Rough n Rugged: Chapter 2
#2 of Rough n Rugged
Richard the alligator is struggling with his past, as memories of war and pain suddenly come back to haunt him. Will he be able to cope with and come to terms with the past, or will it tear him apart and leave him ruined?
This is the second chapter of a short, multi-chapter work. It is, overall, considered "adult" for maturity, rather than any actual sexual contact, and later chapters may be upsetting to some readers. Note that it is a complete work of fiction, not based on anyone specific.
Chapter 2
The next day, we awoke from our hotel rooms in Miami and were picked up in a Lincoln, to take us to the airport. The flight from Miami to Philadelphia would be a short flight. While the cast and crew would be put up in a hotel in the Poconos, near the shoot, I had chosen to just make the drive from Philadelphia, as I would rather be at my house, with my wife, than in some random hotel.
As I sat in the terminal, waiting for the flight, I had a cup of coffee, bitter and black, as I read the newspaper. President Reagan seeking second term, NFC crushed the AFC in the Pro Bowl, the Dow plunged 29.11....
After I finished the paper, I suddenly felt bored. I looked over at Jim, who was kicked back, his feet propped up on his suitcase, listening to his new Walkman. I have also considered buying a Walkman, which would have certainly made these flights and waits much better. Not that I could have done anything in this airport.
Fortunately, the boarding call then came up. "Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for flying with us. Now boarding for first class passengers. First class passengers, at this time." I got up, ticket and coffee in hand, my suitcase in the other. The first class line was relatively short, and, within a moment, I had handed my ticket to the attendant, an arctic fox with wildly-coloured and fluffy fur. "Thank you, sir, go ahead." "Today's youth had such peculiar taste in fashion....", I thought as I walked towards the airplane.
I took my seat on the airplane, as passengers continued to board the plane. Most of the passengers were businessmen and women dressed in business suits. In front of me, a cat dressed in a navy blue business suit with large shoulder pads, was talking on a rather large cellular phone, I imagine on the phone with an office in Philadelphia. "I'm sorry, ma'am, but we are about to take off. Can you please turn off your phone?", the flight attendant, a papillon, interrupted. "I will talk to you in the office. I am on the plane now.", the cat finished, hanging up.
"Hey, I know you. You're Chief Hardcore!", a green gecko, dressed in a black business suit, said, looking at me. "Chief Hardcore is only my character. My name is Richard Farquhar.", I replied, shaking his hand. "I love your show. I watch it every week, even on business trips. Hey, when we land in Philly, do you mind if I can get a picture?" Such requests were hardly rare; our show was popular, and millions of viewers tuned in weekly. Even Japanese and European viewers were tuning in, eager to watch Chief Petty Officer Hardcore shoot communists and blow things up.
As the aircraft began to take off into the Florida sunshine, and as the city on the ground began to yield to swamp land, I started to nod off.... Suddenly, like a burst of napalm, the memories started to return, like a nightmare, that I could not shake off as imaginary. The fishermen that picked me up and turned me in, the tortures I endured in the prison camp, watching my countrymen get tortured and die, my escape in to the night, being chased and shot at by Vietnamese soldiers. I ran through the jungle, searchlights shining and the roar of North Vietnamese tigers in the dark night, thinking about home, about Philly, about my shipmates, about how I could have avoided this by not falling overboard....BANG! I feel a sharp, burning pain in my tail, trying not to scream and reveal my position....
I opened my eyes, to the sight of the cabin of the airliner. It was not the Sixties, it was not Vietnam, it was 1984. I looked out the window at the sky; above us, bright blue sky, below us, grey clouds. Inside of the aircraft, the same business suits as before, some smoking cigarettes, some kicked back, others looking at documents....
"Ladies and gentlemen, this is your Captain speaking, we are about to make our descent into Philadelphia International Airport. At this moment, the fasten seat belt sign and no smoking sign are lit; at this time, we ask all passengers to extinguish all cigarettes and fasten seat belts. We will be arriving at gate B15...."
As I left the terminal, I felt the icy cold wind against my face; a contrast from the warm Florida weather I had been in just a few hours ago. Elvira said that she would be here, to pick me up from the airport....
A white Rolls-Royce Silver Spirit then pulled up to the terminal, the door opening in front of me. Behind the wheel, a slender, curvy gator, dressed in pastel pink; Elvira, my lovely queen. "Hello, handsome....", she greeted.
"So, how was the shoot?", she asked, as we pulled on to the northbound freeway. "Oh, same as usual. Fitzy acting like a control freak, did I tell you that Jim almost passed out from heat exhaustion?" "No....is he alright?" "Oh, he's fine. Paramedics gave him some fluids, and he laid down in his trailer. The next day, we were back to shooting." "Oh, well I'm glad to hear that he is alright. You'll have to take me to one of your shoots, one day...."
The sun had begun to set as we returned to Bucks county, a golden shine reflecting off of the white snow. "So, honey, what shall we have for dinner?", Elvira asked, her eyes still focused on the highway. "I guess I could go for a steak right now...."