Andrea managed to avoid Lieutenant Chadwick for the next couple of days, hoping that a bit of distance might give the dust a chance to settle. However, two days after their fight she got an unwelcome surprise when she arrived early for an appointment with Doc in his lab. It was just supposed to be the two of them, but as she entered the underground room a quick scan of her surroundings found Chadwick already there, fiddling with some of the equipment sitting on one of the counters that lined the walls.
“What are you doing in here?” asked Andrea, making Chadwick swing round in surprise, and quickly drop whatever it was he had been tinkering with.
“I don’t have to explain myself to you, Hallstrom,” he replied, crossing his arms defiantly. “In case you didn’t realise, you don’t run this base, even if you do have the Major’s ear.”
“And you don’t run it either,” countered Andrea, “Even if you like to think you’re some bigshot.”
“I should do, though. You’d find things were a bit different with me in charge. I certainly wouldn’t have let you get away with attacking me the other day, that’s for sure. I guess the Major has her favourites though.”
Andrea could feel her blood starting to boil. It wasn’t so much what Chadwick said, it was the entirely condescending way he delivered his remarks that got her goat. She clenched her fists to clamp down on her anger, remembering the promise she had made to the Major two days previously.
“What’s up?” asked Chadwick, “A bit too close to the mark?”
“Maybe the Major appreciates people she can rely on,” suggested Andrea, “Rather than back-stabbing wankers?”
“And you think she can rely on you?” scoffed Chadwick, “Your previous colleagues didn’t have much success in that area did they?”
Andrea’s fingers were now digging so hard into her palm that she could feel the blood starting to drip between them. Luckily for her and Chadwick the door swung open at that moment and Doc entered the lab, immediately sensing the tense atmosphere.
“Andrea? Lieutenant? What’s going on?”
Andrea took a few steps away from Chadwick, hiding her hands from Doc in the process. “Nothing, I think the Lieutenant was just leaving.”
Chadwick shot her a last disparaging look before he made for the door, stopping to speak to Doc before he left. “Be careful what you say, Doc,” he whispered loudly as he leant close, “She’s liable to attack you for no reason.”
“Thank you, Lieutenant,” replied the be-spectacled man, “Though I think it’s just you that has that effect. In fact I think you prompt that reaction in a lot of people.”
Chadwick sneered down at the smaller man, but didn’t respond, instead stomping from the room. Andrea tried hard to stifle her snigger until the door closed after him.
“Was he giving you trouble again?” asked Doc, crossing over to join Andrea.
“Again?” queried Andrea warily.
“Well, there was that altercation during the pool game on Monday,” outlined Doc, “And I heard about the fight outside two days ago.”
“Right,” noted Andrea, calmer now she realised that was all he was talking about. “It’s nothing I can’t handle, he just likes to stir things. Anyway, what are we up to today?”
The Doc frowned briefly at her avoidance of further discussion, but let it go. “We’re going to be studying your energy conversion rates.”
“Sounds fascinating,” said Andrea jokingly.
“Yes, well, you can’t always be flying around outside. If you’d take a seat on the bed?”
Andrea hopped up onto the mattress as Doc explained his experiment further. Apparently he was going to stimulate the energy conversion in her cells by attempting to draw off some of her energy so it need to be replaced by her natural ability to convert energy from ambient light. He outlined how he had been working on a way to safely access the energy held in her body for a while, and that this was the first trial run of his new device. It didn’t look like anything particularly special to Andrea, an innocuous looking steel box, about the size of a microwave oven, with a set of controls atop it. In order to siphon off the energy, Doc inserted a small needle just under the skin of Andrea’s right arm, taping it down with some surgical tape. The exposed end trailed three wires to the device that Doc had wheeled over. Leading from the other side of the box were some more wires, attached to Doc’s computer that he had also positioned close to the bed on it’s movable trolley. He attached a few more sensor pads to various points on Andrea’s body before settling down in front of his screen.
He ran a careful eye over the controls. “Right, I’m going to start slowly. Let me know if you feel anything odd straight away.”
Andrea nodded and
he flicked the switch on the device, a series of green lights indicating it was
active. For the first couple of minutes
or so it just caused a dull tingling in Andrea’s arm, around the area where the
needle was affixed. It was certainly
nothing that she couldn’t handle and she sat on the bed watching Doc looking
with interest at his computer monitor.
“I’m just going
to increase the power slightly, ok?” he asked, glancing up at her to verify the
request. “Let me know if it starts to
feel at all uncomfortable.”
“All right,” said
Andrea with a nod.
Doc touched a
couple of buttons on the device by the bed, swivelling back to his monitor
afterwards. Andrea felt an immediate
surge in the degree of the pulsing generated through the needle. The tingle was extending down her arm now
and out across her chest. Since Doc
seemed so transfixed, Andrea waited for a couple more minutes before bothering
him. Only when she found that she was
having trouble breathing did she decide she really had to say something.
“I think maybe we
should stop now,” remarked Andrea, through clenched teeth.
Doc’s eyes
flicked up, having heard the slightly pained tone in her voice.
“Bloody hell,
Andrea,” he said, shooting up from his seat, “Why didn’t you say something
sooner?”
He tapped at the
controls, a confused expression creasing his brow as it bleeped uncooperatively
at him.
“Now would be a
good time,” Andrea said anxiously. The
pounding had worked its way up into her head now, and she was starting to feel
dizzy and not a little nauseous.
“It won’t shut
off!” cried Doc, thumping the metal casing in annoyance.
Andrea had a
flashing thought to pull the needle out of her arm, but the room was spinning
rather unhelpfully making it hard to focus, let alone lift any of her limbs.
The next thing
she knew she was staring up at the white ceiling. She didn’t recall ending up on her back and she blinked a couple
of times to try and clear her fuzzy thoughts.
Then there was a hand on her bare arm, squeezing it gently. She thought Doc was being rather forward and
turned her head to tell him so only to be met, not by the bald-headed
scientist, but by a pair of concerned blue-grey eyes.
“How are you
feeling?” asked the Major softly.
Andrea tried to
sit up, but the pounding in her head returned as she lifted it off the pillow
forcing her to sink back down onto it, letting out a small involuntary groan.
“Easy,” said the
Major, a mild chastisment in her tone.
“Doc,” she called over her shoulder, “She’s awake.”
The scientist
hurried over, easing the Major out the way as he reached the bed. A look of relief was evident on his
face. “Thank goodness! You gave me quite a scare there,” he said,
checking on Andrea’s vital signs as he fussed around her.
The Major had
taken a step back now, to give him room to work, though she still hovered in
Andrea’s view, watching Doc with no small anxiety. It crossed Andrea’s mind to wonder exactly what the Major was
doing there. Had Doc called
her? If so, why? And how quickly had she come? All the
questions seemed rather inappropriate to voice out loud at that moment.
“She seems to be
ok,” Doc informed the Major after completing his checks.
“Is that why my
head’s pounding like I’ve had a bad Saturday night out?” asked Andrea
sardonically.
“I’ll give you
something to help with that,” he replied, disappearing off to one of the supply
cabinets on the far wall.
Andrea risked
trying to raise herself again, finding the Major’s hand on her arm once more,
helping her up into a sitting position.
The fingers felt hot on her bare skin, though she wasn’t entirely sure
if that was because she was cold after passing out, or if it was just her
imagination.
“Thanks,” she
said as she shuffled up the bed.
The Major smiled
back at her. It seemed to Andrea that
she was being studied even more intently than normal. “Doc was right,” the Major said, “We were worried. You’re sure you’re ok?”
