#naval aviator

[alex--max]

Super Hornets on station.

U.S. Navy F/A-18s from the USS Harry S. Truman (CVN-75) Strike Group fly in formation over the CENTCOM area of responsibility, March 3, 2025.

The Truman group played a key role in Operation Rough Rider—executing strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen from March through early May. On May 6, a U.S.–Houthi ceasefire was announced, halting attacks on U.S. vessels in the Red Sea.

However, tensions remain high, as the Houthis have vowed to continue targeting Israel.

🎥: U.S. Air Force by Staff Sgt. Jackson Manske.

[the-potus-is-a-russian-asset]

On July 18th, 2015, I realized that the Republican Party had left me behind. On this day, while seeking the Republican nomination for president, Donald Trump had the following to say about an Annapolis graduate who was shot down, captured and tortured as a POW by the communist North Vietnam regime:

“He's not a war hero. He was a war hero because he was captured. I like people who weren't captured."

This verbal diarrhea came out of the mouth of a man who used his father’s wealth and privilege to dodge the draft five different times due to his “bone spurs”. Donald Trump is a traitor, a repeated draft dodger and the largest fraud in the history of our country.

[nocternalrandomness]

LT Nick "BEARSHARK" Green preflighting his F-18C

[sdrose93]

Captain Pete Maverick Mitchell ❤❤

[aesthetic--mood]

Pete Mitchell "Maverick" Aesthetic

[ereardon]

Have just realized I've written Bob as a medical doctor in At Sea and in Golden Hour but they could NOT be more different.

At Sea Dr. Bob:

Naval doctor!

Sexy. Sorry but this man is hot straight off the bat and reader knows it

Openly pursuing reader from the start, no waiting period

Golden Hour Dr. Bob:

Grumpy at first but quietly falls for Olive

Nerdy, never left home

Has an ex-fiancé we don't know much about?

If you've read both, which is your fav??

[harrysdaydream1]

Loved the pilot idea. Wanted to tell a tiny mistake:) the character name is Alex but in the greeting it’s Harry. Should I go Harry and Alex now?😚

ahh!! thank you for telling me🙃

i already changed it to Alex :)

[allie-campbell-bradshaw]

Chapter 10: Maybe It Isn’t All Bullshit

A/N: This chapter had me COMPLETELY in my feels! This is when the pages really start to turn people! I tried something new and wrote it in the author’s point of view, that way we could get a good grasp on Bradley AND Allie’s feeling at the same time. You’ll also find some more developments for supporting characters as well. I mention this in my notes for every chapter, but just in case you missed it– I do not give permission for my work to be re-posted without credibility. If you do want to post this story to your page, please be sure that you tag my account or at least mention its original source in your post. 

Also: This story is sequential…please go back and read my other chapters, in order, for the best results!

Again, thank you for being here and I hope you enjoy :)

Warnings: Very brief mentions of sex (nothing explicit), swearing (it is the navy after all), mentions of a horrible childhood, and a blissful wisp of a blossoming romance!

Chapter 10: Maybe It Isn’t All Bullshit

AUTHOR’S POV

Allie closed the door of room 2 on the student wing. The student wing of the Naval Academy hospital was outside. The navy letters of the hospital hung over the 6 navy blue doors that led to the patient rooms. These rooms were used for quick and easy treatments for students and staff that suffered slight injuries throughout the day. That morning, Allie had treated two students who fell pretty bad on the track. Easy bandaging. The student in room 2 broke his clavicle during an incident on the submarine simulation that they had on base. Allie assisted with the X-Ray imaging and helped the student get placed in a sling. The day was very uneventful overall.

Allie made her way back into the hospital through the sliding glass doors, crossed the hall of the lobby, and made her way over to the nurses station in the second wing where Kiera and Holly were standing.

“Join us for lunch?” Kiera asked Allie, as she was finishing up typing the report of sling man. 

“Can’t” Allie answered shortly, keeping her eyes on the computer screen.

Kiera and Holly exchanged a look, as if to tell each other that their friend is no longer as fun as she used to be.

“Okay, that’s it!” Kiera said, reaching over and pulling the laptop away from Allie.

Allie looked over at her confused; “What?” she asked genuinely. Not at all understanding what Kiera meant by that.

Kiera gave her a slight smirk, “We are prescribing you with a break…” she said in a gentle tone, not wanting to upset her best friend.

