Slow Dancing- Troy Otto

3

The hummer screeches to a stop once inside the ranch, both men rushing to the backseat, Cooper allowing Troy to scoop her up this time. Rushing to the medics tent as everyone from dinner stares on. Troy lays her on the table as the medic stands there shocked quickly moving to help the poor girl.

"What the hell happened?!" Jake screeches looking at their doctor working on Scarlett. "It's her first day Troy!" Jake scolds.

"I-I know. These guys they just attacked us- she killed three of them.. they jumped on the car and she fought them, then the blood.." Troy rambles on staring at the girl horrifically.

"She started puking blood, if that helps, Julie.." Cooper explains to the medic.

"She has internal bleeding, I need all of you but Cooper out. Now!" Julie screams.

Jake struggles to drag an unmoving Troy out of the tent, Tanya runs up wailing at the news of her injured child beating on Troy's chest.

"How could you let this happen to my baby girl?!?" Tanya sobs beating harder and harder on his chest as Troy looks at her emotionless.

"Tanya, Julie is helping her, let's take a walk." Jake says de-escalating the situation by grabbing the mother in pain. She nods glaring at Troy harshly before walking away with Jake.

Troy stands frozen in his place wondering how he could let someone under his watch almost die, ultimately deciding it was her fault for not listening he shrugs off any care and walks back to his home to wash her blood vomit off his body.

It would be three and a half days before Scarlett woke up. Her crusty eyes rip open feeling pain in multiple areas of her body. Julie rushed to her side with wide eyes.

"What the hell is going on?" Scarlett groans, her voice scratchy and throat dry.

"You had internal bleeding, I had to operate. You shouldn't sit up without help, you might bust your stitches." She says assisting the girl in sitting, a guttural scream emerges as pain shoots through her abdomen. Once fully sat Scarlett shot the medic a glare.

"I'm so sorry, I'll get you some water." Julie squeaks.

Tanya brushed past the medic on her way in pulling her daughter in for a tight hug causing Scarlett to scream again.

"Sorry! I forgot.." Tanya says sheepishly.

"I don't want to see you, leave." Scarlett says angrily.

"Jellybean-"

"Give us a moment Tanya. I need to have a word with Scar." Troy says making his presence behind her known.

"You. You're the reason she's in here!" Tanya screams in his face pointing a hostile finger at him.

"Mother. Your negativity is making me nauseous, leave." Scarlett says biting back cries of pain from breathing too hard.

Tanya gives her daughter a pained look before sighing and leaving the tent. Troy looks at the girl still in her military attire, only in a bra instead of her shirt and bandages covering her abdomen.

"You look like shit." Troy says bluntly.

"Yeah, you too big guy." Scarlett says scoffing at his insult. "If you came to yell at me some more, don't. I feel like I'd break a bone if you blew air on me right now." Scarlett says not meeting his eyes.

"Not here to yell. I'm here to congratulate you, you went above and beyond to protect the militia so if you aren't scared to go back out and do it again, you're in." He says proudly causing her to look at him like he has seven heads.