What becomes of the brokenhearted

Posted on Fri Jul 18th, 2025 @ 12:07am by 1st Lieutenant Kara Melo & Major Cameron Bourne

1,743 words; about a 9 minute read

Mission: Broken Mirror
Location: Kara’s quarters

On:

Walking down the marine deck, Cam was headed to check in on Kara. After their last mission and how he’d reacted to her almost being captured, he couldn’t hold off on talking to her. At least, he needed to clear the air between them. Finding the door to her new set of quarters, Cam took a deep breath before tapping the door chime.

Kara was rearranging her room. She didn't have much, but it kept her mind occupied--or should have. She couldn't stop hearing Cam call her his wife. What did he mean by that? Was it just to get their attention? When she heard someone at her door, she turned. "Come in."

Opening the door, Cam stood outside feeling a little nervous. He didn’t want to intrude on her private space if she didn’t want him in there. “Hey, can we talk for a minute?” He asked, giving her a smile.

"Umm..." She looked around. "Sure. I've just been...umm...rearranging a few things." Her sea chest was in the middle of the room, piled with uniforms. The contents of her shelf unit were stacked neatly in the corner and a small couch was covered with knick knacks. The only surface not covered was her bed.

"We can sit on..." She waved to her bunk. "Or I can clean off the sofa..."

“It’s ok, you sit on your bunk. I’ll perch on your trunk” Cam said, moving over to her trunk and pushing her uniforms over just enough for him to sit on the edge. Waiting for Kara to sit down, Cam figured he’d jump right into it, “first off, I’d like to apologise. I realise that I made unilateral decisions about our future without talking it over with you first. So, I’m sorry.”

That was not what she expected. She wasn't even sure it was what she wanted. Okay, she didn't know what she wanted at this point. No. She did know what she wanted, but she also knew she couldn't have it. "Thank you, but I know you did what you had to. I wasn't going to make you stay."

Cam was left a little confused. Out of any of the dozens of responses he’d expected from her, that was not even on the list. “Wait. You’re not angry with me?”

"No." She looked at him for a moment. "You thought I was angry with you? I wasn't happy, of course, but I understand why you had to leave."

Cam gave a weary smile, “but I was wrong. And it took me too long to realise that. I thought I needed to stop and retire. I thought I was done with this life, but I was so wrong. It felt right for a month or two, but after a while I went stir crazy.” He explained, giving a small chuckle, “I got bored. And when I got those divorce papers, that’s when it all started to hit me. Was I really trying to find peace, Or was I just scared? I didn’t think. I didn’t think about what you wanted, about what I’d be leaving behind. And I didn’t realise what I had until it was gone”

Cam paused for a moment before looking up at Kara, “I’m not expecting forgiveness or for you to just take me back like nothing has happened. Maybe all I’m asking for is a chance. A chance to fix what I’ve broken”

Kara just stared at him. He didn't say what she thought he said...did he? Surely she was hearing things. After all this time, after all the problems getting together. After saying nothing about her wanting a divorce. "What do you want, Cam?" The words were almost a whisper.

“You” Cam said, hopping off the footlocker and kneeling down in front of her on both knees. “I know I have no right to say it. But I want you, to be with you until the Valkyrie claim me and take me to the next plain. If I’ve burnt that bridge, if you don’t feel the same, just say so and I’ll stay away. We can be nothing but work colleagues. Completely professional.”

"Yes." She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him. "I only asked for the divorce because we couldn't get together. Every time the Calypso had any kind of shore leave, you were off somewhere and I didn't think it was fair to you. I thought I'd stopped caring...until I saw you again."

Stunned by Kara’s sudden reaction, Cam blinked in surprise for a moment trying to process what had just happened. He was certain that she had grown to hate him for leaving, but her words, her actions told a completely different story. Carefully, he wrapped his arms around her and gently held her as if she was made of glass and might shatter at any moment. “I……um……wait. I’m confused. I thought you’d be blaming me for everything. But you’d take me back just like that?”

