Chapter Text
- - - - -
The night went on and Jason had to as well.
Even if his heart was in little pieces, even if he felt lost without you. He had to, he had the responsibility to bring the people left back on the surface. They already lost Joey, Merwin, Clarice, Rachel, you… He couldn’t lose anyone else. Even if it meant ignoring any feeling and working on autopilot. He had to.
And he was doing that just fine while patrolling with Nick around the temple, placing cameras and mines. Jason was concentrating more than ever on his work and the threat surrounding them. It made it easier for him not to think about you. Think about how he missed you, wishing he told you his feeling before. Jason’s heart tighten as he thought how he could’ve protected you better. You looked so scared when the shadows took you. If only they took him and not you, he would give up anything for you to be safe.
A scream suddenly took him out of his thoughts. Jason’s eyes grew wide as he wiped his head at Nick, confirming with one look that he had heard it as well, but also confirming the source of the scream.
‘’Y/N!’’
- - - - - -
‘’Joey! It’s me! Let me be!’’ You screamed at your fellow marine, punching his chest, trying to free yourself from his grip.
You regained conscience just a few hours ago, alone in a pool of blood. Panic grew within your chest as your last memory was Jason, looking at you with terrified eyes and a dying Merwin as you got sucked in by darkness. You were really hoping Jason was alright and that whatever got you didn’t get a hold of him, nor Nick. As for Merwin… He was bleeding so much, You weren’t a fool, the man was probably dead. You were worried for your friends, and you knew Clarice was taken as well, but you couldn’t see her anywhere and you had a really bad feeling about staying any longer in this creepy, bloody place you were in. You needed to pull your shit together.
As you took in your surroundings, you noticed some kind of line out hanging high above. You’ve always been a decent climber, clearly not as good as Rachel since she always won the races you held with her, but still decent. You figured that the structure meant some kind of way back towards the tunnels you were in before being brought here, and it didn’t look that high. But honestly, anything would be better than staying in this pool of blood.
It took you a while, but you managed to climb all the way up. Let’s just say the blood all over you made it quite a slippery ride. As you reached the top, you fell to the ground exhausted.
‘’Fuck..’’ You let out, taking a deep breath and closing your eyes as you felt fatigue wash all over you. ‘’I bet Rachel never climbed out of hell covered in blood, can’t wait to rub it in her face.’’
A light burst of laughter escaped your lips, but your smile fell rather fast. ‘’I hope they’re alright..’’
The sound of rapid footsteps made you stand up in a second. You felt your heart racing as you scanned the room, not seeing anything that could’ve made that noise.
‘’Anyone there?’’ You called out as you tried to get on your feet. It might’ve been smarter to hide, but you knew you didn’t have the energy to even walk towards a hidden place, and honestly? There wasn’t much place to hide.
You took a slow step towards the only door you could see, but a sudden shadow on your left made you stop. The shadow was slowly creeping towards you. You squinted your eyes through the blood on your face, trying to take in the figure. It weirdly looked like…
‘’Joey?’’ You smile, feeling your whole body releasing all the tension you had built up. ‘’God, you don’t know how happy I am to see your stupid face.’’
You giggle, taking a step towards the man when you realized he wasn’t answering you. In fact, he was growling. You felt your heart drop when he stepped in the light. Joey’s skin was a deep blue, he had two little horns on his forehead and the fangs of a predator.
‘’What the fuc-’’
You couldn’t finish your sentence as the man tackled you to the ground with all his weight. He held you there as you tried to free yourself
from underneath him. You managed to push him off for a second before he jumped back on you and made the two of your roll on the line-out structure. His hands were grabbing you where ever they could as he relentlessly tried to take a bite out of your throat.
Adrenaline kicked in, rushing through your veins, keeping you away from the exhaustion that you felt earlier.
You grabbed onto Joey’s collar, keeping your arms as straight as possible to keep his face away from yours, but you could see yourself slowly failing at your task. Whatever happened to your friend, it made him stronger than ever before.
‘’Joey! It’s me! Let me be!’’ You screamed at your fellow marine, punching his chest, trying to free yourself from his grip. His breath was now hitting your neck, his crazy eyes now too low to get a hold of them. You had no strength left. No amount of adrenaline could help you in your state. With your eyes closed, you begged for it not to hurt when you heard a loud yell next to you and felt Joey’s weight lifted off of you.
‘’Fuck off’her!’’
