A/N I know I mentioned I hate filler in literally the chapter before this, but I'm too excited for Sang's Birthday Bash. So here's a short chapter so we can skip to the good stuff.
~~
I'm being swallowed whole.
I wake up gasping for air. My face is wet, and I feel weight over my torso. I whimper as I struggle against the weight. I know I'm waking from another nightmare, but I can't fully register my surroundings. I don't know what's on me.
"Trouble, Sweetie, listen to my voice. It was just a nightmare. Take a deep breath. That's right, take another." Gabriel moves his arm from my torso and cups my face, turning it towards him. His thumbs swipe at the tears I was unknowingly shedding. Luke squeezes me, his arm still resting over me.
"I'm sorry," I breathe out.
"You don't need to apologize. Is everything okay; do you always have nightmares?" Luke asks me.
I nod and look at Luke. "They're not always nightmares, sometimes they're memories. My stupid brain never learned how to forget."
"Was this one a memory?" Luke questions.
I sigh, "Yeah."
"What do you mean your brain never forgets?" Gabriel chimes in.
"Oh y'know, photographic memory and all that. A blessing and a curse, unfortunately." I move to stretch, not wanting to delve into my past or discuss my ability to remember everything. I've worked with therapists, but there's only so much I can do. It's easy to heal from trauma when you don't remember every second of it, but I can. I've improved in some ways. I used to only be able to take baths, but now I can shower again. Sometimes I still get panic attacks while trying to shower, but there are other triggers that lead to it usually.
That wretched woman had nearly killed me, one of her many attempts. She tied me to a stool and left me in the water for hours. First burning my skin with hot water, only to suffocate in the freezing water when it died out. Eventually Marie, my half-sister, demanded that I get out. She released me but didn't bother helping me any further. I could barely crawl into my bed. Changing clothes and bandaging myself was impossible.
"If you ever want to talk about it, we're all open ears. You only need to tell one of us, and we'll do what we can." Luke rests his hand on my bare back, rubbing soft circles. I relax at the touch and lay back down.
"So, Meanie. What have you got planned for my birthday tomorrow?"
He bops me on the nose with his pointer finger, "You wish, Trouble. It's a surprise."
"Which means you have no idea, huh?" I tease.
He grumbles, "It's hard! We're still learning about you, and I only had three days to work with."
He looks so cute. He's pouting and tugging at one of his blonde locks in frustration. I move my hand and grab the one near his face, pulling it to me and holding it. "Can we do another sleepover? There's still a lot of sleepover activities we didn't do."
"That sounds like a great idea, Cupcake," Luke adds.
Gabriel contemplates the idea. "Do I at least get to dress you up for a nice dinner first?"
I beam at him, "I did promise that you can do my hair, and I'd love if you would pick my outfit and make me pretty. Would you pick my pajamas too?"
"Fuck yeah! We're taking you to a nice dinner and then spending the rest of the evening at Owen's apartment. I can be over at two tomorrow to get you ready." He cuddles in close and kisses my shoulder, Luke follows suit and kisses the back of the same shoulder. My breath hitches, remembering last night. We start our morning similar to how the night ended, my nightmare completely forgotten.
~~
Gabriel and Luke left for their shifts at the diner. I have today and the weekend before my next shift at the hospital, so I've mostly laid in my bed since they left. I don't like to lounge around. I get anxious and start to think about the past. Deciding on what I want to do, I push myself out of my bed and grab my phone.
Texts between Sang and Raven:
Sang: Hey, Big Bear. I'm going to the range, join me?
Raven: Corey join. Threesome is better.
Sang: Sounds good Raven. I will meet you downstairs.
I laugh at Raven's text. He may not be the most fluent in English, but he is an expert at sexual innuendos. Ravenisms is what they should be called. I move to get ready, taking a quick shower before getting dressed. I decide on a pleated, black skirt and an off the shoulder, red sweater. I pull on thigh high boots and grab my gun case. It's a sleek black bag that looks like a suitcase. My outfit choice isn't ideal for shooting, but I can't only practice in jeans. A lot of my missions require me to be in heels and revealing clothing, so it makes sense to wear what I typically would.
When I lock up my apartment, Axel, Raven, and Corey exit the unit closest to the elevator. I step to them, my heels clicking with every step and a faint sound of wheels echoing in the hallway.
"Hey, Axel! Are you joining us too?"
His eyes rake up and down my body before making eye contact. "Raven mentioned you were going to the range, and I was hoping to witness your skills in person. Is that alright?"
"Of course it is. Let's go then!" I lead the way.
When we step into the elevator, Corey speaks, "Sang, what's in the case? Are you going somewhere after?"
I look down at the case then at him and giggle, "Nope, but I kind of need my guns for the shooting range." His eyes widen and Raven has an excited glint in his eyes.
"What all do you have in there?" Axel asks.
"Let's keep it a surprise for now. You'll get to see up close after all."
~~
The shooting range is quite far from the apartment, but that doesn't bother me. I decided to drive us, so the long ride was spent with the three of them. Corey informed me that Luke did in fact share the video of North's reaction to my bike. Raven congratulated me for upsetting 'East' and convincing him to become Little Kitten. At that comment, I had to pull over because of how hard I was laughing and took the opportunity to show the pictures I got with North in the helmet. Raven had literally barked with laughter, demanding that I sent the pictures to him. I agreed but told him to wait until later. I plan on sharing the photos in a group chat with the rest of them, potentially during my birthday so I can personally witness him become flustered.
