A fic inspired by a Hong Kong drama I just watched: Triumph In the Skies II.
The story is kinda dry and Raven is OOC. Oops. In this fic, Raven is not dark and moody, but still sarcastic.
Pilot
"You're a good-for-nothing bitch!" Garfield screamed as he buttoned his clothes.
I couldn't believe it. I mean seriously, we've been dating for three years already, and now you're dumping me for that Terra? Do you even know her?
I glanced at Terra, she was pulling the blanket around her tightly, looking as if she was innocent. "You're the one who cheated." I screamed as I turned away and marched out of the door, "Consider yourself dumped, Jerk!" I swore I saw Terra's lips curved upwards.
RxR
"Watch where you're going!" I eyed the man who bumped into me.
"What— Hey!" Shock was evident on his face.
Well, he looked kind of hot. But right now, I'm not in the mood.
I grumbled and stormed off.
RxR
"Retracting the landing gears help to decrease the drag as the airplane ascends…" Uh huh.
"To increase the thrust available, a device called an afterburner is sometimes built into the engine. Fuel is dumped into the hot exhaust gas exiting the nozzle causing another controlled explosion. This makes the air even hotter which adds more energy to it, thereby increasing the thrust. This is not an efficient thing to do however…" Okay.
I yawned and rubbed my eyes. It's getting late, and I have an interview tomorrow. But I need to memorize this entire module too! Who knows what they'll ask in the interview. Besides, I really want to be accepted into the pre-pilot training program.
"When the system is out of control, the Propulsion Controlled Aircraft system allows the plane to land safely using throttles only…" [1]
RxR
Holy shit.
I fell asleep yesterday and I'm also late.
I quickly put on a clean buttoned up white blouse and a pair of black jeans. I grabbed my car keys and bag and ran out of my apartment.
RxR
Thank goodness! The interview was delayed. Heart still thumping fast from the adrenaline, I proceeded to the waiting room.
The waiting room was like a home room. Everyone was dressed neatly; guys had their hair combed and gelled, the ladies (although not many) clipped their hair so tight that not a single strand of hair could dangled down. All of them either had books piled on the floor or on the vacant seat beside them. I moved to an unoccupied seat and opened my bag. It's empty.
Fabulous.
RxR
"Good morning Miss Roth, I am Victor, the chairperson of this program," a browned-skinned man smiled. He pointed to two other man beside him, "Garth and Roy are the two other in-charge of this program."
"Now Miss Roth, would you kindly explain to us why did you applied for this training program? We can only select 10 people out of the 120 candidates who had applied for this, why should we chose you instead of the others?"
"Well sir, I applied for this program because I'm interested," I paused and Mr Roy raised his brow, as if beckoning me to continue.
"I'm a meteorologist in NASA. NASA sent me to many countries to conduct studies. Every day, I watch the clouds, hear the growling of imminent rain, and feel the raindrops in my hand. Occasionally, I'd like to photograph the sky, and even planes. The more I study about the sky, the more intrigued I am. And gradually, I fell in love with that blue piece of heaven. I want to reach the skies, not just looking at them from the ground anymore. That's why I signed up for this program."
Victor nodded and Garth smiled. I continued, "As for the latter, I'm really really interested in piloting, I read books about Aeronautics and related fields. I believe my achievements in meteorology give me a boost in piloting because I have greater knowledge about the mystical wonders about the sky. I'm also very serious about this."
Victor smiled and he asked, "We have a routine question for you: What is the difference between a two-engine plane and a four-engine plane."
I admit, this caught me by surprise. What should I answer? I couldn't possibly recite the entire module on engines, could I?
"You don't have to answer us now. After your break, you'll be called back in groups and I'll hear out your answers," Roy spoke.
RxR
What is the difference between a two-engine and four-engine plane?
I don't have my books with me, what could I do? Even if I did, I bet I couldn't find the answers there. I sighed and slumped back against my chair.
"Hey, um, do you know what the difference is?" I asked the redhead sitting beside me. She looked friendly. Maybe if she knew the answer, she would tell me.
She sighed, "I wish I knew! I can't find it on the internet either."
I smiled, "It's okay. Oh yea, I'm Raven Roth."
"Kori Anders," she beamed.
RxR
"Captain Cool, could you please sign this for me?" God, that voice sounds awfully like Terra: flirtatious and not to mention, fake.
I stepped out of the washroom and just as I was about to return back to the waiting room, I stopped.
Did that lady just called that guy "Captain"? Oh yes she did. A smile began to creep up my face.
"Um, excuse me," I called out, getting that man's attention.
"How can I help you, miss?" he paced towards me. "Are you lost?"
This man is wow: Tall, muscular, ebony hair, cute smile, dark blue eyes. Stop looking at him.
