Page 44 of Brighter Shades of Light

I loved doing suicides. It was basically nonstop running, working on speed and agility. Everybody lined up at the starting point on the track, some stretching their arms and others bouncing in place, getting amped up.

Tristen took a stance beside me and furrowed his brow.

“Try to keep up,” I said.

“Fuck you.”

“Go!” Gunnery Sergeant Colgrove shouted.

I burst out of my starting position, taking the lead. My shoes skidded on the track, but I didn’t lose my balance. I ran ten yards and back to the starting position, then thirty yards and back. My legs burned by the time I reached fifty yards and back to start. The burn was my push not to give up.

“Keep going!” Colgrove yelled.

Tristen stayed a few paces behind me the whole time, and though he looked like he was about to fall over, he didn’t give up, either.

After the first set of suicides, I jogged in place with the others who were done while we waited for the rest of the midshipmen to finish. We cheered them on, encouraging them to keep moving. Once everyone returned to the starting point, we took off again.

Sprints weren’t as fun as long distance runs, but they helped get my blood pumping. The conversation with Tristen made me think of Dr. Vale, and I couldn’t get the sexy professor out of my head.

Maybe it was pathetic, but I couldn’t wait to go to his class today. The thought of him helped push me harder, too.

At the end of training, all the midshipmen formed a circle on the green and cooled down. We were a sweaty, stinky bunch. Marcus looked pissed, which was how he always appeared when worn out, and Keith looked like he was on death’s door.

“How do you still look so perfect?” a sweat-drenched Tristen asked Rachel.

“Because she’s Rachel,” Marcus said. “Girl always looks good.”

“Aw, I’m flattered.” Rachel smiled and nudged Tristen’s foot. “But you boys can’t smell me right now.”

After the workout, I showered in the PT building with a few of the others, since Tristen would be hogging ours. I washed and got out before changing into my outfit for the day and returning to the dorm.

Tristen was in the living room when I got there, putting on his shoes. He seemed sad lately, and I didn’t know why.

“What happened to that witch guy?” I asked, bumping his arm and trying to make him smile. “The one you thought wanted to put a hex on you?”

“Ah, he’s dating some vampire-looking guy now,” he answered.

“So, you’re telling me you got dumped for Edward Cullen?”

Tristen laughed and grabbed his backpack. “I gotta go. Talk to you later.” He walked past me to the door and turned back around. “And try not to drool too much in Vale’s class.”

I flipped him off.

There was still an hour before class started, and I was starving. On PT days, it was too much of a hassle to cook, so I had started eating at the dining hall.

I grabbed my bag and left the dorm, taking the stairs down into the lobby and heading outside to the next building over.

The dining hall usually wasn’t as crowded for breakfast as it was for lunch and dinner, so I was able to scan my student ID and go inside right away. Most of the tables were empty, and it was so quiet I could actually hear the music playing. For the first few weeks, I hadn’t even known theyplayedmusic.

A head of blond hair caught my eye.

Dr. Vale sat at a table at the far back of the room, staring out the window as he sipped coffee out of a white mug.

I scooped scrambled eggs onto a plate and dropped a blueberry bagel into the toaster. As the bagel toasted, I poured a cup of coffee and added a ton of cream and sugar. Once I had everything, I walked over to him.

“Good morning.”

He looked up and blinked. “Cody.”