Chapter Text
He spots it. Finally. A safe zone. Crane felt like he'd been running for hours when in reality it has only been a few minutes. But it was those crucial few minutes before nightfall. And as he learned, night in Castor Woods is nothing like night in Harran. As he vaulted up to grab the ladder, he heard gun fire somewhere behind him. Doesn't matter. Once he's up under the UV light, he can retract the ladder. No man, nor monster can get him. As the ladder snapped closed, Crane fell backward on to the bed up in the safe house. He set his pack aside, thinking he should rummage through it to find something to eat before passing out for the night. As he picked up his pack, distant shouting can be heard. He didn't think much of it at first. Some poor bastard caught outside a safe zone. Normally, he'd jump right down and help, but after dodging infected all day, running errands for the folks in Town Hall and getting shot at by the Baron's men, he wasn't feeling particularly charitable.
Finding some dried meat and some sort of old ass hydration drink he had grabbed in a dark zone , he started to eat when hears the shouting again. Only this time.... Son of a bitch. That bastard was below him. He stood up and looked down over the edge. Yep. About 30 feet below him is one of the Baron's men. Fuck. It's one of those fuckers who was shooting at him just moments before.
Just outside the faint circle of UV light beaming down from the safe zone, he saw a few volatiles circling, just waiting for this guy to make one wrong move.
"Hey fucker! Having some trouble down there, huh?! Pays not to be a giant fucking asshole. Looks like you're making some friends down there. Have fun!"
He saw how panicked the soldier looked and how hungry the volatiles looked. "Fuck this asshole," he said under his breath. And as he turned away, the soldier yelled up,
"Please! PLEASE LET ME UP! I SWEAR TO YOU I'M ONLY DOING THIS BECAUSE THEY SAID THEY'D TAKE CARE OF MY FAMILY. FUCK MAN! I DONT WANNA DIE! FUCK. PLEASE!"
Something in this man's voice, his plea, his tone, whatever, gripped onto Crane's heart and held tight. He stood there, facing away, arguing with himself for about 15 seconds before he realizing he had kicked the ladder down. He turned around once he heard snarling, roars and screams.....but only from the volatiles. He realized the guy was climbing the ladder with a swiftness he found awkwardly desperate and kind of funny.
Crane stood there as the soldier made it to the top, eyes focused and intense, waiting for him to look up. In his panick he kept "climbing" and managed to throw himself onto Crane, knocking them both onto the bed. This guy was so scared and moving so fast he didn't even register he had made to the top.
"Get the fuck off me!"
"Oh fuck! Oh god! Thank you! Jesus fucking Christ, THANK YOU!"
Crane, feeling The Beast boil inside him, grabbed this fucker by his vest and made sure their eyes were locked when he said,
"Tell me why I shouldn't just toss you back down there right now and enjoy the show?!"
"Because I did nothing to you!"
"You fucking chased and shot at me!"
"Yeah but I missed! Purposely!"
"The fuck you mean purposely?!"
"I shot above you, too far left or right! I wasn't actually aiming for you! I had to make it look like I was! You gotta believe me!"
During this back and forth, both men realized Crane was sitting, albeit leaning back in a rather, uh, suggestive way, on the bed. And the mother fucker he had saved was sitting on top of him, straddling his lap.
The soldier stood up, panicked and...was he...he was blushing. Crane was still sitting on the bed, leaning back. It's not like he hadn't been in that position before, many many times. You don't join the military and think your sexual exploits are going to be strictly with the opposite gender. And Crane had been with his fair share of men and enjoyed every single one of them. He wasn't picky about gender, for sex or intimacy. God it had been a long time....
Crane, still leaning back, looked up at the soldier and said,
"Ok fuck face. I want the truth and I better fucking believe you "
He watched as the guy shrugged off his rifle, removed his helmet and undid the clasps on his vest. While his face remained steady, angry, he immediately noticed how well defined and chiseled this man was. Around Crane's height, maybe an inch or 2 taller but he was definitely slimmer. That didn't take away from how impressive and well defined his muscles were. This man clearly has a workout regime. His soft, blonde hair was pressed down to his skull from his helmet but with a swift fluff from his hands, his hair was done, creating this wispy, effortless look. This man's eyes were soft brown behind dark, full lashes. He had about a day's worth of stubble growth going and that stubble surround a full set of lips...... Which this man kept licking nervously.
