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Some breathing space, finally. After the situation that happened the night before, Ghost arranged a meeting with Price.
Ghost braced himself and stepped into Price's office. It reeked of bitter coffee, cheap tobacco, and leather. It's like entering your dad's room when you were little. On one hand, he's the person you know well; on the other, you don't know half of what happened with him. Probably explains the dad-and-sons chemistry between Price and TF141.
Ghost never hesitated before entering Price's office, but this time was a bit different. A bit too much different.
Price looked up at Ghost from his leather chair. "What did you want, Simon?"
Ghost tried to keep his rough exterior. "I think Soap and I worked hard enough lately. We require a few days off duty."
Telling Price anything like this was equivalent to pointing a loaded gun at yourself. Ghost knew it perfectly. But nothing ventured, nothing gained.
Price merely raised his eyebrows. "A few days off?" He seemed to consider such a demand for a bit. "I could do it."
Ghost was surprised by such an easy agreement from the Captain. He wanted to say "thanks", but got cut off.
"But you'll owe me a debrief on time you spent during this," Price chuckled, "vacation."
Fuck.
"Affirmative, Price." Ghost saluted with his two fingers.
"You have 3 days. Spend them wisely."
Ghost nodded and left Price's office. He didn't know if Price noticed how his legs were a bit wobbly from the tension.
He set this up so that he could take Soap to Thailand. He had no idea how they'd get there, he had no idea if Soap would approve this, and he had no idea whether they'd survive being in another country. But he knew exactly what he wanted to do there.
See the waterfalls.
He remembered how Soap's eyes shone when he saw the waterfalls in the TV the previous night. And he wanted to see that sparkle again.
He approached Soap's barracks. Knocked at the door thrice.
"Come in, whoever you are." Soap's muffled words were heard behind the door, he huffed between words.
Ghost opened the door.
He was met by an exercising shirtless man in front of him.
Soap wore black standard-issue shorts, training sneakers, and absolutely nothing else. His mohawk was a disheveled mess, sweat ran down his face, arms, chest, and abdomen. Speaking of abdomens, Soap's abdomen was ripped. A very prominent six-pack Ghost hadn't paid much attention to before, but now Soap's abs felt like headlights pointed at Ghost in the role of a deer. He let his eyes linger on the man's midsection, then averted his gaze to the floor.
Soap was doing sit-ups, if you wondered.
"Aye, LT. What's up?" Soap looked at Ghost and grinned, still doing sit-ups and still huffing.
"Just wanted to ask you if you wanted to hit Thailand with me." Ghost stated.
Soap froze.
"The fuck? If I wanted?" Soap's eyes were wide open. "Of course I do want!"
He paused.
"But... how are you going to do this? We have duty, after all."
"I took care of it. Price gave us three days. Said I'd have to share with him what I was doing during those days. So let's make the man envy us."
"WOOHOO!" Soap shouted. "LET'S FUCKING GOOO!"
Ghost facepalmed, the same gesture he did the previous night. "Get decent."
"I am decent."
"You're not."
"Since when can't men be shirtless in their own rooms?"
"I'm standing right here."
Soap tch'ed, but it lacked any irritation. "Pass me my tank top."
Ghost reached for it and threw it at Soap indignantly, still trying hard not to admire the body of his sergeant.
Soap put it on and they left the room.
As they walked down the hall, Ghost glanced at his watch. "1656."
Soap snorted. "We aren't soldiers for three days. Use normal language."
"What do you mean?"
"Say it's 4:56 PM, or say it's 5 in the evening. Don't say 1656." Soap mocked him playfully.
"Old habits die hard."
Some beats of silence.
"How are we getting to Thailand after all? It's, like, 9 hours by plane." Soap asked.
"5 plus 9?"
"...14?"
"So 2 AM. We'll get there somewhere around 4."
"Awesome." Soap said sarcastically. "Why Thailand though?"
"It's famous for its waterfalls. Thought you'd like to see som-"
Ghost was abruptly cut off by Soap's crushing embrace. "You're the best, lieutenant."
Ghost didn't know how to react. Soap was a touchy guy, indeed, but Ghost still couldn't get used to it. He awkwardly placed his hands on Soap's back and patted. "You're being soft-soap."
Soap giggled. "Was the pun intended?"
"No."
Soap stood like this, nearly choking Ghost with his huge big hairy buff muscular chiseled inexplicably awesome and beautiful arms. Some other soldiers walked by them in the hall and tried to ignore the little moment LT and SGT had. Soap finally let go of Ghost.
"We're wasting time, let's eat something and get our bags ready!" Soap happily chimed as they continued walking.
Ghost sighed, but he smiled under his balaclava.
6:10 PM
The duo was already at the airport, luggage in hands. Soap smiled throughout the entire check-in, and Ghost couldn't shake off the feeling his smile made him feel.
"So, we have special seats for families in case you need them." A lady at the counter smiled at the men.
Ghost went pale behind the balaclava. Soap's jaw dropped.
"Wait-wait-wait, lady, we aren't a couple!" Soap explained, stuttering.
"Oh," lady's smile faltered, "I'm sorry, you just seemed so happy, I dunno."