“I take plenty of breaks.” Allie corrected her, reaching over and pulling the laptop back in her direction, wanting to finish her report on the student she just saw.

“Not enough!” Kiera replied, a little snappy, but still gentle enough to complete her humble personality. Kiera slid the laptop back to her and held on tight on the back of the screen. Allie reached over for it again, but she didn’t try to snatch it back. She knew it would be no use, Kiera was far more stronger than her.

Allie looked down as she collected her composure, growing slightly frustrated with the “cock blocking” that her friend was doing between herself and her work.

“Look,” Kiera began, “We love you and we can see the life being sucked out of your eyes. Working with students is torture, and it sucks your soul out…” Kiera was being incredibly sarcastic and the least bit sympathetic for Allie’s situation during this shirt: “ but we can also see that you are itching for some fun!”

Allie kept her eyes down, but did look up slightly, admitting to herself that Kiera was right. She had been stressed to the MAX since she graduated from nursing school at Johns Hopkins University back in May. While there, she met her two best friends, and brought them with her to the Naval Academy when they graduated. Given Holly’s obsession with military men, she followed without a problem. Kiera however, was a different story.

Kiera was from New York City, growing up in a family of 7 in two, sometimes one, bedroom apartments throughout the area. She was the oldest, and held onto much of the responsibility of keeping house while her parents worked multiple jobs to pay the bills. When she graduated high school, all she wanted to do was get out. She went as far as she could within reason and ended up in the nursing program with Allie. However, after 4 years apart from her family, and the death of her brother, she felt it was her responsibility to go back and help with her other siblings. After a nasty fight with her mom after she moved back, Kiera packed her bags, moved in with Holly, and never looked back. It had been 2 months since she’d heard from any of her family, but it didn’t bother her as much as it used to, since she was with the two people she loved most.

“Please,” Kiera pleaded to Allie, “join us for lunch. It’s only 30 minutes out of your life”.

Allie looked up at Kiera, who had a hint of loneliness and pain in her eyes, nodded and smirked at her. 

All three girls walked out of the lobby and into the connecting wing of the academy, where a small cafe stood in the corner of the large room. The room was a completely open concept with glass walls stretching all three stories. Stairs linked the three stories on the opposite side, with glass paneling that overlooked the cafe area. It was small, only 6 tables scattered the cafe area, each with sets of 2-4 chairs–people moved them around all the time.

Allie and Holly sat down at one of the tables and Kiera went to an empty table, grabbed an unused chair, and brought it over to them. The tables and chairs were gray metal, completely cold due to not being used in awhile. Two Academy students were working in the cafe, dressed in their service khakis with an apron provided by the cafe draped over them.

Kiera bought all three of them coffee, which they all greatly accepted. “So,” Kiera said, breaking the awkward silence that now existed at the table, “What’s the newest update with medical school”?

Kiera and Holly had their eyes glued to Allie, who just responded with a shrug. She had felt defeated recently in regards to that subject. Halfway into the nursing program, Allie got to participate in a field experience in the surgical wing of Sinai Hospital. During that time, she saw a life saving surgery of a little girl that reminded her of herself when she was her age. She got to be part of the team that performed her heart surgery. However, there was a complication with the surgery that was discovered the next day, and the girl died within minutes. That experience changed Allie’s life, and she realized that nursing was not her end goal in healthcare. Since that day, Allie had been studying anatomy and surgical procedures during all of her spare time. She had recently filled out applications to various medical schools in the United States, hoping to be accepted and able to go by this time next year.

Harvard, Stanford, Cambridge, and Oxford all had applications form her headed their way. She wanted to be able to attend a medical school that was not only rigorous, but also an institution. She honestly didn’t care which of the four she was accepted into, but Stanford was her number one. No reason other than that was just the one she gravitated towards the most. Most particularly because it was away from here…this Academy…where she constantly had men breathing down her neck.

The conversation drifted from Allie’s current surgical studies, to Holly’s love interests (of that there were plenty), to Kiera’s dry-spell, which has lasted longer than she cared to admit. Allie finally let out her first genuine smile-filled laugh when the pager, attached to her hip, went off beep, beep-beep, beep. Silence. Beep, beep-beep, beep.

Allie’s face dropped as she was slowly forced back into reality. She was being paged back to the hospital. She checked her pager’s screen to see the message: Student, 23, in need of immediate medical assistance, student-wing, room 1.

