Thrive in Catastrophe - Chap 30
‘”Just me?” Xiao Yan laughed at Lily.
“You only think that because you don’t know Col. Burton.”
“Maybe not, but I know that men like Heine Burton don’t turn back easily.”
Xiao Yan fell silent at Lily’s words, his thoughts eventually interrupted by an officer entering.
“The base is allocating rooms for sleeping quarters. There are six officers, eight students and one female student. Lily Gran.”
“Sir.” Lily stood at her name and saluted the officer.
He nodded towards her and said, “You are assigned to Lounge 8, along with the other female liaison officers.”
“Thank you.” Lily let out a deep breath prepared to head out.
The officer opened his display and looked over the other names. “All students are assigned to Lounge 9.” The officer rattled off the names of the students but Xiao’s was not among them.
Lily looked worriedly over at Xiao Yan, but he is not concerned with his sleeping arrangements. It’s not like Colonel Shen Bing would have him crash in middle of the control room.
“Student Xiao Yan.”
“Yes.”
“You are assigned to Lounge 2.”
The officer left after delivering the information.
Xiao Yan playfully flicked Lily’s nose and smiled. “See, I have a place to go. Maybe I even get a suite all to myself.”
“You dream!”
The dinner was quite simple. Everyone was rationed a compressed biscuit and a bottle of water.
Xiao Yan still struggled with consuming the dry cracker, but he knew that given the situation there were no other options. He must choke it down to get the nutrition that his body needed. Xiao Yan chewed for a long time before swallowing the ration. He looked at the expressions of the other students and began to relax as the atmosphere of the base seemed to ease.
After dinner, everyone retired to their assigned sleeping quarters.
Xiao Yan walked down to one of the lower channels, fewer base officials occupied the area and the route to his lounge became eerily quiet.
Suddenly a pair of large hands grabbed him and picked him up. Xiao Yan shrank back and was about to burst out in a ferocious yell when Mark’s smiling face appeared in front of his.
“Ha! Hey rookie, I specifically informed the quartermaster to let you sleep with us. Since Maya had to go back to the Shire there is an extra bunk for you.”
It was then that Xiao Yan understood why he was separated from the other students.
“Ugh! Put me down Mark or I’ll vomit on you.”
“HA! Let’s see you try. Come one spit it out! Let’s see.” Mark’s large hand reached down and patted Xiao’s ass.
“Mark, you are too noisy.”
The sharp voice came from Heine’s passing figure. Xiao Yan shoulders stiffened at the sight of Heine and his body went rigid, then the sliding door opened and he exited the area. Xiao Yan’s felt his muscles relax as he disappeared from sight.
Mark rubbed his nose and put Xiao Yan down, his hands still resting on his shoulders. “Hey is your brain okay? Right after you woke up the base was attacked. Did it affect your IQ?”
“Even if his IQ is affected it is still higher than yours.” Liv mouth pulled into a wide smile as she entered the lounge area. As a female special forces member she was assigned the female officer lounge.
Xiao Yan walked to where the sleeping bunks were and saw there were only eight in the room. He found an empty one and headed toward it.
The special forces had their personal belongings, such as food and water, lined neatly against the wall. Xiao Yan did the same.
