Watching Yute

by Joseph Picard

  “Maybe I’d be an awful girlfriend, maybe I’d end up taking you for granted, and you’d...”

  Cheryl took Cassidy’s hand, and their eyes met. Cassidy’s jaw trembled, and her eyes were welling up a little.

  “Shhhh.” Cheryl’s eyes glistened as they sat silently for a long, short moment. “Maybe, maybe. Maybe we should just find out.”

  Cassidy grimaced a smile, and nodded. A moment later, Cheryl had her arms wrapped around Cassidy, and suddenly all the complex nonsense in Cassidy’s mind melted away. It was all so clear, it was all so simple.

  Held close, Cassidy’s lips first found the side of Cheryl’s neck, her hands slid around onto Cheryl’s back. “I’ve been trying not to think of this.”

  Cheryl leaned back to offer more skin to kiss, and giggled softly. “Oh yeah? Why not?”

  “Cuz I’m a moron!” she kissed her way up to Cheryl’s lips. “I should have pounced the day you arrived.” Kisses deepened, hands slid under shirts. Cassidy’s voice quietly simmered into a more aggressive tone, steeped in growing lust. “Let’s get these off.”

  Cheryl’s heart pounded. “Here? Now?”

  “Well..” Cassidy moved back to get her top off, and watched Cheryl’s eyes take her. “It’s here or the barracks. I guess we could go find Wanda and ask if she wants to watch.”

  Cheryl laughed and lunged forward, pushing Cassidy onto her back. She stripped off her own top, and kissed Cassidy deeply. “You’re right, you are a moron.”

  ~~~~~

  :::C /17

  ~~~~~

  Cassidy stormed into the barracks with rigid, forceful stomping. Her glower radiated from under the brim of her hat with intensity that would melt paint. Cipriana, Maxine, and especially Wanda watched silently. Cassidy flopped onto her bunk on the far side of the room with force, crossing her arms and ankles, lowering her head enough so that the brim of her hat hid her eyes.

  Before anyone recovered from the shock to venture a question, Cheryl meekly appeared at the barracks doorway.

  Cassidy pointed at her, and erupted. “Keep that psycho bitch away from me!” Everyone including Cheryl jumped a little. Cheryl dipped around the corner and melted to sit on the hallway floor, head in her hands.

  “Cassidy!” Cipriana said in a near-military fashion.

  Wanda rushed over to Cheryl, and knelt down to her. “What the hell happened?”

  “I’m sorry…!” Cheryl could only whimper into her hands, repeating, “I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…!”

  Cipriana knew she had to resolve this fast. She addressed Cassidy. “What is she so sorry for?”

  Cassidy hadn’t stopped seething, and re-asserted her pointing. “She knows what she’s sorry for. She goddam well knows!”

  “What?!” Wanda was near panic.

  Cheryl lifted her head with an innocent smile, and spoke sweetly. “I’m sorry I let Cassidy convince me to do this.” Across the room, Cassidy was giggling devilishly. “Ohhh damn, Wanda, I could not resist!”

  Cipriana chuckled softly, and went back to her book.

  “Wh.. what?” Wanda was still recovering, absorbing that she’d been had. Maxine felt it important to point something out. “Cipriana laughed.”

  “Really? I didn’t hear it!” Cheryl stood, and patted Wanda on the head. “That would be pretty un-Cipriana-like.”

  “Yup, I heard it. For her, I’d call it a downright outburst!” Cassidy was beaming, and sat up on the side of her bunk, and reached out towards Cheryl as she approached.

  “Wha…. Why. You meanies…!” Wanda quietly whined.

  Cassidy took Cheryl’s hand when she was close enough “Because, you’ve been so sure of yourself, I needed to see you suffer for payment first.”

  Wanda stood. “First…? Before what?”

  Cheryl made herself comfortable in Cassidy’s lap, and Cassidy wrapped her arms around Cheryl’s middle then give her a little peck on the shoulder. Both of them were smiling sublimely.

  “Oh!” Wanda clued in. “Oh! I knew it. Ha!” She jumped up and down a couple times, in the spirit of prideful boasting.

  Cassidy huffed. “Yeah, that’s what I figured you’d say. We knew you’d be intolerable when you found out, so we had to have some fun with you first. Pre-vengeance.”

