by Kris Jacen
“That’s great.” Jack saw Briar turn his head toward him. Briar had a look on his face between thinking Jack was nuts and wanting to rip Jack to pieces. Didn’t matter to Jack, his mood was not going to fade in the face of Briar’s bad mood.
“And just how is it great? I now have nowhere to go, no home, no life, no job and no prospects to get my life under control and get mobile again.”
Jack signaled to turn right and parked the car. “You have nowhere to go? I’m sorry, did I kick your ass out and forget about it? Hmmm, nope, don’t seem to remember doing that. No life? Oh, yeah, the crews hate you and don’t like being around you. They just tolerate you. No prospects or job? You just lost your foot not even two months ago so maybe give yourself a fucking break. Once you’re on your feet, no pun intended, the practice can always use a good vet tech or I’m sure that FLSH could use one.” Jack paused for a minute then continued, “Now, are you done with your pity party because we’ve got babies to cuddle.”
A few hours later Jack’s mood was still upbeat but damn, he was now dragging ass. He thought that three hours on the mat with Siah was tiring? Jack had met Siah’s match and conqueror… well, conquerors. The triplets had been awake non-stop. Okay, it was more they were tag-teaming him and Jack and Briar were on the losing end of the match. They would finally get one of them to calm down and sleep and the next one was awake wanting a bottle or a diaper change. How was Sandy not insane by now?
“Are they all down?” Briar asked.
“Sshhhhh… if you wake them, I’ll beat you,” Jack said in a loud whisper earning him a chuckle from Briar.
“We’ll have baby cuddles! It’s going to be amazing! Maybe they’ll be awake for some of the time.” Briar rolled his eyes and it was all Jack could do not to laugh. He was swaying back and forth with Ethan in his arms, seems his nephew was a dancer in training, he always wanted to be moving and Lord help you if you put him down. “Is this where I remind you that you were almost pouting that we weren’t going to be chasing after them tonight?”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about.” Jack heard Ethan whimpering and turned to walk to the other side of the room. He was so getting his 10,000 steps today.
“How are my precious babies?” Sandy asked as she came into the room, waking all three babies.
“Bugs! No, it’s okay. It’s just your mama being loud,” Jack said as he glared at Sandy while Briar reached over for Faith. “Pick up your girl, Sandy.”
“Bugs? Why are you calling my babies bugs?” Sandy cuddled Grace, who immediately went back to sleep.
“Ethan is my jitterbug and the girls are my ladybugs. You told me I couldn’t call them princesses and I told you that I’d find a different nickname for them. Bugs for short.” Jack was sticking to his guns on this one. The girls cooed at him and Ethan almost smiled when he called him Jitterbug.
“Awwwww, that is so cute and so you to figure out a nickname that wasn’t traditional for Ethan.”
“You look like shit,” Tom said as he walked into the room.
“Thomas Albert! Language!” Sandy scolded her husband. Jack smirked at Tom who just smiled and shrugged.
“Sorry, babe, but look at Jack. He’s never looked this… this… what is the word I’m looking for?” Tom seemed a bit loose.
“Had a few drinks, have we?” Jack was so getting mileage out of this one.
“Ummmm, maybe?” It didn’t look like Tom actually knew the answer to the question.
Briar sat on the couch bouncing Faith lightly on his knees watching Jack tease Tom. He shook his head and turned to Sandy, “Do you need help getting the bugs into the car?”
“Nah, I got it. Just keep an eye on the teetotaler here. He didn’t have a lot to drink but it’s been so long since either of us has had anything remotely alcoholic, it went right to his head. Luckily, it didn’t really hit him until we were in the car on the way here.” Sandy gently laid Grace into her car seat and had her all buckled in under a minute. Yup, practice makes perfect.
Before Jack knew it, he was kissing Sandy on her cheek and telling her to text when they got home. Just because she was a mother now, didn’t mean he wasn’t going to worry about her.
“A little favor, Jack?” Briar asked when he got back to the living room.
“Sure, what?”
