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[marineris]

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[donkeyballs]

They hadn't even tried giving him a deadline. Holden had spotted him while he's been pacing, waiting for the surgery to finish, and the conversation had been short. He left without telling Alex when he needed to be ready to go - just that he should check in, soon as he could, before the ship's got underway again.

It had only actually been a couple of hours, since the surgery. Naomi was off rerouting the power from core back to the drive rather than the laser, Amos and Holden off doing who knows what, and he was here. Crammed in next to Bobbie's bed, praying to a God he hadn't even tried to talk to in decades.

The relief that hit him when she spoke was all ecompassing, and he let out a breath he hadn't realised he'd been holding.

"Yeah," he breathed, reaching for her hand again, squeezing it firmly. Her blood still coated his skin, but it was dry now. "Yeah, it worked. ... Thank you. For trustin' me."

[marineris]

This time she squeezes back, a bit weaker than normal. It worked, and he's safe, and it feels like a weight being lifted off of her chest. She can't think of Mars yet, or about the fact that this is desertion number two. They won't take her back this time, no matter her justifications.

Instead, she focuses on Alex, on the relief in his expression. "Yeah." She swallows, trying to rub a bit of the blood off of one of his knuckles with her thumb. "I'm starting to make a habit of this, aren't I?"

[donkeyballs]

However weak her grip, his hold on her hand is firm enough to make up for it.

"Yeah, we really need to stop meetin' like this," he replied, trying to crack a smile and managing something fond but also pained, instead. "Only so many times my heart can take it."

[marineris]

She smiles back, though she can't quite manage a laugh. That's probably for the best, because there's no way her healing side could handle it.

"You need to keep me up to date on your crazy plans. I can't keep up."

[donkeyballs]

"Hell, if I'd known you were here--" he should have. She was part of the shit storm, too - the same weird coincidences of fate that Holden kept dragging them into. But he's still been surprised.

"I am more than happy to inform you of every damn plan I have from now on, crazy or not." He paused. "Which- I may already have a small one."

[marineris]

It's not actually his fault, and she doesn't blame him. They'd lost track of each other after that last call before reaching the ring, before everything had gone sideways. At that point, it had just become about survival.

She raises her eyebrows at his statement, though, frowning. "There's not much I can help with right now."

[donkeyballs]

"That ain't the kind of plan I mean."

He paused, unsure for a second even though he'd been so very sure, talking to Holden. But he only hesitated a few seconds.

"This med bay - this ship - is pretty crowded. But I, uh. I've got a ship with a med bay that's a hell of a lot more empty. We're all gonna be gettin' out of here, soon, I figured - you might be more comfortable if you take the ride with us."

[marineris]

She doesn't respond right away, just lets out a breath, her gaze dropping to their hands. It's a hell of an offer, and she knows she's not a marine anymore. No one has to march down here and tell her.

"I don't think Mars is going to want anything to do with me. Is Holden okay with it?"

[donkeyballs]

He resisted the urge to say that he didn't think she should want anything to do with Mars - resisted the feeling that Mars had betrayed her rather than the other way around, ever time. But she wasn't in a place to hear that. So he bit his tongue on the subject and nodded to the rest, instead.

"... Yeah. Honestly, I was gonna - give him a whole speech about it, but he already seemed to know what I wanted to say. Think he might have talked about it with the others, first, before gettin' to me." His voice felt oddly thick, so he swallowed. "There's a lift on offer, regardless. But there's - there's a bunk, too. If you want it."

[marineris]

So it isn't just a ride, like last time—he's offering her a spot on the crew. She looks up at him again, eyes meeting his, and tries not to think too much about the way her chest tightens, or that sudden rush of relief and gratitude.

She squeezes his hand, maybe a little too tightly, her voice soft. "I'm in."

[donkeyballs]

The relief spreads through him, too - he hadn't realised just how badly he needed her to say yes. He seemed to relax almost immediately, all the worry and wound up energy and fear finally just letting go. He squeezes her hand in return, just as firmly as she was.

"Alright then." His tone is soft, too, but then he clears his throat and looks up and around them. "You give me just one minute, I'll get a med tech and we'll get you transferred over to the Roci."

