Attack of the Domestics
A/N: Encouraged by @michysminions7 and inspired by @jenksel to post this. I've gotten very insecure about my work and barely write anymore, other than little author-insert fluffs. This is one of those, but I still hope you enjoy reading it.
Fandom: Baa Baa Black Sheep
Pairing: Bobby Anderson/OC
Rating: T
Word Count: 2,116
Summary: Bobby's having a bad time at the party the night before a mission. He tries to find some alone time to sulk - and overhears an unexpected conversation.
Damn Wiley, Anderson thought as he stomped towards the beach. How in the hell had he managed to lose a girl to Wiley? Last he checked the man hadn't been anywhere near him, and then poof! Boyish charm and floppy hair and that genuine puppy dog smile and the cute brunette Anderson had just been about to score turned all her attention from the action at hand.
It's not fair, he thought grumpily to himself. Though if he was being honest, he was more upset about losing a girl to Wiley than he was about losing a girl. He usually had no problems chatting up the ladies but he could get a little overenthusiastic. Not to mention his height sometimes worked against him. Ladies like 'em tall? Not always!
He wasn't surprised to find another person on the beach, but he did do a double take when he realized it was another woman. One of the nurses, no doubt, and she looked a little familiar. Had she said hi to him earlier? He'd been so focused on the brunette (whose name he could no longer remember) that he couldn't recall if someone else had spoken to him. But there sat another nurse, wearing a white midriff-baring top and a pair of khaki shorts. Her knees were drawn up to her chest and her elbows rested on them. Her head was in her hands. Wait, was she crying?
Anderson felt a flare of anger bloom in his chest. Who the hell was enough of a jerk to leave a woman crying on the beach? He started out of the brush towards her…and a voice interrupted him.
"Lori?"
Anderson dropped to the ground, praying he hadn't been seen.
The woman lifted her head, and in the dim light from the buildings behind them he could see she did have tears on her face. It was a plain face, framed by lovely brown hair, but there was something haunting about it. And yes – she was familiar. Anderson couldn't help but stare.
"Mags?" the woman asked.
"Lori, what are you doing away from the party?" Another nurse, older, blonde, strode purposefully down towards her. Anderson had seen her before for sure. She was one of the more no-nonsense women, the kind you couldn't use your best lines on because she'd laugh in your face, ruffle your hair, and call you cute. The last thing any guy wanted when he was looking to pick up a woman was for her to think he was cute.
"I'm fine, Margaret," the woman…Lori, Anderson thought, her name is Lori…replied.
"The hell you are, you're crying." Margaret sat in the sand beside Lori, thankfully closer to Anderson so Lori kept her head turned in his direction. He didn't want to listen in on the conversation struggling to hear what Lori had to say.
Of course, if he was the gentleman he professed to be, he wouldn't listen in on this conversation at all.
"I'm fine!" Lori wiped her eyes. "I'm just not in a party mood."
"After seeing the pickings in there, I'll buy that," Margaret said, (bitch, Anderson thought, then flinched at the sound of his Mama's voice in his head chastising him for such language), "but you were so excited earlier today. I heard you girls talking, I know you were all anxious to meet up with Major Boyington's men."
That's right, Anderson thought proudly.
"I was. Am. Just…oh, Mags, it's stupid. Don't ask me."
Any self-respecting man would walk away when a woman said that to him. But Anderson knew enough to know that when a woman said that to another woman, it was an invitation.
He was right…sort of. "What's so stupid? You came, you saw, you decided not to play. You want to wait for the next opportunity to have some fun, that's your choice."
Lori looked away, and suddenly her shoulders shook. Anderson twitched instinctively, wanting to step out and comfort the crying woman. It was basic manners, not to mention the fact that comforting a crying woman upped your chances of getting lucky later.
"Lori!" Margaret leaned over and put a hand on Lori's shoulder. "Look, if you're not interested, there's nothing wrong with that…"
"I know…" Lori blurted, her voice distorted with sobs. "I know you all think…I'm a prude."
"Oh, don’t be silly, we don't think that…"
"Yeah, you do, I heard Melinda talking the other night."
Ah, Melinda, that was the girl he'd lost to Wiley. And now he recalled, he had spoken to Lori. She'd said hi while he and Melinda were talking. But he'd been deep into weaving a setup for himself and Melinda to leave, and hadn't really responded to her.
He felt a little guilty about that. After all, she was out here crying. Could it be because of him?
"What you do with whoever you want is your business," Margaret said. "You don't have to brag about it as much as Melinda does. The whole camp knows who she goes around with almost before she actually goes around with them."
Anderson's lip curled. Huh…maybe he needed to go save Wiley. He'd seen nurses play with the feelings of his friends before. The last one had almost torn the Black Sheep apart.
"Just when people ask me how my night went and I don't want to tell them…they assume I'm just a…a…"
"Cold fish?"
Lori nodded.
"And you're not?"
Lori stared at her and Anderson found himself very, very interested in her answer. He'd save Wiley later.
"I haven't been with a man in months," Lori finally said. "Not since before I came here. And you know how that turned out. I just haven't been interested. No one has interested me…but…but now..."
Anderson's eyebrows lifted.
Margaret tilted her head. "Are you saying there is someone in there that you're interested in?"
