by Alison Mello
We’re about to sit back down when Keaton comes running through the door. “Hey, Mama.” He kisses her on the cheek. She tells him to make a plate. Like my brother’s here for any other reason. He knew she was having this gathering. She holds it on the second Sunday in June every year, and they throw the party in August. She’ll also use this time to invite folks over for a Fourth of July celebration.
“Hungry much?” I ask him as he sits next to Dad and me with a plate piled up with food.
“Heck yeah, I’ve been working my tail off all day in that blazing hot sun. My guys screwed up on some siding and the only way we were going to fix it in time is if we worked overtime today.”
“Sounds like you need some new men on your crew.” I chuckle.
“Nah, shit happens sometimes.” He shrugs it off and begins devouring his food. “Who’s the new girl at the table?”
“All I know is her name is Kenzie. I’ve seen her out on my running route a few times.”
“Damn, she’s sweeter than Mama’s peach pie.”
My brows shoot up. “Down, boy, she’s here taking care of her ill nana. She doesn’t need you breaking her heart too, Mr. I’m-not-ready-to-settle-down.” He clears what’s left on his plate, wiggles his brows at me, and stands to remove his shirt, leaving him in shorts and work boots. He starts to take those off. I know what he’s planning to do, but it ain’t going to work.
He stands and starts toward the pool, but before he can dive in Mama shouts, “Don’t you jump in my pool all filthy like that. Your brother just cleaned it.”
“Mama, I’ve been working outside all day.”
“Don’t sass me, boy. You take your filthy ass upstairs and shower before you get in that pool.” I can’t help but laugh at my brother. He thought he was so damn slick.
“Yes, ma’am.” He scoops up his stuff and runs upstairs to shower.
When my brother finally gets downstairs, the party is wrapping up and Kenzie is on her way out the door. “So sad, so sorry, bro, you missed out.”
“Why didn’t you tell me you cleaned the pool today?”
“What does that matter? You shouldn’t get in all nasty anyway. You were covered in dirt, and that’s disgusting.”
My brother shoves me, but I’m stronger than he is, so I don’t go very far. My mother starts to intervene but it’s too late. I throw my brother into the pool with all his clean clothes on. “Dude, you suck. I don’t have any other clothes here.”
I shrug. “Looks like you’re driving home wet.”
Chapter 4
Remy
I set out on my morning run with the music pumping in my ears. Once I’m up to speed my mind starts going through all I have to do today. It’s my first day back to work, and I have to check in with my commander, find my new office, get a new ID, and meet with the major I’m replacing. I take a deep breath as I notice I’m at the turn in my run when I see Kenzie. I’m hoping to see her fine ass again this morning. Sure enough, when I round the corner there she is. I pick up my pace to catch up to her.
She turns to me and nods. “Good morning,” she says, trying to maintain her breathing.
“Good morning, I wanted to tell you I’m sorry to hear about your grandmother.”
“Yeah, thanks,” she says, slowing.
I turn to face her confused. Did I say something wrong? I’m totally lost, so I shout, “Have a good day,” before I take off running. I don’t have a ton of time to stop and chat with her, but I feel bad that she looks so upset. I finish my run and go straight up to shower. My Army Combat Uniform is hanging from the back of my door all ready to go. I grab the hanger and the rest of my stuff and jump in the shower, but as I wash I can’t help but think about the troubled look on Kenzie’s face. There was no beautiful smile today, no shimmer in her beautiful hazel eyes.
Did I cause that pain by bringing up her grandmother? I grab my shampoo and begin washing. I lost my grandmother a few years ago to cancer, and I just wanted Kenzie to know I felt her pain. I was just trying to be friendly, and I feel like I made things worse for her.
I push my thoughts aside. I can’t spend my entire day worrying about this. I’ll talk to my mom and see what she knows about her. I have to focus today though. It’s too important of a day. I need to impress my new commander. I’m up for promotion and it’s important to me that I retire a major. I’ve worked too hard to blow it now.
I run downstairs carrying my boots and ACU jacket. It’s still early, and just because I’m up doesn’t mean the entire house has to be. However, I can’t help but laugh when I get downstairs to find my mother in the kitchen. “Here’s your coffee, Remy.” She puts it on the snack bar. “Your breakfast will be ready in a minute.”
I take a seat at the snack bar and put on my boots. When I’m done I stand, kissing my mama on the cheek and say, “Thanks. Are you trying to make it so I never leave?”
She smiles at me. “No, but I’ll enjoy taking care of you while I can.” She sets my plate down and I begin eating. I still have thoughts of Kenzie on my mind.
“What’s wrong, Remy?”
I sigh. Leave it to Mama to notice I’m thinking of Kenzie. “What do you know about Kenzie?”
“Not a whole lot. Her family is originally from Georgia, a few towns over I believe. She teaches at the elementary with me, fourth grade I think.” She crosses her arms over her chest. “Why do you ask? Is that girl what you and your brother were fighting over yesterday?”
“Keaton was being dumb as usual, but that’s not why I asked. I see her on my run every morning. We always smile and nod as we pass, but today she said good morning to me. When I said it in return I told her I was sorry to hear about her nana and she looked devastated.”
