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Chapter 5

1000 Hours, March 17, 2547 (Military Calendar) /
149th Street, Downtown New York
Earth

Wayne Greggs awoke with a thumping headache. As he struggled to peer through sticky eyelids, he felt his brain spin full circle and felt himself fall back against the pillow.
"Ugh." He groaned, trying to figure out what he had done the previous night. He forced his eyes open and his vision blurred as he tried make out a light overhead. Leaning over to his right, he saw his clothes neatly folded on a chair nearby. "Lights off!" he yelled and the bright room was plunged into darkness. "Blinds, please" the window turned from a dark opacity, to see-through glass in a split second and sunlight poured into the room. What time was it? He sat on the edge of the bed, concentrating on no more than one movement at a time. He suddenly felt sick, and breathed deeply a few times until the feeling passed. Plucking the courage to stand, he stumbled over to his pants. Pulling on one leg, he then realised he was already wearing trousers. In fact, he was pretty much fully clothed.
His white shirt was stained with what looked like beer and was crumpled from his sleeping position. The only thing missing were his socks and shoes. Moving over to the door, he hit the switch for it to open. The plasteel door parted, opening himself up to the view of the kitchen. The flat they had rented out was small, but had everything they needed for the two-day leave. Sitting at the light-grey breakfast bar were Grace and Tanya, both showered and dressed. They sipped coffee and ate what looked like a pastry of some kind.
"Hey, there." Tanya said, her voice quiet. "How you feeling?" she beamed at him. She was an attractive young lady and he found they got along well. He didn't fancy her or anything, but he considered her a good friend.
"Well, how do I look?" he mumbled.
"Terrible!" Grace pitched in. He had always liked Grace's abrasive manor, the way she spoke her mind. He was fond of her and he could tell she was fond of him back.
"Then, I can say I look like I feel!" they laughed and he shuffled over to the breakfast bar and slid onto one of the gel-stools. As he sat down, he felt the padding beneath him change to fit his behind, to make him more comfortable. He reached out and touched the pad in the middle of the table. A list of foods scrolled down the small plasma-screen in front of him. He chose an omelette and a cup of coffee. Flicking a switch under his chair produced a thin sheet of metal that appeared behind him, and he leant back into the rest, rubbing his face as he did. A whirring wound alerted Greggs to a descending tray. He looked up and saw his breakfast coming down from the food processor on the ceiling. As the tray came to rest in front of him, Greggs felt his stomach roll over as he looked at the food.
"How much do you remember of last night?" Grace sipped at her coffee, waiting for a reply. It never came. Greggs suddenly launched himself off of the stool and ran headlong back into his bedroom where he vomited all over the floor. "Well, at least we have some idea of how much you drank!" the two women chuckled to each other as the big man leant against the door back into the kitchen.
"It's not funny." He groaned, wiping at his mouth. An emergency cleaning-bot emerged from a panel in the floor of the kitchen, zipped into the bedroom, and in seconds had cleared up the gooey patch left by Greggs. He managed to make it back to the table and rested his head in his arms, not paying attention to the food in front of him. The two ladies glanced at each other and smiled.
"We're going round to see Sarah later if you want to come." Tanya said, reaching out and patting Greggs on the back. "Fresh air might do you some good."
"I think a good long sleep will do me better!" he raised his head slightly and peered menacingly at the dark-haired woman. "Fancy joining me?" Tanya's face turned to disgust and she reared back.
"You gotta be kidding me!" she exclaimed. Greggs laughed at the comment and looked over to Grace.
"Don't even think about asking me that question, boy or you'll wish you were back in bed!" The trio laughed amongst themselves, and Greggs finally plucked up the courage to take a mouthful of his omelette. The door at the far end of the apartment opened and a tall, muscular figure stepped out. He loomed forwards, rubbing his nose with both hands. Coming to rest at the breakfast bar, he pulled up a stool, flicked the backrest switch and slid into it without making a sound. He looked at the others who had fallen silent. He didn't look mad, but he didn't look happy.
