September Tango

by Scarlett Jade

  “You're good to go, Soldier, enjoy your time at Fort Carson.” He waved them on and Calvin let out a breath.

  “Thankfully, he didn't stop me. Rank helps.” He smirked.

  Chapter Twenty-Four – Wednesday Afternoon/Evening

  Zoe looked back as they were driving away. “What purpose does that serve?”

  “Security, verification, something like that. As far as what it does to prevent you from doing anything you shouldn't be, I'm not sure.”

  Zoe shrugged, “Anyway, do you know where you're going?”

  “Yeah, I know this place like the back of my hand.” He shook his head. “Three years here, I ought to know where everything is.”

  “True story.” Zoe stared out the window to try to get an idea of where she was and how to get back out, but it was no use. There were too many twists and turns to keep track of. After what seemed like an eternity of driving, they arrived at a tall building made of red bricks and a sign in the front that said ID card / Deers. They rushed out of the car and into the building.

  “Looks like there's no one in line,” Calvin said as they rushed to the desk.

  “Hi, how can I help you?” A woman behind the desk asked when they arrived.

  “Hello, Marcella,” Calvin said, reading from her name tag. “I need to add her as a dependent.” Calvin explained. “We just got married.”

  “Oh, congratulations,” Marcella smiled warmly. “Alright then,” She pulled a sheet of paper from under her desk. “We will need your marriage certificate.” She looked to Zoe, “I'll need your social security card, preferably with your new name on it, if not, it'll be fine, and I'll need two forms of ID, and yes, your social security card counts as a form of ID.”

  “I think I might be able to do that,” Zoe commented as she began digging through her purse and finding her wallet again. She dug a little deeper and found her social security card and her license, and Calvin handed Marcella their marriage certificate. Marcella mumbled as she read them.

  “Oh, then you guys were JUST married,” she commented. “Alright then, I'll hold these right here for you, have a seat over there and we will call you when we're ready for you.” She pointed several rows of chairs facing the entrance where there were only two people seated watching the TV. Calvin and Zoe walked towards the seats and started to sit down.

  “Staff Sergeant Hall, Booth 3,” they heard a man call.

  “Does it always happen that quickly?” Zoe asked him.

  Calvin shook his head. “No, never, I guess we're just lucky today.” They made their way to booth 3 and were greeted by a man with a name tag that read “David”

  “Alright, have a seat,” David told them furiously typing on the keyboard in front of him. Zoe sat in a seat in front of a camera and Calvin remained standing. “Alright, so we're adding a new dependent.” David said to himself. “Zoe Hall, alright.” He began making noises as he typed and shrugging his shoulders. “Sponsor's social?”

  “What?” Zoe asked.

  “He wants my social,” Calvin explained handing David his social security card. David peeked up at the social security card, then back at the computer screen and continued to type. When he finally stopped typing, he pulled a piece of bent plastic and a sheet of paper from the desk. He put the paper into a printer.

  “Ok, please sit behind the...” David started, looking up. “Oh, never mind, you're already there.” He looked back down to the computer. “Are you ready?”

  “Yes,” Zoe nodded.

  “Alright, one, two, three.” With no warning there was a flash. “Please sign.”

  “Huh?” Zoe looked down to the desk in front of her and saw a pad with a stylus pen attached. She picked up the pen and signed her name. Once she placed the pen down, David hit a few more buttons and the printer began pushing out the paper he inserted. Once out, he put it into the plastic, then into the laminator and handed it to Zoe.

  “Alright, you're all done. Thank you for stopping by.” He said without looking at them.

  “Um, thanks,” Zoe said looking at her new military ID.

  “Gawk later, Zoe, We still have to get to the hospital to enroll you in Tricare.”

  They rushed out of the building and on their way out, they ran into First Sergeant Porter who was on his way in.

  “Sergeant Hall, I was just looking for you,” he said when Calvin and Zoe passed. Calvin quickly stopped, turned around and put his hands behind his back. “Relax, Relax.” He walked up to Calvin. “Listen, I knew you guys were running late so, here's all the information you needed from housing. It is just a list of acceptable complexes to rent from.”

