the sink.
"You two nerds have fun," Sonny said, "We're gonna see how this season of football plays out."
"Jess," Metal called down the hall. "You seriously gonna leave those dishes in the sink?"
"No! I'll clean them up before I go to bed!" She called back. "Promise!"
Snorting at the likelihood of that, Metal let it go, knowing they would still be there in the morning.
"Your house sure isn't as spotless as it used to be," Trent commented innocently as he set up his computer at the kitchen table and waited for Jess to come back with her's.
"It's not too bad," Metal grumbled with hidden affection, "But I keep finding her damn socks everywhere! Yesterday I fished four pairs out from under the couch!"
"Yeah! The socks! I noticed that!" Clay squinted around the room. "What's with the socks?"
"Socks are evil." Jess replied as she trotted back with her arms full of computer cord, laptop, mouse and gaming headphones.
"Why do you take them off?" Clay asked.
"I don't like them on my feet and cold floors against barefeet is better."
"Ok, but why are they in random bunches around the house?" Metal finally asked. He'd been trying to keep an open mind and let her just be herself at home, quirks included, but it was one thing she did that both amused and annoyed him.
"I don't know," Jess started setting up next to Trent. "I just…remember I have them on and suddenly they have to be off and I don't want to stop whatever it is I'm doing at the time to put them in the laundry because if I stop I might not get started again."
"Your little brain is an odd place," Sonny told her.
"I know. Be glad you don't have to live in here."
"I can safely say that I would not likely survive the chaos of your mind, Jess." Sonny concurred.
Jess didn't answer, already absorbed with geeking out about whatever game it was that she and Trent were about to play.
Metal couldn't fathom the appeal of it. He'd never been one to play games unless he was bored, and he had to be really bored.
The need for a change of scenery drove them all out, finally.
They'd been at the Bulkhead almost an hour at their usual table on Wednesday night, still waiting for Jason and Ray to show up when Jess marched over.
"I don't understand! What am I doing wrong?"
She didn't even say hello before launching into her problem as she plopped down between Brock and Metal. The lack of uncertainty or concern about them not wanting her there was night and day from when she first officially met them just over a year ago. She'd been with Pauline and Zoe since they arrived. The latter girl was in town visiting for a few days and Jess had been enjoying herself immensely, so it was puzzling why she was suddenly sitting down with them.
"Why do you think you're doing something wrong?" Trent asked.
Jess lowered her voice and hissed, "Guys keep talking to me! I've had it down to an art form in the past of how to keep anyone from talking to me, so what the hell am I doing wrong!? First Todd, now this?! Wowow, wait, I mean, not that this last guy was as bad and he backed off really nice. You don't have to get up and pound him. I'm just trying to figure out what I'm doing wrong!"
There was silence as Jess looked around the table at her brothers and she squinted with mild annoyance.
"Stop that. You're doing that thing where you look at me like I'm a puppy and you want to pat me on the head or something. I'm being serious!"
Sonny smiled and shook his head, "It's so damn cute how oblivious she is."
"I don't understand!" Jess leaned forward and splayed her hands in a little flourish. "Oblivious about what!?"
"Guys like confidence, Jess." Brock tried to tell her plainly.
Jess looked at him like he had rocks in his head. "I'm not confident."
"You're a damn sight more confident than you were when we first met." Metal rumbled, taking a swig of his beer and smirking at the memory of her crashing into him so forcefully that he spilt his drink all over himself and Sonny. The look of abject mortification and horror followed by a completely incoherent babble of sound before she fled to the washrooms had been funny at first until he realized she was genuinely terrified of her own shadow.
"They also like confidence in sweet, gorgeous girls with an enormous dose of adorableness and inexperience." Sonny told her. "The good ones and the bad ones, darling, they'll both be wanting to talk. It's like a drug they can't keep away from."
"Ok but none of those are me, except the inexperience part…which I absolutely want to keep that way cause I'm not looking for any of that..like the idea just really freaks me out, especially casual-" Jess looked horrified as a thought occurred to her. "Oh my gosh I'm putting off those signals?!-"
"No!" Clay answered firmly. "You aren't. That's the point , Jess."
"Ok," The wrinkles between Jess's brow looked painful. "Now I'm really confused."
