"Lake Weswik?" Nick popped the question I've been dreading. He wanted to visit this lake since he read about it in school. And I knew I was going to break his heart.

I tried to hide my grimace. "I'm sorry son. I won't be home this Christmas." I said already feeling guilty.

His lips curled down and he dropped his shoulders before walking away silently. The last Christmas I spent with him was three years ago. He's six years old and every year I give him disappointment as a gift.

"Damnit I break his heart everytime." I said feeling defeated.

"You can't just do that! You promised him that you'll be home this Christmas! If not, atleast lie to him. Don't hurt him like that!" Merlen was angry. And my remorse got worse.

"You know I can't.." I started off but couldn't complete.

"J, he loves you. But all this is only going to break his trust in you. He's your son. You need to do better." She said politely this time. I just nodded a Yes. I knew I was fucking things up.

"I don't know how to get better, Merlen. I can only try." I said and went into her arms. She kissed my forehead making me feel all the warmth I missed in past eight months. Sucks to be an armyman and not being able to meet your family for years straight.

*****

"You just came! Why do you come home when you have to go back so soon?" Nick complained. No he screamed in anger.

For a six year old, he was too bold and angry at his father. "That's not how you speak with your dad, Nick." I was angry too. Here I was leaving and he had to throw tantrums.

"Fine. Go. Me and mom will be just fine without you." He said, turned around and left. I was taken aback. I had always worried about this moment and it had come. I was not wanted here anymore and I couldn't accept it.

"J, you're not helping it." Merlen said holding my hands.

"I don't know what to do Merlen. I'm losing him and it annoys me even more. It irritates me everytime he fails to look at my efforts and complains about my failure instead." I breathed through my lips somehow.

"If you don't tell him that you love him, he won't ever believe it." She said the truth. I have never felt so helpless in my life.

"I know it's difficult. But you have to change yourself for him. He doesn't deserve to grow up with an asshole father who only comes home to fight." She said making me look at her.

"I'll try to change myself. I'll try to be a better father for him the next time I come. I just need you to be with me." "You have me, J. Always." She hugged me tight one more time before I left.

I looked at Nick who was standing at the window with an angry face. My broken heart cracked a smile at his attitude. He really was my son.

******

"But this is not fair." The audacity!

"Oh really Captain Rollins?" I said quivering in plank.

"Come on Boss. I thought you'll take me to your weaponary, we'll go for long range firing, have some beers in your bar and curse our lives out about Beta. But here we are, at the place you considered best. Still you are barely making it through." He mocked me careless of the breaths that were yet to be counted in his lungs.

"You've started using bold words, dog. Tone it down before I remind you how to do it." I teethed. Fucker was speaking everything he shouldn't.

He laughed silently not realising that I'll feel the movements because he was sitting on my back!

I waited for a few more patient moments. But when I found that he was in no mood to let me free, I blurted. "Is that enough for a welcome?"

"How about...." "Dog, don't push it." I warned him knowing well that isn't going to go well.

"Alright Boss. I won't. Why don't you do that job?" Fucker! Has learnt how to screw boys!

I painfully moved my elbows back and got into pushup position, waiting for his permission to start. He didn't speak.

"You should know I'm not going to beg you ever. Make it fast." I said in my most scarily polite tone.

This time he didn't hold back and laughed whole heartedly. That brought a little smile on my lips too. My hands shivered so much that I fell down with a thud. Rascal won. I lost.

He got up without a word and I stayed down on the floor ready to get my defeat milked onto my face.

"I told you, Boss." He said still chuckling. I sucked it quietly and stood back up.

"Yeah fine. Let's grab the beers you were crying for." I said wiping the sweat off my forehead. I was going into withdrawal and I wasn't liking it. I needed to meet Marks to get the already flowing beer in my blood out of my system.

Dog stepped aside and made way for me. I pulled him by his neck and made him walk along with me.

"Is this a new prey from KMA?" Neil asked as we entered the bar. I wasn't surprised by his presence.

"No. Just a visitor." I answered straight away.

"Since when we started hosting parties for outsiders?" he asked knowing I wasn't liking it one bit.

"He's not an outsider. He's my junior and I trust him. Stop being so hostile for every stranger." I sneered.

Neil raised his eyebrows in shock and shifted his gaze to my Dog who stood quietly. At the same moment I realised I've never been this harsh with him.

"That's your dog you're so possessive for, isn't he?" He read it all on my face. Damnit.

"Yes. Captain Drake Rollins. Major Neil Fermin. Dog, you better think before you think because he does black magic and reads minds." I warned dog during the introduction before he blurts something out.

"Pleasure to meet you, sir." He shook hands with Neil who looked back at him with thin and curious eyes.

"He's not going to tell you anything about my past if that's what you're planning." Guess we had two players in the 'read my mind' game.

Neil scoffed. "Damn James. You are a completely different person right now!" He pointed out the change in my personality and suddenly I felt conscious. I was in my Boss role and it was my instinct to save Rollins from everything. And Neil screamed trouble.

Was Charles really right? Is this how I was going to exercise power? I shook all the thoughts away from my brain.

"We'll come back here after sometime." I was in no mood to mess with Neil.

"Boss, it's okay. I'll be fine." Dog assured me that he can manage it. And I felt guilty for underestimating him. I nodded and turned back to get both of us drinks.