Kiera and Holly’s smiles also dropped as they watched their overworked friend get called back into her personal hell. “And just like that,” Kiera began, in an upset tone; “the magic is broken”.

“Well,” Allie said, as she began to get up, “We ain’t no Disneyland”!

“Hey,” Holly said softly, watching her friend, who had a look of dread in her eyes, “Don’t forget about Friday, please?” Holly knew it was inevitable that Allie would cancel, but had high hopes that she would go out with them just this once.

Allie tapped her forehead with her index finger twice, as a way to say ‘it’s in my brain’ as she grabbed her trash and turned towards the hospital. Her friends watched as she strutted out of the cafe, threw her trash away, and went into the hospital wing.

There were flirtatious giggles coming from the two men that were behind the cafe counter. Kiera and Holly looked at them and then back at each other, rolling their eyes in sync at the men’s thoughts that they knew were of Allie as she passed.

“Why can’t that kind of stuff happen to me?” Holly said in desperation.

“Because you give into anything that moves” Kiera replied in a funny tone, making fun of her friends’ tendencies, while also making it clear that it was a joke out of love.

They both got up and started assembling their own trash as they prepared for their afternoon shift with their patients, all of which were recovering from extensive surgeries that happened within the last few days, and one woman that recently had a baby. Although this hospital was located at the Naval Academy, it still was available to the public as it was one of the only hospitals in Annapolis with a solid reputation. It was small, but the surrounding community appreciated having quality care ready for them should they need to go to the emergency room, but it was mainly used for Naval students and staff as well as navalmen and women that were stationed around the area.

Allie stopped at the other nurses station that was at the right wing of the hospital, smiling at another nurse as she handed her a clipboard with this 23-year-old student’s information on it. Allie returned the smile with a slight smirk of her own, even this nurse, who barely knew Allie, knew how much she hated being on the “student shift”.

Allie read through the notes of the student’s medical file as she made her way to room 1 of the hospital;

Name: Bradley Bradshaw

Age: 23

Vitals

Body Temp: 98.2

Pulse Rate: 63

Respiration Rate: 16 Bpm

Blood Pressure: 111/60 mm Hg

Description of Injury: Student was in their flight training course when they smacked their hand on a magnet strip located inside of the cessna. Student has reported a pain level of 3/10, although it is expected to be much higher. Student now has ice on the injury, but it needs to be wrapped. X-Ray showed no signs of broken or fractured bones. Monitor for possible ligament strain.

Allie knocked on the door of room one, as to give her patient a warning that she was about to come in. She pushed the door and held the clipboard to her chest. “Good afternoon Mr. Brad-” she froze in her place as she made eye contact with the man that has single handedly made her life more stressful during this last week and a half.

“Mr. Bradshaw. Or, you could even say Midshipman Bradshaw”. Bradley responded to her, with a flirtatious smirk on his face, sweat forming along his hairline. It was no lie that this outdoor wing of the hospital was known for its low quality air-flow. The summers were miserable in these sticky rooms and the winters left you freezing. Students worked their asses off to make sure that they didn’t get hurt during the extremely hot and extremely cold days, but for some, it was unavoidable. 

“Jesus” Allie muttered under her breath, looking down so she could roll her eyes as she prepared for what was going to be the longest 15 minutes of her life. Utter torture is the best thing she could compare it to.

“What?” Bradley questioned, leaning in so he could hear her better. Although he asked, he knew full well what she said.

Allie raised her eyebrows and put on a fake smirk as she walked over to the counter, putting his chart down and washing her hands. “So,” she began, as she turned off the faucet and shook her hands over the sink before grabbing a handful of paper towels to dry the remaining moisture, “You smashed your hand on a magnet strip inside an airplane?” She sounded a bit unimpressed, and left a tone that was meant to make him feel utterly stupid, which didn’t work. Nothing really hurts his feelings anymore.

“No”. He replied, quickly closing his eyes and shaking his head. Obviously he told a lie, but it was more like a half-truth than a full-on lie. “I mean, yes” he corrected himself. Allie looked at him utterly confused, with a face that one would have when talking to a completely stupid person. “Yes, I hurt my hand, but not by accident.”

“So, you hurt your hand on purpose?” Allie questioned as she threw away the paper towels and sat down in the rolling stool, making her way over to Bradley.

