Ghost scrunches his nose in frustration. "Kyle, is now really the time fo-"

"But we get there, and we find that there you were, dropped off at God knows what hour and waiting at the sidelines for somebody to come and get you. Looking like a lost kid on the first day of school," Gaz glances back over his shoulder and smirks at Ghost. "Not that you'd ever admit that."

Ghost scoffs, reaching behind him to grab more tape to wrap the bandages up with. "That's cause I wasn't lost. Was just waiting on one of the useless lackeys to tell me where my bloody quarters were."

He takes one more glance over the supplies laid out on the table, running through the checklist ingrained in his head before getting to work. Luckily, it seemed like the bullet hadn't hit anything severe, just nipping his right shoulder and passing through the other side.

It still seemed like it took a lot out of the sergeant. Med evac not an option as they were waist deep in hostile territory, all they could do for the time being was wrap him up to slow the bleeding and push on. With them finally in the safe house, all the fight and adrenaline leaving his body left Gaz looking more haggard by the minute.

"You know it's rather funny," Gaz continues, "when the Cap'n told me to keep an open mind when meeting you guys, I figured he was going on about harsh personalities and butting heads. Imagine my surprise when we enter the complex, and he introduces me to a towering lieutenant with a skull for a face."

"What, costume-making not a part of your manual?" Ghost fires back.

Gaz snickers. "No. But then again, none of the other shit we deal with is either now is it," he winces under his breath as Ghost applies pressure to the wound. "I still remember our first actual conversation. It was late at night, I couldn't sleep, first day nerves and all, and I figured a late night jog might tire me out. 'Remember this nagging feeling, like something was watching me from the shadows. I get myself so worked up over it that by the time I'm making my way back around to the barracks and I spot that skull watching me in the dark, I bloody screamed!" Gaz laughs, "the sorriest fuckin' scream, you 'member that?"

Ghost hums along to the story, his majority of his focus on patching up Gaz adequately enough until he can get him proper medical treatment. He should be fine, really. He's seen plenty of soldiers make it out of the battlefield with far, far worse. But he still can't shake the feeling of unease that sits in his stomach, his hands trembling as he wraps the bandage around his shoulder.

Maybe it's because he partially blames himself for Gaz getting hurt. Maybe he should've taken the lead down that alleyway, double-checking their six for the both of them like he should have done. Maybe he made the wrong call, a minor slip up that now resulted in his comrade, the rock that held the 141 together, slowly bleeding out in a rickety chair some miles out from the nearest hospital.

"Ghost? You still with us?"

"Right, yeah. Solid. Continue," Ghost startles.

"I asked you a question, mate! I'll take the lack of response as a 'no' then." Ghost eyes him quizzically, and Gaz clicks his tongue before explaining. "Was asking you if you were ever going to quit smoking, eh? Go full cold turkey?"

Oh great, this again. At least Gaz isn't as hounding on him about the matter as Laswell is. "Same answer as before, if I make it to retirement. Why bring it up now?"

"It's one of the first things we talked over," Gaz shrugs, or rather, tries to shrug. "I asked what on bloody Earth you were doing, stalking around the place like a damn ghoul. You didn't say much, just offered me a cigarette to make up for being a damn creep."

"That's right," Ghost reminisces. "You turned me down. Said that out of everything out here, the last thing that was going to kill you would be a nicotine addiction." He laughs bitterly. The joke hits a little too close to home now with the circumstances they're in.

"Yeah, and you told me you didn't want to share anyway… you really know how to make a first impression, don't you?" Gaz absentmindedly rubs at his shoulder while the bandages are applied to his wound.

It's not perfect, but it should hold him over until exfil can get them outta here. It better, at least. Ghost's eyes trace over the trail of blood leading from the doorway over to the table they're sat at. He notices how his hands shake as he wraps the tape around the bandage, and he has to take a deep, steadying breath. He chastises himself for letting his emotions get the best of him now.

