A Stack of Stress

Posted on Wed Jul 3rd, 2024 @ 3:30am by Hale Stratton [Major, United States Army] & Alonzo Blazevic

2,095 words; about a 10 minute read

Mission: Winter is Coming
Location: Outside of Bob's Pancake House
Timeline: 6 September 2010 - 2:00 p.m.

Outside of the pancake house seemed to be relatively safe. At least as safe as one could be when the world came to be in its present state, where someone shoots a rather petite looking French boy, and where the dead appear to reanimate unless certain necessary measures were taken to prevent that. Alonzo had yet to see bones and ash reanimate. Perhaps cremation was the better means of disposing of your loved ones. These days it certainly would have helped though the reanimated come in various shapes and sized, some look rather gnarly yet none of them looked like embalmed bodies in coffins. It wasn’t as though entire graveyards were clawing and climbing up, unearthing themselves. If these were zombies, they weren’t that type. Something was causing this and Alonzo could only speculate it was more science than fiction, but nevertheless, it the world was becoming an inescapable horror movie.

One of his least favorite genres, romance had started to become a drama between him and Hale Stratton. More people, more eyes, more ears, more military. A part of Alonzo just wanted to run away but he had no desire to do so alone. It was Hale. It was Ethan. He wanted to run away, but to do it with the two of them. Instead, they were moving place to place, gathering more people along the way. That meant more responsibilities and Alonzo felt as though it came with more stress.

Things had been said. Hale was physically distant, and that was Alonzo’s fault. He had not exactly been warm and inviting to Reuben, to Vic, to Tim, or to anyone really. There was a lot circulating through Alonzo’s mind and a lot weighing on his shoulders. He had snapped a few times. Perhaps a few times too many, but he was going to make an attempt to clean those wounds and bandage them before they too festered and changed into something worse.

“Walk with me,” Alonzo said leaning into Hale’s ears. They needed some time away from the others. Privacy thought Alonzo. It was something that was becoming more and more difficult to find. Even before the arrival of the latest batch of people, they had several teenagers. Odd. Teenagers always decried about the lack of privacy adults gave them, but they were always the ones interrupting the moments Alonzo and Hale had. “Please” Alonzo added in Hale’s ear feeling it was warranted to add in order to get Hale to come willingly.

Hale nodded and fell into step beside Alonzo; he kept his gaze on the surroundings, watching for trouble. There was a list in his head now, things that he needed to do, things that he needed, that the group needed. Like how hee was cognizant, almost painfully so, of the emptied pistol at his side or the distance between him and Alonzo. What they had shared, Alonzo and him, seemed light years away, edged out by a surprising amount of hostility, suspicion, and a 'me' aspect that Hale hadn't noticed in the first rush of feeling toward Alonzo.

"Even as a young child, Hale, you don't forget the sounds of bombs. The shots being fired, or the bodies in the streets" prefaced Alonzo. "I never wanted to experience that ever again. My parents brought me here to stay away from that." Alonzo looked at Hale.

He reached out to try and hold Hale's hand. The attempt was made. Whether or not Hale would be receptive was up to him. "I don't hate you, but when we were around all the military, I didn't feel safe. I felt anxious. I still feel anxious. It brings me back to my childhood."

Hale didn't accept his hand but instead turned toward him for a moment, to make eye contact. He kept his expression neutral and turned away before any hint of how he was feeling could show through. "I'm military. Through and through. You knew that."

"And I'm a refugee, Hale. I'm grateful to be here, to have spent most of my life in your country, but it has never been home. It's difficult for it to feel like home when people express they don't want you here" explained Alonzo.

He met Hale's gaze. "You are military. I understand that. Maybe you'll always be military in your heart, but will there always be a military?" Alonzo placed his hand on Hale's shoulders.

"Good soldiers follow orders," Alonzo stated. "But good leaders know when to break from the line. I respect you, but I know I haven't showed that lately. You give so much to the uniform, so much to the military. You are military, Hale, but what else are you?"

Alonzo squeezed the Major's shoulder and then took the back of his hand and gently ran it along Hale' cheek and jawline. "Nećete naći svoj mir dok ne poslušate svoje srce" said Alonzo. "A proverb from my home."

"And what line am I supposed to be breaking from, Alonzo," Hale asked. "Am I to deny the friendship I have with Tim and Serena? To turn away Reuben? Or Vic? Because they wore a uniform? Because you can't ... or won't ... trust them?"

"No, I'm asking you to be true to yourself and follow your heart," replied Alonzo. "I'll come to trust them in time. What I'm asking is for all of you to consider that you might wake up one day and the military to not be there."

"I can be an army of one, two if you count Tim," Hale said. "The skills I learned can help keep everyone safe. It's what I can contribute. If you're worried what I'll do if someone shows up calling himself a General and demands I follow him, well, we have rules now to cover that, don't we? And, just so you know, I'm not that easily led."

"I'm not brilliant or anything special like that. I just read a lot. As I understand it, this country in good times has over 300 million living breathing people. Less than two million are active service members. The odds aren't in the favor of Uncle Sam."

