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Ever since your shot injury a few weeks ago, your love Alejandro won't let you do anything physically exhausting. And while he was right and in the beginning you were enjoying your break too, it's starting to take a toll on you.
You went to the infimary again, trying to bargain to take you off leave, but they don't budge.
"Health has priority, you know that." They say. Damn the doctors and their correctness with no room to argue. Huffing and puffing you shuffle your way back to the barrack Alejandro and you shared. While you loved being close to him, especially after being wounded in action, you just can't stand the sight of this room any longer without anyone to keep you company at least.
So, you decided while it was a risk, it was worth it. You needed to get out, see Rudy and your other comrades. You just needed to pray that Alejandro didn't catch you doing so. You were just going to take a walk around base, what could possibly go wrong ?
Peering your head outside your door, you checked out the hallway for your love's voice, hoping he is still busy with the paperwork he told you about last night. It's not that he despises it, but it's not exactly his favourite part of the job either. So instead of doing paperwork every day little by little, he tends to pile it up and take one day a week to sort it all out at once. And today was the day.
Walking, or more like limping through the hallway, you make your way outside, just to catch some sunlight that isn't blocked by the windows. When you first came to Las Almas, the sun burned extra strong for your liking, but over the course of time you learned to appreciate it.
Humming as your open the door, you smile and tilt your chin up towards the sky to really soak in that sunlight. Noticing that your leg is starting to act up, you opt to sit down on a bench not far away, overlooking the training grounds in the shades of the building you just came out of.
Closing your eyes, you let the warm breeze touch your face as you listen to the noises around you. Farther away, there are Humvees being driven in and out of the base and orders being barked. In the other direction there is the steady drum of a platoon of new recruits running some laps to warm up for training. It is still early in the day, so they have plenty of time.
It was as peaceful as it can be while living on a military base, until you heard the splitting scream.
Whipping your head around to the training grounds, you see a bubble of soldiers gathered around a small area. Curiosity and the urge to help got the better of you, so you made your way over to see if you can be of assistence.
"Fuck, I don't know, man, she just dropped."
"Get some water, hurry !"
"Did anyone see anything ?"
The agitated voices of several soldiers blend together as you arrive to assess the situation.
"What happened here ?"
The recruits turned to you and all of them turned a least one shade paler at the sight of you here.
"Lieutenant, what are you doing here ? Aren't you on leave ?" One of them quips.
"Technically yes, but I live on base. The more interesting question is, what are you doing here ?" You remark, making the soldier realize that you are still his superior, even on medical leave.
"She just dropped like a fly, I don't know what happened." The soldier holding the unconscious colleague in his arms explains.
Kneeling down after some effort to get you leg in a position where it doesn't hurt like a bitch, you scan your eyes over the soldier in front of you.
Putting your hand on her forehead, you feel her temperature slightly elevated, more than the sun could have done. And then you spot it.
Immediately you bark to the recruit who first spoke to you "Get some epipen right now ! Seems like an allergic reaction !"
The recruit legs it, bolting to the door you came out of.
You order the comrade that already holds her body to lift her and take her to the shade of a nearby tree close to the entrance the recruit just disappeared into.
"What's happening ?" Another recruit squeaks, taking off her baseball cap to rub her temples in stress.
You point towards the neck of your unconcious trainee "Do you see the red circle ?"
All of them lean in to take a closer look as you explain "Bee sting."
A row of "Oh"s and "Ah"s follows while you bring her into position to tilt her head back as to open her airways, not knowing if they already swelled close of not.
The recruit comes back with the epipen and some medical staff in tow. Grunting as you stand up, you explain your suspicion to the meds.
As they rush past you, you also spot Alejandro, making you freeze like an antilope in the headlights.
His look is stern and a little disappointed and it honestly makes you feel like your mom catching you stealing food before dinner.
Stepping up to him you give your love a wavering smile, reaching out to touch his cheek, as he catches your hand by the wrist, turning around and, while careful, still firmly leads you to the bench you originally occupied. Alejandro makes you sit down, not letting go of your hand, but not sitting down with you either.
The turmoil behind you two blurrs out as Alejandro sinks down on his knees to look at you.
"I thought we talked about this, mi amor." He speaks, picking one of your hands up to softly lay a kiss on the back on it; so soft that you feel his stubble more than the actual kiss.
