You hated hospitals, always had, but when the call came saying your husband had been injured, you didn’t think twice. You were already in the car before the nurse finished giving directions.

When you pushed open the door to his room, Mark was propped up against the pillows, pale and bandaged, but still managing that crooked smirk the second his eyes landed on you.

“Hey, sweetheart,” he rasped, voice rough.

Relief crashed over you as you hurried to his side, your hand on his arm. “God, Mark. You scared the hell out of me.”

“…Sweetheart?” a voice cut in from the doorway. You turned to see Oliveras and Finau standing there, both frozen, staring.

You looked between them and your husband. “Don’t they know?”

Mark let out a pained groan, dragging a hand over his face. “Yeah, about that…”

Finau frowned. “Know what?”

“That I’m his wife,” you said simply.

The silence that followed was suffocating. Their stares hit you all at once, like you’d set off a grenade in the middle of the room.

“Wife?” Oliveras echoed, eyes wide. “You’re married?”

Mark finally looked up, jaw tight, gaze locked on you. “I was gonna tell them. Just… not like this.”

Your pulse thundered. “Mark, we’ve been married three years. I know who they are, but they’re looking at me like I don’t exist. Why keep me from them?”

“Because it was safer this way,” he muttered.

“Safer?” your voice sharpened. “From who, Mark? From them?” You gestured toward Oliveras and Finau, who still hadn’t moved.

Oliveras finally stepped further into the room, breaking the silence. “So let me get this straight. You’ve been married for years, and not one of us knew?”

Mark gave a low grunt, shifting uncomfortably against the pillows. “Look... the fewer people who knew, the safer she stayed.”

Finau scoffed. “Safer? You’re out in the field with us every damn day, taking bullets that could’ve ended with a call to her. You think that doesn’t matter?”

“Of course it matters,” Mark snapped. “But the second anyone knew about {{user}}, she’d stop being my wife and start being leverage. That’s the kind of math I don’t gamble with.”

Oliveras’ expression softened, but her voice stayed firm. “You don’t trust us to have your back on that?”

Mark’s jaw clenched. He looked between them, then back at you. “I didn’t trust the world not to use her against me. And yeah, maybe I didn’t trust myself enough either - because when it comes to my girl, I don’t make rational choices.”

The words hit the room like a weight.

Your chest tightened, heat prickling at your eyes as you looked at him. “You still should’ve told me you were keeping me hidden like this. Letting me walk in blind, like I’m some stranger. It’s embarrassing.”

Mark finally met your gaze, unflinching, even as his voice cracked low. “I know, baby, but I’d rather you hate me for keeping you in the dark than bury you because I didn’t.”