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I shrug. “I wish I felt like one right now but thank you. I’ll see you over by the kitchen in a bit, I’ve got a briefing to get to.” I tuck in my shirt and make sure that I don’t look tousled before stepping into the general space of the floor.
I shake the feeling like I’m missing out off my shoulders and go in search of my guys. I find a few of them and wait for the Colonel to give us more direction. Why he wanted us to meet over in one of the aisles instead of the customer service area as we have previously is strange. Moments later, he steps out from the back of the darkened aisle, as if he’s a villain in a movie.
“Gentlemen, the announcement that testing will begin is going to happen shortly. We will commence that first thing in the morning.” He says.
“Why not right away? It was a matter of hours when the other two got sick after we originally arrived,” I ask.
“Because the doctor needs to prepare. The state is low on testing kits, and I’m not sure if we will be able to get new ones in time. However, the doctor and I just spoke, and he has a comparable test. But again, he needs to prepare.”
“What are we to expect, sir?” someone to my left asks.
“Questions. A lot of questions. I expect some people to be pissed off, you guys are our backbone during this. Remain calm, reflect no panic, and make sure that we continue to keep a watchful eye out for anything.”
A resounding confirmation and we all branch out. I immerse myself into the crowd and head towards where we’ve destined the mess hall would be and I see Kendall. I know that I just saw her, but it’s like I’m seeing her all over again.
She hasn’t done anything differently in the twenty minutes that would make me think that, but after that kiss, my body gravitates to her.
“What’s on tonight’s menu?” I ask stepping beside her.
She looks up and smiles at me, it’s a simple gesture, but it makes me want to reach over to her and pull her against me.
“I pulled a few slow cookers out earlier and we’re having Shepard's pie. For the small group of non-meat eaters, they’re getting mushroom sandwiches.”
“Your dream of opening up a restaurant is shaping up pretty nicely in here.”
“I mean, it’s a different kind of ingredients than I’m used to, but it’s good practice for large parties, heck, I can look into catering.”
“I’m still impressed. I’ve eaten in a lot of mess halls and this food is more of a fine dining experience. The food isn’t cardboard, tastes good and it doesn’t hurt that you’re the one making it.” I wink.
At that moment, the loud speaker makes a high-pitched noise.
“Ladies and gentlemen! I would like your attention, please?” There is a pause as if he’s waiting for everyone to look at him, even though people are spread throughout the store.
“We have been mandated to do testing on a daily basis moving forward. I’m apologizing in advance if this seems excessive, but I wanted you all to know that this is the utmost importance. We want to make sure that if someone does come down with the virus, the we control the situation as soon as possible. Tomorrow morning, the doctor will begin at 0800. That is eight in the morning.”
You can hear the murmurs in the space and then the tap on the loud speaker again.
“I want everyone to remain calm in times like these. We are receiving guidance from medical professionals and the government at this time and promise you that there is nothing to worry about at this time.”
Kendall looks to me.
“Is this because of what we somewhat talked about earlier?” She asks.
“You mean where you made guesses?” I ask.
“Yeah,” she nods.
“Yes.” I answer honestly.
11
Kendall
I’m terrified, purely terrified that more people will become sick, and that one of those people could be me. Or Levi. Or Janelle.
After dinner, I went in search of her, but she was already sleeping. I wanted to talk to her, I needed to tell her about the kiss that blew my mind and then promptly was taken away from me. I need some sort of normalcy.
The moments that our lips touched, all my worries went away, and I was thankful for the reprieve. But I understand that he has a job to do and the last thing that I want is for me to be a distraction, to hinder his performance.
