Chapter 6: Chapter 6

I've just about done it. I've already taken the ASVAB test, and I'm on my way to the MEPS. I've done a little bit of research and found out that the MEPS are typically about 2 days long and that it consists of a multitude of physical tests. I don't think I have any physical impairments so this should be fine. Oh, yeah. I forgot to mention that we've already left, and we're on our way to the hotel that they directed us to right now. "I'm excited." Speaks the voice beside me. I look towards the voice, already knowing who it was. Obviously I don't have a car because I can't afford monthly payments on one without a job, so Brandon is taking me. "I am too, I couldn't sleep at all." "Nervous?" "Something like that." We continue to drive down the long, busy highway in an eerie silence. We've been on the road for a while, I'm pretty bored so I just listen to the sound of vehicles tearing down the road and watch as bikes swerve by us. I see a hotel closing in the distance. "There it is." I look ahead at the towering hotel that was a mere 100 meters away. This hotel will be the very beginning of my stay in the U.S. Army. We walk into the front door and to the service desk. "Hello, we're here for a MEPS class." The lady looks at us with a smile. "Right this way." We follow her and we're guided to a room with quite a few people in it. It was a briefing of sorts I guess. It wasn't really much. It was just them talking about the behaviour expected at the MEPS and they gave us a paper that listed what all we couldn't have. I read it out mentally and notice a few things. "Large amounts of cash..." "Weapons or contraband of any kind (including pocketknives)..." Everyone's having a good time talking. I get the feeling that people aren't taking this as seriously as I think it is. I feel someone nudge my side. I turn to see who it is. It's a man that looks to be in his early twenties, with brown hair, and green eyes. "What do we do if we brought some of this stuff?" He has a sort of high pitched voice. Not annoying, but it was enough to be a little odd for someone in his twenties. "I don't know, I'm an enlistee too. Why don't you ask them? What'd you bring anyways?" He smiles awkwardly and responds "I accidentally brought my knife with me." "Right, 'accidentally'" "Whatever." I see him go to talk with one of the staff members here. "What is this shit anyways? 'Martial arts weapons'" I look to my side and see a dirty blonde man with brown eyes talking to another recruit. "Yeah, fuck is gonna happen?" "Goddamn chin-ling is gonna show up and pull a pair of nunchucks out of his ass and brutally beat the shit out of some random hotel staff with it, I mean that doesn't make sense at all." I see them just shake their heads. It's certainly an interesting group, that's for sure, but they did get one thing right. Some of these are odd. Like "Mace." I'm not sure why they have to list a mace in here, or what made them list it specifically, but I get the feeling that I just don't need or want to know. Later on in the paper it lists off all the times that certain functions of the facility are open and when we'll wake up. There's also a recreational room that's open til' 10, After that it's lights out, then we have to wake up at 3 in the morning. I walk out of the room and towards the recreational room. I hear footsteps behind me, and then a voice. "Where are you going?" I'm surprised, not because someone was following me, or that they spoke to me. I was surprised because their voice was very feminine. I turn around and I see a woman with brown hair, tied in a bun. She was short, which surprised me too. I didn't think that the Army took people as short as her. I look over her and she looked to be about 5'3. All of this is just, really surprising to me. "O-Oh, hello." She seems puzzled by my confusion. "What's with that look?" "I was just surprised by you, no offense, but I didn't think the Army took people as short as you." Her face flushes red from embarrassment and looks away to try and hide it. I guess that she's self conscious of her height. "Well you're not particularly tall either, what are you like 5'7?" "5'8, and I mean that I'm just surprised they took you in, I'm not saying you're short." "Well, the Marines rejected me, the Navy rejected me, and the Air Force did too, so I just bugged the Army until they let me join." She says completely ignoring what I said. I divert my attention from the conversation for a moment and notice that we're just standing in the middle of the hallway. "We should probably get out of the hallway." "Yeah, probably. I have some stuff to do so I should probably go." She waves awkwardly and just walks away and I suddenly feel prying eyes behind me. I turn and see Brandon standing there. "So, who was that?" I think for a moment and notice that I never got her name, nor did I really get anybody's name. "Not sure, I'm not really sure if we're on good or bad terms either." "It didn't look good to me." "Well she wasn't angry." "Yeah, that's good. You don't want to be enemies with these people before we even get to basic." "I know." I turn around and walk into the room and see games, and coke, and couches. Not what I expected from the military but whatever. It's here now, so why waste the opportunity? Making my way over to the cokes I overhear some of the guys talking about what I'd expect them to be. "Man, I wanna get out of here and just kill some towelheads." "I'm gonna take my gun and just hose em' all down, Rambo style." I face them and he's standing with his legs spread and mimicking gun sounds while pretending to hold one at the hip. They're all laughing and I just grab a coke and walk away. "Hey, you!" I turn back around but they aren't talking to me. "Yeah?" I hear Brandon speak up. "You don't look so tough, why'd you join the Army." "If you're so confident in your abilities why don't you go and eat wax with the marine corp, they all seem about as stupid as you." I have to speak up, I don't want any fighting. "Alright, chill out, we don't want to make any enemies before we even make it to basic." I glare at Brandon to let him know that he needs to chill. Everyone goes their separate ways, but not before Balls McGee decides to threaten Brandon. Brandon doesn't take it lightly. He still walks away but not before swearing that if he got a shrapnel wound to the chest he wouldn't help him. We spend the rest of the night messing around and that was it. After 7 I left and went to my room. Now I just lay in bed, waiting for the next day.