Selene blinked her eyes open, bracing herself for the bright sunlight she was accustomed to in her east-facing bedroom, but found only the dim emergency lights of the chamber. Where the hell was she? With the confusion of sleep still riding her she closed her eyes again and took a deep breath, mentally replaying the past day. Rocket… emergency… Moon… traitorus friends… evil glowing eyes… rock fall… chamber…
That was it, she was trapped in the centre of the oon like a bad sci-fi B-movie plot. Wasn't that just swell? Exactly what she needed, a nap sitting on the cold, hard ground. She gave an experimental wiggle but her butt was not as numb, nor as cold as she expected it to be. Chamber… rocks… floor… warm thing her cheek was currently pressed up against…JOHN!
Her eyes snapped open and she stiffened in shock. That was his warm, uniform-covered, chest she was currently drooling on. She glanced down even though she already knew what she would see. Yep, those with his firm thighs her not-so-firm gluteus maximus was perched upon. And yes, those were his strong, muscular -but not in an over-the-top bodybuilder way- arms encircling her waist, pinning her to said chest. This was not a drill. I repeat, this was not a drill.
She took a steadying breath, not wanting to disturb him since he had to be tireder than she was. He'd been the one to come out and rescue her and the band of idiots and deserved to get a little shut-eye. She needed to stay calm, if she moved she would think too much about where she was, but also how much she badly needed to find a bathroom that she was pretty sure didn't exist down here in the tunnels. Great, just fan-bloody-tastic.
What she needed was a distraction and, since she was not going anywhere any time soon, she might as well take advantage of the situation -not to mention her current lap-perched position- to indulge in a good old staring session. After all, she was never going to see him again, so she might as well look her fill and commit him to memory as best she could.
Up this close, she could see things she'd never noticed before, like the dusting of golden stubble that had formed on his cheeks and chin. And there, just on the side of his jaw, she spotted a tiny red mark where he must have nicked himself while shaving. She liked his jaw, it had a bony sharpness to it, as did his cheekbones and there was just a hint of a dip at the sides of his mouth where she knew little dimple indents formed when he smiled wide enough.
His chin was touching his chest, having drooped as he slept, and his hair, that thick, luscious hair that looked like it had been spun from gold and would feel like silk to the touch, had flopped forward. It was messier than it had been when she'd first seen him, even after he'd removed his helmet. That superhero curl at the front was a little less defined and not as sleek and her fingers itched to smooth it back into place.
The thought made her giggle to herself, a superhero curl on a real-life Superman. Because that's what he was to her. Sitting here on his lap, encircled in his protective arms, she felt truly safe for the first time in so long. Not just since this whole ordeal had started, but probably since she was a little girl on her daddy's knee. Women these days had to be so careful, they were taught to be suspicious of everyone, to remember that men might not always be who they said they were and that putting your trust in the wrong person could be so dangerous. And boy had she found that out with Atlas and Cosmo.
John was different though, she'd known instinctively with a bone-deep surety. She just knew that he'd never be one of those people who would lie to get what he wanted, he just radiated good-boy honesty with a straightforward attitude while still being sensitive and caring. He'd looked after her from the moment they had met, paying attention to her and seeming to know just what she needed to help get her through, which was more than the people she had called friends for years had done. Sure, he hadn't answered all her questions, but he'd been honest in telling her why and, even with that, over the time they had spent together she still felt like she'd gotten to know him well enough to make that judgement.
He still smelt great, even after a night spent in a cavern, and how unfair was that? She probably smelt like she'd done a six-hour workout in the gym, her perfume long since worn off and her deodorant giving up the battle, while his spicy aftershave had simply faded away, leaving his own manly musk to invade her nostrils with every breath she took. Damn him for being so bloody perfect but so bloody unobtainable.
She averted her eyes, looking up at the rocky ceiling. How much longer did they have together down here? Not long enough would be her guess.
How nice would it be to just stay there? Her heart and mind rebelled at the thought of being forced to give up someone who was so very new to her but that she just knew was so incredibly special. If it had been any other time, any other place, any other situation, then maybe it could have been different. Maybe if they had met before he'd joined up with his super secret organisation she would have been able to go along for the ride and stay with him. Maybe then she could have kept him.
She sighed deeply, looking back at his handsome face all relaxed in sleep. Could she not just pretend, just for a little while? Could she not keep him in her own mind, this spaceman who had flown her safely to the Moon before they had to go back? The thought, and indeed the whole sorry situation, reminded her of a song her grandparents used to like that had once been a favourite of hers and without realising it she began to hum the chorus bars, trying to remember the lyrics. It was oddly comforting, to break the almost oppressive silence created by the sheer amount of rocks surrounding them, making the place seem a little cosier somehow. That was good, she hated silence.
