Full Band slammed his tray on the table in front of him and greeted at his squadmates with a smug look "Miss me?".
Tabloid, and Count ignored him and focused on their breakfast.
Full Band narrowed his eyes and sat down "What the hell guys? I thought you'd be glad to see me after being gone for 3 days!".
"To be honest, I barely realized you were gone" Count admitted causally. Tabloid nodded his head in agreement causing Full Band to roll his eyes and take a, rather large, bite out of his bagel.
"So anything interesting happen while I was locked up?" Full Band asked.
Count shrugged "Nothing really".
Tabloid shook his head "Actually, Trigger did some cool things yesterday…"
"What do mean?" Full Band asked, now curious.
"Trigger did something stupid again. Don't worry about it" Count stated, getting agitated. Tabloid noticed this and smirked.
"Getting a little defensive there. You jealous?"
"Shut up. Like I said before, I could have done that easily. I have nothing to be jealous about".
"Hm. If you say so" Tabloid grinned. Full Band just stared at the the of them as they continued to eat there food.
"Sooo...are you guys gonna tell me or….?" Full Band pressed on.
Tabloid hit Count on the shoulder "Well then, go on. Tell Full Band what happened. Should be easy, course you're totally not jealous".
Count glared at him but eventually spilled the beans "Trigger had half the squadron fire missiles at him, then he performed a PSM".
That surprised Full Band "Damn. Never realized Trigger was that skilled".
"So. I've done it before. It's not hard".
Tabloid began patting Count on the shoulder "I'm sure it's easy bud. You'll have to show us sometime".
Count swatted his hand off and went back to eating. Full Band chuckled and directed his attention back to Tabloid "That Trigger must have a death wish".
Tabloid nodded his head in agreement and Full Band looked around the mess hall "So where is that idiot anyways".
"He's over at the hangars with Avril and Bandog" Tabloid replied.
"What the hell is Bandog doing over there?"
Tabloid shrugged "I dunno, overseeing maintenance?"
"Since when does Bandog care about the condition of our planes?".
Tabloid shrugged again and the group began to each their food in silence.
o-o-o-o-o
Avril couldn't catch a break.
Not only was she running low on parts the fix the planes, but Trigger's stunt yesterday caused some serious stress on the frame of his MiG-29. Now she had to fix the cracks or else Trigger's plane would fall apart like glass. And fixing his plane was delaying her fixing up the other planes.
So as you may imagine, Avril was not very happy with the idiot pilot.
Trigger was last person she wanted to see today, but fate was always against her, and guess who was currently laying atop the plane she was next to trying to fix…
"Avril, your not gonna believe e this" Trigger started as he laid across his MiG. "I was napping in my cell the other day, dreaming about a pancake, when suddenly I hear this where tapping noise coming from under my bed frame. It was a quiet, but definitely noticeable. So I look under my bed and see this giant ass hairy wolf spider tapping the metal frame. It was so fucking nasty! It's legs were moving all over the place, it was kind crushed so slime was everywhere, and I think there was also eggs as well. It took me a good hour the kill the thing and clean my cell! Then I tried to ask the guards if they could disinfect my sheets for me because some slim got them but they said no so I had to complain to Bandog who proceed to to tell me to shut the fuck up then I got mad and started to talk to prisoners about this back proble-"
"TRIGGER!" Avril yelled, stopping Trigger dead in his tracks. Bandog was sitting on a barrel off to the side, highly amused at the scene he was witnessing.
Trigger scratched his head "What?".
Avril pinched her nose and sighed "Dumbass. Please. Shut the hell up".
"Oh" Trigger scratched his arm "Heh heh, sorry about that. I can get really talkative".
Avril glared at him "I know".
"Are you still mad at me?".
Trigger quickly dodged a bucket that was thrown at him by the girl, shattering a mirror in the back of the hangar.
He looked down back at Avril "So yes?".
Avril's glare hardened and she went back to work. Trigger leaned back on his plane and sighed looking sad. These actions caused Bandog to snort in disgust. He got got his barrel and walked up to Trigger.
"Don't act like you don't deserve being mad at, dumbfuck" Bandog sneered.
"I was just having some fun!"
"My god Trigger, shut the hell up. You were just trying to show off and you fucked things up".