  “Oh, okay.” Calvin smiled as he took the papers Porter handed to him. “Thanks a lot, First Sergeant.”

  “No problem. Just take care of whatever you need to.” He turned and walked into the building.

  Calvin turned to Zoe. “Sweet, one less stop to make.” They quietly walked to the car and Calvin drove them maybe a quarter mile away to the hospital.

  “You do know I'm not dying, right?” Zoe joked.

  Calvin put his fingers on her wrists. “I don't know, I don't really feel a pulse.” The two of them laughed as they exited the car and walked into the hospital and boarded an elevator which took them up to the third floor. They followed the signs that led them to the Tricare office.

  “Hello, my name is Mandy.” A woman told them once they entered the office. “How may I help you today?”

  “I need to get my wife signed up for Tricare,” Calvin told her. Mandy smiled and handed a clipboard to Zoe.

  “Alright, what I need you to do is fill out the information on this sheet of paper.” She put a piece of paper on the clipboard. “Have a seat over there; someone will be with you shortly.

  “There's a lot of sitting and waiting in the military, isn't there?” Zoe asked Calvin.

  Calvin shook his head. “A whole lot more than you will ever know, Baby.” Around the time Zoe finished with the paper, another woman came to the doorway of the office.

  “Sergeant Hall,” the woman yelled, making Zoe jump. They rose from their seats and walked over to the woman. “Follow me,” she said and began walking down the hall. Zoe had a hard time keeping up with the pace they walked. Finally, she took a sharp right turn into an office and pointed to two chairs sitting in front of a desk. “Have a seat,” she chirped like a creepy robot. They glanced at each other, then sat. “What can I help you with?” She snarled as she began typing.

  “Yes, I...” Calvin started.

  “Are you finished with that?” She cut Calvin off.

  “Um, I think so,” Zoe answered slowly handing over the clipboard. The woman snatched the clipboard from her and resumed her furious typing.

  “Do you have any allergies? Taking any medications? Are you pregnant? Have any preexisting conditions? Sexually transmitted diseases?”

  “Um, No.” Zoe scratched her head. “Not that I'm aware of.” The woman didn't respond, she just kept typing.

  “Are you enrolling in Tricare Prime or Standard?” Calvin started to answer. “Oh, never mind, I see it right here.” She continued to type. “Do you have any questions at this time?”

  Zoe waited a moment before answering. “No, I don't think...”

  “Alright, good. Now,” the woman began as she printed out a stack of papers. “Here is an explanation of all of your benefits.” She looked to Calvin, “You'll have to remember to sign her up for dental, I can't do that here. Also, update you SGLI.” She turned back to Zoe. “You will be seen at clinic five whenever you have a problem, or in the emergency room downstairs if there's an emergency. Remember to schedule an appointment with you Primary Care Manager as soon as possible and if you don't have any questions, I thank you for stopping by, Welcome to Fort Carson and have a nice day.” She went back to typing.

  “Um, okay, I guess.” Zoe scratched her head as she and Calvin left the room. “What the fuck just happened?”

  “This is what the military pays o
ur civilians to do.” He laughed, “Anyway, everything's done. What do you want to do now?”

  “Rest.”

  “Sounds like a plan to me. Let's get outta here.”

  Once they were finished with insurance and housing, he drove over to the hotel on base and they parked in the parking lot. The building was tall and tan colored, pretty damn boring from the outside. He smiled at her expression. “I promise they are nice on the inside.”

  She shrugged. “I don't care what they look like, as long as there is a shower and a bed. I am exhausted.”

  He put his arm around her waist and they walked up the stairs and he opened the glass door for her. The inside was nice, a soft muted green carpet with a cream colored wall and a border of flowers. Lots of natural light highlighted the wooden desk where a young woman sat. “Hi, can I help you?”

  Calvin smiled. “Yes, we'd like a room for a couple of nights, please.”

  The young woman nodded, the sunlight reflecting off of her glasses. “Single room?”