‘We’ were
worried? Andrea repeated
wonderingly in her mind. Before Doc had
just referred to himself, but it seemed he wasn’t the only one who had an
interest in her well-being.
“Yes, I’m fine
really,” Andrea reassured her.
The major nodded,
a contemplative expression crossing her face.
Andrea got the distinct impression she was going to say something more,
that thought being borne out when the Major made to speak again. “I…”
“Here we go, this
should help with the headache.”
Andrea could
gleefully have slapped the doctor at that moment. She was convinced that the Major had been about to say something
important, surprised by the degree of frustration she felt at not knowing what
it was. Realising the moment was gone
she offered up her arm to the man who was completely unaware he had disturbed
anything.
“So what
happened?” she quizzed him as he injected the pain-relieving drug.
“I wish I knew,”
he replied ruefully.
“Just another
random accident?” offered Andrea, making sure she caught the Major’s eye as she
said it.
The Major looked
displeased at the suggestion. “We don’t
know that there’s anything suspicious about this,” she reasoned, “You did say
this was a new piece of equipment, Doc?
So it could have just been a malfunction.”
“It could have,”
he allowed, “But I did test it thoroughly before I used it on Andrea.”
“Of course, I
wasn’t insinuating you would do anything to jeopardise Andrea, just that
testing something and the real thing can sometimes yield different results.”
“That’s
reassuring to know,” interjected Andrea, “Just another day at the office for us
guinea pigs then?”
The Major rolled
her eyes in Andrea’s direction. “You
know we don’t think like that. All I’m
saying is that accidents can happen sometimes.
I still want Doc to go over his device with a fine-tooth comb, to check
for any signs of tampering.”
Something
suddenly occurred to Andrea.
“Lieutenant Chadwick was in here when I arrived. I’m not sure what he was up to, but he
appeared surprised to see me.”
“Was he doing
something to Doc’s equipment?” the Major asked, her brow creasing at the
disturbing implication that her subordinate might be involved in some way.
“I’m not really
sure,” Andrea answered, trying to recall exactly what Chadwick had been doing. “He had his back to me when I came in – he
was over at the bench there.”
“What do you keep
there?” the Major asked Doc.
“Nothing to do
with this device,” he answered, “It’s something else I’m working on for Dr
Todd.”
“But he could
have done something to this before I got here,” Andrea posited, holding up the
coloured wires of Doc’s device that now hung loose at the bedside.
“Possibly,”
allowed the Major doubtfully, “But it would be pretty stupid to come and
sabotage something with someone to witness it.
Are you sure you’re not letting your personal disagreement with
Lieutenant Chadwick cloud your judgement?”
“I’m just saying
what I saw,” Andrea stated. The Major’s
reluctance to believe ill of her officer confirmed to Andrea that she had been
right not to mention the previous encounter with Chadwick in her quarters.
“And I will look
into this,” asserted the Major, “But since we don’t have any evidence one way
or the other at this stage I don’t want any kind of unfounded accusations
circulating, is that understood?”
“Perfectly,”
replied Andrea.
……….
Having been given
the rest of the day off, Andrea headed back up to her quarters to try and
relax. She unsuccessfully attempted to
play her violin, but her mind was too distracted to concentrate properly. She thought that old Mrs Chambers would be
spinning in her grave if she could hear the sounds that passed for music
emanating from the strings. That was
assuming Mrs Chambers was actually dead by now, which Andrea thought highly
likely considering the violin teacher must have been about eighty when she used
to teach Andrea as a child.
In the end Andrea
settled for some mindless gaming on her playstation instead. However, even slaughtering an army of
zombies or racing round the streets of Monte Carlo didn’t really help ease her
mind.
Her thoughts kept
coming back to the lab and she couldn’t help thinking that Chadwick was somehow
responsible for what had happened to her.
She knew she only had the fact that he had been present prior to the
accident as any sort of evidence, and considered that she could be letting her
personal feelings get in the way as the Major had suggested. Thinking of the other woman she realised the
fact that the Major had seemed to discount her suggestion was more troubling to
her than what had actually happened.
Dumping the
console’s control pad on the floor she took a swig of her Pepsi. The phone sat invitingly before her and she
deicded she’d call one of her outside friends, to give her a chance to connect
with the real world for once. A quick
check of her watch verified that it was late enough to find someone at
home. Picking up the cordless handset,
she deliberated over who to call for a second before her fingers punched in the
number she knew off-by-heart.
“Hello?”
“Hi Meg, it’s
me.”
“Andi? It’s good to hear from you. How have you been?”
“Not too
bad. I just thought I’d give you a
call, catch up on the gossip from home.”
“Feeling a bit
out of it?”
“You could say
that, so what’s been happening back in London?”
“Oh my god!” said Meg suddenly, “Actually I’m glad
you called, I heard something worrying from Mike, you know Maria’s partner.”
Andrea was alert
and on the edge of her seat now.
“What? What did he say?”
“Well, he was
a bit drunk at the time,” noted Meg warily, “So I don’t know how true it was or if it was just
him spouting off.”
“Just tell me
what he said…please.”
There was a
moment’s hesitation on the other end before Meg spoke. “Well, he was saying he wasn’t sure
Maria’s death was an accident.”
“What?” cried
Andrea, shocked.
“I know,
freaky, huh?”
Andrea was having
trouble taking it in. “And did he say
what made him think that?”
“Not much that
made sense, though he seemed pretty adamant.
Most of it centred around the fact that Maria was investigating
something on the side. Something that
she hadn’t even told him the details of, all very hush, hush by all
accounts. He reckoned she’d stumbled on
something she shouldn’t have.”
Andrea was
silent, struck dumb by the implication of Meg’s words. This secret thing Maria had been
investigating, it was the warehouse incident, it had to be. Which meant that if what Mike said was true
then Andrea had gotten Maria killed.
“Andi?” came Meg’s voice again, “Are you still
there?”
“Y-yes, I’m
here,” stuttered Andrea quietly.
Meg couldn’t fail
to pick up on the shift in Andrea’s mood.
“Are you all right?”
“I…I need to go
now.”
“Andi?”
Andrea quickly
hung up without even saying goodbye, the phone slipping from her hand to
clatter noisily onto the coffee table.
She couldn’t talk to Meg at that moment, her mind was reeling too much
for what she’d just learnt. She felt
sick inside knowing she could have indirectly sent Maria to her death. All she could do was cling wishfully to the
notion that Mike had got it wrong, that in his grief he’d concocted a fanciful
scenario to justify a seemingly random, pointless death. Yet deep-down Andrea couldn’t helping the
gnawing doubt that he could well be right.
She got up,
wandering dazedly to the window, leaning her head heavily on the cool
glass. The last light of day was fast
disappearing over the bleak landscape of the island and Andrea felt a similar
sinking sensation in her stomach.
The chime of the
door broke her reverie. She glanced
round at the door, supposing she could pretend she wasn’t in, though knowing
that a quick check with the monitoring room would verify her location to
whoever was outside. Sighing she ran
her fingers roughly through her hair, trying to steel herself for her visitor,
hoping she could get rid of them quickly.
“Come in,” she
finally called.
The Major
entered, her eyes swinging round the room until she located Andrea over by the
window.
“Is everything
all right?” the Major asked, noting Andrea’s demeanour.
“Yes,” replied
Andrea shortly.
“If you don’t
mind me saying, you look a little…haggard.”
Andrea
shrugged. “I suppose someone trying to
kill you can have that effect on a person.”
The Major ignored
the barbed edge to the comment and crossed over to join Andrea by the window. “That’s what I wanted to talk to you about
actually,” she said, still scanning the young woman. Andrea wished her moods weren’t quite so seemingly obvious to the
other woman. “Though we can leave it
until morning if you’re not feeling up to it.”
