"Please to meet you. Is it your first time with us?" Nick lets go of your hand. "Yes and I guess not yours?"
"Actually it's my fourth tour, this year"
"Wow, you must love what you're doing then?"
Nita turns to you. "He's one of our most beloved ones around here. If you ever get stuck somewhere, he's the man to call."
She winks at him and he smiles shyly. You haven't ever seen a big, chiseled man like him, to have a shy bone in his body. That fact, for some reason, makes you want to get to know this magnificent creature next to you. "Now, now Nita, don't you go and put ideas in this lady's head. I'm not all that good"
"Dr. McPherson, why don't you just go ahead and ignore these last few words spoken by this beast of a man. He might be good looking but definitely needs a bit more pride. Don't let him fool you, he's definitely the best"
Just then, while you're boarding on the ship, a man passing by, all of a sudden stops in his tracks and immediately salutes Nick. Nick just keeps on walking. You turn around and watch as the man only walks on after Nick is well away.
This almost happens with every man walking past him. He never looks them in the eye or acknowledges them. You see that he glimpses at you, every now and then. "So, Nick, how does it feel?"
He looks at you and frowns, confusion written on his face. "What should I feel?"
"How does it feel when everyone salutes you everywhere you go?"
He laughs and shakes his head while opening the ship's door for Nita. "Oh, that, I hardly even notice"
You enter the ship and it's something you've never seen before. The corridors are very small and you must really walk carefully not to bump into each other or fall. "So you must be a big deal around here?"
"I'm not such a big deal"
Nita stops dead in her tracks and turns around to talk to you face to face. "He's of course lying again. He's Master Chief, almost the highest rank around here"
She then carries on walking to your courters. He just shakes his head and you're sure you saw him blushing. "Not such a big deal, huh?"
"This doesn't mean that I'm any different from any of the guys here on the boat. We're a team, all protecting our beloved country and no one is above anyone"
"Except, you are...and then you're humble too. Your men must love you?" You see the sparkle in his eye disappears and he looks down for too long. You must've hit a nerve somewhere and decided to rather keep quiet for the remainder of your walk. You arrive at your quarters.
"Here we are, we will be banker mates. You get the bottom banker. We have one more roommate, ah...here she is"
A dark-haired woman, dressed in a uniform walks into the room. "Hey, honey. When did you arrive?"
The woman walks right up to Nick and gives him a passionate kiss, throwing her arms around his neck possessively, without even having a shy bone in her body. He holds her lightly with his hands on her waist and then looks down wiping his mouth. Then she looks at you as if she sees you for the first time.
She sticks out her hand to you for a handshake. "Please to meet you, I'm Dr. Helena Dickson and who might you be?"
You lift an eyebrow and shake her hand in return. You might be new here but you'll let her know, early on, that you don't like to be trampled on. "I'm Kim McPherson, I'm pleased to meet you too"
"So, I see you've met my boyfriend here. Did you mess around with him?" She looks you in the eyes with a challenging glare. Nick chokes in response to her question. "How, Helena, let's not do this again, please?"
He tries to avoid your eyes and you see that blush on his handsome face again. He clenches his chiseled jaw, embarrassment play on his face."Don't worry about it. She does this to every woman she meets. She thinks everyone wants to be with Nick"
"Oh, no it's no problem at all. There's a medical term for this, it's called insecurity. There's, unfortunately, no cure for it" Nick hides a smile behind his hand and you stare right back at her while talking about her. She then moves around uncomfortably and you smile.
"It's a pleasure meeting you Dr. Dickson, I'm sure we'll get along just fine, don't you think?"
"I...uhm...yeah...yeah, nice meeting you. Come Nick let's get out of here" She turns and leaves the room. Nick puts your luggage down and then turns to you. "I'm sorry about this, she....she can be a handful but deep down she's a good person. I hope you enjoy your time here with us. It was only a pleasure meeting you, Dr. McPherson."
"Please, it's Kim and...thank you for carrying my luggage"
"Like I said, only a pleasure. Dr. Naidoo, Kim..." He then turns and walks out of your quarters. You feel a little disappointed that he left but most of all that he has someone. Then it hits you like a bomb, you also have someone. He must be missing you like crazy and here you stand, looking at another man.
"I hope she didn't scare you away? There's really a lot of nice people here too, you know..."
"Oh, no, she didn't. Don't you worry about me. I can handle myself"
"I can see that! Well, I'll let you get comfortable and unpack. I'll come and get you for dinner later and introduce you to the rest. Feel free to walk around, just make sure you know where you're going, all the doors looks the same around here"
She winks at you and then leaves the room. You look around your quarter and realize that this will be your home for a very long time.
(I miss you mom but I'll make you proud)