Jack and Jill: Army

by Ansley Gilmore

  Chapter 9

  Sniper Competition: The Plane Ride

  A week after the HALO jump, Jill and Jack received orders that put them on the next C-130 going to Fort Benning, Georgia, for the sniper competition. They sat down in the middle of the airplane near the wings. The airplane, deadheading to Fort Benning, carried only Jill and Jack. Jack fastened his seatbelt as the pilot started the four big engines on the C-130. As each engine roared to life, Jack imagined himself sitting in the pilot seat, flipping switches, reviewing checklists, making radio calls to the tower, and talking to the co-pilot. What a contrast, he was now sitting next a woman, and he had nothing to talk to her about. Jack stole a glance at Jill. Her head leaned back against the headrest, and her eyes were closed. I wonder if she is trying to sleep. Is she meditating? I suppose that I should try and make some conversation. “Are you afraid of flying?”

  Jill’s eyes opened slowly. She rolled her head toward him and smiled. “I love flying, especially in these fantastic luxury liners. I heard the in-flight entertainment is out of this world.” Her squeaky voice hinted that she was making a joke.

  Jack paused; he didn’t know how to respond. If Jill were a guy he would have shot back an insult, or punched her in the arm, or made a grunting sound. But she was not a man, and worse than that, she was his boss.

  “Joking aside, my dad used to have a Stearman. That’s how I like to fly, with the wind in my face, a hundred feet above the treetops.” Jill smiled again. Jack was surprised that Jill had flown in a small, aerobatic biplane. She sounds like she has genuine memories of good times with her father. I wonder what my life would have been like if I had a father when I was growing up.

  “Hmmm” was all that Jack could muster. He wanted to talk to Jill about airplanes, but the gender issue was sidetracking his mind.

  Once the engines warmed up, the pilot eased the seventy-ton aircraft through the maze of taxiways to the end of the runway. Jack waited for the engine run-up. Sure enough, at the end of the runway the pilot put full brakes on, and pushed all four engine throttles forward to half speed. Jack again imagined himself in the pilot’s seat, checking oil temperature and pressure, looking at vacuum gauges, and monitoring the water temperature. He loved the way these C-130s shook during run-up. It made him want to fly an airplane again.

  The pilot relaxed the throttle back to idle, and the shaking stopped. After checking the engine instruments one last time, he released the brakes and pushed the throttle to full speed. The seventy-ton giant lurched forward and began gaining speed. As the airplane was accelerating down the concrete runway, Jack thought about his early days of flying small airplanes off grass fields. He imagined the bumpy ride as the wheels rolled over the clumps of grass and dirt, and the exhilaration that occurred when the bumping stopped, indicating that he was airborne.

  The airplane gained enough airspeed to ease off the ground and begin its ascent to cruising altitude. The ride was smooth, the skies were clear, and there was only a gentle breeze. Jack looked at Jill; her eyes were again closed. Jack thought this was strange, and felt like they should be talking. He rode on lots of C-130s before, but they always had lots of people on board, or rather, they had lots of guys on board. Today’s flight was abnormally quiet except for the engine noise. If she’s going to close her eyes and sleep, so can I. Jack’s eyes were only closed for two minutes when Jill broke the silence.

  “Do you mind if we change our seats?” Jill asked.

  Jack didn’t know what she was referring to, but he played along. “Okay.”

  Jill stood and walked to the back of the airplane. She sat on the last row and slid in one seat so Jack could sit next to her on the aisle seat.

  “We need to talk about the sniper competition before we land. I wanted to get away from those loud engines so we could hear each other.”

  Jack nodded, and waited for her to continue.

  Jill paused, then took a deep breath. “There will be a lot of people watching us during the competition. The higher-ups know that we will get an important mission if we do well. The other soldiers in the competition will be wondering why a woman is on a sniper team. And the instructors never taught a woman before, so they won’t know how to handle our situation. On top of that you and I have not had any time to work together and get to know each other. I believe Major Phelps referred to that as ‘male bonding.’”

  Jack bit back a chuckle as he thought about the slip the major made.

  “So, I think that we need to have a strategy as to how we are going to handle these situations,” Jill continued.

  Jack’s fingers dug into his armrests. Why do women need a strategy? Why can’t they just do the work and get the job done? Jack bit his lip and nodded.

  “The tension between all of the parties involved could get pretty high. We may have to play some mind games with ourselves to get through this competition. I have three older brothers, and I think that it will help me to think of you as one of my brothers. I can then defend you in a sibling sort of way, and at the same time that will give me a perspective that we have a mutual bond that can’t be broken. I was thinking about this all morning, and I wanted to pass my strategy on to you, in case you were struggling with the same problem. The bond of a brother and sister is a compelling relationship and it cannot be broken, except in death. In that sense, it is actually a stronger bond than marriage. Many marriages end in divorce, but a sibling is a sibling for life.” Jill looked eye to eye with Jack as she spoke above the airplane’s rumblings.

  Jack’s stomach started to feel queasy. “I never had a sister, or a brother,” Jack replied.

  “Hmm, that’s true. I suppose you might struggle to consider me like a sister. What do you think?” Jill looked straight ahead with a pensive look on her face.

  Without any hesitation, Jack replied, “I think we win the competition, and go home.”

  Jill paused, took a glance at Jack, and took a deep breath before speaking. “Jack, I want you to have a good time and enjoy winning this competition. If you would like to talk about this in the future, don’t hesitate to approach me about it.” Jill placed her head against the headrest and closed her eyes.

  Jack wanted to scream. His new boss not only wanted to run the show, but she also wants to make him think thoughts that he was incapable of thinking. There must be a way out of this mess.

  Lieutenant Jacobson and Sergeant Savage sat silently in the back of the C-130 for the rest of the flight to Fort Benning.

  Upon landing they quietly unbuckled their seat belts and gathered up their bags. After exiting the airplane, Jill said, “I’m going to the infirmary; I will see you at 0800 tomorrow morning.”

  Jack frowned at her and said, “I didn’t know you were sick.”

  Jill smiled. “No, it’s not that. The problem is that Fort Benning doesn’t have accommodations for female snipers. All of the barracks are for men only. Not that I could care. I don’t mind sharing a bathroom with you guys. But the commander at Fort Benning thought it would be best if I were segregated during the four S’s.”

  Jack was relieved that Jill wasn’t sick because that would hurt his chances of winning the competition. He looked at her cute freckles and her soft smooth skin.

  “Ma’am?”

  “Yes, Savage.”

  “Concerning the four S’s—don’t forget the shaving part. We don’t want to look grungy when we meet the competition tomorrow.” Jack smiled, implying he was joking. He shaved his face every morning so he didn’t look like a hobo. If I am going to work with her, I might as well learn to joke with her like I do with the guys.

  Jill caught his joke and said, “I brought a razor. I will be sure my legs will be free of grunge.”

  When Jack heard her refer to her legs, he was embarrassed. Oh no. She is going to think I was making a sexual innuendo. His expression gave away his thoughts.

  “Savage, come on, I was making a joke, too. You take me too seriously. I may be a girl, but I can joke like a guy.”


  Jack smiled. She’s a girl that can joke like a guy—that’s novel.

  There were two Hummers waiting for them. After saluting, they silently got in each vehicle and drove off. Jack glanced at Lieutenant Jacobson as she drove away. He saw her smile and wondered if she was still thinking about their playful joking. That little bit of joking was the first real interaction we’ve had, and for some strange reason, it felt good.