Context: Richard and Ashley are the couple we are expecting to see. But what if I told you that Ashley is not the first love interest of Richard since we first meet him in Book 1? Although he is impressed by Ashley upon first seeing him and they have some interactions, Richard is actually falling for another enlisted operative, though not deeply: Cameron Phillips. There is a moment of friendly banter between Richard and Cameron as the latter trains him in close-quarters combat. Currently, I don't have any other romance scenes between these two in the first book b/c Cameron is killed off towards the end and I didn't feel like a deeper romance would conveniently tie into the story's progression. At the same time, a point I make in A.T.X.D. Full Scale (Book 2) is that Richard was starting to feel some romantic feelings for Cameron before her death. By this second book, he has lost two potential love interests to combat (the first one was in the Rangers and we learn this in Book 2), and it's the struggle of trying to be with a girl just for a suitable amount of time in his life that plays into the journey that ultimately leads him and Ashley to come together by Book 5.
Please look at the scene below and tell me if this evokes clues of romantic interest between Richard and Cameron. Should it be improved to sound just a little more romantic, or is it good enough?
At this point, Cameron stopped tutoring Richard and initiated a full out practice round. Cameron threw kicks, punches, or grappling attacks, some of which caught Richard off guard, but he broke free or blocked them the best he could. He did, however, take some kicks and punches to the lower midsection which bruised his stomach a little and, to a point, his ego. But just as Cameron attempted a high kick, Richard swung a light blow into Cameron’s stomach, stunning her. Richard then fixed his arm across her middle, below the off-limits area, grabbed one of his opponent’s hands, then parried his leg behind the Corporal's knees and swung her backward onto the mat before making a light air punch above her forehead to "finish" her.
“Will that do?” Richard asked.
“She may be tough,” Cameron admitted, clasping Richard’s hand approvingly, “but against a Ranger like you, I’d say that’s going to knock her out for the count. I think you’re ready to face our all-star Lieutenant tomorrow.”
Although the training session was now over, Richard and Cameron took a little more time to get to know each other. While Cameron took a break to do some basic stretches, Richard picked up some nearby weights and checked the strength of his biceps. He couldn’t help taking a break, however, to watch Cameron do some elegant lunge steps, then balance on one foot like a flamingo while reaching behind her to stretch out her arms. Considering the last time he had ever met a girl who was both beautiful and friendly was back in the Rangers, Richard was feeling a familiar anxious pulse in his chest: the kind he got when he wanted to do something to please someone but was nervous about how they would react. But as Cameron relaxed to a normal standing pose, the young ex-Ranger quickly returned his focus to the weights so as not to give the Corporal any romantic indications.
“So Dave told me you and Ashley worked on a few missions together,” Richard inquired. “Seeing as I have yet to actually be deployed, would you mind giving me a rough idea what to expect?”
“I will say this,” Cameron replied, “if you aren’t already aware, we don’t deal with world-invasion-apocalypse-bullshit on a regular basis. The risks for anything of that magnitude are very rare. But if you’ve got any Spec Ops or S.W.A.T. training, then you need to apply it to the fullest, because we tend to deal with a lot more high priority dangers within the extraterrestrial community than between them and the human race.”
“I’m sorry, extraterrestrial community?” Richard was quite surprised at this. “I had no idea that extraterrestrials comprised a significant amount of our population.”
“They don’t comprise a large percentage of the permanent population,” Cameron replied, standing up and pulling her legs up behind her one at a time. “But it’s a big enough community that the UN thinks the welfare of extraterrestrials takes just as much precedence as that of humans. Of course, a lot of it has to do with efforts to maintain peace with more powerful or intelligent races so that we don’t add to the number of wars already going on in the world.”
“Huh, yeah God knows we have enough of those,” Richard replied. He then changed the subject as he finished his workout and watched Cameron some more by adding, “If it’s my place to say, I think your outfit is interesting. Haven’t seen real retro clothing like that in a long time.”
