The Military Connection

Chapter 2

One month later, on July 13th, a guy in a Camaro drove to the Lodge of Fallen Leaves, hoping for directions. When he arrived, he rang the front desk bell summoning Aubrey.

"Welcome to the Lodge of Fallen Leaves. Can I help you?" Aubrey asked.

"Yeah. I'm looking for a good place to stay around here. Can you recommend something?" Chad asked.

"Sure. Are you from out of town?" Aubrey asked.

"No. Actually, I live around here. Just had to get away from the house for a couple of days," Chad explained.

"Why?" Aubrey asked.

"My mom and I haven't been on good terms lately," Chad said.

"I'm sorry to hear that," Aubrey said.

"Thanks. How much is a room or whatever you'd have here? Maybe I'll stay for a bit," Chad said.

Aubrey rented him a room, and as she was showing him around, "So, do you live with your mom?"

"Yeah. She's been having a rough time. My dad joined the military, so she's been relying on me a lot," Chad explained.

"Your dad's in the military? Mine too!" Aubrey said.

"No way! Which branch?" Chad asked.

"Army," Aubrey said.

"Air Force," Chad responded.

"Wow. I can't believe we have that in common," Aubrey said.

"I know, right. I'm Chad, by the way," he introduced himself, offering a handshake.

"Aubrey," she said, accepting the handshake.

"Nice to meet you. Say, I know this may be a lot to ask, but could I get your number?" Chad asked.

"Sure," Aubrey agreed.

Chad handed Aubrey his phone, and she put her number in. Once that was done, she handed his phone back to him. He then texted her his number so she'd have it before Aubrey led him to one of the available guest rooms.

Two days later, Aubrey and Chad had their first date at a diner.

"So, what made you decide on the diner?" Aubrey asked.

"I remember you saying you're allergic to certain seafood, so I wanted to find a good restaurant to accommodate that," Chad explained.

"Yeah, just basically lobsters and crawfish," Aubrey confirmed.

"A lot of sit-down restaurants have some seafood on their menu, so I didn't want to take a chance," Chad said.

"I really appreciate that," Aubrey said.

"So, tell me a little about you," Chad requested curiously.

"Well, I really love to sing. I was part of an acapella group in college called the Barden Bellas," Aubrey said.

Suddenly, Chad's curiosity peaked, "Really? You know I happen to be a rather good singer too," Chad said.

"No way!" Aubrey exclaimed, feeling excited.

"True. So tell me more about the Barden Bellas," Chad said, interested in the details.

"Well, senior year, my friend Chloe and I led the Bellas, and we both ended up making a big group of friends that year," Aubrey explained.

"Well, that's great! It sounds like you still have a great bond. Do you still stay in touch with them?" Chad asked.

"Yeah, but getting the group started that year was not as easy as you might think," Aubrey recalled. "Nearly everyone disagreed with my decision, it was rough, but we got through it. I didn't want to take a lot of suggestions, but they helped me see a different way."

"Why wouldn't you take suggestions from people? If you did, it would've made you a better leader. In time, it would've been a lot easier to earn the respect of the whole group," Chad said.

Aubrey remembered how difficult it was for her, "Well, this one girl who I was skeptical about having in the Bellas came along, and after she got in, she convinced me that more modern music was the way to go." All in all, I'm glad I listened because if I hadn't, the Bellas never would've been three-time national champions or recent World champions."

"That's amazing! They sound like a fantastic group of women. I'd love to meet them," Chad said.

"Oh, they are. I think you'd like them," Aubrey said.

The day after Aubrey and Chad's first date, Aubrey had a phone conversation with Chloe.

"It was amazing! He took me to the local diner for lunch, and we had a lot to talk about," Aubrey reported, recalling that tender moment.

"Really? Like what?" Chloe asked.

"Well, it turns out his dad's in the military, and he likes to sing too," Aubrey recapped.

"That's awesome! Wait, he wasn't a Treblemaker when we were in college, was he?" Chloe asked.

"No. He didn't even go to Barden. He went to Tampa University, and they don't even have an acapella group, just a standard choir," Aubrey explained.

"That makes sense. I mean, even though that oath is a thing of the past, I know you'd still never date a Treblemaker," Chloe said.

"You got that right. Well, I enjoy our phone conversations, but my break's almost over, so I must get back to work. Later," Aubrey said, hanging up.

After the conversation, Aubrey couldn't stop staring at the one picture in her phone of her and Chad. She had taken the picture outside the diner where they had their first date. Yeah, she had boyfriends prior to him, but those relationships didn't stand out as much. It made her wonder what was so different about Chad. Whatever it was, she was sure to recognize it at some point. In fact, after her shift, she couldn't wait to call him again.