Jason’s voice felt like a miracle. Your eyes opened, taking in the sight of the man kicking Joey off of you. As he fell into the abyss underneath, Jason quickly grabbed your armpits, pulling you away and back onto the ground. You couldn’t control yourself as Jason fell behind you. You jumped in his arms, wrapping yours around his neck as you shed tears of exhaustion and relief.
‘’I’m so glad you’re okay!’’ You murmured.
Jason’s body stiffened at your action. He was taken by surprise, not expecting you to hug him. He nervously put his arms around you, a light touch at first, unsure if you would allow it. But the joy of seeing you alive was too much to contain, he tightened his grip around you, resting his head in your neck.
‘’Don’t ever leave me’’
Your heart skipped a beat as you pulled back to look at him. His face blushing but his eyes holding yours. Millions of emotions were running wild in your mind as you were getting lost in his beautiful eyes.
Nick put his hand on your shoulder, making you jump at the feel. You never realized he was here as well. He smiled softly at you and gave you his hand, helping you up.
‘’Glad to see you alive Y/N’’ He pulled you into a quick embrace. ‘’We should go back’’
Jason got up, letting out a breath he didn’t know he was holding. ‘’Mailman to Two-One-Actual, Heading back to camp’’ He looked at you and winked, ‘’We’re bringing back a gift.’’
- - - - -
Jason was holding you up and helping you walk, his arm around your shoulder while yours was resting on his shoulders. You could barely stand straight from exhaustion. But Jason kept scanning your body, scared that you were hurt more than you had said under this heavy layer of blood.
Nick was a few meters in front of you, making sure the way was clear. Leaving Jason and you a little bit of privacy in the back.
‘’Thank you’’ You cleared your throat and smiled at him.
Lifting his eyes to meet yours, Jason felt his heart flutter. He was terrified when he heard you scream from afar and he had run faster than ever before to be met with a horrible vision. You fighting for your life underneath Joey, and clearly losing. He had never felt more relieved than when you jumped into his arms. It was the third time in a single day that Jason almost lost you. He couldn’t bear it anymore. He really needed a break, and seeing from your exhausted look, so did you.
‘’I-I did what I had to’’ He stuttered. How can you still look so beautiful covered in blood and crumbling from tiredness? ‘’I didn’t wanna lose you. I-I mean.. Lose another man!’’
You chuckled, as you took in his flustered face. Jason looked away, trying to hide himself, he couldn’t help but smile. If he had you by his side, he knew he would get through this hell.
- - - - -
Jason helped you walk until you reached the camp in the temple. He brought you to a tent and made you sit on an old bed. You wanted to go explore the place, but you knew you were in no condition to do so. Eric suddenly ran into the tent to come see you, you
weren’t close to the man but in this situation, it really didn’t matter. He smiled at you and patted your shoulder.
‘’Good to see another face than these two idiots’’ He laughed pointing at your friends standing behind him. They faked an annoyed look, but couldn’t hide their smirk as you laughed with Eric. ‘’We need to come up with a plan, but for now Y/N, you can rest. We’ll wake you when we need you.’’
‘’Yes sir’’ You breathe out, falling with content on the creaky bed you were sitting on.
Your eyes closed by themselves as the men left the tent to go report and make up a plan. You couldn’t care less about being left out. Right now, all you wanted was to sleep.
- - - - -
A weight pushing down the cushion of the bed next to you woke you up. You opened your eyes to Jason’s back. He was sitting next to you, looking at the floor. He looked so tired and overwhelmed, his eyebrows knit together and his mouth stuck into a straight line. You watched him sigh as he took off his hat to pass a hand in his soft-looking brown hair. You admired his feature from your laying position. Jason was an impressive man, you didn’t much of his past but you knew he wasn’t proud of it. He barely talked about himself before he enlisted. But it doesn’t change that the man built himself a good reputation as one of the best soldiers there were, no wonders he managed to become first lieutenant in only two years. That was no easy task. Not only was he incredible, but he was also one of the most handsome men you ever laid eyes on. He could make your heart skip a beat just with a glance. It was hard to be so attracted to him and stuck in his team as you knew you would never be more than coworkers. But you were glad to have met the man, even if it meant pain for your fragile heart. He was one of kind and you were glad to be around him.
Jason put his hat back on and moved himself to face you. You quickly closed your eyes, as if you were never awake. Not wanting to be caught glaring at him, even though you knew this is exactly what he was doing now. You held back a smile.
‘’You asleep?’’ His quiet voice barely reached you, and you faked shifting your head in your sleep to be able to hear him better.
