𝐖𝐄 𝐀𝐑𝐄 𝐅𝐀𝐌𝐈𝐋𝐘, 𝖺 𝗀𝗅𝖺𝖽𝖾𝗋𝗌 𝖺𝗅𝖻𝗎𝗆

one of us

It started like any other morning.

The gear room buzzed with quiet energy as the group prepared for a new scouting mission — checking weapons, rationing supplies, dividing teams.

Nico moved through the edges of the chaos, quiet as always. Present, but never in the center. Not really.

Even after everything — even after he opened up to Bea, and Minho spoke to him the morning after — he still didn't expect much.

He figured most of them still saw him as that guy from the pirate ship. The one who'd once helped raiders tear through innocent towns.

He didn't blame them.

But then, something shifted.

Vincent was the first.

The grizzled medic walked up, tossed Nico a medkit, and said with a smirk,

"If you're gonna keep risking your neck for us, might as well patch us up while you're at it."

Nico blinked, caught the medkit, and gave a cautious nod. "Uh... sure."

Next was Sonya.

She handed Nico a water canteen and said with a rare softness,

"I was wrong about you."

Nico glanced at Bea, confused.

Sonya added, "You fight for us like someone who's already bled for us."

Before he could answer, Harriet stepped in from behind him, tossing him a coiled rope.

"You're with me on Team Two. Don't fall behind, Marrow."

He smirked. "Wouldn't dream of it."

That's when Nancy cut in from the corner of the room.

"You know we all heard, right?"

He froze.

"Not everything," she went on, pulling on her gloves. "Just... enough."

Vicky, still wrapping her wrist, offered a small nod. "We saw what you did for Bea. For all of us. That means something."

Finally, Thomas, who had been quiet the whole time, turned to face Nico.

There was a long pause before he spoke.

"You could've turned us in. Back when we first let you come with us. You could've run the second your old crew showed up."

"You didn't."

He held out a hand.

"You stayed. That makes you one of us."

Nico stared at it. Thomas's hand, extended in a simple gesture that somehow weighed more than anything he'd ever carried.

He shook it.

That's when Minho grinned from behind Thomas and called out,

"Guess we need a new nickname for you now, huh?"

"No more 'Sea Rat," Sonya smirked.

"What about Captain Heartthrob?" Nancy offered with a wicked grin.

"Absolutely not," Bea said, trying to hide a smile as she shoved Nancy lightly.

Laughter rippled through the group, light and honest.

Nico stood there, a little stunned.

Warmth bloomed in his chest.

Acceptance wasn't loud. It wasn't a medal or a ceremony. It was this — tossed gear, inside jokes, shared glances, and the quiet knowledge that when the next fight came, he wouldn't be standing behind them.

He'd be standing with them.

Where he belonged.

★