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Fox hadn’t known he would fall for the ARC trooper he’d thought he’d killed. But he had. And now he was sitting here, watching Fives struggle to walk.
One of Fox’s troopers had peeled Fives off the concrete, after they’d all seen him die. After Rex had cried out for his fall vod’ika. For someone he’d adopted and who Fox had killed. Blur had said that Fives was still alive and Flinch had pulled him immediately into the medbay. Fox had never meant to hurt Fives. It had been on stun. He swore it had been on stun. But it hadn’t been. He would never know how that had happened. Not for certain. Fox had his hypothesis.
Fives’ grip was white-knuckled on the bar next to him. He looked up at Fox watching him and sighed.
“Am I really that much of a fall risk that you have to watch me?”
He asked, stubbly hair on top of his head taking away a lot of the gravitas that Fox had always known the former 501st ARC to go around with. Of course, that had been tempered when Echo had died on the Citadel mission. Maybe Fives would have had better backup if he’d had Echo. Instead he’d gotten shot in the chest but a glitching Guard Commander.
“Well…seeing as I shot you in the chest, yes.
Fox sighed and Fives’ eyes snapped up to meet Fox’s.
“We both know you had no choice.”
Fives said firmly, taking another shaky step, and grunting as his knee gave out on him, and he lurched downwards. Fox jerked out of his seat, catching Fives on his way to the floor.
“Ha…fell for you.”
Fives snorted, resorting to joking in his discomfort and frustration with himself. Sure, Fox’s shot hadn’t killed Fives, but it had clipped the side of Fives’ spinal column, temporarily paralyzing the ARC trooper and briefly stopping his heart. It was only luck that Blur had checked and Flinch had been close enough to move quickly one Rex and General Skywalker had left.
Fox rolled his eyes, turning away to hide his blush.
“No, you fell for the floor, di’kut.”
Fox retorted, carefully easing the ARC up as Flinch came over to check Fives over.
“Sorry.”
Fives said, shoulders slumping as Flinch ran a scan.
“He’s okay. Just take a break, Fives. I’ll go get you some water. Fox, can you stay with him?”
Flinch asked and Fox nodded.
Flinch disappeared and all of the cocky confidence Fives usually carried on him disappeared.
“I’m not a great vod.”
He whispered and hissed as Fox gently set him on a bench, looking at the still healing wound on Fives’ bare chest. Muscles rippling slightly. Muscles that hadn’t faded as much as Flinch had thought they would. And that was because Fives was relentless. Fox could appreciate that relentlessness.
“You’re fine, Fives. You’re a better vod than I could ever be.”
Fox admitted quietly, hating that it was true, but proud that Fives was someone who he could trust. Fives had shown them what had happened. What the chips did, and the Coruscant Guard had finally found out the cause of the blackouts.
Fives had his removed already, so it was simple to explain where Fox’s would be and have them use the scan. And Fox had only recovered for a day or two before he was sitting, watching Fives struggle.
“I’m not…I failed to warn them. And now you don’t want me to.”
Fives pointed out and Fox chuckled.
“Vod, Fiv’ika...that’s not why we didn’t want to warn them.”
He gently rubbed against Fives’ neck where he knew Fives got sore a lot with the effort of simply moving some days and Fives melted into him.
“We’re not saying anything except to vode because of what happened to you. I know you forgave me. But Rex is furious with me. And General Skywalker might actually take my head. For now, we just have to get these karking things out so that no one else gets a repeat of what happened, alright?”
Fox asked, and shifted Fives into his lap. Fives gasped a bit and then nodded.
“Good man.”
Fox said gently and Fives flushed. Fox grinned. He loved seeing Fives like that. After he learned that Fives had actually had a crush on him for quite a while and when the drugged up on pain meds ARC had actually confessed right after waking up, and said he’d forgiven Fox in the same sentence for shooting him, Fox had nearly fainted. That was…a lot. It had taken a bit to get used to, and Fox was just grateful that he had had the barest bits of control to try and not shoot fatally. Even if he had initially thought he had. Fives sighed again and Fox started to gently massage the ARCs tense muscles.
