March 15th
Tessa's POV

The plane ride over had been terrifying. If I was the type to fear planes, I’m sure I would have asked to go back. It wasn’t like normal airliners; it was like every bump could be felt deep in my body. It was hell.

Iraq wasn’t as bad as I was thinking. From the news reports, they made it seem like there was an IED blast every few minutes. Yeah, it was bad over here, but it was better than being trapped in L.A.

Sighing, I rubbed the back of my neck as I thought about how I left Jinx. I didn’t even tell her I was leaving. What kind of friend did that? I left a note and an extra $200 for her, which had been transferred into my bank by Mayhem. Then I had packed my stuff and headed to the nursing recruitment office.

Jinx was going to be so pissed when she found out I was gone. She was going to tear me a new one. There was a huge piece of me that felt she might even fly all the way here just to destroy me. Music was her dream though. I was here pursuing mine. I hoped to hell Jinx understood that.

“Ma’am?” One of the Marines stared at me. “You need to check in over here.” He motioned over at the table they had set up.

I nodded and hopped into line. There weren’t nearly as many volunteers as I thought there would be. My plane had been filled with mainly National Guard people. I would have thought in the post 9/11 wake that more people would take up arms. I suppose they had done it through the various military branches.

“Name?” a man in fatigues said.
“Theresa Wright, I’m here for the Nurses.”
He looked up and examined me. “Here’s your tent assignment. Someone from the medical staff will meet you and tell you what they want you to do.”
“Thank you,” I said, taking the piece of paper he had handed me.

The Marine base wasn’t pristine. There were dozens of dirty areas that worried my nurse heart. If this was their living space, I sure hoped their medical area was a little more sanitary.

By the time I had set my gear down on my cot, I already felt exhausted by the heat. Iraq was a desert, so it was supposed to be colder at night, but it just felt like the sun was literally on top of me.

I quickly found someone who looked like they were in charge and tapped their shoulder. The man turned to me, a look of boredom in his eyes.
“Yes?”



“Hi, I’m a nurse volunteer. Can you help me find someone to give me my assignment?”
“That would be me. I’m Hospital Corpsman Henry Salas. And you are?” He held out a hand, giving me a quick, firm pump.
“Theresa, just call me Tessa.”
He guided me over to a cot and motioned for me to sit down. “Welcome to Iraq, Tessa. Can you tell me about your nursing experience?”
I nodded, already feeling better than I had in weeks. Depression wasn’t always easy to combat, but it got better when you had things to do.
“I’m a certified nurse, have been for about five months. I haven’t really worked in a hospital or anything, but I was an EMT for a little bit. I did trauma for a long time. Most of my experience is helping drunk friends.”
Salas furrowed his brow. “Okay, let me ask you this. Can you suture? Can you identify injuries? Can you tourniquet? Can you set a bone?”
His questions were rapid fire. “Yes, I can stitch and suture. I am more able to identify common injuries but know head injuries. I can tourniquet. I’ve done quite a few of those. And I’ve only set one or two bones.”
He nodded his head. “Okay, that’s better than a lot of our volunteers. I’m going to set you up with another Corpsman. His name is Jeremy Bender. He rides with the Marines. You’ll be his main point of contact when an injury occurs, especially if they’re coming back from the field.”

Salas started to walk through the field of tents. I had no idea how he knew where he was, but I’m glad I had someone to follow. I couldn't even really remember where my cot tent was.

We stopped in front of a group of Marines. I had to stop myself from ogling the attractive men in just shorts. They were all muscled with tattoos and buzz cuts. I had to bite my lip to keep from drooling.



“Bender!” Salas shouted for his fellow Corpsman.

A man with black hair and chocolate eyes looked over at Salas. He sent him a small smile and then cocked an eyebrow when he saw me.

“What’s up, Salas?”
Henry put a hand to my shoulder. “This is Tessa. She’s our new nurse. She’s assigned to you.”
Bender looked me up and down. “Welcome abroad, Miss Tessa.”

I smiled, feeling better than I ever expected I would. If Jinx was happy in L.A., I could be happy here. This is where I belonged; this is where I was needed.

***

Jinx's POV



What the fuck?

Tessa’s dream turned Red, White, and Blue, despite her claims that the good guys don’t wear Red, White, and Blue...

