Posted by Captain Molly Holloway (Chief Intelligence Officer) in Harris’s Quarters - A Much Needed Break

Posted by Colonel Calvin Harris (Commanding Officer) in Harris’s Quarters - A Much Needed Break

Posted by Captain Molly Wright (Chief Intelligence Officer) in Harris’s Quarters - A Much Needed Break
Posted by… suppressed (6) by the Post Ghost! 👻
<snip>
“Uncle Luc came around a lot, and he would spend afternoons with me. Sometimes he would come and visit mom when dad was at work. He was great.” The smile on her face made it clear how fond she was of her uncle and of those past memories. “When I was five, mom got pregnant again. You know… with Erin.” She smiled sadly. “I remember her birth as if it was yesterday… It was June… only a few months before I started school. Mom took me with her to do some grocery shopping… I don’t know what happened… she must have put her foot wrong on the step and she fell down the stairs…” Molly paused for a moment trying to hold her emotions in, covering her eyes for a second before continuing in a shaky voice. “There was so much blood Calvin… I will never forget… I tried to wake her up but she didn’t—“ Her voice cracked. “An ambulance came and we went to the hospital. My grandparents were there… they took me away from mom. They told me I was going to get to see my little sister that night… I had never been more excited. Until the doctor came.” She paused. “At the time I couldn’t understand what was going on, but… Uncle Luc came and held me in his arms and told me…” She took a deep breath. “Told me mom was not coming home.”

Cal wanted to hold her, his heart broke for her as she shared the story of the loss of her mother. Stunningly painful, such things shouldn’t happen to kids. He was also very grateful that Lucas was there to look after them because their father seemed to be an ass. He looked at Molly in a different light… she had been through so much and so much he had no clue of until now.

“From then on, things got worse. Dad went to work every day as he usually did and came home later and later. Uncle Luc would take me to school in the morning and pick me up in the afternoon… He taught me how to take care of Erin on my own, and I promised him I would look out for her whenever he was not around. And I did… until the day I hid my father’s booze. That was the first time he ever struck me. And it continued every single day for four years. I can’t tell you how many times I missed school over concussions and broken bones… the excuses he made me tell the doctors, under the pretense that they would take me away from my sister if I ever told the truth…” She sighed. “I… I don’t know if you knew but… I repeated third grade…” It was clear the subject was a difficult one for Molly.

Harris felt his fists tightening at his side. Inside, he could feel a surge of protectiveness and rage that seemed to pierce his very soul. “Every single day…” He repeated softly, the disbelief clear across his stoic features leaving no doubt that the redhead’s revelations rocked him to the core.

“Then one night I threw his stash of Bourbon in the trash and waited for the garbage truck to come and collect it. He got home already drunk that night when the dive he used to go to kicked him out for drinking too much. He came home… but when I told him his Bourbon was gone for good he became the most violent I had ever seen him… He threw me on this couch. Erin came to help me and that’s when he turned to hit her.” Another deep breath. “I grabbed the first thing I could find… that lamp.” She pointed to the floor lamp laying across the room. “Erin hid behind the recliner and I hit him in the head with the lamp. And he went down. I didn’t kill him… the hit just left him unconscious. So we left… to the first shuttle I could find… and luckily that was to San Francisco.” Molly’s eyes teared up but no tears rolled down her cheeks. “She was four, Calvin! What was I supposed to do? I promised Uncle Luc I would take care of her… Hell…” Her voice cracked. “I promised mom.”

The two tears that streaked down Cal’s face burned and felt so meaningless in light of what he had just heard. Two women who, intimate relations aside, he was extremely fond of and cared for… had been through a nightmare and he was now one of the few that knew. It was one of the most humbling moments of his life and he lacked the words to even attempt to express how he was feeling. “I…” His voice cracked. “… I’m so sorry Molly.”

Wiping her eyes, Molly continued. “That was the last time any of us ever saw him… or Uncle Luc for that matter. I changed our names hoping never to be found, and no one ever came looking for us. Turns out he was always there… in every big event we ever had, Uncle Luc was there. He just never came to talk to us. His parents decided that Robert was a good fit to take care of us, and they set up a fund for our education. They never came to town or told us who we really were, and it was not Robert’s place to tell us.”

