Off Base (Out of Uniform 1)

Zack frowned. “I know. Still think I did the right thing, though.”

“Of course you did.” Pike brushed off his shoulders, straightened his collar. Anything to be close to him for another few seconds. “You’ll call me after, right?”

“Of course.” Zack gave him a quick kiss. Things were...different since they’d made up. There was still so much up in the air, but at the same time, it felt like they’d never been apart, sinking back into a routine of sleeping next to each other and playing games and eating together. Pike was trying to roll with it, not require a blueprint for their future, but it was hard. His hands fisted tightly against Zack’s uniform.

A honk sounded from the driveway. Zack pulled away from Pike with one last kiss. “That’s the senior chief.”

Zack probably could have driven himself, but Pike liked that the senior chief wasn’t letting him. It was a nice silent message that he at least supported Zack, even if he wasn’t ultimately responsible for what the outcome would be.

“Text me,” Pike called after him as Zack hurried to the truck, trying hard not to feel like his heart had suddenly grown legs, left with Zack. Hell, his heart was Zack, and if his command let him down, Pike really wasn’t sure what he’d do. I will bodily harm his command if they don’t help him. I don’t care if they’re SEALs. He’s my guy, and I’m not going to let them hurt him further.

Resolved, Pike turned his attention toward getting ready for work. Buzz. His phone went off. Hector. Hell. He still hadn’t brought up the job stuff with Zack.

“Hey, Hector. What’s up?” He grabbed his bag and headed to the living room for his shoes.

“Glad I caught you! I was hoping you’d have a minute before your first class.”

“I do.” Pike’s heart sped up.

“I won’t keep you in suspense any longer. The job is yours. Everyone was super impressed by you, and we’d like to get you up here as soon as possible so we can discuss a transition plan for after you teach your last class.”

Last class. That sounded so...final. And he should be giddy, right? Especially when Hector named a starting salary that would have made his eyeballs fall out if he wasn’t well aware of the cost of housing in the Bay Area. And hell, even with housing, it was quite the pay raise. He should be spinning in circles. But he wasn’t.

“Do you need an answer right now?” he said at last, once Hector had finished laying out the benefits package.

“What? You mean you’re having cold feet?” Hector sounded genuinely baffled. “You leaned on me hard for a over a year now for a shot. You need time now?”

Pike drew a deep breath. “Yeah, I guess I do. I need to talk to my boyfriend and think about my options. First of next week maybe?”

Hector made a noise like he was grinding his teeth. “I can’t keep this job open indefinitely. Monday. I need an answer Monday morning.”

“I can do that.” I hope.

He ended the call, hoping he was right and that the next few days brought clarity about what he wanted for his future—namely, what sort of a future he had with Zack.

* * *

The senior chief was quiet on the drive to the base other than asking how Zack was feeling. Like Zack, he was wearing his service uniform for the meeting, another sign that this wasn’t a typical day for the team. As they walked to the SEAL team offices, he noticed the men out on the grinder obstacle course. Despite everything, he couldn’t wait to get back out there. He hoped he got the chance, hoped that he hadn’t ruined everything for himself.

Instead of the lieutenant commander’s small office, the senior chief ushered Zack to one of the conference rooms where the commander and a stern-looking female lieutenant Zack had never seen before waited.

“Nelson.” The commander stuck out his hand. “Great to see you up and around.”

“Thank you, sir.”

“This is Lieutenant Hernandez from the Command Managed Equal Opportunity Office.” The commander gestured at the woman, who had dark slicked-back hair and a wide mouth.

Equal Opportunity Office. Shit just got real. Zack tried to keep his face neutral as he shook hands and they all took a seat at the oak table. The room’s decor had probably last been touched before Zack was born, but there was something almost comforting about the orange carpet and thick rust-colored curtains.

“Nelson, I want to assure you that we take complaints such as yours very seriously.” Lieutenant Hernandez opened a slim laptop. “And everything we discuss today will be held in the utmost confidence.”

“Thanks.” Zack’s pulse leaped like a ski jumper attempting new tricks.

“And while I can’t tell you any specifics, I can tell you that yours is not the first complaint we’ve received against this particular SEAL. Your report aligns with others.”