“Yes.” Bradley answered matter of factly. “I needed to see you, and I knew that this was the only wa-”

“You can just stop there!” Allie said back sternly as she placed her fingers on his hand, with the intent to turn it so his palm would be facing up, but something made her stop. Something about his touch made a bolt of electricity fire through her. She quickly let go of his moist hand.

Bradley noticed the change in her demeanor and had a look of curiosity on his face. She gathered her composure and looked up at him, taking note of his complexion. His eyes were a piercing brown, with a hint of hazel. Hers were a brighter hazel, one that would be the next shade up from his if they were on a color palette together. “I’m sorry,” she apologized softly as she went back to grab onto his hand.

“It’s okay,” Bradley responded, slightly uneven, “I don’t bite”. He said, in an attempt to lighten the mood. Allie would never admit it to him, but that joke did amuse her for a brief moment. Allie now had his palm facing up and was examining the swelling that did not look good, at all.

“But you do gamble”. She said, throwing a punch in her words, which stung at Bradley’s heart. 

“Yeah,” Bradley said slowly and cautiously, “about that…”

“Don’t worry about it”. Allie said, stealing a glance up at him before going back to his hand. “You’re not the first one to say that. It was quite unoriginal”.

Allie now rolled her chair over to the cabinets and bent down over the stool, opening a floor cabinet and began rummaging through it, looking for ace wrap. 

“But, it wasn’t even my idea”. Bradley said, with a slight beg in his voice. “It was my roommate Emmett’s, I just went along with it”.

Allie froze in her search, looking up at his leg for a split second before refocusing on the insides of the cabinet, scanning every corner for the wrap that she needed for his hand. She couldn’t explain it, and didn’t want to believe it, but something felt genuine in his voice.

Finally, she found it! She reached far back as she grabbed the substance, closed the cabinet and rolled back over to Bradley. He looked at her with a curious expression, wanting to know everything that was swimming in her brain. 

“I-” He began, before finding himself speechless. How could he not be? In a room with a woman as beautiful as her in it, it was easy to find oneself speechless. “It was just bullshit. I was bullshitting him. I didn’t care about a single outcome of that bet. I just wanted to get to know you. That’s not bullshit.”

Allie was now holding his hand steady as she interlaced his hand with the ace wrap, completely ignoring his explanation on the outside, but fully listening to it on the inside. “You’ll need to keep this completely wrapped for 24 hours, and then just re-wrap it every time you notice the swelling flaring up. Take ibuprofen for the swelling and pain. It should go down within the next few days. I would come back on Monday if it hasn’t. Make sure to ice! Don’t use heat, or the swelling will get worse. And absolutely don’t go putting your hands on medal powerstrips ever again”.

Allie started standing up, when she felt his clean hand hold onto her wrist, “Allie-” He began to plead, but let her go after a second, knowing full well that no amount of begging would satisfy her. 

“Mr. Bradshaw,” she began, with a professional tone in her voice, “Midshipman Bradshaw,” she corrected, remembering what he said 20 minutes earlier. She swallowed hard as she prepared for the next layer of her speech, “I appreciate your care and compassion for the Navy. Your service can never be fully repaid”.

Bradley smirked and nodded his head in thanks as she went on, “But I would like to remind you that I am a nurse, and you are my patient. And we will not have a relationship that goes anywhere beyond that. I would appreciate it if we could continue this relationship professionally whether it be in the hallways or a treatment room. I thank you for your patience and understanding.”

Allie turned her body towards the cabinets when she froze in her tracks, caught off guard by Bradley’s loud laugh. “Oh-my-God!” Bradley managed to say in between laughs, “How many times have you said that?”

Allie was in fumes, upset with his reaction. “You see,” He said, still in a fit of laughter, “Here I am being genuine in my apology, and here you are with the same old bullshit boring speech that you give the ordinary midshipmen”. Bradley was still laughing, but Allie could have nothing more to do with this conversation.

She turned her body and grabbed his chart off the counter, stealing one last glance at him, her face red with rage. Turning her back towards him and heading to the door, she froze again, finding the anger getting the best of her. “Listen here!” She snapped, facing him and letting him have it, “Your ‘apology’ was anything but. An apology is saying “sorry” and all I heard you say was nothing but excuses and vulgar language!” Bradley had stopped laughing and was growing anxious as she was walking towards him, “and don’t even think for a second that you’re anything out of the ordinary ‘Midshipman Bradshaw’. You are completely ordinary! In fact, even the most ordinary of men here have more originality than you! And it’s not at all about the bet! It’s about the fact that a 22 year old man can’t even come up and simply ask me out on a date without having to get his no good, immature, teenage roommate involved! Now there is nothing more bullshit than that!”

