2: Beneath Orion, Worlds Apart 03

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Spartan22
Spartan22
606 Followers

Cash laughed, pulling out a dip, "Yeah, except the Ghosts have it easier. They get to sit on alert while us Reapers get ta stick our necks out in Boogieman country. Besides, we're not even the pawns. We're the chessboard that gets walked on."

Westwood gave a subtle smile and told his crew, "Pawns or not, the Colonel's right. The bombing run should be simple enough, but Special Ops have to be there just in case, exposing all of us to danger. That's just the way it is. Get some rest, fellas. Tonight is going to be a big night, and I'm going to need all of you with fresh and rested eyes."

"Anyone want some snuff? How about you, Patton," Cash smiled, knowing Luke wouldn't touch his tobacco with a ten-foot pole.

"Um, pass," Patton said, unsure if Cash was joking or not.

"Have it your way. Looks like I'm the only one that gets a Scooby-snack," he grinned, loading it up in his mouth.

"Hey Chuck," Wayne asked Cash as the four-man crew left the briefing tent. "If you die," he said in a faux-serious voice, "I just want you to know that I'll take your Camaro off your hands and give it a good home."

Cash laughed, "Fuck no; I'm not gonna be buried in a coffin. I'm gonna be buried in my Camaro. I'll drive it right on down and they can throw the dirt on top. Who says I can't take it with me when I go?"

"Well, I'd give you my car," Wayne countered.

"That piece of crap foreign lemon that's like ten years old? It gets how much rice per gallon? No, thank ya. That's your fault for smashing up your own ride."

Wayne looked at Patton. Luke immediately knew what was coming even before Wayne asked.

"Forget it, sir," he told Wayne, heading him off at the pass. "My parents gave me that Challenger; if anything happens to me they'd repossess it."

Cash said, "Tell you what. If I die, you can have my old World War 1/World War 2 era French rifle. It's in great shape; never been fired and only dropped twice."

Westwood and Cash broke out in laughter; it took Patton a moment to realize Cash wasn't serious, he was really telling a joke.

Wayne muttered, "You guys suck."

---

Patton showed up early for mission planning. He hadn't been able to sleep; because he was wide-awake, he decided to show up early to prepare for the next mission. For the first time on his deployment, he genuinely wondered if he and his crew would return from the mission in one piece.

The hardest part was always waiting when you were ready to go; it was the anticipation of flying the mission that took the most patience. He'd be ok once he stepped aboard the HH-60; he always was. Training and instinct would take over, just like it always did. The moment he put his gloved hands at the controls of the fully loaded minigun, he'd be ready.

Still, Kaylee had been infiltrating his mind at the most inconvenient times, and a little too frequently as of late. Luke was having a difficult time focusing on his duties as an aerial gunner in the middle of a combat zone as thoughts of sitting next to Kaylee on his parent's porch swing incessantly invaded his mind. And to make things more complex, he didn't want to push those thoughts away. He wanted to embrace those daydreams of rekindling their relationship, thinking about cherishing her and adoring her if he had a second chance, if he were home.

Intensifying the distraction that clouded his mind was his worry about what would happen to Kaylee if anything happened to him. He couldn't even begin to imagine how distraught Kaylee would become and how she would suffer if, heaven forbid, Luke were killed in action.

The letters she wrote him were powerful. He could feel her emotion and love through every last written word and letter gracefully penned on the stationary. He caused her enough pain by closing off his feelings to her the last few years, and now all he was doing was opening the door for pain and misery to come flooding back into her life. But this time the pain would be unbearable. His timing couldn't have been worse.

Luke couldn't shake the Colonel's haunting words, soberly reminding him about the dangers of their next major operation. Operation Eagle Rage was tough enough, but that was just the calm before the storm. Things were about to get intense.

He could hear the Colonel's voice in his head: Remember why we are doing this and who we are protecting back home.

Those words stuck with him; he couldn't shake them and he couldn't ignore them.

Many of you won't be going home.

Luke took a deep breath. Looking at his watch, he had a few minutes. He sat down at the computer terminal and brought up his email. Trying to form the words in his mind before typing them out, Luke decided it would be best to open up his heart and tell her how he felt, despite how painful it might be.

Kaylee, there is no easy way to say this, he typed.

"I'm so sorry Kaylee," he whispered quietly to himself. This would be the hardest letter he's ever written.

I love you so much, but we can't do this anymore. I may have misled you earlier; no, I lied to you, and I am so sorry for that. Things have not been easy like I led you to believe; it's been awful. I've seen things that I can't even begin to describe, things that give me nightmares. And soon, it's about to get worse. If something happens to me, I refuse to leave you heartbroken and desolate. Even if nothing happens to me, I will not be the same Luke you knew when I come home, and I refuse to disappoint you.

I am so sorry, but I have to let you go.