North is an intimidating giant, but he reminds me of Grumpy, the Care Bear. I know that his rough exterior is more of a defense mechanism more than anything. No one messes with the broody, bad guy. He's a real life tsundere, cold and distant but a complete softie for the right person. That's what makes teasing him so much fun. I already know that if he didn't want to do something, he wouldn't.
We arrive at the shooting range, and I grab my case. The place is Academy owned, and surprisingly deserted. No one wants to shoot on a Friday, I guess. There's a large table behind the shooting stations and I lay the bag on top. Unzipping it, I flip it open, revealing the contents. I have multiple smaller handguns, both full-sized and compact for easier carry. I also have a larger gun, a long-distance rifle. I rarely use the rifle or my handguns in general. I prefer to incapacitate with my hands not kill people. When I do need to shoot, I'm careful of where. With my knowledge on human anatomy and accurate aim, it's easier for me to shoot someone in the least harmful manner. The second layer of my case holds my extra bullets as well as my knives. I carry an assortment: throwing knives, daggers, and discreet lipstick and comb knives.
Axel and Corey are stunned at the contents of my bag. Raven looks like a kid in a candy store, and he points at the rifle, "This one first."
I shrug in agreement and slide on protective headphones. The guys wear theirs too and move to stand around and watch without being in my space. I set up a target and move it back to be a distance away from me. I take my shots, landing them in a circle around the center mark. I pull in the target and add a new paper. I don't conversate with them, switching to a handgun instead. I grab a spare clip and move back to my station.
I turn to Raven and send a wink, "I'm going to give you an early birthday gift."
I turn back to the target and begin shooting, emptying the clip, and replacing it with the new one before finishing the rest of my design. I grin at my masterpiece; a large heart takes up the paper. Pulling the target back in, I unclip the paper and hand it to Raven. He gladly accepts, a large grin takes up his face.
"I much prefer to practice on moving targets, it's too easy like this," I say.
"Thank you, Little Kitten. You are a great shot. I will keep this forever."
I give Raven a grin. "I'm glad you like it!"
"You're an impressive bird, Sang," Axel comments.
"Sang, I'm going to need you to teach me this too. The hacking tips and shooting tips from you would improve my skills tenfold." Corey gushes towards me.
I shake my head with a small smile.
"Will we get the chance to see you play with knives sometime?" Axel asks with a wink.
Knife play, Axel? Interesting.
"Axel is quite good with knives. I'd love to see both of your capabilities side by side." Corey explains.
"We can definitely play with some knives," I smirk at Axel, and he returns it.
Raven's stomach suddenly releases a growl. "Time to eat. Let's go."
They help me place everything back in the case and we get back into my car. We decide to pick up fast food and go back to their apartment. Axel leads us into their unit, and I take in the space. It's relatively clean, but definitely feels like a male apartment. When Axel offers me a drink, I get a glimpse of the inside. He couldn't offer me food even if he wanted to, it's literally full of alcohol and various other beverages. I'm genuinely concerned about their health for a moment before I remember that they have other family members that usually cook for everyone.
We migrate to the living room to eat our food, and they put on a movie. It's early afternoon, and I don't have anything else planned for the evening. I'm contemplating what to do when their front door opens. They don't shift, but I turn my head to see who has entered.
"Hey Sweet Treat, what are you doing here?" Marc smiles at me.
"Just waiting for you, Coffee Bean," I tease.
"No surprise there. I bet you can't get enough of me." His heterochromia eyes reflect mischievously.
I playfully pout, "I've been deprived of my Marcuccino."
He snorts at the name and pulls me up from the floor, placing me on his lap when he sits on the couch. "What have you all been up to today?"
"Sang took us to the shooting range," Axel answers.
"Little Kitten shot heart and gave it to me as gift."
Marc's face is full of puzzlement, and I laugh. "Sang shot a heart on the paper target and gave it to Raven, quoting it as an early birthday gift for him," Corey translates.
"Raven you seriously need to stop learning English through SpongeBob," Marc jokes.
~~
I spent the rest of my evening with them. I attempted to retreat back to my apartment a couple of times so as not to intrude in their space, but they continuously managed to loop me into staying longer. Corey and Marc had to part ways for some Academy missions but encouraged me to hang out with the other two.
Holding conversation with Raven and Axel was an interesting experience. I would have never assumed that Raven and Axel were very close, but it's clear how well they get along. I can tell that they have a deep friendship and it reflected in our conversations. I would compare them to Luke and Gabriel. Axel is fucking hilarious, and Raven encourages every second of it.
I eventually returned to my place, citing that I have guests coming in the morning as my excuse. I didn't want to leave really, but I can't invite myself into their bed. I mean, I probably could, but I wasn't trying to seduce them. They had hugged me and kissed me goodbye, which was sweet. Well, Axel kissed me. Raven on the other hand, had his way with my lips. That man didn't even hesitate in front of Axel either.
I sigh and climb into my bed, excited for what's to come.