I couldn't help but feel that I've met him somewhere before.
Then, he smirked, as if something in his mind clicked. He said, "Watch where you're going?"
"I'm… I'm sorry, what's that?" Did I hear him wrongly?
"Watch where you're going." He simply stated. He seemed to felt my confusion as he explained, "Remember on 14 July you bumped into someone in Jefferson Avenue?"
14 July? When Garfield and I broke up? My mind ran through the events that happened on that day. Watch where you're going!
Oh, it's him, the man whom I bumped into.
This is awkward. "How can you remember that accident so clearly?"
"Pilots need good memory."
"Okay, whatever. I need your help," I really wanted to slap myself. I sounded so desperate.
"I have never thought that the day Miss Stare-Daggers needs my help would even come!" I want to wipe off that smugness from his face.
"You're not going to make this easy huh?" I crossed my arms and leaned my shoulder against the wall.
"You still owe me an apology," he said in a sing-song voice.
"I'm sorry." When he didn't speak, I continued, "Could you tell me what's the difference between a two-engine plane and a four-engine plane?"
"Cheating huh," he copied me and leaned against the wall.
"Please?"
"As a gentleman, I accept your apology and your help." You have no idea how happy I felt. "But, every single thing on earth has a price to pay." I knew it's too good to be true, I inwardly chided myself.
"Name your price," I challenged.
Captain Cool flashed a smirked (that could probably make every single girl out there swoon), "A kiss from milady?" He tilted his cheek towards me.
"Perv."
"Excuse me? What's that? You don't need my help? I guess… it's okay then," he pretended to be sad and retreated.
"Okay okay, I'll do it."
He stopped and titled his cheek towards me. I sucked in a deep breath, and planted my lips on his cheek. "Okay, there. Could you please tell me the answer now?"
"See ya!" he winked.
"Wait! The answer," I begged.
"There's no answer." I believe my face looked incredulous now.
"Please!"
"If you insist, the answer is: S-T-U-P-I-D."
"S-T-U… Hey!" But it's too late, he's already gone.
RxR
KISS
KISS
KISS
Damn it. Stop thinking about him, stupid! I trusted him and bet all my hope on him, but I got cheated in the end.
"But then again, it's not every day that you get to kiss such a hot guy."
"What kiss?" Kori looked at me.
Gosh, did I say that out loud? I fumbled for a sentence, "I… I was just wondering if there's any acronym called KISS. You know, like PCA stands for 'Propulsion Controlled Aircraft'…" I want to bury myself in a deep hole and never come out.
"Actually," a man with blonde curls interrupted, "There is a KISS principle noted by the US Navy in 1960. KISS is an acronym for 'Keep It Simple, Stupid'. The KISS principle states that most systems work best if they are kept simple rather than made complex; therefore simplicity should be a key goal in design and unnecessary complexity should be avoided."
RxR
"Miss Raven Roth, Miss Kori Anders, Mr Jericho Wilson, Mr Walter Bushido," Victor addressed. "We may begin. What is the difference between a two engine plane and a four engine plane?"
"Well, I believe…" Mr Bushido initiated a discussion. Everyone, except me, was participating in that discussion. The conversation topic escalated from plane engines to propellers.
"Are we just complicating the question?" Victor, Roy, Garth, everyone turned their attention to me. "Think about it, the most obvious difference between a two engine plane and a four engine plane is that a four engine plane has two more engines."
Victor and Roy nodded. Then, I understood. "The KISS Principle: Keep It Simple, Stupid," I explained, hoping that Kori and the others could understand. "Why complicate things?"
"Which means, with two more engines, the four engine plane could fly a longer distance than the two engine plane!" Kori's eyes lit.
RxR
"Here," I passed a cup of coffee to Captain Cool and pressed the vending machine again for a bottle of Vitamin Water.
"From your heart-warming hospitality, I believe you got in?"
"Not really, but I'm qualified for the next interview."
"That's great!" he smiled.
"Thanks," I smiled. "By the way, what's your name? What's up with 'Captain Cool'?"
"Name's Richard Grayson," he replied. "My coolness makes every girl swoon, that's why people gave me that nickname."
I mumbled, "Captain Ew."
"Hey, you want a hint for your next question?" I gave him a questioning look. He laughed, "What? I'm a committee member of the pre-pilot training project, I know all the questions Victor's gonna ask."
I rolled my eyes, "And what hint are you going to offer me this time?"
"KAP."
"Huh?"
He leaned face closer to me, "Kiss Again Please."
I laughed and pushed his face away, "That's a S-L-A-P for you! Stupid Like A Pig!"
[1] Acknowledgment:
NASA and wikipedia for providing the info.