#ne're queue well

You were standing, talking to a neighbor excitedly about something he couldn’t make out, but he could see that you were smiling. 

You had adjusted to life in Pabu easier than the rest of them, trusting the people here immediately and wholeheartedly. Sure, the rest of the squad was opening up, too, but there was something nagging at the back of Hunter’s brain every time he watched you make a new acquaintance.

Your laugh caught his attention and he watched as your hand touched the man’s arm, steadying yourself. 

He heard Omega approach from his side. “Hunter?” she questioned, following his line of sight to you.

“Yeah?”

“Is everything okay?”

He briefly glanced down at her. “Yeah, everything is fine.”

Omega nodded, but her curious gaze stuck on him. “You’re doing it again.”

Hunter’s brow furrowed a little more. “What?”

She shrugged. “Echo told me I had to keep an extra eye on you because you do this thing where you stare at them looking all grumpy. He said that you were gonna scare them off.”

Hunter’s gaze finally fully shifted to her. “I don’t do that,” he protested, earning an incredulous look from his sister. 

“Why are you always so angry with them anyway? They’re really nice and funny-”

“I’m not angry,” Hunter interjected with a sigh. “I just think they trust too easily.”

“Oh,” Omega hummed, drawing out the vowel. “So you’re protecting them?”

A vague suspicion tagged at the back of his brain as her tone shifted, but he ignored it as he kept his eyes on you. “Sure.”

“You don’t watch Tech or Wrecker like this,” she pointed out.

Hunter sighed. “They don’t get into trouble as much.”

“Is that the only reason?”

“Omega,” Hunter warned.

“Don’t you trust them?”

“I do, but-”

“I think you like them.”

Hunter all but growled in frustration. “Look, sometimes you have to keep an eye on people you lo– people you care about to make sure that they’re okay.”

“So,” Omega murmured. “You do care about them.”

“Yes.”

“A lot?”

“Ye– they’re part of this squad.”

He wasn’t sure when exactly she had left his side, his attention focused on you as you accompanied the neighbor back through the streets of Pabu.

It had taken quite a bit of practice, but Omega was getting better at evading her brother’s heightened senses. She ducked underneath a wall with flowers growing out of it, whispering your name as you emerged from your new friend’s house.

“Omega?” you chuckled. “What are you doing?”

“Get down here!” she hissed, her tone setting off an alarm in your mind, but her grin soothing it.

You knelt down next to her. “What’s going on?”

“Remember that special mission?” she smiled, excitement permeating the air around her.

You eyed her suspiciously. “Omega-”

“I know you said to drop it,” she explained. “But I think I’ve made some progress!” 

You sighed, running a hand down your face as she continued.

“He only glares at you like that because he’s trying to protect you,” she informed you. “He thinks you get into trouble a lot, so he has to make sure you’re okay. But he said he cares about you a lot.”

You blinked at her, the information still processing.

“Why- why didn’t he come and talk to me himself?” you mumbled.

“Echo said it’s because he’s scared of you,” Omega stated, matter-of-factly. 

You scoffed. “Scared of me? Look at me, ‘Meg; I’m not exactly intimidating.”

“Perhaps not physically,” Tech suddenly appeared at the other side of the wall they were sitting against, startling you. “But given that Hunter has seldom cared for anyone outside of his siblings, it stands to reason that his affection for you feels unfamiliar and therefore, uncomfortable.”

Tech continued on to inform Omega about how she can improve at staying out of Hunter’s awareness as you sat, trying to absorb the information. One phrase hummed through your body on repeat. He cares about you.

As it neared sunset, you found yourself sitting on the edge of the dock, staring out at the horizon.

“Mind if I join you?” Hunter asked. You nodded with a small smile.

He sat next to you, mirroring the way your feet hung over the side. You sat there together in an easy silence, though you could tell he had something to say.

“Did Omega tell you I was here?” you prompted. Maybe you could draw something out of the terse sergeant.

“Uh, yeah,” he hummed. 

“So you came looking for me?”

He nodded, awkwardly sparing a glance towards you.

You smirked. “What can I do for you, Hunter?” 

He felt his body humming with electricity as you said his name. You have no idea the effect you have on me, he thought.

“No? Maybe you could tell me,” you suggested, watching his entire face bloom into a deep red as he realized he’d voiced what he meant to stay in his head. You set a hand gently on his knee, noting the tiny gasp he made. “I have it on pretty good authority that you care about me.”

Hunter swallowed. Omega was so grounded. 

“Perhaps our little double agent didn’t relay information back to you,” you mused. 

“No?” he nearly whispered.

“She told me how you feel, but I don’t think she told you how I feel,” you smiled, feeling your own cheeks warm under his intense gaze. 

Hunter’s mouth felt dry and his heart pounded against his ribcage. “And how do you feel?”

This was it. You had to say it now.

“To put it simply, I’m in love with you, Hunter.”

Time stopped around you, the ocean ceased its ebb and flow, the sun paused where it hung low in the sky. There was no sound but both of your heartbeats as you gazed at one another. Hunter’s mouth was parted in a tiny ‘o’ like he couldn’t believe what you’d just confessed.

Reality snapped back into place around you as he began to smile. He leaned towards you, one hand coming up to cup the side of your face. “I’m in love with you, too, mesh’la.”

Neither of you knew who’d closed the gap first, your lips slotting together in a deep and overdue embrace. He broke the contact first, resting his forehead against yours as he attempted to catch his breath. In this moment, it was just you and Hunter.

Neither of you heard the hoots and hollering of the rest of the squad.

Thanks for reading! - River

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