Chapter 5: Stanley ‘STAN’ Norris vs. Ian ‘WILL’ Williams ~ Danger and charm… Roommates!

***

Will stretched and jumped out of bed at dawn the following day. His first session with the recruits had been scheduled for 4 a.m. Although Stan was the main trainer, Will was to be the lead for that dawn’s session since it was going to be his first real encounter with the recruits. He was looking forward to having a good workout session with the team and a good chat with Stan after.

He hadn’t seen Stan again the night before. He’d thought he would see him at supper but he hadn’t shown up. Rosanne had explained that Stan didn’t usually take supper because he claimed he was usually not hungry. For someone with his physique, it was pretty strange that he only took breakfast and lunch, Will couldn’t help but think. His abrupt departure the night before had been a tad weird though Rosanne had insisted it was his usual routine. She’d however admitted that Stan not changing into his running gear like he usually did was strange. Will had expected Stan to sit with him and bring him up to speed on what had been done so far. That was the right thing to do. Clearly, Stan didn’t think it was that important.

Will had waited up in their suite, hoping to have a chat with Stan upon his return. He’d even dozed off at some point and woken up when he heard the main door opening, signaling Stan’s return. But for the time, he would have gone to have that chat with Stan. It was after 1 a.m. When he’d heard Stan stop outside his door, he’d thought he was going to come and talk to him so he’d gotten out of bed only to hear Stan move away. Initially, Will had thought that was a strange time for a person to return from a run. But then it had occurred to him that maybe Stan had already made some friends in town so had probably gone to hang out with them after his run. That was the only logical conclusion he could arrive at. After all, the townsfolks were very friendly and knew how to show foreigners a good time.

He had been to the Training School twice with his colleagues and had made some friends in the town. He smiled when he thought of Akua, a very pretty lady he’d had a lot of fun with on both visits. He needed to see her and give her the stuff he’d brought for her but his two crazy military buddies who were in the Ghanaian army had insisted he waited till the following weekend. Their plan was to come down from Accra, the capital, to visit him. But knowing those guys, that visit was probably going to turn into a party. He knew he was certainly going to have some mad fun. Till those crazy fun guys showed up, however, he had a week to concentrate on the training.

As Will got ready for his morning session, he couldn’t help but wonder whether Stan was up. He decided to go and make some coffee but the luscious smell of coffee hit his nostrils before he even entered the kitchenette. He noticed a fresh pot which indicated that Stan was already up. Will filled a mug with hot coffee and took it to his room to finish getting ready. He didn’t think it was necessary to disturb Stan at that time. They could always have their chat later in the morning or later in the day. After all, they shared the same suite so were bound to see each other.

The school had thirty executive suites reserved for top military personnel. Each suite had two big bedrooms each with its ensuite bathroom. The suite had a dining room, a living room, and a kitchenette. Each bedroom looked simple but very classy with a comfortable queen-size bed, a desk, a sofa and a lovely rug. The spacious living room had simple comfortable furniture and a 40-inch flat-screen TV with multi-channels. The cute dining room had a six-seater dining table and a cute tabletop fridge. Then there was the kitchenette which had a seating area for two, a refrigerator, microwave, and a cooker, which the occupants hardly ever used. Stan and Will shared one executive room since Admiral Mathias didn’t think they needed to have one each. According to the admiral, they could strategize even better if they stayed close.

There were a lot of single rooms that were usually assigned to senior officers, and furnished flats with shared kitchen, toilet, bathroom, and laundry facilities for trainees. The school, which could accommodate about a thousand soldiers, was one of the elegantly designed military training schools in the world. Apart from the classrooms, resource centers, study areas, computer lab, and the state-of-the-art library, there were so many other amenities that some have described it essentially as a resort. The amenities in the school included high-speed internet access and cable in every room, a video game room, karaoke, and open-mic entertainment lounge, a movie theater, pool tables, a fitness center, three pool complexes, tennis courts, basketball courts, a putting green for golf lovers, a running track, and a big football park.

There were even shuttles that took people, especially the top military personnel, from one place to another. The school was designed to promote a healthy and active lifestyle. And the food served in the dining hall was to die for. Armies from all over the world booked to train their soldiers in the Jungle Warfare School for the unique and great experience that only the school could give.