He let out a heavy breath. ‘’God... I was so worried you know?’’ He wasn’t looking for an answer since he thought you were dead asleep.’’I thought I was gonna lose my mind when you disappeared into the darkness. It was driving me crazy thinking you were dead. I don’t know what I would do without you.’’
Your heart was beating so hard in your chest, you were scared he would hear it. You couldn’t believe what you were hearing. You knew Jason cared for his men, he cared more than any Lieutenant you knew. But what he was saying, whispering to you in his thick southern drawl, it was more personal, it meant more than just loyalty to his crew. You could feel it from the way he talked, and as much as you tried to stop it, you felt hope rise in your chest.
‘’And then! I hear you scream. I thought I was going crazy but Nicky heard it too. So I ran to you, I was terrified when I saw you fighting what used to be Joey… Man, poor Joey.’’ Jason got lost in his thought for a moment, searching for words. ‘’Y-You know I.. Y/N? I can’t stop thinking about you. Ever since I laid eyes on you. My life was so shit back then, and everything is a blur since a joined the Marines. I was concentrating so much on being a better person, following orders without a purpose. But you just... You just arrived like a ray of sunshine. Making everything around you bright and colorful. You made me feel things again.’’
He chuckled.
‘’I’m so freaking jealous of Nicky. Having you around him all the time, smiling and laughing. I want that too. Fuck, I want it all to myself to be honest with ya. I try... I try making you laugh. But most times I just get hypnotized in your eyes and I just forget how to talk. I’m such a fool…’’
You heard him clear his throat.
‘’I guess, what I really wanna say is… I-I wanna take you on a date. When we’re back at the surface I-I swear, I’ll ask
you.’’
You felt his hand press against the mattress close to you. Your hand gently slid on his, caressing him as you felt him jump in surprise.
‘’I’d like that too.’’
You opened your eyes to stare at him. His eyes were wider than before and his face a dark red. He cough to hide his embarrassment. You softly smiled at him as he regained his composure. Glancing between you and your hand holding his.
‘’W-We need to go help the guys with some r-radio’’ He let out.
‘’Yes sir.’’
He stood up before you, giving you his hand to help you do the same. You gladly took it and as you stood beside him, his hand holding yours for a heartbeat longer than necessary. He let it go and lead the way out of the tent.
Looking at him, you’ve realized you’ve never felt so light. Jason’s monologue truly took you by surprise, and even though some part of you were still doubtful, scared to get hurt by another man, you couldn’t help but want to try. Jason was such a kind man, and he seemed so sincere, confessing to you in your sleep. You might cry for it later, but right now, you wanted nothing more than to give the man a chance.
‘’Y/N, you coming?’’ Jason asked you, taking you out of your thoughts.
‘’Yes sir.’’ You smiled and followed him out of the tent.
- - - - -
‘’Well, the radio was a waste of time!’’ You grunted as you tried pushing the door shut, as the screaming of the monsters were just growing closer and closer.
Jason chuckled at your comment. ‘’Put your shoulder into it!’’ He order.
‘’Hurry!’’ Eric screamed, scanning the room for any enemies.
‘’I don’t see the Iraqis.’’
‘’Ain’t what I’m worried about right now Nicky!’’ You let out, having a lot of trouble making that damn door move an inch.
‘’If they’ve got any sense they’ll stay back. Shit’s about to get real in here!’’
The three of you pushed even harder to try and close the door. You felt it move when-
‘’Wait!’’
‘’Rachel?!’’
Nick immediately stopped pushing, looking shocked when he saw Rachel running inside the room. As the man was reunited with his lover, you went back to help Jason close the door behind us. He nodded at you when you were both done. Thanking you for your help. You couldn’t help the pink tinting your cheeks as you saw him return the smile you were giving him. But his smile fell when he saw Nick being pushed against the door after being punched by Eric.
‘’That’s the best you got?’’ Nick smirked as he fought back.
Rachel ran in between the two men, trying desperately to stop them.
‘’Stop it!’’ She ordered.
‘’I know it’s him, Rach. I know!’’
‘’You better step off before I start swinging. Colonel or no Colonel.’’
Jason stepped in between, interrupting their love fight. He pressed a hand on Nick’s chest, silently ordering him to step down.
‘’It’s good to see you, Rachel. I thought we’d lost you.’’ Jason smiled at her.
