“You’re going to be in room 210 with, Rasul.” He stops before the stairwell and turns to me. “Look kid, if you’re in trouble they are going to find out with the background check. Whatever you’re running from, it’s going to catch up with you.”
“Sergeant, I swear to you I’m not in trouble, and I’m not running from anything. I’m just starting fresh. “
He shakes his head as if he is still a little doubtful.
“Okay, if you say so. Can I give you one last piece of advice?”
“Sure!”
“Don’t let anyone know how desperate you are to leave, especially the job recruiter. He is going to try and put you where he has the most job slots open. He may try to bend the truth about what is available to you, but don’t be fooled. I know there are openings for CAG babies. If you do well on your exit exam, you are eligible. You have to be willing to walk out of the room with no job. Don’t except anything less than what you want. The only time you have cards to play in the Army is during enlistment or reenlistment. Play your cards wisely and get what you want. Whatever you do, don’t let them intimidate you, got it?”
“Yes, got it. Thank you, Sergeant. You have no idea how much you have helped me. I am truly grateful.”
“I don’t know if I have helped you, or hurt you Malone, but I’ve given you what you asked for.”
We walk up the flight of stairs and make our way to room 210. He knocks once before using the key card to open the door. Inside a boy about my age with tawny brown skin and dark wavy hair is reclining on the bed. He is watching TV and looks bored out of his mind. He sits up as we enter and looks from Sergeant Jefferson to me.
“Rasul this is Malone. The two of you are going to be rooming together for the next few days while you are at MEPS. I’ll leave you two to get acquainted and fight over the TV. Lights out in an hour, you’ve got a 0600 wake up call.”
He slaps me on the back. “Well, I’ve got a long drive back. Rasul, Malone, good luck tomorrow. Remember what I said, don’t fall for their bullshit.”
Rasul and I both nod as Sergeant Jefferson leaves the room. Rasul stands to shake my hand.
“I’m Omar, and I’m not really watching anything, if there is something you want to see.”
I shake his hand and I can tell instantly by his easy-going nature that we will get along.
“I’m, Fin, I’ve got plenty of pizza if you want some.”
We eat and talk about nothing in particular for about forty minutes. After that I pass out, exhausted from the day. At six am, someone pounds on the door, and a head sporting a BDU cap pokes in.
“Breakfast is downstairs in the lobby, be done eating and ready to go in one hour”
I jump in the shower, and twenty minutes later I am downstairs eating a surprisingly good hotel breakfast. Shortly after, I see Omar and wave him over to where I am sitting.
“The bacon and cheese omelets are really good.”
“I’ll stick with eggs and toast. I don’t really eat pork.”
“But you had some on the pizza last night?”
He rubs his stomach and grimaces.
“Yes, and I paid for it this morning.”
“Are you allergic?”
“Yeah, let’s go with that.”
I shrug and drop the subject.
A few minutes later Omar looks up at me from his plate.
“Fin, if those girls eyeball you any harder, one of them is going to get knocked up.
I look up from my plate and laugh at the bored expression on his face. I glance around to see what he’s talking about. I notice two girls, one petite red head, and one very curvy brunette. They are staring at our table, whispering, and giggling, in typical teen girl fashion.
“How do you know they are not eyeballing you, Omar?”
“I rode in a van with them yesterday to get here, and neither of them even glanced in my direction.”
“Well either way I’m not interested.”
His face shows skepticism for a moment and then it clears.
“You must have a girlfriend back home.”
There is a stab of pain in my heart, as my mind automatically travels to images of Haven. I push the thoughts of Haven from my brain and remind myself why I’m here.
“No, there’s no girlfriend. But I’m not going to let myself get distracted from my goals, just because a pretty girl smiles at me.”
There that sounded legit even to my own ears. Not at all like a guy who can’t even look at girl, because the only one he loved just died. I force myself to swallow another bite of food. It no longer tastes good, and it’s nearly impossible to force it past the lump in my throat. If Omar notices a change in my demeanor, he disregards it. Yet, another reason I can tell Omar and I, are going to be friends.
“Whatever you say man, personally I think I can handle a little distraction.”
I look up and he is grinning as he takes another bite of food.
“What job are you trying