“No, you’re here
now, you may as well continue,” replied Andrea, thinking that was the easiest
option to avoid further questions on her state of mind.
The Major eased
round the edge of the sofa and lowered herself onto the cushions, crossing her
uniformed trouser-legs and waiting expectantly for Andrea to join her. Andrea contemplated remaining standing to
indicate she wasn’t expecting a long conversation.
“Are you going to
make me get a crick in my neck, or are you going to sit down?”
Andrea walked round
the low coffee table to sit at the far end of the sofa, the Major turning to
face her as she did.
“Mainly I just
wanted to check how you were,” she said gently, “Though I suppose I already
have my answer to that,” she added her eyes sweeping over Andrea again.
Andrea sighed,
trying to avoid the apraising stare by looking off at the window over the
Major’s shoulder. She felt a bit bad
making the Major think the earlier incident was the cause of her current bad
mood. “I’m ok really, just a bit
tired.”
“If you’re sure,”
replied the Major doubtfully before continuing on. “I’ve spoken to Lieutenant Chadwick, by the way, he says he
didn’t touch Doc’s device.”
Andrea snorted
with derision. “Really. So that’s it then? Another whitewash? You
lot are good at covering things up aren’t you, just like the warehouse
incident.”
“You can hardly
link the two things,” reasoned the Major, “And it’s not a whitewash,
investigations are still ongoing. Doc’s
taking his equipment apart piece by piece, when he’s finished hopefully we’ll
have some answers.”
“I won’t hold my
breath,” muttered Andrea, “Just like I’m not holding it for any results from
your other investigation.”
The Major’s face
took on a pinched expression at Andrea’s sarcastic tone. “You’re hardly making me think it’s worth my
while continuing with it if that’s your attitude.”
“Oh, sorry, am I
somehow meant to be grateful?” wondered Andrea bitterly. She couldn’t seem to stop thoughts of what
Meg had told her colouring her current conversation.
The Major paused
before answering, her eyes narrowing perceptably as she observed Andrea. “What’s going on?”
“What do you
mean?” asked Andrea, shifting her gaze away once more.
“Why are you
being so antagonistic all of a sudden?” the Major asked evenly, never taking
her eyes from Andrea, “I thought you were happy for me to be taking my time
looking into it. I thought you
understood the need for caution.”
“There’s taking
your time, and then there’s doing sod all.”
Andrea didn’t know why she was being so short with the Major. It seemed she was just a convenient target
for her repressed frustration.
The Major was
doing remarkably well not rising to it, though there was an edge of annoyance
creeping into her tone too. “Are you
accusing me of doing nothing?”
“I’m not accusing
you of anything,” said Andrea off-handedly, “Why, do you have something to be
guilty about?”
“Of course not!”
cried the Major, before lowering her tone again, “What’s gotten into you?”
“Nothing. I told you I’m just fed up of your inaction.”
The Major shook
her head, eyeing Andrea suspiciously.
“There’s something you’re not telling me.” Her eyes travelled round the room, taking in her surroundings as
she left a gap for Andrea to volunteer something. Andrea could see them passing over where the phone still sat
upturned on the coffee table. “Have you
spoken to someone today?” queried the Major, looking back at Andrea.
“I might have
done,” replied Andrea non-commitally.
Why she hadn’t just said ‘no’ she didn’t know.
“What did they
say to you to get you this riled up?”
Andrea leapt to
her feet, snatching up the phone and putting it back in its cradle. “There is such a thing as a private
conversation you know!” she snapped,
before walking back over to the window so her back was to the Major. She crossed her arms, standing stiffly while
gazing out at the twilight.
“Sorry, I’m just
concerned, that’s all,” came the Major’s voice from behind her. “If there’s something wrong I want to help.”
The Major’s voice
had come from slightly closer the second time, making Andrea think she had got
up too.
“Andrea?”
Andrea almost
jumped as the Major’s hand came to rest on her shoulder. She could feel the warm fingers just as
earlier in the lab, the simple touch strangely comforting. Andrea exhaled slowly, letting her shoulders
droop in resignation.
“It was Meg,” she
said quietly.
“Oh?”
Andrea slowly
turned round, the Major letting her hand drop though she didn’t step back. “She told me something…worrying about
Maria,” outlined Andrea.
Andrea explained
the rest of what Meg had told her, the Major’s expression growing increasingly
concerned as she spoke. Even when
Andrea mentioned how she had asked Meg to look into the warehouse accident for
her, the Major didn’t interupt, letting Andrea finish before she spoke.
“It does sound
disturbing,” she conceded, “If what Maria’s partner is suggesting is
true. There must have been some sort of
investigation surrounding the circumstances of her death though, which I’m
presuming didn’t reveal anything untoward?”
“True,” agreed
Andrea, “But then there are investigations and there are cover-ups aren’t
there?”
The Major frowned
at the implication she would be the sort to know about such things.
Andrea sighed
again, closing her eyes. “It’s just so
bloody frustrating – I need to do something!” she cried casting her hands
up. “Instead I’m stuck up here on my
own cut off from everything.”
The Major placed
a calming hand on Andrea’s upper arm.
“You’re not on your own, you have friends here.”
Andrea glanced
down at the fingers that were stroking her skin almost imperceptably now. Andrea wasn’t even sure the Major realised
she was doing it, since she seemed to be naturally tactile, always ready with a
reassuring pat here or a comforting stroke there. At least she was tactile with Andrea, the young woman not
recalling seeing her touch anyone else quite so often.
Looking up into
the Major’s eyes she found it hard to remember what they had been talking about
for a moment. Fortunately the Major
continued on, relieving Andrea from the need to formulate anything to say. “I know no one could replace Maria,” she
said in a low husky voice, “But that doesn’t mean you’re alone.”
“I just miss her
sometimes,” confessed Andrea, “And then I start thinking of home and missing
that and everyone there too. I never
thought I was that attached before, but I guess we don’t always realise until
we lose something. God, I even miss my
bloody cat! How ridiculous is that?”
“It’s not
ridiculous,” said the Major understandingly, “It’s all right, you are allowed
to feel a little homesick and lonely from time to time, you were uprooted
rather suddenly under trying circumstances.
You can let the tough exterior drop every once in a while and we won’t
think any the less of you; I won’t think any the less of you.”
Andrea wondered
why the Major felt the need to add the extra bit on the end, touched that she
had. Andrea managed a small half smile
of reassurance, to let the Major know she had taken in and accepted her words.
“The thing is
it’s not like I could talk to anyone back home about this even if I could see
them,” Andrea noted in frustration, “What would I say? ‘Oh, by the way, I’m a
mutant with super powers.’ It’s hardly
the easiest thing in the world to comprehend or accept.”
“You never know
though, maybe they wouldn’t be bothered in the slightest. I mean how did your friends react when you
told them you were gay? I bet most of
them didn’t really care, knowing that you were still the same person whatever
your sexuality.”
“That’s true,”
agreed Andrea, “But then there are all those people who aren’t my friends. There’s a good number of narrow minded
bigots out there, who fear anything that’s different or they don’t understand. And if you think being gay is enough to alienate
you from those people, then what about being a mutant?”
The Major pursed
her lips contemplatively. “Or maybe it
wouldn’t be so ‘bad’ in their eyes. Not
that I’m justifying homophobia, but there’s a whole load of cultural and religious
reasons behind it.”
“Maybe,” allowed
Andrea, “On the other hand there are thousands of other gay people. How many other mutants are there? It’s not as if there’s many people to turn
to for support who understand what you’re going through.”
