//------------------------------// // Chapter 2 // Story: Mocha's Story // by Mocha Star //------------------------------// The alarm was blaring through the speakers like it did every freaking day in my room. Room, more like cell. I rolled to my right side and opened one eye before reaching to the nightstand and pressing a button on it. The cold metal stung my hand for an instant before the alarm stopped and my TV turned on. I loved to wake up like this, but Cadence hated it. She grunted and pulled the covers over her head and mumbled something about hating my morning routine. She was a beautiful woman. Light skin, long black hair, amazing ass, perfect C cups, just enough to grab but… Anyway, she was great and all mine. I looked over to the TV, mere feet away and set into the wall, playing the required morning propaganda. “Our country is growing in strength thanks to us. Our dedication is the drive for our economy." Blah, blah, blah. A minute later the routine ended and a guide channel showed up in monochrome black and white. I sat up and stretched. Looking to the right, I saw the remote on the nightstand and grinned. Reaching for it Cadence turned and lunged for my wrist. She’s a sergeant and it shows, she’s faster and stronger than most give her credit for. “Turn on a cartoon and I swear you sleep alone tonight.” I laughed. How can anyone not laugh? I looked back at her naked body under the sheets, her bare chest, and my smile turned to a wicked grin as she traced my line of sight. “Yeah, every woman has them. Turn on the news and I might let you touch them,” she said softly as she batted her eyes at me. I leaned down and wrapped my arm over her body as she let my wrist go. She rolled to her back and I kissed her lightly, while my other hand held the remote and typed in ‘363’. The sound in the room switched from kissing and light moaning from her to the slapstick sound effects of Tom and Jerry. She looked at me with disgust as I sat up and laughed, hopping to the carpeted floor, and putting the remote behind me. “Sorry, it slipped.” She sat up and looked me over and now it was her turn to let a wicked grin plaster itself across her face. Then she looked behind me to the TV. The room was about the size of, well, I don’t know. A small shipping crate cut in half? Tall enough to stand and stretch my arms all the way up and do a cartwheel and a half from end to end. It was home. She sat up and let the covers fall to her hips as she turned her face to a scowl, I knew what was coming next. “Specialist, you will return that remote to me, get back into this bed, and cuddle me until it’s time to get ready for formation. Am I understood?” “Sorry, the TV’s too loud. Can you say that again?” A smirk showed for a second before she narrowed her eyes that trained forced anger military leaders get. Any other man would have done anything to get her to stop but, I’m not them. “You will give me the remote or Ah’ll have ya whipped.” She squeezed her eyes shut at what she said knowing what I’d say. “Whipped? Sergeant, that’s racist and I think I have to report you to the captain,” I said standing taller and almost at attention. She groaned and fell back to the bed. “You’re an ass, you know that.” “Yeah, but since I’m black you can’t do shit about it.” She looked to the ceiling and placed a hand of her forehead, wiping a few hairs from her face before replacing the hand to her head. “You’re more of a mocha color, hot mocha, and for craps sake can we not play the race game today?” I sighed and slumped my shoulders and returned to bed turning the remote to the TV and pressing ‘013’; the news. I hate how much I love her and the sacrifices I make. “Ya know, you don’t have to sleep here. Your quarters are much more fitting for us to roll around in,” I suggested while leaning against her, staring at her dark hair. She smiled and leaned up onto her elbow to look at the screen before she sighed. “I know that I say this a lot, but why don’t you just get promoted and move in with me? Bravo barracks would be glad to have you and,” she looked at me and spoke seductively with lidded eyes, “so would I.” “You already have me, and I’m in no rush to command my own squad or platoon. I’m not in the mood to have piles of paperwork in front of me for hours a day, not to mention the stupid questions thrown at me like knives at a wall during training.” Her face fell emotionless. “I wasn’t either, and the paperwork makes sure my soldiers get food and paid so they can have a butt as nice as yours,” she said smiling again and kissing the arm I was leaning on to stay upright on the bed, slightly over her. I couldn’t help but chuckle. Then it happened, the moment I feared every time it came up. She lunged with her right arm and pulled me to the bed while starting to tickle me with her left. Naked or not, I was about ready to run out of the room. She knew just where to get me to make me giggle like a little girl and fight for my freedom from her tickling reign of terror. I finally got free and fell, butt first, onto the floor with a heavy huff, gasping for air between girlish giggles before a stood up and put my hands on my hips. “That was manly and rugged, now where’s my logging axe?” I spoke in a deep baritone voice. She laughed and rolled off the bed in front of me. I stood my ground as she reached down and caressed my… part, and leaned in, wrapped her other arm around me and kissed me lightly. “You’re the manliest man that’s ever manned. I’m so lucky to be kept safe by you, but I’ve got your axe and I plan to use it.” I gulped heavy and looked into her hazel eyes and blinked. She shoved me against the wall and against the screen, inlaid in the wall and covered with bullet proof glass, and glared at me. “But,” she said breathily, “if I have to wake up to cartoons again; I’ll give you a week long dry spell.” “Yeah, you can’t go twelve hours without sneaking a kiss, at least,” I winked, “and I know what it takes to moisten your towelette.” She scoffed and looked at me with a confused look. “You are so stupid,” she said smirking