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Harlow | Phoenix | Other people
"Good Morning Sir or Ma'am. This S4, Corporal Morgan speaking. How can I help you?"
"You can stop calling me is what you can do."
"Excuse me?"
"You keep calling me at one o'clock in the morning and I really don't appreciate it. I have work in the morning! Are you looking for some ass because I can tell you right now buddy that -"
"Ma'am this is a military line. Please do not call this number again. Thank you."
. . . T E N M I N U T E S L A T E R . . .
"Look here asshole. I don't appreciate you telling me to never call this number again and within five seconds of me hanging up you call me back -"
"You don't sound like my Aunt Justine at all."
" . . . . "
"Hello? . . . Is this some kind of joke Aunt Justine?"
"I'm not your Aunt Justine."
"Thank fuck for that. Your voice sounds very hot and it would super weird if I tried to hit on my aunt."
" . . . . "
"Oh don't get all shy on me now."
"Are you the person that keeps calling me at one in the morning?"
"Ah shit, I'm sorry about that. I forget that we're on different time zones. My apologizes my lady."
"Just don't call me again."
"Wait!"
"What?"
"I call when I get off shift because I'm not tired and I need someone to talk to since my Aunt Justine clearly got a new number."
"Why don't you talk to that wonderful person that answered the first time I called?"
"Because I don't know who you talked too. There are like eight guys in here and a bunch all over this ship that could have answered. What did he sound like?"
"Like he loved his job."
"Ah! A lady with sarcasm! Marry me!
"Wha-"
"I'm kidding. None of us love this job right now."
"Tempting as it is to sit and talk to you about what your job is and how much your Aunt Justine is probably missing the sound of your voice I'm tired and I have to work in a few hours sooo goodnight."
"Before we hang up! . . . If I call you tomorrow, will you pick up?"
"Please don't call me. I'd rather be sleeping."
"What if I called earlier?"
" . . . . "
"Hello?"
"What's your name?"
"Call me Nick."
"Is that your real name?"
"Phoenix."
"Phoenix is your real name?"
"It is but they tried calling me Nix in boot camp which was terrible so I didn't answer and eventually they just called me Nick and it stuck."
"Boot camp?"
"Yes ma'am."
"Ugh, please don't ma'am me. I'm only twenty-two."
"I got you by two years. Good to know I'm not talking to a minor."
"Wouldn't want that to go on your military record."
"No we wouldn't."
"So what branch are you in?"
"I thought you didn't want to know about my job?"
"And curiosity killed the cat so tell me."
"They call us the backbone of the military. We can do it all. We're in the sky, on land, and in water. The few. The proud."
"You're a Marine?"
"I am."
"Wow."
"No need to melt in a puddle or send your panties through express."
"You're really full of yourself Phoenix."
"It comes with the uniform. If you ever see me in my dress blues just make sure you bring an extra pair."
"Wow, I'm going to hang up now Mr. Panty Dropper."
"Wait!"
"This is the last time."
"What's your name?"
" . . . . "
" . . . . "
"Harlow."
"That's unique."
"Yeah, well my parents let my grandmother name me and she liked the actress a lot so . . ."
"I like it."
"Thanks . . . Phoenix is nice too . . . I'm hanging up now so goodnight."
"Night."
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Shaking my head I tossed my cell on the nightstand before turning out the lamp wishing that I didn't have to work in the morning at Glamour. My cousin Brianna was the manager and offered me a job as cashier even though I have zero experience in makeup. I knew the basic names. Lipstick and gloss, eye shadow and liner, blush, and concealer. After that I was lost. I didn't know anything about colors or what would go well with skin tone beside black because black went with everything.
Rolling on my back I put my hand on my head letting out a sad breath knowing I had to get up in just a few measly hours.
What kind of name is Phoenix anyway?
I mean Harlow isn't all that common but Phoenix is . . . I don't know. I guess uncommon like mine.
"Why are you thinking about that boy anyway?"
Shaking my head I turned on my side grabbing my cell again and my glasses. Opening the web browser I typed in USMC into Google Images and scrolled through the pictures for a few seconds before adding dress blues to the search.
Phoenix was right. Their uniform was nice. I wasn't sure about it being panty dropping worthy but I've never seen a Marine wear it in person so my answer could always change.
Deleting the search I typed in USMC boot camp and cringed at the images that showed.
So
Much
Yelling
I couldn't imagine what Phoenix had to go through. How long did he have to do this? How often did they get yelled at? Why were they yelling so much? What if they spat on you while they yelled?
I couldn't
"Not my cup of tea."
Exiting out of the images of military torture I searched how long did boot camp last and what all happened during the time. Clicking on a video clip that read Marine Boot Camp Raw Footage, I turned the volume up and regretted it as soon as the video loaded.
So
Much
Yelling
Why would someone purposely want to go through that? Having your head shaved. Being screamed at. Being pushed past your limits. Military life was definitely not for me. I enjoyed my sleep too much and my memory wasn't all that great so remembering everyone's rank wouldn't work. No thank you.
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A/N: How do you all feel about this writing style? The other short story I wrote will be in a different style too but it won't be posted until later