“Thanks,” Cameron replied, smiling gently at the compliment. “I know it looks a little old fashioned and worn, but that’s how I lived my life. My dad, he’s a Gulf War veteran, and very utilitarian. Always hated the idea of buying stuff just for the heck of it. So when it came to clothes, most of the time we wore stuff from thrift stores or swap meets, or at least I did. I'm not really much of a fast fashion person to be honest. And if we ever did buy newer clothing, it was only because we needed to, and we would make sure to hold onto it for a good long time.” Pausing to place her heel on a nearby bench to continue her stretch, Cameron added, “We’re not dirt poor, my family, but let’s just say being a veteran doesn’t guarantee luxury and wealth when you come home.”
“For what it’s worth, I’m glad it doesn’t,” Richard politely interjected. "The idea of fighting for glory and riches isn't really my thing."
“Damn, like wow, you really aren’t the glory-seeking-type are you.”
“Did I ever give that impression?”
Cameron just gave another one of her funny little smirks before continuing with, “My mom also liked to keep things for a long time. And working at the local thrift store in our San Bernardino neighborhood, she got plenty of chances to live in her hey-day. I guess I too got fascinated with it, so I started delving more into 80s and 90s culture. Everything from toys, books, and yes clothing. Even these babies,” Cameron briefly slapped the sole of her Reebok trainer, “I’ve had them since high school and are one of my first choices for civilian or undercover ops; bought them used to save my family the money of buying new and overly-fashioned junk. They've gone through dirt, mud, puddles, the whole mix and yet they're still holding up just fine with no holes or tears, even if they lack much color. But can you also believe that my family still owns a VHS player? Even as DVDs begin to fade into history outside in the terrestrial world, here I am more than a decade behind our generation watching old flicks like Starship Troopers, Aliens, Speed, and Lethal Weapon in their original formats.”
“I actually find that admirable,” Richard replied with a goofy and intrigued smirk. “I just hope you don’t use films like that to influence how you fight in the field, considering that it sounds like we’re more focused on protecting extraterrestrials than waging war with them.”
“They may not influence my perception of extraterrestrials, but some of the most disturbing flicks I’ve seen,” Cameron replied as she finished her stretches, “let’s just say they’ve given me a ‘stomach for being a medic.’ And truth be told, it came in handy: back in the Army, I had to save a fellow brother-in-arms when he almost lost a leg and took a bunch of shrapnel from a mortar attack back in Gandamak. Call me creepy, but the sight of all that blood, any other girl might’ve puked their guts two times or more if they weren’t prepared like I was.”
“And you’re a medic in the force now?”
“Yep, trained and certified. So if you fall in the field, hopefully, I’ll be there to patch you up and keep you going.”
As Cameron headed up the two steps to the higher corridor floor at the rear of the training center, she turned again and added, “Oh by the way, just because I’ve trained you doesn’t mean you’re ready. Personally, I’d recommend you spend a good portion of tonight in the gym for tomorrow’s match, because Ashley loves training late for challenges that she knows are going to be a pickle.”
Here is the reference in Book 2 - A.T.X.D. Full Scale - that hints to Richard's romantic trauma and longing. For context, Richard has met up with his handler Dave Connor to converse about a critical element to said book's rising action, and the latter has just taken a time out from a friendly basketball game at base with a couple other operatives.
When he finally got a chance to take a break from the game, Dave came over to Richard to share some casual words.
“I have to admit, I haven’t heard tunes like this for a long time,” Richard commented, gesturing to the speaker. “And I guess it’s when you don’t hear it often that it becomes a real treasure.”
“Oh you got that right,” Dave agreed. “Very therapeutic in an active sense. It really goes well with sports in my opinion. And man, I can’t forget how many wild tunes of the old days Cameron would listen to when she was on the court with Ashley here. I tell you, put her in that old school athlete attire, give her something classic and wild to listen to, and she’d give you a full retro 80s and 90s vibe on the court.”
“Yeah,” Richard breathed with a smile. He did, however, feel his chest mildly clench with some broken-hearted remorse as the ex-Ranger regretted only knowing Bravo Team’s late charming and witty, decades-obsessed medic from the Army for only a week before her sacrifice at Area 51 six months ago. Just like with Isabel in the Rangers, Richard was admittedly starting to fall for Cameron at the time, but then the demons of war had taken her away too, though luckily not without a fight like before. God, can't I just get one chance with a girl that will actually last before I die? the Lance Corporal could hear himself beg on the inside at this thought.