WIR: I Don't (Chapter 5)

It was early morning when the guest she'd been waiting for all night had finally arrived. She sat up on the couch and rubbed her eyes, not even pretending to care that he had entered her house without knocking.

"Morning, Felix," She said, acting as though she had just woke up, when in reality she barely slept at all.

He didn't speak. It was obvious he had just spent a good amount of time crying, judging by his slightly red eyes. Either that or he hadn't blinked for a long while.

He looked over at the ring, which thanks to the height of the table was in perfect line of his sight. She wasn't sure if Ralph had done that purposely or not.

Felix reached for the ring and flipped it between his gloved fingers, his voice still silent. Calhoun was starting to get nervous. She had never seen Felix go this long without talking. Or smiling, for that matter.

She hadn't even seen his smile since before she practically turned down his proposal days ago. She hadn't realized how much she had missed it until now.

"So, it's true, then?"

Calhoun's head jerked up. Not just at his voice, but by the tone. A tone she wasn't even aware Felix could produce. She just nodded, hoping he was watching her.

Felix clutched the ring in his palm. "It's because of him, isn't it?"

She shut her eyes tightly. Of course it was about him. Even Ralph knew that. But it was more than just that. She opened her dry mouth, hoping her voice could carry across the room. "I just..can't go through with another wedding. Not again."

Felix looked up. "Well, we don't have to get married here! We can find somewhere else."

She raised an eyebrow at him, since it was obvious churches weren't exactly easy to come by in an arcade world.

"We don't even need to have a ceremony. We can just exchange vows over a plate of nachos at Tapper's, for lands sakes!"

Calhoun forced away the small smile that dared to peek out. "It's more complicated than that, soldier."

"But it doesn't have to be," He insisted, hopping to the couch, so he was right beside her.

"I-" She looked at Felix, silently cursing herself for looking into those giant orbs he had for eyes. She felt the argument slowly slipping from her. "I love you, Felix. You know I do, so don't stand there acting all surprised." She added when his head perked up at the sentiment.

"Then why...?"

Calhoun's stare made him drop his sentence. She breathed out. "It's in my programming, Felix. And I love being with you, but I will not have a wedding and risk putting your life in danger. I already lost one fiancee that way. I can't lose you, too."

"Tamora, I-"

"I've got issues," She halfheartedly joked. "You came into this already knowing that. And there's nothing that can change that." She stood up. "I'm not like the buildings in your game, Felix. You can't just fix me up. I'm broken, beyond repair, and that's-"

Calhoun was abruptly cut off then by Felix hopping up, wrapping his arms around her neck, and slamming his lips against her's.

Shock rushed through the sergeant as she tried to comprehend what just happened. She kept a firm hold on Felix, and shifted her weight to keep from falling backwards. She wasn't really sure how what she just said deserved a kiss, but she did know she had missed being this close to Felix, so she didn't stop it.

When the two of them finally broke apart for air, Calhoun's eyes were confused. Felix returned her look with a hard stare. "Don't ever say that again." It didn't take much to make Felix angry, but hearing the love of his love being dissed, especially by herself, just about did it.

She blinked, trying to remember the last time she had been put off guard as much as she was just this morning.

"You're right, you're not like the buildings in my game," He said. "You're stronger than they are."

"Felix.." She turned her face away.

"No," He insisted, placing his hands on both sides of her face, so they stayed eye to eye. "I've seen what you can do, Tammy. You are the bravest, strongest, smartest, most dynamite gal I have ever met. You have to know that."

Calhoun tried to focus on Felix's words, but a flashback danced behind her eyes at the word "dynamite" and she found herself stumbling backwards onto the couch. Similar conversations with Brad echoed through her mind, along with kind words from her cadets at his funeral.

The handyman fell with her, but recovered more quickly and was immediately at her side for support. "Tammy? Tammy, are you okay?"

She blinked a few times before looking over at him, moments later. "Sorry," She mumbled, sitting up.

Felix sighed with relief, wrapped his arms around her, and snuggled into her side. They were quiet for a while then, just enjoying the warmth of the other, their steady breaths in rhythm together.

"I didn't mean to make a big deal out of this," Calhoun said finally, breaking the comfortable silence around them.

He regrettably pulled away to get a better look at her. "No, it's my fault. I was just so excited about the idea, I didn't think about how difficult it would be for you."

She bit the inside of her cheek, before speaking up again. "But it doesn't have to be."

He grinned back. "Really?"

She gave him a soft smile.

"Right," Felix agreed, his enthusiasm growing. "We can fix this!"

"No," Calhoun shook her head, causing the handyman to blink in reply. She smirked. "I can fix this." She opened Felix's hand and grabbed the ring that was still safely sitting in his palm. She held it out to him.

His eyes grew wide, along with his smile. "Really?" He said again.

She didn't reply, just continued to hold the ring out. Suddenly nervous as a possum, Felix rubbed his hands against his pants, as though that would rid the sweat inside his gloves, and took the ring.

He moved to the ground and got down on one knee. He looked up and cleared his throat. "Miss Tammy Jean Calhoun," He said, his voice squeaking a bit. He decided to keep it brief, raising the gold band. "Will you marry me?"

Calhoun made a noise that sounded like a nervous laugh, trying to ignore the knots currently tying up inside her stomach. "You bet."

Felix sighed in relief and the happiness that coursed through him days earlier returned as he slid the ring onto her finger.

She already felt lopsided by the weight of it. She raised her left hand to eye level and watched it sparkle in the dim lights.

The handyman was still grinning as he hopped back onto the couch and slid in next to her. He watched her face closely, his nervousness returning. "You're sure about this?"

She dropped her hand and looked over at her new fiancee. Her stomach twisted again at his wavering smile, but this time it was in a good way. "Absolutely not," She admitted, but she was grinning. "Now let's go share the good news, Future Mr. Calhoun."

He cocked an eyebrow. "Calhoun?"

She smirked. "Who'd you think you just proposed to?"