Castles Burning Part Two

by Nicole Ryan

  I let the hot water run over my face for a few moments, relaxing before I collected myself and washed my hair, and body before turning the shower off and stepping out.

  “Oh excuse me!” Someone said behind me as I bumped right in to her.

  “Oh, God, I’m sorry. I should have been watching where I was going.” I said, steadying myself by grasping the shower stall.

  “It’s ok, your sea legs will come in a few days. It’s always the hardest to judge stepping over things, that’s when you notice the sway more.” She smiled and held out her hand. “I’m Jessica.”

  “Amber.” I said, shaking her hand.

  She had thin, flat, blonde hair, and very large teeth. Her eyes were a pale greenish blue. She stepped into her stall, and closed the curtain as I began to brush my teeth at the sink directly in front of the showers. I dried my hair and put my pajamas on, before Jessica finished with her shower.

  “What Division are you in?” She asked as she pulled out a long piece of floss from her shower caddy.

  “DC.”

  “Me too!” She cried turning to face me. “Oh, thank God I won’t be the only female anymore. Those boys are so rowdy!” She smiled hugely at me, and I couldn’t help but grin back at her.

  “You’re the second person I have met today, and you both are in my division.” I said.

  “Really? Who else did you meet?” She asked smiling as she dragged the floss through her teeth.

  “DC2 as I was walking from my car.”

  “Which DC2?”

  “Um... Harlen or something.” I said, a bit embarrassed for not remembering Tyler’s last name.

  “Oh! DC2 Harlow, yeah he’s really great.” She said as she inspected her huge white teeth in the mirror.

  “Yeah, Harlow. What shop are you in?” I asked her, hoping we would be together.

  “I’m in CBR. They put you in fixed systems I think.”

  “Yeah they did.” I said, a little disappointed.

  “Ah well, we will still get plenty of time to chat. Do you like to work out? I’m nuts about it. I’d love to have a buddy.”

  “I love to run, when do you workout?”

  “After working hours, then I go to dinner. Want to join me tomorrow? I can meet you in Fix.”

  “Yeah, that’d be great. I haven’t worked out in a few weeks it feels like.” I said.

  She glanced at me nervously. Opened her mouth to say something, but then hesitated.

  “What is it?” I asked.

  “I sort of read your file.” She glanced at me, and then fluttered her gaze back to the mirror.

  “What?”

  “Your file.” She stopped flossing, placed her hands on the metal sink, and looked right at me through the mirror. “I’m really sorry, I am so nosey, I have a habit of doing this sort of thing.”

  “It’s ok. I don’t really care.” I laughed, she was so serious about it, I couldn’t help but find it comical.

  “Well, I feel bad because I read about why the Captain gave you additional time before you checked in. I’m really sorry about what happened to you. If you ever need someone to talk to, I’m a good listener, I’m nosey, but I’m not a blabber mouth.” She said.

  I smiled. “Thank you. That means more to me than you know.” I said.

  “So we’re cool?” She asked.

  I nodded, “yeah.”

  “Cool. See ya in the morning for muster.” She said picking up her caddy and leaving the Head.

  It was refreshing to be around someone so light and cheery. When I climbed back into my rack after putting my things away I felt much more relaxed than before. I closed my eyes and imagined what the ocean must look like in the middle of nowhere, stars sparkling on the water, as beautiful as deep blue cerulean eyes that drank in my soul, and filled it up in return.

  ***

  When an alarm in the birthing beeped and rang loudly somewhere on the other side of the birthing, my eyes popped open. I looked at my cell phone; it was a quarter to five in the morning. My alarm was set for six. I groaned and rolled over, closing my eyes to go back to sleep as whoever it was climbed loudly from their rack and began to dress for the day. When my alarm finally did go off, I rolled out of my rack with a groan. There was a girl standing folding her blanket and placing it on the end of the middle rack across from me. She smiled at me quickly before leaving the small space and allowing me to change into my uniform. I went into the head with my shower caddy and towel and washed my face, and pulled my hair up into a tight bun, after I brushed my teeth I put on some chap stick and deodorant and returned my things to my locker.

