Katy Westford. Better known as Sergent Maze, the youngest person to achieve the rank in the history of the North American Military. She worked hard for the respect from her supervisors and her hard work payed off.
Or, at least, that's what she thoug...
Richerson pushes aside the curtain, kisses Nelly on the cheek and plops down on the couch beside Katy.
"If only they knew the truth. Can you imagine the headline?" He waves his hand in the air dramatically. "Teenage Sergeant survives house bombing!!"
Katy cringes, "Gods I am glad that people are dumb."
Nell reaches over and smacks her shoulder gently. Katy gasps, pressing her hand to her forehead and falls backward with a giggle. Richerson sits her up with a huff, feigning annoyance, but his eyes are crinkled with a smile.
The three of them chill on the couch as the news continues, going from the explosion to news from South Africa to local stories. By the time the explosion was the topic again, both Katy and Richerson were getting antsy.
Nelly finally sighs, "Alrighty kiddos. I gonna pee. So put your shoes on, cause once I get back, we're storming the castle!"
She stands and raises her fist with a mighty shake before making a face and rushing to the bathroom.
"Everything okay?!" Richerson yells as she whips open the door.
"Stood up too fast," Her voice is muffled by the door.
Katy sniggers softly. Richerson punches her arm with a glare, "Don't laugh. You've got no idea what it's like."
"Jeeze, man. Take a breath, I mean, what happened to the caring man who took care of me last night?" Katy responds as she stands, stretches, and heads toward the front door, "So get your ass off my couch and put your shoes on before your wife comes out."
"You know I can hear you just fine from in here?!"
"Yes, I am aware of the annoyingly thin walls here, thank you Nelly." Katy smiles, immersing herself in the carefree feeling of acting her age. As she opens the door, the sight and sounds of the surrounding Base makes the smile falter.
In a wave, Katy is overwhelmed with a feeling of uncertainty. The uncertainty of tomorrow, of her solders safety, of her families safety. Hell, even the safety of the base in general! Her mind halts for a moment, the though occurring to her that it wouldn't be too bad if the offices were blown up...
Katy shakes her head violently, causing her to stumble down the stairs and run into the wall across the landing. With a groan, she pushes away from the wall and rubs her nose, which is now a bright red as a result of being smashed into the wall.
"Careful there, Noodles, the wall was there before you."
Katy groans, both in pain and frustration, as she turns to look at Richerson, "Really? Did you really have to bring that back? I though we were past that point in our relationship."
"What do you mean?" Nelly pushes Richerson out the door and tugs him down the stairs toward Katy.
Richerson immediately smiles, a glimmer of mischief in the mans eyes. Katy groans for the second time but says nothing, instead turning to leave.
Nelly hurries after Katy, brows furrowed in concern, "Katy, what do you mean by that? Did he do something wrong?"
Katy snorts, "No, he didn't. Noodles is the nickname that Rich gave me during my training. He used it as a means to make fun of me, which triggered my competitiveness and made me push myself to the point that I couldn't walk properly because my legs were noodles."
"It worked though..." He pointedly looks everywhere except Katy's direction. Nelly punches his arm, giving him a sarcastic but pointed look.
He laughs, kissing her forehead, and grabs the girls hands before dragging them both toward the car, "Come on, we've got things to do today and we're not going to get them done if we drag our feet."
As he starts up the car, Katy frowns in the rearview mirror, which Richerson notices but ignores. Knowing that he is purposely ignoring her unspoken questions, Katy purses her lips, annoyed.
But, well aware that whatever the plan is will be a surprise, Katy simply watches the world pass by. Her mind slowly drifts off, memories surfacing without permission.
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"Mum! It's my birthday!" Katy screamed as she ran into her mothers room and leapt onto the bed with a maniacal giggle.
Tyler groaned and rolled over on top of Katy, "Five more minutes..."
Katy squealed as Tyler suddenly started tickling her, and she tried to get away franticly but found herself trapped.
"Ahhh, Muuumm, stop! I'm pee my pants!" Katy immediately took advantage of the pause in Tyler's attack. She wiggled out from under her and leapt off the bed, executing a perfect roll before standing and bolting out the bedroom door.
"You get back here you little rascal!!" Katy pushed her legs to run faster when she heard her mothers footsteps close behind her. Tyler reached out to grab her shirt but just as she was succeed, Katy turned the corner.
With a thud, Tyler ran full speed into the wall at the end of the hallway. Katy quickly turned back to check on her with a face full of worry. But, just as Katy got within arms reach, Tyler grabbed her and resumed her tickling.
The two spent the next few minutes laughing as each tried to tickle the other without being tickled themselves. Finally, Tyler gave up, letting Katy have the win. Instead of making her happy, Katy watched her mom with concern.
"Have they been pushing their work on you again?" Her voice was very small as she looked at her mum through her lashes. Tyler didn't answer, knowing full well that Katy already knew the truth and that the question was rhetorical.
"Ka--"
"Kat--"
"Katy wake up!"
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Katy jolts awake with a sharp inhale, whipping her head around to register her surroundings. She found herself in Richerson's car, parked in the parking lot of the City Fair, with Nelly worriedly talking with her husband.
"She isn't responding, I don't know what to do--"
"It's alright, Nelly. I'm awake, sorry for worrying you," Katy pushes herself out of the car with effort. "The last couple days seem to have caught up with me, and they're hitting a lot harder than I expected. I'll be okay in a few minutes of walking around, get my blood pumping."
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
Should I be sleeping right now? Yep. Will I? Nope.