Allie stormed out of the room, letting the door slam behind her as she stomped through the pavement, halfway between room 1 and the sliding glass doors of the hospital, she slowed her pace and then quickly came to a complete halt.

What did I just do? She thought to herself, completely embarrassed about her lack of professionalism. Had she just put her entire future at risk? Her job? Her security blanket? But more importantly, did she just admit that she wanted Bradley to ask her out on a date? She didn’t mean it the way it came out. She wasn’t interested! At all! But would going out with him be so bad? And if he didn’t fuck up and just asked the normal way, would she have said no?

Of course I would have! She answered her thoughts. I would have rejected him just as hard as I’ve rejected others in the academy. She didn’t care that he was much older and more mature than plenty of the other ‘ya-who’s’ on campus. Before she knew it, she was storming back to room 1, throwing the door open, and finding Bradley in the same position that she left him in–paralyzed with shock on the chair that was next to the exam table.

She looked at him, and he looked at her. She was covered in anger and he was completely flabbergasted. No one knew what to say.

“If that wasn’t bullshit, what was I wearing?” She demanded to know. His eyes squinted in confusion, his lips parted on his smooth shaven face.

“The night we met,” she answered, reading his mind. “What was I wearing?”

She stood above him like a queen looking down on the poorest of peasants, knowing the full power she had over him in this moment. She had got him in his own game! From her experience, any man that ever wanted to sleep with her only noticed two things, her eyes, and the shape of her perky breasts. And he was about to be caught red-handed in the same league as those ‘ordinary’ assholes that she has fought against for years. 

Bradley looked down, adjusting his shoes and tying a lace that had gotten loose. She watched as he did this, finally noticing that he was wearing the camo pants of his working uniform and a black skin tight shirt that was showing off the muscles that he had begun forming, they were still underdeveloped, but further along than any other midshipman that she had seen on base.

He sniffled and stood up, keeping his head down as he answered her question, “You were wearing a red dress with white flowers printed all over them. It was loose, and swayed in the breeze that hit you on the dock. Your hair was out of your regular ponytail, curled more than it is now. You had on an anklet that showed in the sunlight, and later on I saw that you had on a locket. It had an “A” printed on it. Your toes were painted a light pink. It was the same color as your nails. And you had white sandals that you carried instead of wore. And studs in your ears that were opals'' Bradley was now at her shoulder as he looked down at her, a complete shift in the power…now he was the king and she was the peasant. She held a flabbergasted expression on her face.

He didn’t say anything else, slowly walking towards the door, “Thank you for the care, nurse Campbell.” he said to her as he left the room, proving he knew another detail of her life–taking the time to learn her full name rather than her bra size.

Allie stood there in shock, focusing on nothing but breathing as she reached into the neck of her scrubs and pulled out the golden locket that was attached to a golden chain. She rubbed her thumb against the “A” that was on the face of the heart. She kept her gaze forward as she regained her composure.

She knew that she made a lot of solid points, and that her analysis of this man was legit. He was less than ordinary, and a complete ass, but she was wrong about one thing… it wasn’t all bullshit. 

[living-mites]

HOW DOES IT FEEL

TO LIVE MY DREAM?

AHHHH

[all photos from pinterest <3]

[dutchmn007]

U-2 Spyplanes, F-18's, & Afterburner Consequences

[alex--max]

U.S. Navy EA-18G Growlers in action over the Red Sea.

🎥: U.S. Air Force by Staff Sgt. Gerald R. Willis.

[classackles]

Omg so when I get back to the states, my dad said he would take me to visit the naval academy campus! Because he is in the Navy, not an Aviator, but he’s a Seabee. And I asked him what would be the better choice, going to a normal college and then Navy pays for 2 years or the Academy and the navy pays for all 4 years. He said the academy and he’s said he could probably get me a good letter of recommendation. I have never been so fricking excited in my life. It’s so funny how a silly little movie about planes can change the trajectory of your life! Thank you Tom!

[sdrose93]

There's just something about him 😍❤

[ltjgbillybadass]

Former President George H.W. Bush when he was LtJg. Bush as a Naval Aviator Officer fighter pilot in World War Two!