“From what your father told me, she’s having a hard time dealing with it. Her nana has dementia and that’s really hard to deal with, because she doesn’t have an ailment your father can just cure. Unfortunately, the poor woman can live for years like that. I wouldn’t want my nana to forget who I am.”
“No, I can’t imagine that’s easy to deal with. I feel bad, though. I was trying to be friendly and feel like I only upset her.”
“Don’t you worry, she’ll come around. I think it’s all still too new to her. I invited her over for the Fourth of July party on Saturday, perhaps you can talk to her then.”
“Maybe, but I don’t want to upset her.” I start eating, because I need to leave in a few minutes. Mama walks away and leaves me to my breakfast and thoughts. I don’t know what it is about this woman, but I’m really attracted to her and I haven’t been interested in a girl since I broke it off with my high school sweetheart.
I scrape my plate into the trash and load it into the dishwasher. I put on my uniform top, zipping it up. I grab my cover and head out the door for work.
I pull up to the base gate thirty-five minutes later. I was worried about traffic, so I gave myself extra time and now I’m early. I roll down the window and the guard at the gate asks for my ID. I hand it over and watch as he looks at it, then scans it with his handheld device. Watching the screen, he must be happy with what he sees, because he hands me my ID and says, “Have a good day, sir.” He salutes, which I quickly return then drive off. I decide to take a drive around the base. It’s been years since I’ve been here, and from what I’ve heard, they’ve made some changes. I take a left and drive slowly up the road. There are kids playing outside as I make my way past base housing. I could stay on base and have a place to myself, but I’ve been there done that, and at this point, I’d rather live with my parents.
I’ve found the reception center where I need to check in, the commissary, the PX, and I found the DEERS office where they distribute IDs and the sticker I need to get for my car. As well as the officer’s club. It amazes me that I grew up down here and this is the first time in my career I’m being stationed here.
Circling back around, I pull up to the reception center to report in and let them know I’m on base. I dropped by yesterda
y to let them know I was here and ready to start today. I have some quick paperwork to take care of here, then I’ll head over to my new office building to check in there. I have to come back for the newcomers’ brief tomorrow at three p.m., so I write it on my calendar so I don’t forget. These things are typically more for families staying on base, but it’s mandatory so I’ll be there.
About twenty minutes later, I pull up to my new office building. It’s a typical Military Intelligence office, a large brick building with no windows. It’s gated and lined with concertina wire, and there are two guards at the entrance holding rifles. I once again show my ID, and because they’ve been told to expect me, I’m let right in.
I step out of the car, locking it as I take a deep breath. It’s going to be mighty hot today. I walk into the building with my military folder in hand. Despite the lack of windows, the building is well-lit and doesn’t have the dungeon feel you would think it’d have. I walk down the hall following the directions that were given to me, and, as promised, on the right-hand side is Colonel Mackey’s office. I knock on the door and a second later I hear, “Enter.”
I step inside, closing the door behind me. “Colonel Mackey, sir. Captain Bennett reporting for duty, sir.” I salute my new commanding officer.
He stands to return the salute and says, “Ahh, yes, Captain Bennett. I’ve heard a lot of good things about you. Please have a seat.” He points to the chair in front of his desk.
“Thank you, sir,” I say, dropping my salute. “Here you go, sir.” I hand him the file with my military records in it and take the offered seat. He flips it open and starts scanning through the pages of my file. It’s pretty thick from my years of service.
“You’re up for promotion,” he says in a flat tone.
“Yes, sir, I am. It’s my understanding that’s one of the reasons I was moved here. I will be promoted to Major and finish my contract here working with the new soldiers coming into Military Intelligence.”
“That’s correct. Right now we have four soldiers who were recently commissioned and are about ready to move on to other duty stations. While they finish their time here, we’re going to have you work alongside Major Vickers. He has been working in this area for quite a while now, and he will set you up for success. He will be here long enough to not only finish this round of troops, but to get you started with the next round as well. In your new position it will be your duty to guide the troops through the process that is Military Intelligence. You’ll work side-by-side with them while they get their first glimpse at what it’s like to get a real piece of intel and then have to dissect it.” I nod as I make notes. “You’ll be helping them determine urgency levels and who to report any threats to. You were chosen for this position because you’re good at what you do. You know this job inside and out, now teach it.” I look up from my notepad. “Any questions?” he asks me.
“When do I start?”
“Tomorrow. Are there any personal tasks you need to see to?”
“I need to update my ID, get all my new passwords situated, and I have a newcomers’ brief tomorrow. I don’t have a lot since I’m living off base.”
“Good, why don’t you go get your ID taken care of? When you get back I’ll introduce you to Major Vickers and the rest of the staff in this building,” he says to me.
“Yes, sir. Anything else I need to know?” I ask him.
“No, anything else you need to know will come from the major.”
I stand, and so does he. He sticks his hand out and says, “Welcome to Fort Stewart.”
I return his handshake and say, “Thank you, sir.”
I get back out to my car, and as instructed, I’m going to get my new ID taken care of.
