Work Text:
"Do you really have to go, Havers?"
"I'm sorry, sir, once the transfer was put in I couldn't retract my request."
The Captain and Havers were standing in the main common room, a respectable distance from each other. The Captain was looking out of the window. The reason for this was because if he turned to see Havers' broken face he probably wouldn't be able to keep it together.
"Of course, Lieutenant. Carry on." Havers nodded sharply before walking out of the door.
The Captain strode into his office, his feet moving of their own accord. He poured himself a whisky and sat down almost automatically, his mind only focused on one thing.
His William was leaving.
A sharp knock on the door had him standing to attention.
"Come!" Two young men were roughly shoved through the door by one of the older men.
"What is it, Adams?" The Captain asked, raising an eyebrow.
"Jus' found these two buggers kissin' in't linen cupboard. Decided t' report 'em." The Captain looked from Adams to the two men, who were both looking down at the floor. The Captain shook his head, before dismissing the older man from the room.
"Before you do anything, sir, I know what we did was illegal, sir, but I don't regret a thing." One of the young men looked up defiantly. He had short, brown, hair, slicked back with gel. A young Havers, his brain unhelpfully added. The Captain could see the fear on his face as plain as day, but there was also passion there, as well as love. The other man reached towards the first one with a shaky hand, interlocking their fingers together.
"If you are to report us, at least let us go together." The first one finished with a sharp nod.
"What is your name?" The Captain addressed the bold man.
"Williams, sir." The Captain internally scoffed. Of course it was. Life just had to torture him, as if he hadn't enough to deal with.
"Williams, you are a brave man, and I commend you."
"Thank you, sir," Williams said, clearly shocked.
"And you?" The Captain nodded at the other man, shorter with sandy blonde hair.
"J...Jones, sir." He stammered.
"Well, Jones, you clearly have a man that loves you by your side. And to risk a relationship in this time, it is highly impressive of you." The Captain gave them a small, rare smile.
"I'm not going to turn you in. I do not see any problem with homosexuality, though I would appreciate it if you kept that to yourselves." The two men looked at each other and then to the Captain, clearly in disbelief.
"You... we're not going to prison?"
"No. And don't trouble yourselves with Adams, he has several abuse records behind him. The police will be called later to deal with him - if he mentions this, I will say that he was trying to shift attention off himself." The Captain nodded at them.
"Now, Jones, you will need to get something to cover the mark on your neck. It's November, so work outdoors and nobody will question a scarf. Dismissed." The two boys - they were boys in the Captain's eyes, neither of them older than 20, nodded. As Williams reached for the doorknob, the Captain added,
"Oh, and be more careful, would you?" He gestured to the hands joined between the two of them. They smiled, putting a respectable distance between them before leaving the office.
The Captain slumped into his chair, taking a sip of his whisky before picking up the telephone and calling the police.
~☆~☆~☆~
After Adams had been dealt with, Havers approached him at the window.
"You did a good thing, with those boys." He said.
"I'd like to think so." The Captain turned to face him, and saw the pride in Havers' eyes. It made him want to cry, knowing that soon that exact face would be fighting in the trenches instead of keeping him warm at night.
"Sir, if it's not much bother, would you meet me later, in the storage unit? There's something I've been meaning to show you." Havers gave him a small smile.
"Of... of course, Havers. I have nothing on my agenda, shall we go now?"
"Sir, I would appreciate it rather more later."
"Right, yes. What time?"
"Shall we say 2000 hours? Dinner should be over by then."
"Yes, jolly good." Havers smiled before turning and walking out of the door. The Captain pondered about their meeting. Havers probably just wanted to say goodbye formally, that's all. The Captain didn't think about the fact that Havers was leaving tomorrow, not later that day.
~☆~☆~☆~
After dinner was cleared away, the Captain dismissed the regiment for the evening.
"It has been a long day, what with the police arriving and all. Treasure this time off, I am not giving it out often." The Captain nodded. He tried to catch a glimpse of Havers but he had been suspiciously elusive since their last conversation.
As eight o'clock neared, the Captain got more nervous. Which was ridiculous, of course. He was just meeting Havers! He'd done that many times...
The clock chimed, startling the Captain out of his thoughts. He straightened his jacket before making his way outside to the storage building, but stopped just before he entered. The main lights had been switched off, replaced with oil lamps scattered around the room. It looked... beautiful.
Once the Captain stepped inside, however, he only had eyes for Havers. He was still in his army uniform, but he had taken his jacket off. The Captain gave him a quick once over, before looking back at Havers' face which had settled into a smirk. The Captain coughed and blushed, embarrassed at being caught. He gently pushed the door closed.
"I wanted to do something before I left," Havers started, slowly walking towards the Captain. "The two boys from earlier helped me set this up, I told them not to tell you because I thought you'd disapprove." Havers reached the Captain, putting his hands on his waist.
"I know you don't dance, sir, but, well... dying man's wish?" Havers chuckled. The Captain furrowed his brow before pulling the taller man to him and growling,
"You are not going to die. I won't allow it."
"I'm not sure Jerry's bullets will listen to you, sir, but I'll do my best." Havers kissed him on his forehead.
Havers moved away from him, fiddling with a gramophone the Captain hadn't even noticed was in there. Vera Lynn's voice cut through the crackling, and Havers held his hand out.
And how could the Captain say no to that?
It wasn't proper dancing, not really. Havers had looped his arms around the Captain's waist, while the older man had rested his hands at the base of his neck, head resting on the taller man's shoulder.
We'll meet again,
Don't know where, don't know when,
But I know we'll meet again,
Some sunny day,
Havers was softly singing along to the record. The Captain thought that he had the voice of an angel.
"Not really, Teddy, but I am flattered nonetheless." Havers chuckled, the Captain shocked that he had let his thoughts slip. Havers pulled back slightly to look at his lover in the face, before gently bringing their lips together.
The kiss was soft and sweet, the Captain's hands curling into his hair, Havers moving his to the Captain's shoulders.
Keep smiling through,
Just like you always do,
Till the blue skies drive the dark clouds far away.
"You'll write?" The Captain asked, voice close to breaking.
"All the time," Havers smiled warmly, pulling the Captain to his chest. They stayed there for ages, gently swaying in time to the music. The Captain never wanted to move from this spot.
"I love you," he whispered under his breath. Havers inhaled sharply, but before the Captain could launch himself into a state of panic, Havers whispered back,
"I love you too."
I know we'll meet again,
Some sunny day.