"So," Grace said "How you feeling?" she looked over to him and managed a smile, but she knew it looked out of place. He focused on her and she saw how badly bent his nose was. A bruise lined his cheek bone as well, and in the tight vest he wore, it was easy to see a slight swelling under his right arm where Manny's father had kicked him.
"I've been better." He tapped something into the pad, then sat back in his chair, inhaling sharply as if the movement hurt. "God if I run into that little..."
"You'll what?" Greggs piped up. "Get the crap beaten out of you again?" the normal happy-go-lucky exterior had been dropped all of a sudden, and Grace felt the tension rise. Harris glared over the table at the other man. Greggs held the stare for a few seconds then looked down at his cup of coffee, shaking his head as he did so. Harris carried on staring at the top of the fatter mans head, but broke it off when his tray-full of food dropped in front of him. A selection of fruits sat in a glass bowl and a glass of orange juice was situated next to it. He picked up an apple and bit into it, taking a huge chunk. There was silence for a few minutes until Tanya spoke up.
"So, when are we leaving for boot tomorrow?" she glanced around at everyone.
"We have to be back by mid-day, the sarge said." Grace replied. "That's right, ain't it?" she looked over at Greggs who nodded in agreement. He looked thoughtful for a moment as he shovelled a forkful of food into his mouth.
"So," he said around a mouthful of food, "that means we'll have to catch the jet at ten, right?" the others nodded. He swallowed and sipped at his coffee. "What are our plans for today, then?"
"Well, Tanya and I are going to see Sarah and check out her place, then I think us three are going shopping." She looked over at Greggs. "You're welcome to come." She smiled at him. He smiled back and shook his head, mouthing 'no thank you' at her. Harris didn't answer, he just munched through the bowl of fruit, and downed his orange juice before returning to the room he came from. Greggs stared after him as he exited, then got back to finishing his omelette.
They sat in silence again, each finishing their meals. Grace found herself thinking about the events that happened last night. It would be interesting to find out where Manny's dad learned to fight like that. He was either a martial arts instructor or ex-Special Forces; she suspected the latter. It would be interesting, also to find out what happened between Manny and Sarah last night. Grace couldn't but notice their affinity towards each other, despite Tanya's best efforts to get his attention. She had to admit, Manny was a good looking man. He was tall, slender and had an air about him. The way he walked, the way he carried himself, was different to everyone else, yet not noticeable. She could see why Tanya and Sarah both liked him.
Her thoughts were interrupted by Greggs leaving the table.
"Right," he exclaimed, "I'm going to have a shower and then I think I might go back to bed." He yawned and plodded off into his room. The door slid shut behind him, and the two girls were left on their own again. Tanya leaned back in her chair, folding her arms across her chest.
"Do you think they'll be alright?" she looked worryingly over at Grace.
"Who?" Grace glanced over.
"Harris and Greggs, who else?" she smirked to herself. "They seemed pretty pissed at each other." She leant forwards, and cocked her head to one side.
"It ain't nothing to do with us, sister." Grace said "If they wanna be like that to each other, let 'em do it!" she got up out of her chair and started towards her bedroom door. She stopped and looked back at Tanya. "It's a man thing, they'll sort it out. C'mon, I'll get my bag and we'll go see Sarah."




Manny awoke with a start. He found himself sitting up in bed, breathing heavily; something had woken him, a bad dream perhaps? But he couldn't figure out what. He rubbed his face and squeezed his eyes shut for a second, feeling the pull of sleep drag at his body. Glancing over at the holo-panel next to him he noticed it was nearly 10am. He fell back into the pillow and nearly fell back to sleep hadn't it been for the nagging feeling that he was very much alone. He sat up again and realised that Sarah wasn't lying next to him, as she had been a few hours prior.
Where was she? They had spent the night with each other, he remembered that much, and also something else which he definitely remembered. But had she gotten up and left? Was this just a one-night stand for her? As anger started to rise up in him, the door over the other side of the room hissed and the anger disappeared as quickly as it had come.