“That’s crazy…” Cal said softly. “…and he was always there. Lucas really is a hell of a guy. You’re lucky to have him.”

“Uncle Luc spent most of the last two weeks with me. Since you decided to walk away.” The hurt in Molly’s voice was unmistakable and her last words were uttered in a cold tone. “But you have to believe I never knew any of this.” Her voice cracked again and a half scoff came through. “I found out two weeks ago my father took his own life the year after we left, on mom’s birthday. My parents are both gone, Calvin… My dad has been gone for eighteen years… Eighteen years! And I didn’t even know.”

Molly

“I believe you… I do. God Molly… no one deserves that kind of mess! Listen…” His voice cracked. “… I had my head filled with a lot of garbage… stuff I’m still trying to process. But…” His eyes glimmered with tears. “… but I had already figured out where we stand… or at least… hell… where I’d like us to stand. You just got to me first.” A smile broke across his pain darkened face.

“Stuff you’re still trying to process!?” There was no mistake of the hurt in Molly’s eyes. “What are you still processing!? I saw the man I love throw me to the wolves and leave me in the middle of the most unfair process in my life! And you are still trying to process stuff? Good God, Calvin!” Standing up from the couch, Molly paced around the room.

Calvin knew his mistake the second he opened his mouth. “Jesus Molly…!” His tone more apologetic than defensive. “… that’s not what I meant and you know it!”

“I spent the last two weeks thinking I was going to spend the rest of my life locked up for something I didn’t do! And yet…” Tears fell down her cheeks when she turned to face Cal again. “And yet, that was not what I was worried about…” She paused to catch her breath before continuing. “You say you had already figured out where we stood. Damn it, Calvin… you think you took long enough!? Of course I got to you first! It’s been two weeks Calvin, two weeks!!! Two weeks without you even asking me how I was or whether everything in that interview was true! Two weeks!” The last part of the word turned into a desperate wail as all the emotions she had bottled in seemed to finally leave her body. Grabbing on to the back of the couch she cried, as Cal had never seen her cry before.

Cal walked to Molly, tears in his eyes, and embraced her tightly. “I’m so sorry Molly.” He trembled as he held her. “I know I don’t fracking deserve it but can you find it in your heart to forgive me?”

Cal

As soon as she felt his arms around her, Molly’s face buried in his chest. And she cried, just like she had cried on her uncle’s arms so many times during the past two weeks.

Silently, he held her. Needing her back back in his arms more than even he knew. Never had he missed another’s touch as he had hers.

Moments became minutes before she spoke again, letting go of Cal and sitting back down on the couch. “Uncle Luc told me you’d come around.” She mumbled. “He really does know you…” Looking up into Cal’s deep blue eyes, Molly sighed. “In my heart you have been forgiven a long time ago. All I wanted was for you to come back, and not for me to have to go looking for you. But you never did…”

Harris looked at her with a soft smile. “Where ‘da hell do you think I was going when you showed up at my door? I was leaving to come see you! Just took me a bit to get my head out of my ass.”

Molly gave Calvin a sad smile. “For two weeks I didn’t come looking for you… regardless of where you were going… if I got to you first, you were too late.”

“I want nothing more than for us to go back to what we were… to forget this whole thing and be us. But… there’s something I need to ask you Calvin…” The look in her eyes would tell him that she was serious. “Do you trust me?”

Molly

“Yes…” Harris said as he kissed her forehead. “… without reservations.”

Cal

There was a long pause before Molly spoke again. “You turned your back on me, Calvin…” She stared back into his eyes. “You know I would have never done that. You know I would have gone to hell and back defending you before believing whatever crap someone had put in front of me about you.” She sighed. “I know who you are Calvin… And deep in my heart I know who you strive to be. All those interviews that they showed you? All that video?”

“Molly…” Calvin sighed. “… remember, I was in a pretty damn hard spot myself at the time. Looking back on it, I can tell you… I was played. On purpose.” He ran his fingers through his hair and continued. “I had no business being in that room. I was still exhausted and emotionally compromised from all that had happened and that bitch knew it!” Harris’ fist clinched at his side as he recalled everything that had happened. “You went through a lot Molly… so did I. But I promise you, had I been in my right mind… I am confident it would have gone differently.”

