Chapter 16: “Got a hot date?”
eventual Poly!141 x Reader
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Summary: Soap is so so so done with this mission. When he gets back to base he makes his new mission to find you. Content warnings: mdni, full series warning AN: nothing to see here
Soap was itching to finish up this op. They had been in this shit hole safe house waiting for Kate to make arrangements for the captive for longer than normal. Kate wanted him alive, transferred to some black site somewhere so her contacts could work him over. The 141 had been gentle with him so far but wherever Kate sent him would likely leave him destined for a shallow unmarked grave.
Soap was on captive watch, it was worst than regular watch where Soap could peer out of the windows and watch the world go by. Staring at this man's ugly mug on and off had left him in a foul mood that not even day dreaming was enough to get him out of it. Thoughts of you, thoughts of Ghost, thoughts of you and Ghost, round and around he went and still he could not get the image of this man's face out of his head.
The man wasn't talking or really doing much of anything. They had forced to him to swallow down some protein bars and gave him water at irregular hours, making it harder for him to tell how much time had passed, not letting him catch on to any kind of routine in how they handled him so he didn't get any ideas. All pretty standard stuff.
Until now.
"Psst, hey guy, hey."
Soap had been counting the ceiling tiles for what felt like the hundredth time, going over and over and over the water stained squares. Not once before had the man tied to the chair spoken to any of them.
Soap narrowed his eyes, brows furrowing as he took in the man. He looked worse for wear, the 141 might have been gentle in their handling of him but the lack of food and sleep had him looking both gaunt and tired, the dark circles under his eyes though were the least of his problems.
"You speak English or what?" his voice was rough, the words whispered, but the hint of an American accent was hard to miss.
Soap merely tilted his head to the side.
"Look, the people I work for can pay you. They need me. They'll pay you to get me back. You just gotta call them."
The 141 had heard it all before.
I'm rich, my family is rich, my country will pay to have me back, I work for important people.
And sometimes it worked, sometimes it helped to have important friends in important places, but that was not the case for this man.
Soap said nothing. The room was bugged, anything the man said would be recorded and sent to Kate and her team of analysts to make sense of. Soap had been far from happy when that was the decision, he would have loved to get his hands on the man that threatened Ghost, the man who thought he could take Simon away from him.
Each time someone from the team entered the room they took off anything identifying, leave him guessing when it came to who exactly they were. Trained and armed and capable, sure, but he hadn't given away how much he knew and they weren't going to let him learn anything new.
"My," the man paused as if searching for the right words, "my boss will pay you. He always pays."
What kind of a mercenary was he if he had been captured enough to know that his boss would pay to get him back? Didn't seem like a very sound investment to Soap. All of the mercenaries he had had the pleasure and displeasure of working with had been worth their ilk. This man may have been a good shot at some point, but he was sloppy, thought far too highly of himself.
"Do ya even speak English? Am I talkin' too fast for ya?"
His accent was stronger as he got more agitated. Southerner? Kate had said he had been living in Kentucky or was it Kansas? Soap hadn't spent enough time working with American's to pick apart the nuances between their accents past the basics.
"Look man, I know you gotta speak English. The brief said the big guy was British. It was just business, you gotta know how it is."
He was pulling against the restraints now, the severity of the situation finally getting to him. If he was dumb enough he would give something away, there was no way he was as well trained for interrogations as SAS, he hadn't even been special ops.
"You gotta let me go!" he was shouting now.
Soap leaned forward in his own seat, a little too gleeful at the man's outburst. He had clearly pegged Soap as the weakest link in the group, but none of them was the weakest link, Soap just had a face and a countenance that screamed unprofessional.
A lethal misjudgment for many.
Price was outside the room when Soap left the man, his shift was far from over but the constant shouting was starting to grate on him, a headache brewing behind his right eye. He would need some paracetamol before it became a full blown migraine.
"Didnae take much tae break 'im, did it?" Soap said with a grin.