“Some warning before the little bugs invade again so I can up my life insurance. Make sure that Brand is taken care of for life.”
Jack looked at Briar and dropped to the couch, laughing his ass off.
Chapter Three
September
Christ! Could these chairs be any smaller? “Sorry, Mama,” Tank automatically whispered even though his mama wouldn’t know that he’d taken the Lord’s name in vain. He shifted in the chair, trying to get comfortable. It wasn’t that Tank was grossly overweight; he was just a big boy. That’s what his mama had been telling him for his whole life.
The Army apparently had a problem with soldiers built like linebackers these days. Tank had taken a cooking class over the summer through workforce readiness—whatever that meant— here at the community college. He remembered some of what his coach in high school had taught him about how different foods worked together, or against each other. The tiny bit that the instructor mentioned this summer caught his interest; so here he was crammed in a classroom chair waiting for the teacher.
A commotion at the back of the room made Tank turn and get out of his chair. One day, he’d stop reacting like someone was going to shoot him — maybe. A pretty woman with shoulder length blonde hair was gathering some papers from the floor. Tank quickly moved over and started helping her.
“Let me help you, ma’am,” Tank said as he knelt beside her.
“Thank you. The folder caught on the door as I walked through.” The woman stood up and walked past Tank to the front. “Good evening everyone. Please, I know how much no one likes to sit up front but looking at the roster, this isn’t going to be a big group so if everyone could move closer?”
Tank looked around and shrugged before gathering his stuff and moving closer to the instructor. She was right, there might be a total of eight of them? Including her?
“Right. So, let’s get started. First, let me introduce myself. I’m Deborah Luna with a bunch of letters after my name that I’m sure you saw on the course listing. Since this group is a small one, please call me Debbie. This course is set up to be much more interactive than others in the catalog. It’s more about how you relate to food and how it can help or hinder you. I’d like to start with getting to know everyone so we can tailor the lessons as we go forward.” She looked around. What she was looking for Tank wasn’t sure but as she nodded she must have found it. She glanced down at a piece of paper and said, “Richard Martin? Why don’t you start?”
Tank almost rolled his eyes. Figured he’d be first. He cleared his throat and spoke. “I’m Martin. I prefer Tank, been called that for years. Only my mama calls me Richard and I don’t want to mention what my cousins call me.” He paused, not knowing what else to say.
“Military?” Debbie asked.
“Yes, ma’am. Been in for about five years now but not sure how much longer. I’m not the smallest of guys. Never been but I need to get smaller. Guess that’s why I’m here.” Tank ended with a shrug.
Debbie was nodding and had a small smile on her face as Tank finished. “I can see where there might be a problem or two for you with the standards.” She consulted the paper again and called on the next student.
It didn’t take long for them all to tell about themselves and then Debbie started the lecture. Maybe lecture was the wrong word because Tank always fell asleep when teachers talked but he was wide awake, listening to everything she was saying. Considering he’d been up early for a road march, he should be head-bopping as he tried to stay conscious.
Tank had thought that this was going to just be a foundation class for him. The ins and outs of nutritional counseling were intriguing.
“Okay, when we meet on Thursday, if you can remember to log some of your foods… we’ll review where things could be improved. Any questions?” When no one asked anything, Debbie said, “See you then.”
After most of the class had grabbed their stuff and left, Tank approached the front. “Excuse me, ma’am?”
“Please, Debbie. I know it might go against your training but…” She let the sentence trail off.
“Debbie, do you think that if I—” Tank stopped as a loud noise from the hallway had him spinning and putting himself between the door and Debbie. The door to the classroom flew open and he pushed her to the ground behind the podium, bracing for an attack.
“What the hell!” a man yelled from the opening. “What are you fucking doing?”
“You’ll have to go through me to get to her.” Tank shifted to a defensive position but wasn’t above taking this guy out if he wanted to hurt Debbie.
“Get through you? That’s my wife!” The man moved slowly but Tank could tell that he was ready to attack him if he needed to.
“Your wife?” Tank asked as Debbie shifted to look around the podium.