Seeing him like this, without all the tactical gear on, feeling the skin to skin contact makes you once more realize that he is more than just Colonel Vargas. He is a man who loves and cherishes you, and desperately wants you back to one hundred percent of your health.
Sighing, you raise your unkissed hand to his forehead to stroke the hair at his hairline, knowing it relaxes him quite a bit.
"I know. But I can't stand being in that room any longer. It's boring and lonely. I'm not used to not being useful. I want to be involved and go about and help. I think you can understand that." You sigh as you seek out his eyes, which are glazed over with worry and compassion.
"I do, amor. Trust me I do. I also miss seeing you around and having to wait all day to see you again, but more than my selfish desires to be around you, I want my desire to see you back at health win. I think you understand that, too."
Breathing out through your nose heavily, you drop your hand from his forehead down to his ear and cheek, caressing the skin on your way. You notice that his tired eyes close and he lightly leans into your touch, and suddenly all you want to do is curl back up in bed and let Alejandro rest against you. Smiling, your hand stops at his bearded chin, stroking your thumb lightly across.
"I do. Maybe as a compromise, we could eat lunch together. Canteen will do. Please ?" You ask him with a sweet tone in your voice, making Alejandro's lips spread in a wide grin.
Nodding, he answers with a simple "Okay." And takes your linked hands back up with him as he stands from his current kneeling position on the ground.
If you could have, you would have jumped up and down in excitement, even skipped all the way to the canteen. But no, you even had to take a stop for you to catch your breath, almost prompting Alejandro to carry you back to your room. After convincing him you were okay, you finally made it to the canteen.
Up until then, Alejandro had brought you food over the course of the day or had one of the medical staff deliver it while he was deployed. He was in charge of a whole base, so of course he still had to attend missions, regardless of your state of health; whether you are a couple, married or anything else. Alejandro tried to take on short term missions though, and it worked. so he was gone for one week tops. Which is a miracle really, with the cartel rising and all.
"Okay, mi vida, you stay here, I'll get the food." Your love tells you as you settle down in the most uncomfortable chair to ever grace your presence. But soon enough, while Alejandro stood in line, Rodolfo took a seat at your table as well.
You got along well with him and you like his company, but he too is a buy man and you understand that he didn't have time to come by for a visit.
"Hey, it's good to see you back." Rudy smiles as he sets down his plate, taking a seat.
"It's nice while it lasts. Probably have to go back to bed after lunch though. Colonel's orders."
You explain, side eyeing where Alejandro is already holding one plate, waiting for the second one. Rudy hums in understanding as he is already chewing on his food.
"Thought so, he talks about keeping you safe all the time, but he knows he can't take you away from the field. So he does what he can." He continues after swallowing down his noodles.
At this point, Alejandro arrives back with two plates in hand, placing one of them in front of you, before tending to his own.
The three of you eat in peace, and while you usually dislike the loudnes of the busy canteen, you find yourself enjoying it today. Seeing Rudy definitely brought your spirits up a lot, but he was unknowingly about to crush it down again.
When Rodolfo finishes his plate first, it's no surprise, because he started before you. Setting his cutlery down, he turns to Alejandro, who is still in the middle of eating his own food.
"Colonel, after lunch, I need you at the supply bay."
Stopping the slurping of his noodles, Alejandro turns to Rudy with a confused look. Rudy knows today is Alejandro's bureaucracy day. Rudy has his authorities for the day.
Noticing the confusion and slight tension, you ask for the reason while your love finishes his bite.
"Today's a heavy weapon transfer for the upcoming mission with the British task force. He needs to be present and manage the whole thing. And sign it personally."
Groaning lightly, Alejandro leans his head back a bit and closes his eyes to bite back his annoyance. He just wanted to get the damn paperwork done and come back to his room, to you. He knows from past expriences that this things will hold him up late into the evening.
Grasping his forearm, you squeeze him slightly with your fingers, to calm him down a little, as well as to show him that you know and that you will be okay.
Alejandro is a man with some temper, but his passion and kindnes make up for it tenfold. Yet in moment like these, where just about nothing seems to go the way he wants them to, you know that he just needs this little reassurance from you to keep going with the flow.
Alejandro grabs your hand off his arm and leans down to very shortly kiss your palm and lean his cheek against it, pressing your hand into him with his own.