"I'll tell you, I'll never forget my first impression of you that day. Here I thought you might be cold, standoffish, and distant, which you can be," he tosses a smirk back at Ghost. "But that night, after an hour of chatting over the horrid smell of smoke you left, I remember seeing just a little bit of that shell of yours crack… and seeing a little bit of the man you really were sneak out from behind that mask. You remember what we talked about?"

Of course he did. He recalls so clearly how laid bare and afraid he had been that first day. Still remembers the trepidation and fear he felt at having to expose himself, leave himself vulnerable under the snare of a new team.

"You asked me if I could really trust you," Gaz continued. "Big, domineering guy with a fucking face mask and all. And I said yeah, I would. If Price chose you, then knew I could trust you… And that was the first time I saw that wall you built to protect yourself come down for just a second."

Ghost swallows harshly. God, he's fucked up big time. He let one of the few people he loves, one of the few people who truly sees him for who he is, get hurt.

Gaz slowly turns around in the chair to face Ghost now, leaning against the table for support. "I meant it then, and I mean it now Simon. Don't think that this-" he gestures to the wound "-changes anything. I know you've got my back, and I've got yours. On and off field. For life mate."

He bumps Ghost's shoulder with his uninjured arm. "So quit you're bloody sulking, Simon. I'm going to be fine, it barely grazed my shoulder. Sides, I've dealt with far worse," he fixes him with a cheeky grin. "I swear I can still feel the pain in my back some days from that damned helicopter rope."

Ghost has to take a second to look away from that blinding smile on his face. Fuck if those sincere words were actually getting to him a little bit. It was probably just what Ghost needed to hear, though he'd hate to admit. He still felt some responsibility for the situation, but the honesty did help to curb some of the shuddering and self loathing still running through him.

Always the levelheaded one of the group, somehow Gaz always knew the way to ground everyone back to reality.

Ghost turns back to him. "Yeah…you're probably right. That back's going to give out on you years ahead of Price, I'll bet."

Gaz chortles softly, the edges of his eyes wrinkle beautifully. "Oh, I'm sure you'd love to see it. Just dying for your biggest completion on the task force to get knocked down a peg, are you?"

"Course not, if you go down then that'd just leave me with Soap!"

The two men let out their own broken laughs then. Ghost's comes out harshly and Gaz's comes out clipped, sounding exhausted as he winces toward the end.

"Thanks for humoring me with the story, Simon… You did good…." His head starts dipping lower onto the table. "Fucking hell, I'm getting tired.."

"Keep upright, Sergeant," Ghost barks. "Need to see that you make it to evac." As his head dips lower, Ghost harshly slaps at Gaz's cheek.

He jumps back up for a moment in the chair. "S-sorry! Sorry! Fuck, I'm just bloody tired."

"I know. Just keep upright Gaz, you'll get to rest later." Ghost speaks softly, trying to keep the worry out of his voice.

"Gaz, stay upright," he says louder a few minutes later.

"Gaz! That's an order!"

"Kyle!"

……….

"Doctor, he's not going to make it! He's lost so much blood. It's only a matter of time befo-"

"I'm not giving up on him yet, Grace! Richard! Prep trauma! We'll be cutting it close, but if we can stabilize him enough to-"

*Click*

"-ith of the spotted cubs along the ice shelf. He hurriedly hops along the snowy tundra… just behind his brothers and sisters back to their mother."

Yeah, that's much better.

Gaz relaxes back into the hospital bed, throwing the remote to the side and reaching over to dig out the pudding cup Price stashed for him later. He breaks the seal on the plastic cover and digs in while a sea lion cub cuddles into its mother's side for warmth. He sighs into the first chocolaty mouthful. It was the cheap, rubbish kind, but God did it hit the spot after the last couple of days he's had.

It killed him to be stuck here one more night. The clinical tang of hospitals and the unease that hang in the air always put Gaz on edge. There wasn't much he could do while he waited either. There were only so many hours of sleep he could do in the day to pass the time, and his team had all been called away by work today.

The task force visited him when they could, all three being the first thing he saw when he woke up after his procedures. Since then, they've popped in here and there, helping him pass the time by talking or playing cards late into the night.

