Just Your Average Military Girl Chapter 5

Chapter 5.

I think I am starting to like Marshall. Not falling for him I mean that only happens in fairytales right? No one actually falls in love at first sight. Do they? Oh god, I don’t know. I hate not knowing things I mean I always know everything (okay over exaggeration) but when it comes to boys, I’m clueless. But then there is Wes. Cute, smart, amazing Wes who I can’t stop thinking about. But he doesn’t want me.
Question: What’s a girl, who has never had a relationship and knows nothing about boys, to do?
Rodger’s answer: SURF IT UP MAN!
******

"Rodger, stop! You don’t know what your doing, I can’t surf!"
"Oh come on it will be fun and besides it’s all about balance. I’m pretty sure you can balance."
"Oh so you did see me walk the tight rope the other day." I say sarcastically.
"Ha, ha. No. But balance is all about your core and with those abs, I think you will be fine."
I groaned. "Rodger please. Can’t I just watch you?"
He sighed. "Fine, but your missing out on a whole lot of fun little sis. Watch and learn."
He ran out towards the waves, board in hand. He jumped onto his board and glided out towards the ocean. I rolled my eyes but I couldn’t help but admire him. I sat down on the warm sand and watched as people walked past, different kinds of people, old, young, younger. It made me wonder where they’re going, if they are heading to something or away from something.

"Hey." I turned my head and saw Marshall. He came and sat down beside me.
"Hey." I said a little sheepishly.
"So Rodger tried to get you to surf huh?"
"Yep. Tried and failed…miserably."
Marshall chuckled. "He’s used to it, or he at least should be by now. The amount of times he tried to get the girls to surf amazed even me."
"So my guess is that I won’t hear the last of this?"
"Oh your definitely in for a battle."
"Great." I muttered. But I for some reason I didn’t mind it. I looked at him more clearly. He wasn’t wearing a shirt, which I did notice before but tried not to focus on it, a pair of black shorts and runners. Runners?
"Your going for a run?"
"Yeah, I run every day. I’m the fast person here."
"How fast do you run a mile?"
"Seven four." He said triumphantly. Is that? I thought. But I didn’t say it.
"Hmm."
"What?" He asked sceptically. I turned to him, to see his eyebrows raised.
"What?" I was biting my lip to keep from smiling, or more or less smirking.
"You can do better than nine four?"
"I didn’t say that." I said with a smile on my face.
"You didn’t have to that smile says it all. Come on tell me."
"No."
"Why not."
"Because."
"Because why?"
"Marshall quit it."
"No not until you tell me. How fast can you run?"
I sighed. "Four Ten." I muttered.
"What?"
I sighed again. "Four Ten."
I turned to look at him. He had shock written all over his face. Then he smirked at me.

"Bullshit." He said.
"Excuse me?" I said a little shocked.
"I said…Bull-shit." He said it slowly as if I were retarded.
"I can!"
"No one can run that fast. And if they can then I don’t know what they are doing here and not on a track."
"I can to!" I almost yelled.
I stood up and walk towards Rodger. He was coming out of the ocean, with a smile on his face.
"Bullshit!" I turned and glared at him before meeting Rodger.

"What’s bullshit?" Rodger asked.
"Nothing, Marshall is just being a complete idiot."
"So nothing new?" He chuckled. "Seriously though what are you two bickering about."
"First of all we are not bickering and secondly Aurora is just telling lies." Marshall said.
"I am not lying! I can so run that."
"Oh yeah…prove it!"
"What?"
"Come on, prove me wrong."
"And how will I do that?"
"We’ll race."
"You race Aurora? You have got to be kidding right? I mean she will own you." Rodger said. I giggled and smiled at him, at least someone had my back.
"Well let’s see shall we. We’ll meet out the back of the house and we race each other on the beach. Let’s say one mile?"
I snorted. "One mile? I could run that in my sleep, unless that’s all you can handle."
His smirk disappeared.
"Fine lets make it three."
"How about four?"
"Six."
"Eight."
"Okay, kids calm down. We don’t want you running off the island now." Rodger stepped in between us. "Why don’t we make it three?"
"Fine." Marshall said.
"Splendid." I said.
"Great well, we will meet at the back of the house lets say twelve o’clock."
"Sounds great to me!" I said.