While they were discussing our losses and Rachel’s traumatizing experience, you leaned against the door, a weird feeling rising in you. As you listened closely, you heard the monsters getting louder and louder.
‘’Guys..’’ You let out. ‘’We should g-’’
Their screams grew louder than ever as they hit the doors, trying to open them. They all turned, pointing their guns at the door. Jason turned to Rachel.
‘’You armed?’’ In a swift and precise movement, he spun his handgun around his finger, handing it out to Rachel. ‘’Make sure every shot counts.’’
As Rachel took the gun, you couldn’t help but stare at the man. The way he handled that gun, you had to admit, it was hot. You grinned when his eyes met yours. He blushed and quickly looked away, scratching the back of his neck, clearly uncomfortable under the teasing look you gave him.
Suddenly, the beating at the door seemed harder, and Jason instantly grew out of his embarrassed state. A true Marine, that’s for sure.
‘’All right! Fall back to the main temple.’’
You all ran towards the temple, and you followed Rachel to help her with the generator as your two friends tried closing yet another door.
‘’We gotta keep the generator running!’’
‘’I
got it’’
You ran to the machine, looking for the problem and for a way to fix it. As you were concentrating on your job, your heard Jason complaining.
‘’Fuck! These things really have a hard-on for getting in here!’’
You laughed. Even in the worst situation, the man always had a joke in store.
‘’Generator is fucked!’’ you screamed as the door exploded, sending Jason and Eric to the ground. They rapidly got up. Running towards you.
‘’We gotta go!’’
‘’East gate!’’ Rachel called out.
You all ran towards the gate. As you were about to go through a tunnel, Jason grabbed your wrist, pulling you to his side.
‘’Stick to the walls!’’ He ordered, dragging you behind him as he kept running.
As you reached the next room, you felt the ground tremble and the sound of an explosion behind you. Everyone stopped, catching up their breaths.
‘’Shh, listen,’’ Jason whispered. ‘’Can you hear them? Blast must have cut us off. We should keep moving.’’
Everyone nodded. He was about to take the lead when he realized he was still holding your wrist. He quickly let it go.
‘’Sorry.’’
You chuckled at his shy manners and followed behind him as he lead you towards the catacombs. Staring at his back, you knew you lost the battle. You fell hard for the man and it was too late to repress any feelings. At least, it seemed like he felt the same. You smile, maybe you’ll get your happy ending after all.
- - - - -
‘’Well, this looks like the worst place in the goddamn world.’’ Jason breathe out, taking in the horrible place they were in.
His eyes landed on your shivering frame, as you looked around, afraid. He walked towards you, staying close. His hand brushed against yours, letting you know he was there. And his heart felt lighter as he saw you slowly calm down due to his presence.
The calm didn’t last for long. Screaming and screeching came crashing against the walls of the catacombs as the monsters surrounded you.
Jason quickly lifted his rifle, shooting at the closest creature that was heading towards you. You retreated behind him. His back against yours to cover all surroundings. Feeling you against his back made him feel more relaxed, knowing you were still there, close to him. He would protect you, no matter what.
Well, that’s what he thought until he got knocked on the ground and dragged in a hallway without being able to do anything.
‘’Jason!’’ You screamed, running after him.
As you watched him disappear around a corner, your heart sank. You couldn’t let him die. You sprinted in the same direction but came to a stop when a figure suddenly stepped in your way. But you were seeing red, nothing would get in the way while you tried to go save Jason. You ran to the figure while shooting him with your rifle. He was unstable from the fire, and you easily passed beside him.
The figure turned back towards you, it was about to grab you when Nick tackle it against the wall.
‘’GO!’’ He yelled at you.
You nodded as a thank you and ran in the direction Jason was dragged to.
- - - - -
‘’You stupid piece of shit! Let me go!’’
Jason was screaming under the creature as it locked him on the ground. He was fighting with all his might to push the creature away. And it took him a moment to realize what happened after he was freed from underneath the monster. Still on the ground, shocked, he looked at you on the back of the creature, stabbing it relentlessly with a small tackle knife.
The monster finally fell on the ground beside Jason, letting out a loud cry as it died. Jason stared at it before looking up at you. Your face covered in dark blood, you smiled at him, breathing heavily, and held out your hand
to him. Jason was never more in love with you than at this moment. You risked your life for him, defeating a creature three times your size. You did this for him.
He took your hand.
‘’Teach you to mess with a Marine.’’ He teased, as you pulled him back on his feet.
‘’Damn right!’’ You laughed.
