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You let out a frustrated sound from your throat before you kicked the side of the Marauder’s holoprojector. The loud metal clang filled the cockpit, and you were thankful all members of Clone Force 99, including Echo, were out collecting supplies so you could express your anger and disappointment in peace.
You looked back at the hologram message that spelled out in large letters DENIED in a bold script like it was intentionally mocking you. You felt your eyes fill with tears as you turned away from the hologram. You don’t know why you even allowed yourself to get your hopes up that you would be accepted into the GAR’s Advanced Field Training Program. You thought your skills were quite good considering you’d been with Clone Force 99 for almost an entire cycle, but the reasons listed in the rejection holo were such bantha fodder it enraged you.
How could they say further training was ‘unnecessary’ and to apply again at another time? You were in the middle of a war alongside some of the most elite soldiers in the GAR. What about that meant extra training was unnecessary? Shouldn’t they want you as capable as you could possibly be? How could they deem any request for further training unnecessary when you felt you could barely keep up with the boys? It’s like they were setting you up to fail.
You let out another frustrated sob as you slammed the button to shut off the holo with your fist and started to leave the cockpit. You needed to sulk on the gunner’s mount for a while until the rejection didn’t sting so much.
You didn’t hear his footsteps until it was too late, and Hunter was in the doorway at the top of the gangplank. You watched his face register your angry tears before quickly looking away, hoping to dodge his questioning by continuing in the aft direction.
“Woah, woah, woah,” Hunter stepped into your path and placed his hands on your shoulders, angling his face to look at your eyes that still avoided him. “Hey, what’s the matter?”
You sniffled and wiped away the stray tears on your cheeks. “Nothing.”
“Doesn’t look like nothing,” Hunter said softly, and you sniffled again before he cocked his head. “Come on.”
Hunter put an arm on your shoulder and gently guided you out of the Marauder and into the fresh forest air of the planet you were on. You stomped alongside him, his hand and the small of your back as you walked further towards the treeline.
“Talk to me,” Hunter said when you were under the shade of tall trees some distance from the ship.
“What are you doing back so early anyway?” you asked, crossing your arms, still avoiding his gaze. There was something embarrassing about looking at him with tear-stained eyes and cheeks. Hunter always remained strong no matter what adversity he faced. He was always cool, calm and collected. Never wavering. But the façade of your strength had broken, and he was witnessing it. It was mortifying.
“You’re supposed to be with the others,” you continued.
“I was. But I got an alert from GAR command so I thought it might be important, seeing as though they never contact us first,” he explained.
You suppressed a loud groan. The alert was your rejection letter. You hadn’t realised his comm had been synced up with the ship’s systems. It wouldn’t hit you until a little later that Hunter had prioritised you over what he thought was an important message from GAR command. He was continuously amazing.
“But you still haven’t answered my question,” Hunter said gently, stepping towards you. After a beat of silence, he said with a hint of amusement in his voice, “You gonna look at me?”
You sighed and flicked your eyes to him. Hunter was a very handsome man, anyone with eyes could see that, but there was something devastatingly beautiful about how he looked right now. Stood with his hands on his hips in his armour, the speckled sunlight from the trees lit up his face, shining in the grey-brown of his eyes and across the tattoo of his face. The corner of his mouth was turned up slightly as you met his gaze, the warmth and familiarity of it made your heart squeeze.
You really did love him. And you could hardly believe he loved you too.
“It’s nothing,” you assured him, not wanting to bother him further when he already had so much on his mind with the upcoming mission. “I just got frustrated.”
“Uh-huh,” Hunter raised an eyebrow. “Wanna tell me what about?”
“It doesn’t matter,” you shook your head.
Hunter said your name and placed his hands on your arms, drawing you closer. “I know this is still…new, for us both. But you can tell me anything.”
You’d only been together for a couple of months; despite the length of time you’d been with The Bad Batch. You’d steadily found yourself falling for the sergeant, with his rough voice which almost never angered even when he was thrown curveballs that definitely warranted it, his capable hands and ability to lead and look out for his squad with care, you could hardly be blamed for it. You’d never expected that he would ever return your feelings. But sitting at a campfire sipping spotchka late into the night after a particularly tough mission where you’d almost not come out alive had spurred the revelation of your feelings to one another. And the two months that followed had been a bliss of shared bunks, stolen kisses, secret handholding, and sneaking away whenever you could.
You loved it. You loved him.
You sighed and put your forehead on his chest. How could you tell him, the ever-proficient sergeant of an elite squad with an unbroken winning streak, you’d been denied further training? It was humiliating. Hunter raised a hand to your hair and gently smoothed the back of your head. The gesture was so soft you almost started crying again.
“It’s stupid,” you muffled into his armour.
Hunter took your face in his hands and lifted it from his chest. “Cyare…how can it be stupid when it’s upset you?”
