“Whoa.” Zack hadn’t been expecting that. “You mean he’s done this before?”
“I can’t divulge details, but suffice it to say your report was timely.”
I wasn’t alone. Sweat gathered on Zack’s back. Someone else had been suffering, probably scared to come forward too. And Zack’s report was helping this other person. No matter what happened from this point forward, he’d done the right thing. No one should have to suffer Cobb in silence. Including me.
“Full disciplinary action will be pursued,” his commander said. “I assume you’ll cooperate with Lieutenant Hernandez’s investigation and provide her with whatever she needs.”
“Of course.” Zack’s voice wasn’t working right—it sounded too high and far away.
“But what we need to discuss today is keeping you safe on the team going forward.”
“That’s priority number one.” The senior chief spoke up for the first time.
“I need to tell you that prior to your complaint, we were discussing a transfer,” the commander continued.
“A transfer?” Zack’s stomach fluttered.
“There’s a team out of Little Creek that’s down a few men. Our team’s...cohesion isn’t what we’d hoped, and since you had seemed so...restless, there were discussions about having you transferred to that team.”
“I’m not unhappy,” Zack protested. Booted. This was his biggest fear, being pushed out of the team. “Or restless. Other than this stuff with Cobb, I love being on the team.”
“This is your chance to have a fresh start on a new team. You say the word, and we’ll get a quiet transfer together for you.” The commander stared him down, forehead creased, but eyes more concerned than angry.
Zack took a deep breath, let the commander’s words sink in. He could take the transfer, maybe even manage to get distance from Cobb’s rumors, not have to come out to his team if he didn’t want to. But... Pike. Pike’s whole life was on the West Coast. And Zack couldn’t imagine a fresh start that didn’t include him. He looked over at the senior chief. He couldn’t envision being on a team that didn’t have him.
“I want to stay.” Zack worked hard to keep his voice level and strong. “Whatever the consequences may end up being, I want to be a part of this team.”
“Oh there’s not going to be any consequences,” the senior chief drawled.
“Like I said, Nelson, we’re going to keep you safe and make sure you don’t have a hostile work environment.” The commander looked over at Lieutenant Hernandez, who nodded.
“And while your command and mine will need to meet separately to determine a course of action, we will work closely with you to ensure there’s no retaliation,” Lieutenant Hernandez said. “That’s a priority in every harassment case.”
Every harassment case. Zack was still trying to wrap his head around the fact that he wasn’t alone, that other people suffered this. “I’m not...” He took a deep breath. “I’m not the first gay sailor to have a complaint like this?”
There. He’d said it aloud, proud and firm, and the world didn’t end. If anything, the same relief that he’d felt telling his parents danced in his veins.
“Like I said, I can’t get into specifics of other cases, but you’re not alone.” Lieutenant Hernandez had a kind smile. “There are some informal support networks here that you could take advantage of as well. Are you planning to be out to your team?”
“Cobb’s not going to leave me much choice,” Zack mumbled, because really he hadn’t thought much beyond that. Reporting Cobb equaled coming out in his mind. Commander knew. Senior Chief knew. Wouldn’t be much longer before everyone knew, right? He hadn’t thought much about a middle ground where some people, but not everyone, knew.
“You always have a choice,” the commander said firmly. “If you don’t want your private life to be the concern of your teammates, I’ll back you on that, but I have to tell you, I had a long talk with Lieutenant Floros, and I think that way may be harder on everyone, especially you.”
“Agreed.” The senior chief nodded. “We’re a family. We want to be happy for each other. You have something positive in your life, your buddies should know. Things suck, well, we should know that too.”
Pike. He didn’t say the words, but he knew that was what the senior chief was referring to. And no way could he keep that part of his life hidden any longer.
“Not everyone will like it,” Zack said instead.
“The gay jokes are done with. We should have put the clamps down on that a long time ago, and that’s on me,” the commander said. “Anyone has a problem serving alongside you, they can report directly to me.”
“And I’ll have your back on this too,” the senior chief added. “We’re damn lucky to have you on our team. Not many have your navigational and surveillance skills.”
The commander nodded. “I’m glad you’re choosing to stay with us. Do you know how you’d like to tell the team? Casually, like one-on-one, or more formally, like you’d like me or the senior chief to help you to share it at a meeting?”