Crane, realized what he was doing and shook his head to stop those thoughts from taking over. It has been a long time since he had been with anyone and apparently he was just desperately horny for any and all bodies, no matter who they worked for.
Once comfortable, the soldier sat down next to Crane on the bed. He let out a deep sigh, put his face in his hands and rubbed vigorously, before holding his head up and looking directly at Crane.
"My name is Carter. Joseph Carter. My family was originally from the USA, Michigan more specifically. Both my parents were military, one Marines, the other Navy and they each held high ranking positions so we moved around to different bases a lot. Last one before the Fall was in Germany, Specifically USAG Bavaria. When everything went to shit, and it went to shit fast, we hunkered down at the base. Didn't do us much good. Lost my mom on a supply run about a year into it. It broke my dad...he was never the-,"
"I didn't want your full life story!"
"You said you wanted the truth! And that you wanted to believe me! How the fuck else can I explain to you how I ended up purposely missing your ass, which is quite the easy target by the way! Big bubble ass bitch......."
Crane, while initially ready to rip this fucker's head off, couldn't help himself and started laughing. Not just a little snort or snicker, but a full belly laugh that only stopped when he realized he had alerted all the volatiles in the clearing near the safe zone. It took Crane several seconds to calm himself and when he did, he spoke in a level tone,
"Ok, ok. Fine. But can I get the Cliff notes version? I know we have all night but after dodging your supposed 'wide shots', I'm pretty fucking wiped."
"....the fuck are Cliff notes?.... Anyway, anyway. Like I said it broke my dad. It was just me and him and while the man was a tactical genius, he was gone in every other way. But that didn't stop the Baron. He found us not long after her death. He had my dad's military record, GRE gave it to him I think. And employed him. We had been fighting and starving and clawing to survive and this bitch shows up promising life as it was before the Fall if my dad helps coordinate his soldiers movements. That was an easy answer for my old man. I had no say. And I still don't."
Crane sat there, taking it all in. He can usually tell when someone is lying to him and this came off as anything but a lie. Carter has this distant sadness in his eyes, not just of a soldier, but as someone who has seen and dealt with much more than he should have, especially at a young age.
They sat in silence for another minute. Crane broke the silence,
"Ok. So it's just you and your dad. Did y... Did you fucking lie when you were begging me to lower the ladder? You said you're working for the Baron because they'd make sure your family was taken care of!"
"It's true! My dad is my only family and while he worked for him, we were safe. But something happened. Dementia, Alzheimer's, whatever the fuck you call it. Once my dad was completely gone mentally, the Baron had no use for him. We would have never made it, just the 2 of us. Not with my dad the way he is. I begged the Baron to let us stay. Basically wanted me to prove to him I could pick up where my dad left off. And....I did. I am not proud of it. In fact, I absolutely hate myself and what I've done.... My mom would have never been ok with this... But my dad needs the medical help and I can't just abandon him. So I made a choice. And it will haunt me for the rest of my days. Happy now?"
Crane again sat silently, taking in everything he just heard. Carter wasn't lying, he could clearly see that. But something else was missing. He couldn't put his finger on it.
"What major operations did your dad organize and lead?"
Under his breath, he heard Carter say,
"Please don't make me say it...."
"WHAT. DID. HE. ORGANIZE AND LEAD?"
"YOUR CAPTURE. He set up everything to jump in and take you after the scientist convinced you it was safe! I was fucking 18 at the time! I had no say but I begged him not to do it. We could have escaped, gone into hiding. He refused. Kept saying he took an oath.... What fucking oath?! To a mad man!? ..... Look, if you're going to kill me, just fucking do it and make it swift. Don't let the volatiles rip me apart. Not like my mom...."
Crane was taken aback by that last sentence.
"You said you lost her on a supply run..."
"We did. She was almost back. We could see her, about 100 yards out as night crept in. She tripped. Nothing outlandish or insane. She tripped and stuff toppled everywhere. Alerted every volatile just creeping out of their nests. It was just an accident. And I watched it all unfold."
There was a haunted, hallowness to his voice and Crane could in his eyes a man forced to relive his absolute worst nightmare.