“Luny! Why are you here?” she asked as she stood up and put a hand on Tank’s arm. “It’s okay, he’s with me. You can relax.”
“The boys are with May and Siah so I had May drop me off so we could go get drinks. Who’s this?” The guy was still looking at Tank with an expression of confusion with a little hesitation mixed in on his face as he put his arm around Debbie.
“You know Siah and May?” Tank asked.
“We do. And you are? Wait, I recognize you now. Let me think… Specialist Richards?”
“Martin. But it’s Sergeant Martin now,” Tank corrected.
“Command Sergeant Major Luna,” Luna said as he held out his hand to Tank.
“You’re one of the crew?” Debbie asked.
“Yeah, I am. You’re the twins’ mother?”
“Guilty as charged. Such a small world. Luny, Tank is in my class and he… well, we’ll talk later?” she asked Tank.
Tank looked around the classroom and moved toward his backpack. “I’ll see you on Thursday.”
“Remember if you can to log,” she reminded him.
“Been doing that for a month or so now. Seems I can’t put anything in my mouth before I look at my app.” Tank was a bit uncomfortable with the sergeant major knowing.
“Let me guess, didn’t pass standards?” Sergeant Major Luna asked, shaking his head. Tank nodded, not saying anything. “I think being here says a lot. Ask Debs to let me know if you need anything. If you’re one of May’s crew, you’re a good one to keep around, and if I can help, I will.”
Tank, pulling his keys from his backpack, not believing what the sergeant major had said.
Debbie smiled and nodded. “Yes, you heard correctly. Luny has helped out many a soldier in his time in the Army. Can’t seem to help it and it’s now second nature for both of us.”
Tank knew from May that the sergeant major was a good guy. He hadn’t had a lot of interactions with any spouses but it looked like the sergeant major had gotten one of the good ones.
“Yes, ma’am, thank you. See you Thursday.” Tank watched Luna escort his wife out the door. A smile crossed his face as he heard him whistling “Hot for Teacher.”
Chapter Four
October
If Siah didn’t stop bouncing, Jack was going to kill him. Siah never really was still but this was beyond even him. He crossed his legs again and Siah kicked Jack’s shin right where an overactive Great Dane had stepped on his leg.
“What the fuck! Siah will you stop?” Jack had finally had enough. “What is your problem tonight?”
Movie night was at Jack’s and they were in the middle of Peppermint. Carter had a study group for one of his classes so Siah was by himself tonight.
“Problem? I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Siah said, shaking his head.
“Oh, I call bullshit on that,” Jack argued.
Barbie and Bree were lying on the floor in front of the couch, relaxing against the oversized pillows he had gotten when Sandy had yelled at him for not having anything for ‘tummy time’. They both leaned back and looked at them upside down.
“Siding with Jack on this on, Siah. You haven’t stopped moving all night, so dish,” Barbie agreed.
“Cough it up so we can get back to the movie. Tank, hit pause. You’ve got the remote?” Bree rolled over and put her hands under her chin as she spoke.
Jack caught movement out of the corner of his eye and turned to see Tank stretching to the side to grab the remote. His shirt rode up and Jack got a glance at the groove along Tank’s side. He could run his tongue along that muscle for days. Follow it down and lower his sweats to—
“I’m fucked!” Siah’s voice interrupted Jack’s little fantasy. And what the fuck was that fantasy?
“Umm, you’re always fucked and you like it,” Randolph said with a snicker. “Oww! B!” He rubbed his stomach. Seemed like Briar had smacked him.
“Seriously, Phinny? You’re going there when I’m having a real problem?” Siah shoved off the couch and started pacing. Every time he got to a wall he would stop, bang his head against it then turn and start all over. After he done a few laps around Jack’s living room, Briar reached out and grabbed his arm pulling him to a stop.
“Okay, now that you’ve expended the extra energy, why don’t you tell us what’s going on?” Briar asked.
“I’m totally screwed. Okay, maybe I might not be if everyone agrees but yeah, the number of favors I’m going to owe is staggering. Because if—”
“Siah! Focus!” Bree and Barbie said together.