  “Yes!” She squeaked.

  They both looked at her curiously and Calvin squeezed her hand. “Sorry, she's a newlywed.” He winked at the girl and she smirked. Zoe shot him a look that would have melted steel and stomped on his foot. “Ow!”

  The girl clicked on the computer for a couple seconds. “Okay, I have a room in Building 2-C; room 321. I need your card please.”

  Calvin handed over his card and signed the receipt the woman handed him. “Enjoy your stay at Fort Carson.”

  “Thank you, miss.” They turned to leave and the girl spoke up.

  “Oh, by the way, congratulations!”

  Zoe almost ran for the door, her face flaming. “You are such an ass.”

  He caught her around the waist and spun her around, pulling her in for a kiss. “But, I love you.”

  “You love embarrassing me.” She murmured against his mouth.

  “I love teasing you.” He tapped her ass and stepped away. “Let's find this building.”

  “What the hell is up with multiple buildings?”

  “Well, you gotta remember, when soldiers graduate, they have a big influx of people staying on base.”

  “Oh. I guess I never thought of it that way.” She looked around and tapped his arm. “It's across the street.”

  “Let's drive over.” They loaded into the car and crossed the street, unloading their luggage and climbing the stairs to the building. He held the glass door open for her and they walked inside. The building's interior was identical to the other building. He walked to the silver doors of the elevator and pressed the up button. “We're third floor. You hungry yet?”

  “Starving.”

  “Want to go out to eat, or do you want to stay in?” The elevator dinged and the doors opened. They stepped inside and the doors closed as he pushed the number three.

  She shrugged. “It doesn't matter to me. I'm easy to please.”

  “Yeah?” He bumped her with his shoulder. “Can I find out how easy later?”

  She smirked. “Maybe.”

  “We could go look at apartments on the list. Maybe some of them are open past five.” The elevator dinged again and opened on the third floor. They read the sign on the wall and followed the arrow indicating their room was to the left. He slid the card in the lock and the door opened. She walked in ahead of him and sighed. The room was comfortably cool, with a queen sized bed in the center, a burgundy and brown comforter and plenty of pillows. A small bathroom was off from a simple kitchenette. The bathroom was clean, with a toilet, sink and small tub with a shower head. All in all, it was a nice room. They dropped the bags on the bed and Zoe stretched.

  “I need to freshen up then we can go, if you want.”

  He nodded, plugging in their electronics already. “Yeah, go ahead, Babe.”

  She walked in the small bathroom and closed the door. She splashed her face with water and used the restroom. After washing her hands, she felt human again. She found him looking out the window. “You ready?”

  “Yeah.” He grabbed the list of acceptable apartments and she picked up her purse and they walked back down the hall to the elevator. Catching it on the way down, they stepped out into the foyer of the hotel and out into the sunlight. They got back in the car and drove off the base. “Do you want to eat first?”

  “I'm starving. I could go for a burger.”

  He nodded. “That sounds good. Burger King?” He pointed at the sign at the edge of the interstate.

  “Sure.” He took the exit and followed the street to the restaurant. They parked and walked in, hand in hand.

  “Do you know what you want?” They were behind a woman and her two children who were about to go ape shit over a toy.

  Zoe smiled. “Yeah, I want a cheeseburger and fries and a chocolate milk shake.”

  Calvin nodded. “Sounds good. Want me to order for you?”

  “Sure.” She wrapped her arm around his waist and he kissed her forehead.

  They came up next in line. The cashier was popping gum and obviously bored. “What can I do you for?”

  “She'd like a cheeseburger, fries, and a medium chocolate shake. I'd like a chicken sandwich, fries, and a Coke.” He pulled his wallet out of his front pocket and slid his debit card out of the slot.

  “Okay. For here or to go?” She tapped her long fingernails on the counter.

  “For here,” he said quickly. She finished punching a couple of buttons and he slid his to her across the counter card to pay. He took his cup and filled it at the fountain while she waited for the food. Once their order was ready, he took the tray from her and they sat in a blue booth. He slid the brown tray across the white table and they began to eat. She opened several ketchup packets and squirted them over her fries. “You like ketchup?”

