One of the first rules of the Losers that everyone learned was that Jensen was fucking insane and there were no ifs, no buts and definitely no maybes about it. Nine times out of ten Jensen was either the one who orchestrated or at least played a heavy part in anything freaky that happened on or off base. And while the blond’s antics were liable to cause a mini heart attack or two they’re never outright dangerous nor explainable because Clay had interrogated Jensen’s sister about that shit extensively but every time they started talking about it and Clay could literally feel a break through Jennifer shut down like somebody had flipped a switch and all the lights around the memories she’d been about to share had gone dark.
Now in all honesty Clay had seen some fucked up things in his life, and that included the bits of his life before he enlisted so not many things gave him pause. Yet there was always something about that reaction that made goose bumps pebble across his skin and he never tried to stop Jennifer when she changed the subject. He wasn’t scared but he was man enough to admit that he did keep a closer eye on Jensen for a few days until the unpleasant feeling in the pit of his gut faded into the background blotted out by thoughts of getting a new sniper and keeping Roque from murdering whichever one of the cherries that decided they were brave enough to breathe in the man’s presence.
And then Cougar joined and everything went to hell in a hand-woven basket.
Clay wasn’t sure how he missed it the first time because Jensen’s default setting was chatter and Clay had always been able to gauge the blond’s moods depending on what topic the chatter centred around. Movie trivia meant Jensen was just running on half a cylinder and was focused on something else but he still wanted you to remember that he was there. Gun talk or anything that contained weapons meant that you were nearing Jensen’s breaking point and that was when Clay usually sent in Roque or Pooch to distract him. But when Jensen decided to play mind games Clay had learnt to either pull out the big guns and order Jensen to stand down because someone was very likely going to end up with one of the tiny knives, that the hacker used on his computers, sticking out of a vital body part….or, if they were on enemy ground Clay would pull back and give Jensen free reign…it was entertaining to watch the men that saw Jensen as nothing but a geek blanch in terror when the blond went on one of his ‘freedom sprees’….Jensen’s words not Clay’s.
But the point of the matter was, Jensen always talked yet for the first few weeks when Cougar was settling in Jensen was quiet, the glint of his glasses shifting in whatever direction the sniper happened to be but he didn’t approach Cougar and there was none of the usual tricks played on the newbie because Roque and Pooch seemed to notice the strangeness of it all too.
Thankfully that only lasted for three weeks before Jensen’s chatter was back in full force and if Cougar lingered a bit too close to the hacker well DADT meant Clay definitely wasn’t asking so they could keep whatever was going on between them.
Clay liked keeping his promises, even if it was only promises made to himself so when their last mission ended with Cougar clinging to life by a thread and Jensen as silent as the grave Clay promised that he’d hunt down the bastard that had fed them the wrong intel and gut him, himself.
He never got the chance.
He didn’t know what woke him that night, he’d just come in from spending another shift at Cougar’s bedside and all but collapsed into bed when the sound of the door opening had him on his feet because he’d told Roque to come directly to him as soon as Cougar woke up again.
What he saw made him freeze in the doorway of his room.
Jensen stood in the middle of the living room, the bright yellow of his t-shirt darkened by several red splotches and for a minute the blond’s form seemed to flicker like a TV trying to find a station and Clay couldn’t help the shiver that worked itself up his spine as Jensen turned his head towards him, the glint of his glasses make the scene even more eerie.
Jensen’s lips curled into a small smile as Clay stared at him, “It’s stupid you know?” he started, fingers twitching and Clay glanced down, eyes focusing on the blood still clinging to Jensen’s hands before Jensen started speaking again. “I spend God knows how long fucking about and trying to fit in because it’s what Steve would have wanted and then some ass wipe decides to go after the wrong fucking person!” his voice descended to a growl as he flickered again and for a moment Clay swore he could see straight through the hacker but then Jensen moved, taking another step towards the bathroom. “You should probably go back to sleep, Sir. One of the good things about the condition that my brothers and I share is that we can make you forget, just remember that the guy got what was coming to him, nobody hurts what’s mine.”
With a final nod at Clay Jensen walked inside and as the bathroom door shut, Clay blinked in confusion….what the hell was he doing out here?
A soft humming from the bathroom had him shaking his head as he turned away, only Jensen would go for a shower at fuck o’clock and then decide to start serenading himself with Midge Williams.
In the morning when Clay arrived at Cougar’s bedside he was just in time to watch the sniper hand Jensen an old black and white photograph. Clay could just make out three men on it but the look of awe on Cougar’s face made him pause and retreat leaving the two alone with whatever revelation Jensen had decided to share.
As Clay leaned against the wall of the hospital and watched the hustle and bustle around them he couldn’t shake the feeling that he was forgetting something important.