She paused before shaking her head. “I know what they showed you… those were things in the past and yes. I meant every single one of them. I never lied. Yes, I wanted to do to Alison the same thing she did to me. And yes, I joined Starfleet Intelligence for the same reason. Command walked all over me and took my ship away. It’s gone. Together with part of her crew! Our crew Calvin. Half of the Marine complement went with it too! I hope you never get to feel how that feels. So yes. I joined Intelligence so I could gather tools to do the same to them. Or anyone else who tried to pull the same on me. I want— I need to be in control Calvin.”

“I know Mols!” Calvin gestured toward Molly with both hands open, marking his point as he spoke. “You’re as bad as I was and I understand Babe… I really do. What Command did was wrong… what that girl did to you in school was wrong… what that girl tried to pull… all of it, WRONG!”

For a moment Molly rested her face in her hands before looking up at the Marine again. “But I would never do that to you.” She paused. “I thought that… like me, deep in your heart you would know what was right or wrong.” Her eyes teared up again. “And yet, I had to watch you walk away in one of the scariest moments of my life. I played that same moment in my head for two weeks…” She paused to catch her breath. “I was done Calvin… You walked away and I didn’t care anymore… I didn’t care if I spent the rest of my time in prison or not. So… how do I know that you truly trust me. That you’ll have my back the next time something happens? How can I be sure of that?”

Molly

“And I will have to live with that for the rest of my life Molly…” Harris hung his head, clearly ashamed of his actions. “… I was played and played bad and honestly…” He took a deep breath and pressed on. His voice cracking. “There’s not a goddamn thing I should be able to say after that that should change your mind! I left you when you needed me the most and that was probably the most cowardly thing I have ever done in my whole damn life.” Tears streaked Harris’ cheeks as he spoke. “You can trust me Molly… I swear to God you can. I failed you… I failed you like I have never failed another living being. But I can promise you, as long as there’s breath in my lungs… my ass is never ever failing you again!”

Cal

Before Cal could continue, Molly’s lips found his, taking him in a deep embrace. Finally, when it was evident to her that he wasn’t going to continue talking, Molly pulled a PaDD out of her hip pocket and gave it to the Marine.

Cal looked at the small PaDD curiously before putting his thumb to the authentication area and the PaDD snapped to life in his hand.

“I got this today. That was also what made me go looking for you… it’s a letter from the President of the United Federation of Planets… absolving me of all charges. I thought you’d like to see it.” She paused. “Besides, as my CO I need to hand it in to you so that you can restore my place on this ship.”

Looking as though he might actually burst into tears, Harris scooped Molly from the floor in a bear hug. “Oh Mols! Thank God! Thank God!” Then as suddenly as he did, Cal sat her back on the deck… even more ashamed of himself than before. “And to think I doubted you.... that I let that bitch get in my head!” Harris’ eyes hung to the floor. “I will never doubt you again Molly… I swear to God!” A soft sniff could be heard from the Marine’s down-turned face.

She smiled at him. “I know you won’t do it again… and I know you’ve been through as much as I did down there… hell… I can’t sleep without being back on that shuttle—“ Molly couldn’t bring herself to say the rest. She hugged Cal once more before continuing. Her words muffled by his chest. “You don’t know how close we came to dying in that shuttle… and there was nothing I could do about it. And in my dreams I see you die over and over again. And I can’t take it…” Molly pulled him even closer. “I don’t want to be alone in my quarters anymore.”

Molly

Cal wrapped his arms around Molly and patted her back softly. “Now now hun… you stop that right now Molly.” Gently nuzzling then kissing the top of Molly’s head, he said softly. “The fact of the matter is… I’m alive because of you Molly. You kept my little girl from losing the only parent she left at 21. We, Ali and I, literally owe you everything.” Calvin then held her a bit tighter and sighed. “Baby… you rest where ever you want. If you wanna stay at my place, you’re welcome to do so. You want me there with you for a while, that’s fine too.”

Cal

Molly gave Cal a soft smile. “Staying at your place would be nice…” She paused for a moment. “I… I really hope we could just return to normalcy… return to being us. I…” She took a deep breath. “I love you Calvin. I did before and I still do… and that never changed. No matter what you believed in.”