"Can you make it back to our room by yourself or do you want me to get someone to help you ?"
Throwing him a look with a raised brow, he smiles and rolls his eyes in defeat.
"Fine, okay. Whatever you want, amor. I'll try and make this quick, but if it gets too late don't force yourself to stay awake, okay ?" Alejandro makes you promise. Breathing out through your nose defeatedly, you nod at him and knowing to follow his request, because mans has enough on his plate today.
Placing a kiss on your forehead, Alejandro heads out with Rudy, who sends you an apologic frown. But you know he would ask for Alejandro's presence if not absolutely necessary.
Taking a look around the canteen, you see that it's slowly getting emptier, leaving you to see even the tables more further down. You smile as you see the rookies from earlier and decide that, before you follow your love's request to retreat, you are going to talk to them to see if they have any news of the other one that's now in the med bay.
You take your tray in one hand, but as you stand up, you immediately feel your leg flare up in pain, and you make a note to make the conversation quick. Damn doctors; they were right.
Placing the tray on top of the return counter on your way to the rookies, you step up to their table and interupt their rather quiet lunch time.
"Easy, we are on break. I just came by to ask about your colleague. You got news on her ?"
The recruit that held and carried her spoke up.
"Yes, she is already doing better." He smiles, but you can tell it's not an honest one.
"That's good to hear. Are you guys okay though ?" You ask, leaning your hip against the table to try and take off some weight from your injured leg.
"Could be better, honestly. I mean, if you weren't there she could have died from a damn insect bite. Not even a damn bullet, no, but a bee."
The other rookies are humming in agreement, slightly exchanging affirmations of feeling the same way.
"Look, I know what you feel like. You feel like losers right now, because 'How can I save anyone from danger if I can't even save my comrade from a bee'. You guys are still in training, and I'm betting that not even she knew of her allergy. So don't beat yourself up over this, alright ? Take care of each other and you will never be alone. You guys are a team." You explain, making them all look up at you in adoration. They start knocking on the table, one of a few alternative ways to clapping.
Nodding, you leave them to their food and make your way back to your room.
Walking through the corridors, you realise that Alejandro probably really should have gotten someone to assist you on your way back. Maybe you should have asked one of the recruits. Well damn, now here you are. But you know that there is a place nearby where you can sit down for a moment, no questions asked.
Taking a slight detour, you reach Alejandro's office door and take out your keys.
Opening the door, you are not surprised to not see him in here, but his left overs of paperwork.
Rounding his table, you see he forgot to switch off the little desk lamp. Shaking your head at his forgetfulness you think that if his head wasn't attached to his neck permanently, he would forget that too at one point.
Sitting down in his chair you sigh in relief as you finall take off the pressure from you leg. You decide to sit it out, but it was boring none the less.
That's when you got the idea. Grabbing some post it notes, that have definitely seen better days as they are bleached out by the sun hitting his desk, and some pens, you start scribbling down some notes and affirmations for him to find all around his work space.
'Te amo <3 ' or 'I love that look on you in combat jackets ;)', as well as some smiles or little heart doodles. You put them wherever you see fit. On his keyboard, in his drawer, even in some of his files you know he still has to work through.
As you sit in his chair, you can't help but sink back in it a little, feeling the comfort of his smell on the leather of it. At some point, he told you that he thinks that he smells bad when he comes back to you straight after work. And yes, while it probably wasn't a field of roses to your nose, you certainly loved his unique scent a lot. Alejandro told you that he would shower religiously just for you not to smell the stench on him, and while you appreciate it, you still want to see him okay back from the field first, and showered second.
Once you finished your task, you decide to try and make your way back, but of course your day was not over yet.
Your detour to Alejandro's office makes you now take a different route than you normally would have used. Straight past the med bay. You didn't plan on visiting again today, but the turmoil behind the doors once again won your interest.
Pushing the door open, you see the chaotic scene unfold. There must have been a recon mission gone wrong, or rather several. Many of your specialized recon comrades are laying down on the cot, looking like they escaped a nightmare.
You approach one of the few concious one's.
"Hey, Lieutenant, what happened out there ?" You ask, ushering the overworked nurse away to take a break, while you clean the remaining smaller wounds on him.
"A set up. El Sin Nombre really did a number on us there. Luckily, it was just us and not the actual operation team." He tries to smile, but grimaces in pain.