Lt. (jg) George H. W. Bush in the cockpit of his TBM aboard USS San Jacinto (CVL-30), 1944

[harrysdaydream1]

i want to post the bot but c.ai doesn't let me upload it😣🙏🏼

idk what is going on, hopefully i can upload it today🫠

remember always that my inbox is open for you!! for any request or just to chat/vent💓

[allie-campbell-bradshaw]

Chapter 7: Gallup

A/N: Here is another chapter of this fantastic love story! I mention this in my notes for every chapter, but just in case you missed it– I do not give permission for my work to be re-posted without credibility. If you do want to post this story to your page, please be sure that you tag my account or at least mention its original source in your post. Again, thank you for being here and I hope you enjoy :)

Warnings: Swearing (It is the navy after all), brief mentions of sex (nothing explicit).

Chapter Seven: Gallup

BRADEY’S POV

Breakfast time came to be my favorite time of day. No, it’s not because the food slapped, but that was a definite bonus. It was because she was there. Every day. At the same table. With her two friends. I looked for her every day during lunch and dinner, my eyes scanning the room every five or so minutes, but she never showed. Only at breakfast was she there.

By the next Monday, my friends had realized what I was doing, and were teasing me mercilessly. 

“Dude! Man up and go talk to her!” Javy encouraged me as I looked at Allie sitting in her usual spot that morning. I felt a smack on my shoulder coming from his direction, but I was in my daily trance to notice if I actually got hit or if it was all in my imagination.

“He’s not gonna go man, he’s too chicken shit” Natasha said to Javy, teasing me with her name calling.

I looked down and shot her a dead stare before looking back up at Allie, making it clear that her words didn’t have any sort of effect on me. It definitely did, but she didn’t need to know that. I knew I was skilled enough to play it cool.

Emmett reached into his pocket and grabbed 10 ten dollar bills, fanning them out in his hands and waving them at me, pretending to cool me down; “We got a bitch in heat!” He screamed out.

Natasha sighed before adjusting her body from what was once turned in Allie’s direction and now facing me. Natasha and I switched spots after I spotted Allie at breakfast last week. It wasn’t official, but at lunch that day, I walked two paces ahead of her, making sure that I made it to the chair first. She definitely knew why, and graciously swapped spots with me: “I’ll look interested when there’s something to be interested in” she said with a sarcastic grin on her face.

Due to this, no one was surprised to see me speeding from the gym’s locker room to the cafeteria, pushing open the doors and coming to a halt when I noticed an unfamiliar group of people in Allie’s normal spot. They were sporting our navy working uniform that I also had on today, definitely not the people I was expecting to see there.

My face dropped as the realization of her absence hit me. What was the point of getting here so early then?

My friends must have noticed my disappointment, because Emmett gave my shoulder a firm pat and shake as he made his way to the breakfast line; “Well, you win some you lose some”.

I stood there paralyzed for a moment before regaining my consciousness and joining the group in line, being modest with my selection; a fruit cup, eggs, bacon, and a few pieces of toast, making sure to grab some grape jelly on my way out of the buffet line. 

I couldn’t help but look over my shoulder one last time before taking my original seat, facing away from the group that would just unconsciously torture me the whole time if I could see them in my periphery. 

Natasha gave me a confused look as she slowly took her original seat back as well, keeping her eyes on me as she sat down in her same matching navy uniform. It was actually the first time I noticed we were all in our working uniforms.

“You okay dude?” Javy asked me, noticing my disappointed look and hunched shoulders. He sat down next to me, a concerned look on his face, while Emmett took the spot next to Natasha. Natasha tensed up a bit as he took his place, making it clear that she was uncomfortable. Those two giving each other shit had become an entertaining staple in our group.

I didn’t respond to Javy, electing instead to just look him in the eyes and then down at my plate, “He’s just pissed because his eye fuck isn’t here.” Emmett responded in my absence.

I rolled my eyes at his comment and continued to stare down at my tray, picking off a few pieces of bread and popping it into my mouth one at a time. Although I was upset, I was still starving, and we were some of the last to get lunch since our flight training lecture went until 1:00pm, so I knew it would do me no good not to at least eat a little.

“I don’t get why you just won’t ask her out,” Javy said quietly with a little bit of caution in his tone. You could tell he didn’t want to offend anyone, especially me.

“I think we have all established that Bradley is not going to find the courage to ask her out.” Natasha said as she swallowed some of her fruit.