  Wanda started turning it into a song. “I-I-knewwww it, I knewwwww it!”

  “I dunno, Cassie,” Cheryl said loud enough for Wanda to hear through her silliness, “I don’t know if this is worth it. Maybe we should call it off just to shut Wanda up.”

  Wanda froze, and silenced herself.

  “That’s better.” Cassidy snuggled against Cheryl’s back.

  “As I asked when Cheryl first arrived,” Cipriana said as the new couple cuddled, “This isn’t going to be a problem, is it?”

  Cassidy peeked around Cheryl’s shoulder. “Sir, no, Sir, Cipriana, Sir!”

  “We’re mature, responsible adults, Sir!” Cheryl added.

  Cipriana grew one of her soft smiles. “Then congratulations. You’re repulsively cute together. And obviously troublesome. Go play pranks in the boys’ barracks next time.”

  Cassidy and Cheryl smiled at each other. “Too easy.”

  “Like shooting fish in a barrel.” Cheryl added, getting up, “But if I don’t get a shower soon, I’m going to go crazy with all this sand.”

  Wanda narrowed her eyes. “Sand flurry get you?”

  “Nope.”

  “I need one too.” Cassidy said, “We must have caught some flying sand.” By the time Cassidy stood, it had occurred to everyone what the two of them having a shower at the same time might end up entailing. Hypothetically. Despite the wonderful imagery that it fostered, Cassidy thought better of it. She looked to Cipriana. “That might not be professional.”

  Cipriana sighed. “I think it would be best if you kept that sort out thing out of the base. Far out.”

  Cassidy turned to Cheryl, an eyebrow raised. “Wanna go for a walk first?” Cheryl grinned, and started sprinting out the door with Cassidy hot on her tail, leaving Cipriana, Wanda and Maxine alone in the suddenly quiet barracks.

  Wanda spoke softly, “I knew it…”

  Just as order was settling in again, the duo popped back into the barracks, holding a tent and a couple sleeping bags. Cheryl chirped, “Cip! Can we borrow these from supply?”

  Cipriana stared at them a moment with an expression of mild confusion. “May I ask why?”

  “You told us to keep ‘it’ out of the base,” Cassidy explained, “We just want to be comfy. So... please?”

  Cipriana lowered her head with an amused smile, and sighed. “Very well. For now. But it’s clear we’ll have to have a discussion about it. Consider this your grace period.”

  Cheryl blew Cipriana a playful kiss, and dragged Cassidy away with the gear. Nearby, a smiling Wanda wiggled in approval. Maxine raised an eyebrow and stared at Wanda. “What are you, anyway, their cheerleader?”

  Cassidy and Cheryl raced back to their spot from earlier, carrying their gear. Cheryl got there a second or two ahead of Cassidy, dropping her cargo, and sliding to the ground on her back, holding her arms wide for Cassidy. Cassidy wasted no time in dropping her encumbrance, and sweeping down on her new lover, kissing madly, her precious hat getting pushed up out of the way. Out of breath from running, there seemed little hope of either of them catching their breath any time soon.

  “I want to say it,” Cassidy gasped, trying to fit words between kisses, “is it too soon to say that kind of thing?” She got up a little to gaze into Cheryl’s eyes. “I mean, it's not like we just met. I've known you for months now.”

  Cheryl looked up, smiling, biting her lower lip. She reached around to grab Cassidy’s hat, and pulled it away so that Cassidy’s hair was again free to fall around Cheryl’s face. Cheryl closed her eyes and purred before speaking in the softest, most heartfelt voice Cassidy could imagine. “I love you too, Cassie…”

  Cassidy held Cheryl as close as she could. With her li
ps by Cheryl’s ear, she whispered, “I love you, I love you, I love how you call me Cassie.”

  Cheryl giggled, and Cassidy babbled on. “When other people call me Cassie, it pisses me of, but somehow, from you, it makes me feel.. I don’t know. Did I mention those shorts drive me crazy? And those boots? I’ve been dying to complete the compliment.. Nice boots-“

  Cheryl laughed, and cut her off. “Wanna fuck?”

  ~~~~~

  :::C /18

  ~~~~~

  The “magic tokens” Kirison was preparing were going to be pivotal, but they wouldn’t do any good if Horad’s men couldn’t get to the temple. They might also appreciate thinking he cared if they got out. He chose to ignore for now that he hadn't been able to contact Horad for some time now.