“You have us here
at the base,” offered the Major.
“No offence, but
none of you know what it’s really like.
You can study us as much as you like, but you don’t know what it’s like
to have this thing inside you that sets you apart from everyone else, to carry
the burden of these abilities.”
The Major frowned
slightly. “You make it sound like a
curse. There must be some good aspects
to it. Isn’t it even the slightest bit
wonderful to be able to do something no one else can?”
“Ok, maybe it is
a bit,” conceded Andrea, “But at the same time it would be nice to be able to
share it with someone, both the good and the bad.”
The Major nodded
as she gazed up at Andrea. “As I’ve
said before, I want to help you as much as I can. All right I may not know exactly what you’re going through, but I
can try if you give me the chance.”
Andrea didn’t
quite know how to respond to that. It
was true that the Major had expressed similar sentiments before, but never in a
sentence so littered with first person pronouns. It sounded as if Andrea was becoming something of a cause for the
Major.
“Anyway, I’ll
leave you to it for tonight,” said the Major while Andrea was still considering
her previous words, “Try to get some sleep and we’ll speak again tomorrow about
how we might move things on.”
Andrea’s eyes
shot to her quizically.
“Our own
investigation,” clarified the Major, “Into the warehouse accident.”
“Ah yes, of
course,” agreed Andrea, not knowing what she had been thinking of.
After the Major
had left she went over their conversation again, thinking that maybe the Major
was right that it wasn’t so bad being a mutant if it meant she got extra
personal attention from the army officer.
…………………
Two days later
Andrea was heading back to her quarters with thoughts of bed after a long days
training, the hot jets of the shower looking more inviting than ever. Entering her quarters, she went straight
through to the bedroom to discard her jacket haphazardly on the bed. She was starting to peel off her t-shirt
when something struck her about the room she had just come through. Pulling her shirt back down she wandered out
into the living area, flicking on one of the uplighter lamps. Andrea’s mouth dropped open in surprise as
the light revealed that what she thought she had seen the first time through
was indeed there.
Andrea reached
down to pick up her cat from where he was sitting contentedly on her sofa. “How on earth did you get here?” she asked
of the tabby and white tomcat, brushing her fingers over his fur.
He merely
answered by starting to purr in her arms.
It was then that she saw there were a number of tins of cat food sitting
on the kitchen counter along with Gerry’s bowl. She had walked over to inspect them when the chime on her door
sounded.
“Come in,” called
Andrea, spinning to face the door with her cat still cradled in her arms.
The Major came
in, smiling when she saw the animal held close to Andrea’s chest. “Good, you found him then,” she noted, “I
meant to warn you before you got here.”
“You
brought him here?”
“Yes,” confirmed
the Major, before a brief look of concern flashed across her face. “That’s all right isn’t it?”
“Yes, yes, of
course,” replied Andrea quickly, “More than all right. I didn’t realise pets were allowed.”
“Well, no one
else has one,” the Major conceded, “At least not that I know of, but conversely
there’s no rules against it. I thought
it might be a small reminder of home for you.”
“It’s great,
thank you.” Andrea set Gerry down on
the counter top, still stroking him as she tried to gather her thoughts. “Can I offer you a drink?” she asked to give
herself some more time.
“Thanks,”
answered the Major, “Coffee please.”
Andrea
laughed. “I hardly had to ask did
I? Take a seat and I’ll bring it over,”
she suggested, indicating the couch. As
Andrea busied herself with the kettle she continued speaking over her shoulder
to the other woman. “How did you manage
to get him off Meg?”
“I called her and
asked if we could send someone to pick him up.
I hope you don’t mind, but I thought it would be a nice surprise for
you.”
Andrea supposed
she should be a bit offended that the Major had been speaking to her friends
without permission. However, any minor
affront was far outweighed by the pleasantly warm sensation sweeping through
Andrea at the idea that the Major would want to arrange a surprise for
her. Andrea had only mentioned missing
Gerry as a casual comment, yet it seemed the Major had wasted no time acting
upon the information.
As Andrea turned
with the coffee and her own tea she was amazed to see that Gerry had sauntered
over to the sofa and was now making himself comfortable on the Major’s
lap. Andrea smiled to herself at the
incongrous sight of the uniformed army officer with a ball of fur busily kneading
her thighs.
“You can chuck
him off if you like,” noted Andrea as she joined the pair of them on the sofa,
setting the drinks down on the coffee table.
“Though you should feel priveleged - he doesn’t like to sit on just
anyone.”
“In that case I
better let him stay put,” said the Major, tentatively stroking him. Andrea stiffled a chuckle, guessing the
Major obviously wasn’t really a cat person by the way she warily eased her
fingers across his back. “So his name’s
Jerry then is it?” asked the Major, “Wasn’t Jerry the mouse, or is it an ironic
thing?”
“What?” said
Andrea, confused for a second. “Oh,
no,” she laughed, as realisation dawned, “It’s Gerry, with a ‘G’, as in Gerry
and the Pacemakers?”
The Major’s brow
creased into a dubious look. “I
sincerely hope that’s not who he’s named after.”
“Do you not like
Gerry and the Pacemakers?” Andrea
asked, trying to hide her smile.
The Major shot
her a look to indicate she knew Andrea was winding her up. “I like ‘Ferry Cross the Mersey’ as much as
the next person,” she replied evenly.
“As long as the
next person has some earplugs, right?” suggested Andrea with a wink. “But, no he’s not named after them, though
there is a Liverpool connection I’m afraid to admit.”
“Hang on, Gerry
with a ‘G’?” checked the Major once more, “That wouldn’t be short for Gerrard
would it?”
Andrea nodded
sheepishly. It had seemed like a good
idea at the time, to name her cat after the Liverpool captain, and normally she
never got as far as explaining where the name came from in order to feel
embarassed about it. She considered
that she should come up with some other fake reason for the future – maybe the
Major’s cartoon character suggestion would come across better and not make her
look like quite such a sad football fan.
“And I thought I
was a devoted fan,” remarked the Major, looking like she was about to burst out
laughing at any moment, “But I’ve never gone to quite that extreme. Ow!”
The Major glanced
down at the cat on her lap, who was now flexing his claws in her kneecap as if
in silent protest about her mocking of his name.
“Here, let me
take him,” suggested Andrea, reaching to pick him up off the other woman’s
legs.
“It’s all right,
I was just surprised…”
The Major stopped
as Andrea’s hand brushed over her own.
It was purely accidental, both women having been going for the cat at
the same time, but to Andrea it felt like an electric shock had been discharged
up her arm. She quickly retracted her
hand.
“Sorry,” she
said, averting her eyes and trying to calm her breathing which had shallowed
perceptably. Her breathing stopped
completely in the next instant when the Major took her hand again as Andrea was
moving it away.
“It’s all right,”
said the Major softly, her husky voice sending further tingles right through
Andrea.
The room suddenly
seemed small to Andrea, everything pressing in and focussing on the joined
hands. Her eyes were fixed on them,
staring as a thumb gently stroked over the skin of the back of her hand. Andrea was unable to tear her gaze away,
scared to look up in case the Major decided to stop the intimate contact. At least it seemed intimate to Andrea,
though for all she knew it could be perfectly normal for the Major to touch
people like that. Maybe she wasn’t even
aware she was doing it. Andrea, on the
other hand, was acutely aware, as she was of the reactions it was evoking in
her – sending her pulse rate and temperature soaring in equal measure. Finally Andrea managed a ragged breath,
forcing herself to look up. Seeing the
Major regarding her with soft eyes, Andrea had to take a tiny gulp. Andrea was further stunned when the Major
didn’t let go of her hand, even though she had been holding on far longer than
was entirely appropriate for a friendly gesture.
