Our Bruised Bodies | Bradley Bradshaw

ACT FOUR - PART TEN

Hello and Cheers!

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There was no way Grace was able to make it on time. She got off the job at five, so even if she sprinted down the corridors, which she couldn't do as an officer as long as there wasn't an emergency, she would never reach the rehab facility in time. Not that Bradley seemed to mind, he knew that Grace did everything she could to be there for him and Cookie and him were usually just chatting about something. Sometimes Lena was waiting with them, since her wife won't go off the job before five either. So, it was fine, it was no big deal, but that didn't mean that Grace didn't mind it. She would love to be on time, to be already there and waiting for Bradley, which she never managed.

"Are they getting dumber with each essay they write?" Jon asked as he entered Grace's office, carrying around a stack of already marked essays, which she would have to take note of, before they could return them to their students.

But by all the gods Grace didn't believe in, Jonathan Bates was a gift from above, Grace was so sure of it. He was the quickest, she had ever seen anyone grading papers and pointing out flaws in an essay and she loved him for it. That man singlehandedly spared her of ever having to grade papers after working hours.

The had a nice rhythm in their routine. They were preparing their lessons together mostly, taking notes of how the other one was teaching and improving along their shared way. They understood how the other one was operating and thinking, which is why they also worked well together in the sky. Shooting one of their students down after the other. Elrond flew a bit different than Icarus did. While Grace liked to pull up into the sky to lose their students on her tail, Elrond like to lose them with elegant breaks and turns. But that had never been an issue, because they did stick together when it came to it. Elrond was her wingman up there, just as she was his, which had their students nearly breaking their necks, trying to not lose one of their instructors with their quick flying and almost extravagant style, while the other one was right behind them.

It was most Grace, who did the debriefs with the students, while Jon sat at the back of the classroom, half listening and having an eye on everything from behind while he was marking papers so quick, they never had to take any work home.

"Honestly, I hoped for improvement." Grace replied. Finishing off the new training course she wanted to confront their students with, which of course had to be all written down and approved by a board of officers before.

"So far, I do see improvements in their flying. Sadly enough, not in their English. How did they even manage to get so far?" Elrond asked while flopping down in the seat on the other side of Grace's office desk, which had her smile amused at him.

"It's a disgrace for the rest of us." He pointed out, only for the youngest Kazansky to raise an eyebrow.

"Not everyone went to the academy, Jon." Grace told him, which had him huff again.

"No, but they all are officers which means they at least have a bachelor's degree in something. And now they can't even form a coherent sentence." She knew that he could complain about this for hours and hours. Especially because no one had told him about the essay and paper marking part of the job, but the higher you get in the Navy, the more you work behind a desk with stacks of papers piling up.

"Then don't mark their English, but what they try to say." Grace offered, but that had Jon, who spoke four languages fluently snort at her.

"And be nice? No chance." He told his boss, which had her roll her eyes, before reaching for the marked papers he brought her, to pencil down the marks and point in little booklet, before she checked her watch again.