Chapter Text
Rook sat in the back of the military van by himself. Before, the van was filled with three other men but after a mission gone horribly, horribly, wrong, the Frenchman was left alone to shoulder the guilt of their deaths. He stared down at his hands which refused to stop shaking, then glanced to his legs to see they were also shaking beyong his control. He closed his hands into fists as tightly as he could to distract himself from the shock running through his body. It didn't help.
He felt something warm start to trail down his head so he lifted his hand to touch the spot. He lowered the hand to see red now on his fingertips. The young man quickly removed his helmet and turned to look at himself in the reflective metal of the vehicle. The Frenchman frantically looked over his head and face for gashes to find one above his left eyebrow. It didn't seem too deep but it was starting to bleed heavily. The young man took in a deep breath to attempt to calm himself as he put pressure on the wound with his sleeve. He would have to wait until he got back to base to have it properly taken care of.
Of course, this meant going to Doc, the best, and only, doctor on Hereford Base. The problem was, Doc was one of Rook's partners and knew him better than anyone. With how well he was holding himself together now, the young man knew as soon as he entered Doc's office and his gentle gaze met his own, he would fall apart right then and there. He would break down and cry and scream into the doctor's shoulder while the older man did he best to comfort Rook.
He supposed he could go to his other lover Montagne, but Monty was the most gentle soul on Earth and Rook couldn't bear to make him distraught as he knew he would be after hearing the terrible news.
So to Doc it was.
The van finally came to a hault, signaling to the young Rook at it had arrived at the base. He collected himself and his gear then opened the doors and jumped out. Ash, who was driving the van, stepped over to him to say something but Rook shook his head at her as he kept walking. Her shoulders dropped and she watched him go with a worried expression on her face, but made no effort to stop him.
Rook made it back to his room without any interruptions from other operators and made straight for Doc's office.
He peaked his head in the already open door to see Doc calmly typing away on his computer. The older man immediately glanced over to mske eye contact with Rook, "ah, I see you're back from the mission. Good, good." He paused as he noticed the still bleeding cut on the young Frenchman's head, "it seems you got a little wound. Which I'm assuming is why you're here. Come then, I'll patch you up."
Rooked nodded and shuffled over to one of the medical beds within the room. Doc gave a curious glance at his young lover while he washed his hands and put together all he needed to clean the wound. Rook was normally a bright and chipper soul, so him not talking was setting off a huge red flag to Doc.
The doctor approached Rook and gently pushed his hair out of his face so he could begin cleaning the cut. As he did, the young Frenchman stared intently at one of the buttons of Doc's white coat. 'Keep it together, keep it together, keep it together.' He repeated to himself endlessly in his mind. He bit hard on his lip to make for a distraction from his overwhelming thoughts but it did no good.
Before he could stop it, Rook felt his eyes begin to fill with tears, his vision becoming blurry as he sniffed once then twice. Doc noticed and stop his cleaning to look down at Rook's face, "Julien? What's wrong, mon amour?" He set the used rag down on the tray and put his hands on Rook's shoulders.
Julien took in a breath before letting out a wail as he collapsed forward against Doc's chest. He cried into his clothes and tried to wrap his arms around his waist for support.
Doc didn't hesitate to support the upset Rook as he helped hold him up and then gently guided him down to the floor. There, the two sat embracing each other as Rook continued to wail, "oh God, Gustave, it was so awful! Their faces, their poor faces--so scared and confused. I was supposed to protect them, I was--oh God, Gustave." Julien explained before collapsing into Doc's chest again. Doc hushed his crying partner and gently ran his fingers through the younger man's hair to help comfort him.
Then, as if it were a mother running to her crying child, the large Montagne quickly appeared in the doorframe of Doc's office. He looked worried and confused as his gaze fell on Doc and Rook on the ground together. "I thought I heard Julien cry--oh, no. Julien..." Monty said gently as he walked over to the two. Without even being told, Montagne knew why Rook was so upset.
The large Frenchman sat down on the other side of Rook and wrapped his arms around his small lover to help comfort him. "It's alright Julien, let it all out. We're hear for you." Monty gently kissed the top of the younger operator's head while he wrapped one of his arms around the other man's waist. Doc copied Monty by also placing a kiss on Rook's head and continued to stroke his hair.
After being on the floor for some time, Rook was finally starting to calm down. His crying slowed down to a small whimper and sniffed every so often. Eventually, he sat up and wiped his eyes, "I'm alright now, I can stand." He assured his two partners.
Doc and Monty exchanged glances and let go of their shorter lover so they could stand up with him. Once they did, Rook sniffed once more and offered a broken smile to the two of them, "thank you for that."
"Of course." Doc reassured him with a warm smile. Montagne wrapped both his arms around Rook and hugged him tightly, bending backward slightly so Rook's feet were almost off the ground, "we love our little plate boy." He teased the other Frenchman affectionately.
Rook couldn't help but laugh while he tried to free himself from his boyfriend's grip, "Hey, stop, don't call me that!" However, the spark of happiness didn't last as the thoughts of what happened just hours ago began to claw its way back into Julien's mind. He slowly stopped laughing and clenched his jaw tightly.
Monty noticed this and put him down again, "you can get through this, Julien. We know you can and we're here for you." He put a comforting hand on the younger man's shoulder, along with Doc. Rook sighed and flashed a small smile, "I know you will be and I love you both for it."
Doc and Monty glanced at each other then both leaned in and gave Rook a kiss on each cheek simultaneously. Julien grunted and blushed madly, attempting to hide his face, "was that really necessary?"
"Yes, it was." Doc and Montagne answered in sync.