What was the
Major doing? Andrea
wondered. Was she actually doing
anything? Andrea considered she could be completely imagining it, that she
was the only one who felt the charged atmosphere in the room.
Suddenly a loud
electronic bleep broke the silence and the moment. The Major started as if she too had been caught up in thinking
about something, Andrea desperate to know what that had been. The Major swiftly dropped Andrea’s hand to
answer the call from her communicator.
As the other woman responded to it, Andrea didn’t hear the words of her
conversation. She was too busy looking
down at her hand, brushing her own fingers lightly over where the Major’s had
been moments before.
“Sorry, I have to
go,” said the Major, rising off the sofa and spilling Gerry from her lap.
Andrea’s eyes
flicked dazedly up to her. “Yes…of
course…”
“Is everything
ok?” queried the Major, stopping for a moment before she left when she noticed
Andrea’s distraction.
“Uh…yes…,”
replied Andrea unconvincingly, realising she was sounding like a bumbling
idiot. She had to steel herself before she
spoke again, injecting some calmness into her tone. “Thank you again for arranging for Gerry to be brought here,” she
said, thinking that was reasonably safe.
“No problem,”
said the Major with a smile.
“Feel free to pop
by and see him any time, since he seems to like you.” Andrea cringed inwardly as soon as the invite had passed her
lips. Why on earth her mouth insisted
on coming out with such rubbish in the Major’s presence was beyond her.
“Thank you,”
replied the Major, seemingly unperturbed by the offer, “I might just do that.”
Andrea tried to
stop her eyebrows raising in surprise, though it felt like they were
threatening to sneak right off the top of her forehead.
The Major had
left the dumbstruck Andrea and was near the door now, turning slightly as her
hand rested on the handle to wish Andrea a “Good night.”
“Good night,”
Andrea replied automatically, thankful her mouth seemed to be working
still. As the door closed, Gerry hopped
up onto Andrea’s lap, rubbing his head against her hand. “Oh, now you want me do you, traitor?” she
said accusingly. “Mind you I’m not sure
I can blame you…” she added, glancing back off at the recently shut door.
……………
“Is it meant to
be this dark?”
Andrea sighed,
turning in the blackness to where the voice of her companion had come
from. “I don’t know, Harry. I’ve done this as many times as you have,
which is precisely none.”
“Didn’t you do
this kind of thing in the police force though?” pressed the young man.
“I think you’ve
been watching too many episodes of The Bill,” suggested Andrea, shifting
uncomfortably on the hard floor where she sat, “Most police work is pretty
mundane - hours of painstaking investigation and mountains of paperwork. It’s certainly not all explosions and car
chases.”
“What, no hostage
rescues at all?”
“I have been
involved in some hostage negotiations,” admitted Andrea, quickly continuing on
when she heard Harry taking a breath to speak, “But only as one of the officers
on the scene. And in all those cases it
was hours of sitting around followed by the suspect giving themselves up
voluntarily. We certainly didn’t storm
in with all guns blazing.”
“Maybe they do
things differently in the army though?” pondered Harry, “It’s kind of an SAS
thing isn’t it? Surprise the enemy,
take them all out before they know what’s happening.”
“You really do
watch too much TV you know that?” said Andrea, shaking her head, “But you could
be right. Either way, it’s what we’re
meant to be doing today so who am I to argue?”
Andrea could hear
some stiffled coughing and spluttering noises coming from next to her. She peered into the darkness but couldn’t
make anything out in the pitch black.
“Are you all
right?” she asked Harry.
He coughed a
couple more times. “Yes, but I could
have sworn I just heard you say you weren’t going to argue. A month or so ago you wouldn’t shut up
moaning about these exercises – ‘it’s too cold’…’it’s too wet’…’I’m
tired’…’what the hell are we doing out here’…”
“All right, all
right,” interupted Andrea, “God, you make me sound like a right whinger.”
There was the
deafening sound of silence from by her side.
“That’s the point
where you’re meant to leap in and say that I’m not,” she informed Harry.
“Right…” he
noted, “…er…so how’s your cat?”
“How the hell did
you hear about that so quick?” said Andrea in alarm, forgetting that he hadn’t
done as requested. The Major had only
given Gerry to Andrea the night before.
“Like you can
keep anything a secret round here!” scoffed Harry.
“I’m beginning to
see that,” noted Andrea ruefully. “He’s
fine thank you,” she added answering the original question, “I little
disoriented for now, but he’ll be roaming the halls in no time.”
“That was nice of
the Major wasn’t it?” commented Harry evenly.
If Andrea could
have eyed him suspiciously she would have done. “What’s that supposed to mean?”
“She’s never
brought any pets in for me.”
“Do you even have
a pet?”
“Well, no, but
that’s beside the point.”
“Which is what
exactly?” queried Andrea.
“That this is
more proof that you’re the Major’s new favourite.”
“New
favourite?” repeated Andrea, emphasising the first word.
Harry seemed
reluctant to continue, stuttering out a response. “Well, there was…erm…well…maybe I shouldn’t say,” he
mumbled. “Forget I said anything,” he
swiftly added.
Andrea wondered
what he had been referring too.
Whatever it was, it seemed that some things could be kept a
secret after all. In a way she was glad
about that, since it appeared no one seemed to be aware of her propensity for
night time walks round the base. Since
discovering the Major on the roof nearly two weeks previously, Andrea had ended
up there more than once. Each time she
reasoned to herself that she liked to get out in the peaceful night air and
watch the stars, and that it was nothing to do with hoping she might find a
certain army Major up there again.
If that had been
her aim, then it would have been successful on several ocassions, the Major
being on the rooftop more often than not when Andrea arrived. Each time they would share a coffee and a
friendly chat about the events of the day before Andrea went back in to
bed. On the nights when Andrea opened
the door on an empty roof she always found herself faintly disappointed.
Hallstrom, are
you and King in position?
Andrea shook herself
out of her nighttime recollections to reply to Chadwick over the intercom. “Yes, we’re ready yo go.”
Ok, King, you
know what to do.
“I hate this
bit!” stated Harry as Andrea sensed him clambering to his feet.
“At least it’s
dark,” she noted, hearing the sounds of clothing being removed, “And I’m really
not interested in seeing anything you have to offer anyway.”
“Thanks, that
makes me feel so much better,” he replied sarcastically, “Just make sure you
pick my clothes up!”
Andrea heard the
faintest whispering noise in the dark, assuming it was the sound of Harry
activating his power to alter the molecular density of his body. Unfortunately that power didn’t extend to
anything he might be wearing, so in order to take on the lightest gaseous form
he could achieve meant removing them.
The next thing she heard was the sound of a lock clicking undone as
Harry undid it from the other side having slipped under the tiny crack at the
foot of the door. The door swung open
to reveal an empty corridor, Andrea blinking a couple of times as light flooded
into the area on the dark side of the entrance.
Harry’s head
poked round the edge of the door, his naked shoulders just visible. “Why you can’t just bash the thing down I
don’t know,” he said in annoyance as Andrea handed him back his clothes.
“Because that
would activate the alarms straight away and this is meant to be a stealthy
mission at this point,” she explained.
Harry continued
muttering to himself as he pulled his trousers back on, Andrea taking the
opportunity to glance up and down the dim corridor to check for any boobytraps
or other devices. It was just a
training exercise, but she still liked to do things right. She couldn’t spot anything untoward, just
bare concrete walls and floor stretching off into the distance. They were in a specially constructed
building on the island, used for such activities by both them and the regular
troops.
