As this chapter is published, I'm actually a TA so a lot of my experiences will be used in the story.

Year Four: Dry-Erase Markers & Glitter Beards

Sci-Tech Lab - 15:43 PM

Daniel wasn't surprised that the lab component Dr. BV assigned him to teach was one of her beginner courses for nuclear physics. She was thrilled when she found out he got his PhD in that field so no other professor would snatch him when he uploaded his TA profile for availability.

He isn't even sure why he needed to make one since BV selected him when they met.

"Alright," Daniel says, stepping away from the board. He closes his dry-erase marker and looks at the class.

All of them stare at him blankly. For a moment, he isn't sure if they all tuned out or are confused. Did he even explain as he was writing each variable? Daniel looks at the board and now sees the possible misunderstanding. He knows he talks fast and his hand moves faster all because his mind is the fastest of them all, but god that board is a mess of scribbles. Not like there isn't a Sci-Tech class that doesn't look like that.

He can read it because he wrote it and has a Ph.D. in this field. His class? Not so much.

"So…" Daniel mutters, wondering if he should just rewrite it, just explain it, or say it out loud for them to copy. " … does anyone have questions?"

The blank stares from the class continue. A beautiful room of people in glasses with laptop light glinting off their lenses. Daniel's used to being on that end of things.

"Well," Daniel continues, "my office hours are after this course so feel free to ask then. Moving on."

-o-

Hudson Residence - 2:16 AM

He ended up asking one of the cadets to rewrite the formula, making it more legible for everyone. Daniel cleverly disguised it as a learning experience for all of them. They learned the concept as he learned how to write it properly. After that fiasco, some cadets stayed after for various reasons regarding due dates and material. He had to make it very clear that he isn't able to grant extensions nor ask BV if they can have an extension.

Then he called it a night, returned to his dorm with a whiteboard and markers he borrowed from the library and called his fiancée.

Emily: Look at me engaged to a professor.

A "professor" whose TA profile she helped fill out when she was home over the summer and whom she nagged to get some new clothes for his new job. He underplayed his strengths and inexperience and she made sure to highlight "how stupidly and impossibly smart he is." Meanwhile, he didn't see a problem with what he already owned but she looked offended when he said that to her.

Daniel's cheeks redden as Emily laughs to herself. On his phone screen, he can see her in her dorm room in Japan. She's sitting on her bed with a billion pillows behind her, bundled in a pale pink half-zip and leggings. No makeup rests on her face but her hair's in a messy bun with baby hairs spilling out nicely. For his past midnight, it's the afternoon for her. He isn't sure if she's done much yet or just started her day with this call.

He's spent the past two minutes scribbling the same expression on the board he did earlier.

"How does it look?" Daniel asks, looking it over himself. He notices he somehow got dry-erase marker all over his hands despite not recalling touching the board at all. Wait, he did smudge some signs to fix them as he was writing. "My mom used to say how my writing used to be so nice and now my hand just can't keep up with my brain. I sent a picture to my parents earlier. My dad was impressed but not her." He exhales, reading it over again. "It's not that bad, is it?"

Daniel glances at Emily, smiling to himself when he sees her squinting her eyes as she looks at it, referencing her phone where he also sent her a picture.

Emily: … I'd better sign our marriage certificate for you.

Daniel isn't laughing with her. "Funny."

Emily: And our future child's birth certificate. I hope she gets my beautiful penmanship.

Daniel still isn't entertained, but the thought of that makes him smile. "Funnier." He starts erasing his work. "What's up with you?"

Emily: I'm taking a small mental break from my Master's thesis.

Daniel stops his task and takes a seat at his desk to fully pay attention to her. "How come?"

Emily's eyes look off at something behind her as she shrugs.

Emily: I just … need a breather, you know? I've made progress on my experiments and have my materials and all that. I know what I'm doing and I love it, but I just don't want to do it now.

"Emily, are you okay?"

Emily looks right at him as she bites into a bagel. She chews for a bit before smiling determinedly at him. There's the Emily he fell in love with but it still feels like she isn't entirely there. He remembers how excited she was to start her thesis and move to Japan. Yes, it took a bit for her to adjust to the different time zone and culture, especially after living in Italy for two years.

Emily: I have a plan, don't worry.

"I'll fucking worry about you," Daniel states. "You're across the planet and said that. Wouldn't you be concerned if I or anyone else told you that?"

Emily purses her lips, still holding her bagel but slowly nodding.

Emily: … very valid point. Go to sleep or else I'll fucking worry about you.

"You're not sending me to bed."

Emily: Not saying I am but I'd be concerned if you oversleep and miss something important.

Daniel pauses. "Okay, very valid point. I'm calling you in a few hours."

Emily: I'll be answering.