When he smiled reassuringly at you, thumbs softly drawing across your cheekbones, catching stray tears, you melted.
“I applied for the GAR’s Advanced Field Training Program,” you told him. “That was the alert you got.”
Hunter’s brow creased. “I didn’t know you applied for further training.”
You shook your head. “Because I didn’t tell you.”
“When did you apply?” he asked.
You swallowed. “After that mission.”
You didn’t need to say anything more than that. You both knew which one. Whilst it had brought you too together, it almost had fatal consequences for the squad. You’d barely made it out of there, and you’d all had to spend several hours patching each other up, applying bacta, and then using spotchka to sterilise the wounds when you’d run out. You’d taken some of the worst hits you’d ever experienced, and you remembered trying to run after the boys as droids closed in on your exit from the facility, information in tow. You remembered vividly falling behind, your legs not fast enough, reflexes slower. You’d tripped over debris, falling and spraining your wrist and ankle, Hunter had to fall back and pick you up, dodging blaster fire as he carried you back to the ship. You’d felt helpless; like you’d let everyone down.
It's what spurred you to apply for further training, so it wouldn’t happen again.
Hunter took in a breath, his expression becoming understanding as his hands that still held your face stroked down your neck. “I see.”
You swallowed before forcing the words out, irritation flaring up in you again as you recalled those bold red letters. “They rejected my application on account of it being ‘unnecessary’.” You scoffed. “I told you it was stupid.”
Hunter nodded carefully before running the backs of his fingers across your tear-stained cheeks, gently wiping the remains of streams away. “I’m sorry. They should’ve accepted you.”
You felt your chest expand. You hadn’t realised how much you needed to hear that; that you deserved to be accepted into the program; that their decision to reject you was as ridiculous as you thought, and that you weren’t overreacting. You gave him a tight-lipped smile and leaned into his hand that cupped your face. “Thanks, Hunter.”
“Why didn’t you tell me you applied?” Hunter asked earnestly.
You shrugged. There wasn’t really a proper reason, hearing his response now. You took his hand from your face and traced his palm between you, avoiding his eyes.
“I just wanted to be better,” you said quietly. “I didn’t want you to think I wasn’t good enough for the squad.”
Hunter said you name in that gentle chastising way. He shook his head. “I would never think that. I don’t think that.”
You gave him a small smile before looking away again. “Are you mad?”
“No,” Hunter told you without hesitation before he gently lifted your chin with his finger and kissed your forehead. “But I understand why you are.”
You huffed despite the sweet gesture. “It just makes no sense! How could they say it’s unnecessary? We’re in the middle of a kriffing war. Don’t they want to win?”
Hunter nodded, an amused smile trying to break through his expression at your frustrated hand gestures. “You’re right, cyare. But staying mad at the GAR won’t do any good.”
You sighed, crossing your arms, frown on your face. “I know. But they’re just so…idiotic.”
Hunter chuckled. “I know, sweetheart. But I do have an idea, if you’d like to hear it.”
You raised an eyebrow at him. Hunter smiled and unlaced your arms so he could hold your hands. “You let us train you.”
Your eyes widened in shock at his offer. “Really? You would give me the extra training?”
Hunter smiled with his teeth, and you knew he was really happy when he did that. Knowing you were the source of such a smile made your insides warm. How special was he.
“Yes, I would. And so would my brothers.” Hunter squeezed your hands and looked at you seriously. “If further training is what you want, then you should have it. You’re an asset to this squad; I don’t want you to feel like you’re not good enough to be here.”
You could’ve cried with happiness. All your anger at the GAR melted away. Who needed them when you had Hunter? You loved this man so much.
Smiling up at him, you asked, “How will it work? Our missions are always back-to-back.”
“I’m sure Tech will be able to formulate a schedule,” Hunter shrugged. “But we’ll make it work. The GAR says it’s unnecessary? Well, we’ve never been good at following orders.”
You laughed and threw your arms around his shoulders, squeezing him tightly. You breathed in his scent from his dark curls, and his arms went around your torso and held you close. You could feel him smile into your neck before he kissed it. The edges of his armour bit into your body, but you could hardly care. You loved him more than words.
“Thank you, Hunter,” you whispered into him before pulling back to look at his beautiful face. He smiled warmly at you, a dapple of sunlight hitting his eyes, so they shone with that same warmth. You cradled his jaw in one hand and stroked the stubble-lined cheek with your thumb before kissing his lips sweetly, hoping it conveyed how much you loved and appreciated him. Hunter, ever the discerner of your emotions, smiled into the kiss before he deepened it a little, holding you tighter against his solid frame as his lips moved against yours tenderly. When you both pulled back, you were smiling at each other as your foreheads touched.
“Always,” Hunter said between you, grinning.