Old Soldiers...Sort Of

[v_harkryder]

Virgil had been in a bit of a mood since Dean's funeral service. Not angry so much as a little blue. He went to work the next day and taught classes, which lifted his spirits somewhat, then decided to treat himself to dinner out that night. He showered, then shaved carefully before putting on some fresh clothes.

He lived in a convenient area to get to shopping and places to eat on foot, so he left the car behind and walked. His neighborhood was made up of young families and people who'd just graduated from college, so he was almost the only single man on the block. Sparse grass was beginning to sprout as the season warmed up.

He should call Mattie tomorrow. She knew his moods, having dealt with them first-hand when he first got back. They'd come to a comfortable understanding since the divorce. He was just glad there'd been no kids to get caught in the middle when they split up.

A dog was barking crazily in a back yard where he couldn't see it. Virgil crossed the street, using the pedestrian crossing. There was a buffet place he liked to frequent four blocks down. He was looking forward to shredded pork.

Comments

[valerie_vause]

Sunshine. Had it always been this bright or had it just dimmed due to her moods? Valerie would have contemplated it longer had she not been jostled into moving across the sidewalk by a group of male teens all mumbling something about popcorn verses soda in importance to watching a movie in the theater. For a second she got lost in the sea of shoulders and wound up staggering out of the group disorientated. The heavy scent of body-spray clung to her clothes and she coughed at the excess that followed her like a cloud. Belatedly she shouted, “Popcorn!” And as one, the group all turned to gawk at her. Two of which high fived while the other four frowned. “No way, soda is better, especially when you buy candy.” Said one with short dark hair and sunglasses.

Valerie tilted her head as a small chorus of, “Yeah.” went up and she shrugged lightly, “You’re wrong.” She finally stated, a slightly cheeky smile touching her lips. The one with the shades shook his head, “Soda wins hands down, it’s like, not even a real competition.” Valerie grinned, and offered a light shrug again as she raised her arms in a ‘whatever-you-say’ gesture. “All I’m saying is, when you’re sitting there, the plots about to reach a climax, everyone’s holding their breath for a big reveal, and then someone ruins the moment by announcing their bladders about to burst, it’s the soda that ruined the movie not the popcorn.” The guy lifted his chin to regard her, then slowly nodded. “Okay, maybe you have a good point, but that doesn’t mean popcorn wins. We don’t guzzle our soda.” He said, as if that were a fact to be proud of.

The blonde eyed the group curiously, took note of the mumbles and the squeak every now and then of a voice not completely broken, and her smile turned less mischievous and more knowing. “You forgot about the sharing. Sure you can share soda, probably even grab an extra straw, but the beauty of popcorn is how you can pass it around, or if you’re on a date, you both reach into the bucket, your hands touch, you’re nervous but smile, and in that moment you realise that buying popcorn was the best choice you made that night.” They blinked at each other, then back at Valerie, but Shade’s didn’t want to look so easily swayed. “But, popcorn has all those flaky bits that can make you cough, that’s so not attractive!”

This time Valerie laughed, a wonderful, bubbly amused sound as she sauntered up to them and then around, only to turn and glance over her shoulder with a quirked eyebrow. “That’s why you douse it in butter, duh.” She could leave it at that, but where was the fun in that? So she paused, turned to regard Shade’s once more, and narrowed her eyes thoughtfully. “Think of being on a date, maybe they’ll even lick their fingers afterward. Could be better than the movie.” When his jaw dropped she flashed a grin and turned to keep walking, only to add, “Told you, popcorn wins.”

[v_harkryder]

The group of teenagers had Virgil considering walking right through them and forcing them to part like the Red Sea. He was a big man, not just tall but solidly built, and his thousand yard stare had stopped conversations in the past. He was n no mood to be trifled with by a bunch of kids.

It was only the girl that stopped him from hitting the asshole switch. He might have been a grown man, bu he knew what his mother would have said if he'd started acting stupid in front of a woman, no matter her age. The veteran's shoulders relaxed a notch, and his mouth lifted into a half-smile.

"Popcorn does win."

He said it once the boys had rumbled past, and he waved at their retreating backs. "The only thing that might possibly make soda superior is that you can sneak a bottle into the theater in your jacket. Popcorn you've gotta pay for."

[valerie_vause]

“Oh!” Valerie felt herself blush slightly, it had been bad enough that she’d stepped into someone elses debate and apparently loud enough to gather attention. Still, she offered a crooked grin and half shrugged as if that said everything. Though she’d been about to say she had no idea why she’d added her own two cents to the conversation she couldn’t help but grin as the man beside her did the same.