"I'm more worried about how his supposed boss even got intel on this op. Not many people knew about it."
Price had spent much of their time in the safe house going over the materials they had been given, reviewing the change of information, listing out anyone and everyone who could have gotten access. The merc was there for Ghost specifically, which meant that they knew the mission brief, they knew where the 141 would be conducting the stakeout, they knew to wait for Ghost to be the one on that rooftop.
The question was why and then who? Why take out Ghost specifically? What was it about him or the 141 that had caught their attention? They were always in danger, it went with the territory, being the best at what they did made more enemies than allies. But which of those enemies was targeting Ghost and just Ghost.
"Gaz, get Kate on the horn. Need to confirm next steps now that he is talking."
*********************
"What's got your knickers in a twist, Tav?"
Soap was sat in the helo, picking at his cuticles as the chopper lazily made its way towards their base. Even after the man started talking it had taken days for Kate's team to arrive for the handoff, the 141 more than happy to pass off the sedated mercenary before making their way towards their own extraction.
"Nae got mah nickers in a twist, just eager tae get back."
They all had their headsets on, the oversized equipment helped to block out the roaring thrum of the motors and made it easier for the team to communicate if needed. It also meant that everyone could hear Gaz's question.
"Knee's been goin' like a goddamn jackhammer, shakin' the whole bloody bird," Price groused.
For most of the flight the captain had had his boonie hat pulled down over his eyes in a last ditch effort to get some rest before the inevitable hours of debriefing he would need to do. The mission might have been a bust when it came to the Sons but that didn't mean there wasn't more to followup on. Connecting the mercenary and his bosses to the Sons was just one of the tasks at hand.
The rest of the team though had been given leave to report back in the morning,
"Just excited tae be back 's'all."
"Got a hot date?" Gaz's question had the captain's attention.
Soap covered his face with his hands, praying to god he wasn't blushing like a goddamn school girl.
"Haud yer weesht!"
Gaz laughed, Price scowled and Ghost glared, the rest of his face obscured by a painted balaclava.
When the helo finally touched down Soap was the first off, ignoring Gaz teasing him, clapping Ghost on the shoulder as he laughed at some mad thing he was spouting off.
Soap wanted nothing more than to find you first, to declare his interest, explain some part of his relationship with Ghost. First though, he was minging after a long day of traveling. He needed a shower, food and to figure out exactly how to approach you without scaring you off. Ghost was right, there was a chance you weren't interested or that you wouldn't want to be with both Gaz and him.
A man could dream.
You weren't in the mess when he stopped by for food. It was full of soldiers from the new team. Soap had had the displeasure of meeting a handful on them already and was dreading conducting trainings with them. Normally he would be chomping at the bit for an assignment, some way to shirk off that particular responsibility. Teaching demolitions to new recruits and more experienced operatives was fine, he enjoyed that most of the time. But doing exercises on stealth, evasion and really anything else with a group of men dumber than dirt who had no interest to learn was a punishment the 141 didn't deserve.
This bunch had a reputation for being difficult to work with, rough and rowdy, with a disregard for any authority that wasn't their pigheaded captain. The man himself was sat at one of the tables, a few of his officers with him.
Maybe you were in your office?
First he needed to grab food for Ghost and then he would find you.
Soap stopped outside of Ghost's office. Ghost was in there, the lingering scent of smoke still clung to the air outside his doorway, the light filtered out beneath the door.
Ghost was a man of habit, his post mission routine was sacred and also necessary for the him to decompress, to come back to himself. They might have joked around together in the safe house, but the undercurrent of violence, the tension of danger, the aggression thick on Soap's tongue when they stole a kiss in the dark.
There was no easy mission when you had to be prepared for anything.
Ghost could compartmentalize like the best of them, but he needed space to do it. Quiet. The two of them had developed a routine that ended with Soap bringing his lieutenant food so that Ghost could eat in peace.
