“So… We are the ones that will be flying in our group, right?” It was Chris who broke the silence.
“I think so.”
It was no longer dark, Anna began gaining some energy, but the awkward tension between her and Chris stayed unchanged. Their conversation carried on with both of them looking off into the horizon.
“And I will be your co-pilot in the G-22?”
“Yep.”
There was another long pause.
“Um… look, I just want to apologize,” Chris said, sounding like he had had enough of the awkward atmosphere.
“About what?”
Anna turned her head to Chris, who didn’t meet her gaze.
“About… what happened earlier.”
Realizing that was what Chris was talking about, Anna blushes and looks down while beginning to fidget with her hair.
“J-Just pretend it didn’t happen,” Anna said quietly.
“Hm.”
Chris’s plan to ease the tension had backfired.
“Let’s head back now and save some seats at the cafeteria,” Chris said.
“Sure.”
Anna didn’t hesitate to go along with Chris’s topic change.
As if he could no longer handle the atmosphere, Chris hurried to the stairs. Anna stayed on the deck for a couple of seconds before catching up with him, giving the ocean one last look while exhaling deeply.
Like always, the corridors of GMRS Citadel were by no means easy to navigate through, but after spending a week onboard, Anna has gotten quite used to the twists and turns. She stared at Chris’s figure from behind as she followed him through the corridors. Soon, she reached the entrance to the cafeteria.
Even though the sun had just risen moments before, the cafeteria is already half-filled with people. The workers were opening up the counters and the stalls, preparing for the day. Chris walked to a large empty table close to them and sat down. Anna grabbed a seat across the table from Chris, but not directly, as she still didn’t exactly feel comfortable with making eye contact with him.
They sat in silence, letting the ambient chattering of the cafeteria encompass them. Not many people present were from the academy. The students most likely didn’t have a habit of waking up so early in the morning, despite the fact that they come from a prestigious military school.
Anna found herself concerned over where to place her gaze as she didn’t want to appear antsy or overly friendly. Then she realized that she was completely overreacting. The whole ordeal with Will earlier that week created a gap between Anna and Chris since both of them had no idea how to deal with the situation. As if adding fuel to an already blazing flame, that event had to take place in the morning.
Anna knew that this shouldn’t go on given that they will soon have to participate in co-op training, moreover, Anna didn’t want it to go on.
“Chris,” Anna said while muttering the courage to properly face Chris.
Her determination wavered as soon as she saw his deep blue eyes.
“Yes?”
Anna didn’t have the slightest idea as to where she was going with that. Scrambling for a conversation, Anna panicked.
“T-The sky… sure is blue.”
“I’m sorry?”
Chris’s confused look was driving Anna into a deeper state of embarrassment.
“Hey, Anna, you sure are up early.”
Like the flapping wings of a guardian angel, the sound of Owen’s voice had rescued Anna.
Leaving Chris in his puzzlement, Anna turns around to greet her brother, who was walking toward her in his white aviator uniform.
“Good morning, Owen!” As always, Anna leaped into Owen’s embrace.
Owen, who never seemed to mind his sister’s overt affection, patted her on her head.
“Get a room already, you two,” Liam, who didn’t have a presence until now, spoke up.
“That’s not their intention, I think,” Chris muttered.
Anna let go of Owen and went back to her seat.
“Do you want to sit with us?” Anna asked.
“Sure.”
“Why not.”
Owen walked over and sat down beside Anna and directly across from Chris. Liam took a seat beside Chris.
“The cafeteria doesn’t open in 10 minutes, why were you two up so early?” Owen asked.
“We are pretty excited about the training,” Anna said.
“Oh, the aerial training? Liam and I will be demonstrating.”
“Really? I can’t wait to see you show off your awesome skills!”
Anna’s eyes lit up.
“Eh? I don’t think I am that awesome…” Owen said while scratching the back of his head in a smile.
Chris and Liam watched the conversation without saying a word. It wasn’t like they could say anything anyways. Liam tapped Chris on the arm and leaned in to whisper.
“Man, you got a hell of a competition.”
Even though he wasn’t eating or drinking, Chris choked on something and began coughing.
“Are you okay?” Owen asked, not knowing what had caused Chris’s sudden cough.
“Y-Yeah, I’m fine.”
Chris waved and took a deep breath. His face is visibly red. Which one would assume it was because of his wheeze. Of course, Liam knew the actual reason, but he just sat back pretending to be innocent.
Now that everyone’s attention has shifted to Chris, the conversation has also naturally been redirected.
