Halo: Dare to Love

Dare to Love - Chapter One
Years have passed since the Covenant Empire had capitulated from within, shaking itself to pieces over the later part of 2552.

The galaxy was different now. Quieter. Still dangerous. Still full of death-dealing aliens. Humanity had come out stronger than its enemies. Resilient and made powerful once again. Many things came out of that war - triumph, sadness, loss, disappointment, relief. So many had died so that Humanity could survive, death toll numbered in the billions. Everyone lost someone, everyone knew someone who lost their life at some point. That was the cost of war. And yet, to live on in the era that followed. There was some level of guilt in that. To have survived where others did not.

Families who will never see sons and daughters return home after twenty-seven years of war. Parents leaving orphans to be delegated by the State. Entire generations wiped out by plasma and glassing. To fight was to survive, and yet, there remained some guilt. Some that existed from before the War and some that existed during. It never quite went away, always gnawing at the back of the mind.

Tonight was one of those nights that the survivor's guilt did not perpetuate through her soul. The loss of friends and many respectable colleagues were not as prevalent or on the evening's menu. Dreams twisted into nightmares were warded off.

Thunder echoed distantly outside the hotel suite. Rain clattered against the skyscraper, echoing through the walls. Water drained slowly against the cold glass pane. The skyline of San Diego was blurred out by the awash waves of descending droplets.

Light would arc across the sky, every few moments as lightning struck out toward the land or sea. ONI Captain Veronica Dare was silent as her mind drifted in the pitch black of the hotel room. She was content, complete in the presence of this night sky and the scattered storms outside. A familiar presence watched her back from the other side of the room. Dare was comfortable in the dark.

It was a reminder of a mission from a year ago. Africa. New Mombasa. Back then, the mission had gone wrong from the start, and yet, it came together so right. Her loaned ODSTs got lost in the drop, however, little by little, they found their way back to each other. They discovered a Huragok engineer who was willing to spill the Covenant Empire's secrets. They all made it out alive.

Back then, everything had been so much simpler. It was all just survival. Fight to survive. Now, five years after that mission. The War was over but the fighting had not. The Covenant remnants still existed and Humanity had gone back to fighting among themselves. That last part, in particular, had destroyed a piece of the man she loved. It had torn his team apart. It hurt to see him broken back then but something also changed in him.

The familiar presence behind Dare stepped out of their chair with a slight groan. The wooden stool had not been designed to handle the weight of a man of considerable muscle mass, however, it held firm. A large, beefy hand reached out and gently caressed Dare's back.

Instinctively, Dare leaned into the grasp of the hand. It was warm and gentle. The hand-rolled across her back, starting from her left shoulder before moving down to spine. She shivered at the touch as embers emblazoned somewhere in her stomach and butterflies danced at the flickering light.

"Honey. It's getting late. Come to bed." A male voice whispered in the darkness.

Dare turned to face the speaker; Edward Buck's face was barely visible in the dim light of the city outside. What little could be made out was clear signs of someone tired but happy. His hand left Dare's back and came outstretched, waiting for her to take it.

Dare reached out gently, letting her own hand be swallowed by Buck's much larger grasp. Like his hand, his entire body towered over Dare. Standing at around two hundred centimeters, he was a giant of a man. Sure, it was his Spartan upgrades, however, she'd always been shorter and smaller than him, however, now Dare felt like an ant in his presence.

His arms gently wrapped around Dare's waist and brought her close to his chest. He was wearing nothing but a waist-high pair of track pants. The scent coming off his bare chest was uniquely his, a mix of deodorant-covered sweat mixed with freshly mowed grass and dirt from many battles. Buck took command of the pair, guiding himself and Dare toward their shared bed.

Buck bent down first, sitting down cautiously on the bed. The frame groaned in response to the new presence and pressure being placed upon it as he made himself comfortable without letting go of Dare. His hands moved up and down her body, running his rough but gentle hands against the fabric of her skin-tight clothing. The touch came with friction but it sparked a shiver within Dare, wherever Buck's hand ran, goosebumps began to form.

Dare was comfortable, happy. She wanted to feel him running up against her. She wanted to feel Buck's presence. She grasped at his hair that now sat at eye-level. A black mop of hair clearly outside military regulations was still already started to feel wet from perspiration. The sweat caused Buck's aroma to grow in intensity. It drew her in. Dare reached out and grasped at any skin she could clasp onto.

In moments, she was on top of him and he was already kicking his pants off his legs. Dare smiled at him from atop his chest. She could feel the muscles in his abdomen flex and bend under her. He smiled back reassuringly. They were feeling the want, the lust to be in each other's presence.

Dare could feel her skin grow tough and rigid against her tank top. She attempted to pull it off but Buck stopped her silently and helped pull it off her rather quickly as her chest and stomach became exposed to the cool air of the hotel room. She leaned in and pecked Buck's cheeks before going for his lips who crashed into hers with a drive for connection. Their lips touched and sparks danced in their hearts. Their chests met as they grew more passionate in their closeness. They were rubbing up against one another now. Dare's tongue dipped into Buck's mouth seeking its counterpart, wanting to play tug-of-war. Her tongue danced on his own as they found contact and kept up the make-out session.

She could feel his member grow progressively thicker under her stomach as she pressed into his body. She was just about ready.

A communications device buzzed in the background. The pair broke off their makeout session and stared at the blinking-green screen in the darkness of the room. It was Buck's device.

Buck reached out and grabbed the phone from the nightstand and pressed the talk button.

"Buck."

There was mumbling from the other end. Already knowing that something was up, Dare disappointingly climbed off Buck's abdomen. He had a grimace on his face which clearly suggested some level of frustration.

"Uhm. Uhm. Alright. Yeah, I'll be there in a few - I just got to get changed. Yeah. Yeah. Will do. Seeya." Buck shut down the channel and the room was silent again. Buck's blue eyes glanced back at Dare's nude chest before staring into Dare's own blue pupils.

There was silence between the Spartan and the ONI agent for a few good moments before Dare broke the silence. "Who was it?"

"Locke."

"Damn."

"Duty calls," Buck stated before climbing off the bed, leaving Dare to sit there alone watching him as he went to grab his pants and pulled them back on. He hobbled through the dark, hunting for the presence of a tee shirt.

"He's a cock-blocker, you know that right?" Dare stated toward Buck's back as he pulled on his black sweater near the windows. The silhouette of the shirt obscured his neck and face.

From within the shirt, Buck could be heard mumbling. "That's kind of lame, but cheesy. I'll have to use that next time I see him."

"You're about to." Dare pointed out.

"I am," Buck confirmed. "Raincheck?"

"There really isn't anything else we can say on that."

"Right. I'll let you know what's going on when I get to work and I'll tell you when to expect me back."

"'kay." Dare replied, feeling very disappointed as she let her head hit the pillow and she decided she promptly wanted to go to sleep.

There was another period of silence before anyone spoke again.

"I love you, Veronica," Buck called from the entryway of the hotel room.

"I know...I love you too." Dare called back weakly. She didn't move her head to glance at Buck's retreating form.

The giant of a man stepped out into the hotel's hallway and let light blossom into the hotel room, forcing Dare to squint her eyes shut. The door closed a moment after with an audible click. Buck was still being as gentle as ever, even if it wasn't in bed.

All Dare could think as she turned back to the window was thoughts about Jameson Locke, Buck's superior officer.

'Fuck you Mr. Locke... fuck you. You cock-blocker. Might as well be a prescribed cock-lock at that point...'