Not at all sleepy now and with the song still stuck in her head, she allowed herself to relax back into his embrace as much as she dared, not wanting to wake him because if he did the spell would be over and reality would come crashing back in. And she really didn't want to give up this feeling just yet.
-x-
Her soft humming, coupled with the comforting weight of her body nestled against his ensured that this time, when John awoke from his nap, it was a far more pleasant experience.
He kept his eyes closed, letting the sound of her voice, the little snatches of words she was quietly singing to herself, wash over him. He knew this couldn't last, but for one moment he allowed himself to imagine what it would be like to wake up with someone like her beside him. It was something he rarely allowed himself to dream about, he'd been too young to think about settling down when their father had first started building International Rescue, and then they had all been too busy to focus on anything else. It had been what they called a no-brainer for him to agree to their father's proposition, just as all his brothers had. They wanted to do good, to help people, so removing themselves from the world they were trying to save had been a price they were all more than willing to pay. But that didn't stop him from dwelling on what-ifs when the radio waves were silent and he was all alone in the darkness of space. When it was just him and the stars for company, then he allowed himself to think, to wonder, to dream the seemingly impossible dream.
Waking up like this with Selene snuggled securely in his arms was nice. In fact, it was more than nice, it was something that warmed him from the inside out. Like something that had been missing from his life had been found, albeit for far too brief a period, and he was loathe to do anything to ruin the moment.
So he lay there, as still as he could, eyes closed, listening to her voice, his brain picking out certain words and phrases that he tried to commit to memory, something about friends deserting her, packing a bag for outer space and the Moon. He didn't recognise the song but it had a nice melody to it. Sometimes she'd sing a few lines, then she'd fall back into humming that which she didn't know, the result being a mishmash that made absolutely no sense to him but that he was content to listen to regardless until the ache in his neck grew too much and he was forced to lift his head from its forward flop, giving up the pretence.
She stopped immediately, stiffening on his lap, and damn did he hate that he had been the one to ruin the moment.
"John? Are you awake?" she kept her voice pitched low, as if not wanting to disturb him if he was still asleep, a courtesy he wasn't used to with four siblings.
Slowly he opened his eyes, taking in the embarrassed flush on her face, her mussed hair and wide eyes. She looked so beautiful that he couldn't help but smile. "Hi."
Seeing his smile conjured up an answering one of her own. "Morning," she murmured. "Or is it night? Afternoon maybe? How do we tell down here?"
She was so adorable that he instinctively tightened his arms around her, pulling her closer to his chest where she had leaned away. He didn't know why he did it and he knew once they got out of here and he was back in normal territory he would kick himself for it, but at that moment in time, he couldn't care less. She wasn't pulling away, in fact, she had nestled closer, almost burrowing into his embrace. That had to mean she was okay with it, right? It was just a comfort thing, he was just doing his job, making sure that she was alright…
"I said thank you for making my night a little more comfortable," Selene repeated, staring up at him with those big blue eyes of hers, all wide and innocent, locked onto his own.
"Oh, you-you're welcome. I mean, you were shivering and I didn't want you to get too cold so I-" he was rambling, he knew that, and cut himself off before he said anything he would regret.
"Well, whatever the reason, I appreciate it," she continued, her mouth curving into a hesitant smile that drew his eyes down to her full, lush lips. They looked so inviting. It would be so easy to…
As he lowered his head, she lifted hers, their thoughts, their desires, their needs, in sync. What could one kiss hurt? They were both adults, they both knew what they were doing and surely, in a situation like this, it wasn't that unusual? She'd looked so hurt last time when he'd pulled away and he refused to do it a second time. They would never see each other again, that was a certainty, but would it hurt to give her a pleasant memory to offset the negative ones?
Keeping one arm loosely around her waist, giving her enough freedom to move if she so desired, he allowed his splayed hand to drift up the length of her spine, loving the way she shivered lightly from the contact, until his fingers could slide into her silky hair, cradling the back of her neck. She leaned into his hand, tipping her head back further in a blatant offer.
He knew he shouldn't do it, knew that if his dad ever found out he'd be in for the dressing down of a lifetime, but he found it hard to care. He was forever doing things for others, and he liked doing them, he was proud of the work they did, but he also knew what he had given up to do so. Was it so wrong to want this one, tiny, thing for himself? To allow himself to feel like a regular guy for a few hours? To allow himself to imagine what it would be like to not have to worry about secrecy and just let himself enjoy the moment? He wanted to know what her lips felt like, Were they as soft as they looked? As welcoming as he dreamed? He'd never see her again, he knew that, he wasn't deluded enough to believe otherwise, he just wanted this one time. Once would be enough. It had to be.
As if sensing his lingering hesitation she made the move for them.
"Is this okay?" she murmured, her lips brushing his whisper-soft, like the fluttering of a butterfly's wings.
"Very," he whispered back, closing the remaining distance as he pressed his lips to hers.
