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Caboose stands behind Doctor Grey as she shouts things at whoever else is listening. He doesn’t really understand what she is saying. He can’t really hear her properly as she crouches over the crumpled aqua heap on the ground that is Tucker. His heartbeat is too loud and he can hear it inside his head; it drowns out almost everything else. Carolina eases Washington down onto the ground beside Tucker and asks if she can do anything to help. To Caboose, her words are muffled and slow. She nods once before heading off as quickly as she can manage with her injured leg. Caboose doesn’t know where she is going and to be honest, he doesn’t care. All he cares about are the two Blues on the ground.
“Tucker? Agent Washington?”
He can just make out the slow rise and fall of Washington’s chest. He is alive. Sleeping, and maybe very hurt, but alive. For now. Who knew how long Washington might be alive for? Caboose doesn’t like thinking like that. He doesn’t want to be thinking like that.
Caboose can tell that Tucker isn’t sleeping; there is too much red oozing from his stomach and spilling onto Doctor Grey’s hands and onto the ground for that. Caboose doesn’t think he has seen that much red since he had accidentally shot Church. Back then, Church had died. Unlike Church, Tucker isn’t a computer program. Caboose can’t put him inside an ancient artifact or a warthog or even their armour. Tucker can’t come back as a ghost like Church can.
“Tucker? Wash?” Caboose’s voice is small. Scared. Almost as though if he says the wrong thing, there will be no more Tucker. No more Wash. “Can you hear me?”
Caboose doesn’t want anyone to die. He doesn’t want Tucker to die. He doesn’t want Wash to die. Tucker and Wash are on Blue team. Tucker and Wash are his friends. His second-best friends. He doesn’t want to lose any more friends; it is far too sad. Caboose has already lost so many; he can’t lose Wash and Tucker too. He can’t.
Doctor Grey is shouting some more. He isn’t sure if she is talking to him, but he can’t move and ask if she is. Suddenly Carolina is back with some water and cloth. The reds are there too and Sarge is helping Doctor Grey move Tucker so he is laying properly on the ground. Grif and Simmons are helping to remove his helmet and armour so Doctor Grey can work.
All Caboose can focus on is Wash and Tucker dying in front of him. He doesn’t know what to do. He doesn’t want to be the only one on Blue team again. He loves Blue team. He loves Washington and how nice he is and how he looks after Freckles. He loves Tucker and how he will sometimes play with him and how they tell stories about the fun times with Church before he ran away with Carolina.
“Tucker?”
He will be alone again.
“Wash?”
Completely alone. His second-best friends will be dead and he will be the only one on Blue team left. Caboose clenches his fists and looks at the ground, trying to hold his feelings back. He remembers this feeling. It’s scary. But maybe for Tucker and Washington and Blue Team, he will let himself feel this way. He will let himself feel this way and remember how he feels, right at this very moment, so that when he meets Felix and Locus again they will regret hurting his friends.
“Caboose?”
The blue soldier looks at the pink armoured hand that is carefully patting his shoulder. He looks at the ground once more.
“My name…is Michael Jay Caboose…and I…hate…Felix.”