Come Back To Us - 2. Chapter 2

That Monday was his first day of training. He tried not to show how nervous he was feeling because it was something new, not such an easy thing to do… He left the room as soon as he got dressed in the most utter discretion, with the intention of avoiding any kind of interaction with anyone. The atmosphere was… awful. He wasn’t sure there was a right word to describe it. It was similar to when he had shared the room with George at first. It was something he would have preferred to avoid.

His heart was beating fast in anticipation as he was walking through the long corridors.

“Wait!” Someone suddenly called after him.

He instantly recognised that voice. It was that of the man who had stood up for him the day before. He stopped in his tracks and turned around to see him catch up with him.

He looked at him wordlessly as he was standing before him. He looked somewhat embarrassed.

“I’m so sorry about what happened yesterday…I didn’t want your first impression to be so bad… I really wish things could have been different…But Dierk will always be Dierk I guess…”

He wondered for how long he had been here. He noticed how his eyes were dark, and his hair brown and smooth.

“It’s okay. It wasn’t your fault. By the way, thanks for standing up for me. If you hadn’t, I don’t know who else would have.”

A small smile made its way on his face.

“That was the least I could do. And don’t worry, the others aren’t like Dierk at all. It wasn’t against you at all. They are just so done with his shitty behaviour.”

“I can understand.”

His smile didn’t fade.

It seemed that he didn’t know what to say anymore. It made him look slightly awkward.

“Well, you already know my last name, but my first name is Jørgen.”

How funny.

“Jørgen is my second name.”

“Really?”

Karl hummed in confirmation.

His smile only became bigger.

“That’s a funny coincidence!”

Now he was wondering whether his parents had named him after someone in particular or if they had chosen this name at random, just because it sounded nice.

“Were you named after someone in particular?”

He was being too curious. They didn’t know each other, and he was asking that?

“I was named after my grandfather.”
It was nice. Being named after family members. He liked this idea.

They were both silent afterwards. Karl didn’t know what to say anymore, and it seemed that Jørgen didn’t either.

“If you wish, I can help you with your training. I know it’s not easy when you start from scratch.”

He couldn’t refuse some help when it was so kindly offered.

“Thanks. But you must be quite busy already.”

“Oh, don’t worry about it. As long as I’m not going on missions yet, it should be okay. I’ll manage to make time for you in my busy schedule.”
This was enough to make Karl smile.

“Well, I won’t make you arrive late. Yesterday was already enough. So I’ll see you later!”

“See you.”

They parted ways with one last smile. Had he just made a new friend? It was very likely.

Even if he didn’t like the idea that he should put up with that Dierk guy as a roommate probably for a long period of time, this was enough to brighten up his mood.

*

Well, that first day was…intense. It was just like going to school…and he wasn’t sure he would like it. He still had trouble reading in English. He felt totally behind during that first course. But maybe it would get easier and easier as the days would pass.

Yes, he just had to adapt. He had to keep that in mind. Even if it took time, he wouldn’t give up.

He didn’t even feel like going back into the dormitories. He didn’t want to see that jerk guy. He knew he would have to go back there eventually anyway. Unless he left. But he wouldn’t do that. Not when he had just arrived.

But where could he go for now anyway?

He just decided to keep walking for the time being. As he was wandering aimlessly throughout the main building, he came across Edgar.

“Good afternoon. It’s good to see you again. I was looking for you.”

“For what?”

Did it have anything to do with what happened yesterday?

“Come with me.”

Karl followed him without saying anything else and they walked until they entered what looked like a kind of office.

“Let’s sit down for a bit.”

Karl did as told still without a word. Edgar took some paper and a pencil.

“Before I let you go back to your dorms, there’s some information I need to collect to make your enlistment official.”

Information…what kind of information?

“What’s your full name?”

“Karl Jørgen Nielsen.”

“Karl…with a C or a K?

A C or a K? He had no idea. Did it really matter anyway?

He shrugged as they observed each other silently.

“With a ‘K’ I assume. It’s more Nordic,” he said before he wrote it down.

“Jørgen…with a J…But it is an ‘e’… I’ll have to check it out later. But there’s one in Nielsen…alright, let’s say it will do for now. A birthdate?”

“1922.”

“Day and Month?”

“June 4.”

“Place of birth?”

“In Sønderho. Fanø.”

“I’ll have to check the writing too. Any siblings?”

“One older brother and sister.”

“Named?”

“Johann and Anna.”

“And your parents? What are their names and birthdates?”

Why did he need to know his parents’ names and birthdates?

They observed each other silently once again.

“I need to know who you were born to. Don’t worry, no one will learn about it. Our information is confidential.”

He still didn’t see the point, but if he needed it then…

“Aleksander Nielsen, born in 1892, October 6 and Hege Nielsen, born in 1889, November 25.”

“A maiden name?”

Made…it happened again.

“Your mother, she wasn’t born a Nielsen like you are, or you sister and brother. She is a Nielsen because she married your father. What was her former name before?”

He didn’t even know that. He couldn’t know everything. It was already good enough that he knew their birthdates and names. He shrugged again.

“That’s alright. It will be enough. Thank you for cooperating,” he said as he put his papers away.

He didn’t seem to know anything about what had happened the day before. It was probably better this way. He stood up, ready to leave.

“Just one last thing before I leave you alone. We need to do something about your hair. You can’t be in the Royal Air Force and have such a mop of curls. You need to cut it.”

Cut…it…he had never done this before. Well, his father, mother, and older sister had done it for him in the past to prevent it from growing too much, like a girl. Once it had been so long that it had almost reached his shoulders. But he preferred when his father did it.

“I can do it for you if you wish. I’ve got quite good at this with time.”

Him…cut his hair? Hmm…well, if he had no other choice, they might as well get this done quickly.

They ended up in a bathroom, most likely the one that was in his own room, Karl with his upper body naked, so he “wouldn’t have small hair everywhere on his clothes”. It didn’t take that long to cut his hair. Once he was finally done, they both stood before the mirror.

“So, how do you find it? Not that bad, is it?”

It was quite a change. It was so short on the sides… it was longer on the front, but there were no more curls that wandered around his face. Like that, it didn’t look that blond anymore…it looked darker. He felt he was going to miss his blond locks. His lips pressed in a thin line.

He looked more like him.

Mímir.

His jaw clenched.

He would never leave him alone.

Hello everyone!
So ehre you go with the second chapter! I hoep you enjoyed it.
Take care ❤️