"Pftt, you know I looked cool. Don't deny it" Trigger sat up and looked back at Avril "I know you did too Avril, c'mon, admit it". The mechanic flipped him off and went back to working. Trigger looked back at Bandog "See Avril thought it was cool".
"Fuck you Trigger".
Trigger rolled his eyes and hopped to the ground "What do you guys want me to say, that I'm sorry?".
Avril and Bandog just looked at Trigger with faces full of disappointment.
"Ugh. Fine" Tigger walked up to Avril and spread his arms out. "I'm sorry".
"I'm not hugging you Trigger, fuck off" Avril said as Trigger advanced closer.
"Do you forgive me?"
"Hell no".
"Well then there's no stopping this" Trigger grabbed Avril and pulled her into a bear hug.
"What the hell?! Let go dumbass!"
"Forgive me, then maybe I'll consider it".
"I'm serious Trigger, if you don't let go you gonna regret it!" Avril yelled as she tried to pry Trigger from her. All this managed to do was tightened his death hug, causing Avril to realize that Trigger was a damn Air Force pilot. So he was pretty damn strong.
"Forgiiiive meeeee…."
"Fine! Fine! I forgive you! Just let me go!"
Trigger immediately released her causing him to get a swift fist to the face. He took it in stride and grinned "See was that so hard? I'll even help fix the plane. Ya know, to really regain your friendship".
"We're not friends".
"We will be after I help you fix the plane".
Avril shook her head and leaned on the plane "Do you even know a thing about fixing planes?"
"Eh, how hard can be? I know a everything on on how plane works. I do have a Bachelor's Degree in Aviation after all"
"I don't know…"
"All I gotta do is follow your instructions and things should be fine" Trigger grabbed Avril's toolbox enthusiastically and brought up to his face, "Let's get started!"
Bandog lit another cigarette and sat back down "This should be good".
Avril glared at Bandog and crossed her arms "Hey Shithead, how about you stop lazing around and make yourself useful for a change".
"Fuck off, I'm perfectly content at watching the dumbass over here screw up again. It's entertaining".
"Ah c'mon Bandog!" Trigger yelled. "It'll be a fun! And it'll be a great bonding experience for the two of you".
Bandog face twisted in disgust "That sounds horrible".
"I agree with the shithead, dumbass" Avril stated, and turned around to get back to work.
"You guys aren't even gonna try?! " Trigger exclaimed in bewilderment.
"Trigger, use your tiny brain and think for sec" Bandog grunted. "Why on Earth would I want to bond with that bitch?"
Avril scowled at him "Go to hell shithead".
Bandog gave her a mock salute "Alright, see ya there".
Avril flipped him off and attempted to get back to work but Trigger stopped her and grabbed her arm. he proceeded to guide her over to Bandog and and grabbed his arm as well.
"What the fuck? Get the off me!" barked Bandog (heh), as he tried to pry Trigger off him. "Jesus Christ, what the hell do you eat?"
"I want you two to work together on this" Trigger stated simply.
"NO!" yelled Avril and Bandog.
"Yes".
The two tried to pull away in opposite directions, but they were no match for Trigger death grip. After a good few minutes of protesting, the two of them realized that Trigger wasn't going to let them go until they worked together.
"Fine Trigger" Avril sighed. "You win, I'll work with the asshole".
Trigger looked pleased and turned to Bandog, waiting for his answer.
Bandog huffed and looked away "Sure, whatever".
Trigger grinned "Perfect! Let's get this shit started!"
Trigger released the two and pushed them both towards the plane "Alright Av, tell us what to do".
"Sure…" Avril dusted herself off. "Well first we need to take care of the cracks in the frame. To do that will the limited supplies means we'll have to weld them shut".
"So we need a the blowtorch…" Bandog grimaced.
"I'll get it" Trigger exclaimed, but Bandog stopped him.
"I don't trust you around blowtorches. Not after what happened last time"
Trigger swatted his hand off "Pffft, that shit won't happen again. I know better now"
Bandog rolled his eyes "If you say so".
Avril and Bandog examined the plane while Trigger search for the blowtorch. Not even a minute had passed before they heard Trigger yelp in pain and a loud crash. The two ran over to him and saw him gripping his finger in pain.
"Son of bitch Trigger…" Bandog facepalmed.
"Woah, woah, it's cool. It was only my finger this time!" Trigger held up his slightly red finger in confirmation then handed Avril the blowtorch.