  “Yeah, I have a problem, don't I?” She picked up a dripping fry and he smirked.

  “No, I just am not too crazy about it.”

  “To each their own, I guess?” They finished eating in silence. He pulled the list out of his pocket and his phone.

  “How about we try the Regency Park apartments first? They are open till seven.” He took another drink of his Coke and finished the last bite of his sandwich.

  She nodded. “Sounds good. I'm ready to go if you are.” They emptied the tray and left the restaurant. As they drove through Colorado Springs, the town outside the base, she tried to memorize basic landmarks. There was a grocery store and a Post Office. His phone directed them to a small brick complex. It looked to be two stories and had tons of flowers and nicely manicured shrubs around the buildings. They could see a small pool behind the office, and there seemed to be plenty of families living at the complex. He parked the car and they walked up to the office.

  He squeezed her hand. “Are you excited?”

  “Yeah, I can't wait to have a place of our own.” He opened the wooden door and they walked into a cozy office with cream colored carpet, a stone fireplace and a few desks with wooden chairs. A young woman walked up to them with a bright smile.

  “Hi, I'm Sarah, welcome to Regency Park Apartments. How can I help you?”

  “We would like to talk to you about apartments. Can you tell me what you have available?” Calvin spoke up.

  “Sure! We have some different apartments available. What do you need? A one or two bedroom?” She walked to a desk and pointed to the chairs. “Why don't you guys sit down?”

  Calvin looked at Zoe, who shrugged. “How about we see some two bedrooms. We might like the extra space.”

  “Okay, we can do that. When do you want to move in?”

  Calvin smirked. “Tomorrow.”

  “Oh! Are you new to the area?” She smiled quickly as she looked through their inventory.

  “I am stationed at Fort Carson, we just got married and I'm going to be heading to Afghanistan early next week. I want her in a house.”

  “Absolutely, and thank you for your service, sir. We actually have some fantastic programs for military. How
about I show you the only apartment we have available? Would you like to see it?”

  They nodded and she directed them outside. They followed her around to a building and she unlocked the door with a card. They went down the well lit cream colored hall to apartment number four. “Here we are.” She unlocked the wooden door and stepped inside. The entryway was tiled, with enough room to leave shoes. There was plenty of natural light from several windows in the living room. The last vestiges of afternoon sunlight filtered through them, highlighting the chocolate colored carpet and the two tone paint work. Zoe walked through with the woman, seeing the small tile floored dining room and kitchen, with updated stainless steel appliances. She nodded excitedly at Calvin behind the woman's back. The bathroom was fresh too, with the same chocolate and cream paint job, a tiled floor and a pedestal sink. It housed a nice sized tub and storage for towels and toiletries. The bedrooms were large, with plenty of closet space and windows. “What do you guys think?” The young woman smiled. “Want me to give you a few minutes? I'll just step outside. You let me know.”

  Calvin pulled Zoe into his arms. “You like it, don't you?”

  She nodded. “I do. I can see a lot of potential.”

  “Wanna sign a lease on it? It looks really safe, I like the card entry.”

  “Can you afford it?” She looked at him with concern.

  He bent to kiss her mouth. “Yes, we can afford it.”

  “Then yes, I want it!” They went to the hall and expressed their desire for the apartment. Within half an hour, they had signed the lease and had keys in hand. They got back into the car and drove back to Fort Carson. Zoe leaned her head against the window and dozed off. Her eyes opened again as they pulled up in front of the hotel.

  They walked inside and rode the elevator to their room. “I want a shower. I'm so tired, Calvin.”

  “I bet you are, Babe; jet lag. Go ahead and take a bath. I'll get the bed ready for us and clean up after you're done.” He turned to pull the cover back on the bed and she caught him around the waist.

  “No, come with me.” She pulled him to the bathroom door and stripped her clothes off before stepping in the tub. “Come on,” she smiled softly. “I won't bite, unless you want me to.”