My eyes scanned over the note she'd left on a piece of the motel's stationary;

Dear Jinx,

When you wake up, I won't be there.
I followed you to L.A. because you were in persuit of a dream, and I believed in you. Scratch that, I still believe in you. But it's Your dream. Not mine.
I'm on my way to Iraq to finally put some of the skills I've gained over the past few years to good use. I can't continue to just sit by and watch the news everyday, knowing so many people are suffering. I want- No. I Need to help.
The last thing I want is make you feel like your friends have abandoned you.
So please, don't think that, not even for a second.
I love you to death, but I have my own path to take, as do you, and so too, does Mayhem, now she and Will are set to become parents.

I'll write when I can, and I wish you the very best of luck

- Tessa xoxo

And so Three became One.

I scrunched up the paper in my hands, tossing it into the trash with a growl. If she hadn't wanted to be here, to follow me on the path to and share the dream of playing music for thousands, why didn't she just fucking say something? I'd thought we were on the same page. Nobody seemed to agree on anything these days.

Where have all the bastards gone?



I stared out the window at the LA skyline, mist settling over the skyscrapers. So much for the city of shining lights. So much for the place I'd fantasized and dreamed of coming to to chase my dreams, with my two best friends by my side. Now, I was all alone. Left to rot, abandoned by the people I thought I'd always be able to count on.

"Nobody likes you, everyone left you, they're all out without you, having fun..."

Hell, my voice was feeling the effects of all the excessive drinking I'd done lately. But at least I was finally achieving that Rock n Roll rasp I'd always wanted. I turned away from the window, my eyes drifting over the motel room - now feeling eerily empty in the absence of Tessa - settling on my guitar case in the corner.

"At least you're still here, Jet." I sighed. "When everyone else fucks off, I know I can always count on you."



I took him out of his case, settling down on the edge of my bed, and began to gently strum away. Music was my rock, without it, I'd probably be dead. I hummed along for awhile, shifting my fingers into the shape of different chords, trying to find a melody that I liked. After awhile, one came to me, and I began to sing;

"The night is when, the ghosts all come out. Playin’ with my head, spin it all around. This room is like a prison cell, I'm all by myself. I'm waiting for my friend, to come and break me out."

"You left me today, just lyin’ on the floor. I wanted you to stay, seems you wanted more. This bed is like a prison cell, cause I'm all by myself. I'm waiting for my friend, to come and break me out."

"And there's stone cold bars on my door, for this stone cold heart..."



I sighed, setting Jet down beside me. Playing and singing helped a little, but it didn't take away the unease I felt at not knowing where to go from here. I grabbed my cigarettes from the nightstand and went outside, leaning against the railing as I tried to light one. I flicked the wheel repeatedly, but only got sparks.

"Oh c'mon!" I groaned.
"Need a light?" a voice came from beside me.

I looked up into the stranger's brown eyes, rimmed in black kohl. His thin lips were set in a soft smile and a silver ring glinted on one side of his nose. His jet black hair was spiked up in an attractive mess that poked out at random angles all over his head, and a light goatee covered the underside of his chin. A black sleeveless tank hugged tightly to his torso and exposed the colourful monsters that littered his muscular arms. He was fucking attractive, to say the least.

"That'd be great." I nodded, leaning into the flame emitting from his lighter. "Thanks."
"No worries." he said, lighting his own and taking a drag. "You got a name?"



"Jinx." I introduced myself. "And don't wear it out."
He chuckled softly in response.
"And you?"
"I'm whoever you want me to be." he smirked, holding out his hand to shake. "Most people just call me Syn."
"Nice to meet 'cha." I nodded, shaking his hand.
"Heard you singing in there, you got a cool voice."
"Thanks." I frowned, staring down at the parking lot below. "Shame it's gonna go to waste."
"How so?" he asked, leaning over the railing beside me.
"I came here to start a band with my best friend, but she fucked off to Iraq without warning, leaving nothing but a note." I grumbled, taking a drag from my smoke. "Turns out Nursing's her big dream, and she never truly wanted to pursue music with me."
"That blows." sighed Syn. "So what now?"
"I don't know." I shrugged. "I have a little cash to get me by, but once that runs out I'm screwed."
"I wouldn't give up just yet." he said, nudging me with his elbow. "It's not over 'till you're underground."
"I actually really needed to hear that." I said, a smile spreading across my face as I turned to look at him. "Thank you."
"Anytime." he replied, taking one final drag of his cigarette before he threw it over the railing. "Good luck, and goodnight."

I watched him retreat back inside his motel room, which coincidentally, was right beside mine...

Notes

BRIAN HAS APPEARED.
HAPPY NOW?

He's just going to be "Syn" in this story, since he's playing the role of St. Jimmy in American Idiot. I know the logical choice would've been to choose The Rev, but I'm a Syn Gates girl, so we gon' roll with dis. - Ghost

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