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The rays of the golden sun seemed to make Scout's metal bat glow as it was lazily thrown next to you, the departure of the sun making itself known as everything was painted with soft hues of orange and pink. Outside the base, you were sat by him while you wrapped another bandage around his cut and calloused hands, removing the previous bloodstained ones. You frowned at how his hands were always so hurt and damaged, your touch tender as you looked after his hands. They felt warm, tempting you to just intertwine your fingers with his but you decided against it. You were only friends, after all. But Scout felt the temptation too, the feeling of your soft fingers brushing against his harder skin making heat rush through his body. He coughed awkwardly, breaking the silence that hung between the pair of you.
"This tight enough?" You asked, after tying up the bandage. Scout nodded quickly, raising his other hand for you to bandage with a sheepish grin. You shook your head, taking his other hand with his palm facing up, unravelling the bandage. "I swear, Scoutie. Your poor hands are going through it." You sighed, partially scolding him for how he was always finding a way to harm his hands. Yet, you couldn't you really blame him after all. As another mercenary yourself, it was difficult to avoid injuries, but the fact it was always his hands felt baffling to you. Was he doing this on purpose? Nah. Or was he?
"Sorry, pally. My hands are always gonna be hurt like dis." Scout chuckled, his eyes crinkling as a smile grew on his lips. He wasn't lying, but if he was truly being honest, he would admit that he kind of intentionally let them get hurt. And why did he do this? To be tended by you, of course. It was a stupid way of having the opportunity of being touched so gently by you, but he didn't care too much at the end of the day. You made up for the pain.
As Scout smiled, you couldn't help but feel your heart swell at the sight of him. Seeing him look so happy, so content made your heartache, and made you want him even more. The fact that the sun was setting was no help to this want either, the rays making him look even more handsome than he already was. He looked golden, his eyelashes turning into a lighter brown, his blue eyes sparkling from the glimmer of the sun rays, and how the colours reflected on each contour of his facial structure. To you, he looked so kissable, so lovable and unbelievably fine. You wanted his smile engraved in your mind, but at this point it already was. You didn't even notice how you were looking at him so deeply and lovingly, until Scout's smile grew softer.
When his gaze locked with yours, he felt heat rush to his cheeks. You looked simply gorgeous, especially under the varnish of the sunset. Your hair looked so shiny against the honey-coloured light, each feature enhanced and even more enchanting below the warm hues. To say that you were beautiful would be an understatement - you were angelic, heavenly even. Scout wouldn't be surprised if you had grown delicate snowy feathers on your back, or if a halo began to float above your head. To think that someone like you was looking after his sore hands felt extraordinary and surreal, but he was most certainly thankful for it. Upon feeling your gaze, he couldn't help but melt as he paid attention to the way your brows furrowed slightly in adoration, the way every feature of yours seemed to soften along with your heartwarming study of his face.
The silence continued to loom over the atmosphere, although it wasn't that awkward. Both of you were far too invested in each other's faces to even notice, until your free hand accidentally brushed against Scout's baseball bat, which had unfortunately felt near scorching hot due to the sun and its metal material. Your yelp shattered that silence and halting the feeling that rushed through both of you.
"Shit!" You winced, jolting your stinging hand away from the bat and unintentionally letting go of Scout's hand. He snapped out of his hypnosis, his brows knitting in mild concern as he scanned your hand and face, a discreet pout on his lips once he felt your hand part from his.
"You aight?" He asked, his eyes darting between your hand and his bat, connecting the dots and feeling rather stupid for asking that question. But, you didn't pay mind to it too much, he was just trying to make sure you were okay after all.
"Y-Yeah," You grumbled, glaring daggers at his baseball bat as if to intimidate it. "Just the metal got hot from the sun, is all." Scout hummed in acknowledgement, trying to edge it away from you by using the bandaged part of his hand to shield his skin from the metal. He just about felt like hitting it against a tree to "punish" the bat for hurting you, but he would most certainly get hurt in the process because of how it was still hot. You went back to bandaging his other hand after blowing on and waving the pulsing skin, successfully tending to both wounded hands.
"There we go," You grinned, looking proudly at him. "All patched up." Scout's eyes slowly snapped down to his newly bandaged hands, a small and soft smile growing on his face at the sight, a testament for how you cared about him enough to be the one who looked after his cuts and wounds. He felt his heart aching.