“I haven’t seen you around very often in the last week. You are Chris Arden, right?” Owen asked.
Even though they have spent an entire week on the same ship, Chris hasn’t had much interaction with Anna’s brother. When Anna had gone off to hang out with Owen, Chris spent his time with Charl since being around those two wasn’t the most comfortable pastime.
“Yes.”
Chris suddenly sat up straight after Owen had turned to him. Though he was still breathing quite heavily from earlier.
“Anna has told me much about you,” Owen said.
Anna, who was enjoying listening to her brother talking to Chris basically for the first time, did not respond well to Owen’s sudden and suggestive comment.
“Wait a minute, no I haven’t,” Anna said.
But it was already too late. There was a faint smirk at the corner of Chris’s mouth.
“I-Is that so?” Chris said.
However, Anna was telling the truth. She barely talked about her friends with Owen. Most of the time she just listened to his stories with a mesmerized expression. Anna had no idea why Owen was bringing it up.
Liam took no notice of the current situation, or at least pretended to not take notice, and wandered off into his own world.
Chris gave a fleeting side glance to the flustered Anna, who was staring at the table and didn’t catch it, but Owen did.
“You seem like a great guy, so please take good care of my sister. Just so you know, they call me Skull because I can drop a bomb from 30000 feet and land it right on a person’s head.”
A bright smile was on Owen’s face, but there was nothing easing about it. Chris’s faint smirk immediately vanished and there was an audible gulp.
“Jesus man, you are terrifying,” Liam said after being snapped out of his thoughts.
Since Anna sat beside Owen, she didn’t know what was going on, in fact, Anna was quite happy because she thought Owen was taking a liking to Chris and Liam was commenting about Owen’s skill.
Charl and Leah walked into the cafeteria. Anna waved to them, signaling them to join her. At the same time, the cafeteria stalls had opened for breakfast.
“Who is that?”
“I don’t know, but I saw him with Anna a couple of times.”
“Anna’s secret boyfriend?”
“Maybe.”
Anna didn’t make out the contents of the chatters occurring behind her on the deck of the carrier. The gossip was targeted toward Owen, who was standing beside Commander Drummond along with Liam.
Some clouds have formed above GMRS Citadel, but the weather is still great nonetheless. Anna, Chris and a dozen others who have signed up for aerial training lined up in formation beside an array of aircraft.
Commander Drummond and the two others, all wearing aviator sunglasses, stood in front of the crowd. Owen and Liam were in their G-suits, just like Anna and everyone else.
“Good morning, Gladakia’s finest. Today we begin our month-long training aboard GMRS Citadel. I hope you have all gotten used to the life on deck. As you already know, you have been separated from the main group, who have decided to not undergo the aerial training. They will instead be training as deckhands. You lot, on the other hand, will get to fly these birds,” Commander Drummond said with a deep, firm voice and pointed to the jets behind him.
As soon as the commander had started speaking, the group fell silent, as they were the most highly trained cadets in the country, after all.
Anna was excited to get her hands on the in-service version of the G-22, which stood in all its glory right in her eyes, ready for take-off. The long, pointy nose, the wide wings, and the dual rectangular thrusters at the end distinguished the G-22 from any other jet fighter. Anna became aware of its incredible combat capabilities the second she saw the prototype at Hamilton-Douglas. She couldn’t wait to fly it one more time.
She could tell that Chris, who was standing beside her, did not share her enthusiasm. Anna noticed that Chris’s behavior toward her had been odd after his talk with her brother, or at least odder than it had been in the morning.
“I believe you have all been taught the theories and controls, but just knowing the theories will not be enough to take the crafts to the skies and defeat those who pose threats to our nation. If you display exceptional skills in the cockpit, you can receive offers to train with the 2nd Fighter Squadron right here on the Citadel upon graduation,” Commander Drummond continued.
Anna knew that the opportunity to join a Navy fighter squadron immediately after graduation is amazing. One can skip the years of the necessary training and go straight to combat pilot, which is already quite high among the military rankings. However, Anna had already planned to refuse the offer if she was given it since she now had her own task force, but for most others, the potential offer will greatly motivate them.
“Now, Staff Sergeant Hastings and Senior Airman Stratford here will demonstrate take-off and landing, along with some maneuvers of their choosing before you lot can give it a try.”
Anna could hear some mutters around her. Unsure of the reason, she assumed it was excitement.
“Observe carefully.”
“Yes, Sir!” A collective shout came from the group.
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