(Landon's PoV)

Just a couple more hours, I told myself, Just a couple more hours and I'll be done with this test and basic training completely.

    But not even that could cheer me up. The weapons test wasn't nearly as hard as the physical test, but it was equally as awkward. Sgt. Blake actually took the time to line us up alphabetically, so we would be tested in order. I couldn't get much conversation in between Matteo and Connor's bickering.

    "Quit being a freak," Connor commented on Matteo's constant fidgeting.

    "I'm not a freak," he retorted.

    Connor seemed to make a point. Normally Matteo used wild hand gestures, but they were more choppy and twitchy than usual, and it even continued when he wasn't speaking.

    "Are you all right?" I asked him privately.

    "I'm fine," he said quickly, glancing at the sky several times.

    Lt. Jason brought up the idea of teaching us how to use bayonets. Sgt. Blake disapproved of this idea. He said, "no one used them anymore" and he "sure as hell didn't trust any of us with a two in one weapon."

    We also had a time limit. We had to finish the test before nightfall, so we would have time to pack. Since we were in the shortened course, we didn't have a graduation, meaning we were flying to China the next day. It was also a good idea to finish earlier because it looked like it was going to storm soon.

    I did considerably better on the test today. The only part I had trouble with was grenades. I knew how to get the pin out, but I couldn't throw for shit. It didn't matter though cuz I was being scored by Lt. Jason, and he wasn't really paying attention, but some of the other guys noticed.

    "Wow," Connor observed. "You must've really tried to keep it that close. It's gotta take skill to do worse than Matteo."

    I gave a nervous laugh. I somewhat expected Matteo to throw punches again, but he didn't. He hadn't reacted at all, almost as if he didn't even hear Connor.

    The last test we took was with our M-16s. We just had to be able to hit a target ten times. The act of shooting had a lot to do with math and physics. It incorporated angles, velocity, and distance. I wasn't about to sit there and work out equations, but I understood how it worked. I managed to do pretty well even with Sgt. Blake scoring this time. There were only eight guys after me, and then we were finally done.

    Clayton sighed in relief. "We're free!"

    Sgt. Blake sighed in annoyance. "You do realize that was the easy part. War is more work and there's a sense of danger."

    Logan frowned. "That's not fun."

    "Being a soldier isn't supposed to be fun," Sgt. Blake corrected him. "It's a job."

    "I couldn't even get hired at Pizza Hut," Trevor said. "They don't trust me with an oven, but they trust me with an M-16?"

    "Now go to the barracks, finish packing, and make sure that place is spotless," he ordered. "Our flight leaves tomorrow afternoon. We'll drive to the airport after the final inspection."

    "Wait, what do you mean our flight?" I questioned. "Don't you and Lt. Jason stay here? Aren't you guys just drill instructors?"

    "There was a change in rules," Sgt. Blake explained. Based on his facial expression, he was unhappy with these changes. "Because there was a shortage of drill instructors, military officials have to train the platoon they're going to be sent out with."

Lt. Jason was beaming. "Surprise! We're coming with you!"

(Will's PoV)

Thunder clapped as I zipped up my bag with my uniform and supplies. It looked like the heavy rain we had been having for the past hour had progressed into something bigger.

Matteo, who was next to me, ended up dropping his open bag. I tried helping him by picking up some of his things off the ground, but when I looked up to hand them to him, I noticed his breathing was really fast and shallow.

"Matteo, are you okay?"

    He awkwardly pushed some of his hair back with his trembling hand. "I'm fine."

    Unfortunately for him, he hadn't just caught my attention.

    "Are you sure?" Logan asked. "You're shaking like crazy."

    "He's been acting like this all day," Landon pointed out.

    "I said I'm fine-" but lightning struck before he could finish and Matteo flinched at the sound of the following thunder.

    Most of the other guys laughed, but Gavin stared at him for a few seconds. "Oh my god," he said. "He's afraid of thunderstorms."

    "I am not." Matteo denied, but his straining voice cracked, completely giving him away.

    They continued to laugh even more. Anger built up inside of me. Those guys wouldn't be so tough if they were in his place.