“I love you too Molly.” Harris said softly as he held her against him. “I don’t think I could honestly never stop loving you.”

Sighing, Molly took a small cherry wood box from her pocket. The letters M.G.H. engraved on the top. “This room… this is all I remember from when I was a kid… my dad is the one I have most present in my memories… my dad and Uncle Luc. But my mom… it seems that every day that goes by I forget another piece of her… her voice… her laughter… her touch… her looks…” She shook her head. “There’s not a day that goes by, Calvin, that I don’t think about her… it seems that Uncle Luc was already two steps ahead of me… he gave me this box.” Molly extended it to Cal so that he could see it. “It contains a memory chip all the pictures he took of her… a few videos… and…” Molly couldn’t do it. She couldn’t bring herself to talk about that last picture. Shaking her head, she continued. “She was going to divorce dad… I didn’t know this… she was going to divorce dad and… he didn’t tell me but I suspect it… she and Uncle Luc were going to try it… All my life I wished he was my dad… and… she died before it could actually happen.”

Harris raised an eyebrow at that comment. “My love… being the niece or… daughter… of one of my oldest friends. Wow. I’m surprised he didn’t warn you about me the second he put two & two together.” Cal held onto Molly, gently running fingers through her hair. “I do hate that though… for both of you. Lucas is a good man and I for years thought his… ways…” Harris smirked. “… were due to something like what happened with me, that the one person who made me whole at the time was violently and permanently taken away.”

Molly looked up into the Marine’s eyes at his last comment. Some of the words Tomas had said to Calvin when they were down on Beta Prime came back to her memory. She’s a child Calvin… nothing compared to the woman you loved from the time you were sixteen. The woman that won awards covering the war… only to be taken and killed. Wright shook it. One the one hand, she knew that the Rogue Intel Officer was trying to play them against each other… but on the other hand, Molly couldn’t help but wonder if she was nothing more than a replacement to the Marine.

“Uncle Luc did warn me about you, actually.” Molly smiled softly. “But he also did say that I would never lose you. I guess he was right…”

“Lucas Holloway is a smart man and yes…” Harris smiled warmly, gently touching Molly’s face and kissing her softly. “… I could have done a lot of things but I could never live with myself if I lost you. I mean that Mol’s” After the kiss, Cal’s hands closed on the box in Molly’s.

Taking the box from Molly, Calvin looked curiously at it. He turned it over in his hands, a thoughtful expression on his face. “Hmm…” He said as he played with the box. “… my mom had one of these…” Harris continued to gently prod the box. “… if I remember correctly, it’s right....” Harris suddenly rammed both thumped up into the box lip and a loud click could be heard as the inner lid fell into his hand. “… here!” From within the hidden compartment, a single color photograph slid into his hand along with a platinum banded two-carat diamond solitaire. “What the frack is this?!?” Harris said with a start.

Seeing Calvin prodding the box, Molly’s eyes widened in a slight panic. “Please don’t…” there was a clicking sound from the box lid. “… break it…” Holding herself on the slight tip of her toes to see better what had just fallen into the Marine’s hands, Molly’s heart broke. Taking the picture and the ring in her own hands, she inspected them closely.

Molly didn’t remember when the picture had been taken, but it showed Mary and Lucas smiling at the camera. Mary was visibly pregnant, and a six year old smiling Molly stood in front of the pair. It was one of the happiest pictures she had of herself. On the back, a simple inscription read, in what Molly supposed was her own mother’s handwriting, they should have been yours.

Calvin saw the words at the same time as Molly and his heart sank. What a terrible loss, not just for Molly but for Lucas. It all made sense now why Lucas was the way he was. He couldn’t believe such terrible luck could fall on another human being as it had for him. For one of the few times in his life, Calvin Harris was speechless.

Covering her mouth with her hand, Molly sat down on the couch. Tears silently rolling down her cheeks. “I can’t believe this…” She looked at the ring. “He…” Molly’s words came between sobs. “He… He was going to propose to her.” Sobbing, Molly took her hands to her face. The picture and the ring falling to the floor.