Standing in his dark-blue dressing gown was Sarah. The robe hung either side of her lithe figure, and he noticed she was wearing nothing other than a bra and a pair of knickers. He also noticed she was holding a metallic trey of steaming coffee and a plate full of food. She gazed over at him from the door, wearing a wide smile. As she started across the floor to the bed, Manny settled back onto one elbow and followed her with his eyes.
"I'd thought you'd left." He said, feeling his face pull into a huge grin as she sat down. She passed the tray to him, which he set down beside him.
"Do you really think I'm that kind of person?" although the question was probably meant as a joke, Manny couldn't help but notice a look of hurt on her face beneath that smile. He looked away from her and down at the tray.
"No, I just don't normally do things like that." He grabbed at the mug of coffee on the tray and sipped at it. The hot liquid scalded his tongue. As he swallowed he felt it burn his belly, waking him up a bit more. The plate on the tray consisted of what looked like Perchovian Bacon strips, fried Krillen eggs, and sausages. The reason why he knew what the food was, was mainly due to the fact that it was all he had in his fridge.
"So am I an exception?" he looked up at her. She was beautiful, even without being dressed up. She sat on the edge of his bed, leaning into it, gazing at him. It made him shiver with delight.
"Yeah, I guess you are." Suddenly his mind was consumed with thoughts of where this was going, what last night meant, and what was to come. "Listen, about last night..." before he got to finish she interrupted.
"I know what you're going to say," she said. She looked down at her feet, her smile vanishing. "It will be something along the lines of 'thanks, but I'm not ready for a relationship'. I totally understand, it's not like the first time this has happened." As she looked up at him, a hurt look covered her face and he couldn't help but feel something warm build up in him.
"I was going to say the exact opposite of that, actually." He pulled himself forwards so he was sitting next to her, and kissed her warmly on the lips. She put her arms around his shoulders as he did so, and he felt her pull him in more. They parted and sat gazing at each other for a few moments.
"Well?" she asked, leaning back from him a bit more.
"'Well' What?" he was puzzled by the question.
"What were you going to say?" she moved closer to him, and lightly kissed him on the forehead. "You were going to say the exact opposite of what I thought."
He chuckled at the remark and tried to think of what to say. He wanted to say that he wanted to spend the rest of his life with her, that he was falling madly in love with her, that he didn't want anyone BUT her. But saying that might make her think he was a complete loon.
"I was going to say..." he paused for a moment. "that I didn't want this to be just a one-night thing. I want to make something of this, and from you saying what you did has made me realise you want to as well." She closed her eyes and nodded, smiling.
"Yes, I do want to make something of this. I have had a thing for you since we met, and kinda had my sights set on you." She opened her eyes again. "I just thought you'd be interested in others, that's all. I mean, I have got a bit of competition." He looked at her, puzzled by her last comment. "Oh c'mon, don't tell me you haven't noticed Tanya!" he laughed out loud, falling back into his pillow again.
"Tanya? Yeah, I've noticed her, but not in that way!" he chuckled to himself. "It's funny you mention it because I could have sworn I felt her stroking my leg with her foot last night in the bar." He looked over at her and beckoned for her to come and lie next to him. She moved the tray onto the floor and snuggled up next to him. "Are you jealous?" It was a serious question, but he said it in a humorous tone. He didn't want Sarah to think he liked the attention, which he didn't.
"I was a little bit at first, when she told me she liked you at Boot Camp. But is she lying next to you now?" she looked at him and kissed him again, then rested her chin on his bare chest. "I think it's going to be the other way round when she finds out we're an item." She chuckled to herself then fell silent, looking as if she was deep in thought.
"What's wrong?" Manny asked, rubbing her arm.
"Nothing, I was just thinking about last night, that was all." She gazed off at the far wall.
"You haven't got a thing for Harris have you?" a pang of jealousy rolled over him as he asked the question, not wanting to hear the reply. She shot him a look of bemusement.
"What?" she cried. "That pig? I don't think so!" she reared her head back and laughed loudly. "No, I was just thinking about the way your dad took care of him last night. Where'd he learn to fight like that?"