"Let me make it plain and clear for you," Sonny sat forward and folded his hands on the table. "Guy sees girl. Girl is pretty, sweet, kind and very very cute. Girl is also oblivious to interest, which makes it clear she's not used to attention which seems ridiculous because of how pretty she is. Girl is also not looking for attention by flirting because the girl is just genuine with everyone, not interested in casual sex and that's just how she rolls, which is just fine. Now, a guy who sees that is probably thinking one of three things. One: I need to look after her and make sure no one hurts her and if they do I'll tear their arms off or Two: I want to get with that and have a story for my buddies and Three: that girl is beautiful and I want to take her home and introduce her to my parents."
Jess looked at Sonny blankly. "But…I'm not that girl…right?...Wait…am I?"
Collectively, her brothers shifted. Sonny and Brock put their heads in their hands. Clay and Trent closed their eyes and tipped their faces to the ceilings with soft, huffing laughs. Scott just shook his head and drew a long, controlled breath as he drank more of his beer.
Utterly serious and bemused, Jess asked again, "Am I?"
Sonny rubbed his face with both hands and groaned. "Jess….Jess, Jess, Jess…you are 100% that girl."
A stunned kind look settled over Jess as she processed. "Oh. I didn't know that."
Trent pinched the bridge of his nose and said as if it pained him, "We know."
Still a little confused and disbelieving Jess scrunched up her nose and asked, "I'm cute?"
Metal lifted the arm that had been draped across the back of her chair and patted her on the head, saying gruffly, "Somedays unbelievably and painfully so. Why do you think we worry about you so damn much?"
"Oh…huh. Hey, that's so nice that you worry!" Jess gave Metal the brightest of smiles that hinted at mischief and the big guy softened a fraction before shifting back to his usual expressionless state. Not bothered by it, Jess launched back into the reason that brought her to their table, "Ok, but how do I get them to stop noticing and talking to me."
"You can't." Sonny laughed. "Aside from sitting here and making them all wonder."
That blank look returned and Jess asked, "Wonder what?"
Five faces stared at her and waited patiently.
"What like- OH! Oh. Ewwww! I mean! No offense to you guys it's just-"
"None taken." They chorused hurriedly, laughing a little at the series of expressions that crossed her face.
"Good," Jess hopped up again, "Ok! Well, I don't like the attention, and I need to figure out how to be less cute now. I'm going back to my girls! Bye!"
And off she went, leaving five heads shaking in her wake.
"God love her, she is something else," Sonny chuckled.
There was a hum of agreement.
Back at her own table, Jess took a drink of her cider.
She could tell herself all she wanted that the only reason she was drinking at all was because she knew without a shadow of a doubt she had the best kind of people watching her back and she didn't get to see Pauline or Zoe much anymore. She would be only half true though.
On her way back to the table she'd had a run in with Jason.
It had been a very brief, awkward exchange when she nearly ran into him as she dodged through the bar. He's given her a clipped, 'Hello' and hardly made eye contact with her, face unreadable and jaw clenched like he was angry. The entire incident was enough to get in her head if she let it, and she wanted to have fun, not stress about if Jason still loved her like a daughter or not.
Taking a second swig, just for good measure and to get it out of her head, Jess waited for her friends to speak first.
"Any insights?" Pauline asked, shaking her head as she exchanged a look with Zoe.
"They said it's because I'm cute."
"I TOLD you!" Pauline pumped her fist and pointed at Zoe. "Didn't I tell you that's what they would say?!"
"Alright, alright, you win!"
"I need to figure out how to be less cute now," Jess sighed, taking another sip of her drink and avoiding eye contact as a couple of younger guys walked past.
"You used to have a great resting bitch face! Just use that!" Zoe told her.
"Oh, geez, thanks , Z," Jess laughed.
"And you have to take yourself seriously again." Pauline added. "You're way too relaxed now and it attracts attention."
"I don't want to be tense!" Jess complained.
"Well, then put up with the odd guy talking to you then. It's not like it happens every ten minutes like it did for Stacy when we used to go out."
"That is true." Zoe agreed. "That girl knew how to attract without so much as lifting a finger!"
"What's going on with her these days anyway?" Jess asked. "She and I kinda had a falling out after everything that happened with her friend Jodi."
"Ughh, that whole thing. Gross." Pauline rolled her eyes and picked at a coaster.
"Yeah, I'm glad I left with I did," Zoe breathed. "That sounded awful, Jess."
Shrugging, something that she hadn't noticed was becoming an acquired habit, Jess said, "It's fine. I'm kinda glad it happened because it meant I got to move in with Scott. It a way better situation and way safer too."
"You guys are too cute." Zoe grinned, leaning back and shaking the black curls from her face. "I actually just love how he takes care of you and looks out for you all the time."