"It's not 'just you'. You are a part of us and not expendable." You say, soothing him as you clean a rather naughty wound on the LT.'s neck.
"It's what we signed up for."
"Being expendable ? No, you signed up to protect people. Whether that's us or the towns folk."
His eyes soften a little, still obviously in pain, but feeling a little elevated by your words.
Fixing his last wound, you leave him be and turn your attention around the room. With all that is going on here, they sure won't notice you.
So you get to work taking some trash out, refilling some supplies and checking up on a few patients.
"What the hell are you doing here ?" Your doctor asks in a shocked tone, smacking the clipboard on a nearby table to take full attention to scolding you.
"I just saw the fuss going on and thought I could be useful." You explain with a sheepish grin, still holding a bag of trash.
Sighing, your doctor pinches her nose and gestures to the door.
"Leave, before I get the Colonel to bring you to bed."
"Like he doesn't do that anyways.." You remarks, but turn to the door as the doctor mumbles several profanities at your innuendo.
The walk back to your dorm is quiet, but exhausting all the same. Maybe you really overdid it in the med bay. You can just hope that Alejandro doesn't catch wind of this before you can maybe tell him in a more soft way.
Upon entering the room, you breath out heavily, finally feeling safe in the confinements of your shared room.
You walk to the bed at the end of the room, sitting down and relaxing your overused leg. Just as you want to lean back and flop onto the bed on top of the sheets, you hear the door open once again. Looking back up, you see Alejandro closing the door behind him while shrugging off his jacket.
"Hey !" You greet him, trying to stand up, but finally giving in to you pain, knowing it's better to rest now.
"Easy, love. I'll be right there." Alejandro answers, already gesturing for you to stay put while he toes off his boots after unlacing them.
Crossing the room in a few large steps, Alejandro is right in front of you, and with him, you catch a whiff of the gun metal smell that always swings with him, as well as the cologne you gifted him a few months ago for his birthday.
Leaning down to your seated figure, he takes your face between his hands and places a tender and exhauted kiss on your lips, and you realize this is all you wanted the whole day.
Kissing him back, you grasp his wrists, feeling Alejandro's pulse beneath your fingers.
You can feel his exhaustion through the kiss and lean back a little, still keeping his hands on your face.
"You look tired, mi vida." You tell him in a hushed voice. Breathing out a chuckle he responds with a sarcastic "Thank you."
"No, you know what I mean, vaquero hermoso. You just look like you could use some sleep." You explain, nuzzling the tip of your nose against his in a featherly light touch.
"I could use some cuddle time with you, yes."
And so, one shower later, you are both changed into comfortable clothes and ready for bed.
As you slip under the covers, you sigh at the domestic atmosphere with the moon shining through the window as you only light source, as Alejandro already switched off the other lights.
As you lay down, he is quick to follow.
Gazing over his still hovering form, you lay down and invite him to lay on you with open arms.
He descends to you face and you smile at him before continuing where you left off earlier, starting off with some light kisses, sliding our hands up his arms, feeling his muscles, until landing on his shoulders.
Alejandro pulls back from your lips and tilts your head to the side with one hand, kissing along your cheek and neck, before returning back up, giving your lips one last tired, but passionate kiss.
Placing your hands on his neck, you pull him back, looking back into his dark weary eyes.
You give his forehead a kiss, before tugging him down to lay across your upper body.
Snuggling deeper into you, Alejandro shuffles his legs around until he clings to your body like a koala to a bambus tree.
"Hey, have you ever thought about a family.. with me I mean?" Alejandro mumbles sleepily before elaborating "Not like... biological kids even.. just you and me.. maybe a dog or cats.. in a house far away..."
You raise your hand to stroke Alejandro's dark hair that is not slicked back for now, but quite soft to touch, before answering his question.
"I don't know, we have quite a lot of kids to take of here, don't you think ?" You say, referencing to the rookies, the med bay and every other problem you encountered.
Alejandro releases a neutral hum and you add to your statement as you brush back his dark hair from his forehead.
"But having a little cozy house with you indeed sounds like a dream."
"Mhhm... can't wait to come to an actual home to you... with you..." Alejandro slurrs, already half way to dreamland.
"I can't wait either. I love you." You whisper, pressing a kiss to his forehead, before drifting off to sleep yourself in the safest embrace you ever felt.