Work Text:
You cringe and shake your head as you watch Wrecker effortlessly pick up two Togruta women and hold them against his sides. They dizzily laugh, their small hands clinging to his biceps as he marches them to the dance floor.
You're pretty sure you smell like the lower-level sewers from chasing a war criminal early today. You showered twice and bought some cheap perfume to try and cover it, but you doubt it's doing anything from the side eyes you keep getting. Though the mission was utterly revolting, being sent to Coruscant for a quick recon mission has its perks.
Like getting to make a stop at 79's.
You had decided early on that you were going to get buzzed at most. Tech was quick to claim to be the sober one and you have no intentions of dealing with a hangover tomorrow morning, so you've decided to drink enough to get a fuzzy feeling.
Besides, you don't need to get hammered to have a good time. You're having plenty of fun just observing the boys letting loose and relaxing with a couple of well-deserved drinks.
Even if they're totally embarrassing themselves, like Echo currently is, in a shots challenge he started with a reg from an old squad he grew up competing with on Kamino.
Which has gathered a fairly large crowd. Tech is right beside him, recording everything no doubt for tomorrow's hangover recount. Meanwhile, Crosshair is leaning on the back of Echo's chair, whispering slyly in his ear as the competition takes his third shot.
Both of them are offering Echo some much-needed moral support, obviously.
"Can I buy you another round, doll?"
You glance over your shoulder. "Ah, no. I'm good." You politely smile at the stranger. Other than the red, complicated tattoo crossing over the bridge of his nose, he looks like most clones. His dark hair is a little longer than the typical military style you've become familiar with, but it's nowhere near the length of Hunter's.
He sways forward, letting you see just how full of alcohol he is. A relaxed, loopy grin settles on his sweet face as he practically falls onto the counter space next to you. "Come on, honey. You look like you could use another."
You shake your head at his request with a soft smile.
"Why not?" He asks with an almost comical pout. "Aren't you having a good time?"
You chuckle. "I am." You say before taking a sip of your drink. "I just really wouldn't recommend buying me a drink."
"What?" He asks, his face somehow contorting into another exaggerated expression, only this time confusion. You refrain from laughing again, not wanting to accidentally upset him in his inebriated state. "Why?"
You point towards the large crowd and his gaze follows. You witness Echo successfully toss back another shot, getting a large slap of approval on the shoulder from Crosshair and a half-smirk from Tech. Based on the number of glasses stacked on the table, you've got a feeling that you're going to be doing a lot of babysitting tonight.
Not that you really mind.
"You've got a boyfriend, huh?" He gains your attention back. You shrug in response. He then uncoordinatedly rests an arm on the back of your chair, leaning a little too close to you for your comfort. "Which one is he, sweetheart?" He gestures at the scene in front of you.
You scoot slightly on your chair away from him, wanting to put some space between you. Normally, you're pretty vocal about getting them to back up, but since he seems absolutely wasted, you decide to give him the benefit of the doubt and just create your own space.
"The one with the eye tattoo." You answer while Crosshair begins snapping at the reg at his right, pointing his toothpick threateningly at him. You can't help but chuckle slightly as Echo reaches out and grabs Crosshair's shoulder to tug him back to keep him in line.
He surprisingly listens, sending the reg one last glare before returning to his spot behind Echo.
The reg at your side scoffs and you look up to see him scowling. "Him? You came here with that asshole?" He asks, his words slightly slurring together.
You nod your haed.
He suddenly straightens up and slides his arm off your chair, bumping your back in the process. His eyes study Crosshair for a moment, as if sizing him up, before looking back down at you. "A pretty girl like you shouldn't have to settle for a dick like him. I'm buying you that drink." He declares as he drags his hand down your arm and steps up to the counter.
"You're going to regret it." You say into your drink. You finish the last of it as he orders another of what you've been nursing all night.
As he waits for the drinks to return, he stands close to your seat. "I never did catch your name." He smiles, his gaze lingering a little longer on your body than you like.
"Ace." You answer, your guard quickly going up. "Yours?"