I looked up at her, unamused with her tone, “I’m just waiting for the right moment.” I started in a matter-of-fact tone. 

“Oh please!” Natasha yelled, not being able to hold back her laugh even though she tried, “You wouldn’t know the perfect moment if it slapped you in the face!”

“Wait all your life man,” Javy said, picking at his bacon in his hands, “Sooner or later she’s going to be with somebody”.

“Yeah,” Emmett said, looking over us into the crowd, “And I think that somebody is right over there”.

I quickly shot over to where he was looking, my heart stopping and a cold rush running through my body. There was no way in hell I was too late!

Emmett was laughing with the other three as I realized that she was not there, fully comprehending that everything he just did was a joke in order to see my reaction. I turned around, a sly smirk on my face as I flipped him off.

Emmett put his hands up in an innocent way stating, “Hey! Don’t be mad at me! You’re the one that’s got it bad bro!”

“Enough.” I said firmly, more so directing it at the table rather than just at Emmett. They immediately changed their demeanor, knowing that I had had enough of the teasing for now.

“Wanna look over chemistry?” Natasha asked me. We had quizzes every Tuesday over our weekly reading, which was almost 60 pages this week! It doesn’t sound bad on the syllabus, but when you see how tiny the print is, it had to be equivalent to 100,000 words. It was a lot, and I wouldn’t lie, I was nervous as fuck for it! Thank God for Trace though, she was willing to cut the reading in half and have us each take detailed notes and discuss them during our free time, which we used as study time. Another advantage to being single and not overwhelmingly horny like Frasier. If it wasn’t for campus being closed during the weekdays, I doubt I would ever be allowed into the dorm!

Natasha and I spent the remainder of our time looking over our notes and quizzing each other while the boys talked about their ideal woman. Or something like that. I don’t know, I tuned them out. Knowing those two, it was something about sex.

All of us made our way out of King Hall towards the doors that faced the commons area. All four of us froze in our tracks when we made it down the thick stairs. It seemed as though all of us saw her at the same time, which caused a synchronized reaction.

She was sitting on the bench at my ten o’clock, a hand holding a book steady on her thighs as the other one held onto a half eaten peach. I watched her as she slowly chewed and grazed across the page, very into whatever she was reading. She was wearing an oversized navy sweatshirt. The kind that almost every naval man and woman wore in the 90’s, with the big yellow letters. She had on gray sweatpants that had been cut into short shorts. Her hair had a slight curl and was slightly waving in the breeze.

“Well, we better get you cleaned up dear!” Emmett exclaimed as he made his way over to me and adjusted my uniform which had bunched up at my shoulders where my backpack straps were. He licked his hand and was reaching up for my hair when I brought my shoulder up and used it to push him away.

“Dude!” I said, not understanding why he was making such a fuss.

“What?” He asked innocently, “You are about to go talk to your future wife, man. You need to look your best!”

“My future, who?” I asked him. Obviously I knew what he said and what it all meant, I just wanted to make it clear to him that that concept was NOT on my mind, and nothing I was even considering. He was adjusting my uniform again before taking a step back and looking at me.

He raised his eyebrows, holding up his left hand and tapping the bottom portion of his ring finger three times. “Relax. You’ve got this all under control. She’s just a woman okay?” He said, taking a deep breath and admiring his work, me. “If you don’t do anything now, you’ll regret it for the rest of your life”. Holy shit! Did Frasier just say something that made sense? I stared at him, impressed with his point. He seemed to understand my gaze and adjusted his posture so he was standing up straight, a look of proud admiration on his face.

“Yeah I know,” He said, putting both of his hands on my shoulders, “Now go get her!” He tapped me on the chest and pushed me with enough force that I started to fall forward, my feet catching me and causing me to take a few steps to regain my balance. I was on my way to her, headed in her direction, watching as she turned the page of her book and started reading at the top corner, swallowing her freshly bitten piece of peach.

I suddenly realized just how dry my throat was. I quickly shut my mouth, which was hanging open for god knows how long, and swallowed hard, feeling a burn as the saliva coated my dried out throat. I licked my lips and slowed my pace as I came closer to her, now in earshot if I wanted to say something. Yet, she didn’t look up from her book, her eyes were glued to its contents. 

I was close enough now to see the title of the book; “Atlas of Human Anatomy and Surgery” with a picture of a human’s upper interior on the cover. I wanted to laugh at the selection, but I couldn’t. I was speechless, not knowing what to say to such a beautiful girl.

