Castillo’s eyes widened at the guy, almost as if she were giving off a warning.
“Oh, hey!” the guy said. I instantly recognized him as Vernon. “Picking up your orders, Pfc. Bennett? You must be so excited to be moving on unscathed after having beat such an obvious fraternization charge.”
I tried hard to smile, but it wouldn’t come to me. Everything Alex had told me about this guy let me know that he was trouble with a capital T and he was not to be trusted.
“If you would excuse me, Sergeants, I need to get going.”
They both nodded, their eyes hooded and low like snakes in high grass. Castillo I could deal with, but Vernon, I was unfamiliar with. I had heard nothing but bad things about him. Seeing him in the chow hall, then again at the pool, had definitely rubbed me wrong and he was adding to it now. I turned with orders in hand and walked out of the building, feeling their eyes burning into me the entire way out. These two seemed as if they were made for each other—they were both conniving assholes. I had never been so happy to get away.
Iraq? That didn’t necessarily tell me anything about Alex’s orders. All that meant was that he would be deploying. But from where? Was he still going to be here in Twentynine? Or had they shipped him clear across the country and would deploy him from there?
My first inclination was to call him and find out because my mind was racing and I needed to know, but after thinking it over, I decided I would wait. I wasn’t sure if Alex had picked up his orders, and if he hadn’t, I didn’t want to be the bearer of bad news. When he found out, he would tell me.
I let my mind settle with that, then walked off in the direction of the air wing, readying myself to be a real Marine.
++++
I checked in with Staff Sergeant Rapert. She was a tall, husky looking female, with short blond hair, and a rugged face that held a friendly smile. She took me around the shop, pointing out all of the important people within the squadron. I tried to take in all of the information she quickly passed my way, but I decided not to fret. I’d be in this unit for the next thirty-six months, and I had plenty of time to figure all of that out.
“You will work directly under me,” she said with a jovial smile. “I have another female radio operator under my command, Pfc. Ruiz. I think you two will get along.”
Angelica’s name jolted me. With everything that had happened, I had forgotten that she was in this unit, and dread flooded me. She had apologized for everything she had done, but that didn’t mean that everything was copasetic between us, and from where I was standing, we certainly weren’t friends. I didn’t know how I’d feel or react to seeing her again. It had been a while, and her reaction towards me had caused a bit of anxiety.
SSgt. Rapert walked me to the Comm cage and there she sat—dark brown hair pulled back into a perfectly neat bun, green t-shirt tucked into her desert cammie pants showing off her ample assets and deeply engaged in conversation with another Marine.
“Ahem,” SSgt. Rapert called, instantly gaining the attention of everyone in the cage. Angelica’s eyes lifted, landing on me, and it looked as if a frown spread across her lips. “This is Pfc. Bennett, another radio operator. Welcome her in, and get her up to speed on what we have going on here.”
I swallowed, looking around at the eyes staring back at me. The only person who I could fixate on was Angelica. She didn’t have the same evil glare that I had been on the receiving end of so many times before, but there was nothing friendly in her eyes.
The male she was talking to walked over and reached out his hand. “I’m Lance Corporal Serrateli,” he said. His bright green eyes matched mine and contrasted beautifully against his olive skin. I gave him my hand, shaking gently, then stepped back to take in the manual that he had placed in front of me.
“This radio is new, and will soon be out in the warzone, so we’re trying to get some practice on it before we see it in the middle of an Iraqi sandstorm,” he joked, smiling wide and showcasing a set of perfectly white teeth. There was something about him that put me at ease.
“This is Lance Corporal Jennings, and Pfc. Ruiz,” Serrateli introduced. Jennings shook my hand and Angelica came walking over slowly, a slight hint of a smile finally caressing her lips. She looked to me, to Serrateli, then back to me again.
“I already know Pfc. Bennett. We were roommates in Comm School.”
Serrateli’s eyes brightened. He and Angelica exchanged a smile that held a million secrets, but no one else was privy to the unspoken conversation. It made me uneasy, shifting as I stood there feeling like the joke was on me before Serrateli broke the awkwardness.
“Welcome to the squadron, Bennett. I look forward to working with you.”
“Same to you, Lance Corporal Serrateli.”
I started to walk away when Angelica walked behind me, calling out my name and tapping me on the shoulder. “Welcome to the squadron, Bennett,” she said, giving a smile that didn’t meet her eyes, but was still better than her earlier expression.
“Thanks. I’m not following you if that’s what you’re thinking.”
She laughed, finally making me feel at ease. “I don’t think anything. This is the Marine Corps. You go where they send you, point blank.”
“True.”
“Anyway, I just wanted you to know that I really meant everything I said at the hospital that day. I’m sorry for what I said and did to you. I really hope you forgive me, especially now that we’ll be working every day together.”
“I told you then that all is forgiven, Angelica. I’m just ready to move on from all of it.” She had no idea what all of it entailed, and I damn sure wasn’t about to tell her. We could be amicable, but she still wasn’t someone who I could trust.
“Good. Well, I’ll see you around. I have some stuff I need to take care of.”
“Yeah, see ya.” She turned and walked away.
Her words were sincere, but her little look and secretive glance with Serrateli was different. I would be lying if I said that I was looking forward to working so closely with her, but I had no choice. I had the next thirty-six months in this unit, and some of it, or maybe even all of it would be spent without Alex. I had no choice but to look forward and start paving my way. At least I had Dalton. At the end of all of this, I still had him, and that was better than nothing.
++++
The following night, Dalton asked me to go with him to his basketball tournament. I wasn’t in the mood, and really just wanted to lay around and watch TV, but he refused to allow me to be such a bum. He always had a way with words.
Alex had texted a couple of times, asking me how my check-in went and if Angelica had reared her ugly head yet. He never told me about his deployment, and I didn’t prod. I was waiting for him to tell me himself.
As I worked a straightener through my hair, I wondered how Alex and I had risen and fallen so quickly. As hot as he was, there was something about him that told me he was trouble, and it may have been that which hooked me. I knew from the second I saw him in formation that we would have something. It had been quite humorous watching him squirm while trying to stay away from me. I’d given him his space, and he’d come crawling back.
That was what I was hoping for this time. By giving him the space he needed to heal his broken ego, maybe he’d see the light and come back. I wouldn’t take him easily. What he’d done to us was hurtful, callous, and childish, but I loved him. I loved him with every part of me, and I wanted him back in my life more than anything.