She sighed softly, melting against his chest, her arms winding around his neck to pull him closer, her lips yielding to his. He closed his eyes, savouring the moment, the feeling of rightness and wonder. This was it, this was what he had been missing for so long. And she was right there with him, ready to drown in a kiss that he knew would be something special. He parted his lips in anticipation, their breath mingling, breathing as one. Just a little more, just a taste.
"This is Thunderbird Five calling John, do you read me?"
They sprang apart guiltily when Alan's voice, sounding so loud in the silence, echoed around the tunnel.
John's hand dropped from her neck as if burnt and he grabbed for the radio, almost fumbling it in his haste to answer before Alan could suspect something was amiss and call again.
"This is John, reading you strength three."
"There you are," Alan replied as if John may have popped out to the store for snacks and just gotten back. "I've got news."
"What is it?" John almost growled, wanting to scream at his brother for his terrible timing as he felt Selene withdraw from him, shuffling sideways off his lap as if needing to put distance between them once again.
"Wow, someone woke up grumpy this morning," Alan teased.
"Yes, anyone would think that sleeping sitting up on a rock floor would be a more restful experience," John grumbled, refusing to be drawn into Alan's games. "You said you had news?"
"I didn't bother waking you earlier as it seemed like a waste of time, but Virgil arrived just over an hour ago and is ready in the Mole."
"Really? He's here already?" John didn't know if he sounded relieved or disappointed but didn't want to examine it too closely.
"Yep, he just needs to know where to aim for. Can you give us some clue as to where you are?"
John looked around as if some handy dandy signpost might have sprung up magically overnight, but as he suspected there was nothing. Just rock walls and more rock walls, with a rocky ceiling to top it off.
"I know we're somewhere off the main shaft to the right," John mused, trying to think. "I know we ran down one tunnel and into another before we came across the Hood's little package, but after that I don't remember much, we just ran out of there, I'm not sure which way, and then everything around us exploded and collapsed."
"So… what you're saying is that you could be anywhere off of the main shaft?" Alan asked.
"Yes," John reluctantly confirmed.
"Virgil can't just dig around until he finds you, the miners have already reported several new collapses and pockets of structural weakness. If he takes out any load-bearing walls, none of which we can currently confirm given the state of the place, he could trigger a chain reaction that could trap you even deeper or worse." He left that last bit hanging, not needing to spell out just how much worse it could be for them.
"I know that," John assured him, it wasn't like he could have forgotten. "What we need is some way to get a signal out to him."
"Can that radio send one?" Alan asked. Selene leaned in a little closer again, her eyes on the radio as if it were their salvation.
"No," John said with a sigh. "It's on a closed circuit, it's only able to broadcast now because I cannibalised my watch to do it. Without some kind of transmitter, there's nothing we can-" John paused. "Transmitter."
"Did you think of something?" Selene asked, but he was too busy fumbling through his pockets, looking for something.
"John?" Alan called out, concerned by the silence.
"Please let it be here," John muttered as he searched first one pocket, then the other. It was so small it could have fallen out at any point during their run through the tunnels, and if it had there was little hope they could find it.
"John, what are you looking for?" Selene asked. "Can I help?"
John continued to dig through the hidden pocket on the back of his sash, yelling in triumph when he felt the small, round, pea-sized object he had been searching for. He held it up for her inspection.
"A mint? You were looking for a mint?"
"Not a mint," he informed her as he popped it in his mouth, allowing the protective coating to dissolve on his tongue for a moment to activate the miniature device, before swallowing. "An edible transmitter."
"Of course!" Alan cheered. "Why didn't I think of that?"
"Because it's you?" John teased, the feeling of relief dispelling some of the tension in the air. "Can you track it?"
"Checking now," Alan assured him, already pulling up the feed on another screen. "Got you! Sending the signal to Virgil, he'll be able to pinpoint your location from the Mole. We'll have you out of there before you know it."
"Good to know, guess we'll be seeing him soon."
"Sure will, but keep this channel free just in case. I'll catch you later," Alan said, cutting the connection.
"And we're back to waiting," Selene said as she shifted backwards so her back was propped up against the wall, not sure what to do or say now that their bizarre entrapment was nearly over, let alone address the fact that they had just kissed. How awkward was that? She was avoiding his eyes, knowing that if she looked at him she would say something she probably shouldn't, like beg him to tell her his name, give her his number, call her when he had vacation time, and honestly, she'd like to keep what little dignity she had left.
John pocketed the radio, "I guess so." What else was there for him to say? She had just made her stance pretty clear by putting as much distance between them as she could without moving to the other side of the tunnel.
Had their kiss been that bad? Sure they had been interrupted before they had really begun, but he'd found it more than pleasant. Was she regretting it now that rescue was on the way and she would soon be on her way back to earth? Had he been nothing but a comforting distraction? The idea of that hurt more than he cared to admit.