FvS: Social Experiment

FvS: Social Experiment

Maybe it was the fear of rejection or perhaps it was the fact that he had never spent enough time around the opposite gender when he was younger but either way, Karl had never had any comfort around the other female officers. He often avoided their eyes and looked to the floor as he spoke in soft mumbles. It wasn’t that he was rude. It was more that he was nervous.

Karl walked through post-op checking on the recent recovering wounded. Picking up a clip board, he sighed over the dusty documents it held. More instructions for dealing with injuries in relations to new weapons appearing on the battlefields.

“I swear that they seem to like inventing new ways to kill each other,” Karl muttered under his breath.

He heard soft foot steps behind him across the wood floor. They came to a stop behind him. Looking up and turning around, his eyes met those of another nurse. She seemed surprised by Karl suddenly looking at her.

“Oh! Um, hi! Anyways, the Cornel wants to see you, Karl,” said the nurse.

For that moment, Karl saw nothing else. She was one lone figure in his landscape. One lone intimidating figure. His palms sweat and his eyes were wide as he locked on to her for that moment in time. His breathing was heavy and his pulse quickened. Karl was nervous. He wasn’t close to fainting yet, but he couldn’t stay here long. Quickly, he looked to the ground. Anything to avoid looking at her.

“Are you okay, Karl?” she asked with genuine concern.

Karl allowed a few seconds of silence to pass.

“Karl?” she asked again.

“Y-yes. I-I’ll get right t-to it,” Karl managed to choke out in amidst his nerves.

Without a second thought, he dashed past the nurse not daring to hear what else she had to say or even to look at her. He disappeared out the post-op doors no longer able to be in her presence. Karl mentally cursed at himself as he went out those doors. Perhaps one day, he would get over himself when it comes to dealings with the opposite gender. But for now, this is how it was to be.