and punching my arm. Darn she’s a lot tougher than she looks. I actually may get a bruise, but I won’t complain, it’s a love tap and I’ll tap her back before too long. She turned and started picking up her clothes off the floor and I was really tempted to do something right then and there but I decided not to. Waiting can be a blessing sometimes. I thought as she stood up and looked back to me with a wink. She knew what I was thinking. We quickly got dressed and looked each other over, making sure our uniforms were spec before we looked to the door. I turned off the news and replaced the remote on the nightstand as I felt her glare at me. I flinched at the thought and slouched my shoulders turning to my bed. Making it quickly I turned to her to see her shaking her head. I grumbled loudly and made my bed ‘properly’. She hugged me from behind and kissed my cheek. She smells so nice and is so soft. We left together into the large empty warm metallic halls and sealed the door behind us then turned our own ways and went to our next locations. Her to some leadership staff meeting, or something, and me to my breakfast. Yum; slop. Getting into the que I took my tray plus a few extras and handed them back to the thanks of the others. “Hey jerkwad, ya gonna pass one more of them trays or ya too busy eatin’ all the good food?” a male with a spanish accent said . A few people laughed and I rolled my eyes and head to him. “No comprendo por favor.” That line always gets a huge laugh. Pretending to be ignorant is always funny. “Hey Reece, I can’t hear you from that far behind me. Speak up,” more giggles, since he’s shorter than average at five foot three. “Esse, say what you want, but who’s the one that tosses ‘chu like a leaf every time we spar?” “Hey man, leaf the fighting alone.” I tell ya, I should get paid by the joke. "Yeah, we'll see what you say when you're on the mat this afternoon, cryin' for me ta let ya go." "Well, maybe I'll win this time," I said smugly. "Maybe a monkey will fall outta my butt and do the mamba." Damnit, he's always winning. “Soldiers!” A voice boomed from the side of the room. The whole hall snapped to attention and stood in place, trays level before us and all of us looking forward for where we were. “I expect professional attitudes and conduct at all times, am I understood?” That voice, the voice of the only leader in our battalion that worried me. “Yes Colonel!” we all shouted in near perfect unison. For a high ranking military man he was pretty cool, actually. But when he was around large crowds he was always a hard ass. Us older guys understood and acted afraid of him. Mostly because new ‘recruits’ would come in and start ‘volunteering’ as young as 11 years old. Free labor from underage little people? It’s worked so far and all they do is run small errands for us. Unlike history books told us, they don’t work mines or do anything dangerous, I usually see a kid wiping glass or sweeping a floor. Simple work even I did at their age. Most of the time we don’t even notice them. Like little robots full of happy energy. I remember being a child like them, free food and a place to live. The safety and security the military can provide while having a steady list of things to do and when to get them done by. Always different, always growing in challenge, always something to do. Just what any kid needs. I scoffed at the thought before I was bumped by some chick behind me with her tray. She was asian, short, and cute, I let my eyes trail her body for a fraction of a second before I turned forward and took a step ahead. She looked like a bitch and I was already with the perfect woman. Lee? What a typical name. Hush brain, don't make the same mistakes that started the wars. I turned and nodded to her, she sneered at me. Yup, bitch. I smiled at the thought and how Cadence'd melt in my arms when I told her later of my loyalty, the passionate love we'd make, then my thoughts went to how tough she acted in the real world. It was always scary to watch her change from cuddlebug to hardened military leader as soon as we leave the room. I shuttered at the thought of what she could do to me. As a soldier or as a lover. The rest of the day was spent doing paperwork, standing in lines, doing laundry, exercising, and talking about whatever. Another day, just like thousands before it and what I believed would be thousands after. Two days later everything changed. Cadence and I woke up like any other day, I turned on the news since I wasn’t feeling like being silly out of respect. It was her time of the month and I knew not to push the limits so we looked to the wall and stared at the TV for what felt like half an hour. Images and news, unfiltered and full of graphic violence, as was the law, of people dying, being killed in firing squads, soldiers marching down a popular street in a major city. At the top of the screen was a red banner that scrolled various stats of the conflict and, between every several stats, ‘WAR DECLARED’ was stated in flashing letters. We looked to each other and to the TV without talking, watching the events unfold until she jumped out of bed and clutched her hands together. She grabbed her clothes and pulled her shirt and pants on, slipped on her boots without socks and grabbed my stunned ass by the shoulders and looked at me. I felt her hand buzzing. I looked to my shoulder and was about to say something sly before she kissed me, hard, held my face for a second then ran to the door, opened it, and left. The moment she looked at me before she left sent chills through me. She was afraid. I looked out the door to a stream of soldiers running down the hall. One, a female, ran to my door and looked me over for a split second. “Get dressed, we’re at war!” My mouth hung open and I started at the open door where she was a second ago, then hopped to it, shut it, then I got fully dressed as quickly as I could. I saw Cadence’s bra and socks still on the floor, pushed against the edge of my bed. For the first time that day I worried, but it wasn’t gonna be the last.