    "Well it's not a very reasonable fear," Alan stated. "The statistical probability of getting struck by lightning is only one in-"

    "No one cares about statistics!" Clayton explained. Even though he was probably just expressing his hatred of math, I had to agree with him. This was not the time for "Fun facts with Alan."

    "It's still a dumb fear," Tristan said.

    "Yeah, I thought only little kids were afraid of thunderstorms," Michael added.

    I felt horrible for Matteo, who began blushing furiously. I wanted to stop them, but I didn't know how. I wasn't used to being this mad.

    "No it's not just little kids," Trevor tried. "My pet chihuahua's afraid of thunderstorms."

    "It must be a Spanish thing."

    Oh no, I thought as soon as I matched the words with the speaker. Connor was just going to make things so much worse.

    And then it hit me. The guys weren't going to stop making fun of Matteo. Some of them weren't even necessarily mean, but they knew if Matteo was the target then they weren't.

(Matteo's PoV)

    I wanted to disappear. I wanted to be six years old again, hiding under my bed. I wanted to be anywhere but here.

    I put my head in my hands, trying to isolate myself from my surroundings. It wasn't working. I could still hear the thunder as well as the laughter.

    "Aw, he's crying," Connor mocked.

    "No, I'm not," I shot back. My eyes did have that burning feeling like they were being stabbed by a million tiny needles that could only be stopped by tears, but I couldn't cry. Not here.

    "Are you sure?" he challenged. "It must be awfully scary having all this lightning strike all over the place. Or waiting for thunder that could go off at any given moment. Never knowing exactly when it will come."

    I flinched in anticipation for thunder that didn't come, but he was right. It would go off soon. I kept darting my eyes to the windows, making sure there wasn't any lightning. I tried to ignore him, but his words had gotten under my skin and into my head.

    Lightning flashed , which was shortly followed by thunder. I felt the lump in my throat growing bigger.

    Connor raised his eyebrows. "And listen to that. Thunder and lightning within seconds of each other. That means the storm is close. It could be right above this building, waiting to strike at any second."

    As if on cue, lightning and thunder went off at almost the exact same time.

    I squeezed my eyes shut, but it was too late. Tears were already starting to slip out.

    No, please no, I begged silently. Not here. But nothing could stop it at this point.

    Connor smiled, in a kind of malicious way that I didn't even know existed. "You're right," he said. "You're not just crying. You're sobbing."

    "Shut up Connor!"

    Although that didn't come from me. I turned to see that the owner of the voice was Will. He was attempting to get eye level with Connor, which was difficult, seeing as Will was as tall as me. "You're not being funny," he continued. "Everyone's afraid of something, so give it a rest."

    Several of the other guys shared uneasy glances.

    "What about you then?" Connor had an eerie sort of calmness to his voice.   

    All the attention in the room turned to Will. I hated myself for putting him in that position. He could've backed down, but he didn't. He made me sure of one thing: Will Atteleigh was the nicest person I knew.

    "Alcohol." he mumbled.

    The other guys burst into laughter, finding his fear even stupider. My panic temporarily turned to anger and guilt. I had no real reason to be afraid of thunderstorms, he had been trained to fear the thing that corrupted his parents.

    "Lay off him," I demanded, my voice still shaking.

    Connor opened his mouth to retaliate, but he was interrupted by Sgt. Blake.

    "Shut up! All of you! Or I'll make you run laps in the rain!"

    Connor eyed me, as if to say, I would love to see how scared you'd be outside, but none of us want to run.

    Lightning struck again, snapping my anger back into fear. Someone turned the lights off and I curled up and the back edge of my bed. Will sat on the opposite side.

    "You didn't need any of that," he said.

    "Thanks for trying to help," I responded.

    "We've got to stick together," he told me. "And not just as battle buddies."

    I gave him a small smile and wrapped my arms around him. He reminded me when it seemed like the whole world was against me, I had someone on my side. "You're the best friend I've ever had."

    "You're the only friend I've ever had," he admitted. "I mean I've been on good terms with people, but I've never really been close with anyone." He smiled back. "But if I only have to have one friend, I'm glad it's you."

    "We're gonna look out for each other," I promised.

    Will nodded in agreement. "Definitely."