It was as if time had stopped. Jason couldn’t pull his eyes off of you. His gaze wandered, admiring your face and taking in as many little details as he could. He was so close to you, so close that he could feel your breath hitting his face. He felt your hand pressed against his chest, you could probably feel his heart beating like crazy in his chest like this. But he didn’t mind. Not anymore no.
His eyes left yours to trail down towards your lips. Jason loudly gulped as he stared at them, dazzled by their soft appearance. He had been wanting them for so long. He felt your hand tightly grip his vest as you slightly opened your lips. His heart burst, he wanted to kiss you so badly.
‘’J-Jason..’’ Your voice was weak. Too weak.
He lifted his gaze to meet yours, you looked scared.
A violent cough took hold of you. Jason’s heart sank. You were couching blood.
He quickly took a glance at you, scanning your body for any injuries. That was when he noticed it. A big claw was piercing through your stomach. Your shirt already turning dark red.
‘’No... No no no... NO!’’
How could he not see it? How could he be such an idiot!
Jason barely heard their new Iraqis soldier friend jump on the sneaky creature standing behind you. He tackle it to the ground, making its claw violently leave your stomach. You coughed again and fell as your knees weren’t strong enough to hold your weight anymore.
Jason caught you in your fall, wrapping his arms around you as he sat on the ground, holding you against him. He couldn’t care less about the fight going on next to him right now, honestly, he already had forgotten about it. All he cared about was pressing his hand against your stomach to stop the never-ending blood loss.
‘’Fuck...fuck FUCK!’’ He panicked. He could feel his heart shattering into a million pieces as he stare at your stomach. He lifted his hands, looking at them, tainted with your blood. Jason’s face was torn into a grimace, he tried fighting back his tears but they kept flooding his cheeks just like your blood was flooding the floor.
How could he be so stupid? He should’ve seen it! He should’ve seen the creature, if he did, he could’ve protected you. What happened? Why the fuck is this happening!
He felt a gentle caress against his cheek.
He missed a breath, lifting his eyes to meet yours as your hand softly caressed his face, drying the tears coming down on it.
Your gaze wouldn’t leave his. He put one arm behind your neck, as his other hand came to press itself against your cheek. You leaned into the touch, slightly closing your eyes.
‘’I’m s-so sorry…’’ He sobbed. ’’I should’ve paid more attention, I should’ve saved you. I should be able to help you. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry!’’
‘’Shh...’’ You let out and smiled at him. ‘’It’s okay.’’
You cough and his heart shrank. He felt so guilty, oh so fucking guilty. You didn’t deserve to die like this. You couldn’t die like this.
‘’But I... I need you Y/N. I can’t go on without you.’’ He cried. ‘’I can’t lose you Y/N, I can’t. Not now, not ever. I need you. I don’t wanna lose you! I should’ve told you sooner if only I asked you out sooner. We would’ve had time together. I’m so stupid, so fucking stupid!!’’
Your smile grew bigger as you looked at him.
‘’I would’ve liked that too’’
Jason felt like his whole world was crumbling down. He stared back at you. He couldn’t comprehend how you could still look so beautiful and how you could still be smiling at him as if you were happy. But your eyes were so soft and full of love for him. He could feel it, but it could also feel you grow weaker. It was too late.
‘’J-Jason… Smile for me.’’ You cough out with obvious difficulty.
Jason’s heart was screaming in pain. How could he smile? It didn’t seem possible for
him right now. But as he looked at you, with your beautiful, hopeful eyes, he couldn’t help but smile. He would do anything for you, you meant the world to him.
He leaned in and closed his eyes right before his lips softly melt into yours. You weakly kissed him back. Your lips were chapped, and the kiss tasted like a mix of tears and blood, but it was the most amazing and meaningful kiss he ever had. He held you tighter as he kept his mouth lightly pressed on yours. It was your first and last kiss together, Jason wanted to remember the sensation of your lips against his. Without opening his eyes, he pulled away to press his forehead against yours and whispered...
‘’I love you’’
He caressed your hair for a while. Feeling as much as your warmth before it left your body. When he straightened his body to look at you, he knew you were gone. Jason let a painful smile reach his lips. You looked like an angle with your eyes closed and a slight smile on your lips. He pressed another kiss on your forehead, his hand still moving in your hair as he held onto you tightly.
Jason stayed on the ground a long time, caressing your hair as he let the tears flow downs his cheeks. If only he told you those three small words sooner. What could’ve been?
- - - - -