Page 51 of Forever Flustered

Banshee was sitting in the driver’s seat, giving the most dour frown – complete with a scrunched-up nose, both lips pressed together, and huffed before crossing his arms over his chest… and Eli flipped. Reaching over, he did the unthinkable and laid hands on another person. He grabbed the man’s arms, unfolding them as Banshee stared at him in shock.

“I don’t look like that,” Eli rasped angrily, feeling his eyelid twitch even more as his teeth ground together. “I don’t.”

“You’re doing it now,” Banshee pointed out. “Here, look…” and turned the rearview mirror toward him. Eli shoved it away, except the mirror came off in his hands. Exasperated, he flung the mirror out the passenger window, narrowly missing someone as it shattered on the concrete. Turning, he glared at Banshee.

“It’s almost a hundred degrees outside – can you start the Jeep so we can leave? Now?!”

Banshee obeyed. Immediately, he started the Jeep and it rumbled loudly before putting it into gear. The vehicle surged forward and then lumbered for a moment before picking up speed as they got on the road toward Ghazni.

“Someone’s awfully pissy…”

Eli turned slowly toward Banshee, staring at the loudmouth’s profile as he stared straight ahead, avoiding confrontation. Maybe he did frown a lot; perhaps he was miserable here, but that was because ‘here’ didn’t have a smiling woman that looked at him like he’d hung the moon.

Cursing angrily under his breath, he heard Banshee’s voice again.

“Told ya…”

Three days later – Eli’s neck pain was back.

He had already gone to the clinic for an antacid for his stomach ache, ordered another bottle of Advil for his neck, and some sleeping pills to rest – because every time he closed his eyes, he saw Maureen. Her soft expression, those gentle smiles, the way she would laugh during the movie, or how she would snuggle up to his side, laying her hand on his chest like it belonged there.

She belonged at his side… and it felt like her presence had been ripped from him. Neither of them had a choice in the matter. He’d had choices taken from him his whole life, so why was this one any different?

Eli didn’t feel like he could call Maureen because it would open the door to questions he couldn’t answer. He didn’t email her, but then again – she didn’t email him either. They were both retreating, both hiding in the corner, licking their wounds… and trying to move on, except he wasn’t sure he wanted to.

This was hell – and he was trapped.

“Good,” a voice boomed immediately, shutting the door as Eli looked up slowly from his paperwork – and then winced as his neck twinged in pain. Embrace the suck, people would say. His father would tell him to ‘man up’… and his mother would encourage it, telling him that he was acting like a ‘girl’. They were miserable people, living miserable lives, creating a miserable environment around them… and Maureen just wanted space to relax, to leave your worries at the door upon Kronk’s shoulders - and she was right.

His parents were wrong – about everything.

I should have never left Maureen…

“Look, we need to have a heart-to-heart, Hall,” Bradford began in that booming voice that reminded him too much of Eli’s father. “You’ve made a few screw-ups in your past, but I think it’s about putting a square peg in a square hole…”

I’m getting transferred, Eli thought sullenly, feeling his neck tense up once again as he listened, staring at the man. Transferred or demoted…

“I think you could do so much for the Air Force, but you would be better served in a mentorship position… maybe even recruitment? I just don’t think leadership is for you – no offense intended, Archangel.”

I love her…

“None taken,” Eli replied quietly, fighting the fear raging within him.

I should have told her how I feel…

“Every man comes to a point in their career where they need to decide where they are headed, where they are best suited,” Bradford was telling him, practically going into his little soliloquy that he so enjoyed giving when he thought people were looking up to him, respecting him… and that made Eli chuckle. He didn’t respect anyone who used a title or rank as a threat – and Bradford had done it more than once when admonishing him.

Eli wanted nothing more than to go home to Maureen.

I shouldn’t be here…

Bradford gave him a hard look and sat down across from Eli’s desk, folding his hands over his stomach as he stared him down. “Is something funny about discussing your future, Archangel?”

“It’s up in the air,” Eli admitted and smirked. “Pun intended.”

“You think you’re too good for recruitment?” Bradford said sharply, glaring at him – and then leaned forward. “I’m going to share something with you that I think you’ll find surprising.”

“Please do…”