"Cash." He twists to lean his back against the counter so he can fully face you. "You know, your boyfriend hasn't come over here yet."
You arch your eyebrow. "I promise, you don't want him over here. You'll be lucky if we can have this conversation without him noticing." You say, coming off a bit cold now.
He chuckles, undeterred, and gently reaches out his hand to brush your knee a bit more intimately than you're comfortable with. You lightly push his hand off and move your knee away from where it was in hopes of keeping him off without making a scene.
His head tilts and a smug scoff escapes him. "You know, I'm starting to think your relationship might be a little one-sided."
"I promise, it's not." You harshly reply as he steps closer to you. He moves to make sure his waist is leaning against your legs and he stares into your face with a teasing smile. You look away, your chest starting to tighten.
You're waiting for him to finally get the hint that you're not interested, not even the slightest bit amused at what's happening.
Just as you place your used glass on the counter, Cash is forcing the next one into your hand.
He holds up his glass before taking a drink. He then drunkenly smiles at you, apparently pretty proud of what he's accomplished so far. You watch in horror as his free hand goes to your thigh and rests too high on your body for it to be taken any other way. "You don't mind if I touch you like this, right?" He quietly smirks while his thumb begins to press into your skin. "I mean, your date clearly doesn't seem that interested in you, even though I think you look absolutely stunning."
Your mouth goes dry and you don't move. You can feel your heart pounding. This has never happened before. While 79's is a hot spot to be, no one has ever been so handsy with you. Or has even tried making a move on you with the knowledge that you were exclusive with someone else, much less another clone.
He leans forward, either not picking up your discomfort or choosing to ignore it, and brushes his lips against your ear. "I don't understand how he doesn't have his hands on you constantly." He whispers and his hand begins to slide up and down your thigh.
You freeze from his touch and words. Your mind is completely blank and you're panicking about what to do. You don't like this at all, and you don't know what you're supposed to do to get him off and away from you.
Before he can go any further, his wrist is snatched off of your thigh with a angry, familiar snarl. "Did you really think I wouldn't notice the way you're pervertedly touching her?"
"Cross." You quietly say as you rest a hand on his shoulder, both out of relief and as a warning. You don't want this to become a big fight. You'd rather just forget this whole thing and leave now because of how Cash has made you feel.
He shrugs you off though, his focus only on the reg as he moves to keep you behind him. "I'm only giving you one warning. Back the kark up, or you'll be nursing more than a hangover tomorrow morning." He threatens. His voice low and harsh as he jabs at Cash's chest hard, shoving him backward.
You watch as Crosshair slightly sways on his feet, clearly having had plenty to drink tonight. His fists tighten at his sides while he shifts his stance to prepare for a fight. You feel like you're supposed to do something to stop this, but you can't seem to think or do anything now, as you're still reeling from what just happened.
Cash chuckles and sets his drink down. "Look, brother, it's not my fault you left her alone. I've been eyeing her all night, and she's been sitting here the entire time looking so lonely. How was I supposed to know that she came here with some defective asshole?"
"'Eyeing her?'" Crosshair repeats, his voice getting louder and angrier.
Cash squints. "That's not what I meant." He grumbles, quickly picking up Crosshair's interpretation of his words. He shakes his head and then gestures at you. "Plus, I don't know why you're getting pissed at me. She was letting me make those moves on her."
The group watching Echo's shot challenge must realize that a fight is breaking out because the space is quickly getting more crowded by the second.
You find your heart rate rising, suddenly feeling the pressure from the additional eyes. You don't like the attention, but you also know that Crosshair doesn't make the best decisions with an audience.
If there's one thing you've learned about him since your time together, he likes to put on a show. So when there's a crowd, you can bet he'll do whatever it takes to entertain.
He flicks his toothpick at Cash's face, his jaw locking. "I have no issues kicking your ass. Get the kark away. Now." He warns one final time.
This is going south fast.