Emily blows him a kiss before hanging up. Daniel doesn't move from his seat, unsure if he's actually going to be able to sleep knowing that his fiancée will be preoccupying his mind in other ways.

-o-

Camp SHIELD - Date and Time Unknown

It's been raining for the past three weeks … or maybe it's only been three days. Time is hard to tell at Camp. Every day feels like the last, blending into each other like a never-ending rainy time loop. Every day was scheduled, with meals and drills between. It doesn't help that the military alphabet has been playing on a constant repeat to "encourage memorization," or so all the agents on-site have told him. Xavier can attest that in his four years at the Academy, he's never needed those set of letters outside of mindlessly singing it.

He's never hated that fucking song more than now. It's taking all his willpower not to punch a tree in half with his bare fist.

At least when James was here last year with him, he has someone to give him something to do, even if it was giving him shit. They had real goals to prank each other, with vendettas deeper than the lake. Sure, it's debatable if it all went too far and he might've died for a few seconds in the destroyed Camp, but it was fun. Xavier will never tell James that, that's for sure.

Now Camp is so well repaired that it's like the feral hogs and man-made earthquakes never happened.

"Rogers, can we leave?"

He was sitting on a lawn chair under the porch of his cabin when he hears a group of his cadets approach him. Their windbreakers are soaked from having sparring practice in the storm. All covered in rain, mud, grass, and leaves. Their shoes squish with every step, expelling water before soaking more in.

"You literally can't," Xavier says. "I've thought about escaping for the past three weeks."

"It's only been three days," a cadet responds.

Xavier stares at the group in disbelief. The longest fucking three days of his life, that's for sure. "… I'm proactive. Go back to your drills or whatever you're scheduled to do."

"Aren't you in charge?" One asks.

"Watch us find a way out," another cadet says.

Xavier scoffs, sitting back in his chair. "What are you gonna do? Trek through the forest for miles and miles until you find a stretch of road. Gotta make sure a wild animal doesn't get to you first. And then from there you gotta either walk and hope the direction you picked heads to a town and not a dead end, or stick your thumb out when someone passes by and hope they pick you up without killing you. Or, better idea, canoe or swim across the lake. Maybe catch a ride on a fish to find civilization and hope you run into some nice people."

The cadets stare at him but he gets up and folds his lawn chair before moving it to the side.

"Did any of that work?" A cadet asks, brushing her wet hair behind her ears since they were sticking to her temples.

Xavier stops himself from smiling but fails, biting the corner of his mouth. "You do whatever you need to keep yourself intact."

"Take down Sci-Tech."

"Exactly. Fuck the schedule. Any ideas for a prank while everyone is busy and hiding from the rain?"

"Agent Mathias brought us this," the cadet holds up an Academy drawstring bag.

Everyone circles around it, hiding it. The cadet opens it and takes out a jar of silver glitter, pieces glinting in the dim light passing through the dark clouds. Still enough to be blinding.

Xavier nods as he thinks, staring at the glitter. "The rules have changed because of the fiasco last year. Pranks have to be harmless. But lucky for us, harmless and annoying aren't the same thing. Any word on Sci-Tech?"

"I think they're doing some math crap," one cadet responds.

"That was math?" Another asks in shock. "It looked like some foreign language."

"Math is a fucking foreign language."

"You know that if we use this, it'll be everywhere," Xavier warns, "even we're not safe."

"But as long as it's primarily on Sci-Tech property. You know all their reflective lab equipment is gonna get fucked."

Xavier grins, remembering half-listening to Emily, James, and Daniel talk about the importance of cleaning and maintaining equipment. So little as dust could hinder experiments and mess up results.

So that's what they did. They stealthily planted and spread glitter in all the labs and the allocated Sci-Tech cabins and spaces. Beds and bags, desks and showers were dusted with the beautiful glitter. Even the vents, windows, and fans got their coating in case Sci-Tech decided to try and air out the room to get rid of the glitter. They'd only worsen the problem and spread it out.

In the pleasant sounds of Sci-Tech screaming and raging about the nuisance glitter being harmonized by Communications' cackling and Operations' cheering, it was a wonderful prank. The single glitter specks in their space made the whole prank worth it.

But then Sci-Tech retaliated.

During one of Operations' drills where all the cadets were out running through the woods, Sci-Tech infiltrated their space but didn't dump glitter on them. Instead, the nerds ransacked all their bags for razors and hair ties. If they had to live in an omnipresent glitter-infested camp, then Operations were growing out their hair and leaving it out just to get all the glitter possible.

Communications cackled even more, armed with their lint rollers, haunting everyone.

Don't worry about our girl, Emily, we will see her in person in a few chapters.

By the time you're reading this chapter, you would've probably already read Xavier at Camp in PNG which now makes Camp in SA even funnier from now on.