Harris sat next to her, wrapping an arm around shuttering shoulders. No words he could say would be of any consolation to the gut turning anguish currently coursing through the heart of the woman he loved. But he could sure as hell hold her until the initial impact had subsided. Cal couldn’t take his eyes from the picture, the startling similarities been the image of a woman deep from Molly & Lucas’ past with the woman currently weeping in his arms.

Shaking, Molly leaned forward and grabbed both the picture and the ring from the floor. She could barely bring herself to look at them.

Once again she meddled with the back of her collar and undid the clasp on her mother’s necklace. Cal would notice it was not the same golden chain she used to wear. Taking the ring, she let it slide down the chain and placed the rosary back around her neck, before tucking it inside her uniform. “I’ll give it back to Uncle Luc. I wonder if he forgot the ring was in the box.”

Molly stood still for a moment, sniffing quietly and enjoying the warmth of Cal’s arm around her shoulders. “I’m sorry.” She finally said. “I didn’t know that was there… I could never imagine…” She looked at Cal. “Uncle Luc was going to be my dad…” The realization seemed to finally sink in with her. “To me he already was. Hell… he still is. After all these years I just wish I could make it official…” She paused. “Hopefully that wouldn’t make things awkward for you.” There was a small smile in her lips.

Harris chuckled softly and shook his head. “Nah… I think I’m good on that one. Lucas isn’t ‘that’ scary, I promise.” With that, Cal gently kissed Molly and then asked. “Is there anything you need to get you moving in the direction of getting your life back on track?”

Looking at Cal again, Molly continued. “I’m taking two weeks vacation, Calvin. I hope you don’t mind. I’m going back to Earth with Uncle Luc and visit my grandparents… and…” She paused before continuing. “I’m going to change my name back.”

Molly

“Not at all Mols.” Harris said with a warm smile. “You take all the time you need… it’s family Honey and you know to me that comes first.” Then with a pause, added. “As for the name… it’s your name Molly, your legacy. You have the right to claim that legacy.”

A playful expression then on his face, Cal added. “And, ya know… it can’t help my on rep for beddin’ a billionaire.” He winked.

Colonel Calvin Harris, Marine About To Get Thumped Upside The Head (Also Commanding Officer)

There wasn’t even a beat between Cal’s words and Molly’s dope slap. She rolled her eyes, but the smile was playful in her face. “Of course you’d think that, wouldn’t’ you?” Molly shook her head in fake disbelief. “What are you going to ask me next? To take you to see the cool starships?” Molly smiled. She wanted to tell him that they were in fact, cool, but neither her or her sister had ever set foot on Holloway Heavy Industry’s HQ. Not that she remembered anyway. The only thing she vaguely recalled was a dinner at the house of who she thought was the Carnegie family. But even then, that was blurry enough.

Flinching slightly from the well deserved thump to the back of his head, Harris smiled. “Remember Mols… Dad is Vice Commandant and I have been friends with Lucas for years. I’ve seen the cool starships up close. Especially that damn Slipstream ship the rich fart tools around in. I am quite familiar with your uncle’s ‘cool ships’.”

“I guess you were luckier than I am then.” Molly smiled sadly.

Looking back at Cal, Molly pondered for a second before asking. “So… is there anything else you want to know about me?”

Molly

It took Cal less than a half a second for the question that had been roaming around in his subconscious for over two weeks to come flashing to the front of his mind. In his defense, the Marine did try to stop the question from blurting out the moment it made it’s way to his lips but he was too late and his curiosity got the better of his ‘Shut the hell up’ reflex. “Soo....” The smile was unmistakable as Harris took a deep breath and the questions shot out in rapid fire fashion, faster than Molly had ever heard the man speak. “… your first was a girl? Who is this Alison person anyway? Is she hot? Should I feel threatened? What was it like? And lastly…” Harris tried to keep the straightest face he could. “… why the absolute hell did I have to find out my girlfriend is in to chicks from a megalomaniac bitch that was trying to destroy both our frackin’ careers?”

Harris caught his breath and in his mind said a silent prayer that he wouldn’t be on the couch for the next decade, or dead… which was also a possibility.