  The woman from the bathroom the night before with the butterfly tattoo, came in through the birthing door suddenly.

  “Hey kittens, momma Maria brought some breakfast, come and grab it.” She said, tossing a box of donuts and a basket of bananas, apples, and what looked like wheat muffins onto the table across the leather bench that served as a couch. She smiled at me before heading back out of the birthing, the door slamming behind her.

  I grabbed a banana and ate it on the bench. Two girls came in with bags and started to dump laundry onto the second table in front of me, I finished my banana and helped them fold the coveralls. As we did so, girls came and went, grabbing their uniforms and sometimes others who shared their cubicle, and placed the uniforms on their rack. When we finished I made my way down the stairs to the hanger bay for muster.

  I saw Jessica standing next to a short, but bulky man who had dark brown hair and glasses. They were laughing, there was a Chief standing before them, he was very tall, and well built who was also enjoying the conversation. He rolled back on his heels as he laughed charismatically, his distinguished chin covered in stubble already. I came to fall in line next to Jessica, whose coveralls read Johnson. She had one chevron on her collar which meant she was a rank above me, a third class petty officer. I stared out at the other end of the hanger bay and watched as about a dozen guys in blue coveralls approached. They fell in line in front of and behind me chatting with one another about computer games they’d found for deployment and coffee stashes. I looked ahead at the Chief; he had thick black hair and blue eyes. He was older, maybe thirty eight or forty, but he was astonishingly attractive. His khaki’s read Hudson, and I was mesmerized with his handsome smile until I heard a familiar voice behind me.

  “Pst! Sonny!” He whispered.

  I turned and saw Tony Cravats. He had been in school with me, after boot camp. He’d been friends with Jarred, who I’d dated for a few months while in Chicago.

  “Cravats, holy crap you’re on this ship? I’m so glad!” I really was, he was a really nice person, and even more nice to have on your side in a tough situation.

  He nodded and smiled at me, “Yeah I’m glad you’re here, you’ll like our division.” He whispered loudly.

  Another Chief came to stand beside Chief Hudson and they looked at us, there were three rows of us in blue coveralls, maybe twenty of us total. The second chief was not very tall, and he was more round. He had a strange air about him, as if he were looking down his nose at all the rest of us. He cleared his throat and the division fell silent.

  “Good morning.” He said.

  “Good Morning, Chief.” The division said in unison. I noticed his khakis said his name was Morose, and silently giggled to myself. How fitting.

  “I have to bring it to your attention,” he said as he looked down at his papers, “That we have a new Fireman joining us today, Fireman Carlson.” He offered gesturing to me. I felt my cheeks flush as all eyes turned to me, there was a cat call from a guy to my right, he was short and had an unusually deep voice for his height, I thought he might be messing with me.

  “Hey now, behave.” The taller Chief said, smiling blithely at him, I noticed that he had a very handsome smile. There were some hushed snickers.

  “There will be two more new Firemen joining us before the end of the deployment somewhere around Dubai or Thailand, but they’re all fresh from b
oot camp, LPO’s will be glad to know that Fireman Carlson is joining us from Great Lakes where she worked with new recruits and check in. All of her evaluations are impeccable.”

  “Sweet, Chief.” DC2 Harlow called, a few of the guys laughed again.

  “Okay then, cleaning stations.” Chief called, waving his hand in front of him before he left.

  Chief Hudson rocked on his heels again; his hands clasped behind his back and looked out at us, once Chief Morose was out of the hanger bay he spoke to us.

  “Everyone take your cleaning stations seriously this morning, we need our compartments sparkling clean today.” He said, he smiled directly at me before he made his way out of the hanger bay, the same way Chief Morose had.

  “Fixed Systems! Meet in the shop!” A tall, very attractive black man with a shaved head and honey colored eyes called to us. He was a DC1 and, I assumed, my Leading Petty Officer. His voice boomed across the hanger bay. I followed close behind him, he smelled of vanilla, cigar smoke, and some sweet spice, and as I climbed the ladder well with a row of men below me, I felt a little awkward. I figured this would likely be the first of many times I’d feel a little weird being that I was the only female in the shop. But I could already feel the heat of eyes on my rear end.