Strangers weren’t all bad, and even if they were, despite her size she could handle herself. Perhaps that was why she felt relaxed as she added thoughtfully, “I like the way you think but…” She looked around then, lowered her voice, and continued as if she were swapping launch codes. “Depends on how creative you are with hiding little zip-lock bags of popcorn. Pockets come in handy, but so does…” Valerie stopped as she took in his size, and of course, the fact that he was a man before coughing quietly.

After a moment she decided to continue, albeit through a mumble, as she motioned to herself. “Well lets just say bras can come in handy for other, admittedly more lumpy, reasons. But hey, you can always feign outrage if someone notices and flat out tell them to stop staring. Sure you’ll make a few people flustered but hey, that’s just an added bonus.” Whether or not Valerie had actually done any of that was another thing entirely, but she was grinning all the same.

[v_harkryder]

Now he was amused, white teeth flashing momentarily against a dark face. After the encounter with the blonde at the church the other day, he'd wondered if it had been just the setting that caused the weirdness. His mood lightened another fraction. A giggly girl was better than one who talked about caskets.

"Sometimes you can bring snack food in, but only stuff like candy bars and whatnot," he said, his tone a bit more expansive. A car passed by on the street. The boys' chatter had already faded into the distance. Virgil had to look down to make eye contact.

"This your neighborhood?"

[valerie_vause]

Valerie resisted the urge to laugh but winked as she said lightly, “Keep telling yourself that.” As if she spent the majority of her life sneaking food into theaters the same way spies smuggled information across state lines. Well, maybe she’d have to try it now, zip-lock bags included. Though, she doubted that chocolate bars would get anywhere near her underwear. Melted was not the way to go for confectionery. Especially not in those places.

Even though she knew the answer Valerie couldn’t stop the way she looked around, as if mentally confirming it first. “Nope. I mean, not really, sort of?” The blonde shook her head then rolled her eyes at herself. “I stay on campus at UNLV, I just like to wander and get a feel for the areas and stuff since I’ll be here for a few years, you know?”

If it made sense to her hopefully it would make sense to him. Besides, it was as reasonable as she could manage. While true, the other purpose held darker reasons, such as exploring territory and getting a feel for the area so she didn’t end up lost on patrol. Nothing good ever came from being unaware of spaces. One wrong detour could be the death of her if she unwittingly chased something into a dead end.

“What about you, you live around here or just enjoying the newness of it all like me?” The blonde questioned with a bemused smile, his own quite infectious and she felt compelled to return it. Today, she felt, was going to be a good day.

[v_harkryder]

If Virgil had been a mind-reader, he'd have agreed with her on the importance of knowing your surroundings. Las Vegas wasn't the jungles of Vietnam by any stretch, and subconsciously he might have chosen to settle here for that precise reason, but on the occasional sleepless night he'd wandered his neighborhood watching every passing car and random passerby as if he was still in-country. Dry heat was preferable to the suffocating humidity of the trees.

"I live up there," he said, waving his hand in the direction of his one-story house. He'd dipped into his savings to buy the house, then fixed it up a little. Being handy was important when you lived alone. He'd thought she was too young to be a student, but that might have been her lack of height.

"I was just taking a walk to get some dinner. They've got a good buffet up the street a little ways."

[valerie_vause]

Green eyes shifted from him to the general area where he waved and she found herself nodding. Vegas might never feel like home but, home itself hadn’t been home since the second her mother had been killed. Valerie made a conscious decision that home for her would never be a place so much as simply being in her own skin. It didn’t matter where she ended up, providing she was still herself. That, she could handle. It had also meant that over the years she had adopted the lifestyle of never really possessing many things. So much easier to go somewhere else when you only had a few bags of belongings to take with you at the drop of a hat.

“Ooo…” Valerie’s smile turned crooked and she absently brought one hand up to her stomach. She could eat. Probably better to do so now than later anyway, now that she thought about it. “Would you mind if I followed you? I haven’t been to the place but you sold me on it with the words ‘good buffet’. My stomach would never forgive me if I walked away without at least trying what it has on offer.” She confessed somewhat bashfully. Thank heaven she had the stamina to burn it all off. Then again, for someone her size, she had a much larger apitite due to what she was anyway.