"Thanks for lookin' after me, pally. I oughta say dat more often." His voice was more quiet than his usual loud and energetic tone, it was far more gentle and almost vulnerable. Like, the realisation that you were in fact looking after him, caring about him and wanting to make sure he was alright. It was obvious you did, but his remembrance that it was you of all people made his heart skip beats.
"Of course, Scoutie. You don't need to thank me, I'm just giving you the care you deserve." You smiled warmly, your previous adoring gaze coming back. He felt his heart feel like it was borderline bursting, his hands feeling slightly clammy beneath the bandages. Your words were so sweet, like honey for his ears, and it had him feeling like he was on top of the world. He still couldn't truly grasp that you had so much unconditional kindness for him, and he felt grateful to even have you sitting beside him. Nobody else would really willingly give him this much time out of their day, with the exception of his Ma of course. And oh, the nickname you gave him had his heart doing flips and made him feel like doing flips too. It was adorable, and made him feel even more in love with you. Love, the word that made him excited yet terrified at the same time. Excited to be lovesick for you, but terrified at the idea of you not sharing the same sort of love he felt. But it wasn't just that, it was the fear of losing you in some way. Although you were strong, considering you were a mercenary as well, he hated the idea of losing you in some form. You could respawn, but the concept of you even having to die freaked him out even if you were coming back not long after.
Scout wanted to always be by your side, the one who clung onto your ankles when you tried to leave to do any sort of thing that didn't involve him, the one who made stupid jokes and embarrass himself just to catch a glimpse of your smile and hear your laugh that was sweeter than the summer rain, the one who you would heal and patch up (he doesn't need Medic when he has you), the one who would hold you close to him whenever you felt sad or were in need of comfort, the one who would die alongside you. Scout didn't think about the future often, but when he did, you were pictured right beside him. His main component, the one he was stupidly and madly in love with. You weren't just a little infatuated crush he had, you were far more than that. If he wasn't in love, then God knows what love was.
"You...ya mean that?" He stammered, snapping himself out of his thoughts. You nodded almost instantly, your warm smile still very much present, and he was still drowning in it. He was drowning in your loving gaze. He was drowning in you, and he sure as hell couldn't float to the surface.
"Of course I do." You said it so matter-of-factly, and it had Scout thinking that his heart was going to pop at any given moment. He breathed in deeply, his smile widening, but his anxiety grew within him. He wanted to confess. From what he recalled from his lesson with Spy about how to win a lady's heart, romantic settings seemed to help, and the current sunset seemed to be romantic enough to him and hopefully for you. Scout's lips formed into a thin line as he thought about what to say, trying to get the words out right. Should he act all suave and romantic like from Spy's teachings...or should he just be himself? This uncertainty only fuelled his growing anxiousness, worrying that he might just make a fool of himself by trying to act like something he most certainly wasn't, but then he also feared that being himself wasn't enough. Was he even your type? Would you even be remotely able to see Scout as something more than just a silly, boisterous best friend? Did you love him the way he loved you?
His rushing nervousness was more than obvious to you, making your expression etch with concern and your voice become more quiet.
"What's wrong? Is everything okay?" You questioned, instinctively taking his hand in yours, which only made the redness that dusted his cheeks even deeper. His breathing became more heavy, his hands becoming more sweaty which made him incredibly grateful for the fact that they were bandaged. He looked at you, swallowing a lump that formed in his throat, struggling to find the words to speak. His demeanour took such a dramatic change, making him internally facepalm and cringe. You must be finding him so embarrassing, so stupid right now. But that couldn't be further from the truth. He never looked cuter, but you were more worried about something bothering him.
You patiently waited him to speak, squeezing his hand gently so it didn't aggravate the recent wounds. Your eyes seemed so big and sparkly, his heart pounding against his ribcage as he kept trying to speak but ultimately failing.
"Take your ti-" You were cut off by 3 words that you never expected.
"I love you." He blurted, his free hand suddenly slapping against his mouth as his eyes widened at how he said the words so abruptly. At least the hard part was over?
You sat there, completely dumbfounded, as you searched his eyes and expression. You didn't think he was lying, but the mere worry of him being dishonest or joking around made you check anyway. He loved you? He loved you back? This felt like some realistic dream, your fingers pinching your arm to check if this was actually happening, making Scout nervously chuckle.
"I...J-Jeremy..." His heart nearly stopped at how you stammered his name. You had called him Jeremy like, once or twice, both on serious occasions. He loved hearing the way you said his name, however the use of it only made him more nervous. What if you were breaking the news that he dreaded to hear? Did you not love him too? But those thoughts quickly melted away as soon as they arrived when you continued your sentence. "I never thought you felt...the same." You breathed, your lips parted. You never looked so damn gorgeous. The smile that ghosted your parted mouth, matched with your glimmering and loving eyes only made his happiness skyrocket.