  DC1 punched a code into the door and then let it swing open. He sat at a chair in front of the computer, his coveralls read Lewis, DC2 Harlow also sat in one of the chairs, along with another fireman, who had the start of a mustache, and thick blonde hair. His shoulders were broadened nicely, but they weren’t huge, he had an athletic look to him; his coveralls said his name was Cross and I had a sudden thought that he would smell like a Hurley model. The thought made me grin as I crossed to a corner of the shop. Cross sat in one of the chairs looking over a chart, one ankle resting on his knee, his brow furrowed in concentration as I tried to draw his attention to me to introduce myself. He was trying to be very obvious about not being interested in the new person, so I decided to wait. I imagined that training a newbie on the start of a deployment was probably not something to look forward to, and since both of our last names started with a C, he was likely going to be the one assigned most of my training. I made a mental note to be sure and be kind and grateful to him, so as not to seem too much of a burden to him.

  The short guy with the deep voice was in my shop too, his coveralls read Smith. He sat back in a chair with exaggerated motions of exhaustion while he pointedly watched the coffee pot, which was not on. I smiled as I watched him pull his bright red baseball cap that read “Damage Controlman” over his eyes, I shook my head and went over to the coffee pot. Took it to the small scuttlebutt in the corner of the shop and filled it, then scooped some grounds into the filter and pressed start. I smiled at Smith pointedly, and he looked grateful.

  “Hey you’re gonna fit in just fine here, you keep that up.” He winked.

  I kind of laughed, and stood in the corner of the shop again, watching my new ship mates in their usual routine, teasing each other, talking about the night before. A couple of them placed pinches of tobacco into their lips, one in particular with blonde hair and pale blue eyes winked at me as he dusted his large hand off on this pant leg. Others, such as Cross and DC1 Lewis, sat quietly, looking over their maintenance charts for the day’s work, sipping coffee once it was finished. I stood quietly, waiting for instruction from our Leading Petty Officer. The tall blonde sauntered over to me and held his clean hand out to me, rolling his dip from one side of his mouth to the other with his tongue.

  “Sawyer.” He said with a big, country boy grin, as I placed my hand in his, it swallowed it up and he winked at me again before spitting into an empty coke bottle, his attractive features turning to DC1, but the smile lingering on his lips.

  “Alrighty then,” DC1 said finally, looking at a clip board and sighing deeply. “Who would like to take Fireman Carlson to cleaning stations? Show her around the ship a bit today?”

  A few of the guys offered their services, and I felt a little embarrassed. My shoulder was aching slightly already, and I hadn’t done more than fold laundry today.

  “I’ll take her around and show her some Triple stations.” Harlow said standing from his chair. He exchanged a look with DC1 who looked hesitant, as if there was something on his mind, and it made my stomach tighten.

  Suddenly the door swung open behind me, and I stepped out of the way just as Johnson poked her head in, looked around the shop, wrinkled her nose at Smith, and then looked at DC1.

  “Can I please borrow Carlson?” She asked, feigning breathlessness as she dropped her left hand to her side and let it hand limp. “I have an extinguisher in a female birthing I need some help with.” She grinned at him winningly, her huge teeth sparkling.

  “How long will you need her? We’ve got a lot to cover today.” DC1 replied. “You know this is the smallest damage control shop but we’ve got the most equipment.” He raised his eyebrows on his smooth, chocolaty skin, and I briefly wondered what it felt like. I’d never seen a man who looked so soft, yet strong.

  “Only a few minutes DC1.” She gushed, sagging on the door knob, and thrusting her lower lip into a pout.

  “Alright, good I needed to go over something with you anyway.” He said turning his eyes to Harlow, and handing him a clip board. “Go on with Johnson.” DC1 said nodding to me, his eyes still on DC2.