Well, all of them except Ghost. The lieutenant still hadn't been down since that first day. Not that Gaz held him to it or anything though. He's sure he's been busy with all kinds of tasks and debriefings back at base. And if he really gave it some thought, Gaz had a sneaking suspicion that Ghost still felt some responsibility for what had happened, and was avoiding Gaz because of it.

Bloody drama queen.

He's the reason he's still here in the bloody first place! Ghost had his six the entire way through, kept the hostiles at bay and guided them out of the damn city. That patch up at the safehouse giving him just enough time to make it out until he got help. Hell, he even resuscitated Gaz when he went under for a brief moment.

How one of the top SAS soldiers in the field and one of the deadliest soldiers in the world could be such an oblivious fool is beyond him. Gaz set the empty container on the end table. Well, there's no sense in stressing over it now. He'll just have to pull him to the side when he gets back to base and have a heart-to-heart. Maybe thanking him for keeping him alive will be enough to snap him out of it.

A few more hours of flipping through channels later, and Gaz figures it's about time he try and get some shut-eye. The lights are all dimmed down by now, and only the beeping of machines and the occasional shuffle of a nurse outside are the only sounds left in the hall.

Gaz is just feeling the edges of sleep take over him when suddenly the door to his unit creaks open.

He stifles a groan rising in his throat and opts to definitely keep his back turned away from the door and feign sleep. Who on Earth would be bothering him at this hour?

Several beats of silence pass, and Gaz starts to wonder if he made up the whole thing before the slow creak of the door closing echoes in the room.

His guest stands still for a moment before stepping lightly to one of the chairs in the corner and sitting down directly behind him.

Greaat. He's got a damn serial killer watching over him while he sleeps now. Gaz is halfway through debating if he should act on instinct and call for someone, but then a voice disrupts his thinking.

"I do remember that first day."

Gaz opens his eyes. Ghost?

"You asked if I remembered the first day we met." He hears him shuffle in his seat. "I remember everything about that day."

"I was a Ghost. More so than just the namesake. Deployed wherever they needed me by whoever without a care in the world. And I preferred it that way, no being tied down, no broken promises and false hopes, and definitely no growing close with anyone." Gaz hears him laugh dryly. "Quite the way to live, isn't it?"

Gaz doesn't respond. He weighs his options, letting him continue while Gaz fakes being asleep feels like a bit of an intrusion, but this is also one of the few times Ghost has opened up to him like this. Gaz decides he doesn't want to break the spell.

"So it was no surprise to me when, the heads in charge essentially jumped at the chance to hand me off to some new captain and rid their hands clean of me. That's how I found myself dropped off hours before anyone else, left to sit on the sidelines until my new orders came in… And no, I really wasn't lost. My people didn't bother to send in the right paperwork, so I was left waiting for Price to clear the issue. Bet you feel bad now, you arsehole," Gaz feels Ghost lightly kick the bed-end with his foot.

Okay. Yeah, he did actually feel bad now for that jab earlier.

"I got told the same spiel about 'butting heads' and other crap, but Price gave me a little ribbing as well. He said 'Now Simon, I want you to know these are good people I've chosen to join the task force.'-" Ghost mimics the Captain's gruff voice. "-'I trust these men with my life, including you. Now I won't ask too much of you, but I want you to know that they have my seal of approval, and it is my hope that you can maybe gain learn something from working with this crew.' One thing I learned so far is that the Scottish are shit at making a cup'a tea."

Gaz nearly breaks his composure at that comment, all of his military training coming in clutch to keep from laughing.

"I do remember our first handshake. I still held the belief that I'd be sent off to some shithole somewhere by myself again, so I didn't bother much with formalities. Still though, you and Soap, you guys had every right to be put off by my demeanor those first few days. But you both met me with the warmest eyes regardless, like a couple of sappy dogs you two are."

Well look who's the sappy one over here, waxing poetry over their first few days as a team. Gaz is savoring every second of it though. He knew the man had a caring side to him, and it feels great to be vindicated as Ghost pours his heart out into the dark.

