Expendables- Devil's Ax

Chapter 12

After a half and hour of fighting Gunner, Rose gave up and ate the basket of food that had been placed in front of her. His stubbornness was rather annoying. His grunt of accomplishment put a small smile of Rose's face. She quickly ate and found that she had been very hungry. When she was done, she sat back in her chair and continued to look around. the people of the bar continued to glance over at her and Gunner, snickering to themselves. What were they thinking? When Gunner had finished, he stood up and went to pay for the food, on his way back to the table he caught one of the younger men looking at Rose from the bar. As he walked back to the table, he grabbed the boy by his brown hair jerked his head to the side so that he was facing the bar.

"Let's get out of here." Gunner said in a low voice.

Rose, not seeing what had happened, nodded and stood up, grabbing the filled out application and sat it at the bar before leaving with Gunner. Outside, the cool night air struck Rose and made her shiver. Gunner walked over to his bike and waited for her to get on.

"Wanna go for a ride?" He asked. "Before we head back."

Rose smiled and nodded her head. It had been a while since she had just gone on a ride.

Once Gunner sat down on the bike, Rose wrapped her arms around his waist and rested her head on his back. She was tired but still wide awake. Gunner turned his head to the side to look at her and chuckled to himself. The bike came to a rumbling start and they took off.

The lights in the window of shops light their path as they drove down the many streets, till they arrived at a main road and headed north. Within moments, the only other light than the light on the bike, were the stars. Holding on tight, Rose pushed herself closer to Gunner when the open cold air brushed over her skin.

Gunner let go of the left handle of his bike and placed his hand over Rose's. Her skin was cool and he could feel her shiver from the cold. Warming her hands with his own, he felt her push up against him even more. He smiled to himself and squeezed her hands before speeding up a little.

After a half an hour or so of driving, Gunner and Rose made it back the tattoo parlor. Gunner walked Rose back up to her room. At her door he turned to her and smiled.

"You were gettin' kinda close on the bike." He said with a smirk. He could see the look of embarrassment in her eyes and he chuckled.

"Sorry." Rose said looking down at the floor.

"Don't be." Gunner said placing a hand on her head and ruffling her hair, not knowing what else he should do. Rose pushed his hand away with a laugh and brushed her hair out her face. But soon after, the smile disappeared when she looked at the door to her apartment. Gunner knew what she was thinking. She didn't want to be alone. Usually Barney was with her at this time just talking with her and keeping her company. But he wouldn't be here for a few days.

Scratching the back of his head Gunner looked down at her. "Mind if I come in for a bit?"

Rose looked up at him with relief in her eyes. She opened her door and walked in, followed by Gunner.

It was near midnight when Rose had fallen asleep on the couch next to Gunner. They had spent the last few hours just talking and watching TV. Gunner looked over at her watched her for a few moments before standing up and grabbing a blanket from behind the couch and draping it over her. His chest grew tight as he thought about leaving her alone. Something deep down made him want to watch over her and take care of her. He leaned down and scooped her up into his arms. Carrying her to her room, Gunner could feel how bad her condition was. She felt like mostly bones. Laying her down in her bed, he tucked the blanket around her and sat on the edge of the bed. Placing his elbows on his knees, he leaned forward and thought about if he should leave or stay for a bit longer. Shaking his head at the thought of staying, he stood up. Before he had the chance to take a step, he felt a slight tug on the back of his shirt. Turning to the side, in the dim light from the hallway, he saw Rose with teary eyes. She didn't directly at him, for she seemed scared to do so.

"Can.. You stay... A little longer." she said in a such a quiet voice, it was hard for gunner to hear her. "I don't want to be lone."

Without a word, Gunner climbed into the bed and placed his hand on her cheek, brushing her jaw line. throwing aside his warning thoughts, his lips brushed over her's and his other hand snaked around to the small of her back, pulling her in closer. He could feel her breath was weak as he held her. His thumb brushed away a tear that escaped her eye. Parting his lips, he brushed his tongue over her soft lips and felt her tremble a little.

Too soon, he thought to himself. Pulling back, he saw Rose open her eyes a little and more tears fell. Shit.

"I- I'm sorry." He stumbled over his words, but before he had the chance to see if she was alright, Rose threw herself into his arms tangled her fingers into the back of his shirt. Her body shook and she silenced a sob. Gunner wrapped his arms around her and held her close.

"Gunner..." She sobbed. "I'm scared. I don't want to be alone. I want you to stay. Please."

"I will." He said in a low voice. "I'll stay with you tonight." What am I doing? What the hell?

He had never acted this way with anyone. He had been with plenty of girls before, and he had never treated them like this. All he wanted to do was hold her tightly, keep her safe, kiss her. Grabbing her by the hips, he pushed her back a little and pushed his lips against her harder. Forcing his tongue into her mouth, he felt her squirm in his grasp. Unable to fight the urge, he gently pushed her down onto the bed and rested her head on the pillow, as he deeped the kiss even more. He felt her hand leave his back and go to his chest. She pushed him slightly, but he didn't budge. He couldn't kiss her enough.

"Gunn.." Rose said muffled.

As Gunner pulled back, he knew he had done something terrible wrong. Her eyes were wide with fear, and her body trembled. Tears ran faster down her cheeks as she looked up at him. An image of the soldiers from the prison shot through his mind. Without a word, he lifted her up and spun around on the bed so that Rose was straddling him on top. He leaned forward and wrapped his arms around her waist and rested his head on her shoulders.

"I'm sorry. I wasn't thinkin'." He said in a low voice. "That probably didn't help you any. I'm sorry." His grasp tightened, as he realized he had just fucked up. Pulling back to see if she was alright, he was met by a slight brush of Rose's lips over the scar on his cheek. Her fingers dug into his shirt as she buried her face into his shoulder and silently cried. Her body trembled and shook as her grip on his shirt tightened.

"I love you." She whispered through a sob before hiding her face into his chest and falling asleep.