Hey, hey! Thank you so much to everyone who has read, reviewed, followed, or even just opened and then closed the page! I'm so honored that anyone would even open this, so thank you! Here's another build-up chapter for you. Sorry that it's a little shorter, but better short than filler, right? So enjoy! (hopefully...)

Pros and Cons of Following Your Mother's Order to Stay at School

(A list assembled by Cameron Ann Morgan)

Pro: You get to avoid any impending danger.

Con: You're letting your friends walk into that danger alone.

Pro: Your friends might think you're doing the right thing by listening to your mom.

Con: Or they might hate you for letting them go alone.

Pro: You can avoid getting yelled at upon return.

At breakfast the next morning, I dove straight into the stack of Belgian waffle that our chef was famous for. Mr. Smith walked around to pass schedules down the table as we ate. Mine was printed on blue evapopaper which doesn't taste like cotton candy to my disappointment. I stared down at the schedule in my hands and it struck me: I was graduating this year. Graduating. This year.

Mr. Smith also announced to the table of seniors that there would be a meeting for us after classes this afternoon to discuss graduation details and the future. Bex must have been as surprised as I was because half of a Belgian waffle plopped out of her mouth when her jaw dropped with shock. Liz winced, and I'm pretty sure I heard Macey mutter something about Madame Dabney being ashamed.

Zach, however, was the first to break the silence: "So Cove-Ops first thing in the morning, eh?"

I nodded, and Bex replied, "How great is it going to be with have Mr. Solomon back?"

I looked up at the teachers' table and saw a weak Mr. Solomon eating. He definitely wasn't the same as before the night at Blackthorne, but he was getting stronger every day. I wondered if class would be different, or just the same old Mr. Solomon exposing us to new depths of spy craft every day.

"Cammie!" I jerked back to the conversation at the sound of Liz's squeal.

"Hm? What?"

"Are you ready to go?" Bex repeated slowly.

I nodded and stood to leave. Everyone but Liz made their way back down to Sublevel 3.

"Hello, ladies," Mr. Solomon said as he entered the room.

"Hi, Mr. Solomon!" Our response was far peppier than normal.

He sat on the corner of his desk with one leg on the ground and the other hanging off like he always did. His cane sat unused at the edge of the desk. He sighed and said, "It's fantastic to be back, and I'm sure you'd all love to hear the whole story, but second semester senior year means you've got a few months to get field ready. Let's get down to business! Ms. Fetterman, can you tell me how to..."

Bex and I slowly sauntered out of the P&E Barn after class. We did a pretty nice job of beating each other up for the first day back. It would take some time to get used to P&E again because I was finally allowed back on the non-restrict workout list. Most of my bruises had healed which made getting beat up by your best British friend easier, but there were still scars particularly on my arms which left a painful reminder of summer.

Liz merrily skipped up to us, "Time to talk about the future! I'm so excited!"

"Ah, and I'd almost forgotten about the meeting. Oh wait, no, you've mentioned it ten times today!" Bex groaned.

I sighed, "We might as well not be late."

The meeting was held in a rarely used classroom behind the science labs. It was a tight squeeze, but the entire senior class and most of the staff managed to fit. Professor Buckingham stood at the front near an old chalkboard with some equations left on from what I assumed was a class years ago. Mr. Smith was with her along with Mr. Moscowitz who wielded a plethora of pamphlets and brochures. Mr. Solomon leaned against the corner with his cane in hand.

After arguing with Mr. Moscowitz about where the best lighting for speaking was, Professor Buckingham began, "Welcome! And congratulations on making it to your final semester at the Gallagher Academy!"

There were cheers and applause and smiles all around. It seemed that Bex and I were the only ones that looked unfazed. Professor Buckingham continued, "Now, you must all begin thinking about what you'd like to do upon graduating. There are, of course, many options."

Professor Buckingham began to talk about the different agencies we could apply for a position with directly out of high school such as the CIA, FBI, Secret Service, DEA, CSS, and MI6 (for our British classmate) along with college options (which few Gallagher girls chose). Mr. Moscowitz scurried around passing out pamphlets for the various agencies while Buckingham explained the long application process that we needed to begin. When I finally had all the brochures in my hands, I noticed the CIA one floated to the top. Even though I had always wanted to follow my parents' footsteps in the CIA, now that it was so real, I felt confused. I wanted to give the brochures back and head back to the sophomore year intro to Cove-Ops class. I closed my eyes and saw Josh for the first time in months. I saw his trash, the bottle, my "cat," pie, a corsage, and the earrings.

I looked back up and noticed Mr. Solomon staring at me. He must have seen my worried look.

I snapped back into reality when I heard the screeches of chairs. Everyone was getting up to leave. I left the brochures on the seat and followed Bex out quickly. "Hey, Bex. What are you going to do?"

"I guess it's all MI6 from here, right?" she said.

I shrugged, "It's just so real now. I don't know."