  He assumed they had considerable ability in the desert, but he thought of a wonderful toy that would greatly assist them to evade the military if the heat was turned on. The trouble was, it wasn’t exactly available at the corner store. It was time to visit the Lancer office.

  He walked up to the sturdy, metal, unremarkable door, on the shady side of an unremarkable building, in an unremarkable industrial area of Densfarn.

  By the door was a video intercom. Kirison pressed the sole button on it. The screen flickered as you would expect if were malfunctioning.

  He put an ID card against the screen, as well as his left thumb, and a wide-open eye. “Cheese!”

  The screen went blank and the door clicked. At least he wasn’t yet persona non grata. At least not entirely.

  Down a hall and around a corner stood a pair of men dressed casually, concealing ungodly amounts of hardware. One spoke as he opened the door. “Mr. Book is free to see you.”

  “Ah, good timing then.” He continued in. On the other side of the door, the building was considerably less modest. Most of the doors Kirison passed were either heavily barred and locked, or sealed air tight. Or both. He made it to Mr. Book’s office, and came in with a friendly but professional demeanor.

  “Hey, Mr. Book. I was in the neighborhood.”

  “A little out of your way.” Mr. Book spoke with his usual joyless tone.

  “Well, I haven’t heard anything about re-assignment. Just thought I’d come by in person, and... well, to be frank, remind you I existed.”

  “Hrmph.” Mr. Book didn’t sound impressed, nor offended. He was good at these neutral grunts. It was just… acknowledgment. “Very courteous of you, Kirison, but it doesn’t change things. Your speciality just isn’t worth any money with the new laws.”

  “Laws, huh?” Lancer as an organization wasn’t always such a stickler for the rules, and it scarcely needed mentioning.

  Mr. Book wobbled his head slowly. “There’s laws, and then there’s laws. It’s a risk assessment deal. After Coll had that little matter of nano-genocide- nasty bit, that- if the wrong person so much as smelled a nanite on any of us… I wouldn’t put it past them to dip us in napalm just to be safe.”

  “I got that impression, but my skills aren’t limited to nanites.”

  “Hrmph.” There it was again. “Look, I can sympathize. Prior to Coll's garbage, I thought your department would be ninety percent of the business. It’s not a fun thing for any of us,” easy for him to say, “but I’ll tell you what. Polish up your resume, highlight skills you think might transfer well to other departments, and I’ll make sure copies make it to all the heads.”

  Well, it wasn’t why Kirison was here, primarily... he was more worried about shutting down his last nanite project before that figurative napalm bath… but the truth was, he’d still need a job after it was all settled. “Well, that’s very kind of you, Sir.” Kirison started heading out. “Good to see you again! I honestly can’t remember the last time I saw you in person.”

  “Hrmph.”

  Well, that out of the way, he wouldn’t be watched so much. If Book had been watching him come in, his curiosity was now sated, and he could move about a little more freely. He made his way to the armory.

  A grunt was there, counting bullets. They ignored each other, and Kirison, trying his best to behave like he belonged there, grabbed a mid-sized box. The grunt took notice.

  Kirison had his story lined up. Hopefully it would be enough. It was all he had. “I’m going to see how it reacts to masers.” The grunt shrugged, and went back to his counting.

  Kirison wanted to run all the way out, but he resisted, and played it cool. No one said anything, and the two casual-wear guards were too busy being casual to ask questions. It wasn’t until after half an hour of driving that Kirison’s hands stopped trembling.

  ~~~~~

  :::C /19

  ~~~~~

  When the moon took ownership of the sky, it found Cassidy and Cheryl holding hands nude, gazing into the sky, delirious with peace. Cassidy looked over to Cheryl and her body, and sat up on her elbow. “Mind if I stare a bit?”

  Cheryl smiled softly. Despite her wish to stay there forever, she picked up her watch and looked at the time. “Ughh… Think it would be against regulation to show up to duty naked?”

  Cassidy giggled softly. “Definitely out of uniform. Besides, I’m the jealous type. I want all that to myself.” She illustrated her statement with a gentle caress that started around Cheryl’s knee, and went smoothly up until she held her face, for a slow, soft kiss.

