"And up!" Drill Leader Cruiz surveyed our neat uniform rows, all of us in push-up posistion.

I felt the beads of sweat forming at my hairline. My arms - like everyone else's - quivered from exhaustian.

"And down."

I lowered myself down, sweating and panting.

"YOU TIRED BOY?" The hot, raspy breath scaldedmy neck.

"Sir, no, sir." I yelled.

"You would do push-ups till you passed up wouldn't you?"

To get out of this hell-hole? Yeah! "Sir, yes sir"

"You enjoy doing pushups more then break Saturday right maggot!?" He paused. "UP!"

I struggled to raise myself, trying to ease into an elbow lock. Sergeant stood and blew his whistle. "Hit the showers maggots! It may be Friday afternoon - but come Monday morning your butts are minde!

I tumbled on my back, panting for breath.

It had been a hard first few days. Even though I hadn't earned the rights to drive away on Saturday afternoons, I knew the two day break would give me time to recooperate.

The scratchy grass was cool against my burning skin. I lifted my head dizzily.

Back at home, even the biting pain I would have stood and taken teasing jabs at anyone resting - but the soreness repaced my muscles with jelly. At least no girl at Chilton will be able to resist me after this...I smirked. Not that they do now...

That was a lie. One still did.

I finally sat up, propping my face in my hands, elbow on crooked knee.

"Havin' fun Ken doll?" King, who had not been in my drill group strutted past me, but not before kicking dirt up and letting it stick to my sweaty body.

I stood and dragged myself to the showers, which stank of sweet sweat. A smell I knew I would be getting used too.

I let the icy cold water pour over my back. I closed my eyes - and for a moment I felt like I was back home finishing a gym workout in the mens lockeroom and ready to meet a new flavor of the week for a drink at the country club's sun porch.

The vision slid and was replaced with a warmer one. Mary...sitting on the porch swing reading Pride and Prejudice again. She looked up at me: "WAKE UP KEN DOLL!"

My eyes shot open with a start. Shoot. I had fallen asleep in the shower! I truned of the water and grabbed a towel.

King stood behind me wearing a white T, and combat pants. He smirked a smirk so smug it could have been my own.

"Me and the guys are going to the Merrel / Redding dance in the hall..." He smirke bigger. "I was droppin' in to tell you that even though the notice said all invited, the fine print said new, rich boys stay in their dorm."

Truthfully I hadn't planned on attending. I could have any chick fawning on me - sleep on the other hand, that's worth something.

I looked at the overconfident bully leering at me and almost laughed. Behind the thinly vieled threat, was fear. This guy was jealous of me. It was like when bagboy was at the dance. I got all up in his face bu I knew I couldn't win because even if I threw him off the balcony (tempting) Mary would love him and not me.

"Your unlucky again King. I think Military girls are hot. So I s'poseI'll being seeing you on the dance floor."

"Stay away from Chancre." King yelled.

By now all the occupants of the shower house had zeroed in on watching yours truely.

"Chancre..." I pretended to ponder the name. "Now that has a ring to it." I pushed past him and went to my bunk house.

Once safely inside cabin Delta I collapsed on my bed and shifted to the new stack of letters I'd gotten at lunch before hurrying off to drill.

Dani, Grace, Marissa, Summer?...

I paused through the letters and picked up one.

Unlike the feminine stationary was a long white envelope. The address was a familiar flwoing cursive. It had no return address.

I checked the postmark. It wasn't Hartford...it was Stars Hollow.

My heart jumped into my throat and beat wildly. I tore open the side of the envelope for a single piece of folded notebook paper.

In the bottom forner was a smudge of brown.

I sniffed it delicately.

Coffee.

I opened the folds and looked at the small too-the-point three sentances.

Paris hates you. She's taking it out on me. You suck.

I grinned.

Well. I hope you guys like it. Please review. I promise he won't stay a loner, it will be a trory and that military school only builds up for the fun part of the story. I want to stay in the PG rating, but it'll be a higher up end PG.

-Thought's Pen