Turning Tables || Jake 'Hangman' Seresin x OC

burst into flames for you

Summary: After the mission, Jas confesses why she's been ignoring Jake.

Meet me at the Hard Deck. Please.

Jake knew it was serious because Jas never said please. Even when she was under him and on the edge of coming undone, she wouldn't say please. She wouldn't beg for it. That one word sent Jake out the door of his barrack room and off to the bar.

It was mid-morning on a Saturday, and Penny had opened early. He pushed the front door with the chipped paint open and walked inside. He scanned the room but didn't spot Jas anywhere, only Penny and a few patrons nursing coffee rather than beer.

He stalked towards the bar, locking eyes with Penny, confusion on his face. Jas had texted him to meet her there, but now she was gone?

"She's down by the water," Penny told him when he was close enough to hear her. He mumbled a quick thank you and headed for the door leading out to the deck.

There, in the distance, Jas sat on the sand facing the ocean. It was cloudier than usual, but the sun still bounced off her hair, making it look shinier. He rested his hands on the deck railing for a minute, gathering up the courage to make the short trek to her.

Jake squared his shoulders, walked down the steps, and trudged through the sand to get to her. He stopped a few feet behind her and took a deep breath.

Please.

The word still lingered in his mind. Jas rarely texted him. In fact, she had spent weeks refusing to give him her number, but finally relented a few days before the mission. She'd made him promise to let her know he was alive.

"I'd say quit staring at my ass, but you can't see it, so just quit staring."

"You have a great ass," he said, closing the last bit of distance between them. When he sat, he could see the grin Jas was biting back.

"So you've told me," she agreed.

"I'd never lie to you, Doc."

At that, her jaw clenched. She didn't like it when he called her Doc. At least, that's what she'd told him frequently, though it was usually right before they slept together.

"I know."

For a while, they just sat there staring at the sea. They listened to the waves meeting the shore and seagulls screeching above them. Jake looked at Jas. Her auburn hair looked red in this light, and her blue eyes matched that of the endless sea while he was on the carrier. She had freckles on her nose that'd become more noticeable since he'd met her. Her lips were pink and plush. Kissable.

"I'm glad you're alive," she said, filling the silence.

He'd texted her as soon as they got back on dry land, hoping for a response, but none came. He'd gone to the Hard Deck that night to celebrate their success with the dagger squad, but Jas didn't show. When he asked Caro if she knew where Jas was, she'd informed him she wasn't coming.

Jas had gone radio silent, and Caro, Bob, and Fanboy kept their mouths shut on the matter. He'd even tried to intimidate Bob into telling him why she wasn't there, but the bespectacled aviator had stood his ground, and Jake respected that even if he hated him a little for it.

"Could've fooled me," he said, mostly joking.

Jas turned her head to him. "Do you know why I'm stationed here?"

He shook his head, brows furrowed. Jas looked back at the ocean.

Jake watched her shift uncomfortably in the sand, folding and unfolding her hands where they rested on her shins. He had never seen Jas like this before.