Everybody Wants to Rule the World

01

A/N: hellooooo lovelies!! i've been so excited to publish this book, and here it is — the first chapter!! i just have a few notes before you read. i wanted to once again remind you that each chapter will be accompanied by a warning for any potential triggers; for example, be aware that this chapter will include depictions of military combat and a minor character death. on a happier note, every chapter will also be paired with a song whose lyrics or melody represent the events or a character's thoughts/feelings. i recommend listening to the song before reading so that it can set the mood for the chapter. i have attached this chapter's song, "soldier" by fleurie, above. okie, that's all!! i hope you enjoy reading :)

~ Jimin's Point of View ~

23:00, THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 17, 2020. BAGRAM AIR BASE. PARVAN PROVINCE, AFGHANISTAN.

"I love you, too."

A series of groans resounded from the table.

"She's got him on a leash," Adler mumbled, and I bit back a laugh at the façade of annoyance on his face. Perhaps he was genuinely frustrated, but it only went insofar as Connelly abandoning our card game. Platoon commander or not, Adler had a destructive tendency of actually liking his platoon.

"And we'll not mention how you spent an hour on the phone with your girl last week," Harvick noted, throwing a card onto the table almost aggressively.

I mumbled the human equivalent of aksjkakak with a cigarette between my lips.

"Listen, babe, I've got to go. No, like, actually."

"Yeah, babe, he's got to go," Adler affirmed, leaning back in his chair to increase his proximity to the phone speaker. Connelly scowled and retreated to a corner of the drab room to complete his evening back-and-forth goodbyes with his girlfriend. "Like I said, leash. I don't do that with my girl."

"No, you just make kiss noises over the phone."

"That was one damn time!"

"Uno," I said, tossing my second-to-last card into the pile.

Harvick stared at the table for several moments without blinking. Then his brows furrowed, and he cast a suspicious gaze at me. "When did you get down to one card?"

"While you were busy sabotaging Adler."

Adler groaned and threw down his cards in favor of retrieving a cigarette. "The game's over, anyway. I don't know why we play anymore – Uno is for babies and women."

"I bet your wife loves you."

Adler squinted at me. "Take a walk, Park."

"But it's late."

"And?"

"I don't know." I pushed my chair back from the table and stood with an unnecessary groan. "Hell, maybe I'll finally get some action after two months of quiet."

"A man can dream. Harvick, go with him to make sure Park doesn't lose himself in the dark."

"What'd I miss?" Connelly remarked, returning to the table just as Harvick and I set out to patrol the fence.

"You know," Harvick remarked, "don't ever let Adler get wind of this, but he actually reminds me of my girl."

I almost choked on the breath of smoke that I drew from my cigarette before stamping it out on the sandy rock. "Are women all you ever talk about?"

"Pretty much. Women and beer. God, what I wouldn't give for a beer right now."

"What I wouldn't give for some action right now. You ever seen combat?"