Marshall smiled then turned and walked back towards the house.
"Oh I am going to kick his ass." I said.
"Well you better other wise you will never live it down."
"Trust me, when you’ve been running eleven miles everyday for the past five years, three miles barely gets me puffing."
"Even though I know you will slaughter him, don’t under-estimate Marshall. I mean when he gets competitive, he gets a little…aggressive."
"I don’t underestimate Marshall, I could never do that. But that doesn’t mean I can’t go in being a little confident. My first rule, don’t worry about the opposition, just run your race."
"Huh, deep."
"Thanks."
"Well let’s go and get you carbo-loaded." I rolled my eyes.
"What’s the time anyway?" I asked.
"Oh it’s about seven."
Great five hours till my race.
******

"You’ll do fine." Rodger said as he shook my shoulders.
"Yeah, I know but still. I always ran alone. It’s just weird that’s all."
"Well not any more."
Somehow those words hit me a little harder then they were meant to.
We walked down towards the beach, only to see Marshall surrounded by a group of people. They were all boys, except for one girl who was small, with blonde hair and big brown eyes. She looked almost like a porcelain doll. She looked up and smiled at me and I smiled back. I realised at that moment that they weren’t just saying hi to Marshall.

"Oh you have got to be kidding me!" I yelled at Marshall.
"What?" He shrugged, "I just thought that it would be better if you know we had a cheer squad."
Okay really going to kick his ass!
"Yeah cause your totally going to need it."
"We’ll see." Marshall said and smiled at me. His smile always reassured me that everything would be okay.
"Okay, so the dealio is the first person to cross the three mile line wins and the loser…wait what does the loser have to do?" Rodger said.
"Hmm, how about loser shouts dinner?" I said. Everyone laughed.
"Sweetie we didn’t come out here just so we could get a free meal. How about loser streaks?" A scruffy guy said.
"Normally I wouldn’t have an objection to that but in Aurora’s case I don’t think she could do."
I snorted and stepped forward closing the space between us. "Please, those shorts are so mine."
"OOOOOO" The crowed urpted and Marshall smiled at me and I smiled back.
"Well lets get this show on the road shall we!" Rodger yelled behind me. There was a line drawn in the sand a few feet away from where we were standing. Marshall moved first and I followed.

"Okay girls here are the rules, no biting, no pushing, no punching, no grabbing, no tripping, and well…fuck it. Just do the damn thing." Rodger said. I laughed along with Marshall.
"You ready?" Marshall asked.
"Ready as I will ever be."
"Alright then." Marshall lifted his hand and waved it around. A girl stood a few meters away from us with a bright red towel in her hand.
"Ready, on your marks, get set…GO!"
She through the towel to the ground and we were off.

Marshall was speeding up ahead of me, while I was just keeping the same pace, which was still pretty fast, but steady. I suddenly heard the sound of a car coming behind us. I turned my head and saw a black jeep filled with people heading this way.

"COME ON MARSHALL, YOU CAN DO BETTER THAN THAT!" A guy yelled.
"COME ON AURORA! BET HIM! PUSH!" Another guy yelled. I felt a sharp pain in my stomach. Like someone had just punched me. I took a deep breathe and found myself running faster.
"PUSH AURORA PUSH! FASTER!" Some else yelled.
I felt tears run down my face. I felt like I was back there again, with my father. The memories of our last run is flooding my head.