A few shots down and I loosened up a bit. "So why the loving reunion at gym?" Neil asked both of us. Ofcourse he heard, fucker.

"We placed a bet." Dog started off excited and there was no way he'd keep his mouth shut about it, so I let him.

"He had told me that he was working extra hard on his core and can beat my timing added with my own weight." You could hear the mockery in his tone.

"But wasn't that few years back, James? When Instructor Charles was on the job?" Neil confirmed from me.

"Kids these days don't know the concept of timeline." I complained. And my dog absolutely ignored me and continued talking.

"So we placed a bet that whenever we meet next, we'll follow through this and if he fails or gives up, he'll lose." Rollins and Neil were clearly enjoying my humiliation.

"I would have earned some money there." Fucker added.

"Yeah yeah. Whatever. Dog you're done?" "What's the hurry James? Out of all the KMA products, I like this guy the most. Let him clear the name you and Daniel have spoiled for me." Neil was playing this game I could see very very clearly. It was called 'snatching your personal bitch from you' and I was not going to let him win.

Or may be I had too much alcohol in my brain that I was making up all these terms and Neil was just being a good host. I needed to stop drinking now. It's been three days and nights. My liver will pop off.

"What did you do, Boss?" Rollins asked me accusingly.

"Just hit some bull's eyes. On someone else's targets." Neil taunted me and I lost my fake anger and laughed.

"I'll show you how many eyes I can hit. Want to grab some glasses, old man? Let's bet." I challenged him.

"I wouldn't agree if I were you." Dog adviced Neil quickly but carefully making me scoff. That's my dog!

"You think I'm a fool? I know he can shoot dots in dark, drunk. I'd never place a bet on something I have no scope of winning at." Neil replied just as fast.

Yeah. That's what I thought.

"If that's not the loving reunion going on here...." That's called cherry on the cake. Dan entered taunting me and Rollins just like at KMA.

"Yeah. Sadly, you won't get to experience it ever." I burned him back in full force.

Ever since he cleared his tests and became one of us, he was permitted to use his mouth the way he wanted. There was no salutation of 'sir' for me, not that I wanted him to, but I kind of started liking it.

He was back to being the Dan I had known for those three years. His personality as that bitch had grown here if that was even possible.

"Good Evening sir. Heartiest congratulations!" My dog went and shook hands with him. The nerve!

"Rollins you better get back where you were." Neil murmured to himself looking at me and giving me that cocky smile I hate.

"So? Here to assess how bad it's going to be for you?" Dan asked him immediately making my thoughts take a sharp turn too.

"Dog you want to come to CCTC?" I asked him reflexively before he could say anything.

"What? No!" He exclaimed.

"Such a vehement denial?" Neil asked getting offended too.

"I... I'm sorry I didn't mean it that way.. I meant I came here just to meet Boss..." He said hesitatingly.

"Dog? What is it?" I asked him sensing that he's upto something I'm not going to like.

"Umm Boss.. actually I'm... planning to.. apply for.. SFU..." He hushed the statement.

"What???" Dan and I had a similar response.

"I knew it!" Neil said.

"You know where you are and what are you saying? You can get kicked out of here for just thinking about it." Dan said.

"Dog. We hate Special Forces Units. We can't stand them. And you...?" I spoke up finally.

"I know Boss. I know! That's why I wanted to meet you and say this. I know Class-I agents and commandos don't get along well. And the fact that I'm just planning to apply for it gives me no right to speak on their behalf since I'm not a part of them. I just didn't want you to be mad at me for this." He said politely. Fucker always uses this tone when he wants to get through me.

"For the first time in my life I'm stuck between wanting to see you succeed and fail equally. But it's your life so you get to decide that. Anyways it's going to be tough for you. So all the best." I said with all my heart despite the little rage inside me.

"Boy has got courage to talk about joining SFUs and not CCTC in front of three Class-I. We'll be at loss." You know you're worth it when Neil Fermin says this for you. I was proud of my dog.

"Let's start your training then." Dan pulled him by his neck to the bar.

Fuck my withdrawal, Boss and Dog are going to drink away to glory.

"Boss please help-" "Nah-uh. Not happening. You're not walking back on your feet tonight. Commandos drink like fish and eat like wolves. Show us that you want to be wild like them." Neil got a prey and I didn't intervene because Rollins is going to face far worse than what will happen to him tonight if he really applies for SFU. They're going to reboot his system. And I know my boy will make it through. He's got a strong will power and even sharper brain. That's why I picked him up as my dog. And I don't regret it.

The night wrapped up well. Dog was sloshed and carried to his room by Neil and Dan. I was in no state to support an extra ounce on my body, forget helping him. Next morning both of us ended up at Med Bay with Marks giving me killer glares.

Whatever wounds Nick's anger gave me, Rollins seemed to heal them a bit. I felt so much better with his visit. He brought good old memories and my focus back. About time I stand back straight and sober. There's work to do and missions to complete.

************************************

Who else knew Nick was such a trouble? Giving James tough times since he was 6 huh? 😉

AND I really love the Boss-dog relation, be it any generation. And James-Rollins reunion? It has my ❤️! Did you guys like it too?

I waited for this part for so many months! Hi everyone! 😁😁 Sorry for ghosting you all for so long. I can't promise that I'll update quickly now onwards, but I'll try. Hope everyone is safe and healthy. Wishing all of you a happy new year and best of health. 😊