itâs almost comical. four of the most dangerous men in the world, the infamous 141, crammed into a pastel pink nursery, standing shoulder to shoulder as they surround a stout, handmade crib, staring down at the babbling babe inside. sheâs precious. the sweetest creature any of them have ever seen, with johnâs nose and your frown, chin slick with drool, her sparse tufts of hair sticking out every which way. five weeks old, and she already has them all wrapped around her chubby fingers.
âsheâs fuckinâ perfect, capân,â kyle murmurs, grinning so hard it must hurt his cheeks.
john smiles just as wide, his pride a tangible thing. even the sleepless nights and the stress of a newborn couldnât dull it. it suits him, all this newfound domesticity. they can all remember a time that the captain abhorred the very thought of it, wouldâve scoffed if you told him what would become of him. that was before you, before her. âisnât she? she looks just like her ma.â
âthank god for that.â simon bites, though even heâs gentled himself in the presence of such innocence. john pretends not to notice how heâs looking at johnny, how the lieutenantâs hand lingers on his loverâs arm as the scot coos at the baby. itâs not so scary, he wants to tell him. itâs nothing like they feared it would be.
johnny claps his captain on the shoulder, misty-eyed and starlit. âyou did good, olâ man. weâre proud of you.â
âthanks, sunshine.â john squeezes his scruff, his chest warming at his words. it means more to him than he can say, that pride. it means the fucking world. âmâglad sheâll have you, all of you.â
âshe will.â simon vows, stern, final. âso will you, and the missus. youâll always have us, capân.â
heâs never doubted that, not for a moment. they have, and always will be, johnâs. just like you, just like this little life youâve created. not even the devil could take them from him.
although, âthereâs sumthinâ i ought tell you,â heâs been avoiding it. not because heâs afraid, or because he regrets it, but because john priceâs never been very good at change. but heâs learning. sometimes, all you need is a leap of faith. now heâs finding his footing on the other end of that chasm. it isnât so bad, with you around to stabilize him.
âiâm gettinâ out. i signed the papers monday morning.â
simonâs the only of them who isnât surprised. his lips twitch into what could almost be called a smile. pride, is what it is.
kyleâs brows raise, his gaze soft, gentle but mournful. understanding, but still dejected. his first boy, his sweet gaz. he knew heâd take it the hardest. âyeah?â
âyeah. iâve got new orders, straight from the top. a new mission. sheâs it. theyâre it.â
for a moment, itâs silent, but itâs not loaded. not the settling of dust in a formerly active war-zone, just the sun setting over something thatâs long since due. itâs his boys coming to terms with the fact that theyâll have to fight the good fight without him from now on. but heâll still be here. his home will always be theirs, a soft spot to land when itâs time to shed the kevlar and fatigues.
itâs johnny who breaks it, of course. heâs a mouth almost as big as his heart, that one. âgood for you. you deserve itâall of it.â
âso do they,â simon adds, nodding at the angel-faced infant. him and john both know, better than most, that you cannot have just one foot in. itâs all or nothing. heâll never be able to walk onto the field with the same confidence again, without fearing for what heâs leaving behind. that sortâve second guessing is what gets people killed. and he wonât be the one to tell you your husbandâs dead.
john looks to kyle then, and the sergeant softens. âmâhappy for you,â he means it, too. johnâs done more for this service than any of them. johnnyâs right, he deserves this. every beautiful, hard-earned bit of it.
his daughter chooses that moment to stir, emitting a wail so loud that it seems to rattle the very walls. john only laughs, cooing at her as she wriggles and fusses, reaching into the cot to pick her up. johnny grins gleefullyâheâs been waiting weeks to meet her, after all. they all have.
âoh, i know, i hear you. were you feelinâ left out, sweet girl? is that it?â
âi told you not to wake her up,â the sergeants jerk like children caught with their hands in the cookie jar, wide-eyed and contrite, as they see you standing in the doorframe, arms crossed over your chest, despite the sheen of amusement in your eyes.
âi didnât!â john protests, though the grin heâs fighting does nothing to argue his innocence. âshe wanted to say hello to her uncles, is all,â
âmm. mâsure she did.â your front doesnât last long. in fact, it crumbles the second john steps forward to press his lips to yours, ignoring kyle and johnnyâs playful gagging. you melt into it, baby smushed happily between the two of you, grabbing at fistfuls of your hair and babbling senselessly at her parents.
john heads down the stairs after detangling your locks from her eager fingers, with two of three soldiers hot on his heels. you linger, waiting for simon, smiling gently when the lieutenant makes his way to you to wrap an arm around your shoulders.
âalright, si?â
âyeah, love, mâgood.â his eyes crinkle as the sound of johnnyâs sweet laughter filters through the house, following by johnâs instructions to be careful of her head! itâs a far cry from the gunfire and carnage the 141âs so accustomed to. itâs a nice change. it heals something in him, cauterizes a wound thatâs been bleeding for far too long. he has john to thank for that. and you, most of all. youâve made a home, not only for yourself, your husband, and your child, but for this rag-tag family you inherited along the way.
âyouâll take care of him for us?â
âalways.â you promise, and he knows it to be true. they kept john alive long enough to get him here. now, itâs all up to you.
the lieutenant has no doubts that youâll do right by his captain, as you always have.
