"And how could I forget our first actual conversation?! I'd never forget that squeal you let out when you finally saw me." Ghost chuckles.

Maybe he spoke too soon.

"Okay, but seriously though," Ghost straightens up, "I actually remember our conversation very fondly. I asked you why you were running so late in the middle of the night and you told me how you couldn't sleep. You opened up about all the things eating away at you and all the fears plaguing you, sounded awfully too similar to mine. And I gave you some advice of my own, which you happily accepted… all except the cigarette. Speaking of which, I could really fucking go for right now, but I won't, just this once for you. Hope you're happy."

Gaz accepts the small victory. He'll take them where he gets them.

"But yeah, I still remember all the stories you told me. Your journey and how you got onto the taskforce, what you hoped to find under Price's command, and how you thought you'd found it… I didn't open up much to you that night. Couldn't. But I want you to know that that back and forth with you, was some of the first /real/ banter I'd had with someone in what felt like years."

There's a long pause as Ghost gathers his thoughts. "You know I um- I think after everything that happened to me all those years ago, -well not think, I know- I know that it takes a lot for me to put my faith in other people. To feel confident enough to let that shell a'mine come down. And joining the 141, fucking hell, everything was screaming at me not to. Yelling at me that it would all just happen all over again or that-" Ghost's voice falters. "Joining the 141, it was my first time in a long while in a more permanent team. It was my biggest fear, taking the chance on someone new. I had to spend months relearning how to trust a people again… But you made it easier."

Gaz feels a pang in his chest. He's glad he's turned away from Ghost at this moment, he wouldn't really know what to say. He blinks a slight bit of wetness away from his eyes.

"That night, conversation with you just flowed so easily. I wasn't sure if I was capable of having a heart-to-heart to someone with someone anymore, but we did. And when you answered that you trusted me after all that, I think I realized that maybe I could eventually let my guard down. Fix that broken patch in my psyche and learn to trust people wholeheartedly again."

Gaz is at a loss for words. All he can think of is that it's been an honor to be a part of the remedy that helped Simon Riley come back to the world of the living.

"Anyways, all this to say that maybe you caught on that I was a kicking myself over what transpired. And you're right, it happens all the time with no warning for guys like us, you know, I just- -It still kills me to see you guys, any of you guys injured under my watch."

Gaz feels Ghost's hand, his ungloved hand, pat his side. "You all are good men. Some of the best men I've come to know. You guys took me, me in, of all people, and showed me what trust looked like again. You all deserve to see to the end of this taskforce and to see your... your sappy fucking sunsets on your bloody porch swings while you're old and graying." Oh God, did he hear Ghost just sniffle? "So maybe the other day I worried that that would get taken from you and I got scared. Doesn't matter anyway though, does it? You're here in one piece, and I was worrying my arse off for nothing. It's good to see you healthy again Sergeant, rest easy mate."

Ghost gently bumps his fist on Gaz's side again before turning away. Gaz almost wants to let him walk out of the room, but part of him feels as if he has to say something to the bloke after all of that heartfelt confession. Maybe some of Soap's eccentricities are starting to rub off on him.

"That was beautiful Simon," he says simply.

And yeah, it's a little evil after the speech that was just said, but flipping over and seeing that 'deer caught in the headlights' look on Ghost's face is still priceless.

"Fuuucking Hell, were you listening the whole time you daft bastard?!"

"'Fraid so sir."

"Right, well- -you've heard enough then, haven't you?" Ghost glares at Gaz, somehow it doesn't hold as much weight as it usually does. "Get some rest then, and heal up good. Cause the next time a bullet hits you, I'm letting you bleed out."

Ghost just about stomps to the door, but before he can slam it shut Gaz calls out to him. "Ay Simon!"

That skull mask peaks around the doorway.

"I'm glad you trust us. And I'm glad you're on the force, wouldn't want it without ya."

It's dark, so it's hard to tell, but it seems like the scowl behind the mask softens just the slightest bit.

"You too. Night Kyle."

~~~~~~~~~~