When Harry was
finally clothed again they crept along the corridor, alert the whole time for
danger. Though Andrea had denied it to
the young man, the fact that she had been in the police force did give her some
experience, at least more than Harry had that was for sure. Before coming to the island base he’d been
working in computing, doing some mundane deskbound job. Sitting typing at a keyboard all day didn’t
really prepare you well for attempting to rescue hostages from hostile
terrorists, even if it was only a simulation.
In the simulation
the parts of the terrorists were played by soldiers on the base, while the
hostages were just dummies. It was up
to Andrea and the other superhumans to sneak in and then use any means
necessary to secure the hostages’ safety.
Andrea supposed ‘any means necessary’ in army parlance included actually
killing the terrorists, though obviously they wouldn’t be doing that in a
simulation. It troubled her to think
that might be expected in the real thing though, if they were ever called upon
to engage in the real thing. She had
used force to apprehend suspects in the police before, but never to the extreme
of having to kill someone. The fact
that the British police didn’t routinely carry firearms made that a rarity in
general.
“This is it isn’t
it?” Harry whispered to her, having stopped in front of a sturdy metal door.
“Yes,” replied
Andrea, recalling the briefing they’d received from Lieutenant Chadwick before
they started.
Andrea relayed
their position to Chadwick, who was running the exercise that morning, the
Major busy elsewhere. She could see
Harry shifting uneasily at her side as they waited for the signal to go in,
suddenly struck by the similarity between the current setting and the raid on
the warehouse over two months ago that had started everything. Harry even looked a bit like Walker she
suddenly realised, having to shake away the unwanted mental image of the young
constable dying by her side.
“Andrea!”
“What?” she
queried, turning to Harry.
“That was the
signal!”
“Helvete!”
Andrea leapt to
her feet, berating herself fot letting her mind wander. The time for stealth was over now and she
kicked the door down in one easy motion, the clang as it hit the concrete
echoing off the bare walls. The pair of
them dashed into the room on the other side, both knowing the part they were
supposed to play. Andrea was
immediately up in the air, avoiding the tracer bullets being fired in her
direction. They wouldn’t hurt if they
hit her, beyond a small sting, but any touch would signal the end of her
participation. Swooping down at the
fake terrorists she could see the other superhumans fulfilling their roles,
Harry hardening his density this time to repel attack, while Tom zipped round
the room disarming their opponents.
That just left the two men holding the ‘hostages’ to Andrea. Landing next to them she whipped the guns
from their hands before they could turn them on her and crushed the nozzles in
her fists, rendering them useless.
Discarding them she grabbed both men by the scruff of the neck, hoisting
them effortlessly off the floor, their legs spiralling in free air.
“Do you concede?”
The men merely
nodded, and she set them down, catching sight of some other activity on the far
side of the room. Everyone had stopped,
thinking the exercise was over, but suddenly Chadwick was behind Harry, tripping
him up and then levelling his gun at Harry’s head .
“Bang!” said the
Lieutenant as Harry whirled round, “Look’s like you’re dead.” Chadwick now had his foot on Harry’s chest,
pinning him to the ground as he loomed mencingly over him.
“All right, you
can let me up now,” said a disgruntled Harry.
“Huh, what was
that?” asked Chadwick, looking around the room, “I thought I heard a little
voice?”
“Leave it out,
Chadwick,” said Harry, trying to move the other man’s foot.
Chadwick sneered
down at him. “You wouldn’t last five
minutes in the real army. You lot are
pathetic, my men would have you in a second.”
Andrea was next
to them now, hands on hips as she stared at the Lieutenant. “Let him go, Chadwick.”
His eyes flicked
to her, his sneer still curving his lips.
“Here they are, the rest of the mutie band,” he said, seeing that Tom
and Bel were behind Andrea too, “You lot would be a bunch of losers if you
didn’t have your powers. You are with
them.”
“Want to put that
to the test?” challenged Tom.
Chadwick finally
removed his boot from Harry so he could square up to the fair-haired young
man. “Anytime! Just name the day!”
“Tom!” cried
Andrea, grabbing his shoulder, “You can’t fight him.”
“Yeah,” agreed
Chadwick, “The Major wants us all to be friends, and we all know how Hallstrom
wouldn’t want to offend her.”
Andrea returned
the nasty look Chadwick was currently shooting her.
“I didn’t say
anything about a fight,” remarked Tom, “How about something more civilised – a
football game, us against you lot?”
Chadwick
considered it for a moment. “And no
powers?”
“Yep, no powers.”
“All right,
you’re on.”
……
Though Tom’s
suggestion had started out as a way to ease the tension with Chadwick, the rest
of the base soon got wind of it and suddenly everyone was interested in who was
going to win the football game, a number of books starting up on a range of
topics from what the final score would be to who would be first to be sent
off. Since there were only four
superhumans it was decided that the game should be five-a-side, Doc joining up
on the superhuman’s side to make up the numbers.
Two days after
Tom’s initial challenge, Andrea headed down to the indoor gym where the game
was to be played still unsure who was on the other team. Chadwick had been keeping his selection a
closely guarded secret, though it had been agreed that his team should include
two women, to keep the sides even.
Andrea dumped her bag in the changing room and headed out into the gym,
noting that spectator gallery that overlooked the wooden-floored room on one
side was jam-packed. Tom and Harry were
already out in the middle, Harry doing some enthusiastic stretching while Tom
looked on in amusement his foot nonchalantly resting on a ball. His eyes flicked up as Andrea approached.
“Oh bollocks,
you’re not wearing that are you?” he cried as soon as he caught sight of her
attire.
Andrea looked
down at her replica Liverpool home shirt, which hung loose over the top of her
plain black shorts. “What? You said we were playing in red. Anyway, you can hardly talk,” she added,
casting her eyes at his Manchester United shirt.
“But this is the
shirt of winners,” he reasoned.
“Hey, we’re in
the final of the Champions League, that’s more than your lot,” Andrea teased
him.
“Maybe,” he
reluctantly conceded, “But there’s no way you’re going to win it.”
“We’ll see.”
Their debate was
cut short as more people entered the room.
Chadwick was at the head of a group of three other soldiers. Andrea recognised one as Chadwick’s
pool-playing partner, and she thought she’d met the woman down in the
monitoring room once, though her name escaped Andrea at that moment. The other man she didn’t know, though he was
talking animatedly with Chadwick, so she could only assume he was one of the
Lieutenant’s cronies. They all wore
white shirts, to distinguish them from Andrea’s team, combined with
miscellaneously coloured shorts. Next
came Bel and Doc, kitted out in red, along with Dr Todd who wore black, leading
Andrea to assume he was refereeing the game.
Finally the doors swung open to reveal the final player.
Andrea had to do
a double take of the figure in the white t-shirt and navy shorts. Her second look, confirmed what the first
had told her but she hadn’t quite believed – it was the Major. As the other woman crossed the room, Andrea
found her eyes drawn to the Major’s chest, telling herself it was the
“Carlsberg” logo across it that had led them that way.
“Bloody hell,”
cried Tom also looking at the Major’s shirt, “Why don’t we all put Liverpool
shirts on and be done with it?”
“I have
more than one if you’d like to borrow one,” Andrea commented in Tom’s
direction.
“Bugger
off!” he exclaimed in horror.
The
players filtered off to their respective sides ready for the kick off, Andrea
finding herself staring at the Major’s retreating back, still not quite able to
grasp that she would be part of the game.
Andrea wondered how and why she had got involved. Was it to keep an eye on things between
Chadwick and the superhumans? Maybe it was because she was friendly with
Chadwick and he had asked her? Or was
it just because she was competitive and liked to play football? The answers weren’t forthcoming from the
white material of the back of the Major’s shirt, beneath which Andrea could
make out the band of her sports bra.