"Come on Aurora push! I can’t believe how slow you are! You’re nothing! PUSH HARDER AND SHOW ME THAT YOU CAN DO SOMETHING FOR A CHANGE!" My father screamed at me. I took a deep breath and pushed a little more.
"I can’t." I said.
"What was that?!" My father screamed again. I knew I shouldn’t have said that, but something in me was finally cracking.
"I can’t do it anymore." I yelled and stopped running. The my father was in screeched to a halt and he jumped out and slammed the door. He had so much anger in his face that it made me almost feel sorry for him. He can right up to my face.
"What did you just say soldier."
"I am not your soldier! I am your daughter. Why can’t you see that?" I almost begged him.
"You are what I say you are, now get in the car. We are going home and then, I am going to make you wish you were dead."
"No."
"What?"
"I am not getting in that car with you." So many emotions were filling me. I wanted to so much to just leave. Turn around and walk away, forever but my legs wouldn’t budge, whether it was out of fear or love I don’t know. Suddenly I felt a hand smack against my jaw. It was so hard that I feel backwards. My jaws aching badly but I knew I it wasn’t broken. I looked up at him and he had a face of pure evil.
"Get in the car now!" I did as he said. This time I knew it was out of fear.

"You will give me fifty pull ups! Now!" My father screamed at me, and once again I was to weak to say anything. That I just let him do it.
That afternoon I got the worst beating of my entire life. I couldn’t move anything without cringing or screaming. I knew after that day that I was never going to defies my father again.
******

"Aurora!" Marshall yelled. I didn’t slow down though. The tears streaming down my face as I ran harder and faster than ever. "Aurora! Slow down!"

I couldn’t think anymore or at least I didn’t want to. I just kept running and running trying to get away from everything, my problems, my fears. I wanted to forget it all. Why couldn’t I just forget it all. I don’t know how long I’ve been running but I just suddenly dropped, like my body couldn’t move anymore. I’m on my hand and knees, trying to catch my breathe. It felt like I couldn’t breathe.

"Aurora?" I heard Marshall whisper from behind me.
"I hate him." I whispered. I turned and sat down.
"What?" He whispered again. God, he probably thought I had gone crazy. I pulled my knees to my chest.
"I hate him." I said louder.
"Who do you hate." He sat down next to me.
"My father. I hate him."
"No you don’t"
"Yes I do, Marshall. You don’t know what he did to me. It wasn’t fair. I didn’t deserve it. I was just a kid, you know. I wanted to play with barbies and go out on dates. But no my life consisted of my father running me into the ground and beating me. I just wanted a normal life."
Marshall pulled me into him and I let him. I rested my head on his shoulder.
"Can I say something?" He asked.
"Sure."
"You are one of the fastest runners I have ever seen in my life." I giggled. "Seriously. One minute I thought I had you and the next you were sprinting past me and you didn’t even slow down for a second. I tried catching up with you but you were too quick. I had to catch a ride with the guys."
I looked up and thirty feet away was everybody. Most of them looking in this direction. I suddenly felt so self-conscious.
"Well we should probably go see them, before they think I’ve lost it." I said with as much pride as I could.
"They don’t think you’ve lost it Aurora."
I rolled my eyes and stood up. I extended my hand to Marshall and he took it. He held my hand for a little bit longer when he stood up. I blushed a little but pulled my hand away. We both walked towards the group.
"Holey shit girl, do you know how to run or do you know how to run?" A tall guy said. I smiled. At least something good came out of my previous life.
"Yeah well, I guess you can say I like to win. Speaking of which, wasn’t there a particular debt that you owe me?" I turned to Marshall and smirked.
"Uh, uh. No way, no how. I am so not doing it."
"Come on chicken. You lost so you have to pay." Rodger said.
"Yeah, or else we will all call you chicken shit and various other names for like…eternity." The smaller guy said.
Rodger had this goofy grin on his face.
"Fine. You win. I’ll streak, for Aurora’s benefit." I swear I turned bright red and everyone laughed.
"Well then Marshall…hand them over."