Siah’s head whipped around and he frowned. “Did Carter teach you how to do that?”
“We’ve all learned how to do that, Siah,” Tank corrected. “Unless you’re teaching a class of some sort, you ramble.”
“I do not!” Siah tried for affronted but just couldn’t pull it off and smiled.
“So what is this that we need to agree to that will get us favors?” Jack asked, bringing the subject back to Siah’s problem.
Siah nibbled on his top lip for a minute then took a deep breath. “So the sixth grade teachers are responsible for the fall fundraiser and you all know that I can’t bake for shit—”
“Ahem, hello?” Bree said.
“Yes, you can bake the socks off of everyone in this room, let the man finish please?” Barbie asked.
“So, as the new teacher on the block for this I stupidly opened my mouth and suggested we do something other than a bake sale,” Siah continued.
“I could so rock a bake sale. Cupcakes, little sugar cookies in the shape of bats, macrons looking like pumpkins,” Bree whispered.
“What did you suggest?” Tank asked.
“A haunted house,” Siah replied. “Well, more of a fun house than a scary house but you’ve got the concept.” With that he threw himself back onto the couch.
“Not seeing where we all come into this.” Jack voiced what he knew they were all thinking.
“June and Sheryl loved the idea. They couldn’t figure out how to pull it off, so I told them not to sweat it that I had it all covered. And when you all agree to help, I’m set. We’d need to go to the school Friday night to set up and then be there on Saturday for a few hours,” Siah paused and the next thing out of his mouth made Jack’s mouth drop. “In costume.”
Jack looked around and it seemed he was the only one not thrilled with that last part.
“Yes! Can I go as a ring master?” Bree asked.
“Oooh, can I go as a judge?” Barbie asked.
“Ummm, actually, I told them that we were all going to be there in a group costume so that we could be easily identified.” Siah started chewing on his lip again. Oh, this wasn’t going to be good.
“What are we going as?” Tank seemed a bit hesitant, too. Maybe the two of them could fall mysteriously sick and crawl into Jack’s king-size be
d together. Then they could—
Once again Siah’s voice snapped Jack’s attention. “We’re going as The Avengers.”
“I want to be Wanda!” one of the girls yelled.
“No, you should so be Black Widow, Barbie. A little temporary color in your hair and you’ll knock it out of the park,” Bree told her. “I’ll go as Wanda. My hair is close to hers.”
Tank’s head dropped to the back of the couch with a groan.
“What’s wrong, Tank? Don’t like The Avengers?” Randolph asked.
Tank turned to Randolph and exploded. “Have you missed the past few months? What the hell am I supposed to dress as? I’m fat enough that I’m about to be booted from the Army and you think I’ll voluntarily dress in spandex?”
“You are not fat!” everyone in the room corrected.
“Really? Fucking look at me?” Tank stood up and held his arms out to the side.
Jack was looking and he kept looking. He wasn’t sure what had come over him tonight but he had a sudden urge to pull Tank into his bedroom and lock the door.
“Trying to make the rest of us feel like slackers, are you?” Briar asked.
“Are you serious? I’m fighting every bite I put in my mouth.” Jack could tell that Tank wasn’t fishing for compliments and was truly frustrated.
“Tank, sit down,” Jack said softly. When Tank sat down, Jack walked over and knelt in front of him. Ignoring the others, he gripped Tank’s hands. “We understand how hard the past few months have been for you and wish there was more that we could do. I think that you’ve let this hit you harder than you should. Look at what’s going on with the Army right now. They’re changing the PT test and looking at more strength-based qualifications, if I understood what Randolph was saying the other day. If they’re making changes like that after how many years, maybe they’re understanding that strength is important and that the size charts need to be reevaluated, too. Christ, if you look at a BMI chart, I’m sure that all of us in this room would be “overweight” and none of us…and I do mean none of us… are overweight.” It was so quiet when Jack finished talking, he wondered if the rest had left the room.
