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“Go on,” he told her gently. “He’s a good one. And completely gay.”

That earned a twitch of her lips, and though Dean couldn’t hear him from so far away, Carter saw the man’s brow furrow. Carter grinned at him, which apparently did nothing to ease the frown.

Knowing there wasn’t much he could do, he left the private with Dean, trusting the man and striding out into the sunlight. As he strode across the grass, he wondered what he was going to do with himself. His day had started brilliantly, and then shit had hit the fan faster than he could believe.

Carter stopped when he saw a pair of soldiers walking toward him. And not just toward him, but their attention was locked on him. When Carter saw what they were, his stomach twisted.

Military police.

Without thinking, Carter pulled out his phone, brought up his messages to Marco, and quickly tapped out a message, praying it was sent before shoving the phone away.

“Corporal Grant,” one of them proclaimed, stopping before him.

“Morning,” Carter said, glancing between them. “Something I can do for you boys?”

“You’ll have to come with us,” the second told him.

“Why?” Carter asked, knowing the answer, unsure if he should feel despair or rage.

“Attacking your commanding officer,” the first said, voice slightly tinged with disgust. “You went too far this time.”

“Stockade then?” Carter asked softly.

“Until they can be bothered to try you, yes.”

Carter had been warned repeatedly that his actions might result in him being locked up. It wasn’t that he hadn’t believed the warnings, but he’d never believed that he’d done anything worth locking him up for. It seemed he’d finally reached that breaking point, and it was all due to Sergeant fucking Reynolds.

MARCO

I’m sorry

Marco stared at the last message he’d received from Carter. The one he’d woken up to on Monday morning and had curiously responded to. Marco had grown worried when he’d received no response. The hours ticked by, and the silence from Carter began to eat away at him, bit by bit.

After three days, Marco thought he knew what it felt like to slowly lose his sanity. Despite repeated attempts to text Carter or call him, there had been nothing. Eventually, Carter’s phone went directly to voicemail, and despite leaving a few, there was still nothing.

He spent his days lost in thought. Fear tore at him, ripping him away from his work, the TV, and anything he did to try and distract himself.

What if something had happened to Carter?

What if he was dead or dying somewhere through some accident?

What if Carter had finally decided he couldn’t do it anymore?

What if it had all been a farce, a lie, while Carter enjoyed the ride and dropped Marco when he was done?

What if?—

When Thursday rolled around, he couldn’t stand it anymore. He had made a promise to Dean, and it was time he followed through on it. Praying Dean wasn’t on shift, he dialed his number and paced his apartment.

“Hey,” Dean said as the line clicked open.

“Dean, I think I’m losing my mind,” Marco told him in a rush.

There was a pause, and Dean’s voice grew thick with concern. “What’s going on?”

“You’d tell me if Carter had come in, right? Like, injured or...worse, right?” Marco asked, wincing at the desperation in his voice.

“Carter?” Dean asked. “Uh, he was in here the other day. But he was fine, just bringing a private in for a basic check-up.”