Soap's grin reappeared on his face. "It's okay, hen."
"Like fuck it's okay, Johnny." Ghost gritted through his teeth so that only Soap could hear.
Soap didn't answer, just nudged the man with his elbow.
"Your plane boards in thirty minutes. Takeoff at 7 PM. Have a good flight." The lady waved them.
"You too!" Soap blurted out without thinking. "Uhh..."
The lady laughed at this as they walked away.
Ghost chuckled too.
By 6:50, they stepped on the plane, found their seats, and got comfortable. Soap pulled out a laptop and started playing Minesweeper. Ghost didn't know what to do for 9 hours. Or maybe he did.
"You brought your earphones with you, right?" Ghost turned to Soap.
"I did. Why?"
"Can I borrow them for some time?"
"Just for a bit. I'll need them."
"Okay."
Soap handed him the earphones. Ghost plugged them in his phone.
And he played "Nature Boy". He would never admit it to anyone, but he liked the orchestra and the sweet sounds of strings and the beautiful vocals. He laid back in his seat and closed his eyes. 9 hours is a lot, he had to make time count.
---
3:50 AM
The flight attendant walked by Ghost and Soap, waking the former up since their plane was landing. Ghost's eyes groggily opened as he nodded at the lady. She walked away. When Ghost woke up completely, he realized the earphones were still in his ears, still playing the same song for 9 hours straight. Soap hadn't taken them. Speaking of Soap...
Ghost glanced at him.
Soap lay back in his seat, sleeping with his mouth slightly open. A small line of drool glistened on his chin. His legs were spread, and his hand was a bit too close to Ghost's, their fingers millimeters from each other.
Ghost shook Soap by his shoulder. "We're la-"
Soap jolted awake, almost jumping from his seat. "AH!"
Ghost swiftly slapped his palm over Soap's mouth to shut him up.
"What was that?" Ghost whispered angrily. "There are other people on the plane, and you're screaming your lungs out."
Soap mumbled something inaudible.
Ghost removed the hand off of Soap's mouth.
"You scared me!" Soap pouted.
"Did I?"
...
"Anyway, we're landing. Pack your stuff back."
4:49 AM
Thi Lo Su Waterfall. Finally. After the excruciatingly uncomfortable sleep in an economy-class seat, after the hours spent, they were finally here.
It was oddly beautiful here at night. There were no tourists at this hour, no one to disturb the peace. It was just them, the waterfall, and the beauty of nature.
The trees swayed and rustled quietly in the night wind. The grass beneath their bare feet was tickly. The sounds of the waterfall were the only thing they could hear amidst the paysage. The cool fresh air of the mountains felt like Heaven. Especially at night. The mountains themselves stood tall, like great sentinels of the harmony. Usually forests looked somewhat creepy at night. But this one was an exception. This place seemed like the best place on Earth. At least in that moment.
Ghost and Soap found a place to sit and admire the scenery. They sat down next to each other.
Soap inhaled deeply. "Ahh, this is divine. Never thought I'd actually see a waterfall in my life."
Ghost didn't say anything. He hummed a "yeah", his eyes never leaving the grand downpour.
They sat like this for a long time. They hadn't even moved.
"You really did all of that because I once mentioned I liked waterfalls." Soap broke the silence.
"...I did." Ghost simply answered. "Didn't regret it."
"You're so normal about this. You asked Price for time off, bought plane tickets, picked a waterfall, and most importantly, you took me with you."
Ghost had no words to answer. Soap never addressed him like this.
Soap lay on the grass with a huff, sprawling his arms around, and inhaled again. "I can't believe I'm here for real."
Ghost watched his comrade lay on the grass. He watched his chest move up and down. Slow, controlled. He felt things he shouldn't have. After all, they've been beside each other for a decade, and only now was he getting attached to the man?
Ghost lay too. Didn't sprawl his arms like Soap did. Just admired the sky and the stars.
"The stars are a completely different story." Soap started. "Waterfalls are cool, but stars, stars are..."
He proceeded to lecture Ghost on stargazing, astronomy, or whatever the hell that was somehow associated with stars. Ghost listened.
By the time the sun started rising above the horizon, Soap had been fast asleep on the grass beside his lieutenant. Ghost assessed him.
He wore the same black shorts as before and a white tank top. His chest heaved with slumber and the faintest of snores were heard.
Soap's face.
It was scarcely crinkled. His eyes were shut tight. His nose occasionally twitched in his sleep. The old white scar on his right eyebrow looked more pronounced in the morning glow. His 5 o'clock shadow looked harsh to the touch, the little hairs making his jawline look ravishing. His jawline, in fact, was sharp. It was usually tight with rigidity, but in that moment it looked soft, delicate even. His eyelashes were dark, casting shadows over his face. He had chronic eyebags under his eyes. His lips were dry and cracked. Ghost couldn't help himself.
He put a small, barely perceptible kiss to the man's forehead. His skin felt cold under Ghost's lips.
Ghost exhaled. Lay back down. He would still have to come up with a lie to tell Price when they returned. He watched the sun rise and thought.
"Maybe my life was worth living after all."