  “Mmm, don’t. There’s no time. I’ve still gotta get my duty pants and boots. We gotta get going.”

  Eventually, they approached the temple holding hands, parting as new lovers do, arms reaching out, touching fingertips until the last possible moment.

  Cassidy realized how sappy she was being the moment she saw Jim standing a few metres away from their post, the southeast door, waiting for the shift change. She tried to harden up a bit. She greeted him as she approached. “Hey, Jim.”

  “So… not that I particularly doubted the rumour…” Jim glanced over towards Cheryl’s post, the southwest door, “but I see you got your cookies.”

  Cassidy sighed. “Man… I’m sorry. You know.”

  “Don’t be stupid,” Jim said with a chuckle that sounded a little forced. “Something great happened for you, that’s great, that’s all. It’s not like it has anything to do with Karl.”

  “Yeah, but still, you’ve been recently kicked, and here I come with Cheryl, prancing along like ...”

  “Like a couple of girly… uh...”

  “Bimbos?”

  “No, not quite what I was looking for,” Cassidy peered into nothingness looking for the right word.

  “Bimbos.” Jim gently asserted.

  Cassidy sighed, and relented. If Jim wanted to call her a bimbo, she’d give him licence for a while. As long as the term didn’t spread. The shift changed over, and they took their posts. It was difficult to have casual conversation while all Cassidy could think about was Cheryl. She didn’t want to bring her up, and rub Jim’s nose in her new romance any more than need be. But what else was there to talk about?

  Jim could easily see Cassidy’s problem in her body language. Eyes wandering everywhere, restless stance. She was either trying to not talk about Cheryl, or she had to go pee. “Would you just relax, Cass? You’re going to come off your hinges if you keep this up for eight hours. It’s okay, seriously.”

  Cassidy exhaled deeply. “Well, it’s not fair for you.”

  “I’ll survive.”

  “You’re rebounding on porn, aren’t you?”

  Jim laughed. “No, no, no. A little. But speaking of rebounding, what happened to you not rebounding from Brandy?”

  “Brandy and I have effectively been apart for quite a while now, even if not officially. I figure that it counts against the whole rebound thing.”

  Jim smirked. “Sounds pretty convenient.”

  “Oh, yes, isn’t it just?” Cassidy smiled wide, and sighed.

  “Alright, alright, tell me all about it.” Jim couldn’t help but be amused. The fact was that he may as well face the force of Cassidy’s n
ew-found bliss, but he was also feeling genuinely happy for her. And maybe he could enjoy the feeling vicariously a little.

  Cassidy let loose another dreamy sigh. “Oh, what’s to tell? It’s been less than a day. Most of what’s to tell is a little more explicit that I care to share.”

  “Bimbo. Or ‘trollop’ maybe?”

  “Yeah, yeah. Oh!” Cassidy almost hopped a little. “She and I also played this trick on W-“

  “Oh, I think everyone’s aware of that whole thing already.”

  Cassidy hummed to herself, swaying a little where she stood. “Oh. Heehee..”

  Jim smirked, and shook his head slowly. “Oh, Cass, I know people act different when they fall in love, but compared to the Cassidy I met when you first got here… It’s just not like you.”

  “Hmm. Yeah.” She looked over towards Cheryl’s post. “I wouldn’t generally call her my type, you know.”

  “It seems to sit well with you. Maybe you should consider her your type after all.”

  Cassidy just quietly smiled, gazing Cheryl’s way.

  The early morning came, and soon after, morning shift arrived.

  Cassidy’s relief had an unexpected message. “Cip says you and Cheryl should go back to the barracks, not ‘your camp’.”

  Alright, fine, not a big shock. She let Jim get going ahead, so he wouldn’t have to see her reunion with Cheryl. “Has eight hours ever been longer?” Cassidy said with a kiss and a hug.

  “Ha. I know. But Cip-“

  “Yeah, I know.”

  They straggled behind the rest of night shift on the path, and got a little distance from the eyes of morning shift before joining hands. Cheryl glanced in the direction of their private camp. “Think we’ll get that tent up today? I think I’m a little burnt from our ... uh, sunbathing session.”