There were downsides to being one of the Chosen but getting to eat whatever she felt like and putting the energy to use really wasn’t one of them. In fact, it was a perk, one she actually enjoyed indulging. “That probably came out weird, I’m not a stalker or anything. Although I guess that’s exactly what a stalker would say.” Valerie cringed, “Okay, even I know that didn’t help.” The blonde shook her head with a lopsided grin. “Let me start over like a sane person. Hi, I’m Valerie, could you point me in the right direction to the buffet place, please?”

[v_harkryder]

Virgil laughed without realizing he'd intended to, the sound working its way up from his gut and out of his mouth before he could rope it in. It wasn't a mocking sound, though. One big hand reached out to offer a shake.

"Hi, Valerie," he said, the amusement in his voice lingering. "My name's Virgil. And provided they haven't put up a 'Do Not Serve' sign with my picture attached to it, I'd be glad to walk with you."

In Chicago, he probably would have turned down her offer. Home training aside, he was taught to be courteous rather than really conversational with some people. But the west was different. And these were the eighties.

"You like to put food away too? You got a hollow leg or something?"

[valerie_vause]

“Hi Virgil, it’s a pleasure to meet you.” Valerie took his hand in her much smaller one and shook it firmly, a wry grin curved her lips. “I doubt they’d do that. You’re probably the guy they’d want on the poster advertising it. What with you being so healthy and built entirely of muscle.” Valerie motioned from his head to his toes once she took her hand back, and although her tone was laced with amusement, she meant every word. Virgil was fit with a capital F. Anybody with eyes could see that.

“Yes sir.” The blonde nodded enthusiastically, then laughed. “No hollow leg, I just have a very…” Valerie paused, her smile turned cryptic as if she were making some sort of inside joke. “Extensive workout regimen that I take very seriously. One of the perks is getting to eat my body weight in food.” Yeah, if only he knew the half of it.

Valerie shifted to stand by his side as they walked down the street. It might have been odd for someone else, striking up a conversation with a complete stranger, but the blonde couldn’t help it. She received only good vibes from Virgil, and that was enough for her. “So what do you recommend, or is everything worth sampling at least once?”

[v_harkryder]

"Everything's worth trying. As long as they haven't left it out for too long, I mean."

Virgil had tried to stand in a more appealing way when Valerie complimented him, avoiding flexing by a hair. Sure, he was probably twice her age, but he had eyes, and that meant he could see the blonde was a very pretty girl. He tamped down his grin as they started to walk again.

"I gotta work hard to keep the weight off," he said. "Got into the habit in the army, never grew out of it. Plus I eat too much starchy food, so when hit the gym I have to hit it hard."

They reached a crosswalk, and the veteran waited while a station wagon with fake wood paneling rattled past before stepping off the curb. "Are you over at the college?"

[valerie_vause]

“My kind of place then.” The response was light but Valerie meant it as she grinned up at Virgil while they waited for the traffic to thin out. Part of her lamented the fact that she hadn’t thought to lift her sunglasses as she squinted through the sunlight, but at least the buildings on the other side of the road were tall enough to cast shadows.

“I don’t doubt that.” The blonde admitted as she looked at his biceps. “How long did you serve? You don;t have to answer, just know I really respect your choice to join, and I admire your dedication to protect our country. Not everyone can stomach that sort of thing, but you did, and that’s…” Valerie shook her head lightly. Yeah, she fought demons daily, but the average human had no idea of such things, and those that fought other evils? Those people were amazing. They chose to do it, they weren’t called by destiny, and that spoke volumes.

“Yeah, I moved here when I got into UNLV.” She chewed on her lower lip then shrugged lightly, “It had been my dream to get in for the Arts programme, and honestly sometimes I’m amazed that I made it this far. It probably seems insignificant but... It’s a good feeling. Nobody can take that away, you know?”

[v_harkryder]

"Two tours."

He said it without inflection, and he didn't plan to elaborate much. Vietnam was both old news and still fresh for him, and other than his therapist he'd talked about it with no one other than his wife. Not even his mother knew most of it.

"I took the money from the GI Bill and put it in savings, then went to cop school and all that. That only lasted a couple of years, less time than I was overseas. I was tired of uniforms, I guess."

Virgil's big shoulders went up and down when he said it. If he told her what had happened to chase him off of the force, she'd think he was a lunatic. And it was mostly the truth anyway, he had been tired of uniforms. He still helped the community now, just in a different way.

"School's tough," he continued as they neared the buffet establishment. "Kids in my neighborhood didn't really go to college 'cause they had to get jobs instead. Without army benefits, I might not have gotten there myself."