Guns & Kisses - Billy Russo x Reader

Chapter 1 - The Beginning

Looking up at the building I felt some sort of anxiety bubble up inside of me. This was supposed to be a new start for me. But the beginning of something new is always a little scary. And things get a lot more scary when they can reach something in your personality that you keep hidden behind metaphorical walls. I assumed that Anvil could do just that and I was scared of it. But at the same time I felt drawn into it, the thrill of holding a gun and fighting among others pulling me closer to the monster made out of steel and glass until it was only a few more steps to take to enter the building. I took a deep breath, in and out, and then I  walked into a new life.
A look around and I knew that I wasn't the only ex-soldier signing up for the job. Some of the newbies had their uniform on, others just screamed "I've been in a war" by their posture or their scars. Only a few men looked like they haven't seen violence in real life before. What stood out to me though was that I was the only female around here, not counting the office staff walking through the lobby in a busy haste. I walked over to the tiny crowd of applicants and waited for the great arrival of the CEO.
Only a few minutes passed when a tall slender man made his way over to us. His dark brown hair was slicked back, revealing a handsome face with intense chocolate eyes and a serious expression. The overly expensive suit he was wearing brought me to the conclusion that this had to be said CEO. I was proven right a second later. "Good morning. My name is Billy Russo, I'll be your personal point of contact for today. Follow me." With that he turned on his heels and walked back to the direction he came from. The crowd, including me, started to move forward, following the man like he wanted us to do. We ended up in some huge hall with little to no interior. The next command was to line up and again everyone followed suit. Somehow I ended up in the front line on one of the outer corners. I took a look around, scanning everyone in the room and once again I noticed that I was the only woman. But this time I realized it in another way. What if they didn't want me because of that? What if they treat me a different way or put me into another job? I grew slightly self conscious but tried to shake it off. If I made the impression of being a scared little girl they surely won't take me. I turned to the front and straightened my back, getting myself in the typical marine posture.
Once everyone was positioned Billy started a speech. "Each of you trained is a part of the finest fighting force in the world. Now, what do you think that cost? From the moment that you walked in the recruiting office to the moment that you took your first duty station, what do you think? I'll tell you: 50.000$." A moment of silence. The suited man walked around in front of us, looking some of us up and down while talking.
"Then that's just for starters. Say you're a Special Forces. 150.000 minimum. Corpsman? Add another 200k." I heard a slight gasp from the guy behind me and had to surpress a chuckle. What did he think it would cost? A dime? No, no. Though I  knew that the army spent a lot of money on recruits I had to admit that I was surprised too.
"So this government, this country, the one you all swore to protect, invested in you. And you all... you all invested too. You invested time, your lives." I couldn't help but think back to the war. Back to my team, my new found family. And how they died. One after one being hit by bullets or torn to shreds by granades. I was so consumed by my thoughts that I didn't notice Russo standing right in front of me until he spoke up again. "Ask yourself: What are you doing with that investment?" His voice seemed to be a bit softer than before, though it barely sounded different. The way he looked me straight into my eyes, however, made me think that this sentence was directed at me personally. He walked back into the other direction, starting to talk again.
"Is... is anybody here making 100.000$ a year?" Some mumbled things like "I wish" or "Maybe in our dreams" but Russo completely ignored them. "You making 50k a year? 40?" More mumbles, again ignored by Russo. "No. No. No. Why? Why is that? Is it.. is it because you're not worth the investment? No. It's because your skills are not matched to the tasks available to you here at home, it's that simple." He made a short pause before raising his voice again, louder than before. "You are fighters!" A smile found its way on my face. That's right we are fighters. Or at least I am a fighter.
"And here at Anvil you have the opportunity to fight for a living. And you will be well compensated. Now. I know, I know. I'm not here offering you just money. I mean not a single one of us joined up to make a fortune, right? It's because we didn't want our lives to be just gray. We wanted to mean something. We wanted to be a part of something bigger than ourselves." He paused again, giving everyone enough time to think about his words. My thoughts wandered to the reason why I joined the force. And in the end I noticed that I  didn't know the reason until just now. I somehow never knew that I just wanted to be a part of something bigger.
"And here at Anvil, if you are recruited, you will find that something. A new brotherhood to call your own. Something to fight for. To live for. Anvil." He stopped talking, took another look at everyone standing in front of him. "If you want to be a part of Anvil stay. If you want to leave, now is the time."
After a handful of men walked out of the room Billy Russo spoke up again, ordering some employees to set everything up. At first I was confused as to what this was supposed to be but soon enough Russo explained that each of us had to go through some sort of test to determine if we get recruited and if yes what our position would be.