"Thanks dumbass. Let's hurry and get to work. I don't have all day" Avril sighed.
Bandog snorted at that "Like you have better shit to do"
"Shut the hell up!"
o-o-o-o-o
The trio had been working on the plane for around 2 hours and it was going surprisingly smoothly. They had nearly closed all the cracks in the frame, Avril and Bandog were playing nice (except for one Avril yelled at him for a accidentally burping in her face and the two argued about for thirty minutes), and Trigger haven't managed to break anything. All in all, it was going well….
Until…
"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU JUST DO SHITHEAD?!" Avril screamed in Bandog's face.
Bandog looked annoyed "What?".
Avril grabbed him by the shirt and forced him to look at the cockpit
"You got fucking beer all over the electronics! Half the shit won't even turn on!"
It was true. Lately, Bandog had been carrying around a flask full of beer he'd stolen from Mckinsey's office. He'd forgotten to put the cap back on before putting it back in his pocket, and while he was tightening the bolts on the canopy, it spilled out of his pocket and damaged the cockpit.
Bandog looked annoyed "So what? Just fix it'.
"Oh yeeeah, Just fix it" Avril said with as much sarcasm as she cou muster. "Do you have any idea how much that shit cost?!".
"No. But I'm assuming it's pretty expensive since your yelling at me about it".
"Argh! Would you take shit seriously for a change?!".
"I would If I didn't have some bitch nagging at me!"
"Maybe if you stopped being a complete shithead and payed attention to what your doing I wouldn't have to!".
"How about you stop being such a cunt piece of shit and just let me do my work!"
Before Avril could slap Bandog, Trigger jumped in at the last second and took the blow, falling to the ground in the process.
Bandog looked down at him with a blank expression '"Thanks idiot".
Trigger shook his head to recompose hinself "Don't mention it". Trigger stood back up and turned to Avril "Don't worry about it Avril. It just got wet, it'll probably dry itself out".
"Trigger. It's fucking alcohol. Pretty sure that shit ruins tech".
Trigger dismissed her "Nah, it'll be fine. Trust me".
"Trigger I don't thin-"
"Nah, nah, it's cool".
"But-"
"Nah".
Avril realized it was pointless to try to argue with Trigger and rolled her eyes. She decided to go work on the nozzles to pass the time. Bandog and Trigger decided to take a break and situated themselves in a corner.
Several straight minutes of silence rang through the hangar before Bandog suddenly asked Trigger a question "You ever dated before?"
The question surprised Trigger. He never thought Bandog was interested in talking about relationships. Especially considering last time.
Trigger shrugged and responded "Yeah a little bit. Haven't dated since high school. Just sort of stopped after freshman year".
"Well why's that?"
"Eh, I just stopped being interested in girls.."
"I get it. You wanted to experiment with guys. Makes sense".
Trigger stuck his tough out "Fuck you".
"Pay me first" Bandog did a fake cough "Queer".
"What? You a homophobe?".
"You asking is just confirming my suspicions"
"Fuck you again".
"Still waiting for my money".
Bandog lit another cigarette "So what made you not interested in chicks anymore? Someone break your heart?"
"Nah it was more of gradual thing. I was a huge loner in high school. Had no friends, and really no desire to be around people in general".
"You still like that?".
"A bit. I mingle a bit more, but I like to keep my friend groups small". Trigger sat against a well and stared at the ceiling "Never really had many friends to be honest. Even the ones I did have, I never hung out with. I forgot about them quickly".
Bandog looked at Trigger silently.
"Reminds me a bit of myself" He thought.
Trigger continued "Things didn't really change either when I joined the OADF. Back in basic, I had trouble getting along with others. My unwillingness to cooperate got me in trouble several times. Almost got kicked out, hell, I even thought about quitting".
"Shit man…"
"A couple years later I signed up for IUN Peacekeeping force. The decision was rather abrupt. Once I heard that their wasn't as many people around in the Usean bases, I jumped at the chance".
"I'm assuming you like to fly solo".
"Damn right. It's the primary reason I hate two seater jets" Trigger chuckled.
"Did you make any friends at all? It be pretty difficulty to function in squadron if not".
"I mean, I got along with everybody fine. I just never made what you would consider friends. To me they were my comrades, nothing more, nothing less".
