Chapter 3
She sighed, "Pfft it's hot", as they were heading towards the edge of the forest.
"Uh-hu, but soon it will be dark and cooler", he replied.
"Mozzies!"
"What?"
"Mozzies! I hate mozzies. They will be there when it gets dark and they'll always have me for their supper", Kate muttered, pushing the vegetation away.
"It will be fine, it's not humid", he tried.
"It will be dark and they will be there", she pouted.
"Kate, you're grumpy", he said as they began their way through the vegetation.
"And with good reason! It's hot, I'm sweaty, I'm sticky, I smell and I want to have a bath and there will be mozzies!", she grumbled.
"Hmm, you can count yourself lucky that the others are not there. An officer cannot complain", he said.
"I know, but it's just you and I can tell you everything", she said.
"Thank you", he simply said.
They reached their previous location at the edge of the forest and the checked the surroundings with binoculars.
"Nothing", she whispered.
"Indeed, let's listen if we hear a plane", he whispered.
They focused on the sounds of the night, but they only heard the cries of birds and some forest animals, but no propellers noise.
They sat silently next to each other and suddenly she slapped her cheek.
"What?", he asked.
"Mozzies! I told you", she mumbled.
"Couldn't you tap a little less hard? They must have heard it in Cairns", he said.
"It's not funny", she mumbled, nudging him.
"Can you tell me everything too?", she asked after a while.
"Well, I suppose so", he answered.
"What do you mean by 'I suppose so?", she asked, looking at him in the darkness.
"Well, we're friends, but you are still an officer and then there are limits", he said.
"This is bullshit. Really! I'm a human being you know, not some kind of saint or anything", she replied irritated.
"Okay".
After a while, looking at his dark figure, she asked, "Is there anything you wanted to say of ask?".
"Hmm… How are you and Mike doing?", he asked.
"Jeez, I already feel pretty miserable enough with this heat and these mozzies and you also want to spoil this night?", she said irritated.
"I'm sorry then. You see, there are still things that are better not to ask", he said.
She sighed, "No Dylan, no. It's not you. It's me. The fact is that I'm not one hundred percent myself".
"I had already noticed that".
"Huh? Didn't you have anything better to do?", she snapped.
"Uh-hu".
They said nothing more and looked around with their night vision binoculars.
Ten minutes later, she said, "For your information, there is no relationship between Mike and me, there never was. We tried, uhm, I tried, but in vain. All my attempts to broach subjects like marriage, children, a house, a family have failed. His boat, the antics of the crew, the successes of the ship and dates he wanted to have with me, these were our topics of discussion. My feelings for him have faded and now I see him as a friend to have a drink with, but nothing more".
"I see, so you're single again", he concluded.
"Not again, still", she corrected him.
"Okay".
A little later.
"Dylan, are you in a relationship?", she asked, staring at the dark barracks in the distance.
"Me? Nope. I've always attracted the bad girls, the ones who want to live the good life and do nothing", he said, shrugging.
Kate raised her eyebrows, but in the darkness he couldn't see it. "And what kind of girls are you looking for?"
"A woman who wants to do something with her life with me, intelligent, sporty and also pretty, of course", he said, chuckling at the last part mentioned.
"Hmm", she replied.
Much later.
"What kind of man are you looking for or are you no longer looking for?", he asked.
She turned her head briskly towards him, "And who said that I was no longer seeking?", she replied sharply.
He didn't react to her way to have a short fuse, but said, "That might be the case, huh".
She sighed, "No, I always want to meet that person who will have the same ideas as me, the same wishes. Intelligent, a man of integrity, honest, kind", she chuckled, "Not a prince on a white horse, that's for fairy tales, but a good and solid man", she said and he noticed the weak point behind her usual scowl.
"I see", he simply said.
After a while, they checked the area again.
"Will they come?", he wondered.
She shrugged, "My feeling is that if they have to come, it will be at dawn".
"Uh-hu. It's better for photos".
Kate moaned, "Fucking operation! I already have several mozzy bites and I'm already cramping".
"Hmm, a quiet, cool, refreshing night, fresh air, no rain. It could be worse", he said, smiling.
She glared at him, "If you have nothing better to say, then shut up!".
He looked at her and she felt it, "What?"
"You're still doing it".
"This. You snap and have a short fuse, I'm not used to that from you,", he said.
Kate sighed deeply, "Sorry Dylan, really. I'm…I'm not myself", she replied dejected.
"What's going on? We have time", he said encouragingly.
"Pfft, is it really necessary?".
"Yes, it is. I see you're consuming with deception and this is not good and the crew will feel it too. I thought we could tell each other everything", he said, observing again the surroundings with his binoculars.
She turned around and massaged her neck. "All sore", she mumbled.
"Geez, I feel like a fool for what I told you about the failed relationship with Mike. All these years for nothing. Such a waste of time! Besides, I have heard that a number of officers in my year are already commanding their own ships or are being promoted. Knowing that at the time, some of them had barely passed their exams!", she said bitterly.
"Recently, I had my annual visit to the gynaecologist and he told me that my biological clock was ticking. So if I really wanted to have children, I had to make a decision. Well, that news hit me like a freight train and I didn't sleep that night. When I was my normal self again a few days later, the best was yet to come. Do you know Nikki, my friend?"
"Yes, you often spoke to me about her, but I never met her".
"She's younger than me and a year ago she was promoted to lieutenant commander and commands her own patrol boat in Darwin", she said with difficulty.
"Hmm, that's hard. How did you react?", he asked.
"Of course, I'm happy for her. She deserves it. I called her and congratulated her", Kate said, looking at Dylan in the darkness.
"Uh-hu, I meant more, how did you feel about it?"
"Honestly?"
"Yes"
"I drowned my sorrow in a bottle of wine and cried my eyes out. The next morning when the fog in my head had cleared and I could start thinking more clearly again, I came to the conclusion that I was at a dead end. My dreams, my expectations, all scattered and why? Simply because I fell in love with a certain Mike Flynn who considered me as a pleasant pastime and a perfect tool to run his bloody ship. Moreover, there's that bitch Knocker who can't accept that I'm better than her. I discovered her results at ADFA once and they were far from good. That's my story", she said, sniffing, "A Story? It's more a soap opera".
He touched her shoulder, "Hey, hey, don't be so pessimistic. You'll find a way out, as you always do".
She looked at him in the darkness and he was under the impression that she had wiped her eyes. He could see it because the night started to fade away.
"You're too kind, but this time, I don't know anymore. These two have too much influence and I've been too busy with work to build up a network of acquaintances. Nikki did it and you can see where she's now".
"Did she use her connections to get promotion?", he asked surprised.
"I wouldn't be surprised. Her father has a high position in the banking sector and he knows a lot of people", she said and he got worried because he didn't perceive any emotion in her sentence.
"Which ship does she command?", he asked.
Kate shrugged, "I don't know, I didn't ask and I don't want to know", she answered bitterly.
He looked at her in the semi-darkness.
What happened to the combative Kate?
"Did Mike say when he would be back?", he asked to escape this painful situation.
"Nope. It was a mayday call and I don't know if it's far from here or how much work they will have to do", she answered.
"Hmm, okay".
"Dawn is coming. It'll be now or never", Kate said, checking the surroundings with her binoculars.
To be continued
