Page 9

He ran towards the ten-foot wall and jumped almost halfway up. Then he used his hands to pull his body the rest of the way up. He didn’t have to use the hand and foot holes like everyone else.
Okay, I’m not going to lie, that was kind of hot.
He climbed down on the other side and expertly ran between the tires, never missing a step. He crawled through the mud on his stomach, not letting his back or torso touch the ground or the net. Wow, he did everything so quickly. Most of the time, it took me half an hour to finish the whole course.
Then he climbed up a single rope that was hanging down like Spider-Man. He fell to the floor and slid down the rope like a firefighter on his pole. I wanted to have s*x with him right then and there.
He finished the whole assault course in less than a minute and didn’t break a sweat. Damn, he was like a god. He came back to me, took his walkie-talkie back, and put it back where it belonged: around his waist.
“Finish your two rounds,” he said, and that was all he said. My mouth was slightly open in shock that I had just seen what had happened. “Riley!” he pointed to the assault course.
“Okay,” I said slowly, but I didn’t move. My feet stayed where they were.
After that short workout, it looked like his muscles had gotten even bigger. His green shirt fit him perfectly, and his arms were like glutes.
It was a beautiful sound when Mason laughed. He looked younger when he laughed, which wasn’t very often.
“Riley, all punishments must be done. I can’t change my mind about that. If I give you a punishment, you have to do it.” I nodded. “Go!” he said with a grin, pointing at the obstacle course again.
“Okay.” I said it again, but this time I moved. It was embarrassing to put on the display after his, but at least I got it done.
“Okay Rivers, get out of here.” He said this after my second round, going back to his Lieutenant voice.
He gave me a salute, and I gave him one back.
Thankful to leave the field and wash off all this mud.
I was able to get into the staff quarters without getting hurt again. I ran straight to the shower block because I really needed to get out of these wet clothes and clean my hair and body.
I took off all my clothes right away, put them in a plastic bag, tied the top in a knot, and threw it on the floor.
After that, I opened the shower door and turned on the water to warm it up for a few seconds while I used the bathroom.
I looked at the palms of my hands while I was sitting on the toilet. They still hurt from lifting my body up and down the ten-foot fence.
Blisters were starting to form on the friction burns that were covering my skin.
When I was done in the bathroom, I opened the door to the toilet and felt the warm steam from the shower. I smiled to myself, knowing how nice and warm this would feel after the terrible day I had.
I heard the commander’s voice talking to someone on the other side of the door as I walked to the shower. The door handle started to move. I stood still, not knowing what to do.
I was completely naked in a shower block that was off-limits. I was already on my first punishment, and if I got caught in here, I would definitely be sent away.
I looked at the door to the shower. I could hide in there.
The commander would probably see and hear that it was busy and then leave.
The door handle shook again, this time it was pulled down, and I opened the shower door and stepped inside as quickly as my sore legs would let me.
“What the fu—” I put my hand over his mouth.
He looked like he had seen a ghost: shocked, pale, confused, and angry. It was really the most human I had seen him yet.
We looked at each other in silence as the water fell on us. I could feel his frantic breaths hitting my hand through his flaring nostrils. He must have gotten in the shower while I was on the toilet.
It was hard, but I was able to keep my eyes on his face. I did notice that he still had his dog tags on a chain around his neck.
The commander yelled from behind the shower door, “Mason, are you in here?”
I closed my eyes and made my face really tight because I knew I had just messed up so badly. I knew I was going to die, but I had to let go of his lips and wait for him to tell on me.
He didn’t want to answer right away and looked at me with scared eyes, as if my face alone could explain things. Instead, it begged him in silence to keep me safe.
“Yes, Sir,” Mason said, sounding a little surprised.
“Okay son, let me know when you’re done,” the commander yelled. Then the door opened and the sound of it filled the room again.
Mason looked at me, but only at my eyes, and I looked back at him. I could tell he was trying to figure out what had just happened, or what was happening right now, but he wasn’t getting anywhere.
The warm water fell all over us, and it dripped from his hair and into his eyelashes. The water soaked his lips and fell on his skin.
His skin was bare and covered in tattoos.
“Um…” I started, and he blinked at me with a blank look.
“Riley, I swear to god, if you ask me if you’re in trouble for this, just save yourself the trouble because the answer is always yes. F**k yes.” I sucked in my lips and took a deep breath through my nose.
“Actually, I was going to ask…” he said, clenching his jaw in anger. “Should I be looking down right now?” I had to hold back a smile at how scared he looked.
He turned off the water by grabbing the knob with his hand. Reaching out and grabbing his towel. He was going to wrap the towel around his own waist at first, but then he sighed and gave it to me.
“Cover yourself,” he said in an annoyed tone before leaving the cubicle.
I couldn’t decide whether to follow him out and listen to him yell at me or turn the water back on and finish the shower I came here for.
I was already in trouble, so what was a few extra laps or push-ups? My hand hovered over the water lever.
I turned the water back on.