“Interesting read,” I said to her, mentally rolling my eyes at my comment, quickly looking for a way to recover, “I’m more of a Gray’s Anatomy fan myself”.

“Well, this is very different from a T.V. show,” she said, not looking up at me and continuing to read, “it’s the real deal”.

After a moment she brought her gaze up to meet mine, her face dropping and rolling her eyes when she saw that it was me. She adjusted her posture, sitting up straighter now after being slouched into the bench.

“I’m sorry,” I said softly, “I didn’t mean to distract you from your reading. I was just wondering if I could bother you for a sec”?

“Well, you’re already bothering me.” She said coldly, which was far from what I was expecting.

I couldn’t help but smirk and drop my head to the ground, before I brought my gaze back to her, my side smirk still rested deep in my face. “My apologies ma’am”. I responded smoothly, with a subtle flirtatious tone hidden in my words.

She raised her eyebrows and shook her head slightly as if to ask what I wanted, what this BIG thing was that I needed to bother her for. Oh fuck! I had no idea what to say.

“Oh yeah!” I exclaimed, buying myself some more time as I shifted my weight on my feet. I glanced over at my friends who were looking in opposite directions now, making it obvious that they were intensely watching us and immediately shifted their gaze right then when both Allie and I looked at them. Emmett was the most dramatic of all, doing a 360 on his heels and nearly losing his balance, falling back a few steps as his feet struggled to catch him. I couldn’t help but roll my eyes at him.

“Well, see that man over there,” I went on,  “That’s my roommate Emmett. I was wondering if an intelligent, attractive, third party such as yourself could tell how much of a jackass he is just by looking at him. A scale out of 10 would be perfect”. She was silent as she looked at him, “It’s a new survey I’m conducting. I believe that it is destined to change the world. Even the people at gallup told me they have never heard anything like it”.

Allie was looking over at him now. He was currently running his hands through his hair and looking at his hand so as to observe the dandruff and dirt that he had just picked out. What a hot dog!

She looked back over at me, with a slight smirk on her face that I could tell she was trying hard to hold back, almost succeeding. “7.5.” she answered.

I couldn’t help but give a dramatic reaction to such a low number. Rather, low for what I was expecting. My eyebrows raised quickly and my eyes opened wide in a shocked expression. “Wow!” I managed to exclaim, before calming my face a bit, my eyebrows still raised as my eyes died down, “That's a little bit below the average.”

“Aren’t you all.” She stated slyly, shooting me a poker faced look.

This made my shocked expression completely eradicate from my face as I realized the dig she made at me. Who was this woman? And why were her sassy comments so well planned out. She was even better than Natasha at this.

I was too stunned to speak, not knowing what to say to that. I may be a hardass myself, and I may be goofy, but I was in no way sassy. Not on this level. I could never do what she was doing right now. Not successfully anyways. “Well,” I said, clearing my throat and adjusting my stance again, “Like every good survey, all participants are given a prize. I ran out of my $5 amazon gift cards a while ago. But I assume you would want the better one anyways, since you already gave me so much of your time”.

“What did you have in mind?” She asked, still holding onto her sly facial reaction.

I stood straight and looked her dead in the eye just like last time, “Take a walk with me,” Just like last time, it sounded more like a demand than a question, but there was a slight loss of confidence in my tone, as I was unsure if she would say yes.

She looked down at her book and let out 1 airy breath, not a sigh, but more of a laugh before looking at me. It seemed as though she was surprised at my audacity, which I found confusing. “Well I would,” she started, “But then that would make you one step closer to being one hundred bucks richer, and we can’t have that can we”?

I froze, looking at her with a confused reaction, raising one of my eyebrows, trying to make sense as to what she was saying. That’s when it hit me. One hundred bucks richer…She knew about the bet!

Before I could say anything, before I could justify myself, she was standing up, her book in one hand and her peach in the other. “You know,” she began in an annoyed and slightly angry tone, “I am conducting my own research. It is my belief that every male student here at the academy is a chauvinistic pig. I believe that it is destined to change the world. Gallup told me that they have never heard anything like it.”

Her cold eyes blazed into mine as she took a bite of her peach, not breaking our gaze. I could tell she was pissed, and I couldn’t do anything but stand there flabbergasted and embarrassed. She turned on her heel and stormed off, having that same stomp in her movements that she had the other day.

Damn it.

Shit.

Fuck!