Did he sometimes fuck Soap over his desk if the mood was right?
Soap grinned at the prospect, would Ghost be in the mood?
No, Soap banished the thought, hoping his loose cargos would hide his hard on. He was here on business.
The door was unlocked, Soap knocked once before entering. Most people knew not to enter the office without permission, but Soap had never been good with boundaries, not when it came to Ghost. Not when he had made it his mission to pick apart the right ones to push and leave alone the ones that needed to be respected.
The lieutenant was sat at his desk. He had changed out of his gear, a fresh black balaclava pulled over his face. He was still wet from his shower, the clean shirt he wore clinging to the planes of muscle across his chest and shoulders.
Soap clicked the door locked behind him, dropping the tray of food on the desk before taking a seat across from Ghost.
This was time together that Soap cherished. Just the two of them. Ghost peeling back his mask to expose that bonnie bonnie face that haunted Soap's dreams. The tensions melting off those monolithic shoulders as Ghost relaxed into his desk chair, eating whatever scraps Soap had brought him. No one else got this moment. Gaz and Price might get to see Ghost with his defenses down but they didn't get this time together.
Soap had known for a while that there was no life for him without Ghost. No existence where this brooding, shadow of a man wasn't by his side. He had been working up the courage to ask Ghost to join him in Scotland for leave, to meet his family, to see where Soap was from. Soap wanted to be able to share that part of him, of his life, with the man that made him feel tethered to the world.
It was a small ask, it didn't even need to mean anything, even if it meant everything. Soap had joined Gaz on leave, all of them had been dragged to Price's more than once. It's what friends did and the two of them were more than friends, it it wasn't strange to ask.
And yet, when Soap opened his mouth to talk, nothing came out. Ghost looked at him curiously, chewing on a bit of food and blinking slowly as he waited for Soap to go on.
Soap was the one who typically filled these quiet moments with every thought and idea that had come to him during a mission that he had been unable to share. That was part of the routine for him, emptying out all of the things that he had had to push down for the mission.
Soap had once came up with a very complex system for a remote detonator, something that in theory would be groundbreaking but in practicality was more of science fiction than it was science. But Ghost had listened to each painstaking detail and at the very end he had offered to put in a requisitions request for the materials.
He opened his mouth again and then snapped it shut. It wasn't the time. This wasn't the right moment. He needed, fuck, he needed time to think. He couldn't ruin their routine for something so selfish.
"Cat got yer tongue?"
"Ahm workin' on it."
Soap reached forward and stole a handful of chips from the tray, chewing on them now at a loss for words.
"Ye find the specialist?"
"Mars?" he asked with a mouthful of food.
"Only specialist we 'ave, innit?"
"Couldnae find 'er."
"Fuckin' finish chewin' yer food, ye knob."
Soap laughed, the unease slipping away as he did.
"What's so great about 'er? Just another CIA know it all. Or are ye really just a dog with a bone?"
"Och, it's nae like that. Ah like Mars, she's smart, and witty and ye should've seen 'er and Price. Cap didnae ken what tae dae with 'imself."
Ghost stares at him in that way Ghost does where it looks like he is trying to dissect you. Soap learned long ago not to think about it too much, it was just one of Ghost's quirks. It was hard to take him serious after a mission anyway because the lieutenant had a shit skincare routine and he always looked a bit like one of those emo boys, the eye black still ringing his eyes.
"Didnae ken what Price's issue is this time."
"What d'ye mean?"
"Cap's been…moody? Ah dinnae ken 'ow tae describe it. Gaz and Ah thought he'd get over 'imself once ye got back, but the man is worse."
Ghost said nothing.
"Yer nae keepin' somethin' from us, are ye?"
It wouldn't be there first time. The 141 might be a taskforce with shared goals but there were time, missions, projects that only the captain and the lieutenant were privy to. Discoveries that didn't get covered in the debrief. Follow-ups that didn't make it to the sergeants. Ghost had been on more solo ops than the rest of them.