Cal

Molly’s face darkened as fast as Calvin’s questions. “My first was not a girl, Calvin. My first was Ashton.” She said through gritted teeth, almost as if she was trying to convince herself of the fact. If looks could kill, the Marine would be a pile of ash. “Alison is no one. She was my classmate in high school and I lost touch with her since then. The last time I saw her she was involved with someone else. Another girl. I guess she likes to try a little bit of both sides.” There was disgust in her voice unlike Cal had ever heard before. “Samantha Halloway was the bitc–” Molly stopped herself before the word completely left her lips. There was a visible wince. “Halloway with an a. Not an o. At least I know she’s not family.” She paused and muttered. “At least family didn’t actively try to kill me. And that’s to say something.”

Molly

The second Samantha’s name left her mouth, Calvin looked as though… had he been drinking something at that moment… Molly would now be wearing it. He did, to his credit, kept control of his response until Molly had finished speaking… but that was it. As soon as the last words left her lips, Cal burst out laughing.

It was not the reaction Molly had been expecting. Especially from Cal. Wasn’t he supposed to support her and stand on her side?

“What… the… actual… hell!?!” Harris gasped through his laughter. “You mean to tell me, that of all people, you got in a pissing contest over your high school fling with Samantha “Vixen” Halloway!?!” Cal was tearing up with laughter, wiping his eyes… he added. “You know she’s frackin’ crazy, right!? That lunatic nearly took out my fighter with her own damn bird at TopGun!”

Of course he knew her. Molly sighed. “You do know everyone don’t you? It’s like everyone I cross paths with, you have crossed paths with in the past. Starting with my own family!” She was visibly not happy. “Yes, Calvin. Yes, she is crazy. But I didn’t know it at the time. And when I found out it was too late.”

“Sam Halloway is probably one of the finest pilots I ever taught but between her tempter…” Harris nodded to himself. “… cause you are right, she’s a solid gold bitch…” He laughed before continuing. “… and her crazy ass flying, I always swore one day she was gonna get either herself or someone else killed. Not to mention the fact she’s bedded more girls than I have, I would say she is certainly one hell of a character.” Harris then paused with a smirk. “So, ya don’t have to tell me if ya don’t want to… but I’m curious, how bad did Vixen kick teenage Molly Wright’s ass? Cause that was a decade ago and you got one hell-of-a chip on your shoulder for someone, I can assure you… if she didn’t sleep or fly with you… doesn’t even know you exist.”

Cal

“You’d think the broken nose ought to jog her memory!” There was almost rage in Molly’s tone before crossing her arms over her chest. Was she… pouting? She rolled her eyes before speaking. Cal would probably have a fairly good idea of what annoyed teenage Molly would look like, because that’s what she looked like right now. “I blacked out.” She said under her breath.

Harris smirked slightly. “Why am I not surprised. Trust me Honey, you’re not the first person I’ve met that either wanted or did try to knock Samantha Halloway on her ass.” A soft laugh escaped him as he motioned to Molly. “And you’re also not the only person to learn the hard way that that is not a good idea!”

Taking a deep breath, her eyes moved but they never looked at Cal. She held her arms over her chest. “I blacked out. And she was sitting on the foot of her bed with a phaser pointed at my head when I woke up. She’s a lunatic!” Her voice went from reluctance to plain disbelief. She shook her head.

“Thank you for proving my point!” Harris snorted. “Sam Halloway has as about as much patience in someone crossing them as I do and no where near the… tact… in dealing with them. You better be glad she didn’t actually shoot you! Because, if hormone-fueled early 20-something Halloway is anything like the early 30-something Halloway I know and have known for the better part of a decade… that was more of an option than I think you might have realized at the time. What in God’s name made you hunt her crazy ass down?!”

“I went to her quarters one night to talk to her. I had been trying to talk to her all week to save her from the pain that Alison really was!” Molly scoffed, seemingly still believing that her teenage jealous ex-girlfriend tantrum had been completely justified. “She never listened. Worse. She told Alison! So I went to her quarters one night to confront her about it. She said… She asked if my mother had never taught me any manners… and I broke her nose.” It was as if she could still feel the pain she felt the whole week after the incident. “After that…” Molly hesitated momentarily. “I don’t really remember much… only the panic at the realization that I might actually die that night…”