Carter has tears streaming down his face and once he realized he was crying, let alone in front of someone, he wiped them away quickly and stiffened up.
"So am I a dead man?"
Crane just sat there, looking off into the dark. He shook his head,
"No. Fortunately or unfortunately, whichever way you see it, you get to live through the night. .... I'm sorry about your mom. Although, I can't really say I'm sorry about your dad. Nothing personal against you."
Carter let out a snort and half smiled. Seeing that sent a bit of warmth through Crane's chest. And a bolt of lightning to his groin..... He pretended he didn't notice that.
"So. I'm a, what did you say? 'Big bubble ass bitch' ?"
"Dude, an infected who lost his eyes could hit your ass with a marksman rifle from 500 yards out while you're running! Do you know how hard it is to FAKE missing you while shooting?!"
With this, Carter shoved Crane's shoulder in the most playful manner. Both men started laughing lightly. While still tense, things had eased up after Carter's story. Crane didn't have any ill will towards the guy. Not really. In fact, his heart ached for him in a way. Being a military brat isn't easy, let alone for 2 different branches. And the way he lost his mother. And watched his dad basically go insane.....
"Ok, look. You're safe for the night up here. You can't undo what your dad did. And I can't imagine how fucked up you are from his choices and...your mom. Why don't we just hunker down, eat and sleep? I've got some food I grabbed from a dark zone earlier. You hungry?"
"Fucking starving. We've been out on patrol for days. Well, I say 'we'. It started with 6 of us. I got it down to 2 before you passed by....
Crane handed Carter a pack of stale cookies and dried meats, along with a bottle of water.
"What do you mean you got it down to 2?...Wait, wait. Were you picking off your own men?"
As Carter shoved the food unceremoniously into his mouth, he answered.
"Damn right I was! Those fucks were on the same level as the Baron. You mask and pretend long enough to be one, they'll tell you all their dirty deeds."
Carter finished eating and shivered before he continued,
"I won't tell you what I heard but trust me. It warranted them being taken out. I just had to make it look convincing so the others wouldn't question it. I was finally down to the last fucking psycho when you passed by and well.... Here we are. I'm really hoping one of the volatiles got him."
Crane sat there in disbelief at what he heard.
"You were their CO and you had no problems killing them?"
Carter sat up straight looked Crane dead in the eyes and said,
"Infected. They did THINGS to infected, at least as a start.... Then moved on to living people.... The infected, once you remove the limbs, couldn't fight back..."
Crane's eyes went wide and he put his hands up.
"Ok! Ok. I get it. I....fuck man. I get it."
With a deep sigh, Crane finished off the bottle of water. Both men sat in silence, listening to the infected out in the night: a cacophony of growls, roars, howls and screams. Finally, Carter broke the silence.
"Genuinely, thank you for saving me. I know it can't be worth much, coming from me and everything. I don't think I will ever be able to repay you for this."
"Keep killing off those sick fucks that serve under you. Then we can call it even."
"Ha! Oh I can definitely do that. It's not all of them but a good chunk. Thank God most are loud mouth idiots who don't know how to keep their mouth shut. I was raised by military folks and know what I'm doing. I'm a near perfect shot, too, although don't tell the Baron. I pretend to be average at best. Helps keep the guise up and make a it easier to kill these men."
"How have you done that? That man is ruthless and always watching everyone. I hate him but have to admit he's always 10 steps ahead."
"He couldn't have given 2 fucks about me until I became useful to him. So I got to watch and observe without worry for years as he put my dad through it. You're right. The man is smart. But he's not without fault."
"Also, if you're so gifted like your dad, why aren't you part of his personal guard? It's because you can't, uh, 'shoot'?"
"Bingo! Plus, as you've seen, he likes to knock everyone down a peg, or 12. So, when I was set to take over not only coordinating the military movements, but his personal guard, he felt that I wasn't good enough since I was such a 'bad shot' and had me set for outside missions coordinations. The Little Bitch™️ needed the very best to stay safe. Jokes on him. None of those idiots can shoot either but they are stupid enough to save him and not themselves."
Crane was impressed. Thoroughly fucking impressed. And maybe a bit turned on. Thank fuck for the jeans and the way he was sitting.....
Carter spoke up,
"So, how are we supposed to situate this? We are not small men and this bed isn't a king size. Head to foot?"