Luke gritted his teeth and slammed his fist on the table, drawing a few stares from surrounding service members. He knew Kaylee; she would try to talk him out of it, and he would probably cave. He'd want to cave. But he refused to string her along; Kaylee deserved much better than that, much better than him. He couldn't do that to her.

Luke deleted the entire paragraph, leaving only the first line of: Kaylee, there is no easy way to say this.

He was racking his brain, trying to think of what to say, how he could minimize the pain he was about to cause. There was no way to avoid hurting her, but he had to soften the blow as much as possible. How could he let her go when he didn't even want to let her go? Even if it was for her own good, it hurt like crazy to even consider as a possibility.

Remember why we are doing this and who we are protecting back home.

The Colonel's words arose to the forefront of his mind once again, reminding him whom he was protecting back home.

Suddenly, it made sense. Everything was put into perspective.

It wasn't just that he was protecting her from the evil of the world, but he had to protect her from himself. Luke realized that he himself was the key. Either he could let her go now and cause her temporary pain, or he could let her get close to him and have her find out he'd never be the same person that she once knew -- or worse yet, die overseas -- either of which would cause her permanent wounds she may never recover from.

Reluctantly, Luke grimaced as he typed the next line:

I'm sorry, but I found someone else. I have to let you go.

His finger hovered over the send button for what seemed like an eternity. Contrary to his nature, he was prepared to lie to the girl he loved -- a lie he convinced himself she needed to hear so he could protect her. Protect her from the pain he would bring her. Protect her at all costs, even if she hated him for it and could never find it in her heart to forgive him.

His entire arm flexed and he reached down, but he couldn't hit send. He took a breath, closed his eyes, and made another attempt.

He just couldn't do it. With a defeated sigh, his head dropped and his shoulders sagged. He looked over the words again, knowing he had to protect Kaylee, even if a lie was the only way to do it, but he couldn't send her the email. Not like this.

Luke didn't even notice Sergeant Cash as he hurriedly entered the room. Without so much as looking at either Luke or the screen, Cash hit the send button for him.

Staring at the screen with disbelief, Luke's eyes opened wide. The young Airmen was stunned... and angry. He leaped up and started to say, "What the f...,"

"We have to go NOW," Cash cut him off. Luke realized the Sergeant wasn't playing around; his face indicated he was all business and something serious was going on.

"We're being taken off of Burning Rain; the other Reapers can handle it. We're taking Pararescue out instead. A massive IED went off and there are conflicting reports of how many Army guys were injured, but it's a lot. To make it worse, it was part of an ambush and they're still under attack so you better get your trigger-finger ready. You get Wayne; Major Westwood is already at the helicopter, and I've gotta get my ass out there and crank it up. I'll meet you there."

Luke grabbed his gear and followed the Sergeant out the door as fast as he could, heading for Wayne's tent.

If I survive, Kaylee is going to kill me, Luke thought, hustling as fast as he could. What did Cash just do... what did I just do?

---

Kaylee was inconsolable. It took Audrey at least five minutes of listening intently to Kaylee's sobbing over the phone to understand that Kaylee wanted her to come to her apartment. Even though she had no idea what was going on, Audrey broke multiple land speed records to get there as fast as she could. She'd seen Kaylee hysterical before -- after all one of the many categories she'd won by her high school class was Biggest Drama Queen -- but Audrey could tell this time it was serious.

Just as Audrey stepped through the door Kaylee grabbed her hand and without saying a word, still fighting against her flood of tears, showed her the email. It didn't take long to figure out why Kaylee was so upset.

Audrey covered her hand with her mouth; she couldn't believe what Luke said. Three simple sentences were all he typed, but those short words were enough to dramatically devastate her best friend. She had to re-read the lines a couple of times, making sure she wasn't missing something:

But I found someone else. I have to let you go... But I found someone else. I have to let you go...

Found someone else.

Let you go...

Audrey was floored. It didn't make any sense; this didn't sound like Luke at all!

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Kaylee sitting on the couch facing away from the computer with her legs tucked in and her hands wrapped around her knees, rocking back and forth. Her face was heavily stained with tears, but Kaylee was trying her absolute hardest not to cry, sniffing and wiping them off her face. She rested her head on top of her knees; it reminded Audrey of an ostrich trying to bury its head in the sand.

After the shock wore off of Audrey, she exclaimed, "T-that... that asshole!"

He didn't even bother telling her over the phone, or at least send her a personal letter. He had to do it over email. Email! The thoughtless bastard!

As quickly as she could, Audrey ran over to Kaylee and sat on the couch, holding her friend. Kaylee lost it, and the tears started pouring again. "Oh honey, I am sorry! I can't believe that jerk would do something like that!"

For the first time, Kaylee managed to get out a few words Audrey could understand.

"W-w-wh-why? W-we were so, so..." Kaylee blubbered before sobbing all over again.

"Shhh, it's ok, hun. You don't need to say anything," Audrey said, trying to get her to relax.