  ***

  Throughout the day I ran around the ship like a mad person, I got lost four times, I swabbed the deck, dusted every surface in the shop, and shined more brass than I ever thought possible to shine in one day. I was shown to all of the repair lockers where our emergency equipment was, and I was given all of the key codes to them and to the shops. Johnson showed me around a lot, and over the course of the day I got to know more of the people in my division. They all seemed very kind, and very close to one another, the communication between everyone was odd to me since my previous duty station was so large, people hardly noticed one another, let alone had a connection with someone. I’d heard for the last two years that the ship was different than shore duty, but this was still quite unexpected.

  That evening, after running with Johnson in one of the ships gyms, and after the ship set sail for California, we met with a group from our division for dinner. There were eight of us there, Cross, Sawyer, Harlow, Johnson, and Smith among us. We were all very close in age, early twenties, except Harlow, who I thought after getting to know him more, might be early thirties. In the light, I was actually able to see him, he was gorgeous. He had a strong jaw, soft skin, and the most beautiful sea foam colored eyes. He turned them to me as if feeling my gaze on him, I smiled briefly and then looked down at my chicken parmesan; it tasted awful, but the salad was pretty good, and I was starved from the day of running around the ship.

  “Whoa, was that a facial expression?” Harlow asked, his fork paused at his mouth.

  “What?” I laughed as I felt a blush creep up my neck.

  He grinned at me, it made me feel warm inside to see a few pairs of friendly eyes. I didn’t feel as lonely, and I liked that none of them knew about what had happened at the smoke deck, and none of them needed to know.

  “Anyone feel like showing me the way to the smoke deck?” I asked, picking up my tray.

  “We all go up and smoke after we eat, so just follow us.” Smith said, his deep voice catching me off guard again, he was short, and thick, he reminded me of a bulldog. He had dark olive skin and dark hair, with deep brown eyes. He looked like he might be Italian, or even Greek.

  I followed the group of them up to the smoke deck, which was now lit only by red lights again, since it was dark outside. It was mostly empty aside from three Officers in their section of the smoke pit, and us. I craned my head over the thick metal rail, and looked down at the water as we sped along; I was fascinated at how fast something so large could move through the water, it was astounding.

  “So Chief wants you to go see him in his office before twenty hundred.” Harlow said, looking d
own at me as he took a deep drag from his cigarette, his kind eyes glittering with that secret joke that seemed to always linger there.

  “Oh, okay.” I said, looking at my watch, it was nearly that time now.

  I took another drag from my cigarette, and watched Jessica as she flirted and dazzled the guys with her nonstop chatter, animatedly telling stories with her hands fluttering about her. I noticed in particular that although she stood probably four or five inches taller than him, she was particularly interested in Smith. She bit her lip, staring down at him for a second before I noticed an exchange between them, and Johnson sashayed away. Smith slapped hands with the guys before tossing his smoke into one of the butt cans and leaving the smoke deck. There was a brief awkward silence, I had the feeling the guys knew exactly what was going on, and I had an idea, although I wasn’t quite sure how they were going to get away with sleeping together on the ship. It was a huge no-no.

  “Well, I guess I’ll go see chief.” I said.

  “I’ll walk you down I gotta go see Neighbors anyway.” Cross, said as he tossed his smoke over the side and into the water. He had been leaning against the bulkhead, one foot propped on the wall behind him like a dark cowboy. And as he moved beside me as we made our way to the Chief’s office, I was impressed. He was very lithe, his movements precise and calculated, he had a swagger to his walk that I found very sexy; confidence seemed to ooze from his pores, yet there was a humble way about him that also seemed to neutralize this.

  Chief was in his office when we got down to the shop, he was sitting at his desk, and playing a computer game, it looked like he was smashing frogs, little pools of blood spread out below them. My stomach lurched for a second, and I swallowed hard as I tapped on the Chief’s door, and Cross disappeared into the back of the shop. He turned dark blue eyes toward me, he was a handsome man, in great shape and he had a kind smile with a dimpled chin that was covered with five o’clock shadow, I briefly wondered if it would feel like sand paper along my breasts before I pushed the thought away.