"Yeah that'll work. God knows how many times I did that through training out on field missions. Can't say I miss it."
"Well hopefully this will be a one time thing and I don't get caught off guard again."
"I'll try to remember that next time I go running past you...."
"Thank you Crane. That would be very much appreciated."
Both men smiled softly at the sarcasm and started to settle into the decently comfy, yet very small bed. They had both shrugged off their shoes as that helped make more room and neither wanted kicked in the head by boots in the middle of sleep. Right after they both laid down, Carter sat up and said,
"I'm sorry. I hope this doesn't bug you. I can't sleep with my shirt on. It's fucking suffocating."
And with that, he removed his shirt and Crane was able to see everything he had glanced at when he first got a good look at the man. His skin was lighter in tone and color than Crane's but not by much. He had well defined muscles that when not pulled taught and put to work, were soft and seemed to jiggle a bit in the UV light. Carter's body was also covered in a slew of scars, old and new. Some well healed and others just received, as recently as today.
"Kyle....Kyle? You ok?"
Crane was jolted back to reality as he heard his first name. He had not realized he was staring so openly. Even his mouth was a bit agape.
"Oh shit! Sorry! Sorry. It's been a minute and I'm not usually this physically close with anyone who isn't..."
Crane couldn't finish the sentence. He was looking down. He couldn't look up. Why was he even telling him this?!
Carter reached out and put his hand on Crane's shoulder.
"Hey. No need. I....I don't get it but I hear you. Also, it's not like intimacy the main thing to come by amongst the Baron's men. Sex? Yes. Actual intimacy? Pfft."
Crane looked up.
"Yeah that sounds like the military. Of any kind. It wasn't any different when I enlisted. Both with basic and special ops training. It's like they purposely rile us up, get us all horny and when we get any free time, all we wanted to do was fuck each other senseless before we go back to being mindless drones, being told what to do. Seems like a lifetime ago."
Crane let out a little chuckle, thinking about those memories. A lifetime ago....
"Wait. Wait. You're telling me that you fucked around? With everyone? Nah. You seem like a ladies man. And only a ladies man."
"Yeah it's true. I thought I was only a 'ladies man' until I enlisted. Granted, I was an idiot teenager who thought he was suave and WOW was the best game on the planet. Only one of those things still holds true. Take a guess which one."
"Oh I mean I confirm you're still very suave. And what the fuck is WOW?"
That first sentence passed through Crane's brain without sinking in.
"Wait? You've never heard of World of Warcraft?!"
"Oh. That. Yeah I was playing GTA and not that nerdy shit."
"Nerdy shit! I'll have you know I ran my own serve.......... Ok. Yeah. I see where you're getting that."
Carter chuckled at this and Crane realized he was blushing. BLUSHING. Oh thank fuck for darkness and UV light.
"Wait? Do I give off straight guy energy?", Crane said with a chuckle, leaning back down, trying to get comfortable again. Carter stayed sitting up.
"Yeah you do. Although, it could just be me. And that I DON'T give off straight guy energy. I think that's also why the Baron didn't want me around. Guy's a big homophobe but loves looking at half naked, jacked up men all day."
Crane lifted his head and asked,
"Were you the barracks whore?"
Both let out a chuckle.
"Damn right I was! Only way to deal with what I saw and lived through. At least until I got the right books and talked to some good people. Which amazed me they were even around, let alone employed by the Baron."
"Well, that makes 2 of us."
And with that, Crane laid his head back, put his hands behind head and closed his eyes. As he was laying there trying to actively turn off his brain and sleep, he could feel Carter looking at him. Carter was still sitting up. With his eyes closed, Crane spoke.
"Carter. Lay down. We've got like 10 hours until daylight. I'm not going to kill you. I thought we established this."
"Ok. I'll lay down but I've got one more question: top or bottom?"
"....why do you want to know?"
"Genuine curiosity."
Carter flopped backwards as he spoke and waited for Crane to respond.
"Top."
"Ever a switch?"
"Once."
"Care to explain?"
"No. I don't."
And with that, both men settled in, as best they could on what felt like the smallest mattress on the planet. Crane was on the verge of passing out when he heard Carter whisper,
"Crane. Thanks again."
Crane grunted in response and then promptly passed into a deep, unrestful sleep.