It never bothered Soap, it didn't really bother him now but it did make him wonder if there was something else going on.
He would talk to Gaz about it tomorrow, the other sergeant was good at talking him off the ledge about these kinds of things.
"Got te keep some things from ye. Mouth like a sieve."
"Fek off, ye weapon," Soap gasped, hand coming up to his chest in mock horror. "with that, Ahm out, gotta find Mars."
Ghost narrowed his eyes but said nothing. He had given Soap his blessing and Soap wasn't wasting any more time.
***************
When he did finally find you you were just coming out of your room in the barracks. He must have just missed you on your way back from the office. Your eyes went wide, followed by your smile.
"You're back!" you exclaimed, opening your arms instinctively as he approached, letting him wrap you up in a bear hug, your toes dragging against the floor as he spun you.
"Mars, ye bonnie thing, Ah missed ye!" he murmured into your hair, not ready to let go.
Soap should have realized in that moment that this was more than a casual interest in a temporary coworker. It wasn't like the casual flings that he dallied in while Ghost was away, fleeting and meaningless.
You hugged him back tightly, too tightly. The press of your breast against his chest, your breath warm against his neck, the feel of your body against his body had his hard on from early back full force.
"Ah, Soap, you happy to see me or something?" you teased.
"Fuck, Mars, ye dinnae ken just 'ow excited Ahm tae see ye."
Fuck, you looked so kissable right now, face close to his, a different kind of intimacy from that night in the rec room. He needed you something fierce.
The hall was hardly the place to be kissing you, it was barely the place to be holding you like this.
Soap's room was down the hall, he could take you there, get a bit of privacy but he wasn't sure what state he had left it in before leaving, certainly not up to regs, and barely lived in because he spent most nights with Ghost.
There was your room, but that felt presumptuous.
Soap went for the next best thing.
"Soap, why are we in a dark broom closet?"
"Utility closet and Ah wanted a wee bit of privacy, aye?"
You were still wrapped around him, fingers tangled in the hair at the nap of his neck. Your face was illuminated in red from the emergency light overhead. You mouth was twisted into a lopsided smirk, eyes almost twinkling in the low light.
Your gaze slipped down to his lips and then back up to his eyes. He liked to think that that was enough of a sign of interest, he had certainly done it to enough partners hoping for more.
"Can Ah kiss ye? Please, Mars, Ahm right beggin'."
You didn't answer with words. You pressed your lips to his tentatively, but it wasn't enough for Soap. He pressed you back into the door, scooping his hands beneath your thighs and devouring you. Your mouth was warm, still minty from brushing, your skin still wet from your shower.
Did no one know how to dry off properly?
You moaned into his mouth when he rolled his hips into your core, your legs wrapping around him, pulling him somehow closer, the pressure of your heels against his lower back egging him on.
Would it be too much to drag you to his room? Too sudden? Fuck, was this too sudden? Was he coming on too strong? This was not something he had ever done on base with anyone but Ghost, not even in the days before Ghost.
His mind may have been parsing through conflicting trails of thought, but his body knew what to do. With your body pushed against the door he was able to snake one of his hands up beneath your shirt, coarse skin skirting across the smooth warmth of you, bold in its exploration. It wasn't long before he was leaning back just enough to create space for his fingers to pinch at your nipple through your bra.
You arched against the door, pulling harder at his hair while he choked down your moans, the risk of being caught by a more than irate Price had him harder than he cared to admit.
"Wait, ah, fuck, wait," he pulled away, whimpering as your teeth nipped at his lip.
In the low light he could make out the sheen on sweat on your skin, the way your pupils were dilated, the heaving of your chest.
You seemed to come back to your self, as if realizing where they were and what they had been doing. Your legs dropped from his waist and he guided you down to the ground. You stared at him wide eyed.
"What the fuck, just happened?"
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