"I get where you're coming from. When I was a regular grunt, my personal motto was 'While I may fucking hate you, I'd fucking die for you….you bastard".
The two laughed loudly as Avril listened on in private. This was the most she ever learned about Trigger in the span of a few minutes. During the times Trigger invaded her hanger, she'd tried to get to know him but he was surprisingly closed of for someone so cheerful…
The laugh calmed down into low chuckles before Trigger continued "I honestly forgot most of those guys back at Fort Gray's names. What was my wingman's name again? Cloud? Clock? Clue? I'm bad with names".
Damn right he was. Bandog recalled when the two first met in person, Trigger called him Bad Dog for like a week.
"I also called Avril, Anvil when I first met her" Trigger grinned. "How ya doing back there Anvil!"
"Screw you!" she yelled.
"Excellente" Trigger said as he leaned back. "There was also this chick named Brownie that I sort of new, but she died".
"What happened?"
"During our confrontation with the Arsenal Bird she and her wingman tried to escape but got shot down by a bandit".
"Dang. That sucks".
"Yeah, it was pretty sad. She was a nice girl...I think? I never talked to her much".
"You never know. Perhaps she's still alive. Maybe in POW camp or someshit" Bandog suggested
"Nah, she's dead".
"You seem certain…"
"We found the wreckage a day later. Found the body too".
"Yikes".
"I know. The pictures were so damn gross" Trigger chuckled at the thought.
Bandog raised a brow "You seem pretty apathetic about it".
"I think I might be a sociopath, though I'm not to sure. I mean, it's not like I didn't feel anything when she died. I felt sad in the moment, but got over it fast. Within seconds actually".
"You intrigue me Trigger. You really honestly do".
"Heh. I guess I'm flattered".
"So you ever gonna get back into the dating game?"
"Hell no, I hate romance".
For some reason Avril twitched at that. She shook her head and walked over to the two of them awkwardly "So, uh, you guys ready to get back to work or….?".
"Sure" Trigger said simply.
Bandog said nothing but nodded in agreement and the three went back to working together.
o-o-o-o-o
It took almost 6 hours, but they finally finished. The plane looked like complete ass, but it was finally flyable again, and that was most important.
After a bunch of stuff breaking, Avril nagging the hell out of Bandog and Trigger just plain goofing off, they managed to do it.
Avril admired their craft with appreciation that the two didn't screw up. Trigger gave her pat on the back.
"Well that looks like a damn good job well done!" Trigger exclaimed in glee.
"Agreed. Didn't know you had it in you, dumbass" Avril smirked.
"Pfft, I'm great and you knew it all along. Ain't that right B-Dog! Up top!" Trigger raised his hand to Bandog for a High-five, but Bandog gently pushed his hand down.
"I'm good man, thanks. And don't call me that" Bandog said as he turned to exit the Hangar.
"Don't be like that man. Didn't you have fun?".
Bandog stopped and looked over his should "A bit".
"HA! I knew it!".
Avril looked at Bandog curiously "Why'd you come to the hanger in the first place? Seems out of character".
"I was bored" Bandog shrugged.
"Lies" Trigger said immediately. "You just wanted to hangout with your best friend"
Bandog flipped him off and walked away, leaving Trigger and Avril alone in the Hanger. Trigger prepared to leave as well, but Avril stopped him.
"Hey I overheard you and the shithead talking in the corner earlier " She said to him.
Trigger face turned neutral "Yeah. And?"
"I just wanted to say if you need anyone to talk to and shit. Well...I'm here".
"Sure whatever" Trigger said dismissively and quickly walked out the hanger. Avril sighed and walked back to the plane, somewhat glad to be in peace again.
"It was kinda fun…"
o-o-o-o-o
I'm back guys! Sorry for the long break. Writer's block sucks (still haven't gotten over it for my last fic though. I'll get to it eventually).
Anyway's I wanted to try out a new combination of characters in the form of Trigger, Avril, and Bandog. I thought it be entertaining to see them all interact.
I also wanted to bring up Brownie in this chapter cause I noticed a trend that people like to have her survive and/or Trigger have feelings for her or something. Screw that, she ded. Another thing is I wanted to delve into Trigger's psyche a little and show that my interpretation is a little unhinged and apathetic, while subtly hinting that Trigger may not be so happy-go-lucky as he lets on. Again, a different interpretation of most.
I hope y'all enjoyed.