Fight or Flight

“Scott, your guys are on their way,” Sergeant Collier shouted from across the way. “Just got signal that they’ve entered the base.”

Veronica nodded in acknowledgment, slipping on her glasses to protect her eyes from the sand and dirt kicking up in the air. She stood in front of her station, equipped in her full combat uniform. Her helmet was strapped onto her head, her tactical vest covered her upper body, and her M-16 was slung over her shoulder. She hadn’t had time to return to the trailer to change uniforms after the operation earlier in the day. Catching one insurgent had taken longer than expected.

When the white shuttle bus pulled up and stopped a few feet away from her, Veronica straightened up. She stepped forward, greeting the base bus driver and ushering the people off of the bus. Avenged Sevenfold were her guests, along with their crew. Their crew would be coming on the next shuttle bus.

They were big, muscular guys with lots of tattoos- that was Veronica’s first thought. They would have made good Marines, but they were musicians instead. She listened to their comments to each other about how long the actual flight to Iraq was and how broken the city looked.

She did a quick two-finger salute to the bus driver before he pulled off and then she turned to the five men in front of her.

“Hey,” She greeted them with a half-hearted smile. She wasn’t sure if she really wanted this assignment, but it was a lot safer than the other things she’d done. “I’m Veronica, but you’ll hear everyone call me ‘Scott’ or ‘Scottie’. Usually only Sergeant calls me Scott, but Scottie is fine by everyone else.”

Because her last name was Scott, everyone had taken up calling her ‘Scottie’ as her nickname and codename over the radio ever since her first tour overseas. Many of her male counterparts felt that ‘Scottie’ just added a more girly and playful touch to her last name. She didn’t mind it really; she actually preferred being called Scottie around her fellow soldiers. She was Scottie on base and Veronica at home.

“Um, so I’m basically going to be your tour guide and everything else while you’re here,” She continued. “We’ll get more in depth with that later. I didn’t exactly get to read up on the information beforehand, so what are your names?”

“I’m Zacky,” The shorter and chubbier man said, holding out his hand for Veronica to shake.

She gave him a firm handshake, looking him over. His hair was cut short and gelled back neatly, and sunglasses covered his eyes. He wore a plaid short-sleeved shirt and a pair of jeans.

“Brian,” The man with spiky hair introduced himself without offering his hand for her to shake. He, too, had shades covering his eyes from the blinding sunlight and wore a t-shirt and jeans. “This man right here is Johnny.”

“Hey, how are you?” Johnny asked and Veronica just smiled.

He was the shortest of all of them, wearing American flag shades and a ring pierced through the cartilage of his nose.

“You may have to watch out for him,” Brian warned.

Veronica raised an eyebrow and narrowed her eyes at the short man behind her glasses.

“I wouldn’t piss her off like she doesn’t have a gun over her shoulder right now,” Said the biggest and tallest guy of them all. His serious expression quickly faltered to a grin and a chuckle, showing off his deep dimples. Dark sunglasses covered his eyes and his cap was backwards on his head. “I’m Matt.”

She shook his hand and turned to the older looking man with the long hair and the long, messy beard. He wore a sleeveless shirt and shades.

“Mike,” He said, giving her a quick handshake.

“Alright, just follow me,” Veronica instructed, turning around and walking.

With backpacks slung over their shoulders, the men behind her exchanged looks after checking out the female soldier. She looked over her shoulder every few steps as if she was checking to make sure they were still there. She spoke a few words to the people who passed her. She stopped outside of the compound that the units lived in for six to nine months out the year.

“This,” Veronica unlocked and pulled a door open, “is where you’ll be staying for the two nights that you’re here.”

She stepped into the vacant trailer, cleaned and ready just for them. They followed her inside and she flipped the light switch. It was a decent size for the band and their crew with enough top and bottom bunks for each of them. The small living room area had two couches, a coffee table, and a television. It was almost like a motel room made to hold about ten people.

“We obviously don’t have much indoor plumbing out here so there’s porta potties outside,” She told them, pointing out a window. “We do have showers and such, but I’ll give you guys the grand tour later, not that there’s much to see.”

A couple of them laughed, setting their bags down and claiming a bunk.

“You guys can relax and settle in. I’m sure you’re tired. I don’t get breaks, but I’ve gotta get out of this uniform.” Veronica motioned to the bulky outfit on her frame. “I’ll come back in about two hours or so when it’s almost time for dinner. If you need me, just holler at someone and they’ll find me.”

“Yes, boss,” Zacky said.

Veronica smiled at him. “Alright, I’ll see you guys in a few. Make yourselves at home.”

She walked out of the trailer, closing the door behind her. She paused at the faint sound of an explosion and a cloud of smoke rose in the air from miles away. No one around reacted to it as a threat; it was just one of the other platoons disposing of a roadside planted bomb. She exhaled at the realization and continued her walk around the compound.



When Veronica returned to the trailer that she shared with her friends, it was empty. She removed her helmet and protective vest, putting them away. She took off her clear, goggle-like glasses, putting them in their respective case. She stretched her limbs a little and rolled her neck, her body fatigued.

She grabbed her hairbrush and comb, turning to the spotty mirror. The helmet had left her hair a mess and her bun was loose. She ran the brush through her dark, wavy locks and combed out the tangles. She pulled all of her hair away from her face, twisting it and tying it into a neat bun on the back of her head. She didn’t have the luxury of styling it and washing her hair everyday like she did at home. She missed it a lot.

The door opened and slammed, making her jump when heavy footsteps approached her.

“How’s those guys?” Nathaniel asked from a few bunks down. He was also in full combat uniform, slowly removing his articles.

“They’re alright so far,” Veronica answered her best friend on and off the field. “I told them to just relax for a while until it’s time for dinner.”

He grunted in response. She grabbed her light-colored camouflage jacket, shrugging her arms through the sleeves. She buttoned it up and grabbed her matching hat. She passed Nathaniel at his bunk and sat on the couch. She watched him pull his undershirt off. He replaced it with a clean, beige t-shirt, tucking the tee into his pants.

“So what are you doing until dinner?” He asked, glancing at her as he put on his own jacket. He started to button it up.

She shrugged, “Nothing, I guess. I’m assuming those guys are tired so I’m letting them rest. You and I can just hang out if you’re not busy either.”

“I’m not,” He responded.

At home, civilian people assumed they were dating. Overseas, it was completely inappropriate. At first, their fellow friends were skeptical about their relationship. By now, it’d become a joke. Nathaniel and Veronica never dated and never will.

Nathaniel was married with a one year old son. He and his wife didn’t hesitate to declare Veronica as their son’s godmother. Veronica loved Nathaniel’s little boy like he was her own, and she was very good friends with his wife. Veronica, on the other hand, was single and had practically been single all of her adult life. She had a small apartment back in her home state of California, but spent most of her time at her parent’s house. She liked to live a very simple life.

Veronica still remembered the day she ever met Nathaniel. It was basic training day for the new recruits, and he was her partner for some of the exercises. They hit it off right away and from there, they did almost everything together. They trained together, they made the Marines together, they went to the School of Infantry together, and now they served together. With Nathaniel as a team leader and maintaining a much respected role, he vouched for Veronica and took her wherever he went if life permitted. They were basically a package deal.

“You ready?” He asked her, grabbing his hat and his rifle.

“Yeah,” She nodded, also grabbing her rifle and placing the strap over her shoulder.

The two of them stepped from the trailer to go find their peers. With nothing to do, cameras usually came out and stupid things were done. No one ever really knew what boredom was until they were in the middle of the desert.