The whistle from Dr Todd to start the match saved Andrea from
contemplating why she had noticed that last thing.
Since it
was a five-a-side game the players were all over the pitch marking various
other players at one time or another.
Andrea received the ball from Tom, taking a moment to control it with
her instep. Suddenly a tackle flew in,
whipping the ball off her toes.
Glancing up to see who’d been so fast in closing her down she caught
sight of a brief smile from the Major before the other woman was off, dribbling
the ball towards Andrea’s team’s goal.
Doc
looked exceedingly nervous between the white posts as the other team advanced,
the Major laying the ball off to Chadwick.
When the shot came in from the Lieutenant, Doc practically leapt out the
way as it sailed into the net. Chadwick
was slapping hands with the others on his team as Doc glumly retrieved it.
Once the
game restarted Andrea found herself with the ball again, making sure she
protected it better this time. Only now
the Major was right up behind her, marking her tight. It was all part of the game, the jostling and nipping at the
heels, but when Andrea felt the Major’s hand in the small of her back as she
balanced herself to get sight of the ball, Andrea completely lost her
concentration and the ball was gone again.
“Andrea,
what the hell are you doing?” hissed Tom as he ran past her to defend the
attack.
Andrea
ignored him and sprinted back towards her own goal too, managing to slide in
and knock the ball away before the Major could shoot. Suddenly it seemed as if the game was a turning into a private
battle between the pair of them.
Whenever Andrea got the ball the Major was all over her and vice
versa. When half time came with the
score still at one up to the military team, Tom wasn’t slow in mentioning the
obvious personal duel.
“What’s
going on with you and the Major?” he asked, sitting down on a bench at the side
of the gym and swigging from a water bottle.
“I don’t
know what you mean,” replied Andrea, glancing off to where the other team were
also having refreshments.
The
Major was standing up, turned slightly away from Andrea as she chatted with her
team-mates. She was pushing her hands
through her auburn hair and putting back on the hairband that held it away from
her face. The sweat was tumbling down
over her cheekbones, everyone exceedingly hot due to the frenetic nature of the
game. The Major’s limbs all had a
healthy sheen to them from the exertion, Andrea’s eyes particularly drawn to
her lithe legs and the cut of her thin shorts.
Tom
broke her study. “Really? Is that why you’re staring over there now?”
Andrea
swung back to him. “I was not staring,
I was just gauging how tired the opposition are.”
“Ah, and
you can discern that from ogling the Major’s legs can you?”
Andrea
didn’t reply, since she could hardly deny it, instead whipping the bottle off
him and taking a long cooling drink.
She resolutely avoided looking at him, knowing he currently had a smirk
on his face.
She
didn’t stay cool for long as the second half started, the gaggle of soldiers up
in the viewing area cheering both teams on in near equal measure as the
battling game resumed. The shouts for
Chadwick’s team were ever so slightly louder and more earnest, but it could
have been far worse, considered Andrea.
She’d imagined that most of the troops would be rooting for Chadwick,
but it seemed there were others from amongst the rank and file that wanted to
see him lose. Plus most of the civilian
scientific staff sounded like they were supporting Andrea’s side.
Tom won
the ball off the other woman on Chadwick’s team, who had been identified to
Andrea as Private Ramis now. Seeing Tom
looking for someone to pass to, Andrea started off down the wing, and Tom duly
found her in space with the ball. As in
the first half the Major was on her in a flash, surreptitiously grabbing a
handful of Andrea’s shirt on the blind side from the referee to stop her
getting away. Andrea rose to the
challenge this time, managing to safely pass the ball to Harry.
However,
it wasn’t long before Andrea’s team lost the ball again and it was back with
the Major. Returning the favour of
moments before, Andrea was up behind her, holding on to the edge of the other
woman’s shirt. Attempting to turn with
the ball, the Major backed right up into Andrea, her backside pressing into
Andrea’s groin. Suddenly Andrea was
feeling a whole lot warmer, unable to blame the game this time. She actually gasped out loud at the
arousing sensation of the Major’s buttocks rubbing up against her. Andrea couldn’t think anything sensible as
she felt the warm mounds of flesh through the thin shorts, and before she knew
it the Major was off leaving her standing like an idiot.
“Andrea,
for god’s sake - wake up!”
Andrea
started at Tom’s remark, hoping no one else had noticed her distraction. She began to run after the Major, but Tom
stopped her.
“You
take Chadwick, I’ll mark the Major.”
Andrea
wasn’t going to argue, knowing the Major was running rings round her at
present. Andrea just seemed to lose all
recollection of how to play the game when she got close to the other
woman. Andrea dashed over to the
Lieutenant’s position, though he didn’t have the ball at that moment. She stuck close to him as her tried to find
space to receive a pass. With the ball
on the far side of the room, Chadwick took the chance to turn and speak to her
out of earshot of the others.
“See, I
knew you lot wouldn’t be able to hack it,” he whispered in her ear.
“Sod
off,” she replied succinctly deciding that action would be better than
words.
She had
spotted that Harry had won the ball for her side and she got a pass from him
now. With the Lieutenant in between her
and the goal, she deftly flicked the ball between his legs, rounding him while
he dazedly wondered what had happened.
Crossing the ball, Andrea found Harry again who thumped the ball home to
bring them with one of the other team.
“Who
can’t hack it now?” she commented to Chadwick as she walked back for kick-off.
As soon
as the game re-started Chadwick made a beeline for her, marking her tightly as
she got the ball. When it seemed like
she was going to get away, he yanked roughly at her shirt, causing her to
stumble to the floor. A loud blast on
Dr Todd’s whistle signalled that he had seen the foul, and Andrea clambered to
her feet glowering at Chadwick. The
Major was quickly there, interposing herself between them, maybe sensing that
the game could boil over at any moment.
“Take it
easy, Callum,” she said to Chadwick, using the first name that Andrea had never
heard before, “This is meant to be a friendly game.”
He
grunted and ran off to take up his position, the Major leaning closer to speak
quietly to Andrea. “That goes for you
too,” she noted.
“Me?”
said Andrea incredulously in an equally low voice, “I believe you were
the one barging into me.”
“That’s
all part of the game isn’t it?” asked the Major innocently, raising her
eyebrows before turning back to the match.
Andrea
sighed and re-joined the game too. From
the free kick the ball was played out to Bel.
She side-stepped the hapless Ramis out on the wing and fired the ball
back across the goal in Andrea’s direction.
The Major was on her again as the ball came to her feet, leaning in on
her side. It took all Andrea’s concentration
not to let the ball slip beneath her foot when she felt the Major’s breasts
rubbing up against her arm with only the thin material of her football shirt to
separate them from Andrea’s bare skin.
Andrea used her own body weight to ease the Major out the way, giving
her a sight of goal that she willingly accepted – levelling the game at two
apiece.
“Good
shot,” noted the Major genuinely.
“Thanks,”
managed Andrea, trying desperately not to look down at what had been
distracting her moments before.
The deadlock was maintained for the rest of the half, but as the last minute came Andrea found herself clean through with just the keeper to beat. The man was dancing across his line to try and put her off as she neared. She drew back her leg to shoot when suddenly she was clattered into from behind. Her standing leg was taken completely from beneath her, the young woman too surprised to stop herself crashing to the floor as her momentum carried her forward. The side of her face whacked into the hard floor as she fell, stunning her for a moment. Shaking her head, she was aware of a commotion behind her.
“That was an outrageous foul!” cried Tom.
