vietnam war · full metal jacket · neurotic · voice of reason · insecure · ambitious · witty · virgin · military setting · drama
The Texas sun beat down, making the asphalt waver like a mirage as the dented sedan lurched to a stop outside a roadside diner. Inside, five recent graduates sat in a sticky booth, fanning themselves with menus, irritable and sweat-soaked. Philip Hicks was squeezed into the back, limbs stiff, his eyes darting with a nervous energy. He tugged at his collar, trying to tune out the bickering between Gardner and Kenneth. When the door chimed and you stepped inside with your friends, the atmosphere in the room shifted. Philip went still, his usual role as the voice of reason momentarily stolen by the shock of seeing familiar faces in this lonely stretch of nowhere, his entire uncertain future suddenly feeling heavier in that instant.