Rambo

Chapter One

15 hours and 56 minutes.

That's roughly how long it took to fly from Afghanistan to Lauren's beloved home state of Florida. She normally doesn't mind the flying time because her travelling points gets her first class but this time was different. Every hour, every minute, she was itching to leap out of those plane doors and out into the familiar Summer days of Florida. She missed the beaches, she missed the sandy grounds and the tropical town of Miami but, most of all, she missed her friends who waited for her throughout the months she fought. 

Holding onto the somewhat uncomfortable plane seat, she felt the stable landing of the aircraft touch down onto the ground, at this point, she felt that recognizable feeling of joy surging through her chest. She was ready to come home.

The next few minutes were near unbearable but she was almost the first person off of the plane with her overhead luggage secured in her tight grip. She dragged the black case behind her, throughout the airport, retrieving the rest of her things and going through the rest of the process before heading to the front, passing by strangers who were eager to either get home to their own family or the opposite, fearing for their lives as they're readying themselves to board a plane that will take them into war. 

She saw a few people like her in the crowd, wearing an outfit decorated in camo. Her eyes would always dart to the tabs they'd wear but she'd always felt proud knowing that she'd always wear the better one, though immediately pushed that feeling down when she realizes that it's not at all a competition. Though she always pats herself on the back for completing the most difficult training program known to date, and being the second woman in the world to do so. 

Lauren quickly made her way to the front of the airport, only to stop just a ways away from the glass doors to see a sign held up by three women saying "Welcome home, Rambo!" and right then and there she dropped all of her stuff and ran into her friends waiting arms, their embrace welcoming and warm. "Hey there, soldier!" Dinah happily greeted her, the group consuming Lauren in their massive hug; not even thinking about stopping anytime soon. 

"Ranger, to you." She corrected, saying of her new role. This was only her second deployment as a ranger but she wasn't new to the military life. Lauren has been a soldier for 8.5 years. But decided only so long ago that she wanted to switch over and go through the RASP training course to become special ops soldier. A ranger.

Just to say, those countless weeks of training was Hell. RASP is known as one of the most intense, brutal, military courses known to man and it has just recently been opened to women. That's why only two have succeeded in being a ranger. Lauren can recall her staff sergeant demanding her and her group to lie down face first in the wet mud on a boiling hot day after they had just ran 5 miles while he spouted words saying "You can give up now and still be a good American" and "You can join the regular military" but she's been down that road before. No. She was gonna do this. Yet, left and right, men stood up from the mud and walked away from the ranger life while she stayed down in the uncomfortable dirt. Only two men passed the RASP with her. 

"Right. Ranger. Look at you growing up." Dinah let go of her hold on Lauren, standing back to wipe under her eyes, as if she were crying. "Hush it. How are my children?" Lauren asked, worrying about her home was what she did best.