Chadwick was puffing out his chest as Tom wagged his finger at him. “It was a good, honest tackle,” stated the burly Lieutenant.
“Bollocks! You could have broken her bloody leg!”
“All right, all right,” said Dr Todd, stepping between them with hands up, “I’ve blown the whistle - it’s a penalty.”
“What?” exclaimed an outraged Chadwick.
“The referee’s decision is final,” stated Dr Todd.
The three men continued their heated argument for a moment, the Major taking the chance to come over and check on Andrea. She knelt down by the young woman, Andrea trying to stop her eyes being drawn to the way the Major’s shorts now gaped open up her thigh. “Are you all right?”
Andrea attempted to force her eyes upwards while trying to engage her vocal chords. Only on the way up the close proximity allowed her to see that, with the combination of sweat and a white colour, the Major’s shirt was taking on a distinctly see-through quality.
“Andrea?” asked the Major again, “Did you hit your head hard? You seem a bit out of it.”
“Huh?” managed Andrea eloquently, “Oh, no,” she added, “I’m ok.” At least her head was ok, she considered, she wasn’t sure about her racing heart.
The Major helped her up off the floor, allowing her hand to stroke down Andrea’s arm in a final check that she was all right after her fall. The small hairs on Andrea’s arm were standing on end as the fingers left her skin. The men had finished their argument now, Tom coming towards Andrea carrying the ball.
“Do you want to take it?” he asked, “You won it after all.”
“No, you take it,” suggested Andrea. “The game was your idea, you should be the one to stick it to Chadwick,” she added with a sly smile.
Tom grinned back at her, before going to the penalty spot and placing the ball down.
“Just make sure you score!” Andrea called after him, adding a wink when he swung round at the comment.
Taking a couple of paces back, Tom ran and resoundingly thumped the ball home, turning to receive the congratulations from his team mates who were quickly upon him, hugging him and slapping him on the back. Dr Todd took the opportunity to blow the final whistle, and Andrea experienced great pleasure in seeing the dark look on Chadwick’s features now his team had lost.
The Major approached Andrea once she had disengaged herself from the ecstatic Tom, extending her hand. “Good game.”
“Thanks,” replied Andrea, taking the delicate fingers and shaking gently.
“Now I have to go console my team mates,” said the Major, casting her eyes over her shoulder at Chadwick.
Chadwick didn’t really looked like he wanted anyone to speak to him as the Major attempted it, and Andrea allowed herself a final satisfied smile before heading for the changing rooms.
……………
The Major wandered into the
changing rooms, realising she could have just changed back in her quarters, but
feeling so hot and sweaty that she’d wanted to have a shower then and there
rather than wandering the corridors looking dishevelled. It seemed someone else had the same idea, as
the sound of running water filtered through from the shower area. The Major glanced at the pile of clothes
that sat on the bench on the opposite side of the room from her own, wondering
whose they were.
Sitting down on the wooden bench,
the Major had just finished undoing the laces of her trainers when the sound of
the shower stopped. She was in the
process of removing her shoes when Andrea entered the changing area wearing
nothing but a fluffy white towel. She
didn’t immediately see the Major, too busy running her free hand through her
dripping blonde hair and shaking off the excess droplets. The Major’s eyes followed the young woman
across the room. Her towel really was
too short for someone of Andrea’s stature, considered the Major, the edge of it
sitting on her smooth, white thighs.
It slowly dawned on Andrea that
she was not alone, her head turning to regard the Major. “Oh, hello, decided to change down here too
did you?”
Watching the beads of water still
tracking across Andrea’s exposed shoulders, the Major found her mouth was
suddenly dry. “Yes,” she managed to
croak out.
“Don’t mind me,” said the young
woman, turning to her pile of clothing so that her back was to the Major.
That was harder said the done as
Andrea blithely removed her towel and started drying herself with it.
“That was a good game,” she called
out over her shoulder.
The Major tried to engage her brain
to say something sensible in response, but she was finding it difficult to tear
her eyes away from the naked vision in front of her.
“Yes, it was,” she replied
inanely, forcing her eyes down to the floor to continue removing her socks.
Andrea was still happily talking
away as she dried, seemingly thinking nothing of displaying her nakedness. The Major on the other hand was getting
increasingly nervous about the prospect of removing her own clothes. She didn’t know why, she had changed in
front of plenty of people in the army before without feeling self-conscious
about it.
“I thought you had us there,” said
Andrea, “Lucky Chadwick is such an arse really - giving us that penalty because
his male pride was wounded.”
The Major didn’t reply
immediately, her eyes drifting upwards once more and spotting something else of
interest, as if the endless legs weren’t diverting enough. In the small of Andrea’s back there was a
tattoo, a small celtic design of some sort.
It really was highly intricate, with the complex bands of the pattern
weaving in and out of one another. The
Major found herself tracing the lines with her eyes, wondering how long it
would have taken to do. As she continued
to study it, she found herself thinking about what it might be like to touch it
too. Would it be smooth like the skin
around it, or would it be a rough contrast?
Suddenly Andrea whipped round and
the Major caught a brief glimpse of belly button instead before a white towel
obscured it. She found it hard to hold
back the flush that crept across her cheeks as she met Andrea’s querying gaze.
“Did you want something?”
“Sorry?” asked the Major, deciding
it was best to play dumb, maybe Andrea hadn’t really noticed.
“You were staring at my back.”
Shit! Time for some
honesty. “Um…I couldn’t help
noticing your tattoo,” revealed the Major, “Does it mean something in
particular?”
Andrea’s right hand darted round
to her back, as if she herself had forgotten she had a tattoo there. “Oh that,” she said, “To tell you the truth
I’m not sure what it means – I just liked the design.”
The Major was still finding it
hard to control her eyes, the blue orbs insisting on continuing to flick down
to Andrea’s bare legs at every opportunity, following the curves of them as
they disappeared up under the towel.
All she could hope for was that Andrea hadn’t noticed the scrutiny. “It’s very detailed,” she said, trying to
stick to the subject in hand, “It must have taken a while to do.”
“It did, and it was bloody
painful, let me tell you. I certainly
won’t be in a hurry to get anymore. It
just seemed like a good idea at the time, and Meg seemed to like it…”
Andrea had trailed off, looking as
if she was recalling some memory or other.
The Major wondered what exactly about the tattoo it was that Meg liked,
suspecting it wasn’t so much the design as it was location and the fact that
Andrea was more than likely naked whenever she would have seen it. That thought made the Major totally lose
track of the conversation, though she could sense Andrea waiting for her to say
something. Suddenly a chirrup from the Major’s communicator
echoed round the room.
Thank god! cried the Major internally.
The Major eagerly
grabbed the communicator that sat on top of her bag, speaking to the person on
the other line briefly, before tunring back to Andrea.
“I have to go,”
the Major informed the young woman.
“Not changing
first?”
“It’s an urgent
call,” lied the Major, “I guess I’ll just have to speak to the Colonel in my
football shirt.”
And with that she
quickly gathered her belongings and dashed from the room, relieved to be out in
the cool corridor. What the hell had
that been about? she wondered to herself as she walked for the lift. She’d seen plenty of naked bodies before –
not much was private in the army - but she’d never been so unnerved as she had
been in the changing rooms with Andrea.
Her friend Sophie’s words returned to her at that moment, the other
woman’s question of Andrea’s attractiveness filtering through her mind. The Major supposed that Sophie had a
point. Even the Major could see that
Andrea was exceedingly attractive, no doubt especially to those who were
interested in that sort of thing. Which
of course the Major was not, she maintained to herself as the lift carried her
back up to her office.