"Y-You....ya love me too?" He gulped, leaning closer to you, his breathing beginning to slow down.
"I do," You nodded, your thumb brushing against his knuckles reassuringly. Your touch sent shivers across his body, making him all the more giddy and his face nearly as red as his t-shirt. “I love you too.” As the words he had longed for more than anything poured from your lips, his face leaned even closer to yours, your lips merely millimetres away from one another. You could feel his breath gently hit against your face, your heart thumping in your chest as the closeness sank in. His face, every little feature you adored, was so clear and close, and you couldn’t help but look over them again. Without another word, your hands went around his neck, his taking a hold of your waist, and your bodies got even closer to each other. Your movements were almost in unison, like both of your thoughts and decisions were running at the exact same time as each other. You gulped, feeling your entire body heat up, before your body did the thinking for you. You crashed your lips against his, kissing them sweetly but also with a sense of desperation, like you had been yearning for this as much as he was. Scout’s eyes widened at the contact of your soft lips against his own, but his eyes quickly closed, kissing you back with the same tender eagerness. He gently squeezed your sides, your lips moulding against each other. It wasn’t a perfect kiss, but it felt like it was. And that made it perfect to the both of you.
“Darlin’…” he paused after pulling away, then quickly adding in another sentence. “It’s okay if I call ya dat, right?”
“Absolutely!” You exclaimed, Scout’s smile growing impossibly wider. The name made those familiar butterflies soar in your stomach, and got your heart squeezing with affection. He was adorable.
“So, darlin’…I’m guessin’ you wanna be together now?” His tone was more confident compared to how he was feeling beforehand, but that vulnerability still remained, like he still needed the affirmation that you wanted him the same way he wanted you. It was already a sign that Scout could be insecure or in need of reassurance, but that wasn’t an issue at all. You were more than happy to provide him with all the support and affirmations he needed.
“Mhm, I absolutely do, Jeremy.” His face brightened even more, not only from your confirmation of wanting to be his girlfriend, but also from you saying his name. His arms wrapped around you tightly, near wrapping his lanky body around yours, making you almost topple backwards. You giggled, nuzzling your head into the crook of his neck. The feeling of your hair brushing against his skin was enough to make his stomach do flips. He was so lovesick for you, and you knew he was going to love you right. His - now romantic - affection was already so intoxicating.
“Spy’s sure as hell gonna be surprised that I gotta girlfriend. Especially since it’s you.” Scout chuckled sheepishly, his face squished against the back of your head, repositioning your bodies so that he was now the one cradling you.
“Well, you can tell him you didn’t need his advice,” You laughed, recalling that distant memory of Spy giving Scout a lesson on how to be romantic. “Because I don’t need you to be all different. I love you for, well, you.” Scout perked up, a grin growing on his face.
”Oh yeah? Tell me, darlin’, what is it dat’s got you lovin’ me?” His teasing returned, but you could tell that he was internally screaming.
“Well…” You began. “Everything. Your face for starters, so damn fine and handsome. You’re absolutely adorable, and I love your humour. You’re confident, always so caring towards me, and just…everything I need.” That snarky behaviour left as soon as it came. His heart was melting and his body was melting, and he couldn’t help but look at you so lovingly shocked. He knew you would be genuine, but never expected compliments on such things that people and the other mercenaries would find irritating. He could marry you on the spot at this rate.
“Oh, and you look so good with the sunset’s colours your face. Emphasises every feature I’ve fallen in love wi-“ He cut you off before you could finish, his lips roughly pushing against yours. You could feel how warm his body was, and the kiss was filled with his adoration and love for you. You were making him feel things he had never properly felt before, and he was loving every bit of it.
“Can say the same about you, darlin’. Fuckin’ gorgeous. Neva thought you could look more angelic, but here we are.” He mumbled against your lips, before briefly kissing them again more tenderly.
“And ta add, you got the most beautiful laugh I’ve ever heard. Gorgeous smile.” You kissed him again, your lips now moving onto his face to smother it with kisses. Your heart pounded, feeling nothing but love, adoration and euphoria for this man. You couldn’t get enough of him already. He chuckled as he felt your lips brush and press against his skin, his hands still holding onto your waist and squeezing your sides occasionally.
This was gonna be his favourite spot from now on. The place where this relationship bloomed.