"He was in the UNSC Special Forces division." Manny replied. Sarah looked at him in surprise.
"Your dad was in the Special Forces? Wow, no wonder he made short work of Harris."
"Yeah, he joined up at the start of the war and worked his way up pretty quickly. His family had moved out to Harvest and everyone, except his mother, were on it when it was destroyed by the Covenant. He joined up the day after it happened, despite the fact that my mother had just given birth to my brother."
"You have a brother?" Sarah asked.
"I did have. His name was Bradley," Manny felt his throat tighten a little as emotion started to run riot in his body. "He died last year."
"How did he die?" Sarah leant in closer to him.
"He was coming home on leave for my birthday. The ship he was on was destroyed by a Covenant ambush." Manny felt a tear role down his cheek and onto the sheet beneath him.
"Are you okay?" Sarah asked, tilting his chin to face her.
"It's nothing." Another tear rolled down his cheek, but this time it was caught by Sarah's finger. She looked deeply into his eyes. Sadness took over Manny's body and he could feel himself welling up.
"If you don't want to talk about it..."
"No, it's okay." He took a deep breath, wiping at the tears forming in his eyes. "It's just that I always resented him for what he did. It seemed to me like he joined the UNSC to get on the good side of our father. Dad always seemed to love him more, seemed to take pride in hearing what Bradley had to tell him; about where he was, what he was doing, or who he was doing it with.
"Brad became the most decorated soldier in his unit, and my parents had all his awards hung up on the wall. And whatever I did seemed to become more and more insignificant in their eyes. Whenever I saw him, I tried my best to talk to him without feeling anger towards him. It was more jealousy than anything, jealously that he was out becoming the hero. All I had done was get into college, which to some parents is a big deal. Not mine, they were too concerned with how Bradley was doing." Manny wiped at his face again, feeling himself coming closer and closer to losing it.
"When the news came through about his death, my parents were devastated. They cried for days, not wanting to believe he was gone. The worst part was, his death made me feel even angrier. It was my birthday the day after they got the news and the whole thing was forgotten because of his death. Once again, he had taken centre stage, and I was left in the foreground. The only piece of satisfaction I got out of it was that he was gone from our lives and I would be the number one son. I never shed a tear for him, not one. And I realise now, that I should have never felt like that.
"I joined the UNSC because I felt like it was something I had to do. And it was something I thought my parents wanted me to do as well. When my dad used to look at Brad, he got this look in his eye; a look of pride, of happiness. I never got that look until I joined the UNSC, and the first time I got it, it felt great. But after a while I started to think he was seeing my brother in me. The whole pride thing was bitter in my mouth as all the resentment and jealousy started to come flooding back. I didn't want him to see Bradley, I wanted them to see me. It wasn't until yesterday that I realised every feeling I felt against my brother had all been wrong.
"Seeing my father yesterday made me realise that we're in the middle of what could be extinction. My brother wasn't fighting to impress our father, it was to stop us from being killed. Had I seen that from the start, I wouldn't have felt the way I did. I'm not saying that feeling different would bring him back, but at least I would have felt what my father did when he looked at him. Pride. Pride that he was helping us, that he was fighting to keep us alive. He died for us, died for me, so I could live. And I had only seen that when he was alive, I would have treated him with the respect he deserved."
Manny couldn't bring himself to look at the woman opposite him. Since Bradley's death, he had bottled up all these emotions he felt towards his brother, had never told anyone how he really felt. The resentment he had for his brother's achievements, the jealousy he had for believing his father loved Bradley more, the anger he felt when he heard about Bradley's death. All those emotions he had kept to himself, only to realise that he should have never felt them in the first place.
And now it was in the presence of a woman he hardly knew that he was letting it all out. He expected her to leave, not wanting to see him like this. And he thought she was going to until, without saying a word, she reached over and pulled Manny into her arms. As she did so, he literally broke down in her arms, and for the first time in his life, he cried over the death of his brother.

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