Kaylee ignored her. It was clear she had something on her mind and desperately wanted to get her thoughts out. She told Audrey, "We were s-so, we were doing so much better. I-I can't believe... I mean, he poured his heart out," she bellowed.

Audrey stroked her hair, holding her tightly. Much to her surprise, Audrey realized a few stray tears of her own had escaped, running down her cheek. She really did like Luke; after realizing how crazy Luke was about Kaylee, she thought he completed her. They were like the perfect couple; she taught him how to have fun and enjoy life, and he kept her grounded whenever she tried to drift away and escape from reality.

"I-I just can't believe he found some Air Force slut that quickly that he'd be willing to leave me for," Kaylee cried out in exasperation. "I mean, I don't get it! No warning or nothing. How could... could," her lip quivered. Taking a breath of air, she finished, "How could he leave me like this? I mean, I knew he was being a little distant at first, but he started writing me the sweetest letters. And then, out of the blue, this!"

"This has to be some kind of mistake! Did you write him back or call him and try to get to the bottom of this?"

"Yeah," Kaylee exclaimed patronizingly as if Audrey should have already known the answer to that question. "Like only thirty times! So far, nothing! I don't think he's going to... going to write me back..."

Kaylee broke out crying once more.

Her best friend was falling apart, and Audrey didn't know what to do. "Come on, hun, let's get you cleaned up and get you outside so we can get some fresh air. I'll take you to dinner."

Kaylee shook her head, pouting, "I don't want to."

The more she thought about the email, the angrier Audrey became. "Are you sure? It'll be good for you, hun; you can't just stay in here mourning. You don't need him, anyway. Luke can go screw himself. If he really were a good guy like we all thought, that bastard wouldn't have done that to you. We just need to take your mind off of him," Audrey said, trying to convince her.

"Not tonight," Kaylee whimpered, finally getting her crying under control. "I don't feel like going out."

"Ok," Audrey said quietly, still trying to think of the best way to help her friend. "Well, do you want company tonight, or do you want me to leave?"

Kaylee thought about it. "You can stay," she said.

"I'll go back to my apartment and grab my stuff. You stay here, ok? Don't do anything stupid. I'll be right back," Audrey told her, waiting for Kaylee to nod before she ran to her car.

Audrey just couldn't believe it; she was still in shock. And as bad as she felt, Kaylee had to feel a hundred times worse.

That wasn't in Luke's nature. Maybe he changed, she thought to herself as she slid into her car. After going from high school nerd to a normal guy (with Kaylee's help!) to a hotshot Air Force gunner, maybe he became too big for his britches and all of a sudden thought Kaylee was beneath him. Maybe he thought if he could score Kaylee, one of the most beautiful girls in the world, then he could have any girl he wanted.

Well, no matter what the explanation, he was an asshole for treating her best friend like that. Oddly enough, Kaylee was normally the angry one, but this time it was Audrey. It was like Kaylee was hurt so badly that she couldn't find the strength to become angry.

So Audrey had to do it for her. Which was fine, because Audrey hoped Kaylee would never see his ugly face again.

Spartan22
Spartan22
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shopratshoprat25 days ago

This started out as a great story but it's gone off the rails Real people don't behave like this. Oh well, it's many years old anyway. I'm going to hang in there awhile yet.

AnonymousAnonymous3 months ago

Ugh seriously how can Luke be so stupid and emotionally clueless? This is all just so damn contrived, it's hard to read. They're all morons I swear. No one ever giving anyone the benefit of the doubt or thinking calmly. They just jump to the worst conclusions, despite anything that has previously happened, and let their anger control them. Rather disappointing really. All the forced drama is really annoying when it's so out of character for what's established and what a typical person would do. With each passing chapter I'm beginning to think the author is just baiting us and Luke and Kaylee won't ever be together. Or if they do, someone else will have been with them first. Pretty lame but whatever, I've almost checked out at this point.

PurplefizzPurplefizzabout 1 year ago

It’s been said before in the comments, but there is forced drama being written into this to give it more emotional impact. Fact is if a gifted guy walks into a recruiting office with his GPA and tests out as higher than average IQ he won’t end up as a door gunner, he’ll end up as a tech specialist, working with avionics, computer systems or radio equipment etc, if he signs for a longer hitch possibly pilot or similar. I understand why the author has made this decision, but kills the believability for me personally, so I’m out, so long and thanks for all the fish. 🐬

dgfergiedgfergieabout 3 years ago

Wake up people he was trying to spare Kaylee and he didn't push send and freaked out when his commander did. It's done now so it's just a matter of the girls digging deep and realizing what's really going on over 'there'. Dark but good writing.

Horseman68Horseman68over 7 years ago
Signing Off. Tired of So Much Stupid.

Previous comment asked you to stop writing Luke as a self-depreciating idiot. Seems to have fallen on deaf ears. Suspect the author has never done a walk in the woods. Some vets will know what I mean. Signing off.

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