"He's awesome!" Jess agreed, trying to push aside the mental note in her brain reminding her that he was also human. She didn't want to bring that up though. "The rest are great too! I'm really lucky to have them."
"Most of them." Pauline muttered.
"Hey…" Jess swatted Pauline's arm lightly. "We agreed you would leave that alone."
"Leave what alone?" Zoe asked, looking between them.
"Nothing," Jess countered, "How's the new job going?"
"Ahhh, no, don't go deflecting on me! What's going on? Spill!"
"Jason just over stepped last week and I told him it wasn't ok and that was that. That's all."
"What sort of overstep?" Zoe wanted to know.
Pauline gave a sardonic laugh into her drink and murmured, "Here we go!"
"It's not that bad!" Jess scolded.
"The dude was a dick." Pauline stated frankly.
"Yeah, but the rest aren't, and…Jason just…he knows he messed up and he's trying to make it right again."
"What happened?" Zoe asked again, leaning forward now, eager for the gossip.
"Nothing important." Jess brushed it aside. "I don't really want to get into it, ok?"
Realization flashed through Zoe and she nodded suddenly, "Oh, yeah of course. I'm sorry for pushing. I should have read that better."
"It's good. How's the job?"
"Amazing! I love the hours!"
They settled into a comfortable silence as the two other girls listened to Zoe bring them up to speed on her new job and all the new stories she had to share. The young woman hardly stopped for a breath for nearly forty-five minutes.
"I really love being so close to my family," She concluded with a happy head bob, "I missed them so much!"
"Wish I could say that." Pauline laughed. "My brother called me last week asking for money so he could buy more drugs. I told him to go fuck himself."
"My brother and I are actually going for dinner next week!" Jess commented suddenly.
"You are?!" Pauline turned and looked at her as if she had rocks in her head.
"Yeah! He's in town and he's been making an effort to stay in touch lately, so I figured I would give it a shot, you know?"
Taking her glass, Pauline set it out of arm's reach, saying, "I'll give this back when you stop sounding like a crazy person. You never see your family, and Jer? You said it yourself that he's an egotistical jerk who only thinks about himself!"
"I know, but we were close once and he really seems like he's changing. I have to at least see."
"You're way too forgiving," Pauline grumbled.
"Jer wasn't as bad as your sister though, right?" Zoe asked, worry showing in her face.
"Nah, Jer is way better than my sis. I don't think I would even want to spend time with her now, the way she's gone in life. She's so obsessed with fashion and beauty and sleeping with hot guys, drinking, drugs, sugar daddy's. We have nothing in common."
"She'd be great friends with Stacy." Pauline said.
"Yeah, you never told me what happened to her!" Jess stole her drink back and got back to sipping it, letting it buzz her brain just a little.
"She left town with a boyfriend who's older than her. Haven't really heard from her since."
"That's just the way of things, I guess," Zoe said, swirling her drink thoughtfully. "There was one time I thought we would be friends forever, but I guess life changes and we grow apart."
"Awww, Zoe we'll always be friends," Jess assured her. "Hey! Did I tell you I'm on a list of students eligible for a research trip to the Amazon Rainforest at the end of term!?"
"Like…the Amazon Amazon?" Zoe's eyes went big.
"Yeah! They have a research group that goes down every year and they get to work in conjunction with a Brazilian University down there for samples of plants that have cancer fighting potential!"
"That's so cool!" Pauline exclaimed. "When do you know if you get to go?!"
"In a week they said they'll announce who they're picking to go. It's limited spots and I'm not likely to get in, but I put my name in anyway just for shits and giggles. I mean, if I get to go, it's a chance of a lifetime, and if I don't, hey, nothing lost!"
"But damn, that Amazon. Isn't there all kinds of shit down there, and it's super dangerous too!"
Jess chewed her lip and then took another long drink of her cider. It was almost gone and she considered getting a second.
"If I get named, I'll ask Scott if he thinks it's safe for me to go. He'll know."
"I'm sure it's safe," Pauline said reasonably, "They wouldn't send people every year if it wasn't. Can you imagine how much liability they would have sending students somewhere that wasn't safe?"
"There will be waivers and stuff, and I'm sure they have a security plan," Jess answered, "I talked to a girl who went last year and she said it was fine so long as you didn't wander from the group and stuck to the plan, and stuff."
"Well, I'm excited for you!" Zoe smiled brightly. "Regardless, you never stepped out of your comfort zone like that before and I'm proud of you for at least putting your name in!"
"Yeah! On that note!" Pauline got a conspiratorial look on her face and leaned in closer across the table. "Wanna come to a horse thing with me and ride Charlie?"