Lori nodded.
"Then why aren't you in there?"
"I don't have a chance. Melinda's got him."
Wiley. Anderson couldn't help the twist of disappointment in his stomach. It was one thing to lose a girl face to face to Wiley, but hearing another crying about losing her chance with Wiley because he was already taken…well it definitely made Anderson want to leave the area. He started to unravel from his hiding position to slink away. Maybe he wouldn't save Wiley from Melinda. Seemed like the guy could use a little bad luck with women.
"That doll dizzy with the fluffy blonde hair?" Margaret laughed. "I've seen him before, Lori. He chases as many women as Melinda chases men. You're not missing out."
"His hair wasn't fluffy and blonde, it was short and black," Lori said.
Anderson stopped moving. What?
Margaret echoed him. "What? Black hair?"
"Black hair," Lori repeated. "And a beautiful smile. He's got these really full lips. You know, the kind you know would feel good on yours? And when he smiles it stretches up into his eyes and squints them, like his whole face is enjoying whatever made him smile. It's an honest smile."
"You're talking about one of Major Boyington's men?"
"Yes. He was talking to Melinda. I guess she turned him down or something because the guy you're talking about was definitely not him. He was really tall. Like six feet or more."
Now Anderson was paying so much attention, he was holding his breath.
"Oh, yes!" Margaret exclaimed. "Yes, tends to stay in the back, keeps his hands in his pockets. He slouches, probably because he's a giant…"
Like you're a giant pain in the…Anderson shook his head to stop the thought.
"I never got his name," Lori said.
Anderson clawed his fingers into the ground, staring at her. My name's Bobby!
"Well, he's not talking to Melinda anymore," Margaret said. "Why don't you come back in and see if you can salvage the night?"
Anderson wondered how fast he could get back to the party without the women seeing him. His head was spinning. Oh yeah…he wasn't breathing. He exhaled hard and yanked in a breath of sea air.
Lori shook her head. "I…look, he's only going to want one thing. And…"
"And what's the problem with that?"
"Like I said, it's stupid."
"Lori, what are you talking about?"
Lori suddenly threw up her hands. "I don't want to just fool around tonight with him, Mags! I know, I know I have no idea who he is! I don't even know his name! But seeing him smile and laugh like that…it was like…my entire life, I've been living in the dark, and someone turned on the light. I want to cook breakfast for that smile. I want to hear that laugh while watching one of those old Buster Keaton pictures. I want to feel his arms hold me and hear his voice tell me I'm safe from everything in the world."
Anderson was aware his mouth had dropped open. He wasn't aware of much else.
"Lieutenant Beaufort, you had an attack of the domestics," Margaret sighed. "It happens. You see a tall, strong, confident man like that, and everything inside you says he's the one for you. But Lori…he's a pilot. The most he can do for you right now is just right now. Tomorrow he could be dead. If you go filling your head with dreams of the future and tomorrow he gets shot down…how many more like him will break your heart before you give up? You need to focus on the right now and let the future come when it's ready. Now if you can't fool around with him tonight, I understand. But don't deny yourself a good time because you're too busy trying to live in the future."
Anderson wasn't entirely sure if he wanted to shout at Margaret or run for the party or just run as far from the situation as possible. The way he saw it, everyone was right here. He might get shot down tomorrow. But did that mean thinking about the future was forbidden? Was it bad to try to think about life after the war?
And he couldn't get her words out of his head. "...like someone turned on the light."
She certainly was pretty, though not the best-looking nurse in the bunch. And she wasn't interested in fooling around, so his chances of getting any tonight were zilch if he pursued her. She wanted more and he had no idea if he wanted…
Well…some. He had some idea. He thought about home often. New Orleans. He'd had a girl before the war had started but once he'd announced he was heading to the South Pacific, she had told him she couldn't wait for him. And it would be nice to have someone. It would be nice to think about a future in New Orleans, with a woman that stated he'd brought light into her life. But he couldn't really trust Lori would stick around. Emma sure hadn't and she'd been his high school sweetheart.
He supposed whether or not he trusted Lori didn't preclude him from getting to know her a little more. But he still needed to get back to the party without being seen.
"I can't do it, Margaret. Not tonight. Put me back on duty in the hospital, will you? I'm sure Sophie wants to go to the party."
Margaret sighed deeply. "Are you sure?"
Lori laughed, the sound bitter and beautiful all at once. "No! But if I go back there and I see him, I don't know what I'll do! I don't know if I can just let go of this and have a great night and wake up tomorrow and go on with my life. Maybe I can. But if I can't…I don't want to know what it'll feel like if I can't."
Margaret stared at her for a long time before nodding. "You are going to have to cultivate some inner strength if you're going to survive your assignments here, Loretta," she said. "If you care this much about everything, it's going to kill you." She stood and helped Lori up. "I'll drive you back to the hospital."
"Thanks," Lori replied. "And…look, don't tell any of the girls, okay? Just…tell them I wasn't in a party mood and decided to leave.”
"Fine."
The two women passed by Anderson and he focused up at Lori. His stomach turned when he saw the broken look on her face, and it was all he could do not to jump up and say I'll take it from here. She wanted him, and he'd be damned if he missed an opportunity to at least speak to her.
He had to find a reason to go to the hospital. Tonight.