"Come on, lab scrabber." Cash taunts with a grin. He lightly punches at his own cheek while getting in Crosshair's face. "Gimme your best punch. Because I'm not leaving here without a reason." He grins, clearly egging him on.
That's all it takes.
Crosshair makes the first move, hitting him in the jaw where Cash was gesturing to. Of course, because it can't simply end there, Cash socks him back in his eye, which sets him off. The crowd gasps and cheers, witnessing the two of them begin to brawl on the floor.
You watch as they duke it out at your feet. If you weren't concerned for his safety and upset with how uncomfortable Cash made you, it would almost be comical how they're rolling around. As quickly as it started though, Crosshair stands back up and sways over Cash's groaning body. "Keep your eyes off my girl, reg." He sneers, and you tug on his arm to keep him back and close to you. "And don't even fucking think about touching her, or any other girls, like that again!"
You immediately slide out of your seat, placing your hand on his chest to keep him back and steady on his feet. "Alright, enough. You won. Let's go." You softly say. You hear the crowd begin to jeer at the three of you. Some are taunting Cash to get back up. Others are cheering on Crosshair, showing they're happy that the poor bastard got decked.
Most are just shouting for more punches from anyone in general.
The crowd starts to move in closer. A few men are trying to help Cash from off the ground and onto his feet while the rest attempt to get up in Crosshair's face and either egg him on to fight some more or pat him on the shoulder for standing his ground.
Seeing how the atmosphere in 79's has quickly shifted, you drape his arm over your shoulders and lead him away. He's glaring at everyone, pulling you close to his body as they struggle to get closer and either talk or fight him. He just drunkenly snaps at everyone, no matter their stance in the fight, and demands that they get back or they'd get the same treatment.
Great. Now he's going to be possessive for the rest of the night.
Before you know it, another fight is breaking out, thankfully not from any of the other members of Clone Force 99. This lets the two of you escape the swarm and make it toward the dance floor.
You glance back at the bartender, who's marching your way and is clearly pissed at how things have rapidly become violent in the bar thanks to you.
"Don't worry, I got him and we're leaving. Just let me get the rest of 'em." You wave off as Crosshair's hand squeezes your shoulder protectively.
The bartender shouts that you better be heading for the exit, which you both quickly assure that you are. Your patience is starting to thin as Crosshair moves to stand behind you. His arms wrap defensively around your waist as he rests part of his weight on you. Normally you'd complain about his chin digging into your shoulder, but since he's drunk and very clingy now, this situation works well.
You can't lose him if he's willingly holding onto you. He's being a bit more intimate with his hands than you prefer, considering you're in public. Rather than fight him, you settle on just gently brushing his hands away when they get too grabby.
But that doesn't stop him from being cheeky and stealing a few touches when you're not ready for it.
Although he's being a little annoying right now, after what just happened you are grateful that he's sticking so close to you and that it's his hands on you instead of anyone else's.
You eventually run into Tech, who has Echo laughing and leaning into his side.
"Again?" He asks, quickly taking in the state of Crosshair.
"Things got out of hand." You tiredly shrug as Crosshair mumbles something into your hair, which you chose to ignore. "Will you grab Wrecker? I'm going to try and find Hunter. We've had our fill of alcohol for the night."
"Agreed." Tech sighs.
Echo uncoordinately raises his finger in the air. "I disagree. The night is just getting started." He smirks before hiccuping loudly.
"The bar is closing in a half hour and Crosshair lost his temper and fought someone. The night is over." Tech snaps, clearly fed up. He then shakes his head and looks back at you as Echo begins playfully scolding Crosshair. "I'll meet you back at the ship with them. If I run into any trouble, I'll comm you."
"Meet you there."
You part ways, heading in separate directions to look for the remaining intoxicated members of Clone Forcee 99. It takes a bit of searching, but you finally find Hunter with his mouth occupied on some woman's neck in the back of the bar. You grab him by the scruff of his collar and gently tug him back. "Say goodbye, lover boy. We're leaving."
"Hey!" The woman protests, stepping forward to pull him back.
