FLY BOY - Completed

Chapter 13

Chapter 13

River couldn't believe that Dayden was scheduled to be their first pilot to be tested in the Arcane simulator. What were the odds of that? Probably pretty good, she thought considering he was ranked number one out of the Fly Boys.

"Have a seat right here River." Technical Sergeant Cook indicated the desk that was situated directly across from the first simulator. The Sergeant was older than her father and actually reminded River of her grandfather, with his glasses and white messy hair. His hair was too long, as if he had forgotten to cut it. He smiled easily though, and had lots of laugh lines around his eyes, which River liked.

"I am going to show you what I want you to record during this first simulation." Sergeant Cook took the next thirty minutes to do a basic run through of exactly what he wanted River to do. He explained what he wanted her to look for in the computer readouts and what he wanted her to record and keep track of on her clipboard during the testing. She knew a lot of this already from her father, and because of that caught on quickly to what the Sergeant was teaching her. He was just finishing up when there was a knock at the door. He took his glasses off and tucked them into the top pocket of his lab coat as he went to answer the door.

It was Senior Airman Humphrey back again, only this time Dayden appeared in the doorway behind him. River had to admit Dayden looked great. He was wearing his usual ripped jeans and a black Henley, but it was so much more than the clothes he was wearing. It was the natural confidence that he carried off so easily and that beautiful smile he wielded almost like a weapon. He truly had the power to mesmerize. 

Sergeant Cook took a few seconds to welcome Dayden with a hardy handshake and a manly backslap. River kept her eyes on Dayden and knew that he had not seen her yet. The Sergeant thanked Airman Humphrey, this time calling him by his first name. "Thanks Chad, we should be finished up here in about three hours and then you can bring down the next two Fly Boys for the late afternoon session."

Chad nodded his head at Sergeant Cook and replied, "Yes sir." Then just before he left he made a point of winking at River. Why he did that, River had no clue, but a cocky smirk followed his wink as he strutted out the door.

River glanced over at Dayden, who was watching the receding figure of Chad as he made his way out of the room. River wondered if Dayden had seen Chad wink at her. She got her answer a few seconds later when Dayden turned back around to survey the room, probably wondering who Chad had been winking at. She felt his eyes land on her and saw his surprise. He gave her a puzzled smile. River could almost see the wheels spinning in his head as he tried to work out how she had ended up down in the testing lab. Then she watched him do a double take back towards the doorway behind him. She knew he was wondering why Senior Airman Humphrey, now known as Chad, had been winking at her.

"Well, well, well... I think you two know each other," Sergeant Cook said with a big smile. "If I've heard correctly, I believe you two are mates. Am I right?" Sergeant Cook looked from Dayden to River. Both nodded their heads in reply. "I'm sure that you can both remain professional though, while we run through these tests. Am I right?" Again he looked from one to the other and both nodded their heads in affirmation.

"Good. Very good," he said rubbing his hands together. "Lets get started then." He told Dayden to climb into the first simulator. The Sergeant climbed in behind him and River followed the Sergeant. As Dayden got himself seat belted into the pilot's seat, the Sergeant explained that they would be running through a series of tests. He then had Dayden lift his t-shirt so that a number of different electrodes and wires could be attached to Dayden's chest for monitoring purposes. The Sergeant took his time explaining each step to River, even going so far as to have her repeat the process herself. He wanted her to know how to do it on her own. River somehow managed to complete the task, but definitely found it hard to concentrate with Dayden's highly defined abs so vividly on display. She noted that was not the only thing he had on display either; his cocky smirk was also prominent. He was obviously enjoying River's discomfort.