A/N: Just a head's up, there's 10 chapters in total and all of them will be posted today. So buckle up!

Chapter-3

The harsh sound of the alarm going off in the distance breaks through the chaos in the hallway. Even though I know what it is, I can't help feeling the adrenaline rush through my body.

From the other end of the hallway, I see Whitlock run out of his quarters. "What's happening?" he shouts out to me.

Just to fuck with him, I don't tell him that it's a fire drill that takes place regularly in a random manner. Instead, I imitate being afraid and call out, "The place is on fire! Get out!"

"Is this a drill?" he asks.

"No! A short-circuit."

His eyes widen as he nods. "We should help people to get out safely," he yells.

I shake my head. "No time. Get out now while you can."

He looks baffled as if he can't believe how someone can say that. "I'm not leaving while someone might be in danger."

"Whit ..." Before I can tell him that it's a drill aimed to see how fast you can evacuate the place, he's marching away from me toward the upstairs sleeping quarters where the female agents in training were.

Shrugging, I follow the protocol and get out of the building with the rest of the trainees.

"Hmm ..." Captain Masen seems to be in deep thought as he paces in front of us. "Agent Whitlock."

Whitlock straightens his back and stands stoically. "Yes, Sir."

"You realize what you did was both brave and extremely foolish?"

"Foolish, Sir?" he repeats.

"The moment you joined the agency, you became an asset to the agency and to the government. What you did back there was a risk to you, the asset. Should there be a fire, you're supposed to get out of the place … to protect yourself and the agency."

"But if there were people trapped inside ..."

"They're not your problem," he cuts him off. "Every person inside this building is highly trained so they should know how to protect themselves. That was very foolish of you to put yourself at risk like that … that too in a drill situation."

"I didn't know it was a drill, Sir."

Captain Masen looks astonished at that information. "You mean you didn't get the memo?" he asks, his tone dripping with sarcasm.

Whitlock hangs his head, not making a peep about why he thought it was a real fire.

That's the first time I truly grow to respect him.

A/N: So ... thoughts?

Share them with me and review please.

Thanks for reading.

See you soon.

Ann