“You know, Fives. When you told me that you liked me, karking high off of pain meds, I thought you were just leaning into ARC bravado. Imagine my surprise when I learned you were serious.”
Fox chuckled and Fives blushed, starting to try and slide out of Fox’s lap, only to be pinned there with a pointed look.
“Not done, Fives.”
Fox warned and then smiled warmly.
“My surprise, yes, but it was more that you would still feel attracted to someone who just shot you in the chest.”
Fox explained and Fives’ ducked his head, opening his mouth again.
Fox reached up to gently tap Fives’ nose.
“Nu uh, still not done.”
Fives blushed and shut his mouth with an audible click. Fox snorted and shifted a bit to help Fives lean against him more, mouthing a bit at Fives’ neck, eliciting a soft gasp from the ARC.
“You are a strong, independent, too smart for your own good, di’kut’ish, dumbass with a heart of gold and a will of beskar, Fives. To learn that you wanted me to know, if you didn’t survive, that you liked me? What a way to say that. You’re karking insane. And I love you too.”
Fox said, with a grin and sat back to watch Fives splutter.
“I…you…what…I didn’t mean…how could I…whaaaa??!”
Fives spluttered, staring so hard at Fox that Fox almost feared Fives’ eyeballs would pop out. Of course, that’s when Flinch returned, looking between the two.
“Do I want to know why you’re trying to kill Fives a second time, Commander?”
Flinch asked, setting his hand on Fives’ shoulder and drawing him out of the Commander’s grip and lap with a glare when Fox tried to hang onto the ARC.
“Well…you see...”
Fox started and Flinch leveled a glare. That would be a nope. Fox shut up.
Fives had finally recovered enough to sip at the water, staring at Fox with confusion and no small amount of awe.
“I mean it Fives.”
Fox said quietly as Flinch looked over the exit wound of the laser bolt that Fives had.
Fives winced a bit as Flinch prodded at his back and then his chest, and then his back again.
“Quit it!”
Fives snapped, slapping Flinch’s hand and Flinch snorted.
“Just trying to see if you were paying attention, vod.”
Flinch rationalized and Fives rolled his eyes.
Fox sighed and moved over, supporting Fives as Fives grumbled some choice insults at Flinch and Flinch chuckled goodnaturedly. The medic gave a sloppy grin and looked between the two.
“You’re healing nicely, Fives, but you still need to take it easy. I don’t want to come back to find you passed out on the floor again.”
Flinch warned and Fives chuckled, looking to Fox and Fox merely raised his eyebrows, in this instance, the medic was right. He didn’t want splat Fives anymore than Flinch did and if it was up to Fox to make sure that didn’t happen, he would happily ensure that it didn’t.
Given the all clear, Fives started to unsteadily stand up and Flinch gave a lazy salute.
“I’m going to go see what Thorn and Thire have managed to break on the new batch of shiny’s that came in.” he said, looking back at the two and then leveling a glare at Fox.
“Don’t break him.”
He warned and Fives snorted, looking to Fox.
“He can’t break me worse than he did the first time!”
Fives called out, only to have Fox flick the back of his head gently.
“Hey!”
Fox was ever glad that he’d gotten Fives, the ARC was notoriously fun to manage and between them all, they managed to free the entire Coruscant Guard, with only a handful of troopers who’d noticed specific blackout zones with their chips still. Fox wasn’t included in those, mostly because he wouldn’t have asked his men to do something he hadn’t already done when the only evidence was a suspected to be crazy trooper that he was supposed to have killed. No time for doubts that way and it was a way to be absolutely certain.
Fives himself was a gift to the Corrie Guard, and they weren’t going to give the talented trooper back. Not while he was still suspected to be dead. Fox knew a time would come that Fives would be healed enough to not only have to strategize but would have to let Fives go and tell Rex that he was still alive. That Fox hadn’t betrayed his brothers. That they could fix this. And they would.