After the commander left,
"You guys can relax now since the commander has left," he said. "You know what? When I was still a trainee, just like you guys, Commander was the one who trained our batch, and I still recall how those six months were a living hell, with the commander being so harsh that most of us thought we wouldn't be able to survive the training. Then he paused, creating a nostalgic face as he spoke about his memories. And after a while, he said: "You guys are extremely lucky that the commander is not the one who will train you guys, so don't worry, I won't bite as hard as Captain Lin here," James said foolishly with a goofy smile on his face.
"Captain!" She yelped
"Relax, captain," he said once more. "Nothing has changed till now; he is still scary and strict; the only thing that has changed is that he still had hair at that time, but now he has a head that looks like a stainless steel bowl."
"Pfft." I covered my mouth, realizing that I had laughed loudly because of his comments. Laelah looked at me, too, for suddenly laughing so loudly, and now everyone is looking at me.
She was about to punch him in the shoulder, but he dodged it. "You're getting too much." "You should set an example and act as a higher-ranking individual."
"Yeah. That's what I'm trying to do by setting an example that I'm being honest here and lying is not okay."
"Are you f***ing kidding me, Captain?" She grabbed his collar, trying to choke him out.
"Okay, I'm sorry. I'm just trying to make the atmosphere here more cheerful since it's their first day, and the tension in this room is heavy, making it more difficult to breathe."
"Right, Miss?" He asked warmly, smiling, looking for an ally to agree with what he said. He put me in an awkward situation, and everyone is staring at me. Especially the Powerpuff Girls, who are staring at me like they are about to kill me. Ugh! I want to smack him in the face because of it. I understand the captain's feelings already about wanting to kill this guy.
And Captain Lin looked at me and said, "And you!" and I could feel the anger radiating from her.
"Come forward and state your name." She said this while pointing her finger at me. I froze. All eyes in the room were focused on me as I nervously stepped forward, and I could feel my heart pounding in my chest as I introduced myself.
"I am Maeve Vanille Fray, and I apologize for my behavior being disrespectful to Commander Collymore." My voice wavered, and I bowed down in apology.
"That behavior is disrespectful to the commander. I was about to give you a deduction, but I think it's not fair since you are not the ones who caused it." Captain Lin said, motioning for me to return to my post.
I felt such relief that she wasn't going to punish me. Laelah approached and asked if I was okay, and I nodded to her as an answer.
"So this is a reminder to everyone here in this room that respect is the cornerstone of this unit, "especially you, captain," the captain warned, giving Captain James a lethal glare.
"Yes, ma'am," Captain James replied, smiling like an innocent child as if he had done nothing wrong.
"Since the introduction is over. I think it's time for me to leave since I still have a significant amount of work to completebefore tomorrow's training. Take it away captain. " He spoke up, and the captain shooed him away.
"All right, bye, everyone." He said this while smiling and giving me the peace sign. I stood there in awe, watching him confidently leave the room.
"Don't be like him in the future," said Captain Lin in a dispassionate tone. I can feel the tone of the captain when she says that having to deal with a comrade who has no sense of urgency every day is a pain in the neck.
I heard the Powerpuff Girls talking again. I'm becoming a certified marites here.
"Did he just smile at us?" The Powerpuff girls giggle. "But he was giving a peace sign, could it be?" and three of them were looking in my direction. I'm in danger.
I quickly looked away in their direction, trying my best to ignore their glaring stares because I knew from the way they stared at me that they wanted me to be buried alive.
I sighed "Ugh! I don't like this situation. Please, he is all yours, and that is not my focus here. I have no intention of taking away your joy, and I'm not here to steal him away from you and he is not my type, okay? I'm not your enemy here." I thought to myself and I wanted to say that loudly to them, and then the captain called our attention.
"Trainees," said Captain Lin Command.
We immediately stood to attention and awaited further instructions. She hands us a piece of paper with a message on it, which she begins to read aloud. The paper contains the meal schedule, the curfew, rules and regulations here. There are separate rooms for men and women. The rooms for men are located in the north wing, while the women's rooms are in the south wing. At 0600 hours breakfast is served and ends at 0700 whereas lunch is from 12:00 to 13:00 hours, and dinner starts at 19:00 and ends at 20:00 hours in the evening, and we have one free hour left to do our things. Furthermore, the paper also contains a list of activities that can be undertaken during the free hour. Men are not permitted in women's rooms, and women are not permitted in men's rooms. In addition, there is a strict curfew at 22:00 hours after which we are not allowed to be out of our rooms, and visitors are also strictly prohibited.
"I'd like everyone in their rooms by ten o'clock, and they may not leave after that. If you violate any rules, you will be harshly punished or immediately dropped. Additionally, we will check each room every night, and an officer will be on patrol and placed at every corner if you try to sneak out on us. I'm warning each of you not to act foolishly." Captain Lin warned us.
"At precisely 0700 hours tomorrow, we will begin our training here. I urge everyone to arrive at our training on time, not even a few seconds late, or you will automatically be deducted five points, a severe punishment will be imposed, and I will not accept any excuses. I detest tardiness because, in real-life scenarios, a lot could have happened even just a few seconds ago. It can have serious repercussions in a battle and is especially important for a soldier in a war zone, where time is of the utmost importance. We are all responsible for our own actions, and therefore I expect everyone to be punctual in order to ensure that the training is conducted properly and efficiently."
"Is that clear?" the captain said in an authoritative voice.
We uttered a unified "Yes, Captain."
"I am certain that each one of you will follow this rule, so you may begin to prepare for tomorrow's training. Dismissed"
With these words, our commanding officer ended the briefing, and we saluted in unison. After our first meeting, we went to our rooms.