Well, this is it, the last chapter of Silent Call! I hope everyone enjoyed it, and if anyone feels up to continuing this feel free (just ask first lol). Thanks for reading:D

Disclaimer: I own nothing from Halo.

Chapter Sixteen: Happy Endings (Finally!)

"You haven't answered my question, Master Chief," she pressed, the hard edge in her voice beginning to waver.

"I think you know the answer, you just won't admit to it," he replied as he moved closer. For some reason she found herself unable to back away.

"We both know ONI would never allow that," Jessica protested, one last weak attempt to maintain her dignity.

"Let Ackerson deal with them." She didn't get the chance to argue further as his lips met hers. Her arms wrapped around his neck as she was pressed against him.

For a long while each had nothing to say.

Jessica was sleeping when John opened an audio/visual transmission to Sydney—a secure line directly to Colonel Ackerson.

"Colonel? I found her."

"She's alright? Not hurt or anything?" the other man asked. There was concern in his voice, as if he knew he wasn't getting all the information. Guess he really was worried after all, John thought.

"She's perfectly healthy, sir, apart from a few fatigue issues. I had a little trouble finding her, but not as much as we expected."

"I noticed," Ackerson commented dryly, gesturing to the Spartan's torso, which he finally remembered was bare. "You are aware of the regulations against military fraternization, are you not?"

"I am, sir, but Jessica's not military anymore. And I…" John paused searching for the right words to express his feelings, something he hadn't done since he was a kid.

Ackerson seemed to understand what the Chief was trying to say. "Don't worry, Master Chief. I'm sure ONI owes you quite a bit—and I know I do, for looking after Jessica on that mission. We'll make sure the UNSC looks the other way." A smile played across the older man's features. "Just don't enjoy yourself too much, Chief. Sydney out."

John stared at the blank screen, thinking about the Colonel's words. 'Just don't enjoy yourself too much'….'We'll make sure the UNSC looks the other way'….what did he mean? The more suspicious part of his mind said Ackerson was plotting something, but after everything that had happened he wasn't so sure. Maybe the ONI colonel was up to something, maybe not—as far as he was concerned, it was too soon to tell.

A faint stirring in the bedroom reached his ears, and he smiled. Moving silently into the back of the apartment, he watched as the sleeping brunette gradually woke up. A green-flecked brown eye opened, a slow hand brushed hair out of her face, and Jessica Hawkes blinked up at him sleepily.

"Where'd you get to, Chief?" she yawned.

"Had to make a phone call to an old friend of yours." He watched as understanding slowly dawned—clearly, Jessica wasn't a morning person, and it took a while for her normally-sharp mind to get itself going.

"The man still thinks I'm ten years old sometimes, I swear," she said, shaking her head in disbelief.

"He does treat you like a daughter. You didn't see him when you vanished, he wasn't as calm as he usually is."

"Still, I'm not a kid anymore, there's no need for him to worry…oh well, I'll yell at him later." Jessica sat up and stretched, apparently forgetting that she was in minimal clothing. He couldn't help but stare, and had no idea when she reached for the pillow.

WHAP!

"Gah! What the hell?" She snickered evilly.

"Score one for Hawkes, zero for the Chief. See, that's what happens when you let your guard down."

He glanced at the pillow she'd thrown at him, at her still sitting in the bed, and felt a grin spreading across his face. Before Jessica could have the chance to react, he lunged and pinned her to her own bed.

"This is what happens when you provoke a Spartan," he stated, staring down at the woman beneath him. He felt her stop squirming and a now-familiar sense of arousal.

"Guess I'll just have to do that more often," she grinned as John bent his head down to kiss her.

----

Jessica raised her head, a weary smile gracing her lips. Never thought feeling exhausted would feel this good. Deciding she needed a better vantage point, she propped herself up on one arm and looked down at John.

"Don't tell me you're tired, Chief," she murmured softly.

"Hardly, just letting you rest," he replied, leaning up to place a kiss on her cheek. Jessica shook her head and sat up the rest of the way. The sheets fell back to expose her upper body, and she grabbed a robe to ward off the sudden chill. Get up, get moving, then you can relax a bit, she told herself mentally.

"Leaving so soon?" John asked as she stood on shaky legs.

"I was just going to get some food—I daresay you could use a recharge as well." Tying the robe closed, Jessica meandered out to the kitchen and began pulling things together for a light brunch. She didn't hear a sound, and had no idea John had followed her to the kitchen until he wrapped his arms around her waist.

"Chief, I can't exactly get food together if I'm trapped, now can I?"

"I can wait a bit longer," he whispered along her neck—the man was close to bent double, but it didn't feel that way. Jessica waited a little, and managed to slip out of his arms.

"You can, but I can't. I need something in my system or I'll end up flat on the floor." She cast an amused glance at John's disappointed look. "Don't worry, it won't take long." True to her word, in a matter of minutes they were both sitting down to a decent meal (better by far than the rations served on board the Athens).

"What's on your mind?" She could tell there was something he wanted to ask—one thing she'd learned from ONI was how to read people, even the ones who were good at wearing masks.

"Lynn Hutchins?" Jessica chuckled—she'd been expecting that question sooner or later.

"My mom's last name and my middle name. You never wondered what the 'L' stood for?" Still smiling, she carried her empty plate to the kitchen sink. "Since there are tons of people named Lynn, and even more with the name Hutchins, I figured it'd be a safe bet. Didn't think anyone would find me, especially with that red wig."

"Then you've never gone up against a Spartan," John replied with a small smile.

Epilogue—Two Years Later

She stood by the window, watching her husband playing with their son Jacen. The youngster was attempting to pelt his dad with snowballs, but was having little success. Still, she had to give him some credit in regards to his aim—he was doing better than most two-year-olds in that regard. I wonder…

The two were coming back inside; a door was closed and moments she heard the tramping of toddler-sized feet down the hall. Jessica turned from the window just in time to see Jacen stumble into the room.

"Momma!" He was trying to run, but the afternoon outside had worn him out. She crossed the distance and scooped him up.

"Hey squirt, how you? You all tuckered out?" Jessica didn't need to see the little one yawning to know he was worn out. Carrying him upstairs, she tucked him in his bed and quietly left the room. John was standing in the hallway, a small smile on his face.

"He has a lot of energy, doesn't he?"

"More than a normal two-year-old, believe me, and a lot more stamina than any youngster I've ever seen. I wonder how much of that is because of you." She chuckled.

"He's gonna be a handful when he gets older, I'll have to let you babysit him."

"Oh no, no way am I getting stuck with raising him," John protested. "I have no idea how to raise a kid, not after…not after Reach." His voice dropped, and Jessica sensed his unease, and to a degree his sorrow. He still misses them, the other Spartans. The war cost all of them too much. She placed a comforting hand on his arm (since his shoulder was far out of reach).

"You seem to be doing fine with him as is," she murmured. "I'm sure he'll be fine under your tutelage." She snickered again. "Plus, if I'm right, I doubt I'll be able to teach him once his augmentations kick in. I have a feeling he'll be faster and smarter than everyone else: he'll need you to guide him."

"I'll take care of it then," he replied, the smile returning to his face. Jessica hugged him, smiling in her own right. Now to drop the next bombshell: she was looking forward to this.

"John?"

"Yeah?"

"How would you feel about a little girl?"

WHUMP!!

Oh wow….Jessica had to have been the first person to see a Spartan faint.

THE END