"What do you think is happening here, Alonzo," Hale asked. "Why are you pushing this so hard?"

"Because I chose to follow you," replied Alonzo. "My family lives in Bangor. I had a life here. I could have gone back home, taken care of my family during this. Instead, I stayed with you and with Ethan" blurted Alonzo. "And I am not blaming you for that. It was my decision. I'm pushing this so hard because of other things."

"What other things," Hale asked. He returned his gaze to the surroundings. Roads. Alleyways. Vehicles. Anywhere someone ... or something ... could pop out.

Alonzo looked at Hale and turned Hale's head. "If anything pops out to use us for munchies, you'll kill it before gets within arms reach."

He touched Hale's chest. "Us things. The things that keep me with you. The things that make me grumpy because I was in a jeep with glass rained on me, and when my ears stopped ringing and I could make sense of everything again, I didn't see you there where I fell asleep with you. Instead, our teenage ward was checking on me."

Hale frowned as it all sort of slotted into place. "There was glass around you. Not on you. Because I shielded you from the blast with my body. Made sure you alright and then went off to see if there was an immediate threat. I think I told Ethan to stay with you." He shook his head. "You been nursing that all this time?"

"I didn't know," Alonzo confessed. "I didn't know that you did that. I felt pressure on me, but when I opened my eyes and the ringing stopped, I didn't see you. I thought... I felt abandoned, and I've been nursing it because I have certain feelings for you that I don't think the military tends to like."

"We're kind of beyond all that," Hale said. "When, because I think it will happen at some point, when the military reforms, they won't be able to be that picky. And if that bothers them over what I am, what I can do, then I'll resign my commission." He shrugged. "Wasn't like I was going to be able to stay on the teams forever. Just needed a good enough reason to quit."

"Am I?" asked Alonzo. "A good enough reason?" He knew how he felt about Hale even if they hadn't known each other that long yet. Days felt like months when you're just trying to stay alive.

"Not too long ago, I would have said yes, absolutely. But to be honest, up there on the roof, and other times, you've make it clear that it's your job to protect the teenagers. Like you cut me out of the equation at a moment's notice," Hale said.

"I'm still trying to figure you out, Hale. I'm not cutting you out. Does Timothy know? Does anyone know? The teenagers aren't the only ones I've been trying to protect. I've been trying to keep my distance from you in front of the others. I didn't want anyone to know anything unless you were ready for that."

"You said you wanted things secret," Hale said. "Back in the beginning. Just between us." Hal shrugged lightly. "So, I kept it that way. As to Tim, yeah, he knows. We're friends and sooner or later, I had to tell someone. He knew what it would cost me, kept it secret, but I told him if he couldn't, that would be alright too. Had this plan to get a boat and sail around the world."

Alonzo grabbed onto Hale's collar and yanked him forward into his own chest, holding him in place and kissing him, not caring they weren't in the thick woods or in the back of a jeep.

Hale kissed him back, confused for a moment, but the passion behind the kiss warmed him up quickly.

When the space between their lips was enough to speak, Alonzo only had a few words to say. "I'm an idiot who's falling in love. The only reason I wanted to keep it a secret is because I'm a coward. A coward that got kicked to shit by a very mean and very drunk father that was not happy his son looked a little too long at the other boys."

"That's rough," Hale said. "My Dad thought I was crazy. Going into the military and all. Warned me about the cost of keeping things secret. But he never had a problem with who I was. How I felt. And my Mom? She kept trying to find me a guy and hinting about how adoption is just as good. Long as there were grand babies to spoil."

"My mom was fine, but she didn't say anything even though she knew. My dad drank a lot, and when he drank he got angry" Alonzo said. "I took the beatings. I got kicked around because I needed to. I wasn't going to let him hit her or my little brother."

"I've stepped in front of a blow or two," Hale said, "because I could give as good as I got." He ran a hand through his hair and wished again for a shower. "So I didn't abandon you and we're no longer a secret. How about, Mr. Professional Writer, you start using your words and not building up grudges and walls? That a deal?"

"I'm not even thirty yet, old man," countered Alonzo. "I have some growing up to do. Not as much as Ethan and the teenagers, but I'll work on using my words more."

"Good," Hale said. "So ... we're good again? No more military equals evil and all that?"

Alonzo smiled. "We're good, sweetheart. I'm sorry."

"Apology accepted," Hale said, kissing him lightly. "Sweetheart. I like that. Now. Let's go find a way to get me cleaned up, huh?"

Alonzo grabbed Hale's hand and squeezed it. "Together" he said. "As a couple."

"Absolutely," Hale said and as they started walking back, he added, "you know, Ethan already knows."

"Well...he fond me in the jeep and I wasn't exactly dressed in an argyle sweater" Alonzo said blushing a little. "I didn't say anything to him, but I know he can probably piece things together."

"Did," Hale said. "He came to me later and we talked about it. He's good."

 

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