It's been two months since Gilbert Beilschmidt and his brother Ludwig were stationed here at the headquarters in which I conduct my research. Two months of a second loud presence, (the first being my own brother Alfred) and copious amounts of gift-giving.
Having a close call with a kaiju a couple months beforehand, the government issued another jaeger to protect the peninsula we're on. It was baffling to have one come so close and to a place with such low population. Many summed it up to be just a fluke, but I can't shake it off as something more. Regardless, I still stay in my lab, going over formulas and kaiju tissue samples to better understand the creatures and whereabouts they come from.
Over the year I've been at this place. I've had a routine; study, research, snack, and maybe sleep. But when Gilbert came along that changed almost instantaneously. The man had taken strange immediate liking toward me that I couldn't understand.
It started with him popping up in my lab. At first asking me about projects and what I was doing, to deviling into my personal life. It was friendly enough at first, and I was enjoying the attention, but then the pilot's actions grew bolder. In February I received a massive bouquet of flowers in the middle of my desk. While the gesture was kind, the pollen was not. Especially to my nose. My sinuses were mortified and I had a runny nose with glossy eyes. I couldn't focus on any of my work. So instead I spent the day cleaning out my office and trying to get anything floral out of it. I've never seen Gilbert look so guilty, and in return it made me feel a little bad too. It was then the albino asked what I did like, and it is now I regret what I told him;
Kaiju samples.
After that Gilbert was gone for two whole days. No phone calls, no note left behind, he just disappeared. Ludwig didn't even know where he was and it didn't just leave me, but the other government officials on base very worried. Mainly for them it was because of the possibility of a surprise kaiju attack. They were about to launch a search party for him when the cocky man came waltzing back in. A big black trash bag over his shoulder and shit-eating grin on his face, acting like as if he did nothing wrong. His ass got chewed out from that stunt.
Later, after being reprimanded and forced into a shower by Ludwig, Gil brought the hunk covered in plastic into my lab. I jumped at the weight of it landing on my desk. I soon got over that too though. It was a broken off piece from a massive toe. The toe must've been from the last kaiju attack though because it was rotting and some sea creatures and insects have already made it their home. And God did it smell awful.
He older boasted about how he found it on the shore, thinking I could still use the decaying mass when I had fresher specimens in my freezers. But he was so proud and happy I couldn't find it in me to break his spirit. Later that week a new kaiju appeared on our radar. Gil, Ludwig, Alfred, and Kiku were sent out to fight it. While I had always been worried for my brother and his significant other, I found myself also caring for Gilbert's safety too. The man had become my best friend in such a short amount of time.
Watching the fight though I was impressed with the Beilschidmit's Jaeger. I had to remember they had more experience with fighting kaiju's compared to Al. Still, it was a very dangerous game. The kaijus were only getting stronger after all.
Thankfully the pair were victorious, but not without suffering some damage. Kiku's side for the jaeger suffered a lot of surface and wiring damage while Gilbert's arm control was busted from the final blow it delivered to the kaiju.
The kaiju carcass was about to float to the bottom of the sea when the German jaeger reached down, broken arm still barely functioning, and started pulling the alien body back up.
The captain was baffled and head engineer angry as he ordered them to leave it, not wanting to have to repair more than he had to. But the pilots didn't listen. That is, mostly Gilbert didn't listen.
The brothers managed to drag the large body to shore before retiring the jaeger to its garage, surprising everyone and their mothers. The higher ups went down to go chew out Gilbert again, but he was gone before they could even reach him. Skipping the medic and other people they had to respond to after a kaiju battle, the crazy albino took a jeep and immediately went to go collect samples with some of my other colleagues.
By morning my lab was FILLED with dead kaiju. Not only were all my freezers full, but so were the back-up freezers for the cafeteria and all the tubes in my lab, office, and personal chambers. It was wonderful at first, but then it got to be exhausting trying to find places for all these body parts. Panic filled me when there was another new body part. And Gilbert just kept coming back with more. My lab smelled rancid and I return so was I. I asked repeatedly for the German to stop but he just kept coming back with more, like the brooms sticks from Fantasia. Only instead of carrying buckets of water it was alien body parts and blood. A scifi-horror fans' dream. And a scientists' like me, but I was out of room for all this! Really Gil could've just dragged that giant corpse straight into my office but I didn't dare voice that thought because I wouldn't put it past him to actually do it should he have the opportunity in the future.
Alfred came to visit only to turn back around, saying it was worse than our college days when he came back to our dorm to me smoking pot. I couldn't agree more, only to me weed sounded a lot more ideal at the moment.
I appreciate Gilbert, I really do, but this was getting to be just a bit much. Why was he going all this way for me? What did the pilot want from a scientist? Especially a quiet, boring one such as myself. Alfred always teased me about it ever since the flowers incident and Gil would joke about wanting to kiss and all that but . . . fuck.
I really have no experience with this sort of behavior, but that's what made being with Gilbert so exciting. My lonely days and nights of working in the lab with sparse breaks for eating, bathing, and sleeping, had been traded in for long talks, shared meals, and mindless activities until I was tired enough to pass out, with Gilbert.
Even though the elder pilot typically spoke his mind and was very straightforward, he still left me confused and second guessing myself.