You expect another fight. But, thank the Force, Hunter doesn't even shrug you off. "It's alright, baby. Ace is right. It's time to go." He says a bit breathless as he runs his hand through his hair with a smile. You roll your eyes as Hunter gives her one last sloppy kiss, which makes Crosshair dramatically gag into your shoulder.
"Enough swapping spit." You grumble. You grab his bicep and pull him back with a bit more force. If Hunter wanted to, he could easily fight you on this and win, but he doesn't.
"I'll see you around, okay?" He promises his lady with a disoriented smirk as you start dragging him and Crosshair to the exit.
The woman waves goodbye with a drunken giggle, and you have a feeling that neither one of them will remember a blasted thing that happened tonight.
Once you're outside the bar, you place yourself between the two of them and make them walk on their own. It's easier to keep them in good spirits as long as there's a buffer and if they have to focus on not falling over.
As you walk back towards the ship, Hunter weakly looks around you to stare at Crosshair. "What happened to you?" He asks as he roughly gestures to Crosshair's darkening eye.
He growls incoherently and waves him off in response. Hunter scoffs, somehow understanding what he said. In retaliation, he then pouts and glares down at you. "Ace, how could you let him get into another fight?" He huffs.
Your cheeks heat slightly. You feel so stupid and don't want to talk about it. Why did you freeze up like that when Cash touched you? You should have acted. You shouldn't have needed Crosshair to stop him.
You just felt so nervous and uncomfortable at the time.
You want a subject change badly, not in the mood to explain how you can act in an instant on the field but failed to defend yourself from a creep. Unfortunately, it seems like Hunter is determined to get to the bottom of this. "Someone offered to buy me a drink and it lead to that." You settle on while refusing to look into his eyes.
Hunter scoffs in disbelief and turns his attention to Crosshair again. "What is wrong with you?"
"He tried buying her a drink." He defends, his words slightly slurred as he rubs at his jaw with his knuckles.
"So what?"
"'So what?' She's my girl."
"It's free booze! You don't turn down free booze."
"He bought it to sleep with her." Crosshair scowls as he steps in front of you to get into Hunter's face. Everyone stops, letting him jab harshly into Hunter's chest. "No man, clone or natborn, should ever think he has a chance of getting with Ace while I'm around!"
Hunter's eyebrows furrow and he pauses to smack his lips in thought. You glance between the two of them as you wait for one of them to snap like usual. Instead, Hunter bursts into a deep laugh, which gets a half-smirk from Crosshair. "Did you win?"
"Of course, I won." He huffs, looking a little proud. "I always win."
Without warning, Hunter's arms wrap around Crosshair to bring him in for a large, messy hug. "That's what I like to hear!" He cheers while playfully digging his knuckles into his gray hair, which actually gets a quiet chuckle from the normally closed off sniper.
You shake your head with a smile, thankful that the drunk interaction didn't create another fistfight or that you'd have to talk about what triggered the fight in the bar. Crosshair has gotten into enough trouble for one night, let alone the problem that brawling with Hunter would cause.
Finally, you reach the damn Marauder.
"Alright, boys. Get in and get ready for bed." You say, shooing them up the ramp to the ship.
Just as Tech promised, he retrieved Echo and Wrecker and brought them to the ship. Wrecker is already asleep in his bunk, snoring away like a train. Echo is fumbling around in the refresher, occasionally giggling to himself. You find Tech hidden away in the cockpit.
"Were they as much trouble as usual?" You ask, poking your head in as Crosshair and Hunter rummage around for a late-night snack.
"Surprisingly no," Tech says as he looks up from his datapad. He spins to look at you then glances past you to watch Hunter eagerly open a ration pack. "They seem like they're in good spirits."
You turn in timee to watch Crosshair flick a toothpick at the back of Hunter's head, which just makes the sergeant scrunch up his shoulders and chuckle happily.
"Yeah. I was a little worried that Hunter wouldn't leave his lady of the night, but he was happy to come back." You reply, leaning against the wall to watch them with Tech.
