#tlcinbflo

The battle had nearly gone sideways after that. The eirochs were, for whatever reason, more interested in attacking the Pathfinder team than the kett, and one of them had grabbed Jaal and nearly broken his leg before Scott and Cora had rescued him at the last second with a biotic combo. They’d all had to focus their attention on taking out the attacking beasts first, which had given the Kett time to regroup and lock themselves into the various prefabs scattered around the area.

SAM had gotten all the door unlocked by the time all the creatures were dead, of course, but the eirochs and adhi hadn’t gone down without a fight, and most of them were bruised and bitten by the time they turned their focus to taking out the kett holed up in the buildings.

That hadn’t gone as smoothly as they would’ve liked either; one of the doors was rigged with explosives by some kett willing to die if it meant taking them out. The explosion didn’t kill them, thanks to Cora and Peebee hastily throwing up some shields, but Scott had still been thrown back about 15 feet and Liam had to be retrieved from the battlefield by Vetra when he started to show signs of a concussion after the blast knocked him back against a kett rover.

By the time the last kett was dead they were ill-tempered and exhausted, all of them covered in various bruises, blood, and scrapes, and most were so tired that the Tempest had to fly in to retrieve them, rather than just shuttling the team back to their own temporary camp with the Nomad and resting there.

Lexi was waiting in the cargo bay when they all limped in, and had nearly had a conniption when she saw the state they were in. She’d even called Suvi in to help her patch up the worst of their injuries, while Scott told Kallo to head for the Nexus. They literally trusted Lexi with their lives but she was just one doctor with limited supplies versus a very battered team.

By the time they got back to the Nexus and had gotten everyone patched up to the joint satisfaction of Dr. T’Perro and Dr. Carlyle nearly six hours had passed since the battle had ended, and Cora and Scott were nearly dead on their feet. They opted to go to Scott’s rarely used apartment rather than make the trek back to the Tempest, where they’d been for the past hour. The apartment went largely unused, but there were times like now that they were both very thankful that he had it.

They’d spent about fifteen minutes of that hour lounging on his couch before getting up and into the shower that they were currently enjoying, keeping each other upright as they scrubbed away sweat, blood, and who the hell knew what else off of their body, all the while being mindful of each others bruises and scrapes, and though being under the hot water had woken them up a little their mutual weariness was still evident.

Again, the shower had probably lasted too long already but damned if they hadn’t earned it.

Scott had pulled her close once they were both clean enough and she’d been leaning against him for the past few minutes as they stood under the warm spray of water, her head against his chest as she listens to the soft beat of his heart. Scott’s head was currently resting on top of hers, and if it weren’t for him frequently nuzzling his cheek into her hair she might’ve thought he’d fallen asleep where he stood.

One of them probably would doze off if they didn’t get out soon but the warm water feels fantastic against her sore body and she’s seeing very little appeal to withdrawing from Scott’s embrace, as enticing as the thought of going to sleep might be at that moment. Scott likewise seems to be in no hurry to move, holding her close as he gently sways the two of them in place, and letting out a happy little sigh when she presses a soft kiss to his wet collarbone.

Eventually Scott stirs against her, moving his head back just far enough to brush his lips against her forehead. She smiles as she watches him; his eyes are shut, a look of pure contentment on his face as he steps closer to her, gently nudging his nose against hers as he leans down and presses a warm kiss to her lips.

Cora hums softly as she reciprocates, and the kiss is sloppy and unhurried and still so perfect. He reaches up to rub his hands along her shoulders when he finally draws back again, flashing her a smile as she lays her head against his shoulder.

Scott turns to kiss her cheek, nuzzling their heads together. She feels his hands slide from her shoulders and down along the slight curve her back, stopping just above her backside, but his movements are slow and almost lazy. There’s no obvious intent behind the touches even as he pulls her a little closer to him, his palms sliding towards her hips and up along her sides, and Cora squirms when the light brushes from his fingertips started to tickle.

She raises her head from his shoulder to look at him, smiling when she sees that it takes Scott several seconds to respond, slowly blinking his eyes open to meet her gaze. “Hm?”

“What’re you doing?”

“Struggling to stay awake, mostly..”Scott mumbles before he leans his head back down, eyes closing as he nuzzles his forehead against hers, and his hands stroke her sides before settling once more on the curve of her hips. “You’re really soft..”

“Probably because I’m soaking wet,” Cora replies before she can catch herself, and she tries not to roll her eyes when Scott raises his head up again, opening his eyes as he gives her a borderline lecherous grin. “Don’t flatter yourself, pal. The shower gets all the credit this time.”

“Aww.. Not even partial credit for me?” Scott asks with a half-wounded look, and Cora huffs out a laugh, shaking her head before she kisses him again. Scott pouts a little as she draws back, though it doesn’t last long before he’s smiling again. “Fine, but in my defense I’m running on fumes right now..”

“You and me both, sweetheart,” Cora replies before a yawn escapes her, as if admitting that she was exhausted had reminded her body just how long and bruising their day had been. Scott hums softly in reply, kissing her nose again before he steps away to shut the water off. They forego grabbing their fresh change of clothes, instead just toweling themselves off enough so that they wouldn’t drip any water onto the floor before the two of them exit the bathroom, making a beeline for the bed across the room.

Scott flops down onto the mattress first as soon as Cora pulls back the blanket, stretching out across his side with a satisfied groan as she settles in beside him. They scoot towards each other immediately and Scott pulls her close as she tucks herself up against his side, laying her head on his shoulder. He presses his head close to hers, breathing in the scent of shampoo still clinging to her damp hair before kissing her forehead. Cora tilts her head back to look up at him, cupping his stubbled cheek in her hand and smiling as he leans into the contact.

“Wouldn’t mind sleeping for the next twenty-four hours,” Scott mumbles after Cora draws her hand back, sitting up just enough to pull the blankets over their bare bodies and Cora closes her eyes, humming a soft agreement. They probably could, with no pressing missions lined up for tomorrow, but her internal clock hadn’t let her sleep in since she was a teenager. But if nothing else she could at least enjoy a day of just lounging around with the man she loved.

Scott exhales deeply, his own eyes sliding shut as he snuggles down into the bed, his left arm coming up to wrap around her middle and hold her against him, and Cora can’t help but smile at how secure and safe she feels right now in his arms. She presses herself closer to Scott, one hand coming up to rest against his chest, her fingers tracing random patterns until it draws a low, content grunt from him.

She’s almost asleep when Scott lets out a soft noise, starting to stir beside her. “How’d I get so lucky?” he mutters into her ear, and Cora tilts her head to look up at him again. A sleep smile tugs at his mouth but his eyes are still closed, and now she’s wondering if he even knows he’s speaking out loud. It wasn’t the first time he’d talked to her while half-asleep. “Most amazing woman in two galaxies.. falls for a dope like me..”

Cora watches him for another moment, looking for any sign that he was awake and very much aware of what he was saying but he doesn’t stir again, his breathing evening out and now she was pretty sure he was asleep. She smiles again, burying her face into his chest as a soft blush heats her face.

Right now, she was pretty sure that she was the lucky one.