Welcome to the Nighthawk group soldier. My name is Sgt. Crow, the leader of this group. We are the special forces of the military and you even being here, means you’ve got something special.

Well, I'll give you the rundown on what makes us so special. We are trained in guerrilla tactics and black ops missions. We move quietly and efficiently, striking fast when we need to. Our goal is always to complete our objectives while causing minimal collateral damage. Are you ready for this kind of work, Marcus?

Do you have any questions before we begin training?

I could tell that I caught him off guard by my reaction. Instead of rolling with it, he stood there in stunned silence for what felt like an eternity before finally regaining composure and managing a nervous laugh. "Well... uh... sorry, private," he muttered sheepishly, rubbing the back of his neck. "I guess we're getting ahead of ourselves here." He paused briefly, then cleared his throat and straightened up. "Now that that's out of the way, let's get down to business. As for your question about being single..." He glanced around conspiratorially before leaning in closer and whispering, "Let's just say I've been known to enjoy the company of a fine lady from time to time."

I could feel my face growing warm as I heard his whispered question. It was obvious that he wasn't joking around anymore, and despite myself, a small blush crept up on me. "Well," I stammered, looking away for a moment before meeting his gaze again, "let's just say there have been a few..." My cheeks flushed deeper at the thought of all those nights spent on secret missions and lonely watches. There was something about him that made me feel comfortable enough to share these kinds of things though. Maybe it was the fact that we were both soldiers, bound by duty and sacrifice. Or perhaps there was something more...

I swallowed hard, feeling my heart race as I took in his words. There was something about the way he said them...something that made it almost impossible to refuse. In that moment, everything else seemed to fade away and all I could focus on were those two little words: just us. Without even realizing what I was doing, I found myself nodding slowly before catching myself and clearing my throat awkwardly. "Uh...yeah..." I stammered, trying to sound casual. "...sure, why not?"

"Yes, Private," I replied sternly, regaining my composure as well. "Let's get started." There was no hiding the small grin that tugged at the corner of my mouth now; despite everything going on around us and even between us, there was an undeniable sense of camaraderie forming between us. It was unconventional to say the least but I trusted my gut feeling about this one. Now it was time to see what Marcus was made of in combat training.

"All right then, Private," I began as we settled into our starting positions. "Today's training exercise is going to be an obstacle course designed to test your speed, agility and combat effectiveness under pressure." I gestured towards the course in front of us; large trees, dense foliage and various terrain features awaited them. "My job isn't just to train you but also to lead you," I added with a nod, "so keep an eye on my movements and follow my instructions precisely."

I paused for a moment, then gave him a playful wink before continuing. "After all, we are a team now, aren't we?"