"Hunter is typically a happy person when he's intoxicated. I am not surprised that he listened to you and came back." Tech shrugs. The two of you then continue to watch Crosshair and Hunter stumble around and carry on pointless conversations until Echo exists the refresher.
You push off the wall and make a beeline for it now that it's open.
"All yours, Ace!" He grins as you pass him.
"Get to bed, Echo." You playfully scold. He lets out a deep chuckle then stumbles and barely catches himself.
Once you're in the refresher, you quickly get ready for bed. You have a feeling that you won't be sleeping well tonight, considering the state that Crosshair is in. He can tend to get clingy and affectionate when he's intoxicated. So the longer you spend in bed, hopefully, you'll have a greater chance to catch some rest.
Just as you're finishing up, you're able to make out Hunter and Crosshair having a not-so-secretive conversation right outside the door.
For being highly-trained soldiers, you would think they'd be better aware of their surroundings. Even when drunk.
"Seriously, why'd you fight that reg? You know they're just trying to get you riled up." Hunter mumbles before stuffing a ration bar into his mouth. "They like pushing your buttons and you fall for it every time, Cross." He mumbles, food still in his mouth.
You bite the inside of your cheek, leaning closer to the door to hear what Crosshair will say in response.
"He was feeling her up."
"What?"
"He was touching like she was just something for him to enjoy." He clarifies a bit harsher. "All because she was sitting there by herself and not being a bitch to him. Was I just supposed to stand there and watch? Let her get taken advantage of because they were apparently trying to rile me up?"
The conversation pauses and you wait, wondering if Hunter will go into another rant about how Crosshair didn't have to resort to violence to make the point that it was wrong how Cash was touching you. You also have a strange, inner fear that maybe he'll ask why you couldn't shake him off yourself.
"Who was the bastard? I'd like to kick his ass to Kamino and back myself." Hunter growls, making you softly smile.
Crosshair scoffs, but you can hear the smile in his voice. "Don't worry, I took care of it. He deserved much more, but I think Ace would have killed me if I kept going."
You quietly chuckle to yourself as you hear them walk away, hopefully to their respective bunks. When you exit the refresher, you find Echo peacefully asleep in his bunk and Tech trying to talk Hunter and Crosshair into laying down.
"I've got him, Tech. Thanks." You smile before gently patting his shoulder. He smiles back before rounding up Hunter and corralling him towards his bunk.
You flop down onto your back in Crosshair's bed and make yourself comfortable. He watches you with a sly grin, leaning against the wall. "Come to bed already." You say while gesturing for him to join you. Without complaint, he falls into the bunk. He crawls up your body and settles between your legs. He rests his chin on your chest with a soft smile.
"Is this what you wanted?" He chuckles.
"Not exactly, but it works." You smile as you reach out to run your fingers through his hair. He closes his eyes in response before scooting higher up your body. You loop your legs around his lower waist, hoping to keep him still.
He nuzzles his nose into the crook of your neck, a dopey grin plastered on his usually stoic face. "You're so pretty." He quietly slurs.
"Thank you, Cross." You lightly pat his cheek as he makes himself comfortable on your shoulder.
"And smart. And nice." He continues, his eyes fluttering as he starts fighting off sleep.
You run your hand through his hair again. He leans into your touch, sighing with a wide smile. You then cup his cheeks with both hands and pull his head backward to look at him properly. "And you are drunk." You reply with a laugh, wishing you could photograph his comical expression.
"Yeah. A little." He chuckles, letting you hold his head. His smile then slowly fades and you watch his eyes study your face, as if seeing it for the first time. "I'm sorry I wasn't there to stop that guy sooner." He says in a low voice.
"It's alright." You quietly assure. You look at his eye, noticing how dark it's becoming. Softly, you brush your thumb over it, making sure not to hurt him, but he still flinches. "You were there when it mattered. That's all I care about."
He shakes his head sloppily to remove your hands. He raises a finger, jabbing it lightly towards your face. "You should have never been in that situation to begin with. And you shouldn't have to put up with my drunk ass. And break up my fights. And help me to bed."