[marineris]

She's not quite willing to let go of his hand just yet, but she forces herself to, untangling their fingers reluctantly.

"Thanks, Alex." And then she smiles wryly. "Sorry I shot at you."

[donkeyballs]

"I'm just glad it was you on the other end of those bullets," He admitted, giving her hand a final squeeze before letting go. He couldn't quite bring himself to immediately pull away, though, reaching out and putting a still bloodied hand on her shoulder - just for a few seconds.

"Alright. Just hold tight."

It took a little arguing and a little cajoling, but by the end of it he finally found someone to take a look over here - the blue glowing light in her abdomen pulsing as it healed her. They were given the go ahead to let her walk - as long as she put her arm on Alex's shoulders and let him take the weight.

The walk to the skiff was thankfully a short one, and a tech came with them, since Holden, Amos and Naomi had already headed back for the Roci. He made sure Bobbie was strapped in before sitting down beside her, the tech flying and leaving them alone for the first time since - well, hell, since she'd last been on the Rocinante.

"How's it feel? You holding up okay?"

[marineris]

It's a bit of a journey, and Bobbie can't help but wonder how many times she's going to get dragged into the medbay like this. It's good to have Alex here, though, and it's a relief to know she won't have to face her commanding officers, at least not just yet.

"I feel like I've been shot, but the whole system didn't get blown out of the sky, so I guess I can't complain."

[donkeyballs]

Oh. That's right.

"Yeah. No wipin' out of the human race, yet. But something did happen, while you were out." He fumbled through his pocket, fishing out his hand terminal, then swiping over to the recorded video.

He held it out to her.

"Here."

[marineris]

Bobbie takes it from him, frowning as she processes what she's seeing. When it clicks, she sits up so quickly she winces.

"Are those what I think they are?"

[donkeyballs]

"Easy--" he murmured, a hand immediately reaching out to rest on her shoulder to keep her from moving that fast again.

"Yeah. Yeah, they are." He paused, swallowing. "I ain't sure how I feel about it, but they're open, now. All of them. The whole damn galaxy is open to us."

[marineris]

"Shit."

She's honestly not sure how she feels about it either—she's torn between the intense desire to see what the hell is out there, and the knowledge that this could easily just make things worse.

"And that means everyone is going to be scrambling for a piece."

[donkeyballs]

"Yeah."

He didn't really notice that he'd left his hand on her shoulder, until he started to rub it a little, like a nervous action.

"I mean - why terraform a planet when you can have your pick of thousands, instead?"

[marineris]

She clicks her tongue, considering that. If she minds his hand on her shoulder, she certainly doesn't say so, still staring down at the hand terminal.

"No point to terraforming Mars."

Which makes something in her chest twist.

[donkeyballs]

"That's definitely going to be the argument," he agrees quietly, still rubbing his thumb in slow circles into her shoulder.

"I don't know what the hell is going to happen to any of us," he admitted quietly. "But I figured - if that made a difference, and you wanted to change your mind--"

[marineris]

Bobbie finally looks up at him again, offering the hand terminal back.

"...Change my mind about the Roci?"

[donkeyballs]

"Yeah." He sounded sheepish. "Just realised I sorta- asked when you didn't exactly know the whole situation. If I know Holden, we'll be going out there, for some reason or another. Thats a lot different than just runnin' with us in the belt."

He paused, determined to wait for her answer, then immediately failed by adding: "... Not that I want you to change your mind, because he'll, I really don't."

[marineris]

"I'm not changing my mind." She reaches up to cover his hand with hers. "Do you really think I want to sit at home or wander the belt while this is happening?"

[donkeyballs]

He let out a breath, then offered a tired, relieved smile as the skiff settled in against the Roci with a low vibrating thud.

"Yeah, I had a feelin' you might say that," he admitted, and he tried to ignore the way it made his chest twist, or the way his thoughts ran to Talissa. She would never have understood wanting to be out there.

Bobbie didn't even hesitate.

It was incredible to him, how well she understood him, and he was incredibly thankful. He heard the hiss of the airlock engage, and only then slipped his hand out from under hers, to undo his harness, then reach over and get hers, too. They were weightless, at least, which would make getting Bobbie to the med bay a lot easier.