Molly

Looking genuinely surprised, Harris shook his head. “Well… I don’t think she knew it at the time but, in your head, I don’t doubt that you felt she deserved it. However, if I remember correctly, by Sam’s third year at the Academy… she was a 2nd Degree Black Belt in Krav Maga. Believe me honey…” Cal sighed and patted her knee. “… as much as I know this is gonna hurt your teenage ego, Sam Halloway was pissed that you broke her nose… that’s about it. She whooped your ass to prove a point and get you to go away. Had she thought you were an actual threat, she would have either maimed you for life or killed you before you hit the ground. Sam is an incredibly dangerous human being and its part of the reason why Starfleet has kept her around in spite of her drinking problems. I honestly think they feel she’s too dangerous for civilian life. Be happy you didn’t do something stupid like pull a phaser on her… you’d have died with that phaser either stuffed up your ass or down your throat.” He was trying to be sweet but the look of What the frack was wrong with you?! was still clearly in his gaze.

Cal

Molly flinched at the thought before taking her gaze from Cal and looking at the floor. Sighing, her shoulders slumped forward. “It doesn’t matter.” She said after a long pause. “I’m never going to see her again and… if what you say is true, she’s not even going to recognize me if we bump on each other on the street.” She shrugged. “Besides, I don’t need anybody else with drinking problems in my life… I’ve had enough of that.”

Harris nodded but inside, a part of him died… knowing that, being fall down drunk more than once around Molly would probably always live in her head. Regardless of how infrequently he did it, once was too much for a woman that had been through the trauma Wright had and it killed him that he ever left that impression on the woman he had grown to love like no other.

Glancing back up at Cal, Molly smiled. “I wanted to bring you here so that we could both be on the same page… I don’t know what else is there left to say. I just hope you understand where I come from a little better now.” She shook her head. “I’m just sorry you had to know it the way you did.”

“Oh, and two things I feel like I need to tell you before we do anything else…” There was a soft smile in her face. “No… I’m not giving you any details about the night with Alison. And yes. the Thresher’s Commanding Officer, Lieutenant Colonel Ryan York… he was my partner at the Farm. And as you know, what happens there, stays there. Just know something Calvin…” Molly’s gaze was serious. “I don’t want you digging him up, I don’t want you looking for him. Did we do it? Were those some of the best nights of my life? Yes, and yes. But I also trust him with my life, and if Uncle Luc hadn’t showed up I am positively sure he would have gone through hell and back to get me out of this mess. Unlike you Calvin, he didn’t need proof that I hadn’t done it, or two weeks to get his head out of his ass.” There was now fire behind Molly’s eyes. “He was at my door several times before he left. And yet…” Her voice trembled as she recalled their farewell. “… I broke his heart to be with you. I hope I made the right choice.”

Molly

With the… disappointing… mention of the lack of torrid details he wouldn’t get of Molly’s first tryst, Calvin gave a playful pout. The mention of York, on the other hand, Molly would feel Harris’ walls snap up into place. Never in the time they had known each other had Molly ever seen Calvin Harris anywhere near jealous… this could now be anywhere further from the truth. A fire lit behind Cal’s gaze at the mention of the man and Molly could hear the knuckles crack in his right hand as he formed a tight fist. “Too late… good to know… thanks” Were Harris’ response to the first three statements about the Intel Officer and former partner of the woman he loved. “I bet he would” Was the harsh response to the comment about him bailing Molly out. Then the words that seemed to cut through him like a knife. Despite him walking away from her when she needed him most, Molly stood by him. The rage within him dumped so suddenly, the change in his demeanor so shockingly dramatic… it was as if the Marine became a completely different person before her eyes.

“I…” His voice cracked instantly as his already tearing eyes broke from her gaze and found his boots. “… I have no words Molly…” Harris’ voice was soft, pained. “… none at all. I…I… I don’t deserve you…” He stammered. “… and I sure as hell don’t deserve your faith and trust in me. What…” He asked in a strained tone. “… what made you stay? If he was that great, that close to you, and sure as hell didn’t turn and run…” The last words sounding as though they ripped through his very soul. “… why me, Molly?” His eyes returned to hers, his spirit crushed by the realization of everything he and he alone had done. “Why in God’s name would you stand beside me when I turned and walked away from you when you needed me most?”

Cal