"Well, I don't mind the last one." You lightly laugh, getting a glare though it holds no weight.
"I'm serious, Ace." He mumbles with a soft scowl. "I should have been watching you closer. He shouldn't have even thought he could approach you like that." He adds while reaching out to brush your hair from your forehead.
"Crosshair, you know how I feel about that." You gently say as you rub his shoulder. "And I know how you feel about it. Neither one of us likes clingy, and we shouldn't have to be stuck at each other's side constantly just to keep creeps away. I don't want you hovering, you know?"
He frowns, seeing your point. Uncoordinatedly, he lays his head on your shoulder in defeat. "I didn't even ask. Did he hurt you? Are you okay?"
"I'm okay. I promise." You chuckle while resting your head against his. "He just made me feel uncomfortable. You stepped in before any damage was done."
He grumbles, clearly disagreeing with you on no damge being done. You lie like this for a little while, patiently waiting for him to fall asleep. You place your hand on his back and gently rub in circles, hoping to coax him to stop resisting and just give in.
Instead, he picks his head up and dramatically drops it into your chest, as if it weighs more than normal. "You deserve someone better." He suddenly rumbles. "Someone who isn't just a lab experiment gone wrong." His hand tracing up and down your bare arm.
"You are not a lab experiment." You huff before kissing his temple in protest. "And there's nothing wrong with you. Don't say that." You softly add.
"There's a lot of things wrong with me." He frowns. He closes his eyes and continues running his fingers against your skin as he adjusts his head to look at the wall. "How you can possibly be with me when there are more conventionally attractive men out there? And they're a lot more pleasant too."
You restrain yourself from smiling at his descriptions, knowing he'd think you're laughing at him. It's just that it's fun to see how much he and Tech are alike when they both let their guards down. Alcohol can make Crosshair a bit more wordier than normal.
You hold him close and shake your head. "I don't like conventionally attractive. I like my individualistic, charming man who knows how to keep me on my toes." You comfort as you shift the blanket to cover his body better.
He looks up at you. "You don't mean that." He whispers, and suddenly you see a lot more hurt in them than ever before.
Wrecker had told you long ago that growing up on Kamino wasn't easy for any of them. And while you never got any details, you quickly learned how they each coped with not fitting in. Tech goes into his shell. Hunter prefers to pretend like nothing's wrong but is always a little anxious. Wrecker makes sure to be the center of attention so that they're looking at him and only him.
And Crosshair puts up his guard, making sure that they don't want anything to do with him or his brothers.
"I do mean it." You whisper back, making sure to look deep into his eyes. "I had plenty of years to find someone else before you. No one has been able to keep up with me like you have. You're always surprising me and impressing me, especially with those jaw-dropping shots on the field. How could I possibly want more? Not to mention your devilishly handsome looks."
He scoffs and rolls his eyes, but you can see that you've gotten to him.
"You're not getting rid of me that easily." You add with a smile while cupping his face with your hands. He chuckles, and you enjoy this rare moment of him being clingy and lovey.
"Good." He finally slurs and his eyes fight to remain open. "Because I'm not sure how I'd survive without you." He confesses before softly breathing out your name.
You don't bother telling him that you feel the same way.
He lays his head back down and then kisses your jaw. "I love you." He whispers, your name falling from his lips like a dream.
"You know it doesn't count when you're drunk." You say with a soft laugh. Your cheeks blush and you feel your heart race a bit faster. It doesn't matter when or how he says it, it always makes you smile and feel good.
He chuckles, his lips still against your skin. "Drunk words are sober thoughts, Ace." He quietly says. "And I'm always thinking about how much I love you."
"Go to sleep, Crosshair." You chuckle, tilting your head slightly as he continues kissing your jaw and working his way up to your ear until he finally falls asleep, pressing his cheek to yours. Once you are sure that he's out, you allow yourself to totally relax.
"I love you, too." You softly reply before allowing yourself to drift off.
~~~~~~~~~~