More Than Human

Chapter 45: Care

When they arrived back at base, they split off into their usual pairs. Price took Gaz outside to give him some time in the sun, Alejandro took Rudy to their room to draw him a bath, and Ghost brought Soap to their room so that he could lie down.

Soap curled up on top of the sheets and continued to rub at his temples. Ghost left for a moment before returning with some painkillers for him to take. Soap sat up so that he could pop the pills.

"I didn't think remembering would hurt so damn much. Physically." He clarified.

Ghost hummed and sat down next to him on his bed, "Well, you weren't ever supposed to remember, so I'm honestly not too surprised."

Soap let out a slightly amused snort before polishing the pills off.

"What did you remember exactly?" Ghost asked, curious after everything.

Soap sighed, "Basically what we suspected. I definitely came from one of those places. Some of my old scars seem to have come from some unsavory places."

Ghost could tell he was trying to keep things lighthearted. Of course, Johnny would. But he allowed it, anything to help his sergeant cope with what were likely very unpleasant memories.

"There was another wolf. I think they were trying to protect me." Soap was saying, slightly softer, "You think it was one of my parents?"

Ghost's eyebrows raised behind the mask, "I'm not sure, Love."

"I feel sort of bad..." Soap admitted, "I mean, for years I just assumed that they abandoned me or something. What if they really had been keeping me safe? And I've been thinking of them like that all this time."

"That's not your fault, Johnny." Ghost rubbed his back, "You know that."

"Maybe." Soap replied. They were both thinking the same thing, though. If his parents had been with him, they were definitely dead. If they were alive, Soap wouldn't have ended up in an orphanage. Coming from that place, they should have been with him already.

But it did prompt a question about why Makarov had been seemingly collecting young monsters. Could it be seen as any coincidence that Gaz and Soap's situations were so similar? They had gotten the sense that Rudy's poachers had been involved also. And they had caught him when he was also young.

Soap shook his head to clear the many thoughts and turned to look back up at Ghost, "Anyway, more importantly, you hungry, Si?"

"Don't worry about that right now, Johnny. You've got a headache. You should really sleep for a while."

"Oh, come on, Simon." Soap huffed, "If you really want me to get some rest, you know what would make me extra sleepy?"

Ghost gave no reaction to Soap's puppy dog eyes, "I can wait to eat, Soap."

"I don't feed ya outta pity, y'know?" Soap told him, exasperated.

Ghost tilted his head at that and leaned closer to his face, "Oh really? Why do you do it then, sweetheart?"

Soap felt himself blush and he swallowed, embarrassed, "Well, I, uh, I guess... I sort of, um..."

Ghost took a hold of his chin, "Go on, Puppy. Speak."

"I like it." Soap squeaked out, "I like how it feels."

Ghost laughed before angling his head up and bringing his face down to his neck to feed.

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Alejandro gently set Rudy in the bathtub, speaking softly to him all the while. His siren hadn't uttered a word since they arrived back at the base and his color was looking poor. He helped him out of his clothes before turning the tap off and letting the tub fill.

He just had to let Rodolfo ride this out. He sat beside the tub on the floor and waited. Now that he was in some water he was sure he would perk up a bit.

Alejandro began to softly hum to pass the time and to hopefully help his partner some. Sirens would often comfort each other in this way, and while Alejandro's voice didn't possess any sort of mystical ability, he hoped it would provide him with some relief.

After a few minutes, he lifted his head at the sound of some reciprocated quiet humming. Rudy looked less frozen now and had watery eyes.

"There you are, Sweet Rudy." He leaned forward on his knees to touch his face.

Rodolfo shook his head, "I'm sorry, Ale. I'm a soldier, I see bodies all the time, I shouldn't have frozen up like that."

"You and I both know this wasn't the same." Alejandro told him sternly, "I'm just sorry you had to see that."

"I haven't seen another siren since before." Rudy murmured, "I had always hoped if I ever saw another, they would be alive."

Alejandro nodded, "I didn't like it either. I just kept thinking about you in there."

"Mi Alejandro." Rudy cooed, reaching up to grab his face in turn and pull him closer. Wanting to drag him into the water with him.

Alejandro couldn't help but laugh and gently push away, "Paciencia, mi amor. Let me get my clothes off."

He stripped himself quickly before leaning back down towards the tub, at which point Rudy practically lunged forward, wrapping his arms around the back of his neck and hauling him in. The siren rolled them around a few times and wrapped himself around Alejandro, holding him tightly and pressing little kisses and nips to his face.

Clearly he was extra clingy after his mourning period.

"Do not think on it, Alejandro. I know I am safe with you here." Rudy told him.

Alejandro hummed and tilted his head up to capture his lips to give him some of his color back. When they pulled away from each other, they rested with their chins on either of their shoulders.

"¿Crees que el perrito va a estar bien?" Rudy asked.

"I'm sure Soap will be fine. His mind is sensitive right now." Alejandro replied.

Rudy clicked in response and they fell into silence.

"What are you thinking, Rudy? I can hear your brain working."

Rudy squeezed him tighter and pressed his eyes to his shoulder, "Do you think we could find a way to get them out of there? All of those creatures deserve better resting places than that horrible basement."

Alejandro hugged him closer and kissed the side of his head, "We'll talk to Price about it. See if there's anything we can do for them."