I Love You Keith

Lies

Iverson POV

I splashed some water on my face, trying to wash away the tear stains from earlier. I felt terrible, having to tell everyone that the astronauts wouldn't be coming home. Especially when it might be a lie. Yes, there had been wreckage, but it didn't look like a man-made scene. No, it looked like there had been some sort of weapon fired, and we were trying to figure out what. Camera footage showed some kind of shadow going overhead, and somethings falling to the ground. But you couldn't see what. I wiped my face and went to sit at my desk. I couldn't get their faces out of my head. Adam looked heartbroken. The man he had fallen in love with and was supposed to marry was gone. Mrs.Holt had lost her husband and her son.  Katie had lost her father and brother. I had know Mr.Holt for many years, and had watched Matt and Katie grow up together.   But Keith, Keith's reaction hurt most of all. 

He, unlike his brother, had alarming violet eyes, that normally shone with hope and excitement. But today, that light had been put out. Replaced with layer of pain, sadness and anguish. His brother, his only living family member, was gone. And the excuse of pilot error? Shiro was the best pilot of his generation, and Keith was looking like he'd be the best of his. And with the "error", it made it seem like Shiro was largely responsible for the mission failure. But I knew that it wasn't true. And he probably did too, along with Katie.

A knock on the door inturrupted my thought. "Come in." I called. The door opened to reveal Admiral Sanda. "Hello Iverson. Nice show out there today. You made it look real. Now pull yourself together soldier. You have a job to do." I glared at her "It wasn't a show. We don't even know if they're alive. And work can wait. And so can the classes. People need time to mourn." Her eyes narrowed "You will work when I tell you. I am your commanding officer. And the people can work and mourn at the same time. preparations have already begun for a memorial service, and the families have been notified." She headed towards the door, but I stood, now angry "You can't just announce that they're dead and then bury it! The press will want to know! The families will want an investigation! These people just lost their loved ones! Katie and Mrs.Holt, father and son. Adam, his future husband. And Keith? The kid you were so impressed with? Shiro's his brother! His only living relative! And now he's gone! Have a heart Sanda!" She suddenly stopped, and turned towards me, her eyes like daggers. "That is exactly what I'm going to do. When something dies, you bury it. That's how it goes. The press will know what the cadets know, nothing more, nothing less. There will be NO investigation, because this is government property and a government institution. I understand that losses have been suffered, but that's the price of discovery. They knew the risks when they signed up, and they agreed with them. Remember your place soldier. Or you may be next to go." She turned on her heel and marched towards the door.

I sighed and sank into my chair once more. That bitch. Did she even have a heart? She had me deliver soul-crushing news about three people dying, then wants to move along, back to buisness as usual? That wasn't happening. I knew for a fact that Shiro and Adam had some hard liquor, and that Adam would have a hard time processing it all. I couldn't even imagine what it might be like for the Holts and Keith. They'd never be the same again. Nothing would.