"Um, yes !" Jess leaned in too. "When?"
"Next weekend, it's a cross country eventing training course for newbies and green horses! I got a trailer, we just need a truck."
"I know people with trucks!" Jess said enthusiastically as the alcohol started to reach her cheeks with a happy glow.
"Exxxaccctlyyyy…" Pauline grinned. "Wanna see if we can borrow one?"
"I'll be right back!" Jess hopped up and was ducking through the busy bar.
Metal was enjoying himself, playing the same old role he usually did, making dark jokes and listening to stories. Their group had grown into quite the little party as some of the other teams joined them. A few were just back from deployment.
He caught Jess's approach before she got in earshot and decided against making the comment he'd been about to before. She didn't need to hear it.
"Heeeyyy!" Jess sat down next to him with a smile that instantly told him she wanted something and had been drinking enough to flush her cheeks. Good thing he was driving them home and not her.
"What do you want," He asked gruffly. With the other two teams hanging around he couldn't help it. He had a reputation to keep and they hadn't seen him interact with Jess that often. Some of them had never even met her yet.
Undeterred, Jess leaned her chin so it was framed with her palms and asked hopefully, "Can Pauline and I borrow your truck next weekend?"
The team guys around them had become quieter and quieter ever since she sat down, watching the exchange with growing shock and amazement.
Ignoring them, Metal growled, "Why."
He secretly adored that Jess didn't even falter, and was unbelievably proud of the growth and confidence.
"Because we need something to pull a horse trailer."
Knowing everyone was waiting with baited breath to see what he would say he took his time answering. None of them would ever have considered asking to take his truck, let alone use it to haul around horses.
Oblivious to it all, Jess sat with those big, hopeful eyes that didn't hold an ounce of fear or worry, totally ignoring the other people around them.
"Which one of you is driving?" He asked between a casual swig of the last of his beer.
"Both, probably. Pauline has more experience than me on the highway with a trailer, but I'm better at backing it up and turning around…and navigating."
"Horse better not kick my truck."
"Is that a yes?"
"Uh huh."
"Yay!" Jess was hopping up again and giving him a throttle hold hug around his neck and shoulders as she left before he could ward her off. "Thank you!"
And then just like that she was gone once more, leaving him with a small crowd of stunned frogmen.
Giving the whole lot of them a steely glare, he growled dangerously, "What?"
"What the hell just happened!?"
"Who the fuck was that?!"
"There's no way that was a girlfriend…"
"Was that the girl I heard rumors about? I thought that was a joke!"
Snorting and drinking his beer without a word, Metal ignored them all and let Sonny take over. The Texan was just itching to give this speech anyway.
"For those of you who don't know, that, gentlemen, was none other than our girl, Jess." Sonny announced just loud enough for them to hear and left the girl in question completely unaware. "Most of us call her a sister, others a daughter or a niece, but in all cases, it makes her entirely off limits. Anyone not respecting that will be met with the full wrath of not only Bravo Team, but Metal there will make sure the body is never found."
"Yeah. You thought he was a legend before?" Trent chimed in. "You don't wanna know what happens if someone makes a move on his little sister."
"Shit!" Echo team's newest recruit whispered.
"You already hit on her?!" Echo's Master Chief asked.
"A little." The kid had the brains to go a little white when Metal turned his glare on him. "I took the hint. I swear. She wasn't interested. I won't go near her again."
"Better not." Metal said with a warning edge. In all honesty the last thing he wanted for Jess was for her to end up with a frogman. She was strong, but she'd already been through hell.
Once things died down and attention was shifted, Jason casually made his way over and sat next to him, periodically casting a glance at Jess.
"She seems like she's doing well." Jason commented. He hadn't asked about Jess for days, and as far as anyone knew neither has spoken since the barn.
"Yeah, she is. You gonna at least say hi to her?"
"Already did." Jason brushed it aside quickly with a shrug. "Right before Ray and I joined you."
"You can't seriously call that talking to her, Jase," Ray chimed in with a low voice. "It was barely a 'hello' from you before you walked off."
"I told her I'd give her space, Ray," Jason all but snapped, "That's what I'm doing."
"She's gonna think you're mad at her." Ray muttered.
"We talked about it already!" Jason threw back under his breath. "I'm the one who screwed up. She's the one who's gotta make the call if she wants to let me back into her life. Until she makes that call, I'm keeping my distance."
Choosing not to comment at all, Metal went back to his drink and kept his opinions to himself. For now.