"It got so hard when we had to cancel one shore leave after another. Then we just stopped talking and I..." She put her hands on his arms and buried her face against his shoulder. "I convinced myself you'd be better off if you didn't have a wife somewhere in the galaxy. That I didn't love you anymore. This last year just convinced me I was right. But when you walked off that shuttle...I knew it was a lie."

Holding her close, Cam gave a sigh as he let her words process. It seems they were both blaming themselves, and even though they tried to move away from each other, the universe just seemed determined to keep them together. “Oh Kara, every night I looked up at those stars and felt comforted just knowing you were out here. Like a guardian angel.” He said, leaning down to gently kiss the top of her head, “well I’m back now, and we’re here together. My Imzadi”

Sitting on the floor with Kara in his arms, Cam grinned as a thought came to him, “so, do we try to annul the divorce or did you want to get married again? Have another giant party?”

"I'm not sure we can annul it after this long..." She paused and tipped her head in his direction. "Can we?" Did she want to? Or was she afraid he'd realize he was better off without her?”

Cam shrugged, “I’m not sure. Never been divorced before” he said, looking down at her, “we could talk with the Captain about it, or just get married again. What do you think?”

She moved back to look at him. "I'm just afraid that you'll decide you don't want to stay with me after all."

“No, never,” Cam said, cupping Kara’s face with his hands, “I’d never do that to you again. I tried it once and it tore us apart. You are my everything Kara. What do you want me to do to prove it?”

"You don't need to prove anything. Just be here. With me." She didn't realize how empty her life was until Cam came back, and now, like him, she didn't want him to leave again. She shook her head. "I'm sorry. I don't have the right words to tell you that I still love you."

Giving a sigh, Cam smiled, “that’s all I needed to hear. Plain and simple.” He said, as he stood up and offered her a hand, “dinner? Tonight?”

She took his hand and stood. "Yes."

Giving her hand a squeeze, Cam smiled down at her, “I don’t want to leave you, but I’ve gotta get back to work. I’ll pick you up around 1700?”

"Yes. I'll be ready." She looked around her quarters. And she'd get everything put away. It would help pass the time.

Following her gaze, Cam wanted to try and help Kara relax, “hey, you ok? I can stay here for a while longer if you want.”

"I'm okay. Just...all the stress of having you back and not knowing what to think or feel and now it's just...gone. It'll take some processing for it to sink in." She shook her head, then waved to all her gear. "This is because I instinctively reached out to you telepathically and you came. I didn't realize the bond was still there. Doing something physical helps me think. So...this." It was a little jumbled, but so were her thoughts.

Cam gave her a concerned smile, “does that frighten you that our bond is still there? Do you want me to give you some time?”

She put a hand on his arm. "No. I don't mind. I just didn't expect it. But then, I've been on such an emotional roller coaster lately I don't think I was able to notice it was still there. It may take us a little work to get back to where we were--at least for me--but that's because I've spent a year trying to block my feelings about you."

Cam nodded. He completely understood her feelings and why she had such a strange reaction to him. Spending a year trying to forget someone, only to have them return couldn’t have been easy. “So, no sending any mental images in front of a full length mirror for a while I’m guessing?” He asked, giving her a sly smile.

"That all depends on who is sending images to whom," she replied, chuckling. "But an image is never as good as the real thing."

“I couldn’t agree with you more” Cam said as he leant down to give her a gentle kiss on her cheek, “now, I gotta get going. Paperwork won’t fill itself out. Remember, dinner tomorrow.”

She smiled. "I won't forget. See you tomorrow, Cam." Tomorrow was a long time away, but they both had work to do. And tonight, she'd get the first real sleep since Cam's arrival.

Starting to walk away from her, Cam stopped, quickly turned back and pulled Kara into a kiss before quickly leaving the room with a skip in his step.

End:

Major Cameron Bourne
Marine CO, Love Struck Puppy
USS Calypso

1st Lieutenant Kara melo
Platoon Leader
USS Calypso

 

RSS Feed