When I get to the DEERs building I climb out of the car, bumping into an old friend. “Is that Remy Bennett I see before me?”
I smile and hold out my hand. “How’s it going, Vaughn?”
“Good. Look at you, a captain now,” he says with pride.
“Looks like you’re doing pretty well yourself, Staff Sergeant,” I tell him with pride.
“Promotable,” he responds with a smile.
“Nice, me too. I’m hoping to make Major after I get through my first round of troops. I start working with Major Vickers tomorrow to learn my new job before he retires.”
“Where you going from there?” he asks me.
“Staying right here, hopefully for the next few years, and then I’ll decide if I’m going to retire or not.”
“Good for you. I won’t bother asking what you’ll be doing because I know you can’t tell me, but good luck with it.”
“Thanks, will I be seeing you around?”
“Yeah, I’m stationed here for a while as well. Then I have to decide if I’m going to renew my contract or get out.”
“Nice. Hey, listen, you know where my mama lives. We’re having a huge Fourth of July party on Saturday. Come on by, Mama would love to see you.”
“Sounds good. What time?” he asks.
“Three.”
We hug, and he says, “Cool, see you then, sir.” He gives me a quick salute as some low-ranking NCOs walk by. I salute them as well, and he says, “Have a good day, sir.”
“You too, Sergeant,” I say with a smile before I walk into the building.
“Can I help you, sir?” the woman behind the counter questions.
“Yes, I need an updated ID,” I tell her, handing her my old one.
She smiles at me, takes my ID, and starts typing into her computer. She then asks me to stand in front of the screen. She takes my picture, and in a matter of a few minutes, I’m out of there. When I get to my car I send a quick text to Mama to let her know I invited Vaughn to the party this weekend. She always has more than enough food, but I want to give her a heads up anyway.
Remy: Mama, Vaughn is in town. I invited him Saturday.
Mama: You know that’s not a problem. What time will you be home?
I chuckle, looking at Mama’s smiley face emoji.
Remy: Probably around five-thirty.
Mama: See you then.
I put my phone on the charger and head back over to the office so I can get introduced around.
***
It’s been a long, quiet day, but it’s finally over, and as I told Mama, I’m pulling into the driveway at five-fifteen. I walk into the house to smell my mama’s home cooking, and damn does it smell good. “Mama, I’m home,” I shout as I walk through the door.
I’m starving. I had a grilled chicken salad for lunch and it wasn’t enough. Now that I know what we have available in our small office kitchen, I’ll have to start packing my lunch. It’s too much of a pain to go out for lunch, especially when work gets really intense. Sometimes you just can’t stop to go out and eat.
“Go wash up. Dinner is almost done, and your father will be home any minute now.”
I run upstairs, change into a pair of shorts and a tank top, wash my hands and face, and run back downstairs to find Mama hard at it in the kitchen. She’s made my favorite: fried chicken, greens, mashed potatoes, and gravy.
“Oh, Mama, I’m starving,” I say, leaning in to give her a kiss on the cheek.
My father comes walking in the room. “Hey, honey,” he says, kissing my mama.
“Dinner’s ready,” she says, placing the last bowl on the table.
“Where’s Brooke?” my father asks.
“She’s working late tonight. I’ll make her a plate when we’re done eating.” He nods, and we all take a seat at the dinner table.
“How was your first day back to work?” my father asks me, scooping some greens onto his plate.
I shrug. “Pretty boring actually. I met with my new commander, got my ID squared away, met the staff, and worked on some security stuff. I start working side-by-side with Major Vickers tomorrow. He’s the guy I’m replacing, so he’ll be sticking around long enough to finish this round of training and get me started on the next. He’s retiring once it’s time for me
to take over.” I take a bite of my chicken. “Mama, this is so good,” I say, shoving more in my mouth to avoid questions I can’t answer.
***
Kenzie
I pull into Nana’s drive, exhausted from the long day I’ve had. I went for my run this morning, then went home to shower and do some house chores. I had two tutoring sessions today, and now I’m at Nana’s house.
When I got here, I found her sitting on the porch in her night shirt with a puddle of urine under her. I called Aunt Kenderly to find out about getting some added help for her. If she’s not getting up to go to the bathroom, this is a real problem and I’ll have even less time to spend here when school starts.
“Come on, Nana, let’s get you cleaned up before dinner,” I say with a warm smile.
“I already had a bath today, Joanne.” She looks up at me.
“Nana, I’m Kenzie, and you haven’t had a bath today,” I help her from her swing. Thank God she has a bathroom on the first floor. I’m not sure her legs will carry her up the stairs anymore. My aunt had her bedroom set moved to the first floor to make things easier for us.
Now that I have her all cleaned up, I sit her at the dining room table and begin warming her dinner. My aunt prepared something last night for tonight and I’ll do the same tonight, so when my aunt gets here tomorrow, all she’ll have to do is heat it up. I put her plate down in front of her with a glass of milk and get to work preparing tomorrow’s dinner. I’m just about done when my phone buzzes. I smile at the text from my best friend, Lillian.
Lilly: How’s Nana?
I sigh before typing out a text.
